by: Zebeckras
'Twas the day before Christmas. More specifically, 'twas
11:15 a.m., the morning before Christmas. Launchpad was holding
the ladder that Drake was standing on as he put up many a strand
of lights on the outside of the house. "Steady, LP... Steady...,"
he said carefully as he leaned over the side of the ladder to
attach one last part on the edge of the house.
"No problemo, DW!" said Launchpad, looking up at him. The
ladder was shaking just a tad, but Launchpad had a good handle on
it.
Honker came up the walk and approached him cautiously. "Um,
good morning Launchpad."
Launchpad turned and favoured him with a big friendly grin.
"Hey, Honkman! Merry Christmas Eve! Hey, DW," he called up to
Drake, "Honker's here!"
"Yeah, great, hi Honker," Drake called down. Tensely, he
repeated, "Now could you please hold the ladder steady, LP?"
"You got it!" said Launchpad, and saluted. He managed to
grab the ladder again before it did much more than wobble once or
twice. Drake mumbled something unintelligible and glared at him
for a moment before carefully turning back to the roof.
"Um, is it really safe for him to be up there?" asked Honker,
his brow furrowed.
"Aw, yeah, don't worry! He does this all the time! He's got
a great sense of balance!" said Launchpad. He took a hand off of
the ladder and patted Honker on the back reassuringly. The ladder
started shaking violently. Drake cried out, dropped the strand of
lights, and clung to the ladder. This action caused it to shake
more, and even though Launchpad quickly grabbed it again, Drake
had lost his footing on it and was hanging from a rung in less
than a second.
Honker gasped, not sure whether to help steady the ladder or
duck in case something larger- specifically, Drake himself- fell.
Launchpad held the ladder very, very steady until Drake managed to
get one foot back onto the ladder, and then the other. He
breathed a sigh of relief, then glared down at them. "Honker, I
think you'd better go inside. Launchpad, hold on to the ladder,
I'm coming down."
"How come, DW? You're not done yet, are you?"
Drake spoke as he made his way down. "No, I'm not. But I
need to get that string of lights that I dropped." He stepped
off, and picked up an extra string from the box near him. "And
before I do THAT," he said, "I'm going to do THIS." With that, he
tied it around Launchpad's hands, firmly anchoring them to the
ladder. "Honker, go in," he repeated.
"Yes, sir." Honker nodded obediently and went for the door.
"And check on Gos while you're in there," said Drake. "I
tried to booby-trap the place, but she has a tendency to get into
trouble even when there's no way she could."
"That's for sure," Honker said, half to himself, as he opened
the door. He stood watching for another moment as Drake
reascended the ladder, then shook his head and went inside. He
sure hoped nothing bad came of this... Mr. Mallard may have been a
good superhero, but even Honker's father knew his way around the
average suburban rooftop better.
When he entered the living room, Honker wasn't especially
surprised to find himself alone. Gosalyn always got a little
overeager on Christmas Eve; there was a good chance that she was
present-hunting at the moment. Out of a stronger desire for
company than for gifts, he called "Gosalyn?"
He was startled when her voice answered from somewhere in the
room. "That you, Honk? Is Dad still out there hanging from the
rain gutters?"
Honker looked around the room, puzzled. She SOUNDED like she
was right in front of him, but there was no sign of her! "Um...
yeah... He looks like he's gonna fall any minute now."
"I keep telling him, a large percentage of deaths occur in
the home," sighed Gosalyn's voice.
He glanced briefly at the pile of presents next to the
Christmas tree, and in a flash he identified the source.
"Gosalyn...? Are you... um... IN the presents?"
"I just... like the FEEL of them," sighed Gosalyn as she
reluctantly climbed out of the pile. "Anyway, there's no use
worrying about Dad now. He's not going to give up until he's
satisfied that his decorations can out-do the ones from your
family, Honk."
Honker was a little shocked; his father took a no-holds-
barred approach to holiday decorating, subscribing to the opinion
that more lights equaled more festive holiday joy. Year after
year, Honker managed to not mention how the amount of lights on
the outside of the house kept him awake nights. "Trying to OUT-DO
my dad's decorations?" he sputtered. "Um... Gosalyn, has he SEEN
them this year?"
Gosalyn nodded solemnly. "Yep. Last night he said something
about how Darkwing Duck was a master of decorative drama, and that
he was going to win the neighbourhood lights contest."
"But-"
"I know, Honk, but try telling him that!" Gosalyn shrugged.
"Like I said, there's no point in arguing now... he's got his
heart set on winning and only losing is going to convince him
otherwise."
From the window, Honker could see a huge box of Christmas
lights sitting on the lawn. He realized that Drake was going to
be pushing the limits of good taste every bit as far as his father
did... maybe even farther. "Is he really going to use ALL of
those?"
"That's the plan," said Gosalyn, nodding.
"Gee. Maybe he'll win after all. I'd hate to see the
electric bill, though."
Gosalyn grinned. "Hey, for once, it wouldn't be my fault!"
She flopped onto the couch and turned on the TV. "So, Honk,
what's up?"
"Um, nothing really," said Honker, as he took a seat next to
her. "Mom's cooking and Dad's decorating the tree, so I thought
I'd better get out of the house."
"No one to occupy Tank's attention, huh?" Honker nodded, and
Gosalyn gave him a sympathetic pat on his shoulder. "Well, you're
always welcome here, Honk! If you need something to do, you can
come with us when we go to the mall!"
"Your dad's going to the mall today? Isn't that a little...
uh... hectic?"
Gosalyn rolled her eyes at the thought of her father's
carelessness. "Yeah, but he never finishes his shopping on time.
Then he always says 'I'm sure everyone else will have finished by
now, and the mall will be fine!' You'd think after last year he'd
have learned, but he's kind of dumb that way."
The door opened then, and Drake limped in. "Gee, I'm sorry,
DW," said Launchpad, coming in behind him. "I really did try to
hold the ladder steady, but the newspaper hit me in the back of
the head, and--"
"Let's just forget it, LP," said Drake through gritted teeth.
"We'll finish decorating later. Why don't we try something safer
now, like facing the galloping hordes of last-minute shoppers at
the mall?"
Gosalyn bounced up from her seat. "You call that safer,
Dad?"
Drake sighed with exasperation. "Oh, come on, Gosalyn. I
was joking. I'm sure that THIS year, most people will have all
their shopping done by now! The mall will be fine."
**
"It's a MAAAAADHOUSE!" yelled Drake, standing in one of the
few spots in the shopping center that wasn't overcrowded.
Launchpad, Gosalyn, and Honker stood around him, sticking together
to keep from getting lost. "Boy, I can't BELIEVE how many people
were lazy enough to put this off until the last moment!"
"Well put, Dad," said Gosalyn sarcastically.
Realizing what he had said, Drake sputtered for a moment
before replying, "W-well, I mean, I guess a few people might have
simply had too much to do up until now, or... something- ANYWAY,
that's not what I meant!"
Gosalyn shook her head, smiling. "Whatever..."
Drake very unsubtly ignored his daughter. "So, fellow
shoppers, where should we head?"
"Well-" Honker began.
"Toy store!" yelled Gosalyn.
"There's no need for us to go to the toy store, Gos," said
Drake.
Gosalyn deflated. "There's NOT?"
Launchpad did the same. "But, DW... Isn't there maybe
SOMETHIN' we might wanna look at there?"
"No! Any and all shopping that might have needed to be based
in a toy store is done with now!"
Honker spoke again. "I thought-"
"Okay, sporting goods store, then."
Drake gave a loud sigh. "Gosalyn, we're not going any place
that's going to be that crowded!"
Edging closer to his friends as the shoppers pushed their way
past him, Launchpad said, "Whatever we do, can we get outta the
center of the mall first?"
"Maybe-"
"I think Launchpad's right, Dad. I'm getting stepped on."
"Launchpad does have a point," said Drake. "All together,
let's go over to that bench and talk this over." Honker sighed
quietly and waited for another break in the conversation.
After plopping herself onto the bench, Gosalyn said, "So, toy
store now, right?"
"Nice try." Drake looked amused, and ruffled his daughter's
hair.
"You guys-"
Obviously not hearing him, Drake continued, "I was thinking-"
"Dad!" Gosalyn had on an indignant expression. "Honker was
trying to say something, and you cut him off!" She patted
Honker's shoulder. "Go ahead, Honk."
Honker smiled; she may have been in her own little world, but
at least it was an entertaining one. "I'd like to go to the
Learnatorium, please, Mr. Mallard. It has some educational toys,
as well as some really nice microscopes."
Drake's impatience at being interrupted evaporated.
"Educational, eh? Sounds good! Then I need to go someplace where
I can find a tie tack and socks. Anybody else need anything?"
Gosalyn was busy pouting. "Educational toys? That's a
contradiction!"
"I gotta pick up some goggles, DW," said Launchpad. "But I
can get those in any flight supplies store, so it won't be too
hard."
"Uh... right, LP."
With that, the four set off for the Learnatorium, keeping an
eye out for a flight supplies store just in case.
The display windows of the store were filled with science
games, telescopes, and glow-in-the-dark planets. Drake looked
impressed. "Hey! I just might have to do next year's shopping
for you here, Gos!" he said.
Scowling, Gosalyn retorted, "Ha. Ha. That's a cruel joke,
Dad. This place looks like it doesn't know the meaning of the
word 'fun'." She looked at the shelves as they walked in, noting
the abundance of "Do-it-yourself" kits and brainteaser puzzles.
"I bet this place doesn't even have Whiffle Boy." Turning to
Honker, her sarcasm was detained as she noticed the way his face
was lit up. She smiled quietly; if he liked the place, it
couldn't have been all bad. But it sure wasn't her style!
"Wow! They have the latest 100x power microscope, Gosalyn!
This is just what I want for Christmas! I told my Mom and Dad
that I wanted it, but I'm not sure if they knew I meant this one.
I hope so, though, because this one has a better lamp than any of
the others in its line!"
Gosalyn wasn't sure when she remembered hearing Honker say so
much in one sentence. She looked around for her father and saw
him peering at the Math & Science CD-Roms. 'Oh, no! Anything but
that!' she prayed silently, and let out a breath of air as he
turned away from them and started looking at a rack of test tubes.
At least it was better than *learning*... With a chemistry set
she could maybe blow something up. She spotted Launchpad across
the store, working intently on a Rubik's Cube. He looked utterly
mystified by it.
When she turned back to Honker, he was no longer there.
"Honk? Where'd you go?"
"Over here!" he called, and she saw him waving from another
aisle. "Look at this!"
Certain that it was nothing she had any real interest in
seeing, she joined him. "What is it? One of those books about
stuff you can't see without a really big telescope?"
"No, it's a kit!" He held a box out to her, smiling
cautiously. "I, um, thought you might like it. It's a kit to
make your own volcano."
"Keen GEAR!" Gosalyn cried, grabbing the kit. Looking it
over, she found that it even came with the exact ingredients to
make the volcano erupt. So there WAS something in this store that
could interest her!
As if picking up on her thoughts, Honker said, "See, Gosalyn?
Sometimes science can be fun."
Gosalyn nodded. "Yeah, this is great! I can be a Volcano
God and demand sacrifices! Wait here, I'll be right back." With
that, she ran off to find her father.
Drake, meanwhile, was trying to be patient with Launchpad.
"No, LP, turn it to the left. No, your other left!! Okay, now
twist the middle a little and you should have a side."
Launchpad followed Drake's instructions. "Hey, you're right,
DW! It is a side! But, uh, aren't all the colours supposed to be
the same?"
Drake ground his teeth together. "ARGH!!! Who MAKES these
things!? Nobody can do them anyway! Come on, LP, just get a yo-
yo."
"Dad! Look what Honker showed me!" Gosalyn ran up,
waving the volcano kit. "Can I get this?"
"Oh, I don't know, Gosalyn," said Drake, looking at the price
tag. "It's awfully expensive."
Gosalyn pouted. "But I *need* it! It's educational!!
Daaaaa-aaaad, come on!"
This succeeded only in getting Drake to put his stern face
on. "And when has whining ever convinced me, little Missy?
Definitely not now." He took her by the hand and returned the box
to its place on the shelf. "I think we've spent enough time here.
Where's Honker?"
Gosalyn looked around. "That's funny... I left him in this
aisle."
"There he is, at the counter." Launchpad pointed to where
Honker was just grabbing his bag and receipt.
"Let's get going," said Drake. They met Honker on their way
out of the store.
"He said I couldn't get it," Gosalyn muttered to Honker.
"Oh... um, that's too bad. But, don't worry. Maybe Santa
Claus will get it for you," Honker said.
Gosalyn eyed the bag he held tightly. "So, what'd you get?"
Honker held it closer to himself. "Um, well, I -um- had to
get some stuff. For Tank. Mostly."
He was such a bad liar. Gosalyn smiled. "Well, that's cool.
I don't know what Tank would like from there, though. Hey, Dad,
NOW can we go to the toy store?"
Drake sighed. "Gosalyn, we have a bunch of other places to
go! Besides, that place was full of toys!"
"I mean REAL toys, Dad."
Launchpad said, "I can take Gos and Honker, DW. I've got all
my shopping done already anyway."
"Great, thanks, LP. I'll meet you at the store then." He
waved to them as he departed from the group. Then, after making
sure that they couldn't see where he was headed, he ducked back
into the Learnatorium for a few last-minute gift purchases.
An hour or so later, Drake emerged from the toy store,
grumbling to himself. Gosalyn, Honker, and Launchpad followed him
closely. Gosalyn was the first to speak. "Come on, Dad, show a
little holiday spirit. They didn't make you pay for the damages!"
"No, but I'm starting to run out of stores that you're not
banned from, Gosalyn!" her father retorted. "Can't you *try* to
keep the destruction to a minimum in public?"
Honker timidly spoke. "Um... Sorry, Mr. Mallard."
"It wasn't Honker's fault at all, Dad," Gosalyn said
immediately. "He was only using the water guns 'cause I was."
"B-but I, um, I should have known better," Honker
volunteered.
"I shoulda known better too," Launchpad said seriously. "I
mean, just 'cause I didn't see any signs that said 'display only'
doesn't mean we can use 'em in the store, I guess."
Drake remained silent.
"...Hey, DW? You okay?"
"Dad, it really wasn't Launchpad's fault either. I suggested
it, and I was the one who said there were no signs... Dad? Are
you okay? You're shaking!" Gosalyn sped up to step around to her
father's front, and viewed him face-to-face. A little startled,
she said, "He's laughing!"
Launchpad and Honker both rushed to face Drake, who could now
no longer hold in his laughter. After laughing so hard he ended
up gasping for breath, Drake wiped tears from his eyes. "Just the
thought... of Honker suggesting that you guys s-start a water
fight..." He dissolved into giggles for a moment again. "Or...
the image of Launchpad involved- I didn't know you were in on it,
LP!" He snorted loudly and doubled over into laughter. The
others gave each other puzzled looks, then shrugged and started
laughing as well. "Ah, heck," said Drake between laughs. "It's
Ch-christmas... what's the season without a little good cheer?"
As they were going out the door, Drake froze, all traces of
laughter suddenly gone. "Hold it! Look at that!" He pointed at
a large decorations display, or rather, he pointed at the person
standing next to the display. The person in question being a
large, unkempt-looking rat. A rat whose sparse hair stuck out at
odd angles, and who wore a large plug on his head like a hat.
"Come on, you can't possibly be enjoying it here," Megavolt
was saying to the multitude of lights hanging on the display.
"Are they even paying you for this? You poor, overworked babies!
This is an outrage!" Sparks started to fly from the battery on
his back, much to the alarm of several bystanders. "It's my duty
as a concerned citizen to free the lights from their holiday
slavery!"
"I don't think so, Sparky!" said a voice from behind him.
"DON'T CALL ME SPARKY!" shrieked a predictably irritated
Megavolt, as he whirled around. There was no one there. He
looked puzzled for a moment, and checked the soles of each of his
feet in turn before shrugging and chalking it up to too much egg
nog. When he turned around again, however, Darkwing Duck was
standing calmly in front of him.
"Calm down, Megs! Just be chilly, wouldja?" he said calmly.
The crowd watching cringed, waiting for the sparks to really
start flying. Their expectations weren't met, however, as
Megavolt's demeanor suddenly changed completely. "Why, Darkwing,
how nice to see you this afternoon! And a very merry one to
you..." said Megavolt, and he bowed low and then simply left,
without another word.
"Well, that was weird," said Darkwing, taking off his hat to
scratch his head.
**
"Whoo!" said Drake as he and the others entered the house.
"Is is just me, or has it gotten colder outside since we got
back?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot! On the news they said we're supposed to
get a snow storm tonight!" said Launchpad.
Gosalyn's face lit up. "A snow storm! Cool beans, it's
sledding time!!" Suddenly she grimaced. "D'oh! Vacation JUST
started... We never get days off from school!"
"I better get home," Honker said, clutching the bag with his
purchases close to his chest. "My parents probably noticed I'm
gone by now, and they like us to all help make dinner together."
"Okay! See you soon, Honker!"
Drake patted him on the back. "Have a merry Christmas,
Honker," he said, and Lauchpad echoed the sentiment. Honker gave
them a happy smile, and went home for the evening.
With most of the days' chores taken care of, Drake went back
to setting up the lights. Compared to his earlier efforts, for
some reason it took a very brief amount of time to string the
remainder. Once he had finished that, he attached many a glowing
reindeer to the roof. By that time, several storm clouds were
gathering overhead. Drake stepped back to look at his work-
unfortunately forgetting that he was on the roof. Once Launchpad
had carried him in to the sofa, he relaxed and let his injuries
heal. "Well-" he said in a tense voice, "At least there's no WAY
the Muddlefoots can beat me THIS time!"
"I'll start dinner while you're resting, DW," said Launchpad.
Drake and Gosalyn gave each other a look, then Drake jumped up
from the couch.
"No, I'm fine, Launchpad, I'm fine! I'll cook!" he yelled,
experiencing a miraculous (and very sudden) recovery, and ran for
the kitchen.
Alone in the living room, Gosalyn sat tensely on the couch.
"I can wait for sixteen hours," she told herself. "I don't have
to know what's in those boxes yet..." Unbidden, her hand reached
for the gifts under the tree. "No! No!" she said, holding her
wrist tightly and trying to divert it. "Must... control... self!"
She lost her battle of wills and grabbed the wrapping paper of
one of the gifts just as her father came back into the room.
"Gosalyn!" he gasped, and she dropped the gift like a shot.
"I wasn't doing anything!" she said innocently. "I mean, the
bow was lopsided, I was just fixing it!"
"Uh...huh. Sweetie, why don't you come into the kitchen with
Daddy? We'll make a salad together, like the Muddlefoots do!" As
Gosalyn reluctantly walked past him to the kitchen, he muttered,
"I never thought I'd *willingly* take a cue from the
Muddlefoots..."
***
"Sheesh, Dad, grilled cheese for dinner? Can you get much
more basic??" Gosalyn griped.
"Really, Gos. We're having a big dinner tomorrow, so dinner
on Christmas Eve doesn't have to be fancy!" Drake answered.
"Besides," said Launchpad, "he makes 'em with two kinds of
cheeses! Cheddar AND swiss! That's not so simple, Gos!" He
smiled, and stirred the glasses of chocolate milk he was fixing.
Drake looked smug. "That's right! So you just go back to
tossing that salad, little Missy!" he teased, and started humming
as he flipped the sandwiches.
It wasn't long before they sat down to eat. They were midway
through the meal when they heard very distinct noises on the roof.
"Santa's a little early tonight," said Gosalyn.
"Or else... something's afoot!" said Drake. He grabbed his
gas gun and said, "Let's... get... protective!"
Outside, on the roof, it was snowing moderately. Megavolt
was able to see the Muddlefoot's house from where he was standing,
and looked at it with an expression of indecisiveness. "Hmmm,
which house is tackier, that one or this one? Darn it, why do so
many people have to overdo their Christmas decorations every year?
It would be so much easier if I could just work in descending
order...! Oh well, might as well stick with this one, as long as
I'm here." He reached down and picked up a strand of red, yellow,
orange, blue, and green lights that were sporadically blinking on
and off. "Come on, little buddies! This year, Christmas will be
OURS!" he exclaimed. He threw back his head and laughed, then
gave a great yank on the strand, unplugging it. Every single
light bulb entwining the house instantly went dark.
Behind Megavolt, a trademark puff of blue smoke spread
through the snow-filled air. Darkwing's disembodied voice
announced, "I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the one
bulb that makes all the others go out! I... am Darkwing Duck!"
"Well, Ho-ho-ho! THIS is sure a surprise! Let me give you a
little Christmas present, Darkwing!" said Megavolt, obviously not
in the same forgiving mood he'd been in earlier. He fired an
electrical bolt at his enemy.
Fortunately, Darkwing expected this. After all, years of
battle with the same enemies gave you a little forethought into
their usual attacks. He dodged to the right as the bolt was
fired, and it passed right by his head. Not so fortunately,
however, the snow had plunged the roof into a terribly slippery
state, and after dodging, Darkwing then lost his balance and had
to grab the chimney to prevent a fall. He wondered how many times
he had come close to falling, or actually had fallen, from the
roof that day altogether. Megavolt found the situation
uproariously funny. "Hah! Just can't wait for Santa Claus to get
here, Dripwing?"
Below, Darkwing's family watched. Gosalyn, being short, had
some trouble seeing the rooftop fight, so Launchpad had lifted her
up onto his shoulders. From up there, she managed to keep most of
the snow out of his eyes, as well.
Launchpad scratched his head. "Gee, what's the point of
trying to free colored light bulbs? We only use them once a year,
it's not like we overwork them!"
"I guess that's just not the way Megavolt thinks," said
Gosalyn.
Meanwhile, Darkwing was able to gain some footing on the
roof. With that accomplished, he swung himself upwards, spouting
a quack-fu noise as he went. He landed and balanced himself
perfectly on the roof, then proceeded to slip a second time. As
he fell, he grabbed Megavolt's legs, pulling him down as well.
Both combatants stopped and caught their breath. "Well. This is
a very interesting situation," said Darkwing, his hands
desperately clutching Megavolt's ankles for support.
"You might say that," Megavolt answered from the other side
of the roof. "You do realize I could zap you right now, and you'd
fall."
Darkwing's breath caught. "True. But you'd fall, too, as
soon as I let go."
Megavolt considered this. "Point."
"On the other hand, we could work out a little compromise- I
let you go, just for tonight, since it's Christmas Eve and all...
as long as you promise to go straight home."
"That's conceivable too. But, how would you be sure I would
go straight home? After all, I'm a villain, and we rarely keep
our promises." Having made this point, Megavolt crossed his arms
in front of his chest and chuckled.
"Uh..." Darkwing thought for a moment, then shrugged.
"Fine, if you're going to be that way about it." He let go of
Megavolt's legs suddenly, then scrambled until he found purchase
in the roof. Pulling himself upright, he watched as Megavolt slid
screaming off the edge and landed with a thud on the ground.
"Ooh. That must have hurt. Well, adios, Sparky!"
Lying in a crumpled heap on the snow, Megavolt managed to
mutter, "Don't... call... me... Sparky..."
Darkwing climbed down from the roof, but not before grasping
the string of lights that had come unplugged and proudly plugging
it back in. The house was once again lit up brilliantly. Gosalyn
gave her father a pat on the back once he got down, then went in.
Launchpad stayed outside with Darkwing for awhile, looking at the
lights. "They sure are nice, DW," he said.
"Yep, yep, yep... Darkwing Duck is a sheer maestro at
decorations!" He heard voices from behind them. Peering through
the wall of snow, he could make out four figures coming towards
the house. "LP! It's the Muddlefoots!" he hissed, and dragged
his sidekick inside.
There was a knock on the door just as Darkwing was changing
out of his costume and into his "Drake Mallard" clothes.
"Launchpad! Stall them!" he said, and ran upstairs. Once he was
out of sight, Launchpad pulled the door open.
"Howdy, neighbors!" said Herb Muddlefoot, wearing a Santa
Claus hat. "Is Drake in?"
"I baked you some cookies!" said Binkie cheerfully. She held
them out to Launchpad, who took them eagerly.
Tank pushed his way past Launchpad, growling "Make way,
dorkface!", and settled onto the couch. Honker followed him,
pausing momentarily to greet Launchpad.
"Er, Drake's upstairs. He'll be down in a minute," said
Launchpad. He ate one of Binkie's cookies. "These are great! I
like the M&M's in 'em!" he said, with his mouth full.
"Why, thank you, Launchpad! It's an old family recipe!" she
said, waving a hand in front of her as if to bat the compliment
away.
Herb took a handful of the cookies, and called jovially up
the stairs. "Hey, Drake-meister! Company callin'! Ho-ho-ho an'
stuff, y'know?"
"Coming, Herb!" Drake yelled back down. He sounded as if he
was barely restraining himself from being rude- which wasn't
unusual when he dealt with the Muddlefoots.
Gosalyn came out from the kitchen. "Hey again, Honk!" she
yelled, and ran up to him. "Hi, Tank," she added in a lifeless
voice. Tank grunted some sort of reply. "So Honker, didja bring
me anything?"
"Um... My mom brought cookies," said Honker, gesturing at the
plate that Launchpad was holding, and which Herb was eating freely
from. It was only about half full now. "And, um, this is, um,
for you." He handed her a small, perfectly-wrapped package with a
bow stuck on the top.
"All right! You're too cool, Honker!" She tore into it
without hesitation, then held the gift up. "Are these
binoculars?? Keen gear, Honker! These are great!"
Honker smiled. "I thought you could use them to, um, look at
birds and stuff. Or at sports games when you can't see the
players."
"Or for spying! I could help out Da- I mean Darkwing! Hey, I
can look into St. Canard's seamy underbelly!" She laughed, then
reached to the coffee table and grabbed a crumpled-up package.
Handing it to Honker, she said, "Okay, I know this isn't a
microscope, but it's the best I could do."
Beaming, Honker picked at the tape, trying to open the
package carefully. Gosalyn gave a noisy sigh, so Honker gave up
and ripped the corner until he could pull the gift out.
He wasn't sure what it was at first. Gosalyn, smiling, said,
"Do you like it? It's a Rubik's puzzle snake. It's supposed to
be able to twist into a bunch of different shapes, but I like the
snake the best. Anyway, i thought you might like it 'cause it's
kind of a thinker's toy. At least that's what it says on the
box."
"Wow, thanks, Gosalyn!" Honker peered at the toy. "I can
think of five different variations so far, even when it's just in
the package!!"
Drake came down the stairs. "Hello, Herb, Binkie. Nice to
see you." His politeness struck everyone as very strained.
Everyone except the Muddlefoots, of course.
"You, too, Drake-a-roonie! The whole clan of us just hadda
drop on by and say 'Merry Christmas'! Y'know, that's a pretty
nice display you got out there," said Herb.
Drake looked proud. "Yes... I know," he said.
"It mighta even won out over mine!"
"'Mighta'? I mean, 'might have'?" Drake suddenly seemed to
deflate.
Herb looked at him sympathetically. "The judgin' was ten
minutes ago! They looked outta their windows and judged the
lights they could see through the snow-- I won 'cause your lights
weren't on!" he said, making no particular attempt to be gentle.
He chuckled a bit, full of good humour and obviously not the least
bit aware of Drake's disappointment. "Hard luck, huh, Drakester.
Heck, if I'd'a known you just had 'em off, I'd'a made the judges
wait a while and told you to turn 'em on! Oh, well, there's
always next year!" he said. He ate a few more cookies, much to
Launchpad's dismay, then signaled to his sons. "Well, we oughta
be gettin' back. I just wanted ta stop in and wish you a happy
holiday!"
"Next year..." Drake said vaguely.
Herb laughed. "That's right, I almost forgot! Happy new
year, too! Well, come on, kids, let's move on out!" Herb and
Binkie started out the door. Honker waved goodbye to Gosalyn and
followed his parents. Tank pushed Launchpad and Drake out of his
way, grabbed what cookies were left on the plate, and followed the
rest of his family.
Drake was speechless as Launchpad shut the door, and he
remained speechless for several minutes more.
*****
Story copyright R. Littlehales, 1998. Characters are owned by the
Walt Disney Co. and are used without permission. No infringement
of their rights was intended with this writing. This story may
not be archived or distributed without my permission, nor may it
be copied, or sold. If either of those are done I will get
extremely vexed with you. From the Stuff You Probably Knew
Already Department: this story takes place one year after "It's a
Wonderful Leaf", so Gos is ten, etc. Stuff like that. Don't you
kind of miss Bushroot in this story though? I do...
