14AmyChan: okay, last chapter, right here~! *^_^*

Isabella: thank goodness!

14AmyChan: I don't own anything that is cannon!Phineas and Ferb

Phineas: She owns Loic and Daniel.

14AmyChan: let the show go on~! *^_^*

"I'm fine, it hurts a little bit, but I'm fine," Phineas Flynn once again reassured the paramedic examining his shoulder for the umpteenth time. He once again took in the sights around him. Here he was, on the end of a paramedic vehicle, having his recently dislocated and replaced shoulder checked out by professionals, while being bathed in the flashing red and blue lights that sat upon the nearby police cars. Ferb, Daniel, and the party guests were being questioned by the policemen about the night's proceedings, and the Mexican man seemed more anxious than when Phineas had seen him last. Vaguely wondering as to the fate of this poor, used man, the teenager looked to his right.

On the rear of the ambulance alongside him was none other than Isabella herself, assuring her own medical help that she, too, was in good health for the moment. She had come through with little more than a few bruises, and—while he wished it had been no harm at all—the young lad was grateful no more damage had befallen his feminine friend.

Isabella smiled as the paramedics walked away and turned to her left, only to find Phineas had been staring at her with a small smile of his own. She playfully lifted a hand and waved at the boy who sat not two feet away from her. It was a gesture he returned gladly with his good arm.

"Wanna walk around a little bit?" Isabella asked, hoping to finally have a word in private with the red-haired man. Phineas nodded and hopped to his feet with a smile, then winced at the pain the unexpected jostle had caused his injured arm. The pain, however, was forgotten as soon as his raven-haired companion joined his side. They walked not too far from the blinking lights of police cars, but far enough so they could be bathed by the steady glow coming from the party-lit mansion in front of them. Here, Isabella stopped, staring wistfully at the house before her.

"I didn't belong here… not really…" Isabella stated slowly, her eyes sweeping the structure from top to bottom, a delicate frown on her face. "But… there are so many things I still can't remember about when I was younger, about my life then. I know I had a life there, a real life with friends, family, and even a dog!" Here, Isabella chuckled about the thought of a small Chihuahua nipping at her heels, in his own way demanding attention and relishing in the affection when it had been given. However, it was just a thought, a memory of a life past, and that in itself brought up a whole new series of questions. Questions that caused the young lady's heart to clench upon itself in sorrow.

"I remember a lot of it, or it could only be a little. I can't tell… But the life I do remember, I would really like to go back to. But I can't…" Isabella's words crashed terribly in Phineas' ears. He turned swiftly to see that the girl's eyes had begun to mist over, and he knew it was as hard for her to say it as it was for him to hear it. To attempt to ease both of their pain, he gently maneuvered his right arm over her shoulders and pulled her close. She allowed him to do so, and they simply stood there for a moment, shoulder to shoulder, dwelling on their current situation.

"Why not?" Phineas finally choked out, feeling as if he were attempting to hang onto a life that was quickly fading. After everything that had happened, she had said that she could not return, and he had a valid reason to want to know why. His question, however, was returned with another.

"How many people besides you believed I was alive a week ago?" Isabella asked from his side. The question stunned the young man, yet made absolute sense. It was a question that fed a prolonged silence, which inadvertently gave the young woman her answer. Thus, she continued her thought, though it need not be said.

"So if I just pop up back home, alive, after being presumed dead for—how many years have they thought I was dead…?" Isabella paused in her hypothesis to wonder the obvious. How long had this man been on his own in his belief of her being alive? A few days? Weeks? Months? Perhaps years of searching alone?

"You were announced dead about six years ago," Phineas answered, not quite realizing the massive implications of what he had just said. But she did. And she quickly fit the pieces together, and once in place, the thought touched her heart. She at once thought it touching, yet sad. Sweet, yet terrible. Drowned in these swirling emotions, she turned her head into Phineas' chest and gently wrapped her arms around his torso, taking care not to disturb his injured arm. It was an embrace which Phineas returned.

"Isabella? What's wrong…?" he asked, confused for a moment as to the sudden display of affection, though he did not mind it in the least. Perhaps the thought of being "dead" that long had shocked her…?

"That's how long?" Isabella managed to choke out. Tears began to slip themselves down her face and onto Phineas' shirt, the emotion becoming too strong to repress any longer. "That's how long you looked for me all by yourself?"

A wave of guilt passed over the boy as he realized he himself was the reason for Isabella's tears. He held her close, attempting to find some way to answer the question without upsetting her further. Another question—asked in the heat of pursuit—returned to him. A question he had not yet answered.

"Stubborn," he stated firmly, his voice filled with warmth. The statement confused Isabella, and she pulled away slightly to look Phineas in the eye. Her confusion seemed lost on the boy as he placed his hand on her shoulder and continued with a twinkle in his eye that she could not quite comprehend.

"Determined… headstrong… intelligent…"

"Phineas… what—?"

"Kind… good… sweet… adorable…"

"What are you—?"

"Trustworthy… amazing… compassionate… and much, much more," Phineas finished his obscure list as his friend's face weaved itself into one of confusion. A few beats of silence passed before Isabella deemed she could question the list without interruption.

"What was that about?" Isabella inquired, having no clue as to why the red-haired teenager had just switched topics to recite a list of adjectives. Was it his way of becoming more comfortable? She could not remember.

"That's what you were like when I knew you," Phineas admitted, and continued before Isabella could get a word in. "Before, you asked me what you were to me at that age. You were my friend, but more importantly you were one of my best friends. We would call each other if something was wrong, and celebrate when things went right. We picked each other up when we were down, and wherever me and Ferb were, you were almost always nearby. You were one of the most important people in my life, and I couldn't just let you go."

"But, Phineas—"

"I know there was a very real chance of you being… gone… forever. But I didn't want to think about that. To me, you just had to be alive… That probably makes me sound like a love-struck fool, but… I just couldn't…" Phineas' voice trailed off and he turned away from Isabella, thinking about his words. Though nothing except for the truth, even he had to now admit to himself that he had wrapped himself up in his attempts to find her. And now that he had, he had run into a very large road block.

"Phineas, I want to go back. Believe me; I want to go back to the place I grew up. I remember it was in the Tri-State Area now, but I can't quite remember the name of the town… But if I went back… If I went back now after all these years… then what would happen? A dead girl wandering the streets of the city, what would happen?"

"Isabella, I may be the only one who openly admitted that there was still a belief of you being alive, but I'm sure that I wasn't the only one who thought like that. Your mom still looks at the door every day when my mom goes over to see her, and sometimes she'll say something about you coming home soon. Not everyone really thinks you're gone forever," Phineas' comfort helped to ease the girl's fears a little bit, though some legitimate trepidation still lingered in her mind with good reason.

"What if I do actually walk in the house, say 'Mom, I'm home', and she passes out?" Isabella wondered aloud. That was the way things happened sometimes. A person would either pass out, think they're hallucinating, or both. What if the same happened to her loved ones?

"Then we'll let you guys meet up in a calm setting, so she can take the surprise better," Phineas answered. Isabella cast a hopeful glance up to Phineas, then shot a weary look over to the general area where everyone else remained.

"What about Dad? I feel bad that he got roped into all of this because he wanted to see me and was too scared to come and face my mom," Isabella admitted. Though she did feel bad for the man, she also felt more than a slight pang of anger and hurt for having had almost half of her life taken away by how he felt.

"We could probably add a seat to the plane to bring him along. Looks like he's pretty much beating himself up for all of this anyways," Phineas noted. He watched as Daniel stood his ground and remained to talk with the police officers about his faults and his offenses to the law. In both teens' eyes, it was one of the bravest things the man had done.

"After we pay his bail, of course," Phineas stated as he and Isabella turned back to the mansion, regaining their shoulder-to-shoulder position. They stood there for a few moments in comfortable silence, his hand on her shoulder while her head leaned comfortably against his. A cool wind nipped at both of their noses, and they both smiled.

"Think we can make this work? A dead girl walking the city streets?" Isabella asked after a while. She was greeted by an impossible grin on the red-headed teen's face.

"We'll make it work," Phineas reassured her, a smile growing on her face as well. "After all, nothing's impossible."

One Year Later

"Have you got your cell phone?" a woman asked; triple checking as her daughter was getting ready to depart from the house.

"Sí, mama," Isabella answered as she showed her mother the item in question. Before her mother could ask, she also revealed the pepper spray she always kept in her purse. Vivian smiled warmly, tell-tale signs of tiredness in her eyes.

"Oh, mi híja…" Vivian smiled, wrapping her daughter into a loving embrace. It was one Isabella returned gladly. She was still getting used to having her mother back in her life, as well as—

"Come home safely," Daniel Garcia-Shapiro said as soon as mother and daughter parted. He gave his daughter a brief, but loving hug.

"I will, Dad," Isabella stated when they broke. The girl beamed at her parents, who were together and not fighting or frightened. They were just together. And happy. Isabella headed out the door thinking about how her parents had already been married for six months! It had taken a while to get used to living with both parents at once, but the family was getting adjusted to the change rather quickly. Vivian had been more than livid with Daniel for taking her Isabella away, but soon forgave him after hearing the entire story, as backed up by Isabella, Phineas, and Ferb.

Isabella walked to the curb when she felt her phone vibrate; accompanied with the catchy line It's a waggle dance! The teenager wondered which of the girls had texted her and was pleasantly surprised when it was Gretchen.

Hey, Chief,
The girls and I wanted to know if you wanted to
hang out this Saturday? We're going to
karaoke!
-Gretch

Isabella smiled. When she had first returned to Danville, the former fireside girls had instantly been there. She assumed either Phineas or Ferb had called them over. They had all cried, and when told of the recent and not-so-recent events, cried some more. Tears of joy at Isabella's return mixed with tears of sorrow for all the years lost.

For the past year, the former fireside girls had all gotten together every other Saturday night to catch up, to have fun, and to be BFFs in general. After texting back an affirmation to the event, Isabella pocketed her phone and proceeded across the now-familiar street.

Once there, her phone decided to buzz with a Big Hunkin Hole in my heeaaart! Isabella, curious as to why either Buford or Baljeet would text her now, checked the screen.

Hey Girly,
Dinner Bell says to wait about five minutes
before you can come back here
-Bufe

Though curious as to why she was being asked to wait before coming into the backyard, Isabella looked around for something else to do. Upon noticing the Johnson car parked in the driveway, she decided to go inside and see what Candace was up to.

"Hey Candace," Isabella greeted as she walked in the house. Instead of Candace, she was greeted by a hyperactive five year old child who instantly lunged for Isabella's legs, then proceeded to run around her with the boundless energy of her mother.

"Hey Aunt Isabella!" Amanda shouted of joy, confusing eighteen year old. Throughout the year that she had known the child, she had never once been called an Aunt. The teenager simply followed the girl with her eyes and finally decided to go out on a curious limb.

"Hey, Amanda," Isabella started, but before she could get to the question, the girl's mother walked in. Amanda hid behind Isabella with a smile on her face as Candace pretended to search the room.

"Now where is that little girl?" Candace asked aloud, seemingly not noticing Isabella. However, the notion was soon dispelled when the red-haired woman shot her a wink. Catching onto the game, Isabella joined in.

"You mean a little girl with flaming red hair?" Isabella asked, striking a thinking pose with a smile. Amanda peeked out cautiously from behind the raven-haired girl, obviously wondering if the adult were about to betray her secret hiding spot.

"About this tall?" Candace played along, her hand roughly at about Amanda's height. Said child giggled uncontrollably at her mother's blatant confusion, having decided that her beloved aunt would not double cross her.

"Giggling like a maniac?" Isabella asked, pointing out the child's behavior. Amanda giggled all the louder, clearly enjoying her game of hide-and-go-seek.

"Wait, I think I hear her…" Candace trailed off dangerously as she made her way to the couch in the front room, still in clear sight of Isabella and—therefore—Amanda. "Behind here!" Candace called before stealing a glance behind the couch. When her surprise search yielded nothing, Candace straightened up with her back to the duo.

"Well, if she's that good at hide and seek, she'll never be found… and then she'll never have her fish crackers snack…" Candace would have trailed off, had she not been interrupted by an excited child.

"I want fish crackers!" Amanda called as she darted out from behind Isabella and into her mother's arms. Candace took the young girl up and gave her a hug.

"All right, Amanda, you can have your snack now," Candace said as she set her daughter down. As soon as she was released, the five year old made a bee line for the dining room, where her golden fish treasure await her. Behind her stood two laughing adults.

"They grow up so fast…" Candace mused, watching as her daughter delightedly ate her crackers with an open lid cup full of apple juice.

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Isabella agreed. Her mind drifted off to her entrance into the house, and she remembered she still had no answer as to why Amanda had called her what she did. She looked to the elder woman for answers. "Hey, Candace?"

"What's up?"

"When I came in the door, Amanda called me 'Aunt Isabella'. Any idea why?" Isabella asked, another memory tugging at her mind. It had been a year, and most of the memories had returned—well, judging from what she told her family and friends, it was most of her memories—but there were moments when she would attempt to bring up a time of her life and she would come up blank.

However, this question got a curious response from Candace. The woman had never been amazing with keeping secrets, always determined to expose the truth. So now, when said woman began to stammer—her known trait for lying—Isabella knew something was up.

"Candace, what's going—" Isabella's questioning was interrupted by the vibration of her phone accompanied with a very British accent saying This is gonna be sweet. Isabella glanced at her phone and noted that Ferb had said that it was safe to come in the backyard now.

"I'll ask you later. It looks like Phineas is up to his old tricks," Isabella smiled as she went out of the back door. While she expected to find some kind of contraption, she did not expect to find Phineas, sitting by himself, in front of the tree. It was a special tree to everyone, and no one could bear to take it down. So up it stayed. And now Phineas was the only one sitting beneath it, patting the seat beside him for her to come and join him. Glad for the time alone with her boyfriend of eleven and a half months, Isabella complied happily.

When the two had returned to Danville, they had painstakingly agreed to wait a while before getting into a relationship to make sure that what they felt was real, and not the adrenaline rush. When they could not bear to spend more than a few days without talking to each other, just to say hi and just to check in, they knew they were still meant to be together. That and the fact that they kept catching themselves trying to kiss each other didn't help either. They gave up after a couple weeks.

And now they were together, and happy. Isabella listened as Phineas talked about a few new ideas he had, and she input her comments and advice from time to time. Then, after a while, the conversation switched to what Isabella had been up to, what her new ideas were, and how college was for both of them. They had taken different classes, but were on-campus at pretty much the same time.

"And how are Ferb and Vanessa doing?" Isabella wondered at the odd couple. She was able to vaguely remember the girl whom Ferb had crushed on as a boy. When he had returned with Phineas, Isabella, and Daniel, the first person he had talked to was Vanessa. It turned out that the two had had increasing contact over the previous years, and had gradually moved from acquaintances to friends to best friends to eventually two people madly in love. When he had turned eighteen a few days after their return, the two had seriously talked marriage and—upon a beautiful proposal and an affirmative response—the two had gotten married not a month later. Though most people seemed to be awkward with the relationship upon being introduced to it, everyone knew the couple was happy. And really, that was all that mattered.

"They're talking about kids, last I heard," Phineas said with a grin. Isabella beamed brightly, wondering about a little Fletcher running around. She closed her eyes so she could picture a brilliant boy, or perhaps a daughter.

"That's good for them," Isabella beamed. She was about to lean on Phineas' shoulder when she realized he had moved. Her eyes snapped open to find that Phineas had disappeared. She stood quickly and walked around the tree, somehow knowing he was only behind it.

"Phineas, where—"

Isabella's question halted itself as soon as she found her boyfriend behind the tree. On bended knee. With a small velvet box in his hands. Isabella's own flew to her mouth in surprise. Phineas gave a weak and hopeful smile.

"I know we've only been dating for a year, and I know things have been really crazy, but even so… I wouldn't love anyone more than you. Isabella, will you consider marrying me?" Phineas asked. The shock of it all surprised Isabella, as well as the fact that this was a bit small for the man in question. However, that was a small detail. The big one was how she was going to answer the question.

Isabella nodded vehemently with a smile on her face and allowed Phineas to place the ring on her left-ring finger. It was a beautiful small diamond surrounded by sapphires. When Phineas stood, she hugged him close, surprised that she had become an engaged woman so quickly. And so quietly…

"We're not going to elope, are we?" Isabella asked suspiciously, pushing away her fiancé to look him dead in the eye. The man laughed and shook his head.

"Not if you don't want to. I just didn't want to make you nervous with something really big. But now that you've said yes, look up," Phineas admitted. Isabella curiously looked into the sky. She grinned at the vibrant cloud arrangements and wondered how she could have ever thought the lad in front of her could ever pull off something small.

I love you, Isabella Garcia-Shapiro! Marry me?
-Phin

When her eyes fell upon her fiancé again, there was a huge party around her, filled with family and friends. She saw the faces of her mother and father. The former fireside girls beamed brightly at her, having seen the ring already. Buford and Baljeet stood around construction supplies with triumphant smirks on their faces. Isabella guessed this was what they had been doing before she came, and assumed it had been Ferb piloting the plane in the sky to divert her attention as the party had been set up. Said British man walked into the backyard in his normal attire with his wife at his side. The two smiled happily for the newly engaged couple. The Flynn-Fletchers and the Johnsons were there, obviously, with loving smiles on their faces.

As the party drew on, an old Chihuahua came to Isabella's side, and a weary Platypus to Phineas'. With great joy, the two gathered up their respective pets before looking at each other.

"Phineas…" Isabella asked tentatively, instantly attracting his attention. He turned to his best friend fiancé with Perry on his head. The sight caused Isabella to giggle.

"Yeah?" he asked, enjoying the party and being with her. Life had not quite returned to normal when she had returned. There had been many questions and the blend of Daniel into life had definitely changed things forever. However, Phineas would not have had it any other way. Isabella was home, things had changed, but only for the better. And things could not go better than how they were at the moment.

"Thank you," Isabella smiled as she snuck an arm around Phineas' torso. He gladly returned the hug. Pinky and Perry retreated tactfully, knowing what was to come and not wanting to be in the middle of it.

"For what?" Phineas asked, his face conveying perfectly his playfulness. That was one of the things Isabella had fallen in love with him again for. She smiled.

"Thank you for making everything so perfect," Isabella answered, drawing her fiancé into a kiss. He gladly obliged to her silent request. And for now, everything was indeed perfect.

…/…/…/

Somewhere in the Quad State Area

An insane asylum was at the change of shifts. A new employee walked around the building, hoping to find his charge's room before the man tried anything dangerous. He found it quickly enough, and proceeded to stay in front of the door, guarding it.

Unbeknownst to this poor, new employee, his charge had easily squirmed his way out of his straight jacket. He needed it off so he could think. So he could plan. Also, tapping his fingers on the walls helped.

14AmyChan: okay, so that's the end~! *^_^*

Isabella: Phineas and I get married at eighteen?

14AmyChan: not exactly. You guys get engaged at eighteen. I've known couples that have been engaged for a couple years and are just waiting for the right time to get married.

Phineas: what about jobs and all of that?

14AmyChan: well, here's the fun bit. All those questions you have, you can ask them. And instead of the drawing an answer like I did with "Where's Phineas", I'm going to make oneshots~! *^_^*

Isabella: oneshot answers?

14AmyChan: yup~! Like the day where you and Phineas had out earlier, that'll be the first oneshot.

Ferb: so, if you like, ask a question about the story and patiently await your answer in story form. It will not be coherently multichapter, but rather a string of oneshots under one title. Feel free to ask questions at any time with the review button below.

14AmyChan: so please read and review~! And thank you all so much for keeping up with this one~! *^_^* for the first time ever, I'm gonna make a list of people who've supported me thus far on FF. there'll be another list on DA, where this story is also posted. here I go:

TheNargana

foobar137

PianoMan5

Whythis

fvcutie0028

Book girl fan

Cute as a button22

MassiveSinger

Kale Bishop

phineas81707

TheCartoonFanatic01

Ryan Stoppable

Dallimater

Guest (CH3)

Axis22

FanFicCriTicTheThird

HalyPooH

Yarthayaj'knaushtavdhladleklwa

Thesmartone1997

RedWingChris

Duh (CH4)

Shadouge-and-Silvaze4ever

Guest (CH11)

14AmyChan: again, thanks to all these lovely people who-by simply reviewing their thoughts-helped to shape this story and give me inspiration to keep it going. I'll hope to see you guys next time~! *^_^*