Donald awoke and found himself comfortably situated on a decently sized couch.
As a gift to him on his most recent birthday, Chip and Dale asked Donald if there was any modification they could add to the ship for him.
"You know," Donald replied, "A nice place to sleep wouldn't be so bad…a place of my own…with no feet and no ears all over me!"
It was a modest bed, but a bed nonetheless and Donald was thankful to his old friends for this nightly space to call his own.
Usually, upon waking, Donald heard a lot of sounds: clanks and clangs and booms and bangs and goodness knows what else. This morning, however, there was silence. As Donald's drowsy brain pondered at this, his thoughts brought him back to the battle against Jafar the night before.
He glanced to his left and saw Goofy and Sora still snoozing heavily on the floor. Smiling to himself, he waved his wand and sent blankets over them as he pushed back his own.
He couldn't help but wonder, sometimes, why those two kept him along. After all he couldn't do much in battle. Sure, he was good for spells and Curing now and again but that's not what won fights against monsters. Besides, Sora was getting better and better at his magic and even Goofy was remembering to bring his Potions with him to battle more often.
Donald shuffled into the kitchen, rifled through the cabinets for pancake mix and a bowl and absently began to make breakfast the old fashioned way.
Usually, at this time, there was a lot of shouting as Donald and Sora fought over the controls and the where they should go next and poor Goofy would get yelled at for trying to quell the riotous hotheads.
However, in the unexpected quiet, with only the small taps of the stirring spoon against the bowl to occupy his ears, Donald began to think.
His first thought was of Daisy; but then again, when was it ever not? When the sun first touched his eyelids, even if it was just for a moment before he fought with Sora over silly things, Donald thought of Daisy.
Her image flashed across his bright blue eyes like lightning against the stars and he couldn't help but feel a terrible pang of guilt and loneliness. She had looked so beautiful the day he had left, the day he had promised her he would return as soon as he could.
They had both known that day wouldn't be for quite sometime; but Donald was beginning to wonder if letters and cards on all the right occasions were still enough for her. He leaned his small orange duck bill over the pancake bowl and said a small prayer to whoever might be listening, and silently asked Daisy to hold on a little longer.
Usually, Donald was too busy yelling at Sora to steer clear of that asteroid to be bothered with such thoughts about his comrades; but now as Donald poured batter into a hot frying pan, he remembered that Goofy had a son, and Sora two far-away friends.
Donald smiled nostalgically as the batter sizzled, and remembered the day that Max was born. Donald and the King were up all night in the lobby of the nearest hospital, and finally, at 4:06 in the morning, Goofy came shuffling out.
Although, something wasn't quite right with their usually cheerful friend. He was smiling like a newly-designated father, sure, but….
Donald could remember the faint glimmer, all but dimmed, in his friend's eyes as he told them about his healthy new son, and of how his mother did not live to see him. Max, however, became the spark that reignited the glimmer in Goofy's eyes, and a day didn't go by that Donald didn't catch Goofy looking at a picture of Max he kept hidden in his left coat pocket.
Donald sighed as he placed two pancakes onto a plate and Sora let out a particularly loud snore. They were no closer to finding Riku; but at least they knew Kairi was safe on Destiny Islands again. Although Sora would deny it, Donald knew by the fierce blush in his cheek of how much he missed the beautiful redhead.
Usually, Donald tried not to think about these things. They were not the happiest of topics; but, when a duck is alone making pancakes while two of his closest friends snore, what else is there to think of?
As he placed a few more pancakes onto the plate, he smiled to himself and thanked his lucky stars that Sora and Goofy kept him around, useless as he felt. He was glad that somewhere in the universe he was lucky enough to have a beautiful soul mate waiting for him, and that Sora and Goofy as well were still able to hold onto the most important thing a person can possess: the complete and unconditional love of another being.
It was not unusual that, at this point, the acute senses of Sora and Goofy awakened them, having caught the luscious smell of blueberry pancakes. Up they jumped, scrambling blankets all around the floor, and rushed for the plate.
Donald rolled his eyes as the kitchen became a debacle of plates, syrup, flying forks, and napkins. When at last the dust settled, though, he was just glad to see one pancake lying intact for him.
He took a seat at the cramped table next to Goofy, unable to hide a smile as he watched his two allies scarf down the pancakes like wolves.
"Gee Donald," Goofy grinned, "you sure do make the best pancakes!"
Sora gulped down a drink of milk. "Yeah, Donald! I'm sure glad we have you around!"
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AN: I just love Donald. There should be more stories about him. He has a lot going on in that brain of his.