Chapter 2: The New "Normal"
Part 1

Lincoln and Clyde both gasped as they were doused with a spray of glowing greenish-blue liquid. It was somehow both hot and cold at the same time, and Lincoln accidentally dropped Lily (who had also gotten soaked) in shock at the sensation.

After a few seconds of trying to comprehend what had just happened, Lincoln was suddenly hit with an intense burning sensation both inside and out, like lava was covering his skin and his stomach was full of hot coals. He let out a strangled scream and doubled over in pain, falling to his knees and clawing madly at his clothes. His muscles were writhing under his skin, growing and bunching together, causing him additional pain. His clothes tore off as his body doubled in size in a matter of moments. Wiry white fur burst from every pore, and a long, bushy tail sprouted from his hindquarters. His legs and feet changed shape to be more like a dog's, and so did his head. His mouth and nose stretched into a long, pointed muzzle, his teeth transformed into needle-sharp fangs, and his ears tapered to points and moved to the top of his skull. To complete the transformation, sharp black claws replaced his finger- and toenails, and the irises of his eyes turned blood-red.

Lincoln fell over onto his side, panting heavily as the burning sensation gradually subsided. Wearily lifting his head, he looked over at Clyde and Lily. Both went through the same horrifying transformation that he did, only with different animals. Lily was now an anthropomorphic hedgehog, the quills on her hunched back quivering as her body shook with sobs. Clyde had become a cross between a human and a cat; specifically, a Tortoiseshell Calico. He was covered in mottled brown, black, and beige fur with pointed ears, abnormally long canines in his mouth, and a long, twitching tail. The only difference between their transformations was that both Clyde and Lily stayed their original sizes, so their clothes were slightly shredded but mostly intact. Lincoln on the other hand had grown so much in so little time that none of his clothes were wearable any longer.

A wave of exhaustion struck all three of them, and they passed out.

...

The sun was high in the sky when Lincoln woke up with a skull-splitting headache. Every sound was too loud, every smell was too sharp, and the harsh sunlight was blinding him. He began to hyperventilate at the overpowering assault from his senses, then remembered the meditation techniques that his sister Lucy taught him for the far-between times that he was under extreme stress. Sitting up in the lotus position, he closed his eyes and took slow, deep breaths in and out. After the twentieth breath, the sensations weren't hitting him quite as hard, so he cracked open his eyes and looked around.

Clyde and Lily were still unconscious, and Stella's car was gone. Lincoln was amazed that all the screaming while they mutated hadn't woken her up; then again, Stella's mom had told them a story of how Stella had quite literally slept through a hurricane when they still lived in the Philippines (to Stella's embarrassment).

He then realized that he was still naked. He quickly snatched up the blanket he and Lily had laid on while watching the meteor shower and tied it around his waist. He shook both Clyde and Lily awake, and comforted them both before they could panic with the consideration that Lisa might be able to change them back.

Clyde's car battery was dead due to him accidentally leaving the driver's-side door open all night (which in turn meant the overhead light was on all night) and there was no way Lincoln's Vespa could carry all three of them plus Scout, especially with Lincoln's new monstrous size. Now that all three of them were technically part of the animal kingdom, Scout was even more enthusiastic to be in their company than usual, which gave Lincoln some comfort. Thus, being forced to abandon the vehicles, they made their way back to town on foot. That was how they discovered that both Lincoln and Clyde could run on all fours with great speed, with Lily clinging to Lincoln's back and whooping in delight.

Once they arrived at the border of Royal Woods, they miraculously went unnoticed by the ordinary humans as they made their way to The Loud House. Lincoln's family was very understanding of the situation, with Lana even noting that Lily was even cuter than she had previously been. Lisa, after hearing their story of what had happened, requested blood and saliva samples from all three of them so that she could begin the search for an antidote...

...

"I can't change you back."

Lincoln was stunned. He, Lily, and Clyde had been confined to the house, away from the public, for three days. Seeing that no article of clothing in the house would fit her big brother, Lucy had kindly gone out and bought several pairs of the biggest, baggiest sweatpants she could find, cutting slits in the back of each pair for Lincoln's tail. Clyde's dads had dropped off clothes for their son, track suits identical to the one he wore when he mutated but varying slightly in color. Clyde's and Lily's clothes also required a few modifications to make them compatible with their mutant physiques. All the waiting was making Lincoln stir-crazy, and he was starting to develop Cabin Fever.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU CAN'T CHANGE US BACK?!" Lincoln finally roared at Lisa. She didn't even flinch when the force of his yell ruffled her hair and knocked her glasses askew.

"You, Clyde, and Lily were all doused with an extremely powerful mutagenic chemical compound that is most likely of extraterrestrial origin," Lisa calmly explained while straightening her glasses. "I need a sample of that same substance in order to synthesize a retro-mutagen that will revert the three of you back to your human forms. Unfortunately, what didn't splash on you soaked into the ground, which was thankfully barren and full of rocks, and rendered itself useless. Unless I find a way to obtain another sample...you are rather effectively stuck like this. Permanently." Lincoln sighed and plopped down on his mattress in defeat.

"I was supposed to have a date with Cristina tonight. What am I supposed to do now?" he moaned, the dog-like pointed ears on the top of his head drooping. Lisa was then struck by a totally unrelated idea, an idea that would hopefully show Lincoln what was wrong with his relationship with the admittedly rude and snobby girl.

"Attend your date anyway," she said, and Lincoln's ears perked. Satisfied that she now had his attention, Lisa continued, "As a test of her devotion to you and to your relationship, show Cristina what you look like in your current state. I am aware that you and she have been having squabbles, so this may be your chance to find out what her true intentions are. Besides, we've all noticed how restless you've been cooped up in the house, which is no doubt the fault of the wolf DNA from Scout that was spliced into your own." Lincoln liked the idea, so he pulled out his phone (which Lisa had recovered from the site of the Star Party during her investigation, along with Clyde and Lincoln's vehicles).

"Hey, babe, slight change of plans. Can you meet me by the grove of trees in Ketchum Park at sundown?" he muttered to himself as he typed a text message and sent it to Cristina, who replied with a thumbs-up emoji.

...

When the sun was about to drop below the horizon, Lincoln made his way to Ketchum Park, cloaking himself in the shadows of the trees. Despite the snow-white fur covering his body from head to toe, he remained completely invisible. He didn't have to wait long for his girlfriend to arrive.

"Lincoln? Lincoln, where are you?" Cristina called out, walking along the outside edge of the grove.

"Over here, babe!" he called back, and Cristina walked toward the sound of his voice.

"Lincoln, are you okay?" she asked. "You sound different. Are you getting sick?"

"Nah, I'm fine. Just, uh, stay right where you are. I'll come to you." The truth was that his mutation into a human/wolf hybrid had deepened his voice slightly, not enough to be unrecognizable, but just enough to clue Cristina in that something wasn't right. Lincoln crept over to Cristina, being careful to stay in the shadows. "Listen, Crissy, something happened a few days ago, right after the meteor shower. I guess you could say I'm a new man now." Cristina gasped and squealed giddily.

"Oh, Lincoln, I knew you'd start seeing things from my point of view!" she said with a cheesy grin.

And what point of view would that be, exactly? Lincoln thought before speaking. "Well...that's not exactly what I meant, babe. Some kind of...ooze splashed on me and transformed me. I don't...look like what I did before."

"Uh...what do you mean? How did it change you?" Cristina asked. Lincoln looked down at his bare, fur-coated chest, watching the bulky, powerful muscles writhe under his skin while he figured out how to respond.

"I, uh...I guess you could say...in certain regards, it's a definite improvement. I'm gonna come out where you can see me now. Promise you won't freak out or anything?"

"Uh...okay?" Cristina responded uncertainly. Lincoln took a deep breath.

Well, it's now or never, he thought. He had been crouched on all fours while speaking to Cristina, so he stood up as straight as he could with his backwards dog's legs and his hunched back. He took one final deep breath and slowly stepped forward into the light of the streetlamp. Cristina's pupils shrank as his wolf's snout came into view slightly before the rest of him. She whimpered in fear and took one step backward for every step forward he took. Unbeknownst to him, she had taken out her phone and was recording him on video.

"Crissy? It's okay. It's just me, Lincoln," he said slowly, his nose detecting a sudden tang in the air that he instinctively knew was the smell of fear. For some reason...fear smelled delicious!

"L-L-Lincoln?" Cristina whimpered.

"Uh...yeah. This is the new me. Not what you expected, huh?"

"Not what I expected?! Lincoln, you're a monster! A freak!" she screamed. To Lincoln, it felt like she had just stabbed him.

"Babe, please! Give me a chance to explain!" he said, stepping forward again. Cristina rapidly shook her head and took another step back, only to trip on her own feet and land hard on her backside. "Crissy! Are you okay?" he asked, lunging forward in a belated attempt to catch her.

"HELP! HELP! MONSTER! SOMEBODY HEEEEEEEEEEELP!" Cristina screamed at the top of her lungs, scrambling to her feet and running away as fast as she could. Lincoln helplessly stared after her, once more crouched on all fours. His body trembled, and his tears dripped onto the grass like raindrops.

...

The next day, everyone walked on eggshells around Lincoln. He had taken the unofficial breakup harder than any of them had anticipated, and none of them wanted to tell him that Cristina's video of him "attacking" her had gone viral overnight. However, it didn't quite have the effect Cristina must have intended. Lincoln was an upstanding member of the Royal Woods community, and local viewers that included Lincoln's friends and the sisters who had moved out by that point shamed Cristina in the comments and advocated for Lincoln's innocence.

News of his mutation spread through the town like wildfire, and Lucy and Lana found themselves coming up with creative ways to scare the press away. His friends, however, were welcomed with open arms. They tried to talk to Lincoln, only to find him curled into a tight ball on his mattress, his eyes covered by his tail. Rusty persisted, only for Lincoln to almost bite his hand off.

Lucy finally decided that enough was enough and went upstairs to talk to her brother herself. Over the years, she was able to build an emotional bond with him that was much deeper than any of their other family members, so she knew him better than almost anyone else did. She knew what made him tick, what triggered him emotionally, and dare she say it, she knew who his heart truly resided with, even if he didn't yet. Someone like Cristina was precisely the opposite of what Lincoln needed to thrive and be the best person he could be.

Lucy closed Lincoln's bedroom door behind her and sat down beside him on the bed. She remained totally silent, letting him make the first move.

"Go away, Lucy," he said. He was starting to learn that different people had different scents; to him, Lucy smelled like incense smoke and spiced oranges. The longer Lucy stayed, the more annoyed he got. "Go away, Lucy," he emphasized, the fur along his spine standing on end like a dog's hackles. She still refused to budge, so he started to growl. Lucy sighed.

"Lincoln, you and I both know that the last thing you need right now is to be alone," she said softly, gently stroking Lincoln's head between his ears, which he found strangely soothing. She ran a hand down his back, smoothing his hackles back down. "Oh, you poor thing," she continued. "Nobody seems to realize or appreciate how sensitive of a person you actually are. Someone who would dare to hurt you this badly doesn't deserve your love. You'll find the right person eventually; I know you will." Lincoln's body started to shudder, and Lucy realized that he was crying.

"How could anyone love me now, Lucy? Cristina's right. I'm a monster," he blubbered. Lucy frowned.

"No, Lincoln. You are the absolute furthest thing from a monster. Trust me, I would know. You only look different on the outside, but you're the same gentle, caring person I know on the inside," she assured him. Lincoln hesitated a moment before uncurling himself and wrapping his beefy arms around his younger sister. His muzzle was so long that when he put his head on her shoulder, his chin touched the bottom of her shoulder blade. Lucy returned the embrace, continuing to rub his spine as he shook and whimpered like a hurt puppy. "There, there. It's alright," she whispered.

"Th-thank you, Lucy," he whispered back. After what seemed like an eternity, Lincoln broke the hug and dabbed at his eyes with a wad of tissues. "I think I'm okay now," he said.

"Good. Your friends are downstairs, and they're worried sick about you," Lucy told him.

They walked down the stairs together, but when they go to the bottom, Lincoln's friends were at the dining room table, huddled around Zach's laptop and whispering to each other.

"Uh...what's going on?" Lincoln asked, and everyone jumped up to try to act like nothing was wrong, with Zach slamming the laptop shut.

"Nothing's wrong! Why would anything be wrong?" Stella hurriedly covered, grinning sheepishly with a drop of sweat on her temple. Lincoln narrowed his eyes.

"I didn't ask if anything was wrong. I just asked what was going on," he said. His friends all looked at each other, sweating even more. Lincoln sniffed the air, then raised his hackles and bared his fangs. "I can smell your fear now, you know. Tell. Me. NOW!" he roared.

"Okay! Okay! We'll talk!" Zach screamed in terror.

"You, see, Lincoln," Stella began, "Zach did some digging on Cristina to see if there was anything we could use to get back at her. And, well...turns out she had a social media profile not even you knew about."

"Go on..." Lincoln growled. Stella gulped and elbowed Zach, who opened the laptop and turned the screen towards Lincoln. Lincoln sat down and looked at the screen. The first picture at the top of the profile was of his girlfriend...

...with Chandler?!

Lincoln scrolled down. More pictures with Cristina and Chandler in different places. At the beach, in the mountains, in a hot spring...Lincoln was so stunned that he didn't even look at the captions or the dates the pictures were posted. He stopped on a picture of Cristina and Chandler kissing.

On the lips!

"She's...cheating on me?" Lincoln asked. Stella walked to the other side of the table and put her hand on Lincoln's shoulder.

"Not just currently," she said slowly. "I'm so, so sorry, Lincoln. She's been two-timing you all summer! Your entire relationship!" Lincoln was still.

He didn't move.

He didn't breathe.

He didn't blink.

After several tense moments, Lincoln's pupils turned to vertical slits so narrow, it almost looked like he didn't have pupils at all. He bared his teeth and stood up with a low growl that steadily increased in volume. Zach realized what he was about to do and quickly pulled his laptop away.

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" he bellowed and slammed both fists down on the table, making it crack across the middle and collapse. He then sank to...whatever he had that passed for knees, huffing and puffing. Fresh rivers of tears ran down both sides of his muzzle and dripped from the tip of his nose. "Why?! Why would she do this to me?! I tried to be a good boyfriend, so why?!" he sobbed.

"You brought this on yourself, pal," Rusty said rather insensitively. "I knew something was off about her, but you didn't-" He was cut off when he felt Lucy's pointed fingernails digging into his neck, the one silvery-blue eye she chose to reveal blazing with fury.

"You're making it worse. Scram!" she hissed.

"Make me!" he hissed back. A wrong move on his part, as her grip only tightened.

"Please don't make me remind you that I can kill you in twelve different ways," she snarled. Rusty made the right decision and backed down, leaving the house entirely alongside Zach and Liam, leaving Lincoln alone with Lucy and Stella.

The two girls stayed with Lincoln and hugged him from both sides until Rita returned with a blanket-shrouded Lily in her arms, accompanied by Clyde, who was hiding his mutant features with the old-fashioned but effective trench coat and fedora combo, the collar of the coat pulled up to hide his face. The trio had slipped away to the tailor shop Leni ran in Hazeltucky to get Clyde's and Lily's clothes professionally tailored to fit their new body shapes. Considering that her only son was so much bigger than an average human, Rita opted to leave him behind and request a house call from Leni, to which the second-eldest Loud child eagerly agreed.

After Lucy filled her in and before she assisted in helping Lincoln calm down, Rita pulled out her phone and texted two words to her daughter Luan: Code Turquoise. Every conceivable emergency situation in the Loud household had its own code, turquoise meaning a sibling's significant other was caught cheating. Luan took it upon herself to punish said cheaters with outlandish practical jokes that, while non-lethal, added plenty of insult to injury.

Until she arrived, though, all they could do was wait.

In case anyone was curious, Lincoln's mutant form was heavily inspired by Death from Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.