Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, my friends. I have repeatedly been sucked into reading other fanfictions, and it took a while for me to get back to writing them. Anyway, here's a nice long chapter for you. Please review! I love hearing what you guys think, good and bad!

Having had plenty of experience with haunted houses and their lame tricks, I thought Phineas and Ferb could do much, much better. So, I had them build a haunted house good enough to terrify our local heroine, Isabella. Nothing scares her. Except this, a living horror movie. Enjoy! :D

Disclaimer: If I owned Phineas and Ferb, I'd make Mayor Doofenshmirtz lose for once, just because he's obnoxiously perfect.


Phineas' PoV

I waved as an energetic Baljeet climbed out of Buford's shirt.

"Hey dinner bell! Whatcha doin?" Buford shouted, mockingly tilting his head.

"Uh, hello?!" Isabella waved from her spot on the log flume. I laughed, and lowered the lift from the top of the Ferris wheel.

"Just building the greatest amusement park ever!" I replied, "We're pretty much done with the construction, but you can help with the test runs! Where do you want to start?"

Baljeet nearly exploded with excitement, "OOOH the haunted house! The haunted house! Maybe if I go on it before, so I know what is going to happen, I can prevent myself from being scared when I go on it again later!"

"Sounds like two wet pairs of pants to me," Buford remarked.

"You will see, Buford! This time, I am going to be the unfrightenable one!"

I laughed and answered, "Sounds good! Ferb, would you mind running this one?"

Ferb peeked his head out from behind the gate to the IMAX theatre, giving me a thumbs up.

"Okay then, let's get started!"

We all headed down the main path to the ominous building next to the carousel. Isabella caught up to me, resting a hand on my shoulder, "Is this like the last one?"

"Oh, no. We used some special effects tricks we learned from Clive Addison, and we borrowed some stuff from Russel's family too, so it's much much scarier."

Isabella went white, like she had already seen one of our holographic ghosts. I guess she must've thought the last one was really scary if she was terrified already. A familiar, protective flame lit up inside me, like it always did when she was distressed.

I gave her a reassuring look, "It'll be alright. You can ride with me, if it'll make you feel better."

She smiled, "Thank you, Phineas!"

"But I wanted to ride with-" Baljeet started. Isabella glared at him, and his mouth clicked shut. Why'd she glare at him? I thought. Oh well, it's probably not a big deal.

We followed the queue line ropes up to then entrance and climbed over the passenger counter to avoid messing up the day's total. Ferb climbed the stairs into the operator's room and gave me the go signal. I led the gang over to the loading station. The cars were designed like black buggies, with plush velvet seating and wispy, almost spiderweb-looking engravings. A spindly black lap bar stood upright, waiting to trap it's victims in the cozy, ghoulish vehicle.

"Hey, don't these things have a section where you have to walk?" Buford said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, normally," I replied, "But last time we did that Candace got lost inside for a while, so we figured this time better safe than sorry."

Buford was silent for a second, then shrugged, "Fair enough."

I climbed in to the first car and helped Isabella in after me. Baljeet clambered into the car behind us. We heard a squeal as Buford climbed in after and sat down on top of him.

"Buford! Get off of me!" he shrieked, waving his hands frantically.

"Why should I, nerd?" he replied, folding his arms.

"Because I am going to suffocate!"

"So?"

"SO? I will be DEAD, you idiot!"

Buford laughed and slid off of him. I chuckled and signaled to Ferb to start. He gave me a thumbs up. The lap bar came down, stopping just high enough we could move around, but just low enough we wouldn't be able to get out.

"Okay guys, you know the drill," Ferb said over the intercom, "Hands and feet inside the ride, don't stand up, blah blah blah, here we go!" The car lurched forward, and began to crawl it's way into a dark tunnel.

"Phineas?" a tiny voice asked.

"Yeah?" I replied, turning toward Isabella.

"You built this, right?" she squeaked.

"No, Ferb built most of it," I replied, "so it'll definitely be cool."

She let out a pitiful cheep. I reached over and took her hand.

"Don't worry, Isabella," I said, squeezing it lightly, "I'm right here, and Ferb's got the controls. Plus, being scared is fun! That's the point of a haunted house, right?"

She smiled nervously and nodded. I squeezed her hand again as we slipped into total blackness.

An eerie laugh echoed through the tunnel. A broken, slowed version of Polly Wolly Doodle plinked through the darkness, a ticking clock getting louder and slower. A scene ahead began to turn an unsettling green, lighting a small music box resting on a stool. The handle turned, clicking spookily. It came to a stop.

Isabella's breath caught, her hand tightly gripping mine. The car pulled closer to the scene, the high, childlike laugh echoing through the tunnel again. Suddenly, the music box popped open, and a ghostly face filled my vision.

My muscles tensed instinctively, the jolt bringing a smile to my lips. Isabella shrieked, throwing her arms around me and burying her face in my shirt. I wanted so hard to laugh. I didn't think it was all that scary, only startling. But then, I knew how it worked. It just wouldn't be right to laugh at her.

I could feel her heart pounding as she clung to me, racing from the bolt of adrenaline. I smiled to myself and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She stopped shaking in surprise, and pulled away from my shirt, her expression going from confusion to delight. And then, her heartbeat got even faster. What is it getting faster for? I thought. Shouldn't it slow down?

Another face flashed across the tunnel. Isabella squeaked and buried her face into my shirt again. I smirked as the ride continued along. Creepy scenes of murders and zombies passed, each with a sudden shock that forced a shriek from Isabella, or a scream from Baljeet followed by laughter from Buford. Soon, the scenes stopped, and we were left in darkness again.

I strained to see further, but found nothing. Isabella still had her face buried in my shirt, her arms wrapped tightly around my neck. But, as nothing came, she slowly pulled herself away, peering into the darkness.

Several minutes passed, and my heart began to pound. That couldn't be it. There has to be something else, I thought. I could feel Isabella's heartbeat pick up as she nervously searched the dark. Fear gripped my lungs, making it hard to breathe. C'mon, Ferb, what've you planned? I could almost hear him cackling as he watched us from his control room. Come on, dude, what did you do? Suddenly, the car came to a stop.

Ferb's voice came through some speakers in the car, "Sorry, guys, technical difficulties. Something's jammed the chain in the track. I'll try to get you started again soon. Hang tight." It clicked off.

"Aw come on!" Buford shouted, "It was just starting to get good! This totally killed the mood." Baljeet gave a sarcastic reply, and argument broke out between them. I simply shook my head, chuckling to myself.

I felt Isabella shift, her movement filled with unease. "What do you think happened?" she asked.

"Probably just a loose bolt or something," I replied, trying to sound more sure than I was, "Probably not a big deal. He'll have it fixed soon."

"What if it's not just a loose bolt?," she answered tensely, "What if something else broke?" Her voice began to waver. I could tell she was really starting to panic. "What if he can't find what's wrong? What if he can't fix it? What if..." To my surprise, she began to cry.

The little flame inside me flared up, turning into a bonfire. An overwhelming desire to help flooded my being. I'd never felt it so strongly before. But what could I do? The only other time I'd seen her cry was on that deserted island when we flew around the world, and I had been just as stressed as she had. She continued to cry, what ifs sputtering out in wet sobs. The bonfire turned into an inferno. I couldn't... I couldn't take it anymore.

I wrapped my arms around her shoulders, holding her to my chest. She buried her face into my shirt again, her tears soaking into the fabric.

"Shhh..." I whispered, "It's okay. Everything is going to be fine. If I know anything about my brother, it's that he can fix anything. We'll be out of here in no time."

She melted into me, shuddering. Her heart raced a million miles a second, but it began to slow.

"I'm s-sorry, Phineas," she sputtered, "I just- the ride was really scary an-and- I guess I just got paranoid-"

"What are you apologizing for?" I replied, "You haven't done anything wrong."

She sniffled, then continued, "I- I thought you would think I was stupid for being s-scared..."

That made me angry. Not at her, of course. But, Isabella? Stupid? I could never think that! She was the smartest girl I knew, and certainly the bravest. If all this ride did was make her paranoid, who knows what it would do to another girl? I'll have to talk to Ferb about that...

I hugged her tighter, "Isabella, there is nothing in this universe that could make me think you were stupid. All that your paranoia means is that the ride did its job. It is a horror ride, after all."

She choked on a laugh, "Yeah, I guess so."

What felt like hours passed, and still the cars didn't move. Isabella's shudders turned to deep breaths, and tears stopped wetting my shirt. I could feel her heart beating quickly, her warm breath softly hitting my chest.

Then, something changed.

All at once, a fuzzy, tingly feeling shot across my skin. I was suddenly, shockingly aware of everything I touched. The plush velvet of the seat beneath me. The rough denim of my shorts. The loose, soft cotton of my shirt. The cool, crisp air of the tunnel. And Isabella. Wildfire danced across my skin where she touched. Her leg pressed to my leg. Her delicate shoulders in my arms. Her front against mine. Her head on my shoulder, hair tumbling down across my arm. Her soft hands against my chest... What is this? I thought. I'd never felt like this before. I'd hugged her before. What was different? It was like nothing I'd ever experienced. I didn't want it to end. Why do I feel like this? What is going on?

Isabella shifted slightly, and I was brought back to the present. I pushed her away just slightly, sadly relinquishing some of the wildfire. Focus, Phineas, I told myself, whatever that was, it doesn't matter now. Isabella had just broken down, in front of me, and was probably a bit nervous still.

"Better?" I asked.

She sniffled, "Yeah."

"Good," I smiled.

We sat for a while longer, so long that Baljeet and Buford's argument died down to quiet. Ferb had shut off all of the sound effects, leaving us in total silence. Although, I wasn't sure which was worse. The sound effects were nerve-wracking, but this silence was just eerie. It didn't help that it was completely dark. I couldn't even see Isabella's eyes, and you could almost always see people's eyes in the dark.

"Phineas?" she said. She flinched slightly at the sound of her own voice echoing down the tunnel.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"I-I'm still sort of scared," she stuttered, almost nervously, "Would you... maybe..."

"What do you need?" I asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. She sighed deeply.

She continued less nervously, "It's really dark. Could you maybe, invent a light or something?"

I thought about it for a second, trying to think of what I had to work with. I reached into my pocket to grab my screwdriver. Instead, I found my brand-new recently-acquired phone.

I pulled it out and flicked it open, grinning, "I don't think I have to."

I saw Isabella grin as I turned it up to the highest setting. She tilted her head up toward me and smiled, batting her eyelashes. Her shiny blue eyes were still red from crying, her hair slightly disheveled.

"B-B-Baljeet..." Buford whispered, "B-Baljeet, look."

We heard Baljeet shift, and then a high pitched scream.

Buford burst out laughing, fist thumping on the side of the car.

"Hahahaha! That was priceless!" he howled.

"BUFORD!" Baljeet shrieked, "That is not funny!"

"What? What happened?" I asked, leaning out the side of the car, trying to see the two of them.

"You, dinner bell! The shadow of your h-hair looked like a giant h-hairy spider!" he gasped, laughing so hard he couldn't breathe. I turned to look up at the ceiling, and indeed, a silhouette of a giant spider bobbed around as I moved my head. I laughed, too. I heard Isabella giggle behind me, and then, a familiar, British chuckle. I whipped around.

"Ferb?!" I shouted happily. Ferb gave me a thumbs up and pulled out a remote. He clicked a button, and the lap bar went up. I leapt out of the car and helped Isabella out as well. Baljeet started to climb out of theirs too. Buford stood up, shoved him off, and jumped down onto the track. Baljeet rubbed his head and got to his feet.

"What are you doing in here, Ferb?" I asked, "I thought you were just going to fix the chain so we could ride the rest of the way."

Ferb took off his watch and handed it to me. 12:00! We'd been stuck inside for nearly an hour and a half! Ferb nodded in response to my shocked look, then walked over to the wall of the tunnel. He pressed a button on the remote, and it slid open, pouring light onto the track.

"You'd still have ten more minutes of terror in the dark if you rode it out. I figured you'd rather not." he said, eying Isabella. She smiled gratefully, and we followed him out the door.

"So what, you couldn't fix it?" Buford scoffed. Ferb wobbled his hand, tilting his wrist.

"What happened then?" Baljeet asked. Ferb pulled out a receipt from his pocket and handed it to him.

"You had to buy a new chain?" Baljeet said incredulously, "That must've been some jam!"

Ferb grabbed an imaginary chain and pulled it apart.

"Whoa, dude," I said, laughing slightly, "Guess the haunted house is out of commission for a while."