Disclaimer: We don't own Loud House or Pokemon. All rights to Loud House belong to Nickelodeon. All rights to Pokemon belong to Nintendo and Game Freak.
The Second Signboard
Lincoln and Kieran make their way up Reveler's Road while following after Clyde and Carmine. They soon reach a large clearing where Lincoln sees a flight of steps with a line of stone lamps on each side of them leading up a hill.
"What's up there, Kieran?" asked Lincoln.
"That's Kitakami Hall." said Kieran. Lincoln then notices that there were a lot of people going up the stairs.
"It must be a very popular spot." said Lincoln, making Kieran look to see all the people; he thinks for a while before a look of realization appears on his face.
"Oh yeah!" Kieran says with excitement.
"What is it?" asked Lincoln.
"The Festival of Masks starts tonight!" exclaimed Kieran.
"What's that?" asked Lincoln.
"It's a festival celebrating the Loyal Three." said Kieran. "There's gonna be all sorts of games and food stands."
"Awesome!" cheered Lincoln.
"That sounds like fun!" said Lana.
"It sure does!" said Luan.
"If I was there, Lincoln and I could go together, like a date!" said Iono, making Lincoln smile and blush while his sisters squeal with delight.
"And also; everyone wears masks as a tribute to the Loyal Three." said Kieran.
"That's so cool!" said Lincoln.
"But Linky shouldn't have to cover up his cute face with a mask." said Iono.
"If it's a rule, then I gotta." said Lincoln.
"I suppose." said Iono.
"At least it's only for the festival." said Rita.
"That's true I guess." said Iono.
"Let's check out the setup so far." said Kieran.
"Okay!" said Lincoln. He and Kieran run up the stairs to Kitakami Hall; when they reach the top, they see a lot of stands were already set up.
"What do you think, Lincoln?" asked Kieran.
"This is so amazing!" said Lincoln.
"Wish we were there with you, bro." said Luna.
"I want to try the candy apples!" said Lola when she sees a stand that was selling them.
Lincoln and Kieran walk around and look at all the stands with excitement on their faces.
"I can't wait for tonight!" said Kieran.
"Me, neither!" said Lincoln. After they all look around, they decide to head for the second signboard. They continue until they reach a large plaza where a shrine was.
"What's that?" asked Iono.
"That's a shrine where the remains of the Loyal Three are entombed." said Kieran.
"Wicked." said Lucy. They head down a path to the left of the shrine and quickly see the second signboard with Clyde and Carmine standing near it with Carmine waiting impatiently.
"What took you two so long?!" asked Carmine.
"Hey, this isn't a race." said Lincoln. "And it's not like we planned a time to meet here."
"I guess you're right, cutie." said Carmine with a grin, making Iono growl.
"Let's just read what's on the signboard." said Lincoln as the blush he had on his face faded away. They all walk over to the signboard and Clyde starts to read.
"The ogre possessed four mysterious, glimmering masks." said Clyde.
"It is said that depending on the mask the ogre donned, the powers of its cudgel would change." said Lincoln.
"When wearing the teal mask, it could bring life back into withered greenery around it." said Clyde.
"When wearing the crimson mask, it could turn a candle's flame into a raging inferno." said Lincoln.
"Cool!" said Lana.
"When wearing the blue mask, it could stop the very flow of a river." said Clyde.
"When wearing the ashen gray mask, it could easily break the hardest stone in two." said Lincoln.
"Nice." said Lynn Jr.
"Before the Loyal Three fell, they wrested away three of the ogre's masks, greatly weakening it." said Clyde.
"The masks the Loyal Three stole are kept over at Kitakami Hall in the shrine where their remains are." said Kieran.
"Really?" asked Lincoln.
"Yes; everyone in town is scared of the ogre" said Kieran. "But me? I really like it."
"I like the ogre, too!" said Lana.
"It was strong... and cool... and it didn't even care when everyone shunned it..." said Kieran. "I've always wanted to be like that, even when I was a kid. I want to be as cool as the ogre."
"Oh, please, Kiki." said Carmine.
"My sis sorta ends up doin' everything for me... even when we're at school..." said Kieran.
"That's because I care." said Carmine.
"We can relate to that." said Lori.
"I... wanna try to get stronger." said Kieran. "So I can do things for myself, you know?"
"I get that." said Lincoln.
"I'm gonna become someone people can rely on." said Kieran. "Then, just maybe I... can be that ogre's friend."
"You can do it, Kieran." said Lincoln.
"Can we just take the picture already?!" asked Carmine impatiently.
"Okay, sheesh!" said Lincoln.
"And keep your hands off my Linky while you're doing that!" said Iono.
"Oh, I will." said Carmine with a grin, making Iono glare at her.
"Let's get together for the picture." said Clyde. The four huddle close while Lincoln uses his Roto Stick to hold out his Rotom Phone so everyone was in the shot.
"Ready? 1...2..." Lincoln counts down, and as he got to 3, Carmine quickly kisses him on the cheek, surprising Lincoln and making him blush, while Clyde and Kieran looked with shock, and Lincoln's sisters giggle.
"YOU HUSSY!" screamed Iono. "NO ONE KISSES LINKY BUT ME!" Carmine replies by sticking her tongue out at her, making Iono turn red with anger.
"I'm pretty sure it's too late to get to the third signboard before it gets dark." said Carmine. "I'm gonna head to Grandma and Grandpa's place to get ready for the festival."
"I want to hang out with Lincoln for a bit longer." said Kieran.
"Fine." said Carmine. She then starts heading back to Mossui Town, giving Lincoln a wink as she does.
"What should we do now?" asked Clyde. Kieran looks to a nearby path that seems to lead up a tall mountain.
"Oh. You know that mountain the stories say the ogre lives on?" asked Kieran.
"Yeah, I remember you mentioning that." said Lincoln.
"It's actually Oni Mountain." said Kieran. "You can climb it from the stairs over there." Lincoln and Clyde look over to where Kieran was looking to see flights of steps leading up the mountain.
"Do you think we could check it out?" asked Lincoln, surprising Kieran.
"Really?!" asked Kieran. "No one's ever wanted to go up there?"
"It sounds exciting." said Clyde.
"And maybe we might actually see the ogre." said Lincoln.
"Yeah!" said Kieran. "And I know where it's home is; it's a place the folks call the Dreaded Den."
"Clyde sweetie, that sounds dangerous." said Howard McBride.
"It kind of does." said Rita.
"We'll be fine, Mom." said Lincoln. "We have our Pokemon with us, and if it looks too dangerous, then I promise we'll turn back."
"We'll watch out for each other." said Clyde.
"It's not like we'd be able to stop you from here." said Lynn Sr.
"Just be careful." said Rita.
"And if you do see the ogre, take a picture for me." said Lana.
"Or get it on video so I can show my followers." said Iono.
"I promise." said Lincoln.
"And I'll bet the ogre's face will be less scarier than Carmine's." said Iono with a frown, making Kieran chuckle.
"That might actually be true." said Kieran.
"And we promise we won't tell your sister you just said that." said Lincoln, making Kieran sweatdrop.
"T-Thanks, Lincoln." said Kieran.
"No problem." said Lincoln. "I know how scary older sisters can be when they're mad at you."
"Hey!" replied Lori, Leni, Luna, Luan, and Lynn.
"Like most of you don't feel that way when Lori's mad?" asked Lincoln.
"Touche." replied all Lincoln's sisters except Lori as she frowns at them.
"How about you show us your trip up the mountain, cutie?" asked Iono.
"Sure." said Lincoln.
"Thanks, Linky." said Iono before blowing Lincoln a kiss, making him blush and smile.
"Shall we get going?" asked Kieran.
"Lead the way." said Clyde. He, Lincoln, and Kieran head over to the stairs and start their climb up the mountain. After they reached the top of the stairs, they see an open field with several Pokemon. "Should we catch some Pokemon as long as we're here, buddy?"
"I don't see why not." said Lincoln. Before they can continue on, their eggs started to glow.
"What's going on with your eggs?" asked Leni.
"Are they going to explode?" asked Luna.
"No, I think they're hatching." replied Lincoln, excitedly. The eggs suddenly flashed brightly, causing everyone to turn their heads away to avoid getting blinded. When they felt the light faded, Lincoln looks to see he was holding an orange, chimplike Pokemon with a fiery rear end while Clyde was holding a green, turtlelike Pokemon with a brown shell.
They set their Pokemon down and Lincoln takes his Rotom Phone and points it at his newly hatched Pokemon.
"Chimchar, the Chimp Pokemon. It is very agile. Before going to sleep, it extinguishes the flame on its tail to prevent fires." said Lincoln's Rotom Phone.
"O-M-Gosh, it's, totes, adorbs!" said Leni.
"Orange and cute; it reminds me of you, Linky." said Iono.
"Is Chimchar's butt supposed to be on fire?" asked Lana.
"I think so." replied Lincoln.
Clyde points his Rotom Phone at his newly hatched Pokemon.
"Turtwig, the Tiny Leaf Pokemon. The shell on its back is made of soil. If the shell is moist to the touch, Turtwig is very healthy." said Clyde's Rotom Phone.
"This is amazing!" said Lincoln.
"They're so cool!" said Lana.
"Quite fascinating seeing the birth of new Pokemon." said Lisa. Lincoln kneels down towards Chimchar.
"Hi, Chimchar; welcome to the real world." said Lincoln. "Would you like to come and travel with me if you want to?" Chimchar looks at Lincoln for a few seconds before smiling and nods.
"Would you like to go with me too, Turtwig?" asked Clyde. Turtwig smiles and nods. Lincoln and Clyde each take out an empty pokeball and tapped their new Pokemon with them, sucking them in; they wiggled around before clicking.
"Congratulations, you two." said Kieran.
"Thanks, Kieran." said Lincoln. He uses his Rotom Phone to look up his Chimchar's information. "This says my Chimchar's a boy, he only knows Scratch, and he has the Blaze ability which powers up his fire type attacks when his stamina's low."
"And my Turtwig's a boy, he only knows Tackle, and he has the Overgrow ability like your Floragato." said Clyde.
"Come on, guys; let's get going." said Lincoln. The boys then started to continue on their way to the Dreaded Den.
What other Pokemon will they encounter as they make their way to the Dreaded Den? Will they find the ogre? Wait and find out.
End of Chapter 44
Pokemon on Lincoln's team: Floragato (M), Pawmot (F), Charcadet (M), Lycanroc Dusk Form (M) Finizen (M), and Chimchar (M).
Pokemon in Lincoln's collection: Floragato (M), Pawmot (F), Spidops (M), Hoppip (F), Vivillon (F), Oinkologne (M), Fletchling (F), Wooper (Paldean, F), Psyduck (M), Buizel (M), Wiglett (M), Magikarp (F), Sunkern (F), Flamigo (M), Ralts (M), Pachirisu (F), Skwovet (M), Deerling (F), Happiny (F), Pichu (F), Azurill (M), Igglypuff (F), Bonsly (M), Surskit (M), Bounsweet (F), Fidough (M), Drowzee (M), Greavard (F), Shellder (F), Venonat (M), Shroomish (M), Klawf (F), Tinkatink (F), Bronzor (genderless), Charcadet (M), Eevee (shiny M), Lycanroc Dusk Form (M), Crabrawler (shiny F), Grimer (F), Gulpin (F), Magnemite (no gender), Tandemaus (no gender), Cyclizar (M), Teddiursa (F), Finizen (M), Impidimp (M), Spinarak (M), Cutiefly (F), Heracross (M), Vulpix (F), and Chimchar (M).
Pokemon on Clyde's Team: Quaxwell (M), Kirlia (M), Dachsbun (F), Naclstack (F), Litleo (M), and Turtwig (M).
Pokemon in Clyde's collection: Quaxwell (M), Kirlia (M), Skiploom (F), Dachsbun (F), Swablu (M), Naclstack (F), Starly (F), Klawf (M), Mareep (M), Smoliv (M), Gimmighoul (no gender), Fletchling (F), Eevee (F), Litleo (M), Combee (F), Spoink (F), Cyclizar (F), Sewaddle (M). Bellsprout (F), Seedot (M), and Turtwig (M).