The battles being fought were shortened dramatically after that day. The cops had come to ask Ferb questions and he'd managed to get through it without breaking down. They told his dad they'd be in touch and left. They got a phone call less than an hour later saying Frank had been arrested. Evidently his computer had been confiscated and they'd found photos of Ferb clearly taken without his knowledge, as well as of other yet to be identified children. He was taken away, and when the point was made that it was happening under her roof and she hadn't been aware, and that her son had told her and she'd ignored him, Susan Fletcher was deemed an unfit mother and complete custody of Ferb Fletcher was turned to his father, Lawrence.
The divorce battle fell apart not long after that, Susan getting the house and Lawrence getting Ferb. It was all over in less than 2 weeks. His dad had sold the antique shop, they'd packed up their apartment, bid his grandparents goodbye with promises to visit when they were settled, and they were crossing the ocean to a small town called Danville. Ferb couldn't help think that his mother got her wish. Her ex-husband was as far away from England as it was possible to get.
It takes them about a month to get settled, and by that point the local schools are in their final weeks before winter holiday so there wasn't much point in enrolling Ferb just yet. His dad spent most of the time job hunting, leaving Ferb to unpack and set up his room under the watch of a young woman named Maddison Sweetwater. She was a Junior at the local college with a sister a year younger than Ferb who'd answered an ad Ferb's dad had put in the paper for occasional babysitter while he was out of the house. The apartment they found was a lot like the flat they left in England; a bit smaller, but still comfortable. He was just finding the box with the TV remotes and their movies collection when his dad came home from grocery shopping with an announcement. He'd reconnected with an old friend.
He'd known her back in college when she'd done a study abroad program, and they'd wound up dating during her stay but unfortunately had lost touch when she'd had to return to the states. They'd run into each other in the produce aisle and decided to go out for coffee and catch up on old times. Evidently she'd gotten married some time after returning to America and had two children, but her husband had died several years back. "One of her children is about your age, Ferb. A boy named...um...Phil? Finnigan? Maybe Guineas I think? Oh I can't remember. But we figured if you're interested we could set up a day later this week? Let the two of you meet? It'll be good for you to make some friends that will go to the same school as you."
Ferb thought about it for a moment. A boy about his age? Would he like him? Would the other boy like Ferb? Would he think he was weird because he didn't talk? After several different directions of thought, Ferb finally decided he'll never know unless he tries and gave his dad an affirmative nod. The grin on his dad's face spoke volumes of how he felt about this woman and what Ferb's agreement meant to him. He immediately excused himself to go call the woman, Linda, and let her know that Ferb had agreed. They spent the next several hours on the phone and when they finally hung up it was nearing dinner time, Ferb had put up the groceries, and Lawrence Fletcher had a date the following evening.
The grown-ups had made arrangements to meet at the Flynn household the following Friday. Her children would be out of school by then and the weather would still be pleasant enough for them to be able to play outside. Ferb spent the morning full of nervous energy, thoughts of if his shyness would scare the other boy away, what would he be like, would they have anything in common? His stomach was starting to hurt. Was he going to be sick? Finally his dad came to collect him, the two piling into the four door station wagon he'd bought and they were off.
When they'd parked in the driveway and were starting up to the front door, they were met with a skinny almost-teenager standing in the open doorway with a small dog wagging excitedly by her feet. "You must be the guys mom told us about," she said crossing her arms. Her voice was nasally and they saw flashes of braces when she talked. "I'm Candace Flynn. This is Bucky." She motioned to the dog who was now staring at Ferb like he had a ball and was about to throw it. "Hello, Candace, I'm Lawrence Fletcher. I've heard so much about you from your mother, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. This is my son, Ferb." Ferb offered her a smile, but didn't say a word. Something about her was very familiar but he couldn't place it. The orange haired girl stared at him for a minute, frowning. "Don't you talk?" she demanded, and Ferb immediately wanted to hide. He knew this had been a bad idea.
"Candace Flynn! That is not how you greet our guests!" A tall, red headed woman appeared behind the girl. "Hi, Lawrence. Sorry about Candace. Candace, honey, why don't you go tell your brother our guests are here?" Candace huffed and walked off, the little dog following closely on her heels. Linda Flynn offered them both a smile. "Why don't the two of you come in off the porch. I've got snacks in the living room. Ferb, dear it's so nice to finally meet you. Your father has done nothing but talk about you, and I know Phineas is excited to finally get to meet you. It's all he's been talking about all week!"
Ferb followed his dad and the chattering woman into the living room where a plate of cookies and some lemonade had been set out. Like her daughter, there was something oddly familiar about the woman, and had she just said her son's name was Phineas? What were the odds? He sat on the edge of a couch seat taking in the room. There was a fireplace, the mantel covered in family photographs, all featuring Linda and Candace with a short, angular faced boy with bright eyes and an infectious grin. Ferb felt his own eyes widen in recognition. No… it couldn't be. Could it? He was just about to bring up the photos when there was a thungering of feet from the stairs.
Candace came in first, plopping herself down next to her mom and grabbing a cookie. Next came Bucky, running in and nearly tripping over the edge of the rug in his haste to get to Ferb and see if he could be suckered into sharing a cookie. Lastly, accompanying the sound of running feet, was the short redhead from the photos. Ferb recognized him immediately, but how was this possible? He was a dream, but now he's standing right in front of him with that wide, infectiously mischievous grin on his face. There was a light in his eyes that told Ferb that somehow this boy knew exactly what he was thinking as he came forward with a hand stuck out. "Hi! I'm Phineas! It's nice to finally meet you, Ferb! I know we're gonna be great friends!"