Della had never actually thought about it, not until she overheard her sons talking after Webby had opened the door for the Saberwing sisters to come in…
"Sleepover!" Webby had shouted as she dragged Lena and Violet in while the triplets followed behind.
"Yet another one" Louie shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Webby sure loves to throw them" Huey added "It's like the third one this month?" he counted with his fingers.
"Yeah, Lena could have spared us the trouble and asked to move in. She practically lived here before and still kind of does now. Wouldn't have made a difference if she stayed for good" Dewey replied.
"Yeah, right" Louie huffed "Can you imagine Uncle Scrooge having magic around 24/7?"
That cracked up the other two "Oh man, yeah, picture that" Dewey snorted "he would have lost it, 'curse me bagpipes! Who summoned the ancient one?!' " he mocked his accent fueling their laughter.
And the idea got stuck on Della's head. Truly, her Uncle seemed to welcome everyone into his mansion nowadays. And the kids were right, Lena tended to visit a lot. Before it was on a daily basis, but now that Violet was back to school, it was only on the weekends. But the question didn't left Della…why didn't Lena live with them as well? She clearly belonged and given all her backstory, it would have been fitting.
So why didn't she?
Her curiosity got the better out of her as it often did, and without even realizing it, her footsteps had taken her to Scrooge's office, where he sat while sorting papers.
"Hey, Uncle Scrooge" She called from the entrance "Got a minute?"
"Oh, Della" he gazed up "what brings you here, lass?" he set everything aside giving her his full attention.
"Not much I just…I wanted to talk about Lena?"
He frowned confused "What about her? Is she alright? Are the kids trapped in a magical realm or cursed by a -?"
"No, no, they are all fine; I think they are playing board games? And not even the life-endangering ones" she offered before stepping inside "Their sleepovers have been more normal lately"
"Aye, my insurance company has been quiet for a while now" he chuckled "So, what is that you wanted to tell me about the lass?"
Della awkwardly stood still for a moment "…Do you mind that she stays over?" she took a seat in front of him.
"Have I given you that impression?" he seemed truly aback and somewhat hurt "She's always welcome into the manor, has she said anything to you?" he was actually worried and that surprised Della.
"No, she hasn't" she assured before rubbing her palms hunching into herself "no, I'm the one inquiring" she admitted, "I know that she hurt all of you in the past but you forgave her, right?" Scrooge took notice of how uncannily self-conscious his niece said those words. He could easily tell she was also projecting into the statement, but made no comments regarding it "…well, the boys made a comment and it got me thinking…and since you strongly dislike magic-" she finally met his eyes "Why isn't she living here?" she asked out front.
She had been expecting a lot of reactions, but the way he calmly stood up smirking wasn't one of them "I offered" he said.
"Wait, you did?"
"Yeah" he walked to the window looking up at the full moon "as you might recall, she stayed here for a week or two and I thought it was self-evident my offer was permanent. I promised her a place in the family if she helped me save them by defeating Magica, and she paid fully, the ultimate price no less" he said bitterly, his eyes darkening in a way Della hadn't seen in a long while. He turned away from the night sky facing her again softening his demeanor "but one day she came to my office and said that little Miss Saberwing had offered to take her in, at least as a trial at first. I talked to Mr. Indigo and Mr. Tyrian and once they settled in, I helped with the adoption papers, since Lena had no formal record on paper"
"I…I didn't know that" she offered a gentle smile "That was a very nice gesture, Uncle Scrooge"
"Well, my debt isn't paid yet, not even close. Whenever she feels like she has something to ask of me, I'll deliver. But thus far, she's been elusive regarding the topic" he explained "can't blame her, she's still figuring out a lot of things"
Della nodded, she could understand that much "So, she never said why she didn't want to stay?"
"Didn't say and I didn't ask, it was not my place to question her decision" he sat back down "It couldn't have been an easy one either. She was for a second time walking into an unknown territory, leaving behind what she knew and those she was familiar with" he motioned around at the place "but I trust she made the right call, she seems happy, doesn't she?" he smirked "and she comes here often enough, so we can keep a watchful eye, make sure Magica isn't coming after her"
"I guess you are right" she tilted her head, looking over at the moon, her former home.
Scrooge reached her side gently giving a pat on her shoulder "You know? You could ask her" he suggested "you might as well be the only person she would answer to" Della was about to refute when he cut in again "Webby doesn't know either" he provided leaving her speechless before squishing her arm lightly and going back to his paperwork.
Nothing could stop Della Duck and in this particular instance, that was an annoying quality, given that her thoughts roamed back to the incognita of why Lena had chosen to move to a different household. Not that there was anything wrong with Lena's now permanent living arrangement, Ty and Indy were amazing parents and they often offered pretty good advice regarding parenting, but at the same time, something just didn't click for Della. Why would the kid that previously had no one to lean on or trust, would rather move in with strangers and have to start building all that from ground zero? Lena knew everyone at the manor had moved past the Shadow War and the betrayal, but maybe there was something more as to why she hadn't taken up on the offer of living on a literal mansion.
Why it bothered Della so much not to know the answer? She wasn't even sure. She was probably overthinking it, or…maybe it resonated with her own past and actions…
Why did Della assume her own home would welcome her back with open doors? She was a complete stranger to her kids, and still imposed herself back into their lives like if nothing ever happened. Maybe…she should have done what Lena did. Give them all space and progressively walk back into their lives as her full self… maybe the teen was way stronger that Della would ever be…
"Sulking in the shadows too?" the very familiar voice in question asked from across the hallway as Della jolted, looking up to find Lena sited by the frame of a window, stargazing.
"Lena?" she walked to her side "What are you doing up, kid?"
The teen glanced at her almost challenging, a brow raised as if though the question had been ridiculous on its own "What about you?" she said in return and Della chuckled.
"Fair" she smirked sitting on the opposite end "The others know you are here?" Della asked, making sure Lena wasn't isolating herself.
"Yeah, we were playing some videogames, things got a little too loud and bright for me" she shrugged "Violet noticed and suggested I stepped out for a bit, since I didn't want to cut the fun short" she explained, "Webby said she would check on me later, so meanwhile I decided to enjoy the view" she pointed at the full moon "It's kind of nice once you are not trying to steal it's power or be tormented by it"
"Tell me about it" Della sighed sullenly.
Lena flinched slightly "Sorry" she muttered.
Della realized belatedly the shift in the mood "No, hey, don't be, I'm just a little lost in thought today" she said reassuringly, kicking her feet up the cushions.
"Trapped up here or up there?" she pointed at her own head then gazing up at the sky.
Della had to smile; the teen knew her well enough that she could ask so blatantly one of the topics Della tended to avoid with others. But they were in a mutual understanding, a kind of safe zone in which neither had to put up an act.
"Up in my head" she finally said "not up in memories" she added "Well, maybe just a little moon-reminiscence but nothing that's keeping me awake," she said confidently.
"Then why are you awake?" The remark didn't sound like a jab, but a genuine question.
Della shifted, holding her gaze, trying to read if this was a good time to ask "Are you happy here, Lena?"
The teen physically pulled away as if the question had exploded on her face "Am I happy here as opposed to what?" she asked before frowning "Do you miss being on the moon?" she inquired worriedly.
"No! No!" Della quickly waved her hands "I was not trying to-! No, I was not talking about me, I was genuinely thinking about you, kiddo" she pedaled back "As in, are you happy coming to the manor?"
"Oh" Lena rubbed a hand against her neck "I mean…yeah? I like seeing all of you" she hugged her knees to her chest.
Della smiled softly, knowing that it was better to speak out front, she had never given Lena any reason not to be forward and the teen always responded accordingly "I talked to Scrooge today" she traced back, giving her some context "and what I really want to ask is…why didn't you chose to live here?"
Lena was definitely caught off guard, her fingers instinctively tried to reach for an amulet that was no longer there. So instead, she schooled her hand down to play with her bracelet instead.
"You know you don't have to answer me if you don't want, I won't press"
"I know" Lena assured relaxing her posture "There's…a lot of reasons" she admitted and for a brief moment, Della got to see Lena as the 15-year-old she was "My first mission was to infiltrate into the manor and for so long I tried and when it was all over, being invited into it…I don't know. I felt worthless by accepting it. I almost destroyed them and then I was supposed to live in here?" she shrugged "too many things happened here and…many of them were not…" she stopped for a moment "I had to pretend back then to get in, and I didn't want to pretend right now that everything was going to be alright if I stayed, so…" she shrunk her shoulders "Of course, annoyingly observant as always, Violet noticed and invited me over at her house…at our house-" she corrected with a smile "And suddenly, I felt like I belonged somewhere for real, for who I am, no lies, no deception. And they were so…down to earth! Seriously, have you met Ty and Indy? I mean, they are the most normal people ever" she chuckled to herself unaware of Della's growing smile "They go to jobs and bake cookies for movie nights and…and last month they grounded me for coming back past my curfew and even though they were scolding me I was happy, you know? No one had ever worried if I made it back home or at what time" she said excitedly "I didn't even have a home to go back to before. But get this, before sending me to bed, they made sure I had dinner first because they knew I hadn't eaten all day" she giggled to herself "Can you picture that? They were mad because they were concerned about me, that's such a strange thing, right?" she hugged herself in a comforting manner "T-they weren't mad at me" she paused, accentuating the big difference in her life. "They just wanted to know I was safe" she concluded "I've never had that before. They see my magic and don't fear it, or want something out of it. Some days they don't even see it at all, all they see is me…their daughter"
Lena didn't even notice at what point Della had come closer, all she knew was that she was enveloped in her arms and she had no trouble answering back the gesture, as long as she was under her embrace, no one could see her reddened eyes.
"I have a family" Lena mumbled to herself as Della stroked her back.
"You do, honey" she smiled even if the teen couldn't see it. Perhaps, Lena didn't need a place where magic and adventure were ensured or understood, she wasn't like Della in that regard. What she wanted was a sense of safeness and normality. She needed something she never had before and the Saberwings provided just that.
"I'm happy," Lena said, composing herself a bit "I'm really happy with them, and Scrooge said I could visit whenever, so I kind of have two homes"
"And a lot of people that care for you" Della added with a smirk.
"I know" Lena assured, letting go, wiping her eyes just in case.
"Hey" Della shoved her shoulder lightly "thanks for telling me, kiddo"
"Well, I know you won't go with the others telling them my sappy story, so" she smirked back, pushing her shoulder in return.
"Your secret is safe with me, your reputation won't be ruined"
"Thanks" she snorted, going back to comfortably sitting in the frame.
"One more question, kiddo?" Della added, her face showed curiosity but not concern.
"Shoot"
"Why didn't you tell Webby?" she asked and the teen averted her eyes, but instead of looking like the gesture she tended to do when she wanted to deflect or avoid a topic, she seemed embarrassed.
"Well…she was another reason I kind of didn't want to live in the mansion" Della's face must have shown her surprise because Lena rapidly added "not in a bad way, I just…I wanted to get close to her again, but to do that I needed some space first. I mean, I was her shadow for six months after all. And I know I am very contradictory in this matter because I still seek her as my anchor since for half a year she was all I had to keep my sanity" she ran a hand through her hair "and…I want to be by her side, and I want to keep her by mine, but to determine as what or how, I needed to give us both the chance to be apart and figure that out. I mean, she believes I saved her life and I'm sure she saved mine at least twice, so having such heavy debts among us…how do you move forward having that kind of… baggage?" she exhaled "I don't want her to stay with me because she feels like she owes me and I don't want to keep burthening her with having to save me, even from myself and my own thoughts and fears…so putting some distance to figure it all sounded reasonable and, I don't know, healthy?" she shrugged "so not living under the same roof just yet seemed like a good idea. I don't know if that makes sense" Lena concluded, looking up to find Della gazing at her with such, softness? It wasn't her usual look of empathy or understanding, it was something else that Lena couldn't place, but it made her blush madly at her previous admission.
"I think you were very brave by making that decision" Della finally said "it was a very mature and sensible choice and I can't imagine it was easy to be apart from someone that for a very long time was your whole world" 'and still is, in a sense', Della thought but kept that last part to herself.
A smile tugged at the side of the teen's beak "I don't think anyone has ever said I was mature before" she said slyly "don't let Tea Time hear you, she'll give me responsibilities and stuff"
"You rascal" Della reached for her, hooking her under an arm and messing her hair.
"Hey! You know how hard it is to make it look just right?" she chuckled, half-heartedly fighting her off.
"I'm pretty sure you use magic"
"Exactly my point!" she laughed.
"There you are!" the previous duckling in question spoke from the end of the hall, jumping directly into Lena's arms, giving Della enough time to let go, before the little spy almost tackled them to the ground.
"Webby!"
"Are you feeling better?" she gazed up with those sparkly eyes.
Lena smiled "Yeah, all good, Pink" she patted her back.
"Do you want to stay out here for a little longer?" Webby inquired, considered as always.
"That sounds like a great idea," Della said, standing up, "Why don't you keep her company? I was about to head to bed, actually" Della smirked.
"Of course!" Webby sat down in front of the teen as Della waved a hand, knowing fully well the inquisitive glance Lena was shooting her way, but the older duck didn't offer any explanation.
When she was reaching the corner ready to head to her room, she caught a last glimpse of the two. Webby was resting her head on the teen's lap while talking excitedly and doing grand hand gestures, and Lena was just there, absently running her fingers through the smaller duckling's hair as she listened closely. All the while holding that soft smile only Webby could get out of her.
Della knew Lena was going to be just fine. Although it would still take her time, space, and effort, Lena was going to be capable of saving herself, even if her soul motivation was so Webby wouldn't have to anymore.