Shrinking!

Shrinking! is a magazine story.

Plot
One rainy day, Oliver meets Bill and Ben at a junction between Duck's Branch Line and the Main Line. Bill and Ben joke that the rain will make Oliver get rusty and shrink, but Oliver brushes off their remarks as nonsense.

Later, at a level crossing, Oliver cannot believe his eyes when he sees a small, rusty red engine on the back of a lorry. He now believes Bill and Ben's warning and thinks the little engine is off for scrap. When he returns to the yard, he anxiously asks Thomas to make sure he has not gotten any smaller.

That night, heavy rain drums at the roof of Oliver's shed and he is too worried to sleep. Next morning, Oliver refuses to leave the shed - fearing he will be sent for scrap if he shrinks - and the Fat Controller has to come and see what is the matter. Oliver explains what the twins have said, so the Fat Controller sends him to the works to "cure" him.

Oliver is initially scared that he is going to be dismantled for scrap at the Works, but is amazed when he arrives and sees the little red engine being repaired. The Fat Controller explains that it never was a bigger engine and he rescued it from scrap to run a line by the seaside, making Oliver feel silly. Now, whenever he sees the little red engine, Oliver is reminded not to listen to Bill and Ben's jokes.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Oliver
 * Bill and Ben
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * The Miniature Red Engine

Locations

 * The Works

Trivia

 * This is the first magazine story to physically feature Oliver. He was previously mentioned in Bright Diesel!.