Lincoln's possessions were all packed, leaving only his furniture behind. The day after he came home from the Royal Woods Child Care for Mental Health, his parents had made arrangements to appoint Lyra Lone as his own legal guardian should anything happen and now it had been recommended for the white-haired boy to move in with her. Looking at his once room, Lincoln let out a sad sigh as Rita rubbed his shoulders.
"I'm so sorry, sweetheart," she whispered to her only son, who shed a tear.
"Lincoln!" Lucy came out of her shared room holding a single box of her own.
"Lucy?" said Lincoln. "What's with that box?"
"I... I'm coming with you!"
"What?!" said both Lincoln and his mother in surprise.
"I can't..." Lucy stuttered. "I can't say goodbye to you! Please, Lincoln! Mom, you can get rid of my coffin. I don't want it! I want my big brother!"
"Lucy..." murmured Rita.
"I'm sorry about my sisters," Lucy said to Lincoln. The poor goth girl was on the brink of tears. "But you always understood me... Please... Lincoln... T-take me with you..." Rita looked defeated, as she recalled that she and her husband let Lucy's bangs grow to cover her eyes to avoid being on the end of her staring or just not wanting to see her eyes always spaced out. It's true, Lincoln was one of the few family members who tolerated her. Lincoln tried his best to smile at Lucy and held out his hand to her. The brother and sister then hugged each other.
"Oh, Lucy..." Lincoln whispered. In the living room, Lincoln and Lucy met with Lily and the Loud parents for one last private talk.
"Lincoln, Lucy, I'm not gonna lie," said Rita, practically overcome with worry and shame. "I'm very worried for our family. Your father and I... put too much faith in you and the other sisters... and it got to the point where we've come to... regret that decision. Lincoln... your other sisters are very sorry... but... it may be too late... to take any more chances with them." Lincoln nodded. He could not blame his mother. Yesterday was plain awful, beginning the moment he came home from school. It was for the best that he needed to avoid living under the same roof as his sisters to ensure that he could continue to recover.
"'Inkin..." Lily suddenly said. "'Inkin go?" Rita practically lost it then and there and it was all she could do to keep her composure. Afraid she would bawl her eyes out if she uttered even a word, she simply nodded to her youngest daughter.
"This is bad," said Lucy, slightly monotone. "This is really bad. Without Lincoln... Lily may grow up... hating her other sisters... for what they did."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Lynn Sr. sighed. His fear was indeed quite palpable. There was no telling what would become of the rest of the Loud family since those eight other sisters foolishly let their anger get the better of them a second time, now leading Lincoln to move out and take residence with his newly-appointed guardian. As for their punishments, the parents seemed to agree that Lincoln moving out for God knows how long as well as not getting their theatrical debuts might be more than enough. That and Lori had lost all her privileges until she'd become an adult legally. It was also worth noting that the other sisters seemed to have shut themselves in their rooms rather than see Lincoln off for what could be weeks, months, or even years. Either their parents literally forbade them from coming near Lincoln, which was actually more like a wild card of a guess, or they were just too ashamed to show themselves. It was as if they snapped and all bets were off once they saw what the footage of them as the Full House Gang was ultimately used for. And of course, it was costing them something fierce.
"We'll... stay in touch?" suggested Lincoln.
"Of course we will, honey!" said Rita without missing a beat. "We'll have to keep checking on your progress every now and then. And Lucy, promise me you'll do everything you can to keep Lincoln company." Lucy held Lincoln's arm.
"I will," she said. "I need him as much as he needs me." Eventually, they all heard another car pulling into the driveway.
"That'll be Lyra," said Lynn Sr. as they shared goodbye hugs and kisses with Lincoln and Lucy. "Take care, Lucy."
"Dad..." the young goth murmured.
"Say goodbye, Lily," said Rita. Lily gave Lincoln a tiny kiss on the cheek. But as Lincoln and Lucy headed for the front door, the family dog named Charles started to follow them.
"Charles, no," said Lincoln. "You need to stay." Charles only whimpered. "I'll be fine, Charles," insisted Lincoln. "You need to stay with the rest of the family. Please, Charles." This only made Charles whimper even more and then little tears were shed from the dog's eyes. This made Lincoln come to tears of his own. "Ch-Charles..." Lincoln started to cry. "Oh, Charles... Th...that was a cheap move!" As tears slipped down the boy's face, he dropped to his knees and threw open his arms. Charles raced into them, tears flying from his face and the boy and dog hugged each other and cried as Charles licked Lincoln's face. Lucy and Lily shed tears of their own.
"Ready to go?" said Lyra, standing outside her vehicle as Lincoln, Lucy, and Charles got in.
"Yeah," Lincoln replied.
"Are you sure you want to come as well, Lucy?" Lyra asked. "Lincoln's time away from home is currently indefinite."
"I know," said Lucy. "I still want to stay with Lincoln. I feel like I owe him this much."
"You don't owe me anything, Lucy," insisted Lincoln.
"After all this time?"
"Always." Lucy smiled at Lincoln's words and kindness.
"Don't ever change."