A/N: Hey, everyone! Yet another P&F fic from me! I thought of this after seeing the many fanarts of Marie Flynn and Thomas Fletcher on DeviantArt. As a result, I have caught a nasty bout of the Marie-and-Thomas-fever myself. I also stumbled across a few Marie-and-Thomas-centric fics on this site, so I decided to pitch in myself. Since most of the aforementioned fics had a lighthearted and P&F-faithful tone, I decided to take this fic into darker territory, being the dark-fic-savvy madman I am. XD
Before I begin this, I have to announce that I had to delete "OWCA Civil War" in order to get this done. I know, I suck so badly that it destroys your computers. But believe me, you would make such a decision, especially with the burden of working on two other popular fics, and also the pressure of scrambling endlessly to find a vacancy in my schedule to update a certain other fic on the endless supply of pleas from rabid fans. Plus, I didn't like how the story went off; it was going a bit too fast than I wanted it. I'll post a rewrite once I finish one of my other fics, I promise.
Also, I would love to thank Animegx43, a fan of Marie and Thomas and the writer of some Marie-and-Thomas-centric fics on this site, for giving me some advice on how to be able to use the OCs, as I was not a member of DeviantArt, where I could find their creators. So, thanks a whole lot! Without you, this wouldn't have been possible.
Enough ranting! ENJOY!
Disclaimers:
-"Phineas and Ferb" DOES NOT belong to me in any way! All claims of ownership fall to Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh.
-Marie Flynn DOES NOT belong to me in any way! All claims of ownership fall to Angelus19 and sam-ely-ember.
-Thomas Fletcher DOES NOT belong to me in any way! All claims of ownership fall to Melty19.
-Jasmine Rai DOES NOT belong to me in any way! All claims of ownership fall to sam-ely-ember and Melty19.
P.S.: If you're not fans of Marie Flynn, Thomas Fletcher, and all the like, then do not flame this fic. You are all free to ignore it.
"The heart of a father is the masterpiece of nature."
-The Abbé Prévost
"It is a wise father that knows his own child."
-William Shakespeare
"Noble fathers have noble children."
-Euripides
"Rise and shine, little girl."
Nine-year-old Marie Flynn opened her eyes, only to be greeted be a burst of bright, blinding light, which was partially blocked by the locks of her red hair cast over her eyes. Letting out a pained moan, she flicked away the locks and squinted her eyes to the point where they were more like slits, feeling her pupils adjust to the light. She could feel bonds restraining her to a wooden chair; her hands, tied behind the back, were touching the hands of someone else...
Once they were fully adjusted, she found herself staring into the piercing brown eyes of a man wearing a black ski-mask, kneeling before her. Her eyes widened in fear, remembering the gravity of the situation she was currently in. This expression was quickly met with a sadistic smile and a malicious chuckle from the masked man, who then stood up and started walking around her, the sounds of his boots echoing across the room, which Marie quickly identified as a stage theater, which was obviously abandoned due to its outdated and dilapidated nature. The source of light was coming from the sun, which was shining through a large hole present on the ceiling.
"It's quite a pleasure to meet you, Marie Garcia Flynn," the man encircling the nine-year-old said, his voice sounding slightly raspy, as if he had screamed for hours and can barely talk. The menacing raspy voice seemed to stir the innermost cores of Marie's fear. "I have been looking forward to this day. I mean, it is quite an honor to meet the daughter of the famous Phineas Flynn. And it's also a pleasure to meet your step-cousin, dear Thomas Fletcher. Such a pleasure to meet you both."
Marie's eyes widened again, and she instantly identified the owner of the hands touching hers. He appeared to be still unconscious, as she couldn't hear any noises from him aside from his soft breathing.
The man continued, "Now, don't panic, Marie. You'll see your precious daddy again, as long as he pays handsomely for the safe return of you and Thomas."
"So, that's why we were taken?" Marie asked within the corners of her mind. "For a ransom? Well, Daddy and Uncle Ferb do make a lot of money from his business..."
Suddenly, the man stood in front of Marie and knelt before her again, looking into her blue eyes with his brown eyes. A frown forming upon his lips, he placed a finger underneath her chin, bringing her face closer to his. She could smell the putrid breath emanating from the man's skin, and she could literally see the pure malice that was alive in his eyes. Remembering what her father said about being brave, Marie successfully composed herself, frowning rebelliously at her captor. This only seemed to turn the man's frown back into a grin.
"A brave one, eh?" he asked. He then chuckled as if someone had told him a joke, and he stood up, taking a few steps away from the nine-year-old, facing away from her and looking up at the hole in the ceiling. "Yep, you're just like your father, that slimy, good-for-nothing, rotten THIEF."
Finally, Marie spoke for the first time since she regained consciousness, giving great emphasis to the note of profound courage that she was utilizing against the man. "My daddy's not a thief! YOU'RE the thief! You don't know who you're messing with, mister! My daddy will find you and beat you! And so will my Uncle Ferb!"
"Oh, is that so?" The man faced her, a look of mock-curiosity plastered on his face. He started walking up to her, resembling a predator ready to capture its prey. "Well, we'll see about that. And I'm pretty sure the odds will change in my favor. After all, I have the leverage."
He suddenly raised his hand and flew it across Marie's cheek, using all of the strength he could muster. Feeling her head snap back uncomfortably from the abrupt blow, followed by the blazing feeling of a billion stings pricking painfully at her cheek, Marie couldn't help but release a soft sob. The man chuckled at her misery and then snapped his fingers. A second man, also wearing a ski-mask, suddenly appeared, which surprised Marie; he had been so quiet that she never noticed him. The second man took out a handheld camera and handed it to the first man. He smiled and aimed it at Marie's face.
"Say cheese!" he said, grinning sadistically.
As the man took one picture after another, bombarding her with split-second-long flashes of white light, Marie began to look back at the events that occurred prior, events that now hit her as catalysts to her unfortunate incident...
Six hours earlier...
Wearing her traditional yellowish-orange dress and bow, Marie traveled down the stairs and entered the kitchen, where she found her parents, Phineas and Isabella Flynn, sitting at the table. The family's elderly pet platypus, Perry, was lying lazily beside one of the table legs, next to a bowl of his food.
"Morning, Mom! Morning, Daddy!" Marie greeted.
"Good morning, sweetie," replied Isabella, standing up and kissing Marie on the forehead.
"Good morning, Marie," Phineas said, looking up from the newspaper he was reading. "How was your sleep?"
"Amazing! I dreamed about building a large robot with Tommy and Jazz! And for once, it didn't explode! I wish I didn't wake up. It was such a good dream!"
"Well, maybe your gonna live out your dream, honey, 'cause I'm gonna be dropping you off at Uncle Ferb's. He and I have to go to a board meeting, and your mom is gonna go shopping with her friends. Baljeet's also dropping off Jazz because he is going to work too."
"YAY!" exclaimed Marie. "I get to build with Tommy and Jazz! This'll be fun!" Just then, she noticed that something was missing. "Hey, where's Perry?"
Phineas and Isabella just looked at each other with understanding.
"WHAT?!" Thomas screamed. He was standing in the kitchen, where his parents, Ferb and Vanessa Fletcher, were seated at a table.
"Come on, Thomas," replied Ferb, "playing with Marie has gotta be better than going with me to a board meeting."
"Going to a board meeting's better than getting myself exploded, Dad."
"Well, I am sorry, Thomas, but Phineas is already bringing her over. Baljeet's also dropping off Jazz-"
Thomas's eyes widened with shock. "WHAT?!"
"What's wrong with Jazz, son?"
"She keeps bugging me about how I have a crush on Marie and it's annoying!"
Vanessa smiled craftily, and she asked, "Do you have a crush on Marie, Thomas?"
"WHAT?! NO, MOM!"
"Sorry, Thomas," Ferb said, "but I have spoken my word. You're staying here with Marie and Jazz. Don't worry, though; your mom's gonna be watching you guys, so if you need anything from her, just call her over. Alright?"
Thomas just sighed angrily in response and marched over to the family room, where he expected his pet chameleon Steve to be at. That was when he noticed that something was missing.
"Hey, where's Steve?"
Ferb and Vanessa just looked at each other with understanding.
The Danville Science Fair was once one of the pinnacles of the city's success. However, all of that changed fifteen years ago, when a disastrous fire left it uninhabitable, and now, the fairgrounds have been forgotten, as the science fair was relocated long ago. Tents were torn down, stands were fragile, and the concrete that was the support for the framework of the fair's central theater was cracked and potential to collapse.
Inside the central theater, two men sat silently on wooden chairs on the stage, staring out into the empty audience seats. A ghostly breeze blew about, coming from the gaping hole that was on the ceiling. Their faces were hidden in shadow, only silhouettes. However, it was obvious that they were upset about something. After all, fifteen years ago was when they would've been famous; it would've been their golden moment, the day they reaped the fruits of victory, had it not be for a certain duo of stepbrothers, whose actions ruined their lives forever...
But today was the day the two men would seek retribution. They would still taste victory.
One of the men stood up and faced his companion. "It's time," he said.
A/N: So, what do you think? If any of you are fully aware of Marie and Thomas, keep me informed, 'cause I don't know much about them aside from the basic stuff.
Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!