Inspired by: Fireflies by Owl City
Cause I'd get a thousand hugs
from ten thousand lightning bugs
as they tried to teach me how to dance
-Owl City. Fireflies.
Phineas rolled over onto his side, blearily opening his eyes. Which widened at the sight before him. Streaming into the bedroom window were millions of fireflies, which lit up the entire space above him.
He sat up, staring upwards as they swirled around him. After watching them for a minute, he quietly climbed out of bed, tiptoeing to where his brother lay fast asleep.
"Ferb, wake up. There's millions of fireflies in our room! They're dancing all over the place! It's really cool! Ferb?" He gently shook the boy's shoulder. "Ferb!" But it was no use; his brother was dead to the world.
He smiled. "That's okay Bro. You keep sleeping; I'll play with the fireflies and tell you all about it in the morning." The red head chuckled as the fireflies descended, swirling all around him, landing on his face and arms before flying upwards.
Suddenly, the bugs seemed to dance. They dipped and moved in a graceful foxtrot, dipping up and down to an unheard rhythm.
Phineas grinned, trying to imitate the movement as he put his arms out to the side, twirling, spinning and dipping along with them before the bugs disappeared under Ferb's bed.
"Hey wait! Come back!" He clamped a hand over his mouth, remembering that his brother was asleep. He snuck over to Ferb's bed, getting down on all fours. Underneath the bed, the bugs were jumping and twirling, seeming to bounce as a shaft of moonlight hit a wad of spider web, causing it to look similar to a disco ball.
He grinned. "Wow. You know for bugs, you're pretty talented dancers. Wish I could learn those moves." Phineas jerked to the side as the fireflies zoomed out from the bed, leaving the room in a flurry of yellow light.
"Hey wait! Wait! I wanna come with you!" Quickly, the redhead grabbed a pair of shorts from the end of his bed, throwing on a t-shirt before hurrying downstairs and out the front door.
Perry woke with a start, looking around the room. Something was amiss. Making sure all was quiet, he jumped out of his bed, placing his fedora on his head. Whatever had woken him, it certainly wasn't Doofenshmirtz; the Major would have called him.
But something was definitely off. He walked over to Ferb's bed, holding out a paw to make sure the green haired boy was breathing. He breathed a sigh of relief when he was.
Next up was Phineas. Perry crossed to the other side of the room, peeking over the boy's bed. His heart stopped; the boy wasn't there.
The platypus quickly scanned the room, looking for any sign of forced entry. The bedroom door was open a crack; nothing unusual there. The window was open, which was normal for this time of year and nothing in the room appeared to be out of place.
Except for the fact that the boy's shorts and t-shirt were missing from the foot of his bed.
Perry scratched his head. Strange. If Phineas had been taken, then he wouldn't have had time to get dressed. But, if the shorts and t-shirt were gone and there was no sign of forced entry, then...where was he?
He was just about ready to make a midnight call to the Major when he heard it. The sound of laughter and giggles coming through the window. Quietly, he tiptoed to the window, breathing a sigh of relief as he looked down.
Out in the backyard was Phineas, running around chasing fireflies. Each time he got close, the bugs would float high up into the sky, only to float back down, enveloping the boy in what would almost be considered a hug.
The boy bowed to the bugs, seeming to dance with them, and Perry smiled. He took off his fedora, placing it to the side as he crossed two paws on the windowsill. It wouldn't hurt to watch for awhile.
"Wow. This is really fun." Phineas grinned as he dipped and twirled, bowing to the fireflies. "I'm really glad you guys came through my window. I'm just sad Ferb and Perry couldn't see you." The fireflies stopped in mid-twirl, hovering in the air. "What's wrong?"
The bugs didn't answer. They paused for a moment, then slowly began to climb higher and higher into the sky.
"Wait! Wait! Come back! Don't leave! We were having so much fun!" Phineas looked up into the sky, his eyes filling with tears as the fireflies climbed higher and higher before disappearing into the night sky. He put a hand up. "Wait..."
But the bugs were gone, back to wherever it was they had come from. He sighed, wiping his eyes, only to jerk at a soft tap on the back of his leg. The red head looked down.
"Hey Perry." His sad expression was quickly replaced with a smile and the platypus breathed a sigh of relief as the boy ran a hand down his back. "Gee Perry; it's to bad you weren't here earlier. There were millions of fireflies a minute ago. They snuck in through the bedroom window and we had a good time dancing and laughing."
The platypus chattered.
"But now they're gone." The red head sighed wistfully. "Aw well. Maybe next time they come around, I'll save a few and keep them in a jar." He paused. "Well, maybe not a jar; that would be to mean. But maybe Ferb and I can make a special kind of jar. One the fireflies would like being in."
Phineas grinned, holding Perry at arm's length so he was looking the platypus in the face. "Perry, I know what Ferb and I are gonna do tomorrow."