Back at the Loud residence, Lisa stirred from her nap as her eyes slowly fluttered open. She could barely see anything without her glasses but she already knew that she wasn't in her room. The bed she was laying on was different than the bed she was used to, it was more softer and comfortable that she was tempted to stay there longer. But there is something preventing her from doing so, something that keep scolding her for being so ignorance. What was it? She tried thinking back to what she was doing before she got here. It was still a little bit blurry for her to remember in her current state. The sleep she had indulged herself earlier is still affecting her thought process.
Lisa sat on the bed and softly rubbed the sleep from her eyes, letting a yawn escaped from her lips. She looked around for her glasses, her hands patting over the bed until her finger reached the spectacle on the desk. She didn't remember putting it there. Once her vision became clearer with the help of the glasses, she took a deep breath and concentrated for the reason why she was sleeping in her brother room. She wanted to see him about something, but what was it?
Then, her body froze, its all coming back to her like a hurricane of emotions. Her eyes widened at the realization flooding her anxious mind. She had fallen asleep in the middle of her experiment, instead of being in her room to observe the activation of the device like she supposed to. How long she had been unconscious, it can't be that long. Lisa didn't even look for the time as she jumped from the bed, almost stumbling, opened the door and rushed out from the room. Her heart is pounding faster against her chest, her mind kept shouting at her for being so reckless. She went down the hallway and stopped infront her room. She gasped, the metal door she had installed was lying on the floor, only increasing her fear.
Lisa entered her room and her heart instantly dropped. Her eyes wide open to see the bad condition of what used to be her room. She almost couldn't recognize the place if not for the fact that she lived in there. Her bed, her closet, her shelves of lab instrument, all of them were destroyed, leaving little to none trace of them even being there in the first place. What could have caused these? It took a moment before it registered to her.
The device! she turned her head to where the machine supposed to be, only to see a pile of broken metal and mechanical parts lying on the floor. Her voice caught in her throat in a weak attempt of a whimper. Her right hand reached for the metal, stopped midway, and dropped to her side. She clenched her small fists, almost drawing blood from her soft palms. Her teeth gritted as a sob escaped from her lips. She sniffled and her eyes blinked repeatedly, preventing the tears that threatened to well in them. How could this happen? She had already took a lot of precautious measures just to make sure this would work. Then why isn't she getting the result that she wanted. Was she cursed to never get anything right? No! She is a woman of science, there is no way she would believe such nonsense.
The first drop of tears escaped the corner of her right eye and ran down her cheek.
She should've stayed in her room, none if this would happened if she stayed in there. This is all her fault, she was the one that kept ruining her own career. She would only be teased by her colleagues if they see her like this, grieving yet for another of her failed creation.
"I'm glad that you are finally awake Lisa." A familiar voice said in a calm tone.
The brown haired girl turned around and the sight of her white haired older brother filled her watery eyes beneath her glasses. He wore a white labcoat over his orange t-shirt, blue jeans and a pair of white sneakers with three blue stripes on either sides of it.
Seeing the tears flowing down her soft cheek, his eyes dropped slightly from meeting her sad gaze. Silence filled the air between them as Lincoln walked towards her, kneeled down and brought the girl closer into his embrace, softly hugging her.
"I'm sorry, this is all my fault." Lincoln said in a low voice. He could feel her body fidgeted in his arms afterwards, trying to get out. With a sigh, he let her go and looked at her confused face.
"W-what do you mean?" Lisa asked, taking a step back, her lips quivered just like her voice.
"I didn't mean it to be like this, your device would've work fine if I didn't come here earlier." He lowered his head, still kneeling on the floor. He didn't need to look up to know that she was glaring at him.
"What did you do?" Her voice slightly changed. More demanding than asking.
"I came to check on you earlier and your door was open, I went in but you're not in here." He paused and breathed in deeply, aware of the angered girl staring at him. "When I tried to get out, I tripped on one of the wires and fell to the floor, it must have triggered a reaction that made the device malfunc-" A slightly painful sensation struck the surface of his cheek, stopping him from finishing his sentence. He was shocked but not that much since he was already expecting it. He looked up and sure enough Lisa is looking at him with a hateful glare. She gritted her teeth and clenched her sore palm in anger, her body shaking with the increasing amount of rage consuming her rational conscience. And finally, she lashed out at him with the fury of a young girl having her dream crushed infront of her.
"Do you know how much I had put just to make this work, all the efforts that I had put into this!" She screamed.
He knows.
"Do you understand what I had been through just to get this far, the sacrifice that I needed to make!"
He hoped he does.
"D-do you understand the pain of seeing all your hardwork being wasted like its worth nothing, d-do you understand what I'm feeling right now!" Her screaming interrupted by her increasing sob and tears.
He wished that he understand, he wished that he could feel that pain for her. He wished for her to stop crying and let him be the one having all those pain instead. He hoped for anything just so his sister would feel better. But, it didn't work like that. Wishing won't fix anything, action speaks louder than word, he will fix this, like he always does.
"Leave me! I don't want to see your face!" Lisa shouted, pointing at her fallen door.
Sighing, Lincoln stood up and wiped the dust from his labcoat. "Sorry but I can't do that right now, I need your help." He looked at her with a blank face, his eyes half lidded and his lips a thin line. Her glare returned to him but he wasn't fazed by it.
"Why should I help you, I don't even want you to be anywhere near me right now!" She lashed.
"Unfortunately, that explosion didn't only destroyed everything in your room but also did something else." He stated.
"What could be worse than this!" Lisa inquired.
"You would be surprised."
Among the tombstones lining randomly in the cemetary, a girl could almost be mistaken as one with how still she is standing, not moving from her petrified state. Inches away from her face was the face of her white haired brother who is hanging upside down from a low branch sticking out from the tree. His cold blue eyes staring at her as if he could see her secured eyes behind her bangs, and deeper into her soul. If her bangs isn't there, he would definitely see her wide eyes staring back at him in shock. She looked at him in silence as her older brother swiftly let himself down on his feets with a spin over the branch. Now that he is properly in her vision, she couldn't help but noticed a few different things about her usually cheerful brother. He wore a black t-shirt with black and white striped long sleeves, black pants and white sneakers with three black stripes on either sides of it. If that wasn't weird enough, he was sporting a black choker around his neck. Her cheek slightly reddened at the almost unbelievable sight before her. It was definitely unusual for him to be wearing these kind of clothing.
Lincoln's eyes narrowed when he felt a weird sensation running through his body. A sense of deja vu, how weird is that. He glanced at the younger girl, and sure enough he could already tell where the feeling was coming from.
"Can you stop staring at me, I can feel your gaze." He said, breaking the girl from her trance as she shook a little. With a sigh, he started heading towards the direction she was coming from, walking on the dirt trail with a few patches of grass sprouting out from the crack on the ground. Out of her stupor, Lucy followed him until she was walking in the same pace by his side.
"What are you doing here, I thought you're going to stay at home until the others get back?" She asked, ending the silence between them.
His eyes narrowed yet again, did he already have this conversation before, not that he can remember, but it felt somehow familiar. "I'm just taking some fresh air, l'm going to head back home after this." He answered, his hands shoved into his pants pockets.
"What's with the clothes, it isn't like you to be wearing something like this," She placed her hands behind her back.
"This is only for temporary, so you don't need to worry about it." He replied, dimissing her hopeful thought.
"Oh, what's a shame, you looks good in black." She lowered her head as her heart skipped a beat faster. What is wrong with her, she needs to keep her emotions in check before she did anymore damage.
"Thanks, you look good as always." He responded, getting her attention for a moment. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it when Lincoln suddenly stopped infront a tombstone, the same tombstone she was at earlier.
Lucy watched as he lowered himself on one knee and placed his right hand on the head of the cold stone. He took in a deep breath and slowly let them out from his mouth.
"Sigh, hi great grandma Harriet, I'm sorry that I can't visit you much often, time has been nice with our family, though a new problem also rise from it." He whispered, his left hand reaching into his left pocket, taking out a stick of red rose and placing it down on the ground. "Thought you would like this, I hope I can come here again soon," He said, his eyes closed and a small smile plastered on his face. "Its always nice to be here."
Lucy looked at him, almost couldn't believe that he is the same brother that she knew her entire life. Why did he suddenly become like this, what could possibly happen that changed him so much in a day. Its almost like she was looking at a different person entirely, but deep down in her heart she knew it was still him, he still have that certain trait that only people close with him would noticed. She never saw this part of her brother before and its intrigued her. Perhaps, there is more about him that she don't know about, side of him that he kept hidden, but why would he showed it now?
Not that Lucy was bothered by his changes, like she said, he looks really good in black.
Lincoln stood up, took a deep breath, and started his way out of the cemetary with Lucy still following him.
"I didn't know you used to come here before?" She lifted her head.
Lincoln spared a glance at her before looking back to the front. "Its been awhile since the last time I visited that I almost can't remember exactly when it was, before the summer ends, I wanted to at least come here even if only for once." He replied, his head lowered slightly.
"Sigh, why can't you come here just like you used to before?" She asked. "Great grandma Harriet would be much happier to see more of us visiting her."
"Wish I could, but if I'm not helping you, I'm helping the others with their own activities," Lincoln sighed. "With the scarce time I had left, I barely get to do anything else without sacrificing my own needs."
He stopped walking when he realized his sister was no longer by his side. Turning around, his eyes were met by the sight of Lucy standing still with her head hung low. He raised a brow and his lips stayed no wider than a thin straight line. Realizing what he just said earlier, he ran his hand through his white hair in frustration.
Lucy slightly shrieked when he placed his hand on her head. "You don't need to feel bad about it Lucy." He said.
"But... you're not wrong," She sighed. "If it were not because of us, you would have more time for yourself, to do things that you like."
"Yeah, I can't argue with that," He admitted. "I can ignore all of you when you ask for help from me if I wanted to..." He paused.
"...But then, can I still call myself your brother if I did so." He playfully pushed her head down before retracting his hand to his side.
Lucy lifted her head as her brother started walking again with his back facing her. "Besides, great grandma Harriet would be mad at me if I chose to come here instead of helping all of you." He said, glancing over his shoulder. "So are you going to stay here or get back home with me?" He asked.
Lucy quickened her pace and walked by his side, still quiet as her mind were occupied with the thought of her different brother. She don't know what is actually happening to him, but she wanted to know the answer for it. "I'm coming with you." She responded as Lincoln slightly nodded at her. They headed home together with the same silence keeping them company.
After half an hour of walking, they arrived af their house as Lincoln opened the door and stepped into the living room with Lucy. "I'm back." He announced in boredom. It was quiet in the house, indicating that their sisters aren't back yet which confused the goth girl. Lincoln would never leave Lily alone in the house unless there is someone watching after the baby, and with Lisa busy with whatever she was making in her room, she can't think of anyone else that could do that. Then why would he left the house if he knew that?
Soon after, the front door opened again as they turned around to greet the upcoming Louds.
"Forget the burger, you owed me an explanation Lincoln, who is this guy you're talking about..." The voice of Lynn reached them, followed by the figure of their older sister. Lynn turned her head and raised a brow when she saw her brother and Lucy standing infront of her, not to mention the weird clothes he is wearing. "Lincoln how did you get in first, I thought you're still behind me, and what's with the clothes?" She asked.
"What are you talking about? Lincoln has been with me for awhile now." Lucy replied, her confusion increasing.
"I just got back from Burpin Burger with him, I even paid for our foods." Lynn reasoned.
"Thanks for paying the burger Lynn, I didn't realize I forgot my wallet when I left the house earlier." A new voice said, followed by an identical sigh from the same yet different person.
"I should've known you would go to her." Lincoln sneered with a slight glare which none of them noticed.
When the last person entered the house, the girls eyes widened in shock to see two Lincoln standing across each other. Lynn and Lucy stared as their brothers exchanged a few words that they barely recognized with the shock and confusion still filling their minds. Neither could comprehend what is happening infront of them right now. It was unbelievable, impossible and certainly weird.
"What a coincidence, I thought you would take longer before coming back home." Third Lincoln said with a small smile. "Where did you go anyway?" He asked.
"It's none of your business." Second Lincoln replied, his glare hardened.
"Wow! What's with the hostility, did I do something wrong?" Third Lincoln took a step back, geniunely confused.
Second Lincoln clicked his tounge and gritted his teeth, restraining himself from saying what he has in mind. Instead, he dimissed the topic and calmed himself as to not bring it any further. He hoped his other self had already found a way to fix this, he don't know if he can keep himself together for a long time.
"Ah! I see that you're all finally back with some of our sisters, what a fortunate situation." Another similiar male voice could be heard coming from the bottom step of the stairs.
Lynn and Lucy turned their head and sure enough another different clothing Lincoln is standing there with a shocked Lisa beside him.
"Please say that you already know how to fix this, I don't want to be here any longer." Second Lincoln walked towards him.
"I do, but it would be better to discuss about it when the rest of our sisters are here." First Lincoln replied.
"Why do we need to wait for them, you said you know how to fix this, to fix us." Second Lincoln inquired.
"I do know how to fix this, but I didn't know how much time it would take me to get it done," First Lincoln answered. "To make it safe, I needs to tell the other about it and see if I can reach an agreement with them."
"So, you're saying that we will be here for a long period of time." He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"You can say it like that," He shrugged.
They both jerked when third Lincoln appeared between them and wrapped his arms behind their shoulders. "Calm down dudes, it can't be that bad," He said cheerfully.
"Sigh, its already is." Second Lincoln groaned.
"Okay! I've had enough with this nonsense, what the actual hell is happening here!" Lynn screamed, breaking her younger sisters from their trances. They looked at the three boys huddled together as they stared back at them. Silence filled the air as tension slowly rising in the room at the lack of answer being given.
"Leni, you're not supposed to park Vanzilla or literally any vehicles like that," Their oldest sister, Lori said as footsteps could be heard nearing the front door.
"I'm sorry Lori, like I still can't understand which thingy I need to press so Vanzilla would stop moving." The second eldest sister, Leni apologized.
"Say that to Mr Grouse mailbox that you just ran over earlier." Luan chuckled.
"Okay." Leni turned around only to be stopped by Luna who slowly shook her head.
"That's not nice dude." Luna's eyes narrowed at her roommate. "Besides Lana already told us that she would fix that mailbox for ol Grouse."
"You better be getting it done before tommorrow Louds!" The old neighbor yelled from his window.
"Sure, Mr Grouse!" Lana shouted back. "How strong is his hearing anyway?" She whispered just to be cautios.
"Don't know, don't care, now step away!" Lola shoved her way past them. "I have a tea party to attend to." She held her chest high with her white gloved hand swaying her blonde hair, spreading some glitters that she hid in them.
Once she stepped into the living room, she immediately halted at the sight before her. The rest of the sisters that arrived after her also did the same when they saw the three similar figures standing in their living room. They all have the same features like their brother except for the different clothes they were wearing.
Breaking herself from her shocked state, Lori narrowed her eyes and glanced around until her gaze landed on her spectacled younger sister. "Lisa. Explain!" She ordered.
After a few minutes of getting the sisters comfortable in the living room, Lisa stood up infront the couch with first Lincoln by his side, much to her annoyance and irritation. But she knew deep down in her heart, there is still a slight appreciation that she held close for him.
Lori is sitting in the middle of the couch with Leni, Luan on her right side and Lola, Lana by her left side. Luna sat on one of the armrest as Lynn stood by her side with her arms crossed. As for Lucy, she sat between Second and third Lincoln on the floor. Their eyes were all locked to the two siblings standing infront of them.
"Now, mind explaining what literally happened to Lincoln?" Lori massaged her temples in frustration.
Lisa fixed the round glasses on her nose and let out a sigh. "As you might already know, I've been indulging myself with a new experiment since the start of summer, an experiment that took a lot of time and effort just to be operated," She sighed as first Lincoln lowered his gaze.
"As of a repercussion when the device malfunctioned due to a variable that I didn't thought well enough, our elder brother was caught in the explosion that divided his cells into a few new copies of himself with different psychology." Lisa explained.
"Can someone else explain what she just said but easier to understand?" Lana asked, having the same look of confusion like most of her sisters.
"Well, she was saying that the device probably destroyed his main body but also creating a few Lincolns based on his different interests." Lynn said with a shrug, shocking all of them.
"Wait, you understand what she is saying?" Lola asked with a brow raised.
"What, I'm just gussing," Lynn replied.
"Actually Lynn, you're right." Said Lisa.
"Wow Lynn, I'm impressed." Third Lincoln showed a thumb up.
"But what kind of device that could have cause this?" Lori asked. Lisa opened her mouth to respond but was quickly interrupted by first Lincoln.
"It was a teleportation device." He said as Lori returned her gaze back from him to the young scientist.
"And what was a dangerous device like that doing in this house!?" The small girl squeked under her oldest sister glare. Lisa closed her eyes, waiting for the torrent of yelling from her sisters only to slowly open them back when she received none. Lori's gaze was no longer on her but at the first Lincoln standing infront of her.
"As part of her explanation earlier, I'm the one that caused the explosion to happen in the first place, if I didn't mess with her stuff, her device would have work perfectly fine like its supposed to." He stated, defending the spectacled girl behind him.
"How do you know that?" Lori asked, her glare hardened.
"Because I'm the one who has been helping her with the creation of the device, although I don't know what it was at first, it shouldn't have cause any harm to anyone with proper care, it was my own fault for not being careful enough while in the perimeter of the device." He reasoned.
Lisa lowered her head at the misinformation he was telling, not caring to correct him either. She was scared of her sisters being mad at her that she kept her mouth shut for her own benefit, letting her brother carry all the burden and blame for her, like he always does. Isn't that what she sees in her brother, an escape for every mistake she has ever made and will in the future.
"If you wanted to blame anyone, I will be taking all the responsiblity for this matter and that is final." He said louder than he intended to.
Lori held her glare for a moment before finally sighing in defeat after seeing that he was not intimidated by her. He is different than the Lincoln that she knew, but he is still her younger brother. And if she knew anything about her brother, he isn't the kind of person that would give up that easy without having a backup plan and another backup plan for the first one. "If you said so, since you already admitted your fault, I guess we can move onto the next subject." Lori crossed her arms. "We have less than a week before mom and dad get back from their vacation, so how do you plan to fix this?" She asked, her right leg folded over the other. If she was right, he already have this think through.
"I can solve this problem..." First Lincoln stated. "...But, I can't do it alone." The spectacled girl lifted her head behind him. "It takes weeks for Lisa to get the device working, I can't assure you that I can get it done in less time without her help." He explained.
"I should've tell mom and dad about this, but I don't want to disturb their vacation since it was a rare luxury for them." Said Lori. "So Lincoln, Lisa, can I trust both of you with this." She seriously asked, her blue eyes never leaving them.
"But..." Lisa spoke as first Lincoln turned around to look at her.
"Lisa, if this has anything to do with your disatisfaction towards him, I want you to put them aside for now, I may not competely understand what is happening but getting Lincoln back together should be our priority right now, even you should know that." Lori said.
"I know," Lisa sighed. "You can count on us to fix this, i will give my full cooperation until we get this done." She lowered her head.
"Good, i can't take more of this nonsense." Lori groaned. "Anyone wants to add anything?"
"I have a question!" Lana raised her right hand.
"What is it Lana?" The oldest sister asked.
"Lincoln!" Lana called.
"Yes?/ Yeah?/ What is it?"The brothers asked while looking at her.
"See! That's what I meant, how should we call them, they're all Lincoln!" Lana pointed out.
"Huh, you actually asked a good question for once," Lola commented.
"What do you mean by that!?" Lana growled at her younger twin with a glare.
"Cut it out dudettes, now that Lana had mentioned it, I think it would be a bother if we don't know how to identify and keep mistaking them." Luna agreed while preventing her younger sisters from starting another fight.
Luan looked at them, inspecting their different styles of clothing and snapped her fingers when an idea popped in her mind. She pointed her index finger at the Lincoln wearing the labcoat. "Smart Linc," Then to the Lincoln sporting a black choker. "Goth Linc" And lastly to the Lincoln having a band aid over his jawline. "And Jock Linc," She cheerfully suggested.
"Wow Luan how original, not stereotypical at all." Lynn groaned in annoyance.
"Hey, if you have a better way to call them, you don't see me stopping you" Luan snarled. Lynn stayed quiet and turned her head away at her older sister remark. She can't think of anything better either to address their brothers.
"Actually, I don't have any problem with Luan suggestion." Smart Linc said, receiving a confused look from most of his sisters. "I think it was unnecassary to change our name too much since it would only make it harder for us to get used with it, so adding our personalities into the equation should be sufficient enough, what about you goth Linc?" He looked at his counterpart, asking for his opinion.
"I don't mind, its only for temporary after all," Goth Linc shrugged. "When this is over, none of this would matter anymore." He turned his head away with disinterest.
"Well, Jock Linc sounds good to me," Jock Linc cheerfully smiled.
"I guess that settles that then," Lori clapped her hands. "Since things are done here, I'm going to be in my room and stay in bed for awhile, I'm literally having a headache right now just thinking about this." She sighed tiredly.
"Wait!" Leni screamed as she instantly stood up, startling most of her sibling. She counted her white haired brothers with her fingers and raised a brow while looking around. "Like where is Lily?" She asked, her index finger touched her chin.
The sisters eyes widened at the realization of their youngest sister not being in the room with them. Now that they thinks about it, they still didn't see any traces of Lily when they got back.
"Dude, I thought you said you're going to take care of Lily, where is she?" Luna asked, concern filled her raspy voice.
"I'm taking care of her, she is in good care right now." Smart Linc replied.
"You don't say..." Luan trailed off when another white haired boy coming out from the kitchen with Lily sleeping in his arms. He wore an orange buttoned shirt over a white t-shirt, blue jeans and a pair of red shoes with three white stripes on either sides of it. They looked at him with the same blank faces as the shock was no longer affecting them. With all that has been happening today, they're not surprised to learn that they now have more brother than they used to.
"For the love of god, please stop, I can't take this anymore," Lori slightly whimpered, her right hand slowly massaging her forehead.
"So what should we call this one?" Lana asked.
The unknown Lincoln passed the sleeping baby to Leni who gently cradled her youngest sister in her embrace. As soon as Lily was no longer in his arms, he instantly dropped to the floor with his eyes closed, not at all bothered with the pain caused by his action. They could hear his low snoring slowly reaching their ears, indicating that he is already sleeping.
"Wow, that went down pretty quick," Said Luan. "I guess you could say he is head over heels for you." She chuckled, receiving a collective groan from her sisters. They decided to call him Lazy Linc because of his weird behavior, the only thing they know about him since he didn't seem to be waking up anytime soon.
