Best-Ish Friends - ThomasNATION Fanstory
July 23, 2022
It was a dreary summer day on Sodor. The residents and tourists wanted to spend a day at the beach, have a barbeque and catch some rays, but they couldn't because of the rain. As Thomas and Percy were shunting at Knapford, they couldn't help but notice the disappointed passengers.
"Those poor tourists." Percy lamented. "I mean, all they want to do is go to the beach."
"I know," sighed Thomas. "it's kind of sad, honestly. But, y'know, maybe it'll clear up tomorrow."
"Right." chuckled Percy. "Oh, hey, are we still on to deliver that heavy goods train together to Vicarstown later?"
"Oh, absolutely. And I mean it this time, I know I've had to miss out on the last few deliveries, but I guarantee you, 100%, bona fide promise I'll make it."
"Great. Thanks." said Percy as he left to collect his next load. As Percy left, Thomas noticed Ryan in the distance looking pretty upset.
"You okay over there, Ryan?" asked Thomas.
"Oh. Hi, Thomas," sighed Ryan. "yeah, I'm fine. I've just been so swamped with all my jobs. I've got to take the mail around my branch line, since Daisy won't because it's "fitter's orders", and I've got a load of gravel to take to the docks."
"Oh, really?" asked Thomas.
"Yeah, I'd be lucky to get one second to rest my wheels."
Thomas thought for a second. On one hand, he really wanted to help Ryan. On the other, he promised he'd help Percy with the train to Vicarstown. As he thought, Duck rolled up alongside him to fill up with coal.
"Well, if you want me to..." thought Thomas, "I could help you out for a little while."
"You'd do that?"
"Sure."
"Thanks a million, Thomas." Ryan sighed. "Come on, we don't have time to lose."
As Ryan left, Duck approached Thomas. "Are you sure about this? Didn't you promise you'd help Percy?"
"Sure I did, Duck," said Thomas, "but Ryan needs my help as well. I'll be sure to wrap up as soon as possible so I can get to Percy."
Unfortunately, helping Ryan took much longer than Thomas could've expected. From handling the gravel to taking the mail to everything inbetween, even Thomas was getting swamped with all the work, and that was bad news for Percy, who ended up having to take the delivery on his own. He kept struggling on the hills, which led to a string of insults from his peers.
"Oh dear, Percy!" mocked Diesel. "What's the matter, your best friend ditching you again?"
When Percy finally got to the station, Sir Topham Hatt was livid. "I don't know why you keep ending up so late, Percy, but you have to stop this dilly-dallying, okay?"
"Okay..." Percy sighed.
As Sir Topham Hatt left, Thomas raced into the station. "Percy! Look, I know I was-"
"Thomas, where were you?!"
"I had to help Ryan out on his branch line, I-"
"You had to help Ryan?!" cried Percy. Now he was the cross one. "What about our delivery? You promised!"
"I honestly tried to make time, but there was too much to do!"
"How?! How was there too much to do?! Or are you just making excuses?"
"What?! How am I making excuses?!" yelled Thomas, fed up with Percy. "I tried to make time, it's not my fault I got held up!”
“I wouldn’t even be complaining about your excuses right now if this wasn’t the fourth time this happened now!”
“It’s true! And besides, maybe that train was hopeless, it was too heavy for both of us, and you crawling like a green caterpillar with red stripes certainly wasn't gonna help it either!"
At that moment, Percy had officially had enough. "You know what? That's it. I'm done. If you're not going to value our friendship, then...maybe we shouldn't even be friends!"
Thomas was taken aback. He didn’t expect Percy to declare their friendship over, but he was too upset to make amends. "Fine by me."
Percy left, his friendship with Thomas officially a thing of the past. "Pah. Green caterpillar indeed..."
From another platform, Toby and Henry were watching everything unfold.
"Did you see that, Henry?" asked Toby. "They just broke off their friendship!"
"Unbelievable." Henry sighed. "I thought they were the best of friends! Y’know, inseparable."
"I know! But, maybe this is just a little spat. Before we know it, this whole thing will blow over and they'll be back to being best friends."
It certainly didn't blow over that night. At Tidmouth Sheds, Thomas hadn't returned to his berth. But Percy didn't care, he was still seething over their fight and wasn't talking to anyone.
"Where's Thomas?" asked James. "Not like him to return late at night."
"I heard he was staying at Wellsworth tonight." said Nia. "But who's taking his berth?"
"No one, hopefully..." muttered Percy under his breath.
Just then, Philip rolled into the sheds. "Hello, everyone! Thomas offered to swap places with me for a while, so I'm staying with you now! Am I one of the Steam Team now?"
"No, Philip..." James groaned.
"I sure hope Thomas is okay." sighed Nia.
Meanwhile, at Wellsworth, Thomas was venting his frustrations to Edward. "...and he had the gall to say I was making excuses! I mean, it wasn't my fault I got held up in Arlesburgh."
"Sorry to say it, Thomas," said Edward, "but this argument is just pure nonsense. The two of you are getting angry over something so silly."
"I don't care, Edward," sighed Thomas, "I just don't want to talk to him again."
Edward wasn't sure how to help Thomas. All he could do was hope things would get better by the morning.
The next morning, all the engines were getting on with their work as usual. Everyone except Thomas and Percy. They were still mad with each other as they crossed paths the next morning.
"Thomas." scowled Percy.
"Percy." growled Thomas.
"How was your sleep at Wellsworth? Were you not satisfied messing up Ryan's branch line, so you had to mess up Edward's?"
"Oh, and how did your mail train go? Did any of the letters actually end up on time?"
"Stop it, you two." Sir Topham Hatt groaned. "I don't know why you keep arguing, but that shouldn't distract you from your work. Now, Thomas, you know what to do on your branch line."
"What, you mean running all his trains late?" grumbled Percy.
"Oh, look who's talking!" bickered Thomas.
"Enough! The both of you!" barked Sir Topham Hatt. As he tried to settle the two down, Ryan, Toby, Oliver and Diesel were watching from the shunting yard.
"I can't help but feel like this is all my fault." sighed Ryan.
“Don’t say that, Ryan,” said Oliver, “it’s not your fault. It’s hardly anyone’s fault at all.”
“No, it is.” Ryan muttered. "If I didn’t ask Thomas for help, none of this would be going on."
“Honestly, I don’t know why you all are making such a fuss,” groaned Diesel. “This sort of thing happens all the time.”
“What do you mean?” asked Toby.
Diesel looked around for an example, as he noticed Donald and Douglas at the yard. “Take Donald and Douglas for instance. They argue all the time, but they always come together in the end, no matter what the problem is. Even if they need someone else to convince them.”
What Diesel was saying inspired Toby. "Diesel! You could be onto something!"
"I am?"
"Yes! One of us needs to be the peacemaker between Thomas and Percy. But who?"
"Why not you, Ryan?" Oliver suggested. "You're always a good negotiator."
Ryan wasn't sure. "I don't know, this whole ordeal was my fault, so maybe I should sit this one out. What about Diesel? It was his idea."
"What?" Diesel gasped. "I'm not a peacemaker, I'm an adversary. What about Toby?"
"Oh. Um..." Toby pondered. "I mean, if you guys are okay with it."
"You'd better hurry, though," Oliver responded. "they look pretty upset." He noticed Thomas angrily clashing with Annie and Clarabel as Percy furiously bashed into his mail cars.
"OW!" cried Annie.
"What was that for?" asked Clarabel.
"I don't wanna talk about it." sighed Thomas.
Thomas pulled into Ffarquhar later that day. He was so busy thinking about his fight with Percy that he couldn't focus on his work and ended up stopping too late.
"Thomas!" called Clarabel. "Um...we've overshot the platform."
"Oh." said Thomas as he reversed. "Sorry, guys, I'm just in a bad mood today. You heard about what happened with me and Percy, right?"
"We did," sighed Annie, "and we're dreadfully sorry."
Just then, Toby approached the platform. "Thomas! Listen, I know you're mad at Percy, but I think it's time you two made up and became friends again."
"Why should I?" Thomas groaned. "He's not gonna listen to me. And besides, why should I forgive him? I don't even need him. Yeah, I miss how he made me laugh and...well, all his jokes and the conversations we had..." As he spoke, his mood slowly shifted from mad to almost a little guilty.
"Thomas?" asked Toby. "What's going on?"
"It's nothing, I-"
"Thomas." Toby interrupted. "It's not nothing. Now, come on, what is it?"
Thomas sighed. "I…miss him. Okay?"
"Oh."
"I just wish we never even had that fight to begin with. I really tried to get to the delivery on time, but the work kept piling up one after another, and I couldn't get away on time. I even tried explaining to Daisy, but she kept on telling me that neither her or Ryan were strong enough to pull those trains or clean everything up."
"Did you tell Percy that?"
"I tried. But he didn't want to listen. I don't care who was right, or who started it. I just want my friend back."
Dang. Toby wasn't expecting that answer. He didn't know what to say. Thomas sighed. "Look, just forget it, alright? If Percy doesn't want to be around me, I can respect that."
"But what if he feels the same way?" Toby suggested. "Maybe he doesn't want to argue with you either."
"Toby, I see where you're coming from," said Thomas, "but have you seen Percy? He wouldn't forgive me if his life depended on it."
"You don't know that." said Toby. "Maybe he'll be as eager to make up as you are. Come on, what do you have to lose?"
Thomas thought for a second. He still wasn't convinced that Percy would forgive him, but it would be worth a shot. "Well...alright."
Later that day, Percy had to collect some mail from the harbor as Toby and Thomas approached.
"Hey, Toby." said Percy. "Um...why did you bring Thomas?"
"Because I think it's time you two made up." Toby explained.
"What? Why should I?" groaned Percy. "He's not gonna listen. He's a bad friend."
"Percy, please, let me explain." Thomas pleaded. "I really, really tried to get to the delivery on time, but Daisy wouldn't let me."
Percy wasn't all that convinced. "If that was really true, then why did you call me a green caterpillar with red stripes?"
"I wasn't thinking," Thomas sighed. "and I let my frustrations get the best of me. But I didn't want to get delayed, I tried getting away to help you several times, so...I'm sorry. I don't expect you to forgive me, since...well...you were right. I was a bad friend."
Percy really listened carefully to what Thomas had said. He considered everything he mentioned and then...smiled at him. "I'm sorry too, Thomas."
"You are?"
"Yeah. I never really wanted to fight either. Honestly, it’s my fault for getting mad at you getting delayed. So what do you say? Are we friends again?"
"Percy," Thomas smiled, “I’d like nothing more.”
Toby grinned to himself. He couldn't believe he had actually done it!
"Tell ya what," Thomas suggested, "your mail train looks pretty heavy. Why don't I deliver it with you tonight?"
"You'd do that?"
"Anything for my best friend."
The next morning, Thomas and Percy's friendship had never been better. They were happily delivering a heavy goods train together as Toby, Duck and Nia watched.
"How did you do it?" asked Duck. "I thought their friendship was beyond repair."
"Never underestimate Toby, he's a friendship wizard." chuckled Nia. "But really, what's your secret?"
"I have to admit," said Toby, "I'm surprised I even got them to make up myself."
The guard's whistle blew from another platform and it was time for Thomas and Percy to leave.
"Take it away, Percy!" called Thomas.
"Right-o, Thomas!" cried Percy as they left.
As the two disembarked, the two made a promise to never fall out again. And off they went, a delivery on its way and a friendship rekindled.
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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