always something there to remind me

Summary: Scrooge and Goldie run into each other in Ireland.

Word count: 3203

Warnings: None

Loch Goir, Ireland
March 29th, 1956
7:52 AM (local time)

TIR NA NOG IS REAL: $100,000 PRIZE TO THE EXPLORER THAT FINDS PROOF

When the New Stork Times Magazine published that article, there were whispers heard around the country that the author had lost his marbles. People were questioning the legitimacy of the magazine if they allowed talk of mystical unreal otherworlds only reachable by magical bridges. And the prize money was insane!

But Scrooge McDuck was immediately on the hunt.

Scrooge had been to Ireland plenty of times before. He hadn't done much business there - it wasn't exactly the most prosperous country - but it was right by his homeland so he'd made his way through Dublin a few times. On this particular adventure he found himself in Limerick. A source of his suggested that the Mag Mell Bridge would be in some body of water near there and Scrooge was determined to find the bridge before anyone else.

It was a short journey from the Shannon Airport to Limerick, though the numerous taxi drivers begging for his money made Scrooge nostalgic for a time when he'd have to walk the whole way.

But this was a race and $100,000 was on the line. No time for bellyaching about a few dollars when he'd be making so much more.

He stepped into the taxi, only one small bag seated next to him. "I need to get to Limerick, on the double."

The driver nodded and started to move, but almost immediately stopped.

Scrooge was about to yell at him when he heard a familiar voice outside.

“You going to Limerick?”

The driver stuck his head out the window and nodded. He looked back at Scrooge. “Ye mind if we bring ‘er along?”

Scrooge breathed out a deep sigh. “Go ahead.”

His driver stuck his head out the window again and Scrooge situated himself and his bag so there was room for his new traveling companion. He should’ve known this would happen, but it’d been over a year since they last spoke. How did they always manage to run into each other?

She opened the door, tossed her bag onto the floor and crawled in, not looking over at Scrooge as she shut the door behind her. “Thanks! We can split the…”

Scrooge smiled smugly as Goldie finally realized who she was sitting with. “Hello, Goldie.”

“...Scrooge,” she said, only a small wisp of surprise in her voice. “Looking for Tir Na Nog?”

“Of course.”

“Then I suppose we're going together," she commented dryly as the taxi started to drive.

They sat there awkwardly for a few minutes. It would be at least a half hour til they made it to the center of Limerick and neither duck knew what to say.

Their last adventure together had gone badly and they both remembered the details all too well. Lots of confessions of love and affection forced from their beaks while they were slowly being killed by the air they were breathing. And then they had a huge weird fight that Scrooge still didn't really understand. He knew she was embarrassed about what happened, but he'd suffered the same fate. Shouldn't the solidarity have made it better?

Often when they split from each other after a fight, they'd just come back together and not talk about it. Pretend it never even happened. But Scrooge didn't think that was healthy, even if...almost none of their relationship would really be classified as healthy. But he also didn’t know how to bring up old fights with her. The only people he ever did that with were his dad and sisters and they’d just start fighting about it again. Maybe it wasn’t worth it.

"How have you been?" he asked suddenly.

She turned to him, surprised. "...fine, thanks. And you?"

"Busy." Scrooge played with the bowler hat he had on his lap. "I'm extremely close to becoming the richest duck in the world."

Goldie smiled and rolled her eyes. "Good for you. Who's the sucker you still gotta beat?"

"Vander Zee," Scrooge said, plucking a loose feather from one of his fingers. "He owns-"

"- hotels, yes. I'm aware." Goldie crossed her arms over her chest. "Well with him as the only thing in your way, I'm definitely rooting for you, sourdough."

Scrooge smiled humorously. "You werenae rootin' for me before?"

They locked eyes for a moment where neither duck spoke. Then Goldie lifted a hand to play with some loose strands of hair. "Of course I was."

And just like that Scrooge felt himself fully sunk once again. The smallest drop of compliment or confidence from her made his heart go wild and he didn't care about anything else she did or said.

He reached over and put one of his hands on top of hers. She looked surprised at the gesture and Scrooge smirked at the light blush on her cheeks.

Goldie copied his smirk and undid her seatbelt. "Hey, driver, keep your eyes on the road."

Scrooge reacted quickly as she straddled his lap, wrapping his hands around her hips and holding her tight.

---

---

Brendon McQuack considered himself to be a pretty average guy.

He'd been a taxi driver since he was 18 years old and ever since then, he'd been saving up enough money to move to America. He has a nice wife and they were talking about starting a family after they moved and it was going to be nice.

He liked driving taxis. He also really liked planes, but learning to be a pilot was expensive if you didn't know the right people. Brendon hoped his future child would be able to fly freely if they wanted to.

So at the tender age of 33, Brendon had seen his share of odd passengers. Ireland was full of fun characters, and the types of people that came to visit their land were always at least a little interesting.

Despite all the years of driving strangers around, not once before had he experienced what happened in March of 1956.

Two passengers who entered his taxi at completely separate times, in the middle of the day, neither of whom were drunk, started heavily making out in the backseat.

He kept his eyes on the road, but Brendon was pretty sure based on their noises that they were also having sex. Or some kind of sex.

He wasn't sure what to do about that. Maybe he could add a small fee for inappropriate behavior. Though he was pretty sure one of the people in his taxi was Scrooge McDuck, aka one of the richest men in the world, so...a large fee for inappropriate behavior? That only seemed fair.

So alright. He could handle a bit of weirdness in his taxi so long as it got him to America faster. Rich people were known for being a bit strange, after all.

---

After several hours of wandering around Limerick, the two ducks finally found a body of water called Loch Goir. It didn't take a lot of guesswork to realize it contained the Mag Mell, though Scrooge and Goldie were lucky that it'd rained earlier in the day. Explorers needed the shine of a natural rainbow to make the bridge visible.

"So...this is it, then," Goldie commented as she stared into the water. "We just walk in?"

"You should go first," Scrooge suggested. "I paid that ridiculous taxi fare, after all."

Goldie glared at him. "Shouldn't you want to go first, then?"

"Ah, but...this is your home country, Goldie. Go right ahead!"

"I've never been to this country before, moneybags. But I'll bet you've done business here. You should go first!"

He scoffed. "Well...ladies first!"

The two bickered over who would be the first to step on the rainbow bridge to who-knew-where? until finally Goldie just grabbed him by the lapels of his sport coat and threw him into the water.

Scrooge sputtered and coughed, water having gone up his nostrils, but his hands and knees were flat on the rainbow. It was a solid surface made of pure light. Sure. Ludwig would kill him for suggesting such a thing.

"How's it feel?"

"Feels more sturdy than my trust in you!" Scrooge responded angrily. He knew he'd be going first, but he was hoping to put it off for another minute. What if the rainbow bridge thing was just a trick of the light? He would've bashed his head onto the rocks in the lake's shallow waters.

Goldie shrugged and followed him, hopping excitedly onto the rainbow and stomping her feet for good measure.

"How long can ye hold your breath?"

"Hopefully long enough," Goldie said with a grimace.

The bridge had a gradual decline into the water, but they could see it continued well past where the lake should've ended. If they were right, then they'd reach Tir Na Nog well before drowning. If they were wrong, well...then they'd drown. Probably.

Goldie took a deep breath and dove into the water, swimming along the path of the Mag Mell bridge. She was a strong swimmer and she could hold her breath for well over a minute.

As she swam and the water got darker, the rainbow bridge seemed to glow. It made her all the more confident about her chances of survival.

That was, until Scrooge suddenly swam past her with some sort of device hooked around his head and locked onto his beak. Little air bubbles were coming out of it and Goldie didn't need to be an inventor or a scientist to realize that it was helping him breathe underwater.

She clenched her fists and glared and tried not to get too angry. She needed to focus on saving her breath, not screaming at Scrooge.

He was visible despite being far ahead of her, thanks to the glowing bridge, and Goldie was starting to get worried about her chances until Scrooge stopped swimming and suddenly fell splat! onto the bridge. She had to stop herself from laughing, but mostly she was excited to see that she was close.

Scrooge rolled over onto his back and took out his rebreather device, placing it back into his bag and thanking whatever-Gods-were-listening that Tir Na nog had breathable air.

He leaned forward and watched Goldie swim towards him, impressed at how long she was able to hold her breath. He had intended to share the rebreather with her, but then she dove in so confidently that he didn't need to help her out.

Goldie finally reached the end of the water and flew out, landing on top of Scrooge and knocking the wind out of him. She coughed up water and didn't even try to avoid hitting him in the face with it.

Scrooge took her aquatic assault and sat them up straighter so he could pat her back. Maybe she wasn't doing as well as he'd thought. "Are ye alright?"

She coughed a few more times and wiped a soaking-wet sleeve against her beak. Then she glared down at her sleeve and realized how pointless that action was. "Fine. Thanks for watching me drown."

He smiled awkwardly. "You wouldnae have drowned! You're Goldie O'Gilt, remember?"

Goldie glared, but the loving look on his face brought a smile to her own. She'd absolutely be swiping that device from him sometime soon. He probably had a ton of them back home.

After taking a few minutes to collect themselves and dry off a little bit, Scrooge and Goldie continued their journey along the rainbow bridge.

---

To say that Tir Na Nog was magical and beautiful would be a major understatement. Everything was sparkling and bright and smelled like honey and just generally seemed like paradise.

Scrooge and Goldie were not amused.

"This is too nice," Goldie said with a hand on her hip. "It's like that dimension with the mice, but worse."

"Aye...if ye feel your memories start to fade, let me know," Scrooge responded. He was looking all around them for any sign of trouble. So far nothing was standing out...there were ducks all over just bathing in clear cool waters and enjoying life. Afterlife? He wasn't exactly sure what this place counted as.

"We just need to get some proof and go, right?"

"Those were the rules."

"I brought a camera, but I have a feeling they'll be wanting more than that." Goldie tugged at her bottomless purse and pulled out a camera, quickly wrapping the strap around her neck for safe keeping.

"Before we announce to the world that we found this place...maybe we should make sure it's safe." Scrooge started walking off in one direction, not checking to see if Goldie was following.

She quickly caught up and kept the camera in her hands, taking photos of anything that looked particularly odd or interesting. She shivered and shook her tail feathers. "I just got the shivers from something around here."

Scrooge raised an eyebrow at her, but then he shivered too. He looked around and saw some buildings and some baths, deities enjoying fruits and desserts in every other corner. It was like a bacchanal with how drunk and satisfied everyone looked.

It was weird to think that only a year earlier, he and Goldie might've participated in the fun without a second thought. Instead, they were suspicious and paranoid and judgmental.

"Scrooge," Goldie murmured, tugging on his kerchief. "Look over there! It looks off-limits."

He rolled his eyes and held back a comment about how fitting it was that she focused on the areas they weren't supposed to be. In her defense, though, she was right to point it out.

"Let's go see what they're hiding," Scrooge whispered.

The two adventurers snuck around bathers and actors, slowly making their way towards the darker, off-putting area. No one seemed to notice them, though, and even when they did they didn't seem to care.

"Sneaking around is no fun when everyone's too high to care," Goldie whined.

Scrooge walked past her to the oddly-shaped building, ignoring her comment. He noticed a giant lock on the doors and moved out of the way to let his partner/rival/??? do her thing.

She flipped her ponytail at him and went to work on the lock, getting it open within a few seconds.

"Don't be impressed, that was way too easy," Goldie said as she stood back up. "This could be a trap."

"A trap?" Scrooge laughed for a second. "Who would be trappin' us? None of these radges even know we're here!"

Scrooge tore open the door and the two ducks were met with a sight they could not have predicted.

It was a stable filled with unicorns. And all of them were either starving or struggling to breathe or too small to get out of their chains. Scrooge, who had a deep appreciation for animals after they helped him during the Gold Rush, was immediately disgusted at the sight.

"Wait, what?" Goldie said as she stepped inside. "Is their paradise dependent on...unicorn blood? That's so stupid."

"What's stupid is the way these defenseless animals are bein' treated!" Scrooge yelled, clenching his fists at his side. He was shaking with anger and he didn't even know who to be angry at. He hadn't felt that angry in years, not even during one of the many times Goldie betrayed him.

She looked back at Scrooge and felt a blush cross her cheeks at the sight. Seeing him so angry made her remember their first month together - when they fought Soapy and took him down. The memory was a real turn-on. But obviously they had other things to do.

"So...we breaking these things outta here or what?" Goldie asked, putting a hand on Scrooge's arm.

He almost immediately calmed down and stared at her hand. "Goldie, I dinnae know if most of these creatures have the strength to leave. Let alone get through the lake."

She glanced back at the unicorns and had to agree that most of them looked half-dead already. "We could at least set them loose, right? Give 'em a taste of freedom?"

Scrooge put his hand on top of hers and smiled. "I hope they find the bampot who locked them up and rip him to pieces."

---

Over the next hour, the residents of Tir Na Nog ran around, trying to capture or hide from the several dozen unicorns galloping every which way. The animals were angry and scared and prepared to take it out on anyone they saw.

Scrooge and Goldie happily watched the chaos, leaning against each other as a building suddenly set on fire.

"I don't think the unicorns did that," Goldie commented.

Scrooge chuckled for a moment, but suddenly stopped when he saw something special. "Look!"

Goldie followed his finger to a small, half-starved little foal that was wandering around and looking very lost. "Aw... it's cute."

"I dinnae know if it'll survive on its own," Scrooge said as he walked over and picked it up. "Maybe we should take it home with us."

Goldie's heart fluttered annoyingly at the combination of 'we', 'home', and 'us', but she shook it off and went back to focusing. "If you take it away from its own kind, that horse is gonna hate your guts."

Scrooge glared at her. "I'll bring it back when it's at full strength!'

"Sure, sure. I’m sure you won’t forget about it." Goldie reached over to pet the foal, but it whinnied unhappily and tried to bite her. "Hey!"

Scrooge laughed and held the unicorn to his chest. "Oh I think we'll get along just fine. He's already takin' after me!"

Goldie rolled her eyes, though she had to admit the image of Scrooge holding an infant was...really cute. And it was doing things to her heart that she didn't want to think about. "And how exactly do you plan on getting him back to Earth?"

"He can take the rebreather," Scrooge said with a shrug. "If you could hold your breath that whole time, then so can I. I'm Scrooge McDuck! I'm t-"

"Tougher than the toughies, yes, I'm aware." Goldie pouted, annoyed that she wouldn't be able to take the device like she'd planned. Taking it from Scrooge was one thing, but a weak little baby? She wasn't a monster.

Scrooge scoffed and started walking towards the rainbow bridge, ready to get back to their world. "Did ye get all the photographs ye need?"

"Oh, right!" Goldie quickly snapped a few shots of the chaos before popping her camera back into her bottomless bag. "I'm surprised you're okay with leaving Tir Na Nog in this state."

"They were hurtin' animals," Scrooge answered with a scowl. "They can clean up their own mess."

Goldie smiled at the back of his head as they walked out. She wondered if they'd still get the prize money after destroying the place. The article never said anything about Tir Na Nog needing to be in tact when they found it. Plus no one could prove it was them.

Scrooge seemed proud enough about what they did to brag, though.

(She didn’t mind. $100,000 was nice, but taking down a bunch of drunk weirdos abusing innocent animals was also pretty nice.)

DEFINITIONS:
- radges: crazy people
- bampot: idiot

REAL HISTORY FACTS:
- There's conflicting information about Tir Na Nog and the Mag Mell. Probably because they're not real BUT I DIGRESS. Here I've used the interpretation of Tir Na Nog as a paradise for deities and the Mag Mell as a magical bridge from Earth to Tir Na Nog.
- New Stork Times Magazine is obviously the New York Times.
- Shannon Airport and Limerick are very real and not terribly far from each other. Maybe like a half hour drive?
- Loch Goir / Lough Gur is a real lake in Limerick.
- Several people have mentioned that the Tir Na Nog twist is reminiscent of The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin. I have never read that but yeah it's a similar vibe.

DUCK FRANCHISE REFERENCES:
- Vander Zee is the guy from Scrooge's flashback in "The Richest Duck in the World!"
- Brendon McQuack (aka Launchpad's grandpa) is not a real character but I just thought it'd be funny to have him here. He'll soon move to America and his wife will give birth to their son Ripcord which is a totally normal American name.
- Yes that is definitely the same unicorn from "The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck!"