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Darkness Falls on the House of Loud	By : Trillhouse Category: +G through L > The Loud House Views: 2549 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own The Loud House, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 2
- 3
- 4
III - Blood

Lola awoke with a start, her eyes jolting open; what time was it? She grunted drowsily as she pushed herself up to a seated position and glanced at the clock. She had to wipe the sleep from her bleary eyes to make out the numbers… one thirty-five, it read. Still frozen. Lola groaned, glancing out the window to find that it was still pitch black outside. She wasn't sure what had woken her… she couldn't recall any nightmares. In fact, she couldn't remember having any dreams at all, which was unusual for her.
So why was her heart beating so fast?
"Lana, are you-" Lola began, before realizing that her sister wasn't in her bed. She frowned deeply; she was used to this, as Lana would often go to Lori for comfort when she had a bad dream. Lola would never admit it, but that always bothered her a little bit… though she and her twin had a tumultuous relationship even at the best of times, she did love Lana very much, and found it hard to sleep when her sister wasn't by her side.
Lola lied back down and tried to fall back asleep, but couldn't. Perhaps it was just due to the nerve-wracking events of the evening, but something just felt… wrong. Lola felt a pit in her stomach that physically pained her, as though she were having a bad stomach ache yet not quite. She wanted her sister. Lola ignored her tiredness and slipped out of bed, yawning loudly as she headed towards the door.
The hallway was quiet; she could vaguely make out Lisa babbling some dull nonsense from her room, but ignored it and made her way down the stairs.
"-need to do something. It's been two hours, at least… probably more than that." She heard Luna's voice from the living room. As the room came into view, she saw Luna, Leni, Lincoln, and Luan in the midst of a conversation; Leni was cradling a sleeping Lily in her arms. All four looked incredibly stressed out… even Lily seemed to be having an uneasy rest, her brow furrowed slightly as she slept.
"Lori told us to stay here." Leni said quietly.
"I know that, but Lori's not here, Leni! She could be out there hurt or worse, and we're just sitting on our hands waiting around! She could be dead for all we-"
"Luna, don't say that!" Lincoln scolded, a hint of edge to his voice; Leni had visibly tensed up at the mention of death, and he gently grasped her hand to reassure her. "I know it's hard, but Lisa also said we shouldn't go outside… don't you think we should listen to her, at least?"
"Ugh, I know, it's just… there's got to be something we can do!" Luna groaned, flopping back into her seat. "What about that walkie-talkie of yours?"
"Tried it already… no luck." Lincoln sighed. He could only hope that Clyde was alright.
"L-Lori's still not back…?" Lola stammered, catching her siblings' attention.
"Lola?" Leni gasped. "What are you doing up?"
"I-I couldn't…" Lola whimpered, looking at Luna with tears forming in her eyes. "Luna… y-you really think Lori might…?"
Luna's face fell; she mentally cursed herself for thinking out loud as she rushed to her little sister's side, pulling her into a comforting hug. "No, little dude, no… I'm sorry. I'm just all out of tune right now, and I said something stupid. Lori's fine, I know it." Luna forced a smile to try and reassure the little princess.
Lola sniffled, clinging tightly to Luna. "I… I want Lana." Lola whined. "She wasn't in bed…"
"Wait, Lana hasn't gone back up yet…?" Luan muttered in confusion. Leni looked at her with a mildly annoyed expression.
"Luan…" Leni said in a chiding tone, "What do you mean 'gone back up'?"
"O-oh, well…" Luan gave a nervous laugh. "She came down looking for her pets, so I let her check the basement… but she promised she'd go back to bed afterwards!"
"Luan…" Leni sighed.
"It's alright though! I bet you she's still down there… maybe she found them?" Luan said as she got out of the armchair, before walking over to Lola and taking her hand. "C'mon, let's go touch basement. Get it?"
"O-okay." Lola mumbled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. Luan led her through the dining room and kitchen to the small hallway leading to the basement. However, as they opened the basement door, they found that the light was off; the basement was pitch black, the stairwell trailing off into complete darkness after the first step.
"Huh…" Luan muttered under her breath. This was unusual… Lana had never been a huge fan of the dark. "Lana, you down there?" She called out; no response. Lola squeezed her arm tighter.
"L-Luan… I don't like this…"
"It's alright, Lola. You stay up here, okay? I'll go have a look." Luan assured her, practically needing to wrestle her arm away from the frightened girl.
"W-wait, you shouldn't…!" Lola protested; she wasn't sure why, but she really didn't want her sister to go down there. Luan just chuckled softly, patting her on the head.
"Don't worry that pretty lil' head of yours, princess. I'll be back in a flash!" With that, Luan took her first step down, and then another. As she descended the stairs, she had to stop for a moment to take a deep breath; she'd acted calm in front of Lola, but in truth she couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. The basement had always been a bit creepy, and no matter how many times she'd ventured down alone, she never quite got used to it. "Lana?" She called again. "Are you here?" Again, silence.
Luan frowned, walking to the middle of the basement. She reached up for the light cord, only to find that it wasn't there. Wait… what? She grasped about for it, but found nothing. It made no sense… she'd been down here plenty of times before, she knew where the cord was. Maybe Lana had pulled it off by accident…?
"L-Lana…" Luan said again, her voice cracking a bit. "Stop messing around." Silence. In fact, it dawned on Luan just how silent the basement was… she could hear nothing, not so much as a single roach scuttling across the ground. "Lana!" She cried out again, louder this time… nothing. To her bafflement, she realized she couldn't even hear the echo of her own voice.
In fact, she couldn't hear her voice at all.
Luan swallowed the lump in her throat. That… couldn't be right, could it? Luan stuck a finger in her ear to clean it out before trying again. "LANA!" She shouted at the top of her lungs. There was no sound… she could feel the vibrations of her throat, but she heard nothing but dead silence. She snapped her fingers… nothing. She stomped her foot…
…nothing.
Luan turned, bolting for the stairwell. She'd had enough… at any rate, Lana clearly wasn't down here. She reached out to grab onto the banister, but her hand simply passed through the space where it would be; had she gotten turned around? Impossible. She knew this house like the back of her hand. She'd lived here her whole life, after all… the stairs were here. They were always here.
…Right?
Luan's chest heaved with rapid breaths. She heard nothing; without the sound of her own breathing, she couldn't be sure if she was drawing in air or not. She couldn't even hear the sound of her own racing heart. She thought, for sure, that she must be suffocating… but she couldn't feel the burning in her chest that would indicate that to be the case. She ran, desperately flailing her arms in front of her for some sign of the stairwell, or of anything, but there was nothing. Luan lost her footing and fell forward, reaching out her arms to catch herself.
She couldn't even feel the ground beneath her.
"Luan's gone!" Lola shrieked as she ran back into the living room, frightened tears streaming down her face. "S-she went down and-and-and she's not coming auuughhh…!" Lola's cries devolved into hysterical sobbing as she threw herself into Luna's arms, blubbering inelegantly into her sister's shirt.
"L-Lola calm down…!" Luna held her sister as she cried, Lincoln rushing to her side as well. Lola's screams had awoken Lily, and she too started bawling as Leni tried to console her. "Calm down… breathe. What happened?"
"L-Luan…" Lola choked between sobs, "S-she went in the b-b-basement a-and she… she's not coming out…!" Lola whimpered pathetically into Luna's shirt, soaking it through with tears and mucus. "I-I-I called out to her b-but there's no answer and she's not coming o-out!"
Lincoln and Luna exchanged an annoyed glance. Luan. Lincoln sighed, kneeling down and rubbing his little sister's back. "Lola, it's alright. Luan's just playing one of her stupid pranks again."
Lola sniffled, pulling away from Luna to reveal a long strand of snot stretching from her nose to the rocker's shirt. "A… a prank…?"
"Y-yeah…" Luna assured her, doing her best to stifle her gag reflex. "Come on, I'm gonna give that girl a piece of my mind."
"N-no!" Lola whined, clinging to Luna tighter. "You'll disappear too…!"
"Lola, nobody's disappeared." Luna said in a gentle voice. "Now come on… I've got you." Lola reluctantly allowed Luna to lead her back to the basement door. The door remained open, and the basement below remained pitch black and silent; if anything, it seemed even darker than before, with not even the first step visible through the void.
"Luan!" Luna shouted into the blackness. "Get your ass up here!" No response. Luna grit her teeth in frustration… this was too far, even for Luan. "Luan, enough with the jokes! Get up here, NOW!" Nothing.
"Luna…?" Lincoln said as he entered the kitchen. "Is she down there?"
"She'd better not be, because I swear I'm going to stomp the crap out of her for pulling this shit right now…" Luna hissed, her anger masking her growing apprehension. Something about this was wrong… Luan wouldn't pull a joke like this, not when poor Lola was so frightened already. "I'm going down there."
"NO!" Lola, screeched, pulling back on Luna's arm with all her strength. "You can't!"
"Lola, it's fine." Luna said sternly, pulling her arm free a bit harder than she intended to. "Lincoln, take her, will you?"
"I, uh…" Lincoln frowned, looking down into the darkness of the basement. "I… I agree with Lola… I don't think this is a good idea."
"Lincoln, for fuck's sake, will you just-"
"Luna, come on, you don't need to swear in front of Lola…"
"Yes I do, Lincoln!" Luna snapped angrily, making Lola and Lincoln flinch. "It's late, I'm tired, I'm stressed out, and if you haven't noticed, my Goddamn fingers are broken! I'm in no fucking mood to deal with this anymore! Now take your sister, I'm going down there!"
"STOP!" A shrill voice rang out. "Do not set one foot into that basement!" Lisa rushed past, pushing Luna aside with a surprising amount of force before slamming the basement door shut.
"L-Lisa…? What're you-" Lincoln began.
"Everyone. Upstairs. Now." The diminutive girl said with the most authoritative tone she could muster. "I'll explain everything, but it's not safe here. Let's go."
"Wait…! What about Luan?!" Luna asked.
"A-and Lana…!" Lola whimpered.
"Luan and Lana…?" Lisa muttered, a note of apprehension to her voice.
"Lana… Lana's missing," Lincoln explained, his voice cracking slightly. "Luan went down to the basement to look for her, but she hasn't come out…"
The color seemed to drain from Lisa's face. She grit her teeth, glancing back towards the basement door for a moment before shaking her head. "…We have to go. Now." She began to forcibly push her three siblings away from the door. "I've already told Leni to meet us in my room."
"D-dammit Lisa, stop!" Luna hissed. "Luan's still down there!"
"No, she isn't." Lisa replied in a small, strained voice. "Not anymore."
"Lynn!" Lisa shouted, pounding on her door. "Emergency meeting in my room, now!" She ushered the others into her bedroom, where Leni was already waiting; Lisa had been put to bed, a pair of noise-cancelling earmuffs placed over her head. Lucy was there too, seated in the corner with her face buried in her knees.
"Lucy…?" Lincoln called out. "Lucy, what's-"
Lisa cleared her throat. "It's… best if I do the talking."
"What's going on…?" Came the hoarse voice of Lynn from the doorway. She skulked into the room, eyes red and raw from crying; her gaze met Leni's for a moment before she winced and looked away.
"Did you…" Lincoln swallowed. "Did you figure out what's been going on…?"
"Yes… I believe so." Lisa's voice carried none of the usual excitement that would accompany a new discovery… instead she sounded tense, tired and perhaps even scared. "Everyone, sit." Her siblings did so, and she took a few moments to collect her thoughts before continuing. "I, um…" Lisa began, her voice uneven and wavering. "Quite frankly, I'm not sure where to start."
Everyone shared a confused glance. "Um… how about you start from the beginning?" Lincoln offered.
"The beginning…" Lisa mumbled. "Right. Well, first of all, it would appear I was correct in assuming that there was no earthquake."
"A-alright…"
"The shaking we experienced earlier was not seismic in nature… in fact, it would be inaccurate to say that the ground was shaking at all." Lisa continued. "Rather, what we experienced was closer in nature to turbulence."
"Um…" Leni raised her hand. "Like an airplane…?"
"Correct."
"But this is a house…" Leni muttered, scratching her head in confusion. "Right…?"
"…Yes, Leni." Lisa sighed. "Perhaps a better term in this case might be extra-dimensional turbulence."
"I… don't get it." Lincoln said. "What do you mean extra-dimensional?"
"What I mean, Lincoln, is that the house was not merely shaking. It was transported through space and time, as were we all."
The silence in the room was tangible; the siblings awaited the inevitable sarcastic follow-up from Lisa, or a laugh, or something to indicate that she was joking with them, but it never came… she seemed dead serious. "…What." Luna was the first to break the silence, her voice flat and unamused.
"W-where are we, then?" Lola squeaked, trembling in Luna's arms.
"Nowhere." Lisa replied flatly. Her siblings looked at her as though she had sprouted a second head; she sighed, waddling over to her chalkboard. "This…" she said, drawing a circle. "…Is the space-time continuum. This covers everything… it is the very fabric of the universe itself. And let's say this…" She added a small circle within the first. "…Is us, or at least it should be. If my hypothesis is correct, right now we are instead here." She jabbed her chalk outside of the larger circle. "We are locked somewhere outside of the space-time continuum. In essence… we are outside reality itself. We are nowhere."
"…What." Luna said again.
"That… that doesn't make any sense, Lisa." Lincoln stammered, his mouth suddenly very dry.
"You're right, Lincoln. It doesn't. And yet… here we are."
"I-I don't understand, but… Lisa… if we're outside time, like, wouldn't that mean that time… stopped?" Leni asked meekly.
"That's… surprisingly astute, Leni. Yes, that would appear to be the case."
"Wait, if we're in some other… place… how do we even have power…?" Lincoln asked.
"That I have yet to determine. It's possible that our home is locked in the same condition it was in when we left… in other words, we had power in our universe, so we retain it here. There are a number of logical fallacies at play here, but then again this situation itself would seem to defy logic, wouldn't you agree?"
"O-okay, let's just say for a second I buy into this bullshit." Luna scoffed, earning her an irritated glare from Lisa. "How would something like that even happen?!"
"Yes, well… that's where we have an even greater problem." Lisa muttered. She walked over to her desk, pulling a large leather book from the top… the grimoire. "If you'll recall, Lucy had mentioned earlier that she had conducted a ritual."
"Alright, screw this." Luna huffed, getting to her feet. "I'm done wasting my time here."
"Luna-"
"No, Lisa. I'm done." Luna snapped. "I mean, rituals, now? Have you lost your damn mind?!"
"Luna, please." Lisa sighed. "Believe me… I am well aware of how preposterous this sounds, and I can hardly blame you for your incredulity. But trust me when I say we are dealing with forces here I never thought possible… and if any of us hope to make it out of this alive, we'll all need to accept that."
Luna swallowed. "What… what do you mean, make it out alive…?"
"…Sit." Lisa instructed. Luna frowned, hesitating for a moment before reluctantly complying. Lisa cleared her throat before continuing. "This book came into Lucy's possession recently… as I'm sure is immediately apparent, it is quite old. More to the point, however… it is a grimoire. A book of magi- yes, Leni?" Lisa asked as Leni raised her hand.
"That's like, too big." Leni complained. "Lucy totes should have got it digital."
"…Noted. Thank you for your input." Lisa grumbled. "Pressing on… Lucy translated the book herself, with the help of a friend. Quite frankly, she did an admirable job for an amateur… but, nonetheless, mistakes were made."
Lucy whimpered slightly, drawing her knees closer to herself. "M'sorry…." She murmured, barely above a whisper.
"Namely…" Lisa continued, readjusting her glasses. "There are parts where the author's writing became erratic, and seemingly nonsensical. This was incorrect, though I can hardly blame her for assuming so… in reality, the author was in many cases making use of ciphers to code his words… and, given the nature of the languages at play, the missing information at times drastically alters the meaning of the text."
"O-okay, so Lucy made some mistakes, but… what kind of ritual could have done this?" Lincoln asked in a trembling voice.
Lisa flipped open the grimoire to the page in question. "'For those who seek the embrace of darkness.' Let me ask you all, what is darkness?"
"Nighttime?" Lincoln offered.
"Scary," whined Lola.
"Pissing me off, right now." Luna grumbled.
Lisa coughed. "R-right… well, to put it simply, darkness is nothing more than the absence of light. However, the individual that wrote this tome seems to think otherwise… at various points he indicates that man's understanding of darkness is somehow flawed. He writes of a true darkness, pure and untarnished by the light… ever-present, ever-growing, and all-consuming. I'm sure this sounds… familiar to you, given our current situation. "
Lincoln felt his blood run cold. He hadn't been imagining it… it had been getting darker.
"It would seem that this ritual was his life's work," Lisa said. "While Lucy skipped over much of the author's private musings, it's clear that he was driven by a need to understand this so-called 'true darkness'. To… become one with it, perhaps. As I'm sure you can imagine, a ritual powerful enough to warp the fabric of reality comes at a dreadful cost."
"What kind of cost…?" Lincoln asked.
Lisa frowned, removing her glasses to massage the bridge of her nose. "…At first glance, the components for the ritual are deceptively simple. I assume that's what drew Lucy to it in the first place. However… that is where she made perhaps her greatest error." Lisa sighed, placing her glasses back on. "The most important component… the offering. The ritual requires an offering of one's own blood. However… in this context, blood means something different."
Lincoln's eyes widened. "L-Lucy…" he stammered. "You didn't."
Lucy sniffled, giving a small nod. "I… I didn't know…"
"Like… I don't get it…" Leni muttered trembling slightly; she didn't need to understand fully to grasp that this was a very bad situation. "W-what does it mean, then…?"
"…Please, don't blame Lucy. She was driven by passion… not malice." Lisa said softly. "However… it would seem that our sister has unwittingly placed us onto the proverbial chopping block."
"L-Lisa…" Lola sniffled, the terror apparent in her voice. "I-I don't understand… where did the others go…?"
Lisa frowned deeply. "Gone."
"You mean…" Luna swallowed, her bravado rapidly fading away. "You mean they're dead…? Lori… Lana… L-Luan…?!"
"I mean they're gone, Luna. What, specifically, that entails, I cannot say… but suffice to say they are not here." Lisa's voice was low, serious, and tinged with pain. "The darkness consumes all it touches, and it's already begun to spread inside the house. At most… I'd say we have less than three hours before it completely overtakes us. Relatively speaking, of course… as I stated, time does not actually pass here."
Lisa's siblings stared at her in wide-eyed horror. Lola was the first to break, wailing loudly as she cried for her twin sister; Luna clutched her tightly, fighting back her own tears for the sake of the young princess. Leni, however, seemed nearly catatonic as tears silently streamed down her face. Lincoln put his arm around her and she practically fell into his arms, sobbing softly into his shoulder. Meanwhile, in the back, Lynn silently got to her feet and left, returning to her own room. Lisa hung her head slightly; she hated putting them through this, but it was best that they understood the gravity of the situation.
"Lisa…" Lincoln sniffled. "You can do something about this right…? Y-you're a genius… there's got to be something, right…?!"
"Actually, there very well may be. I trust you are all aware of the multiverse theory?" Silence. Lisa groaned, drawing a diagram on the board. "Very well, try to follow along… in essence, there are an infinite number of universes parallel to our own... some that are nearly identical to ours, and many that are not. For example, there may be a universe where we were never born, or one where our biological sexes are reversed."
"Or one where we're rabbits…?" Lincoln offered.
Lisa cocked an eyebrow. "Er… y-yes, I suppose so. In any case, I have been working on a device that should, in theory, allow us to travel between universes. That said…" Lisa sighed, "Apart from being little more than a prototype, the fact of the matter is that it was meant to travel between universes… and, right now, we are outside any known universe. I may be able to get it working, but needless to say… time is not on our side."
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Luna asked.
"I'm afraid not. As I'm sure you can imagine, quantum mechanics are a highly complex field… one that none of you are particularly well-versed in, might I add. Your involvement would merely complicate matters."
"So what are we… ow… supposed to do?" Lincoln winced in pain; Leni was clutching him so hard that her nails were digging into his back, but he nonetheless rubbed the back of her head
"For now, nothing." Lisa replied, hopping off the chair and to the floor. "As long as you stay out of the darkness, you are in no immediate danger… however, it's crucial that you maintain a level head."
"Easy for you to say…" Luna huffed, though her voice lacked the edge it held earlier. Lola was still hysterically sobbing in her arms, and Luna could think of no way to console the poor girl; hell, she couldn't even think of a way to console herself. Even in the off chance they actually survived this, they had still lost three of their sisters. Luna wasn't sure if she wanted to cry or scream or just break something, but what good would that do? All they could do was wait.
"I-I guess… we should leave you to it, then." Lincoln sighed. "Guys… c'mon. Let's get out of Lisa's way." He tried to get up, but Leni wouldn't let go of him; she simply squeezed tighter, shaking her head. "Leni… c'mon. It'll be fine… Lisa's gonna get us out of this, okay? But we need you… you're in charge, remember?" Leni sniffled, meeting his gaze. He smiled warmly at her, helping her to her feet.
"You as well, Lucy." Lisa said to the distraught girl huddled in the corner. "If I have further need for your expertise, I shall let you know." Lucy silently nodded and got to her feet. She kept her gaze locked on the floor as she shuffled past her siblings. How could she look them in the eye after what she'd done? Lincoln and Leni followed her out.
Luna struggled to her feet, doing her best to carry Lola with one hand. "Lisa… please." She said weakly before exiting. "Fix this."
As the door shut behind her, Lisa let her stoic façade crumble away. She took a deep, unsteady breath, choking back a sob as the tears began to flow freely. Lisa rarely allowed herself the luxury of showing emotions… after all, emotions merely got in the way of reason. Still, despite her best efforts she was only human. She loved, she hurt, she cried just like anyone else, even if she was better at hiding it.
Lisa took off her glasses and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. There would be time for tears later… right now, she had to act.
Lynn stood just beyond her bedroom door, staring blankly ahead at nothing in particular, as she had been for the past several minutes. It all felt so unreal; for all of her superstitions and beliefs, she had rarely put much stock in Lucy's occult nonsense. How many times, after all, had Lucy claimed to speak with the spirits with no evidence to back it up? How many rituals, spells, and enchantments had been attempted with no discernable effects? Even now, it just seemed too ridiculous to even consider.
And yet, Lisa herself had just stated in no uncertain terms that yes, magic was real, and it had thoroughly fucked every one of them. Lynn wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or cry… but her tears had dried up long ago. She could only give a strained, humorless chuckle as she staggered into her room. It was all just so absurd. Just a few hours ago, everything had been so normal… just an ordinary night in the Loud House. And now? Now, they were trapped in the middle of who-knows-where, completely cut off from the outside world, and her sisters were dead.
Lori, Lana, and Luan were dead.
Lynn felt her stomach lurch. She clasped a hand over her mouth, stumbling her way to the window as her body shook with dry heaves, and threw it open. Lynn braced herself against the window frame as the first wave of vomit spewed forth from her mouth, unseen through the darkness. She heaved again, and again; even after her stomach had been completely purged of its contents, she was still throwing up pure bile and gastric juices that seared her throat and nostrils as they forced their way out. She practically collapsed against the windowsill as she felt the heaving subside, her body continuing to rattle with coughs and sniffles.
For a good while she just laid there, allowing her stomach to settle down. She wiped her mouth on her sleeve and, reflexively, looked at it; but there was nothing to see. Everything beyond the window was simply an endless void… true darkness, far as the eye could see. Lynn stared out into the nothingness beyond, the darkness that had already claimed three of the people she loved. Was there even anything left of them to bury?
Would there be anything left of her to bury?
Lynn swallowed, her saliva doing little to soothe her raw throat. Seeing it for herself, she could only feel the futility of it all… this wasn't some opponent that could be overcome. This wasn't an enemy team, or a broken leg, or some challenge that could be faced down and dealt with. This was… nothing. She may as well just a climb outside and get it over with.
Do it. Lynn felt something pushing her forward-
"NO!" Lynn screamed, hurtling herself away from the window and back into her room. She frantically glanced around the room for some sign of her assailant, but there was nothing there. There never had been.
The voice, she realized, had been her own.
Lynn let out a low, hoarse moan, falling to her knees in anguish. She was losing it. How could she not be? She was going to die. She was only thirteen years old and she was going to die, and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. All because of Lucy's stupid ritual…
…Lucy.
That's right. It had been Lucy's doing, hadn't it? She was to blame for all of this… it was her fault that they were here. It was her fault that Lori, Lana, and Luan were dead. It was her fault that she and the rest of her siblings were going to die as well. As far as Lynn was concerned, Lucy may as well have killed them all herself.
And for what?
Some stupid, childish game?
Lynn felt her stomach twist into a knot again, this time borne not of nausea but of hatred. She couldn't fight the darkness, she knew that. There was no way she could make the darkness pay for what was happening to them.
But someone had to.
Luna felt a chill run up her spine as she looked down the staircase. Lisa hadn't been kidding… the darkness was spreading. To the left, the dining room was already pitch black, while the corners of the living room were far darker than they had been before; darker than they should be, given the amount of light in the room, but even that seemed to have dimmed. "Guess we're stayin' up here, then…" Luna mumbled softly, sitting on the top step.
Lola lay across her lap, having cried herself to sleep; as she stroked the sleeping girl's hair gently, she couldn't help but feel like she had never properly appreciated how much the little princess meant to her. She could be a brat at times, yes… and even downright spiteful at worst. But seeing Lola like this reminded Luna that she was still just a little girl… her little sister. She relied on Luna and looked up to her, even if she didn't always show it. The fact that it took losing three of her sisters to realize that made Luna feel sick to her stomach.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier." Luna said softly. "Both of you," She added, glancing over at her brother. "I'm sorry."
"It's alright, Luna." Lincoln responded with a sad smile. He was sitting against the wall with Leni at his side. She was leaning against his shoulder with a far-off look in her eyes.
"I'm the only one that should be sorry." Lucy murmured, huddled against the wall opposite her brother. "I'm the one that caused all this. Lori and the others are gone because of me…"
"Lucy, no…" Lincoln sighed. "This isn't your-"
"It is my fault, Lincoln." Lucy interrupted him. "You can't pretend it's not. None of you can." Her voice was small and fragile, different from her usual dreary monotone… she just sounded like a scared eight-year old girl.
"Maybe so," Luna admitted, "But it doesn't mean we blame you for it, Luce. You had no idea something like this would happen… hell, I'm still havin' a hard time believin' it myself."
"S-still…" Lucy shook her head sadly. "I shouldn't have messed with things I didn't understand… I had a bad feeling about it from the start, but I… I still went through with it…"
"…Lucy." Leni spoke for the first time since Lisa's bombshell. She smiled weakly and outstretched her arms to her little sister. Lucy sniffled and bit her lip, hesitating briefly, before diving into her big sister's arms. Leni embraced her gently as she began to cry, her tiny body shaking with sobs.
"I-I'm sorry…!" Lucy whimpered, her tears soaking Leni's nightgown. "I never meant for anyone to get hurt! I'd… I'd take it all back if I could…"
"We, know, Lucy." Leni assured her as she gently rubbed her little sister's back. "It's all going to be okay. Lisa is totes gonna fix this."
"B-but the others…"
"Lucy," Lincoln chimed in. "Remember what Lisa said? She wouldn't say they were dead… just that they're not here. If she can get us back home, she might be able to save them too!"
"Yeah… yeah, Linky's right!" Leni grinned, some of her usual pep returning to her. "Lisa's going to fix everything, don't you worry… like, someday I bet we're even gonna look back at this and laugh." Lucy sniffled and looked up at her two older siblings; they both grinned brightly down at her, as though they genuinely believed what they were saying. On one hand, Lucy couldn't help but wonder if they really understood the gravity of the situation… but on the other hand, somehow their words of optimism soothed her troubled soul just a bit.
Leni ran her hand up Lucy's cheek and under her bangs. Normally, Lucy would bat her hand away… but now, she didn't care anymore. Leni brushed her hair to the side, revealing the pale blue eyes that had once unnerved her. Now, Leni just smiled sweetly as she gently wiped away her little sister's tears. "…I love you." Lucy said quietly. "I love all of you… I don't say it enough, but it's true…" She sank into Leni's arms, no longer caring about maintaining her image. Right now, her siblings made her feel safe.
"C'mon, Luce… you think we don't know that?" Lincoln chuckled, joining in on the embrace.
"We totes love you, too. No matter what!" Leni agreed.
"Ditto," Luna added with a smirk. "I'd come hug it out with you guys, but I'd rather not wake the princess."
For some time, things were peaceful. Lucy stopped crying after a bit, and simply sat in silence nestled between her brother and sister. Lincoln couldn't help but notice just how quiet the house was… quieter than it had ever been. Even when the entire family had come down with laryngitis, things hadn't been this silent. It was eerie, and he found himself longing for one of Luan's terrible jokes, or one of Lori's insults, or even for the twins to get into yet another fight over some petty nonsense. But now he could hear nothing save for the gently breathing of his sisters, and the muffled sounds of Lisa hard at work in her room.
"Hope she hurries up…" Luna muttered uneasily. "It's gettin' worse, dudes." Lincoln leaned over and peered down the staircase. His blood ran cold; it was getting worse. He could only see the floor for a few feet at the bottom of the steps… the front door was already lost to the darkness.
"Lisa can do this." Lincoln sighed as he leant back against the wall. Luna only frowned and gave a small nod. Lincoln wasn't sure how long it had been yet… it felt as though even his perception of time was out of whack. It certainly hadn't felt all that long. "…I gotta pee." He mumbled as he got to his feet.
"Don't fall in!" Leni warned, earning a small laugh from her brother. "What? I'm serious. It happens, Linky…"
"Guys pee standing up, Leni!" Lincoln pointed out as he walked to the bathroom.
"They do…?" Leni frowned, her brow furrowed in confusion. "How…?"
"I'll tell you when you're older, Lens." Luna snickered, and Lucy couldn't help but let out a small chuckle herself. The banter made things seem almost… normal.
But someone was missing.
Lucy frowned as she looked at her bedroom door. Ever since her outburst, Lynn had been holing herself away in her room, and Lucy couldn't help but worry. Though the two were polar opposites in most ways, they'd always been particularly close to one another… granted, mostly by virtue of being roommates. Lynn had never handled adversity very well, and tonight was no exception; in fact, now that Lucy thought about it, she realized the sport-loving Loud hadn't said a single word during Lisa's briefing, and in fact had left before it was even finished.
"You wanna go see if she's alright?" Leni asked, apparently noticing her sister's concern. Lucy gave a small nod and Leni patted her on the head. "Go on, then. Tell her… tell her I totes forgive her for what she said, alright…?"
"Lynn…?" Lucy said as she stepped into her room. "Lynn, you should come… out…" Her voice trailed off as she realized she couldn't see her sister anywhere. "L-Lynn?" She asked again, approaching her sister's bed; the blanket was all bunched up, but it was empty. She had come back in here, right…? "Lynn, where are-"
Lucy gasped. The window. It was open. "Lynn!" She rushed over to it, looking out into the void beyond as her heart pounded in her chest. She wouldn't. Not Lynn. "N-no…"
Click.
Lucy heard a sound from behind her. She turned, breathing a sigh of relief as she saw her sister behind her, safe and sound... she'd been standing beside the door the whole time. "L-Lynn, thank goodness…" Lucy stammered. "You scared me…"
"Did I." Lynn replied flatly. "Not so fun from the other side, is it?" Something about Lynn's tone sent a chill down Lucy's spine; her voice was low, cold, and dripping with venom. Lynn withdrew her hand from the doorknob. Had she just locked the door…?
"Lynn, a-are you…" Lucy swallowed. "Are you alright?" Lynn simply scoffed in response before grabbing the chair from the desk and wedging it beneath the doorknob. "Lynn…?!" Lucy instinctively took a step back. "What are you doing?!"
Lynn didn't answer. She took a step towards her sister, and then another, backing the young girl against the dresser. Lucy had never felt the difference between them so clearly... though she was only about nine inches or so shorter than Lynn, right now her older sister may as well be ten feet tall. Lynn had her cornered, and Lucy wasn't about to find out why; she pushed the older girl away and made a dash for the door.
Lynn was prepared. She easily swept the goth's legs out from under her, and Lucy's chin smacked against the floor so hard it made her ears ring. A moment later she felt Lynn's fingers clutch her ankle tightly and she realized she was being dragged over to the window. "N-no… no!" Lucy screamed, desperately clawing at the floor to no avail. "Lynn, stop!"
Lucy frantically kicked with her other leg, spinning around onto her back as her older sister attempted to grab her. She managed to kick Lynn on the chin hard, making her let go momentarily, but it was fruitless… the athlete simply caught the young girl's face in her palm and viciously slammed her head against the ground. Lucy cried out in pain, her vision exploding into a blurry mess of stars and colors.
Lucy found herself being hoisted off the ground with ease, and she had to struggle with all the strength she could muster as Lynn began forcing her out the window. "Lynn, please!" She cried, her pleas falling on deaf ears; Lynn had nothing but cold indifference in her eyes as she offered her sister to the darkness. Lucy braced her hands against the window frame, holding on with all her might. She knew she could never hope to overpower the teen… the difference in strength was simply too great.
"What's wrong, Lucy?!" Lynn hissed. "I thought you liked the dark!" Lucy could feel herself slipping; as Lynn tried to push on her face, she did the only thing she could think to do. She bit down on Lynn's fingers hard, making the older girl howl with pain and loosen her grip. This was her chance. Lucy threw herself against her sister, sending both of them toppling to the ground. Lucy scrambled to her feet and ran for the door.
"Lucy?! Lucy, what's going on?!" She heard Lincoln pounding at the door, desperately trying to open it.
"I-it's Lynn!" Lucy cried, frantically pulling at the chair in an attempt to dislodge it. "She's gone crazy…!"
"I've gone crazy?!" Lynn shrieked as she got to her feet, her eyes filled with rage. "You're the one that's killed us!" Lucy dove away as her sister charged for her, crashing to the ground roughly.
"It was an accident!" Lucy sobbed as she scurried away on all fours, Lynn hot on her trail. She could hear shouting from outside the door, and a series of loud bangs… someone must have been trying to break down the door.
"Liar!" Lynn pounced upon Lucy, driving the young girl to the ground. Lucy felt her sister's arm wrap around her neck, pulling back tightly and choking her. She gagged and clawed desperately at the older girl's arm, her lungs burning as she struggled for air; she was certain that this was it, that her own sister was actually going to strangle the life out of her. Lucy let go, and Lynn felt a dampness around her knees accompanied by a faint odor. "Ugh…!" She grunted, recoiling in disgust as she realized her sister had wet herself. Lucy gasped as Lynn's grip loosened enough to let her slip free.
Lucy dove underneath her sister's bed, desperate for some means of escape, but Lynn simply dragged her back out. She grasped for something, anything to aid her, and her fingers closed around Lynn's baseball bat; as Lynn pulled her from beneath the bed, Lucy turned and swung.
Lynn caught the bat with ease.
"So, that's how you want to play?" Lucy's blood ran cold as the teen plucked the bat from her hand with ease, flipping it and catching it by the handle. "Alright. Let's play ball." Lynn brought the bat down on the little girl's stomach hard, knocking the wind from her lungs; Lucy was barely able to raise her arm in time to protect her face as Lynn swung again, her arm making a sickening thwack as the bat smashed into it. She raised her other arm, doing her best to block herself as the furious teen rained blows upon her. "This is for Lori!" She screeched, "And this is for Lana!" There was a loud cracking noise as the door flew open, the chair tumbling across the ground. "And this is for Luan!" Before she could hit Lucy again, Luna was already upon her, knocking the bat out of her hands and restraining her.
"What are you doing?!" Luna screamed at her sister, pulling her away from the battered girl and out into the hallway. "Have you lost your fucking mind?!" Lynn paid her no heed, struggling madly in the older girl's grip; she wanted blood.
"Let me go!" Lynn hissed as she fought against her sister. "She killed them!"
"Lynn, for God's sake, she's eight!" Luna couldn't believe how strong Lynn was… even though she was the larger of the two, it took everything she had to hold the athlete back, especially since she only had one hand to work with. "D-damn it… Lincoln, help me…!"
As Lynn struggled, her elbow inevitably struck Luna's injured hand, making the rocker shriek with pain and loosen her grip. "I said…" Lynn growled as she slipped out of her older sister's grasp. "Let go!" Lynn swung and planted her foot into the girl's stomach, hard.
It was the worst mistake she had ever made.
Time seemed to slow at the realization of what she'd done set in. Luna's eyes were wide with shock at the force of the kick; she hurtled backwards, away from Lynn.
Directly towards the stairs.
The rage dissipated from Lynn's face in an instant, replaced by horror. She planted her foot down and ran for her sister, reaching for her desperately.
Luna's heel caught at the edge of the first step and she teetered back, off-balance. Lynn tried to grab her hand but she couldn't quite reach, her fingertips barely brushing against Luna's as she fell.
Luna's back hit the stairs, hard, and she tumbled roughly with her legs flipping over her head. She rolled again, and again, before slipping out of sight into the void.
Luna felt her body slam against the floor roughly; relieved that her ordeal was over, she finally dared to open her eyes, her battered body screaming in pain as she pushed herself upright.
There were no stairs.
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Darkness Falls on the House of Loud