So... It's been a while since I last updated.

By which I mean, like, more than two months.

I don't really have any excuses at this point. I'll try to do better in the future.

Ferb

Day 66 (That's four days since last chapter)

The pavement clattered away under the wheels of Ferb and Adyson's bikes. Adyson rode hunched over the handlebars, her face a mask of concentration, while Ferb seemed more pensive.

The truth was, he was suspicious. This all seemed too convenient. Here they were, less than a week after Isabella's disappearance, and not only had they discovered what had happened to her, but Candace just happened to be a self-taught expert on it. It wasn't that he doubted this Slender Man was behind it- he'd always harbored a bit of a belief in the supernatural (unlike his decidedly down-to-earth brother), and the evidence they'd been trawling through these last four days had more than convinced him.

No, if anything, he was suspicious that there was someone leading them onto this path. The most likely suspect so far seemed to be this "AM," but somehow it didn't feel quite right to him. From the tone of his message to Candace, he'd really sounded more like an observer of some sort than someone who was actively messing with them. As far as he could tell, that only left the possibility of the Slender Man himself, but he'd asked Candace about it the day before, and she'd said he mostly acted through servants- people who he'd dominated to do his will, called "proxies." Direct action of his was generally limited to physically appearing to whoever it was he was stalking.

For the moment, however, Ferb had decided to try to focus on their more immediate problems- for instance, finding out just who AM was, just what had happened to Isabella, and whether it would be possible to bring her back. However, more pressing to him was the issue of Phineas.

On the face of it, he was doing well. Along with Candace, he'd been the hardest-hit by the message AM had left for them- Candace, because she'd been looking into the Slender Man for a while, but had never before experienced this level of intrusion into her own life, and Phineas- well, he was complicated, to say the least.

Ferb had always suspected that Phineas harbored an affection for Isabella that went perhaps a little beyond friendship. If it was present, he'd doubted Phineas realized it himself, and Isabella certainly hadn't seen any reciprocation. But after that tearful confession of his a few days past, Ferb was all but certain.

Not too long before, he would have been relieved at the final resolution of this unending bit of tension, and happy to see the two together at last. But now... now the last thing they all needed was more stress in their lives.

As a bit of consolation, Phineas stilldidn't seem to have realized the nature of his feelings- truly, obliviousness was the most powerful force in the universe. But it was only a matter of time, Ferb thought- partly due to Phineas's problem-solving skills, but mostly due to the deadline Adyson had given him.

Which brought him to yet another problem...

He turned his head a bit to look at Adyson, riding just to his left. Her face was stoic, like she was focused on her goal, and determined not to let anything get in her way.

Now she was a puzzle he still didn't quite have figured out- a potentially dangerous one, at that. When he'd asked whether or not to tell Phineas about Isabella's crush, her reaction had seemed... unusual, to say the least.

To be sure, he knew she was going through some hard times at home, especially with that fire right after they were finished moving. But they were all going through a lot, and they needed to work together if they were going to get through this.

Ferb put aside his misgivings as they pulled up to the public library. They did need to work together, but he was going to get some answers today.

Adyson stuck her bike in the rack, then carefully looped her bike lock through it and shook her hair free of helmet hair. Ferb did the same, minus the hair-shaking; he was far too British, and his hair wasn't really long enough for a proper shake anyway.

The two began wordlessly tromping up the stairs to the main entrance, flanked by faux-Roman stone columns and marble lions. The sounds of downtown Danville began to gradually fade as they walked through the heavy wooden doors, then vanished completely as they slammed shut behind them.

At the front desk was a bored-looking college-age girl with her nose in a thick paperback. Adyson walked up to her and, perhaps a bit more curtly than was necessary, said "We need to see your microfilms."

Without looking up from her book, the receptionist pointed to the bank of elevators behind her. "Second floor on your right."

A scowl crossed Adyson's features.

Ferb's brow ruffled a bit, but he said nothing.

The elevator was slow, and made ominous creaking noises on the way up. The strains of "I'm Lindana and I Wanna Have Fun" could be heard faintly.

"Weird week, huh?" Ferb said to break the almost-silence, acutely aware of his understatement.

"Yup," Adyson replied.

Ferb waited a moment, waited for her to say more.

"I wonder how Phineas's project is going," he continued when it became clear she wasn't going to. "He seemed rather enthusiastic about it when we left." He watched Adyson out of the corner of his eye, hoping the mention of Phineas would get a reaction out of her.

"You don't have to tell me that," Adyson replied in a droll tone. "I've been at your house the last four days too, remember?"

Perhaps not.

The elevator doors opened with an obnoxious "ding!" and the two of them stepped out. A ways to the right, there was a row of filing cabinets with a placard on top of them reading "Microfiche, Danville Daily." Adyson tapped him on the shoulder. "I think that's what we're looking for."

Once they were closer, Ferb could make out smaller labels on each of the drawers, with a range of months and a year on each of them- "March-May 1923," for instance.

"What was the date Candace gave us?" Ferb asked Candace under his breath. She took a moment to fish a slip of paper out of her pocket before answering.

"October 15, 1995," she replied.

Ferb began scanning the row of filing cabinets. Currently at the far left end of the row, he was with with the oldest newspapers, dating from the late 19th century.

He took a few steps to the right, scanning down and across the cabinets. After a few seconds of searching, his gaze locked on the drawer labeled "October-December 1995."

He walked over and pulled open the drawer, then started scrounging through the tiny cardboard boxes contained within.

This time, he found his target almost instantly. He withdrew the box, the reel of film within making a satisfying rattle as he did so.

"This is the one we want," he said.

"Excellent," Adyson replied, taking the box from his outstretched hand and withdrawing the reel of film contained within. She looked up and took a quick look around the room. "And I think I see a microfilm viewer over there," she said, gesturing at the object.

She began to take a step towards it, when a thought suddenly struck Ferb.

"Wait!" he exclaimed, reaching out to grab her shoulder. She seemed a bit annoyed as she turned back to see what was the matter.

"Do you know how to use a microfilm machine?" Ferb asked.

She opened her mouth, as if to respond, then, after a pause, apparently thought the better of it.

"Well, how hard can it be?" she eventually decided. "We can figure it out."

"Or we might break that," he countered, gesturing at the roll of film in her hand. "You know, the library staff is here for a reason; maybe we could-"

"No!" Adyson exclaimed. "You heard what Candace said- the Slender Man can control people. Anyone could be working for him."

"Yes, she said he could do that. She didn't say it meant we should automatically be suspicious of everyone we meet."

"That doesn't mean it isn't a good idea."

They stood there for a little bit, glaring at each other.

After a few moments, Ferb rolled his eyes, exasperated.

"Fine," he declared. "Go ahead."

"I will," Adyson replied angrily. She turned back away from him and paused. Her face was turned away from Ferb, but he would have been willing to bet that a glimmer of uncertainty was crossing her face.

He smirked a little in spite of himself. Then he remembered what he was here for to get the newspaper article and to find out why Adyson seemed to be intent on destabilizing Phineas; not to be malicious at her expense.

And besides which, he was trying to get her to work with them- it seemed a little hypocritical to just make fun of her here.

He sighed and went over to see if she needed help.

The machine was mounted on a table about waist-high. It seemed to be about two-thirds screen and one-third machinery. So far, Adyson seemed to have gotten the reel on the machine, but the operation of the device seemed to be eluding her.

Apparently oblivious to his presence, she carefully pulled the end of the tape off the reel and through a series of rollers, and pushing it through until it suddenly encountered resistance. She hesitated briefly, seemingly unsure of what to do next, then tried pushing a blue switch in front of the reel. Predictably, nothing happened.

"Try turning it on first," Ferb said, startling Adyson.

"I can do it myself, thanks," she said angrily, then turned back to the machine. She hesitated a moment, then grudgingly flicked the power switch

A humming sound began to come from the machine, accompanied by a dim yellow light from behind the tape. Now Adyson tried pushing the blue switch again, and the reel began to unwind with a satisfying whirring sound.

She released the switch after letting the reel unwind a good ways. Now the tape looked like it was in the right place, but there was still nothing on the screen.

"Try pushing the reel in," Ferb suggested. "I think the film's supposed to be over that light."

"I can handle this myself," Adyson repeated, her tone growing angrier again.

She fumbled around the machine for a while, pushing buttons and adjusting knobs, but nothing seemed to have any effect. Eventually, she seized a handle and, glowering, pushed in the bottom third of the machine until the unwound portion of the reel was over the yellow light.

As she did so, the newspaper on the film finally came onto the screen. "There we-" Adyson began, before realizing that the image was backwards.

She sat there, staring. Ferb considered the situation for a moment, and then began "Maybe if you-"

He was never able to finish his sentence, however. Adson stood, turned to face him, and yelled "You know what? Maybe you should mind your own damn business!"

"Adyson, I think you are-"

"What?" she asked angrily. "You think I'm what? Unhinged? Mental? Lost my marbles over some family problems?"

"Actually," Ferb replied, struggling to keep his mounting anger out of his expression. "I was about to say you might be overreacting a bit, right before you started yelling at me in the middle of a public library."

Adyson seemed to take a moment to process this. She turned and saw the rest of the room staring at them. Ferb forced a little smile and waved at them. Adyson did the same, her smile a little weaker.

After a few seconds, the library patrons seemed to accept that all was well and went back to their previous library activities. Then, his usually calm emotional balance finally tipped by Adyson's outburst, Ferb grabbed her by the sleeve and pulled her behind a row of shelves.

"Alright," he said icily, his voice low and controlled. "What is going on with you and Phineas? When we were deciding whether or not to tell him about Isabella's crush on him, you seemed to want to tell him for the sole purpose of causing him emotional pain."

She angrily pulled her arm free of his grip.

"So?" she retorted. "Buford wanted to tell him too, and I don't see you calling him a psychopath."

"First of all, I'm not calling you a psychopath." Actually, she'd be a sociopath, if anything,came a voice in the back of his head, but he brushed it aside. "Second, Buford is the self-identified neighborhood bully- his tendency for trying to hurt people is well-established.

"But you, on the other hand, have never shown any tendencies towards violence or cruelty that I am aware of. He is Buford van Stomm, harasser of smart people and all-around bully. You are Adyson Sweetwater, Fireside Girl and friend of Isabella's. You should know better than he does.

"And so I will ask you once more. What. Is. Going. On."

Adyson's eyes widened in shock at such a sustained outburst from Ferb, then narrowed again in ire. There was silence between them

"You have no idea what I have had to live through," she said finally. "And there's no way you could understand if I tried to explain it.

"Adyson, we all know about your house burning down and your father leaving-"

"That's not what I'm talking about!" Adyson's voice started to rise again. She caught herself and spent a moment running a hand through her hair, apparently trying to regain her composure.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said once she seemed to have calmed down. "Look, we're here for that article Candace asked for. Let's just get it and get out of here."

She walked back to the microfilm viewer, leaving Ferb standing there with his righteous anger slowly fading, with bewilderment rushing in to fill its place

Something was going on with her- well, something beyond the general weirdness that had been surrounding them all for the last week, and beyond the stress he'd already known her to be undergoing. He tried to think back. Had she been acting differently before all this? She'd seemed normal the day Isabella had disappeared- he remembered she'd talked to Phineas that day- but they'd all been pretty shocked and torn up then. If she had been acting like this before then, she might have been temporarily brought back by the stress of Isabella's disappearance.

Or maybe she'd been behind it and had just been pretending to be distraught. Maybe she'd even been in league with the Slender Man...

No. He was letting his paranoia get the better of him. Adyson had been helping with their research for the last four days- so far, the only strange behavior out of her had been the whole Phineas thing.

Not seeming to notice his lost-in-thoughtness, Adyson looked up from the microfilm viewer at him. "Found the article," she said icily. "You coming or what?"

Ferb nodded and walked back over to her, putting aside his misgivings for the moment.

The article was headlined "Apartment fire kills five; police suspect arson." Ferb scanned through the text at lightning speed, his speed-reading classes from last year finally coming in handy.

The report was preliminary, according to the article, but the fire seemed to have been started on the fifth floor with gasoline or some other flammable liquid. The fire alarm had been deliberately disabled, and so three people had died from smoke inhalation before the fire department had been contacted. An elderly woman on the top floor had gotten stuck in her apartment and seemed to have suffered the same fate.

Oddly, there was also a man missing- the fourth member of the family of whom three who had suffocated. The police declined to comment on whether or not he was a suspect, but the author of the article noted that there no other likely candidates thus far.

"I wonder what Candace thinks the Slender Man had to do with this," Ferb mused.

"He's often associated with fire," Adyson replied unsolicited. "There are a lot of accounts of him being involved in fires related to his victims."

"Yes, but I would think a supernatural being would require an accelerant to start a fire," Ferb countered. "And I somehow have a hard time picturing the Slender Man picking up a gas can."

Adyson shot him an icy glare, then turned back to the microfilm viewer. She stabbed the "print" button, then walked over to the pay printer and slotted some change into it, scowling all the way.

Ferb raised an eyebrow a miniscule amount.

Something was definitely going on here.

Ferb and Adyson dismounted their bikes and leaned them against the front of the house. They hadn't spoken to each other the entire ride home.

"We're back!" Adyson declared as they walked in, just a little out of breath. There was a pounding noise from the stairs, and then Baljeet stuck his head around the corner.

"Oh, hello," he said. "Candace is upstairs- she locked herself in her room to keep herself from trying to bust Phineas."

"Well, we have the article she asked for," Adyson said, holding up the printout. She walked past Baljeet and started up the stairs without waiting for acknowledgement.

"What is her deal?" Baljeet asked, one eyebrow raised. Ferb shook his head, not wanting to try to explain to Baljeet- mostly because he wasn't sure himself.

"What about Candace?" Ferb asked trying to change the subject, and conceal his current sense of disquiet. "How's her research coming?"

"We're still about as far as we were when you too left," Baljeet replied. "Buford had the idea that AM's name was a literary reference of some kind, but so far we have not found much.

"However, we have been having some luck with the 'Bureau of Special Investigations.' There is the usual 'Men in Black' UFO myths, but the name seems to come up rather frequently with regard to the Slender Man. There are a few rumors Candace considers to be credible, and a potential source she's trying to track down.

"Unfortunately, she has not been having the same degree of success with Isabella. She has found no credible information on how to bring back someone the Slender Man has taken. Right now, we are about were have been for the last four days- there are a few instances of him returning people some time after they disappeared, but she does not think that likely in this case."

"And Phineas?" Ferb asked with some trepidation.

"Still in the backyard," Baljeet replied. "He hasn't come inside since you two left."

Ferb sighed and put a hand over his forehead.

"All of this... it still seems a little unreal. I need some-"

He stopped, a flash of realization crossing his features.

"My god. He's gone. He's been gone for four days and I haven't noticed."

"Who is-"

"Perry," Ferb said. "Where's Perry?"

Thanks to the reviewers:

Viscount Edmund Allenby

gamelover41592

AuthorD: I think I've taken a bit too much horror out, actually. There really should be some mysterious happenings, at least.

EDD17SP: Well, sorry about the slow chapter today. Next one will pick up the pace!
Although it occurs to me I may have said similar things in the past.

Sleeping Kangaroo: Not heating up enough, in my mind.

Eeznii24

KimberlyJolie34