The months following Lincoln's return were difficult, but happy ones. Everyone was thrilled to have their little brother back home, but it posed an interesting problem: they couldn't keep him locked up in the house forever. Lisa, however, already had a plan in place for him, and had so since she first envisioned his rescue. Lisa's technical ability was unmatched, and was utilized by both Wild Card and Lynn to hack into Bianchi's accounts and files to gather incriminating evidence on him. Likewise, after helping Lynn, she was able to hack into several government databases and create a new identity for Lincoln, including a new birth certificate, social security number, and even hospital records.
He was now Lincoln Loud II, the new youngest member of the Loud family.
It was a strange feeling for Lincoln, assuming a new identity. He was given a backstory to stick to in case people tried to question him on his sudden appearance in the family: because of what happened to his "older brother" Lincoln the first, his parents homeschooled him and isolated him from other people, but are now willing to let him branch out and experience more things in the world. Only a few people outside his family knew of who he really was: Clyde, Haiku, Bobby, and Ronnie Anne.
Clyde and Haiku were the first to find out. Lynn, Lisa and Lucy had brought him over a few days after he had settled in. True to form, Clyde took one look at him and fainted. After he came to, Lisa explained everything. It may be the fact that he has been a lifelong nerd, and Haiku was a staunch believer in the supernatural, but they accepted their explanation without question. In truth, Clyde didn't much care how he came back, he was just happy his best friend was back.
Upon hearing about all that Lincoln had gone through, Clyde was understandably upset, but his years of training as a trauma therapist paid off, as he was able to keep his composure for Lincoln's sake. He immediately agreed to the family's request to act as his informal therapist. He knew the trauma that he must have experienced would destroy even the strongest of minds if left untreated. He would go over there three days a week for therapy sessions. After which, they would simply spend time together, playing video games, reading comic books, and catching up. The age gap didn't matter to them, they were still the best of friends.
Ronnie Anne and Bobby were a little trickier. Even after living in Great Lakes City for ten years, they still harbored a deep resentment towards the Louds for Lincoln's disappearance. Additionally, they were hesitant at how much to reveal to them regarding Lincoln's rescue. After discussing it, the family agreed that they should never reveal Lincoln's actions as Wild Card. They didn't want to cast a shadow over their reunion. Instead, they only told them what they needed to know: they went back in time, found and rescued Lincoln, and brought him to the future to preserve the timeline.
Bobby and Ronnie Anne were understandably shocked to see the return of the sole Loud boy, but their happiness outweighed their shock. They agreed to keep his secret, even from their family. The less people who knew the truth, the better. After learning all they did to rescue their brother, Bobby and Lori began to reconcile. He hadn't been able to move on since Lori either. He had grown distrustful of people around him, and had refused to date anyone for fear of getting hurt again. Instead, he threw himself into his work, which is why he was able to build such a successful chain of Mercados.
Ronnie Anne was a harder nut to crack. She was overjoyed that her friend had returned, but was not ready to forgive his siblings as quickly as Bobby was. She could tell that Lincoln was deeply scarred by the situation, and she still resented them for this. However, she was at least willing to abstain from violence when she was around them while visiting Lincoln, although she did glare daggers at his sisters whenever she saw them. The only one that she seemed to get along with, ironically, was Lynn. The sisters were confused by this, as Lynn seemed to be the one she should be angry at the most. But Lisa surmised it was because of all Lynn did to correct her mistake, risking her life to save her brothers, that she was able to somewhat forgive the sporty sister.
As for the Loud house, after ten grueling years of suffering, happiness finally began to return to the family. Because of Lisa's various patents and the money received from Luan's buyout of her company shares, the family experienced a financial windfall. With this liquidity, they were able to finance a new business venture for the family: a family restaurant, which they lovingly dubbed as "Lincoln's Table." It had seen moderate success after both the mayor and her new assistant mayor were seen eating lunch there. Luan was fitting into the assistant mayor role like a glove. Brooks, the previous assistant mayor, was actually found to be on Bianchi's payroll, responsible for keeping his criminal activities from ever being tied to him. But now with his boss behind bars, he was facing criminal conspiracy and fraud charges of his own.
When it came to taking down Bianchi, Lisa had completely outdone herself. Because she was forced by Wild Card to hack into his records and obtain a papertrail to his criminal activities, she knew exactly where to look to find those records again. After "anonymously" providing it to Lynn, she was given the permission by the Chief Roxberry to be the one to collar him. It was an intense boost to her career, earning her a promotion to detective.
With Bianchi's arrest, his assets were seized and his business interests divested. The wayward children's home that once served as a recruitment center for his organization was purchased by Lisa and transformed into a boarding school, where she, Lori, and Luan served on the board of regents. They were hoping to turn around its reputation and give these poor children the second chances they deserved. They were determined to do everything in their power to prevent what happened to Lincoln from happening again with any of these kids.
As for Lincoln, his recovery was slow, but steady. Having your therapist also be your best friend helped, but he still suffered from night terrors. Several nights he had woken up screaming in a panic, prompting the family to come rushing to his aid. It took Lynn Sr., Lana, Lynn, and Lisa all of their strength to restrain him. The nanomachines in his blood system had caused him to grow a lot stronger in a short amount of time. Already he was able to lift double his body weight, and he was getting stronger every day. Several times he had accidentally broken a glass in his hand by squeezing it too hard, but he barely felt any pain, even when it had sliced his hand open. The wound didn't even require stitches, and it healed completely overnight. Lisa surmised that the nanomachines had amplified his healing ability as well, and took a vial of his blood for analysis. Lynn had noticed that his physical appearance began to change as well. He looked stronger, larger and more muscular than a boy his age should. His white hair had returned, but it was no longer combed and parted neatly as he used to do it before, simply leaving it disheveled and messy.
The poor boy was a shell of his former self. He rarely smiled anymore, and didn't like to converse with the family much, choosing to spend his time in the isolation of his room. Lynn and Lucy had decided to move back into the Loud House for the foreseeable future so they could be close to him during his recovery. Lynn was especially concerned about her brother, often checking on him several times a night, and when she wasn't at work, she was usually seen around the house, keeping a close watch on her brother.
The only one Lincoln was able to truly relax around was Lily. She was only a baby at the time the incident happened, so she was hardly to blame for it. Additionally, he found a kindred spirit in her, as she had saved and read all of his comics and developed a love for pop and nerd culture, just as he had. Considering they were now roughly the same age (with Lily being slightly older than him, having turned twelve before he did), they had become very close. She had introduced him to her group of friends at Royal Woods Junior High, all of whom were surprised that she had a brother they never knew about. Luckily, they all bought their cover story and left it at that.
Lynn actually found herself slightly envious of how easily Lily and Lincoln got along, but she could understand it. Lily and Lincoln had shared interests, whereas when Lynn and Lincoln got older, their interests diverged to the point where they practically had nothing in common. Still, she didn't let this deter her, and she continued to watch over her little brother at a distance, giving him the space he needed, but still letting him know that she was there for him.
She wasn't the only one. Lincoln was practically babied by the rest of his family. Everything he could ever want was provided for him. Whenever he needed something, someone was right there to help him with it. They were always asking him to spend time with them, but wouldn't be pushy if he wasn't interested, and would always consider him first when it came to things like movie night, dinner, or various other things. In truth, Lincoln found all the attention overwhelming, and tended to keep to himself more. The family was concerned, but knew that his healing wouldn't be an overnight process. In fact, according to what Clyde had told them, he would most likely suffer from this in some way for the rest of his life.
One day, Lynn had come to pick Lincoln up from Clyde and Haiku's house after one of his therapy sessions. The couple had seen Lincoln off, with Clyde giving him a fist bump and Haiku a kiss on the cheek. Lynn felt her heart swell, as they had both become surrogate older siblings for Lincoln, even though technically they could be considered the same age, in a way. The thought of it made Lynn's head hurt, and decided she would leave this timey-wimey stuff to her. Lincoln silently stepped into the car next to Lynn, buckling his seat.
"Hey, bro," said Lynn cheerfully. "How was it?"
"Fine," said Lincoln simply. An awkward silence stretched between them, which was pretty normal. Usually they would ride home in silence and he would retreat to his room until dinner. Lynn tried to find things that she could talk to him about, but what could she possibly say? And she didn't dare press the subject of "The Incident" for fear of sending him into a spiral. Lynn sighed and started the car, proceeding to drive off.
"Wait," said Lincoln. "I want you to take me somewhere."
"You do?" Asked Lynn in surprise. "Of course, where?"
Lincoln and Lynn stood silently next to each other in the quiet cemetery. They gazed at the headstone before them, reading "Lincoln Albert Loud, beloved son and brother, taken too soon." Lynn hadn't been back here since saving Lincoln, and was stunned when he asked her to take him here. He didn't say a word, only continuing to stare at the words on the gravestone.
"Are you okay?" Said Lynn uneasily.
"Yeah. Well . . . no, not really," he admitted with a sigh. "I never thought I'd find myself looking at my own grave."
It was a surreal experience for Lynn as well, but she could only imagine how he felt. Not only that, but she couldn't even begin to understand how he felt about them all. From his perspective, they betrayed him in the worst possible way, making him feel abandoned and unwanted. And after enduring a week of hell at the hands of a psychotic scientist, it must have only solidified his hatred for them. But Lynn couldn't let it go on any further. She couldn't sit on the sidelines anymore waiting. She had to say something. She had to make this right.
Lynn let out a deep sigh, placing her arm around him. "Look, bro," She said. "I understand if you never forgive us for what we did to you. To tell you the truth, I don't think I can ever forgive myself. We didn't really think you were bad luck, we just. . . no, I made a mistake. The worst mistake of my life." Lincoln didn't reply, continuing to stare at the gravestone. Lynn felt her stomach drop, but expected this kind of response.
"Why?" Lincoln asked.
Lynn looked at her brother questioningly, unsure what he meant. "Just. . . why?" Lincoln said again, finally looking at her. He had tears streaming down his cheeks. "Why did you do it? You were always picking on me, hurting me and making my life miserable. I didn't even want to go to that game, but you threatened to beat my head in if I didn't. I know I kept the lie going, but I just wanted some time to myself. Did. . ." his voice began to shake. "Do you hate me?"
Lynn gasped, shocked at how her brother could think such a thing. "Of course not!" She said, aghast.
"Then why?!" Shouted Lincoln. "I. . . I thought you were always going to protect me! You promised you'd never let anything bad happen to me. But y-you let that m-monster take me. He hurt me. . . I waited for you to rescue me. . . but I thought . . ." he began to break down, sinking to his knees and sobbing. Lynn crouched down with him and wrapped her arms around him, holding him as he sobbed into her shoulder. "I was afraid that you didn't want me as your brother anymore," Lincoln finished through his tears.
Lynn felt her heart break under her brother's words, but she knew they had to be said. Every single word he threw at her and more was fully deserved. She held him for several minutes as he cried. After he finally began to calm down, Lynn continued to hold him, rubbing his back.
"I'm so sorry," said Lynn. "I'm so sorry, Lincoln. I don't hate you, I never did." She sighed. It was time to tell him the truth. "Before I came back to get you, before bringing you here, I came face to face with your. . . other self, Wild Card."
Lincoln stopped crying, looking up at Lynn as she continued her story. "He was a tactical genius," said Lynn. "He was able to outthink and outsmart us at every turn. No matter how hard we tried, he was always ten steps ahead of us. Eventually, he managed to capture the family and gather us in one place: the baseball diamond. When he was there. . . he told me to choose my favorite sibling."
"Why?" Asked Lincoln.
"He said he wanted to balance the scales of justice," Lynn continued. "Since his life was stolen from him, he was going to. . . end the life of my favorite sibling."
"What. . . what did you tell him?" Asked Lincoln quietly.
"I told him the truth," said Lynn. "I told him that my favorite sibling. . . is you."
"Me?" Asked Lincoln, surprised. "I'm your favorite?"
"You always have been," said Lynn. She sighed deeply. "The reason I did what I did to you back then was because I was angry. Angry and afraid." Lynn wiped her eyes before continuing.
"When we were little, we were inseparable," She said. "But as time went on, we stopped spending time together. We stopped playing together. I know a lot of that was my fault. I was so obsessed with sports and winning that eventually I realized that I didn't know you anymore. You and I had become so different, and it scared me."
"I didn't know," said Lincoln.
"Well, I was too stubborn to admit it," said Lynn. "I picked on you because I missed spending time with you. And when you said you didn't want to come to my game I . . . I just saw red. I thought it was confirmation that you didn't want anything to do with me anymore. I thought that if I just forced it then maybe you would end up liking the things I liked. But I was so angry that I lost focus, and it cost me the game. Instead of owning up to it, I just. . . blamed you for it. That anger turned to fear, and when I saw you were faking bad luck to get out of coming to events with us. . . the fear just grew."
"What do you mean?" Asked Lincoln.
"I didn't want you to abandon me, Lincoln," said Lynn. "I know it doesn't make much sense, but that's how I felt. It felt like I was being abandoned by you. So I wanted to make you feel how I felt. I wanted you to experience how it felt to be abandoned by the people you love. But I realized too late how. . . wrong that was. It was the worst mistake of my life. A mistake that not only cost me my brother, but my best friend as well."
"I'm. . . your best friend?" Said Lincoln, surprised.
"Always have been," said Lynn, embracing her little brother. "Whenever I was scared, whenever I needed help, you were the one I could always go to. Even if I never did show it, I loved how you were always there for me. I think we all took it for granted how much we relied on you." Lynn pulled away from him, placing her hands on his shoulder squarely and looking him in the eye.
"I can't take back what I did to you," said Lynn. "I've tried, but I can't. But I can promise you this: I broke through time and space to get to you. I will never, ever, let anyone hurt you ever again."
"Do. . . do you promise?" Asked Lincoln.
"On my life," Said Lynn, embracing him again.
They stayed like for a while, for how long, they don't know. But Lynn felt as if a ten-year weight was lifted from her shoulders. She didn't know how things would be from now on, but right now, she didn't care. Her brother was home. He was safe, and they were together again, and he had the second chance at life that he deserved. That was all that mattered to her.
Lisa sipped from her coffee as she stared at her computer screen. She had finished the analysis on Lincoln's blood, and her suspicions were confirmed: the nanomachines in Lincoln's body were altering his body in alarming ways. He was already showing immense strength for his size, and his healing factor was extremely fast. He was quickly becoming superhuman.
It would be fascinating if it wasn't so frightening. She had no idea how far Lincoln's new strength would progress, nor the long-term effects they would have on him. She had to be cautious. Additionally, she was still ascertaining the amount of damage, if any, to the timeline. She was collecting data, to which she could aggregate a rough solution, but there was no way to fully determine the full extent of their actions. Perhaps nothing will happen, perhaps not.
Only time will tell.
The End
Author's Note: I want to thank everyone for reading both my first Loud House Fanfiction as well as the first fanfiction I have ever completed! I was worried about using the Time Travel trope to fix the damage caused by Wild Card, but I assure you there was a reason for it. I wanted to leave it open to a sequel with the focus being on Lincoln as he rebuilds his life, now with superhuman abilities. I am not sure when this sequel will come out, as I am still working on Powerless, Gravity Falls - Illuminatus, and will have another Loud House project coming out soon, but I do plan on writing it.
Thank you again. Let me know if you have any questions or comments.