RECOVERY
A Thunderbirds fic by Ro-RoWeasley

Can you believe it's been three years since Trouble was completed? RO IS BACK! x
DISCLAIMER: Nothing has changed while I've been gone, I still own nothing :(

"Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny." ~ C.S. Lewis

Chapter One

Scott Tracy sat bolt upright, breathing heavily.

His entire body shook, tears leaking from his eyes, and his throat felt slightly raw as if he'd cried out. He swiped a trembling hand over his face and up into his mop of hair, catching the cold layer of sweat that beaded on his skin. Clenching his fist, he flopped back onto the pillow with a frustrated yell.

The digital alarm clock over on his desk told him it was 3.47am, and it was certainly still dark outside glancing towards the blue curtains. Sighing deeply as his heart rate settled, Scott winced as flashes of the dream once again invaded his mind's eye.

The Mall. Running. Too late to save them. John crumpling to the ground. Then Virgil. Helpless.

These nightmares were persistent. At eighteen a good night sleep should have been easy but the eldest Tracy was struggling. He wasn't the only one, he knew that, but he was too old for this. He was supposed to be strong.

He was hyperventilating again, the room closing in on him. Fight it, Tracy, fight it!

"Scotty?"

The voice was so quiet, almost a whimper, that the eldest almost didn't hear it. But the ingrained big brother sense that had been in force for sixteen years snapped him out of it - a brother was in distress and he was needed.

"Alan?" he croaked, his voice weak as he tried to stop it from shaking so as to not scare his brother. Slowly sitting up and switching on his bedside lamp, his eyes searched flew to the figure peering around the door.

"What's up, Sprout?" he frowned, patting the space next to him on the bed inviting Alan to sit. It was very unusual for Alan to have a night terror and that worried him. If Alan was suffering, how were his other brothers coping? Namely John and Virgil who had been more involved in the whole situation than him.

Alan moved closer but didn't immediately sit on the bed. Instead, he stood next to it and fixed his brother with such a searching look that Scott almost started. It looked very mature on a face as young as Alan's. Too mature.

"Scotty, you had the nightmare. Are you okay?"

When Scott just blinked, unable to reply, the youngest moved onto the bed and cuddled close into Scott's side. For a moment, the teen didn't do anything, too busy marvelling at Alan's perceptiveness, before resting his head on top of his brother's and wrapping his arms around him, grateful for the comfort.

"It was just a bad dream, Al, I'm fine."

"You didn't sound fine," the seven-year-old mumbled, making Scott snort softly.

"Well I am now, thanks to you," Scott replied, smiling fondly when Alan beamed up at him. "I'm sorry I woke you."

"You didn't, Daddy did, and he told me to come and keep you safe."

"Dad?" Scott looked hopefully at the door.

"He was going to come and see you, but the floor creaks outside his room and I heard him. He was outside your room when I came out, he didn't tell me off though. He said to come in here and help wake you up, help keep you safe. I think he went downstairs."

As Alan yawned, Scott shifted down the bed so they were laid down. Combing a hand methodically through Alan's hair as he gradually dropped back off to sleep, Scott's thoughts were elsewhere.

His family were becoming more and more united following the events of the Mall incident back in November.

Jeff was becoming more and more the family man Scott remembered, actively exchanging work-from-home business for quality time spent with the boys. He dropped Alan and Gordon off at school most days, took them to swimming lessons, stayed calm with Virgil, and even the two of them talked way more often than they had in a long time. It was nice.

Grandma was also over more frequently than ever, claiming to be keeping an extra eye out for Vigil and John while making them the most amazing portions of food, but the eldest also knew there was an unspoken word directed towards Jeff there too.

All of this positive change meant Scott was sleeping (almost) perfectly, attending classes for the full days and keeping his grade point average up. Yale was creeping up on them with just five months to go. But Scott was content that he was leaving behind a functioning family unit, even if he was still going to miss the hell out of them.

Gordon had stopped getting into fights at school and was excelling every week in his swimming. The most recent swim meets had seen fishfeet achieving very fast times even if he wasn't always winning the races themselves. Their father was certainly very proud, turning up to as many as he could to cheer his second youngest on.

Alan was growing up so fast. The youngest Tracy was in first grade, and doing really well in school. So well in fact, that his teacher was considering giving him second grade work to tackle.

Virgil on the other hand, was stretched pretty thin. The aftermath of the bank fiasco had focused media attention on him around school, and Scott knew the artist was so not great being the centre of attention unlike his younger brothers. He was having regular sessions with the school counsellor, and when he wasn't doing homework, the unmistakable melodic sound of the keyboard would float down the hall.

John could usually be found on the roof with his telescope until Jeff called him down around the time Alan and Gordon were going to bed. The days were getting longer now though and Scott knew it wouldn't be too long before it was still light at that time, restricting John's access to the cosmos. But Scott would do what they always did which was to take him to the nearest park just out of town where they'd spend almost the entire night stargazing.

John and Virgil were spending a lot of time together, though from what Scott had managed to coax out of the space-case, it was more of just being in each other's company rather than talking. Scott had just nodded without saying anything further, if it was working for them both then he wouldn't pry. The pair of them had been through an experience that could only be understood by those present.

Dad had also mentioned possibly taking a vacation during Spring Break, somewhere, he'd promised Scott, that could change their lives forever. Scott had no clue where Jeff Tracy had in mind, but it's was assumedly around New York where the main Tracy Enterprises offices were. Maybe there would even be a proper family vacation with a water park for his brothers. The excitement on his father's face was something he wasn't going to forget for a long time.

"You alright, Scott?"

"I got this, Dad," he replied, knowing full well he wasn't asking about Alan. But Scott wasn't ready to spill.

Jeff nodded, not drawing attention to the fact his eldest hadn't answered his question, before crossing the room and planting a kiss on the top of his head and ruffling Alan's hair.

"Sleep tight."

Scott couldn't help the smile that spread across his face as he watched his father retreat from the room, no doubt heading to check on Virgil, John and Gordon before heading back to his own bed. Rewind four months and this wouldn't have been happening, the boys barely seeing their father as he was wrapped up in constant business meetings. But now, it was like the family had a brand-new lease of life. Things were moving on really well.

Jeff's relationship with Scott and his brothers was still far from perfect, but for now it was enough, and that was more than okay for the eldest. Shifting slightly to ensure Alan was as comfortable as he could manage, the eighteen-year-old relaxed back into the pillows, allowing his breathing to even out and sleep to overcome him.

The rest of the night saw a peaceful, dream-free respite for the entire household.