7. A Flicker Of Hope

A/N: Apologies for the delay of chapter 7. Life continues to dictate that I remain more active with my studies, but I manage to set aside time for my story. Also, I needed to get my mojo going as I didn't have the inspiration to think clearly on the next chapter. But hopefully, it would've been worth the wait. I really want to get this story chugging along, so I believe a small time skip is due. But first, let's look at Clyde's visit, shall we?

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING from the Loud House.

Lincoln continued to stare at the ceiling, his body dull and mind stuck on a single train of thought. He didn't know how long it's been, but he knows he hadn't moved at all after his mother and infant sister left the room to chase after Lynn. About a half hour later, a nurse came to check on him. She noticed the broken tray on the floor along with pieces of it scattered about. When asked what happened, Lincoln was too afraid to tell her the truth. Instead, he stated he accidentally made it fall off the desk when he reached over for it. The nursed looked at him oddly, not believing the story for a moment, but decided not to question him further. After that, the Loud boy was left alone with his thoughts.

He just couldn't believe it, he really couldn't. Never before in his life had he struck any of his sisters in the fashion he did earlier. Immediately after the hit, Lincoln realized what he did, and recoiled in fear as he thought Lynn might jump him and put him a coma when she came to her senses. Instead, she sat on a floor, a genuinely hurt look in her eyes. Her voice even trembled as if it was about to break. Lincoln affirmed himself on what he did, but he meant every word when he said he didn't want to hurt Lynn again. He was a lover, through and through. When the 13 year old fled, the boy was initially glad Lynn left, but the more he thought it over, the more the guilt set in.

"Maybe...maybe I overreacted...m-maybe she wasn't trying to hurt me..." That's what Lincoln thought initially. But soon, memories of the severe beating he received a day ago became the front page of his mind. Then came the instances Lynn had feigned innocence only to prank him or just generally wrestle (harshly) with him, not really caring if he suffered a bruise from the ordeal. The resulting paranoia renewed doubts about his sister. "Or maybe she was just upset initially, and she'll come back and beat me like a Cherokee drum! Or worse, all of them will!" Lincoln gripped the bed sheets tightly as he quaked with apprehension.

He imagined Lynn telling the rest of his non-infant sisters about what he did. They would be upset with him more than they already were on Sunday, and what would stop them from just marching down to the hospital to tear him limb from limb? The boy doubted a simple grounding would stop their rage. A sudden knock at the door caused him to yelp a bit. Turning his head, he glanced at the gray metal obiect that separated his room from the hallway, or in this case, his only shield. He also heard what sounded like someone falling to the floor.

"Y-Yes?" He squeaked, holding his breath.

"Mr. Loud?" It was his nurse. "You have another visitor."

Lincoln wasn't in the mood for another visit, fearful it might be another of his sisters, but he was too petrified to say anything. Fortunately, his fears were put at ease for the time being when the door revealed none other than his best friend, Clyde. Like Ronnie Anne, the African-American child was surprised at the state Lincoln was in. It definitely explained why the sisters were so mellow: they practically damn near killed their only brother. The nerd stumbled a little, trying not to faint. He had to be strong for his best friend, and passing out might scare him more than he already looked.

"I knew what I heard was bad, but still..." Clyde finally spoke.

"R-Ronnie Anne said the same thing when she dropped by...she said she told you everything, so she figured you come...so how are you holding up Clyde?" Lincoln asked.

"I should be asking you that. I mean, look at you!" Clyde said wide eyed, though he winced upon seeing his friend give a sorrowful glance at his body. "Poor choice of words..." He muttered. "Sorry about that, but really, are you doing ok?"

"Well, n-not exactly...I mean...I guess you could say that..." The white-haired boy replied hesitantly.

The nerd could already tell something was troubling Lincoln. Given what he knew, and his constant sessions with Dr. Lopez, he a feeling it concerned his sisters. But, Clyde knew better than to question about such a thing. Like his therapist told him, the client will say what's on their mind when they feel ready. And he hoped to distract the Loud boy from his current situation.

"Then fear not, cause a brought you a present!" Clyde stated, presenting the collection of Ace Savvy comics.

Lincoln perked up instantly. He practically drooled just from making eye contact. "How did you know I was thinking about Ace Savvy?!"

"Cause I'm your brother, Lincoln. Well, not relatively speaking but you get my point. And trust me, I know being stuck in a hospital can get boring. Remember that time I tried doing a triple back flip on a skateboard and shattered my leg?"

"Yeah. You spent nearly 2 weeks here before they let you go. And even then you were stuck with crutches."

"Those were the most boring 288 hours of my life. But thankfully, my dads brought over a few puzzle games to pass the time. Also, it was tax day, so we were plenty occupied."

"Cool. Speaking of which, where are your dads?"

"Uh...one of them fainted after seeing you through the window, so my other dad had pulled him back to the waiting area." Clyde said embarrassingly.

"Oh...well, thanks for the comics Clyde. It really sucks not being able to move or anything. Want to read with me?"

"You think I'd have it any other way?" The African boy smirked. He dug through the bag and pulled out a certain stack of issues. "Also, I brought yours over after visiting your house."

"M-My house?" Lincoln questioned, his paranoia beginning to set in again.

"Dang it..." Clyde muttered. "Uuuuuh yeah. Sorry to bring it up, but I figured it'd cheer you up if you had your set of issues to read."

Lincoln was happy his friend cared that much about him to have that amount of foresight, but he couldn't help but think about what was happening at home. "How...how's e-everyone?"

"Well..." Clyde looked at the floor uneasily. "It's...different to say the least. It's not Loud or anything, just oddly quiet and gloomy. I think Lucy might like it, but I doubt it considering how depressed she was at school...well, more than usual."

"That's...nice, I guess..." Lincoln replied, unsure of how to take the news.

Clyde detected his buddy's nervousness and was quick to change the subject. "Just don't think too much about it Lincoln. Let's just let our minds be absorbed into the world of Ace Savvy." He suggested, handing the bed-ridden boy a comic.

"I-I guess you're right." Lincoln agreed, setting the issue on his bed before flipping it open. Suddenly, a thought came to him that made him irate. "Dang it! New issues will come out on Wednesday for the next few weeks, and I don't know if I'll be out of here by then!"

"Not a problem. I'll just grab some copies before coming over to visit."

"Really Clyde, you're the best bro ever." Lincoln complimented, making the nerd chuckle a bit.

Lucy stepped out of the bathroom after having done her business on the toilet. It was the first thing she did after getting home a couple hours after everyone else, mainly due to a drama class group project that needed to be done. Also, the goth wasn't comfortable using the school toilets, knowing how dirty they were and how much the bathrooms stink. Picking up her backpack, she waltzed over to the room she shared with Lynn and turned the knob, expecting it to open. Instead, she was met with resistance as the knob refused to turn. Getting confused, the goth jiggled the handle a bit, accidentally taking the whole thing off in the process.

"Dang it..." She muttered, dropping the now useless handle. As much as Lucy liked her family's old, decrepit house, something really needed to be done about the door handles breaking. Last time when a tornado passed through, Lynn Sr. accidentally broke the front door handle off. Long story short, they had to get an entirely new door after Lynn finally managed to knock it off its hinges. Speaking of which, Lucy heard faint sounds on the other side of the door. Putting an ear up, she heard her roommate's small cries. Considering that Lynn rarely sheds a tear, something serious must've happened.

The goth walked back to the bathroom, using the oval office as a step ladder before pulling herself into the familiar ventilation of the Loud House. Lana may be the Queen of Plumbing, but if there was anyone who knew these vents inside and out, it was Lucy, so it didn't long for her to find the intake that lead into her and Lynn's room. Pushing the grate open, the goth found her sports loving sister lying on her side whilst cuddling a pillow. The pillow was being used to muffle her sobs, but even so, the quietness of the house still made them audible at range. One quick look around the room showed it was the same as Luan and Luna's room: more spacious and only containing room necessities like the bed and dresses. You could even see the clothes Lynn had in her closet. Technically, Lucy's own bed was bought to suit her dark and gloomy personality. Other obiects that encouraged this were thrown out (which, sadly, included her bust of Edwin). However, since this was the only bed she had, Lucy supposed she got lucky in that sense.

Climbing down onto the roof of her bed, Lucy carefully slipped onto the floor. "What's the matter Lynn?"

The jock was startled by her sister's presence. "Now isn't a good time for scaring me Lucy..." Lynn told her, casting an irate look at the goth. Lucy could see some of the damage Lynn had from her fight earlier that day, but something told her she that's not what she was crying about.

Lucy wanted to argue that the 13 year old could've noticed her coming out the vent, but decided to let it slide. "Sorry...but really, what's troubling you? You hardly ever cry..."

Lynn looked at the floor in sorrow. "I...I don't really feel like talking about it..."

"Lynn..." Lucy put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I can see the sadness inside you is eating your soul. I understand that you locked the door because you didn't want anyone to see you like this, but as your roommate, I am always here for you..." Lucy spoke without her monotonous voice, showing she was being sincere.

This alone spooked the jock, who knew Lucy more than anyone else (besides Lincoln). She looked unsure for a moment, before she finally decided to open up. "Ok...I'll tell you..." She sniffled. "You know about the fight between me and Ronnie Anne?..."

"I heard...I'm guessing you were suspended?"

She nodded. "Mom took me to the hospital to fix me up...and since Lincoln was there, I...I wanted to make amends with him. I wanted to do something, anything, to try to make it up to him...but instead he...he..." Lynn wiped her eyes of fresh tears. "He hit me with his food tray!..."

Lucy's eyes became the size of dinner plates as she let out a gasp. "He...he actually hit you?..."

Lynn nodded, pointing to where her face had been temporarily married to the tray. Although the mark was barely visible, a small red spot was still in its place. "...I just wanted to apologize...I know it couldn't undo the damage, but it was still a step in the right direction...but...it's too late now...my only brother hates me..." The jock buried her face into her knees. "I really am a bully..." She muffled out.

Lucy let this information sink in for a moment. She didn't want to believe that Lincoln actually hated anyone. He would at most despise a few of his siblings due to their annoying habits. Hell, his sisters didn't like some of his habits as well, but actual hate was something that no one in the family ever felt towards each other. The kids always pulled together even when tensions were high in normal circumstances. But, as Lucy then considered, Sunday was anything but normal. No doubt their actions may have convinced Lincoln that they cared little about him. But given the general mood of the entire house, everyone did still care for him, even if they didn't show it much before.

The goth climbed up onto Lynn's bed, wrapping her arms around her older sister. "I'm really, really sorry that happened Lynn...but you still love him, don't you?"

The sports fanatic nodded. "But how am I supposed to show it if he's going to hate me regardless? I broke his arm Lucy...that's not something that can be forgiven easily..."

"Well...I...I don't know..." Lucy was a little stumped on this. How would they make it up to their brother? It's not like giving him a 'get well' card would fix the world of crap they currently inhabit. But, in this instance, the two girls were lucky to have a large family.

"Does anyone else know yet?" The goth asked.

"No...that's why I locked the door..." Lynn lied back on her bed.

"...If it's fine with you, I think we should have an emergency sister meeting...we can't just sit here and do nothing wallowing in sadness..." Lucy looked around. "Even if I do like the darkness and silence, it's too creepy with everyone feeling the same way..."

The jock glanced at her younger sibling. "I guess...but what if we got no ideas?"

"Better than sitting here and letting you mope, because that's my thing..." Lucy stated, her monotonous voice returning.

Four hours later, the evening finally arrived. It was clear moon out tonight, few clouds, and plenty of stars. In the Loud abode, Rita was asleep on her and Lynn Sr.'s bed. Lily's crib was in there as well, with the infant snuggling into her blanket. She wasn't on speaking terms with Lisa, so she made it clear she wanted to sleep elsewhere for the time being. As for the patriarch of the Loud family, he was spending the night at the hospital, making sure Lincoln was doing alright. On the second floor, all of the rooms barring Lynn and Lucy's were closed (broken lock), the lights turned off. All except the room of the two oldest siblings.

After requesting for a meeting tonight, Lori decided it would be better to discuss whatever it was when their parents were asleep/away. Once that time arrived, the remaining Louds piled into the room. No one said anything for a few moments, the amount of angst in the air would be enough to make an onion shed layers.

Like always, Lori was the first to speak. "Ok everyone, on the request of Lucy and Lynn, we're having this emergency meeting now." She turned to the two girls. "Alright, so what's this about? And no offense, but I want you both to get to the point. I don't think we're supposed to be up this late..."

"Ok...I had the chance to talk with Lincoln today and...it didn't go well..." Lynn began. Leni then raised her hand. "What is it Leni?"

"Like, why is your face all damaged?" The blonde asked, earning a groan from the jock.

"Leni, I literally told you at school. Ronnie Anne and Lynn ended up in a fight. There's even a video on the Internet!" Lori hissed.

"Anyway, I...wanted to apologize to him about what happened on Sunday and...he...hit me with a food tray..." This earned a hushed gasp from the others sans Lucy. "Now...I think he hates me...but I'm not so sure, I mean...I was at first, but now..." Lynn was stumbling on her thoughts before she cleared her head. "Look, we all still love our brother right?" They nodded. "Now me and Luce aren't sure how we're gonna make it up to him, but we gotta find some way to show that we care for him! I don't want him hating us for the rest of his life!..." Lynn glanced at the floor. "Nothing would be the same without him..."

The other silently agreed. "But what can we do? I know mom and dad want us to show that we're sorry!" Lana stated.

"Do you actually know that or you're just guessing?" Lola asked.

"The dudette has the right idea though..." Luna agreed.

"Even so, statistically speaking, it will take quite some time for Lincoln to forgive us for our actions. Given our general treatment of him during past incidents, he may think we care very little about him and only use him as a tool for our own needs..." Lisa explained, feeling guilty at the last part. "On that note...I deeply apologize for using you all to further my own research...I should've known that focusing so much on science was turning me into an emotionless monster...it may take months, or even years, before Lincoln can even refer to us as his female siblings... "

"Still, it's worth trying...I want him to be able to laugh at my jokes again...and I hope he can forgive me for the mess I've caused on April Fools Day..." Luan answered.

"I want to have him rockin' with me once again, and let him know I won't ever again harm him the way I did..." Luna agreed.

"I literally need to make up for all the times I threatened to turn him into a human pretzel just for being in the room..." Lori said, feeling disgusted with herself for getting upset with Lincoln over trivial issues.

"I want Linky back!" Leni cried.

The rest of the sisters shared similar sentiments. Lynn needed to make up for all the times she rough-housed with Lincoln and didn't apologize when she actually injured him, Lucy for constantly scaring him or bothering him when he wanted some alone time, the twins needed to make up for the times he had to settle their little fights, and Lisa really needed to make up for the fact she constantly treated him as a lab rat and not a sibling. Most importantly however, was the one goal all 9 sisters shared. They needed to show that they should've just let Lincoln help them instead of keeping him out of the loop. The group realized that, had this happened, he may have solved their problems without the need to resort to their fists.

Feeling some of her confidence returning, Lynn managed to give a grin. "Ok, whose up for getting our brother back?!"

The rest cheered. "But we still need some idea..." Lucy pointed out.

"We may have some time on that actually. I overheard our parents discussing what happened to Lynn earlier, and I don't think they'll let us visit Lincoln for a few days for both our sakes." Lisa added.

The other sisters groaned, but at least they had some hope. By the time they visited Lincoln, they hoped to be ready to express their pain and guilt, and try their best to make him the happiest boy alive. But what they don't know, is how difficult such a task would actually be.

A/N: Sorry that this chapter isn't a long as the last two, but that's because I plan to do a time skip in the next one. Getting bored of the whole fact it's only been two days in-story, so I'm gonna fast forward by a couple days or so. I don't think think this one is as good as Chap. 6, but it does show the sisters have some hope in setting things right. But can they correct their mistake?