Ducktales: Journey To Agartha - Act 5

Chapter 32: Dr. Anity

Guilt was eating away at Ellie. She was being a shit mother and she knew it; all thanks to the paparazzi. All she wanted for months was a child to care of on her own, and now that she finally had one she barely saw him anymore. But the media stayed away from Boyd (for the most part) which was all that mattered in the end; being Ellie's end goal.

But now that the cruise had arrived at the first island, things were going to be different. From afar, Ellie looked like a dad or a hardcore lesbian, your choice. Her and Boyd adorn hats and sunglasses too and it seemed to do the job. They were caught by an interviewer now and then, but it was easy to escape paparazzi on the island. Every so often, Ellie would pull out her phone to check the news. It seemed Mark hadn't attempted to change anything yet and, to be honest, she wouldn't be surprised if he didn't even try at all. He might have seemed like he regretted his actions the previous night, but for all she knew it was just an act to save his life. Act or not, it worked.

Ellie squeezed Boyd's hand as they walked toward a local restaurant. Most of their walk had been silence or awkward small talk so she decided on speaking up again to clear the air.

"I apologize for not being around you often, Boyd. I am trying my best to divert the media's attention from you." She smiled weakly as she continued. "But now that we are on the island, I promise we can spend tons of time together, alright?" It wasn't the best apology, but she hoped Boyd would understand. He was extremely smart, even if he acted childish, so Ellie was sure he knew everything that was going on. Though... a part of her hoped he didn't after what Mark had said about his new project 'Ta-Da'.

He nodded "Yes, I understand, but don't worry, mom! Piper has been keeping me company so it's not all bad!" He was still upset about the whole Mark thing but there wasn't a point in bringing it up now. They were trying to have a good time on the island. Not mope around and rant about how much Mark was pissing everyone off.

"That makes me feel better. Much appreciated." It really didn't. Ellie was happy Boyd made a new friend, but he also wasn't some other family's responsibility. She owed that family a giftcard or something. Whatever, she'd just give them someone's wallet that she stole. "Anyway, after lunch Ashley told me you can pick any tour you want. It will be covered by her boss." Who's name she had yet to know. He was paying for shit so did it really matter?

That made Boyd smile. "It was very nice of her to offer us free stuff! I'll be sure to draw her something before we have to leave the island!"

Ellie's robo-heart sunk. That was right, Ashley was going to be staying on the island for her job. Ellie squeezed Boyd's hand tighter as she began to grow nervous. "A drawing is a wonderful idea-"

"Hey Ellie! Boyd! Over here!" Ashley waved at the two of them from the front entrance of the restaurant. "It's so nice that you guys were able to meet me and my boss for lunch! He's really interested in meeting you both."

Pushing her worries aside, Ellie greeted her with a hug. "Ashley, it is so good to see you!" They literally saw each other like a few hours ago. "And it is of no problem. The least we could do is say hello to him; he seems like a very generous man."

Boyd waved. "Hi, Ashley! Nice restaurant choice, it smells really good!"

"Thanks!" Ashley let them both inside the restaurant. They had to move to the very far end of the building to get to their table. The front of the place was very lively with tourists but the table that they were seated at was in the far corner with dim lighting. It was almost something you would see in an Italian gangster movie.

There was a man sitting there at the table, hunched over this notepad scribbling words down like a madman. He was the only one around so Ellie and Boyd quickly pieced together that it was Ashley's boss. His hair was a mess. It was very frizzy and unkept and it looked like he had just been electrocuted in a comical fashion. There were also dark circles under his eyes and it made his whole appearance more sickly. He was wearing a white button down shirt where the buttons were not buttoned in the correct corresponding hole and a long black coat. Homeboy looked a little scary not gonna lie. He was giving the vibes of a goth college student working on their senior project at 4 am.