A Rewritten Family History
This was the first chapter published post-series. Anyway, one of the chapters of this fic I really wanted to do was an AU inside my AU inspired by episode 3x02 Quack Pack and so here it is in all it's trippy glory. The format of this chapter is obviously different so hopefully different is good. Thanks again to all the readers out there whether you are new to the program or have been along for the ride for a while your kudos and reviews mean the world to me and even just commenting with a one word adjective vs a full blown constructive critique helps to feed my muse.
Opening her eyes Della looked over toward the empty space in the bed beside her brushing a hand gently against the pillow longing for a time when her and her husband's sleep schedules matched up as she missed waking up tangled in his arms. Letting out a soft sigh she was suddenly met with a sharp pain in one of her legs just above the knee.
"Leg day am I right?" she muttered to herself internally chuckling as she gently massaged the ache with her hand for a moment before climbing out of bed. She could smell the pleasant aroma of fresh brewed coffee in the air and as her eyes gazed at the clock she had known that she still had time to greet her husband before he left for the day.
Following the heavenly scent toward the kitchen, she couldn't help but allow for her eyes to glance at the various photos and décor that had adorned the wall. From photos of family vacations to her children's school portraits to a hand crafted sign touting 'the doctors are in' which always brought a smile toward her face.
Doctor Della Gearloose, it still just felt so surreal to say it or think it or see it plastered on the door to her office but there she was. After her little adventure in space on the Spear of Selene was a rousing success she had briefly wondered what could be a more ambitious feat than that. Raising three kids while both you and your husband work toward a PHD wound up being that adventure. There were highs and lows but in the end she knew her and her husband were all the more closer because of it.
Speaking of her husband, Della soon rounded the corner toward the kitchen where Gyro stood filling up a thermos of coffee.
"Hey you," she said, crossing the kitchen, "early morning?"
"Late night," Gyro replied as Della placed her hand on her husband's shoulder, noticing the way that he winced slightly, causing her to roll her eyes.
"I take it you weren't in the office grading papers?"
Gyro simply shook his head.
"Beagles."
Her husband had been an asset to McDuck Enterprises. Her Uncle's top scientist and head of his research and development think tank since they first met as teens. Then, a few years into their marriage there were circumstances that caused him to walk away from it all. Now, Doctor Gyro Gearloose was one of the most popular professors at Duckburg University with a waitlist of students wanting to take his lectures and labs...well by day anyway. By night he was simply known as Gizmoduck, changing the world which had always been his life's ambition ever since she knew her. Sure being a vigilante was dangerous and wouldn't one day earn him a Nobel Prize but it definitely suited him.
"Your arm?" Della asked, moving her hand away as she began to pour her own cup of coffee.
"It's just a minor bruise it will patch itself right up."
"It's a good thing you're cute, you know that?" Della soon teased as Gyro tauntingly rolled his eyes.
"Family Night Friday at Funzo's to make it up to you?" Gyro asked as he gave her a peck on her cheek before walking toward the door.
She simply smiled back as he soon left, leaving her alone but not for long. Soon four pairs of feet could be heard shuffling toward the kitchen and soon four young birds entered the room all dressed identically in school uniforms.
"I don't care if you have a crush on her Hue, she promised to be my partner for the Junior Woodchuck Fall Field Day." This declaration came from the sole female of the group. The youngest member of the Gearloose family, their daughter Tilly. Tilly...short for Matilda was three years younger than the triplets and had her fathers chicken-like features.
"I do NOT have a crush on Vi," one of the boys spoke as he crossed his arms over his chest. Even though the boys looked eerily identical in their school uniforms their voices, hairstyle, and ways they carried themselves made them easily identifiable and so even with her back turned in the moment, Della could easily tell it was Huey speaking in the moment.
"Well, then why are your cheeks turning as red as your favorite hat huh?" Dewey replied with a raised brow.
"Oh boy, it is way too early for this," her third son Louie added before turning toward the kitchen island. "Mom can I have a cup of coffee?"
"Not until you're thirteen kiddo," Della replied with a shake of her head as she placed their breakfasts in front of them.
"Uncle Scrooge would have let us have coffee I bet," Louie muttered under his breath causing a round of gasps to be heard from the others at the table as if the youngest triplet had said something scandalous which honestly he kind of had.
"Why didn't you tell me we were related to Scrooge McDuck? Why did I have to find it out on the internet?"
As the young girl began to speak Della couldn't help but freeze in the moment. She could see her sons chattering away to their sister however while their beaks were moving, Della couldn't hear a thing instead she began to feel that same pain in her leg that she did when she woke up. Reaching to rub the irritated spot to try to soothe it once more she swore she felt a coldness and as she looked down for a brief moment she could have sworn she saw a prosthetic in its place.
"Because I spent my childhood traversing the globe going on adventure after adventure. And while traveling like that would be any child...heck any adults wildest dream there was always a small part of me that longed for some stability."
Honestly, Della didn't know if she even believed the words that were coming out of her mouth as her head began to pound. She was supposed to head to her job at the Duckburg Planetarium after the kids were off to school but perhaps she'd call in… just this once...chalk it up to a mental health day though in the moment she didn't know why she had a sudden need for one.
"Mom," Huey asked, a genuine look of concern in the older triplets eyes, "Are you okay?"
"She's probably just anxious about dad patrolling as Gizmoduck," Dewey spoke in between bites of cereal as he was met with glares from his three siblings.
"Geez Louise! Mother Mary! Pete The Dragon!," Tilly exclaimed.
The young girl's words gave Della a sense of Deja Vu thinking about how that was how Webby reacted when she came back from the moon after almost twelve years. Wait...no...she was never actually on the moon just in a spatial orbit for four months….and who was Webby?
"FIRST I find out that I'm related to THE Scrooge McDuck and then I find out GIZMODUCK is my FATHER! BEST DAY EVER!"
Della couldn't help but just stand there and smile as Tilly continued.
"Can I tell Violet about Dad? Can we have a Family Dinner at McDuck Manor? I've always wondered what it looked like inside."
Watching as Huey placed a hand on his sister's shoulder.
"Superheroes have secret identities for reasons which is why I'm sure Dewey wasn't supposed to know about it in the first place and which is why I'm sure he'll be sitting the four of us down for a lecture on discretion when he gets home from work."
The younger bird paused to ponder for a moment before nodding her head once more.
"But what about Scrooge? When can I meet him?"
"Mom hasn't spoken to him since Uncle Donald's funeral." Huey replied, "Which is why we don't normally talk about him."
As Huey glared daggers at Louie and Tilly's voice rang out asking 'Who Was Uncle Donald?' Della began to think about just why Gyro hadn't been working for her Uncle and why Tilly didn't know about their relationship. The boys were three at the time, her daughter still an egg when her beloved twin brother Donald got swept up in a storm and was lost at sea. Scrooge spent a solid month calling in every resource he had to aid in the search before deciding to declare his nephew dead and hold a memorial service. He was the richest duck in the world so surely Scrooge could try harder!
No No No No
That's not how it happened… Donald was never supposed to die but then she wasn't supposed to die either. She came back so why couldn't Donald come back. Waves of scrambled memories began to flash in her head soon to be accompanied by voices.
"Mom"
"Mom"
"Mom"
"Mom"
"Della"
"Come on sis wake up!"
It was then that one last flash bulb seemed to go off in Della's mind. She'd been examining a cavern of treasure like one does on a McDuck family adventure while holding a casual conversation with her brother and uncle.
"Life has been great the past few months. But sometimes and I know it's stupid but I wish I could get a glimpse of what life would be like if the Spear of Selene never lost contact and I returned home as planned."
Little had Della known in the moment that her pinky had been brushing against a lamp that held a genie who would gladly oblige and grant her wish.
It was then that Della's eyes began to flutter open as she looked over toward her brother and uncle with a confused expression on her face.
"Della dear do you know where you are."
"I suggested that me, you and Donald, go on an adventure together. The original three! To cheer you up after that Buzzard stole your company out from right under you."
She could see an almost relieved look in the two mens eyes as she began to move into a seated position however Donald's hand gently resting on her shoulder prevented her from doing so.
"Anyway I had the strangest dream."
"Let me guess Dell...I was there and Scrooge was there and…"
"Actually you were lost to the sea as I was lost to space Don, and Scrooge and me well…"
Donald nodded thinking about his own feelings he had towards Scrooge after the Spear of Selene and how if it weren't for his promise to make sure that Dewey had been raised to be close to his cousins well he was sure he would iced his uncle out of his life.
It was then that Della couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"Gyro was Gizmoduck," she couldn't help but blurt out continuing to chuckle thinking that while Scrooge had known the heroes true identity had actually been Fenton she hadn't known if that tidbit of knowledge had reached her brother's ear.
"That Stalactite must have been a nuisance to your noggin. Rest up lass. We'll help you out of this cavern and get Launchpad to fly us home."