Day twenty-one of MerMay prompt month.

This chapter is kind of cut off at the end because I was still in the middle of writing it when I got my most recent review, and well...

Let's just say it's a good thing I'm not writing this for anyone other than myself. If I was writing for acknowledgement or praise, I would never post anything. I likely wouldn't be writing at all. I understand that this story isn't everyones cup of tea—maybe you think the writing is bad, maybe you just don't like the premise; I don't care. You are entitled to your own opinion. And I know at least three people are enjoying this story mainly because they ask me to read them a chapter every night as their bedtime story.

Sun - Ferb

[Isabella is like the sun: bright and warm, something to help see the good in the world.]

He hadn't realized how close he was standing behind Isabella until she jumped away from him. He had been in a hurry, practically running from the warehouse to his family's home. His hair was still wet! Usually it dried well before he walked up the street. Then when he walked through the gate, he saw Isabella bolting a pole to the ground and he felt drawn to her for some reason…

He also didn't realize he hadn't verbally said hello to her… He really needed to work on remembering to speak out loud when he was above the water.

Then Phineas ran over with the last of the stuff they had stored in the garage the night before—in case of rain. None of the boys had wanted to chance all of their stuff getting ruined if the weather turned overnight.

With a few of the blankets laid out and the extras folded and stacked up nearby, Isabella had dragged him over to one to fix his hair while Phineas worked on getting the first movie set up. They had decided to do all of the Space Adventure movies first—mainly because there were more of them produced in the last five years than the Stumbleberry Finkbat movies, but also because Buford practically begged for them to end on a good note with his favorite series.

When Isabella started braiding his hair, he wanted to groan in pleasure. Sure, he could do his own hair, though it was a pain—he really should get it cut… but he liked the style. Rainie was the one who talked him into this style, and she usually was the one who redid whatever he did (he accepted it because she did make it straighter than he could), but she tended to pull hair. Isabella… Well, it felt really good. She was very gentle, and when her fingertips grazed his scalp, he felt tingles travel down his neck.

When she was finished and had gone over to the food tables, Ferb sat still pondering what was happening. Something weird was going on with him… Was he coming down with something?

Before he could think too much about it, Isabella returned with a bowl of fruits and pastries. Granted they obviously weren't for him, but he couldn't help himself. It looked good, and he didn't want to get up for his own. When he snagged a piece of melon from her plate and received a scowl in return, something shifted in his mind.

He hadn't even wanted the biscuit…

But she was so fun to tease.

Ferb sighed while throwing what was left of his sandwich into the trash. What a waste, he thought… but oh, it had been fun! He went back to the food table to make himself a new sandwich, the smile still on his face from pulling her down and tickling her when she grabbed half of his sandwich earlier. He probably did deserve it after taking food from her breakfast earlier, but dumping his plate upside down had not been part of the plan.

Not that there was a plan, but still.

After remaking his sandwich, plus another for Isabella made the way he knew she liked, he turned to go back to his seat. Someone was standing in his path though, and Ferb blinked at him.

"Hello Ferb!" Irving said, smiling up at him. Ferb blinked, a little unnerved—their old, er, friend had an amiable look, but there was a hardness in his eyes that Ferb couldn't understand.

"Uh, hullo Irving. How have you been?" he asked carefully.

The blond's smile widened, as if he was pleased with the question… "I've been good. I hear you just got back last week." He leaned forward. "Five years is a long time to be away… What were you doing for so long?"

Ferb raised an eyebrow. Subtle he was not. "I was visiting with my family in England. My mother wanted me to stay with her for a while." It was probably the first time he called Meris his mother so casually, but something about Irving's behavior was rubbing him the wrong way and he didn't want to give him hints about anything.

Irving nodded, completely unsurprised by Ferb's answer. He probably knew the same stuff that everyone else did too… So what is he getting at? Ferb wondered.

"Everyone is so happy you're home now," he stated.

Ferb's eyes narrowed slightly. Yeah, you sound happy… "I'm happy to be home too," was all he said in response.

Irving glanced back to where Isabella was sitting, still waiting for Ferb to return. She had pulled her sketchbook out again, refining a picture she had already sketched out earlier. Ferb felt his lips twitch, but he refused to smile when Irving was acting so weird.

"Isabella seems happy to see you too." The blond studied the much fitter boy. "Very happy."

Ferb tilted his head, no longer wanting to play this game. "Okay, and?"

Irving shrugged. "Nothing, just saying… You seem really close with her."

"She's a friend," Ferb said flatly.

Irving's eyes widened, as if he had only then realized he was pushing against something he hadn't wanted to. "Oh, of course! Of course she's a friend. I didn't mean to imply she wasn't."

Ferb's eyebrows furrowed. "And what were you implying?"

A droplet of sweat trailed down Irving's forehead and he shuffled in place. "N-nothing. Just that… You guys were… really… close… Considering her crush on Phineas," he finished quickly, his words melding in his rush.

Ferb felt something sharp in his chest, but he ignored it. "Like I said, she is a friend. One I haven't seen in a long time. I like catching up with her, and I like spending time with her. I do not see why you feel the need to comment on it."

"Not only that, but Isabella's crush on me died a while ago." a voice said suddenly from behind Irving. The blond jumped, and even Ferb was surprised, though he hid it better. He hadn't even noticed Phineas coming up behind Irving. His eyes were hard too, something that was so odd to see on his usually energetic brother.

"Ph-Phineas! H-hey!" Irving said, waving awkwardly at him.

The redhead shook his head. "Irving, you are a friend. But you are sticking your nose in where it doesn't belong."

Ferb's eyes widened—good on Phineas for standing his ground! Ferb had only ever really seen him do that with Candace, and that was not often at all!

He wasn't done either. "Isabella and I will not get together. We learned that a long time ago, and everyone else understood that… Except you."

Irving shifted, glancing around for some help, but everyone seemed to be busy either with their own conversations or with the first Stumbleberry Finkbat movie that was currently on the screen. "Uh, well, I, uh…"

Phineas stepped forward and placed a hand on Irvings arm, leading him towards the gate. Ferb didn't move, unashamedly listening in as Phineas walked him out. "You do not need to be so defensive over a 'sinking ship', as you once called it. We are real people with real feelings. You need to stop fantasizing over your friends—keep that to fictional people."

Though they were facing away from him, Ferb nodded his agreement. He finally turned away, ready to head back to Isabella with both sandwiches, when he heard Phineas say one last thing.

"If Isabella and Ferb start dating, I would be more than happy for them. But it's their choice."

Ferb froze, his brain stalled out. Isabella… and him… dating…?

Oh…

Oh no…

The rest of the movie marathon seemed to go okay… A lot of the people had left before the ending of the last movie, and Ferb was starting to feel that familiar itch that meant he needed to get into the water soon. Buford waved tiredly out the gate, saying he wanted to go to the gym the next day if Ferb was free. He was, and he quickly agreed.

Linda and Lawrence picked up the leftover food, packing it up in the house for their own lunches or to send with Phineas when the boys would go to work on Brosville. And Phineas carried the projector into the garage. Ferb glanced around, feeling antsy but not sure what he could do. He really had to leave soon…

Instead of returning through the door to the garage, Phineas poked his head through the gate. "Come on Ferb. Let's get you home."

Ferb sighed in relief and hurried into the car Phineas already had running. "Thanks Phin," he said. "I might not have made it by walking."

Phineas grinned at him. "Eh, you probably could. You know your limits. But this way you don't have to be jumpy and jittery all the way home."

Ferb glanced at him in surprise. "You could tell?"

He nodded. "We're brothers, Ferb. I pay attention." Then Phineas smirked. "Like how you were acting around Isabella…" he teased.

Ferb's face flushed and he looked away. After his brain glitched out on the idea of dating Isabella, he felt all awkward sitting with her for the rest of the movie... and he knew she had noticed, but then Adyson grabbed her attention and Ferb just tried to avoid her for the rest of the day. He wasn't exactly sure what was happening. It felt like a crush, but different too…

Phineas gazed sideways at him. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

Ferb sighed. "I don't even know what to say…"

The car pulled up the dirt road. "Let's get you in the water. You can use that mental talking thing and tell me what's going on," Phineas suggested.

He watched his hands fidgeting in his lap, but he nodded to Phineas's suggestion as the car parked next to the warehouse. They walked inside in silence, Phineas no longer batting an eye as Ferb stripped out of his shirt before he even walked through the door to the dressing room. He was quick to change into some loose swimming pants, and wasn't surprised to find Phineas sitting next to the trap door, his feet dangling in the warm ocean water.

The salty smell relieved some of the itch Ferb was feeling, and with a smirk, he jumped into the water. He could barely hear the cries from Phineas as he got soaked by the splash, and he only grinned as his transformation fell. After taking a deep breath of water, he let the sea wash over him. "Much better," he sent to Phineas, surfacing just enough for his eyes and ears to be above the water.

Phineas scowled at him, brushing water out of his hair. "That wasn't nice," he pouted.

Ferb grinned, unashamed. "That's why I did it."

Phineas rolled his eyes. "At least now I won't feel bad when I start teasing you about Isabella."

Ferb froze and he sunk into the water. A hand reached down and tugged on his ear, the sensation shaking him out of his thoughts and he resurfaced. He sent his brother a frown, but Phineas simply grinned back.

"So," the redhead began. "What's going on?"

Ferb's eyebrows furrowed and he stared at the water. "I… I don't know. I'm so confused about a lot right now."

"Just… start with something that does make sense."

Something that made sense? Was there anything that made sense right then? "I like spending time with her…" he finally admitted. "Sometimes I have to remind myself that I haven't seen or talked to her in years."

Phineas nodded, though he had looked surprised when Ferb said the last bit. "Okay, so you guys clicked right away. Is that what you're saying?"

Ferb nodded, blinking rapidly. They really had clicked, as Phineas said. From that first day, eating breakfast. It had been like all of those years had vanished in an instant. "I… I don't know if I like her as just a friend… or if there's something more," Ferb explained slowly. He looked up at his brother, his eyes curious. "How did you know you didn't like her?" he asked, then his eyes widened and he pushed forward towards his brother. "Do you like her?!"

Phineas leaned back as the water splashed at him again from Ferb's sudden movement. "No, I don't like her—not like that. She's a friend, nothing more," he said, holding his hands out in a reassuring manner. Then he gained a thoughtful look. "And I don't know how I figured that out…" He shrugged and chuckled. "Well, for one thing, I don't want to kiss her."

Ferb's face flushed scarlet as his mind supplied the idea of him kissing Isabella… and it was a nice thought.

Thankfully Phineas didn't see that since he had leaned back, staring at the ceiling with his thinking face. "Honestly, I'm probably not the best person to talk to about this," he confessed. "I can't even tell if I actually like the girl for her or if it's for something else."

Ferb's eyes widened and he lunged up. "WHAT?!" he exclaimed in his actual voice, coughing on the sudden mix of water and air in his throat.

Phineas fell back at his sudden movement. Then he blushed and his mouth fell open. "I wasn't supposed to say that!" he squeaked. "Why did I say that?"

While the soon-to-be-nineteen-year-old freaked out over his words, Ferb took the time to recover from his random choking. As soon as he could breathe normally again, he leveled Phineas with a look. "Explain," he demanded.

Phineas froze for a moment, staring at him like a deer in the headlights, before flopping onto his back. "I don't want to!" he whined, covering his face with his hands.

Ferb's eyes narrowed. "Is it Holly?" he asked. Phineas shook his head. "Katie?" Another shake, Thank Fae. "Adyson?" Ferb didn't think so, considering she had apparently been gone for a few months. Again, Phineas shook his head. "Ginger?"

No movement.

Ferb's eyes widened. "Ginger?!" he asked, his 'voice' excitable.

Phineas groaned and sat up. "Maybe," he said softly, and Ferb realized there was something more to this.

"Phineas?"

With a sigh, Phineas looked directly into Ferb's eyes. "Remember when you had that big crush on Vanessa when we were kids?"

He blinked. "Yeah…?" Though it had been so long ago, he had almost forgotten.

Another sigh. "Well…" He looked off to the side of the warehouse, studying the air tanks intently. "Stacy was my Vanessa."

Ferb's mouth fell open and he gaped at his brother, though it went unseen since it was underwater. "Wha…?"

Phineas ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah. And Ginger… she's so pretty!" He huffed and rubbed at both eyes. "But do I think she's pretty because it's her, or because she looks like Stacy?! I don't know!"

Ferb could do nothing but watch as Phineas worked himself up into a panic. When he stopped talking, resting his face in his hands instead, Ferb huffed. "Well… Seems like we're both in a mess."

Phineas glanced up, not saying a word, choosing instead to laugh.

Vila/Veela

A vila (or more recently known as veela, thanks to Harry Potter) is a Slavic fairy similar to a nymph: female, beautiful, and with long blonde hair. There are three kinds of vila: those who live on land and in forests, water nymphs, and cloud or air nymphs. They can appear as swans, falcons, horses, or wolves; though the cloud vila may also appear as whirlwinds.

Vila are usually friendly to people, but they will take horrible revenge on those who insult them, ignore their orders or advice, or approach their circle dances uninvited.

In Harry Potter, they have an affinity to the element of fire and air, turning into bird-like creatures who will hurl fireballs when provoked.

[I have this headcannon that the episode Put That Putter Away, specifically the song Disco Miniature Golfing Queen was Phineas's 'awakening', so to speak. So I decided to add that in here because I thought it would be funny. It's also interesting that so far I have Phineas paired with a different person in every story I've written where he has a love interest... Hmm...]

[Skip this next part if you're just here for the story.] :D

[About the review I spoke about in the beginning AN: I can't really call it a flame, though I do believe the person who left it didn't actually read any of this story. I think they decided to hit that arrow button to skip to the last chapter before leaving their words for me. In that review, they suggested to others to read another story—one written by an author I know. The reviewer is impersonating that author, and honestly they are doing a very poor job of it—I knew it wasn't the author even before I read the review simply by seeing the oddness of the username.]

[I will not say what story it is or who the author is. If you find it and want to read it, please do so. I have not read the suggested story, but that is simply because it did not interest me. It happens.]

[I've lived most of my life not being supported in my passions and hobbies. This is not new.]

[I will do my best to finish this story by the end of the month. In June, I will try finishing the next chapter of Man of Action—maybe even two!—and I will proofread this more. Then, probably in July, I might start transitioning my stories to Ao3. Don't worry, I will not be removing them from FF, but I will admit I'm starting to feel a little unwelcome here. Maybe it's just the current lack of activity in the fandom, but I might as well start branching out.]