With everything going on in the world and our personal lives I thought it might be a nice idea to help lift all of the Thunderfam spirits by filling our dashboards with some Thunderbirds art, screenshots, fluffy fic goodness etc..
#TFamLove so we can all find it
❤️
And here’s my first contribution some of my favourite screenshots
A selection of mini fics featuring Alan and John. *Joined these two lovely lads together as I don’t seem to have many stories in this collection featuring them*
Touching the Stars: Part 1 - Alan.
“John… Can you hear me?”
A crackle of static…
“Well if you can hear this, then please listen…”
Another crackle…
“Who am I kidding… You’re always listening…”
A pause…
“I… I wanted you to know… My earliest memory… It’s of you… We’re in Kansas, I’m sitting on your lap and we’re staring up at the night sky… The stars John, they… They were so sparkly… I remember trying to reach out with my tiny hands… But no matter how hard I tried, I never could reach… I vowed that one day I’d just be like you and dad. I would fly out in a rocket and touch those stars that sparkled…
“Well… I did it… I flew a rocket,” a blink, yet tears still welled at the sight of Thunderbird 3 in the distance, “but I kind of wrecked her, and I had to get out… And now…”
He floated… Alone… Eyes wide, Air thinning… His hand reaching out…
“I’m doing it Johnny, I’m touching the stars…”
Part 2 plus 3 more prompt mini fics beneath the cut…
I prefer to draw the body rather than the face. But I know, no matter what we say, the most important thing in drawing a character is the face, so I’ve been practicing drawing faces a lot lately. I want to draw a body soon, John’s butt and so.
（後日追記） play to win = 直訳は「勝つためにプレイする」ですが、ここから考えて「何としてでも成し遂げる、成功させる」派生して「遊びではない」という意味にもなるかものことです。な～るほど！ つまりアランは、ミッションに出たからには絶対成功させる、とか、遊びでやってるわけじゃないというのがわかるでしょう。という訳ですね。ご指南ありがとうございます！！
and just for posterity, here’s everybody together!
I did this using a site called artbreeder, mostly just on a whim after I used it to make my current DND character. I’ve always had a hard time visualizing the cast with the same degree of realism that I treat them in most of my writing, but I’d say this is right about spot on. If anyone else is further interested, I might tool around with some of the extended-extended cast, and make Casey and Jeff and Lee Taylor and etc.
(I let Alan do my column this month. Let’s see how he did.)
Capricorn
The Moon sneaks a peek at Venus - which she wasn’t happy about as she was sunbathing on the beach outside her house at the time -while at the end of the solar system. The Sun provides the perfect shade for Mars and Jupiter as they floss in the vacuum of space. Your stars are in alignment with the cookies of Oreo.
They are telling you to stop being a wuss and ask out that good looking Astronaut that has been flirting with you over the last slice of Arctic Roll in the cafeteria. You are in control of your life and you need to be brave enough to take the plunge.
Aquarius
Pluto and Neptune are throwing hands on the steps of an asteroid belt, obstructing crucial space communications. Wednesday is going to be a collision of galactic gravitational forces, obscuring your aura from the warmth of space radiation.
Don’t buy that sweater, the colour doesn’t suit you and it’s twenty years out of date. My dad would wear that. Besides, it’s totally over-priced even in the sale.
Pisces
Jupiter’s moons are hanging lower than normal and swinging backwards. The far off suns of the Milky Way are exploding causing ripples of distortion across the cosmic fretboard of time and space. Can you hear its echoing melody? Don’t tell Virgil, he’ll try to copy it and it sounds like a cat wailing. This disturbance will all come to a frightening head on Monday.
Go skiing with Chad from finance over the weekend. He’s been doing CrossFit and he’s looking to show off his new set of abs, though they will be nowhere near as nice as mine. He jelly.
Aries
Mercury has skipped town with a cute little moon just a few lightyears travel away from Saturn. A supernova in the proximity of the Cornetto quadrant has wiped out the only other signs of life in the galaxy but your Tuesday is looking to be pretty rad.
Give yourself a well-deserved long weekend off. Call in sick and leave a burning bag of poop on your boss’s front porch, go to the spa, have a facial and work on that acne. You’ll feel tons better.
Taurus
The multiverse is in chaos, even The Doctor is worried. Godlike beings like the Lazoons are playing snooker with countless realities, the time lines are in chaos! The screams of your doppelgangers are confusing the hell out of John, because he’s sure he logged that call twenty minutes ago. This will encourage thoughts of procrastination on Tuesday morning, but it’s fine, because you can put it off until Wednesday.
Don’t eat it. Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about, Gordon said the same. Don’t touch it — don’t even look at it!
Remember that things aren’t always as bad as they seem, that there are still good people out there and good times in the future. Remember to reach out to your friends and check in on them, because we’re all in this together.
Gemini
As Marina C is slowly but surely swallowed by a black hole throughout the next month, Captain America will rise and obscure alternate heavenly bodies in accordance with the Titanic model, resulting in an overall crap storm of epic proportions.
Go ahead and sign up for that windsurfing class. Francesca will realize what she’s missing, just give it time and she will come crawling back.
Cancer
The geocentric orbit surrounding Earth this week may pull in several unexpected objects, including three satellites, two stars and an asteroid in the shape of Mickey Mouse. This in turn will affect the stability of spacetime, so avoid any heavy lifting on Friday, make Virgil do it, it’s easier.
Carefully read through all written work you come across this month, even if it’s from Brains, because otherwise you will be cloned and your evil doppelganger will take over your life while you remain locked in the cupboard in Colonel White’s office. He has far too many comedy ties but he never wears them. It’s just weird.
The world is still in chaos but that can’t be helped, five planets are retrograde and Selene says that always makes things iffy. I asked Scott what his advice was in regards to dealing with the world in general and he looked me dead in the eye and said “Make a completely normal approach, and keep your head.” I don’t know what he means by that but it seems important.
Leo
Saturn spins a sick beat on its new decks, rocking the universe with its slick beats. The little dipper spills cherry coke on the Andromeda constellation, initiating a sticky rain cloud that will fall only on Edinburgh.
Go back to bed, it’s fine, in fact, don’t even bother with bed, the floor is surprisingly comfy. Don’t worry, you won’t miss anything, absolutely nothing of interest will occur this month because everyone is still focused on themselves.
Virgo
The steady movements of the second star to the right will bring a sense of clarity to your life and you will recall moments of your childhood that you had previously forgotten. However, interference from Cygnus may work to confuse things more — watch out, because your Teddy Bear isn’t the good guy here! It will only get worse if you ignore it.
Those whispers you hear at night aren’t in your head, it’s aliens I tell you! You should probably Alien-proof your house. But don’t worry, if you don’t get abducted by Saturday your chances of living improve by 15 per cent! Buy that lottery ticket.
Don’t forget your masks when you go out in case someone coughs on you , we never do. There was one time that I didn’t bring mine and Gordon farted and let me tell you, I regretted it that day.
Libra
M-type main-squeeze star Alpha Bravo 6 will jumble up the celestial flow and likely have a huge impact on the double star of Teflon, possibly even all of Aluminium. Make sure to factor this in before making any decisions or building any Robots.
Watch out for banana peels, pool water and make sure to keep a box of band-aids with you. You’re going to be clumsier than John this week.
Scorpio
There has been an awakening in a distant galaxy. The dark side of the force is moving in to battle the light. They have been locked in an eternal conflict for the last six minutes and it shows no sign of stopping. As such, this will infect your Thursday evening with mean thoughts towards your best friend’s sister. Do not pull her hair just because stole your bike one summer.
Stop what you’re doing and go see Star Wars again. Don’t even think about it, it’s a great movie, buy me popcorn and I’ll come with you, I just have to wait until John we have an off week…so sometime in the next six to eight months suit you?
Sagittarius
A white hole off the tip of the Sombrero ring is spewing glitter at an alarming rate across the cosmos. A colony of sentient space mushrooms are drifting through the galaxy and set to collide with the Downward Dog.
When no one is watching pull that fire alarm. Free your brothers and sisters from the capitalist regime and the social niceties of life.
“And what does that do?” asked Alan, swinging his legs wildly and kicking at the air.
“That is n-not for small hands,” said Brains, promptly picking up the mechanism from the counter Alan was sitting on.
“But what does it do, Brains?” he demanded, crossing his arms.
“You tell me,” he said, holding it up so his young companion could see it clearly.
Alan bent over the open motherboard embedded in the handle, fingers tracing the circuitry in the air.
“That’s an infrared sensor, right? And it’s automated?”
“G-good, what else?”
“Well, I’m guessing that part goes ‘snap’,” said Alan, pointing at the metal trap. “Because otherwise, you wouldn’t have grabbed it so fast.”
“Hmm,” said Brains, lifting an eyebrow. “N-not quite the explanation I was h-hoping for, but you’re not wrong.”
“Well, then you tell me,” he said, slumping against the wall.
“It’s a f-failsafe for cables,” explained Brains, turning it over as he spoke. “When the tension increases, the temperature will increase too. Since we know the m..maximum tension the cable can hold before it deforms, we can detect when the tension is getting too high and then–”
“Snap!” said Alan, clapping his hands for effect.
Brains nodded.
“Exactly right. It will clamp the two ends of the cable and set off a radio signal to apprise us of the situation.”
“International Rescue, we have a situation,” Alan mimicked, hands over his mouth to simulate a walkie-talkie.
It would nearly be time for another birthday, Brains realised with a pang, nearly a year since he’d built the shortwave radios with Virgil.
So much had changed.
Alan cocked his head as he stared at the mechanism.
“How does this know what the temperature should be?” he asked.
“You mean the sensor? We p-program it.”
“No, I mean because different parts of the world are hot or cold. We were learning about the different habitats in school the other day.”
“I see,” said Brains, who most certainly did not see.
“Yeah, and my project is on the Arctic tundra and Sophie’s is on the Sahara Desert.”
“So?”
“So, how can this thing work in different environments? If its really hot in one place and really cold in another, doesn’t it have to know that too? Is there a thermometer attached?”
It was a good question, one that made Brains miss Jeff and the insistent way he had about understanding every aspect of the machinery that was being built down in this lab. It was a trait they all shared, one that Brains was used to fielding when people came down to talk to him.
He shouldn’t be surprised that Alan was developing that same keen sense to question, to seek answers, to learn.
He said nothing to address the change.
“This is specialised for… one environment,” he said instead. “One which lacks t-temperature fluctuations.”
“Fluxtions?” asked Alan, trying the new word on his tongue.
“F-fluc…tu..a…tion,” said Brains, slow and patient until Alan repeated it back to him. “It means changes.”
Alan rolled his eyes.
“You could have said that.”
Brains laughed as he turned and put the device away.
Alan grabbed John’s arm and dragged him to Thunderbird Three before Scott could get on the line to beg him to come home.
He couldn’t believe him, the way he’d so recklessly gambled with his life mere minutes after nearly dying.
The memories all jumbled together, John’s lifeless body hovering in the living room and then in his arms, the mooring claw grabbing at his ‘bird ready to kill him and then his brother, the old determination coloured with desperate understanding for this… thing.
And then he’d called it a friend.
“Alan, are you okay?”
A flare of anger shot through him, white-hot and leaping eagerly to devour the kindling questions in John’s eyes.
“Fine,” he growled, spitting the words through his teeth. “Strap in.”
John wavered, either unwilling to let the fury slide or uncertain of how far he could push.
Alan didn’t know nor did he care.
“Hurry up,” he barked, infusing Scott’s most serious commander voice into his own.
John strapped in. He glanced uneasily over at Alan, staring firmly at the panel as he ran through engine checks.
His expression soured at the alert that beeped relentlessly as he examined the fins that stabilised their landing.
“It’s knocked it off balance.”
“She,” said John automatically.
Alan scowled.
“It,” he said, ugly emphasis painting his contempt, “has just ensured an ocean landing. There’s no way I can land her in the round house.”
“She didn’t mean t–”
“Yes, John, it did!”
Alan whirled around in his seat, glaring at John.
“Listen to me, she didn’t–”
“No, you listen to me. It tried to kill you, it tried to kill me. It stopped us from saving people today, just to play at some twisted game of vengeance, but–”
“That’s not what she was doing!”
Alan barrelled on, spurred by the image of John’s dead body floating behind his eyelids.
“I don’t know what kind of stunt you were trying to pull there; you were gambling with your life and now it’s a friend?”
“It was a calculated risk.”
“It was stupid,” insisted Alan. “What if it had been me in there? Or Grandma? Or… or… Scott?”
“I would have made the same decision,” said John firmly, but Alan could hear the creeping undercurrent of doubt and pounced on it.
“You’d have risked our lives on a hunch that the thing that spent quite literally all day trying to murder you?”
“No! I mean, yes! That is…” John dropped his head in his hands. “It’s not that simple, Alan.”
“Yes, it is!”
“I’d been studying her since Japan, I knew she was scared, I knew she only wanted to play.”
“She was playing with your life! I would have had to take your body home and that’s if she didn’t kill me in the attempt as well.”
He swiped at his eyes, revulsion clawing its way up from his stomach.
“Did you think about any of us when you said it?”
John flinched.
“I just… I had a feeling,” he said lamely.
The words were a hollow comfort, falling limp in Alan’s lap, and he swallowed back a hard lump that choked the furious response he wanted to shout.
“A feeling’s not much to go on,” he said instead, willing John to hear him, really hear him.
John’s lips quirked.
“Sometimes a feeling…is all we humans have to go on.”
There was no calculating the odds, no level of certainty about how EOS would act in the future. John was right about one thing – she was no mere computer programme. Alan knew what to do with computer programmes. EOS was an unknown entity, that John was trusting with his life and more. He couldn’t trust it, no matter what John said. And so, he was forced to ask himself a harder, more foundational question.
Did he trust John?
John snorted, leaning back in his seat as he scrubbed at his face.
“I’m not sorry, you know,” he said quietly.
Alan looked at him, eager and earnest in a way he’d never seen before, caution thrown to the wind and preparing for a battle to keep his new… pet.
He didn’t trust her, and nobody would fault him for it.
Only within the dark night of the soul, can you see the parts of yourself that are true.
…
The massive tumble of stones looked like they had been left there by a glacier, all rounded grey and scarred. Kayo didn’t even what to think about what could have caused this to happen here. She was fairly certain that glaciers had never roamed the Dark, and if they had - she didn’t want to think about that possibility. She pointed to the right. “You go that way. I’ll go left.”
“What are we looking for?”
One of the many reasons working with John was so easy. He didn’t question the need for something, just the what. “A place to put our backs against. If we’re really lucky, a protected area that we can rest in.”
“That would be a good thing. Or haven’t you noticed it’s getting darker?”
Kayo opened her mouth, then wrenched the words back before she could utter them. “No, I hadn’t. We need shelter, now.”
“See you on the other side.” John started around the rock pile.
She shivered a little at that, and her hand traced a symbol in the air that she hadn’t made since she was very young. Then she started to circle the stones. They were large, some the size of cars. Whatever had pushed them here had to have been huge.
“Kayo!”
She pulled her longest knife and started to run. Her heart dropped back down out of her throat when John came into view. He was not fighting God knew what, but grinning. “I think we’ve found our shelter.”
One stone was lying at an angle to its mate, forming a tall triangle. Kayo crouched down to look. There was space beyond the opening. “Hopefully, nobody is home.” She crab-walked into the passage and knelt down to look the space over. It was an irregular ovoid, and the ground was bare dirt. Reddish dirt, but dirt nonetheless. She eased her way into the area. There were some fallen bits of stone lying around, but that was it. No plants, no creatures, no anything.
It’s been perfect stargazing weather over here for the past few days and I gotta say it has really lifted my spirits <3 So….. John and Alan stargazing. This is set 6th December 2052, because this is a real astronomical event when the Moon will be the largest ‘supermoon’ all century - when the Moon is at its closest perigee during a full moon. The “last time” Alan mentioned was a transit of Mercury that is scheduled to take place 8th/9th November 2052. I’m still upset about missing a transit of Venus in uni because of weather lol…
Anyway - enjoy :)
—-
Although the start of semester was always warm and pleasant, it didn’t take long for the seasons to turn and the northerly wind to hurl itself at John’s windows, exploiting every micron of space to force its way into the small, dark bedroom.
He shivered slightly, pulling the robe tightly around his shoulders as he frowned down at the problem. His socked feet were wrapped around the space heater and he fumbled slightly as he readjusted his position. There was pure logic to be found here but he just couldn’t seem to grasp its implications.
He groaned and pushed away from the desk.
“Damn proofs,” he muttered, rubbing at his eyes as he stood.
The blinds rattled against his window, a constant tap-tap-tap that John was certain would drive itself into his brain until he was reduced to constantly clicking his pens in exams to stimulate the proper recall environment.
The bright light of a holo filled the room and he looked up, grateful for the distraction.
“Alan,” he greeted with an indulgent smile.
“Iknew you’d still be up!” his brother crowed. “Dad! He’s still up! I told you so!”
John laughed, a little abashed at being called out and by his eight-year-old brother no less.
Aww, both beautiful and sad at the same time. Not sad sad, but lonely sad. Yet there is so much family power emitting from the Alan sun that it is surprising the moon wasn’’t whited out.
I also learnt things :D Or possibly relearnt things, I have forgotten more than I know, really. I did know about Olympus Mons being on the opposite side of a lowest point on Mars, and the fact they reckon there might be some lave stuff in Antarctica directly opposite the dino death crater in Mexico. The Siberian Traps were expected to have happened for similar reasons too, but I can’t remember where that crater is (maybe Southern Africa? Not sure, I have watched too many videos and they all blur together). But I had not considered this happening on the Moon, but it does make sense. Does the Moon still have a molten core? I know we can see all the craters for a bazillion years worth because the crust hasn’t moved in all that time, so I’m guessing it has cooled somewhat - I should look it up. See what you did? You made me think far too early on a Sunday morning :D ::hugs you::
This is both a sad moment and a happy moment all at once. John laughing was significant and some relief. These boys are so connected to each other, they don’t exist well apart for long. Certainly explains away why five adult men live in the same house together and don’t throttle each other :D Though come to think of it there probably has been some throttling on occasion :D
Wow, you set me off babbling. Far too early on a Sunday morning. Thank you for this lovely moment…though freezing. I felt that weather in my bones ::shivers:: Stupid winter. You also have me thinking of timezones, trying to work out where John actually is, but that is me and it hurts too much to come to a conclusion cos astronomical math and visualising moon positions and…blah, too early for thought.
Gorgeous work ::hugs you tight:: I’ll shut up now. You thought sparking person ::hugs more cos I can::
Nutty
(Oooh, astrogeology - your fault for mentioning it :D )
In the soft grey silence, nothing moves. Like the aftermath of an apocalypse everything is quiet. Even his bare footsteps on gravel can barely be heard and the mist prickles his skin. Cloud caressing, taunting cool amongst the warmth, condensing in his hair.
He needs the silence.
To listen.
Beyond reality, he feels two of his brothers. John, orderly, passionate, loving and starstruck. His colours of midnight blue, silver starlight and flame orange flicker on the edge of his mind, a quiet, worried hover wanting to intrude, but respecting Virgil’s need of solitude.
The other is burning magnesium sparking, contorting and bouncing about, splashing ripples all over their mindscape. Smooth, slippery and joyous, yet muted by the same concern haunting John. Gordon is aquamarine and sunshine wrapped in love, strengthened by steel.
And himself. He wonders how his brothers see him, what splashes of colour represent his presence. What they feel when they feel him.
He is the focus. The sensitive. The eldest of the three. He knows things.
But not enough.
Because where Scott and Alan reside in his mind, there is nothing. No sense, no knowing. No colour to turn to.
Scott is their leader and his best friend. His relationship with his older brother could not be stronger, yet he senses nothing.
Alan is his littlest brother. Of all of them the one needing the most care and protection, yet Virgil senses nothing.
Not even today. Not when it had been most needed.
The grey is suddenly not enough. He needs storm and lightning, the fury of the sky to compliment his mood. He needs an angry ocean. Mountainous waves crashing against a resolute shore.
He needs his brothers.
All of them.
-o-o-o-
Jakarta.
Earthquake.
Aftershock.
Virgil is running. Thighs strong yet not strong enough. His uniform rustling in the after silence. The after collapse. The after injury.
“ALAN!!”
He is screaming his brother’s name. The sixteen-year-old had been behind him.
Now he wasn’t.
He can’t see him.
John can’t get a signal.
“ALAN!!”
Nothing.
Rubble.
More rubble.
Backtrack.
His boots scuff in the dirt.
“ALAN!!”
Distant wailing.
Silence too close.
“ALAN!!”
Scott’s in his ear. John and Gordon are hovering on the edge of his thoughts, vibrating.
Please, Alan.
-o-o-o-
He is standing on the edge of the Island. The rock falls to the ocean abruptly and decisively, but the water is lost in the fog. Only the hissing of gentle waves against the cliff can be heard in the grey.
He reaches out, stretching as he had done today, searching, knowing he should be able to do this.
And failing.
There is nothing.
Why?
Why can’t he reach his little brother? Why can’t he be there for him?
A wash of reassurance wafts through from John.
Virgil shies away.
-o-o-o-
A hand.
A small blue gloved hand.
He finds his little brother under a building.
The hiss of his hydraulics moves mountains. Scott appears from nowhere and Virgil is reaching down, his own glove shed, fingers seeking movement.
There is life and Virgil breathes again, but there is also broken bones, injuries, bleeding.
A major disaster becomes a personal disaster and he is too close to the action.
His little brother is wrapped up and taken away.
Virgil can’t go with him.
The ground shudders under his feet.
Alan is safe, but so many are not.
The world blurs and Virgil goes back to work.
-o-o-o-
He wants to scream his brother’s name into the mist. So he does, teeth grating against the two syllables.
Gordon sparks at him.
John wraps him in a mental embrace.
The mist is disturbed by silent wings, a vast swath of silver grey camouflaged, and his eldest brother emerges to alight on the rock beside him.
The man’s hair is tossed, his blue eyes catching Virgil’s as bare feet brush against the basalt. Scott is wearing little more than cut-off jeans, giving his grey span, flecked with that same blue, all the freedom it needs.
No words, but the rustle of feathers as his brother’s wings fold. A sigh as he absorbs them into his silver mark.
Still nothing is said.
Two brothers standing on the edge of the Island facing the grey of nothing.
Virgil reaches out through the virtual desperate to touch.
Nothing.
Why?!
It’s a cry into that nothing.
John flinches.
Gordon snarls.
Virgil closes his eyes.
“He is going to be okay.”
Virgil doesn’t answer.
“It wasn’t your fault.”
“Yes, it was.”
A shift of bare feet on rock. “No, it wasn’t.”
“I should have paid more attention to what he was doing.”
“You can’t be everywhere.”
Eyes open and glaring at his brother. “I can at least be there for him.”
“You are! You were! He will recover.”
“If I had just-“
Scott is in his face, those blue eyes flashing with anger. “No, Virgil. You can’t be everything to everybody. It was his choice. It was a chance taken and it failed. You’ve done it yourself. He thought he could be in and out fast enough. He was wrong. He tried, but it didn’t work. It happens.” The glare intensified even more. “You’ve told me enough times.”
But this is Alan. He can’t say it out loud.
He must have emoted enough, because Gordon flares up in outrage.
Scott looks ready to crack. “Would you prefer he not attempt to save that little boy?!”
“No, I-“
“You would have done exactly the same thing.”
“I-“
“Admit it.”
“I-“
“Virgil!”
“Okay! Alan did the right thing. He saved that little boy. He was damned lucky they weren’t both killed. I…” A swallow. “I am damned proud of him. I just wish…” But he can’t say it. How can Scott understand?
“What?”
Virgil sighs and turns away.
Gordon is moving, determination bright and sharp.
Great.
“You better head back to Allie. Gordon is on his way to kick my ass.”
A sudden silence from his brother and Virgil looks up at the man.
Blue eyes frown at him. “Is this about your empathy thing with John and Gordon?”
“No.” It is about his lack of empathy with his other two brothers. How he can’t reach them when he is needed. How he can’t touch them.
A swirl of grey mists between them washing Scott’s expression out, disappearing him into the background. His brother is fading away from him. It is strangely appropriate to how he feels.
Without thinking he reaches out and grabs Scott’s hand as if desperate to stop him from vanishing. His brother frowns at him, but doesn’t pull away.
“Virgil, what is it?”
He presses his lips together and stares down at their hands. “I can’t feel you. I can’t find you. I searched for Allie; I did. I tried everything I could think of and I couldn’t find him.”
“You found him.”
“But how long did it take?! He could have died.”
“He could have died the moment the building collapsed.” It is sharp. It’s a slap. It is meant to be.
Scott’s eyes pin him. “I don’t have what you, John and Gordon have, Virgil, but I know…” The hand in his tightens. “I know what you mean to me. I know what I mean to you. And I know nothing will stand between either of us when needed. I don’t need telepathy to know that.”
Virgil is staring, something caught in his throat.
Scott’s voice softens. “Allie knows how much you love him, Virg. He knows you’d walk through hell and back if you had to and never doubt that he or any of your brothers would do the same for any of us.” Scott’s other hand lands on his shoulder and squeezes. “Never doubt.” A small smile brightening the grey. “I never have.”
“Never doubt.” It falls as a whisper from his lips.
Something sparkles in Scott’s eyes just as a swirl of mist and crunch of gravel reveals their aquanaut brother. A bounce and he has an awkward arm around Virgil shoulders, his presence emanating confidence, pride and…love. “Hey.” A nod at Scott. “Virg being stupid again?”
Scott’s lips twist into a smirk and his eyes sparkle. In that moment Virgil knows.
He knows.
He knows what his eldest brother is thinking.
He knows what he is feeling.
He still senses nothing.
But he knows.
An incoherent sound passes his lips and the smirk disappears from Scott’s expression to be replaced by a frown. “Virgil?”
He has the sudden urge to grab his brother in a hug.
A shove from behind and he is doing just that. Scott lets out an oomph, but wraps his arms around him.
Gordon’s laugh is a rain of bright sparks across his virtual space.
Virgil’s eyes are clenched shut and Scott is wheezing under his grip.
God.
-o-o-o-
His pencil scrapes across cartridge paper, the graphite leaving its smooth trail behind and forming another strand of hair. It flicks to a missed detail in an eye before skirting back to the hair, adjusting the forehead, an eyebrow, back to the misbehaving eye.
His drawing is smiling up at him.
It is in shades of grey. It holds no colour, but there is life.
Light sparks in its eyes.
The pencil flicks to and fro, finalising bits and pieces, upping the contrast, deepening the shadows. He switches to a stick of charcoal and the shadows go black.
As do his fingers.
“I hope you’re not getting that on my sheets.” And as much as he is smiling up from Virgil’s sketchbook, he is smiling at him from the bed beside.
“Hey, Allie. How are you feeling?”
“Been better. Leg’s aching and my ribs suck, but at least you’re not double anymore.”
“Good to hear.” Standing up, Virgil walks over to the trash bin and blows the charcoal dust from the page and closes the book.
“Hey, don’t I get to see?”
Virgil stares at him a moment before flicking the page open again and showing his little brother his sketch of Alan Tracy.
“Cool! You drew me?”
“I’m concerned about the question mark at the end of that sentence.”
“Hey, no, bring it closer. I wanna see.”
He can’t help but grin at Allie’s enthusiasm. His little brother is always fascinated by his drawings and Virgil can’t help but be encouraged by his compliments.
Alan takes the book carefully, almost reverently, from Virgil’s hands and peers at the drawing, his eyes following the lines of pencil. “I still don’t know how you do this. It’s me, but it is only pencil.”
Half a laugh. “I think the human brain is designed to grab those features and add life.”
“I don’t know.” He’s tilting the book and frowning in concentration. “I’ve seen stuff that doesn’t look anywhere near as good as yours.”
It warms him inside and he’s not afraid to admit it.
“Can I keep it?”
“Don’t you already have several of my drawings of you?”
“Maybe.” A puppy dog grin.
Virgil rolls his eyes. “Sorry, bro, this time no. This one’s for me.” It is. He wants to keep the emotion that drew it, too.
Alan throws on a pout and Virgil can’t help but laugh.
“I dibs the next one.”
“Okay, your big toe it is.”
“My toe?”
“You didn’t specify a subject.”
“Viiiirgiiil.”
“Yes, little brother?”
Alan glares at him.
“Your left ear? I particularly like that subtle curve.”
“You suck.”
A snort. “Well, in that case I’ll caricature you and post it to social media for some instant infamy.”
“Do that and I’m telling Kayo about the toys.”
“What toys?”
“The Thunderbird Shadow plushie you have stashed in your studio.”
Another snort. “Kay gave that to me. Zero blackmail power, bro.”
“Does she know about the figurine?”
Virgil froze. “What figurine?”
“The one of Kayo.”
“What the hell have you been doing in my studio? Keep out of my studio, Alan.” That broke the rules. No one was allowed in his studio.
“Haven’t been in there. Didn’t know you had a figurine. Thanks for letting me know.”
“What?”
“Hah.”
Shit. Flippin’ Gordon’s protege.
“Aren’t you supposed to be sick or something? Do that sleeping thing.” He waves a careless hand in his brother’s direction. Alan grins up at him.
Virgil can’t help but smile back.
It takes a moment, but he forces the hesitation back and reaches out for his brother’s hand.
The same hand he found in the rubble.
He squeezes it just that touch harder.
Alan is eyeing him suspiciously. “What are you doing?”
“Connecting with my brother.”
The stare intensifies and Virgil can see the question of his sanity flickering behind those blue eyes. He smiles gently, but doesn’t let go. A frown flits across Alan’s brow, but his fingers curl around Virgil’s.
John hovers in query around the edges of his mind, a quiet starlit presence.
Gordon dances in swirls of sea green lit by sunlight, his laughter echoing.
Scott is all blue calm big brotherly love, a voice ever present.
Alan is golden shadows and an impish smile, life under his fingers.
