The Loud House - Wild Card

Chapter 7 - Unpleasant Memories

And none of this would have happened.

"We just got through talking with our lawyer, kids," said Lynn Sr. "And things. . . aren't looking good."

"What do you mean, pops?" Asked Luna.

"Your mother and I don't exactly have a good chance at beating this charge against us," Lynn Sr. replied. "So, we're going to take a plea deal."

"You mean you're going to ask the judge politely to let you go?" Asked Leni.

"No, elder sister," said Lisa. "They are entering into an arrangement with the prosecuting attorneys for a reduced sentence in exchange for a guilty plea."

"What?" Shouted Lynn Jr. "You're going to plead guilty?!"

"You can't!" Shouted Lola. "You'll go to jail!"

The girls began to panic as they spoke over each other, voicing their protests and concerns. "Girls!" Shouted Rita, silencing them. "You need to understand, this is the best option we have."

"The prosecution has informed us that if we proceed to court, they'll be pushing for the maximum sentence," said Lynn, Sr. "That's ten years in prison, and we'd be lucky if we could get parole. Not to mention we would lose custody of you completely." The girls gasped in shock. Ten years without their parents? Most of them would have already reached adulthood by that time. They would miss them growing up entirely. And the idea of their parents losing custody of them filled them with fear. That would likely mean that they would either have to live with their extended family, or they would be separated and put into foster care.

"Not only that, but you girls wouldn't get through this unscathed," said Rita.

"What do you mean?" Asked Lori.

"The prosecution has threatened to drag you into this," said Rita. This was not surprising to the girls, but it was still frightening to them. After all, this whole situation was their idea. They were used to pushing Lincoln around, and he rarely ever showed any signs of protest or resistance, no matter how invasive they were to his privacy or how much they sacrificed his dignity. It was one of the things that they took for granted with him.

"What are they gonna do to us?" Asked Luan.

"For the younger girls, probably nothing," said Lynn Sr. "But as for you older girls, they are arguing that you are at an age where you could have reasonably determined what was being done to Lincoln was wrong. If you were to go to trial, you could face time in Juvenile hall. Some of you could possibly be tried as an adult, which would mean a prison sentence."

"Regardless, this would be an end to your future," said Rita. "Even if we were found innocent, there's still the court of public opinion. The stigma of this situation will follow you wherever you go, and your life will become ten times harder for it."

The girls began to understand their predicament. If they were to be found guilty and sent to juvie or prison, it would be on their permanent record. It would make getting into college, getting a job, extremely difficult. Even dating and getting married would be hard, as who would trust them enough to raise a family with them when the very reason they were found guilty was child endangerment?

"But the prosecution told us that if we were to plead guilty, we would serve a reduced sentence of one year," said Lynn, Sr. "We would still keep custody of you, upon condition that we attend two years worth of parenting courses, as well as 5 years probation. In turn, you girls would receive immunity, and after that time the file would be sealed, keeping it from the public record."

"This would minimize your liability and prevent the most impact to your futures," Rita affirmed.

"But you would take all the blame," said Lynn, Jr.