Author's Note: First of, Happy 2023! If you are reading this I can only say, THANK YOU! For real, this fandom continues to amaze me because I still see people invested in these characters and their stories and it warms my heart.
Secondly, and getting back to the fic itself, the first part of this update takes a few weeks after the chapter in which the Duke of Making a Mess appeared and the rest is a little bit after the chapter in which Della picked up Lena from the Police Station.
That being said, I hope you enjoy it, and thank you for staying tuned!
The quiet night inside the manor was only challenged by the sound of the TV in the rec room as yet another episode of the spin-off of Ottoman Empire played on the screen. The only two souls in said place were the green triplet and the shadow witch, as they devoured away as much junk food as their bodies could take.
"20 bucks say it's a fake duplicate," Louie said, shoving a fistful of popcorn into his mouth.
"I'm not taking that bet, you are an expert in forging things, I'm sure you are right."
"It can't be! It's not authentic!" The voice on the TV said and both chuckled.
"Called it!" Louie threw a piece of popcorn to the screen before taking a sip of his pep and gazing to his left where Lena was settled under a mountain of covers, "Hey, I'm glad you shoot me a text."
Lena smirked, trying to ease the tension on her shoulders at the mention of her arrival. Truth be told, it had been one of those difficult nights in which time seemed to be frozen and she couldn't tell apart reality from the Shadow Realm in the monochromatic darkness. Normally she would have reached out to Violet first, but she had gone camping with the Senior Woodchucks, leaving her with the room all to herself, which she never thought would upset her that much. "I didn't want to wake up Della, she's finally sleeping the nights away."
"Yeah, therapy seems to be working for her. Sorry Webby was out with Ms. Beakley on a mission or something."
Lena shrugged, in all honesty, although the smallest duck's presence always soothed her, she wasn't so sure she would have liked to appear in her room in the middle of the night to ask her to hang out, because that would imply having to explain why she needed the company. So, she reached out to her brother, and he delivered, fetching some blankets, food, entertainment, and a soothing presence.
"It's cool, we already planned to meet up when she gets back, preferably when there's sunlight."
"Cool," Louie raised his can of pep, bumping it against hers, noticing the end credits were already rolling, "What do you say? One more episode?" even if the dark bags were soon to claim their faces, Lena still felt uneasy about going back to the shadows to return to her house and stay in the empty room.
"I can do one more, it's getting more interesting," she said, and Louie smirked. He knew the real reason why she didn't want to leave and didn't call her out on it.
"One more it is."
While both were engrossed with what was happening on the screen, a couple of footsteps began to wander to the source of the noise at the rather odd hour.
"What if they are robbers? Can we please use my secret attack then?" Dewey asked, following Huey close behind as the oldest led the way.
"For the last time, a dance battle is not a real battle."
"You are just jealous I was gifted with all the charisma and eye-foot coordination at birth."
Huey rolled his eyes before motioning Dewey to be quiet as they reached the half-open door, finding Louie's head sticking out of his signature green hoodie.
When the remaining triplets realized it was just him, they were about to burst in and threaten to tell scrooge about breaking curfew but then they heard a second voice interrupting the show.
"Thanks for doing this, man."
Louie did his best to cut short the yawn that was about to take over. "No prob. You know I'm always down for not-life-threatening reunions," he answered back, sinking into the couch.
"You can sleep if you want to, I'll be okay, bro," she gently punched his shoulder. "Just having someone in the room makes it better, you don't have to stay up."
"No way. If our mom can pull all-nighters with you at her age, then so can I," he flashed a teasing smile, taking a long sip of pep.
Lena chuckled, "How old is mom anyways?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, sis. I don't even know Uncle Donald's age; we've always just put candles at random on the cake."
While their laughter echoed in the room, their previous words sounded louder than thunder in the other two boy's ears. Huey rapidly ushered Dewey away from the entrance, putting a hand over his beak to prevent him from making a sound or shouting altogether.
When they were finally down the hall, the blue triplet pushed Huey's hand away to finally speak, "Did you hear that?!"
Huey's sight was still gazing down the hall at the door. "Yeah…"
"Did you know Lena and Louie hang out like that? That he even calls her sis? Or that Lena called mom, mom?!"
"I didn't," he finally gazed back at his brother.
"How are you not freaking out?!" Dewey demanded. "It's the perfect opportunity to freak out! Your brain should be going a hundred miles an hour!"
"It is but only because I can't believe I didn't see it before."
That cut Dewey's rambling short, "Say what?"
"I mean, it was right there," Huey tilted his head to the side.
"So, just to clarify, you are upset you didn't discover this sooner and not because it's happening in the first place?"
"Why would that upset me?" Huey asked with an arched brow.
"Well because…" Dewey pointed at the door, but words didn't come out and his arms fell to his side.
"Because of Lena?" he asked without a bite.
Dewey looked away uncomfortable, dragging his foot on the carpet.
"I know you aren't a huge fan of…sharing mom?" he tried to say amicably, "but…Lena's been a great help to her," Huey said, thinking back to how he had seen them practicing sign language and knowing that it was thanks to Lena that Della had agreed to therapy for which his mom had also convinced him to go as well to talk about the Duke.
Dewey shrugged, "I-I know," he had been actually the first to see it up close when he called for Lena's help and she submerged the three of them to a place where sound and colors couldn't confuse Della, "It's not that."
"Then what is?" he asked, folding his arms.
Dewey hunched onto himself. "Does it really not shake you up even a little to think of having her as a sister? You wouldn't be the oldest anymore…"
Huey shuffled in his place considering his approach, "I mean…I will always be the oldest brother of you guys, and…it has never felt like she was trying to take my place, rather she just wants to find her own. And somehow, it's with mom," he explained thinking back to their interactions, "and having her in our lives…would it really be that different? Think about it, she still lives with the Saberwings, that won't change, apparently."
"Then what will?" Dewey asked a bit conflicted, "Because it feels like a big change and at the same time you are listing things as they are right now."
"So…maybe things already changed in a way that we are just now realizing. I guess the question is whether to jump on board?"
Dewey groaned inwardly fighting a battle of his own.
"Would it make you that miserable to have another sibling?" Huey asked.
"No, I-! I'm not sure, okay?" he finally exploded, "It…it bothers me that she's closer to mom than us! That she gets to be there, have a connection we don't share, alright?!"
Huey softened his demeanor at his admission, "I get that," he admitted, "but…I think part of mom being able to reach out to us is thanks to the fact Lena has helped her open up," he put a hand on his shoulder, "I talked to mom about the Duke, I finally felt like it was not something foreign but rather a bit of an unfortunate family trait."
That perked up his brother's attention, "You did?"
Huey nodded, "I'm not saying it will not be an adjustment but…it kind of feels right too, doesn't it?"
Dewey hated to admit just how much so. And he knew that if there was something more frightening than having Lena so deeply involved in his life, it was not having her at all. The shadow witch was a vital part of their dynamic now and when he said to her that he was glad she was back, he fully meant it. Maybe his default mode was to fight off change, but change had also shown to be an amazing adventure.
"Yeah…I guess so," he smiled tentatively, "seems like both of us will be the middle child now," he teased, earning yet another eye-roll from his brother.
"Let's go, then," they went back to the entrance of the rec room. Right there and then stood a line they were both eager and scared to cross, so exchanging glances one last time, they set all doubts aside and walked in.
"So, what are we watching?" Dewey asked out loud, jumping into the couch and grabbing a pep, startling the other two that panicked a bit at being caught.
"Guys? What are you doing here?" Louie asked, showing a bit of nervousness, since the last time someone caught them talking about their secret-found family it had ended in a bit of a mess.
"Same as you," Huey answered, taking a seat next to Lena, "we are joining the sibling marathon."
Lena flinched expecting a remark, a protest, any kind of rejection, but when the boys eased into the covers and acted as if it was nothing out of the ordinary, her shoulders relaxed as she gazed at Louie, expecting an explanation, but he simply shrugged unsure of what was going on.
"So? Who is the scapegoat in case we get caught?" Huey asked.
"Louie," Lena and Dewey said in unison.
"Hey!" the green triplet scoffed while the rest laughed, "traitors!" he threw a pillow.
"Sorry bro, you are still the youngest," Lena shrunk her shoulders.
"You are all lucky Scrooge took away my phone because otherwise, I'd have enough blackmail on all of you to make you do my chores for a lifetime."
"Who says we don't have anything on you?"
The morning sun crept up hours later, reestablishing a sense of time but Lena hardly even noticed that, because she was living the moment right there and there, surrounded by her brothers and it felt like an amazing moment to be in.
At that moment, Lena was completely sure that even though there was no blood inside of her, something was definitely boiling.
"What were you thinking?!" Della demanded, throwing her hands up, her always welcoming expression interrupted by frowned brows. It was uncanny to think that after two years of their relationship, this was the first time they were on opposite sides of an argument.
"I had it under control!" Lena snapped back, unbothered by all the eyes that gazed at their exchange in the middle of the manor as they made it back from a less-than-successful adventure.
"You jumped right in front of a direct attack!" Della sentenced, her voice growing louder, "you could have been killed!"
"I'm a shadow!" Lena spitted back, the blue bursts of magic around her fists flaring although she was not in her sorceress form, "Webby is real! She could have been killed! I had to do something!" she pointed at the door at the end of the hall, where the smallest duckling was being treated by Beakley for a broken arm after fighting against Duckburg's latest eldritch horror.
"You don't get to disregard your own safety like that!" Della shouted back, the desperation and frustration in her tone mixing.
"I'm not even a real human! Magica made sure of that, it will take a lot more than that to destroy me!"
"You are real to us! And you are more human than Magica will ever be! Quit treating yourself as expendable! You are not a shadow, not even Webby's, so stop acting like it!"
Lena took a step back as if being punched in the gut. Her eyes hardened as she gazed inside those of Della's before merging with the shadows in a swift motion, leaving the older duck talking by herself.
"Don't you walk away on me!" Della demanded, but she had already stormed off, and that only fueled Della's anger some more. She turned on her hill and headed upstairs still fuming.
The rest of the manor fell under a long and deafening silence.
Lena re-materialized a few halls down, pacing across the room, while her eyes were still a couple of white orbs, engulfed by magic. Her powers had become somewhat unmanageable to keep under control when agitated, so shadow-traveling across town was a terrible idea, given that with how much magic she was emanating, she could easily end up two states over.
She walked up and down, brushing her now blue streak of hair back, mumbling to herself in an agitated way, dwelling over everything that had happened just within the last hour, from the fear of losing Webby in what was supposed to be an easy mission she had just tagged along to help in the magic department, to the way Della had publicly scolded her as a child.
Lena was so absorbed in her thoughts she didn't notice the figure that approached her, "Sis?"
Louie reached her side, showing his own bracelet as to explain how he had found her. The tracking magic worked both ways when someone was in distress, "You okay?"
"She had no right to say that!" Lena argued still pacing around while her hair began to flicker up, moving like wild flames, "I know what I'm doing!"
"Hey, as the first one to ever be on the receiving end of an argument with mom, I get it, it sucks big time," he said, trying to appease her, "but to be fair, you were acting kind of scary," that earned him a stern gaze from her, "I mean, you went full sorceress mode without even transforming. You are even emanating magic right now," he gestured broadly at her.
Lena stopped moving, finally noticing she was not only fuming inside, but her magic was creating a threatening aura around her, one that could turn as dark as the shadows if she wasn't careful about it. She forced herself to take a deep breath, pressing her fist tightly as if to suffocate the magic and extinguish the flames, letting some puffs of smoke out of her eyes. She was sure it wasn't a pretty sight, but Louie stood there, waiting for her to regain control over her emotions.
Once she completely powered down, she felt part of her adrenaline die as she pushed herself against the wall, "Sorry, I-I didn't realize-"
"It's okay sis, we all lose our temper now and then."
"I can confirm," Huey's voice appeared a second before he did, with Dewey strolling behind him, "And sometimes we misguide that anger," he said in a way that reaffirmed that his role as the older brother was indeed left intact. He tended to be the most levelheaded and unarguably the one with the soundest advice when it came to that kind of situations.
Lena scoffed, folding her arms defensively, shrugging into herself.
"Look, we are all upset Webby got hurt," Dewey said, he had been the one to carry her back to the plane while the rest fought off the magical being, "and I wish I could have done something to stop it just as much as you do, but sometimes adventures go sideways and that's why we always go as a family, so we have someone to watch our backs."
Lena did an effort not to groan, "I get it, you also think I shouldn't have jumped in."
"Well, it's not just that," Huey said, rubbing the back of his neck.
Louie took in a deep breath, being the one to dare say it, "You are going to hate hearing this, but mom has a point." The look on her face almost discouraged him to continue, he much rather have Lena show anger or shock rather than the wounded expression she was wearing, "and instead of addressing what has really been bothering you, you've been acting…"
"Like a shadow," Huey provided steadily.
"Webby's shadow," Dewey finished.
Lena didn't know if what she was feeling right now was betrayal or disbelief but having her three brothers agree on that didn't feel great, "I'm-I'm not-!"
"We get it, you are afraid she's going away, that there will be this physical distance but that doesn't mean you are going to lose her."
Lena blinked aback, recoiling a bit but deciding to stay there instead of fleeing with the shadows, so her siblings continued.
"Ever since she recieved her acceptnace letter you've been out of yourself."
"But following her every step and disregarding yourself as an individual won't make that separation any easier."
"Because that's what a shadow does," Lena mumbled to herself. If tears were at the edge of her eyes, no one made any remarks about it. "I guess old habits die hard," she hunched into herself, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her grey hoodie.
"And maybe instead of being here with us, you should really be talking with her because I don't think she'd be very happy of losing you again, not even if it was a sacrifice for her own life," Dewey added, folding his arms. He was probably the only one within the right to say that, as he had been the person to care for Webby while she mourned Lena's apparent death when the witch sacrificed herself for both of them.
The other triplets nodded in agreement, expecting her reaction, but she just started at the image before her, for a moment. It was hard to believe they had grown up so much, too. That the nerdy boys she had first met at the park some years ago were now some of the most important people in her life.
Lena chuckled, pushing the remaining tears away with the heel of her hand, "I'm pretty sure I'm kind of banned from seeing her right now, especially after my fight with mom."
"Well, that's the good thing about siblings, we cover for each other."
"Yup!" Dewey nodded proudly, "leave it to us, we'll get Mrs. Beakley out of there so you can just sneak in, and we'll make sure no one else enters."
"You'd…really do that?"
"Easiest play in the book," Louie nodded, tilting his head to the side, "We've got your back, sis."
"She could have been killed!" Della shouted, pacing around her room restlessly, "and it wasn't just this once!" she strolled from one side to the other.
"Aye, I know," Scrooge answered, although he highly doubted Della was listening to him. It seemed Della needed to vent and given that Beakley was currently with her hands full worrying over Webby she couldn't be the one to talk reason or help calm down Della.
"She just goes head-first into danger!" Della ran her hand down her face, grunting in frustration, "I swear, if I didn't know better, I'd say she's my daughter by blood and not just by the title!"
"Aye, the lass does remind me of you," Scrooge chuckled under his breath, fumbling with his cane, "funny thing that debate of nature vs. nurture," he gazed up at her, "are you blaming yourself for this?"
That managed to make her stop on her tracks, "What?"
"Well, I know how you often say you both have a lot of influence over each other, I don't want ye to feel responsible of yer daughter's decisions. Even if ye fear she might be losing her sense of self, do recognize that she is making those calls on her own, although her judgment might be clouded."
Della felt something twist in her insides, because if she contradicted Scrooge's logic, then it was as if admitting she thought he had a part in her departure and in her reckless decision of going into the Spear of Seline, "I-I…" words failed her, but what she heard next rendered her completely silent as a third voice echoed in the room, startling both.
"Your daughter?"
"Donnie!" Della turned to her twin as he held a steamy cup of tea, "What are you-? How long have you-?"
"Mrs. Beakley said you might need this," he showed the beverage, walking into the room tentatively.
Scrooge noticed there was much to be said and little he could do to help. "I'll leave ye two kids alone so ye might talk."
And so, it was just the two of them, like it used to be, them against the world, the odds, and even against each other at times, but somehow this felt different.
"Donnie, I-"
"Here," he stretched the cup for her. She sighed, relaxing her shoulder as she received it.
"Thanks," she took a drink trying to calm her nerves.
"I was going to check how you were after your…"
"Screaming match with Lena?"
"Disagreement," he offered, gazing at her to try and read into her expressions, "So, are you okay?"
There was a thousand things Della loved about her brother, the fact that he always put her well-being as a top priority was undoubtedly among the first three.
"I-I am. A bit shaken up still, I'm not used to all the aspects of-" she waved her hand without finding the words -or rather- the resolve to utter them.
"Parenting?" Donald offered and Della shied away, her gaze dropping on her reflection on the tea, "Della-"
"I…I wanted to tell you the most," she breathed in, gathering the courage to gaze away from her own reflection and embrace the fact that she was more than broken pieces of a mirror, "Lena is my daughter, that much I can say without the shadow of a doubt. And she considers me her mom as well, despite how tonight played out, we actually have a good relationship, and I adore her, but I could never find the valor to say that to you before."
Donald tilted his head to the side, showing confusion, "Why not?"
"Because you raised my boys!" she exclaimed, some of the tea spilling by the abrupt movement, "With what right was I to adopt a kid after I wasn't there to be a mother to my children and just tell you about it?" she set the cup aside, turning away from him, "I was…scared and ashamed because…if I had listened to you I wouldn't have missed all the amazing thing I see in the photo albums, I would have been there to see their first steps, or stay awake all night to get them through a fever or have taught them their first words but…but I wasn't," she sniffed, wiping the tears, "but you were. You were such an amazing brother and uncle that you didn't let my kids grow without love and care and you didn't…you didn't even tell them that I had abandoned them."
"You didn't abandon them," Donald intervened, putting a hand on her shoulder to turn her around.
"Didn't I?" she huffed, "the fact that I came back doesn't take away that I left," she shook her head, still fighting not to let the tears overwhelm her.
"So…was Lena your second chance?"
Della was taken aback by his question, "No! Well- yes in a sense, but I wasn't trying to replace those missing memories, I just-"
"You care," Donald offered, going to take a seat at the bed, waiting for her to do the same, "It's okay, I know about Lena."
"You-?! How?" she asked shocked at the reveal.
"Lena has been part of the family for a while now," that much was a given, "and you haven't been secretive about it," he deadpanned, "You taught her sign language. You learned that to help me, to communicate when talking was too hard, same as you tried to protect her. Besides, every time the kid was going through something she'd appear at your doorstep. And I think I've overheard the boys a few times calling her sister. I…also started to see the changes the more you spent time together. You put curtains up to block the light, you began to open up more about your time in the moon, started leaving the house and even told me about going to therapy…"
Della chuckled, "I should have given you more credit, you know me too well, Donnie" Della sniffed, "the truth is I did most of those things before ever daring to admit to myself that I loved that girl like my own."
"Really?" he frowned.
Della smirked, "Yeah. I finally said it out loud when I feared losing her after she ran away from home," she clenched her fists and that reaction somehow clicked something for Donald.
"That's what this is about, isn't it? Losing her?" he referred to their recent outburst. "She jumped in front of danger…"
"And that scared me senseless?" she provided, huffing, "yeah," she mumbled, "I know we all go on adventures together, and although I worry about all my kids, when she joins us, she puts herself in the line with no regard for her safety. I don't have that problem with the boys, they are aware of their strength and weaknesses, they rely for help among one another, but Lena… I don't know. Maybe she still feels she has something to prove, or she thinks she's living on borrowed time before Magica remerges in her life, but… I'm scared that one day she won't be as lucky to walk out of one of those reckless decisions and it could cost her…" she squeezed her metallic leg.
Donald noticed the little gesture and rubbed the back of his neck, "I see."
Della couldn't help but to gaze at her brother and wonder for the million time the same question that had burned her insides for years. "…Do you really not resent me for having to raise the boys?"
Donald's head snapped up, the question hurting him more than the implication, "Of course not," he said avidly.
"Sometimes I wish you would… or that at least that you would show your anger so we could start to call it even, because nothing I can do or say will ever be enough."
"There's one thing you can do," Donald said solemnly, and Della felt every muscle in her body tense at his words.
"Name it, anything," anything to repay a debt no amount of gold or words could be enough to settle.
But what he spoke next almost broke her entirely. "Forgive yourself."
Della felt the sting in her eyes as the tears began to take over, "Donnie, I-"
"That's all I want from you. Nothing else and nothing more."
"I-I can't," she felt the sob trapped in her throat.
"You can. I know you do, nothing has ever stopped you before and the only thing in your way right now, it's you," he said pointedly, with the same determination that always driven him to push beyond any obstacle for the sake of his family. "You need to forgive the person you were all those years ago and embrace who you are now. Get rid of that guilt. And…if what kept you from telling me or others about Lena was the guilt of being a good mother to her when you couldn't be here with the boys, then get rid of that, too."
Della couldn't help the watery chuckle that mixed with the crying, she couldn't untangle her own feelings right now, because it was too much, all the confusion, all the hurt and the confrontation mixed inside with the warm feeling of talking to Donald, her brother, her twin, her confidant. It was like getting back a part she had been missing of herself. A tender, reliable and strong part that always managed to ground her and make more bearable to face all the challenges the world presented.
"I promise," she finally said, latching her arms around him, "It won't be overnight and I'll need help but- but I promise I will forgive myself, Donnie." She hugged him tighter, shielding against his shoulder.
And Donald could do nothing but to hug back and believe in her word, because he knew she fully meant it.
Lena rather not know the specifics of how her brothers had managed to get Beakley out of the room, she just knew she owed them big time. She transported with the shadows into the gently illuminated medic bay, finding the only occupied bed hosting the one person she needed to see the most. The sight of the cast over her right arm and the several bandages covering some minor scratches didn't help soothe her, so she rapidly emerged right beside the bed, finding the smaller duckling with her eyes half open.
"Hey, Pink," she said lightly, trying to keep her voice down, not wanting to risk her chances of staying there.
The younger teen greeted her with a lopsided smile and big bright eyes that fought off the sleepiness. "Lena!" her voice itself sounded drowsy. "There you are, you tormented soul! My big, soft, gentle idiot."
Lena chuckled, rubbing the back of her neck at the reception of a heavily-medicated-with-painkillers Webby. "I think you forgot to add beautiful somewhere in there."
"Oh no, you know you are beautiful, but you really don't realize how idiotic that was."
"I'm…getting the gist of it," she admitted, sitting on the side of the bed. Lena highly doubted Webby would be able to recall even half of their conversation given how anesthetized she looked. "How are you feeling, Webs?"
"I've been worse, I have the scars to show for it," she said, taking a look at her arm as though just now realizing it was on a cast, "this will leave a cool scar, right?"
"I hope not."
"Scars are trophies that show I've overcome even my toughest challenges."
Lena smirked, moving a loose buckle of hair out of her face, "you always see the bright side of stuff, don't you, Pink? Only you'd get hurt and consider your scars a victory."
"What about yours?"
"I'm all good, Webs. That eldritch terror couldn't land a hit on me."
"Not those scars," Webby's eyes showed hurt despite the fogginess in her head and those words reached a corner of Lenás heart, "You shouldn't have done that," her voice cracked a little.
"I was not about to let it harm you," Lena said devotedly, her blue magic flaring in her eyes with the same fierceness as her tone. "So, if being injured was the price to pay, I'd taken it, every time. I rather die than live in a world where you are hurt because I couldn't protect you."
"But I couldn't live in a world where you are not in it because of me!" Webby answered with the same resolve, "Don't you see losing you hurts worse than a broken arm? Worse than any pain I could be put through?!"
Lena was left speechless as something throbbed inside her chest. It was an ache, unlike anything she had ever felt. It was stinging, scorching, and nauseating. She was feeling heartbroken. "I…I'm sorry," she turned her head to the opposite side, unable to face her eyes a second longer, "I didn't…I-" words failed her, and she felt a hollowness inside that craved to be filled with meaning, to put out there what was eating her inside. She pressed the fabric under her fingers mercilessly in her fists, "I don't want to lose you," she finally confessed the truth, plain and simple. That unassuming declaration encapsulated every single fear she had been harvesting ever since learning Webby would be leaving for college.
"You are not going to lose me, I'm capable of defending myself and I have my family, and you and-"
"No. I—I didn't mean it like that," Lena cut her off, taking a deep breath, finally gathering herself to meet her gaze once more.
Webby looked at her confused, her mind fighting to stay in the moment. So, she tapped at the empty space in the bed, offering Lena to take that spot. Her rightful place next to her.
Lena chuckled but obliged, resting there, finally allowing the exhaustion to catch up to her. She hadn't even realized how she'd been running on pure adrenaline until that point. The moment Webby's fingers entangled themselves around her own Lena felt the last of her energies leave her body and the tension evaporated from her shoulders. Webby was safe. She was right there, in front of her, breathing, smiling, looking at her.
"What's torturing your tender spirit?" Webby asked, her fingers pressing a tad tighter to offer comfort knowing sometimes Lena needed to be grounded back to reality through touch, to remind her she wasn't a shadow that others could walk right through.
Lena swallowed thickly feeling needles rolling in her tongue. She hadn't felt so at odds with her own voice for over a year now, but somehow, having to let the words out -to Webby of all people- paralyzed her in the same way it used to when she had barely escaped the Shadow Realm.
"Lena?" Webby called again softly, but Lena could do nothing but close her eyes and nuzzle into her shoulder.
"Sorry," she said once more, "I'm…I'm just not ready to let go," she felt the sting in her eyes, "But I would never ask you to stay, you deserve to pursue this adventure and I know I can't keep following you wherever you go because…because that'd only make me your shadow." Her throat closed as though she had spitted rocks instead of sentences, her chest feeling a little lighter after letting go of that.
"You'd never lose me," Webby's voice carried softly through the room with a lot more steadiness than before. "I'm…I'm scared about going away since I'll leave everything and everyone I know here in Duckburg, but I never feared losing you, you beautiful idiot." Her hand held on tighter, "When you were…in the Shadow Realm I…I never felt lonelier when in reality you were right there next to me."
Lena didn't need to be reminded of those memories that once in a while would resurface in her thoughts at the brink of midnight.
"So…I know that we will be alright. Because distance won't change the bond that binds us," Webby smiled softly, looking at the worn-out bracelet that still wrapped around Lena's wrist, "You will always be with me, as part of my life, no matter what. I mean, you've already proven that before," she caressed the back of her hand with her thumb, thinking how even when Lena had ceased to exist, she hadn't forsaken their friendship. "I will miss you, more than you can imagine, you complex moonlight, and I'm sure some night I'll stare at the window hoping you'll emerge from the shadow so we can go for a midnight walk but… the fact that I'm going away for a while is not the same as me walking away from you. I'm never going to do that; you are not going to lose me. You are stuck with me."
Lena let out a watery chuckle, sniffing silently. She didn't have the right to ask, not after putting Webby through so much, after having her save her more than once, but the word left her beak, nonetheless, "Promise?"
"I could cut my hand open to make a blood oath right now, that's how determined I am."
Lena shook her head at her antiques, smiling lovingly, "Let's not do that, I wouldn't want to give Tea Time any more reasons to strap you into this bed," she gently pressed Webby's hand, as if touching porcelain. Her eyes stayed fixed there as if committing the touch to memory. She took one shaky mouthful of air before daring to materialize the words that she could never take back, "Out of all the things that have happened to me…meeting you has been the greatest one, Webby," she swallowed thickly, "I just wanted to make sure you knew before you move on to this next adventure. I-I know I don't always have the words to say what's going on and despite that, you've always seemed to read me so easily it used to scare me that you might see me for who I really was but…but I wanted you to hear it from me. You are...you are the reason I started living, I-I don't think I really had a pulse beating inside of me until I met you. But I don't want to keep putting you in situations in which you have to save me, not from others, not from myself or my demons. You are ready to go grow and…I'll do the same. I will be more than broken pieces, not because I owe it to you, but because you inspired me to become more than the shadow I was condemned to be." If tears were already streaming down her face, she didn't dare to admit it, "Just give me a little more time so I can be the person that stands next to you and not one step behind."
The silence that followed was only opposed by the rapid heartbeat that drummed without an accord as Webby felt her heart hammer against her chest, ready to break free from its cage and jump into Lena's hands, so she could reassure the young witch that its place was right there, next to hers.
Instead, Webby leaned in, pressing their foreheads together as much as her immobilized body allowed her, gently placing her beak over the runaway teardrops that stood at the corner of Lena's eyes, "I will wait, you sensible soul. As I said, I'm not leaving you."
Lena dare to open her eyes and meet the innocent ones that had always looked at her with that same gentleness and warmth as right now, holding something special in them for Lena to claim if she so dared to act on it.
Sighing longingly, Lena wrapped an arm around Webby and pressed a kiss on her forehead. She was committed to becoming whole, to be someone worthy of being there for Webby, and she knew she wasn't there yet. Time, the usual thief it was, played against her again. But she would wait, it was something that deserved the endeavor. When they were both ready, then maybe Lena would find the courage needed to utter the three words that had been aching inside of her for so long. But it didn't matter even if she had to wait a century to say them, she would still mean them with the same fire and conviction that was flaring inside of her right now…
It was little past eleven when Mrs. Beakley finally made it back into the med-bay, finding Webby peacefully asleep and no trace of the shadow witch that had dissolved into the darkness to avoid being caught. Lena re-materialized a few rooms over, taking her cell phone out to write a message to her brothers, thanking them for having her back and promising she would repay the favor. Three consecutive color-coded emojis appeared on her screen and she felt a warm feeling that reminded her she had a lot of people she could lean on. That she didn't have to shoulder all her fears, and sometimes, she could rely on them to give her a nudge in the right direction "So, how is she?"
Lena snapped her head up from her phone, staring ahead with her beak agape. Apparently, fate itself had nudged her directly into Della's path. Then again, maybe the magic in her friendship bracelets had done its part, as it often did.
Lena avoided her gaze, instead looking down, making sure to drag the sleeve of her hoodie across her face in case there was anything there that could reveal she had been crying, "You knew I was with her?"
Della arched a brow, almost challengingly, "Do you seriously think Mrs. B would leave Webby alone and unattended on a hospital bed for that many hours?"
Lena felt a pang in her chest and a flush of heat running through her cheeks as her shoulders tensed.
Della offered a small smile, "How is she?" she asked once more.
"Resting," she answered, swallowing the knot in her throat, feeling the tension stretch between them. She had never screamed at Della before, not like that, not out of anger and hurt. And in all those years she had never been anything but forward with her and yet, she didn't know what to say -or how- right now. And judging by the way the older woman began to gently tap her metal foot against the carpet to fill the silence, neither did she.
"I'm not her shadow," Lena's words finally broke the spell, "You…were right about that. I was acting like it because…it's easier that way. It's what I used to be, for the most part of my life, it felt…familiar. Not right or comforting, only familiar, and when facing change its…easier to fall back into old habits," she felt her chest tighten, "I… I didn't mean to snap at you, I just…I bottle that up for too long," she admitted, her right hand clenching the hoodie at the same height Magica's amulet used to hang around her neck. Della hadn't seen her do that gesture in the longest of times, so she knew things from Lena's past were resurfacing, "But…I…finally let some of that go," she said softly as if a wish before blowing the candles. The softness in her eyes told Della something important had been lifted from the teen's shoulders. She wanted nothing more than to embrace her and ask about it, but she knew she had hurt the teen, one way or another and for that, she didn't have the right to act as if nothing had happened.
"What I said… I shouldn't have phrased it like that. I was frustrated and scared that you might get yourself…" she didn't dare to say it, so she shook her head, getting rid of those thoughts, "It doesn't excuse me from it. Those words, the way I used them…that's something Magica would have said to you. I…hurt you the same way she did, that much I don't have any way to deny."
Lena's shoulders tensed as Della's words echoed in the room, her eyes inspected the older duck carefully, trying to untangle the declaration, "You…hurt me," she said slowly, "for different motives than Magica. You did it unwillingly because you were worried about me, she did it because she could. It's not the same Mom, I know the difference," she nodded solemnly.
Della felt her eyes water, so she hastily pushed the tears away, just as Lena had a moment ago. Sometimes they were a perfect reflection of each other, it made it impossible to deny they were family, "Still, I'm sorry I snapped, kiddo, it wasn't my finest hour," she held her gaze, "but I need you to understand that I can't bear seeing one of my children getting hurt. I know you are strong -stronger than any of us- but that doesn't make you invincible. You are still my daughter, and I will worry, and I will do what I think it's best for you, not because I don't trust you, but because I can't bear to lose you. Can you understand that?"
Lena exhaled a mouthful of air she didn't realize she was holding, "I do, Mom."
Della felt the tension fade away from her posture, "Good. And I promise I'll find a better way to express my concern next time."
Lena tentatively smiled, allowing herself a moment to put her guard down now that the storm had passed. Della couldn't help but open her arms in hopes that the young witch would be willing to be cradled in them.
And as if a magnetic force had pulled her in, Lena allowed herself to indulge in the hug.
"I love you, kiddo," Della said. "don't ever doubt that, even when I'm mad, you'll always be my favorite daughter."
"Your only daughter," Lena countered with a smile.
Della sneakered as well. "Well, as far as your Uncle Donald is concerned."
Lena let go of the embrace to try and meet her eyes. "My Uncle Donlad?"
Della nodded, her eyes were shining with pride and hope. "Yeah, I finally told him. Of course, he knew, in his own way. He welcomed you into the family a long time ago, sweetie."
Lena didn't try to hide the smile that took over, because even if the other Duck twin had always been nothing but kind to her, to hear that he also considered part of his family warmed something inside. "Everyone knows now," she said and suddenly the declaration became real.
Hearing her say that made Della also double-take the information. "I…guess so," she mumbled, looking directly into Lena's eyes remembering the first time she had seen those same orbs cautiously gazing at her from the kitchen's entrance all those years ago. She could see all the moments that followed flashing before her eyes, as the elusive kid that walked in the shadows had slowly become part of her life, helping her overcome her own struggles to readapt. She could recall when Lena gifted her the bracelet on Mothers' Day and the first time she called her by that tittle and when she finally admitted to Beakley that she thought of Lena as her own. Or the time she overheard Louie casually calling her sister and having to confront Scrooge about it and finally starting to heal her relationship with him because of it. How one morning she simply noticed that all her sons openly welcomed Lena as their sibling as if that was the most natural thing in the world. And now...
Now Donald was in it too. Now it was not a secret she kept behind closed doors in a dark and monochromatic room that was always too quiet. Now Lena was simply that, her daughter, a Duck in all her right while still proudly calling herself a Saberwing.
"Mom, what's wrong?" Lena asked when she noticed Della had spaced out for a moment too long looking at her.
"Nothing," she felt her voice quiver a bit, "I just…needed a moment to breathe it in," she mumbled. She never thought that this would be the outcome of all those small decisions she had taken along the way regarding the young witch. But if she had to do it all again -even this night and all its disastrous quarrels- she would gladly do it, because it meant having Lena as her kid.
"I think I just fully realized that I am your mother."
Because it was not just about saying that as an endearing name, it was not a game or an inner joke the whole family was in, it was their truth, even if for the outside world such an arrangement wouldn't make any sense. For them, their bond was just as strong as if they were related by blood.
Lena didn't register that she had moved with the shadows until she found herself hugging Della. "It was worth waiting over a decade for it." She mumbled against her shoulder.
Della felt her breath catch in her throat as her arms wrapped around her daughter.
I have a few more chapters in mind before formally/finally bringing to an end this fic, but I'm also conflicted to say that I have an idea for another story (probably a one shot?) that would take place after the ending of this fic. I'm tempted to write that story even before finishing this one, but we'll see what happens. As always, thank you for your support!