Confession time, I didn't really plan this chapter, I just sat down and started writing. I think it turned out alright, but there are parts that are probably unnecessary or drag on too long and others that seem out of nowhere and add nothing whatsoever to the story. So, sorry for that.

I don't own Phineas and Ferb, only my version of the London School of Musical Theatre and my OCs. This idea also belongs to psav2005 filling in a gap between 'Play build up' and Chapter 10. Thanks for another great suggestion

"And scene!" Oliver waved for lights up. "Great job guys, that's us done for the week! Go enjoy your weekend and I'll see you on Monday. Show week is getting nearer so stay on top of what you gotta do."

The cast and crew started dispersing for the weekend. Oliver waved to Connie and Isabella.

"What's up, Oliver?" Connie asked, as she and Isabella sat down on the edge of the stage so their heads would be level to where Oliver was in his 'director's' chair.

"I mean this in the nicest way possible but your fight scene needs a little more work," Oliver looked up from his notes with a disapproving glare. "Connie, when you jump on Isabella's back, I want more fury. You think she's stolen your man, you're angry, you want blood. Isabella on the other hand, you're scared. You've never seen this side of Hermia before but you're also playing up the victim act to get the boys to protect you."

"Got it," the girls replied.

"Ok, that's all from me, keep up the good work." He slipped off his chair and packed up his bag.

"Hey, Isabella!"

She turned and smiled, "Hey, Brian."

He jogged up to her and when she glanced over her shoulder, Connie had disappeared. "I was wondering if you want to meet up this weekend and go through a few scenes with me?"

"Yeah of course. I actually wanted to talk though the end of the first scene."

"You mean your monologue and the mirroring part?"

"You know it." They both laughed. "When are you available?"

"Well, I'm heading home this evening and staying Saturday night and meeting with Charles on Sunday. So does this afternoon work for you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm meeting with some friends this afternoon. They flew over from Danville so we're gonna catch up over dinner." She tilted her head. "Tell you what though, why don't Connie and I come see you and Charles a little later on Sunday. We could do with a group session since, according to Oliver, our fight scene needs touching up on."

"Sounds good," he nodded. "Alright, I'll see you on Sunday, then."

"See you then," Isabella echoed. He jumped off the stage leaving her alone. She looked around and frowned when she realised there was a spotlight on her. She rolled her eyes. "Really, I expect this from Alex but shame on you, Seb, for agreeing to do it."

The spotlight clicked off and Alex stuck their head out of the lighting booth. "I'm just as surprised as you."

Isabella laughed, "Don't break anything up there or you'll ruin his good mood."

"No promises!" Alex grinned as Isabella turned away and headed backstage but not before she heard Seb ordering them to stand outside.

"Connie?" The netballer's kit bag was still in the dressing room but she was nowhere to be seen. Isabella shrugged and hefted her own bag onto her shoulder. She pondered whether or not to take Connie's with her but decided against it. Wherever her friend was, she probably would want her stuff where she had left it.

After switching off the lights, Isabella stepped back onstage to find Alex on their knees delivering Romeo's speech up to where Seb was in the lighting booth. When they noticed Isabella, Alex crossed their arms.

"He's an awful Juliet."

"Alex, not everyone can recite every play ever written like you can," Seb protested. "I said the 'where for art thou' part."

Isabella blinked. "Wait you did?" She laughed. "Ok, who are you what have you done with the real Seb?"

"Not funny," Seb retorted.

Isabella and Alex exchanged a triumphant grin. "There he is!" they chorused.

"Where's Connie?" Seb asked huffily. "We have practise to get to."

"I don't know," Isabella replied. "She kind of disappeared after we spoke to Oliver."

"Should we wait?" Seb locked the lighting booth before making his way down through the auditorium to the others. "Maybe she already left?"

"Her bag's still backstage," Isabella said. "I have no clue where she went."

There was a beat of silence. "Aren't you going to suggest an organised man hunt?" Alex nudged Seb questioningly.

"What?" Seb laughed. "No way! Not only does that sound drastically extreme and uncalled for but also boring!"

"Yes," Alex agreed. "Which is why we're waiting for you to suggest it."

"Sorry!" The three spun around as Connie burst through the top doors. "Sorry, sorry, sorry! I'm here!"

"Oh good," Alex poked Seb in the side of the head. "Because Seb's broken."

"I'm not broken!"

"Isabella can vouch for me, you're broken."

"Alex, dude, chill."

Alex's jaw dropped. "Ok, what just happened?"

Connie laughed, "he's not broken, he's just nervous. When he get's all flustered his personality fluctuates between his normal self and who I like to call 'fun Seb'."

Isabella didn't look convinced, but there was an earnest tone to Connie's voice.

"I've seen weirder ways of people coping with stress," Alex shrugged to her.

"Anyways," Seb interrupted. "Connie, where on earth have you been?"

The group left the theatre and headed towards the main road as Connie started explaining, "well, Oliver said that our fight scene needed a little more."

"Work," Isabella corrected. "A little more work."

"Oh," Connie considered it for a second. "I didn't hear that part. I just heard 'more' and the cogs in my brain started spinning."

"This should be fun!" Seb exclaimed at the same time Alex muttered, "oh dear."

They glanced in shock at Seb. "Did we just switch personalities?"

"Cool!" Seb grinned while Alex shook their head frantically.

"No!" They yelped. "Not cool! I can't be you! I'm me! I'm Alex James! The Alex James! I'm a specimen!"

"Good for you, bro." Seb nodded, looking proud of himself.

Alex turned to the girls. "Tell me this is weirding you out too?"

"Kinda," Isabella admitted.

Connie shrugged. "I've seen it before. It's no big deal. What is a big deal, however," She reached for her bag before realising she didn't have it. "Ah man! I left my bag backstage!"

"Oh yeah," Isabella laughed nervously. "I probably should have gotten if for you."

"I'm on it!" Seb declared before sprinting off.

Alex crossed his arms and shook his head at the girls. "I don't like this at all. That was a declaration. He just 'declared' he's on it. Declaring stuff is my thing!"

"Alex, calm down," Connie grinned, reaching into her pocket. "Hold up. I have the mints here!"

"The mints?" Isabella took the little box from her. "This is where you went? To get mints?"

"And red dye for fake blood manufacturing," Connie added.

"Connie, what?" Even Alex looked perplexed.

"You know that part where I swing my fists wildly, but the boys are holding me back so none connect? Well," Connie raised an eyebrow. "What if one of them does? And then you turn to the audience, spit teeth and blood out then they know you mean business?"

"Yes!" Seb cried, skidding to a halt, holding Connie's bag victoriously above his head. "That is an amazing idea!"

"Seb, did you even hear it?" Alex demanded. "Because the Seb I know would think it's an awful idea."

"I heard something about spitting teeth and fake blood," he panted. "I'm in."

"You think my idea is awful?" Connie said over him, sounding hurt.

"Ok, ok." Isabella held her hands up. "Everyone calm down. Connie, as much as I'd love to spit teeth and blood at you, let's be real. It would actually dyed cornflour and mints which don't sound particularly appealing. Also, come on. You know there's no way Oliver is going to let us do that." Connie seemed like she was going to protest before seeing the truth in Isabella's words. "Alex, you being mad that Seb is acting like you is the reason why you're acting like Seb. So, stop being mad and just be yourself again. Seb, I understand that you're nervous, we all are, but pretending to be someone else to fool yourself into thinking you're actually not nervous is not the right thing to be doing." She took a breath and looked at her friends. "Ok, I'm leaving but I'll see you at Connie's game later, alright?" She turned around before anyone could say anything.

"Thanks, Isabellaaaaaaaaaaaa!" Alex yelled eventually, drawing out the final vowel in her name.

"What would we do without you?" Connie added.

"Alex, please stop shouting!" Seb's voice rang out.

Isabella breathed a sigh of relief and laughed before waving over her shoulder. She headed over to the Borough tube station and got off at Charing Cross. The 'Charity Begins at Home' Soup Kitchen where half of the Fireside Girls were volunteering, was pretty packed that afternoon, but after explaining who she was to the man in charge, she was led into the kitchen.

"Look at you all hard at work!" Isabella grinned. Holly, Milly and Adyson looked up and she received a mixture or 'hi's, 'hey's and waves. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Actually," the man in charge said. Isabella squinted at his nametag as he shooed her over to the serving table. "You can hand out these fliers please."

Kyle dumped a load of leaflets in her arms and pointed her outside.

"Best food to donate," Isabella read as she started offering the pieces of paper out to anyone who passed outside. "Donate to this kitchen to supply hot meals to people less fortunate for yourself!"

After around twenty minutes handing out the fliers, the Fireside Girls came out of the building and led her to the youth hostel that they were staying at, where they met Gretchen, Katie, Ginger and Isabella's parents.

"How was your rehearsal?" Vivian asked, as Mr Garcia-Shapiro called for a taxi.

"It was alright," Isabella shrugged. "Everyone's getting frantic with the show coming up, but everything's looking good."

"Where are you taking us for dinner?" Adyson looked embarrassed as her stomach rumbled loudly. "Working with all that food really got me hungry."

"Same," Milly and Holly said.

Gretchen frowned, "funny how working with plastic all day didn't get us hungry."

As everyone laughed, the taxi pulled up and they all got in. Mr Garcia-Shapiro turned in his seat to look at his daughter. "So, Isabella, what is this restaurant you're taking us to?"

"It's this place called Gourmet Burger. I thought since it's a UK specific chain, we'd go there," Isabella began. "And my friend, Connie, has a netball match later on this evening and I'd love for you all to come?"

She waited nervously in the silence that followed. She had spent the entire train ride there debating whether or not she should try mixing home friend with school friends. It was less obvious to her than she realised but back in Danville the Fireside Girls, while able to hold a conversation alone, would usually bounce off of her and whatever she was saying. Whereas in London, on the other hand, she very much took a back-seat role in the direction of talk. She was happy to let Alex and Seb rebound off each other while she and Connie listened and made the odd comment here and there, stepping in before one of the other took it too far. While unaware of the full extent to how different she was around the two groups, Isabella was not blind to the fact she was not the same person she was with the Fireside Girls as the person she was around Alex, Connie and Seb. She had no clue how to act if they ever came together but it didn't seem right that she had too keep her different lives separate simple due to a difference in roles among each one.

After what seemed like hours, Gretchen spoke up, "That sounds like fun, Chief." The other girls nodded their agreement but instead of feeling relief like she expected, Isabella only felt more nervous.

"So!" she said brightly, trying to hide it. "Tell me more about the work you girls did today! Did you meet loads of new people?"

Conversation picked up again and it was just like old times. Isabella sighed. There was a comforting sense of familiarity but also an alien feeling of having to keep the flow of topics after so much time allowing the flow to carry her along with it. But, as the afternoon stretched on, she found herself getting back into the old swing of things. By the end of dinner, in fact, it was as if she was thirteen years old again and just hanging out with her friends. Not mature wise, of course, but in terms of her mindset. There was something oddly freeing about the whole situation, Isabella found, and that wasn't something she had expected to come away feeling. Which wasn't to say she felt trapped or restrained in her friendship with Alex, Connie and Seb. If anything, the freedom she felt now stemmed from the memories of those carefree summers back in Danville when all she had to worry about was making the most of every day, not a big assessment play.

"Are you absolutely sure this is a UK only chain?" Mr Garcia-Shapiro asked as he paid the bill. "Are there really no plans to expand to the US?"

The waiter looked perplexed since such knowledge was above his pay grade. "I'm probably not the right person to answer that, Sir," he said apologetically. "But I'm glad you enjoyed your meal."

"If you're done making the staff uncomfortable, dear," Vivian patted him on the hand. "Isabella, how long until this match?"

"We have about," Isabella checked her watch. "Well, including time taken for the taxi to get here and also taking into consideration rush hour, we should probably be looking to get going in the next ten minutes."

"It's quite late for a school sports game isn't it?" Gretchen asked.

"Well, due to play prep, every match has to be pushed back or else no one can make them," Isabella laughed and shook her head. "If you thought I was busy back in Danville you'll be blown away by how much Connie and Seb do. Alex as well, for that matter."

"Alex is the red headed one," Vivian added helpfully.

Isabella laughed. "Yeah and they're also a double major in both drama and music."

"You can do that?" Katie asked.

"I mean, they're the only one I know that does, but they've always been a bit of a wild card," she smiled encouragingly. "I think you're really going to like them. All of them, that is."

"So, we're watching a netball match?" Vivian sounded sceptical. "How are meant to know what's going on?"

"I can explain as we go along," Isabella replied as they all stood up. "But it's quite an easy game to pick up."

"I'm so confused," Gretchen called to Isabella over the shouts and cheers of the crowd. "Why is it Hampton's ball when LSMT made an interception?"

"Because our player went off side," Isabella explained. "Remember how I said that each player is limited to a certain area of a pitch? Well, that player went out of their area meaning a turnover."

"Riiiight," Gretchen said nodding her understanding.

"WOOHOOO!" Adyson cheered as LSMT scored another goal. "I love this game, it's so exciting!"

"How come we don't get to play it that much in Danville?" Ginger agreed.

"It's not a common American sport," Isabella shrugged. "It's getting more popular though, from Connie told me."

"Isabella?" Alex's voice caught her attention. "Seb, she's over there!"

Isabella turned and waved the two over, "Hey, guys."

"You really couldn't have picked a worse place to do introductions," Seb grinned as they sidestepped between the groups of people filling the stands.

"Make the most of the situation," Alex preached. "Hello, Americans! I'm Alex and I'm just… gonna… squeeze past… you all…" they slumped into an empty seat next to Adyson and smiled charmingly. "How you doin'?"

Seb rolled his eyes, and using Isabella's seat as a boost, jumped over their heads and into the seats behind. Gretchen shot Isabella an impressed glance.

"I'm Seb," he said extending his hand. "Nice to meet you…?"

"Gretchen."

"Nice to meet you, Gretchen." He smiled before moving on down the line, introducing himself.

"You know that stereotype that all British boys are gentlemen?" she whispered to Isabella. "It might be truer than I gave it credit for."

"Actually, I think that's just Seb," Isabella laughed.

"Oh, I like you!" Alex exclaimed. "Isabella, I'm replacing you as my number one American gal pal, I'm afraid."

Isabella frowned. "With who?"

Alex gestured grandly to Adyson. "We have the same energy!"

"Yes," Seb muttered as he retuned to his seat. "Because another Alex is exactly what we need."

"Good to have you back, Seb," Isabella said over her shoulder. "Fun Seb was nice but he wasn't you."

He laughed, "thanks for your advice, by the way."

"Anytime."

"So," Seb leaned forward. "Where's Connie playing tonight?"

"She's wing attack," Gretchen said. "Did I say that right?"

"She's picking up on this game super-fast," Isabella told Seb. "Yeah, that's right."

"It's funny watching Connie play netball," Seb mused. "When we played basketball together, she was always a defender."

"You play basketball?" Gretchen asking surprised.

"Isabella didn't tell you? It's my thing."

"Trust me," Alex called from down the line. "It's not your thing."

"Anyway," Seb went on, shooting a glare their way. "I specialise in lighting at the school but basketball's my main sport."

"I play basketball too," Gretchen said. "What position d'you play?"

Isabella had played a fair amount of basketball herself back in Danville, but from what Gretchen had said over the dinner table, she had been selected for a high school basketball scholarship and had really gotten into it. She smiled to herself as Gretchen joined Seb in the row behind so they could talk in greater depth about their sport without her having to turn around. At the other end of the row, Adyson and Alex were hollering at the top of their lungs as Connie made a turnover.

"THAT'S MY FRIEND!" Alex screamed.

"THAT'S MY FRIEND'S FRIEND'S FRIEND!" Adyson echoed.

"Will you two quiet down?" Seb and Gretchen said at the same time before exchanging an amused glance.

'And you were worried about whether your friends would get on with each other,' she thought to herself before budging up to sit next to Ginger, Milly, Katie and Holly. "How are you guys enjoying the match?"

"I agree with Adyson about the exciting part, it's so fast paced," Milly said.

"I can barely keep up," Katie agreed.

"What about you, Isabella?" Ginger nudged her shoulder. "Is this evening going the way you hoped?"

"Oh yeah," she smiled. "It's been so nice to see you all ag-"

"Not what I meant."

"Ok, fine." She shook her head ruefully. Ginger always had had a knack for knowing exactly how Isabella felt, as easy as reading a book. "I'm really glad that you guys and my other friends are getting along well."

"They seem like nice people," Holly looked sideways at Adyson and Alex. "If a little energetic."

"What's Connie like?" Milly asked.

"She's super cool, I think you'll like her a lot." Isabella answered. "She's sort of a social chameleon, she can fit in with absolutely anyone."

"She's a really good player," Ginger mentioned. "She's so quick!"

"She trains for hours on end," Isabella said, somewhat proudly. "She's always been focused on things she passionate about."

"That sounds familiar," the fireside girls looked at Isabella pointedly, who laughed embarrassed.

"Maybe," she shrugged.

The crowd erupted into cheers and shouts as the final buzzer sounded. 43 – 51 to LSMT.

After celebrating with her team, Connie bounded over to where her friends were waiting at the side of the pitch. "That was our championship qualifier! We're through to regionals!"

"Congrats!" Seb grinned as Alex picked her up and spun her around. "That's so good."

"Alex, put me down," Connie panted. "You're making me dizzy."

"Fine," Alex grinned and obeyed. "Well done."

Isabella stepped forward and the two friends embraced. "We're so happy for you, and you played amazingly!"

"Regionals takes place next spring," she raised an eyebrow. "You think I'll be able to get you up to scratch in time?"

"I have no clue," Isabella laughed.

"So," Connie nodded her head towards where the Fireside Girls and Isabella's parents were waiting. "Are you going to introduce us?"

"Right, right," Isabella ushered her over. "Everyone, this is Connie. Connie this is Adyson, Ginger, Gretchen, Holly, Katie and Milly and these are my parents."

"Pleasure to meet you," Connie waved. "Thanks for coming to my game."

There was a slight silence but just before Isabella could say something, Alex beat her to it. "Shall we get out of here, then? I know a really good café nearby."

"Sure," everyone agreed. Isabella breathed a sigh of… relief? Concern? She wasn't completely sure but she did know that this situation was what had her so worried earlier on in the day. All of her friends, together and each with their own expectations of her and how she fitted into the group. She could sense the confusion radiating from the Fireside Girls; not at the suggestion itself but at the fact it wasn't Isabella who suggested it.

They exited the sports hall and things seemed to work themselves out. Alex, Adyson and Holly took the lead, being loud and jovial, Seb and Gretchen following behind them with Ginger. They were discussing the right sort of balance between sport and academics, both of which were important to Seb who was enjoying the company of such intelligent, like-minded individuals. Connie had instantly ingrained herself with Milly and Katie and they were talking about boys one minute, plans for the future another, and favourite pastimes the next leaving Isabella walking between her parents at the back of the group.

She was once again reminded of her youth, walking with her parents on either side just enjoying each other's company. Isabella was comforted by the fact that she knew she could slot herself into any one of the groups that had just formed and fit in. She had, it seemed, been worried for nothing. Everyone was getting along perfectly. In her panic, she had expected herself to be the only thing binding these two peoples and forgotten the fact that they all had quite a lot in common and they would be able to form their own bonds and forge their own connections.

This day had gone so much better than Isabella could ever had hoped.