Oh, isn't it wonderful to have TAG back?! It's been an awfully long wait, but that opening episode - WOW!

Poor Gordon, though. He really didn't understand why Penny was so upset with him, did he? He has a lot to learn about love. Luckily, he's about to find the very best teacher.

It's so good to be writing for TAG again, and I hope you enjoy my first story for these new episodes!

Lessons In Love

Gordon stepped out of his shower, wondering why he didn't feel much better for it. Damn, he was tired. And really, really, sore. Every part of him ached, with a heaviness that went beyond anything he'd felt before. Pushed so far beyond its limits, his body now felt every bit of its aftermath.

Said body wasn't happy with him either - a soft "Ow!" escaping him as he towelled himself dry, and changed back into his clothes. Its revenge, he supposed, for bouncing it over the sea bed like he was sliding into fourth base.

He hadn't felt it at the time, of course. The adrenaline rush that had saved his life had also served as a shock-absorber, protecting him from the battering he'd taken. And yes, the relief on Penny's face when he'd finally surfaced and waved back at her had taken his mind off all the 'what ifs' that it hadn't wanted to address.

If he'd spent another second in that lethally acidic water. For once, that cliche had been no melodramatic exaggeration.

If Four's airlock had failed, at the time when any kind of delay would have killed him.

If the laser in his suit had been too badly damaged to cut through that door, trapping him for more of those vital seconds.

If.

If.

The irony of it all tugged Gordon's mouth into the wryest of smiles. For such a tiny word, that little 'if' held a lifetime of weight inside it. Just like three other little words, that still felt like a lump of lead in his heart.

I. Love. You.

Damn it, why were they so hard to say? Why, when his life was in such danger, couldn't he just tell the woman he cared so much about how he felt?

The smile ruefully widened as he trudged back to his bed, and stretched out on top of its covers. Yeah, like he should be so surprised at his inability to say three simple words, when he couldn't even get his own name right.

"International Gordon, this is Rescue!"

Thank God he'd been alone then. Spared the hell of three evilly teasing brothers. And as he continued to stare up at the ceiling, even his famous Gordon Tracy Squid Sense let him down too. He wasn't alone now either. Unseen and unheard by his part open doorway, he was being quietly, and just a bit anxiously, watched.

Sally Tracy loved her grandsons with equal pride, and the same measure of Mama Bear protectiveness. In the absence of their mother, and now their father, she prided herself in always being there when they needed her - although some needed her wisdom and guidance more than others.

When he wasn't filling his father's shoes, she knew Scott welcomed her quiet encouragement, and faith in him that he would bring her own son home. In these private moments between them, she'd hug him tight, and keep telling him what he needed to hear, until the shadows in his eyes cleared, and the smile on his face lit them with fresh hope and belief.

A natural loner, John still appreciated her company when their eye in the sky felt a bit too out of touch. He slept a lot better for her personal assurance that everyone was home - safe and sound - after a harrowing day. It made the guilt he felt over losing track of their father's plane just that little bit easier to live with.

Her favourite grandson - though she'd never show it in front of his brothers - Virgil kept his mother's calm, gentle nature alive. She knew he treasured those 'just you and me, kid' chats in the den as much as she did, learning about the grandfather whose heroism he'd inherited with such humility. The compass she'd given him went everywhere with him now - still guiding him through those life and death decisions.

For Gordon and Alan, it was all the experience she'd had in turning two carefree boys into the young men who now bore the weight of the world on their shoulders. And for Alan on his own, it was those nights when growing up into such responsibility all became a bit too much, and he just needed one of her all comforting hugs.

Tonight, though, it looked as if that hug was needed elsewhere. Still watching her next youngest grandson, concern gave way to a knowing smile as she went through a finely honed checklist.

Successful mission? Tick.

Home in one piece? Tick.

His 'bird safely back in her tank? Tick.

Mission debrief with Scott? Medical debrief with Virgil? Okay, a bit livelier than usual, with several perfectly synchronised yells of "You did what?!", but... yes, now that Smother Brothers One and Two had finished fussing and fretting over him... tick, and... tick.

Checklist complete, Sally's instincts shifted from the professional to the personal. Like every grandmother, she took a subtly keen interest in their off duty lives too. And while this budding romance had surprised her as much as everyone else, she still recognized the depth of feeling behind it.

However unlikely it was, this wasn't harmless flirting, or a late teenage crush. This was love. Real, first time love, in all its dizzying joy.

For every one of its highs, though, came a soul destroying low. Aside from their poles apart backgrounds, the age difference between them was also a potential issue. Closer to Scott's age than his much younger brother, Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward also moved in far higher circles. Growing up in such society, her would be suitors would surely come from the British aristocracy - not the son of an albeit world famous hero.

So, then... had something else happened on this mission? A difference in how to tackle it, that had caused a rift between them? If so, then... well, yes, she'd been through that too. And while these boys could talk to each other about just about anything, not even that closeness was going to cut it here. These were the times when only the ear of a wise (not so) old grandma would do.

Subtly, though. After all, he wasn't supposed to know she was there.

"Hey, Grandma. Come on in."

Damn that boy and his Squid Sense! And from now on, she'd leave covert ops to their head of security.

More seriously, she was already searching his face for clues - trying to hide her own concern at the wince that crossed it as Gordon sat up onto his pillows. Oh, he'd feel every bump and bruise in the morning. But then his eyes cleared and he grinned - sitting up straighter, as if he were thankful to see her.

Settling in beside him, Sally gave him a gentle hug of encouragement, and kept her response as casual as it had to be.

"Hey, kid. I thought you'd be asleep by now."

As she'd already expected, Gordon shook his head while toying with the bracelet on his wrist. Another of those little tells that revealed their little ray of sunshine wasn't quite as sunny as he'd like his family to believe.

Again, though, Sally resisted the urge to rush him into opening up. She knew her grandson far better than that. Gordon Cooper Tracy would only reveal what was upsetting him when he was good and ready.

"I really upset Penny today, Grandma. She was... uh... real mad at me."

Apparently he was good and ready right now. Luckily, her own intuition had already given her the likeliest cause for this little lovers' tiff. Again, though, she made the prompt she needed to give him as gentle and simple as she could.

"Because you risked your life in that rescue today?"

A simple enough question, but one that brought out a whole tumble of answers.

"Well, yes... no... aw, shoot, Grandma, I - I don't know! I - I mean, she knows it's what we all do, but today I scared her. I really scared her, and..."

"...you think things have changed between you because of it?"

Ah, the million dollar question. One that had clearly bugged him ever since he'd come home, and still bugged him now as he sighed and shook his head.

"If I knew how she felt about me, Grandma, I'd be able to tell you. But when I asked her that, she just... well, kinda blew me off."

Beyond the concern on her face, Sally felt herself smile. Yes, this thing called love was a crazy and complex thing, with all kinds of lessons to learn along the way. Luckily, her lovestruck grandson had the perfect teacher to give him some guiding help along the way. And, of course, the obligatory hug.

"She didn't blow you off, kid. Anyone who looks at the two you together knows there's something real special between you. You're both learning to be in love, and... well, some of its lessons are harder to learn than others. Especially when one of you is in danger, and the other knows there's nothing they can do to help."

From the way he was watching her, all hopeful and grateful and serious, Sally knew she'd made her point. But it was Gordon who, just as she'd hoped, made the point that really mattered.

"I know, Grandma, but... well, I still upset her. And I just don't know why."

Ah, time for lesson number two. Taught with a wise smile, and just the right amount of straight talking love.

"Yes, you do, kid. Now, just think about it, and be completely honest with yourself. Go back to what you did on that mission, and think about how you might have done things differently."

A frown as he considered a question that he clearly hadn't expected. But then his face changed, into a rueful grin as the honesty she'd told him to face made everything clear, and showed him where he'd gone wrong.

"I wouldn't have lied to her. I wouldn't have told her everything was fine, when we both knew it wasn't."

And - bingo. Rewarded with another hug, and more gentle wisdom, he'd passed two of the trickiest hurdles of learning how to be in love.

"There you go, kid. I know you did it with all good intentions so you didn't upset her, but Penny's a big girl. Like you said yourself, she knows how dangerous this job is as much as you do. And don't forget, she would have had her own telemetry on your suit, so she'd have known how much danger you were in."

Nodding agreement, Gordon sighed. Yes, he saw everything so clearly now - including the fear that his noble intentions had caused more harm than good. But as Sally knew from her own experience, the arts of compromise and apology could heal the most painful of rifts. You just needed to know what to say, and when to say it.

"Now knowing Penny, she'll be awake already, and working on her latest projects. Why don't you call her, and talk this out with her before she gets too busy? If she's mad at you for deceiving her, tell her you're sorry. Tell her you didn't mean to scare her, and you'll do everything you can in future not to do it again..."

Easier said than done, of course - especially in their line or work. But Gordon didn't care about that. Instead his face lit up, full of relief and gratitude as a weight of regret and remorse lifted off his shoulders.

"Yeah! The next time I'm in trouble, I won't fob her off. I'll tell her myself. Thanks, Grandma. Yeah, I'm gonna call her right now, and -"

As quickly as it had appeared, though, so that joyous grin vanished into a look of mortified horror. He could live with his family's constant nagging over the state of his room, but for Penny to see it like this? No way!

Watching him whirl into action, Sally's grin stayed put. Okay, so this priceless sight consisted of piles of clothes, books and days worth of junk being stuffed into any nook or cranny that hid it, but - yes, to a proud chuckle of laughter, she'd still take it.

"Wait 'til Scott hears about this. I've finally found a way to make him clean up his room."