A/N: As promised, this is the Lynn story that I brought up at the end of "Clown in the Dumps". Fair warning, though, this isn't in my comfort zone. Don't expect anything groundbreaking.

"Hey, Lynn!" Lincoln called out from the kitchen, rummaging through the snack pantry above the microwave.

"Yeah, bro?!" Lynn answered just as loudly from the living room.

Finally, Lincoln's hands grasped onto the two boxes of popcorn he had been looking for (something that would've been much easier had it not been for Lisa neglecting the rule about storing her beakers in the pantries…again). He pulled them out slowly, doing his best to do so without accidentally knocking over Lisa's beakers from their undeserved storage space and making a mess. Upon his success, he looked between the two choices and was satisfied with what he grabbed.

"You want extra buttery or the spicy chili-flavored popcorn?!" Lincoln yelled back.

He asked out of formality, really. Knowing Lynn, there wasn't a reason in the world to think that she wouldn't choose-

"Spicy chili-flavored! I'm feeling extra daring tonight!" Lynn said enthusiastically.

Lincoln rolled his eyes at her predictable answer but did so without contempt. He didn't care what kind of popcorn they shared as long as their movie night was going without a hitch.

"Gotcha!" he replied and got to work on his popcorn preparation duties in a hurry as he removed an unpopped bag from its box and tossed it in the microwave in the blink of an eye. As he pressed the buttons for the microwave to operate for four minutes, Lincoln thought back to how this evening with Lynn had all played out.

To celebrate a promotion that his father earned today, he planned on taking the entire family out to eat at some fancy-sounding Korean restaurant that he didn't care to remember. All he and Lynn cared about was that it would get in the way of them watching the premiere of a movie rerun that they had been dying to watch together since it was hyped during commercial breaks for over a month now.

DVR'ing the movie was out of the question since DVR'ing programs was a privilege that their parents granted to each of their children for one week at a time and this week, it was Luan's turn. Erasing her vintage comedy routines and silent vaudeville shows, in order to make room in storage for the upcoming two-hour action flick, would only get them in trouble.

That's why in the end, Lincoln had no choice but to barter with his father; in exchange for he and Lynn getting to stay at home and watch their movie, they would work together and do every chore around the house for a week. It was going to be heavy burden to bear but thankfully, not only was he willing to endure it but Lynn was also up to taking the extra chores head-on, much like she did with any another goal. It made it all the more satisfying to know that her inclination was because, in her own words:

"Don't worry about it! Spending quality time with my little brother is worth it!"

The microwave beeping signified that his buttery, spicy treat was ready to be eaten. The peppery smell tingled in his nostrils as he inhaled the mouthwatering scent robustly. Pulling out a red bowl from the dishwasher, he snagged the popcorn out of the microwave, taking care not to burn his fingers on the heated surface of the bag as his fingers lightly pinched the top. With one precise flick of the wrists, the bag tore open, allowing Lincoln to pour the salty, savory snack inside the bowl in the blink of an eye.

Humming merrily to himself, Lincoln moseyed out of the kitchen with the bowl, approached his sister on the couch, and plopped the bowl into her open lap, which was covered by a red blanket that she had draped over her lower half.

"Here you go," Lincoln said as he took his own seat right next to her, taking care not to invade her personal space in the process.

Lynn grinned. "Thanks, Linc."

Even though the movie hadn't started yet, Lynn was still up to helping herself to a few handfuls of popcorn. As she reached down to grab some popcorn, she noticed Lincoln doing something conspicuous in the corner of her eye. She turned to him and saw him reaching over the side of the couch and pulling up his blanket from his bedroom.

Lynn frowned at her little brother's actions. She set the popcorn in the middle of them and tugged on his sleeve, coaxing Lincoln to look to her.

"You know, you didn't have to bring your own blanket," she said sternly. "We could always share mine."

"Pssh. Nice try, Lynn," Lincoln scoffed with a smirk.

Lynn bit back a snicker, though she couldn't help the tiny little mischievous smile that spread across her face. Looks like she had been busted.

"What'd do you mean?" she asked oh-so sweetly.

Lincoln folded his arms in triumph as one of his eyebrows perked up.

"If we share the same blanket, you're just gonna Dutch oven me when I least expect it. I'm not falling for that one again," he playfully reprimanded with a finger wag.

Lynn gasped theatrically as she held her face in her hands.

"Whaaaaaaat?! Noooooooo!" she declared with sarcasm that she hoped he wouldn't detect. "C'mon, Lincoln, do you really think I'd be so cruel?"

"Yes," Lincoln answered. "Yes, I do."

They stared at each other, looking to see which of them would cave under the pressure of their little game. After ten seconds, Lynn broke away and sighed. Even as competitive as she was, she knew she couldn't beat Lincoln when he was one step ahead of her.

"Ugh, fine, you got me. Guess I'll have to keep my "fart-illery" at bay for today," she grumbled as she rested her head against the palm of her hand and glared at the TV.

"Heh, "fart-illery"," Lincoln laughed. "Nice one, Lynn. Luan would be proud."

Hush befell the room after that. Though Lynn seemed fine with just waiting for the movie to begin in silence, Lincoln really wasn't. He loved his sister's lively presence that she seemed to carry around with her and wanted some lively atmosphere interjected in his viewing experience. Why else would he sacrifice his free time to do this with her?

Snagging a few popcorn pieces for himself, Lincoln asked, before popping them into his mouth, "Anyways, you lookin' forward to movie night?"

That grabbed Lynn's attention immediately, who leaned towards him excitedly, mouth agape and revealing the mushy food that she hadn't cared to swallow.

"Heck yeah! I've been waiting to watch "Eliminator: Origyns" for months now!"

She gulped down her popcorn before she reclined back to her seat, though she still didn't take her eyes off of him.

"Sucks we couldn't see it because we all had to watch "Outside In" while it was playing in theaters but now that it's airing on TV, we can finally check it out for ourselves. Just the two of us."

'That's right,' Lincoln thought happily. 'Just the two of us.'

Before the lyrics of a certain Bill Withers R&B single could start playing in his head, Lynn broke him out of his reverie.

"And you know what else is really cool?"

"What?"

"I heard that at one point in the movie, we're gonna hear someone say, 'Join me if you want to survive!', just like in the old movies."

"Niiiiiiice," Lincoln droned contently. "Good to see that they're keeping in touch with their roots after all these years."

"Y'know, unlike "Eliminator: Deliverance"," Lynn said contemptuously and stuck her tongue out.

Lincoln shuddered at the thought of that cinematic train wreck. He'd rather watch an entire season marathon of "Blarney the Dinosaur" than watch that dreck again.

"Yech!" he groaned.

"Double yech!" Lynn agreed.

Sharing laughter at the memory of that awful movie, Lincoln reclined in his seat, snuggling into the warm texture of the couch and cocooning himself with his blanket, leaving only his upper body free of restraint.

Suddenly, his tongue began to sting heatedly and his throat prickle with tiny, burning stabs. He winced at the discomfort and knew exactly why he was being blitzed with these sensations; the popcorn. It had been his first time trying such a bold flavor of popcorn so of course, unlike Lynn, he wouldn't be used to the zesty taste.

Unwrapping himself from his blanket, he stood up, prompting Lynn to look up at him.

"Wait a sec," Lincoln said.

"What's up?" Lynn questioned.

"I'm going to get me something to drink," he replied and was just about to leave her until Lynn stopped him with a request.

"By the way, if there's any root beer left, make you grab me a can or two, okay?"

Lincoln grimaced at the thought.

"Uh, spicy chili-flavored popcorn AND root beer? You're gonna be on the on the toilet for hours if you consume all of that in one sitting, y'know."

Lynn waved off the possibility with an eager grin.

"Like I told you, Lincoln, I'm feeling extra daring tonight."

Knowing there was nothing he could do to change her mind, Lincoln just shrugged.

"If you say so. Just don't blame me if you have stomach cramps until you're 30."

He could almost hear her rolling her eyes as he turned to head back to the kitchen to retrieve soft drinks for the two of them.

The knowledge of move time coming to dawn, as well as the growing stab of spiciness in his mouth, urged him to take haste. Though he wasn't in the most comfortable state right now, Lincoln didn't care. Hanging out with Lynn had its downsides but one thing he could always look forward to was the dynamic energy Lynn would inject into their pastimes. It made their outings unique because with Lynn, he didn't always know which direction she would take things and Lincoln, someone who was always used to being prepared to tackle any situation with his wits and cunning strategies, appreciated being taken by surprise every now and then.

But, even with only a few of the cards being laid out on the table, there was one thing that Lincoln knew for sure, a truth that was certain as the setting of the Sun; this would be a night that he would never forget.

He just didn't realize it would be for reasons that he never could've imagined.

A/N: I feel like such a hack for the "fart-illery" pun since I snagged that off of TV Tropes. :(

That and the unsubtle, real world movie references were vomit-inducingly awful. Sorry about that.