launchpad lets out a small ‘oof’ as he’s suddenly yanked into the room, but he never protests. he listens on attentively as dewey explains his problem, and, for the most part he’s following along. “what do you mean?” he asks, finding it hard to believe that dewey simply can’t wash the makeup off. he knows it’s more to it than throwing water on your face and rubbing at it with a washcloth, or, at the very least there are better ways to go about it but he doesn’t get how even the simple option isn’t working. “how much makeup did you use?” did the amount change the process? he didn’t know but it was a theory, a bad one, but a theory nonetheless. “of course I’ll help you! anything for my best friend!” he pulls dewey close into him for a hug, squeezing the smaller boy far tighter than he should. “we need the proper equipment!” what that equipment is...well, he doesn’t know. “where do we get makeup equipment?”

launchiemcquack​:

Launchpad stumbles through McDuck manor, head throbbing and exhaustion clear on his face as he makes his way back from Scrooge’s office. The night before had been nothing short of a blur, and he had the migraine to prove he’d maybe gone a little too far with the drinking and merriment. So, when he hears a voice whisper yelling his name he groans hoping the response will get it to stop. But, it persists, and Launchpad can’t ignore it for much longer, especially not when he realizes it’s source. “Dewey!” he exclaims, wincing immediately after because the sounds of his voice thundering around him does himself no favors. “What do you need?” he asks, coming to the door and pushing lightly. “Why are you still in your costume? Are you filming something for your YouTube?”

Dewey quickly pulled the older man into his room when he got closer, closing the door behind him. He sighed, loudly, at the question about his makeup. It was obvious. “No but i totally should have.” He briefly considered doing that before attempting to get the makeup off any further but quickly shook it off. No! He had things to do today. “I can’t get it off Launchpad. I tried last night, it didn’t work so I was like ‘oh, okay I’ll just go to sleep and try again in the morning’ and it still won’t come off! I’m been trying all morning. It won’t come off! Can you help me? You’re the only one I can trust. Huey and Louie would just make fun of me.”

this was nothing new to launchpad. the accident, crawling out of the wreckage, the dubious way he stares at the pile of smoking parts and the poor tree that had met his bumper. all of this occurred far more often than he could count, and if he had any more self awareness he’d be even the slightest bit ashamed. but alas, he smiles brightly at the woman checking in on him as if nothing had happened. “i’m okay miss!” he assures her, because in the grand scheme of things he absolutely is. he hadn’t gotten hurt, and neither had anyone else other than the tree. but he’s sure it’ll be fine. “an herbal remedy?” he repeats, nose scrunching up but just as soon as he says it his face lights up with childlike excitement and awe. “ooooh, cake! what kind of cake? is it chocolate cake?”

starter: @launchiemcquack

“Mmm, you look like you’re having a rough day. Between the leaves in your hair and the dirt on your knees.” Magda crossed her arms and studied him, shaking her head. “Should I offer you an herbal remedy? Or cake for your morale?”

Launchpad stumbles through McDuck manor, head throbbing and exhaustion clear on his face as he makes his way back from Scrooge’s office. The night before had been nothing short of a blur, and he had the migraine to prove he’d maybe gone a little too far with the drinking and merriment. So, when he hears a voice whisper yelling his name he groans hoping the response will get it to stop. But, it persists, and Launchpad can’t ignore it for much longer, especially not when he realizes it’s source. “Dewey!” he exclaims, wincing immediately after because the sounds of his voice thundering around him does himself no favors. “What do you need?” he asks, coming to the door and pushing lightly. “Why are you still in your costume? Are you filming something for your YouTube?”

“Launchpad!” Dewey had his bedroom door opened a crack, loudly whispering in an attempt to get the older man’s attention. He had been cooped up in his room all morning, trying to get his costume makeup off. His costume this year had been a skeleton so, naturally, he had gone all out with the makeup on his face. Mostly to make up for the fact that his costume was a lot more generic than it usually would be but it also just seemed like fun. “Launchpad!” He whisper-yelled again, waving a hand out. “I need your help.” He wasn’t sure why he thought Landon would be helpful when it came to getting makeup off his face but he didn’t really want to ask Huey or Louie. He could only imagine what their reactions would be. @launchiemcquack​

without beakley to guide him in the right direction, launchpad was free to do every little thing that popped into his mind tonight. unfortunately for anyone that would have to deal with him tomorrow that included trying every weird halloween drink the place had to offer, out of sheer curiosity alone. he hadn’t made it through more than a sip of two of them before realizing this wasn’t nearly as fun as he’d thought it be. he’d forgotten alcohol was kind of gross. so, he sits at a table, way too many cupcakes around him a bag of candy and one of the awful drinks with him as she tries to figure out how to make it better. “hi!” launchpad looks up, smiling brightly at the stranger. “are you a fighter pilot?” the question comes out rushed and excited, and it dawns on him the second he sees her costume. he probably should have waited before bringing it up but his excitement outweighs that concern. “no, not at all! you can sit. have a cupcake! or three!” he offers happily

judy was pretty lost on her own, having lost nick at some point, she wasn’t sure what to do. she wasn’t the best at having fun and often needed someone to direct her. she thought briefly about texting sav and seeing if she was there, but that might’ve been a little more fun than she was ready for. settling on getting a snack while she decided what to do next, she held her funnel cake brains and some halloween cocktail in her hands as she searched for a seat. “hi.” she smiled at the person sitting at a table, seemingly also on their own. “mind if i join you?” @launchiemcquack​

lcstprincxss​:

When she’d arrived back to civilization, Halloween had quickly become one of Rapunzel’s favorite holidays. Candy? Dressing up? It ticked most of her boxes. However, she wasn’t so great when it came to horror, which was why goosebumps prickled on her arms at the mention of a headless woman running around. “Headless,” she asked carefully, glancing over her shoulder. “Like, a real headless lady? It’s not a costume?”

launchpad pauses unable to really process her question as his mind focuses on the fear of it all. though, to be fair, he wouldn’t be able to process it even if he wasn’t scared. “a real headless lady!” he repeats, nodding firmly. “her head was in her hands and everything! and it spoke to me!”

this should have been expected. launchpad runs through the crowd screaming at the top of his lungs. no one’s chasing him, and no one had even tried to intentionally scare him. but seeing a headless woman walking around the festival was just too much for him to handle. he’s hardly paying attention to where he’s going and it results in him colliding with a much smaller person. “be careful little sunflower girl! there’s a headless lady, she’s going to steal all our heads!” launchpad explains to the stranger. @lcstprincxss

continued from here.

launchpad stares up at hook, smiling brightly as he holds out his jack o lantern trick or treat basket. “practice trick or treating!” launchpad answers even though it’s pretty clear what he’s doing right now. sometimes some of his friends could be so dense. “what are you going as for the fall festival?” he asks excitedly. “are you going to be a pirate? is that why you have a hook? can i see your costume?” the questions come out in one giant flow, and with the last one he stops. “i can stand here and wait! go show me!” @yohohook

🏚 (dory)

🏚 go to a haunted house

fear had made a home in launchpad mcquack’s life a long time ago. eccentric billionaire adventurer scrooge McDuck doesn’t know how to have a quiet day, and he especially doesn’t know how to pursue something that’s not cursed or haunted or protected by booby traps. that being said, launchpad shouldn’t be phased by actors in costumes — not after everything he’s seen with scrooge and the kids. and yet, here he is, clinging to dory’s arm as they walk through the dimly lit corridors of wild wild world’s haunted house. “ahhhh!” he screams, jumping as a man dressed as a vampire approaches them. “don’t let him bite you dory!” on instinct, he steps in front of dory, unable to shake his role as a protector whether it’s with four kids that he views as siblings or his exe girlfriend turned best pal. lifting his fists in front of him, prepared to swing if need be, he continues on. still yelling. “stay away from our necks creature of the night!”

@dcrybluc

nursekanga​:

While kanga highly doubted Mr. McDuck was the oldest person on Earth, she was aware that the man was fairly high up there in years, so she simply nodded and accepted his response. “I would like that - so long as it’s not too wild. I can’t go around embarrassing Joey with my nicknames. She may never speak to me again if I did that,” she jokes, thought part of it is true. For all kanga’s never cared or tried to be a cool mom she still knows how easy it was for kids to be embarrassed by their parents and didn’t want Joey to feel that way if she could help it. “Oh, you can put whatever you like on. I’m sure my taste isn’t anything you’d be into, don’t worry. Besides, I’m interested to see what you like.”

“no way! joey would super appreciate a cool nickname. what if i came up with one for her too?” landon doesn’t think he’s ever known a single person who couldnt appreciate a fun nickname. when kanga insists that he wouldn’t like the music she likes he laughs quietly, shaking his head. “i’m trying to get to know things about you too kanga,” he reminds her with a gentle smile. “so we can take turns picking songs. that way we both win!” he’s starting to think she’s not very good at this making friends thing with the way she always makes it seem like her own interests and wants aren’t as important as his.

launchpad pokes his head around the corner. peering his head down the hallway the girl at the bar had instructed him to go down. it seemed like any other hallway, so he straightens up and walks towards the door the owner’s office. if launchpad had even a crumb of awareness, he’d realize the bartender’s skittish behavior wasn’t in regards to some mythical terror at the end of the hall but rather the reaction she knew was coming once launchpad said his piece. but asking launchpad to think ahead is comparable to looking for rain in a drought. he knocks on the door as a courtesy before coming in. “mr. nightclub owner? you got a minute?” he smiles sheepishly, overcome with a wave of nervous energy as he enters. “my name’s launchpad and I’ve got some bad news about your car.” @lxrdoftheunderwxrld

yohohook​:

cuckockitty​:

“I think you mean positive fifteen!” Kitty grins, not about to be put off by his negativity. The second she stops being happy is the second she gets mad, and she doesn’t think a shouting match between her and Hook, all because she’s disappointed in his constant negativity, would end well for either of them. Instead she’s going to look on the bright side of things, happily pretending that Hook secretly loves them, rather than blatantly loathes them, no matter how obvious he makes it. “Loading first!” she decides with a nod, because it’s the easiest way to extend the visit in Hook’s office. The second she hands over the money he’s done with them and her hopes of having a fun little chat are immediately dashed. And where’s the fun in that? “You haven’t even told me how your day is!” She reminds him, already trying to launch into the small talk portion of the day. “How are those little lost boys that are always running around the docks?” she asks, hopeful that Hook might actually give her a response even though history would tell them that he has no interest in carrying on a conversation with her. After a moment she realizes that she hasn’t been paying much attention to Launchpad since they entered the office and she glances back over her shoulder at him. She has to press her lips together to keep herself from laughing out loud as she notices the hook on the end of his hand. “You doing okay over there, sweetie?” she calls out to him, unable to hide the amusement from her voice.

And as always, Kitty chooses loading first. And as always, Hook already knows she won’t just let his workers do it themselves while he collected the payment at the same time. No - she always had to draw out the visit as long as she possibly could, to torture him. Why he even bothers asking anymore, he’s not fully sure except that it’s just a habit to ask all his clients, regardless of whether he already knows their answer or not. “My day is fine. The lost boys are still alive and have yet to be drowned,” he answers her questions dryly. As much as he wanted to fully ignore the both of them, Hook had long sine learned that just giving Kitty some kind of a response was the smartest thing to do. When he flat out ignored her that just sparked her to launch into a full detailed retelling of her own day. And that was not something he cared to hear again. He’s just about to move towards the door and get them out of his office when he hears a tapping noise and Kitty draws his attention back to Launchpad - someone he never should have taken his eyes off of. “What the bloody hell are you doing?” he asks in an almost yell, temper starting to rise at the sight of the man wearing his hook and playing around. Stepping forward, he grabs the cold metal end of the hook and pulls it, hoping that would be enough to get Launchpad to just let go.

“huh?” launchpad perks up, smiling instinctively as he hears kitty’s voice. “oh yeah, look. i borrowed hook’s....hook,” he pauses, chuckling in amusement at that. “hook’s hook.” he repeats, laughing a little louder this time, completely losing his train of thought in the moment. it isn’t until hook speaks that he snaps back to reality. frowning at his tone, launchpad looks down, eyes sad and small disappointed noise rumbling from within his chest at his friend’s reaction. he almost says he’s sorry for upsetting him when he realizes something. “hey! you talk like beakley! are you a housekeeping spy too?” he asks excitedly. then, he realizes it. “i mean, housekeeper. she’s not a spy. spies aren’t real.” it’s supposed to be a secret. not one beakley or scrooge hide all that well because he’s definitely heard beakley say it twice now. maybe more if he tried hard enough to remember. “she’s a housekeeper, and a granny, and you talk like her.”

nursekanga​:

“some people do. usually older folks, though. it used to be an important sign of respect,” she explains, knowing full well there are plenty of people other than just mr. mcdee that insist on being directed in such a way. “how about a bit of them both then? sometimes landon, sometimes launchpad. and i would say you could call me by a nickname as well, but i don’t really have one.” aside from being called roo-roo by a few people when she was younger, but she doesn’t really want him addressing her by that. for a moment there’s silence on kanga’s end - that certainly hadn’t been the explanation she’d expected to hear. it couldn’t possibly be true, and she had a suspicion landon’s boss may be playing some kind of prank on him. it was wrong and upset kanga a bit, thinking about the man taking advantage of landon’s…. naivety like that. so she made a mental note to bring it up to beakley when she met the woman later at the party. “that’s… interesting,” she finally settles on saying before laughing at how adamant he was that she must pick. “okay. how about we put on some music and then you tell me what car games you know.” reaching with one hand blindly, she feels around for the aux chord and holds it out for him to take to hook up his phone. “well, with a mansion full of people it makes sense that she’d need a lot of rules. i lucked out with getting a kid as good as joey. i never really had to enforce or create too many rules for her.”

landon nods in understanding, a rare action for him because he hardly understands anything at all. “that makes a lot of sense cause mr. mcdee’s like the oldest person on Earth.” the truth is landon really has no clue how old his employer is, and neither do his nephews. but they all have their guesses. smiling, landon quickly accepts kanga’s offer to call him both. “that works for me. and if you want a nickname im sure we can find you one,” he pauses, trying to think of something that could be. “in my experience they kind of just come to you.” he’s sure the more time they spent together he’d be able to find one for her. “but also i like your name as is, it’s cool.” landon takes the aux chord, hooking it up to his phone happily. “what do you like to listen to?” he asks, “maybe i can do a mix of both of our favorite artists so it’s fair.” landon stops to think about her car game question, making a mental note to really try to figure that out after he gets the music picked. he’s normally the one driving and mr.mcdee doesn’t like when landon talks while he’s driving, so he doesn’t really know many car games.

rclphwrecksit​:

“Hate to break it to you, but I break stuff too,” Ralph chuckles, thinking back to the countless things he’s broken since discovering his super strength, all of which Felix has selflessly fixed without so much as a complaint. He certainly hopes he’s refraining from hurting anyone, though. He’s been working hard for a lot of years to ensure that. “Right… and what does turbo boost do?” he asks, almost afraid of the answer. Frowning as Launchpad continues to talk, Ralph simply shakes his head because he’s starting to realize that he may never fully understand what he’s talking about and that’s okay. If the other man ever shows up with a broken plane, he’s sure to figure it out then. “Oh no, it’s okay buddy,” Ralph reassures Launchpad as concern flashes across his face, clasping a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t think anyone would stab a hamster.”

if launchpad is supposed to be deterred by the admission that ralph breaks things too, he’s not. in fact, he just sees it as an opportunity to remind ralph how great he is despite that. “not on purpose though, i’m sure! and i bet you always say sorry after you break something! and you don’t hurt people, so you’re still light years better than big green.” launchpad offers ralph a bright, comforting smile. “well when the engine’s giving you trouble and you need that little jump start, a little juice.” he shrugs, not fully understanding what’s so hard to grasp about the concept of turbo boost. sometimes ralph can be so dense. launchpad still loves him though, friends accept friends as they are. “but you just said someone stabbed nibbles.” launchpad frowns, now confused by what ralph is saying and what exactly the man had been getting at.

nursekanga​:

with a light chuckle, she nods. “i had a feeling you probably weren’t a fan of that.” kanga may not know landon all that well, but she could certainly tell he wasn’t much of a mr. mcquack. listening to his story, she had a few questions but holds off on asking any of them. as he looks away and out the window it becomes obvious to her that this isn’t necessarily an easy topic for him to talk about. and she realizes for all he’s told her about his boss, the triplets, webby, and all the others that live in that giant mansion, this is the first time she’s ever heard him bring up his biological family. and she realizes there must have been a reason for that. “Well, if launchpad is what you prefer to be called then launchpad it is. though do forgive me if it takes some time to get used to it. and joey will likely also be calling you landon at first - since that’s what i’ve called you.” another chuckle as she’s about to explain that she was only joking about the cleaning when the whole ghost thing catches her attention. she wants to assume it’s some kind of metaphor but quickly realizes landon certainly isn’t the type ot be speaking metaphorically. “a ghost?” she finally questions - hoping to get an inside joke and not an explanation for how he truly believes the man is a spirit. “i’ve missed you too. and i don’t mind doing whatever you want. i have an aux chord if you want to hook up your music, or you can look through the cds in the glove box. they’re mostly joey’s though. or we could play a game if you’d rather do that.” true to her words kanga doesn’t mind doing whatever it is he chooses, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t a bit curious as to what kind of music a man like landon listens to. “there’s nothing wrong with having some rules. i can’t say i personally have many myself for our household, but joey would probably say otherwise.”

“no one likes being called mr. or ms. anything!” he smiles, then pauses as he realizes he’s wrong...again. “well except mr.mcdee, but he’s you know...mr.mcdee.” he shrugs as if that’s a valid enough explanation. which, when comparing scrooge to other every day people...it kind of is. “oh don’t worry about it, landon, launchpad — whatever you call me I’ll answer.” he waves his hand dismissively when she says it might take her a while to adjust to the change. he’s still firm in his belief that she can call him whatever she wants. when kanga questions him about duckworth, launchpad just looks over at her, a little confused. he doesn’t her what wasn’t straightforward about what he said. “yeah, duckworth died a little before I started working there. but at Scrooge’s like 800th birthday, his spirit was accidentally summoned. so he’s back now.” launchpad explains. he hadn’t known much of duckworth, and wasn’t even at the party when it happened but webby was very excited to fill him in on the details. “nooooo,” launchpad chastises. “you have to pick what you want to do kanga!” he knows he’s easily excitable and that means he’ll just decide what they’re doing without so much as giving her a chance to pick for herself, so he wants to hear what her first choice would be and then they can move from there. “she doesn’t have some rules,” he laughs, shaking his head as he thinks back to the house rules presentation when the triplets and first moved in. “she’s got like a thousand, but i don’t mind it! she feeds us and makes sure we’re okay, so the least i can do is listen to her. and im sure Joey feels the same way about you.” it’s probably a long shot because in the history of kids listening to their parents that’s just not the case, but he likes to think Joey respects kanga’s rules.

yohohook​:

cuckockitty​:

As usually happens whenever Launchie and Kitty are together, a few workers at the docks give them curious looks as they head for Hook’s office. Neither of them are particularly good at controlling their volume or enthusiasm on a good day, and it all goes out the window when they’re together. They feed off each other’s energy when they’re together, which is a lot of fun for them, but often causes a headache for those around them. Not that they every really notice. Heeding Launchie’s warning, she ducks as well as she can while still remaining on his back, letting out a small “oop” sound as the door frame narrowly misses her head. “Hook!” Kitty cries as soon as they’re in the office, waving at him happily. As always she stays oblivious to just how much he dislikes her, never really picking up on the annoyance in his voice. If anything she think of him as another Angelo, someone that’s a little grumpy on the outside but will no doubt melt to her cheeriness and charm after a little while. He’s just taking a bit longer than most, that’s all. “How much did you miss us?” she asks, jumping down from Landon’s back. “On a scale of one to ten!” She can never just let it be an easy transaction, getting the candy and leaving. She has to make some small talk first, it’s only polite.

Of course it was fucking Launchpad that Kitty had to bring along with her this month. Because the universe refused to allow him even a moment of peace. “Negative fiftenee,” he answers dryly before raising out of his seat. The previous dock owner had always been much more polite iwth clients - but then again, Hook reasoned that he never had to with one Katherine Cuckoo or any of her friends. Plus, he made nearly triple the profit that the old man used to draw in, so obvious he was doing something right regardless of his attitude. “Shall we get this over with now? Payment or loading first?” He always left it up to the client what order they handled their business in - knowing some liked to see the products in person themselves before paying while others preferred to have his workers load them up while they paid to make the experience with Hook as short as possible. Unfortunately for him, Kitty never seemed to be quite so considerate. 

“you’re so funny hook,” landon laughs, a loud genuine thing that’s out of place for the present company. even though hook had just admitted to not missing them, implying that he’s not actually their friend the way landon likes to think hook is. but he’d never been the brightest and he’d always been the most optimistic person in the room, thinking very little of the jabs people throw his way in conversation. so, naturally he’s just going to run with the impression that hook is joking. how could hook not have missed them? as kitty and hook start barreling right into the work portion of this visit, landon looks around hook’s office, immediately enthralled by the literal hook sitting on his desk. with an excited little gasp, landon picks it up, ducking his hand into the sleeve of his jacket so he could appear to be missing his right hand. he slaps the hook piece in between his fingers, and goes back to looking around. he’d always wondered what it’d be like to be a real pirate. how do they eat? how do they lift things? well, he’s about to find out. first, he comes across a stack of crates in the office and landon thinks this is the perfect opportunity to test out opening things. he tries to lift the lid of the crate from the bottom but the hook hardly catches the edge of it, so, he moves on to poking the crate with the pointy part of the hook. surely, if he pokes it hard enough to stick, he can just lift it that way. it’s not working at first, so he continues to stab at it harder trying his best to be quiet and not be distracting to hook and kitty.

rclphwrecksit​:

“Yeah, yeah, totally fun.” A little tired perhaps, and he knows Sav is going to have something to say about his choice in friends as soon as he comes back inside, but other than that he’s doing just fine. “I don’t know about superhero, I just lift stuff buddy.” He can’t help but laugh as he watches his friend sing, not wanting to burst his bubble. Not that he’s actually sure anything could ever bring him down — he’s never seen the man with anything but a big smile on his face. “Wait, who the hell is Nibbles?” Ralph asks with a shake of his head, trying to keep up. It’s not secret that following a Launchpad train of thought is no easy feat, and while he can sometimes do a pretty good job of it, he needs another moment when he’s still half asleep. “You mean the kid that got stabbed? What’s he got to do with it?” Ralph isn’t entirely sure that’s even the kid’s name, but he remembers Penny’s friend saying something of the sort, and at this moment he can’t figure out who else Launchpad might be talking about and how they might come in handy at this particular moment.

“well, that’s better than what the hulk does. he just breaks things and hurts people.” launchpad shrugs, because he won’t accept anything less than ralph accepting he’s basically a superhero. just with slightly better clothes and hopefully a less sad life. superheros always have dead parents or wives or something and that’s just so messed up. “nibbles is in charge of the turbo boost, he’s how i’m smarter than the smarties!” launchpad proudly quotes his boss, though, the meaning isn’t quite there. but he tried. at the mention of someone getting stabbed launchpad frowns. “no one stabbed my hamster, he’s in his pen. why would someone stab a hamster that’s so mean!”

nursekanga​:

a bit of a laugh escapes her at how quickly he answers and kanga is just about to ensure him that okay, she can call him launchpad then when he corrects himself. it’s obvious he’s thinking something over, so she gives him a moment to put his words together. “technically i’m probably supposed to call you mr. mcquack at work, but because you’re my friend i’ve always stuck with landon,” she explains, glancing over at him to offer a smile before looking back at the road. “landon’s a nice name, but if you prefer to go by launchie or something else i don’t mind using that.“ really she doesn’t mind calling him whatever he prefers even though like she said, she does think landon is a nice name and suits him perfectly fine as it is. “as much fun as doing a deep clean of the house can be. i didn’t think through just how much i would have to prepare for this party when i decided to host it.” her smile only brightens at the mention of being safe - glad that he took her warning to heart and had been keeping himself out of trouble. it had been awhile since she’d last seen him in the hospital, but kanga hadn’t known if that had been intentional or just sheer luck. “good. i’m glad to hear it. though i do have to say it’s been a lot more boring around work without you.” at the mention of her dad chopping the firewood and how excited he potentially sounds about that, the redhead nods and suddenly remembers something. “he did. oh, i forgot. i should probably warn you - my parents live a bit far out from here, so it’s quite a drive. i hope that’s okay. i promise we’ll be back in plenty of time for the party, though. and of course that’s alright. the more the merrier, of course. besides, it’ll be nice to meet this beakley i’ve heard so much about.”

“mr. mcquack?” he scrunches up his nose, shaking his head quickly as if to completely dismiss the idea altogether. “you can call me whatever you want, just...never that.” he chuckles, even if he does genuinely mean it. it’s too formal, too serious and it feels weird to his ears. at kanga’s explanation, he nods. “don’t think anyone’s called me landon since I was, like, sixteen.” he explains, realizing then that kanga has definitely never heard the story of his nickname. with a smile, he continues, eager to share something new with his friend. “launchpad just...felt right, you know? my family all had nicknames, and as a kid I spent so much time trying to come up with one for myself. but nothing was as cool as ripcord and birdie, so, when dad came up with launchpad I just,” he shrugs, looking out the window as he thinks. mentioning his father, even in something as brief and unimportant as this, is weird for him and he almost never does it. “I don’t think I’ve ever introduced myself as landon since. especially when loopey got her name.” it should be noted that this entire story probably makes very little sense to someone that doesn’t know at his family does for a living. but launchpad didn’t think that far ahead. “that’s fun?” if kanga was being sarcastic, it goes entirely over launchpad’s head. “beakley and duckworth hardly seem to enjoy it.” then, after he says it, he quickly corrects himself because he’s wrong. “well, actually I don’t think duckworth minds too much. he’s a ghost, so what else is there for him to do?” when she admits it’s been boring without him at the hospital, launchpad smiles, looking over at her even if she can’t really smile back at him because she has to focus on the road. “well, I’ll stop by to say hi. I’ve missed you anyways.” it comes out easily, and it doesn’t occur to him that maybe he shouldn’t miss hanging out with a nurse who’s supposed to be taking care of him. but launchpad can’t help it. he did miss her a lot. it’s weird to go from seeing someone almost every four days to not at all for a few weeks. “that’s no problem. car rides are fun! we can turn on music and have a sing along, or we can talk the whole time, or play a game!” he can’t hide his enthusiasm as he lists all the things they can do on their way to her dad’s house. “you’ll love beakley! she’s the coolest! she seems stuffy and mean at first, but she’s not at all. well...she’s stuffy, but she’s just really serious about her rules. she’s got a lot of rules.”