The Big Crack-Up! - ThomasNATION Fanstory
April 20, 2025
"Another Easter coming and going," sighed Mavis, "and another year I can't join the party."
"Oh, never mind, Mavis." smiled Toby. "You're not missing much anyway. It's always the same egg hunt every year."
"I know, but I love hearing about the egg hunt." continued Mavis. "It sounds so wonderful."
"Well, maybe this year will be your turn to deliver the eggs!" said Henrietta. "It's the most important part of the party."
"Yeah," chuckled Toby, "without the eggs, there's no egg hunt."
"Hmm, maybe." Mavis perked up a bit. Maybe Toby was right. Perhaps this was her year. Just then, Sir Topham Hatt pulled up aboard Edward.
"Ah, Mavis!" Sir Topham Hatt announced. "Just the engine I wanted to see!"
Wait. Really? She was the engine he wanted to see? Could this be it? "Yes, sir?"
"I have a very important job for you tomorrow. I need you to deliver the eggs for the annual Easter party in Harwick."
Mavis was overjoyed. She was finally getting to join the fun! "Oh, yes, sir! Thank you so much, why me?"
"I know how much you enjoy this time of year, so it figures I give you Easter off at the quarry so you can join the party!"
"Thank you, sir! I'll absolutely sort those eggs. You can rely on me." Mavis was floating on air. Her dream was about to come true once and for all.
"See? I told them you'd get your chance!" Toby chuckled.
The next morning was Easter Even, and Mavis wasted no time in rushing off to Farmer McColl's. She couldnāt find any trucks that werenāt covered in gravel, so she had to
Borrow a couple of old trucks on an abandoned siding. Pulling into the platform, she was amazed to see stacks upon stacks of eggs that Farmer McColl had built up.
"Wow!" gasped Mavis. "How long have you been saving those up?"
"Let's just say you're not the only fan of Easter on Sodor, Mavis." joked Farmer McColl. "I've been saving up these chicken eggs for four months, just for this time of year."
"Four months?" asked Mavis. "Did you not have breakfast in that time?"
Farmer McColl laughed at Mavis' joke. "It's a good thing I also raise ducks. Ah, if only they laid chocolate eggs. Right?"
Mavis and Farmer McColl laughed. "That'd make both our jobs a bit easier!"
Before long, Mavis' trucks were filled top to bottom with chicken eggs and she disembarked. "Bye, Farmer McColl! Happy Easter!"
Soon, Mavis was en route to Harwick. She took a moment to admire the spring colors. She even saw a gaggle of ducklings passing a pond. You wouldnāt get sights like these in a quarry. However, she started to get a bit distracted. She didnāt notice the red signal.
āMavis!ā called James. āWatch out!ā
Mavis snapped back to reality as she noticed the red signal. She hit the brakes, barely hitting James. āSorry!ā
James scowled as he puffed off. Mavis sighed a long breath of relief.
āPhewā¦ā she sighed as she began to back up. āIām just glad nothing bad happened to the-ā
BANG!! Mavis bumped right into Charlie behind her. āSorry! You okay, Charlie?ā
āYeah, Iām okay.ā Charlie called out. āI think your trucks are-ā
āOld? Yeah, I know. I think theyāre on their last legs. After I deliver these, I wonāt be surprised if these trucks burst.ā
āGive them three days, theyāll be just fine.ā Charlie joked.
As Charlie and Mavis laughed, the worst began to happen. The planks slowly creakedā¦and creakedā¦and crea-
SPLAT! The trucks burst open, spilling the eggs everywhere. Yolk was everywhere. On the tracks, on the grass, and all over Mavis and Charlie. Bill and Ben were passing, noticing the calamity.
"Hey, Ben, look!" Bill laughed. "Mavis just scrambled herself!"
"Ha! Good'un, Bill!" Ben giggled.
āNo! No, no, no, no!ā Mavis whimpered. āMy eggs!ā
āAw, youāve got to be yolking me!ā laughed Charlie.
āCharlie, this is no time for jokes!ā groaned Mavis. āI need to fix this!ā
Mavis thought and thought. She tried to come up with a solutionā¦until it hit her. What was it Farmer McColl said? Didnāt he also raise ducks as well as chickens?
Thatās it. Sheād solved it. āOf course! I just need to go back to Farmer McColl!ā
After replacing her trucks, Mavis raced right back to Farmer McColl, who was tending to his crops.
āFarmer McColl!ā she called. āThereās been a bit of an emergency!ā
āWhat kind of emergency?ā asked Farmer McColl before seeing Mavis covered from fender to footplate in eggshell and yolk. āGreat gears, what happened to you?!ā
āThere was a bit of an accident.ā
āA bit? Now thatās an understatement if I ever heard one in my life. You do realise I donāt have enough eggs to fix all this.ā
āI know, but hear me out.ā Mavis continued. āYou said you raise ducks, right?ā
āā¦right?ā
āSo, we can use those to replace the eggs! Theyāre bigger and stronger.ā
Farmer McColl took his hat off. āMavis, I donāt have enough eggs.ā
āYeah, I know about the chicken eggs. Iām asking about-ā
āNo, I mean in general.ā sighed Farmer McColl. āThat load of chicken eggs took me four months. Itāll take me at least two weeks just to fill one row.ā
āButā¦butā¦ā Mavis was at a loss for words. She didnāt know where else to find some eggs. āā¦where am I gonna find eggs now?ā
āHmmā¦ā thought Farmer McColl. āI do know this one chicken farm in Brighton. They have plenty of eggs.ā
āBrighton?ā Mavis gasped. āLikeā¦on the mainland? But the partyās tomorrow morning. Iām never gonna get them back in time. Iām running late as it is.ā
āI know, but at this time of year, itās your only bet.ā
āBut wonāt Sir Topham Hatt be upset with me?ā
āI'll explain everything to him. You just get those eggs. I'll place the order.ā
Mavis thought for a second before declaring that Farmer McColl was right. āAlright. Iāll do it. But Iām gonna need some backup.ā
"Us?!" gasped Bill and Ben as they crossed the Vicarstown Bridge with Mavis. By the time they got there, it was starting to get dark.
"Yes, you." smirked Mavis. "You know where to find things, and I need to find some eggs."
"This is because we teased you after you spilled those other eggs, isn't it?" whined Ben.
"Mostly, yes. But it's also because I need your help." Mavis said. It was a long journey to the Brighton egg farm. By the time they had got there, a full moon was shining. All they could hear over their wheels turning was a distant owl.
"I don't like this, Ben..." whimpered Bill.
"Me neither, Bill." whinged Ben. "Let's go home, Mavis!"
"We're almost there, boys." smiled Mavis. "Let's just keep our eyes open for some eggs."
The farm was a dismal sight. Barren trees. Creaking pipes. Rotting egg shells all around the tracks. Mavis, Bill and Ben didn't even want to imagine how the chickens were treated.
"Are you sure this is the right farm, Mavis?" asked Ben, right as a squawking chicken popped up behind the gate, startling him. "I don't remember egg farms being so...spooky."
"I think this is the place?" Mavis whispered. "Keep an eye out for an order for McColl."
The three of them looked around the shunting yards. Flatbeds upon flatbeds upon flatbeds of eggs.
"We may have a problem." whimpered Bill.
They kept looking for Farmer McColl's order. Mavis noticed a chicken come out of one of the cartons on a flatbed marked "DELIVER TO: FARMER P. McCOLL".
"Guys! I think I found it!" whispered Mavis.
Bill and Ben approached the flatbeds. "Alright, let's get these eggs and get out of here! "
"OI!" shrieked a security guard, shining his flashlight on the three of them. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"
"Let me handle this." Mavis told the twins before turning to the guard. "Pardon us, sir, we're here on behalf of Farmer McColl! He called earlier?"
Once they cleared up their intrusion with the guard, Mavis, Bill and Ben raced over to Harwick as fast as they could before the Easter party began. Sir Topham Hatt was waiting for them.
"Did someone order a hundred eggs?" Mavis announced as the children cheered. "Sorry for the delay, sir. There was an accident with some old trucks."
"Well, that's alright, I suppose," said Sir Topham Hatt as he began unloading eggs. "Just don't let it happen again next year."
Mavis beamed at that last couple words. "Next year". She wasn't gonna miss out on Easter again. But for now, she enjoyed the fun and games as children, parents and even Sir Topham Hatt painted eggs.
"Mavis, look!" a little girl shouted as she showed Mavis an egg. It was painted black with a grey square in the middle. And in that square was a little smiley face.
"Aww, who's this?" asked Mavis.
"It's you!" the little girl giggled. "Mavis the Easter hero!"
Mavis was thrilled to be considered an Easter hero, and to be part of the fun. She couldn't wait for next year - maybe she'd get repainted as the Easter Bunny. But for now, she was glad to finally be involved in her favorite holiday.
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