Henry

"'Oh I don't worry all the time, Thomas. I hardly worry at all- when it's sunny.'"Henry’s fear of rain stems from nearly drowning in a flood as a child. His parents moved the family to Gloucestershire when he was 9. At 18 he tried going to a London cosmetology school, but his mental illnesses made it impossible to cope with the demanding course and London lifestyle. He dropped out and returned home a shaken mess. His parents weren’t angry, but Henry was harder on himself than they or anyone else could ever be. Ashamed and embarrassed, he moved away and started working in a railway yard on the Island of Sodor. Henry’s experienced many personal hardships, both on and off the railway, and is still healing, but he’s found himself surrounded by people who love and care for him, and now, slowly but surely, he’s starting to make peace with the past.

Past
Henry was born in Amalfi, Italy. He was a premature baby but his worried family was assured he would grow up just fine. Even at a young age, it was evident he had inherited his father's social anxiety, but his stay-at-home mother was always patient with him. She helped him learn how to manage his anxiety through gardening. His father worked several hard, dirty jobs in order to pull their family out of poverty and succeeded. Now able to afford a big move, Henry's family moved to Cheltenham, Gloucestershire in southeastern England when he was 9.

Henry discovered a love for cosmetology in his secondary school. As it specialized in performing arts, Henry was encouraged by his friends to try the theater. He despised being on stage but loved backstage work, particularly doing the cast's makeup and hair. As he grew older he decided he wanted to go to beauty school and work in a salon.

At age 18 he enrolled in the London School of Beauty & Make-Up for a year-long course. However, the demanding course, living in Central London, and his pre-existing mental illnesses made it impossible for him to continue. He dropped out and returned home a shaken mess. His parents were very understanding and weren't angry with him in the slightest, but Henry was harder on himself than they could ever be. To make matters worse, Henry's expensive venture had set the family back to being financially stretched.

Ashamed and embarrassed, Henry couldn't stand living at home. He wanted to make up for the lost finance, especially to help fund his little sister's rapidly approaching university years. Though he would never admit it, he deliberately sought jobs far away from his family. He eventually got a job offer to work in a railway yard on the Island of Sodor. He liked the idea, in part because he knew his father would approve. Henry's father had taught him to take pride in hard work and not think himself "above" dirty jobs.

Henry, nearly 21 years old now, moved to Sodor as soon as he could. He decided to rent a cheap bungalow near Crovan's Gate. The bungalow had one tiny bedroom, one tiny bathroom, and a tiny backyard. He hit his head on the door frames a lot and the insulation was poor and Henry got cold often, but he figured he'd manage. After all, he still had a backyard, he could still garden. What he cared about most was making up for what he'd done to his family.

For the longest time, he wouldn't visit them. He'd make up an excuse, something about canceled trains or having to work, but the truth was he felt too guilty to face them. His family's insistence that they did want to see him and wouldn't mind hosting him for a few days made him feel even worse. Ultimately, for the longest time, Henry felt like he didn't deserve anything good in his life.

Present
In the current day, Henry has repaid his self-assigned debt to his family and letting himself reconnect with his family- even with some lingering guilty. While overall his life is in a good place, he's still facing some stress factors. For one, he's very empathetic and is all too aware of Percy's fears of Thomas leaving for university, as well as Thomas' own anxieties towards going out on his own. In addition, Henry is still recovering from nearly losing Gordon. Henry wants to help everyone around him, he's just unsure how to do so.

Future
Henry's plans to continue railway work. He and Gordon, who will get married, don't intend to have any children of their own but like the idea of helping care for their friends' children.

In one potential future, Henry and Gordon do have a child. James agrees to be their surrogate and gives birth to a child created with his and Gordon's genetic material.

Past jobs
Over the course of his life, Henry has worked in a wide variety of job. His first job was working general retail at a garden shop while he was a teenager, then again in a separate shop in London. He loved working around so many plants, even with the stress he faced at the time.

On his first day of working on the North Western Railway, the railway's controller, Sir Topham Hatt, met Henry in his office at the Tidmouth station. He briefly welcomed his new employee and explained what he expected from him. Hard work, diligence, and respect, and Henry was happy to promise it. Topham then turned Henry over to Edward, a kind man in his early 20's and the railway's only driver at the time. The two immediately became friends.

Henry primarily did manual labor in the yards and occasionally worked as a guard, but the railway was severely understaffed and Edward would often request his assistance as his fireman. Over time, Edward taught Henry how the railway was run, what signals meant, and other useful information regarding the engines. Once Henry was more capable, on their breaks Edward would let him practice driving in the shunting yard. Eventually he could operate Edward's engine completely on his own. He would move it to attach his train and have the engine ready to go by the time Edward got there- though both of them agreed it would make much more sense to get an additional, smaller engine for shunting. Henry's interest and work ethic didn't go unnoticed. Topham decided to bring the No. 3 back into service, with Edward teaching Henry how to operate it. In the meantime, Henry was promoted to the footplate and began working full-time as a fireman for Edward on the No. 2, or an assistant driver of the No. 3. Eventually, Henry was made the primary driver of the No. 3. Henry has also worked as a semi-professional model. In his mid-20's, a friend he'd made in beauty school was planning to put on a photo gallery of uniquely beautiful people and Henry, deemed a "human painting," was to be one of the main stars if he agreed. Henry would've done it for free, but his friend insisted on paying him. Henry took a few days off from railway work to go to London and the project was a great success. Henry used some of the pay to buy his family's Christmas presents that year, giving the rest to his parents.

Current job
Henry drives the NWR No. 3, usually referred to simply as the No. 3, which is one of the Famous Eight Engines. His most consistent job is pulling the Flying Kipper early in the morning. Throughout the day he usually pulls freight, though he'll occasionally take the express. He's content doing most any jobs and finds it easier pulling goods than passengers, but he still enjoys the occasional passenger train.

The Sad Story of Henry
Once Henry, pulling a train on the main line, refused to leave a tunnel. According to him, he didn't want to ruin his engine's lovely green paint and red stripes. However, even though he had indeed developed a bit of vanity and was afraid of Gordon or James berating him, the real reason he refused to leave the tunnel was his long-standing fear of rain. Topham had already fed up with Henry's bad behavior and this was the last straw. He fired Henry on the spot, in front of several very full coaches. Henry came to his senses and was so ashamed of himself that he was packed and ready to leave Sodor by the end of the week. His journey was looking to be cruelly ironic. Not only would it pass his pitiful tunnel, but the only train that could take Henry to a connecting station on the mainland was Gordon's express. Topham was also aboard. Henry knew Gordon would take any chance he could to gloat, especially as Henry's ticket conveniently placed him in the first coach. Despite the overwhelming embarrassment he felt being on that train, he did his best to ignore the situation. He just wanted to go home. As they came closer to "Henry's tunnel," as it had been nicknamed, the train began to slow and eventually stopped just outside the entrance. After Topham exited the coach to investigate, Henry overheard that Gordon had burst a safety valve. Gordon denied having any reason for accelerating but Henry knew him well enough to know exactly why. After all, Gordon had been taunting him only just earlier. Henry found the situation delightfully hilarious and peeked out through the coach window to silently mock Gordon.

Topham sent for Edward, who arrived with his engine as soon as he could. But despite his best efforts, his engine simply wasn't strong enough to move the express on its own. To everyone's surprise, Gordon suggested that they fetch the No. 3 and let Henry pull the train. Topham, desperate to get things moving, then told Henry that if he could have his job back if he stopped being so unusually arrogant. Henry agreed without hesitation.

While Gordon and his crew moved the No. 4 out of the way, Edward took Henry back to the sheds. They changed engines and returned with the No. 3. As Henry and Edward moved their engine to the front of the train, Henry noticed Gordon was sulking. the engine to pull the express, Gordon was sulking in his own. As show of goodwill, Henry invited Gordon to join him and Edward on the footplate. Gordon was humbled and agreed. With Henry as the driver and Gordon and Edward as the fireman, the three pulled the express without issue. Later, Henry and Edward went back with both their engines to retrieve the No. 4. This incident brought them closer together and the three were then good friends- until James showed up.

The Flying Kipper
In 2003 Henry had one of his most dire accidents, the first Flying Kipper crash nearly cost Henry his life. He was hospitalized for nearly seven months, during which his engine was being repaired and rebuilt.

Familial
He has his parents, an older brother, and a younger sister. Despite being the middle child, Henry is usually the one getting teased by the other two but it's all in good fun and he knows they don't mean any harm.

His family at home was always very supportive of him growing up, whether it be dressing femininely at school or exploring a new interest at home. He was raised with aspects from both his parents' cultures, but Henry identifies most closely with his Italian heritage.

Platonic
Henry would call most of his coworkers his friends. He's particularly close to Edward, Hiro, and James. James may seem an unlikely choice, but Henry's known James for 15 years and has come to consider him a dear friend. Even if he can be unbearably obnoxious. They often have spats and occasionally joke about being "frenemies."

He has lunch with Hiro from time to time to catch up and talk about their gardens. The two also visit botanical gardens together.

He cares very much for Thomas and Percy. He wouldn't call them his sons out loud from fear of embarrassing them but he definitely loves them as a father would.

Romantic
He's in a deeply committed relationship with Gordon, whom he pined after for more than a decade. The two get along very well and like having quiet dates at the cafe, cooking together, and trying each other's exercise habits. Henry helps Gordon gain the confidence to truly be himself around others, and Gordon gives Henry all the affection and security he could ever want. They've exchanged hobbies, too, with Henry introducing Gordon to yoga and Gordon introducing Henry to long-distance running. Neither are very good at the other but they love doing it together. Sometimes they get into petty arguments, but they love each other unconditionally and, even at their angriest, would do anything for each other.

Past Abuse
In the many years before he would finally date Gordon, Henry went through many relationships. He believed he'd never be with Gordon and wanted to push the feelings away. One of the relationships he entered, though, proved to be very damaging for him. Though the relationship lasted less barely more than a year, he was used as an outlet to his abuser's volatile emotions, and he was pressured and manipulated into intimacy he didn't want. When his change of demeanor became more and more evident, Edward asked him if everything was okay. As Henry described what was going on, Edward strongly advised him to reconsider his relationship. After talking to his mother about the situation, Henry broke it off. He's still recovering from this abuse today.

Bad Blood Origins
By the time Henry was 36, and Gordon 38, they'd gotten into the habit of flirting regularly- though neither ever really realized they were doing it. Regardless, Henry had begun to believe Gordon might return his feelings. At some point Gordon got an iPhone for the first time and was trying to familiarize himself with it. Henry, also on break, wanted to help him so he began showing him all the different utilities. He showed him the camera app and how to use it. He also showed him how to upload photos to Facebook and took a picture of them together, leaning in close. Ironically, Henry didn't notice how flustered Gordon had gotten.

Later that night, Henry was looking through the comments on the photo. James had done what he always does and teased Gordon but Henry didn't mind. It was Gordon's reply that he minded. To James making a remark about the two of them together, Gordon had said something that amounted to him saying he "couldn't" date Henry, implying it was because his family was lower class. Henry felt deeply hurt and betrayed by this, not only had Gordon insulted him but he'd insulted his family as well- just when Henry had started to believe he'd changed. At this point, Henry decided he was done trying to win Gordon's heart. At least, he wanted to be done.

The next day Henry barely said a word to him at work and Gordon seemed to be clueless as to why. Throughout the day Henry did his best to avoid him. When Gordon was finally able to corner him, he asked Henry why he'd been avoiding him. It was hardly a fight, it was just Henry yelling at Gordon for insulting him and his family, letting him know exactly what he thought of him. They didn't see each other for the rest of the day. For some reason, Gordon thought he was still going to give Henry a ride to the bus station, though, as they'd created a routine of doing so since no trains ran late enough to take Henry home. But when Henry didn't show up, Gordon grew concerned and asked Edward for his whereabouts.

Henry had told Edward what Gordon did and how he was just going to walk. Edward would've given him a ride but he had to work. The sky looked dark and gloomy but Henry was so mad at Gordon he'd rather risk a storm than get in the same car as him. He lost that bet and was halfway to the station when it began to rain. He sought shelter under a tree by the road and tried to call someone, but his phone had died on the way. He was freezing cold, soaked to the bone, and the cold air was setting off his asthma.

Soon enough, though, Gordon's car drove by, backed up, and stopped. Gordon apologized and begged him to get in the car but Henry stubbornly refused. Once again he set to tell Gordon off, but this time, now that they were in private, Gordon explained himself more. Henry found out that it wasn't his social status that put Gordon off. Gordon's father, who apparently he's very fearful of, wouldn't approve and would try to make them both miserable. Henry remained unpacified, however, calling Gordon a coward and still refusing a ride. It was then that Gordon let it slip out that he does want to date Henry, he's just afraid for Henry's safety. He didn't seem to realize what he'd said, though, and continued trying to explain himself.

With this new information, Henry was having second thoughts and even felt a little bad for being so harsh. Gordon had deserved most of it, but the fact that he did in fact want to be with Henry changed things. He finally accepted the ride.

They stopped at what Henry guessed to be Gordon's house. When Henry questioned it, Gordon told him it was just to get him warmed up and in some dry clothes, then he'd take him home. It never got that far, though. After Gordon had started the fire and given Henry some clothes, there was a knock on the door. He had to stop mid-change to answer it. Edward had come to ask if Henry was okay. James was with him.

Henry noticed Edward trying not to smile, probably at seeing him in Gordon's house with Gordon in the middle of changing. James didn't even try to hide it. After hearing Gordon's embarrassed explanation, Edward said he was glad Henry was safe and left, dragging James behind him.

Gordon sat down beside Henry, apologizing for the interruption and making a joke that they'll hear about this for a while. Gordon started apologizing once more for what he said and even for how he'd treated Henry in the past. He honestly didn't mean what he said, how he'd said it. Henry accepted his apology and brought up something else.

When Henry reminded him what he's said under the tree, Gordon blushed very hard and was clearly embarrassed. He tried to laugh it off as he always does, but Henry was firm and told him he didn't want to play games anymore. He wanted to know once and for all if he should give up pursuing him. Gordon, of course, had been completely ignorant to Henry's affection and was once again caught off guard. After a bit of awkward discussion, Henry found out his feelings were mutual. He was still shy, though, as was Gordon. Unsure of what else to do, they hugged for a moment.

Gordon didn't know what else to say besides that Henry should be getting home. When Henry commented that it was nearly 1 a.m., though, Gordon offered to let him stay the night. He showed Henry to the guest room. Then, it happened. Gordon said goodnight, and Henry said it back before kissing him on the lips. He hadn't exactly meant to do it, it had just felt like the right time, but it had happened nonetheless and it had been their first kiss. Both stared at the other for a moment before Henry quickly said goodnight again and shut the door. Gordon was speechless.

They both had a hard time falling asleep that night.

Negative
Henry does his best to avoid making enemies, but he can't help the fact that Gordon's father seems to have made it one of his priorities to antagonize Henry at every opportunity. After a rather disastrous family party, Henry ended up actually sucker-punching Gordon's dad. In Henry's defense, Gordon's dad got physical first. He doesn't have plans to see Gordon's family any time soon.

As for the railway, Spencer has a history of being especially rude to Henry. Gordon's relationship with Henry made Spencer insecure in himself, which then led to him putting both of them down. It had escalated to a point where Spencer being outright homophobic towards the two of them. This abruptly ended when Henry slapped him across the face.

Personality
Henry's worrisome, sensitive, and very aware of others' emotions. He wants to please others. As good a listener and friend this makes him, it also means he can be easily led astray or manipulated. It's because of this people-pleasing attitude that his history on the railway is less than perfect. He's recently gotten better at resisting manipulation. He's insecure of himself but he’s a very diligent worker and an extremely loyal friend. A widely known trait is the fact that he's very much a hypochondriac. He's very particulate about maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Though his fear of rain stems from a childhood incident, at times it's exacerbated by his schizophrenia.

On the other hand, Henry can easily become grumpy and pessimistic when he's tired or under high amounts of stress, or when he's being antagonized by others. When this happens, his sudden change of personality can surprise those unfamiliar with it. Very few ever see this, but when pushed far enough while defending himself or a loved one, Henry will become physical.

He's also very camera shy, though not as much for photos as videos. When he realizes he's being filmed, he gets very awkward and fumbles over himself.

Interests
Henry's most prominent hobby is gardening and botany. He learned from helping his parents with their garden. Henry's most familiar with produce: fruit, vegetables, and spices. He wanted to learn to grow flowers but wasn't sure where to start. Hiro gave him some beginner's cuttings and since then Henry's garden has become even more beautiful.

Henry loves yoga and practices it regularly to keep himself fit. He also likes nature in general, forests, hiking and camping, and quiet nights in with Gordon. Thanks to Ryan, he's a Troye Sivan fan now too.

Having studied cosmetology, he also fancies keeping up to date with the latest hair trends.

Physical description
Henry is 6'0", has thick brown wavy hair and heterochromatic eyes- brown and brown with green. He has dark skin speckled with freckles and vitiligo, with more notable pale spots on his nose and the nape of his neck. Henry has a strong, broad body but this feature often goes unnoticed due to him having very poor posture most of the time. He also has self-harm scars on his inner arms and thighs.

Uniform
Please see the following visual reference:

Quotes

 * "The rain will spoil her lovely green paint and red stripes."
 * "Beep beep, hullo fatface!"
 * "I'm 'old square foot'!"
 * "We...we came fifth. ... There were only five engines."
 * "Chicken pox are even scarier than rain!"
 * "I'm not scared of that ghost, and yes, I have seen it! But it didn't frighten me at all."
 * "Only me!~♪"
 * "It's not as if [Gordon] doesn't put his cold feet on me at night."
 * "James! I thought you said you were going daffodil spotting!"
 * "Is there anyone on this island who hasn't kissed Gordon?! Besides me."

Trivia

 * Henry having heterochromatic eyes, vitiligo, and being mixed race is a reference to the canon character being a hybrid buildRose engine Fanart.jpg
 * The names for Henry's siblings are inspired by real-life "siblings" of his canonical basis. "Rose" is inspired by the last place the LMS 44932 loco operated: Rose Grove. This specific engine was chosen based on a piece of fanart of Henry's sister. "Eric" is inspired by the preserved loco, LMS 45428, which was given the name Eric Treacy.
 * "Henry" is also the nickname of the artist