Hello there! This is my second T&F fic, another one inspired by my favourite special. I've decided to publish it today for being the International Day of Friendship. :D I'm very happy to be here and having known so many wonderful persons. Friendship is the fuel of peace and joy, so I wish that you all have good friends during your whole life. As a huge T&F fan, I think it would be good to celebrate this day with a fic dedicated to Edward and Thomas' relationship. It may sound exaggerated, but this whole story came to my mind thanks to that short phrase spoken by Thomas about 20 minutes into the movie, the phrase that I wanted to include in the story icon and use it as the first chapter's subtitle. What a sentimental woman I am! XD

I want to give thanks to Jeremy and Aaroncottrell97 for having helped me with this job. You two are amazing, my friends!

I hope you all like this story. And something else; our friendly Nº 2 engine was built in 1896. So let me say: Happy 120 Years, Edward! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Thomas & Friends. All the characters who appear in this story belong to HiT. They are used for entertainment purposes only.

CHAPTER I

FATHERLY LOVE

"I'm blue! Just like you!" -Thomas (TAB)

Not even the world's best painter would have been able to express on canvas the beauty of that awesome sunset.

The sun was just above the horizon line and a whole gamut of warm colours covered the sky peppered with clouds on the Island of Sodor. Indeed all the summer sunsets on this magical island are awesome, but this in particular seemed like a declaration of love from Heaven to Earth, for lack of a better comparison.

The view from Knapford was so privileged that Sir Topham Hatt himself had left his office at the big station to watch such wonder. Engines and workmen of the North Western Railway were enchanted by the natural spectacle, especially Henry, the engine who is a huge nature lover. Everyone was enjoying that exotic beauty. Everyone, except for one engine.

It was not that he did not like the sunset, but simply he was thinking of something else while putting some trucks into place at Knapford Yard. To be honest; he was worried. The expression of sadness in his sweet almond eyes was the proof of it. He was so worried that he watched the clock in the church's bell tower for the umpteenth time. That delay of half an hour was more than enough to alarm his heart. "Why hasn't he come back yet?" thought the worried engine. "He should already be here..."

The worried engine was Edward. And the issue that he was concerned about was Thomas...

This has been Thomas' first day of work on his own branch line and he was taking his time to return from his last journey.

Sir Topham Hatt had given Thomas the line from Knapford Junction to Ffarquhar a few days ago after he helped James from an accident with the troublesome trucks. The days that James was at the Steamworks to be repaired, Edward has endeavoured to teach Thomas all on how to pull passenger trains; principally how to brake gently at the stations. Now that James had returned to work, Thomas could finally leave to run his branch line.

"Off to see the world now, Thomas?" Edward had asked him in the morning. "Yes, Edward! I am!" had responded Thomas happily as he left the yard with his new coaches Annie and Clarabel. Edward was sure that Thomas would do everything right, but even so he could not stop concerned about him all day long. And now that Thomas was taking his time to return, Edward kept looking at the clock and wondering what might have happened.

"I can't stay stopped here any longer," thought Edward. "I must find out what happened." So he went to the big station.

On arriving there, he found Sir Topham Hatt sitting on a bench. He was still enjoying the sunset.

"Excuse me, sir."

"Yes, Edward?"

"I just wanted to ask if you know why Thomas is taking so long to come back."

Sir Topham Hatt smiled at him. Edward seemed like a father who worries when his son does not return home at the agreed time. "Thomas is alright," soothed Sir Topham Hatt, "there was only one little mishap. A section of McColl's Farm fence had fallen and the cows invaded the tracks before Thomas could pass through."

"Oh… So, is that why James went out with a truck of building materials?"

"Exactly."

Edward smiled with relief. "Thanks for the information, sir. Now I can wait calmly."

Sir Topham Hatt stared fondly at his Nº 2 engine. He was touched by how Edward cared about Thomas.

The engines, despite of being machines; can experiment human feelings, for they were built by humans and, in addition, they are loved by them. In fact, it was the flame of human love what gave them life and made them open the eyes when their boilers first started to bubble. Sir Topham Hatt knew it, and that is why he was not surprised that his engines could feel brotherly love. What he did not know was that they could be able to feel another kind of love too; specifically, the one he was seeing now into Edward's eyes.

"I see you already know what fatherly love is like," said Sir Topham Hatt.

Edward did not understand. "Pardon, sir?"

"Even since Thomas arrived on the island I have noticed a little change in you. The way how you care about him, the patience you have with him, your pride on seeing his achievements, your concern about his delay... That's fatherly love, Edward. It's the love that a father feels for his child. It's different from the love between siblings or a couple."

Edward raised his eyebrows. "Do you mean… I love Thomas like a son, sir?"

"Yes, I think so. And what do you think about that?"

Edward stood looking at nothing. His mind got lost amongst the memories of his relationship with Thomas…

The father-child bond between Edward and Thomas was born on the same day in which Thomas arrived on the Island of Sodor. Edward was sure that Sir Topham Hatt had bought another tender engine to help in the yard, but he was speechless when he saw a little tank engine who looked excited about having arrived at Knapford. "You're not a big engine," was Edward's first reaction. But soon he repented of what he said and a strange feeling came over him as Gordon gave a rude welcome to the newcomer. That feeling was the protective instinct which seizes a father when someone bothers his son.

"I'm Edward, by the way," said Edward afterwards in a gentle tone, wanting to gain the trust of the little engine. And there was so much tenderness in his eyes that Thomas smiled at him sweetly, like a baby who smiles at his father for the first time. That smile of Thomas was engraved on Edward's heart, and he felt very lucky on hearing the verdict of Sir Topham Hatt: "Edward will show you what to do." Without realizing, Sir Topham Hatt had assigned Edward the best task of his life: educating his son. The task was not easy for him, but it was highly rewarding.

He will never forget the joy he felt at the time that Thomas returned from the Steamworks after receiving his new paintwork. "Look, Edward! Look!" had exclaimed Thomas, "I'm blue! Just like you!" The expression of happiness in Thomas's face was the one of a son who is proud to resemble his private superhero: his own father. And this morning when Thomas went out to run his own branch line, Edward felt a mixture of pride and concern, just like a father who feels pride when his son finishes high school with honours but at the same time he is also concerned because his son just got his driver's license...

Edward smiled through his thoughts. "So that's fatherly love…"

"Edward?" called Sir Topham Hatt. "Are you there?"

"Oh… Sorry, sir," responded the kind engine. "Well, now that you have explained to me that there are several kinds of love, I think I really love Thomas like a son. I'm grateful to you, sir, for having trusted me to care for him."

Sir Topham Hatt smiled sweetly. "You know, Edward," he said, "I have no favourites among my engines because all are equally important to me, but I can't deny that you're very special. You have certain qualities that others should learn from you. That's why I wanted you to be the mentor of Thomas. You're a really useful engine and I'm quite proud of you."

Edward blushed. "I just do my job, sir."

"And you're also modest. Your face is redder than James."

Sir Topham Hatt and Edward chuckled.

"Sir, speaking of James," said then Edward, "I'm a bit concerned about him too. He was very happy when he returned from the Steamworks this morning, but then he was sad all day long. I still couldn't talk with him about that but I think it's because Annie and Clarabel belong to Thomas now."

"Oh no... I have been so busy today that I forgot to speak to him about that change. I decided to give Thomas those two coaches because they're perfect for a tank engine like him, while James can pull longer trains, even the Express. James is a special mixed traffic engine and can pull trucks and coaches quite easily, but still has a lot to learn. So I would like you to show him how to pull coaches in the coming days."

"Count on me, sir!" responded Edward. "I'll be happy to get another son."

"That's good!" Sir Topham Hatt laughed. "Well, if you still have things to do, when Thomas returns I'll tell him that you are waiting for him in the yard."

"Thanks, sir!"

Edward blew his whistle and returned to the yard with a smile on his face. Today he learned something new: there are several kinds of love. And now he felt happy to know that he was... the father of Thomas.