4After writing "I preferred it when you were dead (not really )", I decided to add more to Duckworth and Beakley's love story headcanon. And yes, Scrooge totally ships them.
Duckworth's otherworldly form roaming free through the halls of McDuck Manor was a sight the inhabitants of the house quickly grew accustomed to, even if it was a bit creepy. Scrooge was more than happy to have his most loyal servant back in his life, even if said servant was... not so alive, but there nonetheless. To Donald, he had fainted at first. But after a quick explanation and temper tantrum, he was more than happy to welcome back the butler that had been present for a big part of his childhood.
His demon form... not so much.
Not after accidentally scaring poor Donald half to death.
Webby was overjoyed at having back who she had considered a granfatherly figure in her early years of life before he passed. He even remembered how she liked her chocolate milk! The triplets found him absolutely amazing and he was quite knowledgeable in Junior Woodchucks' surviving skills and offered to pass down some tips, much to Huey's delight.
But none could be as overjoyed as Mrs. Beakley. She had yet to say anything other than pitiful remarks to one of Duckworth's dark jokes, but Scrooge knew better. He had been trying to get them together for years. Their flirting attempts at each other were more than obvious to him, but weird for the others.
Scrooge knew there were unspoken rules that weren't meant to be broken in employer and employee relationships. But he was Scrooge McDuck and he was not going to listen. Besides, he's been wanting to get them together for so long it was like a second nature to him. As soon as he saw his chance, he would strike. And the chance presented itself during a movie night, where he caught Duckworth eyeing Bentina.
"Duckworth, ye' might want to take a picture. It will last longer."
He did not had to wait long for his servants to blush and groan. Nor he was surprised at the children's mischievous grins.
And so, he and the children joined forces to try and set them up together. Without telling Donald, of course. As always, they had proven to be quite difficult to set up. They tried all ways possible, even turning it into a game. But Duckworth and Bentina seemed determined to keep everything the way it was.
Then, the children decided to confront Bentina about it first. She forbid them to speak another word about it to her again. That night, Scrooge walked pass by the kitchen to get a drink when he saw her crying.
"Mrs. Beakley? What's wrong?" He had only seen her cry two times in his life. The woman was tough. So whatever happened to make her this upset must have been bad. "And don't ye' dare to tell me everything is fine." He spoke in a soft, but autoritive tone. He was still her boss. And her friend.
Bentina sniffed and seemed to think about it. She took her time to find her voice and resumed washing the dishes. "Duckworth and I had a talk." Silence.
"And?"
"We'd rather ignore anything between us and let it be."
"Why would ye' do that!? Anyone who's anyone can tell ye' two have a thing going on."
"Mr. McDuck... You don't seem to understand the complexity of the situation." She looked down. "Death already drew us apart..."
Oh... That was it. This... was bad.
OOO
He decided to speak to Duckworth right after speaking with Bentina. He walked up to the third floor and into a balcony, where he knew Duckworth would be.
"Duckworth, may I have a word with ye'?"
The ghost butler turned around and greeted him. "Mr. McDuck. What is it that you need?"
"Why didn't you say a word to Beakley about how ye felt before, well, died?"
The question took him by surprise. Duckworth sighed and looked up at the night sky. "I guess I was afraid."
"Afraid of her fists?"
"Afraid of her rejection." He stated. "I never noticed she felt the same. She's always been hard to read." He went on without any prompt from Scrooge's part. "I did kind of confessed myself on this very balcony, but by then, I wasn't going to wake up the next morning."
Scrooge stared with a sorrowful gaze. "What do ye mean by kind of? You weren't very specific, were you?"
Duckworth looked down. "I kissed her, sir." He quietly added. "I believe that I was being very specific."
Scrooge stared again. "She told me death drew you apart. And ye can't be together."
"It's simple logic, sir."
"Screw logic!" Scrooge snapped, surprising the butler. "Ye know, compared to what Ah've seen in all my years, a demon ghost butler and a retired agent housekeeper is the least weirdest thing Ah've seen. That beagle boy lad could have called upon any other spirit, but at the end it was you!" He smacked his cane over Duckworth's head. It was a good thing the ghost could still feel certain objects, otherwise it would have been embarrassing to try to hit him and just go through him. "Ah don't care if you can't marry or anything for obvious reasons. It's yer second chance with her. Don't waste it." He sighed. "Don't make the same mistake Ah did" He said, remembering Goldie. "Goodnight, Duckworth. See you tomorrow."
Duckworth stared after Scrooge, deep in thought.
Scrooge stopped on his tracks right in front of his room. His eyes widened in realization. "Duckworth kissed Beakley?" He laughed. "Duckworth, ye smooth dog."
OOO
The next morning, Scrooge spotted Donald and the children staring out the window. "What's going on, lads?"
They shushed him. Webby pulled him closer. "Duckworth and Granny are talking, we've been trying to hear what they are talking about."
"Webby, lass, it's not polite to hear other people's conversations." He looked up at Donald, who was very into listening to the couple in question. "Ahem. Right, Donald?"
Donald looked at him with a guilty smile. "They told me everything. Might as well join the club."
"HOLY MOLLY, THEY'RE KISSING!" Huey exclaimed.
"Really?!" Scrooge looked outside with his beak pressed agaisnt the glass window. "Finally, after more than thirty years!"
"Is that a tongue kiss?" Louie asked, immediately replied with a smack on the back of his head by Donald.
Dewey glared at his younger triplet. "No, Louie. Look at them! Too sweet, too juvenile! His hand copping her cheek, like two lost souls that have finally found each other! Man, I'll watch a movie about their love story."
"You're reading too much Shakespeare." Louie commented.
"Shut it."
"If ye want, I could tell ye a few things." Scrooge laughed. "Webby, did you know they once pretended to be a married couple to save me from Glomgold?"
"I don't believe you. Continue."
"Yep. Ever since, Ah tried to get them together. But those two are stubborn when they want to." Scrooge said. "The best part is tormenting them about it. But only Ah can do it." He opened the window and yelled. "Yer missing a spot, Duckworth! Mrs. Beakley, a little to the left, will ye?!" They laughed until their cheeks hurt, watching Duckworth and Bentina blush a heavy red.
"Mrs. Beakley, it was a good thing yer finally together. Otherwise, Ma Beagle will get word that he's here and will track him down again!" He gave a hysterical laughter.
Mrs. Beakley covered her face in embarrassment as Duckworth rubbed the bridge of his exasperated. "I should have sued thay woman for harassment." He mumbled.
The children looked up at Scrooge in curiosity. Scrooge smiled. "Ma Beagle always had a crush on Duckworth, to the point he'll throw his dignity away and hide himself in a trash can."
"It was one time, sir!" Duckworth yelled.
"I don't know if I should feel creeped out that Ma Beagle had a crush on Duckworth." Louie commented.
As the family talked and laughed, Duckworth eyed Beakley. "Do you think that as soon as she knows I'm here, even with my current form, she'll hunt me down again?"
Bentina shrugged and smiled. "I told you once, Duckworth. You were always quite the looker."
They laughed. "And you were always as beautiful as a rose."
"You always knew how to complement a lady."
"Bentina, you were never a lady."
"And you weren't that much of a gentleman."
They laughed. Surely, this felt normal and then realized, they weren't really that apart.
Tell me what you think! I'm planning on writing one or two other fics with these two, so if you want that to happen, I might need some suggestions! Review!