Part 15

"What the hell!?" Gordon yelled. "He just left!?"

"Gordon", John began.

"No! I mean come on! He just left in the middle of this very important moment!"

"Gordon."

"How can he just do that?"

"Gordon", John said sharply. "It's okay."

"No it isn't! He's doing it again! Acting like you mean less Johnny!"

"Maybe he just… needs some time to think?" Alan asked, he was still hugging John.

"Then why is he running away!?"

"Because he is scared", Grandma said and sighed. "He's afraid of John's answer. I'll talk to him, alone. You boys get something to eat, I'll be back soon." She left too.

"But-"

"Gordon", Scott said gently. "Let it go for now, let Grandma talk to him."

"But it's just-"

"Gordon", John said and all eyes were on him. "Leave it for now… I need a break too because I need to think."

"Because you don't know the answer either?" Alan asked and John smiled.

"When did you get so smart?" he asked and Alan grinned and cuddled closer to his brother's side. John smiled and put his arm firmly around his youngest brother.

"John!" a childlike voice suddenly shouted and a hologram of EOS appeared.

"Hi EOS", John said and smiled. The brothers watched the exchange.

"You lied to me", EOS said in a small voice.

"I know EOS, I'm sorry."

"You told me you would come straight home and that things would get back to normal as soon as your dad was rescued… you didn't come back at once."

"I know EOS, I am very sorry for lying to you. At the time I had no idea that we would run into the Hood."

"And you nearly died!"

"I did", John said and looked at his arm. "To protect my brothers."

"What about me? You promised to always protect me."

"I did and I will. If I had killed my brothers the Hood would have gotten what he wanted, the utter destruction of International Rescue. I would have been put in jail, IR would have been shut down and you would have been left all alone. I could not risk that, I never want you to be all alone again. I knew that if I died instead IR would be safe and I knew my brothers would look after you, you would not have been alone. I protected them so that they could protect you. But I'm sorry I lied EOS, believe me I never meant for it to go this way. Can you forgive me?"

"You promised to get back as soon as you could…"

"I did and I still do. I'm not allowed to go to space yet but as soon as I am able I will come back to you. I missed you too."

"Can't I come down?"

"It depends on-"

"Of course you can EOS", Scott cut in and everyone stared at him. "As long as you stay in the island systems and don't go anywhere else."

"I promise", EOS said happily. "I'll monitor rescues still and… and I'll make sure all systems are working as they should and… and… and I can hang out with Max."

"Max?" Virgil asked amused.

"He's nice…"

"You do that EOS", John said fondly. "I'm sure Max will love the company. I also think Brains would love to see him interact with another intelligence, not just human intelligence. But I hope you'll not forget to talk to me too."

"I don't want to", EOS huffed and John chuckled.

"EOS."

"No you lied to me."

"Well you just talked to me so I guess I win." Silence met him. He sighed. "EOS I truly am sorry. I never meant to lie to you, I didn't want to lie to you. It was out of my hands. You're my partner, my friend and you are right. Friends are not meant to lie to friends, but this was out of my hands. So can you find it in your processors to forgive me?" Silence again. "EOS?"

"You got hurt…" EOS replied in a small voice.

"I did."

"I could have helped."

"I know you could, is that why you are upset? Because you feel guilty? Oh… EOS this was nothing like our first meeting."

"That was my fault and this was too!"

"How? I asked you to stay back here and keep an eye on things. I asked you to stay out of harm's way because I could not risk losing you in deep space. How could you have known the Hood would attack us?"

"I would have noticed him… and I would have noticed you trying to hack the systems. I would have stopped you sooner, before things got out of hand."

"I know you would, but as grandma said… this was in a way needed."

"Because you and your father needed to talk about it?"

"Yes and my brothers needed to know. Believe me I rather they didn't because I never wanted them to lose their view on dad."

"But you need it to feel good again", EOS said. "To… heal?"

"Exactly. You pick up fast."

"Family is good for you… unless it is a shitty one."

"Okay who taught you to be a potty-mouth?"

"Alan and Gordon."

"What!?" the two blondes exclaimed.

"They taught me many good words when you were at that party with Penelope. My favorite is-"

"Don't say it EOS or Grandma will clean your processors with soap", Virgil teased.

"Only if she can catch me!"

"Don't put it past her", Scott chuckled. "Grandma has her ways."

"Not around the kitchen."

"EOS!" John laughed. "Don't let her hear you say that!"

"You five always do."

"Yes but I want to protect you from her spatula."

"But she isn't good at cooking."

"No she really isn't."

"Maybe I could find her an online course…"

"You do that EOS and go talk to Max. I'm sure he's waiting for you."

"Thank you John and you're forgiven." She blinked out and John chuckled. He looked at his brothers and they smiled back. "Kids."

"Never thought our first niece would be a murderous AI", Gordon said and laughed.

"About that", John said and crossed his arms. "Who told you it was okay to teach her curse words?"

"Uh… Allie?"

"Yeah Gordon", Alan asked.

"Run?"

"Uh huh." Both boys fled and the oldest three brothers laughed. At least things between them were not awkward or changed. John looked in the direction his father and grandmother had disappeared. He sighed. He knew things would be different between his father and him now… and between his father and brothers. They had all have this image of Jeff Tracy as the perfect father, caring, strong and brave. Now they had gotten to see the father John had been forced to accept. John didn't really know how to feel. He was happy that things were finally out in the open. He was relieved that things would probably change for the better. He felt guilty for causing so much distress around her and… he felt sad. He had torn up the image his brothers of their father… had torn it apart and crushed it underneath his heel. To them Jeff Tracy had always been the amazing father. Attentive, caring, brave, strong and just. Now that image was gone forever… had John ruined their relationship with their father as well? He felt a hand on his shoulder and jumped in surprise. He noticed Scott and Virgil watch him worriedly. He gave them a tired smile and opened his mouth, but Virgil cut him off.

"Don't lie", he said. "You're obviously not okay, getting there but not okay."

"What's eating at you Johnny?" Scott asked gently.

"Guilt mostly", John replied and sat down on the couch, his brothers sitting down on each side of him.

"What do you have to feel guilty about?" Virgil asked.

"Ruining everything with dad."

"Hey he did that to himself", Scott said and wrapped an arm around John's shoulders. "Sure our relationship with him will change too after this, but it is for the best. Because now you won't be hurting, now you won't be suffering and I can live with that."

"But you all had such good relationships with dad… I ruined that."

"No John, dad did that", Virgil said. "He never should have picked favorites, he never should have pushed you aside."

"It's not all his fault… it's mine too for not speaking up. I just… I didn't want to be a bother. You had your hands full with the terror twins and each other. I just… I didn't want to add to your worries."

"John", Scott said. "You would never have been a bother, hell you can't be a bother."

"Of course I can, everyone can", John said. "I just… I saw how happy you all were. How much you loved dad and how much he loved you in return. I didn't want to take that from you, but in the end I did it anyway."

"Not really", Virgil said gently. "I mean I'm still angry… no upset with dad for doing what he did but I still love him. I mean… he's still our dad and I would not wish for another one. Do I wish he, you, we had acted different in the past to spare us all this discomfort and awkwardness? Yes. Do I at the same time not wish it? Yes because my memories of dad are so good. Is it selfish? Hell yes but still… I love those memories and I love dad."

"I feel the same way", Scott said. "Would I change the past? In a heartbeat. Would I hesitate? Yes because like Virgil I have treasured memories of my time with dad. But change them to have made your life better? No hesitation there Johnny. Do I still love the guy? Of course I do. I'm disappointed in him, I don't hate him. I'm upset with him."

"You should be upset with me too", John objected. "I mean, I never did anything to show I was suffering and was unhappy. I should have told someone but didn't! I should have stood up for myself, should have put my foot down. Why are you so upset with dad and not with me?"

"Because you were a kid", Virgil said and hugged John close. "Dad is the parent. He should have known better. I'm a little hurt that you never told us Johnny but I understand why you didn't. You thought we wouldn't believe you and I think you would have been right. We would not. The only reason I believed you now was dad admitting to it and me really thinking about what you said and what our childhood was like. I was so sure you had misunderstood or was lying but when I really thought about it I saw it… you were telling the truth and then some."

"I needed to get blown out of the airlock to see sense", Scott said. "I admit that I can be a bit of an idiot at times, don't you dare." He pointed at both of them when Virgil and John were about to give a witty remark. "I need time to think things through, time to cool down and be rational. But I as well saw that every word you said was true. When dad admitted it I was in denial, it could not have been true. Our dad could not have been that shitty to his own son. But he was and I had missed it. I guess I was mostly angry at myself for having missed my little brother suffering. I'm the oldest, I should know when my brothers are hurt or suffering… it made me feel so guilty. Just like when EOS attacked you. It took Penny being suspicious for us to even realize something was wrong."

"It was a good fake", John said.

"Yeah but we should have noticed the difference John."

"You did in the end."

"When it was almost too late!"

"Scott it's okay", John said and moved out of Virgil's arms to hug Scott. "I forgave you for that a long time ago and I never, ever resented any of you for not noticing I was hurting. I did all I could to keep it from you because I wanted you to be happy. I'm not surprised you didn't realize it was me from the get got that time. I had been pulling away from everyone for years. I made sure you didn't know me as well as you know the others. Because I thought that would spare you all so much discomfort."

"Because you look and act so much like mom", Virgil said and rubbed John's ginger hair softly. "God…"

"What?" Scott asked and John looked at Virgil as well.

"It's just… we were losing you Johnny", Virgil said. "We were losing you and didn't even know it… we didn't even notice. Sure we noticed you not being around so much, but we didn't notice that we were losing you."

"I know", John soothed and took Virgil's hand. Virgil clung to it. "It was my plan though… I'm sneaky like that. I pulled away so slowly that you wouldn't notice."

"And we didn't", Scott said and sighed. "We are the worst."

"You really aren't Scott", John soothed. "I could not have asked for better brothers. You four are the most important thing in my life. I have the best brothers in the world."

"How can you say that?" Virgil asked. "How can you say that when we didn't even notice you were hurting and that we were losing you!?"

"Because it's true", John stated firmly. "You are the best brothers. Scott is my guardian."

"I am?" Scott asked.

"Of course you are. You are strong, athletic, brave, charming, outgoing and loyal. You always stand up for what you believe in. It doesn't matter what it is or who we are facing, you always stick to your ideals and do what you can to protect strangers and family alike. You're a guardian Scott, the sentinel keeping watchful eyes on all of your brothers."

"But I messed up when it came to you, so many times."

"You had no idea of knowing."

"Like with EOS."

"You figured it out in the end."

"Yeah but nearly too late."

"You saved me when the hotel fell."

"Because Kayo called me, I was nearly too late again."

"Scott you're not omnipotent. How could you have known? When it really matters you make sure that we are all safe. Like when Ridley tricked me into saving her station!"

"I was scared for you… I… I didn't think you could do it."

"No you were scared I couldn't do it. You didn't doubt my skills, you were just worried something would go wrong. Like it always does when we deal with Fischler. In the end everything was fine. Scott no one is perfect but you have done so much for me without even realizing. It was you who taught me to fly. You and Virgil protected me from bullies at school and monsters under the bed. Not because you had to, because you wanted to and that is the difference here. Dad didn't want to. You did."

"But John", Virgil cut in. "Why don't you resent us? I mean dad chose us over you openly, at least to you it was openly. I mean he came to a rather unimportant football match instead of seeing you win a world championship! How can you not hate me for that?"

"Because I love you Virgil", John said. "You didn't know. Dad didn't tell you."

"I don't get how you could still trust me or even like me after that."

"Because you are my rock Virgil."

"What?"

"You're my rock. Scott has always been more vocal in his wish to protect this family. You do it silently and from the background. You're strong, calm, levelheaded, safe… I can always count on you to pull through anything. Whenever a distress call comes in and I need to send someone out alone I send you, you're my first choice because I know you won't take any unnecessary risks." Both brothers looked at Scott. Scott blushed and grumbled something bout cheeky younger brothers under his breath. "You're my rock Virgil because I can always count on you to carry me through anything… you'll always support me."

"But I missed you hurting", Virgil whispered.

"Because I hid it so well."

"I didn't go looking."

"I didn't ask you too or signaled for you to."

"I still should have known."

"You're not omnipotent either Virgil. How could you have noticed!? I made sure you saw everyone else and not me. Virgil you are my rock! My safe foundation! Virgil, you and Scott are the dynamic duo in everything. When you are on the job Virgil I don't have to worry as much because I know you will listen to reason! You are my rock and my safe haven!" Virgil flung his strong arms around him in a bearhug.

"And you are my saving grace", he said and John blinked.

"Huh?"

"I always know that there is a way out when you are on the other line", Virgil went on. "Just your voice can calm me down. You always have a solution Johnny. We couldn't do any of this without you."

"I agree", Scott said.

"We do too!" Gordon said as he and Alan made their presence clear. They had dared sneak back to the room when they realized no one was coming after them. They had heard John's words about Virgil and Scott. The two blondes sat on the table in front of the oldest three and grinned at them. John chuckled.

"Of course you do sunshine", he said gently.

"Who?" Alan and Gordon asked.

"Gordon", John said and Gordon blushed. "Don't blush because it's true Gordy. You are my sunshine. Your horrible jokes and not so frustrating pranks always pick me right up when I need it the most. Your bad jokes, witty comments and kindhearted mishaps always puts a smile on my face. I know people think you are stupid Gordy but you are far from it. Between us all I think you have the best intuition. I mean, how else did you know that firing missiles at the Hadron Collider would work? You just did it and you were right. You also just knew that you would need a lot of equipment at that forsaken tomb you, Penny and Parker went into. You just knew that you would need that stuff and it turned out you were right again. You always try to lighten mood, therefore you are my sunshine."

"I thought I only caused you guys more trouble than I'm worth", Gordon said and stared at John with big eyes. "That I have the worst sense of judgment ever!"

"That's not true!" John said sharply. "Sure Gordy you can be rash and often act before you think but you are still my sunshine and damn good at your job. You lighten the darkest of moods, you always want to find a solution and always want to help! You are not bound by inside-the-box-thinking like me! You are flexible, impulsive and openminded! You think outside the box and you are just a ray of hope and sunshine! You made it back from that hydrofoil accident! You didn't even let your recent brush with death and danger slow you down! You are one of the strongest people I know and one of the bravest! You are my sunshine! Just like in that old song! You make me happy when skies are grey!"

"You… you really mean that Johnny?"

"Every. Single. Word." John said firmly and found he had a lap full of Gordon the next second. He chuckled and hugged his little brother close. "Never doubt yourself Gordy, you can always do it."

"You are the best", Gordon sniffled. "The absolute best."

"Thanks", John chuckled.

"So", Alan asked in a small voice. "Scott is your guardian, Virgil your rock and Gordon is your sunshine… what am I then?"

"My star", John said and smiled at him. "My hope, my dreams, my promise, my faith, my conviction, my savior, my backup, my protégé, my student, my fan and my ally. I can always count on you when it matters Alan. You are still young but you hold the promise of a bright future. I know that no matter how great you will become you will always be my little brother and will always turn to me for guidance. Scott is my eyes and ears on the ground, my judgment. Virgil is the solider I send out to save the world. Gordon is my secret weapon and Alan you are my ace. Alan you are my ace, my last resort and my most powerful card. My best choice and my advantage."

"How can you have so much faith in us", Alan asked and looked at his toes.

"Because I believe in you. I trust you and I know that when I send you out… the world is in safe hands." He found himself in the middle of a group hug again.

"Virgil is right though Johnny", Scott whispered in his ear. "You are our saving grace."

"Thanks Scott", John chuckled.

"Um John", Alan asked.

"Yeah?"

"Um while we wait for grandma… do you wanna play a game with me?"

"Which one", John asked and Virgil noticed an almost predatory glint in his eyes.

"Cavern Quest!" Alan said with a bright grin.

"Pft you got anything more challenging?"

"That is the hardest game I have!"

"Uh huh…" John said dryly and moved Gordon off his lap. "Give me that controller." Alan obeyed and John brought out his own gaming archive. Gordon and Alan gaped in awe. John handed out five controllers. Scott and Virgil looked dubious.

"You too", John told them and reached for the holo-goggles. "Okay put your gear on." His brothers followed orders and John started the game. "Okay in this game we will wake up on a carriage with other prisoners. The carriage will take us to a fort where we are to be executed but before that can happen a black dragon appears and…" John's explanation drifted through the house as he started the game, pulling his brothers into his world for once instead of pushing them out.


TBC

Thanks for all reviews! This chapter did not end up as I planned but I felt it was necessary. Oh! Bonus points for the people who knows what game John/I am REALLY describing at the end.

To Spanish-talking reviewer - Gracias por tus palabras ambilidades. Um that is as far as my Spanish knowledge goes and I am pretty sure I messed up. I haven't studied Spanish since 2009 :/ I appreciate your words and I agree with you.

To AngelMouse5 - Thanks! It means a lot that you say that because I really enjoy YOUR stories.