Jeff put his arm around Penelope's shoulders as he watched his five sons head down to the beach. Scott had a backpack full of beer and soda slung on his back, and Virgil carried another pack filled with food. Gordon carried some blankets, and John had a telescope tucked under his arm. Alan walked beside them, chattering non-stop.
"How on Earth can they still be hungry?" Penelope asked. She shook her head in astonishment.
Jeff laughed. "Easy Penny, they're boys. They're always hungry."
Parker walked over to them. "Excuse me Milady, Mister Tracy. I do believe I shall turn in for the evening."
"That will be fine Parker. Good night." Penelope answered, smiling at him.
"Thanks again for helping with dinner." Jeff told him.
Parker nodded. "You are most welcome Mister Tracy." He started towards the house.
"Sleep well Parker." Penelope called out after him.
"I most assuredly will Milady."
Jeff sighed and pulled Penelope closer. "I thought they'd never leave."
"And just what did you have in mind Mister Tracy?" She smiled coyly.
"Come here and I'll show you."
Penelope let Jeff wrap his arms around her. She tilted her chin up for a kiss, then settled back against him. She looked towards the beach, and sighed.
"What is it?" Jeff asked.
"I'm worried about John."
Jeff groaned. "Not you too. Scott nearly lost it with me this afternoon while discussing his brother."
"What did he say?"
"Scott doesn't think John is ready to go back up to Thunderbird 5. Alone anyway."
"And what is your opinion?"
Jeff got to his feet and walked over to look down across the beach. The sun was starting to set, coloring the sky in brilliant shades of reds, oranges, and purples. "I don't know Pen." He said at last. "I mean, he seems fine, but as Scott said, this is John we're talking about. He didn't even tell me how badly he had been hurt up there, you really think he'd let me know if he didn't want to go back?"
Penelope walked over to stand next to him. "Could you spare Scott or one of the other boys for a few weeks perhaps? Just until John settles in a bit?"
Jeff shook his head. "I wish I could. We've been short-handed as it is with John grounded, and my back still acting up." He sighed. "I thought about sending Alan up there when school gets out. We should have another person trained, and I think Alan would like that. I was going to run the idea by John, see what he thinks."
"That sounds like an exceptional suggestion." She nestled close to him. "And is your back still bothering you?"
He wrapped his arm around her. "A bit. Nothing I can't handle." He said evasively.
"And you wonder where John gets it from."
"Hey!"
"Don't even try Jeff, you're as bad as they are." Penny smiled up at him.
"I'll show you how bad I am." Jeff swept Penelope up in his arms and stifling her squeal of surprise with a kiss, carried her into the house.
Gordon leaned back on the blanket, a soft drink in his hand. "And then I yelled, 'Watch out for that tree!" and Scott answers…"
"'What tree?'" Both Gordon and Virgil yelled together.
Scott shook his head, frowning at his brothers. "Visibility was nearly nothing with the smoke. It wasn't my fault."
"Yeah whatever." Virgil rolled his eyes at his younger brothers. "So, the tree comes crashing down across TB1's tail, totally destroying the stabilizers. I thought Dad was going to kill him!" Virgil finished laughing.
Alan looked up, incredulous, at his eldest brother. "You told me that happened while you were trying to rescue people from the fire zone."
Scott shrugged. "That is what happened…In a manner of speaking."
Virgil stared at his brother, hazel eyes wide. "In a manner of speaking! If you had kept your eyes on your mission instead of that girl from the Red Cross—"
"What about you and the blonde in Istanbul?" Scott shot back.
Gordon scooted out of the way as Virgil launched himself at his brother. Soon all three were wrestling on the sand. Alan watched for a few minutes, then got to his feet and wandered off looking for John.
He found his brother at the darker end of the beach, peering intently through his telescope. "Hey John, what are you doing?"
John looked up. "Hi Sprout. Here, have a look."
Alan bent over to look through the eye-piece. Then he turned to his brother, his blue eyes wide with surprise. "Is that Thunderbird 5?" John nodded, smiling. "Wow!" Alan breathed and bent back to the telescope. After a few minutes, he straightened and looked around. John was sitting down a short distance away, gazing up at the sky. Alan flopped down next to him. "Do they look any closer from up there?"
John stared up at the sky. "Not really, but I like looking at them better from TB5 anyway. There's less light pollution and it's quieter up there all by myself."
Alan looked thoughtfully at his older brother. He considered John his favorite, even though he knew they all cared for each other the same. John always had time to talk to him, never blowing off his questions no matter how busy he was. "John?"
"Yeah Sprout?"
"Is it lonely up there?"
John smiled down at his brother. "Sometimes, but I manage to keep myself busy."
Alan gazed up at the stars. "Wish I could go. See what you do." He turned to his brother. "Think Dad would let me?"
John shrugged. "Don't know Alan, but it wouldn't hurt to ask."
"You wouldn't mind?"
"Are you kidding? It'd give me a chance to get some sleep." John grinned at him.
They both laughed, then slipped into silence once more. Finally, Alan glanced at his brother, then turned away and spoke. "John? Do you…do you ever get scared?" Alan asked in a small voice.
John glanced down at his youngest brother. Alan was playing with a piece of grass, and avoiding his gaze. "We all get scared sometimes Alan." John replied evenly.
Alan shook his head. "Not Scott."
John laughed. "Not Scott? Mr. Scott 'I'm afraid of mice' Tracy?"
Alan looked up in surprise. "Scott's afraid of mice?"
"Why do you think he stays aboard TB1 during an underground rescue?" John smirked.
Alan smiled, and filed the information away in his mind for the future. "I'd always wondered about that." He sighed. "But that's not what I meant."
"What did you mean?" John asked, already knowing the answer.
"You're up there alone all the time. Don't you get scared sometimes?"
"I guess I never thought about it." John glanced back up at the stars. "It never really bothered me."
"But now it does?"
"Maybe a little." John sighed.
"Because of the Hood?"
"Yeah."
Alan looked away again. "I was scared. When you and Dad and the others were stuck up there, and we couldn't wake you, I was really scared. I thought you were all dead." He said, a catch in his voice.
John put an arm around Alan's shoulders and pulled him close. "Easy little brother, we're here now."
Alan wrapped his arms around John's waist and buried his face in his chest, sobbing quietly. Scott chose that moment to appear, but at a look from John, melted back out of sight. After a few minutes, Alan's sobs subsided, and he pulled away, wiping the last of the tears from his face.
"Feel better?" John asked. Alan shrugged. "It's OK to feel like that you know. We all tend to kinda break down a bit after a rescue."
"You do?" Alan looked up, surprised.
"We do."
"Even Dad?"
John looked down at Alan. "Yes, even Dad. Look Alan, we're only human, and sometimes when a rescue goes bad, it reminds us of that. And sometimes when a rescue goes good, it can be just as nerve-racking. But there's one thing you need to remember."
"What?"
John's blue eyes bore into his brothers. "That we're in this together Alan. We can always count on each other no matter what happens. Understand?" Alan nodded. "We're out there, putting our lives on the line to save others. At the same time, worrying about each other. It's not easy Alan, and it's not something you have to do. We'd all understand if you don't want to be a Thunderbird."
"Not be a Thunderbird? Are you crazy?" Alan was taken aback by John's comment.
John smiled. "Just checking Sprout." He tousled Alan's hair. "C'mon, let's go back before Gordon eats all the hotdogs."