Cleaning Grandma Tracy's oven after Lasagna
This story takes Place when Scott and Virgil return from saving Taipei from a falling Solar Collector Dish in "Ring of Fire."
2017 Fanfiction by Crystalquirt
[[[I do not own anything to do with The Thunderbirds Are Go, past or present. [Wish I did] but I just love this show and don't get to see new episodes very often. It is so awesome and great entertainment for all! This story is a work of Fan Fiction, and no profit is being made from it.]]]
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"I'm wiped out," Virgil said, sitting two large take-out bags on the floor next to a couch.
Scott joined Virgil in the living room, and each sank into a couch on their backs.
"I'm more than wiped out." said Scott, "Oh – you didn't start dinner yet did you, Grandma?" he said loudly.
"No, but I'm about to," Grandma Tracy answered.
"No don't – to save you some time and work, Virgil and I brought back authentic Japanese cuisine from Taipei!"
"Where's Gordon? He won't want to miss this food," Scott asked.
"Gordon's been asleep since you guys left to catch that solar panel." Grandma Tracy came over and got the bags of food to put in the kitchen.
"Oh, thanks, Grandma," Scott said. "But he doesn't usually sleep in the middle of the day. That's Alan's thing."
"What's Alan's?" Alan came into the room after smelling the food. "Wow! Something smells good!"
"Hey, Alan!" Scott and Virgil said at the same time.
"Alan – wake your brother up and tell him that's he's missing food."
"Okay, but if we leave him alone - there'll be more for me!" Alan laughed, but he was still on his way to find Gordon.
"Gordon promised yesterday to clean the oven for me," Grandma Tracy said. "As soon as everyone eats I still want that oven cleaned. It really needs it after my little accident with the lasagna yesterday."
Grandma Tracy tossed cleaning gloves and the oven cleaner on the counter next to the stove.
The last place Alan looked for Gordon was his bedroom, and he was surprised to find a lump on his bed under the covers that turned out to be his brother.
"Really? He doesn't usually nap in his own room – he says it's too easy for us to find him." Alan mumbled thoughtfully and went in to wake him.
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After Scott had cleaned off the table, Virgil arranged the containers of food, Styrofoam plates, and disposable chopsticks for everyone.
Scott yelled, "Dinner's ON – Buffett style!"
Even John came down from Thunderbird 5 when he heard what they were having for dinner. Alan came running to the food, while Gordon walked.
"Hey Gordo, how's your head?" Virgil asked.
"What do you mean, Virg?" Gordon asked.
"John said you got knocked out during that time we couldn't contact you during that deep sea rescue earlier."
"That's what he told me," John added with his mouth full.
"Oh, I'm fine, just tired and got a little headache – probably because I haven't eaten in hours - gimme some of that seafood dish that I don't know how to pronounce!"
"Yeah?" Virgil spoke up, "Oh, and one of the scientists you rescued told me that you got hit by several pieces of equipment when the lab shifted. Is that when your comms got knocked out?"
"Probably, but they came back on," Gordon said with his mouth full.
"You better ask Brains to check it out anyway," Scott instructed. "And Maybe Brains should check you out too," Scott said, hoping he'd take it as an order.
Gordon was too busy chewing to respond.
The family ate together for the first time in a long time.
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"Gordon – Oven!" Grandma Tracy yelled when Gordon stretched out on the couch after dinner.
"Come on Grandma – there's no room out there yet – it's Alan and Scott's turn for dishes – I'm just letting them finish."
"Alright, don't disappear. Everything we used tonight was disposable. I'm watching you." Grandma Tracy threatened.
Gordon closed his eyes again, just for a moment, he thought. Scott caught him pressing on his head with his palms.
"Did you take anything for your headache? Or visit with Brains after dinner?" Scott asked.
"No, I think I'll be fine now that we ate." Even as Gordon said it, he felt a bad feeling. He jumped up and ran to the bathroom. Curious about why he ran, Scott followed him. He peeked in at Gordon and saw him violently throwing up. So violently that he thought he might pass out and fall head first into the toilet.
"Oh man, Gordon!" Scott went in and supported Gordon with his hands holding his ribs on either side until it was over. Gordon nearly collapsed, and Scott let him sit down on the floor.
"Oh no all that good food, completely wasted," Gordon whined. "If I didn't feel so lousy I'd go start over on dinner."
"What caused that?" Scott asked, "Are you getting the flu?"
"No way, maybe I got a bad shrimp," Gordon suggested.
"We all ate more than you did and we all had shrimp." Scott pointed out.
The next sound they heard was Grandma Tracy standing in the living room yelling, "Gordon! I told you not to disappear! Come clean the oven like you promised."
"Do you want me to clean the oven for Grandma?" Scott volunteered.
"No, I promised - I'll go do it," Gordon said, and Scott gave him a hand to stand up.
"Okay, Alan challenged me to a game of 'zombies something or another.' See you later," Scott said.
Gordon left the bathroom, but Scott stayed a while to clean up after his brother.
In the living room, Virgil sat on a couch with his tablet to read some specs from Brains for a new deck and elevator system on Thunderbird 2.
Gordon walked by Virgil and to the kitchen where he put on the gloves and picked up the can oven cleaner. He took the racks out and sprayed the inside of the oven.
"Grandma Tracy? You know they make really good self-cleaning ovens and stoves now. Why don't you get one?" Gordon nearly begged.
"Because this one works just fine and I don't need a new-fangled one." Grandma Tracy stood nearby watching Gordon. He stopped scrubbing. Grandma Tracy couldn't see his face, but his eyes closed.
"What are you doing? Did you find something you can't identify in there?" Grandma Tracy asked after a few moments of no cleaning going on.
"Oh, no – I'm okay." Gordon was startled and started scrubbing again. Grandma Tracy went back to the dining table and started scrubbing it.
Gordon blinked a few time and rose up a little like he was going to back out. He groaned softly and fell forward into the oven from his waist to the top of his head.
Grandma Tracy had only finished wiping half of the table when there was a loud crash in the kitchen.
Virgil looked up toward the kitchen, but couldn't see anything from where he was so he looked back at his tablet screen.
"Gordon? What did you break?" Grandma Tracy asked on her way back to the kitchen area.
When she rounded the counter, she found Gordon on the broken oven door, but the rest of the oven was leaning forward on top of him. Only his legs were visible.
"Virgil! Help your brother!" Grandma Tracy yelled.
"So you really did break something?" Virgil asked on his way. He looked around the corner to see what was going on.
"Gordon! Gordon!" he called more urgently, "what did you just do?"
Virgil lifted the oven off of Gordon with one hand and pulled him out from under it by the back of his belt.
The door was off its hinges under Gordon's belly. Virgil felt down Gordon's back, neck and arms quickly for injuries before he carefully turned him over and off the oven door.
Scott and Alan showed up and watched too. Alan asked, "What happened?"
"I don't know for sure yet," Virgil answered.
"Help me put him down over there where there's more room than there is here," Virgil asked. Scott grabbed Gordon's legs, and they gently took him closer to the piano. They put him back on the floor on his back.
"What happened?" Alan asked. "Did the oven fall on him?"
"Not sure," Virgil said again.
"More likely," Scott said, "that he passed out, and the oven tipped forward with his weight on the door," Virgil suggested. "He was already complaining of a headache, and vomited after dinner - then he stuck his head in the oven with a lot of oven cleaner."
"All the symptoms of a severe head injury," Virgil said grimly.
"Brains – met us in Medical," Virgil said over the comms.
"What could have happened just since we had dinner?" Brains wondered out loud.
Virgil started to pick Gordon up to carry him to Brains' lab, but Gordon woke up.
"Oh ouch, wait what are you doing Virg?" Gordon put his hand to his temple and squirmed a little, "Put me down!"
"You fainted – like a little girl." Virgil put Gordon down but stayed close just in case.
"I did not faint!" Gordon argued.
"Come on - you're still gonna let Brains and John check you out," Scott said.
"No! Really – I'm fine." Gordon argued, but Virgil and Scott were herding him toward the elevator. Alan followed looking very worried.
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Brains looked up when he heard them coming. "What happened?"
"I think Gordon passed out. We also just picked the oven up off of his back," Virgil said.
"So we're not sure if the oven fell and knocked him out or if he passed out and tipped the oven over on himself."
Gordon was strangely quiet. Alan got in front of Gordon and looked at his face. "Are you okay?" Alan didn't know what else to say. Gordon didn't answer him anyway.
Brains already had the CT scanner, ultrasound, and Medical imaging devices all set up. "Come on over here, Gordon."
"No!" Gordon argued, "I'm fine – I just need some sleep." He backed away from Virgil right into Scott.
"Come on – just let me go to my room." Gordon stepped away from Scott and headed for the elevator.
Half way there, Gordon grabbed his stomach and doubled over. "Ohnnn!" he groaned. "I think I'm gonna be sick!" Scott and Virgil were at his side in an instant and kept him from falling.
"Gordon - Nausea is a symptom of head injury. You'd better let me check you out." Brains encouraged.
"Fine." Gordon gave in and let Virgil help him to Brains' work table.
"Are you having trouble seeing?" Scott asked when he noticed that Gordon was blinking a lot and rubbing his eyes.
"I guess. You're a little blurry." Gordon finally admitted.
Virgil felt around Gordon's head.
"What are you doing?"
"Checking for missing parts," Virgil answered.
"Oh – ha ha." Gordon gave him a dirty look.
"Lay back Gordon." Brains instructed.
A machine on the left side of his head hummed, then a flash of light surrounded his head. Brains extended an arm from one large machine over Gordon's face. A lens on the arm shined several red lines that moved slowly across his face and from the same arm from the side, three red lines moved horizontally from the top of his head to his shoulders.
"Thunderbird 5, John? Are you getting the data?"
"Yes –Receiving now."
"F.A.B." Brian acknowledged.
"I'm okay – right?" Gordon asked. "John?"
"Don't worry Gordon. I see a spot that I'm not sure what it is. It might be perfectly normal. I sent your data to Dr. Brackett in London. As soon as he gets out of surgery, he will get back to us."
"Oh no!" Gordon said, "I know you John – if it were normal, you wouldn't question it."
"Don't panic – get some rest. I'll contact you as soon as Dr. B. contacts me. I think you do have a mild concussion," said John.
"That's not so bad, right? I'll be back in deep water after a good night's sleep."
"Well, maybe not that fast. It is still a head injury, and you should take care of yourself." Brains warned.
"F.A.B., John." Gordon scooted off the table by himself and started to walk away. Instead of going to his room, he went to Thunderbird 4. The others watched him.
"He shouldn't be alone." Brains cautioned. Gordon grabbed his stomach and leaned on a pod that waited to be loaded into a pod bay.
"Whoa, Gordon," Scott asked as he jogged to catch up, "Where are you going?"
"I just wanted to sit in Thunderbird 4 for a while."
"If you're nauseated or feeling dizzy you should be in your room where we can help you if you need it."
Scott turned Gordon around, and Alan walked with them to Gordon's room. Virgil stayed to help Brain's load the pod.
"As cluttered as your room is, I'm still staying with you among all the trash to be sure you get in bed and stay there. Alan, could you bring me my tablet from the coffee table?"
"Sure Scott, but I can stay with Gordon, you should get some rest." Alan offered.
"F.A.B. Alan," Scott said.
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Scott awakened by himself and looked at the clock. "5 o'clock in the morning – and John never called back?" Scott sat up on his bed. "How long is Dr. Brackett gonna be in surgery?"
Scott looked at the clock one more time to be sure and called, "Thunderbird 5, Come in!"
"Yes, Scott?" John said.
"Well, did you hear anything about Gordon?" Scott asked.
"Yes, I did. Dr. Brackett thinks it would be better to come to Tracy Island to talk to all of us. He should be there about six a.m., and I'll be there soon too."
"What? Why in person?" Scott asked.
"I don't know - he didn't tell me anything. Alan was still sitting up keeping an eye on Gordon when I called. Virgil volunteered to go pick up Dr. Brackett so everyone else could stay asleep. He's on his way."
"F.A.B., Thunderbird 5. See you soon." Scott got dressed and knocked on everyone's doors to wake them up. Except for Brains who was already in his lab. Gordon's room was last, and he only went in to check on him. Alan was asleep on the floor by Gordon's bed like a loyal dog. Just to make himself feel better, Scott found Gordon's wrist and took his pulse.
"Pulse seems okay," Scott said.
Gordon rolled onto his back and groaned like he might wake up. Scott waited. Gordon yelled, "Get those kids out of that dumpster!"
Scott smiled wondering what was going on in his brother's dream.
Gordon put his arm over his face and pressed his head deeper into the pillow before begging, "Scott – Virgil! Noooo!"
"That doesn't sound fun anymore," Scott whispered. He sat forward and reached for Gordon's hand to wake him up gently.
"Come on Gordon, wake up."
"Nooo! Agnnnn - help! Help! Thunderbird 5!"
"Gordon! You're having a nightmare. Everything is okay." Scott squeezed his hand and gently shook his shoulder.
"Oh, Scott? What's wrong?" Gordon blinked.
"Nothing's wrong, you were yelling in your sleep. It must have been some nightmare, you woke Alan too, but it's time to get up anyway."
"Oh, yeah – I guess," Gordon said.
"I came in to wake you in case you wanted to get up and get dressed, or maybe take a shower. Dr. Brackett is coming to talk to us. Virgil went to get him."
"Why is he coming here? Couldn't he just tell us?" Alan asked, fully awake when he heard the doctor was making a special trip for Gordon.
"I don't know. John's coming down too." Scott said. "If you don't want anyone coming to your room to see you, you should get up and get dressed if you feel up to it. This place is a mess."
"You're right." Gordon agreed.
"Do you want me to stay in case you need help?" Scott asked.
"No," Gordon answered. "I'll be fine. I think I'm feeling a lot better."
"I'll stay with him," Alan volunteered.
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"Good morning everyone." Dr. Brackett greeted the family waiting around Brains' lab. "Come on Gordon, get up on the table."
Gordon reluctantly hopped up onto the table. "Why the rush? I feel much better this morning."
"We need to get this taken care of as soon as possible." Dr. Brackett said urgently.
"As I think you all know," Dr. Brackett continued, "John saw something odd on the images Brains took of Gordon's head injury yesterday."
"What was it Doc?" John asked quickly.
"Very serious indeed." Dr. Brackett began.
"What? It's serious? But I feel so much better than I did yesterday!" Gordon interrupted.
"I think I can help you right now. There might be a little discomfort, but a brave member of International Rescue can take it without anesthetic, right?"
"I'm not sure! What are you going to do?" Gordon asked, he voice becoming shaky.
"Don't worry about it. Lay back with your head turned to look at your lovely grandmother over there." Dr. Brackett gently guided Gordon's chin, so his head was in the position he wanted it. "Now stay very still."
Gordon did as he instructed, other than trembling.
"Now Virgil, I need you to come over and hold him down, especially his hands. Keep a hand on his leg in case he kicks." Virgil did what he was told smiling gently at Gordon. That scared Gordon even more.
Dr. Bracket reached over to the counter and got a long pair of surgical scissors with very sharp points.
Gordon saw and gasped, "What are you going to do?"
"Keep looking at you Grandma's face Gordon." Dr. Brackett said. When Gordon looked at Grandma Tracy, she looked scared and worried, and it didn't help.
Gordon felt the doctor's fingers touch his hair and tensed up. Dr. Brackett nodded at Virgil, and he held Gordon down with his hands tightly crossed over his chest.
"Easy . . . Easy - Take a deep breath, Gordon!"
Gordon whined through his clenched teeth. Virgil could see what the doctor was doing and felt Gordon's hands and whole body trembling. "Take it easy Bro." he encouraged.
They all heard, snip – snip – snip, "and we almost got it, brace yourself this is gonna hurt a little." Dr. Brackett prepared his patient.
Gordon whined again. Virgil pressed down harder.
"And there! I got all of it." Dr. Brackett finally announced.
The Doctor held up a lumpy thing with a lot of blond hair sticking out of it.
"What? What happened?" Gordon asked, rubbing his head as he sat up.
"I think it's made up of peanut butter, gum, hard candy and perhaps a little seaweed." Dr. Brackett smiled. "But I'll send it to the lab to be sure it's not contagious and can't multiply."
"THAT's what I saw on the images?" John asked loudly, grinning.
Gordon got tears in his eyes he was so relieved at first. Wait a minute! You guys scared the crap out of me, and all it was is gum in my hair?"
Virgil messed up the hair that Gordon had left on his head, which was most of it. Scott jogged over and pretended to punch Gordon in the stomach.
"I'll get you guys!" Gordon threatened. "You won't know where or when, but beware!"
Almost everyone went their separate ways and left Gordon sitting in Brains' lab, except Alan who was on the floor he was laughing so hard.
The End.