Unforgotten
AN - Thanks again for the amazing feedback I've received, I'm glad you are all enjoying it still. We're staying on Tracy Island for a while so please enjoy! If you'd like to leave a review, let me know which bits you liked and which you didn't - feedback helps me improve!
Disclaimer - I do not own Thunderbirds
Chapter Twenty Seven - Revelations
Over the next few days it was obvious to everyone on the Island that Scott was very fond of Annie and she seemed to feel the same towards him. Well, everyone on the Island with eyes, which meant that Alan and Gordon were completely oblivious.
Virgil was uneasy. He knew that Scott had felt something for Angel and worried about the impact on his brother if Annie never got her memories back. He had seen and felt how distraught Scott had been just a few days ago. It alarmed him how quickly Scott's mood had changed.
Tintin was torn between worried about it and pleased about it - she would always be concerned that if something happened between her friend and one of the Tracy boys that it may affect the friendship if it went wrong. That being said, she trusted Scott more than the rest and it was clear how much he liked her. He was pretty much back to the old Scott and Tintin couldn't be sorry about that.
Grandma was ecstatic. She had worried that she would be long buried before any of her grandsons actually settled down, especially now that Tintin was with Brains and not Alan. This gave her a small spark of hope that she may still see great grandchildren one day.
And Jeff - Jeff found himself growing increasingly fond of the quiet girl that brought life and laughter to his eldest son. He had thought in the past that Scott was growing closer to Lady Penelope, but the sight of Scott and Annie together blew that out of the water. Much as Scott and Penelope were friends, he didn't light up when she entered the room the same way he did when he caught sight of Annie from a distance. That the girl obviously returned the sentiment brought joy and relief to Jeff.
But the quiet routine the Island had settled into over the last few days was about to be disrupted. Lady Penelope was arriving today and simultaneously John was returning from Thunderbird 5. Jeff, after recent events, just wanted everyone together on the Island for a change where he could keep an eye on them. John had spent a lot more time calibrating the remote monitoring system and this was an opportunity to conduct another test run with it. Jeff was up early, reading the morning news with his coffee in the peace and quiet before the Island woke up.
It was still very early in the morning. Alan and Scott would be going up to bring John down in a couple of hours, but for now Scott was still in bed. Not his own bed though, he had snuck across the corridor into Angel's room once the house had gone quiet last night. This was what he had done every night since the first that Angel came to the Island. Scott was only half awake, burying his head into Angel's hair, when alarms within the room started to sound.
Angel flew into a sitting position, looking around her with slightly wild eyes. Scott placed his hand on her back.
"It's ok, it's just a rescue alarm."
Her breathing eased as she forced herself to relax. "Well, no one is going to be ignoring that."
"No," Scott agreed, kissing her shoulder. "Father and Brains have been making them more and more elaborate as we've gone on. I'm going to have to go."
"Of course," Angel replied. "I'll follow you out. I'm interested to see you all in action."
Scott kissed her quickly and slipped from the bed, pulling on some clothes. He delayed just enough that he thought he'd be able to get to the lounge without anyone noticing he wasn't in his own room. He quietly slid the door open and stepped into the corridor - and came face to face with Virgil.
Virgil raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to say something. "Not now," Scott hissed, leading the way into the lounge quickly. Luckily no one else was around so Virgil was the only witness to his sleeping arrangements. His brother followed him closely, thankfully obeying Scott's whispered direction.
"What's up, father?" Scott asked, seeing his father sat at his desk.
"A maintenance crew member for one of the major telecommunication satellites has been shot into space after a malfunction of the solar motor. The same malfunction hit the shuttle they travelled in and broke its propulsion unit." John informed them from his position on Thunderbird 5. "The company will send a ship to retrieve the shuttle, but the stranded crew member won't have enough oxygen to last that long. We're the only people that have a chance of rescuing her."
"OK John. Here's what we're going to do. Scott and Alan, you'll take Thunderbird 3 and collect the crew member. You'll then return her to the shuttle, where she can be collected with her colleague by the company's ship. Unless she is injured, of course, but we'll worry about that if it's an issue. Then you can go and collect John before you come back down."
"F.A.B. Father," Scott replied. He noticed that at some point during the briefing that Angel had slipped into the room, she was now standing by Tintin and Virgil. Scott glanced her way quickly as he sat on the sofa that would carry him to Thunderbird 3 and the corner of her mouth quirked up into a smile that only he could see. Then he was gone, vanishing into the labyrinth beneath the surface of Tracy Island as he made his way to Thunderbird 3's hanger.
One he was gone Angel took a deep breath, willing herself to remain calm. Now she had Scott back she was reluctant to let him leave her sight, but she knew this was his job - more than that, it was his calling.
With a distant roar that shook the very foundations of their building, she heard the rocket take off carrying Scott and Alan away to the stars. She jumped as Tintin touched her elbow. "Would you like some tea?" Tintin asked her gently. "It's still very early."
"Yes, please." Angel smiled at her. It didn't come naturally to Angel to be as friendly as Annie was towards Tintin, but she still greatly appreciated the girl's companionship. On her part, Tintin assumed that the kidnap attempt had affected Annie badly and caused her more reserved demeanour.
They sat on the patio sipping their tea, watching dawn break over the ocean.
"You and Scott have been getting on well," Tintin started, watching Angel closely.
Angel circled a finger around the rim of her teacup. "Yes, he's been very kind to me."
When it was clear Angel wasn't going to elaborate further, Tintin began to question her further. "Are you ok, Annie? You've been very quiet since that horrible affair, I'm worried about you."
"Oh please, don't be," Angel reassured her friend. "I'm ok, truly. I've just been getting more and more flashbacks, I have a lot of things I need to think through."
"Really?" Tintin asked excitedly. "What caused that?"
"I'm not sure," Angel lied. "I think it might have been the fact I hit my head again, it's almost caused me to remember more things about my past. But there are a lot of things to sort out, so I've had to spend a lot of time thinking about that."
"Well in many ways that's a relief, I have been worried." Tintin admitted. "I also have a small favour to ask - I know you may not want to think about it but I saw how you were deflecting the blows back at the house. I wondered if you could teach me?"
Angel winced. "I didn't succeed very well. But I can try. I think I must have known some self-defence before, I've managed to persuade Scott to take me down to the beach to train as soon as Virgil says my rib is healed enough."
"You will be careful, won't you? They're very fit and strong, all the boys. He may not realise his own strength."
Angel smiled at her reassuringly. "You don't need to worry about me. I'll be ok."
"Well why don't we go and get Virgil to have a look at you now? He won't be needed unless there's another problem somewhere, not if the rescue is in space."
Angel followed Tintin as she re-entered the house, finding Virgil in the kitchen with Grandma. "I thought it may be a good opportunity for you to run a check up on Annie," Tintin explained to him.
Virgil stood up, finishing his coffee and placing the mug in the sink. "Sure, why not? It's probably due a check now, should be pretty much healed."
"I want to know whether I'd be ok to show Tintin some self-defence," Angel explained softly.
"You've been learning in California?" Virgil's expression was sharp and Angel was reminded of the intellect behind the gentle exterior.
"No, but I've been getting a couple of memories back and self defence is something I can remember being taught, alongside some martial arts."
Virgil looked critically at both Angel and Tintin. "If you know some, that would be a good idea. I think recent events have made us all realise we can never be too prepared."
As they made the short walk to the infirmary, Tintin asked Virgil how the rescue was going. "I think they've managed to locate the floating person," Virgil replied. "They're on route to collect her now, shouldn't be too much longer."
At the door to the infirmary Tintin excused herself. "I want to go and see how Brains is getting on," she explained sheepishly. Angel smiled at her and shooed her away before following Virgil in and sitting on one of the beds as he ran a scanner.
"So how are you enjoying being on our Island?" Virgil asked her, making notes as he did so.
"It's been lovely," Angel replied honestly. "You have all been so welcoming to me."
Virgil set down his notes and looked at her with a serious expression. Angel was worried by the look on his face.
"Is there something wrong?" She asked.
"Your rib is fine," Virgil told her. "You are good to go and do whatever you want with Tintin."
"Oh, thank you." Something in his expression held Angel on the bed though.
Virgil eventually sighed and looked away from her. "Be careful with him, ok? I don't know what he's told you, but he thinks he knows...someone that looked like you. From before."
Angel could sense his frustration and took pity on him. "Yes, he told me that you knew. About the fact he knew me before, I mean."
Virgil's head snapped to her. "Wait, you know?"
"My history? Yes, some of the memories came back."
"Well then why haven't you said anything?"
Angel dropped her eyes. "It's... complicated. I'm complicated. My life was complicated. There has been a lot to process... I haven't exactly known where to start."
Virgil sat down heavily on the second bed. "So you want me to keep this secret too? That's asking a lot Annie. No wait, it's Angel isn't it?"
"I know it is," Angel nodded her head. "And you don't know me. But talk to Scott first."
Virgil sighed, running a hand across his face. "OK. I'll wait."
"Thank you," Angel whispered. Virgil nodded curtly and left the room.
With a sigh, Angel made her way back to her room and dug out her gym kit. After the morning she had had, the gym was calling. She also felt that she needed to get back into the form she was in before her accident, to regain the strength she had lost.
She was still in the gym when Tintin came to find her to tell her that Lady Penelope was due imminently. Angel thanked her friend and quickly changed to meet the new arrival in the lounge with the family.
Lady Penelope looked impeccable as always, although this time Angel was surprised at being swept into a perfumed hug straight after Tintin.
"What a simply terrible thing to have happened! I'm so relieved to see you both safe and well."
"Thank you, Penelope," Tintin replied. "We're just so lucky that International Rescue came when they did."
Penelope cast an eye around those assembled in the room. "We seem to be missing a few Tracys."
"They went out on a mission," Gordon informed her. "They're on their way back now, they've just picked up John."
Angel felt a moment's relief when she heard that Scott would be back soon. She had felt awkward on the Island without him, especially after her conversation with Virgil. Speaking of which, Virgil was watching her carefully now, she could feel the weight of his eyes on her.
Penelope also noticed that Virgil was watching Annie carefully, although she attributed it to a different cause. Her expression tightened slightly, unnoticed to all but Tintin. Tintin looked at her curiously.
"Maybe you would like some tea, Penelope? To help you relax after your journey."
"That would be lovely Tintin, thank you. Annie, will you accompany us?"
"Not this time, thank you. I need a rest after all the excitement this morning." Really, Angel wanted some space to think about everything that was going on. Penelope didn't look at all put out by her choice.
"That's completely understandable, but we must have a talk later. I'm dying to know what you think of the Island here."
Angel smiled and waved, leaving the lounge. Virgil watched her go with a small frown on his face, which in turn caused Penelope to feel very uncomfortable.
The house went quiet, Penelope and Tintin drinking tea on the balcony, Gordon working with Brains on a couple of enhancements to Thunderbird 4 and Jeff working in his study. It was peaceful - though the peace was soon shattered by the roar of Thunderbird 3 returning. Angel took that as her cue to return to the lounge, eager to see that Scott was ok. Rationally, she knew she was being a bit silly as he had done rescues that were far more serious and more dangerous than the one he went on today, but this was the first time she had been left behind when he went out.
She met Virgil in the hallway, murmuring a quiet greeting and trying to ignore the tension between them. Penelope looked up as they entered the lounge and went to stand on opposite sides of the room. Penelope's eyes narrowed as she looked between them and Angel couldn't help the feelings of guilt for the position she had accidentally put Virgil in.
Distraction came as the sofa disappeared, to be replaced with an identical one containing three figures. John was immediately greeted by the family, whereas Scott was swept into an embrace by Penelope who kissed his cheek as she murmured a greeting. In Angel's opinion, Penelope held the embrace for a little too long and she could tell Scott felt the same from the expression in his eyes that met hers over the aristocrat's shoulder. Finally Penelope released him to move on to greeting Alan and John, so Scott could move over to Annie.
"Are you ok?" He asked her quietly. "You look tense."
"Virgil knows," she murmured, lips barely moving. "I think you need to talk to him."
Scott nodded and turned back to the room, noticing where his brother was watching them like a hawk. He could immediately see Angel was right - Virgil had that expression on his face that said he was trying to work out a problem and wouldn't rest until he solved it.
Scott was distracted by John's approach and he introduced Angel to his closest brother. John gave her a penetrating glance, blue eyes registering the protective stance of Scott and the wariness of Annie's gaze. He sent a questioning look at Scott, whose expression indicated that he would explain later. Scott was spared any actual questions by Virgil's approach.
"Scott, I have some engineering designs for a new grapple function that I was hoping you could look over for me, mind coming into the lab?"
John looked curiously at Scott who shook his head minutely, smiling at Virgil. Angel excused herself, she knew what this would be about and would leave them to some privacy.
Sure enough, as soon as they were in the lab and the door closed behind them Virgil turned to his older brother. "We need to talk about Angel."