Book Two: Tasha the Model Engine
Tasha was a small model tank engine owned by the Reverend. She was based on the Midland 3F âJintiesâ with six small wheels, a short stumpy funnel, a short stumpy boiler, and a short stumpy dome.
No one was quite sure where she had come from, if they were to be honest. She had simply been left on the Club's table during an exhibition. No one had truly paid attention to the small tank engine shunting the yard until the show ended. When asked, Tasha had had no knowledge of her original owner, having woke only as the power of the Club's Exhibition Layout flowed through her for the first time.
 Night was falling, and everyone had wished to go home, so the Reverend had taken the tank engine home while the show's organizers had contacted as many of the visitors they could to find her home, but to no avail. No one was certain what to do with the stowaway engine, but the Reverend saw how much it meant for Edward to have another engine to share her shelf with, so he had paid the organizers the cost of a new Jinty, and the matter was considered settled.
Tasha had proven a fussy but hard working little engine as she settled in. She could often be found at the big station on the Club's layout, pulling coaches and trucks about as she prepared the other engine's trains. She arranged their outgoing trains, and sorted the empty coaches and trucks from the ones that arrived.
Tasha was a cheeky little engine and believed none of the big engines worked as hard as she did. The older models had humored her, well used to the antics of young tank engines. But as newer big engines such as Gordon and Henry arrived, they held no such patience towards the excitable station pilot.
âStation pilots should be seen and not heard,â they would grumble.
Quite unimpressed, Tasha had quickly taken to playing tricks on them in turn. She loved best to sneak quietly beside a big engine sleeping on one of the layoutâs sidings and make them jump.
âPeep, peep, peep, pip, peep!â She would whistle, âWake up Lazybones! Why don't you work hard like me?â
Then she would laugh and run away.
Needless to say, this did little to endear Tasha to the bigger engines.
One evening Gordon was resting in the sidings after a run with the express. The club had been late starting that night, so he'd had to work hard to make up the time. He had brought the train in on time, but was very tired.
He was just falling asleep when Tasha rolled up in her cheeky way.
âWake up lazybones!â She peeped, âdo some hard work for a change, you can't catch me!â
Gordon watched irritability as she ran off laughing. âDo some hard work?â He grumbled, âwe'll see about that little Tasha,â and instead of falling back asleep he stayed awake plotting how to pay Tasha out.
He got his chance a few nights later. Tasha had struggled to wake up, even as the Reverend had applied full power to the controller. She had slowly run along the sidings, collecting the coaches for the express, yawning and shaking her head in an attempt to wake herself up.
âOh dear, oh dear, oh dear,â she yawned.
âWhere have you been? Where have you been? Where have you been?â The coaches fussed anxiously as she pulled them to the platform.
âCome along, don't fuss. Come along, don't fuss,â Tasha grumbled sleepily back.
Gordon hid a smirk as he realized his chance had come.
âPoop poop poop! Hurry up!â He called, false crossly, âI shan't be late because of you.â
âPeep pip peep! Hurry yourself,â She snarked back
âYes, I will,â Gordon chuckled to himself and quickly came out of his siding and backed down onto the express almost before Tasha had stopped moving.
He dug his wheels in quietly, and waited eagerly for the signal to drop. The clock above the layout struck the hour, and the signals dropped. Gordon normally started slowly, as was prototypical, but this time he pulled forward as quickly as he could with a whistle.
Tasha always helped start the larger trains such as the express, but she normally uncoupled so she wouldn't be pulled along once the train was started, but Gorodn started quickly enough the coupler was pulled taunt before she could.
âCome on! Come on!â Gordon called to the coaches.
âPull harder! Pull harder!â Tasha puffed back.
The train went faster and fasterâŠtoo fast for Tasha.
âPeep! Peep! Stop! Stop!â She whistled as she realized she couldn't pull away.
Gordon just laughed at the front, âHurry! Hurry! Hurry!â He puffed, pretending not to notice Tasha.
âYou can't get away! You can't get away!â The coaches laughed.
Poor Tasha was going far faster then she had ever been designed to. She was out of breath and her wheels and gears ached, but still Gordon raced on.
âI will never run the same again,â she thought desperately, âmy wheels and gears will be quite worn out.â
But Gordon for all his flaws, was not a cruel natured engine, and stopped the express on the part of the layout Reverend was controlling with a chuckle. The Reverend raised an eyebrow at the expressâs unscheduled stop and the panting tank engine behind.
âExcuse me sir, but I'm afraid Tashaâs coupler failed to release properly.â Gordon said, his voice full of innocence and sincerity, âwould you mind uncoupling her?â
âHmmmm.â The Reverend hummed, well aware of the bickering between the engines, âand I'm sure you simply didn't notice the extra weight." He said dryly as he uncoupled Tasha with a pen.
âI stopped at the first person I saw after the coaches told me,â Gordon blinked large innocent eyes at the Reverend as the coaches tittered behind him.
The Reverend shook his head as Tasha tiredly ran over onto a siding to rest beside the water tower, waving his hand for Gordon to resume the express.
âWell Little Tasha,â Gordon called as he pulled away, ânow you know what hard work means, don't you?â
Tasha couldn't answer, she was still out of breath. She had a long rest before the Reverend signaled the line was clear for her to head back to the big station. She set out slowly, and was careful to never cross Gordon again.