A Dodge Charger sped down the road, its engine the only sound roaring through the otherwise silent night. The driver looked ahead and noticed a sign coming up. As he passed by he managed to make out the words 'Welcome to Royal Woods'.

He felt a knot in his stomach, and began slowing down at he passed the sign. From the top of the hill, he could see pretty much the entire town. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, feeling more nervous than he could ever remember. The man was someone who had stared death in the face, but what he was here for had him more terrified than even that.

Still, he had come all this way. He needed to see this through, for better or worst. He put his foot on the gas pedal and drove forward.

The alarm went off and Lincoln's eyes shot open. He yawned and stretched his arms before reaching over and pressing the button on his alarm clock. Then he smiled and hopped out of bed. Usually on Saturday mornings the sole male sibling of the Loud house would be sleeping in, knowing he didn't have to report to another dreaded day of school.

But today he needed to be up bright and early. An Ace Savvy marathon would be on today, and he intended to stake a claim on the TV before any of his sisters could get the chance. He opened the door to his room and peeked outside.

There was no one in the hallway, and he couldn't hear noise coming from his sisters' rooms. It was a straight shot to the bathroom. He grabbed some clean clothes and then quickly but quietly made his way across the hall. After gently closing the door behind him, he got washed up and dressed.

Then he snuck his way downstairs and jumped onto the couch. "Spot officially claimed," he said proudly grabbing the remote. In accordance with the time honored rule of 'First come first serve' he could now safely say he was in control of the TV. He suddenly heard static followed by a voice.

"Lincoln, come in. Have you secured the perimeter?"

Lincoln smiled before picking up his walkie-talkie. "This is Lincoln, and don't worry Clyde. The perimeter have been locked down and secured," he assured. "You can head on over anytime you want. But remember, the marathon starts in an hour."

"Copy that. I'll be bringing the chips and dip for the afternoon shift. You got the cereal for the morning phase right?" Clyde asked.

Lincoln's eyes widened. "The cereal… Dang it! I forgot the cereal!" he said slapping his forehead. How could he have forgotten that!

"Oh man, that stinks. But don't worry about it. I'll grab some on the way… uh-oh." Lincoln definitely didn't like the sound of that. "I forgot I had to spend the rest of my allowance on that new limited edition baseball mitt. I'm a little strapped for cash right now."

Lincoln sighed. "Don't worry about it. I guess I'll just have to go out and get some."

"But wouldn't that put your claim on the TV at risk? I'm not sure it's worth it buddy?"

Lincoln grew a determined look in his eyes. "We can't have our perfect Ace Savvy marathon without that cereal Clyde. I say it's a risk worth taking. If I'm quick enough I can ride down to Flip's and grab a box before my sister's even wake up. Wish me luck pal."

"Godspeed Lincoln, over and out."

Lincoln set down the walkie-talkie and then looked down at the remote. Perhaps if he took it with him he'd be able to keep his stake on the TV even if one of his sisters happened to come down before he could make it back. He pocketed the device and then made his way outside and grabbed his bike.

Anyone who knew him knew Lincoln Loud was not a particularly athletic boy, but you wouldn't be able to know it with the way he sped down the road. He was booking it as fast as he possibly could at a speed that would have made his big sister Lynn proud.

He needed to hurry. He had been planning for this marathon for weeks, and he wasn't about to let his sisters ruin it for him. As much as he loved his family, they had a tendency to… kind of get in his way. It wasn't intentional. At least not usually. But with eleven siblings in one house plans were bound to entangle, and heads bound to clash.

This time however he was going to make sure his plan had flawless execution. He smiled as he rode into the parking lot. He was almost there! His perfect Saturday a mere cereal purchase away.

But then a loud honking, followed by a screeching sound broke him from his thoughts. Lincoln glanced over and gasped when he saw a car headed right for him. "AAAAHHHH!"

He leaned to the side as best he could, but felt a bump on his leg, knocking him off his bike. He hit the ground hard and tumbled back a few feet. After taking a moment to groan in pain, Lincoln quickly sat up, his heart feeling like it was going to beat right out of his chest. He looked over himself.

He didn't seemed to be severely injured anywhere. Well, his leg where he had been bumped felt a little tingly. He pulled his pants leg up and then saw a small bruise. After poking it he winced slightly. It hurt, but it didn't feel like it was broken or anything. He let out a sigh.

"Shit! Are you okay kid?"

Lincoln looked up and saw the driver getting out of the car. The man looked like he was in his mid-twenties or so, and had a slim but muscular figure. He was wearing a black t-shirt and green cargo pants, along with brown combat boots. He was also wearing green baseball cap on his head. Lincoln noted he had a pair of military dog tags around his neck.

"Kid? You okay? Talk to me."

Lincoln shook his head, snapping out of his stupor. "Uh, yeah. I'm fine. Just… a little shaken." It was more than a little if he was being honest. He was pretty sure he could have died just now.

"I'm so sorry kid. You came shooting right out of nowhere and I couldn't stop in time," he said walking over offering him a hand. Lincoln took it, and the man easily pulled him up to his feet. "You sure you're alright? Nothing broken or anything?"

Lincoln nodded. "Yeah. I got a bruise on my leg but that's it. I'm really sorry sir. I wasn't looking where I was going. I should have seen you coming," he apologized.

The man waved it off. "Nah, don't worry about it. I'm just glad you're in one piece. But just…" The man seemed to stop as he took in Lincoln's appearance. He stared at the youngster with a wide eyed gaze.

Lincoln shuffled nervously where he stood. He was starting to feel a little uncomfortable under the man's look. "Uh… sir?" he asked.

The man snapped out of his daze. "Uh, sorry. I just… I blanked for a sec there."

Lincoln hummed. "Well, again, I'm really sorry sir. Your car isn't damaged is it?"

He waved it off. "Don't worry about my ride kid. Might have a few scratches at worst but nothing that can't be buffed out easy. Your bike on the other hand though…"

Lincoln looked over and then saw the mangled heap of metal that used to be his bicycle. He groaned and ran his hands over his face. "Oh man, my bike. Mom and dad are going to kill me…" he whined.

That bike was supposed to last until he passed it down to Lucy. There was no way his parents were going to shell out the money for a new one. He'd have to blow half his allowance to make up for it. "Crud, I'm going to be late for the marathon too! Oh man!" His sisters would surely wake up before he could get back on foot.

There was no way today could possibly get any worse. The man looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He turned towards his bike, then towards the store. "Hey kid, if you need a ride somewhere I got nothing to do. I could give you a lift."

Lincoln stopped and looked up at him. "Wait, really?"

"Yeah. I mean it's the least I could do for almost running you over."

Lincoln hesitated for a moment. Partly because this whole thing technically was his fault for speeding into the parking lot without looking where he was going. But another voice in his head was reminding him of his parents warning not to go along with strangers.

He didn't really know this guy. For all he knew he could be a kidnapper or an axe murderer… then again, he really wanted to get back home and see that marathon. "Um… I guess so. Could I just grab something from inside first?" he asked.

The man nodded. "Sure. I got to fill up on gas anyhow."

With that, the two made their way inside of Flip's. Lincoln quickly ran down the aisle and grabbed a box of 'Ace Savvy Sugar Snaps', before heading to the counter. The man was going through his wallet putting out some dollar bills. "Give me thirty dollars on pump number 2…" He glanced over and saw Lincoln with his cereal, then pulled out another five dollars. "And the box of cereal for the kid."

Lincoln looked surprised. "Oh, you don't have to-"

"Relax kid. I got it," he assured tossing the money down onto the counter. "Like I said, owe I you for nearly running you over."

Lincoln frowned. It really didn't seem right that this guy was trying to make up for something that was totally his fault, but it was clear the man wasn't going to leave any room for argument. Plus he wanted to save as much as he could now, knowing that bike was going to drain his wallet later. "Thank you."

After they made their way out, the man put what was left of his bike in the trunk. Lincoln jumped into the driver's seat while he pumped the gas into the car. Lincoln glanced around the vehicle. It looked pretty old, but well kept. At least maintenance wise anyhow. The dash board looked a bit messy, covered in wrappers and receipts, and there was some loose change in the middle compartment.

But despite how old the model of the car looked, the interior seemed pretty well kept. The guy must have put a lot of work into this vehicle. The driver's side opened and the man slide inside of the car. "Alright, all pumped up and ready to roll." Lincoln nodded. "Where we headed little man?"

"Do you know where Franklin Avenue is?" Lincoln asked.

The man nodded as he started the car. "Yeah, I know where it is." He pulled off and drove out of the gas station. Lincoln had wondered if the man was from around here. He hadn't seen him before. Maybe he was visiting a relative or something. "You sure you're okay kid?" he asked.

Lincoln realized he'd been staring at him and quickly turned away. "I'm fine. I'm just… uh…"

"Thought I was some psycho kidnapper or something?" the man asked with a smirk.

"What? No…! Well, yeah. I thought about it a little earlier, but that wasn't why I was staring just now. Sorry by the way."

The man chuckled. "Don't be. Probably best you don't take rides from stranger after this kid. Never know what kind of creeps are out there."

Lincoln hummed. "Right… so, are you from around here?" he asked.

"Nope," he answered. "I'm just in town for a little while to… visit some family. Some I haven't seen in a long time."

So Lincoln had been right. He was just in town visiting. "Sorry about all this then. You probably wanted to head straight home and see everyone."

"Kid, stop apologizing. Let's just say we both should have paid more attention and call it even yeah?"

Lincoln smirked and nodded. "Sure. Hope my parents take it as easy as you do…"

"Don't sweat it little man. Just tell them it was on me."

"What? But you already paid for the cereal and gave me a ride. I can't let some stranger-"

"Leonard," the man said cutting him off. "But most people call me Lee for short. There, now I'm not a stranger. I'm an acquaintance."

Lincoln was silent for a moment, and then smiled. "Lincoln," he introduced.

"Like President Lincoln? Huh, don't here that one often."

"I don't hear Leonard a lot either."

"Touché."

They both shared a chuckle as they continued down the road. It had been a much shorter ride in a car rather than a bike, and they had reached Franklin Avenue much sooner than Lincoln had expected. "You can pull over here," Lincoln instructed. Lincoln hopped out and turned around to the car. "Thanks again for the ride Mr. Lee."

The man rolled his eyes. "Drop the Mister kid. I'm not that old."

"Sorry. Force of habit I guess."

Lee opened the door and stepped out of the car. "Hey, don't forget to get your bike kid. And while you're at it, could you send your mom out or something. I need to… I need to talk with your folks. Make sure we're straight with this whole deal, you know?"

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want them getting mad at you or anything."

"I'm sure kid. I'm a big boy. I can handle a little yelling," he said as he went around to the trunk to grab his bike.

Lincoln looked slightly worried, but nodded and headed towards the house. He opened the door and was thankful to see that none of his sisters had claimed his spot on the couch. He let out a sigh before making his way to his parent's room.

He gently knocked on the door, and heard a groan from the other side. He knew it was his mother since his dad had probably left for work already. "Mom, I know it's kind of early but… I really need to talk to you," he called.

Lincoln could hear her mumbling, obviously not eager to have been woken up so early. But then a few moments later the door opened. His mother yawned before looking down at him with bags under her eyes. "Sweetie, I really hope this is something important," she said sounding impatient.

Lincoln twiddled his fingers nervously. "I… okay, so you know how I was planning on watching the Ace Savvy Marathon with Clyde this weekend? Well I realized we didn't have any cereal, so I rode down to Flip's to buy a box. And on the way there I… I got into an accident…"

"An accident? What type of accident?" she asked suddenly looking more awake.

"…one involving a car."

"Oh my gosh?! Lincoln, are you okay?!" she asked as she began looking over her baby boy. "You don't have any injuries do you?! Do I need to take you to the hospital?!"

Lincoln blushed as she moved him around, looking for any signs of injury. "Mom, I'm find. I didn't get injured or anything," he said deciding not to tell her about the bruise on his leg. He knew she'd blow it out of proportion, much like his sisters tended to when he got injured. "I just… the guy is outside."

Rita's eyes widened. "The man who hit you?" He nodded. Her eyes narrowed and she headed for the front door. "Good, I have a few choice words to share with him."

Lincoln quickly grabbed her arm. "No, wait! Please don't be angry mom. He's really sorry. He stopped to check on me, and he even offered me a ride to the hospital. He only came here cause he wanted to apologize and clear things up with you."

The matriarch of the Loud House slowly came to a stop, and then sighed. She supposed she had jumped to anger a little too quickly, but she couldn't really help it. That's how mothers were about their children. "Okay, okay, I'll talk to him… wait, how did he get here? Did you give him out address?"

Lincoln laughed nervously. "I… I came with him. He offered me a ride home."

Rita glared down at him. "After we're done sorting this out you and I are going to have a reminder of why taking rides with strangers is a bad idea Lincoln."

"Yes ma'am," he said hanging his head.

He followed her outside, where they found Lee standing at the bottom of the porch. When he saw them he seemed to flinch slightly. "Uh… good morning ma'am."

Rita smiled and nodded back. "Good morning sir. I understand you and my son had a little accident earlier."

Lee kept staring at her for a few moments. He gulped and then nodded. "Yes ma'am. It was… it was completely on me. Wasn't looking around and didn't see him coming. All my fault. I'm very sorry about all this. I'm willing to pay for the bike or any medical stuff."

The blonde waved it off. "Well, my son thankfully doesn't seem to have any serious injury, and I couldn't really ask you to pay for a new bike for him. I do appreciate you offering him a ride and bringing him home," she said.

He nodded. "Well, I figured he wouldn't want to drag that thing back by himself so I offered. I know it's ironic coming from but I gave him the rundown with stranger danger too."

Rita chuckled and patted her son on the head. "Well, luckily Lincoln here seems to be a good judge of character. So, I doubt this would be necessary but would you like to exchange insurance information or…?"

Lee kept looking down at the ground and bit the inside of his cheek. "Uh… look, if I'm being honest ma'am, I didn't just come here to sort things out about the kid. I… I actually came for a completely different reason. I guess things just turned out like this and… god I don't know how to do this," he said running his hand over his face.

Rita and Lincoln both looked confused. Rita scooted her son back slightly, growing a little concerned. But Lee quickly held his hand up. "I'm sorry, I know I sound crazy. I just… look." He reached up and took his hat off, and both Rita and Lincoln gasped at what they saw.

Lee had a full head of white hair, and while it was slicked back, there was no mistaking that all too familiar tuft sticking out from it.

Lincoln's eyes were just about as wide as they could get. "Uh… mom. Why… why does he look like…?" he turned to his mother for answers, and found her looking even more stunned.

No, stunned wasn't the word. It was more liked horrified. "You… you're…" Rita stepped back, leaning against the doorway as she struggled to catch her breath.

Lincoln began to panic slightly. He had never seen his mother so shaken to the core before. What in the world was going on? He turned back to Lee. "Who are you?"

A/N: Hey guys. So this is an idea I came up with a little while ago. It's also going to be the last new story I start for a while. At least until I wrap up one of the others first.(Which will most likely be Ladylike Lynn since I have longer plans for the others)

This story is also going to be my most dark and mature story by far, and the rating will be probably end up being bumped to an M sooner or later. Anyway, I don't want to go into too much detail since it would spoil some stuff for next chapter. But I wonder if any of you guys can guess what's going on. Leave your reviews and I'll let you know if you got it right!