( Author's Note )

This is my first The Loud House fiction. I'm not giving up on my other fandoms, I just wanted to try to get my mind off current fiction, and cure the writer's block. This fiction came out pretty fluid. It may need alterations, and fixes.

( Lincoln )

The sun had lowered beyond the horizon hours before, the temperature had followed the sun's suit. Sweat dripped from his body soaking into his clothes as he made his way back to where he lived. The moisture from the sweat made it seem much colder than it already was, but he couldn't stop. He almost literally had to force himself to keep moving. He was exhausted he usually was on his way home. His hair, which once used to be snow white, darkened from dirt. His sweat cleaning portions of his face making it look as though he were melting.

Unlike most days he had found money lying in a ditch. At first, it had just been a five dollar bill. That he had eagerly snatched up, when he got closer to it. Only to see another bill not far from it, and another. Granted, it had only amounted to one hundred and twelve dollars. To him, it had a fortune. So, he had stopped at a grocery store despite being tired. The workers had watched him, they usually did when he went into any of the stores. That was one of the bad things about living like he did. Once he made his selections, and paid for it, he made his way out and had started towards home. He still carried over flowing bags with him. Full of food, bottles of water, and other things that was needed.

Working like this was new to him, though he didn't have much choice. He was finally fifteen, and places wouldn't hire him before. Even now they didn't really hire him in the legal way. He was used for the worst jobs. The most strenuous labor that no one else wanted to do. However, he would, because he had to. Before he had started working, he stole. He never felt good about it, it hurt him to be a thief. Though, he didn't have a choice.

He was an orphan. Now some might wonder, if he was an orphan. Why was he tearing his body apart working for food. Surely, state funding would take care of that. At least until he was eighteen. Right? Well. It would have, if he were still in an orphanage. If he hadn't run away when the state decided to close the orphanage, and split all the children up. Their 'family', was going to be destroyed. What little bit of home, they had managed to carve out of a world that hadn't wanted them. All they had managed to salvage, ripped away because of lack of funds.

Luckily, it wasn't that bad for him. There had only been one other person in the orphanage that meant the world to him. Some of the other children had been either taken from homes that were bad. They had been saved from horrors that he couldn't imagine. Some of them were there because they had lost their parents. Another thing that he couldn't even imagine. Have to have parents to lose them. However, he was sure that it would be rough. There were even a boy that caused so much problems his parents couldn't handle him.

The other child and him. They were alike. They didn't look alike. Not even the same gender. They had been given up at birth. No one had ever wanted them. Losing your parents, being beaten and abused, or never having been wanted in the first place. Which was worse? Maybe all of them were bad in their own ways.

"Need to sit for a second." He muttered to himself as he sat down placing his bags on the ground next to him.

The smell of rust filled his nostrils even from where he sat. That meant that he was almost home. Almost back to his sister, who would probably waiting for him. He was usually back by now, and he would have been, if he hadn't found the money on the ground. They needed something fresh to eat. Granted, it was mostly canned food. And an already cooked roasted chicken, reduced price mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese. It might not be that fancy. But to him and his sister, this would be a feast. Something they hadn't had in a long time. Something they couldn't afford. It had been canned food for a while.

"Alight, Lincoln," He muttered to himself, "Lets go."

He sighed as he pushed himself up, and picked up his bags. He groaned then continued off the the side walk and down through a field. Leaves crunched under his feet as he got farther into the field. He'd walked this path before, even in the dark there wouldn't be anything he'd trip over. At least he hoped so. There was no telling what could have been dropped while he was working.

It seemed to have gotten colder by the time he reached a long tall chain linked fence. The smell of rust much stronger than before, signaling that he was very close to home. He followed the fence for several minutes before he found the cut in the fence. He used his hands to untwist the ties they had used to hide the cut in the fence, so no one would find it. He went inside, then re-securing the fence behind him. He looked out into the area he had entered. Literally tons of metal, cars, and machinery. A junk yard.

This was his home. The home that he shared with his sister. Who was still waiting for him. He made his way through the paths, to the back of the junk yard. He didn't take in many of the sights, mainly because back here there was hardly anything new added. That and he'd seen pretty much everything near their home.

He walked up to the bus, and pushed open the door. He tried not to take long to get in and close the door behind him. He didn't want to let out the heat that was inside. The entrance to the bus was curtained off with blankets, making a 'entrance way'. But it was more to help keep heat in, since the windows on the door of the bus didn't hold in heat very well.

"Big brother?" her voice called to him from the other side of the blanket. She sounded worried. Maybe because he was late, she might think that something happened to him, or that she had bee found.

"It's me, Luce." He moved the blanket, and climbed up the steps into the bus. It was warmer inside the bus. They had found the bus void of all the seats about a year before. Slowly but surely they had gathered things. A table, a couple chairs. A couch. A couple mattresses that were stacked. He looked around before his eyes stopped on his sister. Long black hair that went to her shoulders. Bangs that covered her eyes. A faded, but still dark enough black dress. Black and white striped stockings, that matched the sleeves of her undershirt. This was his sister. Gloom and doom. But he loved her.

"I was worried. Thought I was going to have to dig you a grave." She sat up from the book she was writing in, and looked up at him, even though he couldn't see his sisters eyes, he knew due to her head tilting up towards him. "I was torn. I like digging graves."

"You'd lose me though." Lincoln smiled, he knew his sister didn't mean it. It was just how she was.

"Not physically." Her mouth turned up just the slightest.

"Fine. But if I had died," he held up his bag, "You'd go hungry."

"What did you bring?" She got up from her bed, leaving her notebook behind. She grabbed the can opener from the table.

"We don't need that tonight." He smiled. He set his bags down, and unloaded everything. The container of roasted chicken, potatoes, and macaroni and cheese. He could see his sister salivating. Much like he had when he had picked them out. There were also canned food, their usual fair. That he placed with the other cans. He pulled out two cans of cola, another thing that was a rarity. But he wanted his sister to be happy. While she preferred gloom, he liked seeing her smile.

"Oh, Lincoln! We... we can't afford..." She looked up at him. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "How?"

"I found some money on the ground." He leaned down and put his forehead against hers. "You've been looking kinda thin, and I thought you needed a good meal. Honestly, we both could use it. And that's not all." Lucy had already gotten out paper plates, and the plastic cutlery. And was putting them on the table. She stopped and looked to him.

He reached into another bag and pulled out a chocolate bar, a pack of pens, and a couple note books. He had noticed that she was getting to the end of her current one. His sister had always liked writing opens, and short stories. She never asked for anything from him. Never complained about what food they had. She accepted what was offered to her, and never complained. Sometimes she would come to him for ideas. Or read him some of her short stories.

"Lincoln!" She wrapped her arms around him, after rewarding him with one of her rare smiles. Honestly, those smiles were worth any amount of money he had to spend. Any amount of of hard labor.

"You're worth it, Luce." It was true. She had very sensitive skin, and burned easily. Being twelve, she wasn't old enough to work. So, she spent her days in the bus. He wanted to hook up some sort of solar panel, but he lacked the skill. Most of the parts could be found around the junk yard. Someone with the mind for it could probably be able to get it working.

Lucy had cut up the chicken, and put the sides on their plates while he had been thinking. She had already started eating, then he too picked up his fork and began. It was heaven. It was cold, and might have been reduced. But it was delicious. Lucy showed that she liked it, by savoring every bite. It had been too long since they had eaten meat that wasn't from a can.

…

Lincoln leaned back on the couch, Lucy sitting next to him. She was reading aloud from one of the books that he had collected for her. Which reminded him that he should look in the second hand stores for more older gothic style books for her. She always appreciated any books he gave her, and she always read them. But he knew what she liked. She liked vampires, zombies, witches, and magic. There was a book series that she had actually fell in love with, The Vampires of Melancholia. He had managed to find a few of the books in thrift stores, and second hand book stores.

His mind wandered as he listened to his sister. Between seeing his sister's excitement about her new notebooks and the dinner, which would leave enough for breakfast, and maybe even lunch for Lucy tomorrow as long as he ate light for breakfast. He didn't mind cutting back on food, his sister was too thin. He was worried about her. He might go back to pilfering to make sure she ate more, if he had to. Or maybe he could work at some sort of fast food place, bring home the left overs. If they allowed him.

There were the dumpsters, but he didn't want his sister to eat trash. Yes, he knew there was nothing wrong with the food that was tossed out that day. It was the thought though. He didn't want that for Lucy. She was all he had in this world. It wouldn't be right.

"Linc?" Her voice brought him back from his thoughts.

"Hmm?" He murmured. He'd forgotten how tired he was.

"Time for bed. It'll be warmer in the bed, with me." She hopped up. It wouldn't be the first time that they had shared a bed due to it being cold. This winter was just starting, but he had moved to the couch when spring and summer heat started. It had been much too warm for them to sleep in the same bed. Lucy was right. It would be warmer if they shared bodyheat.

"Sounds like a plan, Luce." He grunted as he pushed himself off of the couch. He drug his blanket with him to the bed. He laid down on the bed, not even bothering to change into something lighter than his jeans. He was too exhausted to worry about it. Lucy went behind a sheet that they used for privacy, to change into her pajamas. When she came out from behind the sheet, she wore black and white stripped pajama pants, and a black t-shirt with a bat on it, that he had managed to find for her back when they were in the orphanage. It was tight, and reminded him that he had to find her better clothes. It seemed his found money wouldn't last as long as he had hoped. But when it came to Luce, it would be worth it.

…

'Going to have to get a change of clothes if I'm going to keep working here,' He Lincoln thought to himself. He had just spent the last three hours getting every plastic ball out of the ball pit in Spunk E. Pigeons Pizza Palooza Paradise. Apparently, some kid had peed in the ball pit. Which wasn't really unusual in places like that. It wasn't uncommon in places like that. Though, if a parent says something it seems they have to close the pit until it had been cleaned. Then, there's the matter of finding someone that will clean it. Jobs like that, he might not like doing them, but he was more than willing to do these jobs. He had his sister to take care of.

Seventy-Five large garbage bags full of plastic balls. Lugging them out back, then cleaned with bleach and hot water. They hadn't had anywhere big enough to clean the balls, though he had the idea of running over Super Mart to get a kiddy pool. It would still take a while. But it was better than washing the balls in a sink, one at a time. That was not something he wanted to do.

"Hey, whatcha doin?" A rough female's voice called from behind him, causing him to look over his shoulder.

He looked at the female behind him. She couldn't have been much younger than Lucy. Wild blonde hair, under a backwards red cap. A green t-shirt under denim overalls. She did seem rather curious about what he was doing.

"Cleaning the balls from the ball pit." Lincoln said as he finished scooping the last of the balls out of the kiddy pool, putting them back in a clean plastic trash bag.

"Why would you do something like that?" This girl seemed shocked about what he was doing. "The dirt is half the fun."

"Some kid peed in the ball pit." He offered as he started dumping another bag into the pool.

"Oh. Yeah, that's a bit more dirty than I like." She mused. She seemed to think for a moment, as he put his gloved hands into the bleachy water and used a white rag to clean each ball. He knew that this was going to take him most of the day. But the restaurant was willing to pay him more than he would have asked for. "Want some help? Oh, by the way, I'm Lana."

"I'm Lincoln, and sorry. But I'm being paid for this, and I hate to turn down help. But..." he felt his face heat up in embarrassment. He really wanted the help, it would make the job go by easier. However, there were many things that he needed with this money. Lucy needed new Pajamas. And he needed to buy something for Lucy to eat tonight. They had canned foods, but he wanted better for him. "I can't afford to lose any of the money."

"I don't need money! I just think it would be fun!" Lana had told him before getting on her knees next to him, rolling up her sleeves and helping him clean the plastic balls.

…

Him and Lana had just finished dumping the balls back into the pit, after it had been scrubbed of course. It was great to know that he would be able to make it back to the bus before it got dark. Lucy would appreciate that too. That and he could go back to Super Mart, and look for Lucy another set of pajamas. Maybe a new blanket. It had gotten pretty cold last night. The Landry mat's washer and dryers were kind of rough on their things. But they didn't have much of a choice.

"Hey, thanks for helping me today." Lincoln gathered up his things. He looked down at himself, the bleach has messed up his clothes in spots. He sighed a little. "Coulda been worse."

"Oh, man. Your clothes are totally ruined." Lana said extending her arms to indicate his clothing. "If my sister were here, she could help with the clothes. Leni is a wiz at that stuff. Lola might know too."

"It's okay." Lincoln said. It didn't really bother him. They still fit him, despite how they looked. They still had more uses.

"I'm sure your parents will replace them."

"Yeah, maybe." Lincoln didn't really want to say anything. There was always the risk that him and Lucy would be sent to foster homes or another orphanages. Most likely separated. He couldn't let that happen. "Hey. How about I buy you something for lunch as a thank you?"

"You don't haveta do that..." Lana started.

"I was planning on picking up dinner anyways." He said walking with Lana to the counter. He went over the cost in his head, and he wanted to make sure he had enough for Lucy's pajamas, and another blanket for them. Another case of water. They had a few cases, but when winter set in he wouldn't be able to leave. If he skipped dinner, he could afford Lana's lunch. Of course Lucy would ask him why he wasn't eating. He would just tell her that he had already ate. He ordered Lucy her dinner

"Hey, how about I join you? Y'know. Meet your sister. You had said that she was about my age." Lana asked, after they had received their orders.

"Oh... um..." He had to think of something, some reason that she shouldn't follow him. "Lucy... my sister. She isn't feeling well, and I wouldn't want you to get ill too. Not after all the help you gave me today."

"Sick? I could call my sister, Lisa. She's really smart!" Lana started.

"Just how many sisters do you have?" Lincoln decided to change the subject. Hoping that it would get Lana off the topic.

"Oh, there are nine of us." Lana said counting off on her fingers, "Lori, Leni, Luan, Luna, Lola, Lisa, Lynn, Lily, and me. Anyways. Are you going to be here tomorrow?"

"No, I'll be working at Gus' Game and Grub tomorrow. They need someone to vacuum out the dust from the machines, and to clean all the machines." Lincoln patted Lana's shoulder. "I gotta go, pick up some things from Super Mart, then get back to my sister. She'll be waiting. Hope to catch you later."

"Later, Lincoln!" Lana followed him out, then went off. He assumed that she was heading towards home. While he made his way to the store.

…

He had problems finding pajamas that would suit his sister's personality, but he finally found something that he thought that she would love. Money was tight, but he didn't want to bring her the wrong thing. She would wear it because that was who Lucy was. She didn't complain, but he knew it would make her unhappy. When they had left the orphanage, he had told her that she would be taken care of. Which he had been slacking on. Not by choice. Working wasn't easy, keeping them fed was harder. Since he wasn't working legally, he never got paid what he should. Except with today, with the ball pit. Tasks like that no one wanted to do, and would pay high prices to be able to not have to do them.

Of course, as usual, the staff in the store had taken turns following him around. Even if he had never stolen from the store, even when he did take things. It was only ever from the grocery stores, and that was only when it was needed. Though, based on how dirty he was, and how ragged his clothes were, he couldn't blame them.

He had to admit that it was better walking back during the day. There was a lot more to see. Not that he hadn't seen it, though it had been a long time since he had seen the sights. The town of Royal Woods was a beautiful area. Granted, it got less beautiful the closer to the junk yard he got. Though, he supposed that was normal. No one lived near the junk yard. Not many businesses around. Who wanted customers to come out and see scrap metal? But it did give him and Lucy privacy to come and go as they please without getting caught.

Once he had managed to get into the cut in the fence, and closed it up behind him. He made his way to to the bus. Once again, for the millionth time, he was glad that this junk yard didn't have guard dogs. He didn't know if that was just a movie thing, or if junk yards actually used to have guard dogs. He didn't even know what they'd be guarding. It was just stuff no one wanted. Kinda like him and Lucy. Maybe it was the perfect place for them.

He spotted Lucy as she was airing out some of the blankets. When you live in a bus things can get kind of musky. Lucy took care of the bus while he was away. Also, it was the only reason the bus wasn't dirty and grimy. Lucy took care of him, as much as he took care of her, It was different ways, but still both were important.

"Hey, Luce! I'm back!" He called out to his sister. She jumped a little, causing him to smirk. It was usually her sneaking up on him, and scaring him. The other orphans had hated her for that, he never hated her for it. It made her special, unique. It was who his sister was.

"Hello, Lincoln. You made it back early." She was acting as if she hadn't gotten scared, and he wasn't going to ruin that. She moved one of the blankets aside to look at him. She looked shocked. "Lincoln! You brought someone with you?!"

"No. I would never..." He noticed that she wasn't looking at him, but looking past him. He turned and looked behind him. Lana stood not far behind him, her mouth opened slightly in shock. "Lana?"

"I'm sorry, Lincoln!" She looked down at her feet. "You said your sister was ill, and I thought that if I knew where you lived, I could bring Lisa to come and take a look at her.

"I'm not ill." Lucy sounded gloomy about it. Then again, she did like the doom and gloom. She had to be the only person in the world that liked being sick.

"No... I lied. I'm sorry, Lana. I just... Didn't want you to know about us living here." He turned to Lucy, and put her hands on her shoulders. "Luce, I'm sorry I lied about you. It was wrong. I was afraid that if someone found out... We'd have to leave. Because we might get sent to separate homes."

"What? You live here? Why would you have to leave? It's cool! Your parents own a junk yard! How cool is that!" Lana looked excited.

"Um, no. Our parents don't own it..." Lincoln sighed. "Come inside, We... We'll explain."