Disclaimer: Things have finally calmed down enough for me to finish this chapter. Midterms are over, and now we can return to the wonderful world of Ducktales.

Seriously though, I didn't mean to let this go quiet for almost 2 months, but school got really busy for me, and I didn't have time to work on this and my other story at the same time. This isn't abandoned, but updates will be spaced out sometimes. Good news is my huge story is ending in April (Ha!), so I'll have more time to look at this.

RainbowCelin: I don't know who Frankie is, but yes, I've heard about the school shooting in Florida.

ultima-owner: It was one of the first Disney movies.

Jarjaxle: She's only been in two episodes so far, so it's hard to tell if it'll be great or not.

WolfGirl01: Most likely, yes.

Guest: University comes first in everything. Sorry for the wait, but I was swamped with work.

"Speaking"

Thinking

"Reading"

"Man, that movie was lame!" I laughed, throwing a grin at the kids behind me. Strangers walked past us from the movie theater's entrance, throwing away their food in the bins outside. "That animation was so terrible it was hilarious!"

"Come, on, that was classic cinema," Dewey argued. "Right, Webby?"

"So good!" She cheered, jumping in excitement. It had taken a while for the four to wear down Mrs. Beakley and Donald, but they were eventually freed from their grounding. To celebrate, I had suggested some cheap horror flick playing downtown. Mrs. Beakley, despite letting Webby off the hook, didn't want her running free so soon, and chose to tag along with us. Her, and Launchpad too, for some... reason. It's not like he's any more adult than me. I'm much more mature, and can actually drive without crashing. Repeatedly. To make things even more interesting, Webby had invited Lena along with us. As far as I could tell, the housekeeper wasn't entirely too fond of the spunky preteen.

"Oh, and remember when the surgeon tried to cut the mole queen in half but then she multiplied into a million mole babies and then they ate him?" Lena imitated a chainsaw, and mimed cutting Webby open. The younger girl cried out, pretending to spew her guts over the floor at her feet. Mrs. Beakley grabbed Lena's arm to hold her back as we turned the corner, making me frown.

Lena was… a more intense version of myself. She was on board with my movie idea, and if memory served me correctly, she had told the older woman that this was a relaxing and calm movie. Oh, was she ever pulling the feathers over her eyes. "Lame! Where was the drama. The heart, the needlessly expensive car crash mayhem?" Louie complained. I nodded in agreement. It was about as half-decent as some horror-comedy about, I dunno, a freak storm filled with piranhas or sharks or something.

"Even if mole men did exist, why attack someone in the shower?" Huey added. "With the water running there wouldn't be enough traction to attack anyone above the knee. Totally phony."

"What is with you guys?" Webby asked. "It says right on the poster: based on an actual true novel." True, yes, but not everything you read is fact.

"This is the only book I trust." Huey pulled out a red notebook from under his hat, holding it proudly for us to see. "If it's not in the Junior Woodchuck guidebook, then it's not a thing." Apparently my assumption in him being the intellectual type was spot on. The book must have been well-used, sporting a wearing cover and tape to hold pieces together.

"What about were-ducks?" Webby asked, watching him open it up.

"Nope."

"Tri-clopses?"

"Not a thing."

"Well, what about the legendary Terra-firmians of Duckburg?" Seriously? That one I had heard about. Some weird urban legend about some underground race living in the old subway of the city. Not that I don't believe in the paranormal, but even I thought that one was a bit of a stretch.

"Let's see. Pterodactyl, terror-dactyl, terrible-twos. Nope. No Terra-firmians. Must not exist," Huey declared, just as Webby began laughing.

"What? Terra-firmians, the mythical underground race that live below our very city?" She asked desperately. She really believes that idea? Where did she even hear about it?

"Hehe. No. That's ridiculous," Huey replied.

"You're ridiculous," Webby shot back. Okay, this is going to escalate quickly. Best to step in before someone does something they might re-

"Children, children." Lena swung her arms around their necks, pulling them in close. "There's an easy way to settle this." She looked past me, and I turned with the other triplets to stare at the subway entrance across the street. Ooh! That makes so much more sense. "Let's go find them ourselves."

"Ahem." Oh, right… forgot about her. Mrs. Beakley gave us a disapproving stare, before a familiar scream came from around the corner. She dashed off, with Louie and Dewey behind her, leaving me and the other kids behind.

"Okay, so I'm making this clear right now," I whispered. "We're doing this no matter what she says, right?" Lena smirked at me, making me sigh. "Well, I am a legal adult, apparently. Let's go before she gets wise." With that, the four of us ran to the open door and down the stairs, leaving the surface world behind us.

I've never been in the subway before, believe it or not. I never had a need to go down there. And I think I'm glad I chose that. It was disgusting, with graffiti and garbage and… weird miscellaneous fluid stains in the corners. "Eugh, this is disgusting." I kicked a pop can away from me, sticking my hands into my jacket. "Doesn't anyone clean up down here?"

Lena rolled her eyes, and hopped down off the platform once a subway train came by. Taking the lead, she headed off down the tunnel, and we followed after her. Stepping through-or in Huey's case, over-a puddle, we came to a crossroads. The left tunnel was obviously where the train went, but on the right was a blocked path. A sign saying it was closed for renovations mounted on three orange and white boards. "Hmm. Now what's behind here?" Lena went to the side of the barrier, and began pushing it aside to make a gap big enough for us to move through.

"The old 818 train line," Webby answered. "Famous for Terra-firmian sightings. That's why it's closed off."

"The sign says 'closed for renovations'," Huey corrected.

"That's what they want you to think," Webby grinned. She headed after Lena, leaving the confused boy.

"Who is they?"

"Exactly." Huey and me exchanged a look as the girls continued pushing at the sign. Once Webby began helping though, the ground began to rumble at our feet. With a startled cry, I moved over to them with the triplet, and we held each others arms to steady ourselves as dust and rocks fell away over our heads.

Coughing at the particles in the air, I watched Lena pull out her phone to shine it into a newly made opening. "Well, we can't not go in at this point. Hello!?" She called, letting her voice echo around the walls. Casting a look at Webby and Huey, I jogged to catch up with Lena. Knowing my young friend, she'd be off telling the kid about her research about the Terra-firmians. The older child paused at the top of a flight of stairs, shining her phone down to see if there was anything worth checking.

"But one day the rightful prince will reunite the two tribes and put an end to their bitter conflict," Webby concluded as she and Huey caught up.

"And what's that?" Huey pointed at a random doodle in the upper corner of her book, making her chuckle awkwardly.

"Oh, just a drawing of a candy I wish they made. Webbi-dings."

"And that?" Lena pointed at the doodle beside that.

"Me as a superhero." Ah, such an active imagination this girl had. Wouldn't I give to be that young again. "Look, can we just focus on all the exciting stuff I just said?"

"So these Terra-thingies are responsible for that tremor?" Lena asked. Huey shook his head, taking his book out from under his hat again.

"According to the JWG, earthquakes are shifting tectonic plates. Science fact." He snapped it shut, standing proudly at his sound argument. "No reason for any of us to go in there. The book knows everything."

Lena raised a brow, and snatched the book from the boy. Huey gasped as she chucked it down the stairs, and we watched it bounce out of our sights. "Did the book now I was gonna do that?" Okay, I am really liking this kid. Heading down to the next floor and ducking under a blockade, we examined the new area. A rat ran past us squeaking, but that was the only sign of life down this far.

"Oh, I can't wait to meet a real Terra-firmian! I'm totally gonna sacrifice myself in the name of the rebellion." Uh… what?

"Oh, and then I can hunt down your attackers and avenge your death!" Lena added.

"Aw! That's sweet. There!" Webby dashed over to a wall, and I gulped nervously. Those were some pretty huge claw marks. "Claw marks! Proof they were here!"

"Even better! The tremors exposed three kinds of rock," Huey cheered. "Schist, marble, and gneiss. Ooh, do I spy some shale?" He knelt down and began examining the rock while checking his guide book for reference.

"How is that better than subway monsters?" Lena crossed her arms with a frown.

"'cause my thing's real."

"How can you dismiss this after all the stuff we've seen Scrooge?" I asked incredulously. "Dragons that hunt gold, Atlantis, the man-horse… thing?"

"It's a big book. You'd be surprised. Anything new we've seen I've added myself," he replied. "Now help me with the shale rock. Need it for my geology badge."

"Why don't you ask your best friend, the guidebook, to help you?" Webby asked sarcastically. "Oh, wait, you can't. It's a book." In response, Huey flipped through it before stopping with a smile.

"How to properly handle rock samples in the field." He tucked it under his hat, and began giving himself a wide stance. Bending down, he slowly lifted the rock up, barely able to hold it in his noodle-like arms. I mean, talk about chicken bones-no offense to Gyro.

"Aahhhh!" A scream came from further down the hall, and Huey dropped the stone immediately. Lena! Where'd she go!? Taking the kids' hands, I dragged them down towards a subway car, looking around for her. As we passed by a cart, Webby traced her hand over an odd circular indent in the metal. A banging sound came from inside the cart, and we moved back cautiously.

"What was that?" Huey asked. The door jiggled in place, and slowly moved to the side, sending several clouds of dust raining down. "Um, after you." Rolling my eyes, I took the lead in front of him and Webby, and climbed into the cart.

"Clear." Webby then climbed up beside me, and as Huey began hoisting himself up, Webby gave a loud scream.

"Terra-firmian!" I fell forwards at the surprise, having not gotten up yet and landed on my face. A cackle came from behind me, and Lena poked her head over a wall by a seat, holding a marker in her hand.

"Sorry, couldn't resist." Huey glared at her as he got up, while Webby gave her a high five. Huey looked around, and turned back to us with a smile.

"Just more subway junk. Now, if you're all done, I have some rock samples to collect." A large boom came from behind us, and we turned to see a wall was kicked down and a towering figure staring back. Whoever they were, it was hard to tell. The shadows masked all determinable features. Huey quickly snatched up a rock beside him and hurled it. However, the figure moved out of the way, having it bounce against the wall and towards the entrance they made.

"Hey, watch it!" What the-Louie?

"Louie?" Huey stated. From out of the shadows, Mrs. Beakley, the other two triplets, and Launchpad stared at us. And, oh, boy, did the housekeeper ever look mad.

"Granny?" Webby asked.

"Aah! Those are moles!" Launchpad, ever our 'brave' hero, dove behind the wall, shaking.

"Launchpad, it's just the guys," Dewey reminded him patiently. Launchpad murmured a reply, but I couldn't make it out.

"I can explain," Webby began as we all walked over to them.

"You are all in big trouble. I assume this was your idea." She directed that part towards Lena, as the girl narrowed her eyes.

"Sure, blame the mysterious rebel playing by her own rules," she scoffed. "It's not like we didn't have an adult down here with us."

"No back talk!" Mrs. Beakley snapped. "And April is clearly not an adult enough to handle you, apparently." Wh-hey! I was in my mid twenties! I am more adult than Launchpad ever was and ever will be! "You made me come all the way down here, drag two more children and one man-child right into danger."

"Man-child!? Where!?" Launchpad sprung to his feet, looking around with a shudder. "Easy, LP. Easy. One monster at a time."

"Aren't you supposed to be crazy adventure family? This is like an afternoon field trip for you people," Lena remarked.

"Well, there won't be anymore afternoon field trips for you. I can assure you that." Oh, I am going to be in such trouble when we get out of here. Unless Scrooge decides to side with me, I'll be stuck inside the mansion doing bills for months.

"Granny, Lena didn't mean to-ah!" Webby gave a startled cry along with the rest of us as the ground began to shake under our feet, tossing the car on its sides. "Terra-firmians!"

"Naturally occurring tectonic shifts!" Huey, I will personally hit you on the head with that book you love so much if you don't shut up!" A series of loud bangs came from behind me and the kids, and as the rumbling quieted down, Mrs. Beakley leaned out of the vehicle to investigate.

"Splendid. We're stuck," she sighed. "It looks like the only safe way out of here is to get this train moving. Launchpad, get to the control room."

"No, Mrs. B.," Launchpad replied with a shake of his head. "I can't leave you alone with-I mean, uh, I don't know if I can." Why do I believe he still sees us as mole creatures? "I've never crashed a train before."

"Well perhaps you could drive it without crashing it?" I suggested, stressing the word.

"Huh?" Mrs. Beakley sighed, clearly seeing the chauffeur wasn't going to get our point anytime soon.

"Just get to the control room and see what you can do," she sighed, rubbing the bridge of her beak.

"Fine," Launchpad relented. "Hey, Dewey, come with me. I need someone to help me for some reason." He guided the blue triplet out of the cart, and I could've sworn I saw him pick up something off the floor as he went. Meh. Probably not too important… I hope.

"I'm going to the rear to see if I can detach us from the cave in. You, with me." Lena frowned as the housekeeper singled her out. "You've caused us enough grief."

"Aye aye, Colonel Crumpet," Lena mocked, giving a salute.

"We'll stay here and be on the lookout for Terra-firmians. It must be about halftime at The Great Games, so it'll be easier to spot one." Her granny gave her a confused look, but shrugged it off. If it wasn't harming their efforts to get out, then it was okay.

"Okay. Just stay put." She cast a look at me, giving me the clear message of 'so help me, you'll get out here and help. You are not going to hear the end of this'. With a groan, I hopped out of the car before I could say something I'd regret. Lena followed after me, and Mrs. Beakley took up the rear. "After you help us get out of here, you're never seeing Webby again."

"Ugh, okay, lady, you are real bad at asking for help," Lena said as Mrs. Beakley walked ahead of us. Once she went around the corner, we slowly made our way to join her. "Hey, April? Why are you so buddy-buddy with Webby anyway? Bit of an off choice in friends for an adult."

"I've known her since I was about twenty. She was, what, five when she first came to the mansion. With no people her age to hang out with, I sort of ended up being an older sister figure. I… don't really have that many friends my age. It's been me, Webby, Scrooge, and Mrs. Beakley for ten years after the… well, I won't bother explaining that right now." I didn't really know the girl that well, and I wasn't sure if explaining my past was a good thing or not. I knew the triplets and Donald more than I knew her, and I've only known them for a few weeks! "Point is, despite the rougher edges I clearly have, it's important to show how much you're willing to go for this family. Prove that you care for them."

Lena gave a small smile at my words, as we turned to watch Mrs. Beakley strain while trying to detach the train. "Looking good, Tea Time. Keep it up." She took out her phone, clicking away at it as we could hear Huey, Webby, and Louie chat further down the tracks.

"This would go a lot faster if you would give me a hand."

"Well, the sooner I help you, the sooner I never get to see my friends again, so…" Mrs Beakley turned back to the spike, and Lena's eyes widened as another remark came to her mind. "Want me to go get one of the more trustworthy kids to help, or am I still not allowed to talk to them?"

"Do not mouth off to me," the elder woman finally snapped, standing up. "It's your fault we're in this mess. Who raised you, anyway? I know a bad influence when I see one." Hey! I wasn't too fond of Lena, but that was entirely uncalled for. Lena's face turned into one of regret and hurt, avoiding the speaker's eyes. "Those are good children with bright futures."

"Yeah? And what does that make me?" She finally turned around, stuffing her phone in her skirt. The tension was thick in the air, and Mrs. Beakley looked away, clearly not wanting to answer.

"I don't know." Seeing the conversation as over, she turned back to the spike, and began kicking it. Lena rolled her eyes, and walked away for a moment. Seizing the few seconds, I glared at Mrs. Beakley, who only raised a brow at me. I couldn't say anything right now, least Lena heard it. I needed to have a chat with her too, apparently, once we returned to the mansion. I was doing my job. Keeping an eye on the children. I did not see any problem with coming down here. If she was going to blame anyone, then blame me. Not her. She's just a kid, Beakley. Give her a break.

"If you're gonna vandalize, at least do it right." She returned with a crowbar in her hands, and with a twirl stuck it under the top. Mrs. Beakley went to the other side, grabbing the upper part of the pole, and helped her loosen the spike. With a few tugs, the metal piece flew up and onto the ground a few feet away.

"I suppose you're good for something." What do you know? Guess Mrs. Beakley can say something nice today! Not!

"Ugh, don't hurt yourself with the compliments, Abbey Road. I'm just trying to help," Lena replied, hopping up to the door above her.

"All right, I've had it up to here with your horrid behavior!" The moment she said the words, the lights came on in the front of the train, and moved on to the very cart Lena was in. The girl gasped for a moment, looking at Mrs. Beakley and me. The girl shuffled to the side, getting out of the light while still staring at the wall. Why? Is there something behind us? We turned around, but saw nothing, like I expected. What was up with that? What spooked the girl?

The train's wheels creaked on the tracks, and slowly began to roll forward, knocking Lena off. I caught her before she hit the ground, arms preventing her from hitting her head as Mrs. Beakley began to jog ahead of us. "Come on!" Mrs. Beakley reached the cart first, keeping one hand on a handrail and another outreached for us. Panting, we ran to grab her, and were pulled up onto the cart just as-the heck!?

"What are those?" I asked, as we all leaned to the side to look ahead of the train. Several boulders were speeding ahead, chasing the front of the subway. As fast as it happened, we could hear the loud and terrified screaming of the children, just as the cart began to sway back and forth, barely keeping itself on the tracks. Lena was almost thrown off again, until I wrapped an arm around her to keep her on. Mrs. Beakley held both handrails, keeping us pressed against the closed door, until a large swing knocked us off, sending us flying through the tunnel. I tumbled across the floor, and gasped as my head made contact with a rock.

Y-you know… concussions aren't s-something I was known for. But… but now seemed like a good moment to p... pass out...

(Time Skip)

"I can't believe you let April get knocked out! What were ya thinkin'?"

"She just got thrown off the subway, Uncle Scrooge. She doesn't have any other injuries. She'll be fine. Right, Lena?" H-Huey...? Scrooge?

"Yeah." No… too soon to wake up. Too loud. Let me sleep forever. And why was my head so cold? "Huh. Guess she's coming around."

Apparently. Still too soon though. Blinking my eyes wearily, I looked up. I was in the TV room, lying on the couch with a blanket draped over me. "O… kay? Why are you all staring at me?" Scrooge, Mrs. Beakley, and the children gave me incredulous and amused looks. "What?"

"Oh, I give up," Mrs. Beakley muttered, walking towards the door. "I'll go get you your breakfast, April, and a fresh ice pack." Ho-how long was I out fo-ice pack? Oh. Right. I was thrown off the train and hit my head.

"Um, did I do something wrong?" Scrooge shook his head, and without another word, left me with the kids with a small smile. He knew I was alright. I've been banged up before, and a simple rock on the skull wouldn't slow me down. He knows I'm fine, so I trust in his observation. Besides, an adventurer like him knows how to look for serious wounds. "So… would one of you tell me what the heck happened?"

"The creatures were real, they didn't know what we were at first, thinking we were attacking them, we made peace, and then we all escaped," Huey listed off on his fingers. "I think they actually thought we were some rebel force and mysterious creatures too. Oddly enough, they had the same color theme as us too." Red, green, blue, pink, and black, you mean?

"And Beakley made pancakes!" Louie cheered. A chuckle escaped me at the happy declaration before I winced at the pounding at the back of my skull.

"Alright, children," Lena smirked, seeing my pain. "Let's give the weather girl here a break." Weather girl? Is this because my name is a month? Well, it's... better than coffee girl. Slightly. The four relented, and the boys headed out behind her, but not before I got a quick hug from Webby and a sly grin from Louie. So much for Don talking to him. I sighed, leaning against the arm. Kid still has a crush on me, and probably will continue to flirt with me for as long as he lives here. Okay then. I can deal with that. As long as it doesn't get out of hand, then it's no problem at all.

All I good guess was that one of the kids must have helped me get out of there, but which one, I don't really know. But I think I have a pretty good guess. After all, Lena's here now. Did she finally win over Mrs. Beakley? Did she help get me out of there? "Oh, my head hurts too much to ponder life's questions."

"April are you in here?" Speak of the drake, and he shall appear. Donald stuck his head out from behind the door, and once he spotted me came right over. His eyes widened, taking in the bag of ice wrapped in a towel on top of my head. My signature beanie was laying on my chest, letting my head feathers stick out more than usual. "What happened to you?"

"Do you really want to know, or would it be better if I spared you the explanation?" He opened his beak, before shutting it quickly. "Thought so. Why are you looking for me?"

"Uncle Scrooge has some plan involving taking the kids to see some cricket at a temple tomorrow, and he invited me along. Surprisingly," he muttered, crossing his arms. "I was wondering if you were coming too, but seeing how you've got that..." he motioned to the bag, making my mouth thin.

"Of course. Just a little ding, Donald. I'm not out of commission yet. Also, you should know that wherever Scrooge goes, I usually am not that far behind. Not that into crickets, mind you, but a temple sounds pretty cool." Grinning, I slid the ice pack off, sitting more upright. Short brown feathers stuck out randomly, giving me a weird case of bedhead. This is why I wear the hat. Donald stifled a laugh, and I playfully stuck out my tongue at him. "Oh, take off, Don."

"Ha ha ha! Whatever you say, coffee girl." I threw the bag at his head, earning a startled quack from him and a laugh from me. It's a trip to see a cricket. A bug. Honestly, what was there to worry about? Its screeching music making our ears bleed? Let's just hope I didn't just jinx us.

I really am sorry it took such a long time to write this. This term was so much more painful than the last one. I won't abandon this story, but like I said above, updates might sometimes take a while to come out.

Until next time!

Angel