"Thanks for the help kid, really needed to get rid of that damned snow, but my scooter plow is still busted up at Flip's garage. Good to know you Louds are good for something."

"Gee, thanks alot Scoots. Can Iget those 30 dollars now?" Lincoln said, grinding his teeth. He just spent half aday shoveling snow from Scoot's driveway and the small racetrack she had in her backyard, which wasn't that bad. Or at least wouldn't be if Scoots didn't pester him constantly during it.

"Sure, sure. You youngsters only care about money. What happened to help your elders." Scoots grumbled as she handed him the payment they agreed on.

"Well the diapers and crib for my daughters won't buy themself, will they Scoots?" He thought to himself bitterly. It was early January, just afew days before school resumed. But school wasn't what was bothering him right now, it was Lori. She was due any day now and that was making him anervous wreck most of the time. Would the baby be alright? Would Lori be alright?

He was extremely grateful to Lisa for running genetic background checks for any genetic complications. Thankfully, it turned out the chance for genetic defects was barely above usual, so he didn't have to worry about that. What did he tell her to get her to do that for him? The truth.

Well, actually, he just confessed, as it was Lisa who confronted him about it a month after Clyde left. He suspected for some time Lisa knew something, and apparently, the secret camera she set up in his room (again) caught him and Lori in a rather compromising situation. Needless to say, she was furious and chewed him out really bad. Lincoln never thought a five-year-old could be that scary. But in the end, even if she didn't approve of his relationship, she agreed not to rat them out, as it was too late for that. Or at least that's what she said.

He still didn't understand her reasoning but was grateful to her either way. It was a tough month for him. Losing his best friend felt like losing a part of him. He and Clyde were best buddies for as long as he could remember, and not having that any more was hard. Sure, he was still friends with Liam, Zach, Stella, and Rusty, but it didn't feel the same without Clyde.

Speaking of Stella. Recently, he noticed, that she became a lot more "close" to him. She constantly invited him to the arcade, even without the gang, and always made sure to sit next to him at lunch. He didn't really understand what was going on with her until Luna told him that she was obviously flirting with him. Strange, just a year ago, he would be delighted and wouldn't hesitate to pursue a relationship with her. Even if she rejected him the first time he tried to sway her, he still hoped he would get a second chance. Well, that was before Luan, and his other sisters came and took her place in his heart. But now? Now it was just a nuisance that made spending time with his true lovers more difficult. "Wonder if I should tell her I'm going to be a dad? Bet she wouldn't want me once she knew that." Lincoln chuckled to himself as he was making his way back home.

His amusement was interrupted by the buzz of his phone. Looking at the screen, it showed Lynn's face, covered with makeup, blowing a kiss. "Still can't believe she really kept her word for losing that bet with Leni." He smiled as he picked up the phone. "Well if it isn't the princess of football. What can I do for you, your majesty?" Lincoln said in a posh voice, hoping to tease her a little.

"Not now Stinkin, it's an emergency. Lori's water just broke. Dad and Mom already took Lori and Leni to the hospital. They told they would come for us later." Lynn shouted into the phone.

"Shit, I'll take a taxi and be there as soon as possible. Wait, why did he also take Leni?" Lincoln asked, confused as to why his parents didn't leave her with the others. Lynn was silent for a moment before Lucy snatched the phone from her hands. "I'm afraid she also went into labor as Dad was helping Lori into the car." She said in her usual emotionless voice.

"What!? But that's still at least three weeks early!" He screamed in disbelief. Immediately, he ended the call and with shaky fingers typed in the number of the local taxi service. "Come on… Pick up already!"

Just 20 minutes later, he was already racing through the RW hospital corridors towards the rooms where his sisters were being stationed. "Lincoln, what are you doing here?" his father asked surprised, noticing his only son running towards him as he was exiting the cafeteria with 2 cups of coffee. "Dad…Where is Lori and Leni?" Lincoln asked as soon as he caught his breath. "Rooms 345 and 346. Wait, if you're here, can you also grab me and your mom some lunch?" Lynn requested as he didn't want to make the trip to the cafeteria twice, but before he could even finish, Lincoln was already bolting for the stairs. "Guess I'll just have to come down again." He sighed in defeat.

"Hey, watch where you're going, kid! Is that how you treat cripples these days!?"

"Calm down Greg. Besides you're barely disabled."

"Sorry, I'm in a hurry!" he screamed as he ran past a duo of what he assumed were doctors, while accidently bumping into the one with a cane.

Once he reached the third floor he began frantically look for the rooms his sisters were in. Thankfully he spotted his mother sitting nearby.

"Oh, Lincoln sweety, how did you get here?" she asked as she bent down to hug him.

"I took a taxi. But that doesn't matter. How are they? Is everything fine? Does Leni have any complications?" he questioned his mother frantically.

"Lori seems to be fine according to the doctors. But Leni had high blood pressure and they are still doing tests on her. I don't want to scare you, but I overheard the doctor saying they may have to perform C section.

"What?! I have to see her." Lincoln tried to push past his mother to Leni's room but was stopped by his mother's firm grasp. "Lincoln, I know you're worried about your older sister, but you can't do anything right now. We must wait for the doctors to do their job.

He clenched his fists, frustration building up inside him. Lincoln knew his mother was right, but he wanted to be there for her, to make her feel safe. "Can I see Lori?" he asked after a moment of silence. Rita nodded and let go of him, watching him disappear through the door to Lori's room.

"Phew, I really need to exercise more. I have the coffee, honey." She heard her husband say with a winded breath behind her. "Where is Lincoln?"

"He just went to see Lori," Rita answered her husband.

"Figures. He seemed to be in a hurry to see them. It's a bit weird, to be honest, how clingy he has been to both of them that is." Lynn muttered under his breath.

"Oh come on Lynn. You know how close they are, and what they went through. Let's just appreciate how much they support each other, who knows how long it'll last." Rita berated her husband.

Meanwhile in Lori's room…

"Lori! I'm so sorry it took me this long to get here." Lincoln said as he ran to his sister's side after closing the door. Lori smiled weakly as he knelt to the side of the bed. Lincoln caressed her cheek before their lips locked in a loving kiss. "Mhh, almost makes you forget the painful contractions." She teased him before adding, "I'm glad you're here."

"How could I not be here. I'm about to become a father after all." He smiled briefly before his smile soured. "But It was just supposed to be you. Lori, I'm worried about Leni. The doctors said there was something wrong with her pressure. What if she… she…"

Seeing her brother spiraling again, Lori held him tightly and gently hummed to his ear. She found out it was the best way to calm his nerves when panic overtook him. They remained like that for several minutes until Lincoln stopped shivering and relaxed into Lori's embrace. "So, decided how we'll name her?" she asked. A few weeks after Clyde left, Lori learned at one of her ultrasound checkups that she was having a daughter. Needless to say, his other sisters teased him for having his father's luck. As for Leni, she insisted on leaving it as a surprise, which of course meant the others started betting on it's gender.

"I thought about it a lot these last few days, and I think I'd like to continue the L name tradition. Although that means it's a bit harder to pick an original name, Luan gave me a wonderful idea." He said motivated.

"Well out with it, what did you come up with?"

"Loan." Lincoln proclaimed, puffing up his chest. Lori simply stared at him in disbelief, trying to ascertain whether he was joking or not. Once she determined he was serious she answered, "Loan, so literally just Luan but with an o instead of u. You're telling me you didn't make that connection."

"Now that you mention it, I guess Luan may have been joking. But I mean, it's not a bad name, right?" he said embarrassed, scratching the back of his head. "No, it's not a bad name. But once I get home I'll have a talk with that clown." Lori sighed and reclined back into her pillow. Suddenly a wave of pain spread through her body, causing her to scream. Lincoln squeezed her hand tightly and was about to kiss her forehead when his parents suddenly burst into the room.

"Lori sweetie, are you alright? We heard screams." They both instantly surrounded her, pushing Lincoln to the side.

"Nothing Mom, just the contractions. Doctors told me to inform them when they get more frequent." Lori tried to calm them down.

"If you say so, sweetie. We're going to go pick up the others. Come on Linc, give your sister a bit of space." Their father said, nudging Lincoln out with them. Once outside, they told him to come with them as they needed to grab some things in case they had to spend the night in the hospital. Begrudgingly, he accepted as he didn't have a good excuse not to go.

Once home, everyone quickly piled inside the vanzila and Lincoln was berated with questions from his sisters. "Don't worry brother unit, high blood preshurre is quite common for premature labor." Lisa assured him once he told them about Leni's condition. He appreciated that Lisa was trying to comfort him. Usually, she pretended he didn't even exist to express her disapproval of his actions, but deep down he knew she still cared about him.

Soon they were back at the hospital, with Lincoln jumping out to race to his sister's side the moment they parked the van. He reached the floor his sisters were in and was about to check in on Leni when the door burst open and a group of medical personnel rushed out, with Leni being dragged on a portable hospital bed. "What's going on? Where are you taking her?!" he screamed running after them. One of the nurses noticed him when they approached the elevator and stopped to answer him. "Are you her brother? She kept asking for you. I'm sorry but the test's found out her baby had a rather severe nuchal cord. We need to perform C sections as soon as possible to mitigate damage."

"What? What does that mean? What do you mean by mitigate damage?" Lincoln panicked, yelling for answers at the nurse.

"As I said, I'm sorry but this is the best we can do now. The baby had the umbilical cord tightly around its neck cutting the oxygen supply. We think it's what caused the early labor. We don't know how long it was exactly but with oxygen deprivation, it's likely the baby suffered some brain damage." The nurse explained apologetically.

Once the information set in, he broke down in tears. Dropping to his knees he covered his head with his arms. "Why? Why did this have to happen? Was it his fault? Could he have prevented it?" He didn't know. All he knew was that he couldn't do anything to help them. He remained sitting there until Lucy found him, appearing in front of him seemingly out of nowhere. However, he felt too numb to be scared. She knelt down in front of him and without warning put her small dark lips on his. The kiss was gentle, but with it being done in public, laying out her emotion for the world to see, it felt more powerful than all the kisses he shared with her before. "Don't worry my love, our parents are still searching for you by Leni's room." She assured him.

Slowly they both rose from the ground. "Thank you Lucy. I'm sorry for being such a mess, I just can't fathom the thought of losing any of you." He paused to take a breath, "Let's return to the other's so they won't worry" and took her hand in his. "Down worry brother, I'll never cross the river Styx without you and neither will Leni or her child." She answered with a glee when he took her hand.

"I know Lucy." He smiled warmly at her. Even if most people found her appearance and love for all things morbid off-putting, to him it was what made her special. And in moments like these, when her façade dropped and she revealed her piercing blue eyes, to him she was an elegant black swan. Not able to hold himself back he quickly scanned the surroundings once again before picking Lucy up under her arms and pining his lips to hers, silencing her gasp of surprise.

"We should go while I still have some self-control around you."

"Yeah, we should…" Lucy answered, still dazed and with a dumb smile on her lips.

When they returned they saw that their parents already received the bad news as their father lay unconscious on a nearby bench. Meanwhile, their mother hysterically demanded more answers from the poor nurse who came to inform them.

"Where did you go bra? Something happened to Leni but the nurses only told something to Ma and pops and then the screaming started." Luna said when she noticed them approaching.

"I know Lunes, I saw them take her to the operating room. Something is wrong with the baby, they said it might have a… a... Oh god, I can't even think about it." Lincoln tried to explain before tensing up again. He shook his head, there was nothing he could do now, he needed to at least be there for Lori. "How is Lori?"

"The contrashtions are frequent now, it shouldn't be long before the delivery starts." Lisa approached them with her hands behind her back. After doing a quick sweep to ascertain no one would overhear she added, "I'm sorry Lincoln. Despite my anger with you, Leni's child is innocent and should not suffer. If it eases your burden, this most likely isn't your fault. I mean the fact that the child was conceived by incest." She coughed, still not used to saying that word in association with her own siblings, " Still, should the baby be afflicted by any form of disability, I'll do my best to help."

Lincoln smiled at his little sister and playfully ruffled her messy hair with his hand. "Thank you, Lisa. That would mean the world to me."

"Sure, just remember, I'm doing just for the baby!" she replied flustered with a hint of blush on her cheeks. This prompted Luna, Lincoln, and even Lucy to laugh at the little scientist's obvious embarrassment. They continued standing there, chatting, with Lynn and Luan joining them, for about an hour until a doctor came to inform them that Leni's surgery was successful with both of them surviving, however, the baby would need to be kept and examined for the effects of hypoxia. Leni fell asleep right after the operation from both exhaustion and stress, so they left her to rest for now.

This lifted some weight off of their shoulders, with Lincoln finally relaxing a bit since this all began. It would be another three hours till Lori entered active labor. The staff only allowed 2 people inside so of course she picked her mom and Lincoln. Their father protested for a bit, but his sisters talked him down.

It was a painful process, for both Lori and Lincoln. The former suffered painful contractions and pushing and the latter had to watch his lover in pain, while also having his hand crushed. He wanted to make her feel better but was afraid of doing anything suspicious with Rita in the room.

Finally, after an excruciating forty minutes, Lori was holding her daughter in her arms. Little Loan was currently sleeping like a little angel in Lori's arms. She had a little tuft of light blonde hair and a smooth white face. "She's beautiful," Lori said adoringly, cradling the baby in her arms. "She really is honey. Could I hold her for a bit?" Rita asked, with Lori nodding and slowly handing Loan. Their mom carefully picked her up, admiring her granddaughter. "She looks just like you sweetie. It's a bit strange that she doesn't have any similarities with Bobby. But I'm no expert in genetics." Rita commented upon examining Loan more closely, causing a shared drop of sweat to trace down both Lincoln's and Lori's foreheads. "Alright Mom, I think Lincoln should also get to hold ou.. my daughter." Lori nervously blurted out, with Lincoln nodding frivolously in agreement.

Rita reluctantly handed the newborn to Lincoln, who was currently sitting in the chair next to the bed. It was a surreal feeling for him, holding his own daughter, a daughter he and Lori made. These nine months were an emotional trainwreck for him, going from disgust at himself, fear of not being able to handle the responsibility, and regret of most likely never being able to admit that Loan was his daughter to anyone besides his sisters. But Loan suddenly opened her eyes to look at him, and stretched her small arm to touch his nose, he was certain. He was certain it was all worth it, for if his love for his sister could create something this beautiful and pure, then to him it couldn't be wrong.

"She's wonderful Lori." He said, tears of joy filling his eyes, and handed Loan back to his sister.

"Awe, look how happy your brother is about his new niece Lori." Rita nudged Lori jokingly, who smiled at how adorable Lincoln was being right now.

The joyful atmosphere was disrupted when an older balding man in a medical lab coat entered the room. He scanned the room his eyes falling on Rita. "Are you Mrs. Rita Loud?"

"Yes, that is me. What is this about?"

He eyed the room once again. "I have news regarding your second granddaughter. Although I think it's something we should discuss in private."

"Wait, it's a girl?!" Lincoln asked excitedly but was silenced by his mother's stare.

"My children deserve to know as much as I do. Please tell us what you learned." Rita said confidently.

"As you wish. We ran a CT scan and an EEG to learn what damage the lack of oxygen caused to the newborn. The damages aren't extensive, however, the parts of the brain controlling her speech have been affected the most. This means that while she will be able to learn and understand speech, her ability to speak will be heavily limited at best." The man explained in an exhausted voice.

The atmosphere of the room was once again dark. "Thank you for informing us," Rita said, which the man took as his cue to exit, leaving the trio to ponder on the news brought.


Hey guys! This chapter is a bit shorter and mainly here to add some backround to Loans and Lienas birth. It's also shorter because I plan the next chapter to contain the confrontation with Sam as well as how Lyra's origin. Sorry for not being as active but I fell into the worst rabbitt hole there is,... Swedish map games.

Also, you may have noticed there are a lot greater timeskips in the past. That's because there is still a lot to cover and I don't want to drag this out too much, so the present will remain the same with the past being more of a chain of relevant events.