Disclaimer: The Loud House and associated characters belong to Nickelodeon and Chris Savino.

marz-senpai: Thank you! I plan for this one to remain simple, realistic, and character-accurate.

GHOST0938: I have a job now, though I'm off today. Between that and playing my games, things will take longer now.

Lupa: Nothing but a Lanacoln here.

Mud and Love

By Lola Presents

Chapter 4

That Sunday morning, Lana awoke late. Stretching in the morning sun, she yawned once, then swung herself out of bed. Noticing Lola had already woken, Lana glanced around the room. Finding her twin hard at work, sitting at her vanity, the tomboy rose and approached her.

"What'cha doing?" Lana inquired, peering over Lola's shoulder.

"Putting on my face," Lola quipped. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

"That's silly," chuckled Lana, reaching for her overalls. "You already have a face."

"Not like yours, I don't," complained the beauty queen.

"Uh, Lola?" muttered Lana, rubbing one arm with the other. "About what you said last night..." she led. "We're twins. Right?"

"Yeah, so?" Lola mouthed as she applied a bit more rouge.

"So..." Lana repeated, prolonging the syllable. "We have the same face. You're just as pretty as I am," she said before reconsidering her words, as she never felt pretty. "What I mean is..."

Lola spun in her chair to face her sister, her brows slightly furrowed, though not in a harsh way. Her expression was more indicative of reflection than projection, and it took Lana off-guard, as Lola seldom considered more significant implications.

"I know what you meant," Lola muttered, putting down her applicator. "And you're right. But..." she paused. "What don't I feel that way?"

"I don't know, Lola," admitted Lana. "Maybe something happened when we were little that we can't remember," she offered. "Either way, the only difference I can see between us is that you live for yourself while I live for others. You'll have to figure it out for yourself if it isn't that. But, please," Lana demanded before pausing, "don't compare yourself to me or anybody else."

"I'll try..." whispered Lola before returning to her beauty regiment. "What do you have planned for today, anyway?"

"Well..." sighed Lana, her mouth twitching as she folded her arms. "Lincoln's been so sweet to me recently, and I thought I'd return the favor and play some video games with him."

"Really?" gasped Lola, her mouth hanging open.

"Yes!" exclaimed Lana indignantly. "What? Does playing video games surprise you?"

"No. Not that..." stammered Lola, looking at Lana in her lighted mirror. "Returning the favor. Where's the gain in that?"

"The gain, dear sister," sighed Lana, "is that it ensures he'll continue to pay attention to me. Otherwise, he'd start thinking it was one-sided and give up. And! chirped Lana, whirling her sister's chair, grabbing her hands, and pulling her to a stand. "It's high time you paid him back for all those tea parties he attended."

"What?" gasped Lola as her twin pushed her from behind toward the door. "Me? Play video games?"

"Yes, you!" declared Lana, grinning. "Total Trash Takedown can handle four players, and you'll have fun taking down the Trash King with us!"

"Trash!" grimaced Lola, her face turning green. "Yuck..." she muttered, sticking out her tongue.

"Oh, come on!" pleaded her sister. "It's not actual trash! It's only a video game. Who knows? You might even have fun! Remember how you didn't like reading until you learned how?"

"Fine..." mumbled Lola as she got forced through their door.

Lincoln was already awake and dressed when Lola came stumbling into his room, nearly losing her balance under Lana's influence. Setting aside his comic, Lincoln sat on the edge of his bed and greeted them, a little surprised his sisters needed him this early on a Sunday.

"Hey guys," he chirped. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Lana sang. "Lola's here to play video games with you to make up for all the times she bribed you into being her playmate," Lana hastily explained before giving her sister a nudge and heading for the door.

"Wait! Lana!" griped Lola. "I thought you were going to..."

"Bye!" cheered Lana as the door closed, cutting off Lola's question and leaving her standing there, facing the door in confusion and apprehension.

"You..." Lincoln stammered, rubbing his morning hair, "want to play video games with me?" he inquired with disbelief.

Lola furrowed her brows and folded her arms as she spun on her brother.

"I wasn't planning on it," Lola admitted. "But Lana had other ideas..."

"Well, I'm not going to force you," Lincoln replied, placing his hands in his lap. "But I would be glad to have your company doing something I liked for once."

"Thanks, Lincoln!" chirped Lola as she turned and reached for the doorknob. Then, as her hand rested upon it, she reconsidered.

"You live for yourself, while I live for others..." floated through her mind.

Then, relaxing her expression, Lola smiled and faced her brother again.

"You know what?" she asked. "I'd love to," Lola offered.

"That's the spirit!" chirped Lincoln as he stood and reached for the controllers. "Have a seat on the floor while I get things ready!" he said excitedly.

Pleased with herself, Lana wandered downstairs and into the kitchen, where she joined the few early birds at the table. Opting for a bowl of oatmeal and a piece of toast with grape jelly, the happy girl began chowing down.

"Good morning, Lana," Lisa greeted her sister. "I trust you slept well?"

"Mostly..." offered Lana as she slurped some oatmeal from her spoon.

"What do you mean, mostly?" inquired Lynn as she downed several raw eggs from a large glass. "You either slept well, or you didn't."

"I slept well enough," admitted Lana, scratching her cheek. "Only, I had trouble falling asleep."

"I'm sorry," sighed Lucy, as emotionless as ever. "I tend to moan the loudest just before bed."

"What?" muttered Lana, looking at her sister. "No. It wasn't that."

"Then what was it, bruh?" interjected Luna, sensing childhood anxiety.

Lana shrugged, embarrassed to discuss the situation, wrestling against the need to understand.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I was thinking about someone I like, and I got all tingly," she informed them, unaware of the implications. "Especially, you know, down there?"

"What?" gasped Rita, who stood by the sink.

"Haha!" laughed Luan. "Lana's got a crush!"

"Honey?" Rita offered in a motherly tone. "Hurry up and finish your breakfast. We need to talk."

"Oooh!" teased Lynn. "You're going to get it now!"

"What?!" gasped Lana, dropping her spoon into her bowl. "I'm not in trouble, am I?"

"No, honey," chuckled her mother. "Lynn's just teasing you. It's about..." she said, gazing at the ceiling. "Well, the birds and the bees."

"Mom!" chirped Lana, turning redder than a rose. "I already know about mating!"

"Honey," sighed Rita, trying not to laugh. "Humans are a lot different than the critters you keep. There's a lot more to having a relationship than mating. But..." she muttered. "That's for a more private discussion after you eat."

"Geez..." complained Lana as she shoved her toast into her mouth, trying to hide her gaze.

As Lana forlornly sat on the edge of her mother's bed, Rita explained as delicately as possible what Lana had experienced. She then continued with the topics of familial love, romantic love, physical love, and the differences between them. Finally, she opened the floor to questions.

"So..." muttered Lana nervously, her mouth contorting oddly. "If you're in love with someone, you're supposed to have sex with them before it's a real relationship?"

"No, honey," Rita sighed. "Especially not at your age. However, intimacy is an extension of romantic love as an adult."

"But you said that people can have sex without love," Lana reminded her mother. "I don't understand."

"Oh, gosh. How do I explain this?" Rita questioned herself. "Okay, listen," she insisted. "People can be in love and not have sex. They can also have sex without being in love," she explained. "But, when you put the two together, it becomes something special," she summarized. "But, again, only when you're an adult."

"Why?" Lana asked.

"Why, what?" responded her mother, furrowing her brows.

"Why do I have to be an adult?" Lana clarified. "If I'm having these feelings now, why can't I have sex?"

"Oh, honey..." sighed Rita, sitting beside her daughter, leaning into her. "For one thing, your body isn't ready. It might hurt. And for another thing, you might get pregnant, and you're too young to carry. It might kill you."

Lana hung her head, trying desperately to process everything her mother told her. Of course, some of it she'd heard from her sisters but never with an authoritative explanation. Lana wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to learn about nature, even if it was her own.

"But, wait!" requested Lana as she eyed her mother. "You said I was too young to get pregnant."

"Most likely, yes," her mother said. "The average age range for puberty in girls is between eight and thirteen, with the average starting age around eleven. But..." Rita muttered, lightly slapping her knees. "Environmental effects have been known to cause some girls to begin developing as early as eight. So!" she chirped, looking sternly at her child. "Please, promise me you won't do anything dumb. Okay?"

"Okay..." sighed the deflated girl as she rose and headed for the door. "I'll have to get used to being a quivering mess, I suppose..."

"Baby? Wait..." pleaded Lana's mother, growing red in the face. "There's still one more thing we need to discuss..."

"Yeah?" muttered Lana as her hand rested on the knob. "What's that? Something else I need to know but not allowed to do?"

"No, honey," whispered her mother, fidgeting nervously before meeting her daughter's gaze. "You don't have to be a 'quivering mess,'" she said, patting the bed and inviting Lana back over. "Let me tell you how to take care of that..."

Lana left her parent's room a few moments later, as crimson as they came. Her mother had given her a ton of information, insisting they were things a young, developing girl needed to know to protect and care for herself. While Lana was comfortable with nature, some of the things she learned crossed her mind as gross, even for her.

"Haiiii Laaaanaaaa..." teased Luan, who sat on the couch along with a few of her sisters. "How does it feel to be in love now?"

"How'd it go, brah?" inquired Luna, hanging over the back of the sofa. "Did you get all the deets?"

"Please..." chuffed Lisa, adjusting her spectacles. "Our mother is an adult. I'm sure she handled the matter with delicacy and expertise."

"Lisa's right!" exclaimed Leni as she rose from the recliner to properly scold her sisters. "Mom handled it, and it's none of your business. Remember how you felt when you first found out! Keep your noses where they belong, not in Lana's pants!"

"Uh..." moaned Lana, hiding her face with her cap as she shuffled off toward the stairs.

Leaving her nosy siblings giggling on the couch, Lana trudged upstairs to check on Lola's playdate. Surprisingly, she and Lincoln were still at it, Lola's fingers flying between the buttons and the joystick. It indeed appeared that Lola was having fun, despite her initial hesitancy.

Part of Lana didn't want to interrupt them. But another desperately needed her twin. Sighing, she ambled into Lincoln's room while twiddling her fingers, and her face still darkened from embarrassment. Patiently, she waited for a break in activity before announcing herself.

"Hey, Lola?" she mumbled quietly. "Got a minute?

"Just," Lola conceded as she faced her timid twin. "We're about to tackle the sewer level. What's up?"

"Uh..." stammered Lana, averting her gaze. "Not in front of Lincoln," she whispered. "I just had an interesting talk with Mom, and..."

"Oh!" gasped Lola, turning her gaze upon her brother. "I'm sorry. I've had a lot of fun, but Lana needs me now. Do you mind if..."

"Not at all," chirped Lincoln, saving their progress and turning the console off. "I'm a bit hungry anyway. You two talk, or whatever, while I go grab leftovers."

With a knowing smile, Lola followed her twin to their room and locked the door behind them while Lana sat on her bed with her hands dangling between her legs, slumped over tiredly.

"What happened?" inquired Lola. "You were so chipper this morning."

"Mom gave me 'the talk,'" Lana offered with embarrassment, a fresh flood of blood entering her cheeks.

"I see," observed Lola. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked. "Mom had that talk with me when I was five."

"Five?" gasped Lana. "Why you and not me?"

"Because, sweetie," Lola proudly began as she sat beside her sister. "Many men who come to my pageants are perverts, and Mom wanted me to be aware of things to protect myself."

"I see," acknowledged Lana, still mildly irritated. "So, you've known about this stuff for two years?"

"Mmhm," hummed Lola, gazing brightly at her sister. "Feel free to ask me anything."

"Does it work?" Lana inquired after a long, thoughtful pause. "You know, masturbation?"

"How would I know?" gasped Lola, her cheeks slightly tinged red. "I've never been in love before, so I've never..." she said before trailing off.

"Oh..." sighed Lana, feeling like she'd beaten Lola to another milestone. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?" Lola asked, genuinely confused. "I mean, you aren't planning on going through with, you know, it? Are you?"

"No!" barked Lana indignantly. "That's gross, even for me! Besides, I don't want to get pregnant!"

"Not that!" gasped Lola, her eyes springing open. "Geez, I hope you aren't thinking about doing that!"

"No. I don't plan on doing anything. But..." Lana sighed, propping herself up with her arms, resting on her knees, "thinking about it is all I can do now."

Lola had never been in love before. At least not to such a degree as Lana. Sure, she'd had crushes, but nothing that instigated a bodily reaction. She was jealous, but it seemed more trouble than it was worth. Instead, Lola was satisfied that her sister had no plans to engage in risky behavior.

"Alright," sighed Lola. "Well, I'm going to take a shower. Let me know if you want to discuss anything later."

"Okay," mumbled the stricken girl. "I will."

As Lola gathered her things and left for the restroom, Lana flopped backward onto her bed and stared intently at the ceiling. For years, Lana saw sex as nothing more than a way to preserve a species. Now, it seemed that physical intimacy and romantic love were intertwined.

That people would do that for fun was beyond Lana. Yes, people called her weird and sometimes gross, but to let a boy put that there seemed crazy to her. Why, then, did movies and television shows make it seem like something everyone would want to do?

Already near noon, Lincoln opted for a healthy brunch, tackling two meals at once, planning to bide his time until dinner playing video games or reading comics. After finishing his meal, Lincoln headed upstairs to take a shower and put on fresh clothes.

Then, as he lay on his bed, mentally going through a list of things he wanted to do for the day, Lana moseyed in, seemingly lost in thought. While Lincoln knew his sister had been dealing with loneliness the past few days, he didn't want her to become dependent on him.

In addition, his feelings for her worried him. Encouraging her was one thing. Exacerbating his desires was another. Still, he found it difficult to refuse her puppy-dog eyes and cute face, even though she insisted on wearing her red cap over her neatly styled hair.

"Hey, Lana," Lincoln chirped. "Would you care to play Total Trash Takedown with me, for old time's sake?"

As much as Lana would've loved to, she had an entirely different game on her mind, one she wasn't allowed to play. Sadly, Lana was so conflicted that she had forgotten why she'd come to Lincoln's room.

"No, I..." stammered Lincoln's sister as she fidgeted with her overall's straps.

"You snooze, you lose!" chirped Lola as she pushed past her sister, fresh from the shower. "I still have to take down the Trash King!"

"Well," chuckled Lincoln. "Alright then. I wasn't sure you were going to finish."

"I don't lose!" Lola barked. "That stinky monarch is going down!"

"Yeah, okay..." sighed Lana as she backed out of the room.

Lost in a world of her own, Lana slowly descended the stairs, traversed the dining room and kitchen, and left through the back door, heading for the woods. The forest was her special place, where she would retreat when things bothered her or she needed to consider something.

"Why does love have to be so difficult?" she thought. "There are so many strange feelings and even more rules."

Nestling between two large roots under a great Oak tree, Lana closed her eyes, leaned her head against the massive trunk, and began thinking of her brother. Eventually, her mother's words returned to her and imposed on her thoughts, igniting the embers within the hormonal girl.

As her temperature rose and pulse quickened, the tingling sensation from the night before returned with a ferocity she could no longer ignore. Feeling herself grow damp between her legs, Lana cursed herself and her stupid body for its torment.

Desperately needing a distraction, Lana cracked her eyes and glanced toward a budding growth of reeds near the creek's edge. Wondering if the army of frogs they'd disturbed the other night had reformed, Lana reached over and gently pushed some of the shoots aside.

Bad move.

While Lana was happy to see the little family had reunited, two of them were in the process of mating. Releasing the reeds, Lana closed her eyes again and, after resting her head against the tree, slipped her hand inside her overalls, letting nature take its course.

"Dang..." Lana whispered as she gently ran her index finger over the little bump near the top of her cleft. "Oh, geez..."