God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen...
"Twas the night before Christmas,
and all through the house,
not a creature was stirring,
not even a-"
"Pipp, who are you talking to?"
Pipp jumped and swung round, only to see Zipp standing there. "Zipp! How long have you been standing there?"
"About ten minutes." Zipp shrugged. "I was wondering if you were done in the bathroom yet, as I need to get in there. After all, Santa trains aren't going to run themselves."
It was, indeed, Santa season in the heritage rail sector, and it was no exception at the Swanage Railway. Every year, the railway would conclude its season with a big gala, and then would go down for winter maintenance. However, special trains would operate for about a month between December 1st and Christmas Eve. And these trains were usually packed full of children who wanted to meet Jolly Old Saint Nick and submit their requests for Christmas. Not only were the events nice for families, they were also quite good moneyspinners for the railway too, putting much needed cash into the pocket of the line, which could then be used on other things.
"Oh! Of course." Pipp looked moderately annoyed. "Well, sorry for wanting to look my best."
Zipp slipped past. "Alright, princess. Seriously, why does it take you so long?"
Pipp huffed and rolled her eyes. "Unlike your hair, which is half an inch long and takes three seconds to dry, mine needs careful preparation and proper conditioner to keep in good condition. I also need to ensure my face is also clean. After all, basic hygiene costs nothing and gets you everything."
"Sorry I asked," Zipp replied, shutting the door behind her.
Pipp checked her watch. About 10 in the morning, so about two hours until Zipp's allocated departure slot for the Santa Special. She was helping out on the 15:00 as a helper, which was something she loved doing. True, it was hard work, but seeing the smiling faces of the children always made it worth it.
It was time for a stream, she thought, and so went back to her room, checked her lighting was correct, and fired up her streaming software of choce. "Good morning, Pippsqueaks!" she said, putting on her best smile and glancing from one side of the room to the other. "How are we this frosty and snowy morning?"
"Good morning Pipp!" a myriad of voices said from the other side of the screen. Mostly younger voices, but some teenagers too.
"We had to dig our way out of our drive this morning!" said a voice.
"And we had to use heating equipment to supplement our radiators!" said another.
"Well, safe to say we're not used to this level of snowfall," Pipp admitted. "But none of that matters right now. It's almost Christmas, and you guys know what that means!"
The cheers and general exhaltation on the other end was a confirmation of this mindset.
"I'm not just talking about presents! It's a time of collective enjoyment of the season, of music, of general fun!" Pipp glanced at her calender. "Don't forget about the Great Western Royal Carousel Concert, which is coming from Swanage this year! Me and my sister have been invited to perform, which is totes exciting, and even better this year's event is being livestreamed so you can all watch! Isn't that exciting?"
She then spotted a familiar name in the chat. "Oh, hey Sunny! Nice to see you! How's things in Cornwall?"
Some text appeared in the chat. Sorry for typing this, as I don't have a webcam or microphone. But when's that being streamed?
"It's no worry, Sunny," Pipp replied. "It's going out from 7PM tomorrow onwards."
Suddenly, a familiar face appeared on the screen. "Hi Pipp! Don't you have something spooky to tell us?"
"Hi Izz!" Pipp smiled. "Of course I do. Christmas used to be a time of ghost stories, well at least before Halloween got the monopoly on that, and it's a tradition I think should be revived. So that's what I'm gonna do!"
She flipped open a book and began reading. "Marley was dead, to begin with..."
Charles rumbled to a stop in the platform at Swanage with the returning 12:00 Santa Special, watching as the passengers disembarked and headed back down the platform. "Merry Christmas!" he called.
Zipp got out of his cab a few seconds later and watched the throng head back to the station building for hot drinks and minced pies. "I think we need to make some changes to the passenger flow," she said. "That was far too many people for the grotto to handle. How long did that take to process?"
"About ninety minutes," Charles replied. "Gives the staff here about an hour to clean the train. Still, could be worse. At least we didn't break down."
"True," Zipp noted. "And we can have the evening off as one of the steam engines is tackling Wonderlights."
Charles laughed as he saw the Nativity scene set up next to the platform canopy. "Remember when a kid left a T. Rex in the display where it looked like it was about to eat one of the camels?"
"That was a weird one," Zipp admitted. "Not as weird as going to Bethlehem and finding a miniature Stig in the manger, I'll admit. But at least we got the dino back to its owner."
A member of the steam department handed Zipp a piece of paper. "Bad news, I'm afraid," he said. "The steam engine's failed and we won't be able to repair it in time for this evening. You and Charles will need to work tonight's train on top of your existing workload. Sorry about that." He then headed off down the platform.
"Great," Zipp said. "Rattling up and down the line with bad remixes of popular Christmas songs going in my ears. What's not to love?"
"Well, they could hardly play the original version of Fairytale of New York, could they?" Charles pointed out. "Still, could be worse."
"What do you mean the DJ can't make it?" Zipp asked.
"He got food poisoning from some badly prepared pigs in blankets and can't leave his house. We'll need to find somebody else."
Zipp groaned and leaned back on the carriage as Pipp flounced over.
"Hi Zipp! How's it going?"
"Oh, hello Mrs Cratchitt," Zipp replied. "Interesting choice of clothing for this event."
Pipp adjusted her shawl and hood. "What? Crinolines are Christmassy!" To Zipp's credit, Pipp, who wearing a green puffy dress with a matching winter jacket, would not have looked out of place in a performance of A Christmas Carol. "Though it did make fitting down some of the corridors an interesting challenge. Still, I bet you'd like it if you tried it on!"
"No thank you," Zipp replied. "And we've got more important things to think about than playing dress up."
"Namely?"
"We have no DJ for the first Wonderlights train. Not only that, the steam engine is down. So Charles and I are working it. Know anybody who could provide music and operate sound systems?"
"I could!" Pipp replied.
"Wait, really?"
"Yes!" Pipp smiled. "It's not too different to using mixing equipment to make music. I should be able to operate it no problemo."
Zipp nodded. "You have about three hours until the train goes, so that's plenty of time to pop home and get changed."
"Sadly. No way I'd fit this into the booth in the brake coach."
Zipp was about to head to the break room, but then got handed another note. "Fresh steam engine found. You're driving it to ensure customers aren't annoyed. Is WD 2-8-0."
Her face fell. "Of all engines, I had to get Vulcan."
Vulcan was, not to put too fine a point on it, an engine not designed to pull passenger trains. A large slab of a tender engine built for the war effort, his utilitarian frames and boxy shape didn't exactly evoke images of a Victorian Christmas, which was rather what Wonderlights was going for. Still, as the only steam engine in working order he was roped in.
As Zipp backed him onto the coaches, he hardly seemed happy. "I don't know what the world is coming to!" he said, in a broad Yorkshire accent. "Me, a goods engine, being asked to pull passengers! It's a funny old world."
"It's not like we have a choice," Zipp sighed, as the engine impacted the coaches with a bang. "The passengers expect a steam engine, and so we have to use one. You just happen to be the one engine who looks remotely presentable."
"Ah well," Vulcan replied, as he was hooked up. "A run in the snow can't hurt. As long as the weather holds, we should be fine. And my lamps should guide the way too. Always did in the days out in Sweeden."
The passengers began to arrive at 17:15, 45 minutes before departure. Naturally, they came up to see the engine before getting in the coaches and preparing for their journey.
Pipp had already taken up position at the machinery, dressed altogether much more sensibly for mixing music. As the guard blew his whistle and waved the green flag, she began to speak over the intercom as the train pulled away.
"Good evening, everybody!" she said. "We welcome you to Dorset tonight, where we have fun, snow, and a whole lot of music and lights awaiting you. This is Pipp Petals, filling in for the usual DJ who, sadly, couldn't make it tonight. But enough about me. Let's kick this off with some music and lights! And what goes best in hot chocolate?"
Zipp had an earpiece in that allowed her to hear the audio, as some of the effects required her to vary the speed at which she was driving the train. Her eyes widened at the last sentence. "Oh no. No no no. Pipp, don't you dare."
And then the music came blasting in.
"It's a marshmallow world in the winter/
When the snow comes to cover the ground!"
Zipp groaned. "I HATE this song!"
After a long run they reached the other end, and Pipp popped down her headphones. "Well, that was quite the ride! We will now have a short break whilst the engine runs round and attaches to the other end of the train. I'll be back soon. See ya!"
Pipp slipped out of the booth and opened the door, walking past a box she had brought with her, and went out onto the platform to see if the passengers were enjoying themselves.
Suddenly, there was a loud bang from behind. Pipp jumped and swung round, as did several bystanders too far from the speakers to hear what was going on. The scene that lay before them was unfortunate, to say the least.
The coaches had shifted forward, and Vulcan was sitting there, looking dazed and surprised. "I told you we were coming in too fast!"
"It's this fog!" Zipp complained. "Visibility is close to zero in these conditions." She hopped off the footplate to inspect the damage and frowned. "Oh dear. This is not good."
"What's happened?" Pipp asked.
"Brake pipe is damaged. There's a hole in it about the size of my little finger. That means the brakes will be leaking on the whole way back. I need to fill this gap with something, or at least cover it over."
Pipp suddenly removed her coat and one of her boots, threading the laces out of it.
"Er, Pipp, what are you doing?"
"Use this bootlace to tie my coat around the hole. That should restore the vacuum pressure and enable us to at least get back to Swanage. I'll keep the passengers entertained whilst you do that."
"Aren't you going to be cold? And how will you walk with only one boot?"
Pipp hopped back into the coach and opened the box, revealing the green dress and a fresh pair of boots from earlier. "I brought this just in case. As I said, crinolines are Christmassy!"
The plan worked. Pipp's telling of an old Christmas story in the grotto was succesful in drawing the passengers in, and this allowed Zipp plenty of time to fix the damaged pipework. Thirty minutes later, and they were ready to go. So Zipp got back on the footplate and sounded the whistle, alerting the passengers to reboard.
They scrambled onboard, eager to return down the line to Swanage, and Pipp was the last to hop onboard, having popped her dress out of shape in advance.
Vulcan cheered as they moved off. "Next stop, home!" he called. "Keep the home fires burning!"
Zipp got on the radio as they rolled down into the grade. "Thanks for the help, Pipp. You can play any music you want, as loud as you like!"
"Thank you!" Pipp replied, and quickly adjusted the needles.
"The nights are getting longer/
And there's a chill in the air!
And you feel a bit of magic/
Ooh, everywhere..."
Zipp nodded. "Not a bad choice."
The snow whirled around them, as did the fog, but the lights from the carriages shone through the gloom like a beacon of hope. There was plenty of heating in the carriages thanks to the steam from Vulcan's boiler, and the passengers happily sang along to popular songs blasting over the speakers.
They were simply having a wonderful Christmastime.
The train eventually pulled back into Swanage, the snow still whirling through the air as they came to a stop. "All change!" Vulcan called.
The passengers calmly got off and walked back to the station building, having concluded their journey. And all seemed happy.
Lady Haven was there, and greeted her daughters warmly. "I heard what happened," she said, beaming with pride. "And well done! You two made an excellent run out of a very hard situation, and your quick thinking saved the day."
"Thanks mom," Zipp replied. "But I think Pipp deserves most of the credit. Without her quick thinking, we'd still be stuck at Norden, and in severe frost as well."
"But you drove us back through arctic conditions!" Pipp replied. "You deserve credit too!"
"Thank you for a great time!" said a passer by. "I especially liked the storyteller. Very effective way of keeping the passengers entertained."
"I don't recall putting a storyteller in," Lady Haven admitted.
"Pipp came up with that to buy me time fixing the brake pipe," Zipp explained. "Crinolines are Christmassy, after all."
"Very good thinking," Lady Haven answered. "Well, we'll need to be up early tomorrow morning. The final rehearsal for the Great Western Royal Carousel Concert is tomorrow, before the performance in the evening. And this year the program is twice as long as it was at Axeminster!"
Pipp looked excited. "I hope they added some more classics to the program!"
Zipp, on the other hand, groaned. "Double the length of last year. Oh joy."
"Don't be such a Scrooge!" Pipp teased. "We only get to do this once a year."
That was enough to get Zipp laughing. And before long everybody was laughing too.