Well, this has been a fun little project and while not the most popular thing I've ever written, I'm glad to see that there has been some interest in it. Not much left, just this epilogue and a little something extra afterwards. Enjoy!

Christmas Cookies: Epilogue

Disclaimer: I do not own the Loud House and make no profit from this story.

Lori couldn't get out of work soon enough that night. The holiday season had made working a much more taxing experience than she would have cared for. It also didn't help that she had only just recently picked up a position working at the bakery of the local supermarket. Needless to say that the rush of customers and their demand for baked goods had pushed her past her limit. To put it simply...

"People are literally the worst!" She whimpered as she got into her friend Becky's car. "It's like they can't even wait their stinking turn before starting to bark orders at you! Just how am I supposed to help a dozen different people all at once?!"

"Whoa, take it easy." Becky said. "Do you want to take talk about it?"

Lori shook her head. "I just want to go home, lay down and forget that this stupid day happened at all!"

Becky didn't push the subject any further and just started to drive Lori home. The ride was fortunately spared from an awkward silence thanks to the radio. But it was still a bit uncomfortable for Becky's taste. At least it wasn't a long drive to get Lori back to her house.

"Hey, just text me if you need to, okay?" The red head offered as Lori got out of the car.

Lori mumbled out a 'thanks' and proceeded to the front door. She fished her keys out of her pocket and opened it, stepping inside. Kicking off her shoes and dropping her coat, Lori trudged over to the living room and found it empty, aside of her sister Lynn who was standing directly in front of the television screen. Normally Lori would reprimand her siblings for doing something they knew they shouldn't be doing. But right now, she only cared that the couch was completely empty, allowing her to go over to it and unceremoniously collapse onto it's cushions.

"Oh, hey Lori." Lynn said, taking her eyes off of the screen for but a second. "How was work?"

Lori groaned miserably in response.

"That bad huh? Well, maybe you can go into the kitchen. Mom and Dad are in there making cookies with..."

Lori snapped her head up suddenly and glared at her sister. "Do. Not. Mention. Cookies." She snipped through gritted teeth. "And you know what else? Get away from the dang screen! You know you shouldn't be so close!"

"Okay, okay. You don't have to act like such a Grinch, you know." Lynn said as she repositioned herself on the floor by the couch, tilting her head back and looking at her older sister. "Anything I can do to help?"

"Yes. Do not mention or eat anything that comes from a bakery in front of me. Especially cookies. I'll literally be much happier if I never have to see one ever again!"

No sooner had those words left Lori's mouth, than the front door suddenly opened. Lincoln entered along with Mr. Grouse, Lincoln holding his father's tupperware platter full of fresh baked treats.

"Who wants cookies?" the boy asked, proudly holding out the fruit of his and Mr. Grouse's combined labor.

Lori groaned again, this time with frustration. She grabbed a pillow and buried her head beneath it.

"Keep those horrible things away from me!"

Lincoln slowly pulled back the cookies, his smile falling from his face. Mr. Grouse put a hand on Lincoln's shoulder reassuringly while giving the teenager a sour look.

"Well season's greetings to you too, Loud."

"What's wrong with Lori?" Lincoln asked of his other older sister in the room.

"Bad day at work. She just needs some time to chill." Lynn said.

"If you say so." Lincoln said with a shrug. "But if she changes her mind, I'll leave these in the kitchen. I made a bunch of them with Mr, Grouse today. There's enough for all of you and..."

Lynn suddenly snatched the tupperware platter from him and pried off the lid. She eyed the aforementioned cookies greedily, taking a handful for herself. After taking a bite of one, she ruffled Lincoln's hair and handed him back the platter.

"Thanks little bro, these are awesome! Hey Lori, you don't know what your missing."

There was no response from the oldest Loud girl. Lynn shrugged and stepped over to the kitchen to peek inside at her parents and siblings.

"Hey you guys! Linc is here and he made a ton of those chocolate cookies with the peppermint candy on top!"

Suddenly Lori sat up, the pupils of her eyes dialating and a surprised gasp escaping her mouth. Her eyes went to the uncovered platter in her brother's hands and she instantly got off of the couch and closed the distance between them.

"You literally did make them!" She said, her mood brightening significantly. "Oh, Linky these are my favorite. Thank you so, so , so much! This is just what I need!"

Lori planted multiple kisses on her brother's cheek and then took some of the cookies to enjoy. And as she sat back down on the couch, Luan came down the steps with Lily in her arms. She approached Lincoln and picked out a couple cookies as well, breaking off a small piece of one for Lily.

"Wow, she sure improved her mood quickly enough. Guess she was riding the Bipolar Express!" The comedian said letting out a few laughs. "Get it?"

"I do." Mr. Grouse said with a smirk. "Nice one, Loud."

Luan's smile grew from the praise. She thanked her brother and went into the kitchen. Lincoln went to follow, but suddenly found himself tackled by his twin sisters who more than eagerly helped themselves to some of the cookies. The thanked him in unison and then scampered back into the kitchen, leaving their brother on the floor.

"You're welcome." Lincoln muttered out, trying to get back up.

"Sheesh, you weren't kiddin' when you said your sisters really liked those cookies." Mr. Grouse said, lending the boy a hand. "Might want to find a place to put those down before the rest of them gang up on ya."

"Good idea. But at least it's good to know that they appreciate all the work we did."

"Yeah, it kinda is. Even though they're all going for your cookies."

"I'm sure they'll like yours too, once they've tried them." Lincoln said. "But my dad and Leni tried the ones I brought over earlier. Let's go ask them!"

"Sure, and if they didn't like them, then that just means more for me!" Mr. Grouse said with a chuckle. "Not that it matters when I can just make them anytime I want now. I'm glad you came up with the idea. It was pretty nice."

Lincoln smiled. "No problem. Thanks again for letting me come over."

"Anytime. In fact, you feel like doing this again next weekend?"

"Sure! I bet my dad can give us all sorts of ideas. Let's go and ask him now!"

The two went into the kitchen, joining with Rita, Lynn Sr., Leni, Luan and the younger girls. Eventually Lucy returned home from her walk and Luna was dropped off by Sam's mother and the entire Loud family, plus guests, shared in sampling the many tasty goods that had been prepared that day. Smiles were shared, laughs were had and hearts were warmed. The time they shared that day was brief, but forged a memory that would last a lifetime.

The End.

So, I'm just going to call it right now. Not the best ending, at least in my opinion. Seems a bit sappy. But as a whole, I like how this turned out. The whole idea when I started was wanting to focus on the characters sharing in a tradition and I wanted to go with something a little different. As always, honest opinions and constructive criticisms are welcome. And as an additional treat, here's a bonus recipe for a classic. Happy Holidays everybody!

Gluten free chocolate chip cookies (from Betty Crocker)

Ingredients:

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 cup butter, softened

1 and 1/2 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla

2 eggs

2 and 1/2 cups Betty Crocker™ All-Purpose Gluten Free Rice Flour Blend

2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1)Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, beat sugars, butter and vanilla with electric mixer on low speed, or mix with spoon, until well blended. Beat in eggs until light and fluffy.

2)In medium bowl, stir rice flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda and salt until thoroughly blended. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

3)On ungreased cookie sheets, drop dough by tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart.

4)Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until light brown (centers will be soft). Cool 1 to 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Store in tightly covered container.