CHAPTER 20 (part one of three) - I'll say this right now: this all occurs before the New Year's episode, to keep it within two summers.

Also, these chapters are super long. Like, seriously long. Like, waaaaay longer than my usual chapters. Really long.

Sorry if I don't update after this, at least for a while. I'll try to get it up, but I get the feeling I'm going to be pounded with homework this week. Ick. I'll try to get the next part up as soon as I can!

Once again….don't own Phineas and Ferb. If I did, they would already be crossing over with Gravity Falls.

Phineas sighed and threw his hands in the air. "I give up."

CANDACE'S POV

"No, Phineas. Absolutely not."

Phineas and Ferb glanced at each other and hurried to catch up to me as I crossed the street to go to Isabella's house, my cell phone clamped in hand.

"Come on, Candace. It's been almost a full two years now. Practically everyone but Mom and Dad know that you're a mermaid. You need to tell them."

I sighed and trudged up Isabella's front steps. In a way, Phineas was right. More people knew then I cared to think about. Phineas, Ferb, Isabella, Buford, Jeremy, Stacy, Perry, Pinky, Carl, Irving…the list was so long.

Before I reached the front stoop, I turned back to the boys, who had their swimsuits on and towels draped over their shoulders. "Phineas, I'd love to tell Mom and Dad. But let's be serious here. Would they actually believe me?"

Phineas hesitated. "Well they would if you showed them."

I shook my head. "Phineas that might actually scare them. I mean, their teenage daughter being a mermaid? That only happens in the movies…or at least, it's supposed to only happen in the movies."

Phineas and Ferb glanced at each other and the quieter of the two just shrugged. Probably telling Phineas that it was my decision. Phineas nodded. "Ok, Candace. But…"

I groaned, my hand an inch from Isabella's door. "But what, Phineas?"

Phineas chewed his lip. "If…if we needed to, could we tell Mom and Dad?"

I frowned and glanced back at him. "Why would you need to?"

Phineas shrugged. "I don't know. Just in case."

After hesitating for a moment, I finally nodded, knowing that the need to tell Mom and Dad would probably never arise. (I love foreshadowing)

The boys and I stepped into Isabella's house, dropped our things onto the table, and headed out back, where Isabella was lounging on a lawn chair, sunglasses perched on her nose.

"Hey Isabella!" Phineas said as we walked down into the backyard.

When the girl didn't respond, he walked over to her and poked her in the shoulder. Isabella responded with a faint snore and I chuckled.

Pinky, who was probably back from his mission, raised his head from the edge of the pool and gave me an impish smile.

I grinned and motioned Phineas back. Raising one hand in the air, a stream of water lifted from the pool. I guided it over to Isabella and dropped my hand, the falling water the equivalent of throwing a bucket of water on her.

Isabella jumped up gasping and when she saw the three of us all laughing, she scowled, her eyes twinkling playfully. "Really, guys?"

In a split second, she darted forward and then both Phineas and Ferb were in the pool. They came up laughing and Isabella turned to me. I raised my hands, grinning. "You sure you want to do that, Is?"

Isabella grinned and shoved me backwards into the pool. I came up waving my hand and a stream of water grabbed her around the waist and pulled her in with us. She surfaced and pushed her hair back, chuckling. "I knew you would do that."

I laughed and for the next hour, the four of us swam around and goofed off. Jeremy stopped by briefly to say hi before he went to work, but other than that no one came over.

After that hour, I was sitting on the edge of the pool, my orange tail dangling in the water and my face turned up to the sun. Phineas, Ferb, and Isabella were still laughing when a wet nose nudged my hand.

I glanced over at Pinky who cocked his head towards the back gate. I paused. As much as I was enjoying sitting here and doing nothing, I needed to stretch, and walking Pinky would probably be a good way to do it.

I yanked myself out of the pool and sat still until my legs came back. My brothers looked up at me curiously. "Where are you going?" Phineas asked.

I motioned to Pinky and slipped my shoes on. "I'm going to take Pinky for a walk, if that's all right with you, Isabella."

Isabella nodded. "That's fine. His leash is inside by the door."

I smiled. "Come on Pinky."

He followed me inside, tongue hanging as I got the leash down. "So," I said, clipping it on more for show then because he would run away, "short mission today?"

Pinky nodded, rolling his eyes. I got the feeling that he didn't take his nemesis very seriously, much like Perry and Dr. D.

We walked out of the house quietly, stepping onto the sidewalk. Pinky pulled me to the left, so I followed and once we were out of sight of the house I unclipped his leash and rolled it up, holding it in my hand and enjoying the beautiful day.

Pinky happily hopped alongside me, not going anywhere, though he did growl every time a cat came near. I laughed. "Yeesh, Pinky, they're just cats."

Pinky made a scoffing sound in his throat, and I wished, not for the first time, that I understood all animals, not just semi-aquatic and aquatic ones.

We turned a corner onto a street that wasn't really familiar to me. I had been down it a few times, but no one I knew lived this way.

A car rolled past us and had gone about fifteen feet when a loud POP! made me jump two feet in the air. It startled Pinky too, and the car pulled up to the curb.

A man got out, wearing sunglasses and a ball cap turned backwards, cursing quietly under his breath as he knelt to examine his damaged tire. He looked familiar.

After hesitating a moment, Pinky and I walked over to him. "Sir, do you need help?" I asked.

The man looked up at me and stood, dusting his jeans off. He pulled off his sunglasses and cocked his head. "No, I'm fine."

I nodded and turned to walk away, Pinky still at my side. A click behind me made me glance back and I paled.

"Get in the car. Now."

The gun pointed at my face couldn't have made me do anything else, but Pinky started growling like there was no tomorrow. He bared his teeth and leapt at the man, but with one swift kick, he was thrown back against a fence behind us, whimpering.

That didn't stop him, though. As the man grabbed my arm and led me towards the car, Pinky got up again and leapt. Before I knew what was happening, the man had wrenched Pinky's leash out of my hand and snapped it at the dog, leaving an angry welt on the Chihuahua.

As Pinky stumbled to his feet yet again and I struggled, the man kicked the lovable dog one more time. Pinky sank to the ground, and I shrieked. The sound was barely out of my mouth before a hand was slapped over it, the gun digging into my side. "Shut up and get in the car."

He shoved me in and as the man drove off in a car that had absolutely nothing wrong with the tire, I realized that I had just been kidnapped in broad daylight, gotten my brothers' friend's dog knocked out, and had no idea where I was going.

A second man, who I hadn't noticed, reached over the seat, and despite my clawing, managed to press a cloth to my mouth.

The world faded to black.

GENERAL POV

Pinky groaned and lifted his head slowly, the world spinning around him. It felt like he had gotten hit by a baseball bat, several times.

The dog sat up slowly and glanced around, trying to recall what had happened. He winced and pressed his fingers to his side, glancing down. A red abrasion was flung on his fur, the side stinging like crazy.

Pinky whipped his head up, suddenly recalling what had happened. He looked around frantically for Candace, but the girl was gone. A quick sniff of the air told him he'd only been out for maybe five minutes.

Pinky got to his feet shakily, his left front paw difficult to walk on. However, he couldn't be seen running through the streets on two legs, so he pushed the leash, which was on the ground, back into the bushes, and started hobbling as quickly as he could back home.

Halfway there, he screeched to a halt. Perry. Duh! He had to tell his friend that Candace was kidnapped.

Pinky gulped and raised his watch to his face. This wouldn't be easy. He pressed a few buttons and Perry's face came on screen. The wind whipping through his fur told Pinky that he was done with his mission and flying home. "Hey, Pinky. What's up?"

Pinky gulped, quivering. "Perry, I'm going to get to the point. I…Candace was kidnapped."

Perry halted in midair, hovering, his face turned to stone. "What?"

"Candace was kidnapped. The man….I recognized him, Perry. He's Isabella's next door neighbor."

Perry growled, an angry, menacing growl that made Pinky's hair stand on end. "Get back home and try to tell the kids without revealing yourself. I'm going to find Candace."

"How?"

Perry gave a small smirk, his eyes blazing with anger. "She agreed to wear a tracking device for me on a necklace after the other dimension incident."

Pinky nodded and shut off his watch, struggling once again to his house. He reached the back gate, very out of breath, and was relieved to find it cracked open. He hobbled inside, whimpering, and Isabella's head immediately shot up.

"Pinky?"

She was out of the pool in seconds and at her dog's side, Phineas and Ferb right behind her. "Oh my gosh, Pinky, who did this to you?" his owner yelped.

"And where's Candace?" Phineas asked, looking at Ferb anxiously.

Isabella moved to pick Pinky up, but the dog backed up and limped to the gate. Isabella quickly followed him and Pinky managed to stay just in front of her. "Isabella, he's leading us and wants us to follow him," Ferb said, hopping on one foot to put his sandal on as Pinky yet again danced out of Isabella's reach.

The girl nodded and the trio of children followed the dog down the street, back to where Candace had been taken. He hopped over to the bushes and pulled out his leash. Isabella took it from him and looked up at Phineas and Ferb, who were deadly pale.

"Candace wouldn't leave Pinky like this, Isabella," Phineas said, his voice filled with hate. "She was taken."

Isabella rapidly shook her head. "No. There's got to be another explanation."

Phineas sighed. "Isabella, think about it. Candace would never do something like this to Pinky," he said, motioning to the injuries on the dog, "and she wouldn't leave him like that unless something bad happened to her. We've got to call for help."

His hand went for his pocket, and he cursed under his breath when he realized that all of them were still wearing their swimsuits, their phones back at Isabella's house. "Come on. We've got to get home and call for help," Phineas said, starting back towards the house with Ferb at his side.

"Why not just go into one of these houses?" Isabella pointed out as she scooped up Pinky and his leash and ran after the brothers.

"If the people in these homes didn't notice Candace getting taken and a dog getting beaten, they're not going to be helpful in this case," Phineas said bitterly.

Isabella followed the inventors silently, looking down at Pinky. She saw the long red abrasion on his fur, and the way his paw dangled limply, the cuts on him, and she realized just what a fight this animal had put up to protect Candace.

A tear trickled down her cheek and Pinky woofed softly, licking her face with his tongue. Isabella gave him a small smile and sped up to catch Phineas and Ferb, who were sprinting to their house. "We have to find Mom and Dad!" Phineas called over his shoulder.

Isabella nodded and slowed as the two burst into the house in front of her. As she followed them inside, she noticed a note taped to the door.

Kids: Your father, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, and I went out for lunch around 12:30. We'll be back in an hour or so. Please don't strangle each other. Love, Mom.

Isabella sighed and put Pinky on the couch. "Guys, our parents aren't here! They went out to eat!"

She glanced at the clock, which read 1:42, and looked up as Phineas and Ferb came in the room, breathless from shouting for their parents. That was how Isabella knew it was serious. Ferb had been yelling, and he never ever yelled.

"Then we'll just call the police," Phineas said firmly.

His hand reached for the phone, but Ferb slapped it away, his eyes wide. "Ferb! What the heck?"

The green haired boy picked up what looked like an index card that had been left on the windowsill by the phone. He handed it to Phineas slowly, and as the boy read it, his face turned sheet white.

"What? What does it say?" Isabella yelped.

Phineas, in a trembling voice, read the note out loud.

We have your sister. Don't call the police, because believe me, we will know. We know everything. About her and what she can do, and we mean to find out how. Don't worry. You'll get her back. Whether or not she'll be in one piece…well, that remains to be seen.

Phineas sank onto the couch, trembling as much as Pinky. Ferb leaned heavily on the couches arm and Isabella buried her face in Pinky's fur. "How…how could they possibly know about Candace?" Isabella whispered.

Phineas shook his head and ran his hands through his hair, looking frantic. "I…I don't know what to do. I don't."

He buried his head in his hands, the card falling to the floor. As freaked out as he was, Ferb leaned over and picked it up. A grim smile crossed his face. "Well, this is helpful," he muttered. "Seems the people who took Candace aren't as clever as they let on," he said, turning around the card to reveal a business address on the other side, along with a name and phone number.

Isabella read the name and gasped. "That's my neighbor!"

Phineas yanked the card from his brother and scowled. "That would explain how he knew about Candace. How secure is your yard, Is?"

Isabella winced. "Not very, but we always tried to be really careful."

She looked down, her eyes hurt and her shoulders shaking. "I guess we weren't careful enough."

Phineas winced. "Aw, Is, I didn't mean it was your fault."

She nodded. "I know, Phineas, but even if it was my neighbor, what are we supposed to do about it? We can't very well charge after him. We are just kids."

Phineas looked pained, and Ferb sank down onto the couch next to the two to contemplate what they were going to do. Before they could do anything, though, the front door opened and Linda and Lawrence walked in holding leftover containers.

"Hey, kids, we're home," Lawrence said cheerfully, before noticing the looks on their faces.

"Kids? What's wrong?" Linda asked, putting down her keys and walking over to the trio. Lawrence glanced around and frowned. "And where's Candace?"

Phineas looked up, his eyes filled with tears. He handed the card to his father and buried his head in his hands. Isabella and Ferb patted his back gently as both parents read the note.

"Boys? What's the meaning of this?" Linda asked, her voice shaking. Pinky whimpered and clambered into her lap, and the woman noticed his injuries for the first time.

The kids looked at each other and Isabella nodded slowly, her eyes rimmed red.

"Mother? Father?" Ferb said softly. The seriousness of his voice made both parents look up and sit down, ready to listen. "We need to tell you something. Something about Candace."

Perry followed the blip on his watch to an old building on the edge of town and touched down on the roof. He ditched the jetpack behind a vent and crawled in through said vent, coming out into a hallway.

He crouched quietly and darted down the corridor carefully, peering around the corner before moving forward again.

He sprinted into an empty room and checked his watch again, trying to figure out how far he was from Candace. She was one floor down. Perry sighed, ran back into the hallway, and heard footsteps. He immediately lost his hat and dropped to all fours as a man, a very familiar man, stepped around the corner.

He smirked when he saw Perry. "Well, well, well."

A cage fell from the ceiling. Perry was trapped.

Candace groaned and sat up, rubbing her temples slowly, brushing her floating hair out of the way. Hang on….floating hair?

Her head jerked up and she gasped, realizing that she was in a tank filled with water, like one you would see at an aquarium.

She flicked her tail gingerly and floated upwards, looking around slowly. As far as tanks went, this one was empty, minus a random chair in the corner that Candace vowed she wouldn't use, no matter what it was actually for. Whether to rest or for some terrible test, she wouldn't use anything her captors provided her.

She glanced around the room outside the tank and saw a large computer like thing in the corner that Ferb probably could have figured out in a split second. There were a few cages along one wall, and a window very high up in the air, but other than that, the room was relatively empty.

"Oh, good, you're up."

Candace swiveled around, trying to place where the voice had come from. She spotted a loud speaker at the top of the tank and when she turned around again her heart leapt into her throat.

A tall man stood just outside the tank, a microphone in hand. He had blond hair that was cut close to his scalp and a single diamond earring in his left ear. He was wearing jeans and a polo shirt with something embroidered across the chest. Candace couldn't make it out because of the water distortion, but it didn't matter. She recognized the man and she slowly started scowling.

Isabella's neighbor, Cody Mitchell.

Cody smiled. "I'm glad you're up. You see, I've been watching you for quite some time when you went to Isabella's house."

Candace gritted her teeth when he said the girl's name, and Cody laughed. "Chill. Didn't touch Isabella. It was you we wanted. My, Candace, would you like to enlighten us on how exactly you've become this…creation?"

Candace scowled and spun around, crossing her arms and whipping her tail to keep afloat.

"Your tail has amazing agility, my dear. Now, you should probably submit to a few tests. Otherwise….well, let's just say I have a pretty good bargaining chip."

A snap filled the room, his fingers, Candace realized, and a door clanged open. Still, she refused to turn around. At least until….

"Candace!"

She whipped around, hair blinding her for a moment, her heart dropping when she saw the large burly man standing in the entryway. He had a knife in one hand.

Perry was struggling in the other hand.

Did you like the first part? I'll have two more chapters. The last chapter is a combo chapter/epilogue. I think I'm going to enjoy this….not the part about hurting Pinky, but everything else. Bwahaha

R and R!