A/N: You know, with everything else I'm working on, I'm almost tempted to just write out the full story at once and then release the chapters on a steady, consistent pace. If not, looks like all you'll be getting is a chapter or two a month. Sorry about that.

Hope this was worth the wait.

Luna cast her roommate, Luan, yet another worrying glance as she sat in her beanbag, absentmindedly playing with the tip of her ponytail. She hadn't moved from that spot since they were sent to their room and from the looks of things, Luan was still probably pissed off at her for what she said.

The rocker groaned softly, turning over in her bunk until she was facing the wall. She didn't need to be reminded of how her words had put her on the spot, making her siblings look on at her with disapproving glares.

She could be thankful that despite everything, Lola had mercifully remained rooted in her seat and didn't opt to violently lash out at her.

But it wasn't fair! She was just doing her best to make her family come into understanding with each other. Why was that so wrong? Like she had told them all before, saying those mean things to Lisa was absolutely uncalled for but that didn't mean that their parents had just decided to get out of bed and act like a bunch of jerks out of nowhere. Clearly, Lana's coma was the reason behind it. All they wanted was to get their family through this dark time without anyone else having to suffer and to best quite honest…

Luna could not only see where they coming from but she agreed with their perspective, too. Lisa's explanation of her plan included a fair warning that her nanites were untested and thus, increased the chance for failure. But Luna couldn't associate the word "failure" with some, humdrum, run-of-the-mill experiment that meant some minor collateral damage to the house.

This was a matter of life or death. This wasn't like band practice, where one could make all the mistakes they wanted before they ironed out all the mistakes in the performance until show time. One mistake, just one simple mistake, meant that Lana would be no more.

Regardless of how angry her sisters and Lincoln probably were for her words, she couldn't sign off on those nanites messing about in Lana's head.

"Hey, Luna?"

Luna jolted up, not believing her ears. Without hesitation, she looked down and saw Luan looking right at her. Despite her downcast expression, it was a relief to Luna that from the looks of things, Luan was opening up to her, even with the disappointment and bitterness that she surely felt towards her.

"Yeah, Luan?" Luna replied meekly.

And then, in a move that Luna certainly wasn't prepared for, Luan got up from the beanbag chair and strode over to bunk bed, climbed up the ladder, and shifted about on the top bunk until she was lying right next her sister, looking up at the ceiling.

Then, without warning, Luan softly took a hold of one of Luna's hands, in one of her own, and interlocked their fingers. Luna let her do so without fighting back but still wondered where all of this was coming from.

"I thought about what you said earlier…before Mom and Dad came back and dressed us down."

Luna's eyes widened as her heart began beating faster than normal and fear took hold of her better senses. Luan was clearly her to trap her, to keep her in place while she talked down to her for thinking the way she did and saying the things she said.

But if it had to come down to down, Luna would let her know how sorry she was for making it seem like she was a heartless witch who didn't care what happened to her own sister.

"Look, Luan, I'm really sorry if I-"

"You were right."

Well…that was certainly unexpected.

"What?" Luna asked disbelievingly, looking on as Luan kept staring at the ceiling.

"You were right," Luan repeated. "About everything."

"What'd you mean?" Luna asked, wanting to be completely sure that she had support on her stance and it wasn't just her hope painting a skewed picture of reality to comfort her.

"About Mom and Dad. I get why they'd act like they did. We've never had anything like this happen to us. The hardest thing I can remember us going through was Lynn going away for sports camp for the summer two years ago and even then, at least we knew she'd be coming back."

The hand grip tightened on Luan's end and Luan matched her strength to keep their bond even and sturdy.

"But this…this is nuts. Lana's in a coma. And whether we like it or not, the safest hands to handle tough spots are our parents. Lashing out at Lisa aside, I can't really say that they're wrong for cracking down on us and I don't think we can afford to not listen to them."

Luna couldn't believe it. Had she really gotten through to Luan, to the point where she was coming around to the only consideration that was the right one?

To be sure, Luna had to press the conversation into uncomfortable but necessary territory. As far as she was concerned, the only thing Luan agreed to was that she was understanding why their parents were acting so strictly. That didn't mean that she thought that Lisa's nanites were too dangerous to consider.

"So…does that mean that you think…" Luan began to say but her words caught in her throat, unable to move passed the lump that swelled in her larynx.

Evidently, Luan caught Luna's apprehension and turned her around until they locked eyes. Once they did, Luna, knowing that she was on the spot, found no choice but to let her inner thoughts vocalized.

"You think that we shouldn't got through with the nanite plan?" she finished and quickly shut her eyes, hoping to miss any signs of Luan's imminent disapproval etched on her face.

Immediately, she felt Luan withdraw her hand from hers. Luna felt as if her heart was pierced by an arrow as she thought that Luan had rejected her and was moving to get as far away from her as possible.

Before the first of what was sure to be many tears could form, Luna felt her body swell with warmth as she felt something wrap around her in a soft hug. Her eyes fluttered open and saw none other than Luan, grabbing onto her and staring at her with a gaze that showed no traces of malice.

And, if Luna wasn't seeing things, she could've sworn that in place of anger…was relief.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I think," Luan said. "I mean, I'm not saying that Lisa's dangerous or anything but she's never attempted anything like this before. One bad slip-up and it's curtains for Lana. I can't even imagine how Lisa would feel knowing that she had a part to play in that. I just don't think it's worth the risk."

Luna let out sigh of relief and beamed at her sister, expressing her gratitude that she wasn't alone in all this.

"That's a relief. And here I thought I was a one-man show about that. Nice to know I've got someone else taking this crazy tour with me."

Her smile faltered when she saw Luan not make one of her own. Resisting the urge to facepalm herself for her stupidity, Luna's grin melted away under the weight of the somber implications of their decision and realizing what was at play, it was no wonder that Luan didn't smile.

Just because Luna found solace in the fact that she didn't have to think the way she did without moral support, didn't mean that everything was alright.

Deciding to address the elephant in the room, Luna said, "I know it's hard but for now, we can't stop believin' that the Louds will take center stage as a whole group again. And besides, maybe Lisa'll find a safer way."

Luan shook her head. "I don't think that's going to happen."

Luna's face scrunched up in agony and astonishment at Luan's glum sentiments. Besides Leni, Luan was always the most chipper, peppy, optimistic of the Loud children. If she thought that Lisa was tapped out of any alternative solution, then that must've meant that Luna had clearly missed something.

"If Lisa thought about a safer alternative," Luan proposed, "chances are, she would've resorted to that first. I think it's safe to say that that was our last real shot. But still, any risky plan, that involves Lisa being responsible for everything, isn't one that I'm comfortable with. Not when there's so much on the line."

With that, Luan simply shimmied even closer into Luna's body, nestling her head against her chest and pressing her face into her shirt. Before Luna could question what Luan was doing, she felt her chest vibrating slightly and muffled weeping rang out.

It didn't much for Luna to know what was going on and she made her move, stroking her back with one hand cradling the back of her head with the other. Eventually, she, too, fell in a fit of despair and cried along with her little sister and it painfully clear as to why there didn't seem to be anything left to do but shed tears.

There was uncertainty to be had from what they both wanted. Those nanites were their last real hope, a faint light piercing through the shadow that hovered over their house since last Saturday afternoon.

And for now, it was a darkness that they would have to get used to until something else, something less dangerous, fell into their laps.

Until then, all they could do was weep.

"Lynn?"

Lucy looked on as Lynn glared angrily down at her phone, veins protruding in her neck and forehead and her face taking on a shade of furious red. This was the third time that she had replayed Lucy's recording of her mother and Lisa's private conversation, that Lori had insisted that she sneak into the vents and get for her. Once Lucy returned, Lynn wanted to know what she was doing since she had left their room. Lucy thought about lying at first, thinking that Lori didn't want their agreement to be known to anyone else.

But then, she remembered that Lori never mentioned not to tell anyone else and besides that, she felt bad about lying to her siblings, especially Lynn, whom despite her stark differences, shared the strongest bond with. So, without thinking, Lucy handed off her phone to Lynn and showed her the video of their mother lashing out at Lisa, while lacing her address with less stern correction, as if to cover her tracks for unfair treatment.

After seeing it for the first time, Lynn just glared down at the screen of the phone, ignoring Lucy's asking for her phone back. Instead of complying, Lynn just replayed the video again, looking on with emotions that Lucy was quick to discern: rage, indignation, hostility. Usually, the emotions of her family, which always hit their highs and lows throughout the day, were sources of inspirations for Lucy's poetry but now, all it did was make her anxious.

Like Lynn, Lucy was clearly displeased for what their mother had said to Lisa and if she had to make a guess, she was also in no way in one accord with their parents' rejection of the nanites. She had caught Lynn's glowering, vexed scowl as their parents tried to give them their point of view but from what Lucy saw, Lynn wasn't buying any of it and had it not been for Lori voicing her thoughts, Lynn was certain to make the first move.

And, as much as Lucy wanted nothing more than to have everything resolved as quickly as possible, Lucy knew that right now wasn't the time to do anything hasty and knowing Lynn…

Before Lucy could react, Lynn dropped Lucy's phone on the ground and made a move towards the door.

"Lynn, wait," Lucy called out, panic laced in her monotone voice.

To her relief, Lynn stopped in her tracks but Lucy knew that without immediate action, Lynn would push past her plea and storm out the room, clearly with the mission to give her parents a piece of her mind. With that in mind, Lucy grabbed firmly onto Lynn's arm, squeezing tightly and hoping that Lynn would knock her aside with her superior strength.

Still, she had to keep her in place until she was able to explain herse-

"Let me go, Lucy," Lynn growled as her hand gripped the doorknob tight enough for her knuckles to turn a pale, ghostly white color.

"No," Lucy replied defiantly, throwing caution to wind despite Lynn's clear warning that was likely to result in her getting thrown off.

"Lucy, I'm warning you, let me go or I'll-"

"Please don't do this."

Lynn suddenly spun around, breaking off Lucy's hold on her. Lucy nearly gasped at what she saw from Lynn; her teeth her grinding, her face was redder than ever, and her forehead vein now had a twin, which was pulsing rapidly.

But what really made Lucy's insides crawl was the look in Lynn's eyes. They were steeled and filled with intent that swayed on the side of downright murderous.

"Don't do what?!" Lynn whispered loudly. "Tell off Mom and Dad for what they're doing?! Lucy, this is insane! I don't know why they have their heads up their butts but all I know is, we're not getting our family back until we do something and if no one else is going to do it, I will!"

With her worse fears confirmed, Lucy had to resort to a retort was going to probably earn her a hard shove and a cold, angry glare at her direction but any opportunity to get Lynn's attention affixed to her was worth it.

"You'll only make things worse."

Lucy winced as Lynn reached for her but instead of pushing her down, Lynn grabbed onto Lucy's shoulders, her fingers gripping painfully into her muscles.

"So, what, you're saying that you agree with our parents?! That we should just throw away our one chance to rescue our sister?!"

Despite the pain, Lucy stood her ground, shaking her head in response to Lynn's outlandish accusation.

"I'm not saying that at all, Lynn. Just sit down and listen to what I have to say."

"No, I'm not going to-"

"Lynn, enough!"

Lucy's voice, though carried in a loud whisper like Lynn's, was still harsh and loud enough for Lynn to break out of her malice-fueled trance.

She looked down at Lucy, seeing her goth sister look at the ground with her head hanging and her frown looking more sad than indifferent.

"Just…just let me explain myself," she begged.

Lucy watched as Lynn did as she wanted, sitting down on the floor and waiting for her little sister to join her. Though it wasn't as comfortable as either of their beds, Lucy couldn't complain. She wanted Lynn to wait for her and that's exactly what she did.

She took a seat next to Lynn, her legs crossed and her hands resting in her lap. With an un-Lucy sigh, Lucy began.

"I saw the same thing you did, Lynn. In fact, it was worse for me because I actually had to record it for Lori. I had to sit there, up in those vents, and restrain myself from jumping down there and putting a stop to it. But even with all of that, even I know that yelling in our parents' faces isn't going to solve anything. We just have to be patient."

Lucy caught Lynn trying to speak up to object, but she quickly put her hand up.

"Don't interrupt. I'm serious, Lynn."

With an elongated groan of frustration, Lynn folded her arms and complied. Lucy nearly giggled at Lynn's relent; it was rare seeing someone as headstrong as Lynn be led around in anything, whether it be competition or conversation.

"I agree with you, those nanites are our only hope right now. And what Mom said to Lisa…that wasn't fair at all. She didn't deserve it in the slightest. I've read about the dark of creatures, the vilest of monsters, the most deplorable, disgusting creatures ever spawned and our Lisa definitely doesn't deserve to be put in that category."

Lucy paused to make sure Lynn was listening and once she found that she was all ears, continued.

"But right now, we have to stay level-headed. You heard what Luna said, our parents are scared. They want to keep us all safe the best way they know how. But right now, as you and I both know, they're not thinking clearly. Their priorities and values are completely screwed-up and they're giving up Lana by rejecting Lisa's plan.

And with all of that said, we shouldn't lower ourselves to their level by getting all hysterical and flipping out just because we know we're right. It won't solve anything and like it or not, they have the last word. The more we resist them with anger and shouting, the harder they'll put their foot down and then, we won't be able to appeal to them at all.

We just have to hold out for just a little while longer. Once they see that they have no choice, that's when we'll make our move. That's when we'll ask them to reconsider and then, we can get Lana back."

"I…"

Lucy perked up and looked at Lynn again. She didn't expect her reply to be so fast but what threw her off the most was the tears in her eyes. Lynn didn't cry often and even though she shed her share of tears on the day of Lana's accident, the sight of a weeping Lynn was enough to stir Lucy to take action.

Scooting closer to Lynn under they were shoulder-to-shoulder, Lucy wrapped an arm around Lynn and pulled her closer until her head was resting against the crook of her clammy neck.

"I c-can't, Lucy. I-I can't *hic* wait th-that *sniff* long," Lynn objected with no fight in her.

Lucy stayed silent, not saying a word as Lynn's crying got a little louder. Lucy felt that she understood what Lynn was going through right now; she was accepting that they'd have to continue to hold out longer for Lana's sake. Though it would be difficult, ultimately, it would be necessary.

Lynn removed herself from Lucy's neck in favor of sliding down to rest her head in her lap, her whimpering and sniffling still as loud as ever.

"I... j-just *sniff* c-cahahahaaaaaant!"

The dam broke and right there and then, tears fell from behind Lucy's long bangs. For the next several hours, goth and jock shared their grief together on the floor, finding comfort in each other's arms.

"Here you go, Hops."

Lifting off the top of Hops' habitat tank, Lola smiled as Hops leaped free from his container, croaking gleefully as he landed on the floor and hopped about. With that, she sat on Lana's bed, her legs dangling off the side as she looked on as Hops had a blast.

Out of both guilt and responsibility, Lola shouldered the burden of watching over Lana's pets, a prospect that would've grossed her out had anyone asked her to do it before her twin sister's misfortune. But now that she had gotten used to the slime and bugs, she had to admit, it wasn't so bad. Hops, in particular, was her favorite to look after. He was so independent and self-efficient, not needing Lola to do much for him at all while he tended to his own business.

Plus, he was…actually kinda cute. Lola once entertained the idea of kissing Hops on the head and seeing if he turned into a prince. He was certainly charming enough to be a prince in her book.

She jolted out of her thoughts when she felt something land on her lap and giggled once she realized who it was. She reached out her hand and gave Hops a little pet on the head, not minding how her glove got kinda sticky.

Besides, now that she had some company, she felt like it was the perfect time to vent about what her parents were doing. Although she knew full well that Hops couldn't actually understand, regardless, any confidant was a good confidant.

"You miss Lana, don't ya, Hops? I miss her a bunch, too," Lola said sadly.

Hops just croaked in reply, though Lola could tell that he was less chipper than before. Perhaps could understand her after all? Either way, Lola wasn't done yet.

"But you know what the worst part about all this is? I don't think Mom and Dad miss her…at least, not as much as they should."

Sighing, Lola just fell back on the bed, and giggled when she felt Hops' tiny feet patter against her body as he hopped on her until he was sitting on her chest, looking down at her with eyes that seemed inquisitive.

Taking that as a sign that Hops was interested, Lola carried on.

"See, Lisa had these really neat robots that are supposed to fix her brain and make her all better but…"

She broke away from her story to scowl and turned her head around in another direction, not wanting Hops to think that she was angry with him.

"Mom and Dad said we can't do it. Normally, I'd be causing a riot and throwing a tantrum until I got my way but even I know that won't solve anything. Not this time."

Lola knew full well that with a pouty lip, crocodile tears, hysterics, and wailing to match the loudness of a foghorn, she could easily get her way. It didn't work all the time but she had enough confidence in her tantrums to know that she could rely on them at least 90% of the time.

But this wasn't something trivial like control of the TV remote or cutting her way in line for the bathroom. This was something much, much bigger. This was about Lana's life and how best to handle it. And what made Lola less confident about loudly objecting her parents was Lori. She had brazenly defied her parents in the most brash manner that she could remember anyone ever doing.

And yet they still didn't budge. Lori was a bridge to her younger siblings, an opportunity to appeal to their parents by using Lori's position of authority and responsibility to get their parents to see things their way. But if Lori couldn't get through to them, what chance did she have? Like it or not, she had to face the facts; she could yell and scream all she wanted but at the end of the day, she was just a little girl. Individually, she had less say in official family concerns than anyone in the house except for Lily (Lisa, despite being younger than her, was often relied on to make the most rational choice, given her brains and all).

She only had more stock on the totem pole than a baby. How on Earth was she supposed to change anything, do anything to tip the scales in Lana's favor?

In her mind, she couldn't and all that was left to do was try and keep her head up, despite how powerless she was. Just the thought of it made her scowl grow longer and her fists curl and tighten.

"What am I supposed to do?" Lola asked wearily.

Her question was greeted by Hops leaping off her chest and landing in front of her face. He moved in closer and began rubbing her cheek against her head, croaking in a rhythm that was reminiscent to that of a cat. The gesture lifted Lola's spirits up a bit as she leaned over and pecked Hops on the head, not minding the sliminess one bit.

As she expected, Hops didn't turn into a prince but as far as she was concerned, she didn't need a prince right now. She needed a friend and Hops was filling that role spectacularly.

With a heavy sigh, Lincoln tossed Issue #17 of "The Beaver Brigade" off to the side and sat up from his bed and swiveled his body around until he was looking at his bedroom dresser.

It had been a few hours since he and his siblings were sent off to their respective rooms by their parents, with the hopes that they would have time to think about the consequences of their outlook on Lisa's nanites and reconsider their optimism towards the idea of using them.

At first, Lincoln wanted nothing to do with that at all and used his plethora of comic books to distract himself from entertaining the idea of looking at the matter from his parents point of view. After all, if what Lisa was saying was true, and he had no reason to believe that she could anything but right, considering that she was a super genius, then the nanites were their only hope. What else could be done but let Lana lie in a hospital bed as a vegetable for the rest of her life?

But once he got through Issue #14 of "The Beaver Brigade", he could no longer keep that tense confrontation at bay any longer. Instead of running away from it, Lincoln recollected his parents' words. Immediately, what came to mind was a crying, sniveling Lisa, who had been subjugated to harsh, cutting words from her own mother.

Remembering her tears, her red-splotched cheeks, her quivering bottom lip, her whimpering…it made Lincoln furious and nearly reject the notion of seeing his parents as nothing but bullies who threw their authority around and made their flesh and blood feel horrible for just trying to restore their family.

But eventually, righteous fury gave way to contemplation. As far as Lincoln knew, this was the first time that their parents ever acted like this. Of course, this was the first time that one of their own had suffered so dramatically.

And then, almost like a light switch had been flipped on in his brain, Lincoln remembered the words of her older sister, Luna, who had her own piece to say about their parents' hectic, draconian response to their secret siblings meeting:

"I mean…I just think that, maybe, we should look at things from their perspective instead of ours. They're just trying to look out for us and if they're acting differently than we'd like, remember, we've never had something as bad as a coma happen in the family before. You gotta see why they'd be so freaked out, y'know?"

Maybe it was the fact that it came from Luna, the siblings that he always felt was his most trustworthy confidant during the most troubling of times, or maybe it was the wisdom of the words themselves but regardless, Lincoln couldn't say that they didn't hold weight. And once Lincoln began to do as Luna suggested, he could understand fully where they were coming from. It was a bitter pill to swallow but it wasn't as if their fear was unfounded.

What if things did go wrong? What if Lisa's nanites only made things worse? What if she injected them in the wrong area in Lana's neck?

And most importantly, what if Lana actually…actually died because of Lisa's well-meaning but careless intervention?

Once Lincoln began to ask himself those questions, it felt foolish of him to compare Lisa's undertaking to the fictional, consequence-free marvels of a comic book. Sure, characters bit the bullet all the time but unlike in real life, a writer could undo everything that happened with a reboot, thus erasing the ramifications of a person's actions.

But if Lisa made a mistake, that would be it. Lana would die and there'd be nothing anyone could do about it. The thought of his younger sister dying before she could truly experience the world, was enough to get Lincoln to change his tune in a heartbeat. He always felt responsible for his younger sisters and even though he knew that he didn't have much say when it came to the final decision of family matters, that didn't mean that he couldn't voice a dissenting opinion if he felt that he had do.

But thankfully, it seemed like at least Luna saw things that way, too. Even if she didn't outright say that she wasn't on board with that nanites, it was still comforting to know that she, of all people, could possibly have his back.

All things considered, however, that didn't mean that the acceptance of his newfound convictions would be easy. Once he realized what his stance meant, Lincoln knew that Lana would be comatose for just a little longer than they all thought she'd be. And with that in mind, that meant that the monster truck rally, that he had wanted to take Lana to once she recovered, would be nearly impossible to go to now. That was about a month away and from the looks of things, Lana would be out of it for way longer than a month.

And that made Lincoln's heart, in the midst of his rigid, unmoving stupor, ache and constrict in his chest. Those monster truck tickets weren't just a promise that he made to his bedridden sister, they were a sign that he had absolute faith that Lana would get better at a timely fashion.

But no nanites meant that that wouldn't be happening any longer. Sure, it wasn't as if Lisa couldn't find another way to help Lana but knowing Lisa, any other "quick fix" would either be impossible, even for her, or result in an even lower chance of things going right…

Which meant that Lana would be down for the count for God knew how long, effectively leaving her fate out of their hands.

With that in mind, Lincoln knew he had to fully commit to his rejection of Lisa's nanites and knew just how to do it…but he needed more time, more time to gather the strength and wherewithal to execute what he felt was the ultimate sign of commitment.

And so, he read a few more issued of "The Beaver Brigade" until he reached to Issue #17 and knew that he couldn't keep stalling any longer.

Once he threw that comic book away on the floor, Lincoln crawled over to his bedroom dresser and pulled open the top drawer. Then, he fished out the monster truck rally tickets that he had presented to Lana that day in the hospital.

He gave them a sorrowful look as he stacked one on top of the other and shifted them about in his hands until they were held tightly between the grip of his thumb and pointer finger in each hand.

"I'm sorry, Lana," Lincoln whispered.

Squeezing his eyes, Lincoln tore the tickets in half down the middle with one, swift motion. The second he heard the tiny ripping sound the paper made, he could no longer keep a lid on his emotions and he began to weep bitterly, hot tears searing down his cheeks despite his constricted eyelids keeping most of them in his eyes.

"I guess we won't be see being seeing those monster trucks after all."

"Is that the last of them?"

"Yep. That's everything."

Satisfied with her husband's reply, Rita took one last long look at all the moving boxes that were loaded up on the back seats of Vanzilla. Inside them was all of Lisa's science equipment. Everything that Rita promised to take away was in them. While they did this, Lisa stayed in her parent's room. Only Lisa's bed was left untouched in the room renovation. Now that everything was taken out, all that was left to do was for Lynn Sr. to haul all the goods in storage.

Although Rita did feel some regret for doing this, she knew that this was for the best and her husband, though somewhat reluctant to follow through, ultimately agreed to it once she convinced them that this was the right thing to do.

She almost chuckled at the irony; just a few hours ago, it was Lynn Sr. telling her that they needed to do everything necessary to keep the family from falling apart. Now, she was the one that was leading the charge with acts that she would've deemed unnecessarily cruel, had this tough spot not warranted this type of action.

Before she could head back into the house and start dinner, Lynn Sr. stopped her with a question.

"How's Lisa holding up?" he asked as he walked up to her and stopped just a few feet away.

Rita breathed heavily through her nose in frustration. Knowing her husband as well as she did, she had a feeling that this was a backhanded way of getting Rita to get her to realize how much they were hurting Lisa by doing this.

"She's…"

But her mind was made up. This had to happen. Turning around, she glared at Lynn Sr. with fierce determination.

"She'll be fine, Lynn," Rita insisted.

"So, she's not fine now, yes?" Lynn Sr. responded in a subtly challenging tone.

But Rita was no fool, having caught onto the disdain.

"No," Rita replied with a tiny frown. "No, she's not. But we can't relent just because what we're doing hurts her, or our other children, now. Soon, they'll thank us. What's important is that we stay strong for our family's sake."

Her words were enough to seemingly win out the silent battle of wills as any tension in Lynn Sr.'s face melted away, leaving behind a reflection of a despondent soul that had given up on all hope.

"But…"

Rita inwardly groaned, having underestimated her husband's resolve.

"But what, Lynn?" Rita sharply demanded, not wanting to have to be at odds against her husband.

They needed unity, now more than ever. Their children relied on it.

"If…Lana doesn't-"

"No, Lynn. We can't think about that. Not now. Now, more than ever, we have to trust our system. Lana will pull through. Maybe not in the near future like we all want but who knows? Somewhere down the line, maybe someone will find a way to help us, help us in a way that isn't rash and irresponsible like Lisa's plan."

Lynn Sr. nodded, though Rita could tell that the gesture was somewhat empty. Basically, he agreed but he still had his objections.

"I just hope it comes around soon. It's either that, we risk doing more harm than good with conventional surgery, or we just have to deal with the fact that we have to live in a world without Lana."

Rita glared. That was a cheap shot and by the way that Lynn Sr. shrunk away, he knew it, too. Just because they didn't have an alternative, didn't mean that that they had to rush into action one that was just begging for disaster. Lynn Sr. seemed to realize this perfectly well when they both eavesdropped on their children just a few hours ago.

Was all that was needed to sway him were some tears from Lisa? Yes, she didn't like any of her children shedding tears. She wanted all of them to be happy. But, like the old saying went, an omelet required a few broken eggs in the process. Lisa would cry her eyes out today but be grateful tomorrow.

"I'll get started on dinner now," Rita huffed and spun around on her heels to march back in the house and slammed the door behind her as she left the house.

She didn't want to continue this silent sparring match with the one person that she needed to stay on her side.

She waited for the distinct sounds of Vanzilla's spluttering and coughing exhaust pipe to hit her ears, indicating that Lynn Sr. was following through with what she had requested of him. She then looked out through the living room window and saw, to her satisfaction, Lynn Sr. driving away.

With a grin, Rita headed towards the kitchen.

Lori really didn't need this right now. Her plan needed her to be in absolute solitude in order to pull off. But being surrounded by family at the dinner table wasn't going to do her any good.

Hours after they had been sent to their rooms, they were finally beckoned out of their prisons when their mother asked them to come down for dinner. Leni, who had been sullenly lying in her bed the whole time, shuffled out of bed and made a move to leave but stopped when she saw that Lori hadn't moved out of her bed. When Leni asked if she was coming downstairs, Lori made an excuse not to come, saying that her head hurt a bit and she just wanted some alone time.

Seemingly buying the excuse, Leni went along her way, leaving Lori behind. Once she felt that enough time had passed for her to safely make her move, Lori initiated her "running away from home" scheme.

First, she called up a classmate, Cynthia. Cynthia had an older sister, Macy, who had her own apartment room. She had been there a few times before and felt that that was the perfect place to hide away for as long as she needed. Plus, it was a reasonable distance away from her school, meaning that Lori could either take the bus or walk there if she woke up early enough (she'd be leaving her car keys behind since she obviously couldn't take Vanzilla with her).

For the next ten minutes, Lori and Cynthia talked over the phone but Lori did most of the talking as she explained that she needed to move in with Macy for a little while. When asked why, Lori said that she simply wanted a taste of independence for a change and promised that while she was there, she'd help Macy with the utilities and other costs, a promise that she intended to follow through with her job at "Gus' Game & Grub". Though Cynthia was somewhat deliberate, she was finally convinced to carry through with it and at Lori's request, would get an answer later once she talked to Macy.

With the most important step of her plan executed, Lori moved on towards the packing. She pulled all her clothes out of the closet and folded them into piles to stuff away in her briefcases and duffel bags. Next came her make-up, jewelry, and toiletries. The only thing that she refused to take with her (besides her car keys) was her phone. The last thing she needed was her family to try and reach out to her. She'd delete all her contacts and then enter them in a new phone (an easy enough task since she had all her contacts memorized by name and number), one with a different number.

She wanted her desperate move to warrant chaos and confusion. She absolutely needed it. Her parents weren't going to budge on their anti-nanite stance until she used emotional leverage to do what was right. As bad as a taste at it left in her mouth, Lori knew she didn't have a choice but to resort to that.

Besides, if she was going to have to deal with the Loud house without Lana, it wasn't a house worth living in anyway.

Suddenly, Lori's phone buzzed, indicating that she got a text from Cynthia. She pulled out her phone from her pocket and quickly turned her phone off, her nerves racing all the while.

In a text that made her heart both leap and sink all at once, Cynthia had texted, "macy's in. she'll pick u up around midnite. sound good?"

This was it. Lori knew that once she responded with a "yes", there would be no turning back. In her absence, tears would be shed, hearts would be broken, and spirits would die.

But hopefully, once her parents got a glimpse of it, they'd be backed into a corner and know what needed to be done; Lisa's nanites to restore Lana. It was that or they'd never see her again.

Steeling herself against her objecting conscience, Lori entered in her reply at breakneck speed and tossed her phone away.

The last thing she needed to do was write out her runaway letter in time for Macy's arrival at midnight.

At around 10:00, everyone had gone to their rooms to head off to sleep. It had taken Leni longer than Lori wanted but eventually, she slipped into her nightgown, pulled her sleeping mask over her eyes, and drifted off to sleep. With the only real obstacle in her path out of the way, Lori freely but quietly heaved the heaviest of her three bags, her big, blue rolling suitcase, out of the room and down the stairs, leaving it by the front door. Once that was done, she went into the kitchen and grabbed her some leftovers from the dinner her mother prepared earlier; roast beef, mashed potatoes, and asparagus.

With food in her belly, Lori had looked down at her phone and realized that it was close to 11:00. Deciding that she could get a short little nap in before she got picked up, Lori stealthily snuck back into her room and set up her phone alarm to go off at 11:45. With that done, she slid into bed and waited for sleep to overtake her.

But it never came. Her mind was racing about with a mixture of sadness, dread, fear, anticipation, and even regret. Even now, as it came down to the final home stretch, she couldn't help but feel conflicted over her decision. Things were moving faster than she thought, not expecting Macy to agree to her terms and getting her to do what was necessary by midnight.

She was going to be saying goodbye to her family for an unknown amount of time. For all she knew, she would be gone for months before her parents finally did the right thing.

Or perhaps, not even the thought of their own daughter running away would make them change their mind.

Lori growled lowly when she felt stinging tears gouge at her eyes. With a furious brush of her arm, she wiped them away. She couldn't be weak now, not when her family need her to stay strong. Deciding to simply wait it out until it was time to leave, Lori sat in bed, looking on at Leni's happy, peaceful sleeping face.

God, she was gonna miss her the most. Leni wasn't just the person that she knew the most out of all her siblings, she was her closest friend in the entire world. They supported each other through everything. Lori's wisdom and advice would steer Leni away from making foolish decisions and Leni's cheeriness would (usually) brighten up her day. They were the perfect match; sensibility and sentimentality.

And now a big part of her life was going to be away from her for God knew how long.

Before she could relish in her sorrow for much longer, Lori's phone buzzed again. She looked down at the screen and saw the text: "macy's comin in ten mins. be ready".

Sure enough, Lori noticed that the time read "11:50" PM.

'Right on time,' Lori thought. 'Oh well, like Cynthia just said, it's time to get ready.'

Moving out of her bed, Lori slowly walked to her bedroom door and opened it, wincing as the creaks and groans left no room for much stealth. Before she could grab her bags and leave, though, Lori walked over to her bed, slipped out her letter from underneath her pillow and left it on the bed. Then, she placed her phone, which was now devoid of any contacts, her texts, her battery, and her SIM card, and car keys on top of said letter.

With everything she needed done, there was only one thing left to do.

Heading over to her closest, Lori pulled it open, reached down, and slung a duffel bag over each shoulder and went to leave her room without anyone catching her at-

"Lori?"

Lori froze in place, cold chills racing up her spine.

Out of everything that could've gone wrong, this topped the list by a huge, HUGE margin.

"What're you…" Leni began to say before her yawn broke her sentence. "What're you doing up so late?"

As calmly as she could, Lori placed the bags back and turned to face Leni, who was looking at her with a face that demanded an explanation. Her gaze was unfocused and her mouth as fashioned in frown.

"Well, uh…"

Her failure to give her an immediate answer only served to make Leni squint in suspicion.

"I was just…"

The squint was followed by a pair of folded arms. Thankfully for Lori, by the time she did that, she came up with an excuse that was sure to pacify Leni's curiosity.

"Going for a…a walk! Yes! That's it!"

"Why were you carrying those bags?" Leni asked as he pointed to the bags at Lori's feet.

Lori cursed a string of expletives in her head, wondering where Leni had gained this insight from all of a sudden.

"Lori," Leni said more sternly, "what's going on? Where are you going?"

Leni couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right here. It was the weirdest sensation of déjà vu but all Lori's explanations did was remind her of what Lana had done before she managed to slip away outside in the rain. Ever since it happened, Leni had been riddled with guilt over what Lana pulled on her because in her mind, if not for her lack of awareness, Lana wouldn't have been able to get hurt.

And now, from the looks of things, Lori was trying to do the same thing with her.

No. She wouldn't let that happen twice, not on her watch.

"I-I told you, Leni," Lori said nervously, "I'm j-just going for a walk."

Leni glared. "Then what's with the bags, Lori? You better tell the truth before I tell Mom and Dad that you're up to no good."

At that moment, Lori sensed a chance to escape. Leni was mad but no one, except for Lola, could match her in anger, even if it was fake. It would hurt Leni's feelings but she couldn't afford to spare her, not when she was so close.

Marching over to Leni with her best faux indignant look, Lori barked back.

"Can't a girl get some exercise without being grilled from all sides?"

It worked better than she thought. Leni shrunk away, looking like she was about to cry.

Sighing, Lori sat on the side of Leni's bed and reached out her hand to cup the side of her face.

"Sorry, Leni, I'm just a little tired and irritable right now, that's all. I heard from Lynn that exercising early in the morning is really good for your so that's why I'm doing it now."

Leni nodded sheepishly before she pointed behind Lori.

"And the bags?"

"Just some gym clothes and water bottles," Lori said, having come up with a good excuse to compliment her exercise fib.

"Gym clothes?!" Leni said excitedly. "Wait, hold on, I can totes make you something that you're gonna really like! Just give me a second to-"

"No!"

The retort flew out louder than Lori wanted and in a vain attempt to not alert anyone else in the house, covered her mouth quickly. She looked across to Leni and nearly cried at Leni's hurt, panicked expression.

Lori took her hands off her mouth, wanting to assure Leni that she hadn't done anything wrong.

"I mean…no, Leni. Just…just go back to sleep, okay? I'll be fine."

"O-okay."

Doing as he big sister told her, Leni laid back down, resting her head on her pillow and giving Lori one last look before she motioned to put her sleeping mask back over her eyes. Before she could do so, Lori's hands grabbed her own.

"Leni?"

Leni looked up at Lori, who was slowly moving in closer to her for reasons she couldn't understand.

"Yea-"

Leni immediately stilled as Lori quickly leaned forward and planted her lips on her cheek. It was enough to make Leni gasp in surprise and once Lori withdrew, she absentmindedly brought her hand up to cover the spot that Lori had just kissed.

Looking to Lori for an explanation, she was taken aback when she just grinned at her.

"What…what was that for?"

The significance of Lori's action wasn't lost on Leni. They hadn't kissed each other on the cheek since they were children as Lori just fell out of the routine as she grew older. Leni eventually followed suit, not wanting to get on her sister's surly side for doing things that she apparently didn't find suitable anymore.

"I just wanted to show you how much I love you, Leni. That's all," Lori responded simply.

Leni still didn't understand where this unusual brand of tenderness came from but she had no reason to not believe it. She knew that she wasn't the brightest of bulbs but she'd have to be completely brain dead to think that Lori didn't love her.

If she wanted to express it with a kiss on the cheek, then so be it.

"I love you too, Lori," Leni beamed.

"Forever?" Lori asked. "No matter what?"

She needed some assurance if she was going to do this. She needed to know that Leni would always and forever love her. If she felt that there was a chance that sweet, lovable Leni would hate her, she would back out of this whole plan right now.

"Of course, forever, silly!" Leni giggled.

With that, Leni laid back down and this time, when she pulled her sleeping mask over her eyes, Lori didn't stop her.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Lori picked up her duffel bags and scurried out the room. She was tempted to say goodbye to her (under the veil of a simple farewell) but felt it unnecessary. She had her goodbyes in the letter, anyways. Everything that she felt she needed to say was there for her family to read for themselves.

As Lori descended the stairs, she could faintly see her family photos through the darkness, a painful reminder to what she'd be leaving behind. All the same, she was more regretful about leaving her siblings behind. Her parents, namely her mother, could kiss her ass. This was all their fault to begin with and if they wanted to be angry about what she was doing, they would have no one but themselves to blame.

Even though Lori knew that her siblings would probably be sad about her departure, she felt that it was for the greater good.

After all, like the old saying went, an omelet required a few broken eggs in the process.

A/N: And there goes another chapter for the books. This is point where I'm gonna really start having a ball with this story and I hope that it's your kind of scene, too. Nothing's worse than a party of one, after all.