Hello, folks, I hope you've all had a wonderful Christmas!
I've been very lucky this year to be part of the TAG Team Secret Santa. This is the story I wrote for the prompt of presents.
Thanks again so much to my wonderful friends Megan and Abby for letting me join in the fun, and I hope you enjoy!
All I Want For Christmas Is...
Every family had its favourite way to spend Christmas. From a houseful of noise and chaos to peaceful solitude, they all had one thing in common. Joy, and happiness, and hope for the future, at what everyone called that most wonderful time of the year. Whether you were one or ninety one, the magic of Christmas never really left you.
Growing up with four younger brothers, it was something that Scott had always believed in. An all too brief innocence of childhood, maturing into the adult he was today. The cheering mantra that gave him strength. Hope. Not just for himself, but for every one of his brothers too. And - yes, maybe more for her than anyone else, he believed it for Grandma.
So yes, the den had been turned into the Tracy version of Santa's grotto. Wherever there was a free space that didn't interfere with its operations, bunting and baubles shared it with glitter string and tinsel.
The tree was up too, with piles of presents stacked beneath it. As ever, it looked perfect.
And yet. And yet.
No. He'd been raised to tell the truth, and take responsibility for its consequences when he didn't.
He was facing one of those cold hard truths right now. In this run up to a day that used to be so wondrous and magical, that belief was becoming harder and harder for him to find. Because when the holiday was over, one of those impeccably wrapped presents would be carried back to the desk behind him, and join the four others that still sat in its drawers.
Their inexplicably missing father's. Lost to them for five years now, but never lost from their minds. Their hopes that, some day, they'd get the call that would bring him home.
Yeah, right. So many times, they'd thought they'd found a clue to his whereabouts. Each time, they'd been sorely disappointed. Even with The Mechanic's help in payback for The Hood's betrayal, every lead that the GDF followed had come to nothing.
Staring out into the endlessness of night, Scott felt the same darkness creep further through his mood. Tomorrow it would be Christmas Eve. A day that he smiled through on the outside - and silently cried beneath its facade.
For everyone who'd receive their presents, and share the day with their families, it would be a day full of laughter. For him, it was a private hell, that he also bore for the rest of his.
Never by his own choice, he'd taken on the command of International Rescue. The best, most respected rescue team in the world. The dream built by his father's vast wealth, and the need to help others that Jeff Tracy had instilled into every member of his family.
Yet despite his fame and reputation, few knew about his other side. The generosity that he'd always shown at this time of year. Without ever revealing his identity, he gave millions of dollars to the many charities that he and Lucy had supported. Children's, especially, and those that helped the poor and unprivileged, had always come top of Santa Tracy's list.
In his absence, that duty now fell to Scott. And while he'd never think of letting those charities down, it... damn, it still hurt. It hurt like hell.
Five years now. Five years of not knowing if he was alive or dead. Its agony was one that Scott knew everyone else in the family shared. And, like him, they refused to show it. To do so would give even more satisfaction to whoever had caused his 'accident' and taken him from them.
Because he wasn't dead. An instinct he couldn't identify, but that was more powerful than mere hope, told him his father was still alive. Whatever the reason for his disappearance, Jeff Tracy was out there somewhere. Waiting for his sons to launch the rescue mission of their lives.
'...30965... 30965...'
Right now, though, Scott's thoughts were focussed on the one he'd make tomorrow night. Like every one of their missions, they'd prepared for it meticulously. Some, he thought dryly, with more pleasure than others, ie him, to turn his own jet into the fastest sleigh in the world. Under layers of sparkly paint, his other pride and joy made Santa's look positively dull.
Santabird One, as Alan had gleefully called it on its first little 'makeover.' A kid brother's right, he thought wryly, to the 'what the hell?' shock of the eldest.
This year's, though, had been... different. He'd hoped he'd imagined it at the time, but now? No, the more he thought about it, the less convinced of it he was. Those shadows in his youngest brother's eyes couldn't be explained away by any other reason.
Nor could he deny the truth that brought out another sigh. Another shake of his head. Was their little ray of sunshine succumbing to the same loss of faith that he was feeling? Were the memories of their father that Alan felt were already slipping away from him also draining that endless optimism?
'...30965... 30965...'
Reading through this year's selection of requests, the smile returned - its amusement chasing away the itch of envy that had flicked through his mind.
"Dear Santa... all I want for Christmas is..."
"...a toy fire engine..."
"...hover skates..."
"...teddy bears..."
"...a puppy..."
"...a kitten..."
"...a baby brother that won't cry so much..."
The smile widened at that last, hopefully scribbled request. Enough for those famous dimples to deepen too.
"Yeah, Bobby... good luck with that..."
The thoughts he said aloud, though, didn't hold so much humour. His own Christmas wish, just two simple words, carried a world of anguish within it.
"My father."
Lost in thought, he needed rescuing himself now. Someone to pull him out of their increasingly murky depths.
Right on cue, its reflection appeared in the window in front of him. Striding to his side, its arm slid around the shoulders that carried the weight of the world upon them. A voice as full of concern as it was compassion still brought him immeasurable comfort.
"Hey, bro, Let me take some of that load."
Settling into Virgil's side, Scott released a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. His head came to rest on its familiar spot on top of his brother's. Another personal tradition for them both, for all those times when the commander of International Rescue needed a moment like this one.
Neither of them spoke. But then, they didn't have to. Everything they needed to say was carried through this unique connection between them.
With everyone else in bed, there was no reason for it to be interrupted - except, of course, for the next call for help that John reported from Thunderbird Five.
The call that now brought his hologram flickering into life.
Turning instinctively towards it, Scott and Virgil frowned. Their eye in the sky, Mr Unflappable himself, looked unnaturally... flapped. Not so much panicked as just... stunned.
The last time he'd looked this shaken had been that awful day five years ago, when...
Glancing at each other, Scott saw his own thoughts flash through his brother's eyes. And damn if he was glad for that arm now, supporting him as they both strode to the centre of the den. Legs that could effortlessly handle a five mile run suddenly felt like rubber.
Now, if he could make his voice heard above the hammering in his chest.
"J - John?!"
Turning to acknowledge EOS's confirmation, his brother nodded and turned back towards them - the hope on his face tempered by an inevitable, more familiar warning for caution.
"It's - It's Dad's emergency signal, Scott. Real weak, but it's definitely his. I've tracked it to an old ranch in North Australia. But with The Hood still on the run, it could be a trap, so I've called the GDF and Kayo for back up. They're on their way..."
"...and so are we..." Scott finished for him, running so fast towards his launch tube that he almost crashed straight through its wall. "John, sound the alarm. Get Gordon and Alan down to the pod bay. We're bringing him home."
Virgil, too, had set his own record for reaching his launch point - urging the panel behind him to tilt him just that little bit faster.
"Damn it, just flip already!"
The last sound he and Scott heard was the alarm that Brains had set up especially for this call. As it blared through the villa, they could just imagine the chaos that followed. Wherever they were on the island, both Gordon and Alan would be running for Two's silo as fast as their legs could take them.
Down in the kitchen, Sally stood by the window that looked out onto the pool. Beneath her, she could feel the machinery that now pulled it back on its gantry. In truth, she didn't know what was trembling more - the floor under her feet, or the heart that had endured so much disappointment.
But then she stood straighter, as the fearless pilot she'd once been herself. She hadn't gotten to where she was today by letting her emotions get the better of her.
And if anyone could bring her son and their father home, it was her five equally fearless grandsons. Wherever this new lead had come from, Sally knew none of them would come home unless they had a very special passenger.
The smile she'd always worn at this moment grew even wider, even prouder, as she watched One roar into the sky.
"Go get him, boys. Bring him home."
A thought shared by every one of her grandsons. And for Scott, even more were flooding through his mind as John relayed more details to him.
They'd been here before. This part of Australia, when The Hood had held the world to ransom with his ability to cause earthquakes wherever he chose to, and... damn it! Had they been so close to rescuing their father then, all those months ago? If Kayo had been given a few more minutes to search The Hood's ship before it took off, would she have found him?
They'd never know, of course. It was one of those 'what ifs' that would now forever bug the hell out of him.
It had been different then too. They hadn't even heard of The Mechanic, let alone faced the technology that he'd built for the man who'd controlled him. And yes, part of him would always bitterly remember their first encounter. The day when both he and Virgil had barely escaped with their lives.
Thanks to Brains and the GDF, he was now free of the devices that had forced him to obey The Hood's demands. Aside from the gratitude he owed to them, their oldest enemy's betrayal of him had brought some unexpected consequences - not least the intel that might now lead to their father's rescue.
He'd promised to help them find him. He still had 'contacts' who'd also been double crossed by The Hood's treachery, and now had their own scores to settle.
Slowly but surely, their loyalties were changing. Moving away from the ruthless criminal who'd used them, abused them, and betrayed them, and turning instead towards the family who'd borne the brunt of his vendetta.
Through ways that Scott knew better than ask too much about, The Mechanic had reached out to one of those disgruntled minions who was also responsible for guarding The Hood's greatest prize. As he coaxed more speed out of One's already straining engines, Scott just hoped he'd kept to his word, and persuaded his father's captors to let him go. If this was a trap, or yet another dead end - damn, he couldn't face that thought right now. It was too devastating to even imagine.
Ahead of him, he could see three of the GDF's most heavily armoured gunships, with Shadow flying in tiny escort beside them. But what she lacked in size, she more than made up for in stealth. And if any of The Hood's still loyal henchmen stood in their way, Scott knew Kayo would soon 'persuade' them to move.
As they came in sight of land, a blinking triangle of green appeared on the HUD in front of him, prompting a wry thought that... yes, when he put his mind to it, his slowpoke brother could hit the throttle with the best of them.
And they were the best. Blessed with so many resourceful allies, International Rescue were the best. With Virgil now just minutes behind him, they were about to embark on the most personally crucial rescue of their lives.
As commander, he'd normally take the lead. But with the threat of possibly hostile resistance to consider, it was Colonel Casey who now called her joint teams to orders.
"All teams and International Rescue, this is Colonel Casey. We're on final approach to target now. Kayo and Ops Team One, to stealth modes for sweep and search. Recovery Teams Two and Three, stand by with International Rescue until search is complete, and all hostiles have been... dealt with. Do not... I repeat, do NOT enter the rescue zone until I give the word."
Orders made as seriously as she'd had to for them to be obeyed. But then, just for four anxious brothers, her holographic face softened into a reassuring smile. As one of their closest friends, she knew how desperately they'd want to join this search.
"Stand by, boys. I'll get you in there as soon as we've cleared the area."
From his own time in the military, Scott knew she was doing what had to be done. Even so, he couldn't help but fidget in his seat as he watched the search teams close in on the signal he could now see on his holo-pad. And tasked with keeping Gordon and Alan under control, he didn't envy Virgil that at all.
Of course, he could always sit on them, and -
"All teams, this is Kayo. I've found him."
- oh, God.
It was the moment that Scott had imagined so many times in his mind. But as cheers and applause erupted through his comms, he was having real trouble believing it. For several seconds, he honestly thought he was dreaming.
But then another voice - tired, strained, but still unmistakeable - brought him back to wide eyed, joyous reality.
"Sc - Scott? Son? You there?!"
Dear God, it was really happening. This was no dream or wishful thinking. The best Christmas present he could ever ask for had just spoken his name.
A tide of emotions swept unstoppably through him. Suddenly, he couldn't see through the tears that had filled his eyes. Swallowing hard, it took several more attempts for his voice to force its way past the lumps in his throat.
"FAB, Dad. I'm - I'm here. We're all here."
'Here.' Yes, they were. Just not the 'here' where he needed to be. He couldn't speak for his brothers, of course, but he was still sitting in his flight seat, and - yeah, to hell with that.
Rarely, if ever, had he landed his 'bird so fast. His chair was still several feet off the ground when he jumped out of it - wincing slightly as his ankle twinged in protest, but now too full of excitement to care.
Instead, he ran at full pelt to the cluster of people that Virgil, Gordon and Alan now also ran towards. And it spoke volumes for the bonds between them, that all three of them had activated John's holo-link on their armbands. This was the moment that all of them, space-bound brothers included, had waited over five tortuous years to see. None of them were going to let John miss it.
Then, in perfect synchronicity, they all skidded to a halt. Maybe their excitement had gotten the better of them, and they'd forgotten how long their father had been missing, but... this. No, this wasn't the sight they'd all seen in their dreams.
Instead of striding out to greet them, their father lay on a gurney. Pale and haggard under a runaway beard, he looked more like a hermit than one of America's most distinguished heroes. Surrounded by a medical team who still fussed around him, he was now... old. So old. And so, so frail.
A million miles away from the father he remembered. More vulnerable than Scott could bear to look at.
Luckily, Colonel Casey had seen his reaction, since she now stepped forward to reassure him, and three equally shaken brothers.
"He's okay, Scott, he's just... well, just overwhelmed that he's finally safe. I know how hard this must be for you boys, but let the medics check him over. They'll just be a few more minutes, okay? Then we'll be flying him to our base at Alice Springs. Don't worry, he's going to be fine."
Recovering his composure, as much for his brothers as for himself, Scott nodded. They'd waited this long to see him again. These few more minutes to make sure he was all right weren't going to make that much of a difference.
Instead, he used them to call back to Tracy Island - so glad for the three sets of arms that still hugged him as much for support as they did for celebration.
"Grandma? Grandma? We've - We've got him. He's okay."
There was still so much that he wanted, and needed, to say. But that, too, would have to wait. The cheers and yells - and a mother's inevitable tears - would drown those words out for some time yet.
Then again, there was still a lot for him to organize - not least a flight back to Tracy Island to bring Grandma and Brains in to join this wonderful reunion. To his surprise, another unmistakeable voice took care of that.
"That's wonderful news, Scott. Parker and I are landing on Tracy Island now to collect your grandmother, John and Brains. We'll meet you at Alice Springs as soon as we can."
So then - one less thing to worry about. And that weary thumbs up sign that he now saw from his father's hand magically lifted the weight of all other worries from his mind.
As the medical team stepped away from their patient, so four still anxious brothers took their place. Taking point at his father's shoulder, Scott instinctively took the hand that had lifted in search for another's comfort. With Virgil taking his other hand, and Gordon and Alan squeezing each of his arms, Jeff Tracy was finally safe. And it didn't surprise anyone that his eyes now shone with the same tears of joy as those of his sons.
Dr Meddings stood quietly in the doorway of Room 21, and smiled at the scene within it. Not many patients passed through the GDF's Infirmary here, but - yes, its latest had caused more of a stir than all his previous patients put together.
Not just for his medical team either. Half of the base's security teams now seemed to have taken up guard outside his room. And once you ran that little gauntlet, another that was equally protective lay in wait for you around Jeff Tracy's bed.
Chairs took up every inch of space around it, while the smallest member of the family had curled himself into his father's side.
Like every kid on Christmas Eve, though, there was no way in hell that Alan Tracy was going to give in to his eldest brother's pleas to go to sleep. All the time his father stayed awake to tell them how he'd sent that message, he was going to stay awake to hear it.
Not that Dr Meddings blamed him. If his father had been held prisoner for over five years... well, yes, he'd want to hear how he'd managed to escape too.
Not wanting to intrude on their privacy, he then left to carry on with his rounds - still smiling at the still much too excited voice he left behind.
"...so your guards gave you all that stuff piece by piece... and they had no idea you were building a radio to send us your code?! Cool!"
'Cool' indeed. One thousand, eight hundred and ninety six days of captivity - finally brought to an end by everything the Tracy family stood for. Courage against fear. Ingenuity against a seemingly hopeless situation. Or, as Jeff dryly put it - just pure and simple bloody mindedness.
Between sipping his drink and hugging his youngest son, Jeff met the eyes of his eldest with the same 'what would you do with him?' amusement. Yet there was sadness too, for a father who'd missed out on so much of their lives. Days, and months, and years, that he could never get back.
Damn, they'd changed so much. Little Allie was still so little, but now had a maturity beyond his years, while Gordon still had that twinkle of mayhem in his eyes - and the first flush of love in his cheeks.
For Penny?! Damn if he'd ever seen that one coming.
Virgil - still so much his mother's son that it brought fresh tears to his eyes. His Lucy would forever live on through the gift of his gentleness.
Then John, whose eyes and face could say everything he'd find so hard to put into words. The relief in them now spoke a whole library of those ever suppressed emotions.
And Scott. Every inch the leader and commander that he'd knew he'd become. A burden he'd taken through necessity rather than choice, but - by God, he'd borne it superbly.
But then he had to consider the alternative. That he'd have been kept prisoner for the rest of his life, and never seen his boys again. That for whatever reason, he'd not lived to see this moment.
As horrific as that thought was, it brought everything back into perspective. Freedom, he realized, was a gift that could only be marred by your own bitterness for what you'd lost. So instead of railing against everything he'd missed out on, he'd put every ounce of his strength into his recovery, while he and the rest of his family rebuilt their lives.
Dr Meddings had advised them to take things slowly, and give themselves time to adjust. After everything they'd been through, it would take time for normality to fully return.
One aspect of normality, though, was welcomed by all of them - and by Scott in particular. Just twenty hours earlier, he'd dreaded this day, and the special extra duty that came with it. Now, his father's tired but smiling orders brought out the biggest grin he'd worn all year.
"Well, since you've made such a fine job of it in my absence, son, it's yours for good now. So let's not keep those kids waiting any longer. Santabirds are go!"
Still grinning, Scott nodded and strode to the door - pausing there to enjoy one last glance behind him. Surrounded by his family, his father was finally safe. Against all the other presents that he was about to deliver around the world, he'd been given the best Christmas present of all.