Duck

**Montague "Duck" the Great Western Engine** is is one of the main protagonists of the SeventyVerse and the eighth engine on the North Western Railway.

## Backstory

Duck worked at Paddington station with some of his siblings. He was especially close with his sister, Jackie. He befriended the likes of King James I while working there.

Occasionally, he would head down to the Sunshine line to work with his slip coaches, Alice, Mirabel and Benjamin and work with his brother, Collet. Unfortunately, the relationship between the siblings was very rocky, which got worse when Duck questioned where Collet's autocoaches, Stella and Heather came from.

One day, Duck was asked by Sir Bertram Topham Hatt to go to Sodor, and he readily accepted. Jackie warmly parted ways with her brother, but Collet gave Duck cold reception. The two parted ways on a bitter note, and Duck tried to push it aside so he could get on with his life. Unfortunately, that bit him later...

## Little Western crew

### Donald and Douglas

Duck was the twins first real friend on Sodor, and he admired their efforts with the trucks and coaches. He later stood up for Douglas when he shunted Annie and Clarabel by mistake, and went along with Donald's crash gambit to save Douglas. Duck was a deputation for the twins, and was glad they stayed on the island. He remained close with them ever since. Donald and Duck also became pranking buddies, such as when a duckling was slipped into Donald's tank and an egg was put under Duck's bunker.

### Oliver

Duck was thrilled to have a relative on the island. Immediately, Duck showed Oliver around the Little Western branch, and the duo call each other "cous". Duck finds Oliver's nicknames for Bulgy, Brutus and Bowler very funny. However, when Oliver gets full of himself, Duck will often sit back to watch the chaos unfold.

### Ryan

Not much is known about their relationship, but Duck is grateful for Ryan's help on the Harwick extension.

### Daisy

Duck couldn't fully understand Daisy's annoyance with the school kids and offered to take them for her.

### Alistar, Mirabel and Benjamin

Duck's slippies on the Sunshine line, and he loves them very much. When he got them back one year during the Summer rush, he was ecstatic to see them. Maybe a bit too ecstatic, as he neglected Old Slow Coach in the excitement. (See further down). He also is very particular as to who he lets pull them. While a bit hesitant to let Oliver take them, he did start mentoring him. However, letting Arry or Bert near them is a huge mistake, as Dowager Sharon Hilary Hatt found out.

### Algy

Not much is known about Duck and Algy's relationship, but it's mostly positive. Algy helps run the roadways of the Little Western and is very close with Duck.

### Jackie

Duck and Jackie have a very solid friendship. They often competed in shunting back at Paddington. However, Jackie was annoyed at Duck and Collet's arguments. That being said, Jackie was very protective of Duck when she heard Diesel told lies about him. Jackie also helped on the Little Western during the London trip.

### Katrina

Not too much is known about their relationship, but Duck heard that Katrina worked with Oliver on his old branch and was impressed with her work ethic.

### Toad

Though they don't interact that much, Duck non-the-less trusts Toad. Sometimes he will take him out if Oliver or Douglas are preoccupied or being mended.

## Other relationships

### Thomas

Though the duo disagree on certain points, they do have each other's backs. Duck was grateful when Thomas rescued him from the barber shop, even if he was annoyed by laughing at Sir Topham Hatt's pun.

### Edward

When Duck had his lies spread by Diesel, it was Edward who gave him a metaphorical shoulder to cry on. He also helped build his confidence back up, and Duck defended Edward from James (later Gordon as well) when they was being rude to him.

### Percy

Percy and Duck, though working on separate branch lines, are quite close. Percy and Duck (along with Henry) worked together to stop Gordon and James from ordering them about in the yards. Duck is very grateful to Percy for finding a key clue to clearing his name from Diesel's lies, and was happy to help on the branchline after he was pushed into the sea by the trucks.

### Emily

Unknown to Emily, when Duck thought he was dying in *Diesels and Westerners*, he was entrusting her to run the Little Western alongside Oliver. Months later, when Emily was in service, there was some really bad timing. Duck was hoping to tell Tasha how he felt, but she had left for her new home. As a result, he ignored Emily for a while. It wasn't until Diesel talked sense into Duck that he finally started to get to know Emily. Despite all the misunderstandings, the duo's relationship has become quite good. However, in *It's Only Snow*, Oliver has informed Duck of Emily's snide remarks toward Diesel, which will strain their relationship. In *Duck and the Slip Coaches*, Duck slept at Tidmouth sheds, taking up Emily's berth. The pannier felt guilty about that, and he and Emily were able to patch things up once again. Emily stood up for Duck when Martha and Julian mocked him in *Emily's Coach Trouble*. Duck also entrusted Emily with Gladys after she chose to be her coach in *Given The Slip*.

### BoCo

Though Duck was standoffish to BoCo at first, BoCo eventually won Duck over with a friendly smile, sharp wit and good sense of humor.

### Diesel

It was no secret the two despised each other at first. Duck sent Diesel on a faux errand with no idea what he was doing, and Diesel spread harsh rumours about Duck. However, time away from Sodor had changed the 08, and he returned a second time. Though Duck stood his ground, walls crumbled on both sides as they saw the better sides of each other. Duck has kept Diesel's affections of ducklings a secret, and Diesel had saved Duck's life from his own kin. Now, the two see each other as confidants, friends and even brothers. They even remained close during Diesel's darker phase, and Duck is one of the only engines Diesel feels he can be his true self around. Diesel saved Duck once again when the pannier tank was getting too close to the flames in an attempt to save Arry, and Duck managed to save Diesel from being captured by one of Addison's engines.

### Bill and Ben

On the Brandam branch, Duck ran into the twins who pretended they were one engine. They managed to scare James away, who was looking for Duck to interrogate him, leaving Duck was a positive first impression of them.

### Arry and Bert

Duck had hated the duo when he found out they nearly killed his cousin, Toad and later on, Donald. Things got worse, when Arry and Bert decided to get revenge on Duck by trying to force a final firing on him. Though this thankfully backfired, Duck has been petrified of the duo ever since.

### Collet

Duck and Collet's relationship was rather strained. Collet sometimes accused Duck of neglecting his pilot duties for working on the branchline. However, there are some things Collet refused to tell Duck about. Unfortunately, things ended on a sour note when Duck headed to Sodor. Duck tried to push it aside and move on with his life, but hoped to make amends with Collet someday. He didn't get a chance to do that though, as Arry and Bert killed poor Collet when he was trying to escape to Sodor. They did manage to make amends in a dream, but Duck still has unanswered questions.

### Gladys

Previously named Old Slow Coach, Duck ran with her on the Little Western branch for years. Unfortunately, he and Oliver both incidentally neglected her when the slippies arrived. Guilt ridden, Duck and Oliver gave OSC a choice: remain with them, or become Emily's coach. She decided to be Emily's coach, but still wanted to run with Duck or Oliver once a week, showing that she had no ill feelings to them.

### City of Truro

Duck looks up to City of Truro to the point of idolising him. When he first met Truro, however, he thought Truro would see him as a disappointment due to not being Swindon built. Truro however, was very quick to get to know him and considered him 'one of the family'. Since then, Duck often listens out for Truro and hopes he'll visit Sodor again one day.

### Annabelle

Duck and Annabelle get along really well. Both connected when they learned the other was autistic, and Annabelle loves Duck's sharp witted mindset and his Great Western Railway knowledge. Their bond grew even stronger when helping stand up for an autistic child from a porter.

## Romance

### Tasha

It was pretty much a crush at first sight for Duck and Tasha. Unfortunately, the duo had to deal with a heavy metal monster named Diesel 10. Thankfully, they escaped and Tasha spent Christmas on Sodor. When helping Burnett adapt back into society, Tasha had to rescue Duck from a snowdrift. Though Tasha felt inadequate, Duck encouraged her to get a rebuild to make her stronger. Further along, Duck was planning on confessing to Tasha, but she unfortunately had to leave for her new home early. She later came back after Thomas broke down and the two finally confessed their love. Duck and Tasha remain in a long distance relationship even now, often seeing each other at Christmas or the Summer rush.

## Personality

Duck is a very proud engine of his heritage and works with no fuss. He is often up for a practical joke and has a sharp wit that could potentially outpace Toby. However, he is by no means malicious, and will root for the underdog. Unfortunately, since Arry and Bert tried to kill him, Duck has some serious trauma.

## Technical Details

### Basis

Duck is based on a Great Western Railway (GWR) 57xx Class 0-6-0 Pannier tank engine with added sand boxes. 863 of these engines were built by various manufacturers over a twenty-one-year period (1929-1950), making it the most produced class of British tank engine. Sixteen of these engines survive in preservation. The 'real Duck' was built on the 31st March 1929, but was sadly withdrawn on the 3rd of May, 1957, and scrapped on the 14th of May, 1958.

Jackie, Collet and Goose are also members of this class.

### Livery

Duck is painted unlined NWR green with black wheels and valences. The initials "GWR" are painted on the sides of his pannier tanks in yellow and red. His number (8) is painted on the sides of his cab in yellow, on a rectangular black background with a yellow outline. He has red bufferbeams.

When Duck first arrived, he was painted Great Western Railway (GWR) Mid Chrome green. He had brass GWR number plates on the sides of his cab with his number (5741) painted on them as well as a painted safety valve cover. Duck was painted into NWR green after his accident at the barber shop.

## Differences between the episodes and the books

* Duck didn't get his TV livery until after the Barber shop crash.
* Duck was the deputation for the twins, not Percy.
* Duck didn't meet City of Truro until long after Diesel was sent away.
* Duck and Diesel have a strong friendship now.
* Duck is in a romance with Tasha, who he nicknames "Lady". Likewise, Tasha calls him "Monty".
* In the books, Duck's GWR number was 5741. This series used that too.

## Trivia

* Duck is autistic. Reasons behind this speculation are:
	+ Being deeply ingrained in his Great Western roots. (Sort of like how some people are obsessed with a certain book/TV series or toys.)
	+ Having trouble reading a room and being insensitive.
* In a morbid twist of fate, Duck's real life basis's withdrawal roughly coincides with Diesel's visit in the books, and the book's release roughly coincides with Duck's real life basis' scrapping date.