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Chapter 20: Epilogue

Once the group arrived back at Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated, Dr. Doofenshmirtz had been quick to use his re-good-inator on Thaddeus to remove the additional evilness applied. Before actually using it, however, Thor introduced Ferb to Doofenshmirtz, who helped tweak the inator to add on an extra 5% goodness for good measure.

Shortly thereafter, everyone's mind-control effects and the Converger both stopped functioning. Seismic activity feeds and other sensors showed that Arcopis had suffered the beginning of an extreme continental plate shift. When even those sensors failed, it became clear that the compound had been entirely wiped out. If they had still been there even an hour later, they might have never made it home at all.

Isabella and Phineas were taken to the hospital for treatment, but both were discharged surprisingly quickly. Isabella was given a proper cast to heal her arm but only needed it for a week. Ferb and Baljeet's later investigations revealed that Arcopis's atmosphere contained molecules which greatly enhanced the healing rate and energy of humans and other life. Such was necessary for any life to have survived on such inhospitable, active tectonic plates that made up the surface of the alien planet.

As for Thaddeus, his snarky personality remained remarkably unphased even after the re-good-inator treatment. He would repeatedly remind the group that Phineas and Ferb would not always be the best, and that he and Thor would rise above their level one day. He did manage a small apology to the group, however, primarily blaming Doofenshmirtz but admitting that controlling others' minds or kidnapping were not acceptable behaviors.

Understandably, Phineas and Isabella were skeptical, but after a day or two of monitoring, Thor assured them that Thaddeus had returned to his old self and no longer had similar evil intent or plans. Since Ferb and the others seemed to trust Thor, Phineas and Isabella decided they would trust him too. Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Thaddeus each emphatically swore that they would never work with each other again all while glaring at one another, and Thaddeus incessantly explained that his next goal was to best everyone in his upcoming AP Biology class. So only a few days later, Thaddeus and Thor parted ways with the group.

Of course, after having been fooled by Thaddeus once, Ferb wasn't taking any more chances. He had surreptitiously swiped one of Thaddeus's hairs before they left and used it to build a tracking device with Phineas. Any strange behavior and they would be alerted. That, and Thor was now on speed-dial and had promised to similarly update them whenever Thaddeus was getting too obsessed with his self-declared rival.

Isabella and Phineas, after relying on each other for so long and then being forced apart, could hardly stand leaving each other's sight. Whether it was more out of infatuation or post-traumatic stress was unclear, but they had only agreed to stay at the hospital that first night back when they were placed in adjacent rooms. Of course, Isabella had simply snuck into Phineas's room to be with him and process everything together once night fell.

It took a few more weeks before everything felt mostly back to normal, just in time for the gang's Senior high school year to begin. Neither Phineas nor Isabella initially felt comfortable sleeping without the other nearby, leading to a lot of outdoor sleepovers with the gang. Especially after overcoming the challenge of Thaddeus impersonating Phineas, the bond they shared had at least tripled in strength. Phineas needed time to grow used to displaying affection with his new girlfriend, but Isabella was all too happy to oblige and take things slowly. Even if she still had to explicitly explain her hints to him from time to time (which she finally felt confident enough to do), she was just happy that they had actually made it home safely and come together in the process.

They were home. Normalcy had resumed, for the most part. Isabella's friends were rearranging class schedules, Gretchen kept shyly fawning over Ferb, everyone was asking her about her post-graduation plans, and talks of Prom had already begun to surface. It was easy to get caught up in the commotion and forget what had happened that summer. After all, while it felt like ages at the time, Isabella had hardly been absent for more than a week, and looking back was starting to feel like a blur.

But one memory remained as clear as crystal. Phineas, sitting on a cot in a dimly-lit drab cell, turned away from her to hide his blush as he spoke.

"If I had to do it again, but I got to do it with you, I'd want to do it".

As awful as being kidnapped, abandoned to the cold, then kidnapped again had been, Isabella was grateful. Surviving alone with Phineas, as it turned out, had been the catalyst she needed to get out of her shell, and apparently the same was true for him. Without it, maybe they would have still figured out things, down the road. But they were together now, and that was important.

So now, as Isabella looked down at her hand tightly clasped in Phineas's, and then up into his twinkling blue eyes, she knew she agreed with what Phineas said. She would do it again too, or do anything, really. All of it was worth it, if it pushed them together.

—

Well there you have it! This was my first attempt at a story with an actual plot, not just a purely romantic fling like my past stories Christmas Bliss or Canderemy Redux, and I'm pretty happy with it. That said, there are a lot of mistakes and weak spots that I'm aware of, and if I could rewrite it again now (especially the first half which was conceived all the way back in 2014) I would change a lot of things (i.e. improve the importance of Ferb's chapters, capture Isabella's character better early on, make certain Isabella x Phineas interactions more unique, tie up the end better, … the list goes on).

But I do this because I love it. I want to take the flittering plot ideas that pop into my head in the wee hours of the morning and fit them together into a flowing story. I want to improve my skills as a writer. So even if it isn't perfect, I still enjoy it, and I love creating content that others can enjoy with me. And I'm so grateful to all the friends on this site, like you, that support me in it.

If you made it all the way to the end, please consider dropping a comment or review so I can know how you thought about it! Constructive criticism makes us all better, so please don't hold back! These things really make my day.

I am now writing and will be releasing a story for Teasing Master Takagi-San coming up. Until then, all the best to you!