A Rewritten Family History
I have seen in few other fics the idea that Louie was born after midnight and I have 100% fully embraced this head cannon.. also I kind of liked the idea that Webby was born just enough days after the triplets to be a Taurus instead of an Aries...
It had been a full month since Della had returned to her family and it still felt so surreal as she balanced on a ladder to hang up streamers. Sure, it was still two days until Huey and Dewey's actual twelfth birthday, three days until Louie's as the younger triplet managed to hatch at 12:01am, and another week until Webby's but the family decided as a whole that today should be a day for celebration and so there she was...decorating the foyer of the manor.
"We're celebrating you too you know," her fiance said with a smile as he stepped into the room, shopping bags in hand and a smile on his face as he looked her over. "Anyway, you really should have a spotter, we've lost too much time together already and I selfishly don't want to lose you again to a coma."
"It's been a month...gravity has become my new best friend."
Della watched as Gyro raised one of his brows and let out a slight huff before curling his bill into a slight smile. Man she didn't realize how much she had missed his smile until it had become a fixture in her life now, she soon noticed the way he tilted his head toward the breast pocket of the pale green button up he'd been wearing observing as one of his lil bulbs peered out.
"Help your mother with the decorating," she listened as the chicken spoke in a commanding tone to his mechanical minion.
Della rolled her eyes as the bulb bounced up the rungs of the ladder before perching on her shoulder, grabbing the end of the streamer before then jumping up onto a shelf.
"What?" Gyro said defensively, "my inventions are just as much my kids as our boys are."
"Just please don't have Gizmoduck call me mom." Della replied with a chorus of giggles.
"I promise, though I should introduce you to Maria sometime. You're both strong, fierce, slightly intimidating women."
Della could only assume Maria was Fenton's mother sparking a tinge of curiosity as to what kind of relationship she and Gyro might have.
As she finished hanging the streamers with the bulb's help, Della climbed off the ladder wrapping her arms around her fiance's shoulders.
"So if you're here where is Huey?"
"I dropped him off at the marina with Don and Dewey, I figured I'd get a head start coming here to the manor to make sure you weren't going overboard."
"ME!" Della exclaimed, "Go overboard….seriously Gyro seriously…."
Taking a step out of the foyer and into the dining room she admired her handiwork from her many hours of toiling to get ready for the festivities. Red, Blue, Green and Pink Balloons seemed to occupy a vast majority of one side of the room while the dining room table had a row of chafing dishes set out to eventually hold a pretty substantial buffet of all the kids favorites...also there was a four tiered cake that Beakley was hopefully en route to picking up now after Della had instantly been shot down when she said she wanted to make her (in) famous firework cake.
"It's like funfetti but instead of sprinkles I use a secret ingredient," she had told the kids a few days ago, "the secret is pop rocks."
"I've missed eleven birthdays…" she said thinking back to the first that she had missed.
April 2008:
Della didn't know how many days she'd been in flight before crash landing on the moon nor did she know the exact day her eggs hatched however from her tally of how many days she'd been sitting in her makeshift bunker trying to figure out how to rebuild a ship to get back home it had been 365 days.
"Happy Birthday Boys," Della said hoping against hope that one of her transmissions broke through the vast void that encircled her. "I'm sure by now you've made your first steps, possibly said your first words...and whichever one of you was raised by your father...well I can't begin to think of whatever other firsts you might have already accomplished."
Letting out a chuckle for a moment she couldn't help but smile at the thought of Gyro and the boys...it was what kept her going most days.
"I imagine you look like this," Della said holding up a crude scribble of three ducklings. She was much better at drafting blueprints then doing actual art and thought that if anyone outside of herself had seen her work they would laugh.
"I promise to spend a birthday with you again someday…..soon."
"...Let me have this one."
Della watched the way that Gyro looked at her with a challenging gaze.
"Okay I'll let you have this one, but come December I don't want you to start going overboard to make up for the many Christmas's past."
"Oh don't worry about that, I'll be on the hunt for Santa…"
"Someday you'll have to tell me all about your uncle's vendetta."
Della nodded as Gyro's bill slowly moved toward hers about to connect into a kiss when the sound of footsteps echoed in the air and Donald entered the room instantly reaching his hands out to shield Dewey and Huey's eyes from any potential PDA the boys could be witnessing.
"They are just kissing," Dewey said as he shook himself away from his father's grip.
"And when mom moves in I'm sure I'll be witnessing it all the time," Huey added as Donald relinquished his shield of his nephew's gaze, "Which hopefully will be soon, I know you said to be patient but it's been a month and next to a growth spurt it would be the best birthday present ever."
"He's a bit bitter that Louie has been gifted with our shared father's genetics when it comes to height."
"Why shouldn't I be bitter, I am the oldest triplet and it's wrong that my youngest sibling is three and a half inches taller than me."
Della simply shrugged her shoulders thinking Huey did have a point.
"You can't be an overachiever at everything," Louie spoke as he entered the room placing his hand on the other boy's shoulder as there was suddenly a knock on the door.
"Duckworth," Della called out.
"Don't bother, I'll get it," Louie said as he walked toward the door causing Della to raise her brow as to her it looked as if the boy had known something she didn't.
As the door opened a young hummingbird stood there holding a shopping bag with a smile on her face.
"So, this is what a party looks like?" Violet said with a smile, "I guess I'm the first one to arrive...anyway, where are Webbigail and Lena?"
"Upstairs getting 'Glammed Up'," Louie said as Della looked over toward her brother and fiance.
"I thought this was supposed to be a small family get together? Oh my god I hope that we have enough food!."
Della began to frantically walk toward the kitchen as Donald placed a hand on his sister's shoulder.
"Take a deep breath and count to ten sis."
Della rolled her eyes thinking about all the times they had told this to one another growing up putting a smile on her face as she began to count.
"1-2-3…"
"Well, while we wait, Hubert can we talk?"
Huey shrugged back his shoulders wondering what she had possibly wanted to banter about.
"So, you might not know this but before I met your cousin I never had any friends and so I didn't know if I should have just purchased something for Webbigail as she invited me or if I should get something for you and your cousins too…"
Reaching out she pulled a book out of the bag she was carrying.
"I know it's not much, but when I was in a vintage bookstore I saw this and thought of you."
Huey looked down at the well preserved first edition of one of his favorite novels.
"You shouldn't have."
"I can take it back."
"No, I love it...thank you."
Della watched as her eldest nervously went in for a friendly hug before going for a handshake instead.
"They remind me of the two of you when you first met," Donald whispered toward the other two adults in the room.
Della couldn't help but both smile at her brother's comment and shudder at the thought of her babies ever having girlfriends. Her thoughts were soon interrupted however as a voice filled the room.
"Oh good Violet you could make it."
Della turned toward the two girls who true to Louie's comment were glammed up with Webby in a pink dress, her hair down in a light wave of curls and Lena in a metallic purple sweater with leggings and a sparkly clip in her hair.
"And it looks like I'm the only one," Violet said as she reached back into the bag pulling out a wrapped package and handing it toward Webby with a secretive look, "it'syay ayay agicmay ookbay."
Della didn't want to tell the girls that she was well versed in Pig Latin as she began to wonder what Scrooge would think about his daughter dabbling more and more with the supernatural. That was a thought for a different day as another knock on the door caused everyone to look up as Louie headed toward the door only to return moments later with Doofus who instantly gave Della a once over.
"Not as classy as your step mother but she definitely has your eyes."
Della rolled her eyes...Goldie….classy…Anyway where WAS she? Surely Scrooge would have gotten in contact with his wife the moment he had heard his niece had resurfaced and surely even if he hadn't that the woman would want to be there for her children's birthday.
"So, did you all invite a friend?" Della asked.
"No, but I can totally call Fenton that unless you need him at the lab dad."
"And I can go to the carriage house and get Launchpad, though I'm sure he's already going to come in at some point to fix himself a plate of food and grab a slice of cake."
Della simply shrugged her shoulders back as she nodded her head. Why not, the more the merrier and if a few unexpected but totally invited guests was the only chaos to unfold then so be it.
