Eventually they found themselves an abandoned building, reading that it was due for demolition coming spring.
Scanning it, they found no signs of security watching it, or if they did, hopefully won't take notice of a group of kids sneaking to sleep and seek shelter.
Settling around, finding some scraps of tarps and such to make due as blankets, they set themselves up for sleep, knowing they would have a big day ahead of them.
As morning came, despite being hungry, they sat together, knowing they had to think of what to do regarding money. They couldn't steal nor beg for money and food without drawing attention to themselves.
Therefore they decided to do what any normal kid would do, get summer jobs and save up as much as they could. They would only spend what they earned on what they absolutely needed, when it was needed.
Candace and Jeremy knew they couldn't get official part time jobs without proper credentials, without a home most of all.
Therefore, between doing odd jobs around town, they scouted, much to their discomfort, some shady apartments that wouldn't think twice.
Scanning different places, the young woman glanced at her boyfriend, seeing that without the kids around, he let his optimism drop a little.
Knowing exactly what, or who he was thinking about, she placed a hand over his shoulder to try and comfort him.
"We'll find her, I'm sure of it," she reassured, seeing him give a bitter smile.
"Thanks, I just hope Suzy's safe."
"I'm sure she is."
With that, the rest of the day went on, the teenagers managing to find a few odd jobs around, hoping the kids are having some luck themselves.
When getting back, they traded stories on what they did; managing to learn that while people did seem wary, almost nervous.
They knew it had to be because of how the brother's hair looked much like with their sister. Yet, despite that, some people did hire them, mostly to help walk their dog or mow lawns if they could.
Some even offered to help clean gutters for older people, getting a little more in pay. Phineas even mentioned how he and Isabella when they worked at one house had been offered a lunch and permission to borrow their bathroom to wash up.
Ferb, having risked being on his own collected any empty bottles and such that were deemed recyclable.
When he got enough that he could carry without the bag he found ripping or toppling himself, he found a place to redeem them.
It wasn't much, earning only a couple of dollars after hours of work, but it was at least something. Especially when seeing as no one would hire him because of his hair color it seems.
It frustrated him, and with his already awkward social skills, it made it even harder to try and ask why.
Baljeet told them about how he and Buford, likely because of the boy's timid nature, when passing some restaurants, the owners offered some scraps to take.
It was obvious that they looked homeless, but the fact no calls were made or attempts to take them away felt strange, almost alien.
A little unsure about it at all, Candace, when she had time to herself, decided to look for a library.
Finding it, she began looking through the computers, doing research, being very careful what she chose to print to bring back and share her findings.
Thankfully the cost to print was extremely cheap, so she barely spent anything when she was done.
All in all, she felt bad for the world they were in, reading about some group she wasn't sure about called diclonii being the main issue.
An economy crisis happened, though it's exact details were hard to figure out, hence why she had them printed.
If anyone could put it together better, it'd be Baljeet and Ferb, they were the smartest, at least they made themselves appear so.
What did worry her was that because of what's happened, the numbers of homeless had recently increased. Meaning even if they did try a shelter, they likely wouldn't be accepted. It looked like not even an orphanage or any place would them in because of how many are without homes.
She wasn't sure to consider it a curse or a blessing, all she knew was that they get to stay together longer.
"Oh man, this world is more messed up than I thought," Jeremy sighed as he and the others looked the papers over.
"Tell me about it," the redhead sighed as she glanced at the papers.
"Candace, what are diclonii?" Phineas asked, sitting almost in her lap when he stared at the papers, seeing the word popping up more than once.
"I don't know. I didn't really bother looking into it. I wanted to learn more about this place than anything else. You know, find out if we're in any actual danger being separated," she answered, letting her hand run through his hair.
"Oh…but why would people not like these diclonii though, it doesn't really make any sense?"
"Who knows, let's just hope we don't find out any time soon," she stated, giving him a firm hug as he leaned into her.
From there, days passed, crawling into weeks and soon most of summer was gone, money slowly saved and spent when needed.
The teenagers eventually found a place that looked habitable, but questionable when seeing the residents and landlord.
It was perfect, more so thanks to the mentioned landlord appearing half baked most of the time they secretly spied on him and the complex.
All they had to do now was save enough money when seeing what was needed, having cleaned up to get a tour of the unit, appearing interested.
Yup, the guy was half baked alright, didn't ask for their identifications and smelled like choking smoke, the two grateful the kids weren't with them.
But they found the unit was well stocked, learning that the previous occupants refused to pay rent for whatever reason, so left, leaving all their stuff behind.
The two could only guess that whoever lived here prior likely lost their job and couldn't afford not only to stay, but hire movers to take their things.
It was pitiful, but they had to find a way to earn enough and claim this place as theirs before someone else does.
Therefore, they worked tirelessly on odd jobs they could do, grateful that while a lot of people were wary, were becoming more and more open. It became noticeable one time they had Ferb with them and an adult took the chance to ruffle the boy's hair.
They had helped the guy out, though instead of earning money as they secretly wished, they did get some food, albeit stale.
Seeing the relieved look on his face, as if touching the boy's hair meant something caused him to be more generous with his handouts.
It was strange to the teens, but they shook it off, right now, they didn't want to raise questions, not reveal anything more amiss than they may already give.
At some point, they managed to earn quite a bit of money, but it was still a long ways off, having to work almost double.
A few times, Candace almost considered going to the riskier parts of town she'd pass, only to shake her head. If her brothers ever found out, even if they knew her intentions were to help them, they may not forgive her. And she did not want to think how Jeremy would react if she did that, nor did she want to think if he thought of doing the same thing.
When they all reunited again, everyone was using the abandoned building as their temporary home, turning parts more livable due to the extended stay.
They found the place had been a home, finding a couple of old bathrooms, albeit one was torn up pretty badly. Probably to get at the more valuable wiring and pipes inside in order to sell or reuse. That is, if they weren't stolen to begin with.
But the other bathroom was in better shape, cleaning out the old tub to use, finding buckets to use to collect water. Its location was almost perfect, set near some woods where there was a stream running through. Though, if they couldn't get to the stream to refill, they would leave the buckets outside to collect rainwater instead.
Candace barely took notice of everyone sitting down together, eating the meager meals they collected.
The few things they bought were mostly cleaner clothes at thrift shops, very cheap hygiene products like soap and toothpaste. And when it did come to having to buy food, it was mostly things to make what was given taste better, such as salt or something to act as a dipping sauce to give it some flavor.
She watched everyone, feeling depressed at their ragged looks, her eyes landing on her poor brothers.
In all her years, while she wanted to bust the little menaces for their wild inventions, she honestly did love them. She didn't want them to get hurt and here they are, suffering and she couldn't do a damn thing about it!
"So you found a place?" Baljeet's voice broke through the teenager's thoughts.
She glanced in his direction, finding he was talking with her boyfriend, likely telling them about the apartment they found and what it held.
"That's great, so we might actually have a real place to stay then?" Phineas asked, looking at his sister with unwavering hope.
She knew it would die at some point, but she was willing to do everything in her power to keep that hope alive.
"If we work hard to save enough, then yeah."
"But what about papers though?" Isabella's voice spoke up, looking at the bread with a thin frown. "We have no birth certificates, no documents regarding who we are. What are we going to do?"
"The landlord isn't very smart it looks and doesn't keep things as they should. I doubt he'll bust us so long as we have money to pay rent," she joked dryly.
She reached her hand out to gently pat her arm, an open invitation if the girl wished to cry into her.
"And I'm sure we'll think of something if we did start facing certain problems," Jeremy added with a bitter smile. "If we can just scrape by as we are, but with a proper roof over our heads, then chances of us getting home are higher."
"I really hope so."
"Of course we'll get home; Ferb and I have been trying to think of what could've happened to land us here. We even visited the spot we woke up in a few times to look for clues," Phineas prattled excitedly, pulling a nut from his pocket to show as proof.
"Even if we did know how we got here, how could we get home? I don't think we can get away with the same shtick as before," the raven haired girl grumbled softly.
She didn't want to sound harsh, but part of her was really losing hope, only keeping up appearances for the others.
However, when the redhead started going on again, sounding so optimistic, she turned, ready to scream at him, stopping at the look in his eyes. But it wasn't just the way he looked alone; it was the way he spoke, the very thing that brought a small smile back to her face.
She shouldn't lose hope nor force the redhead to lose it either because it's sitting in their laps right now, right next to them. Phineas Flynn is their hope to get back home and he won't fail, she's sure of it.
"We always find a way, just like Candace said," the redhead grinned, his childish innocence penetrating everyone's depression. "We'll figure out how we got here, figure out how to get home, build it, then voila, we're home. We can go back to having fun like we used to, course we'll be a lot more careful."
At that part, he gave a nervous laugh, more to himself, likely revealing that he might be blaming himself for their misery.
Before he knew it, Ferb wrapped an arm around him, pulling him into a hug, leaning his head into his shoulder.
It was his silent way of telling him not to blame himself, telling him that it wasn't his fault and no one hated him for it.
From there, with renewed determination, they continued what they were doing, saving up as much as they could.
Eventually they found themselves able to pay the first month's rent, but knew it wasn't enough. There was still a lot more and needed to save more if they planned on staying longer than that.
Slowly summer was coming to a close, adding a spark of danger knowing when school starts; it'll get harder for them, and easier for cops to catch them.
It was so stupid they had to hide like this, but they had no choice, they couldn't risk getting separated.
If one of them gets caught, it's pretty much game over for all of them.
They wouldn't be able to get the captured out nor would they even think of abandoning them.
It was a thought they secretly feared as much as they didn't want too, as much as they didn't want to think about.
But seeing how bleak the situation looked, they kept up their resolve; they had faith in the creative brothers. So long as they don't lose that faith as well, Phineas especially, then they still have a chance to get home.
"Thank you," Phineas chirped happily towards the restaurant owner as he, Isabella, and his siblings walked away with a few bags of leftover food. "Thanks for taking us with you."
"No problem," Candace smiled softly glancing down at the small redhead, feeling his positivity radiating.
He looked so ragged, bags hanging under his eyes from lack of sleep, crying himself to sleep.
Sometimes he'd press himself into her or Ferb, the latter mostly to finally get any rest. Yet he still held some optimism that they'll get home very soon. She could only guess that his breakdowns weren't from losing hope, but the fear of what could happen before they get home.
She wondered just how innocent the naïve looking boy is, he's intelligent and has shown moments of maturity. Fact he knew how to weld at such a young age tells a lot, course Ferb shows it too, but he's different at the same time.
But Phineas, back home, he's always shown such a carefree nature, easily trusting and loving everything and everyone, or just about. There were a few he's shown dislike, be it a few gross foods even she would grimace at or enemies such as Mitch.
Yet, she always feared that his naivety would get him into trouble, possibly put him in danger. Fact he has his friends going along for the ride just adds to it. That was one of the reasons she originally wanted to bust them before it became a nasty habit she regrets ever getting.
But the boy is almost a teenager now himself, he'll have to grow up and mature if he ever wants to get taken seriously. The redhead just wished it wasn't like this he'd have to grow up against.
Pulling her eyes away, she now watched Ferb, seeing him silent as ever, albeit a tad clingier, not that she could blame him.
The green haired child though, he's always held an air of maturity far greater than his age shows wherever they are.
He barely says a few words and it's enough to diffuse an argument, people either shocked he spoke or how suave they were to move people.
Lately though, after all that's happened, she's starting to see the little boy he really is, not the young man he makes himself out to be.
She's no fool, hearing, sometimes feeling his tears whenever he'd cling to her in his sleep, Phineas clinging to her as well.
Both were scared, but showed their childish habits, knowing when they slept, they took turns snuggling with their pet. How they did it, she wasn't sure, nor did she really have motivation to ask how they trained him.
Her mind wandered to the teal pet, knowing that despite not doing much, he was devoted to her brothers. He just about followed them everywhere, somehow kept his poisonous claw from ever harming them, sleeps with them so peacefully. He even lets them get away dressing him up or using him as part of their activities, never complaining, simply makes his noise and continues that blank stare.
It almost made her wonder if he was smarter than he looked, knowing that no animal would be that compliant.
At least not without some serious training and far as she knew, he was always like that since they brought him home.
Plus there were times he'd disappear for most of the day, rarely days, though when he did, it'd send the boys into fits.
She wouldn't admit it, at least before this, she wouldn't, but she honestly did miss Perry and would very much love to snuggle him right now as much as the boys do.
She wouldn't be surprised when they get home, the three share a bed for a while as they readjust, Perry flopped on top of the pile.
"What are you thinking about?" Isabella asked, seeing the spacey look on the teenager, knowing she couldn't be thinking of Jeremy. The look was to sad, making her worry for her a bit, the others' attention grabbed as they glanced at their sister.
"Of all things, I was thinking of Perry," she chuckled as she saw looked at the boys, regretting her words as their smiles faded into frowns.
"I miss him," Phineas whispered as he stared at the battered sidewalk.
"I miss him too, but I'm sure he's fine, worrying where we are. And second we get back, he'll be all over you two, heck I wouldn't mind getting platypus slobber if I got caught in the crossfire," the teen laughed, seeing the corners of their mouths twitch.
"I thought you didn't like Perry?" Ferb asked, the small smile never leaving, hearing Phineas snickering at the thought of their sister covered in their pet's drool.
"I don't, but I don't hate him either."
At this, they began talking, the boys sharing some stories about their precious pet, stories the teen didn't even know about.
It was a nice change of pace than worrying about their lives, focusing on something that made them smile and laugh.
It changed however the second they heard a choked sob call out towards them, the group turning to its source.
"Ph-Phineas! Ferb! Candace!"
When turning to the source, they saw the sorriest sight before them.
A young man, possibly not much older than the teenager, red eyes watering with tears as he stared at them. His skin was sickly pale, covered in mud and what looked like blood, hopefully not being the case.
His hair was a beautiful shared of teal, a very familiar shade to the group, seeing what looked like black streaks peppering the locks. But as with the rest of him, they were dirty, matted with fresh mud and what appeared to be more blood.
He wore what appeared to be ragged clothes, something one would see a patient at a hospital would wear.
The outfit was torn and ragged, as if he had climbed through a wire fence to get where he is now.
He carried what looked like a pillow case, it covered in mud, slung over shoulder, though dropped upon seeing them as he fell to his knees in shock.
All in all, he was a terrible mess; the most notable feature about him was the bandages on his arms. They went from his wrists all the way up to his elbows, covered in mud, signs he tried wiping them off, failing horribly.
"Who-who are you?" the redheaded boy stuttered with a bit of fear.
"It's me, Perry."
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