37. Resettling(1)

A/N: Took a long break from this due to life matters and being a bit bored (see Fame and Misery). But, I'm getting back in the saddle to continue etching out this story until it's finished; which to be honest, shouldn't be too long as I feel it could drag out far longer than I want it to. It'll be kinda sad to see it end, but it'll be a sweet ride up until that point.

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING from the Loud House.

For the first time in months, there was not an ounce of worry or stress in Lincoln's body. Ever since he walked through the door, the only person keeping him occupied was his bubbly infant sibling. Time was but a blur to Lincoln, not taking any notice on the minutes that passed as Lily cherished his presence in the form of playing around with her toys. Sometimes, the boy would join in on the fun to help Lily's imagination run wild; and he certainly didn't disappoint as Lily laughed at almost everything he did. She'd occasionally give Lincoln a different toy to use (who'd become confused as he hadn't a clue on what to do with it) only to take it back moments later and attempt to eat it. Lincoln chuckled every time before calmly pulling it from her open maw and setting it on the floor. His heart grew warmer each time Lily smiled at him with her nearly toothless mouth; the Loud boy raised a brow upon noticing what looked to be the tops of small teeth poking ever so slightly out of her gums.

"Someone's growing to be a biter." He joked to himself as Lily started to chomp on a plastic cube from her shape set.

Her stomach gurgled a little. "Hungee." Lily replied simply, still gumming up the plastic object in her hands.

"Alright alright." Lincoln chortled, getting to his knees before lifting the baby, who kicked her legs around in an excited manner. "Let's get you fed." He took the cube from her mouth and dropped it to the floor. As Lincoln walked towards the dining room, he noticed it was already half past 1. "1:30? What time did I get home again?" Lincoln narrowed his eyes as he thought to himself. "It had been around...11?" He spoke, making Lily glance up at him as she was sucking on her fingers. This didn't go unnoticed as he smiled at her. "It's not about you Lily, just talking to myself."

Lily giggled. "Lincoln funny." She poked at his nose not a moment later.

Upon reaching the room where the family ate together, Lincoln noticed his dad sitting at the table with a bunch of papers flanking him on both sides. The boy grew concerned as he noticed the scrunched up face his father had. "You ok Dad?"

"Huh?" Lynn Sr. looked up from his work upon hearing his name. "Oh, didn't see ya there sport." He smiled. "I'm fine," The patriarch looked down at the sheet, "Though I think I need to start wearing some reading glasses..."

"You mean like the ones Pop-Pop wears?"

"Yep." Lynn Sr. nodded. "Your old man is startin' to get at that age where I can't read small letters like I use to. Which is also not a good idea when you have someone who apparently crashed their computer so hard it needs to be set back to factory settings."

Lincoln didn't really understand I.T. work, aside from that it deals with computers; Lisa would definitely know more about it than he would. The Loud shuddered a little as he thought about his Brainiac of a sister, which subsequently made him think about his 8 other siblings. The stress and anxiety that had been lost filled his chest like a 30-pound weight, and Lincoln's breathing became noticeably uneven.

"Lincoln?" Lily asked, poking his mouth with a finger.

The Loud shook his head upon realizing he had been staring into space. "I-It's nothing. Hey Dad?" Lincoln looked to his father. "Can you feed Lily? I need to go upstairs."

"Uh, sure Lincoln." Lynn shrugged, getting up from his seat to take his youngest child.

Almost immediately after Lily left Lincoln's grasp, "Noooooo!" She whined, reaching her arms out towards her brother whilst kicking her tiny feet against her father's stomach.

Seeing she was almost at the verge of crying, Lincoln grabbed one of Lily's small hands with a few of his fingers. "I'm not going anywhere Lily." He spoke softly as he smiled, lightly thumbing across one of her eyes as she shed a tear. "Just need to go upstairs and finish unpacking everything. We'll play together later." Lincoln finished with a light kiss to her forehead.

That seemed to do the trick as Lily sniffled a little before becoming complacent, nestling against her father's chest with a slight frown on her face. "Wow. That's the quickest I've seen anyone calm her down in the last few weeks." Lynn stated, heading into the kitchen.

Lincoln raised a brow. "Didn't one of..." He paused. He knew the exact word he wanted to say, but it felt...how to describe it? Unnatural? Chilling? Weird? It was one of those in which he could refer to his other siblings. In the end, Lincoln settled for, "Them try to take care of her?"

"Whose 'them'?" The older man asked, opening the fridge and pulling out a small up of applesauce.

Lincoln breathed in deep. "My...other...sisters..." He spoke slowly, shuddering a little.

"Oooh…" Lynn gave the door a hip check to shut the fridge door. "Let's just say Lily wouldn't talk to anyone for a while after that...thing that happened sport. She didn't want to sleep in Lisa's room and myself and your mother could barely keep her calm whenever she started crying."

It didn't take an Ace Savvy approach for Lincoln to figure out Lily was that upset about his absence. He couldn't blame her either; spending the better part of two months away from the house was enough to make the sensation of home feel alien to him. You could even say the old house would've felt like stepping into a new home if it weren't for the fact it was rundown in more ways than one. But, being true to himself, Lincoln still felt the pangs of guilt in spite of the situation he was in. He could only imagine the restless nights Lily had, desperately waiting for her brother's return; not to mention those his parents had due to dealing with the fussy infant.

There was but one, very dark thought hidden within this pit of sorrow however. While he wouldn't say it out loud, part of Lincoln hoped his other siblings barely got any sleep. He couldn't explain why this thought ran across his head; maybe it was bitterness for making Lily mourn in his absence, or perhaps it was some deep resentment that had yet to show itself.

Whatever it was, Lincoln felt a tad disturbed by this hidden anger. Thankfully, his dad spoke again before he could dwell on it further. "Oh, and I made your favorite sandwich while you were busy with Lily." Lynn spoke as he gently fed a spoonful of applesauce into Lily's waiting mouth. "You like peanut butter and sauerkraut, right?"

The very mentioning of those two words made Lincoln's stomach growl in anticipation. "I sure do!" He replied enthusiastically whilst making a beeline for the fridge.

Sure enough, there was a sandwich that had aforementioned shredded cabbage and peanut butter, all wrapped nicely in plastic. After having been unable to enjoy his favorite meal for so long, Lincoln wasted no time in undoing the wraps and taking a bite of his lunch. He gave a content sigh as he chewed slowly; others may have been disgusted by this weird assortment of food, but it's not like he was eating pizza covered in mayonnaise.

Just, ew...

"Thanks Dad." Lincoln replied as he left the kitchen.

"Sure thing son!" Lynn called after him. As he turned his attention back to Lily, he got a spoonful of applesauce in his eye. Lily giggled as she fiddled with the spoon in her hand, spraying more of the processed food this way and that on the tray of her baby chair whilst causing some of it to fall to the floor.

"Alright Lily," The Loud patriarch rubbed his face clean. "Settle down. You're still getting your daily fill young lady." Lily responded with a few incoherent words as she sucked on the handle of the spoon.

Lincoln continued chewing on his meal as he exited the dining room, taking a moment to look upon the main floor of the house. Just as he remembered it: same old TV, same old couch, same old coffee table. And yet...it felt as if something was missing...

The middle child squinted his eyes in thought. Usually, one of his other younger siblings might've left a toy or whatever lying around on the floor. The clean yard certainly made sense; his parents must've had the girls finally clean their stuff both inside and out. Lincoln stopped chewing when he turned his head to the right, his vision locked on the stairs. The base of them was the very spot most of his siblings did that horrible deed, though there wasn't any sign of a prior confrontation. Not one speck of blood could be seen, nor was there a carpet hair was out of place; in fact, this particular section of the carpet looked a little bit lighter than the rest of the floor, as if it had been bleached. This didn't stop Lincoln from visualizing those 5 minutes of hell he endured, and if one were to look closely at each individual step, you'd notice there were visible indentations from the moment Lincoln and Lynn came crashing down the stairs.

Looking up at the entryway to the second floor, it was easily lit up by afternoon sun shining through the windows. But to Lincoln, he felt like he was staring at the entrance to a den filled with venomous snakes. He knew he'd have to pass by his other sibling's rooms in order to get to his, and he still didn't know whether they were truly absent for the time being or just hiding from him; that was their strategy after all when it came to school. At home, there was obviously a lot less places to hide (barring the vents, but Lincoln wouldn't dare go in them), and that left the boy wondering how they hoped to employ this similar strategy.

As Lincoln dwelled on this however, he started to feel that familiar sense of bitterness seemed to come up whenever he thought about the girls' plans. "That stupid protocol clearly didn't work out the way they wanted it to..." His lips became a thin line that was just shy from showing teeth. "Doubt they have anything meaningful if they're still gonna play hide and seek..."

Then again, he hadn't seen nor heard any of his other siblings for the past two hours, further cementing the thought that they had taken Vanzilla somewhere. Giving out a small huff, Lincoln incoln took another bite of his sandwich before making his way up to the second floor. His body was partially stiff at the thought of something jumping out at him as soon as he reached the top, knowing full well how bad falling down the stairs can be in any situation. In fact, Lincoln would've been certain he'd have broken something if Lynn just tossed him down the steps instead of trying to fight him.

Once he reached the last step, Lincoln gripped the railing tight as he listened for even the faintest sounds of movement. Aside from hearing Lily giggling in delight and his father's laughter, it was so quiet he could hear the house settle. All of the doors were open, or at the very least, slightly cracked. Part of Lincoln told him to ignore this and make a beeline for his own room, but curiosity got the better of him he opted to see if his siblings' rooms had changed in his absence. And, he wanted to be thoroughly sure no one was waiting to ambush him.

Starting with the oldest girls' room, Lincoln only poked his head in enough to get a good view without making himself known; Lori always had a problem with him being in the room when she was. Leni, bless her heart, never did; but she never said anything to stop Lori from just needlessly booting him out. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary, although there wasn't as many fashion products lined up on the dresser in front of the biggest mirror in the room. Along with that, Leni's sowing machine was missing.

Lincoln raised a brow at this, but soon shrugged it off before leaving the vacant room. Turning around towards the performers' abode, he poked his head in once more. This room was in stark contrast with the last one: not only were Luna's various instruments missing, but so were Luan's comedic props, her classic Joker-styled chair, Mr. Coconuts was nowhere to be seen, and her Funny Business calendar had all of the days crossed out.

"Where's all their stuff?" Lincoln asked aloud.

He spotted a guitar lying next to the bunk bed, but it was just some regular guitar you'd probably see country singers use as opposed to the electronic axe Luna often sported. Eyeing the calendar, Lincoln walked up to it, lifting the sheet with the current month to check the rest of the year. Knowing Luan, she tended to plan her parties at least a month or so in advance; yet nothing was there. He couldn't even check to verify the previous dates as this was the type of calendar where you toss out the sheets for past months.

"Guess Luan stopped doing Funny Business all together..." The Loud stated quietly. With how important this voluntary job was to the comedian, it came as quite a shock Luan had given up something she was passionate about.

"Then again..." Lincoln's brows furrowed a bit. "I've had to give up a lot of my time just to help any of them." He dispelled a heated breath through his nose. "Guess it was all for nothing..."

Turning to leave, Lincoln took the last bite of his sandwich, chewing in a somewhat agitated manner before swallowing. Stepping back into the hall, the boy made a hard left and sidestepped towards Lynn and Lucy's room. Before peeking inside, Lincoln looked down both ends of the hall to make sure he was truly alone; last thing he wanted was for Lucy to pop out of thin air like she always does.

After a moment, he felt satisfied enough to take a look. Like before, Lincoln came across a site that was alien to him. For as long as he's known Lynn, she was never a person that liked to organize. Or, if she did, it equated to "leaving everything in a pile for easy reach". None of her sporting equipment was around, and the same could be said for her multiple sports jerseys. He doubted her stuff would be smooshed up in the closet; Lynn had enough equipment to own a small department store.

On top of that, Lincoln noticed that none of Lucy's bats were around. Being that it was still the middle of the day, they should be indoors; possibly the attic at best. However, there wasn't enough ventilation to make it climate controlled, not to mention dusty. Plus, as Lincoln looked up at the ceiling, the dozens of claw marks from where the colony nested were quite faded; it was as if they hadn't been in the room in months.

"Lucy wouldn't tell her bats to just leave, would she?..." The Loud mumbled to himself.

He sauntered into the room, opening up the large closet on Lynn's side of the room; it wasn't uncommon that the bats would occasionally roost in the dark and cramped space, much to the athlete's charging. Instead, Lincoln found nothing but rows of regular t-shirts and pants hanging on the rack. Like the outside, there was not even a reference to sports hiding around in there; although Lincoln could see some of Lucy's dark apparel.

"Ooookaaay...either my sisters have dropped their hobbies entirely," The middle child spoke as he shut the door. "Or Mom and Dad dished out some heavy groundings..."

Lincoln exited the room to look at the last two that bordered his on both sides. The results were the same: a majority of the girls' belongings were gone. Many of Lana's pets were missing besides Hops (who was resting in his terrarium), Lola's stuffed animals and pageant gowns were gone along with her tiaras after he did a quick check of her closet, and Lisa's chemistry set and other lab equipment was absent; kinda weird to actually see the prodigy's room look like an actual bedroom instead of half lab, half sleeping quarters.

Knowing none of his siblings would give up their possessions unless forced to, Lincoln could safely say his parents definitely had something to do with it. "Guess Mom was right. They didn't hold back..."

Entering his room, Lincoln stood in the doorway as he reminded himself that he really was back at his own house. His room was exactly the way he left it; whatever state it had been that is. Lincoln couldn't recall if he made his bed or had all of his shirts neatly hung up.

Although...

Upon noticing the way his bed covers were tucked into the sides of the frame, a sense of worry grew within the Loud boy. Sure, he would make his bed look presentable, but not to the point it looked like it was your average hotel bed; the sides of the sheets have been tucked between the mattress and the spring box, the pillow was fluffed to its maximum circumference, and the covers looked fresh from the wash.

With the memory of what was possibly his worst dream ever when he was in the hospital, Lincoln knelt down to the floor and looked under his bed. He spotted the chest that contained the various costumes he and his siblings used during the one chore day almost everyone had plans and needed to cover for each other. Lincoln pursed his lips a little as he pulled the chest out, the events playing in his head like in a miniature flashback. Granted, all of his siblings were embarrassed one way or another due to being forced to wear whatever outfits they kept on at the time; more specifically, Lincoln wished he hadn't been dressed up as Lily.

There was more to the story though. From what Lincoln could remember, it was likely one of the few times he had become embittered due to his siblings' actions; or more specifically, he was mad at Leni due to her shortsightedness at telling him she happened to be covering for the rest of their siblings. Part of him wondered if it would've been better to just oust the girls for skipping out on chore day, or at the very least their failure to notify their parents that they already had arrangements that day; Lisa's lecture, Luan's birthday party gig, and Lola's pageant would've definitely had to have been planned a few weeks in advance. Plus, it was common knowledge that their parents could be forgetful.

Don't get Lincoln wrong: he was prideful of his ability to maintain a solo act for so long until he had to call for backup; and everyone did admit they should've stopped with the cosplaying once everyone was home. But the reason Lincoln had fumed about it was due to how pointless the entire charade became since everyone still got in trouble. He didn't talk to Clyde for six whole days due to him (without Lincoln's consent) inviting their entire class over to watch ARGGH, and subsequently embarrassing the Loud to no end. Seriously, when did the rest of his class even remotely talk about ARGGH as much as they did? Some found the show to be corny even! One would wager a guess that they only arrived for free food. Regardless of the reason, Lincoln felt he couldn't show his face at school for a while, so he asked his mother to let him be home-schooled until it blew over. Fortunately, Rita didn't have any qualms about it, and the incident was all but forgotten after a week and a half.

As Lincoln opened the chest, he recalled how he pretended Leni didn't exist in the days following their punishment. The first day had been understandable to most, the second had a few of his siblings wondering how long he expected to keep up the act, and the third day had Lori ordering him to stop being a jerk to Leni (mostly because she was at her wits end with the fashionista's bawling). If the circumstances were different, Lincoln probably would've relented and made up with Leni immediately at the threat of physical punishment; instead, the middle child refused to do so unless Leni apologized first for dropping the load on him at the last minute. He also called Lori's bluff that she would actually hurt him, as he would tell Mom and Dad about it.

Although Lincoln was right, Lori did swear revenge on him sooner or later. Picking through the chest, Lincoln felt the weight on his heart decrease as he didn't find anything that looked remotely similar to a bomb. Around the end of the week, after what was assumed to be a lengthy discussion as to why Lincoln was upset at her, Leni approached him with a cake she baked herself. The top had the words, "Please 4-Give Me", written in frosting. Honestly, the cake was terrible (and that wasn't how a particular word was spelt), but Lincoln did forgive her because she at least tried; and the apology was so over the top that it was hard to NOT forgive her.

Lincoln sighed as he closed the chest, pushing it to the side as he looked under his bed again. "Guess even nice people can be pretty mean too..." He muttered to himself, pulling out some various discarded toys or comic collections that had been collecting dust.

After finding nothing else under his bed, the boy then sorted through his dresser in case one of his siblings might've hidden something in it; a lengthy process as he felt each piece of clothing in the event Lisa might've hidden a small device in it. Coming up short, the Loud boy gave another sigh of relief before sitting on his bed. If Lincoln were a boat, he'd feel like he was in an endless, calm sea that seemed to lead to nowhere. He finally pushed himself to come back home, caught up with Lily, Charles, and his dad, and he finally had his little corner of privacy in the home once more.

And yet...he wasn't so sure as to what to do now. Even though his other siblings were away for the time being, Lincoln didn't know for how long they'd stay out the house. And when they did come back, was he truly ready to face them? Lincoln certainly liked to believe he was, but-

"Meow."

Lincoln's train of thought derailed when he heard a cat call at his door. Looking to his left, Cliff was staring at him at the doorway before letting himself inside. Lincoln eyed the short-hair's tail, noticing it was point straight up. He smiled a little. "Guess someone's happy to see me."

Cliff hopped on the bed, to which Lincoln immediately petted him. The cat licked his hand for a few seconds, purring in content as his owner matted down his fur. Lincoln was more of a dog person, but after having learned the mannerisms of Clyde's cats, he could easily pick up how Cliff was feeling. The black cat shook his head a little after Lincoln scratched him behind the ears, soon walking over and lying himself across the boy's lap.

"Cliff definitely isn't like Charles. But at least he doesn't jump on me every morning." Lincoln chuckled inwardly.

As his thoughts returned to his absent siblings, "...Am I really ready to face my other sisters again?"

Cliff meowed in confusion, staring out into space.

"I mean, I came back because I felt I needed to fix this on my own without having to rely on my friends all the time." He rested a hand on the middle of Cliff's back. "It was nice seeing Lily again after so long, and Charles was definitely happy. But how am I supposed to act at dinner or any other time when we gotta be together? Like when Lori drives everyone to school?"

Cliff gave a meow in response, licking one of his front paws.

"Sure, I could just eat in my room. And I could walk to school or take the bus...but it's easier if Lori drives." Lincoln rapped his fingers on the bed spread. "I'm not exactly afraid of them as much as I used to," His brows furrowed a little. "Especially after I realized how stupid they were. But" The boy idly used a finger to stroke the back of Cliff's neck "...I just don't trust them enough..."

Cliff gave a half-hearted 'meow' as he rested a paw on the boy's knee. His tail made a slight circular motion, which made Lincoln grow confused.

"You're saying I should just roll with it?" Lincoln squinted his eyes in thought. Shaking his head, "It's...it's a lot more complicated than that..."

Cliff meowed again, turning his head a little so Lincoln could scratch an itch just behind his left ear. He then rolled a bit so he was lying on his side.

"Then again...I stopped having dreams about my other sisters killing me after maybe..." Lincoln counted on his fingers. "A month? And my last dream had Lisa actually helping me." Cliff gave a confused meow, glancing up at the boy. Lincoln gave an uneasy laugh. "It's a long story..."

The sound of an engine sputtering from his window grabbed the boy's attention. Letting Cliff down, Lincoln pulled a chair to just below the window and leaped up. From his perch, the middle child spotted the family van pulling into the driveway. The sight of it made his heart sink a little; in spite of the fact he could clearly see his mother (whom was dressed in her dental attire), he also spotted Lori sitting in the front passenger seat, as well as numerous other shadows lining the windows.

Lincoln dispelled a shaky breath, putting on a faux smile. "W-Well, guess I don't have a choice Cliff..."

"So, he is here right?" Lynn asked, the question being directed towards the matriarch.

"Your father said Harold dropped him off a few hours ago." Rita glanced up at the circular window on the side of the house, spotting a tuft of white hair through the glass. "So, I'd figure he's probably in his room by now."

"I'm predicting there's a 88% chance he'll be there for the rest of the day." Lisa was the first to reply.

"But what are we gonna do about the cool stuff we bought for him?" Leni asked, holding up a bag from one of the department stores she browsed through. "It's probably not much, but it's something, right?"

"I STILL doubt Lincoln's gonna accept our gifts. I mean, look whose giving it to him?" Lynn gestured to herself.

"That's why you're going first." Lola stated, pointing her finger directly at the brunette's nose momentarily before withdrawing it. "Besides, you already talked to his face 3 times now; and you were the reason he had a cast on his arm."

Lynn furrowed her brows. "Says the girl who screwed up his teeth..."

Sensing a fight about to occur, Rita immediately turned in her seat. "Girls! Enough!" Everyone clammed shut as 9 sets of eyes addressed their mother. "I'm sure we all know this isn't going to be easy. Myself and your father still don't know how Lincoln will react to being around the house again; it's also possible he won't join us a family when it comes to dinner..." In the few moments after she spoke, Rita had a flashback to what she feared could happen to Lincoln if he kept himself holed up in his room. She sniffed a little as the thought passed, but the matriarch steeled her nerves. There was no way she was going to let her baby boy feel like his life wasn't worth living. "But we can get through this...even if it takes Lincoln a long time to heal..."

"How long we talkin' Ma?" Luna asked, her tone carrying some traces of a hopeful answer.

Rita could only give a sigh as she opened the driver door. "I wish I knew Luna. I wish I knew..."

The rest of the girls could only mull about this in silence before getting out as well. A chill went up Lori's spine as she felt she was being watched, pausing from shutting the front passenger door to give a side glance up to the circular window where she knew her brother's room resided. From what she could see, the boy wasn't visible; either because he was no longer there or the reflection of the sun was hampering her view. Regardless, the teen was certain the next few hours were going to be so tense and awkward.

Rita opened the door, giving the classical, "Honey, we're back!"

Lynn Sr. poked his head out from the kitchen, adorning the classic top chef hat and apron. "Hey gang! How'd the shopping go?" He asked whilst walking up to them.

"Went about as-" Lori started, only to get cut off by Leni.

"It was awesome!" The fashionista's smile dropped a little. "Well, actually it was hard. But we totes got a bunch of cool clothes for Linky." She dug into the bag before pulling out a plain white T-shirt with the words "#1 Bro" on the front. "The store I got this from had a TON of cool things in there. I even had help from two employees." Leni scrunched her face a little. "Though the girl I talked to felt like she didn't want to work there, which is weird cause Reininger's is the best store in the mall."

"ANYWAY," Lori cut in. "We picked out a few things we know Lincoln likes or probably does. It might not mean anything to him, but at least he'll see that we're just trying to make it up to him."

"I still think trying to buy his forgiveness it's a bit tasteless." Luan folded her arms. "There are some things money CAN'T buy."

Lola rolled her eyes. "Pfff. That's a load. Everyone knows money is the answer to happiness."

"Affirmative." Lisa agreed. Lola held a smug grin at being proven right by the resident genius, only for Lisa to add, "For the short term that is. Currency is pointless if one does not know how to manage."

"Oh yeah? Well I'll prove it!" Lola declared, pointing a finger directly at Lisa's forehead. "Don't be surprised when Lincoln forgives me first!"

Lisa kept a stoic face before moving the older girl's digit back a few inches. "So you're going to be the first to speak with him in private then?"

The former pageant star went wide-eyed, her fading confidence visible for all to see. "Uhh..." Lola finger went limp as she racked her brain for a quick excuse to save face.

Lisa could've held a triumphant grin if she wanted to, but decided not to egg the youngest of the twins into a potential altercation that would've turned physical. "Let me know if your method is successful."

Lola glares at the prodigy before turning away. "I'll show you, you little..." She uttered quietly.

Lucy bit her cheek a little at this display of a childish spat, losing interest a moment later as her eyes idly scanned the group. Leni and Lori continued to talk to their dad (which was becoming a white noise at this point), Luna was checking the items she had in her bag, Luan and Lana started to engage in small talk, her mother promptly excused herself to change out of her work attire; Lisa and Lola stayed silent, with the latter glaring holes into the brainiac's head.

It was times like this that Lucy was thankful her family didn't seem to notice her presence; she didn't have anything to say that would've been worth contributing, nor was she willing to participate. Heck, she'd rather be upstairs figured out a way to approach Lincoln without making the color drain from his face. The emo looked down at her bag, jiggling the item within for a moment. Being true to herself, Lucy didn't know how to express her sorrow towards her brother in a way that wasn't alien to her. She knew she could write poems all day telling Lincoln her feelings, but Lucy felt she had to do more...way more if she had hoped to regain Lincoln's affection. The 8 year old let out a sigh through her nose; much of her anguish was stemming from one issue she knew Lincoln would be sore about if brought up.

There was no way to sugar-coat the fact Lucy practically betrayed Lincoln after he protected her from scorn over the 'clogged toilet' incident, and the dark haired girl felt like she ripped his heart out and shred it to pieces, proving that one moment of sacrifice meant nothing to her. So, Lucy wouldn't bother doing a poem; but there was another form of art she could do. Almost 2 weeks prior, she gave doodling a heartfelt try whilst internally monologuing about her family's suffering; the end result was a crude picture of her begging Lincoln to forgive her. The idea of making a picture became more enticing around after Lucy remembered that comic she made for him due to being the reason Lincoln was prevented from going to a convention he was looking forward to, hence the paint set and cover paper in her bag.

Now, Lucy didn't have much experience in painting; much less drawing. But she was willing to give it a try nonetheless. She wanted this picture to be perfect, and it wouldn't be too hard to get the necessary silence and focus to ensure she wouldn't be disturbed. And speaking of effort...

Lucy raised a brow upon noticing a certain young brunette was missing from the group. "Where's Lynn?..." She asked internally, turning away from her family to look around the living room. The sound of the steps creaking drew her attention towards the upper floor. Just as her eyes focused at the very top, the pale girl spotted the back of Lynn's ponytail just as she went around the corner to the right.

Since their room was directly in front of the stairs, it didn't take a genius to know what the former athlete was up to. "I hope you fair well, sister..." Lucy muttered quietly.

Lynn rounded the corner as quick and quietly as she could, her destination just up ahead. The moment her sisters seemed preoccupied with talking to their father, she backpedaled up the stairs, being careful not to step on the areas that were known to produce noise. Once she made it to the top, the 13 year old wheeled around and sped walked towards her target. At least, she would have if Lily wasn't patting on the base of her brother's door. Lynn's determination was fading fast upon realizing Lincoln would be opening his door any second now. The main reason she came up here was so none of her sisters would be watching as she talked to Lincoln. If it were any other moment, Lynn loved being at the center of attention; but feeling 8 pairs of eyes watching your progress on something this delicate made the brunette fear she'd screw up and cause Lincoln to shut the door on her. And she definitely wasn't going to fuck this up if she could help it.

"Lincoln!" Lily spoke, hitting the door again with an open palm.

Her pleas were finally answered as the white-haired boy opened it a bit to glance down at his baby sister. Lily giggled and was about to walk in, but stopped as Cliff made his way out. On instinct, Lily giggled as she reached for his tail, to which the Short-Hair meowed his displeasure before jumping away from her. Lily blew a raspberry at the cat before turning her attention to Lincoln as she felt his hands wrap around her sides.

"Told ya I'd only be gone for a moment." The boy smiled. He chuckled as Lily 'bit' the tip of his nose. "H-Hey that tickles."

"Eeeyah!" Lily replied, then grabbing the boy's nose.

Lincoln cringed a little as Lily's sharp nails planted themselves in the soft flesh of his nostrils. "Ok, ok." He gently took a hand and removed her fingers from his face. "Your nails are as sharp as a bear's you know."

Lily made a cheerful squeal as she sucked on her fingers, and Lincoln couldn't help the grin on his face. He idly looked past Lily as he watched Cliff walk down the hall, only to drop it when he brushed by the legs of his 5th oldest sister. Lynn tensed up upon their gazes meeting, but she noticed that Lincoln was more focused on the bag in her hand than herself. The former athlete was quick to catch on what her brother was thinking, seeing as he was subtly backing into his room.

"Lincoln, wait!" The brunette spoke quickly, rustling into the bag and pulling out something that made the boy freeze; Lily kept sucking on her fingers as she looked towards her older sister. In Lynn's hand were a few just-released issues for Ace Savvy, with one or two about Muscle Fish that Lincoln knew he didn't have yet. "Look, I know what you're thinking, but I'm not gonna hurt you ok?" Lincoln didn't say anything, but Lynn started to grow more confident as he opened his door fully. "So...you might know that we've already been in your room." Lynn watched as Lincoln shifted a little. "B-But it was for a good reason! We knew you were coming home, so we thought it'd be good to make your place ready for when you get back." She looked down at the issues in her hand. "I saw some of the comics you had, and I know some new ones came out. So..."

Lincoln still hadn't said anything, which was starting to unnerve Lynn. While the boy would admit that he hadn't had the chance to update his comic collection, the fact Lynn actually went out of her way to get these new articles for him was rather daunting. She didn't even like reading comics unless they were sports related, and she outright said Ace Savvy was dorky to his face; numerous times in fact. But, he couldn't deny that she had told the truth while they were in therapy, and he wasn't picking up any underlying threat or misconceptions in her tone.

Lily looked between Lincoln and Lynn. "Eh?" She looked back towards Lynn, then back to Lincoln a second time.

She didn't know why they were just standing so far away from each other. While the infant was very much aware that what her sisters did was wrong, hence why she wanted to sleep with her parents for a time and just generally avoid her sisters. But seeing them trying to make an effort to apologize to Lincoln put them back in her good graces. When she looked up at her brother's face, it was devoid of any base emotions she knew about. Being against his chest however, Lily could feel his heart beating a bit faster than normal. Maybe he just didn't know how hard the girls were trying?

Well, that certainly wasn't going to stand. "Down down!" Lily spoke, patting Lincoln's hand.

The 11 year old whipped his head down, confusion very clear on his face. When she waved her hand in a downward motion, Lincoln obliged and set the infant on her feet. Lily ran (well, walked unevenly fast) towards Lynn, who raised a brow at what she was doing. First, she grabbed the bag, which Lynn released because she thought it was what Lily wanted. However, she immediately backpedaled on that idea upon realizing how dangerous a plastic bag can be to a baby. Reaching down to take it back from Lily, Lynn was caught by surprise when the baby put the bag down and grabbed her hand instead.

Using what little strength she had, Lily tugged the much older girl forward. "Lynn come!" She spoke.

Lynn didn't know whether this was just Lily being Lily, or there was something else she had planned. Either way, she obeyed. The brunette had to make sure she didn't move too fast, lest she force Lily to trip over herself. Lincoln stood still as the baby brought his older sister to him, a little unsure of what to think about this. It was a cute scene first and foremost, but while he did trust Lily and whatever intentions she had, he subconsciously planted a foot behind him; the urge to back away and shut the door grew as the two girls drew closer. By the time Lily dragged a semi-reluctant Lynn to his doorstep, Lincoln clasped a hand around his arm to try and steel his nerves.

Lily panted a little before sitting down, a confident smile on her face as she looked up at her siblings. Both of them looked at her with some hesitation; they could tell Lily was expecting them to make up easily. No one wanted to tell her that the issue at hand wasn't as a typical 'forgive and forget', but could they really say no to that face?

Looking back to Lincoln, Lynn gave a light smile as she held out the issues to him. "Sooo, you still want these?" She held out the comics in hand.

Lincoln stared at the issues for a few seconds before gently taking them from her. "T-Thanks..." He replied.

The hesitation and unevenness in his tone was quite apparent to Lynn, but not to Lily, who started crawling away as if her 'mission' was accomplished. Remembering that her father was making dinner, Lynn knew that would pose a significant obstacle for Lincoln. He may have seen her face numerous times to the point he didn't outright shut her out, but being forced to sit with everyone during the last meal of the day made the former athlete worry it would be too uncomfortable for the boy to be sitting with all 10 of his sisters.

However, it didn't hurt to ask; especially when Lynn had Lincoln in front of her for a few more seconds.

"Um..." Lynn rubbed the back of her head. "Are you gonna come down for dinner? I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to. I know you're not at ease being around everyone yet."

Lincoln didn't give an immediate response, though he narrowed his eyes and tapped his chin.

Not wanting to make it seem like she was forcing him to decide, "Y-You can stay in your room if you want, and Mom or Dad could-"

"I'll come."

Lynn went wide-eyed as her mouth practically fell open. "Huh?!"

"I'll come down..." Lincoln repeated, addressing her with what Lynn assumed was a determined gleam in his eye. "But you're gonna sit next to me while Lily sits next to Mom or Dad."

Lynn blinked a few times as she processed those words in her head. "O-Okay?"

She was expecting Lincoln to keep avoiding her and the others whilst they try to slowly coerce him into opening up. Slow being the operative word here. Getting over the fact Lincoln just so out of the blue decided to return home was one thing, but Lynn was now growing worried he was rushing things a little too fast. "Man With The Plan" he might be, the last thing anyone wants is for Lincoln to realize he overestimated himself and leave the house again.

Lynn was so caught up in her thoughts that she jumped a little when the door closed a mere inches from her face. Taking a moment to compose herself, Lynn turned towards her room. "Ok, he's going to be at dinner," She leaned down to grab the used plastic bag. "And he wants me to sit next to him." The brunette muttered to herself, throwing open her bedroom door and dumping the useless bag in the trash. "Dunno whether that's luck or something else..."

"What is?" A monotonous voice asked.

Lynn shrieked, her body becoming stiff like a plank as she looked to where the voice came from. She finally settled on Lucy, who sat on her bed with a book in her hands. A stare of indifference was painted on her face as figured that would have been Lynn's reaction the second she opened her mouth.

The emo huffed a little before redirecting her attention towards her text. "You guys really need to be more aware of your surroundings..."

Lynn's eyelids narrowed until they were almost shut. "Well excuse me for being caught up in my thoughts!" She spat before marching over to her bed. "Not my fault you always walk so quietly..."

Lucy's book did well at hiding the smug grin forming on her lips. "Thanks." She muttered. Knowing more urgent matters were at hand, she popped the question. "Did Lincoln take it well?"

Lynn didn't speak for a moment, making Lucy assume the worst: she couldn't get through to him. Yet, that wasn't the response Lynn threw at her seconds later.

"He took it a little too well." Lucy's head immediately shot up from behind her book. "Though, I doubt I would've gotten anything done if Lily hadn't been there."

Lucy raised a brow. "What did she do?" Was her reply as she slowly set her book down in her lap.

"She dragged me over to Link so I could give him my gift. Emphasis on drag. She just pulled at my fingers the whole time while I followed her." The brunette chuckled a bit. "I mean, have you seen a baby try to drag someone way older than them? It's cute, but-"

"Lynn, focus!" Lucy hissed. "What did you mean by saying your plan worked out?"

"Oh, right." Lynn folded her arms. "So he took the comics I got him, then I asked if he was gonna be down for dinner since Dad's already cookin'. I tried to downplay it for him cause I figured he'd want to stay in his room; probably forever if he hasn't changed his mind about us." Lynn leaned back on the bed, putting her arms out behind her to keep her head level. "Instead, he's actually going to join us."

Lucy blinked a few times as that last sentence played on repeat in her head. "What?..."

"I know right? Is it just me or is Lincoln getting a little bit over his head here?"

"...I don't know if he's ready either. You talking to him I can understand, but that says nothing about how he'll react to the rest of us." Lucy looked down at her book. "Especially me since I scare just about everyone without even trying."

The unsettled feeling in her stomach made it almost impossible to focus her reading with the current piece of news floating in her brain. After a moment of hopelessly staring at the pages, Lucy sighed before shutting it with a loud clap.

"True, but it's not like he hadn't thought it over first. He wants to sit between me and Lily while being close to Mom and Pops."

"Lucky..."

Lynn shook her head, a deep frown crossing her lips. "Just wait til Lincoln goes into one of his 'episodes' and snacks me in the face." She bit the cheek that was slapped with a plastic tray a couple months back. "With his glass plate..."

Lucy cringed a little just imagining how gory the scene would be. You'd think she'd find the act amusing, but the hilarity of it all disappears if it's your siblings catching glass shards to the face. "Does anyone else know?"

"Nope." The brunette pointed at her roommate. "Just you."

"Sigh..." Lucy spoke gravely as a chill ran down her spine. Glancing at the clock on her nightstand, she cast a grim look at the digital numbers. "We don't even have time for a meeting..."

Lynn just gave a shrug. "We got this far without screwing up." She kicked her feet onto the bed before lying down, hands behind her head. "Can't get any worse."

"Sorry, but I don't see how you can be happy about this."

"I'm not." Lynn spoke with clarity. "I'm just hoping Lincoln knows what he's doing..."

Lincoln almost regretted his decision to attend dinner with the rest of his family. And by 'almost', we were talking a 70% chance here. He certainly didn't mind dining with his parents; especially after realizing how much he missed Lynn Sr.'s infamous cooking. Sorry Harold and Howard, but Lincoln's dad is just miles better in the kitchen. Plucking another piece of steak into his mouth, the boy had to cut himself short from giving a moan of ecstacy as his taste buds danced in joy.

The moment was short lived though, as each bite only offered a few precious seconds of relief before the middle child was reminded of his current situation. As Lincoln swallowed his piece, he gave a quick glimpse around the table, keeping a weary eye on his siblings. As he insisted earlier, Lynn sat to his left while Lily sat to his right; the baby herself was being fed by Rita, who sat next to Lynn Sr. at one end of the table. Everyone else was scattered about in whatever seat they chose. Heck, Lori was sitting directly across from Lincoln after all.

One look at Lincoln would make you think he was being indifferent to it all. On the outside, sure. But once you cracked open the surface of his exterior, you'd see a nerve-wracked child just waiting for the opportunity to bolt if something went awry.

It was hard enough coaching himself to not fall back on his word, but Lincoln couldn't help one scenario that kept playing in his head...

Lincoln fidgeted every few moments as he paced around in his room. He instructed Lynn in such a way that the middle child would sit in between his former sporty sister and the youngest Loud in the family, all while being within close proximity of his parents. He could've chosen to sit between the adults, which would've been the most ideal spot as it would have given him greater protection. But that came with the risk of Lily potentially being under the influence of their other sisters. And this was on top of the fact he still couldn't wrap his mind about why she brought himself and Lynn together.

"Was Lily trying to make us happy?...Or was it all part of Lynn's plan?..." Lincoln murmured, rapping his fingers across his arm.

"KIDS! DINNER!" Came the unmistakable voice of Lynn Sr.

Lincoln flinched a little upon hearing his dad shout. "Dang it!..." He swore as his arms fell to the sides. Already, he could hear the stampede of the nine-headed beast making its way downstairs, leaving him alone in the silence that followed. Lincoln gulped a little before reaching towards his doorknob. "H-Here goes nothing..."

Slowly, the Loud boy opened his door, peeking precariously through the crack to make sure he was truly alone. Not a soul but himself was on the upper floor, and he could hear the clattering of dishes coming from the stairwell. Lincoln proceeded with an eye over his shoulder in case someone tried to surprise him from the rear, only to stop once he reached the top of the stairs. He was about to have a reunion with the very sisters who made him live in fear for two whole months; and it wasn't going to be a friendly one, he could assure that.

Although he told Lynn where he wanted to sit, Lincoln had his doubts on whether she'd follow his instructions without asking. For all he knew, this could very well be a repeat of the Sweet Spot ordeal; there wasn't a so-called 'Ideal Seat' at the table, but that wouldn't stop his sisters from thinking otherwise.

However, from the sounds of things, it didn't seem like anyone was fighting. "I'm probably just overreacting again..." Lincoln muttered. His grip tightened on the railing as he thought about the reasons why he came home in the first place. "Come on Lincoln...you wanted to be brave, and here's another chance to prove it." He started down the stairs, "If I can remain calm around all of my sisters, then maybe I can go back to being the way everyone wants me to be..." The boy frowned a little, a few memories cropping up about him wearing his Ace Savvy costume along with other moments where his strength was questioned. "Well, maybe not as weak..."

Upon reaching the ground floor, Lincoln shuffled his feet along the carpet as he approached the dining room entrance. Placing a hand on the wall, he peered around, spotting his family already in the midst of munching on their steaks. Each person had a somber expression on their face for a reason he didn't quite understand.

Lynn Sr. looked up as he was cutting off another piece, noting the depressed gazes of his daughters as they chewed on their food. Junior looked a bit worse than the others, likely because of the empty seat between herself and Lily. He knew exactly why they were so glum, and the father even went the extra mile to fix his son a plate in case he decided to join them. However, Lynn knew that was dubious at best. Back when Lincoln had been released from the hospital, the patriarch had often set a 13th plate at the table before remembering the harsh reality that his son wouldn't be home for a while. Now that Lincoln was here though...

It never felt more depressing to see food growing cold...

All of that changed the moment he looked towards his left and spotted an all-too-familiar tuft of white hair. "Lincoln?" Lynn Sr. called out, drawing the attention of the others.

For once, Lincoln wished his hair was a different color. With everyone staring directly at him, the Loud felt no choice but to come into the open. "H-Hey..."

"You still feel like eating? Dad made you a plate." Junior thumbed to the plate next to hers.

Lincoln found himself once again caught at a crossroads. He could've said no, and that would've been the end of it. But what would've been the point of coming this far just to give up? Lincoln would admit he blew that opportunity the first time he worked up the courage to seek out Lynn, what with his paranoia acting up after Luan's sudden appearance.

The middle child bit his lower lip as his fists tightened. He wasn't going to blow it this time...and the smell of steak was making his stomach growl with anticipation.

Lincoln straightened his posture as his lips thinned out. "Yeah. I'm feeling really hungry right now." He replied sharply.

Breathing in, he walked over to the table, doing his best to not cave under the constant staring. Lynn pulled out his chair for him, startling him for a second before he realized it was just an act of courtesy; something he rarely saw from her. Sitting down, she pushed him up to the table, making sure not to smoosh him between the chair and the table edge. Once he got comfortable, Lincoln picked up a fork and used it to cut out a small piece of steak.

"Looks like Dad cooked this pretty good." Lincoln thought to himself as the heat from the seasoned meet drifted into his nose, making his mouth water a little.

The second the boy put the fork in his mouth, Lincoln entered what could be described as the best feeling on earth. Being away for so long must've made him forget what Lynn Sr.'s cooking tasted like, because he immediately started cutting off piece after piece of the steak and shoveling it into his mouth. If everyone was making weird glances at him, Lincoln could honestly give little concern; he didn't want this bliss he felt to end. Lynn Sr. himself would've been proud even.

Unfortunately, Lincoln's emotional high came to a crashing halt when he felt his stomach throbbing uncomfortably. Initially, Lincoln just passed it off as him eating too fast, but the strange gurgling and flips started to make him feel nauseous.

"Ugh..." Lincoln groaned, slowly letting go of his fork as he started to feel listless.

"Are you ok Lincoln?" Rita asked, momentarily pausing from her feeding of the infant Loud.

"I...I think I ate...too..." Lincoln's face turned green as he started to heave, his stomach already beginning to send his dinner back up. He turned quickly in order to try and rush to the restroom, only to feel as if whatever energy he had leave him. The only thing he could do was point his head towards the floor.

Lynn flinched and scooted away from her brother as he vomited onto the floor, and grew immediately worried when she saw his puke had dark patches of blood in it. Both adults got up from their seats to see if he was alright, only to immediately realize something more serious was going on as the white-haired boy lost his grip on the seat and fell to the floor. Lincoln didn't know why he suddenly felt so ill, and his face scrunched in pain as his stomach felt like it was burning. His body began to convulse uncontrollably as his heart thumped hard in his chest, each beat feeling like it was banging against his ribcage.

"Lincoln! Say something! Does anything hurt?!" Lynn Sr. yelled, turning Lincoln onto his back.

"Oh God he's turning pale! Junior call an ambulance!" Rita ordered.

Lynn wasted no time and immediately vacated the dining, having the phone in the living room up to her ear frantically dialing for the emergency services. The patriarch asked again what was ailing his son, but Lincoln could only give a soft whimper as a reply. The burning in his stomach spread to his lungs and throat, and the boy found himself struggling to breathe. His lightheadedness increased again, and Lincoln found his vision started to become less and less focused. He attempted another cry for help as tears streamed out of his reddening eyes, but the only thing that anyone could understand was a pained rasp.

Lincoln's hearing began to fail, making the cries of his parents and littlest sister indiscernible from the white noise that was overtaking him. Blackness started to envelop the edges of Lincoln's vision, meaning his brain was starting to shut down. He blinked away more tears, catching a glimpse of his frantic parents and a baby who didn't know what was going on. Shifting what remained of his vision towards the rest of his sisters, Lincoln was shaken to his core as he saw what might be the last thing he ever would before the darkness claimed him. Each of the girls had a knowing smirk on their faces, their eyes having red pupils while their mouths parted to show grinning teeth like they were relishing in his demise.

"Did...did they poison m-me?..." That single thought played around in Lincoln's head before the lack of oxygen finally made him pass out.

A daydream like that would've easily made Lincoln want to skip dinner entirely, even if someone brought his meal up to him. However, as conceivable as that scenario may have been, the more logical side of Lincoln didn't let his debilitating fear run away with it. He saw for himself that Lisa's chemistry set was completely gone; and he had some doubt that Mom and Dad wouldn't have checked for any spare chemicals she might've left lying around. On top of that, after deducing how any of them could've slipped a poison into his food, the girls would've been hard pressed to not get caught doing so; Dad liked to hover over his creations from start to finish, and Lincoln had little doubt he would've noticed something was off.

"But that didn't stop them from beating the crap out of me while Mom and Dad were busy hiding..." Lincoln groaned inwardly moments before he heard dinner being ready.

In spite of his parents incompetence back then, that didn't appear to be the case now. Either way, he settled on getting down there before his sisters did.

Which brings us to now. Similar to his little daydream, Lincoln still enjoyed the food his dad prepped for everyone; but unlike his daydream, Lynn Sr. hadn't been too sure if Lincoln would eat with them, prompting the father to immediately fix up a 13th plate. From his chosen seat, Lincoln had a chance to study each of his sisters as they came down to eat. The looks of astonishment on their faces made it obvious that none of them sans Lynn, and probably Lucy, expected his presence. Even now, his sisters appeared rigid and try to look at any other direction but him; if they did happen to glance at him, it'd only last a second before quickly darting their eyes towards something else. If Lincoln could recall a similar moment like this, it had to be the time Lynn unexpectedly showed up during lunch at school.

The boy pursed his lips. "I guess they're trying to make me feel more comfortable." He told himself. A light sigh escaped him a moment later. "Even though I'm still far from it..."

Lynn Sr. gazed over his family as he finished up his steak. Quiet meals had been a mainstay since Lincoln's absence, but that didn't mean they weren't unnerving. He and Rita had been used to the children acting so animatedly that it still made their hearts tear at the lack of optimism floating around. As for Lincoln, well...Lynn Sr. didn't expect his son to eat dinner with everyone, but that didn't mean it wasn't a possibility. However, he hadn't set up a plate for his son as he figured it would be very unlikely for Lincoln to join them; instead, the chef had to curl his lips in upon seeing Lincoln being the first one down right after he called the kids, lest he wanted his mouth to hang open and let a fly in. Could it be that Lincoln was finally conquering his fear? Did they have a chance to be a real family again?

Sadly, that wasn't the case, as Lincoln looked as nervous as ever when his sisters came down; not that the girls were faring much better. Not a sound was heard aside from the movement of utensils on plates, and Lily occasionally giggling as her mother fed her. Before Lynn could debate on this any further, he felt a soft tapping to his left.

"Everyone's on edge dear. Do you think it's because Lincoln is around?" Rita whispered in a low voice.

The father nodded. "Everyone barely said anything over the past weeks. I thought they'd be happy with Lincoln being back in the house, but this is just as much of a ghost town as any other day..."

The two gave a quick glance to Lincoln, who was focused on his food but chewed slowly. Although he appeared to be ok, the adults could see the fear in his eyes based on their rapid movement and the fact his pupils were smaller than normal. Next to him, Junior sat normal, though she gave frequent glances to Lincoln and her shoulders were tensed up; likely in the event he snapped and she needed to get away from him as quick as possible. Across from Lincoln, Lori was more relaxed in her seat, but even she didn't look at Lincoln directly; she turned her head a few times, but only to the point where she could eye her brother from her peripheral. The same could be said for the rest, though Lana leaned forward on the table to get a better look at her brother, only to be yanked back by her twin who gave a disapproving glare.

"Ok. Everyone's nervous and feeling peachy; probably too busy trying not to freak their brother out. BUT! We can save this." Lynn Sr. told himself. "Just gotta find a way to break the ice..." He tapped his finger on the table. "So..." Just about everyone on the table directed their attention towards the father. "How was your girl's trip at the mall?"

Luna gave the patriarch a half-lidded gaze. "Didn't you ask that earlier Pops?"

"Doh! Right..." Lynn Sr. slumped a little. "Well, honey." He turned to Rita. "How was work?"

Rita sent the man a confused stare, to which Lynn subtly nodded to her so she could carry on with the conversation.

"Ooooh." The matriarch muttered before speaking out. "Well, I had to deal with a root canal appointment today. Unfortunately..." She furrowed her brows a little. "It was with Flip, and myself and David had to strap him down (again) since he wouldn't stop moving." Rita pursed her lips. "Probably should've put him under too since he nearly screamed my head off."

"Wow..." Lynn Sr. winced a little as he set his fork down. "Is he gonna be ok?"

"I'm more concerned with losing my hearing the next time I have to assist in his checkup. Hmmm..." Rita hummed as she mulled in thought. "Maybe I can ask Sarah if she can switch shifts next time Flip is due." The mother of 11 shrugged.

"So..." Rita looked at her son. In those few seconds, Rita debated on whether it was a good idea to put Lincoln on the spot. He was already anxious as it was, and she didn't want to make it worse. However, she also felt a simple question wouldn't hurt, especially since she wanted to know if he was settling in ok. "Did you finish unpacking Lincoln?"

The boy flinched upon hearing his name being called, all but certainly grabbing the attention of the others as his fork clanged on his plate twice before Lincoln steadied his hand. The middle child pursed his lips as he felt several pairs of eyes watching his every move.

Wanting the spotlight off of him as soon as possible, "Y-Yes." He blurted out quickly with a stutter.

"Ok, that's good." Rita replied. She wanted to say more, to really ask him how he truly felt about being home again. But she knew such questions weren't best to ask at the dinner table, especially knowing that the first thing Lincoln would talk about is his sisters. The matriarch lightly tapped her son's shoulder before leaning towards him. "We'll talk more later." She whispered to him.

Lincoln lifted his head, an eye narrowed in confusion as he looked towards his mother. However, she immediately went back to eating for the moment, so asking her to clarify was out of the question. Focusing on his own plate, the steak his dad wonderfully made had disappeared into Lincoln's stomach, and he practically demolished his mashed potatoes, corn, and collard greens. Looking around the table, Lincoln could see his sisters were nearly done; not that he wanted to stick around any longer. Besides, if he left now, that meant he'd have plenty of time to get himself ready for bed before a line formed for the bathroom.

Lincoln scooted his chair back, grabbing his plate as he stood up. "Thanks for dinner Dad." Lincoln spoke calmly before walking briskly to the kitchen.

With his back turned the girls looked towards their brother as he disappeared behind the archway. Everyone heard the sound off running water and a couple dishes shifting in the sink before it was silent again. Hearing his footfalls, the girls quickly acted like nothing was going on as Lincoln quickly strolled past them and started up the stairs. Halfway up, Lincoln contemplated whether or not he should use the shower; one quick whiff of his armpit made him gag.

Once everyone was certain Lincoln was back on the second floor, the girls breathed a collective sigh of relief. "Well, that went smooth." Luna stated.

"Seriously. I thought he was gonna blow at any second." Luan agreed, stuffing the last of her food in her mouth.

Leni let out a gasp as she dropped her fork. "Linky could've exploded?!"

Lisa rolled her eyes. "Not in the literal sense, Leni. Although, I am still surprised our brother even bothered to come down for dinner. Surely our mere presence in one room would've been obvious."

"Pretty sure Mom and Dad being around had a lot to do with it." Lynn thumbed to their parents.

"Actually Junior, I don't think we had much to do with it." Lynn Sr. stated, resting his elbows on the table. "I mean, it could be that your brother is finally getting used to being around you girls again."

Lisa hummed in thought. "It would make sense for him to estimate the time frame he can withstand our presence before his anxiety builds up to the point it forces him to seek shelter."

"Yeah? Well I'm very sure he would've slammed his door on me if Lily wasn't with him." Junior huffed, shoving what remained of her steak into her mouth.

"So, what about tomorrow?" Lucy asked. "It's a school night, and I doubt Lincoln will want a ride in the van."

Lori pursed her lips. "He could take the bus or just walk." She shrugged. "Not like he has before."

"And I'm pretty sure he still remembers the line that forms in front of the bathroom every morning. While I don't feel comfortable with him leaving the house very early, I can already see that happening." Rita stated, pushing her chair back before grabbing hers and Lily's plate. "Either way, I'm still gonna talk with Lincoln to make sure he's alright." She finished as she walked past everyone to the kitchen.

Lincoln was quick get a head start on his nightly preparations for bed. Jumping in the shower, he spent a maximum of 3 minutes scrubbing down and 30 seconds drying himself, then spent another 30 seconds cleaning any leftover food from his choppers. The Loud boy didn't bother trying to change into his PJs while in the oval office, feeling that he wasted enough time not being in his established 'safe zone'. If a point were to be made, he nearly slammed into a bewildered Lori while having nothing but his towel on right as she reached the top step. Once he shut his bedroom door, the Loud gave a sigh of relief before putting his pajama pants on.

"Well, I managed to get through dinner," Lincoln rubbed his stomach. "And I don't feel sick or anything. And Lynn actually listened to me and didn't try anything funny..." The boy grabbed his night shirt and started to put it on. "Though I'm surprised no one tried to talk to me at all; I mean, it wasn't like I didn't see them staring. And I thought Lynn would've at least...said..." He stuck his tongue out as he pulled the shirt down over his head. "Something, cause she didn't have a problem doing that earlier." Lincoln dug into his backpack and pulled out a container of floss. Snapping off a line a few inches long, he started grinding it through the cracks between his teeth. "So...I guess eating with everyone for dinner doesn't bother me." He frowned a little, knowing that was a lie. "Well, not enough to where I don't want to be there at all; but at least Mom and Dad were around." Lincoln pulled the floss out, running his finger down the line to remove whatever food was caught before going back to work. "But what am I supposed to do about school? I know I can just get up early to avoid standing in line...but being in the van when Lori drives us to school?..." He shook his head. "I don't think I'm ready for that..."

His tongue lapped around the empty holes where a few of his teeth used to be. Lincoln could feel the tips of his permanent teeth poking through, but it made him grimace as it served as a stark reminder as to how many times he had been hit in the face. "Those girls really pack a punch. I'm not even sure if it was just Lynn that did this..."

A knock on his door made the boy pause, his chest feeling heavy as he whipped his head to the door. Was it one of his siblings? Did they want anything from him? They almost never knocked before, just kicked the door-

"Lincoln?" Rita called out as she peered from behind the wooden frame.

"Oh, right...Mom wanted to talk." Lincoln told himself as he dispelled a sigh through his nose.

Rita smiled a little. "Glad to see you remembered to floss." She kindly told him, opening the door enough to let herself in before closing it.

Lincoln pulled the floss out of his mouth, giving his mother a nervous smile. "H-Heh. I still remember what you told me after the doctor visit."

Rita sat on the bed, patting a spot next to her for Lincoln to sit. The boy did so without question, dumping the used floss in the trash before taking a seat. "So, how do you feel?" The matriarch asked.

"A little refreshed after being in the shower." Lincoln ran a hand on his arm, noting how rough his skin felt. "Though I think I might've dried myself a little too hard."

Rita chortled a little. "Not that sweetie. I meant being here, at home."

"Oh..." Lincoln frowned. He didn't respond right away, but Rita didn't expect him to. A situation like this was complicated, and she was a very patient woman to let him formulate his response. "...It's...weird I guess? I'm kinda glad to be back in my room..." Lincoln looked around. "Even though it's a lot smaller than the McBride's guest room. But at the same time..." He folded his arms, gripping the sleeves of his shirt. "I'm scared Mom...I came back because I wanted to try to be brave. I found out Lynn, Lucy, Luan, the twins, and my friends were working together to keep me calm during school; it was an accident though. I mean, I was gonna give Clyde his phone but saw he had a text from Lynn on it. And after I went through all the messages, I saw they were worried I'd no longer trust anyone and keep being afraid all the time..."

Rita raised a brow. She hadn't known about this operation her daughters were doing, but it must've worked out since they hadn't brought home any bad news. "Do you have trust issues with them now?" Lincoln was about to respond, but she quickly added, "With your friends I mean."

Lincoln shook his head. "No, and I can understand why they did it. They risked our friendship just to help me, and that's something you see a lot of heroes doing even though it may not always work." The boy unfolded his arms and sat his hands in his lap. "They were all very brave to do it...and the whole time I was worried about what my other sisters would do to me. I also saw that everyone was starting to get worn out with me being scared all the time, and even Ronnie Anne said in a text that she wanted me to be my old self again..." He looked towards the door as he heard a bit of noise from beyond its wooden frame, most likely the girls just getting themselves ready for bed. "I wanted to be brave like my friends, and I know I can't always have them helping me with everything. That's why I wanted to come home; I wanted to try to meet my problems head on like Ace Savvy would."

Lincoln looked at his mother. "I even came down because I wanted to see if I could at least try to be around all of my sisters without running away. It was..." He glanced to the side. "Pretty difficult not to. I thought someone might poison my food or something," Rita blinked in surprise at this, "But that didn't make much sense when I thought about it." The boy knitted his brows. "And my sisters aren't the best planners if that stupid protocol is any clue..."

"Wait a minute Lincoln." Rita interrupted right as he was about to continue. "Why would you think the girls would try to poison you?"

Lincoln pursed his lips. "It...it was just a thought in my head..."

"Yes, I get that. But why?" The matriarch pressed, a little more forceful than she intended. Lincoln pursed his lips as he started to clam up, and even though he shifted his stare towards the carpet, she saw his eyes beginning to water while his mouth quivered a little. Maternal instincts coming forth, Rita put a comforting hand around her son and pulled him towards her. Lincoln sniffled, rubbing his nose as he leaned into his mother's side. Rita debated on her next move: she could've stopped as to not make her son cry, but after learning about the various personality issues her daughters were dealing with (and seeing how Lincoln seemed hesitant to discuss his daydream), she wanted to help her son in any way she could.

And Rita knew she'd have to do the painful process of edging it out of him. That much she learned from Dr. Lopez.

"Honey...is there something about your sisters that you aren't saying?..." The matriarch asked in a soothing tone.

Lincoln gave a light nod. "Y-You know about the dreams I've been having about m-my sisters?..." Rita was about to respond, but Lincoln wasn't finished. "A-All those nightmares I had about them..." He breathed in through his nose, which sounded rather nasally as tears leaked from his eyes. "Most of them...they were about them k-killing me..." Rita's mouth dropped as her eyes widened. "I-It's been like that since I was in the hospital...I was hurting so much...I t-thought they were trying to kill me for a long time since then..." Lincoln blinked, letting fresh tears paint his cheeks. "And almost every time I feel asleep, it just got worse and worse..."

The memories of his previous nightmares were all flooding in like a tidal wave, becoming too much for Lincoln to bear as he shuddered instinctively. From the first one on his first night at the hospital, all up until his first Ace Savvy dream, they sped through his mind within seconds of each other. His brain throbbed as the stress was becoming too much to bear, with Lincoln bringing a hand to his head as fresh tears poured from his eyes as he gritted his teeth. The boy bit a few of his fingers as several quiet sobs escaped him, breathing in after a moment before a whimper resonated from his mouth.

For Rita, she felt as if she was reliving the moment her baby boy was unconscious after all the pain that had been dealt to him. And honestly, she couldn't blame Lincoln for having such extreme nightmares; there was a very real possibility that he could've died from his injuries as (aside from him passing out being a serious concern) the surgery he had been through involved correcting the alignment of one of his ribs since it was just a few centimeters off from piercing his left lung. With this new information in mind, everything else suddenly made sense. The girls had been acting so moody not only because they assaulted their brother in a way that shouldn't ever be conceived, they were possibly aware they nearly ended his life over what was essentially an exercise in stupidity.

It was fortunate the girls managed to come to their senses before Lincoln received any life-threatening injuries, but if they hadn't...

"No, Rita. Don't you DARE go there..." The matriarch chided herself. There was already one crying person in the room, there didn't need to be two; as much as she wanted to right now. Staying strong for her son was more important, even if she knew herself and Lynn had a bit of a hand in this issue indirectly.

"Lincoln..." The woman started, her son stopping his sniffles as he rubbed his nose again, wiping any excess mucus on his pants. "I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for all of these nightmares you've been going through. Your sisters may be the ones causing them..." Rita cast a solemn gaze at the floor. "But your father and I are just as much to blame; we didn't do enough to keep everyone from fighting. All we did was hide like idiots and hoped it'd solve itself..."

Lincoln didn't say anything, as he didn't know whether he should. His mother spoke the truth, and he did feel occasionally his parents would turn a blind eye to whatever the kids did if it became too much to handle; but hearing his mother actually admit the two adults in the house were being cowards was still surprising in its own right.

"It probably doesn't mean much at this point, and your father will likely tell you the same thing, but I'm sorry I haven't been the best mother I could to you or any of my kids..." Hearing him sniffle again, Rita stood up halfway and reached out towards the dresser. She grabbed the tissue box and pulled a few slips from it, holding two up to her son's nose a second later. Lincoln didn't need to be told twice as he emptied his nasal passages into them. "You wouldn't be going through all this turmoil if me or Lynn stepped in when things got rough, but we failed to realize how disastrous the situation was until it was too late..." Rita blinked back some tears before continuing. "We're trying very hard to fix this, but it hasn't been easy. While the girls and yourself have plenty of issues to deal with, it still falls upon us as the parents to fix them. And we've done a pretty poor job at it until...well, you know..."

Lincoln winced a little, taking a third tissue from his mom before blowing into it.

"But things are gonna be different from now on, I promise." Rita lightly rubbed her son's shoulder. "If you need anything, you can come straight to me or your father and we'll handle it. I know you might be wondering what you'll do tomorrow about getting to school." She looked down at him. "You're not comfortable with being in Vanzilla with the others, right?"

The middle child shook his head.

"So, you're free to walk to school or use your bike to get there. Just remember to let me or your father know about it first." Lincoln gave a light nod. Rita released her son, getting off the bed so she could kneel in front of him. "We love you very much Lincoln, and we're not gonna let anything hurt you again. I know you still don't trust your sisters, but they aren't going to hurt you." She placed a hand on his shoulder. "They just want to make amends, but it's up to you if you'll let them. Now, are you still having those bad nightmares?"

"No..." Lincoln spoke in a hoarse tone, pausing to clear his throat. "They stopped a little while after I stayed at Clyde's house. Now these days, I'm getting dreams about being Ace Savvy with me being the leader of the girls in a group." He balled up the tissues with one hand. "Though they betrayed me at some point..." The boy sighed. "It's hard to explain, but I'm not getting any dreams about being killed anymore..." That said nothing about the near-death experiences he went through in his dreams, but his statement remained true.

"Well," Rita smiled. "It's a start. Though, if you start having any nightmares, our door is open." She kissed the boy on his forehead before embracing him. "Have a goodnight sweetie."

Lincoln returned the gesture, a feeling of warmth filling his chest. "Goodnight Mom."

After she released him, Rita ruffled his white follicles a little as she stood up, earning a chuckle from the boy. She quietly exited his room a moment later, making sure to shut the door behind her. Silence was all that remained as it appeared the girls were now in their respective rooms. But Lincoln didn't mind. For the second time that day, he felt pretty content with himself; a personal record given how his days usually went as of late. He kept the real problem with his dreams a secret for so long that he almost forgot he never informed his parents about it. Rita didn't even explode in worry like he originally predicted; she comforted him like any caring mother would and gave him her assurance that she and his dad would protect him. Naturally, she dropped advice on how to deal with his sisters; but she still left the ultimatum up to him.

"I know you still don't trust your sisters, but they aren't going to hurt you. They just want to make amends, but it's up to you if you'll let them." Those words repeated themselves in Lincoln's head as he climbed into bed.