Disclaimer: Is this still necessary? Oh well, if it is, I don't own it . . .
Authors Note: Guess what I found in a charity shop for 53p (what an odd number)! Well . . . my sister found it, and my Dad paid for it . . . so really I did nothing but go 'Oh hey wow!' Anyways, it was the 1992 Thunderbirds annual . . . wow, did I feel privileged! I was incredibly proud . . . even if the crosswords and colouring pages had been done, it was still really, really cool!
Somewhere In Between
By Bubblegum Thai
Chapter Four: Have you ever seen Dad this mad before?
At the Tracy home, all eyes were fixed on the nearest television set whether it be in the living room, kitchen or a bedroom, eyes ranging in colour were glued to the screen, accompanied by many open mouths. Just a few minutes previous they'd seen a horrifying thing:
"Ladies and gentlemen, we've just had news from our reporters at the Welsh mining incident . . . there's been another Earth tremor!" Exclaimed a news reporter before the picture flashed to a shaking screen, the camera focussed upon the rock face,
"There's a child! A child at the foot of the cliff and rubble is falling!" Shouted another reporter, presumably on site, "A young girl has run out also directly in the path of the landslide! She appears to be wearing an Internat-OH MY GOD!" The camera shook again as it began to focus in on a pile of rubble at the foot of the almighty rock face, "They've been crushed!" He suddenly said, his voice quieter now though, "They've . . . they've . . ." He stammered.
Jeff could feel himself begin to shake, but he refused to turn his eyes away from the dust-surrounded mound of rock which covered his daughter's body,
"This is . . . impossible . . ." He mumbled, "I did not just witness . . . that . . . no . . ." He stammered, looking up to the doorway where Alan was standing, leaning against the frame,
"Father . . ." He whispered, "Suzan . . . is she . . .?"
Jeff stayed silent; he'd only turned his eyes away,
"Mr. Tracy!" Kyrano cried as he hurried into the room, "Mrs. Tracy has just fallen!"
Jeff jumped to his feet, pushing the heavy weight in his stomach out of his mind as he rushed to the aid of his elderly mother,
"Oh Jeff . . ." She sobbed, grabbing her son as he knelt beside her to check if she was alright, "Oh Jeff . . ." She said again, now muffled by his jumper, "She can't be . . . she just . . . can't be . . ."
- - -
Back at the rescue site, both Scott and Virgil had their eyes still fixed upon where they'd last seen their sister,
"We can't just stand here!" Virgil suddenly said angrily, "They could still be alive under there!"
Scott gave Virgil a look as if to bring his younger brother back home to the real world when suddenly there were shouts of people as a hand shot out from beneath the mess. It was covered in blood, but seemed to be feeling for something as it gently patted at the jagged rocks. Both brothers instantly recognised the shreded blue sleeve to be that of Suzan's uniform and instantly sped towards their younger sibling, lifting rocks off of her battered body. Groaning she sat up, the little boy still in her arms. He was crying, his fingers stuffed into his mouth for comfort, but he appeared to be unharmed other than a few scratches.
Suzan looked up at her brothers with a dopey grin,
"Hi!" She beamed only to be returned by a tight hug from Virgil who squeezed her so hard it hurt,
"Don't you dare do that again!" He nearly yelled, "Everyone thought you were dead! Don't be so stupid!"
"I'm sorry . . ." She said quietly, "I was only trying to . . ."
"You risked your life!" Scott snapped,
"Isn't that what the job's all about?" She asked, giving them a little shrug.
Both stared at her, open-mouthed and at a loss for words. She'd caught them out. Scott rolled his eyes, wrapping an arm around her,
"Alright kiddo . . . alright . . ." He chuckled, "You did good . . ."
She smiled softly before paramedics appeared by their sides. She looked helplessly at Scott as one of them tried to pull her away from her brothers,
"Don't worry, we have our own medical facilities."
"But, here . . ." She said, handing the child to him, "He looks like he'll be alright . . ." She said brightly. The paramedic smirked and nodded,
"God bless!" He said brightly before heading back for the ambulance,
"Scotty-boy . . . carry me . . ." She whined,
"Scotty boy? Just for that . . . no!"
"Oh please!" She whined.
He looked her up and down; her humorous uniform was absolutely ruined. When she'd first emerged in the atrocity, he hadn't had much time to contemplate it, but now that the mission was over and that his siblings were safe, he could look at and appreciate what Virgil had been laughing at. The top part of his sister's outfit was just like their own, long sleeved and comfortable, not too tight or loose. However, instead of full-length trousers she wore a skirt which stopped just above her knees. It had a small slit up the side. Beneath that, she wore tights in the same shade of blue whilst her boots, sash and hat were the same as their own; her assigned colour was a pale, almost mint shade of green. She glowered at the amused look on his face,
"Stop laughing at my uniform." She ground out, balling her fists at her sides, "It's not funny anymore!" She growled, stamping her foot, "Euck . . . can we go home now? I need a shower . . . I'm a mess . . ."
Scott shrugged,
"I guess . . ." He breathed, "We're pretty much done here, why don't you guys take off? I'll catch up with you, just finish off things here."
"FAB." Both said in unison before disappearing into the bowls of the heavy Thunderbird 2 craft. Within a few minutes, it had risen into the sky and was performing a well balanced 180 degree spin above their audience below before steadily making it's way towards the horizon, gaining speed with every growing second.
- - -
Back at Tracy Island, the family had been thrown into relief at the news of the safety of their baby, each one slouching into their respective seats after recovering from such a shock. Ruth Tracy's knees were still weak as she dried her eyes, looking over at her son who was still seated behind his desk. He glanced up to meet her gaze,
"Don't be too rough on her, Jeff . . . she was only doing her job, after all . . ." She murmured. Jeff remained deathly silent as he stared back down at his hands. He chewed on his cheeks as he mused over everything which had arisen on the last mission. Both Scott and Virgil had already radioed in, announcing that they were on their way home and Jeff had been conscious of the fact that his tone had been laced with ice as he'd been answering his boys. All three of his children would be getting a talk upon their return, his daughter especially.
With a huff, he sat back in his seat, now staring at the portrait of Lady Penelope as if for guidance. Ruth had long since given up, finding her strength and retreating to the kitchen, whilst Gordon and Alan, still wearing their bed robes, were hanging around on the far side of the room, mainly because they wanted to watch the show which they knew would be presenting itself in just a few hours.
They snickered amongst themselves as they hid their faces behind magazines, the one of which that Alan was 'reading' didn't make for a very good disguise, because it wasn't even in English, however Jeff hadn't noticed, he was too busy planning his argument and before he knew it, he could hear the low rumble of the jets of Thunderbird One.
- - -
Scott was a little nervous about facing his Father this afternoon, after all, it wasn't everyday that you nearly let your younger sibling get crushed to death, but, she had had a very valid point, it was all part of the job,
"I've just gotta keep telling myself that . . ." He mumbled to himself as he turned clockwise into the living room, "Hey all!" He greeted, holding up a hand to greet the family members that awaited his return in the living room, only, no one seemed to register is arrival. Gordon and Alan were deeply engrossed within a magazine each; "That's funny . . ." Scott thought to himself, "I didn't know that Alan could read Italian." He continued before his eyes scanned over to his Father's desk, "Hey Dad." He greeted,
"Sit down, son." Jeff said, his voice in a monotone,
"Uh . . . sure thing!" Scott beamed, leisurely taking a seat opposite his father,
"What's your report?"
"Uhm . . . well . . ." Scott began, "The mission went well . . ." He continued on carefully, "No fatalities what so ever, a few were injured but none severely . . . most were just cold and hungry . . ."
"Fair enough, well, you'd better go and get cleaned up before dinner!"
"Sure thing, Father." Scott said with a weak smile, scampering off to his room, quickly glancing back over his shoulder.
- - -
". . . IRRESPONSIBLE THING THAT I'VE SEEN SINCE THIS OPERATION BEGAN!" Jeff bellowed, towering over his teenage daughter who was covered in cuts and dirt, fresh back from Wales with her brother.
Both Gordon and Alan were peering over the tops of their magazines nervously, watching their father blow up at their younger sister. Watching Jeff, Alan noticed that he had gone extremely red in the face whilst his sister had tears welling in her eyes,
"It's what we do, isn't it? Save people! I know that today was only my first mission, but that little boy was a life too, y'know! No one would've got there any faster than I did! I had to think fast and I did! So what if it were the wrong decision, if it were Scott or Virgil I bet you would give them a pat on the back," She then lowered her voice and puffed out her chest to mimic her father, "Oh, well done, son!" She mocked, "Good job!"
"Suzan. Louise. Tracy." He said icily, clenching his hands into fists at his sides, "How dare you mock me! GO TO YOUR ROOM!" He yelled,
"FINE!" She screamed back, "What kind of an organisation is this!" She muttered, stalking from the living room,
"And you can stay there for the rest of the night!" He called after her,
"I DON'T CARE!" She turned and yelled, "I HATE this! I HATE being protected; all I wanna do is be like my brothers! I just want to fit in with the boys! How am I supposed to do that if YOU won't let me!" She growled, "I'm not Daddy's little girl anymore! I've grown up since you ABANDONED ME!"
"I SAID, GO TO YOUR ROOM!" Jeff blew up again which made Gordon whimper slightly. Breathing heavily, he sat back down in his chair, rubbing at his forehead soothingly. He then turned his eyes upon Virgil who stood awkwardly before his Father, "You should've been looking after her."
"How're we supposed to do our job if you want us constantly looking over our shoulders to make sure that Suzan hasn't fallen and bumped her knee? Or, isn't getting into a fight with someone!" Virgil huffed, folding his arms across his chest, "She's right, you won't let her join in, you keep her in a protective little bubble of paternal panic and you won't let her out to breathe! You rarely let her go to the main land, she's not used to hanging around on the island all day . . ."
"Go, clean up . . ." Jeff sighed, waving Vigil away with his hand, "We can talk about this later . . ." He muttered through gritted teeth,
"Woah . . ." Gordon whispered, "Have you ever seen Dad this mad before?"
"Nope . . . not even with me!"
- - -
Once dinner was over, both Alan and Scott crept along the hallway towards their sister's room,
"You boys aren't going to see Suzan, are you? She's grounded." Jeff warned from the living room,
"How can you ground her? She never leaves the island!" Alan queried,
"No TV, no leaving the house and certainly no missions!"
"That's a little harsh, don't you think?" Scott began but Jeff turned eyes on him which told him not to question it. He backed away from his father and continued on his defiant path to his sister's bedroom, knocking on the door quietly, Alan popped his head around,
"Hey squirt, brought you some pie . . . it isn't much, but, Scott and I don't wanna see ya starve!" He laughed softly, placing the slice of pie wrapped up in a napkin on the top of the desk, "See ya later?"
"Hm. Thanks . . ." She replied, sitting on her bed, doodling in a sketchbook which Virgil had gotten her for her birthday.
The pair of brothers exchanged worried looks, but let the door quietly slip shut, they turned around and jumped out of their skins to see Gordon standing there,
"What're you playing at?" He asked slyly,
"We brought Suzan some pie." Alan said proudly, yet quietly,
"Heh, me too!" Gordon beamed, holding up a matching paper package containing pie.
By the end of the night, Suzan had four slices of pie, the two brought by Scott, Alan and Gordon, another by Virgil and a fourth from their Grandmother who had stayed up late for the soul purpose of paying her Grand daughter a visit.
As Jeff retired to bed, the conversation in the living room switched to one of heated discussion over their Fathers reaction, even Ruth joined in, however, Alan did not,
"What's up, kid?" Scott asked, poking his brother in the ribs, his face full of confusion, "Something bothering you?"
"Huh? Me? Of course not . . ."
"Uh huh . . . sure Alan, we believe you . . ." Gordon taunted, rolling his eyes, "It's because a certain someone isn't here to keep him company, isn't it?"
"I don't know what you're talking about . . ." Alan murmured guiltily, down casting his eyes to his hands which rested in his lap,
"Soooo, anyways, Scott," Virgil began, leaning on the top of the piano, holding a scotch loosely in one hand, "When're Brains and Tin-tin coming back?"
Alan's eyes darted up quickly before going down again, and that clinched it for his three brothers who burst into laughter,
"Knew it!" Gordon laughed, dancing around the blonde man, "Look, why don't you just TELL her, I know it's a strange concept, but just tell her how you feel."
"Yeah . . . at first it was great entertainment, but now it's just boring watching you flirt with one another. Take advantage of the fact that you don't have to worry about finding the one you love and having to go through whether to tell them about your job or not!" Scott said wisely,
"Y'know, I've never thought about it like that before . . ." Gordon mused aloud, "Not that I have anyone in mind or anything!" He quickly countered as he caught the other three watching him closely,
"Oh, great! So you don't pick on him!" Alan grumbled, folding his arms over his chest,
"Look," Scott began, changing the subject, "She comes back tomorrow afternoon . . . take her down to the beach and tell her . . . for all our sakes."
Alan stuck his nose in the air,
"Goodnight, fellas." He muttered, stalking off towards his room, leaving the three others behind to snigger at him,
"D'ya think he'll go through with it?" Gordon asked his brothers as he shut the balcony doors, the air beginning to get cool,
"Nope." Virgil and Scott said together,
"Hmmmm,"
"Well, I know love when I see it . . ." Ruth suddenly said,
"Grandma!" They exclaimed in unison, "How long have you been there?"
"A while . . . I just chose not to mention it, you all seemed to forget that I was ever in the room, so I went along with it." She said kindly before stifling a yawn, "Well, it's definitely past my bedtime, could one of you boys do me a favour?"
"Sure, what is it?" Virgil asked,
"Check on your sister for me?"
"Sure . . ." Scott replied, nodding his head slowly, "I think that one of us can handle that."
"Ok, just don't tell your father."
"Right."
- - -
Knock. Knock.
"Pssst . . . Suzan, are you awake?" Scott hissed through the crack in his sister's door. The hallway was pitch black and he didn't know whether to enter his little sister's bedroom uninvited or not, but, seeing as his Grandmother had asked for one of them to check on her, and he'd volunteered, he figured that he probably should.
Stepping in, he shut the door quietly behind him. The room was lit by the moonlight drifting in through the open curtains and a small lamp in the corner which lit the pillow where her sketchbook and hand lay resting. He approached the girl, spread out across her bed lazily, one arm extended, still holding the pencil between her fingers, beside the paper, the other tucked up against her body which laid on her side. Carefully, he plucked the pencil from her grasp, resting it beside the lamp and slid the sketchbook out from beneath her arm. He held it up in front of him and smirked,
"Following in Virg's footsteps, I see . . ." He whispered, "Just like Mom . . ." He added with a little shake of the head, closing the cover and placing it on the chair beside her bed. Carefully, he pulled an old blanket over her lithe frame, shut the curtains and switched off the light, "Sleep well, kiddo . . ."
He turned to leave, but the room was entirely dark and he couldn't see where he was going. Feeling blindly, he found the dresser then the desk and finally the door handle. Pushing the door open, he snuck out and crept along towards his own room, stopping outside Alan's to see him propped up in the window seat staring off across the ocean,
"Alan?" He called softly, "I thought you went to bed?" He asked, noting his brother's pyjamas,
"Couldn't sleep . . ."
"Oh, well, good night."
"Night, hey, Scott . . ."
"Hmmmm?"
"D'ya think she's thinking about me?"
Scott smirked and gave a little laugh,
"Yeah . . . I do . . . night."
- - - To be continued . . .
I saw the movie last weekend.
It was better than I had thought it was, but I still love the show! I didn't like the lack of Virgil, he being my favourite and all! (What can I say, I'm an art student . . . I've always loved art . . . lol).
Thanks for all your reviews! Thank you so much! Keep on writing them, it's my eighteenth birthday next Sunday (8th) soooo, I'll try to get another chapter out by then, sorry this took so long, I was on holiday!