Aren't You A Little Young To Be Building An Interdimensional Portal?

Chapter 12

"I don't get it," Doofenshmirtz says. "Why won't it do anything?"

"How would I know?" Vanessa asks, her hands on her hips. "You're the evil scientist, not me."

"You know, I bet Perry the Platypus would know how to fix it," Doofenshmirtz says. "He's smart that way. He knows how to break any inator. I bet he could fix them, too."

"I don't think it works that way," Vanessa says. "All you have to do is smash it or unplug a wire or hit the self destruct button and it'll break."

"Yeah, well, you don't know Perry the Platypus like I do," Doofenshmirtz says, crossing his arms.

Vanessa rolls her eyes. "Whatever."

There's a knock on the door, so Doofenshmirtz goes over to open it. It's no one he knows, though, so he's a little confused. "A platypus?"

The platypus pushes past him and heads straight for the inator blueprint closet.

"Hey, you can't just barge in here and look through my blueprints!" Doofenshmirtz yells.

"Oh, Perry, you're back," Vanessa says. "Is everything okay?"

The platypus sticks a thumbs up out of the closet.

"You know this platypus?" Doofenshmirtz says, confused.

The platypus disappears into the closet, then, a moment later, Perry the Platypus steps out with his little fedora.

"Oh, be careful, Perry the Platypus," Doofenshmirtz says. "Another platypus just broke in a few seconds ago."

Perry rolls his eyes and heads back into the closet.

"What are you looking for?" Vanessa asks. "My dad already built the inator. It just doesn't work."

"I was actually hoping you would know how to fix it," Doofenshmirtz adds.

Perry runs out of the closet and hands him a blueprint, panting slightly from whatever hurry he's in. Doofenshmirtz takes it from him, and it's the blueprint to the platypus-translator-inator.

"I thought you didn't like this," Doofenshmirtz says, confused.

Perry clasps his hands and looks up at him, almost pleading.

"Do you want me to make it?"

Perry nods.

"Okay, as soon as I figure out this inator —"

Perry takes the blueprint and smacks Doofenshmirtz with it.

"What was that for?" he asks, rubbing his arm.

"I think he wants you to make it now," Vanessa says.

"Don't you think the other-dimension-inator takes priority?" Doofenshmirtz asks.

Perry shakes his head.

"But why?"

"Well, maybe if you built it," Vanessa says, "he could tell you why this is so important."

"Good point," Doofenshmirtz agrees. "Okay, let's see. What do we need?" He takes the blueprint back and looks it over. "I think I have all this, actually." He needed to buy a couple parts for the other-dimension-inator, but when taking inventory to find the parts for that, he thinks he saw all the ones he would need for this inator.

As Doofenshmirtz scrambles to get all the parts for the new new inator — this is his third inator of the day; that has to be a new record — Perry paces back and forth by the overhang of the building. He has to admit, it's a little distracting, but Doofenshmirtz can tell that this is important to him, so he forces himself to stay focused.

"Perry, calm down," Vanessa says, amused. "He's breaking apart old inators. You should be happy."

Perry just chatters, and not in a cheerful way.

"It's going to be okay," Vanessa says. "It always is."

~~

"I'll be honest, Perry the Platypus," Doofenshmirtz says, holding up the platypus-translator-inator, "I don't know if this is going to work."

Perry holds it hands out anyway.

"Okay, but if it doesn't work, don't get mad at me," Doofenshmirtz says. "I didn't have much to go on when I made it."

With that, Doofenshmirtz slips the platypus-translator-inator over Perry's head. It's a weird little helmet, with a bunch of pokey proddy thingies sticking out. He's sure they do something, but he doesn't remember making this blueprint, so he's not sure what it would be that they do.

"Say something," Doofenshmirtz says eagerly.

Perry looks around uncertainly. "Um... hi?"

"It worked!" Doofenshmirtz jumps up and down, clapping his hands together. "I can talk to my nemesis now! I'm officially the only evil scientist in the whole tri-state area that can talk to my nemesis!"

"Congratulations," Perry says, and though it sounds incredibly deadpan and insincere, Doofenshmirtz chooses to think that's just the way the platypus-translator-inator translated it.

"There's so much I want to ask!" Doofenshmirtz says. "Like, what —"

"There's no time for that," Perry says. "We have to —"

Doofenshmirtz stares at him, waiting for him to finish, but the platypus just stops. Doofenshmirtz looks at him, then at an equally confused Vanessa, then back at his nemesis. Nothing.

"You good, Perry?" Vanessa asks.

"It's just very hard to think with this voice talking for me," Perry says. He shakes his head as if clearing the thought from his mind. "Is there a transistor in the interdimensional-portal-inator?"

"Obviously," Doofenshmirtz says. "Otherwise it would blow the power throughout the entire tri-state area."

"Good," Perry says. "I need it."

What do you mean, you need it?" Doofenshmirtz asks. "It's in the inator! You can't just take apart my inator! Not when we're so close to finishing it!'

"Someone else is making one just like this and —" Perry pauses. "This is very disorienting."

"Why would someone else be making an interdimensional-portal-inator?" Vanessa asks.

"For the same reason we are," Perry says. "And I think all they need is a transistor."

"In that case, let's go bring them one," Doofenshmirtz says with a grin. He was really enjoying working with just his menesis and his daughter, but he wouldn't mind adding a few new friends to the mix.

"I can do it," Perry says.

"I know, but where's the fun in that?" Doofenshmirtz asks.

"Well, um..." Perry clasps his hands in front of him and looks at the floor awkwardly.

"What?" Doofenshmirtz asks. "What is it?"

"I think he wants to do this alone," Vanessa says.

"What? No, he doesn't," Doofenshmirtz says confidently. "I just built him a whole translating helmet! He wouldn't just leave after I built him a translating helmet!"

Perry looks between Doofenshmirtz and Vanessa for a moment, then gives a resigned sigh. "Let's go."