Three rewritten chapters in one day. I'm on a roll people.
Perry: You had us waiting pretty long for just one of those, you know. (crosses his arms)
Yeah, sorry, school and all that, you know.
Perry: I don't actually.
Oh forget it you. The Readers know and that's what matters.
Perry: (raises an eyebrow) If you say so. Phineas and Ferb doesn't belong to Night, R&R please.
A shadowy figure crouched high between the branches of a tall oak-tree, eyes narrowed while it watched the proceedings on the grounds of DV-Junior High. The group of Agents spread out quickly and with practised ease, soon leaving no blind-spots for anyone to use to sneak in. Still, the figure let out an unconcerned chuckle. A snort came from behind it and it turned slightly. A second figure appeared and gazed down at the Agents. It snorted again and muttered: "Idiots, do they really think this is going to stop us from doing our job?" "Well they are just doing theirs", answered the first figure with a shrug. "No matter, that school won't stand much longer…are those-?" "Members of a bomb-squad. We have to be more careful this time it seems. If they discover the bomb too soon." "It'll be fine", argued the second figure and dropped down a few branches. "C'mon, let's get this done." The first figure shot one last look at the school, trying to remember where the Agents were positioned, before it also started jumping down the branches. It grabbed a satchel from between the roots and then the two set off. They had a job to do and no one would stop them from finishing it.
A good hour had passed already since Pinky had taken his position on the roof of DV-Junior High. He was positioned in a northern direction, just where a small copse met the school-grounds. Two more Agents, Herman and Wendy were in position on the ground, overlooking the same space Pinky did while Harper circled overhead. Roger and Tanya were within the school, checking it through. The rat's senses were great for tracking down explosive chemicals.
Till now they didn't seem to have found anything.
Static crackled in Pinky's ear for a second before Elisa's voice filtered through the Chihuahua's earpiece. "Pinky, Wendy, Herman, status report."
"Nothing yet from my position", answered Pinky.
"I don't have anything either", added Herman.
Wendy ended with a: "Nope…wait!"
Everyone tensed. "What?"
"There's something near the trees!"
Pinky focused his eyes there and they widened when he saw a shadow darting between them. "She's right, there's something or someone near the edge of the copse", exclaimed the Chihuahua.
What none of them realised, while everyone's attention had moved to the shadowy figure, a second figure burst from a few bushes surprisingly near to the school and quickly sprinted towards the building.
"It's leaving!", shouted Harper after she'd flown over to the trees.
"So we're done?", asked Connor.
"Don't be ridiculous", rang Roger's snarl through now. "And keep your attention on your surroundings. That could've been a distraction."
"But no one moved from their positions, aside of Harper and she was meant to", argued Wendy.
"Nonetheless we aren't done yet. Roger is right. Stay alert. Maybe it'll come back", ordered Elisa before an argument could start. They continued to observe in silence, when suddenly a strange noise had Pinky wince. It stopped soon enough, only to start up again.
"What the-", muttered the Chihuahua.
"What is it Pinky?", asked Leon worriedly.
"I-I'm hearing something", answered the Chihuahua. His ears twisted back and forth, trying to detect where the noise came from. "But…I'm not sure what it is…" His ears tipped to the right and he winced again when the noise was louder now. He dared casting a glance there and found himself looking at the ventilation-shaft. "It seems to come from the ventilation-system…Elisa?", asked the Chihuahua.
There was no answer for a few seconds, then the eagle's voice came through the earpiece once more. "Harper you take Pinky's position. Pinky check this out but give us a signal every minute."
"Roger that", answered the Chihuahua and turned to face the shaft fully.
With a swift kick the cover came off and Pinky winced when that alone increased the noise. It was high, very high, high enough that there is a chance no one but a dog could hear it, at least clearly. He glanced back, to find Harper landing where he'd stood previously, and then jumped into the shaft. It went straight forward for about a meter, then straight down. Raising his arms, Pinky set a silent alarm on his watch, making sure it would vibrate once every minute, before he stated: "I'm going in now."
"Be careful", answered Elisa.
Pinky nodded, although he knew the eagle wouldn't know it, and leaped forward. He fell for a while, using his ears to their best ability. Thrusting his arms out at the estimated last second, the Chihuahua caught the sides of the shaft and slid the last meter down. Once down there he activated the flashlight in his watch and tilted his ears in the each of the three directions the system led. The noise came from the shaft on the far left, so Pinky fell on all four and crawled forward, ears perked to catch every kind of noise.
After a while his watch vibrated shortly and he softly stated: "Checking in."
"Roger", answered Elisa. Pinky could hear annoyed grumbling through the connection and bit back a chuckle when he recognized a certain rat. The expression "Roger" had to suck when it was your name.
Pinky moved further and further down and soon he was sure he was in the cellar of the school. The noise got louder with every meter he moved forward and soon Pinky could identify it clearly. And what he identified sent a cold shudder down his back. Oh please let me wrong, let it be some sort of alarm the janitor forgot to turn off, please, pleaded the Chihuahua to whichever deity was willing to listen to him right now. Soon enough the noise was almost deafening to his sensitive ears and he pressed them tightly against his head. He continued crawling forward though, when he hesitated.
It's getting quieter again, realised the Chihuahua and turned around. Soon enough he found a lid where the noise was quite loud again and quickly he kicked it off. Skilfully he dropped into the room the hallway and turned his flashlight this way and that. He gulped at what he read.
Chemistry-Lab 1, Chemistry-Lab 2, Chemistry Storage, Generator room, good grief! He located the noise quickly enough and started picking the lock of Chemistry-Lab 2. The door swung open and Pinky ran in, to freeze before he barked out a string of curses in Mexican.
"Pinky?!", asked Elisa.
"Guys…we need to evacuate this place, NOW!", shrieked the Chihuahua and started to run.
"Why?", asked Leon.
"They got past us. There's a massive bomb in one fo the Chemistry Labs, right next to the Chemistry Storage. And the timer's down to one minute!", cried the Chihuahua while he started rushing up the stairs. Over the earpiece he heard Elisa shouting for everyone to run. Pinky reached the ground-floor and looked left and right.
Damn, which way is the way out?! Muttering a few more curses under his breath, the Chihuahua chose a random direction and started to run. Panic started to really set in when the Chihuahua suddenly found himself at a dead end. He turned around immediately and set off in another direction. Pinky was running out of time, and he knew it. His watch vibrated once more and Pinky's heart leaped into his throat. It had vibrated the last time shortly before he'd found the bomb. That meant the minute was almost up.
That's it then, thought the Chihuahua. He didn't stop running but…I'm gonna die today. And in an explosion of all things. Well, at least I managed to get everyone else to safety quickly enough. Still, there was a lot I still wanted to do. And…oh Isa. Pinky shook his head, hoping to dispel the tears that had gathered at the thought of never seeing his beloved owner again. And there was still no exit in sight.
Growing desperate Pinky started pulling on the lockers, hoping that he may get lucky and survive the explosion by hiding in one. They wouldn't budge. "Dammit!", growled the dog.
"Pinky where are you?!", sounded Darren's voice through his earpiece. The Chihuahua didn't answer. He couldn't, he wouldn't put his friends through the knowledge that he wouldn't be able to get out of the school in time. They'd figure it out by themselves soon enough.
That was it then I guess, thought the Chihuahua and closed his eyes, head resting against the door of a locker. Suddenly someone grabbed his shoulder. Instincts kicked in and Pinky tried to turn, to fight whoever it was off, but a second arm wrapped around his other arm and the owner of the arms started to drag him away. Pinky did his best to try and struggle away, but whoever it was didn't budge.
"What are you doing? Who are you?", exclaimed the Chihuahua. He got now answer. Growling the Chihuahua was just about to bite into the figures arm when the scent of grass hit him. Wait a second, grass means outside. And that meant…this guy was…saving him. Whoever this was, they tried to save Pinky's life. The Chihuahua stopped his struggling and started to somewhat run with his rescuer.
They came forward quicker now and burst out the doors together. The figure's grip on him changed and then the Chihuahua felt himself sailing through the air, before he hit the grass, back first, the breath knocked out of him. His rescuer landed on top of him just when the school exploded behind them.
With his rescuer on top of him, Pinky was shielded from the heat and the debris of the explosion, though he did have to close his eyes to not be blinded by the light. The other wasn't so lucky and the Chihuahua heard a few pained grunts from the figure above him. Smoke rolled over the two and Pinky held his breath quickly. Finally the heat and noise died down and Pinky dared to crack his eyes open.
His surroundings were mostly grey from smoke, but it started to thin out slowly. After a few more seconds Pinky dared to try and breathe in again. The air was still filled with smoke, but he would be fine as long as took only shallow breath. The ringing in his ears needed a little longer to fade away, but when it did he finally realised that his rescuer was calling out to him, coughing ever so often.
"-inky! Pinky can"-cough-"you hear me?!"-cough-"Are you"-cough-"alright? Pinky answer!"
The Chihuahua's eyes widened at the familiar voice and blue eyes focused on concerned bright red ones. "Perry?", croaked the small dog out in shock, his words turning into coughs as well. The platypus' beak curled into a soft smile, before he found himself pulled down and against this friend, who was sobbing into his shoulder by now.
"Pinky?", asked the platypus.
"I-I'm sorry", chocked the Chihuahua out. "B-but I-I missed you so…much."
Perry let a familiar purr rumble in his chest before he answered: "I missed you as well Pinky." He allowed Pinky to cling to him a little longer, before he carefully removed the Chihuahua from his person and got up. He brushed some ashes from his by now greyish-green fur, then turned his back to the Chihuahua. "See you around."
"Wait!", cried Pinky out, a new coughing fit erupting soon enough. "Where…what…where are you going?"
"I still am suspended Pinky", answered Perry softly, his eyes becoming sad. "I shouldn't be here." He locked eyes with the Chihuahua. "Please Pinky, don't tell anyone you saw me here? The boys and Candace maybe, just so they know I'm alright, but no one else. Can you do this for me?" All Pinky managed was a numb nod and Perry gave him another smile, this one pained. "See you around", whispered the platypus again, before he ran off, quickly disappearing in the smog.
All Pinky could do for the next few minutes was stare after his closest friend, wondering if he'd really been there and this hadn't been the Chihuahua's imagination. Finally though, when another bout of coughs hit the small Agent, Pinky had to get up.
He staggered to his legs and glanced around. He still saw fires burning in the remainders of the school and his heart twisted painfully when he realised they'd failed and that he could've died within this wreckage if Perry hadn't saved him. Turning away from the school, Pinky stumbled forward. He hissed when he moved his arm and a spasm of pain shot through him. He must've landed wrong and now something was out of place.
Gritting his teeth Pinky grabbed his injured arm and continued his way through the smoke, hoping to spot someone familiar. "There he is!"
He looked up at the shout, to see Elisa circle once overhead, before the eagle dived down to him, relief openly displayed on her face. The eagle landed gracefully and exclaimed: "Thank goodness. We were so worried about you. We thought you didn't make it!"
Pinky gave a tired smile at that and answered: "I…somehow managed to get out just in time…but the explosion…left my ears ringing for quite some time…also knocked me hard into the ground…I think my shoulder or something is dislocated." He coughed a few times. "Took-took a while before I could get up and look for you."
Elisa nodded at that answer, then asked: "Why didn't you answer our calls though?"
Pinky blinked at that, then flicked his ears and frowned. Now that she mentioned it, the familiar weight of his earpiece wasn't there. "Must've lost the earpiece somewhere along the way", muttered the Chihuahua to himself, but Elisa heard him anyway.
She looked doubtful, but didn't question him. Pinky was thankful for that, because a horrible thought had just come to him. He knew Perry wanted to remain hidden, but would he really…
No, thought the small dog. Perry wouldn't do that. What would he need my earpiece for anyway. Just to remain hidden? Why would he need to? Even if the others had heard him, they wouldn't have given him away to Monogram. Yes, the Chihuahua nodded to himself.
There was no reason for Perry to take his earpiece from him. He must've lost it somewhere.
"Climb on." Elisa's voice cut through his thoughts. "You've been through a lot today and need some rest. Let me carry you back." The Chihuahua nodded gratefully and climbed onto the eagles back. Elisa took of smoothly and soon enough they left the smouldering remains of the school behind.
In a tall oak-tree an ash-covered teal-furred animal watched with sad-eyes how Pinky climbed onto Elisa's back before the eagle took off and took the Chihuahua away. Perry sighed deeply, eyes flashing in the bright red that was normally reserved for when he was enraged, but now they only held exhaustion, pain and regret.
"I'm sorry Pinky", whispered the platypus and glanced down at his hand. He opened his fist, revealing a crushed earpiece within. He'd snatched it off the Chihuahua before he'd even started dragging his old friend out of the school. "I'm so very sorry, but this is the only way. Your better off not knowing."
He cast one last glance back at what once was his owners' school, then shook his head and took off over the trees.
Perry: Night...
Pinky: Perry? What exactly was that all about?
Perry: Don't ask, just don't! I have an idea and I don't like it at all. Ask Night if you have to ask someone.
Phineas: Come to speak about her. Where is she?
Perry and Pinky: (shrug)
Phineas: (shouts) NIGHT?! WHERE ARE YOU?
(hear a thud and yelp from another room)
(Icome in while rubbing my head) The hell Phineas! I was trying to get a book from the highest shelf! Thanks a lot!
Phineas: (sweatdrops) Sorry.
Oh forget it! (walks off again)
Perry: Well that helped.
Pinky: As if you did anything.