Frieda on the Rails Again

**Frieda on the Rails Again** is the first story of the third set of *Between the Lines*. It was originally published on June 25th, 2023.

## Plot

With Murdoch back in service, this meant Hiro had left Sodor to go home to Japan. Gordon and Freida were both being mended. While Frieda was doing her final tests, Sir Topham Hatt asks Frieda to look after the express until Gordon is ready to go. She would be going home with Hugo after the Summer rush was over. Upon being told that the engines have to trust her, Freida is uneasy.

Frieda tries to be polite to Peter Sam, but he heads off angrily, while Rusty heads off with a hurt expression. Sir Handel tells Frieda exactly where she messed up, and she feels even more guilty. More whispering is heard from the engines at Knapford for Frieda being mean to men, and she heads off worriedly.

At Tidmouth, the engines ask Frieda of her time in Germany. She admitted that she was one of three engines built as a Black Swan class, along with her sisters, Helga and Gretchen. Frieda became very angry at the male engines who were boasting about being better than them, and Frieda decided to prove she could do things better than them. Unfortunately, this manifested in a massive grudge against males. It wasn't until recently that Henry was able to prove to Frieda that not all males were bad.

Percy starts comparing Frieda to himself and he may have developed a grudge to bigger engines if Sir Topham Hatt's father didn't buy him for the North Western Railway. He talks with Hugo on the matter, and it turned out the rail zeppelin knew about Frieda's story. The two decided to help Frieda open up more to the other engines.

Frieda tries to greet Murdoch, but she doesn't have much like as the heavy goods engine doesn't trust her. Thankfully, Percy and Hugo arrive and lead Frieda a hand. They try to encourage Frieda to smile. The first couple of times are a bit too forceful, but eventually, Frieda shows a beautiful smile. Frieda is then tasked to practise a friendly conversation. Percy starts chatting to Mavis as an example, and Frieda then starts to chat with Caitlin. The conversation goes very well.

As the days went by, Frieda started to open up to others more, which surprises Philip when he nearly crashed into her and Frieda simply tells him it's alright. That evening at the sheds, Frieda is feeling much happier and thanks Emily for her help. Emily is surprised, but Frieda explains that her words gave her much to think about. The group joke about Vinnie not going anywhere near Scotsman after Gordon's boxing match with him, but Thomas shudders at the implication they could have lost Gordon. He also felt helpless to help him as he was too slow to get to the Great Railway Show in time. Frieda assures him that Hugo was able to get there in time, and Edward adds that Gordon is fine. The engines fall asleep, with Frieda saying she'll miss Sodor when she goes home to Germany.

## Characters

* Thomas
* Edward
* Henry
* James
* Percy
* Emily
* Murdoch
* Charlie
* Paxton
* Philip
* Mavis
* Sir Handel
* Caitlin
* Frieda
* Hugo
* Sir Charles Topham Hatt
* Frieda's Driver
* Kevin (does not speak)
* Peter Sam (does not speak)
* Rusty (does not speak)
* Gordon (mentioned)
* Victor (mentioned)
* Fred (mentioned)
* Flying Scotsman (mentioned)
* Connor (mentioned)
* Vinnie (mentioned)
* Hiro (mentioned)
* Helga and Gretchen (mentioned)
* Mr. Wolfgang Klein (mentioned)

## Locations

* Crovan's Gate Steamworks
* Crovan's Gate
* Knapford
* Tidmouth Sheds
* Wellsworth

## Voice Cast

### Official

* John Hasler as Thomas
* Keith Wickham as Edward, Henry and Sir Handel
* Rob Rackstraw as James and Hugo
* Nigel Pilkington as Percy
* Teresa Gallagher as Emily and Mavis
* Matt Wilkinson as Charlie
* Steven Kynman as Paxton
* Rasmus Hardiker as Philip
* Rebecca O'Mara as Caitlin
* Kerry Shale as Sir Charles Topham Hatt

### Fan chosen

* Phil LaMarr as Murdoch
* Diane Kruger as Frieda

Undecided for characters who speak

* Frieda's Driver

## Trivia

* This story was loosely inspired by *Frieda Te Grumpiest Engine* from *Great Race Friends Near and Far*.
* This is the first *Between the Lines* story to be co-written with Matt St. Onge.
* A bit of dialogue was removed at the request of Matt St. Onge, and is as follows:
	+ **Thomas:** But then again, it's not like he's the first big problem to come from Canada. Let us not forget Bryan Adams.
	**Henry:** \**chuckles*\* No apology that the Canadian government makes will ever be enough. \**the other engines laugh*\*
	+ This is a reference to *South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut*, in which a similar jab was made almost verbatim towards Canadian musician Bryan Adams, whose hit single "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" topped the UK charts for sixteen consecutive weeks in 1991. Since its release, the single has appeared on several "worst of" lists.

## Continuity

* *The Great Railway Show* is referenced, from Hiro leaving Sodor to Murdoch coming back into service, to Frieda and Gordon being fixed after their incidents.
* Percy's arrival on Sodor from *The Adventure Continues* is referenced.

## Links

* DeviantArt
* Fanfiction.Net (Chapter 1)