A/N: This is a little prequel to the ATSD movie and takes place in the other dimension. It features Candace and Perry, and how they both wound up in the situations they were in when the movie started. Candace is about ten, and who knows how old Perry is. Anyways, enjoy and leave some reviews while you're at it! :)

Protector

"Again," said Candace grimly. Perry raised an eyebrow skeptically, and Candace nodded her head. "I need to be ready for anything, start again," she said firmly.

Perry nodded and attacked her again, gently but swiftly. Candace raised her staff in response to Perry's and the two began to parry and thrust, each delivering blows not designed for harm but practice. As they fought, it still occurred to Perry that he had never in a million years expected to be doing this type of thing ever; not in his own lair, and especially not with Candace, a ten year old girl with an attitude problem.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, he supposed.

The fight continued, the moves from both Candace and Perry speeding up and getting slightly more intense. After a couple of well placed blows from Candace, however, she soon had Perry lying on the floor, her staff hovering a few inches above his neck.

The two just stared at each other for a moment, before Candace's face broke into a huge, yet slightly grim, smile. She let Perry up and he bowed to her out of respect, provoking a giggle from the little girl.

As Candace took a break to get some water, Perry sighed at the thought of her actually fighting giant robots in the near future. She was just a little girl, and Perry didn't want to think of her having to learn to fight and handle things like an adult.

It was all Doofenshmirtz's fault, Perry thought bitterly. It was Doofenshmirtz that had brought this early adulthood onto Candace; it was Doofenshmirtz that had forced Perry into hiding, into forming the Resistance. Doofenshmirtz had caused it all, and Perry hated him for it.

The learning to fight had been Candace's idea. Late one night nearly a month ago, Perry had been inside his lair, desperately trying to contact OWCA to see if there were any agents left alive and able to fight. Candace had followed him, unable to sleep, and had discovered his secret. After hours of typing out explanation after explanation onto his computer, Candace had eventually accepted Perry as a secret agent and understood why he had never told anyone. For their protection.

They had both agreed that Phineas and Ferb should never know, for their own safety. That had been Perry's idea, and one that Candace had agreed with.

"They shouldn't have to grow up yet," she had said. "So I will."

Perry had never been more proud of her in that moment, and so heartbroken. Although he hadn't wanted to admit it, she had been right.

Candace came back from her water break and caught Perry staring off into the distance, thinking. "Perry?" she asked. Perry's gaze snapped to hers. "Are you alright?"

Perry nodded and Candace gave a little smile. "Shall we go again?"

Perry shook his head, walked over to his giant computer and typed out, No, it's late and you need your rest. Good night Candace.

Candace sighed, but didn't disagree with the platypus. Gently leaning her staff against the wall, she grabbed her jacket and crawled into the little elevator that would take her upstairs. Just before she left she glanced back at Perry, who was looking at his computer screen, his shoulders slumped in exhaustion and defeat. Quickly, and without hesitation, she ran back to the platypus and pulled him into an embrace.

Perry, though startled, didn't pull away and allowed Candace to bury her face into his fur. "Good night, Perry," she whispered. "Promise you won't ever leave us."

Perry chattered softly in response and hoped with all his heart that he would never have to.

Perry awoke lying on something hard and metal, unable to move. It was dark, and all he could see was a tiny pinprick of light shining far above him. At first, he was confused. How had he ended up here?

With a start, it all came back to him.

The Normbots had invaded his lair while Perry had been dozing at his computer. They had surrounded him and Perry had been prepared to fight.

But then Doofenshmirtz had arrived, a sinister smile on his twisted face, and holding Candace by the arm. Candace, who had been merely trying to help Perry fight, Candace the little girl.

Perry froze and the Normbots, seizing the chance, had quickly overwhelmed him. Doofenshmirtz had laughed at Perry, causing Candace to shot him a glare so fierce that he should have been shaking in his boots. Instead he had laughed harder and released her, waving his hands to have Perry carted away.

"PERRY!" Candace had screamed. Perry had struggled against the Normbots in response, trying to get back to Candace, to protect her, but their grip had been too strong. The last thing he had seen was Doofenshmirtz's leering face before blissful darkness.

Now that darkness remained, but it was far from blissful.

"Ah, Perry the Platypus, how kind of you to finally awaken," came the voice of Doofenshmirtz from somewhere in the darkness. Perry immediately began to struggle, and Doofenshmirtz's laugh echoed. "Try all you like, but you'll never escape those bonds. I must admit, I expected a little bit more from you, back in your lair, but I suppose your weakness has always been your family. Oh well, now that I know where they live, I can now control you." Perry stopped struggling, and his eyes widened in alarm. No, no, no!

Doofenshmirtz continued. "But, I really don't have the means of keeping an eye on them all the time; I simply don't have the resources yet. So, I'll just wipe your memory and turn you into something so unrecognizable that they'll just forget about you." Perry began struggling again, and he could hear a machine begin to start up. "Well, I'll be back in about five minutes, the machine's still warming up. See ya!"

Perry didn't hear him. His memories overwhelmed him, each fighting to be in the forefront of his mind. Being a secret agent didn't matter anymore; all he could think about was his family and the fact that he had failed them.

When Doofenshmirtz finally pressed the button that would take away all of his memories, all Perry could think was, Please forgive me, Phineas and Ferb and Candace, for I have failed you.

And his world went black.

Candace knew what had happened to Perry, yet she knew that she had to act clueless once her brothers discovered that Perry wouldn't be coming home. They had cried for a week, Candace shedding real tears along with them. For she knew what Perry had been and what he had become—what Doofenshmirtz had done to him. Turned Perry into a platyborg and then turned him against everything that he had believed in, turning him evil.

Only one thought kept her going each and every day.

She was the only one who could protect her family now. Doofenshmirtz was going down.

Down, down, down.