Aaahh, okay. Watching Paranormal Activity right before bed. Probably NOT the best idea. It sucked right up til the end, but that chick……. She KILLED the dude. Flippin' KILLED him, then went right up to the camera and went 'RAWR!'

I hate being startled like that……..

It had been about three hours since he had last heard from Phineas. He woke up, and… he just wasn't there.

Ferb had asked Candace where he'd gone, and she told him that he went somewhere with Isabella, Baljeet, and Buford, and would be back soon. And… to go back to bed.

Ferb decided that he'd had enough rest for the day, and snuck out through the window. He didn't bother to set up any decoys to trick Candace into thinking he was still there, figuring that as crazy as Candace was, she probably was bored of checking on him by now.

He walked to the town cemetery. While most would consider that creepy, Ferb just thought of it as a quiet place to think. The dead were the only people who never disturbed anything.

There was a soft breeze: not enough to justify wearing a jacket (as he was), but enough to move a few leaves, thus further setting the mood. Other than that, the place was still.

"Boo," said a voice. Ferb jumped slightly, turning around.

There stood a young goth woman with long brown hair. She was pretty, with penetrating brown eyes, and dark, almost black, lipstick that stood out from her light skin. Ferb had known (and secretly loved) her from the fourth grade. It was Vanessa.

"Did you think it was a ghost?" she asked. "I don't think I've seen you jump that much… Actually, I don't think I've seen you jump at all."

Ferb blushed briefly from embarrassment, then turned back around.

"So… Do you usually go hanging around in graveyards, or is there something going on?"

"…A bit of both, actually."

"Ah," said Vanessa. "I'm gonna ask, but I think I already know the answer… Wanna talk about it?"

Ferb shook his head. "Not particularly."

"Want me to leave you alone?"

"… Not particularly."

Vanessa nodded. "So… Did somebody die?"

"No."

"Girl troubles?"

"No."

"… Did a zombie break into your house and eat your family?"

"No."

Vanessa sighed. "I give up."

"My brother," answered Ferb.

"Oh. What's wrong with him?" asked Vanessa.

"If there was anything, I wouldn't know." Ferb sighed. "He went off without telling me."

"When was that?"

"Today."

"Okay… And that bothers you?"

"It shouldn't."

"But it does," said Vanessa. "Why? You don't like not knowing where he is?"

Ferb sighed. "It's… never happened before."

"Well…" said Vanessa. 'From what you've told me before, he sounds like a pretty good kid."

"That just means that he doesn't know what there is to hurt him."

Vanessa shrugged. "Maybe… he's just growing up."

Ferb sighed. "Maybe."

0-0-0

Isabella stood staring at them for a time, then dropped to her knees and hugged Phineas.

"I… I don't believe it," she stammered. "I thought… you…" Isabella held him tighter. "Oh, Phineas! I never thought I'd see you again!"

"Yeah… This was about Ferb's reaction, too…"

"Oh, I missed you so much…"

The sound of metallic footsteps rang out again.

"We have to move," said F.

Isabella nodded. "Right."

They came to a hole in the side of the alleyway that was covered by an old piece of wood. F pulled it aside, ushering Phineas through the crack. From there, they walked through a shallow passageway until they saw a light at the end.

On the other side was a small room, roughly the size of their living room at home. Light flickered from a small fluorescent bulb on the ceiling, from which Phineas could see the contents of the room. Two couches with the upholstery coming off in several places sitting opposite each other were placed on the walls, and between them was a small table crowded with food, bottles, magazines (the gun parts AND the books), and anything else, to the point of not being able to see the surface of the table.

The room was in overall terrible shape. There were holes in the walls, with ratty grey wallpaper peeling off, and the ceiling looked close to collapsing. Phineas was almost afraid of falling through the floor.

"Home sweet home," remarked Isabella.

"I suppose Baljeet's hiding out like a mole as usual?" asked F.

"You supposed right," answered Isabella. "I'll see if I can't find him in all those stacks of papers." With that, she left.

"What happened to Isabella?" asked Phineas. "She's… different."

"Ten years of hell," F replied. "Think of it this way: Aeon Flux was once a cute little girl."

Phineas nodded. "Oh." He looked up at F. "Is this why you never let me watch that show?"

"…That and other reasons."

At that point, a man rolled into the room, sitting backwards on a computer chair, at high speed. The chair got caught on a crack in the floor, and fell, landing the man flat on his face.

"OW!" He stood up, pushed the chair back a ways, then tried it again, with the same result. Then he repeated it.

"… Should we… y'know… try to stop him?" asked Phineas.

"Actually… I kind of want to see what happens next."

After awhile, Isabella walked out from behind the man and sighed. "Baljeet, stop trying to make a cool entrance. You already failed. Now it's just getting sad."

"Aww… But I almost had it!"

"No. I think you've lost it."

Baljeet stood, brushing himself off. "Ah…" He had on all black, save for a white lab coat, and his dark hair now fell in waves just past his shoulders. He looked up at the brothers, raising an eyebrow upon seeing Phineas. "Hm? Oh… I see. You two have come back. Back… TO TH-"

"If you try to make a movie title reference, I WILL hurt you," said F sighing.

"Right… Sorry…" Baljeet returned his attention to Phineas. "The real question is… Why are you here?"

"We need information," answered F. "You're usually the one to go to for that."

"I am. What kind of information are you needing?"

"The empress. Anything you've got on her."

"Hmm… Well," said Baljeet. "I can only learn so much in this time… Take me back to the past, and perhaps it will be easier."

F nodded. "That can be arranged."

"I'm coming too," said Isabella. "I miss the old days."

"What was originally going to be a short one-man mission is now turning into a field trip…" F sighed. "I suppose now you'll both be coming along?"

The other two nodded.

"Is there anything else you'd like to see in the future?" Isabella asked Phineas.

Phineas laughed slightly. "Not really."

"I didn't think so."

With that, they all reached out, touching the watch, and disappeared.

0-0-0

They arrived in the past soon, and found themselves in the basement of an apartment building surrounded by boxes.

"Hm… So this is what it looked like before we moved in…"

"How do we get out?" asked Phineas. "The hole's gone."

Isabella grinned, picking up a nearby metal beam. "We could make one."

F frowned. "No."

But she ignored him, slamming the bar against the wall until it gave out, revealing the tunnel. Isabella smirked. "Let's go."

After a short walk, they were outside. "Where do we go now?" asked Baljeet.

"I'll take Phineas home," said F. "Your future selves are probably still at the Agency. Once you get them, meet me back here, and we'll discuss living arrangements for tonight."

The others nodded, and the two parties went opposite ways.

The brothers walked for awhile without talking, until F spoke up.

"There's something you should know about Isabella," he said. "Something you really should have known by now."

"What is it?" asked Phineas.

There was a long silence.

"Are you going to tell me?"

"She loves you," F stated, as if it were an obvious fact.

Phineas blinked. "…W… Wha? She… Huh?"

"I thought it would have been obvious," said F. "She's been in love with you from the moment you both met. She even told me herself."

"When?"

"About a week before your death. Tragic, really." He looked his brother in the eye. "And how do you feel about her?"

Phineas blushed. "I… I like her, but…"

"Then why don't you make a move?" Phineas turned bright red, looking away. F smirked, patting him on the head. "That's cute." F sighed. "In adulthood, you'll find that these things become much more simple."

They now were in front of the house. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Or… inside, technically," Phineas pointed out, grinning.

"…Right."

Phineas walked in…

…to find his brother waiting for him right behind the door.

Ooh.

And sunsetofdoom-san. Now YOU must hold up YOUR side of the deal. Wink wink.

..I have a kitten munching on my toe. What DO you want, earth feline?