A/N Chapter 2, for anyone who's actually reading :) I know it' quite ramble-y and some of it might not make sense because i'm still to lazy to proof-read it. Sorry. Don't hate? Enjoy! :)

Chapter 2

A few hours later, I woke up, still on Alan's chest. He was half asleep now, but when I shifted he looked down and smiled.

"Go back to sleep," he whispered. "It's just past midnight."

"I can't. I'm wide awake now. How's it going?"

"It's alright…" he said slowly.

"Alan, tell me the truth."

"It's not going great. The natives are still refusing to accept the guys, and Scott's been trying to reason with them for the past two and a half hours. Emphasise on trying. Virg and Gords have had quite a bit of success with the fire, but it's spreading rapidly, and if they aren't careful, it might be out of even International Rescue's control."

"Is dad awake yet?"

"No. John told me that he's gone over his caffeine intake for the day by six cups of coffee. I guess it really hit him when he fell asleep."

I nodded in agreement. "Is it still stormy?"

There was a brief flash of… something that might have been fear in Alan's eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it came. "Uh-huh," he nodded.

"Are you alright Al?"

He nodded again.

"You don't look it," I stated bluntly.

"Gee, thanks Lil!"

"Seriously, you look really tired, go to sleep."

"I can't," he admitted. "Too worried."

"Please?"

"Really Lily, I can't. I've already tried. I promise, when everything's a bit safer, I'll try again."

I nodded. That was good enough for me.

"Can I watch?" I asked, indicating to the screen, which was consumed by a large image of John tapping furiously at the computer keyboard, but no Scott, Virgil or Gordon.

Alan shook his head. "Sorry Lil. Scooter didn't want you to see it."

"Why?"

"Because it's quite scary."

"How come you're allowed to see it then?"

"Because I'm three-and-a-half years older than you."

"That's not fair."

"Seriously Lily. I'm not watching either."

"Hmph."

He laughed at me. I glared at him. He ruffled my hair. I glared even harder.

"Lily, seriously, go back to sleep. You look knackered."

"Only if you do."

"Lily you're younger than me. You need more sleep. Teenagers do. It's a fact."

"You're only eighteen."

"And I had a couple of cokes about an hour ago, so I'm not sleeping anytime soon."

"God help us, you're turning into dad!"

"Nah. I'm not addicted."

I snorted.

John looked up on the screen.

"Hi Lil."

"Hey Johnny."

"Go back to sleep!"

"Argh not you aswell? I'm. Not. Tired."

"And I. Don't. Care. You need sleep. You're fifteen. It's scientifically proven that teenagers need more sleep than anyone."

"Alan's a teenager."

"Yeah, and he should be asleep too, but I watched him drink two cans of coke an hour ago, so there's no way he'll be able to sleep for a while."

"I could drink some coke…" I threatened.

"Don't you even think about it."

"How's it going John?" Alan butted in, to stop us from arguing.

"The damn natives are going to get fried if they don't start listening to Scott. Other than that, Virg and Gordon are beginning to get the fire under control, but it's dangerously close to the 'village' that they live in, so unless Scott makes any progress within the next, shall we say fifteen minutes, they're all gonna burn to death. Which is quite grim."

"Fifteen minutes?"

"Yeah, I reckon. It's a bit of a weird situation really. Essentially, it's just a fire, but it's so big, and out of control, and dangerous, that it's more than just a fire."

For about the ninety sixth time today/yesterday, I wondered why dad and the boys did this sort of thing. I know the satisfaction and pride that comes from a successful rescue, but equally, I know the frustration and sorrow that comes with a failed one. It just seems a bit too much for a billionaire ex-astronaut and four (or five if you include Allie) of his children to literally be carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders.

"Scott to base?"

"Come in, Scott."

"John, I'm making progress."

"Great. What sort of progress?"

"A few people are beginning to listen to me. Not many, but some. I might be able to move some of the younger ones if their parents trust me."

John nodded seriously. "Well done Scott. If you have to though, and I'm perfectly serious, just pick them up and carry them out. This is getting ridiculous."

Scott nodded in agreement. "Will do Johnny. Is dad still asleep?"

"Yeah. And I'm not waking him."

"He's gonna give you hell for a while."

"I live on a space station Scott, he can't touch me."

Scott laughed. "True. Is Lily awake yet?"

"Uh-huh," John said.

"Don't let her watch."

"She can hear you Scott."

"She's got a name," I butted in.

"Sorry Lily. But I really don't want you to watch."

"Fine," I huffed. "But I'm NOT going back to sleep."

"Fine, whatever you say. I gotta get back to reasoning with the stubborn asses… I mean friendly natives… Over and out."

"FAB Scott," John replied as the connection died. I looked up at Alan, who tightened (again, seriously he's going to squeeze the life out of me soon) his grip on me. I didn't mind. He was just as worried as I was.

"Allie?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you listening to?"

"Just stuff?" he waved his hand vaguely.

"What sort of stuff?"

I know I'm an irritating younger sister, but I want to know now. It's the middle of the night, I'm a naturally inquisitive person, and when I'm tired, I talk a lot. Not that I'm tired…

"Stuff that we wrote…" Aw he sounded so embarrassed!

"Can I listen?"

"No. I'll play it to you before we perform it, but not now. It's a bit loud and clash-y."

"Er right."

"Please Lily, go to sleep?"

"No. Not 'till you do."

"I still can't sleep."

"Nor can I. I feel like something's going to go wrong."

"It won't though," Alan insisted firmly. "Close your eyes."

"No."

"You can be so annoying sometimes Lily," he said jokily.

"I know. Kind of the point."

We lay there for a long time, both internally panicking. Something was about to go wrong. I knew it, so did Alan. Neither of us wanted to sleep, in case something did go wrong.

It didn't take long.

"John, we've got a problem." Scott sounded quite worried. Shit.

"What is it Scott?"

"Well I've just got all the people out, but Gordon's been burnt… quite badly. We might not be able to finish putting the fire out with just two people."

"Leave it then."

"NO! Our primary concern is to save lives. We're just endangering loads more lives if we leave the fire burning."

"Well Scott what else do you propose you do?"

"Sort of why I was radioing in… to ask you."

"I've told you what I think."

"And I've told you, as acting head of IR, that we will not be following through with that idea."

"Then what are you going to do?"

"Pick up Alan," Scott whispered very quietly.

"What?"

"Pick up Alan. He's our last hope. I can be there in less than an hour in 'One, and then fly him back. There's spare fireproof equipment. Virg needs to look after Gordon, so it will give him time to sort everything else before returning to the danger zone."

"Are you fucking insane Scott? You're just gonna willingly bring Alan into this rescue."

"Yeah that was the idea. Look John, I don't like it any more than you, but I have to act as International's leader right now, not Alan's big brother. We're one man down. Therefore, we're bringing on 'the sub'."

"I don't like this at all Scott."

"I know John, but you're safe on your space station, 22400 miles above the earth. There isn't much you can do. You don't know the situation. You don't really understand. As the Team Leader, I have made the executive decision to bring Alan on, and you don't get a say in the matter."

John didn't like that very much. "Fine. Do whatever the hell you want Scott, but if anything bad happens, then don't come running to me for ideas. I gave you my best shot. You can just go and put our kid brother in danger, and I'll sit back and not say anything. You know how I feel about this."

Then there were a few minutes of silence, before both John and Scott realised that Alan and I had seen the whole thing.

"Al, I'll be there to collect you in not much under an hour ok?"

"Yeah," he replied. He didn't sound quite as enthusiastic as I'd thought he might. I could see John's smirk at his lack of enthusiasm.

I suddenly realised that through all of this, I had been utterly forgotten. In my mind I began to devise a plan, while Scott and Alan discussed where 'One could land without attracting too much attention. The answer is nowhere, by the way, but Scott and his newfound optimism said he'd think of something and let Alan know where he was after that. Alan had to get a permission slip, or rather, forge on, that would get him out of the school without setting off a million and one alarms. John had very reluctantly agreed to post dad's signature on the screen for Alan to copy. Finding the headmaster's signature would be a little harder, but John has the whole internet and pretty much every database in the world at his fingertips. It wouldn't take him too long.

Scott cut the link, so he could prepare 'One for takeoff. I turned to Alan.

"I'm coming with you."

"No."

"Yes."

"Are you mad?"

"Probably. But I'm coming with you."

"What the hell Lily?"

"I'm not staying here on my own. I'll just follow you out, and sneak into 'One's storage compartment. You don't even have to know. Just tell Scott you had no idea when I'm finally discovered. Please Allie. Scrap that. I'm going anyway and you can't stop me."

"I hate you sometimes Lily. Put something black on and tie your hair back then."

"Love you too Al," I said cheerfully.

He left the room while I changed into a black t-shirt and black jeans. It wouldn't do much against 'One's bright interior, but it would help me keep covered for the sneaking out bit.

I pulled my long, dirty blond hair back into a messy plait and surveyed myself in the mirror, declaring I was good to go. I slipped my feet into a pair of tattered black sneakers, and turned my watch off, to make it look like I had gone to sleep. John knew, but he wouldn't tell. He was thoroughly against the whole idea anyway.

Alan knocked on my door again, twenty minutes later.

"Ready?" he hissed.

"Ready," I hissed back. He had a forged note from John that allowed him out of school, and he too was wearing all black.

"Put this on," he whispered, handing me a black beanie to hide my hair. Blond hair can be a curse when sneaking out. I should know, I've snuck out enough times in my life. I pulled the hat over my head and nodded at him.

With a finger to his lips, indicating silence, he began to tiptoe down the carpeted hallways. Our school is like a friggin' hotel, with carpets in the corridors and chandeliers in the dining rooms. Shows how much we pay for our education here.

Suddenly, I crashed into… scrap that I don't even know what it was. But it made quite a bit of noise. Alan and I froze.

"Lily you idiot," he said under his breath. I glared at him. We stood very still in the shadows for thirty seconds, but it seemed like everyone was fast asleep, so we ran down the stairs to the front desk. Alan threw himself to the ground, true army style and rolled under it to gut to the front entrance. I wiggled under it, slightly less gracefully, but also slightly less show-offy. We got up quietly, and sprinted for the gates, where Alan scanned his pass with baited breath. If it didn't work now, we were scuppered.

A few seconds later, the light flashed green and the gates clicked. We were out!

I hopped and skipped down the drive with Alan following me, not quite as happily, but there was still a smile on his face. We had just broken out of one of the most top security schools in the world. There was hope for the future if we could do that.

Let me explain… I'm aware that I have just dumbed down the security of the school as much as it's possible to. I'll start by giving you the basic layout of the campus.

Well our school is massive. It takes a good half an hour minimum to 'speed-walk' from one side of campus to the other. There are two main gates- the north gate and the south gate. Doesn't take a genius to work out where they are. The North Gate is the big main gate, seeing as the front of the school is north-facing, and that's the one people usually use. The South Gate is at the back, opening onto the airfield and the woods. That's the gate that Alan and I were using, as we were heading for the airfield.

The school itself is split into four blocks, the dorms; the maths, science and English block; the 'creative' block as we've nicknamed it, which is art, drama, food tech, D.T etc; the languages block which is also the geography and history block, and the main block, which holds the cafeteria, the assembly hall, the gym and the entrance hall. Every room is smart and clean, even the friggin' toilets. They don't drop on hygiene anywhere in our school. I think they permanently expect surprise inspections from the rich parents.

Right, so we have four blocks and massive grounds so far. So let me explain the security system. To leave campus in term time with your parents, first your parents/parents secretaries/your legal guardian have to write to the school. Like actual ink on paper. We don't leave school to go to the orthodontist at my school; we leave school to travel across the world for various reasons. To leave school, the headmaster has to approve of the letter, and then log it into the school computer system. After that, an out of lesson card in provided, and every teacher who teaches you has to sign and approve the fact that you'll be out of school for a bit. Then, and only then, do you return to the Headteacher who in turn signs an out of school pass that must be scanned at the school gates and at the office. You can't creep past one without the other. Unless you're me and Alan, and you like to roll under desks. But even then, Alan still had a pass to get him out. I think it's fairly impossible to leave the school otherwise. The gates are literally 20ft tall with a 15ft perimeter wall. I'm serious. It's rumoured that the wall goes 10ft deep as well. You can't fly in because there's nowhere to land. It's actually very cleverly arranged. The four blocks are positioned so no-one can land between them or around them without damaging something. The only place you can land is the airfield.

So you can't walk in, drive in, use the gates without a pass, fly in or dig under. Have I missed anything?

Oh yeah, all parents/secretaries etc, have to register their voice in the system, along with their thumbprints and DNA swabs, so that they can open the gates from the outside. That's the only way they can be opened from the other side, by speaking into them. If an unregistered voice tries to command the gates, the whole school goes into lockdown for a minimum of two hours. I'm utterly serious.

So that's the security of our school in a nutshell. A very large nutshell.

Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of lightening, illuminating the whole school. I panicked, and dropped to the ground, knowing full well that anyone could look out of their dorm window. It would ruin everything if somebody saw us now.

I looked up and realised that my panic was nowhere near close to Alan's. He was frozen in fear, and even though the lightening had stopped, he looked like he was being lit up.

"Alan?" I hissed. He didn't answer. "Alan?"

A couple of seconds later, he took a shaky breath and seemed to return to earth.

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Y-yes I am. Let's just go quickly Lily."

I nodded, swallowed heavily and sprinted for the trees with Alan on my heels. We ran through the rain, soaking wet and shivering, but eventually we made it to the bushes and trees.

"I'm going first," Alan said in my ear. I was on the verge of refusing, but I couldn't see the point, so I just nodded again. Alan got down on his stomach and slid underneath them gracefully, barely scratching himself. I say gracefully… it is quite difficult to be graceful when you're sliding through the mud, so I'll go with nearly gracefully.

I didn't want to get my clothes covered in mud, nor did I particularly want to get to know nature very well, so I chose the other option. Hacking my way though the branches like there was no tomorrow. I gained a lot of cuts on my arms and face, but I was through faster (if less gracefully) than Alan.

He took one look at me and just glared. "You utter idiot Lily. You've got blood dripping all down your arms. Those branches are so much sharper than they initially look. Why the hell do you do stuff like this?"

I rolled my eyes, scanning the sky.

"He's here! Scott's here! I can see him just over there!"

As if on cue, Alan's wrist comm. beeped.

"Scotty?"

"Al, I'm about to land. Can you see me?"

"Er yeah… you're basically on top of me."

"I'll try not to squash you then," Scott said dryly, cutting the call. Alan turned to me.

"Right, slip in the underbelly hatch as soon as you can. I'll knock the button open for you. If you're gonna get found at all, don't do it until we're nearly there, or even better, actually on the ground again."

I nodded. "Good luck Allie."

"What?"

"Good luck. You're going on a mission. Duh."

"Oh yeah," he grinned. "You too. For whatever might happen."

I nodded again. "See you in a bit." I grasped Alan's forearm, trying not to betray too much emotion. The funny feeling that something was wrong had returned and I didn't like it.

Alan grasped my forearm in return, and I could see what he was feeling in his eyes. Alan's eyes always betray emotion. "Go," he said urgently. "Hide or Scott'll see you."

"See ya Alan," I whispered, disappearing into the darkness.

A few minutes later, Scott pulled 'One down neatly and climbed down to meet Alan. I waited until they were safely climbing the steps, and then I rushed out of my hiding place as the underbelly hatch began to open. Silently thanking Alan, I stepped onto the rope ladder and began to climb, ignoring my fear of heights. Finally, I was up. I crept across to the shadows, where I tucked myself away and hid, until it was time to be found.