Edward's Children

Chapter One

It was cold. Master Martingale's Circus was all they knew. Four children lay near each other. Three of them, the older ones, had dark skin, chocolate brown and grey-blue eyes, long, brown curls. What had got them here was their wolf tails and ears, their slightly narrow pupils. The youngest was pale, blue eyed and had wavy brown hair. Like the others, she had the wolf features. Eliza, Andre, Gabriel and Bethany had been kidnapped at young ages. Four and a newborn. Eliza, Andre and Gabriel were triplets, the latter pair being identical. They had been taken from their home in Mexico at four years old to this....place. Tonight, however, they intended to escape. Gabriel looked around and shook his siblings awake. They looked around and ran. They ran as quick as they're legs could carry them. They ran so quickly their cloaks flapped behind them. If they could make it to the docks, they would never have to come back. Gabriel and Andre's fake legs caused a few delays but they didn't stop once they were on all right again. Bethany coughed every now and then but she, like her older siblings, wanted freedom. Their tattered clothing blew in the wind behind them. It seemed to whisper Go. Run. Make it. Be free. As though it wanted them to escape as much as they did. Sharp stones and sticks dug in to their shoeless feet. Slowly, a ship became visible against the dark starry sky. Eliza gasped and encouraged them to run faster. Run faster they did. Gabriel looked around and pointed to the group of crates of coal and trunks of various other things marked with a sign saying 'SODOR'. Breath catching in their chests, they hid in a large trunk. A crane loaded them onto a boat. They'd done it. They'd escaped. With that comforting thought, they went to sleep.
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Meanwhile, the Ringmaster glared at the teens' cages. In his fury, he whipped a nearby elephant. It whimpered in pain. Then he chuckled darkly, "I'll find you, oh yes, I will!"
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HONK! HONK! HOOOOOONK!
The ship's horn brought the teens back to the waking world. They were free. Tears of joy slipped down their cheeks. They had waited years for this. The trunk they were hiding in was unloaded and the slipped out. Not wanting to be seen, they kept to the shadows. They ran to a forest, laughing. They heard trains puffing on their tracks. Unable to believe their good fortune, they played in the forest. That is to say the triplets, Bethany watched curiously. She had never heard of games.
Peep peep!
The siblings started. Gabriel stumbled and rolled down the hill onto the tracks.

Edward was chuffing along happily. A sixteen year old rolled in front of him, right onto the tracks. He gasped and stopped as quickly as he could. The teen was wearing a cloak. Tarp? Edward questioned, Surely it doesn't provide any warmth!
The teen looked up at him and snarled. His eyes went from brown and grey-blue to gold. Edward gasped. The boy snarled. Three others, a boy and two girls, ran down the hill to the teen. The other boy looked exactly like the first. The first girl looked like him too. The other was pale in contrast to them. The first girl was calming the first boy down. Edward too shocked to say anything. Their pupils were narrower than the usual. His driver stepped out his cab,
"Edward?"
The older three children snarled. The second boy's eyes had turned a dark, bloody red and the girl's had become amber. Claws extended from their fingers. Then Edward's eyes landed on the younger girl. She seemed confused. Then she said timidly,
"I... I don't think they want to hurt us. Do you?" Her voice trembled. The older children stopped snarling. Edward smiled kindly,
"Of course I don't."
The older ones cried. Edward suppressed yet another gasp. He didn't understand. Why were they crying?
"We've not been shown kindness." The youngest girl had said those words. Edward had spoken his thoughts aloud. His eyes stung with tears. These poor children.
"Why don't we go to the sheds?"
The clambered on his tender. Edward chuffed away unable to believe what he'd just heard.
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The children looked at the sheds curiously. Then they saw the other engines. They shifted. Gordon looked at them,
"What is the meaning of this?"
"They've had bad lives. I wanted to help."
The youngest child looked at the engines curiously. She looked rather interested. Her brothers and sister were far more hesitant and causious, glaring fiercely. A big green A3 engine puffed out of his berth.
"I think what Gordon meant to say was who are these?"
Edward would have shrugged, "They didn't tell me."
"We don't have to tell you!" Said the older three children in unison. Edward had to smile,
"Of course not!"
The youngest spoke again, "W-Well I'm Bethany..."
The youngest triplet sighed, "Well if she's making herself known! I'm Gabriel...."
His identical brother rolled his eyes, "Andre..."
Their sister shook her head, "Eliza..."
A small blue tank engine chuffed forward, "I think they could do with one of your stories, Edward."
Bethany raised an eyebrow, "What's a story?"