A/N: Hey, everyone! I am so sorry this took so long to get out, but some of it wasn't entirely my fault. See, in case you guys and gals haven't noticed, starting on Halloween, this site was hit with a major bug that affected the visibility of new updates to fics and accounts, as well as newly-posted stories. During that time, I quickly decided to hold off on writing altogether and instead devote my energy to cross-posting my existing stories to my Archive Of Our Own (AO3) account, as well as creating backups for my documents on Microsoft Word, because I've been a dummy by using the Doc Manager and only the Doc Manager to hold onto my fanfiction materials.
Now, it looks like the site's starting to get its act together again, which will allow me to carry on with writing. HOWEVER, I just wanted to let you all know that, if this site goes down for good, it is NOT the end for me. Not by a long shot. I am and WILL remain active elsewhere. I have my alternate accounts listed at my profile, and the usernames are 100 percent accurate. It should NOT be hard to find me there. Go over to my profile, and make sure you have the usernames and the websites memorized. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Alright, I think I'm done talking! Let's get on with the long-awaited chapter. ENJOY!
P.S.: Due to the ever-worsening situation regarding the coronavirus outbreak, I'm going to have to remind you all about the basic steps you should take if you want to stay healthy, courtesy of my university's reminder emails:
-Wash hands often with soap and water for 20-30 seconds at a time, and/or use hand sanitizer
-Avoid close contact with people who are sick
-Keep your hands away from nose, eyes, and mouth (I can't imagine how difficult this part is probably going to be)
-Eat well, get adequate rest, and exercise regularly
-Get a flu shot if you haven't already and are able to
And if you ARE sick (I hope you get better if you are), please be a good sport and save other folks the trouble of getting sick. You can do this by:
-Covering your mouth and nose with your sleeve, elbow, or a tissue whenever you sneeze or cough
-Not sharing food and drinks with others
-Avoiding touching your mouth, nose, and eyes (Again, I understand this is probably going to be difficult)
-Avoiding close contact with others
-Cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and objects
-Staying at home if you're unwell (PRIORITY NUMBER ONE!)
-Staying calm and keeping yourself well-informed (My personal advice)
If you already know this, then great! If you didn't know any of this beforehand, please keep that information in mind as we all go through this trying time. It's a realm of unknowns at this point, and I wish myself and all of humanity well.
Original A/N: Creds go to Gyaradosmaster for pointing out a tiny error. Many thanks, good friend!
The platypus-sized chair Perry was seated in felt extremely uncomfortable as he looked at Major Monogram, who was wearing a stern, disappointed look on their faces. Adding to the already-negative nature of the situation was the sting of the injuries the agent sustained from being held in Norm's tight grip. He was bandaged, and yet, it didn't stop the stinging and aching. And plus, the room the two were in was murky-looking and had no other furniture aside from Perry's chair.
"Agent P," said Monogram, "I am very disappointed in you. Blowing your cover to your owners and their friends once was acceptable enough, but for that to happen twice? And worse yet, even more people know about your secret identity than last time? ...Agent P, I don't care what good reason you have for revealing yourself in front of innocents, or if we'll erase their minds to forget that event. You are aware that breaking the OWCA's number-one rule for a second time results in a one-week suspension from the organization. Having to do that again and again will compromise the OWCA's meaning of 'secret agent'. Do you understand?"
Perry nodded sadly, understanding completely. Monogram sighed and stretched out his arm.
"OWCA routine requires your week-long suspension to begin now, unfortunately," the major said. "Agent P, hand over your fedora, please."
Perry took off his fedora and looked at it sadly. He had only been an OWCA agent for a year, but the platypus had already become attached to the hat, and to let it go was the last thing he'd ever do. But the rules were rules, and Perry became watery-eyed as he reluctantly put the tiny fedora into Monogram's hand.
"I know, I regret it too," Monogram said, noticing Perry's look. "And to think, it had to happen on the day you were to receive your Honorary OWCA Award..."
His head low, Perry exited the room through the animal-sized door. The first person Perry saw (or more like animal) was Pinky, still trembling as usual.
"Hey, Perry," barked Pinky. "Monogram suspended you, didn't he?"
"Yep," Perry chattered in reply. "You know, I'm really jealous of you now."
"Well, that's scary to know."
"Really, Pinky. You blew your cover to Isabella for the first time, and first-time offenses require you to be relocated, but there's no doubt that you'll go for the secondary solution of ignoring the punishment and just get her mind erased with Doof's Amnesia-Inator. Yeah, you have it better than me."
"I guess. But look on the bright side! At least your owners and their friends know your secret again! And they'll have to keep their memories until after Phineas is turned back to normal, am I right?"
Perry nodded slowly. He remembered the weeks following the day of the 2nd Dimension, when he blew his cover to Phineas and Ferb for the first time in order to protect them from his doppelgänger. The platypus had always wished his owners would know of his secret again. Sure, the point of having to maintain the disguise of a mindless house-pet was designed to protect them, but Perry hated it whenever he had to sneak off without his owners' consent and leave them worried about him, all for nothing. Plus, it was hard, having a double life. Many occurrences of nearly getting caught, lives compromised...all Perry wanted to do was stand up on his hind legs and whip out his fedora in front of Phineas and Ferb once again, make them remember. That way things won't be so difficult.
And now, he got what he wanted, and it will all last until Phineas was turned back into normal. Then, everything else will be brought back to normal. Including the whole double life thing. Unless Phineas isn't turned back to normal...
Perry's eyes widened and he mentally smacked himself. He couldn't believe he was thinking of such a thing. Surely he wanted to see Phineas turned back to normal! ...Right?...
Perry mentally smacked himself again. He couldn't believe he was thinking about this! He should be focused on devising a strategy against this new Phineas. Then again, he can't; he was temporarily suspended from the OWCA, so he couldn't pitch in in any way...
As he walked down the corridor with Pinky, back to the waiting room holding everyone who now knew of his secret, a single thought crossed Perry's mind.
"Could this day get any worse?"
Ferb watched pitifully as Vanessa wiped her red eyes with a tissue. The teenager was still in pain from seeing her father actually affiliating himself with a pure entity of evil by capturing her and her family and threatening them all. He may not have met Heinz Doofenshmirtz, but surely he knew that despite his...eccentricities, he was still a good, caring father to her, and that his recent actions have been out-of-character, even for him, a self-proclaimed evil scientist.
The British boy looked at another side of the room, where Charlene was crying as Roger and Mr. and Mrs. Doofenshmirtz comforted her. Vanessa didn't have any family to go to in the face of this tragedy, and she needed someone to comfort her. And that someone was him.
Confidently, Ferb got off of his seat and walked over to Vanessa.
"Hello, Vanessa," greeted Ferb. "Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah," replied Vanessa. "It's just...I can't believe my dad actually threatened me. And my mom. Our family. I've always thought of him as the lamest villain the world's ever seen. It looks like I was wrong; he IS capable of large amounts of evil..."
"That's not true. He was just intimidated by my brother, that was obvious."
"But he's my father. He should be standing by my side, not his! You should probably know that."
"Yes, yes I do," Ferb replied sadly, looking down at the floor. Like Vanessa, Ferb was in pain from seeing Phineas, his brother from another mother, his greatest friend, actually threatening him, their family, and their friends, without any sign of remorse. It was greatly out-of-character for him, as unimaginable as Candace not wanting to bust them, or Isabella having a crush on someone other than Phineas. He didn't know what caused him to behave this way, but according to what Adyson said on the OWCA bus, it had something to do with that random green laser that shot him in the sky during her birthday party.
"Don't worry, though," continued Ferb. "We'll find a way to make things all better, I promise."
"You promise?" Vanessa asked hopefully.
"Yes."
Vanessa smiled. "Thanks, Ferb. Those words mean a lot to me."
She kissed Ferb on the cheek, causing him to blush. Vanessa didn't notice and continued talking.
"You know, my boyfriend would never have done those things to me."
Ferb felt his heart freeze the moment he heard Vanessa say 'my boyfriend'. "'My boyfriend'?" he repeated.
"Oh, yeah. His name's Johnny Jackson. He's a really nice guy, but he's not the kind of person to whip up something comforting. You should meet him, Ferb; you two would get along really well. He's actually as smart as you."
"I'm fine, thank you," replied Ferb shortly before walking off, trying to comprehend what Vanessa just told him.
Vanessa Doofenshmirtz, the love of his life, was already seeing someone else? He couldn't believe it. Then again, he should've expected it. A beautiful girl like her was liable to attracting all kinds of boys, vying for her attention immediately. Ferb mentally slapped himself, knowing that maybe, just maybe, he could've acted faster. That way this Johnny wouldn't get to her. But it was too late, and Vanessa was taken. And it sounded like she liked this Johnny, much like Candace liked Jeremy...
First Phineas becoming nuts, then Vanessa revealing she had a boyfriend...As Ferb sat back down on his seat, trying to fight back tears of grief, a single thought raced his mind.
"Could this day get any worse?"
Little did he notice someone watching him...
Jeremy and Stacy approached Candace, who had a disturbingly calm look on her face as she looked at Linda and Lawrence, the latter comforting the other. They had examined their girlfriend/best friend ever since they escaped from the Danville Arena, and she didn't seem to display any emotion whatsoever, nor has she spoken. It was starting to frighten them, and they decided to see what was up with Candace.
"Hey, Candace?" asked Jeremy. "You haven't said a word in a while. Are you okay?"
Candace was silent.
"Candace, I know you're shocked about what Phineas did," Stacy said. "We'll talk to you, help you, but you've gotta talk to us."
"Help me?" repeated Candace calmly, looking at them with a disturbing smile on her face. "No, I don't need help. In fact, I'm having the time of my life! I'm so glad that Phineas did this! That way Mom gets to bust him even more once this is all over!"
"You do know that she'll bust you too," replied Stacy.
"Maybe, but it'll be worth it! Now, what should we do now? Go shopping?"
"Shopping?" Jeremy and Stacy said simultaneously.
"Are you serious, Candace?" Stacy asked. "Your brother's gone bonkers and you want to go out shopping?"
"Fine. If you don't want to, then we won't. What else should we do?"
"Never mind." Stacy left, followed by Jeremy. When both were out of Candace's sight, they faced each other.
"I can't believe Candace is taking all of this like, well, that!" exclaimed Jeremy.
"I guess that's what happens when Phineas and Ferb are finally busted," Stacy replied, shaking her head disapprovingly as she examined her redheaded friend. "Could this day get any worse?"
Baljeet took a deep breath as he approached Isabella, who was staring out of a window and into the majestic sunset. This was a perfect opportunity to get close to her, and he knew that one mistake will blow the whole thing, so he was cautious.
Sitting beside Isabella, he asked, "Hey, Isabella. Are you okay?"
"No," she replied. "I can't believe Phineas has done all of this. That is so unlike him."
"I know, right?" He was silent for a moment. "Isabella, don't take this hard. We'll find a way to turn Phineas back to normal. I promise you that."
"But those obstacles we've conquered, those were because of Phineas! Without him, we're nothing! And now, he's working with the bad guys and we're left on our own..."
"But we've got this OWCA helping us out. They seem to be as clever as Phineas is."
"No," replied Isabella seriously, looking at Baljeet for the first time. "No one's as clever as Phineas. He's done the impossible. He's done the things no other would be able to do. He's conquered the impossible! Like he once said, the only thing that's impossible is impossibility! Oh, Phineas, what happened to you?"
She stared off into the sunset again, while Baljeet struggled to hold in his temper. For some reason, hearing Isabella talk about Phineas was starting to become annoying.
"Well, he obviously contracted Dissociative Identity Disorder," Baljeet replied shortly.
Isabella looked at him. "What's that again?"
"Mental disorder." Isabella raised an eyebrow, still confused. Baljeet elucidated, almost coldly, "He went bonkers."
"Don't say that. He would NEVER go bonkers. He cares about everyone and everything, so much that it overrides ANY mental illness. He wouldn't dare to threaten the ones he loves. There's gotta be another reasonable explanation to his behavior-"
"There's no other reasonable explanation!" screamed Baljeet. "It must be Dissociative Identity Disorder! The symptoms are all there! Two distinct personalities, a signal that represents the change between those personalities, a name for this new personality, distinct actions and behavior for those personalities...it's all there! Phineas. Has. Gone. CRAZY!"
"He wouldn't!" Isabella protested. "He would never-"
"OH, I AM SO SICK OF HEARING YOU BLABBER ABOUT PHINEAS!"
Isabella gasped, but Baljeet didn't care.
"EVERY DAY, IT'S PHINEAS THIS AND PHINEAS THAT! IT'S SO ANNOYING! IT'S ALWAYS 'HEY, PHINEAS. WHATCHA' DOIN'?' IT COULDN'T BE SOMETHING ELSE, LIKE 'HEY, BALJEET. WHATCHA' DOIN'?' EVERY DAY, YOU ADMIRE PHINEAS AND CONTINUE YOUR CRUSH ON HIM, WHEN IT'S OBVIOUS THAT HE'LL NEVER RECOGNIZE YOUR FEELINGS FOR HIM! EVEN HIS NEW PERSONALITY CHOOSES ADYSON OVER YOU! BE SMART AND GO FOR SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY CARES FOR YOU! SOMEONE LIKE ME!"
A chatter and a bark were heard, and Baljeet turned to see Perry and Pinky standing there, both wearing looks of concern. Her mouth open, Isabella stood up and backed away from Baljeet and towards the two agents, obviously horrified at him. Realizing what he did, the Indian boy stood up as well and walked away. When he was out of Isabella's sight, he slapped his thigh angrily, knowing that he totally ruined the perfect moment. He should've done something kinder to her, but now, she feared him and the chances of him winning her love have sunken to an all-time low.
"Baljeet?" a voice asked. "Are you okay?"
Baljeet looked up, expecting to see Isabella, but instead, he saw Ginger, a look of pity on her face.
"Oh, yeah," he replied sarcastically. "Having the time of my life. This day couldn't get any better." He was silent for a moment before finally exploding. "Oh, who am I KIDDING? Of course I'm not all right!"
"Look, I saw what happened between you and Isabella back there-"
"You SAW what happened?" Baljeet was shocked; he didn't know anyone was watching, and he didn't really want anyone watching. "Well, don't mention it. And surely your parents told you to stay out of anyone else's business? Because that's what you should've done. Now please, go away, Ginger. I-I just wanna be alone right now..."
Tight-lipped, Ginger left. Sighing heavily, remorsefully knowing that he hurt Ginger's feelings also, Baljeet mentally asked only one question to himself.
"Could this day get any worse?"
Linda quietly wept into Lawrence's shoulder, still thinking about what Phineas had done to her and their family. She had been Phineas's mother for all of his life; therefore, she should've known if something was wrong. But did she? No. And it was because of her constantly leaving the house when she should've been there for her son...
"Oh, Lawrence," said Linda sadly, "I shouldn't have gone out of the house every day. Something obviously happened to my little boy, and I wasn't there for him when I should've been."
"There, there, darling," replied Lawrence softly, "whatever happened already happened. There's no turning back to the past; instead, there's moving forward into the future. And we can do that by peacefully curing Phineas of whatever is ailing him."
"It's kinda like Phillip, all over again. I should've double-checked the rollercoaster for safety. After all, his inventions kept collapsing; surely I should've caught onto a pattern. But I didn't. They usually collapse after everyone gets off. I didn't think the rollercoaster would...would..." She stopped for a moment and sniffled. "And now, I should've kept Phineas under my wing at all times. But I didn't. I trusted Candace to keep them safe at home while I was out, a duty she always seems to succeed on since I come home to find the house still in one piece. But as it turns out, my children have been doing unsafe things. I should've stayed home more often..."
"No, no, don't say that to yourself, dear. There's no way you could've prevented any of this. This is fate's doing."
"Well then, fate doesn't seem to like me."
"My father once told me that everything happens for a reason, Linda. This event is definitely no exception."
"But what is the reason for this suffering, Lawrence?"
"I don't know, Linda. That's what we have to find out."
"And if we don't?"
Lawrence was silent, and he couldn't help but shrug. Linda sniffled.
"Oh, Lawrence. Could this day get any worse?"
"Possibly," replied Buford as he passed them.
"You're not helping, young man," Lawrence said sternly. Buford just shrugged and left to find a nerd to victimize with a wedgie, for he couldn't find Baljeet anywhere.
"Could this day get any worse?"
Django Brown continuously asked himself that in his mind. He was outside the OWCA headquarters and sitting on the stairs leading to the main entrance doors, watching the sunset. He felt uncomfortable being inside: he had overheard everything inside. Ferb realizing that Vanessa, his crush, already has a boyfriend; Baljeet trying to win Isabella's love, only to rage on about Phineas; Linda's pain at being threatened by her own son...He was also able to overhear Major Monogram's conversation to Perry. A lot of bad things were happening inside and Django didn't want to get mixed up in any of the conflict.
A lot of bad things were happening because of him. Him and his decision to put Phineas in the rocket, only to be hit by that random green laser in the sky.
"Oh, why, why, why?" Django asked himself. "Why did I have to tell Phineas to use that rocket? That was stupid!" He began smacking himself lightly in the head. "Stupid, stupid, stupid!"
"Django?" a voice asked. "You okay?"
Django looked up to see Adyson Sweetwater approaching him.
"Oh, hey Adyson," he replied. "Yeah, I'm okay."
"It sure didn't look like it a few seconds ago." Adyson sat down beside him. "What's wrong?"
"Wrong?" repeated Django. "I'll tell you what's wrong: I'm moping! If it weren't for my decision to get Phineas into the sky, maybe he might be behaving the same way he does any other day. It's all my fault he's acting weird!"
"Django, that wasn't your fault." Adyson sighed before continuing. "It's my fault."
"What? What'd you do?"
"I danced with him during my birthday party, all because of my stupid crush on him. I shouldn't have done that. If it weren't for my decision, Isabella wouldn't have spotted us, yelled at Phineas, and saddened him, giving him the motivation to apologize to her."
"But if I didn't suggest using the rocket," argued Django, "then he wouldn't have been zapped by that laser!"
"But if I decided not to dance with him, then you wouldn't have to suggest using it."
"Trust me, Adyson, I'm the culprit behind this, not you."
"No, I'm the bigger culprit."
Django sighed, knowing that this argument might last long, so he said, "Okay then, here's a compromise: it's both our fault."
"Yeah, I guess that puts it at simpler terms." Both were silent before Adyson spoke again. "Actually, I think I'm the bigger cause out of us."
Both laughed, and when they stopped, Django said, "Geez, Adyson, you remind me of my sister Jenny. Always pursuing the argument even after a deal is made. ...Look, thanks, for helping me out with this. It means a lot to me."
"You're welcome, Django."
Both smiled at one another, just before Adyson spotted something on Django's back.
"Hey, Django, what's that on your back?"
"Huh?"
Adyson pried off the object from Django's shirt and both looked at it. It was some sort of metallic object, resembling a tiny camera lens. It was blinking a crimson light.
Just then, the entrance doors to the OWCA headquarters burst open, and Django and Adyson watched as their friends and the OWCA flooded out of the building, examining the horizon.
"Hey, what's going on?" asked Django, standing up with Adyson.
"They've found us," Ferb replied, pointing towards the horizon. Django and Adyson followed Ferb's finger and gasped upon seeing the sight before them: the Shadow was leading LOVEMUFFIN as they advanced towards the headquarters, armed with Phineas and Ferb's Big Ideas and LOVEMUFFIN's Inators.
"HELLO, OWCA!" called Doofenshmirtz. "HOPE YOU'VE GOT YOUR 3-D GLASSES, 'CAUSE WE'RE COMING AT YA!"
"Really, Doofenshmirtz?" the Shadow replied. "That's the awesome battle cry you've got? Here, let me try." He cleared his throat. "OWCA, YOU BETTER COUNT YOUR HOURS AS THEY TICK AWAY, 'CAUSE WE'RE GONNA DESTROY YOU! ATTACK!"
Looks like this day can get worse.
Original A/N: Yes, yes it can. And that's not looking good, then.
Now, I'd like to thank the following for reviewing:
PnFfan101
iheartphinabella05
Coolguyforever [No, not Doofenshmirtz! GAH! *runs away*]
Gyaradosmaster
BroadwayFanGirl91 [You are right on that, good friend.]
Stinkfly3 [*gulp*]
CAB00SE
NattyMc [Yes, yes we do.]
Person X (unsigned)
speedman12 (unsigned) [Thanks!]
NoShameHere [Oh, really? LOL! XD]
chrissytutu [No, don't bring Candace back to me! NO!]
Fanatheinvader [Sorry if you didn't think much happened in this chapter. And no, I didn't get March break yet. Hopefully I will soon.]
Thirteen reviews? That's strange, comparing it to the last chapter's eighteen reviews. I hope no one's losing interest in the story...
Candace: Or they're probably mad that I haven't busted TheCartoonFanatic01 yet!
WTF, Candace? What're you doing here? And since when did I deserve to be busted.
Candace: You constantly keep stealing my catchphrase.
I was unaware of that. I promise you, I will stop. Will you leave?
Candace: Yes, yes I will. *leaves*
Well-hope-you-enjoyed-this-chapter-TheCartoonFanatic01-is-out-PEACE!
Candace: Hey, I heard that! Mom, TheCartoonFanatic01 is stealing my catchphrase again!
Linda: Ugh, first Phineas and Ferb, and now you're imaginary friend TheCartoonFanatic01? What's next?
Great, Linda's a part of this too? What's next?
Isabella: Hi, TheCartoonFanatic01. Whatcha' doin'?
*silence* I guess that's better...
New A/N: In a way, I actually liked the little gag I had going on with this chapter, with everyone constantly asking how the day could get any worse and subsequently jinxing it. XP Anyway, it looks like things are really breaking down for all of the characters, except for Candace, apparently. Is it all an act meant for deflection's sake? Or is she truly pleased that her life goal was now finally accomplished? (I seriously don't know; I haven't read ahead in my notes. :P)
Well, I'd like to thank the following for reviewing:
-Gamelover41592: Thanks. I'm glad you're so understanding. :D
-Bezerker21: It's alright. I was just wondering out loud. XP Anyway, I definitely agree with you; I too wouldn't read this nowadays. In fact, I wouldn't write it like this if I wanted to try it out as a brand-new fic. I've grown a lot since then, and looking back at this and other older fics, I can't help but cringe. XD XD XD
-Maeph93:
1) Yeah, Katie will be an important instrument in this story going forward.
2) Yeah, the cold, hard truth is truly a bomb for Candace to behold. :P
Well, hope you enjoyed this late chapter! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!