#billy twofeathers

[billyandstacyshiningtimestation]

By LaSirenofEire

[pxmun]

Back at Shining Time Station, Schemer and Billy Twofeathers cautiously approached the once beloved place. Billy could hear Schemer's nickel dispenser jingling due to the former arcade owner shaking from fear. Back in the day Schemer was just afraid of the ghost that he believed haunted the station, but since the incident on that final day he found out that the scariest things in this world weren't ghost that go boo. The two stopped right in front of the entrance door. Both men were hesitant as they didn't know if the station had acquired any unwelcomed occupants during its years of abandonment. Billy carefully creaked the door open, once he did Billy carefully listened for any sounds of movement or breathing. When no sound came, Billy called out into the darkness. No answer. Much to Schemer's protest, Billy instructed Schemer to follow him into the station. Schemer stuck close to railroad engineer as they entered into the darkness. Once inside, Billy took out a little flashlight from his back pocket and clicked it on. They needed to find the workshop and see if the breakers could be used to restore power to the station. Billy used the wall to help guide Schemer and him to the workshop. Schemer was still trembling, so Billy tried to make small talk to help calm Schemer down. "Seeing the old "To All Trains" sign reminds me of the day Kara and Schemee brought Darius from the hospital for the first time, he was a really little guy back then." Billy said. "Yeah, I remember. Now he's so big, D-man could probably pull the Rainbow Sun all the way to Cloggyville." Schemer chuckled. "I remember when we threw Romeo's fourth birthday here, boy I really didn't think that hire-a-clown thing through. The kids didn't appreciate my performance." Schemer said. "Well, you did try and charge them for their free balloons and for the air to inflate them." Billy recalled. "Hey, I was already performing for free! The parents could've least left a tip." Schemer argued. Billy just gave him a disapproving look. "Come on Billy, you know I would never scam my own grand nephews and grandniece, everybody else though, well now that's a different story." Schemer continued. Billy just rolled his eyes. Somethings never changed. A sudden creak caught the two men's attention. Billy immediately shined his light in the direction of the noise, a figure stood were his light shone. Schemer shrieked like a little girl while jumping into Billy's arms. In return the figure yelped in surprise. To Billy and Schemer's shock, in front of them was a little girl. It was Holly. "Hey there little lady, what are you doing here"? Billy asked. "Sorry, I didn't mean to trespass, I'm just trying to catch a train to..." Holly stalled as she tried to think of a town. "Muffle Mountain." Holly stuttered. Billy got suspicious. "Muffle Mountain. that's quite the ways away for someone to travel, especially at night in an abandoned train station." Billy said. Holly felt nervous as she knew Billy didn't believe her. Billy saw this and tried to be gentle. "It's alright, you're not in trouble. We just want to make sure you're not lost or in any danger." Billy assured. Holly was still unsure; she didn't think the two men would believe her. "I am here to catch a train, it stops here at Shining Time Station when needed, as to where it goes well... Holly hesitated. "It heads too someplace, well, unbelievable." Holly said. Schemer also was suspicious of Holly. "Unbelievable, eh? What kind of unbelievable"? Schemer asked. "Well, like something you would need to see to believe." Holly replied. She looked at Billy, her eyes telling the man that she didn't want to explain any further. Billy began piecing things together; something told him the girl was more involved with the station than let on. The engineer knelt down to be eye level Holly. "I understand that for kids there are times where they feel like adults won't believe what they have to say. They feel like the grown-ups will think it's just excuses or just a child's imagination. However, Shining Time Station isn't like that. Schemer and I worked here before and we both have our share of unbelievable stories, some not even our fellow grown-ups would believe.  So, if there's something you feel there's important you need to say, we're here to listen." Billy assured. Holly was still hesitant, but she could tell that Billy was being genuine. She let out a calming breath before speaking. "I'm here to catch a train pulled by a magical engine named Lady. I need to go to an island called Sodor and see if Lady or anyone there can fix my hair, which magically grew back in a silver color thanks to the magic of my talking engine friend Spencer." Holly explained. "Pft, magic engines, magic hair? What do you take us for kid a couple of..." Schemer was interrupted when Holly removed her wool cap to reveal her sparkling hair. The two men looked on in disbelief. Schemer though quickly shook off his shock. "Nice try kid, but anyone can dye their hair silver. Now, what are you really here for"? Schemer questioned. "Schemer"! Billy scolded. "Oh, come on Billy! You're really going to believe this random girl's story about this island of Soda what you call it." Schemer said. "Schemer remember what I told you earlier after our call with Stacy"? Billy asked. "Yeah, I remember, but that was just a joke, right? All that talk about a little magic man named Mr. Conductor, gold dust, and an island full of talking trains. Come on Billy, I have more sense than to believe that." Schemer said. "Schemer, I'm not trying to pull a prank on you. All that stuff is real, don't you remember when you and Stacy switched personalities? When Schemee turned invisible? Or the time you were chased by a giant nickel"? Billy asked. Now it was Schemer’s turn to be interrogated. He stuttered as he recalled those memories. Schemer didn’t want to believe it; those experiences were scary and the thought of those things happening due to some force beyond human capability was terrifying. Schemer’s fear soon turned to anger as he realized what Billy said was true. “So magic is real, and for all these years you guys kept it a secret from me. What else are you hiding? What, next you're going to tell me that there is a band of little elves living and playing in my jukebox”? Schemer fumed. Schemer angrily strode up to the jukebox in question, he was upset that his coworkers and friends kept such a thing hidden from him. Schemer then gave a big kick to the jukebox and immediately regretted it as the pain began to register. “Ow, ow, ow”! Schemer cried as he grabbed his foot and hopped on the other, eyes clenched. When he opened them, the first thing he saw that a little doll dressed as either a retro bus driver or a retro gas station attendant. The doll looked at Schemer and gave a friendly wave hello. “AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH, little elf”! Schemer shrieked. Billy was nowhere near as surprised as Schemer, but he was still shocked to see the living puppet. Holly on the other hand was glad to see the puppet and soon approached. “Hi! I’m Holly. Do you live here with Mr. JJ Silvers and the Jukebox Band”? Holly asked. The puppet didn’t say anything, instead he took the little chalk board next to him and began writing something down with a piece of chalk. When he was done, he presented the chalk board to the three humans. “Hi Holly! I’m Roy, it’s nice to meet you. I do live here with JJ Silvers and the others, I’m JJ’s assistant. JJ and the others haven’t been back to the jukebox in a while, is there something I can help all of you with”? Roy asked. “I was wondering when Lady will be stopping here? I need to go to Sodor and see if anyone can turn my hair back to normal.” Holly asked. Roy quickly wiped off his board before writing again. “Let me check real quick to see if her line is active.” Roy wrote. Roy then hopped down from the jukebox, causing Schemer to yelp in fear.  “Wait Holly, you’ve been here before”? Billy asked surprised. “Yes, last time Mr. Silvers and his band brought me here to take a magic engine named Lady to Sodor.” Holly said. Schemer quickly composed himself. “Did you by any chance happen to see anyone else in the station when you were here? Like a really big guy, a teenage boy, or a girl around your age? They're my grandnephews and grandniece and they went missing, last we heard they were rumored to have been seen heading towards this station.” Schemer asked hopeful. “I did run into an older boy wearing a number four jersey and a blue, yellow, and red jacket.” Holly recalled. Schemer began to sob. “That’s him! That’s my grandnephew Romeo”! Schemer cried. “Please Holly, can you tell us if he’s, okay? Where is he”? Schemer begged. “He seemed alright and last time I saw him; Romeo was on Sodor.” Holly answered innocently. Schemer nearly fainted. “Sodor, of course it had to be Sodor”! Schemer whined. “Schemer it’s alright, from what Mr. Conductor said Sodor is a safe place so Romeo, Cleo, and Darius shouldn’t be in any danger.” Billy tried to assure. “Even if that’s so, I still want to see them for myself. When is this supposedly “magical” engine going to be here”? Schemer asked. Roy soon ran in. He quickly wrote something down. “Some bad news, Lady’s line is down. I don’t know when it will be active again.” Roy wrote. “Oh no! What are we supposed to do know”? Holly asked saddened. Roy then spotted the silver whistle around Holly's neck. He hastily scribbled something. “You have a whistle, that’s great! I can load it up with gold dust and you can use it to have your engine friend stop here at Shining Time Station”! Roy wrote. The puppet quickly entered the jukebox before coming back out with a bag full of gold dust. Roy was about to open the bag and fill Holly’s whistle but stopped. “You two grown-ups should stand back, too much gold dust for adults is bad.” Roy wrote. “Dangerous, how so”? Billy asked. “We don’t know why, but adults that get over exposed to gold dust have a bad reaction to it. If you two aren’t careful you can end up like me.” Roy warned. The two men were shocked. “What about the kids? Is overexposure to gold dust dangerous for them”? Billy asked concerned. “Surprisingly not. Kids can be directly exposed to this stuff for days on end and nothing bad happens, their completely immune”! Roy responded. With this new information in hand, Billy and Schemer backed away to a safe distance to avoid exposure to gold dust. Once Holly’s whistle was filled, everyone headed outside to the trains. Billy switched the lines so Spencer wouldn’t end up on a line that was blocked by old freight cars. When that was done, Holly took a big breath and blew into her whistle. PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP! The sound was loud and echoed through the Indian Valley Railway. When nothing happened, Schemer spoke up. “What was that? Nothing happened! I’m sorry little Holly, but it looks like this puppet schemed...” A loud shrill whistle interrupted Schemer. Out of nowhere, a tunnel of light appeared and out of it was a familiar LNER class A4. “Spencer”! Holly beamed as she watched her friend approached. “My dear Holly it’s good to see you again and so soon”! Spencer smiled as he came to a stop before the girl. Billy was speechless, he knew of the island of Sodor and its talking engines from Mr. Conductor’s stories, but it felt so unreal to have one there before him. “It’s a talking train! It’s going to eat us, run”! Schemer shrieked as he tried to dart away but ended up tripping over his feet and into an old trash bin. Schemer passed out, when he came to Schemer found Billy standing over him. “Billy? What are you doing in my house”? Schemer asked groggily. “We’re not at your house Schemer, we’re on our way to find Romeo.” Billy said. “The kids, have we found the kids”? Schemer asked. “Yes, Spencer and Holly are taking us to them as we speak.” Billy assured. “That’s good. Where are we heading again”? Schemer asked. “Sodor.” Billy answered. “That’s what I thought.” Schemer said before passing out again, all the while Spencer was going along the golden track from Shining Time Station to Sodor.

[number1spongebobfan]

Welcome to Shining Time Station!

All the human/live action characters are drawn as stickmen.

I'm going to incorporate shining time in my episode rewrites.

[kevingotabigasschin]

Tw: Racism and Sexism

I’m sorry but this needs to be said, we need better representation of Native Americans in media, Disney’s Pocahontas is so racist and offensive on so many levels and the fact they tried to sugarcoat colonialization in Pocahontas 2 by making it a decision that Pocahontas made herself to go to England when back then Native Americans didn’t have a fucking choice, they were ripped away from their tribes, forced to dress up like white people and go to white school or they’d be fucking shot. The whole damn reason that Disney even thought of making a part two just makes me even fucking madder. 

Don’t get me fucking started on Peter Pan, even when I was a kid I thought the scene with the Natives was wrong and the fact that Wendy was being forced to do work instead of having fun with the rest of the boys is really just pushing a damn sexist agenda. 

And the fucking red face that most live action movies do because they’d rather have someone who’s white dressed up in feathers rather than someone who’s actually Native American because Hollywood is racist. And the fact that Hollywood uses the damn excuse that they’re of Native American descent makes me so fucking angry, you’re just using that as an excuse not to have an actual Native American in a prominent role.

I am so sick of this bullshit, I’m so tired of people saying “you have Pocahontas as representation isn’t that enough?” no fuck you, that damn movie isn’t representation, that’s a damn checklist for Disney to say they have a non white Princess. 

I hate that when people think of Native Americans they immediately think of Disney’s Pocahontas, please do not associate us with that shitty movie we want nothing to do with it. 

The only proper Native American representation I can think of off the top of my head is Billy Twofeathers from Shining Time Station and TATMR, who both roles were played by actual Native Americans, his race isn’t his whole personality, he isn’t heavily stereotyped or racist in the slightest, he’s just another character on the show and a delightful change at that. 

I especially like the one episode of Shining Time Station called Schemer’s Club, where an owner of a club was arriving to STS and was harassing Stacy and not taking her seriously as headmaster of the station and then began to pick on Billy for being Native American and started calling him chief and told him to do a dance for his entertainment. Now this guy was a known bigot and Billy even calls the guy a bigot in the episode and explains the definition of it to him to really let the crowd know you didn’t want to be one. The bigot had his comeuppance in the end though and I’m so glad he did because racism and sexism should not be excused.

The fact that a damn kids show was able to tackle racism and sexism better than any other shows says a lot. And I’m so glad that Stacy and Billy didn’t just let the guy take advantage of them and harass them, but I still don’t know how the hell Billy was so patient because that guy would’ve made friends with the floor if I were in Billy’s situation, probably to display the message that violence is never the answer to deal with a problem. 

Billy really is a sense of empowerment for Native American representation in media and we need more characters like him. 

And no I do not count John Redcorn as Native American representation, I love the fact that they had to make a Native American a homewrecker in Dale and Nancy’s relationship. Totally not painting Native Americans as bad people. 

Enough ranting though, I’m tired, I just needed to get this off my chest. 

[billyandstacyshiningtimestation]

Letters Under a Flag

Chapter 5: Wrong Iron

Kit remembered he was supposed to ask Billy about the day of the cowboy just before bed. He found his uncle on the back porch restringing his guitar.

Leaning against the door frame, Kit quietly watched as thoughts of his conversation with Dan came back and wouldn’t leave him alone.

“You ready for bed?” Billy asked without so much as glancing over his shoulder.

“Yeah.” Kit stepped outside. The wooden slats of the porch were cold beneath his bare feet. "Can I ask you something?"

Billy nodded and went back to cutting the old guitar strings.

Kit sat on the bench near his uncle’s chair and pulled his feet up under him. “Everybody’s been talking about the day Ned came to town two years ago. I asked Dan, Kara, and Becky about it and what they said is different from everyone else.”

He traced his finger along the worn wood of the bench as he recalled what his friends told him. “Where were you when all this happened?”

Billy finished taking out the bridge pins before answering. “I was there.”

“Dan and Kara said you weren’t there like you usually were. They said you didn’t do anything to stop Schemer from challenging Ned to a duel.”

“Schemer has to learn some lessons on his own,” he replied with a morose smile. “But he wasn’t in any real danger anyway.”

“Kara said she and Dan and Becky were ignored by everyone. They said you were too.”

Billy didn’t answer. He organized the new strings for the guitar in the proper order then started to rethread them. “I was busy for most of the day with the Rainbow Sun.”

Kit suppressed a groan. His uncle was doing that thing he did where he answered honestly without telling you what you really wanted to know.

“So like normal busy?”

“Normal busy. Kit, what do you want to know?”

That’s not fair, Kit thought. He was trying to work through exactly what he wanted to ask and now he was being asked questions.

“Becky said that the historian guy isn’t the same the Ned as the cowboy.”

“She told you what happened?”

Kit nodded.

Billy finished winding the string he was working on then he put down the guitar and gave Kit his undivided attention. “What else do you know?”

“Kara said she didn’t think you liked him.”

“She say why she thought that?”

“No.”

Billy didn’t say anything further, but Kit could tell he was close to uncovering the truth about that day.

“Kara said Stacy fell in love with the cowboy.”

He didn’t mean to blurt it out like that; he was trying to form it into a question, but it wouldn’t cooperate.

Billy held Kit's gaze for another moment before reaching for the guitar again and threading the next string. Kit slumped back against the back of the bench as he realized he’d accidentally ended the conversation.

“She did,” Billy said a while later. "For a day.”

Kit sat back up and regarded his uncle with concern. There was a tone in his voice he’d never heard before. The shadows created by the porch lights in the night made it impossible to see his expression. He watched him for a while feeling guilty about bringing Stacy up even though she was a common topic of conversation around the house.

It was getting late and Kit’s guilt deepened when no direction to go to bed came.

 He sighed and looked out over the front yard. “Uncle Billy?”

“Hmmm?”

“How come we don’t do the Founder’s Day dinners with Dan’s family anymore?”

“That tradition began with your great-grandfather and Dan’s great-grandmother,” Billy answered as he carefully clipped the extra string from the tuning pegs with wire cutters. “My parents and Stacy’s kept them going but by the time they passed on everyone had lives established elsewhere. There was no one to take over and it’s hard to get everyone back in the same place at the same time now.”

Kit slid down on the bench until he could reach out and touch the porch post in front of him with his feet. He had grown up hearing about the dinners, but he never got to go to one. Neither had Dan.

“I’m surprise Stacy doesn’t do them,” he said absently.

Billy stood up and walked over to him, gesturing for him to move over. Kit sat up and Billy sat beside him, resting his forearms on his knees as he looked out across the yard.

“She’s talked about it,” he told him. “Maybe one day.”

Kit nodded and watched the light show that the fireflies were putting on. Beyond them stars filled the sky. He loved being able to stay up late enough to see them.

“Kit.”

He looked up and saw the serious look on Billy’s face. “Yeah?”

“I don’t want you kids asking Stacy about that day.”

“Okay,” he said, confused by the request. “How come?”

“She doesn’t remember it and I haven’t talked to her about it yet.”

“Oh.” Kit didn’t know what to make of that. It wasn’t like Stacy not to remember things, especially things that she was at the center of. “I’ll tell them.”

“Good.” Billy ruffled his hair. “Now bed.”

Kit groaned. “Can I sleep out here tonight?”

Billy laughed and shook his head. “Not tonight. Maybe this weekend.”

“Okay.” Kit got up and headed to the door. “Night, Uncle Billy.”

“Night.”

Kit watched his uncle go back to his guitar and listened to him play for a few minutes. Then he took one last look at the night lights before going inside.

[billyandstacyshiningtimestation]

Letters Under a Flag

AllegrasWindow

Chapter 4: Markers

Signals on a train's rear — flags by day, lamps by night

The station was already awake when Billy arrived before sunup the next morning meaning Stacy had arrived first. That made him pause because she was never this early unless there was something wrong and he knew had been no meetings or emergencies that needed her attention.

The sound of the door closing behind him echoed more than it should have in the quiet and the air itself seemed to lack the usual warmth the station carried in the mornings.  Dust particles drifted lazily in the beams from the high windows and the steady rhythm of the clock ticking above Stacy’s desk could be heard. 

There was nothing out of place from where he stood. The air smelled of paper, dust, and the faint metallic trace of the radiator warming up. It wasn't until he saw Stacy at her desk sorting the mail that he realized what was missing: the aroma of brewing coffee. 

Normally, whoever arrived first put the coffee on, and it was almost always him this early in the morning. It was a ritual at this point, yet he could see the area where the coffee machine set on the other side of his workshop door was untouched.

He turned his attention to Stacy who sat at her desk absently sorting through the incoming mail, stacking envelopes by size only to change her mind as soon as she was done and sort them out another way. This concerned him because he knew she had taken care of the mail yesterday as soon as it came.

If Stacy heard his heavy work boots on the floorboards she didn’t acknowledge it. She kept sorting the mail with movements so precise and deliberate, as looked though she was trying to keep her hands busy enough to quiet whatever was weighing on her mind. 

“Morning,” he said softly.

She looked up swiftly with a sharp intake of breath, clearly unaware of his presence. When she saw him, she looked almost relieved.

 “Morning,” she replied with a small smile.

Billy crossed the lobby and leaned against the edge of the desk close enough that she didn’t have to tilt her head much to meet his eyes.

“You okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she said. Her smile tightened into a line and she looked away. Though her tone was warm, Billy still heard the strain beneath it.

“You sure?”

“Absolutely.” She went back to sorting the same mail in a different way.

“Stace,” he said so gently that she looked up at him curiously. He nodded toward the small table near the workshop door. “No coffee.”

Stacy closed her eyes as she smiled and shook her head. “You don’t miss anything.”

He tilted his head slightly to the side but said nothing. 

She sighed, pushed the mail aside, and turned towards him. “I didn’t sleep last night.”

“Figured as much.”

She gave him a look of half exasperation and half gratefulness that she always gave him when he’d read her too easily. “You always figure.”

Billy’s mouth tugged into a small smile.

"You seemed shaken last night, " he replied. "Wasn’t too hard to work out."

Stacy looked down and rubbed her thumb along the edge of an envelope not really seeing it.

 “I just can’t remember the day everyone keeps talking about.” Her brow knit together in worry and frustration. “Is there something wrong with me?”

Billy froze.

She’d asked him that once before, years ago, on her grandmother’s porch.

It took him a moment, but he responded the same as he did back then. “There’s nothing wrong with you.”

“Then why can’t I remember?”

Billy shifted a little closer. “I honestly don’t know.”

Leaning back in her chair, she sighed heavily then admitted, “I’ve been so tired lately. The last two years have been so busy I haven’t had much time to think.”

The deliberate way she looked away told him she had said all she wanted to say about forgetting that day for now.

“Not surprised,” he replied, intentionally lightening his tone. “You’ve accumulated seven years of vacation time you’ve never used.”

This finally got a genuine chuckle out of her, and he watched the rigid tension in her shoulders ease a bit.

“Look who’s talking. At least I take holidays off.” She lightly swatted at his arm, the lingering sadness in her eyes was replaced by an amused gleam. “Anyway, I can’t take time off. Someone’s got to run the station.”

He grinned. “I’ve done it before.”

Her expression softened completely, and she reached out toward him. "I know. But you shouldn't have to."

The sun came fully through the window behind them, alerting them that the day was about to start. Billy reluctantly pulled away from her and headed over to start the coffee. He returned with their mugs and found her sorting the mail again.

He set her mug down in its usual place.

She started to place an envelope on top of another but stopped halfway. Her hand dropped against the top of the desk and her fingers curled in on themselves, small and tight.

Billy let out a slow breath. He wanted nothing more than to make her fear disappear, but until he understood what was happening to her memory, he was afraid of saying the wrong thing. Without thinking, he looked over at the painted signal house on the mural.

The station clock struck the hour.

Schemer would be in soon.

Billy started to turn toward the workshop, but the stark look of melancholy on Stacy's face stopped him in his tracks. Instead of retreating, he stepped around behind her chair and rested his hand lightly over hers. She looked up, instinctively leaned back against him, and turned her palm upward to lace her fingers tightly through his.

"If you need me," he said quietly, nodding toward the door near to her desk.

"I know."

He gave her hand one last gentle squeeze before stepping away. At that same moment, the heavy station door swung open, and Schemer loudly announced his arrival. Stacy immediately straightened her shoulders, smoothed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, and settled right back into the calm composure the station expected of her.

Billy headed toward the workshop without looking back, but he left the door open exactly six inches, even though he had a lot of work to do that day.

[billyandstacyshiningtimestation]

Letters Under a Flag

Letters Under a Flag by AllegrasWindow

Teen And Up Audiences, No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Stacy Jones/William "Billy" Twofeathers, Stacy Jones/Ned Kincaid's great-grandson, Billy Twofeathers & Schemer

Characters: Stacy Jones, William "Billy" Twofeathers, Ned Kincaid's great-grandson, Kit Twofeathers, Dan Jones (Shining Time), Kara Cupper, Becky (Shining Time), Horace Schemer, Midge Smoot, Various Character(s), Mr Conductor 1991-1996 (Shining Time),Original Characters

Becky sat on stool next to Stacy while she worked staying as close to her as she could. She tried to focus on her book, but she couldn’t stop looking over at the stranger who said he was a historian and up at the mural.

Ned Kincaid.

That’s what he said his name was.

Becky looked up at the mural again feeling very uneasy.

Ned Kincaid was his name too.

It couldn’t be the same person.

It just couldn’t be!

She knew she had not made another wish about a cowboy or anything else. And she knew if the others had, it would not have been a wish to bring him back.

Becky’s eyes went straight to the signal house on the mural looking for any sign that someone might be home. But unfortunately, the signal house was just paint on the wall.

This has to be a mistake!

Becky didn’t know what to do. She was fairly sure she was the only one who really remembered that day. People like Midge were convinced that cowboy Ned was a real person, either a stranger or someone’s unknown relative, who decided to join the Founder’s Day festivities, but that seemed to be all they remembered.

She knew better.

Cowboy Ned came out of the mural due to her wish to meet a real cowboy from a long time ago. But she never got to meet him, not really. Stacy was the one who found him and brought him to the station. The closest she got to meeting him was when he took over face painting from Dan, but he wasn’t interested in them.

He was only interested in Stacy.

Becky’s heart sank as she remembered that day that was all her fault.

Stacy had fallen head over heels in love with cowboy Ned as did the entire town. Everyone forgot that she, Dan, and Kara existed. Kit wasn’t with them yet, so he was lucky to have avoided the whole day. Cowboy Ned did save them from a runaway train when Schemer accidentally released the brake on the Rainbow Sun. Becky always wondered what happened to Billy that day and why he wasn’t there for them. He should have been- the Rainbow Sun was his train.

She glanced over her shoulder at the workshop door and felt a twinge of guilt.

Billy had been forgotten that day too. Schemer would have been also had he not forced his way into the middle of things. But Billy never forced his way into anything.

“Are you okay, sweetie?”

Stacy’s voice startled Becky and she jumped a bit.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” she said leaning against Stacy’s shoulder.

“You’re holding my hand awful tight. You’re usually upset when you do that.”

“Oh, sorry,” she said. Her eyes darted over to Ned. She really hoped that no one else remembered that day.

She knew she shouldn’t say anything, but she also couldn’t stand not knowing. So, with her heart hammering as she asked, “Does he look familiar to you?”

Stacy followed her gaze. “Honestly, no, honey, he doesn’t.”

Becky let out a sigh of relief and relaxed her grip on Stacy’s hand. She really didn’t want Stacy to remember that day and she really didn’t want this Ned to be that Ned. Still, she couldn’t come up with a logical explanation for how or why he was here looking exactly like that Ned. Or why this Ned was a historian. That seemed too close to the wish for comfort given her whole reason for making the wish was because she loved history.  

Becky glanced at the signal house again, this time making a wish that Mr. Conductor would come to visit soon.

[billyandstacyshiningtimestation]

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