Author's notes: This one is a bit of a fun episode. Good to see that it's not just the engines and ponies that make mistakes, but the humans do too.

James and the Bootlace

Narrator: The next morning, things went from bad to worse for poor James. The Fat Controller spoke severely to James.

Fat Controller: Listen to me James! Your shenanigans yesterday cannot be tolerated on my railway. If you cannot behave yourself today, I will take away your red coat and have you painted in the NWR standard blue livery.

Narrator: Needless to say, James did not like that at all. When Rachel and Rarity arrived to start him up, he had descended into a flaming temper.

Rachel : Morning James. 'ello, you look pretty flamed about something.

Rarity: I agree. What's the matter darling?

James: (Angry sigh) Nothing.

Narrator: Rachel and Rarity weren't convinced.

Rachel: Are you sure about that?

James: (Sharply) I SAID IT WAS NOTHING!

Narrator: Rachel and Rarity were taken aback and just decided to get to work. He was very rough with the coaches as he brought them to platform 1 for the east bound trip to Vicarstown.

James: Come along! Come along!

Coaches: All in good time.

James: DON'T TALK! LOOK SHARP! AND COME ON!

Narrator: And with the coaches squealing and grumbling, James snorted into platform 1. Rachel and Rarity were even more worried.

Rachel: I wonder what's bitten him?

Rarity: Search me Rachel. It's not like James to get to get so rough with these coaches.

Narrator: James was incandescent with rage that morning. The Fat Controller had scolded him, the coaches dawdled, and worst of all, he had had to fetch his own coaches and shunt them into platform 1.

Rarity: Calm down darling. If you keep up with this, you might get into trouble.

James: Pah, Gordon and Rainbow Dash never have to fetch they're own coaches, and Gordon's painted blue. A splendid red engine like myself should never have to shunt my own trains.

Narrator: And he ran round to the front on platform 1 and backed down onto the coaches with very rough bump.

Coaches: OOOOFFH! How Rude!

James: I TOLD YOU LOT TO STOW IT!

Coach 1: If you ask me, he is as bad as those B-12 brothers today.

Coaches 2-6: Agreed.

Rachel : Be careful James. Hit the coaches like that and your likely to break something!

Narrator: But James took no notice.

Rarity: Tisk tisk tisk…I don't fancy where this is going.

Rachel: Too right Rarity.

Narrator: To make James even more furious, he had to take the coaches over to platform 3 where no one came near him. James felt lonely and crosser than ever before.

James: (To himself) I'll show those idiots! They think that Rainbow Dash and Gordon are the only ones who can pull coaches.

Narrator: Soon the guards whistle blew and James started off with a tremendous jerk.

Rarity: Easy darling! Easy!

James: COME ON! COME ON! COME ON!

Narrator: And the coaches squealing and groaning in protest clattered over the points and on to the mainline. All modern passenger trains are fitted with a special pipe which is connect to the engine. This called a brake pipe. Its worked in conjunction with an engine's vacuum brake. The brakes along the whole train are charged and controlled by air pressure transmitted from the engine's vacuum brake. However, if there is a leak in the brake pipe, the outside air penetrates into the brake pipe causing the brakes to turn on via the penetrating air pressure which can cause the train to gradually stall to a complete stop. Anyway, James was hurrying along the line and trying to make up for the time he had lost.

James: HURRY! HURRY! HURRY!

Coaches: Your going too fast! Your going to fast!

Narrator: The coaches swayed from side to side .

Rachel : You are really pushing your luck James. Your tender is writing bills that you can't pay.

Rarity: Rachel is right James darling so just watch your speed and calm yourself.

Narrator: James just laughed.

James: PAHAHAHA! I'm only cruising Rarity. Just watch this.

Narrator: James then tried to go faster but the coaches wouldn't let him.

Coaches: We're going to stop! We're going to stop! We're going to stop!

Narrator: And they were. James soon found himself going slower and slower until they came to complete stop in the middle of nowhere.

James: Now what's the matter?

Rarity: Indeed. What in the name of Celestia just happened?

Rachel: The brakes are hard on, leak in the pipe most likely. Hmph… wouldn't surprise me. You've banged the coaches enough to make a leak in anything you big red klutz.

Narrator: James remained silent as Rachel, Rarity, and the guard all checked the train to find the root of the problem.

Rachel: Ah ha! There's our culprit. See right there?

Narrator: She pointed to the obvious hole in the pipe.

Rachel : See? Thanks to James's rough treatment earlier at Knapford, the connecting joint between these two front coaches has broken off. The outside air is penetrating into the brake pipes, causing the brakes to come on.

Rarity: Oh goodness gracious me! How should we mend this little problem?

Rachel: Oh don't worry Rarity. It's an easy fix. We'll just use some old newspaper and a leather bootlace.

Guard: Oh well that's great idea, Rachel. But where the heck are we going to find a leather bootlace?

Rachel: Well duh. We'll, asked the passengers.

Guard: Oooh! That's right. I forgot!

Narrator: So they made everyone get out.

Guard: Has anyone got a leather bootlace.

Narrator: Everyone said no. Then Rarity saw a man in a bowler hat. His name was Jeremiah Joblings, whom tried to hide his feet.

Rarity: Over there. Right there mister guard. That man in bowler hat. I saw he had leather bootlaces as he was trying to hide his feet.

Guard: Excuse me, my pony friend here tells me that you've got a leather bootlace Sir and I see she is right, could you please lend them to me?

Jeremiah: What… What a cheek! How disgraceful. I will do nothing of the sort.

Rachel: Listen here Mister Jobling. Our train has a hole in the brake pipe. We need your bootlace in order to mend the hole please.

Jeremiah: Well that's your own problem! Not mine.

Rachel: LOUSY CHEEK….

Rarity: Whoa okay. Just aheheheh… Just calm down Rachel darling. The last thing we need is a railway staff member hurting one of our passengers.

Rachel: (Sigh) Your right Rarity.

Rarity: That's a good girl. Now just leave it to me. Now excuse me Mr. Jobblings, if you will so kind, hand your bootlaces over. We will give them back to you once we've reached Crovans Gate where we can get a new brake pipe fitted.

Jeremiah: You've heard my answer. I will not give you my bootlace!

Guard: Well fine. But then I'm afraid the train is just going to have to stop where it is.

Rarity: Why you horrible man, you won't even allow us to fix the brake pipe to get our train moving. How could you? Hmph!

Narrator: The passengers were all saying what a bad railway it was, and then Rarity, Rachel, the guard and the passengers all told Jeremiah Joblings how bad he was. At last, he reluctantly gave the his bootlace. Rachel tied a patch of newspaper tightly around the hole in the brake pipe and at last, James was able to pull train again.

James: Thanks Rarity and Rachel. I owe you one.

Rarity: No need James darling. I'm just glad I could help. So let's going.

Rachel: I can only hope that you've learned your lesson after this affair.

Narrator: James remained quiet, but he was a sadder and wiser James now and took care never to bump coaches again. That night back at Knapford Hotel, Rarity and Rachel arrived back, mentally knackered and exhausted.

Rachel & Rarity: Hullo William.

William : Hullo Rachel, Rarity. Are you two alright? You look a little drained.

Rachel: Well. James grumbled about fetching his own coaches and grumbled about shunting them to platform 1.

Rarity: Then he bumped them, puncturing one of the brake pipes on one of the coaches.

Rachel: Then we had to re shunt the entire train to platform 3.

Rarity: Then, the brakes came on through the hole in the brake pipe.

Rachel: And on top of that.

Rarity and Rachel: We all got into an argument with arrogant pig of passenger whom wouldn't give us his bootlace to help us mend the brake pipe.

William: Oh dear. It sounds like you two had pretty rough day. Here, I just made a spot of tea, would you two care for some?

Rachel: Oh yes please William. Thank you very much.

Rarity: That goes double for me. We could use a good cup of british tea.

Narrator: Rachel and Rarity sighed heavily. And then Rachel poured herself and Rarity a cup of tea.

Rarity: Excuse me, could you pass me one lump of sugar please?

Rachel: (Sigh) No problem Rarity.

Narrator: She handed her the sugar and then two of them of them, tired and weary, drank their tea with their friend William Holden.

Ok. Part 2 is done. Let's go onto the next one. See you there.