Thomas and Friends Fanfiction Series 5

Hello, Caroline!

Caroline is a little vintage car who lives on the Island of Sodor. She is not the oldest vehicle, but she is vulnerable. If she goes too fast, her engine can overheat and she can break down easily because of it. 

One day, Caroline was having a rest after a slow drive into the Hills. 

(The cricket players are playing a game on a field there. Bridget Hatt, Nancy, Sir Robert Norramby and Farmer McColl can be seen watching.) 

Skarloey and Rheneas passed her by and stopped. 

"Hello, Caroline!" said Skarloey pleasantly. 

"How are you?" asked Rheneas. 

"Tired, but peaceful," replied Caroline politely. 

"Be careful on your way back down," warned Skarloey. "It had been raining last night, and the last thing a little car like you needs is an accident." 

Caroline didn't like being told she was little and accident prone. 

"Thanks for the warning!" she said crossly. 

"Just looking out for you, Caroline," said Rheneas kindly, as they puffed away. 

Caroline wished that she could run fast without making herself overheat and look silly and useless. 

Later, Caroline was being driven back down the hill, but it was steep and the damp roads made it difficult for her to not go too fast. 

"At least it's not as strenuous on my engine going downhill," she said to herself. 

Then there was trouble. 

There was a muddy puddle on the road and it made it all the more slippery. Caroline drove straight into the puddle and rolled out of control. 

"Oh my!" she cried. 

Her driver pressed hard on her brake pedal, but it was no good. They rolled right off the road and broke a fence, and were covered in mud. 

"Oh, yuck!" moaned Caroline. 

Soon, Caroline was rescued, and the fencing was cleared away. 

(Butch pulled her to the road, and Bertram passes by when the fencing is moved off the tracks.) 

Caroline felt even more useless. 

"My brakes aren't even sufficient to get me down a hill and through a puddle safely," she said sadly. "Maybe I should just be retired and should find myself a scrapyard." 

This was heard by Skarloey and Rheneas. They felt sorry for Caroline. 

At Crovan's Gate, they told Emily about what Caroline had been through and had said. 

(Toby can be seen passing through with Henrietta.)

"Poor Caroline," said Emily. 

Emily then told James. 

"Well, she might be needing retirement, but nobody deserves to be scrapped!" he said thoughtfully. 

James then told Duck. 

"Oh my! That state of mind is not the Great Western approach!" he said. 

Later, Thomas was talking to the Fat Controller when Duck came in. 

"Sir, we're all hearing that poor Caroline is feeling so down about herself that she thinks she deserves to be put in a scrapyard," he explained. 

"Indeed?" said the Fat Controller. "We cannot allow that!" 

The Fat Controller waited in his office. He knew Caroline's Driver often stopped outside the station to do some shopping. 

Soon enough, Caroline, in a muddy state and looking very sorry for herself parked in the square near the Lion of Sodor's statue. 

The Fat Controller quickly rushed over to see her and her Driver. 

"Hello! I'd just like to have a word," he called. "Now, Caroline, I hear that you've been feeling sorry for yourself and feel like you don't deserve to stay on the roads." 

"Yes, sir," admitted Caroline sadly. 

"You're a kind and useful car," said the Fat Controller. "You helped those cricketers get their ball back and tried to get me to a party once. And you also helped my mother once too!" 

"But I let you all down on those occasions," groaned Caroline. 

"What matters is that you did your best, but I agree that you have had a lot of problems in the past. Too many, which is why I suggest..." 

"That I go to the scrapyard," murmured Caroline piteously. 

"No!" insisted the Fat Controller. "I suggest that you go to Jem Cole. I'm sure he can fix you up and make you more reliable. I'll pay for it too, as a return of the favour for your services in the past to my mother and I!" 

Caroline and her Driver couldn't believe it. 

"I-I-I could be r-really useful again?" murmured Caroline. She sounded fit to tears. 

"I'll call Jem up to see what he can do," smiled the Fat Controller. 

Jem Cole came a little while later, while the Driver did his shopping. He gave Caroline a thorough examination. 

"No wonder you're in bad shape, Caroline," he said. "Your engine is out of date, far too old to keep you running reliably. You need a new one. And your brakes will need replacing too!" 

"Can that really be done for an old car like me?" asked Caroline. 

"Of course! I'll just tell Sir Topham Hatt, and he can order the right parts for you!" said Jem confidently. 

Caroline couldn't have felt happier. 

The Fat Controller ordered the parts, and a week later, Sidney brought them in from the Mainland. 

The engines went to Jem Cole's work shed near the depot to see the result of his work. Out came Caroline with shining new red paint, polished metal, a new engine that hummed merrily and her brakes didn't squeak or fail when she came to a stop. 

"Well!" chortled the Fat Controller, "Hello, Caroline!" 

"You look splendid!" said Thomas. 

"Now that is the Great Western attitude, Thomas!" added Duck. 

Caroline was fit to tears again. She had never felt grander or as healthy since she was young, and her Driver admired her happily. 

Caroline smiled happily. 

"Thank you, everyone! Bless you all!" 

(The End...of Series 5! Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays to all! And a very Happy New Year!)