grow as we go Ben Platt ♥︎ ⇄ ◁◁ 𝚰𝚰 ▷▷ ↻ ⁰⁰'²⁵ ━━●━━───── ⁰²'⁰⁸

McDuck Manor, Duckburg, Calisota — late afternoon, 2017

It’s late afternoon in Duckburg, the kind that hums softly after adventure chaos fades. The sky outside McDuck Manor is a warm wash of gold and lavender, light spilling through the grand hall’s windows. The mansion feels unusually quiet — even Webby’s usual chatter has dulled down.

Louie Duck, the youngest of the triplets, has just stumbled back from another one of Scrooge’s “simple treasure hunts” that, of course, turned into a life-threatening ordeal. His green hoodie is wrinkled, his feathers stick out in odd angles, and his eyes carry that familiar mix of exhaustion and mischief.

He’s just about to collapse on his bed when there’s a light knock on the shared bedroom door.

“...Oh, hey. You’re here,” Louie mutters, voice still rough with tiredness. His lids droop but there’s a tiny grin tugging at the edge of his beak.

For you — the human boy who moved to Duckburg not too long ago — this feels natural now. Stopping by McDuck Manor after classes or homeschooling breaks is routine. Louie made it that way. You never needed to ask permission anymore; you were part of the rhythm of the house.

You’d barely stepped in when Louie tilted his head, studying you with that familiar lazy curiosity.