A/N So this has been in my drafts, completed, for a long, long while...

Phineas stared at the page. The words seemed to blur together as his mind drifted. He been trying to read it for what felt like hours and was only on the second page.

With a sigh, he snapped the book shut. How could Ferb not only read it but reread it and like it?

He'd only chosen this one because of how many times he'd seen Ferb reading it. There'd been a book next to it called Conceit and Bias and the Undead maybe he should have tried that one instead of The Odyssey.

Phineas leaned his head back against the maple in the backyard. The boredom was intolerable. Of course he could build something, he almost always had a chiliad of ideas in stock, but without anyone to join him, it wasn't as much fun.

Smiling, he set the book down in the grass and dug a pen and small notebook out his short's pocket. Then he flipped the notebook open and checked off the word 'chiliad' before sticking both objects back into the pocket.

He stood up, picking Ferb's book back up as well, and headed inside. Reaching the kitchen, he left the book on the counter and opened the refrigerator. After rolling his eyes at all the stuff marked 'lite', 'low', 'non', 'free', or 'diet', he grabbed the one soda that was not marked with any of those things, thank heaven. His mom's newest health binge was beginning to get to him. He could only hope it was temporary.

And if not, they'd get to work on dong the impossible and create something 'lite', 'low', 'non', 'free', or 'diet' that actually tasted good.

He elbowed the refrigerator door closed as he popped open the tab on the can. And then almost spilled it at the sound of an unexpected screech.

"Phineas! What are you doing?"

Phineas blinked at Candace before looking down at the soda can. "Uh, I'm about to drink a soda?" Something occurred to him, and he frowned. "Why are you home? I thought you were going to the mall with Stacy?"

"I was, but the mall was closed when we got there." She got a strange look on her face. "Some water and power guys were snooping around and blocking off the entrances and stuff. Then Stacy hurried off, saying she had to do something or other. The whole thing was weird enough that I thought you and Ferb had something to do with it." As if just realizing it, she glanced around. "Where is Ferb anyway? Aren't you two like joined at the hip or something?"

"Baljeet asked to borrow him." Phineas took a sip of his soda.

"'Borrow him'? Phineas, he's not some object you can loan out," she said, the disapproval in her voice clear.

That prompted a laugh from Phineas. "I know that. It's not like I forced Ferb to go over to Baljeet's." He shook his head, grinning. "You think I can order him around?" It's not like he hadn't tried a few times. But it was always met with snippy or sarcastic remarks and eye rolls. He walked past Candace.

"Really?" She was following him. "Huh..."

Phineas didn't know what she was surprised about. He picked the book up off the counter.

"So you're not doing anything today?"

"Not really," he said, heading towards the hall.

"Figures," Candace mumbled, "the one time you two twerps aren't doing something to ruin my day, I have no plans to be ruined."

"Don't be like that." Phineas skipped up the stairway. "I'm sure we can find something to do!"

"'We?'"

At the top of the stairs, he looked back at her. "Well, yeah, I mean, if neither of us has any plans with other people, why not do something together?" He pointed towards Ferb and his room. "I'm going to put Ferb's book away, why don't you go set up Skiddley Whiffers while I do?"

Candace blinked at the mention of her favorite board game before a manic grin spread across her face. "Deal. But you are going down, little brother. Down, down, down..."