Travis Gets Spooked

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"And with that, the ghost of the engine vanished into the night, looking for his missing tender~"

Travis finished with a spooky tone of voice. The other engines were less than impressed.

"That was awful!"

Ramsey roared.

"I don't think you'd know a good ghost story if it came and bashed you through a set of buffers!"

"I do so!"

Travis replied snootily.

"And anyway, at least I'm telling stories! Do you have anything better!?"

Ramsey pondered for a moment.

"I think I do."

He said at last. And this is the story he told.

"A long time ago, an engine was taking a goods train home. It was a misty, moonlit night. The engine tried to climb up a steep hill, but as hard as they tried, they simply couldn't. The train was brought to the bottom, where the guard went to the nearest signal-box, and called for help. A banker rushed to help, but when they arrived, they found the line deserted. They looked all along the line, but no engine could be found. They were never found again... However, some workmen will tell you, that every misty night, just before midnight. The shape of an old, ghostly engine and it's line of trucks will hurry down the line, only to vanish into the night.

Ramsey finished his story, to find the rest of the engines white as sheets!

"Pah! Rubbish!"

Travis grumbled.

"That ghost sounds as tame as a pet pug dog!"

As much as he wouldn't admit it, secretly, Travis was a little spooked.


The next morning, a low hanging fog arrived. The Fat Controller arrived to see Travis.

"I need you to help the workmen inspect the line."

He told the red diesel engine.

"You'll be out late, but should break up the monotony of your regular banking duties."

Travis gulped, he wasn't keen on the idea.

"Can't someone else do it?"

He protested politely. But there wasn't, so Travis sheepishly departed from the sheds. Ramsey watched, not so far away. He felt himself smiling.

"Driver. Can we stay out late tonight?"

He asked. His driver paused, her head tilting to the side.

"Uhm, why?"

"I want to play a trick on Travis."


The day seemed to tick slowly by for poor Travis. While the work was a nice change, as the day turned to dusk, he began to grow nervous.

"Can we hurry this up!?"

He whined like a school boy.

"If we don't finish soon, I'll be left with the spot with the dripping pipe!"

"Noch unchil thish shecchon ish fully checked!"

His engineer squeaked back. This only seemed to make Travis more uneasy. What made it worse was how thick the fog was becoming. Each sound or movement didn't settle his nerves.

"I hope we finish soon."

He whispered to himself.


Not too far away, Ramsey was snorting down the line. The trucks were oddly quiet, which is what Ramsey was hoping for.

"I'll show him tame as a pug dog!"

He came closer and closer to the workmen.

Travis was unaware of the approaching engine. As last, he heard his driver cry out.

"We're done!"

"About bloody time too!"

Travis grumbled.

"I felt myself aging back-"

Suddenly!

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"

Travis was terrified! Steam roared in all directions! He couldn't see a thing! Ramsey was gone in a flash! The track gangers were less then amused.

"GHOST!!"

Travis whaled! His crew sheepishly coupled him to the train, and the terrified diesel crawled away.


He was still whispering to himself as he made it to Edward's station. Ramsey was organising his train away, and saw the pale expression on the banker's face.

"Travis, you look as if you've seen a ghost."

He tried to hold back laughter. Travis was too shaken to reply.

"Ghosts aren't as rubbish or tame as you claimed, are they?"

"I... Suppose not."

Travis replied. The two fell silent, as Ramesy puffed quietly home.


Travis still doesn't know the truth. To this day, he still believes that what he saw was the ghost engine. He tends to become quite cagey on the subject of ghosts.

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