CHAPTER 10- Wow. No one guessed this. I'm stunned. At least, I don't think anyone did. If you did and I missed that, then sorry! You'll get TWO cookies.

Guys, just to make this clear: I'm going in order of episode production, so that means if I have passed a certain episode, I won't be doing it. If you want me to tell you specific reasons why I didn't do one, let me know and I'll get back to you!

To Elizabeth, my guest reviewer: I'm going to try to answer all your questions. Here it goes: No, no, maybe, nope, no, keep watching for that, maybe, no, maybe (most likely), yes, yes, no, not there yet but might do it, and NO. I will definitely not have Jeremy cheat on Candace. Hopefully you can figure out how I just answered everything. Maybe you should make an account….and sorry I couldn't update sooner. I've been loaded with studying.

Anyway, thanks to everyone so far who has reviewed! I don't own Phineas and Ferb!

Perry sighed and followed Candace inside. "That would be the first thing you comment on."

GENERAL POV

Candace scowled and glared at the boys out her window. Oh, they were planning something. She just knew it. They may have just been sitting there with their new goldfish, but they were going to do something eventually. And Candace was prepared for it.

Speaking of prepared…

Candace glanced down at her notepad and scribbled on it. "Should I carry the one? Wait! I know, I divide by Jeremy's face! Now if I add six…oh, crud!"

She yanked her cell phone off the bedside table, pulled her green-tooth (hee hee) from her pocket, and sprinted down the stairs, sliding into the chair next to the kitchen counter.

She stuck the green-tooth into her ear and put her hand on top of the house phone, waiting in anticipation. Her mother walked in a moment later and looked at her in confusion.

"Candace? What are you doing?"

Candace sighed. She should probably take the time to explain. "Waiting for Jeremy to call! You see, last night he said he was going to call soon. So I calculated that soon must mean first thing in the morning since soon can't refer to a period of time in excess of or equal to 24 hours, give or take a 59 minute cushion of time on either side of the event questioned. See? I had it all figured out right here on this notepad. I even showed my math," she said proudly, holding up her notepad. She glanced at it.

Linda frowned. "Uh…"

"Wait!" Candace yelped. "Maybe I should have carried the one instead of dividing by Jeremy's face."

Linda rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm off to my favorite author's book signing. Try not to freak out on your brothers while I'm gone."

Candace scowled as her mother left the room. "Mom, I do not freak- Oh my gosh! The square root of soon is never!"

She sat in stunned silence for a moment, and then pulled out her binoculars to see what her brothers were doing.

They weren't in the backyard.

Candace frowned and planted her hand firmly on the phone. She wasn't moving a muscle.

ON THE BOAT

Phineas clenched the steering wheel tightly in his hands and gritted his teeth. He glanced around, and turned to Ferb.

"HEY! Where's Perry?" he yelled in his brother's ear.

Ferb winced and shrugged, lunging for the wheel as it slipped from Phineas' hands. The boys struggled to get it back into place and Phineas grinned. "Thanks Ferb!"

Ferb nodded and the boys gathered up the rest of the animals needed. Ferb was relieved when they got back to the dock. Of course, as soon as they did, the clouds went away and the skies turned bright blue.

Phineas glanced at Ferb and cracked a smile as they guided the delivery man to their house.

"Ok," Phineas said, hopping out and moving around behind the truck when they reached their driveway. He waved his arms. "Back it up, back it up! Ok, stop! Ferb! Press the button!" he hollered.

Ferb pressed the button labeled "DUMP." A loud beeping was heard as the animals were dumped into the tank with Goldie.

Ferb nodded to the man in the truck and hopped out, going into the backyard as the truck disappeared down the street.

Phineas smiled in satisfaction. "Well Goldie, how do you like your new friends?"

There was a pause, and then Phineas' eyes widened as an orca snatched Goldie up in its mouth. "NOOO!" he shrieked.

Phineas and Ferb stepped back in surprise as the orca squirted Goldie back out through its blowhole. Ferb caught her gently and placed Goldie back into the aquarium, glancing over at Phineas as he did so.

"That was cool enough to be in one of those trained marine animal shows," the boy commented thoughtfully. "Hmmm….Ferb, I know what else we're going to do today!"

FIVE MINUTES LATER

Phineas grinned and wiped the sweat from his brow. "Wow. I can't believe how fast we ran around town and put up those flyers."

Ferb nodded. "It normally would have taken us a montage."

Phineas shrugged. "Well, Candace called the montage today, so I guess we got lucky. Let's open the gates to the public, my brother!"

Ferb swung open the back gate and moved quickly so that he wouldn't be trampled.

INSIDE

Candace scowled. Well, the montage hadn't helped at all. She glanced out her window and did a double take. "Hey, what's with all these kids?" she wondered.

She darted from the house and sprinted out front, popping her head up over the fence. "That's what I thought," she muttered. "Phineas and Ferb. I've so got them this time."

She yanked out her phone and snapped a picture, but it didn't turn out as well as she wanted it to. Candace sighed, squeezed through the mess of people, and scrambled up the tree.

Candace looked down and gulped slowly. The water was directly under her. If she fell in….

No. She wasn't going to fall in because she was going to hold on tightly. Candace grabbed her phone in one hand and wrapped her other hand around a tree branch, bracing one foot on the trunk.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she heard Phineas say as she leaned out, "welcome to Goldie's Aquias Extravaganza!"

Candace extended her body out over the water, gripping the branch so hard that her knuckles were white.

Of course, it would've been a good idea to pick a sturdier branch.

Candace hit the water with a scream, automatically darting to a corner of the tank and pressing her back to it as her tail formed.

Phineas smiled above surface. "Ladies and gentlemen, our sister Candace!"

There was a moment's pause, and then a man burst into the backyard. Everyone looked over at him. "Hey everyone! The clown at Mr. Slushy Burger is dancing! Come on!"

The crowd erupted into cheers and followed the man out, leaving only Phineas and Ferb in the backyard. Both boys were now worried and leaning over the tank anxiously.

"Where is she, Ferb?" Phineas asked.

Ferb shook his head. Phineas stood up. "Okay, I'm getting freaked out. You took lifeguarding lessons. See if you can find her, and I'll go call 911 just in case."

Phineas leapt off the podium and Ferb kicked off his shoes and pulled off his shirt, dropping them to the grass below. He was about to leap in when Isabella strolled into the backyard.

"Hey Ferb. Whatcha doin?" she asked, taking off her Fireside Girl beret and revealing her bow.

Ferb looked at her, worry creasing his brow. "Candace fell in, and she hasn't come back up. I'm going to find her, and Phineas is calling 911."

Isabella paled and bit her lip. "Ferb…."

Ferb held up a hand and dove in abruptly. Isabella sighed and leaned against the fence. Well, it was only a matter of time before the boys found out.

She stood up in shock and gasped as a shot came out of nowhere and iced the aquarium over completely. Isabella put her hand on it. Frozen on the outside, not the inside. Candace would be fine, but Ferb….

Isabella winced and frowned, racking her mind for options. The sun wouldn't melt it fast enough. But the harbor was only three and a half blocks away.…

Isabella gulped and shoved the iced aquarium as hard as she could. She watched it slide away and hoped it would be fast enough. Then she wondered what the heck to tell Phineas about where the aquarium had gone.

Ferb felt his lungs burning and his eyes watering, which he didn't even know was possible when underwater. He headed for the surface, stopping short when he realized with horror that it was iced over.

If he could have, he would have gulped. Instead, he pounded his fists against the surface, hoping they might break through.

Candace glanced up at the sound of pounding moving through the water, but she shook it off as one of the animals.

How the heck does a giant aquarium freeze over?

Candace sat straight up, her entire body going rigid. Dear God, that was Ferb. The tank was iced?

Ferb? she thought, flicking herself to an upright position.

Ferb struggled to keep his eyes open, but blackness was fuzzy at the edge of his vision. Candace? Where…?

Candace heart's stopped when she heard the silence in her mind, and she moved faster than she had probably ever moved before, scooping Ferb into her arms just as he passed out.

Candace pounded the ice hard with her free arm, and her stomach rolled as she felt the iced aquarium fall. It started melting almost immediately and Candace deduced that they were probably in more water.

She backed up and threw her whole body at the ice, keeping Ferb well out of the way, and she managed to break through, hurtling towards the surface.

She yanked Ferb above water, moving her tail hard to keep him up. Candace looked around frantically, breathing a sigh of relief as she spotted one of those bell things that were put into the water. (Does anyone know what those are called?)

She pushed Ferb onto it quickly and yanked herself up next to him, leaning her head over his mouth and letting her tail dangle into the water. Candace breathed another sigh of relief as warm breath hit her ear. She maneuvered Ferb's head so that it rested on the top half of her tail.

Candace sighed and leaned back. No more denying it. Ferb was going to find out, no matter what she did.

The boy shuddered and started coughing badly, his body's shudders forcing him upwards into a sitting position, and then a kneeling position as he threw up into the harbor. Candace winced and rubbed his back soothingly.

Ferb slowly calmed down and pressed his hands to his head, glancing around. "Where are we?"

"Danville Harbor," Candace said softly. "You ok?"

Ferb nodded and turned around. "I was more worried about…."

He trailed off and his eyes went wide, his face paling to an unnatural color as he took in Candace's tail.

He slumped back and leaned heavily on the bell, staring at his sister in disbelief. Candace glanced down, biting her lip hard enough to draw blood.

Ferb took a few deep breaths and looked at his sister, a rare grin slowly starting on his face. Candace looked up and caught his smile, and she raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Ferb shook his head slowly. "I can't believe you didn't tell us about this," he whispered.

Candace winced. "Sorry. I was going to, but I wasn't sure how to."

"This probably wasn't the ideal way," Ferb commented.

Candace snorted and looked at her brother, and Ferb saw the glimmer of worry in her eyes. He rolled his eyes and wrapped his arms tightly around Candace's shoulders. "Don't worry about it," he said into her ear. "You're my sister. I don't care."

Candace grinned and hugged him back. As she pulled away, she noticed that the boy was shivering violently and his lips were changing colors. She slid back into the water and held a hand out. "Come on. We better get home and hope Phineas hasn't freaked out too much."

Ferb took her hand and leapt into the water alongside Candace. "Ok, hold my shoulders, and I'll swim us back," Candace said, turning her back to Ferb.

Ferb cocked his head slightly and wrapped his fingers around Candace's shoulders, his feet dangling and just brushing her tail.

Candace started swimming back, giving Ferb time to collect his thoughts. His sister was a mermaid. Not many people could say that. Actually, probably no one could. He of course had a million questions, but Ferb figured they could wait until Candace felt more comfortable talking to him.

His feet now brushed sand and he climbed off of Candace and fumbled to shore, turning back and smiling as Candace held out a hand. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her to shore, panting by the time she was all the way up on the sand.

He watched in utter fascination as her tail vanished and she stood, looking like he'd always known her to look….like Candace.

Candace rolled her eyes and started for the street. Ferb ran and caught up alongside her, warming up now that he was back in the sun.

"Isabella knows, doesn't she?" he whispered.

Candace looked at him in surprise. "Well, yeah. How'd you-? Never mind, actually."

Ferb smiled briefly and jammed his hands into his now soaked pockets. "Why didn't you tell us?" he finally asked.

Candace sighed. "Ferb, I wanted to, believe me. But it's…it's so hard to explain. I just couldn't, you know?"

Ferb gave a small smile and nodded. "Will you tell Phineas now?"

Candace chewed on her lip. "You're going to hate me, but no. No I'm not. And it's not because I don't want him to know. It's because…well, you know how mad he gets when he's left out of secrets. I just can't right now. If there's ever a time I need to, then I will. But not until then."

Ferb sighed. Candace was right. He was mad. But it was her secret, and if she didn't want to tell Phineas yet, then he would respect that. He wouldn't like it, but he would respect it.

They turned the corner and gasped. Squad cars were lined up and down the block, and a hysterical Phineas was talking to one of the cops.

"Yeesh, Phineas," Candace muttered. She and Ferb broke into a sprint for their house.

Thirty minutes later, she and Ferb had convinced everyone that they were fine, and the yard was finally back to normal, with only Phineas and Isabella left in the yard looking at them.

"I'm so glad you guys are ok," Phineas said for probably the fifteenth time.

Candace nodded. "I'm glad we're ok, too. I have no idea how we ended up in the harbor, though."

Phineas shrugged, and then blinked. "The harbor? Come on Ferb!" he cried, grabbing his brother's hand and pulling him into the backyard.

Isabella looked at Candace. "He found out, didn't he?"

Candace sighed and nodded, sitting down on the curb. Isabella sat next to her. "It wasn't so bad, was it?"

Candace shook her head. "No. He took it fine."

Isabella raised her eyebrows and Candace sighed. "But I'm still not telling Phineas, Isabella."

The girl scowled. "Candace, come on!"

Candace shook her head. "Please, Isabella. This is my secret to tell. I want to tell him, but only when I really need to."

Isabella scowled even more. "Fine. Whatever."

She stood and stomped across the street to her house. Candace sighed and put her head in her hands. "Great," she muttered.

"You ok?"

She glanced up and looked at Perry, giving a tense smile. "Yeah, Isabella's just annoyed that I won't tell Phineas after Ferb found out."

Perry's eyes widened. "Ferb found out?

Candace nodded. "Yeah. Frankly, I'm a little relieved."

Perry cocked an eyebrow. "He took it well then?"

She chuckled. "If you can call going as white as a ghost taking it well, then yes. I'm just worried Isabella will tell Phineas out of anger."

Perry shook his head. "She wouldn't do that. She's a sensible girl. And you know Ferb won't say a word."

Candace smiled. "Yeah. Hey, they're probably looking for you back there," she said, jutting a thumb over her shoulder.

Perry turned and walked slowly to the backyard, taking his sweet old time, and a shadow fell on Candace. The teen glanced up to see Isabella in front of her again, hands twisting in front of her. "I'm sorry, Candace," she said softly. "I was just annoyed."

Candace shrugged. "It's ok. I know where you're coming from. And I know it isn't fair. But…it sounds crazy, but I'd rather Phineas have to find out then someone telling him."

Isabella nodded. "Ok. I just wanted to make sure you weren't angry with me."

Candace rapidly shook her head. "No, of course not. And if it'll make you feel better, you can answer all of Ferb's questions."

Isabella's eyes brightened. "Really? Thanks Candace!"

Candace chuckled and watched her dart back to her house. She leaned back on the curb. In reality, she actually didn't want to answer Ferb's questions until she got more used to the idea that he knew. It would be better if she didn't have to explain to him.

She glanced towards the backyard and stood, walking towards it. She got to the gate in time to hear Phineas say, "Oh, there you are Perry; we were just talking about you!"

Ferb glanced up, caught her eye, and gave her the smallest of smiles.

This is most definitely one of my favorite chapters. Yes, I referenced SpongeBob with the Slushy Burger bit. I don't own that show. I swear.

Leave a guess to my next chapter!

And R and R!