Ocellus got Babs up early in the morning. “Come on fusspot,” she said. “It’s time to go.”
“Go away,” the old engine replied.
“If you come out today,” Ocellus told her, “I’ll give you a polish, and won’t you look smart.”
Babs was out of the shed in a flash!
Babs lugged the coaches down the line. She wasn’t built for this sort of work, and the coaches were extremely heavy for her. “Didn’t have to pull this weight in Manehattan,” she grunted.
At last, she arrived at the first station. She scowled in the platform and saw a larger engine pull into the platform. “Hello!” she called.
“What do you want?” Babs snapped.
“That’s no way to speak to a lady!” the larger engine replied. “I’m Rarity, and I think you look magnificent!”
Babs’ expression softened noticeably. “Hey, thanks,” she answered. Just then, the guard’s whistle went, and she blasted away.
Babs thundered up the line. Due to being underpowered for the run, she produced an absolute din running down the line. The passengers felt the coaches rocking, but payed no mind. This was the narrow-gauge after all.
At the lake station, Pipsqueak was trying to position a truck with a pumpkin float on top of it. Diamond Tiara rolled by on the return run and began laughing. “That looks so lame!” she laughed.
Babs rolled forward, and uncoupled from her train. As Pip backed off of his truck, she charged forward and slammed into it. The load fell off and tumbled into the lake.
“Looks like somebody’s pumpkin just got squashed!” she laughed.
Pip looked completely hurt, and ran off (well, ran is debatable) off up the line crying.
“Yeah, run ya crybaby!” Babs yelled after him. “You wouldn’t last a second in Manehattan!”
Diamond looked at her. “Wow, brutal!” she said. “You really showed that Blank Tank who’s boss.”
“I don’t put up with any nonsense, and that includes stupid engines,” Babs snorted, with a massive smirk on her face. Just then, the whistle went, and Babs set off with her train.
Babs suddenly heard a loud rock tune being played, and instinctively began to rock back and forth. She was a very rough rider, and the carriages began to shake as well.
“Look out!” called the guard. But it was too late. There was a crunch, and the train came to a sudden halt.
“This sucks!” Babs shouted. “I’m off!”
Back at the depot, Snails was moaning.
“I warned her not to rock and roll,” he complained. “But no, she wouldn’t listen and had to block the line!”
Ocellus was desperately turning the starter key. “Come on, start up!” she said.
“Nope!” Snails told her. “She deserves to sit there and rust.”
“I don’t believe this!” Silver Spoon said. “What about her passengers? Should they just sit there and rust?”
Snails looked shocked. “I forgot about them,” he said, and his engine roared into life. He went and collected the breakdown train, and coupled Snips to the other end. He roared up the line to the site of the crash.
Snips remained with the breakdown train, whilst Snails went and recovered the coaches. He then came back up with a piece of rail, which they wedged under Babs. The team slowly, but surely, lifted the engine back onto the track.
Snips took the train up to the top station, whilst Snails hauled Babs back to the shed. Cheerilee was not happy.
“You are unbelievable!” she shouted. “Not only do you bully the other engines, you put your passengers at risk as well! You’ll be going to the quarry for this!”
“Good,” Babs growled. “At least trucks don’t complain all the time.”
The other engines got sick of Bab’s behaviour, and decided to pay her out. One day, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle were at the quarry, watching Babs slamming several slate wagons together. She seemed angrier than ever.
“Hey, Babs!” called Apple Bloom.
“Yeah?” replied Babs, in her characteristic disinterested manner.
“Why not push a train up that incline?” she suggested. “That way, every engine would know how strong you are!”
Babs began pushing the trucks toward the incline, which had a winding drum coupled to the top. In the mixup, she was coupled to the wagons.
The foreman wandered over. “Thanks for being so accomodating,” he said. “Babs has found it hard adapting to life on this railway, not to mention the bullying she suffered in Manehattan.”
“What?” the 3 narrow gauge engines cried.
“Turns out she was bullied because she was a Blank Tank.” The foreman walked away.
Sweetie Belle had turned pale. “Maybe that’s why she bullied us!” she said. “So, we wouldn’t bully her!”
There was a loud yelp as the drum started up. Babs was being dragged up the incline with the trucks. “Hey! What gives?”
The foreman sighed. “You stupid engine!” he shouted.
The winding drum could only take so much. The cable snapped, and Babs and the trucks shot forward and roared off down the hill.
“What are we waiting for?” Scootaloo shouted. “Let’s go!”
Babs shot forward uncontrollably down the hill. Her eyes were jammed shut, as she was flying toward her certain doom.
But 3 whistles sounded behind her. “BABS!” shouted a distinct country voice. “APPLY YOUR BRAKES!”
Bab’s brakeblocks slammed on, producing a horrible screeching noise that could be heard for miles, as well as throwing up a shower of sparks.
She checked her speedometer. She was slowing down, she was winning! But up ahead was a tight curve. “Oh no! I’m gonna wreck!” she cried, closing her eyes.
Then a sudden lurch pulled her backwards. She checked behind her, and saw the 3 engines coupled to the back, braking with all their might. They slowed down, and slowed down further...
...and stopped, just as they got to the curve.
Babs let out the breath she’d been holding in for the last minute. “After all I did to you guys, you saved me!”
Scootaloo looked immensely guilty. “We wanted to pay you back for the bullying.”
“But we didn’t know you were only doin’ it because you had been bullied yourself.” Apple Bloom looked equally miserable.
Sweetie Belle chirped up. “And all this time, we were the bullies! Argh, why does life have to be so ironic?”
They got the load down the bottom station, and backed into the depot. Cheerilee was waiting there. “Good job, you three!” she said. “Babs, how are you feeling?”
“Better than this mornin’,” she replied. “Look, Miss, I’m sorry about my attitude.”
“Not to worry, at least you learned your lesson.”
Just then, Diamond Tiara backed into the shed. “Look at them-”
Babs cut her off. “Keep it down you, or do you want me to tell them yer attitude stinks?”
The other engines burst out laughing.