A/N: I don't use a beta reader, so note...all mistakes and errors are my own.

Comments appreciated, but don't forget - be kind and no flames!

Much Love!

Sad-Blue-Eyed0-Angel 2010

"The decision is yours." Scott said as he watched Alan and Fermat open their backpacks further. Even Scott had to admit that it was kind of a lame gift, but Tin-Tin thought it was fun to put together and he was sure the poor girl was bored without Alan and Fermat around to keep her going on adventures around the island.

"Can I have time to think about it?" Alan asked, watching his gathered family's faces fall slightly. If the opportunity had presented itself any other time before the fire destroyed life as he knew it, Alan would have jumped at the chance to have a home education. But now he had friends that he liked. He had a girlfriend that he'd like to see more than every couple weeks or months and the idea that he might get grounded if he put one toe out of line while earning his home education.

"Sure Alan. You don't need to make any snap decisions." John said as he brushed off Alan's inquiry to hold off on decision making. He knew Alan would make the right decision for himself after he had some time to think.

"And if you decide you'd prefer to go back to the mainland, Isaac has offered to stay with you as your guardian. He's going to be stateside for about a year or two since he's fulfilled his active duties. He'd have to go back to train every couple month but that'd just mean that one of us would come stay with you for a few weeks." Scott said as he stood to pick up one of the many cupcakes that Onaha had sitting on a platter.

"C-Can I t-think about it too?" Fermat asked as he thought back to when he and Alan talked to each other about what they'd choose if given the opportunity to select either a home, public or private education.

"Sure son, you d-don't need to d-decide right away." Brains said as he smoothed Fermat's hair back with a gentle hand.

As much as Brains wanted his son to get the best education possible, he doesn't want his son to ever find himself in the position where he felt rushed or like he couldn't talk to anyone. If Fermat wanted to take some time to decide what he wanted, Brains didn't feel like it was his place to rush him.

"There's something else in the bag…" Alan mumbled as he dug down deeper before he pulled out a pamphlet attached to a lead. He glimpsed the pamphlet before his head shot up. "No way!"

"What is it?" Fermat asked as he looked in the very bottom of his bag to see if he had anything extra like Alan had.

"You're seriously going to let me get a dog?" Alan asked, his eyes wide.

"On one condition, it's not going to be only your dog." Jeff said before Fermat pulled out an adjustable collar. "Hiram and I talked it over and since you two both seem to have an affinity for dogs, we've decided it'll be both your dog. You'll have shared responsibilities and it'll be up to you both to train the dog and be responsible of your pet."

"A-And it's going t-to be a shelter d-dog as you requested A-Alan, so we'll g-go out there n-next week and look a-at the dogs to see if w-we can find one t-that suits you t-two. In t-the meantime, we'll s-set about dog p-proofing the house a-and figuring out what k-kind of dog would b-best be suited for life h-here on the island. We w-won't want one t-that can't acclimate to t-the weather out h-here, nothing t-that will shed a-abundantly and nothing t-that could trigger Fermat's a-asthma too badly. Hopefully y-you two will b-be able to find one t-that will do w-well out h-here." Brains said as he watched Fermat's face brighten up.

Much like Alan, Fermat routinely asked his dad for a dog. For years as Hiram recalled, Fermat asked for a dog or would talk about having one; one day. Hiram never allowed him to have one because he was more concerned with his son having a proper education and not focusing because of having a dog. After the fire and hearing Jeff discuss with his other sons about fulfilling Alan's long desired wish of having a dog, Brains figured it might even be a good thing for Fermat to share some of those responsibilities.

"I guess we'll have our work cut out for us." Tin-Tin said with a playful grin. She for one was excited at the idea of having a dog on the island. Days became long and boring when they were spent alone exploring the island and Tin-Tin thought it'd be fun to have a dog to follow around and to have following her, Alan and Fermat around the island.

"Yeah, it'll be interesting to see what kind of dog we choose." Alan said with a grin. He was excited to know about getting a dog and as excited as he was he was also worried. He'd be disappointed if they didn't find a dog that suited their lifestyle on the island. But Alan also had an idea that his and Fermat's dad was talking about them sharing the responsibility of a dog because then they'd be less likely to leave for private or public school if there was a dog at the house that gave them the puppy dog look.

Conversation carried on as usual for the family all afternoon and soon Alan and Fermat were exerting a fair bit of effort to keep their heads from bobbing up and down. The sun had slowly dropped until it was close to lowering beyond the horizon. Kyrano stood to light the torches that surrounded the deck and he only stopped when he noticed Alan and Fermat's eyes grow in size when the fire had been started. He'd only lit the one torch and he hesitated before lighting any others before he was given the okay from Alan and Fermat that the torches weren't going to bother them.

Alan's brothers kept waiting for the final shoe to drop. Jeff watched his son much like Brains was watching Fermat for a reaction. Alan and Fermat both took deep breaths before forcing the air out of their lungs slowly. Tin-Tin didn't know quite what to do. She didn't want Alan and Fermat to freak out, but she sensed they wouldn't tolerate the flickering flames much longer and so she asked Alan and Fermat if they wanted to go in the house to check out their renovated bedrooms.

Both boys seemed to show the relief on their faces of having an out and they nodded before painstakingly standing after hours of sitting in roughly the same position. Their joints clicked a little as they stood to follow Tin-Tin. The rest of their family stayed put, back in their normal conversations. Alan and Fermat slowly made their way into the villa and they followed Tin-Tin through the hallway until she reached what used to be Jeff's 2nd office and anteroom. In it was Alan's new room. Alan stepped through the archway of the door and noticed how close his new room looked to his old room. The only difference being that his bed was in a different location than it normally was.

Alan walked in his new albeit it temporary room and took a seat on his bed. He looked around and smiled. He knew Tin-Tin had to have been behind a majority of his bedroom move and he liked how close she came to his old room.

"What do you think Alan?" Tin-Tin asked as she entered Alan's new room to see him, "Your brothers helped me with redecorating your room."

"You all did a great job. I love it." Alan said before he sighed. "Where's Fermat's room? Is it the same room or is it relocated like mine?"

"It's relocated as well, both you and Fermat had bedrooms upstairs and well…we didn't feel right making either of you go up and down the stairs until you're feeling more like yourselves." Tin-Tin said with a sheepish grin. "I hope that's okay."

"It's okay Tin-Tin. H-Honestly I'm g-glad that I d-don't have to go u-up the s-stairs for a w-while longer." Fermat said before he took a step into Alan's room, his limp coming apparent with the step. "Tearing t-that muscle i-in the f-fire was life c-changing for m-me."

Alan and Tin-Tin both looked at Fermat and Tin-Tin then took notice of how Alan and Fermat were both wearing long jeans and long sleeve t-shirts. She took notice of her own attire and felt a little underdressed being in shorts and a tank top especially since Alan and Fermat were wearing less revealing clothing. They didn't normally dress so…conservatively but then she didn't know what exactly happened to her two best friends. She did know that she didn't necessarily want to know what it was like in the fire.

Tin-Tin had to stop herself there. She didn't know what had gotten into her but she didn't want Alan and Fermat to ever find out that she felt so ignorant over the fire. Sure she had never experienced what they had in the fire but that didn't mean she had to look at her best friends differently because of that. Tin-Tin contemplated asking Alan and Fermat if they would rather turn in early for the night, but a part of her was loathe to do so because she wanted to spend time with her friends after being separated for so long.

"Do either of you want to just stay here and watch a movie?" Alan asked as he saw the recently installed TV in his bedroom. Alan recalled having to watch TV in the living room if he was going to watch it because his dad forbade him or any of his brothers from watching tv in their rooms because he wanted them to spend time together as a family. "What made dad change his mind? Do you know Tin-Tin?"

"Well, your dad had your brothers bring a couple new tv's home when they came back last time because his reasoning was that there might be some days where neither of you would feel like going to the living room." Tin-Tin replied as she gave a shrug of her shoulders.

"That's fair I guess." Alan said before he sat down with a deep sigh on his bed and brought his feet up onto the mattress. Once he reclined back against the pillows that'd been piled up to his preferred height, Alan laid his head back and was out for the count. Fermat and Tin-Tin were hesitant to stay but they'd both sat down on the bed prior to Alan catching the last flight to snooze-ville and Tin-Tin picked up Alan's remote and turned on the television before turning on the closed captioning and muting the programming.

Fermat and Tin-Tin got comfortable on the bed watching TV while Alan napped and they soon were feeling the fatigue from the busy and exciting day catch up to them. Fermat who by this time had rolled onto his belly and fell asleep with his head propped up on his hand while Tin-Tin sat up at the head of the bed by Alan where she fell asleep sitting against the headboard.

The rest of the family on the deck started to ponder the teen's disappearance but Scott soon volunteered to go seek them and their whereabouts out. Scott ventured into the house with Virgil by his side, since he was 'thinking of getting a refill from the kitchen' despite having left his glass on the table. Their first stop was Alan's bedroom and sure enough they found all three missing teens down for the count and Scott grinned at it. Virgil started to speak but Scott seemed to sense what he was going to do or say and he turned with his finger up to his mouth to silence his brother.

The oldest son walked over to the newly renovated closet and pulled out a thin blanket to cover all three teens. He was loathing waking them all especially knowing how relieved Alan and Fermat must have been to finally be home. He motioned to Virgil to help him spread the thin blanket over Alan, Fermat and Tin-Tin before gesturing for them both to retreat from the room.

Later in the night, Alan woke up and moved to sit on the side of his bed. Letting his head hang down and hands dangle between his knees was how Gordon found his little brother as he walked through the house after all the occupants of Tracy Island had retired for the night. Gordon walked into Alan's room, aware of the need to stay quiet as Fermat and Tin-Tin stayed deeply asleep.

"Hey Al, what are you doing up this late?" Gordon inquired softly as he knelt in front of his brother. He could see by the moonlight that Alan's forehead was dotted with sweat but Gordon couldn't tell if it was because he was hot, running a fever or if it was because of his dreams.

"Not here." Alan whispered back before he stood to follow Gordon from his bedroom. They went all the way back out onto the deck where they'd all been sitting during dinner. Gordon suggested the sit on the steps leading to the beach and there they sat, the solar lights illuminating the way to the sandy path below.

"So, tell me what's going on in that head of yours." Gordon said as he got comfortable with his back and shoulders nestled in the shrubbery behind him.

"Do you ever, find yourself going back to the accident? Like reliving every minute detail in such realistic effects that you feel like you're just going to wake up one day to find yourself back there during the accident?" Alan asked as he raised one of his hands in front of his face to look at the scarring marring his hands.

"Of course I do, some nights it's really bad, others it's easy to put behind me. I just have to remind myself that I'm not there anymore." Gordon said as he held his hand up so he could grab Alan's and to take a look at it. "When it gets really bad though, I've figured out that if I focus on an object in my room or wherever I'm at that is familiar I can usually snap myself out of whatever spell I seem to be under. Let's try this."

"Try what?" Alan asked, missing the point of just what Gordon what's them to try.

"Next time you wake up during one of these nightmares where you feel like you're reliving the fire, find a focal point in your bedroom and focus solely on that. It doesn't matter what it is, just as long as it's something that catches your attention. Me, I usually focus on my picture of mom which I typically keep on my bedside table." Gordon said as he gave a sidelong glance at his brother. "What's your focal point going to be?"

"That's a good question, because it makes me wonder just what I could focus on that would bring me out of whatever is going on in my head." Alan said as he dropped his head into his hands. "I'm getting so tired of being tired. I'd love to just go to sleep and not be woken up by my dreams getting carried away."

"Well, do you want to stay out here and talk a little bit longer or did you want to go in and try to go back to bed?" Gordon inquired as he watched Alan curl up where he sat and take to resting his head on his knees and folded arms. "Maybe it's time we get you back to your bed before you fall asleep out here."

"Yeah, maybe." Alan said around a yawn. He stood up with Gordon's help and he walked slowly in front of his brother who steered him with a gentle hand on his shoulder. When he returned to his room, Tin-Tin and Fermat had inexplicably disappeared from his room, but Alan was too tired to question their departure. He crawled back into his bed, snuggling down deep in his covers and he briefly opened his eyes to glimpse a poster that Scott had found at a magazine stand. It was an artist's rendering of the International Rescue fleet. Scott had figured Alan would like it and had given it to his baby brother for his 13th birthday.

Alan, being such an International Rescue junkie had found the humor in the likeness of the International Rescue fleet considering that some of the design concepts weren't right at all. Scott's jet didn't have the flame design that the poster boasted it did just like Virgil's green machine wasn't painted with white stripes. Gordon stayed standing in the doorway of Alan's room, looking in on his brother before seeing Alan fell fast to sleep. He took that as a positive sign that his talk with Alan helped him to find a bit of solace enough to relax.

After Alan fell asleep, Gordon went back to his bedroom himself and sat on the edge of his bed before he looked at his framed picture of his mom. It was the same picture that he'd loaned to Alan before the fire, he'd believed it to have been destroyed in the fire but was more than a little relieved after Officer Pellegrini had brought it to their room stating that Wharton's shop teacher had it and was rebuilding the frame after it'd been irreparably damaged.

TBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTB

The next morning found Alan wandering into the kitchen early, Fermat not far behind him. They both were dressed in long sleeves and long pants again and were greeted by Onaha who was bustling busily in the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the household. Onaha took a brief moment to greet both her boys with a tender kiss on the forehead and a hug before returning to her duties. Since the boys were up however, she took the time to prepare them with a bowl of fruit before she double checked the schedule that Jeff had brought home from the hospital. She noticed the boy's doctor had underlined the note to apply sunscreen of SPF 30 or stronger and she took a moment to have Alan and Fermat apply it to the back of their hands while she put it on the back of their necks as well as their faces. Once the sunscreen had been applied, Onaha stepped back into the kitchen to wash her hands before she retrieved the boys' vitamins that their doctor suggested they take.

Onaha poured the selection of juice the boys indicated before tutting after them to go eat their breakfast. Alan and Fermat both just sat down at the bar and focused on their breakfast bowls. Jeff soon entered the kitchen and before he could say anything to the boys about taking their vitamins, Onaha spoke up.

"I've already taken the liberty of having Alan and Fermat apply their required sunscreen as well as have them take their vitamins. Was there anything else you'd wish me to cover for you Mr. Tracy?"

"No but thank you Onaha. I appreciate your help with the boys." Jeff said as he stepped into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee. He grinned at the family housekeeper before he walked over to check in with Alan. "How'd you sleep son?"

"I slept okay, woke up a time or two but went back to sleep shortly after waking. Same old, same old." Alan said around a mouthful of mango. He didn't tell his dad that he'd been woken up by another dream of the fire, he'd told his dad a while back that the dreams had subsided because he hadn't wanted to reenroll in any more support groups. Not that they didn't help him, he just didn't want to sit in a room with other people traumatized by burns or fires and rehash everything repeatedly. Personally, he would rather forget everything about the fire.

"Maybe you should ask Virgil for a sleep aid tonight." Jeff suggested.

"No, I think I'll give it some time. Last night was the first night back in my own bed, I'll give it a little bit before I ask Virgil for sleep aids." Alan said before he took another bite of fruit.

"Okay, well I want to know if you continue to have difficulties sleeping." Jeff said before he walked around behind Alan and kissed his head. "I'll be in my office if you want to talk."

Alan grinned at his dad with a nod before he stood up from the island bar and walked over to the sliding glass door that led to the deck. Alan wandered outside, to where he and Gordon sat the night previous when he had problems sleeping. He sat down on the step, making sure to stay hidden from the sun's scorching rays by staying in the shade provided by the shrubs. There he could see his favorite area of the beach and he could also watch the waves lapping at the sand.

He stayed there for approximately fifteen more minutes when he was joined by Scott who came out and sat down beside him. The elder brother took to gazing out at the distance much like Alan was. The younger didn't know what he could do that wouldn't have his dad or brothers following him around like mother hens. He didn't have a desire to watch anymore television, having watched enough while in the hospital. He didn't really have a desire to play video games, reading left him bored, he couldn't walk outside when it was hot outside per doctor's orders until his body had grown reacclimated to the warmer weather. So that had Alan puzzled as to what he could do.

"Al? Do you want to tell me what has you so quiet?" Scott inquired.

"Nothing, really. Just thinking." Alan replied, unsure of what to tell Scott.

"About?" Scott asked again, curious as to what had Alan's thoughts so muddled.

"I'm bored. I don't know what I can even do. I mean I am home but what can I do?" Alan said as he leaned back against the wall, looking across at his older brother.

"I know dad doesn't really approve of you being in the Thunderbirds, but do you want to go in for a tour? Maybe while we're in there, I can get you set up in one of the simulators." Scott suggested as he stood up before offering a hand to Alan.

"Yeah, I guess." Alan said before he stood with Scott and proceeded to follow him back up towards the lanai, passing through the kitchen where Scott grabbed both himself and Alan an orange from the fruit basket set in the center of the counter top before grinning at Onaha who shook her head with an eyeroll and muttering in her native tongue.

TBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTB

Scott led Alan down through the house, turned his head periodically to look back at Alan until he made it to the end of the hall where there was a bookcase placed strategically. Scott waited until Alan came to a stop beside him before he gave a gentle tug to a book that is labeled as a World Almanac. Once Scott pulled the almanac, the bookcase drew back into the wall and revealed a cement staircase.

Scott never could lose the idea that surfaced how much like those old superhero movies when a rich hermit much like their dad had decided he was going to become a superhero, which again made Scott think of his dad's dream. If it wasn't for the fact that his dad's dream was born out of their mother's passing, Scott would openly joke about how his dad was the new Batman.

Scott stepped to the side to allow Alan past before he pressed the button on the interior wall that would return the bookcase to it's original place so as not to attract attention in case of any unwanted visitors. From there, Scott led Alan down the pathway. He bypassed a worktable where he could work on parts for his 'bird'. Once in the silo for Thunderbird One, Scott stopped to let Alan look up and behold the glory of such a majestic machine.

"You ready to go in?" Scott asked as he turned to look back at Alan and he couldn't wipe the smile from his face fast enough at seeing Alan gazing at his 'bird'. The older brother knew that his baby brother adored the International Rescue crafts. If it wasn't for getting an education, Scott was sure that Alan would insist on being apart of International Rescue, as he's done in the past.

"Sure." Alan said as he watched Scott enter the key sequence that opened the entry port. There, Scott led Alan up into the belly of Thunderbird One all the way up to the cockpit. Once there, Scott prompted Alan to sit down in the pilot's chair. Scott sat in the co-pilot's seat and he started pressing a series of buttons before a helmet with a viewfinder in front of the eyes descended down from overhead.

Scott picked up the helmet and handed it to Alan with a gentle order before he began scrolling through a sequence of scenarios. Once Scott found a suitable scenario that was within Alan's level, he selected it before donning a second helmet similar to the one Alan was wearing. Scott started the initiation sequence and he prepared to guide Alan through the scenario.

Alan took hold of the yoke and he watched with baited breath as an automated voice echoed in the cockpit while number counted down across the viewfinder in front of Alan's eyes.

'Commencement in 3,…2,…1'

"Okay Alan, now when you have questions don't be afraid to ask. If you find these simulations too real or you get dizzy flying the simulator and you want to stop, just say the word and I'll stop the simulation." Scott said as he looked out of the corner of his eye to watch Alan who was sitting in the pilot's chair in total silence with his mouth agape as he watched the simulated landscape zipping past his face. "Alan?"

"Yeah?" Alan asked in breathless wonder.

Scott had to smile as he heard Alan's question. He couldn't even be mad that Alan wasn't listening. He was simply just taking in everything about the simulation. Scott began paying attention and he did as he said he would and he guided Alan into taking hold of the yoke once more after his grip went slack.

"Okay Alan, now you're going to need to hold the yoke steady. We're going to be doing a simulated water rescue. It's a clean and cut rescue. What you'll need to do is hold the yoke steady and when I say now, you'll press the buttons on the ends of the yoke to send out a flare. The flare will illuminate those that need rescuing long enough for either Thunderbird two or four to get in place to retrieve the three 'people' in danger. That's all you have to do for the simulation. Since we're in Thunderbird One, we're the command station in lieu of one on land. We don't regularly take people from rescues in our craft because there's not a lot of room, but it has happened. Particularly after an earthquake or having to rescue people from collapsed structures."

"Okay, thanks Scott." Alan replied as he focused on the simulation. Finally, having passed the stars in his eyes stage, Alan was able to focus on the task at hand. Scott was impressed with how fast Alan took to the simulated rescue. He coached Alan through and when he gave the word, Alan did as Scott instructed and he pressed the buttons at the tips of the yoke handles and the flare deployed as Scott said it would. The simulation continued for a few more moments before a giant green success scrolled across the screen and an automated voice echoed the completion of a simulation. Scott and Alan both removed their helmets and Scott raised his hand up to offer Alan a 'high-five'.

"You were awesome." Scott said with a grin before he stood to lead Alan from the cockpit of Thunderbird 1. Once they were both outside the aircraft, Scott grabbed Alan up in a head lock and gave him a noogie with a laugh. "You know none of us completed a simulation on our first try except for you? We all had to go again, two or three times before we figured out what to do."

"Well, I did have a good teacher." Alan replied with a smirk before he looked up at his brother.

"Yeah, and I had one kick ass pupil." Scott said before slinging an arm over Alan's shoulders and leading him from the silo of Thunderbird 1 and up the stairs he'd previously led Alan down. When they made it back up into the hallway above the silo. The brothers caught sight of a clock and were surprised to know that they'd been down in the silo for over an hour. "Well, that's one way to kill time."

"What's one way to kill time?" Virgil asked as he came out of the infirmary door which was a few steps down the hallway. He was holding a folder in his hand and he closed it with a snap upon seeing Alan. "How're you doing little brother?"

"I'm okay." Alan replied with a shrug of his shoulder.

"Well, how about you let me be the judge of that?" Virgil said as he walked around behind Alan and proceeded to gently push him ahead of himself right into the infirmary.

Alan humored Virgil and allowed his older brother to manhandle him into the infirmary to have a basic checkup. Alan didn't really know why his brother wanted to do this but figured he wouldn't fight him on it.