So I'm going to give everyone a heads up. I'm leaving for vacation on the 29th of this month and we'll be gone for about a week. I'm not going to have any internet access while I'm gone so work on this will be stalled for a bit. I will try to get another chapter of this one posted before I leave and I will certainly try to finish one of my other stories, Night of Terror, (my story for October) before then.
So that's my heads up, let's get into the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Loud House.
Several hours passed and dinner time began to roll around. Clyde had already left for home an hour before, but made sure that Lincoln was going to be alright before he left for home. Now Lincoln sat back downstairs on the couch where most of the other girls were watching Operation: Dessert Storm. Even if he couldn't see the show, just the descriptions from the judges and the commentator for the show were enough to help him imagine what was going on. He honestly found a pretty cool way to view the show.
The only one missing from the group was Luan. No matter what anyone had tried, she wouldn't even step out of her room. Not even Luna could convince her to come out. Lucy had even tried to spy on her from the vents, but apparently Luan had anticipated that and had covered up the vent in the room with a poster or something to keep Lucy from looking in.
Whatever was going on, Luan was resorting to extreme measures to keep anyone from bothering her.
It was just as the program was wrapping up that their father announced that dinner was ready. Each one of them reluctantly got up from the couch and made their way towards the family dinning room, with Leni helping Lincoln along despite his protests that he could handle things himself. Suffice it to say, Leni ignored his protests and helped him along anyway.
They all sat in their regular places, with both parents (currently only their mother) sitting on one end, Lincoln sitting on the other end, and the rest of the girls sitting along the sides of the table. Their father walked in a moment or two later with the dishes containing tonight's dinner, consisting of turkey meatloaf, mashed potatoes and peas. As he set them down, the girls and Rita loaded up their plates with the food. With the exception of one person who was currently missing.
"Hey wait, where's Luan?" Lynn Sr. asked.
"She won't come out of our room," Luna answered with a scowl.
Lynn Sr. sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his oven mitt clad hand.
"That girl has been shut up in her room ever since she got home. What is she even doing up there?" Lynn Sr. asked with frustration clearly evident in his voice.
Rita suddenly stood up from the table with a sigh and said, "Honey let me go talk to her. Maybe I can get her to come down. Or at the very least find out what's going on with her. You just make Lincoln's plate."
Lynn Sr. nodded as his wife made her way out of the room and up the stairs. He sighed and took the plate that sat in front of Lincoln and loaded some food onto it, being very careful to make sure certain foods were in a certain spots on the plate. He walked back over to Lincoln and set the plate of food down in front of him.
His father carefully adjusted the plate in front of his son and said, "Now son I want you to listen to me very carefully. I want you to think of this plate like a clock. The turkey meatloaf is at six o'clock, the mashed potatoes is at ten o'clock, and the peas are at two o'clock."
Leni looked at her father in confusion and then looked up at the clock on the wall.
"Wait, I thought dinner was at seven. We're having it at different times?" she said as she looked back at their father.
Lisa sighed and said, "No Leni, that's not what's going on. Lincoln can't see where the food on his plate is. Since he has to know where everything is located, he has to think of the plate like it's a clock. Everything on his plate is sitting in a different position like the numbers on a clock. When he's told where they are, he'll have an easier time finding them."
Leni looked back at Lincoln's plate, laughed and said, "Silly Lisa, he's not eating his food off of a clock. He's eating off of a plate."
Lisa rolled her eyes and with an annoyed groan she said, "Just forget it."
She then went back to eating as Leni shrugged and did the same. Lynn Sr. couldn't help but worry about Leni a little after that exchange, but turned his attention back to Lincoln to see if Lincoln understood.
"Do you understand it son?" Lynn Sr. asked him.
Lincoln nodded and said, "Given what you and Lisa just explained, I think I get it."
Lynn Sr. smiled and said, "Good. Now eat up." He even made sure to pat Lincoln's shoulder.
As Lynn Sr. turned his attention away from his son, Luna was pouring some gravy on her mashed potatoes. She turned her attention towards Lincoln as he was just starting to eat.
Knowing him, he'd want some gravy as well and said, "Hey bro? You want some gravy?"
Lincoln turned his head in the direction of her voice had come from and with a nod of his head he said, "Yes please."
"Glad to hear it," Luna said and then had the rest of the girls sitting with her pass the gravy boat down to him.
As the gravy boat was placed into Lincoln's hands, he prepared to pour the gravy out. That is until his father grabbed his hand and said, "Whoa son. Maybe you should let me take care of that for you."
Lincoln wanted to argue with his father that he could handle it himself. But before he could, Lynn Sr. took the gravy boat from Lincoln's hand and poured some gravy over his mashed potatoes for him.
"Want some of your meatloaf too?" his father asked.
Lincoln responded with a sigh and nodded his head. His father took notice and poured some gravy over the turkey meatloaf as well. As he finished, he patted the top of Lincoln's head and made sure to remove his oven mitt before taking his place at the head of the table. Before long, Rita returned with a blank looking Luan in tow. As they approached, the rest of the family took notice of the look on Luan's face and decided it would be best to not ask her any questions. At least not right now. Even Leni believed it would be best to not ask her anything right now.
For much of the meal, the family sat and ate in silence. Normally they would be a bit more active or at the very least talkative, but no one really felt like conversing or even being their usual energetic selves. Suffice it to say, everyone was feeling a tad bit uncomfortable and everyone understood why too. But they chose to remain silent and not address the elephant in the room.
Lincoln could hear the lack of activity around him. He understood why everyone was remaining silent and knowing that it was because of him really was rubbing him the wrong way. Even if it was really his fault, he couldn't help but feel upset at himself for it. So he figured that it would be best to at least try to break the silence.
"So dad. Where did you find out about that stuff about my plate?" Lincoln asked his father.
Rita looked up from her plate and said, "What stuff?"
"Dad taught about this thing with my plate," Lincoln said and then explained everything that his father and Lisa had said earlier.
Rita listened intently and then looked back to her husband.
"Where did you learn that?" Rita asked.
Lynn Sr. stammered a bit and said, "Well I had some time earlier so I decided to take a little time to see how parents with... blind children help their children with the effects of being unable to see. It was one of the things that they listed."
Lynn Sr. hated having to use the phrase "blind children" especially in front of Lincoln right now and had cringed as he had said it. But he knew that it was the only thing he could actually say to properly describe the things he had looked up.
Rita listened to what her husband had said and as she thought about it, she couldn't believe that she hadn't thought about doing the exact same thing earlier herself. After dinner she would certainly have to go and try to do just that.
"That's not a bad idea. I should have thought about doing that earlier. I'm glad that one of us decided to do that," Rita stated as she looked around the table.
Lynn Sr. looked around at his kids around the table. As he thought about it, he figured that they could all benefit from doing the same thing as well. As the doctor had said, there was a chance that Lincoln's condition COULD be permanent and if it was it would be better if they were prepared for that potential outcome. After all, why shouldn't they be prepared for the worst case scenario?
"In fact, girls, I think it would be best if you all learned a bit more on how to help your brother," Lynn Sr. announced from his seat.
Each of the girls looked up, a couple of them voicing protests while half of them seemed to be agreeing with their father's idea. The only ones who remained silent were Lily, who was too young to talk anyway, and the other being Luan, who was still sulking.
Lynn Sr. was happy to know that some of the girls were enthusiastic about the idea, but was at the same time disappointed in the rest. Lisa, Lola and Lana didn't really seem to be very keen on the idea. It's not that they didn't want to help, they'd be happy to, with the exception of Lisa who still found this whole thing to be a bit overblown. It's just that for Lola and Lana, Lincoln was their big brother and he was always there to help look after them. The idea of the roles being reversed just didn't bode well with them and still made them think of the harsh possibilities that were yet to come.
Lynn Sr. looked between the three girls and the stern looks he gave them left both Lana and Lola looking down at the floor in shame. But as he did the same with Lisa, she continued to remain stoic.
"Lisa? Do you have anything to say?" her father asked.
Lisa gave him a glance and said, "That I do not paternal unit."
"Even when it comes to helping out your brother?" Lynn Sr. asked with him starting to give Lisa a hard stare.
Lisa looked back and said, "Even if this does turn out to be a temporary thing, I think that it would be more beneficial for Lincoln to start learning how to handle things on his own in his current state. If anything, it might prove useful for any future scenarios."
Lynn Sr. sighed and was about to argue when Lincoln interrupted.
"Dad it's okay," Lincoln said.
Everyone, including Lisa, turned their heads in his direction. Thought Lisa was the only one who didn't look surprised.
"Dude, are you serious?" Lynn Jr. asked in surprise.
"She's talking about leaving you on your own bro," Luna added.
Lincoln shook his head and said, "No she's not. She's saying that I need to learn how to take care of myself if things don't get better for my eyes. I appreciate being helped, but there are some things I'd like to be able to do on my own."
He didn't want to tell them about some of the more obvious things he'd have to do. Like finding the bathroom or stuff like that.
"Still, you won't be able to learn them on your own," Lori added in as well.
"You needed my help to use your ears a bit better," Lynn Jr. said too.
He could hear someone getting up from their seat and walking behind him. He felt their arms wrap around him and rest their chin on the top of his head.
"Please let us help Linky," Leni said from above him.
Lincoln couldn't help but smile at her comforting embrace and even patted her arm with his hand a little. He knew they only wanted to help and he was happy about that. But at the same time, he didn't want to take time away from them. Sure he'd be willing to do just that if it meant that there was something for him in return, but at the same time he didn't want them fretting over him as well.
"I know. It's just...," Lincoln began before his mind began to draw a blank.
"At the very least, let us help you get started at it. We're a family, we should be helping each other instead of viewing this as a minor issue... Lisa," Rita said and then gave a hard glance at the second youngest of her children.
Lisa wasn't really bothered by the look that her mother was giving her. She at the very least had some satisfaction that Lincoln acknowledged her words as truth and was glad to see that someone in the family partially agreed with what she had to say. She merely finished the food on her plate and then excused herself from the table. After having cleared her dishes and depositing them in the kitchen sink, she passed through the dining room again and announced that she was returning to her room.
But as she exited the dining room and turned the corner, rendering her out of sight of the rest of the family, she stopped and looked back in. Or more specifially, at her brother. She peered at them and let out a sigh herself.
"Why must I be too afraid to express myself properly in front of them?" Lisa quietly asked herself before she proceeded up the stairs.
After dinner, the family began to pretty much part ways for the night. Lori and Leni had returned to their room and were reading from some of their magazines, deciding that they could wait a day or two before learning everything they would need to know about assisting Lincoln. In the meantime it was Luna and Lynn who were currently studying up on some of the sites that their father had visited earlier, making sure to take notes on some of the more important things.
Luan had returned to her and Luna's room, without saying a word throughout dinner apart from thanking their father for dinner. Suffice it to say, the rest of the family was less than pleased with her actions. Lola and Lana had decided to call it a night as well and were up in their room and at the same time Lily was being put to bed in her and Lisa's room as well.
As for Lucy, she was currently sitting with Lincoln on the couch as she watched Vampires of Melancholia. Lincoln wasn't really trying to pay attention to the show as he really had no interest in it. But Lucy was the only sibling that wasn't busy right now so he figured he could at the very least sit with her while she enjoyed her program. Lincoln wasn't really into vampires or werewolves that much either as he normally prefered ghosts. But he figured he should at least try to do something nice with her while he could. Even if the audio coming from the TV did make him want to beat his head against the wall.
Lucy looked over at her older brother and scooted a little closer to him. Of all of her siblings, Lincoln was the one that she felt the closest to. He understood her dark outlook on life and he almost always stood up for her. Even took the blame for the incident where she had clogged the toilet. She had tried to make it up to him, especially since he had to miss something he had been waiting all year for. But sometimes she felt that the comic she had given him just hadn't been enough. She'd find a way to make it up to him properly someday, she just wasn't sure how to yet.
After a while, commercial break came on and Lucy decided to turn more of her attention towards Lincoln.
"Hey Lincoln, can I ask you a question?" Lucy asked him.
Lincoln shrugged and said, "Wasn't that a question right there?"
Lucy did her best to suppress a laugh. Last thing she wanted anyone in the family to know, including Lincoln, is that she actually did have a real sense of humor. At the very least she found his jokes funnier than Luan's as he did come close to making her laugh at times. Whereas Luan just made her groan more often.
Instead of laughing, Lucy just sat back and said, "Sigh! Can I please ask A question?"
Lincoln nodded and said, "Go ahead."
"What's it like? You know, living in darkness," Lucy asked, hoping that it wouldn't upset Lincoln too much.
Last thing she wanted was to upset him. However, Lincoln could sense her apprehensiveness in her voice.
"You don't have to be nervous Lucy. To tell you the truth, it's kind of boring. I mean, I can smell things a little easier and food tastes a lot better now too," Lincoln answered.
"I thought dad was just getting better at his craft," Lucy said in response.
Lincoln laughed and said, "Well it could be that too. It's just, there are a lot of things I enjoyed doing and I need to be able to see to do them. With this though? I can't really do any of them. Can't watch anything, can't read on my own, can't play my video games. I can't even dra-"
Lincoln caught himself as if he had almost given away a big secret.
"Either way, I can't do most of the things I enjoyed doing," Lincoln said and then he found himself beginning to frown.
He began to wring his hands together and said, "And if it's permanent..."
Lucy grasped one of his hands and then looked around to make sure that no one could see them. Regardless if whether Lincoln could see her or not, she actually gave him a rare smile from her.
"I can help you find some new things to try. Things that don't require sight to be to enjoyed," Lucy said as she scooted closer to him.
Lincoln still frowned and said, "Think you can?"
"I can try at least. You still have that creative mind of yours don't you?" she asked.
Lincoln thought it over for a moment. True he couldn't see, but he could still think and he could still hear. Maybe there were some things that were worth trying and Lucy had very rarely led him astray in the past.
"I suppose," Lincoln answered her.
Lucy still smiled, but still she looked around to make sure no one could see her as she did so.
"As for reading though, I know someone who can help you with that," Lucy continued.
"You do?" Lincoln asked.
Lucy nodded, out of habit, and said, "Yes. Remember my friend Haiku?"
Lincoln cringed and said, "How could I forget? She and three other girls wanted to tear me and each other apart remember?"
Lucy sweat dropped. Yeah she still remembered the incident with the Sadie Hawkins Dance. She had only wanted to do something nice for Lincoln, but wasn't aware that three of her other sisters had thought of doing the same thing. While she was happy that things turned out well for everyone in the end, she did feel some guilt that her friend, her sisters friends and her brother had to go through all of that. Haiku had even been a little upset with Lucy, but she quickly got over it as she had made good friends with one of Lincoln's friends. So things still worked out for everyone in the end.
"Don't worry, she's over that. The thing is, she knows how to read braille and has no problems teaching others how to read it," Lucy stated.
"Braille?" Lincoln asked as he wasn't sure what that was.
Lucy groaned and said, "Sigh! Braille is a written language that the blind use to be able to read, much like how Sign Language is used to help the deaf or mute communicate. It takes study to get it down, but will help you to be able to read again. Whether your condition is permanent or not, it may still be information that would be useful to have."
Lincoln took a moment to think this over. He knew that Lucy did have a point. Neither they nor the doctor knew how bad his condition truly was and it would probably be good to have something in place just in case he didn't recover his sight. Not to mention that even if he did get better, learning something like that might be pretty cool or even helpful in the long run. Lucy was one of his sisters that he trusted the most and whenever she had ideas like that, it usually led to good things as a result. Key word being "usually".
Lincoln nodded and said, "Alright. I think I can try to learn it."
Lucy took another look around the room to make sure it was clear and with the smile still on her face she said, "Good. I'll see if I can have her stop by after school tomorrow and see if you guys can get started."
Lincoln smiled and pulled her into a hug.
"Thanks Lucy," he said.
This time Lucy couldn't suppress a chuckle and said, "It's the least I can do after everything you've done for me."
Lincoln chuckled as well and said, "What are big brothers for?"
Lucy was enjoying the hug, that is until she looked at the TV and saw that her program was coming back on. She pulled herself out of the hug, resumed her usual frown and sat attentive to the show in front of her.
"Okay time for talking is over. The show's back on," she said and focused back on the TV.
Lincoln merely sighed to himself and resumed listening to the TV in front of them. What he couldn't catch though was Lucy casting one last glance at Lincoln and giving him one last smile. But she chose the wrong time to do it, as Luna was just coming into view of the TV with a root beer in her hand.
She saw what Lucy was doing and said, "Dude, did you just smile?"
Lucy saw Luna and she groaned and said, "Dangit!"
Another hour or so passed and the house was really winding down. Most of the family was heading off to bed and Lincoln decided it would be best if he did the same thing as well. He climbed up from the couch, doing his best to not disturb Luna as she was dozing on the couch beside him. She had decided to take the couch for the night as she didn't want to be near Luan right now as the family comedian was still a brooding mess.
As Lincoln got up from the couch, Luna yawned and then sprawled herself out on the family couch. Lincoln could hear her shifting and sighed in relief as he had probably just dodged Luna using him as a pillow or foot rest.
Using his cane, he quickly found his way to the stairwell and ascended up them. As he reached the top step, he turned towards his room and went over to it and slipped inside. After having changed into his pajamas as best he could, he slipped off to the bathroom along with his cane. He did his business and quickly made to leave, but as he stepped outside he ran into someone who was standing just outside.
"Oof," came Luan's voice.
Lincoln stopped in his tracks and turned his attention to her.
"Luan? Was that you?" he asked.
Instead of giving him a straight answer, Luan quickly pushed him away and slammed the bathroom door shut. Lincoln was flabbergasted at Luan's behavior. Even at her worst times, she was never that pushy (except for maybe during the Sweet Spot incident) and would normally try to apologize in some way. But here she was just getting him out as quickly as she could and not even explaining herself.
Wondering what was up, Lincoln was about to knock on the door but before he could, he heard something on the other side. He pressed his ear against the wood of the door and he could hear Luan inside. It almost sounded like sniffling. Luan was crying? He wanted to investigate further, but Lincoln decided it would be best to just let her be for now. She'd talk about it when she was ready to do so. So Lincoln proceeded back to his room and heard one of the doors in the middle of the hall creak open.
"Hey Linc. Going to bed?" asked Lynn's voice.
Lincoln nodded and said, "Yep."
Lynn laughed and said, "Okay. Just make sure you fix your pajamas. You're wearing them inside out."
Lincoln paused and felt all around his pajamas. As his hands reached his back, he could feel the tag that was supposed to be on the inside of his pajama shirt was on the outside instead.
Lincoln groaned and said, "Dangit."
So I really really want to bring Haiku into the story. Out of all the minor characters in the show, I kinda like her the most. Might be because of her Gothic lifestyle, something I've always had an admiration with. And I got the idea that she should be the one to teach Lincoln something useful like understanding braille. So I decided that I should try to roll with it.
Also if you folks have noticed the advertisments for the Halloween special, I have some fun trivia. Luna's costume and the music that plays at the end of the commercial are very reminiscent of a group known as The Ghastly Ones. They're a 90's rock group that has some very good and kinda creepy rock music. Check them out, it's cool stuff.
