Hey all, Twisteddarkness225 here with my next Loud House story. I got a few reviews and messages regarding whether or not I'd attempt a 'Deleted Scenes' for the "Brawl in the Family" episode that was so poorly received (for good reason). I'm sorry to say that I won't be doing a deleted scenes for it and that is for two reasons.

One, at the moment anything I thought up along those lines has pretty much ended up with me practically re-writing the entire episode and aside of that being more effort than needed, it also makes me feel like I'm making it non-canon. I'm not against non-canon, but in my opinion any 'Deleted scenes' fics should be kept canon. But that's just my opinion.

The second reason is that I already was working on an idea for the episode before I saw 'No Suck Luck' and was inspired to do the 'Deleted Scenes' for that episode. This one is going to be a multi-chapter story and I want to work with what I came up with, even if it turns out to be less popular.

As for this story, it's going to address one of the major issues that I had with the "Brawl in the Family" episode. The parents. They had a complete lack of authority througout the episode despite their ability to easily take charge in other situations throughout the series. Plus the Sister-Fight-Protocol itself did have some flaws and I'll bring that up in a later chapter. But for now, I present

Avoiding Estrangement: Chapter 1)

Disclaimer: I do not own The Loud House and make no money from this story.

The inside of the warehouse was almost completely dark, only a few rays of light coming through the wooden boards covering its windows. There were crates stacked halfway up to the ceiling, arranged in paired rows throughout the building's vast space. A lone figure cautiously stepped through the darkness, his eyes warily scanning for any signs of movement. He knew he wasn't alone and that the other presence in the warehouse would most likely try to catch him off guard and then either escape, or try to kill him. But years of experience made him wise when it came to this enemy, and he was well aware of the fact that she was creeping around in the darkness behind him, awaiting the chance to strike.

Lincoln Loud gulped audibly as he gazed at the last panel on the last page of his newest 'Ace Savvy' comic book. His beloved hero was being challenged yet again by his evil arch-nemesis the Card Countess. And this latest issue left off with a doozy of a cliffhanger too. It was enough to both leave Lincoln excited for the next month's issue where he could see how things turned out, and yet also frustrated him that he would have to wait so long for the conclusion. But until then he at least had other comics stacked up which he could read, among other ways to pass the time. And as he grabbed the next comic he wanted to read, he readjusted himself in his spot by the tree in his family's backyard.

"If there's anything better than having a three day weekend, it's a three day weekend with no homework. Nothing but three days off of school with nothing to do except the things I love." Lincoln said before pausing for a moment. "Well, okay...I have some homework. But it's nothing that can't wait."

He opened his next comic and resumed reading. However, he was unable to make it more than halfway through the first page. His light was suddenly blocked off by a tall shadow, making it difficult for him to read the text on the page. He then heard someone clearing their throat and he looked up to see his father glaring down at him disapprovingly.

"Oh, hi Dad." Lincoln said. "What's up?"

"What' s up is that I just heard you say that you plan on procrastinating your homework. You know how your mother and I feel about that."

"It's just a book report. And it's not due until Wednesday."

"That doesn't change the fact that you should start working on it now. And I know that your teacher won't let you do a book report on a comic. So why don't you just head inside and pick out a good book to get started?"

"But..."

"But nothing mister. You go inside and do that homework! And then you can come out here and help me with some of the yardwork afterwards. I'll be in to check on you in a bit, so you'd better be doing your assignment."

Lincoln sighed, accepting that he wasn't going to get out of this. He wanted to tell his father that he had already read the book for his report, and that the report was almost done anyway. All he had to do was the conclusion and then review the whole thing to make sure that he was satisfied with it before he decided it was ready to be turned in on Wednesday. But his father did have a point. At least when he finished it he could show it to his father and then he could enjoy the rest of his Friday afternoon, whether he had to do yardwork or not.

Heading inside, Lincoln cut through the dining room and then headed upstairs. When he arrived at the top he noticed his older sister Lynn was by his bedroom door, leaning against it and looking rather bored. She took notice of him and held up her hand, signaling him to stop.

"Sorry Linc, I can't let you pass."

"What are you talking about?" he questioned with one eyebrow raised. "It's my room, why can't I go inside?"

"Lori is in there. Sister-Fight-Protocol."

Lincoln groaned, starting to feel frustration bubble up inside him. Every fiber of his being despised that stupid protocol and all of the inconveniences that it caused. But he had made a promise to his sisters to butt out of any future fights that were just between them. Although regardless of that, he still needed to do his book report. And said book report was inside of his backpack, which was inside of his room.

"Okay, fine. Whatever. I won't get involved in whatever is going on. But I need to get something out of my room. Could you let me ask Lori if I can just grab my backpack really quick? I won't take more than a few seconds."

"Well...okay. But let me ask her." Lynn replied, turning to the door and knocking. "Hey Lori? Lincoln's here. He want's to know if..."

"Tell him to go away!" Lori snapped. "I want to be alone!"

Lynn turned back to Lincoln and shrugged. "Sorry bro, I tried."

Lincoln sighed. "Just let me talk to her." He said as he stepped forward and knocked. "Lori, please let me in. I'm not going to bug you, I just need to get my homework."

"You can do your stupid homework later!"

"But dad said that I have to work on it now!"

"That's your problem!"

Lincoln felt his frustration grow, bordering on anger. He took a deep breath to calm himself. He knew he didn't want to provoke Lori when she was already in a bad mood, and getting mad himself wasn't going to help with the matter either. After waiting a few seconds to cool off he decided to try again, hoping Lori would be more compliant this time.

"Please Lori?"

"I said NO! Get lost you stupid twerp!"

Lori banged the door to emphasize her point. Lincoln clenched his teeth as his frustration returned full force. He felt it was unfair that his oldest, and supposedly 'most mature' sister was taking her bad mood out on him over nothing. He didn't even know what her problem was, but he knew he didn't deserve to be spoken to that way.

"What the heck is bothering her anyway?" He asked Lynn.

"She and Leni had another fight."

"Oh for crying out loud, what's wrong this time? Did she see that Leni bought the same color nail polish as her?"

The sound of Lori slamming her fist against the door again caught their attention. Lynn gave her brother a soft glare, her way of warning him without words to watch his step. Lincoln only crossed his arms, still expecting an explanation. His athletic sister led him a few steps away from his bedroom door, not wanting to further upset Lori should she be trying to listen in.

"Leni was spending time with Bobby while Lori was out today. They were in Lori and Leni's room, with the door shut, when Lori caught them. Leni was taking a selfie with Bobby and both of them started to act suspicious when they saw her. She thinks that Bobby was cheating on her with Leni."

Lincoln took a moment to absorb everything Lynn had just told him. Not only did he find it hard to believe, but it was just plain ridiculous. There was absolutely no way that Leni would try to steal Bobby from Lori. She had been fully supportive of her older sister's relationship since the moment she had learned of it. She would be the last person who would try to steal her big sister's boyfriend from her.

"Okay Lynn, you have to admit that doesn't make any sense. Has Lori even tried to talk to Leni about what she saw?"

Lynn shrugged. "No idea."

Another frustrated sigh escaped Lincoln. It was really starting to get difficult for him to stay out of this. But to be fair, this was much more serious than the usual 'Sister-Fight-Protocol scenarios'. And unless Lori was right, which Lincoln seriously doubted, then this was also unfair to Leni. His brotherly instincts got the better of him and he went back to his bedroom door, taking a deep breath again.

"Lori? Do you want to talk about what's going on?"

"It's not any of your business! Not that you could do anything anyway!"

"But I..."

"GET. LOST!"

Lincoln stepped back and frowned. It was clear that Lori had no interest in listening to him. But he still felt the need to do something. It occurred to him that he could just walk away and wait for this to be resolved without his interference, and a little voice in his head encouraged him to do so. But then he'd have to be ready to deal with his father later on when he was caught not doing his homework like he had been told.

Wait...that was it! Lori could give him all the attitude she wanted, no matter how much he disliked it. But if she did the same to one of their parents, all she would get is trouble. And since Lori was keeping him from getting into his room, and therefore keeping him from doing his homework, he had a good excuse to tell his dad. It was a guaranteed success.

"Uh-oh. I know that look." Lynn said. "Lincoln, whatever you're thinking...don't."

"Just hear me out." Lincoln said confidently. "Do you really want to be stuck inside to guard Lori all day? Wouldn't you rather be outside on a nice day like this? Maybe riding your bike or playing basketball or something?"

"Well...yeah. I would actually love to be doing anything besides this."

"And as Lori's younger siblings, I don't think it's fair that either of us should have to be inconvenienced just because she's in a bad mood. So I'm going to go and get Dad and he can help us sort this all out. Okay?"

Lynn didn't argue with him. He was making sense after all. There was no need for her to be playing 'bodyguard' for Lori when their dad could step in and take care of the problem. And it would be nice for her to have the rest of her Friday afternoon back. She was glad Lincoln had thought of it. But there was something wrong with the plan. Lori had heard everything, and she wasn't pleased at all.

"Seriously Lincoln?!" She shouted. "You're stooping to tattling on me?! You really are a twerp!"

"So what if I am Lori?" Lincoln retorted. "You aren't exactly being very fair to me! All I want is to go in my room!"

For a moment there was only silence. Then the doorknob on Lincoln's bedroom door started to turn. The door opened a crack and then nothing. Lincoln stared at the ajar door, hesitant to do anything. But he took a step towards his room and tried pushing the door open further. He cautiously went to peek around the door, his fingers gripping the door's side.

He ended up regretting that immediately.

Lori had been waiting for him to enter. And once she saw him trying to do so, she kicked the door with all her might. Lincoln had been able to get his head clear in time, bu could not say the same for his hand. His fingers got caught between the door and the door frame, sending a sharp pain through them. Luckily it wasn't enough to break the bone, but it certainly stung a lot. He yanked his hand back and hissed in pain as Lori shut the door again.

"Serves you right, you little weasel!"

That was it. Lincoln didn't care anymore. Lori needed to be told off and consequences be damned. His anger welled up and burst forth as he let his emotions control his actions.

"You know what Lori?! You are a BITCH! I wouldn't be surprised if Bobby did decide to cheat on you! And I wouldn't blame him either! I know I wouldn't want to date a girl who's such a spoiled brat! You don't deserve someone as good as him!"

Those words had barely left his mouth when suddenly a powerful malevolence could be felt behind his bedroom door. Lynn could sense it too and her sharp reflexes allowed her to grab the doorknob before Lori could open the door. There was a momentary struggle between the two, each trying to pull the door in their resective direction. This ultimately resulted in the doorknob snapping off on both sides, making it so the door was stuck shut.

"That was close." Lynn commented. "Are you crazy? You realize that she would have totally destroyed you, right? You didn't just poke a sleeping bear. You went and kicked it in the face."

"So what? That stunt she pulled was uncalled for! It's just another reason for me to go and get dad."

Lincoln turned to leave but stopped when he heard a crash. The sound originated from inside of his room. Other noises followed, accompanied by cries of anger from Lori. It didn't take long for Lincoln to piece together what was happening. Lori was wrecking his stuff. He tried to open his door, but he couldn't get it to budge. Then he tried to slam his body into it, to break it open, but had no better luck. Lynn had him step aside and she, in one swift and powerful motion, kicked the door off of it's hinges.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Seriously, I don't need to get grounded for that."

The two moved the door aside and were greeted by a horrible sight. In a very short amount of time, Lori, in her pure rage, had completely destroyed the entirety of Lincoln's bedroom.. All of his possessions were broken, his clothes torn to tatter and strewn about. And in the center of it all stood Lori, clutching Lincoln's stuffed bunny Bun-Bun in an iron grip. When she saw her younger siblings she twisted the head off of the beloved toy and she advanced on her brother.

Lincoln watched in shock as Lori decapitated Bun-Bun. But he had no time to mourn the loss. No time to react in anger. His sister was striking fear into him and he could only back away. Lori managed to grab hold of his shirt and she lifted him up off of the floor. She felt Lynn grab her arm and she glared at the brunette, letting Lincoln go.

"You stay out of this!" She spat venomously, slapping Lynn across the face hard enough to send the girl reeling. "And YOU!" She continued, returning her attention to her cowering younger brother. "Let me tell you what you are! You are pathetic, obnoxious, disgusting and a total disappointment! You get in the way, never mind your own business and you cause more trouble than you're worth!"

Lori shoved Lincoln backwards, the boy barely maintaining his balance. Lynn tried to interfere again, but Lori shoved her back as well, keeping her focus on Lincoln. Her eyes glaring at him with a fiery spite.

"I wish our mother hadn't given birth to you. You're literally nothing but a mistake!"

Lori struck Lincoln across the face with such force that he stumbled over. He suddenly felt weightless and discovered that he had gone over the top step of the staircase. His body tumbled down the steps and he landed face first on the floor below. When he lifted his head, he was seeing stars and felt something warm and moist on his face. Once he came to his senses he realized that it was blood. He brought his hand to his face and was shocked to see just how much of it was there. The sound of Lori calling him caught his attention and he panicked and ran out the front door, tears streaming down his face.

Chaos broke loose the moment he left. The other Loud children had heard the commotion and had seen their brother fall. Now they were all either at the open door, calling for him to come back or glaring angrily at their older sister, berating her with nasty comments. But this cacaphony was quickly silenced when a booming voice called for their attention.

Lynn Loud Sr. stood at the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, a cross expression on his face. Even while outside in the backyard he had heard all of the yelling Lori had done. And when he came inside to check, he had just missed Lincoln bolting out the front door. But he saw all of his daughters reaction after and knew that something was up. Which left him with only one question.

"What the heck is going on in here?!"

End of chapter 1.