Lincoln woke up that morning, knowing today was the day he was going to have his date with Lynn. He was still a little iffy about the whole thing, I mean, he was about to go out with the girl who helped blow up his whole "Bad Luck" scheme into something more than it was intended to be. And then perpetuated it into something more with the squirrel costume.
The white-haired boy sighed as he swung his legs over the edge of his bed and was about to get ready, but just then the dial that was installed by Lisa began to flash a bright blue. At this point he had managed to associate which color belonged to which sister, and in this case, it was Lori's color that was blinking. Curious, Lincoln walked up to the dial and pressed on the center button. Immediately a door of bright blue light opened in front of him. Lincoln stepped back and watched as Lori exited the doorway, her expression neutral.
"Morning, Lori, did you need something?" Lincoln asked.
"We need to talk, Lincoln, come with me," said Lori.
"Wait, I have my date with Lynn!" Lincoln remarked.
"It's about her. Please, just come with me."
Lincoln was even more curious. With a sigh, Lincoln followed Lori through the doorway and ended up in the giant high-rise tower that was part of her dimensional space. The door specifically opened into one of the offices she had in there, where Lori took a seat behind a desk and motioned for Lincoln to take a seat across from her.
"Lincoln, please take a seat." Lincoln did as Lori asked, and once she had, she laced her fingers together and propped her elbows on the desk itself. "Lynn's not here, Lincoln."
"Wait? What do you mean she's not here? Where is she?" Lincoln asked.
"She ran away."
Lincoln jumped out of his chair and yelled, "WHAT?! Where?! Why?!"
"Calm down, Lincoln, I'll tell you why."
Lincoln took a breath and sat back down in his chair.
"Lynn's giving up her shot at dating you, because she's afraid of hurting you even more than she has. I don't know how you feel about Lynn, but it seems she hasn't forgiven herself for the Bad Luck incident," Lori explained. "So, in order to spare her own feelings, and to spare you the 'trauma' of having to date the girl who helped make a bad situation way worse, she decided to runaway and forfeit her turn to Lucy."
Lincoln was shocked to hear that.
"Look, little brother, I'm not going to sit here and tell you all the reasons why you could go after Lynn. Honestly, the less competition there is the better. But I am going to ask you to think about your next actions."
The shocked state of the eleven-year-old finally wore off and allowed him to ask, "What's there to think about?! And wait, if you knew she ran away, then why didn't you stop her?!"
Lori sighed as she leaned back in the chair. "Because it would, literally, lead to a slug fest between us, and we'd end up leveling the entire neighborhood and then some."
Lincoln facepalmed himself, he had forgotten for a moment that his sisters were cosmic powered beings, and a little fight between them would end with big time destruction.
"Lincoln, right now, I'm not talking to you as your potential lover, but as your older sister. You shouldn't go after Lynn, not because I want one less girl for you, but because I don't think you have the words to bring her back," Lori spoke.
Lincoln looked up at his big sister with confusion.
Lori elaborated, "Tell me something, Linc, have you forgiven Lynn? We've all made an unspoken vow to forget that incident ever happened, that it was better to pretend that it never happened. But it did happen, and recent events have forced us to confront that black mark on our past. You've forgiven me, Leni, Luna, and Luan, but out of all of our sisters, Lynn is the one person who stands at the center of that turmoil. The one who drove you out of our house. You can't go and find Lynn until you know you can forgive her, because that will always be hanging over you and her. And if she can't feel that from you, genuine forgiveness, and if you can't feel it either, then there's no point in going after her. You'll only hurt each other."
This was a lot to process, on a level, he did understand what Lori was telling him. It would not matter if he managed to locate Lynn, she would still blame herself and hate herself for what she did, and if Lincoln could not forgive her, then there was no point in even going after her.
Lori walked around from the desk and got down on one knee before Lincoln. She gently placed her right hand on his shoulder and had him look her in the eyes. "This isn't a decision that Mom and Dad, your friends, or any of us can tell you to make. Only you can determine what the right thing is here."
Lincoln's gaze lowered as he said, "What if…What if I can't forgive her? Lori? What if…What if I can't bring her back? She's our sister, our family, I can't just turn my back on her like that."
Lori shrugged. "I'd say turn about is fair play. We literally did the same thing to you not all that long ago and look where it ended up. The only difference here is that Lynn chose to leave to protect you." Lori stood up and sat on the desk. "Like I said, Lincoln, it's your decision. If you want to go after her, I'll help you, and if you don't, that's fine, too. I'll respect and accept whatever decision you make. Whether the girls do or not, at least know I'll have your back."
"Thanks, Lori…"
Lincoln was still in his pajamas, he was lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling as Lori's words bounced around in his mind. While a bit of it went over his head, he did understand overall what Lori was talking about. There was no point in talking to Lynn or convincing her to come back home if Lincoln did not truly forgive her for her part in the incident. But right now, he was conflicted. That time in his life was so messed up, and anger inducing, that it was hard to separate it and Lynn when she had a big part to play in both perpetuating it and prolonging the aftereffects.
But there was something else Lincoln realized. I can't move forward if I can't forgive them all either way. Yes, even if Lincoln managed to forgive Lynn, the others still had their parts to play back then, and while he had forgiven four of his five older sisters, there was still the younger ones. Although in all honesty he could not completely blame them, they were younger than him, and it was Lisa, Lucy, and Luna, who were at least trying to convince everyone that the good luck squirrel suit thing was nothing but BS.
"Lucy…" Lincoln sat up in his bed and jumped out of it. "Maybe that's the way?"
The white-haired youth turned the dial to the black shade and pressed the button. Immediately a black doorway opened before him, if this was any other circumstance, he'd pee himself seeing a door made of darkness open, but knowing who was on the other side of the dark door helped to ease the fear. And just as predicted, Lucy came walking out of it and looked down at him in surprise.
"Lincoln? Shouldn't you be on your date with Lynn?" Lucy asked.
"She's gone. Lynn ran away last night," said Lincoln.
"I see…"
"You don't seem too worried."
"If I am being honest, big brother, I am not. I've sensed turmoil in Lynn's soul for some time now, but I was not sure how it was going to manifest. Seeing as the Bad Luck incident has resurfaced, I imagined it would not be long before Lynn did something in reaction to that event," Lucy explained.
Lincoln raised an eyebrow. "I'm surprised your familiars didn't tell you about that."
"I only have them assigned to you, Mom and Dad, and Lilly. They're the only ones in this house who do not possess powers, and so, it's more prudent to keep watch over them. Whereas the rest of us have powers and can defend ourselves."
Lincoln opened his mouth, but after a moment to think about it, coincided to Lucy's point. "That make's sense. Anyway, I need your help."
"To find her?" Lucy asked.
"Not exactly…not yet anyway."
"Hmm…come in."
Lincoln followed Lucy into the dark doorway, and on the other side, he entered into a magical realm. This was the first time he had been in another one of his sisters' pocket dimension rooms, the first was Lori's, the second was Luna's, and each time he was blown away by how big and different each one was. Truly these dimensions reflected the dweller, it was a vast expanse, with floating rock platforms that had various things on them, either bookcases, tables with magical items or concoctions, and on some were mythical animals that were either grazing, resting, or just hanging out before they left to whatever place they were going to go next.
Multiple pieces of rock appeared in front of them, forming a pathway as they walked. Lucy obviously knew where they were going, so the pathway formed to where she wanted to go. Once they arrived, Lincoln noticed that there was someone sitting in an armchair, sipping on some tea on a table in front of them.
"Sorry, Alastor, but we will have to cut our talk short," said Lucy.
The chair turned around and revealed a being that gave Lincoln a chill down his spine. He was dressed head to toe in a snazzy scarlet red suit, a black bowtie, and black shoes. The being had crimson tipped claws on each of his fingers, his eyes were blood red, with a lighter shade of red for the iris, and black slit pupils. He had a monocle over his right eye, and when he smiled, it showed off two rows of sharpened teeth. There was something oddly charming and deeply menacing about his smile.
"Ah, not a problem my fair lady! This was an unannounced visit, so things like this are bound to happen," said Alastor, his voice sounded as if it was being spoken through an old vacuum tube radio.
"Uh…Lucy…who's that?" Lincoln asked.
The being finished his tea and stood up. Instantly, he summoned a staff into his left hand that looked like a stage microphone. "Alastor's the name, young lad! Pleasure to meet you!" Alastor appeared in front of Lincoln and held out his hand to shake.
Lincoln glanced looked at his hand, although he was not attuned to the supernatural like his little sister, his intuition told him that it was not a good idea to shake this guy's hand. So instead, Lincoln politely bowed. "Uh, nice to meet you. Mr. Alastor."
"Ha-ha! Sharp one this kid is! I see why you talk so highly of him."
"Uh, sorry if this is rude, but what are you?"
"Ah, well my dear boy, I am a demon. The Radio Demon, they call me in Hell!"
Lincoln's eyes went wide, a demon, a real-life demon was right in front of him. No wonder he felt uneasy.
"Alastor is a human who became a demon in Hell, and apparently he's one of the most powerful ones down there," said Lucy as she crossed her arms.
"Indeed, I am, but I felt a strong magical force that reached all the way down to my neck of the woods, so I just had to come and see who it was that managed to become so powerful on this side of the world, and who should I find but this lovely young lady." Alastor disappeared and reappeared next to Lucy. "I just wanted a chat with Ms. Loud here, and to see if she possibly wanted an alliance. A powerful demon of Hell and a powerful sorceress in the living world, why, there's no telling what kind of fun we can have!"
Lincoln was feeling more and more uneasy about Alastor. He spoke in such a disarmingly charming manner, belaying the evil that he undoubtedly wanted to wreak both here and in his world.
"We'll discuss this another time, Alastor. My brother takes priority for me," said Lucy.
"Indeed, family is everything. Especially when you're trying to seduce one of them."
Lucy growled a little, prompting Alastor to evaporate to another location away from her.
However, before the demon could leave, Lincoln asked, "Mr. Alastor…uh…am I…?"
"Are you going to Hell for dating your lovely sisters?" Alastor finished. The Radio Demon chuckled. "I am not the one who doles out judgement young lad, wherever you end up is determined by your actions here in the living world. However, despite your current circumstances, if it makes you feel any better, I can't see any reason why I would see you in my realm. But should you end up there, I'll personally take you under my wing and look after you. Who knows, you may show great promise like I did."
Alastor bowed in a very showman way.
"Until we meet again."
A portal opened beneath him, and just like that, he was gone.
Lincoln blinked. "Uh…should I be worried that demons are coming to see you, Lucy?"
"I am the Sorceress Supreme of our world, it only makes sense that I'd draw the attention of otherworldly mystical and demonic beings. But fear not, my brother, I make no deals with them. If anything, I bend them to my will." Lucy waved her hand and reset the chairs and tea. "But tell me, if you're not go after Lynn, then what is it that you wanted to do?"
Lincoln sat down in the new armchair and said, "I was wondering, is there a way you can…I don't know…let me see my memories? Kind of like lucid dreaming, I guess."
Lucy hummed as she thought about her big brother's proposal. "First, tell me why you want to?"
"If I'm going to have any chance of bringing Lynn back, and moving past that time, I need to confront it and how I feel. And something tells me that magic might help me do that, which is why I wanted to see you, Luce," Lincoln explained.
Lucy sat back in her chair and said, "I see. Well, it is possible. But I can do more than that." Lucy snapped her fingers, and before her appeared a magical formula. "If you wish, I can create a kind of 'virtual environment', comprised of not only your memories, but all our sisters' memories concerning that incident. You'll get to see how we all felt from our perspectives, and hopefully, this will allow you the clarity you want. And maybe the closure you need."
Lincoln looked at the floating runes in amazement and then smiled. "That sounds like exactly what I need!" He then noticed a reluctant expression on Lucy's face. "What's wrong?"
"Sigh…I too wish to forget that day. I feel so stupid for not seeing the signs that it was all made up. I profess my knowledge of the occult and mystic arts, and yet, when it came to that, I somehow fell in line with the rest of our siblings and parents instead of debunking it. And part of me is afraid of you reliving that again through this spell," Lucy confessed.
Lincoln reached across the table and held her hand. "Lucy, I'm not looking forward to this either, but if it helps Lynn, and me, then I want to do it."
Lucy smiled at her big brother and slipped her hand away as she stood up. "Very well, my beloved big brother. I will cast this spell."
A couple of minutes past and Lucy had everything ready. She sat crossed legged on the outer edge of a glowing magic circle that was etched onto the floor before her. At the center was Lincoln, gulping as he watched Lucy make different hand signs, and with each hand sign made more and more glowing runes and sigils appear.
"Remember, Lincoln, you will be witnessing these events from a third person perspective. You'll have free movement within this imaginary world, you won't be able to interact with anything there, and neither will the memories be able to interact with you. I'll be out here monitoring the spell, and if at any time you want me to end it, just say so."
Lincoln nodded. "I'm ready."
Lucy's eyes shined with black light as she slammed her hands together into a prayer position. The magic circle glowed and released a blinding light that made Lincoln shut his eyes as the spell took hold.
~{The World of Memories}~
Lincoln stood in a vast empty white void. At first, he wondered if the spell went wrong, but considering this was Lucy on cosmic power, he highly doubted that she messed up the spell. Suddenly, wisps of different colored smoke began to materialize out of nowhere. These different colored smoke trails began to mix and form his house.
"Okay…" Lincoln walked to the house and made to open the door, but his hand passed right through it. "What the…?" Lincoln hummed for a moment and then took a step forward. Upon doing so, he found himself passing through the door and ended up on the other side. "Huh, okay."
"Dude enough is enough, we need to get Lincoln out of that damn suit! It's not right!"
"Luna?" Upon mentioning her name, he was immediately whisked away to where she was. He ended up in Lucy and Lynn's room, with the former gone and the latter in a state of undress as she readied for school. "Oh c'mon…!" Lincoln was about to avert his gaze, but just accepted it. "You know what, forget it, I've seen a lot already."
"C'mon, Luna, you've seen it yourself! So long as he's wearing that suit, our luck is changing! I haven't lost a game since he started wearing that suit. You should totally ask out Sam! I bet she'll say yes!" Lynn stated.
"Look, I already told you guys, there's no way Sam would go out with me," Luna retorted.
"Oh, how wrong she was," Lincoln commented.
"Whatever, so long as he's wearing that thing, we're all on easy street. No losing games, no accidents, no bad things have happened AT ALL to any of us since he's worn that thing. And remember that one time he did take it off when we weren't all sleeping, Dad nearly got killed by Vanzilla's brakes not working!"
"Oh c'mon, Lana must've forgot to fix them or somethin'!"
"And yet, the moment he put it back on, Vanzilla stopped. See, you can't make this stuff up, Sis."
Luna growled in frustration. Why could they not see how miserable he was?
Lincoln could feel what Luna was feeling, her frustration and anger, not just at Lynn, but at herself for believing that Lincoln was bad luck. He followed Luna as she walked out of the room and followed her to his room. Lincoln remembered this part.
"He, little bro, it's me. Can I come in?" Luna asked.
"Free country…" Lincoln replied miserably.
Luna sadly entered his room, which was still mostly bare since they threw out most of his stuff. Luna and her parents were in the middle of getting all that back, fixing what could be fixed, and replacing what they could replace. Thankfully, they were able to save his collection of comic books, but other than that, they just had to bring in a mattress for him to sleep on and rewash his clothes, otherwise, the only thing he was wearing under there was just his, well, underwear.
"Hey, you doin' alright?" Luna asked.
"What do you think?"
"That's fair." Luna walked in and sat next to him. "You can take off that head, dude."
"No, 'cause if I do, something bad will happen and it will be my fault," said Lincoln.
"Look, I know we were complete idiots about the bad luck thing, but this…even I know this is going too far. Just take it off, I want to see my little bro's face, not some costume head."
Reluctantly, Lincoln took off the mascot's head and revealed his face to his big sister. Although, he kept a sharp ear out just in case he heard someone yell. Luna turned to the door and shut it, then leaned against to make sure no one barged in and accused him of anything.
"We're tryin' to get everyone off this Good Luck kick but…"
"Lynn's not letting up on it being connected to me in the suit."
"It's bogus, all of it is! It's one thing if our sibs are believin' it, but she's convinced Mom and Dad! I don't know whether to be embarrassed or angry or both!" Luna exclaimed.
Lincoln sighed. "Just leave it alone, eventually they'll snap out of it. Besides, it's mostly my fault that I'm in this mess."
"Yeah, okay, you did mess up with that. But Lynn and the rest of us took it too far. I get that you wanted some alone time, you're not wrong for wantin' that little bro. Considering everything you do for us, and what we drag you through, you deserve some time to yourself," Luna argued.
"And this is the price I pay for it."
"Linc…"
"It's fine, Luna, it'll pass."
Lincoln sighed; how wrong he was then. Everything paused, and Lincoln could see a purple glow coming from the center of Luna's chest. Lincoln walked up to the sphere, and on instinct, placed his hand against it.
"It's not fair that he has to suffer like this, and it's even worse that I helped!"
Lincoln took his hand away in surprise. He heard Luna's voice, but the scene was still paused. Are these her inner thoughts? Lincoln placed his hand against the light again and listened.
"If only I could tell you how much I love you, lil' bro. Honestly, if I could, I'd run away with you, right now, and never look back. I'd be anything you wanted me to be, your sister, your lover, your protector, anything. I don't know how far we'd get, or how well we'd do, but I promise I'd treat you how you should be treated. Damn anyone who says what I'm feelin' is wrong, if it's wrong to love your brother this much then I don't want to be right!"
The scene shifted to his school, yes, he even wore that stupid costume there, too. To this day, he still had no idea how the teachers allowed him to walk around in that thing and not order him to remove it. Then he could just say that the teachers told him to take it off, but then again, all he had on underneath was his underwear, since the damn thing was so hot. So, taking it off was not an option either.
All throughout the school, the kids were making fun of him. Rusty, Clyde, Liam, and Zach helped here and there, acting as defense against the other kids who tried to mess with him. He explained it away to his friends, and even Ronnie Anne, who was skeptical about his reasoning, but was no less instrumental in keeping everyone who wanted to mess with him away. She could be very persuasive.
The scene shifted again, this time showing Lucy and Lisa. They watched from afar as their big brother became the subject of public ridicule, Lincoln could feel Lucy's anger and wanting to curse all those who were picking on him. While at the same time, he could feel Lisa's own anger, despite neither of them outwardly showing it, their stoic expressions were simply a mask to hide what they were really feeling inside.
"This is getting more ridiculous by the day," said Lisa.
"I've consulted the cards, and spoken to the spirits, all of which have told me that Lady Fortuna has just simply decided to bless us with great luck, and that it has nothing to do with that costume. She is a fickle mistress," said Lucy.
Lisa rolled her eyes at her big sister's explanation, she never believed in the occult or any of that supernatural nonsense, but right now, if it meant that it could help convince her family that their string of good luck was not inherently tied to Lincoln wearing the mascot costume, then she would back up Lucy's claim in any way she could. However, not even when presented with scientific facts and figures did her family members believe that Lincoln was not good luck with the suit on.
"Perhaps you can ask those same spirits why they have seen fit to make our elder brother suffer more while you are at it," Lisa replied in a snarky tone.
Lucy looked as if she wanted to say something but kept it to herself. All they could do was try and be of some comfort to Lincoln during this trail.
Lincoln didn't know that Lucy, Lisa, and Luna were doing this much behind the scenes to help him. He started to feel worse about what would soon happen. The scene paused again, this time showing two lights, one green that came from Lisa, and a black one coming from Lucy. Lincoln placed his hand over Lisa's light and listened to her inner thoughts.
"Elder brother…if only I was older. I could help you better. Some days I curse the fact that I was born so young and with an intellect that rivals many of our current scientists. If I were older, I could use my vast intellect to emancipate myself, and in so doing, emancipate you as well. With all the grants I have, I could easily buy a home and live there without any of my siblings. Except for one, in a home that big, I want you there, Lincoln. You who are my anchor, the one who keeps me human no matter how much greater my intellect grows."
Lincoln removed his hand from Lisa's light and then touched Lucy's.
"How I wish I could comfort you better my dear brother. If only I had the courage to take that step past the forbidden boundary and give you the love and support that only a lover can bring. But…if I did that now, I would only be taking advantage of you. You're so vulnerable, so hurt, and angry, that any advances I make run the risk of shattering our bond or pushing you into something you are not yet ready to accept. Or worse, to indulge in the forbidden, and take your frustration out upon me, ravaging me. I would gladly accept it, if to only grant you a moment of comfort, but I fear for what it could turn you into…so…all I can do for now is support you as a sister…I'm sorry…"
Lincoln removed his hand from Lucy's light, he was a little shocked after hearing their inner thoughts. Lucy was willing to let him do whatever he wanted to her if it meant that he'd feel better, and Lisa was seriously contemplating getting her own place and having them live alone, just the two of them. I know what they said they felt about me but hearing it from them before they became what they are now…it's…a lot.
Another scene shift, but this time it was from Lola and Lana's perspective. They saw their big brother getting messed with and laughed at by the other kids in their school, word had reached even the lower grades of the boy in the squirrel costume, so it was no surprise that the younger kids got in on the laughing and even chasing of the squirrel.
"Lols…I don't like it," said Lana.
"What?"
"I mean, look at Lincoln, he doesn't look like he's having that much fun."
A bunch of smaller kids were chasing Lincoln around, some having grabbed onto his tail in an attempt to slow him down.
Lola watched the goings on with a mixture of worry and indifference. "Ugh, well…uh…it's what Lincy gets for messing with us for all those weeks. Plus, you can't deny that we've had a lot of good things happen to us since he wore that suit. You haven't lost a gator wrestling match since he has!"
Lana rubbed the back of her head as she said, "Well…yeah, you're right. But is it really fair for him to wear that all the time?"
Lola glanced again at their brother, who was now at the bottom of a dogpile. The pageant princess bit her bottom lip, part of her wanted to go over there and kick off all the little brats that were causing her precious big brother such trouble, but…
"I know it's…it's hard to watch. But just think of all the good things that will happen for us," said Lola.
Lana glanced in Lincoln's direction. "Yeah, but when are those good things going to happen for him?"
Once again, the scene paused, showing a pink and royal blue light. Lincoln decided to start with Lola.
"HOW DARE THOSE PLEBIANS DO THAT TO MY LINCY!"
"OW!" Lincoln removed his hand after Lola screamed her inner thoughts. "Even in her head she's loud." After the ringing in his ears stopped, he tried again.
"I outta go over there and – and –! UGH! Stupid, Lincy, why did you have to go and do all that?! Lana's right, when will something good happen to him? I want something good to happen to Lincoln, it's really not fair that he's going through all of that and not getting rewarded. Maybe…Maybe he'll realize that good thing is closer than he thinks…I love Lincy, and I want us to be boyfriend and girlfriend, and if he's wearing that thing then maybe it'll happen, and he can finally take it off! Just…Just hang in there a little bit longer, please. I'm sorry…"
Next was Lana.
"Bet if I throw El Diablo out there, all of them would scatter like scared mice." She sighed. "I love you, Lincoln, I…I don't know what else to call what I'm feelin', but I do love you. I want to help…but I don't know how. You've always helped me and Lola, and now the one time you need help, and I don't know how to help you…it's not fair…"
I didn't know Lana was feeling that sad about what I was going through…And Lola, she was hoping that I could be more to her than a brother, that this would help her wish come true.
Knowing what he knew now, he could not blame his little sister. She was wishing on a star, a child's wish for something good to come out of this, for both of them to have a happily ever after, storybook ending.
Another scene shift brought Lincoln to Royal Woods High School. It was here that he saw what his older sisters were thinking and doing. Lincoln didn't know how, but it seemed that word of his costume had reached even the high school level, as he could hear multiple teenagers talking about a kid walking around in a squirrel outfit, and how there were even talks among the jerks of their school to go out and mess with him.
He was warped to Luan, who was in her theater class. While taking a break, she was alone with her dummy Mr. Coconuts. As she often did, she talked to the inanimate object as if it were a real person, and there were times that Lincoln swore that thing was possessed. If it weren't for the fact that Luan was attached to the thing, he'd have thrown in a woodchipper and then burn the dust that was created from it. Anyway, it seemed that Luan was in deep conversation with Mr. Coconuts, as the normally ever grinning jokester was looking a bit glum.
"I know he's miserable Mr. Coconuts, but…is it so wrong to think that something good might come out of this for him?" Luan asked.
"I don't know Toots, sounds like you're trying to justify your hope of getting into your little brother's pants," Mr. Coconuts remarked.
Luan blushed hard. "Mr. Coconuts! T-That's not what I want at all!"
"No, but it's somethin' you'd like to have happen down the line."
Luan clamped up, as she could not deny that part of her – the deep perverted part of her – wanted something like that to happen with her brother, but only when he was old enough to do it and could make that decision for himself. She may be a little horny, but she wasn't a rapist.
"But it's not like there haven't been a lot of good things happening us lately since he's worn it. I know he hates it, and I know he's just doing it because he thinks he needs to after the whole Bad Luck stuff…but…when's it his turn to be happy? I don't like seeing him sad…I wanna make him smile, but right now…I don't think anything will work other than burning that squirrel suit."
"Then why don't you bring it up? Tell the rest of those gals that you should get Lincoln outta that thing! And be damned the consequences!"
A look of determination appeared on her face as she balled up her free hand into a fist. "You're right, I should do that! I'll talk to the girls tonight! It's Friday, so we'll be free to talk it out!"
The scene paused just then as a yellow light appeared around Luan's chest. Lincoln stepped up and placed his hand on it to hear what she was really thinking.
"Lincoln, I promised I would protect your smile, but now I feel like I'm helping in making it go away. I get you wanted some alone time, we drag you around all over the place and never give you a moment to yourself. I know I shouldn't think like this, but maybe this will help us to get closer…
Another scene shift and now he was next to Leni, who was being flanked by her school friends, Mandee and Jackie. As was often the case, the two girls were always on lookout for Leni, making sure any boy who came up to her was not about to take advantage of her innocent nature. Lincoln was happy to know that she had friends like this at school who saw Leni's ditzy-ness as more of an endearing quality.
"OMG, Leni, have you heard about the squirrel boy?" Jackie asked.
"Here we go," Lincoln groaned.
"Squirrel boy?" Leni asked.
"Yeah, word is he goes to the elementary school. No one really knows who he is under there, though," Mandee added.
"Oh, I think you're talking about my little brother," said Leni.
The girls stopped and looked at Leni with surprise.
"That's your brother?" Jackie asked. "Why's he going around wearing a squirrel costume?"
"Oh, well…it's kinda complicated. But…honestly, I don't like it."
Mandee placed her left hand on Leni's shoulder and asked, "Hey, what's up? You know you can talk to us about anything. Right?"
Leni smiled at her two friends and said, "I know, it's just, my family thinks it's good luck that he's wearing it, and good things have been happening since he started wearing it. I guess."
"Huh…does he like wearing it then?" Jackie asked.
"He says he doesn't mind, but I feel like he's just saying that."
"Maybe you should talk to him? You know, one-on-one talk to him. Find out what he really thinks," Jackie suggested.
Leni hummed in contemplation for a moment before nodding her head. "I think I will."
A turquoise light shined from Leni, and Lincoln listened to the inner thoughts of one of his sisters.
"I love Lincy, he's the perfect guy. And I don't like seeing him sad or pretending to be happy. If I want to be a good sister, no, if I want to be a good girlfriend, I need to find out how Lincy's feeling!"
"Looks like at least two of them were going to try and help me out…Luan and Leni." Lincoln sighed, because knew what would happen this day, or rather, later that night. And now, knowing what he knew, it would make him feel bad for what he did next.
The vast white void turned black, with a shining orb of light in the sky to mimic the moon. The multicolored smoke whooshed in, transforming into his house once again. Vanzilla was gone, which meant his parents were out on their date. Lincoln dreaded this night, because it was the night that he lost his cool completely. He arrived late to the house. And why was that? Well, he couldn't get on the bus on account of he could not fit through the door, so he had to walk to and from school. Which was not that far, but it was still a trek, made even worse by the hot suit. So, as he walked home, he got attacked by some wild dogs, thankfully he managed to outrun them, but not without some damage to the suit.
As he walked home, someone's sprinkler had broken and caused water to gush onto the street. While he avoided that, he did not avoid the splash of water that came when a car went through the puddle and drenched him. That was not as bad, he was hot, and the water that seeped through managed to cool him off a little. Oh, and let's not forget the teenagers who did a drive-by egging of him. It was like a GTA game to them as they pelted him with the eggs, hitting him in the head, back, torso, tail, there was hardly a spot on the suit that was not covered in egg yolk. And wouldn't ya know it, the smell of the eggs attracted the same dogs he managed outrun earlier, and Lincoln found himself running like a madman, again.
Hours passed, thankfully the inside of the suit had a spot for his cellphone, allowing him to call and tell his parents he was going to be late coming home. Lincoln did not tell his mother or father the real reason for the delay, only that he was helping out at school, or so he lied. By the time he returned the sun had set and the streetlights had kicked on. That's when Lincoln reached the front door of his house, his frustration nearing its peak as he opened the door.
Lori was the first one to notice his arrival, as she was sitting in the living room when he did. The eldest daughter of the Loud family shot up out of her seat and marched over to him. "Lincoln, what the heck?! It's been hours?! Where have you been?!"
"I called Mom and Dad, they knew I'd be out late," Lincoln responded as he began to walk towards the stairs.
However, Lori blocked his path.
"Late is one thing, but the streetlights are on, you know the rules, Lincoln."
"So ground me already!" Lincoln snapped.
Lori was taken aback by the tone in his voice, but that only lasted a moment before she glared down at him. "Fine, you wanna have an attitude with me? Then go to your room!"
"Yay! Like I wasn't going there already!" Lincoln walked around Lori; his furrowed brow hidden thanks to the mascot head.
After another moment to get over her anger, Lori finally took notice of how beat up the suit looked. "Lincoln, what happened to you? The suit's all messed up."
"Don't worry, your precious 'good luck charm' is completely ruined," came his snaky reply, before continuing up the stairs.
"You – That's not what I–!" Before Lori could finish her sentence, Lincoln had already rounded the corner. "Ugh…you little twerp…"
Lincoln watched as Lori gripped her left arm as her gaze was cast to the floor. An azure light appeared, and Lincoln took that as his cue to listen in.
"He's never snapped at me like that…He must be really mad. I don't know what happened to him, but it looks like he was put through the ringer." A deep sigh was released. "Lincoln…I wish I could be closer to you…but I can't…I'm afraid of what I might do to you…It would only take one moment of vulnerability, I know it, and I couldn't live with myself if I took advantage of that moment and forced my feelings onto you…Please, be alright."
"Lori wasn't kidding when she said she was afraid that she'd do something she might regret. Looks like that was holding her back," said Lincoln.
Upstairs, Lincoln was still marching through the hallway, as he did, Luan popped out of her room and said, "Hey, Lincoln, what's up?! Whoa, what happened?"
"Nothing I want to tell you, the last thing I want is to hear a joke made up about it," he replied.
"I…I wouldn't. Hey, why don't we talk for a minute?" Luan asked.
"No, thanks. I just want to go and take a shower and get this thing off!"
As Lincoln drew closer to his room, Leni appeared next. "Hi, Lincy! Oh, wow, what happened?"
"I swear to God, if someone asks me what happened one more time…" Lincoln muttered angrily as he continued to his room.
Leni was surprised to hear the anger in his voice. She had heard Lincoln angry before, but this felt and sounded different.
"And before you ask, I just want to be left alone. I'm going to take a shower and stay in my room!"
"Oh, you are? Do you want me to join you for the shower? We can, like, gossip and stuff. Ooh, why don't we take a bath together instead? It'll be way more relaxing," Leni asked innocently.
Luan's draw dropped at that moment. Did she just say what I think she just said?!
Lincoln released an exasperated sigh as he said, "Leni, I don't have the patience or time to tell you all the reasons why that is not a good idea and why that's not going to happen. So, go away." The white-haired boy then slammed the door shut, creating enough of a gust to blow Leni and Luan's skirts just a bit.
Leni looked disappointed that he turned her offer down. "But…he used to like taking baths with me."
Luan dragged her hand down her face as she calmly stood next to her big sister and began leading her away. "Leni, sweetie, that was when he was a toddler, like Lola and Lana's age, he's an eleven-year-old boy and you're a sixteen-year-old girl."
"Yeah, and?"
"And…" Luan had to pause. If she said, "Because you're brother and sister, and you shouldn't bathe together like that, or be naked in a tub together," it would be the height of hypocrisy. "And…And…Oh look a penny!"
"Where?!"
Lincoln passed through his door and looked at himself as his memory double threw off the squirrel costume, chucking the thing into the corner angrily and huffing afterwards. Now he wondered if the outcome of tonight's events would be different if he had just stopped to listen to Leni and Luan. Could they have been able to bring all this Bad Luck/Good Luck nonsense to a close? If he had not been so angry, and told them how miserable he felt, would that have galvanized the others? Unfortunately, this was just a memory, all these events have already happened, and there was no stopping what was going to happen.
After taking a shower, Lincoln felt a little less angry and a little more relaxed. A nice hot shower normally did the trick. As he headed to his room, he saw the last person he wanted to see in there. His anger returned full force as she headed to his room and asked, "What are you doing in my room?"
Lynn was in there, inspecting the costume. "What the heck, bro? The costume's all jacked up."
"I'm fine, too, thanks for asking. Now get out!"
"Jeez, you shoulda thrown this into the washer or something. Or have Leni get to work on this thing, every second you don't have this bad boy on is another second we're bound to get hit by some bad mojo," said Lynn.
"Oh, I'd like to hit something alright," he muttered.
"What was that?"
"I said, get out my room, Lynn! I need to change!"
"Not right now, I need to get this washed first and then to Leni."
Lincoln growled and then grabbed Lynn by the wrist, hard. Lynn winced a little, and then met her little brother's gaze. "Out. Now."
Lynn looked at her wrist and then back to Lincoln. "You better let me go, little bro. It won't end well for you if you don't."
"Tough." Without warning, Lincoln swiftly jerked Lynn out of his room, catching her off guard. She stumbled backwards for a moment before catching her footing. Before she could say or do anything, Lincoln, literally, kicked the costume out of his room. "Do what you want with that thing! 'Cause I'm done wearing it!" And then he slammed the door.
Lynn had an indignant look about her, did her little brother just toss her out? "Hey! If you got something to say, then say it, Stincoln!"
A minute after she said that Lincoln threw open his door, now fully dressed, and exited his room. "Okay, since you're apparently hard of hearing, and slow, I'll spell it out for you…SCREW YOU AND THAT SQUIRREL!"
Something snapped in Lynn at that moment, causing her to shove Lincoln onto the floor. The eleven-year-old fell onto his back and released an "oomph!" upon impact.
"You got some balls talking to me like that, funny, I never knew you had any to begin with," Lynn snidely commented.
That did it. Lincoln launched himself straight at Lynn, barreling into her headfirst. The young brunette was once again caught off guard by Lincoln's sudden attack as his headbutt to her gut briefly knocked the air out of her, stunning her long enough for Lincoln to get on top of her as he held her down by the shoulders.
Lynn, after regaining her senses, growled and bucked Lincoln off her hips, sending him flying backwards onto the floor. The commotion was starting to gain the attention of the rest of the Loud siblings as Lisa – after slipping on a pair of noise cancelling headphones onto Lily – opened her door to see what was happening. As she did, she quickly closed it as Lynn and Lincoln slammed against the door, making the four-year-old brace against the door to keep them from crashing into her room and likely cause some kind of accident what with all the equipment she has.
Lucy was in the airducts, writing down her thoughts in a journal before hearing the sounds of combat. She quickly moved to one of the vents and gasped when she started seeing Lynn and Lincoln fighting. This wasn't like one of their usual sibling brawls, Lucy could tell, there was a ferocity in Lincoln's eyes that she had not seen before. The look of a boy who had had enough, pushed too far, and was now on a rampage. Conversely, Lynn had the look of someone who was determined to not be bested by anyone, her competitiveness, and pride would not allow her to let Lincoln beat her, for she was the big sister, the strongest in their family, and she was going to prove it, even if it meant trading serious blows with her brother.
The two siblings slammed each other into the walls, with Lincoln getting thrown about like a ragdoll. He knew that Lynn was stronger than him, as much as it annoyed him to admit it in this situation, she was a born athlete and trained every day. As opposed to himself, with his noodle arms and lanky frame, this battle could only go one way. However, there was one thing he had going for him, it was that Lynn was not even a tenth as pissed off he was right now. To the jock, this was just a fight, but for Lincoln, it was a culmination of all the abuse he had suffered over this last month, and countless times he had been used as Lynn's practice dummy against his will.
With a primal war cry that startled Lynn. At this point Leni and Luan were in the hallway as well, watching helplessly and worriedly. Lori could hear what was going on, she had done nothing up until now figuring it was just another sibling brawl, but when she heard Lincoln release that war cry, it made her stand right up and look up towards the stairs with shock.
Lincoln took advantage of Lynn's stunned state and threw a right punch straight for her face. The strike was fast and hard, nailing Lynn across her right cheek and causing the jock to spiral and slam against the wall. The other sisters gasped in shock; Lincoln had punched Lynn. A serious punch at that, he did not hold back, the evidence of such was made clear as a trickle of blood leaked from the left corner of Lynn's mouth. Lynn looked shocked as well as she rubbed that spot and saw blood on her hand, her blood, Lincoln had made her bleed.
Lincoln panted, his hand hurt like hell from the punch, but he did not care, he had landed a blow against the toughest girl in this town. "Not so tough now, huh?!"
"You…little…bastard…" Lynn furrowed her brow.
Lynn quickly recovered and rushed straight for Lincoln as she struck him in the gut with her left fist, causing the young boy to cough hard as the air escaped his lungs. Lynn wasn't finished, she backed up a little and delivered a haymaker right to his face, hitting him right in the eye as he stumbled about, disoriented, eyes watering as he tried to fight back the urge to cry from the pain.
"LINCOLN!" Lisa, Lucy, Leni, and Luan cried out.
"Don't you dare think a lucky blow is something to be proud of! It's ten years too soon for you to even thinkabout fighting me!" Lynn saw Lincoln stumbling towards the stairs and grabbed him by the hem of his shirt. "Do you get me, Stincoln?!"
"Get this!"
"Wuh – Wha – AAAAH!"
Lincoln reached out with his right hand and grabbed Lynn by her collar, He then leaned backwards and dragged the both of them down the stairs. The rest of the Loud siblings watched in horror as the two of them tumbled down the stairs, wincing at every thudding impact of their bodies. Once they reached the floor below, Lynn was tossed one way, but Lincoln's grip on her shirt was strong enough that it tore her jersey, the tear running from her collar down to the right side of her chest, exposing the sports bra underneath. Lynn's grip was also strong, having torn off a piece of her little brother's shirt upon getting tossed.
Lynn and Lincoln groaned in pain; their vision was spinning as the world refused to remain still. The jock of the family got up and stumbled about until she was at the couch, while Lincoln crawled towards the dining room. Lola and Lana were about to rush to Lincoln, but Lori stopped them before they could get in the middle of this. Even she was reluctant to do so, this fight was savage, and it scared her. It was around this time that Luna burst through the backdoor, having just heard fighting after finishing her little jam session in the garage. From where she was at, she could see Lincoln on his hands and knees, looking injured and in pain. The others were coming down the stairs but stopped at the middle when they saw that Lynn was the first to regain her senses.
"Lynn, that's enough!" Lori ordered.
Lynn was not listening to her; she honestly could care less. Lincoln just kept pulling one cheap trick after the other. "That's the only way you can fight me, huh? Just some cheap moves and a sucker punch! This is why you need me to stand up for you, to protect you, Stincoln, because you can't even protect yourself! So, just give up already!"
As soon as Lynn said that she charged straight for Lincoln. Luna heard what Lynn said dashed in Lincoln's direction, while Lori tried to grab Lynn, but Lynn was still faster even in her current state. Lincoln heard her coming, he was still a bit disoriented, but he could tell she was about to pounce on him. That's when he had a crazy idea, he doubted it would work, but it was worth a shot, at least he could say he did not go down easy.
Just a mere few seconds before Lynn was upon him, Lincoln leaned on his hands, tucked his legs in under him, and then thrust backwards with them into a donkey kick. Lynn was too late to even defend against it as both of Lincoln's feet struck her in the stomach. Her forward momentum, combined with Lincoln's thrusting double kick generated enough force to send the jock flying backwards across the room where she struck, back first, against the sofa, nearly toppling it over on impact.
Lynn gritted her teeth as she held her stomach, it hurt, it actually hurt. Lincoln's sucker punch hurt, but that was negligible, this, however, was not. That blow hurt, it almost felt like he cracked her ribs with that kick, but she was not about to give him the satisfaction of even thinking he caused that much damage to her. Lynn pushed through the pain and got back to her feet, her legs were shaking, but that was not about to stop her.
"STOOOP!" Luna shouted as she got in front of Lincoln. "THAT'S ENOUGH, LYNN!"
"I'll say when it's enough!" Lynn shot back.
"IT IS ENOUGH!" Lori yelled as she got in front of her little sister. "This is over! It's done! No more! For God's sake, Lynn, just stop!"
Lynn glared up at Lori, every breath she was taking hurt her, but did not lessen the ferocity in her eyes. Her gaze then fell on Lincoln, who was struggling a bit to get back up to his feet even as Luna helped him. Seeing the state of her brother snapped Lynn out of her rage.
Lori could see that the fight had finally left her eyes. "What in the literal hell you guys?! You nearly killed each other!"
Lincoln shrugged Luna off him as the rest of their siblings gathered around. "I'm done with this…It's all your fault, Lynn!"
"My fault?" Lynn asked incredulously.
"All of this started with YOU! All I wanted was some time to myself, just a little time to myself! But, no, you had to drag me to your stupid baseball game! And when I said no, you threatened me with a goddamn baseball bat! Oh, and when you lose your game, heaven forbid it was because the other team trained harder or was just…just…fucking better than you!" Lincoln stated.
"Lincoln!" Lori snapped as heard him swear, trying to remind him that the younger siblings were in attendance.
"DO I LOOK LIKE I CARE RIGHT NOW?!" Lincoln remarked. "You label me as 'bad luck' after that, and yeah, I'll admit it, I am to blame for making you all think that, but the moment I come clean and confess what I did, YOU kept them all convinced that I was! Then I sneak into your game to prove you wrong, and what do you do? You go to the next extreme and make everyone think that me in the suit equals good luck! You wanna know what that 'good luck' suit has done for ME?! I was chased by dogs, pelted with eggs, splashed, made fun of, and then chased by wild dogs, again! And that was just today, that's not counting everything else this month! I'm tired of this crap! I'm not your 'good luck charm'!"
Lincoln took this moment to gauge the reactions of his sisters, something that he was not able to do in the heat of the moment. He could see that they were shocked to hear everything he had gone through, and how much venom was laced in his words. Even Lynn looked shocked. Lola and Lana had tears in their eyes, along with Leni and Luna. Luan had had her hands over her mouth as if to stifle a gasp, Lisa was in disbelief about what happened. Lucy's normally deadpan expression was showing signs of breaking upon hearing of her brother's torment. Lori looked as if she wanted to say something, but she did not have the words right now.
Looking at it from this side, he could tell that his words hit his sisters hard, so hard that they could not respond right away. But in that moment, Lincoln took their silence as a sign of their lack of respect or just even caring about what this had put him through. That's when he left the house.
Time flashed forward, showing the aftermath.
Lana and Lola were crying in the on the couch with Luna hugging them.
"L-Lindsy ha-hates us!" Lola cried.
"I-I don't want him to hate us," Lana bawled.
Luna hugged her sisters tight, she wanted to tell them that it would be alright, that Lincoln would come back. But right now, if she said it, it would only sound as if she was trying to convince herself. Because right now, she felt the same way, especially after their talk. So, the only thing she could do was hug them tighter.
Lori was in the upstairs bathroom, unsure of what to do. The thing she had feared most had happened; Lincoln truly hated her. Even though she had done everything she could to keep him at a distance, but close enough so that he could at least come to her, if need be, all of that effort was for nothing. In the end, the result was the same, because of her distance, she could not see what he was going through, how much all of this was affecting him. And she claimed to be in love with him? Lori laughed mockingly at her reflection, she had a strong urge to punch her reflection, but there was already enough of a mess to clean up, both literally and metaphorically.
Just then, her phone went off. Lori saw that it was Luan and she quickly answered it, "Luan, where is he? Did you find him?"
{I'm sorry, I lost him! I don't know where he went! Oh, God, Lori, what have we done?! He's out here somewhere!}
"Calm down, Luan, just…" she sighed. "Just come back home, there's no sense in having you out there, too. I'll…I'll call Mom and Dad and tell them what happened…" Lori ended the call and began to bawl right there; her legs lost their strength as she slumped to the floor. "Lincoln…I'm so sorry…"
Lisa had thrown herself into her work, she had secretly chipped all her siblings, something that she would deny and take to the grave. Lily was still in blissful ignorance about what had occurred downstairs, although, it was taking all of Lisa's effort to retain her stoic expression. She blamed herself, she blamed herself for everything.
"You call yourself a genius…What good is all this knowledge and intellect if you so easily give into such inane things as 'bad luck'?!" Lisa cursed herself. "Your older brother needed your help, you should've tried harder to convince everyone, no, you should have debunked his claims the moment he uttered them! Wanting a little solitude is not a crime, dear brother, and you are well deserving of at least that luxury…"
Lisa's glasses were starting to fog up, it was at this time she realized she was crying. She had never heard Lincoln talk like that before, not with so much malice and frustration, and it hurt her more knowing that she had a hand in pushing her kind and helpful brother into exploding like that. Lisa took off her glasses, wiped them, and placed them back on. Her computer showed that Lincoln had arrived at the Santiago residence, it relieved Lisa to see that he did go there. Going to the McBrides would've been the likely route but given that Ronnie Anne and Bobby's mother was a nurse, getting his wounds treated by someone who would not involve the authorities was the best option.
It was not like the seriousness had been lost on Lisa, she knew if the police were called that this would undoubtedly lead to a domestic disturbance case, and if Lincoln gave an account of all he had been put through in just this month, it would no doubt be labeled as child abuse. The result of which could end with Lincoln being placed in foster care or having all of their siblings separated and taken from their mother and father. She knew Lincoln was not that vindictive, which was why he went to that house. The McBrides, being the overly protective people they are, would more than likely call the police after seeing Lincoln's state of being.
"Even if he does hate us…he's still looking out for us. Is it any wonder why I harbor such feelings for you, elder brother?"
Lucy had retreated into the darkness of the attic; her deadpan expression had cracked as she released sobs into a blanket she kept up there. It was at this time that someone appeared next to Lucy, a ghostly figure that looked a lot like Lucy, wait a minute…
"Great Aunt Harriet?!" Lincoln exclaimed. "Lucy wasn't kidding, she really is around!"
~Lucy, my dear niece, it will be alright,~ said Harriet.
"My beloved brother has been pushed away by us; I was too late to do anything to truly help him!" Lucy argued. "And now…he's left us…and I'm not sure if he will return to us…"
Harriet continued to stroke Lucy's head soothingly. "I know you have strong feelings for you brother, child. You would hardly be the first girl in the history of the world to feel that way. I would not approve of such a thing if I hadn't looked into your heart and saw that he is truly the light in the darkness for you."
"The darkness has always been inviting, always there, and Lincoln, Lincoln was my light, the sole light in the darkness that I could always count on…my family, my true love…I couldn't do anything to prevent this…"
Meanwhile, Leni was curled up into a ball, hugging her pillow as she cried. "I-I-I want Lincy back…I-I'm sorry…P-Please come back, Lincy…!"
Outside, Luan was sitting on the steps of her house, her face in her hands as the tears leaked through her fingers.
"I'm the worst…I couldn't do a thing to keep him happy…I only made him sad…"
His sisters were in love with him, that he knew was a fact now. The tears they were shedding, the pain they were feeling, was felt double because of their feelings for him. To them, they did not just lose their brother, they lost their lover, they lost any chance that their brother could see them as more than just a sibling, that now it would be impossible to even contemplate that being a possible reality. However, out of all the sisters whose thoughts he had heard, there was one that he had yet to hear.
Lincoln passed through the walls and entered Lucy and Lynn's room. The jock was curled up into a ball on her bed, he noticed a hole in the drywall, and he wondered if Lynn did that because of her feelings or because of the fight. She said nothing, she was just silent. A red glow of light appeared; it was time to hear her inner thoughts. Lincoln was about to reach out towards that light but was stopped by a hand reaching out and grabbing him. Lincoln yelped in shock when he saw that the one who grabbed him was…himself.
"W-W-What the heck?! H-How did you do that?! Lucy said you can't touch me!" Lincoln exclaimed.
"She said this place is made up of our sisters' memories, and yours. It's a place of the mind, and I'm the part of you that's trying to talk some sense into you." This version of Lincoln was the one who was just beat up, as evidenced by his messy appearance and black eye. "Do you really think hearing what she's thinking is going to make any of this any better? We know the kind of person Lynn is. She's a bully, a bitch of a sister who doesn't give a crap about us!"
"Okay, so she can be an asshole, I can be, too. But she's in love with me – us – whatever – that's got to count for something?" Lincoln remarked.
Memory Lincoln chuckled derisively. "Ever heard of an 'abusive relationship' before? People like Lynn will say they're sorry and that they love you, and all that crap, but in the end, all they will do is hurt you again, apologize, and do it all over again in a vicious cycle. Don't you think she understood that when she ran away? She figured it out and left because of that. In all honesty, her running away and giving up on us was probably the most unselfish, sisterly thing she has ever done. Yeah, she loves us, loves us enough to make sure she's far enough away from us so that she can't hurt us anymore. And now that she has these powers, she can do a lot worse to us than just a black eye. She can kill us."
Lincoln looked back at the Lynn lying on the bed. His memory doppelgänger did have a point, it was probably for the best that Lynn ran away, why would he choose to be with a girl who would only hurt him when the others have sworn to protect him. Lucy, Lola, Lana, and Lisa have not yet made such pledges, but their actions thus far have spoken for themselves. Lincoln's mind flashed back to the battle on the outskirts of town, where Lynn singlehandedly beat down six of their cosmic powered sisters. She became a berserker, and there was no telling what else she would have done if Lori and Leni had not arrived.
However, there was one thing that made Lincoln think otherwise. "If that was true, why was she willing to die for me."
Memory Lincoln clenched his fists.
"When I threw myself into that battle, when Lori's attack was about to hit, Lynn used her body to shield me, she even used her power to coat me in a protective aura when she could've used it for herself." Lincoln looked back at Lynn. "Lynn has a lot of flaws, we all do, but in the end, if I couldn't accept my sisters for who they are, flaws and all, I don't deserve to be called their brother."
"Even if they have taken advantage of our kindness? Even if they have put their own needs before ours?!"
"We're hardly innocent in that regard," Lincoln shot back. "I'm not some saint, I've done things I regret, selfish things, but I never stopped caring about my sisters. And this time isn't any different…"
Memory Lincoln sighed and began turning into smoke. "Don't come to regret it. Remember this moment, this was the moment you could've just left everything alone and gone on a date with Lucy instead. Eight out of nine cosmic powered sisters who are madly in love with us is still just as good."
"Maybe you're right, but I guess we'll just have to see what happens."
Lincoln placed his hand on the glowing red light, and it was then he could hear Lynn's inner voice.
The spell ended and Lincoln opened his eyes, Lucy was still floating in the air her expression neutral as she kept her gaze fixed on Lincoln.
"How long was I in there?" Lincoln asked.
"Just a second," Lucy answered.
Lincoln blinked. "A SECOND?! How?! I had to have been in there for hours!"
"The realm of the mind is devoid of time, my brother. Everything happens as it happens, so, what may feel like hours or even days in your mind, is really a fraction of a second in real time."
Lincoln took that in and said, "Huh…wow."
"So…did you receive at least some measure of closure?" Lucy asked hesitantly.
Lincoln walked towards his not-so-little-sister and then gave her a hug, causing the raven-haired sorceress to blush.
"L-Lincoln…?"
"I'm sorry…for what I said to you all back then. I didn't know how much my words hurt you," he said.
Tears began to form in her eyes as she hugged him back. "You don't need to apologize…I was so afraid that you would be lost to us…that any chance of you feeling love towards us, even romantic, was a lost cause. I hated myself for not being able to do more to help you…I felt so powerless in that moment…"
Lincoln patted Lucy's back gently. "Well, your definitely not powerless anymore, Sorceress Supreme." Lincoln gently separated himself from Lucy and said, "Just like you're hurting, I know Lynn is, too. She's hurting a lot more because she blames herself for all of it, my words hit her harder than my punch or kick did. So, I need to bring her back."
Lucy carefully clasped her hands around his right. "Must you? I don't say this because it's one less rival, but Lynn did what she did in an act of love, to protect you from herself."
"Lori said something to me earlier, she said, 'You can't go and find Lynn until you know you can forgive her, because that will always be hanging over you and her. And if she can't feel that from you, genuine forgiveness, and if you can't feel it either, then there's no point in going after her. You'll only hurt each other.'"
"Sigh…I guess Lori's capable of spouting some words of wisdom once in a while." Lucy released Lincoln's hand and smiled at her big brother. "Very well, how can I help you?"
Lincoln smiled back and said, "As powerful as I know you are, I don't want you getting in the middle of a fight with her. So, for now, I'd like it if you could find out where she is."
Lucy made some hand signs and conjured several magic circles as she prepared to cast her locator spell. "I hope you have a plan, dear brother."
"I have part of a plan," Lincoln admitted sheepishly.
Lucy raised an eyebrow. "What percentage of a plan do you have?"
"…twelve percent?"
"Sigh…"
A/N: I know some of you were excited for the Lucy date...tough! Lynn's going to get hers whether she likes it or not! lol