Disclaimer: All characters of the Thunderbirds movie-verse do not belong to me. I'm merely borrowing them for my own amusement and the amusement of my readers. All original characters are my creation, so please don't use them without my consent.

Meg Tracy's POV:

As I dried the last plate, I glanced out the window into the backyard. Virgil, Scott, John and Gordon were out there playing a game of baseball - well at least a four-person version of baseball. At least the four of them were getting along right now. I had spent the last couple of evenings breaking up squabbles between them. Though I loved all five of my boys, there were times that all I wanted was a break from them.

Looking away from the window, I finished drying the plate and put it up in the cupboard as the phone rang. I closed the cupboard door and dropped the dish towel onto the counter. Walking over to the phone, I picked it up.

"Hello."

"Hello, Honey. I'm not going to make dinner tonight," came Jeff's voice over the phone. The call didn't surprise me. It had become a common thing for Jeff to work late these last few months. Most nights the kids were already in bed by the time he got home.

Jeff had been working six sometime seven days a week at Tracy Industries since September. There had been many nights when he hadn't made it home in time for dinner. I understood that there was a lot going on at the company. Jeff was reorganizing the company along with working on a merger with another company. Jeff was also helping a longtime friend of his, Dr. Mark Harper, to set up a free clinic at the hospital he had privileges at. However, I also missed my husband and the kids missed their father.

"And the trip?" I asked trying not to sound to disappointed. The ski trip had been Jeff's idea. A chance for us to spend some time together as a family. Something that I knew we all needed desperately. I kept praying that nothing would cause us to cancel it.

"Nothing is going to get in the way of this ski trip," Jeff told me. "That's why I need to work late tonight. I have some final things to wrap up with the merger before I leave for the week. After that, Marley can handle the transition. I promise, I'm leaving work completely behind me while we're in the mountains."

"Okay," I replied. I was about to say something else when I heard a commotion outside.

"Ow!" I heard someone cry out. I wasn't sure but it sounded like John.

"Some pitcher you are, Scott," I heard Virgil call out.

"I didn't mean it," Scott replied. "John are you okay? John, where are you going?"

Well that told me for sure who the first shout had come from. I also had a very good idea about what had happened. Though he kept on trying, baseball was not John's game.

"I'm not playing anymore," came John's voice. I could hear a slight tremble in it.

"Jeff, I've got to go. Something is up with the boys. I'll see you when you get home."

"Okay, Meg. Love you."

"I love you too." I told him quickly and hung up the phone. I turned around to head outside. I got half way to the door when it opened and John came in. His left eye was already turning black and blue and I could see tears glistening in his eyes.

"John, what happened?" I said rushing over to my twelve-year-old son.

"Scott beamed him with the softball," ten-year-old Virgil supplied coming in behind him.

"I didn't mean to," Scott said defensively from behind Virgil. "It was an accident. Most people usually move out of the way if the ball comes that close to them," Scott said as I led John over to the stools near the counter.

"You told me to quit ducking. That I would never hit the ball if I didn't keep my eye on it," John said as he sat down on one of the stools and I went to get an ice pack out of the freezer.

"That's when the ball is actually going over the plate, stupid."

"Scott Tracy!" I scolded looking back at my oldest son. "You know you're not suppose to call anybody that word! Now apologize to your brother!"

"Sorry, John," Scott said quietly looking down at the floor.

"Now go to your room," I told him as I wrapped a dish towel around the ice pack and applied it to John's eye.

"For how long?" Scott asked.

"Until I say you can come out," I told him.

"Man, this sucks," my fourteen-year-old said, even as he headed for the steps. "He's the one who wanted to play baseball. I can't help it if he sucks at the game."

"Watch the mouth young man," I called after him.

There were times when I didn't know what to do with my eldest son. He had never exactly enjoyed school but he had still managed C's up until this year. His first two report cards hadn't been all that great. He had a D in both history and math the first semester and a D in English and gym the second semester. The D in gym class had been because of mouthing off at the gym teacher and not participating. Scott knew the rules though, he either pulled his grades up to solid C's or he didn't play little league come spring. So far this semester he had pulled all his grades up to C's though, which was the only reason I had let Jeff talk me into taking the kids out of school for this ski trip. Not to mention that we needed some time together as a family.

"Where's Gordon?"I asked, realizing he wasn't in the kitchen.

"Probably still outside," Virgil said. He was still standing near the back door, probably ready to go back outside himself. It had rained the last few days and this was the first chance the kids had gotten a chance to go outside. The four older boys had been outside since they had come home from school.

"Well, how about you go get Alan from the living room and take him outside with you. You and Gordon can keep an eye on him while I get dinner ready."

"Okay," Virgil said, not seeming at all happy about having to keep an eye on his four-year-old brother. I watched him walk toward the family room to get Alan though.

I couldn't really blame him. Watching a four year old wouldn't have been my idea of fun at that age either, but Alan had wanted to go outside earlier. I had kept him inside though because the older boys were playing baseball, and I didn't want him to get hit with the ball. Now that Scott was in his room, and John was in here, the game was pretty much over with. I figured it would be good for my youngest to get outside for a little while.

"Keep that on your eye," I told John, as he reached up to take the ice pack from me.

I left his side to start dinner for the boys. I'd eat later when Jeff got home.

"I'm never playing baseball again," John said. He was now sitting facing the counter, his elbows on the counter top as he held the ice pack to his eye.

"The game isn't for everyone," I told him softly, even though I knew that decision wouldn't hold for long. The next time Scott went to play baseball with his friends, I was sure John would be tagging along with him. John never had been one for team sports. The exception to that was soccer. He had tried out for and made the middle school soccer team last fall. Baseball, basketball and football he just couldn't seem to get. Unfortunately, those were the sports that Scott loved so of course John kept trying, just to be with his older brother. John was forever tagging along with Scott and his friends which was usually how he got into trouble.

Virgil was okay at sports but he only played with his friends or brothers or in gym class. He was much more interested in music and ballet, although he had recently started taking a lot of kidding from his class mates about the latter and was talking about quitting. Although I didn't like the reason he was going to give it up for, I also wasn't going force him to keep doing it. I wanted my boys to do what they enjoyed and have fun with it. They were still young. I wanted them to enjoy things while they were young. I knew getting teased by his classmates couldn't be fun.

I could already tell Gordon was going to be another jock like Scott. He enjoyed all sports, swimming being his favorite, and at eight years old could already beat Scott at a one on one game of basketball, without his older brother going easy on him. Last fall he had spent a lot of time with John, when John practiced his soccer skills and was picking that up as well. I just hoped Scott's attitude didn't rub off on any of his younger brothers.

"How was school today?" I asked John as I started cutting the vegetables for the stir-fry.

"Okay," he replied with a shrug.

"How did the book report go?"

"Okay I guess. Not as many kids laughed at me this time when I started stumbling over the words," he told me. "Why do we have to do oral book reports anyway?" he complained.

"It's a confidence builder," I told him. "I'm sure it wasn't as bad as you thought it was."

"I wish I could just do the school work without actually going to school," John said.

"It'll get better, Angel" I told him. Words I had been repeating to him for years.

Part of me really did want to home school him. To be able to shelter him from the other kids at school. John was just so shy and sensitive that it was hard for him to talk to the other kids. Hard to make friends. The other kids making fun of him didn't help matters either. I had been excited when he had gotten interested in soccer. It gave him something to do with kids that shared the same interest as him. I had been hoping he might make a friend or two but while all the kids on the team were nice enough to him, he hadn't really made a connection with anyone.

Still, he needed the social experience more than he needed the book learning. John brought home straight A's easily. Jeff and I were considering sending him to a private school where the classes would be smaller thinking he might do better in that kind of setting. Of course that also meant that unless we pulled the others out of public school too, he wouldn't have the support of his brothers. Neither of us were sure what to do.

While I prepared dinner, I asked some more questions trying to get John to talk about his day. Before long he was talking openly, and I quit with the questions.

"Let's see what that eye looks like?" I said as I turned the stove off and crossed over to the counter, taking the ice pack from him. It didn't look that good at all. "Does it still hurt?" I asked him.

"A little," he admitted.

I went to the cupboard and got a couple of Tylenol out for him to take hoping they would help. I'd wait until Jeff came home and see what he thought before dragging him to the ER. Scott could keep an eye on Virgil and Gordon but I didn't feel comfortable leaving Alan with him, which meant I would have to take Alan with me if I went now. A four-year-old running around a waiting room wasn't exactly my idea of fun.

"Can you go outside and get your brothers for dinner?" I asked him.

John nodded and headed for the back door. I went upstairs to spring my eldest son from his room.

Jeff's POV:

"Are you sure your wife isn't going to mind me spending the night?" Mark asked as we got out of our cars and headed from the garage to the house.

"Has she ever minded you stopping by, Mark?" I told him with a laugh. "When she married me, she knew you were part of the deal."

Mark and I had been friends since sixth grade, when he had been assigned to show me, the new kid, around the school. We had been inseparable since despite our different choice in careers. We had gone to the same college pursuing our different careers only to end up working at the same place - NASA. I was training to become an astronaut and Mark was working with the base physician having just graduated medical school.

I had met Meg during my years at NASA as she was an aspiring astronaut herself. Where I had gotten the chance to go into space, Meg had never quite been that lucky. When she had finally been chosen for a mission she found out she was pregnant with our first child two weeks before the launch.

After Scott was born, Meg wanted to be a stay at home mom. I had stayed with NASA for a few more years and then left to start my own business.

Now Mark had his own practice at the hospital and did shifts at the local ER and I ran Tracy Industries both in the same town. Mark had even become my family physician and I wouldn't trust my family's health to anyone else. It was only natural that he had approached me as a partner for starting up the free clinic he wanted to open at the local hospital. A venture I was only too happy to back. Along with the merger, I had spent a lot of time lately with Mark trying to get that free clinic up and running. Like all other business though, we were both determined to put the clinic behind us on our upcoming ski trip.

"Yeah, I still don't know what she was thinking when she did that," Mark told me jokingly.

I laughed as I opened the door to the house, and entered the kitchen.

"Goodnight, Mom," John was saying as he gave Meg a hug.

"Goodnight. I'll send your father up as soon as he gets home," she told him.

"No need to, I'm already home," I said letting my presence be known. As soon as John saw me, he rushed toward me and threw his arms around me. I hugged him back. "What happened to the eye?" I asked him having noticed his swollen black and blue eye. That must have been the reason that Meg had to get off the phone earlier.

"Scott hit me with the softball while we were playing a game this afternoon," John told me.

"Guess you finally didn't duck one, huh" I told him messing up his hair. John had always been afraid of the ball whenever we tried playing catch or he tried hitting it. It didn't stop him from trying though.

"I wish he had," Meg said from her spot at the sink. "I debated taking him to the ER to get checked out."

"No need to," Mark said from behind me. "You're lucky that you have a doctor that still makes house calls. I'll take a look at it, if it will put your mind at ease."

"Thanks, Mark," Meg said.

Mark had John sit down in a chair at the table, and I walked over and gave my wife a kiss and a hug.

"So where are the others?" I asked her as we pulled away from each other.

"Alan's in bed already, Gordon and Virgil are upstairs packing for the trip as they hadn't done so yet, and Scott's in the living room watching tv."

"Okay, well let me go see each of them and then we'll sit down to dinner," I told her knowing she had waited to eat until I got home. "Mark's spending the night," I told her. "I figured as we were both working late and we want to get an early start it would be easier."

"Not a problem. I'll set another place at the table," Meg replied.

"He'll be fine," I heard Mark tell her as I headed upstairs.

I went to Alan's room first, kissing my sleeping son's forehead and quietly leaving the room. I stopped by John's room to say goodnight as he had come upstairs and climbed in bed in the meanwhile. I checked on Gordon and Virgil who were finishing up their packing.

"Excited about the trip boys?" I asked them as I sat down on Virgil's bed.

"Yeah," they both said excitedly. It was the first time this year that we were going skiing as a family. Meg and her sister, Beth, had taken the two older boys to the Poconos one weekend and Mark had taken Virgil and Gordon one weekend when he went skiing with his brother. I hadn't gone yet this year as I had been too busy with work.

"Remember this may be a vacation but your school work still needs to get done. No waiting until next weekend and trying to rush through it."

"We won't," Virgil said.

"Scott's the one you have to worry about doing his school work. The rest of us always do our homework," Gordon said sounding a little upset that I would think he wouldn't do his school work.

"I know that," I told him. "Set a good example for your big brother for me though will you."

"Okay," Gordon said.

"You two about finished?"

"Yeah."

"Well when you're through, how about getting ready for bed. I want to get an early start in the morning."

"Okay," Virgil replied, speaking for both Gordon and himself.

"Goodnight boys," I told them giving them both a hug before leaving the room.

I headed back downstairs to the living room to see my oldest son. Scott was sitting on the couch watching Unsolved Mysteries.

"That's some shiner you gave your brother," I said lightly as I sat down beside him.

"It was an accident," Scott said defensively. " I didn't mean to hit him. Who knew the one pitch that happened to be off would be the one he decides not to duck?"

"I know," I told him, laughing. I couldn't help it. Scott had a point and when you thought about it that way it seemed humorous. "You do realize though that the only reason he keeps trying is because he wants to spend time with you don't you," I told him growing serious once more.

My two eldest boys were like night and day. Still, I knew John idolized his older brother. Would do anything for him even though it usually got him into trouble. And even though Scott sometimes found having his brothers around annoying he was protective of all of them, even more so of John. I had seen Scott refuse to go places or do something with his friends when his friends didn't want John around.

"I wish he'd find his own friends so he wasn't hanging around so much," Scott complained.

"It's not as easy for him to makes friends as it is for you Scott," I reminded him. "If he didn't spend time with you and your friends I think he would stay around the house all the time."

"I know. I don't think he's ever going to learn how to hit a baseball though. The only reason the others let him play is because I refuse to play unless he's on my team. They know whenever he is up to bat that he's going to strike out."

"Yeah, well he might surprise you one day," I told him. "And in the mean time I think he repays you quite enough for covering up for you when you're out past curfew," I told him. Scott looked up at me surprised. "I know about last week, when John told your Mom you went to bed early and then made the bed look like you were in it. I saw you climbing up the tree on your way back in."

This was the first time I had been able to confront him about it, without Meg knowing about it or waking him up at some ridiculous hour when I had finally gotten home. I couldn't wait for things to slow down at work. I hated being away from my family so much.

Scott looked down at the floor knowing he had been busted.

"Are you going to tell Mom?" he asked me softly.

"No, it can be our secret this time but you need to stop sneaking out like that Scott. What if you fell trying to climb the tree or getting to the tree from the window or vice versa."

"I guess I hadn't really thought about it," he said.

"Well, maybe you should start thinking about things a bit more before you actually go ahead and do them." Scott nodded. I just hoped I had gotten through to him. I really didn't want to go back to the yelling matches we had at the beginning of the school year. "Don't stay up too late," I told him.

"I just want to see the end of this show," he replied.

"Okay. Goodnight kiddo," I told him standing up and heading back toward the kitchen.

"Goodnight Dad, "he replied.