Part 1 – Tracy Farm

It's safe to say that raising children as a single parent can be difficult. Raising six boys all aged between eighteen and eight is particularly hard. But when five of those six boys have extraordinary talents… well, it makes life quite interesting indeed.

Today was no exception. Jeff returned home from work to hear a ruckus in the den; the sound of Virgil and Gordon's voices, their tones distressed. Putting down his briefcase and the pizza boxes he'd brought home for their Friday night treat on the table inside the door, and hanging his coat on the hook with all the others, he made his way in there to see Virgil attempting to clean up a cut on Gordon's head.

"What happened?" he asked, going straight over.

Gordon looked up at him, his eyes full of tears. "I didn't mean to upset him," he whimpered.

"Who?" Jeff asked, lifting him onto his lap.

"Alan," he replied, practically whispering.

"Alan?" The Tracy patriarch frowned, confused. "He did this?" He looked from Gordon to Virgil who offered the handful of tissues he'd been using to try and mop up the blood, assuming his father would take over.

"He got all upset because he thinks he's not special like us," Virgil muttered quietly. "Gordon tried to tell him maybe his ability would come later and he got cross and shouted something like he thinks he'll never be like us and he shoved him. Gordon fell over and hit his head on the table."

Jeff sighed softly. "Oh dear," he whispered. "Where is he?"

"When he realised he'd really hurt Gordon, he ran out," Virgil said. "Scott went after him."

"I found the first aid kit." Kent skidded to a halt inside the door when he saw his father. "Dad, I didn't hear you come in."

Jeff looked up at the sound of Virgil's younger twin entering the room, the emergency pack clutched in his hand. "I'll take that, thank you, Kent," he said, holding out his hand. "Where's John?"

"He went up to his room, something about getting a headache," Kent replied. "He's only just gone up."

"That could have been because I was arriving. The tech in the car," Jeff said, rifling through the kit and pulling out some antiseptic wipes.

"Probably," Kent said, watching their father rip open a pack, Gordon wincing as the wipe touched the wound on his head.

"Shh," Jeff soothed. "It's alright, Gordon. Heads always bleed a lot. The cut is quite small and not very deep. You'll probably have a decent bruise there, but I don't think we'll need to take you to the emergency room."

The young boy nodded and reached up to wipe his eyes. "Thanks, Dad," he whispered.

Jeff smiled softly at him and used one more wipe to make sure the injury was definitely clean. "I'll just put a Band-Aid over it and I think you'll be fine." He carefully covered over the cut then pressed a kiss to his forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"It's a bit sore, but I'm alright," Gordon replied.

"You're sure?" Jeff asked.

He nodded again. "I'll be alright."

"Good," he replied, smiling at him, then looked at the twins. "Alright, you two, would you go and get dinner ready? The takeout is by my briefcase out in the hall."

They exchanged a glance before looking back at Jeff and nodding.

"Good, thank you," he said, letting Gordon slide off his lap before standing up. "And Kent? The plants on the windowsill are fine as they are, alright?"

"What? I wasn't going to do anything," he replied, holding his hands up.

"Hmm, I know what you're like. You want all the plants to be as big as possible, which is fine out on the farm, not so great in the kitchen."

"Alright, alright," he said.

"I'm going to go on upstairs and check on the others."

Scott had traced Alan to his room after the incident, his soft sniffles giving him away from his hiding position under the bed.

"Al?" Scott asked quietly as he entered the room. "Alan, it's me."

"Go away, Scott," was the mumbled response. He'd frightened himself when he realised he'd managed to hurt Gordon. Despite all those things his brothers could do, Alan was still capable of injuring them and that scared him. He didn't want to hurt his brothers.

"No can do, Kiddo," Scott replied, sitting down on the floor and crossing his legs. "I came here to see if you're alright."

"Doesn't Gordon need that more than I do?" the eight-year-old countered.

"Gordon has Virgil tending to him," Scott reasoned. "I just want to talk to you."

"You mean you wanna tell me off for hurting Gordon," Alan stuttered between his little gasps from crying.

"I'm not here to tell you off," Scott assured, unfolding his legs and laying down on his front so he could see under the bed. "I think you're telling yourself off quite enough. I'm not gonna add to that."

"But I pushed him and he fell and he cut his head and Daddy always said I should be nice to people and pushing him wasn't nice," Alan said, all in one breath and sobbing again as he finished.

"And by the sounds of it, you know what you did was wrong, but Alan, I don't blame you," the elder boy said quietly.

"You don't?" Alan asked, surprised.

"No, Alan," Scott whispered. He rested his chin on his hands and looked at his littlest brother. He hated seeing him so upset. "I don't agree with what you did, but I can understand why when you're surrounded by the rest of us with our abilities, and I can also tell you're really sorry."

"I am," Alan insisted. "I really am. I didn't mean to hurt him when he was just trying to make me feel better."

"You're right, he was," Scott said. "And that's why I won't be cross with you, because you understand you shouldn't have done it. You're gonna say sorry to him, right?"

"Yeah," Alan agreed, nodding.

"Then I'm sure it'll be alright," Scott said, sitting up again. "Come on, come out here."

Alan crawled out hesitantly, then when he saw Scott sat there, his arms open for him, he went over and climbed straight into his lap, letting his biggest brother wrap one arm round him while the other reached up so he could cradle his head. "I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say we're sorry, Alan."

"You?" he asked, looking up at him with eyes shining with tears. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because we're all a bunch of show offs," he said. "We're not very considerate of the fact that while we're flying or lifting or swimming or making plants grow or changing the channel or whatever it is we do… while we're all doing that, there's nothing you can do. At least not yet."

"That's what Gordon said," Alan muttered. "He thinks I'll just be late to get my ability."

"He's probably right," Scott said. "Or it could be that you have it already but you haven't been put in a position to recognise it yet. Those approaching dust storms or the hay dust in the barn or the tractor fumes never bother you. Maybe that'll be something to do with your ability."

"So you think I'll have super lungs or something?" Alan asked, sounding unimpressed.

"Perhaps," Scott said softly. "But maybe one day you'll surprise us all and it'll turn out that your ability is really cool."

Alan lowered his head back down and nuzzled his head against Scott's chin. "You guys don't need to be sorry," he whispered. "You're not all show offs. Just sometimes I feel…" He frowned, trying to put his feelings into words.

"Left out?" Scott offered, deliberately avoiding mentioning 'jealousy'.

Alan nodded and wiped his eyes. "Yeah," he said. "But I wouldn't want you guys to stop doing the stuff you're doing. Our games are fun!"

"You mean when we play fetch?" Scott asked with a mischievous grin. "D'you know, Dad hates us playing that."

"But why?" Alan replied. "All I do is throw the ball on the roof for you to get back."

"He's worried the ball might break a window," Scott said. "But I know that you have a really good aim so you never miss."

"That's 'cause Dad taught me how to throw really good!" Alan said enthusiastically. "Does he really hate us playing?"

Scott shook his head. "Probably not," he said. "You know what he's like. He worries about us."

"All the time," Alan agreed. He wiped his eyes and took a deep calming breath. "Thanks, Scott."

"Any time, Kiddo," he said, using his thumb to brush away the missed tears on his cheeks. He glanced over the young Tracy's shoulder and grinned. "Al, look."

Alan turned to see what Scott was looking at and saw a sunflower outside the window. The bloom was waggling around like one of those old solar-powered dancing flowers their grandmother had in her car. "Why's Kent making the sunflower dance?" he asked, laughing.

Scott was glad to see him looking happier again. "Maybe he wanted you to smile. Looks like he made it grow, too," he replied. "Pretty sure the sunflower wasn't that tall yet."

Alan slid off Scott's lap and went over to the window, climbing up onto his toy box to look outside. "Hey look, on the stem."

The elder boy got up and went over, opening the window. There was a note attached to the stem of the tall flower which Scott reached out and plucked off. He grinned. "Kent says dinner's ready," he said, showing him. "And it's takeout Friday," he added, his tone almost a sing-song voice as he reminded his little brother of their weekly treat.

Alan grinned brightly. "Aw, yes!" he said. He turned to run out the door when he saw their father stood there. Immediately, he shrunk in on himself, huddling next to Scott.

Jeff noticed him place a hand gently on Alan's shoulder and smiled at them both. "It's alright, Alan," he said. "Virgil explained what happened and I was listening when Scott talked to you. But before you can have any pizza, you do need to go and find Gordon and apologise to him."

"I will," Alan replied straight away, his eyes full of sincerity. "I really will, I promise."

"Alright, you go find him then." Jeff watched the young Tracy run off in search of his immediately older brother before turning back to Scott. "You handled that well, Scott."

He just shrugged. "I can't imagine how hard it must be for him. Six of us and he's the only one not able to do anything special? He feels so left out."

"I know, but that doesn't mean we should excuse bad behaviour."

"I know that, Dad," Scott insisted. "But I didn't make a big deal out of it because I could tell he really understood he'd done wrong. And I told him as such."

Jeff nodded. "I heard," he replied. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "It's been a very long day. There was so much arguing in the board room today."

"Oh dear," Scott said. "So how about we go eat and forget about work and school and stuff for a bit?"

Jeff chuckled. "Alright."

"Is John coming down?" Scott asked as they passed his door.

"Are you kidding, Scott? It's pizza! You know that's one of John's favourites. Anyway, I checked on him before I came to listen in on you two. His headache receded once I turned off my phone."

"It's strange how he can handle the computers and appliances here but when you're leaving or arriving in your car with your phone it's too much for him."

"Some kind of sensory overload he calls it," Jeff said. "He's accustomed to the things we have here on a daily basis and to be fair we don't have much. But when I then add my phone and car to the mix it's extra for him to try and deal with."

"I suppose," Scott said. "As long as he's alright."

Jeff smiled. He loved seeing that protective streak in Scott. Ever since John arrived, he'd been fiercely protective, growing increasingly more so with each new sibling. Among his fondest of memories of Scott when he was still a young child, was the day they'd told him when his mother was expecting the twins. His bright blue eyes had widened so much and he'd excitedly announced "I get two new brothers this time?!"

"Something funny?" Scott asked as they made their way down the stairs.

Jeff chuckled. "No, just thinking about stuff," he said, heading into the kitchen to sit down with the others.

Dinner was always a loud event in the Tracy household, with seven voices all wanting to be heard but it was a time Jeff enjoyed, when he could be sat with all his children at once.

Alan and Gordon had cleared the air, the younger having apologised to the older with words and hugs, before racing to the dinner table.

Scott, naturally, had got there first by flying over their heads, to which Jeff had had to remind him about not flying inside.

Gordon had decided that he didn't want any peppers on his pizza and so while Kent wasn't looking he kept piling them onto his slices. An effort that when discovered, Kent had called on the ivy vines that grew up the outer kitchen wall. Before Jeff had noticed what he was doing, the vines had sprouted from between the floorboards and strapped Gordon to his chair.

"Kent, what have I told you about that?" Jeff asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Sorry, Dad," Kent said, but couldn't help but grin at his twin as he instructed the vines to return to their natural habitat.

John sat quietly next to Scott, digging into his pizza with enthusiasm.

"Mind your fingers there, John," Scott warned him. "If you don't pay full attention, you'll eat those, thinking they're topping."

John looked round at him then down at the slice. "Will I?" he asked, having not been paying full attention.

"Well, I'd hope not really," Scott replied. "I was just commenting on how fast you're eating your pizza."

"It's my favourite," he said.

Scott smiled. "Yes, I know. But I also know that look. You're doing your homework, aren't you?"

"I was almost finished. Just need to write one last paragraph."

Scott shook his head, chuckling. "Seriously, John? I know you can write up your homework on the computer just by thinking about it, but come on! It's Friday night and we're having pizza. Forget about it. You can do it in the morning."

"I'd rather get it all done now," John said.

"And you can't even wait until we've finished dinner?"

"I'm almost done, then I'll focus."

Scott knew he wasn't going to win this argument, so just shook his head again. "Whatever you say, John," he said, helping himself to another slice.

"Do we have sauce to dip our crusts in?" Alan asked.

"In the cupboard," Jeff replied. "New bottle, we finished the other one the other day."

Virgil sighed. "I'll get it," he said, getting up.

"I don't mind," Scott offered. "I'm sat closer."

"No, it's alright. We all know you'll be handing it to me anyway if it's a new bottle."

Alan grinned. "No! You gotta give it to Dad first, I wanna see if he can do it."

Jeff rolled his eyes with a smile. Alan seemed to find it hilarious that there were jars and bottles that he couldn't open because they were just too stiff and yet Virgil could remove them in less than the blink of an eye. "No, Alan, let Virgil do it seeing as he got up. Let's not mess him around when he wants to eat his dinner."

Virgil removed the bottle from the cupboard, opening it as he went before sitting back down. "Dad, after dinner can we go work on the tractor?"

"Can we do it tomorrow?" Jeff asked. "It's been a very long day and I just want to relax this evening."

"Alright," Virgil replied, finishing a slice and reaching for another.

"After breakfast good for you?" Jeff asked.

"Sounds like a plan," he said, smiling at him. Working on the tractor with Jeff was one of his favourite things to do. It wasn't a particularly glamourous or important job as they didn't really need the tractor for the running of the farm with their more modern equipment, but it was credit for his mechanics classes and was time spent with just the two of them.

"Excellent," Jeff responded. "Kent, would you mind attending to the crops?"

"Of course," the younger twin replied, smiling brightly. He was at his happiest when he could sit in the field and feel connected with all the plant life around him. He'd been known to sit out in their fields for hours at a time, allowing himself to feel each and every plant. He'd know how well each was growing, give it gentle encouragement and would also heal any damaged or diseased crops, meaning their yield was higher than all the others in the area.

"If John's done his homework, d'you think he could help me with mine?" Alan asked, almost timidly as he looked up at his father.

"Why don't you ask him?" Jeff suggested, glancing at John.

The second eldest looked up from his pizza, having realised his name had been said. "Sorry?" he asked.

Alan looked between them then focused on John. "I have homework I gotta do. Will you help me tomorrow?"

"Of course, Alan," John replied, smiling.

Alan grinned brightly back at him.

Jeff looked around at them all, watching his children eating and talking and enjoying each other's company. It was one of the best feelings and his favourite time, being able to just spend time with his boys. He smiled to himself and sat back in his chair, listening to his children.

The following day was bright and clear.

Kent had finished his breakfast and was now wandering outside to head towards the crop fields when he heard a sound above him. He looked around then realised which tree he was passing under and grinned.

He held his hands out at his sides, palms down as he concentrated. The grass around his feet grew, thickening and tangling together and lifting him from the ground towards a large overhanging branch high up in the tree. "You're up here really early," he said.

Scott looked up from where he was sat, his back against the trunk of the tree. He had a book propped on one knee, his foot tucked near him while the other hung beneath the branch he sat on. "Oh, hi, Kent," he replied, smiling at him. "Yeah, I woke up hours ago. Tried some breakfast, did my homework, still no one else was up so I thought I'd bring my book out here."

Kent stepped off his grassy platform and onto the branch, walking along it to approach his eldest brother. He had no fear of the height they were at because he knew that even if he were to fall, Scott's reflexes were such that he'd catch him. That, and his own were pretty decent as well and he knew he'd be able to manipulate the tree to shift its branches to aid him. "You still reading that old thing?" he asked, sitting opposite him, his hands braced in front of him while he hung a leg either side of the bough.

"This old thing used to belong to Grandpa Grant," Scott said, closing the book around his finger to keep his page. "And it's my favourite book. I love this story. He would read it to me before bed when I was a kid after he got back from working the fields."

Kent smiled back at him. Scott was very much a child of the modern age, interested in technology and the latest inventions as much as their father, and yet, he was incredibly attached to an antique paperback copy of To Kill A Mockingbird. "So why were you up so early?"

Scott shrugged. "I didn't really sleep much last night," he said quietly, the smile slipping.

"How come?" he asked, finally noticing the dark rings circling Scott's eyes which concerned him.

The older boy brought his other leg up, hugging his knees closer to him which surprised Kent. Scott suddenly looked a lot younger than eighteen.

"Scott?" Kent crawled along the branch to get closer to his brother. "What's wrong?"

"Bad dreams," he whispered, sighing shakily. "Been trying to put them out of my mind."

"What kind of bad dreams?" he inquired, worried. "Maybe if we talk about it, it'll help?"

Scott shrugged again, looking like he wanted to shy away from him at the suggestion.

"Scott, don't keep it bottled up inside," Kent insisted. "Let me help you."

He looked down at the younger twin, the one he normally butted horns with. Kent could be a pain in his side at times, but then at other times, he was right there when he needed someone. Sometimes he seemed so much older than he really was, being barely into his teens. Taking a deep and shaky breath, he nodded. "It was the incident yesterday."

"When Alan hurt Gordon?"

"Yeah," Scott whispered. "I dreamed about that, but Gordon was injured way worse and Alan got real scared and ran away and we all looked and looked but we couldn't find him. We didn't find him. I didn't find him."

Kent stared at him, compassion in his eyes as he saw tears forming in Scott's. He reached out and took hold of his hand. "Nightmares always seem to draw on our worst fears like that, but Scott, that's not how it happened and you know it. Gordon's fine and Alan was still snoring like a sailor when I came out here. Both of them are safe and here."

"I know," Scott said. "I looked in on them both when I woke for my own peace of mind, but I couldn't shake off the dream."

With a little bit of wriggling and careful climbing, Kent managed to get up next to Scott and rested his head against his arm, hugging him gently. "It'll be alright, Scott," he said quietly.

Scott let out a sigh as he put his arm round his shoulder, a smile beginning to form as Kent tucked his head closer to him. "Thanks, Kiddo," he said.

"Hey, less of that, thanks," Kent argued playfully. "That's Alan."

The smile grew, even going so far as becoming a small chuckle. "Sorry, Kent. But I did mean the thanks."

"I know, Scott."

With another small sigh, Scott looked out towards their house and finally noticed the grass tower. "You might want to tell the grass to go back to normal before Dad notices. I'll take you back down if you like."

Kent looked up at him. "You sure you can manage me? You're not as strong as Virgil."

Scott nudged him gently. "And I'm also not as weak as you think. I can still pick you up. And sling you over my shoulder if I need, too."

The younger boy grinned at him. "Alright, but not over your shoulder. Piggy back?"

Scott laughed. "Piggy back it is," he agreed, smiling as he leaned forward so Kent could climb onto his back. He watched as the grass receded back down to the ground then allowed himself to lift from the branch, taking Kent with him, and together they drifted back to the floor.

Part 2 – Tracy Island

"How long has Gordon been out in the pool?"

Scott looked up from his book to see Alan walking over. "Hmm, what's the time?" he asked, glancing at his watch. "Uh, a few hours now I think, why?"

"Just wondering," Alan replied, sitting beside him. "I wondered if he was out there when I went down to the beach to help Brains and Kent gather up seaweed and gone back out there when we returned."

"No, you know him, he's been out there the whole time," Scott said, marking his page and closing the book. "Why were you gathering seaweed?" His head was tilted as he regarded the youngest Tracy brother, an eyebrow quirked through his curiosity.

"Ah, Kent mentioned they might contain some chemical or mineral or whatever that'll be useful if extracted for our medical supplies. I offered to go help because Grandma was threatening to get us to tidy earlier."

"I wondered why I was the only one cleaning the kitchen," Scott stated, smiling. "Virgil said he had to go prepare stuff in Brains' lab. Now I see he was in on this too."

"Sorry, Scott. But did the kitchen really need that much tidying doing to it?"

"After the breakfast Virgil prepared today? There was grease everywhere. You know how he gets when he makes us a big fry up."

Alan laughed. "Is it done now?"

"D'you really think Grandma would have let me sit here reading if it wasn't?" Scott countered, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah, good point."

Scott grinned. "Oh, I know what I meant to say to you."

Alan looked over at him, wondering why he hadn't finished that sentence when John appeared above the table in the centre of the room.

"Yeah, John called earlier with a proposition for you, if you're interested," Scott stated.

"Really?" Alan asked.

"Hey, Alan," John said, waving at him. "How would you feel about some time up here with me?"

"What d'you mean?" Alan queried, confused.

"I mean, we'd like you to come up for a few days, get to know the station a bit better. The others have all taken some time up here to familiarise themselves with my systems should it become necessary for me to, uh… to…"

"It's called shore leave, John," Scott provided with a grin.

"Yeah, that," he said, looking as though the very idea was disturbing. "But at the very least, it would benefit you to be more aware of how stuff all works up here."

"Really?" he asked, looking between the two eldest brothers.

"Yeah, and, well, there is a sort of a catch, but I'm hoping you might be interested," John added.

"Right…" Alan said slowly, frowning.

"Well, Five needs to have her external systems checked, part of routine maintenance," John explained. "We were wondering if you wanted to help with that. You'd be able to work outside longer than I can."

Alan's frown melted into a smile. "Really?" he asked, his tone far more interested now.

Scott chuckled. "I told you he'd be interested," he said.

Alan grinned brightly. "I'd love to! When do I go? Am I taking Three up?"

"Whoa, slow down, Kiddo," Scott said, holding his hands up. "Take it easy. John's gonna send the elevator down so we can keep Three free should she be needed."

"I can send it down as soon as you're ready," John offered.

"I can go now?" Alan asked.

"If you want to."

The young astronaut looked over at Scott who nodded encouragingly. "You'd better gear up if you're going now."

"FAB, Scott!"

The two eldest watched the youngest run off before exchanging a glance. "Want me to let you know when he's ready?"

John chuckled. "Once he's in his uniform, I'll be able to detect his tech, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Scott said, smirking. "How could I forget?"

"Thanks for your help, uh, Kent," Brains said as the two of them put down the buckets they'd been carrying. Alan had palmed his off to Kent as soon as they'd finished searching the beach and wandered back inside. A quick glance around and Brains also noted that Virgil had finished setting up for their experimenting and was no nowhere to be seen. He assumed he'd gone to work on Two, knowing that was his favourite pastime.

"Anytime, Brains," he replied. "I'm certain if you can process this stuff right, it should augment the painkillers we have in our stores."

"I don't doubt you," Brains agreed. "Your knowledge of plant life is not something I'd ever, uh, dispute."

Kent grinned. "Why thanks, Brains," he said. "Can I stick around and help?"

"If you'd like," the scientist said.

Kent grinned. "What d'you need then?"

"We need to get these samples separated, ideally by the content of the mineral you detected."

"Well, I can do that," Kent responded. "Easily." He focused on the seaweed and his grin widened as the plants floated out of their buckets and started to settle across the bench, some piles bigger than others. Before long, Kent took a deep satisfied breath and turned back to Brains. "Alright, so your end of the bench has the highest concentration of the mineral, and the closer you get to my end, the lower the concentration."

"Perfect, thanks, Kent," Brains replied with a smile.

Gordon walked into the hangar later that afternoon to hear music playing. "Huh, Virgil must be working," he said to himself. Whenever the older twin came to work on his Thunderbird, there would be music playing and it was usually a good indicator as to what mood the mechanic would be in. Today, if Gordon was correct, it sounded like Holst's Jupiter, a cheerful sounding melody, so the aquanaut entered the hangar fully.

He approached Thunderbird Two which was, as usual, stood up on its landing struts, wings up and the modules nestled away in their own bay, ready to be selected. "Hey, Gordon."

He heard his name being called by Virgil but couldn't see the man anywhere. "Virge? Where are you?"

"Just coming out," he replied.

Gordon followed the sound of his voice over to the modules and realised one of them was open. He stepped around the side to mount the ramp, heading inside. "What are you doing?"

"I was just finishing up. Been cleaning the pods. They were a bit filthy."

Gordon raised an eyebrow and grinned, folding his arms over his chest, as he realised Virgil was holding both the pods, one in each hand. "I see," he said. "Well, I'd offer to help you tidy up but I think you have it all in hand. Or at least, hands."

Virgil grinned, lifting one of the pods to attach it back to its cradle before doing the same with the other. "You could help with the cleaning equipment, if you like?"

"And what if I don't like?" Gordon asked.

"You don't have to," Virgil answered, grabbing a sponge from the bucket and throwing it at him.

Gordon laughed as it splashed against him. "Funny, Virge," he replied, throwing it back. "If only water bothered me. I'll help you though."

Virgil grinned again. "Thanks, Gordon."

Before long, the supplies had been put away and Gordon turned back to Virgil. "Why didn't you use the autowasher for the pods?" he asked.

"Oh, I did," Virgil responded, glancing over to the machine in the corner very similar to a car wash. "But it always misses bits so I go over them again afterwards."

"Ah, fair enough."

"You should probably check on Four at some point," Virgil suggested. "She hasn't been needed in a while and has been sat in her tank. Don't want the intakes clogging with algae."

"Hmm, fair point. I'll go do that now."

"I'd offer to help but I assume you'll just dive in?"

"Of course. Easiest way to go."

Virgil smiled at him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Have fun then."

That evening, Scott and Virgil sat outside by the pool, watching the sun going down. "So, I noticed you managed to hide from all the cleaning today," Scott commented, looking over at the younger man.

Virgil glanced back at him. "I was helping Brains, then went to work on Thunderbird Two. She was overdue some maintenance and general cleaning."

"But you left me the kitchen to clean and no one else was around to help."

Virgil bit his lip. "I forgot about that," he said. "Sorry."

"It's alright, Virgil, just next time don't leave me all the greasy fry up stuff to deal with."

"Yeah, sorry," he repeated. "I'll take your turn next time."

"See that you do," Scott replied, nudging his brother's arm with his shoulder.

Virgil smiled at him then looked back out over the vista. "Nice evening," he commented.

"Mmm hmm," Scott said. "And it's been so quiet today, too. I actually felt like I could relax for once."

Virgil turned to face him. "You? Relax? Surely not!"

"Hey, don't mock," Scott retorted.

The younger man grinned. "Oh, come on, Scott, we all know you don't actually ever relax."

"I'll have you know I actually read a book today."

"Ooh, let me guess, Thunderbird One's specs. A business manual. The Big Book of Rescues."

"Actually, it was a fiction book, my favourite in fact. No work, no research. Just pure fiction."

"Wow, I'm impressed," Virgil stated.

Scot rolled his eyes. "I do read for recreation, you know," he said.

"Yeah, but not often."

"In my defence, we are usually either busy on rescues or recovering from them. Our job is pretty tiring."

"Very true," Virgil agreed, smiling at him.

"So, where are the others?" Scott asked, glancing around.

"I think Gordon may still be doing maintenance on Four," Virgil said.

"Still?"

"Well, he went to check on her earlier, make sure there wasn't any algae build up on her or anything, but I think he may have drained the tank for a full check."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't he realise Brains installed special filters in that tank so algae won't develop?"

Virgil grinned. "He never seemed to question it, but then, he is rather attached to his little sub."

"Aren't we all attached to our vehicles though?"

"Point taken," Virgil replied. "But suffice it to say, he's probably in the hangar. As for the others, I've no idea."

"I'm right here," Kayo said, appearing beside them and laughing when they both jumped. "You boys are so easy to sneak up on!"

Scott folded his arms across his chest. "Kayo, it's hard to know when you're coming, you always turn invisible!"

"It's called working an advantage," she countered, grinning. "And with regards to your earlier statement, Kent has gone into the jungle again."

"He's what?" Virgil yelped.

Scott put a hand on his arm. "Virgil, chill out. This is Kent. Out of all of us, he's definitely the safest in the middle of our jungle."

"From the flora, but what about the fauna?" Virgil asked, concerned for his twin.

"I don't think there's anything in that jungle that can harm him," Kayo assured him. "I've been in some of the way and although, yes, there are some pretty deadly creatures in there, Kent's way with plants is such that he'd be able to deal with them. You know, move them out of his way and stuff."

Virgil looked between them. "Sorry, I just don't really like that jungle. I tried to take a look in there when we first moved out. The creatures and the density were too much for me."

"Really?" Scott asked. "You're afraid of the jungle?" A grin began to play across his lips.

"I didn't say afraid," Virgil retorted. "I said I don't like it."

The grin softened into a smile of understanding. "I know, Virgil," Scott said gently.

"To be honest, I don't particularly like it either," Kayo agreed, sitting beside the younger man. "I can go in as far as I want because the density isn't a problem for me, I just walk through the trees, but it's so easy to get turned around in there."

"I can get to the centre just fine," Scott said.

"Scott, you fly, that's not the same. You go over all the obstacles and avoid all the creatures," Kayo responded, rolling her eyes at him.

"Still the centre," he replied.

"Doesn't count," Virgil said. "Perhaps we could ask Kent to take you in there, see how you fare."

"I thought you didn't want him going in there either?" Scott stated, tilting his head.

"The two of you in there together can look after each other," Kayo offered.

Virgil smiled. "To be honest, if he wants to go in there, that's his look out. I just don't particularly like it."

"Talking about me?"

Virgil looked over his shoulder to see his twin approaching him. "Hey Kent, yeah we were. You and your jaunts into the jungle."

"I love it in there," he stated, grinning. "I feel most alive in there, being surrounded by so many plants and I can feel each and every one of them. It's like you said about your flying, Scott."

Scott nodded. "I suppose that's true. Happiest in the skies."

"Just as I'm happiest amongst the wildlife," he replied. "And I found a palm that had been damaged by that storm last week so I healed it."

"That reminds me!" Virgil suddenly said, turning to him. "There's a palm on the runway that's damaged as well. Sudden wind shear caused me to clip it the other day."

"No problem, I'll head down now if you like," Kent offered.

"I'll come with you," he responded, standing up with him.

Together, the twins made their way down to the runway and Virgil turned once again to his younger sibling. "So, the one I clipped is…"

"Virgil, let me stop you there," Kent said, an eyebrow raised at him. "I know it's getting dark and all but not only can I see which one you clipped, I can also feel which one. It's hurting."

Virgil bit his lip in guilt. "I didn't mean to," he mumbled.

"I know," Kent soothed. "Come on." He placed a hand on Virgil's shoulder and guided him over. Stopping at the affected tree, Kent glanced up at it. "He got you good, huh?" He looked at Virgil before looking back at the tree. "But it's alright, I can fix it. Virgil won't do it again, right, Virge?"

"I'll try not to. Blame the wind."

"Mmm, the wind rips at their fronds," Kent stated. "Strips them of their leaves, they understand."

Virgil smiled at him as he stepped closer to the tree and placed his hands on the trunk, closing his eyes. A faint green glow emanated from the damaged section of the plant and with the sound of rustling leaves, the tree knit itself back together again. "There, good as new, right?" he said, patting the trunk gently.

"Thanks, Kent," Virgil said, smiling at him again, then looked up at the tree. "I wouldn't harm any of the wildlife here intentionally, you know?"

"I know," Kent said again. "I'm sure they don't hold it against you."

Virgil slung his arm round his twin's shoulder. "Come on, it's getting late; time to go back inside."

Kent looped his own arm round his brother's waist and together they headed back into the villa.