DISCLAIMER: Standard disclaimer applies. We don't own the Thunderbirds. Neither are we making any money off this endeavor.

EPILOGUE

Four days later, John was lying on one of the pool-side chaise loungers. Gordon wandered out. "Hey John, how are you feeling?" He asked.

"Better, a lot better." John replied. "I'm still a little stiff, but it's good to be out of the infirmary. It's nice to be out in the sun again."

"Well, we're getting ready to take off. I wanted to say goodbye." Gordon said.

John stood up and put an arm around Gordon's shoulders as they headed into the villa. "OK, I'll come in and see you off. Who's going?"

Gordon gave John a pained look, but before he could answer Alan came bounding out of the house. "Hey John, did Gordon tell you? Man this is going to be great." Alan said excitedly.

John gave Gordon a confused look but addressed Alan. "No, Gordon didn't tell me. What's got you so excited?"

Alan's smile couldn't get bigger even if he tried. "Dad said that I could pilot Thunderbird 3 for part of the trip."

Gordon groaned and said. "If he puts even one little scratch on my 'bird, he's dead meat."

"Hey," Alan said indignantly. "I've been doing great in the simulator. That's why dad is letting me take the controls for a bit. Besides, I'll be out in space. What could I scratch it on?"

"With you, baby brother, there's no telling." Gordon said, winding Alan up a bit more. "A rogue comet? An asteroid? Gene Roddenberry's ashes?"

Alan frowned. "That's not funny Gordon. If you…"

John broke in laughing. "Relax Alan. We all feel protective of our main ships. Besides, Gordon's just pulling you leg. You have been doing well in the simulators and dad wouldn't let you take the controls if he didn't have complete confidence in you."

Gordon laughed along with John. "He's right. I'm just giving you a hard time. Sure I'm nervous about you taking control on my 'bird for the first time. It's just because I know how things can go wrong even for experienced pilots like me. But I've been keeping track of your activities in the simulators. You've been doing really well. You'll be fine. Plus, dad'll be there to help you if a problem comes up, but I don't think you'll need it."

The smile returned to Alan's face. "Thanks Gordon, and I'll make sure that I'm very careful with your 'bird. Come on, we better get going. Dad is probably already waiting for us."

The three headed into the house. John turned to Alan and asked. "Speaking of dad, has he said when you are going back to school?"

Alan's mood deflated a bit. "He said that I could stay through the weekend. He's going to take Fermat and me back on Sunday."

The three of them entered the command center. Scott and Jeff were already there. Jeff looked up. "Good. There you are. Are you ready to go?"

Virgil walked in at that moment. "Oh good, you haven't left yet."

"We were just getting ready to leave." Jeff said. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I just wanted a chance to say goodbye to Gordon." Virgil said as he pulled Gordon into a hug. "Call me if you get lonely."

"Oh sure, Gordon's going to be on the comm all the time." Scott said wryly.

"Ha-ha, very funny," Gordon told Scott.

Laughter erupted from the group. "All right, let's get going." Jeff said. Turning to John and Virgil, he continued. "Once we drop Gordon off, Scott and I are going to give Alan some practice time in Thunderbird 3. So we'll be a little later than normal."

"F-A-B, Dad." Virgil said. "We'll see you when you get back."

"Take it easy Alan." John said. "When you get back, we'll go fishing and you can tell me all about it."

Alan gave John a smile. "Sounds like fun, but I have a better idea. Why don't you get some rest this afternoon, and we can have our talk tonight while looking at the stars."

John looked at Alan in surprise. Alan had never shown interest in the stars before. "Really?" He asked.

Alan laughed at the look on John's face. "Yeah really, I can tell you all about my trip on Thunderbird 3, and you can tell me the stories behind the constellations."

John smiled back at Alan. "OK Alan, it's a plan then. I'll see you later. Bye Gordon."

The four Tracys stepped into the access chutes behind their portraits and disappeared.

"I'm heading back outside." John told Virgil. "But I think that I will stop in the kitchen first and grab some ice cream."

"Sounds good." Virgil said. "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all, come on." John said. "But I get the Chocolate Fudge Brownie Ice Cream."

"Only if you can beat me to it." Virgil laughed as he made a beeline to the door.

"You're asking for it, Virgil." John tried to growl, but he couldn't keep the laughter out of his voice. It felt good. The events of the last week only served to re-enforce how important his family was to him. He headed for the kitchen at a leisurely pace. Maybe this time, he'll just have Butter Pecan.

Author's note: Well, friends, we have come to the end of our story. We have cleaned up our mess, and put the boys neatly away. We want to thank all our faithful readers and especially the reviewers. We tried to send a reply to those who reviewed, but some were sent anonymously, so we want to take a moment to thank them too. We really do appreciate all the reviews that we got. They were very encouraging to us, and some were just a heap of fun to read. Again, thank you to everyone who has enjoyed our story along with us.