The stairway ends in an open hole to the plaza. Something about the active Selego Circuit causes dark clouds to block the sun's light, so the blue sky from before is gone. The dark clouds let the red glow of the Circuit wash over the familiar stairway that leads up to a ledge. I was a prisoner on that ledge a year ago. I watched my brother fall towards oblivion there.
I pull myself from the past and to the present. My family is gathered around the base of the stairs- all except Huey. My oldest son- careful, caring, exact, organized, loyal Huey- is sitting on that cursed ledge with his legs hanging over the edge of the precipice. He looks calm and in control while his feet dangle over the swirling red portal in the bowl that could destroy him instantly. He meets my eyes, and I see confirmation of my fear. He thinks I hate him.
"Took you long enough." Huey's tone is somehow cold and burning with anger at the same time, "You couldn't be bothered to show up on time, could you, Mom? Was this not impulsive enough? Dangerous enough? A good enough mystery?"
The accusations sting, but I ignore them- wait, no. I close my beak and swallow. I was going to apologize for ignoring him, but I'm not going to ignore him while apologizing.
"It was more than enough, I just got knocked out in the crash." I explain, then pause, "Honey, what's going on?"
"You don't know? You haven't found the angle?" Huey narrows his eyes and leans forward so his elbows are on his knees.
Is it my imagination, or are his clenched teeth pointed now?
"I think I understand now, but I want to make sure," I maintain eye contact, "It's that I've been ignoring you, hasn't it? That I've been ignoring who you are because your strongest traits remind me of Eddy?"
Silence reigns. I know my family is still there, and I hear Dewey walk up onto the roof behind me. But my eyes are on my son- my wonderful, loving, frustratingly structured oldest son. I still see Eddy in him, but I refuse to flinch away. Huey's expression is surprised, angry, and hurt- I was right. When he doesn't answer my question verbally, I continue.
"There's a reason I fell in love with Eddy in the first place. Nothing you got from him is inherently bad. Not your lists or schedules or journaling or temperament- none of it. The reason his betrayal hurt so much is because it contradicted everything he was. Just like this," I motion to the circuit and platform above it, "Contradicts everything you are. I'm sorry for not acknowledging that earlier. I'm sorry I didn't realize I was hurting you. You're my son, and no trait you have will change that I love you. Please- I can't lose you, too."
Dewey stays quiet long enough to let my words sink in. Then he steps forward and holds up Eddy's journal. He must have run back to get it, or found it on our sprint to the library.
"You have a choice, Hue," Huey's eyes turn to him, and I see Dewey gulp. He keeps his head high and gaze steady, however, "You're not stuck between two juggernauts. You're not in an impossible situation. You can choose the Duck family without destroying all of us."
He pauses, then lowers the journal. Dewey grips it in both hands as he scans the cover. I wish I could know what he's thinking or what that journal represents to him. Then Dewey closes his eyes.
"I may not know my dad, but I grew up with an awesome big brother." he looks up at Huey, "And I can't lose him."
Huey looks at Dewey, then at me. Louie almost speaks, but seems to think better of it and shut his beak instead. Huey keeps scaning Dewey and I, trying to read our sincerity. Then he looks at Donald and Uncle Scrooge. Donald is silently crying, and nods in agreement when he sees Huey watching him. Uncle Scrooge, looking penitent, nods as well and extends a hand.
"I'm sorry, lad." his voice is so soft that I wonder if Huey heard it.
Huey looks back to me, then finally speaks.
"You mean it? You won't hate me for being Dad?" I hear the tears in his voice, though his eyes are still dry.
"You aren't him." I smile ruely as my own tears start, "I'm sorry I treated you like you were. Could you give me the chance to change that?"
I know the answer before Huey nods and stands, before tears come to his eyes. I see it in every part of his posture. He makes his way down the stairs, and I start to go up to meet him.
Then another tremor hits, and my battered and exhausted legs give out.
Before I can comprehend what's happening, a hand has grabbed my wrist, and Huey and I are dangling over the vortex still swirling inside the Circuit. Huey clenches his teeth in effort, one hand on me and one on the stair right above us.
"The lever on the control panel turns it off!" he shouts up and out of the bowl.
Footsteps are already on the stairway, and it's only a few seconds before Uncle Scrooge and Donald are grabbing Huey. Launchpad and Mrs. Beakley join them, and together the four pull me and Huey up. Donald pulls me away from the edge and sits me down.
"You aren't walking by yourself for a while." he scolds.
I nod. I've gotten my head knocked way too often today. Huey sits down next to me as I hear Webby yell triumphantly. The Circuit powers down, the red glow vanishes, and so do the clouds. Huey's head is lowered as the sun comes out.
"I'm sorry." his hat casts a dark shadow over his face so I can't read his expression.
That doesn't stop me from hearing the remorse in his voice. I put my arm around him and pull him close.
"Thanks for grabbing me." I try a small smile, "But next time, try just talking to me, okay?"
He glances up, guilt written on his face, and nods. Donald sits down on my other side, and Uncle Scrooge takes a seat on Huey's other side. Launchpad sits down right where he's standing and nearly falls into the disabled Selego Circuit. The other kids come up, and Scrooge moves so they can gather around Huey. Huey lets them each hug him before leaning into me. We all sit there quietly for a long moment, long enough for Mrs. Beakley to cautiously sit down as well. Then Huey starts to talk.
"I'm sorry about this whole thing. I didn't start out wanting to do this. It started when I found a picture in a F.O.W.L. File with Uncle Scrooge, Uncle Donald, Mom, and another duck. The other duck's name was written by him- Eddy Duck- so I started looking for his name in the files. Everything was there- employment sheets, birth certificate, graduation certificate, agent certification, military service, mission deployment, marriage certificate, journals. Everything. And the more I learned about Dad, the more I noticed-" Huey looks up at me, "The more I noticed how much you avoided me. I thought you hated me because I was like him. I thought- I thought you would feel better if-"
He motions to the circuit, and the horrifying thought makes me tighten my grip on his shoulder.
"You thought Mom would feel better if the biggest reminder of Eddy disappeared from existence," Louie finishes his sentence.
Huey nods.
"I didn't want to, so I wanted to make sure that's what she wanted," he glances down, "Though I was also mad at her and wanted her to know what she was doing."
"I definitely figured out what I was doing," I agree, "It took several head injuries, but I got it."
Huey winces.
"I hate to interrupt," Mrs. Beakley interjects, "But none of the files explain what Eddy did after leaving. Did you by chance find anything?"
Huey nods.
"That's another reason I came here," he pulled a folder out of his hat, "Dad's file was incomplete, so I had to search for the end of the story."
Huey pulls out several papers from the file, showing each as he explains what's on each.
"According to this transcript I found, as soon as Mom had laid our eggs, Bradford ordered Dad to kidnap me- the oldest- as soon as I hatched. Dad refused."
He moves the transcript to the back, showing another.
"A little while later, Dad made an offer to Bradford to keep me out of F.O.W.L.'s hands: since Bradford appeared to want an heir of Clan McDuck, a direct descendant of Scrooge would probably work better than nieces/nephews. Dad proposed a plan where he brought one of Uncle Scrooge's feathers to F.O.W.L. for Black Heron to make that descendant with. Bradford agreed."
Huey pauses, turning the papers back towards him. He keeps his eyes down as he finishes.
"The rest was really hard to find, since nothing was explicitly recorded. I could only put the pieces together from seemingly random actions and orders. But from what I could find, I don't think Bradford let Eddy escape alive."
In the moment of silence that follows, I pull Huey back towards me. The hurt from knowing my husband is dead mixes with a strange joy- the joy that I wasn't truly abandoned.
Well, in a way, Eddy isn't dead. I look at Huey, then catch myself. No, Eddy is definitely dead. Huey is similar to him, but they're not the same person. I'll be alright, though. I may have lost my husband, but I still have my sons- all three of them. And that's enough for me.