So, yeah, it's my birthday~! YAY! (throws confetti into the air)

And since my writer's block is still persisting, I thought I'd give you all a little something for my continuing absence. :3 It's something that I've been planning to do for a while; a little thing to make up for the "Ferb's Goodbye" hiatus.

SURPRISE! It's a Phineas and Ferb fic starring the two bros!

Only…only they're not actually…brothers…XD

It's complicated. Let's just get started, shall we? :3

I don't own "Phineas and Ferb"; that belongs to Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh.

I own OCs that may or may not appear in this particular story, and I own the story itself.

Enjoy~!

P/F/P/F

Prologue

It was cold.

I don't remember much of what happened, but I remember that it was cold. There was a lot of snow, and I remember that the sky was covered in clouds. It was nighttime, when I should've been asleep. But I wasn't.

Other than those things, that moment was all a blur for me. I don't know what they were yelling about, or why that other figure looked so scared as it hid behind one of the taller figures. It wasn't my dad, though; my dad was on the other side, looking I assume defensive about something. I was watching from somewhere but…the room just…looks blurry to me.

The words they say, I can never make out. They just keep screaming and screaming. By now, that small figure is crying, and I'm just staring as the tall person, who I think was a woman, leaned down to comfort her. My dad looked a little…guilty? I don't know…that's usually when I wake up, just before dad decides to turn away.

I think about this dream very often, and I have it just as much. It haunts me, so to speak, like an evil spirit. I should tell someone about it…but I won't. I'm afraid that I might not want to hear the answer to the questions I'm going to want to ask. Because I know that the questions will be easy to say…the answers are what bother me so much.

It's really one of the reasons why I prefer Summer over the Winter. The warmth of Summer makes me forget about the dreams, at least for a while. Winter causes those dreams to multiply. I guess I'm thankful for that, somehow, because sometimes the dreams extend a little, and I get more out of it. But those moments are more blurry than the others.

It wasn't always this bad, though…and…I…

.

.

.

A little boy sniffled in his bed, letting the tears escape his eyes as he tried to wipe them away. He had been startled awake, in the middle of the night. And if that wasn't enough, it was dark in his little room, and that terrified him even more. He cried for a while, hugging his stuff animal close to him.

The lights turned on.

"Kiddo, you alright there?"

That was the voice of his father, who had a look of concern for his son. The tall, skinny man walked into the room, and sat next to the sniveling child, wrapping an arm around what appeared to be a three-year-old with a five-year-old's speaking manner. It still amazed everyone in the family how fast the little boy appeared to be learning in terms of speech and in other things as well. But none seemed more proud than the father himself.

The father began to rub his hand against the child's side, soothing him.

"It's alright buddy, daddy's here" the father said, smiling a little, "Was it another bad dream?"

The child sniffed and nodded his head. "I-it was that scary-thing again," he murmured, "It got bigger, though…and it looked mad…and…"

The boy hid his face on his father's side. The father ruffled his son's hair, and continued to smile at him. "Ah, don't let it get you down," he said, "That thing's not real. It's alright."

"I know it's not real," the boy pouted as he proceeded to pull away to look up at his father, "That's just it! But…it always scares me anyway…I always think it's real in that dream…"

The boy, full of shame, proceeded to cocoon himself under his blankets while his father watched, almost a little amused. "I'm a big scaredy-bug…" he mumbled, just a smidge loud enough to his father to hear.

"Naaaah, that's not true," the father said, shaking his head, "This is coming from the great explorer of the universe, isn't it? Someone whose traveled across the seven galaxies doesn't appear to be a scaredy-bug to me."

"But that's pretend," the boy said, not moving him his cocoon, "I'm not actually doin' it…"

"But you think that you can, don't you?"

"…When I'm playin'…I guess…"

"Well, then," the father crossed his arms, "Just think like that the next time you see that big scary thing. Show it whose boss. You're my tough guy, remember?"

The boy slowly poked his head out of the blankets to stare up at his father. "…You think so?" he asked quietly.

The father pulled the small boy onto his lap. "Listen," he said, "There's gonna be times where you think you can't do anything. Heck, I've been in those places-"

"YOU?!"

The father proceeded to chuckle at the boy who thought his old man could do no wrong. "Yes," the father said, "Of course there has. And those moments are what everyone's gonna face in their lives. But," the man poked his son's nose, "You can't let that stop you from trying, alright? And if you keep trying…"

"…Then…I might be able to…?"

The father nodded, seeing that a lightbulb had lit up in his son's eyes. He was a very proud man to have such a child as his own son, who proved to be less dense than other children. At least to the father himself, he supposed. But deep down, the father thought, he knew his son was extremely special.

"Trust me," the father went on, "You can do anything you set your mind to. And you can't give up; otherwise you will be a scaredy-bug. And that's not what you are, is it?"

The boy grinned. "No! I'm not!" he said determinedly, "I'll show that scary thing what for!"

The father laughed more, and once again ruffled his son's head. "Atta boy," he said, "Now, you better get to bed, alright? It's late."

The boy snuggled under the covers, letting his father kiss him on top of his head. The boy pulled the covers over himself, and he lied his head against the pillow, closing his eyes. Two words left his lips:

"Goodnight, daddy…"

The father left out the door, looked to his son and said, "Goodnight, Phineas…"

Then, the father left to go to sleep. This was the last time Phineas Flynn ever talked to his father; after this very moment, his father left and never came back. His son would remember this moment forever, though, and he would never forget how much his father meant to him. And his father would remain an inspiration to him for years to come.

The father left, and didn't even bother looking back. He kept going and going and going until he wasn't seen anymore. Phineas would likely have asked his mother where his father went, and she would explain to him gently that he was on a trip for a long time. Then his older sister, who slept in a room across from him, would tell him that their daddy wasn't coming back, and that it was all his fault for being so weird. It wasn't out of cruelty that the sister would say this, but out of grief, though this would still scar the child regardless.

They would move on, of course. Phineas and his family eventually filled the voids that were placed in their hearts by a new father and brother. They became a family, and the brothers became best friends. Their friendships spread throughout the Tri-State Area, particularly in three who would always come over to see what they were doing, and a platypus who was also a big part of their family.

This is how it was written, and how it has been for many years to come. But there are different outcomes and different versions of how this story came to be. This is the story of what happened when one choice changed everything, whether there be consequences or none of the sort. This choice would in fact effect the lives of these characters to some chilling degree. It seemed so insignificant, but so drastic all at once.

This is the story about how Phineas met another boy named Ferb.

A/N:

I hope you enjoyed! :D

Don't worry, this is actually much more lighthearted than most of my other works; this is purely slice-of-life. :3

The next chapter's gonna be more relaxing. I'm not gonna give much away yet, though, so hold your horses! XD (If you read my fics, you'll be able to catch on pretty quickly)

Anyways, I hope you liked this! Please, review if you'd please, and give me some tips on how I can improve on this story! :D

-GTS