Joint Connection
Saturday, 7 March 2020 21:15![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
walkyourownwayTitle: Joint Connection
Fandom: DuckTales (2017)
Main Character(s): Della Duck, Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera
Minor Character(s): Hubert "Huey" Duck
Genre: General, pre-romance(?)
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: DuckTales © Disney
Notes: Post "Moonvasion!". This was a commission from![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
toonish, who asked for a Della/Fenton fic with them bonding over Della's mechanical leg.
Summary: It can take a bit of work, but eventually the pieces fall into place.
So what do you do after saving the entire world from an alien invasion?
You throw a victory party at your uncle’s gigantic mansion, of course.
And it was a good thing that the party was at the mansion, too; even though the invitation was extended to just the people who had helped during the invasion, it was still a pretty impressive turnout. Della can’t remember the last time she had seen the place so full.
Figures from the past being displaced in time notwithstanding.
With the party in full swing, one might be a bit surprised that Della is off to the side, observing instead of engaging. And while she is planning to mingle eventually – there were plenty of faces she still hasn’t seen since returning to Earth, and she’s eager to reconnect with them – she is also beginning to appreciate stepping back sometimes and just taking things in.
...okay, now she’s getting bored.
But just as she was about to go see where Penny had wandered off to (and hoping her best friend wasn’t too overwhelmed with experiencing her first Earth party), Della pauses mid-step when she hears one of her boys calling out to her.
“Mom! Hey, Mom!”
As she turns in the direction of the voice, she watches as Huey drags a rather flustered-looking young man through the crowd and over to her, despite his apparent protests.
“Mom, this is Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera,” Huey announces, gesturing to the tan duck. Then, with an eager grin, he turns to Fenton and says, “Fenton, this is my mother, Della Duck.”
Della can’t help the swell of pride she feels at hearing those words – his mother – especially as she can just make out the satisfaction Huey seems to have in getting to say them.
Fenton fiddles with the strap of his duffle bag for a bit before extending his hand and reaching out for hers. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Duck,” he said in a bit of a rush.
She can’t help the face she makes even as she shakes his hand. “Just Della is fine,” she corrects him. “I’m not married.”
That seems to send the poor guy into even more of a panic. “O-Oh! Of course, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to assume – !”
Huey suddenly clears his throat loudly, and Della briefly wonders if it had been to purposefully interrupt Fenton’s train of thought. “Mom, Fenton is a scientist, and works for Uncle Scrooge in his research department.”
Della considers this for a moment. That could explain why Fenton is here at the party, since she can’t remember seeing him helping out during the invasion. Then again, there had been quite a few people, and with everything happening it’s possible that she had just missed him.
...although…
“So you must work with Gyro then, huh?” she eventually asks.
Fenton nods. “That’s right. I started on as his intern, actually.”
The face Della makes this time is more intentional. “You have my deepest sympathies.”
That gets a surprised laugh from Fenton, and he seems to relax a bit. “It isn’t all that bad,” he informs her with a shrug. “I think Dr. Gearloose is finally starting to really consider my ideas.”
“Yeah?” She glances across the room to where she had last seen Gyro, though she isn’t even sure if he was still there. “Well if that’s the case, you must be good.”
Fenton smiles, and it’s a look that lies somewhere between pride and sheepishness. “Thanks! I try my best.”
Della nods, though she’s only half listening at this point. Vaguely she’s aware of Huey wandering off, his attention called away by one of the other kids, and with him gone, she decides to excuse herself as well before this meeting gets too awkward. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Fenton –”
“Oh wow!” he suddenly exclaims just as she takes a step back. “Is your leg robotic?”
Blinking in surprise, Della glances down at her leg. “I wouldn’t exactly call it robotic. It’s just a metal leg.”
“Ha! ‘Just’ metal!” Fenton scoffs as he kneels down to get a better look at it. “A regular metal leg wouldn’t have such fine points of articulation. This was pretty well made.”
She can’t help a grin at that. “Well, thanks.”
He nods, though seems distracted as he pulls a small notebook and pen from his duffle bag to begin jotting things down. “Y’know, I bet with a lot of tweaking, it could be something really impressive.”
Della’s smile falls, giving way to a bit of annoyance. “Tweaking?” she echoes.
“Yeah! Y’know, just a few modifications to make it more functional.”
“It’s plenty functional, thanks,” Della retorts, already feeling her temperature rising.
Fenton makes a so-so motion with his hand, already lost in his excitement and planning. “It’s all right. I mean, as well as it moves, it’s a pretty basic design. I’m just saying it could be built even better, and maybe even do more.”
Della folds her arms with a huff. “Well maybe ‘basic’ was all I really needed when trying to survive on the moon for ten years and didn’t have access to anything else.”
Fenton looks up sharply, his eyes wide with surprise. “What?”
She takes a step back to keep from kicking him with her ‘basic’ leg. “Oh, and by the way,” she adds, “I’d like to see you rebuild your own leg by yourself after losing it, if you’re so smart.”
His mistake finally seems to dawn on him, and jumps back up on his feet, his hands waving frantically. “Oh no no no no…! I didn’t...I-I mean, I wasn’t trying to imply – ” He falters, then slaps a hand over his face. “Gosh, I’m sorry! Oh, I’m such an idiot!”
Taking a moment to count to ten, Della then releases a slow breath, already feeling the anger receding. “No, it’s okay,” she finally says after a long pause. “You wouldn’t have known. It’s not your fault.”
Fenton continues to stare at her, his mouth agape and his eyes wide with a mix of confusion and awe. “...you were really stuck on the moon for ten years?”
“...yeah…” she answers slowly, though she really hopes that she won’t have to go into the details of her experience.
Unfortunately, her answer only seems to intrigue him even more. “How did you survive?”
She sighs. “Well...Gyro is a genius,” she admits, though begrudgingly so.
That doesn’t exactly answer his question, though, but he doesn’t seem to mind as he glances down at her leg again. “And you built a replacement leg for yourself? All on your own?”
Della nods.
“That’s…” Fenton flounders for a moment, trying to find the right word. “...incredible! To think, you were able to survive on the moon by yourself for so long, and you were able to build a leg like that! That’s amazing!”
Despite everything, Della feels the familiar sense of pride filling her chest. “Thanks. But didn’t you say it was basic?”
“Well...I mean, yes, maybe a bit,” he confesses. Then he quickly adds, “But I mean, given what you must have had to work with at the time, it’s still really impressive! Especially with its finer points of movement, like I said earlier, and all by yourself! How did you build it?”
Della grins. “Oh, well actually…”
From there, the two spend a better part of the party just talking; Della tells him how she had built her leg, of trying to fix the rocket ship (while leaving out most of the details about the crash), which somehow leads to talk of her career as a pilot and the adventures she’s had with Scrooge and Donald. This in turn opens up to talk about Fenton’s work; the inventions he’s helped with as well as some of his own unique ideas.
At one point, Della can’t help a laugh. “Man, what I wouldn’t have given for a glazed donut spray!” she says. Even now, the taste of black licorice still lingers in the back of her mouth.
Fenton grins brightly. “Hey, if you wanted to check it out, you could come by the lab. I can even show you all the other projects we have in the works.”
Della thinks about this for a moment. What could it hurt? “Sure, why not? It sounds interesting.”
“Great!” There’s a pause, as if he hadn’t expected to get this far. “So, uh...when would be a good time for you?”
“That...is a good question.” Because honestly, she isn’t sure, and she’s also realizing that she lacks a way of communicating with him. She should really get a new phone or something.
Luckily he works for Scrooge anyway, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to reach him. So she answers, “I’ll let you know.” Then her eyes dart down to his duffle bag. “Though I think you’d have a bit more trouble finding free time than I would.”
“Wh-” He looks around nervously, tugging at his collar. “Wh-What d’you mean? What makes you say that?”
“I mean…” She pauses, realizing for the first time that maybe not everyone at the party knows. “I just figured you’d be kinda busy with...you know…” She gestures to the duffle bag.
Fenton chokes. “How did you know?”
Della laughs. “He’s the only one who didn’t show up at the party, so I took a guess.”
With a dramatic sigh, Fenton picks up his little black notebook and quickly jots something down. “Just please don’t tell anyone. I mean, aside from Huey and your uncle, because they already know...oh, and actually, so does Launchpad...and Dewey...and -”
“Wow, not too good at the whole ‘secret identity’ thing, huh?” She bites back another laugh at the exasperated look he gives her. “I won’t tell anyone. Scout’s honor.”
Satisfied, Fenton nods. “Thank you.”
“Sure.” She’s suddenly aware of the awkward feeling hanging over them, and she can see that he’s realized it too, but neither of them are sure where it came from. Eventually she clears her throat and says, “So, uh...once I figure out some things, I’ll let you know. And...I guess I’ll see you around.”
“O-Oh, yeah! That sounds good.” Rubbing the back of his neck, he manages an awkward smile. “It was nice meeting you, Della.”
“Nice meeting you too…” And, because she can’t help herself, she adds as she steps away, “Gizmoduck.”
She can’t help another laugh as Fenton groans a bit.
With another sigh, Fenton starts to put his notebook back in his bag when he realizes that Huey is standing nearby, looking at him with a...peculiar expression on his face.
“What?” he asks, unable to keep the suspicion from his voice.
“Did you just ask my mom out on a date?” the young duck asks eagerly.
“What? No! It’s not a date, it - !” Fenton freezes, the words dying in his beak. He had thought the whole exchange with Della had been familiar, but he couldn’t remember why until now, right down to this very denial.
And if it is the same as before, then he had just...
“...Oh blathering-”
Fandom: DuckTales (2017)
Main Character(s): Della Duck, Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera
Minor Character(s): Hubert "Huey" Duck
Genre: General, pre-romance(?)
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: DuckTales © Disney
Notes: Post "Moonvasion!". This was a commission from
Summary: It can take a bit of work, but eventually the pieces fall into place.
So what do you do after saving the entire world from an alien invasion?
You throw a victory party at your uncle’s gigantic mansion, of course.
And it was a good thing that the party was at the mansion, too; even though the invitation was extended to just the people who had helped during the invasion, it was still a pretty impressive turnout. Della can’t remember the last time she had seen the place so full.
Figures from the past being displaced in time notwithstanding.
With the party in full swing, one might be a bit surprised that Della is off to the side, observing instead of engaging. And while she is planning to mingle eventually – there were plenty of faces she still hasn’t seen since returning to Earth, and she’s eager to reconnect with them – she is also beginning to appreciate stepping back sometimes and just taking things in.
...okay, now she’s getting bored.
But just as she was about to go see where Penny had wandered off to (and hoping her best friend wasn’t too overwhelmed with experiencing her first Earth party), Della pauses mid-step when she hears one of her boys calling out to her.
“Mom! Hey, Mom!”
As she turns in the direction of the voice, she watches as Huey drags a rather flustered-looking young man through the crowd and over to her, despite his apparent protests.
“Mom, this is Fenton Crackshell-Cabrera,” Huey announces, gesturing to the tan duck. Then, with an eager grin, he turns to Fenton and says, “Fenton, this is my mother, Della Duck.”
Della can’t help the swell of pride she feels at hearing those words – his mother – especially as she can just make out the satisfaction Huey seems to have in getting to say them.
Fenton fiddles with the strap of his duffle bag for a bit before extending his hand and reaching out for hers. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Duck,” he said in a bit of a rush.
She can’t help the face she makes even as she shakes his hand. “Just Della is fine,” she corrects him. “I’m not married.”
That seems to send the poor guy into even more of a panic. “O-Oh! Of course, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to assume – !”
Huey suddenly clears his throat loudly, and Della briefly wonders if it had been to purposefully interrupt Fenton’s train of thought. “Mom, Fenton is a scientist, and works for Uncle Scrooge in his research department.”
Della considers this for a moment. That could explain why Fenton is here at the party, since she can’t remember seeing him helping out during the invasion. Then again, there had been quite a few people, and with everything happening it’s possible that she had just missed him.
...although…
“So you must work with Gyro then, huh?” she eventually asks.
Fenton nods. “That’s right. I started on as his intern, actually.”
The face Della makes this time is more intentional. “You have my deepest sympathies.”
That gets a surprised laugh from Fenton, and he seems to relax a bit. “It isn’t all that bad,” he informs her with a shrug. “I think Dr. Gearloose is finally starting to really consider my ideas.”
“Yeah?” She glances across the room to where she had last seen Gyro, though she isn’t even sure if he was still there. “Well if that’s the case, you must be good.”
Fenton smiles, and it’s a look that lies somewhere between pride and sheepishness. “Thanks! I try my best.”
Della nods, though she’s only half listening at this point. Vaguely she’s aware of Huey wandering off, his attention called away by one of the other kids, and with him gone, she decides to excuse herself as well before this meeting gets too awkward. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Fenton –”
“Oh wow!” he suddenly exclaims just as she takes a step back. “Is your leg robotic?”
Blinking in surprise, Della glances down at her leg. “I wouldn’t exactly call it robotic. It’s just a metal leg.”
“Ha! ‘Just’ metal!” Fenton scoffs as he kneels down to get a better look at it. “A regular metal leg wouldn’t have such fine points of articulation. This was pretty well made.”
She can’t help a grin at that. “Well, thanks.”
He nods, though seems distracted as he pulls a small notebook and pen from his duffle bag to begin jotting things down. “Y’know, I bet with a lot of tweaking, it could be something really impressive.”
Della’s smile falls, giving way to a bit of annoyance. “Tweaking?” she echoes.
“Yeah! Y’know, just a few modifications to make it more functional.”
“It’s plenty functional, thanks,” Della retorts, already feeling her temperature rising.
Fenton makes a so-so motion with his hand, already lost in his excitement and planning. “It’s all right. I mean, as well as it moves, it’s a pretty basic design. I’m just saying it could be built even better, and maybe even do more.”
Della folds her arms with a huff. “Well maybe ‘basic’ was all I really needed when trying to survive on the moon for ten years and didn’t have access to anything else.”
Fenton looks up sharply, his eyes wide with surprise. “What?”
She takes a step back to keep from kicking him with her ‘basic’ leg. “Oh, and by the way,” she adds, “I’d like to see you rebuild your own leg by yourself after losing it, if you’re so smart.”
His mistake finally seems to dawn on him, and jumps back up on his feet, his hands waving frantically. “Oh no no no no…! I didn’t...I-I mean, I wasn’t trying to imply – ” He falters, then slaps a hand over his face. “Gosh, I’m sorry! Oh, I’m such an idiot!”
Taking a moment to count to ten, Della then releases a slow breath, already feeling the anger receding. “No, it’s okay,” she finally says after a long pause. “You wouldn’t have known. It’s not your fault.”
Fenton continues to stare at her, his mouth agape and his eyes wide with a mix of confusion and awe. “...you were really stuck on the moon for ten years?”
“...yeah…” she answers slowly, though she really hopes that she won’t have to go into the details of her experience.
Unfortunately, her answer only seems to intrigue him even more. “How did you survive?”
She sighs. “Well...Gyro is a genius,” she admits, though begrudgingly so.
That doesn’t exactly answer his question, though, but he doesn’t seem to mind as he glances down at her leg again. “And you built a replacement leg for yourself? All on your own?”
Della nods.
“That’s…” Fenton flounders for a moment, trying to find the right word. “...incredible! To think, you were able to survive on the moon by yourself for so long, and you were able to build a leg like that! That’s amazing!”
Despite everything, Della feels the familiar sense of pride filling her chest. “Thanks. But didn’t you say it was basic?”
“Well...I mean, yes, maybe a bit,” he confesses. Then he quickly adds, “But I mean, given what you must have had to work with at the time, it’s still really impressive! Especially with its finer points of movement, like I said earlier, and all by yourself! How did you build it?”
Della grins. “Oh, well actually…”
From there, the two spend a better part of the party just talking; Della tells him how she had built her leg, of trying to fix the rocket ship (while leaving out most of the details about the crash), which somehow leads to talk of her career as a pilot and the adventures she’s had with Scrooge and Donald. This in turn opens up to talk about Fenton’s work; the inventions he’s helped with as well as some of his own unique ideas.
At one point, Della can’t help a laugh. “Man, what I wouldn’t have given for a glazed donut spray!” she says. Even now, the taste of black licorice still lingers in the back of her mouth.
Fenton grins brightly. “Hey, if you wanted to check it out, you could come by the lab. I can even show you all the other projects we have in the works.”
Della thinks about this for a moment. What could it hurt? “Sure, why not? It sounds interesting.”
“Great!” There’s a pause, as if he hadn’t expected to get this far. “So, uh...when would be a good time for you?”
“That...is a good question.” Because honestly, she isn’t sure, and she’s also realizing that she lacks a way of communicating with him. She should really get a new phone or something.
Luckily he works for Scrooge anyway, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to reach him. So she answers, “I’ll let you know.” Then her eyes dart down to his duffle bag. “Though I think you’d have a bit more trouble finding free time than I would.”
“Wh-” He looks around nervously, tugging at his collar. “Wh-What d’you mean? What makes you say that?”
“I mean…” She pauses, realizing for the first time that maybe not everyone at the party knows. “I just figured you’d be kinda busy with...you know…” She gestures to the duffle bag.
Fenton chokes. “How did you know?”
Della laughs. “He’s the only one who didn’t show up at the party, so I took a guess.”
With a dramatic sigh, Fenton picks up his little black notebook and quickly jots something down. “Just please don’t tell anyone. I mean, aside from Huey and your uncle, because they already know...oh, and actually, so does Launchpad...and Dewey...and -”
“Wow, not too good at the whole ‘secret identity’ thing, huh?” She bites back another laugh at the exasperated look he gives her. “I won’t tell anyone. Scout’s honor.”
Satisfied, Fenton nods. “Thank you.”
“Sure.” She’s suddenly aware of the awkward feeling hanging over them, and she can see that he’s realized it too, but neither of them are sure where it came from. Eventually she clears her throat and says, “So, uh...once I figure out some things, I’ll let you know. And...I guess I’ll see you around.”
“O-Oh, yeah! That sounds good.” Rubbing the back of his neck, he manages an awkward smile. “It was nice meeting you, Della.”
“Nice meeting you too…” And, because she can’t help herself, she adds as she steps away, “Gizmoduck.”
She can’t help another laugh as Fenton groans a bit.
With another sigh, Fenton starts to put his notebook back in his bag when he realizes that Huey is standing nearby, looking at him with a...peculiar expression on his face.
“What?” he asks, unable to keep the suspicion from his voice.
“Did you just ask my mom out on a date?” the young duck asks eagerly.
“What? No! It’s not a date, it - !” Fenton freezes, the words dying in his beak. He had thought the whole exchange with Della had been familiar, but he couldn’t remember why until now, right down to this very denial.
And if it is the same as before, then he had just...
“...Oh blathering-”
