Uprooted
It was just your average day at Dimmsdale. People were going about their lives with not much happening. For Tootie, a fifth-grade girl, today seemed more average than most. She was hard at work on a school assignment, for which the topic was 'Ancient Civilisations'. She had a capable partner, AJ, the resident genius, and they picked out Ancient Rome as their topic. While AJ was everyone's ideal project partner, Tootie would rather be partnered up with Timmy Turner, her crush. She had admired Timmy for a long time, and while she had settled down in her admittedly overly amorous affections, Timmy had said to her that he only thought of her as a sister. Tootie suspected the new girl Chloe Carmichael to be the reason why Timmy felt this way.
While this was heartbreaking to hear, Tootie was fine with it, to be honest. Having Timmy as an honourary sibling was preferable to the biological sibling she had; Vicky. Every kid in Dimmsdale knew, hated, and feared her. She was a tyrannical monster, terrorising the kids put under her charge by parents ignorant of her evil ways, for she did her best to conceal her worst self. So scary was Vicky, that even her own parents were almost driven to madness by her cruelty, which made home life somewhat unbearable.
What made the situation the most horrible was that Timmy was a frequent target of her abuse, and the one Vicky took the most pleasure in tormenting. All this and more made Tootie sad for Timmy. She felt for all the other kids that had to endure Vicky's wrath, but Timmy held a special place in her heart. Still, Tootie soldiered on, just like Timmy would. Her portion of the project was finished, and she was calling AJ to get an update on his.
"The rise and fall of Julius Caesar has been catalogued. Should get us that 'A' for sure," AJ notified.
"And I am finished with the after-effects of the Vesuvius eruption. We should plan out the parts of the Roman Pantheon we should explore," Tootie suggested.
"How about we draw comparisons between Roman and Greek Gods? Timmy and Chloe are doing that era, and it should make for a good cross-over," AJ added. Tootie's heart fluttered at the prospect of sharing project space with Timmy Turner.
"Awesome idea. Everyone knows Timmy can be a bit of a slacker. He could use the boost," Tootie remarked. AJ chuckled at this response.
"Yes, that he could. I feel bad for Chloe, getting stuck with him. She genuinely thinks she can get his lazy butt in gear. If they can get anything above a 'B', I'll eat my test tube collection," AJ joked.
"Be sure to wash it down with a swig of acid," Tootie joined in on the fun. The two laughed down the phone line, but they were interrupted with a knock on Tootie's door. Her parents answered the door and were greeted by two male detectives.
"M-m-may we help you, officers?" Tootie's dad asked timidly.
"Hi, we're Detectives Montana and Looper. Special Victims Unit. We're here to inform you that your daughter Vicky has been arrested on child neglect and cruelty charges. Since she's 17, she has to have adults present at interrogation," Montana informed. Tootie's heart gave a leap at this news. Part of her feared that Vicky would never get her come-uppance. It was like angels had descended from on high to deliver her to a better life. She was prepared for this.
"Excuse me, officers, did you say Vicky?" Tootie inquired.
"Yes, we did. Why?" Looper responded.
"There's something you need to see. Please stay. I'll be right back," Tootie then rushed upstairs to her room, gathered up all the evidence she had on Vicky that she saved in case this day came, and came back downstairs to show it to Montana and Looper. They poured through it intensely and made no attempt to hide how disturbed and disgusted they were at what they saw.
"How long have you had this?" Montana probed.
"I've been gathering it for months. My sister Vicky is very good at hiding what she really is. I feared no-one would believe me. I'm sorry. I should've come forward sooner," Tootie said regretfully.
"It's OK, sweet pea. What we have here is more than enough to press charges. Once a court sees this, Vicky will never see the light of day again," Looper sympathised. Tootie's mum and dad were positively ecstatic at this news.
"W-w-we're free? WE'RE FREE! FINALLY, WE'RE FREE!" Tootie's mum exclaimed.
"Jeez, how bad was she?" Montana wondered.
"I can tell you stories about home that will make you wretch," Tootie replied.
"You might have to tell a court. You comfortable with that?" Looper queried.
"I will tell everyone everything. I'll write a book on the matter if it keeps her locked up," Tootie affirmed.
"Alright, well, that should be everything we need. We'll get this evidence down to the station. They'll take it from there. You did the right thing, Tootie," Looper assured.
"I can't wait to tell Timmy that Vicky is going away forever. This is like Christmas!" Tootie said excitedly. Suddenly, the mood in the house changed.
"I'm sorry, do you mean Timmy Turner?" Montana requested clarification. Tootie's mood changed from delight to confusion.
"Yes. Why?" Tootie asked tentatively. Montana sighed heavily and knelt down to Tootie's level.
"Tootie, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but the Turner family has told us some sad news. I'm sorry, but Timmy is dead," Montana broke the news. Suddenly, Tootie's world came crashing down. What should've been the best day of her life rapidly turned into the worst. Tootie would rather have Vicky free to do what she will than face the prospect of never being able to see Timmy again. But that wasn't up to her. All sorts of things raced through her mind. Was this a joke? Did someone cause Timmy's death? How did it happen? Why did it have to happen?
"N-n-no. No, this can't be happening!" Tootie said, displaying the first stage of grieving; denial. Just then, Tootie got a call from AJ.
"Tootie, what is going on?! Some girl with black hair covering her eyes just came to my house and handed me an invite to Timmy and Chloe's funeral! Tell me this is some sort of sick joke!" AJ exclaimed. Tootie had no words. If funeral invitations were being handed out, then it must be true.
"AJ, detectives are at my house right now. They just told me. Vicky's been taken in, but they didn't say anything about her killing Timmy or Chloe," Tootie responded.
"I wouldn't put it past her. You know what she's like," AJ rebutted.
"I don't think so. The death of a child means less money for her. She's heartless, but not stupid. Vicky's capable of many things. Murder is not one of them," Tootie reasoned. While this was hard to swallow, the scientist in AJ knew that Tootie made very valid points. The one thing Vicky loved more than inflicting pain was money, and she wouldn't dare do anything that would put her income at risk.
"Makes sense. But it's so much to take in. Timmy and Chloe dead. Vicky arrested. Crocker fired. Principal Waxelplax sent out an email to everyone stating that Crocker's tenure had been revoked and his employment terminated. I've also seen cops at his door as well, along with a paddy wagon. What happened?" AJ listed.
"I don't know," was all Tootie could say.
"I appreciate that this is a tough time for you, but we do have to move you into witness protection, owing to the fact you're giving evidence. It's standard procedure. We can't even guarantee you can even go to the funeral," Montana asserted. This made Tootie very upset. Not only did she receive the worst news that her honourary brother had died, but she couldn't even go to the funeral. There was no doubt in her mind; this was the worst day of her life. Not even Vicky's arrest could alleviate her grief.
"This isn't fair! He was like a brother to me! Now he's gone forever and I can't even say goodbye! Can't you hold this off until after?!" Tootie ranted, quickly falling into the second stage of grief; anger.
"I'm sorry, but we can't. Our investigation revealed that Vicky was part of a cadre of evil babysitters. We're rounding them up now, but it'll take some time. If it gets out that you gave evidence against Vicky, they'll be out for your blood. We can't take the chance that they'll jump you at the funeral. I know that this is very painful for you, but we have to consider your safety," Looper gently put the facts to Tootie.
"I could just…..hang back. Stick to the trees. Wait until everyone else has gone," Tootie offered, going into the third stage of grieving; bargaining.
"Again, too risky. We have to go, now," Montana dismissed. Tootie was lost for words. She was too sad to protest, as cops led her and her parents to their car and drove her off who-knows-where, to some safehouse on the outskirts of town, where Tootie fell into the fourth stage of grieving; depression.
Tootie got stuck on this stage for a whole year. Even after she gave evidence in court. Even after Vicky was found guilty of all charges and, owing to the severity of her crimes and the fact that she would turn 18 in a few weeks, she was tried as an adult and sentenced accordingly. Even after she had seen grief counsellors about her loss. What didn't help was the mental toll Vicky's cruelty took on the parents, who were declared psychologically incapable of caring for Tootie, so she had to go into foster care until her parents were deemed fit again. She did genuinely love her new foster mother and father. She even settled into a new school, but try as she might, she could not feel joy again. The staff had been briefed on Tootie's circumstances and offered help where they could, but a smile would forever elude Tootie's face.
It had been a year to the day that Tootie was first told of Timmy's death. Her foster mother and father took her to Timmy's gravesite. Tootie got a bouquet of flowers to lay at the headstone. She was about to pay her respects, and hopefully, finally, reach acceptance, when she saw a white-haired boy in an orange polo and jeans, accompanied by a black-haired girl dressed in funeral garb, presumably brother and sister. Tootie hung back, opting not to disturb the pair. She had never seen these two before in Dimmsdale, and Timmy never spoke of them, so Tootie found it odd that they were even here at all. How did they know Timmy? Were they there when he died? Were they, too, victims of Vicky? Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see a figure in a black cloak towering over her.
"Always a shame when you can't get closure. You deserve that much," the figure consoled. Now Tootie had some serious questions. Who was this guy? Why was he addressing her? What did he know of Timmy's death?
"And you are?" Tootie asked. The figure lowered his hood to reveal a mane of red hair and an other-worldly demeanour.
"I had a name like yours once. It has been so long since I've used it, but you may call me War Leader," War Leader introduced himself.
"War Leader? I'm pretty sure the section for the honoured dead is that way," Tootie then directed him to the section of the cemetery dedicated to those that fell in the line of duty.
"I'm not here for them. I'm here for you. I know your struggle. I know what it's like to lose loved ones. You crave a closure you never got because you couldn't say goodbye. That was most cruel. I also know what it's like to want answers," War Leader consoled.
"Forgive me, but I've heard this all before," Tootie rebuffed.
"No doubt. What if I told you that white-haired boy you just saw was the last person to see Timmy Turner alive?" War Leader posed. This piqued Tootie's interest. If War Leader was telling the truth, then the white-haired boy knew what happened to Timmy. Another, much darker thought crossed Tootie's mind. If he was the last person to see Timmy alive, maybe he was the one who did him in, and he came here to gloat over his grave.
"How do you know this?" Tootie inquired.
"I know many things, including how to get answers from him. I can show you, if you want," War Leader offered. Tootie wanted more than answers. She wanted revenge. If War Leader was offering her the opportunity to get both, who was she to say no?
"Alright, I'm in," Tootie agreed. War Leader then handed her a green, spherical object, wrapped in yellow bands.
"Then your training shall begin. After school, and when your homework's done, squeeze on that tightly, and it will bring you to me. I will show you every trick I know. You will learn interrogation, intelligence gathering, stealth, even combat. No longer will you be the helpless little girl you once were. When you are ready, you will have your answers from him, and the closure you seek," War Leader explained.
Throughout her life, Tootie had always been taught not to accept gifts from strangers, and no-one came stranger than War Leader. Tootie didn't want to say anything, but she noticed that his ears made him look like an extra from Lord of the Rings. Some part of her wanted to toss the orb he gave her away and report him to the cops, but that part of her was being overtaken by the need for answers and the desire for revenge against the white-haired boy she saw at Timmy's grave. She did her best to keep the orb hidden. After another day at school, when her work was done, she gave the orb a squeeze, not expecting anything to happen. To her surprise, it started glowing and the yellow bands rotated rapidly around the green spheroid. The orb then emitted a bright light, momentarily blinding Tootie. When she found her sight again, she was standing in a large room, the walls of which were lined with strange devices of unknown origin.
"Where am I? What is this?" Tootie demanded. Just then, War Leader came into the room.
"You're here. Good. This is our training room. Here, we can simulate any and all scenarios. This is the room where we practice combat, stealth, anything. Think of it as a video game tutorial," War Leader clarified.
"Not much of a gamer, chief," Tootie replied.
"Forgive me. I keep forgetting that living with Vicky all your life deprived you of fun. Regardless of your thinking, this room is where you will transform from helpless damsel to finely tuned warrior. Here, you will learn not only how to stalk your enemies without them noticing, but how to defeat them in battle should the need arise. You being here tells me you are ready to take the first steps into a larger world," War Leader explained.
"I am, War Leader," Tootie affirmed.
"I believe you. Here is your target," War Leader then commanded the devices lining the walls to project an image of the white-haired boy at the cemetery. "His name is Lincoln Loud. He comes from a town called Royal Woods. He has ten siblings. He is not much older than you, and he is the only one who knows how Timmy Turner died. He alone can give you the answers you seek," War Leader briefed. Tootie looked upon this image with disgust and hatred in her eyes. This was the one responsible for Timmy's death. He didn't look like much.
"I'll make him talk, before I make him bleed!" Tootie seethed.
"All things in time. Getting to him will be difficult. His ten sisters are fiercely protective of him and will not hesitate to get in your way. Under my tutelage, you will learn how best to isolate him without their noticing. You will learn not only how to strike the final blow, but when to pick out the opportune time to do so," War Leader lectured.
"Where do we start?" Tootie asked enthusiastically.
"First lesson; blending in with the crowd. If you can't be unseen, at least be un-noticed. Let the people mask you until you are ready to strike," War Leader instructed. He then had the devices conjure up a training scenario involving Lincoln in a crowded place Tootie was unfamiliar with personally, but it looked like your typical mall. War Leader then handed Tootie a small blade. "Put this in his back without raising the alarm," War Leader added. He then stood back and observed Tootie carrying out the exercise. She was struggling with how to carry out the deed. Blending in with the crowd was easy, but finding an opportunity to strike was difficult. She knew that if she struck amongst this group of people, the alarm would be raised. She figured that if the people could mask her presence, the people could also shield Lincoln from harm. Witnesses were plenty, and she didn't want any of those linking back to her. This was something War Leader noticed, but rather than be critical, he actually smiled. "Freeze it," War Leader indicated, and the simulation came to a halt. "Tell me what you learned from this," War Leader guided.
"I can watch Lincoln easy enough. Killing him without notice would be easy, too. But getting out after the deed is done, that would be the hard part. Have-a-go heroes would be on me in an instant. Revenge is nice, but it's not worth martyring myself over," Tootie concluded.
"Well done, that was the true lesson of this exercise. Despite your desire for vengeance, you practiced patience and restraint. That is the mark of a true assassin. Indeed, in this scenario, there was no ideal time to strike. Tell me something. You seemed to be able to blend in very naturally. How?" War Leader wondered.
"I learned a long time ago that individual faces are impossible to make out in a large crowd. Stay quiet enough and no-one neither knows nor cares that you're there," Tootie answered.
"An unfortunate truth and a useful tool to remain undetected. Come back tomorrow and we'll advance to intel gathering. The orb I gave you also takes you home," War Leader outlined. Tootie gave the orb one more squeeze and it did indeed bring her to the front door of her house. Tootie stashed the orb away, out of sight, smiling at what her life would be now, for this was the day Tootie stopped being a defenceless, vulnerable girl, and became an assassin-in-training, biding her time and learning under War Leader, bracing for the day she would have her vengeance against Lincoln Loud.
As the weeks went by, Tootie filled her after-school hours with training sessions from War Leader, who noted that Tootie was a quick study. She was already proficient in the three techniques of intelligence gathering; pickpocketing useful info, eavesdropping on conversations of note without being noticed, and using unarmed violence as a means of extracting information from subjects. Tootie learned unarmed combat a lot faster than normal, already a master of judo, karate, and tae kwon doe. War Leader had decided that Tootie was ready for sword combat and was sparring with her in the training room. Tootie was good but needed further coaching as she and War Leader sparred with wooden swords.
"Stop relying on basic attacks. Use the unorthodox," War Leader guided. Tootie then tried improvising her attacks on War Leader to throw him off-balance. This was a slight improvement, but War Leader noted that her attacks were all over the place; unfocused, without direction. "Control my central line," War Leader coached. Tootie then centralised her strikes, hoping to keep War Leader in one place. "Be careful not to grip the handle too tightly or too loosely, lest you risk disarmament," War Leader advised. Tootie was improving with every bit of coaching War Leader gave her. "Last, but not least, always take the weight of the blade into consideration. Think of the sword as an extension of your body. Let the blade move with you," War Leader counselled. Tootie then put all her energy into getting the upper hand on War Leader. "No, no, no. Conserve your strength. Only push when you see an opening. Do not try and force one into existence," War Leader urged. After a few minutes, Tootie and War Leader put down their training weapons and took a few drinks of chilled bottled water to cool off.
"War Leader, you know people in my world don't use swords as weapons anymore, right?" Tootie asked.
"Yes, but I find this therapeutic, plus it never hurts to master the basics of the weapon," War Leader responded.
"I see what you mean. I do feel better after that bout," Tootie agreed.
"Truth be told, I wanted to accelerate your training. An opportunity has arisen. Latest intelligence confirms that Lincoln Loud is away from his siblings," War Leader confessed.
"And has lost his bodyguards? What would compel him to do that?" Tootie inquired.
"Hidden sibling resentment. Lincoln has chosen to live in the city with his love Ronalda Santiago. He needs to heal from the mental trauma of, and I do wish I was making this up, his family locking him out the house at night and feeding him cereal through a doggy door last year, among other things. After that, no wonder Lincoln is not as fond of his sisters as he was previously," War Leader answered.
"If that was supposed to make me feel sympathy towards him, you're going to be disappointed," Tootie remarked.
"It wasn't, but can you tell me how else this development will make killing him easier?" War Leader posed.
"Royal Woods is a suburb, whereas a city is more densely populated. It will be easier to blend in and spot an opportunity to strike without anyone noticing," Tootie quickly surmised.
"Excellent. I see you haven't been neglecting your theoretical studies. Before I send you off on this assignment, I have prepared a sort of exam, if you will. I have constructed a scenario where you will be in Great Lakes City and you must use everything you've learned to kill your target. Random variables based on intel gathered about the city will come into play. You must adapt accordingly. Are you prepared?" War Leader queried.
"Yes, sir," Tootie enthusiastically responded.
"Very good. Let us begin," War Leader then commanded the training room to project an image of Great Lakes City. Tootie had her concealed blade in hand and could see a holographic version of Lincoln walking the streets. Amongst the hustle and bustle of the people, it was easy for Tootie to conceal her presence. Using War Leader's lessons, she was able to keep her eye on Lincoln. Then again, his white hair made him stick out from the crowd. She tailed and watched Lincoln as he bought a hot dog from a stand. He was about to tuck in when a swarm of alley cats rushed in and grabbed it. Lincoln, along with Tootie, were in hot pursuit. The cats led Lincoln to an abandoned apartment complex. In one of the apartments, Lincoln was seen wrestling with the cats for his hot dog. The room was not lit, so Tootie could hide in the shadows. After witnessing the alley cats scarper, Tootie pounced. In one quick motion, Tootie was able to grab Lincoln and plunge her blade through his back, while covering his mouth with her other hand to muffle his scream. When he could see the last bits of life fade from Lincoln's eyes, she set his body down. Suddenly, the holographic Lincoln started to disappear bit by bit until he was no more, and the exam came to an end, with War Leader's applause indicating a positive result.
"You are ready, Tootie. Your first field assignment begins now," War Leader braced Tootie for the real world. War Leader then summoned a portal for Tootie to take to Great Lakes City.
Meanwhile, Lincoln Loud and his luggage had arrived at the Casagrandes apartment building. Owing to his resentment of his parents and half his siblings for instigating or failing to stop the 'bad luck incident', that notorious time the Loud family treated him worse than Harry Potter at the Dursley house, it was decided that Lincoln, a newly emancipated minor, move to the Casagrandes to help with his mental healing. It was hoped that this would be temporary, and that Lincoln, with the right counselling, could learn to forgive and move on. He would be among friends, as well as his girlfriend, Ronnie Anne Santiago. While the circumstances were less than ideal, Lincoln found the prospect of making a home with Ronnie Anne highly appealing. Inside the building, the Casagrandes were preparing for Lincoln's arrival.
"Now, we all know why Lincoln's going to be living with us for a while," Rosa reminded.
"Because he hates his family," Carl replied.
"'Hate' is a rather strong word, wouldn't you think?" Bobby reasoned.
"You heard what Ronnie Anne said! What they did to him was vile!" Carl protested.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Carl. Leni may be the kindest soul I've ever known, but even I had trouble believing it until Leni flat out said that it happened," Carlota responded.
"And it was a year ago, and they feel completely awful about it. The reason Lincoln's here is to help him heal and move past what happened," Bobby rebuffed.
"That what Lori say, cousin?" Carlota sassed.
"Maybe, but that doesn't stop it from being true," Bobby riposted.
"You ask me, they should've all gone down," Ronnie Anne stated.
"Really? If you felt that way, why did you and Lincoln come to our spin-the-bottle game?" Bobby posed.
"For your information, 'Boo-boo bear', the only reason I agreed to go was because I thought I'd get some answers out of them as to what was going through their minds when they did all that malarky! It was Lincoln that insisted on not pushing the issue!" Ronnie Anne argued.
"Let's keep things calm, people. We don't want to give Lincoln bad vibes when he arrives," Carlos soothed. Ronnie Anne took a few deep breaths and managed to keep her emotions in check.
"I guess Lincoln's not the only one with hidden resentments," Ronnie Anne guessed.
"I do hope none of them are towards me," Lincoln's voice came from the stairwell. Everyone smiled at him warmly but gave Ronnie Anne the first hug.
"Hey there, love. Glad to see you made it here OK," Ronnie Anne greeted.
"Yeah, it was hard for me to leave, but I couldn't live under the same roof as people I resented. It wouldn't have been healthy," Lincoln lamented.
"It would've been even more unhealthy to have kept those resentments bottled up. Studies show that…." Carlos began, but Frida ushered him into their apartment.
"Alright, alright, I'm sure that Lincoln will want to settle into his new room. CJ's almost finished getting it ready," Frida interjected.
"You're getting Bobby's old room. Since he moved into the empty apartment downstairs, it's been sitting vacant. I hope you like it," Ronnie Anne added.
"With CJ at the helm, I'm sure I'll love it," Lincoln replied.
"One thing I should warn you about. Lori might come visiting while you're here. You sure you're going to be OK?" Bobby probed. Lincoln gave this some thought. His resentments were mainly directed at the older siblings and the parents. He particularly harped on Lori for failing to put her foot down when it was most needed of her, and for being the architect of the 'Sister Fight Protocol' he had to endure. Still, she and Bobby were an item, and no amount of sibling resentment would change that.
"Just…..give me notice so RA and I can go do something in the city," Lincoln requested.
"Will do, little man," Bobby conceded.
"Come on, let's go see your new room," Ronnie Anne then guided Lincoln into his new living space for the foreseeable future. CJ had done a terrific job in making it look like his room at the Loud House, only this one had a bit more space than a converted linen closet. Lincoln did indeed love it. The only thing it needed was more bedspace in case he and RA wanted to snuggle together on weekend nights, but he could plan around that. After all, that was what he was best at, otherwise he wouldn't be known as the Man with a Plan.
"Lincoln, I made this for you," CJ then presented a door sign with Lincoln's name on it, which they hung on the door.
"Wow, thanks CJ. I love it, and the room. You should think about being a home decorator when you grow up," Lincoln complimented.
"Need help unpacking?" CJ offered.
"Thanks, buddy. That would be great," Lincoln readily accepted. Between the three of them, Lincoln, CJ, and Ronnie Anne had unpacked all of Lincoln's belongings; clothes, video game systems, school-books and supplies. He did leave his comic book collection at the Loud House because Lincoln figured that his usual activity of reading them in his undies would not go down well, especially with Ronnie Anne's parents. That, and doing so gave him a reason to want to go back someday. Despite his resentments, Lincoln does still care about his family and hopes the relationship they once had can be repaired. Once the job was finished, CJ left the room, leaving Lincoln and Ronnie Anne alone together.
"Ronnie Anne, I need to thank your family for…" but Lincoln was interrupted with Ronnie Anne lunging forward and sticking her tongue down Lincoln's throat, a gesture he was more than happy to reciprocate. The lip-locked for a good few minutes before breaking apart. "….taking me in," Lincoln finished his expression of gratitude.
"You've always had a place here, Linc. You've had a long drive getting here. You must be exhausted. Why not take a load off. Dinner won't be for another hour," Ronnie Anne hinted. Lincoln picked up what she was laying down and was thrilled at the prospect.
"For you, I always have time," Lincoln replied in kind. He lay down on his new bed, with Ronnie Anne lying on top of him, the two resuming their lip-locking session. So intense was their make-out session that they didn't notice Sid, Ronnie Anne's bestie, who came to visit and was curious about the door sign, peeping in to see what the fuss was about, as well as the noises she was hearing. She had gotten a good view of the 'activities' before Lincoln managed to open his eyes and see her staring, which prompted him to abruptly break off from Ronnie Anne. "Sid!" Lincoln exclaimed. Ronnie Anne turned to see her best friend in the doorframe and went bright red in embarrassment.
"Afternoon," Sid teased.
"We were just….errrrrrr…..testing Lincoln's new mattress. Still springy," Ronnie Anne awkwardly bluffed.
"Yeah, I bet it is. Too bad the sound-proofing needs work," Sid continued to tease Ronnie Anne. The embarrassment only continued when Maria and Arturo Santiago, Ronnie Anne's mother and father, came to check on Lincoln and could also see for themselves what they were up to.
"Oh great, he's only been here a few minutes and he's already all over my daughter. This isn't a love shack, you know," Arturo warned.
"Settle down, Arturo. We were like that when we were their age. Besides, they haven't breached our boundaries because their clothes are still on," Maria eased the tension.
"For how long?" Sid blurted out.
"Not helping," Maria reprimanded.
"I better go see if Abuela needs help with dinner," Ronnie Anne then hurried out of Lincoln's room, with Sid in tow.
"Be honest with me, RA, you were reaching for skin, weren't you?" Sid was unrelenting in her teasing.
"Shut up, you," Ronnie Anne rebuked. Lincoln was left alone to get his new room just the way he liked it, arranging everything like it was in the Loud House. In some way, it was like he never left. Only the settings, living companions, and sounds were different. After a day or two, Lincoln's transfer to Cesar Chavez Academy, the school Principal Ramirez of Royal Woods Middle School got him into while he would be living in Great Lakes, would be finalised. Lincoln was eager to get started, as he would be placed in Ms. Galiano's class alongside Ronnie Anne and Sid. Between that and home-making with his love, Lincoln felt more content than ever.
"I think I'm going to like it here," Lincoln observed, speaking to the readers.
Author's note: Well, that served as a precursor to what Lincoln and Ronnie Anne's home life will be like in a few years. Please be patient with me, this is my first story focused on revenge. At least, I think it is. I've been writing for exactly seven years now, so I think I've lost track. I might've done revenge stories in the past. I don't know. Regular readers will know that first chapters of my stories tend to serve as the toe-dipping portion, getting things ready for the real meat. I hope you like what you see. For those of you wondering how Timmy died, see 'The Second Cipher War'. For anyone wondering why Lincoln resents his family, see 'Malefic Origins'. The usual disclaimers, I own nothing. All properties belong to their respective owners. Enjoy.