Hello, readers! The author Lincoln loud420 gave me permission to rewrite a story of his that he pulled from the website completely for reasons that I'm not going to mention. Some of you might have read the original version before he deleted it. If so, read at your own risk. Enjoy! This story is rated T because of the themes in the original.

Chapter 1

The Louds were once a loving family. Very loving indeed. Then one fateful day, everything started to change. A particularly brutal health inspector forced Lynn Sr. to permanently shut down the restaurant that was his pride and joy, so the man with many children began drinking heavily to drown his sorrows. This led to many "mistakes" with his own daughters and even his son. At the same time, his wife adopted some very feminist political views and decided that she only wanted daughters from then on. She forced her only son to dress up in girl's clothes and changed his name from Lincoln to Linka, beating him mercilessly whenever he dared to protest. These problems, combined, eventually got so bad that Lori eloped with her boyfriend and took Lily with her. The unwilling transgender himself was currently walking home from school between Clyde and Ronnie Anne, the only two friends he had left in the entire uncaring world. Both were loyal to the end and did their best to stand up for him. Each had an arm wrapped around him in a sideways hug to console him after a hard day at school.

"Don't worry, Lincoln, things will get better. You'll see," said Clyde as they approached the walkway that led to Lincoln's front porch.

"Yeah, but when will they get better?" Lincoln moaned in despair. Neither of his friends knew how to answer. All either of them could do was pray that things wouldn't get worse for the poor boy or his siblings. The time had come, so the three friends hesitantly parted ways. Lincoln stepped inside to the sight of his mother holding her newest torture instrument at the ready: a wire clothes hanger bent into a narrow diamond shape, with the hook acting as the handle.

"Hi, sweetie. Did you have a good day?" Rita Loud asked with an insincere smile. Knowing what would happen if he said no, Lincoln lied.

"Yes, Mom, today was great!" he said with a fake smile of his own.

"I'm happy to hear that, Linka. Now go get started on your homework." As soon as Lincoln faced away from his mother, his face drooped. Upon locking the door to his room, he switched out his pleated skirt and orange crop top for sweatpants and a pullover hoodie. He then flopped onto his bed and started to cry. After a few minutes, someone knocked on his door, too gently for his anger-prone mother and too rhythmic for his permanently intoxicated father.

"Hey, dude, it's me. Can I come in?" Lincoln perked up a little. Luna was considered the most motherly of the Loud girls, and Lincoln trusted her and her alone with the only spare key to his room.

"Y-yes," he replied, his voice cracking. The lock clicked and Luna stepped inside. Lincoln sat up to make room for her to sit down beside him.

"How was school?" she asked gently, running a hand through the white hair that he was in the process of growing out to appease their mother. He completely broke down and buried his face in her side.

"I-it was horrible, Luna! First, Ms. Johnson flunked a pop quiz that I know I got a good score on, then Chandler and his goons surrounded me and tried to t-touch me, and Girl Jordan gave me a wedgie, so I had to go commando the whole day!" Luna stroked his back and kissed the top of his head as he shook with sobs. When he started calming down, she lifted his chin so she could look him in the eye.

"I know what would make you feel better, bro." Lincoln sniffed, drawing some runny snot back into his nose.

"W-what's that?" he croaked.

"Robin and I need help with a new song. Maybe you could find a few rhyming words for us?"

"Actually, Luna, I'm going home. You and Lincoln need this time alone," said Robin Locksley, Luna's newest band member. Sam's family had forced her to transfer schools when she and Luna came out of the closet about their secret relationship; Luna hated the idea of replacing her, but Sam had insisted. Robin was a tall, strapping young man with an untidy mop of steel-gray hair (it's natural color, he explained when asked), emerald-green eyes that seemed to glow in the right light, a brown leather duster coat that went down to his shins, a beige button-down shirt with no collar, and baggy jeans tucked into knee-length brown leather boots that he admitted to making himself. He spoke with a slight British accent that suggested he was an immigrant.

"That's fine, dude. See you tomorrow!" Luna said and waved goodbye. She turned her attention back to Lincoln when Robin walked away. "Is there anything you wanna do, bro?" Lincoln shook his head.

"Just hold me. Please?" Luna smiled; unlike when their mother greeted Lincoln downstairs, this smile was full of warmth and love. She nudged Lincoln until he was laying down, then laid down beside him. He instinctively snuggled into her embrace as she started humming a lullaby, and soon fell asleep. She kissed his forehead, carefully got up, and turned off the lights before she closed and locked the door. "Sweet dreams, baby bro."

...

Lincoln may have been "the Man with a Plan," but tonight it was Luna doing the scheming. Planning how she and Lincoln could escape this waking nightmare that their home life had become. If Lori and Lily could do it, then so could they!

To everyone who knows where the name "Robin Locksley" comes from, do everyone a favor and please keep it to yourself. If you don't, you'll spoil the whole story!