Work Text:
The boys are six when they first learn about their bond.
It's new, and exciting, and theirs. They can't wait to learn all they can about it. But learning all they can is harder than they thought it would be, especially when it seems nowhere or nobody has the information they need. They are undeterred.
They quickly figure out how their magic works and how it works in relation to each other. Quickly figure out that it's stronger when they're together, and even stronger when something's wrong with one or more of them. Quickly figure out that it's more refined when they're getting along and weaker when they're fighting. Quickly figure out that it's tied to their emotions, and their emotions are more tied together than most people's.
Everything the boys do, everything the boys are- is so intertwined with each other, and their magic only enhances that.
The boys are ten when their bond first shifts.
It's surprising at first, and then it isn't. Their lives are changing, it only makes sense their bond would change with it. It makes the change easier, makes it easier to deal with. Especially since none of them are big fans of change, and this change -in particular- is straining for them. A lot happened, and in such a short time, it gets overwhelming and they can only seek solace in the things that haven't changed.
Their Dad, the houseboat, but mostly each other. They know one another inside and out, upside and down, they could completely forget who they are but still know their brothers. Even if their bond is ever-changing their relationship is not.
They separate from each other more than before, but their bond makes them feel like they're still within five feet of each other.
Sometimes they get lost within themselves.
Sometimes Huey gets so consumed in his need to be in control of everything, or Dewey gets so wrapped up in standing out, in proving himself, or Louie gets overwhelmed by his fears of never being good enough. But they always reach out, and they always feel two tugs back. Huey gets reminded it's okay to let something else take control, Dewey gets reminded that he's loved just how he is, Louie gets reminded he will always be good enough.
The boys are eleven when their bond is tampered with.
It's a weird feeling, and one none of them are too keen to feel again. If they have to explain it they'd say it felt cold, like there was nothing on the other side. It was terrifying, especially since they had no idea it could be tampered with in the first place. It's supposed to be something that's safe, a comfort, and for a while it's neither of those things.
Most of the time it's a good thing, but when something negative influences it the bad parts showed themselves. The anger they are all feeling is amplified because they are all feeling it. It's like a never-ending cycle, the angrier one of them gets the angrier the other two get and so on. It just keeps growing. And when anger finally clears out and other emotions come through they aren't good ones. It is all they can do to not get swept up completely.
They don't like talking about that time for many reasons, but they know they will do whatever it takes to make sure it doesn't happen again.
Sometimes it feels like they can read each other’s minds.
It's hard to know if it's because of their bond or just spending their whole lives together, but it's there nonetheless. It comes in handy plenty of times, like when something's wrong but they don't know how to say it, or if they're feeling things too hard to describe. They can look at their brothers and just be understood. And sometimes that makes all the difference.
Sometimes it's like they're one person in three bodies.
Their bond makes it so they're always on the same wavelength, connected in a way they can't be with anyone else. But sometimes it goes a little further than that, makes it so they can't tell who's who- like they can't exist without each other. They are so intertwined that they can't tell when one of them stops and the other ones start anymore. They don't like that, they like being their own people, and their relationship only works if they are different people. One person can't be the perfect team, one person can't be the Duck Boys. So they learn how to be three people in three bodies again.
The boys are also eleven when their magic permanently intertwines.
They do not know if this is a good or bad thing yet, they do not know what the secret book means in terms of their bond, they do not know why they always seem to get more questions than answers, there is a lot they do not know. They do know they can find each other's energies, they do know they will be the most powerful people in their bloodline, they do know the good things outweigh the bad, there is a lot they do know.
And that gives them comfort for the things they do not know, makes them see they will figure it all out eventually. After all, they know so much more than they knew when they were six. They want answers, but are also starting to understand just what they'll have to do to find them, the time they'll have to put in. The answers can't be found somewhere familiar, they need to journey out to find them. But journeying out is harder for them than you would think, they are still undeterred.
This is something that's been in their lives for as long as they can remember, and has played such a big part, they will always be undeterred.
They do not understand how their bond works.
Every time something new happens they are way too surprised for people who have had this thing for fiveish years. Maybe even earlier than that. They should understand this by now, understand how all of the pieces fit together. That is perhaps the biggest mystery.
They seem like things that would fit together, but the boys can not figure out how. Why does it make doing magic easier? Why does it tell them what their brothers are feeling or if they're in danger? Why are they the only ones that have it? How can they send things through it? How can they draw on each other's power? How does it connect their magic? Is it even what connects their magic? They do not understand any of this, they do not understand what the connection between the things it does is.
Are they the connection?
They do understand why they have this bond. Kinda.
The secret book made it clear why, but it also feels like there is more to this. Something it can not tell them. Something no book, no matter how secret, can tell them. Something they have to tell themselves maybe? Something they're not seeing, not yet ready to confront. Or maybe they're just overthinking this whole thing. That's more likely.
They do like how close it makes them feel.
They do like how they don't even have to look at each other to know what they are thinking or feeling. They do like how they are always able to calm each other down or help when one or more of them are in danger. They do like doing magic together, and how even when doing it separately it still feels like they're together. They do like that how no matter how far apart they are they always feel like they're right next to each other.
They do not like how confusing it can be.
They do not like how many questions surround it. They do not like how their bad feelings can leak into each other and make tough situations worse. They do not like how it sometimes feels like they can't have a moment truly to themselves. They do not like how it's always on, but are too terrified of it turning off again. They do not like how it felt when it was off. They do not like the thought of it turning off again.
They do not want it to ever turn off again.
They are not sure how they feel about being the only ones to have it.
Huey's specialty is healing magic, Dewey's is kinetic magic, and Louie's is defensive- they don't know how those fit together. How they would work together. They've never had to use them together, but they always wondered about how it would work. Would it combine into a new type of magic, or would it stay separate and just find some sort of balance? What would even be the situation where they had to use them?
They've combined magic before, sometimes it seems like they do that more than on their own, so they could just go off of that. But their specialties are different, that's why they're their specialties, so surely combining them would be different too. Maybe it'd be easier, since that's the magic that comes easiest to them. Or maybe it'd be harder, maybe it'd be too much to contain and that's why they've never done it before. There's only really one way to know, but they never do it. There's too much unknown.
The one thing they have in common is protection, and the triplets always want to protect each other.
Huey is the triplet that is most curious about their bond. He can't help it, he's curious by nature and this is a huge part of his life. It makes sense he wants to know everything about it. They all do, but he's most likely to lead the charge, most likely to bring it up. If he can figure this out, he can give his brothers the answers they need, he can not have to worry about not knowing something as big as this.
Dewey is the triplet who is most excited about it. He loves his brothers, he doesn't think he has the words to describe how much, and he loves that they have something to connect them, to bring them closer together. He couldn't stand the thought of not being around them one day and he's assured that with this bond they'll always be close. And as long as they have it he can not have to worry about his place in the world.
Louie is the triplet to most likely bring up the bad side to this all. He's the skeptic, one of them has to be, and if it means protecting his brothers he'll gladly be it. But he knows overall their bond is a good thing, knows that their lives are better for having it. It's something he treasures greatly, which is why he constantly worries about the negative stuff. But everything involving his brothers is good, he knows that. His brothers are around, and that's why he can not have to worry about the things he can't control.
Huey's magic feels like a comforting embrace. Any time Dewey or Louie are hurt or upset they can count on their oldest brother to make things better. And whenever their emotions get the best of them and affect their magic Huey's sweeps in and tempers them. Huey fixes things, Huey takes care of them, and no one does it better than him. Whatever happens they can count on their oldest brother to be there for them.
Dewey's magic feels like a burst of energy. When Huey and Louie get down or worried about something their middle brother is there to cheer them up. And every time the world feels like it's closing in on them and their magic shuts off Dewey's is there to bring it back to life. Dewey brightens things, Dewey gives them a positive perspective, and no one does it better than him. Whatever happens they can count on their middle brother to make them smile.
Louie's magic feels like a cool breeze. At any moment Huey or Dewey get worked up about something their youngest brother calms them down. And no matter when everything becomes too much and their magic gets control over them Louie's pushes it back and finds them. Louie soothes things, Louie makes them relax, and no one does it better than him. Whatever happens they can count on their youngest brother to bring them back to themselves.
Whenever they mix together everything feels right with the world.
Huey losing control of his magic, rare as it is, is nothing. Even if you look at him and look really close it's hard to tell unless you know him very well. Thankfully there are two people who have always known him very well. Huey's is somewhere in the middle of his brothers to reign back in, with Huey you have to hold him, you have to be able to get close enough to hold him. He can usually get control back, but sometimes he has trouble and needs help, two people will do that whenever they have to.
Dewey losing control of his magic, rare as it is, is loud. All you have to do is look at him and you'll know what's happening. Thankfully there are two people who are always looking. Dewey's is the hardest to reign back in, with Dewey you have to overpower his magic until he gets over whatever made him lose control of it, no matter how long that takes. He can't ever get control back on his own, but that's okay because he has two people that can.
Louie losing control of his magic, rare as it is, is quiet. You have to look really close to know something's wrong, and even then you still won't have a clue unless he chooses to let you. Thankfully there are two people who will always be let in. Louie's is the easiest to reign back in, with Louie all you really have to do is remind him you're there, that you're always there. He always gets control back after that, but if the day comes that he won't be able to he has two people there who will.
When their magic combines a balance happens. All their individual weak spots are covered and their strengths are heightened. They truly become the perfect team. Their individual wavelengths have always been similar to one another's, a side effect of their energy combining, but when their magic combines it's like it becomes the same wavelength. And now that it's permanently combined it feels like all the time. They still feel like their own people, thankfully, but they're more in sync in a way they weren't before.
It's fun, even if it's something that's never happened to anyone before. They still aren't sure how to feel about that aspect of it, but Huey and Dewey are still convinced it's overall a good thing, and the longer they believe that the more Louie starts to. They all are eager to know why it's only happened to them though. They are eager to know a lot of things about all of this, and this happening has only furthered that.
Their resolve in finding answers has strengthened over the years, no matter how many times they get more questions over answers, no- because of that. There has to be a reason for it, and they are going to find it no matter what it takes.
They are going to find all the answers no matter what it takes.
Huey's been stressed lately, with everything going on it's impossible for him not to be- he just can't stop thinking about it all.
FOWL is a very big deal and they clearly have some kind of plan that the McDuck clan knows nothing about, plus there's all the mystery and questions surrounding his and his brothers' bond... Nothing is giving answers about any of this and Huey really hates not having all the answers. It's his job to provide his brothers with answers, if he can't do that what kind of a brother is he?
He knows what they would say- that he's the best kind, but he doesn't feel like it. He never feels like the best when he can't help them.
But one of the great things about their bond is that they always seem to know when he's feeling that way.
"Huey!" Dewey announces as they run into the room he's in. "We're here to cheer you up!" Huey smiles at them and honestly already feels a little better. But they've always had that effect on him.
Louie sticks his hands in his pockets, "So, what's up?"
Huey let out a huff, "What isn't up?" Louie makes a face as if saying, 'good point'. "Everything is up, everything is happening and I can't stop thinking about it! I know it doesn't do me any good but I do it anyway! I just wanna figure it all out."
"Yeah, that'll end well." Huey sighs. "No, I'm serious, you know what happens when you're trying to figure everything out too fast? You get burnt out, or worse. Look, I'm not saying we have all the time in the world here but there's no sense in rushing. Besides, would you honestly be happy with the results if you didn't have all the information?" Huey sighs again, no, he wouldn't. There's no point in results if there's missing information, they're not accurate. It would be a complete waste of time... his brothers know him well.
"You're right. So what do I do now?"
"Lean on the people around you, duh." Huey and Louie smile at their brother. "Lean on us, we've always got you." Lean on them, he's always done that.
So that's what he does, literally, and as they lean back they all know they will always be there when one of them needs someone to lean on.
If Dewey has been more watchful of his brothers since Huey's Senior Woodchuck challenge that's nobody's business but his own. And maybe theirs.
He honestly doesn't see what the big deal was, they're always protective over each other. It's just that those events reminded him of just how easy it is for them to get hurt. Huey was almost attacked by a bear for crying out loud! And it's not that he doesn't think they can take care of themselves, he knows better than anyone just how capable they are, but they aren't invincible and he doesn't know what he would do if something happened to them again.
They're probably co-dependent but he can't bring himself to care.
But of course his brothers don't let him get away with it for long. They call him out- in the gentle, loving way only they can.
"Dewey, you've been weird since Huey's challenge thing, what's going on with you?"
Huey gives their brother a look, "Weird's not the right word, you've been more... protective. You've been more protective." Dewey looks at both of them and nods to himself. It’s time.
"It just got me thinking, I don't want you guys to get hurt. And I know, I know I can't really do anything to stop it, but I'm still not okay with it. How can I be?" They sit down on each side of him and hug him, they know how he's feeling. And it isn't just cause they can feel each other's emotions.
"Maybe you can't do anything to stop it, but your magic can. And maybe that doesn't help with emotional hurt, but maybe knowing you have people who know exactly how to help you through it can be enough." Huey says, and once he finishes he softens like he also needed to hear it. Louie also becomes quieter and Dewey thinks this is something they all needed to hear. Like it's been weighing on all of them. Which it had.
But maybe it doesn't have to anymore. "We're there for each other no matter what, even when things get hard, especially when things get hard. We'll be okay no matter how many times we get hurt." Dewey has never been more certain of anything in his life, he's always been certain of that- if they have each other they'll be okay. Even if he hates the thought of them getting hurt.
"But if we could keep it to a minimum that would be great." Louie says making his brothers giggle and decidedly agree.
They fall silent after that, but still hear each other loud and clear: they will always be there when one of them is hurt.
Louie is having a panic attack, he knows he is having a panic attack because he can't think of anything else. But fortunately for him he doesn't have to because his magic knows exactly what to do.
He feels his brothers before he sees them and their presence really does make all the difference. He doesn't say anything though, he doesn't think he can, but it's okay cause his brothers can. He can't tell what they're saying exactly, but he'd know their voices anywhere, and that makes it a little easier for the fuzz to start leaving his head.
"Louie?" Is the first thing he actually hears. "What's going on?" And isn't that the question, he honestly doesn't know what's happening, he doesn't know what caused his panic attack.
"I don't know." Two hands comfortingly grab at his and it makes him feel a little lighter. "Do you ever just get anxious for no reason?"
"Sometimes." "No." Huey and Dewey reply, respectively. Louie smiles at them.
"That's what this was. I was just going along and all of a sudden I was panicking. I don't even remember what I was thinking about." He slumps against the wall and two heads fall against his shoulders. "Thanks."
Dewey then moves his head making his brothers look at him in confusion. "Sounds like you need a distraction." A distraction, yeah, that sounds great right about now. And, well, if anyone can provide it it's them.
Something in his face must show what he's thinking because Dewey leaps up and offers them both a hand. They take them and Louie squeezes it gratefully. Dewey smiles back at him. This is one of the many times he can't ask for better brothers, they always seem to know just what to do, and he knows it's not just cause of their bond. Words can't describe how grateful he feels to have them.
As they go to the den to find something to watch they know there's only one thought in their heads- they will always be there when one of them is panicking.
Sometimes when they're having a bad day they'll seek each other out, most times in fact, and when they're all having a bad day, well, there's nothing else to do than just lay with one another. They rarely talk, talking takes too much energy that they just don't have on bad days, instead they're content to simply enjoy the company.
They don't need words anyway, their bond allows them to share their feelings in a way words can't. Words probably can't describe them anyway. It's just something they always, known. As far back as they can remember, even before they found out about their bond, they could always tell what their brothers were feeling. All they had to do was look at them and they would just know. Now they don't even have to do that.
"Why do we do everything together?" Dewey asks, breaking the silence and making his brothers look at him in surprise, they never break silences on shared bad days. "Not like 'why do we always hang out?', but like 'why do we go through the same thing at the same time?'. Shared bad days are a lot more common than solo ones."
"We didn't go through my possession together." Louie pointed out. "Thank god." He adds on, although his brothers aren't sure they a hundred percent agree with that, they never wanted Louie to suffer like that alone. None of them ever wanted any of them to suffer like that alone.
"Maybe, but we still felt the effects. Besides, I get what Dewey's saying- why do we share feelings more often than not? Like not just know what we're feeling, but actually feel it. Do we rub off on each other that much or do we just have the same feelings about most things?"
"A little more specific than what I was going for but okay."
Louie groans quietly, "I was hoping to not think today. Can't we just say it's cause of our bond and leave it at that?"
"We don't gave the same feelings, we aren't the same person." Dewey continues on, ignoring his brother's words. Louie groans again. "Remember when Della came back? We had very different feelings about that. Maybe our minds are just synched up so well that things feel like they're happening to all of us." Dewey widens his eyes. "Maybe we really are codependent." He whispers to himself.
"Yeah, but why?" Huey asks. "Why would our minds synch up like that?"
"Oh my god it's our bond, it's actually our bond!" Louie says sitting up in frustration. "How do you guys not see it?" They look at him blankly and he runs his hand down his face. "Okay it's like this, our bond has made it so all these impossible things have happened to us. Feeling the same emotions or going through the same thing at the same time or whatever isn't that much of a stretch considering everything else we can do! Now can we please stop talking about it cause I'm getting a headache." He immediately feels a wave of calm wash over him. "Okay, that feels better."
He falls back against the bed and synchs his breathing back up with theirs. "No more thinking today." Huey decides, and his brothers readily agree with that. They fall silent again and Huey can't help but start thinking again, however it's about how to make this day better for his brothers.
Bad days suck, and shared bad days are the worst. Usually when one of them is having one the other two can cheer them up, but when they're all having one... there's no one to cheer them up. And sitting in it is only appealing for so long. He doesn't want the whole world to stop today, none of them do. But Huey doesn't know how he can pull all of them out of this funk, but he doesn't have to, not by himself. He's never had to do anything truly by himself.
He sits up, "I don't want today to be a bad day. For any of us. The world's not stopping today." He decides. His brothers look at him curiously, they can feel his resolve, know that he's not just talking. As if to prove that he slowly gets out of the bed and onto his feet- another first for bad days. And that's all Dewey needs to also get up, and well, if both of his brothers are doing something Louie's doing it too.
"Now what?" He asks as soon as he's on his feet.
"We could go see what the others are up to." Dewey suggests, but that doesn't sound particularly pleasing. It would just take too much energy they don't have.
Huey frowns in concentration, "Do you wanna go watch a movie or something?" Dewey and Louie both light up at that idea and the three of them go to find something to do just them- now that doesn't take a lot of energy. But being with each other never did. It's how they've gotten through everything they've gotten through.
They had each other and they had their bond, as long as they had those things they would be fine.