After a long day one might find solace in stargazing, after all, what could be more relaxing then just laying down and simply watching the night bring you comfort?
Linka leans back against the hard tiling of the roof with her hands held firmly behind her head as she watches the sky above. Despite the usual noise of her home, most of it would die down after lights out… save for the snoring.
Given what had happened just a few days prior, it's understandable.
*Sigh* She goes, before sitting up and staring at the watch that had given her so much grief and yet held the way home. "One fragment down, three to go right? To prevent the destruction of the world?" She lies back down, "William… I wish you were more direct."
"Hey Linka." A familiar voice greets.
The girl looks up with that, "Oh hey Lars, what brings you here so late?"
The Goth boy carefully steps over and takes a seat next to her sister, "I usually come up here before dinner to get some peace and quiet. It's one of the best places to write…" Then he looks at the notepad in his hands, "Plus, the cold air keeps me up. Not that anyone would notice if I'm in my bed or not."
Linka raises an eyebrow before shrugging, "Fair enough bro."
"So what brings you here so late… Linka." Lars continues, his tone unchanging, yet his voice filling with a brotherly heat, as if he were begging for something that he rather not say.
"I just came up here to think about stuff." Linka sits up and turns to face her brother, "I've been here for three months now and have just got the first fragment after all…"
Lars then begins to write, "Hey Linka… you didn't tell me yet, but how's… the real you doing? You know, back where you came from?"
"Dangit, I knew he'd ask that!" Linka quickly thinks, before giving a soft sigh, "She's doing well and all. You know, just spending time with my sisters like I've been spending time with you and all."
"Linka," Lars starts, "Sigh, you know you've been dodging the question ever since that night." Then he turns to Linka with begging eyes, "Please tell me the truth, I can handle it. What's going on with the real Linka?"
"Nothing Lars." Linka calmly responds, desperate to keep things calm, "She just… hasn't gotten as far as I have, you know, getting the MacGuffin Fragments and all."
"You sure Linka?" The Goth boy begins to write, "Sigh, if it were that simple you would've told me it a while ago." Without looking at the girl masquerading as his sister he continues, "I know you're trying to hide something Linka, please, I need to know. I want to help my sister come home!"
Linka sighs, "I'll tell you some other time. I… I need to go check on her? You know, inter-dimensional viewing goggles are on the fritz again so I'll have to fix them and stuff."
"Sigh." Lars stands up, "I'll just wait…" And with that, the younger boy turns and walks back into the home.
"Heh, I'm too easy to read." Linka sighs, "Well… now that I think of it, I wonder how Linka's doin' back home… how bad could it have gotten?" and so, Linka stands up and calmly climbs back in, through the window into Leon and Levi's room.
"Thanks Levi." Linka says, before quietly passing the scientist and walking into her own room.
"Strange…" Levi then screws in a small nut and declares, "And my latest invention is complete!" He then turns and shouts, "Luke! Lars! Can you come here?!"
A few moments pass and the duo enters the scientist's room.
"What is it Levi?" Luke asks with a bored tone. "I was just about to practice my singing and stuff."
"And I was about to get to writing. It's taking me too long to write the next chapter of my latest story." Lars then sits down and begins writing, "I have to take every chance I get to write."
"You ok bro?" Luke looks at his younger brother with a concerned expression, "You seem like you haven't gotten much sleep last night."
"I can stop writing whenever I want!" Lars snaps, "Just because I have been pulling all-nighters to do this doesn't mean I-"
"Siblings!" Levi adjusts his glasses and motions towards a small helmet-like device, "Luke, I've finished the Dimensional Communicator, I need to you to test it right here in case something goes wrong and I need to make an adjustment of some kind.
Luke nods, "Ok."
"And why am I here?" Lars asks, his voice filling with a monotone lack of care, "This is already starting to cut into my writing time."
"I just wanted to ask you about the walk you had with Linka. After all, I've been so busy that I was unable to ask you sooner, so if you've forgotten some details, that will be all right."
"Sigh." Lars answers, "Nothing of value happened during that walk. Linka just wanted to go out for a walk to clear her head." Then he pulls out his clipboard, "In fact, the walk inspired some of my writing, but alas, our sister is still our sister and nothing more."
"I see." Levi gives a soft sigh, "I suppose that is a good thing. I suppose my belief that she would rather be our brother must have been unfounded. That will be all Lars."
Lars simply nods, before disappearing as abruptly as usual.
Then, the scientist turns to face the purple helmet, "Now Luke, this device is very fragile. Please be very careful when handling it."
Luke shrugs, "Ok bro." While he thinks, "I just hope I can talk some sense into Linka…" and with that, he equips the helmet.
The scientist flips a small switch with that, causing a small, glass, facemask to drop and secure Luke's head in place, before the AI speaks.
"User detected: Luke Loud of Dimension 63i Apostrophe Backslash." A soft, feminine voice greets. "Unit is ready for dimensional insertion. Please input designation of dimension destination."
"First… Cortana?" Luke asks.
"Yes. The sound files used for unit creation originated from video game: HALO."
"Levi, you need to find better sound files." Luke flatly stares, before continuing, "Ok, Crotona, I would like to see uhh, how about Dimension C-137?"
"Input accepted. Tracking signature of Dimensional Counterpart!" The AI goes, before a flash of light bursts across Luke's face. "Here I go, time to finally confront Linka with what she's been doing for the past few months."
And when Luke opens his eyes, he finds himself in a familiar linen closet, "So far so good…" He takes a quick look around, noticing its familiar pink paint had been replaced by a soft green one. "Just like last time, ok, here we go."
Suddenly, the room door opens, revealing two boys, "Wait… what? Ron Andy?"
"Are you sure you wanna do this Ron?" The Lincoln counterpart asks, before jumping on the bed.
"Of course Lincoln, you're the only boy I want to spend my life with!" And the Ron Andy counterpart jumps on top of him.
Without another word, the two boys begin to kiss and begin to undo each other's pants.
"Linka?! What the heck is going on?!" Luke shouts, his face turning red from embarrassment.
Immediately the two boys stop, "Did you hear something Ron?" Lincoln nervously asks.
"Nope." Ron responds and they get back to work.
"Cortana! What dimension did you send me to?!" Luke angrily asks, "I said C-137!"
"Unit has sent you to dimension Sea-137. Unit is now confused by user input."
Luke grits his teeth, before taking the helmet off and glaring at Levi, "Levi! One these don't work. Two, this thing sent me to a dimension where Linka's male counterpart and Ron Andy were gay lovers!"
"Interesting." Levi goes, before taking the helmet back in his hands, "I apologize, I been unable to find a device capable of supporting every function required to get these to work properly."
"What about the piece I got you?" Luke asks, his voice filling with frustration, "You said that's all you needed!"
"I wish it were that simple." Levi gives a defeated sigh, "For most devices if I got the part that I was missing I'd equip it and complete it before the night were out." Then he returns to work, "But for some reason, inter-dimensional communication just doesn't seem to work! I doubt it's because of the anomalies!"
"Well, maybe you've missed some calculations or something. After all, you made Linka a set of Dimension-viewing goggles!" Luke responds, his voice filling with hope.
"Yes, I did, but simply viewing dimensions is one thing, communicating between them is an entirely different story." Then he takes a deep breath, before throwing his wrench across the room in frustration, before throwing his body into his chair, "I've been working on these for weeks and they still don't work!"
Luke hesitates for a moment, before placing a soft, fatherly hand on the boy's shoulder, "Don't worry Levi, you'll finish them eventually, but throwing your tools around isn't going to help you finish them sooner ok?"
Levi takes another deep breath, before turning and nodding, "You're right… I'll get back to the drawing board." Before he thinks, "But… I suppose this will not be complete for a while. I need to start back from square one."
"Ok… you ok Levi?" Luke asks.
Levi takes a moment to regain his composure, "I'm fine. I was just hoping that I would be able to find out why our sister has suddenly opened up. I'm afraid that if she doesn't want to be our sister, she rather just leave us for an alternate reality…"
"If only you knew…" Luke smiles, before ruffling Levi's messy hair, "Don't worry bro, she's going to be fine."
And with that, Luke stands up, "Anyways, if you need me I'll be in my room, ok?"
The scientist nods and with that, Luke walks out of the room and passes by a familiar linen closest, where Linka rests, preparing to do something she had done countless times before.
"Another day, another chance to see how badly Linka's ruining my life." Linka whispers before slipping a familiar set of goggles on, "Hey GLaDOS, you ready for the usual directives?"
"You sure you don't want to calibrate me first User: Linka Loud? After all, I believe there are still other universes that you must see in order to be ready for… whatever is to come." The AI responds.
"Seriously GLaDOS? Are you trying to be a fortune teller or something?" Linka chuckles.
"No, I just believe that as long as you have the ability to see into alternate realities, you should be numb to what comes."
Linka sighs, "Whatever GLaDOS, I just want to see my real home again, please."
"Yes User: Linka Loud."
And with that, a flash of light bursts across the girl's face, forcing her to shut her eyes. And when they open once more, Linka finds herself standing in front of a familiar Nursing home, one with a beautiful modern design that breathed of the amount of money one would have to drop to get in.
"Huh?" Linka thinks, "Why am I at pop-pop's this time?" She quickly looks around, and stops her imposter standing at the gate.
"Now Lincoln, have fun with grandpa today!" Rita asks, before shutting Vanzilla and driving off. From what the girl can see, Lincoln's hair, while still long, had been trimmed slightly. Instead of the poufy dresses that he used to be in, he wore a simple orange shirt and blue pants. For a moment, Lincoln starts to look like his old self again!
"I wonder if the real Linka's only now starting to feel the way I am…" Linka thinks, before stepping forward.
Albert greets his grandson with, "Haha! Lincoln my boy! How are ya doin'?" Then he playfully pats his side, "You've changed since I last saw you!"
Lincoln puts on a sheepish smile as he responds, "I'm doin' fine grandpa! Everything's fine!"
"Why, what happened to Pop-pop?" Albert jokingly responds while he throws his arms around him, "Don't tell me you've forgotten what we do together!"
"Of course I wouldn't forget pop-pop!" Lincoln responds, his voice filling with nervousness.
Albert brings the boy closer, before declaring, "Why my boy, we're going to have a grand old time today! I have so many manly things planned! You're gonna love it!"
"You sure that's a good idea Pop-pop, I mean I uhh…" Lincoln goes, only for Albert to respond. "Your mom's worried that you've been spending too much time with your sisters, so she decided to call me in hoping that your former marine grandpa could give you a manly person to spend time with!"
"Ok…" Lincoln nervously goes.
"Now, let's get you into some greens, I have some spares left over from my time." Then Albert lifts the boy up with ease, "You're goin' to have a brilliant old time you and I!"
No doubt, Albert was doing his best to hold back some sort of emotion.
And with that, Albert and Lincoln step back into the home. For a moment Linka considers following them, just as she had done countless times before, and yet this time, she simply sighs and goes, "I think I'm good for now GLaDOS. Send me home."
"What User: Linka Loud? That's the shortest amount of time you've spent gazing into another world! Are you sure?"
"Since when have you cared GLaDOS?" Linka retorts, "You're just a snarky A.I. that has no limits!"
"True. Input accepted, returning User to dimension of origin!" And with that, the goggles shut down once more, bringing the young girl back to her room.
She then takes the goggles off and places them softly on the table, before taking hold of the Matter Key Watch, "Well… I guess things could be worse… Linka seems to finally start converting to me like I've converted to her… but she doesn't know how to spend time with Pop-pop… and mom's really worried about me."
A curious expression overtakes the girl's face, "Now that I think of it, we haven't visited Pop-pop here in months... I wonder why that is. I remember we'd at least get a call or something from him every now and then, but it's been almost three months..."
"Ehh, it's probably not important." Linka shakes her head, "After all, it's been a week and I haven't had another breakthrough… I wonder where the next fragment could be…" Then she sighs, "And I still haven't told Lars the truth…Given the way Luke behaved when he found out the truth, even if it wasn't as bad as I had expected, it was still bad. Even if Lars likes me, what'll he do when he find out his real sister doesn't want to come home?!"
She sighs once more, "I guess I'll just save that problem for when I get to it…"
"Linka! I need you!" Rita calls, her soft voice echoing through the home."We have to make dinner!"
"Coming mom!" Linka responds, before jumping to her feet, rushing down the stairs and joining her loving mother in preparing dinner.
After that, Linka helps in serving dinner, before taking her seat next to her brothers just as she had done countless times before.
With all of his children gathered for their meal, Linka's father speaks, "So how were your days, kids?" his fatherly voice giving a commanding strength.
Loki is the first to speak, "Well, I managed to hit the gym today, and I have completed my routine. Also, I was able to complete acquiring the gear for our trip in a few weeks." Then, the young man shoves another spoonful of food in his mouth.
"Good." Lynn Sr. then looks at Loni, and the young man responds, "I was able to finish the repairs to the roof!" Before putting on a pained smile.
Their father nods again, "Luke?"
Luke doesn't respond, and instead continues to pick at his food, the image of a male Linka kissing Ron Andy burned into his mind.
"Hey Luke." Linka nudges her brother, causing him to flinch up.
"Huh, what?" He stammers, "Oh uhh, I was fine. I uhh, got to work on that song I've been putting off."
Lynn Sr. stares for a moment, "Are you sure son? It seems you've got something on your mind."
Luke shakes his head, "It's nothing, just uhh, girl problems and stuff."
"I see, ok then." The father goes, before looking at the next brother, "How about you Lane? What did you do today?"
Lane responds, "I managed to do three parties!" Immediately followed by Lynn Jr. declaring, "Oh yeah Lane?! I managed to play three games today, and won all three!"
Lynn Sr. gives a soft, approving smile, before turning to his lone daughter.
Yet, before he can ask her, she goes, "Hey dad…"
"Yes Linka?" He responds.
"I was wondering…" Linka awkwardly rubs the back of her head, "Why do we never visit grandma and grandpa?"
"Oh, no reason…" The man's voice trails off with uncertainty, while he turns to his wife for some guidance.
Rita responds by simply shrugging, forcing Lynn Sr. to go, "We just haven't found the time to do so." Then he gives a soft gaze. "We'll talk about it some other time ok?"
"Ok dad…" Linka gives a disappointed nod, "I was just wondering because… well I remember one of my friends talking about how excited they were to visit their grandparents and stuff…"
"It's ok honey. Now how about we get to eating? After such busy days, you guys must be hungry!" Rita speaks up, desperate to change the conversation topic, for some reason.
Later...
"Maybe we should go see them, after all, it's been eighteen years since we last saw them…" Rita suggests, her voice filling with a motherly calm, "You've been putting this off for years now Lynn!"
"I'm not sure Rita… I just have a bad feeling about it…" her husband counters, his voice filling with a fatherly concern, "I don't want to risk putting them through that!"
"But they deserve to meet them." Rita responds, he voice bordering on shouting. Now, normally, their room's walls would hide the arguing, but of course, there is a small opening in their closet that allows the noise to go upstairs.
Linka stands in front of the vent and simply listens to her parents, "Come on Lynn, what's the worst that could happen? Just because they didn't approve last time, doesn't mean they won't approve this time!"
"What's she talking about?" Linka thinks, "Back home we used to visit Pop-pop all the time!"
"Yeah, it's been eighteen years," Lynn Sr. continues, his voice filling with despair, "But that doesn't mean my mom and dad are going to just forget what we did! We ran away from home! They called you a word I won't scream in this house!"
"Oh… but… what?" Linka tilts her head in confusion, "Mom and dad didn't run away… did they?" Then she sighs, "Alternate dimensions are confusing."
"Well, wouldn't you want to see Loki after he ran away? 'Welcome home my wayward son' was it?"
"It's 'Carry on my wayward son'…" The father thinks for a moment, "Fine, you win." Lynn Sr. sighs in defeat, "We'll take them to see their grandparents in the morning. But we're leaving at the first sigh of trouble, got that?"
"Agreed," Rita responds, before continuing with a seductive voice, "now come over honey, you know what comes next."
Immediately, Linka's face goes red in surprise, before she promptly turns and rushes out of the bathroom… only to hear a rather loud crying emanating from the room next to hers.
"I wonder…" Linka thinks, before she sticks her head in Levi and Leon's room, only to find the scientist desperately trying to calm Leon down. "Uhh, what's going on Levi?"
"Oh Linka! Great timing!" Levi desperately goes, before running over and shoving the baby into her arms, "Please, I need your help with Leon, he won't stop crying! I checked his diaper, and he's not hungry, I don't know what to do!"
Linka calmly takes the baby in her arms. "Calm down little Leon." She whispers, before softly shaking him, "Everything's going to be all right. Your older sister is here for you!" Then, she places a soft kiss on his forehead, causing the baby to laugh. "Poo-poo!"
"Wow Linka, how'd you do that?" Levi asks, shock filling his voice.
Leon proceeds to gnaw on Linka's Matter Key Watch while she responds, "It's just something sisters know how to do. I guess you could call it my sister's intuition." Then she chuckles, before kneeling down, "And I think you would like me to read you a bedtime story, don't you?"
Levi blushes in surprise, before tapping his fingers together and looking away. "Well I…" Then he drops the tough boy demeanor and nods, "Yes…"
Linka smiles, not noticing the dim glow of her watch and a small stream of light flow into the baby. "Heh, ok then, get in bed then Levi."
The scientist boy complies and Linka responds by tucking him in. After that, she places Leon in his crib as well and stands between them.
The young girl thinks for a moment, before beginning, "There once was a young boy that questioned his life and family. And decided to try and see the world outside his own home." With a soft, motherly voice, she continues, "But he realized that the home he found was not the one he wanted and so he came running back to his true home. And he lived, happily, ever, after."
And with that, the young girl places a soft kiss on her younger brother's foreheads, before turning off the light and closing the door behind her.
"Huh, that was strange…" Linka thinks as she steps into her own bed, "I didn't expect that to happen… most of the time I used to just pass Lily off to one of my sisters." Then she chuckles, "I guess here, they pass Leon off to me… I wonder why I'm just noticing this now."
She sighs and simply tucks herself in for the night, before closing her eyes and going to sleep. "I hope everything is going to be fine…"
The next morning…
"You sure we have to go Rita?" Lynn Sr. asks, his voice filling with reluctance as he shoves the key in the ignition and turns.
"Yes." Rita answers, "Our children deserve to meet their grandparents, after all, things have changed! It's been years, how bad could it be?!" Then she glances back, making sure that her ten sons and one daughter are all buckled in and ready for a car trip."
*Sigh* Lynn Sr. goes, "You don't know my parents." And with that, he starts the car. He grits his teeth and drives off with that.
It takes close to an hour of driving for the Louds to finally reach their grandparent's home, though none really mind. After all, Linka was given the sweet spot, with Loki making sure to sit next to her.
Finally, their father turns and stops in front of a small home, with peeling white paint and a small lawn that seemed to have been well maintained. A small brick path stretches from the small, chain-link fence to the door.
"Here we go." He whispers, before ordering, "Ok kids, out of the van!"
With that, the ten Loud children file out and stand before the home.
"Huh, so this is where pop-pop err, mam-mam lives?" Linka thinks before Lynn Sr. takes point and step onto the property.
"I can't believe we're visiting grandpa and grandma." Loki quips.
"Yeah! It's so exciting!" Loni responds, "I wonder why we never visit them!"
The man glances back, "Kids, I want you to be on your best behavior when we go here, got that? Your grandfather is a bit… old fashioned. To say the least, and he's never been one for surprise visits." Then, he rings the bell.
The Loud Family stands by in silence as they wait. Soft sounds of shuffling pass for a moment, before the front door goes *click* and opens up, revealing a balding old man in a light-read long sleeve shirt. His skin is wrinkled, no doubt from age, and yet his light skin remains smooth. He stands shorter than Lynn Sr. and yet, brings in a stronger air of authority than the man.
"Who the hell are you supposed to be?" The man greets, "I didn't order a circus act."
*Sigh* Lynn Sr. goes, "It's me dad. Your son." Loosening up his expression as he does so.
The man shows no emotion as he responds, "Well, I can see you've been busy. How many kids you got there?"
"Eleven." Lynn Sr. flatly responds, "I've got eleven kids."
"And it seems you're still with that woman." He continues, and the younger man nods, "Yes…"
"Care to tell me how long it's been? And why after all these years you've decided to suddenly appear on my doorstep?" The old man asks, his voice filling with a soft anger.
"It's been eighteen years dad." The man responds, "And I came because I wanted to introduce you to my family, after all…" He grits his teeth, "It's about time you met what I've been working on with the woman of my dreams."
The old man proceeds to slam the door in his son's face.
"Well, that's that I guess…" Lynn Sr. quips… only for the door to open once more, revealing a little old lady, who too had perfect skin despite her age. She wears a green sweater, and has soft brown hair.
Her eyes go wide at the sight of the family and she throws her arms around Lynn Sr. "Oh my darlin' boy! You've come home! How have you been?! You haven't called!" Then she grabs hold of the man and declares, "Come! We have much to talk about!" And with that, she drags the man inside, much to his dismay.
"Huh, that's funny." Linka thinks, before the rest of the Loud Family simply shrugs and follows them inside.
The interior of the home is small, with every inch of the space decorated with random photos of the resident couple's numerous travels as well as the various trinkets they had brought back with them.
The old woman leads her son of to the kitchen, before ordering, "Come, come, take a seat! I know this table isn't that big, but we have to make due with what we've got after all!" And so, the Loud Family crowds around the table, with Linka, Lynn Sr. and Rita taking up the only open chairs at the table, forcing the brothers to stand.
"You have so much to tell us, where do you live? How are you doing?" The old woman's voice is filled with excitement as she clutches her son's hands.
"I've been doing ok mom. I live in Royal Woods now." Lynn Sr. Responds.
"Oh my, Royal Woods?!" She goes, "You must be rich now! Isn't that an expensive place to live nowadays?!"
Lynn Sr. puts on a sheepish smile, "Well, with a big family, money's always tight. We manage though, Rita works in business and I'm a dentist."
"So how are those 'urges' getting you?" His father cuts in, "From what I can see, they haven't lessened over the years."
"Now Larry, our son has come to visit." The woman responds, "We should give him a chance to introduce his family, before you release the rage you've pent up all these years."
"Seriously?! Our son is forcing himself to drive a van that should have stopped running years ago. I can probably guess what else he's doing! He probably lives in a house with walls thin as rice paper. And makes his children wear the same outfit every day just to have enough money to support his ever growing family."
"What, it's easier to buy in bulk!" Loni responds, causing the other Loud Brothers to glare at him.
Larry facepalms, before shouting, "Lynn Junior!""
Immediately, Lynn responds, "What? I didn't do anything! Yet…"
"Not you! Him!" The old man points at his son. "Lynn Junior!"
"Wait, dad's named after you too?" Luke begins to chuckle.
"Not exactly, he's named after me." The old woman cuts in, "My name's Lynn."
Linka thinks for a moment, "So if you're Lynn senior." She points at her grandmother, before pointing at her father, "And dad is Junior…" Then she points at Lynn, "That would make Lynn here..."
"Don't you dare Linka." Lynn mutters, gritting his teeth as he does so… only for Loni to cut her of, "Lynn Junior Junior?"
Lynn groans and shoves his face in hands.
"Technically he's Lynn the eighth. It's a tradition on my side to pass the name down." Their grandmother responds with a soft smile.
"And yet someone decided to have what looks like four more kids, before doing so didn't he?" their grandfather continues, "Did you run out of names or somethin' Jr.?"
"Well I-" Lynn Sr. starts… only for his father to interrupt again, "You did, and then out of desperation you decided to finally pass down the name."
"But dad I-" Lynn Sr. starts again, only to point at Linka, "I bet your only daughter doesn't even know how to take care of a child!"
Linka then speaks up, "I uhh, take care of Leon and change his diapers and-"
Yet, the grandfather simply continues, "But do you know what you're supposed to do when a baby starts crying in the middle of the night? Or how to properly burp a child? Or how to feed a child the natural way?!"
"Uhh… no." Linka responds, her face turning red as she does so.
Larry glares at his son, "And I bet the rest of your sons-"
"Enough Larry!" The old woman goes, her voice filling with anger, "Our son has decided to stop by, and all you've done so far is berate him for having a large family and insult his skills." Then, with fire in her eyes she continues, "So how about this, you go spend the day with him, go to Dairy Flags or something and catch up with your son and meet you grandsons and by the time you get back, I want you to tell me one good thing about them all." The old woman then motions towards herself, "While I stay here and try to get to know my daughter-in-law and my only granddaughter, ok?"
Then the old woman looks at Linka, "I'll even teach her what the lessons I've learned about being a mother." Then she motions towards Leon and Rita, "We'll hold onto the little one while you're gone so you don't have to worry much."
"What, but Lynn, I'm not going to take care of nine-" The old man starts, while his son adds, "Mom, I'm not sure that's a-"
Yet, with a straight face and a deadpan tone, the woman continues, "Lynn, Bertram, Loud, Junior."
Both Lynn juniors freeze, while Loki, Leif and Linka mouth "Bertram."
Then, she continues, "Lawrence, Louise, Loud." Then, she points at door. "Go bond. Now."
The father and son look at each other with worried eyes.
Lynn Sr. then quickly asks, "You remember how to drive the van?"
Larry doesn't hesitate to respond, "Nope."
And with that, the duo darts out the door, while everyone except Leon stares at the older woman with jaws open.
"Aren't you boys going after them?" The woman adds.
"You don't have to tell us twice." Loki responds, before the brothers take the hint and dart off.
*Cough* *cough* "Aren't you forgetting something kids?" The elderly woman yells.
Immediately, the brothers all facepalm, before backtracking, making a line, and kissing their grandma on the cheek in descending order and racing out the door... again.
And while this happens, Leon just giggles.
"You'll learn how to do that after we go over how to clean re-usable diapers." The old woman chuckles, while she turns to Linka. "After all, knowin' how to scare boys comes in handy when you need something done!"
"Wait... there's such a thing as reusable diapers?!" Linka goes in surprise, "Seriously?!"
"Yes my dear." The grandmother goes, before looking up at Rita, "How much does she know about… where babies come from?"
Rita rubs the back of her head in embarrassment, "We gave her the birds and the bees a while ago..."
Linka shakes her head and shrugs, "Well... I know that umm, a guy sticks his thing in me and umm..." Her face starts to go red as she tries to come up with the words.
The grandmother sighs, "That's enough." Then he grabs Linka "Time to get your hands dirty. From what I can smell, your little brother needs a change, so how about you show me what you can do?"
And with that, the girl takes Leon in her arms; from a single sniff she can tell that his diaper needed changing. "Ok, let's do this." She then brings him over to a nearby table and begins getting to work. With her grandmother and mother watching, she easily undoes the diaper, then using baby wipes, cleans the area off.
"Splendid!" Her grandmother declares, while Rita hands her a new diaper, "Now you just have to replace it."
And with a few more motions, she does so, before taking the young boy in her hands, and cradling him.
"Wow, this feels so nice." Linka thinks, before she says with a nostalgic tone, "I wonder if I'm going to be a mother one day..." Suddenly the realization dawns on her. "Wait… if I stay as Linka too long..." Her heart races in panic, "What if I can't take care of them." Her voice speeds up, "What if, what if-"
"Calm down Linka." Rita speaks up, "You're going to be fine."
Grandma Lynn then continues, "If you've got some Loud in you, you're going to be a fine mother."
"But what if I become a mother too soon?!" Linka frantically goes, careful not to drop Leon. "And why does becoming a mother seem so… exciting?"
Her grandmother smiles, "Don't worry, you'll be fine. Just don't let a guy stick it in you and you won't have to worry about anything." Then she kneels down and looks her in the eyes, "Now Linka, your mother and I have some bonding to do. Can you watch Leon while we're gone?"
"Wait, you're leaving me?!" Linka shouts, her voice filling with fear. "I don't know how to be a mom! I can't-"
"Are you sure that's a good idea Lynn?" Rita cuts in, "She hasn't been left alone in years. She-"
Grandma Lynn cuts her off with, "From what I could see with her changing that diaper, she will have an easy time caring for her baby brother." Then she chuckles and puts on a soft smile as she turns to face Linka, "You'll be fine, just stay calm ok?"
Linka gives a meek nod, "Ok Grandma…"
"Good." her grandmother adds, "Feel free to watch whatever you want on the TV, we have all the channels you could want."
"Ok…" Linka responds,
"Now come Rita, I know a great place we can get some good bread. It'll be a nice place to be."
"Ok Lynn." Rita nervously responds, before turning to her daughter, "Be careful Linka. Leon's feisty."
Linka nods, "Got it." and with that, her mother and grandmother walk out of the home.
"Well… that was unexpected…" Linka thinks, before she walks over and places Leon on the couch. "Ok Leon, what do you wanna watch?"
"Poo-poo!" Leon responds, before flailing his arms around and yelling random baby gibberish.
"Hmm, Blarney The Dinosaur sounds nice." Linka answers, before taking a seat next to him and turning on the TV. A few seconds pass before the old thing finally boots up and shows a dancing Irish Dinosaur singing, "The world is a huge place! Let's go!" And with a scene flip, the Dinosaur moves from the small home to an oversized park, followed by one of the many overblown musical numbers the show is famous for.
"Goo-goo!" Leon laughs and claps his hands in joy.
"Haha, you like that Leon?" Linka asks, before raising the boy up and making a silly face, "Hey look, I'm Blarney!"
Leon smiles more, before clapping his hand and shouting, "Poo-poo!"
"Haha, you want to go to the park huh?" Linka asks, her voice filling with motherly warmth, "I'm sure there's one around here. Mom and grandma won't care if I take you out for a bit I'm sure." Then she nuzzles the boy's belly playfully, causing him to laugh… and then start glowing.
"What the…" Linka whispers, before Leon disappears with a flash of light.
Linka blinks twice, "What the heck just happened?! What happened to you Leon?!" The girl jumps to her feet and runs around the house in a frantic search for her baby brother, "Where are you?!"
The young girl's heart races as she rushes outside. "Where could he have gone? Is this an anomaly's doing?! Why did he disappear?!"
She scans the street with panic in her movement; only spot Leon simply crawling across the street.
"Leon!" Linka desperately shouts, before rushing towards the boy.
Leon continues to crawl across; not worrying about the cars driving passed him.
Suddenly, a frog jumps in front of the boy… only to immediately get hit by a car.
"Oh no, Leon!" She ducks and dodges in front of an incoming car, before rolling, grabbing the boy and landing safely on the other side of the road.
"Phew, that was a close one." Linka quips, before attempting to look at the baby she had rescued.
"Poo-poo!" He cheerfully greets, only for Linka to look at him in annoyance, "Leon! Don't do that, you had me so worried!" Then with a more motherly tone she continues, "If you wanted to go to the park, you just had to ask, I would've taken you!"
Yet, Leon simply responds with some more random baby gibberish, before glowing again and disappearing.
"Leon!" She shouts, "What's going on?! Babies aren't supposed to disappear, right?!" She frantically scans the area around her, and spots her baby brother now entering a nearby playground.
"This is going to be frustrating day." The girl whispers, "But I guess a mother's work is never done… Why do I feel so… strange?" She shakes her head and gives chase to the baby.
Meanwhile…
"This is a horrible idea." Larry declares, "I don't even know why she wants us to and bond." The old man crosses his arms and looks straight ahead as his son drives.
"Yeah, but you know mom, dad, she'd kill us if we didn't do this!" Lynn Sr. responds, "Do you know what mom did the last time we tried to hide something from her?!"
Immediately, the two older men shiver in fear, before they both shake their heads and whisper, "Poor pony."
The Lynn Sr. sighs, "So can we at least try to have a good time, for mom's sake? We haven't seen each other in eighteen years!"
"Yeah, and why's that son?" Larry counters, "Why did you suddenly leave and take the family van with you? Why did you go out with that girl even though we didn't approve?!"
"Uhh dad and grandpa." Loki speaks up, "I know there's something going on here, but for our sake, care to explain?"
"Who the hell'er you?" The older man responds.
The young man responds, "I'm Loki, the oldest."
Larry hesitates for a moment, "Well I guess you're the reason. They left so long ago." Then the man glances back, "Don't call me grandpa yet, you're not worthy of that yet. Just call me your granddad."
"Ok?" Loki tilts his head in confusion.
"As for what's going on, your grandmother just got me to go out with my wayward son for some odd reason."
Lynn Sr. sighs, "Can we at least try to have some fun dad? Dairy Flags is right here." Then, the man turns the van and parks in an open space. Larry doesn't hesitate to step out and order, "Since we're here, I might as well meet you. Line up!"
And with that, the boys quickly rush out of the van and stand in line from oldest to youngest.
"Well, at least it looks like they have some discipline." Larry mutters, approaching the first brother as he does so, "So you're Loki, the oldest right?"
Loki nods, "Yes sir."
"You look like you've been through a lot. Military School much?" Larry goes.
"Yes sir, I spent four years at Royal Woods Military School." Loki's voice fills with a soft strength, as if he was filled with pride.
Larry glares at his son, "Seriously? Well at least you stopped him from being a complete mistake."
The Loud Father grits his teeth, "Can you please stop calling my kids mistakes!"
"No." Larry flatly responds, before walking over to Loni, "You look like you're good at woodworking."
Loni nods, "Yeah granddad! I love building things! I'm Loni!"
"You're fixing my roof when we get home." The old man responds… only for Loni to give an ecstatic nod, "You got it!"
"I like this kid already." Larry goes. Then he steps over to the next son.
Before Larry can speak up, Luke greets, "Hey granddad, I'm Luke."
"Word of advice, aim for a more masculine color." Larry goes, "You look like you're getting ready to seduce another man."
"Hey!" Luke clenches his fists if the man in front of him were not his grandfather; no doubt he would've hit him with the guitar.
"Shut it." Larry commands, causing Luke to hold his tongue. The old man takes one look at Lane and passes by.
"Uhh, you missed me?" Lane tilts his head in confusion, only for the grandfather to respond, "You're a one-dimensional joker who is trying too hard to be funny. I don't even need to talk to you to figure that out."
Lane drops his arms in shock.
"Now dad, I don't think-" Lynn Sr. speaks up, only for Larry to approach Lynn Jr.
"Well, you look sporty." Larry quips, "What do you do in your free time?"
Lynn Jr. nervously answers, "I uhh, do basketball and football and stuff."
"Now kid, I'm your grandfather, you don't need to be nervous." Then he leans down and feels his arm, "Though with muscles like this, you seem more fit to be a ballerina more than anything else." Lynn Jr.'s face goes red in embarrassment.
"Who's next?" The old man asks, only for Lars to appear in front of him.
"I'm next, I'm Lars." He goes.
Larry remains unfazed, "You look like the creative type, I like you." Then he turns to face the twins, "And who might you two be?"
Leif motions towards himself, "I'm Leif." Only for Lexx to come and pushes him out of the way, "And I'm Lexx."
"From what I can see, I prefer Leif and Lexx seems like a naive fool." Larry then looks at the final boy, "Let me guess, you're a child genius or something."
"Yes." Levi nods. "I am a professor and a respected scientist as well."
"A professor and respected scientist who probably sits in a booster seat and blows bubbles in his chocolate milk float."
"Ok dad, I think that's enough." Lynn Sr. finally speaks up, "Sheesh, I don't need you making my sons feel like they're mistakes!"
"I'm your father, it's my job to screw with you son. After all, I haven't raved on you for leaving for eighteen years." Then, the old man steps forward, "Now let's get this day over with."
And with that, the younger Louds grit their teeth and enter the park.
Meanwhile…
"Leon! Get back here!" Linka shouts as she races into the jungle gym. Leon easily swings from bar to bar, glowing and teleporting a few inches every swing to jump the gaps he can't make.
His older sister on the other hand frantically chases after him, "On days like this, I wish I had gone with Lynn's sports practice more often." Finally, Leon reaches the end and just as he jumps off the last bar, he giggles and teleports again.
"Dangit!" Linka shouts, "What the heck is causing this?!" Then, Linka too jumps up from the jungle gym and lands on the grassy ground below. She darts her eyes around once more, "There you are!"
The young girl gives chase to her brother, who was now crawling along one of the various playsets.
"Come on Leon, I need you!" Linka rushes onto the set as well. And just before she can grab her little brother, the young boy chuckles and teleports again, this time to the opposite end of the set, "Guide dangit! William, I am going to scream at you!" With a quick turn, Linka jumps up and grabs hold of the metal bars that connect the two sections.
She quickly moves from bar to bar, before jumping once more and landing on the opposing platform. "Stop running Leon!"
"Poo-poo!" Leon cheers, before flailing his arms cutely and disappearing again.
"Come catch me?" The girl facepalms in frustration, "Dangit this is getting annoying!" And with another sigh, she carefully looks around, "Where is he this time?"
She slowly moves her eyes around the park, expecting to find her baby brother perched precariously in a tree or waiting for her on another playset… only to find Leon now sitting in one of the nearby baby swings, as if waiting for her to come.
"Phew." Linka goes, before she walks over, "Please don't teleport again Leon, you almost gave me a heart attack with that last one." Then she tries to pull her brother from the swings… only for the young boy to start crying.
Linka thinks for a moment, before smiling, "You want me to push you don't ya?"
"Poo-poo!" Leon goes, before adding some more random baby gibberish to it as well as clapping.
The girl gives a motherly smile and walks behind the baby, "All right Leon, I'll push you, but after this we gotta go ok? I have to find out why you keep teleporting away for no reason!"
The baby smiles and claps his hands in response.
And with a soft push, Linka sends Leon up in the air, and the contraption responds by swinging him back. Linka counters the baby's fall by pushing again and just like a pendulum, the swing set moves back and forth. As for the baby, he laughs in joy while his sister does this.
"Leon's so much like Lily." the girl thinks while she pushes her brother back, "He's so full of life and energy! Yet… why do I feel like I have to stay for him?" Her caring sisterly expression slowly fades into a soft frown, "Back home, Lily' had to deal with the real Linka… Has she even spent time with her? Lily always loved it when I told her a story to go to sleep to…"
Then, the young girl looks up and gazes upon the she pushes up in the air. The young boy smiling as if the world around him was as pure as it could be.
*Sigh* Linka goes, "I wonder how things around going back home… After all, a day with Pop-pop is usually more fun than many would expect… I wonder if he's going to try and put her through all that manliness stuff that he had to go through." Slowly Linka looks away, "Now that I think of it, that's the first time I saw her not wearing a dress… I wonder, is she slowly becoming me now?"
"Poo-poo!" Leon shouts, and Linka responds with a soft tone, "You wanna go higher Leon?!"
"Poo-poo!" The baby cheerfully responds and Linka complies by pushing him higher.
*Beep* The Matter Key Watch goes, "Huh?" Linka quickly checks the watch while she pushes the seat once more. "Space Waves Detected!" She reads, "Hmm, does this have something to do with the segment?
Leon then suddenly spouts some more random baby gibberish.
"On days like this, I'm glad I asked Luan how to speak baby." Linka quips, before grabbing hold of the chain and slowing Leon's descent, "Ok Leon, it's time to head back, if we're not home soon, mom and dad are going to be worried."
Leon responds with disappointed baby gibberish, yet Linka simply pulls him out of chair.
Suddenly, he goes *hic*.
"Aww, so cute Leon!" Linka goes… only for Leon to glow once more, this time engulfing her as well, "What the?!"
Suddenly, Linka finds herself standing on a tree branch about twenty feet above ground, "What the heck just happened?"
*Hic* Leon goes once more.
And with another glow, Linka finds herself standing on top of the jungle gym once more. "Ok, I think this has something to do with the segment, this just has to." Linka then looks at Leon with worried eyes, "Please stop Leon!"
Leon holds off for a second, before grabbing at the sky. *Hic*
"Dangit." Linka whispers, as her body is engulfed in light once more.
Suddenly she finds herself falling above the town, "Dangit!" She thinks. Her heart and mind race as she watches the earth quickly approach her, "Think fast!"
Immediately, the girl hits her watch, "I don't know what this'll do, but it's better than nothing!" Then, with a final button press, the watch glows, and engulfs the duo in Light.
She opens them after that and finds herself standing in the center of a vast field. "What the, where am I?"
In front of her stands a massive horseman with his army behind him. To the man's right is a young woman with long white hair, clad in silver armor. Then, she turns and notices massive storm clouds in the distance, "What the heck?"
She looks down, "Leon, do you know what's going on?" The baby simply shrugs, "Poo-poo."
Suddenly, the world around her melts away and glows, forcing her to shut her eyes once more.
And when she opens them again, she's standing safely on the ground, "Phew, that was intense." She quips.
*Hic!* Leon goes, causing Linka to brace for another teleport… only this time nothing happens.
Linka breathes a sigh of relief with that, "Phew, I guess that's over." Then she looks upon her watch, "And I guess I know what the segment does now."
"Poo-poo?" Leon goes.
"Yeah, let's go home." The girl responds, before turning and tiredly walking back to the nearby home, exhaustion filling her voice.
Back at Dairy Flags…
"Ready, aim, and fire!" Loki declares, pulling the trigger of a CO rifle, punching a hole in the center of the paper target twenty feet away.
"Nice shot son." Lynn Sr. glances back at his father, "Now reload and fire again. You gotta make that second shot."
Larry simply leans back against a nearby wall and watches, "When did I agree to babysit nine boys and my son?"
*Pop* the rifle goes once more, before firing another bullet at the target… only to miss the center by about six inches.
"Dangit!" Loki shouts, "Why do I always miss the second shot?!" Then, in frustration, he throws the weapon against the post.
"Well, I'm not doin' anything." Larry thinks, before he breaks and steps over to his son and grandson. "What are you doin'?"
"I'm trying to hit a target center twice. The first always gets centered, but I could never get the second!" Loki goes, his voice filled with annoyance.
Larry thinks for a moment, "Lynn, do you think he's having the same problem you had?"
"What do you mean dad?"
Larry picks up the weapon and hands it to Loki once more, "Show me how you fire and reload."
"Ok." Loki complies and aims at one of the open spaces, before firing. Just like before, the bullet hits a perfect bull's eye before Loki drops the rifle barrel, opens the breach, and loads in another small bolt, before firing a second round… missing the center by six inches once more.
"I see what your problem is." Larry goes.
Lynn Sr. raises an eyebrow in confusion, "Oh really dad? What is it?"
"He's letting the barrel drop too much and then not focusing during the second shot." The old man adjusts the rifle once more and hands it back to Loki, who proceeds to fire it.
After a few test shots, Loki finally nails the second shot, "Awesome Loki, you did it!" Lynn Sr. declares.
"Hmph, you should've known that yourself son, I taught you how to shoot years ago." The grandfather scoffs, "Didn't you teach them how to use a rifle properly?"
"I did." Lynn Sr. goes, "I taught him the way I learned."
"It wasn't good enough then." Larry responds, before turning away and walking towards Lynn Jr.
And so, Lynn Sr. watches as his father repeats the process once again, this time helping Lynn make some baskets in a hoop.
A few minutes later…
After spending some playing the various games that Dairy Flags had to offer, The Loud brothers sit down at the food court for some snacks. After all, it's a good idea to eat before you go on a roller coaster!
"Guys, I think dad and granddad need help." Loki goes, his voice filling with concern, "while I was shooting, granddad never seemed angry... he seemed, disappointed."
"Same with me and basketball…" Lynn adds, "He didn't seem like he was mad at me, more annoyed that I couldn't do it…"
"I deduce this has something to do with that fact that he ran away with mother." Levi speaks up. "I suppose that he and dad need to make up before we return home or else grandmother will do something drastic."
"Guys, I have an idea!" Loni cuts in, his voice filling with excitement, "we should..."
"No." Luke goes, "Whatever you're about to say is a horrible idea Loni." He proceeds to strum, this time holding the pic differently, just as his granddad had shown him.
"Aww, give him a chance!" Lars cuts in, "After all, you never know what it could be."
Loni smiles, "Well, we could…"
A few minutes after that…
"Hey! Get back here!" Larry shouts as he chases after Leif, "That's my sweater kid! I need that not covered in mud!"
Leif then turns and bolts into a rather large building decorated with mirrors, and his grandfather doesn't hesitate to chase after him. On the other side, Lane does the same, except with his own father's favorite sweater.
After a few minutes of stumbling around, Leif and Lane easily emerge from the house of mirrors, leaving the father and grandfather alone… together without a clear way out. It only takes them five minutes to run into each other.
"Well this is just great." Larry declares his voice filling with annoyance, while he pulls himself off of the mirror house floor. "Why the heck did your sons throw us in here? Now we're stuck and don't know our way out!"
Lynn Sr. responds, "Yeah, I know the feeling." Then the man puts his hands in front of him and steps forward, "Come on dad, let's try to find out of here. At least then we can just leave this stupid amusement park, but I don't know, what we're going to do about mom, you know how she is with these things."
"If you just hadn't come by, we wouldn't be in this mess." Larry complains, before following his son's motions, "Why did you come anyways? It's been eighteen flippin' years!" Then he turns, "Heck, while you're at it, why don't you tell me why you left in the first place too?"
"Dad, didn't you figure it out?" Lynn says, his voice filling with annoyance, "I didn't want to go today! Rita said that our sons deserve to meet their grandparents and I couldn't say no!"
"Yeah, that's one of the many things you couldn't say no to." Larry quips. "What kinda person has so many kids that they end up barely passing by? I-"
"You know what dad." Lynn Sr. finally cuts off his father, "Rita and I wanted a big family! Didn't you think of that?!" His voice fills with anger, "When Rita was pregnant, we agreed that it would be best if we stay behind, but lo and behold you go off on a tirade saying that she wasn't a good choice! That I had made a mistake!" Then Lynn throws his arms out to his sides, "Well guess what, I owned up to it! And we decided to have more kids!" And then Lynn promptly walks into another mirror.
Larry sighs with that, "Son, this isn't about how many kids you had Lynn. It's about you having them beyond your means to support them! You have eleven kids now!" The grandfather then proceeds to turn and stumble into another mirror
Yet, the man's son wasn't backing down, "I would've come to ask you for help, dad, but after what you did, Rita and I decided that it would be better if we went on our own." The man grits his teeth, "If you were really concerned about us, why didn't you call? I never changed my number!" The man the finishes, "And all you've done today was insult my parenting."
Grandpa Lynn grits his teeth, "I cared, I wanted you to come home of your own accord, I wanted-"
"Well we took it as you not caring." Lynn coldly goes, "And now, I'm stuck in a House of Mirrors with you, on a trip I didn't want to go on! You say you care? No you didn't! It's been eighteen years and not once have you ever even 'thought' of calling! What? Did your 'pride as a man' stop you from seeing your grandchildren? Do you blame them for how we live? My granddaughter wondered why we never visit her grandparents. This is why. I knew that this would happen. You were always like this dad."
For a moment, the two stand silent, unsure of how to continue the argument.
*Sigh* Larry goes with a defeated tone, "You even scold me like your mother. You look like me, but you talk like her. You have her name. And before this you acted just like her. You were so unlike me growing up I..."
"Get to the point dad." Lynn Sr. mutters, not even bothering to look at his father.
"I was actually proud of you for sticking up for the girl. We were hoping you'd come back sooner, but…" Larry stops his thought and continues in a more commanding voice, "I'm still sticking to my guns about the kids. You were too young to have Loki. And you shouldn't have more than you can support comfortably," Larry sighs once more, "but that's just me calling the kettle black. I just had a few of you. The fact that you've raised 11 even with all those issues without any help… while it might not have been smart. It's damn impressive." He looks his son in the eyes as he finishes, "I wanted to make sure you would be tough for what ever came next. And for what it's worth, I'm proud of you son."
Lynn Sr. smiles, "Took you long enough dad."
"Yes, it did. Now let's get outta here." Larry responds.
And with that, the two fathers make their way out of the maze of mirrors, this time, without an argument… or bumping into too many mirrors.
Later…
"That was awesome!" Loki quips as he steps into his grandfather's home.
"I'll admit son, you did a good job raising these boys…" Larry sighs, "Maybe you running away all those years ago was for the better."
Lynn Sr. raises an eyebrow, "Really dad?"
The old man nods, "But don't let it get to your head."
The younger man smiles, "Thanks."
"Hey, where's Linka?" Loni asks, "Wasn't she home with mom and grandma?"
"Oh, she's upstairs." Grandma Lynn speaks up, "We're in the kitchen talking, Linka was so tired from taking care of Leon that she went upstairs and passed out."
Immediately, the brothers as well as the dads rush upstairs in a soft panic, and they find both Linka and Leon asleep on top of their grandparents' bed. With Leon's baby blanket covering both of them and the little guy sucking his thumb in his sleep as he cuddles his sister who he sleeps on top of.
"Aww." The brothers go, before pulling back and slowly closing the door. And with that, the men head downstairs once more.
"Lynn." Larry grabs his younger son's shoulder, "I know I can't excuse my previous behavior, but I'm proud of you. You seem to be doin' good for yourself and your kids, even though I didn't approve of the union."
"Thanks dad." The man smiles and nods, "And I have to admit, if it wasn't for you pushing so hard and teaching me, I doubt I would've learned how to be a good father for my sons."
Now, Lawrence Loud isn't one for emotion, but even he can't help, but to give his son a small smile in approval.
"Well it looks like you guys had fun." Grandma Lynn declares as she approaches the group, "Now as long as we don't wake those two upstairs. I think it's my turn to get to know my grandsons."
The boys smile and nod, and with that, they head out once more.