The second time Perry woke up, his bedroom became lit from the sunlight beaming inside. His window draped with a soft, peach colored curtain, causing the room to illuminate in a warm atmosphere, encouraged by the white walls that triggered the feeling to intensify. It seemed like a perfect way to start a new, normal, productive day.

It would have, had it not been for the warm body he still cradled in his chest, shifting slightly to remind him of the occurrence that happened earlier in the day.

Perry looked downwards, tilting his chin to get a better view of their form, only to receive a face full of green, spiky hair. Sometime during the night his left arm found its way under Ferb's head, making it a bone-hard pillow for the youngster, his right arm still wrapped protectively across his shoulders. His face still buried in his shirt and small hands clutching the fabric, not as tight as before but still holding on.

The older man turned his head to look at the digital clock that rested on a small desk next to his bed, 8:05am.

He nearly jumped out of the bed when he double checked to see if he read the numbers right but stopped himself just in time to keep from startling his little cousin. He's late! Monogram would surely have his head this time.

As softly as humanly possible, Perry maneuvered his left arm away from the child's head and managed to make him let go of his shirt without waking him. He ran out of the bedroom but not before lifting the blankets and covering the child to his shoulders. Searching for his mobile phone and finding it on the mantel holding the same lamp he turned on last night in the living room, Perry flipped it open to find seven missed calls from his boss and three from his partner. He was in so much hot water now.

He quickly speed dialed his partner and waited for the worse. "Bueno?" Came the teasing answer.

"Hey Pinky quick! Give it to me straight, how dead am I?" Perry quickly asked.

"Welp, boss man is demanding the reports of the Burgis Gang case and shouting orders about workers lazing about instead of actually working, he also missed his morning coffee, soooo… it's safe to say that you better get your butt down here if you want to live to see another day. I'm not saving your hide this time." Pinky stated as a matter of fact.

"Oh man, I am so dead! Listen Pinky, the Burgis Gang report is finished and done with on my desk, just tell Monogram to send a couple of men down on the intersection of Onyx and Main around midnight, they will get enough evidence to lock Riley and his friends up for years." Perry began to panic, if one isn't there to present their case in person to Monogram on time he tends to get upset which later migrates to anger and finally concludes to 'workers getting lazier and lazier' with whoever first started the chain getting blamed and glared at, right now Perry can't handle that.

"Why can't you tell him? Something wrong? It's not like you to encourage boss man's ranting."

"Look, something came up, family business." Perry's voice almost cracked upon saying the last two words, he tried his best to cover it up by clearing his throat but he knew the attempt was a fail, his partner is sharp and not about to let a poor attempt of a cover up throw his observation away.

The cracking of his voice caused Pinky to pause, silence taking over the phone line. Family? Perry never once talked about family let alone worry about family business. Something terrible must have happened if this matter was even brought up in the first place, and being partners for five years, you tend to catch on hints faster.

"Hey Perranule, what happened man?" Pinky's soft voice came through after a few seconds later, genuine worry and concern heard even through the interference from the phones.

Perry couldn't help but smile at his words. Perranule? It's rare for anyone to use his full first name let alone have his partner use it, but this is a habit of theirs. When something important happens, a life and death situation, serious matters, family business or injuries they both tend to go back on formal names that could only be gained from true partnership and trust. They never fully reveal their names, keeping it to themselves privately and telling those worthy of it.

If either one of them says the others' full first name, it means serious business.

"Pinkarter, something happened last night. My uncle and aunt... they got into an accident... an eighteen wheeler, they died on impact."

Perry couldn't find the strength to even finish his words. It's times like this that he just can't help but hate people! It's one thing to drunk drive a small car or SUV but a freaking, six ton behemoth of a vehicle?! Who even has time to get drunk while driving across states on a time limit?

His aunt and uncle didn't stand a chance.

Ferb's parents didn't stand a chance.

"Parranule?" Pinky asked after a few minutes.

"Y-yeah, still here, sorry. It's my cousin, my four year old cousin, he wasn't with them so he is alive and they gave me temporary guardianship. I don't have a sitter and I can't just leave him alone right now, he needs someone."

A long pause ensued, Perry knew he was thinking it all over; Pinky had a way of knowing what exactly he was going through, maybe because of the years they worked together or maybe because Pinky just understands people. Right now he is extremely thankful that he has this ability.

"Caray, I'm sorry to hear that man."

"Same here."

"Look, you keep an eye on that kid and make sure you show him you will be there for him. I don't want to catch you slacking off on it, de acuerdo?"

Perry softly chuckled at this; leave it to Pinky to command him on taking care of his cousin, even though he's never heard of him. The man has a soft spot for children.

"Promise."

"Good, I'll take care of boss man and try to explain the situation, don't worry about coming in today, I'll take the blame for ya."

Perry gave a sigh of relief, salvation. "Yeah, thanks a lot Pinky, I owe you one."

"Hombre, you owe me an arm and a leg, that's what you owe me. Now, go back to the kid, he's probably worried about you." Pinky finished off before hanging up, not giving Perry a chance to say good bye.

He flipped the phone closed and to his surprise, as soon as he turned to head back towards the bedroom he found Ferb standing in-between he doorway, clutching the bottom of his shirt desperately, looking at the ground almost ready to cry.

Perry blinked twice at this before rushing off and crouching near the child. "Ferb? Hey buddy what's wrong? Did something happen?" He placed a comforting hand on his small shoulder and used his thumb to massage circles and relax the boy.

"G-gone."

"What?"

Ferb clutched his shirt even harder before suddenly wrapping his arms around Perry's neck, surprising the man. "You were g-gone."

Once he recovered from his initial shock he instantly wrapped his arms around the boy's midsection. "Hey, I'm not going anywhere. I promised a friend I will be here for you and I never break a promise." He made a mental take, how in the world did Pinky know his cousin was worried about him? The man is psychic.

Ferb didn't respond but continued to keep his hold. Perry sighed; he really didn't know what to do.

"Tell you what, I don't need to report to work today so how's about we freshen up, have some breakfast and do some shopping later? Sound good to you?"

He received a nod in agreement but still had a neck wrapped by small arms and looked to be firmly in place. And so Perry worked around it, letting his cousin continue his hold and keeping one of his arms around his midsection, lifting the child up and making his way into the bathroom, freshening them both to the best of his ability before finally landing in the kitchen.

"Hey bud, I kind of need both hands if I am to serve us both cereal."

For a brief second Ferb tightened his grip even more, like a reassurance, before loosening his arms and pushing himself from Perry's chest.

Perry set the child down, crouching to make his landing slower before straightening to grab two boxes from the top of the refrigerator. "All I have is Corn Flakes and Lucky Charms. Which one would you like?"

Ferb motioned his hand towards the Lucky Charms box. "Lucky Charms it is then. Go ahead and sit down over at the table and I'll bring you your bowl."

His cousin did just that, walking over to the glass table and sitting on the chair facing the opposite way of the kitchen, keeping an eye on him.

Perry served the bowls of cereal expertly; he wasn't much of a cook and relied heavily on already-prepared products. Cup of Ramen noodles, cup of Mac & Cheese, cereal, even easy to make stuff like sandwiches or bagels smeared with cream cheese. It's not much of a life, and he sounds more like a college student when he thinks about it, but he's survived so far, and as long as he contained something sweet in his pantry, it's good enough for him.

He finished serving Ferb's Lucky Charms and his own Corn Flakes bowl with added sugar and banana slices in record time. Walking over to where his cousin sat and placing the bowls in place, both family members got to work, slowly munching and crunching away at the cereal in silence. Perry didn't know how to start a conversation and the kid seemed to prefer to stay silent, something he would have to decipher soon if he wanted to understand him. The silence continued until only the little puddle of milk that stayed at the bottom remained from where the cereal once was.

"Alrighty then." Perry clapped his hands together once he and Ferb placed the bowls into the sink, making a quick mental note to wash those once they get back. "Let's go and make quick haste of our pajama's and get the shopping started."

He wanted to get the day going and change the mood surrounding the pair but first, he can't exactly go out in public wearing bed garments, so a quick trip to the cabinets in his bedroom is in order.

Ferb followed behind him, his small purple backpack carried all his clothing given to him, which isn't a lot of clothes at all. He has more stuff, but right now the strangers that helped him said they were keeping an eye on all of it and promised to return them soon. He didn't know how long soon is.

Perry made his way towards the cabinet placed on the far-end corner of the room while Ferb only walked to the entrance, his backpack placed right next to the door.

When Perry picked out the clothes he would wear, a plain black shirt with dark jeans, he turned to head over to the bathroom, the small backpack with clothing's hanging or dangling outside caught his eye. Are those clothes the only things he has? What about other things like toys, or whatever four year olds are prone to carrying around? What about another pair of shoes?

The older man walked out of the room faster, he needed to make another phone call. He grabbed the silver business card from the table he left it at when they arrived and dialed the numbers. Three rings later someone picked up.

"Hello? This is Mrs. Kennel speaking."

"Hi Mrs. Kennel, it's me Perry Platynis from the night before, or actually I should say from earlier today."

"Oh Mr. Platynis! Good day to you." She said, recognition in her voice.

"Yes good day to you as well, listen, I'm calling with a question."

"Is something wrong? Is Ferb Fletcher doing alright?" She quickly replied with worry.

"No, nothing's wrong and Ferb is doing okay, or okay as anyone would in a situation like this. I called because I'm curious about his possessions. I'm no expert but I'm pretty sure a child has more stuff than that little backpack of clothing that he carries."

"Ah yes, all of his possessions, along with the possessions of the parents are under lock and key right now. Mr. Fletcher signed all the items away to his son if anything were to ever happen to him or Mrs. Fletcher, but Ferb can't gain access to it until he turns of age. Nobody else can touch it, not even you Mr. Platynis."

Perry made quick notes about all this. "I can't touch it even though I am his guardian?"

"Temporary guardian, and I'm afraid that's right. His parents didn't add any names or gave anyone else access, only to Ferb."

"So he can't touch anything until he turns eighteen basically." Perry didn't like this, he didn't like it one bit. If he can't get access and Ferb can't touch any of it until fourteen years from now how will he get any of his stuff back? His toys? Or even his family photos? That is, if they took photos.

"Than what about his clothes he has right now? How did he get those?" If everything in the house is in lockdown how did Ferb even get anything out of there? He is too young to be unwatched, someone would have had to keep an eye on him, so he couldn't wander far or be given the chance to run inside and get his stuff.

"That was my doing. Before they locked it all away I jogged inside and picked up the few clothes still out in the open. I tried looking for other things like shoes or toys, but I was too late it seems."

"So there is no way for him to get anything back?" Perry double checked one last time.

"I'm sorry there isn't another way to bypass this. He will have to wait until he turns eighteen. He'll receive a letter when the time comes but in the meantime, he has to make do with what he's got." She sounded sincerely sorry; anyone would if they discovered a kid who just lost everything important to them but it sounded worse when you personally interact with the child, or even take care of them.

"Well, it can't be helped. We'll just have to start over from scratch then. Thank you for your time Mrs. Kennel."

"It's no trouble Mr. Platynis. Call again if you have any more questions or concerns." They both said their goodbyes and hanged up, Perry sighed.

They really did have to start over from scratch and not just material wise, family wise too. And then it hit him, like a football player slamming head straight at him.

He is taking care of a four year old, he is the guardian of Ferb, guardian of his little cousin of which he didn't know existed (That part keeps repeating in his head) and yet he will be looking after. He couldn't just think of himself anymore, he has to think about the wellbeing of another. This means no more shopping for himself, no more selecting for himself because there is another in his life now.

When he goes shopping for clothes he has to shop in the kid section now. No more cup or canned foods because kids need nutrition to grow healthy. When he returns home he won't be alone. When he goes out he won't be alone. When he goes to work he will make a drop off at a day care. First he needs to find a day care. First he needs to explain everything to his boss.

It finally sunk in.

He is taking care of another soul.

Perry pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Why didn't he pay more attention to his parents when they were parenting him?

It can't be helped, he's going to have to figure this out on his own and right now his little cousin is in desperate needs of items like clothing, shoes and food, not to mention toys, every child needs toys.

Before he could think of anything else to add on the list his mobile phone rang again, looking at the caller I.D he groaned, it's his boss. Hesitantly answering Perry waited for the worse, again.

"Hey boss." He said awkwardly.

"I heard from your partner that you won't be coming in today Detective Platynis." A deep, gruff voice stated through the phone line. He doesn't sound mad nor does he sound happy, seems like he is in a neutral state for now, this is good.

"Yeah, sorry boss but something important came up at the last minute and I'm not prepared at all."

"I understand." The voice replied softly.

This left Perry frozen for a second before recovering. "Y-you do?"

"Detective Chinchua explained everything to me and I called to inform you of your work situation. I am giving you a week of temporary absence. Use it wisely and get everything you need, understand? I don't want to hear any excuses as to why you are late." His boss explained.

"Yes sir, I understand."

"Be there for the child Platynis, don't let him out of your sight. That's an order."

Perry couldn't help but choke on the last part, to be ordered by your boss on taking care of his cousin? Monogram must really be worried.

"Of course Major, you can count on me."

"I know I can, now if you'll excuse me, I have mountains of papers that were meant for you and Detective Chinchua but since you are on temporary leave, he will be doing double the work this week."

"Tell him he's not just going to owe me an arm and a leg, I want both of his kidneys too!" A faint, distinct voice came from a distance of Monogram's line, Perry smiled as he heard Pinky throw a childish fit.

"Detective Platynis, you better have those kidneys ready." Monogram told him, his boss is not known for having humor but on the rare occasion where he plays along, and it's mostly with him and Pinky, he has that playful sarcasm going on, and right now Perry knows and hears from his voice that Monogram is smirking. Traitor.

"I'll have my kidneys in ice and ready for when he needs them sir." Perry laughed.

"Good, now get. Make sure that kid knows you'll be by his side."

"Will do sir, thank you for this Monogram."

"Good luck Detective Platynis." Monogram finished off before hanging up, leaving Perry feeling a lot better about the situation. If his boss is ordering him to do something, than it means Monogram believes he can do it and wants it done fast. His boss believes in him, so does his partner Pinky, and right now that's the way Perry should be thinking.

He can't go on worried about what will happen and how he should do it. His cousin needs comfort and if he himself is worried on what to do, how can he give Ferb what he needs?

Perry was a police officer for four years, since he was 22 years old, and got promoted to detective two years ago. He has been helping citizens all around, ensuring their safety and making sure they know that help will always be there.

He will do the same for Ferb, granted he will have to find another method of doing it but do it he shall!

And right now their first step on starting over involves them going shopping, and so help him he will buy Ferb the whole store if he has to, show him he cares and will be there for him.