Disclaimer: I don't own Thunderbirds.

Prompt from janetm74: "Person A steadying Person B as they try to stand/walk" with A=Alan and B=Scott

Alan was the youngest. He hated it when it was pointed out, because normally when his age came into things it was accompanied by the words 'too young'. He hated it because it meant his brothers tried to sugar-coat anything they could get away with, so he could keep his 'childhood' just a little while longer.

He wasn't so young anymore that he didn't realise certain older brothers had lost their childhood way younger than the age he was now. (He was still too young to realise that was why they were so insistent on his).

Smother hens masquerading as older brothers, a grand total of up to four, depending on how much of a Responsible Big Brother Gordon felt like being, as opposed to the Fun Big Brother Alan much preferred him as, meant that he was quite successfully shielded from a lot of things. Not so much that he wasn't vaguely aware of them, but there were sights he didn't see.

Being the only brother on the island when Scott tripped and fell down the stairs from the den to the kitchen in hunt of something edible while Thunderbird One refuelled between busy missions (which Alan was not involved in, because none of them needed Thunderbird Three and once again his eldest brothers were brandishing his slipping homework in front of him and ordering him to pick up the slack or be grounded until the summer holidays), Alan found himself witness to one such occasion he was normally kept far away from.

The fact that Scott didn't immediately pick himself up and keep going had Alan ignoring the homework - and the alarm John had tagged on him for leaving the table without authorisation, because yes they had decided to be that strict about it today - and running for the unmoving form of his biggest brother.

"Scott?"

The groan he got promised consciousness, at least, even if that made it even more worrying that Scott wasn't moving.

"Scott!" He leaned over him, tapping his cheek and watching in relief as blue eyes blinked open.

"Urgh," his brother mumbled, clearly taking a moment to register where he was and what had happened. "Alan?"

"Where are you hurt?" He had to be, if he wasn't already up and pretending it hadn't happened. Scott blinked at him.

"I'm not hurt," he said. Denied. Alan might not be an adult, but he knew Scott well enough to know there was no way he'd still be lying on the floor if he wasn't hurt. He sent his best disbelieving glare at his brother.

"Sure you're not," he retorted when Scott didn't fess up. "Tell me or I'm calling John."

John, who was no doubt gearing up to berate him for abandoning his homework the moment he got a moment to spare. It wouldn't be long before his second eldest brother piped up anyway.

"Alan-" Scott started, finally starting to shift and getting his hands beneath him in a way that had Alan's eyes narrowing. Scott didn't normally need to push himself up with his hands; none of them did. They were all too in-shape for that.

He tapped at his wrist. "Last chance, Scott." Grandma was also in the house, and as soon as he called John, he'd be calling for her, too.

Scott stopped his denial, eyes honing in on the comm as though it was a threat. Well, that wasn't wrong. Another moment of silence was all it took for Alan to bring up the link to Thunderbird Five and-

"My ankle," Scott admitted. First aid training kicked in and Alan instantly moved to assess it. His brother hadn't specified which one, but now he knew what he was looking for he could see in Scott's movements that the left was being favoured.

"Let me see," he insisted, batting Scott's hands away as his brother resignedly stayed sat down. A gentle probe had Scott obviously fighting to recoil, and Alan rolled his eyes. "I don't think you're going back out on that rescue, bro," he said.

"It's fine," Scott told him. "Some ice and it'll be good as new."

Who he thought he was fooling with that, Alan had no idea. It certainly wasn't him.

"I'm getting a scanner and we'll see," he said. "But I'm not leaving you at the bottom of the stairs for Grandma to trip over. Come on."

That time, Scott did recoil, some stupid big brother pride rebelling against the idea of being helped to stand by his youngest brother, but he was cornered against the stairs and with an eyeroll, Alan caught his arms.

"Up you get," he said, shifting until he had Scott's left arm across his shoulders and his own arm around his back.

"I can stand by myself," his brother grumbled, but it seemed that Alan having hold of him was enough to stop him trying to get away. Either that, or his ankle was a lot more painful than he was letting on.

It wouldn't surprise Alan if that was the case.

"Nope." It took some effort, especially with the height difference, but he managed to get his brother to his feet. Now, where to take him? The breakfast stools dotted around were perfectly shaped for Scott to simply slip off the moment his back was turned, so they were out, but the kitchen wasn't particularly conducive for lounging around-

Lounging.

He eyed the loungers by the pool. Thunderbird One wasn't going to be launching any time soon - Alan was under no illusions about being allowed to take Scott's place - and if Scott was laying down… It might just take him an extra few seconds to get up.

Plus, it would elevate the ankle a little.

"This way," he coaxed, bracing himself as Scott stumbled, clearly caught out at the change of direction.

"Where are we going?" his brother asked, confusion lacing his voice as Alan led him towards the pool.

"Mind the step," Alan answered, helping him down to the patio. "You need to put that ankle up."

He saw the moment clarity struck. Scott attempting to dig his heels in had something to do with that, but with one ankle out of action and Alan still directing forwards motion, he had little choice but to follow.

Sometimes, Alan appreciated John's love of simple physics.

"Sit," he ordered, nudging him down onto the nearest lounger and scooping his brother's legs up to make sure he settled on it properly. "And stay, or I'll get Grandma."

That close to the kitchen, it was a threat.

Whether it was enough of a threat to get Scott to obey, however, remained to be seen.

The answer was apparently yes, as Alan returned from his dash to the infirmary - pausing to update John out of Scott's earshot, who rolled his eyes and obligingly turned off the 'Alan do your homework' alarm at his valid reason for not doing it right then - to find Scott was still there.

Scott was also, somehow, asleep, as though the act of laying down on a lounger was the last push he'd needed to get some rest. Alan wondered if he'd have fallen down the stairs if he'd slept a little earlier.

Probably not.

Careful not to disturb him, he ran the scan.

Just a sprain. To be safe, he scanned his head, too - all clear; no concussion, just plain exhaustion. He could let Scott sleep a while longer before summoning Grandma to deal with the ankle.

Satisfied, he retreated long enough to snatch his homework before relocating next to his brother to get on with it. And if his new location meant he got to enjoy some peaceful time in the sun with a sleeping brother, well, that was just a bonus.

If this feels familiar, it's probably because this used to be in my collection fic Behind The Scenes. I recently reorganised that collection and came to the decision to post anything 1000+ words independently, so some chapters have been removed from that and will be going up as individual works over the coming weeks.

Thanks for reading!
Tsari