One Wednesday Night
balter(v.) - to dance artlessly, without particular grace or skill but usually with enjoyment.
Just a random fluffy scene that got a little out of control. I claim no sanity. Spoilers & Warnings: Fluff, alcohol, 3924 words. Many thanks to scribbles97 for the read through and for putting up with my crazy.I hope you enjoy it :D
Everyone knew Virgil was the musical soul in the family. He played, wrote and occasionally bled music. It was a constant in their home and the few times it was missing due to illness or absence, it was painful.
The man could sing if he wanted to, but that was a rare thing. He could dance with the grace of any ballroom dancer, his rhythm and style even outshining his eldest brother, Mr Lady-swooner himself.
Music was part of Virgil's soul.
So, what happened late one Wednesday night after one too many rescues and ten too many drinks was quite surprising to them all.
The Tracy brothers weren't big drinkers. They couldn't afford to be due to their occupation. Both Scott and Virgil had been known to down a late night sniff of whisky on occasion. John had his boutique beers, but honestly, he wasn't home very often to drink them, and space and alcohol was never a good combination.
Gordon fancied an odd cocktail from time to time and had the liquor stash to back it up, but most of the bottles were dusty and a couple well past their expiry dates. They just didn't have the time or the opportunity to really let rip.
But it was Wednesday. The last rescue of five had been an avalanche and they always sucked. The boys had congregated in the living room…and it was a living room, not a damned comms room because International Rescue was down for a good forty-eight hours, Grandma's orders.
They were all exhausted, but none wanted to sleep. They wouldn't admit it, but there was fear in what they might find behind closed eyelids after such a shitty day, so they just sat together.
At first it was quiet. One or two words, fragmented debrief, until Virgil put an end to it and demanded John come home. Now!
Fifteen minutes later, the middle brother, just as exhausted as the rest, slunk into the living room and made a seat his own.
But there was little talking, each caught up in their own thoughts.
"Screw this." Gordon jumped to his feet. "Stay here. I'll be right back." And he disappeared around the corner.
Scott didn't pay much attention, his eyes on John, assessing his condition and fast coming to the conclusion that his brother hadn't slept in at least the last twenty-four hours judging by the bags under his eyes.
"John, have you eaten."
Turquoise darted in his direction. "Have you?"
A blink and Scott realised he hadn't. He had been too occupied keeping track of tired brothers. "No." Honestly, he wasn't hungry.
"Then you understand."
A glare in his brother's direction. John just turned away.
Scott's lips thinned, but then his attention was taken by Alan, who was slowly tipping sideways on his couch, eyelids drooping. "Alan, you should go to bed."
"Don't wanna. Wanna stay with you guys." His head landed on the couch cushion and two seconds later he was snoring.
Scott sighed.
"I have cake. I have popcorn. I have drinks." Hurricane Gordon slammed into the sunken lounge and a pile of popcorn, chips, a rather large cake and a bucket of candy landed with him. The whole mess was dumped on the table and the aquanaut disappeared again.
Scott just stared at the pile of food.
"Well, that's the healthy option." Virgil's voice was pure sarcasm.
"Do you really care?" Honestly, Virg.
"Not really, but the principle is there."
Scott rolled his eyes. Just in time for Gordon to reappear with half his alcohol stash, several of John's beers and whisky. Glorious, golden whisky.
Now that was a very good idea.
What happened after the appearance of the alcohol involved a movie Scott didn't pay much attention to, far too much carbohydrate…c'mon, caramel popcorn, yes…and a lot of alcohol.
After all, they were down for forty-eight hours guaranteed and how often did that happen? This was an opportunity for them to focus on themselves and despite their exhaustion, there was finally a little relaxation in front of…the Enterprise?
"Who gave John the remote?!"
"I did." The feminine AI's voice danced through the room in amusement.
"Eos! That's cheating!"
She giggled. "I thought Gordon was cheating when he stuck it in his drink."
Scott turned to his aquanaut brother who was dressing the sleeping Alan's hair with popcorn. "Gordon!"
"What?!" The cocktail in his hand had an umbrella and a remote control garnishing it.
"You drowned the remote."
"Huh?" He looked at his drink. "Oh." And he pulled it out of the concoction and started licking it clean.
"Augh."
A blur of red plaid and Virgil snatched the gadget from Gordon's fingers and flicked it into the nearest pot plant.
Gordon appeared forlorn for its absence for a whole second before turning to his drink and sculling it all in one go.
"Gordon!" This time it was Virgil yelling his name.
The aquanaut had blue curacao for lipstick. "What?!" It was a direct echo of his same exasperated response moments earlier.
"Take it easy."
"I don't want to take it easy. I'm having fun." With that he grabbed a bottle and dumped something red into the same glass with the blue, resulting in a rather unpleasant purple.
Scott groaned.
Which only earned him an assessing stare from Virgil.
A sigh. "Relax, Virgil. We're home, we're safe. Let your hair down a little."
He was going to regret those words later.
The stare turned into a glare, but moments later, Gordon was ribbing Virgil about drinking and somehow he got under the engineer's skin because there was a drinking contest.
Unfortunately for Gordon, swimmer's physique or not, apparently Virgil was more brawn and could simply just absorb the stuff.
Gordon ended up snoozing in a sea of popcorn beside Alan.
John started giggling.
Scott raised an eyebrow at the small pyramid of empty beer bottles beside his space brother.
"How many have you had?"
"It's a tetrahedron. Work it out." John placed a single bottle at the top of the pyramid and smirked at Scott.
This was definitely a very bad idea.
His own whisky glass was only half empty. He needed to fix that.
It was warm going down.
Gordon started snoring, loudly.
"Okay, that's it. Time for bed."
"Don't wanna go to bed." Virgil put on the soppiest puppy dog face Scott had ever seen.
John cracked up laughing.
Oh god. "No, bed, now."
"Okay." And Virgil stood up.
And took a quick step to the left, then the right, before managing to stabilise himself somewhat upright, but listing slightly to one side.
It was that moment that the movie playing on the holoprojector burst into music.
Music? What the hell were they watching. He stared up into a haze of rebooted retro nineteen fifties and a song about a car and lightning.
"Ooh, I like this one."
What?
And Virgil was suddenly dancing. Well, it could be considered dancing in some circles, but it mostly consisted of a lot of poorly coordinated butt wiggling and a lot of horizon pointing arms.
The jumping on the couch was really not called for.
"Virg?"
But his brother was lost to the music and dancing his heart and his coordination all out.
"C'mon, Scott, get up and boogie!"
Of course, Virgil was loud enough to wake Gordon, who took one look at Virgil and fell off the couch.
There was far too much butt wiggling happening.
"Virg, come down from there."
He was completely ignored.
Scott needed more alcohol.
The bottle of golden oblivion smiled at him.
Screw it.
He wasn't quite sure what happened next, but the result was a broken lamp and Gordon on the floor laughing hard enough to break a rib.
"Eos, play Jailhouse Rock." John managed that between giggles. Scott idly noticed that the tetrahedron had become modern art and was attempting to defy the laws of physics.
It failed with a smash and rolling of bottles two minutes later.
And Virgil was still dancing.
Classic Elvis Presley at full volume, enough to wake up every lifeform in the caldera.
The butt wiggling had morphed into hip waggling and some kind of leg shaking that threatened to faceplant his brother on the floor.
"Virg, please get off the couch."
"I am having fun, Scott." Each word was enunciated clearly as if the man was having trouble putting the syllables together. "Letting my hair down." A grin and Virgil shoved his fingers into his hair and completely messed it up until it was sticking out in all directions. Suddenly a hand was almost in Scott's face. "Join me?"
There was something in his brother's deep brown eyes, something beyond the alcoholic haze, something desperate, something…sad.
Scott never could refuse a brother his help. So, a moment later, he found himself standing on the couch as Virgil shifted his dance moves into something that involved some shoulder rolling and a goofy grin.
Scott found himself grinning in return.
John said something half drowned out by the music and the room was suddenly filled with an old dance favourite from his teens.
Virgil actually let off a laugh and moved into a sloppy dance routine from their childhood.
Scott couldn't help himself and at some point, he just let go.
-o-o-o-
Alan woke from one of the weirdest dreams of his life. It involved music and Thunderbird Three dancing to a beat, her arms waving about.
It took him a moment to work out exactly why.
The dream was saner than reality. Scott and Virgil were standing on one of the couches…dancing.
Alan blinked the sleep out of his eyes. Was that the Macarena? It was hard to tell. Virgil was so uncoordinated, he could have been servicing Two in his sleep for all Alan could discern. Scott was smoother, but he was leaning at a teetering angle.
Frantic eyes located his two other brothers.
John was sitting on the floor beside a pile of empty beer bottles. He had a dob of cake frosting on one eyebrow.
That left Gordon.
The strawberry blond was sitting on the floor in front of Alan's couch.
"Gords? What's going on?"
Gordon turned around and a soft smile curved his lips. "Big bros are letting their hair down." The music suddenly paused and Gordon sat up straighter. "Eos, Dance Party 2054."
More music erupted from the overhead speakers and vibrated the glass walls.
Alan found himself bopping to the beat.
Virgil climbed up off the couch and onto the hardwood floor, apparently so he could really let loose. His plaid shirt was undone and swirling around him as he moved.
Scott tripped over the top of the couch and almost faceplanted on that same hardwood, but he saved himself the bruises with those half-sharp reflexes of his. A moment later he was up boogying with his brother.
It was an odd sight.
"Are they okay?"
Gordon's voice was quiet. "No, but they will be."
"What about John?"
Gordon shrugged as they both eyed the slouched astronaut. "Not sure he has it in him, fresh down from Five. He's safer on the floor."
"What about you?"
Gordon snorted. "I'm good." He chucked down the remains of his drink before turning to face his little brother. "Wanna dance?"
Alan's eyes widened. "How are you?" His eyes bounced to the empty bottles on the table, the stained glasses and limp umbrellas.
"What? Do you really think I can't outlast Virg? The man is a drinking wimp. Only took two good ones to get him dancing with the fairies. Letting him win was the hard part."
"Win what?"
A snort. "Virg thinks he can drink me under the table. He's small fry." The aquanaut stumbled to his feet and Alan eyed him. Gordon had definitely had a few. "You aren't allowed to kill brain cells. However, you can have fun, dear little brother." He held out his hand. "May I have this dance?"
He blamed sleep fog for the automatic yes that found him up and out of the sunken lounge, careening around the room laughing his ass off.
-o-o-o-
"John, what is happening?"
The astronaut blinked dopily. Maybe he had had one too many, but with each one, the voices faded just that little bit more. Calls for help he was desperate to answer.
And the silences that followed.
"They're dancing, Eos." It was obvious really.
"I've never seen them act like this before."
"Doesn't happen very often." If ever. What was Scott trying to do with their father's chair? "Eos, could you please close the doors to the balcony." Gravity did suck after all.
He took another swig of Swedish beer as the giant glass doors slid smoothly closed.
"Can you access the room lighting?"
"One moment. I have control, John."
"Good. Reference the 1970s disco movement and see if you can replicate any of the lighting involved."
"FAB."
A few moments later and the room's lighting went nuts. The holoprojector flickered and shone dancing rainbows on the rafters. The atmosphere changed radically as the whole room pulsed and flickered in beat with the music.
Virgil froze for a whole five seconds in the middle of the room, staring up at the glass ceiling before bursting into a massive grin and throwing himself into a full on fit of dancing to the song that was screaming out of the speakers.
Scott was pirouetting with his father's chair in great rotating circles.
Gordon was attempting some kind of retro-breakdancing. Though at this point, the only thing that was going to be broken was pot plants.
Alan had a grin on his face and was the most coordinated of them all, jiggling along to the beat with a grin on his face.
Another figure appeared in the entrance to the room. It took John's entire remaining intellect to realise that it was Grandma.
Something stirred in the back of John's head, something about getting in trouble, but he had no coordination to connect the dots so gave up. Besides, the Grandma figure was only standing in the doorway watching.
"What is the purpose of all this activity?" Eos' voice was ever curious.
"It's fun, Eos. An attempt at stress relief." To wash the pain away.
-o-o-o-
Virgil was vaguely aware that he was being ridiculous, but he was beyond caring. The music pulsed through him and lifted him up. He just let it all go and rode the beat.
He was too exhausted to care about anything.
Except his brothers.
He always cared about his brothers.
Scott was astride their father's chair and was riding it across the room in a completely undignified manner. Gordon was laughing his ass off at the sight and Alan was beside him in that. Even John was grinning as the eldest coasted past.
Virgil spun and let the air stream around him.
Round and round and round.
Oh dear, too round.
He staggered to a halt, but the world kept going. He stumbled.
A hand caught him. "Take it easy, honey."
The blur turned into his grandmother in her dressing gown.
"Grandma!" He drew her in to a massive hug. "I love you, Grandma."
Her tiny arms hugged him back. "Virgil, you're drunk."
"No, no, I'm dancing. Wanna dance, Grandma?"
She was looking up at him with concern on her face.
"Smile, Grandma. You need to be happy."
He needed to be happy.
She reached up and touched his face, her hand cupping his cheek.
He closed his eyes and leant into her palm as the beat throbbed around him.
-o-o-o-
The sight of his grandmother sobered Scott immediately. The chair beneath him drifted a few more feet before he brought it to a halt.
Grandma caught Virgil as he stumbled and they were hugging. Something about that simple gesture clenched his heart.
He clambered off the chair and staggered awkwardly. Okay, maybe he had a few too many. He forced himself upright, kicking some spine into his vertebrae and made his way over to his grandmother.
Virgil was all plaid and gentle eyes as she cupped his cheek.
"Grandma?" Scott's voice wavered with his step.
Eyes as blue as his own turned towards him. "Scotty, you need to sit down before you fall down."
He frowned. He had a chair a moment ago. He looked around.
A hand caught his cheek and drew his gaze back to his grandmother and those blue eyes.
A red arm wrapped around him and drew him in. "Scott, you are my big brother." The statement was declared with so much love as he was pulled sideways into Virgil.
They almost fell in a heap. It was Grandma who steadied them.
"You boys need to go to bed." A concerned frown and she called out to the ceiling. "Eos, kill the light show and the music."
The silence that fell was so sudden, Scott almost fell with it.
Virgil stumbled and Scott held him upright.
An almighty crash off to their left and Gordon upended one of the large pot plants near the glass doors. Potting mix scattered across the floor. Gordon rolled over and sat up covered in the stuff. "Who turned off the music?"
Grandma straightened. "It is time for bed, young man."
The dopey aquanaut looked up at his grandmother and squinted. "Grandma, is that you?"
She ignored him. "Alan, come here, sweety."
Alan, who was yawning fit to break his jaw, wandered over as bidden.
"Yes, Grandma?"
She snaked an arm around his waist and drew him in. "Time for bed, Allie."
Virgil reached out an arm to snag his littlest brother, but suddenly Gordon was in his way and he got an arm full of fish instead.
Virgil did not seem to mind. "Gordo! My wingman, my copilot, my fish in a barrel." Red plaid squeezed tight. "Love you, bro."
Scott blinked. That was three. Where was the other one?
A glance at the lounge found John sprawled on the floor up against one of the lounges, fast asleep.
"Oi, Johnny!"
Scott jumped at Virgil's yell and so did John. Bleary turquoise peered in their direction.
"Get over here, little brother, group hug!"
Wha-? Scott's head was so foggy.
But John was stumbling to his feet. Something told him this was a dangerous thing. As the astronaut wobbled over, Scott moved to help him, but found himself snagged by cast iron red plaid.
Fortunately, Alan picked up on his fellow spaceman's difficulties and hurried over to give him a hand. A few moments of wobbly astronaut and John was standing with them.
Virgil immediately reached for him. "Johnny!"
Unfortunately, he didn't let go of either Gordon or Scott when he did and, damn, Virgil was strong. They ended up in a huddle, Alan and Grandma awkwardly caught up with them.
"I love you guys." Virgil's voice was muffled up against John's shirt. Scott had caught Grandma and Gordon had grabbed Alan. Virgil had his face mushed into John's shoulder.
John looked like he had stuck a finger in an electrical socket and didn't know why his hair was on fire.
"We love you, too, Virgil." It was Gordon's voice, muffled by Alan's hair.
Something lodged in Scott's throat and he found himself hugging the pieces of brother and grandmother he could reach.
Apparently, it was something they all needed, because they stayed there holding each other for a full minute.
Just long enough for Virgil to fall asleep against John's shoulder and let off a snore. It took Gordon and Scott to catch him to prevent them all from falling in a heap.
The group hug dissolved and the focus became getting certain brothers to their bedrooms. Grandma hovered and helped where she could. Scott took Virgil, while Gordon switched to helping Alan with John.
The family went their separate ways.
Grandma followed Scott up to Virgil's rooms. The engineer faded in and out, declaring his love for any and all brothers several times on the way up. But by the time they made it to Virgil's room, the engineer was getting heavy.
"C'mon, Virg, not much further." Scott was ever so glad of that as his head was still trying to swim against the current.
Letting him gently down on his bed, the man immediately curled up into a ball, fully dressed and obviously not caring. Scott undid green shoelaces, dumped boots on the floor with a clatter and yanked the covers up and over his already snoring little brother.
A hand smoothed crazed hair back into its more familiar style and Scott unfolded from the bed.
A glass of water appeared on the bedside table and he turned to find his grandmother looking at him fondly. He blinked. He had forgotten she was there.
She held out a hand and as he took it, he was drawn into a quiet hug. She was ever so little up against his bulk. "C'mon, Scotty, let's get you to bed."
"I'm okay, Grandma. I need to check on the others."
She sighed, but let go a single nod.
As they left Virgil's rooms, she didn't leave his side.
A visit to John's room found him in bed, but the wrong way around, his feet on the pillow, his head hanging off the end. It took some prodding and yanking, but Scott re-orientated him. A quick check of the gravity support systems in his clothing were functioning properly – the alcohol probably wasn't helping. Grandma materialised with another glass of water which was placed on John's bedside table.
Quietly. "Eos, are you monitoring, John's systems?"
"Of course. He is well, Commander. Do not concern yourself. I will watch him."
Scott's eyes closed without permission and he had to force them open again. "Thank you, Eos."
The AI didn't answer.
Grandma took his arm and led him from the room.
A check on Alan found him on the floor, but that was nothing unusual. Gordon had probably dumped him there. The kid preferred the rug to his bed and Scott meant to talk to him about it, but…life.
Gordon had fallen asleep in the corridor outside his room.
Scott rolled his eyes. He wouldn't be surprised if the brat had done that on purpose. After all the entire night's fracas was obviously engineered by the aquanaut. A fond sigh of exasperation and he pulled his little brother into his arms and dragged him into his rooms.
Dragging fish was considerably easier than dragging two hundred pounds of engineer.
Scott threw Gordon onto his bed and covered him up. Fingers brushed hair off his face.
Scott sighed again and had to prevent himself from curling up beside his brother.
"C'mon, Scotty, your turn."
Scott mumbled something even he didn't fully comprehend and let his grandmother lead him out of his brother's rooms. One of the aquariums blurped at him as he walked past.
And finally, he was in his own rooms and his own bed. Grandma handed him a glass of water. He guzzled it before burying his face in his pillow.
He opened his eyes as a hand brushed through his hair. "We love you, Scotty. Don't you ever forget that."
He blinked slowly and managed a smile up at his grandmother, but her fingers caressed the side of his face, forcing his eyes to close again and he drifted off.
His dreams were kind.
And full of loving family.
-o-o-o-
FIN.