"Damn it" Virgil exclaimed, his frustration getting the better of him.
John had sent him instructions, promised that this was all the information he needed. Virgil was good with his hands: dexterous, steady, precise. He had been tinkering with engines since he could remember and could often be surrounded by some gadget or other that he had taken apart. He liked to know how things worked, how each cog or circuit fit into the pieces of a bigger puzzle. And he was good at it, was proud of the way he could look at a machine and know how it was meant to go. Which was why this was so frustrating! He couldn't believe that he was being bested by a foot and a half of fabric.
He had set aside plenty of time to get ready for this evening: ironing his dress shirt and taking extra long in the shower. He had checked his trousers for dust and his cummerbund was sitting comfortably. His jacket – a classic black, satin lapelled, one button affair - was hanging pristine on the back of his wardrobe and cufflinks were resting on the nightstand. He had even bought new oxfords for the occasion.
The only issue was tying this bloody bow tie!
No matter how many times he had tried, now carefully he followed the directions it was either too tight, or uneven or one time just fell apart entirely. There was no choice but to call for help, and he reached for the holo-display.
"John, I need your help." He said, as the pilot of Thunderbird 5 appeared before him as an eerie blue shadow.
"Hi Virgil. Is it urgent? I'm a little busy right now."
Knowing John that meant he was doing about six things at once. The space monitor could multi-task in his sleep so for him to be 'busy' would probably be giving anyone else a breakdown.
"Anything you need me for?" Virgil asked reluctantly, training and duty warring with the thought of what he actually wanted to do this evening.
"After all the effort I went to to get you tonight off? No way. But Scott needs a structural analysis, Kayo is looking for information on one of the Hood's hideouts, Lady Penelope is trying to bluff her way into a party she was definitely not invited to and Gordon and Alan... well I'm trying to keep an eye on them."
When Virgil had first come up with this idea he knew that he would need John's help to make it work. He needed to be free for an entire evening and, although Virgil knew that he could be called back at any moment, he and John had come up with a way to cover piloting of 2 and give Virgil a small opportunity to do something very important.
"I'll be quick. I just need you to help with this bow tie." He explained.
"I sent you instructions."
"Which don't work. I've been at it for half an hour and if I take much longer I'm going to be late to meet... who I'm meeting."
"You know I could find out who that is by the way. I don't know why you are keeping your mystery date such a mystery."
"Sure you do."
"Ok, I do. But I don't know what to tell you Virgil, those were the instructions I had when I went to that charity auction, even if I didn't need them in the end." John said distractedly, looking at several screens that were out of Virgil's sight.
John glanced back, seeing Virgil's dejected look at the lack of help. He sighed. "Stand by Virgil." And he winked out.
Virgil blinked at the sudden loss of his brother. Well that's just great he thought to himself. He sat on the bed and ran his hands through his hair, despairing. He had looked forward to this so much. International Rescue didn't leave much time for fun and even less for personal relationships but he had put the effort into cultivating this one. It had potential. This was the first step into more serious territory and he couldn't even get dressed properly! Why oh why did he have to choose the most fancy restaurant with the strictest dress code?
His introspection was interrupted by a knock on the door, which opened to reveal his grandmother.
"Are you ready yet Virgil?" She asked, smiling. "Oh, you look so smart! You boys don't wear suits often enough you know."
"No I'm not ready!" He cried. "Sorry, Grandma. I didn't mean to shout... I just can't do this damn bow tie!"
"Oh Virgil" she chuckled. "Calm down, don't get yourself into such a state." She sat down beside him. "You could have just invited your mystery lady here, then you wouldn't have had to dress up."
"And inflict Gorgon and Alan on her, in person? I'm not sure she likes me enough for that yet." Virgil joked, but that was a real fear of his. Had he misread the signs, did she just think they were friends? He was going out on a limb here and the dinner, the dressing up, was all part of that.
"Oh I understand, your father didn't bring your mother home until they'd been dating six months. And I didn't meet your grandfathers parents for eight!" She smiled at the memory, and patted him on the knee. "Tracy's have always been cautious in sharing affairs of the heart."
"Do you think it can work?" Virgil asked revealing a deep seated worry "Being a member of International Rescue, walking into dangerous situations and any time of day and night, that and the..."he waved a hand vaguely "…... romance thing?"
"It will be hard, there's no doubt about that, but the only two of you can really answer that." She replied "And I know you won't give up easily. Not if she's as special as she seems to be."
"I'll have to give up right now if I can't get this bow tie right – they won't even let me in the door without it and what kind of first impression would that be?" Virgil fretted.
"And that's why John called me. Before he knew that Brains would be customising his suit he worried about the bow tie too. So I told him what I'm about to tell you. What I told your father the first time he went to a formal dinner. Life is too short to struggle solving problems that have already been solved. Save your energy for moving forward not repeating the past. And don't be afraid to take a short cut."
She reached into her pocket and pulled out another bow tie. This one already tied, with a fastening around the back. She handed it on and Virgil, smiling, put it on in just a few moments, adjusting it so it sat straight. That was much better! He popped in his cufflinks – solid silver treble clefs - grabbed his suit jacket that completed the look and Grandma smoothed it over his broad shoulders.
"Perfect" she approved, and leaned in, whispering though there was no –one else around. "That was your fathers. I've never know a Tracy man yet who can tie a bow tie."
Virgil's nerves settled slightly at the thought of his father struggling with the same things he did. It made him feel closer, like he had never left. He gave the bow tie a tweak that it didn't really need, just to touch it, for luck.
If Dad could do this, so could he. Particularly carrying a piece of his father with hime. He adjusted his sleeves, smoothed down his lapels.
"I'm ready."