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The Smiling Steamie

A Thomas & Friends Fanfiction

Written by Joey Turner

Based on the Creepypasta “The Smiling Man”

  One crisp, fall evening, Henry was making his run with the Flying Kipper. He was making good time and was well on his way to Vicarstown - the Kipper’s last stop of the evening, and Henry’s new home. Although he had a reputation of being a worrisome engine, Henry didn’t mind running at night - it was peaceful, quiet, and he had a fantastic view of the full moon. Overall, things were going well… until they came to a red signal in the middle of the woods.

  Henry groaned, “Bother! I can’t stop now, I’ll be late! What’s the holdup?”

  “Calm down, Henry,” chuckled the driver, “We’ve plenty of time.”

  The guard ran up from his van, “Everything alright?”

  “We’re fine,” reassured the fireman, “we’re just waiting for the red signal to change.”

  The guard looked puzzled, “Red signal? But the dock manager said we were all clear. We should be the only ones out on the line tonight.”

  “Strange. Must be another last-minute train,” shrugged the driver. “We should be all set in a few minutes.”

  Reluctantly, Henry and his crew waited for the signal to drop. They waited, and waited, and waited some more… but nothing happened.

  Henry was becoming impatient, “My fish will go bad by the time the signal changes!”

  His driver was concerned, “Hmm… there’s a signal box not too far back, maybe we ought to check in with them just to be safe.”

  Carefully, they backed up towards the junction and parked in the siding out of the way. It was small and hidden by a thicket of trees and bushes, but it was just big enough for Henry and his train to avoid blocking the line. Afterward, the driver, fireman, and the guard started walking towards the signal box -leaving Henry alone in the siding.

  When Henry was by himself, he finally noticed how spooky everything looked. Creepy shadows danced in the moonlight, the trees creaked and groaned as the wind blew through them, and an owl’s hoot echoed through the night air. Henry was a little spooked; he tried to distract himself from how scary everything seemed. He thought about his crew coming back any minute now, he thought about finishing his delivery on time and returning home to Vicarstown, he even thought about how smelly his fish were. While he wrinkled his nose at that last one, it DID help keep his mind off the creepy siding, and he slowly felt better.

  Suddenly, Henry could hear something in the distance. It sounded like another engine chuffing up ahead, and it was getting closer. Henry squinted his eyes as he looked ahead and saw the shadow of a little engine on the mainline coming towards the other side of the siding. Henry sighed gratefully -knowing that he wasn’t alone anymore- and started wondering who this new engine was. However, what Henry saw next made his boiler run cold.

  Chuffing out of the darkness was a little brown engine covered in cobwebs and what looked like moss. It smelled of burning rubber bands and its wheels groaned as they turned… but that’s not what frightened Henry. No, what did the trick was the engine’s frightening face - it wore a humongous, twisted grin that showed off its enormous, crooked teeth. Its eyes were completely colorless -almost reflecting the moonlight. The engine didn’t even look at Henry, its pale eyes kept looking towards the sky… and yet, Henry felt like they were staring straight through his smokebox.

  Finally, Henry found his voice. “H-hello?” He whimpered, meekly. The engine took no notice. Henry tried again, “Uh… w-w-who are you?” Still no reply. “Are y-y-y-you lost?”

  Then, what happened next still haunts Henry to this very day. One of the engine’s eyes looked down and locked directly onto Henry’s own frightened eyes -the other still gazing up at the moon. The terrified green engine’s axels shook with fright as this horrifying face gazed at him -smiling its horrible smile and crazed, walled eyes.

  As its other eye moved downward to glare at Henry too, the engine finally spoke. With a chilling, crackly voice, it asked: “Can you tell me what time it is?” Its grin grew wider as it wiped its long, gray tongue across its misshapen teeth.

  By now, poor Henry was quaking in fear; he had never been this frightened in all of his life. He didn’t know what to do next, so he shut his eyes tightly -hot tears pouring out as he trembled in his wheels. All the while, he could feel this monstrous engine glaring at him with its Cheshire cat-like grin.

  After a good minute, Henry finally opened his eyes, expecting the worst to happen, and… the engine was gone. The mainline was completely empty, and the air was calm once again -as if this mysterious engine had never even been there. But Henry was still in too much of a state of shock; he felt like he was going to cry. He frantically looked around, fearing that the engine might come back, when…

  “Henry?”

  Henry jumped in fright, causing his fish trucks to go bump! He quickly glanced to where the voice had come from…. And felt a massive wave of relief when he saw his driver, fireman, and the guard standing there.

  The driver spoke again, “Henry? What’s the matter, old boy?”

  Henry finally caught his breath, and spoke shakily, “I just saw the most terrifying engine in the world! It had this gigantic grin and these disgusting, big teeth… and those eyes! Those horrible, horrible eyes!” Henry nearly started to sob again.

  “Henry, Henry, calm down,” soothed the fireman. “It’s alright, now. Everything’s going to be ok.”

  “You saw it too, didn’t you?” Henry asked pleadingly.

  “We HEARD another engine, but we didn’t see anything,” said the driver. “Either way, we found out what the problem was - the viaduct on the mainline is in need of repairs. We’ll have to take the long way to Vicarstown.”

  Soon, the signal changed, and they were well on their way again. Taking the longer route meant that they would barely make it, but Henry didn’t care -he was just happy to be moving again. For the rest of the trip, he kept looking around nervously -hoping he wouldn’t run into that ghastly engine again. Luckily, Henry didn’t see the engine once. He barely arrived on time and made his last delivery of fish; he then parked his empty vans in the yard and crawled miserably towards the shed.

  Henry slowly backed into his berth, taking care not to wake the sleeping Rosie. Once he was tucked away, he finally let out a deep sigh of relief; at last, he was safe and sound in his shed where nothing or nobody could hurt him. Despite this, Henry couldn’t sleep a wink; all night long, he looked out into the yard for any sign of that horrifying engine. He looked by the hopper, he glanced at the carriage shed, he even peeked to his right to make sure Rosie was still there. Not a soul to be seen for miles… but poor Henry still didn’t feel safe.

  By the time Henry was sure nothing was out there, it was already morning. He could already hear the sounds of workmen coming into the yard and the firelighter in his cab prepping his firebox for work. Rosie yawned sweetly next to him, awakening from a peaceful night’s sleep… lucky her.

  Rosie peeped happily, “Morning, Henry!” She then saw that he was wearing the most miserable and tired frown she had ever seen. “What’s the matter? You look completely exhausted.”

  “I AM completely exhausted,” muttered Henry. “Didn’t sleep a wink last night.”

  “Why not?” Rosie asked. “Long night with the Kipper?”

  “You could say that,” Henry said grimly. “There was a delay thanks to the viaduct… but that’s not the worst part.”

  Rosie was concerned, “What WAS the worst part?”

  Before Henry could answer, the yard manager came up. “Come along, Rosie,” he interrupted. “Flying Scottsman’s coaches need to be ready for his connection.”

    “Bye, Henry,” whistled Rosie. “You can tell me more about it tonight.” With that, she puffed cheerfully off to work.

    The manager then turned to the tired green engine, “And Henry, Sir Topham Hatt wants you to bring the Breakdown Train and some empty trucks to the viaduct up the line.”

    “Yes, sir,” yawned Henry. He was too tired to make another wheel turn, but he knew he had to carry on anyway. He was just glad he didn’t have to work at night again.

    Henry collected Judy, Jerome and a line of trucks and set off for the bridge. Just as he was finally calming down, he suddenly remembered… on the other side of the viaduct was the line where he had seen that terrifying engine. Images of that ghoulish grin came flooding back into Henry’s smokebox, and he started looking back and forth anxiously for any sign of that horrid steamie.

    Judy and Jerome noticed this, “Are you alright, Henry?” Jerome asked.

    “You’re looking a little jumpy today?” Judy added.

    “Sorry, Judy, Jerome,” sighed Henry. “I guess I’m still a bit shaken from last night… I saw something terrifying on my way home.”

    “What sort of something?” asked Judy.

    Henry chose his next words carefully, “Something like a…. Little brown engine with a big, creepy smile and a crazy look in their eyes?”

    Jerome pondered, “...Sorry, Henry, I don’t know any engine like that. Although… Toby’s little and brown.”

    “No, no, no,” Judy corrected, “Toby’s got a little NICE smile, not a big creepy smile. ...what about Stafford?”

    “Oh, Stafford’s much too clean and friendly. Um, what about….”

    Henry chuckled slightly. Listening to Judy and Jerome go back and forth did brighten his spirits a little, but he was still full of questions about what he thought he saw last night.

    Before long, they had arrived at the viaduct. Now Henry could see what the problem was - the rails had become worn and were in need of new sleepers. Judy and Jerome helped the workmen pull up the old rails and sleepers, then load them into Henry’s trucks. After that, Henry took the loaded trucks to the scrapyard and then returned with more empty ones; this was how it went all afternoon. By the time dusk fell, they were already halfway across the bridge, but it was time for the day shift workers to be taken home. Henry left Judy and Jerome on the viaduct and took the works unit coach full of workmen back to Vicarstown.

    The sun was nearly set by the time Henry returned to the yards. There, waiting for him, was Rebecca, the new yellow engine, with a new team of workers.

    Rebecca smiled when she saw the big green engine, “Evening, Henry! Has your day been going well?”

    Henry couldn’t help smiling. His friends at Tidmouth Sheds told him how Rebecca was good at bringing a sunny mood, and he believed it.

    “Hello, Rebecca,” he answered back. “My day’s been going well… a lot better than last night.”

    “Oh?” Rebecca was confused, “What happened last night?”

    Henry sighed, “I saw something strange and… scary last night. It was the spookiest steam engine I’ve ever seen in my life. It had crazy eyes and a creepy smile… and crooked, nasty-looking teeth!”

    Rebecca gasped, “Did… did it talk to you?”

    “Yes,” Henry whimpered. “It asked me what time it was.”

    “...and?”

    “...And that was it.”

    Rebecca looked unimpressed, “...Well, that’s a fun story and all, Henry, but I was expecting something a little more… terrifying.”

    “It WAS terrifying,” snapped Henry. “It looked like it was going to hurt me… and it was unsettling.”

    Rebecca snickered, “Oh, Henry. It probably just actually wanted to know what time it was… nothing to be upset about -even if it wasn’t much to look at.”

    Henry was very cross. He felt like Rebecca was making fun of him. “You’re not listening to me! I’m telling you that…”

    “Calm down, Henry,” soothed Rebecca patiently. “I’m sorry if I upset you; I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t there last night so I don’t know what you saw; what I do know is that if there WAS something last night, it can’t hurt a big, strong engine like you if it tried.”

    Henry calmed down slightly, but he still felt insulted.

    “-and worrying yourself all day like this isn’t going to help you,” Rebecca continued, “you’ll give yourself boiler ache. Why don’t you just take a deep breath, cool your pistons, and just take your mind off everything, eh?”

    Finally, Henry sighed in defeat. “I’ll try.”

    “There’s a good engine,” Rebecca said warmly as she was coupled to the coach and the new workmen climbed aboard. “I have to go now. I’m taking the night shift crew to the viaduct so they can finish pulling up the old rails.”

    “Okay, but… just be careful tonight,” warned Henry. “You never know what might be out there… spooky or not.”

    “I’ll be fine, Henry,” Rebecca said dismissively. “You just get a good night’s sleep tonight.” With that, she whistled “goodbye” and chuffed off to the bridge. Henry, now too tired to be cross, thought it best to follow her advice and crawl back to the shed. He hoped this time he’d be able to sleep peacefully, but he wasn’t so sure.

    By the time Rebecca arrived at the viaduct, the orange evening sky had turned pitch-black as the sun finally set. The night shift crew immediately set to work ripping up the last of the old sleepers and rails; Rebecca would stand by if needed to take the scrap trucks away or be prepared to take the crew home when the job was done.

    As the yellow pacific engine hummed cheerfully, Jerome spoke up. “Evening, Rebecca. How’re you tonight?”

    “I’m fine,” smiled Rebecca, “...though a little worried about Henry.”

    “You too?” Judy chimed in. “We’ve been worried sick about him ever since he told us about something he saw last night.”

    “He told you that story too?” Rebecca was surprised. “Well, you don’t believe it, do you? About some kind of spooky engine with a creepy smile?”

    Jerome considered, “I don’t know. We’ve heard a lot of strange things happening on this railway over the years.”

    “We even know of a few strange things ourselves,” Judy added -remembering Ryan’s incident with the ghost of an abandoned shunting yard. “And if it’s bothering Henry this much-”

    “-It must mean something,” finished Jerome.

    Rebecca didn’t say anything else, she became too lost in thought. She liked Henry, and she felt bad for brushing off his concerns, but his story seemed a little farfetched. Though, just in case, she took a little peek towards the other side of the bridge… but she couldn’t see anything strange or spooky. All the same, Henry’s story kept playing in her smokebox.

    Meanwhile, back at Vicarstown, Henry was dozing peacefully. Hours of work and little sleep finally caught up to the big green engine. His driver and fireman had gone home, and he could finally get some well-earned rest. But not for long.

    PEEP! PEEP!

    “Ohhh,” groaned Henry, waking up. “I was finally getting some sleep”

    “Sorry, Henry,” chuckled Rosie as she backed into her berth. “Glad to see you resting, though. Feeling better?”

    “A little,” admitted Henry. “I think working at the bridge helped clear my smokebox.”

    “Which reminds me,” Rosie remembered, “what happened this morning? You looked so frightened.”

    Henry sighed. He really didn’t want to go over the story AGAIN, but he didn’t want to keep it from the engine who welcomed him into her shed. He took a deep breath and, once again, retold the tale of what he had seen the night before. When he was done, Henry wore a heavy frown on his face -once again reminded of how frightening his experience was. Rosie stood there, listening without saying a word.

    When he finally finished, she spoke up, “That’s strange… I think Edward told me a story about something similar.”

    Henry’s jaw dropped, “He did?”

    “Yes… but it wasn’t a very happy tale.”

    And this was the story Rosie told him.

    “Years ago, before the North Western Railway was formed, a little brown engine was in charge of the goods work on the mainline. His name was Vyvian, and although he was a hard worker, he was always in a sour mood. He never smiled and he hardly ever spoke. He was too focused on finishing his work on time… in fact, the only time he ever really spoke was when he would ask his crew or a worker ‘Can you tell me what time it is?’”

    Henry shivered when he heard that. Rosie frowned knowingly and continued her story.

    “The workers were very rude whenever they saw Vyvian. They would call him a sourpuss and say that he should smile more. One night, one of the workmen took a piece of red chalk and drew a crazy smile over the poor engine’s scowl. Furious, Vyvian begged his driver to clean his face, but they were in a hurry with the night train and didn’t have time. So the little engine was forced to do his work with that stupid smile drawn on him.

    “Out on the mainline, Vyvian -humiliated and indignant- was in a massive hurry to finish his job so he wouldn’t have to deal with any more teasy workmen. He raced down the line at top speed -narrowly avoiding red signals along the way. The driver tried to ease him off, but it was no good.

    “‘Steady, old sourpuss,’ he joked, ‘there’s plenty of time.’

    “Vyvian only scowled. He was in too much of a bad mood to care what his crew said, and he went even faster. A little further up the line, the grumpy engine found himself looking up at the moon. There was something about its golden, ghastly glow that calmed his boiler slightly, and suddenly, all of his issues seemed to be forgotten.

    “But he was so busy looking at the moon that he didn’t watch where he was going. Some faulty points sent him down an unused branch line through the woods, and he was already traveling at twice his normal speed.

    “‘Slow down, Vyvian!’ cried his driver, fighting for control. But it was no use, Vyvian just ignored him and kept gazing up at the moon. The driver finally applied the brakes, but the engine was going too fast for them to be of any use. Then… it happened.”

    “W-w-what happened?” Henry stuttered.

    Rosie sighed as she grimly continued.

    “They came to a piece of unfinished track, and Vyvian ended up jumping right off the rails. The driver and fireman jumped clear, but poor Vyvian could only crawl along the grass deeper into the woods, dragging his trucks along, and still looking up at the moon. By the time he finally looked ahead, he was already heading for an enormous tree. And…”

    Rosie didn’t finish. There was no need to. Henry knew all too well what happened next.

    “What happened after ...that?” Henry asked hesitantly.

    “There wasn’t anything left to salvage,” Rose said grimly. “Whatever was left was sent for scrap. The crew and workmen were so ashamed of all the grief they gave Vyvian that they all resigned immediately. But… that’s not the end of the story. Many workmen will tell you that whenever the moon is full, they’ve seen Vyvian run the rails again. Only this time… he can’t stop smiling.”

    “I know that for certain,” Henry shivered. “...Did Edward say what would happen if Vyvian ever met another engine?”

    “He didn’t… but from what it sounded like, you were lucky to get away when you did.”

    “I just hope Rebecca’s that lucky,” Henry said to himself.

    No more was said after that. Henry looked completely miserable for the rest of the night -thinking about Rebecca running into this ghostly steamie. Rosie didn’t leave her friend’s side for a minute; she had a feeling he didn’t want to be alone after THAT horrible story.

    At 11 o’clock, Rebecca had finished bringing loaded trucks to the scrap yard and was on her way back to the viaduct with new empty ones. As she puffed through the woods, she got a good look around. She had been through these woods plenty of times during the day, but it was a lot spookier and more foreboding in the dark.

    “Ooooh,” quivered Rebecca. “Now I see why Henry was so shaken”. She was thinking about Henry’s story again. She was sure that she wouldn’t see any ‘ghoulish engine’, but she couldn’t help but wonder.

    That’s when the trouble began. As they approached the junction in the middle of the woods, the signal was red and they had to stop.

    Rebecca’s driver was confused, “Was someone else scheduled tonight? I thought we were given the all-clear signal.”

    “We should be,” the fireman replied. “No one told us of any changes.”

    Everyone was very puzzled. The driver and fireman debated going back to the signal box when they heard a light chuffing coming from right behind them, coming closer and closer. Rebecca couldn’t see who it was at first.

    “Hello?” She called out. “Henry? Thomas? ...Percy? Is that you?” No reply came as the engine puffed closer and closer until it had stopped right beside her. “Well, whoever you are, what’re you doing out so late? I thought I was the only one out to-”

    Rebecca never got a chance to finish. When she peered to the left, what she saw next made her boiler freeze up. There, sitting on the track just beside her, was Vyvian. His brown paint all moldy and filthy, his pale, soulless eyes gazing up at the moon, and his enormous, unnerving smile displaying his terrible, twisted teeth. Anything Rebecca wanted to say was lost in her smokebox - Henry’s “smiling engine” was real… and it was absolutely terrifying! Even though he wasn’t even looking at her, he didn’t need to for her to see the madness in his eyes.

    Finally, Rebecca plucked up courage, “H-h-h-hello?” She mumbled weakly. “Do you know my friend Henry?” Vyvian didn’t reply; his eyes were glued to the sky.

    As the air grew tenser, Rebecca slowly looked away from Vyvian, turning her attention towards the signal. She silently begged and pleaded for it to drop… but it didn’t. Reluctantly, Rebecca took another peek next to her and squeaked in fright! Vyvian wasn’t looking to the sky anymore… both of his glossy eyes were now locked directly on her -staring right through her smokebox and sending a horrible chill in her boiler.

    Finally, Vyvian opened his mouth, and through his sickening smile, he asked, “Can you tell me what time it is?” Like with Henry, he ran his silver tongue across his malformed teeth -which made Rebecca’s wheels shiver in place.

    Rebecca was so horrified that she couldn’t even speak -only quiet, frightened squeaks came out. Finally, she managed to blurt out “I-i-i-i-it’s just before midnight.”

    Finally, as a sweet motion of relief, the signal dropped. Rebecca hastily jerked forward and steamed away as fast as her wheels and the weight of the trucks would let her. She was so scared, she didn’t even try looking back. Her driver and fireman were shaken too, but they eased her off and gently brought her to a halt once they were much further up.

    “Steady, girl.” The driver soothed, “I think we lost him.”

    But they didn’t. They all froze in place when they heard a hasty chuffing of a steam engine coming right behind them. Reluctantly, Rebecca looked back and shrieked - Vyvian was following her, and he was closing in! He WHOOSHED right past her, not stopping once as he raced off into the distance and disappeared into the dark.

    Rebecca, her driver, and her fireman let out the breath they each had been holding. At last, it seemed like the madness was over and everything was calm. But now something else troubled Rebecca, “Why didn’t he stop when he had the chance?” ...then, an awful thought came to her. Frantically, she looked along the mainline in front of her, and-

    PEEP! PEEEEEP!!!

    -She whistled in horror. Vyvian wasn’t racing away from her, he was now rushing TOWARDS her on her line!! His lifeless eyes and twisted grin were now right in front of her and closing in at top speed! Frantically, Rebecca’s driver threw open the regulator and backed her up as fast as he could. Rebecca puffed faster than she had ever gone before, desperate to get away from this frightening engine. But while she was considerably faster than the little steamie, she couldn’t get away from his ghoulish face -staring straight at her and never losing its focus.

    Then there was trouble. There was a bend ahead, and Rebecca was going too fast to stop in time. Her crew jumped clear, but poor Rebecca jumped the rails and crashed through a fence into an open field -her trucks dragged off the line as well. No one was hurt, but Rebecca stood helplessly on her side, watching in horror as Vyvian raced in, growing closer and closer. Without thinking, she shut her eyes tightly, anticipating the worst. She could hear the ghastly steamie getting closer and closer, and then….

    Silence. Rebecca opened one of her eyes and looked around. Everything was still, and Vyvian was gone… as if he had never been there at all.

    Rebecca and her crew were safe, but were now stranded and alone in the middle of the woods -scared out of their wits. The driver and fireman didn’t dare leave their shaken engine behind, so no one would be coming to rescue them until daylight. Rebecca didn’t care. She was too terrified to care about anything except where Vyvian had gone. Her eyes were plastered open, not daring to blink as she hastily looked all around for any signs of him. She looked up the line ahead of her, she looked at the other side of the bend…. She even looked next to her a few times to make sure her driver and fireman were still there with her. Thankfully, they always were.

    Suddenly, more puffing noises were heard in the distance. Rebecca started to panic, convinced that it was Vyvian coming back. Her boiler shuddered and shook, she glued her eyes shut, and she whimpered silently under her breath. The poor engine was so frightened, small tears started trickling down her cheeks. Closer and closer the puffing came -slowly grinding to a halt right next to her. Rebecca didn’t dare look; instead, she continued trembling, anticipating whatever horrible fate was in store for her. Then…

    “Rebecca?”

    Shocked to hear her name, Rebecca cautiously opened her eye, and nervously looked toward the track. There on the rails was Henry and Rosie, with Judy and Jerome in tow, looking very concerned about her predicament.

    “There you are, Rebecca!” Jerome exclaimed in relief.

    “You never came back to the viaduct,” Judy continued. “We were worried sick about you!”

    The workmen from the bridge were on board, and so was Sir Topham Hatt -still in his pajamas. He looked very cross.

    “Rebecca? What on earth happened here?” He demanded. Rebecca was too shaken to speak properly. All that came out were timid little mumblings. Sir Topham Hatt’s cross expression melted into a concerned frown.

    “We were on our way back,” explained Rebecca’s driver, “but some strange engine came and chased us off the rails!”

    “He was coming at us like a bat out of-” the fireman hastily cleared his throat.

    “It was horrible,” Rebecca finally uttered quietly.

    Sir Topham Hatt noticed this and now spoke kindly to Rebecca, “Well, what really matters is that you’re all safe. We’ll investigate the matter in the morning. In the meantime, Rebecca, I’m afraid you’ll have to go to the Steamworks -they should fix you up in no time. Henry, you’ll have to manage both the day and night shifts of the repair work for the next few days.”

    The green engine didn’t say anything; he just gave a sad, sympathetic frown towards Rebecca. In no time at all, Judy and Jerome loaded Rebecca back onto the rails. While Rosie stayed behind with them to clear away the trucks, Henry gently helped Rebecca all the way to the Steamworks.

    The two traveled in silence for most of the way. But halfway through the journey, Rebecca spoke up quietly. “I’m sorry, Henry.”

    “For what?”

    “For not believing you about that…. Scary engine! It was absolutely terrifying! I don’t even want to think about what he could’ve done to me!” She took a deep breath to compose herself. “The point is, I should’ve listened to you.”

    Henry smiled understandingly, “that’s alright, Rebecca. I don’t know if I would’ve believed it myself.”

    “I still want to know,” Rebecca continued, “who was that engine? Why’d he come after us?”

    “I don’t think it was personal,” Henry answered thoughtfully, “he was probably just lashing out because of what happened to him while he was alive.”

    “When he was alive?” Rebecca was puzzled, “What do you mean by that?”

    Henry sighed. “It’s a long, unhappy story,” he simply said as he recounted Vyvian’s grisly story to Rebecca. The big yellow engine listened with wrapped attention -her concerned frown becoming more and more horrified. When Henry finished, she couldn’t even think of a proper reply… but her forlorn expression said it all. Nothing more was said after that; both engines were too lost in thought.

    Rebecca stayed at the Steamworks for several days, and Henry continued work on the viaduct for just as long. Both big engines found themselves troubled with sleepless nights -worrying about what’s hiding in the dark… for obvious reasons. Luckily, they were never really alone. Rosie kept Henry company all night until she couldn’t keep her eyes open, and engines came to visit Rebecca every day to make her feel better -even Henry and Rosie came to visit her in between jobs.

    In a matter of weeks, things returned to normal on Sodor. However, Rebecca and Henry now know to be extra careful when traveling at night; for although they haven’t seen Vyvian since their horrific encounters… they had a feeling he was still lurking about on the mainline. So if you decide to go out at night, be cautious if you go out alone… especially if you’re stopped by a red signal. You never know what might be lurking around the corners, watching you with a sickening, haunting smile.

Description

The Smiling Steamie

A Thomas & Friends Fanfiction

Written by Joey Turner

Based on the Creepypasta “The Smiling Man”

  One crisp, fall evening, Henry was making his run with the Flying Kipper. He was making good time and was well on his way to Vicarstown - the Kipper’s last stop of the evening, and Henry’s new home. Although he had a reputation of being a worrisome engine, Henry didn’t mind running at night - it was peaceful, quiet, and he had a fantastic view of the full moon. Overall, things were going well… until they came to a red signal in the middle of the woods.

  Henry groaned, “Bother! I can’t stop now, I’ll be late! What’s the holdup?”

  “Calm down, Henry,” chuckled the driver, “We’ve plenty of time.”

  The guard ran up from his van, “Everything alright?”

  “We’re fine,” reassured the fireman, “we’re just waiting for the red signal to change.”

  The guard looked puzzled, “Red signal? But the dock manager said we were all clear. We should be the only ones out on the line tonight.”

  “Strange. Must be another last-minute train,” shrugged the driver. “We should be all set in a few minutes.”

  Reluctantly, Henry and his crew waited for the signal to drop. They waited, and waited, and waited some more… but nothing happened.

  Henry was becoming impatient, “My fish will go bad by the time the signal changes!”

  His driver was concerned, “Hmm… there’s a signal box not too far back, maybe we ought to check in with them just to be safe.”

  Carefully, they backed up towards the junction and parked in the siding out of the way. It was small and hidden by a thicket of trees and bushes, but it was just big enough for Henry and his train to avoid blocking the line. Afterward, the driver, fireman, and the guard started walking towards the signal box -leaving Henry alone in the siding.

  When Henry was by himself, he finally noticed how spooky everything looked. Creepy shadows danced in the moonlight, the trees creaked and groaned as the wind blew through them, and an owl’s hoot echoed through the night air. Henry was a little spooked; he tried to distract himself from how scary everything seemed. He thought about his crew coming back any minute now, he thought about finishing his delivery on time and returning home to Vicarstown, he even thought about how smelly his fish were. While he wrinkled his nose at that last one, it DID help keep his mind off the creepy siding, and he slowly felt better.

  Suddenly, Henry could hear something in the distance. It sounded like another engine chuffing up ahead, and it was getting closer. Henry squinted his eyes as he looked ahead and saw the shadow of a little engine on the mainline coming towards the other side of the siding. Henry sighed gratefully -knowing that he wasn’t alone anymore- and started wondering who this new engine was. However, what Henry saw next made his boiler run cold.

  Chuffing out of the darkness was a little brown engine covered in cobwebs and what looked like moss. It smelled of burning rubber bands and its wheels groaned as they turned… but that’s not what frightened Henry. No, what did the trick was the engine’s frightening face - it wore a humongous, twisted grin that showed off its enormous, crooked teeth. Its eyes were completely colorless -almost reflecting the moonlight. The engine didn’t even look at Henry, its pale eyes kept looking towards the sky… and yet, Henry felt like they were staring straight through his smokebox.

  Finally, Henry found his voice. “H-hello?” He whimpered, meekly. The engine took no notice. Henry tried again, “Uh… w-w-who are you?” Still no reply. “Are y-y-y-you lost?”

  Then, what happened next still haunts Henry to this very day. One of the engine’s eyes looked down and locked directly onto Henry’s own frightened eyes -the other still gazing up at the moon. The terrified green engine’s axels shook with fright as this horrifying face gazed at him -smiling its horrible smile and crazed, walled eyes.

  As its other eye moved downward to glare at Henry too, the engine finally spoke. With a chilling, crackly voice, it asked: “Can you tell me what time it is?” Its grin grew wider as it wiped its long, gray tongue across its misshapen teeth.

  By now, poor Henry was quaking in fear; he had never been this frightened in all of his life. He didn’t know what to do next, so he shut his eyes tightly -hot tears pouring out as he trembled in his wheels. All the while, he could feel this monstrous engine glaring at him with its Cheshire cat-like grin.

  After a good minute, Henry finally opened his eyes, expecting the worst to happen, and… the engine was gone. The mainline was completely empty, and the air was calm once again -as if this mysterious engine had never even been there. But Henry was still in too much of a state of shock; he felt like he was going to cry. He frantically looked around, fearing that the engine might come back, when…

  “Henry?”

  Henry jumped in fright, causing his fish trucks to go bump! He quickly glanced to where the voice had come from…. And felt a massive wave of relief when he saw his driver, fireman, and the guard standing there.

  The driver spoke again, “Henry? What’s the matter, old boy?”

  Henry finally caught his breath, and spoke shakily, “I just saw the most terrifying engine in the world! It had this gigantic grin and these disgusting, big teeth… and those eyes! Those horrible, horrible eyes!” Henry nearly started to sob again.

  “Henry, Henry, calm down,” soothed the fireman. “It’s alright, now. Everything’s going to be ok.”

  “You saw it too, didn’t you?” Henry asked pleadingly.

  “We HEARD another engine, but we didn’t see anything,” said the driver. “Either way, we found out what the problem was - the viaduct on the mainline is in need of repairs. We’ll have to take the long way to Vicarstown.”

  Soon, the signal changed, and they were well on their way again. Taking the longer route meant that they would barely make it, but Henry didn’t care -he was just happy to be moving again. For the rest of the trip, he kept looking around nervously -hoping he wouldn’t run into that ghastly engine again. Luckily, Henry didn’t see the engine once. He barely arrived on time and made his last delivery of fish; he then parked his empty vans in the yard and crawled miserably towards the shed.

  Henry slowly backed into his berth, taking care not to wake the sleeping Rosie. Once he was tucked away, he finally let out a deep sigh of relief; at last, he was safe and sound in his shed where nothing or nobody could hurt him. Despite this, Henry couldn’t sleep a wink; all night long, he looked out into the yard for any sign of that horrifying engine. He looked by the hopper, he glanced at the carriage shed, he even peeked to his right to make sure Rosie was still there. Not a soul to be seen for miles… but poor Henry still didn’t feel safe.

  By the time Henry was sure nothing was out there, it was already morning. He could already hear the sounds of workmen coming into the yard and the firelighter in his cab prepping his firebox for work. Rosie yawned sweetly next to him, awakening from a peaceful night’s sleep… lucky her.

  Rosie peeped happily, “Morning, Henry!” She then saw that he was wearing the most miserable and tired frown she had ever seen. “What’s the matter? You look completely exhausted.”

  “I AM completely exhausted,” muttered Henry. “Didn’t sleep a wink last night.”

  “Why not?” Rosie asked. “Long night with the Kipper?”

  “You could say that,” Henry said grimly. “There was a delay thanks to the viaduct… but that’s not the worst part.”

  Rosie was concerned, “What WAS the worst part?”

  Before Henry could answer, the yard manager came up. “Come along, Rosie,” he interrupted. “Flying Scottsman’s coaches need to be ready for his connection.”

    “Bye, Henry,” whistled Rosie. “You can tell me more about it tonight.” With that, she puffed cheerfully off to work.

    The manager then turned to the tired green engine, “And Henry, Sir Topham Hatt wants you to bring the Breakdown Train and some empty trucks to the viaduct up the line.”

    “Yes, sir,” yawned Henry. He was too tired to make another wheel turn, but he knew he had to carry on anyway. He was just glad he didn’t have to work at night again.

    Henry collected Judy, Jerome and a line of trucks and set off for the bridge. Just as he was finally calming down, he suddenly remembered… on the other side of the viaduct was the line where he had seen that terrifying engine. Images of that ghoulish grin came flooding back into Henry’s smokebox, and he started looking back and forth anxiously for any sign of that horrid steamie.

    Judy and Jerome noticed this, “Are you alright, Henry?” Jerome asked.

    “You’re looking a little jumpy today?” Judy added.

    “Sorry, Judy, Jerome,” sighed Henry. “I guess I’m still a bit shaken from last night… I saw something terrifying on my way home.”

    “What sort of something?” asked Judy.

    Henry chose his next words carefully, “Something like a…. Little brown engine with a big, creepy smile and a crazy look in their eyes?”

    Jerome pondered, “...Sorry, Henry, I don’t know any engine like that. Although… Toby’s little and brown.”

    “No, no, no,” Judy corrected, “Toby’s got a little NICE smile, not a big creepy smile. ...what about Stafford?”

    “Oh, Stafford’s much too clean and friendly. Um, what about….”

    Henry chuckled slightly. Listening to Judy and Jerome go back and forth did brighten his spirits a little, but he was still full of questions about what he thought he saw last night.

    Before long, they had arrived at the viaduct. Now Henry could see what the problem was - the rails had become worn and were in need of new sleepers. Judy and Jerome helped the workmen pull up the old rails and sleepers, then load them into Henry’s trucks. After that, Henry took the loaded trucks to the scrapyard and then returned with more empty ones; this was how it went all afternoon. By the time dusk fell, they were already halfway across the bridge, but it was time for the day shift workers to be taken home. Henry left Judy and Jerome on the viaduct and took the works unit coach full of workmen back to Vicarstown.

    The sun was nearly set by the time Henry returned to the yards. There, waiting for him, was Rebecca, the new yellow engine, with a new team of workers.

    Rebecca smiled when she saw the big green engine, “Evening, Henry! Has your day been going well?”

    Henry couldn’t help smiling. His friends at Tidmouth Sheds told him how Rebecca was good at bringing a sunny mood, and he believed it.

    “Hello, Rebecca,” he answered back. “My day’s been going well… a lot better than last night.”

    “Oh?” Rebecca was confused, “What happened last night?”

    Henry sighed, “I saw something strange and… scary last night. It was the spookiest steam engine I’ve ever seen in my life. It had crazy eyes and a creepy smile… and crooked, nasty-looking teeth!”

    Rebecca gasped, “Did… did it talk to you?”

    “Yes,” Henry whimpered. “It asked me what time it was.”

    “...and?”

    “...And that was it.”

    Rebecca looked unimpressed, “...Well, that’s a fun story and all, Henry, but I was expecting something a little more… terrifying.”

    “It WAS terrifying,” snapped Henry. “It looked like it was going to hurt me… and it was unsettling.”

    Rebecca snickered, “Oh, Henry. It probably just actually wanted to know what time it was… nothing to be upset about -even if it wasn’t much to look at.”

    Henry was very cross. He felt like Rebecca was making fun of him. “You’re not listening to me! I’m telling you that…”

    “Calm down, Henry,” soothed Rebecca patiently. “I’m sorry if I upset you; I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t there last night so I don’t know what you saw; what I do know is that if there WAS something last night, it can’t hurt a big, strong engine like you if it tried.”

    Henry calmed down slightly, but he still felt insulted.

    “-and worrying yourself all day like this isn’t going to help you,” Rebecca continued, “you’ll give yourself boiler ache. Why don’t you just take a deep breath, cool your pistons, and just take your mind off everything, eh?”

    Finally, Henry sighed in defeat. “I’ll try.”

    “There’s a good engine,” Rebecca said warmly as she was coupled to the coach and the new workmen climbed aboard. “I have to go now. I’m taking the night shift crew to the viaduct so they can finish pulling up the old rails.”

    “Okay, but… just be careful tonight,” warned Henry. “You never know what might be out there… spooky or not.”

    “I’ll be fine, Henry,” Rebecca said dismissively. “You just get a good night’s sleep tonight.” With that, she whistled “goodbye” and chuffed off to the bridge. Henry, now too tired to be cross, thought it best to follow her advice and crawl back to the shed. He hoped this time he’d be able to sleep peacefully, but he wasn’t so sure.

    By the time Rebecca arrived at the viaduct, the orange evening sky had turned pitch-black as the sun finally set. The night shift crew immediately set to work ripping up the last of the old sleepers and rails; Rebecca would stand by if needed to take the scrap trucks away or be prepared to take the crew home when the job was done.

    As the yellow pacific engine hummed cheerfully, Jerome spoke up. “Evening, Rebecca. How’re you tonight?”

    “I’m fine,” smiled Rebecca, “...though a little worried about Henry.”

    “You too?” Judy chimed in. “We’ve been worried sick about him ever since he told us about something he saw last night.”

    “He told you that story too?” Rebecca was surprised. “Well, you don’t believe it, do you? About some kind of spooky engine with a creepy smile?”

    Jerome considered, “I don’t know. We’ve heard a lot of strange things happening on this railway over the years.”

    “We even know of a few strange things ourselves,” Judy added -remembering Ryan’s incident with the ghost of an abandoned shunting yard. “And if it’s bothering Henry this much-”

    “-It must mean something,” finished Jerome.

    Rebecca didn’t say anything else, she became too lost in thought. She liked Henry, and she felt bad for brushing off his concerns, but his story seemed a little farfetched. Though, just in case, she took a little peek towards the other side of the bridge… but she couldn’t see anything strange or spooky. All the same, Henry’s story kept playing in her smokebox.

    Meanwhile, back at Vicarstown, Henry was dozing peacefully. Hours of work and little sleep finally caught up to the big green engine. His driver and fireman had gone home, and he could finally get some well-earned rest. But not for long.

    PEEP! PEEP!

    “Ohhh,” groaned Henry, waking up. “I was finally getting some sleep”

    “Sorry, Henry,” chuckled Rosie as she backed into her berth. “Glad to see you resting, though. Feeling better?”

    “A little,” admitted Henry. “I think working at the bridge helped clear my smokebox.”

    “Which reminds me,” Rosie remembered, “what happened this morning? You looked so frightened.”

    Henry sighed. He really didn’t want to go over the story AGAIN, but he didn’t want to keep it from the engine who welcomed him into her shed. He took a deep breath and, once again, retold the tale of what he had seen the night before. When he was done, Henry wore a heavy frown on his face -once again reminded of how frightening his experience was. Rosie stood there, listening without saying a word.

    When he finally finished, she spoke up, “That’s strange… I think Edward told me a story about something similar.”

    Henry’s jaw dropped, “He did?”

    “Yes… but it wasn’t a very happy tale.”

    And this was the story Rosie told him.

    “Years ago, before the North Western Railway was formed, a little brown engine was in charge of the goods work on the mainline. His name was Vyvian, and although he was a hard worker, he was always in a sour mood. He never smiled and he hardly ever spoke. He was too focused on finishing his work on time… in fact, the only time he ever really spoke was when he would ask his crew or a worker ‘Can you tell me what time it is?’”

    Henry shivered when he heard that. Rosie frowned knowingly and continued her story.

    “The workers were very rude whenever they saw Vyvian. They would call him a sourpuss and say that he should smile more. One night, one of the workmen took a piece of red chalk and drew a crazy smile over the poor engine’s scowl. Furious, Vyvian begged his driver to clean his face, but they were in a hurry with the night train and didn’t have time. So the little engine was forced to do his work with that stupid smile drawn on him.

    “Out on the mainline, Vyvian -humiliated and indignant- was in a massive hurry to finish his job so he wouldn’t have to deal with any more teasy workmen. He raced down the line at top speed -narrowly avoiding red signals along the way. The driver tried to ease him off, but it was no good.

    “‘Steady, old sourpuss,’ he joked, ‘there’s plenty of time.’

    “Vyvian only scowled. He was in too much of a bad mood to care what his crew said, and he went even faster. A little further up the line, the grumpy engine found himself looking up at the moon. There was something about its golden, ghastly glow that calmed his boiler slightly, and suddenly, all of his issues seemed to be forgotten.

    “But he was so busy looking at the moon that he didn’t watch where he was going. Some faulty points sent him down an unused branch line through the woods, and he was already traveling at twice his normal speed.

    “‘Slow down, Vyvian!’ cried his driver, fighting for control. But it was no use, Vyvian just ignored him and kept gazing up at the moon. The driver finally applied the brakes, but the engine was going too fast for them to be of any use. Then… it happened.”

    “W-w-what happened?” Henry stuttered.

    Rosie sighed as she grimly continued.

    “They came to a piece of unfinished track, and Vyvian ended up jumping right off the rails. The driver and fireman jumped clear, but poor Vyvian could only crawl along the grass deeper into the woods, dragging his trucks along, and still looking up at the moon. By the time he finally looked ahead, he was already heading for an enormous tree. And…”

    Rosie didn’t finish. There was no need to. Henry knew all too well what happened next.

    “What happened after ...that?” Henry asked hesitantly.

    “There wasn’t anything left to salvage,” Rose said grimly. “Whatever was left was sent for scrap. The crew and workmen were so ashamed of all the grief they gave Vyvian that they all resigned immediately. But… that’s not the end of the story. Many workmen will tell you that whenever the moon is full, they’ve seen Vyvian run the rails again. Only this time… he can’t stop smiling.”

    “I know that for certain,” Henry shivered. “...Did Edward say what would happen if Vyvian ever met another engine?”

    “He didn’t… but from what it sounded like, you were lucky to get away when you did.”

    “I just hope Rebecca’s that lucky,” Henry said to himself.

    No more was said after that. Henry looked completely miserable for the rest of the night -thinking about Rebecca running into this ghostly steamie. Rosie didn’t leave her friend’s side for a minute; she had a feeling he didn’t want to be alone after THAT horrible story.

    At 11 o’clock, Rebecca had finished bringing loaded trucks to the scrap yard and was on her way back to the viaduct with new empty ones. As she puffed through the woods, she got a good look around. She had been through these woods plenty of times during the day, but it was a lot spookier and more foreboding in the dark.

    “Ooooh,” quivered Rebecca. “Now I see why Henry was so shaken”. She was thinking about Henry’s story again. She was sure that she wouldn’t see any ‘ghoulish engine’, but she couldn’t help but wonder.

    That’s when the trouble began. As they approached the junction in the middle of the woods, the signal was red and they had to stop.

    Rebecca’s driver was confused, “Was someone else scheduled tonight? I thought we were given the all-clear signal.”

    “We should be,” the fireman replied. “No one told us of any changes.”

    Everyone was very puzzled. The driver and fireman debated going back to the signal box when they heard a light chuffing coming from right behind them, coming closer and closer. Rebecca couldn’t see who it was at first.

    “Hello?” She called out. “Henry? Thomas? ...Percy? Is that you?” No reply came as the engine puffed closer and closer until it had stopped right beside her. “Well, whoever you are, what’re you doing out so late? I thought I was the only one out to-”

    Rebecca never got a chance to finish. When she peered to the left, what she saw next made her boiler freeze up. There, sitting on the track just beside her, was Vyvian. His brown paint all moldy and filthy, his pale, soulless eyes gazing up at the moon, and his enormous, unnerving smile displaying his terrible, twisted teeth. Anything Rebecca wanted to say was lost in her smokebox - Henry’s “smiling engine” was real… and it was absolutely terrifying! Even though he wasn’t even looking at her, he didn’t need to for her to see the madness in his eyes.

    Finally, Rebecca plucked up courage, “H-h-h-hello?” She mumbled weakly. “Do you know my friend Henry?” Vyvian didn’t reply; his eyes were glued to the sky.

    As the air grew tenser, Rebecca slowly looked away from Vyvian, turning her attention towards the signal. She silently begged and pleaded for it to drop… but it didn’t. Reluctantly, Rebecca took another peek next to her and squeaked in fright! Vyvian wasn’t looking to the sky anymore… both of his glossy eyes were now locked directly on her -staring right through her smokebox and sending a horrible chill in her boiler.

    Finally, Vyvian opened his mouth, and through his sickening smile, he asked, “Can you tell me what time it is?” Like with Henry, he ran his silver tongue across his malformed teeth -which made Rebecca’s wheels shiver in place.

    Rebecca was so horrified that she couldn’t even speak -only quiet, frightened squeaks came out. Finally, she managed to blurt out “I-i-i-i-it’s just before midnight.”

    Finally, as a sweet motion of relief, the signal dropped. Rebecca hastily jerked forward and steamed away as fast as her wheels and the weight of the trucks would let her. She was so scared, she didn’t even try looking back. Her driver and fireman were shaken too, but they eased her off and gently brought her to a halt once they were much further up.

    “Steady, girl.” The driver soothed, “I think we lost him.”

    But they didn’t. They all froze in place when they heard a hasty chuffing of a steam engine coming right behind them. Reluctantly, Rebecca looked back and shrieked - Vyvian was following her, and he was closing in! He WHOOSHED right past her, not stopping once as he raced off into the distance and disappeared into the dark.

    Rebecca, her driver, and her fireman let out the breath they each had been holding. At last, it seemed like the madness was over and everything was calm. But now something else troubled Rebecca, “Why didn’t he stop when he had the chance?” ...then, an awful thought came to her. Frantically, she looked along the mainline in front of her, and-

    PEEP! PEEEEEP!!!

    -She whistled in horror. Vyvian wasn’t racing away from her, he was now rushing TOWARDS her on her line!! His lifeless eyes and twisted grin were now right in front of her and closing in at top speed! Frantically, Rebecca’s driver threw open the regulator and backed her up as fast as he could. Rebecca puffed faster than she had ever gone before, desperate to get away from this frightening engine. But while she was considerably faster than the little steamie, she couldn’t get away from his ghoulish face -staring straight at her and never losing its focus.

    Then there was trouble. There was a bend ahead, and Rebecca was going too fast to stop in time. Her crew jumped clear, but poor Rebecca jumped the rails and crashed through a fence into an open field -her trucks dragged off the line as well. No one was hurt, but Rebecca stood helplessly on her side, watching in horror as Vyvian raced in, growing closer and closer. Without thinking, she shut her eyes tightly, anticipating the worst. She could hear the ghastly steamie getting closer and closer, and then….

    Silence. Rebecca opened one of her eyes and looked around. Everything was still, and Vyvian was gone… as if he had never been there at all.

    Rebecca and her crew were safe, but were now stranded and alone in the middle of the woods -scared out of their wits. The driver and fireman didn’t dare leave their shaken engine behind, so no one would be coming to rescue them until daylight. Rebecca didn’t care. She was too terrified to care about anything except where Vyvian had gone. Her eyes were plastered open, not daring to blink as she hastily looked all around for any signs of him. She looked up the line ahead of her, she looked at the other side of the bend…. She even looked next to her a few times to make sure her driver and fireman were still there with her. Thankfully, they always were.

    Suddenly, more puffing noises were heard in the distance. Rebecca started to panic, convinced that it was Vyvian coming back. Her boiler shuddered and shook, she glued her eyes shut, and she whimpered silently under her breath. The poor engine was so frightened, small tears started trickling down her cheeks. Closer and closer the puffing came -slowly grinding to a halt right next to her. Rebecca didn’t dare look; instead, she continued trembling, anticipating whatever horrible fate was in store for her. Then…

    “Rebecca?”

    Shocked to hear her name, Rebecca cautiously opened her eye, and nervously looked toward the track. There on the rails was Henry and Rosie, with Judy and Jerome in tow, looking very concerned about her predicament.

    “There you are, Rebecca!” Jerome exclaimed in relief.

    “You never came back to the viaduct,” Judy continued. “We were worried sick about you!”

    The workmen from the bridge were on board, and so was Sir Topham Hatt -still in his pajamas. He looked very cross.

    “Rebecca? What on earth happened here?” He demanded. Rebecca was too shaken to speak properly. All that came out were timid little mumblings. Sir Topham Hatt’s cross expression melted into a concerned frown.

    “We were on our way back,” explained Rebecca’s driver, “but some strange engine came and chased us off the rails!”

    “He was coming at us like a bat out of-” the fireman hastily cleared his throat.

    “It was horrible,” Rebecca finally uttered quietly.

    Sir Topham Hatt noticed this and now spoke kindly to Rebecca, “Well, what really matters is that you’re all safe. We’ll investigate the matter in the morning. In the meantime, Rebecca, I’m afraid you’ll have to go to the Steamworks -they should fix you up in no time. Henry, you’ll have to manage both the day and night shifts of the repair work for the next few days.”

    The green engine didn’t say anything; he just gave a sad, sympathetic frown towards Rebecca. In no time at all, Judy and Jerome loaded Rebecca back onto the rails. While Rosie stayed behind with them to clear away the trucks, Henry gently helped Rebecca all the way to the Steamworks.

    The two traveled in silence for most of the way. But halfway through the journey, Rebecca spoke up quietly. “I’m sorry, Henry.”

    “For what?”

    “For not believing you about that…. Scary engine! It was absolutely terrifying! I don’t even want to think about what he could’ve done to me!” She took a deep breath to compose herself. “The point is, I should’ve listened to you.”

    Henry smiled understandingly, “that’s alright, Rebecca. I don’t know if I would’ve believed it myself.”

    “I still want to know,” Rebecca continued, “who was that engine? Why’d he come after us?”

    “I don’t think it was personal,” Henry answered thoughtfully, “he was probably just lashing out because of what happened to him while he was alive.”

    “When he was alive?” Rebecca was puzzled, “What do you mean by that?”

    Henry sighed. “It’s a long, unhappy story,” he simply said as he recounted Vyvian’s grisly story to Rebecca. The big yellow engine listened with wrapped attention -her concerned frown becoming more and more horrified. When Henry finished, she couldn’t even think of a proper reply… but her forlorn expression said it all. Nothing more was said after that; both engines were too lost in thought.

    Rebecca stayed at the Steamworks for several days, and Henry continued work on the viaduct for just as long. Both big engines found themselves troubled with sleepless nights -worrying about what’s hiding in the dark… for obvious reasons. Luckily, they were never really alone. Rosie kept Henry company all night until she couldn’t keep her eyes open, and engines came to visit Rebecca every day to make her feel better -even Henry and Rosie came to visit her in between jobs.

    In a matter of weeks, things returned to normal on Sodor. However, Rebecca and Henry now know to be extra careful when traveling at night; for although they haven’t seen Vyvian since their horrific encounters… they had a feeling he was still lurking about on the mainline. So if you decide to go out at night, be cautious if you go out alone… especially if you’re stopped by a red signal. You never know what might be lurking around the corners, watching you with a sickening, haunting smile.