The three brothers returned to their room after a long evening, not entirely pleased with what had happened earlier.
"Louie, what's wrong with you?" the youngest triplet complained.
"With me? Are you crazy?" he replied obviously angry. "You called her "Auntie Daisy"? Really?"
Huey stepped in. "Lou, we're just trying to help uncle Donald. Why are you so against it?"
"Hello? We don't even know Daisy! How can we trust her?"
"That's stupid. You know uncle Donald likes her, even though he won't admit it, not even to himself. That's why we should help him. Why didn't you help us at the gala?"
"Huey, don't mind him" Dewey sighed. "He's just trying to destroy someone's happiness, as always".
"What is that even supposed to mean? I'm just saying there's no need to rush things! Uncle Donald is fine, he doesn't need a girlfriend".
"Yeah, but he wants one: Daisy" Dewey declared losing his patience.
"And why should we even interfere? Why pressure them? They are two adults, they can handle it by themselves. Are we matchmakers or something?"
"We're his wingmen. Louie, that's the ultimate goal! How can you not get it?" Dewey shouted.
"I can't believe you are not willing to help uncle Donald, especially after all he has done for us" Huey added with a calmer tone in his voice. "I mean, we owe it to him. Because of us, he didn't get to enjoy many things that people of his age usually enjoy".
"Yeah, exactly!"
"Guys! Will you just… ugh! Don't you get it? Uncle Donald can't date anyone! He doesn't have the time. Do you know how busy he is? He has his job and... and he's trying to fix the boat, and he also has us and—"
"'We're old enough now!" Dewey cut him off. "Plus, now mom is here".
"Yeah, I was sure you'd say that..." Louie commented quietly in a sarcastic tone.
"Excuse me?" he demanded an explanation.
"You heard me".
"Guys, let's get back to our subject. We were talking about uncle Donald, remember?" their eldest brother rushed in to prevent them from fighting.
"Look, I get that you don't get along with mom, but that's your problem. You're just jealous of me!"
"Dewey, behave yourself!" Huey reprimanded him.
"Oh yeah? You can keep her all to yourself, I never even asked for her to come back" Louie said while hiding his hands in his front pocket, trying to act cool.
"Louie, don't say things like that!" Huey raised his voice.
"Of course!" Dewey laughed, ignoring Huey's effort to calm him down. "You never wanted her, and still you don't!" he shouted angrily at Louie.
"Maybe I would, if you had let me and Huey have some space!"
"Louie! Dewey! Stop right now!"
"Don't bring Huey into this, he and mom are fine. You are the problem!" he pointed at him.
Huey could bare it no longer. His face become red with anger and he lashed out.
"I said stop!" he shouted so loud that everyone across Duckburg could hear him.
His brothers immediately stopped and stayed silent. They knew him very well to understand that the best for them was to just shut it when Huey's angry mode was on. He had definitely inherited their uncle's temper.
Huey circled the room slowly, took a few deep breaths and rubbed his eyes before saying:
"Now, listen to me closely, both of you! Dewey, you don't get to talk to your brother like that. He's not a problem, and his relationship with mom is different than yours, but that doesn't mean that either is better or that she loves either one more. Each person has his own pace at accepting new people into his life and you should respect that, otherwise you come off as a really bad person with no concern for other people's feelings, which I know you are not".
"Exactly, I-" Louie began saying.
"Don't interrupt me!" he shouted. "Louie, what you're doing is mean. You can't make Dewey feel guilty about his relationship with mom. He adores her and longed for her all of his life, and you don't have the right to make him feel bad about it. I get that you are going through a difficult phase. I completely understand you. But you can't release your anger on Dewey".
Deep silence all over the room. Louie and Dewey both looked down at the floor awkwardly.
Huey placed his hands over his brothers' shoulders.
"Now…" he continued trying to smile, "apologize to each other and shake your hands, like good brothers".
"You remind me of uncle Donald everyday more and more" Louie commented and received a punch in his arm.
"I said apologize and shake hands!" he repeated, losing his patience.
"Fine! Okay, Dewey, I am sorry. I am really happy for you and mom and I shouldn't try to make you feel bad about your connection" he admitted shyly.
"To be honest, I brag about it and I often feel that I am better than you two because me and mom are so alike. But that's not true. I am sorry. I belittle your love for mom, but I know you adore her and that the day she returned was the best day of your life".
"It's alright" Louie half-smiled.
"Are we okay?" Dewey asked and reached out his hand for Louie to shake, but the middle-kid unexpectedly pulled him into a tight hug instead.
"We're okay" he reassured him.
"That's my boys!" Huey sounded proud.
"Get in here, you silly!" Dewey invited him to the hug.
"I don't want to ruin the mome—"
It was too late, Louie pulled him too into the hug.
"So, we are the wingbros?" Dewey asked full of excitement when they split. "Ready for duty in order to help uncle Donald conquer his beloved one?"
"Um... no? You didn't hear a word I said, right?" Louie said.
"What is your problem with him dating someone? Doesn't he deserve to find love?" Huey asked.
"But he's got all the love he needs".
"Not that kind of love!" Dewey rolled his eyes.
"Lou, let's be honest. Uncle Donald didn't have the best life exactly. He worked really hard for so many years! All his life is a giant trouble. He was marooned in an island for six months! He deserves to find happiness. Even you dislike Daisy-"
"I don't dislike her! I… I just… well" he tried to articulate. "I actually find her very… cool. She's okay".
"Then what is the problem?" Huey asked worried.
"Don't you get it?" he exhaled deeply, his face red.
"Get what?" Huey stepped closer.
"I am confused! Like, a lot! My head is a mess and I'm trying to figure out so many things and I just can't!"
"Lou, tell me what's wrong" his big brother rested his hand on his trembling shoulder.
"So now mom is back. But what does this mean for us and uncle Donald?"
"What do you mean?" Dewey tried to understand.
"Well..." his voice started trembling, but he kept talking, "he raised us, he was our parent, but now our biological parent is here, but mom is not uncle Donald. And since she returned we keep drifting apart from uncle Donald. And I get that he wants to give mom some space, but that's temporary, right? And now uncle Donald wants to date someone, which is a perfect thing for him, but I can't understand the dynamics of this family anymore! Is Daisy going to be our aunt or our parent? And if uncle Donald has a girlfriend and eventually marries her, does this mean he leaves our family? He has a new one? I... ugh! I just don't get it!" Tears started running on his cheeks before he could even realize it. "So many changes in such a sort time! I don't like this! I don't know what's going on! I mean, I want him to be happy with Daisy, but I feel like she's taking him away from us!"
Louie burst out in tears, hid his face under his hood and sat down on the floor.
Huey sat down beside him and, before he knew it, Louie's hands were around him and his head rested on his shoulder. He patted him and whispered that everything was going to be okay.
Dewey was standing there awkwardly, before Huey whispered to him: "come here!", and he sat down too beside them and started caressing Louie's shoulder.
"It's alright, Lou" Huey's soothing words followed. "We are uncle Donald's boys no matter what. He'll never leave us".
"That's right! I get there are many changes lately, but we are all in this together. You are not facing it alone" Dewey reassured him.
"Do you seriously believe that we can get rid of uncle Donald so easily?"
Louie chuckled and raised his head.
"He will always be our parent, our family" Dewey added.
The triplets felt more united than ever.
Louie may have doubted his place in the family for the last few months, but he now felt much that he was never going to be alone.