Brains
The more they thought about it, the more they realised how little they actually knew about Brains. When their father had first introduced him as the man who would design their fantastic machines, the Tracy boys' first instinct was to laugh. This small, nervous, stuttering, bespectacled man, barely into his twenties, the designer of brilliant machines that would save lives? Pull the other one.
But as he showed them his early sketches and schematics, a grudging respect began to manifest itself within them. John in particular, on a similar wavelength to the young genius, saw that what this man was attempting to create was years ahead of anything else. What was more, he knew how to make it reality.
Slowly, Brains found his way into the Tracy family, casting firm friendships with each of them. But now, today, they realised how little they actually knew about him.
Brains never went "home." He never discussed his past. Come to think of it, they didn't even know his real name! And, truth be told, he spent a great deal of time in his lab, improving the 'birds, or designing new safety equipment.
Sometimes, Alan or John (depending on who was planet-side) would stroll in and give him a hand. Tin-Tin often spent hours on end helping Brains with his work, usually reminding him of the feasibility of his designs, or questioning their practicality. However, even these three wouldn't be able to write up a decent biography if asked.
So when Brains walked into the lounge that morning, eyes red and a letter crushed in his shaking fist, the boys had no idea what to do or say.
Jeff on the other hand, looked up from his work with an understanding expression on his face, and pulled the scientist out onto the balcony, closing the French windows behind them.
The next day, Jeff flew Brains out to the mainland, the pair dressed in black suits, and didn't return until a couple of days later.
For those of you new to this, this is a collection of random snippets based around the letter B. For those of you familiar with the set of A snippets: welcome back.
A slightly sad one to begin with. There is a bio for Brains, which doesn't really have much, though it does mention him being an orphan that was adopted by a Cambridge professor. Brains doesn't strike me as one to talk much about himself, so I suspect the Tracy brothers don't actually know that much about him. The name "Hiram Hackenbacker" was an alias in the original series, although it seems to be his real name now.