This is my 10th chapter to this story. I came up with most of this after a nice small nap, but I would like to thank longtime friend RawToonage Press for the Harriet's reason idea. Enjoy guys.
Family of two.
Chapter 10. Elderly of the family.
(The Loud House.)
The kitchen sounds busy and it seems they are having a good time with the new renovations to the place. Right now, Lincoln and Luna are making some pizza with the new brick oven that has been installed. But they are not alone in making it and I don't mean Great Grandma Harriet.
Lincoln gets some mushrooms from the large double door refrigerator and he hands them to Luna. "Here you go mom." He then goes over and helps with the dough.
"Thank you sweetie." Luna finishes stirring the sauce and she brings the pack of sliced mushrooms to the sink and she rinses them. "This'll go well with the sauce and double as toppings as well." She then places them into the pot and stirs. "How's the pizza doing over there guys?"
"We're having a blast tossing and kneading the dough!" said Lincoln as he helps tossing it into the air.
"There yo go kiddo, that's the stuff right there" replied Pop-pop as he tosses his dough. "But try not to make it stick to the ceiling, otherwise this'll remind me of the time I failed to make pizza back in the army. It did not end well for me and my pals, and the major too." They all chuckle hearing that.
They then finish making the dough and the pizza sauce, they then place the sauce onto the pizza and the sliced pepperoni, bacon bits, cheese and olives and they place it into the brick over. Both pizzas in the brick over, Pop-pop makes sure there is enough fire wood and Luna sets the timer.
"Alright, once this thing dings then it's time to enjoy what we all made, or how Pop-pop would say it the spoils of war!" said Luna, she then helps them clean up the place and they all chuckle at what she said.
"Well it sure is nice to be spending some time with you two here, and making pizza as well" chuckled Pop-pop as he wipes the table. "I came to the right time for this."
"You did Pop-pop" Lincoln tosses the left over stuff into the trash can. "We could do this like, a once a month thing. Maybe next month we can make something else, like the inside out spaghetti and meatballs."
Luna then dries the pot and puts it into the cabinet. "Sounds good Lincoln. We still have the cook book and it has lots of food to make, we can use some of the good stuff in there for when Pop-pop comes over."
"Awesome" replied Lincoln and Pop-pop.
They all take a seat onto the three chairs and the large kitchen table, Luna serves them up some lemonade. Pop-pop then looks around the place once again. "I gotta admit, this whole renovation to the house is something, a shame I wasn't around to help out. I was busy back at Sunset Canyon with some shuffle board bet with Scoots and there was no way to heck that I was gonna let her have all of my pudding for the rest of the week, no sir!"
"Did you win Pop-pop?" asked Lincoln as he drinks his lemonade.
"Yeah, did the geezer of the shuffle board deck show that lady who was the boss?" asked Luna.
"Sure did kiddo, and I gave it to her and she regrets it" replied Pop-pop. But I am a good sport and I decided to let her only have one pudding per day, she took it with strode and she said I earned her respect, again."
"Well, I should be honest with you Pop-pop" said Luna. She then looks at the kitchen. "The renovations to this place was not what Lincoln and I expected, we didn't even know that Great Grandma Harriet got our friends and loved ones to be part of this, this was too much and it seemed a little over the top too."
Pop-pop smiled. "Well, be greatful they did this for you two. You two need this, a home that won't be a wreck and won't make life here a bit hard."
"You're not wrong Pop-pop." Lincoln looks to the timer. "No creaking floor boards, no loose doorknobs, no slanty floors, no holes in the bathroom floor, no broken down door knobs and no opossums coming in and chewing the wires, it sure is nice to see the old place look as food as she was from before."
"You are right Lincoln, this place is better than how we lived here" replied Luna. "I can't believe I fainted from seeing the place, and right as we finished coming back from visiting Leni."
"Speaking of which." Pop-pop sighs. "How is … How is Leni by the way?"
Lincoln and Luna knows he wants to know how the sweet hearted blonde teenage girl was doing, the girl who Lincoln and Luna would still see as family. "She's doing fine, as it turns out she had a tumor and never got the proper checkup from Rita and Lynn Sr. the tumor was damaging the learning part of her brain, therefore making her who she is."
Pop-pop is in shock hearing this. 'Oh Rita, what have you done? Why didn't you and Lynn see this?!'
Lincoln then speaks up. "But, she is improving now, with the tumor gone she's learning and making good strides in advancing and trying to get to the point where she can be cleared to leave. Mom and I told her we decided to let her stay there for only a year, she seemed capable of finishing her sentence and regain her lost knowledge through that time. But she said she would wait until she feels like it's time, she wanted to help the other people there who also needed to try and regain who they are and try and rejoin human society. I guess the kind hearted Leni is still there. She even came up with her own last name."
Pop-pop smiled. "Well, at least she's doing her best and I'm proud of her. Are you two planning on visiting the others anytime soon?"
"Well, next year around January we're planning to go and see how Luan is" replied Luna. "We wanna see how well she's doing after all of this has happened."
Pop-pop then looks to both of them. "This …. This new life you two are having, I can tell that you two are trying your hardest to try and get through this. I know too, because I myself am trying to adjust, it's not easy just seeing two of my grandkids, and one is now the mom and the other is officially her son. This stuff with approved contracts is new to me, but I am proud to the both of you, ever since Luna held Lincoln when he was a baby, I knew something good was gonna happen between the two of you and look at you two now. Living the new life as a mom and son."
"Thanks Pop-pop" replied Lincoln and Luna.
"But you two have to understand, that there will be a time when you two will have to come in terms with the rest of the family who's still locked up. I know you two seem less happy to try and make amends with them, but at least give them a shot when they're done with their sentence. Deep down you two are disappointed at them for what they did to Lincoln, I am too. But let them have their time to think about what they've done and maybe things will be clear when the time is right, no one can stay mad at someone forever" replied Pop-pop/
Lincoln and Luna know what he meant, even though they were the ones who were responsible for bringing all of this and shattering the family, deep down Lincoln and Luna know that the family are feeling bad for making this happen. All of them.
"We'll try and find a way to talk to them Pop-pop" said Lincoln. "As best we can."
"We are both planning on lightening their sentences to at least give the time they need to adjust back into life and then we can gather them all so we can all talk things through" replied Luna. "That was the plan Lincoln and I and some other friends agreed on."
Pop-pop smiled. He knew his words of wisdom would help them. Then he realizes there was one person who isn't even there, someone he hasn't seen in a long, long time. "So, where is she? Where's my mo ….. Harriet at?"
"Hello Albert." Pop-pop gets startled by her sudden presence.
"Jeez! Still as the same as I remembered" Pop-pop holds to his chest, he was that close to getting a heart attack.
Harriet sees this and she puts the basket of dry laundry onto the ground and goes over to him, and so does Lincoln. "Are you alright? You're not going to die yet are you? I am so sorry for appearing like that again, it's just in my nature as I was when I was still living."
"Mom and I also have been getting some startling appearances from her, it's not easy to get used to" replied Lincoln. Luna also agrees to this.
"No need guys" Pop-pop takes a deep breath. "Look, I'm still kicking and sure as heck I ain't going away anytime soon, so there's no need to worry."
Harriet sighs and picks up the basket of dry clothes. "Please don't say that, it makes me feel uncomfortable that you're here and I am as well." They then hear the timer ding.
"Pizzas done!" cheered Lincoln.
Luna the opens the brick oven, and with Pop-pop's help they get the two pizzas out and they place them onto the two large round plates. Lincoln brings the lemonade and three plates to the dining room, with Luna and Pop-pop following him with the two plates with the large pizzas. Harriet brings the clothes into the living room and she uses her ghostly magic to make the clothes fold themselves while she goes over to the dining room and sits with them on the far side of the table.
All three of them look to the two delicious pizzas, both of them have pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, and cheese and bacon bits. "Okay guys, let's dig in!" said Luna. They each grab a slice and a glass of nice cold lemonade.
"Mmmm, this is so good!" said Lincoln, he then takes another bite.
"I gotta admit, better than any pizza I ever had!" replied Pop-pop as he takes another slice.
"Really good, maybe we can save some for later for dinner" said Luna as she drinks her lemonade.
Pop-pop then sees Harriet looking at them. "Umm, sorry is this rude? I know you're a ghost and all and I wanna know if seeing us eat is offending you?"
Harriet looks to Albert. "No, no it is not. I already lived my life as a human and enjoyed the times I had while I was still thriving on this god forsaken place, though the old times were a bit cruel and also unruly. The times here seem a bit less and also a bit more." Lincoln and Luna had no idea what to even say to that.
But then Luna asked her. "Great Grandma Harriet, I understand why you would do those changes to this house and that this place was once your home. But, how come you never wanted to change it before?"
Harriet then thinks about it. "That is an answer even I cannot answer, perhaps I was confused and was too occupied by my role in maintain hold of the family. To make sure all member of the Loud House would stay together and keep each other from drifting apart, also to the fact those two people who called themselves parents said that they could do the fixings themselves, but clearly they cannot."
Lincoln and Luna do recall that one, whether it was trying to fix the TV antennae, fix the issue with the internet, fix the air conditioning, fixing the bathroom problems, the door knobs, the garage door, the leak in the basement and a lot of other things, but the one thing Lynn Sr and Rita fixed themselves, the floor boards that keep braking. They never once called a professional to do the job, why? It would be expensive. So, I guess that is a good and stupid reason.
"Is that why you're still here and not moving on Great Grandma Harriet?" asked Lincoln. "From what I learned about ghosts, is that they have an unfinished business and when you said you wanted the family to stay close and never fall apart, was that you're unfinished business?"
Harriet look down in sadness and then she looks to Lincoln. "Yes, yes that was my business. It was to see if the family was capable of dealing with each other, and try and stay as the large family of 13 as they were meant to be. But, when the whole bad luck fiasco started, I saw the family fall apart. Even though you did one small lie, they were the ones who pushed it too far and I did not like that. It was wrong and ill minded and the parents ….. They were ingrates to even believe in such luck! I know that ghosts can be through belief because they are the embodiment of who we were before, but luck is an illusion, an illusion that tore the family apart and I hated them for it! That is why I brought nightmares into Lucy's thoughts when they saw they're error and the law came to them, that is why I striked fear into them when they were under house arrest, I made sure they knew I was here, the former owner of the house and the one who was well-known by Lucy! I was ashamed and felt like a failure for what they have done to Lincoln and Luna, for what they did to the family that I was supposed to keep an eye on and protect."
Lincoln, Luna and Pop-pop felt bad for her, she tried to keep the family together, but failed. Luna also feels her pain.
"But then you two came back, the two of you came back and I heard that Luna had become the mother through legal rights and Lincoln was now under her custody. That gave me a new reason, a reason to stay and a reason to have hope, hope that this will be the small family that could spark a next generation to see just how important family truly means, it was then I realized that my ethereal form was a little less in the existence and I was able to reveal myself to the two of you, I got stronger as the two of you have learned to adapt and be there for each other, and I am proud to the both of you and I am glad to call the two of you my greatest descendants to the blood line."
Lincoln and Luna drop their pizzas onto the plate and are shocked, they are the very reason why she still lingers, why she remains and why she wants to show herself to them. They are her new unfinished business. They should feel like a burden to her, but now they feel as if they were glad they gave her some hope into seeing things and its brighter side.
"Well, we're glad you're here with us too Great Grandma Harriet" replied Lincoln.
"IT sure is nice to see some good old family still living with us and helping us with this life of ours, thank you so much" replied Luna.
Harriet smiles. "Anytime." She then looks to Albert. "Son, I can tell that you're feeling on edge from my very presence. What seems to be the problem?"
Pop-pop sighs and then looks to her. "I'm sorry, it's just. You're here, you're actually here! The woman ….. The woman who raised me and made me and Ruth what we are now. I don't even know what to say! I don't even know how to come to this new stuff, and then I also realized you have been watching the family and whenever I visit."
"It is true, I have been observing you when you came here and interacted with all the louds in the house. I was pleased that you were able to spend with all of them. It reminded me of the times I would visit you and Marie and you're daughter Rita, though she seemed very shy to me whenever I visited, and I know it's because of my dark and brooding nature, and also because my eyes are always hidden and I would pop out of nowhere and startle someone to a close heart attack situation."
Pop-pop chuckles. "You're not wrong. You always came up with some small talk about stairs from your old days, and some of them were a bit not right for kids." Both Pop-pop and Harriet chuckle at that.
Lincoln and Luna smile at this, they can see Albert, the man who was the son of Harriet and Great Grandma Harriet, the woman who was once Albert's mom. It looked like they had a …. Bond between them, a mother and son bond. Some part of Lincoln and Luna think, this is another reason why Harriet stayed. She sees herself in Luna and some part of Albert within Lincoln. Though Luna didn't quite get some of it, she doesn't even look like Lucy.
They soon finish up eating and then place the left over pizza in the fridge. Luna then sees Pop-pop and Lincoln watching some TV and laughing at the show. Luna picks up the basket filled with folded clothes and she heads upstairs.
When she reaches her room, she sees Great Grandma Harriet sitting on the bed side and looking at the picture of Lincoln and Luna.
Luna sits next to her. "What was Pop-pop like back then?"
Harriet smiles. "In a way, almost like Lincoln. He was smart, funny, liked having an adventure and did whatever he could to see things alright and planned it all ahead. So in some way, Albert is the other reason why you did planning when you were little, and why Lincoln also is deemed the name "The man with the plan" Albert and I did share some common grounds. He would help me with my books, he would help me cook and of course help me sort out any trouble that was going on within this house, I didn't have much in common with Ruth, she was her own person and seemed more of the kind of girl who would look for someone she could lean onto for some needed help and attention, like she seems to still be right now. She may ve the eldest, but she wasn't quite the great big sister figure for Albert and she seemed more to rely on his ability to plan and fix things, though like me we like cats and avoiding most people we don't like at all, and I fear that you two could get into some serious trouble should she ask you two to visit her again."
Luna then places her hand onto Harriet's. "Should that come around, then I'll make sure she understand that we are not going to be doing some of the stuff she wants us to do. She has to learn how to do it herself and I know she's old and all, but she could at least call for some nursing help, otherwise she could lose her home and her cats. I feel bad that she is like this, but I will not hesitate to report to the police for the food she has in her home, I am not going to let her killi my son through expired food. You have my word."
Harriet smiles and hugs Luna. "We're both mothers who try our best to keep the family together."
Luna hugs her back. "Always." They were both on the same agenda, they both know what to do and they both are mothers to white haired boys who they share a bond with.
A/N: I came up with the choice of making Great Grandma Harriet the mother of Pop-pop/Albert from a deviantart by EddyX. I also want to thank RawToonage Press once again for giving me the idea of Harriet's reason to be still with them, and it was best to tell it with Pop-pop there as well. Leave a review and tell me what you all think.
Also, happy 10th chapter! Should I even be celebrating about this?
Date made: 5/16/20.