Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was a dark and cloudy day in the village called ‘Shining Time,’ although it was an ironic name for a small town that was supposed to be bright. However, one person was not heading into the village called ‘Shining Time,’ but instead headed towards the mountains above the town.

The person was a small, skinny child wearing an oversized camouflage sweater with shades of blue and sky-blue hems. They also wore a light blue shirt underneath, blue jeans, and white and light pink shoes with white shoelaces.

Their head was low, and the oversized hood covered their face, creating a shadow to keep someone from discovering who they were. They crossed their arms over their chest to keep themselves warm from the cold wind blowing against them.

They continued walking down the path towards the mountains with their head down before looking up when they discovered something hidden in the distance. Curious, the child walked over to the object and examined it, noticing graffiti and vandalism but no damage to the building itself.

The child stepped back after looking at the object’s structure, silently nodding to themselves before looking at the chain that keeps the door closed. Since many years have passed, the harsh weather has rusted the chain that keeps people out, making it easy to break.

Picking up a hand-sized rock from the ground, the child hits the chain at a weak spot as it cracks from the impact, the chain falling with the lock as it unwraps from the handles. The child slowly opened the doors of the object and peered inside, smelling the faint smell of rust coming from it.

Some light peeked out from the boarded windows. It had been years since anyone had entered this abandoned place. The child turned around and closed the door behind them, not wanting anyone to see they had entered somewhere they were not supposed to be.

Once inside, the child reached up with their hands to their hood and pulled it from over their head. From the back of their head, they had what looked like stuck hair within their sweater, but after taking off their hood, the child reached in between the hair and neck, carefully taking out very long, straight blue hair that fell out after the last of the hair popped out from the sweater.

The hair reached their ankles, was dark blue at the roots, and ended in blue at the ends, but it was messy and barely touched. The child had fair caucasian skin, rectangle dark Oxford blue glasses, and round azure blue eyes, and she pushed her long hair back after removing her hood. She looked around, seeing that it was covered with dust and had cobwebs covering the corners of the empty place.

“Well,” the child said with a tired sigh as she moved her arms close to her body for warmth as the cold air lingered through the abandoned station. “I suppose this is my home now.”

She paused momentarily after noticing the dust on the floor that left behind her footprints and wandered through the room, stepping over some items on the ground from the collapsing interior or people throwing garbage inside.

The walls would look like murals, but she could not tell what they were because of the dust covering them, and cobwebs were everywhere, with some little spiders scrambling when she accidentally disturbed a small bundle of cobwebs.

After looking around at the mess within the station, the child searched for a cabinet with cleaning supplies inside. She soon found the cabinet she was searching for and checked if it was locked. To her surprise, it was unlocked, much to her confusion.

The child opened the door and saw the cobwebs covering the cabinet, but it was not bad, unlike outside the cabinet. But there were not enough cleaning supplies inside for her to clean all the graffiti off the outside walls.

“This isn’t enough,” the child mumbled. “But it’ll last me for the moment until I figure out how to get a job.” She instantly winced after mentioning the word ‘job’ and groaned, muttering as she picked up the cleaning supplies, cleaned off the cobwebs that stuck to them, and even gently brushed away some spiders. “No, no, no, I shouldn’t mention that. Something else.”

The child walked over to some cobwebs and started cleaning them, spraying them before wiping them away with a rag. While cleaning the place, she used some of the items left behind. These items included a mop, a brush, a sponge, and pails that people had left behind.

Checking if there was water, the child entered the bathrooms and turned the knobs, perking when she saw fresh water pouring out. Nodding, the child used the bathroom’s water to fill the buckets with fresh water, putting the now-full buckets down.

She started collecting all the garbage around the station, picking up the tossed trash, and using an extra bucket to place the trash inside. Once the last piece of junk was picked up, the child stepped outside, covering the top of the bucket with a hand while the wind blew against her.

Seeing the trash can, the child approached it and filled it with the garbage inside the station before hurrying back to the station, feeling the wind picking up. Before she could step in, a loud meow caught her attention, and she glanced over to see what looked like a hiding animal underneath a bench.

She pitied the animal and reached underneath with an arm, hearing the meow again before scooping what was underneath the bench into her arm. After scooping what was underneath the bench, the child stood back up when a thunderbolt struck in the sky, causing her to shriek in startlement before scrambling inside as fast as she could.

After stepping back into the station, the child sighed in relief as she placed what was hiding underneath the bench, looking over to see what looked like a black and white fluffy cat. The cat was very fluffy and had messy fur with a white background, black stripes with spots, a black underbelly, black socks with white toes, catfight-like notches covering the ears, and the right eye had a scar.

“Hello, there,” the child softly cooed as she kneeled to the cat’s height, causing it to perk as its tail went up, the tip curling somewhat. “You’re so fluffy.”

The child placed the bucket with the others and cautiously reached toward the cat, pausing when the cat started sniffing the back of her hand. The tail’s tip still curled somewhat as the cat sniffed the back of her hand. After sniffing, the cat gently nuzzled its head against the back of her head, the tail’s tip uncurling and emitting soft purrs.

The child smiled more after hearing the cat purring and gently picked it up from the ground, pausing when she noticed how long it was when she picked it up. Deciding to use both hands, the child carefully scooped the rest of the body up by putting a hand on the bottom.

“You’re so long,” the child remarked as the cat rubbed its head against her cheek as she was carrying it. “And fluffier!”

She softly squealed from the cat’s fluffiness of its body while hugging the cat in her arms, although she was struggling somewhat because of how long it was compared to her. She walked over to the cleared benches and placed the cat down, gently petting its back as it arched to her hand.

“Wait here,” the child chuckled as the cat lay on the bench it was placed on. She gently scratched its chin, hearing its purr grow louder from scratching a spot cats love. “Wait until I am finished cleaning this place.”

The cat watched the child walk away and continued cleaning the place, using dusters to remove the cobwebs and places where she could not reach the dust, even removing spiders by putting them in a small area outside where the harsh wind would not reach them.

As she brushed around the jukebox left behind in the station, the child paused when she heard what sounded like someone gently singing inside the jukebox. She stopped briefly to listen to the singing, which sounded like the song ‘I’ve Been Working on the Railroad.’

The child pushed her glasses into place as she listened to the song, wondering where she had heard that song before as she sat there momentarily. The memory was fuzzy, but she remembered someone holding her as a baby in their arms, singing that song while doing something else as she watched with curiosity.

The song continued for a minute before eventually ending, leaving the child confused, knowing that the jukebox had not been on for a long time or had any dimes in it either. She shrugged after the song had ended and continued cleaning around the place, doing her best not to accidentally topple the jukebox over.

After getting all the dust and cobwebs away, the child then moved on to wiping everything down with a rag to get all the dirt and mud, being careful not to accidentally wipe away something beautiful on the walls. There were some plaques in some places, but she decided to leave those alone for later until she could wash them.

A few hours passed, and the child finished cleaning the place, seeing its former glory in front of her as she used the back of her hand to wipe some sweat off her forehead. The place was still slightly rundown, but it had what looked like a mural of the 1900s and, oh my gosh, steam locomotives!

The child’s eyes sparkled after seeing the steam locomotive, pushing her glasses into place as she remarked, pointing to one of them while speaking to the cat she befriended, who looked around with the child as she kneeled somewhat to the bench, “That’s an Atlantic Coast Line 4-4-2! I am very impressed at how they made the details of the steam locomotive.”

The cat purred while listening to the child talk as she looked around, lingering with a feeling that this place looked familiar, but she could not remember as this place had been closed for a long time. She continued looking around the massive mural and saw other magnificent items painted on the walls, ranging from steam tugs, paddle boats, coaches, ferrymen, and many other things!

It made her heart flutter before she looked at a booth at the far right she had cleaned around. But it all looked familiar to one of the museums she had been inside before, causing her expression to change to confusion as she muttered, “Wait a minute.”

She went to the booth to the left as the cat perked, hopping off the bench and following after her. The child found a way to enter it, poked around it curiously, saw the chair bolted to the ground, and sat on the little chair. She coughed a little when it exploded with dust from underneath her bottom as she stood back up while waving her hands.

It was like she had sat on a whoopie cushion filled with dust. After a few coughs, she mumbled, “Okay,” waving her hand to keep the dust off her face as the cat sneezed. “This one needs a clean-out from the inside.”

After the dust settled, the child looked at the cleaned-off desk and stood up from the chair, wondering what could be in the drawers. She pulled one out and peered inside, seeing nothing as she looked thoughtful after looking.

The child pushed the drawer back and went to the next one, which was empty when she looked inside. She closed that drawer and kneeled to the lower drawers as the cat jumped out of her hood onto the chair, watching her pull out one of them.

She peered inside and paused when she discovered what looked like an old journal with a dark brown leather cover. Curious, the child took the journal from the lower drawer and sat back on the seat after the cat jumped off the chair and onto the desk, flipping the journal open.

The pages were empty, but their design looked like a train book for people to gather tickets for when they came to the station. Curious about the journal entry, the child picked up another and opened it, seeing handwriting inside that ranged from the train numbers to the times they arrived.

The child perked when she pieced together what she had discovered, placing the books down where they were, and stepped out from the booth, looking at the plaque she saved for later. Using a handkerchief, the child wiped away the dust, and it read, ‘Ticket Booth.’

“I found a train station?” The child muttered, slightly bewildered, as she took a second glance at her surroundings. “How can a train station still be here after a hundred years since most buildings have been torn down?”

She paused after she had asked herself, muttering, “Well, maybe this station was important to them because it was a memory of the past.” The child paused again after muttering as she softly asked, “Why did they forget about this station?”

Deciding to look at the dates of the journals to see when the station closed, the child kneeled and reached over when something scurried in front of her. She yelped in startlement when something scurried in front of her and clonked her head on the desk, giving a loud “OW!”

The impact on her head must have unlocked something, as it silently clicked while the child groaned while clutching the back of her head with her hands. The cat flinched after the child accidentally hit her head underneath the desk and hopped off, approaching her to check if she was alright.

“Oww!” the child winced with hisses while gently rocking herself forward and back while holding the back of her head with her hands. “Mother-! That hurts!” The unlocked area slid down as the child recovered from the stinging impact, revealing two items inside.

“Ugh,” the child groaned as she checked for bleeding while looking at her palm, but she felt nothing. “That’s going to-” She paused after seeing something in front of her underneath the desk in front of her face. “What’s that?”

She reached over to the items and took them out from inside the container before closing the open container after taking them out. The child sat on her bottom with the items in her hands, looking at them as the cat looked over her arm.

The first item looked like a whistle; the other was a folded letter. The child looked confused after seeing the two items in her hand before standing up from where she was sitting and walking over to the cleaned benches with the cat following her.

She sat on the bench as the cat jumped onto the bench beside her, and she placed the whistle on her lap. The letter had someone’s handwriting, which read, ‘Stoke up the magic in the mountain, and the Lady will smile. Then watch the swirls that spin so well.’

A silent, perplexed expression appeared on the child’s face after reading the letter as she asked, mostly to herself, “What magic? And who’s ‘Lady?’”

Deciding to keep this written letter, the child refolded it and placed it into her pants pocket before looking at the second item. The second item was a whistle, except it looked different from the whistles she usually sees occasionally, mostly from annoying kids.

The whistle was made out of alloy and had a pill-shaped container in the middle filled with a tiny bit of what looked like gold glitter, and the end had symbols on it. The child looked at the symbols on the bottom and recognized what they were as she turned them. She was surprised to see how they moved as a small arrow pointed at each element.

They were strange, and the child did not know which one, considering she never read a book about these symbols. As she was turning the knob of the whistle, it was emitting clicking noises whenever she turned to the next symbol, making the child feel more curious.

She turned the dial to the circle with the dot in the center symbol after looking at all the symbols across, hearing the gentle clicking of the mechanisms inside the small device in her hand, and asking herself, “Why would someone put these symbols on a mere whistle?”

The child looked around at the whistle with a necklace chain, telling her it was something to wear around her neck. But it had glitter in the pill-shaped container inside of it, so it could be some new toy the people made to make customers buy it.

“Oh, well,” the child shrugged, putting the necklace around her neck and seeing it reach the middle of her chest. “I guess this is a way of doing a little ‘clean up’ celebration.”

She glanced around after putting the necklace around her neck and took a deep breath before whistling into the whistle as it made a sharp, shrill noise. A large puff of gold dust shot out from the whistle, which surprised the child as it suddenly engulfed her and the cat on her lap. The puff of gold glitter then went over to the tunnel mural and went through, disappearing out of sight.

Chapter Text

The child yelped as she flailed her arms around, suddenly appearing like a tunnel with branches covering something glittering from the other side. The cat followed with her, too, flailing around and having no sense of balance in midair.

She looked around as she clutched the whistle in her hands, startled that she suddenly appeared in this dead branch-filled tunnel while they were… glittering what looked like the same gold dust from the whistle itself.

They both continued floating down the tunnel before seeing the end of the tunnel approaching, causing the child to panic. She released the whistle around her neck and scooped the cat into her arms. But she did not slow down as the tunnel’s exit arrived towards her and went through in a bright shine of light.

The child and the cat soon popped out of the tunnel and landed roughly in the grass, the child skidding through the dead grass while holding the cat close to her body. She continued skidding for a few minutes before eventually stopping, wincing from the gravel that was poking at her left buttcheek and left leg.

“Ow!” the child winced as the cat hopped off the child’s chest after she released it, shaking its body to get some dried grass and dirt off its body, and sneezed out the remaining dirt from its nose. “That’s going to leave a mark.”

She gingerly stood up as she wiped the grass off her bottom and looked where she had arrived, only to see a massive area that looked like an apocalypse. There were dead trees and grass that were a dried color, and the sky was dark with black clouds, leaving nothing but an empty place.

“What happened to this place?” The child gently muttered as she reached down and picked up the cat from the ground, holding it close to her chest as the cat curled close after sensing the child’s worry. “Did I stumble upon a zombie apocalypse?”

She looked where she skidded and noticed she landed near what looked like railroad tracks that were cleverly hidden underneath the tall grass. The child held the cat close to her and followed the railroad tracks, looking for anyone and perhaps flagging down a train to help her know where she was.

As she was walking down the rails, the child noticed that everything looked eerily empty, with barely any animals wandering around. As she turned around the corner, the child perked when she saw what looked like a coach approaching the coach.

“Hello?” the child called, looking up at the coach but pausing when she was too small to see through the windows or see who was inside. “Is anyone here?”

There was no response to her question. The child continued walking forward before approaching what looked like a real steam locomotive. The steam locomotive’s color was dull cerulean blue with a red lining, with the number four painted on what looked like a tender.

“Hello?” the child called, walking around the large steam locomotive, feeling her heart beating against her chest with worry and curiosity. When she reached where the driver and fireman were, she peered inside but stopped, seeing that the driver and fireman were statues.

They were frozen in what they were doing, and the child reached over to the nearest leg, tapping it, and was confirmed to be stiff as a statue. The child felt more worried and stepped away from the steam locomotive, confused about why the driver and fireman were statues.

Seeing a station ahead, the child headed towards the station and soon arrived, pausing when she noticed that she needed to climb to get on top. The child first allowed the cat to step onto the platform, and the cat watched as the child pulled herself onto the platform, struggling a little before finally pulling herself entirely onto the platform.

After finally stepping onto the platform, the child picked the cat up from the ground and held it close to her chest, looking around before gasping when she saw something that shook her to her core. Everyone was statues!

They resemble people and are in different positions, but they have some signs of how many years have gone by and how much dust is on them. No moss was growing on them as they were still in their positions, their expressions either looking confused or scared or at their previous expression.

“Oh, my god!” The child gulped as she saw the people’s conditions and hugged the cat. “Are these the town’s residents?”

A sudden low growl caused the child to stiffen after hearing the noise as the cat in her arms fluffed while emitting a low growl as it pinned its ears against its skull. She thought it was a dog still moving around but paused when she noticed that most animals were statues.

Then what was it? Something shadowy moved in the background as the child gasped, turning around to see a pair of red-faceted eyes staring back at her from the station’s shadow. Then, a sharp, toothy grin appeared on the creature. The child’s confusion turned to fear after seeing the monstrous face appear from the shadows as the cat in her arms started hissing, and every inch of fur on the cat’s body was puffing. That is no animal.

A monster appeared from the shadows and was grinning maniacally, revealing its teeth and almost goblin-like appearance. It was hideous and had jet-black hair growing on its body, large red eyes, and even sharp jet-black claws with a dark gray body, wearing ripped clothing for clothes. The goblin-like creature shrieked and headed straight toward the child, causing her to scream and run in the other direction, panicking when more appeared and started chasing her.

She tried leaving the platform, but the goblin-like creatures made faces and swiped their clawed hands at her whenever she tried. Every time they swiped their clawed hands at her, the cat in her arms would spit at them and swipe at their fingers protectively.

The child stopped when she realized the goblin-like creatures were all around her, but she perked up when she saw someone run towards an office and hide behind a closed door while the goblin-like creatures chased after them.

The child grabbed the doorknob and quickly opened the door, entering inside as she dropped the cat as it landed on its feet. She quickly returned to the door and grabbed it to close it, but the goblin-like creatures crowded it, trying to enter as they grabbed the door’s side.

She used all her strength to close it, slamming it onto the faces or arms they were trying to get through. Thankfully, she closed the door as the goblin-like creatures shrieked in pain from the door slamming on their limbs before discovering a key next to her, picking it up, turning around, and locking the door with it as the knob twitched frantically.

She stepped away from the door as the doorknob continued frantically clicking as the goblin-like creatures tried to enter. They stopped before moving away from the door, giving up on trying to enter. After the goblin-like creatures disappeared, the child panted as the cat slowly calmed down and muttered, “What the heck was that?!”

She looked through the window as goblin-like creatures were walking around, fighting against each other or vandalizing. One slammed against the window she was looking through, causing her to scream and scramble backward as the cat yowled in surprise.

She watched it laugh maniacally after the child screamed, and the cat yowled before disappearing as the cat scratched at the window in anger. She shakily stood up after the goblin-like creature disappeared and turned around before yelping when she saw someone standing in the same office as her. Thankfully, the stranger was human, but she could not tell what they looked like because of how dark it was in the office.

“Oh, thank God,” the child sighed as the cat was near her legs. “I’m so sorry for barging in like that. I was trying to get away from those things. What were they, though?”

There was no response, and the child worried about whoever was standing in the office, thinking it was one of those goblin-like monsters hiding in the darkness. But when she looked down at the cat, the cat was not reacting, puffing its fur out, or arching its back… so it could be clear?

“Um,” she said, gingerly walking over to the stranger as the cat looked up at the child after she spoke up. “Sir? Are you-!” The child stopped speaking when her hand went through the stranger’s body, recoiling as if she had touched fire.

Now that she was up close to a ghost, she felt bewildered and surprised that she had made contact with this spiritual being floating a few feet from the ground. She had heard stories about ghosts and the paranormal, but she now felt afraid that she was seeing one for herself.

The ghost moved back after the child realized she was speaking to a spirit and mentioned something at a desk as if something were standing over a desk, turning slightly to the side. After the ghost mentioned the desk with a hand, the apparition disappeared as the child looked worried.

Did she stumble upon a corpse? The child hesitated for a minute before slowly walking up to the object, seeing that it looked more stone than dead. She looked around the large object and sighed in relief, seeing it was another statue instead of a corpse.

“I prefer a statue over a dead body,” the child sighed. The statue had an envelope on its desk near its left hand, and its right arm was raised to protect its face from something already hitting this city. Curious, the child picked up the envelope from the desk and noticed a gold pocket watch underneath the letter.

She picked up the gold pocket watch in her hand and looked at the cover, seeing that it had a symbol: a large blue flower with multiple pedals that started in a dark blue in the center and faded into a lighter blue at the tips.

The child flips the gold pocket watch onto its back, looking for a name or who owned it, but there is no name. Confused, the child puts the gold pocket watch down near her and looks at the envelope, noticing it has the cursive words ‘To anyone’ on the front.

The child searched for a letter opener to open the letter, opening the desk’s drawers before finding the envelope opener decorated with engravings around the handle. She picked up the letter opener, used it to open the envelope, and took out the letter from inside. She unwrapped the piece of paper that was inside, and the letter read:

To whoever is reading this letter, my name is Sir Topham Hatt. I may have been transformed into stone, but I had to arrive early to write this S.O.S. letter to whoever comes here.

Our world is in danger because someone has stolen our magic from the island and is using it for evil, turning the world into a dark and gloomy place. I am giving you the Zodiac Pocket Watch from an old friend of mine to help you with your travels to find four temples in each element that creates the earth itself.

Use the diamond to activate one of the zodiacs on the pocket watch, and use it wisely. Avoid detection by the Nightmares and find solutions to bring Sodor back to life before it’s too late. I wish you luck in rescuing Sodor from being forgotten.

After reading the entire letter, the child looked confused before taking out the diamond gemstone from the envelope as she placed the letter down, muttering, “How can I put this in the Zodiac Pocket Watch?”

As she said that, the gold pocket watch twitched, and the child flinched, looking confused after watching it start to twitch. She picks up the pocket watch as the symbol glows brighter before magically lifting it from her hand and flipping it around.

The back of the gold pocket watch opened and revealed empty gem slots, and the round diamond in the child’s hand was removed and shrunk down to fit the empty gem slot. The diamond entered the first gem slot on top before the back closed and the pocket watch opened, revealing the clock’s face to her.

There were four sets of symbols in a complete circle around the clock’s face and four extra symbols on the front: a symbol of a cat, a bison, a hawk, and a ‘U’ with a squiggle through it. The pocket watch’s symbol flashed as the clock’s arms moved before pointing at twelve with the symbol of a rat, a falcon with open wings, a deer, and a Y-shaped symbol.

The child’s body suddenly transformed as she held the pocket watch, feeling everything on her skin tingle. Her legs transformed into hind legs, her face became a snout, her ears went on top of her head, and her hands transformed into paws.

Her clothes morphed into her body and disappeared out of sight, and the child then shrank down to the size of a mouse, and the transformation was complete. The child opened her eyes in confusion after the tingling sensation finished, but felt like her body was covered in fur.

She reached up to her face with her hands, but instead of feeling five fingers and a palm, she felt whiskers and ears. Confused, the child looked at her hands, only to be surprised when she saw paws instead!

The child looked around her body with a panicked expression, realizing she had transformed into a rat! The child’s entire body was covered in cream-colored fur; she had round ears, no tail, and tiny claws, and she wore a collar around her neck with a pendant. She gives a little confused, animalistic squeak from her voice before perking up after making the noise, proving that it is real.

‘Okay,’ the child thought, trying to keep herself from panicking and not wanting to collapse on the ground. ‘I had transformed into a rat, so what should I do?’

Then she looked up at the cat as it was sniffing her from over her body, and she instantly started panicking after giving a small squeak of startlement as she turned towards the cat, realizing that cats chase mice.

“Uh, nice kitty?” The child gulped, mostly thinking in shock that she could speak in this form. The cat perked up after the child gulped before smirking, “It’s alright. I don’t chase humans who transform into mice.”

The child’s jaw dropped after the cat spoke to her, as she exclaimed, standing up on her hind legs to show herself that she was still herself without making herself worried. “You can talk?!”

“Not really,” the cat responded, flicking his tail around his body as he sat down on his bottom as the child went onto her front paws. “The Zodiac Pocket Watch allows you to listen to what animals say. Most of the zodiacs assigned to the watch are mostly animal-based.”

“It is?” The child perked up, cocking her head to the side, before feeling the collar’s pendant around her neck with a paw out of curiosity.

“Yes,” the cat nodded after the child asked. “But I can’t talk to other humans who don’t have the Zodiac Pocket Watch like you do.”

After the cat explained, the child blinked as she removed her hand from her collar to place it on the office floor and asked, “How do you know much about this?”

“I’ve seen it happen before my eyes when I was just a kitten, with someone else holding it before you,” the cat explained. “Ever since I started to learn that a pocket watch has another mythical level compared to the magic I have seen.”

“That is fair.” The child nodded, looking down at her paws before looking back at the cat. “How do I turn back?”

“Simple,” the cat said, lying on its front as the child stiffened, staring back at the heterochromia eyes. “All you have to do is remove your necklace to transform back.”

“Remove this?” the child asked, mentioning the collar around her neck.

“Yes,” the cat nodded, moving back up onto its paws before the child as she watched with curiosity. “You’ll return to normal once you take that off around your neck.”

The child hesitated briefly but grabbed the pendant and yanked, taking the pendant off before transforming back to herself while she was sitting on the ground. She was startled after transforming into her human self and looked at her hands, seeing that she was holding the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hands.

“This was the power of the Zodiac Pocket Watch?” the child asked, looking back up at the cat approaching the child before her.

“Yes,” the cat nodded, and the child flinched after hearing the cat speak to her, even without using the Zodiac Pocket Watch’s power. “You can still hear me while in your human form, right?”

“Yeah,” the child nodded, feeling a knot in her stomach from listening to animals speak towards her. “It’s a little weird hearing you talk.”

“You’ll get used to it over time,” the cat calmly assured the nervous child. “Now, for the problems of this world, the letter said to use the diamond to find solutions to bring Sodor to life, right?”

“Right,” the child nodded, switching her mind to the mission written in the letter instead of being freaked out over speaking animals.

“Then let’s find a way to return this place to normal,” the cat explained to the child as she listened to the cat. “You can’t leave a place alone without helping it.”

The child paused after the cat told her before agreeing, “You’re right.”

“Good,” the cat nodded. “Now, let’s start with getting around those.” He paused after seeing a goblin-like creature called ‘Nightmares’ staring through the window, making a hideous face before disappearing as he made a disgusted expression. “Things without getting caught.”

The child nodded as she grimaced a little after watching the Nightmares mess around the platform before saying, “Maybe I could open the door to let you out and close it while I search for another way through the room.”

“That could work,” the cat nodded. The child stood up and walked to the locked door with the key in her hand, warning the cat, “Be careful. Who knows what those things do to animals.”

The cat nodded before the child unlocked the door and quickly opened it, allowing the cat out before closing and locking it. She looked through the window as the cat disappeared, avoiding the Nightmares before running off.

“Okay,” the child nodded after watching the cat run off as the Nightmares searched for where the cat went, sniffing the ground and climbing on the platform’s walls. “My turn.”

She took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch and looked at the face, seeing that the arms were still on the rat, deer, falcon, and the Y-shape symbol. The child paused from activating the Zodiac Pocket Watch, wondering how she would get it to… The child tapped the top of the pocket watch with a single click, transforming herself into the same rat again.

“Oh!” The child perked up as she looked at her paws after transforming into a rat and went onto all fours. “That’s how you activate it!”

She switched her mind to what she was doing and instantly searched the room, seeing it looked like an office with some assortment. The child searched for a few minutes before coming across a hole in one of the corners and seeing that it was a little small, but it did not matter.

From what she read in the books, mice can squeeze through holes ranging from six to seven millimeters. The child squeezed herself through the small hole into the tunnel, crawling through it as she searched for an exit.

The crawling lasted a few minutes until she popped out from the other side, glancing around as the Nightmares were distracted by graffitiing the walls and horsing around with each other. The child quietly snuck by them as they were distracted and soon came across the same cat as he was waiting for her.

“Are you okay?” the child asked him, her ears perking up from being close to her skull and nervous around the Nightmares.

“I’m alright,” the cat assured with a gentle nod before his ears flattened with a slight scowl. “I’m just disgusted at these things messing around on the platform.”

The child nodded in agreement before glancing up at the cat and saying, “Now that we are out of the office, we need to look for clues on what we could do to help this world.”

“Right,” The cat nodded before lying beside the child. “It’s best if you climb on my back. Your small size would slow me down if I stopped for you.”

The child responded with a nod and climbed onto the cat’s head after finding a way to climb onto the side using her small size. She perked after realizing she had not asked for the cat’s name, asking, “Oh, I didn’t get your name.”

“Eh,” the cat shrugged as she relaxed on the cat’s neck, holding onto the cat’s thick fur with both hands. “I got called a lot of names back at home. I honestly never had a suitable name for me.”

The child looked thoughtful after the cat shrugged before suggesting, looking at his ears, which had notches. The thought ‘notches’ stuck with the child as she looked at his black patterns, resembling a word she overheard when she was a baby. Then she perked with a smile, suggesting, “What about Notches?”

“‘Notches?’” the cat asked with confusion, looking back at the child slightly but not enough since she was cleverly tucked behind his head.

“Your ears,” the child pointed out, mentioning them with a paw. “They’re filled with notches. If you say notches to noches in Spanish, it means ‘night,’ like your pattern.”

The cat paused a little as he muttered the name a few times, and he flicked his ears a few times, feeling the notches in them before saying, “I like that name. I’ll be called ‘Notches’ then.”

“Great!” the child nodded, beaming happily that Notches agreed with his name as she looked forward at the path Notches walked down.

“What’s your name?” The cat, Notches, asked, looking back at the child with a curious expression. The child paused after Notches asked and responded, “I, too, was not given a name, either.”

“You never had a name?” Notches asked, stepping over some items on the path, careful not to jolt around too much to accidentally knock the child off his back.

“No, I never was.” The child sighed, looking down from looking ahead. “I was called names like you but never wanted any of them as they were cruel.”

Notches paused as he hummed in thought before saying, “Why don’t you give yourself a name you like?”

“Why?” the child asked, looking confused after hearing Notches suggest.

“Well.” Notches paused, thinking of what to tell the child. “Sometimes, some cats of mine back home have their names. Ranging from Nightshade to Willow, others chose their names based on their personalities, while some,” he paused. “Have their own opinions on their names.”

The child listened to Notches as he wandered through the empty place, thinking about what Notches told her as she rode on his back. She then noticed something floating in the air and perked up, turning to see what it was and tugging Notches’ fur, causing him to stop.

“What?” Notches asked. This ghost stared at the child with dull light blue eyes, short brown hair, pale skin, a single scar over the left eye that is somewhat hidden underneath the bangs, and a dark blue uniform with black pants and polished shoes.

“Do you see something?” Notches asked, looking over at where the child was looking. He then noticed the ghost flying in the air and flinched, puffing a little after seeing the ghost, as the child asked, “You see the same thing?”

“Yes, I see him.” Notches nodded, his tail flicking up somewhat at an angle, unsure of who the stranger was, while his fur ruffled a little. “Who is he?”

“I don’t know,” the child said, shaking her head. The ghost stared at the two thoughtfully before transforming into a glowing orb and going down the sidewalk, causing the two to perk up.

“Notches,” the child said. “Follow that ghost. I think he is showing us something.”

Notches nodded and followed the ghost, saying, “I hope he leads us towards something useful, or he will haunt us forever.”

Chapter Text

The child continued riding on Notches’ back as he followed the ghost through the place, passing by statues and railroads. Steam locomotives were placed randomly in the area the child noticed, some with statues inside the coaches, just like the previous one she encountered.

There were even diesels, electrics, and many others scattered around this place called ‘Sodor’ as Notches passed everything, looking like everything was frozen. The child sits up a little to look at the surroundings as they head towards what looks like a mountain, and Notches feels his fur tugging a little.

“Is something wrong back there?” Notches asked, looking over at the child with a somewhat confused expression. The child perked as she snapped out of her thoughts, glancing over at Notches as she looked around out of curiosity.

“No, nothing is wrong,” the child answered with a gentle shake of her head, releasing some clumps of his fur to be polite. “I’m just looking at my surroundings.” She paused a little as she looked at the vehicles decorating the location, adding, “There are a lot of vehicles around Sodor.”

“Mhh.” Notches nodded as he followed the ghost, which had transformed into an orb floating ahead of him, looking at a vehicle with a somewhat somber expression. “Sodor is famous for its vehicles.”

“Really?” the child asked, turning towards Notches with a somewhat confused expression, slowly becoming comfortable with the surroundings. Seeing all these vehicles seemed to become common, although she was curious about the different performance models.

“Yes.” Notches nodded, pausing a little to gingerly step over some items on the ground and even to get around some rocks. “They all work on Sodor to help many people and even take visitors from different countries to travel.”

The child stayed silent after Notches explained, looking thoughtful about what he said before he stopped when he entered a vast forest filled with animal statues and then stopped at the edge of the mountain.

The child hopped off Notches’ shoulders and took off her necklace, transforming back into her human self as she scooped him up into her arms, allowing him to climb into her sweater’s hood. The ghost transformed into their human form and pointed at a tree trunk near the mountain before disappearing into thin air.

“That was weird.” Notches frowned, cocking his head to the side as his tail flicked. She walked up to the tree trunk as Notches hopped off her shoulder and felt around it curiously with her hands, feeling something in front of her that was a little loose.

“What do you feel?” Notches asked, walking up next to her. The child said nothing as she continued to feel around with her fingertips, feeling something was there, but it was clearly hidden.

“I feel a door,” the child responded. She pushed on the log and heard a click before a door opened when she moved her hands back, revealing the inside.

“A secret compartment!” Notches perked, the door opened wider, and he took a couple sniffs, smelling the hint of must lingering from within before stepping away. “A clever way of hiding things in the middle of nowhere.”

“It’s almost like the desk back at Shining Time Station!” the child exclaimed, remembering the same compartment back at the station.

“That’s right!” Notches nodded before turning towards the child, nodding towards the open door. “What do you think would be inside?”

They poked their heads into the log and discovered a worn-out bag with a journal beside it. The child reached in and took the items out from inside, placed the worn-out bag next to her, and noticed it was filled with something heavy as she held the journal close to her chest, closing the log’s secret door before sitting on top of it.

“It looks like a journal,” the child remarked as Notches hopped onto her lap, getting comfortable as the child waited for him to stop moving.

The child opened the journal and noticed handwriting from someone with a dark blue ribbon as a bookmark and a small flower symbol. Strangely, it looked like the same symbol on the pocket watch she had found, and the child cocked his head a little in curiosity.

Why would this symbol be important in this bookmark and the Zodiac Pocket Watch? It may mean something that she has not noticed before. The child moved the bookmark to the side for later and went to the first page of the journal, which had child-like drawings on it.

The child-like drawings decorating the diary pages showed a young child with short brown hair and brown eyes watching his father, who seemed to be wearing a black uniform. The next one showed the same kid looking at a small, eighteen-inch-tall man near what looked like the mural of the Shining Time Station. The page reads:

November 21st, 1987,

You wouldn’t believe what happened today at the Shining Time Station! I was told to wait as my dad went off to take a train to a meeting, and while waiting, I met a small man the size of a doll! Of course, I wasn’t scared of him, but he seemed shy at first. I greeted him like people had greeted each other, and he greeted me back, slowly starting to come out of his shy shell.

He told me his name was ‘Mr. Conductor,’ and he lives on the Island of Sodor. I asked what the Island of Sodor was, and Mr. Conductor said the Island of Sodor is a magical world where steam locomotives, diesel locomotives, and any vehicle reside and work together to make Sodor a better place.

I felt excited and curious as Mr. Conductor explained further about the Island of Sodor, telling tales about a small tank engine with six small wheels, a short, stumpy funnel, a short, stumpy boiler, and a short, stumpy dome.

He told me all about the trouble he went through that I was going through, as well as the others who worked with the number one engine, learning the lessons and learning different important topics.

I fell in love with the stories Mr. Conductor told me, and I wanted to ask if I could come with him to the Island of Sodor, but my dad, unfortunately, arrived before I could ask Mr. Conductor, seeing that he had disappeared when my dad arrived.

I was surprised and a little sad when he disappeared and started to leave the station. During the car ride, I told my dad everything about what Mr. Conductor told me, but my dad scoffed and told me that I ‘shouldn’t believe in a stranger’s imagination.’

But it is real. I need to see Mr. Conductor to find out if the island is real and to prove it to my father so he will believe it! I’ll come to the station tomorrow since Dad is busy with work, and there is no school that day either! I hope Mr. Conductor is there, though. 

Written by Avril Uriel.

The child cocked her head slightly after noticing the written page and flipped to the next, reading what the stranger who was writing down in the diary named ‘Avril.’ The drawings showed the same child, who could be ‘Avril’ watching his father before meeting Mr. Conductor again near the same mural. The written diary page reads:

November 22nd, 1987,

When my dad was busy with work, I snuck out of the house and went to Shining Time Station, searching for Mr. Conductor as I had hoped in the previous diary entry. And to my luck, Mr. Conductor appeared at that exact moment after I asked, “Mr. Conductor? Are you here?”

I told him what I wanted and how curious I was about the Island of Sodor and wanted to see it. Mr. Conductor calmed me down and told me he could take me to the Island of Sodor, as he had done to other children he met.

I was curious about who the children were, but I followed Mr. Conductor’s words as he used his whistle, and we were magically teleported into the mural of the train tunnel. The tunnel was beautiful and had shimmers, almost like we were wading through the ocean’s water.

To my surprise, Mr. Conductor had me shrink down to his size as we traveled through the tunnel and soon exited it as we had popped out of the buffers. After the ride through the tunnel, Mr. Conductor led me up the hill and showed me the Island of Sodor, which took me by surprise.

Millions of vehicles were around, mainly locomotives, as they were taking trucks filled with goods across the rails, and cars were driving through. After finally arriving on the Island of Sodor, Mr. Conductor took me to the rails, and a train came over.

But it was not a normal steam train like the one back at Shining Time Station. It was alive and had a face on the front! I didn’t scream when the train appeared but was surprised to see the sentient train.

Mr. Conductor helped me board the coaches the train arrived with, and we rode through the island. I was very excited about riding in a steam locomotive coach during the ride, as I had dreamed of experiencing it long ago.

When we arrived at Knapford, Mr. Conductor introduced me to Sir Topham Hatt the Second, who was with his twin sons, Bertram and Lowham. Bertram was shy when I was introduced to him, and Lowham was confused about me, but I was patient and introduced myself.

When the adults talked in the office, I asked Bertram and Lowham about Sodor, causing Bertram to perk up as Lowham started talking. Lowham told me Sodor was a part of the Mainland (England), and he and his brother usually saw their cousins whenever Christmas or Thanksgiving came.

Of course, Bertram asked if I was American, and I said yes, even telling them it was my first time arriving in Sodor. Lowham got excited and took me to their grandfather while Bertram followed, telling him they wanted to show me around Sodor.

That is how I learned most about Sodor—from traveling with their grandfather. He soon took me to a playground and introduced me to his friends and a large group of people. They were friendly towards me and showed me games to play, and somehow, I managed to win hide-and-seek.

I love being in Sodor and meeting with my friend, who we call the ‘Dream Team,’ who has dreams of being a firefighter, a postman, a conductor, an engineer, a builder, and for me? I have a dream of solving Sodor’s mysteries!

It was a surprise for my friends, but they agreed with my dream, and we took this picture with the help of Bertram’s grandfather’s photographer. For my father, I decided to keep this world a secret since he would never believe my words if I told him. Ooh, we’re going to play a new game! I’ll write later!

Written by Avril Uriel.

A soft smile appeared on the child’s face as she continued reading the pages in the diary, explaining how close Avril was to his friends, from playing little pranks to showing them what he had discovered.

His relationship with his dad was strained because of his disbelief in Sodor and because he always forced him to become a business worker instead of pursuing his dream. Strangely, it almost sounds familiar.

Avril’s drawings had improved, showing drawings of what looked like other children and different vehicles with faces, which confused the child as the vehicles did not have faces. Is there something wrong, or was Avril seeing something she did not?

She flipped through the pages as the handwriting got better and more cursive before stumbling upon a page that piqued her interest with a drawing of Avril with a different appearance, wearing something around his neck.

January 15, 1997,

I found the most incredible thing! I searched my grandfather’s house after he passed away from smoking, and I stumbled upon a secret compartment near his bed. The secret compartment had what looked like a pocket watch inside with strange symbols and a letter that told me it was now passed down to him, which he had created.

I took the pocket watch from my grandfather’s home and showed it to my friends when we met up with each other, telling them what my grandfather had written to me. There was some suspicion that it could’ve been fake, and nothing was weird about it.

I accepted what they told me and decided to use the pocket watch for the time, noticing the time was not right. But the pocket watch proved wrong when I turned the clock’s arms to the exact time, and when I pressed the top, I had transformed into a half-goat, half-human hybrid!

After I changed into this hybrid, people started to panic, and I joined them by tripping over my new legs and making animal noises. I spent time trying to figure out how to use the pocket watch, finally turning back to normal when Bertram and Lowham’s father entered, and we pretended nothing had happened.

After he had left, we were gobsmacked that the pocket watch I thought was an ordinary pocket watch had transformed me into a goat hybrid. Everyone told me I should hide the pocket watch since it was dangerous for a teenager and consider doing something else.

But I was amazed at its power and decided to use it for good, even though there was some concern among the friend group. So, that is how I discovered that the pocket watch my grandfather gave me is a powerful item used for good.

Written by Avril Uriel.

“Hey, that’s the pocket watch I found!” The child perked up after reading the page about the discovery.

“It does sound like it.” Notches nodded. “Avril might be the guy I saw transforming and saving me too.”

“Avril used the Zodiac Pocket Watch before?” The child perked up.

“Yes.” Notches nodded, answering the child’s question. “He was a very nice man. I wish you could meet him someday.”

The child nodded in agreement after Notches told her before looking at the next page curiously. She came across the end of the journal, looking confused as it read:

January 25th, 1997,

Something amazing happened today! I was hiking in the mountains with my friends, and although Bertram and Lowham were panting and huffing at the end, we just continued. As we were walking down the path, I suddenly tripped over something in the ground and nearly fell over the side, but Henry caught me before I could fall entirely.

When I was pulled up from the side of the trail, I inspected what I had tripped over, seeing what looked like a massive crystal! It had split into different parts after I popped the entire thing out, so I took the parts with me as a single crystal.

I took the crystal with me after seeing it, and when I arrived home, I washed it off in a bowl with some warm water to loosen the dirt from it. The phone rang. I walked away from the crystal to answer it, and Kathleen called to tell me about her day.

The call went a little longer than I anticipated, and something happened while talking with one of my friends. When I returned to the crystal, all the color had evaporated, and there was now glitter surrounding it in place of the water.

Somehow, the crystal itself absorbed the water and transformed it into glitter! Ironically, I was excited about what I had discovered and kidnapped Bertram and Lowham, including Henry and the others, from their homes.

They were rightfully mad after being kidnapped, but I showed them what happened, even showing the same gemstone and the process. This time, I watched as the crystal’s color drained and was absorbed into the water, transforming it into glitter.

Mr. Conductor was surprised to learn that the crystal I had found was made of gold dust remnants, which he thought only Lady would produce. But this proved to be completely different from what we all thought.

I could look further into this dust part of Sodor, and I would like to know if there is any other dust like the Gold Dust. To remind me, I have kept a piece of paper for making Gold Dust with my tools whenever I encounter any Dust Crystals.

Written by Avril Uriel.

After reading the journal, as the rest of the pages had been blank, the child cocked her head slightly as she went back to the previous page she was at and murmured, “‘Dust Crystals?’”

“I never heard of those kinds of crystals before, either,” Notches responded as the child closed it.

The child looked thoughtful as she placed the journal into her sweater’s pocket before picking up the worn-out bag beside her. She noticed it was worn down from age and was heavy when she picked it up, but it did not rip when she lifted it until it did so after more weight was added and the contents fell on the ground.

“Well, that works,” The child sighed sarcastically as she placed the bottomless bag to the side as Notches was chuckling. Notched jumped off the child’s lap after the bag ripped and looked at the worn-out bag’s contents on the ground. There were tools inside, ranging from a screwdriver with the tip covered in dirt to a hammer, a water sprayer, and a small journal.

‘How many journals does this Avril write?’ the child thought as she took out the small journal. She opened the small journal, seeing the same handwriting from Avril and the process of making this ‘Gold Dust.’ A small note on the side reads:

I have created the first Dust Whistle that allows me to travel between Sodor and Shining Time Station, even to avoid my dad whenever he comes around because of certain things. My friend Crystal helped me create the Dust Whistle and test it with the Gold Dust Sodor it thrives on, which was a success!

If lucky, we can make multiple Dust Whistles for conductors to use for travel without running low on Gold Dust! But I can’t store the Gold Dust anywhere without the Dust Whistle; it is the only source for keeping it other than the conductor whistles I helped them make for themselves.

The child looked thoughtful and reached up to the Dust Whistle around her neck, feeling it through her garments before looking at it closely. She looked at it thoughtfully as she looked at the gold symbol. But it does not make any sense with the other symbols on it.

She shrugged as she put the Dust Whistle away, placing the journal into her sweater’s pocket, and turned to the mountain with Notches, watching as the ghost reappeared and pointed at something in the rock before disappearing.

“There’s another secret compartment?” Notches asked, mostly muttering with some disbelief in his voice.

“It could be,” The child nodded, mostly weary that there would be another secret compartment. The child and Notches approached where the ghost pointed and looked, seeing something golden stuck within the rock.

“Hey!” Notches perked. “Is that what I think it is?”

“It looks like it,” The child nodded in agreement. She pushed her glasses into place and picked up the water bottle, spraying at the section where it was sticking out. After a few sprays, the child placed the bottle away, took out the hammer, and aimed her screwdriver, using it as a chisel as she chipped at the rock from the crystal.

The chipping lasted a few minutes before finally removing all the rock around the golden item and coming across a hand-sized golden crystal! The child took the crystal out of the rock and stared at it with surprise, finally seeing what this ‘Dust Crystal’ was.

“This is what a Dust Crystal looks like?” the child asked.

“It doesn’t say much, does it?” Notches asked as the child looked at him.

“Yes,” the child nodded. “I’ll get a journal of mine and try sketching them out to let others and maybe Avril know what they look like.”

“Good idea.” Notches nodded. The child placed the Dust Crystal into her sweater’s pocket before stopping when she noticed something else sticking out of the rock.

“What’s that?” The child looked confused. The child took out the sprayer and sprayed at the section before using the hammer and screwdriver to chip at the rock. She sees something silver underneath, so the child continues to chip at the rock and pauses a few times to spray it with water. Eventually, the child finally uncovered what was silver and took out another gemstone, except it was a Dust Crystal itself!

“Another one?” The child blinked after seeing a new sparkling, glitter-filled gemstone in her hand. “I thought there was supposed to be only Gold Dust.”

She stared at the crystal with confusion before placing it into her sweater’s pocket, double-checking if any more Dust Crystals were poking out. After double-checking, the child watched the ghost transform into an orb and head toward one of the buildings.

“I think he wants us to enter that home,” the child perked up, picking Notches up before following the ghost with the items and Dust Crystals she had collected in her sweater’s pocket.

But it was a little heavy for her to carry them all, and she was worried about her pocket ripping, reminding herself she needed a bag. The child followed the ghost while carrying Notches in her arms and approached the house as the door automatically opened, signaling they could enter.

There was some hesitation as the child stared at the door, but she took a deep breath and entered, closing the door behind her. She turned back to the ghost as the ghost mentioned the stove in the kitchen connected to the dining room before disappearing into thin air.

“He wants me to cook something?” the child said out loud.

“I don’t think he means cooking something.” Notches spoke as the child placed him down. “I think he is trying to show us something else.”

The child perked up after Notches explained before walking over to the stove and reaching into her pockets, taking out the two Dust Crystals she found and placing them on the counter. She reached inside and removed the small journal from her sweater’s pocket, opening it to the first page, where the handwritten message was on the back of the front cover.

Only two pages from the journal were written, but the others were blank as she flipped through the pages. The child wondered why this stranger only stopped on Gold Dust and did not write anything about the silver Dust Crystal.

‘Maybe this is a good time to write down and draw sketches of different Dust Crystals,’ the child thought. The first section of the page reads:

• Gather pieces of crystal from Muffler Mountain, and be careful not to break any open so you don’t get sick from the Wild Dust.

The child looked at the crystals worriedly, wondering what ‘Wild Dust’ was, flipping to the second page as it read:

Black Goo: This Black Goo results from mixing two or more different Dusts while creating it and is very dangerous. It will corrupt any living being in contact with it and be permanent if nothing can reverse its effects on the victim. By making this error, the user will also become corrupt.

Processed Dust: Processed Dust can transform any electronic or vehicle into half-humanoids if touched or consumed instantly. This can be reversible if appropriately used, and the proper Dust can reverse the effects. However, each Processed Dust has many different color types and results; some are more unique.

Wild Dust: Wild Dust does not affect humans much, leaving behind a runny nose, drained energy, and a coughing fit. It can transform electronics and vehicles into half-humanoids if touched or consumed over a week or two, giving them sentience or life. Except it will not last long, will slowly revert after ten or more years pass, and will soon lose its sentience.

“Oh, okay,” The child sighed in relief after reading the written descriptions. “So I must be careful about accidentally breaking these Dust Crystals open, or I will get sick. It’s better than getting COVID-19 back in 2019.”

She glanced at the camera from the corner of her eye with a slight grimace but noted the ‘Black Goo,’ not wanting to get herself corrupted if she accidentally mixed the Gold and Silver Dust Crystals. The child flipped over to the first page after reading the description of what the Dusts do, and the second half of the first page reads:

• Take a large pot, fill the pot with clean water up to the rivets, and place the pot on a stove.

The child placed the book down and searched the house, eventually finding a large pot and going over to the sink. She placed the pot in and started the water, filling it as she had one hand in to check if the water was up to the rivets.

When she felt her fingertips touching the water, the child removed her hand and turned the water off, picking up the heavy pot and placing it on the stove. She dried her hands off and picked up the book, reading the second part of the first page:

• Bring the water to a boil and place the crystals in the same color scheme, but do not mix two or more crystals of different colors in the pot.

The child placed the book down and turned the stove on, watching patiently as the water soon boiled after two or three minutes. She picked up the golden Dust Crystal and placed it into the water, watching it sink to the bottom, and picked up the journal as she had brought the boiling water down to a medium. The second half of the first page reads:

• Stir the water gently with a spoon and watch as it turns color until the crystals are drained of their color or until they are translucent and the water transforms into dust.

The child took a wooden spoon and started to stir the water inside the pot, watching in amazement as the water slowly transformed into golden glitter. The crystal in the middle had lost its color and glitter and was translucent. The child turned the stove off after the water transformed into glitter and picked up the journal, reading it as the next part of the first page reads:

• Once the crystals are either drained of their color or translucent, take the drained crystals out and pour the dust into a container of your choosing.

The child placed the book down, picked up the Dust Whistle from around her neck, and turned to the Dust curiously. Suddenly, the Gold Dust lifted from inside the pot and went into the Dust Whistle, flipping it with fresh Gold Dust, and each drop of the Dust filled the whistle to the top.

“I did it!” the child cheered, jumping up and down with happiness before picking Notches up and twirling around with the whistle.

“You did it!” Notches smiled with a happy purr in his voice.

“I can get back home now!” The child smiled back, then paused after mentioning ‘home’ and muttered, “But where can I go home now?”

“What do you mean?” Notches asked, cocking his head to the side after the child placed him on the counter. She looked thoughtfully at the Dust Whistle around her neck, her expression a mixture of worry and disappointment.

“Well,” she began as she looked at the Dust Whistle. “I was kicked out of my house by my supposed ‘parents,’” she quotes with her fingers after releasing the Dust Whistle. “But if I return home, they’ll continue controlling my life and make sure I do their bidding.” She crossed her arms over her chest and slowly added, “And this world will be forgotten, and these people will be stone statues forever.” She forced herself to stop as she shook her head, mumbling, “No, no, no, no, I don’t need to work myself up over that.”

Notches looked confused after the child muttered, but instead of pressuring her to explain more, he just went silent to let her take her time. When she noticed two extra written works on the page, she placed her Dust Whistle around her neck and picked up the journal. The last two read:

• Use the dust at your own pace to help vehicles transform into different forms or transport from one spot to another.
• Hint: Make sure you restock dust when you are low.

After reading the two, the child blinked in confusion but noted the number seven, knowing she needed to fill it if she ran low on Gold Dust.

“Excuse me, Notches?” The child spoke as Notches perked, turning towards her. She gently leaned down towards Notches with the journal in her hand.

“Yes?” Notches responded, glancing back at the child after she responded to his name. The child showed the writing on number six to Notches and asked, “What does this mean?”

Notches read what number six read and responded, looking back at the confused child, “I have no idea what that meant.”

The child looked confused after Notches answered her question, but it started to give her some curiosity about what the Dusts do. A thought entered the child’s mind as she placed the journal down, looking at the Dust Whistle around her neck.

She turned the knob at the end, and it switched from the Gold Dust symbol to the silver symbol, wondering if it was Silver Dust. So, the child removed the drained crystal from the inside and repeated the same process as before with the previous crystal.

It was lucky because the pot was already cleaned out of Gold Dust, and there was no sign of any leftovers from accidentally mixing the Dust. She placed the silver Dust Crystal inside once the water came to a boil and lowered the temperature to prevent overboiling, watching as the water transformed into Silver Dust. The child used her Dust Whistle to absorb the Silver Dust, seeing that the capsule that showed the amount of Dust inside was full.

“Okay,” the child nodded after filling two compartments in the Dust Whistle. “Now two of the Dusts are filled. We need to figure out what to do next.”

The child collected her items, returned everything to be polite, and picked up Notches before watching as the same ghost appeared and exited the house. She transformed into her rat form with the Zodiac Pocket Watch, pausing when she noticed that her items had magically disappeared but reminding herself that animals do not wear clothes. Once she had transformed into her rat form, the child climbed onto Notches’ back, returning to the station.

When they arrived at the station, the station was still a mess, and Nightmares were roaming around the darkest parts, trying to evade some sunlight that perked their attention when the Nightmares were avoiding the light.

“Okay.” The child nodded as she climbed off Notches’ back. “I’ll return to the office and transform into my human form inside, then let you in.”

“Good idea,” Notches agreed, and the child hurried off. She avoided the Nightmares as they were busy either with each other or messing around with the place. After getting past all the Nightmares, the child arrived at the hole in the office but flinched when one of the Nightmares roared, emitting a small squeak.

So the child squeezed herself through the same hole and went through the maze before entering the office, seeing nothing much that had changed inside. She removed the necklace around her neck and transformed back into her human form before walking over to the door, opening it just enough for Notches to squeeze through, and closing it before any Nightmares entered.

Once they were both in the office, the same ghost appeared and looked over at the statue, mentioning the statue with a hand, the man said in the letter before pointing the Dust Whistle around her neck.

“You want me to use the Dust Whistle?” the child slowly asked. The ghost nodded after the child slowly asked and floated over to the statue with a soft, sad expression before disappearing. The child was confused and hesitant about using the Dust Whistle, but she took a deep breath and took it out as she exhaled gently.

“Here goes nothing.” The child switched from silver to gold and blew into the whistle, watching as the Gold Dust emerged from the whistle and went to the statue. The child watched as the Gold Dust swirled around the statue, slowly fading the stone’s appearance into flesh.

The statue soon came to life after a whistle, and the stout gentleman blinked, wobbling a little before falling out of the chair, causing the child to scramble over to him and grab him around his chest before he could collapse as Notches scrambled back in startlement.

But his weight against her small frame was heavy, and she stumbled a little when he went into her as his hat fell off, but she kept herself up as she helped him onto his bottom. The stout gentleman has fair caucasian skin and brown eyes, looking somewhat groggy from sleeping for a long time. He wore a morning dress of grey trousers, a white shirt, a black tie, a cream waistcoat, a black tailcoat, and a black top hat.

The child picked up his hat from his desk next to them and knelt to his height, asking as she held his hat towards him, “Are you alright, sir?”

The stout gentleman blinked dizzily after the child asked and looked over at her, seeing her standing with worry while holding his hat in her hands. She paused a little to brush some leftover Gold Dust off the hat, along with dust from age.

“I’m fine,” he answered groggily before noticing the Dust Whistle around her neck. After seeing the whistle, he perked up and exclaimed, pointing to the whistle, “Wait a minute! Where did you find the whistle?”

The child handed him his hat, and he placed it on his head as she explained, “I found it while in a station. It was in a secret compartment-” “Under the ticket booth,” they both simultaneously finished. The child perked up after Sir Topham Hatt finished her sentence with her.

“You’ve found the message Mr. Conductor left?” the stout gentleman asked.

“This?” The child reached into the pocket of her blue jeans and showed the message to the stout gentleman, now understanding the term ‘Stoke up the magic in the mountain, and the Lady will smile. Then watch the swirls that spin so well.’

“Yes, that!” the stout gentleman nodded. “Thank you for helping me.”

“You’re welcome,” The child nodded before holding a hand out to him.

He took her hand as she helped him up to his feet, surprising him when she successfully helped him rise without strain. Notches walked back up to the child as he looked up at the stout gentleman, and the child bent down to pick him up, holding him in her arms as he climbed onto her shoulders and into her hood.

“Sir?” the child politely asked as Notches put his head on her shoulder. “What is happening? Where did those ‘Nightmares’ come from? Who is leaving these messages? When did this all happen? Why is this happening? And how did I get here in the first place?”

The stout gentleman cocked an eyebrow after the child asked and was about to respond when she said, “I added the last part because I wanted to finish the main questions, even though I know how I got here.” She paused a little and added, “Somewhat.”

“Well,” the stout gentleman began, regaining his posture, although a little cramped from being a statue for a long time. “Let me explain what is happening here so I can give you some information about this world and why these Nightmares are running loose. It may be long, but we’ll take this time to explain.”

The child nodded after the stout gentleman explained before he asked, “Oh, I forgot to introduce myself properly, but my name is Sir Topham Hatt the Third.”

The child froze for a second, remembering she did not have a name or even be named in the first place! So, instead, she said, right off the bat, “Stephanie. Stephanie Allen is my name, sir.” Then she looked at Notches and responded, pointing to the cat with a finger, “And this is Notches, my pet cat.”

Chapter Text

“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, trying to walk around the desk, but flinched when he wobbled a little, his muscles still numb. Stephanie went over to him and gently helped him up from leaning against the desk.

“Are you okay, sir?” Stephanie asked, helping him stand upright and showing impressive strength towards Sir Topham Hatt, but he did not mention it.

“I’m fine.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, moving away from the desk but not leaning too much towards Stephanie in worry of accidentally hurting her. “I felt a little numb, that’s all.”

“I think it would be best to sit and wait for your muscles to un-numb for the moment,” Stephanie suggested. Sir Topham Hatt nodded after Stephanie suggested it and sat back down in the chair as Stephanie sat across from him at his desk.

After sitting down, Notches hopped onto Stephanie’s lap, startling her a little when he, before keeping still, gingerly climbed onto her shoulders, getting underneath her long hair to curl around her neck and laid down, purring as he laid down.

“Let’s begin with what I know about Sodor so far,” said Sir Topham Hatt, adjusting his hat slightly. “But it will be enough for you to help with your confusion, Stephanie.”

Stephanie nodded in response as she listened carefully to Sir Topham Hatt’s words, telling her about his experiences from learning about the past, the present, and the future of what is yet to come.

The Island of Sodor is a magical island created by Lady the Golden Engine, who possessed a magical dust called Gold Dust. She created the island for many steam engines and humans to live harmoniously. Lady was one of the many protectors of Sodor who guarded the island against many dangers and was called a ‘goddess’ by many.

There were others like Lady, but most had fallen over time or after many battles against these mysterious monsters called ‘Nightmares’ that roamed Sodor, causing destruction and chaos. Lady was the only one behind as the main protector and giver of Gold Dust, as she locked the Nightmares away as the others fell during the Great Battle.

She went between the human realm and the island of Sodor to keep guard, even to make sure anyone could go through safely, but she would not let anyone who would do more harm pass through the barrier.

As time passed, there were many changes throughout history, but several stuck out to many people, including one human named ‘Dinah’ from the human realm. Dinah befriended one of the engines from Sodor and soon decided to stay in Sodor with Wendell, the Silly Engine, the steam locomotive she befriended.

She was known for her vast knowledge and curiosity through the written diaries she left behind about Sodor’s whistles and the use of Lady’s Gold Dust, finding more than just whistles that transported you from Sodor to the human realm.

Dinah learned so many things from Sodor and soon settled down, meeting a young man named ‘Ethan Topham,’ Sir Topham Hatt’s great-great-grandfather. Dinah soon grew old after marrying Ethan and died of old age, causing Wendell to grieve her death, but he went mad after Ethan passed.

Wendell started lashing out at everyone; even the slightest criticism made the narrow-gauge engine easily mad, and he started searching for something horrible that would stop death. No words of comfort or affection would calm the angry dragon, eventually forcing the two brothers to seal Wendell away.

With many years passing after Wendell was sealed away, Lady befriended three children who came to Sodor. The children’s names were Tasha, Burnett, and Peter. But while Sodor was magical, it had dark secrets underneath its glory, and Peter discovered them over time.

Peter grew suspicious of the Golden Engine, asking questions about things he had discovered but only receiving hesitation from Lady. This hesitation grew as Peter, now an adult, discovered more dark secrets and confronted Lady after realizing the darkest secret.

He lost the Golden Engine’s trust when she did not explain what they all meant and distanced himself from anything magical, losing all his beliefs and returning to the human realm, never wanting to return to Sodor. Tasha’s passing drove him over the edge, causing him to go into a blind rage and attack Burnett, eventually destroying the Golden Engine, but she managed to escape from him.

Unfortunately, a diesel named Diesel 10 was chasing after Lady. He started attacking as well, damaging her further to the point where she was unable to produce steam, much to Burnett’s despair. He escaped into the real world with the remains of Lady, heading over to Muffler Mountain of the Shining Time Station.

The Golden Engine lay dormant in the mountain in the real world for many years, and Burnett took Lady to Muffler Mountain to rebuild her while Peter, now taking the name ‘P.T. Boomer,’ searched to finish what he had started: destroying Lady for good.

As Burnett was rebuilding Lady back to normal, the magic in Sodor slowly faded with the passing of the years, but Burnett could not make steam as Tasha’s death had devastated him. When the magic was about to disappear completely, a young child related to Burnett named Lily arrived at Shining Time Station.

However, during that same time, Mr. Conductor’s cousin, C. Junior, arriving to help Mr. Conductor with extra Gold Dust, meets Lily and takes her to Sodor. Meanwhile, Diesel 10 was searching for Lady to finish her off for good, believing that diesels should reign rather than steamies.

The same riddle that Stephanie discovered started the journey to find Lady, eventually helping Burnett stoke up the magic, and Lady was returned to Sodor. But returning to Sodor brought dangers, with P.T. Boomer teaming with Diesel 10 to destroy Lady.

A great chase started, and as they crossed the bridge, Diesel 10 and P.T. Boomer fell into a barge filled with sludge. Sir Topham Hatt was there after returning from a honeymoon because his wife felt homesick, berating the two and even getting P.T. Boomer arrested for his crimes.

The island is back to its former glory, with new engines and companies forming and changing with time. Sir Topham Hatt’s number one engine, Thomas, the Tank Engine, went on many crazy adventures, including attempting to race, visiting a wooded island, and assisting an engine behind Sir Topham Hatt’s back.

Eventually, four children appeared in Sodor, encountering the engines and slowly learning about its past, even the mysteries held behind closed doors. A familiar foe decided to return to Sodor with these kids to find the sealed engine the two brothers had hidden, which the person who destroyed Lady had released.

The man was foolish enough to release the engine, and he said the engine went on a rampage, determined to destroy anything in his path to rebuild a ‘perfect’ world. Instead of locking the enraged engine away as the brothers did, they soothed the broken engine’s wrath and mended its heart.

The engine remembered the good times with Dinah and soon returned to normal, accepting that she would not be revived and would keep moving forward. With Sodor returning to normal, the peace did not last after many years had passed.

A new threat, called ‘Nightmares,’ filled with the negativity and evil thoughts created by the darkness in human hearts, found its way into Sodor and caused damage. Many people tried fighting against these Nightmares but ended up being defeated as they were too powerful and attacked anything in their path, regardless of their differences.

But a good friend accidentally stumbled into Sodor when he was a young boy and met Sir Topham Hatt when they were young, eventually befriending each other. They soon discovered a magical item created by their grandfather that allowed them to defeat these monsters and discover a way to turn Gold Dust into different abilities, creating a whistle that can change to use these abilities.

And these are the ones that Stephanie is currently holding and is tasked with. Even with these newfound abilities, too many Nightmares came from where they appeared as teenagers. The good friend and a few others came together and sealed the darkness, ensuring no one else would live with them forever.

But someone grew obsessed with the Nightmares after discovering their powers and finding a way to enter Sodor, wanting to release the danger that was sealed away. And that someone tricked Sir Topham Hatt’s friend named ‘Avril’ into taking them to Sodor but went on to release them and was engulfed, transforming them into a more menacing monster.

With no choice and the magic rapidly draining, causing any living thing to turn into stone, Avril gave the important items to Sir Topham Hatt to escape, eventually sending the Dust Whistle to the human realm as a last-minute change.

Stephanie looked surprised after Sir Topham Hatt explained everything to her as she slowly asked, “So… I’m the one who is supposed to defeat all these things and return Sodor to its glory by myself?”

“Not theoretically,” Sir Topham Hatt assured Stephanie. “Since you are new around Sodor and are a child, my friends and I will help you with your task to defeat those things. You’re not the only one who will do this alone.”

She sighed in relief after Sir Topham Hatt assured her, saying, “Thank you, Sir.” But she had so many questions, wondering who this ‘someone’ was who had duped Avril.

“Right now,” Sir Topham Hatt looked out the window as he watched the Nightmares roaming around as Stephanie looked. “We need to defeat those things to save Knapford and everyone.”

“Right now?” Stephanie asked as she felt worried about coming back to those Nightmares. “Didn’t you say I was new at this?”

“Yes.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “But I’ll teach you how to use the Zodiac Pocket Watch to defeat them.”

That worried feeling grew in Stephanie’s stomach after he mentioned the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hand. She felt she was being rushed into war with only a shield for defense.

Chapter Text

Stephanie’s heart skipped a beat as she wrung her hands, looking over at Notches, who made the ‘speak up’ mention with his paw, sitting in the chair she was sitting in. She looked back at Sir Topham Hatt as he grabbed the knob in his hand, and she panicked.

“I can’t go out there, sir!” Stephanie exclaimed before Sir Topham Hatt was about to open the door. He turned back towards Stephanie as he removed his hand from the door after Stephanie exclaimed with a slight panic in her voice.

“Why not?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, barely opening the door as he turned his attention toward Stephanie. She started to wring her hand as she felt her heart beating against her chest as she chewed her lip nervously.

“I only know how to transform into a rat!” Stephanie protested because she felt afraid. “That’s the only one! I’ll get myself discovered and stomped on before we can do anything else!”

Sir Topham Hatt looked confused after Stephanie exclaimed before perking up as he turned away from the door. “Oh. So you must’ve discovered only one of these zodiacs.”

“‘One?’” Stephanie confusedly repeated the word, looking back up at Sir Topham Hatt. “There’s more than one zodiac?”

“Of course!” Sir Topham Hatt nodded as he placed his hands on his jacket’s collar. “Didn’t you study astrology back home?”

“No,” Stephanie slowly shook her head but silently grimaced after he mentioned ‘home.’ “We only sped through history, math, English, and PE and called that good.”

Sir Topham Hatt looked confused after Stephanie explained, as she paused after he mentioned the ‘second,’ ‘third,’ and ‘fourth’ zodiacs. “Wait a moment.” She took her pocket watch out and looked at it, seeing the second, third, and fourth symbols next to the Rat Zodiac and slowly piecing them together.

She pocketed her pocket watch, took out the journal from her sweater’s pocket, and opened it, looking at the writing in the journal. Sir Topham Hatt perked up after noticing the journal as she flipped through the pages, re-reading the handwriting that read, ‘transformed into a half-goat and half-human hybrid.’

She placed the journal down and reached into her sweater’s pocket again, taking out another journal and flipping through it, noticing the pages for the Dusts, but there were a few other pages with the title, ‘Zodiacs.’

“Why didn’t I notice that?!” Stephanie softly exclaimed as Sir Topham Hatt noticed the journal in her hands. “I must’ve sped through the pages without looking twice.”

“Then you need to slow down a little, Stephanie.” Notches remarked, and Stephanie looked at him with a ‘sorry’ expression. She even noticed that Sir Topham Hatt was looking at the journal in her hands rather than staring at Notches. He did not hear him speak?

“Is that my friend’s journal?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, mentioning the journal in Stephanie’s hand. Stephanie perked up as she looked at him and asked, “Avril is your friend?”

“Yes,” he nodded after Stephanie asked. “But how did you find it? He was carrying it during that battle a few hours ago.”

‘Hours?’ Stephanie thought. “He thought it was hours?’

She decided to stay silent after Sir Topham Hatt asked before looking back at the journal and the list of zodiac signs Avril wrote. Mostly silently scolding herself for not noticing the second half of the zodiacs or even studying them before maintaining the pocket watch itself.

The first page has a drawing of the Zodiac Pocket Watch, describing the back with the gemstones and pointing towards the empty gem slots Stephanie saw when it took in the diamond. There was even the design of each symbol of the zodiac, and the page reads:

The Zodiac Pocket Watch: When my great-great-grandfather was a young boy, a great-great-great-grandfather made the Zodiac Pocket Watch as a family heirloom. It can control the zodiacs, from the Western to the Native American to the Celtic to the Chinese. Something about ‘balancing power for another person to wield to protect family members’ is what my father told me, but he never wields it before.

Now that I have the Zodiac Pocket Watch, I can harness that power for myself, perhaps for some tricks and getting to places I couldn’t reach in my human form. During my experiment with the Zodiac Pocket Watch, I noticed I could transform into whatever kind of Zodiac with a simple tap and transform back after taking off the necklace or any kind of accessory the Zodiac Pocket Watch transforms into.

The only problem I discovered is that the many times I kept using the Zodiac of the Zodiac Pocket Watch, it slowly drained the gemstone itself, and I had to constantly replace it with the same gemstone. I need to find a way to help balance it further to help maintain that problem to perfection, just to keep the Allen family from struggling with buying gemstones like I kept getting.

For now, I know what each Zodiac does on the clock’s face that helps keep control of which zodiac to use, but I cannot use other Zodiacs when taking the form of the one you already have in your mind.

Stephanie cocked her head to the side after reading the book about the zodiacs as Sir Topham Hatt was reading the diary from Avril, noticing the last page and even flipping through the remaining pages, seeing there was no handwriting on them, further confusing him that there was no other handwriting.

Meanwhile, Stephanie flipped the page, seeing a whole page written with descriptions of each zodiac’s powers and even listing out the symbols on said Zodiac Pocket Watch to explain further. The page reads:

This page contains the list of the zodiac powers I have recently discovered. Please excuse me if I got any of the names wrong or accidentally mixed up which category the zodiacs belonged to. To explain further, that goes with all of the zodiacs. You can switch between humanoid and animal forms if you focus as hard as possible. The Zodiac Pocket Watch can determine someone else’s appearance without sticking to a common appearance.

• Hour: Ⅻ
• Zodiacs:
  • Western: Aries
  • Native American: Falcon
  • Celtic: Deer/Stag
  • Chinese: Rat
• Gemstone: Diamond
• Aries Zodiac: The Aries Zodiac transforms you into a satyr, a mythical being half-goat and half-human.
  • You can become incredibly fast.
  • You can rapidly heal over time.
  • You can use the abilities of a goat.
  • You can use the abilities of a satyr with this zodiac.
  • You have limitless stamina.
  • You have pyrokinesis, the ability to control fire.
  • You have strength beyond human standards.
• Falcon Zodiac: The Falcon Zodiac transforms you into a falcon or a half-bird, half-human hybrid, known as a harpy in mythology.
  • You have pyrokinesis, the ability to control fire.
  • You can use the abilities of a falcon.
• Deer Zodiac: The Deer Zodiac transforms you into either a deer centaur or an entire deer.
  • You can act as a savior.
  • You can bestow authority on anyone.
  • You can gain strength from the sun.
  • You can give orders to anyone, despite their danger levels.
  • You can have a vast knowledge of war and how to begin a fight, including ending one.
  • You can have incredible crafting skills.
  • You can have vast abilities using a spear.
  • You can manipulate justice.
  • You can manipulate oaths.
  • You can trick people.
  • You can use the abilities of a cervid.
• Rat Zodiac: The Rat Zodiac transforms you into a rat or a half-rat, half-human hybrid. Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.
  • You can bring drawings to life.
  • You can use the abilities of a rodent.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • However, you can switch occasionally after focusing on your powers.

After reading the page about the Aries Zodiac, the Falcon Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, and the Rat Zodiac, Stephanie felt curious, putting the journal away with the second placed on the desk.

“Okay,” Stephanie said, pushing back some hair from her face as Notches perked. “Maybe I could be stronger if I focused on either the Aries Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, or the Falcon Zodiac.”

“Yes, but be careful,” Sir Topham Hatt warned Stephanie as she took a few steps away from him for safety. “Even with the ability of the Aries Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, or the Falcon Zodiac, it is still not enough to stop the Nightmares.”

Stephanie nodded, and Notches hopped off the chair he was sitting on, landing on the ground before walking next to Sir Topham Hatt. She took the pocket watch out of her sweater’s pocket and tapped the top once to look at the clock, seeing it still pointed at the first four Zodiacs.

She closed the cover and pressed the top down again, soon feeling her body transform as she focused hard on any of the first four Zodiacs. Her legs curled into the legs of a ram with a tail, with two horns curled over her head and her ears growing long and flopping down.

Her hair turned from her original blue to pure white, and she wore a white fur collar, including on her ankles, chest, and arms. Her body is covered in fur, but she only wears a blue, sleeveless dress that reaches down to her knees.

After the transformation, Stephanie opened her eyes, and her pupils were rectangular instead of round, causing her to exclaim as she lifted her hands. She paused as she blinked, instantly moving her arms out. Her vision was wide like someone had placed a glass jar on her head. “Whoa! I can see everywhere?”

“That’s one of the abilities with the Aries Zodiac,” Sir Topham Hatt explained, as the ‘camera’ showed Stephanie’s eyesight, which showed every square inch of the office, even turning towards Sir Topham Hatt. “Avril once transformed into his Aries form and was a little overwhelmed with the vision.” He paused a little as he moved his arm forward to hold her arm in case she wobbled gently. “Are you overwhelmed?”

“I am.” Stephanie nodded before chuckling and moving her arm away from Sir Topham Hatt, who looked faintly confused. “But this looks so much different because I am wearing glasses.”

She gingerly took a step forward but was shaking a little because of her newfound legs, and Sir Topham Hatt was prepared to grab her in case she fell over but managed to get to the door as she felt hesitant.

“Be careful, Stephanie,” Sir Topham Hatt assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder the best he could since Stephanie was taller than him in her Aries form. “I’ll be right behind you.”

“And I am following after you, too.” Notches nodded confidently. Stephanie nodded and soon opened the door, exiting the office with Sir Topham Hatt and Notches behind her.

The goblin-like Nightmares perked up after Stephanie stepped out of the office with Sir Topham Hatt and Notches, and she instantly stopped, looking worried after they saw her. Then they started to run right towards her, causing her to panic and feel overwhelmed with the Nightmares coming in different directions.

“Don’t panic, don’t panic!” Sir Topham Hatt assured her as he put his hands on her shoulders. But Stephanie panicked when the goblin-like Nightmares attacked them, grabbing and tugging at their clothes, hair, or fur. They even grabbed Stephanie’s long hair and collar with the Aries Zodiac sign.

“Let go of us!” Sir Topham Hatt frowned, giving one of them a good right hook, but got his tie grabbed by one of the goblin-like Nightmares and was choked. “Let go of that!”

Notches were hissing and scratching at the Nightmares attacking them, giving some good scratches that caused some bleeding while others were being bitten. Stephanie perked up and lifted one of her hands, focusing on its heat before emitting a small ball of fire in her palm.

Some of the goblin-like Nightmares perked up after seeing a small ball of flame as Stephanie swung her hand down, emitting a small wave of fire that hit a group of Nightmares, causing them to be launched backward with a shriek of pain. The Nightmares instantly scrambled back after Stephanie produced fire from her hand while releasing Sir Topham Hatt’s tie and Notches’ tail.

“There you go.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, adjusting his tie to prevent it from being choked and tucking it into his vest as Stephanie quickly hid her necklace to keep it from being yanked off during battle. “Keep going.”

Stephanie focused more on her fire ability as the goblin-like Nightmares chased towards them before shrieking when Stephanie flung her hands around, making small waves of fire that caused them to scramble backward as Sir Topham Hatt was behind, keeping an eye out.

“That’s right!” Stephanie huffed. “Don’t come any-!” One of the goblin-like Nightmares was heading towards her from behind without Sir Topham Hatt noticing, and she perked up after seeing it approach and whipped around in front of Sir Topham Hatt, kicking it across the face with a heel that caused it to poof into smoke.

But the smoke soon reformed into the same goblin-like Nightmare as it chuckled before shrieking when Stephanie moved her fire-covered hand towards it, not liking the brightness it emitted from the palm of Stephanie’s hand.

“Alright,” Stephanie spoke as goblin-like Nightmares surrounded them while Sir Topham Hatt was prepared with balled fists, slowly stepping away from the hoard of Nightmares around them. “This isn’t working.”

“I’m afraid I have to agree with you,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, keeping his stance as his hands were up close to his face for protection.

Stephanie flinched as one of the larger goblin-like Nightmares jumped towards them, moving her hands up as the fire vanished, but instead, golden threads came from wrapped around her fingers and towards the goblin-like Nightmare.

The goblin-like Nightmare was soon wrapped in these golden threads, and Stephanie, Sir Topham Hatt, and Notches looked surprised, hovering in the air while struggling as it was wrapped around its wrists, ankles, and body.

“I can do that?!” Stephanie exclaimed after the threads appeared, wrapping around the Nightmare as it squirmed in its binds and gnawed at the strings.

“I never saw that before!” Sir Topham Hatt nodded in agreement before ducking when a Nightmare jumped towards him.

“Me either!” Notches added, dodging a Nightmare’s attempt at grabbing him as he gave a fierce hiss and scratched one of their faces. Stephanie then noticed a heart-shaped object in the middle of the goblin-like Nightmare’s chest. 

Curiously, Stephanie flicked her fingers as the gold threads wrapped around the goblin-like Nightmare’s heart-shaped object, causing it to stiffen when it was covered. She tightened the strings, and the heart-shaped object snapped, causing the goblin-like Nightmare to disappear, but it did not reform after it snapped.

“Stephanie,” Sir Topham Hatt said as he witnessed the same thing as he approached Stephanie’s side. “I think you found a way to defeat them.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement after discovering her newfound power, and the Nightmares continued attacking all three. Stephanie used both fire abilities, goat-like abilities, and her newfound string ability, making the goblin-like Nightmares weak to reveal their ‘cores’ before using her string ability to defeat them completely.

Sir Topham Hatt helped Stephanie by protecting her back whenever she used the string ability, giving the goblin-like Nightmares a good right and left hook. Seeing they were stronger than them, they started to leave the station as fast as they could as Stephanie tossed flame balls toward them, even using her string ability to wrap some of them that were defeated.

When the last goblin-like Nightmare disappeared with a good shatter of the heart-shaped object, the station was empty of these Nightmares, and a wave of relief washed over Stephanie as she sighed and the strings disappeared. But since she was wrapping more Nightmares with her string ability, it started to hurt her fingers with the harsh rubbing feeling, leaving some marks on her fingers.

“You did it!” Sir Topham Hatt suddenly hugged Stephanie, who stiffened as he did so. “You saved Knapford from those monsters!”

“Yes, I did!” Stephanie nodded before being released. “But won’t they return?”

“Not after they have discovered what you can do,” Sir Topham Hatt mentioned. “They never return after being defeated… unless they bring someone bigger to attack.”

“Oh great,” Stephanie groaned, glancing around to check for the ‘bigger’ Nightmare to appear while looking at the destruction around the platform.

“But we need to find gemstones for the pocket watch,” Sir Topham Hatt mentioned as Notches approached Stephanie. “Ever since the last battle, most gemstones had been used up, but I kept an extra diamond for activating the first two Zodiacs.”

“So we are going to find a jewelry store to find some?” Stephanie asked, hoping that would be a way to cut corners for the Zodiac Pocket Watch.

“Not exactly,” Sir Topham Hatt assured, not noticing Stephanie’s faint hope of finding a shortcut. “We have to find natural gemstones.”

“Oh!” Stephanie winced, feeling worried. “That’s going to be hard to find with all these Nightmares on the loose.” But then she paused and added, as she looked at her fingers thoughtfully, “But I have that string ability that seemed to help a lot in getting these Nightmares away.”

Sir Topham Hatt nodded after Stephanie mentioned that she had transformed into a human, holding the pocket watch before putting it away.

“Now that Knapford is empty,” Sir Topham Hatt said, turning around as Stephanie perked. “Let’s rescue the people.”

A hesitant expression appeared on Stephanie’s face for a minute, but she pushed that doubt down as she watched Sir Topham Hatt walk away before following him.

Chapter Text

While Sir Topham Hatt, Stephanie, and Notches, who climbed into her sweater’s hood, wandered around Knapford, seeing many statues around and searching for a spot where the wind would carry the Gold Dust to restore everyone, Stephanie explained to Sir Topham Hatt about Shining Time Station. She explained how it had been abandoned and the tracks had been pulled out, causing Sir Topham Hatt to worry after hearing Stephanie’s words.

He was even surprised when she mentioned there was advanced technology and even more diesels around that were doing the jobs. Sir Topham Hatt soon stopped walking as a slow realization came to him as he pieced together Stephanie’s words while Stephanie kept talking before stopping when he stopped.

“What’s wrong, sir?” Stephanie politely asked as she looked over her shoulder at him. Sir Topham Hatt stayed silent momentarily before glancing up at her and asking, “Stephanie? The year here in Sodor is 1994, but the real realm is 2013 since time slows down on Sodor.” He paused a little, and Stephanie could tell he looked nervous but was keeping himself together.

Stephanie hesitated for a minute after Sir Topham Hatt asked, glancing over at Notches with a small, hesitant expression as Notches silently nodded at her before answering, looking back at Sir Topham Hatt, “2024, sir.”

Sir Topham Hatt’s eyes popped wide after Stephanie answered what the date is currently outside of Sodor, exclaiming, “‘2024?’” before paling slightly after realizing how many years had passed. “Eleven years have passed?”

Stephanie nodded after Sir Topham Hatt asked as she wrung her left wrist, saying, “Whoever came here with the whistle and left behind that message must’ve forgotten about Sodor itself and disappeared.” She paused a little, saying, “I’m sorry that many years have passed.”

“No, no, it’s okay,” Sir Topham Hatt assured her, still pale as Stephanie looked worried for the controller. “I think I need to sit down for the moment.”

So Sir Topham Hatt sat on a bench at the station where they arrived back from their walk and adjusted his hat, a little spooked after realizing how many years had passed since being transformed into stone. Stephanie looked at the statues around her and said, “I’ll start transforming everyone back to normal. Just take a break here for the moment, sir.”

He only silently nodded after Stephanie had explained everything to him and took her whistle out, muttering, “Let’s hope this works.”

“It will,” Notches assured Stephanie as she looked down at Notches with a hopeful expression. “We’ve seen it happen before.”

Stephanie nodded before double-checking the symbol as it is on the gold symbol and taking a massive breath before whistling the whistle, watching an enormous bubble filled with Gold Dust emerge from the Dust Whistle.

She looked confused before an ‘uh oh’ expression replaced it after witnessing a storm of Gold Dust coming out of the Dust Whistle. But after removing her mouth from the whistle, the bubble rumbled, and Stephanie covered Notches’ face along with hers, yanking the whistle back and causing the bubble to pop.

Outside, a gigantic explosion of Gold Dust soon gathered in the wind and spread throughout Sodor, even sprinkling on top of the statues as the wind continued. They slowly started turning them back to humans, feeling sore from being stuck in their stone forms before stumbling from the soreness from standing.

Others woke up from sitting, glanced around in confusion, saw Gold Dust sprinkling on their bodies from the sky, and looked confused. Meanwhile, Stephanie coughed after whistling in the whistle before looking at it, seeing that the Gold Dust had gone down a little from the explosion.

“Okay,” Stephanie coughed as she waved her hands, not noticing she was getting covered in Gold Dust itself with Sir Topham Hatt as Notches sneezed, shaking himself to get the dust off him. “That was way too much, and I did not expect that!”

“Take small breaths next time, Stephanie.” Notches sighed before sneezing. She looked at the Gold Dust sprinkling on her body, noticing no effect on her or Sir Topham Hatt, who gently brushed the Dust off with his hands.

“Oops.” Stephanie blushed a light blue as her ears flicked up and down slightly, and Notches shook his body to get the Gold Dust off, sneezing a couple of times. “Sorry, sir.”

“It’s quite alright,” Sir Topham Hatt gently assured her, brushing the Gold Dust off his body. Stephanie shook herself to get the Gold Dust off as Notches hopped out of Stephanie’s hood, sneezing and getting the dust off.

She silently noted that she might need to stock up on Gold Dust Crystals if she used them too much to help everyone revert to normal. After hearing a steam locomotive’s whistle, she perked up and glanced over, watching what looked like a sentient, groggy locomotive puffing down the rails.

The steam locomotive’s basis was a GNR Class A1 Pacific, painted in cerulean blue with red lining on its cab, splashers, tender, cylinders, and boiler and yellow lining around its windows. The number four is painted on its tender in yellow with a red outline and has a white running board with red buffer beams and valences.

That looks like the same steam locomotive Stephanie had first encountered when she arrived at Sodor. But the most perplexing thing is that it has a face that looks like an adult’s. Stephanie started to panic after noticing the massive steam locomotive approaching, not expecting to see a face on the previously non-sentient being.

However, she did not run away after seeing the face as it stopped at the station. He looked dizzy as his crew stepped out, looking sore and dizzy. She snapped out of silently freaking out after noticing the crew and quickly rushed over, helping them as she said, gently ushering them, “Take it slowly.”

Sir Topham Hatt moved from the bench to allow them to sit down, looking dizzy and slowly adjusting to their surroundings. He even helped other passengers out of the coaches as the guards laid down on the pavement for their grogginess to stop.

“What happened?” the steam locomotive asked, sounding slightly groggy as Stephanie flinched when it started talking and had a deep voice. “I felt like I had been asleep for a thousand years.”

“Um,” Stephanie said as she hesitated, still silently freaking out that this steam locomotive was speaking, even looking at her when she spoke, grabbing it—no, his attention. “I’ll explain everything once I figure out how everyone is doing.”

He grunted a little with the sound of an acknowledgment as Stephanie stepped into the cab, checking for anything off or any damage. There was no damage except for a low coal supply from the tender and a small fire, but she was fighting the urge to step further into the cab to look around, unsure of how this said vehicle was even moving or speaking towards her.

Maybe all that Avril had written in the diary was true, and she was overlooking everything without realizing the truth, even before using the Gold Dust. A knot secretly grew in Stephanie’s stomach at the thought that every vehicle had faces.

But she pushed all those thoughts away and nodded as she stepped out of the cab, noticing the coaches filled with passengers slowly stepping out. After stepping out of the coaches, the passengers sat on the ground, leaning against walls to keep themselves from falling over from dizziness, as some winced from sore bones.

“Geez,” Stephanie gently winced as she muttered, helping many passengers and workers from stiffened appearances. “Being a statue for over eleven years does give you a crick in the neck.”

“Hey, kid!” Stephanie perked when someone exclaimed and glanced over, seeing an African-American teenager approaching her with jet-black dreadlocks and deep brown eyes. He wore a yellow and blue jacket, a black t-shirt with number four on the front, black shorts, and black and white shoes. “What on Sodor happened here?!”

Then he paused after seeing Stephanie’s appearance, ranging from the pointed ears to the long blue hair, even Notches, whose ears are somewhat folded back and his tail flicking back and forth towards him.

“Romeo,” Sir Topham Hatt spoke, gently tugging the teenager named ‘Romeo’ away from Stephanie as she started to calm down slowly. “Let me explain everything.”

Everyone across Sodor started moving around after being a statue for a long time; some toppled over from different positions while others were sitting on items while clutching their heads. Multiple locomotives and various vehicles were blinking in confusion, looking like they had just woken up from a deep sleep and were trying to get used to the light.

Or maybe they were like bats coming out of the cave in the daylight, slightly groggy from having to ‘wake up.’ After explaining what happened to Romeo, Sir Topham Hatt used his car to drive around Sodor with Stephanie and Notches as his passengers to check if anyone was still standing and to prevent others from toppling over from dizziness.

Some people were still statues, and some locomotives were faceless or not alive, so Stephanie used the whistle to bring them back to life with one whistle. During one of the drives, Stephanie checked the whistle as it was almost empty, telling Sir Topham Hatt, “Hey, sir? I must stop at Muffler Mountain to find more Dust Crystals.”

“Right.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, looking around as if he were searching for someone but keeping an eye on the road. “I’ll stop at Muffler Mountain for you.”

Sir Topham Hatt drove to the mountain and stopped, allowing Stephanie to walk out and search for any Dust Crystals. While she was searching, Sir Topham Hatt was still looking around for someone, muttering, “Where could he be?”

Meanwhile, Stephanie took a long time collecting enough Gold Dust Crystals as Notches kept his eyes out for any Nightmares coming towards them to attack. She finally got some tools to help dig out the crystals, but she planned to get more tools to dig further.

“I don’t think we need to be worried about Nightmares,” Notches remarked after Stephanie double-checked for any Nightmares approaching them. “They can’t come out because of the sun. But they attack from dark places where the sun doesn’t come out.”

“Oh, okay,” Stephanie sighed after Notches explained, dropping her guard but still alert for anything that would come and attack them both.

Once Stephanie had collected enough, she walked to Sir Topham Hatt’s car. She gently tapped the window, accidentally startling the poor gentleman and hearing him give a startled yelp before whipping towards Stephanie.

“Sorry,” Stephanie apologized, as she had her arms filled with Gold Dust Crystals, along with a few others that were the same. “I’m done collecting.”

Sir Topham Hatt noticed that Stephanie had her arms full as she was thinking of a way to open the car door when Notches carefully climbed on her arm and, surprisingly, opened the door for her by using his teeth.

“Thank you, Notches,” Stephanie thanked, surprising Sir Topham Hatt at how talented the cat was, but he kept it to himself as Stephanie climbed into his car’s backseat.

Notches then closed the car door to help Stephanie, allowing Sir Topham Hatt to drive, and made a mental note to give her something to carry all those extra items. Sir Topham Hatt soon drove to the same house that Stephanie had previously entered to create Gold Dust, and he was confused at first but decided to go with it.

Stephanie went to work on refilling her Dust Whistle by repeating the same process but first double-checking if she was using the correct Dust. Meanwhile, Sir Topham Hatt searched the house, looking for something, as his hands were on his jacket’s collar. Everything looked eerily empty.

He entered a room and walked in, only to freeze after seeing a sight. The room looked destroyed as items were tossed around, some destroyed or damaged, and the walls were covered with claw marks and some red splatters across the walls.

Worst of all, the window was smashed as if something had crashed through from the outside. A knot twisted in his stomach as he glanced around, disbelieving that something monstrous had entered his friend’s house.

He gingerly stepped into the room, glancing around cautiously as he looked at the items thrown across the ground as the shattered glass cracked underneath his shoes. Half of him did not want to know what was splattered on the walls as he tightened his grip on his jacket’s collar.

What just happened? Sir Topham Hattt looked around for clues about what could have happened but saw nothing littered everywhere. But where was he? Did something happen to him when he was turned into a statue? How could someone disappear like that?

“Sir?” Sir Topham Hatt perked up after hearing a voice and glanced up, seeing Stephanie peering through the doorway with Notches before gasping after witnessing the scene. “What happened here?!”

“I do not know, Stephanie.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “But I must file a missing person report for Avril and Kathleen.”

“Who is ‘Kathleen?’” Stephanie asked, looking confused after Sir Topham Hatt mentioned a female’s name.

“She’s my friend and also Avril’s wife,” Sir Topham Hatt explained as he returned to Stephanie, his mind buzzing with questions about what had happened to Avril and Kathleen. “But I believe they must have been captured or disappeared somewhere on Sodor while we were stone statues.”

Stephanie glanced at Notches worriedly before glancing back at Sir Topham Hatt and saying, “We can help find out what happened to Mr. Avril and Mrs. Kathleen. From stopping the Nightmares to returning Sodor to its glory, you can search the island for your friends!”

Sir Topham Hatt perked up after Stephanie told him before nodding softly, placing his hand on Stephanie’s shoulder, and saying, “That would be perfect, Stephanie. We can find Avril and Kathleen with more friends and Sodor returning to its glory.” But then he looked at the destroyed room and added, “But we need to have some special people help us find them.”

Stephanie glanced back at the room thoughtfully as Sir Topham Hatt gently led her outside the house, wondering what could have happened in that room. As they exited the house, a faint figure stared through the window, watching the two enter Sir Topham Hatt’s car before disappearing into thin air.

After the last person was brought back to life and double-checking if anyone else was missing, as it was midway through the day, Stephanie was double-checking for anything off or any Nightmares running loose, using her Zodiac Pocket Watch to transform into her Aries form to scare them off.

She mostly gives people a shock with her transforming ability with the watch, but she gives them an apology for scaring them. She, Notches, and Sir Topham Hatt traveled across Sodor to check if anyone else needed to be returned to normal, even seeing different sentient vehicles.

Stephanie was still not used to seeing all these sentient vehicles around her as she continued using the Dust Whistle to help them. After helping the last vehicle regain its sentience, she was finishing up, feeling somewhat tired from wandering around Sodor, not expecting it to be that big.

“Excuse me?” Stephanie perked up as she was in her Aries form, turning around to see a news reporter approaching her. She looked groggy from waking up, but her other hand held a coffee cup and had a cameraman with her.

“Kid,” the news reporter said. “Can you tell what happened in Sodor and how everyone transformed into statues?”

Stephanie became nervous as news reporters gathered around her, pointing any recording device at her face. She was about to answer when Sir Topham Hatt approached her, causing Stephanie to perk up as he said, “I would explain why everyone has been transformed into statues.”

Stephanie listened to the conversation as Sir Topham Hatt explained how he and his friends had locked away Nightmares when they were teenagers. But someone managed to break the seal that locked the Nightmares away and released them, who automatically drained the magic from Sodor, causing everyone to be transformed into statues. Sir Topham Hatt did not tell the press who the ‘stranger’ was; maybe it was for reasonable measures not to get anyone into trouble.

‘So that is what happened.’ Stephanie thought as she returned to normal, still hiding behind Sir Topham Hatt. She perked up when the same ghost appeared a few feet away, made the ‘follow me’ mention, then transformed into an orb and flew away. Stephanie watched the orb fly in the air and muttered, “How would I follow him like that?”

“Didn’t Sir Topham Hatt tell you about the pocket watch?” Notches spoke. “There’s more than one.”

“Oh, right.” Stephanie nodded, taking the Zodiac Pocket Watch from her blue jeans pocket. She looked at the clock face and thought about the Falcon Zodiac, wondering if she could use that one instead.

So Stephanie focused as she clicked the top of the Zodiac Pocket Watch, feeling herself transform and soon stopping after the feeling faded. She looked at her body and was surprised to see she had transformed into a bird of some form while Notches was still bigger than her. She was covered in orange, white, and black feathers with a beak and a necklace around her neck, which was instead a golden Native American totem of a falcon.

“Alright,” Stephanie chirped a little as she looked at herself. “What did I transform into?”

“A kestrel of some form,” Notches responded as he looked around Stephanie. “Too small for me to be carried.”

“Ah, sorry,” Stephanie apologized as the feathers on her cheeks ruffled and she blushed with embarrassment.

“It’s fine.” Notches sighed. “Go ahead and follow that ghost. I’ll try to catch up.”

Stephanie nodded before flapping her wings, going faster and faster before starting to fly as she smiled.

“Hey!” Stephanie smiled, pausing a little when she wobbled before continuing to flap as hard as she could. “I’m flying!”

Notches smiled, saying, “You can glide through the wind, too! But be careful with incoming larger birds or aircraft.”

Stephanie nodded before taking off into the air to follow after the ghost, somewhat stumbling because she was not used to flying in the air.

Chapter Text

Stephanie continued following the ghost over Sodor, sometimes stumbling a little because of the wind and her new form, but she soon got the hang of it and continued flying through the air. She would sometimes land on wooden poles to take a break for a minute but sometimes fumble because of her lack of landing skills before taking off into the air to continue her adventure.

The ghost returned to the same house and transformed into his human self, as he was on the left side, watching Stephanie as she followed. Notches appeared from the bushes after running to the house and looking at the sky, calling, “Take it easy, Stephanie!”

“Okay,” Stephanie said, wibbling a little through the air and flapping a few times. “I can do this, I can do this, I can do this, I-” She realized she was diving a little too fast and emitted a bird-like yelp, flapping her wings frantically as she moved her body downward, trying to land talons first.

“Slow down, slow down!” Notches exclaimed, his tone carrying a warning and worried tone as he watched Stephanie.

“Breaks, breaks, breaks, breaks!” Stephanie panicked, flapping her wings frantically to stop herself from crashing against the ground or breaking something.

But she skidded across the ground as her necklace snapped off, causing her to revert to her human self with the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hand. Notches winced after Stephanie collided with the ground as the ghost winced with him.

“Ow!” Stephanie groaned as she pushed herself up, wincing slightly as her glasses were somewhat off and some of her hair was tangled. “That’s going to leave a mark.”

The ghost hovered in front of her with a silent ‘Are you okay?’ expression as Stephanie pushed herself up, adjusting her glasses and her clothes into place.

“Are you alright?” Notches asked, approaching her with a worried expression.

“I’m fine,” Stephanie assured the two anxious adults. “I just need to practice with that landing maneuver.”

She pocketed her Zodiac Pocket Watch into her blue jeans pocket and moved her hair away from her face, accidentally getting it entangled in her fingers as she slowly stood up to her feet, some parts of her body covered with dirt. As she stood up, however, her long hair got caught between her fingers and even got stuck underneath her knees or feet.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow!” Stephanie winced as she carefully untangled her hair from her fingers and stepped away from her long hair. “I need a haircut.”

The ghost hovered around Stephanie as she watched the ghost eye her, noticing his soft, sad expression as he mouthed, ‘I’m sorry.’ Stephanie smiled and reached up to the ghost, pausing after remembering they could not feel her attempts to assure the worried spirit, so she said, “It’s okay. I’m fine.”

The ghost softly smiled after Stephanie assured the poor ghost before waiting as Stephanie adjusted everything before glancing back at the ghost. The ghost hovered in front of the side of the house and looked around thoughtfully before phasing through the side of the house.

Suddenly, something clicked, and a secret door opened automatically, silently beckoning Stephanie and Notches to follow. Stephanie hesitated for a minute as she picked Notches up from the ground and held him close to her chest, approaching the door slowly.

“Be careful, Stephanie,” Notches told her. “Some ghosts may look helpful, but they can play deadly tricks you will not know are coming towards you.”

Stephanie nodded after Notches warned her as he climbed over her shoulder, got into her sweater’s hood, and placed his head on Stephanie’s shoulder. Once Notches was in his favorite spot, Stephanie slowly reached up to the door and hesitated for a minute before putting her hand on it. She slowly opened the door, revealing a different part of the house that she did not see but was dark inside.

“Huh,” Stephanie remarked. “I never saw this part of the house.”

After closing the door behind her, Stephanie stepped into the secret room, sealing them in the darkness. Stephanie’s eyes were faintly glowing as she stepped through the darkness, glancing around curiously and looking at the walls.

Everything appeared to have been built with blueprints a long time ago, and the owners had already discovered the secrets, as there were signs that it had been cleaned. But there was that lingering feeling that something was wrong with this place. Stephanie continued down the hallway before entering a wide room and seeing a large glass cabinet with what looked like a doll inside.

“A doll?” Stephanie blinked in confusion. Notches perked after hearing Stephanie mumble and glance over, asking, “You can see the doll?”

“Yes,” Stephanie responded before perking up, glancing back at Notches as she pointed at her eyes. “Oh, I can see in the dark too.”

Notches cocked his head with a confused expression as Stephanie watched the ghost reappear as the lights flickered on, surprising the two with the ghost’s ability. It looked over at the doll in the glass cabinet and pointed to the doll behind it before disappearing.

“He wants me to take the doll?” Stephanie blinked in confusion. Notches stayed silent after watching the ghost point at the glass cabinet before saying, “I don’t think you should.”

“Why?” Stephanie asked, glancing at the cat as she looked over at the doll in the cabinet, her curiosity growing by the minute as she stared at the doll.

“Because I don’t trust dolls or that ghost,” Notches responded. “What if it is another spirit or someone attempting to trick us into taking a harmful spirit with us?”

But Stephanie walked close to the glass cabinet as Notches watched, exclaiming as he moved up from her sweater’s hood with some of her hair covering his face, “Are you insane?! Don’t open the cabinet!”

Unfortunately, Stephanie’s curiosity got the best of her even when Notches used his claws to attempt to slow down Stephanie. She reached up with a hand, grabbed the glass cabinet’s door handle, and slowly opened it.

“Aaaannndddd, you didn’t listen to me.” Notches groaned as his ear flicked. The doll instantly perked up after the glass cabinet door opened, and she saw it was Stephanie with Notches. She was beautiful, with long, starlight white wavy hair, snow-white eyes, and a pale complexion.

She wore an 1870s blue outfit with star-like speckles, a moon-shaped crescent in her hair with stars, black leggings, a white collar with a blue necktie, and brown boots with a blue no-sleeve vest. The doll has a silver key in her hand with a gemstone as its head, and she also wears round glasses.

“Who are you?” The doll asked, standing up on her feet from sitting on a chair and picking up her key to use as a weapon, aiming it towards Stephanie as Notches growled, his fur ruffled and emitting yowls with a single hiss. “Where’s Avril?”

“Uh, I’m Stephanie!” Stephanie lifted her hands as Notches started to growl lowly as his fur ruffled. “Notches, calm down.”

Stephanie gently patted Notches’ head as he stared at the doll, slowly growling and giving small hisses, not backing or calming down the pets from Stephanie. He even gave a small hiss to Stephanie, who looked unfazed before turning her attention back towards the doll.

The doll stared at Stephanie, looking up and down at her, noticing the features on her body—the color blue, the long blue hair, the pointed ears, even her wide azure blue eyes—that seemed to have a lingering resemblance.

“Alright, Stephanie,” the doll spoke, still aiming its key at her face. “What did you do with Avril?”

“Nothing,” Stephanie explained as she stayed calm, staring at the doll’s eyes, but she noticed something around her neck. “Avril went missing after I-” She stopped talking when the doll used the key to lift the Dust Whistle from around her neck, exclaiming, “Where did you get this from?”

Stephanie sighed as she reached over to the doll and gently picked her up, pinning her arms to her body as she struggled. But she stopped when Stephanie started speaking as Notches perked, looking at Stephanie with a surprised expression.

“Calm down.” Stephanie softly assured the doll pinned in her hands, who struggled in her hands but listened to her speaking. “Avril went missing with his wife Kathleen after I freed everyone from being statues. Sir Topham Hatt explained what had happened to Sodor when I came here using the Dust Whistle.”

The doll slowly calmed down from struggling after Stephanie explained to them and asked, summarizing everything, “So you’re saying that everyone turned into statues after Sodor’s magic was drained while Sir Topham Hatt sent out an S.O.S., you arrived on Sodor using the Dust Whistle, read his S.O.S. and you freed everyone?”

“Exactly.” Stephanie nodded with an assuring smile. “And Avril and his wife went missing too. I wish to show you the destroyed room, but it is wrecked, and the police are investigating it.”

The doll stared at her hard after Stephanie explained the story but sighed as she said, “Alright. I believe in you. But if you are lying, I will attack you.”

Not wanting to add anything about her or make a remark because of her small size compared to her, Stephanie just nodded and placed her on the table before her after walking away from the cabinet. Stephanie watched as she preened her clothes like a bird, and she kneeled a little to have a closer look at her.

“What’s your name?” Stephanie asked as Notches hopped off from Stephanie’s shoulders onto the desk to take a closer look at the doll.

“I’m Lucy,” the doll responded, turning towards her attention while glancing over at Notches before back towards Stephanie. “What’s your full name and your pet’s name?”

“Stephanie Allen,” Stephanie answered. She glanced over at Notches while the doll looked faintly confused after hearing the last name ‘Allen,’ and Stephanie responded, pointing at Notches as he had calmed down, “This is Notches.”

“Hello,” Notches greeted, somewhat unfazed about Lucy, and his tail flicked back and forth. Lucy’s key transformed into a bracelet, and she clicked it on her right wrist, saying, “Very well. Stephanie Allen and Notches, what brought you here?”

“Well,” Stephanie began. “You wouldn’t believe me, but I followed a ghost here who ‘said,’” she quotes with her fingers. “That I should be taking you with me.”

“Hmm,” Lucy hummed, placing a finger in her chin before looking back towards Stephanie. “What does this ghost look like?”

“A gentleman?” Stephanie rubbed the back of her neck with her hand. “I can’t see much of his body, but he looks like a gentleman with a cap and a blue uniform.”

Lucy perked up more after hearing Stephanie explain what she had seen and glanced away from her, thinking while having a finger on her chin.

“Do you know the ghost?” Stephanie asked, noticing Lucy’s expression.

“I think so.” Lucy nodded, gently pulling herself out of her thoughts, and looked back at Stephanie. “But I can’t be sure.” Then she asked Stephanie, “What else do you have besides the Dust Whistle?”

Stephanie reached into her blue jeans pocket while explaining, as Lucy looked confused, “Well, I have a piece of crap phone that barely works, some Dust Crystals I am carrying in my sweater’s pockets since I don’t have a bag with me, and the Zodiac Pocket Watch.”

Lucy’s eyes widened after seeing the Zodiac Pocket Watch, and she exclaimed, “Did you steal that?!”

“What, this?” Stephanie asked, mentioning the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hand towards Lucy.

“Yes, that!” Lucy nodded, pointing at the Zodiac Pocket Watch in Stephanie’s hand. “Did you steal the Zodiac Pocket Watch?!”

“No,” Stephanie said, shaking her head. “Sir Topham Hatt handed it to me to defeat the Nightmares.” Stephanie paused and added, rubbing the back of her neck, “Well, mostly since Notches and I saved Sodor, he entrusted the Zodiac Pocket Watch to me.”

Lucy listened to Stephanie as she stepped close to her, asking, “Can I look at the Zodiac Pocket Watch?”

Stephanie nodded and showed her the Zodiac Pocket Watch, allowing her to inspect it as she mumbled, “Nothing happened outside.” Then she looked at Stephanie and asked, “Can you flip it over?”

Stephanie nodded and did so, flipping the Zodiac Pocket Watch to its back as Lucy looked at it before taking out her key and tapping it. The back of the Zodiac Pocket Watch opened, revealing all the empty gemstone compartments except the one at the top.

“It looks like the gemstones were all used up,” Lucy noted, seeing only the diamond gemstone powering the Zodiac Pocket Watch. “Someone must’ve used it to seal something away.”

“Seal what, to be exact?” Stephanie asked with confusion. Lucy stayed silent after Stephanie asked and responded, “Something dangerous. I don’t know what it is because Avril kept me here for, and I quote, ‘Safety measures’ and ‘Meeting an old friend.’”

Stephanie cocked her head slightly after Lucy explained to her as she removed her key as the back sealed magically, explaining, “But we need to find where the Zodiac Guardians are so we can fully unlock their true powers. The diamond won’t last long if you keep using it repeatedly.”

“How?” Stephanie asked, perking when she learned of a different side effect; she had not read about the Zodiac Pocket Watch in Avril’s journal.

“Well,” she paused, thinking to herself. “Imagine using the same key for every lock, but it will slowly erode over time until it snaps in one of the locks.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked. “So that will happen to the diamond and, if possible, the other gemstones?”

“Exactly!” Lucy nodded, stepping back from the Zodiac Pocket Watch as the back automatically closed. “That is why we need to find the Aries, the Falcon, the Deer, and the Rat Zodiac Guardians to help support that diamond.”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded, putting her Zodiac Pocket Watch away. “Do you know where they are?”

“The top of the tallest mountain,” Lucy explained. “That’s where they are. Luckily, I have the key to unlock the gates that keep them safe.”

“Safe from the Nightmares wandering around Sodor?” Stephanie asked, piecing together the safety part.

“Exactly.” Lucy nodded, agreeing with what Stephanie said. “You are good at knowing your surroundings.”

“Somewhat,” Stephanie sighed, somewhat shuddering from the visions of the sentient vehicles with their faces. “I’m still trying to understand what Sodor is.”

“Ah!” Lucy perked, not noticing Stephanie’s shudder, and she asked, “You’re not from around here, are you?”

“No.” Stephanie shook her head, holding her hand for Lucy to climb onto. “I’m from Shining Time. It’s my first day here.”

Lucy climbed into Stephanie’s palm as she sat in the middle and clicked her bracelet on her wrist after her key transformed.

“How did you get here? You explained that you arrived here using the Dust Whistle, right?” Lucy politely asked as Stephanie moved her close to her chest. So Stephanie explained how she got here and used the Dust Whistle to free everyone from being statues, which confused Lucy, but she kept it to herself.

Stephanie walked out of the secret room of the house and closed the door, taking Lucy with her as she started walking down a path. She was about to reach the road when a familiar blue car stopped before she and Stephanie winced, saying, “I forgot about Sir Topham Hatt.”

Sir Topham Hatt stepped out of his car and noticed her standing alongside the road, with two other men following him. They both wore blue uniforms and had different facial appearances.

“Where on Sodor were you?” he exclaimed, approaching Stephanie before stopping as the two behind him did the same, looking somewhat confused when they noticed Stephanie’s appearance. “I went around another bend through Sodor searching for you.”

“I’m sorry, sir!” Stephanie apologized with a strange, light blue blush that first confused Sir Topham Hatt before he noticed Lucy in her hand. “I should’ve told you that I-” “How did you find her?” Stephanie stopped talking after Sir Topham Hatt mentioned Lucy in her hand. Stephanie paused for a long time after Sir Topham Hatt asked before saying, “Do you have time to listen to a story that you might think I am making up?”

Sir Topham Hatt cocked an eyebrow after Stephanie asked, and his hands were on his jacket’s collar as she mumbled, “Of course.”

She placed Lucy on her other shoulder as Notches had his chin on her right and explained, as Sir Topham Hatt listened, “Okay. To start with something before I go into details, I sort of ran away because I can see the paranormal.”

“You can see ghosts?” Sir Topham Hatt asked as the two guys glanced at each other in confusion, and the one on the right shrugged.

“Yes, sir.” Stephanie nodded, looking away from the two, who looked at each other. “This ghost guided me around Sodor, ranging from discovering Avril’s tools to gem hunting for Dust Crystals, along with his journals and diary.”

Sir Topham Hatt looked thoughtful after Stephanie explained what she was doing, and he asked, “Do you know what he looked like?”

“I can’t say much.” Stephanie gently sighed. “I know he looks like a gentleman with a blue uniform and a cap.”

Sir Topham Hatt perked up after Stephanie explained it to him, as she could tell he knew about this stranger but silently shook his head.

“So this ghost helped you?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“Yes, sir.” Stephanie nodded. “And he showed me where Lucy was.” She paused as she lifted her long hair, showing Lucy, who waved hello towards Sir Topham Hatt. “I think he sort of knew what to do.”

“It seems like it.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, who seemed unfazed about the sentient doll on Stephanie’s shoulder. “But if you are going to follow a ghost, tell me before wandering off.”

“Yes, sir.” Stephanie nodded, still blushing a little. Then she asked, “Are you mad? Or even not believing what I told you?”

“No, Stephanie,” Sir Topham Hatt assured her, placing his hand on her arm. “I was a little scared that you ran off. But you told me the truth about what you did, and I respected your response.”

Stephanie gently smiled after Sir Topham Hatt assured her but doubted what he had told her and then added, removing his hand, “For the other things, I’m used to seeing puppets and ghosts appearing.”

“Really?” All three perked up, and Stephanie’s ears lifted from drooping, perking the two guards behind Sir Topham Hatt.

“Yes.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “As I explained, we had our adventure with ghosts of the past and had help from the Jukebox Band.”

“Who are they?” Stephanie asked with curiosity. The term ‘Jukebox’ lingered through Stephanie’s head when she noticed it sounded familiar.

“You’ll see them later,” Sir Topham Hatt assured. “Right now, where are you going?”

“To the tallest mountain, sir,” Lucy explained. “She must find the first four Zodiacs to stabilize the diamond.”

“Isn’t that dangerous?” the helper on the left asked.

“Even for a child?” the helper on the right asked.

“It’s fine,” Stephanie assured them. “I’ve got my friends here and the Dust Whistle with the Zodiac Pocket Watch. I have also climbed mountains before.”

All three looked confused after Stephanie assured them, but Sir Topham Hatt took Stephanie to the mountain, where the Culdee Fell Railway was. During the car ride, the two helpers noticed Stephanie’s hair problem, as she felt slightly embarrassed about it, and decided to help her with it, though they did not have the tools to do the job. So they instead did their best to braid it, as Stephanie had a rubber band if she wanted to put her hair up. 

Sir Topham Hatt kept eyeing them through the rearview mirror to check on Stephanie, noticing she had pointed ears as her hair was moved back and looking away, only to look a second time after the thought returned to him.

None of the humans have that type of ear. Is that normal for her? Sir Topham Hatt only stayed silent after seeing Stephanie’s pointed ears, deciding to keep them to himself as he returned to the road.

The drive was a little long, but since there was no traffic, it was easier for Sir Topham Hatt to drive to Culdee Fell Railway quickly. Once he arrived at Culdee Fell Railway, Sir Topham Hatt parked his car at the bottom of the mountain, seeing the engines taking everyone off.

Each locomotive was based on the Snowdon Mountain Railway, except with different faces and liveries. One of them stopped to let passengers out and noticed Sir Topham Hatt looking confused with Stephanie and his two assistants.

“Uh, sir?” one of them said, speaking to Sir Topham Hatt as everyone scrambled to escape something. “I think it’s a bad time to come here.”

“Why?” Sir Topham Hatt asked. Just as he said that question, a loud, monstrous roar echoed from the top, causing more people to scatter as Sir Topham Hatt instantly approached Stephanie.

“What was that?” Stephanie asked as she grabbed Sir Topham Hatt’s arm nervously. Then, a gigantic goat, falcon, deer, and rat hybrid appeared with jet-black fur, sharp claws, teeth, and arrows littered across its back and one directly in its forehead.

“That’s why!” another exclaimed as everyone screamed and scrambled away from the monster as the locomotives entered their hiding spots. The hybrid looked around with a snort before its eyes glanced at Stephanie, seeing something as it growled before roaring.

“Stephanie, run!” Sir Topham Hatt told her. Stephanie listened and did so, running as fast as the monster hybrid approached them. His two helpers scattered when the hybrid stomped towards them, roaring as it approached Sir Topham Hatt and Stephanie, and the adult started leading Stephanie through the forest. Sir Topham Hatt realized the problem and instantly approached Stephanie, avoiding the monster’s stomping and catching up with her.

“Why is it chasing after me?!” Stephanie exclaimed as they went down the hill.

“I think it’s because you have the Zodiac Pocket Watch!” Lucy answered as she held her sweater’s hood while Notches held on with his claws. “It’s a Black Zodiac monster!”

The Black Zodiac monster roared again as it picked up speed, summoning black fire from its palm and shooting it, missing the two as Sir Topham Hatt picked Stephanie up.

“Quick, head for the forest!” Lucy called. “We’ll lose it there!”

Sir Topham Hatt made a beeline and quickly entered the forest, causing it to chase after him through the woods. Sir Topham Hatt continued running as fast as he could while carrying Stephanie in his arms, trying to escape the Black Zodiac monster as it crashed through trees and fired black fireballs.

“We need to find a way to defeat it!” Lucy called. “We can’t outrun it!”

“I wish to use my Zodiac Pocket Watch,” Stephanie explained. “But it will drain the diamond if I use it too long!”

“Then use the Dust Whistle!” Sir Topham Hatt exclaimed. “That one still has Dust in it!”

“Right, right, right, right!” Stephanie nodded, scrambling to get the whistle out of her garments.

Sir Topham Hatt was already tired from running as he felt his energy draining each minute, and the Black Zodiac was coming close to him. But he was determined to keep Stephanie safe from that Black Zodiac monster, so he continued running straight forward while carrying Stephanie to safety. Stephanie looked through the necklace as she turned it to Gold Dust, yelping when a rock was suddenly tossed at them as she turned it to Silver Dust.

“Here goes nothing!” Stephanie took a deep breath and whistled as Silver Dust shot out of it, surprising Sir Topham Hatt, Lucy, Notches, and Stephanie. Suddenly, a steam locomotive bursts from the forest with startled yelps as it goes down a small hill with the Black Zodiac watching.

It skidded across the ground as its wheels were moving before bumping into a rock, going over a small bump before it turned around, skidding a few times before landing on the rails, bumping off them, and landing on the wood platforms that were keeping the rails up. Stephanie was flung around what felt like a steam locomotive’s cab while Notches was yowling, and Lucy was clinging to his back with handfuls of his fur.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!” After hearing a familiar voice, Stephanie perked up as the locomotive went onto the rails with a bump and went down the line. Stephanie looked, seeing the outer part of the steam locomotive painted with a black livery with cream-yellow-ish lines like-“Sir Topham Hatt?!” Stephanie exclaimed with a shocked expression.

Meanwhile, the locomotive’s face, like Sir Topham Hatt’s and based on an LSWR 415 class with jet-black livery and cream-yellowish lining, perked after hearing Stephanie’s voice and asking, “Stephanie, what on Sodor happened?!”

Then he heard a familiar whistle and glanced forward quickly, seeing what looked like Duck heading right towards him. Duck’s basis is a GWR 5700 Class painted unlined green with black wheels and valences.

The initials ‘GWR’ are painted yellow and red on the sides of his pannier tanks, with the number eight painted on the sides of his cab in yellow on a rectangular black background with a yellow outline and red buffer beams. Duck perked up after noticing Sir Topham Hatt, but he did not think it was him because he looked so different.

“Excuse me!” Duck called. “You’re on the wrong track!”

Stephanie sees Duck heading towards Sir Topham Hatt before noticing the stationhouses that Sir Topham Hatt told her about, even watching a locomotive whistle to get the stationmaster’s attention when they used the tracks to travel off-road.

She quickly looked around before noticing a cord and reaching up, tugging it twice as a whistle came from Sir Topham Hatt. The stationmaster heard the whistle and instantly perked up, seeing the strange steam locomotive passing by but quickly switching tracks after seeing the situation. Luckily, Sir Topham Hatt and Duck switched tracks at the right moment, and Duck luckily missed the storming Black Zodiac chasing them.

“What was that?!” Duck exclaimed, startled, after seeing the Black Zodiac. Meanwhile, Stephanie was scooping coal into Sir Topham Hatt’s firebox with the shovel while Notches was peering out of the window with Lucy on his back, watching the Black Zodiac storm down the line and chasing after Sir Topham Hatt at full speed.

“It’s getting closer!” Lucy exclaimed, glancing over at Stephanie. “We can’t outrun it!”

“I know!” Stephanie nodded, pausing to shovel coal into Sir Topham Hatt’s firebox. “But how can I defeat that thing twice my size?!”

“You’ve got that string ability, don’t you?” Notches pointed out, mentioning to her hands as Lucy looked over with confusion after hearing ‘string ability.’

“Yes!” Stephanie nodded as Lucy looked confused, mouthing, ‘What?!’

“Well, use that!” Notches huffed. “Sometimes you have to face things instead of running away!”

Stephanie hesitated before nodding and placing the shovel down. She carefully climbed out of the cab with Lucy holding onto her shoulder. Sir Topham Hatt perked up after feeling something move on him, asking, “What’s going on back there?!”

“Everything will be alright!” Stephanie responded as she stabilized herself with her long hair waving behind her. “I think I’ve got everything under control!”

“Be careful!” Sir Topham Hatt warned. Stephanie pats his cab’s roof before slowly standing up, facing the Black Zodiac as it rears to fire fireballs.

Inside Sir Topham Hatt’s cab, a figure poked its head out of the window, noticed it was about to be ready to fire fireballs, and noticed someone was crossing, so they went back instead and hit the brakes.

Stephanie yelped when Sir Topham Hatt screeched to a halt and fell backward, sliding a little as she landed on his boiler. She wrapped her arms around the funnel while Sir Topham Hatt gritted his teeth from the screeching noise and feeling.

The Black Zodiac accidentally tripped over Sir Topham Hatt, gave a somewhat animalistic yelp, and collapsed on its front, missing Henry by an inch as he screamed, watching it land on the ground with a thump!

“Holy crap!” Stephanie exclaimed after watching the Black Zodiac fall before noticing a confused and, most likely, surprised Henry.

“Sorry, Henry!” Sir Topham Hatt responded, trying to keep his composure but seeming a little embarrassed because of his different appearance in front of the number three.

Henry has the basis of an LMS Stanier Class 5 ‘Black Five’ and is green with a red lining on his cab, splashers, tender, cylinders, boiler, and yellow lining around his windows. The number three is painted on his tender in yellow with a red outline and has a white running board with red buffer beams and valences. Henry was confused at first but was shocked after hearing the familiar voice of the Fat Controller from this strange steam locomotive.

“Sir?!” Henry exclaimed, shocked to see Sir Topham Hatt in a different appearance. “What on Sodor happened to you?!”

“I’ll explain later,” Sir Topham Hatt assured the confused number three steam locomotive. The Black Zodiac started to push itself up as it snarled, and Stephanie muttered, “Uh oh,” while Sir Topham Hatt looked afraid. It turned around to attack when a flash of blue zipped by them and smacked it in the middle of its chest, causing it to shriek in pain as it went backward from the impact.

Sir Topham Hatt was surprised to see it was Thomas, and his basis was based on an LB&SCR E2 class locomotive painted in cerulean blue with red lining on his tanks and boiler and yellow lining around his windows. His number one is painted on his side tanks in yellow with a red outline, and he has a white running board with red buffer beams and valences.

“Pick on someone your size!” Thomas huffed with determination as he let off a whistle. The Black Zodiac hissed and was about to attack Thomas after its hand caught fire when something wrapped around its neck and caused it to shriek.

It flung its hand down and was about to hit Sir Topham Hatt when Thomas quickly switched tracks and bumped into Sir Topham Hatt, catching him by surprise as it slammed its hand down, missing him and Thomas as it created a small flame before digging into the ground.

Behind the Black Zodiac was a steam locomotive painted in a steel-blue color with eyes and a mouth but looking a little cartoonish, holding a rope in its pistons that formed into hands and moving backward.

The Black Zodiac monster snorted and tugged forward, trying to get the locomotive and the rope to loosen, but the steam locomotive continued dragging backward. Thomas stopped after moving Sir Topham Hatt back, as Stephanie was holding onto his funnel with both hands after he started moving.

“Are you alright, sir?” Thomas asked, glancing over from the corner of his eye.

“I’m alright.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. The Black Zodiac shrieked as it swiped at the locomotive, causing it to squish its body slightly to miss its swipe before a rope was tossed and wrapped around its other wrist on its left hand, tugging back as it shrieked. It was from James, as the rope was tied to his buffers with a cocky smirk on his face while he looked up at the gigantic beast.

“Got it!” But the Black Zodiac started yanking its arm forward as James yelped, feeling his wheels lift for a minute before landing back down. “I don’t got it!”

Stephanie quickly slid off Sir Topham Hatt’s boiler and rushed forward, looking at the scene as the Black Zodiac tried to tear itself from the ropes and claw at the two steam locomotives. She stayed near Sir Topham Hatt for safety as Thomas protected Sir Topham Hatt from the looming danger in front of him.

She noticed something wrapped tightly around its neck, seeing it was a black collar with the pendant of the Aries symbol, a blend of the Rat Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, and the Falcon Zodiac. It looked almost like the necklace she would wear whenever she transformed into her Zodiac forms and ripped them off-Stephanie perked up after an idea popped into her head. She took Lucy off her shoulder, placing her on Thomas’ buffer before charging forward.

“Stephanie!” Sir Topham Hatt exclaimed. “What are you doing?! Don’t get too close to it!”

Gordon noticed and quickly went forward as the Black Zodiac managed to snap the rope around its neck, and a flicker of fire started to come from its mouth.

“Watch out!” Gordon exclaimed, wanting to stop but noticing Stephanie was still running forward. Seeing no choice, Gordon quickly went forward as fast as he could, and Stephanie noticed and jumped to the side, missing Gordon as he went towards the pelvis as it was kneeling. 

Gordon realized what was about to happen, as he thought he would hit the chest and cringe, closing his eyes, and crack! The Black Zodiac flinched with a pained expression, crossing its eyes after feeling a shooting pain through its body while everyone else winced.

“Ooh, right in the gonads.” James’ driver winced. The Black Zodiac groaned in pain as Gordon went backward, feeling glad he did not have to experience it a little closer as his buffers cushioned his impact.

It was enough that the Black Zodiac knelt with one hand while its legs were together, giving small whimpers of pain. Stephanie took this moment to get closer to the Black Zodiac and instantly reached up to its collar, grabbing the pendant with her hand. The Black Zodiac noticed and quickly attempted to grab her, but the pain from between its legs was so great that the monster fumbled around like a drunk person while everyone moved back.

“Be careful!” Lucy called as it went wild, trying to shake her off its collar. Stephanie held on as she allowed her weight to snap the necklace, hearing some cracking noises as it was slowly ripped off.

It manages to lift the cartoonish steam locomotive from the ground and give off a startled shriek or whistle as it is flung forward and its driver falls out. The driver landed on the ground while the locomotive landed back on the rails but bumped into Percy as they descended the line.

Stephanie held on for a good minute before the Black Zodiac grabbed her with its clawed hand and tugged back, causing her sweaty palms to slip from the almost-off pendant. She yelped as the Black Zodiac held her with its hand, feeling the heat coming from its palm as everyone perked up.

“Stephanie!” Sir Topham Hatt exclaimed. Stephanie flung her hands towards the pendant, and the same strings wrapped around the pendant as the Black Zodiac perked, feeling agitated and tugging hard, causing the strings to tighten around her fingers, palms, and wrists.

She turned her hands into fists and tugged back with her might, successfully snapping the necklace off as the Black Zodiac snorted with an ‘Uh oh.’ The gigantic Black Zodiac then poofed into nothing as Stephanie was dropped to the ground, landing on her front as the strings disappeared, the pendant disappearing with the enormous creature. The rope also landed on the ground, and everyone sighed in relief as Sir Topham Hatt went forward, switching lines, but kept fumbling a little because of his new appearance.

“Stephanie?” Sir Topham Hatt asked as Lucy switched from Thomas’ buffers to his. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded as she gingerly stood up. “I’m-” She hissed softly in pain as she looked at her hands, seeing burn marks from the tightening strings around her fingers and palms, but nothing was bleeding.

“I’m fine,” Stephanie finished, tugging her sleeves over her hands as Sir Topham Hatt did not notice. The steam locomotive’s engineer walked over to her and helped her up to her feet; he was covered with coal smudges, and she had fair skin and short, dark brown hair. He wore a long-sleeve dark slate blue shirt with Prussian blue gloves, Saint Patrick’s blue overalls with brown shoes, a red neckerchief, and a cap the same color as his shirt.

“Thank you,” Stephanie thanked, pushing her long braided hair out of her face and her glasses into place.

“You’re welcome,” the man said, nodding as he gently picked her up and placed her on her feet.

“You should’ve been careful.” Sir Topham Hatt started scolding her. “What would happen if you were burned to death?”

“I didn’t think about that.” Stephanie sighed with embarrassment as she blushed a light blue as her pointed ears flicked slightly. Then, a small light appeared from where the Black Zodiac used to be and went towards Stephanie, surprising her with the light in front of her as the man who helped her up placed his hands on her shoulders protectively. It hovered in front of her for a minute before soaring up into the sky and disappearing.

“What on Sodor was that?” Gordon asked with a confused tone in his voice.

“I think we rescued a star,” Lucy explained as Stephanie cupped her hands to let Lucy climb into her palms. “A star that a Nightmare found and turned into a Dark Wish.”

A shudder went down Stephanie’s spine after hearing Lucy explain as she climbed up to her shoulder. Notches stepped out, walking up to Stephanie as she reached down carefully and picked him up into her arms.

“How many more of those ‘Black Zodiacs?’” Sir Topham Hatt asked as he paused a little to look at the members of the Steam Team, who were all eyeing him with confusion and bewilderment. “Are they a danger to everyone?”

“Yes.” Lucy nodded. “And we need to get back to Culdee Fell Railway to climb that mountain where the Zodiac Gate is. If we don’t collect all these zodiacs, the Black Zodiacs will do more harm than good.”

“Oh, boy.” Stephanie softly winced. “Meaning more Black Zodiacs are roaming around Sodor.”

“Exactly.” Lucy nodded. “But we can help you train with your current powers to defeat these Black Zodiacs.”

This is something that Stephanie has some hope of learning about, but she feels like it is not enough to defeat these Black Zodiacs.

“One question,” Percy spoke up as Stephanie glanced at him. “How did Sir Topham Hatt turn into a steamie?”

“Oh!” Stephanie facepalmed as Sir Topham Hatt winced. “I forgot about that!”

“Forgot about what?” Gordon asked with a tone of worry.

“Did you encounter Wendell?” Toby asked.

“Did he transform Sir Topham Hatt into a steamie?” James exclaimed.

“No,” Stephanie responded with a confused tone. “I used this.”

She reached into her garments and took out the Dust Whistle, showing it to the locomotives and the humans.

“A whistle?” Edward asked.

“No, Edward,” Sir Topham Hatt said, pausing after realizing he could not move much in this form. “It’s Avril’s Dust Whistle.”

“Your friend?” Emily perked. “What is she doing with his whistle?”

He then glanced at the engineer behind Stephanie and said, “Henry.” He paused as he glanced at the number three engine, correcting himself, “Linus’ engineer. Can Stephanie perhaps borrow Linus?”

“Of course.” Henry, Linus’ engineer, nodded. “Is there something wrong?”

“Very.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “But I want to talk to you and the others privately.”

Stephanie could tell there was something Sir Topham Hatt meant to explain to the others, following Henry to Linus as she stepped into his cab while carrying Notches.

“Aren’t you going to drive Linus, Mr. Henry?” Stephanie asked Henry.

“He’s different from the others,” Henry assured with a gentle thumb jab toward Linus. “You’ll see.”

Stephanie looked confused but nodded as Henry walked off, feeling Linus begin moving with no engineer. Outside, Linus used his pistons to push himself up and carefully crawled around while his tender followed behind, using no turntable as he landed back on the rails before puffing down the line.

‘So this is what Henry meant!’ Stephanie smirked with amusement after being slightly surprised that he could move without his engineer.

During the trip, Linus asked, “Hey, what’s your name?”

“Stephanie,” Stephanie responded as she poked her head out of his window. “Stephanie Allen. This is Notches in my arms and Lucy on my shoulder.”

“Pleased to meet you all,” Linus nodded. “As you can tell from my engineer, Henry, my name is Linus.”

Stephanie looked through the window as they passed by different places, watching locomotives of various kinds and basis move around and catch up to what was happening.

“How did you get to Sodor?” Linus asked, glancing behind him from the corner of his eye.

“I accidentally sent her after using the Dust Whistle,” Stephanie explained. “It was Avril’s, but he went missing long before I came here.”

“Huh,” Linus remarked. “I remember seeing Avril occasionally whenever I stopped to take a break, as he usually talks to Sir Topham Hatt about what he discovered.”

Stephanie cocked her head to the side after Linus explained it to her. Linus continued puffing down the line before arriving at Culdee Fell Railway, where he saw the once-terrified locomotives of the Black Zodiac slowly coming out of their hiding spots.

“Is it gone?” one of them with the nameplate ‘Culdee’ asked.

“Yes.” Linus nodded. “Stephanie here made it go away.”

He paused and added, “Also, her friend Lucy wants one of you to take Stephanie up Devil’s Back to find a ‘gate.’” He quoted the air with his pistons, which surprised Stephanie a little. All the engines looked at each other after Linus asked them before the one named ‘Culdee’ puffed forward bravely and said, “I’ll take her. But why?”

“For getting rid of the Black Zodiacs,” Stephanie explained. “There’s more roaming around Sodor, unfortunately.”

The remaining engines from the shed were moved back after Stephanie explained to them, except for the one named ‘Culdee.’

“Don’t worry,” Stephanie assured the frightened steamies as Notches climbed into her sweater’s hood. “Some are scrambling around Sodor, so it’s fine now.”

Her words did not assure the worried steamies, but Culdee assured her, “They’ll loosen a little when things are back to normal. So, please, climb aboard.”

Stephanie nodded and climbed into Culdee’s cab with the help of his driver. She was a little embarrassed because of her short appearance compared to the driver, but she stood at the cab window to watch the scene.

Culdee climbed higher on Devil’s Back as Stephanie watched, amazed at how careful the steam locomotive was as she looked at the slightly slanted world. A faint slip of the rails started Stephanie and the group, but Culdee continued climbing Devil’s Back.

“Sorry about that,” Culdee apologized after slipping a second time. “The rails here can be a little slippery.”

“It’s fine,” Stephanie said, smiling. “It was slippery on the mountains whenever I went hiking too.”

“Really?” Culdee curiously perked up. “You go hiking at a young age?”

“Yes.” Stephanie nodded with a smile. “It’s pretty fun finding items and learning about wildlife in nature.”

She paused a little as she placed an arm underneath her chin and a hand on her cheek.

“Though it is irritating how people don’t understand the point of enjoying nature,” she sighed.

Culdee felt confused about what she meant but kept the question to himself as he finally reached the top of Devil’s Back, reaching a station called ‘Culdee Fell Summit Station.’ Once reaching the top, Culdee stopped, allowing Stephanie and her two passengers, Lucy and Notches, to step off.

“Okay,” Lucy spoke, surprising Culdee when she started talking. She stood next to Culdee, looking at her key as the gemstone was faintly glowing red. “We’re almost near the gate.”

Stephanie nodded as she turned to Culdee, saying, “Thank you for the ride, Mr. Culdee. We’ll come back for the one back down.”

Culdee stayed silent after Stephanie thanked him, watching as Stephanie walked off with Notches and Lucy, still flabbergasted at how a doll could talk. Meanwhile, Stephanie watched for any Nightmares appearing as she walked further into Devil’s Back, following the path as she went higher and higher. The path through Devil’s Back was a little rocky, but Stephanie did not mind it as she continued walking through the mountains.

“Almost.” Stephanie walked next to a large mountain rock wall before the gemstone turned into a diamond with a gold body, and she exclaimed. “Here!”

Stephanie stopped after Lucy exclaimed and looked up at the rock wall, looking faintly confused but seeing if there were clues that it was the gate. Suddenly, Stephanie’s Zodiac Pocket Watch from the pocket of her blue jeans started glowing, which perked Stephanie’s attention, and she reached into her pocket to take the Zodiac Pocket Watch out and look at it.

After taking out the Zodiac Pocket Watch, the Zodiac Pocket Watch’s flower glowed a little brighter, and symbols appeared on the rock wall, revealing a gigantic Native American falcon with a Chinese rat, a Celtic deer, and a ram.

“This must be the gate!” Stephanie perked up as she put the Zodiac Pocket Watch away.

“That’s where I come in.” Lucy grinned as Stephanie lifted a hand at her. Lucy stepped into Stephanie’s palm, holding her to the door as a keyhole magically opened.

Lucy grinned as she inserted the key into the keyhole and turned it, unlocking the gate. The symbols glowed brightly before disappearing as a long, thin line descended from the middle. Then, two rock doors opened, revealing an empty but dark hallway, and Lucy transformed her key back into a bracelet as Stephanie looked down at her with a silently confused and worried expression.

“You can step in.” Lucy nodded as she put her bracelet on. Stephanie silently nodded and placed Lucy on her shoulder before carefully stepping into the darkness as the rock doors behind her back closed, sealing them inside.

Chapter Text

Stephanie’s shoes gently clicked against the rocky ground, with Notches in her sweater’s hood and Lucy on her shoulder. Everything was still dark, but Stephanie could see through the darkness as she looked at the rock walls around her, seemingly endless as she continued walking forward. 

Stephanie had been walking down the cave for a few minutes when something shone before them. Stephanie stopped walking, lifting an arm to cover her eyes from the lamp’s light, seeing it look like a lamp.

“Who are you?” the voice asked as her voice echoed through the cave’s walls, and the light revealed itself as a lantern at the end of the cave tunnel. “Come here so we can see you.”

Stephanie nodded and followed the lamp’s light, moving her hand down after her eyes had gotten used to the bright lamp. She soon stepped out of the cave hallways into a larger room, also made out of stone.

Once she entered the larger room, Stephanie was surprised to see four people waiting for her. One of the figures held a lamp in her hand and resembled Aries, but she was a female doll at the height of an adult.

She has short, curly, dark brown hair with a crown and ram horns. She also has light brown eyes and a fluffy collar around her neck with the Aries Zodiac symbol on the right side.

The doll wore a blue long-sleeved jacket with a hidden collar underneath the fluffy one, a blue ribbon tie, a long-sleeved cream shirt with buttons, cream pants, long white socks with yellow diamonds on the sides, and boots shaped like a ram’s legs.

The second resembles the Flacon Zodiac, is at an adult’s height, and is a beautiful woman. Some parts of her body were covered with feathers, and her legs were replaced with the legs of a falcon, with the wings attached to her back.

The woman has beautiful yellow eyes, fair skin, and long brown hair with a few feathers stuck to it. She wore light brown Native American clothes with beautiful embroidery designs. The third was a male with the ears, hind legs, and tail of a rat, gray hair, fair skin, and light red eyes who wore a Chinese qipao with two swords on his back.

The fourth was a beautiful deer with green cloth clothes, a shield with a sword in its hilt on her back, and some jewelry with green face paint on her fur. They all perked up after Stephanie stepped into the larger room, and the woman with the lantern in her hand stepped back to allow her to step inside.

“Who are you?” the half-rat Chinese man asked, taking out one of his swords. “How did you get in here?”

“Calm down, Shu,” Lucy said to the half-rat Chinese man, Shu. “She’s the current wielder of the Zodiac Pocket Watch.”

All four looked at each other after Lucy told them as the half-falcon Native American woman asked, “Can you show us the Zodiac Pocket Watch?”

Stephanie nodded and reached into the pocket of her blue jeans, taking out the Zodiac Pocket Watch and showing it to the four. They all looked surprised that she was holding the Zodiac Pocket Watch as Shu placed his sword away, and the half-goat doll said, “You are the wielder! We are so sorry. We thought you were a Nightmare in disguise.”

“It’s alright,” Stephanie assured with a chuckle as she placed the Zodiac Pocket Watch away into her blue jeans pocket. “I get that a lot. What are your names?”

“I’m Shu,” Shu responded.

“I’m Chayton,” the half-falcon Native American woman answered.

“I’m Moina,” the anthro deer responded with a Scottish accent.

“And I am Amelia,” the life-sized doll responded.

“Pleased to meet you all,” Stephanie nodded. “I’m Stephanie, Stephanie Allen.”

She mentioned to Notches, as she could tell they knew who Lucy was, “This is Notches, my friend.”

“Hello.” Notches smiled.

Chayton clapped her hands as the crystals on the room’s walls lit up, causing Stephanie to squint a little as the lights turned on, her eyes adjusting. She took her glasses off for a minute to blink a few times and pushed her glasses into place after a few minutes before being startled when Amelia gently cupped her face.

“Oh, you are cute!” Amelia cooed as Stephanie blushed. “You have beautiful azure eyes,” she paused in confusion after noticing Stephanie’s long blue hair. “Blue hair?”

“It’s natural,” Stephanie said softly, smiling with a sigh.

“Natural?” All four echoed, looking at her long hair.

“You’re saying you were born with blue hair?” Shu asked.

“Exactly!” Stephanie nodded. “I had a lot of people ask if I dyed my hair, but it is all-natural blue hair.”

“With pointed ears?” Chayton asked as Shu rubbed his finger against the side of her ear.

“Yes, that too.” Stephanie’s ear flicked from Shu’s finger, lightly rubbing against the side as he pulled her head back from his hand.

The four glanced at each other after seeing Stephanie’s long blue hair and pointed ears, looking like they had seen this before. But they could not put their fingers on it, so they ignored it as they looked at her outfit and appearance.

“耶穌,” Shu remarked after noticing how long her hair was. “Have you ever had someone cut your hair?”

“No,” Stephanie sighed. “They wouldn’t allow me to go to a barber.” She paused and corrected herself with a slightly irritated tone, “I meant my so-called foster parents.”

They glanced at her long hair curiously while Chayton felt confused about why Stephanie looked irritated about them, and Shu said, taking out one of his swords that made Stephanie nervous. “Don’t worry! I’ll cut it for you.”

“Now, wait a minute,” Chayton said before Shu could do anything as Stephanie took a few steps backward. “What if you accidentally slice her?”

“I’ve done this a bunch of times!” Shu smiled. “Besides, I’m careful.”

“Maybe you should listen to her.” Stephanie worriedly smiled. “And I have thick hair, too. So it’ll be a little difficult for you to slice cleanly. It’s not like how Mulan does it.”

Shu rolled his eyes after Stephanie told him and mumbled as he put his sword away, “Fine. Have any better ideas?”

“Find a barber!” Stephanie exclaimed. “As much as I want all this cut off because it is hard to care for, I would like a professional to do it.”

“Good point,” Amelia nodded. “Now, about the pocket watch.”

“Oh, right.” Stephanie reached into her blue jeans pocket, took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch, and held out her hand as she held it, watching as it floated out of her hand, and the back opened, showing the diamond to the group.

“The diamond is still intact.” Chayton nodded. “Let’s help stabilize it.”

Chayton first tapped the Zodiac Pocket Watch, which glowed for a minute before Amelia, Shu, and Moina did the same after Chayton. Stephanie watched as the diamond went from a faint to a brighter color before a memory flashed into her mind as she watched it.

The memory showed a young man climbing down a mountain carefully, his hands on the side of the mountain while he moved his feet to place them on the rocks. He has short brown hair, light brown eyes, fair skin, a long-sleeved shirt with a light brown jacket, black pants with boots, and a cap.

Suddenly, he slipped and started falling down the mountain. He was trying to grab onto a rock to stop himself before a hand shot out and grabbed his wrist, stopping him from falling over a cliff.

After grabbing the man, the stranger pulled him back onto flat ground, and the man looked over at who had grabbed him and saw another man, except with azure blue eyes and blue hair. He has fair skin and wears a white toga with strange markings on his arms and legs, even barefoot.

The blue-haired man perked up after the man looked at him and turned around as he called, “Wait, who are you?”

The blue-haired man turned around to the stranger and responded, “Just some random stranger. Don’t tell anyone about me.”

With that, the blue-haired stranger disappeared around the corner of the path as the man followed, looking around and seeing that he had disappeared.

The memory disappeared as Stephanie blinked, looking confused after the memory disappeared and wondering what that memory was.

“There,” Chayton smiled, seeing she did not see the memory like Stephanie. “The Falcon Zodiac, the Rat Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, and the Aries Zodiac are stable for you.”

“Thank you,” Stephanie smiled as the back closed after they stabilized it and placed it into the pocket of her blue jeans. “Do you mind if I come here to help practice using the Zodiacs?”

“Of course!” Shu nodded. “Though, since you ‘unlocked,’” Shu quotes with his fingers. “The gate, we won’t be here. We are going to return to the respective realm we escaped from.”

“Wait, your realm?” Stephanie asked with confusion. “What realm?”

“The Zodiac Realm,” Chayton explained. “It’s a realm where Zodiacs like Shu, Amelia, Moina, and I reside to give our respective Zodiacs to children of all kinds.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up with a smile. “Does this mean I could find out what mine is?”

“Sort of,” Amelia responded with a so-so gesture of her hand. “It’ll take a long time since we don’t have everyone around.”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded. “Do I follow you or just step out from where I walked in?”

All four looked behind Stephanie after she asked and noticed that the hallway she walked through was sealed off.

“Yes.” Chayton nodded. “You can follow us.”

She gently took Stephanie by the hand as they started walking through another hallway, and Amelia used her lantern to light the way.

“So, how did you get to Sodor?” Shu asked.

“Using Avril’s Dust Whistle,” Stephanie responded, taking the whistle out and showing it to the four.

“Did you find the whistle at Shining Time Station?” Chayton asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “You all learned about how the Nightmares were freed, right?”

“Sort of,” Amelia responded as she looked over her shoulder. “We had to escape from our realm because of the nightmares leaking in and hide from the Black Zodiacs as they hunted us down. So we don’t know who freed them or sent out those monsters after us.”

Stephanie paused a little after Amelia explained as they continued walking down the hallway, and Shu asked, “So what kind of Dusts did you learn?”

“Well,” Stephanie began. “Gold Dust helps you travel from Shining Time Station to Sodor, turning people from stone to normal. Then I learned that the Silver Dust can turn someone into a steam locomotive.”

“It transforms them into any vehicle they ‘represent,’” Lucy explained as she quoted her fingers.

“Really?” Stephanie asked, cocking her head a little with curiosity.

“Yes.” Lucy nodded. “I saw how Avril used the Dusts before and knew which one did which.”

“That’s great!” Stephanie smiled as she turned to Lucy. “Can you teach me how to use the Dusts?”

“Of course.” Lucy nodded.

They soon stepped out of the stone hallway and into a large, beautiful dome filled with millions of stars in the sky, and the ground had turned from a stone floor to a translucent light midnight blue color. A large circle with what looked like a black liquid was in the middle of the enormous room. Even books and scrolls were littered with either half-empty or half-full cabinets, and pillows were tossed around, too.

“Here we are.” Amelia smiled. “This is the room we reside in.”

“Och,” Moina sighed with a light tsk of her tongue. “It’s trashit. Luckily, they didnae touch any o’ the scrolls or books.”

Stephanie’s eyes were sparkling with amazement as she looked around her with curiosity, even at that large circle in the center of the room. Chayton released Stephanie’s hand after stepping into the room and looking at the water with the others. Stephanie curiously looked at the water, which was pitch black but could not see anything.

“Is this bad?” Stephanie asked, looking up at Chayton.

“Yes, very.” Shu nodded. “We can’t see anything since the Nightmare turned the Great Pool into a black pool. We need the others to help cleanse it.”

Stephanie glanced back at the Great Pool curiously as Chayton, Amelia, and Shu looked around at the damage, seeing that most of the scrolls and books were littered, but none were ripped or shredded.

“God, what a mess!” Amelia groaned with irritation as she huffed.

“This is gaun’ae tak us ages tae clean aw this up!” Moina moaned.

Notches climbed out of Stephanie’s hook as Lucy hopped off her shoulder, growing to adult height as she looked back at her.

“Stephanie?” Lucy asked as she knelt to her height. “What are you thinking?”

Stephanie glanced at Lucy, surprised that she had grown to her height, and asked, “How did you get to my height?”

“The magic from the Zodiac Realm can transform me to an adult’s height since I connect to the realm itself,” Lucy explained.

“Oh!” Stephanie perked. “But you stayed normal on my shoulder.”

Lucy shrugged and responded, “It’s complicated to explain, but you didn’t answer my question.”

Stephanie perked up and responded, “Nothing, but I have a nagging feeling.”

“Of what?” Notches asked before realizing. “Don’t tell me you’re going to reach your hand into the Great Pool.”

“Yes, listen to the cat.” Lucy nodded. “What if it infects you?”

But Stephanie was too zoned out at the Great Pool to hear the two talking, feeling something was calling her. She could not put her finger on what it could be, but it was faintly telling her to reach her hand into the pool. …Should Stephanie touch the Great Pool, though?

Stephanie took a deep and slow breath before reaching a hand to the Great Pool, but she flinched when Lucy grabbed her wrist, causing her to glance over as her hand just hovered over the surface of the black water.

“Are you insane?” Lucy hissed. “You don’t reach your hand into-” The water suddenly rippled after Lucy grabbed her wrist, and she glanced over with confusion as Stephanie decided to take this chance. Stephanie moved her hand down and touched the surface of the Great Pool, causing it to ripple again as Lucy instantly released her wrist and moved back.

Suddenly, the water turned clear after Stephanie touched its surface, removing the inky clouds and revealing a beautiful pool. Stephanie perked up after the clouds were removed as she moved her hand up and felt something had been lifted from the pond with her hand.

She instantly moved her hand away with a gasp after seeing a beautiful prism-shaped gemstone just a few feet away from her palm. The other Zodaics appeared after seeing Stephanie move away from the Great Pool when the prism-shaped gemstone appeared, and Lucy and Notches scrambled back a little.

“What’s that?” Chayton asked as she wrapped her arms around Stephanie and her left wing to shield her.

“What did you do?!” Shu asked as he took out his swords, and Miona took hers.

“I don’t know!” Stephanie stammered. “All I did was touch the surface of the Great Pool, and this happened!”

The gemstone then went towards Stephanie and hovered before it glowed and transformed from a gemstone into a staff. The staff was made of wood with a gold band, keeping the gemstone on top. They all stared at the staff with surprised expressions, and Shu reached over to grab it, but it moved away before he could grab it.

Shu moved his hand away as the staff went back forward, and Amelia did the same as the staff moved away from her. Chayton attempted to do the same with her wing that was shielding Stephanie, but it did the same thing and moved back.

“I think it wants you to grab it,” Lucy responded.

“Whit?!” Miona exclaimed. “Ye’re allowin’ her tae grab a random scepter thon juist poppit oot o’ the Great Pool?!”

“Well, it won’t stop hovering over her!” Shu exclaimed. “And if we attempt to leave, it will continue following her.”

Stephanie stood up from the group as they watched nervously, reaching over to the staff as it moved forward and went into her hand, allowing her to grab it. After gripping the staff, Stephanie looked at it with curiosity, seeing signs of having been used before. The gemstone was a beautiful ocean blue color but had some signs that pieces were missing from it, but it was crafted perfectly to avoid the gaps.

“Whose staff does it belong to?” Shu asked, walking over to look at it.

“I don’t know,” Stephanie responded, looking up at the others. “But it’s beautiful.”

They looked around the staff curiously as Stephanie held it in her hands, allowing them to look at it as they put away their weapons.

“I have never seen such staff before,” Chayton remarked. “Nor one that allowed itself to go to a human before.”

Stephanie looked down at the staff before it transformed into a gold bracelet with the gemstone in the center.

“Hey!” Shu exclaimed as Stephanie placed the bracelet on her right wrist, which tightened to her wrist’s size but not too tightly. “The Great Pool is clear!”

“Really?!” Amelia exclaimed, hopping over and peering over the ledge.

Sure enough, the Great Pool was clear enough that they could see through it as it showed what looked like the world itself.

“This is fantastic!” Amelia grinned.

“How did you do that?” Chayton asked.

Stephanie shrugged her shoulders as she responded, “I don’t know. It was calling to me, and I just placed my hand on the surface.”

All four glanced at each other after Stephanie explained it to them, and Stephanie then asked, “Can I help clean up around here?”

“Of course.” Amelia nodded as she stood up. “Let me show you which one goes to which cabinet.”

Stephanie helped clean the place, and as she was cleaning, Chayton told her it was the Zodiac Realm, and Amelia told her which cabinet the books or scrolls go to. She even sorted through the runes after looking at the symbols on the fronts and placing them in their correct bags.

The cleaning lasted a few minutes before placing the pillows in the correct positions and telling which pillow belonged to which. Stephanie brushed the last pillow off as she stepped back, admiring her work as everything was cleaned and sorted.

“Thank you so much for helping us!” Amelia smiled, hugging Stephanie as she stiffened a little.

“Yes, it helped a lot!” Shu nodded in agreement as she hugged Stephanie with one arm, and Chayton patted her shoulder.

“Ye did a great job!” Miona perked. Stephanie blushed a little from their compliments as they released her, seeing her blush as they looked faintly confused at her blushing color.

“You’re welcome,” Stephanie said, smiling before speaking up. “Oh, I need to go see Sir Topham Hatt. He might be worried that I’m taking too long.” Then she paused and asked, “How do I get out of here?”

The bracelet around Stephanie’s wrist glowed as Stephanie looked at it with confusion, seeing the gemstone start to glow. The last thing Stephanie, Notches, and Lucy knew was that they were suddenly teleported from the Zodiac Realm to outside at the bottom of the mountain.

“That was quick.” Stephanie slowly spoke in confusion. She glanced over at the shed, where Culdee and the others looked flabbergasted that she had appeared out of nowhere.

“How did you get here?!” Culdee exclaimed. “You were at the top of Devil’s Back, and now you’re here with us!”

“Ah, well.” Stephanie blushed, still wearing the bracelet around her wrist. “I’ll explain everything after visiting Sir Topham Hatt.”

She reached into the pocket of her blue jeans and took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch, taking the top as she transformed into her Flacon Zodiac. Instead, Stephanie transformed into a harpy version of the Zodiac, wearing different clothes than usual.

She was wearing a long-sleeved light brown shirt with a dark brown shawl and light gray pants, and she was barefoot, revealing her talons. Stephanie also has a pair of wings on her back, as some parts of her body are covered with feathers, her eyes have the shape of a falcon, and her tail feathers.

“Whoops!” Stephanie exclaimed as the feathers on her cheeks ruffled. “Ah, I still need practice.”

“This is perfect,” Notches assured. “You can carry me with Lucy.”

Culdee and others watched in surprise after watching Stephanie transform into a bird as she picked Notches up from the ground with Lucy before shakily taking off in the air.

“Did you…?” Culdee asked slowly, looking over at the others.

“Yes,” nodded Lord Harry. “We must lay off the Welsh coal for a while.”

Chapter Text

During the trip of arriving at Tidmouth Sheds, Sir Topham Hatt’s bodyguards were… driving him to head over to Tidmouth, though it was a little rock with him having to figure out which is which. The journey to Tidmouth Sheds was a little bumpy for him to get used to his new form, as he would either slow down or speed up and bump into someone’s buffers.

He was acting like he was learning to walk again, just like how Sir Robert Norramby went through it after he was transformed into a steam locomotive by Wendell. It could be like driving Winston, but this was so different from driving and letting someone else drive you!

Despite his lack of self-driving skills, Sir Topham Hatt followed the Steam Team to Tidmouth, passing by confused locomotives hiding when the Aries Black Zodiac suddenly appeared. He knows that keeping this a secret among humans would not last long, so he asks other engines to help gather his faithful Steam Team to tell them everything between him, Avril, and the Dream Team.

If he remembers, the current members of the Dream Team were Bob the Builder, Fireman Sam, Henry Elba (Linus’ engineer to not mix him up with the Steam Team’s Henry), Jenny Jackard, Mr. Fergus Duncan, Mr. Percival, Postman Pat, Sir Robert Norramby, and Wendy.

He can see the rest of the Steam Team, from Thomas to Toby, including Spencer and the Flying Scotsman, and Darius, Romeo, Cleo, and Holly are with them. But he must find out if Avril, Azazel, Kathleen, Mr. Conductor, C. Junior, or his twin brother, Sir Lowham Hatt, are right.

Sir Topham Hatt made a mental note to visit his brother and possibly other family members to check if they were okay and not statues since he traveled almost around Sodor to help people restore normal with the help of the Dust Whistle. Luckily, the current members of the Dream Team arrived at Tidmouth Sheds after receiving the news about what happened.

It was a little strange because Sir Topham Hatt had his trusty assistants to help move him since he was so used to moving himself around, but since he did not have that ability in this steam locomotive form, he allowed them to help him go to Tidmouth Sheds.

Once finally arriving at Tidmouth Sheds after a rocky and bumpy journey, Sir Topham Hatt waited for each engine to enter their respective sheds while some took the sidelines. He also added a mental note about making more sheds for the other members of the Steam Team, knowing that would be important.

It was Sir Topham Hatt’s turn on the turntable after the last member of the Steam Team entered the sheds, and he faced both the Dream Team and the Steam Team, so he told the Steam Team and the current members of the Dream Team what Stephanie had encountered, what had happened to Sodor, and how many years had passed.

They were surprised after hearing the news, but they listened to Sir Topham Hatt as he continued, telling them everything and what he had learned from Avril before disappearing with his wife, Kathleen. Sir Topham Hatt’s explanation soon ended with a note that he and the rest of the Dream Team, including the Steam Team, need to keep an eye out in case they see either Avril or Kathleen.

“So,” Thomas slowly spoke, trying to summarize what he learned in his own words. “That thing Stephanie defeated was a Black Zodiac?”

“Yes, Thomas.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, answering Thomas’ question. “They were monsters locked away many centuries ago, created from Dark Wishes, as Lucy explained.” He glanced away as he looked down at his buffers, mumbling, “But how did they escape?”

The Steam and Dream Teams looked at each other after Sir Topham Hatt mumbled before Gordon asked, “What about the child? How many of those things should she fight against?”

“I don’t know, Gordon.” Sir Topham Hatt sighed, looking away from his buffers. “It could be eleven or twelve of them. That and there is so much to catch up on and juggle since eleven years have passed.”

“What?!” Romeo exclaimed. “Are you saying that it’s not 2012 anymore?!”

“Yes.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, feeling somewhat ashamed of telling Romeo and his siblings the truth, but he could not contain it anymore since everything had been released.

“This is terrible!” Emily exclaimed. “Even you are stuck in this form too!”

“Well, yes, that too,” Sir Topham Hatt said, looking down at his buffers thoughtfully. He was used to moving his hands around whenever he talked to his engines, but this differed from ‘standing still.’

“But she has Avril’s pocket watch, right?” Sam, the fireman, asked. “We could teach her how to use it and help defeat them.”

“That’s right!” nodded Bob the Builder. “We just collect the gemstones and help Stephanie defeat them.”

Sir Topham Hatt softly smiled after Bob nodded in agreement before they noticed something large was flying towards them.

“I appreciate it, everyone,” Sir Topham Hatt thanked. “Now, to catch up on everything for tomorrow.”

“Uh, Sir?” Thomas worriedly spoke as it grew, wobbling a little through the air as if struggling to fly.

“Thomas,” Sir Topham Hatt gently glared. “Don’t interrupt.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie was trying to slow down as she moved her body downward while holding both Lucy and Notches, flapping frantically while muttering, “Brakes, brakes, brakes, brakes, brakes!”

Sir Topham Hatt perked up after hearing Stephanie’s voice and was about to turn around to see her, but his mind reminded him that he was stuck in his locomotive form. Thankfully, Stephanie landed on the roof of Sir Topham Hatt’s cab but slipped and skidded as everyone winced at the faint scratching noise of her talons.

As Stephanie’s body fell from the roof of his cab and landed on his boiler bottom first, Sir Topham Hatt was startled and shifted a little forward to avoid the impact. Luckily, no one was hurt except for some feathers plucked from the impact as the feathers were scattered around like a feathered pillow was thrown and exploded.

“Sorry, sir.” Stephanie apologized with a sheepish grin as she carefully sat up from where she was. “I really need to practice on that landing.”

“It’s quite alright,” Sir Topham Hatt assured, but he was still a little shaken from the scraping noise from her talons as they went against his boiler as she tried to get up. “Try turning back to normal.”

Stephanie perked up after Sir Topham Hatt told her and placed Lucy and Notches down, reaching up to her necklace and grabbing the pendant. She snapped the necklace off and returned to normal, gently sliding off Sir Topham Hatt’s boiler onto the turntable flat on her feet as feathers scattered around her feet.

“Are you alright?” Stephanie asked, walking up to his front.

“It’s fine.” Sir Topham Hatt assured her before asking, “How did it go with the first four?”

“It went great!” Stephanie smiled. “I met Amelia, the Aries Guardian. Shu, the Rat Guardian. Moina, the Deer Guardian. And Chayton, the Falcon Guardian.”

“‘Guardians?’” Percy asked.

“People who protect,” Postman Pat responded. “They are also like warriors, too, in other words.”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, turning to the group before perking up after seeing how big the crowd was. She started to feel shy as her ears drooped, but she did not shut down or hide away from the crowd. “Uh, they help stabilize the diamond, so I can use it without a problem.”

Sir Topham Hatt noticed something wrapped around Stephanie’s right wrist while talking to everyone, although she was slightly nervous.

“So, these Guardians are the good guys you want to search for?” Thomas asked.

Stephanie nodded and explained, “The Black Zodiacs are trying to hunt them down, and…” She paused, not wanting to describe what would happen. “Well, take their stars to become stronger. The one that came to me was a star from that constellation.”

She paused to push her glasses into place, continuing to explain, “There are the Chinese Zodiacs, the Native American Zodiacs, the Celtic Zodiacs, and the Western Zodiacs. Each has twelve Zodiacs and extras, which counts as thirteen.”

“Is this bad?” Edward asked, having a tone of worry in his voice.

“No, it’s a little easy because the Black Zodiacs are infused into one jumbled mess of a being,” Stephanie paused as she thought. “Though it depends on their strength, if I practice with my powers and learn different techniques, I could help defeat them. However, it will take everyone a while, which I am willing to do.”

“Really?” Gordon perked up as the engines shared a look of worry. “Even at this young of an age?”

“I’m only ten,” Stephanie responded. “But I can’t leave this place without getting rid of these Nightmares. More damage will come if nothing happens.”

“As much as you are determined,” Henry, Linus’ driver, said. “But what about your folks? Won’t they be worried?”

Stephanie’s expression slightly changed to a grimacing look that perked Gordon’s attention, and he recognized that face whenever he did it.

Stephanie paused uncomfortably. “They don’t mind,” she said, shrugging a little. “They’re too busy to notice I’m gone, even if I verbally told them.”

She reached into the pocket of her blue jeans and took out her phone, showing it to them as she said, “But I did leave a text to them that I was going to be gone and will be back soon.”

The adults and the engines looked at each other after Stephanie explained, as Sir Topham Hatt said, “That’s good. But-” “How will Sir Topham Hatt work on the railway?” James asked, interrupting as Stephanie glanced at him. “There’s no room in Tidmouth Sheds for him.”

“Yes,” nodded Henry, the number three engine. “Not many engines know what happened to him.”

“Oh, right, right, right,” Stephanie nodded as Sir Topham Hatt gave a silent glare to James. “Ah, Lucy, can you help?”

Stephanie turned to the doll riding in her arms as it stood up from Sir Topham Hatt’s boiler, and Stephanie held out a hand for it.

“Yes.” Lucy nodded. “Use Gold Dust. It’ll bring him back to normal.”

Stephanie placed Lucy on her shoulder as Notches hopped out of Sir Topham Hatt’s cab, and James groaned, “Great. More talking dolls.”

“Shh,” Edward gently shushed. “Be nice, James. She’s Stephanie’s friend.”

“Are you certain she is?” Gordon asked. “What if she is lying to her?”

“Then I would’ve seen it,” Stephanie responded, looking over at them as Sir Topham Hatt’s assistants stepped out. “Besides, Avril trusted the Gateway of the Zodiacs.”

Everyone perked up after Stephanie explained and checked the whistle from accidentally using Silver Dust, seeing it was on the gold symbol. After she checked, Stephanie took a breath and gave it a whistle, watching as Gold Dust shot out and swirled around Sir Topham Hatt for a minute before disappearing, revealing him to be normal with his hat on his chest and sitting on the ground.

“It worked!” Stephanie smiled. She walked up to Sir Topham Hatt and held out her hand for him, and he gladly took it, a little surprised when she effortlessly lifted him from the ground. His assistants instantly came forward after he stumbled a little, grabbing his arms before he toppled over his feet.

“Sorry,” Stephanie blushed as her ears flicked, and the group perked up after seeing something flick as she released Sir Topham Hatt’s hand. “Keep forgetting I’m that strong.”

Sir Topham Hatt placed his hat back on his head after Stephanie apologized and said, placing his hands on his jacket’s collar, “It’s quite fine. And thank you for turning me back to normal.”

“No problem!” Stephanie beamed. “Though, do you mind if I could stay somewhere for the night?”

“You can stay at my house,” Sir Topham Hatt told her. “There is plenty of room for you to stay and practice with your gifted powers.”

Stephanie thought about the word ‘gifted’ as Sir Topham Hatt turned to the engines, asking, “Can someone take Stephanie to my house?”

The engines glanced at each other after Sir Topham Hatt asked before Gordon was the first to confidently move forward, saying, “I’ll take her to your house. It won’t take long.”

Stephanie was curious as she picked Notches up from the ground. Lucy was on her shoulder, carrying him in her arms. She walked up to his cab, seeing how big this locomotive was compared to the others. Gordon watched Stephanie’s ears move up with curiosity, almost acting like cat ears, but he did nothing else to spook Stephanie.

When Stephanie first arrived at Sodor, everything was dull and faceless. But, now that color had returned, Stephanie could not help but become more curious, seeing that there were more than sentient vehicles to them.

Gordon noticed she was curious about him and observed how much curiosity was in Stephanie’s eyes. Half of him felt proud that she was curious about him but was unsure if she would stay still in his cab when they started heading to Sir Topham Hatt’s manor. Stephanie pushed her glasses into place, allowing Notches to climb into her hood as Romeo stepped out slightly to help her into Gordon’s cab.

“Hello,” Stephanie greeted him as she took his hand. Once Stephanie was inside, she watched as the driver and fireman started Gordon up as Romeo helped, and she watched with curiosity, hearing Gordon’s whistle before he started to move. As Stephanie peered through his window, he started to puff down the line, her long blue braided hair waving in the wind.

She watched Romeo, the driver, and the fireman work on the controls and scoop coal into the firebox to continue the journey, piquing her curiosity more. The ride to Sir Topham Hatt’s home was five minutes long, but it was not too slow or fast, though Stephanie was curious about how fast Gordon could go. A female maid waited outside as Gordon slowed down before stopping and allowing Stephanie to step off.

“Thank you, mister!” Stephanie thanked Gordon, catching him off guard. He expected her to walk to the maid without saying a word, like the ride, but this was certainly a surprise for him. No one had thanked him for the rides.

“Erm, you’re welcome,” Gordon said, still slightly surprised by her thanks. “And my name is Gordon the Big Engine.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up and gave him a bright smile. “Then thank you, Mr. Big Engine!”

Gordon felt his firebox squeeze a little from the kindness this blue-haired ten-year-old girl gave him as she turned to the maid, walking to her. Ugh, it was too cute for him! Gordon smiled and whistled his whistle, heading down the line to head back to Tidmouth Sheds. He could someday see this young child at another time.

Chapter Text

Stephanie follows the maid up to the gigantic house, silently awed at how massive this house is compared to her small size. It towered over anyone’s height and almost peeked over the trees’ heights, but it was not too tall.

There were multiple windows, with several having balconies decorated with flowerpots and even curtains on the other side of the windows. As Stephanie looked at the exterior of the mansion, her curiosity grew.

“That’s no ordinary house,” Stephanie softly murmured, quoting something from an old movie she once saw but could not remember the movie’s name. The mansion’s sight made Stephanie feel uneasy underneath all her curiosity, wondering if she would be lost in the hallways if she wandered around the place.

The maid chuckled a little at Stephanie’s remark as they approached the door made out of oak wood. The maid opened one of the doors to allow Stephanie to enter first as she was still carrying Notches in her sweater hood and Lucy on her shoulder. The inside of the ‘house’ was clean and decorated with a vintage taste, lined with different plants and some items here and there.

“Whoa,” Stephanie remarked as she looked around, seeing all the small details and furniture. They all looked expensive and beautifully decorated, making the inside of the mansion more beautiful than the exterior. Her curiosity grew over time as she looked around while following the maid, seeing more details. “It’s a lot larger inside than outside.”

She made a mental note not to touch anything out of curiosity, seeing that everything would be expensive if she made one mistake. Wait, what would happen if she touched everything? Would she accidentally shatter something important and get herself in trouble for getting into her curiosity?

Stephanie felt beads of nervous sweat form on her forehead at the thought of accidentally touching everything out of curiosity. She froze in her path, her lingering thoughts of what would happen echoing through her mind like buzzing bees.

The maid walked up next to Stephanie, along with two other people who noticed Stephanie. She was deep in her thoughts but perked when Notches gently rubbed his head against her chin, snapping her out of her thoughts. Then, someone appeared before Stephanie and asked, “Excuse me, who are you?”

Stephanie snapped out of her mental problems about touching everything around her and glanced at the maid, stammering as she instantly moved her hands in front of her close to her body. “Ah, uh, yes, ma’am?”

The maid silently shook her head after Stephanie looked up at her and pointed toward something or someone in front of her. Stephanie glanced in front after stepping to the side, seeing who was standing before her. She was a stout woman with fair skin, brown eyes, and long, white, graying hair tied in a high bun.

She wore a green dress, a green hat, a gold band, and a red flower. Another stood beside her with beautifully thin, fair skin, short brown hair, and light brown eyes. She wore a blue dress with a white trim sweater, a pink heart pin, matching shoes, and a matching hat with a pink hatband and matching flower.

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up as she blushed a light blue in embarrassment, and her pointed ears drooped slightly. “I’m sorry! Ah, Sir Topham Hatt brought me here, ma’am.”

“My son?” The elderly woman with the green hat perked up after Stephanie mentioned the name, and the other asked, “Were you the one turning everyone back to normal?”

Stephanie nodded after the beautiful woman with the blue dress asked, feeling nervous as she looked around her, noticing her very long hair, a moving doll, to which she looked surprised, and a beautiful cat with strange patterns.

Remembering the question the elderly woman asked, she cleared her throat from nervousness and responded, “My name is Stephanie,” while gently fidgeting with the first finger of her right hand. “Stephanie Allen.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Stephanie,” the elderly woman with the green hat said. “My name is Dowager Hatt, Sir Topham Hatt’s mother.”

“And I am Lady Hatt,” the second responded. “Bertram’s wife.” 

‘Oh, that’s why she looked familiar,’ Stephanie thought curiously as she stopped fidgeting with her first finger. ‘And Sir Topham Hatt’s real name is ‘Bertram?’’

There were so many things to learn about this place, even though she was used to her technology back in Shining Time. Dowager Hatt looked at Stephanie’s long blue hair curiously, noticing the tangles, the split ends, and how somewhat oily it felt. As she looked at this young child, something did not settle right for her.

“You must be exhausted from traveling around Sodor helping everyone,” Lady Hatt softly smiled assuringly toward Stephanie after she had placed Notches and Lucy down on the ground next to her legs. “Let’s get you ready for bed.”

‘That sounds good.’ Stephanie thought but had a lingering worry. Where would she sleep in this gigantic, grand place? Dowager Hatt eyed Stephanie from behind as Lady Hatt showed her around Hatt Hall, noticing some wear on her clothes and places that looked stitched together.

Not to mention how long Stephanie’s hair was, reaching the bottom of her shoes and sometimes getting caught underneath her heel. Stephanie would wince after feeling a tug in her hair and politely excuse herself, adjust her hair, and continue.

Notches followed behind with Lucy on his back, watching as Lady Hatt showed Stephanie around Hatt Hall and introduced her to some butlers who noticed Notches but paid no attention. All except for another black and white cat who noticed Notches gave a “meow” at him and sounded like a female.

Notches perked up after noticing the black and white cat meowing at him and confidently gave back a “meow.” Lady Hatt showed Stephanie the room she would be staying in, which used to belong to their son, Earnest.

It was large and grand, with a wardrobe, a cabinet, a window with curtains, a desk, a king-sized bed, a chair, and other items around the room. Stephanie thanked the two Hatts and politely asked if she could put her items in the room, to which they agreed.

She walked into the room with Notches and Lucy as she reached into her pockets, taking out the journals she had collected and her piece of crap phone and placing them on the desk. Then she walked over to the bedside table, took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch and the Dust Whistle, and placed them next to the bed. Notches climbed onto the bed and laid down, allowing Lucy to step off as she looked up at Stephanie, saying, “We’ll meet you here.”

Dowager Hatt silently noticed the items Stephanie was carrying and felt more suspicious, as there was something strange about this young child. She knew her sons would get into trouble, and dolls could move independently, but this was so different from the trouble she had seen.

The tour around Hatt Hall ended with Lady Hatt showing her the bathroom with a tub and sink where she could wash her face. But there were other strange vintage-like items, too, making her look like she had stepped into a different era and had no idea what to do. So she instead turned to the two adults and said, “Thank you for the tour, Mrs. Hatts.”

Both nodded, and Stephanie closed the door, returning to the bathroom as she gently mumbled, “Okay, Steph. Just think of it like the bathrooms Ms. Richards showed you.”

Stephanie reached up to her sweater’s zipper, showing her wearing a long-sleeved light blue shirt stained with faint stitches on some parts of her body.

“Oh, wait,” Stephanie paused before she took anything off. “Hold on.”

She walked over to the door and gently knocked on it, hiding behind it as it opened slightly as a voice said, “Yes?”

“Ah, I’m sorry, but where can I hang my sweater?” Stephanie politely asked.

“You can hand them to me, Ms. Allen,” the voice responded as an arm stuck out from the gap in the door. “They’ll need a wash and be ready for you tomorrow.”

“Thank you so much,” Stephanie thanked. “Let me fold my sweater.”

Stephanie folded her sweater and handed it to the stuck-out arms, placing them neatly as the man waited. The camera moved down as Stephanie started to undress, taking off her shirt and folding it, placing it on the stuck-out arms before continuing with the others. Once the last garment was off, Stephanie said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Ms. Allen.” With that, the man behind the door walked away as Stephanie sighed, only showing her bare feet. Then, the feet turned around as they gently clapped against the tile floor and walked to the tub.

The rubberband kept the long braided hair undone, and all the thick, long blue hair fell towards the floor, covering her back and body. She was still wearing the bracelet around her wrist, not wanting to take it off because it was important.

“Alright,” Stephanie sighed. “Just like what Ms. Richwards showed me.”

Stephanie spent what felt like an hour trying to see which knob was which and feeling the temperature of the water, even scrubbing her skin to get the dirt and other things off her. The light in the bathroom was somewhat good, but it did not show Stephanie’s skin as she was scrubbing her body with her hands, not wanting to use any items left in the bathtub.

Strangely, she was allowed to bathe but was still unsure about what lay around the corner. A sudden knock startled Stephanie from the noise as the camera was in her eyes, and the ‘eyes’ looked over at the door as it opened slightly, but no head stuck out from the somewhat opened crack. The same male voice said as a pair of arms stretched out and placed two large towels on the counter, “I got you two warm towels.”

“Uh, thank you,” Stephanie thanked.

“Oh, one more thing.” The man’s arms returned with a folded blue nightgown, and he placed it next to the towels, saying, “For you to wear at night.”

“Thank you.” Stephanie thanked him again, sounding a little confused as the door closed. “They gave me something to wear? Then again, I was given only a shirt, sweater, pants, socks, shoes, and other garments to wear back home.”

She softly cringed after mentioning ‘home’ as the camera turned away, showing a pair of hands grabbing the tub’s sides and standing up with Stephanie muttering, “I need to stop mentioning home.”

The same pair of feet landed on the bathroom rug in front of the tub, dripping with water as if something blue was on her skin. Stephanie walked over to the towels and picked one of them up, using it to dry her body off as the camera switched to her feet, the bluish color disappearing when the towel went over it.

She dried off her body as the darkness covered her before picking up the other towel to dry her long hair. It was too long to wrap it up in a turban to dry; it would become a hassle to handle, and it would be way too big of a turban for her to walk around in.

So Stephanie resorted to drying her hair by squeezing the water out with a second towel while the other was wrapped around her body, covering her chest and reaching down to her ankles. Once Stephanie’s hair was dry enough, she checked her body after wrapping the towel around it and nodded before pausing. She noticed something behind her as her long hair covered her back like a cape.

“Uh, do you mind?” Stephanie asked, wrapping the towel back around her body and giving the cameraman a slight glare.

A few minutes later, Stephanie stepped out of the bathroom, all clean. Her long hair was washed with shampoo and looked much better than greasy and coated with oil. She wore a long-sleeved light blue nightgown that reached down to her ankles, revealing her bare feet as her clothes were still in the washroom she had seen before.

But it was still too long for her to walk around, as it would catch onto her heels, causing her to yelp faintly in pain and readjust. Deciding to stop as she grew sick of her hair catching onto her heels, Stephanie reached over to her long hair after putting it all over one of her shoulders and braiding it, doing a fishtail style to make it wavier when dried.

It took her a few minutes to braid her long hair, struggling with the ends but making it all go into a long fishtail braid with nothing tangled. She used the rubberband to tie the end once she had finished and sighed, flipping her long braided hair over her shoulder as she muttered, “There, that’s better.”

Stephanie continued walking down the empty hallway as she glanced around curiously. She saw walls covered with paintings, some looking like a young Sir Topham Hatt with another adult Sir Topham Hatt.

Stephanie paused to look at the paintings, seeing more Sir Topham Hatts, with others resembling family members or twins. How big is the Hatt family? Stephanie continued walking through the hallway of pictures littered with different paintings and different people, feeling like she had walked underneath an oak family tree.

It all looked so new to her, and she was curious about all these people and even the sentient locomotives in the paintings. When she almost reached her room, Stephanie paused as she looked at a massive wall, the top of which had two portraits, and it slowly went down more and more before ending at the bottom.

Is this the family tree? Stephanie curiously looked at the tree, seeing that each one of them had plaques indicating which Hatt was which, ranging from someone named ‘Ethan Hatt’ to ‘Earnest Hatt.’ There were even conductors that perked Stephanie’s attention, surprised to see that the conductors Sir Topham Hatt explained were part of the Hatt family.

A candlelight extinguishing snapped Stephanie out of her curiosity, and she glanced over, seeing Lady Hatt wearing a nightgown and preparing to go to bed. Choosing to save a look at the Hatt family tree for later, Stephanie quietly snuck into the room she was given, stepping inside before closing the door.

She sighed after closing the door and turned around, seeing that Notches had already fallen asleep on a pillow away from the bedside table while Lucy was sleeping on the bedside table while standing upright. Smiling softly, Stephanie walked over to the bed and gently pulled the blankets back, crawling into bed before lying down on her back, slightly startled when the bed was cushioned underneath her weight.

It was strange for Stephanie to be sleeping in a bed, but it felt so nice and warm compared to what she had previously been sleeping in. Stephanie reached up to her glasses and took them off, placing them on the bedside table near the clock, the Zodiac Pocket Watch, and the Dust Whistle. She paused after placing her glasses down, gripped the blankets, and stared at the Zodiac Pocket Watch and Dust Whistle.

Did she see all that happening before her? And did she say all that to save Sodor? Stephanie sighed as she flipped over onto her back, staring up at the ceiling as thoughts returned to her about what she would do while on ‘Sodor.’

She groaned at her thoughts acting up at this time of night as Notches twitched a little in his sleep before nudging close to Stephanie, surprising her as she glanced over. Notches then started purring after feeling Stephanie’s cheek, moving his head away from being curled into a ball to her chest, continuing with that purring feeling.

Stephanie moved her right hand to his head and hesitated for a minute but gently patted it as Notches’ purring went up. This is a good feeling. Stephanie moved her head back onto the pillow and stared at the ceiling before slowly falling asleep while listening to lullabies and Notches’ purring against her chest.

Chapter Text

Stephanie woke groggily before suddenly perking up when she realized her room was ocean blue. She looked around in confusion, seeing herself floating in midair. Everything around her was an ocean blue color that sank to a darker blue toward the bottom, and Lucy or Notches was nowhere to be seen.

She opened her mouth to speak, but bubbles came out, and she gasped, covering her mouth in the realization that she was underwater. Stephanie instantly started swimming toward the ocean’s surface as frantically as possible, not wanting to waste any more of her breath.

The swim lasted a few minutes as she struggled to swim but eventually reached the surface and broke out, taking a deep breath as she coughed. After breaking through the surface, Stephanie looked around at the surface of the water, looking at her new surroundings in confusion.

The sky was crystal blue with a few clouds and no sign of land anywhere, causing Stephanie to be more worried. She moved her arm up to start swimming when she froze after seeing that the back of her hand was covered with dark blue scales and her fingers were claws.

Stephanie’s worry grew when she looked at the rest of her body, seeing fins along the sides of her arms and legs covered in the same scales, webbing between the toes, and a long fish-like tail with the same darker blue webbing.

She reached up to her neck out of worry and perked up when she felt what looked like gills around her neck, even some of the scales covering it until it stopped at the bottom of her chin. Stephanie’s face and hair stayed the same, but she was naked.

Thankfully, she had no gender reveal as she covered herself with her arms, feeling sheepish for being entirely nude as her ears flicked with embarrassment that she was in her birthday suit, but the scales did ‘cover’ her body from being too naked.

“Hey, what’s that in the water?” A voice called, surprising Stephanie as she glanced around with confusion. The water behind Stephanie was rippling, gently splashing against Stephanie’s body as she looked around.

“I don’t know.” Another voice responded with confusion, and it sounded like it was getting closer to Stephanie, who perked when she heard the voice as shadows loomed over her.

“It looks like a gigantic fish!” another exclaimed.

Stephanie frantically glanced around after hearing voices and was startled when she saw ocean liners appearing from the left side, which she swore she had not seen before.

“That’s no fish,” a voice responded as Stephanie stared up at the gigantic ocean liner with a faint, terrified expression. “It’s a human!”

The ocean liners were gigantic compared to her small size, but that was not the only thing that Stephanie was staring at out of fear. They had faces on their bows! Stephanie gave out a terrified shriek and moved backward, only for something to wrap around her ankle and drag her underwater.

Stephanie’s mind became more panicky as she grabbed whatever gripped her ankle, trying to swim upright while making whatever release. But Stephanie finally got a look at what had grabbed her ankle and dragged her further underwater.

It was a gigantic black-clawed hand covered with jet-black fur and a dark blue paw pad tugging her down as the size of the paw could fully engulf her entire leg! Suddenly, a pair of gigantic, familiar, azure blue eyes opened as Stephanie stared back at them with a terrified expression. In an instant, it turns from azure to a gradient of red to black, and instead of having normal pupils, it has eight arrows pointing in different directions from a circle.

Stephanie woke up with a jolt and gave off a startled yelp that startled Notches, who flinched awake with a sleepy “Meow!” while jumping from Stephanie’s chest. Lucy woke up too after hearing Stephanie’s yelp and groggily stood up, her bracelet transforming into her key as she stood up to her feet.

“What?” Lucy asked. “Who is it? Is it a Black Zodiac attacking us?!”

“What’s wrong, Stephanie?” Notches asked, blinking groggily, and Lucy turned towards Stephanie, although somewhat groggy as well.

Stephanie blushed a light blue as her ears flicked, her forehead sweated, and she wiped it away with the sleeve of her pajamas. “Sorry!” She paused as a shudder went down her spine. “I have a horrible wake-up nightmare.”

Notches slowly calmed down after Stephanie shuddered, and Lucy put her key away as it transformed into her bracelet, asking, “What was the nightmare?”

Stephanie sat up from the bed as Notches slid off her chest and onto her lap, and she started stroking him and scratching his chin, hearing and feeling Notches purring. She had never had anyone ask her that question before, and she did not know how to reply.

“Well…” Stephanie began, unsure how to tell Lucy or Notches, but took a slow and deep breath. “I woke up underwater and swam to the surface, only to see I was in the middle of a vast ocean with no islands nearby.”

Notches and Lucy listened to Stephanie as she continued, “Then voices started to echo around me as gigantic ocean liners appeared… but they all had faces on the front of their bows. I panicked and went backward, only for something underwater to grab my leg and yank me downward. I looked at what was dragging me back underwater and saw a monster with pitch-black fur and eyes that were blue until they turned red with arrow pupils.”

Notches and Lucy looked confused after Stephanie explained her dream to them, and Notches asked, “Did you have a closer look at what the monster’s whole body looked like?”

“No, I didn’t.” Stephanie shook her head as the memory of the monster’s eyes flashed back like a projection. “All I got was its arm.”

Notches and Lucy looked at each other after Stephanie answered his question as she stroked him, saying, “But it was just a nightmare, right?”

“Right.” Lucy nodded. “And it shouldn’t be something you’ll get worried about, either. So let’s get ready for breakfast.”

Stephanie nodded as the back of her mind wondered what would be for breakfast. She got out of bed, still wearing the nightgown given to her after Notches hopped off first. She was about to stand but paused when something stuck to her right leg.

Confused, Stephanie looked down at what was stuck to her right leg while Notches lay on his front to allow Lucy to hop onto his back. After she climbed onto his back, Notches carefully stood back up and headed to the door.

Stephanie grabbed the bottom of the nightgown and lifted it slightly, seeing what looked like jet-black fur stuck to her leg as it was wet. The hair on the back of Stephanie’s neck stood up after seeing her leg covered with jet-black fur, not believing the nightmare had come true. But there was a lingering feeling that it was true.

Not wanting to freak out more, Stephanie released the bottom of the nightgown as it covered her legs and stood up, pushing all the thoughts about the nightmare to the back of her mind. She went to the bathroom to use it while Notches and Lucy went to the living room, passing by the butlers and a dressed Sir Topham Hatt. He watched Lucy and Notches pass by, but Lucy perked up after noticing Sir Topham Hatt and gently tugged Notches’ fur, causing him to stop.

“Good morning, sir,” Lucy greeted with a wave.

“Good morning, Lucy,” Sir Topham Hatt greeted back. “How’s Stephanie?”

“She’s awake,” Lucy responded before noticing two missing people. “Where did Mrs. Dowager and Mrs. Lady go?”

“My mother went on errands with my wife,” Sir Topham Hatt gently sighed with a roll of his eyes. “They’ll be back soon.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie returned to her room after using the restroom, still wearing her nightgown, wondering where her clothes would be. She handed them to the butler to be washed because they had a lingering smell of her scent, but they disappeared.

Then she noticed the journals from Avril she had collected and walked over to them, picking one of them up as she sat down on the chair, deciding to give them a look. She read Avril’s diary, so why not the journal with the zodiacs and Dusts? Stephanie put her glasses on and opened the journal, seeing some already-written Dusts but only a little information.

“Huh,” Stephanie curiously flipped the page to look at more of the Dusts. “There’s not much information. Did his work stop halfway?”

The pages lasted through five or six until it went to the page with the zodiacs, the first page with the Aries, the Rat, and the Falcon zodiacs, along with the explanation of the Zodiac Pocket Watch.

Stephanie flipped to the next page and saw that the back was written with what looked like the Taurus, the Ox, and the Beaver zodiacs, with drawings of what each zodiac looked like. The page reads:

• Hour: Ⅰ
• Zodiacs:
  • Western: Taurus
  • Native American: Beaver
  • Celtic: Cat
  • Chinese: Ox
• Gemstone: Emerald
• Taurus Zodiac: The Taurus Zodiac transforms you into a minotaur, a half-bull, half-human hybrid from Greek mythology.
  • Geokenisis: earth manipulation.
  • You can have limitless stamina.
  • You can have strength beyond peak human strength.
  • You can have strong ram-like abilities, like the Aries Zodiac.
  • You can use the abilities of a minotaur or a bovine.
• Beaver Zodiac: The Beaver Zodiac transforms you into either a half-human and half-beaver being or entirely into a beaver.
  • Geokenisis: earth manipulation.
  • You can chew through wood.
  • You can hold your breath underwater for up to fifteen minutes.
  • You can swim underwater.
  • You can use the abilities of a beaver.
• Cat Zodiac: The Cat Zodiac allows you to transform into a Neko (half-cat and half-human) or entirely into a cat.
  • Hydrokenisis (water manipulation)
  • Pyrokinesis (fire manipulation)
  • You can heal
  • You can induce serenity
  • You can manipulate fertility
  • You can manipulate life
  • You can manipulate passion
  • You can manipulate spring
  • You can use the abilities of a cat
  • You can use the abilities of a mother goddess
  • You can use the abilities of a poetry god
• Ox Zodiac: The Ox Zodiac transforms you into a minotaur like the Taurus Zodiac or a complete ox.
  • You can have strength beyond peak human strength.
  • You can use the abilities of a minotaur or a bovine.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie cocked her head to the side curiously after reading the pages of the Taurus, the Beaver, the Cat, and the Ox Zodiac, wondering how it would feel to transform into a beaver and swim underwater for fifteen minutes.

But she noted she needed to find an emerald gemstone to power the Taurus, the Beaver, the Cat, and the Ox Zodiacs, though finding one would be complicated and expensive. Stephanie looked at the other page to study more of the zodiacs, seeing the next four sets as the page reads:

• Hour: Ⅱ
• Zodiacs:
  • Western: Gemini
  • Native American: Deer
  • Celtic: Snake
  • Chinese: Tiger
• Gemstone: Pearl
• Gemini Zodiac: The Gemini Zodiac can separate you into two people, representing your ‘positive’ self and your ‘negative’ self. When whole, your half is split into two colors down the middle.
  • Aerokinesis: Air manipulation.
  • Spatiokinesis: Space manipulation.
  • You can copy other powers.
  • You can create illusions.
  • You can duplicate anything limitlessly.
  • You can have limitless shapeshifting abilities.
  • You can manipulate X-rays.
  • You can manipulate yin and yang.
  • You can split yourself into different personalities, but no harm can come to them as they poof into thin air.
• Deer Zodiac: The Deer Zodiac transforms you into a half-deer, half-human being, or a complete deer.
  • Aerokinesis: Air manipulation.
  • You can use the abilities of a deer.
• Snake Zodiac: The Snake Zodiac transforms you into a Naga, a half-snake, and a half-human being.
  • You can alter shapes
  • You can enhance the magic
  • You can have a mesmerizing presence
  • You can have an undying loyalty
  • You can use the abilities of a magic deity
  • You can use the abilities of a magician
  • You can use the abilities of a snake
  • You can use the ability of a trickster
• Tiger Zodiac: The Tiger Zodiac transforms you into a half-tiger, a half-human being, or a complete tiger.
  • You can manipulate yin and yang.
  • You can use the abilities of a tiger.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie gently hummed with interest as she pointed to the Gemini Zodiac, mentioning, “That one sounds interesting.”

The door knocked, and Stephanie perked up as she glanced away from the book, responding, “Yes?”

“It’s me, Dowager Hatt.” A familiar voice responded from behind the door. “I went shopping and got you some new clothes.”

Stephanie looked confused after hearing Dowager Hatt’s voice and the line ‘shopping for clothes.’ …They were for her? Fresh clothes that were brought from the store?

“Do you mind if I come in?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Of course,” Stephanie responded, closing the journal and placing it on the bedside table. “You can come in.”

After she told Dowager Hatt, the door opened, and she stepped inside, seeing Stephanie sitting there politely, carrying many bags.

“Whoa!” Stephanie gently exclaimed. “That’s a lot of bags.”

“Yes.” Dowager Hatt nodded as Lady Hatt stepped in and closed the door. “We both went shopping for some new clothes for you.”

It checks off the thought list that the clothes were for her, but are they all in those bags?

“The other clothes you wore, except for your sweater and jeans, were ripped beyond repair,” Lady Hatt explained. “They didn’t last in the washing process.”

“Ah,” Stephanie sighed as her pointed ears drooped. “I thought my stitching would make them last a few more years.”

The two women perked up after Stephanie responded as she said, noticing their expressions, “Yes, my foster parents gave me hand-me-down clothes.” She gave an uncomfortable pause, mostly to not say ‘so-called.’

She hates talking about them, even in front of other people who do not understand how she feels… and yet speaks about them with a sour taste. But to Dowager Hatt, there was more suspicion about why Stephanie was not talking much about her foster parents, whom she kept mentioning.

Lady Hatt and Dowager Hatt showed what clothes they had bought for Stephanie, with some that looked cute while others looked vintage towards Stephanie. Their time differs from hers, so she may need time to get used to the era gaps.

Stephanie thanked the two ladies for their kindness, and they handed Stephanie her sweater and jeans, which looked better after being washed. She had some privacy to wear her new clothes after they left her room, putting on a new long-sleeve dark blue shirt. Her shoes were in a lighter pastel pink color, which matched her old ones, except they were too tight for her feet.

Stephanie was about to leave the room without her shoes and socks but paused after reminding herself she was in someone else’s home. So, Stephanie put on white socks with her new shoes, which perfectly fit and greatly relieved her.

Once she had her clothes on, Stephanie went to the desk to pick up the journal Avril had written and the tools for getting crystals because she knew she needed to collect more in case she needed to fill the Dust Whistle.

But she reminded herself that she needed to go to a store to buy some new tools and maybe other things to carry all these crystals and do the production. Stephanie exited the room in her new attire before pausing to let one of the butlers walk by and start heading to the dining room.

The same pictures on the walls reminded her of the last time she looked at them, from baby pictures to others that looked like proud moments. Stephanie needs to catch up on information about these pictures and Sodor itself.

Stephanie peered around the dining room corner and saw Sir Topham Hatt with two more Sir Topham Hatts? The one next to him looked identical but had a mustache, which looked familiar from the picture of them both when they were younger. Perhaps his twin?

The third looked completely different from the two Sir Topham Hatts: thin with short, curly brown hair and light brown eyes, wearing the same attire but with a pocket watch chain. Not wanting to stay hidden, Stephanie stepped into the dining room and politely greeted, “Hello, Sir Topham Hatt.”

Everyone glanced over to see Stephanie as Sir Topham Hatt perked up, saying, “Ah, yes, Lowham, Earnest. This is Stephanie, the child I was mentioning.”

Stephanie waved her hand shyly while blushing as Lowham asked, “When did you adopt another kid?”

“What?” Stephanie looked confused as Sir Topham Hatt stuttered, “Lowham, she’s not mine. She already has parents and is currently staying here to help Sodor.”

“And I already told them I would be gone.” Stephanie nodded. “They know I usually stay over at a friend’s house whenever I am done wandering around.”

“Oh!” Lowham perked. “Why didn’t you say that in the first place?”

Stephanie giggled a little after Sir Lowham Hatt asked, and Sir Topham Hatt rolled his eyes. He knows his youngest twin brother did not listen to him or even their mother when they were young.

“Come have some breakfast with us,” Sir Ernest Hatt smiled.

Stephanie perked up after Sir Earnest Hatt beckoned her and nodded, walking over to the chair and sitting down as they continued their conversation. It was strange as Stephanie was served a plate of food while staying silent, confused about everything.

The food was excellent and delicious, and she had good table manners. The conversation ranged from what they should catch up on to her having to defeat the Black Zodiacs (which surprised the family) and the Nightmares roaming.

Stephanie planned everything in her mind, from studying zodiacs to collecting Dusts to refilling the Dust Whistle. Meanwhile, Notches was eating his food from a different bowl as Sir Topham Hatt’s cat asked after eating, “So where did you come from?”

“I came with Stephanie from Shining Time Station,” Notches explained as he lifted his head from the food bowl. “I’ve been traveling with her since.”

“How interesting.” Sir Topham Hatt’s cat commented and licked her lips to wipe the wet cat food off. “I didn’t get to know your name either.”

“My name is Notches,” Notches responded as the cat looked confused, glancing over at him. “She named me because of my ears.”

“Your battle scars?” the cat perked, mentioning a paw towards the scars on his ears.

“Yes.” Notches nodded, feeling confident in his scars, as Stephanie listened to Notches speak to Sir Topham Hatt’s cat.

“Hmm,” the cat hummed after Notches explained, noticing the battle scars all over his ears.

“What’s your name?” Notches asked, mentioning Sir Topham Hatt’s cat with a paw as a gesture towards her.

“Gracie,” the cat replied with a smile. “Named after my master’s best friend.”

“I like that name.” Notches smiled back. “It suits you.”

Gracie smiled after Notches smiled at her, and they returned to eating, sometimes talking to each other while the adults spoke. Then, once breakfast was finished, Stephanie followed the Hatt family outside, wincing a little whenever her hair got caught. She accidentally bumped into Dowager Hatt’s back when she stumbled a little after her hair got caught on her heels, emitting, “Ow!”

“Right.” Dowager Hatt nodded as she looked at Stephanie’s long hair and stopped walking after recovering from the bump. Stephanie blushed with embarrassment that she had crashed into Dowager Hatt. “We need to get to a barber to cut your hair.”

“Please do.” Stephanie nodded as she turned toward Dowager Hatt. “As much as I enjoy having long hair, I dislike getting my hair in the way or caught in my shoes.”

“I understand, Stephanie.” Dowager Hatt nodded. “But first, we must put your hair up to keep it from getting stuck.”

Dowager Hatt reached into her purse and grabbed a handful of pins as she gently turned Stephanie around. With her fingers, Dowager Hatt carefully combed Stephanie’s hair, noticing how well Stephanie washed it despite its length but not its thickness.

So she needed to find a different hairstyle that would put all this hair up, but an idea popped into her head. She put her bobby pins away and rummaged through her purse as Sir Topham Hatt drove in his blue car with Earnest and Lowham Hatt, taking out a chopstick with blue rose gemstones at the top.

Dowager Hatt placed the chopstick in her mouth sideways and brushed Stephanie’s hair out with her fingers, getting some hair between her fingers but continuing. After Stephanie’s hair was up, Dowager Hatt used the chopsticks to keep her hair styled and removed her fingers, giving a confident huff.

“There.” Dowager Hatt smiled, stepping back as Stephanie had a large bun with the chopsticks as anchors for keeping her hair up with the tips of the chopsticks with a blue gemstone. “That looks much better for you.”

Stephanie gingerly reached behind with her hands and felt the bun, seeing it was styled as a low bun with the chopstick keeping it all. Now that Stephanie’s hair was up, Dowager Hatt noticed she had something on the back of her neck but was more focused on her pointed ears.

“Thank you so much, Mrs. Hatt!” Stephanie beamed as her ears flicked a little.

“You’re welcome, Stephanie.” Dowager Hatt nodded, looking away from her pointed ears before walking next to her, and she quickly picked Notches up, who followed her outside with Lucy on his back. “Let’s take Bertie to the barber.”

“Who’s ‘Bertie?’” Stephanie politely asked as Notches climbed on her and carefully entered her hood, missing her hair.

“He’s a bus,” Dowager Hatt explained. “He takes people like me, you, and perhaps your pet or friend to places.”

“Interesting,” Stephanie nodded with curiosity. “Are there more buses like him?”

“Yes.” Dowager Hatt nodded as they stopped at a bus stop. “There are Bulgy and Algy, though I have never met Algy.”

‘Strange name,’ Stephanie thought but kept it to herself. After a few minutes, the bus arrived after hearing its horn, and just like the others, the bus had a face on the front, and the basis was an AEC Regal ‘T Class’ London Country Area bus painted in red. The bus noticed Stephanie and looked confused, but Stephanie could tell he knew her because of the news.

…Yet again, could it be her ears? Half of Stephanie wanted to yank her hair down to cover them the best she could, but since she was standing next to Dowager Hatt and had put her long hair up for her, she silently waved her hand to Bertie with a smile and said, “Hello!”

“Hello,” the bus returned confusedly. Dowager Hatt took Stephanie’s wrist and waited as people unboarded the bus. “Who are you?”

“I’m Stephanie,” Stephanie responded calmly. “Stephanie Allen. Who are you?”

“I’m Bertie the Bus,” the bus, Bertie, responded, and Stephanie perked, now recognizing where the name came from, and she responded, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Bertie.”

After the last person had stepped off, Dowager Hatt gently led Stephanie to the entrance and stepped in, passing by the bus driver and sitting on a seat. Stephanie sat down next to Dowager Hatt and glanced around curiously, seeing everything looked vintage and different.

It was unlike the buses back home, so this might be a different approach from what she was used to. Once the last person stepped onto Bertie, the bus driver pulled a lever that closed the door and started to drive away from the bus stop and down the road. Deciding to take this time, Stephanie reached into her sweater’s pocket and took out Avril’s journal, flipping it to the saved page and looking at the pages. The next page reads:

• Hour: Ⅲ
• Zodiacs:
  • Western: Cancer
  • Native American: Woodpecker
  • Celtic: Fox
  • Chinese: Rabbit
• Gemstone: Ruby
• Cancer Zodiac: The Cancer Zodiac grants you the abilities of any crustacean. Whenever you are transformed into a human, you are covered with the shell of a crustacean that acts like armor from medieval times, like an exoskeleton.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
  • You can be powerful during a full moon.
  • You can breathe underwater.
  • You can use the abilities of a crustacean.
• Woodpecker Zodiac: The Woodpecker Zodiac grants you the ability of a woodpecker and can make you a harpy of said woodpecker.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
  • You can use the abilities of a woodpecker.
• Fox Zodiac: The Fox Zodiac allows you to use the abilities of a half-fox and half-human being known as a kitsune, either through folklore or entirely as a fox.
  • You can create prophecies
  • You can use the abilities of a fox
  • You can use the abilities of a transcendent giant
  • You can use the ability of blessings
• Rabbit Zodiac: The Rabbit Zodiac grants you the ability of a lagomorph of any kind and even transforms you into a half-rabbit and half-human being.
  • You can be incredibly fast when running.
  • You can use the abilities of a lagomorph.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

A bump startled Stephanie from reading as she gave a small yelp, but she was not too startled as she sighed, putting the book back into her sweater’s pocket and deciding to read it later. In the background, people stared at Stephanie with confused expressions, seeing that she had real pointed ears that could move independently whenever she showed expressions.

Dowager Hatt noticed the same thing but stayed quiet while enjoying the bus ride, and she noticed Thomas coming down the line. Then Bertie picked up speed, and everyone was a little startled, including Stephanie.

She gave another small yelp, leaning slightly toward Dowager Hatt after accidentally falling off the chair, but gently pulled Stephanie close to her. Stephanie was half surprised when Dowager Hatt gently pulled her close to her body, but she stayed silent as Bertie drove down the road.

They soon reached a station with a large bridge over a railway, which perked Stephanie’s curiosity as Bertie stopped. After Bertie stopped driving, Dowager Hatt released Stephanie and stood up as Stephanie followed her, politely excusing herself with Dowager Hatt following behind her. They soon stepped off Bertie as Stephanie glanced back at him, saying, “Thank you so much for the ride, Mr. Bertie.”

Bertie blushed after Stephanie thanked him and stuttered as the new passengers stepped on. “You’re welcome, ma’am.”

Bertie took off driving as Stephanie watched her before following Dowager Hatt. She gently took Stephanie’s wrist when they were walking past crowds. Stephanie flinched a little after feeling Dowager Hatt take her wrist but calmed down as they walked past people.

‘It’s a little crowded around here,’ Stephanie thought as she looked at the people, seeing their different outfits before looking at hers. ‘Am I the only black sheep around here?’

They soon arrived at a large wooden place with a plaque on the front that reads ‘C&B Barber’ with rails that lead towards it, but they stopped a few feet away from it.

“Whoa,” Stephanie smiled with interest before noticing the railroad tracks had led to the front of the shop with buffers. “Erm, Mrs. Hatt?” Dowager Hatt looked at Stephanie with confusion as she stopped walking, and Stephanie asked, “Why is the shop facing the railroad tracks?”

“I don’t know,” Dowager Hatt responded. “Perhaps for the drivers and firemen to have their haircuts? You could ask the barber once we get inside.”

Stephanie nodded after Dowager Hatt answered her question and stepped inside, seeing not many people inside except for some waiting for their turns and a few barbers. One of the barbers noticed Stephanie with Dowager Hatt and greeted her, “Good morning, Mrs. Dowager. What can I do for you today?”

“I came here to give Stephanie,” Dowager Hatt explained as she mentioned a shy Stephanie. “A haircut.”

“Will do,” the barber nodded, noticing Lucy and Notches but not mentioning it. “Take a number and wait for your turn.”

Dowager Hatt took a number from the ticket dispenser and sat next to Stephanie, waiting for their turn while Stephanie glanced around curiously. Everything looked so different from the usual haircut places she usually sees occasionally, where everything was littered with advertisements for shampoo, conditioner, and other products.

But this barber shop was much more different from what Stephanie was expecting, as it just had one large mirror with three barber chairs in front of it, a few posters, and a large table with different bottles.

‘How strange,’ Stephanie thought as she stopped looking around.

Notches crawled from her sweater’s hood to her lap, sitting down on it as Stephanie started gently scratching Notches’ face with her fingers, hearing him purr as Lucy adjusted a little to be comfortable.

Some of the waiting adults perked up after hearing Notches’ purring and glanced over, seeing Stephanie scratching Notches’ chin and neck while Notches was enjoying the scratching. The adults waiting for their turns heard Notches’ purring and glanced over with confusion, seeing Stephanie with Notches on her lap and scratching his face with her fingers.

“Bless me,” one of the adults said as Stephanie glanced at the adult, stopping scratching as Notches rubbed his face against her palms. “Is that purring noise coming from your cat?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, scratching Notches’ chin as he purred. “Is he a little too loud?”

“Certainly not,” another adult said, shaking his head. “I never heard a cat purr that loud.”

“Really?” Stephanie perked up as she stopped again, and Notches gently huffed, rubbing his face against her palms as the adults nodded.

“Steph, can you continue scratching me?” Notches asked, looking up at her. “It feels g~o~o~d.”

Notches purred a little when he said, “g~o~o~d.” Stephanie chuckled a little, scratching underneath Notches’ chin with her fingers, getting to the area around his neck and chin that made Notches’ purring go up a notch.

As Stephanie was scratching Notches’ chin, she noticed none of the adults heard him speaking but did not mind as she just scratched his chin. One by one, the adults had their numbers called and went to have their hair or beards trimmed or cut as Stephanie and Dowager Hatt waited.

Taking this time, Stephanie took out the journal as Notches was curled on her lap in a ball and flipped it to the page after the zodiacs of Cancer, the Woodpecker, and the Rabbit. The next page reads:

• Hour: Ⅳ
• Zodiacs:
  • Western: Leo
  • Native American: Salmon
  • Celtic: Bull
  • Chinese: Dragon
• Leo Zodiac: The Leo Zodiac allows you to transform into a lion of any kind and a half-human, half-lion hybrid.
  • Pyrokinesis: fire manipulation.
  • You can control animals.
  • You can have a feral mind.
  • You can have enhanced reflexes.
  • You can have enhanced senses.
  • You can have solar empowerment.
  • You can have your own natural abilities.
  • You can transform yourself into a Nemean Lion myth.
  • You can use sharp claws.
  • You can use the abilities of a lion.
• Salmon Zodiac: The Salmon Zodiac transforms you into a salmon or mermaid.
  • Pyrokinesis: fire manipulation.
  • You can use the abilities of a salmon.
• Bull Zodiac: The Bull Zodiac allows you to transform into a minotaur or entirely into a bull and use the abilities of one.
  • You can alter the forms
  • You can be empowered by the moon
  • You can create potions
  • You can have incredible beauty
  • You can have supernatural wisdom
  • You can infuse death into objects
  • You can manipulate inspiration
  • You can perceive the future
  • You can project knowledge onto others
  • You can shapeshift
  • You can use the abilities of a bull
  • You can use the abilities of a creator deity
  • You can use the abilities of a witch
  • You can utilize white arts
• Dragon Zodiac: The Dragon Zodiac transforms you into a mythological dragon or a half-dragon, half-human hybrid.
  • You can have a stronger combustion ability through the mouth and fire-breathing abilities.
  • You can use the abilities of a dragon.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie hummed softly after reading the page, making mental notes about trying out the zodiacs whenever she found the gemstones. She was about to turn the page when Stephanie and Dowager Hatt heard, “Does anyone have number eight?”

“That would be us,” Dowager Hatt responded as she stood up, and Stephanie closed the journal and placed it into her sweater’s pocket. She wrapped her arms around Notches with Lucy on his back, picking him up as she followed Dowager Hatt.

“Perfect,” the barber nodded. “Let me see how long the hair is.”

Dowager Hatt took out the chopstick she placed in Stephanie’s hair, and as soon as she took it out, all of Stephanie’s hair flopped down, letting some weight off, but it was still heavy when it was down.

“Bless me!” the barber exclaimed as his eyes popped wide like saucers. Stephanie reached up with her hand to move some hair with an unamused expression, as Notches sneezed when some hair got into his nose, and Lucy moved some hair from her face.

“Mommy, look!” one of the kids pointed. “That kid with blue hair looks like Cousin Itt!”

Stephanie’s face blushed with embarrassment after the kid pointed it out, and Dowager Hatt glared silently while the mother gently shushed her child.

“Honey, don’t stare,” another mother hushed an amazed child.

The barber looked at the long hair with curiosity, noticing the split ends and the blue color of her hair, but it did not feel like hair dye.

“How many years did you grow your hair out?” the barber asked.

“Way too long,” Stephanie groaned as she blushed and her pointed ears flicked with irritation. “I barely went to get a haircut because of the expenses.”

“How much?” the barber asked.

“Forty dollars,” Stephanie responded. “Even still, it’s expensive when you just want a trim too.”

After she explained, the barber looked at Stephanie’s long hair, feeling the thickness and the length, as Dowager Hatt looked confused about how expensive haircuts had become.

“This can be done,” the barber nodded. “What length do you want your haircut at?”

Stephanie adjusted her long hair to uncover Lucy and Notches, handed them over to Dowager Hatt as she held them in her arms, and said, “Can you cut my hair down to the middle of my back? Like here?”

Stephanie did her best to show but struggled a little to show the barber where she wanted it cut because it covered her back where she was trying to show. Luckily, the barber noticed, pinched where Stephanie wanted it cut between two of his fingers, and asked, “Here?”

“Yes, there, please.” Stephanie nodded, careful not to accidentally move her fingers when she nodded.

“Will do,” the barber nodded. “Though I’ll have to cut your hair standing on a tall item since it is too long for me to use the chairs.”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded. So the barber took Stephanie to the mirror while Dowager Hatt held Notches and Lucy in her arms, watching as the barber brought a barrel over. The barber struggled a little with the barrel, but Stephanie helped by putting it upright with no effort, impressing Dowager Hatt when she helped the barber.

Once the barrel was put up at the spot the barber wanted, Stephanie was picked up and placed at the right height to look better at the hair, not sitting on a strand.

“Perfect!” the barber nodded before picking up a black barber cape. “Now, let’s start. Have a seat, please.”

The barber placed the barber cape around Stephanie’s neck and first brushed Stephanie’s long, thick hair with a hairbrush, pausing whenever he went over a tangle and brushing it out as Stephanie waited.

Once everything was brushed out, the barber started to cut Stephanie’s long hair, snipping at the place where she wanted it while Stephanie stayed still. Dowager Hatt watched as the barber snipped Stephanie’s long hair to the exact length, cutting her bangs to the size she wanted. As Stephanie was getting her hair cut, Dowager Hatt noticed some things that were the strangest about Stephanie.

Whenever the barber lifted her long hair while cutting a section or putting it up to even it out, something was on the back of her neck, but she could not distinguish what it was as the hair recovered it. Even her pointed ears looked real whenever Stephanie reached up to them to gently move them down for the barber to brush in some areas.

She can look better at it if Stephanie feels comfortable or is willing to talk to her. She had noticed how flinchy Stephanie was whenever Dowager Hatt placed her hands on either her shoulder or took her hand to keep her close.

Half of Dowager Hatt’s mind thought she was just a little nervous about her new world, but it was too flinchy. But Dowager Hatt decided to save it for later, as the barber brushed out her long hair after a few minutes of cutting.

“It’s finished.” The barber smiled, taking a couple of steps backward. Stephanie’s long hair did not reach the bottom of her shoes anymore and instead was down to the exact size she wanted, and even her bangs were cut to where she could see.

“What do you think of your haircut, child?” the barber asked, placing down the tools he used to cut Stephanie’s long hair.

“It’s perfect!” Stephanie beamed happily. “Thank you so much for the haircut.”

“You’re welcome!” the barber smiled. “Wait one minute so I can sweep the hair.”

Stephanie nodded and waited, watching as the barber used a broom to sweep the long, snipped blue hair into a small pile before moving it away.

“You may step off the barrel,” the barber nodded. Stephanie carefully hopped off the barrel and landed on her feet before asking, “Do you mind if I move it back to where you had it?”

“Erm, sure?” the barber nodded. “But it’s heavy for-” Stephanie carefully moved it onto its side without struggling and started carefully rolling it to its spot, stopping it before moving it back to its height.

“Bless me, that is one strong girl,” one of the barbers muttered as the others stopped and stared. Dowager Hatt was also surprised at the young girl’s strength as she walked over, amazed that she was not feeling her hair getting caught in her heels.

‘This is perfect!’ Stephanie thought as Dowager Hatt snapped out of her daze. ‘Goodbye tripping over hair.’

Dowager Hatt handed Notches and Lucy back to Stephanie as she held them, hugging them as Notches gently rubbed his head against her cheek.

“This is great!” Notches smiled. “I don’t have to be hidden underneath your hair anymore.”

Stephanie giggled after Notches responded as he crawled into her sweater’s hood, watching as Dowager Hatt paid the barber ten dollars, confusing Stephanie after seeing it. After the haircut was paid for, Dowager Hatt and Stephanie left the C&B Barber, and Stephanie could finally walk without tripping over her hair behind her heels.

“Oh, Mrs. Hatt.” Stephanie perked up. “Erm, I’m going to find Dust Crystals to gather for refilling my Dust Whistle.”

“What are ‘Dust Crystals?’” Dowager Hatt asked. “They sound like something I have heard before.”

“So you have heard of them?” Stephanie perked up with confusion.

“Sort of.” Dowager Hatt nodded. “Do you know what they look like?”

“I do.” Stephanie nodded before blushing a little. “We must go to Muffler Mountain to search for some I could show you.”

Dowager Hatt looked confused after Stephanie explained but nodded, deciding to see what Stephanie was showing her. She checked the rails by looking left and right before taking her whistle out, asking, “Do you mind if I borrow the rails?”

Dowager Hatt looked confused after Stephanie asked but silently nodded a ‘yes’ as Stephanie looked back at the rails. She flipped the knob to silver and blew, watching as the Silver Dust came from the whistle and engulfed her.

Dowager Hatt looked surprised after witnessing silver-colored dust come out of the whistle and engulf Stephanie before it moved to the rails and disappeared. Instead, it turned out to be a steam locomotive on the tracks, looking slightly dizzy for a minute before coughing a little. Then, a pair of azure blue eyes opened, and a familiar voice responded, “Whoa, that was… weird?”

The pair of eyes looked confused as they glanced down, the camera switching to what looked like buffers.

“…Huh?” The camera pans out to reveal Stephanie, except she has transformed into a steam locomotive. Stephanie was still wearing her glasses when she crossed her eyes, except she could not move her newfound body like she used to when a human, except with gray skin. Her newfound body resembles an LMS Fowler Class 3F with a dark blue background, blue lining, and silver buffers.

“Whoa!” Stephanie remarked with a smile as Dowager Hatt slowly walked up to her. “This is so cool! I didn’t know the whistle could do this to the user, too.”

Notches dizzily stepped out of her cab with Lucy on his back, muttering, “Stephanie, next time, warn us before using your whistle!”

Stephanie blushed a light blue after Notches told her, and she chuckled a little before looking at Dowager Hatt.

“Oh, sorry, Mrs. Hatt.” Stephanie apologized before beaming. “This is what the whistle can do! Erm, hop on. I think I could take you to Muffler Mountain, too.”

Dowager Hatt nodded and gingerly climbed in, and before Stephanie could do anything, a peep suddenly went through the air, causing her to yelp a little.

“What was that?” Stephanie asked.

“That was your whistle,” Dowager Hatt responded.

“My whistle?” Stephanie asked with confusion.

She glanced around in confusion as the camera switched to a whistle at the front of the cab, whistling again twice.

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up before starting to giggle as she whistled again. “I didn’t know my whistle could become this form’s whistle! That’s pretty cool!”

She started moving down the line and wobbled a little at first after accidentally hitting the brakes as Dowager Hatt held onto the cab window with Notches and Lucy skidding slightly on the floor as Notches yowled a little.

“Sorry!” Stephanie exclaimed. “Alright, let’s try again.”

Stephanie whistled as she went forward, puffing down the line while being careful about accidentally hitting the brakes.

Gordon thundered down the Main Line while pulling the express behind him, feeling glad he was getting back into—Gordon’s eyes saw something blue from the left side of the rails, causing him to glance over in confusion.

From the style of the body, it looked like Thomas… but Thomas was taking Annie and Clarabel with him on his branch line. Eh, it could be him going to Blue Quarry Mountain. Gordon smirked a little at deciding to play a little trick on Thomas, whistling his whistle as he heard a faint yelp as he passed by Thomas, calling, “Express coming through?”

His confidence faded a little after seeing that Thomas looked a little different than how he saw him, looking a little longer and styled differently from Thomas. But he did not slow down to look at ‘Thomas’ as he puffed down the line.

“That was strange,” Gordon mumbled with a confused tone. “I swore that was Thomas puffing down the line.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie was just puffing down the line with Dowager Hatt in her cab, holding Notches and Lucy in her arms. Suddenly, a familiar whistle went through the air that startled Stephanie from what she was doing, and she glanced over to the left while a big blue engine passed her, calling, “Express coming through?”

But the last word changed to a slightly confused tone as the big blue engine went down the line, pulling coaches behind as Stephanie looked amazed.

“Holy crap in a pita!” Stephanie exclaimed. “Was that Gordon?”

“Yes.” Dowager Hatt nodded, surprised to see Stephanie moving by herself while keeping a hand on her hat. “That was him.”

“Was he pulling coaches of his own?” Stephanie excitedly asked.

“Yes,” Dowager Hatt chuckled. “My, you are very curious about everything!”

“Well,” Stephanie blushed before noticing the light turning red and stopping. “I have never seen anything like this before, and-” Stephanie paused when she saw something red passing by and smiled. “Ooh!”

James, the Red Engine, was pulling trucks behind him, glistening in his shiny red paint as he noticed Stephanie, except for her face.

“Hi, Thomas!” James whistled as Stephanie looked confused. “Bye, Thomas!”

Stephanie whistled back in confusion to respond to his whistle and called, “It was nice meeting you?”

With James, James noticed Thomas and whistled, greeting him, “Hi, Thomas!” before puffing down the line with a “Bye, Thomas!”

A different whistle came from ‘Thomas,’ and a different voice responded, “It was nice meeting you?”

James looked confused after hearing the voice and muttered, “That wasn’t Thomas.”

Stephanie continued puffing down the line before noticing she was feeling low on something and asking, “Erm, Mrs. Hatt? I’m starting to feel a little low on something.”

Dowager Hatt looked at the controls in Stephanie’s cab, noticing a gauge showing the water was nearly empty.

“You’re running out of water, Stephanie,” Dowager Hatt explained. “I think it’s best to find a water tower.”

“A ‘water tower?’” Stephanie asked with confusion. “What does a water tower look like?”

“Like that.” Dowager Hatt pointed as Stephanie looked, seeing a large tower with half a barrel at the top and nothing covering the top.

“Oh, I see!” Stephanie perked. “Perfect!”

Stephanie soon stopped near the water tower as Dowager Hatt stepped out without her purse, confusing Stephanie as she watched.

“Erm, Mrs. Hatt?” Stephanie asked. “Are you sure you know what you are doing?”

“Why, of course!” Dowager Hatt nodded. “My son Bertram showed Glynn when I was a much younger woman, being the first engine he created.”

“Wait, what?!” Stephanie exclaimed with surprise as Dowager Hatt carefully moved the nozzle over to Stephanie’s tanks before looking confused. “Which Hatt, though?”

“The one without the mustache!” Dowager Hatt chuckled as she opened Stephanie’s tank from the right side. “He learned so much from both his grandfather and my husband.”

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “It must’ve run strong in the family.”

“That’s correct.” Dowager Hatt nodded as water poured into Stephanie’s tanks, and Stephanie shuddered a little from the cold water. “What about your family, Stephanie?”

“Oh,” Stephanie glanced away. “I only have my grandpa.”

“Your grandpa?” Dowager Hatt asked. “What about your mother or father?”

“I, ah,” Stephanie paused, unsure how to politely put it for Dowager Hatt. “I don’t have birth parents.”

Dowager Hatt stumbled with the nozzle a little after Stephanie told her but kept it from spilling too much as she asked, “You are adopted?”

“You can say that.” Stephanie slowly nodded. “He also had his relatives with him, including my foster mom and dad.”

She hated saying that out of her mouth as she silently grimaced at how it came out.

“That’s good!” Dowager Hatt smiled. “Are there any hobbies for either of them?”

“Well, woodworking,” Stephanie responded as Dowager Hatt stopped filling Stephanie’s tank and checked. “There is also crocheting, my favorite, knitting, stitching, quilting, and other hobbies I learned from my grandpa.”

“Really?” Dowager Hatt asked as Stephanie tried to make herself nod but stopped after reminding herself she did not have a neck.

“Yes, I learned a lot from him!” Stephanie beamed as Dowager Hatt placed the lid back on the water tank and removed the nozzle. “And even from the other members of Shining Time. Grandpa Frank was one busy man.”

Dowager Hatt climbed back into Stephanie’s cab as she whistled twice and started moving forward, strangely feeling ‘refreshed’ from having her tank filled with water. Behind her, a confused Percy followed her, hearing some part of the conversation while his driver hopped out.

“‘Stephanie?’” Percy muttered in confusion.

Stephanie continued puffing down the line and passing by different locomotives, ranging from diesels that either did not greet her or greeted her with a smile to steam locomotives racing by her like a blur of colors.

It all amazed Stephanie as she watched different kinds of vehicles pass her, even road vehicles from the side of the railroad. From the trip, Stephanie learned about stopping and going at the right time, slowing down at signs near the roads, and even allowing others to pass her out of kindness. She finally reached the woods and whistled to switch tracks, heading into the woods as she puffed down the line.

“Ah, here we are!” Stephanie smiled. “We’re almost near Muffler Mountain.”

Dowager Hatt looked at the mountain curiously, seeing how massive it was compared to her or Stephanie.

“So this is where the great Lady resides.” Dowager Hatt mumbled.

Stephanie heard Dowager Hatt’s mumble and said nothing about it, coming across a cleared area and stopping, seeing something sticking out from the mountain’s wall.

“Perfect!” Stephanie beamed. “There’s one sticking out.”

Dowager Hatt stepped out with Notches and Lucy, turned to Stephanie, and asked, “Do you know how to turn back to normal?”

“Of course!” Stephanie nodded. “All you need to do is use Gold Dust,” she said, then paused and said, “Though I might not plan this.”

She chuckled a little as she looked around for an idea but remembered her whistle and mumbled, “Of course! Why didn’t I think of that?”

Stephanie focused as her whistle moved a little, revealing a secret slot with the same alchemy symbol on the Dust Whistle.

“Ha!” Stephanie exclaimed. “Got that down. Now for the next part.”

Stephanie paused as she focused again, accidentally whistling twice, and muttered, “Whoops, wrong one.”

She focused again, and the symbols underneath switched from blank to the symbol of gold as she smiled.

“Alright, let’s see if this works.” Stephanie whistled with a long peeeeep, and Gold Dust emerged from her funnel.

The Gold Dust wrapped around Stephanie and disappeared, revealing Stephanie was back to normal as she sat on her bottom on the ground with a whistle around her neck.

“Yes!” Stephanie cheered with a bright smile. “That was awesome!”

Dowager Hatt placed Notches down with Lucy on his back as he walked over, asking, “Are you alright, Stephanie?”

“Yes.” Stephanie nodded as she stood up before wincing, her legs aching slightly. “Ah, wait, cramp.”

Stephanie slowly stood up after feeling the cramp as Dowager Hatt helped her to her feet, slowly easing the cramp out as she stretched a little.

“Ah, that’s better.” Stephanie smiled. “Now, let’s see if we are lucky enough to find any Dust Crystals around.”

She gently took Dowager Hatt by the wrist and gently led her to the side of Muffler Mountain, where she could see more items sticking out, and Dowager Hatt’s curiosity grew.

Chapter Text

Stephanie was on her knees, digging something out with the tools she had taken, having trouble removing the dirt as she paused with a gentle huff, moving her screwdriver down.

“Dang,” she mumbled as she used her thumb to remove the dirt.

“Is there something the matter?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Well,” Stephanie began, blushing a little as her ears flicked. “I kept forgetting about how thick dirt can be, so, ah, I didn’t get a spray bottle to spray water to loosen it a little.”

Suddenly, the bracelet around her wrist glowed, and Stephanie perked up, placing her tools down to look at it as the gemstone glowed.

“What is that?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Ah, well,” Stephanie began before moving it from her wrist.

But as she took it off her wrist, the bracelet transformed into a wand with the gemstone at the bottom.

“…That’s new.” Stephanie blinked with curiosity.

“Stephanie?” Dowager Hatt slowly asked. “Is that from magic?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “You may think I am nuts, but I went to a Zodiac Dimension thanks to Amelia, the Aries Zodiac Guardian. Chayton, the Falcon Zodiac Guardian. Moina, the Deer Zodiac Guardian, and Shu, the Rat Zodiac Guardian. In that dimension, I somehow cleaned a pool of water that, ah,” she showed the wand to Dowager Hatt. “Gift me this.”

Dowager Hatt gently took the wand from Stephanie and inspected it with curiosity, seeing the gemstone’s color and the stick.

“Hmm,” Dowager Hatt gently hummed as she returned the wand. “Have you tried using its power?”

“I have not.” Stephanie shook her head as she took the wand from Dowager Hatt. “All it did was transform into a bracelet for me.”

“Why not use its powers now?” Notches suggested. “You have plenty of time to try everything out.”

Stephanie stood up and said, “I think you should back up a little in case something goes wrong.”

Dowager Hatt nodded and stepped back a good foot with Notches as Lucy was riding his back as Stephanie looked at the wand.

She thought of something before making a circle in the air, creating a blue magic circle that surprised Stephanie and the others.

Suddenly, a medium-sized water ball shot from the magic circle toward the clumped dirt, splashing all over the wall as Stephanie was tossed backward.

She landed on her bottom with an “Oof!” as Dowager Hatt instantly rushed over, asking, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Stephanie winced softly. “I did not expect that to happen.”

But she noticed the water had dampened the area where Stephanie was trying to dig crystals out and smiled, saying, “But it worked!”

Then the wand transformed into her bracelet as she put it back on, saying, “I guess getting a spray bottle will wait for another time.”

After putting her bracelet back on, Stephanie returned to the spot and finally got the gemstone out, seeing it was another Dust Crystal that is Gold Dust.

“Here it is!” Stephanie smiled, showing Dowager Hatt. “It looks like this!”

Dowager Hatt took the Dust Crystal from Stephanie and looked at it, asking, “These are the ones you use for your whistle?”

“Exactly,” Stephanie nodded. “And you said they looked familiar, right?”

“Exactly,” Dowager Hatt nodded as she handed the crystalized Gold Dust to Stephanie. “They look almost like the ones at Ulfstead Castle Museum.”

“Wait, they are in a museum?” Stephanie perked. “How are they in a museum?”

“They have been in Sodor’s history for a long time, Stephanie,” Dowager Hatt explained. “You can have a look after arriving at Ulfstead Castle.”

Stephanie blushed with slight embarrassment after Dowager Hatt explained it to her and asked, “Though, what is that one you showed me?”

“Gold Dust,” Stephanie smiled. “The same one that helped Sodor’s residents return to normal, and I turned from being a steam locomotive. It acts almost like a reverser for other Dusts, like Silver Dust!”

Dowager Hatt looked confused as Stephanie returned to the dirt, chipping away more as she transformed the bracelet into a wand, holding it in her hand instead of taking it off.

She paused slightly from making a circle and instead made a smaller blue circle as a water ball appeared on the top of her wand.

“Careful,” Dowager Hatt gently warned.

Stephanie nodded and used the water ball at the same spot, accidentally splashing it as some drips landed on Notches’ head.

“Whoops,” Stephanie chuckled before reaching over to him as he flicked his ears to get some off. “Sorry, Notches.”

“It’s fine,” Notches assured as he shook his head.

Stephanie transformed her wand back into her bracelet as it went around her wrist, scratching Notches’ chin before returning to digging.

A gemstone soon popped out, and Stephanie took it out, showing Dowager Hatt the Silver Dust as it was clumped together with another.

“This is Silver Dust,” Stephanie smiled. “This is what transforms me into a vehicle.”

Then she paused and mumbled, “Though I don’t know what it does to vehicles.”

“Let’s not attempt to use it on someone.” Dowager Hatt gently chuckled before noticing something in the dirt. “What’s that one?”

Stephanie looked over and noticed the same thing, looking slightly confused about what was deep in the dirt, as she did the same thing with the water ability with the wand, soaking the soil before chipping away.

After chipping and splashing with water, Stephanie soon took out what Dowager Hatt saw and held a new Dust Crystal.

It was a medium-dark brown color with a different shade of glitter that confused Stephanie.

“I never saw this one,” Stephanie responded as she lifted it to the sun to look through it, seeing more glitter inside as it shone a little. “But it looks almost like copper.”

“‘Copper Dust?’” Dowager Hatt cocked her head as Stephanie moved her arms down. “There is such Dust?”

“I think so,” Stephanie nodded. “If there is Silver Dust instead of the normal Gold Dust, there could be Copper Dust.”

Dowager Hatt looked somewhat confused after Stephanie explained it to her, not understanding that there were more Dusts around instead of Gold Dust, but decided to listen if she needed to learn a few things.

Stephanie soon collected six or seven Gold Dust, five new Copper Dust, and four or five Silver Dust.

“Alright.” Stephanie nodded, placing the tools away and scooping the Dust Crystals into her arms. “I think I’ve got enough to fill my Dust Whistle.”

Then she paused and added, “Though I think I should’ve gotten myself something to carry all this.”

“Try switching to your Rat Zodiac, Stephanie,” Lucy perked. “That Zodiac can bring anything to life after sketching it out.”

“Really?” Stephanie perked up, and Lucy nodded.

So Stephanie reached into her blue jeans pocket and took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch, flicking it open to check if it was on the right hour before closing it.

She tapped the top and soon transformed into her Rat Zodiac, except for keeping a humanoid appearance as she carried the Dust Crystals in her arms and had the Chinese symbol for ‘rat’ around her neck.

She is wearing a blue cheongsam with long sleeves reaching down to her ankles with hidden designs of chrysanthemums that semi-blend with her cheongsam, and her legs have transformed into the hind legs of a pika along with the ears.

Dowager Hatt was a little startled after seeing Stephanie transform into her Rat Zodiac but did not scream after she had changed as Stephanie started apologizing, “Ah, right, sorry! I kept forgetting to let you know about the Zodiac Pocket Watch.”

“How many mythical items do you have?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Erm, one too many?” Stephanie chuckled a little. “But they are useful!”

“That you are right,” Dowager Hatt nodded.

Using her hind legs, Stephanie carefully started sketching in the ground with her short claws, making out a bag as she had full arms.

After she had sketched out what she needed, Stephanie tapped the picture, and it magically appeared from the ground, becoming solid.

Stephanie beamed after watching her sketch become real as she knelt, gently squealing with excitement as she put the Dust Crystals inside, “This is so cool!”

Dowager Hatt noticed that Stephanie did not have a tail with curiosity as Stephanie started putting other items inside, finally having some relief from having to carry her tools and other items.

“Erm, Stephanie?” Dowager Hatt spoke as Stephanie glanced up at her. “Where’s your tail?”

Stephanie chuckled and responded, “Glacier rats, or pikas, are tailless. So, I don’t have a tail, and it would be a little hassle because I would be tripping over it.”

Dowager Hatt looked back at Stephanie’s body as she picked up the bag and put it over her head, slinging it from her right shoulder to her left hip.

“Perfect!” Stephanie beamed before reaching up to her collar and taking the pendant off, returning to normal. “Now, let’s get back to somewhere I can craft.”

“You can craft them?” Dowager Hatt asked as she followed Stephanie and picked Notches up with Lucy.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “It helps to turn them to Dust without finding a well, although I don’t think we could find one around here.”

They walked back to the rails, and Stephanie handed Notches and Lucy to Dowager Hatt to use Silver Dust to transform herself into a steam locomotive.

After transforming, Stephanie allowed Dowager Hatt to step into her cab and whistled, puffing down the line before coming next to a tram named ‘Toby.’

Stephanie whistles after seeing Toby, and he yelps a little after hearing her whistle, glancing over to see her.

“Hi!” Stephanie beamed. “You’re Toby, right?”

“Erm, yes.” Toby blinked with a surprised expression. “Who are you?”

“Oh, I’m Stephanie.” Stephanie chuckled as Toby gasped, screeching to a halt as his coach behind him yelped.

“Stephanie?!” Toby exclaimed as Stephanie went down the line. “How did you transform into a steamie?”

But Stephanie continued puffing down the line as Toby watched behind in bewilderment at what he had just learned.

Meanwhile, Stephanie puffed down the line as she looked around with curiosity, even seeing some familiar locomotives as she passed by them.

She even watched Gordon pass her as she whistled, calling with a beaming smile, “Express coming through!”

After hearing that familiar whistle and voice, Gordon was startled before he could say his famous line.

He glanced over as he watched the same locomotive with the same basis and livery pass him, mumbling, “That is certainly not Thomas.”

But then he sees Thomas puffing down the line with Annie and Clarabel, proving his point that he did not see Thomas passing by him.

Is he seeing double?

“I think I need to ask Sir Topham Hatt for a pair of glasses,” Gordon muttered.

He soon arrived at Knapford and saw Sir Topham Hatt coming out of his office, deciding to take this moment to ask him.

“Sir?” Gordon asked as Sir Topham Hatt glanced at him. “Did you get another steamie?”

“Why on earth?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“Because another Thomas is running around,” Gordon explained as his passengers stepped off. “I saw him pass by me twice while on my run.”

“That’s weird,” Percy peeped. “I saw Dowager Hatt talking to the same steamie and mentioned the name ‘Stephanie.’”

“Wait a moment,” Sir Topham Hatt perked. “My mother was with Stephanie. What is she doing with a steamie?”

Thomas appeared in the station as he heard some conversations, asking, “What’s going on?”

The others, Emily, James, and Henry, appeared, all looking confused as they glanced at each other.

That same whistle went through the air as everyone looked, seeing the same locomotive appear before stopping as they saw the station was full.

Stephanie was in her steam locomotive form and perked up as she exclaimed, “Whoops, ah, full station. I’ll just-”

She was about to move backward when something black pushed her forward, exclaiming, “Whoa, hey!”

“Well, move out of the way, steamie,” a gruff voice huffed behind her, looking from the corner of her eye as she saw the same diesel that did not honk back.

“Okay, okay,” Stephanie huffed as steam came from her funnel. “Don’t get yourself in a twist, please.”

She switched lines and went down as the black diesel honked its horn, moving out of the way as everyone watched with surprise as the black diesel went down the line.

“Did you see…?” Thomas glanced over at a shocked Sir Topham Hatt.

“Yes, and I don’t believe it!” Gordon nodded.

“Did Wendell’s magic do this to her?” Emily asked.

“No,” Sir Topham Hatt said, shaking his head. “It must’ve been the whistle she showed you all.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie glanced around for somewhere to let Dowager Hatt out as she said, “Ah, sorry, Mrs. Hatt. I didn’t get to stop at Knapford. I didn’t expect it to be that crowded.”

“It’s fine, Stephanie,” Dowager Hatt assured. “I can try getting off here to help refill your water tanks.”

“Okay.” Stephanie stopped beside the water tank as Dowager Hatt stepped off before watching a miniature diesel run past her. “Whoa, who was that?”

After hearing her question, the diesel stopped and moved back, honking with a polite but excited “Hello!”

The diesel stopped next to her as Stephanie watched the little diesel stop.

The diesel was a modified PRR Class A6, painted dark green on the bottom half of his body and yellow on the top half, with red buffer beams and black wheels.

A white circle with a black outline surrounds the black number sixty-eight on his sides.

“My name is Philip!” The little diesel greeted her. “What’s yours?”

“Stephanie,” Stephanie responded with a smile. “You’re so cute!”

Philip blushed after Stephanie remarked and said, “Oh, thank you. Are you new around here?”

“Oh, ah.” Stephanie nervously bit her lip. “That’s a whole ball of wax trying to explain everything.”

“What do you mean ‘ball of wax?’” Philip asked with confusion.

“It means ‘the whole story,’” Stephanie explained. “It’s an idiom.”

“Oh!” Philip perked. “So, you’re trying to tell me the whole ball of wax is hard?”

“Eh, not really,” Stephanie chuckled as Dowager Hatt helped Stephanie fill her tanks. “I just don’t want to spend your time having to tell you everything.”

“It’s fine!” Philip chuckled. “All I was doing was shunting.”

“‘Shunting?’” Stephanie asked with curiosity.

“Yeah!” Philip nodded before zooming off as Stephanie watched with curiosity. “Watch!”

Stephanie watched Philip zoom off and start shunting trucks around, and Stephanie looked amazed, watching him move one truck to a site and another to a different place.

There was a brake van at the end of each of them as Philip shunted them, sometimes struggling with some faces and sneering a little whenever he moved them.

After moving the trucks around, Philip returned to Stephanie and said, “See! That’s shunting.”

“Cool!” Stephanie remarked. “That looks very fun!”

“It is!” Philip chuckled. “Minus the Troublesome Trucks.”

“What are troublesome trucks?” Stephanie repeated it with confusion.

As soon as she asked, laughter roared from around her, which startled Stephanie, seeing the trucks with faces laughing as she looked confused.

“Look at this new steamie!” one of the trucks sneered. “She is confused about everything!”

“Yeah, she might be stupid!” another roared as the trucks’ laughter went up.

Stephanie huffed and responded, “Is that right? And what exactly have you accomplished in your life that makes you Einstein?”

A chorus of “Ooh!”s came from the trucks as the laughter stopped as Philip winced a little from her comeback.

“Oh, uh,” the truck said as he glanced away before glancing back at Stephanie. “I don’t know.”

“Then shush, please,” Stephanie gently huffed. “If you can’t handle the comebacks, don’t say anything.”

Said truck blushed as the others snorted and giggled, and Stephanie glanced over at Philip, asking, “Are these all the Troublesome Trucks?”

“Yep,” Philip nodded. “And they are very troublesome. They can push you down a hill, rock you back and forth, and even get you into trouble.”

“Geez,” Stephanie gently spoke. “It sounds like they are a menace to society.”

“Not all of them,” Philip smiled. “There’s Bradford and Toad. They are very nice.”

“That’s great!” Stephanie smiled as Dowager Hatt walked up to her, and Notches hopped onto her buffers with Lucy on her back.

“I’m going to go see Bertram,” Dowager Hatt responded. “I enjoyed the trip we had.”

“You’re welcome,” Stephanie smiled before glancing over at Philip. “Do you mind if I stay here?”

“Go right ahead.” Dowager Hatt nodded. “Be careful, though.”

Stephanie whistled to nod as Dowager Hatt walked away, and Philip asked, “How did you take Dowager Hatt on a trip?”

“Well,” Stephanie began as she moved forward, surprising Philip as she moved back to him. “That’s why. Is it normal for steamies to move on their own?”

“Yes!” Philip nodded. “It’s sometimes rare to see someone move without their driver or fireman unless it’s important.”

“Wow!” Stephanie smiled. “That sounds cool!”

The Troublesome Trucks started laughing after Stephanie complimented Philip, and Stephanie frowned a little with a huff.

“Why does she sound like she was built yesterday?” one of the Troublesome Trucks giggled.

“It’s common for steamies like you to move around!” another laughed.

Stephanie rolled her eyes as Philip glanced at her and asked, “Are you made from yesterday?”

“No.” Stephanie chuckled before pausing and asking, “Wait, weren’t I about to respond to that question?”

“Oh, oops!” Philip blushed as he gently rocked back and forth. “I accidentally strayed off that point.”

Stephanie chuckled after Philip apologized before focusing on her whistle as it popped up, and Philip looked surprised after watching it.

The symbol switched from the symbol of silver to gold and whistled, the gold emerging from her funnel and wrapping around her as Notches hopped off.

She returned to her human self and landed on her bottom, moaning a little as she pushed herself up and mumbling, “Ow, I need to get used to that.”

She looked back at a surprised Philip and spread her arms wide, saying, “Surprise! I’m a human. That’s why I was ‘built yesterday.’”

She quoted the words with her fingers and rolled her eyes as the Troublesome Trucks also looked surprised.

“That was cool!” Philip perked up, surprising Stephanie with his reaction, but he smiled slightly at his quirkiness. “You can use the same whistles too?”

“Same whistles?” Stephanie asked.

“They are whistles Cleo has,” Philip explained. “Thomas explained it to me after Cleo used it to help him.”

After Philip explained, Stephanie asked with curiosity, “Do you know where Cleo is?”

“She’s in Ulfstead Castle,” Philip responded with a smile. “Do you want me to take you there?”

“Nah, sometime later,” Stephanie shook her head before looking at her Dust Whistle, as the Gold Dust was almost empty. “But I might need to refill my Dust Whistle.”

“Okay!” Philip honked his horn as Stephanie stepped away. “See you soon!”

Stephanie waved goodbye to Philip and walked away, heading to meet Sir Topham Hatt before her Zodiac Pocket Watch started tugging at her.

She flinched after feeling her Zodiac Pocket Watch tugging and glanced down with confusion after putting her Dust Whistle away.

Stephanie took her Zodiac Pocket Watch from her blue jeans and looked at the cover, seeing that part of the flower was pointing to the right.

She looked confused after seeing the flower’s petals glowing and turned around in that direction, watching the petals glow as she turned before pointing forward.

Stephanie carefully walked over to where the pocket watch was leading her before stopping near a shed with something glowing near it.

Curious, Stephanie kneeled to see what it was and picked it out, holding a natural emerald in her hand!

After picking up the emerald, the Zodiac Pocket Watch lifted from Stephanie’s palm.

The back magically opened, transforming the emerald into a cut piece before inserting it into the gem slot after the diamond.

After the emerald was inserted, the back magically closed before landing in her palm, successfully finding another piece.

But after she inserted the gemstone, Stephanie’s body soon started transforming, and her body transformed into a minotaur with white fur and black spots with horns on top of her head, and her hair turned jet-black.

Once the Zodiac transformation was finished, Stephanie looked at her hands and smiled with amazement, seeing she had unlocked another Zodiac.

“Yes!” Stephanie cheered, finally unlocking another part of the zodiac.

“Excuse me!” A voice snapped from inside the shed, which started Stephanie as she jolted. “I’m trying to sleep in here! Go away!”

“Sorry!” Stephanie responded before running off.

She stumbled a little in her Zodiac form before mumbling, “I need to get used to this,” reaching up to her collar and snapping the collar off, transforming into her human self.

The camera switches to a pair of eyes angrily glaring as the shed’s door opens slightly from the middle, watching Stephanie walk down before changing to a slightly confused expression.

“She has blue hair?” the voice mumbled. “Where have I seen that before?”

The figure in the shed looked almost like a steam locomotive before a sigh came from the locomotive, and the shed doors closed.

“Nevermind,” the voice mumbled from inside the shed. “I can finally have some peace.”

But that thought of blue hair made whoever was inside the shed curious.

Chapter Text

Meanwhile, the same black diesel was going down the line with a somewhat confused expression as he passed by everyone, not even honking towards them but giving a good scowl towards some certain steam locomotives.

Earlier, Diesel had seen Stephanie’s whistle abilities when dropping off trucks and refilling his tank and was amazed after witnessing the power.

But things took the cake when she discovered something on the ground, picked it up, and placed it in the back of something, and she transformed into a bull!

This might be good news to tell someone he knows will help with his problems.

He went to the Dieselworks and entered, looking around as Den and Dart appeared, looking down at Diesel.

“Is Diesel 10 here?” the black diesel asked.

“Yes,” Den responded.

“What he means is,” Dart responded. “He’s still sulking in his shed.”

“Well, let me get up there to tell him,” the black diesel huffed as he moved forward. “I have some news to tell him about.”

The floor beneath him rose as the black diesel was on top, getting to the level where Den and Dart were.

“Of what, Diesel?” both Den and Dart asked.

“It’s something between him and me,” Diesel huffed at the two diesels. “Now, you two leave because this conversation is for us.”

Den and Dart looked at each other after Diesel huffed and honked their horns, taking turns to get off the level as Diesel approached a shed.

The shed’s door opened when Diesel approached it, and it was semi-dark inside, but at the back of the shed, he saw a shape hiding at the back.

“Hey, 10!” Diesel called. “Are you still in there?”

“Yeah, of course I am still in here!” A gruff voice huffed as a pair of eyes opened angrily. “What is it?”

“I think I found some clues into what was causing all this trouble,” Diesel responded with a smirk.

Suddenly, a larger diesel came out of the shed with a claw attached to the top, looking at Diesel with a confused expression.

The diesel’s basis was a BR Class 42 ‘Warship,’ painted yellow ochre with tan stripes along its sides.

His buffer beams are painted red with black buffers, and the claw on his roof is dark brown.

But the claw was damaged, from dents to wires sticking out slightly from different arm parts.

“What did you learn, Diesel?” The diesel with the claw asked. “It better be some good news.”

“Well,” Diesel begins. “I was pulling Troublesome Trucks and was dropping some off, and I went over to the oil tank to refill my tanks when I noticed a new steamie talking to Philip.”

“What did this new steamie look like?” the diesel with the claw asked.

“It looked almost like Thomas, 10,” Diesel responded as he explained what he had seen toward him. “But she was a little larger, bluer, and female.”

“A female?” the diesel with the claw echoed. “It does sound like a new steamie.”

“But that’s not all, 10,” Diesel smirked coyly. “After a few conversations, this steamie’s whistle suddenly popped up, revealing strange symbols.”

“‘Symbols?’” the diesel with the claw asked. “What kind?”

“I can’t see what they were,” Diesel huffed. “Besides, even if I did, they are too small for me.”

“Huh,” the diesel with the claw remarked. “Keep goin’.”

“Okay.” Diesel nodded. “And after those symbols appeared, it switched to one and whistled, shooting Gold Dust out from her funnel and-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!” The diesel with the claw exclaimed as the claw moved forward in the way of a hand, making the ‘stop’ mention. “Wait a minute! Did you say ‘Gold Dust?’”

“Yes,” Diesel nodded. “Gold Dust came out of the steamie’s funnel!”

“Were there any humans around?” the diesel with the claw asked.

“Nope,” Diesel responded. “She was all by herself!”

The diesel with the claw hummed a little after Diesel answered and asked, “What else?”

“Then, after the Gold Dust shot out,” Diesel continued. “It went around the steamie and transformed into a human!”

The diesel with the claw blinked twice after Diesel explained it to him and asked, “Come again?”

“It transformed her into a human!” Diesel repeated. “But I did see a whistle around her neck after she turned.”

“Hmm,” the diesel with the claw hummed. “She could be like one of those kids from eleven years ago. You said Philip was next to her, right?”

“Yes,” Diesel nodded. “But it was a whistle like the ones the kids wore, not one meant for a diesel.”

“Huh,” the diesel with the claw remarked. “That’s new.”

“There’s another,” Diesel smirked. “After she says goodbye to Philip, she suddenly takes something out of her pocket,” he said, adding, “Once again, I can’t see what it was,” before continuing, “And was suddenly lured over to where Mr. Grump-in-the-Shed was and picked up something.”

The diesel with the claw listened with interest, his claw moving on its own as Diesel continued, “Well, the object lifted, and something strange happened.”

The diesel with the claw cocked an eyebrow and said, “It caused the objects to come to life from her hands and do something, but I saw what looked like horns and a tail. Then, it stopped, causing her to shout, ‘Yes!’ and her shout woke Mini Cranky from his shed, and she apologized, walking away from the spot.”

“Hmm,” the diesel with the claw hummed thoughtfully. “Sounds like that kid has two items with her. Next time, look closer at what she carries with her.”

“Of course,” Diesel chuckled. “Maybe get some insight on what is happening around Sodor too.”

“Yeah, that too!” The diesel with the claw snarled. “I don’t care who or what it is. I want to know what bad is out there takin’ over my job!”

The claw on him snapped as Diesel went backward, missing a few inches from the snap, and the diesel huffed, “Pinchy, down, girl! You’ll get your revenge once we figure out a few things.”

Pinchy, the claw on him, makes a noise before settling down on him as he glances back at Diesel, telling him, “Keep in check with me with the news, alright? And make sure you got everythin’ right, capiche?”

“Capiche.” Diesel nodded before going back on the turntable and exiting the Dieselworks.

“Hmm,” the diesel with the claw hummed. “There are more magical items around Sodor. This sounds very interestin’. I wonder if those are makin’ all those monsters.”

He went back into his shed as Pinchy dove for him to enter as the doors closed, allowing him peace.

Chapter Text

The day went by so fast as Stephanie sat in her spare room after finishing creating Dust and filling the Dust Whistle with the ones she had collected.

She was right when she told Dowager Hatt about the Copper Dust as the symbol for copper, and each container from Gold to Silver was filled.

After seeing that it was all full, Stephanie reminded herself that she needed to collect more once she had time to return to Muffler Mountain.

She spent time with the rest of the Hatt family, with Notches and Lucy, getting to know Sir Topham Hatt and Sir Lowham Hatt’s grandkids, Stephen and Bridget Hatt, and their mother, Saralee Hatt.

They were curious after seeing Stephanie’s pointed ears and blue hair, as Stephanie was on her best behavior, but they liked her difference from them.

And to Stephanie’s confusion at their words of curiosity and compliments, she thanked them for their praise.

At the very least, it was strange for Stephanie to hear words of kindness from them and see how curious they were about her.

But Stephanie was very calm and allowed them to inspect her long hair and ears, seeing how they twitched from their fingers gently rubbing against them.

Stephen commented that they were like a horse’s ears, which puzzled Stephanie, while Sir Topham Hatt was a little embarrassed.

But Stephanie thinks it is funny how her ears can do that, and she was somewhat startled when Bridget started to play with her long hair.

Thankfully, Bridget was careful and started to put them up in twin braids, showing off her ears and putting them in cute styles.

Stephanie felt like a Barbie doll to Bridget, but she allowed her to play with her long blue hair because they were very kind to her.

Dinner went well, too, and Stephanie added to the conversation with Dowager Hatt about her adventure with her, which Sir Topham Hatt asked about.

Shyly, Stephanie explained the Dust Whistle and its power, including the Copper Dust she had discovered during her trip to Muffler Mountain.

Dowager Hatt added her input whenever Stephanie paused to allow her to speak, complimenting her on how well she was going down the line and being very apologetic.

Stephanie’s cheeks and the tips of her ears were so blue that it made her look like a Smurf because of all the compliments from the family, while Bridget and Stephen giggled at her blushing.

But Stephanie started to like the compliments and thanked Dowager Hatt for helping her when she was in her locomotive form, surprising Sir Topham Hatt.

Stephanie explained to Sir Topham Hatt and the others that the whistle does not only work on one person but also the user.

This curious audience listened as Stephanie told the Hatt family what she had discovered, even telling them that she had finally found an emerald to charge the Taurus Zodiac.

It worried Sir Topham Hatt and the others because she had not trained the rest of her abilities, but Dowager Hatt calmed her eldest son down with the assurance that Stephanie could practice no matter what.

It gave Stephanie some relief about cramming everything on her schedule over what to do and how to get accustomed to Sodor, but there were some lingering doubts.

Once dinner went by, Stephanie answered both Stephen and Bridget’s questions about what Shining Time was like and Stephanie would respond, telling them how many shops had changed.

While there were new shops, the old ones stayed because of memories of the past, which all interested Stephen and Bridget.

Sir Topham Hatt walked up to Stephanie after talking to Stephen and Bridget about their time at Sodor, telling her she needed to speak to the adults privately.

She wishes to take Notches and Lucy with her, but Notches is currently busy talking with Gracie, Sir Topham Hatt’s cat, and Lucy is talking with Dowager Hatt and Lady Hatt.

So Stephanie allowed them to talk with the others instead of carrying them around like toddlers.

Stephanie understood what he was saying and went to the spare room Sir Topham Hatt gave her, even though she was curious about what they were saying to each other.

But Stephanie did not want to stay around to listen to their conversation and entered her room, deciding to unwind from all these questions by writing them down.

Even though she did not have any journals, Stephanie decided to use the current items in the room but was glad that Dowager Hatt handed her the things she needed that were not there in the first place.

So Stephanie started writing down questions and reminders for herself on a spare piece of paper with bullet points after learning how to use the ink pen, which goes:

• Ask Sir Topham Hatt if she could find a place to stay and if it was alright with him.
  • If such a thing is allowed on Sodor, Look at other ideas for living by yourself if that doesn’t work.
• Explain to the others how she kept appearing as a steamie that you passed by earlier in the day.
• Find a way to get to the Zodiac Dimension to learn how to use powers.
  • And do not stay up all night trying to perfect an ability, either!
• Find somewhere you can get money.
  • I am still trying to figure that out. I don’t want to get stuck in the limbo of working 24/7.
• Find the Taurus Zodiac to defeat it.
  • After learning how to control the Zodiacs before running into danger and getting injured or killed.
• Get a diary to write down your adventures.
  • Get one that you can lock so you don’t have anyone looking at what you have written or drawn.
• Get a map of Sodor to know where you are going, and map out where you found the Dust Crystals.
• Get notebooks to write down what you discover and draw out what it is.
• Get some clues about Sodor by asking anyone about their experiences.
• Go back to Shining Time to find some missing people.
  • C. Junior (?)
  • Mr. C (?)
• Go to Ulfstead Castle to examine Sodor’s history.
  • Take a look at the Sodor Museum at Ulfstead Castle.
  • Ask if there is a library around the castle.
• How dangerous is Sodor?
  • Am I in danger with all this?
  • How lethal is it?
• How long have Dust Crystals been in history?
  • Does anyone know what their powers are?
  • Who else discovered each of their powers?
• How many ghosts roam Sodor?
• How many people are missing on Sodor?
• Return to Muffler Mountain and look around for clues into what lies behind the mountain.
• Train yourself to use your steam locomotive form and refill yourself.
• What else lies underneath Sodor’s history?
• Who is ‘Avril?’
• Who is ‘Mr. C?’
• Who was in that shed at Tidmouth?
• Who was the ghost I kept seeing?

A sudden knock snapped Stephanie out of her writing engrossment, and she gasped out of startlement as she glanced over her shoulder at the door.

“Who is it?” Stephanie called over her shoulder.

No response.

Stephanie felt confused as she hopped off her chair after putting her papers in the desk’s thin drawer and walked over, her bare feet walking across the carpet floor.

“Erm, Mr. Hatt?” Stephanie politely spoke. “Mrs. Hatt?” she paused and mumbled, “Wait, which Mrs. Hatt? Maybe I should call the other ‘Mrs. Dowager’ instead.”

She walked over to the door, paused a little, and listened to the knock, wondering who was behind the door, but she still had a nervous gut feeling.

‘That does not matter!’ Stephanie shook her head. ‘It’s just the Hatt family! There’s nothing to be afraid of!’

But after taking a deep breath, Stephanie gripped the doorknob with her hand and slowly turned it, hearing her door unlock.

After Stephanie unlocked the door, she slowly opened it and peered through it, perking up when she suddenly saw nothing but darkness.

Everything from the doorframe to the distance was entirely black; even the floor was black, and Stephanie could not tell if there was any ground.

Curiously, Stephanie moved a foot out and placed it outside the frame, landing on a solid floor as it felt cold underneath her feet.

Stephanie perked up after her foot touched something solid before looking into the distance, wondering what had happened.

“Hello?” Stephanie called as her voice echoed. “Is anyone out here?”

She stepped away from the doorframe and kept it open to know where to return, noticing no hallway, staircase, or pictures.

“Sir Topham Hatt?” Stephanie called, and she started to feel nervous as she walked through the darkened place in her long-sleeve shirt and comfortable, tight black pants with the ends drooping over her heels. “Mrs. Dowager Hatt? Mrs. Lady Hatt? Is anyone around here?”

There was no response to her question as she continued walking through the pitch-dark place, walking further away from the door as her bare feet made noises against the floor with a clap, clap, clap.

She suddenly had a bad feeling that someone was watching her, causing her to stop walking as she glanced around, seeing no one anywhere except for her.

“…Hello?” Stephanie nervously called.

Suddenly, something black and shadowy appeared behind Stephanie and slowly rose from the surface, towering over her at twenty feet before slowly forming into a shape.

Stephanie felt someone standing before her and instantly turned around, seeing a gigantic humanoid form appear behind her, blocking the way to the door.

Its skin was black, with sharp claws on each finger, long shadow-like hair that waved in the darkness, a crown on its head, gray armor, and a long pointed tail with a cape and a flowing sash with strange symbols.

Stephanie stared at the gigantic beast as it slowly took on its shape before two eyes appeared with white irises and pinprick pupils underneath the long jet-black hair.

And it was looking down at Stephanie with a frown.

Stephanie shrieked after seeing the gigantic being and scrambled backward before the ground started moving.

She tumbled around, trying to keep her balance, but fell on her bottom instead as she stared at the gigantic being.

The monster-like creature knelt as its lower body sank back into the ground, staring at Stephanie, and she instantly froze while staring at its eyes as it placed its hands on the ground for support.

“ᚹᚺᛟ ᚨᚱᛖ ᚤᛟᚢ?” the monster asked. “ᚹᚺᛖᚱᛖ ᛞᛁᛞ ᚤᛟᚢ ᚲᛟᛗᛖ ᚠᚱᛟᛗ? ᚺᛟᚹ ᛞᛁᛞ ᚤᛟᚢ ᚷᛖᛏ ᛁᚾᛏᛟ ᛗᚤ ᛞᛁᛗᛖᚾᛋᛁᛟᚾ?”

“I-I-!” Stephanie stammered with fear, petrified while staring at the gigantic irises.

The monster looked confused after hearing the two single letters coming from Stephanie’s voice and knelt a little closer, causing Stephanie to give a little “Meep!” as the eyes stared closer at her.

It then wrapped its hand around Stephanie’s upper body, and Stephanie shrieked when its hand wrapped around her before staying silent as her eyes clouded with pitch-black darkness that filled her eyes.

After her eyes were clouded with darkness, the monster’s eyes turned from white to Stephanie’s azure blue, staring down at her with its hand wrapped around her upper body but not suffocating her.

A few minutes passed, and the monster removed its hand from Stephanie’s upper part of her body, her eyes returning to normal after a blink as it did the same.

“Hmm.” Stephanie flinched when it spoke as it placed a clawed finger against its chin. “Strange. You don’t look like you came here to fight me.”

“Of course not!” Stephanie exclaimed before looking confused. “Wait, how can you understand what I was saying?”

“Simple,” it grinned, showing sharp teeth that made Stephanie nervous. “All I did was look into your mind and learn about what you learned. And I perhaps got too curious and discovered more than I could bargain for.”

It knelt further to Stephanie’s height as its body sank into the ground, ‘lying’ its chin on the floor to stare at her curiously while Stephanie sat in front of its head.

“How can a small, young human like you learn all this knowledge?” It asked as its hands were near its chin. “It’s impossible for a mortal to study all this at such a young age.”

“Well,” Stephanie began, as she was slowly calming down but was on the edge of worrying about making it angry. “My grandpa taught me everything I needed to know, and I was great at learning from what they showed me and doing it in return.”

She paused uncomfortably as she crossed her arms over her chest, almost hugging herself.

“But my foster parents wanted better out of me after seeing it,” Stephanie explained. “So they put me into learning difficult things and learning from them. I kept struggling because they went through it fast, and…” she shook her head slightly grimly. “No, I don’t want to talk about it.”

The monster cocked an eyebrow after Stephanie shook her head with a murmur before responding, changing the subject, “Ah, never mind about that! Who are you?”

Instead of pressuring her into telling, the monster grinned as it rose from the ground until it reached its chest and responded with a clawed hand on its chest, “I’m glad you asked. My name is ᛖᚱᛖᛒᚢᛋ ᚲᚨᛚᛁᚷᛟ, the ruler of the Shadow Dimension.”

Stephanie’s face turned to confusion after hearing the language from the monster as it recognized her expression: “Oh, sorry, I forgot you don’t understand what I am saying. I said my name is ‘Erebus Caligo.’”

Stephanie blushed after the monster named ‘Erebus Caligo’ answered her question and gently exclaimed, “Oh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to freak out, your highness!”

“You don’t have to be so formal for me,” Erebus chuckled gently. “I lost my title a long time ago. Now, I prefer being just called ‘Erebus.’”

“Erm, alright,” Stephanie nodded.

Erebus crossed his arms comfortably as he leaned a little, asking, “So what’s your name, Dot?”

“‘Dot?’” Stephanie exclaimed with a huff. “I’m Stephanie Allen!”

“Sounds a little too long,” Erebus said, rolling his eyes with a smirk. “For now, I’ll call you ‘Dot’ because of how small you are to me.”

Stephanie huffed again after Erebus mocked her, her cheeks blushing a light blue as her ears flicked with irritation.

Erebus noticed Stephanie’s hair and looked confused, even seeing her pointed ears.

“Were you born with blue hair?” Erebus slowly asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded as she reached over to one of Bridget’s braided pigtails. “Why?”

“Reminds me of someone long ago with blue hair,” Erebus explained. “I can’t remember their face because it has been over a hundred years.”

“Wait, what?!” Stephanie exclaimed. “Someone else was born with blue hair like me?”

“Yes, Dot.” Erebus nodded. “But I think you need to search for who they are because I can’t remember.”

“Right, right, right.” Stephanie nodded. “Um, I’m sorry for accidentally stepping into your dimension. All I did was hear someone knocking while I was writing something. So I went over to look and opened it to this world.”

Erebus glanced over his shoulder to see the open door, saying, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder, “That door?”

“Yes, that door!” Stephanie pointed as she instantly stood up. “I appreciate you not eating me and-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on, Dot.” Stephanie flinched when Erebus’ clawed hand came into view and stopped, glancing up at him. “As much as you are freaked out about this, you can’t just leave without me telling you something.”

“Like what?” Stephanie asked as he removed his hand.

“Well,” Erebus began. “First, you can’t leave the door open without closing it. You’ll let something dangerous out, like me, and have the world destroyed.”

Stephanie’s stomach twisted nervously after Erebus explained it to her, realizing that if she had left that door open in a different dimension, it would lead to many disasters.

“Also,” Erebus added. “Since I can look through some memories but not all of them, I can tell you needed to be somewhere to practice your Zodiac powers.”

Stephanie flinched after Erebus explained, realizing he had somewhat seen some of her memories about her mythical items, and responded, “Ah, I appreciate your offer, but I don’t trust you.”

“Hmm, true.” Erebus nodded. “But you still don’t know how to find a way to get the Zodiac Dimension.”

‘Crap, I hate how he is right!’ Stephanie huffed to herself.

“Well, alright,” Stephanie sighed. “I suppose you know how to get to the Zodiac Dimension?”

“Hmm, somewhat.” Erebus nodded. “The common one is a special pentagram, the only way to get to the Zodiac Dimension. But that pentagram is only used for celestials to travel to their dimensions, and there aren’t any around here to help you.”

“Wait,” Stephanie spoke. “Can the student ask some questions?”

“Yes,” Erebus nodded.

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded. “Who were the Celestials?”

“The Celestials are Aelius, the Celestial of the Sun,” Erebus explained. “Luna, the Celestial of the Moon, and Andromeda, the Celestial of the Stars.”

“Just those three?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes,” Erebus nodded. “And all of them are in their dimensions, which is impossible for me to contact because I am stuck in the Shadow Dimension, which is too far.”

“Ah,” Stephanie nodded. “Makes sense.”

“But,” Erebus smirked. “Your Zodiac Pocket Watch is another part of going to the Zodiac Dimension without drawing a pentagram.”

“Really?” Stephanie perked. “How?”

“If I am right,” Eberus spoke as he tapped his chin with his claw. “The Zodiac Pocket Watch has a secret compartment that will give you the key to unlocking the gate to the dimension.”

“Like the one Lucy has?” Stephanie asked.

Erebus looked down at Stephanie and exclaimed, “Really?! So you have the gatekeeper with you and didn’t tell me?!”

“Sorry!” Stephanie exclaimed. “I have the gatekeeper with me, but she’s busy talking with the adults. Mostly because I was listening to you differently instead of using Lucy.”

Erebus rolled his eyes after Stephanie apologized and said, “Well, alright, fair point. But I didn’t know you had the gatekeeper with you since I didn’t see who she was through your memories. So what else do you have?”

“Well,” Stephanie began as she pushed her sleeve down, showing the bracelet around her wrist. “I’ve got a magic staff around my wrist.”

“Show me.” Stephanie summoned the bracelet from her wrist, which transformed into a staff, surprising Erebus as she showed it sideways without pointing the gemstone at him. “Where did you get this?”

“From the Zodiac Dimension,” Stephanie explained. “The pool that allows them to see the world to give birthdates and Zodiacs was darkened, and I felt it was calling to me.”

“It called you?” Erebus asked as he listened.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “And I touched the pool’s surface, and it turned back to normal, gifting me this staff.”

Erebus stared at the staff curiously, knowing he had seen that somewhere before but could not put his clawed finger on it.

“And this Dust Whistle,” Stephanie explained, showing the whistle around her neck.

“Strange,” Erebus remarked as Stephanie put the necklace away. “Maybe that pool sees potential in you and gives you the staff. But I think it is best to be careful when showing them off. Someone will steal all your items and use them against you.”

“Meaning I need to be careful with who to trust?” Stephanie asked as her staff transformed into her bracelet, and she put it back on.

“Exactly.” Erebus nodded. “Sodor might be a magical place where everything is perfect, but not all people are trustworthy and are dangerous.”

Stephanie glanced away from Erebus after he explained it to her, starting to feel suspicious about Sodor and the people.

Are they like the people she meets?

“Now, back to the Zodiac Dimension,” Erebus spoke as Stephanie glanced up at him. “Lucy was thought to be the only one who could get to the Zodiac Dimension, right?” Stephanie nodded.

“Right. I might have repeated this before, but the writer didn’t specify.” Stephanie gives a confused look at the reader. “A secret compartment on the pocket watch will give you an entrance to the dimension. I don’t know if it’s right, but that’s another way to get there.”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded. “Thank you for helping me, Mr. Erebus.”

“You’re welcome, Dot.” Erebus nodded as Stephanie approached the open door. “Also, remember to close the door whenever you enter a different dimension. Don’t let anything out, alright?”

“Right,” Stephanie nodded as she stepped into her room. “Thank you so much!”

With that, Stephanie closed the door as Erebus sighed, muttering, “She’s too sweet.”

Chapter Text

Stephanie walked over to the Zodiac Pocket Watch she had carefully placed in her thin drawer with her written notes, taking it out as she looked at the watch itself.

Since her encounter with Erebus in the Shadow Dimension, Stephanie has started to inspect her Zodiac Pocket Watch to see what it contains inside.

“So,” Stephanie mumbled while looking at the Zodiac Pocket Watch. “There’s another secret compartment that allows you to have a key?”

She sat down in her chair while looking at the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hands, seeing the details and looking around it curiously.

Half of her was afraid of accidentally destroying this item of her curiosity, and it was the last thing she wanted that would ruin everything.

Stephanie curiously looked around the pocket watch in her hands, looking at each corner of the object and gently rubbing her fingers across it.

Is it true that there is something hidden within this Zodiac Pocket Watch?

Stephanie paused from looking at the Zodiac Pocket Watch and placed it on the desk before the pendant popped out.

“Oh, crap!” Stephanie winced as she reached over to the two parts.

But she perked up when she saw the pendant had a strange key at the bottom, which Stephanie looked confused about as she looked back at the pocket watch.

“Wait a minute.” Stephanie placed the pendant down, looked back at the pocket watch, looked closer at it, and noticed something on the bottom.

She looked at the pendant with the strange key at the end and picked it up, looking at the hole at the bottom of the pocket watch and the key on the pendant.

Stephanie inserted the key into the hole and twisted it to the right, hearing something click from inside as she paused.

Nothing happened, so Stephanie turned the key again until she could not turn it anymore and stopped.

She took the key out of the hole and placed it back into the slot where the pendant popped out after inserting it, and a click came from the pendant after it was inserted.

After a click from the pendant, Stephanie was teleported from sitting in her chair to the Zodiac Dimension in the blink of an eye before she roughly landed on her bottom.

“Ow!” Stephanie winced in pain as she sat up. “That’s going to leave a mark.”

Then someone walked up to her, and Stephanie looked up, seeing Chayton, Amelia, Moina, and Shu standing over her with surprised expressions.

“Hello,” Stephanie greeted with a smile as she put her Zodiac Pocket Watch away in her pants pocket.

Chayton held out her hand for Stephanie, and she took it, being tugged up to her feet as Shu asked, “How did you get here without Lucy?”

“Well,” Stephanie showed them how she discovered it, and they looked surprised. “Erebus told me there was another way instead of using Lucy.”

“This is great!” Amelia beamed as her little tail wagged. “So, where is she?”

“Back at Sir Topham Hatt’s Mansion,” Stephanie explained. “She’s busy talking with the other adults, so I instead decided to use the easy route after opening the door to Erebus’ Shadow Dimension.”

After Stephanie explained, the four looked at each other, and Chayton asked, “What did Erebus look like?”

“He was dressed in a knight’s uniform with blackish skin and jet-black hair like shadows,” Stephanie explained. “And he was all black with white eyes and pinprick pupils.”

The four looked at each other again after Stephanie explained that she had noticed their expressions and asked, “Is there something wrong with him?”

“No, there’s nothing wrong,” Amelia assures Stephanie. “But how did you arrive at the Shadow Dimension with a single open door?”

Stephanie shrugged her shoulders after Amelia asked, and Chayton placed her hand on Amelia’s shoulder, saying, “Don’t worry about it. We can figure this out once we have enough evidence to support the case.”

Amelia nodded after Chayton explained it to her as Stephanie said, agreeing, “Yes, I agree. However, there’s still some debate over whether it was random or came from me.”

“Good point,” Shu nodded. “Anyways, what brought you back into our dimension?”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked. “I would like to learn how to practice your Zodiac powers.”

She opened the Zodiac Pocket Watch and showed the Taurus Zodiac with the Beaver Zodiac, the Cat Zodiac, and the Ox Zodiac, explaining, “I even found an emerald that powered the next four Zodiacs!”

“This is fantastic!” Chayton smiled as she clapped her hands while Amelia picked Stephanie up in a hug.

Amelia’s hug startled Stephanie, but she calmed down as her fluffy collar gently smothered her, feeling calm after feeling the fluffy collar against her face.

“You’re one step closer to collecting all the Zodiacs!” Shu smiled before patting Amelia’s shoulder. “And Amelia, you’re smothering her.”

Amelia gasped and released Stephanie as she landed on her feet, blushing a little from the hug and smothering she had received.

“Sorry!” Amelia apologized as she knelt a little at Stephanie’s height. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Stephanie chuckled. “I didn’t expect a gentle cloud to embrace me.”

Amelia sheepishly baaed after Stephanie mentioned it as she tapped her first fingers together as Stephanie asked the four, “Which Zodiac should I start with, though?”

“Ooh, me!” Shu smiled proudly as he walked in front of Amelia. “You’re going to have a knack for training with me!”

“Okay,” Stephanie shrugged with a soft smile.

“First things first,” Shu explained as Amelia, Moina, and Chayton stepped back. “You check if your pocket watch is on the right Zodiac-”

“And press the top to activate the right Zodiac you are thinking about.” Stephanie nodded as she checked before tapping it, transforming into her half-rat, half-human hybrid. “I accidentally stumbled on this before meeting you four.”

“Well, alright.” Shu crossed his arms over his chest before noticing something. “Where’s your tail?”

Stephanie looked at Shu after he asked about her supposedly ‘missing’ tail and responded with a shrug, “Pikas don’t have tails.”

“What?!” Shu exclaimed. “You’re supposed to have a tail because that’s how you can snare and draw too!”

“Erm,” Stephanie blushed as she smiled sheepishly. “I don’t know. Tails can become a disadvantage too if you are not careful during battle.”

“Shu, calm down,” Chayton gently assured the confused Shu. “Tail or not, Stephanie can work well without one.”

“Yes!” Stephanie nodded with a smile. “I can draw using my staff or claws instead!”

“Really?” Shu asked.

Stephanie nodded and summoned her bracelet, transforming it from a bracelet into a gigantic paintbrush, with the end having a gemstone and the brush tip being white.

“See?” Stephanie beamed as she showed it sideways.

Shu looked surprised while Amelia, Moina, and Chayton lightly giggled as he remarked, “I did not see that coming.”

Stephanie chuckled after Shu’s remark before asking, “Besides drawing, does it also work on words?”

“Yes!” Shu nodded, deciding to stick with that instead of being slightly offended at how she was showing off to him. “You can write words like ‘wall,’ ‘pillar,’ and others to help create things to help you defeat the Nightmares.”

He reached into his belt’s secret pocket, took out a Chinese calligraphy paintbrush, and said, “Like this.”

He drew a Chinese character in the air in front of him as Stephanie watched with curiosity as she held her paintbrush.

After finishing, he tapped the Chinese character, and a gust of wind blew, causing Amelia to yelp as Moina was tossed backward while Chayton made herself slick to go through the wind and used her talons to grip the ground.

The wind stopped after Shu used the Chinese character as it disappeared, glancing over at Stephanie with a cocky smirk and saying, “That’s how you use words against your opponent.”

“Yeah, not against us!” Amelia huffed angrily with a stomp as Chayton shook herself to smooth her feathers.

“Ye’re lucky A dinnae have tae smack ye!” Moina huffed as she adjusted her clothes.

“Hey,” Shu shrugged as Stephanie started painting something on the ground. “I was just-”

Stephanie tapped it with her foot, and a gust of wind blew up, causing Shu to squeal like a rat while he went up in the air as Stephanie watched him.

Amelia, Moina, and Chayton watched Shu go up in the air, and Amelia started laughing after watching Shu squeal like a rat, while Stephanie looked interested.

She had managed to draw out the same Chinese character Shu made and had tapped it out of curiosity to see how it went.

The gust of wind stopped as he landed on his face on the ground, causing the group to wince as he slowly pushed himself up.

“Okay,” Shu groaned. “I think you mastered my Zodiac.”

Stephanie smiled a little after Shu groaned as he laid back on the ground as Amelia walked over to Stephanie.

“Well, since Shu is down for the count,” Amelia chuckled as she briefly looked down at Shu. “Want to try my Zodiac?”

“Sure!” Stephanie nodded before saying, “One minute.”

She reached for her necklace and yanked it off, returning to her original self as she held the Zodiac Pocket Watch.

Stephanie tapped the top and transformed into her half-goat, half-human hybrid, pausing a little when her eyesight started to spread but calming down.

“Good, good.” Amelia nodded as she gently clapped her hands. “Now, try running.”

“Huh?” Stephanie asked, glancing over at Amelia.

“Try running.” Amelia smiled before putting her lantern down. “Like this.”

She started running fast as Stephanie perked up, watching her run before jumping, going from one place to another, and landing perfectly on her feet.

“You try!” Stephanie paused a little after Amelia encouraged her before nodding and running, going fast but yelping when she almost entered a cabinet.

So she went backward and skidded slightly before continuing to run, picking up speed as she ran straight.

“There you go!” Amelia encouraged Stephanie as she ran past her in a blue blur. “Now, try jumping!”

Stephanie nodded and did so, soaring for a minute before landing perfectly on her hooves just a few meters away from where they were.

She heard clicking noises whenever she clopped against the flat surface of the Zodiac Dimension, and tiny sparks came from her hooves when she skidded.

“Whoa!” Stephanie smirked. “I think I’ve got the hang of this!”

Stephanie slowed down a little as she reached for her necklace and took it off, transforming back to herself before tapping on the pocket watch and transforming into her falcon-harpy form.

She took off into the air and hovered, amazed at how many things she could see far away as she giggled.

“Be careful, Stephanie.” Stephanie glanced over to her left as Chayton flew next to her. “As much as you enjoy flying, larger predators are around, and you will get yourself captured.”

“I know,” Stephanie smiled before diving as Chayton looked surprised.

Small sparks of flame flickered on the tips of her wings as she spun before stopping when she reached the ground and zipped past, startling Shu and Amelia as Chayton landed between the two.

“She’s learning pretty fast!” Shu remarked with a smile.

Stephanie perked up as she heard Shu’s remark and turned around to him while hovering in the sky, saying, “I know! But let’s see if I can practice with the landing part!”

She hovered for a few minutes in the sky to take in her surroundings before taking another dive toward the ground as Amelia moved a pillow to catch her.

Before nearing the ground, Stephanie moved her body back, and with her talons out, she landed perfectly on the ground but skidded a little after missing the pillow.

“Yes!” Stephanie smiled with a bright smile on her face. “I got that right!”

Amelia rushed over and hugged Stephanie, this time not smothering her against her fluffy chest as she chirped, “You did fantastic, Stephanie!”

Stephanie blushed as she tapped the pocket watch again, transforming into a deer-like centaur, and Amelia released Stephanie after she transformed.

She resembled a whitetail deer with long brown hair instead of blue with deer ears, and she was wearing her casual sweater with antlers on her head and a necklace around her neck with a Celtic knot of a deer.

She wears a dark blue tunic that ends in a short dress, and Stephanie looked confused when she felt something itchy on her head and reached up with both hands, feeling the antlers on her head.

“Well, thon’s new,” Moina remarked.

“It is?” Stephanie asked, glancing at her with a slightly confused expression.

“Yeah, only males have antlers.” Moina nodded as Stephanie scratched at the bottom of the antler a little. “But wha cares? The antlers are guid on ye anyways.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement before starting to practice her walk, stumbling a little as she fumbled while Shu giggled at her attempts.

“Will ye shut up, Shu?” Moina huffed. “You’re no helpin’ wi-”

She stopped when Stephanie finally reached her height and attempted again, managing to walk without falling onto her underbelly or stumbling.

“I think I’ve got this!” Stephanie remarked before picking up speed, clopping across the ground, and hopping.

She soared through the air before landing perfectly on all fours, perking with amazement as her ears moved upward.

“Excellent!” Moina remarked. “Now ye can use the abilities o’ ma Zodiac for yer help, an e’en use a spear ower!”

“Really?” Stephanie perked up before looking at her bracelet thoughtfully.

She focused, and her bracelet soon transformed into a spear, matching the Celtic Zodiac with a quartz gemstone at the bottom.

“Ooh!” Stephanie remarked with interest. “I can link my staff with the Zodiacs and create weapons with it!”

“Clever!” Moina remarked. “You’re catchin’ up pretty fast.”

“Thank you,” Stephanie beamed as she removed her necklace and returned to herself, then flicked her wrist to transform the spear into a bracelet around her wrist. “I think I can practice with the other four Zodiacs once I defeat the Black Zodiac of Taurus.”

“Slow down a little, Stephanie,” Shu said as Stephanie looked at him. “As much as I am into defeating the Black Zodiacs, you must be patient when training other powers. For example, you haven’t learned that the Zodiac Pocket Watch can also turn back time.”

“Wait, what?!” Stephanie exclaimed. “And now you are telling me this?!”

“Sort of.” Shu made a so-so mention with his hand. “But it won’t work unless you have two or three gemstones to activate that ability.”

Stephanie sighed after Shu explained to her as Chayton went between the two, saying, “Now that you have practiced on all our Zodiacs, have you figured something out?”

“No, I haven’t.” Stephanie sighed. “All I did was refill my Dust Whistle in case I needed it for emergencies.”

“That’s good,” Chayton nodded. “Try writing down a schedule of which days to collect Dust and which days to learn about Sodor’s history. It could help you with trying to balance things out.”

“Good idea.” Stephanie nodded before pausing a little. “Though, I’m not sure if anything would go right. Sodor is filled with mysteries, and many things will happen before I can develop an idea.”

“Stephanie,” Chayton said, kneeling to Stephanie’s height as she placed her hands on her shoulders, and Stephanie looked into her eyes. “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”

“She means that you have to face it instead of running away from it as I do,” Shu explained.

“Shu!” Amelia huffed, angrily placing her hands on her hips.

“What?” Shu exclaimed.

“You’re ruining the perfect moment!” Amelia huffed.

Stephanie chuckled as Chayton gave them a slight glare before saying, “You’re right. I should be prepared for the changes! It may give me a little tweak in my schedule, but I would have to roll with it.”

“That’s right!” Shu nodded. “Also, if you encounter something that you can’t work around, make sure you run before-”

Amelia elbowed Shu in the side before he could finish explaining, and Stephanie rolled her eyes.

Then she looked at her Zodiac Pocket Watch before perking up when she noticed she could hear what sounded like ticking noises.

Curious, Stephanie opened the Zodiac Pocket Watch and saw the minute hand ticking to the twelve-hour mark.

“Huh, that’s new,” Stephanie remarked. “I have not seen this-” The minute hand hits the twelfth hour, Stephanie is taken back to Sir Topham Hatt’s mansion in her spare room, and the minute hand stops permanently on that hour. “Before.”

She looked back at the Zodiac Pocket Watch after being taken back to the spare room in Sir Topham Hatt’s mansion before hearing thumping on the door and flinching a little.

“Stephanie, are you there?” It was Notches’ voice as she sighed in relief.

She was about to put her Zodiac Pocket Watch back where she had it, but she paused and placed it into her pants pocket, deciding to be more careful instead of lying around.

“Yeah, I’m here,” Stephanie responded as she walked to the door, as the thumping noise happened again. “Hold on. Let me unlock it.”

Stephanie gripped the knob and opened it, allowing Notches to step in before snorting with laughter as he walked in, covered in bows and a goofy-looking vest.

“What happened to you?” Stephanie asked with a snort.

Notches’ tail flicked with irritation as Lucy hopped off his back, responding, “Sir Topham Hatt’s kids saw him while he was talking with the adults, and Bridget decided to play with him while Stephen dressed him with the vest.”

“I think pink looks good on you,” Stephanie snorted before giggling.

“Ha, ha, ha. Very funny, Stephanie,” Notches growled lowly as his tail with a pink bow at the end flicked irritatingly while Lucy was chuckling with her. “May you come here and get me out of this goofy getup?”

He shook a paw with a bow, which made Stephanie giggle a little louder from how he was trying to get them off.

“Okay, okay,” Stephanie snorted. “Let me get the bows off first.”

Stephanie sat on the floor with her legs crisscrossed and started to take the bows off Notches’ body as he lay on her lap.

But a lot was happening in Stephanie’s mind over what she should do tomorrow, ranging from going to Ulfstead Castle to search for more Dusts to fill her Dust Whistle.

…Well, since she has all day tomorrow, maybe a little self-tour around Sodor would not be a bad idea, going at her own pace.

Chapter Text

Strangely, Stephanie did not have another waking nightmare when she woke up in the morning, only for something in black and white to suffocate her face.

“Mhh,” Stephanie gently moaned sleepily, reaching over to the black and white object with her hands. “Notches. Why do you have to sleep near my face?”

Notches perked up after feeling Stephanie’s hands and gently meowed, saying, “I don’t know. It seems like I’m moving in my sleep because of a good dream.”

Stephanie chuckled a little as she sat up from where she was lying, gently rubbing Notches’ face with her hand as he purred.

“Maybe you were moving in your sleep because I love hearing your purring?” Stephanie gently suggested it, as Notches had his chin scratched by Stephanie. “It’s very soothing for me.”

“That c~o~u~l~d be i~t.” Notches nodded between purrs.

Stephanie gently smiled after Notches agreed before perking up as she watched Lucy stand up from where she was as she yawned.

“Good morning!” Lucy greeted. “How did you sleep?”

“Better,” Stephanie nodded as she looked down at Notches. “Notches’ purring did not give me a nightmare… though I woke up with a wall of fur.”

Notches snorted a little with a slight smirk after Stephanie joked a little, returning to purring as Stephanie scratched underneath his chin and cheeks.

After scratching Notches for a few minutes, Stephanie gently picked him up from her lap and moved him to the side, pushing the blanket away before standing up.

Notches hopped off the bed as Stephanie adjusted it back to where it was, and Notches stretched out his body from sleeping in a ball.

Stephanie picked Lucy up from the bedside table after Lucy stepped into Stephanie’s palm and placed her on the ground as Notches lay on his belly, allowing her to climb onto his back.

Once Lucy was on Notches’ back, Stephanie opened the door to allow Notches to step out before closing it to have privacy to change.

Notches started climbing down the stairs with Lucy on his back, holding onto his fur carefully as the family slowly woke up.

Sir Topham Hatt was adjusting the collar of his white long-sleeve button-up shirt as Notches stepped in, giving a little meow to let anyone in the room know he had entered.

He looked down at him as Lucy waved before holding on when Notches hopped onto the table with Gracie.

“Good morning,” Lucy greeted. “How was your sleep?”

“I slept pretty well.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, continuing to fidget with his collar as he huffed. “Oh, bother this collar.”

Stephanie stepped in time to hear him mumble and went onto her tippy toes, carefully adjusting Sir Topham Hatt’s collar as he leaned back a little.

“Thank you, Stephanie.” Sir Topham Hatt thanked her as Stephanie adjusted his collar and returned to his normal posture. “It’s always the collars that are hard for me.”

“You’re welcome,” Stephanie nodded. “It’s the same with socks too, sir. One would not stay up; the other stays down or rubs against your heels.”

“Don’t forget loose pants going down whenever you walk,” Sir Lowham Hatt reminded with a cheeky grin as Sir Topham Hatt blushed a little.

“Brenton!” Sir Topham Hatt huffed embarrassingly as he glared at his younger twin brother as Stephanie giggled. “Don’t remind me.”

“It was funny!” Sir Lowham Hatt chuckled. “We had a laugh!”

“You did.” Sir Topham Hatt rolled his eyes.

Stephanie giggled a little after Sir Topham Hatt told his twin brother before Sir Earnest Hatt walked into the room, asking with a sigh, “Is my dad and my uncle arguing again?”

“Not really,” Stephanie responded calmly. “Just some sibling teasing between the two. Nothing serious or anything escalated.”

The two Hatt twins looked at Stephanie with puzzled expressions after Stephanie responded to Sir Earnest Hatt’s question.

“You can tell that between us?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I learned a little about listening to people’s tones, expressions, and words from Mrs. Richards. A teacher of mine back in Shining Time.”

“That’s incredible,” Sir Topham Hatt remarked as he wore his dress vest.

“We should bring her over to help split the fights between Donald and Douglas,” Sir Lowham Hatt chuckled as Sir Topham Hatt glanced at him with an unamused expression.

“Who are they?” Stephanie politely asked as she gently scratched Notches’ chin as he started purring.

“They are the twin Scottish engines who work on the North Western Railway,” Sir Topham Hatt explained.

Stephanie cocked her head curiously while her scratching on Notches’ chin slowed a little as Lucy chuckled, saying, “I think you got Stephanie’s curiosity.”

Sir Topham Hatt glanced back at Stephanie after Lucy told him, as Sir Lowham Hatt said, “She’s as curious as a cat!” Then he noticed Notches was glancing over at him and added, “No offense.”

Stephanie chuckled after Sir Lowham Hatt corrected himself, and Stephanie picked Notches up and allowed him to sit on her shoulders as he laid down around her neck like a scarf since she was not wearing her sweater.

“So, are there any plans today, Stephanie?” Sir Earnest Hatt asked as they sat down at the table.

“Well,” Stephanie began as she politely scooted forward as Lucy hopped onto her arm to climb Notches’ back. “I was thinking of visiting Ulfstead Castle to look at the museum.”

It was a little ticklish for Stephanie, but she stayed still for Lucy to climb onto Notches’ back as Stephanie spoke with the adults.

“All by yourself?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “Your mother, Dowager Hatt, told me that the Ulfstead Castle Museum holds artifacts with Dust Crystals. And since we went through Sodor, I think I know where the places are, but I will get a map to see where I am going.”

“Ah, I see.” Sir Earnest Hatt nodded.

“It sounds so boring!” Sir Lowham Hatt groaned as Stephanie looked at him with confusion. “Why not try playing with the other kids on the playgrounds around your age?”

“I wish,” Stephanie gently nodded as breakfast was served to them. “But I would politely decline. I need to focus on the situation before settling down.”

Sir Lowham Hatt looked at Sir Topham Hatt with an unamused expression, and Sir Topham Hatt shrugged a little as Sir Earnest Hatt asked, “Do you want to use one of the engines to help take you places?”

“That might not be a bad idea,” Notches responded from around Stephanie’s neck.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, gently petting Notches’ head. “That would be a good idea.”

Sir Topham Hatt needed to figure out which engine would help take Stephanie around Sodor, but he would ask his partners if they would be kind.

Once breakfast was finished, Sir Topham Hatt took Stephanie with him as she was carrying her bag with the items.

He drove to Tidmouth Shed, where the Steam Team was preparing for their work as Stephanie stood beside him.

They were slightly bigger than she expected when Stephanie was in her locomotive form via Silver Dust, but their appearances intrigued her.

Gordon noticed Stephanie was with Sir Topham Hatt, and Percy asked, “Sir. One question: Who was that new engine?”

“About that-” Toby said before being interrupted by Thomas, “Yes, they kept saying the new steamie looked like me.”

“‘New engine?’” Sir Topham Hatt asked as Stephanie quietly went, “D’oh!” “What new engine?”

“Ah, sir.” Stephanie gently tugged on his arm. “I think they were mentioning me.”

The Steam Team looked confused after Stephanie mentioned herself with a hand, but Toby decided to let Stephanie explain it.

“Oh!” Sir Topham Hatt perked up. “Everyone, not to be alarmed by the ‘new engine,’” he mentioned to the shy Stephanie as she waved her hand. “Stephanie had figured out a new ability of the Silver Dust that was used on me.”

Everyone looked surprised after Stephanie explained as Emily asked, “It was you?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “And I’m sorry for confusing everyone.”

“It’s alright, Steph,” Thomas assured with a giggle. “Everyone thought you were another me.”

Stephanie blinked after Thomas assured her and asked, pointing at herself, “Am I that blue?”

The Steam Team giggled after Stephanie asked, including Gordon, but Toby assured them, “It’s alright. I think your color looks nice on you, Stephanie.”

After Toby commented, Stephanie blushed and said, “Thank you.”

Sir Topham Hatt listed to each member of the Steam Team what jobs they should do while Stephanie listened to them.

Unfortunately, they all had little time to show Stephanie around after Sir Topham Hatt gave the jobs to them, so Sir Topham Hatt decided to move on to the next group.

He took Stephanie to meet Mr. Percival of the Skarloey Railway, and he looked a little like Sir Topham Hatt himself, except he was wearing half-moon glasses and a bowler hat, and he was thin too.

Sir Topham Hatt mentioned Stephanie to Mr. Percival and explained briefly what Stephanie needed to do, although Stephanie glanced around curiously.

Smaller engines were moving around, some noticing Stephanie and looking confused, while others noticed her blue appearance.

“Hello!” One of them, painted in vermilion with the basis of a TR No. 2 Dolgoch, greeted Stephanie as he pulled coaches before coming to a stop. “Are you new here?”

“Yes, I am,” Stephanie nodded as she turned to the vermillion-painted steam locomotive. “Who are you?”

“I’m Rheneas,” the vermillion-painted steam locomotive smiled. “What brings you here to the Skarloey Railway?”

“Well,” Stephanie glanced over at Sir Topham Hatt as he was in the office with Mr. Percival. “Have you heard of how someone saved Sodor?”

“I have,” Rheneas nodded. “Her name is Stephanie, from what I can tell from Terence.”

“I’m Stephanie,” Stephanie responded, pointing at herself.

“You are?” Rheneas asked with a surprised look, and Stephanie nodded.

“Och, this wee blue-hairit girl?” A grumpy Scottish voice huffed.

Stephanie glanced over to see a golden yellow-painted steam locomotive with the basis of a TR No. 6 Douglas appear with coaches.

“Duncan,” Rheneas huffed. “Be nice to Stephanie.”

“A am nice!” The golden yellow-painted steam locomotive, named ‘Duncan,’ huffed. “A juist didnae expect tae see another kid usin’ Gold Dust. A thoucht she wis older ower from hou Terence explainit it.”

Stephanie chuckled after Duncan huffed, and Rheneas apologized as he had a light blush on his cheeks, “Sorry about Duncan. He is just as grumpy as Cranky is.”

“A’m richt here, ye know.” Duncan huffed as Rheneas glared slightly.

“It’s okay,” Stephanie assured Rheneas. “And, yes, I am her.”

Then Stephanie noticed a ghostly figure in the crowd, standing a little on her tippy toes to have a better look as it waved its hand to get her attention.

“Whit are ye starin’ at?” Duncan asked after noticing Stephanie glance away from Rheneas.

“Hmm?” Stephanie glanced back at Duncan. “Sorry! New surroundings.”

“American?” Duncan asked as Rheneas heard the conductor whistle and whistle, leaving the station as Stephanie watched.

“Yes.” Stephanie nodded as she glanced back at Duncan.

“Makes sense.” Duncan nodded before hearing the conductor’s whistle. “Nice meetin’ ye, thouch.”

With that, Duncan left the station as Stephanie watched him, blushing a little from being distracted by seeing the ghost as she looked back and saw it was gone.

“D’oh, Stephanie,” Stephanie groaned as she pinched her nose bridge underneath her glasses. “You need to stop letting everything distract you.”

Sir Topham Hatt stepped out of Mr. Percival’s office as Stephanie glanced at him, asking, “Is there any luck, sir?”

“No luck,” Sir Topham Hatt responded, shaking his head. “Let’s try another place.”

Stephanie nodded and followed Sir Topham Hatt, going from one railway to another, but they entered a curious place called Drayton.

It was much larger than the other places they had been and was beautiful, too, perking Stephanie’s curiosity as they went past it.

She can look closer at Drayton when she has someone who can take her across Sodor.

Stephanie and Sir Topham Hatt went on an adventure through Sodor, and whenever he stopped at a station with its conductors, he would step into their offices to converse with them while Stephanie waited outside.

She would sometimes see different ghosts appear from a distance or elsewhere.

If Stephanie was lucky and no one else was around, she would wave her hand and say hello to them, and they would do the same back.

But there were mostly new engines around Sodor, too, as she would sometimes talk to some that stopped by the stations to pick up passengers.

They soon came to Arlesdale Railway, and Sir Topham Hatt went to the office to talk to Mr. Fergus Duncan.

Stephanie waited outside politely, noticing the smaller engines moving around, which perked her attention.

They looked cute, but Stephanie was unsure if they wanted to be called cute in the first place.

One of the locomotives painted in blue with the basis of an R&ER No. 3 River Irt noticed Stephanie waiting outside the office and staring at him.

He went up to the blue-haired girl and whistled as she approached him.

“Hello,” he greeted. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Stephanie,” Stephanie responded.

“You’re Stephanie?” the miniature blue engine asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I suppose Terence told you?”

“No,” he chuckled. “Thomas did. There are no farms around the Arlesdale Railway for Terence to tell us.”

“Ah, right.” Stephanie blushed with embarrassment. “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”

“It’s alright,” the miniature blue engine chuckled. “My name is Bert.”

“And I’m Rex,” a miniature green engine with the basis of an R&ER No. 7 River Esk responded.

Stephanie looked over at the miniature red engine with the basis of an R&ER No. 9 River Mite on a turntable and asked, “Who is that one?”

“That’s Mike,” Rex responded. “He doesn’t like children making fun of him.”

“Of course, I don’t like it, Rex,” Mike huffed from the turntable as it stopped. “I don’t like how children call me ‘cute’ and ‘how adorable’ we are!”

Stephanie blushed a little after Mike huffed as he approached the two and muttered, “I was thinking about that, but I’m sorry if it seemed like that.”

Mike perked up after Stephanie apologized, and Bert responded, “Don’t worry about it, Stephanie. Mike is just usually cranky.”

“Like Cranky himself?” Stephanie joked a little.

“Yes, like Cranky,” chuckled Bert.

Mike blushed a little after Stephanie mentioned Cranky before noticing something glowing around Stephanie’s wrist.

“Hey, what’s that glowing?” Mike mentioned.

Stephanie looked at Mike with confusion and asked, “What’s glowing?”

“That thing around your wrist,” Bert mentioned. “How is that glowing?”

Stephanie looked at her wrist and noticed her bracelet was glowing before tugging her sleeve over it, saying, “Ah, it’s just the sunlight. Nothing to-whoa!”

The bracelet suddenly started tugging Stephanie forward, and she exclaimed out of surprise as she stumbled.

Notches hopped off Stephanie’s hood with Lucy on his back, dragging her heels to the ground to stop herself as the three engines watched.

Bert went backward as Stephanie continued to be tugged forward and suggested, “Try taking the bracelet off!”

Stephanie reached over to the bracelet to take it off or summon it into something to hold, but it tugged her harder, and she yelped again, getting off the station as she stumbled.

Luckily, she did not get hurt when she stumbled off the station but landed on her feet before being tugged again.

Then there was trouble!

One of the miniature engines, with a light gray livery and a diesel with the basis of an R&ER Perkins, was pushing a truck in front of him when he accidentally went in Stephanie’s direction.

“Whoa!” he exclaimed as he hit his brakes to slow down. “Watch out!”

Stephanie winced worryingly after the truck appeared, and the bracelet transformed into a cuff, wrapping around Stephanie’s wrist before lifting her into the sky.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow!” Stephanie winced before landing back on the ground and being dragged forward.

Rex continued moving backward before switching tracks into Stephanie’s path when she tumbled onto the tracks.

He slowed to catch Stephanie as she returned, dragging her shoes across the wood.

“Be careful!” Stephanie exclaimed. “I don’t want to hurt you!”

“Don’t worry!” Rex smirked. “Little engines can do-” he was cut off in his sentence when Stephanie went into his face stomach-first, and the next thing they all saw, Stephanie and Rex, with his driver, disappeared into thin air.

“Rex?!” all the miniature engines exclaimed.

The office door opened, and Mr. Fergus Duncan and Sir Topham Hatt stepped out, asking, “What’s going on?”

All the engines glanced over at him as Bert winced, glancing over at Mike, whose face mirrored his expression.

How would they tell Mr. Fergus Duncan that Rex disappeared into thin air?!

Chapter Text

At a distant place, Stephanie and Rex, with his engineer, appeared and landed roughly on the ground.

Stephanie was against Rex’s face with her stomach as she landed on her bottom with her arms over Rex’s boiler as his engineer tumbled a little with his hat over his face.

“…hng hhnngh!” Rex muffled against Stephanie’s stomach as Stephanie lifted her head while moving her hair from covering her face.

She noticed the surrounding area looked different, with trees everywhere and tall grass, but the Arlesdale Railway was gone!

Stephanie gasped as she sat up from where she was, and Rex’s engineer adjusted his cap and noticed the same thing.

“Mhrh’h grnng rn?” Rex muffled through Stephanie’s stomach as Stephanie glanced down at him.

“Sorry!” Stephanie apologized as she moved away from his face, and he gasped from being smothered before accidentally toppling backward on her back.

Rex coughed a little after Stephanie got off as his engineer stepped out, and Rex asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Stephanie nodded as she pushed herself up before standing on her feet with the help of his engineer. “But, um, we’re not on the Arlesdale Railway anymore.”

Rex looked around after Stephanie told him and saw the surroundings, exclaiming, “What?! How did we get from Arlesdale Railway to here?”

Stephanie pushed her sleeve up and showed Rex the bracelet around her wrist, now a cuff with a gemstone, explaining, “This just teleported us here!”

Said cuff’s gemstone glowed and tugged Stephanie forward, yelping as Rex’s engineer wrapped his arms around Stephanie and moved back, stopping Stephanie from being dragged forward.

“Can’t you take it off?” Rex asked as he glanced over from the corner of his eye as they were dragged together.

“I don’t think I can!” Stephanie struggled with the cuff.

Luckily, the bracelet stopped glowing and stopped dragging both Stephanie and Rex’s engineer as she tried slipping the cuff off, but it was tight around her wrist.

“Darn!” Stephanie groaned, trying to tug it off.

Rex’s engineer placed Stephanie down and grabbed the bottom of the cuff while standing in front of her, and they both tugged, trying to get the bracelet off.

But it was still stuck to Stephanie’s wrist no matter how hard they tugged, and it started hurting her hand.

“Darn!” Stephanie exclaimed as they stopped.

“What’s happening?” Rex asked. “I can’t move without rails.”

“Sorry, Rex,” Stephanie apologized as she returned to him with his engineer. “But I think my bracelet won’t get off.”

“Have you tried smashing it?” Rex asked.

“Worth a try?” Rex’s engineer shrugged.

Stephanie laid her arm down on a rock as Rex’s engineer picked up a hand-sized rock and aimed, hitting it, but instead of the cuff breaking, the rock in his hand broke into two.

“Well, crap,” Stephanie winced as Rex’s engineer looked at the crumbled rock in his hand and the perfectly intact bracelet around her wrist.

“Let’s try another rock,” Rex’s engineer assured her.

He picked up a bigger rock with both hands as Rex watched anxiously, seeing his engineer hit the bracelet with it.

It cracked in two instead as it crumbled in Rex’s engineer’s hand, and Stephanie looked surprised.

“That didn’t work.” Rex’s engineer winced.

Stephanie looked at her cuff worriedly after the next rock was destroyed before being tugged again as Rex’s engineer caught her from being dragged forward.

Rex watched as Stephanie was being dragged for a minute before it stopped, and Stephanie moaned, “What are we going to do?”

“Let’s see where the bracelet is trying to take you,” Rex suggested. “Maybe it took you because there is something here?”

“That could be it,” Stephanie said, nodding as she looked at her bracelet. “But what about you, Rex? We can’t leave you here by yourself.”

“We can’t carry him, Stephanie,” Rex’s engineer added. “There are no cranes around here, and he weighs a lot for us.”

“Hey!” Rex blushed. “But you do have a point.”

Stephanie then got an idea as she reached into her garments, taking out her Dust Whistle, and Rex noticed the whistle around her neck.

“Is that the Dust Whistle?” Rex asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded as she looked at the symbols.

She tried Silver Dust and Gold Dust, but she could not use Silver Dust as that could only transform a human into a vehicle, and there were no coal or water tanks around.

Gold Dust would reverse the other Dust’s effect and teleport humans in and out of Sodor… but what about Copper Dust?

Stephanie turned the knob to the symbol for copper, and Rex asked, “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to use Copper Dust,” Stephanie explained to him. “Hold still.”

“What’s Copper-?” Rex’s sentence was cut off when Stephanie whistled, watching as Copper Dust came out of her whistle and was engulfed in the Dust itself before it cleared, and a person was sitting between the old rails.

He has Caucasian skin, light brown eyes, short brown hair, a green uniform with a red tie and a cap, some yellow lining around the collar, and ‘ARLESDALE’ stitched on the left collar flap in yellow and black shoes.

The stranger looked a little dizzy after the Copper Dust faded before lifting a hand to his temple, pausing when he noticed he had arms.

“So that’s what Copper Dust does!” Stephanie remarked as he glanced over at them in confusion.

“The Copper Dust does this?” the person asked, speaking like Rex.

“Well, sort of.” Stephanie smiled sheepishly. “I didn’t test this Dust.”

Rex glanced back at his hand before noticing he had another as Rex’s engineer walked over to him, putting his hands underneath his armpits before picking him up.

Rex was startled when he was picked up from the ground before being placed on his feet, wobbling a little before grabbing his engineer’s arm when he almost fell as he kept them at his height.

“Th-This is a little new,” Rex stuttered, noticing that everything looked so much different at a different height and even at how small he was compared to his engineer as he reached his middle. “How long does it last?”

“Until I use Gold Dust,” Stephanie explained. “It’s the only thing that can change you back to normal.”

Then she paused as she noticed Rex’s expression, asking, “Are you scared?”

“What?” Rex perked. “No. Just a little startled by the height. I’m not scared.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Stephanie chuckled, assuring the former miniature engine. “But you’ve got legs and are no longer stuck between the rails.”

Rex noticed he had legs and even movement, as he could tell from his legs shaking whenever he tried to move forward.

Stephanie’s bracelet started tugging again, and she yelped, stumbling forward as she gently scolded, “Okay, okay, we’ll follow you! Geez.”

Rex’s engineer started following her while going at Rex’s pace, allowing him to take the first couple of steps forward before stumbling a little with his legs.

“Easy, Rex, easy.” Rex’s engineer held him as Rex adjusted them underneath his body. “Take one step before another.”

Rex nodded as he attempted again, taking careful steps as he went forward, slowly becoming used to his new legs.

All three went deeper and deeper into the woods as Stephanie followed her bracelet as it switched from a cuff to her normal bracelet, allowing her to move her wrist freely without feeling cramped or hurt.

As Stephanie’s bracelet pulled her forward, Rex noticed the strange layout of the area and the numerous abandoned buildings.

“Stephanie,” Rex spoke as Stephanie glanced over at him. “I think I know where we are.”

“You do?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes,” Rex nodded. “This is Duke, Sir Handel, Peter Sam, and Bertram’s old line from long ago. Your bracelet somehow took us onto the Mid-Sodor Railway!”

As they walked past it, Stephanie looked at a worn-out building that looked like a station house, saying, “You’re right! So then we are close to your railway?”

“Almost.” Rex nodded. “Maybe we can find our way back to Arlesdale Railway after finding what your bracelet is trying to show us.”

Stephanie nodded as she dove underneath a low-hanging bush branch, as Rex and his engineer did the same before coming across a vast empty place with a few noticeable things.

“Hey, this is where they found Duke!” Rex remarked as Stephanie glanced at him. “Well, after going through his roof.”

He pointed to where the hole was, as it had vines growing into it, and Stephanie hummed with curiosity.

Stephanie’s bracelet started tugging her toward Duke’s shed as Rex and his engineer looked around, noticing some things had disappeared over time while others stayed perfectly the same.

Stephanie climbed onto the side of Duke’s shed and looked around, watching her bracelet glow brighter.

She looked curious as she looked at the bracelet and turned around, watching as it dimmed a little whenever she turned.

Stephanie walked forward as it glowed brighter and brighter before it stopped glowing, and she looked confused when it stopped.

She took a step forward, and instead of solid ground, Stephanie’s foot slipped, and she tumbled forward, shrieking as she landed roughly on the rocky ground.

Meanwhile, Rex and his engineer looked around, wondering why Stephanie’s bracelet had brought her here when nothing was around.

Suddenly, Stephanie’s shriek filled the air, perking up Rex and his engineer’s attention from what they were looking at, and they glanced over to where she had walked.

“Stephanie?” Rex called.

With Stephanie, she groaned in pain after tumbling from the side of the ‘hill’ where Duke’s shed was, feeling scratches on her hands.

“Ow,” Stephanie winced as she slowly sat up from the ground, reaching over to her glasses that fell off and placing them on. “That’s going to leave a mark.”

She felt a sting on her cheek, and she winced, reaching with a hand to feel it as faint traces of dark blue, warm liquid staining the tips of her fingers.

A faint creak caught Stephanie’s attention, and she glanced over her shoulder to see where it came from before looking surprised at what she had discovered.

A locomotive was sitting in a shed, except it was covered with moss, vines, and rust, covering the chipped and faded olive green paintwork.

The basis of the locomotive was a Fletcher Jennings Class Bb, and he was staring at her with confusion before smiling a little.

“T-Thank God,” he stammered before starting to cry. “Oh, thank God, someone finally came here!”

Stephanie perked up as the locomotive cried as she looked at the state, seeing it did not have wheels and the funnel snapped in half from rust.

“Please let me out of the shed,” the locomotive begged Stephanie. “I want to be useful!”

“Who are you?” Stephanie spoke as he stopped begging.

“Smudger,” he answered before continuing to cry. “Please let me out of here. I don’t want to stay in this shed forever! I don’t want to be alone!”

Stephanie glanced back at him as he was crying before pulling her sleeves down and gently wiping his tears away with her sleeves.

“Don’t worry, Smudger,” Stephanie gently assured him as she gently laid her head against his forehead. “I’ll get you out of here in no time.”

Smudger stared at Stephanie with hope before smiling as he started crying with happiness, and Stephanie had a few tears pricking the corner of her eyes.

“Thank you so much!” Smudger cried.

Stephanie smiled as she gently wiped Smudger’s tears away with her sleeves before tearing the brick wall down.

“Stephanie?” After hearing Rex’s voice, Stephanie perked up and glanced up as Smudger looked panicked. “Where are you?”

“I’m here!” Stephanie called.

“No, no, no, no,” Smudger panicked as Stephanie glanced at him. “Don’t leave! Don’t leave me behind!”

“I’m not going to leave you behind,” Stephanie softly assured Smudger. “I’m calling my friends.”

Smudger sniffled after Stephanie assured him as Rex poked his head over the ledge and looked down at Stephanie with his engineer.

“Are you okay, Stephanie?” Rex asked.

“I’m fine!” Stephanie nodded. “I found an engine, though!”

“You did?” Rex’s engineer asked.

“Yeah!” Stephanie nodded as she looked over at Smudger. “His name is Smudger.”

Rex’s face turned from confusion to surprise after Stephanie explained, asking, “You found who?”

“Smudger!” Stephanie called.

Rex looked at his engineer after Stephanie called, and his engineer asked, “What is his number?”

Stephanie glanced back at Smudger as he responded, “Two.”

“Thank you.” Stephanie thanked him before calling, “Two!”

“Yep, it’s him.” Rex nodded as he looked at his engineer.

Stephanie glanced around at where she was and said, “I’m going to attempt to get him out of here. You two keep an eye out if anything goes wrong, okay?”

“Erm, alright!” Rex nodded. “Be careful down there!”

“I will!” Stephanie called before returning to what she was doing.

Stephanie started to remove the vines from around Smudger as he waited, watching Stephanie remove everything from him.

She winced when she saw where his wheels were supposed to be and were in place with rusted metal, asking, “What happened to you?”

Smudger was saddened after she asked and responded, “This was my punishment for causing so many derailments.”

“Wait, what?” Stephanie perked up, glancing at him. “What do you mean?”

Smudger glanced away from her as he sighed heavily, saying, “I was a prat a long time ago. I had this little show-off personality toward the other engines but kept derailing and spilling everything every time I showed off. Dukie-”

He winced after mentioning someone and corrected himself, “Duke tried to warn me to be careful… but all I did was laugh at him.”

Stephanie listened to his story as she carefully unhooked everything to release Smudger.

He started to finish the story: “Things went downhill after that accident at one of the mines, where I was acting roughly and went derailed, but the trucks stayed on the track. Unfortunately, it went into the mines where a young man named ‘Clive’ worked, killing him.”

Stephanie felt her heart sink as she finished getting everything off him, listening to his story as she was getting dust and dirt off his face with her hands.

“The manager heard what happened from Clive’s father,” Smudger continued. “And I thought Duke would back me up because it was an accident… but Duke just stayed silent. So the manager transformed me into a generator and took away my wheels, and I was stuck back here ever since, even when the railway closed down too.”

He glanced at Stephanie as she rubbed his cheek with a few tears staining her cheeks, saying, “I’m so sorry you were punished and forgotten.”

Smudger softly smiled after Stephanie apologized and said, “It’s alright. I received my punishment and learned my lesson. I have someone here who can help me, too.”

Stephanie nodded as she rubbed her ears away with her sleeves, saying, “That’s right. So now that you are free from all those things attached to you and the vines are removed, let’s get you out.”

She reached into her garments and took out her Dust Whistle, checking if she was on the right Dust as Smudger looked confused.

“What’s that?” Smudger asked.

“It’s a Dust Whistle,” Stephanie explained as Smudger looked confused. “I’ll explain it after getting you out.”

Stephanie whistled with the Dust Whistle as Copper Dust came out, startling Smudger as it engulfed him before disappearing, leaving behind a human sitting on the ground.

He had pale skin and long, oily jet-black hair that reached to his back with a few strands of gray and was in terrible condition.

His uniform was all raggy and shredded, and the color of his clothes had faded, but what stood out the most was that he was missing both legs, and each stump was in bad condition.

“Holy crap in a pita!” Stephanie winced as Smudger looked panicked. “Hold on.”

Stephanie walked over to him as he tried to scoot back, but he stumbled a little from his stump legs as he instead went on his back.

She looked at his missing legs to see their damage as Smudger stiffened, watching as she inspected them thoughtfully.

“These look bad,” Stephanie gently winced.

She reached into the pocket of her blue jeans and tapped the top, transforming into her Rat Zodiac hybrid as Smudger flinched.

“Y-You-You-you-” Smudger panicked as he stammered.

“Sorry!” Stephanie apologized. “Once again, I’ll explain everything after getting you out of here. Right now, let’s bandage these.”

Stephanie transformed her bracelet into a paintbrush and painted a bandage fabric roll, tapping it as it turned real and holding it in her hands.

“Lay on your back,” Stephanie instructed as he did so, staring at her with a surprised expression.

Stephanie wrapped his legs with the bandage fabric as he stayed still, watching as she used her teeth to snap the fabric before tying it.

After the last leg was bandaged, Stephanie looked outside and called, “I’m going to attempt to-”

“Stephanie, there’s a rat!” Rex called after she stepped out.

“It’s me!” Stephanie called. “I’m the rat!”

“What?!” Rex and his engineer exclaimed.

“I’ll explain once I get up there, okay?” Stephanie called.

Stephanie stepped back into the shed, reached up to her neck, took the necklace of the Rat Zodiac pendant off, and transformed back into herself.

She tapped it again, transformed into her Falcon form, glanced at her hands, and muttered, “Okay, I think this can work.”

Then she looked at Smudger and walked up to him as he exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around his middle, “Wait, wait, wait, wait! What are you doing?!”

“I’m picking you up,” Stephanie responded as she did so, startling him as she effortlessly picked him up. “And then carrying you outside and out of here by flying.”

“Is that going to work?” Smudger asked worriedly as he gripped Stephanie’s sweater with his hands.

“Hopefully,” Stephanie nodded. “I’ve never done this before, but this could be a start.”

Smudger gulped nervously after Stephanie explained to him before watching her spread her wings and take off into the air, causing Smudger to yelp.

Rex and Rex’s engineer went backward after watching something fly up, seeing Stephanie as a harpy while carrying someone in her arms but stumbling a little.

“Be careful, be careful, be careful, be careful!” Smudger panicked as she soared through the sky.

Luckily, Stephanie landed on the ground on both feet but slipped and fell onto her bottom as she yelped, but she was somewhat smothered underneath Smudger’s chest.

“Ow,” Stephanie muffled underneath him as Rex and Rex’s engineer approached.

“Are you two okay?” Rex asked as Smudger pushed himself up.

“We’re fine!” Stephanie nodded as she took her necklace off, transforming back to normal.

Smudger stared at Rex with confusion, never seeing another human who was both short and wearing green… but then there was the familiar clothing that looked like a steamie’s paintwork.

“Smudger, may you please get off of me?” Stephanie politely asked.

Smudger glanced down and said, “Sorry.”

He flipped onto his back to get off Stephanie, realizing he was staring at the blue sky and lifting a hand to cover his eyes when the sun shone.

He was finally out of that dark, damp, and cold shed!

Smudger started crying with relief as he stared at the sky, covering his eyes with his arm and sobbing, “I’m finally free!”

Stephanie smiled as she crawled over, picked him up on his bottom, and hugged him from behind.

“Thank you,” Smudger thanked her, placing his hands on hers over his chest. “Thank you so much, Stephanie!”

“You’re welcome, Smudger,” Stephanie nodded with a smile. “Let’s get you to the Steamworks to be repaired.”

Smudger nodded as Rex’s engineer came over, wrapping his arms around Smudger after Stephanie released him before he exclaimed while grabbing Rex’s engineer’s hands, “Wait, wait, wait! We can’t leave him here by himself!”

“Who?” Stephanie asked.

“Stanley!” He pointed at the shed in the distance, near a collapsed entrance.

“‘Stanley?’” Rex asked. “I thought Stanley was back in Tidmouth?”

“Not your Stanley,” Smudger explained as he looked slightly distressed. “The Stanley that used to work here. Can’t you save him too?”

Stephanie looked at the bracelet around her wrist as it glowed somewhat, proving Smudger’s case that there was another.

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded. “Let’s go find him first.”

So Stephanie followed her bracelet as it gently tugged at her before arriving at the sheds, where Smudger pointed as he was being carried, seeing how many years had passed.

“So, where did he come from?” Smudger asked, mentioning Rex.

“I came from the Arlesdale Railway, which was built further away,” Rex explained before glancing at himself. “After we teleported here, Stephanie’s whistle also turned me human.”

“Wait, what?!” Smudger exclaimed. “You all teleported here?”

“Yes, by this,” Stephanie sighed as she mentioned her bracelet. “I accidentally took Rex and his engineer with me after it dragged me from Arlesdale Railway.”

“That’s not good,” Smudger winced. “What about your parents?”

“Sir Topham Hatt and Mr. Fergus Duncan don’t know about this,” Rex explained. “Worst of all, there’s nothing around here to call them to let them know.”

Smudger looked confused after Rex explained as they approached the shed, and the bracelet stopped glowing as Stephanie looked at the open view.

Sure enough, an engine at the back of the sheds was asleep but slowly woke up after hearing footsteps.

The engine’s basis was a Baldwin Locomotive Works, and like Smudger, he was missing his wheels, his funnel was snapped in half from rust but was covered with mud, and other items even had more moss growing on them than Smudger did.

His red paintwork was chipped and rusted, too, as Stanley looked, saw Stephanie, and blinked.

“Who are you?” he asked before noticing Smudger held in Rex’s engineer’s arms. “Who is that?”

“It’s me, Smudger,” Smudger chuckled. “Stephanie is here to free you, Stanley!”

“She is?” Stanley perked as Smudger nodded. “Great! Get me out of here.”

Stephanie nodded and went to work, getting the bricks off and starting to clear his body the best she could as he watched.

Then he noticed Rex and asked, “Friend of yours?”

“He’s from the Arlesdale Railway,” Stephanie explained. “The railway that is built where you used to work.”

“Huh,” Stanley remarked as Stephanie started wiping his face with her sleeves to get some dry mud off. “That many years have passed, eh? I missed a lot then.”

Stephanie nodded as she finished before looking at her whistle to check how much Copper Dust was inside.

Luckily, there was just enough inside for Stanley to transform into a human, as Stanley asked, “What’s that in your-?”

Stephanie whistled her whistle, and Copper Dust emerged from it and swirled around Stanley before it disappeared, revealing him sitting on the ground without legs.

He wore a red, shredded, faded uniform with black shoes, pale skin, light brown eyes, and long, oily, dark brown, somewhat curly hair that reached his chest.

“Okay,” Stanley coughed as Stephanie walked up to him. “I did not expect that to happen.”

“Welcome to learning about Dust,” Stephanie chuckled before bandaging his legs with the roll she made.

“That was Dust?” Stanley asked, and Stephanie nodded her head. “Huh. I heard stories about it from Duke but didn’t think too much before I was turned into a generator.”

“Because you kept derailing and spilling the items from the trucks?” Stephanie asked with a cocked eyebrow.

Stanley looked at Smudger with an unamused expression as Smudger shrugged, saying, “You had the same story as me, Stanley!”

“Yes, I know we had the-” Stanley nodded before wincing a little after moving his almost bandaged leg.

“Sorry,” Stephanie apologized.

“It’s okay, kiddo,” Stanley assured her. “I just moved a wheel too much.”

“You mean leg?” Stephanie asked.

“Leg, wheel,” Stanley rolled his eyes. “It’s the same thing!”

“Basic uses, yes.” Stephanie nodded. “But it’s not the same thing if you compare them.”

Stanley looked slightly confused after Stephanie nodded before she finished tying the fabric after the roll was empty, asking as she turned to Rex’s engineer, “Can you pick two people up?”

“I could.” Rex’s engineer nodded as he walked over. “Here.”

He reached down to Stanley and helped him onto his back, wrapping his arms around his neck as he stood back up to his height.

“Is that everyone?” Stephanie asked Smudger.

“Yes, that’s everyone.” Smudger nodded before looking at the bracelet around her wrist. “Does your bracelet think that’s everyone?”

Stephanie looked at her bracelet after Stanley was on Rex’s engineer’s back and saw it was not glowing or tugging at her wrist.

“No, I think it’s done.” Stephanie nodded, seeing the slight red marks on her wrist, but did not mind. “How do we get from the Mid-Sodor Railway to the Arlesdale Railway?”

“We could try walking there,” Rex suggested.

“It’ll take all day,” Rex’s engineer mentioned.

“Even if Harold or any aircraft discovered us,” Stephanie explained. “They would not be able to land.”

“Good point,” nodded Rex.

“Well,” Stephanie sighed as she looked through the forest. “Let’s try walking then.”

So Stephanie, Rex, and Rex’s engineer, who is carrying Smudger in his arms and Stanley on his back, went through the abandoned Mid-Sodor Railway, crossing rough terrain and helping each other.

It lasted half a day as Stephanie followed the old tracks through the forest, finally entering a familiar station that perked Rex up.

“We’re back on the Arlesdale Railway!” Rex perked.

He rushed forward and cupped his hands over his mouth, calling, “Mike! Bert! I’m back!”

Just as he called, two familiar whistles went through the air, and Rex grew excited, patting himself down as he felt a whistle in one of his pockets.

He took the whistle out and returned to the sound, surprising Mike and Bert as they approached with Jock, Frank, the Blister twins, and Sigrid of Arlesdale.

“Rex?!” they all exclaimed after seeing him.

“What happened to you?!” Mike exclaimed.

“Yeah,” Frank nodded. “How did you become human?”

“Is this the work of Wendell?” both Blister twins asked simultaneously.

“That’s part of my fault,” Stephanie spoke, smiling sheepishly as she blushed. “I used Copper Dust to turn him human after we got teleported to the Mid-Sodor Railway.”

The engines looked surprised after Stephanie explained, and Rex’s engineer came, panting while still carrying Smudger and Stanley.

“Are you okay?” Stephanie asked Rex’s engineer as he placed Smudger and Stanley on the platform’s floor.

He nodded soundlessly as he pushed himself onto the platform, lying on his back with his hat over his face to block the sun.

“I think that’s the last time he has to carry us,” Smudger lightly joked as Stanley chuckled.

The miniature engines slowly approached the two legless people with confused expressions before a familiar voice exclaimed, “Cinder and ashes!”

Thomas approached the station with a couch behind him, seeing Stephanie standing before two strangers and Rex’s driver lying on his back.

“There you are, Stephanie!” Sir Topham Hatt exclaimed as Sir Topham Hatt instantly exited his cab with the other conductors and Dowager Hatt.

“Oh, boy.” Stephanie softly winced as she knew she was in trouble before being startled when Sir Topham Hatt hugged her.

“What happened to you?” Sir Topham Hatt asked as he released her with his hands on her shoulders before noticing Smudger and Stanley.

Smudger looked worried, while Stanley looked confused about this stranger hugging Stephanie.

“And who are those two with you?” Mr. Fergus Duncan asked as Notches hopped out of Thomas’ cab with Lucy on his back.

“Let me give you all a summary,” Stephanie responded as Thomas’ driver and fireman stepped out to assist Rex’s engineer while one of them entered the station.

“In short,” she pushed her sleeve down to show the bracelet to Thomas and the controllers. “This bracelet, also a staff, which I’ll show you all in a minute, thought it was the perfect moment to take me with Rex and his engineer on a joyride to the Mid-Sodor Railway up in the mountains to find these two,” she mentioned to Smudger and Stanley as they waved hello. “Smudger and Stanley, and then we had to walk all the way here from there.”

“That’s what happened to you?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Yep,” Stephanie sighed as she blushed with embarrassment, and her ears drooped. “And I am in big trouble, right?”

After Stephanie asked, the conductors looked at each other, and Sir Robert Norramby assured her, “No, you’re not, Stephanie. Yes, you did send Dowager Hatt and Sir Topham Hatt into a panic after learning you disappeared with one of Mr. Fergus Duncan’s engines, but you are not in trouble after you explained what happened.”

Stephanie smiled softly after Sir Robert Norramby explained before Dowager Hatt noticed her hands, gently taking them and asking, “What happened to your hands?”

“I got a little scratched,” Stephanie explained. “I didn’t see that fall after getting onto Duke’s shed.”

“So that’s how you found me?” Smudger asked as one of the conductors was looking at his cut legs.

“Ironically, yes.” Stephanie nodded as Dowager Hatt reached into her purse and took out bandaids.

“Bless me!” Mr. Percival winced after seeing how bad they looked. “Who on Sodor does this to you both?”

“Ask the previous conductors,” Stephanie responded. “They’re the ones who turned them into generators.”

Everyone’s faces were confused as they looked at Stephanie, and she asked with an unamused expression, “I didn’t explain that part, didn’t I?”

“No, you didn’t,” Sir Topham Hatt responded.

“Right,” Stephanie nodded. “I used Copper Dust to help them become carryable humans.”

“Is Copper Dust the one you showed me?” Dowager Hatt asked.

“Yes, ma’am.” Stephanie nodded as she smiled a little.

She winced when a twinge of pain came from her palms, watching as some dark blue liquid somewhat came from her faint injuries.

Dowager Hatt noticed Stephanie’s strange blood color but kept it to herself as she finished mending her hands and cheeks.

Once her injuries were mended, Stephanie looked at the conductors and asked, “Will Smudger and Stanley be taken to the Steamworks for repair?”

Smudger and Stanley waited anxiously as they held hands, waiting for their responses as the conductors looked at each other.

“I think it is a perfect idea!” Sir Robert Norramby nodded as Smudger and Stanley perked.

“Yes! The Blue Mountain Quarry Manager would like two extra engines, too.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded.

“Y-You’re letting us work?” Smudger asked, not believing what he and Stanley had heard.

“Of course!” nodded Mr. Percival. “You were forgotten for far too long at the closed Mid-Sodor Railway. We think you both should return.”

“Thank you so much, Sir!” Stanley thanked. “We won’t let you down, right, Smudger?”

“Right, Stanley,” nodded Smudger.

Stephanie smiled with happiness before pausing a little as she looked at the bracelet around her wrist, wondering if it could tell if there was anyone to rescue, just like Smudger and Stanley.

Chapter Text

Smudger and Stanley were taken to Sodor Steelworks to be repaired and repainted, even having new wheels reattached, much to their pleasure.

It took a very long time for them to be repaired and repainted, but it was enough for them to be ready to return to work.

When the day came, as they were painted in their original paintwork and with their respective numbers, Thomas arrived with two flatbeds, one for Smudger and one for Stanley.

Stanley was excited about returning to work after being stuck in the sheds for a long time, while Smudger was anxious about making mistakes.

The last thing he wanted was to return to being a generator or, worse, be stuck in a shed forever!

…But what if Duke was there?

He also wants to avoid getting his bunker chewed out by Duke if he comes across him.

Now Smudger started to think about his decision to be taken to the Blue Mountain Quarry, but not wanting his thoughts to get the better of him, he distracted himself by looking at the scenery.

Since so many years have passed, many things have changed since Smudger and Stanley, where there were new stations and engines.

Jeez, they both need to catch up on a lot of things.

“Hey, Smudger!” Smudger snapped out of his thoughts and glanced from the corner of his eyes to ‘look’ at Stanley behind him, responding, “What?”

“Do you think Falcon, Stuart, or Duke are at the Blue Mountain Quarry?” Stanley asked. “I wonder how they are doing.”

Smudger went silent at that question, unsure if he wanted to see if Falcon, Stuart, or even Duke were there.

Stanley noticed Smudger’s silence and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m unsure if I wanted to see them,” Smudger responded. “I mean, I caused a lot of problems back then. What would happen if they saw us? The last thing is that either of us would get our bunkers chewed out by Dukie!”

Smudger pursed his lips in silent irritation at his way of nicknaming someone, needing to break out of his habit.

“Don’t worry ‘bout it, Smudge,” Stanley assured with a slight chuckle. “Just try to act naturally. Maybe working hard and doing nothing rash would change Duke’s mind.”

“Okay.” Smudger nodded. “Just act naturally, work hard, and do nothing rash. I think I can do that.”

They soon arrived at the Blue Mountain Quarry, and there was a lot of noise happening everywhere, but there were some familiar and new faces.

‘Act naturally, act naturally, act naturally,’ Smudger thought as Stanley was the first to be lifted from the flatbed.

He was looking around at the Blue Mountain Quarry, seeing that it all seemed so huge compared to his small size and so new to him.

But it was like mine was back at his old line, which he wanted to ignore and focus on what he was doing.

A man was speaking as the engines arrived to see the two newcomers, and Smudger was doing his best to ‘act natural.’

“Engines,” he said as he mentioned them to Stanley and Smudger after placing them on the rails. “This is Smudger and Stanley. They will work here at the Skarloey Railway and the Blue Mountain Quarry.”

‘There’s more than one railway?’ Smudger thought, keeping his nervousness at a low level.

But it rose a little after seeing Duke staring at him with confusion before the expression of ‘Oh, I remember you’ appeared with disappointment.

Smudger instantly wanted to back away after seeing Duke, as he did not want to get himself chewed out.

But remembering what Stanley said, Smudger kept himself there as Stanley said, “Hello, everyone!”

The engines looked confused, while others, especially Duke, looked surprised to see him.

From how Duke stared at him with his old, cold eyes, Smudger instantly felt like daggers were piercing his firebox.

Stanley was assigned to work at the Skarloey Railway, while Smudger was assigned to work at the Blue Mountain Quarry, helping to deliver rocks from the workers and then over to Owen, the Incline Engine.

Thankfully, Luke was there to teach Smudger what to do around the Blue Mountain Quarry, but that was nothing compared to how much his anxiety rose.

There were workers everywhere, and mines were open for them to take rocks out and place them into trucks.

It was all too familiar to the mine where he used to work, and he never wanted to experience that same thing.

He worked extra hard to keep himself from derailing or causing trucks to crash into mines.

But as he was being careful, Smudger kept accidentally going onto the wrong rails, bumping into others, and even going into the wrong caves.

Poor Smudger was embarrassed whenever it happened and apologized, trying to correct himself, but kept making himself look like an idiot.

“Ah, sorry ‘bout that!” Smudger would apologize whenever an accident happened. “New ‘round here!”

Thankfully, everyone was patient with him and just laughed about it, continuing with their work and helping Smudger with his work.

After working in the Blue Mountain Quarry, the manager sent him to Skarloey’s Railway to help pull passenger coaches, which Smudger instantly worried about.

Instead of telling the manager he could not and fretting that he would be thrown into the sheds, Smudger bit his tongue and responded that he got it and was taken to Skarloey’s Railway.

When he was taken to Skarloey’s Railway, he was surprised at how different everything looked from the Blue Mountain Quarry but instead decided to roll with it since Stanley was there.

On the other wheel, Duncan was a little agitated about another engine coming over to help them with the passengers.

“Great, thon’s whit we needit,” Duncan would grumble as Smudger pushed coaches to couple with Duncan. “More show-offs tae show hou much better they can dae their jobs.”

Smudger was irritated about the Scottish engine complaining about him and Stanley, but he bit his lip to keep himself from lashing at him and continued his work.

“Oh, get a grip on it!” Stanley instead spoke from behind another coach as Smudger flinched. “We’re just helpin’, alright? But, geez, wake up on the right side of the shed, will ya?”

“Pah!” Duncan hissed as he whooshed steam before puffing off.

After Duncan went off to collect passengers, Smudger approached Stanley as he entered the shunting area.

“What are you doin’, you crazy American?!” Smudger hissed.

“What?” Stanley huffed. “He was snarkin’ ‘bout us!”

“I know that.” Smudger sighed. “But are you tryin’ to get us into trouble? What would happen if we got ourselves tossed back into the sheds?!”

“Relax your pistons, Smudge,” Stanley assured. “We’re not going to be tossed in the sheds again. So just roll with this like water gettin’ off a duck’s back.”

Smudger was slightly offended that Stanley was just ‘rolling with it’ and told Smudger to calm down, but he was right.

Smudger went silent and went with his work, sorting through trucks with Stanley and shunting them around.

As lunchtime rolled around, Smudger and Stanley’s drivers and firemen went to get their lunches when a familiar blue-haired figure with a cat in her hoodie and a strange puppet-like doll approached them.

“Ah, Stephie!” Smudger grinned but instantly winced and pursed his lips. “D’oh! Darn that stupid habit of mine!”

“What habit, Smudgie?” Stephanie joked back.

Smudger’s cheeks flared slightly after Stephanie joked, while Stanley chuckled, remarking, “Heh, she’s cheeky.”

“Yeah, somethin’ I didn’t expect that,” Smudger nodded as he sighed. “I need to cut back on that nicknamin’ thing.”

“It’s fine, Smudger,” Stephanie assured him as she reached over and gently rubbed his nose bridge, catching him by surprise. “Old habits die hard.”

Smudger crossed his eyes to look at her hand as she gently rubbed his nose bridge before realizing what she was doing and blushing, stammering as she pulled her hand away from his face, “Ah, s-sorry! I kept forgetting you’re not like Notches.”

Notches meowed from her hoodie as she glanced at him, blushing further as her ears twitched sheepishly.

“No, it’s fine,” Smudger assured her as he watched her pointed ears twitch. “It’s just strange that a human can touch my face.”

“Really?” Stephanie perked.

“Yes,” Stanley nodded. “Not many people just walk up to an engine and randomly touch their faces. It didn’t usually happen with us either when we were workin’ back at Mid-Sodor Railway.”

“That sucks,” Stephanie gently huffed. “But, are you okay with that?”

“Eh?” Smudger paused as he thought back to Stephanie’s hand gently rubbing against his nose bridge. “For the first time havin’ that, I would say it was weird, but it felt good.”

Stephanie’s face turned to confusion, and she asked, “What’s good about it then?”

“You have soft hands,” Smudger remarked with a chuckle. “Is it normal for humans to have soft hands?”

“What?” Stanley smiled. “Let me have some of that.”

Stephanie curiously did the same to Stanley, feeling Stephanie’s hand gently rub against his nose bridge, being careful with her fingernails and avoiding poking his eyes.

But w~o~w, Smudger was right, as Stanley smiled a little while having his eyes closed.

Stephanie had soft hands like he was being pampered with soft sponges that brushed up and down over his nose bridge.

“Wow,” Stephanie chuckled after looking at Stanley’s face. “You like it?”

“Shh,” Stanley gently whispered to Stephanie. “I’m trying to get in the moment.”

“Well,” Smudger chuckled. “Let me add to this too!”

Stephanie soon reached over to Smudger and did the same, a little confused but amused at how her hands seemed to get their interest, even from how one curious conversation went into another after some thoughts.

“Well,” Notches spoke as Stephanie looked over at him. “How are you going to move?”

Stephanie chuckled sheepishly after Notches asked and returned to what she was doing, being careful with them as she carefully rubbed their faces.

The trucks watched curiously, seeing how they enjoyed the young child touching their faces with her hands.

From what they experienced, they had naughty children climbing on them like jungle gyms and putting their dirty hands against the wood after touching whatever was sticky.

But seeing this one touch an engine’s face with their hands made them curious.

It lasted a few minutes before they told her to move her hands as Smudger and Staney’s driver and fireman stepped out from having lunch, seeing Stephanie rubbing her hands gently across their faces.

Stephanie noticed the men and stopped what she was doing as she removed her hands from their faces.

She politely excused herself when they returned to work, stepping away to allow the adults to return to work.

Smudger was pushing a couple of trucks, and one of them asked, “Hey, what was that back there?”

“Back where?” Smudger was confused when the truck asked him.

“That human,” another spoke up. “Why did you allow her to touch your face?”

“Well,” Smudger paused, unsure how he would put it. “She just reached over to my face when I felt embarrassed and started caressing it. I once felt her head against my forehead with a rub, but that was it.”

He cocked an eyebrow as he put the trucks on a site for later, uncoupling as he asked, “And why are you suddenly interested in it?”

“Well, I saw you getting your face touched by that human,” the truck responded.

“Most of us did,” a truck corrected. “What got you interested in having your face touched?”

Smudger went silent after the truck asked, still unsure how he could put it, and the truck noticed his expression, making a little movement with his body as he was ‘shrugging.’

“Eh, it’s weird, anyway,” the truck ‘shrugged.’ “But you are surely new around here. Did you come from a garden with that green paintwork?”

The trucks started giggling after the truck asked about his paintwork, and Smudger huffed with a little groan.

“Troublesome Trucks,” he groaned as he looked at the camera.

As the day went by, Smudger and Stanley had no problem making mistakes as they continued their work, shunting trucks and getting from one place to another.

Smudger was taking some trucks with him as he passed by a bakery with Sir Handel pulling coaches when the door opened, and angry yelling was coming from inside.

He glanced over from the corner of his eyes out of curiosity, seeing two men arguing as one was pushing a tray of something burnt.

It looked like someone had burned a lot of pies, and the baker with the chef’s hat looked angry at the other, who was not wearing one and pushing the cart.

Smudger perked up when he heard a light gag noise and glanced at Sir Handel, seeing he was lightly gagging.

“Are you alright?” Smudger asked as Sir Handel stopped dropping passengers, and Stephanie sat on a bench.

“I’m fine,” Sir Handel tried to assure him as he gulped thickly as he watched the cart pass the sidewalk across the rails to the other side. “It’s just the smell of something burning.”

“But you’re a steamie,” Smudger pointed out. “Steamies don’t have a gag reflex.”

“Ironic, isn’t it?” Sir Handel groaned as he winced in disgust after smelling it. “Can’t you two push that a little quicker?”

The two men were still arguing and not listening to Sir Handel as he groaned, muttering as he looked at the burnt pies, “Not this again.”

Down the line, Stanley was taking some Troublesome Trucks behind him, and they were the mischievous bunch they are, chanting, “On! On! On! Faster! Faster!”

“Hey, quit pushin’ me like that!” Stanley huffed, not seeing what was happening in front of him.

Smudger heard Stanley’s whistle and glanced over, surprised at seeing Stanley being pushed by the Troublesome Trucks and heading towards the two arguing men!

“Stanley!” Smudger called as he whistled. “Watch out!”

Stanley glanced back in front and shrieked in startlement after seeing what he was heading towards, whistling while hitting the brakes.

Luckily, his whistle seemed to spook the two arguing people, and they glanced over, seeing him coming, and scrambled.

But then there was trouble!

Stanley instead hit the wheel tray carrying all the burnt pies, and pies went all over the place!

It was all splattered over Stanley’s red paint and Sir Handel’s body, splattering juices, fruit chunks, and burnt crust all over their faces and paintwork, with tins bent or on the ground.

Luckily, no one was hurt.

Stephanie witnessed the whole thing and protected Notches and Lucy from the incoming burnt pie splatter while the passengers scrambled backward, and the ones in the coaches stayed inside.

She peeked after everything stopped, and her clothes were covered with pie filling splatter and burnt pie crust that stained all over.

“Oh, yuck!” Stephanie groaned as Notches gagged from the smell coming from them.

Stephanie looked at the damage, seeing Sir Handel, Smudger, and Stanley covered with pies and tins.

Stanley groaned with disgust as he coughed out some pie in his funnel before licking some of the cherry juice on his face and saying, “Oh, cherry pie!” Then he winced and added, “A little burnt, though.”

The two men pulling the tray and arguing with each other winced after seeing the mess as the other scoffed and exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air, “That’s it! I quit!”

But Smudger was worried as he glanced around anxiously, muttering, “Oh, boy. We’re in trouble now.”

The loudest gag sound caught Smudger’s attention, and he glanced over to see Sir Handel with the sickest expression, his face green and gagging.

“Oh, blimey,” his driver groaned, also covered in pie filling. “Don’t tell me you will do what I think you’ll do.”

Sir Handel gagged again but glanced at his driver and sickly responded, “Get a bucket.”

Sir Topham Hatt arrived at the scene after receiving news of what happened, and he saw all the mess as he was driving in Winston but had trouble as he skidded across the rails as they were covered with pie filling.

Luckily, he braked hard enough to stop but wobbled a little as he came to a stop, knocking his hat off a little but adjusting it after stepping out.

“What just happened?” Sir Topham Hatt asked as he stood up from his seat.

“Ah, sir,” Smudger spoke worriedly, glancing over at Stanley, who was the most covered in pie filling. “I-I-”

“Sir,” Stanley spoke. “I accidentally crashed into a tray of pies. I was distracted trying to handle the Troublesome Trucks, but I didn’t notice the tray coming and crashed into it.”

He winced a little as Sir Handel gagged, glancing over at him as his driver held a bucket close to his face.

“And made him sick,” Stanley added.

Stanley looked over at Smudger worriedly and was about to add anything when Sir Topham Hatt said, turning to the two men pulling the pies and putting his hands on his hips sternly, “Well, I suppose you had something to say about this?”

“Hey!” the first man exclaimed and pointed at the second. “It was his fault!”

“What?!” the second man exclaimed. “It was you! You were the one who left the pies to burn!”

“Yeah,” the first man huffed. “You were the one pushing the tray!”

Sir Topham Hatt groaned as he pinched his nose bridge, already tired of having to solve the argument between the two whenever this happened.

But before he could say something, Stephanie said, walking over as Sir Topham Hatt winced after seeing her covered with burnt pie filling and crust, “Excuse me? Isn’t it both your dumbasses’ fault?”

Everyone instantly looked over at her after Stephanie asked as she continued, pointing at the two, and they instantly went silent as she showed a streak of anger towards them, saying, “We don’t care whose fault is leaving the pies to burn or who was pushing the cart! No one is coming to save you. This life of yours is a hundred percent your responsibility.”

Ouch, right where it stings, and even showing anger as Sir Topham Hatt went silent, watching her rip a new one towards the two bakers.

He had seen Stephanie visibly irritated from here and there but never this angry.

“Now,” Stephanie said, placing one hand on her hip while the other held an irritated Notches and Lucy. “I know I’m getting myself into trouble for getting into an adult conversation, but it is both your faults! If you two weren’t standing around here arguing about whose fault it is like two stupid Italians with little to no points, Stanley would’ve continued with his work,” Stephanie mentioned over at Stanley, who looked surprised. “And Sir Handel over here would not get sick with all this crap on him!”

Sir Handel nodded with a groan as his driver held the bucket near his face, and in the background, Mario and Luigi glanced at each other with blushing cheeks.

“Get your asses into gear and clean up this mess until everything is as it used to be! No arguments and no snapping!” Stephanie angrily huffed at the two. “Got it?!”

“Y-Yes,” they both nodded, a little taken aback by her mild language and glancing at each other.

“Good,” Stephanie nodded with a huff before glancing at Sir Handel, and her expression turned from anger to worry. “Ooh, that looks bad. Let’s get you over to Victor.”

She put her fingers to her lips and whistled, calling one of the engines as James puffed up, and she asked, “Can you fetch Rocky to help hoist Sir Handel, Smudger, and Stanley over to the Steamworks, please?”

“Su-Sure,” James nodded, whistling as he went to fetch Rocky.

As he was getting Rocky, Sir Topham Hatt went to talk to Stephanie while the two bakers were doing what she told them.

Well, what Sir Topham Hatt was about to tell them would end up arguing with them and getting him into a loop about whose responsibility it is.

It always happens whenever he comes across those two brothers.

Stephanie noticed and straightened herself, blushing while her ears drooped with shame, saying, “Sir, with much respect, I didn’t mean to curse that much. I was irritated about Notches and Lucy getting covered, but I instead got my clothes covered and-”

“Slow down, Stephanie.” Sir Topham Hatt chuckled as Stephanie stopped. “I understand you were angry that someone was being careless and getting yourself covered with pies, but I didn’t expect you to be this angry.”

“Yeah, beware of the nice ones,” Stephanie blushed. “But wouldn’t you get angry because someone left a tray of burned food out and someone crashed into it, almost getting your loved ones covered and trying to blame someone else?”

“Yes,” Sir Topham Hatt sighed, remembering times he was covered in jelly, once from Percy and another from Stephen, covered in cream from Hiro, and so many others he lost count. “You’re right about that.”

Stephanie chuckled as she wiped some semi-dried brunt pie crust from her hand and slowly asked, “Are you a little mad at me?”

“Not particularly,” Sir Topham Hatt responded. “Suprised, yes. But mad at you? I would never be mad at you for getting angry. You have a reason to be upset, and I can understand that.”

Stephanie smiled softly after Sir Topham Hatt told her before adding, “Although, we might need to get you changed into new clothes.”

“Good idea.” Stephanie nodded, groaning with disgust as she looked at her clothes. “Pie on blue clothing is not good fashion.”

Sir Topham Hatt chuckled a little after Stephanie joked as James arrived with the flatbeds, wincing with slight disgust after seeing her covered.

At the Sodor Steamworks, Sir Handel was very sickly green as he was being cleaned up from the pies, but there was one that seemed to be wedged at an uncomfortable part.

One of the workers was trying to shove his hand into his funnel to get a stuck pie tin while Sir Handel was wincing slightly with discomfort, his driver holding the bucket near his face.

Darius, Victor’s human apprentice and one of the humans who helped save Sodor eleven years ago, was helping the men.

“Bother,” the worker huffed as he removed his arm from within it. “It’s stuck in there.”

“Can’t you try something else?” Sir Handel asked, glancing up at the workers.

“Well, we could try removing the funnel,” one of the workers suggested.

“No!” Sir Handel panicked. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no! Anything but that!”

“That’s the only way you asked, Sir Handel!” Smudger protested.

“Nuh-uh!” Sir Handel winced. “I’m not having my funnel removed! I’ll look naked without it!”

“Well, we can’t reach it,” another worker sighed. “It’s not like we can use a magnet to get it out since you’re also metal.”

“Or using pliers either,” Darius nodded in agreement. “Too narrow for us to use it comfortably.”

Sir Handel groaned as he coughed a little, gagging as bits and pieces of pie came out of his funnel, but it was not enough.

Sir Topham Hatt’s car soon arrived at the scene, and Stephanie stepped out, wearing a long-sleeve light blue shirt with dark blue jeans, overalls, and work boots.

Her long hair was in a low ponytail, and she was not wearing her sweater, as Notches were on her shoulders and Lucy on his back.

But she was wearing her glasses and her Dust Whistle around her neck.

“What’s wrong, Sir Handel?” Stephanie asked.

“It’s that pie tin,” Sir Handel moaned. “It’s stuck in my funnel, and none of the workers can get it.”

“Well, we offered to cut his funnel,” one of the workers explained.

“Not that!” Sir Handel exclaimed.

“But he kept saying no,” another sighed.

Stephanie paused as she looked at his funnel and hummed, staring at it as Sir Handel felt a little uneasy with how she was staring at it.

Then she looked at her arm and asked one of the workers, “Can I try getting it out?”

“Are you sure?” a worker asked. “You’ll get your arm stuck in there.”

Sir Handel winced more with discomfort after the worker pointed out, as Stephanie said, “Don’t worry! It’s all covered with pie, so it’ll pop out.”

“Easy for you to say,” Sir Handel groaned.

Stephanie carefully climbed onto his boiler after removing her work shoes, revealing she wore mismatched socks of two colors.

It seemed strange to Sir Handel after seeing the mismatched socks, but he was more focused on what was causing some discomfort in his funnel.

After climbing onto his boiler, Stephanie pushed her sleeve up to her bicep, revealing a skinny arm with what looked like a bunch of white scars covering it.

Sir Topham Hatt perked up after seeing the scars as Stephanie reached into Sir Handel’s funnel, hearing him yelp before coughing.

“Sorry!” Stephanie apologized as she winced.

“I-It’s fine!” Sir Handel assured her, his voice sounding strange as if someone were pinching his nose while speaking. “Can you reach it?”

Stephanie tapped what felt like half of a pie pan wedged inside the funnel and responded as she went onto her tippy toes, “Almost. I just need to-!”

Something cracked, and Stephanie grabbed the pie tin, startled after hearing something boney crack suddenly.

Sir Handel felt that too, and Stephanie instantly pulled her arm out, popping the pie tin out quickly and collapsing on her bottom on his boiler as she semi-heard the noise, which stopped as she held the pie tin in her hand.

She shook off that bewildering feeling and sat right back up on Sir Handel’s boiler as she showed the pie tin to the workers.

“I got it!” But Sir Handel’s face turned green, and he gagged as something bubbled, causing everyone to perk up.

“Uh oh,” one of the workers winced.

“Sir Handel!” his driver winced. “Whatever you do, don’t-!”

Too late.

Sir Handel gagged as the camera switched from Sir Handel to Victor, Smudger, Stanley, Darius, and Kevin, wincing from what sounded like vomiting.

Sir Topham Hatt winced as he turned away from what he saw as something splattered, and his driver winced, glancing away.

The camera switched back to Sir Handel, who was sick as chunky, ashy liquid water was in the bucket while some covered Stephanie’s face and glasses as it had spewed out from his funnel.

It even had some pie filling covering the bottom of his chin and dribbling a little.

“Oh, that’s nasty!” Stanley exclaimed.

Sir Handel’s driver gagged a little as he placed the bucket down, his hands covered in it, as one of the workmen came over, asking, “Now you’re going to do the same?”

He nodded and moaned, “Get a towel and a bucket.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie gently slid off Sir Handel’s boiler, her face covered in ash-like lukewarm liquid mixed with pie filling and burnt crust.

“Aye, yi, yi, yi,” Darius winced after seeing Stephanie’s face as she removed her glasses and her entire right arm was covered with pie goop. “Are you okay, Stephanie?”

She started chuckling as she wiped the substance off her face, saying, “I didn’t expect that to happen!”

Darius knelt on one knee before Stephanie’s face, took a towel from his overall belt loop, and carefully wiped the substance from her face.

“Why are you laughin’, Steph?” Stanley asked as she continued laughing. “You just got splattered with a lot of train vomit on your face!”

“Yeah, I know,” Stephanie laughed, pausing as Darius gently wiped some off her face. “But it’s okay! I was just startled, that’s all. Besides, it’s just train vomit.”

Stanley, Smudger, and Sir Handel, who was a little better after getting a lot out of his system, looked surprised by Stephanie’s words as Sir Topham Hatt gently groaned, “And I just handed you clean clothes too!”

“Sorry, Sir!” Stephanie responded. “It’s just a little, though! Don’t worry about it!”

Darius gently turned her face towards him with a gentle, “Hold still, Stephanie. I’m trying to get all of it off your face.”

Stephanie chuckled a little after Darius mentioned it and was about to apologize when she paused after seeing a whistle around his neck.

It looked like hers, but it was a little different.

It had engravings and was made out of brass, except it did not have a knob where she could switch different Dusts.

What a strange whistle, and what does it belong to instead?

Stephanie decided to save that question for later, allowing Darius to finish wiping the ‘train vomit’ off her face, knowing she needed to reach Ulfstead Castle.

Chapter Text

Knowing how much she needed to look through the histories, Stephanie decided to go to Ulfstead Castle rather than let other things distract her.

Since both clothes were dirty from pie goobers and ‘train vomit,’ Stephanie patiently waited for her clothes to be washed.

When she returned to Hatt Manor, Dowager Hatt was not impressed that Stephanie had been covered once with pie goobers but understood it was an accident.

But when she returned after having ‘train vomit’ on her from Sir Handel on accident, she was again not impressed.

But she could not complain since Sir Topham Hatt and Grandfather Hatt once appeared in a coal hopper when their horse-drawn carriage’s wheel snapped off when it went across a hole, and the horse ran away.

Luckily, Stephanie was responsible for the actions and promised to clean her clothes, which she did.

When the next day came, after washing her clothes, she had breakfast with the Hatt family and told them her plans.

Dowager Hatt packed her lunch to take with her, which she was puzzled about someone making food for her but accepted.

Once she had everything, instead of seeing Smudger or Stanley, Stephanie went to Ulfstead Castle but needed a map to see where she was going!

She had already exited Hatt Manor and was a few miles from the mansion, which meant she was perhaps wandering around a forest near some rails.

But she is not that crazy to go near some rails with some trains passing by!

“Oh, darn it,” Stephanie groaned as she facepalmed after realizing the situation and blushed with embarrassment. “I didn’t get a map.”

“We’ll get one once we get to one of the stations,” Notches assured her. “We’re almost near one of them anyway.”

“Really?” Stephanie perked up with curiosity. “Which one?”

“Wellsworth,” Notches answered. “I know my way around here since my mother would carry me around here.”

“Oh,” Stephanie perked up with a smile. “I didn’t know that.”

Notches rubbed his head against Stephanie’s cheek with a purr as she continued walking, soon arriving at Wellsworth.

As she stepped onto the platform, Stephanie looked around for a map, pushing her glasses into place before seeing one of the conductors.

“Excuse me?” Stephanie politely spoke as the conductor looked in her direction.

“Yes?” He knelt a little to her height as she politely asked, “Is there a map I could use?”

“Of course,” the conductor nodded. “Follow me, please, ma’am.”

Stephanie nodded and followed the conductor, passing by passengers who instantly recognized her, seeing her long blue hair, azure blue eyes, and pointed ears.

Since she had a haircut a long time ago, none of the kids nicknamed her ‘Cousin Itt,’ but they were googling at her ears, making her feel worried.

The conductor led her to a board with different railroads and a map of the paths, making Stephanie feel curious about what it could be.

He opened a map dispenser and took one of the map pamphlets out, handing it to Stephanie as she said, “Thank you so much, sir.”

“Anytime,” he said, tipping his hat towards her before walking away.

A familiar whistle went through the air, and Stephanie perked up, glancing over to see Gordon pulling into the station with James on the other side, screeching instead of slowing down like he does.

Stephanie’s ears flicked like crazy after hearing the screeching noise, and she instantly covered them with her hands while the other was holding the map pamphlet, wincing in pain as Gordon noticed from the corner of his eyes.

“James!” Gordon glared at the red engine after he finally stopped. “Don’t screech your brakes next time you pull up to a station!”

“When are you the Fat Controller?” James huffed indignantly as Stephanie slowly removed her hands from her ears. “Besides, that’s how I always pull up to the station!”

“Not screeching!” Gordon argued as Stephanie walked over, wincing as she rubbed one of her ears.

His expression instantly softened after seeing Stephanie approaching and asking, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Stephanie said, nodding as she rubbed her ear. “Does your friend James do that all the time?”

“Yes,” Gordon glared at the number five red engine. “Constantly. Always bumping his passengers around.”

Stephanie winced after Gordon nodded as her ear flicked, feeling her hearing return after the screeching noise had disappeared.

“Why did he call Sir Topham Hatt the ‘Fat Controller?’” Stephanie asked. “Isn’t it a little rude to call him that?”

“Not to his face,” Gordon responded warmly. “We call him that when he’s not around.” He paused a little. “And he is a little ‘round,’ to add.”

“Thus, the Fat Controller,” James butted with a cocky grin.

“Oh,” Stephanie perked up with a smile. “That makes sense! I think I need to come out from under the rock.”

Gordon chuckled warmly as James noticed, cocking an eyebrow as Gordon asked, “So what are you doing out here, young lady?”

“My name is Stephanie,” Stephanie responded. “And I came here to get a map to walk to Ulfstead Castle.”

“All by yourself?” Gordon perked. “That’s a long way for someone smaller than an adult.”

“I’m at a reasonable size,” Stephanie blushed with gentle protest. “And, yes, it is a long walk, but it’s healthy! It helps a lot with the human body.”

Gordon was unsure how a small young girl could walk alone, but her confident voice softened him.

“Alright,” Gordon nodded. “But if something is wrong, let either of us on the Steam Team know and avoid any troublesome diesels.”

Stephanie looked confused as the conductor’s whistle was blown, and he whistled back, taking his passengers as he puffed down the line as Stephanie watched.

“‘Troublesome diesels?’” Stephanie repeated in confusion.

“There are some troublesome diesels here,” Notches explained to Stephanie. “Avoiding them is best because they can play tricks on you. Especially their leader, Diesel 10.”

“Who is he?” Stephanie asked as she began her walk, using the map after looking at it. “I heard some stories from Sir Topham Hatt about how he almost destroyed Lady after P.T. Boomer.”

“Well,” Lucy began. “Diesel 10 is malicious and evil. He didn’t believe in the magic of Sodor and wanted to get rid of it so only diesels could roam Sodor.”

Stephanie looked nervous as she asked, “But what will happen if Lady is destroyed?”

“You saw what happened to the island if its magic was drained,” Notches explained. “But if Lady were destroyed, Sodor would become inhabitable, and everyone that was once magical would disappear off the face of the earth.”

Stephanie’s stomach nervously clenches after Notches explains, looking at the Dust Whistle around her neck after removing it from her garments.

It sounded like something would happen if Stephanie did something about it, but she was still determining if she could defeat Diesel 10.

“But,” Stephanie spoke as she glanced at Notches and Lucy. “What would happen if Diesel 10 learned about my powers?”

“Then we’ll have to fight against him,” Notches explained. “No matter what happens or how dangerous the situation is, we’ll always fight back against the danger. No retreat, no surrender.”

Stephanie smiled softly after Notches explained and reached over with a hand, gently scratching his face as he purred as she said, “Thank you, Notches.” She glanced at Lucy and added, “You too, Lucy.”

Lucy nodded after Stephanie added and continued walking, staying away from the roads, including the rails, to be safe from incoming cars and trains, mainly from diesels approaching her after hearing a little explanation about Diesel 10.

But a familiar black diesel was going down the line before perking when he noticed a blue-haired girl walking down the side of the road with a map in her hands.

“Honking horns,” Diesel remarked with a perk. “That’s her! I wonder where she is heading off to now.”

He continued down the line after seeing Stephanie as she continued walking, pausing whenever she stopped at a fork in the road or turning points.

She would look at the map in her hands and look at the pathways, muttering to herself with Notches and Lucy, seeing which way was which.

Stephanie could use Google Maps to help, but how would a piece of crap phone from the early 2000s help her determine where she is going?

Instead of seething about the lack of directions, Stephanie continued following the map in her hands, turning from left to right, stopping whenever she heard a car passing by, and allowing whoever to pass.

But she was startled when a racecar zoomed past her at over a hundred miles per hour, causing her to yelp in surprise as she went to the side.

Said racecar screeched to a halt after zipping past her before backing up and going beside her.

“Hey, ankle-biter!” Stephanie looked at the racecar with confusion, seeing it was another sentient vehicle. “Wat ahah ya doin’ out heah by yourself?”

The racecar’s basis was a Triumph Spitfire 1500 painted yellow with white stripes and silver wheels, with a four-leaf clover painted in a white circle.

The number forty-three is painted on the sides of his doors in black with white lines around the black forty-three.

“I’m Ace!” The racecar cockingly responded. “The world’s fastest worldwide racecar!”

“Really?” Stephanie remarked. “Then you were practicing for the next one, right?”

“Exactly, ankle-biter!” Ace nodded as Stephanie huffed a little. “Though ya didn’t answah my question.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked. “I’m heading over to Ulfstead Castle.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!” Ace exclaimed as Stephanie stopped walking, turning in his direction. “You’re heading to Ulfstead Castle on foot?!”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “And it’s fine with the adults, and I know my way to Ulfstead Castle with this map! So, if you were planning, I don’t need a ride with you.”

“Well,” Ace began, slightly startled that she knew what he was planning. “Are you sure, though? There’s a lot of mud ahround ‘n there’s a prized bull wanderin’ ahround heah.”

“Wait, what?” Stephanie perked up as she glanced over at Ace. “There’s a what roaming around here?”

“A prized bull,” Ace responded. “Big one too! Almost scratched up my payynt wen I came across it.”

After hearing that it was roaming around the place with no fence, Stephanie was worried about encountering this prized bull.

“Uh,” Stephanie spoke. “I think I can walk around that prized bull. Besides, I don’t think the bull would think I am threatening.”

“It will still chahrge at ya even if ya don’t think so, ankle-biter,” Ace sighed. “But let me know if it comes towahrds ya, alright? See ya, ankle-biter!”

“It’s Stephanie!” Stephanie called as Ace zoomed down the road.

But Ace did not listen as he sped down the line, and Stephanie mumbled, “How many people are going to ask me if this was alright?”

“Everyone is worried about a kid walking through Sodor alone,” Notches assured Stephanie.

“Fair enough,” Stephanie nodded, calming down after hearing Notches point it out.

During Stephanie’s walking, she came across a traction engine named Trevor, who was surprised to see Stephanie walking alone but allowed her to walk after talking to her a little.

Stephanie then came across a caterpillar tractor named Terence, who greeted her and asked where she was going.

Like the others, Stephanie responded that she was heading towards Ulfstead Castle, surprising him at how long of a walk it was for her, but Stephanie assured him and continued.

But one of them, George, a steam roller, was partially rude, saying, “Free the roads!” whenever a steam locomotive puffed by.

When he sees Stephanie walking down the road by herself, he exclaims, “What are you lookin’ at, kid?”

She responded, “You would be much likable if it weren’t for that hole in your mouth that noise comes out of.”

That instantly shuts George up after Stephanie insults him as his driver starts snorting with laughter while Stephanie continues walking, causing George to hiss, “Oh, shut up!”

After spending a few hours walking, Stephanie finally came across some stations where it was on the map, smiling, “Great! So this is where the-” Her face dropped in surprise after looking up at Ulfstead Castle, and she gasped.

Ulfstead Castle was atop a gigantic mountain as she moaned, “Oh, holy crap.”

“We tried telling you,” Notches responded. “And yet…?”

“I didn’t listen,” Stephanie sighed, her cheeks flustered with embarrassment as her ears flicked. “I thought it was just like a normal castle, something out of a fantasy book! I’m so sorry, Notches and Lucy.”

“It’s alright, Stephanie,” Lucy assured her. “But since we made it to Ulfstead Castle, what do you want to do next?”

Stephanie looked at the castle’s height thoughtfully, seeing they were almost near where they could cross the way and up the spiraling way to the castle.

This meant they needed to walk next to the rails, which was something Stephanie was trying to avoid in the first place.

“We can continue walking,” Stephanie said, smiling hopefully. “But we can try avoiding the rails from incoming engines.”

“Well, if you say so.” Notches nodded. “Be careful.”

Stephanie nodded and continued walking, carefully crossing the tracks to reach the start of the path to the castle, seeing that it was a very tall hill.

But she tilted her body at the angle of the ground and continued carefully climbing the mountain, huffing and puffing as she stayed to the side, away from the rails.

Stephanie soon finally reached the top of Ulfstead Castle and was huffing and panting, her face blue and sweating as she looked up, seeing the castle’s gate and the drawbridge.

“Holy crap!” Stephanie smiled. “We made it!”

One of the engines was puffing down the line before perking when he noticed Stephanie on the side of the line and looked confused.

“Excuse me?” Stephanie perked up after hearing the voice and looked over.

An elderly engine puffed up next to her, and his basis was the first locomotive, Stephenson’s Rocket.

He was painted golden yellow and black with gold nameplates reading ‘Rocket’ on each side of his boiler, and his domes, whistle, exhaust pipes, and boiler bands were painted bronze with a white funnel with a gold finial.

“Oh, hello!” Stephanie tiredly waved her hand to him as he instantly saw her blue cheeks. “Was I too close to the rails?”

“No,” he responded. “But your face!”

“What’s wrong with my face?” Stephanie asked, lifting her hands to her cheeks and feeling them as they felt warm.

“It’s all blue!” he exclaimed. “Are you alright?”

“Oh!” Stephanie chuckled as her glasses were a little fogged. “I’m alright. I’m just sweating from walking up here.”

“Really?” He perked up. “I thought you were low on breath or had poor circulation.”

“I’m fine, sir,” Stephanie smiled gently. “My face is just the same shade as humans’ when exercising. Nothing is wrong with me.”

He sighed in relief after Stephanie assured him as she walked up to him, wobbling a little as he winced.

His driver instantly stepped out to catch her as she gently collided with his arm, causing her blue to deepen slightly.

“Ah, thank you,” Stephanie thanked as her lips dried from not drinking anything as she continued huffing and puffing. “Sorry. I think I exhausted myself.”

“Well, you’re at the right moment,” he smiled. “Come aboard the Rocket!”

Stephanie perked up as his driver gently picked her up and took her into his cab, and she took her glasses off while holding onto the driver.

The steam engine whistled and puffed forward, entering Ulfstead Castle as Stephanie was in his cab, her blue color fading slowly as sweat came from her forehead.

“That’s the last time I’m ever having to walk to Ulfstead Castle,” Stephanie softly reminded herself. “Or not even listening to you two.”

Notches and Lucy nodded in agreement after Stephanie gently huffed before entering Ulfstead Castle’s grounds as two engines watched him enter.

One of their bases was a Head Wrightson & Co. Ltd. Type 1 ‘Coffee Pot No. 1,’ painted red with gold boiler bands.

He has a gray steam space cap and funnel with a brass funnel top, brass control caps, and brass nameplates named ‘Glynn.’

The number one is painted underneath his nameplates in yellow, just like Thomas’.

The second basis was a Decauville No. 8069 Tabamar painted in French blue with white lining, brass fittings, a golden running board, boiler bands, wheel spokes, and wheel rims, all painted in French blue.

She also has a crest painted on her cab sides and the name ‘Millie’ painted in white on the sides of her boiler.

“Here we are,” the Rocket smiled as Stephanie was helped down, and the blueish color faded to a normal blushing color.

“Erm, Stephen?” the red coffee pot engine spoke worriedly. “Do you know that her face is…?”

“It’s normal,” Stephanie assured the worried elder. “It’s my ‘reddish’ color to a human’s blushing. So there’s nothing wrong.”

But she wobbled a little, causing Sir Robert Norramby to scramble over to catch her as she gently leaned on him.

“Excuse me, sir.” Stephanie apologized before adding, “Except for that one.”

Cleo came over and gently took Stephanie’s other arm as Sir Robert Norramby said, “Let’s get you a seat to sit down. You must be exhausted walking here.”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded with a gentle groan. “A seat would be nice.”

The group glanced at Stephen with a confused expression as he said, “She walked all the way here by herself. She was standing almost next to the rails after reaching the place.”

“Sacré bleu!” Millie gently exclaimed. “She didn’t even ask for an engine for a ride either?”

“Nope,” Stephen responded. “All by herself and on foot. Many people did that back before cars were invented, though.”

In the background, Diesel followed where he last saw the blue-haired girl, seeing the elderly engines talking to each other as he growled a little.

“Bother,” he groaned. “I almost had it. Maybe I’ll wait here and see if she can step out.”

It was now or never.

Chapter Text

Stephanie was curious about the castle’s room, looking at the artifacts and monuments as she sat on a bench with a paper cup of water in her hands.

From outside the castle, it all looked normal… but this was different when she stepped inside Ulfstead Castle.

Everywhere was littered with many different items, ranging from suits of armor to historical clothes from different eras and even the Dust Crystals on crowns or other jewelry pieces.

Dowager Hatt was right about Dust Crystals being used as jewelry, and everything looked so much different from what she thought the museum would look like.

Notches was sitting on the bench beside her with Lucy on his back, watching Stephanie glance around curiously.

“Excuse us?” Stephanie glanced at Sir Robert Norramby with Cleo, asking, “How are you feeling?”

“Much better,” Stephanie nodded, glancing at the empty paper cup and then back at them. “Thank you both for helping me.”

“You’re welcome,” Cleo nodded. “What brought you here, though?”

“To look at the museum and the library,” Stephanie explained. “For research on this,” Stephanie reached into her sweater and took out her Dust Whistle, showing it to Sir Robert Norramby and Cleo. “Mostly for where the Dusts I have been collecting came from too.”

“May I?” Sir Robert Norramby asked, and Stephanie nodded.

He looked closer at the whistle in his hand from around Stephanie’s neck, seeing the etchings and the symbols as he gently flicked through it before stopping at Gold Dust.

“Fascinating,” Sir Robert Norramby remarked. “How many Dusts have you discovered?”

“I found Gold,” Stephanie explained. “Silver and Copper. I hadn’t searched for the rest either since I had been promising myself to come here to get more light on these before I came here.”

“There’s more than one Dust?” Cleo asked.

“Yes.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded. “Avril showed some of the Dusts before he and his wife suddenly disappeared.”

“Is there any luck with the search?” Stephanie asked.

“Unfortunately not,” Sir Robert Norramby responded, handing Stephanie’s whistle back to her. “But everyone is still searching for him.”

“That’s good.” Stephanie nodded as Notches hopped onto her lap while rubbing his head. “I hope I can learn from him about all this once we find him.”

In the background, the familiar ghost was listening to the conversation and was smiling sadly, looking at Sir Robert Norramby and Cleo before disappearing.

“I imagine he would be enthusiastic to learn you had discovered new things with the Dust.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded. “Now, what brought you here to Ulfstead Castle?”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up as she put the paper cup into her sweater’s pocket to save it until she came to a trash can.

Notches hopped off her lap with Lucy on his back, and Stephanie stood up from her seat, asking, “Do you mind if I have a tour around the castle? Then perhaps the library?”

Then the thought of the cost of getting a museum tour silently hit her, but Stephanie kept calm as Sir Robert Norramby said, “Of course! But let’s start with the beginning of the tour, shall we?”

Stephanie nodded as Notches hopped off the bench with Lucy on his back and followed Sir Robert Norramby and Cleo back outside, where the beginning of the tour started.

She sat in the coaches pulled by Stephen, Cleo, and Sir Robert Norramby, sitting side by side with Stephanie in the middle and Notches and Lucy on her lap.

The tour was engrossing for Stephanie; she learned about how Sodor came to be and how Stephen was the first steam locomotive to be created on Sodor.

Even so, how many famous people throughout history discovered the Dust Crystals before they faded over time after the huge Gold Dust Flu hit Sodor from a mining exhibition.

Stephanie took multiple mental notes as she learned about a fraction of Sodor’s history, growing curious over time.

Sir Robert Norramby could see Stephanie’s curiosity growing as she would ask questions about different subjects, and he would respond to them.

Cleo took Stephanie’s hand to the library when the tour ended, with Sir Robert Norramby following behind as Cleo was very excited about taking Stephanie to the library.

Stephanie followed behind as best she could, as her enthusiasm matched Cleo’s, and Sir Robert Norramby followed but could not catch up to them because of his age.

It reminded him of when he was much younger, always taking Sir Topham Hatt or getting Avril wound up with curiosity and excitement about what he discovered.

They soon arrived at the gigantic library, with many shelves filled with millions of books.

“Here’s Ulfstead Castle’s Library!” Cleo beamed before Sir Robert Norramby gently shushed her. “Oops!” she blushed with a chuckle. “Sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Stephanie assured Cleo. “But where to start, though? There are a million books around here!”

“That’s easy.” Sir Robert Norramby smiled. “Cleo? Would you like to show Stephanie yours?”

Cleo nodded excitedly as she rushed off, and Stephanie looked around, seeing the walls’ designs and the people’s craftsmanship a long time ago.

“Ulfstead Castle is amazing!” Stephanie remarked as she glanced back at Sir Robert Norramby. “Even the history itself!”

“I’m glad you enjoyed the tour, Stephanie.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded. “You were quite the curious child, too.”

“Ah,” Stephanie blushed as her ears flicked a little. “I don’t usually see that much of Shining Time, so I am always curious.”

Sir Robert Norramby noticed Stephanie’s pointed ears flicking, and Stephanie noticed, asking, “Are you curious about my ears, though?”

“Yes.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded. “Were you born with pointed ears?”

“Yes, sir.” Stephanie nodded with a gentle smile. “Even blue hair.”

“Even blue hair?” Sir Robert Norramby echoed her. “I thought it was hair dye.”

“Nope,” Stephanie sighed as her ear flicked with silent irritation. “It’s pure blue hair.”

“Do you mind?” Sir Robert Norramby asked, mentioning her long hair.

Stephanie was taken a little aback when Sir Robert Norramby asked before nodding her head and responding, “Go right ahead.”

Sir Robert Norramby carefully inspected Stephanie’s long hair, seeing the thickness and how natural it was between his fingers.

It is not hair dye.

“This is the first time someone has asked me to feel their hair,” Stephanie chuckled.

“Really?” Sir Robert Norramby asked. “What did the people do back in Shining Time?”

Stephanie grimaced after Sir Robert Norramby asked before responding, “They kept making fun of my long hair, calling me ‘Smurf’ and other nicknames. They didn’t believe me when I tried to tell them it was real.”

Sir Robert Norramby glanced at her from her hair with a confused expression as she shrugged, dropping the subject: “I stopped telling them when it went to the adults after they started assuming I had hair dye.”

Instead of asking her further, Sir Robert Norramby released Stephanie’s hair and slowly said, “Well, I believe it is all real.”

Stephanie perked up after Sir Robert Norramby told her and softly smiled, saying, “Thank you, sir.”

Cleo soon returned with a thick book in her hands, responding, “Sorry! It was stuck underneath some other books I was trying to research through.”

Stephanie chuckled as Cleo placed the book on the table in front of her as she sat down, with Notches hopping off her shoulders and onto the table.

Cleo sat down next to Stephanie with Sir Robert Norramby, opening the book to the first page as Stephanie listened to Cleo chatter about what she had experienced.

Stephanie will ask Sir Robert Norramby and Cleo questions about their experiences and listen to them curiously.

In return, Stephanie will tell Cleo and Sir Robert Norramby about the Dusts and the Zodiac Pocket Watch she discovered.

Sir Robert Norramby learned a little from Avril, and she will tell them both about the Zodiac Guardians.

She introduced Lucy to the two, and Lucy greeted them as Notches was in a comfortable ‘loaf’ position, as Stephanie would jokingly say.

Hours passed as Stephanie, Cleo, and Sir Robert Norramby chatted with each other until the library door suddenly knocked.

All three glanced at the door with confusion as Sir Robert Norramby stood up, saying, “Excuse me.”

He opened the doorknob to see who knocked, only to be more confused as he had opened it to a wooden library.

The library was gigantic and had greenery growing in some places, looking like a library within a forest.

“That’s strange,” Sir Robert Norramby muttered as Stephanie gasped, realizing the same thing had happened.

Cleo stood up from her chair and poked her head through the doorframe, looking at the library curiously as Stephanie stood up, masking her panic as she asked, “Um, what’s wrong?”

“There’s another library,” Cleo mentioned as she pointed. “But… where’s Ulfstead Castle?”

Stephanie nervously bit the side of her finger as Notches hopped off the table, looking through the door frame with confusion.

“What the heck just-?” Vines suddenly wrapped around them as Stephanie perked up, watching them get yanked into the library.

Cleo grabbed the doorframe as Sir Robert Norramby and Notches with Lucy was tugged into the library, and Stephanie instantly scrambled over.

“Hold on!” Stephanie transformed into her anthro Rat Zodiac form as Cleo flinched.

Stephanie grabbed the vine with both hands and started nibbling as fast as Cleo’s fingers slowly slipped.

With a single bite, Stephanie snapped through the vine as it released Cleo, causing her to collapse on the ground as the remaining vine disappeared.

Stephanie sighed after the vine disappeared, and Cleo scrambled to her feet as the snapped vine slid off her, asking, “What was that?!”

“I don’t know,” Stephanie said, turning to Cleo. “But this happened before at Sir Topham Hatt’s house.”

“This?” Cleo asked as she mentioned the door.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded before stepping into the library. “But we can’t leave the door open, or something comes out.”

“What?” Cleo flinched. “What if the vines come and attack me?”

“Don’t worry, Cleo,” Stephanie assured. “I’ve got teeth, claws, and even ink abilities. So whatever had vines could not harm us.”

Cleo paused after Stephanie assured her before nodding and slowly stepping into the library as Stephanie closed the door, watching the door’s colors shift into the colors of the wall.

That did not happen before.

Cleo turned to Stephanie and worriedly asked, staying close to her, “What now?”

“Let’s go find out what took Sir Robert Norramby, Notches, and Lucy,” Stephanie explained. “And stay close to me.”

Cleo nodded as she wrapped her arms around Stephanie’s arm, walking with her as they entered further and further into the library.

Stephanie and Cleo looked at the library’s shelves, which were filled with millions of books and had different plantations growing in different sections as they walked further.

“So this is my first time with you?” Cleo asked, glancing over at Stephanie.

“Sort of,” Stephanie responded. “The first time happened when I was staying in Sir Topham Hatt’s son’s former room and heard that knock, and the others heard. So I went over to open it, and it took me to a gigantic being named ‘Erebus’ and his Shadow Realm.”

“He sounds scary,” Cleo shuddered.

“He is.” Stephanie nodded with an assuring pat on Cleo’s arm. “But he helped me learn a little about whenever this happened. Like closing the door if something comes out and never leaving it open if you step into this place.”

“Oh.” Cleo glanced around as she hugged Stephanie’s arm closer. “It’s a little empty.”

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded as she continued walking. “I wonder what could’ve-WHOA!”

Stephanie gently pushed Cleo to the side as a vine whipped downward, showing what looked like a pot as Sir Robert Norramby, Notches, and Lucy tried to escape their binds.

Notches were hissing and scratching at the vines while Lucy was hacking with her key, and Sir Robert Norramby was squirming in his.

Vines were all over the place, coating the walls with them and covering every square inch of the library, even the doorways.

“That could be why!” Stephanie exclaimed as she picked Cleo up, as the vines were growing from the pot.

Stephanie continued avoiding the vines with Cleo in her arms as she looked at how to get rid of them.

“Hey, you!” Stephanie perked up as she glanced over, seeing a shape in the distance.

“What?” Stephanie called, yelping when a vine went past her and tried wrapping around her, but she jumped.

Suddenly, another vine wrapped around Stephanie’s body, causing her to yelp as she dropped Cleo and gasped.

Stephanie tried to chew her way out of the vines as they lifted her into the sky to join the others when her necklace snapped off, transforming into her Zodiac Pocket Watch.

“The pocket watch!” Stephanie panicked.

Sir Robert Norramby stretched his arms out and grabbed the Zodiac Pocket Watch in his hands before clicking the top of the pocket watch.

He soon transformed into a half-Aplomado falcon harpy with the necklace as his necktie ornament and snapped out of his binding, falling slightly before taking off.

“Whoa!” Stephanie exclaimed after seeing Sir Robert Norramby transform into an Aplomado falcon harpy before wincing when the vines tightened.

Sir Robert Norramby noticed and instantly went towards her, using his talons to slice at the vines wrapped around her.

Stephanie was freed as he caught her before going towards Cleo, slicing at the vines at top speed before using his hind legs to grab her before she hit the ground.

Lucy finished slicing the vines and freed Notches before Sir Robert Norramby caught them both.

“Hey!” a second voice called. “Close the book!”

“What?” Stephanie called.

“The book!” a third voice called. “Close the book!”

Sir Robert Norramby looked down at the ground while hovering and saw the book with the vines slowly coming out of the pot.

“We see it!” Stephanie nodded.

Sir Robert Norramby dove quickly as Cleo held on, and Stephanie grabbed the book, causing the pot to fall into the book.

The vines were sucked into the book, but they were trying to get back out as they landed, struggling to close the book as they tried to get it closed.

Stephanie summoned her bracelet, which transformed into a crystal dagger, slicing the vines poking out from the book’s pages.

After the vines were all sliced, the book was finally closed, and after it was closed, the vines covering the library’s walls disappeared into thin air.

Suddenly, something landed in front of them as Sir Robert Norramby used his wings to protect the two kids, and Notches fluffed up as Lucy aimed her key toward it.

“Ow!” A lion wearing glasses stood up from the ground and shook himself before glancing around as he stood on his hind legs. “Cleo! Lionel! Leona! Where are you?”

“Up here, Dad!” Stephanie and the others glanced over, seeing a young lion cub wearing a gray hat and a green and white-striped polo shirt at the top of the staircase.

Following behind him was another lion cub with a necklace around her neck, watching the vines slowly disappear.

“Okay,” Stephanie spoke, sighing as she transformed her crystal dagger into her bracelet. “First are sentient vehicles, magic, and now anthropomorphic lions.”

Said lion glanced over at Stephanie, Cleo, Sir Robert Norramby, Notches, and Lucy and said, “Thank you so much for helping us! Erm, excuse me.”

He went off, climbing the stairs to his kids, and asked, “Leona, Lionel, do either of you know where Cleo is?”

“We thought she was with you, Dad,” the male cub named ‘Lionel’ responded.

“She wasn’t,” the father lion said, shaking his head.

Suddenly, ripping noises happened, and a female lioness stepped out from a doorway with her claws out, calling, “I’m right over here, Theo! I got myself stuck in one of the rooms.”

Sir Robert Norramby unfolded his wings as Stephanie stood up, transforming her bracelet into a dagger, and went to where the lioness was.

She used the dagger to slice at the slowly disappearing vines as the female lioness cut them with her claws.

“Thank you so much, honey,” she thanked.

“You’re welcome,” Stephanie nodded, finishing slicing. “What happened to the library?”

“Well,” Lionel said, walking up to Stephanie with his sister Leona. “That’s where we come in.”

“Yeah, it was our fault,” Leona nodded. “We were curious about how the plants worked in Little Shop of Horrors and asked Click to bring out one of the plants,” she paused. “Yeah, that happened.”

“Oh, my gosh,” Stephanie sighed. “At least Aubrey Ⅱ didn’t come out of the book.”

“Yeah,” the two lion kids nodded. “Fair point.”

Meanwhile, Sir Robert Norramby, Cleo, Notches, and Lucy were helping get people out of being stuck, ranging from sentient suits of armor to people and even anthropomorphic animals.

Once everyone was freed, the lion family gathered to meet them, and the father lion, ‘Theo,’ asked, “So how did you, uh?”

He paused to count as Sir Robert Norramby took the ornament off to transform back to normal and handed the Zodiac Pocket Watch to Stephanie as she placed it into the pocket of her blue jeans. “How did you five get here?”

“Well,” Stephanie blushed sheepishly. “We were at Ulfstead Castle in the library, and the door knocked, so Sir Robert Norramby opened the door to see who it was, and we came here to experience that whole event.”

“You came from Ulfstead Castle to the Barnaby B. Busterfield III Memorial Library by just opening a door?” Cleo, the mother lioness, asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “It happened before, though, and I didn’t explain this to everyone.”

She stepped forward and turned to the four, saying, “As you heard, this happened back at Sir Topham Hatt’s house, where the door would suddenly knock, and either I opened it or someone else, as I could tell, and the entrance is in a different place.”

“And you didn’t tell us!” Lucy exclaimed.

“No,” Stephanie sheepishly shook her head as her face turned blue with shame and her ears drooped.

“It’s alright, honey,” Theo assured her as Stephanie glanced at her, and her blush lightened. “But now that you’ve explained it to them and us, I think we could help figure out what it was.”

“That’s a good idea,” Stephanie nodded as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. “Though I haven’t figured out how to return since… there’s more than one door.”

Everyone winced after Stephanie mentioned, as Lionel said, “Oh boy.”

“Well,” Cleo, the mother lioness, perked up. “We can start by opening one door after another.”

Stephanie nodded as she approached a door, gently taking the knob before opening it to a long library hallway.

“Nope,” Stephanie sighed as she closed the door. “Maybe I could try,” Stephanie thought about Ulfstead Castle’s library and opened the door again, finally opening it to the library they were inside.

Stephanie perked up after finally opening the door as the lion family poked their heads out, and Stephanie silently looked at her hands, thinking it was coming from her.

“So this is Ulfstead Castle’s library,” Theo remarked.

Leona sniffed the air and remarked, “It smells older than our library.”

“Uh, yeah,” Stephanie nodded as she entered Ulfstead Castle’s library. “But I think that whole thing was from me. I think.”

She added the last sentence as she looked at her hands, and Cleo, the mother lioness, hummed a little.

“I think I know what that is,” Cleo, the mother lioness, told her. “Wait right here.”

She was about to leave when she paused and said, “Oh, one more thing. What’s your name?”

“Stephanie,” Stephanie responded. “Stephanie Allen.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Stephanie.” Cleo, the mother lioness, nodded. “I’m Cleopatra. You’ve met my husband, Theodor, and my two kids, Lionel and Leona.”

Stephanie glanced at her husband, who waved hello to the other kids as Cleopatra walked off to get something.

The remaining lions looked around curiously, looking at the books and even the designs of the library.

“Incredible,” Theo remarked as Stephanie thought to herself, as she was curious. “Did you style the library?”

“King Godred did.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded. “I refurbished it after I arrived back in Sodor.”

“That’s so cool!” Lionel remarked. “Oh, what’s your name?”

“Sir Robert Norramby.” Sir Robert Norramby nodded.

“I’m Theodor,” Theo introduced. “Lionel, my son, and Leona, my daughter.”

“I’m pleased to meet you,” Leona smiled.

Stephanie smiled softly as she watched the curious lions look around before perking up when Cleopatra returned with a book with a dark blue cover, saying, “Here we are. The Collection of History’s Myths written by Rosaline Mercedes.”

Stephanie and Cleopatra sat down while reading Cleo’s book about Sodor and opened it as Cleopatra flipped through the pages.

“Chapter six,” Cleopatra mumbled as Stephanie waited patiently. “Chapter eight… Ah! Here it is. Chapter 10, Doorways that Lead to Different Realms.”

Stephanie perked up after hearing the chapter’s title, and Cleopatra read the page:

‘At one point, while exploring with friends, I came across the strangest thing: an open door that led to an underwater kingdom. The water stayed when I stuck my hand into it, and it felt like how the water’s temperature felt, but it all felt real. But, of course, I didn’t step through it out of fear of drowning. Unfortunately, one of the people saw what happened and instantly closed the door, believing the water was about to pour through. When I opened the door again after it was shut, the entrance to the underwater kingdom was gone, but only the entrance to the abandoned shed remained. I was dumbfounded at what I saw while everyone thought it was hallucinating.’

Stephanie perked up after reading the paragraph, and Cleopatra said, “I think you have that ability, Mrs. Mercedes discovered.”

“I do?” Stephanie muttered as she looked at her hands.

“Yes,” Cleopatra nodded. “But you have to use those powers for good.”

Stephanie nodded after Cleopatra told her, feeling nervous about what she had discovered, while Lucy felt suspicious about Stephanie’s newfound power.

It sounded familiar to someone who has the same power.

“Mrs. Cleo?” Stephanie politely asked as Cleopatra responded, “Yes?”

“Do you mind if I check out this book?” Stephanie asked.

“Of course.” Cleopatra nodded as she stood up from her chair. “Let’s get back into our library first.”

Stephanie nodded as she stepped back into the Barnaby B. Busterfield III Memorial Library and saw Theo behind the desk.

“Theo, honey,” Cleopatra spoke to her husband. “Stephanie wants to check out this book.”

“Sure!” Theo nodded before looking around from where he was. “Erm, I just need to find Click.”

“‘Click?’” Stephanie asked with confusion. “Who’s Click?”

Then a tiny robotic mouse that resembles the mice for computers appeared on top of some books and asked, “Did someone say my name?”

“Huh?” Theo turned around and looked over at where the mouse was, saying, “Oh, there you are, Click! Stephanie here wants to check out a book.”

“May I see the book, please?” Click asked.

Stephanie nodded and showed the book to Click, saying, “Scanning book.”

Then the book’s cover appeared on the computer before a check mark appeared on the screen, saying, “The book is checked out.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Click,” Stephanie said before putting the book into her brown bag.

“You’re so kind.” Click gently nodded.

“Hey, Steph!” Stephanie perked up as she glanced over at Leona. “Can we meet with each other sometime?”

“Sure,” Stephanie nodded. “But I might be busy studying Sodor and other things.”

“It’s okay,” Leona chirped as she followed Stephanie and walked to the door. “Though, I promise not to get you roped into an incident involving books.”

“Fair enough,” Stephanie chuckled as she turned around to close the door. “I hope I’ll come by sometime.”

“Make sure to bring the book back after a few weeks have passed!” Click added.

“I will.” Stephanie nodded before closing the door.

Then she curiously opened the door, seeing it was the hallway of Ulfstead Castle as the others peeked through.

“That was interesting,” Sir Robert Norramby remarked.

“You’re not mad?” Stephanie asked as she looked at the group.

“I’m mad that you didn’t tell me.” Lucy nodded as she was on Sir Robert Norramby’s shoulder. “But we’re not mad that this happened.”

Stephanie gently smiled after Lucy assured her, but the back of her head was thinking about her newfound ability as Cleo asked about her book.

Is it that powerful?

Chapter Text

Diesel continued to wait at the sighting he was at, observing everything at his hiding spot as his black livery blended in with the trucks.

He did not want to move from where he was to get caught by that coffeepot engine and that old-fashioned engine.

Thankfully, no one else was coming up to Ulfstead Castle, so Diesel had the chance to wait for that blue-haired girl to come out.

He swore he saw that blue-haired kid enter Ulfstead Castle, but why was she taking so long to step outside?

Diesel continued basking in the sun as he watched from where he was until he finally saw the blue-haired girl stepping out with her cat on her shoulders and something smaller he could not see.

He perked up after seeing the blue-haired girl step out, and Diesel observed, seeing her talking to the Earl of Sodor and the little girl Diesel 10 once tried attacking.

After bidding them farewell, the blue-haired girl glanced around before taking something from her pocket and tapping the top.

Diesel’s eyes popped wide like saucers when the blue-haired girl transformed into a half-bird-like human and took off into the air as he watched.

“I have to tell 10 about this!” Diesel exclaimed as he went backward.

Meanwhile, Stephanie continued soaring through the air while carrying the items she collected for study after asking Sir Robert Norramby for permission.

It was a lot of books, but Stephanie could carry them as she flew through the air, carrying everything with her, including Lucy and Notches.

After politely excusing herself from the library, she had already eaten her lunch while sitting outside, so the load was a little lighter.

But Stephanie grew tired after flying for a few minutes and went to land to take a break, finally mastering her landing as she stopped near the side of the road.

A low moo perked Stephanie’s attention, and she glanced over, seeing the prized bull staring at her.

“Nice bull!” Stephanie nervously gulped as Notches’ fur ruffled.

The bull stared at her as its tail flicked, and Stephanie stared back, looking worried as Notches was lowly growling.

Then, the bull started charging towards Stephanie as she shrieked, instantly flying into the air as it missed her before landing again.

Suddenly, something zipped between her and the bull, and the bull mooed a confused sound while scrambling backward.

Stephanie could see what looked like a car as it made a tight circle, skidding dirt towards it as it snorted after some went up its nostrils.

The door opened when it went towards Stephanie and scooped her inside while she yelped, tucking her wings close as the door closed before speeding off.

The bull attempted to chase after the yellow object, but it sped down the line faster, and it gave up, giving a defeated snort before stomping off.

The yellow car skidded to a stop and turned around, seeing that the bull was not chasing after him, with a relieved sigh.

It was Ace, and he had seen Stephanie about to be rammed over by the bull and went to the rescue, scooping her up into his backseat and speeding off as fast as he could to get away.

“That was a close one.” Ace sighed before looking up. “Is the ankle-bider okay in there, driver?”

Inside Ace, his driver looked over his seat to look at Stephanie, who had transformed into her full falcon form and was sitting in one of the seats, looking startled, along with Lucy and Notches, who were fluffed up.

“I don’t see hah.” Ace’s driver mentioned as he glanced away from looking over his shoulder. “But there’s a falcon.”

“Wait, wat?” Ace blinked. “A falcon?”

“Just me, Ace!” Stephanie exclaimed, chirping a little while stumbling, not used to walking with talons. “I accidentally shifted into my full falcon form after getting startled.”

Outside, Ace looked surprised after hearing Stephanie’s voice but became suspicious as he asked, “Can ya step out ‘n show yourself then?”

Ace’s driver rolled down the window as Stephanie hopped out before hopping down the road and attempting to walk over, but she stumbled a little with her talons and reached his face.

“See?” Stephanie chirped as she opened her wings. “I transformed into a falcon.”

Ace stared at her with shock as Stephanie asked, “But how did you know I was there?”

“I didn’t,” Ace responded, still slightly surprised to see Stephanie as a small falcon. “I thought ya weah weahrin’ some choope of costume.”

“Fair enough,” Stephanie nodded with a sigh. “But thank you for saving me, Notches, and Lucy.”

“No problem,” Ace nodded before looking concerned. “Though, uh, how ahah ya garn ta turn back?”

Stephanie perked up after Ace asked and reached up with a talon to her necklace around her neck, taking it off as she transformed back to herself.

“Like this,” Stephanie said, smiling as she held the Zodiac Pocket Watch.

Ace blinked a few times after watching Stephanie return to normal as she stood up, putting her Zodiac Pocket Watch into her blue jeans pocket.

“Is this nawrmal fawr ya?” Ace asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “And it is easily reversible, too.” She looked at the sky thoughtfully before asking, “Do you mind if you could take me, Notches, and Lucy to Hatt Hall?”

“Sah thing!” Ace nodded. “I know weah ‘att ‘all is since I passed by it a few times.”

“Great!” Stephanie beamed as she walked over to the door, which automatically opened. “Thank you so much, Mr. Ace.”

“Please!” Ace chuckled as Stephanie climbed in and closed the door. “Just call me Ace, ankle-bider.”

“It’s Stephanie.” Stephanie rolled her eyes as Notches climbed onto her lap after she buckled with Lucy.

After she buckled, Ace sped down the road as Stephanie winced, not expecting the forces of G pressing against her as he raced.

Ace drove down the road before approaching Bertie, honking his horn, startling him from what he was doing, and glancing over.

“‘Scuse me!” Ace smirked as he sped down the line, and Bertie called back, “Hey! Road hog!”

Ace continued racing down the line as Stephanie held onto her seatbelt nervously, gritting her teeth as Ace continued driving down the road.

Other vehicles, like steam lorries, piqued Stephanie’s interest, and she decided to look at them later when she had time.

Ace soon arrived at Hatt Hall and stopped at the entrance, speaking, “Heah we ahre! ‘att ‘all liyyke ya said so!”

Stephanie gingerly stepped out of the backseat with Notches and Lucy, as Notches had his claws in her sweater from experiencing the fast driving.

Ace instantly noticed and blushed, realizing he had gone too fast for her liking, and slowly asked, “You alright?”

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded, slightly dizzy but shaking her head. “I’m fine. You were very fast.”

Ace’s blush deepened after Stephanie remarked and responded, “Yer, sawrry about that. Kept fawrgettin’ you’ah not used ta fast speeds.”

Stephanie chuckled slightly as she stumbled but kept herself upright, saying, “I’ll get used to it after getting a ride with you. But it was a fun ride!”

Ace smiled after Stephanie remarked to him before honking his horn as he drove off, saying, “See ya sometime, ankle-biter!”

“Stephanie!” Stephanie called him as he disappeared into the distance.

Stephanie sighed after Ace disappeared and mumbled, “What will I do with him?”

She looked down at Lucy and Notches before carefully plucking Notches from her sweater and holding him in her arms.

“Are you okay, Notches?” Stephanie asked as she gently petted him.

“Slightly.” Notches nodded. “I’m not used to riding in fast cars.”

“Me either,” Lucy nodded as she gingerly climbed onto Stephanie’s shoulder.

Stephanie chuckled as she patted Notches’ head before stepping into Hatt Manor and deciding to study in her room.

When she opened the front door of the Hatt Manor, Stephanie was surprised when it was directly in the room she was thinking about as she stepped through it.

“Oh,” Stephanie sighed as she closed the door behind her. “Keep forgetting that little power of mine.”

Deciding to check, Stephanie placed Notches down on the bed with Lucy as she walked over to the door, opening it to the hallway of Hatt Manor.

And accidentally startling one of the butlers as he flinched.

“Oops!” Stephanie flinched. “Sorry!”

“It’s quite alright,” the butler assured after readjusting himself from being startled. “How did you get into Hatt Manor? I didn’t see you walk through the front door.”

Not wanting to say, ‘Oh, I used a sudden power of mine and opened the door to this room,’ Stephanie responded, “I’m a quick walker, and I must’ve entered the room while you were doing something else.”

“Hmm,” the butler gently hummed. “Fair point. Well, how was your day, then?”

“Good,” Stephanie nodded. “I went to Ulfstead Castle to learn about Sodor’s history and took some library books with me.”

“Interesting,” the butler remarked. “Do you want some paper to write down notes?”

“Hmm,” Stephanie paused as she glanced over, seeing the pile of paper and notebooks Dowager Hatt bought for her. “I think I have enough from Dowager Hatt.”

“Ah,” the butler perked. “Very well. Let me know if there is anything you would like.”

Stephanie nodded as the butler left, sighing as she closed the door and mumbling, “So it only works if I am thinking of a place. It sounds almost like something out of a fantasy novel.”

She walked over to the bed and sat beside Notches and Lucy, removing her shoes and placing them to the side.

Then she took the paper cup out of her sweater’s pocket and tossed it into the trash before taking her sweater off.

After getting comfortable, Stephanie walked over to the desk’s chair and sat down, beginning with her study as Notches climbed onto her lap and curled as Lucy hopped onto the table to watch.

With the books, Stephanie read the one that the librarian, Cleo, from Barnaby B. Busterfield III Memorial Library, recommended from Rosaline Mercedes, an avid Sudrian mythological researcher.

Through the pages, Stephanie wrote down interesting notes on the pieces of paper to be written down later, along with sketches of what the pictures were in the book while using a pencil, which read:

• A large, scaly fish-like being was swimming underwater when Rosealina was at Brendam Docks after stepping off a ship called Olympic, but it disappeared from the ocean’s surface.
  • Is it something from the ‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ movie? …Or was it like that nightmare I had?
• Another door was left open, and a million monsters called ‘Grimmites,’ metal-eating monsters, emerged. Luckily, the door was closed, but the damage was done as each one was hunted down to be killed permanently.
  • I would’ve opened the door to get them back home instead of having to get rid of them permanently.
  • It is very cruel to have to get rid of them!
• Since Sodor started to become known, many other beings from different magical worlds have collaborated to spread its magic. This included sentient dolls, sentient vehicles, and many others.
  • Ask Sir Topham Hatt for permission before running off.
  • I need to look around Sodor to see these magical beings.
  • There’s more around Sodor, right?
• Lady is the user of the Gold Dust, but she does not know where the other Dusts came from and does not want to tell.
  • Did Lady know who else had the use of these Dusts than Avril did?
• Strange things happened around Sodor, ranging from different faces that appeared and disappeared to items moving by themselves and spirits appearing.
  • Are there Yokais on the Island of Sodor?
  • Can I see them too?
  • Sodor is almost close to Japan, meaning Yōkais are roaming around.
  • Maybe they are seeing signs of ghosts roaming around Sodor too.
• There are millions of ghosts roaming on Sodor. Some of them are helpful, like the mysterious ghost named ‘Proteus,’ an engine that can grant wishes to whoever finds his lamp. Unfortunately, others are deadly, such as Alfred, or 98462 by serial number, a fallen GCR Class 8F steam locomotive.
  • Are there any other terrible ghosts I need to avoid?
  • I must be careful when encountering Alfred and avoid him as best I can.
  • Who is Proteus?

After reading the book, Stephanie moved on to the books she borrowed from Ulfstead Castle, reading them curiously.

Stephanie even had the book titled ‘Sodor’s History’ by one of the famous writers, reading it with curiosity and writing down notes.

The notes read:

• Ocean liners started a revolution against humans and other land-based vehicles but lost a fight that forced them to make a deal with the current Sir Topham Hatt.
  • Ocean liners? They are familiar with the nightmare I had.
  • Holy crap! That is fantastic!
  • Who ended the fight?
  • Who was leading the battle?
• The Gold Dust Flu suddenly emerged from one of the mining exhibitions close to Muffler Mountain, infecting Sodor.
  • That sounds horrible, and I feel bad for the miners having to experience that sickness.
• The first Dust was discovered by one of the village chiefs during the caveman era, who presented it to his wife, thus causing the collection of Dusts. But the collection of Dusts ended after the Knight era after discovering natural gemstones and replacing them.
  • Did Avril learn about this when he arrived at Sodor?
  • Wow, no wonder it was so recognized throughout history.
• The first steam locomotive to arrive on the Island of Sodor was an engine named ‘Hiro,’ the Master of the Railway.
  • I would like to find Hiro and ask him what Sodor was like in his time.
• The Hatt family created the first railroad called Tidmouth.
  • Could I be like Sir Topham Hatt and run a railroad like him?
  • Sir Topham Hatt’s great-great-great grandfather must’ve been a proud father, seeing how much his great-great-great-grandson was doing.
• The LNER Gresley Classes A1 and A3 were introduced to the railway and became a booming success for Nigel Gresley.
  • Talk to Gordon about his history with his family.
  • Wow! So that means that Gordon is popular, like his brothers and sisters!

After reading that book, Stephanie went back to Cleo’s book that she had written and went through it again, deciding to piece together some written notes she had and compare them to the one Cleo wrote.

The long note reads:

A powerful ship named ‘Juliet’ was responsible for this conflict between humans and land-based vehicles and locomotives.

King Godred was afraid of her extraordinary powers and sought to find a way to defeat her, asking whoever was around Sodor for help.

His pleas were soon heard by a god from above, who granted him a magical key and lock called the Prison Key.

King Godred used the Prison Key and the lock to seal Juliet away as she promised to return, but King Godred split the key into pieces so she would not escape her prison.

He kept the lock with him as he gave the key pieces to his trusty advisors and hid the lock deep within his castle.

Unfortunately, millions of years passed, and the key’s magic started to wear away, slowly becoming weaker and weaker, meaning that Juliet was about to be freed from her prison, but it was not too weak to break free.

And that prison broke when Gordon’s powers went out of control against Wendell, the Silly Engine, finally allowing Juilet to become free and wreak havoc on Sodor.

Gordon used his powers and soon destroyed Juliet, thus ending her terror of Juliet.

The remaining ocean liners joining Juilet immediately surrendered out of fear that Gordon would destroy them, promising Sir Topham Hatt to work with the land-based vehicles without scheming or attempts to take over Sodor.

After the treaty was signed, the ocean liners went away to spend their time alone for a minute while everyone went to repair the damage on Sodor.

My notes:

• Gordon, the Big Blue Engine, has powers?!
  • How did he get powers and transform into an ocean liner?
  • Note: Take some time to ask Gordon about his powers.
• How did Juliet become dangerous?
  • Did something cause Juilet to become a villain?
• How is Gordon related to the ocean liners?
• How many beings have powerful magic?
• How many realms does Sodor have?
• How powerful are the ocean liners?
• Is Sodor like a main anchor while there are millions of realms like a chain link?
• Is this all connected to that nightmare I had about those ocean liners?
  • Note: Get a book about ocean liners to figure out who they are.
• Where is this ‘Prison Key’ that King Godred has?
• Why was Wendell fighting against everyone?
  • Is this caused by the deaths of both Dinah and Ethan Topham Hatt?

Stephanie’s hand started hurting after writing for so long, causing her to pause writing as she gently rubbed her ring finger as Lucy noticed.

“Why don’t you take a break from writing?” Lucy suggested. “You haven’t finished reading Avril’s journal.”

“You’re right,” Stephanie nodded. “Maybe a little break wouldn’t hurt.”

So Stephanie picked up Avril’s journal and flipped to the next Zodiac, knowing that she needed to catch up on the knowledge of Zodiacs since she had her hands full of having to research everything about Sodor.

The next page after the Leo Zodiac, the Native American Salmon Zodiac, and the Chinese Dragon Zodiac reads:

Virgo/Bear/Seahorse/Snake

Gemstone: Sapphire

• Virgo Zodiac: The Virgo Zodiac grants you the ability to control plants and transform your body to represent the nature element.
  • Can control holy fire.
  • Can have either strong feminine or masculine appearances.
  • Can heal over time.
  • Can heal people and other living beings.
  • Can imitate animals.
  • Can purify anything.
  • Can shapeshift.
  • Geokinesis: earth manipulation.
  • Phytokinesis: plant manipulation.
• Bear Zodiac: The Native American Bear Zodiac transforms you into the animal representation of a bear or a half-bear, half-human hybrid. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a bear.
  • Geokinesis: earth manipulation.
• Seahorse Zodiac: The Seahorse Zodiac allows you to have the abilities of a seahorse and can transform you into one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can be perfect in anything.
  • Can be the embodiment of art.
  • Can have impressive creative skills.
  • Can have the traits of a solar deity.
  • Can manipulate gold.
  • Can use the abilities of a fish.
  • Can use the abilities of a lover.
• Snake Zodiac: The Chinese Snake Zodiac transforms you into a snake being or a naga with the appearance of what you ‘represent.’ (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can turn invisible.
  • Can use the abilities of a snake.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Libra/Raven/Wren/Horse

Gemstone: Opal

• Libra Zodiac: The Libra Zodiac can grant you the ability of justice.
  • Aerokinesis: air manipulation.
  • Can have a good balance.
  • Can have enhanced dexterity.
  • Can have enhanced intelligence.
  • Can make someone equal.
  • Can use ‘unity.’
  • Use a type of ‘spiritual meditation.’
• Raven Zodiac: The Native American Raven Zodiac grants you the abilities of a raven and allows you to transform into one or a raven harpy. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a raven.
  • Aerokinesis: air manipulation.
• Wren Zodiac: The Wren Zodiac grants you to use the abilities of a wren and can transform into a harpy of one or a Wren harpy. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can bring the dead back to life.
  • Can generate food.
  • Can manipulate agriculture.
  • Can manipulate fertility.
  • Can master clubs.
  • Can use druid magic.
  • Can use magic.
  • Can use the abilities of a bird.
  • Can use the abilities of death.
  • Can use the abilities of life.
  • Can use the traits of a benevolent deity.
• Horse Zodiac: The Chinese Horse Zodiac grants you the abilities of a horse and can transform you into one or a centaur. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can have enhanced regeneration.
  • Can use the abilities of a horse.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Scorpio/Snake/Horse/Goat(Sheep):

Gemstone: Yellow Topaz

• Scorpio Zodiac: The Scorpio Zodiac allows you to transform into a half-bug hybrid of a scorpion. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can control darkness.
  • Can control insects.
  • Can generate poison.
  • Can have dermal armor.
  • Can use the abilities of a scorpion.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
• Snake Zodiac: The Native American Snake Zodiac transforms you into a snake being or a naga with the appearance of what you ‘represent.’ (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can predict the future.
  • Can turn invisible.
  • Can use the abilities of a snake.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
• Horse Zodiac: The Horse Zodiac transforms you into a horse or a centaur and allows you to use the abilities of one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Be a master of architecture.
  • Be a master of building.
  • Can bestow someone with immortality.
  • Can control powerful fire.
  • Can improve crafts.
  • Can use the abilities of a horse.
  • Can use the traits of a true hero.
  • Has vast intelligence.
• Goat/Sheep Zodiac: The Goat/Sheep Zodiac transforms you into either a goat or a sheep Zodiac, but it is mostly a sheep Zodiac and is a satyr. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use astral projection.
  • Can use the abilities of a goat.
  • Has incredible sewing abilities.
  • Can use the abilities of a sheep.
  • Can control yarn.
  • Can control wool.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Sagittarius/Owl/Salmon/Monkey

Gemstone: Blue Topaz

• Sagittarius Zodiac: The Sagittarius Zodiac transforms you into a centaur or any kind of horse with your lower legs. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can communicate with animals.
  • Can control bows.
  • Can use the abilities of a centaur.
  • Have hunting mastery.
  • Have enhanced tracking.
  • Have enhanced vision.
  • Pyrokinesis: fire manipulation.
  • Supernatural archery.
• Owl Zodiac: The Native American Owl Zodiac fully transforms you into either an owl harpy or an owl. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of an owl.
  • Pyrokinesis: fire manipulation.
• Salmon Zodiac: The Salmon Zodiac transforms you into a salmon mermaid, or entirely into one, and uses the abilities of one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Be a master of agriculture.
  • Can use the traits of an ocean deity.
  • Can give orders to anyone with ease.
  • Can control boats.
  • Can have dermal armor.
  • Can use the abilities of a fish.
  • Can bestow someone with immortality.
  • Can use protection for anything or anyone.
• Monkey Zodiac: The Chinese Monkey Zodiac transforms you into a monkey or a half-monkey. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a monkey.
  • Can shapeshift.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Capricorn/Goose/Swan/Rooster

Gemstone: Garnet

• Capricorn Zodiac: The Capricorn Zodiac allows you to transform into either a half-Capricorn or entirely. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can adapt to environments.
  • Can adapt to underwater environments.
  • Can control mountains.
  • Can control nature.
  • Can have beginning dominance.
  • Can use the abilities of a goat.
  • Geokinesis: earth manipulation.
• Goose Zodiac: The Native American Goose Zodiac allows you to transform either into a goose-like harpy or entirely into a goose. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a goose.
  • Geokinesis: earth manipulation.
• Swan Zodiac: The Swan Zodiac grants you the abilities of a swan and can transform you into a harpy of a swan. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can be a divine craftsman.
  • Can create groups.
  • Can have the same thoughts in multiple bodies.
    • If multiplied.
  • Can use immense destruction.
  • Can use magic.
  • Can use the abilities of a fairy.
  • Can use the abilities of a waterfowl.
  • Can use the traits of a fallen angel.
  • Can use the traits of a health deity.
  • Can use the traits of an ocean deity.
  • Vapor manipulation.
• Rooster Zodiac: The Chinese Rooster Zodiac allows you to transform into a rooster harpy or entirely into a rooster. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use levitation.
  • Can use telekinesis.
  • Can use the abilities of a chicken.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Aquarius/Otter/Butterfly/Dog:

Gemstone: Amethyst

• Aquarius Zodiac: The Aquarius Zodiac allows you to control the abilities of water and an angel.
  • Aerokinesis: air manipulation.
  • Can control ice.
  • Can transform into an angel.
  • Can transform the body into a mimic of air.
  • Can transform the body into a mimic of water.
  • Can use magic.
  • Have supernatural intelligence.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
• Otter Zodiac: The Otter Zodiac allows you to transform into a half-otter hybrid. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of an otter.
  • Aerokinesis: air manipulation.
• Butterfly Zodiac: The Butterfly Zodiac allows you to have the abilities of a butterfly and can transform you into a half-butterfly or entirely into one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can be an incredible weaver.
  • Can determine fates.
  • Can use the traits of a lunar deity.
  • Can use the traits of a mother god.
  • Can use the traits of a sky deity.
  • Can use the traits of a stellar deity.
  • Can use the traits of a virgin goddess.
  • Can be the embodiment of art.
  • Can use the abilities of a butterfly.
  • Can manifest femininity.
  • Can be the embodiment of fertility.
  • Can manifest imagination.
  • Can be empowered by the moon.
  • Can use magic.
  • Can be the embodiment of palingenesis.
  • Can manipulate reproduction.
  • Can manipulate silver.
  • Have supernatural beauty.
  • Can manipulate wheels.
• Dog Zodiac: The Chinese Dog Zodiac allows you to use a dog’s abilities and transforms you into one or a half-human, half-dog hybrid. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a dog.
  • Has immortality.
  • Has a regenerative healing factor.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page to the next four sets, as it reads:

Pieces/Wolf/Wolf/Pig:

Gemstone: Aquamarine

• Pisces Zodiac: The Pisces Zodiac allows you to use the abilities of a fish or a mermaid. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can adapt to underwater environments.
  • Can breathe in both water and air.
  • Can use the abilities of a fish.
  • Can heal.
  • Can use telekinesis.
  • Can use telepathy.
  • Can use teleportation.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
  • Can talk to animals.
• Wolf Zodiac: The Native American Wolf Zodiac allows you to transform into a half-wolf hybrid (werewolf) or entirely into a wolf and use its abilities. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a wolf.
  • Hydrokinesis: water manipulation.
• Wolf Zodiac: The Wolf Zodiac allows you to transform into a half-wolf hybrid (werewolf) or entirely into a wolf and use its abilities. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the traits of a guardian.
  • Can give orders to anything or anyone.
  • Can obtain magic through objects.
  • Can cast prayers.
  • Has underworld lordship.
  • Can use the abilities of a wolf.
• Pig Zodiac: The Pig Zodiac transforms you into a half-pig being or a pig. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use heat vision.
  • Can use the abilities of a pig.
  • Can eat large amounts with no ill effects.
  • Can increase in size during consumption.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

Stephanie read the paragraph on the Zodiacs before flipping the page, reading what was written on that page:

Ophiuchus/Bison/Hawk/Cat:

Gemstone: Rose Quartz

• Ophiuchus Zodiac: The Ophiuchus Zodiac allows you to become a snake bearer and have the abilities of one.
  • Can control architecture.
  • Can receive visions through astral projection.
  • Can have flawless precognition.
  • Can have healing blood.
  • Can have intuitive aptitude.
  • Can control snakes.
  • Can use the abilities of a snake.
• Bison Zodiac: The Bison Zodiac allows you to transform into a bison or a half-human, half-bison hybrid and use the abilities of one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can use the abilities of a bison.
  • Earth manipulation.
• Hawk Zodiac: The Hawk Zodiac allows you to transform into a harpy hawk and use the abilities of one. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can create environments.
  • Can have an animal companion.
  • Can have animal empathy.
  • Can have powers from a divine source.
  • Can manipulate storms.
  • Can manipulate winter.
  • Can use the abilities of hags.
  • Can use the abilities of raptors.
• Cat Zodiac: The Chinese Cat Zodiac allows you to become a half-cat being or a cat. (Whoever holds the pocket watch can tell what species it is.)
  • Can have enhanced agility.
  • Can have luck.
  • Can use the abilities of a cat.
  • You can use the elements of metal, wood, fire, water, and air without struggle, but only one at a time.
    • You can switch from time to time after focusing on your powers.

The pages stopped after that, confusing Stephanie after reading all the Zodiacs written by Avril.

But there was more, right?

Stephanie turned to Lucy and asked, “Hey, Lucy?” Lucy looked over at Stephanie after reading the pages with her. “Are there more Zodiacs?”

Lucy paused after Stephanie asked and responded, “I think so? I remember the Zodiacs mentioned there used to be a fourteenth Zodiac from the Western side… But I can’t remember the name for many years.”

Stephanie glanced away from Lucy after asking, thinking about the Zodiacs written by Avril and still having that nagging feeling there was another Zodiac.

There could be another Zodiac if she collected all the gemstones, and it would reveal itself.

Instead of asking more about the missing Zodiac, Stephanie returned to her study about Sodor and the mythical items slowly revealed to her.

And she could write in her journal what she had discovered about the mythical items to teach someone else.

Chapter Text

Diesel continued speeding down the line as fast as he could, passing by stations and even other steamies.

He has good news to tell Diesel 10 and does not want to slow down while doing anything.

He had to slow down a few times to let someone else pass by or the crosswalks, so Diesel waited impatiently before continuing off.

He finally reaches Vicarstown Dieselworks and enters, honking his horn as he shouts, “Den! Dart! Where are you two?”

“Will you keep it down?” a voice huffed.

“Yeah, we’re only trying to nap,” Another nodded.

There were two diesels with the basis of BR Class 08, one painted in purple and gray and the other painted in olive and gray.

“Oh,” Diesel sighed. “Splatter, Dodge, where’s Diesel 10?”

“He’s still sulking in his shed,” they simultaneously responded. “But why, though?”

“Because I got some news on what we were discussing,” Diesel responded as he oiled onto the turntable as it rose. “Now, move so I can talk to him.”

Splatter and Dodge moved back, allowing Diesel 10 to come out of his shed after the door opened as the turntable reached the upper level.

“Alright, Diesel,” Diesel 10 spoke. “What’s the update?”

“Well,” Diesel began. “I was just passing by with a couple of trucks and saw the same little blue-haired girl walking down the road.”

“Really?” Splatter perked.

“Blue hair?” Dodge asked.

“Shh,” Diesel 10 shushed. “Not now. I’m in the mood to listen to what Diesel is saying.”

Diesel smirked as he continued, “So after dropping the trucks off, I went to see where she was going and arrived at Ulfstead Castle, where the Earl of Sodor and the little girl took her inside, but her face was blue like her hair.”

“Is that a good thing?” Splatter asked.

“No, I don’t think so,” Dodge responded.

“How did her face turn blue?” Diesel 10 asked.

“Walking, I think,” Diesel ‘shrugged.’ “Because I had to hide to avoid Slow Stephen and the coffeepot seeing me, I couldn’t tell.”

“Alright.” Diesel 10 nodded. “Keep going.”

“So I stayed where I parked and watched,” Diesel continued. “But she didn’t come out for a long time, but I guess she went on a tour through Ulfstead Castle.”

“Hmm,” Diesel 10 hummed. “She’s starting to learn about Sodor from what you told me. Anything else?”

“It gets better,” Diesel smirked. “When she finally came out of Ulfstead Castle, she took something from her pocket and clicked it, transforming into a bird!”

“Wait, what?” All three blinked.

“‘Bird?’” Diesel 10 repeated. “You like ‘tweet, tweet’ bird?”

“Little birds that hop around?” Splatter asked.

“Eh,” Diesel paused. “Almost. She had her human appearance but with the traits of a bird, and then she flew into the air.”

Diesel 10, Splatter, and Dodge looked confused after Diesel explained, and Diesel 10 asked, “Did you hear anything else?”

“Nope,” Diesel sighed. “Only then did I see her transform and even collect gemstones.”

Diesel 10 perked up after Diesel mentioned, saying, “Maybe she was collecting those things to try to overpower us.”

“You think so?” Diesel asked.

“Well, think of it.” Diesel 10 nodded. “Gemstones, learning about Sodor, and transforming? That’s all that a master plan would do!”

“Even with those, uh,” Splatter paused. “Nightmares walking about Sodor and causing destruction?”

“That too!” Diesel 10 nodded. “I think she has something connected with those Nightmares and everything about Sodor. So I’m no longer staying here while trying to listen with my thumbs shoved up my nose.”

Splatter and Dodge looked at the cameras with confused expressions that meant, ‘What thumbs?’

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Diesel spoke before Diesel 10 moved forward. “You’re going to search for her?”

“Exactly!” Diesel 10 nodded. “I’m not risking myself to watch her take over my job! Besides, what more harm could she do or defeat us by taking over Sodor?”

Diesel paused after Diesel 10 asked as the turntable went down, moving off it to allow Diesel 10 to be on it.

“But how are you going to find her?” Diesel asked as Diesel 10 moved forward. “There are like a million humans around!”

Diesel 10 stopped after Diesel pointed it out and moved back, mumbling, “Oh, yeah, that’s right.”

He stopped to think to himself before perking when he remembered something and responded with a smirk, “Diesel, I think I know a group of humans that could help.”

“Really?” Diesel asked. “Who?”

Sitting on a bench was an elderly sailor with stubble, steel-blue eyes, and short graying white hair.

He wore a gray turtleneck sweater, a dark blue jacket with a collar, black pants with rolled ends, and black boots, and had his arms crossed over his chest.

Then someone approached him, and the sailor perked up, glancing up at the stranger as he sat beside him.

He has short graying hair, brown eyes, and fair Caucasian skin, and he wears a gray shirt, a black coat, gray pants with a belt, and black boots.

“Ahoy, Boomer.” The sailor greeted him with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Hello, Jonathan.” The other, ‘Boomer,’ responded. “What have you been doing recently?”

“Nothing much,” the sailor named ‘Jonathan’ responded. “I can’t do much ‘cause o’ this stupid thing on me ankle.”

He lifted his pants leg to show the police tracker, to which Boomer sighed after he showed it, moving it back down.

“Right,” Boomer sighed. “Any progress, though?”

“Not much,” Jonathan sighed. “Even wit’ fishin’, I haven’t made a buck in a while.”

They paused after talking a little before Jonathan asked, “Wha’ about ye ‘n Lady?”

Boomer went silent after Jonathan asked, reaching up to his shirt, feeling something around his neck underneath his garment, and responding, “I haven’t been talking to her since.”

“You still don’t feel like she would trust ye aft wha’ happened?” Jonathan asked.

“Yes,” Boomer nodded with a sigh as he moved his hand down. “Still.”

Suddenly, someone was huffing and puffing and went over to the two, revealing a man with a ‘dad body.’

He has short, dark brown hair, light brown eyes, and fair skin.

He wears blue jeans, brown shoes, and a long-sleeve dark green shirt stained with a mysterious liquid.

He approached the two before rudely sitting down on the other side of Johnathan as Boomer groaned, lifting his hand to his nose to cover it.

“God, you smell bad,” Boomer remarked as Johnathan looked at him.

“It’s not my fault,” he moaned. “I got fired from my last job!”

“That fast?” Johnathan asked.

“Yep,” he groaned.

Then two people approached them, and one asked, “Mind if we join?” as they both glanced at the person who asked.

One was tall and thin, with short brown hair, brown eyes, a pencil-thin mustache, fair skin, and wearing a gray suit with a fedora of the same color, a tie, and brown shoes.

The other was short and round, with short curly brown hair, fair skin, and brown eyes, and wore a pink neckerchief, a white v-neck button-up shirt, a light brown jacket, brown pants with a belt, and brown shoes.

“Oh, Baz, Bernie,” Jonathan sighed. “Wha’ are ye goin’ t’ ask us this time?”

“Nothing,” Bernie huffed, lifting his pantleg with Baz and showing the same police cuff as Jonathan. “Remember?”

“Don’t play innocent!” Boomer frowned. “You both nag at us to get you two out of trouble.”

Bernie protested, “Only a few times,” but Baz silenced him with a jab to the chest with his elbow.

“Other than that,” Baz spoke as Bernie went silent. “We just discovered something new while searching through Ulfstead Castle.”

“‘n wha’s that?” Jonathan asked with an unamused expression.

Baz looked at Bernie as Bernie nodded before responding, “A blue-haired girl is wandering around Sodor.”

“What, her?” Boomer asked. “We knew who she was, Baz. She appeared on television.”

“But she has Fat Hatt’s friend’s whistle.” Bernie pointed it out, catching them off guard. 

“Bernie,” Baz huffed. “I was about to say that.”

“Never mind about that,” Boomer spoke. “But she has the whistle now?”

“Yes.” Baz nodded. “Remember we saw him use that whistle to transform at one point?”

“Aye, wha’ are ye trying t’ lead us t’?” Jonathan asked.

“We saw her at Ulfstead Castle using a pocket watch to transform,” Bernie said as Baz sighed.

Now, this piques the group’s attention.

“I thought that was a hallucination,” Boomer mentioned. “I saw that happen before while waiting for the express.”

“Aye, I saw that too.” Jonathan nodded.

“Well, there goes the surprise,” Bernie moaned.

“Never mind that, Bernie,” Baz sighed. “But do you think it is connected to something? I mean, those items are really powerful.”

“And your point?” Jonathan asked.

Little did they know, something in the background was approaching, and a claw was hovering over them like a butterfly net.

“My point is-” Baz was about to continue when Bernie noticed the hovering claw and flinched, exclaiming, “Duck!” But in one swoop, they were all grabbed, and the object zipped backward into a forest.

Diesel 10 was moving backward as he was smirking towards Pinchy, who managed to grab not only one but four people simultaneously!

Those people were squirming in Pinchy’s grip and could hear noises coming from within Pinchy but could not tell because it was all muffled.

“Good work, Pinchy,” Diesel 10 smirked as he watched some limbs squirm around. “Now, be careful with them, alright?”

Pinchy made a noise of affirmation, and Diesel 10 continued moving backward to move out of sight before stopping deep in the woods.

Diesel was there waiting for him before he pulled up, saw limbs smacking against Pinchy or kicking around, and looked nervous as he asked, “Uh, 10? What do you have in there?”

“Well,” Diesel 10 smirked. “Guess.”

Pinchy moved down and opened, dropping Baz, Bernie, Boomer, the guy, and Jonathan down on the ground as they landed in a pile.

Bernie and the guy were on top of the group, looking slightly startled, while everyone else was underneath him and squirming.

“Ow!” “Bernie!” “Get off!” voices would respond underneath them as they gingerly got up, accidentally shifting more weight. “Wait, wait, wait, don’t move!”

“Get yer foot off me back!” Jonathan exclaimed.

Luckily, no one was hurt, but they were agitated about a giant metal claw suddenly grabbing them.

Boomer glanced at whoever had grabbed him, only to groan with irritation as he stood up, helping Jonathan, who was gritting his teeth in slight pain.

“Diesel 10,” he sighed. “What is it this time?”

“You know this diesel?” Bernie asked as Baz was adjusting his clothes.

“Of course!” Diesel 10 grinned. “He was with me while chasing after Lady and was the one who was with Wendell too.”

“Can you drop that?” Boomer blushed, not realizing his whistle was sticking out from his garments. “I’m not with Wendell or Lady.”

“Then what’s that whistle around your neck?” Diesel asked with a smirk.

Boomer huffed as he hid the whistle back into his garment, and Baz asked, a little offended, “Why did you kidnap us?”

“A little birdy told me that this familiar blue-haired girl has two powerful artifacts,” Diesel 10 smirked as Diesel approached him. “And they are related to the problems on Sodor.”

They all perked up after Diesel 10 explained and glanced at Diesel, who said, “What? It is the truth, isn’t it?”

“We’re not sayin’ ye’re wrong,” Jonathan responded. “Ye’re also wantin’ t’ find out wha’ be happenin’ t’ Sodor too?”

“Correct.” Diesel 10 nodded. “And if you help us stop whatever’s making this ruckus, we’ll hand you something in return.”

The group glanced at each other after Diesel 10 suggested it, and Bernie asked, “Wait, how can you-”

“Ah,” Baz spoke, shushing Bernie. “Let me do the suggesting.”

Baz placed his fingertips together and asked, “So you are willing to get what we want?”

“Yes.” Diesel 10 nodded. “Isn’t that what human standers of what trade is? Or was it scratch my back, and I’ll scratch mine?”

“It’s the same thing,” Jonathan nodded. “But that be a good trade. Ye’ll get Cap’n Callan’s booty from the museum fer me.”

“And us with getting the flying car from Ruth,” Baz nodded as Bernie nodded in agreement.

“Even getting back at Bob the Builder?” the guy asked.

Boomer stayed silent, knowing he had sort of dropped the plan of ‘getting back at Burnett’ since Burnett Stone passed away long ago and stopped chasing after Lady.

But everything about this strangeness happening around Sodor seemed to perk Boomer’s attention, and he needed to keep them all on the reigns from going overboard and getting into trouble with the police.

So he responded, “I’m just coming along the way, so I have to keep you all from getting into trouble.”

“Really?” Diesel asked. “Don’t you want riches or expensive stuff?”

“No.” Boomer frowned. “Does it look like I want that?”

The others glanced at each other with ‘so-so’ mentions and some shrugs while Boomer pinched his nose bridge, mumbling, “Lord, give me strength.”

“But may I add one little problem we have?” Baz spoke, lifting his pants leg to show the police tracker on his ankle.

“What’s that?” Diesel asked.

“It’s a police tracker,” Bernie explained as Jonathan showed his along with Baz.

“It lets the police know wha’ we be doin’ if we wander too far whence we be supposed t’ be at,” Jonathan explained. “Meanin’ that we can not move too far wit’ this around our ankles.”

Diesel 10 smirked as Pinchy clacked together, sending a nervous shiver down their spines.

“I think Pinchy can get those off,” Diesel 10 smirked. “Easier than getting a metal screw off a boiler.”

“But this ‘screw’ is attached to our legs!” Baz fretted as Diesel nodded in agreement. “You’ll-!”

But Pinchy moved down, and with one careful press, the anklet snapped from the pressure and fell, breaking into pieces.

“See?” Diesel 10 huffed. “Don’t be a big baby over it.”

Baz blushed with embarrassment as he huffed as Pinchy did the same to the others, snapping them as they slid off, breaking the tracking.

“What about you?” Diesel 10 asked Boomer.

“N-No,” Boomer responded with a slight stutter. “I didn’t get one myself.”

“Lucky!” huffed Bernie, who was rubbing his ankle.

“Alright,” Diesel 10 smirked. “Since I fixed that tracking problem, what’s your name first?”

They glanced at each other after Diesel 10 asked, and Jonathan responded, “My name is Sailor John.”

“I’m Baz,” Baz smirked.

“I’m Bernie.” Bernie pointed at himself.

“I’m Conrad,” the guy smirked cockingly.

“And I’m P.T. Boomer.” Boomer nodded. “And your Diesel 10, right?”

“Exactly,” Diesel 10 nodded with a smirk before mentioning over to Diesel next to him with Pinchy like a gesture. “This is my brother, Diesel.”

“Pleased to meet you all,” Diesel purred.

“Now.” Sailor John clapped his hands together. “Where t’ start?”

Chapter Text

Diesel 10’s cab was a little cramped because he had to carry Sailor John, P.T. Boomer, Baz, Bernie, Conrad, and his driver, so it was a little cramped for elbow room.

But they were polite enough to move to the back for his driver to have some room, but there were some complaints about being unable to move freely.

Luckily, since Diesel 10 was a large diesel for his size, Diesel 10 could carry more than Diesel could since he was much smaller and was following him from behind.

“Where are we going, 10?” Diesel asked.

“I don’t know,” Diesel 10 responded. “But I think Boomer here has a plan.”

Diesel cocked an eyebrow before continuing to follow Diesel 10 from behind, going down the line and heading towards Culdee Railway.

“What are we doing here, Boomer?” Diesel 10 asked, glancing up at his cab window over his face to see where they were.

“Well,” P.T. Boomer spoke. “I saw her climb Devil’s Back after that gigantic beast disappeared.”

Diesel perked up after hearing ‘gigantic beast’ and slowed down a little, asking with a little stammer, “Wh-What gigantic beast?”

“Yeah, what’s that?” Diesel 10 asked.

“It was a huge monster,” P.T. Boomer explained as Bernie instantly hugged Baz’s midsection as he listened. “It was like lab experimentation between a ram, a bird, a deer, and a rat gone wrong with millions of arrows stuck in its body.”

Diesel gulped nervously as Diesel 10 asked, “Are there more of those things?”

“No, not really,” P.T. Boomer responded. “…Best to be careful, though. I could be wrong.”

Diesel 10 nodded and slowed down a little at Diesel’s speed, not wanting to speed down the line as he glanced around while Pinchy was alert.

They soon arrived at the Culdee Railway, and Diesel 10’s driver stopped, along with Diesel’s driver, and some of the people looked confused.

“Why did we stop?” Bernie asked.

“Because Diesel or I can’t be on the rails because they are too small for us,” Diesel 10 explained. “So this means that you guys need to follow Boomer.”

Sailor John was silently grimacing as he looked at the height of Devil’s Back, feeling his arthritis already hurting at the sight of the gigantic mountain.

“Well, let’s search before any of them appear.” P.T. Boomer nodded.

So they stepped out of Diesel 10’s cab and started climbing Devil’s Back, alert and searching for clues about what that blue-haired girl was doing.

P.T. Boomer was running after that beast when it appeared and hid from it, but he saw Sir Topham Hatt and Stephanie appear before it started chasing after them.

He did not move from where he was hiding until the beast disappeared, and the same blue-haired girl with pointed ears reappeared before heading up Devil’s Back.

Since then, the blue-haired girl sort of disappeared, and P.T. Boomer shrugged it off until Baz, and Bernie brought it up and got kidnapped by Diesel 10.

And now he is once again roped into having to dive into the rabbit hole of helping Diesel 10 ‘defeat’ someone who is causing this trouble.

The last thing P.T. Boomer wanted to do was get himself so far into ‘researching’ that he would have to bring up some terrible memories he never wanted to remember.

“Hey, Boomer!” P.T. snapped out of his thoughts and glanced over, seeing Baz leaning against the mountain, Sailor John wincing as he had his hands on his back, and Bernie huffing and puffing along with Conrad. “Slow down a little, will you?”

“Sorry!” P.T. Boomer called. “Just hurry, will you? I-”

He paused when he saw something from the corner of his eyes, drawing his attention away from the slowpokes and over to the mountain’s wall.

It looked like scratches in the mountain’s wall, which were not supposed to be there, right?

P.T. Boomer walked over to the mountain’s wall and inspected the markings, wiping his hand across the wall and removing some debris.

He saw a bird-like symbol as it was carved in the art style of Native Americans.

He moved more of the debris as it showed a rat symbol carved in the art style of Chinese, a ram symbol in Greek, and a deer symbol in Celtic, confusing P.T. Boomer more after seeing the signs.

Where has he seen these symbols before?

P.T. Boomer reached into his bag and took out a book, looking at the covers before rummaging through it to look at them.

He swore he had brought it with him unless he could have-ah!

P.T. Boomer soon took a mythological book from his bag and opened it, flipping through the pages before stopping at a page about ‘Chinese Zodiacs.’

The rat symbol matches the one on the mountain’s wall, which means that one part of it belongs to the Chinese Zodiacs.

The others soon caught up with P.T. Boomer, as Bernie said, panting, “For someone older, you sure walk faster than us.”

“Shh, Bernie,” Baz shushed. “He’s working on something.”

P.T. Boomer glanced at them with a slight glare before returning to what he was doing, flipping through the pages to another chapter of Western Zodiacs and seeing the ram symbol, known as ‘Aries.’

…Then what are the bird and deer symbols?

He went through some book pages with bird symbols, but the symbols differed from those on the wall.

P.T. Boomer was halfway through the book when he finally came across the page of ‘Native American Zodiacs,’ seeing the bird symbol resemble the Falcon Zodiac.

Even a page about Celtic Zodiacs, where the deer symbol belongs to the Celtic Stag Zodiac, is the same.

…So the symbols on the rock wall are Zodiacs?

P.T. Boomer closed his book and placed it back into his bag before wiping more of the debris, seeing something in the middle of all three symbols in a circle.

It looked like a symbol of a keyhole, but it was cracked as its age returned after being still for a million years.

“I think we found out what she did,” P.T. Boomer said, pointing to the symbols.

The others looked as Bernie asked, “What are the symbols?”

“Zodiacs,” P.T. Boomer responded. “It looks like the one chasing that blue-haired girl was a mashup of these four Zodiacs.”

Sailor John and Baz looked at the symbols as Sailor John noticed the cracked keyhole before attempting to push against the wall, thinking it was a door.

“But what did she unlock?” Bernie asked.

That question stumped P.T. Boomer after Bernie asked, but he felt it was not any of the bigger Zodiacs chasing after her.

Sailor John stopped attempting to open the ‘door,’ seeing that it was permanently closed and no key was around to unlock it.

“I think there’s another one around,” P.T. Boomer told the group. “There are the Taurus Zodiac, the Chinese Ox Zodiac, the Cat Zodiac, and the Beaver Zodiac. So we could find that one and see what is behind it.”

“Good idea,” Baz nodded. “But where could this door be?”

“In the woods?” Sailor John shrugged. “Beavers are usually around a lake wit’ a bunch o’ trees.”

“Then let’s start looking through the forest then,” P.T. Boomer mentioned as he started to go down the hill.

“Great!” Sailor John groaned as Conrad leaned against the rock. “More walkin’.”

P.T. Boomer ignored him as they slowly walked back down Devil’s Back, this time waiting for the others to catch up as they followed behind.

Once they reached Diesel and Diesel 10, they explained what they had discovered, and both diesels looked curious.

“So going into a forest would help to find another one?” Diesel 10 asked.

“Exactly,” nodded P.T. Boomer. “It’s best to find it before that blue-haired girl does.”

Diesel 10 nodded as his driver opened his cab to allow them to enter before leaving with Diesel behind him.

But as they descended the line, something semi-invisible watched them go down the line before disappearing into thin air.

Meanwhile, Diesel 10 and Diesel stopped for a minute to refill their tanks with oil and continued their adventure, entering the forest and looking at each creek and tree.

None of them had that distinctive appearance that said, ‘Hey, come over here! We’re a door!’ Instead, it was slowly grinding Diesel 10’s patience down.

They soon came across another creek with a large tree, but there was no sign, and Diesel 10 stopped with Diesel behind him.

The others stepped out of Diesel 10’s cab as Diesel moaned, “Face it, this isn’t the door. I think we shou-”

But he watched P.T. Boomer walk away as some followed him, sighing as he just watched them.

P.T. Boomer approached the tree and inspected it, removing the moss and items from it, seeing the two oxen and the single beaver and cat underneath them.

“We finally found it!” Baz called Diesel 10 and Diesel.

“Really?” Diesel 10 perked. “That’s the door?”

“Yes,” Bernie nodded.

“Alright,” Diesel 10 smirked as Pinchy lifted, clacking together with excitement. “Move so I can-”

A loud moo-like roar echoed through the forest and shook everyone, causing them to glance away from what they were doing and look around.

“Was that the farmer’s prized bull?” Diesel asked.

“Sounds a little too loud to be-” Diesel 10 said, but stopped when something massive appeared, instantly turning his face from confusion to ‘oh crap’ along with Diesel.

Standing just a few meters away from the human group, there was a gigantic Minotaur, but its legs were missing, and it only had its arms that were keeping its body upright.

It had a large pair of horns protruding from its head, buck teeth, a beaver-like tail that was narrow at the top and flattened at the end, and a collar with a pendant.

That’s no prized bull.

Chapter Text

Everyone was staring at this gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster, which stared at them before snorting and giving the same roar.

“HOLY-!” Everyone instantly scrambled away from the tree as it charged forward at an incredible speed and crashed into it, causing them to split as it got its horns into the tree.

“Go, go, go, go, go!” P.T. Boomer shouted as he helped Bernie to his feet as Baz scrambled up. “Get to Diesel 10!”

The gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster struggled to get its horns out of the tree as it snorted and growled, using its hands to push itself out.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry!” Diesel urged as the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster finally freed itself from the tree and saw them heading toward them.

Seeing there was no time for them to climb into his cab, Diesel 10 quickly scooped Baz, Bernie, and P.T. Boomer before catching them by surprise when Sailor John was pushed toward his face when Pinchy went downward.

The gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster stormed over to the rails and stood in front, snorting as it prepared to charge and kicked its hands.

Diesel 10 gritted his teeth before grabbing the back of Sailor John’s jacket and sweater with his teeth, startling him before muffling, “Go! Go! Go!” towards Diesel, who instantly wasted no time standing around gawking.

Sailor John was tugged backward quickly as his jacket and sweater were grabbed by Diesel 10’s teeth, and the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster charged forward but kept slipping because of having no legs.

“SLOW DOWN, YE’RE SCRAPIN’ THE BOOTS OFF ME-!” Sailor John exclaimed before going over a bump that caused him to yelp.

Whenever the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster got close, Pinchy would swipe at its snout while Bernie held onto its arm with his arms and legs, and P.T. Boomer and Baz were in its grip.

Pinchy would smack it across the snout, which caused it to snort, snapping its teeth at Pinchy as Diesel 10 picked up speed.

Diesel was speeding backward before flinching when Diesel 10’s back buffers appeared and gently bumped him, which Diesel yelped before their coupling link connected.

Not wanting to complain or try to separate, Diesel only continued moving backward with Diesel 10 as he tried to avoid the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster.

They turned around a bend, and Diesel 10 almost went over as he muffled something, perhaps cursing along with Sailor John as he grabbed his front buffers.

The gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster stormed over, and using its hands, it slammed them against the ground, and like magic, the earth started shifting and splitting down the middle, causing the tracks to buckle and bend from its powers.

Diesel 10 and Diesel continued moving backward as the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster did the same thing again, shredding the tracks from the ground as it lifted into the sky.

Bernie wrapped his arms and legs around Pinchy’s arm, Baz held onto P.T. Boomer while Pinchy moved backward to keep them from getting hurt, and Conrad clutched onto Pinchy’s base while shrieking.

Suddenly, they went down a different line, and the gigantic legless ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster went the opposite way while Diesel and Diesel 10 went down the other line.

“Okay, we lost it!” P.T. Boomer exclaimed.

Diesel and Diesel 10 skidded to a halt before hearing a yelp from someone, and they glanced over, seeing the same blue-haired girl with the cat and a doll on the other shoulder.

“Hmm, nh’h mrr!” Diesel 10 exclaimed.

The blue-haired girl looked confused as the cat instantly puffed while the doll said, “What are you all doing out here?!”

“You can talk?!” Diesel exclaimed from behind Diesel 10.

“Never mind that!” the blue-haired girl exclaimed. “What is-?”

A bellowing moo-like roar happened, and everyone perked up, glancing over as the same monster appeared in the distance.

“That’s the Black Zodiac!” the doll exclaimed.

The blue-haired girl instantly hopped onto Diesel 10’s buffer on the other side, just as Sailor John went onto the other buffer as Diesel 10 released his garments from holding onto them.

“Hurry!” the blue-haired girl exclaimed. “Move forward!”

“Don’t tell us twice!” Diesel exclaimed as he moved forward, pushing Diesel 10 forward as he descended the line as the blue-haired girl and Sailor John held on.

They went near a ledge, and the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster stomped its arms, and the line started buckling a little as Diesel 10 and Diesel crossed them.

Diesel 10 winced when he saw one of the bumps on the rocking rails move upward before clang!

Diesel 10’s eyes crossed after feeling something hit the back of his gears, but he shook it off as Diesel continued pushing him back as the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster continued chasing them.

“Quick!” the blue-haired girl pointed as they stopped as she hopped off from Diesel 10’s buffers. “Keep moving forward!”

“What about you?” Sailor John asked.

“I got this!” The blue-haired girl smiled, taking her cat and doll off her shoulders as she opened Diesel 10’s cab and quickly placed them inside.

She removed the same object Diesel saw from her blue jeans pocket and zapped the top, transforming into a half-bird, half-human hybrid.

Once she transformed, the blue-haired girl took off into the air as Diesel 10 and the others watched in shock before shaking it off and going down the line fast.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster appeared and started attacking, missing her as it swung its arms around and missing her at every swing.

She could not get close to its pendant and thought of another way as she went backward, missing another swing of its arms as it roared.

Meanwhile, Diesel 10 and Diesel watched the battle between the blue-haired girl and the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster as Diesel exclaimed, “We’ve got to do something! That was a child!”

“I know, I know,” Diesel 10 exclaimed. “Why didn’t you tell me she was a child?!”

“Again, I didn’t realize she was a child!” Diesel snapped back. “Besides, she looked much different from afar!”

“Enough snappin’!” Sailor John exclaimed. “We’ve got t’ do somethin’ about that huge thing!”

The cab’s door opened, and the doll the blue-haired girl was holding exclaimed as she was on the cat’s back, “We can lead it somewhere further in the woods! That can try to weaken it a little!”

“Are you sure that’s going to work?” Bernie asked, still holding onto Pinchy’s arm.

“It will!” the doll nodded. “Stephanie has a special ability to help defeat the Black Zodiac!”

“Let’s do it then!” Diesel 10 nodded as they switched lines and headed toward the battle.

Meanwhile, the blue-haired girl named Stephanie avoided the earth powers of the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster but slammed against a tree and headed toward the ground.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster was about to grab her with its clawed hand when Pinchy went into view and slammed it into the face, causing it to fall backward on its back with a pained bellow.

Stephanie landed on top of Diesel 10 as her necklace snapped, transforming herself back to normal as she pushed herself up before scooping the pocket watch and placing it into her blue jeans pocket.

“Need a hand?” Diesel smirked.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster stood up and was angry, as its nose was bleeding with what looked like pitch-black blood.

It roared as Diesel 10, and Diesel went backward, leading it through the woods as it stormed through the woods.

“That’s it!” Diesel 10 smirked. “Keep following us!”

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster continued to storm through the woods and crash through some trees with ease as Stephanie looked around, coming up with a new plan.

When it was close, Stephanie lifted her hands, and gold-like threads suddenly came from her fingers, wrapping around the trees and the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster’s limbs.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster soon stopped as it bellowed in anger, trying to free itself from its binds.

Stephanie pulled back with her hands, tightening the strings as the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster moved back, trapped in a web of gold strings.

“Hey, you got it!” Diesel 10 perked up as Stephanie smiled.

The gold strings tightened around Stephanie’s fingers as they started to leave marks, but Stephanie was focused on getting the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster’s necklace.

But something landed on her back, and she yelped as Nightmares suddenly came from different directions in the darkness and started attacking them.

“Hey!” Diesel 10 snapped as Pinchy went around, smacking the Nightmares off as they scratched at everyone.

Sailor John started punching and kicking at the Nightmares with his hands and feet, causing them to shriek in pain and return to attack, but he was pushed back.

Baz and P.T. Boomer used their feet to kick away at the Nightmares as Stephanie struggled with one on her back, attempting to snap at the strings around her fingers as she kicked at the Nightmare with her legs.

“Shoo! Shoo!” Bernie exclaimed as he swatted at them with Conrad but held on to Pinchy’s arm as it swung around, smacking them like flies.

Notches and Lucy noticed and instantly hopped out of Diesel 10’s cab as his driver quickly closed the door to keep the Nightmares from attempting to get into the cab.

Diesel blew fumes into the Nightmare’s faces as they huffed and gagged from the smell while they went to Diesel and Diesel 10.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster was slowly being released from its binds as some of the gold-like strings were snapping, and Pinchy noticed while Diesel 10 was snapping at the Nightmare’s clawed fingers to keep them from getting close to his face.

When one of the strings snapped, Pinchy grabbed one of the strings, tugging backward to keep it from being freed as it tugged its limb.

Diesel 10 was slowly being dragged forward as Pinchy was holding onto the string, and Diesel noticed and quickly started up, moving backward to keep Diesel 10 from being pulled forward.

“Get off!” Stephanie snapped at the Nightmare as it tried to get the pocket watch from Stephanie’s pocket and kept scratching at her body and the strings around her fingers as it was using its claws to snap them.

Fortunately, Lucy and Notches arrived just in time, and Lucy swung her key at the Nightmare, smacking it across the face as it hissed, before Notches tackled it as it fell over Diesel 10’s roof.

Stephanie stood up and tugged forward suddenly, seeing the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster slowly being freed and reaching a hand toward Diesel 10.

Diesel was losing the tug-of-war as he huffed and puffed, using all his might to keep it from grabbing Diesel 10.

Stephanie gasped as she switched the strings to her left hand and held on tightly before summoning her bracelet, transforming it into her staff.

She drew a circle from the tip and inserted her crystal into it, emitting a sound wave that caused it to be launched backward from the sound.

Once the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster was lifted into the sky from the sound wave, Stephanie was suddenly lifted with Diesel 10 and the others on his roof because Pinchy and Stephanie had strings on them.

Diesel watched with worry and horror as they soared higher and higher into the blackened sky, with the ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster higher than them.

Stephanie quickly removed the strings and transformed her staff into a sword as the Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster approached her with its hands.

But Stephanie suddenly surprised it with a single swing of her sword, slicing its collar around its neck as it snapped off.

The Black Zodiac ox-beaver-cat hybrid monster poofed into thin air after the necklace was sliced off, and the group fell back down to the ground before she used her string ability again.

Strings created a trampoline underneath Diesel 10, and he landed safely on top of it in front of Diesel as everyone else landed on his roof along with Stephanie.

After everyone landed, the strings disappeared as Diesel 10 landed safely on the rails, and everyone collapsed on his roof.

Diesel sighed in relief as the Nightmares scrambled away after seeing that Stephanie had defeated the Black Zodiac.

“Are you alright?” Diesel asked.

“We’re fine,” Diesel 10 nodded. “But that was a close one.”

Stephanie gingerly pushed herself up as she winced, hissing through her teeth as she looked at her hands as her crystal sword transformed into the bracelet around her wrist.

Burn marks were wrapped around her fingers and half of her palms from the strings, giving her some pain but not enough to bleed.

“Blimey,” Sailor John remarked as Stephanie looked up at him from her hands, and he was gingerly pushing himself up as his hat had fallen off.

“You okay?” Stephanie asked.

“I’m fine.” Sailor John nodded as he put his cap back on before glancing at her. “How did ye do all that?”

“Yes, and what was that huge thing that chased us?” Bernie asked, a little shaken up from their close encounter.

Stephanie sighed as her doll and cat walked up to her, and she gently scooped them before perking up when a star lifted from where the pendant had shattered.

The star went towards Stephanie as everyone watched before going up into the sky, disappearing with the stars as Stephanie glanced back at the group.

“What you all witnessed was a Black Zodiac,” Stephanie explained as Pinchy looked down at her. “They are the dark version of the original Zodiacs but are mashed together with others that resemble the same thing. Like the Western and Chinese versions of the Ox with the Beaver from the Native American Zodiacs and the Cat from the Celtic Zodiac.”

“Then that was one of them?” Diesel asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “One out of eleven I needed to destroy.”

The group instantly looked surprised after Stephanie told them as she added, “But I did defeat the Black Aries Zodiac a while ago, so that’s ten I needed to destroy.”

“How are you so calm about this?!” Bernie exclaimed as Stephanie stood up from Diesel 10’s roof and brushed herself off. “You’re, what, eight years old?!”

“Ten, but close.” Stephanie nodded as she scooped the cat and doll into her arms.

She winced when her fingers started stinging again but ignored it as her cat climbed into her hood and the doll sat on her shoulder.

“I need to find something,” Stephanie said as she slid off Diesel 10’s cab onto the ground.

There were scratch marks on some parts of her body left behind from the Nightmare attacking her, and the one on her cheek was bleeding blue blood.

Diesel 10 instantly noticed her blood as she reached up with her fingers, feeling the mark before looking at her fingers as they were stained.

“Stephanie,” the doll said. “You’re bleeding.”

“I-I know,” Stephanie stammered. “But that doesn’t matter. It’ll-”

“Now, wait one minute.” Diesel 10 scooped Stephanie into his claw, and she flinched. “You aren’t walking away without being mended.”

P.T. Boomer gently took Stephanie out of Pinchy and onto Diesel 10’s roof, seeing Stephanie’s scratches and fingers with burn marks as he gently looked at them by her wrists, and Stephanie was confused.

He reached into his bag and took out a container of bandages, repairing her injuries as Stephanie asked, “Who are you all?”

“P.T. Boomer,” P.T. Boomer responded. “Don’t move around too much.”

Stephanie nodded as she allowed P.T. Boomer to mend her injuries, and Sailor John responded, “I’m Sailor John,” Then he mentioned to Baz and Bernie, “And these two are Baz and Bernie with Conrad.”

“And I’m Diesel 10,” Diesel 10 responded. “The claw attached to me is Pinchy, and Diesel is behind me.”

Pinchy clacked a little in response as Stephanie looked up at Pinchy, who was hovering over her as Notches gave little growls.

“What about you, kiddo?” Diesel 10 asked.

“I’m Stephanie,” Stephanie responded. “Stephanie Allen. I’m a friend of Sir Topham Hatt.”

“Make sense,” Diesel nodded. “But what are you doing out here?”

“I’m searching for something,” Stephanie responded as P.T. Boomer finished mending her injuries, her fingers and palms wrapped in bandages, some on her cheeks. “I can’t tell you it all since… I don’t trust you all.”

“Speaking of which,” Diesel responded. “Are you looking for a gate of some sort?”

Stephanie flinched after Diesel mentioned the gate, and Stephanie’s doll asked, “How did you know that?”

“Welp, we found it.” Diesel 10 paused a little. “One of them that you had already unlocked,” Diesel 10 responded as Pinchy moved a little. “So we sort of know what you are planning.”

Stephanie looked worried as the doll said, “If you plan to destroy the gates, you can’t even destroy them.”

“Huh,” Diesel 10 remarked as he started moving forward, and Stephanie flinched while P.T. Boomer held her from sliding off his roof. “Then how come that Black Zodiac crashed into it?”

A bad feeling sat in Stephanie’s gut as they arrived at the scene where they found the gate, but they were stunned when the tree it was in was magically repaired.

“Well,” Diesel 10 spoke. “That’s… new.”

After arriving at the scene, Stephanie slid off Diesel 10’s roof and said, “Thank you for helping me. Ah, I hope you all learned your lesson of attempting to fight against a Black Zodiac.”

“It’s not our-!” Stephanie took out a whistle from around her neck and blew into it, erupting Gold Dust from it as it swirled around Diesel 10 and the others before disappearing.

They soon arrived back at one of the stations, startled that Gold Dust suddenly came out of the whistle as they were in the same positions.

“That was also new,” Diesel 10 remarked.

Chapter Text

Stephanie sighed after sending the group to a safe place as she pushed her glasses into place, mumbling as she put the Dust Whistle away, “Well, now I know who else to be careful about.”

“Exactly, Stephanie.” Lucy nodded in agreement. “Though, good job using Gold Dust to help teleport them.”

“Thank you,” Stephanie thanked before approaching the gigantic tree. “How did the gateway repair itself?”

“It’s indestructible,” Lucy explained. “Anything that would attempt to destroy it would just magically repair itself. That’s the power of the Zodiacs.”

“Huh,” Stephanie remarked before allowing her to climb into her hands. “Though it would lose its ability once you unlock it, right?”

“Exactly,” Lucy nodded. “Once the Zodiac Guardian is returned to the Zodiac Realm, the gateway will be permanently closed.”

“Great!” Stephanie beamed.

Lucy’s key’s gemstone was emerald, and Stephanie held Lucy at the right height to insert the key into the keyhole after watching it appear.

She inserted the key and turned it, unlocking the gate as it transformed into a large wooden door with the four symbols.

Stephanie opened it after it transformed and stepped into the wooden hallway as she closed the door behind her.

After closing the door, Stephanie transformed her bracelet into a wand, made a circle using the tip, and flicked to create a small ball of light at the tip.

“I still don’t get how you are using it so well,” Notches remarked.

Stephanie shrugged a little after Notches responded before walking through the wooden hallway, using the wand’s light to light her path as she looked around curiously.

The ‘inside’ of the tree was all wooden and carved perfectly with some designs on the walls, from Chinese characters to other designs that are Western or Celtic with Native American. 

As she walked deeper, Stephanie, Notches, and Lucy soon entered the tree’s center and were gently hit with the wonderful aroma of nature itself.

Vines, gardens, and beautiful flowers were growing from the beds as they glanced around curiously.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she extinguished the light from the tip of her wand before transforming it into her bracelet.

Suddenly, a beautiful woman appeared while carrying a flower pot before noticing Stephanie with Lucy and Notches.

She has long, wavy brown hair, light green eyes, and fair skin, and she is wearing a beautiful green mermaid dress with purple flowers on a sash over her waist, a white lace long-sleeve shirt, gloves, and a large green hat with a couple of feathers and the Taurus symbol as the buckle to keep the ribbon.

She had a green umbrella hooked on her left arm and hoop earrings with an emerald collar around her neck.

“Oh, hello, honey,” She greeted. “Excuse me a minute.”

She walked away with the flower pot in her hands, placed it in a small hole in the dirt, and sat down carefully, placing her umbrella to the side.

The woman moved the flower from the pot to the hole in the ground before covering it up and nodded and stood up, brushing herself off to get the dirt off.

“Hello,” Stephanie greeted as she walked up to her. “My name is Stephanie Allen, and I’m the new wielder.”

“You’re the new wielder of the Zodiac Pocket Watch?” she asked, and Stephanie nodded. “This is fantastic. Let me get Adriel, Eoghania, and Niú.”

She walked away as Stephanie watched with curiosity before she stopped and said, “Maybe you should follow me. It will take a while for me to get them both.”

Stephanie nodded and followed the woman as she said, “My name is Constance.”

“I am pleased to meet you, Mrs. Constance.” Stephanie beamed.

She smiled softly after Stephanie beamed before asking, noticing the injuries on her body, “What happened to you?”

“Hmm?” Stephanie reached up with a hand to feel her bandaged injuries and responded, “I got attacked by Nightmares while attempting to stop the Black Zodiac. Mr. P.T. Boomer helped mend my injuries.”

“Oh, you poor dear,” Constance softly cooed as she stopped walking and inspected her injuries.

Stephanie felt worried as she reached up to gently take Constance’s hand and assured her, “It’s okay, though. It’ll heal over time.”

Constance initially looked puzzled after Stephanie assured her but dropped the topic as she said, “Alright then.”

They continued walking before approaching a big woman asleep on the ground underneath one of the trees, her back facing the two.

Stephanie looked surprised to see the gigantic woman as Constance walked up to her back and gently tapped it, saying, “Niú, wake up. The wielder is here.”

The woman named ‘Niú’ snorted a little from her sleep and slowly rolled onto her back as Constance went backward.

“They are?” Niú asked, and Constance nodded, mentioning over to Stephanie with a hand. “Oh!”

She instantly stood up to her feet after Constance mentioned over to Stephanie, and she had light-medium brown skin, brown eyes, long jet-black hair, and was wearing a Chinese light blue and hints of red uniform with a bell at the bottom of the collar.

She was wearing some jewelry with a nosering, had the ears, horns, tail, and legs of a bull, and was very tall compared to Constance and Stephanie.

She had what looked like a basketball-sized curled furball in her right arm before it slowly uncurled after Niú gently poked it.

The basketball-sized furball was instead the Celtic Cat Zodiac, as Niú placed her on the ground when she stood up.

She was standing on her hind legs and resembled a gray and light brown tabby cat with a gold ear cuff on her right ear, and she wore a Celtic leather uniform.

She also has a sword with a shield on its hilt on her back, has long wavy brown hair, and looks tired before perking up when she notices Stephanie.

“Sorry,” she apologized as she bowed to Stephanie. “My name is Niú, the Chinese Zodiac of the Ox.”

“An’ A’m Eoghania,” the Celtic Cat Zodiac nodded as her long tail flicked.

“It’s fine,” Stephanie assured Niú and Eoghania. “It’s peaceful around here.”

Niú and Eoghania smiled a little after Stephanie assured her as Constance asked, “Have you two seen where Adriel went?”

“She went to gather some wood,” Niú responded. “But she will arrive in three, two,”

Some wood clacked, startling Stephanie as she flinched with Notches, glancing over to see an anthropomorphic half-human and half-beaver human.

She has long jet-black hair in two long strands with two Native American hair pins, and her face resembles a beaver with ears and teeth.

She wore light gray skin clothing with the tail of a beaver and the hind legs as she noticed Stephanie with Constance and Niú.

“Oops!” She flinched as she chittered a little. “Sorry, I didn’t know she had already arrived.”

“It’s okay,” Stephanie assured the sheepish beaver. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Adriel,” she responded, bowing slightly to Stephanie. “What is yours?”

“Stephanie,” Stephanie responded, mentioning to Notches on her shoulder from her hood. “And this is Notches.”

“Hello,” Notches greeted.

“Aw,” Constance gently cooed as she reached over with a hand and gently scratched Notches’ chin as he purred. “He’s cute.”

Stephanie smiled, saying, “Yeah, he’s soft too.”

“Really?” Eoghania perked up with a smirk. “He must’ve cleanit his fur a lot gin it gets thon fluffy.”

“Aw, you’re making me blush.” Notches chuckled as Stephanie gently scratched his head, making his purring a little louder.

Stephanie chuckled as Constance stopped scratching, and Stephanie did the same before taking out the Zodiac Pocket Watch from the pocket of her blue jeans and showing it to the three.

She flipped the Zodiac Pocket Watch onto its back as it automatically opened, showing the emerald gemstone as the four tapped the back with their fingers.

When they tapped the Zodiac Pocket Watch, Stephanie had another vision; this time, it was slightly different.

The same man on Muffler Mountain was near the river with the woods, glancing around with confusion as if he were searching for someone.

Suddenly, something gigantic appeared from the river, and the man glanced up before looking surprised to see the same man wearing a tunic towering over his height and staring down at him with azure blue eyes.

He scrambled back a little after seeing the gigantic man appear before him, but the blue-haired stranger reached down with a hand and scooped him into his palm, lifting him to his height.

Although a little nervous, the man started talking to him as they both started talking to each other.

Their conversation was not heard as they began to discuss it, as it was muffled.

But from the angle where the blue-haired man was holding the other, a strange tattoo was on the inside of the bicep that seemed familiar.

The vision stopped as Stephanie blinked, and the Zodiac Pocket Watch landed back into her palm as she looked down at it.

“Are you alright?” Constance asked.

“Yeah,” Stephanie slowly nodded, staring at the Zodiac Pocket Watch with silent confusion before looking up at the four Zodiacs. “I’m fine.”

Lucy and Notches noticed the silent difference in Stephanie as the three Zodiacs gently led her down a different hallway as she used her wand to light the way.

Instead of asking her, they went along with the ride as they left the dimension and soon entered the Zodiac Dimension, where Amelia, Chayton, Moina, and Shu were.

After hearing them enter the Zodiac Dimension, they perked up and saw Constance, Niú, Eoghania, and Adriel, and they all smiled.

“Constance!” Amelia instantly ran over to Constance and hugged her with an excited hop.

“It’s great to see you again, Amelia.” Constance smiled.

“Hello, Niú,” Shu smiled as he gently nudged Niú’s leg with his elbow. “Long time no see, hmm?”

“Yes, you too,” Niú smiled with a chuckle before ruffling Shu’s hair.

Adriel hugged Chayton with happy chitters, and Chayton was gently making happy noises as she returned the hug, being careful with her claws.

“Welcome back, sister.” Chayton smiled as Adriel chuckled.

Eoghania glomped at Moina as she was startled by the sudden surprise hug from Eoghania, and she exclaimed with little happy cat-like chitters, “It’s sae guid tae be back!”

“Yes, it’s good to see you again, sister.” Moina nodded with a chuckle.

Stephanie smiled gently as she extinguished her light before transforming her wand into her bracelet as Notches and Lucy watched the welcoming.

Then she took out her Zodiac Pocket Watch and looked at it thoughtfully, wondering what the two memories she had witnessed were.

Were they someone else’s memories that the Zodiac Pocket Watch copied?

Why was it so familiar?

“Hey, Stephanie?” Stephanie glanced away from the Zodiac Pocket Watch to the current Zodiacs as Adriel asked, “What are you thinking?”

“Oh,” Stephanie smiled as she masked her confusion with her curiosity. “I’m just wondering what the next four Zodiacs are.”

“Well, this is the perfect time to try it out.” Shu smiled. “Just be careful with the Ox Zodiac. It’s like a bull in a china shop.”

Said Niú snorted at Shu for joking about her, and Shu giggled as he lifted his arms up as if silently saying, ‘Just joking.’

Stephanie rolled her eyes as Notches hopped off her shoulders with Lucy, and she opened the Zodiac Pocket Watch, turned the arms to the next four, and tapped it.

Her body soon started to transform, and Stephanie was towering a little over her height when she opened her eyes.

She looked at her arms and was amazed that the skin from the back of her hands was covered with smooth white and black spotted fur, and she was even wearing a collar around her neck with the Taurus pendant on it.

Stephanie has two horns sticking out from her head, pointing upright, and her legs are curled into the legs of a bull.

“Whoa!” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “Can I bend the earth using this form?”

“Erm, yes.” Constance nodded. “How can you tell?”

“Avril wrote out what the Zodiacs’ powers are in a journal,” Stephanie explained. “Mostly from the battle against the Black Zodiacs.”

“You’re the most observant kid I’ve ever met,” Shu remarked as Stephanie chuckled.

She started to practice moving around the area, being careful with items, and using her abilities.

“Wow!” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “This is so cool!”

Then she reached up to her collar and removed it, returning to normal before tapping the top again and transforming into an entire bull.

“Oops!” Stephanie flinched and mooed at the same time. “I didn’t expect this to happen!”

“Now that’s Niú’s Zodiac,” Adriel pointed out. “There’s a huge difference between the two, but they’re the same.”

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded, chuckling as her body resembled corriente cattle. “I wonder what the Beaver Zodiac does.”

Stephanie focused on transforming into her minotaur appearance before taking the necklace off, transforming back into a human before tapping the top, and transforming into an American beaver.

“Ooh!” Stephanie beamed with a slight chitter in her voice. “I transformed into an American beaver.”

Then she shifted into a half-beaver form and was checking herself out, smirking with an amused expression while running her tongue over her teeth and feeling her buck teeth.

“You can still bend the earth using that form, too,” Adriel nodded. “It helps with chewing through wood too.”

Stephanie looked impressed after Adriel explained as she reached up to her necklace and took it off, returning to her human self before tapping it again and transforming into her cat form.

Her body soon transformed into a fluffy Maine coon cat, and Stephanie looked at her paws, impressed at how super fluffy she had become.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she looked at herself all over. “I’m like a walking fluffy cloud.”

She shifted into a half-human, half-cat hybrid and was still a Maine coon cat, practicing her new form while doing tricks.

Stephanie even realized her scent was a little stronger and was amazed as Notches asked, “Easier being a cat?”

“Somewhat,” Stephanie remarked with a chuckle. “Cats have nine lives and can land on their feet.”

“Yeah, an’ don’t use thaim aw up i’ ane sittin’,” Eoghania warned. “That’s whit almost happenit tae a very famous cat.”

“Of course not,” Stephanie assured Eoghania. “I’m not wanting to test out that ability.”

Stephanie reached up to her necklace with the Celtic Cat pendant and took it off, returning to normal before placing the Zodiac Pocket Watch back into her blue jeans pocket.

“That is pretty handy!” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “Thank you all for the training.”

“And thank you for taking us back home.” Constance nodded as she gave Stephanie a gentle kiss on the cheek that caused her to blush.

Her bracelet around her wrist glowed, and Stephanie was transported from the Zodiac Realm to the same place where the gateway was.

Stephanie pushed her glasses into place as she looked up at the sky, seeing that it was already dark and not wise enough to stay outside with Nightmares roaming around.

So Stephanie started to head back to Hatt Hall, where it was safe to stay.

Two Nightmares scrambled through a dark realm as fast as they could before approaching someone sitting on a throne, perking up when they appeared before the stranger.

“What is it?” a deep, grave voice asked.

“The Torso was defeated,” the first Nightmare explained. “Along with the First Born Son!”

“What?!” the deep, grave voice exclaimed. “Why didn’t you both tell me?!”

“We were messing around at the station!” the second Nightmare exclaimed. “It was that blue-haired girl that-”

A clawed hand lifted and stopped the two from talking as the deep, grave voice demanded, “What else does she look like?”

The two Nightmares glanced at each other after the deep, grave voice asked, and the first Nightmare said, “She had pointed ears, azure blue eyes, and long, straight blue hair.”

The camera showed part of the face as a pair of ruby-red eyes with pinprick pupils narrowed slightly before a grin appeared, saying, “I would like to be alone now. You two keep letting me know the progress of the remaining Black Zodiacs.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the second Nightmare bowed.

“I’M A MAN, NOT A WOMAN!” The deep, grave voice shouted as a dagger was tossed at the Nightmare, missing inches as it scrambled backward.

“S-Sorry, ma’am!” The first Nightmare stuttered before correcting himself. “Sir, sir!”

“LEAVE YOU IMBECILES!” The two Nightmares ran away as another dagger was tossed before disappearing into thin air.

A body wearing black armor with a red lining sat back down after the blades were thrown, and an evil smile appeared on the stranger’s face.

“So she had returned to Sodor after so many years?” the stranger smiled. “This will be good news for me to bear witness to.”

Chapter Text

Sir Topham Hatt was thinking as he sat in his office, writing down paperwork and checking the time to know which engine was arriving on time.

According to the police, they had no luck searching for Avril and Kathleen, which worried Sir Topham Hatt.

If they are not on Sodor… could they be in Shining Time?

There could have been hints at where Avril and Kathleen could have gone when Sodor was drained of its magic.

But he cannot do it alone and would get stuck in Shining Time if he were not careful.

To keep himself from being lost in Shining Time, Sir Topham Hatt decided to ask Stephanie if she could take him to Shining Time to search for Avril and Kathleen.

A knock on his office door perked Sir Topham Hatt from his paperwork, and he glanced over, responding, “Enter.”

The door opened, and Stephanie stepped in with Notches and Lucy on her shoulders, saying, “Hello, sir! I went to the forest and found a lot of Dust Crystals.”

She reached into her bag and took out a Dust Crystal, darker than Gold Dust, which confused Sir Topham Hatt.

“I found Brass Dust!” Stephanie smiled with excitement.

“‘Brass Dust?’” Sir Topham Hatt’s voice echoed with confusion. “How can you tell if it is Brass Dust?”

Stephanie approached Sir Topham Hatt and said, “You may think it is weird, but I can tell this is Brass Dust because of the smell coming from it other than dirt.”

“Really?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, and Stephanie nodded.

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded. “I found that out when I stumbled across a dirt wall of bunched Dust Crystals.” She paused, adding, “It was a little overpowering because of all the metal smells.”

Sir Topham Hatt smiled a little after Stephanie added as she placed the Crystal Brass Dust away before saying, “Erm, Stephanie?”

“Yes, sir?” Stephanie responded, glancing over at him.

“I have some unfortunate news.” Stephanie looked worried after Sir Topham Hatt mentioned the news, turning her body back to him and asking, “What’s the bad news?”

“The police did not find Avril or Kathleen,” Sir Topham Hatt told Stephanie. “And I was wondering if perhaps they could be on Shining Time. Would you like to help take us to Shining Time?”

“Of course,” Stephanie nodded. “I have some friends I want to meet back at Shining Time. They must have been worried about where I could have gone.”

“That’s perfect,” Sir Topham Hatt said, standing up as Stephanie stepped back for him. “But we’ll need an engine to take us to Shining Time.”

Stephanie nodded and followed Sir Topham Hatt, stepping onto the station, and he went to Tidmouth Sheds with Stephanie, seeing Gordon and Thomas with Cleo and Romeo.

Stephanie had met Romeo during the trip to Sir Topham Hatt’s manor but had not talked to him since she was more focused on the ride.

Sir Topham Hatt and Stephanie stepped out of his cab as Stephanie followed him.

Cleo instantly noticed Stephanie and happily exclaimed, “Stephanie!” running over and hugging her with a glomp.

“Oof!” Cleo hugged Stephanie, who was startled but grinned as she accepted it. “Hello, Cleo.”

Romeo approached Stephanie, who perked up as he said, “So you’re Stephanie Cleo has been talking about.”

“Ah, yes,” Stephanie blushed a light blue as her ears flicked a little. “I’m Stephanie Allen. I haven’t gotten your name since the last time we met.”

“I’m Romeo.” Romeo pointed at himself with a thumb. “I’m Gordon’s engineer.”

“And Cleo’s my engineer,” Thomas added with a smile.

“Pleased to meet you,” Stephanie said politely before looking at Lucy and Notches. “This is Notches,” she said, pointing at her cat. “And this is Lucy, my guardian.” She pointed to Lucy.

Notches gave a little “meow” as Lucy said, “Hello.”

“She’s your guardian?” Romeo asked, mentioning Lucy.

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded. “She helps me find where the Zodiac Guardians are, to be specific.”

She looked at Sir Topham Hatt and said, blushing a little with sheepishness, “Oh, uh, Sir Topham Hatt wants to say something.”

“It’s fine, Stephanie.” Sir Topham Hatt assured her before turning to the two locomotives. “I must head to Shining Time to search for Avril, Kathleen, and Azazel. But Stephanie and I need someone to help us return to Shining Time.”

“I could take you there, sir,” Thomas perked.

“Pah!” Gordon huffed. “Your cab is much too small to fit that many people inside. I think Sir Topham Hatt wants me to take them.”

“Excuse me?” Stephanie spoke up before the two started arguing. “Why not both? In case one or the other runs out during the trip.”

Gordon and Thomas glanced at each other after Stephanie suggested, as Sir Topham Hatt said, “I think that is a grand plan, Stephanie.”

“Sir,” Romeo spoke up. “Do you think we could return to Shining Time? It’s been a long time since we were there.”

“Of course,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “But be careful.”

Stephanie smiled, saying, “You guys can take as long as you want. I’ll start refilling the Dust Whistle to make sure.”

So Stephanie went to refill the Dust Whistle but did not know that Diesel had overheard everything from the group and went to find Diesel 10.

Meanwhile, Diesel 10 was with the others at the Dieselworks before hearing Diesel’s horn and glancing up, seeing him enter.

“Got any news?” Diesel 10 asked as he moved forward with P.T. Boomer on his roof, with Conrad doing his best to fix Pinchy.

“I’ve got plenty,” Diesel nodded. “Stephanie and Fat Hatt will return to Shining Time with the other kids.”

“Wait, hold on,” Conrad spoke as he turned away from what he was doing. “There’s a way to return to the real realm?”

“Yes,” P.T. Boomer nodded. “Since Lady is the protector of Sodor, she connected the realms to Sodor so everyone, regardless of age or appearance, would come.”

“So it is real?” Baz asked.

P.T. Boomer nodded, saying, “I went through the same buffers when chasing after Thomas and then joined the chase with Diesel 10.”

“And we crashed too.” Diesel 10 nodded before flinching when Conrad hit something sensitive. “Ow! Be careful up there.”

“Sorry,” Conrad huffed. “Geez, someone banged up your claw.”

“It was from that kid, Romeo,” Diesel 10 growled. “When I get Pinchy on him, I’ll ensure he gets tossed into the ocean.”

“Whoa!” Bernie exclaimed. “You’re not going to do what I think you’re going to do-”

“What, nah!” Diesel 10 responded. “Only towards steamies and betraying diesels, not humans. I don’t think I’ve ever hurt a human before.”

Diesel 10 paused before saying, “But let’s follow them to see what that blue-haired girl is planning.”

Then he mentioned Diesel with Pinchy, saying, “And you’re coming with me in case something goes wrong.”

“Why not Splatter or Dodge?” Diesel asked, trying to mask his worried tone.

“Pah,” Diesel 10 huffed. “There’ll be too many diesels following, and it would lose our element of surprise. So you’re coming.”

Diesel had a bad feeling in his oil tanks about this plan, but since he wanted to help Diesel 10 get his ‘job’ back, he decided to go along with it.

Stephanie double-checked everything as she looked at the Dust Whistle around her neck, looking at the elements and the Dusts she collected.

Everything looked fine, but was Stephanie going to return to Shining Time?

Half of her was screaming that it was a bad idea, but the other half wanted to see if her friends were there and tell them she was okay.

But were they her ‘friends?’

Multiple thoughts were going through Stephanie’s mind about her choice before she flinched when someone’s hand was placed on her shoulder.

She glanced up at Darius, who asked, “Are you alright, Stephanie?”

“I’m fine,” Stephanie nodded, lying to him. “Just double-checking.”

Darius looked at the Dust Whistle around her neck as she turned around, placing it into her garments. “Let’s check everyone to see if they are ready for the journey.”

Darius was suspicious when Stephanie changed the subject, but he dropped it for later as she walked up to the engines.

There was Thomas at the front along with Cleo, Gordon at the back with Romeo, Spencer, a grand silver engine who is friends with Holly, and the Flying Scotsman, who is friends with Darius.

“Alright,” Stephanie nodded as she returned to Thomas. “I think that’s everyone. Let’s go.”

Thomas whistled as the others did the same, and Stephanie climbed into Thomas with the help of Cleo as they began heading towards the buffers.

Stephanie and Cleo looked through Thomas’ cab window as they approached the buffers, and Stephanie’s bracelet started glowing.

Stephanie looked down at it when it started glowing and became worried, wondering what it would do this time.

The line of steam locomotives suddenly went through the buffers, and it magically opened a portal, allowing the line to go through.

Peeking around the corner was Diesel 10, with Pinchy mended a little from being covered with ‘scars.’

After watching the first line go through the magic buffers, he smirked, saying, “Now’s our chance!”

So Diesel 10, with Diesel coupled behind him, followed the line through the buffers and entered the magic portal.

When they entered, they instantly saw how crazy everything was and went down on the rails, speeding down quickly.

The ride went wild as the tracks moved upward, downward, and left to right, and everyone held on.

Stephanie held on to Cleo as Sir Topham Hatt held onto the two as the ride continued, gritting her teeth as Notches had his claws out while giving yowls while Lucy held onto Stephanie’s hair.

“I forgot how crazy the rails can be!” Romeo called from Gordon’s cab.

Stephanie gritted her teeth again as the rails went downward, holding onto the ledge of Thomas’ cab window while Cleo and Sir Topham Hatt held onto them both.

Luckily, the ride ended when they exited the crazy ride, but Diesel 10 and Diesel followed behind as Diesel 10’s face went from grinning to ‘oh crap’ after seeing the rails.

Diesel 10 and Diesel went downward on rails as Diesel 10, and Diesel shrieked, speeding down the rails as they went through twists and turns.

Diesel 10’s voice went from shrieking to whooping excitedly while Diesel continued screaming from behind.

Since they could not slow down or stop, Diesel 10 continued moving forward, with Diesel following, getting dizzy and motion sick with all the movements and the craziness.

They soon came towards one of the exits and went through it, which was different from what the previous group went through.

They exit the buffers near the Shining Time Station, and Thomas’ eyes spin around crazily before stopping after he closes them.

“Never again,” moaned the Flying Scotsman, looking a little dizzy from the ride.

Spencer gagged a little from motion sickness but did not vomit as he groaned, his cheeks green like the Flying Scotsman’s paintwork.

Stephanie gingerly stood up from kneeling on the ground with Cleo in her arm, looking a little dizzy as her ears drooped as Cleo pushed her glasses into place.

Notches were dizzy too with Lucy, as Notches meowed dizzily while Lucy released Stephanie’s hair, getting some snapped strands on her fingers.

“That…” Stephanie groaned. “That was the first time I went on a rollercoaster before.”

Cleo opened the cab door to allow her and Stephanie to step out, and Stephanie leaned against Thomas’ side while Cleo leaned with her.

Notches hopped off with Lucy, with Lucy landing on her feet before going onto her knees, while Notches stumbled before lying on his belly.

“Are you okay?” Darius asked as he gingerly walked over but looked a little dizzy.

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded. “I’m just taking a minute to regain consciousness.”

Stephanie blinked a few times to stop her vision from spinning before perking up when she noticed someone missing from the cab.

“Driver?” Thomas spoke, perking a little when he noticed something was off. “Stephanie, is there someone missing?”

“Yes, I can’t move,” nodded Gordon.

Stephanie removed her arm from around Cleo and peered into the cab, looking confused before seeing something black from the corner of her eye.

She glanced at what was black, thinking it was a lump of coal, but to her surprise, Sir Topham Hatt was gingerly getting up with the help of Thomas’ driver and fireman.

And he was the size of a doll compared to her!

After Sir Topham Hatt was up, he noticed Stephanie staring at him with a worried but confused expression, and he yelped after seeing her.

He jolted backward, which caused him to slip and fall onto his bottom, tugging Thomas’ driver and fireman with him as they landed on the ground.

Stephanie carefully stepped into Thomas’ cab after watching Sir Topham Hatt fall onto his bottom, scooping all three into her palms.

“Are you alright?” Stephanie asked.

“We’re fine,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, slightly startled by how small he was compared to Stephanie. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Stephanie nodded, standing up carefully with the precious cargo. “We arrived at Shining Time.”

Stephanie stepped out of Thomas’ cab with the three in her hands and showed them to Thomas, who instantly became worried.

“What happened to them?” Thomas asked.

“It’s normal, Thomas,” Sir Topham Hatt said to Thomas, although he was a little perturbed at how massive Thomas was to him at this newfound size. “Most of the people who are born in Sodor are the same size as Mr. Conductor.”

“Wait a moment,” Stephanie asked as he glanced at her. “We’re looking for someone your size?”

“Theoretically, yes,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “But I believe he and the others are with Stacy.” He paused after seeing Stephanie’s confused expression. “I’ll explain on the way to Stacy.”

Stephanie nodded as she looked at the others, Darius holding the Flying Scotsman’s crew, Holly with Spencer’s, and Romeo with Gordon’s.

“This is bad.” Thomas winced.

“How are we supposed to move without our drivers?” The Flying Scotsman asked.

“I think it’s best to stay here with your drivers and firemen,” Sir Topham Hatt told the engines. “We’ll be back sooner or later after finding Mr. Conductor.”

Stephanie allowed Thomas’ driver and fireman to return to Thomas’ cab while Sir Topham Hatt stayed.

She placed him on her shoulder, hiding underneath all her blue hair, as Notches stood up to get comfortable and placed his head on her other shoulder.

“That means you too, Lucy,” Stephanie said as she looked at Lucy after picking her up from the ground.

Lucy nodded and allowed Stephanie to place her into Thomas’ cab as Stephanie placed Sir Topham Hatt on her shoulder, just hidden underneath her long hair.

Notches climbed on the other shoulder into Stephanie’s hood, and after having her ‘passengers,’ Stephanie followed Darius, Romeo, and Cleo while the others waited patiently.

Meanwhile, Diesel 10 and Diesel came out of the tunnel somewhere else, and Diesel 10 slowed down, his eyes spinning before closing them as he exclaimed, “That. Was. Awesome!”

Diesel’s face behind Diesel 10 was completely green as he was uncoupled from Diesel 10 and stopped a few feet away.

Suddenly, his cheeks puffed up, and the camera switched to Diesel 10 as he heard what sounded like vomiting as he grimaced.

“Oh, that’s nasty,” Diesel 10 groaned.

Diesel 10’s cab door opened as P.T. Boomer stepped out, holding something in his arms before stumbling out and landing on his side out of dizziness.

He carried Conrad, Baz, Bernie, Diesel 10’s driver, and Sailor John, who were all dizzy like him.

“Oi!” Sailor John groaned as Baz adjusted his hat into place. “That was one wild… ride…”

His voice trailed off when he noticed something strange with the world, seeing everything look too big.

Everyone slowly noticed, even seeing how much bigger Diesel 10 looked, as a bad feeling sat in their stomachs.

“Alright,” Baz said, reassuring the slowly growing panicked group. “Everything is just vertigo. It’ll be normal when we’ll-”

That was until a crow appeared after it landed in front of the smaller group, and they all flinched, proving that it was all real as it cawed.

That caused Bernie to panic and go underneath P.T. Boomer’s jacket with Conrad after he exclaimed, “Oh my god!”

P.T. Boomer sat up after hearing Conrad’s “Oh my god!” and glanced over, startling the crow as it took off into the air as he sat up.

“Yeah, back off,” P.T. Boomer growled. “I’m not dead yet.”

He felt movement underneath his jacket and lifted it slightly, seeing a panicked Conrad and Bernie hugging each other.

“Boomer, what happened?!” Baz exclaimed, shakily standing to his feet. “How are you big?! A-And how is Diesel 10 and Diesel huge?!”

“Everything is big, Baz!” Bernie cried, terrified.

“Yeah, I want to get back home right now!” Conrad nodded.

“We can’t go back,” P.T. Boomer told them as he pushed himself up, fighting against his dizziness. “We’re-”

He paused when he noticed Diesel 10’s driver and glanced at Diesel 10, muttering, “Of course.”

P.T. Boomer picked everyone up in his arms as Diesel 10 noticed, asking, “Wait, if that’s my driver, who’s going to drive me?”

“We’ll come back to you after finishing some unfinished business,” P.T. Boomer told him. “It’s best to stay here since everyone will panic about a sentient diesel.”

“Good point,” Diesel 10 nodded before glancing over from the corner of his eyes. “What about Diesel?”

“The same goes with him, too,” P.T. Boomer nodded. “But stay here where no one can see you.”

“That’s what I can do most of the time.” Diesel 10 nodded as P.T. Boomer went to Diesel, glancing at his face before grimacing as he walked past.

P.T. Boomer opened the cab door and looked inside, seeing Diesel’s driver looking confused while standing on the control panel.

So he took Diesel’s driver with him since he would not be safe being alone at that height, placing them into his jacket’s inside pockets near his torso.

It is better than putting them on the outside of his pockets, where everyone would see them.

After adjusting, P.T. Boomer went on his adventure as Diesel 10, and Diesel stayed where they were, deciding to find something he did not take with him.

Meanwhile, Darius, Cleo, and Romeo noticed many changes in Shining Time the last time they were there, seeing that most shops had changed while others stayed the same.

Stephanie looked through Shining Time as she followed the three siblings, wondering where they were going, while Sir Topham Hatt looked from underneath her long hair.

He was glad that Stephanie’s hair acted like a curtain for him to hide from the people walking through Shining Time, but he could not see much in front of him.

They soon came across a house a few miles away from the village, and Darius, Romeo, and Cleo walked up to the door as Stephanie waited in the background.

She was unsure if she would step up to the door or what their reaction would be if they saw her.

Darius knocked on the door, and it opened, revealing a man with short jet-black hair, fair skin, a white button-up shirt, a plaid jacket with slacks, and a belt with a red tie.

“Grandpa!” Cleo hugged the stranger’s legs as he hugged her and the other kids.

“It’s so good to see you all again!” The stranger smiled as he released their hugs. “What happened to you all? The letters were unanswered, and I couldn’t call your cell phones.”

“We’ll explain everything once we get inside,” Romeo explained before glancing over at Stephanie, who perked up. “Ah, Grandpa, there’s someone we’d like to introduce.”

Romeo made the ‘come here’ mention with his hand towards Stephanie, and she nodded, stepping up to the person as Romeo placed his hand on her back.

The grandpa perked up after seeing Stephanie stand before him as she nervously fidgeted with her hands.

“Grandpa,” Darius spoke. “This is Stephanie, and,” Stephanie moved her hair back to show Sir Topham Hatt, who perked before repositioning himself while the other held onto Stephanie’s hood. “Sir Topham Hatt.”

“What happened to him?” The grandpa asked. “He was my height when I arrived in Sodor.”

“That’s because people from Sodor are the same height as Mr. Conductor in the real realm,” Stephanie explained. “That’s why he’s at this height.”

Sir Topham Hatt silently nodded after Stephanie explained as he said, “Why don’t you all come inside and explain everything?”

So they entered as Stephanie stepped inside with them, starting to feel more nervous as she was inside the house, which was a little homey and different.

Very different from the one she-

Stephanie forced the thoughts out of her mind as they sat down and started to explain what happened, and she sat down, listening to the conversation.

She allowed Sir Topham Hatt to climb from her shoulder and into her left palm as Notches climbed onto her shoulders, curled around her neck, and laid down.

When they mentioned Stephanie’s Dust Whistle, Stephanie showed the whistle to Grandpa Schemer or Mr. Schemer, as he would ask Stephanie to call him.

Schemer felt confused about the Dust Whistle when Stephanie showed it to him before looking surprised when Stephanie showed him the Zodiac Pocket Watch, which was the second gift that was given to her.

She wishes to use it to show Mr. Schemer what powers it has, but she does not want to get on Mr. Schemer’s bad side or accidentally wreck the place.

After explaining everything, Mr. Schemer said, “From what I’m hearing, you helped everyone by using Gold Dust after the island’s magic was drained?”

“Exactly,” Stephanie nodded while holding Sir Topham Hatt before saying. “And I must fight off these Nightmares to save Sodor and its people.”

“And these things are dangerous to anyone?” Mr. Schemer asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I’m the only one who can banish these Nightmares away too.”

“Really?” Mr. Schemer asked as he stood up with a cup of coffee. “I don’t believe in that-”

He accidentally tipped over something, and Stephanie took this chance to use the ability, managing to grab the item with her strings before putting it back into place.

“Now I believe it.” Mr. Schemer sighed as the strings disappeared once the item was placed. “Why does that always happen?”

Stephanie chuckled as Cleo said, “Grandpa doesn’t believe in much of Sodor’s magic or what we told him, but he’ll warm up after learning more about it.”

“I hope so,” Stephanie nodded. “But I didn’t know he was your grandpa.”

“Let me guess,” Romeo sighed. “You’ve heard stories about what he did.”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “Many people around here talk a lot about him, and I can tell he has much to handle.”

“I’m right here.” Mr. Schemer blushed as he returned with another cup of coffee.

Stephanie chuckled after Mr. Schemer told them as he asked, “How did you all get here, though?”

“Thomas, Gordon, Spencer, and the Flying Scotsman helped us get here,” Darius explained.

“And I’m searching for someone,” Sir Topham Hatt said. “Have you seen a man with jet-black hair, light blue eyes, and a blue uniform?”

Stephanie perked up after Sir Topham Hatt asked, and Mr. Schemer said, “I don’t think so. I haven’t seen anyone look like that.”

Sir Topham Hatt looked worried and added, “But I did see some people wearing blue uniforms, if you were wondering.”

“Really?” Stephanie asked as everyone perked up. “Who are they?”

“I don’t know much about them. Shining Time Station was on the verge of closing,” Mr. Schemer explained. “Stacy took small people wearing blue uniforms to her house, and I haven’t heard from them since.”

“That must be Mr. Conductor!” Sir Topham Hatt perked up.

“Do you know where Stacy is, Grandpa?” Romeo asked.

“She lives a few miles from where I am,” Mr. Schemer explained. “I could bargain for a taxi to take us to Stacy’s house.”

Stephanie’s bracelet suddenly glowed, and she flinched, looking at it as it flashed a light gold.

“Erm, Stephanie?” Sir Topham Hatt spoke after looking at the bracelet. “What’s happening to your bracelet?”

“I think it’s going to do the same thing again.” Stephanie worriedly responded.

Just as she said that line, the bracelet suddenly tugged Stephanie forward, and Sir Topham Hatt instantly grabbed Stephanie’s thumb from her left hand.

She yelped in startlement as it went toward Darius, magically connecting his wrist with hers like a gigantic bracelet for the two.

It did the same to the others, as Mr. Schemer was startled, asking, “What’s happening?!”

“I think my bracelet is acting up again!” Stephanie exclaimed as the yellow color brightened. “Be careful-”

Stephanie’s sentence was cut off when they disappeared into thin air, leaving only Mr. Schemer’s cup as it landed on the ground with a dull clunk.

P.T. Boomer was driving on his motorcycle through Shining Time, heading towards Muffler Mountain, where he knew where most of the secrets were.

He wore his motorcycle helmet and goggles as he sped down the empty road, heading toward the mountains.

No steam locomotives were puffing down the line as he crossed the empty railroad crossings before finally appearing at Muffler Mountain.

He parked his motorcycle somewhere safe where thugs would not find it and hopped off, taking his goggles off as he looked at the mountains.

They looked so different from when he attempted to blast the mountains to get to Burnett long ago, still seeing holes in the mountains from the dynamite he had used.

…But all that changed when-

“Hey, Boomer!” P.T. Boomer flinched from his thoughts as he opened his jacket, looking at his passengers. “Why did you stop?”

“Yeah, I can’t see!” nodded Conrad.

“We just stopped at Muffler Mountain,” P.T. Boomer huffed. “There are a few things Burnett left behind, and I want to find them.”

They looked at the mountain and looked uneasy but stayed silent as P.T. Boomer closed his jacket and started heading to Muffler Mountain.

There were signs of destruction from him as he climbed up the mountain path, but they were slowly being refilled with dirt and rocks after he stopped blasting.

P.T. Boomer soon reached the top of one of the peaks and glanced around, knowing there had to be something he could find to enter the mountain.

He continued walking down the path before accidentally slipping and tumbling down the steep trail and landing bottom-first on the ground.

P.T. Boomer winced slightly in pain as he sat up, already feeling his arthritis returning to him from his lower hips.

“Be careful, will you?!” Baz exclaimed from his jacket’s inside pockets as P.T. Boomer sighed.

“Hey, I’m not your bus!” P.T. Boomer frowned, poked Baz, and he stopped talking. “So just-”

P.T. Boomer stopped after seeing something from the corner of his eye as he slowly sat up, seeing it looked like something hidden underneath vines.

He got to his feet and walked over to where he saw it, rubbing his arthritis as it slowly ebbed away before stopping in front of the vines.

P.T. Boomer reached over to the vines and pushed them to the side, seeing a long, rocky tunnel within Muffler Mountain.

“Burnett, you sly genius!” P.T. Boomer quietly remarked.

He stepped into the tunnel as the vines recovered the entrance, slowly walking into the darkness but being careful.

P.T. Boomer continued walking further into the darkness as he used his hands to help him walk through it before entering a room.

He stopped walking after entering a large room and reached into his other pockets, taking out a flashlight before turning it on.

It was a workshop with cobwebs on each corner, and it looked like it had been forgotten.

“I finally found it,” P.T. Boomer smiled. “It took me long enough to find it, hmm, Burnett?”

His smile faded a little after mentioning Burnett as he walked over to the table and looked around the workshop’s table.

P.T. Boomer did not see much except for some paper scraps of Lady’s design that were left around the place.

“Excuse me?” Of course, he forgot about his passengers. “What’s going on out there?”

P.T. Boomer placed the items and allowed them to step out of his pockets, seeing some of the things and the workshop.

“Where are we?” Sailor John asked.

“We’re in Burnett’s workshop,” P.T. Boomer explained as he uncrumpled the scrapped blueprints Burnett sketched. “I knew it was still here after all these years.”

The group looked around at the workshop from the table as P.T. Boomer found lamps, using the lighter to light them as they still had oil.

“It looks a little deserted,” Bernie remarked.

“Burnett passed away long ago,” P.T. Boomer somewhat coldly responded. “He left a lot behind after his granddaughter took the pedestal for being Lady’s engineer.”

Everyone can tell by the tone in P.T. Boomer’s voice that he was cold about it, but they heard a hint of regret in his voice but decided not to point it out or tease it.

P.T. Boomer saw something lying facedown on one of the shelves and reached over to it, flipping it back up, and it was a picture of them when they were younger.

The picture had Tasha, Burnett, and P.T. Boomer as kids, with Lady in the middle, smiling as they took their photo.

A picture that was supposed to be a memory of their friendship… but it had all faded.

P.T. Boomer stared at the picture for a while before sighing and opening his jacket as he placed the photograph into his secret pocket, deciding to take it.

“Hey, Boomer?” P.T. Boomer perked up after hearing Conrad’s voice and glanced over, noticing he was staring at something. “What’s that over there?”

P.T. Boomer glanced at what Conrad was staring at but could not see it as he glanced around at the general area.

“Where?” P.T. Boomer asked. “I don’t see it.”

“Well, pick me up then!” Conrad exclaimed. “I’ll show you where it is.”

P.T. Boomer wrapped his hand around Conrad and picked him up from the workshop’s table, walking over to where he saw it and instructing, “Forward. Forward. Okay, stop. Left. Your other left. Down. A little bit up, there!”

Conrad reached up to a brick that was somewhat poking out from the wall and pushed against it, pausing when it would not push in.

“Do you want me to-?” “I got it!” Conrad huffed as he attempted to push the brick into place as P.T. Boomer waited.

After a few struggles, Conrad sighed, saying, “Yes, I need help.”

P.T. Boomer placed Conrad on his shoulder and pushed the brick into place, hearing what sounded like a click.

Suddenly, a secret brick door opened next to P.T. Boomer, revealing another hallway within Muffler Mountain.

“That’s new,” Conrad remarked as P.T. Boomer poked his head in, looking around before stepping back.

He turned to the others and picked them up, allowing them to take his shoulders or outside pockets, still slightly irritated that he was their ‘bus.’

P.T. Boomer is not paid enough for this.

After everyone had their ‘seats,’ P.T. Boomer picked up one of the lanterns and started walking down the hallway, heading further into Muffler Mountain.

A woman with short jet-black hair, fair skin, and wearing a red uniform with black high heels was sitting worriedly in her seat, thinking about what she could do.

Earlier, she was trying to help Mr. Conductor and his family remember who they were as their memories were slowly fading, and she was worried they might permanently forget who they were and who she was.

She sighed as she placed a hand on her cheek, believing that nothing would help her situation, even if-

The woman gasped and looked at the pile after a flash of color appeared.

“Ow!” voices exclaimed as their arms were in front of them, showing what looked like a gigantic bracelet wrapped around all their wrists.

Mr. Schemer, Stephanie, Notches, Romeo, Darius, and Cleo were trying to get up, but they were having trouble with Mr. Schemer on their backs.

Notches scrambled off when they landed on the ground after appearing near the house’s ceiling.

Even Sir Topham Hatt collapsed on his side when they all landed, but he was safe from danger as he moved back just in time.

“Ow, your leg is in my stomach!” Romeo exclaimed.

“Sorry!” Stephanie exclaimed.

“Piggybank, you’re grabbing my tie!” Mr. Schemer exclaimed when he tried to get up, but Cleo had a hold of his tie.

“Sorry, Grandpa,” Cleo apologized.

The woman stood up from her seat and walked over to the group, kneeling to help them up as the gigantic bracelet magically unwrapped itself from their wrists and returned to Stephanie’s wrist.

“Are you all alright?” She asked.

“Stacy?” Cleo asked as Stacy asked, “What happened to you? How did you all get into my house?”

“Gosh, darn bracelet!” Stephanie hissed angrily at her bracelet after everyone got up. “Sometimes, I wonder if you picked me just to play around with me!”

She perked as she glanced at Stacy upside down and perked as she flipped onto her front, not noticing Sir Topham Hatt was getting up a few feet away from where they were, saying, “Ah, sorry, sorry, ma’am! Crazy magic bracelet.”

“Your bracelet is magic too?!” Mr. Schemer exclaimed after Stephanie mentioned the bracelet around her wrist.

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded sheepishly as Notches walked over with Sir Topham Hatt on his back. “Are you okay, sir?”

“I’m fine,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded, hopping off Notches’ back and onto her palm when she moved her hand down to him.

He turned to Stacy as he asked, “Where’s Mr. Conductor?”

“He’s in the guest bedroom with the others,” Stacy responded. “How did you do? What’s-?”

“Let me explain, Stacy.” Mr. Schemer gently pulled her back as Stephanie carried Sir Topham Hatt. “The room is down the hallway to the right.”

Stephanie nodded as she walked through the hallway, and Stacy stayed behind to listen to the family and Mr. Schemer.

She walked through the house while Notches followed behind before turning to the right, where the door to the room was.

Stephanie opened the door and looked inside, seeing four people lying on one gigantic bed compared to them.

Their skin looked pale from the light’s shine, and they looked asleep but were sweating as Stephanie walked over, placing Sir Topham Hatt down on the bed.

“Is that bad?” Stephanie asked as Notches hopped onto the bed.

Sir Topham Hatt did not respond as he looked at their condition, feeling their pulse and watching them twitch slightly in their sleep.

“No, it isn’t,” Sir Topham Hatt responded after being silent, looking worried about the conductors. “They’re slowly losing their consciousness.”

“Is there a way to reverse this?” Stephanie asked.

Sir Topham Hatt paused after Stephanie asked, his face looking weary, and Stephanie could tell he did not know if there was something reversible.

Stephanie’s bracelet suddenly glowed, and she perked up, looking at it and seeing it shimmer gold before fading.

“Wait,” Stephanie said as Sir Topham Hatt glanced at her. “What if Gold Dust could help?”

“You think Gold Dust can help?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“It was shimmering gold when it took us here,” Stephanie responded as she removed the Dust Whistle from her garments. “I think it was trying to tell us there is a way.”

Stephanie looked at the symbol, which was gold, before standing up to her height and whispering, “Please let this work.”

She took a breath and blew the Dust Whistle, watching as Gold Dust came from it and hovered over the conductors, sprinkling Gold Dust on them.

As the Gold Dust was sprinkled on them, their skin color slowly shifted to its original pigment as they perked up and waited anxiously.

Slowly, they started shifting in their sleep before awakening, some looking confused while others yawned.

Then they noticed the Gold Dust cloud over them as they sat up, glancing over to see Stephanie with Notches and Sir Topham Hatt.

“Hello, sir,” the youngest conductor greeted. “How long have we been asleep?”

“Far too long, Junior,” Sir Topham Hatt softly chuckled.

Stacy entered the room after conversing and saw that the conductors were moving and finally awake as she knelt at their height.

“Mr. Conductor?” They all glanced over at Stacy as she started to cry in happiness.

“It’s okay, Stacy,” the first Mr. Conductor assured. “We’re all fine now thanks to…?”

He paused as he mentioned Stephanie with a hand, and she softly responded, although with some tears, “Stephanie.”

“Stephanie,” the first conductor finished before they were all scooped up by Stacy, and she hugged them all as Sir Topham Hatt moved to the side.

The conductors thanked Stacy for her help in taking care of them and thanked Stephanie for her help, as Stephanie was trying not to be overwhelmed by the emotions.

Her bracelet may have some benefits for helping people in need.

P.T. Boomer was still walking through the rocky hallway, still using the lamp to guide his way while everyone was riding on his shoulders or in his pockets.

How long was this hallway?

P.T. Boomer soon entered a somewhat larger hallway, and this time it had what looked like carved marble statues down the line on both sides of the hallway.

Each resembles a god, a goddess, or a constellation from Greece, the Aztecs, or different mythologies that came from books.

What were all these marble statues doing here?

P.T. Boomer walked past the marble statues as he entered another hallway, this time with painted pictures of what looked like ancient beings.

Their hair was jet-black, starlight white, or reddish-yellow like the sun.

Who are these beings?

As P.T. Boomer exits the hallway and enters a much larger space, the lantern in his hand shines on a massive mural before him.

The mural was carved out of stone and resembled humans with pointy ears, each holding a star that looked like it had fallen from the sky.

P.T. Boomer followed the mural as it showed more of the story, but parts were left out since most of it cracked from age.

One of the murals showed three beings banishing what looked like a gigantic monster with sharp claws and a monstrous appearance, but the face was cracked and missing.

But the smaller creatures around it looked almost like the Nightmares roaming Sodor, causing destruction.

P.T. Boomer glanced away from the mural and continued walking down the hallway, soon entering another spacious room and noticing he had entered what looked like a throne room.

The chairs were gigantic for giants to sit on, and they had symbols on the top, one with a sun, one with a star, and the other with a moon.

P.T. Boomer inspected the gigantic throne room, seeing that there were tapestries, but they were all worn out of color and had ripped from age.

A sudden shine in the background perked P.T. Boomer’s attention, and he glanced over, seeing something hidden underneath one of the ripped tapestries.

P.T. Boomer walked down and carefully kneeled, removing the tapestry from the object and seeing it look like an amulet.

The amulet was connected to a snapped necklace and had an ocean blue gemstone cut in a hexagonal column attached to it with a silver band, and the gemstone was lightly glowing.

Who left this necklace behind?

P.T. Boomer stood up after picking up the necklace and was about to put it into one of his pockets when it suddenly shone and wrapped around his ring finger.

He instantly panicked as he dropped the lantern as it clattered, trying to remove the ring, but it stuck to his finger whenever he tried to get it off.

It was silver and had the same gemstone, except it had magically transformed into a round-cut gemstone.

“Magic.” P.T. Boomer muttered, now stuck with a ring stuck to him.

Suddenly, the room started shifting as P.T. Boomer perked up, watching as a brick fell from the ceiling and crashed onto the ground.

P.T. Boomer scrambled to his feet and was about to leave when the ring glowed, transporting him and the others to the workshop.

P.T. Boomer looked at the door as it was magically sealed up, and the door closed, indicating that the entrance they walked through had disappeared.

“What the hell was all that?!” Sailor John exclaimed.

Stephanie and Stacy, carrying the Conductors on their shoulders with Sir Topham Hatt, Darius, Mr. Schemer, Romeo, and Cleo, were returning to Thomas and the others when Stephanie stopped walking.

She heard what sounded like someone calling for her.

“Stephanie?” Notches spoke as he turned to her. “What’s wrong?”

Stephanie turned to the others and caught up with them, saying, “Guys, I need to go see someone.”

“Be careful, Stephanie,” Romeo warned. “It’s almost midnight.”

Stephanie nodded and walked through the darkness as everyone reached Shining Time Station, where Thomas and the others had fallen asleep.

“Thomas,” Cleo said, climbing onto Thomas’ buffers and gently patting his cheeks. “Wake up, Thomas.”

Thomas lightly snorted awake after Cleo gently patted his cheeks, groggily opening his eyes as Romeo did the same with Gordon and the others with the Flying Scotsman and Spencer.

“Did you find him?” Thomas asked before yawning.

“Yes,” Cleo nodded, mentioning Mr. Schemer and Stacy, carrying the Conductors with her, including Sir Topham Hatt. “And we found Mr. Conductor too!”

“Mr. Conductors.” C. Junior pointed out as Mr. Conductor, the third, rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, a light shone on them as they squirted, causing them to turn around to see what was shining at them.

They saw a male teenager with short jet-black hair, round glasses, and brown eyes wearing a gray uniform with a black tie.

Everyone instantly froze like a deer in headlights, and the teenager looked shocked as he held his phone in his hand, using it like a flashlight.

“Uh,” C. Junior was the first to speak as everyone looked at each other worriedly. “Meow?”

Instantly, the teenager panicked and screamed, causing everyone to do the same as he scrambled backward, dropping his phone while stuttering and pointing.

“Jackson?!” a voice exclaimed as a woman appeared, holding a flashlight. “What’s-?”

She instantly stopped talking after looking at them, and her mind went back to what she had seen and looked at, and she instantly gasped as she stood up to her full height.

She has long graying hair tied back into a bun with two braids, fair skin, light brown eyes, round glasses, and brown nineteenth-century-style clothes.

“D-Don’t panic!” Cleo fretted, glancing over at Thomas. “He’s our friend!”

They scrambled back as the woman helped the teenager named ‘Jackson’ up before bumping into someone behind them.

“Easy, easy!” Gold strings suddenly appeared, strung up as Stephanie was using both hands. “Calm down!”

She paused after seeing the two people and asked, “Jackson? Ms. Richards?”

They perked up after seeing Stephanie, and Jackson exclaimed, “Where were you?! You didn’t call. You didn’t let me know. You didn’t write a note. You-”

He paused as he pieced together the strings wrapped around them and exclaimed, “How are you doing this?!”

“I’ll explain after you two calm down,” Stephanie told them as she loosened the strings around them, allowing them to get back on the ground. “Most people here, including steamies, are from Sodor.”

They instantly looked back at Stephanie as Ms. Richards asked, “You were on Sodor?!”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “Just like the books!”

“And it’s real?!” Ms. Richards asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, mentioning the steam locomotives as they glanced over. “They and their drivers and firemen, including Sir Topham Hatt, came from Sodor.”

The steam locomotives smiled as they flinched as Stephanie gently took their hands, Jackson with the right and Ms. Richards with the left.

“It’s okay,” Stephanie assured them. “I’m alright. Sir Topham Hatt and the others cared for me when I went to Sodor.”

“But,” Jackson started. “You were gone for two months, and this entire time, you were staying on Sodor?!”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded with a chuckle, releasing Jackson’s hand and showing him her phone. “My crappy phone does not connect easily to the Wi-Fi since your parents shut it down.”

“What?!” Jackson exclaimed, taking the piece of crap phone from Stephanie and looking at it. “They gave you this phone the whole time?!”

“Stephanie.” The two flinched after hearing Gordon’s voice as Thomas asked, “What do you mean by that?”

After realizing that many of her secrets had been revealed, Stephanie winced and muttered, glancing at the camera, “I’m in big trouble.”

“How did you manage to get this stuck?!” Conrad and the others were trying to get the ring off P.T. Boomer’s hand after returning to where they left Diesel 10, but they were having no luck getting it off.

“I don’t know!” P.T. Boomer exclaimed. “It just suddenly got onto my finger!” He paused with a slight wince and added, “Though, I think you should stop. It’s starting to hurt.”

So they stopped after P.T. Boomer mentioned it, proving that he is stuck with a ring around his finger and has no luck getting it off.

“Well, ye got yourself some jewelry.” Sailor John mentioned, and P.T. Boomer looked unamused.

As they got close to where Diesel and Diesel 10 were, they stopped when they heard what sounded like a voice speaking.

“Wow!” the voice exclaimed, sounding impressed. “How is this possible? It’s fantastic!”

P.T. Boomer felt worried after hearing the voice and stepped out from where he was, seeing a person looking at Diesel 10, who was staring back at her with confusion.

From the view of her back, she was wearing a long black trench coat, short graying hair in two ponytails, and a single strand poked out from the top.

She was also wearing blue jeans with long jet-black boots, inspecting Diesel 10’s face by gently pushing back his lips to look at his teeth, as he has semi-sharp canines.

“Hey!” P.T. Boomer exclaimed, startling the person as she glanced over, wearing round glasses and golden eyes. “What are you doing with him?”

She perked up when P.T. Boomer stepped out from where he was and instantly rushed over to him, startling him as she asked, “You know this diesel? Where did you come from? Are there others like him? Why is the other one sick? How are these people-”

“Slow down,” P.T. Boomer spoke, grabbing her face with a single hand and gently pushing back. “First, who are you? Second, what were you doing with Diesel 10?”

He removed his hand to let her speak, and she said, “I was just looking at him! And my name is Dominique Ember! But I prefer being called ‘Ember.’”

“Alright, Ember,” P.T. Boomer sighed as Diesel 10 looked confused with Diesel. “Don’t do that again to a diesel, okay?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “But how are they alive? Is there more like him?”

P.T. Boomer groaned as Bernie said, “Yes, there’s an island for them.”

“Really?!” she perked with interest. “So it isn’t a legend after all!”

‘Well, there goes ‘trying to keep it a secret.’’ P.T. Boomer sighed as Baz glared at Bernie.

“And that’s what happened.” Stephanie shrugged with a sheepish smile. “And why I barely talked about them.”

Stephanie explained how she was kicked out of her ‘foster’ parents’ house before Jackson returned home after graduating high school.

She went to Shining Time Station because it was the only place standing and empty for her to make a home out of, and she accidentally got herself sent to Sodor when she entered.

“But,” Thomas paused. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Yes, including me out of all people?” Jackson asked as Ms. Richards nodded.

“I couldn’t call because they handed me that phone,” Stephanie explained. “And I was worried they would come to the library to fetch me.” She gripped her blue jeans, which perked Sir Topham Hatt’s attention. “So, I went to Shining Time Station because it’s the only place they would not find me.”

“Honey,” Ms. Richard gently cupped Stephanie’s face as she perked. “It’s okay. You were afraid of meeting them again.”

Stephanie softly smiled after Ms. Richard assured her, and Stephanie said with a soft smile, “But Sodor is my home now.”

“Wait, what?” everyone asked.

Stephanie smiled softly as she repeated, “I want to stay at Sodor. The people there are much better, and I feel safe staying there.”

Sirens suddenly went through the air, and everyone jolted as Stephanie exclaimed, “Except that!”

Stephanie gently pushed Jackson towards Thomas as he instantly put his heels into the ground, shouting, “Wait, wait, wait, wait! What are you doing?!”

“You need to get into Thomas’ cab!” Stephanie exclaimed. “There’s no time to explain!”

As Stephanie took out her Dust Whistle, Jackson climbed into Thomas’ cab and helped Ms. Richard and Cleo into Thomas’ cab.

But she stopped whistling as she said, “Oh, wait! There’s no water or coal around and no one to help me!”

So Stephanie opened her Zodiac Pocket Watch, looking at the time as the arms pointed at the Taurus Zodiac and the other three Zodiacs.

Stephanie tapped the top and soon transformed into her minotaur form from the Chinese Zodiac, startling both Jackson and Ms. Richards when she transformed.

Even Thomas was surprised when she transformed before watching her push his buffers with her might, managing to push Thomas, Gordon, Spencer, and the Flying Scotsman with everyone on board.

The sirens were getting closer, so Stephanie pushed more with all her might, heading back toward the magic buffers as she picked up speed.

“Stephanie!” Gordon exclaimed. “Slow down! Tender engines will crash if-”

But the sentence stopped when Stephanie pushed everyone through the magic buffers and followed behind, only for her bracelet around her wrist to glow.

The bracelet suddenly yanked her upward in the magic tunnel, releasing Thomas’ buffers as they descended the magic railroad.

“OH, MMMMMOOOOO!” Stephanie shrieked and mooed simultaneously as everyone exclaimed, “STEPHANIE!”

Meanwhile, P.T. Boomer was pinching his nose bridge while Ember was playing a game called ‘20 Questions,’ as she asked, ‘How did Diesel 10 get Pinchy?’, ‘How many diesels roam around Sodor?’ and ‘How small can children be?’

Thankfully, the questions were all stopped when the sound of sirens went through the air, and everyone perked up as Ember exclaimed, “Crap, the fuzz!”

“Quick, do you know how to drive a diesel?” P.T. Boomer asked.

“Yes, and no,” Ember responded. “I’ve read a book about diesels but never driven one.”

“Don’t worry,” Diesel 10’s driver said. “Let me instruct you how to drive Diesel 10.”

Ember and P.T. Boomer climbed into Diesel 10’s cab, and Ember listened to Diesel 10’s driver instructing her how to start Diesel 10 and move backward.

Diesel had been cleaned from his ‘accident’ with the help of Ember when she stumbled upon them and was worried when he heard what sounded like sirens before being startled when Diesel 10 went backward.

“That’s it,” Diesel 10 muttered. “Keep moving backward.”

They quickly picked up speed and were about to head to the same tunnel, but then there was trouble!

Diesel instead went on the other rails, and since they were uncoupled, it caused Diesel to move back freely while Diesel 10 heard Diesel’s shriek and glanced over.

“Diesel!” Diesel 10 exclaimed but went through the tunnel as Diesel watched.

Luckily, he slowed down as his power was not turned on… but went down a hill as Diesel continued shrieking.

Unfortunately, P.T. Boomer’s ring glowed when they entered the magic tunnel, which surprised him.

He was suddenly teleported outside Diesel 10’s cab and into the air of the magic tunnel, screaming as he tried grabbing Pinchy, and it shot up to grab him, but his finger slipped as it missed him by inches.

“Boomer!” Diesel 10 exclaimed as they went downward.

P.T. Boomer tried grabbing onto one of the rails, but they went through his hand as he soared upward instead of downward.

Suddenly, a loud voice was heading towards him, and he looked, hearing it get closer and closer.

“MMMMMMOOOOOOO!” P.T. Boomer was suddenly face-planted by something large and fluffy, causing him to exclaim as he was twirled around by what sounded like a cow.

He snapped something off, and in a flash, it transformed back into the same child he met with the others when they were chased.

“Stephanie?!” P.T. Boomer exclaimed as they held hands with their right hands while Stephanie shoved something into her blue jeans pocket. “What are you doing here?!”

“I’ll ask you the same!” Stephanie exclaimed as she gripped his arm with her hand, and he did the same as they were twirling around. “But whatever you do, don’t let go!”

“I’m not!” P.T. Boomer responded as they went through the magic tunnel, the railroad tracks, and through clouds, getting a little dizzy from spinning around. “Whatever you do, don’t-!”

They were suddenly heading towards an exit blocked off with wooden planks, and Stephanie flinched as P.T. Boomer instantly wrapped his arms around her and yelled, “PANIC!”

And P.T. Boomer crashed through the wooden planks, shielding Stephanie with his body, before vanishing from the magical tunnel.

Chapter Text

Diesel finally stopped and sighed in relief, hearing the sirens from a distance, and he was glad he did not move.

Of course, he had forgotten that his driver was not with him, and to make matters worse, he could not move as he did back in Sodor!

The magic here may only work a little, unlike in Sodor itself.

Diesel was about to look at his now-new surroundings when the boards near an abandoned mine crashed open, causing Diesel to flinch.

Lying in front of him was P.T. Boomer with Stephanie wrapped in his arms, and he was gritting slightly in pain but was moving as he got up.

“Are you okay?” Diesel asked, now showing concern for the two humans. “What happened? I thought you two were with Diesel 10 and the others.”

“It’s my bracelet!” Stephanie huffed as her ears flicked with irritation as she looked at her bracelet. “It randomly decided, ‘Hmm, we’re in the magic tunnel. Let’s go flying!’”

She glared at her bracelet as P.T. Boomer explained to Diesel, “My new ring just suddenly teleported me out of Diesel 10’s cab.”

“Wait,” Stephanie perked up after seeing the ring around his finger. “You have a ring that teleports you?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” P.T. Boomer bluntly responded, showing he could not remove it as it was stuck to his finger.

Stephanie gently took his hand, and he stiffened but relaxed as she inspected the ring around his finger, looking at it and noticing symbols on the band.

She carefully looked at the symbols on the band without hurting P.T. Boomer’s wrist, seeing that they were written in a different language.

It reads: ‘ᑐᓭᐁ ᐅᓀᐁ ᐸᓭᐅ ᐸᐃᐁᒥᑌᓴ ᑐᓭᐁ ᓴᑐᐊᒣᒣ ᐸᐃᒥᒥ ᐯᐁ ᑐᓭᐁ ᐅᓀᐁ ᐸᓭᐅ ᐸᐃᒥᒥ ᒣᐃᓀᑌ ᐊ ᐸᐊᔨ ᑐᐅ ᒥᐁᐊᑌ ᐅᑐᓭᐁᔭᓴ ᑐᐅ ᓴᐊᒣᐁᑐᔨ ᐊᓀᑌ ᐱᔭᐅᑐᐁᒉᑐ ᑐᓭᐅᓴᐁ ᐃᓀ ᑌᐊᓀᑎᐁᔭ.’

Stephanie pushed her glasses into place after seeing the carved language on the ring’s band, which looked like it belonged to something ancient.

“Can you read it?” P.T. Boomer asked, noticing the language on the ring.

“No,” Stephanie responded, releasing P.T. Boomer’s wrist as he looked at the carved language. “It doesn’t look like any of the languages I have seen.”

“So I’m stuck with it?” P.T. Boomer frowned.

“It looks like it.” Stephanie shrugged before looking at her wrist. “Maybe it’s the same as my bracelet.”

“Stuck with you?” P.T. Boomer asked.

“Yes.” Stephanie frowned, proving what she meant by tugging on her bracelet to show P.T. Boomer.

“Honking horns,” Diesel remarked after listening quietly to the conversation between the two. “Is there a way to get them off?”

“If we find what it is trying to lead us to,” Stephanie explained as they stood up. “The last time this happened was with Rex, his engineer, and me.”

“Rex went through this?” Diesel asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “We found Smudger and Stanley and walked from the Mid-Sodor Railway to the Arlesdale Railway.”

Diesel looked worried and asked, “Is that going to happen to us?”

“I hope not.” P.T. Boomer frowned before Stephanie could speak up again. “How are we going to find this with Diesel? He’s stuck like this.”

Stephanie paused as she said, “I can help with that, but promise me you won’t attempt to use it for your gains.”

This was something P.T. Boomer felt a little torn about.

He had heard a lot of promises from Lady when they were young, but they never went right.

But seeing how Stephanie looked up at him for respect, P.T. Boomer said, “Alright. We won’t.” He paused as he looked over Diesel, asking, “Right?”

“Yes,” Diesel agreed, although he was hesitant and confused. “We won’t.”

Stephanie nodded as she removed the Dust Whistle from her garments, and P.T. Boomer thought it was like the whistle around his neck… but it looked different.

Instead, it had a knob at the end with symbols that looked like something out of alchemy and a small pill-shaped window that showed Gold Dust.

Stephanie turned the knob at the end to a familiar symbol as the color of Dust inside changed to a copper color, perking P.T. Boomer.

Did she find a way to change the Gold Dust’s color?

After changing the symbol of the whistle, Stephanie approached Diesel, who looked confused about what she was about to do as she took a breath before whistling.

Diesel watched copper dust emerge from the whistle and swirl around him as P.T. Boomer stepped back, watching as it disappeared and someone was sitting between the rails in front of them.

The person has short, jet-black hair, fair skin, and ice-blue eyes.

He wore a long-sleeve red shirt with bishop sleeves, a black cap, black overalls with gold buttons, a red belt around his waist through the loops, a pocket at the chest, and black boots.

“Ah!” Stephanie exclaimed with a smile that caused the person to flinch. “It still works outside of Sodor!”

“What works outside of-?” The person stammered before freezing when he noticed something about them before glancing down.

He stared at them with a confused expression before he moved his fingers, his face changing to shock as Stephanie walked over, placing a hand on his shoulder as he flinched, glancing back up.

“It’s okay, Diesel,” Stephanie assured him as she knelt a little. “I just changed you into a human temporarily.”

“You did what?!” the person, Diesel, exclaimed with a squeak in his voice.

“I only changed you into a human.” Stephanie explained before saying, as she showed the Dust to Diesel as he slowly calmed down, “Copper Dust transforms any locomotive into a human, and it would stay like that until Gold Dust is used.”

“Really?” he asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “It’s not permanent.”

“But dangerous,” P.T. Boomer spoke as she glanced at him with Diesel. “If Gold Dust were used too much for adults like me, I would’ve transformed into a puppet.”

“Wait, you can?!” Stephanie exclaimed as Diesel slowly backed away, stumbling a little. “But it didn’t work with-”

“It only works on people outside of Sodor,” P.T. Boomer explained. “Didn’t Sir Topham Hatt tell you this?”

“No,” Stephanie said, shaking her head. “I usually poke around and find myself learning from a different perspective. But I should’ve.”

Stephanie’s bracelet and P.T. Boomer’s ring glowed, perked their attention, and caused them to be dragged sideways.

Stephanie grabbed the rails with her left hand while P.T. Boomer dug his heels into the ground as Diesel perked, exclaiming, “What’s happening?!”

“Alright, alright, alright!” Stephanie shouted. “We’ll get there at our pace!”

The glowing stopped after Stephanie exclaimed, and P.T. Boomer stumbled back after being yanked forward as Stephanie sighed.

“God, one of these days, you’re going to pop off someone’s arm!” Stephanie angrily hissed as she stood up.

Stephanie turned to the confused Diesel and explained, “Well, that happens if we don’t hurry, and it doesn’t hurt much.”

She rubbed her wrist as P.T. Boomer did the same with his as Diesel asked, “Well, where is it trying to take you two?”

“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Stephanie responded, taking Diesel’s arm. “But let’s start with getting you on your feet.”

Diesel hesitated after Stephanie told him but nodded as she hoisted him, causing him to flinch when he was lifted to his feet.

He wobbled as Stephanie wrapped her arms around his middle, causing him to wrap his arms around her as his legs shook underneath his weight.

“Uh, Boomer?” Stephanie spoke as she glanced over at P.T. Boomer. “A little help, please?”

P.T. Boomer walked over to Diesel and moved his arm over his neck as he kept one of them on Stephanie’s shoulder, standing upright while keeping himself balanced.

“Alright,” Stephanie spoke. “Put one foot in front like you’re driving.”

Diesel hesitated but slowly did so, stumbling, but Stephanie and P.T. Boomer kept him upright from falling flat on his face.

“There you go!” Stephanie happily chirped. “Keep going and follow along with us.”

Diesel blushed and scoffed after Stephanie chirped to him, feeling a little embarrassed that a child was helping him.

But since he cannot move without a driver or walk alone, Diesel swallowed his annoyance and continued walking.

Stephanie’s bracelet and P.T. Boomer’s ring glowed through the woods as they walked through the darkness, faintly lighting their way as they wandered.

Diesel hates going through the darkness without anything to light his way, while P.T. Boomer feels a little agitated that there is barely anything to light their way.

Stephanie, on the other hand, was just silent the entire time, staying next to Diesel as she walked over rocks in her way and stepped over twigs while Diesel or P.T. Boomer would stumble onto them.

“How are you managing to walk over them?” Diesel asked, looking down at Stephanie.

Stephanie looked up at him and responded, “Oh, I can see in the dark-” She paused as she stopped, causing the two to stop as she pushed her sleeve up a little, revealing they almost walked into a tree. “Like that.”

After stopping in front of the tree, they walked around it, and Diesel asked, “Can other humans see in the dark too?”

“Not all of them,” P.T. Boomer responded. “Stephanie,” he paused as Stephanie replied, “I don’t know how I am the one who can see in the dark. I remember having this ever since I was born.”

Diesel and P.T. Boomer glanced at each other after Stephanie told them before their bracelet and ring started tugging a little, causing them to pick up their speed.

“Slow down a little!” Diesel exclaimed. “I haven’t gotten to the running part!”

“Blame our jewelry!” Stephanie exclaimed back.

They continued going through the darkness as Diesel followed them, tripping over some items and invisible rocks or twigs but keeping up with their pace.

Stephanie watched the ground as they continued going through the woods before seeing a dip that caused her to gasp and yank backward.

Diesel and P.T. Boomer did the same when Stephanie yanked backward, causing Stephanie’s bracelet and P.T. Boomer’s ring to pop off.

And they tumbled over the ledge and down a very steep and deep ditch.

Stephanie skidded on her back while P.T. Boomer was on his side while sliding down the steep ditch, and Diesel attempted to grab the grass but was sliding with no luck.

Stephanie took out her Dust Whistle and blew into it without checking the symbol, causing a different kind of Dust to fly out.

It swirled around Stephanie, and she grew twice in height as she went past Diesel and P.T. Boomer, landing on the bottom of the ditch as Diesel and P.T. Boomer landed on where her shoulders were, getting into her hair.

“Ow.” Stephanie winced as she gingerly got up. “That’s going to leave a mark.”

Diesel sputtered some hair out of his mouth as he sat up a little while P.T. Boomer did the same, looking confused before glancing up at Stephanie.

Stephanie looked at the whistle in her hand as she looked at the symbol and perked up when she noticed the bronze symbol, saying, “Oh, I used Bronze Dust.”

Then she paused, glanced over where P.T. Boomer was, and perked up when she saw him at a small size instead of the normal human height.

“Wait a minute.” Stephanie glanced over at Diesel, who instantly froze after seeing Stephanie’s appearance as she looked at her hands. “Did I grow?!”

“It looks like it.” P.T. Boomer responded as he shook his head to get some of her long hair away from his face.

Stephanie reached over to P.T. Boomer and carefully picked him up, placing him on her chest as she did the same to Diesel, who squeaked when Stephanie picked him up.

“Well,” Stephanie began as she gingerly stood up, feeling some parts of her joints hurt from the skidding. “That’s one way of learning how Dusts can affect you.”

Something small went past the side of her head, and Stephanie perked while holding Diesel and P.T. Boomer close to her chest, standing up to her feet as she watched what looked like two glowing lights in the darkness.

She could not see what they were but could see them glowing as she looked confused.

So Stephanie followed them while carrying Diesel and P.T. Boomer close to her chest as Diesel nervously gripped some of her sweater’s fabric with his hands.

He had been lifted by cranes and gone over bridges, but being carried by a gigantic blue-haired child was something he was not used to.

Stephanie wandered through the darkness while carrying P.T. Boomer and Diesel with him, seeing that she entered what looked like a cave with stalagmites and stalactites.

Diesel noticed the stalagmites and the stalactites in the darkness, looking confused about how the same thing could be pointing downwards and upwards.

He could ask his driver where they are again after he gets back on solid ground.

No, he wants to be on the rails in his normal body!

The temperature started going down as Stephanie’s breaths started to have condensation on them, and Diesel and P.T. Boomer started shivering slightly.

Stephanie paused when she felt P.T. Boomer and Diesel shiver in her hands and placed them into her garments with her whistle out, keeping them close to her body to share her warmth while their heads poked out from her collar.

Diesel’s cheeks flushed shyly when put into Stephanie’s garments, while P.T. Boomer was confused about her kindness as she continued walking.

But darn it, it was warm, and Diesel was getting a little cold from the temperature change.

Stephanie soon came across a large rock wall and stopped in front, looking up at it in confusion before perking up when she saw her bracelet and P.T. Boomer’s ring.

P.T. Boomer’s ring transformed into a necklace, and her bracelet became a staff, surprising both P.T. Boomer and Diesel.

The necklace removed itself and was all that was left of the crystal, and it inserted itself into the staff’s crystal, causing the glow to go brighter.

Then it transformed into a crystal key and inserted itself into the wall, turning to the left as glowing light blue lines appeared as Stephanie, P.T. Boomer, and Diesel watched.

The glowing light blue lines reached every corner of the wall, and after reaching each corner, they disappeared, and a door opened, causing what looked like ankle-deep water to pour out as Stephanie stepped back.

Strangely, the water had what smelled like a faint salty smell to it, and after the door opened and all the water poured out, Stephanie looked back up and saw it looked like an entrance to a hallway.

The key reappeared and transformed into a staff, disappearing down the hallway before stopping after a few meters.

Stephanie hesitated after watching the staff go down the hallway, waiting for Diesel, P.T. Boomer, and her to follow it.

She took a slow and careful breath before walking through the door and into the hallway, feeling barely dripping drops of water drip on her from the stalagmites as her shoes gently splashed against the water that barely made an inch.

Compared to normal-sized humans, it would have washed everyone away and been ankle-deep for them.

Stephanie, P.T. Boomer, and Diesel noticed signs of water wearing down rocks, and Stephanie continued following the staff as it moved down the hallway, lighting the way before pausing every meter it moved.

The water started to get a little deeper as the pitters became patters as the temperature dropped, making it feel like they were walking underwater.

The journey soon ended with them coming across a large mural of what looked like a sea serpent with a symbol over it, but the symbol was cracked, and part of it was missing.

There was carved handwriting on it at the bottom of the carved mural of the sea monster, which reads: ᒉᐁᑐᔪᓴ ᑐᓭᐁ ᓴᐁᐊ ᒣᐅᓀᓴᑐᐁᔭ.

Stephanie walked up to the mural as the staff hovered over it before noticing that it was missing an eye where Stephanie could see it.

The staff went in front of Stephanie and transformed into the mural’s eye, taking it into her hand as she looked back at it.

She inserts the eye into the mural of the sea monster, and after inserting the eye, the mural suddenly lights up, and the sea monster magically moves, causing Stephanie to gasp as she moves back.

The moving mural of the sea monster roared and swam downward, causing something to unlock as a door opened, revealing a hand-sized chest, but compared to a human, it looked like a trunk.

Confused, Stephanie reached over to the chest and picked it up from in front of her, looking at it in her hand as the door closed and the sea monster reappeared before the eye was removed and transformed back into a staff.

“We came all this way for a trunk?” P.T. Boomer asked.

“I think so,” Stephanie nodded before looking at her staff in confusion.

The staff suddenly went down to Stephanie’s face as she perked, staring at it in confusion before it grew to Stephanie’s size.

Stephanie placed the trunk into her sweater’s pocket and reached over to the staff, pausing briefly before gripping it.

Suddenly, Stephanie, P.T. Boomer, and Diesel were taken from inside the cave to outside, causing Stephanie to blink before stumbling a little.

“Whoa!” Stephanie exclaimed, nearly falling over but keeping herself upright.

She glanced over at where they had entered but looked surprised when it was not there anymore and was just a steep ditch.

However, the feeling of the trunk in Stephanie’s pocket indicates that it is all real.

“Is everyone alright?” Stephanie asked, looking down at Diesel and P.T. Boomer.

“A-A little c-cold.” Diesel stammered. “But I’m f-fine.”

“I’m alright, too.” P.T. Boomer nodded. “But what was all that back there?”

Stephanie looked at the staff in her hand with a faintly confused expression at what just happened, noticing the color went from a faint ocean blue to a more normal color.

“I think we discovered something else in Shining Time,” Stephanie responded after being quiet.

Then the staff lifted itself from Stephanie’s hand as she released it, watching it transform into a bracelet before attaching it to her right wrist.

This staff looks slightly different from what it originally looked like.

Sir Topham Hatt was worried and had every right to be worried about it as he made himself a cup of tea to ease his nerves.

First, it was not being able to find Avril or Kathleen, and then it was Stephanie getting herself lost in the magic tunnels after pushing everyone to safety.

Now, the magic buffers that were supposed to be the bridge between both realms are suddenly closed off.

What makes it worse is Gordon’s expression after hearing that the magic buffers are not working.

It is one of the expressions that always makes Sir Topham Hatt feel guilty after seeing an engine’s face when they hear the news.

After realizing the magic railroad had been closed, he assured the worried and confused Jackson and Ms. Richards that they needed to wait.

But they could not wander around in the dark because the Nightmares were roaming, so they had to get into their homes to wait until morning came.

“Topham?” Sir Topham Hatt snapped out of his thoughts and glanced over, seeing Lady Hatt awake after feeling her husband was missing. “What’s wrong, dear?”

“I’m just worried, dear,” Sir Topham Hatt explained. “I’m worried about Stephanie’s safety in the magic tunnels.”

He turned back to his teacup as he put his hands together, saying, “I know Lady is responsible for the magic tunnels, but this isn’t natural for Stephanie to be suddenly whisked away.”

Lady Hatt walked over to Sir Topham Hatt and gently hugged him, saying, “Stephanie will be fine, dear. We can tell Lady what happened, and she can help us find Stephanie together first thing in the morning.”

Sir Topham Hatt softly smiled after Lady Hatt assured him and returned the hug to her, saying, “You’re right. Stephanie is a responsible child. We’ll ask Lady first thing in the morning.”

He finished his tea and returned to bed with Lady Hatt, but he had those lingering worried thoughts in the back of his mind about Stephanie.

Sir Topham Hatt knows Stephanie is responsible and will always return… but worries about who else was there after discovering Diesel 10 and that he had followed them from behind and lost Diesel.

But he was more worried about P.T. Boomer.

Chapter Text

“Bertram! Bertram, wake up!” A pair of brown eyes opened to someone shaking him awake, and he groaned a little, blinking as he lifted an arm to block the sunlight, muttering, “What? What is it? Why did you wake me up?”

“Don’t be like that!” A familiar voice laughed as he blinked owlishly, looking up at someone standing over him. “I found something!”

“You did?” The arm moved down and revealed himself to be a young Sir Topham Hatt, with short brown hair, a little thin, and wearing a long-sleeve shirt, brown shorts with black overalls, and black shoes. “What did you find?”

The other stranger was a young child with short, spiky brown hair, steel-blue eyes, awkward round glasses, a long-sleeve light green sweater, black jeans, and gray shoes.

“Come on, and I’ll show you!” The kid grabbed Sir Topham Hatt’s wrist, gently tugged him up from where he was sleeping, and gently brushed against something dangling in front of the two.

He looked up at where they came from and noticed he had been sleeping underneath a large willow tree.

The kid ran forward while tugging Sir Topham Hatt’s wrist as he noticed the sky was a little dark with clouds, making him feel worried.

“Erm, Avril?” Sir Topham Hatt spoke after seeing the sky before glancing back at the kid. “Where are you taking me?”

“That wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you!” The kid named ‘Avril’ chuckled. “Come on. The others are waiting for us!”

“‘Others?’” Sir Topham Hatt perked up.

He continued following Avril through the meadows, and there was nothing in the grass as it was all up to his armpits.

“Kathleen!” Avril called towards a female child standing in the distance in the middle of the large field.

Kathleen has beautiful sapphire blue eyes, long, straight brown hair, and fair skin, wearing a beautiful long-sleeved light blue shirt connected to a dress with slippers.

She was waiting for Avril to come to her before shrieking as she scrambled backward, pointing at something long, slender, black, and appearing from the tall grass in front of the two, “Avril! Bertram! Watch out!”

A black adder appeared from the grass and hissed toward Avril and Sir Topham Hatt, and they both instantly stopped, staring at the snake as it continued hissing at them.

Avril then picked up a stick with both hands and charged directly at the snake, causing Sir Topham Hatt to exclaim, “Avril, what are you-?!”

A loud bellowing roar echoed through the meadow and caused Sir Topham Hatt to almost jump out of his skin as he glanced around, seeing nothing.

Suddenly, a different noise entered the air, and Sir Topham Hatt looked over only to witness something more horrifying.

That adder that Avril went to chase off had grown in size and was transforming into a person with jet-black hair and a mane, holding Kathleen in their left hand and Avril in their right hand with his left arm pinched between their fingers.

It was gigantic and had two horns curled over its head with rows of sharp teeth as the field around them started to die.

“BERTRAM!” Sir Topham Hatt flinched after hearing another voice call for him and glanced over, seeing what looked like his father calling for him from across the field. “Bertram, find the rainbow!”

“What?!” Sir Topham Hatt called as shadows started appearing from all around, clawing at the ground and rising.

“Find the rainbow, Bertram!” Sir Topham Hatt’s father called, despite all the shadows appearing. “Find the rainbow!”

“What-!” Something cracked underneath his weight, and Sir Topham Hatt froze, glancing down at what had broken and discovering he was standing on ice.

He suddenly went through the ice and into the water, feeling his muscles all freeze up once he hit the water before starting to sink.

‘Why can’t I move?’ Sir Topham Hatt thought. ‘What’s happening to me?’

Suddenly, he felt something with sharp claws grab the back of his shirt, dragging him deeper and disappearing underwater.

Sir Topham Hatt’s body jolted as he woke up from his nightmare, and he sat up from his bed, feeling beads of sweat drip from his forehead and clenching his blankets.

His heart was beating against his chest as he placed a hand against it, trying to calm it down from beating too much.

That nightmare was all too real for him.

A ringing noise startled Sir Topham Hatt as he flinched but calmed down after seeing it come from his clock, noticing he woke up a few minutes before his alarm.

He reached over to the clock and tapped the top, stopping the ringing noise as he removed his hand from it.

“Dear?” Sir Topham Hatt gently shook his wife next to him as she shifted in her sleep. “It’s time to get up.”

Lady Hatt shifted in her bed as Sir Topham Hatt got up from his side, getting himself ready to start the day.

But he needs to order the engines to work and search for Lady with the Cupper siblings.

Sir Topham Hatt got himself dressed and again fidgeted with his collar in front of a mirror, irritated at how it would not fold properly from the back.

He glanced around for Stephanie to appear but silently reminded himself that Stephanie was still stuck in Shining Time and was waiting for help.

A different pair of hands helped him, and Sir Topham Hatt looked over, seeing that it was Lady Hatt.

“Thank you, dear,” Sir Topham Hatt thanked.

“You’re welcome.” Lady Hatt nodded before kissing him on the cheek.

Sir Topham Hatt blushed a little after Lady Hatt kissed him before continuing his breakfast routine, brushing his teeth, and kissing Lady Hatt goodbye before heading off to work.

As he drove down the road to Tidmouth, he glanced over to the side and noticed a large meadow that looked almost like the one in his nightmare, sending silent chills down his spine.

However, Sir Topham Hatt ignored it and kept driving because he knew that if he tried to find Lady alone, he would either be lost or captured by the brand-new group Diesel 10 had formed.

So, Sir Topham Hatt needed help from the Cupper siblings since they knew where Lady was better than he did.

A sudden meow startles Sir Topham Hatt from his driving as he jolts, causing him to park to the side as he places a hand near his heart.

Not again with the jumpscares!

“Sorry, sir!” A voice exclaimed as he glanced over, expecting to be Stephanie, but it was Lucy, Stephanie’s doll. “We were locked in Stephanie’s room and had to use another way into your car.”

“Bless me, don’t do that to me, please!” Sir Topham Hatt sighed before pausing. “Wait, how did you two get inside?”

“Notches found a way to squeeze underneath,” Lucy explained as she gently scratched one of Notches’ ears before holding onto his collar as Notches climbed to the passenger seat beside him. “Cats are very incredible when it comes to getting into things.”

Note to self: Leave Stephanie’s door open if Lucy or Notches are inside her room.

“Ah, right.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded before starting the car again while Notches and Lucy sat in the passenger seat.

He eventually reached Tidmouth Sheds, where the Steam Team was residing.

Sir Topham Hatt stepped out of his car once he parked and opened the door to allow Notches and Lucy to step out, and he could tell there was a looming nervous feeling among the group, especially Gordon and Thomas.

He told each one about their jobs for the day, as Percy had already left for the mail train, and turned to Romeo and Cleo, who both listened to him.

Their engines were waiting for them as they listened to Sir Topham Hatt.

“Romeo, Cleo,” Sir Topham Hatt spoke to the two. “I need your help in finding Lady.”

“We’ll bring Darius with us,” nodded Romeo. “Just in case Diesel 10 or anyone else decides to hunt down Lady.”

“Good idea,” Sir Topham Hatt agreed. “But, do you know where Lady could be?”

“There’s a riddle Edward told us that can help, sir,” Cleo spoke as Romeo took out his phone to text. “Follow the rainbow sun to the highest hill. Let the journey prove your heart and will. With your trusty engine, don’t let your bond be frady, be prepared to meet Lady.”

It confused Sir Topham Hatt after hearing the riddle from Cleo, wondering what it all meant, even though he always heard it occasionally after overhearing it from the people.

“Text is sent to Darius,” Romeo told the two. “He wants us to meet him over at the Skarloey Railway.”

“The ‘Skarloey Railway?’” Sir Topham Hatt repeated in confusion. “Why the Skarloey Railway?”

“You’ll see,” Cleo assured the confused Sir Topham Hatt as he followed the two Cupper siblings. “Let’s get Rocky first.”

So they went to collect Rocky and headed towards the Skarloey Railway, where Darius with the Flying Scotsman was waiting, with Sir Topham Hatt in Gordon’s cab.

He politely allowed Lucy and Notches onto his shoulders as Stephanie would, minus the hair and having more shoulder room.

Cleo, Darius, and Romeo took out their whistles and simultaneously whistled together as Gold Dust came out of their whistles and swirled around Gordon, the Flying Scotsman, and Thomas.

The Gold Dust disappeared, and the three had been shrunken down to narrow-gauge size, silently impressing Sir Topham Hatt at how strong their magic had become.

After they were shrunken a little from their magic, Rocky lifted each one up and onto the narrow-gauge railway, and they stepped back into their cabs.

But it was a little smaller than their original sizes, so Sir Topham Hatt stood to the side to make some room for the crew and Romeo.

Once on the railway, they puffed down the line and arrived at Skarloey Railway before heading to the quarry where Rusty was.

Rusty was shunting trucks around when he saw the three engines appear, greeting them, “Hello! What brought you all here?”

“We’re here to find Lady,” Romeo explained. “Something went wrong when we used the Magic Railway, and Stephanie was whisked away.”

Rusty’s expression changed to worry after hearing what happened, saying, “Head over to Dead End Mountain. The magic buffers are still there, and her realm might also be there.”

“Thank you, Rusty.” Sir Topham Hatt thanked Rusty as they continued down the line with a whistle of their own.

In the back of Sir Topham Hatt’s mind, he was a little confused about what Rusty said, but Lady is magical, so he kept the confusion to himself.

They headed up to Dead End Mountain and saw a pair of buffers at the end as they went down a narrow track, and the engines started to go slow.

The last time they went up to Dead End Mountain, it caused an avalanche, but this time, it was happening again as one of the rocks was flung to the side from Gordon’s wheels, and it caused some rocks to loosen.

“Speed up! Speed up!” Darius called to the others as they picked up speed.

A huge rockslide started as the engines sped down the line, heading towards the buffers as everyone held on.

Eventually, they reached the buffers, and with a flash of rainbow light, they were all on a golden track passing through an underbrush.

Strangely, the magic railroad returned the engines to their normal height as they went onto separate tracks.

Sir Topham Hatt, Lucy, and Notches were slightly startled when they entered the different realm but noticed the sun had turned into a rainbow.

He perked up after noticing the rainbow sun, remembering that his dad, in his nightmare, had told him about ‘finding the rainbow.’

…Now, he is starting to feel a little uneasy about how his nightmare is starting to relate to everything around him.

They soon stopped at the mountain base as Romeo, Darius, Cleo, and Sir Topham Hatt stepped out, and a portal opened, revealing a beautiful small Gazelle engine.

“Hello, Lady,” Cleo greeted.

“Hello, Cleo,” Lady greeted back. “What brought you all here?”

Sir Topham Hatt stepped forward as Lady listened, “A young child named Stephanie Allen had been whisked away when we were using the Magic Railroad.”

“And we need your help in finding her.” Romeo nodded.

“I will help.” Lady nodded. “But I have never seen such magic do that.”

Everyone paused after Lady mentioned it as Gordon asked, “What magic?”

“When she reentered the Magic Railroad,” Lady explained. “I felt a stronger pulse of magic enter the magic railroad, which somewhat counteracted mine. It could be why Stephanie was whisked through the Magic Railroad.”

This confused the group as the Flying Scotsman said, “She was carrying this Zodiac Pocket Watch of hers and the Dust Whistle, nothing else.”

“Except for that staff of hers,” Sir Topham Hatt explained, which confused everyone.

“She has a staff?” Darius asked. “We didn’t see the staff.”

“That’s because it transformed into her bracelet,” Lucy explained, and the puzzle pieces finally clicked for the others.

Stephanie’s bracelet or staff somehow ‘activated’ when she entered the Magic Railroad and is now taking her somewhere else, like last time.

“Oh, bother.” Sir Topham Hatt groaned, pinching his nose bridge, while everyone was somewhat confused.

It was going to be one of those days for Stephanie.

Chapter Text

Stephanie had to wait for the police to leave after they checked around the area, and after the last police car left, Stephanie gingerly stepped out, still gigantic and now with Diesel and P.T. Boomer on her shoulders.

“Okay, that’s the last of them,” Stephanie nodded as she stepped out.

“Wait,” Diesel spoke as Stephanie looked down at him as he clutched onto her sweater’s hood. “How are you going to get back to normal?”

Stephanie smiled as she reached up to the two, gently taking them off her shoulders before placing them back on the ground, which Diesel was silently grateful for.

Once they were placed on the ground, Stephanie removed her Dust Whistle from around her neck, turned the knob to the symbol of gold, and blew into it.

After blowing into the whistle, Gold Dust flew out and swirled around Stephanie, eventually transforming her back to her normal height and standing next to the trunk she discovered.

“Well, you’re right about Gold Dust being the one to reverse effects,” Diesel remarked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded before glancing to the side and noticing the trunk. “But we need to get into the Shining Time Station. It’s unsafe out here while there are still people out here.”

“But what about the buffers?” Diesel asked, mentioning them.

“Right, right, right,” Stephanie nodded before walking away from the trunk.

But she paused before walking away from it, silently reminding herself she could not leave a random truck out in the open.

She turned around and grabbed one of the ends, picking it up as she dragged it while Diesel and P.T. Boomer went to the buffers.

Diesel and P.T. Boomer headed directly towards the buffers, expecting the Magic Railroad to be there, when they instead crashed into the buffers themselves.

P.T. Boomer landed on his back after being launched backward, while Diesel wheezed after impacting stomach-first on the buffers, wobbling backward before crouching.

He thought his body was a little like his buffers when he was normal, but the pain shooting through his body from his belly was enough to make him realize humans are more fragile than he expected!

Stephanie perked up after watching the two collide into the buffers, and she stopped dragging the trunk and asked, “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” P.T. Boomer responded as he pushed himself up. “We headed towards the buffers, but nothing happened!”

Stephanie placed the trunk down and walked over to the buffers, moving her hands forward but through nothing but solid buffers.

“What?!” Stephanie exclaimed as she repeatedly tried, only touching the buffers constantly with no portal.

Diesel gingerly stood up as he felt the pain ebb away, silently reminding himself to protect it the next time it happened.

Stephanie looked up at P.T. Boomer with a worried expression, asking as she had her hands on the buffers, “Why isn’t the Magic Railroad working?”

“I don’t know,” P.T. Boomer responded as Diesel’s expression reflected Stephanie’s. “I never saw this happen before!”

Then P.T. Boomer paused and added, “Unless something happened to Lady.”

A bad feeling sank in Stephanie’s stomach after P.T. Boomer explained while Diesel looked panicked.

“If we can’t get back to Sodor,” Diesel gulped. “How am I going to get back there?! Who’s going to take over my job?!”

“Diesel!” Stephanie walked over to Diesel as he started asking multiple questions at rapid-fire as he was tugging at his cap, “Am I going to be stuck here? How can I live here? Am I going to be captured if the Dust wears off? Is-”

Diesel suddenly stopped asking rapid-fire questions when Stephanie grabbed his overall straps and tugged him down to her height, then gently cupped his face into her hands, saying, “Diesel, calm down. Everything will be alright. We’ll find another way to get back to Sodor. You’re going to be fine.”

Diesel started slowly calming down as Stephanie gave him comforting words of assurance, but Diesel’s mind was a little more focused on how surprisingly soft Stephanie’s hands were.

And he had never had anyone touch his face before, but it felt strange that he was not pulling his face away from her.

…Is this normal?

Stephanie continued to cup his face with her hands and asked, “Are you calm now?”

“I… think so?” Diesel responded, although a little confused.

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded, removing her hands from his cheeks as he returned to his height, feeling his face with his hands in confusion. “Now, since we basically can’t get to Shining Time without getting caught by gang members,” she turned to a confused Diesel, rubbing his cheek with a hand. “And yes, they are dangerous, if you are wondering,” she said, turning back to P.T. Boomer. “Now what?”

“Let’s use the Shining Time Station as a temporary house for now,” P.T. Boomer said, jabbing his thumb at the abandoned station. “None of the members come up here anyway.”

“Good idea.” Stephanie nodded before turning to the trunk and placing her hands on it to pick it up.

“Actually,” Diesel spoke as Stephanie stopped picking it up. “Let me and Boomer carry that for you.”

“Oh,” Stephanie perked as she removed her hands from the trunk. “Thank you. I’ll hold the door open for you two.”

Diesel and P.T. Boomer picked up the sides of the trunk on both ends and started carrying the trunk together as Stephanie held the door open.

Once they stepped into Shining Time Station, Stephanie closed the door behind her back, and they stepped into a somewhat dark station and placed it on the ground.

“Thank you.” Stephanie thanked the two.

P.T. Boomer only silently nodded after Stephanie thanked them, while Diesel, on the other hand, was a little bashful.

He never heard anyone thank him for anything he did, except for certain engines, but never from a human before.

Diesel pretended not to be impressed but secretly felt warm as Stephanie turned to the trunk they helped her carry into Shining Time Station.

It looked like it was made out of mahogany wood, but it had darkened over time and had rust and dried barnacles covering some parts, including the lock.

“What do you think it could be?” P.T. Boomer asked.

“I don’t know,” Stephanie responded as she continued looking at the trunk. “But I think there could be something in it.”

“Are you insane?” Diesel hissed. “What if there is something cursed in there?!”

“Have you been watching Indiana Jones a little too much?” Stephanie asked as her fingers trailed to where the lock was supposed to be. “I don’t think there is-”

Something pricked Stephanie’s finger, which caused her to exclaim, “Ow!” and quickly remove her hand from where it was trailing, looking at it as her first finger had a small dot with some blood coming from it.

“See?!” Diesel exclaimed as Stephanie put her finger into her mouth to stop the bleeding. “I told you! Cursed!”

“It’s just a splinter!” Stephanie protested as she showed her injured finger to Diesel. “It’s not-”

Suddenly, the lid of the trunk revealed writing that perked all three’s attention, which read as they glowed in a light ocean blue color, ‘𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐲𐐸𐐱𐑅𐐯𐑌 𐐱𐑌𐐯 𐐶𐐸𐐱 𐐶𐐮𐐯𐑊𐐼𐑅 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐻𐐰𐑁𐑁 𐑅𐐸𐐰𐑊𐑊 𐐺𐐯 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐱𐑌𐐯 𐐶𐐸𐐱 𐐳𐑌𐑊𐐱𐐲𐐿𐑅 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐻𐑉𐐯𐐰𐑅𐐳𐑉𐐯 𐐲𐐸𐐯𐑅𐐻. 𐑅𐐹𐐯𐐰𐐿 𐐱𐑁 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐲𐑉𐐯𐐰𐐻𐐱𐑉’𐑅 𐑌𐐰𐑋𐐯, 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐲𐑉𐐯𐑅𐐻 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐱𐐹𐐯𐑌 𐐰𐑌𐐼 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑉𐐯𐑅𐐻 𐑅𐐸𐐰𐑊𐑊 𐐺𐐯 𐐲𐐱𐐳𐑉𐑅.”

“What does all that mean?” P.T. Boomer asked as Stephanie looked at the symbols.

“I don’t know,” Diesel responded as he stepped back slowly. “And I don’t want to know.”

Suddenly, Stephanie’s bracelet glowed and removed itself from her wrist, transforming into a staff as she took it into her hand while standing up to her feet.

When she took the staff into her hand, Stephanie looked down at the trunk, and the writing changed from its original language to English.

Stephanie looked confused after watching the letters turn to English and released the staff as it floated, watching it turn to normal.

She took the staff in her hand, and it turned to English, confusing Stephanie as the letters, now in English, read, “The chosen one who wields the staff shall be the one who unlocks the treasure chest. Speak the creator’s name, the crest will open, and the rest shall be yours.”

Stephanie looked at the staff with confusion before perking up when she noticed the crystal had letters inside as they magically appeared, reading “Cetus,” and she read, “Cetus?”

Just as she said the word in the crystal, the letters disappeared, and a click came from the trunk, causing all three to perk up after hearing the noise.

Diesel stepped back more after hearing the clicking noise, accidentally stumbling into a jukebox as it toppled, but Diesel whipped around and grabbed it before it toppled over as he put it back flat on the ground and glanced back.

The staff transformed back into Stephanie’s bracelet as it wrapped around her wrist as the trunk opened, revealing scrolls and items inside.

Stephanie’s curiosity grew as she reached inside, taking out one of the scrolls and finding a symbol on the band keeping them together.

It looked familiar to Stephanie as she rubbed her thumb over the metal badge, as the symbol was a sideways nine.

P.T. Boomer knelt to Stephanie’s height next to her as Stephanie looked at him, saying, “Well, this is better than a curse, hmm?”

“Fair enough,” P.T. Boomer nodded as Stephanie placed the scroll into the trunk.

Diesel gingerly stepped close to the two as Stephanie looked carefully through the trunk, taking out some items and looking at them before putting them back.

They ranged from compasses to scrolls as Stephanie looked through them before a shimmer of blue caught her attention.

She reached inside and took out a hand-sized blue round crystal that was somewhat glowing as she stared at it with curiosity and awe.

Stephanie gently rubbed her hand over the crystal as the brightness brightened a little, perking Stephanie’s attention as she moved her hand up from it.

“Uh, Stephanie?” Diesel worriedly spoke. “What’s that?”

“A huge gemstone,” Stephanie responded, showing it to Diesel, who backed away. “It looks like a gypsy’s crystal ball, though.”

“Yes, don’t break it,” P.T. Boomer warned as Stephanie lifted it to her eyes to look closer at it. “You don’t know where that crystal has been, Stephanie.”

Stephanie said nothing as she stared at the crystal, seeing something inside that seemed to catch her attention.

Something large swimming inside looked like a snake at first, but it had the upper body of a human with fins.

Is it a mermaid?

“Stephanie?” P.T. Boomer touched Stephanie’s shoulder, which caused her to flinch.

She looked up and said, “Hmm, what?” as she moved the gemstone to her chest.

“You didn’t hear what I said,” P.T. Boomer responded. “What are you staring at?”

Stephanie looked at the gemstone in her hands, pausing when she noticed the color faded to a darker blue with no shine.

“Uh oh.” Stephanie lifted the gemstone to look, but it crumbled in her hands. “Well, that was weird.”

Diesel felt worried after witnessing the gemstone crumbling in Stephanie’s hands before her bracelet glowed, causing the trunk to close and disappear into thin air.

“And that was also weird,” Stephanie remarked. “I haven’t looked at the scrolls yet.”

“Best if you don’t,” Diesel frowned. “The last thing we wanted was a title wave crashing on us and-”

Another clank happened behind them that caused Stephanie and P.T. Boomer to perk, and Diesel sighed, exclaiming as he turned to what clanked, “Oh, what is it this tim-ahh!”

Stephanie and P.T. Boomer glanced over at what Diesel shrieked about and saw a puppet lying on its front after what looked like a jukebox’s front opened.

The puppet wore what looked like a retro green bus driver’s uniform and had short, dirty blonde hair and fair skin.

But the puppet was moving slightly, seemingly trying to get up onto its feet, but was stuck underneath something that had collapsed inside the jukebox.

Diesel scrambled to Stephanie and P.T. Boomer, exclaiming as he hid behind P.T. Boomer, “Wh-What is that?!”

“It’s a puppet!” Stephanie perked.

P.T. Boomer said nothing after seeing the puppet but watched Stephanie gingerly walk over as the puppet looked up after seeing her appear.

Gingerly, Stephanie took the item on top of the puppet and picked it up, allowing the puppet to stand up after it was removed.

“Sorry about that,” Stephanie apologized. “Are you okay?”

The puppet said nothing after Stephanie apologized before silently making the ‘one-minute’ mention before heading into the jukebox as Stephanie watched curiously.

She noticed the inside of the jukebox looked like a stage, with speakers and drums and such, but there were signs of age as it wore down.

The puppet returned with a large notepad and pencil, scribbling down something on it as Stephanie watched before showing it to her as it read, “I’m alright. The inside of the jukebox collapsed after someone or something outside crashed into it.”

Stephanie looked over at Diesel as Diesel asked, “What? What did it say?”

“He,” Stephanie responded before pausing as she looked at the puppet.

They nodded, knowing what she would ask about their gender, and Stephanie turned back, continuing, “He said someone crashed into the jukebox, and everything inside collapsed, thus trapping him.”

“Oops.” Diesel blushed after Stephanie responded, while P.T. Boomer stayed silent.

Stephanie turned back to the puppet and asked, “What’s your name?”

The puppet flipped the page and wrote on the back of the first page before showing, and it read, “My name is Roy, and I am J.J. Silver’s assistant.”

Stephanie perked up after hearing the name ‘J.J. Silvers,’ remembering hearing that name from Cleo’s book she handed her for studying.

Roy, the puppet, returned to his notebook and wrote something on the next page, “What brought you all here?”

Before noticing P.T. Boomer with Diesel hiding behind him, she said nothing as Stephanie explained what had happened to Roy.

After explaining what happened to Roy, Roy wrote on the back of the second page, “That does sound bad. Did you and P.T. Boomer see something in the Magic Railroad that caused it not to work?”

“No.” Stephanie turned to P.T. Boomer and asked him, “Did you see something when you were going through the Magic Railroad, Boomer?”

“No, I didn’t.” P.T. Boomer shook his head.

Roy then wrote something in his notebook and showed the written page to Stephanie, “Maybe J.J. Silvers can help you get through the Magic Railroad. But we’ll need your help getting through the jukebox.”

“Don’t worry,” Stephanie assured as she took out her Zodiac Pocket Watch, which perked P.T. Boomer. “I’ve got something that can help us get to size.”

She walked over to P.T. Boomer, and Diesel, holding the pocket watch, said, “I can’t work alone, so I need your help.”

Stephanie opened her pocket watch and fidgeted with the crown as Diesel said, “How is a pocket watch going t-”

Stephanie tapped the top while holding P.T. Boomer’s wrist while Diesel was holding onto his shoulder, and she transformed into her Rat Zodiac appearance, looking at her paws as she muttered, “Okay, it still works outside of-”

A rat-like shriek perked Stephanie’s attention as she looked over, seeing a black rat with a red collar around its neck and an Allegheny Woodrat looking panicked.

“Stephanie, what did you do?!” The black rat exclaimed, sounding like Diesel, as the other was staring at his paws and had some graying in his fur.

“Easy,” Stephanie assured, lifting her head to show the collar with the Rat Zodiac pendant as she pointed at it. “I used the Zodiac Pocket Watch to transform us into rats.”

P.T. Boomer perked up after hearing Stephanie’s explanation, realizing that the cow that crashed into him during the Magic Railroad was her!

And that item is what allows her to use Zodiacs.

“When will we return to normal?” Diesel asked.

“If I take this pendant off,” Stephanie explained. “That’s how we transform back to normal. But right now, we’ll help Mr. Roy.” She paused. “Speaking of which.”

She looked over at Roy, who looked surprised but perked up when she turned to him with the others and asked, “Can you lead us the way into the jukebox?”

Roy nodded and led the two into the jukebox as Diesel and P.T. Boomer struggled a little with their form while Stephanie walked ahead.

They were on stage, but it looked like they were going backstage as Roy led the way.

“Stephanie, slow down,” P.T. Boomer spoke, stumbling a little as Diesel was almost smacked in the face by his tail. “We’re not used to being rats!”

“Sorry,” Stephanie apologized as she looked over her shoulder and continued walking forward. “One paw before the other.”

P.T. Boomer glanced down at his paws as he continued following Stephanie, tripping less than last time.

Diesel grunted a little when P.T. Boomer’s tail went into his face and muttered, “Will you do something about your tail?!”

“I can’t take it off, you know?” P.T. Boomer huffed.

“Easy, you two,” Stephanie gently assured. “You’ll get used to it after a few hours.”

“Yeah, where’s yours then?” Diesel asked.

“Mine?” Stephanie asked with a smirk. “Pikas don’t have tails.”

Diesel blinked in confusion as P.T. Boomer just walked backstage, and Diesel asked, “Pik-what?”

“Pikas.” Stephanie chuckled. “They’re a type of rat.”

Diesel blinked in confusion after hearing there were now different species of rats as they soon arrived deeper in the jukebox, except it looked a little damaged.

Roy stopped walking as he wrote something in the notebook before showing it to the three as it read, “This is where everyone was at. Help me find them.”

Stephanie nodded, and the three split up as Stephanie used her nose to smell different scents around backstage.

Diesel and P.T. Boomer were a little overwhelmed with the ability to have a powerful sense of smell, but their whiskers were something else they were not used to either.

Diesel stopped when he saw a pair of legs and helped to remove the rubble, allowing whoever was underneath to come out.

Stephanie found two people wearing the same clothes and did the same as P.T. Boomer dragged someone out from underneath a wrecked table.

Once everyone was out of the rubble and slowly regaining consciousness, Roy led everyone out of the jukebox and outside as the door closed.

At the same time, everything inside collapsed from behind the door as Roy made the ‘phew’ mention with his hand.

“Roy?” Roy glanced over at one of the puppets, who was wearing a yellow-green shirt, purple leggings, and makeup on her eyes. “Is that you?”

Roy walked over to the puppet and helped her onto her feet like the others.

“Is everyone alright?” Stephanie asked, standing slightly on her hind legs.

Every puppet glanced at Stephanie after she asked and was surprised to see her, Diesel, and P.T. Boomer, which caused some females to panic as they scrambled backward.

“Shoo! Shoo!” One of them exclaimed. “Go on!”

Roy quickly wrote something down as Stephanie went back down on her paws, watching Roy go over to the panicked group and show what he wrote.

The group read his writing, and one asked, “They are humans? How did they turn into mice?”

“Rats, actually,” Stephanie spoke up, causing them to glance over after hearing her speak. “Mice have slender bodies, while rats are more of the chunky type.”

“Either or,” another said. “How?”

Stephanie lifted her head and showed the pendant to them, pointing at it as she said, “This helped me, P.T. Boomer, and Diesel transform. I’m the only one wearing the collar because I was wielding the pocket watch.”

The puppets perked up after hearing the name ‘P.T. Boomer,’ as one of the puppets asked, “You’re with P.T. Boomer?”

“Erm, yes?” Stephanie nodded, glancing at him with silent confusion, while P.T. Boomer looked unamused.

“Look,” P.T. Boomer spoke to the group. “I’m not here to cause any trouble. We’re just trying to get back to Sodor.”

“Exactly!” Diesel nodded.

“Well, what happened to the buffers?” one of them asked.

“It’s not working,” Stephanie explained. “Diesel and P.T. Boomer tried running through it, but they crashed into the buffers instead of going into the portal.”

They glanced over at the eldest of the group, who had his finger against his chin, before saying, “Can you show us?”

“Sure.” Stephanie nodded before pausing a little to grab her pendant. “Let’s step outside, though.”

They followed the three outside as Stephanie grabbed her pendant, yanking it off as the three transformed to normal, with Stephanie holding the Zodiac Pocket Watch in her hand.

Now P.T. Boomer understands how Stephanie was in contact with the zodiacs she had been searching for.

“Wow,” one of the puppets remarked. “So, you’re using that to transform?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “It helps a lot with Nightmares and such.”

Stephanie moved her hand down for one of the puppets, and the eldest stepped into her palm, allowing her to lift him to her face.

She allowed him to climb onto her shoulder as Stephanie stood up to her feet, walked over to the buffers, and did so, tapping the buffers while nothing happened whenever she moved her hand forward.

“That is bad.” The eldest puppet nodded as Stephanie looked at him. “Something must have cut off the railroad.”

“Is there a way to open it, mister?” Stephanie asked, moving her hand to him as he sat in her palm as she held him in front of her face.

“My name is J.J. Silvers, hun,” J.J. Silvers explained. “But there is. We could have a chance of using Gold Dust to reopen the Magic Railroad.”

“That’s great!” Stephanie perked up with a smile.

“Yes,” J.J. Silvers nodded. “But we’ll need a whistle to open the Magic Railroad.”

He glanced around Stephanie to P.T. Boomer, who had his arms crossed over his chest, and sighed as Stephanie looked over at him too, “And the person who has a whistle is him.”

“Really?” Stephanie asked.

P.T. Boomer reached into his garment and took out his whistle, showing it to Stephanie and J.J. Silvers while Diesel had the other puppets in his arms.

“I’m Lady’s ‘engineer,’” P.T. Boomer coldly responded, quoting ‘engineer’ with his fingers. “But doesn’t Stephanie have one too?”

“You do?” J.J. Silvers asked as Stephanie nodded, reaching into her garment and taking out the Dust Whistle, showing it to J.J. Silvers. “Perfect! We can use two whistles.”

Stephanie walked up next to P.T. Boomer and placed J.J. Silvers on her shoulder as P.T. Boomer looked at his whistle.

“I think I have enough Gold Dust,” P.T. Boomer nodded. “Ready?”

Stephanie checked the symbol and nodded, holding the whistle as she was prepared.

Stephanie and P.T. Boomer whistled, and Gold Dust came out, creating a portal in front of the buffers as a familiar engine emerged.

After the engine appeared from the portal, Stephanie and P.T. Boomer stopped whistling.

She was a beautiful Gazelle engine, and she was painted dark magenta with gold headlamps on her front footplate, tail lamp, gold buffers, smokebox, funnel top, dome, whistle, side rods, lining, and the name ‘Lady’ on each side in gold.

She is also painted a very dark purple on her cab roof, lower funnel section, and footplate.

‘Is this Lady?’ Stephanie thought, amazed to see the engine appear before them.

“Hello, Stephanie,” Lady greeted, but her smile faded slightly when she looked at P.T. Boomer. “Hello, Boomer.”

“Lady,” P.T. Boomer coldly responded as Stephanie frowned, elbowing him a little in the leg.

“Be nice to her,” Stephanie gently spoke as she put her whistle into her garments before smiling. “Hello! Are Sir Topham Hatt and the others waiting for us?”

“He is,” Lady nodded before noticing Diesel, who looked nervous around Lady. “And who is your new friend?”

“Ah, I’m Diesel,” Diesel responded. “I may not look much because Stephanie turned me into a human.”

Lady looked at Stephanie with confusion as Stephanie said, “Copper Dust. It transforms engines into humans and grows humans twice their height.”

“Ah,” Lady nodded, but she had a faintly surprised expression that P.T. Boomer noticed. “I see you’ve found more of Sodor’s magic.”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “And I want to learn more of this magic.”

This silently made P.T. Boomer worried, as Lady chuckled as she said, “How will Diesel return to normal?”

“Easy,” Stephanie smiled, walking up to Diesel as he handed the puppets to P.T. Boomer, who held them.

As Stephanie checked the gauge, Diesel stepped between the rails, seeing enough inside to use.

Stephanie nodded and whistled, watching as Gold Dust came out of it and swirled around Diesel, eventually transforming him back to his original appearance.

“Finally!” Diesel sighed. “It’s hard being both a human and a rat!”

“Welcome to being human and an animal,” Stephanie sighed before turning to Lady. “Can you take all of us back to Sodor?”

“Of course,” Lady nodded.

Lady was coupled to Diesel with the help of P.T. Boomer, as Stephanie had the Jukebox Gang with her, carrying them like she would carry Lucy with her.

Once she was coupled with Diesel, she went backward with the help of P.T. Boomer as Stephanie was in the back with the others, finally entering the Magic Railroad.

Sir Topham Hatt, Lucy, Notches, Darius, Romeo, and Cleo waited after watching Lady enter through the buffers, hoping she would return.

Eventually, Lady reappeared from the Magic Railroad, with Diesel following in front, although he was a little dizzy from the crazy ride while Stephanie was in Lady’s cab.

“Stephanie!” Cleo exclaimed as she rushed over to her and stepped out once Lady stopped.

Cleo hugged Stephanie as P.T. Boomer remained in the background, avoiding Sir Topham Hatt or the children after spotting Diesel 10 ‘psst’ing.

Pinchy made the ‘come here’ mention towards P.T. Boomer, and P.T. Boomer took the chance while Lady watched.

Instead of asking why P.T. Boomer was leaving or attempting to stop him from leaving, Lady only sadly watched him leave, hoping he would return sometime.

Chapter Text

Stephanie was thinking to herself while sitting in her room, searching through the collection of Crystal Dusts she had gathered through her search around Muffler Mountain.

Strangely and somewhat ironically, Stephanie figured out that Muffler Mountain is the same mountain as the one in Shining Time, which is magical.

Stephanie picked up one of the Crystal Gold Dust in her hand, looking at its color and glitter as it shone from underneath the lamp.

There was nothing wrong with the Crystal Gold Dust as Stephanie inspected it underneath her desk lamp.

It was not cracked either and had no signs of anything bad, blackened, or having a squishy texture whenever she applied pressure.

Stephanie paused as she thought back to the crystals she had been collecting, noticing some infused with each other had blackened to an ugly color and had a somewhat hardened and squishy feeling whenever she touched them.

It would freak her out whenever she stumbles upon these infused crystals, but it would stump her at what they could be.

But half of her does not feel like she should be messing around with something potentially dangerous.

She does not want to worry Sir Topham Hatt again after spending a night in Shining Time Station with two people who work with Diesel 10.

…Though she was starting to worry if she had accidentally spilled too much information towards Diesel and P.T. Boomer, even if they had promised her.

Yet again, people do break promises, and she had grown used to hearing empty promises from a lot of people-

“Stephanie?” Stephanie perked up after hearing a voice and glanced down at her lap, looking at Notches. “Something wrong?”

Stephanie softly smiled after Notches asked and reached down to his face, gently scratching his chin and cheek as she said, “Nothing. Just thinking to myself about things.”

“Alright.” Notches nodded with a light purr in his voice. “Just be careful about overthinking.”

Stephanie nodded as she removed her hand from Notches’ face, returning to what she was doing as she looked through her collection.

Lucy was watching her from in front of her, looking at her key for any damage done to it or any cracks on her gemstone.

Stephanie sorted through the Crystal Dusts by color before pausing when she was about to put them into bins, realizing she had yet to buy one.

So she took out a pencil and wrote down on a notepad:

Reminder: Get bins for your collection of Dust Crystals.

After writing the reminder, Stephanie returned to what she was doing, pausing when she noticed she had collected a new Crystal Dust in an aluminum color.

Stephanie moved the Crystal Dust to her nose and sniffed, noticing the aluminum smell.

“Ah,” Stephanie perked up. “This is Aluminum Dust! Why did I think this was Silver Dust?”

She shrugged to herself as Stephanie placed the Aluminum Dust down and finished sorting, still silently wanting a bin to keep them apart for her use.

As she was about to continue writing, Stephanie’s bracelet started glowing, and she looked down at it, muttering, “No, not now. I’m busy sorting through-”

A sudden thump startled Stephanie, Lucy, and Notches from what they were doing, causing them to glance at what had landed.

To Stephanie’s surprise, it was the same trunk Stephanie found with Diesel and P.T. Boomer.

Stephanie picked Notches up from her lap and held him before moving a hand to Lucy, and she put her key away, climbed into her hand, and was moved to her shoulder.

She walked over to the trunk and knelt in front of it, placing Notches down as Lucy hopped off her shoulder onto the floor.

“Do you recognize this trunk?” Notches asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I found it after my bracelet led us to a secret place, which was closed off after finding it.”

“Really?” Notches asked. “What did the place look like?”

“It was a huge cave,” Stephanie explained as she sat comfortably. “There was a lot of water dripping everywhere and stalagmites and stalactites.”

“I wouldn’t go in there because of the water,” Notches remarked. “But where was the trunk hidden?”

“Behind a carved mural of a sea serpent,” Stephanie explained. “An ancient language was written underneath, but I couldn’t read it.”

“Hmm.” Notches gently hummed. “That sounds like something familiar to an ancient creature.”

“Really?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes.” Notches nodded. “There was a legend about a sea monster that roamed the ocean floors and was once fearsome.”

“What happened to the sea monster?” Stephanie asked.

“Hunted down,” Notches responded. “Someone couldn’t stand being afraid of the sea monster, so he went into the ocean and hunted down the monster. That’s where the legend went.”

“That sounds almost familiar to a Zodiac,” Lucy remarked.

Stephanie and Notches looked at Lucy as Stephanie asked, “There was a sea monster Zodiac?”

“Was, yes,” Lucy nodded. “But he went missing centuries ago after he went to Earth.”

Stephanie looked thoughtful after Notches, and Lucy explained to her before turning to the trunk, noticing no letters were appearing when she placed her hand on it.

Or pricking her finger like the last time.

Stephanie opened the trunk and peered inside, seeing the scrolls and other items still inside.

She took out one of the scrolls and carefully removed the ribbon, unrolling it as there was more ancient language, but it was all written.

The entire scroll reads:

𐐻𐐱 𐐳𐑅𐐯 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐻𐐰𐑁𐑁’𐑅 𐐰𐐺𐐮𐑊𐐮𐐻𐐲, 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐸𐐰𐑂𐐯 𐐻𐐱 𐐶𐐮𐐯𐑊𐐼 𐐮𐐻 𐐮𐑌 𐐲𐐱𐐳𐑉 𐐸𐐰𐑌𐐼, 𐐼𐑉𐐰𐐶 𐐰 𐑋𐐰𐑀𐐮𐐲 𐐲𐐮𐑉𐐲𐑊𐐯 𐐳𐑅𐐮𐑌𐑀 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐻𐐰𐑁𐑁 𐐮𐐻𐑅𐐯𐑊𐑁, 𐐰𐑌𐐼 𐐻𐐸𐐮𐑌𐐿 𐐱𐑁 𐐰𐑌 𐐯𐑊𐐯𐑋𐐯𐑌𐐻 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐶𐐰𐑌𐐻 𐐻𐐱 𐐳𐑅𐐯.

𐐮𐑁 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐶𐐰𐑌𐐻 𐐻𐐱 𐐳𐑅𐐯 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐻𐐰𐑁𐑁’𐑅 𐐲𐐱𐑌𐑅𐐻𐐯𐑊𐑊𐐰𐐻𐐮𐐱𐑌 𐐰𐐺𐐮𐑊𐐮𐐻𐐲, 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐲𐐰𐑌 𐐾𐐳𐑅𐐻 𐐼𐑉𐐰𐐶 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐲𐐱𐑌𐑅𐐻𐐯𐑊𐑊𐐰𐐻𐐮𐐱𐑌 𐐮𐑌 𐑁𐑉𐐱𐑌𐐻 𐐱𐑁 𐐲𐐱𐐳, 𐐰𐑌𐐼 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐲𐐱𐑌𐑅𐐻𐐯𐑊𐑊𐐰𐐻𐐮𐐱𐑌 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐰𐐹𐐹𐐯𐐰𐑉 𐑁𐐱𐑉 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐻𐐱 𐐳𐑅𐐯.

𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐲𐐰𐑌 𐐯𐑂𐐯𐑌 𐐱𐐹𐐯𐑌 𐐰 𐑅𐑋𐐰𐑊𐑊 𐐹𐐱𐐲𐐿𐐯𐐻 𐐼𐐮𐑋𐐯𐑌𐑅𐐮𐐱𐑌 𐐻𐐱 𐑅𐐻𐐱𐑉𐐯 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐐮𐐻𐐯𐑋𐑅 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐸𐐰𐑂𐐯 𐐲𐐱𐑊𐑊𐐯𐐲𐐻𐐯𐐼 𐐱𐑂𐐯𐑉 𐐻𐐮𐑋𐐯 𐐱𐑉 𐑊𐐮𐑌𐐿 𐐻𐐸𐐯𐑋 𐐻𐐱 𐐰𐑌𐐲 𐐹𐐱𐐲𐐿𐐯𐐻𐑅 𐐱𐑉 𐐺𐐰𐑀𐑅 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐲𐐰𐑉𐑉𐐲.

𐐺𐐳𐐻 𐐺𐐯 𐐶𐐰𐑉𐑌𐐯𐐼, 𐐳𐑅𐐮𐑌𐑀 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐻𐐰𐑁𐑁’𐑅 𐑋𐐰𐑀𐐮𐐲 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐼𐑉𐐰𐐮𐑌 𐐲𐐱𐐳𐑉 𐐯𐑌𐐯𐑉𐑀𐐲 𐐱𐑂𐐯𐑉 𐐻𐐮𐑋𐐯 𐐮𐑁 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐳𐑅𐐯 𐐮𐐻 𐐻𐐱𐐱 𐑋𐐰𐑌𐐲 𐐻𐐮𐑋𐐯𐑅, 𐐲𐐰𐐳𐑅𐐮𐑌𐑀 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐻𐐱 𐐯𐐮𐐻𐐸𐐯𐑉 𐐹𐐰𐑅𐑅 𐐱𐐳𐐻 𐐱𐑉 𐐲𐐱𐑊𐑊𐐰𐐹𐑅𐐯 𐑁𐑉𐐱𐑋 𐐳𐑅𐐮𐑌𐑀 𐐻𐐱𐐱 𐑋𐐳𐐲𐐸.

𐑅𐐱𐑋𐐯 𐐱𐑁 𐐻𐐸𐐯 𐑅𐐹𐐯𐑊𐑊𐑅 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐺𐐰𐐲𐐿𐑁𐐮𐑉𐐯 𐐮𐑁 𐐲𐐱𐐳 𐐰𐐻𐐻𐐯𐑋𐐹𐐻 𐐻𐐱 𐐳𐑅𐐯 𐐻𐐸𐐯𐑋 𐐰𐑀𐐰𐐮𐑌𐑅𐐻 𐐰 𐑋𐐮𐑉𐑉𐐱𐑉, 𐐶𐐸𐐮𐐲𐐸 𐐶𐐮𐑊𐑊 𐐺𐐱𐐳𐑌𐐲𐐯 𐑉𐐮𐑀𐐸𐐻 𐐺𐐰𐐲𐐿 𐐰𐐻 𐐲𐐱𐐳.

After reading the scroll’s handwriting, Stephanie looked confused but noticed the same handwriting on the trunk’s cover.

Her bracelet glowed, which caused Stephanie to look at it, watching as the letters on the scroll changed to English, just like last time.

In English, it reads:

To use the staff’s ability, you will have to wield it in your hand, draw a magic circle using the staff itself, and think of an element you want to use.

If you want to use the staff’s constellation ability, you can just draw the constellation in front of you, and the constellation will appear for you to use.

You can even open a small pocket dimension to store the items you have collected over time or link them to any pockets or bags you carry.

But be warned, using the staff’s magic will drain your energy over time if you use it too many times, causing you to either pass out or collapse from using too much.

Some of the spells will backfire if you attempt to use them against a mirror, which will bounce right back at you.

“Whoa.” Stephanie remarked as Notches and Lucy perked, and Notches asked, “What is it?”

Stephanie showed Notches and Lucy her bracelet, saying, “My staff can translate what was written on the scroll.”

“It does?” Notches perked.

“Yes,” Stephanie smiled before looking back at the scroll thoughtfully. “But I never thought my staff could act as a pocket too.”

Deciding to try it out, Stephanie rolled the scroll back up, placed the ribbon on it, placed it into the trunk, and stood up.

She flicked her hand as the bracelet magically popped off and transformed into a wand for her to use.

“Hold on,” Stephanie paused. “Let’s not use magic in Sir Topham Hatt’s mansion, or he would be mad at me.”

Stephanie walked over to the door and focused on where she could practice before opening the door and poking her head through.

She looked confused when she stepped into a gigantic white dimension with nothing around, not even wildlife or anyone else.

“Okay,” Stephanie said as she opened the door more. “This is new.”

Notches poked his head through the door frame as Stephanie flicked her wrist, transforming her wand into a bracelet as she went to carry the trunk.

Lucy did the same as Notches smelled the ground, smelling nothing as he looked around cautiously.

After checking around, Notches and Lucy cautiously stepped into the dimension, as the floor underneath them was solid.

Strangely, they both could breathe in this empty dimension without difficulty, and nothing dangerous would happen.

Stephanie stepped inside with the trunk dragged in before closing the door, and it disappeared into the ground as Stephanie watched.

“Okay,” Stephanie said, gently clapping her hands together. “This is going to be very new.”

Remembering the scroll she previously read, Stephanie flicked her wrist as her bracelet magically came off, transforming into a staff instead of a wand.

Stephanie focused, and using the staff’s gemstone, she drew a light cyan-blue circle in front of her, causing Stephanie to perk up.

She moved the gemstone into the spell circle, and a massive gust of wind came from it, causing Notches and Lucy to be flung backward.

“Oops!” Stephanie exclaimed as she moved the gemstone back, breaking the circle and placing her staff down as she went to the two. “Sorry! Are you two alright?”

“We’re fine!” Notches exclaimed as all his fur was sticking up from the ends.

“Be careful where you are practicing your magic!” Lucy exclaimed as Notches shook himself to flatten his fur.

Stephanie blushed a little after they exclaimed as she returned to her staff, picking it up as she made a huge mental note to be careful with where she was pointing the staff.

After making a mental note, Stephanie decided to practice with the staff in her hand again, making another spell circle, except it was blue.

Notches and Lucy went over to Stephanie, and she inserted the gemstone into the circle, watching as a massive water ball launched out of the circle and landed a few feet away.

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded as she mumbled to herself. “That was water. I wonder if I can attempt to use a different style of water.”

Stephanie drew a larger blue spell circle and inserted the gemstone into it, finally being able to shoot a hose of water as it sort of pushed Stephanie backward.

But Stephanie kept herself upright as she gripped the staff with both hands, smiling with interest as she shot water.

She moved the staff back to break the spell circle, stopping the water as it had created a medium-sized pool of water.

Stephanie drew another spell circle in front of her as it was a light blue color, and instead of putting the gemstone into the spell circle, Stephanie instead tapped the water puddle she made and watched as it transformed into ice.

After the entire water puddle was transformed into ice, Stephanie drew another red spell circle and tapped the ice, causing it to melt into nothing as it disappeared into mist.

“Whoa!” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “I can combine spells using the staff too!”

Stephanie continued to practice using the spells with the staff before changing it to a wand and using many spell circles, pausing a little from using her wand.

Instead, Stephanie used her hand, and nothing happened, perking Stephanie’s curiosity as she attempted to do it repeatedly.

After using her hand, Stephanie used the wand, and a small fireball shot out before landing a few feet away.

She then used another spell circle and shot water to extinguish the fire.

“So it only works with the staff,” Stephanie muttered curiously. “Interesting.”

Stephanie paused from using more spell circles and thought, muttering, “I wonder if I can use the constellation ability the scroll mentioned.”

She paused as she thought of an easy constellation but perked up after one of them popped into her mind.

Using her wand, Stephanie made four dots in the air before connecting them, as she saw in one of the library books about constellations.

Once the constellation was finished, it started taking shape as Stephanie perked up, watching the constellation transform into a beautiful bird-of-paradise, except with the color scheme of the night sky.

The bird of paradise landed on Stephanie’s arm, and she softly gasped, watching the bird tweet as it flapped its wings.

“Wow!” Stephanie remarked with a smile. “It’s beautiful!”

The bird-of-paradise tweeted as Stephanie transformed her wand into a bracelet, petting the beautiful bird-of-paradise with a hand as it made small noises.

Then Stephanie noticed the collar around its neck, which has the constellation of the bird itself, matching the ones Stephanie takes off to transform to normal.

Curiously, Stephanie gently gripped the collar and removed it, causing the bird of paradise to disappear into thin air.

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up as the collar disappeared with the bird. “That’s how the constellations disappear.”

Stephanie looked at the bracelet around her wrist thoughtfully, wondering what else the staff had.

Sir Topham Hatt returned home after a long day at work, sighing as he pushed his cat into place.

“Good evening, sir,” one of the butlers greeted him.

“Good evening.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded before deciding to check on Stephanie.

So he headed to the spare room he gave her, knocking on her door as he spoke, “Stephanie? Are you in there?”

There was no response, and Sir Topham Hatt felt confused and worried.

Did she walk off again?

“Stephanie?” Sir Topham Hatt took the doorknob in his hand and turned it, only to open the door to a vast jungle.

Sir Topham Hatt stared at the jungle with confusion as he looked down the hallway that was his house before looking back at the jungle.

He stepped into the jungle and closed the door behind him, wondering what had happened to Stephanie’s room.

Unless she could have been using spells to recreate this room into something else.

He will have a long talk with her when he-

Sir Topham Hatt almost tripped over something that caused him to stop as his hat was knocked off slightly, but he adjusted it back into place.

Glancing down at what he almost tripped on, he saw a trunk filled with scrolls on top of a rock at his height.

He looked at the scrolls inside the trunk as he picked one of them up, noticing they had a ribbon with a medal on it with a sideways nine.

There were also what looked like pieces of a fish scale with jewelry and some pieces of gemstones.

Does this belong to Stephanie?

Deciding not to poke his nose into Stephanie’s belongings, Sir Topham Hatt closed the trunk before calling, as he cupped his hands over his mouth, “Stephanie? Where are you?”

He soon came across what looked like a waterfall with a pool and continued glancing around, calling, “Stephanie?”

A head popped up from the grass and noticed Sir Topham Hatt before exclaiming, “Sir?!”

Sir Topham Hatt flinched after hearing Stephanie’s voice and glanced over, seeing Stephanie walking around the grass as she held a staff.

“How did you get in here?!” Stephanie exclaimed but wobbled a little.

“I entered your room through your door,” Sir Topham Hatt explained. “It was unlocked, but,” he paused as he looked at the jungle, asking, “What on Sodor happened to the room?”

“It’s not a room,” Stephanie told him, seeing his face more confused. “Here, let me show you.”

Stephanie transformed her staff into her bracelet, which concluded that it was truly the staff Lucy and Notches mentioned, and she took his hand, leading him through the jungle.

“Ah, excuse the greenery,” Stephanie apologized with a gentle chuckle. “I sort of went a little crazy with my magic.”

“You were practicing magic?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded with a smile. “I learned how to use elemental spells and even bring constellations to life too!”

“You did?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, a little bewildered at how fast she learned. “But it’ll take years for someone around your age to learn this!”

“True,” Stephanie nodded before they soon exited the jungle. “Ah, here.”

Stephanie gently tugged Sir Topham Hatt forward, showing the edge of the jungle, and there was only a vast white space, causing Sir Topham Hatt to be confused.

“H-How?” Sir Topham Hatt stammered, sounding confused.

“It’s, ah, a part of my ability,” Stephanie responded. “Not my staff. It’s a secret magical ability of mine.”

She paused as she summoned her wand with a flick of her wrist, making a small ocean-blue circle as the same door appeared from the ground in front of them.

Stephanie turned the knob and opened the door, showing the room to Sir Topham Hatt as Notches and Lucy were there.

“It turns out I can open doors to different places.” Stephanie chuckled sheepishly.

“You can?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, sounding surprised.

“Yes!” Stephanie nodded as she rubbed the back of her neck with her hand. “I didn’t have the chance to explain to you since I have been wandering around Sodor to learn of the island’s magic.”

Sir Topham Hatt looked surprised after Stephanie explained before saying, as he looked back at the jungle, “I didn’t expect you to use that much magic, though. Doesn’t it tire you out?”

“Actually…” Stephanie paused as she leaned against the doorframe, the wand transforming back into her bracelet. “I think I did exhaust myself from doing all that.”

Sir Topham Hatt gently scooped Stephanie into his arms as she drooped, looking tired as she took her glasses off.

“Note to self,” Stephanie spoke as Sir Topham Hatt entered her room. “Don’t go bonkers overusing magic.”

She added, “Close the door too, so my ability would stop working and no one else would walk into it accidentally.”

Sir Topham Hatt closed the door after Stephanie pointed it out and opened it, seeing that it did stop as it was back to the hallway he had walked through.

“I need to get used to this magic.” Sir Topham Hatt sighed as Stephanie sat on her bed after removing her sweater.

Stephanie chuckled after Sir Topham Hatt sighed as she said, “It’s okay, sir. Try taking it at your pace. Overstressing yourself by attempting to get used to it doesn’t work that well.”

Stephanie lay comfortably on the bed underneath the blankets as Notches hopped on, lying around her stomach area.

Sir Topham Hatt turned the lights off as Stephanie’s tiredness approached her.

She eventually fell asleep as he closed the door, and the lullabies and Notches’ purring filled the air as she drifted to sleep.

With Sir Topham Hatt, he wondered how Stephanie managed to do all that in a whole day.

He had heard of how people used their magic when they were young, and it took them a decade to practice.

But Stephanie just learned hers in a day!

He could ask J.J. Silvers how Stephanie could do all that when he could ask him.

Chapter Text

The smell of chrysanthemums made Stephanie wake up, causing her to sit up from where she was sitting in a massive field of chrysanthemums in different colors.

They were beautiful and smelled wonderful as their scent drifted into the wind, and Stephanie inspected one of the flowers, cupping it in her hand as she looked at them.

Happy laughter went through the air as Stephanie perked up, glancing around, wondering where the laughter was coming from.

In the distance, Stephanie could see two people playing in the field a few miles away from where she was, one a woman and the other a male.

Curious, Stephanie stood up from where she was and started heading towards the two, walking through the meadow as it was up to her hips.

Seeing the meadow up to her hips was strange, but she ignored it, continuing through the field as she saw the happy couple continuing to play with each other.

When she was close enough, Stephanie could see the woman had long, straight blond hair, fair skin, and light blue eyes.

She wore a short-sleeved light blue shirt dress, a white apron tied around her waist, and black boots.

Playing with her was a young man with curly brown hair, fair skin, and light brown eyes, wearing a long-sleeve white button-up shirt, light brown pants with straps, and black shoes.

From how he looked, he looked a little like Sir Topham Hatt, and he was even wearing a black top hat to add to the resemblance.

Stephanie watched the two play around in the meadow and kiss each other as she blushed a little, realizing she had wandered into the two being lovey-dovey to each other.

She was about to leave the two for their privacy when she noticed something hidden in a small tree, which was magically opening and revealing what looked like a journal with a knob.

“Excuse me?” Stephanie perked up after hearing a voice and glanced over, noticing they were staring at her, and she blushed. “Who are you?”

She was about to speak when she lifted a hand, only to pause when she saw that her hand had transformed into a skeleton’s arm.

The couple’s faces turned from confusion to shock as the sun set over the horizon, and the male protected the woman.

Stephanie looked panicked after looking at her hand and watching her left arm transform into a skeleton’s arm like the other, and when she reached up to her face, she felt nothing but a skeleton’s face.

Stephanie woke up with a flinch and a deep gasp as Notches flinched away with her jump, meowing a little as he glanced at Stephanie.

Lucy was startled awake from her gasp as she looked over, seeing Stephanie sweating from her forehead and gripping her blankets.

But they paused when he saw her eyes glowing slightly in a light blue color before stopping when she blinked.

“Stephanie?” Notches spoke as she reached up to her face, feeling it with her fingers, and it was not a skeleton’s head. “Stephanie, are you alright?”

Stephanie looked down at Notches after he asked, staring up at her with a concerned and worried expression as she said, laying her head back down on her pillow, “No. I had another nightmare again.”

“What is it this time?” Lucy asked.

Stephanie paused as she put the back of her hand on her sweaty forehead, explaining, “I woke up in a field of chrysanthemums, and I saw a couple playing in the field, but when I got close to them…”

She paused as she shuddered, placing her hands on her face and finishing what she explained, “My entire body had transformed into a skeleton after the sunset.”

Notches and Lucy looked at each other after Stephanie explained her nightmare to them, and Stephanie shuddered again from the flashback of her being a skeleton that haunted her mind.

Lucy hopped from the bedside table to Stephanie, saying as she touched her arm, “You’re still yourself, Stephanie. You’re not a skeleton, and it was a nightmare.”

Stephanie removed her hands from her face and looked down at Lucy, smiling as she placed a hand on her back and one behind Notches, hugging the two.

“Thank you,” Stephanie said.

Notches purred as he started grooming Stephanie’s long blue hair while Lucy returned the hug to her, and Stephanie began to calm down from the aftershock of the nightmare.

But there was a lingering feeling of that nightmare becoming true with the sunset on Sodor.

A knock on the door perked Stephanie’s attention from her thoughts as she pushed them away, sat up from her bed, and responded, “Come in.”

The door opened, and Sir Topham Hatt stepped in, wearing light blue silk pajamas and his top hat.

“Hello, sir,” Stephanie greeted Sir Topham Hatt.

“Hello, Stephanie,” Sir Topham Hatt greeted back. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did,” Stephanie nodded as she sighed, putting Lucy onto the nightstand, and she let go of Notches as he climbed over her onto one of the pillows and moved her blankets off her body. “I slept like a rock.”

“I see,” Sir Topham Hatt remarked as Stephanie stood up, noticing she was wearing her clothes. “Stephanie, I am planning to visit someone over in Drayton.”

“‘Drayton?’” Stephanie asked, looking over at Sir Topham Hatt. “Is that a city part of Sodor?”

“Yes,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “And since there are more mountains there than here, you could find more Dust Crystals.”

“Good idea,” Stephanie nodded. “I would like to come to Drayton.”

She paused after looking at her clothes, noticing she would smell like sweat with the clothes smelling like it, and added, “Right after having a bath and a new change of clothes.”

“Of course,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “Take as long as you want, and let me or my butlers know if there is anything else.”

Stephanie nodded as Sir Topham Hatt left her room and headed to the bathroom after collecting a new batch of clothes, walking across from where the Hatt Family Tree was.

She paused when she stepped in front of the Hatt Family Tree and looked up at it, seeing the faces of the Hatts, including the current Hatts.

But two familiar members of the Hatt family were in Stephanie’s nightmare, one with curly brown hair and the other with long blonde hair.

“Nope,” Stephanie shook her head as she walked past the Hatt Family Tree. “Nope, nope, nope, not today.”

She soon arrived at the bathroom and paused before entering, first knocking on the door to check if anyone was there as she listened.

Thankfully, no one was responding to her knock, so Stephanie stepped inside and showered.

Meanwhile, Sir Topham Hatt was fidgeting with his collar, silently huffing as he attempted, again and again, to get it to flatten.

Lady Hatt appeared to help her husband with her collar as Sir Topham Hatt gently took her hand as she hugged him from behind.

“Thank you, dear,” Sir Topham Hatt thanked.

Stephanie then walked in wearing a long-sleeve light blue shirt with dark blue jeans overalls and carrying brown work boots while wearing white socks.

Her long hair was braided into a braid, covering the back of her neck as Stephanie prepared to start the day, and Notches came in with Lucy on his back.

Stephanie and Sir Topham Hatt ate their breakfast as Stephanie was telling him what she would do in Drayton, just in case she wandered off again.

Sir Topham Hatt listened to Stephanie tell him what she would do while he was visiting someone in Drayton.

This time, Stephanie ensures everything goes smoothly during her adventure through Drayton, though she has some doubts her plan will go right.

Once their breakfast was finished, Stephanie double-checked her Dust Whistle, looking at the Gold Dust, Silver Dust, Copper Dust, Bronze Dust, and the new Dust called Aluminum Dust, and it was all full.

Stephanie followed Sir Topham Hatt to his car and sat between his helpers, holding Notches and Lucy in her lap.

During the ride, Stephanie gently scratched Notches’ chin as he purred from Stephanie’s affection while Lucy rubbed one of his cheeks.

As they were getting close to Drayton, Stephanie’s ears suddenly picked up what sounded like loud noises, causing her to move a hand up to hear them.

It sounded like bells, whistles, and machinery moving, which piqued Stephanie’s curiosity after hearing the noises.

The noises soon grew louder, and Stephanie started to feel worried about them, her ears flicking when a grinding noise went through the air.

Sir Topham Hatt noticed Stephanie’s ears flicking when they were getting close to Drayton when they passed the sign, wondering why they were flicking.

They soon arrived at Drayton, and the noises were a little loud, but Stephanie could still hear them without covering her ears.

Many engines were moving around as Stephanie looked around Sir Topham Hatt’s assistants, ranging from buses, cars, locomotives, and such!

And she thought of Knapford or any of the places she had been, knowing she had looked at the map when she was circling where most of the Dust Crystals are usually collected.

The places all sound so curious to Stephanie, who wants to explore Sodor to look at everything and write down all about the city.

Sir Topham Hatt soon drove over to a building and parked to the side at one of the stops as Stephanie was getting curious by the minute.

Sir Topham Hatt’s assistant from the right opened the door and stepped out, only for the noise to become a little louder.

Stephanie instantly covered her ears after hearing the loud noises as they flicked.

Even Notches’ ears did the same after hearing the loud noises, but Stephanie gritted her teeth as Notches climbed into her sweater’s hood and Lucy onto her shoulder.

Sir Topham Hatt noticed Stephanie’s expression and became worried, watching her pointed ears flick while wincing and gritting her teeth.

“Are you alright, Stephanie?” Sir Topham Hatt asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m-!” Stephanie flinched when a loud, blaring horn went through the air, causing Sir Topham Hatt and his assistants to wince from the noise as well. “It’s just loud!”

“Too loud for you?” Sir Topham Hatt asked.

Stephanie winced again when a loud noise went through the air as her ears flicked, responding, “I can push through it! Noth-” She winced when a loud horn went through the air, finishing with a slightly pained expression, “It’s nothing!”

Notches in Stephanie’s hood shook his head from the noises, giving little meows while Lucy covered her ears with her hands.

“Alright, then,” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “Be back before-”

The rest of his sentence was drowned out when a loud screeching noise went through the air, and Stephanie’s ears flicked like crazy, gritting her teeth while trying to listen to what Sir Topham Hatt was saying.

But that screeching noise was enough that Stephanie said quickly, “OKAYILOVEYOU!” before scrambling off with her hands covering her ears.

Sir Topham Hatt looked confused after watching Stephanie run off before chuckling lightly and entering the building with his assistants.

Stephanie was recovering from the noises as she rubbed one of her ears after walking away from the loud environment, groaning as she muttered, “How loud can this place get?”

“Too loud.” Notches sighed. “Are your ears going to be alright?”

“I think so,” Stephanie nodded. “That was too loud for me.”

“It was?” Lucy asked, looking confused. “It sounded just like something out of a warehouse.”

“Well,” Stephanie began as she pushed her glasses into place. “I strangely have good hearing abilities. I can hear what is coming close and what is trying to creep towards me.”

“Wow,” Notches remarked. “And Crotoonia Bay was too loud?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I think I’ll stay around where it’s peaceful until I return to Sir Topham Hatt.”

“Good idea.” Notches nodded with a sigh as he placed his head against her shoulder. “I need a moment to regain my hearing.”

Stephanie smiled softly as she started walking down the sidewalk, watching different engines of different types pass by and greeting her with a whistle of their whistle, a honk of their horn, or a ring of their bells.

Stephanie returned the greeting with a wave of her hand and a smile.

Although some did not do the same whenever Stephanie waved hello towards them, she just waved at them anyway.

She continued walking before approaching a large rocky terrain and seeing Dust Crystals poking from the wall.

“Perfect!” Stephanie smiled. “Let’s start digging.”

Stephanie started to chip away at that part of the rock, digging out the Dust Crystals as she collected them and placed them in her bag.

There were new Dust Crystals as Stephanie dug through the solid dirt and sniffed them to determine their type.

It ranged from more of the current Dusts she discovered, but then it went to bismuth, antimony, and some others she knew were metal or smelled dirt.

Stephanie even digs out that black, squishy crystal and grimaces whenever she pulls it out as it squishes in her hands, placing it down with the others before watching it become one.

“Yuck,” Stephanie groaned with disgust before continuing to dig.

Notches grew curious after seeing the squishy black gemstone and lightly batted at it with his paws, feeling it squishy with each smack before stopping.

It did feel disgusting to the touch, but the smell is what Notches gagged about after curiously smelling it.

It smelled like someone had melted down different kinds of metal into one pot, and this black crystallized thing was what it smelled like.

Stephanie dug for a long time before she stopped, checking her bag, filled with multiple different Dust Crystals and half full.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked. “I collected a lot.”

“And that’s a good thing,” Lucy remarked. “Having extra is better than having less.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement after Lucy pointed it out, but she wondered if she could do a spell to help her carry all this heavy load she had been hauling.

So Stephanie flicked her right wrist, and her bracelet came off and transformed into a wand as Stephanie drew a white circle from the top.

“Stephanie?” Notches spoke after seeing Stephanie draw a spell circle. “What are you doing?”

She tapped her bag with the spell circle, and the items inside suddenly grew lighter, causing Stephanie to perk up.

Did she accidentally use the wrong spell?

Stephanie opened her bag and peered inside, noticing it looked dark inside, causing her to look confused.

She reached a hand into her hand, but her entire arm went through it, causing Stephanie to perk up after her entire arm went into it.

But Stephanie’s fingers could lightly feel something inside, and she gripped it with her hand, taking out a large book from inside.

“Whoa!” Stephanie exclaimed as she held the book in her hands. “It did work!”

Lucy looked surprised as Notches peered into the bag, seeing the same thing as he stepped back a little from accidentally falling inside.

Stephanie looked at the large book’s cover as it read, ‘Sodor’s Greatest Legends.’

“I’ll look at this book later,” Stephanie reminded herself as she placed the book back into her bag.

Then she felt around with her fingers, feeling the multiple Dust Crystals she had collected to the other items she had packed into her bag.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as Lucy peered into the bag.

“How did you manage to do this?” Lucy asked. “It has to take around three or five years to master this spell!”

Stephanie blinked a few times after Lucy pointed it out and shrugged, not knowing how she had mastered a storage spell.

“This is just gobsmacking!” Lucy exclaimed as she stepped back. “You just mastered multiple spells in just a few days!”

“Yeah,” Stephanie said, nodding in agreement. “Pretty surprising for me too.”

But she paused and added, “I wonder if there are other spells I could master!”

“Oh boy.” Lucy sighed as Notches chuckled, adding, “You can try Latin spells.”

“‘Latin spells?’” Stephanie asked. “There are language spells?”

“Yes.” Notches nodded as Stephanie closed her bag. “You briefly used the Rat Zodiac’s ink spells to create words that help you battle, but there are other spells from different languages you could try out too.”

“Ooh!” Stephanie remarked. “I’ll try those out in my special room!”

“I don’t see why,” Lucy sighed with a shrug. “But what are you going to do with those crystals?”

Stephanie looked over at the squishy black crystals she had dug out and responded, grimacing with disgust, “Rebury them.”

And Stephanie did so after digging a reasonably deep hole and quickly pushing them all in, shaking her hands with disgust as she refilled the hole.

Once the squishy black crystals have been reburied, Stephanie picks Notches up after Lucy is placed on her shoulder, climbing into his favorite spot in Stephanie’s hood.

Stephanie began her adventure through Drayton, seeing the beauty of nature and noticing different people walking through the city.

They range from coming out of a cartoon to being living toys as they walk down the streets and greet each other.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she walked down the sidewalk. “I didn’t know Drayton was this busy!”

“Well, that’s what you get for coming into Drayton!” a villager remarked. “And it’s a pleasure to meet you, child.”

“You too.” Stephanie nodded, silently confused about how the villager knew her.

“Hey, is that the kid who can use Gold Dust?” a child asked, pointing at her across the street.

Stephanie blushed after the child asked as the mother gently hushed, “Honey, it’s not polite to point at strangers.”

“She turned blue!” another kid laughed.

Stephanie blushed more after the other kid remarked about her cheeks blushing blue as she continued walking down the street.

She turned around the corner before perking up when she saw what looked like sentient airplanes slowly driving down the driveway across from where the roads go.

Stephanie’s curiosity grew as she walked over to the fence, staring at the planes moving around what looked like a plane-sized version of a city.

“What is that city?” Stephanie asked out loud.

“That’s Propwash Junction, ankle-biter!” a familiar Australian voice responded.

Stephanie glanced over and saw Ace parked while his driver was missing, presumably going to get groceries or gas.

“Oh, hello, Ace!” Stephanie greeted him with a smile before pointing at the nearby city. “That city is called Propwash Junction.”

“Yep!” Ace nodded. “That’s weah the coolest airplanes resawrt ta!”

“Like who?” Stephanie asked curiously.

“Dusty Crophopper,” Ace remarked with a smile. “He’s the first cropdusder ta win the Wings Around the Globe race!”

“Wow!” Stephanie remarked. “He sounds like an awesome racer!”

“Oh, yes, he is!” Ace nodded. “He even pahrticipated in bein’ a firefighder!”

“No way!” Stephanie gasped.

“Yes, way!” Ace laughed. “If ya want ta go ovah ‘n visit him, just go ovah ‘n meet his friend Chug!”

Stephanie perked up after Ace remarked and stammered, “Ah, i-is that fine with them?”

“Of course it is!” Ace nodded. “A lot of fans come ovah heah ta meet him! It’s not so bad once ya go ovah ‘n see him.”

A knot twisted in Stephanie’s stomach after Ace nodded towards the city as she said, avoiding Ace’s solution, “I’m just going to look around Propwash Junction instead. It was nice meeting you, Ace!”

Ace blinked with confusion after Stephanie bid him farewell and responded. “Uh, sure! Ya too?”

Stephanie soon started walking down the sidewalk as Ace watched, looking confused about her reaction to meeting Dusty Crophopper.

Is there something about airplanes that scares her?

But Ace shook the thought out of his mind as he returned to what he was doing, waiting for his driver to return.

Stephanie continued adventuring around Propwash Junction, looking curious as she glanced around, watching planes and cars drive around.

Some humans were around, but it was not enough that they were walking across the runway or entering buildings.

It all feels curious for Stephanie as she walks on the sidewalks, looking around the place as she looks at the buildings, seeing how gigantic they look compared to her small size.

A loud warning-like noise went through the air, and Stephanie stopped walking, moving to the side as she watched what looked like a plane heading towards the runway as everyone moved to the side for the plane to land.

She watched as two poles appeared with a cable, and the plane landed, catching the cable and slowing down to a stop as Stephanie’s jaw dropped with surprise and awe.

It was not just a plane; it was a jet plane!

The jet plane’s goggles moved up after landing successfully, and the plane went over to the other planes, talking to them as if they were friends.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked for the third time after witnessing a jet plane landing on the runway.

After looking around Propwash Junction, Stephanie started heading somewhere else after seeing what looked like a large toy-like city that piqued her interest.

So Stephanie walked into the city and glanced around, seeing some buildings resembling LEGO bricks or regular buildings.

“Did I wander into a toy-styled city?” Stephanie lightly muttered with curiosity.

Stephanie continued to look around the city before stopping when she discovered LEGO-themed cats starting to walk in front of her.

She counted each cat as they hopped into a car, and a woman named them Fluffy, Fluffy Jr., Fluffy Sr., Jeff, Jasmine, Dexter, Angie, Loki, Bad Leroy, Scarfield, Deathface, Metalscratch, Laserbeam, Fingernail, and Tox.

Stephanie was interested in the cats as she had finished counting them, and Notches was still in Stephanie’s hood, unbothered by the cats.

The woman counted out how many she named, fumbling a little with the names and giving a gentle “D’oh!” before turning to Stephanie and asking, “How many cats did I have?”

“Fifteen, ma’am,” Stephanie responded with a gentle smile. “I counted them for you.”

“Thank you, dear,” The lady smiled before hopping into her car and driving off.

“That was cool!” Stephanie commented after watching the woman drive off. “A lot of cats too.”

She chuckled at the end as she continued walking past LEGO characters around her height as they talked with each other and other humans.

Some adults looked taller than them as they were at their original heights, while Stephanie looked around at the LEGO Minifigures’ heights.

Everything around her looked interesting, but Stephanie was worried about allowing her curiosity to get the best of her and touch everything.

Stephanie soon walked out of the city and entered another, walking through the gigantic place as she curiously looked around.

Everything looked so different from how she thought as she walked through the streets and saw the people.

They seemed to notice Stephanie, too, glancing over at her and watching her walk down the sidewalk with Lucy on her shoulder and Notches in her sweater’s hood.

It scared Stephanie how she had so many eyes on her, trying to ignore the eyes staring at her back as she walked through the city.

She soon exited that part of the city and sighed before flinching when a gigantic foot stomped before her, causing her to step back.

“Whoops!” a voice exclaimed as the foot lifted, causing her to look up and see a robot LEGO figure with what looked like red armor, like a futuristic knight. “Sorry about that! You okay?”

“Y-Yes,” Stephanie nodded as the robot LEGO figure placed his foot back down. “I’m alright. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

The LEGO robot figure knelt at Stephanie’s height and said, “It’s okay. But next time, look before walking into the streets, okay?”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded with a smile. “It was nice meeting you, mister.”

“You too.” The LEGO robot figure nodded before standing up to his height and walking past her as Stephanie watched.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked. “That was a huge robot!”

“Never saw that before,” Notches remarked as Stephanie looked at him. “I meant to see him around. I thought his series sort of stopped production.”

Stephanie shrugged after Notches remarked and responded, “Maybe his show could be on the internet. That always becomes everyone’s loophole.”

She chuckled as she continued walking, this time being careful where she was going as she looked up before looking forward.

Stephanie saw more gigantic robots helping around the city, from putting animals down from trees to moving items around.

They were huge compared to normal humans, ranging from fifteen feet to even taller!

Stephanie felt a little overwhelmed after seeing different beings roaming around Sodor, even ones that could transform into gigantic robots as they helped around.

“Holy crap in a pita,” Stephanie remarked as she exited the city. “There were a lot of people in that one little city!”

“Do you feel overwhelmed?” Lucy asked.

“A little,” Stephanie nodded. “The crowds and the traffic do not look that bad, but it was stupidly crowded!”

Lucy and Notches chuckled after Stephanie remarked as she headed to the beach, stopping as she looked around with curiosity.

The ocean was crystal blue and had barely any garbage anywhere, just like the beaches Stephanie usually goes to, which would help her calm her nerves.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she looked at the beach. “It’s beautiful. It doesn’t look like the beaches back in Shining Time!”

“It doesn’t?” Lucy asked.

Stephanie nodded in agreement as Notches explained, “Campers and partygoers sometimes leave trash on the beaches at Shining Time.”

“That’s disgusting!” Lucy grimaced.

“I know,” Stephanie nodded. “But let’s enjoy this beach.”

“I’ll pass on walking through the water,” Notches added.

Stephanie chuckled as she stepped close to the beach, stopping to allow Notches and Lucy to hop off as they sat on one of the dried, washed-up logs.

She removed her work boots and socks and placed them to the side along with her sweater, which she put next to Notches as he sat on top of her sweater.

Once her garments were off, Stephanie stepped onto the beach barefoot as the sand underneath her feet sank somewhat beneath her weight.

The sand was not too hot when Stephanie stepped towards the ocean, carefully walking through the sand as she stopped to roll her pants legs up.

Once her pant legs were rolled, Stephanie stepped into the ocean water, and it was cool, not cold like the ocean back at Shining Time, as Stephanie walked a little further.

Stephanie glanced back at the beach as she stood knee-deep in the ocean, staring out into the open as the wind blew against her form.

Was the ocean calling her?

Stephanie stared at the open ocean with curiosity, barely moving a muscle as she only started from where she stood, her braid waving in the wind.

It showed what looked like a symbol on the back of her neck, as it had points, but the angle could not make out the rest of the shape.

A gentle tug from her Zodiac Pocket Watch snapped Stephanie out of her staring, her eyes changing from a soft blend of ocean blue and azure to azure after she blinked.

Stephanie reached into her overalls’ hip pocket and took out the Zodiac Pocket Watch, seeing the flower-shaped symbol glowing.

Is there a gemstone close?

Stephanie soon started moving away from where she was standing and following the glow of the flower’s petals, getting closer and closer to where it wanted to lead her.

Eventually, Stephanie stopped near what looked like tidal pools, and the whole flower was glowing, indicating she had found a gemstone.

Stephanie put the Zodiac Pocket Watch into her overalls’ chest pocket and looked curiously through the tidal pools.

She pushed her sleeves up and carefully reached her arms into the tidal pools, moving the seaweed back as she saw small crabs, starfish, or other miniature sea life.

Stephanie paused from searching around and was about to go to another tidal pool when a young voice suddenly asked, “Hey!”

Stephanie’s entire body flinched after hearing someone’s voice exclaim, and the water her arm was in vibrated with her.

She glanced over at the person who spoke and saw a small toy tugboat in one of the pools beside her, looking confused as the brown tugboat asked, “Whatcha doin’?”

“I’m searching for something,” Stephanie responded, calming down after seeing it was the toy tugboat. “You scared me, though.”

The toy tugboat giggled after Stephanie remarked and hopped from one tidal pool to another, hopping into the one Stephanie was looking through and in front of her.

“Sorry,” he apologized. “But whatcha lookin’ for?”

“I’m looking for a clam,” Stephanie responded to the toy tugboat.

“What do you need a clam for?” the toy tugboat asked, cocking its head slightly.

“It’s pearl,” Stephanie responded with a smile.

“Ooh!” the toy tugboat perked. “You’re looking for a pearl?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “But I can’t find one in these tidal pools.”

“Well, let’s keep searching!” The toy tugboat smiled as he swam around the small tidal pool. “What’s your name?”

Stephanie smiled as she removed her arm from the pool, responding, “Stephanie Allen. What’s your name?”

“Scuffy,” the toy tugboat responded. “Scuffy the Tugboat!”

“I like that name,” Stephanie remarked as she stopped at one of the tidal waves and looked through it.

Scuffy blushed after Stephanie remarked and said with a light stammer in his voice, “I-I like your name too. It suits you.”

Stephanie blushed after Scuffy commented as her ears flicked, causing Scuffy to perk up after seeing her pointed ears.

“You have pointed ears?” Stephanie flinched after Scuffy mentioned her ears as the water rippled, saying as she removed her arms, reaching up to her ears and gently grabbing them, “Ah, my ears? Yeah, I have pointed ears.”

“They look cool!” Scuffy remarked, causing Stephanie’s cheeks to fluster. “Can they move on their own?”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, slowly removing her hands as they flicked up and down.

Scuffy’s eyes widened with wonder as Stephanie’s ears continued to flick up and down, watching them as they moved.

“Do…” Stephanie paused as she glanced away from him before glancing back at him. “Do you like them?”

“Yeah!” Scuffy nodded. “You look like an elf with those ears!”

Part of Stephanie felt a little agitated after Scuffy mentioned her ears looked like an elf’s, but since he looked innocent and was remarking on them, Stephanie bit her tongue.

“Thank you,” Stephanie said.

“You’re welcome,” Scuffy responded. “But did you find a clam yet?”

Stephanie shook her head as she looked at the tidal pools, responding, “Not yet.”

“Hmm,” Scuffy hummed. “Let’s try searching through more tidal pools.”

Stephanie nodded as she walked with Scuffy, peering into the pools and looking through the seaweed with her hands.

“Careful,” Scuffy would warn her whenever her hands were near a crab. “You almost touched a crab.”

“Thank you,” Stephanie said.

They went to the next tidal pool and searched through it, with Stephanie moving seaweed apart and Scuffy swimming around to help her.

Stephanie could feel the Zodiac Pocket Watch starting to vibrate, causing her to feel confused when it started moving, but she decided that it was a part of searching.

They reached one of the pools and searched through it as Scuffy exclaimed, “Look, I found a clam!”

Stephanie peered into the pool, saw the clam sitting at the bottom of the tidal pool, and smiled, feeling the Zodiac Pocket Watch vibrate more.

“That’s the perfect one!” Stephanie beamed.

But before she could stick her hand into the pool, a crab suddenly crawled into her path, and Stephanie stopped, watching the crab click its pincers as a warning.

“Hey!” Scuffy huffed. “We’re just getting the clam, not you.”

The crab only stared at them blankly, still holding its pinchers up as a warning while staring at them.

“I think the crab is thinking we’re trying to attack it,” Stephanie explained to Scuffy. “We might’ve accidentally wandered into its territory.”

“Can we do something about it?” Scuffy asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I can try to pick it up from behind and safely move it into a different pool.”

“Are you sure?” Scuffy asked. “You’ll feel a pinch from it if you get too close to it.”

“It’s okay,” Stephanie gently assured. “I’ll be careful.”

Stephanie reached her hands into the pool and watched the crab move its pincher up more, being prepared for a fight as Stephanie was careful.

She did not want to hurt the crab but did not want it to nip at her fingers or lose a finger against this small crab before her.

So Stephanie became cautious as she carefully planned how to pick the hand-sized crab from the tidal pool.

Scuffy watched as Stephanie quickly picked the crab up from behind it, watching it flick around, unable to grab Stephanie as she was being careful.

“I got it!” Stephanie smiled as she showed the crab to Scuffy, as it was squirming and kicking around in her hand.

“Great!” Scuffy remarked. “You didn’t get pinched either!”

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded before walking to the other tidal pool.

She placed the crab into the tidal pool and watched it scramble backward once it was put down, lifting its claws as an ‘I’ll be watching you’ gesture.

Stephanie chuckled a little as she walked back to the same tidal pool where the clam was, reaching into it and taking it out.

The clam was giant as Stephanie held it in both hands, amazed at how big it was outside the tidal pools.

“That is one big clam,” Scuffy remarked.

“Yeah,” Stephanie nodded with a chuckle. “But how are we going to open it?”

“You can’t break it open because you don’t know what you’re going to do with it,” Scuffy pointed out.

Stephanie looked at him with a confused expression as he explained, “You are only searching for a pearl, not a clam. It’s wasteful to just open a clam without using its meat. That’s what Big Mac told me.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up before nodding in agreement. “That’s a good point.”

She turned back at the clam thoughtfully before saying, “What if we could attempt to make the clam laugh somehow?”

“‘Laugh?’” Scuffy asked, looking confused.

“Yes, laugh.” Stephanie nodded. “There’s a little joke, or, as others would say, a rumor, that if you tickle a clam, it will laugh and open its shell.”

“Let’s try it out!” Scuffy encouraged her. “But, where can we get a feather?”

Stephanie thought of an idea of how to open the clam or find a feather, but as she tilted her head, her hair from the tip gently bruised over the clam, and it started to twitch in her hands.

She looked down at the clam with confusion after feeling it twitch in her hands, and an idea popped into her mind.

Stephanie switched hands and started to tickle the shell with her hair, feeling the shell squirm in her hand as the faint sound of laughter came from it.

“It’s working!” Scuffy smiled. “Keep going!”

Stephanie nodded and did so, continuing to tickle the clam as it started to laugh a little louder, its jaws opening slightly as Stephanie used her hair.

She tickled the sides of the clam, and its laughter went louder, and its jaws were barely opening as Stephanie continued, determined to get the jaws open.

Eventually, the clam started laughing harder, and the jaws finally opened, revealing a pure white round pearl on its ‘tongue.’

“Excuse me.” Stephanie politely excused herself as she took the pearl from inside its jaws and started calming down from laughing.

After taking the pearl as the clam calmed down, Stephanie gently placed the clam back where it was and showed Scuffy the pearl.

“Wow!” Scuffy remarked. “It’s pretty!”

Stephanie nodded in agreement as she took out her Zodiac Pocket Watch, watching it float from her palm as the back opened.

The pearl floated from her fingers, inserted itself into the fourth gem slot after shrinking to the right size, and closed back up, landing in Stephanie’s hand as the next power started.

Instead, Stephanie’s body was split in two as Scuffy watched with confusion as two people stood.

They both looked like Stephanie, except one had blue hair, and the other had dark blue hair.

“Uh,” Scuffy said worriedly. “Stephanie?”

The Stephanie with the blue hair turned to Scuffy after he asked her name, and her face lit up like a Christmas tree out of the blue.

“Aw!” The blue-haired Stephanie hugged Scuffy, who was startled when she picked him up. “You’re so cute!”

Scuffy blinked in confusion after the blue-haired Stephanie remarked, and the other, the dark blue-haired Stephanie, with her hair covering her face and drooping slightly, was muttering with a sad tone, “Hey, be careful with him. You’ll crush him by accident.”

“Oh, I’m careful!” The blue-haired Stephanie assured her with a perky smile before releasing her hug and holding Scuffy. “He’s so cute!”

Scuffy stared at the two confusedly as he asked, “What happened to you?”

“It’s part of the zodiac abilities,” the dark blue-haired Stephanie calmly responded before showing the collar as the pendant was in half. “Gemini allows us to divide ourselves into different personalities or mindsets.”

“We can even duplicate objects, too!” the blue-haired Stephanie added with a chirp.

“Wow!” Scuffy perked up after the two Stephanies explained. “Can you two become one?”

The two Stephanies looked at each other after Scuffy asked, and the blue-haired Stephanie said, with a smile, “Let’s try it!”

“Sure,” the dark blue-haired Stephanie shrugged her shoulders.

The blue-haired Stephanie placed Scuffy down into one of the tidal pools, and they both held hands, fusing back together as the necklace became one, making the Gemini symbol.

Stephanie blinked after she was ‘put back together,’ and her hair split between blue and dark blue down the middle.

Stephanie blinked as she placed her hands against her head, muttering, “That was weird.”

“Yeah!” Scuffy nodded in agreement as Stephanie removed her hands from her head. “You used a Gemini zodiac ability.”

“I did?” Stephanie perked up before feeling the pendant on her choker. “Oh, that’s what Gemini is! Cool!”

“What other zodiacs do you have?” Scuffy asked curiously.

“Well,” Stephanie paused as she thought to herself. “There’s the Aries Zodiac, the Falcon Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, the Rat Zodiac, the Taurus Zodiac, the Beaver Zodiac, the Cat Zodiac, the Ox Zodiac, the Gemini Zodiac, the Deer Zodiac, the Snake Zodiac, and the Tiger Zodiac.”

“Wow!” Scuffy remarked. “That’s a lot of zodiacs for one little power.”

“True.” Stephanie nodded, reaching for her pendant and snapping it off, returning to normal as she held the Zodiac Pocket Watch. “This allows me to control each one without being overwhelmed.”

“Wow!” Scuffy remarked as Stephanie put her Zodiac Pocket Watch into her hip pocket. “I wish I had that ability!”

Stephanie chuckled after Scuffy mentioned it, saying, “Maybe someday you can. You are pretty impressive.”

Scuffy blushed after Stephanie remarked, but she perked up when she heard a “Meow!” in the distance.

“Whoops!” Stephanie perked. “I wandered a little too far from Notches.”

“Who’s ‘Notches?’” Scuffy asked.

“My pet cat,” Stephanie responded. “Including Lucy, who helps me learn the zodiac abilities.”

“They sound cool!” Scuffy remarked. “Can I see you some other time?”

“Sure,” Stephanie nodded. “I’ll come by this beach whenever I have some time.”

Scuffy giggled as he hopped off, hopping into the ocean water before puffing off as Stephanie waved goodbye to him.

After he left, Stephanie was about to walk back to Notches when something glowed and caught her attention.

She glanced back at what was glowing and returned to it, poking her head over the tidal pool and looking into the water.

Something was glowing from the seaweed, making Stephanie’s curiosity grow as she wondered what it could be.

She reached into the tidal pool and took out what was hidden in the seaweed, seeing a beautiful ocean-blue ring with engravings and an ocean-blue gemstone seemingly glowing.

Curious, Stephanie placed the ring on her finger, watching as it magically shrank to her finger’s size and stopped glowing.

After putting the ring on her finger and looking at the ring’s design, Stephanie perked up when she heard another “Meow!” from a distance and started heading in that direction.

While she was walking to where Notches and Lucy were, Stephanie’s arms that were wet from the water had strange blue markings, but they disappeared after the water dried.

Stephanie returned to Notches and Lucy as Notches was meowing to call for Stephanie as she was returning to them.

Luckily, her legs dried from the water, and she put her socks and boots back on and rolled her pants legs down.

“Did you find something?” Lucy asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “I found a pearl for the Gemini zodiac!”

“That’s fantastic!” Notches remarked before noticing Stephanie’s ring. “Where did you get that ring?”

“I found it in one of the tidal pools!” Stephanie answered as she felt the ring with her fingers. “It looks like a lost treasure.”

Lucy looked suspicious after seeing Stephanie’s ring as she showed it to Notches, knowing she had seen it somewhere.

Stephanie picked Notches up from her sweater as he was placed back on the log, picked her sweater up, and placed it on.

Once her sweater was on, Stephanie picked up Notches as he climbed into her sweater’s hood and helped Lucy onto her shoulder.

After her ‘passengers’ were on, Stephanie started to walk through the outer parts of Drayton, her curiosity growing as she looked at nature and the places.

Stephanie soon came to a large meadow, and there was a lingering feeling she had been here before as there were some signs of familiarity.

Notches and Lucy noticed Stephanie’s expression as she noticed the meadow and the trees and started to feel a little eerie about where she was walking.

“Are you okay, Stephanie?” Lucy asked as she glanced over at her.

Stephanie paused as she stopped walking, responding, “I don’t know. This place looks a little too real, like my nightmare.”

“It does?” Notches asked.

Stephanie nodded as she continued glancing around and walking, slowly seeing chrysanthemums everywhere as she started to feel nervous.

“Okay,” Stephanie said after noticing the chrysanthemums. “This is a little too-”

Stephanie’s ears suddenly perked up when she heard what sounded like whispering, causing her to stop talking and walking as she glanced around in confusion.

Notches and Lucy noticed Stephanie’s expression changed, watching her glance around with a confused expression.

Confused, Stephanie looked down at her ring, noticing it was glowing slightly, almost like the Zodiac Pocket Watch, but the whispering was not coming from it.

If it is not coming from her ring, where could it come from instead?

So Stephanie decided to look for where the whisperings were coming from, walking into the meadow of chrysanthemums as they were up to her hips, exactly like her nightmare.

Goosebumps formed on her neck after seeing a resemblance between her nightmare and real life.

She wandered through the meadow as Lucy and Notches stayed silent, wondering what she was doing this time.

The whispering sounds were getting closer as Stephanie wandered through the chrysanthemum meadow, noticing they were coming from a tree that looked exactly like the one from her nightmare.

Stephanie stepped close to the tree and looked around it with her hands, feeling the trunk with her fingers as the whisperings got louder.

‘Wait,’ Stephanie thought as she removed her hands from the tree. ‘What if I use one of those magic circles?’

Stephanie flicked her wrist, and her bracelet transformed into a wand as she drew a light green spell circle using it.

After creating the spell circle, Stephanie tapped the tree with the wand’s tip, waiting for the tree to open… but nothing happened.

“Okay,” Stephanie said as she flicked her wrist, the wand transforming back into a bracelet around her wrist. “It’s not spell circles.”

Then she remembered Lucy telling her about ‘Latin spells,’ which are another type of spell that could be taught.

Deciding to give it a go, Stephanie lifted her hand and, thinking of a word, said, “Resigno.”

After saying that word, the tree shook a little as Stephanie perked up, watching as the tree’s trunk slowly started to open, and Stephanie, Lucy, and Notches watched in awe.

The tree slowly unfurled and showed what looked like a journal with a knob, just like what was in Stephanie’s nightmare, and the whisperings were loud.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she reached in and took the items out from inside, and the whisperings stopped.

“You found a doorknob,” Notches remarked with a confused tone.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded as she opened her bag. “I think this knob has a special spell to it. Not all objects are just objects.”

Stephanie put the knob into her bag and looked at the journal, which was medium blue and had some age, along with a strap keeping it together.

“Let’s save this for later.” Stephanie smiled as she put the journal into her bag with the knob.

After putting the items into her bag, Stephanie glanced back at the open tree and wondered if she could use the same spell to close it.

“Iuxta.” Stephanie watched as the tree closed back up after she spoke the spell, impressed that she was slowly learning to use Latin spells.

“Maybe we should start with Egyptian spells,” Lucy remarked as Notches gently chuckled at Stephanie’s ability to learn quickly.

Stephanie walked away from the tree and was about to continue but paused when she saw a red car parked in the distance.

“What’s that?” Stephanie asked, noticing the red car.

Stephanie curiously walked over to the red car and stepped over the fence, seeing it was a mail truck, but it had a popped wheel that made Stephanie’s curiosity grow.

A meow perked the three’s attention, and they glanced over, seeing a black and white cat with a red collar and green eyes peering through one of the windows.

“Hello,” Stephanie greeted after seeing the cat. “What are you doing here?”

Then a stranger walked around the mail van with fair skin, brown eyes, and short, reddish brown hair.

He wears the postman’s uniform from the 1970s, comprising a dark blue hat, jacket, and trousers.

“Hello, Mr. Mailman,” Stephanie greeted him.

“Hello,” the mailman greeted back with a tip of his cap. “What brought you here?”

“I was just walking through the Chrysanthemum Meadow and noticed your red mail truck here,” Stephanie explained politely. “What’s wrong?”

“I ran over a nail,” the mailman explained. “What makes matters worse is that there is no cell phone around where I can call for help.”

Stephanie paused as she said, “Why don’t I help?”

“Are you certain?” the mailman asked.

“Of course!” Stephanie nodded as she took out her Dust Whistle. “I’ve got the perfect solution for help.”

Notches and Lucy hopped off Stephanie’s shoulder as she changed the symbol to Bronze Dust, whistling as Bronze Dust emerged, swirling around her as she grew twice her height.

The mailman looked surprised after Stephanie grew twice her height as she said, kneeling carefully in front of him, “Like this.”

“Wow,” the mailman remarked, pushing his glasses into place. “How can you do this?”

“I used Bronze Dust,” Stephanie smiled as she showed the symbol to the mailman. “It grows a human twice their height.”

“That’s perfect!” the mailman remarked. “But how are you going to carry all the packages?”

“Easy,” Stephanie smiled as she opened her bag and reached inside, taking out a small square bag. “I can use this one to carry your packages. This one,” she mentioned to the brown bag. “It has a little spell that will get them, including you, lost if I place them inside.”

“Okay,” the mailman nodded. “Let me take out all the packages to put into the bag.”

Stephanie nodded as she opened the bag, allowing the mailman to do so as he took each package from his little red van.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as he carefully placed other items. “Your van can hold a lot of packages.”

The mailman chuckled as he placed the last item into the square bag, and Stephanie carefully closed it, placing it over her chest where it would be safe.

“Now, transportation,” Stephanie thought. “It would be easier like this, but I am huge and can easily get stuck in traffic.”

“That sounds like what a deer could get into,” Notches remarked.

An idea popped into her head after Notches remarked, ‘Deer,’ and she snapped her fingers with a smile.

Stephanie took out her Zodiac Pocket Watch and opened it, turning the arms to point at twelve.

She pressed the top and transformed entirely into a deer, at the same height as a truck but resembling an American deer.

With a slight chuckle, Stephanie looked at her head with her eyes and remarked, “I still got them antlers, hmm?”

She looked down at the surprised mailman as she lay down on her belly, and the bag with the packages was around her neck on the back and had a totem as a collar, saying, “Alright, climb aboard.”

The mailman helped the others onto Stephanie’s back, including Lucy, Notches, and his cat, and he gingerly climbed onto Stephanie’s back, holding onto her long, thick fur as Notches climbed onto her head with Lucy on his back along with his cat.

“Is that everyone?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes,” the mailman nodded, pushing his glasses into place. “That’s everyone.”

Stephanie gingerly stood up after the mailman responded, and the mailman nervously gripped more of Stephanie’s fur but slowly calmed down as she started walking.

It was like riding a large dog, except this ‘dog’ had antlers and was a gigantic deer.

The mailman told Stephanie which direction to go, and Stephanie did so, laying down to let him take the packages to the houses after a knock and a ring of the bell and leaving them.

Stephanie was careful as she walked through most narrow places, even stopping to allow others to go past her.

Some of the locomotives would even take one glance over at her and then a second glance after their minds registered what they saw.

Eventually, all the packages and mail were finished, and Stephanie was led to the Greendale Post Office, where Postman Pat works.

An elderly woman was outside but was gobsmacked when Stephanie appeared as a deer and moved her head down to allow Postman Pat to slide off with Jess on his shoulder.

“Pat?” the elderly woman spoke. “What happened to your van?”

“It ran over a nail, and it was towed over to the Special Delivery Service, Mrs. Goggins,” Pat explained to the elderly woman. “Stephanie arrived just in time to help me with my packages.”

Stephanie gently bowed toward the elderly woman as she said, “It’s a pleasure meeting you. I’m sorry I scared you, though.”

“It’s alright,” the elderly woman assured. “I was just a little gobsmacked about a giant deer appearing with Postman Pat on her back like a gigantic horse.”

Stephanie’s ears flicked a little with shyness after the elderly woman mentioned as Notches chuckled, causing Stephanie to look up at him with a faint ‘Really?’ expression.

“Thank you for helping me carry the packages to the houses,” Postman Pat thanked.

“You’re welcome!” Stephanie happily chirped as she started walking.

She exited Greendale and looked at the sun, flinching after she realized it was almost sundown.

“Oh, crap,” Stephanie winced. “I didn’t realize I was gone for that long!”

“Let’s get back to Sir Topham Hatt before it gets too dark,” Notches spoke. “It’s dangerous when-”

Something chomped down Stephanie’s leg, which caused Stephanie to give a deer-like noise of pain as she kicked, looking down as she saw what looked like Nightmares appearing from the darkness.

“Run!” Lucy exclaimed as Stephanie started running.

She hopped through the woods as Nightmares started appearing from the shadows, attempting to grab at her legs, but they kept missing.

Stephanie thought she would make it when her hooves suddenly went through a deep dive into the ground, and she tumbled into the water.

The Bronze Dust faded from her body as she frantically swam after resurfacing at normal deer height, feeling the Nightmares appear from under the water as they attempted to grab her.

Luckily, she made it across the other side with Lucy and Notches on her back, as they were soaking wet, and returned to running away from the Nightmares.

More Nightmares appeared as Stephanie hopped through the forest frantically as Notches and Lucy held onto her antlers.

She glanced over her shoulder as she watched the Nightmares slow down, thinking she would make it, but something swiped at her and her necklace, tearing the totem off as she reverted to being human.

Fortunately, Stephanie had already caught the Zodiac Pocket Watch and was about to tap the crown when Nightmares surrounded her.

Notches growled and hissed as Stephanie flicked her wrist, summoning her staff as she prepared herself.

Nightmares started attacking from around Stephanie as she used magic spells to launch them backward and attacked to shatter their cores, protecting Lucy and Notches from the dangerous monsters.

Stephanie soon became overwhelmed as too many appeared from every direction, even though she did her best in her Zodiac form.

She pointed her staff at the sky, shouting, “Vermillious!” and watching as a red spark flew from the crystal of her staff.

The Nightmares perked up after a shot of red came out of her staff, watching the spark fly up before disappearing into the darkness.

The Nightmares grew closer as she snarled and growled at Stephanie, and she started to become afraid as the Nightmares stared at her with ruby-red eyes.

Then they charged as Stephanie made a sky-blue circle with her staff and launched it downward, causing Stephanie, Lucy, and Notches to be launched into the sky, and the Nightmares collided.

After the Nightmares collided, Stephanie landed safely in the distance and continued running, causing the Nightmares to roar angrily and chase after her.

Stephanie ran as fast as she could and soon exited the forest, being chased by the Nightmares as it was already dark.

One of them jumped towards Stephanie with open arms, and before it could grab her, something swung forward over Stephanie’s head and smacked the Nightmare across the face, causing it to be launched backward.

Stephanie stopped running after watching something smack the Nightmare across the face, and the Nightmares screeched to a halt, hissing as she looked confused.

Suddenly, a yellow JCB 3CX backhoe digger perked Stephanie’s attention as a voice shouted, “Pick on someone your size!” before the lights turned on.

The Nightmares all hissed in pain when the lights turned on, causing them to scramble backward as some had their cores revealed, causing Stephanie to perk up.

She used her string ability to grab the cores before shattering them as the yellow JCB 3CX backhoe digger glanced over at Stephanie in confusion.

But the yellow JCB 3CX backhoe digger continued to shoo the Nightmares away as they hissed and scrambled backward, retreating into the forest as more vehicles appeared.

A red dump truck, an orange tilting-drum cement mixer trailer, a green Zettelmeyer diesel road roller, a blue Liebherr LTM 1200-5.1 mobile crane, a small magenta compact tracked digger with a rear-end backhoe arm and bucket, and a light blue small, light blue skid-steer digger, watching as each one turned on their lights.

“Shoo! Shoo!” The vehicles exclaimed as they pushed the Nightmares away, and they all hissed in pain from the light’s beams. “Go on! Get lost!”

The Nightmares hissed and attempted to attack again when a Nuffield tractor, a Scammell lorry, a 1960 K1C10&K excavator, another excavator, two Scammell Mountaineer dump trucks, a 1943 Thornycroft Amazon Coles Crane lorry, a Caterpillar bulldozer, an Erie Type B Steam Shovel, a Sentinel DG4 steam lorry, a Mack NM 6-ton 6x6 truck, a Caterpillar D9H, an Aveling & Porter R10, and a Roadheader EBZ-200 appeared, turning on more lights and causing the Nightmares to retreat.

“Go on!” one of the vehicles hissed. “Shoo! You don’t belong here!”

The Nightmares eventually left after the vehicles scared them off with bright lights and noises, retreating into the darkness.

“And stay there!” huffed another vehicle as one of them used their back wheels to kick dirt towards them.

Stephanie transformed her staff into her bracelet as she sighed, and instantly, all eyes were on her as she froze.

“Are you okay?” the yellow backhoe digger asked.

“That was insane!” the red front loader exclaimed.

“Were you mad?” the red dump truck exclaimed.

“What are you? Nuts?” another red dump truck spoke. “You can’t just wander into a forest with all those things wandering around!”

All the vehicles started talking to Stephanie as she was in the middle of them, inspecting her as she looked at them.

“I’m sorry!” Stephanie apologized as they dimmed their lights after Stephanie lifted her hand to block the lights shining in her eyes. “I was heading back to meet Sir Topham Hatt, but they almost caught me.”

“You were?” the green steam roller asked, and Stephanie nodded. “Does Sir Topham Hatt know you will be gone this long?”

“I don’t know,” Stephanie responded. “I couldn’t hear him when we were over at Crotoonia Docks. It was too loud for me.”

She started worrying as her ears flicked, and the yellow backhoe digger said, “I’ve got an idea! Let’s tell Jenny and Bob what happened!”

“Okay!” Stephanie nodded as she asked, “Who’s going to take them to them, though?”

“I’ll take you to them,” the yellow backhoe digger smiled. “Just hop on in and hold on.”

Stephanie did so and held on as the yellow backhoe digger drove off as the others returned to what they were doing.

“Oh, one thing,” the yellow backhoe digger spoke. “What’s your name?”

“Stephanie,” Stephanie responded. “What’s yours?”

“Scoop!” the yellow backhoe digger smiled.

They soon entered a small city that Stephanie had not seen before and entered a small area where two people were talking.

“Bob, Jenny,” Scoop spoke as the two glanced at Scoop. “I brought someone here.”

“Who is it?” Bob asked.

Stephanie stepped off Scoop and walked around him, looking sheepish as she was blushing, and her ears were flicking.

“Stephanie?” Both Jenny and Bob perked up after seeing Stephanie.

“You know her?” Scoop asked, sounding confused.

“Of course,” Bob nodded. “She’s Sir Topham Hatt’s, erm,” he paused to think of a word as Jenny said, “Stephanie has been staying in Sir Topham Hatt’s manor for a while.”

“Oh!” Scoop perked.

“Nevermind about that,” Jenny responded. “What happened, Stephanie?”

“I wandered around Drayton after collecting some Dust Crystals,” Stephanie explained. “And I stopped to help Mr. Pat until the sunset, and Nightmares appeared and started attacking me.”

“We stopped them after a red spark launched into the air,” Scoop explained, and Stephanie nodded in agreement.

“That’s terrible!” Bob exclaimed. “Do you know where Sir Topham Hatt is?”

“I think he is still back in Crootonia,” Stephanie said nervously, biting her bottom lip. “Oh, I am in so much trouble with him!”

Bob gently placed his hands on Stephanie’s shoulders, which stopped her from talking, and said, “It’s okay, Stephanie. We can tell Sir Topham Hatt what happened over the phone. You could spend the night here until everything is safe.”

Stephanie’s expression softened after Bob assured her, saying, “Now, let’s get you into the house where it’s nice and warm.”

“That would be great.” Stephanie nodded.

“I’ll go back to the worksite.” Scoop nodded as he left the place.

Bob opened the door as he had one of his hands on Stephanie’s shoulder, and Stephanie stepped inside before removing it as Jenny stepped in, and he closed the door.

“Now, let’s-” he paused when he noticed something blue on his fingertips as Stephanie winced slightly, moving her shirt down and seeing her bleeding slightly.

“Ooh, that must be where they attacked,” Jenny remarked as Stephanie looked up. “Let me get some bandaids to mend that.”

Stephanie nodded as she removed her sweater, seeing a scratch mark with blood sticking to it.

“Aw,” Stephanie sighed as she stuck her fingers through the hole. “It was new too.”

Jenny returned as Stephanie allowed her to look at where the injury was, removing the dried blood stain, but paused when she noticed something.

“That’s weird,” Jenny remarked as Stephanie perked.

“What’s wrong?” Stephanie asked.

“It’s gone,” Jenny responded.

“What?” Stephanie reached up to where her injury was and felt it with her fingertips.

Stephanie felt confused about the injury being gone in just a few minutes while escaping and being rescued.

“H-How did it just…?” Stephanie stammered, her voice trailing off with confusion.

“Is this new to you?” Bob asked, noticing Stephanie’s expression.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “How can injuries just heal in mere seconds?”

“That’s a good question.” Jenny nodded as she had already finished cleaning the blood. “Maybe it’s part of the magic.”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded, feeling where the scratch used to be. “It could be magic.”

Bob picked up a phone and started dialing, waiting patiently as Stephanie calmed down from her slight confusion.

“Hello?” a familiar voice responded.

“Hi,” Bob responded. “Is this Sir Topham Hatt?”

“Yes, this is him,” Sir Topham Hatt responded. “Who is this?”

“Bob the Builder,” Bob responded. “I’m calling because Nightmares almost attacked Stephanie and took residence here.”

“She was?!” Sir Topham Hatt exclaimed as Bob winced slightly, moving the phone away from his ear. “Is she still there?”

“Yes, she’s here.” Bob nodded as he turned to Stephanie. “Here,” he said, holding the phone to Stephanie. “This is for you.”

Stephanie lifted Bob’s phone to her ear, sheepishly responding, “Hello, sir.”

“Stephanie, are you alright?” Sir Topham Hatt asked. “What happened? I thought you went to collect Dust Crystals!”

“I was,” Stephanie nodded. “But I finished collecting and wandered around Drayton because of my curiosity. I was about to return after walking around, but I stopped to help Mr. Pat because his van ran over a nail, and I forgot about the time and got attacked. I’m sorry, sir.”

She paused and added, “And I didn’t hear the rest of your sentence because the noises over at Crootonia were too loud for me.”

Stephanie’s ears flicked up and down as she felt a knot in her stomach, feeling that everything would worsen for her.

“It’s okay, Stephanie,” Sir Topham Hatt softly assured Stephanie as she gripped her overall pants leg. “I understand it all now. I understand you are a smart child who can always return and get into things, but you always explain everything to me.”

Stephanie softened after Sir Topham Hatt explained to her and continued, “I’m not mad at you for not telling me or suddenly disappearing. I was terrified that you suddenly disappeared, but I was never mad.”

“Really?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes.” Sir Topham Hatt nodded. “Stay at Bob’s house until daytime and return to Knapford. I’ll meet you there in the morning.”

“Okay,” Stephanie nodded as she released her pants leg. “I’ll see you soon, then.”

The phone hung up, and Stephanie sighed, feeling that worried knot in her stomach unwind as she handed it back to Bob.

“You can sleep in the spare room on the left down the hallway,” Bob told Stephanie. “Let us know if there is anything else.”

Stephanie nodded as she walked past them, saying, “Thank you,” before heading down the hallway.

Strangely, Bob and Jenny noticed a star-shaped birthmark on the back of her neck but could not see how many points the star had as it was covered when Stephanie flicked her braid over her shoulder.

They did not mention it as Stephanie went to the spare room, deciding to let her wind down after having a harrowing escape from the Nightmares.

Meanwhile, Stephanie entered the spare room with Notches and Lucy, still looking worried as she started to get ready for bed.

She looked down at the ring on her right hand, looking at it thoughtfully as she rubbed it, noticing it was a little stuck when she rubbed her fingers over it.

‘Of course,’ Stephanie thought with a sigh. ‘Just like P.T. Boomer’s ring.’

But she ignored that thought as she lay in bed, staring at the ceiling as that worried feeling grew.

Is Sir Topham Hatt disappointed with her?

Did he lie to her because he did not want to make her feel sad that he was disappointed with her?

Stephanie gripped the blankets with worry as Notches climbed onto her body, noticing that her expression looked slightly worried with a blend of sadness.

Wordlessly, Notches gently headbutted Stephanie’s head with his, snapping her out of her thoughts.

She glanced at him with confusion when he gently butted his head against her cheek, but she softly smiled as she rubbed him.

But that lingering feeling returned to her at the thought of having to constantly run away from Sir Topham Hatt whenever she went to search for Dust Crystals.

How often can she do it until he finally gets frustrated with her?

What would she do when Sir Topham Hatt finally snaps when she disappears and has to face his wrath?

Multiple thoughts went through Stephanie’s mind as she stared at the ceiling, wondering what Sir Topham Hatt and his feelings would be and gripping the blankets again.

Wait, what about Jackson?

Stephanie sighed as she moved a hand over her eyes, but from the corner of her eyes, faint tears were coming from them.

Why does she keep doing this to everyone?

Chapter Text

Jackson was worried as he walked back and forth on the platform of Knapford, wondering to himself about Stephanie.

First, the magic railroad closed after Stephanie and P.T. Boomer were magically whisked away after entering.

Then it was Stephanie almost being attacked by Nightmares roaming around Sodor!

This place was too dangerous for her sake, and Jackson needed to take her back home before anything else happened!

The problem is that Jackson does not know how to take a train to where Sir Topham Hatt lives.

Does he even allow people over at his home?

“Excuse me?” After hearing someone’s voice, Jackson flinched and glanced over, seeing one of those sentient vehicles looking at him. “Is there something wrong?”

“Uh, n-nothing!” Jackson stammered, on the edge of physically seeing a sentient train talking to him. “I’m just waiting for someone.”

“Really?” the sentient train asked. “Who are you waiting for?”

“My adoptive sister, Stephanie,” Jackson explained as he ran a hand through his hair. “I heard the news about her being attacked by Nightmares. I don’t even know what those are!”

“It’s best if you don’t find out what they are by yourself,” the sentient train sighed. “But don’t worry! Stephanie will come soon.”

“But what if those things started to come out and attack her again?!” Jackson exclaimed as a large, sentient train appeared, and he glanced over.

The coach doors opened, and Stephanie stepped out of the coaches with Notches and Lucy on her shoulders, with Sir Topham Hatt following behind her.

“Stephanie!” Jackson ran over to her and embraced her in a hug that caused her to flinch. “Oh my god, you’re okay!”

He released his hug around Stephanie as he scolded her with his hands on her shoulders, “Don’t ever do that to me ever again!”

“I’m okay, Jackson,” Stephanie assured him, gently patting his arms. “I’m fine! Scoop and his friends saved me at the last minute.”

“Who’s ‘Scoop?!’” Jackson exclaimed.

“A friend,” Stephanie explained, assuring her worried adoptive brother. “I’ll explain everything now that we are reunited.”

“That is perfect,” Jackson nodded, taking her hand. “Let’s go to the apartment to discuss it.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement as she followed Jackson to his car, and she glanced over at Thomas and the others, looking concerned for them.

Jackson drove Stephanie over to his apartment, stepped inside, unlocked the door, and allowed Stephanie inside, but noticed the doll and the cat on her shoulders.

“Uh, Stephanie?” Jackson spoke, noticing the doll and the cat as he pointed at them. “Where did you get the cat and doll from?”

Stephanie smiled as she took the moving doll from her shoulder and said, “Lucy is my friend-slash-Guardian of the Zodiac Gates, and Notches is my pet cat.”

“Wait, what?” Jackson spoke. “A guardian and a pet cat? How is that possible? And what are the ‘Zodiac Gates?’”

“Let me explain then.” Stephanie smiled as Jackson noticed the stitched mark on her shirt’s left side of her collar. “Lucy is part of the explanation too.”

“Okay.” Jackson slowly nodded, still slightly bewildered at how the doll moved independently.

So Stephanie sat at the dinner table with Jackson across from her, telling him about her adventures, and Jackson listened with shock.

Stephanie managed to defeat the Black Zodiacs that towered over her height, has a secret string ability that she can use to defeat the Nightmares permanently, and even has a staff she can use for magic.

Jackson was slowly digesting everything as Stephanie rambled with amusement about what she had encountered, even meeting criminals on Sodor who had done dangerous things in their pasts!

How is Stephanie so calm with all these dangers?!

She even told him about her second ability to see ghosts, which Jackson does not believe in, as he just listened to Stephanie tell him.

“And that’s what’s happening on Sodor,” Stephanie smiled as Notches was on her lap. “Are there any questions?”

Jack stared at her with confusion and surprise as he exclaimed, “You went through all that while I was in Shining Time searching for you?!”

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded as her expression turned to confusion.

“Oh my god,” Jackson groaned as he pinched his nose bridge underneath his glasses. “You went missing for just a few months and came back from a supposed magical land where sentient engines roam freely?!”

“They work with humans,” Stephanie said, assuring her worried adoptive brother. “But I think they do roam around freely.”

“And you are interacting with other people, including engines, who are criminals?!” Jackson continued.

“Yes, but no,” Stephanie responded. “They are still figuring out what I am doing, so they’re a little ahead of me.”

“Stephanie,” Jackson said, his attitude changing to seriousness. “You can’t be calm about all this happening! There are Nightmares, Black Zodiacs, and those people you explained! What would happen if one of them killed you?!”

Stephanie opened her mouth to respond as Jackson continued ranting, “Not to mention the supposed ‘magic’ you mentioned! You’re only ten years old and carrying around many dangerous things!”

“It’s not dangerous!” Stephanie protested before pausing. “When they get into the wrong hands, yes, but I am being careful with them!”

“I don’t care how careful you are with them,” Jackson sighed. “It’s dangerous for you! Everything around here is dangerous!”

“It’s-” “Stephanie,” Jackson interrupted as Stephanie stared at him with confusion and shock. “We can’t stay here. We’re going back to Shining Time and forgetting all about this.”

Stephanie instantly stood up from her chair after Jackson said, exclaiming startled Notches and Lucy as she slammed her hands on the table, “NO, I AM NOT GOING TO SHINING TIME!”

“Stephanie, calm down!” Jackson argued back as he stood up from his seat. “Shining Time is your hometown and-”

“It’s not anymore!” Stephanie shouted. “I-” she paused as she gritted her teeth, showing what looked like sharp canines. “It’s not the same anymore! Sodor is my hometown! It’s better here than there!”

“Stephanie!” Jackson shouted as Stephanie continued, “I want to stay here! I don’t care if you have to grab me by the ankles and drag me. I am staying here!”

Jackson and Stephanie stared into each other’s eyes, and Stephanie’s was filled with seriousness with a hint of fear and anger, while Jackson’s was filled with anger but with a hint of confusion.

But Jackson sighed after staring at Stephanie and responded, “Fine! We’ll stay in Sodor. But if anything happens to you, if this ‘magic’ happens, or anyone attempts to hurt you, we are heading back to Shining Time. Understand?”

Stephanie hesitated as she glanced away from Jackson as he asked, repeating, “Do you understand, Stephanie?”

“Yes,” Stephanie responded as her hands were gripped. “I understand, Jackson.”

“Good,” Jackson nodded. “Pack your things and move into my apartment to-”

“I’m staying at Sir Topham Hatt’s mansion,” Stephanie coldly responded, interrupting Jackson’s sentence. “I don’t want to move here.”

She roughly picks Notches up from the table with Lucy, carrying them as she says, “I’m leaving now. It was nice talking to you.”

Jackson stayed silent as Stephanie opened his apartment door and slammed it shut behind her as he sighed.

“What happened to you, Stephanie?” Jackson asked, mostly asking himself why Stephanie was behaving differently.

Ms. Richards did not have much time over there either, having a little of a culture shock with the world’s differences.

The Earl of Sodor, Sir Robert Norramby, was polite enough to give her a room to stay in, but everything around her was a little shaking for her to become familiar with.

Even the sentient vehicles scare her whenever they appear, but she keeps herself from hiding behind someone and just steels her nerves.

They were even kind to her, greeting Ms. Richards and bidding her goodbye whenever they passed her.

“Ms. Richards?” Ms. Richards flinched after hearing a voice speak and glanced over, seeing Sir Robert Norramby standing behind her with his hands behind his back, asking, “Are you alright?”

“I’m a little shaken,” Ms. Richards responded, pushing her glasses into place. “I heard many stories about Sodor being a myth, but here I am! On Sodor!”

Sir Robert Norramby chuckled a little after Ms. Richards exclaimed as she continued, “But I never heard stories about Sodor having sentient vehicles around!”

“I’m right here.” Stephen chuckled as Ms. Richards blushed a little.

“Ah, sorry,” She apologized as she stepped back a little from Stephen. “I didn’t see you appear.”

“It’s quite alright,” Stephen chuckled. “I used to be nicknamed the ‘Rocket’ back when I was a much younger steamie.”

“I know.” Ms. Richards nodded. “You were the first steam engine to be created, which sparked many ideas from other creators, and the Age of Steam rolled in.”

Stephen blushed after Ms. Richards explained, saying, “Ah, sorry. I tend to do that when I’m a little nervous.”

Sir Robert Norramby chuckled as he said, mentioning the castle entrance with his hand and arm to her, “Do you mind if I give you a tour to learn about Sodor’s history?”

“Of course,” Ms. Richards nodded as she took his arm. “Lead the way, please, Sir Robert.”

Stephen looked surprised to see Sir Robert Norramby and Ms. Richards link arms together and watch them enter the castle together as Glynn puffed up next to him.

He noticed Stephen’s surprised expression and asked, “What’s wrong, Stephen?”

“I don’t believe this,” Stephen remarked as he glanced at Glynn. “It seemed like the Earl of Sodor was starting to like Ms. Richards.”

“He is?” Glynn perked up, looking just as confused and surprised as Stephen was.

“Yes,” Stephen nodded. “Let’s keep this between us, right?”

“Right.” Glynn nodded.

Suddenly, the smell of brimstone went through the air, causing both engines to sniff with confusion as the passengers looked confused.

“Erm, Glynn?” Stephen spoke as he glanced over at Glynn. “Are you burning something that is giving off that smell?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Glynn responded. “You, Stephen?”

“No,” Stephen shook his head before joking, “Unless we have a dragon here.”

“Don’t be daft!” Glynn exclaimed after Stephen joked. “There’s no such thing as dragons!”

Walking almost near where Ulfstead Castle was, Stephanie was walking down the road with Notches and Lucy in her arms as Notches exclaimed, “Stephanie! Lose your grip! You’re squeezing us!”

Stephanie stopped walking after hearing Notches exclaim and placed them both down, saying, “Sorry! I didn’t mean to squeeze you two like that.”

She clenched her hand as she said, “I was just angry that Jackson wanted to-”

“It’s okay, Stephanie,” Lucy assured. “He was just a little overwhelmed with everything you explained.”

She placed her hands on Stephanie’s hand and continued, “Give him some time to loosen a little, and he can see Sodor through your eyes.”

Stephanie softly smiled after Lucy calmed her down before watching her suddenly move her hands away with a faintly pained expression.

“What’s wrong?” Stephanie asked.

“You’re hot!” Lucy exclaimed.

Stephanie looked confused as she felt her hands, feeling nothing except some sweat coming off her palms.

“I don’t feel it,” Stephanie responded with confusion.

Notches sniffed the air before wincing, adding, “Why am I smelling brimstone?”

A worried expression appeared on Stephanie’s face after hearing ‘brimstone,’ saying, “Ah, is there such a thing as dragons around here?”

“No,” Lucy responded. “Only through the Zodiacs, not in real life.”

“Oh, okay,” Stephanie nodded as she carefully scooped the two up. “Let’s leave here since I don’t trust that brimstone smell.”

“Good idea.” Notches nodded in agreement as he climbed onto her shoulder and into her hood.

Strangely, Stephanie’s body temperature had decreased slightly to a normal, comfortable, warm temperature, and the brimstone smell faded slightly.

Lucy sat on Stephanie’s shoulder as Stephanie continued walking, feeling confused about the brimstone smell and the slight heat change in her body.

Is that also part of the secret abilities she has?

Chapter Text

Stephanie struggled a little with keeping her Dust Crystals apart, and she sighed as she sat in her room, seeing she needed a cabinet to keep them in different places.

She had been placing them into her desk’s cabinets, but they were small enough for her to keep all the Crystal Dusts in.

Stephanie sat in her chair, thinking about what she should do, wondering if she could either make a cabinet to hold all these Dust Crystals or get a job to get money to get a cabinet.

…That thought of getting a job made Stephanie feel a little angry, not wanting to get one, as it reminded her of them.

But it was the only way to get a cabinet, so Stephanie decided to go with that and take a trip around Sodor to see what kind of jobs were around.

Stephanie pushed her chair back and looked down at Notches, gently petting his head as he purred before gently scooping him into her arms as he slumped.

She chuckled after watching Notches slump in her arms, knowing cats do this strange thing whenever they are in a deep sleep.

Stephanie carried the sleeping Notches over to the bed and placed him down, watching him curl on the pillow as he continued purring.

She gave Notches one last rub before removing her hand from his head as he continued sleeping on her pillow.

She walked over to the door and opened it to the mansion’s front door.

Stephanie closed the door after stepping through and sighed, double-checking that she had her Dust Whistle and Zodiac Pocket Watch with her.

The warning Jackson gave her echoed through her mind, giving her chills at the thought of leaving Sodor and pretending it did not exist.

But Stephanie pushed the warning away as she focused on what she was doing, walking towards the road before stopping as she glanced around.

She could use her Dust to transform herself into a vehicle to help her get from one place to another, but then she would be discovered by Jackson, and it would be over, right?

Deciding to check on Jackson, Stephanie took out her piece of crap phone and turned it on, waiting as it lit up and there was a notification from him.

Stephanie tapped on the notification, and the message read:

Jackson

Hey, Stephanie. I’m not going outside because of the dangers around Sodor. If you plan to go outside, be careful and avoid trouble with anyone on this island. Understand?

After reading Jackson’s text message, Stephanie paused before responding with a single:

Stephanie

Okay.

Jackson

Let me know if there is something you want help with or if there are any questions. I love you.

‘Does he even love you?’ A dark voice whispered in Stephanie’s mind as she clenched her hand. ‘Sounds a lot like lies to me.’

Stephanie ignored the voice in her mind and responded to Jackson’s message with another single:

Stephanie

Okay.

Then she turned her phone off and placed it in her blue jeans pocket before starting her journey around Sodor.

But she paused after walking a few miles down the road, reminding herself she needed a ride to get to some places where she could visualize what a job looks like on Sodor.

…Then, yet again, Jackson is staying in his apartment, so why not try out her Dust Whistle or Zodiac Pocket Watch to transform into something to help with her travels?

Choosing to check with her Zodiac Pocket Watch, Stephanie took it out.

She looked at the symbols, noting she had two of the Zodiacs unlocked, with the third already unlocked, but not wanting to use up its power by transforming into any of the Zodiacs on the fourth set.

Stephanie then took out her Dust Whistle and looked at the amount of Dust on the Silver Dust, seeing she had enough inside.

What if she could transform into a different form using the Silver Dust on the road instead of rails?

Stephanie put away her Zodiac Pocket Watch, changed the Dust Whistle’s symbol to silver, and whistled.

A stream of Silver Dust came out of it and swirled around Stephanie before disappearing, showing Stephanie as a Kia Picanto with the same color scheme as her clothes.

Strangely, Stephanie’s face was like Ace’s, directly on the front and wearing her glasses, except they did not have arms and balanced perfectly on her face.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she looked at her wheels. “So this is what a car feels like? Cool!”

Wondering how she would move, Stephanie focused on moving forward and slowly started driving forward, perking up when she started moving.

Stephanie was about to pick up speed when a blur of yellow sped past her, causing her to yelp in surprise as she blinked a few times and stopped driving.

But the car screeched to a halt after passing by her and dove backward as she watched in confusion.

“Stephanie?!” It was Ace, and he was staring at her with a shocked expression. “W-Wat ‘appened ta ya?!”

“I’m okay, Ace!” Stephanie smiled with a chuckle. “I used my Dust Whistle on me!” She paused and muttered, “Although, where is my Dust Whistle?”

“‘Dust Wistle?’” Ace repeated with confusion. “Wat Dust Wistle?”

“Hold on.” Stephanie assured him as she flicked her lights on, causing her to exclaim, “Whoop, that’s the lights!”

Then her trunk opened automatically as she blushed a light blue, and Ace perked up after witnessing it, and it automatically closed as she sheepishly chuckled, “That was my trunk.”

She focused again before a horn honked, and Gold Dust appeared from over her roof, swirling around Stephanie before disappearing.

She was sitting on the ground as her human self, with the Dust Whistle around her neck.

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up as she snapped her fingers. “It’s the horn!”

She glanced over at a shocked Ace as she repositioned herself to kneel, saying as she showed the Dust Whistle to him, “This is the Dust Whistle. Helps others or me transform into different forms using different Dusts.”

“Ya used that?” Ace asked, and Stephanie nodded. “Oh! That’s wy ya look so different. I thought Wendell transfawrmed ya awr somethin’.”

Stephanie chuckled a little after Ace’s remark as she wondered who Wendell was but decided to save that for later as she said, “No, he didn’t. I just used my Dust Whistle to transform, just like my Zodiac Pocket Watch.”

“Huh.” Ace remarked before asking, “Weah ahah ya headin’, though?”

“Well,” Stephanie said, putting her hands together with a smile. “I’m having trouble keeping all my Dust Crystals in one place, so I need to find a non-permanent job to get money.”

“Really?” Ace asked, and Stephanie nodded. “Alright. I can help ya get ta places ta av a look ahround.”

“Don’t you have a job or something?” Stephanie asked, sounding a little confused.

“Nah,” Ace chuckled. “I’m free ‘n easy! I only race in the greatest competitions ‘n nothin’ is holdin’ me back. Climb on in.”

Ace’s back door opened, and Stephanie smiled, stepping into his backseat as she closed the door and buckled in.

After Stephanie buckled in, Ace sped off as Stephanie winced in surprise, gripping the seatbelt over her chest as he drove down the road.

Instead of worrying, Stephanie slowly calmed down as she looked through the window, watching everything speed past in a blur.

Stephanie gently smiled as she watched the scenery pass by as Ace drove down the road, passing by other vehicles with a honk of his horn and turning around them.

She was still a little anxious about Ace’s driving skills, but she chuckled lightly as Ace continued zooming down the road.

Ace soon arrived at Knapford and parked beside him, opening his back door to allow Stephanie to exit.

She unbuckled herself and stepped out of Ace’s backseat, a little dizzy but feeling a rush of excitement through her body.

“That,” Stephanie spoke as Ace perked up, looking slightly worried. “Was awesome!”

Ace smirked as Stephanie continued, “You were fast and so cool at driving! You were amazing!”

Ace’s cheeks blushed a little after Stephanie commented as she perked, saying, “Oh! When I’m done here, can you take me to Drayton?”

“Sure!” Ace nodded. “Just let me know wen ya ahah done, okay?”

Stephanie nodded and walked away from him as he chuckled a little, starting to enjoy her company slowly but waiting.

Meanwhile, in the Tidmouth Shunting Yard, Gordon was napping in the yard with Romeo on his buffers, lying beside his face.

Stephanie noticed Gordon sleeping while searching for Sir Topham Hatt, and she saw he was not in his office when she poked her head inside.

So she went into Tidmouth to search for Sir Topham Hatt, only to come across a napping Gordon and Romeo.

She perked up when she noticed the two napping friends and was about to leave them, but her curiosity sparked when she saw Gordon’s body.

Not wanting to wake them up, Stephanie carefully walked towards them as they continued to nap, stopping as she placed a hand on one of the trucks and peeked around it.

Gordon looked so cool to Stephanie as she stared in awe, looking at every inch of Gordon from a distance as she peered around the truck.

She wanted to get closer to Gordon to look at every inch of him, but she did not want to wake a sleeping cat as Stephanie watched.

However, the truck Stephanie was peering at from around had a face, and Stephanie’s hand was directly on the truck’s nose, waking it up from its nap and staring at her hand cross-eyed.

The truck was made of cherry wood, and its face was different from the others, looking younger than the others.

Instead of being irritated at Stephanie putting her hand on its face, it sort of just stared at Stephanie’s hand with curiosity and confusion.

It was strangely soft and smooth, and it did not feel gross from the other trucks telling their tales of how children would walk up to them and place their little hands all over their bodies.

Stephanie leaned a little around the truck curiously for a somewhat better look, gently pushing against the truck’s face as it grunted a little, causing Stephanie to look over.

She flinched as she stepped back after realizing she was touching the truck’s face, accidentally stumbling over her feet and landing on her bottom, knocking against a flatbed with metal poles that made clattering noises.

That woke Gordon and Romeo with a jolt, as Romeo instantly bolted up from where he was sleeping.

Stephanie instantly became worried as she stood up, and Gordon and Romeo glanced at where the noises came from as the metal poles stopped clattering.

“Stephanie?” Romeo spoke, sounding confused. “What are you doing here?”

“Ah, I was looking for Sir Topham Hatt,” Stephanie explained as she stepped away from where she was. “I didn’t see him in his office, so I walked out searching for him. Then I came across you both napping here, and I didn’t want to wake you both up, so I sort of hid and, well, spied, and I didn’t mean to-”

“Stephanie,” Gordon chuckled as the tip of Stephanie’s ears turned light blue as she stopped rambling. “It’s alright. It was an accident.”

Stephanie nodded sheepishly as her ear flicked a little, and the truck Stephanie had her hand on was staring with confusion at her long blue hair and pointed ears.

He had seen ugly faces before from different kids whenever they approached the trucks and messed around with them, but this one looked slightly different.

Almost cute-looking.

“Why don’t you come over here?” Romeo asked. “You can come over since we’re awake now.”

Stephanie chuckled a little as she stepped close to Gordon, the blue blush fading as she looked up at him, seeing how grand he looked.

Heck, even how big this guy was compared to her small size.

“Ah,” Stephanie glanced away from Gordon as she switched back to what she was doing, not wanting to entangle herself with curiosity. “Have you two seen where Sir Topham Hatt is?”

“No,” Gordon responded. “We don’t.”

“He’s usually around other stations to check on how we are doing,” Romeo explained. “Or see how work is done on rebuilding the tracks.”

“That’s how a conductor does it?” Stephanie asked.

“No,” Gordon chuckled. “That’s how the controller does it. Not conductor.”

Stephanie blushed a little with embarrassment as giggling came from the trucks around them.

“Hush,” Gordon huffed as steam blew at their sides.

They immediately shut up after Gordon huffed at them as Stephanie asked, “Alright. So what’s the difference between a conductor and a controller?”

“A conductor is responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve the operation of a train,” Gordon explained. “A controller is someone who keeps the railway in check and gives out orders for every engine.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked up as her ears moved up with interest. “That makes sense! Thank you, Mr. Gordon.”

Stephanie’s generosity again takes Gordon aback, and Romeo notices that her ears almost resemble a rabbit’s.

“What about an engineer?” Stephanie asked, stepping closer to Gordon and Romeo as she stood beside them.

“An engineer can both scoop coal into an engine’s firebox and drive one too,” Romeo explained. “That’s like me and Henry.”

“Which Henry?” Stephanie asked.

“Linus’ engineer, Henry,” Romeo explained. “Then for other engines, like Gordon,” he mentions to Gordon with a hand. “They have two people in their cabs. One is a driver, and the other is a fireman.”

“One who drives and one who scoops coal,” Stephanie perked, piecing everything together.

“Exactly.” Gordon nodded, feeling proud in front of Stephanie.

“How come most of the engines move by themselves?” Stephanie asked. “Like, Linus when he didn’t have Henry with him?”

“That’s because each engine has a different type of magic,” Romeo explained. “I’m no Einstein, so I don’t know much about that.”

“Can Gordon do the same?” Stephanie asked, mentioning Gordon.

“I can,” Gordon nodded. “But I can’t work alone without my driver and fireman, as they are important to me in case something goes wrong.”

“Like what?” Stephanie asked.

“Popped safety valve,” Romeo listed. “Broken axles, even things that cross in their paths too.”

“Oh!” Stephanie perked. “So one person and another can’t work alone without each other!”

“That’s one way of putting it,” Gordon nodded.

“Do diesels have the same methods too?” Stephanie curiously asked.

“Yes,” Romeo nodded. “But some of them are dangerous.”

“Like Diesel 10?” Stephanie asked.

They both perked up after Stephanie mentioned Diesel 10 as she added, “I came across him when he and a group of humans, including Diesel, were attempting to find out what I was doing, but I saved them from being attacked by a Black Zodiac and moved them to safety.”

“You rescued Diesel 10?” Gordon asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “Not everyone deserves to be harmed. Even if they seem dangerous.”

Half of Gordon wanted to tell Stephanie that ‘it is not true and most engines can trick you,’ but not wanting to dwindle Stephanie’s positivity, Gordon just stayed silent.

“Alright.” Romeo nodded. “Want to take a look at Gordon’s cab?”

Stephanie’s face lights up more as her ears point upward, excitedly asking, “Can I?”

Romeo nods as he leads Stephanie to the cab, and Romeo walks before her, and she follows behind like a duckling.

Stephanie watched Romeo climb in before he turned to her and held out his hand for her to take.

Stephanie took Romeo’s hand and stepped into Gordon’s cab, glancing around with curiosity as she noticed how wide it looked, even at how many pipes, gauges, and levers there were.

She had been in Gordon’s cab before, but she did not have a chance to look closer because she was taken to Sir Topham Hatt’s mansion.

“Wow,” Stephanie remarked as she looked at the firebox and the controls. “This looks like something out of Super Mario Bros.”

Romeo chuckled a little at Stephanie’s remark, as Gordon felt confused about the game but was listening to the conversation.

“Which lever is which?” Stephanie asked, looking up at Romeo.

Romeo pointed to which lever was driving Gordon as Stephanie listened to him curiously, slowly soaking in every little detail.

“And this one is blowing Gordon’s whistle,” Romeo explained, pointing to the string over their heads. “Go ahead and pull it.”

Stephanie reached up to the string to blow the whistle but kept missing it because of her small size as Romeo watched.

She stood on her tippy toes and finally grabbed ahold of the string, tugging it twice as Gordon’s whistle blew twice.

“I think I need to bring in a stepstool to pull Gordon’s whistle,” Stephanie chuckled as she released the string.

Romeo chuckled a little with her as Stephanie noticed the shovel next to the entrance to the tender, asking, “So how does the fireman shovel the coal into Gordon’s firebox?”

“Easy.” Romeo smiled as he walked up to the shovel and picked it up. “The fireman scoops a good amount of coal into his shovel.” He scoops a shovelful of coal and walks over to the firebox as he pulls the lever to open it. “And shove it in.”

Stephanie perked up after watching Romeo do so before handing the shovel to her and asking, “Want to try it?”

Stephanie nodded excitedly after Romeo asked and took the shovel, turning around as she scooped a shovelful of coal and lifted it, a little surprised at how heavy it felt in her hands.

She lifted the shovel with a little strain but did not struggle as she stepped away from the coal and headed towards the firebox.

“Are you okay, Stephanie?” Romeo asked. “Is it too heavy for you?”

“Nah,” Stephanie responded with a little smile. “It’s just like carrying bags of trash.”

Romeo shrugged as he pulled the lever to open Gordon’s firebox, watching as Stephanie tossed the coal into his firebox as he closed it.

“Hey!” Stephanie perked up with a smile. “I did it!”

“Yes, you did!” Romeo nodded. “Someday, you can be Gordon’s engineer.”

“I can?” Stephanie asked with curiosity.

“Yes,” Romeo nodded. “It’s every kid’s dream of becoming an engineer.”

Stephanie paused, chuckled, and responded, “Yeah, I guess so.”

Outside, Gordon cocked an eyebrow in confusion at Stephanie’s slight tone shift, noticing she seemed distant.

He does not know why but does not want to pressure her into telling him, so he stays silent.

Stephanie stepped out of Gordon’s cab, and her hands were a little covered with coal, but she wiped them onto the thighs of her blue jeans as Romeo hopped out.

“I’m guessing you were finding out what kind of jobs there were around Sodor,” Romeo asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie nodded. “Just a little curious.”

She wanted to tell Romeo she was searching for a job, but that seemed far-fetched, so Stephanie decided to drop the subject and go for the one Romeo asked about.

“Okay,” Romeo nodded. “If you have any more questions or places to go, you can ask Gordon and I.”

“Thank you,” Stephanie thanked. “And Ace is helping me get around Sodor.”

“Wait, Ace?” Gordon asked. “That yellow and white Australian race car Thomas once traveled with?”

“Yes?” Stephanie nodded with a confused expression. “What’s wrong with Ace?”

“He’s,” Gordon paused, but Romeo flat out said, “Full of himself and pushy.”

Stephanie perked up after Romeo flatly told her, as Gordon lightly exclaimed, “Romeo.”

“He is?” Stephanie asked.

“Yes,” Romeo nodded. “So be careful traveling around with Ace. He can get a little handful with different things.”

“Don’t worry,” Stephanie chuckled with a smile. “I know how to handle people like him.”

Gordon perked up when Stephanie mentioned ‘people,’ confused about why she was referencing him as a person.

“It was nice meeting you two!” Stephanie smiled as she waved her hand at them.

“You too!” Romeo nodded as Stephanie left.

“She’s adorable,” Gordon remarked.

Turning to Gordon, Romeo nodded and said, “She’s almost like Cleo but more curious and adventurous.”

Meanwhile, Stephanie returned to Ace and stopped, noticing he had drifted asleep while waiting for her to return.

His driver perked up after seeing Stephanie appear before honking his horn, startling Ace awake as Stephanie flinched but chuckled.

“Hey, mate!” Ace exclaimed as he looked up. “Wat was that fawr?!”

“It was waking you up because I’m right here,” Stephanie responded as Ace looked at her.

“Oh!” Ace perked up as he blushed a little. “Sawrry, ankle-bitder. I didn’t know ya weah garn ta be done.”

“I met up with Gordon and Romeo,” Stephanie responded with a chuckle. “I accidentally woke them up from bumping into a flatbed with metal pipes.”

“So that’s wat made that noise!” Ace perked. “I thought it was one of those Troublesome Trucks makin’ a ruckus on purpose.”

“Nope,” Stephanie blushed sheepishly as her ears flicked. “It was me.”

“So weah else?” Ace asked. “I still av ‘alf a tank of gas.”

Stephanie paused as she thought to herself before asking, “Why not go to Drayton? You can refill your tank at one of the gas stations.”

“Good idea!” Ace nodded. “Theah ahah tons of jobs ovah in Drayton, too, since it’s known fawr bein’ one of the busiest places on Sodawr.”

Stephanie smiled as Ace opened his back door for her, and she stepped inside, closing the door as Ace drove off, heading to Drayton.

However, Diesel had seen Stephanie curiously looking around Gordon and poking around from where he was hiding, looking confused about how curious she was.

“How would she react to seeing a diesel up close?” Diesel smirked. “Steamies are just complicated to drive around. Diesels are easygoing and easy as pie.”

So he drove down the line to follow Stephanie and Ace, wanting to take a chance at getting Stephanie into his cab to look around.

Ace soon entered Drayton and parked at one of the gas stations, opening his back door to allow Stephanie to step out.

“Thank you, Mr. Ace.” Stephanie smiled with a beaming smile. “Where are you going to park after refilling your tank?”

“Eithah at that pahrkin’ lot,” Ace explained as he pointed at the parking lot with his tire. “Or that one. Eithah awr, I’ll keep an eye out fawr ya in cayse ya come ovah weah I am.”

“Okay!” Stephanie smiled as she gave the thumbs up. “I’ll see you soon!”

Ace nodded and watched her walk away as his driver started filling his gas tank as he waited patiently.

In the background, Diesel entered Drayton and saw that Ace had dropped Stephanie off, deciding to find ways to lure Stephanie to him.

But Diesel does not want to get into trouble with anyone around, even if he wants to cause some trouble, so he decides to wait until he can ‘strike.’

It is now or never.

With Stephanie, she was walking around Drayton’s city as her ears were a little sensitive to the noises, but she ignored them the best she could as her ears flicked continuously.

“Alright.” Stephanie paused as she winced. “I did not expect the noise to be loud.” A screeching noise went through the air that caused Stephanie to reach up with both hands, covering her ears as they flicked. “Too loud!”

She stumbled a little through Drayton before entering one of the shops, still covering her ears with her hands as the noise was slightly muffled.

“Goodness,” a voice spoke through the chaos as Stephanie perked. “Are you alright?”

Stephanie looked up at a woman walking up to her, and she had short dark brown hair, fair skin, eyeshadow with some makeup, and was wearing a green shirt with dots, an undershirt, blue pants, and shoes.

“Not really,” Stephanie groaned as she slowly removed her hands from her ears. “Drayton is a little,” she winced when a loud horn blared through the air, covering her ears again and shouting, “Too loud!”

The woman walked away from Stephanie, took something from one of the shelves, and walked back to Stephanie as she watched with confusion.

Then she unwrapped something before placing something over Stephanie’s ears, silencing the outside world as it was muffled.

Stephanie looked confused as she reached up to see what was covering her ears, realizing she was wearing headphones over them.

The woman was mouthing something as she spoke to Stephanie, and Stephanie responded loudly, “What? I can’t hear you!”

The woman made the ‘lower your voice’ mention with her hands, and Stephanie mouthed, ‘Oh,’ before asking, with a lowered voice, “What did you say?”

She made the ‘one-minute’ mention with her hand and walked off, grabbing a pencil with paper and writing something on it, showing it to Stephanie as it read, ‘Do you feel better now that you have earmuffs on your ears?’

“Yes, I do,” Stephanie nodded. “Thank you.” Then she paused and asked, “How much are these, though?”

The woman wrote on the paper and showed it to Stephanie, reading, “They’re free for you since you helped save me and my son, Norman, from being statues.”

“Really?” Stephanie asked, and the woman nodded. “Thank you, miss.”

The woman wrote on the paper and showed it to her, reading, “My name is Dilys Price. But you can call me Mrs. Price.”

“Okay!” Stephanie smiled with a beaming smile. “Thank you, Mrs. Price!”

Mrs. Price smiled after Stephanie thanked her and exited the store, noticing that the noises around her had been silenced.

‘Finally,’ Stephanie sighed as she walked through the streets with her new earmuffs. ‘No more sore ears.’

Stephanie walked through the streets before perking up when she came across one of the LEGO workplaces and saw a lot of construction workers.

Stephanie’s curiosity grew as she stopped safely away from the construction workers and watched how they layered the bricks and sorted through them.

It looked a little easier than the other construction workers Stephanie comes across in Shining Time, but yet again, where is the fun in that?

One of the construction workers noticed Stephanie and perked up, waving ‘hello’ to her with a smile.

Stephanie perked up and smiled back with a wave before continuing her walk.

Since she was wearing headphones that could silence everything around her, Stephanie had to be extra careful around her, double-checking when she crossed the street and looking around here and even above.

Stephanie walked into a large part of the city and came across what looked like a mail company, perking with curiosity before watching something flung out from one of the windows and directly toward her!

She gasped and stepped back with her arms out, finally grabbing the package in her arms as it was large, but it did not hurt her as she sighed.

Confused, Stephanie walked up to the door and peered inside, surprised at what she saw.

Machines tossed mail packages everywhere as everyone scrambled around, trying to rearrange the items and sort out problems.

“Holy crap!” Stephanie exclaimed after seeing the chaos before catching another package that was tossed.

Stephanie reached up to the earmuff covering her ear and removed it, hearing that the noise was not too loud like in Drayton.

She removed them and wore them around her neck.

She stepped further into the mailing company and caught more flung packages with her hands, putting them down as she stepped inside.

Everyone was so busy trying to catch packages and sort through the chaos that they ignored Stephanie as she went to see what was happening.

While observing the machines, Stephanie saw one of them launch a package into the air before Postman Pat caught it.

“What are you doing here?” he asked after seeing Stephanie.

“One of the packages was flung towards me,” Stephanie responded. “And I wandered into here seeing,” she paused as she ducked as another package flew over her head. “This chaos.”

“I’m so sorry,” Postman Pat apologized. “We’re still trying to figure out how to handle these sorting machines Mr. Carbunkle left for us.”

“I’ve got an idea!” Stephanie perked up with a smile before catching another package with her hands and placing it on the ground. “Let me figure out how to work with the machines.”

“Are you sure?” Postman Pat asked.

Stephanie nodded as she walked over to one of the computers, standing on her tippy toes as she looked at the screen.

She pulled back a chair and sat down, seeing it was on the homepage, and Stephanie clicked the mouse as she dodged some incoming packages while she focused on the task.

After figuring out some coding, Stephanie went into the system through the computer and noticed some over-added details, causing the catapulting.

So she rearranged everything as Postman Pat watched with confusion, noticing that the sorting machines were slowly stopping the tossing but starting to sort through everything carefully.

Postman Pat looked amazed after Stephanie readjusted the system before moving on to the others, seeing the same thing and sorting through them.

“Excuse me?” Stephanie perked up after completing everything and turned on the chair, looking over at a short, stout man wearing a mustache and a blue uniform. “Who fixed all the machines?”

“That would be me, sir,” Stephanie responded as she hopped off the chair. “This Mr. Carbunkle left too much data in the system, so I re-edited the added data and sorted through it, making it useful for other systems to borrow.”

“That’s,” the man spoke, blinking a few times with amazement. “Incredible! Pat, I didn’t know your kid could do that!”

“Ah, Mr. Brown,” Postman Pat spoke as Stephanie blushed. “She’s not my kid.”

“She isn’t?” another man asked.

“No,” Stephanie said, shaking her head. “I’m the kid who helped Sodor.”

“So you’re that kid!” Mr. Brown pointed, and Stephanie nodded. “By ‘eck, I didn’t realize that!”

“It’s okay,” Stephanie assured. “Ah, everything is fixed around, so-”

She paused when there were glitches in the machines and muttered, “I’ll fix that.”

Stephanie hopped into the chair and started entering further into the system, finding some bugs and starting to fix them, changing some of the machines as Mr. Brown watched.

“By Jove,” Mr. Brown remarked as Stephanie felt slightly uncomfortable with the eyes looking over her shoulders. “She is hacking further into the system.”

Stephanie chuckled a little as she finished fixing all the bugs, double-checking if there was anything else.

After the last bug was removed, everything in the building was back to normal, with the machines working fine and no more tossing packages.

“Fixed!” Stephanie nodded with a smile as she hopped out of the chair. “Everything is back to normal.”

“Thank you so much,” Mr. Brown thanked, shaking her hand. “You helped the Pencaster Sorting Office from damaging more packages.”

“You’re welcome,” Stephanie thanked as they released their hands. “If there is any more trouble or the machines are crazy again, let me know.”