It was safe to say that Lisa had performed many strange experiments in her day. Despite her young age, the prodigy had pushed the boundaries of science several times with each experiment. For more than a few of them, she'd involved her siblings (oftentimes involuntarily) with her endeavors in her attempt to find the answers she sought. And while her parents had forbidden her from using her siblings as guinea pigs, Lisa persisted in her studies, simply learning to be more discreet when it came to using her siblings as test subjects. This upcoming experiment that she had in mind however, required a willing participant. Someone who would be aware of the risks it presented and still consent anyway. That seemed like a rather tall task, but Lisa was sure she could find someone willing to step up. Perhaps she could convince Leni to be her test subject. Then again, following the other times Lisa's experiments involving her had gone awry, Lisa wouldn't hold her breath waiting for that to come to fruition. Then again, she could always try turning to Lincoln. She found him to always be reliable. Luckily for her, Lincoln was rather easy to find, being currently relaxed on the couch in the living room live-streaming as he played through a first person shooter while Lio provided the occasional commentary.
"Ah, Lincoln, just the person I wanted to see," Lisa said.
"Hey Lisa!" The brothers both greeted her with Lincoln asking her "What can I help you with?"
"Well, I'm glad you asked," Lisa said. "There's an upcoming project I wish to work on that I could use a volunteer for. Since we've worked together so well in the past, I was hoping that I could ask you to lend a hand."
"So you want me to act as your test subject, right?" Lincoln asked.
"Test subject sounds so harsh," Lisa said. "Perhaps the term "research partner" would be a more appropriate way to refer to our tandem partnership."
"You can call it whatever you want," Lincoln said, focusing on the TV as he eliminated another player from the game. "I'm basically just going to be acting as a lab rat for you."
"Must you be so insistent in degrading our partnership by referring to it with such ugly terminology?" Lisa persisted. "Regardless, I was hoping that I could rely on you for this project seeing as it's rather important to me and could be beneficial to the human species as a whole…"
"I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to say no to that," Lincoln said, not taking his eyes off the screen.
"Come again?" Lisa asked.
"No offense, but your experiments can be kinda dangerous," Lincoln said. "Last time I volunteered to act as a test subject for one of your experiments, I ended up growing a horn out of my head."
"Why must you dwell on past events and continue to live in the past?" Lisa asked. "I can assure you that this experiment is almost completely safe with only a 6% chance of things going awry."
"I'm gonna have to politely decline," Lincoln said before his character was killed by an airstrike. "Dang it! So close to being the sole survivor!"
"If you need someone to help you out, I can maybe be of assistance," Lio offered, prompting a stereo response of "What?" from both Lincoln and Lisa.
"After what happened last time with my gravity gun accidentally turning your hand inside out and everything, I would've thought that you'd be the most reluctant to assist me in my experiment," Lisa said.
"You've gotta hand it to me, I handled that situation like a champ," Lio joked. "No, but seriously, if I can handle having my gravity inverted, I'm sure I can handle whatever you have in mind this time around."
"Lio, are you sure you want to do this?" Lincoln asked, trying to warn his twin brothers of the danger. "You know that Lisa's experiments have a certain risk factor, right?"
"Yep!" Lio said cheerfully. "I'm well aware of the risks and I don't care."
"Could I get you to sign this waiver and contract verifying your expressed written consent?" Lisa asked, presenting Lio with two documents for him to sign.
"Um… sure," Lio said, going against his better judgment and signing the forms.
"Well bro, it was nice knowing you," Lincoln quipped, turning his focus back to the TV as the second round of his game began.
"Ignore Lincoln's exaggerated quips, this experiment is in no way life threatening," Lisa said. "The waiver and contract were merely precautionary measures."
"That's comforting," Lio said sarcastically as he followed Lisa to her room. Once they were there, Lisa wasted no time strapping him to an examination table. "Uh, Lisa? What's going on?"
"Do not fear, elder brother," Lisa said. "Despite appearances, I assure you that this is for your own safety."
"Alright, but why have I been tied to a table?" Lio asked.
"I suppose that it's only fair that I fill you in," Lisa said before explaining. "You see, while studying the biological makeup of different animals as well as the traits they've evolved to have in order to protect themselves, I wondered if I could perhaps gift some of these traits to a human."
"I'm still lost," Lio admitted.
"In order to reach a conclusive result, I am going to splice your DNA with that of a certain animal's in order to study the results," Lisa explained. "Seeing as how you have an affinity for cats, I figure that it'll be fitting if I splice your DNA with that of Cliff's so as to study whether you take on the traits I want to assign you or not."
"This seems very unethical," Lio said.
"And it most likely is to some degree," Lisa admitted as she pulled out a syringe containing a glowing green liquid. "But you have my assurance that you are not in any sort of grave risk." She then pulled out a vial of purple chemical and said "In the event that something goes horribly awry or causes you to undergo unexpected mutations, I've developed a formula that will completely undo the effects of said cat DNA and return you to your normal state"
"Before we go any further, are you 100% certain that that formula will work as intended?" Lio asked, squirming a bit on the table.
"Affirmative," Lisa answered. "You have nothing to worry about." With that, Lisa injected Lio with the glowing green chemical, with Lio cracking a joke, saying "Wow, are you sure you didn't mix this up with Herbert West's reanimator?"
"Glad to see you're in a good mood," Lisa said as she finished injecting the chemical into Lio and unstrapped him from the table. "So, how do you feel?"
"I don't know," Lio said as he sat up. "A little tingly honestly, but other than that I feel fine." Lio then sniffed at the air.
"What is it?" Lisa asked.
"Dad's back home," He said. "In fact he's just outside in the driveway."
"How can you tell?" Lisa asked.
"Easy," Lio replied. "Judging from the aroma given off by his cologne combined with the scent of caramel, coriander, and a slight tinge of ginger, I can conclude that he's wrapped up another day at the restaurant." Lio took another sniff and added "On top of that, he's picked up roses presumably for Mom, allowing me to conclude that he and Mom are going out for a date tonight, leaving Lori in charge for the evening."
"You determined all of that from a simple smell?" Lisa questioned. "A smell that you could detect while standing a considerable distance away from father?" Lisa pulled out a notepad and scribbled down some notes. "Interesting, it would appear that Cliff's DNA is already working as intended."
"How so?" Lio asked.
"Similar to many animals, cats have a keen sense of smell," Lisa said. "For you to be able to pick up scents from so far away is a sign that you've taken on attributes from Cliff that could prove useful."
"Oh, neat!" Lio said.
"Please come with me," Lisa said, grabbing Lio by his hand and guiding him to follow her. "There's still much testing to be done."
As Lisa and Lio marched downstairs, they walked past Lynn Sr. in the kitchen. True to Lio's description, he held a bouquet of roses in his hand and was wearing a noticeable cologne.
"Hey kids, how was your day today?" He asked the two of them.
"Fine," Lio said. "I see you and Mom are going out on a date tonight."
"You have as keen an eye as ever," Lynn Sr said. "Yep, it's been a while since your Mom and I had time to ourselves so we're getting out of the house tonight. Of course, that means that Lori…"
"That Lori's in charge, we understand," Lisa said.
"So where are you two headed?" Lynn Sr asked.
"To the basement," Lisa said. "I need Lio's help in finding a vital tool of mine that I seemed to have misplaced."
"Oh, alright," Lynn Sr said. "You two just be sure to be safe down there and don't hurt yourself."
"Will do," Lio promised him as their dad head upstairs to get ready for his date. As they reached the basement door, Lio turned to Lisa and asked "So what tool are we looking for?"
"Lio, I'm going to be honest, I haven't been exactly truthful with you," Lisa said. "The true reason we came to the basement is so that I could test your righting reflex as well as reflexes overall."
"Wait, what?" Lio asked before Lisa unexpectedly pushed him down the stairs.
As he fell, Lio was surprised to find that he was able to correct himself in midair before he hit the ground. With the athleticism and agility of a gymnast combined with the quickness of a cat, Lio landed perfectly on his feet without any difficulty. That didn't stop him from being a little miffed at being so haphazardly shoved down the stairs.
"Lisa, what the heck!?" Lio shouted as he dusted himself off. Strangely, he felt a strong urge to lick himself clean, which he did.
"I apologize elder brother, but as I said, I needed to text your reflexes," Lisa said.
"You couldn't have just threw a ball at me to see if I could catch it?" Lio replied.
"I could have, but it wouldn't have been nearly as effective," Lisa said, writing things in her notepad. "Now for the second part of this test…"
"Which is…?" Lio asked before Lisa turned off the lights to the basement and shut the door on him, leaving him in complete darkness. "Of course."
"Now, I need you to relay to me what you can see!" Lisa shouted. "Can you make out your surroundings at all?"
Taking a look around, Lio found that he actually could, another fact that took him by surprise. Despite being in near absolute darkness, Lio could see the washer and dryer, one of Charles' chew toys, a small mouse hole in the wall, an old black and white TV and a pile of Lynn's sports' socks that needed washing. Thanks to Lio's newly enhanced sense of smell, the socks' had an even more pungent odor to him, causing him to gag. Making sure not to accidentally trip and fall face first into them, Lio continued to look around before answering Lisa.
"This might sound strange, but yeah, I can actually see," Lio told her. "I can see everything down here in stunning detail!"
"There's nothing strange about that," Lisa replied. "That's a sign my experiment was a resounding success! In addition to enhanced smell compared to humans, cats also have enhanced eyesight that allow them to see in low light environments!"
"So you're saying I have all the superpowers of a cat?" Lio asked before cheering as he walked up the stairs and exited the basement. "Awesome! I bet Lincoln regret passing up this opportunity now!"
"And why is that?" Lincoln asked as he walked into the kitchen.
"Because thanks to Lisa, I've got some of the abilities of a cat," Lio said happily. "It's almost like a superhero origin story!"
"No offense, but what would I want with the abilities of a cat?" Lincoln asked. "It seems like it'd be more of a hindrance/burden than a benefit in the long run"
There was a loud crash and Lio suddenly jumped in fright, leaping so high into the air that he ended up clinging to the ceiling.
"What's with him?" Lincoln asked Lisa.
"It would appear that it's time for Luna's drum practice," Lisa said, hearing the faint sound of Luna playing her drums from out in the garage. "Due to his enhanced hearing, Luna's loud playing must've startled him."
"See what I mean?" Lincoln replied, looking up at Lio as the latter cling to the ceiling for dear life, trembling while his teeth chattered. "By the way Lio, how are you doing that?"
"Doing what?" Lio asked before realizing that he was defying gravity, causing him to lose his grip and fall back towards earth. Fortunately, thanks to his newly acquired abilities, he was able to correct himself and land on his own two feet, even striking a pose and proclaiming "Ta-da!"
"So, what do you say, elder brother?" Lisa asked Lincoln. "I could always use a second study partner to help me verify the results of this experiment."
"What you've accomplished is indeed impressive," Lincoln admitted. "But I still don't wanna take my chances."
"Suit yourself," both Lisa and Lio said with a shrug with Lio saying "Guess I'll get to enjoy my new animal powers all by myself."
"How long are these effects going to last?" Lincoln asked Lisa.
"I'm not sure," Lisa said. "For all I know, the effects could be permanent."
"Lisa…" Lincoln said in a scolding tone.
"Relax," Lisa said. "I always have an antidote of sorts that should return Lio to normal if something goes wrong."
"I honestly don't know where you get these ideas," Lincoln said, grabbing a soda before returning to his video game session.
Lio returned to watch and co-commentate as well, but as he was streaming, Lincoln noticed a few strange oddities about his twin. More than a few times, he'd stop commentating in order to lick himself. He'd also crawl around in circles on the couch before curling up and laying down for a few seconds. Eventually, he'd realize what he was doing and return to sitting in an upright position as per normal. A few times, there were loud explosions from the game that caused Lio to instinctively jump behind the couch for safety before getting a hold of himself. Lincoln chalked this up to his heightened hearing, but this didn't make it any less strange. Deep in his heart, something told Lincoln that Lisa's experiment has done more than just give him certain catlike traits.
With Lori taking over for babysitting duties however, he couldn't dwell on it for too long. Needless to say, his streaming session came to an abrupt end as Lori put her foot down. The strangeness didn't end even when the boys turned in for bed, with Lio pacing around on his bed like a cat before curling up just like he'd done on the couch. Lio stayed in that position all throughout the night as he slept. If Lincoln thought things were strange now, he'd have to wait until morning rolled around. In the early hours of the day at the usual time of 4 AM, Lio's alarm went off.
"Mori-Mori-Mori-Morioh Cho Radio!"
Lincoln groaned as Lio got out of bed, prompting Lio to apologize "Sorry Linc, I thought I set it on low volume,"
"It's okay- AHH," Lincoln said, turning to face Lio and being surprised by what he saw.
"What?" Lio asked. "Is there something in my teeth?"
"You might wanna take a look at yourself," Lincoln said, holding up a mirror so that Lio could see himself.
"Oh my DIO…" Lio said upon seeing himself. The young otaku now had a pair of cat ears atop his head alongside a cat's tail from his backside and some whiskers on his face. "I look so kawaii!"
"What's going on?" Lori asked as she and the other sisters barged into the brothers' room. "We heard Lincoln screaming and-," She stopped mid sentence when she got a good look at Lio. "Oh my gosh…"
"Um… Lio, why are you dressed as an anime catboy?" Leni asked. "Is this part of one of your cosplays?"
"Would you care to explain what's going on here?" Lincoln asked Lisa while Lio had the goofiest, yet happiest grin on his face.
"Oh dear, it would appear that the DNA I injected Lio with has resulted in some slight mutations," Lisa said, taking a closer look at Lio.
"Lisa, what have mom and dad said about experimenting on us?" Luna reminded her. "How are we going to explain this to them?"
"Relax," Lisa said. "I developed a counter active formula just in case an event like this arose. All I have to do is give him a simple injection and he should return to normal."
"Um… that wouldn't happen to have been that purple stuff, would it?" Lana asked.
"Yes, why?" Lisa asked.
"Because Charles kinda into it and drank it," Lana explained.
"You've got to be kidding me," Lori said.
"I wish I was, but it's the truth," Lana said.
"So what're we going to do about cat boy here now?" Lynn asked.
"Maybe we shouldn't do anything," Lola said. "I'm not going to lie, Lio looks kinda cute like this."
"If we keep him like this, how are we going to explain it to mom and dad?" Lucy pointed out.
"Technically, that's all Lisa's problem," Lynn pointed out.
"Everyone calm down," Lisa said. "Creating an antidote isn't a difficult task. I can create another one rather easily. In the meantime, I just need you to keep Mom and Dad from seeing Lio."
"How long will this antidote take?" Lincoln asked.
"A couple of hours at most," Lisa said. "Until then, do your best to keep Lio under wraps."
"I take it that means I won't be leaving the house today," Lio said.
"I don't know if you'll even be allowed to leave this room," Lincoln told him.
"But a new episode of Celeste comes out today!" Lio protested. "I can't afford to miss this episode."
"Sorry, Lio, but we can't let Mom and Dad see you like this," Lori said.
"Awww man, this sucks," Lio said with a huff.
"Come on Lio, try to be a little more paws-itive," Luan joked. "I know it's un-fur-tunate, but there's no reason to be cat-atonic."
"You know, I was feline down, but your jokes are going to have me hiss-terical," Lio played along, sharing a laugh with Luan. "I've almost fur-gotten what I was so upset about"
"That's the right cat-titude to have," Luan said, scratching Lio behind his cat ears as the siblings groaned at the pair's pun game. "And if that's not enough to lift your spirits, let me tail you that you look purr-ty adorable and you better believe that I'm not kitten around."
"Fur real?" Lio replied with a laugh.
"Hurry up with that antidote, Lisa!" Lincoln said. "Hurry up before Lio and Luan kill us with cat puns!"
"I'm on it!" Lisa said, rushing to her room to begin work on the formula. Meanwhile the sisters groaned at Luan and Lio's puns and returned to their room to get some more sleep.
"You know, purr-sonally I don't see what their problem is," Luan joked.
"They really should learn how to lighten up and not be such a sourpuss," Lio said.
"Guys, could you not?" Lincoln said as he crawled back into bed. "I'm trying to sleep."
"Oh, sorry Linc," Lio apologized.
"I was reaching the tail end of my jokes anyway," Luan giggled before leaving.
"Since I still have time before either mom or dad get up, I should go ahead and get ready now," Lio said, leaving and heading to the bathroom to shower and get dressed.
"I'm really hoping that this is all just a dream," Lincoln said as he turned out the lights, rolled over and went back to bed.
After emerging from the shower, Lio sneaked downstairs to grab himself an apple to eat before returning to his room, where he would remain for the next couple of hours. Fortunately for both Lio and Lisa, both Lynn Sr and Rita had to leave the house for the day in order to go to work, meaning he'd be free to venture from his room until they came home. As the others would soon learn however, Lio's catlike tendencies extended far beyond a few enhanced senses and a new appearance.
"Hey Lio, wanna help me and Chris practice for my baseball game?" Lynn asked.
"Sure thing!" Lio said, giving a thumbs up as he joined the two outside.
"So, what's with the cat ears and tail?" Chris asked.
"One of Lisa's experiments," Lynn filled him in.
"Ahhh," Chris said, nodding his head.
"I need to practice my batting," Lynn said. "So Chris is going to be pitching and Lio, you're going to be catching."
"Got it," Lio said before getting into position.
Chris threw the ball and as expected, Lynn smacked it almost out of the park. It would've gone over the fence into Mr. Grouse's yard had Lio not unexpectedly leapt into the air and caught it just in time… with his teeth.
"Nice… catch?" Chris congratulated him, unsure as to why Lio caught the ball in such a manner.
The weirdness didn't end there with Lio now playing with the ball on the ground, rolling it back and forth between his hands. He didn't even seem to acknowledge Chris and Lynn's presence, being off in his own little world.
"Lio!" Lynn shouted, snapping Lio out of his trance.
"Oh right, sorry, sorry!" Lio apologized, jumping in fright from Lynn's shouting. "Heads up!" He said, tossing the ball at Chris, who in turn tossed it to Lynn.
Once again, Lynn sent the ball sailing through the air, forcing Lio to take a diving leap to try and catch it. While he failed to catch the ball in his hands, thanks to some quick thinking, Lio was able to use his tail to catch it before it hit the ground.
"Hey, this whole being a catboy thing might be pretty useful," Lio said, winding up his tail before throwing the ball at Chris a little harder than he intended.
"Oof!" Chris exclaimed, struggling to stay on his feet after catching the ball.
"Sorry about that, Chris!" Lio apologized.
"Don't worry about it," Chris said.
"This time, don't cheat," Lynn said.
"How was I cheating?" Lio asked.
"By using your tail," Lynn answered. "That's totally not fair!"
"It may not be fair in the context of competitive play, but the fact that Lio can use his tail as an extra limb is rather impressive," Lisa said, having come outside to observe.
"How's that antidote coming along?" Lynn asked.
"Oh, I've already completed work on it," Lisa said nonchalant. "I just merely want to observe Lio in action for a few more hours to gain a complete understanding of my original formula's side effects."
"Shouldn't you want to return your brother back to normal as soon as possible rather than let him look like a…" Chris said before trailing off.
"Like a what?" All three Loud siblings asked.
"Like a…" Chris said before leaning in and whispering what he wanted to say into Lynn's ear.
"Oh my gosh, how do you even know about that kind of stuff!?" Lynn asked him.
"I was doing some research for a tabletop fantasy RPG I was doing and it led me to rather strange places…" Chris sheepishly admitted.
"What kind of strange places?" Lisa asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'll tell you when you're older!" Lynn said quickly.
"Bold of you to assume I wouldn't understand whatever you're referring to," Lisa said, rolling her eyes. "Anyway, I want to be able to observe Lio's semi-transformation for a few more hours to see if there are any more adverse side effects before I retook my original formula so that I can eliminate them."
"Lisa, we only have a few hours at most before our parents get back," Lynn pointed out. "You may wanna get on this as soon as possible!"
"Well why don't we let Lio decide?" Lisa replied. "I'm pretty sure he's enjoying his newfound abilities, right Lio?" When Lio didn't respond, Chris, Lynn and Lisa all looked around in confusion. "Lio?"
Lio had completely zoned out and was chasing after a small mouse that was crawling around in the backyard. Lio was using both his hands and his tail in an attempt to catch the rodent, even letting out a catlike hiss as he pursued it. At one point, Lio found himself running in circles chasing after the little mouse.
"Lio!" Lisa, Lynn, and Chris all yelled, finally getting his attention.
"Huh?" Lio said, stopping his chase to look up at the three of them. "Oh, sorry about that… I just got an urge to chase after it that I couldn't resist."
"Are you sure your experiment is mostly harmless?" Lynn asked. "I think your little experiment has seriously scrambled Lio's brain."
"While Lio's behavior is cause for question, I'm sure it's nothing major," Lisa said. "It could just be his body adjusting to the cat DNA that I spliced with his."
"You spliced your brother's DNA with that of a cat?" Chris asked. "That might explain his behavior. It could be that his human mind and instincts are merging with those of a cat's. A bit of "Mind is but a plaything to the body" kind of deal"
"Do you think it's possible for his cat instincts to completely take over?" Lynn asked.
"I don't know," Chris said before turning to Lisa and saying "All I know is that you've got to administer that antidote and fast!"
"Right," Lisa said. "Wait right here, Lio, and I'll be right back with the…" the trio looked around to see that Lio had once again disappeared.
In the dining room, Lio was hidden out of side and conversing with the very mouse he had just been chasing a few minutes prior. Meanwhile, Lio had made himself a slice of pizza and was about to dig in.
"Alright, do you remember the plan?" Lio asked the mouse. The mouse nodded in response and Lio said "Good, now play dead."
The mouse followed Lio's instructions and went limp, allowing Lio to pick it up in his mouth. Lio then merrily crawled over to Lincoln on all fours and dropped the mouse at Lincoln's feet.
"Um Lio, what the heck is this?" Lincoln asked.
Lio gently nudged the mouse closer to Lincoln and let out an adorable sounding "meow" as he looked up at Lincoln.
"That's… very nice of you," Lincoln said, not knowing what to think as he picked up the mouse by its tail and head to throw it outside. "But I don't think this belongs in the house" As he opened up the door, he commented "Lisa can't finish that antidote soon enough" before looking at his hand to find that the mouse had disappeared.
"What the?" Lincoln asked before looking back over at the dining room table, where Lio had taken his pizza and was currently eating it alongside the mouse. "Clever boy" He quipped, rolling his eyes. "Good thing there's some more in the fridge, but seriously Lio, what has gotten into you?"
"Looks like he's retained his human level intellect," Lisa said before pointing at Chris and Lynn and ordering them "Quick, catch him and hold him while I go get the antidote!"
"On it!" Lynn and Chris said before going after Lio.
Lio hissed and leapt out of their reach, running towards the living room. Neither Chris nor Lynn stopped in their pursuit and chased after him, leaving Lincoln to gawk at how surreal the whole situation was.
"If you can believe it, this is actually one of the more normal Saturdays," Lincoln said before joining the chase.
In the living room, Lio was briefly distracted by the curtains and stopped to scratch them up a little before moving on. Cat!Lio proved to be quite agile, managing to outmaneuver Lincoln, Lynn, and Chris as they attempted to catch him. There was a loud crash as Lio bounced off the wall in his effort to escape, leading the trio in circles as he ran away from them. The noise ended up catching Lori's attention.
"What with all the noise?" Lori asked.
"Can't talk, trying to catch Lio!" Chris explained as Lio ran past Lori, with Lynn right behind him.
"You'll never take me!" Lio declared as he leapt atop the fireplace mantle.
Lincoln, Lynn, and Chris seemingly had him cornered as they surrounded him. Lio still wasn't willing to go down so easy, springing into the air to jump over their heads. At that second, Lisa came downstairs with a syringe filled with the antidote.
"Alright, I've got it!" She said. "Did you guys manage to catch him?"
"No, but we're working on it!" Lincoln told her as he pounced at Lio, only to just barely miss him.
Lori sighed and pulled out a ball of yarn before saying "Oh, Lio!"
"Oooh, yarn, GIMME!" Lio said the moment his eyes fell on the ball of yarn. Immediately, he forgot about the others and ran over to Lori, taking the string from her hands and playing with it.
"If you wanted to catch him, that's literally all you had to do," Lori said.
"Oh yeah," Lincoln said. "Why didn't we think of that from the start?"
"Quick, get him while he's distracted!" Lynn shouted, pouncing on Lio while he was preoccupied and holding him down with ease. Even though she was single-handedly keeping him restrained, Chris and Lincoln quickly gave her a hand, keeping the catboy held down.
"Steady… steady… there." Lisa said as she plunged the syringe into Lio's neck. Lio started to twitch and convulse before losing consciousness.
"Oh my gosh, is he okay?" Lori asked.
"I don't know," Lisa said. "I certainly didn't expect this type of reaction from him."
Lio came to several hours later, rather dizzy and in his bed in his and Lincoln's room. For a brief time after coming to, Lio thought that everything had merely been a dream, only to see that that wasn't the case when he saw that he still possessed his cat ears and tail.
"What happened?" He asked, grabbing his head.
"Oh, you got spliced with cat DNA and started acting like a cat," Lincoln explained. "At least, acting more like a cat than you usually do."
"Just what did I do?" Lio asked.
"Caught a ball in your mouth, used your tail as an extra arm, brought a mouse to Lincoln and made us chase you around the house," Lynn explained nonchalantly.
"Then Lisa injected you with an antidote or something that removed the cat DNA and you passed out," Chris explained.
"If that's the case then why do I still have my tail?" Lio asked.
"Because, it'll still take some time for the effects to completely wear off," Lisa explained. "You could have that cat tail and ears for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks."
"Great, I guess that means I have to stay hidden in my room until then, huh?" Lio asked.
"Not necessarily," Lisa said. "I plan on coming clean to Mom and Dad. I know I'll probably be grounded for a month, but it's only right that I own up for what I did."
"We could still just try and pass off the ears and tail off as being part of a costume," Lio offered.
"That'll only work for so long," Lisa said. "Besides, what if they don't believe it?"
"Then we say that it was all my idea and that I did to myself when I was messing around with your lab equipment," Lio said.
"Are you really willing to do that just to spare me the punishment?" Lisa asked.
"Of course," Lio said. "To be fair, we're both to blame for this. There's no fault in my throwing myself under the bus."
"Thanks, but you don't have to cover for me," Lisa said. "I'll take full responsibility for everything that's transpired."
"Are you sure you wanna do that?" Lio asked.
"Positive," Lisa said.
"I've always cherished how you would always be willing to help me with my experiments at the drop of a hat, no matter how dangerous," Lisa told Lio. "That wasn't even the last time you put yourself at risk to help me with my scientific endeavors. It is one of the most memorable however." She chuckled. "I always felt that I could rely on you not just for my experiments but for being an awesome brother as well."
"Reliable?" Lio questioned.
"I'd have to agree with your sister on that one," Kat said. "But I'm sort of in disbelief: you were turned into a cat boy and you don't even have a picture of it?"
"Oh, I have a picture," Lio whispered to her. "I'll show it to you when this all over, I promise"
"This isn't going to be over until we can be sure that you're going to be okay," Lori said. "One thing I can say is that you've always had a drive to help us whenever we needed." She smiled fondly and said "Such as the time I tried out for the cheerleading team…"
"Okay Lori, you can do this," a then 14 year old Lori said, trying to talk herself into signing up for the cheerleading team. "It's easy; just write your name on the paper, go to try outs at the end of the week and let things play out from there." Lori grabbed a pen and moved to write her name on the signup sheet, only to be brushed aside by two junior girls. One was a redhead and the other a brunette.
"Ha!" The redhead scoffed. "What is a mousy little freshman like you possibly going to do on the team?"
"Yeah, you'll probably just embarrass yourself and fall flat on your face?" The brunette taunted.
"You're better off not even trying," The redhead said, shoving Lori further out of the way so that they could sign up.
"Or better yet, do sign up," said the brunette. "I need something to laugh at!"
The girls walked off after that, leaving Lori fuming from their teasing. Not making things any better was when her "rival", Carol Pingrey walked by to also sign up for cheerleading; because of course she was! Carol always had a habit of showing up Lori in everything they participated in, whether it be sports or music or pageants. And while Carol had never gloated about this fact and in fact, never showed any signs of animosity towards Lori. In fact, as she was signing up for cheerleading, she even had a few words of encouragement for Lori.
"Hey, don't let those girls discourage you," She said, placing a hand on Lori shoulder. "Rebecca and Ashley can be real witches, but don't let them get to you" Carol signed up for the team and handed the pen to Lori. "Personally, I think you'd be a great cheerleader."
"You really think so?" Lori asked, not sure if Carol was being genuine or if she was being sarcastic and mocking her.
"Of course!" Carol replied cheerfully and sincerely. "You've always excelled at everything you've tried." Carol laughed and said "Not to mention that any time we had to compete against each other, you always gave me a serious run for my money. It'd be nice if we could both be on the same time for once rather than have to face off again."
"Yeah… that would be nice," Lori muttered, doing her best to hide her anger at the fact that Carol had to bring up their competition.
"I've gotta go to class, but I hope to see you at tryouts this Friday!" Carol said, waving goodbye at Lori as she headed off to class.
"Well if Carol's trying out for the team, I'm definitely going to give it a shot," Lori thought to herself as she wrote her name on the sign up sheet. "I'll show those stuck up snobs who's the real embarrassment!"
Lori knew that making the team took more than just good looks and athleticism. She was going to have to train hard and study the team's routine. For that reason, she had looked up video of the previous year's cheer squad doing their routine on her laptop. Lori had to admit that she was a little intimidated by just how rigorous the routine appeared to be, featuring full fledged pyramids, somersaults and backflips, the full nine yards. It definitely wasn't going to be a walk in the park for someone who was just looking for popularity. Luckily for Lori, she had full confidence that she would be able to pull this off. It would just take some conditioning.
"This doesn't look so hard," Lori said to herself. "I can totally do this! Maybe I can get Lynn's help with this."
"Get my help with what?" Lynn asked.
"Getting down this cheerleading routine," Lori explained, showing Lynn the video. "It looks really hard and I thought that if anyone could help me, it'd-,"
"Sorry Lori, but I wouldn't be caught dead practicing that cheerleader stuff," Lynn said. "It's just way too girly for me. Not to mention it's no challenge at all for someone like me."
"Is that so?" Lori asked with a smirk. "So you're saying that if you wanted to, you'd have no trouble training me for tryouts?"
"Oh please, of course not," Lynn said. "Give me one afternoon and I could make you a top tier cheerleader in no time."
"Are you sure about that?" Lori asked, egging Lynn on.
"Is water wet?" Lynn replied before catching on and asking. "Why are you so interested in cheerleading anyway? I thought golf was your thing."
"It is," Lori said, her face contorting into an angry scowl. "But there are these two mean girls named Rebecca and Ashley who I really want to prove wrong so I can rub their faces in it."
"Is that it?" Lynn asked.
"Well, Carol Pingrey is also signing up for the team and I don't want to end up playing second fiddle to her again," Lori explained before blushing somewhat. "Plus, there's this cute boy, Bobby, whose attention I've really been trying to get. I'm hoping that maybe if I make the team, I can catch his eye."
"Oh, I see," Lynn said before teasing Lori. "Chasing after boys yet again, are we? Looking for a real lady killer or Prince Charming to sweep you off your feet, huh Lori?"
"Cut it out," Lori said, hitting Lynn with a pillow. "So will you help me or not?"
"Hmmm…?" Lynn said, taking a moment to think. "While cheerleading isn't exactly my thing, I do love putting people who think they're hot stuff in their place… so yeah, I'll help you!"
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Lori said, hugging Lynn tightly.
"Don't thank me just yet," Lynn told her. "This isn't going to be some simple kiddy affair. I'm going to push you to your limits and make sure you're the best cheerleader on the team! Are you ready for that?"
"I… guess?" Lori said, a bit intimidated by how intense Lynn was.
"Then let's not waste any time," Lynn said, dragging Lori into the backyard to practice. "Alright, I watched that little video and just like I thought, that cheerleading nonsense was just baby stuff! So we'll start off with something easy: I want you to do a somersault"
"A what?" Lori asked.
"You know, a somersault," Lynn said. "You do know what that is, don't you?"
"Yeah, but I've never done a somersault in my life," Lori said.
"Great, just great, a beginner," Lynn muttered. "Here, I'll show you how to do it"
Lynn took a few steps back before getting a running head start and leaping into the air. Rather than settle with doing one simple somersault, Lynn went above and beyond, doing three consecutive somersaults in midair before her feet touched the ground.
"Think you can do that?" Lynn asked.
"Um… I can try," Lori said after picking her jaw up off the ground after seeing Lynn's display.
"Then give it a shot," Lynn encouraged her, stepping aside.
Lori took a running head start and leapt into the air. However, she wasn't nearly as agile as Lynn and ended up face planting into the ground mid rotation, causing Lori to sigh.
"Oh brother, this is going to be a long day," Lynn murmured. "Guess we're going to have to start with something even more basic…"
A few minutes later, Lori was going through the dance routine while Lynn yelled at her.
"Give me an R! Give me an O! Give me a Y-A-L!" Lori chanted, moving her arms and body to form the shapes of each letter. "Give me a W-O-O-,"
"Come on, is that the best you've got!?" Lynn shouted. "Pop Pop can move faster than that! Come on, speed it up! Put some more energy into it!"
"Give me a R-O-Y-A-L!" Lori shouted, moving a little faster. "Give me a W-O-O-D-S!"
"Really!? That's all you've got!?" Lynn continued taunting her. "Do you wanna make the cheerleading team or just be left watching from the sidelines!? Speed it up!"
"Give me a R-O-Y-A-L W-O-O-D-S!" Lori said, struggling to move in sync with her sped up chanting.
"Faster!" Lynn demanded.
"Give me a R-O-Y-AHHHH!" Lori said before losing her footing trying to keep up and tripping onto the ground.
"Good grief," Lynn sighed as she helped Lori off the ground. "Come on, Lori, do you really want to make the cheerleading team or not?"
"Yeah, I wanna make the team," Lori said.
"Well, you're not going to make the team with such sloppy efforts," Lynn told her. "Those other girls will eat you alive if they see you like this! You'll come in second behind Carol again. Those two brats you were talking about will be right. And worse, you'll never get the attention of that boy you're after. You've gotta shape up!"
"But I-," Lori tried to say before Lynn cut her off.
"Alright, I'll tell you what, I'll help you with this next one," Lynn said. "We're just going to do a simple backflip."
"But I-," Lori started to say before Lynn once again cut her off.
"Yeah, I know, you don't know how to do a backflip," Lynn said, rolling her eyes. "Just let me give you a boost and I'll help you."
"Okay…?" Lori said, cautiously stepping up and placing one foot in Lynn's hands.
"Alright, I'll launch you into the air, just try to rotate until you land on your feet," Lynn advised her. "Alright, on 3. 3, 2…"
"Hold on, wait a second," Lori said, trying to get in proper position. "I'm not rea-,"
"Go!" Lynn said before launching Lori into the air. A little too high into the air as she ended up throwing a screaming Lori at least 5 meters into the air, over the backyard fence and into Mr. Grouse's yard. "Heheh, oops, guess I don't know my own strength." Lynn said, nervously rubbing her arm as Lori finally landed on the ground with a thud and an "Ow!"
"I might wanna get out of here," Lynn said. "Give Lori a chance to cool off a little." With that, she made herself scarce.
"Hey, Lori!" Lio greeted Lori as she lied on the couch with an ice pack on her neck, her body sore from training with Lynn.
"Oh, hey Lincoln," Lori said.
"It's Lio," Lio corrected her.
"Really?" Lori asked. "I swear, you have got to do something to make yourself so that I don't get you confused. Like, dye your hair or something."
"Yeah, I've been thinking about that," Lio said. "So, what're you doing?"
"Trying to rest up before I get back to training," Lori replied.
"Training for what?" Lio asked.
"For my tryouts for the cheer team this Friday," Lori explained. "I was getting help from Lynn, but she proved to be a little too…"
"Aggressive?" Lio offered helpfully.
"Yeah, that's the word," Lori said with a nod.
"Why do you wanna join the cheer squad?" Lio asked.
"Mostly so that I can stick it to these two obnoxious stuck up brats!" Lori said, fuming from the mere thought of them.
"I'm guessing that tryouts aren't as easy as actually signing up, are they?" Lio asked.
"No," Lori said, showing Lio the video of the past year's cheerleading team going through their motions. "Just look at everything they're doing. Corkscrews and somersaults and cartwheels, I don't know if I can pull all of that off."
"You don't?" Lio asked, sounding confused. "But I thought that you could do anything."
"Why would you think that?" Lori asked.
"Because you've always been able to do whatever you wanted," Lio said, looking down at his feet. "It was almost like you were a superhero or something."
"Yeah, well this cheerleading thing doesn't seem like something I'll be good at," Lori said. "Maybe those other girls were right, maybe I don't have what it takes."
"What kind of quitter talk is that?" Lio replied. "You're just going to let those jerks push you around and laugh at you?"
"What other choice do I have?" Lori asked.
"Maybe I could help you practice so that you'll be ready on Friday," Lio offered.
"Oh no, I've already been down that path," Lori said. "I am not getting thrown around like a rag doll again!"
"Lori… I'm not Lynn," Lio reminded her. "I'm not that strong." He then rubbed the back of his neck and added "Then again, I don't think anyone is as strong as Lynn."
"How are you going to help me?" Lori asked. "You're only 8 years old."
"Yare yare daze, don't underestimate me just 'cause I'm a kid," Lio said with a huff before pouting and crossing his arms.
"Alright, I'll let you help me," Lori said. "But promise me you won't drop me on my head or anything, okay?"
"Why would I do that?" Lio asked, shooting Lori a strange look.
The following day, Lori was back in the backyard to practice, this time with Lio providing assistance. Right off the bat, Lio was more laidback than Lynn, although that had mostly to do with the fact that he didn't have the competitive drive possessed by the latter. Not that there was any reason to be competitive in the first place. This was simply a practice session with nothing at stakes. That didn't mean that Lio wasn't as eager to help as Lynn was however, being just as determined to help Lori make the cheer team as the athletic sister had been.
"So show me what you can do," Lio said. "Start with the school chant."
"Give me an R! Give me an O! Give me a Y-A-L!" Lori chanted.
"That's good, but do you think you can move a little faster?" Lio asked.
Lori nodded and, remembering Lynn's advice from the previous day, went through the motions as fast as she could while trying not to trip over her own two feet as she'd done yesterday.
"Give me an R-O-Y-A-L W-O-O-D-S!" Lori said in one breath, all the while looking like a fish out of water as she tried posing in the shape of each letter.
"Whoa, whoa, calm down Lori," Lio said. "It isn't a race or anything. When I said go faster, I didn't mean kick it into maximum overdrive" he laughed.
"Sorry, sorry," Lori said. "I just thought you would want me to go as fast as I could."
"What, no way!" Lio said. "Just try and find an appropriate middle ground between slow and fast."
"Right," Lori said before trying again at a more average tempo. "Give me an R! Give me an O! Give me a Y-A-L!" She quickly moved on to the next set. "Give me a W-O-O-D-S! What does that spell? What does that spell?" Leaping into the air and doing a split, Lori cheered "Royal Woods! Royal Woods! Go~ Lions!"
"Very good," Lio said, clapping his hands. "I think that was just right." He winked at Lori and added "Nice touch with the midair split by the way!"
"Thanks," Lori said, wiping sweat from her brow.
"I think you've got the most basic stuff down, now why don't we try doing-," Lio started to ask before Lori cut him off with a very poignant question.
"Wait a second, basics?" Lori questioned. "How do you know that that's the basics of cheerleading? How do you know anything about cheerleading to begin with?"
"Read a little manga titled Cheer Boys," Lio explained, shrugging and saying "It was actually quite an interesting read if I'm being honest. I'd recommend it whenever you had the time"
"You can be quite the enigma, little brother," Lori deadpanned. "Now what were you going to suggest we move on to?"
"I was going to suggest we move onto cartwheels and somersaults," Lio said.
"Oh no," Lori said, getting flashbacks to the previous day.
"Do you not know how to do those?" Lio asked.
"No," Lori answered.
"Not even a cartwheel?" Lio asked and Lori shook her head. "Okay, well maybe a demonstration will help you out some."
Lori stepped aside so that Lio could demonstrate a cartwheel for her. Lio took a deep breath before taking a small running head start and executing an admittedly sloppy but decent cartwheel, something he berated himself for afterwards.
"Dang it, I knew I should've practiced a little bit more!" He mumbled. "If Lynn saw how sloppy that cartwheel was, she'd make me do it 100 more times until I got it right! Come on, Lio, don't embarrass Lynn like that!"
"That was certainly a better cartwheel than anything I could ever do," Lori said.
"Can you at least do a handstand?" Lio asked.
"Yeah, easy peasy," Lori said.
"Great, then this should be easy," Lio said before instructing Lori "Do a handstand right now is it's not too much trouble."
"Okay?" Lori said before doing what Lio asked. She struggled to keep her balance for a few seconds but quickly recovered. She was surprised when she felt Lio gently grab her in an attempt to keep her upright. "Eep!"
"Sorry, just trying to lend a hand," Lio apologized. "Now swing your legs to the right and try to land on both feet."
"O-Okay," Lori said. "Just remember what I said about not dropping me on my head."
"I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing," Lio assured her before Lori did as he said and swung her legs to her right. For a brief second, she thought that she was going to crash and burn, only to safely plant her feet on the ground and bring herself upright. "Good, now try the same thing again."
Lori nodded her head and went into a handstand before quickly swinging her legs to the side. Once again, Lio gently kept hold of her in order to guide her to execute a near picture perfect cartwheel.
"One more time!" Lio cheered her on.
Feeling a bit more confident in herself, Lori executed another cartwheel, this time without any assistance from Lio. Unfortunately for the latter, he ended up standing a bit too close and was inadvertently kicked in the head by Lori, knocking him down and almost out.
"Sorry about that, little brother," Lori said as she helped Lio back up to his feet.
"I think you've got the cartwheel thing down," Lio said, seeing stars swirling around his head. "Let's move on to something else."
The next thing Lio sought to teach Lori was how to do a backflip. Naturally, Lori was very nervous about this following how well her last lesson with Lynn had turned out. Especially when it turned out that Lio had a similar idea of helping her learn. Especially when it turned out that unlike Lynn, Lio also couldn't do a backflip, meaning it was essentially the blind leading the blind. Lio was persistent however and insisted that they at least try.
"Alright, just put your foot in my hands and I'll give you a boost," Lio said.
"I don't know if I wanna do this," Lori said nervously.
"Why not?" Lio asked.
"Because I'd rather not be launched into the stratosphere," Lori deadpanned.
"Lori… I can understand you mistaking me for Lincoln, but I'm unsure as to how you can mix me up with Lynn," Lio retorted. "I'm nowhere near as strong as Lynn."
"Which brings up the possibility of you dropping me on my head," Lori replied.
"Just try and trust me and I promise I won't disappoint you," Lio promised her.
"Do you even have any advice on what I'm supposed to do after you give me a boost?" Lori asked.
"Yeah," Lio said before giving his suggestion. "Swing your arms backwards after leaving the ground, tuck your knees at the peak of your jump, and keep your knees bent as you complete the rotation."
"That sounds like a lot to do," Lori said.
"Don't worry," Lio said. "If anything goes wrong, I'll be there to cushion your fall."
"I'm still not sure about this," Lori said.
"You're never going to make the team if you let fear take over," Lio advised her. "Think about those two witches, do you really want to let them win?"
Lori got a determined look on her face and said "Give me as big a boost as you can!"
"Aye aye, sister!" Lio said, obliging Lori's request and hoisting Lori into the air. Lori took Lio's advice and completed a full rotation. In the process, however, she had forgotten to tuck her knees, resulting in her foot catching Lio under the chin as he was cheering for her.
"Yes! I did it!" Lori cheered. "I can't believe it!" Lori looked down to see Lio gazing up at the sky, a dazed look on his face. "You okay, Lio?"
"Lori, why do you have two heads?" Lio asked before passing out. Once he regained consciousness, he and Lori resumed practice.
By the time Friday had rolled around, Lori felt that she was all ready to go. When she arrived for tryouts, Lori was surprised to see that the routine wasn't nearly as rigorous as it was made out to be. Safe to say, Lori completely crushed the tryouts, her training with Lio and Lynn having paid dividends. Still, Lori would have to wait until Monday before she found out whether she made the team. The next couple of days were some of the most anxious of Lori's life, with the eldest Loud sister biting her nails as she waited to find out the results. When Monday came around, Lori was quick to check out the list detailing who and who hadn't made the team. What Lori saw left her unable to contain her glee.
"Oh my gosh, yes! I did it!" Lori cheered. "This is literally, the happiest moment of my life! I can't believe I made the team!"
"Neither can we," Rebecca scoffed as she and Ashley came to rain on Lori's parade. "What were the coaches thinking putting you on the team?"
"Hey, don't be so harsh," Ashley said. "Every team needs comic relief to make everyone else look good."
Rebecca and Ashley laughed with Rebecca telling Lori "You better not forget who the co-captains are!"
"Yeah, because if you try to upstage us, we'll make sure you regret it!" Ashley snarled.
"This is our team," Rebecca warned. "And we won't let some pathetic little freshman steal our thunder. Especially one whose parents can't keep from getting busy."
"Why you-," Lori snarled, ready to throw punches as she got in the girls' faces.
"Ah ah ah," Ashley mocked her. "No fighting unless you wanna get kicked off the team."
Reluctantly, Lori contained her anger and backed off.
"Good girl," Rebecca said before knocking Lori's books out of her hand and onto the floor before she and Ashley walked off. "See you at the game this Friday."
"Try not to embarrass yourself," Ashley taunted. "Or more importantly us!"
Lori was fuming as she got down to pick up her books. As she was doing so, she received some help from Carol, who looked at her and smiled.
"Ignore them, they're clearly intimidated by you," Carol said as she picked up Lori's math homework and character analysis. "I think it's awesome that you made the team… which is more than I can say for me."
"What do you mean?" Lori asked.
"I didn't make the cut," Carol said sadly before quickly smiling again. "Still, I'm real happy for you and hope that you can show those bullies what you're made of."
"Thanks," Lori said with a smile as she finished gathering her books. Today was turning out to be better than she expected. Not only had she made the cheerleading team, she had finally one upped her rival at something.
Lori couldn't wait to get home and share the news with her family. Upon hearing the news, she received many congratulations from her siblings. Despite her success, she was still anxious about Friday night when the first game rolled around. The last thing she wanted was to make a fool out of herself. Fortunately, she had her family to help her keep her wits about her. Finally, the big night arrived and Lori was ready to show everyone what she had when she received some exciting news from the head coach.
"Alright, Loud, I know you're a freshman, but out of everyone who tried out, you honestly impressed me the most," The coach told her. "For that reason, I'm putting you front and center tonight."
"Oh, thank you thank you thank you!" Lori said, barely able to contain her excitement. "I promise that I won't let you down!"
"I know you won't," The coach said. "Now get out there and slay em'!"
Lori nodded and went out on the field to give the crowd something to remember, not noticing the death glares that Ashley and Rebecca were giving her. As the game went on, Lori did as she was told and wowed the crowd, keeping them energized all throughout the first half. Lynn and Lio in particular we're keeping a close eye on Lori as she performed flips and corkscrews. Both siblings seemed especially proud of her. When halftime rolled around and it was time for the main attraction, Lori was all set and ready to go.
"Alright, here's what I want you to do," The coach instructed Lori. "The rest of the team are going to throw you in the air. I want you to pull off a triple corkscrew backflip, got it?"
"Doesn't seem too hard," Lori said confidently.
"Don't worry about falling, the other girls will catch you," The coach assured her.
"Alright," Lori said, prepping herself up. "I can totally do this."
Lori joined the rest of the team and had full confidence is herself as they picked her up and hurled her as high in the could in the air. Lori completed the corkscrew first before executing three flawless backflips, causing the crowd to become unglued. Their cheers would quickly turned to concerned gasps and stunned silence as Rebecca and Ashley stepped aside, causing the rest of the team to drop Lori on the descent, sending Lori crashing hard onto the ground. Lori had the wind knocked out of her and couldn't even move for a few seconds. Lori looked around dazed and confused, slowly trying to sit up to no avail.
"Oh no, that doesn't look good," One spectator whispered.
"That was quite the nasty fall, is she okay?" Whispered another.
"Is she going to be alright?" Rita asked.
"I don't know," said Leni. "But it looks pretty bad if they're bringing out a stretcher!"
As Lori was carried off the field and back into the locker room, Lio quietly slinked out of his seat and set off to see Lori for himself. Back in the locker room, Lori was starting to recover from the fall and sat up, soreness racking her body. Rebecca and Ashley couldn't help but float over their scheme.
"Wow, Lori, you really dropped the ball out there," Rebecca taunted.
"How could you be so clumsy as to fall like that?" Ashley teased.
"That fall looked like it really hurt," Rebecca said. "Boy, am I glad that I'm not you. I don't know how I would live I embarrassed myself like that."
"I… only fell… because you two intentionally dropped me," Lori accused the two bullies.
"Hey, don't blame us," Ashley said. "We told you not to steal our spotlight."
"But you just had to be selfish," Rebecca said. "Had to make tonight all about you!"
"Well, who's laughing now?" Ashley mocked her. "You'll be lucky if the coach lets you stay on the team after that blunder."
"You'll be lucky if the school doesn't suspend you after what you did!" Lio said, immediately walking over to Lori and asking "Are you okay?"
"Yeah… yeah, I'll be fine," Lori said, wincing as she sat up. "What are you doing here?"
"I saw you take that fall and I wanted to make sure you were alright," Lio answered.
"Awww, isn't this cute?" Ashley teased. "Did you ask your pathetic loser little brother to come lick your wounds?"
"Guess being an embarrassment runs in the family," Rebecca remarked.
"The only embarrassment I see is you," Lio said to the two. "Imagine being so jealous and insecure that you intentionally sabotage someone else in a vain, selfish attempt to keep the spotlight on yourself! Because you know that someone else is better than you and that fact just endlessly eats away at you! Oh wait, you don't have to imagine!"
"Why you little brat!" Rebecca said before rearing back and slapping Lio across the face as hard as she could, knocking the young boy to the ground.
"Lio!" Lori said, kneeling down to check on her little brother.
"Did anyone get the number of that witch?" Lio asked in a state of confusion. Tears welled up in his eyes, there was a raw red handprint on his left cheek and a trail of blood coming from the side of his mouth.
"Little twit should've minded his own business," Ashley said.
Lori snapped and shoved Ashley hard onto the ground before kicking her in the gut.
"What the heck do you think you're doing, you barbarian!?" Rebecca yelled before Lori grabbed her by her hair and slammed her face first into one of the lockers. She then twisted Rebecca's arm behind her back, causing the latter to scream in pain.
"I have had it up to here with your crap!" Lori yelled. "Making fun of me in the halls, knocking my books out of my hands, intentionally dropping me so that I'd get hurt and now slapping my little brother!"
"AHHHH, I'm sorry, let me go!" Rebecca pleaded, prompting Lori to twist her arm even further. "Stop, you psycho before you break my arm!"
"Shut up or I just might!" Lori hissed. "If you ever put your hands on a member of my family again, I'll make sure you end up eating through a straw!"
"Loud!" Lori heard the Head Coach yell, causing her to immediately drop Rebecca to the ground. "What is going on here?"
"Coach, I-," Lori tried to explain.
"I thought that I had made it clear that fighting was strictly prohibited," The Coach said.
"Yes, but-," Lori said.
"No buts!" The Coach said sternly before saying in a sad tone "I'm sorry, Lori, but I'm afraid that I have no choice but to kick you off the team."
"Wait, Coach, please don't!" Lori pleaded.
"I'm truly sorry, Lori, really I am," The Coach said. "But I have no other choice in the matter."
"Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Ashley taunted as she helped Rebecca off the floor.
"Don't think that you two are off the hook either!" The coach told the girls.
"Wait, what?" Both girls asked.
"Don't think that I don't know what you two did," The Coach said. "I saw you two intentionally step out of the way so that the others would drop Lori! Your actions disgust me! As a team, you're supposed to be there for your teammates no matter what!"
"Wait, Coach, you've got it all wrong," Rebecca pleaded.
"No, you've got it wrong," The Coach retorted. "While I take no joy in kicking Lori off the team, after your actions, I couldn't be happier to kick off you two harpies! Now get out of my locker room!"
"That's totally not fair!" The girls screeched, storming out of the locker room.
"I'm really sorry that things worked out the way they did, Lori" The Coach apologized to Lori. "However, I can encourage you to try out for the team again next year."
"Thanks Coach," Lori said, helping a dazed Lio up to his feet before gathering her things and leaving.
As they exited the locker room and head to the bleachers to reunite with their family, Lori crossed paths with someone she hadn't been expecting.
"Oh my gosh, Lori, are you alright?" Bobby asked, gently grabbing a hold of her.
"Heheh, yeah… I'll be alright," Lori said, blushing hard as she talked with her crush. "How did… how did you know my name?"
"I've… I've actually been trying to work up the courage to talk to you for a long time," Bobby admitted. "After I saw what happened out there, I just had to make sure you were alright."
"Oh," Lori said, grinning nervously ear to ear as her face flushed bright red. "Well, I'm fine now, thank you for being concerned."
"I'll just go ahead and leave you two alone," Lio said, leaving to meet back up with the family.
Once they were alone, Bobby asked "I know this might sound sudden, but do you think that we could maybe go out for drinks tomorrow or something?"
"I'd love to," Lori said nervously.
"Oh, well that's okay, I-," Bobby said before double taking. "Wait, what?"
"I said I'd love to go out with you," Lori said.
"Oh, r-r-really?" Bobby asked, blushing just as hard as Lori. "Well, that's great, I'll see you tomorrow."
"It's a date," Lori said, smiling at him.
"Yeah, I know, that's how days work," Bobby said nervously. Lori only smiled more, she could tell she was going to enjoy his company with how innocent he seemed. "Well, I'd love to talk more, but I've gotta get back to my little sister. Make sure that she doesn't get into any trouble."
"I guess tonight wasn't so bad after all," Lori said to herself as she walked back to meet her family in the bleachers.
"Man, even when I was young, I was still ruining things," Lio muttered. "I honestly still feel bad I got you kicked off the team."
"You didn't get me kicked off the team," Lori said. "Besides, if I'm being honest, I didn't even enjoy being a cheerleader that much. I was just trying to make a splash during my freshman year."
"Still, leave it to me to get into trouble," Lio said.
"If it weren't for you and Lynn, I literally wouldn't have made the team in the first place," Lori pointed out. "And if it weren't for what happened that night, Bobby might not have never worked up the courage to talk to me."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Lio said, cracking a small smile for the first time since this meeting had began.
"Whatever happened to those girls anyway?" Leni asked. "Ashley and Rebecca?"
"Last I heard, they were kicked out of college for cheating on an exam and plagiarizing their finals essay," Lori said with a shrug.
"Honestly serves them right," Luna said. "I remember hearing horror stories about them from other students after they graduated."
"Yeah, they were literally the worst," Lori said before asking "So, who's next?"
"I think I have a story to share," Leni said. "This one may not be as wholesome as the others, but it's still stayed with me after all these years…"