22. Chapter 22

She'd sinned. She'd said she was going to let them talk alone, but she'd lied. She knew her uncle was going to tell her aunt what had happened-what the truth was. Lyra desired to know that truth too, and she realized that it was possible to hear inside the apartment from the door. The temptation to eavesdrop was strong. Temptation led to sin. But she couldn't help it.

She wanted to know. Some strange event with repercussions a decade down the line. A dozen lives affected, her's included. Resentment for what could've been. A small bit of selfishness; she'd been affected by it too, so shouldn't she be entitled to the truth too?

So she'd stood there, with ear pressed to the door, Lemy watching her questioningly. She was sure it'd be something sinful. Maybe even illegal. But she was willing to forgive, even for something as impactful as this. No one was perfect. She wasn't, as her actions clearly proved. She just wanted to know.

And then he said it. Those words. And then he elaborated on them. A truth unlike anything she could've expected. Something so absolutely absurd that her initial reaction was only confusion. But then she realized…

It made sense.

She didn't even realize she'd shoved the door open. No one was more surprised than her to realize she was standing in the threshold of the apartment. Her whole body was trembling. Her chest suddenly felt like it was wrapped in chains, making her breathing ragged. Her whole core was cold, making it feel like she was standing in a freezer even though she could already feel sweat forming on her forehead.

Lincoln had jumped to his feet, and Lily had twisted around her chair to stare. Her uncle (uncle?) was the more surprised of the two, but horror was spreading over his face just as quickly.

Lyra opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't. Her whole mouth had gone dry. She swallowed and tried again. "Is it true?" Her voice quavered. But what if she'd just misheard? She clumsily corrected herself. "What did you say? What did you say?" It was a plea more than it was a request or a demand.

Lemy was still outside, leaning through the open doorway. He hadn't heard anything and was very much confused.

Lincoln just stood there, shock and fear all over his face. Then his expression changed, the fear easing off his face. He took a small step towards her.

"What did you hear?" He asked. He wasn't denying it. But he wasn't acting like he knew either. There was still a chance she'd just misheard. A mistake. It could all still be a mistake. An embarrassing mistake, but just a harmless mistake.

"I heard…" She swallowed again. "I heard you…say something…about me and Lemy. What did you say? Say it again. Right now." Having heard his name again, Lemy came back into the apartment and stood next to her expectantly. But Lyra was experiencing such an extreme case of tunnel vision she didn't notice until she saw Lincoln looking at him. She was about to freak out and send him away, but then Lincoln started speaking.

"It's true." Lyra froze, not believing what she was hearing. "Me and Luna wanted to tell you this together, but I guess that doesn't matter now." He sighed and approached them. Lyra was rooted to the spot by shock and her mind shutting down.

Lemy still had no idea what was going on, but he saw Lyra looking scared and was immediately on edge, stepping in front of her as Lincoln approached. The white-haired man they'd both grown to kind of like put a hand on Lyra's shoulder and then kneeled slightly so he could put the other hand on Lemy's shoulder.

"You two are my kids." He revealed. "I'm your dad."

With a startled gasp, Lyra grabbed Lemy and stepped back, backing up until her back made painful contact with the door frame. Her mind had started working again. But she was still panicked and overwhelmed. So many new facts given to her by a single sentence. Ideas she'd never considered or had stopped thinking about ages ago. She didn't know where to begin. It was overwhelming and terrifying.

The door was still open. Her and Lemy could run right out of the apartment and away from here. But one thing kept her there.

"I know that sounds bad. You're freaked out. But please, just let me explain." Lincoln didn't approach them again. He kept his distance, hands raised non-threateningly. Lily was standing up from her seat too, but Lyra wasn't focused on her. "Please."

A million questions and thoughts running through her mind, Lyra latched on to one. "The others." She gasped out. "The others too?"

"Yes." He nodded. "Liena, Liby, Lacy, and Lupa. They don't know, but they're your sisters."

Sisters… She had sisters? Lemy had other sisters?

"So you and our mom and our aunts, you…" Before Lyra could even say it, she felt her stomach twist and bile rise in her throat. She audibly gagged. Incest. That was incest. The worst of physical depravity anyone could imagine. An abomination against God, all his creatures, and the world he'd created. Her mom, her aunts, her uncle-no, father-all of them had done it.

And she and Lemy were products of it.

Somehow, she didn't even question the possibility he could've been lying. She was ready to believe it instantly, that her mother, who'd always had some redeeming qualities to her, had done such a horrible thing. That this man and most of her aunts, all people she'd thought were good people, were these vile sinners.

Worse than that. They were criminals.

They needed to leave. Now.

Lyra didn't pay attention to see if he answered. She pushed Lemy in front of her down the hall to the bedroom. "Grab your things. Quickly." She whispered. "We're leaving." Her brother had a lot of questions, but he also wanted to get away from a situation that he didn't understand and was above him. But he did ask one thing.

"Where are we going?"

"Somewhere safe. Here isn't." She had no idea where. But she'd figure that out later. They just needed to get away right now.

"I thought we didn't have a dad?"

"Lemy, please!" He didn't ask any more questions and hurriedly stuffed his things in his duffel bag. Lyra grabbed her own bag and slung the strap over her shoulder.

"Lyra-" Her father appeared in the doorway.

"Stay away from us!" She pointed threateningly, and he recoiled in shock. He looked hurt, but not an ounce of sympathy entered her mind. This man was a liar. He was a pervert. She wanted nothing to do with him. "I'll call the police if I have to." Her voice quivered, and she doubted the words that had just come out of her mouth. But why?

"You have everything?" She asked Lemy. He nodded. Lyra patted down her pockets, feeling her phone and wallet. All their worldly possessions. "Come on." She grabbed her little brother's hand and pulled him from the room. She didn't make eye-contact with her dad, and he stayed flat against the wall as they passed.

But Lily was blocking the hallway. "Lyra." She tried to reason with her niece.

"Move out of the way." Lyra wasn't going to let her stop her either. She didn't even know what she wanted. Maybe she actually sided with her brother in all this. Lyra didn't know or care. Right now, all she cared about was getting herself and her brother away from here.

"Lyra, you need to think about-"

"I already thought about it. Now move." Lyra had never been a violent person, but she tried to shoulder her way past.

"Lyra!" Lily grabbed her shoulders and pushed her against the wall. Lyra froze, stunned by the sudden assault. Her bag fell from her slackened fingers onto the floor.

"Get off of her!" Lemy tried to shoulder ram his aunt, and although she definitely felt it, she didn't let go.

"Lyra, think about it!" Her aunt implored her. "Your mom had you when was 16. Lincoln's always been 4 years younger than her. Think about it!" Her message said, she let go and stepped back. "He did nothing wrong."

The assault had stopped her runaway thoughts and momentarily cleared her mind, allowing it to start anew on what her aunt had told her. 16. Her mother had her at 16. She'd never denied that. Her uncle really was younger than her mother. She had Lyra at 16. Her uncle would've had to be 12. That wasn't a sinful relationship, it was worse. It was abuse. It was coercion.

It was rape. She was a product of rape. Both her and Lemy. Her father was a victim of rape. Her mom was a rapist.

"Don't blame him." Her aunt implored as Lyra started to slide down the wall before slumping on the floor. "It's not his fault."

"Mom… It was all my mom's." Lyra whispered, starting to shake. That was even worse. Greater than all of her worst fears.

"That's right." Lily nodded encouragingly.

"No, it's not like that." Lincoln interjected, drawing all three youths' eyes to him. "It was more like…well…it's hard to explain." He said. "But it wasn't like that." Even if neither teenage girl had said it, Lincoln knew what conclusion they were drawing. "It was nothing bad, or evil, or anything like it. Not with you guys or the others."

"No, it's fine, we under-"

"It wasn't like that!" Lincoln snapped angrily. Lily went quiet. "Nobody was hurting anybody." He calmed down. "Nobody was…doing…anything wrong." He sighed and spun around, rubbing his temple furiously.

But Lyra couldn't believe that. That was wrong. It was heinous. It didn't even sound possible.

But then why did he insist otherwise? Lyra wasn't satisfied. She suddenly felt guilty. She felt like she'd jumped to conclusions. She thought she had the truth, but she was wrong. She still had no idea what had really happened.

She had to find out the full truth. It wasn't just a matter of finding out now, this was about whether or not they were safe. Whether they could even stay in this family.

"Lemy." She stood up. "Go stay in the bedroom for a little while."

"Aren't we leaving?" He asked.

"I don't know yet." She grabbed him under his arms and lifted him up to carry him. "I need to find out something. You need to stay away."

"She hurt you." She could see the anger in his eyes when she set him down and turned him around.

"No, she helped me realize something. Listen to me, Lemy. Please." She kneeled down in front of him. "I need to do something that's really important, but I need to do it alone. I know you're probably confused and scared-"

"I'm not scared." He cut in. "You're scared."

"Yes, I am." She admitted. "But I'm being brave and facing it. You're scared for me, aren't you?" His face confirmed it. She smiled and hugged him. "I'll be fine." He put his arms around her and squeezed tightly. Everything was going crazy in both their worlds right now, but they each had one solid anchor, and they were holding it right now. "I'll be back." The hug broke, and Lyra stood up to go back out and find the truth.

Lyra wasn't the only one exhausted by what was happening. Lincoln and Lily had gone back to the living room to rest their legs in the chair and on the couch respectively. The front door had been closed. Lyra lowered herself to the cushion next to her aunt, who was looking at the framed picture of Lyra's mom and all her siblings.

Her parents and their siblings.

She reached over to take it, and her aunt let her have it. Her mother at 15. Her…father…at 11. What had been going on behind this photo? What was behind all those smiles? A mental image ran through her mind, and Lyra's stomach lurched again. She laid the picture face down before she ended up vomiting.

"Whatever you want to know, I'll tell you." Her dad swore. "I was already ready to. Luna and me both are, whenever you see her." Lyra had looked forward to getting answers from her mother. But if this was really the truth? Lyra wasn't sure if she ever wanted to see the woman again.

What to say here? What could she ask that could possibly scratch the surface of this? She didn't know, so she ended up making one last plea for a mistake. Denial.

"How are you sure we're-we're yours?" Just saying that made Lyra feel sick. "Our mom is a whore. Lemy looks nothing like you."

"No she's not." Lincoln shook his head. "She's only ever been with two people her whole life: me and Sam."

"And you know that for sure?"

"I believed her when she said it." There was no doubt in his voice, and that shut Lyra right up.

But she wasn't the only interrogator in the conversation.

"When did it start?" Lily asked. "How?"

"About the time I was almost 12, I guess." He shrugged. "There wasn't really a defining moment where it started."

"You don't remember falling in love with your own sisters? Lincoln," Lily leaned forward and grabbed his hands. "If something happened, it's okay."

"Nothing happened." And suddenly his tone changed just like before. Annoyed. Irritated. "Believe me, I've thought about it more than you can imagine. Nothing like what you girls are thinking." Lily was taken aback again. "Those 'things' all of us did, we did because we agreed. Every time." Were those words genuine? She'd been lied to before, who was to say she wasn't still being lied to?

"But…why?" Was all Lyra's aunt could respond with. Lincoln sighed.

"Because we were young and stupid." He admitted with humility. "It was never about romance. Leni had a boyfriend. Luna had a girlfriend. I had a sorta-girlfriend." Was he talking about Loan's aunt? "We didn't see it like that." At that moment, he bowed his head. His face was going redder. What he was about to say was really embarrassing. "We thought-" He looked back up and started moving his hands. "We were all really close. As siblings. And for whatever reason," he sighed, "we thought that was a good way to express it."

Lily leaned back in her seat in obvious repulsion.

"It was dumb and stupid and we realize that now." He put his hands down.

"That's absolutely absurd." Lyra was disgusted enough to find her voice. "That's an act with only one purpose." She was even more livid now. For someone to lay with their sibling was obscene, but to do it out of such a horrid misinterpretation of familial bonds!

Her own mother had believed these things. Lyra suddenly had a sickening thought: What had either of them assumed about herself and Lemy? She shuddered.

"Like I said, we know it's wrong now. We've been trying to fix it ever since."

"Fix it?!" Lyra shouted. "You sired children!" She had to rack her brains for a moment. "Six children! Us!" Lyra had long since stopped giving much thought how she came into this world, but suddenly she felt the weight of her existence in a new way.

"I know it has to be weird to think about." Her father tried to sympathize. "But there's nothing wrong with you. You're a normal kid, a great-

"No, I know I am." Lyra retorted automatically. "Children aren't punished for the sins of the parents. Lemy, me, and all our…siblings…will be fine. You all are going to be the ones that'll burn." She stood up. "This was a waste of time." She'd sat through this looking for answers. For some hope maybe at least one person in this horrid business was innocent or deserved pity. But no, no one did. They were terrible people, and she wasn't going to spend another minute in any of the presence.

"Wait, hold on!" He begged her and, for some reason still she couldn't figure out, she did. But she didn't turn around to look at him. "Everything me and Luna have done since then has been for you guys. Everything the others have done since then has been for their kids. Instead of just being disgusted, think about it from our perspective."

Lyra was still for a moment then silently turned her head to look at her uncle/father. There was pleading in his eyes. Hopefulness. She remembered this man had wanted to see her and Lemy. Wanted to be a father figure to the others. Something he'd done at cost to himself.

"I've never read a bible before." He admitted. "But I know it says something about forgiveness, and redemption. We've been trying to make things right ever since. It's been hard. REALLY hard. Luna and me were going to talk to you, because we hoped you'd see all the good we tried to do and forgive us."

Lyra's mind was still overwhelmed, and him asking her to think further wasn't helping matters. For all her faults, her mother had done a lot of good. She had her redeeming qualities. At the very least, she could've been a far worse woman. Her uncle had clearly gone out of his way to be a good person. She remembered-he'd asked their mom to see them.

Years after he'd already been seeing his other kids.

"You waited a long time to see us." She said quietly.

"Yeah…" He admitted sadly. "I wanted to see you guys for years, but Luna was reluctant." She was? Why? Was there a reason their mother had done that? A well-intentioned reason? A selfish reason?

"Lyra?" Lincoln got her attention again. He'd stood up, approaching her cautiously. "Can you forgive all that, please? I'll call your mom. She'll come here early. We can all talk. There's still a lot of things you need to understand. This all seems bad, but we can get over it." He was getting closer, and suddenly Lyra's chest grew tight. She jumped up from the couch and stepped away. Her dad froze.

Her mom and dad-her parents-had done good deeds. They'd been decent people…eventually. They had good intentions.

But they'd still done something horrible. Something illegal. Something that offended God. They'd torn apart a loving family with their perversion. Lyra's aunt, sitting beside her, had suffered in her own way. Lyra and Lemy had been forced to live their lives a certain way. Liena, Liby, Lacy, and Lupa too. All of them may have been trying to do good, but that wasn't selfless; it was only trying to fix a problem they'd caused with their own selfishness.

Most of all, they'd lied to her. Her mom all her life, and her dad the entire time she'd known him.

God could forgive any sin. Families had forgiven people who murdered their love ones. Forgiveness was the strongest thing any person could do.

But Lyra wasn't that strong.

Her whole life, she'd resented the situation she'd been in. She could appreciate the good, but she'd never stopped noticing the bad. But she'd endured it, for the sake of the good moments, for the sake of her faith, for the sake of her mother and brother she really did love. Because she thought it was the mature and selfless route. Because she didn't think it was completely anyone's fault.

But that wasn't the case. She knew that now. It all went back to her mother and the man standing here in front of her.

Maybe she was being overdramatic. Maybe her decision was overblown. Her life hadn't been too horrible. But her feelings were what they were.

She couldn't forgive him. Or her mother. Maybe in the future, but not now. And if she couldn't forgive them, she didn't want to see them. She needed time to sort her thoughts.

"Not right now." His face fell. "I'm sorry, uncle-… I'm sorry, Lincoln. I need time to think."

"Of course…" He nodded. She started backpedaling towards the hallway. "Lyra!" She stopped. "I love you guys… I've wanted to say that for so long." She gave the slightest nod of her head, turned around, and hurried back to the room.

The white-haired man sighed. Everything had unraveled. It was his worst fear. But it wasn't the ends of things either. He was remembering Lori's advice. Lyra wanted space, he was giving her space. She was shocked. He could understand that. Lori had been shocked when she found out. Mom and dad had been shocked. It was a natural reaction.

But he was tired. So tired. He nearly broke his chair when he let himself fall back into it. Lily was still sitting on the couch, regarding him with eyes wide, lips sucked inward, and her hands tightly clasped in her lap.

"You don't have to forgive me either." He said. "You can think we're all terrible people." She seemed startled at being addressed. More footsteps, Lyra and Lemy appeared out of the hallway.

They had their bags again.

"Guys?" Lincoln sat up.

"We're going out for a bit." Lyra declared. "To think."

"Will you be back by tonight?" Lincoln asked.

"Maybe."

"Okay…" He nodded. "Okay. Stay safe." Lyra nodded stiffly, and they were out the door.

"You're letting them go?" Lily asked, standing up.

"They'll be fine." Lincoln was sure. "When any of us were 15, we roamed around on our own. I think she'll be back."

"They took their bags!"

"I think they'll be back." He said confidently. "Lily. Lily!" He stopped her from staring worryingly at the door. "What about you? Can you forgive any of us?"

"I don't know!" She sounded frazzled. "This is a lot to take in, Lincoln. I waited for this moment. For years." Lily's voice cracked. "And this is what I found… I came here missing you. I really thought there for a second you were just screwed over. Now? I don't know if I should be afraid of you or not." She admitted, pacing around.

"I was never going to hurt you, Lily. I swear it." He got defensive and insistent. "Those times you can remember. Those last years in the house. I already knew it was wrong by then. I was trying to be a good brother. A real one."

"Just…tell me it's all over." Lily asked, now the one pleading. "You're all normal, right?" Lincoln opened his mouth, then closed it without saying anything. "Right?" Lily pleaded again.

"Luna and me really haven't seen each other at all in the last decade." That was a deflection and Lily knew it.

"I need time to think too." She said quickly, grabbing her backpack. "I'll go catch up with Lyra and Lemy and offer to take them to mom and dad."

"You can't do that." Lincoln said immediately, standing up.

"I can and I will!" She shot back. "They need a place to think. If you want to see them, come by. I realize now mom and dad deserve apologies too."

"Lil-" Before he could stop her, she pulled up her camera and snapped a picture, blinding him momentarily with a flash. He heard the door slam as the world became coherent again. His little sister was gone, and now his kids too.

Elsewhere

The worst part of the music business was the upper management. Your managers, your accountants, your record labels. Cause to the lot of them, it was about the profit. For Luna and Sam, it was about the message, the comradery, and the energy. And it could've been a constant conflict.

But Luna and Sam thought the one they had now was reasonable. Didn't ride them too heard, didn't try and sign them into sponsorship deals or shite like that, didn't ask them to act out some fake drama or scandal to get the tabloids and online tossers riled up.

The only thing they really pushed them to do was not be recluses. Get out there and be seen in public. Remind people you exist. Act like normal human beings. Weird request, but that was just marketing, they guessed.

Luna knew her kids probably thought she partied every night, with opposing views on it. The reality was, she partied once, maybe twice a week. Most nights she wasn't playing or actually partying was just rehearsal. Business…mixed with a little bit of pleasure into the early hours. Hey, being a band wasn't strictly a business relationship, you know? And it was still work. Work that dragged on well into the morning, but work.

The actual partying though depended on the season. If they were getting high profile gigs at major venues, then it was spending time at one of those high-end celebrity clubs or bars where the REAL tossers hung out. If they erred on the simpler gigs that had that more indie vibe to them, the party was at the actual spot they'd rented out. Those were the wild parties, less regulated and more chaotic. Mosh pits like they'd gotten into when they were teens. Again, only once a week usually.

And would you believe it if it turned out you could actually get tired of partying? It'd been fun for the first few years. The high-end places had convinced Luna and Sam they'd made it, and the low-end places reminded them of happier times as much wilder teens.

But Luna and Sam had never really been high class girls. And as more time passed, they felt less at home in the grungier festivities. They were in their 30s, kind of old for that crowd of people. Each tier had its repulsive twats too, although tellingly they'd gotten flashed by some twat or another in both settings. The more and more the two exes had reconnected, the more they resented the free time they had being taken up by career mandated publicity.

And believe it or not, neither were particularly fond of drinking. Luna wasn't sure if it was in the genes or not, but she really couldn't hold her alcohol. And with the way each place mixed their drinks differently, it was a game of Russian roulette whether she'd get unwound or end up regretting it intensely the next morning. Sam's hatred was more recently founded. Her brief spell in rehab at the start of the year had been because she realized she definitely enjoyed herself too much; the blond had a thing for natural wines, nature's gift.

Luna had a further personal reason: Lyra. The girl disapproved. She didn't try and stop her anymore, but she still disapproved. And she remembered every time Luna enjoyed herself more than she should've. Every time. And on the chance she got upset, she could really over-exaggerate the tendency. Luna could've gotten mad at her; she knew she wasn't a saint dammit, but she wasn't that bad. But that was hard when Luna was convinced their opinions weren't far off.

They had money in the bank. They could always retire. Or maybe switch to being indie. They'd been indie when Luna joined in, but that was the crappy kind of indie. Being rich and using that to publish your own stuff was the good kind of indie. Luna had had the thought in her mind for the last year or so, and Sam had brought it up seriously not long after she got back.

Neither could really push themselves or the other to make the hard choice yet. Maybe one day soon. Until then. Rehearsals most nights, a show every week, and a party or two for publicity. They still had their fun here and there.

Tonight, they were in Tulsa. Last stop before they headed up to Michigan and started touring the North East. The show wasn't for another few days. Tonight, they were going to hit the town. Let the local paparazzi and the ones that followed get a few shots of them, get some more free advertising.

"Yeah, we'll be out in a minute." Sam told the chauffeur over the phone before setting it down. "He's waiting."

"He's getting money for nothing." Luna wasn't concerned. Both women were at the bathroom sink getting ready. Rocker style was simple, but you still had to put in some effort. A little make up on the eyes, some paint for the finger nails, and of course hair.

Luna was nearly done with her nails when she got distracted by a pair of hands resting on her hips. Smirking to herself, the brunette started swaying back and forth, much to the pleasure of her girlfriend holding. "Wait till we're out on the dancefloor, luv." Luna insisted. Sam giggled; some sparks never did die.

And you never realized how important something was till you almost lost it. Luna wasn't religious and she was sure it didn't work like that, but she was thankful to something greater than herself that her and Sam could still be together after all these years.

It hadn't been easy at first. It'd been tense as hell. Sam had lashed out at her former girlfriend a lot of well-deserved times. The day Lemy had been born and all of Luna's bandmates were there to congratulate her, Sam had looked at her with nothing but pure contempt. It'd taken her a long time to finally be convinced Luna was truly sorry, and even apologize for being so cruel to her over it.

It was hard to rekindle an old and broken love, even more so when Luna had two reminders glued to her sides every day. But they still had that shared passion. Even as twenty-somethings, they'd both still been dorks. Deep down, Sam had wanted things to mend as much as Luna. And their only crutch at first had been nostalgia.

But they'd pulled through. Luna absolutely wasn't redeemed. She never would be, she knew. But she was forgiven. What Luna had done was over. It couldn't be changed. She was sorry and she'd put as much distance between it and her as possible.

It'd been hard at first. Tempers had still flared. The relationship was behind closed doors and on and off frequently, a trend that had really been the norm till last year. Sometimes it was unresolved bitterness, other times is was the stress of trying to manage a relationship, motherhood, AND a career. But it was never permanently off.

They'd started going out more. They were more open in front of other people. Their friends, the same ones who'd come from Royal Woods with Sam and who'd gone on to do their own thing while applauding Sam and Luna for becoming a famous duo, had been happy for the two. The tabloids and fans picked up on it and it actually boosted their careers. They'd kissed again on Luna's birthday 3 years after she'd rejoined the band. Best one she'd had in years.

Sam had even warmed up to Luna's kids. Not as successfully with Lyra as the girl started to drift from even her own mother, but still amicable. Sam had never hated them, but she hadn't exactly been friendly either. But now, Lemy really liked her and to Luna's knowledge her and Lyra had never had a conflict. Sam's role had never been and never would be defined. 'Aunt', 'other mom' or stuff like that. It would cover a taboo subject to the adults. But she was there for the girl and her little brother.

Things seemed to be only getting better since Sam checked out of rehab. She was more affectionate. They both were, out of deprivation. And Sam and Luna had had that serious discussion she mentioned earlier. Again, they were getting older. Better to go out peacefully than burn out. And even if that day wasn't on them yet, what were they going to do when that time came? It was a tolerant America out there. They could do anything they wanted together. They weren't sure what yet, when, or who'd it involve, but they knew it could be whatever they wanted.

The future was uncertain, but the future for those two was going to be great no matter what, Luna could tell.

She'd already reached an agreement with Lincoln. He could still see Lyra and Lemy. It'd taken her time to realize it, but he was at least owed that in spite of everything. But what him and her had 10 years ago? Done and over, never to be repeated. He realized that too. Maybe he'd move on, or he wouldn't; she wasn't sure what his deal with Lynn and Lucy was. But Luna had moved on. She had her future, and it has hugging her from behind right now.

Ah, what the hell? You only lived once. Luna spun around and pulled her surprised girlfriend in to kiss her. A deep kiss that had them soon pressed into the other.

And while they were locked in their embrace, Luna's girlfriend lifted her up onto the sink, shifting her hands to her waist.

"Ooh." Luna meeped into Sam's mouth. The movement had shifted her skirt and her thighs and her thinly covered ass made contact with the cold but stylish granite. But Sam's hands running up her legs relieved at least the first part of that.

They were both considering the pros and cons of things getting heated and them having to get ready all over again when Luna's phone broke them out of their embrace. "Ah, bollocks." Luna muttered, reaching over for her bag and pulling her phone from it. She shivered as Sam kept running her hands over Luna's thighs. She stopped when she saw Luna's brow furrow.

"Who is it?"

"My bro again." Luna answered. He'd already called again this morning. What else did he want? Sam's lips betrayed the slightest sense of annoyance, but she nodded and left, closing the bathroom door behind her. She knew Luna liked to take these calls alone.

"'Ello?"

"Luna." He sounded tired. "Luna…things just went really wrong."

"Wrong? What went wrong? Things were cheery this morning, weren't they?"

"Lyra and Lemy were out in Royal Woods, and they ran into Lily." Lincoln got right to the point. "They brought her back to my apartment and she started demanding answers. I had to tell her. They were listening in." He dropped it all on her at once. Luna was lucky she was sitting on the sink. She might've gotten dizzy and fallen over otherwise. "I had to tell them too."

"Wait, so they both know?" Luna asked, forgetting about Lily for a moment.

"They both know I'm their dad. I had to explain to Lyra and Lily what happened when we were kids. Lemy doesn't know." He explained. Luna slid down from the sink and paced around, a luxury available by its size relative to the price tag. This was not rad at all. Yeah, Luna had decided her daughter was old enough to know the truth, but she'd been the one who wanted to tell her damnit! It was going to be her apology just as much as Lincoln's. And Lemy shouldn't have heard anything about this at all! Her good mood was getting foul really fast.

"And how did they take it?" Luna asked. Her brother said nothing. "Lincoln!" She shouted into the phone.

"Lily was reall-"

"My daughter, Lincoln!" Luna interrupted him. Was she interested in hearing about her youngest sister? Yes, but not now.

"She was upset, alright!" He finally told her. "She was really overwhelmed by it all and she wanted time to think."

"Put her on the phone." Luna demanded. She wanted to do this in person, but it was better than nothing. Lyra needed to hear her side of the story.

"She's not here." Lincoln responded, and Luna's heart lurched. "She said she needed space to think, so her and Lemy went out."

"Out where?"

"I don't know."

"What the hell do you mean you don't know?!" Luna shouted into the phone. "Lyra doesn't just 'go out' Lincoln. How the hell are you going to let your daughter go out without knowing where she is?"

"I'm sure she's fine." Lincoln insisted, but there was that slight tremor in his voice. He was lying.

"Where did they go?" Luna asked, voice eerily calm

"Nowhere dange-"

"WHERE THE FUCK ARE MY KIDS, LINCOLN?!" She screamed.

"Lily said she's taking them to mom and dad's house! I'm going to go get them. They're mine too!" Luna went pale with fear for a moment before rage consumed her.

"Like hell they are! I'm coming up there to get them! You're never seeing them again, Lincoln!" And before he could contest that, Luna ended the call. She immediately tried to dial her daughter's phone. The call was denied in seconds. She tried again with the result. Her daughter didn't respond. Luna was too shocked to even speak. She staggered out of the bathroom, enraged.

"Luna, what the hell is going on?" Sam asked, concerned. She had to have overheard those outbursts.

"I got to get back to Royal Woods now." Luna slammed her bag on a table and flipped through those numbers cards hotels left about all the local businesses you might need, looking for a car rental place. Her phone rang again, Lincoln's number was on the caller id. Without a second thought, Luna smashed it with her hand, breaking the screen. "My brother lost my kids. I have to go pick them up." And after that, they were staying on the road with her for good. Fuck him. She gave him a chance and he blew it.

"What happened?" Sam was only more confused. "Are they okay?"

"They better be, or I'm going to prison. Arrgh, bloody useless!" The card didn't have a number she wanted. She'd go ask at the front desk. She stormed out the room.

"I'll go with you!" Sam jogged out behind her. Luna stopped on the walkway and turned around.

"I love you, babe, but I gotta handle this alone."

"No way!" Her girlfriend refused. "Luna, you can't expect me to see you freak out like that and not worry. Besides, now I'm worried about your kids too. I'm going with you!" She was surprised when Luna suddenly changed moods and pulled her into a hug.

"Sammy baby, you're too good for me. Come on, before our manager finds out." He and the rest of the band were going to be pissed when they missed the next show.

But bollocks to them. There were more important things out there.

Royal Woods

Lemy had only a foggy idea of what was happening right now, owing to him having been sent away while it was going on. But he'd been there to hear his uncle say he was Lyra and his father. But wasn't he their uncle? Lemy had been hostile to the notion of a father, but he couldn't summon up that anger right now.

Right now, he was just really, really confused. Why wasn't it safe? What had mom done? Why was Lyra and their aunt so upset? Why did they still leave after Lyra calmed down? There was just so much confusing stuff happening, it overwhelmed his 9-year-old brain to the point he couldn't do more than be confused and scared.

Not scared, scared. Obviously. But Lyra was upset, and that really unnerved him. Lyra never got upset. Angry, sure, but not upset. She was always calm, just like mom was always fun. And to see that nearly constant factor of his life turned upside down was getting to him more than he'd ever admit.

But Lyra was still with him.

He didn't know what was going on. He didn't know why they left. He didn't know why Lyra had been upset. He didn't know where they were going.

But Lyra was still with him. She was in charge. She was still leading him. And that meant things were still okay. He'd ask her the multitude of questions he had when they stopped, but right now he was letting her do her thing.

Right now, they were just walking down the street, getting odd looks from people because of the bags they were carrying. Lyra was holding tightly onto his hand, and using her other hand to mess around on her phone.

"Lyra!" They stopped and glanced behind them. Lily was running down the street at them, waving. Lyra turned back around and started walking faster, pulling Lemy's arm even. "Guys!" Her voice got closer, but they stilled ignored it. "Hey." She sounded out of breath as she grabbed Lyra's shoulder, and the teen shrugged her off.

"Leave us alone, please." She huffed.

"But where are you guys going?" Their aunt asked.

"I don't know!" Lyra snapped. "But anywhere's better than here."

"Yeah, piss off!" Lemy added. Lyra didn't even freak out on him.

"Guys, listen!" Lily pleaded, grabbing Lyra's shirt to try and stop her. Lemy immediately turned and started kicking at her shins. Just like his earlier shoulder ram, she ignored him. "Let me call my parents! Your grandparents! I'm sure they'll take you in!"

"Lemy, stop." Lyra put a hand on his chest. "Are you sure?" She asked Lily.

"Positive!" The blond insisted. "Just let me call them." She fished out her phone.

"What about…him?" Lyra didn't even say his name, glancing down the street like she expected him to be there.

"He's upset." She hesitated. "But I don't think he's going to chase after us." She glanced behind like she was making sure herself. "So what do say?" Lily asked. Lyra looked deep in thought for a few moments. Lemy looked up at her expectantly.

"Okay." Lyra decided. "We'll come see them." Lemy just went along with it.