Yesterday was the Duck Twins' birthday and it's pride month so I wrote two fics, one for Dellumbra (Debrief) and one for Donro (Licorice), and now it's time for the Donro! Maybe one day I'll write a double date for the two couples ;)

Enjoy!

Survival depends on so much more than being physically and mentally fit. Part of survival is having something to survive for, and Donald's list could reach the moon and back. Mostly he wanted to get back to his kids, and his sister- oh gods, Della was back on earth and he was lightyears away. It wasn't fair. None of this had ever been fair. If there was any time to want to give up it was now but more than anything Donald wanted to give them hell. Whoever them was. He was going to get back to earth, to his kids, to his sister, to-

"Gyro," he murmured to himself, chewing the piece of Oxychew and tasting the familiar taste of black licorice. It wasn't his personal favorite taste in the world but it was particularly nostalgic for him. It gave him one more reason to get back to earth, one more person to get back to.

He shoved that aside for now. Any thoughts of Gyro or the lingering taste of licorice kisses were eclipsed by the urgent need to return to his sister and his kids and protect them from the next looming threat. Unfortunately for Donald, he was pretty much the unluckiest duck in the world.

After barely surviving on the moon he was forced to barely survive on a deserted island. And there he allowed his mind to wander a little bit more. He'd done all he could to try and escape and now he was just hoping and waiting to be rescued.

He imagined reuniting with his kids. He imagined reuniting with, shouting at, and hugging Della. And he allowed himself to imagine reuniting with Gyro. Did Gyro even notice he was gone? Of all the people in the Duck and McDuck family, he knew that Gyro had always had a soft spot for him. The island was scorching but he allowed himself to remember the cool, air-conditioned theatre where they'd had their first date. Donald had bought himself popcorn, which he had spilled in his lap, and then hastily cleaned up so the theatre attendant wouldn't have to. Gyro had laughed a little, but then he'd shared the licorice he'd snuck in. They'd shared one licorice rope, and met in the middle… Oxychew reminded him of that date, of that kiss.

Donald had a lot of regrets in life and one of those regrets was never pursuing things further with Gyro. Would the scientist give him another chance, if he survived long enough to get home and ask Gyro for another date? It wasn't his top priority, of course, but he kept thinking about it. He kept thinking about Gyro and their first kiss. Maybe there was a chance it wouldn't be their last, but he had to survive…

Just when he thought there was no chance of him getting back to his loved ones, his loved ones came to him. Della and the kids landed there by accident, but Donald would take what he could get. As tense as it was at first, reuniting with Della, it was genuinely one of the best moments of his life. When he hugged her he hardly wanted to let go. They'd missed out on so much, had so much to say to each other, but one look communicated so much of it. They loved each other, and now that they were back on earth together they would always have each other's backs.

Except, it seemed, in the case of romance. When Lunaris had been defeated and they had time to settle down, Donald made plans to tie up that other loose end. And when he told Della that he was going to ask Gyro out she was less than supportive.

"Why would you want to go out with that licorice-licking lily-livered loon?"

"Maybe I like licorice," Donald said with a smirk.

"It's like I don't even know you anymore," Della said.

"Well, you were gone for eleven years," Donald said, "We just might have a lot more to catch up on than you realize."

Della looked at him disapprovingly, "Bisexuals are supposed to be cool."

"After eleven years I've realized that parents are never cool. This realization will hit you as well eventually."

"I will never not be cool," Della said.

Donald snorted, "Whatever you say, Dumbella."

Della looked angry for a second, and then she softened, throwing her arm around Donald's neck and giving him a noogie.

"I've missed squabbling with you. Even if you're dating the weirdest man on the planet, I'm still glad you're my brother."

"I'm glad you're my sister. I'm glad you're home. And for the record, I'm not dating the weirdest man on the planet. I'm just asking him out. Up to him if he says yes."

"He'd be stupid not to, you're a catch." Della could easily switch from degrading Gyro to hyping Donald up, which was something Donald loved about her.

"Thanks, Della. Wish me luck?"

"Fine, whatever, good luck." With that, Donald took a deep breath and made his way to the lab to ask Gyro out.

Gyro looked surprised to see Donald, which Donald wasn't sure how to interpret. Hopefully, it was a good kind of surprise, like a licorice kiss instead of a lap full of popcorn.

"I haven't seen you around," Gyro said thoughtfully, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Yeah, I was kind of stranded for a while."

"That sounds like you," Gyro nodded. Things were a little awkward between them. They had been awkward ever since they'd ended things after the first date.

"Gyro, can I ask you something?"

"I suppose. But I reserve the right to not answer."

"Of course. I was just… I was thinking about you lately. How I miss you, how much I enjoyed our brief time together. I was wondering why we never went on a second date."

"Oh." That seemed to catch Gyro off guard.

"If you just didn't like me that's fine, but I want to know why we ended things."

"You didn't ask me out again," Gyro said simply.

"That's it?" Donald asked, a little surprised.

"Yes."

"...You could have asked me out," Donald pointed out after a moment, "If you had wanted to."

Gyro blinked and set down his drink, studying Donald in a way that made Don a little bit uneasy.

"Hm." That was all Gyro said for a minute.

Finally, Gyro spoke again, "Donald, would you care to join me for dinner?"

"I would love to, but I think we still need to talk about this for a minute."

"Alright, talk."

"Did we really miss out on years of dating just because we didn't communicate our feelings? That's just my luck…"

"Well… I'm not the best at feelings," Gyro said, "But you make me feel things. I know that much."

Donald just about swooned, "Gyro?"

"Yes?"

"May I kiss you?"

Gyro hesitated a moment and then nodded, and Donald gently cupped Gyro's face and kissed him tenderly.

"I think our first kiss was better," Gyro said when Donald pulled away.

Donald laughed, "Then I suppose we'll have to get back into practice."

Gyro nodded, "I suppose we will."

"I've missed you, Gyro. Every time I taste licorice I think of you and what we could have had."

"I know as a time traveler that it's best not to focus on what could have been. Let's focus on what we will have, instead."

Donald slipped his hand into Gyro's hand, "Then I look forward to every moment that lies ahead."

"Me too."