Disclaimer: I do not own The Thunderbirds!
A/N: NO FLAMES! Not accepted. Thank-you.
2nd A/N: AU because John has a wife a little girl.
Chapter 10 – Teenaged Annabelle
Approx. 8 years later
"Annabelle! Are you ready! Uncle Scott's got the jet ready!" John called along the hall to Annabelle's open bedroom door; she poked her head out and smiled disarmingly at him.
"I'm almost ready Dad. I'll be down in a second." The 13-year-old said, before disappearing again into her room. It was her first day in 7th grade and she didn't want to be late. She went to a boarding school, so she didn't have to come home every day. But she had a cell phone and her International Rescue watch, her iPod was loaded with her Uncle Virgil's music and she had her laptop with her webcam. She had all the means of communication with the Island she needed. Annabelle had grown up very much. Her hair had grown out of its curls and it now hung in gentle waves. Her bright blue eyes had the same spark they had when she was younger but she'd matured a whole lot too. You had to when you live with Alan and Gordon. Minutes later Annabelle came downstairs in her uniform. The uniform wasn't enforced at her school but John told her that she looked good in it. It made her look grown up. Annabelle had proclaimed she didn't want to grow up, but John had told her that she had to. It was part of life. She had been 9 when she told him she was never going to grow up, but she had grown up so much now. John smiled at her as she gave a twirl.
"How do I look?" She said as she spun again. John smiled at her.
"Beautiful as always Belle." He said giving her a kiss on the forehead and she smiled in return.
"Uncle Virgil?" She turned to her uncle who sat at the piano, "what do you think?"
"Beautiful. You remember what I told you?" He said, she sighed heavily.
"Confidence and a smile will draw people to me. But I've got lots of friends anyway." Annabelle rolling her eyes as she spoke.
"How many go to Ardelle?" he asked. Annabelle frowned, he had a point. Not one of her friends from Rotelle were going to Ardelle Academy for Girls. Why her father insisted on sending her to a boarding school she didn't know. Her friends from Rotelle had made her promise to write and she had, but none had replied. They had either forgotten her, weren't really her friends, or already had new friends.
"None from Rotelle, but I'll make heaps of friends at Ardelle, Uncle Virg. You know that. You met them at the orientation thing last year. Don't you remember Rebecca Andrews?" Virgil paled a little, "you're my auntie's old boyfriend right? Virgil Tracy!" Annabelle had put on a higher pitched voice to recite the words that had rung in both her and Virgil's ears all the way home. Virgil had dated Rebecca's auntie but that was years ago, when 'Catherine' had been a totally cool name to have. Now it was part of life you were a Catherine or you weren't, no big deal. She gave him a smile planted a kiss on his cheek grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl on the kitchen bench and dashed off out to the runway, where Gordon, Alan and Scott were waiting for her.
"Tell Grandpa I told him goodbye and that I love him okay Uncle Alan?" Annabelle said as she hugged her youngest Uncle.
"Will do Annie. Call us when you get settled okay?" He said, she smiled.
"Sure thing. See you for Spring Break!" She called as she climbed into the plane. Her friends at Ardelle had seen Tracy One before and thought it was awesome. But, they said, it was nowhere near as cool as Thunderbird One or Two. Annabelle never commented back to that, she had no comeback and she couldn't tell them she knew International Rescue. It was hard enough trying to remain fairly low-key when you had her surname. One of the most famous surnames in the world.
Jeff Tracy, Astronaut.
Scott Tracy, decorated pilot of the air force.
John Tracy, author and discovered The Tracy Quasar System.
Virgil Tracy accomplish pianist and celebrated artist.
Gordon Tracy, Gold medallist in the 200m butterfly.
Alan Tracy champion Race car driver.
Then there was her. Annabelle Tracy. The outcast. Not talented in the piano or the arts, she wasn't into flying or space really, not anymore. Didn't like swimming and hated the risked involved in driving a race car. But there was one thing she could do. Fight. After years of roughhousing with Uncle Alan she had learned quite a few good hits to make, not to mention the self-defence her Uncle Scott taught her when she told them she got bullied at Rotelle for her name and that she looked nothing like her family. She'd show them!
Annabelle looked around her dorm room. She shared it with 3 other girls. Kiara Danes from Santa Anta, California; Jacqueline Bernard all the way from Nantes, France and then there was Adelaide Foster from Melbourne, Australia. Annabelle found it strange that a girl from Australia would be named after a city. But that was beside the point, when she'd walked in all of them had looked at her like she was some sort of alien or she had two heads or something.
"You're Annabelle Tracy right?" Adelaide said, Annabelle nodded shaking the girl's hand, she could feel calluses under her fingers, Adelaide was farm girl, "Fair dinkum? Struth… I'm Adelaide by the way. You can have the bed next to mine." Adelaide became Annabelle's first friend.
"You can call me Annie or Belle if you like." Annabelle offered, Adelaide smiled.
"Addie, my parents only call me Adelaide anymore. You got siblings?"
"No. A lot of Uncle's though. Four. And one is expecting my first cousin soon." Annabelle and Adelaide fell into easy conversation. It was easy to fit in with her. Adelaide was an only child and knew very little about the Tracy's but Annabelle was helpful and filled her in on everything that Jacqueline and Kiara would already know. Adelaide listened to her intently but didn't ask any questions when Annabelle showed her a picture of her family and pointed out her Dad. And a faded but well-photo of her mother proved most peoples suspicions that Annabelle was adopted or had been born of sperm donation. She looked only a little like her mother, her long waves and her blue eyes were the same colour but other than that nothing tied her to John or Katherine.
"Hey baby girl! What's going on!" Uncle Scott had answered her call.
"Hey Uncle Scott. I'm settled in my room and my roommates seem like really nice girls. I've got an American, a Frenchwoman and an Australian." Annabelle rattled off. Scott smiled over the connection.
"Wow, A real bunch. I'm sure you'll get along fine. Everyone else is outside, want me to patch you through to your dad?" He asked, Annabelle shook her head.
"No. Just tell him I'm fine and I'll send him an email tonight okay?" Scott nodded in response.
"Alright, will do. Talk to you later sweetheart." He said, she smiled and blew him a kiss.
"Okay, I love you Uncle Scott." He smiled in reply and blew her a kiss right back.
"Love you too Belle." As Annabelle closed the connection the door opened and Addie and Jacqueline returned.
"You two look so tired! What was it like? Cheerleader tryouts?" She said turning from her computer.
"Tiring. You should try out tomorrow. It is fun, but really you get a workout." Adelaide said; Annabelle gave her a small smile.
She shook her head "Cheerleading isn't my thing." She said standing up, she stretched and grabbed her pyjamas it was about 7:30 at Ardelle and it was lights out at 11:30. All girls were expected up at 6:45 sharp, showered and dressed and having breakfast in the hall by 7:15. Classes started at 8:00 sharp and if you were late, detention. Annabelle had made a pact the Adelaide that they wouldn't let each other be late. So it was Annabelle's job to wake Addie in the morning and they would run to the dining hall then run to their classes. They wouldn't be late. Ever.
"Annabelle Tracy? Instrument?" Annabelle looked up at the instruments left after most had been chosen.
"Acoustic Guitar." She said confidently. She'd never played it before but how different was it to a piano? But Annabelle found that she had a natural gift for the guitar. The teacher told her she would need her own, in tune and strung properly. Annabelle agreed and on the weekend her and Addie took the train into New York and they found the best Music shop in the city and Annabelle bought her first Acoustic Guitar. It was perfectly in tune and strung with the right materials.
"What are your family gonna say when they found out you spent 75 dollars on a guitar?"
"They'll be glad I found something I'm good at. Don't worry Addie. I won't practice in the room unless I'm alone. It'll be like when I'm at home and Uncle Virgil can't sleep, he'll go downstairs and play the piano. I'll move out of the room if I can't sleep and play somewhere else." Addie smiled at least her friend wasn't inconsiderate.
"Sunrise and I lifted my head; then I smile at your picture sitting next to my bed; sunset and you're feeling okay; cause you smile at the letter that I sent you today; and I can't wait til I see you again; and we both say remember when; the band played on the Fourth of July; and you held me on your shoulders way up high…" Adelaide woke to hear someone singing, it didn't take her long to figure out it was Belle. She was in the bathroom on a Saturday, signing loudly over the sound of the water, but it wasn't that she was bad; no she was really good, on pitch and in tune and everything. Adelaide smiled; her friend was just full of surprises.
"Back then, you walked me to school; told me to be careful and I followed the rules; fast forward you taught me to drive; you gave me the keys and we went for a ride; and I can't wait til I see you again; and we both say remember when; I'm holding on to moments like that; and I know that they're coming back…" Annabelle was very good at singing. This was going to be interesting.
Three weeks before Spring Break, Annabelle's watch started to beep.
"Belle turn you're stupid watch alarm off would you! It's Sunday!" Adelaide groaned waking Belle to the incessant beeping of her IR watch.
"Sorry Addie. I'll be right back." Annabelle slipped out into the hall.
"Dad! What is it? It's Sunday morning!" Annabelle whined quietly.
"Sorry Baby. But are you coming home for Spring Break? Grandma wants to know." He said.
Annabelle giggled, "Tell Mama Tracy, I'll try. But I don't know. My teacher is kind of a dragon. She's wants us to do some project over Spring Break. Then the best ones will be worked on to make perfect then it'll be presented at the end of year award ceremony. We'll see how things go. I don't know Dad. Maybe I'll stay. It's only two weeks right? I mean…there's not much to do!"
"I haven't seen you since you left, Young Lady. And your Grandfather wants to see you too. Who cares about one project?"
"Dad! Is Uncle Virgil there?" Her tone changed in a second.
"I'm here Annie."
"You'll be ever so pleased about this. The teacher wanting us to stay is my music teacher. She has given us the chance to choose an instrument. I couldn't choose the keyboard so I chose the guitar. Acoustic. I have to write a song about my family and work on it over Spring break. That is why I haven't called every night or written many emails. I'm working on a song. I have the chorus but I need the verses. I need this Dad. I need to be this free. I do not want to be tied down anymore. I'd better go before my roommates wonder where I got to." Annabelle cut the connection without a goodbye. Sighing she took another deep shuddering breath. She'd snapped at her father. She'd told him what for. She felt horrible.
The Song was that of Miley Cyrus (Or rather Hannah Montana) 'Been Here All Along' dedicated in her TV show to the soldiers away in Iraq and Afghanistan. Anyone who knows someone who is there or knows someone who has someone out there – here's hoping they come home safe and well.
SS89 xx