Chapter one Rewritten: Curiosity Killed the Cat

The Friday morning's air was crisp and chilly, although there was an undertone of warmth to signify the arrival of summer. It was only just seven in the morning, the sky having barely turned light, yet the children of the Loud family were still gathered outside, waiting impatiently for something. Some were checking their phones, others talking in low whispers, and Leni was simply staring into space while her delicate fingers held up her backpack, a smile making itself known on her face.

A sudden, unpleasantly high-pitched clang came from the driveway. The siblings turned their heads to the source of the noise, the old family van that had been dubbed "Vanzilla". A small, staut girl that wore her hair in blonde pigtail named Lana was busy working on the machinery underneath the old vehicle, although her movement seemed to become more frantic as her oldest sister, Lori, grew furious.

Her fist came down on the teal colored car door, careful enough to not damage it but loud enough to gain her young sister's attention. The blonde teenager made a noise somewhere between a frustrated groan and an angry roar, her thin blonde eyebrows pointing into a deep V shape

"LANA, SO HELP ME YOU DON'T GET THIS DAMN VAN FIXED BEFORE SCHOOL, I'LL-" She snapped, her booming voice commanding the respect of her younger siblings.

The six year old suddenly slid out from underneath the car, a worried look on her oily face. She stood, adjusting the red baseball cap that happened to be loose on her head. She muttered, "Okay, okay, take it easy! I'm trying my best-"

Lori's face grew as red as a jalapeno, her teeth grinding together. "Then hurry up!" She yelled.

Lana flinched and scurried back underneath the car, calling from where she was, "I'm sorry, but you can't rush mechanics!"

"Oh yes I can!"

On the sidelines, a white-haired boy named Lincoln flinched with the rest of his sisters. He seemed to grow agitated as well, hands jamming into his jeans pockets as he groused, "C'mon, c'mon, we're gonna be so late if-"

It was then when the lanky eleven year old realized that the beings he knew watched his life like a tv show, or as he referred to them, the audience, were probably confused. He turned to them, straightening up so that he'd look presentable for TV.

"I'm sure you guys at home are all wondering the same thing: Lincoln, why are you and your sisters all standing outside? Shouldn't you be heading to school by now?"

Lincoln sighed, a cross look on his face. He grumbled as his arms crossed, "Well, Vanzilla's a hunk of junk. Still better than Veronica, at least.". He gagged at the mere thought of the sleek van and his father's former obsession with it.

He moved on, however, and said as an attempt to cheer himself up, "But, y'know what, it's at least Friday."

A dreamy look suddenly overcame him, his eyelids fluttering down a grin tugged at the corners of his cheeks. His voice was breathy as he said, "Ahh, Friday. The week's nearly over, and once you get through it, the fun begins."

The grin spread wider as a twinkle of anticipation appeared in his eyes, unable to sit still as he bounced on his toes. He murmured softly to himself, "Limited edition Muscle Fish comic, you are mine!"

However, a look of realization suddenly came over him, his brows furrowing and his grin dropping into a deep frown.

"I mean, I guess it's not gonna be all sunshine and rainbows...". He shook his head and turned around to face the audience once more.

"Okay, I kinda left out what's been going on lately… ". The boy looked somber as he spoke. He crossed his arms behind his back and continued:

"See, a few months ago, four kids went missing in the span of two nights. But the weird thing is, the police didn't find anything. No footprints, no fingerprints, no blood, no nothing!"

Lincoln sighed, shaking his head. "It's like they disappeared into fat air! And sure, that was way in January, but that's not the end of it, at least for us!"

"About a month ago, we started hearing weird scratching noises from the basement, and saw shadows racing past the first floor windows at night. Mom and dad decided to get the cops involved but..."

Lincoln suddenly looked frustrated, his brows furrowing and his lips tightening into a deep frown as he recalled the events in his head. He grumbled, "They didn't find anything! Just like with those kids! They told us it must have been raccoons or something. Mom and dad still moved the laundry machines to their room though, just to be safe."

Lincoln sighed, a hand coming up to pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's just… I think there's a pattern here, and I don't think it's good."

He then shrugged, facing the invisible camera once more. "Anyways, that's what's been going on lately. Crazy, I know!"

Suddenly, a loud car horn blared from the driveway, making the white-haired boy jump at least a foot into the air. He whirled around just in time to see that while he was talking, Vanzilla was once more up and running, and everyone else was inside.

Lori poked her head out from the driver's window, shaking a fist and bellowing, "Lincoln, quit talking to yourself and get in the van!"

Lincoln sucked in a sharp breath and, with speed that could match the Flash himself, sprinted after the van, yelling, "Hey, wait, I'm coming!"

Seven hours later, Lincoln Loud and Clyde Mcbride walking down the familiar suburban street, their footfalls on the concrete sidewalk being the only noise the two boys were making.

Lincoln sighed. The air was much warmer than the morning, yet it wasn't unpleasant. It was a nice, breezy day, free from the rain that typically plagued the month of April. Mostly why Lincoln opted to walk home. That, and Lori was running late to pick up the elementary schoolers.

Suddenly, Clyde's head swung to the left, his eyes narrowing as he searched for something that wasn't there in the rows of houses. His white-haired friend furrowed his brows and shot him an odd look but held his tongue.

Clyde twisted his head over his shoulder to glance behind him, lips pursing nervously. He turned around and continued walking with his best friend, but after just a few seconds turned his head to the street, eyes searching once more.

Finally, Lincoln seemed to have enough and rolled his eyes, loudly exclaiming, "Clyde, no one's going to take us in broad daylight!". His arm gestured at the nearby houses to make a point as he said, "Besides, there's people nearby who can call the police."

Clyde jerked his head back to the white haired boy and shrugged. "You can never be too careful."

The boy groaned in exasperation but spoke once more. "Y'know, speaking of careful, how come your dads didn't pick you up today?"

His friend suddenly looked sheepish at those words. His fingers fiddled with his blue and yellow-green striped sleeves and his lips pursed tightly. He let his brown wander to the street once more but quickly focused them again on Lincoln. "Ah, well, their car broke down today, and I was supposed to catch the bus, but those things move really fast!"

Lincoln made a hum of acknowledgement. His head turned back to the imaginary camera, thumb jerking in Clyde's direction.

"Yeah, those kids disappeared several months ago, but most of us are still on edge. I mean, I don't blame them, but… maybe not to the extent that Clyde's being."

Said boy gasped, offended, and his chest comically puffed out like a blowfish. He shouted, "Hey, if you're going to talk to some imaginary audience, tell them it's good to exercise caution."

Lincoln sighed, and that was the end of it.

For a good three minutes, silence flourished between the two usually chatty kids. Lincoln stared ahead, ensuring he wouldn't bump into a street sign's pole or a lamppost, and Clyde continued to look behind his back.

They had nearly reached the beginning of Franklin Avenue when Clyde finally broke this silence, a sudden look of thoughtfulness on his face.

"What if it's a ghost?" He uttered, coming to a stop.

As soon as the words left his mouth, his white-haired friend affixed him with a stare typically reserved for someone who just sprouted three heads. He stopped walking as well, turning to face his friend. Clyde coughed into his fist as he feel to judging stare of his best buddy burn into him.

"Right, sorry, I meant the kind on ARGGH, y'know?" He clarified, "The new episode, I mean."

"Are… you okay buddy? Feeling a bit under the weather-?" Lincoln began to ask and even reached out to feel his forehead, but his friend quickly cut him off.

"Don't you remember? Hunter Spector saved a bunch of kids from that evil spirit's lair! I was just thinking it could be something like that!"

Lincoln's arm pulled back as his bright blue eyes widened, recalling the episode the other boy was referring to. He let out a soft gasp, his mouth forming an O shape.

"Ohhh, that one!". He leaned forward, his mouth turning upwards into a grin, "I think he almost got possessed in that one too!"

Clyde nodded quickly, happy that he and his best friend were on the same wavelength. He continued his thought process. "Yeah, that's the one. Man, that was freaky! When his eyes rolled back into his head and you could see the white, and- and when he screamed-!". He shuddered in both delight and fear, "I'll never get that out of my head!"

Lincoln added on, "And then he whipped out his trusty capture device and managed to nab that spirit, saving both himself and all the kids!"

He grinned and replied, "Yep! And that was pretty lucky too! One more second and he'd probably be the meat puppet to some spector!"

"Mm-hmm!"

A small pause stretched between them before Lincoln spoke once more.

"This gives me an idea!"

Clyde hurried to wrap his fingers around his phone, saying, "Call the ARGGH crew and have them take care of it? 'Cause that's what I'm thinking too! Glad we-"

Lincoln suddenly patted his friend's shoulder as if he was a naive child. "Oh Clyde, that would take too long.". He suddenly placed his hands onto his hips, a grin on his face as he proudly declared, "No, I'll take care of it myself! If anyone can get it done, I can! And I think I know where his headquarters are...."

His friend nearly choked on his own spit, eyes flying wide open. The white haired boy standing next to him was barely able to give him a passing glance before his shoulders were suddenly assaulted by the iron grip of the other boy's hands.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Clyde yelled, "You can't do that, y-you just can't! You can't try to confront an evil spirit by yourself! And you're not even trained!". He suddenly let go, his hands coming up to the sides of his head to fist his hair, sucking in several sharp, panicked breaths. "You could get hurt, or possessed, or-or go missing just like all those other kids!"

Clyde's words trailed off as he let go of his friend and hunched over. His body shook violently, his chest heaving from the strain of breathing through the panic.

Lincoln, on the other hand, simply stared down at him in utter bewilderment before he patted him on the back, an assured smile on his face.

"Clyde, it'll be okay. I can handle it."

"How are you so sure though?!" He snapped in uncharistic anger that made his snowy-haired friend wince, "What makes you think you can do this by yourself?!"

The boy paused just as he was about to retort. What made him so sure…?

"Well..." Lincoln started, "I mean, I have a good idea where it is and… I have the equipment! Besides, it's not like I'm going alone."

Clyde shot back: "Oh yeah? Who's going with you?"

"Uh… you?"

"WHAT?! No, I'm not going with you!"

The boy sighed.

"Okay, fine, I'll go by myself."

"I DON'T WANT THAT EITHER!" Clyde nearly screamed these words, making the boy next to him practically cower. He was quick to shush his worked up friend. Said friend sighed heavily, his arms falling to his sides.

"Lincoln… please..." Clyde looked up at him with eyes resembling the look of a sad puppy, a despairing frown making itself known. Lincoln looked away, feeling like a jerk for what he was about to say. And yet...

"I'm gonna do it, Clyde.". His voice was firm and clear, inviting no arguments lor discouragement.

There was a lengthy silence shared between the two boys. Lincoln felt guilt eat at his stomach for upsetting his best buddy, unable to even look him in the eye, instead falling onto the sidewalk. But he had to do this. If it really was a ghost, then he could save the town and those kids. Who knows how long until someone else went missing.

He knew he needed to stop this mess before it grew out of control.

Finally, Clyde sighed, the noise drawn out and resigned. "Fine. I… just don't get in over your head, Lincoln."

Lincoln stared at Clyde, a small yet thankful grin on his face. "Of course." He assured him.

Soon after the pair of boys reached Clyde's house. The boy bid a quick farewell to his friend and walked away, leaving Lincoln standing alone. He didn't stick around much longer, the determination growing as he mulled over his new goal.

Only a few minutes passed before the handsome house that held the Loud family came into view. Lincoln felt his heart speed up, sucking a sharp breath. Somehow, only in that moment did he start to feel the nerves catch up to him, but he quickly shook them off. No, he had to. If he didn't, who would?

Okay, time to put operation nab-that-evil-ghost-and-save-the-kids-and-the-entire-town-and-think-of-a-shorter-name-for-this-operation into action.

He stepped onto the old, creaky porch and opened the front door, leading him into the familiar living room. He set his backpack down in the corner with a few others, double checking to ensure no one would trip over it and all the while mulling over the next steps of his plan.

'Now where'd I put the containment device?'

"Yo, bro, how'd school go?". Lincoln nearly jumped out of his skin at Lynn's query, a small gasp tearing its way from his mouth. He whirled around and came face to face with all of his sisters sitting in various positions on the well worn couch.

"Geez, why're you so jumpy?" Lola asked, tilting her head. But her older brother barely heard her, as he was busy internally panicking.

'Oh no, I can't let them know!' He quickly realized, 'They'll rat me out to mom and dad, and I'll be grounded until I'm twenty, probably!'

Images of his parents scolding the boy while his sisters cackled in the background, making him shiver.

"Why're you all sweaty?". Lana's question tore Lincoln from his thoughts as he realized that beads of sweat had started to form on his brow. He quickly wiped them off with the back of his hand and dried it on his orange polo.

He realized that his sisters' stares were metaphorically burning holes into his body, probably wondering what the heck he was doing. He made himself grin widely and attempted to deflect their questions by saying, "Oh, no no no, I'm fine, just fine! I just SUPER hungry! Don't mind me! Heh…"

Lincoln then darted into the kitchen, leaving his very skeptical and confused sisters behind.

Lisa scoffed.

"Oh please, I'm absolutely certain I saw that white haired pre-pubescent at lunch today."

Lola was next to speak, clearly annoyed yet intrigued. Her eyes squinted as she stared in the direction her older brother disappeared to, "He is definitely up to something!"

Lana rolled her eyes and, in an attempt to rile her bratty twin sister up, commented loftily, "Gee, who tipped you off to that, sherlock?"

The pink princess took the bait and whirled around, her teeth grinding, and mouth twisted into a snarl. She snapped back, "You wanna say that again, Lans?!"

Suddenly, Lori pulled the two girls away from each other, muttering under her breath about how she doesn't get enough allowance for this. She then said in an authoritative tone, "Come on girls, we better go what Lincoln's got up his sleeve."

With the white-haired boy, he was creeping across the dimly light dining room, only just approaching the doorway that led into the kitchen. He cast a glance behind him before bolting into the threshold, stopping just short of the corner that led to the basement door.

Lincoln felt his stomach drop at the sight of the white, worn door. He shook his head, feeling frustration gnawing at his stomach. He had to do this! Not only he could he save people, but… he kinda made a pretty big deal about this anyways. Wouldn't backing out now prove him selfish and cowardly?

A sneaking feeling of being watched came upon him all of a sudden, setting him on edge. He craned his head to look over his shoulder, only to gasp and jolt in shock.

His sisters were standing right behind him, everyone crowded behind a narrow-eyed, suspicious Lori. Everyone else wore an expression that was a mixture of confusion and suspicion, some leaning more towards one side than the other.

Lincoln felt his throat dry up faster than the Sahara Desert. A stone of fear dropped into his gut, eyes going wide. Oh no…

"So," His oldest sister began to speak, crossing her arms against her chest and leaning forward slightly, "Why're you trying to sneak into the basement?"

Lincoln's eyes widened even more, practically bursting out of his sockets from the immense terror. Oh no, he was found out! This was the end of the line for him; he'd probably be grounded until he was twenty!

He felt like a man on death row, but instead of the electric chair, it was his sister's interrogation that would end him.

He let out a nervous chuckle, his gaze darting from sister to sister. He replied in a shaky voice, "Wh-what, me? I would never! That's… I wouldn't do that!"

He expected Lori to speak next, but Luna suddenly butted in, her eyes squinting at him and a skeptical look on her face. 'I dunno, lil' dude." She remarked, "You tryin' to convince us or yourself?"

"Yeah, we all know that excuse is a load of baloney!" Lola added on.

Their brother took a step back. He gulped, figuring that telling a half-truth could get him out of this.

"Okay, maybe I was! I just forgot something down there, and I wasn't gonna stay there long."

Lori quirked a brow, finally deciding to speak. "If that's the case, then why did you try to lie?". She took a step towards her younger brother, practically towering over the white-haired boy.

"I think you're hiding something, Lincoln." She stated bluntly, causing Lincoln to shrink away from his oldest sister. His gaze darted between the crowd of girls, feeling that trying to convince them he wasn't lying through his teeth was more and more hopeless.

After a long, wordless pause, he finally sighed and drooped like a wilted flower. He turned his eyes to the floor as he spoke.

"Okay, okay." He muttered. Here goes nothing. "I was trying to go down in the basement because I think there's a ghost down there, and I want to catch it. I think it could be behind the missing people and-"

Snickers arose from his sisters. His head jerked upwards; eyes widened in disbelief.

"Are you gonna call the ghostbusters to help out? Because that's hard to boo-lieve! I guess you have a bone to pick with your spirit!"

At such words, everyone doubled over in hysterical laughter, cackling hard enough to cause tears to well up. Their brother's jaw hung agape, brows furrowed.

'I knew they wouldn't believe me… but I didn't think they'd laugh!' He thought.

He scowled and stared down at the floor. He couldn't let them know they struck a nerve in him. ; they would only make fun of him more! The need to prove them wrong grew in his gut, anger replacing the hurt.

'Oh, whatever. I don't need them to take me seriously! I just need to prove I'm right! Yeah, that's it!'

Emboldened by this train of thought, Lincoln started to march to the door that led to the basement.He craned his head over his shoulder and glared at his still laughing sisters.

"Yeah yeah yeah, laugh all you want. But when this city thanks me for single-handedly saving everyone, you'll be sorry!"

"Lincoln."

Lincoln practically jumped out of his skin upon hearing Lucy's voice. He whirled around to face her, eyes still wide. Yet his expression grew cross upon seeing her standing in front of the basement door. He groaned loudly. While he couldn't help but feel relieved that she was the one person that wasn't laughing at him, at least, she was still blocking his way.

"Outta the way, Luce. I got a job to do!" The boy muttered as he raised an arm to gesture at the door.

"Sigh. Lincoln, please listen to me." The gothic girl said in a monotone voice, yet living under the same roof as her for years had granted Lincoln, and most of her siblings for that matter, the ability to pick up on subtle undertones and pitches of her voice. He was surprised to find an almost desperate hint to her voice, confirming that she really wanted to talk to her brother before he went down to the basement.

While Lincoln's patience was as thin as a cookie sheet, mostly due to his still laughing and mocking sisters, his big brother instincts told him to at least hear her out. Maybe she'd help him, even. He said firmly, "Alright, but make it quick."

"Lincoln, I don't think it'd be wise to go down there. I've been sensing a bitter, restless presence in the basement for the past week.

"And?"

"Lincoln, just a few days ago, I saw eyes down there. They peered from the darkness, its pupils glowing a strange, golden color and its sclera was a deep, hauntly dark shade of purple-"

Her older brother interrupted her, sounded agitated, "So? That just means there is a spector down there, and I should catch it! I could save those kids! I could be the town hero and stop whatever's going on!"

His eight year old sister fell silent, and if stares could kill, the one she was giving him would most likely strike the boy dead on the spot. His hands fidgeted with his pockets out of nervousness from the sheer intensity of such a gaze.

After the longest ten seconds of Lincoln Loud's life, she spoke once more.

"Trust me, you do not want to interact with an angry spirit. You'll probably make them all the more agitated, more dangerous... and I don't want my big brother getting hurt."

Lincoln snorted, his patience finally worn thin. He had enough.

"I can take care of myself just fine!" He snapped. Such a reaction caused Lucy to jerk back in shock and let out a soft gasp. Normally he would feel awful just a second later, but now he didn't feel a remote droplet of remorse.

He shoved Lucy out from in front of the door, a deep, furious scowl on his features. Lucy flinched upon seeing her big brother slam the door shut, the sound of the door locking just the cherry on top.

She couldn't help but feel the panic swell in her chest, her eyes widening underneath her bangs. Her brother was sending himself to the metaphorical wolves, and she wasn't entirely sure if he would make it out unscathed. Who knows what's down there? However, her posture and body language changed little beyond the previously mentioned wide eyes.

The nearly deafening slam of the basement's door managed to jerk his sisters from their laughing fit, their expressions ranging from confused to shocked.

Lola pulled herself into a sitting position, her eyes bugging out of her skull. "Did he…?" Her voice was quiet and bewildered, jaw falling agape.

"Yeah, I think he did." Her twin added on, sitting up as well and scratching her head.

Lincoln's heavy footfalls echoed along the stone walls of the basement, the enraged, sputtering words complimenting the noise. His hands were balled into tight fists, his face just as red and scrunched up as a furled rose.

"Stupid stupid- I'll show them-! I'm gonna- Ugh! I'll catch that thing! All catch it all by myself! That'll show 'em!".

He finally reached the bottom of the stairs and, as if woken from a dream, took a few calming breaths. He couldn't let himself get too worked up over this. He had to think straight.

But the realization that he couldn't feel the heavy weight of his ARRGH equipment on his back suddenly shot through him. He gasped, his eyes flying open and the color draining from his face.

"Oh crud, I forgot my equipment!" Lincoln cried. He whirled around and started to run upstairs but stopped himself midway. He shook his head. No way his sisters would let him live it down if they saw him run up looking for his stuff. He shuddered at the mere thought of them laughing and the embarrassment that would make his face feel hotter than the surface of the sun.

'What can I do though? I can't catch ghosts without it!'

Lincoln sighed and trudged back down the stairs, defeat clear as day on his face. Okay, now what?

The boy started to pace, walking further into the basement without realizing, his chipped tooth chewing on his lower lip. Oh, what to do, what to do?! What could he do?!

A small chuckle suddenly echoed throughout the basement.

The boy froze in place, his eyes bulging wide open in fear. He shivered, the air suddenly feeling colder than ever.

"H-hello...?" He stammered quietly; all his previous bravado had gone out the window. His voice echoed slightly in the empty room. He glanced around, but he saw nothing besides boxes and the sunlight streaming through the old, small windows. It looked like he was alone.

"Am I hearing things?" He pondered aloud. And then, almost as if the universe itself wanted to answer his question, the sound of someone, or something, jumping from a high place- presumably the furnace, from the source of the noise- and onto the floor reached his ears.

The hair on the back of his neck stood up, a shiver of dread rushing up his spine.

'I don't wanna be next! ' He thought frantically, sucking in a shallow breath. 'This may just be the end of Lincoln Loud...'

Suddenly, there were footsteps behind him. Lincoln whirled around, practically wetting his pants out of sheer fright. Oh god, this was it, wasn't it…

However, it was the figure that met his eyes that frightened him even more than the possibility of death.

The creature was tall, maybe seven feet in height, and while it's torso was rather thin with the ribs visible, it had oddly broad shoulders and thick limbs. It was man-like in structure, yet at the same time, it couldn't be farther from a human..

It had thick, ragged, clearly dusty fur that was mostly white, beyond the black patches on its ears, arms, and the top of its tail. Said tail was long and had a thick coat of long fur, a dead-ringer for a feline's tail, Lincoln quickly realized. He couldn't help but notice it had cat-like legs, with the knees bent and standing on the ball of its foot, although its paws were so much bigger than he would have expected.

It was covered in scars as well, some small, some large. Yet they all shared the same two haunting attributes of being pitch black and emitting a strange dark gray smog.

It wore just three pieces of clothing; a frayed at the ends burlap scarf, a dirty purple jacket that seemed to be missing a zipper, exposing its chest and stomach, and thick pants that only just reached its knees from how torn and ragged they were.

Yet its face was by far the disturbing aspect of whatever this creature was. The shape was narrow with a rounded point of a jawline, and thick, long fur hung loosely off of its cheeks. It had a narrow muzzle, two long, nicked cat ears, and very long, dark gray hair that was tied into a loose ponytail, although several bangs of hair hung out from the band.

Its eyes were nightmarish in nature, and Lincoln could see why Lucy was so spooked. It's pupils were just narro golden slits that seemed to glow brightly, and the scleras were such a dark shade of purple that he at first misrook the color as black. The creature stared at Lincoln, and he felt as if its gaze was burning holes into his very soul.

At that moment, Lincoln couldn't find words to explain his shock. He simply stood there babbling, his mouth flopping open like a fish out of water.

"Well, well. Look what we have here.". The creature's voice was gravely and masculine, yet contained many inflections and dramatic emphasis. It was coy yet rough, an odd combination that made Lincoln shudder.

Lincoln, upon finding his voice again, opened his mouth to scream. But in the blink of an eye, the creature placed a grimy finger on the boy's mouth, a stern look on his face, horrific eyes narrowed, menacingly towering over him.

"Now, now, let's not be hasty." He drawled, his voice cloying, "If you scream, I'll have to use my camouflage, and by the time your sisters come down here, I'll be gone and make you look insane. Now we wouldn't want that, would we?"

Lincoln's eyes went wide, yet he nodded quickly out of fear. The creature smiled, his mouth revealing a full set of huge, sharp teeth that made the boy wonder how the heck it all fit into the spector's mouth.

"Very good, dearie." The cat-beast chortled. He slowly removed his finger from his mouth, eyeing the boy carefully. Lincoln stood stock still for a few seconds, his eleven year old mind scrambling to figure out the overload of information that was metaphorically chucked at him.

"Wh-what are you?!" Lincoln shouted out of impulse, "What're you doing in here?! Did-"

"Be silent." The thing said, his voice as cold and hard as ice. Lincol carried on however, too wrapped up in his terror to take the hint.

"Did you kill those kids?! It's-"

Just before Lincoln could process what was happening, the creature hand gripped his jaw like a vice, closing his mouth shut and jerking his chin upwards. He leaned forward, hints of a snarl showing on his muzzle.

"Silence." He growled lowly, "As long as you're here with me, you will not raise your voice, or make any loud noise to give me away whatsoever. If you choose to do so,". The snarl suddenly disappeared, replaced by another grin that nearly reached his eyes in how long and wide it was. He looked smug as he continued, "Then I'm afraid I'll have to camouflage myself. Wonder why the police couldn't find me? And I can easily hide from your sisters, leaving you looking like a cowardly fool... Unless you'll be quiet?"

Lincoln swallowed thickly, feeling the iron grip on his jaw loosen ever so slightly

It was only enough for him to answer in a shaky, fearful voice, "Ye-yes sir…"

The creature calmed down instantly, letting the boy go. Lincoln began to take several steps back from the spirit and cast a glance at the stairs. He briefly pondered if this thing would let him go back upstairs, but he soon heard a wheezing, rough bark of a laugh. He craned his head, brows furrowing upon seeing the spirit hunched over from laughing so hard.

"Oh please!" He remarked between chuckles, "I won't hurt you, even if I do look like something the cat dragged in.". Lincoln couldn't help but groan at such Luan-styled wordplay, his eyes practically rolling into the back of his skull.

"Heh…alright, alright." The thing finally stopped laughing and stood up straight, fluffing up his cheeks in what the white-haired boy in front of him assumed was an attempt to look as cuddly and friendly as possible. But even going off that guess, the boy had doubts that anyone would look at such a creature and go, "Oh, yes, how friendly!"

Thankfully he didn't primp and preen for long, and cut right to chase:

"So, it's agreed my appearance is rather off-putting, right?". His words were met with a cautious nod, and the creature continued, "Well, since I did give you quite the scare, I'll explain myself."

"I am a demonic wandering spirit, a man who died yet refused to move on and leave behind unfinished business..."

"But why? And why the heck are you a… cat… thingy?" Lincoln apprehensively asked this question, curiosity burning within him, yet there was an edge of fear to the fire. The demon affixed him with a long, wordless stare, a slight smirk snaking across his muzzle.

"Like I said, unfinished business. Pay attention." The demon uttered this remark with an air of condescension. However, he quickly continued, "As for my appearance, it's a byproduct of becoming the entity I am."

"Why?!"

"To teach a lesson, dearie. See we demonic entities, wandering or not, are cursed with dreadful animalistic forms, to show we need to work for forgiveness to regain our humanity."

"Work for it?" Lincoln echoed, his head tilting curiously. "I thought… I mean, don't demons and what-not go to hell?"

The demon shrugged and replied causally, "Yes. But-!" He leaned towards Lincoln, pointing to himself and giving him another toothy, nightmare-inducing grin. "I escaped! Snuck out and into the woods!"

Lincoln swallowed thickly, feeling the terror rise up again upon seeing this unnatural thing get so close to him. The cat-demon chuckled upon seeing the boy's expression change.

"But… what did you do-" He quietly asked.

"Anyways," The cat demon interrupted this question by yawning, stretching his arms upwards, "I know you're questioning why I'm here."

The boy in front of him paused. "Uh…y-yeah?"

"Right, well," The demon began to pace, going in a wide circle around the boy. It was unnerving, but he stood his ground. At the very least, he was certain this thing wouldn't kill him.

'If he was trying to kill me, why wouldn't he just get me earlier? Why go through all of this if that's not what he wants?'

This train of thought helped him calm down slightly, easing his worries of being brutally murdered on a nice Friday evening.

"Well," The demon suddenly spoke up, scaring the living bejeezus out of the white haired boy. He jerked his head around, sucking in a sharp breath and his eyes practically bulging from his sockets.

"Oh dear, my apologies." The cat demon said quickly, a chuckle escaping his lips, "As I was going to say though, I believe both of us can… ah, help each other out, in a certain way."

Lincoln affixed him with an absolutely baffled look, his brows furrowed and eyes questioning. "Wha- Why do you think we could each other?" He voiced, taking a step back, "I-I mean, you're a-a- I don't know, an-and I'm a human! I mean, I-"

He trailed off upon seeing the demon fall deathly silent, head tilted, although his expression remained blank, almost to an uncanny degree. The boy before such a creature swallowed thickly, suddenly fearful of having accidently upset the large demon that, by all means, could probably squash him if he wanted to.

The seconds ticked on, making anxiety build in his gut.

And then, a breezy chuckle came from the demon's maw, his head shaking and his face scrunching up in mirth.

"Is that so, dearie?" The demon drawled, "Don't you remember why you came down here in the first place?"

"I- I was looking for a ghost…". His eyes suddenly narrowed, looking frustrated, his hands balled into fists, "But what does that have to do with anything?!"

"Oh now, is that how you treat someone who simply wishes to offer help?" The demon drawled condescendingly.

"… Help?" Lincoln echoed in a bewildered tone.

"Yes. Help." The demon said these words with a sharper tone, one that helped Lincoln know he was likely annoyed. "Now, listen closely!". He flashed him a toothy smile

Every instinct told the boy to run, yet the terror held in place, concerned about what would happen to him if he tried to flee.

"I want something, you want something. And you managed to figure out there could be a spirit in here, even without that sister of yours."

"You heard that?"

"Mm-hmm. I also heard your other sisters mocking you, laughing at your expense!"

The demon tilted his head coyly. "It made you feel like shit, didn't it? And it was quite rude, goodness!"

"How did you know all that?!" Lincoln shouted, going red in the face, only to slap a hand over his mouth upon realizing the volume of his voice. It was a lucky catch too, as the demon didn't seem pleased by his tone. He hissed in a lower yet still harsh voice, "Were you spying on me?!"

The demon scoffed. "Please. I don't need to use any sort of powers to hear through these pitifully thin walls!"

"Oh."

"As I was going to say though, before you rudely cut me off-" The demon sent the boy a sharp glare that made him cower, "You were looking to catch a ghost, and I would assume because of the disappearances lately, correct?"

The boy nodded.

"Well, I'm sad to say you caught the wrong entity. I only came in a few weeks ago, and from the sounds of it, these missing cases go back to January. But, there is a way I could help, possibly."

Suddenly, the demon paused and held a hand out, flexing his fingers slightly. The action greatly confused Lincoln before a strange, mist-like substance began to emerge from his hand, yet didn't stray far from it. This made Lincoln gasp and back away slightly, but the thought re-occurred to him that this demon wouldn't like it if he ran off.

Thankfully, it didn't seem dangerous, and it formed two shapes. One that looked an awful lot like him, and one that looked like the demon.

"What will happen is this:'' The cat-demo spoke again, although his voice had taken on a strange, eerie echo. "I'll go out at night and search for your little spector, and tell you if I see anything. You, meanwhile, will do me a small favor first and foremost."

"Y-you mean… you'll help me?" As much as he hated to admit it, the prospect of having a literal demon on his side, helping him put a stop to the dangerous spirit, was starting to excite him. He had to suppress a stupidly huge grin to ask another question. "A-and, what do I have to do?"

"If I find anything, write it down and report it to the police. Say you found it on your own, as I doubt anyone will believe a demonic wandering spirit helped you!". Said spirit chortled and then fell silent.

"This is awesome! Uh, sure! But..." Lincoln quickly gained a troubled look on his face, brows furrowed and his smile disappearing in a frown. "What is that favor?"

The demon simply shook his head and grinned, although there was a sparkle of something sinister in his eyes, as if to say he had nefarious intent.

But Lincoln realized that his pupils, formerly narrow slits, were now widening, nearly taking up his entire eye now. He inhaled sharply and slowly backed away, now wondering if he had time to run as he glanced behind him.

"You're about to find out, dearie."

Lincoln didn't have enough time to look behind him when a demonic roar ripped itself from the cat beast's throat, and golden beams of light flew from his eyes and blasted the white haired boy backwards.

It didn't hurt, unless you count Lincoln's back colliding with the concrete floor, but it felt almost like a gush of water, minus the wetness. It was so blindingly bright that the boy couldn't even open his eyes.

After just a few seconds that felt like eons though, it was over. Lincoln groaned and sat up, rubbing his back and his mind scrambling to figure out what just happened.

A low snicker interrupted his train of thought, and the boy was aghast upon seeing the demon standing just a few feet away, towering over the boy.

Lincoln yelped and leapt to his feet, cowering in fear. The demon laughed, clearly amused by whatever was going on.

"Oh my, was that rude, dearie? I'm sorry, really, but I couldn't have you run off if I did tell you!" He chuckled, shouldered bouncing in laughter. The boy glared at the demon, despite the terror inside him, despite every bit of common sense telling him to make a break for it. He noticed that a slight itch fired on his arm, although he had much bigger fish to fry at the moment

"What was that?! What did you do to me?!" He demanded, not caring in the slightest if he was too loud at this point. The demon shrugged casually.

"Well, you'll figure it out soon enough. In the meantime though-" He suddenly grabbed Lincoln's chin again and bent down, jerking his baby blue eyes to face his own. A smug grin was plastered onto his face, his muzzle touching Lincoln's nose. "This cannot be undone. You agreed to my terms, and therefore I provided. So don't come crying to me when it hurts."

He let the boy's chin go, standing up to his full height once more. Lincoln staggered back, shivering, before shooting the demon a less angry and more pleading look and saying, "What does that mean?! Why can't you speak normally?!"

"You'll see."

Lincoln's jaw flopped open as he stared incredulously up at the demon, who starting to back away. Was he serious?! Did he really want him to figure it out by himself, when he had no clue what was going on?!"

The itch from before had tripled in intensity, and this time Lincoln took notice of it. He scratched it, his head turning to look at it.

"I swear, what-"

The words died on his tongue upon seeing what had caused the itch, his eyes bulging wide open, his jaw dropping, his face draining off it's color and his other hand coming over to cover his mouth.

Somehow, there was a concerningly large patch of fur that was growing on his arm, continuing to spread like wildfire.

At that moment, Lincoln's world was flipped upside down. What was going on?! His throat felt clogged, and his body felt like he was just dunked into the waters of the polar caps. His gaze lingered on the sight before him, his mind struggling to figure out what the heck was happening anymore.

After a moment though, he finally found his voice.

"What's going on?!" He cried, his head whipping around to face the demon. Said demon shrugged and grinned from where he was, a sparkle of cruel laughter in his eyes, like he was in on a joke that Lincoln wasn't privy of.

He realized he would get no help from the demon and was about to tug on the hair on his arm to try to pull it off of him, but his limbs suddenly felt like they were made of jello.

"What-"

Out of the blue, horrific agony seized the boy like he was on fire, and he could do nothing but scream bloody murder and fall onto his side.

It felt as if his body was being stabbed with a white-hot knife multiple times in his flesh, while every bone was being beaten with several baseball bats. Lincoln screeched like a banshee, writhing on the ground in agony and curling into himself. His eyes opened slightly and then nearly bulged out of the sockets upon seeing his arms.

While Lincoln had been distracted, he must have not noticed them completing their metamorphosis. The white hairs had coated the entirety of his arms and, from what he could tell, was marching up to his shoulders and the beginnings of his chest. A quick inspection of his hands told him they hadn't changed much, beyond the same white hair covering it and strange pink pads covering his palm and the tips of his fingers.

"No no no no no-!" He quietly pleaded to no one in particular, silently begging for the change and the pain to stop.

But he soon yelped as he felt the fiery pain burn and intensify in his ears. His eyes screwed shut again, hands coming up the sides of his head in a desperate attempt to stop whatever was going to happen.

It sadly didn't stop anything. The ears were already pointed, and they began to grow in size and move to the top of his head, feeling more like large triangles than human ears. At each successive pop as his ears shifted, Lincoln cried out, partially from pain and partially from being overwhelmed with shock and fear. As soon as they took the shape of giant triangles, he felt his ears pop one last time, making him go completely deaf for a moment.

'WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?!'

For a moment, everything was silent. He could still feel the pain, yet he couldn't hear anything! And then, his hearing returned twice as strong as before.

He could easily hear the loud snapping and cracking of his bones, and the straining of his muscles as they realigned with said bones. The bile began to rise in his throat, and he had to resist the urge to yarp right then and there from hearing his body change.

He could also hear his sneakers tearing as his toes became puffed out and shorter, his pinkie slowly receding into his foot. Lincoln groaned and quickly grabbed his left foot, yanking the tattered remains of his sneaker off of it. He was horrified to find his feet were lengthening to inhuman proportions, pads that looked similar to the ones on his hands forming. Yet he spent as little time as he possibly could gawking, determined to not completely ruin his shoes as he pulled the other one off.

It was too much, far too much. He felt his chest tighten, breathing hampered as adrenaline and panic began to flow through him, forcing him to breathe through gasps and pants. The foot debacle has only made his panic worse, knowing he was clearly changing, yet he didn't have the foggiest idea what was going on, what the outcome would be, or how.

His senses were overwhelmed, hearing his bones cracking and his muscle tissue tearing, and what he was seeing in front of his eyes made him feel like he was going insane. And good lord, the pain! The agonizing feeling coursing through his body outshined any pain he had ever felt from any injury in his life. Heck, he'd much rather get into a brawl over money like the Sharon DeMonae incident than go through this! It was so awful the boy wasn't sure if he'd be happier dying or not.

He picked up something with his newly heightened hearing though. The demon's soft chuckling.

In his panic, he realized he might be his only option to stop this agony, as much as he hated to admit it. He tried to stand but yelled in pain and fell onto his hands and knees, staring up at the demon pitifully. This would have to do.

"S-s-sir, p-please make it stop!" Lincoln cried out, shaking as he attempted to face the cat demon, trying to keep his voice steady. "I didn't-ack- I d-didn't say I wanted this!"

The demon flicked an ear in response, a shadow briefly passing through his eyes. The rapidly changing boy couldn't figure out what that emotion was, but he didn't linger on it for long. The demon grinned his horribly smug, terrifyingly toothy grin and took a few steps closer.

"Hm, truly interesting." He said slowly as he tapped his chin, clearly in no hurry to stop this. Lincoln attempted to keep his focus on the cat demon despite the overwhelming pain, silently begging him to have enough mercy to stop…whatever was happening. "A boy begging to terminate our deal when it hurts a little bit, despite him agreeing to my terms."

He hummed thoughtfully, saying in a sickeningly sweet tone, "Does this really make you deserve help?"

"I don't care! Just please please please make it stop!" Lincoln screamed, the agony becoming too overwhelming for the young boy to handle.

"Yes, well, you agreed to my terms." His eyes suddenly narrowed, a dangerous glint in the demon's eyes. "You said yes, you agreed to do a little favor, therefore, your complaints are moot."

"That was before, okay! I-I didn't know this-this would-" Lincoln shouted, trailing off with a whine as he felt the hair from earlier sweep over his waist, traveling down to his thighs. It didn't hurt, per say, feeling like a slight, tingly itch more than anything. He raised his left hand and pushed it under his shirt, feeling his chest and stomach to figure out what this hair thing was about.

It was long and soft, thickly coating his body. He sucked in a sharp breath and shivered, desperately trying to deny that it felt like petting an animal, despite being attach to him. He even tried to pull on it, wincing upon feeling sharp pains shooting through him. His mind tried to rationalize this sensation, scrambling to find a word for this. He realized a better name for the hair would be fur.

His face drained of color and his stomach lurched, the urge to vomit coming back tenfold upon coming to this conclusion.

Oh, sweet lord he was turning into some sort of animal-

"Why the long face, dearie?" The demon questioned mockingly from a few feet away. Lincoln couldn't bring himself to look that thing in his horrible eyes, cursing him for doing this, for turning him into an animal!

"What're you doing to me?". He managed to choke out. He felt disappointment that he couldn't make these words into the demand he intended it to be, worried the demon wouldn't take him seriously.

The demon shrugged and turned away nonchalantly, drawling over his shoulder smugly, the same grin on his face from the start of this mid-change interaction, " Oh, I prefer to keep it a surprise. You'll figure it out though, don't worry your little head!"

Lincoln's eyes burst in shock as the demon backed farther away, going back to casually and quietly observing his changes.

"Is- GAHHH! " The changing boy screamed when he was hit by a fresh wave of pain, this time radiating from his mouth. This new wave of pain made him fall to the floor once again, his arms unable to support himself.

It felt like getting braces tightened from what Lori and Luan described, yet he was sure it wasn't this bad. His teeth ached as if they all had cavities, and he was almost certain they were growing, particularly in his canines.

Granted, all of the pain disoriented his senses and made it hard to tell for sure what was going on and where, so Lincoln decided to test this. He ran his tongue against the top row but must have applied too much pressure, wincing as he felt a sharp sting.

He sucked a breath through his teeth in pain, seeing a couple red droplets fall to the floor, and a metallic taste was in his mouth. His mind took a few seconds to process what happened, no doubt to being overwhelmed with pain and panic, but he swallowed thickly upon realizing what happened.

It was blood in his mouth. It was blood that dripped down onto the floor.

He cut his tongue on his teeth.

His. Own. TEETH.

'WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?!'

The boy's entire body was shaking violently, eyes still wide and his vision beginning to be blurred with tears. Unable to take looking at his transforming body anymore, he buried his head into his arms. He fingers dug into his furry arms to vent stress, but Lincoln quickly realizing he had claws now upon feeling a slight sting from where his fingers were. He didn't want to look, he couldn't look, he wouldn't look-

Then all the pain seemed to be building up into the small of his back, and strangely enough, a lump seemed to be growing there. It felt like a black hole was ripping his spine right out of his body, the skin around it stretching and only barely keeping with the elongating vertebrae. His large ears flattened against his head upon hearing the fleshy pops coming from his tailbone.

Lincoln screwed his eyes shut. His sharp teeth clenched, and his newly formed claws scraped against the floor, the pain being so great that he couldn't even bring himself to scream.

'Please, please, PLEASE let this be a bad dream!'

Deep down though, he knew it wasn't. The pain was too great to all be in his head. As much as he hated to admit it, he never would have dreamed this in a million years.

And then, Lincoln felt several sensitive hairs poke out from either side of his upper lip, the sensation, much like the fur, feeling itchy. Curious, he opened an eye and went cross-eyed to see what happened this time.

These new hairs were at least a few inches long and completely white, although he could tell they were much longer and thicker than the fur that had finished covering his body. Honestly, they reminded him of a cat's whiskers…

He then finally put two and two together about what he was becoming.

The demon was clearly part cat, and the only animals he knew to have whiskers like this were cats.

Lincoln wanted to scream, to cry, to curse this horrible demon back to wherever he came from, but this realization simply took his breath away, a chill running up his spine as such a monumental revelation fully registered in his overwhelmed brain.

"I-I... oh god, I don't wanna be a cat!" He managed to choke out.

A small laugh came from the left and was followed by, "Aw, did you figure it out? Well don't worry, your change isn't over yet!"

Lincoln sobbed, unwilling to believe there was more to go but knowing that he's most likely right. He clenched his eyes shut again, unwilling to look anymore.

Right on cue, the lump from before began to gain length, growing an inch, maybe two, and all the while, his spine made fleshy popping noises. He especially hated how his new hearing could easily pick up on such disgusting noises, despite how much he wished to block it out. He growled and slammed his fist into the ground repeatedly as if he were calling Uncle on Lynn during a wrestling match. The boy felt like he was trapped in some sort of nightmarish, horrific dream, but he was painfully aware of its reality.

Why him?! What did he do to deserve it! Was it because he but trust in this demon thing? He now deeply regretted not running as soon as he saw the thing!

The lump ended up bursting through his underwear and hit the denim of his jeans, and even though it couldn't go farther, it still tried to grow. It pushed painfully against the material, pressure beginning to build.

Lincoln's eyes flew open, hyperventilating as the panic made his chest tighten. He choked back a cry as the pressure continued to build. He wished this would stop, that everything going on would cease!

But the agony got so excruciatingly awful, he eventually couldn't bear to let it continue. As much as he hated to help this horrible transformation along, he lifted his hand and tried to rip a hole in his jeans with his new claws. He felt burning shame upon using it, but desperate times called for desperate measures, he quickly told himself. Even so, he wasn't entirely sure if his claws could pierce through the denim, even if it was worn thin.

Surprisingly, it worked, and he felt a wide enough tear in his pants for the lump to shoot out his pants. It still hurt like burning hell, but the poor kid child felt slightly relieved that the pressure was gone.

The boy shook as the pain in his backside died down, dreading what would come next. He clenched his lower jaw, hoping this was almost over. But nothing happened. In fact, all the pain went away, leaving a dull ache in its wake.

Lincoln sat still for a few more seconds, curled into himself and breathing heavily, tears streaming down his face,

After twenty seconds, he realized that everything had died down. He let out a breath of relief that there was a momentary pause between all the sensory over stimulation, pain, and tingling. Finally, he thought it was done.

He opened his eyes, gasped softly as he blinked in shock at how much better he could see. He could still see the colors any normal human could see, yet he found he could see much better in the darker areas of the basement and his vision felt much clearer.

Suddenly, two black, paw-like feet stepped into Lincoln's vision, and a rumbling, dramatic, horribly condescending voice purred, "Welcome back, dearie!"

Lincoln gasped and jumped to his feet in an attempt to run for it. But he couldn't even back a few steps again before falling onto his butt and onto the tail. He gasped softly in pain and horror at the sensation of unnatural pain coursing up his spine.

The demon stepped closer to him, his shadow falling over the boy. The boy shivered and gulped but realized how futile it was to run when he couldn't even walk properly.

"Well now, is that how you treat someone you were just conversing with? Why the long face?" The demon laughed in amusement and placed his hands on his hips.

Lincoln trembled and tried to speak, only to hack. It seemed that his throat was far too sore to speak, probably from all the screaming. Shame began to rise once more, lamenting that he couldn't yell at him and demand to know what happened like he desperately wanted to.

He couldn't help but feeling that this was his fault, as much as he hated to admit it. He shouldn't have trusted this thing, should have ran or screamed, then maybe all this wouldn't have happened!

He wouldn't be a cat if he just ran.

"Now then, I'll inform you of what I expect from you tonight. But in the meantime, remember this-". The demonic cat man suddenly stopped pacing and lunged towards Lincoln. The boy could barely cry out before he was sharply yanked by his shirt and was face to face with the demon's sharp fangs. He elongated feet dangled helplessly, probably at least to feet off of the ground. He tried to squirm free as he felt his sharp, pitch black claws dig in his shirt and poke the skin below, yet went still when they dug in further at his movement.

His wide blue eyes stared up at the demon's own, desperately searching for any sign of mercy in his expression. The effort was fruitless though, and he could only find apathy to his suffering, and horrid smugness.

The demon snarled, jerking Lincoln out of his thoughts.

"If you ever tell anyone about this little meeting, I'll have no choice but to kill your entire family, boy! One by one, right in front of your eyes!"

Lincoln was suddenly dropped onto the floor rather harshly, a yell ripping out of his throat upon colliding with the cool stone floor. He didn't have enough strength to stand up properly, instead drawing himself up onto his elbows, and any attempt to properly sit up was met with intense ache.

His eyes fixated on the demon before him, who clambered on top of the furnace. And then, his body disappeared, blending in with the wall. The boy heard the demon climb onto the rafters, and a shiver of fear ran up his spine as he realized he was probably watching him from above there.

He wondered if he could make a break for the door, when was alerted to a sudden crack that came from his nose, quickly followed by a sharp sting. The boy's eyes flew open in panic, barely paying attention to how the fur on the tail began to bristle and his ears flattened.

"No!" He shouted, his hands flying up to his mouth. Oh no, not again-!

That all too familiar burn suddenly came back, the sensation akin to someone injecting chili powder into his face. Lincoln collapsed onto his side, his hands clutching his mouth and nose, horrified to find that it had already moved half an inch outward.

He shouted in agony as the area moved once more, the pain intensifying with a pop. Again, his mouth and nose moved a little bit more. He writhed on the ground, hands trying to push back against the change occurring, yet there was no luck. He couldn't stop it even if he wanted to. And the mere thought that he could do nothing to stop his humanity from being stolen away terrified the poor kid.

It was agonizingly slow, growing a half inch at a time, with what felt like ten seconds in between. Lincoln wished it would go faster, that this wouldn't drag out. He felt exhausted, both mentally and physically, yet for some stupid, horrible reason his body felt the need to change more.

Lincoln soon regretted his earlier sentiment however, as his mouth and nose felt as if they were suddenly yanked outwards, a deafening crack filling the now silent basement. Lincoln couldn't even bring himself to scream from the intense agony.

But as the pain faded for hopefully the last time, Lincoln was suddenly overcome by a wave of intense soreness. He groaned and curled loosely into a ball, said ache and then exhaustion suddenly making it hard to move. He desperately hoped this was it.

He realized through his exhausted stupor that the basement door was being banged on by something heavy, and before he knew it, there was a loud crack, and cries of relief came from his sisters.

Were they trying to get the door down the entire time?

As he heard them racing down the stairs, he desperately wished he could run, hide, explain, or anything! But the ache and exhaustion were too much, and unconsciousness sounded tempting compared to the hell he just experienced.

Lincoln wasn't awake long enough to hear his sisters gasp and shocked exclamations as they fanned out in a half circle around him.