Recollections and Returns (TAG)

Ella diligently took notes from her lessons. She knew the sooner she finished, the sooner she could get away for a time. The brunette with honey-gold eyes studied the screen as she tried to work out the math problem in front of her.

Once she finished the problem, she entered the answer in, only for the screen to tell her she was wrong. With a frown, Ella re-read the problem, she tried another method to solve the problem. With a grin she entered the second answer.

The screen gave a burst of green, before it moved to the next problem. With quick eyes, she read the problem twice as she down various notes. This problem was easier than the previous one. Eleanor quickly entered her solution.

Footsteps echoed into the dining area of Tracy Island caught the teenagers attention. Ella glanced away from the screen, but not before pausing the timer on her lesson.

“Hi, Dad,” she called out as she watched him make his way around the kitchen.

“Ella,” Jeff Tracy greeted his sixteen year old daughter. “What are you doing?”

“Homework,” she answered as she turned back to the screen to finish the problem in front of her.

Ella heard her father’s familiar chuckle at her answer. “Where are the boys?”

The teenager shrugged, “Avoiding their homework like always.”

“Well, I’m not surprised about that. But we both know, you’re already ahead on your school work,” Jeff noted as he pulled out different ingredients from the fridge.

“I blame John, he was always ahead on everything involving school. Especially math,” Ella answered as she glared at the screen.

“Math isn’t always easy to learn kiddo,” Jeff reminded her. “I’ve seen you do more advanced math with your work on Thunderbird One, Two, and Three, than what you’ve covered in your lessons. Besides, your dad was the same way, when we were younger.”

Ella perked up at that piece of information. It wasn’t often that Jeff Tracy spoke of his deceased friend. Ella knew her biological parents’ passing had been difficult for her dad. She didn’t remember Christian Rosewood or Elizabeth Creighton-Warrd. The car accident that killed them happened when she was only a few months old. She had been in the care of Jeff and Lucy Tracy not long after their death. As the couple were her godparents and her parents had deemed in their last will and testament.

Ella had grown up in a good home with Jeff, Lucy, and their three boys. Never treated any differently than her siblings, despite being adopted. Her brothers had adored and spoiled her rotten, but she loved all five of them.

“Really?” she asked with a hint of interest in her voice.

“Yup, I remember your dad was worried that he wouldn’t be able to be an astronaut. But your mom was a great tutor, she was able to break it down for him. That’s the first time they met, actually. He was a smitten by the end of their first session,” Jeff told her.

Ella could see the blue eyes, her dad shared with her oldest and youngest brothers, drift off, as he was reliving the moment again. She knew her dad missed her parents, her grandmother Sylvia Creighton-Warrd was the same. Ella was a beautiful mix of her parents, she could easily tell from the pictures she had received over the years.

A familiar sound caught Ella and her dad’s attention. She moved from her seat, and stood closer to the window. With keen eyes, she spotted the familiar plane that was preparing for a water landing. The aqua-plane was a blue color that only one Tracy boy was obsessed with.

Ella gasped, before she looked over her shoulder at her dad. A gleeful smile on her face.

“Go see, Scott. You know he’ll try to find you first,” Jeff ordered his daughter with a laugh.

“Thank you,” she threw over her shoulder as she took off. Her mahogany hair trailed after her, as she ran outside toward the dock.

As she reached the dock, Ella recognized the figure getting off the plane. With a burst of energy, Ella sprinted toward Scott, his name on her lips as she jumped him. Scott stumbled back a few feet as his arms were full of one Eleanor Creighton-Warrd, the duo ended up in the ocean.

Ella and Scott both surfaced not far from the dock. “Oops,” the sixteen year old said, after she got her breath back.

A laugh that Ella had missed since Christmas came from the dock. Ella turned to see the strawberry-blonde head of John Tracy.

“John,” Ella cried in elation.

“Hey little sis,” John greeted as he looked from Ella to Scott. “Told you, you’d end up in the ocean again,” he smugly told the oldest Tracy.

“Yeah, yeah,” Scott grumbled as he sent a splash of water in John’s direction. “Ella,” he sighed as he moved forward, through the water. The eldest Tracy boy wrapped her into a one armed hug, before he pulled away to climb onto the dock.

Once back on his feet, he and John both lifted Ella onto the dock. She wore a sheepish expression as she peeked at Scott through her eyelashes. “Sorry,” she mumbled with a small smile.

Scott’s laughter signaled to Ella that she wasn’t in trouble. “Come on, let’s get to the house before someone else tries to throw me off the dock,” he suggested.

Ella grinned before she climbed onto Scott’s back. The eldest Tracy chuckled but he held the adopted Tracy sister tightly as he and John walked of the dock to head back to their home.

“You would think, you hadn’t seen us in years,” Scott said as they made their way up the trail, that led back to the large house.

“Six months is a long time, and it’s not like either you call or pick up when we try,” Ella remarked, the slight hint of sarcasm was easily heard by both Scott and John.

“Alright we get the hint, Ella. What’s for dinner? It’s not Grandma’s turn to cook tonight is it?” John asked, fear in his eyes at the thought of anything Grandma Tracy cooked.

Ella’s giggles allowed both males to relax. “Nope it’s dad’s turn, and it looked like he was going to fire up the grill when you got here. Of course, that means I’ll making a side salad for dinner.”

John looked at his sister with a smile. “Well, that is one thing I missed most. Your cooking,” he told his sister.

A flush covered the teen’s cheeks, she looked away and stared at the trees. After the loss of Lucy, Ella had started to learn how to cook. She learnt from Jeff, it was a way for the pair to bond and grieve. The little girl, who had lost her second mother, had needed a distraction. Learning to cook with her dad had been the distraction she needed, it was something she excelled at.

“All the guys in my regime enjoyed your cookies, Ella. So, don’t say you’re horrible at cooking because you’re not,” Scott remarked as the large house came into view.

-fin