GennaiArakida-XIV: Plot twist; I was hired by Burger King to make sure people stopped eating at McDonalds. My genius plan came to fruition perfectly...

Guest (The One with the Longer Comment): Yeah, I get what you're saying. I was mostly hyperfocused on the Sam subplot that I let the other aspects of the story/world slip for a while. Hopefully this chapter puts things slightly back on track in regards to consequences on Lincoln and the family at large (mostly Lynn and Leni in this chapter).

johnmonty: As much as I love Sunacoln, I'm going to have to say no D:

F2TF: I really never thought I'd ever be considered anyone's favorite author. I honestly feel honored.

Lynn Loud Jr. took a deep, calming breath as she glared at the pitching machine before her. The machine was still warming up, and Lynn knew that even when it finished heating off all that winter cold, it would still be slow and shaky. Despite this, she gripped her metal bat with the kind of strength that would break it if it were wooden, and grit her teeth. She was squinting now, which brought the image of a Clint Eastwood-esque cowboy to her mind. She wasn't too big on Westerns, but she had indulged in Eastwood's films for Lincoln's sake.

Lincoln.

The name of her brother distracted her momentarily, which unfortunately was the exact moment that the machine decided to spit a ball in her direction. She swung as hard as she could, but it was too low and too late. The ball scraped the top of Lynn's bat and slammed into the fence behind her. The links of the fence rattled, and it almost sounded like mocking laughter.

"Dang it," Lynn growled as she took off her helmet. She looked behind her, and saw how big the large pile of balls the machine had pitched her way had gotten throughout the whole afternoon.

Not a single hit.

Lynn shouted with anger and threw her bat to the ground, panting heavily as the loud thuds against the frozen floor resonated throughout the baseball diamond. "Why am I so off today?" she chastised herself, rubbing her eyes with frustration. "Come on, Lynn, what are you? An athlete or The Supreme Leader for Life of Vaginaville?"

"Sounds like you're having fun," a feminine voice giggled behind her. Lynn spun in her place to find none other than her friend Margo leaning on the fence in her yellow, casual dress and a thin coat. She had an amused yet kindly smile on her face as she leaned down to pick up one of the baseballs. Margo tossed it lightly in the air, letting it fall back into her palm. "If you're the Supreme Leader, can I be the Grand Sith Vizier?"

"Didn't know you were into those Star Wars nerd movies."

"Since you know it's from Star Wars, I think you might be into them too."

Lynn blushed, and Margo laughed. "So what are you even doing here? Practice doesn't start until winter break's over. I don't even know how you got the equipment out."

"I got a key. And yeah, I know. I just… I don't know, I wanted to be here."

"Problems at home?"

"Come on, Margo. You know I have problems at home. The whole fucking world knows."

The buck-toothed girl frowned slightly, placing a reassuring hand on Lynn's shoulder. "Yeah, I know," she said, her voice infused with sympathy. "I just thought I shouldn't bring it up. It can't be easy, and, uh, I can imagine you've already had people..."

"Oh, when the other teams heard about my bro and sis, they decided to have the time of their lives. Serena asked me in a phone call if I ever got to watch them. Zia got me really pissed when she asked if I was jealous of Luna. Tanya had a little laugh too. 'So, Lynn, have you ever considered fucking your brother for one of your good luck rituals?' Fucking slut, I hate her."

"That's harsh."

"Not even the worst part, Margo. As soon as school starts back up, they've promised to spread a new nickname for me. Lynncest Jr. They'll even do that thing at games where people write the letters on t-shirts and stand up for everyone to see."

"They can't do that. They'd be suspended or expelled or something. Plus, you didn't even do anything."

"It's the thought that matters," Lynn sighed sadly, brushing off her friend's hand. She walked towards the green fence, wrapping her fingers around as many links as she could. She let herself dig her fingers into them, and she bore her teeth angrily. "So now it's just a wait for the inevitable mocking. It's going to be like sixth grade all over again. And maybe it would've been fine if it wasn't for… everything going on at home..."

She turned back to Margo, an intensely sad look written on her face. "You know, I just realized why I'm here. Why I bothered to jog out here and swing at balls I can't even hit. Because I just don't want to be at home right now. I'm trying to keep it together for everyone and help them out, but it's hard to be a shoulder for Luan to cry on when I just want to cry myself. Don't tell anyone I said that, of course."

Margo made the lips-zipped-shut motion. "Honestly, Lynn, that's why I came out here. You weren't really answering my calls, and I knew you were under a lot of stress. I figured you'd come here to blow off some steam."

"And all I ended up doing was pissing myself off more," Lynn snorted. "Do you know how these people look at me now? I can see it in their eyes. They know who I'm related to. The nicer ones just give me queasy looks and turn away. The ones that ain't so nice just start laughing. And the really annoying ones pull out their lists of questions like they're correspondents asking a guy about his neighbor's shooting spree. 'Oh, my brother was such a sweet young boy. I never thought he would stick his peni-'"

Lynn loudly gagged, and visibly lurched forward with a throaty retch. She couldn't even bring herself to make that joke without picturing the horrid scene in her head. "My point is, Margs, that I… actually, I forgot what my point was. I don't even know anything anymore."

"Well, I know something; I know you need a friend right now. I mean, you're basically always coaching us and taking care of us. If we're in the locker room, and you see someone sitting in the corner all quiet-like, you're the first one to walk up to them and make sure they're alright. You don't really let anyone do that with you, though."

"Because I don't need to."

Margo huffed, annoyed with the stubbornness of her friend. She contemplated her next words carefully, visualizing them in her mind. Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to craft the perfect offer for Lynn. It needed to give Lynn room to vent without her feeling dependent or weak. After everything she's been through, there was nothing Lynn hated more than feeling like she was weaker than the people around her. Finally, Margo wet her lips and said "I know you don't need to. You're like… a dam, I guess. You protect everyone from a giant flood and hold back the waterworks. That's just how Lynnsanity rolls. But even dams need maintenance. If you hold everything back, Lynn, you're going to crack. And would you rather spill a little for me, in private, or completely break down in front of everyone else? And don't tell me you won't. It's inevitable if you keep walking this path."

"I..."

Margo grabbed Lynn by her shoulders and raked her fingers into Lynn's uniform. She didn't have a strong grip, but at that vulnerable moment Lynn felt like she could never have shaken Margo off.

"Do it for me, Lynn. Let me help you. And if I can't help, that at least let me listen."

The pitching machine stood forlorn now, squatting in the center of the field, forgotten by the auburn haired girl. The two girls stood together, staring into each other's eyes. Margo's were fierce and determined, while Lynn's were unsure and tired. An infinite matrix of responses buzzed through Lynn's head, while Margo waited patiently for her answer.

Finally, Lynn's eyes shone, and her smirk became more pronounced. "Only if you take a step back. You look like you want to make out with me."

Margo chuckled softly, removing her hands from Lynn's shoulders. "Glad we got to an agreement."

"I'm not promising much. Just that I'll try to keep in contact with you more often. You call me, I call you… you know the drill."

"I do. Thanks, Lynn. For listening to me. I'm just trying to look out for the MVP. O Captain, my Captain and all that."

"One last thing… you might want to move right about now. The pitching machine's about to chuck a ball right into your spine."

Margo jumped to the side with a loud yelp as she noticed the pitching machine chugging with momentum. Lynn smirked as she picked up her bat and, within seconds, got into hitting position. She grinned as the machine finally shot out a speeding white ball, and the girl swung her bat as hard as she could.

CLANG!

The ball soared into the air as Lynn hit her first ball of the day. As it landed with a thud on the other side of the field, Lynn called "I'll get it!" to Margo and jogged over to it, her ponytail flowing in the wind as she surged forward with athletic determinism. Her friend's reassurance was more than she could ever ask for, and Lynn couldn't even believe someone as great as Margo existed in her life.

Still, there was a tiny, nibbling doubt at the back of her mind. She felt the need for something else. She was glad to have a friend to rely on, but what she really knew she needed was a family member to help her out.

Right as Lynn got to the front door of her house, she found that it was locked. Cursing under her breath, she knocked the door a few times and rang the doorbell, to no response. She crooked her head to the side to check the window, and found no one was in the living room or back in the kitchen. "They must all be out or something," Lynn realized with Sherlockian deduction. She checked under the mat for the spare key, but found that it was missing as well. "Guess I'll go through the back."

She trudged to the back door, shivering a little as a cold breeze blew past her. However, that small shiver couldn't compare to the massive shake she got when she reached the backyard and noticed some odd green drippings on the side of the garage wall. At first, she assumed it was just mold, but upon further notice it seemed to form letters.

Letters that formed some very unfortunate words.

Lynn groaned, and turned away to knock on the garage door.

"Yo, Lincoln, you in there?"

There was loud moan from inside, followed by the shaking and rattling of locks and chains. The door then swung open, revealing the white haired boy rubbing his eyes. "Lynn? What are you doing?"

"What are you doing? Why do you look so tired? It's the middle of the afternoon."

"I felt like taking a nap," he clarified.

"I thought you were sleeping at Grouse's place now."

"Well, the bed was here, and I didn't feel like knocking on his door just to sleep for twenty minutes… never mind. What do you need?"

"Um… I don't know how to say this, but… have you read the side of the garage?"

Lincoln sniffed heavily, still struggling to wake up, but trudged out to the lawn with Lynn to read what had been sprayed there. And on that wall, written in bold, green, dripping letters were two words;

SISTER FUCKER!

Lincoln grit his teeth and sharpened his eyes. If looks could turn solid, Lynn was sure that he would be shooting knives from his eyes about now. "Yeah, I saw this. Some ass did it last night while everyone was asleep. Hell, the whole reason Mom and Dad took everyone to the mall just a few moments ago was to buy some paint and primer to cover it up."

"I see. Uh… you alright?"

"I kinda wish you didn't remind me of this, but yeah, I guess I'm alright. I wasn't allowed to go, of course. Mom and Dad didn't want me and Luna sneaking off. I'm never supposed to spend time with her, after all. Everyone in the world can just come by and see her whenever they feel like it, and Mom and Dad'll give them the thumbs up. As long as they're not me, of course."

With a frustrated sigh, Lincoln hung his head and let his entire body slouch over. His older sister reached over to console him by putting her hand comfortingly on his back, but just as her fingertips grazed against the fabric of his shirt, she drew her hand back.

What am I doing? I know he's my bro and all, and he's sad, but… he's sad because he can't be with his sister-lover. My sister, his sister, his girlfriend… that he had sex with…

"I, uh, I think I need to go lay down. I'm p-pretty tired, you know?" she tried to change the topic, feeling a twinge of guilt. Lincoln gravely nodded, and gave her a key.

"Leni told me to give you this, since she guessed you probably forgot it."

"Didn't know she paid attention to stuff like that."

"Lynn, just go take a bath. You smell bad."

That last comment was meant to hurt, but he couldn't really blame her for not wanting to talk to him about his taboo relationship. Still, it felt good to slice at someone else, literally anyone else, the way the world was slicing at him. He took one last look at the dark-green graffiti before dashing back inside and hopping on his small makeshift bed. The legs of the bed creaked, and for a moment Lincoln thought it would collapse. Go on, let it. Let it break apart. Maybe if I'm lucky my neck will fall right on the sharpest part...

The young boy shot up, now worried. "That was a pretty dark thing to think," he mumbled to himself.

It's not weird that you'd think that way, though. Especially after yesterday. You invited Luna's former girlfriend to her bedroom. You know there's a word for that…

"Shut up. It was just for a talk. Nothing going on with them. If anything, Luna looks like she's feeling better."

Yeah, but are you? Her former girlfriend talked to her and accepted her. What about you? Your family sure as hell doesn't want anything to do with you, so how about your past dates? You think Ronnie Anne or Tabby or someone else wants to talk to the boy that ditched them for his hot sis?

"I… I just haven't tried talking to any of them. I mean, it's been a while, so it'd be weird."

What about Clyde? You haven't said much to him.

"Fine! I'll show you I still have people for me!" Lincoln shouted at his own mind. He spent a few minutes looking around for his walkie talkie, finally finding it. He pressed his thumb against the large button on the side, and took a deep breath. A sense of nervousness came over him suddenly, sweeping through his body like a chilling ghost. He brought the device closer to his mouth and dryly whispered "H-hey Clyde. Are you there?"

Nothing from the other side, so Lincoln tried again. "Clyde, are you out there?"

He nearly gave up, until he heard a brisk shuffling emanating from his walkie. There was a sharp crackle, and the voice of Clyde McBride came in over the speaker. "Yeah, I'm here, Lincoln. Uh… over."

"No need for the 'overs', Clyde," Lincoln chuckled. The boy felt a rush of energy at the sound of his best friend's voice. The duo had meant to hang out more over the winter break, but circumstances had gotten in the way, even before Lincoln found himself confined to the garage and Mr. Grouse's guest room. He smiled lightly, before coughing into his fist. "So, uh, how are you buddy?"

"I'm doing great. My dads and I were at the cinema yesterday, and we saw an indie film. They let me choose the movie this time, Lincoln."

"Th-that's great, Clyde," Lincoln said. He honestly couldn't really share the McBride family enthusiasm for high art films.

"Dang it, where are my manners? How are you doing, buddy? Anything exciting happen with you lately?"

Lincoln blinked, confused. "Wait, you haven't heard?"

"I haven't heard anything, but I do know my dads saw you on the news a few times. I haven't been watching the news, because it usually makes me sad especially when there are starving kids, but they looked pretty shocked at whatever you did. I think they even told me to stop talking to you, so I could get in trouble for this right now. What did you do? Did you rob a bank? That would be so cool!"

"N-No, I didn't rob a bank. I, uh, did something a bit more… not normal, I guess. Um… I..."

He could feel Clyde's curiosity spilling in over the radio waves, and every second he stammered for time, he could feel his heart sinking deeper and deeper into his chest. "I… you know what? It doesn't matter. I think we're breaking up, I can't hear you."

"That's weird, because I can still h-"

Lincoln tossed the device to the ground, where it landed with a light thud. He exhaled with a defeated sigh, like a sick wildebeest does just before it collapses to the ground for the hyenas to feast on. And that was exactly how he felt in that moment; like he wanted to drop dead, and that unseen eyes were waiting for him to do so, their mouths salivating at the chance to watch him destroy himself. The press, the people of Royal Woods, Clyde's dads, his own family…

He dropped face first into his uncomfortable mattress, and groaned into his pillow. He lay there for a while, he wasn't sure how long. Time was both slow and fast as he tried to get back to his nap, but a boiling sense of resentment and regret kept him awake and debating with his own mind.

Well, that was something. You think you should talk to someone else? Maybe Rusty? He'd probably admire your game.

"Just shut up," Lincoln snarled out loud.

"Okay, no need to be so rude. I'm sorry if eggshell white isn't your color, but it's what the garage needs right now."

He flipped over in bed to find his older sister Leni staring down at him, an offended look on her face. She had two buckets of paint in her rosy hands, and Lincoln realized she must've been talking about painting the garage white while he was buried in his thoughts.

"Oh, sorry Leni. I wasn't talking to you."

"I'm, like, the only person here. Who else were you talking to? Did Lisa turn someone invisible again?"

Lincoln grinned lightly. He could always rely on Leni to cheer him up.

"No, I was just talking to the Tooth Fairy. Anyways, so you got the paint for the outside?"

Leni nodded proudly, and Lincoln stood up and took one can out of her hands. "Alright, I'll just get to work now."

"By yourself? This late?"

"Yeah. At least, that's what I thought that's what I would be doing."

"Yeah, but not alone. I'm going to be helping you out, Linky," Leni cheered herself.

"Wait, really? Wow. Thanks Leni. With your help, I'm sure this thing will be done in a third of the time."

"All that time spent painting my nails wasn't for nothing," Leni beamed brightly.

"Is anyone else going to be helping out? Is, uh, Luna going to be..."

The way Leni's smile was wiped off her face told Lincoln all he needed to know. "Luna's not coming to help. Dad really didn't want her to. He said anyone else could, but after we came back from the mall, he sent her straight to her room."

"Oh..."

Lincoln heaved a weighty sigh, glancing towards the ground again with disappointment. He noticed a wet spot near the corner where he slept. Looking up, he noticed a trail of dirtied water dripping from the ceiling, and it all seemed to crash down on him again.

He couldn't talk to his sister… he couldn't be open with friend… he couldn't spend time with his family like he used to… because he was a sister fucker, like the guy who vandalized his garage said he was. Why was he even going to cover over that anyways? All the vandal did was tell the truth, and let the whole world know what kind of person resided in there.

A set of dainty, warm fingers wrapped around Lincoln's clenched hand, causing Lincoln to look back up at the sweet eyes of his golden haired sister. She smiled lovingly and squeezed his hand, and her eyes shimmered with gentle caring.

"Come on, Linky. Let's get some dinner. Then tomorrow we can get to work. Together."

She led him to the lawn, just as the sun was starting to set. The sky was transitioning from open blue to obsidian black, and if Lincoln squinted just right, he could see the stars revealing themselves to existence. It was as if there were an angel hiding behind the night sky, busily poking holes that revealed hints of heaven.

It was a shame he had to go inside. If he had the choice, he would've eaten his food on the cold lawn. The view was worth the risk of sickness.

But instead he sat at the table, right between Leni and Luna. His parents and a few of his sisters gave them odd looks, but it wasn't like Luna and Lincoln were going to start kissing in front of everyone. Lynn just shrugged and started pouring pasta to his children, and soon the Louds were set upon by a feeding frenzy.

"So, how was your trip at the mall?" Lincoln asked Luna.

"I didn't go in. I stayed in the van, covering my face so no one would recognize me."

"Oh… sorry about that..."

Luna smirked, and she allowed herself to take a risk by giving him a flirtatious look and whispered huskily "It's alright now that you're here, eating Italian with me. Didn't Lady and the Tramp kiss over a plate of spaghetti? Wanna split one of these strands?"

Lincoln choked on his milk, and Luna let out a laugh. Even if it was a joke, it was still a show of love. The best one they could afford under their parents' watchful eyes, at least.

"So, when are you going to clean up that obscenity, Loud?" Mr. Grouse said to Lincoln as he entered his house with a pillow in hand. "I'm an old man. It hurts me to look at those words."

"Wait, how do you even see it? It's on the other side."

"I went over to the Yates' for some sugar, and I caught a glimpse. And now that I know it's there, it's been burning my mind."

"Yeah, I'm sure you're the one most hurt by it," Lincoln rolled his eyes, "so don't worry. Me and Leni are going to clean it up tomorrow."

"Just two of you? I thought that one with the flower liked painting or something."

"Luan? I don't really feel like talking to her," Lincoln growled, gritting his teeth.

"I'd say you should because you should love your family, but I'm sure you're the expert in that field," Mr. Grouse said callously as he started to make his way to the bathroom. "Well, I'm going to spend a lot of time with the loo now, so goodnight Loud."

"Good night Mr. Grouse," Lincoln called as he headed to the guest room. He got on his bed and tossed the old pillow at a small wooden chair in the corner of the room, replacing it with the pillow he brought from home. He gave it a swift, strong punch before setting it down and laying his head on it. He exhaled with blissful relief at the soft sensation.

"It's like it wraps itself around your head," he noted with a laid-back sigh. He squirmed in place for a few moments, enjoying the spongy soft feeling of the bed, before he pulled out his phone and checked the time. "Yeah, I should get some sleep now," he yawned to himself. Before he got up to turn off the lights, he tore off his shoes and socks and tossed them on the floor, wiggling his newly liberated toes.

He got up from the bed, but before he could get to the light switch, he paused at a small, circular window that looked directly onto his house. With a brief sigh, he put his hands on the sill, and looked around his former home. He couldn't see much, but the lights were still open, and from the bits of noise that flowed out of an open window, he could tell that some of his sisters were still awake.

He wondered if they missed him as much as he missed them.

"Why do I even feel like I miss them?" he asked himself. "I still eat with them, I can still talk to them, I'm even doing the thing with Leni tomorrow. Why do I feel like I'm missing out?"

Then it struck him; the time he was spending with them was tainted with an uncomfortable atmosphere. Whether it was them or him causing it, there was no denying that the little time he spent with his sisters was filled with whispers, uncomfortable pauses, and looks of disgust. And that was if he was lucky enough to talk to them.

In a way, it hurt more than when they actually excluded him. It was a mild annoyance for them to leave him at home as they went to the mall, but it was extremely painful when he found that Lana was unable to look him in the eye.

And he had to bear it all with a smile. He couldn't bring Luna down, and in the end, this was all his fault.

"Why didn't I remember the cameras… wait, what's that?"

The young man was unceremoniously drawn from his thoughts as he noticed some motion around his garage. It wasn't much; just a shaking of the bushes and a momentary blur. At first, Lincoln thought it was his imagination, but then he saw it again. It was a small human figure. A teenager. It made its way to the garage, and Lincoln gasped. "I think it's that guy who tagged our garage. Is he going to do more? Oh no he doesn't, I'm not going to be painting over more swear words."

He felt a burst of adrenaline as he rushed down the stairs and out into Mr. Grouse's lawn. He slowed considerably, sneaking by the edge of the fence. He kept his ear pressed against the rows of wood, trying to catch the hiss of a spray paint can. When he heard nothing, he found the hole in the fence that he usually used to spy on his neighbor, and now found himself using it in the opposite way.

The teen was dressed in black clothes, fitting their stealth mission. From the dim lighting, Lincoln could see that they were hunched on their knees, dipping a paintbrush into a can of paint and painting over the corner of the garage. They then shifted to the side, out of Lincoln's sight, but left the can. When Lincoln saw them dip the brush into the can again, that was all he needed to see.

He silently hopped the fence, tearing his pants slightly in the process. He then crawled over to the face of the garage and slowly made his way to the corner, waiting for his foe on the other side to show their painting hand again. When Lincoln saw their lean arm extend towards the can of paint, Lincoln shouted "Got you!" and pounced on them like an apex predator.

He wrestled the masked teen to the ground, when he heard them growl "Get off me!" and punch him in the mouth. The coppery taste of blood leaked into his mouth, and with another fierce growl, he returned the favor. He punched their cheek, and the masked teen let out a cry of pain.

A very familiar cry of pain. In fact, he'd heard it before when brawling with someone specific. That someone being…

"Wait… Lynn?"

"Lincoln?" came a muffled voice from under what Lincoln was now realizing was a ninja mask. He got off the teen, and she took off her mask. Chestnut hair spilled out onto the girl's shoulders, and a pair of confused eyes stared back at the white haired boy. "Lincoln, what the hell? I thought you were staying with Grouse."

"I was. Then I saw you here. I can't believe you would write 'sister fucker' on our garage!" Lincoln yelled at her, hurt.

Lynn rolled her eyes. "And they call me the dumb one. I didn't do that, it was some random guy with too much time on their hands. If you would grab my flashlight and look at what I was actually doing..."

Lincoln noticed the torch on the ground, and picked it up, aiming its light at the wall. The graffiti now read SISTER FUC, the last three letters still visible, but splattered with white paint that at least obscured them.

"I, uh, I felt bad about earlier," Lynn admitted. "You clearly wanted to talk and I didn't feel like giving you time of day. So I knew you and Leni were going to paint over this stuff tomorrow, so I thought I'd give you less work to do."

"Wow. Um… thanks Lynn. But why now? Why not just help me and her tomorrow?"

"When I say 'I felt bad' maybe that doesn't completely explain what I mean. I felt really crummy. And I… I don't know, I thought you wouldn't want me to be around. So I decided to do it while you were away at the old man's place. Like you were supposed to be," she shot him an unamused look.

Lynn lightly kicked the ground after that, a tiny clump of grass and dirt flying out. Lincoln felt a mix of emotions at his sister's confessions. He was both amused and annoyed, but decided to lead with the first one. He huffed with bemusement before saying "Lynn, do you really think I wouldn't want to hang out with you just because things were a little awkward earlier? I barely get to hang out with my sisters anymore at all. I'm not going to throw away the few chances I get."

"Yeah, but..."

"You were talking about how I was supposed to be at Mr. Grouse's, right? Do you know why I even noticed you at all down here? Because I was in my room in his house, staring at our house. My house. Because I miss you guys. I miss brushing my teeth and then saying goodnight to everyone. Lynn, I'm just glad enough you care to help paint over this."

Her frown twirled into a thin, delighted smirk. "You mean that?"

"I do."

He extended his arms, and Lynn approached him, pulling him in for a short hug. "I… I also really missed this," Lincoln whispered into the hug. Lynn felt the boy tremble in her arms, and let out a reluctant sigh. "If you need to cry, I promise I won't make fun of you," she reassured.

"No, it's fine. I don't need… I don't need..."

His voice was cracking, and Lynn felt him shaking even harder. She started to rub his back soothingly, massaging him with her expert hands. That was what broke Lincoln, and the boy felt tears descend from his eyes. "I really miss my old life. I miss you, I miss Luna, I miss everything. And I have to hide it so everyone else doesn't feel worse… I'm just lost," he sobbed.

"B-Believe me, Linc… I know how you feel..."

Lincoln glanced up, wiping the tears from his eyes, to find that Lynn's brown eyes were wet and wistful. She gave him a bittersweet smile, before latching tighter to him, wanting him to stay with them forever.

It was then that Lincoln patted her back as well. It seemed he wasn't the only one with demons that needed exorcising.

The next day, when Lincoln went back to the lawn to start fixing the garage, he found both Lynn and Leni standing their, waiting for him. The older girl was dressed in a stylish smock, while Lynn was dressed in a regular, light jacket.

"Good morning, Linky. Ready to start painting?"

"Good morning, Leni. And yeah, this should be fun. As fun as painting over a deeply offensive insult should be."

Leni clapped her hands with excitement and handed Lincoln his paint roller, already dripping with milky paint. "Me and Lynn, like, got rid of the worst parts before you got here. You slept in really late, so that gave us time to paint over the entire bad part."

"But… you guys painted over the 'sister' part."

"Exactly. What's worse; people seeing the f-word, or people seeing 'sister f-word'?"

"Did the idea of painting over the f-word occur to you two?"

"Trust me, I tried to convince her," Lynn grumbled as the blonde patted her head fondly.

"Well, it doesn't matter. With all three of us, we should coat this thing over with lots of time to spare."

"Actually… I had someone else offer to help."

"Who?"

"That would be me," a new voice said. Lincoln turned to the backyard door, and his eyes widened at who he saw standing there.

"Hey guys," Luan said nervously, giving her three siblings a sheepish wave. "Let's, uh... let's get to work."

When I started this story, I honestly thought the longest the chapters would be is 3.5k words, and that I would be done way before the story got this long. How naive I was.

Anyways, next chapter is when we finally get some insight into how the family comedienne has been doing all this time, and whether she can reconcile with the siblings she's wronged. I don't know about you, but I'd forgive her. You can't say no to those eyes.