Elementary, My Dear Percy - ThomasNATION Fanstory
March 11, 2023
One day on Sodor, Percy had been sent to Ulfstead Castle to deliver some stone. He seemed particularly happy about something, which the Earl's engines and Gordon noticed.
"Mornin', Percy!" chirped Stephen. "My word, you’re in a good mood today. Are you that glad to see us?"
"Yes, but I just heard the most amazing story outside the Knapford school," Percy explained.
"Oh? What about?"
"It was about a great detective, and he and his partner had to put together all these clues to solve a mystery."
"Ooh, what was the mystery?" asked Glynn.
"I think it was finding out who stole the queen's sceptre." Percy thought as his cargo got unloaded. Just then, the engines saw Sonny pull into the station. Now, Percy was still completely trusting of Sonny, even after his involvement in a criminal plot. In fact, even Stephen was willing to trust the guy. The other engines, on the other hand...
"Oh. Hello, Sonny." scowled Gordon. "Steal any goods today?"
"Just the passenger's hearts, Gordon," chuckled Sonny. "that's all."
Gordon rolled his eyes. "Please! You're here, at Ulfstead, fully aware that there's an ancient crown on the premises. It surely can't be a coincidence."
"Please, how am I gonna steal that crown?" he asked as a cook unloaded his cargo. Gordon noticed the cook immediately.
“Look at that,” he said, “you’re being brought here to bring over supplies for a cook. Doesn’t that sound a little bit familiar?” As Gordon was talking, the cook slightly tripped on the stones, splashing a bit of garlic oil under Sonny’s nose. Sonny didn’t realise this outside of getting a little itch. “Is my nose runnin’?”
“Give him a fair chance, Gordon,” chuckled Stephen. “He’s redeemed himself after all that business with the cooks. Not to mention rescuing Diesel. Would he have done that, knowing how troublesome Diesel is, if he was an evil crook?”
Hearing Stephen explain it out loud, it started to make a bit of sense to Gordon. “Okay, I see where you’re coming from.”
“See?” said Sonny. “I’m not a crook anymore, bruv! I’m as useful as the day is wide!”
“I told you, Gordon,” chimed in Percy, “trust him.”
“Hmm…alright.” Gordon snooted. “But one of these days, you’re going to have to prove how useful you are.”
Percy and Sonny didn’t meet up again until later at Knapford. A group of engines were discussing the latest goings-on on the railway.
“Alright, lads?” asked Sonny. “What are we talkin’ about today?”
“Nothing much,” Thomas explained, “just a couple of changes to the railway, there’s a bridge out in Ffarquhar, and apparently there’s been some turmoil up in Ulfstead Castle.”
“Turmoil?” asked Percy. “What’s wrong?”
“The earl hasn’t said.” said James.
Just their luck, the earl approached the platform after talking to some policemen. “Everyone, I have some dreadful news!”
“What’s the matter?” asked Thomas.
“It’s King Godred’s crown! It’s been stolen!”
“Stolen?!” gasped Percy. “But…but who stole it?”
Immediately, all eyes were on Sonny, particularly from Gordon. “I think I have an idea.”
“Wha…me?!” Sonny gasped.
“Yes!” Gordon continued, “You were still at the platform when I left being “unloaded”.”
“I had a lot of cargo!”
“Pah. Likely story.”
“You saw me there, I didn’t move an inch!”
"You were stationary when I left! How do I know you didn't steal it while no one was looking?"
"I didn't steal anything!" Sonny was getting fed up, his voice raising.
"I don't care who stole it!" interrupted the earl. "What matters is that we find it. I'll need to contact the local detectives."
"Detectives?" Percy pondered. "Uh, sir, if it's all the same with you, what if I found it? I have an idea on where to look."
"What a splendid idea, Percy!" said the earl. "But are you sure you want to do this? This could be a very difficult case."
"Good point, I may need some help." thought Percy.
"Can I help?" asked Sonny.
"Sonny?" gasped the earl. "But...are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Capital!" exclaimed the earl. "Now, you two, get started right away.
The earl left, leaving Percy and Sonny to get started. Percy was ecstatic to get to do some detective work like in the story he heard. Sonny, on the other hand, knew nothing about solving mysteries. He immediately regretted his decision.
"Why did I agree to this?" Sonny complained. "I don't know anything about hoodunnits."
"Don't worry about it, Sonny," Percy reassured his friend. "It's easy! We just need to look for clues."
"Like what?"
"No idea, but let’s go check."
Percy and Sonny raced into the castle grounds. They searched everywhere around the crime scene. But no luck.
"Oh, Jiminy Christmas!" Sonny groaned. "This is a sneaky crook, I tell ya, Percy."
"There has to be something." thought Percy.
"We've been here an hour, Percy." replied Sonny. "If this guy didn't leave nothin', then he didn't leave nothin'! Unless that little pile of flour on the station is his calling card."
"How would you know?"
"Experience. I know how crooks act. They always leave behind a little something. For example, that day Baz and Bernie stole them blueprints for the flying car, Bernie left one of his cufflinks in the castle. That's how the cops caught 'em."
"And not for stealing Kenji?"
"Well, that too...hang on."
Sonny spotted a little wooden oar on the rails. His driver picked it up. "Does anyone you know use oars?"
"Why would an engine use oars?" asked Percy.
"No idea, but it can't be a boat."
Then, Percy got an idea. "Maybe it was a boat."
"What are you on about?"
"Skiff. He's a little railboat down at Arlesburgh. Thomas tells me he also got involved with a criminal. He might know what this oar means."
"I have no idea what that oar means." said Skiff as Percy and Sonny visited Arlesburgh Harbor.
"But...you're the only boat on the whole island with access to the railway." protested Sonny.
"But I've never been up to Ulfstead Castle, Sonny. I couldn't have left that oar there."
Percy inspected the oar again. "But if you didn't, who did? And why an oar?"
Sonny looked at the oar. It just didn’t add up. There was no reason for the oar being there, no one knew how it got to the castle, it didn’t even look at an oar!
…wait a minute. “Percy, look at the oar again. It don’t really look like an oar.”
“What do you mean?”
Skiff looked at the oar as well. “You’re right, Sonny. It‘s not shaped like an oar at all!”
“Yeah, it looks like one of those paddles they use in restaurants.” Sonny thought. “Why do they use paddles anyway? I always forget.”
“I know this one restaurant in Dryaw that installed a new pizza oven,” replied Percy. “so maybe this paddle could be a connection!”
“How do you know?”
“I delivered the oven myself!”
Percy and Sonny pulled into Dryaw Station. They dropped off the paddle at the restaurant and looked for anymore clues. Diesel quickly took note of this.
“What are you two up to?” he asked.
“We’re looking for any evidence.” said Percy. “The crown at Ulfstead Castle got stolen and we’re trying to figure out who took it.”
“Pfft. You steamies and your mysteries,” scoffed Diesel, noticing the stain of garlic oil on Sonny’s face. “you act like the answer isn’t under your nose.”
“What?” Percy gasped. “What does that mean?”
“I’m not telling.” Diesel laughed.
Percy and Sonny tried to decode his words. “Under our noses…” they thought.
Sonny tried sniffing to see if that meant anything. But all that he could smell was the breeze…and a little waft of garlic.
“Anything, Sonny?” asked Percy.
“No. All I smell is the wind, flowers, and…for some reason garlic.”
“Garlic? Where’d that come from?”
“The cook that unloaded my cargo spilled a drop of garlic oil on me.”
“We’re getting a lot of food related clues here. Are they all-“
Then, it hit them. The garlicky smell. The pile of flour. The pizza oven paddle. It can’t have been a coincidence. All signs pointed to one character.
“Sonny! That’s it!” gasped Percy.
“The one who stole the crown was that cook!” realised Sonny.
“Case closed!” they both cheered.
The two raced into Ulfstead Castle as quick as they could. They approached the earl to tell him their discovery. He was talking to the clumsy cook as he unloaded Diesel.
“Sir! Sir!” exclaimed Percy.
“We found out who the culprit is!” said Sonny! “It’s that cook!”
“Me?” asked the cook. “But I was called here to return the crown.”
“Pah. Horse apples, that is,” Sonny scoffed. “why would a thief willingly return their stolen goods?”
“Because the cook didn’t take the crown,” chuckled Gordon as he approached the platform. “I did.”
“What?” gasped Percy and Sonny.
“But why, Gordon?” asked the earl.
“Because,” Gordon explained as the cook handed the earl the crown, “I wanted to see if Sonny could truly show he could be really useful. Diesel helped me come up with a plan."
Sonny looked at Diesel. "You helped him? Really?"
"Hey, just be glad I helped anybody." scoffed Diesel.
"I tried being subtle, but then I knocked over a flour bag. I took this opportunity to create a little chef character you could deduce as the culprit, even borrowing a paddle from the restaurant in Dryaw. In fact, that’s not even a cook. That’s my fireman.”
“But why did you accuse me if you did it?” asked Sonny.
“I had to inspire you to solve the case somehow.”
“So, let me get this straight,” said the earl, “you stole King Godred’s crown, made a mess of the castle, and pinned the blame on your own fireman, just so you could teach Sonny a lesson?”
“I’m not proud of it. But I did what I had to.” Gordon smirked. “And I must say, Sonny, you passed with flying colors. I’m never going to be weary of you again.”
“Aw, thanks, bruv.” Sonny grinned. “…I think.”
“Very well done, Sonny,” commended the earl. “you and Percy have both proven to be really useful detectives. Now, as for you, Gordon, usually when thieves get caught, they’re sentenced to community service. So, I’ll talk to Sir Topham Hatt to see if I can give you Stephen’s routes on the castle ground.”
“Hm. I suppose I brought this on myself.” Gordon snooted.
As Gordon left, it was just Percy and Sonny at the platform. They were both proud of each other.
“Well, look at us, a couple of true detectives!” Percy laughed. “I still can’t believe you figured out what that paddle was. How’d you know it was for a pizza oven anyway?”
Sonny was too embarrassed to say that it was because Baz and Bernie used to use his firebox as an oven before he came to Sodor, so all he said was “Elementary, my dear Percy.”
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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