iâm sure this has been done before but iâm new to the fandom so here u go anyway!!Â
 (the weird lighting is because Launchpad is supposed to be watching TV, if thatâs not clear. I couldnât figure out how to add the actual unit in the shot WELP)
I canât wait for more Darkwing and Gizmo interactions! I love the idea of a completely one-sided rivalry. Or one finding out the otherâs secret identity and then them running into each other in public and being like 0.0 Crap I know youâre a super hero! I have so many theories and fun ideas <3 I want to draw them all!
I donât trust those damn vultures. And Frank said âspoilersâ when someone asked about Dellaâs transmissions.
I think they know sheâs alive, but donât want Scrooge to spend the money to get to her.
This isnât a bulletproof theory. We donât know how long it takes for the transmissions to get to earth, and I have no idea how the vultures would get the transmissions and not Scrooge (though we did see them dragging Scrooge away from mission controlâŚ).
so now that we know that the buzzards are F.O.W.L., I have more to add to this theory.
I think they knew Della was alive, but wanted her to stay in the moon to keep Scrooge broken and compliant. Remember the pilot? Scrooge just kind of listened to their proposed budget cuts (all of which were adventure based) and then went home. He had no energy or motivation to argue.
When Della disappeared, Scrooge lost Donald along with her. He became a bitter old recluse. Louie even said:Â âYou used to be a big deal, what ever happened to you?!â
If Della came back, Scrooge would have her back, and there was a chance he and Donald could reconcile, and then there would be three kids in his life to train up to be just like him. Three rambunctious, spirited young kids to propel him back to a life of adventure, where he could be a nuisance for any evil plans. They couldnât have that, now could they?
When Drake wakes up, itâs not slow or gentle; itâs knives on his skin, fire in his bones, and a particularly exuberant jack hammer in his brain.Â
It feels like a normal Tuesday.
Except, when he forces his eyes open, heâs not blinking up at his dark ceiling, his heavy curtains protecting him from the sunâs cheer. Instead, heâs squinting into painful fluorescent lighting, wondering just how hard he hit his head.
âDW! Youâre alive!âÂ
He doesnât jump at the voice, because heâs Darkwing Duck and nothing startles Darkwing Duck.
Itâs also because the rest of his body refuses to move.
âObviously,â Drake mutters, eyelids snapping shut. At the moment, he can only handle one assault on his senses and the voice is loud. âCould you keep it down, please?â
âSorry!â the voice whispers, though even its whispers are loud and stage-like. It repeats, âDW! Youâre alive!â with the same excitement as earlier and Drakeâs headache somehow lessens.
âOf course Iâm alive,â Drake retorts, trying to decide whether to reopen his eyes all at once or one at a time. âIâm Darkwing Duck! A simple...a simple... a simple, uh, what was I fighting again?â
âAliens! An invasion! The moon!â
âRight! The...moon? The moon canât stop me! Iâm Darkwing Duck!â He may have said that already.Â
Itâs fine. It bears repeating.Â
âNothing can stop Darkwing Duck!â the voice agrees with such conviction that Drake decides to rip the band-aid off and get it over with. His eyes pop open and he ignores the fuzzy edges that threaten to overtake his vision, the watery buildup. Launchpad is sitting next to his hospital bed, practically vibrating with a special kind of excitement that Drake is becoming increasingly familiar with.Â
âYouâre not wearing one of those hideous moon outfits. Does that mean we won?â
âWe did! I was a rock!â
Even though it stretches his split beak and makes him want to scream a little, Drake allows himself a smile. Thatâs just so Launchpad. âIâm sure you were very brave for a lot of people.â
âUh, I guess so? I mostly just got fired into a spaceship window. Mr. McD had to dress like Santa, so I think he was the bravest of us all. The sharks in parkas did their part, too, though. Oh! And so did the giant sea bug thing that,â here, Launchpad lifts his hands and begins counting off on his fingers, âDewey, Huey, Louie, Webby, Donald, Della, their cousin Fethry and their cousin Gladstone rode in on.â
One of the reasons Drake lo- likes Launchpad so much is that Launchpad is incapable of being facetious or lying; everything he says is exactly how he experiences it and how he feels. If it were anyone else, Drake would assume he was being fed a story.Â
But since itâs Launchpad, Launchpad is just looking at him earnestly, like everything coming out of his mouth is making sense. Itâs in that moment that Drake realizes heâs still unconscious. He must be.
Especially because, when he shoots his gaze to the side, he notices that Launchpad is holding his hand. Casually. Like itâs a thing they do.Â
âHmm, thatâs nice,â he says. This is a dream he doesnât really want to wake up from.Â
He squeezes Launchpadâs hand a few times, just because he can.
âWhen we were hanging out at your place before the invasion, I wanted to straddle you and kiss you until you forgot how to fly a plane,â he admits, also just because he can.
Launchpad squeaks, turning a delightful shade of pink, and Drake takes pleasure in it. Nothing can go wrong in a coma dream.
âUhhh, jokes on you,â Launchpad chuckles awkwardly, free hand scratching the back of his head and embarrassment still coloring his cheeks, ââcause I forget how to fly a plan all the time.â
Drake smirks, split beak still killing him. Itâs weird that heâs hurting while dreaming.Â
âCute. Anyway, when I wake up from this, Iâm going to ask you out,â he says with the specific brand of confidence he usually reserves for wearing purple. Heâs invincible when heâs Darkwing and heâs (probably) invincible when heâs in a dream.
âWhen you...wait, really??â Launchpadâs face, another thing Drake particularly likes about Launchpad, flickers through several emotions all at once. Â
âYou have to say yes, though. Otherwise Iâm not gonna do it.â
Launchpadâs hand squeezes his own, tight enough that his healing bones might break all over again. Itâs worth it.
âYou got it, DW,â Launchpad says, strangely sincere even for him.Â
Then, all at once, darkness begins to pool at the corners of Drake's vision. Maybe itâs the effects of the drugs bleeding through, or maybe itâs just time for the dream to come to an end. Either way, Drake feels himself succumbing to nothingness and goes willingly.Â
It's okay; something in him thrills at the idea of waking up.