Despite the fact that Dr. Reginald Bushroot is a hardened criminal and a member of the Fearsome Five, he still seems to be a tender soul. Why does he still have a spark of good within him when all of his partners are crazy, evil and downright psychotic?
She gave him hope.
Oh, not in a romantic way, never! He was much too old for her, old enough to be her father. But every time his azure eyes met her green ones, it felt as if she could see right into his soul. He had been struck by those eyes – not old eyes, but definitely older than what they should have been. They should have been filled with childlike innocence, mischief and happiness, with no regard for the horrors of the world. Behind the impish delight sparkling in her eyes, however, was a shadow of tragedy. As if those young eyes had seen horrors that the owner should never have been witness to. He felt a shred of pity for the little redheaded girl, who obviously had first hand experience with death and criminals in St Canard.
He never knew her name. He knew she was definitely close to Darkwing, the rest of the Justice Ducks and Launchpad McQuack, Darkwing's sidekick, but otherwise, he knew nothing about the little tomboy. She was definitely dynamic enough to be Darkwing's niece or daughter – they were just as stubborn, sarcastic and spirited as each other. However, Bushroot found himself not wanting to know. Those eyes, those sharp, keen, street-smart emerald eyes were windows to her soul. And Bushroot, criminal though he was, was still an intelligent being. He could see that her soul was scarred. On the mend, but scarred from having it passed around and torn so much. In a way, she reminded him of himself. His soul was scarred too – from being shunned and laughed at his whole life. By Drs Gary and Larson, the Dean, Rhoda…even the rest of the Fearsome Five laughed at him.
He was probably the most book-smart out of all five of them. Though Negaduck, Liquidator and he had been to college out of the five, and Megavolt and Quackerjack were natural geniuses, only Bushroot had gone ahead with a doctorate in biological sciences. Even so, strength and power were what was valued in their line of work – and all he could do was talk to plants. Physically, he was incredibly weak. Though he could force plants to do his bidding, it was nothing compared to Megavolt's electricity control, Quackerjack's ability to make destructive toys, Liquidator's dominance of water, and Negaduck's brute strength, coupled with his leadership abilities.
This girl, though…she had a knack for getting in trouble, she was definitely ten years old or younger and though rambunctious, she could be easily subdued. But though the rest of the Fearsome Five had tried their hand at kidnapping her, Bushroot could never bring himself to do so. Those eyes seemed to reflect almost exactly how he felt every time she looked into his own gaze. Like they were survivors. They seemed to connect in some strange way…he didn't understand and he didn't know why, but like the truth of her connection to Darkwing, he didn't want to know. If she remained an enigma to him, she would be safe. She had been through too much and Bushroot, who all too well understood the pain of having to grow up too quickly, wanted to make sure she could enjoy what was left of her childhood…he might have been a wanted criminal and a mutant plant-duck, but he was still half duck. And because she gave him hope, because she instilled a dream that things would be different some day…he wanted to return the favor.
So, every time he felt like the only connection he had was to his plants, every time he felt that Negaduck was going too far, and every time he was scorned by anyone, he remembered those honed, insightful green eyes…and somehow knew he wasn't alone when he gazed up at the cold silver moon and the hard, diamond lights in the black velvet sky.