The rain battered against the window, hitting the glass leaving streams as it travelled down the glass onto the ledges below. The room the window belonged to was quiet and full of suspense, which was so thick it could be cut with a knife.

Around the room were two couches and a armchair, in the middle of the room lay a table and on this table were assorted magazines and newspapers untouched by the room's occupants.

The tall black haired young man watched the rain hit the window, he sighed deeply earning glances from the other four occupants. They were in the waiting room of St Helen's Hospital as doctors and nurses worked on their brother/son, who they had rushed in after John had been diagnosed with meningitis.

"I still don't get it" A voice broke the silence that had been in the room since they had been directed into the waiting room.

Scott turned around to see that the youngest member of the family had spoke up, "What do you not understand Alan?" He asked leaning against the wall near the window.

"How John got this... this illness!" Alan said jumping up off the couch he had been sat on next to Gordon, who had joined them shortly after being in the waiting room.

"Calm down Alan, he will be ok" Gordon said quietly pulling his brother back down on the couch next to him.

Virgil looked at the table deep in thought, their dad sighed, rose up to his feet and left the room.

Scott watched the figure of their father disappear down the corridor and sighed. "I don't know Alan... but what I do know that there is more than just meningitis," he said to his brothers for the first time.

Virgil looked up, "What do you mean Scott?" He asked wondering what their oldest brother was talking about.

Scott sighed and rubbed his forehead to try and fight the oncoming headache. "I'm not sure... if that it was the fever talking or there is something wrong with John which would explain why he spent all that time up there" He said looking at brothers before looking back out of the windows.

Alan and Gordon looked at each other then over to the back of their eldest brother in silence.

Virgil sighed deeply and hid his face behind his hands, "Asia" He muttered.

Scott looked over to his brother closest by age, "What was that Virgil?" He asked confused what Virgil was talking about.

Dr Adam Hall looked over the latest test results, "Ok Joe, the antibiotics are working, so continue the treatment and hopefully the fever will break" He told the senior nurse who replaced the bag of fluids.

Their patient was currently unconscious with a monitor to keep a close eye on his vitals. The first thing the team of doctors and nurses did was bring John Tracy's temperature down before they really started treatment.

Joe nodded, "Ok Dr Hall, are you going to talk to the young man's family?" He asked as he looked over the monitor to check the readouts before writing them on the clipboard attached to the end of bed.

"Yes, I doubt that he will wake up while I am gone" Dr Hall said and left the small private room that they had put their patient in once he had been moved from the emergency department downstairs.

Senior Nurse Joe watched the doctor leave the room before finishing writing up his notes and checked to see if the blankets, oxygen mask and drip were all secure.

He's so young Joe thought to himself with a sigh as John moaned and turned slightly in his sleep. He frowned and made sure that the drip wouldn't come out or interfere in any way as the blonde young man.

"It makes sense! But we were all near that farmer... well except you of course Alan" Gordon said from his place on the couch.

"Yeah well someone had to man the space station while John got a break," Alan said with a shrug, quiet use to bring up on Thunderbird Five on a rotary basis.

"I know Al, but you have been around us and around him while we went to bring him back" Scott said from where he had sat down on the armchair instead of by the window.

Virgil had replaced Scott and stood by the window, "We just didn't realise that it was something this serious... we thought that it was just a cold and laughed about it," He said with a sigh leaning against the wall.

They all sighed and the room filled with silence once again. Only to be broken with a knock on the door before it opened to reveal a middle aged light brown haired man dressed in a black suit.

"Tracy?" He spoke softly.

Scott got up and took his place as the oldest brother. "That will be us," He said as the doctor closed the door behind him.

"I'm Doctor Hall, I'm treating your brother but I would like to speak to your father if I may" Dr Hall said as Scott crossed his arms against his chest with a slight frown on his face.

"He has stepped out for some air, we don't know when he will be back," Virgil said moving over to Scott and placed his hand on his brother's shoulder for support.

"Oh I see, take a seat please" Dr Hall said with a smile waving his hand to the free couch.

Virgil led Scott over to the couch, "Just take it easy, yeah Scott?" He whispered to his eldest brother as they sat down on the couch.

Scott took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "Thanks Virg" He whispered back. "Ok Doc, are you going to tell us about our brother?" He asked the doctor nodding at the armchair for the doctor to sit down.

Doctor Hall took the offered armchair, "Thank you, your brother, John is serious sick. We have given him some antibiotics that have been developed to fight against meningitis" He explained watching the expressions of the four brothers in front of him.

"The only thing that is worrying us is the fever but we are giving him fluids and trying to keep him cool in hope that it will break on its own once the antibiotics has had a chance to act, we're just glad that you brought him in when you did" Dr Hall continued his hands tangled together, resting his hands just under his chin.

Gordon and Alan looked at each other then back at the doctor in the armchair, "Can we see him?" Gordon asked in a quiet voice very much unlike his own. Scott and Virgil wondered the same thing silently and they watched the doctor wondering what his response would be.

"I would like to run blood tests on all of you to see if there is any sign of any of you carrying meningitis and we will have to start you all including your father and anyone else in your house on antibiotics" Doctor Hall said soon followed by his beeper going off, with a sigh he pulled it off his belt and read what it displayed. "I'm needed somewhere, I will be back as soon as I can" Doctor Hall said rising up off the armchair and made his way back to the door that led back into the hospital.

"Doctor Hall, what about our brother?" Scott asked jumping up off the couch.

"I will send the senior nurse down to take you to your brother" Doctor Hall said before opening the door and walked off down the corridor into the depths of the hospital.

Scott sighed and crashed back down on the couch.

Virgil looked over at him and got up off the couch himself, "I'm going to get some coffee... anyone else want one?" He asked seeing that Scott might need some coffee with tiredness and worry cracking through his strong mask.

"Please Virgil" Gordon and Alan chorused together, leaning back against the back of the couch.

Jeff leaned against the cold painted brick wall of the hospital's entrance watching the rain as it continued to fall. Part of him wanted to stay in the waiting room with his other four sons but a louder more determined part of him was reminding him of the amount of reports and designs waiting for him to read or check and sign before sending it to the required departments.

He sighed deeply resting his hands in his pockets as a few people entered the hospital while a few more left. What am I going to do? Jeff thought to himself breathing in the cold wet air.

Every time Jeff saw John he was reminded of Lucille, the boys mother. He saw her in Alan too, he saw it in all of the boys but saw her in John most of all. He didn't know why, maybe it was the colour of his eyes or the colour of his hair, or because of the talent he had with speaking many languages.

"What can I do?" He muttered quietly resting the back of his head against the wall.

"Maybe you should go inside and check on your son" A voice spoke up crossing the large carpark.

Jeff looked across and smiled slightly.

The young man groaned and moved slightly, he felt the dull aches and pains in his body as he woke up more and more. Opening his eyes slowly he saw bright white walls and ceiling making the room brighter than what it really was.

Senior Nurse Joe looked up from his paperwork he was filling out in his office, across the hall from John's room. Rising up out of his chair, Joe crossed the corridor and into the young man's room not wincing at the change of temperature.

"Nice to see you awake" Joe spoke quietly as he rested the back of his hand against his patient's forehead while fishing out a thermonitor from his pocket. "You're still feel feverish" Joe mummered and gently moved the oxygen mask off.

John blinked tiredly unsure of what to make of this stranger, he tried to think but his thoughts were all lost in the fog that was created by the tiredness and any medication he must have been given.

"You're in St Helen's hospital in Seattle" Joe spoke up as he checked the thermometer before placing it in John's mouth.

John blinked tiredly and looked around behind the nurse, Joe took the small hint. "Your family are in the waiting room down the hall, I'll send them over once I'm done here" He said waiting for the thermometer to beep, while he did so Joe checked John's pulse and then the fluid bag.

John breathed deeply and closed his eyes ignoring the drip in the back of his hand as the thermometer beeped. Joe removed it and checked the dial before moving to write it down on the clipboard.

"I'll go and get them as they have been worried about you" Joe told John as he put the clipboard back on the bed and cleaned the thermometer before putting it back into its cover then back in his pocket.

Gordon sipped his coffee, or what the hospital called coffee deep in thought. He hoped that his brother would recover from the meningitis he had caught, holding his cup of coffee with one hand he rubbed the small round plaster each of them now wore as prove of that they had blood samples taken.

Alan held his cup of coffee close to him, taking in the smell of the hot bitter caffeine drink. He, like his other brothers, hoped that John would make a full recovery but Alan remembered how his brother reacted to them and their father while on the island. It's more than just that virus... Alan thought to himself, sipping at the coffee while half watched Virgil and Scott, who both stood at the window.

"I hope I'm wrong Virg, but you saw how John reacted to Dad back on the island... how he closed up, I don't know what I can do that will help our brother..." Scott whispered to his brother closest by age, staring at the cup of coffee that rested on the window sill.

"We will have to wait and see to how John recovers from this virus then and only then can we focus on what is going on with our brother" Virgil whispered back as the knocking at the door started once again.

"Who is it?" Scott called turning around, putting the dark window to his back.

The door opened to reveal a different man, this one was a little older than Doctor Hall and wore a dark blue tunic, his brown hair had a few white streaks near the ears and signs of tiredness were in the corners of his eyes.

"Tracy?" He asked entering the room, pushing the door to not completely closing it.

"We are" Virgil spoke up his arms crossed against his chest, his cup of coffee on the window next to Scott's.

"I'm Senior Nurse Joe, I'm in charge of your brother, John's, treatment" Joe introduced himself, looking around the room seeing that the room's four occupants were watching him closely. Ooh boy Joe thought to himself and took a deep breath before continuing.

"He has woken up a few short minutes ago, I thought that you would like to see your brother... although I must warn you that he will be extremely tired" Joe continued and opened the door fully once more.

"As long as we can see him for a little while" Alan spoke up from his place on the couch.

"Sure, I'll take you to him now" Joe said with a nod and stepped out of the way of the door.

Scott and Virgil looked at each other and then over at Gordon and Alan, who both nodded to their brothers silent question before rising up off the couch and walked out of the door allowing Joe to lead them down the hall.

"How did you know we were here?" Jeff asked as they walked side by side through the maze of hospital corridors and stairs, not touching the elevators.

"I am your best spy, and I know that your Swiftwind jet doesn't stick out as other aircraft I could name, it is still mighty impressive" Lady Penelope said with a slightly amused tone in her voice as they climbed up another flight of stairs.

"Thanks for coming Penny, I appreciate it alot" Jeff said with a smile and held the door open which opened to the corridor where the waiting room and John's room was located.

"It's no problem at all" Lady Penelope said with a smile, taking her raincoat off before it was taken by Parker, who had followed them both silently.

Arriving at the waiting room, Jeff finds it empty. "Where have they gone?" He wondered outloud entering the room fully with Lady Penelope and Parker following closely behind.

Lady Penelope walked over to the window where she had spotted two cups of coffee. Feeling them with the back of her hand, she could feel that they were still warm. "These cups are still warm Jeff, they couldn't have been gone long! We should check the nurses station to see if they know where the boys went," Lady Penelope said nodding at Parker, the silent order that the butler should stay here in the waiting room.

Parker simply nodded back, "Yes M'lady" He spoke up in his cockney accent.

"Ok Penny, let's go" Jeff said leaving the room leading the way back up the hall to the nearest nurses station.

John opened his blue eyes tiredly, as his vision cleared he could see his brothers gathered around his bed.

"Hey John, how are you feeling" Scott asked quietly as he sat down on the chair near his brother's bed.

John closed his eyes and turned his head away slightly, coughing a little.

Virgil, Gordon and Alan all glanced at each other, "We'll be outside ok Scott" Virgil said as it seemed that Scott was the only one that could talk to John without the blonde Tracy brother closing everyone out.

"Ok Virg, you guys keep an eye out for Dad" Scott with a nod, noticing John flinch slightly.

"Right ... see you in a while" Virgil said pushing Gordon and Alan gently out of the room, Nurse Joe followed giving the two brothers some time alone.

"It's ok John" Scott said quietly once the door was closed, resting his hand on his brother's shoulder.

John turned his head back wincing slightly in the movement, opening his eyes tiredly he sighed softly. Scott helped him move the oxygen mask off gently. "T-thanks" John croaked softly.

"It's ok John, the nurse said that the medication is working... they are waiting for blood results to come back" Scott spoke softly as he got a cup of water from the jug nearby that had been placed on the table along with a stack of plastic cups.

John sat up a little and was careful not to upset the drip in the back of his hand. "Why?" He asked before giving away to a bout of coughing.

"Easy John" Scott said and once the coughing had faded helped his brother take a small sip of water. "The doctor... Doctor Hall, told us that it was procedure to treat the close family of the patient..." He said placing the cup back on the table.

John leaned back against the pillows, "I'm sorry" He croaked closing his eyes once again so that he wouldn't have had to look at his eldest brother.

Scott shook his head, "No it's my fault... I should have checked on you after we got back to the island...," He said looking his hands together resting them on his lap. "Virgil told us about that farmer you helped... can you remember him?" Scott asked remembering what they had talked about in the waiting room.

"F-farmer?" John croaked and coughed harshly. Scott jumped up and helped John put the oxygen mask back on to help him breath.

"Just take deep breaths John.. nice and slow ok" Scott said resting his hand against the oxygen mask as John leaned against his pillows, taking long deep breaths.

Soon John was half asleep, "I'll help you put the mask back on then let you get some rest ok John" Scott said quietly as he gently stretched the elasticised straps over the back of John's head and made sure that the mask rested comfortably on his brother's face.

"Thanks Scott" John muttered, half of his voice lost in the oxygen mask.

"It's ok John, just get some rest" Scott said with a smile moving across the room towards the door.

John sighed and leaned back against his pillows a little more before falling back asleep.

Scott smiled and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him to leave his younger brother to sleep.

Alan and Gordon sighed sitting down on the softer of the two hard couches of the waiting room. Virgil through had seen their father and gone off to find him.

"The coffees have gone cold," Alan said in a tired voice picking up his coffee.

"Well I wouldn't drink that mud anyway" Gordon muttered tiredly leaning back against the couch.

Parker appeared in the open doorway to find the younger two Tracy brothers. "I found 'em M'lady" He called out of the room.

Lady Penelope soon joined Parker in the small waiting room, "There you are boys, where is Scott and Virgil?" She asked as she entered the room and sat down gently on the armchair.

Parker stayed by the door.

"Scott was with John and Virgil thought he saw Dad, and went to go find him" Gordon spoke up as Alan covered a yawn.

Lady Penelope saw this and sighed, "Parker can you please go and find these boys a cup of coffee" She ordered her butler.

"Right M'lady" Parker said with a small bow.

"I'll take that offer too please Parker... should have known that you would have come" A voice spoke from the doorway.

Virgil walked down the corridor where he had been told by a nurse that she had seen his father walk down.

Can Scott be right? Can that be the mental side of what is wrong with John... why he is closing up around us? He thought, lost in his thoughts about what Scott had talked about in the waiting room while waiting for news on their brother.

Virgil shook his head, What can we do? He thought with a deep sigh reaching a glass corridor. Looking out of the window Virgil could see that the sky was still dark and the rain was still falling, It's still raining... He thought and perched on the edge of the window sill.

"What would you have done Mom?" Virgil muttered quietly.

"I was wondering the same thing myself son" A gruff voice spoke walking up the corridor and joined his second eldest son at the window.

Virgil sighed, "Dad..." He muttered lowering his head looking at his feet.

"Thanks Parker" Scott said accepting the cup of coffee, "He was very feverish... and had a chesty cough" He informed his brothers and Lady Penelope. "I saw Doctor Hall on the way back... I asked about the blood samples they took from us but he's still waiting for the results" Scott carried on before sipping his coffee.

"I'm sure that it's nothing to worry about Scott! The doctors and nurses here all know what they are doing" Lady Penelope spoke softly before sipping her cup of tea that Parker had fetched for her shortly after getting the boys a coffee each.

Alan held his coffee in front of him, looking the bitter brown liquid swirling around in the styrofoam cup. He was remembering how John had joked with him during the switchover at the beginning of the month... only a few short days ago. But look at him now... he was so... so pale and confused Alan thought still staring at the coffee before taking a sip, wincing in how it tasted like tar, not that he had ever drank it before.

Gordon watched his younger brother lost in his own thoughts, he could see that Alan was deeply worried for his older brother. John would either pick sides, sometimes being with Scott and Virgil while other times he would side with Alan and Gordon, but a few times John had been caught in the middle and escaped out of the way of any sibling rivalry. He's just got to get better... he's got to He thought with a sigh.

Scott and Lady Penelope looked at each other then back at Gordon and Alan who both were deep in thought. "I think we should find out and see if there is a hotel or something similar nearby... none of us are fit to fly the Swiftwind back to the island" Scott said before sipping his coffee once again, glad for the caffeine perk up.

Lady Penelope nodded while finishing her cup of tea, "I quite agree Scott, we should go and find your father before discussing this any further!" She spoke up handing the cup to Parker who went to dispose of it quickly.

"I'll go and find him, need to talk to him anyway..." Scott said as he rose up onto his feet finished his coffee and placed the empty styrofoam cup on the table before heading towards the door only for someone to knock on it wanting admittance.

Opening the door, Scott came face to face with Dr. Hall. "Hello, can we talk?" He asked politely.

"Come on in, I was about to go and find my.. our father" Scott said moving out of the doorway to allow the doctor inside the room.

Doctor Hall smiled and looked around the room as he entered, he saw the two younger brothers lost in their thoughts while they held a steaming cup of what the hospital liked to call coffee.

What Doctor Hall then saw was a young woman sat in the armchair, she wore a variety of pink clothing with blonde hair. "I don't believe we've met," He said in the most polite voice he could muster.

Lady Penelope rose to her feet and held out her hand, "Lady Penelope Creighton Ward, I'm a close friend of the family" She introduced herself. "This is my friend Parker" Lady Penelope then introduced Parker who bowed slightly.

"Nice to meet you" Doctor Hall said before kissing Lady Penelope's hand and nodded at Parker.

Scott leaned against the wall near the window once again, his arms crossed against his chest. He watched the doctor kiss Lady Penelope's hand; it was so obvious that he had been shocked by the beauty that Lady Penelope broadcast.She still has it He thought and rubbed his temples tiredly.

Virgil sighed tiredly, the cold glass of the window pressed against his back. He hoped that the chilled glass from the on going rainstorm outside would wake him up enough to last a few hours, he also hoped that it would cool the aches building up in his shoulders.

"Are you ok son?" Jeff asked breaking the silence between them from his place on the window ledge next to Virgil.

Virgil sighed deeply, his eyes closed. "Will be Dad" He muttered feeling his shirt sticking to his back due to the dampness of the window as the condensation formed.

Jeff looked at his second born son, signs of tiredness all over his body and face even with his eyes closed. He could see that his son was worn out ready to try and get some much needed sleep. "Let's head back to the waiting room, we'll need to talk to the others" He suggested, groaning slightly as he got back onto his feet.

Virgil sighed and opened his eyes, "You're right... Scott might be back," He said shuffling off the ledge and back up onto his own feet. He then stretched and rotated his shoulders, "Let's go" Virgil said and led the way down the corridor back towards the waiting room.

"Ok Virgil, we will have to hope that things will keep quiet for a while" Jeff said as he followed Virgil along the corridor.

Virgil stopped dead in the middle of the wide corridor. "This is bigger than that Dad... this is our brother, your son in that room! You haven't seen him in there" He spoke in a low voice, keeping his back to his father.

"If you should worry about anything... you should worry about John because he holds this family together! Not Scott!" Virgil carried on turning to face his father, unshed tears in his eyes. "This is the biggest thing since we lost mom... you've just pathetic Dad!" He said before walking back up the corridor.

John slowly opened his eyes, his vision is still blurred with tiredness and it slowly cleared to reveal the bright room empty.Nothing unusual... He thought to himself tiredly, feeling the cold oxygen flowing from the mask on to his flushed skin.

He woke up a little more to find himself away from his home, John could not hear the buzzing of the many computers and communication channels of Thunderbird Five. If he was unable to look out of the window nearby then he would not see the vastness of outer space but instead he saw the sights of the city of Seattle.

He sighed and coughed harshly, his throat sore and tender but it did not feel bunged up and made it hard to swallow after waking up that morning. Even though he did still found it hard to breath, John's chest felt very tight and his breaths was still hard to pass along his red raw throat.

"So you're awake, how are you feeling?" Senior Nurse Joe asked coming into the room seeing the young blonde man awake.

John blinked his eyes tiredly and coughed harshly once again, leaving him breathless.

Joe stepped up beside John's bed and rested the back of his hand on John's forehead. "It feels like your fever has broken... that's a good thing" Joe informed him as he performed his routine checks.

John watched on tiredly not sure he could speak if he wanted to.

Scott sighed, he was half glad that they were all in the clear but when Dr. Hall had gone on to update them all on John's condition, Scott was worried for him.

"I suggest that you all go and find a hotel and get some rest as all we can do now is wait for the treatment to take full effect" Dr. Hall said as he kept his place near the door.

"We know Dr. Hall, and as soon as Jeff appears then we will be able to discuss our options" Lady Penelope spoke softly from her place on the armchair.

The door opened to reveal Virgil, who looked around at his family and the doctor before leaving the room again.

Scott frowned and chased after his brother, "Virgil! Wait up!" He called as he left the waiting room wondering what was wrong with his brother closest by age.

Alan and Gordon looked back and forth from each other to the door, "What just happened?" They asked at the same time.

Lady Penelope looked at the open door, "I'm sure we will find out soon enough," She said as Parker closed the door for privacy.

Dr. Hall's beeper went off, "I'm sorry about this" He said with a slight frown and checked his beeper. "I'm needed somewhere else... I will be back as soon as I can" He apologised and left the room but remained in the doorway.

"That's fine, this is a very busy hospital and I'm sure that there are other patients that you have to see" Lady Penelope said with an understanding smile.

Dr. Hall smiled and nodded before vanishing out of the doorway, rushing down the corridor.

Jeff looked into the darkened room, in the bed laid his middle born son. Around the sleeping blond man was a machine providing clean oxygen while there was a metal stand with a fluid pack helping his son gain the lost fluids that had been taken away by the fever.

He sighed quietly lost in thought, thinking over what Virgil had told him. He's right... we've got so involved with International Rescue that we forgot what is was like to be a family... Jeff thought to himself watching John sleep. There had been many times that Jeff had watched one of the boys sleep, sometimes it would be John or Alan as he saw their mother in them both.

"Can I help you sir?" A quiet voice asked from behind him. Jeff spun around to come face to face with a nurse. "I... I was just seeing how my son is, I was told that he could be found here" Jeff explained to the nurse keeping his voice low in worry that it could wake his son.

"Ah so you're Mr Tracy, the boys father" The nurse spoke in the same soft voice with a slight smile. "I'm Senior Nurse Joe, Dr. Hall has put me in charge of your son's treatment" Joe introduced himself hearing a harsh and raw cough coming from the room behind Jeff, who flinched.

"How is John?" Jeff asked looking behind him, seeing John shiver slightly.

"I will answer you in a moment, wait here please" Joe said and squeezed behind Jeff into John's room. He rested the back of his hand against John's forehead.

John groaned and coughed harshly, opening his eyes slightly to see who's warm hand was touching his cold and clammy skin.

"It's ok John, you're feeling very cold... I thought your fever broke... I will have to call up for more blankets" Joe said in a quiet voice removing his hand from John's forehead before picking his pen out of his pocket, and moved to the end of the bed to write up his notes on the chart.

John closed his eyes and took a few deep ragged breaths, wishing for the darkness of sleep to take him away once again. Jeff watched all of this from the doorway, unable to go any further from it. He watched in silence as Nurse Joe tended to John, once his son had fallen back asleep then Jeff left the nurse to take care of his son.

He soon found himself outside the waiting room wondering if everyone was inside waiting for him. Taking a deep breath and released it slowly before opening the door and stepped into the room to face his family.

Virgil took a deep breath of the cold damp air as the rain continued to fall. "Does it ever stop raining?" He asked the empty car park.

He had wandered around the hospital until he found himself at one of the many entrances; he really needed some air to clear his head away from the things he had said to his dad.

They were half true though...weren't they? Virgil thought to himself as he breathed the cold air deeply to help him relax and tried to clear his head.

"Virgil?" A voice asked quietly, joining him against the wall under the cover of the entrance.

Virgil looked over at the source of the voice to find his eldest brother. He sighed tiredly and rubbed his eyes, "I'm sorry... just tired of this" He muttered as the rain fell harder, bouncing off the rooftops of the cars in the park.

"Tired of what Virgil? If this is about John" Scott asked seeing how worn out his younger brother was, he was close to collapsing there and now. "If it is then he needs us now more than he ever has in the past," He said showing some tiredness himself as the caffeine wore off and his tight mask cracked.

Virgil looked at his brother seeing that the usual tough big brother that had always been there for his younger brothers and himself was now looking worn out not just physically but mentally. "Scott... come on, we better head back inside and see what our father is going to do now" He spoke quietly feeling worn out and ready to try and get some sleep though he was deeply worried for their middle brother.

Scott took a deep breath of the cold damp air and released it slowly, "Yeah let's go..." He said and moved closer to the doors that opened automatically. "What's wrong?" Scott asked seeing Virgil still staring at the falling rain.

"Just thinking Scott... it's nothing really," Virgil said pushing his thoughts away for a while until he could be left with them once again.

Scott looked at Virgil carefully, resisting the urge to rub his temples before nodding. "Ok Virg, just tell me when you're ready" He said before heading back inside.

Jeff accepted the cup of coffee from Parker, "Thanks Parker" He muttered tiredly and sipped some of the coffee. "I think we should get a hotel close by, try and get some sleep... see what happens as that is all we can do" Jeff said tiredly seeing his sons were all tired and only pure determination was keeping them awake.

Lady Penelope looked at the two youngest Tracy sons, seeing that they were exhausted and in need of some sleep. "You're right Jeff, Parker and myself will go down to the information desk to see what we can find" She said rising up off the armchair and straightened her clothes out as Parker opened the door.

The door revealed two tired sons, the eldest pair of the Tracy family, "Hey everyone..." Scott muttered tiredly as he entered the waiting room followed closely by Virgil before they both collapsed on the free couch.

"We have decided on finding a hotel and get some rest... see how situation goes to what we do next" Jeff spoke up, looking at the warm coffee in his cup instead of his sons.

Scott looked between his father and Virgil, feeling that something had happened between the two of them earlier. "That's good... it will be no good for any of us or John" He spoke up seeing that Gordon and Alan were both exhausted.

"We'll go and do that now for you Jeff" Lady Penelope said softly with a smile before leaving the room with Parker closing the door as they left, leaving the Tracy family in the room.

"Have was John?" Alan asked Scott, breaking the silence that had filled the room once Lady Penelope and Parker left.

Scott sighed, resting his head in his hands his arms being supported by his knees. "Tired... I haven't seen him like this in years..." He said remembering how John had woken up for a little while before his strength faded once again, giving away to the darkness of sleep.

"The nurse thinks that his fever is back, he was shivering under his blankets when I went to see him" Jeff spoke up before finishing his coffee.

Scott looked up at his father, "Did you go into see him? Or just stayed in the doorway?" He asked, the tiredness pushed away keeping his blue eyes locked onto his father's brown ones.

"I would have gone in but the nurse went in, so I didn't go in I would have, I needed to see him" Jeff muttered before rubbing his eyes tiredly.

Scott and Virgil looked at each other tiredly and sighed quietly.

Dr Hall looked around the door, seeing his youngest patient in this ward. He saw that more blankets had been added to the bed for extra warmth, quietly Dr Hall closed the door and crossed the corridor to enter the senior nurse's office.

"Joe, how is our young patient?" He asked accepting a cup of coffee from the nurse.

"Hey Dan, they... his family are going to find a hotel for the night so they can get some sleep" Joe said sitting down on his desk chair, his own cup of coffee sat on the desk. "While John has gone back into a fever, his overall temperature is a little high but the shivers have got me concerned" He said with a sigh leaning back against the back of the chair.

Dan sipped his coffee quietly going over the notes in his head as they hardly got patients in suffering from meningitis. He nodded after a while, "He is showing all of the classic symptoms so the fever would put up a fight while the medication is taking its full effect, we will just have to be grateful that his family got him here as quickly as they did" Dan said with a soft sigh and sipped the coffee once more glad that both Joe and himself would be going off shift for a few hours to get some well deserved rest themselves.

Joe reached across the desk for his own cup of coffee, sometimes he thought that he drunk so much of the caffeine that it would be in his blood but soon enough Joe realised that was not possible. "Very thankful" He muttered before sipping his own coffee.

"Well we just have to make sure that our notes are written up correctly for our replacement so we can actually go and visit our beds" Dan said stirring the contents of his cup in swirling motions.

"Mine are mostly done, just have to perform the checks once more...um, what is bed? I've been here too long" Joe joked lightly.

Dan shook his head to hide the laugh inside of him before sobering up remembering that there would be no laughter in a hotel room close by to the hospital tonight.

Scott unlocked the door to the hotel room he was sharing with Virgil at where they had booked in, they all found three rooms at a hotel while Lady Penelope and Parker disappeared off to a hotel they had booked earlier.

"It's two singles Scott" Virgil said tiredly from where they had entered the medium sized room for what they hoped would be a day or two, he had headed straight for the bedroom.

Scott looked around their hotel room as he kicked off his shoes and his damp jacket; he could see a small living area with a couch and armchair. There was an open doorway that he guessed that led to the bathroom.

Virgil came out of the bedroom; he too had taken off his jacket and shoes. "We better head in for what's left of the night, and try and get some sleep," He said from the doorway.

"You're right Virg, we should try and get some rest" Scott said with a sigh, throwing the doorkey on the table by the main door, making sure that it was locked.

Virgil nodded tiredly and went back into the bedroom to try his best to get some sleep.

Scott turned out the lights as he walked through the room and entering the bedroom he found his brother fell fast asleep even before Virgil had the chance to climb under the blankets. With a soft smile, Scott walked over to the bed and gently pulled the blanket out from under Virgil and laid it out on top of him. "Night Virgil" He spoke quietly before shutting the light off and climbed into his own bed.

His mind buzzed and replayed the days events over in his head, from where he had found John unconscious up on Thunderbird Five to learning that his brother got meningitis. Scott then remembered everything that happened in the hospital, sighing quietly he silently hoped that everything would be ok before he finally gave way to the darkness of sleep. Hoping deep in his heart that things will get better.

Alan and Gordon had entered their own room, kicked off their shoes and stripped off their jackets before climbing into their own beds.

Their thoughts and feeling all mixed up and wore them both out leaving only one sure thing in their body and mind, sleep.

Both of them were deeply worried for their older brother but all that had happened had left the two youngest members of the Tracy family confusing to what they should actually feel and how to react to any news that they should receive.

It is true that Gordon had been involved in a similar situation but that had left him stuck in bed with more energy than what he knew what to do with. This though with John, this was different.

"Gordon..." Alan muttered from his own bed.

Gordon turned from facing the bare ceiling to where Alan's voice came from, "What is it Alan?" He asked lying on his side.

"Will John be ok?" Alan asked quietly with the slight rustle of the blankets as they moved in their beds.

"He will Al, he is always tough and been there for us no matter what had been bothering him..." Gordon said quietly. "Something has been happening between Dad and everyone else, now that this has happened it is more obvious than before" He spoke again turning in his bed slightly.

"I've seen that too... I just hope that we can call go back to being the happy family we once were before we got so distant in what we do... saving lives and yet we can't save our own family's life..." Alan muttered turning from on his side onto his back to look up to the ceiling.

Gordon looked at the faint outline of his younger brother, unshed tears in his eyes. "We can hope Al, that's all we can try and do" He said turning over to place his back to his brother hoping to hide the tears as they fell.

Alan turned his head to look at his brother, whose dark outline shook with suppressed tears. His own eyes shed with tears, closing them he felt the tears leak through the closed lids.

Jeff crashed down on the bed in his room and rested his head in his hands going over all that had happened that day. He knew that there were some long buried feelings inside of him. There was also feelings amongst his sons, there also have been more brewing over the past amount of years simmering like a gas filled room awaiting a spark to ignite it.

This is the biggest thing since we lost mom... you're just pathetic Dad! Virgil's voice echoed in Jeff's mind.

Maybe he's right... I have just let my business and the rescue organisation overtake my life He thought to himself looking out of the window, seeing the lights outside blurred by the wet glass as the storm continued.

Sighing and leaning back against the pillows on the bed, facing the bare ceiling of the bedroom part of the room. Moments like this when one of his boys was going through a difficult time, Jeff always noticed that instead of turning to ask their father they would talk to one of their brothers away from him.

Jeff sighed, "What you have done Lucille?" He muttered praying that his deceased wife would offer the support and kindness before she was stolen away from them when the boys were such a young age.

He silently prayed and hoped that he wasn't too late to try and save the family ties before they grew even more fragile.

Nurse Anne walked along the corridors of the maple ward, walking her rounds checking on the patients seeing most of them asleep due to their injury or illness.

Senior Nurse Joe had told Anne before leaving that she should keep their meningitis patient at the top of their priority list. Anne had checked him shortly before Joe had left and decided that the young man would be ok until the end of her shift.

Stepping into the young man's room now the young nurse found him awake and looking tiredly at the bare ceiling. He was breathing raspily from the oxygen mask. Anne wasn't sure how pale her patient could be under the flush of the fever. "Hey there, how are you feeling?" She asked quietly.

John blinked tiredly seeing this nurse, who looked no younger than Alan with brown bushy hair tied back tightly behind her. He raised his hand up and slowly moved the oxygen mask away from his mask; he licked his lips slowly feeling they were dry and cracked.

But when he opened them to try and speak he discovered that he couldn't speak past his raw red throat. John coughed feeling his throat and eyes burn, why was this happening to him? He bowed his head, hiding away as the tears fell.

Nurse Anne rushed to his side, "Shh... it's ok, take it easy" She spoke quietly making a cup of water and helped John sit up ignoring the tears falling down his flushed cheeks.

Nurse Anne raised the cup to his lips. "Take a sip, it will help" She ordered quietly holding the cup steady. John slowly sipped some of the water before closing his eyes and tried to push the cup away. The nurse moved the cup away and placed it back on the bedside table before helping put the oxygen mask back on.

"I'll go and find a doctor for you, I'm sure that you're just tired" Anne said with a smile before leaving the room.

Once the door had closed, John closed his eyes battling to keep the tears back that wanted to fall. Why is this happening to me? He thought to himself as he gave way to another bout of coughing, which soon passed leaving him gasping for breath through the oxygen mask.

Mom... please help me get through this John prayed, leaning back heavily against the pillows the tears winning against the tired control that John could muster.

The rain battered against the window, leaving tear like trails down the window before falling down the ledges at the bottom then ending in the puddles down on the ground below.

Chapter Three

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