Darkness Falls on the House of Loud

Epilogue - Rebirth

Lincoln began to stir as a warm beam of light from his window settled on his face. He groaned, turning away onto his side. It was too early for this.

Wait… what time was it?

Lincoln rolled back over and took a look at his clock. 8:45 AM. Lincoln grumbled under his breath as he flopped onto his back; for some reason, he didn't feel rested at all. What more, his entire body ached terribly. He felt as though he had run an Olympic marathon.

The white-haired boy shut his eyes and tried to fall back asleep, but he couldn't. He could already hear the twins arguing in the hallway, and the electric wail of Luna's guitar filling the air… and a moment later, an explosion from Lisa's room that rattled the small closet Lincoln called home. He sighed in resignation; when you lived with ten sisters, you rarely had the opportunity to sleep in.

Hang on… ten?

Lincoln frowned, sucking his teeth in thought. That couldn't be right, he thought. With a grunt of discomfort, Lincoln managed to turn himself and sit on the side of his bed. He rubbed the sleep from his groggy eyes and took a glance over at his family photo. It was the same as ever… there was Luna, rocking out as per usual. Luan, cheerfully holding a giggling Lily. Lori and Leni standing together with bright smiles on their faces. Lola, Lana, Lynn… even Lisa had a rare smile on her face. And of course, right in the center stood Lincoln himself. Ten kids total… nine sisters. Just as it always had been.

…So why did that make Lincoln feel sad?

Lincoln shrugged it off, chalking the error up to his tiredness. His body cried out in protest as he slid out of bed, and he pushed his palms into his lower back and leaned back, feeling a few satisfying pops in his spine. He was exhausted, but he figured some coffee would fix that… he hated the stuff, but at least it would wake him up.

Although, come to think of it… he'd never actually tasted coffee before, right?

Lincoln's brow furrowed in thought. He could have sworn he had at some point, but his mind was drawing a blank. Oh well, he thought. There was no use dwelling on it… today was a big day, after all. Tonight was the season finale of 'ARGGH!', his favorite show… and he wasn't going to miss it for the world.

So, ignoring the strange sense of déjà vu that washed over him, Lincoln began getting dressed for the day. After all, with nine sisters fighting for the remote, he'd need to start planning now if he wanted to watch in peace.

Though he wasn't sure what compelled him to do so, Lincoln made sure to hug each of his sisters before heading downstairs for breakfast. After all... you never know when you may lose the chance.

THE END