01x23 - Dirty Objects

[bunniefuu]

(Bell dinging)

Toby and Henrietta like
their new job on Sodor.

But they look old-fashioned.
James was rude when he saw them.

"What dirty objects!" he would say.

Toby lost patience.
"James, why are you red?"

"l am a splendid engine, ready
for anything. My paint is never dirty."

"Oh?" said Toby. "That's why you once
needed bootlaces - to be ready?"

James snorted off, insulted.

Once, a bootlace had been used
to mend a hole in his coaches.

At the end of the line, James left his
coaches and got ready for his next train.

lt was a slow goods, picking up trucks.

James hated slow goods trains.

"Dirty trucks from dirty sidings."

(Whistles)

"Bleugh!"

He picked up more and more trucks
at each station till he had a long train.

At first, the trucks behaved well
but James bumped them crossly.

They reached the top of Gordon's Hill.

Goods trains halt here.
James should have remembered this.

"Wait!" said the driver
but James wouldn't.

He was too busy thinking about
what he would say to Toby.

The trucks' chance had come.
They pushed him down the hill.

"On, on!" yelled the trucks.
"l've got to stop," groaned James.

Through the station they thundered.
Disaster lay ahead!

Something sticky splashed over James.

He had run into two tar wagons
and was all black.

He was more dirty than hurt but the
tar wagons and trucks were in pieces.

(Whistling)

Toby and Percy were sent to help
and came as quickly as they could.

"Look!" said Toby,
"What is that dirty object?"

"That's James!"

"But James is a splendid red engine,"
said Toby, "Never dirty."

James pretended he hadn't heard.

(Bell dinging)

Toby and Percy cleared away the trucks
and helped James home.

(Bell dinging)

The Fat Controller met them.
"Well done, you two!

"James, fancy letting your trucks
run away. You're not fit to be seen!

"New paint for Toby."
"And Henrietta too?"

"Certainly, Toby."
"Thank you, sir."

All James could do was watch Toby
run off happily with the news.