To Catch a Raptor

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger finished speaking to Dreamchild through the Star Wisher's internal telephone. Though he knew that Dreamchild preferred telepathy, he was still far away from the Overlook, and would rather utilize one of the aircraft's features than let it sit idle.

"So, you want me to come over to the Overlook?" he asked the Dream Come True, who was stationed in the mansion. She said, "Yes," and so Duck Avenger nodded, even though he was alone. "Okay! I'll be right over."

Twenty minutes later, the Avenger entered the Overlook Mansion through the front door, and made sure to wipe off the sand that stayed on his yellow boots. He closed the door behind him, and entered the dining room, approaching the large table that the Dream League occasionally dined at, together. He saw Dreamchild standing near the entrance to the kitchen.

"Hey. What'd you need?"

Duck Avenger was told that he wasn't expected to be in the Overlook today, but there seemed to have been a change of plans. After a lengthy talk with Dreamchild over DLIM (Dream League Instant Messenger, the Dream League's own hosted instant messaging service), as well as idle chit chat over the telecommunicator, Dreamchild had expressed a strong desire to invite him to the Overlook. So, here he was.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild stood near the opposite end of the dining room. Her smile brightened when Duck Avenger entered, and she waved at him. "Good afternoon, Avenger!" After a short, almost awkward pause, she gestured to one of the room's exit, which connected to the kitchen.

"I made a pot of tea. Would you care for some?"

She was polite and kind, like always, but something seemed off about her. Something seemed artificial...

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger didn't approach Dreamchild, but he wasn't far away from her, either. She seemed like her typical kind, prim self. But she also seemed... distant. Not quite aloof, but the way she smiled didn't seem genuine, and her voice lacked substantial warmth. It was almost like she was hiding something, or knew more than she was letting on.

The Avenger let this feeling pass, though. He smiled and nodded. "Sure. I'd like some tea." Dreamchild nodded in response, and left the dining room, leaving the Avenger alone. The vigilante duck looked around the room, wondering where everyone was. Was Dreamchild alone in the mansion?

[Chris Hansen]

The answer was no. There was someone inside the mansion at the time, other than Dreamchild. In fact, other than any Dreamer. He was a popular television personality, and he was best known for hosting a recurring segment of Dateline NBC.

When Dreamchild was out of the dining room, a silent ten seconds past before the 'guest's' footsteps signaled his arrival to Duck Avenger. The tall, slender man surpassed six feet by about two inches. He had light brown hair, a serious face, and looked like a professional speaker in deadpan. In his right hand he clutched few pages of paper that were stapled together, but his arms were folded on his chest. He entered and circled the table, until he was facing opposite the Avenger.

"Hello! How're you doing?" he greeted the Avenger, getting his attention. He gestured to a lone chair just next to the duck. "Why don't you have a seat right over there?"

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger heard footsteps behind him. By how heavy they were, they sounded like they came from a human. He looked back, expecting to see one of his numerous human companions. Paradox, maybe? Or the Balloonist? But it was like a roulette wheel's ball landing on 00: all of his bets were lost. He didn't recognize this tall, adult, human male with slick hair, and a three piece suit that was formal, but also had a small taste of casual. He didn't wear a necktie, though the Avenger could have easily pictured the man wearing one.

Duck Avenger's eyes widened in surprise when he heard and saw the complete stranger, who circled the table and stopped when he was directly on the opposite end, facing the duck. The Avenger did as he was told and sat down, though he wondered why he was so easy to obey this stranger, who was in the Overlook. He didn't own the deed to the place, but he was still in high authority in here! ... Right?

"Uh... who are you?" He rested his hands on the table, staring at the man.

[Chris Hansen]

The man's reaction did not flinch at the question. He didn't change any kind of expression whatsoever. It was obvious that this man meant serious business, and was steadfast with his goal. He wasn't polite, but he wasn't rude, either. He did not sit, but he stood, his left hand on his hip, and his right on the table's surface, supporting himself. He was leaning instead of standing upright, yet still very much in control of himself.

"I'd like to know a little more about you, first." After a pause, he asked with a tone of voice between implication and accusation. "What are you doing here?"

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger linked, then twisted his bill and lowered his eyelids in annoyance. "Whadd'ya mean, what am I doing here? I'm Duck Avenger! I live here!" After those words left his mouth, he shifted in his chair uncomfortable and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, actually, I live somewhere else. But I live here sometimes! Why? Are you saying I'm not supposed to be here? I'd say you're not supposed to be here! Who the heck are you?" He gave a hard, dirty look to the man.

[Savage]

If Duck Avenger and his potential adversary listened, then they would have heard the sounds of heavy footfalls on the floor. Someone large was headed their way. The culprit was Savage, who was in the mood for a snack right then. Due to his size and bulk however, a snack to him meant clearing out half the fridge's contents. He was probably about as bad as Bongo was when it came to eating.

Savage decided to take a shortcut through the dining room. Hearing Duck Avenger's raised voice even before he made it to the door, the super shrugged it off as Duck just being Duck, but upon seeing the strange man there with the loudmouth -- um, Duck Avenger -- stopped short. He saw that the two were sitting at opposite ends of the table, facing one another. Was this some sort of interview? He wasn't very fond of reporters: Savage tended to find their questions repetitive, stupid, and annoying. Duck gave off the strong impression of being irate, most likely because of this stranger.

Savage glanced at the well-dressed man then over at Duck Avenger, his features questioning yet wary. He honestly wasn't sure if he should go or toss the man out (which he would be more then glad to do if necessary).

[Chris Hansen]

In this footage, you're seeing Duck Avenger's attitude slowly change. He walked into the Overlook in a state of comfort. And it's this state of comfort that leads me to believe that he has either done this kind of thing before, or he just feels that there's no danger in store for him. Then I walk out, and you can see his surprise. But he's not admitting his problem, so I have to probe the situation further. But then, in steps Savage.

The man ignored Duck Avenger's question, and asked a loaded question of his own. "So, you don't live here? You just came here, knowing that there was a 12-year-old girl here?"

He noticed the hulking werewolf from the corner of his eye. He faced him, and gestured to an empty spot beside Duck Avenger. "Hello. Why don't you stand right over there? And keep your hands where I can see them."

[Savage]

At first, Savage could do nothing but stare at the man, eyes wide and jaw slightly agape. He finally complied with the man's orders, moving to stand beside Duck Avenger and keeping his hands in front of him. This was pretty unusual for someone of Savage's character, but the combination of this guy not only not being scared of him but actually having the audacity to order him around in his own place left him dumbfounded.

What was this about a twelve year old? Did he mean Dreamchild? Shifting slightly, Savage looked down at the duck. "You know this guy?" He asked brusquely.

[Chris Hansen]

"No, he doesn't," the man replied before the masked duck could have a say. "I'll tell you who I am in a minute, Savage, but first let me ask you a question. Are you familiar with your alter ego, Dr. Delbert Doppler?"

---

"I knew he was, but I wanted to hear it from the beast himself. If I get him to reply, it'll boost the ratings. And that multicolored peacock in the bottom right corner will salute me."

---

"I understand that Dr. Doppler is friends with Dreamchild. Doesn't that strike you as... odd? Are you friends with Dreamchild?" His face was cool as ice... yet smoother than ice. He was like a smooth, cool cat.

[Savage]

Intrigued, for a moment Savage cocked his head to one side ever so slightly as he considered the well-dressed man. It was rather odd to see him using a gesture that was more befitting of a pet dog.

Yep, this guy had to be a reporter. Savage decided that he was willing to humor the man. He wasn't asking him about the couple of times he had accidentally wrecked some building somewhere, or if he was completely reformed. or otherwise trying to make him look bad. "Sure, I know the runt." He answered casually, scratching his forearm a bit.

Savage thought about the man's follow-up question, not yet quite getting what he was implying. He gave a shrug. "What's odd about it? Me and her ain't friends. Don't hate her or nothing though." He added a second later.

[Chris Hansen]

The man in the suit's facial expression barely changed, though his eyes gleamed with disbelief. "But you are aware that Dr. Doppler's made physical contact with Dreamchild one night? On..." He held up one of numerous sheets of papers that were laid out neatly on the table. The paper was white, and the text was very small and ordinary. Quickly finding his evidence, he read it, verbatim.

"On Re: To Catch a Raptor, reply #11 on November 5, 2011, 8:31 PM on some time zone no one seems to pay much attention to, Dr. Doppler had this to say: “Goodnight, Dreamchild.” Delbert returned her smile. Hesitating a second, he then reached out and affectionately (if somewhat awkwardly) patted her head. Dreamchild was just the sort of young person that he wished he had had in his classes.'"

The man rested the paper on the table and eyed Savage intensely. "Could you maybe elaborate on that? Why did Dr. Doppler patted her head awkwardly? Did he know it was wrong?"

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger watched the man and Savage engage in a battle of wits. Or was it even a battle of wits? So far, it looked like this costume man was a Gary Stu in a business suit. What the heck was this nonsense about?! The Avenger was getting very annoyed. Was this Dreamchild's idea of a joke? Was this man some actor? He thought loudly, trying to get the girl's attention.

<<OKAY, I GET IT. HA HA HA. YOU CAN STOP THIS NOW!!>> Nothing. <<... Dreamchild?>>

Where was Dreamchild? She left the room just minutes ago. He wanted to get up and track her down, but he had a feeling that the well attired man would do something very bad if he so much as scooted his chair back. So, he sat in awkward silence, trying to keep up with the--

Re: Dreams to Nightmares? HUH?? The duck and Savage didn't really get along, but this time the duck was definitely on his comrade's side. "What the heck is this guy talking about?!" he asked Savage desperately. He pointed at the man accusingly, while keeping his eyes on Savage. "I don't like him!"

[Savage]

His expression unreadable, Savage listened as the man read from one of the pieces of paper that he'd presumably bought there with him. Oh yeah, Savage thought he knew what the guy was talking about, even if he had phrased it in an extremely weird way. He had been there watching, like he always was.

Duck Avenger was really starting to freak out. Savage favored him with a glance as he started yelling. "The kid had a bad dream, so puny Doppler came to see what was wrong. They talked about it, then he patted her on the head and went back to bed." He simply explained, surprisingly calm about this whole situation while Duck fumed.

Suddenly, Savage's eyes grew large as he finally caught on to what the reporter was getting at with his line of questioning. For a moment he could do nothing but stare across the room at the serious-faced man. Then his shoulders shook, and he began to laugh, loudly and uproariously and holding his stomach as he did.

The idea of Doppler even feeling that way about Dreamchild was hilarious! The guy seemed to preferred his books to women... or girls, whatever. Still, the fact that someone would even come to that conclusion about that twerp Doppler was the funniest thing Savage had seen since Darkwing Duck's failed attempt to show him "what being a real hero was all about" a while ago ended up getting him plastered to the concrete.