All right, guys. Here we are. The final part of Just A Breath Away from Perfect. I've really enjoyed writing this, and I hope you've enjoyed reading it.

Thanks so much to Galaxina-the-Seedrian and Rebb R-001 for reviewing the last chapters. Thanks to Marie as well for reviewing. Thank you guys.

I'm thinking of posting a few one-shots set in the same 'verse as this story, but idk. What do you guys think? Drop me a review or a PM and let me know ;)

You know you love me, IzzytheGreat14

/\0/\0/\0/\

18 MONTHS LATER

Marie and Thomas were sitting at the kitchen table doing homework the day Isabella returned.

Phineas was upstairs, finishing up a project in his office/lab. He didn't hear the knock on the door.

Marie sighed, glancing at Thomas.

"Probably another neighbor wanting to introduce themselves," she sighed. "I'll get it."

She rose, leaving Thomas staring at her back.

"Yes," Marie said as she swung the door open, not paying attention to who was standing on the other side, "this is the Flynn residence, home of the once-legendary Phineas Flynn. But he's busy and no, I'm not gonna-"

"Marie," a soft voice said.

"Mom?" Marie gasped, looking up.

Isabella smiled and held her arms out, and Marie rushed forward, hugging her mother tightly.

"Hello, sweetheart," Isabella whispered. Thomas appeared in the doorway.

"Mrs Flynn," he said.

"Isabella," the woman corrected. "Mrs Flynn makes me feel so old."

"Are you back for good?" Marie asked, pulling back to look at her mother, who nodded.

"Yes, sweetie. I'm back for good. I've worked through your brother's death as well as I can by myself. How are your classes going? How are you, Marie?"

Marie laughed.

"My classes are going fine, Mom. And I'm doing fine."

"How is your father?" Isabella asked anxiously.

"He's coping," Marie said quietly. "He pushed away his feelings for so long, he's still trying to sort through them all. But I think you'll help."

Isabella smiled gently.

"Okay. Will you go tell Phineas there's someone here to see him?"

"Of course," Marie grinned. "Come in, sit down. I'll go get Dad."

/\0/\0/\0/\

Phineas raised his head at the knock on his office door.

"Marie, I'm busy," he called.

"Dad, there's someone here to see you."

Phineas sighed.

"Marie, I can't-"

"I think you're gonna wanna see this one," Marie said, and Phineas sighed again.

"All right, Marie," he said, getting up, "but if it's not important, I'm going to be very upset."

When he opened the door, Marie grinned and grabbed his hand.

"C'mon," she laughed. "She's waiting."

Phineas blinked in surprise. His daughter hadn't shown this much excitement over anything in years.

He let her drag him down to the living room, where a very familiar woman sat on the couch.

"Isabella?" he breathed, and she grinned, standing.

"Hello, Phineas. Whatcha doin'?"

Phineas let Marie's hand go and rushed forward, sweeping his wife into a hug and off her feet.

She laughed, clinging to him as he whirled her around in a circle before setting her down and kissing her deeply.

"Ew," Marie whispered playfully to Thomas, who had come up behind her. He rolled his eyes at her.

Phineas drew back from Isabella and smiled.

"Hi, honey," she whispered. "I'm home."

/\0/\0/\

That night, Isabella laid in bed next to her husband.

"So…" Phineas said, "what about Jonathan?"

"What about him?" Isabella asked.

"Do you still...see him?"

"No," Isabella smiled. "Not for a while. I've come to terms with his death."

Then her face fell.

"That's not to say that it's easy...I mean, he was our son, and he died, and he shouldn't have…"

"I know," Phineas whispered solemnly. "I know, my love."

"And it was so easily preventable...what I wouldn't give to go back in time and tell the doctors about his intestinal blockage…"

Phineas reached over and pulled Isabella close to him.

"I know, sweetheart. But we might not have had Marie if we hadn't lost Jonathan…"

"I know," Isabella sniffed. "But still…"

"You can cry, sweetheart. You can grieve. It's natural. It's okay," Phineas whispered.

And for the first time in eighteen years, Isabella broke down and sobbed for her son. She wailed and cried out, and Phineas held her, and together, they began the long road to fixing what was left of their hearts.

In his bedroom, Jonathan smiled and faded away for the last time.

/\0/\0/\0/\

It would never be easy, both of them knew. Life never is. You have to fight and struggle and never give up. But Phineas and Isabella both knew that they were stronger together, and no matter what happened next, they would always have each other.

They cleaned out his bedroom over the next month or so with Marie, sharing stories and memories, slowly letting him go for good. They converted it into a guest room. Marie helped repaint the room, and the three Flynns got into a paint fight, laughing like they were all kids again.

Isabella and Phineas sat in the front row as Marie graduated with honors, and they cheered the loudest of all the parents. They took her out to dinner afterwards and told her that no matter what she chose to do with her life they'd support her. When they heard that she had, in fact, been admitted to Yale on an academic scholarship, Phineas ordered the fanciest dessert the restaurant had, and Isabella told Marie that they would pay for her housing and books.

Phineas and Isabella helped Marie move, and she hugged them both goodbye. They waved and headed off to catch their flight back home.

/\0/\0/\0/\

Even in the darkest times, there is always light. Sometimes you can't see it yourself. Sometimes you need someone to fight with you, or for you, or even just next to you. Sometimes, the remedies you try work, and sometimes they don't. But either way, life is worth living. You just have to find one reason, one thing to cling onto, one thing to keep you going.

In times of trouble and grief, Phineas and Isabella, and Thomas and Marie, clung to each other. They let themselves hurt, knowing that sometimes, you have to hurt to heal. Covering a wound and then ignoring it doesn't help. And in times of light, they held each other even closer, knowing that their love would be strong enough to face whatever obstacles came their way.

Years passed. Marie graduated Yale with a degree in architecture and moved back to Danville. Phineas and Isabella built her a house across the street from where they lived.

Thomas and Marie married and had children. Phineas and Ferb grew to be best friends again, and Vanessa and Isabella hit it off spectacularly. More often than not, Phineas, Ferb, and their wives were together, smiling and talking, watching their grandchildren play in the yard.

Phineas and Isabella adored their grandchildren, and even though sometimes Isabella cried in the night for the children her son would never have, she knew that what she had with her daughter and grandchildren didn't need to be compared to what she might have had with her son and his children.

And if Marie's children had a special guardian angel in their Uncle Jonathan, well...who can say for sure?