OPPOSITE RECIPROCAL
Copyright 2007 by Q Illespont
All characters are property of their respective owners.

Chapter 4

Gosalyn sighed as she stared out the windows of Megavolt's electric car. 'Well,' she said, 'I guess Darkwing and those SHUSH guys must've taken it back somehow. They should be coming back anytime now,' she said wistfully with a slight bit of forced hopefullness, a note that Megavolt was all too familiar with.

'Yeah, he'll be back,' he said as they returned to the Friendly Four headquarters and Gosalyn's home. Steelbeak had taken his own official FOWL car back to his headquarters, so only the three of them trooped into the house.

As they got settled in, Quackerjack gave Megavolt a report. Crime seemed to be on a lower level than in the 'normal' Saint Canard, judging by what Gosalyn had overhead from her father and from the two non-villains here. Still, it was enough to keep them busy--she hadn't even seen the Liquidator the entire time she'd been here so far. The other Gosalyn, she noticed, didn't seem to pay much attention to the crime figures, though, and went to the kitchen.

After the briefing and a few words on Bushroot's reforestation project in Grayson Park, Quackerjack looked over to the green-clad duckling. 'Say, where'd Gosalyn go? I mean, our Gosalyn?'

'She went over there,' Gosalyn said, pointing where the girl was returning from. 'Go ahead and just call her Gosalyn; you said you'd call me "Dark Gosalyn". Why "Dark", anyway?'

'Because that's what we call your world, remember? This is the Negaverse, and you're from the Darkverse,' Megavolt answered.

'But if Negaduck ran this one, why's my world "Dark"?' she asked.

'The same reason this one's called "Nega",' Quackerjack said. He held up two action figures, one in yellow, one in purple. 'See, Negaduck renamed this universe after himself when he took over. And since his equivalent in your world is Darkwing Duck, his universe is the Darkverse. Nega, Dark.'

'Whoa, cool. Da--Darkwing would love to hear about that. How well is he known here, anyway?'

Megavolt sat down and lifted Gosalyn up in his lap, then winced as Gosalyn flinched. 'Um, sorry, force of habit,' he said.

'It's OK,' she replied. 'Still getting used to this place.'

Megavolt relaxed. 'Anyway, Dark Gos, while there's folks--like Steelbeak--who think Darkwing was something Negaduck made up as a symbol of all he stood against, most people think of him as the saviour of Saint Canard. He confronted Negaduck and his gang, the Muddlefoots, and with the Friendly Four--that's us--he fought Negaduck until he snuck away into the portal leading to your world, and chased after.'

'Wow. What really happenned?'

'That's the real verrsion. You should hear the myths!'

'Whoa. So like the folks here love him?'

'Well, if you can call it love,' Megavolt sighed. 'There's some statues, but there's also things like Darkwing Day sales, Darkwing being used in car ads, and so on. Here's an example in today's paper.'

He picked up an ad insert, and showed it to her. Gosalyn saw the familiar purple-caped duck standing and proclaiming great deals on cars. 'Keen gear. They even got his good side.'

'You're not worried about the crass commercialism?' Quackerjack asked. 'I've never liked that.'

'Trust me, if you knew him like I did, you'd know this would just make his day. He's always loved the idea of press coverage!'

The other Gosalyn re-entered. 'I've got dinner going,' she said, and curtsied. 'Dark' Gosalyn still winced at the sight, so familiar and yet so wrong to her. 'And afterward, we'll have milk and cookies!'

'Why're you doing the cooking?' Dark Gosalyn asked. 'I mean, Dad at home does it for the most part.'

'Don't you know how to cook and do the dishes?' she was asked in reply.

'Well, yeah,' she said, then admitted, 'I don't do them often. Never was into that kind of girly stuff. And Dad says it's OK, too.'

She was met with a giggle from the cute duckling. 'That's sweet, having Darkwing Duck baking you cookies.'

'Yeah,' Dark Gosalyn said, then paused, staring ahead. 'Er, it is when he stops by once in a while,' she tried to cover, trying to not look the other girl in the eyes. How'd she figure it out?

'It's almost too disturbing for me,' Megavolt said. 'I guess it makes sense, but ... I've known Negaduck a lot longer. He's the one I imagine. And ... well, you know. It's in the history books, anyway.'

Dark Gosalyn looked back up to the electric rat. 'Know what? I didn't even know my name was universally hated!'

Megavolt and Quackerjack looked at her, then tried to look nonchalant; it seemed to her that the two didn't want to talk about it. 'Come on, spill, guys,' she said.

Tank made his way to the front room. 'I think I'll go over it. I'm sure I can manage it,' he said, and she knew she saw relief in the others' faces when he did. 'She needs to know, in case she were to accidentally cause a scene.'

'Like at the store,' Megavolt said, and walked away to the kitchen after setting her back on her feet. Quackerjack handed the purple duck doll to the other Gosalyn and followed Megavolt; she sighed, hugged the doll, and walked to her room.

The remaining two children sat in the nearby sofa. 'In this universe,' Tank started, 'the name "Mallard" is universally linked to evil, despotism, and all things Negaduck. It's been so even despite L--um, er, Negaduck's own attempts to divorce himself from his given name.'

'Whoa. Kind'a like "Hitler" back home, but even worse?' she asked, staring with morbid fascination--she knew about him, of course, but something about powerful villains got her attention. Of course, she rationalized to herself, she had to know about the enemy.

'Given how our histories diverge, I hesitate to draw any comparisons between the two. Still, it appears that this "Hitler" you mentioned is infamous in your world's history. We can discuss it later.'

'Let's skip the history lesson. Why did the sports store guy object to me putting "Mallard" on my jersey?'

Tank winced, but replied, 'Again, it is a name stained with the past, and with blood. Blood blood blood.'

'Whoa. And why'd your Gosalyn freak out like that?'

'Her name was Mallard, too.'

Gosalyn blinked, then shook her head. 'Lemme get this straight,' she said, 'you're telling me that Negaduck--yellow suit, chainsaw, that guy--had HER as a daughter? How?'

Tank sighed. 'It's a long story. Just ... Negaduck took her in after killing her father and forced her to take his name. We think it was for revenge, but we're not sure why. The others won't tell me, anyway. But she'd always held hope that someday she'd get a better father. And then Darkwing Duck came, and chased Negaduck back to your world. In her eyes, and in the eyes of many people here, Darkwing is the pure hero who can neither tolerate, accomodate, or perpetrate any wrong, or in her case, anything other than the purest good.'

'Hero worship,' Dark Gosalyn said. 'But like way beyond anything normal.' She knew she idolized her own father, but could also see his faults; surely the others should've seen when he was there, too, right?

'Exactly. By the way, how do you know so much about Darkwing?'

'I ... er, run his fan club.' Honest, yet evasive.

'I see.' Tank took his glasses off and polished them, then put them back on. 'So, you expect them to return?'

'Of course I do!' she answered. 'Nothing'd stop Darkwing Duck from getting me back!'

'I see. Still, I think it would be prudent to make our own preparations. We have an appointment to see Steelbeak in his lab tomorrow for the big party, anyway. We should ask the FOWL staff for assistance.'

Dark Gosalyn blinked. 'What big party?' she asked.

Tank looked at her in puzzlement. 'The birthday party. What else did you think?'

She shook her head. 'No, no, my birthday was back in April!'

Tank stared in surprise, then seemed to beam in dawning realization. 'So you do have your birth records!'

'Huh?'

'Gosalyn's birth records were all destroyed. We assigned her tomorrow as a birthday, since that was when she was first adopted. It has special meaning for her.'

'Whoa.' She thought back to when she was adopted, but couldn't remember if they'd had a special celebration of that day. Of course, a lot was precluded from her father's injuries. 'I guess they just kept mine on hand. Maybe I should tell her that.'

'No, don't,' Tank replied. 'We've ... gotten attached to tomorrow.'

'Oh, allright,' she sighed. 'Better get to bed, anyway.' She typically felt more inclined to when she was deciding on the issue; also, she was oddly tired. Time lag, she thought. Waving, she went into the other Gosalyn's bedroom.

---

'DW, you gotta relax,' Launchpad said as he brought in a tray of sandwiches. Around them were shards of glass, twisted metal, and ominously non-blinking electronic components. Pages of the TARDAT's schematics, still dripping from the bay, were scatterred along the floor and walls. 'Besides,' the loyal sidekick continued, 'you're spoiling your lunch--I made these up for all of us, including you.'

Darkwing glared at him, and unclenched his jaw. Launchpad winced as he saw the damage that prompted his comment--Darkwing had been gnawing on the brim of his celebrated hat. 'Launchpad,' Darkwing started, 'I am currently waiting for a mad scientist and a crackpot aviator--no offense there--to put together a smashed teleporter using washed-out plans so they can get my ONE AND ONLY daughter back from an alternate universe. My perilous and prepubescent progeny is practically parsecs away from her panicked parent! To think, my own flesh and blood, torn from my side ... '

'Actually, DW, technically she--'

Darkwing grabbed his sidekick's face and brought him down to eye level. In a low growl that reminded Launchpad more of Negaduck at his worst, Darkwing snarled, 'Do not finish that sentence.' No threat was added. It would only lessen the menace.

Launchpad hurried over to the SHUSH ducks working on the TARDAT itself. 'Um, guys,' he asked, still shaking, 'could you hurry up with that? I think DW's starting to crack.'

'He seems to be taking it hard,' Dr Bellum said. 'I know he loves the idea of a fan club, but this is more than I'd expect.'

'Dr Bellum,' J Gander Hooter said, 'return to your work!' Shocked, Dr Bellum did as Hooter went to Launchpad. 'Relax, Mr McQuack. I ... understand Darkwing's situation.'

'I doubt it,' Launchpad said.

Hooter shrugged, and handed Launchpad a hairdryer, then started working on some sodden pages.

---

'Happy birthday, Gosalyn!'

Even Dark Gosalyn joined in the yell as they stepped into FOWL's headquarters. The birthday girl herself was in an even cuter pink dress, with a shiny new pair of black Mary Janes. Dark Gosalyn herself was wearing her new green jersey; after some discussion with the others, they settled on calling that a birthday present despite the time difference. Megavolt was in his full costume, while Quackerjack and Bushroot had chosen tuxedoes. Steelbeak had selected a dress uniform as well.

Oddly, to Dark Gosalyn, the Liquidator hadn't been seen ever since her arrival in the Negaverse. He hadn't arrived at the combined home/headquarters, and she had only heard that he was busy with other things. Even now, the Friendly Four were limited to the three she'd met so far. She thought back to her first meeting with the watery villain, where he showed unusual interest in her. I wonder if he's further from her, she thought to herself.

Still, the other Gosalyn seemed to be looking for someone else in the crowd. A few Eggmen were on hand, including a slender chicken who seemed to hover near Steelbeak. The group, after a welcome, were already into the cake.

'I swear,' Steelbeak said, 'this cake is the most ex-cell-ente. Who made it?'

'I did,' Megavolt said. 'Was hard to keep it secret--Gos here keeps trying to take over the kitchen.'

Gosalyn--the 'opposite', Dark Gosalyn thought to herself--blushed at that. 'I didn't expect all this over my birthday,' she said.

'But wait, there's more!' Quackerjack said, and went to the door. The rest of them looked over as a monologue started:

'Are you satisfied with your past? Would you like to remove the mark of atrocity from your identity? Why not ... '

Suddenly, and literally, a wave gushed into the room, splashing down near the pink duckling. It reformed into the Liquidator himself, and continued his pitch: ' ... try Liquidator brand legal documents! Watch as they magically erase the curse of the past and restore the dignity and good of the future that is likewise scouring the streets of Saint Canard!'

Dark Gosalyn rolled her eyes at the speech; some things never change. The other Gosalyn, however, squealed in delight and applauded, then oohed as Liquidator extended an arm with a pad of legal documents. Apparently he was able to exert pressure without breaking his water tension, since the papers were still dry. 'Operators are standing by,' he said, and in his other hand offerred the duckling a pen. 'Just sign right here.'

Gosalyn looked over the papers, and gasped. 'This ... says my name's going to be changed?'

'That's right!' Liquidator gushed. 'Nevermore will you be known by the name thrust unfairly upon you by a guardian undeserved and unfit to guide the life of a rock. Now, your destiny will be in your hands. Just sign your new name here.'

Dark Gosalyn managed to work in closest to see the documents. She saw a lot of what seemed to be legalese, and a few things that resembled the adoption papers she saw when Darkwing took her in. She also saw the blank Liquidator was indicating.

The other Gosalyn thought for a few moments, then smiled and reached to scribble in the blank indicated. The Friendly Four and the FOWL agents smiled as they watched, while Dark Gosalyn took a step back, shaking her head. 'No,' she said.'

'What?' the other Gosalyn asked. 'I really miss my ... my old name.' She looked wistful, and marked her initials--her new ones--in the proper place. 'G. B.'

'Gosalyn Bulba.'

---

Launchpad herded Darkwing to the seat in front of the crime monitor. 'Hey, DW,' he said, 'maybe we can find something good on TV to watch!' Pelican's Island was always good for him, he thought, and Darkwing certainly could use something to take his mind off the situation. The SHUSH scientists were still working on the TARDAT, and even to Launchpad's untrained eye, they seemed to be on edge while Darkwing was glowering at them.

'SHUSH issue,' Darkwing said under his breath as he was assisted to the couch and parked in it. He spared a look over his shoulder before the screen flickered to life as Launchpad turned it on. He scowled as the teleporter still stood in wreckage, although he grudgingly admitted to himself that a few items were straighter, and there were more cohesive piles of parts.

Small comfort as he brooded over how Gosalyn had been yanked out of his universe.

He turned his face back to the monitor, and sneered at the first programme, a Pelican's Island rerun.

'Gosh,' Pelican was saying, 'since we got here we've never been able to fix the Manilow and get back to civilization!'

Launchpad laughed nervously and hit the remote. 'Whoops, sorry, saw that one already,' he said to cover up. He flicked through the channels to see what else was there.

The next channel showed an office with a duck hanging for dear life from a black handle while a vixen seemed to fly backwards into a vortex. 'ROSE!' the duck yelled. The girl screamed, reaching for him ... and then a man shimmered in behind her, grabbed her, and shimmered out, just before the breach collapsed.

The scene cut to apparently the same office, but seemingly from another side. The vixen from earlier was pounding on the wall, screaming. 'Take me back! Take me back! I can't leave him! Take me back!' Her mascara was running from her tears. 'I need to go back to my world ... '

'Whoops ... ' Launchpad said as he hit more buttons on the remote. 'Never got into those foreign-language things.'

Another channel change brought up what looked like a Movie of the Week. It showed a young girl wandering in a rain-drenched city, with a stirring voice-over narration. 'Her parents abandoned her. Her relatives died. Even the Boy Scouts lost track as she crossed the street. A duck on her own in a hostile world.'

Another channel change. This one was a public service announcement. 'Remember, parents, always keep an eye on your children.'

And another. 'For the best Father's Day deals, shop at your local Waddle Mart.'

And another. A round-headed boy was holding a leash. Oddly, the grass was in a side view. 'SNEAKY! COME HOME!'

And another. A music video channel. 'And he gave her butterf--'

Launchpad hurriedly turned off the television. 'OK, maybe there's a crime wave we can find ... ' Darkwing just gritted his teeth.

---

The two Gosalyns were led further into FOWL headquarters. 'I hope your guys over there can do the trick,' Steelbeak said. 'If not, we've got quite a few bright boids here. Youse people can talk to Morg about your little situation.'

'We'll see,' Dark Gosalyn said, and looked in the room. 'Whoa ... keen gear,' she said as she stared in amazement.

She had never seen the SHUSH analogue, aside from a few outside facilities, but if it was anything like this, she deeply envied her father the ability to see this anywhere near regularly. It looked just like she thought a super-secret spy lab should--white-coated technicians bustling, computers all over the place processing data, and what looked like rows and rows of experiments.

What she didn't expect was the woman approaching her. Instead of the neat white of lab workers, or the crisp yellow and red uniforms of Eggmen, this woman was dressed in a mechanic's overalls. And the mechanic in question must have been working on an oil leak on wheels, as the overalls bore all the signs of either frequent work or infrequent washing. The woman was barely neater than the suit; she seemed to have some white feathers, but much of her was grimy. Still, Gosalyn could see the smile on her face, like the one she herself would wear after several hours on a muddy field.

What got her attention was the streak of white through the messy hair, as well as the embroidered namepatch, 'Morg'. 'Hi, guys,' she said, and wiped her hand with a rag before extending it. She couldn't tell if the hand was cleaner afterward, or the rag was. 'Morg Macawbre.'

Dark Gosalyn still stared in disbelief. Morg saw this, and hesitated. 'What, did I miss something?' She started looking over herself as if to find something. 'I didn't leave my pliers clamped on the beltloop again, did I?'

'Um, no, it's nice to meet you, ma'am,' Dark Gosalyn replied. 'I'm Gosalyn M--' She then looked around, and sighed. Took her long enough to start using 'Mallard' after she was adopted, and now she had to avoid it. This stinks, she thought to herself; out loud, she said, 'Er, I'm Dark Gosalyn.'

Morg looked at her, then to the birthday girl. 'I can see that, yeah.' She leaned to whisper to Steelbeak, 'Are you sure it's safe to bring her here?'

'We're trying to get her back to her own universe,' Megavolt said. 'The Darkverse.'

'Alternate universe?' Morg asked. 'I never believed in that mystic stuff.'

Dark Gosalyn asked, 'What? Since when's Morgana Macawbre been not mystic?'

'Since I was born, kid. And how'd you know my first name?'

'Um ... well, there's another of you in my universe,' she replied. 'Wait a minute. Why're you here?'

Morg frowned. 'I work here. Did ever since FOWL was founded. Always wanted to be a cop, but was a lot better at making cop cars.'

'Weird,' Dark Gosalyn said. 'You're a good guy in my universe, too!'

The other Gosalyn giggled and hugged her. 'See, guys? Not everyone there is morally opposite!'

Dark Gosalyn smiled nervously. 'Er, well, so can you help us out there?'

Morg thought for a bit. 'Well, alternate reality physics isn't my department, to be honest. But I'll see what my guys can do. Wanna get some lab time, Reggie?'

'Sure,' Bushroot said.

'And Gosalyn,' Morg continued, 'come by tomorrow night. I'm working on your birthday present, but it won't be done by then, OK?'

'Sure,' she said as the rest were led back out.

---

The lamp in the lonely lighthouse shone over the waters. Long automated, it shone on in its ancient mission to guide ships to the safe harbour of Audubon Bay.

A mad cackle punctuated its more recent purpose, to house Saint Canard's third most dangerous criminal: Megavolt. The owners of the lighthouse knew better than to interfere--and reasoned that if nothing else, Megavolt would do his best to keep the power flowing to the huge lightbulb in it, and had humanely chosen to not send employees to evict him. They did inhumanely choose to lay them off, but business is business.

Still, this left Megavolt time to sit back and relax. He got into his favourite sofa, stretched his back and popped his spine back into shape, and reached out--

And then the telephone rang. Meagavolt tried to ignore it, but it kept ringing. Sighing and reminding himself to steal a caller ID unit, he picked it up. 'Hello, you've reached Megavolt, Saint Canard's most electrifying supervillain!' he said.

'Hey, there you are!' the other voice said. 'Listen, it's Launchpad. I need to ask ya a favour!'

'Launchpad? Hmm, I think I know that name ... I know! You're that big guy who always hangs out with Darkwing Duck!'

'That's right! Thanks for noticin'.'

Megavolt scowled. 'You're not trying to arrest me over the telephone, are you?'

'No no no,' Launchpad said. 'See, I was kind'a wondering ... aren't you planning any major capers? Breakin' and enterin'? Robbin' a few banks?'

'Well, I did, but I decided to take the day off. Besides, Saint Canard Sci Fi Cinema's got a marathon going of Doctor Quack. Took me a while to get used to the Tenth Quack, but he's pretty good.'

'Come on, Megavolt! This is serious!'

'I know! They're finally showing the third season! Isn't it great?' He'd been waiting since reading about it online. 'I've heard so much about who they've got with the Quack now. And now I'll get to see it from the comfort of MY OWN LIVING ROOM! HAHAHAHAHA!'

'Um, Megsy ... that's nice, but shouldn't--'

Megavolt winced as he heard another voice in the background, an all too familiar one. 'Launchpad! Just what are you doing on the phone?' Only two ducks could sound so similar, and if this was Launchpad calling, it probably meant that this was his pal Darkwing.

'Er, hey, DW!' the sidekick tried to cover. 'I was just, er, grilling Megavolt for information on His Big Bank Robbery. Right, Megsy?' He sounded to the villain like he was pleading.

A struggle suggested the phone was snatched away. 'Well?' he was asked, this time directly by Darkwing.

'Hey, don't drag me into this,' he answered. 'I'm just watching TV tonight.'

'See,' Darkwing said. 'Now will you CONCENTRATE ON WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING?!' Megavolt winced at the scream and the slam of the telephone being abruptly hung up.

'Sheesh. Probably picked a good night to stay home,' he said as he flicked on the television. Better than tangling with a demented duck.

---

Dark Gosalyn yawned and stretched. Another day ending and still in the Negaverse. She'd enjoyed the party at FOWL, and she couldn't help but smile as the other Gosalyn opened her gifts. She'd also talked Megavolt into a quick run to the FOWL gift shop to get a birthday card and an Eggman plush, which the birthday girl gushed over cutely.

Now they were back home, with the other Gosalyn putting away her gifts. Quite a few were dolls, with a few dresses. Precicely the things Dark Gosalyn dreaded getting at any time, although the chances of that had decreased after some time with her father. Still, it seemed the girl was hanging onto a copy of Liquidator's contract. It was a hard shock to see the name Bulba there, but it made sense, she kept telling herself. After all, everyone here was opposites. Megavolt's the leader of a superhero group, J Gander Hooter was an international terrorist, Tank was an intellectual. It stood to reason that the fearsome Taurus Bulba from her world would be kinder here.

'Well, that was fun, I guess,' she said. 'So, what's on TV tonight? Any good horror movies?'

Quackerjack winced. 'That stuff will rot your brain.'

'Awww,' she replied. 'I just hope Dad remembers to record the Doctor Quack marathon tonight. I wanna see if the Daleks come back and vaporize people again.'

'Doctor who?' Megavolt asked, scratching his head confusedly.

Dark Gosalyn sighed. 'Never mind. I think I'll go to bed. You got a sleeping bag or something?' Quackerjack fetched one for her from the closet, eliciting a wince from her--this one featured an almost disgustingly cute pink bunny on the front. 'It's a good thing all my friends are in another universe,' she muttered to herself, and walked into the other Gosalyn's bedroom.

Inside, she saw it was dark; the blinds were open, but it was night. There was enough light from the city for her to see the other Gosalyn on the bed, curled up under the covers. She sighed as she looked her over. 'Kind'a cute,' she thought, then shook her head to dismiss the thought. 'This place is getting to me.'

She unrolled the sleeping bag and crawled in, then looked up at the bed. She saw the contract copy on the nightstand, but the little girl had cuddled something else up in the bed. Dark Gosalyn yawned, leaned back, and settled down for sleep.

She then fidgeted her thumbs as she heard sniffling from the bed above her. Sighing again, she sat up and looked to see the other Gosalyn sobbing, still curled up. 'You allright there?' she asked.

The other girl gasped ('Way too girly,' Dark Gosalyn thought to herself), and started back. When she did, Dark Gosalyn could see what she was holding--the earlier Darkwing Duck doll. 'Um, I'm sorry,' the cute girl said. 'I ... um, I ... '

'It's OK,' Dark Gosalyn sighed, leaning against the bed. 'I've done that quite a few times, too.' She chuckled as she looked at the doll. 'You miss him, don't you?'

'Well, don't you?'

She nodded. 'Yeah, I do. But there's something I think can help you out.'

The other Gosalyn perked up a little. 'What is it?'

'A lullabye from both my dad and my grandpa,' Dark Gosalyn answered. She sighed as the other girl shrank back. 'Remember, it's opposite of whoever you had,' she said resignedly. 'Like how your dad's different from how he was in my world.'

'But he was so good. How could he be anything but that?' the other girl asked.

Dark Gosalyn shook her head. 'I need to get you some good sci-fi or horror movies,' she muttered. Out loud, she said, 'Remember how Darkwing's not like how Negaduck was? Opposites.'

'But you're not evil. Why would Daddy be evil? He saved Saint Canard so many times, and he adopted me, and everything was so nice ... '

Dark Gosalyn reached to hug the other duckling as she broke down in tears. 'I miss my daddy, I miss Darkwing,' she wailed as she sobbed into the green jersey. Dark Gosalyn could only just hold on and try to hug her as reassuringly as her father had for her during darker times.

After what felt like too long, the other Gosalyn finally let go. 'I'm sorry,' she repeated. 'I didn't mean to wake you up or cry on you.'

'It's OK,' Dark Gosalyn said, trying to think of something else to say.

Gosalyn broke the silence. 'How'd you meet Darkwing Duck, anyway?'

Dark Gosalyn sighed as she sat on the bed. 'Without him, I'd ... well, I'd be dead. It's a cliche, I know, but he really saved my life. And then adopted me. It's a long story ... my natural parents both died, and my grandpa took me in afterward. I lived in his apartment off his lab.' She sighed as she leaned forward, remembering. 'I thought that would be the happiest time in my life.'

'What happenned?'

Dark Gosalyn's face visibly soured as she was reminded of just what happenned next. 'He invented a great machine. And some crooks wanted to steal it, so they ... ' She swallowed, and held the comforter on the bed tighter in her fingers. Even with the years that have passed, the memory was still unpleasant. 'They took him away. They found his body a few days later. They never let me see it.'

'That's terrible,' the other Gosalyn said, shuddering.

'It gets worse. The same crooks tried to kidnap me. They had to lie low for a while, but they found me at the orphanage, and were about to get me in their van when Darkwing came and rescued me. And we've been together ever since.'

Dark Gosalyn sighed and looked at the little girl--she couldn't help apply the label despite being just about the same herself. 'What about you?' she asked. 'How'd you end up with Negaduck and then Megavolt?'

'Well,' she said, 'it started with my first mommy and daddy.' She sat up, hugging her legs to her chest. 'They loved me a lot, and were so kind ... and then they were killed. My grandfather took me in afterwards. He was a mean man. He ... always said I didn't have enough spirit, and kept saying he'd hurt me if I wasn't the little girl I was supposed to be. I think he was a bad man, too. He wanted me to help him hurt people. He built all sorts of things that hurt people. I know he gave some to Negaduck, too. That's why Negaduck was mad when Daddy beat him.'

Dark Gosalyn tried to sort out her conflicting feelings. She knew her grandfather was a good man, and loved her dearly. But she also knew that this was the Negaverse, and this Gosalyn's grandfather must have been opposite of her own. Bracing herself, she said, 'Wow, kind'a like me. So, you were ... adopted by ... him, right?'

'That's right. That's why I picked that as my new name when Liquidator finished his paperwork. He's the chief judge here.' She smiled and leaned back on her bed. 'I've been calling myself that since Darkwing rescued me, though.'

'Good thing we both met him.'

'Yeah.' The girl reached over and hugged her into the bed. 'Thanks for coming here. I'm glad I met you.'

Dark Gosalyn tried to resist, but couldn't find it in her to shove the other girl away, and resigned herself to it. 'It's OK.'

'I miss my daddy,' the other Gosalyn said, and Dark Gosalyn could feel more tears seeping into her new jersey. 'The Friendly Four are great, but ... I miss my daddy. He was strong.' She squeezed tighter, and looked up to the startled Dark Gosalyn's face. 'You feel strong, too.'

'Well,' she admitted, 'I do exercise a lot. Are you gonna be OK?' She tried to coax her double's arms away, but she held on tight.

'Don't go,' the other girl whispered as she hugged.

Dark Gosalyn sighed; still, she did feel for the kid. Especially since the great years she spent with Darkwing, she had to spend with Negaduck. 'What if I sang you a song my grandpa and my dad taught me?' she asked. 'It's a lullabye I liked.' She normally didn't like to admit it, but she'd always loved the song. It reminded her of the two most important people she'd ever known.

'A lullabye?' the other Gosalyn asked. She looked to Dark Gosalyn, who nodded. 'I don't think I've heard one since Daddy ... Daddy ... '

Dark Gosalyn smiled. 'Got her,' she thought. 'Here's how it goes.' She cleared her throat, and started singing. The other girl listened raptly to the words long written on Dark Gosalyn's heart:

'Close your eyes, little girl blue
Inside of you like a rainbow
Yellow blue, red blue purple too
Blue purple and green, then the yellow.'

'Pretty,' the other girl said.

'That's from my grandpa. Dad then gave me this part:

'Rest your head, little girl blue
Come paint your dreams on your pillow
I'll be near, to chase away fear
So sleep now and dream till tomorrow.'

She looked and saw the other Gosalyn resting her head on her pillow, her eyes closing. Now released, she climbed down and knelt by the bed, leaning against it as she whispered the last lines again.

'I'll be near, to chase away fear
So sleep now and dream till tomorrow.'

She leaned forward, and the other Gosalyn settled in. 'Thanks,' she said, and drifted to sleep.

---

Notes: During the television section, the first show is a reference to an episode of Doctor Who, 'Doomsday'. The dialogue and scenery are similar to what happens in one scene, but are not word-for-word. Still, it was borrowed from there. The music video features a scrap from Bob Carlisle's 'Butterfly Kisses', before Launchpad figured that a sentimental tearjerker would probably not help.

Also, after it's reasserted, I do start referring to the 'normal' Gosalyn as 'Dark Gosalyn', just like they suggested. She's the visitor to their world, not the Negaverse Gosalyn.