(A drawing of Perry and Dr. Doofensmirtz posted on Deviant Art by cgratzlaff)
Author's Note: This story is a mixture of a couple of Indian folk story and a television show called Phineas and Ferb. Phineas and Ferb is about two boys going on crazy adventures every day during the summer. The main characters, Phineas and Ferb, are step-brothers and they have a pet platypus named Perry. Perry is a secret agent and his arch nemesis is an evil scientist named Dr. Doofenshmirtz. Dr. Doofenshmirtz is constantly building inventions that cause chaos in the Tri-state area. Also a side note is that Dr Doofenshmirtz did have a dog at one point, which I had not remembered. I found it on the Phineas and Ferb fandom webpage. His dog's name was Only Son and he grew up to be a prize-winning show dog. So even though there is not a helper for the monkey in the original story, I had to add him in here in order for Perry to escape.
Another day passed quietly, almost too quietly. Perry chirped nervously as he glanced down at his phone periodically, which was hidden under his wide tail so the boys could not see it. The waiting put Perry on edge, and he thought every buzz from his phone would be his call to action.
However, it did not arrive, so Perry continued to sit and watch his owners, Phineas and Ferb, work on their project. This time, they were trying to build a portal to the moon. Perry would never understand how they came up with such ideas. As the sun beat down on him, he settled into a lazy platypus nap. Then his phone buzzed. Instantly awakened he glanced at the screen.
"Mission Alert: Your arch-nemesis, Doofenshmirtz, is at it again, he's shooting the moon, get to HQ immediately."
A pit formed in Perry's stomach. The boys were going to the moon today. Perry glanced over at Phineas and Ferb, made sure they were working, and then sprinted to the oak tree in the yard, pressed the secret chute button, and dived in. The disguised chute door began to slide closed, but not before Perry heard Phineas ask, "Hey, where's Perry?"
The chute ride took him directly to HQ. He was sitting in front of the screen with his director's face looking down on him. The director quickly explained Doofensmirtz's newest invention, a laser beam that would blow up the moon. "You must succeed, Perry. The fate of the world rests on your shoulders."
Perry took a deep breath, set his shoulders, and put on his fedora. Then he hopped back into the shoot, sliding directly, and conveniently, to Doofenshmirtz's lair.
Slipping out of the chute entrance into Doofenshmirtz's lair Perry could see the giant laser in the middle of the lab, pointing out of an opening in the roof. Perry couldn't see anyone. He took a couple of quiet steps into the lair when a net swept up around him.
"You're too late, Perry the Platypus!" Doofenshmirtz exclaimed, stepping out of the shadows. "I have captured you and now you will watch as I destroy the moon!" He pointed up to the laser with a flourish, looking at Perry expectantly. Perry stared blankly back.
"What? You don't care?" Doofenshmirtz asked. Perry did care but had learned that if he just stared silently Doofenshmirtz would just keep talking. This allowed Perry to think of a plan to destroy the laser and escape from the net.
As expected, Doofenshmirtz started again about the moon. At this point, all his rants sounded the same — he had a bad childhood and wanted to take it out on the world — so Perry tuned it out like he normally does while looking around the lair.
The wires around him were steel, so he couldn't chew through like last time. Doofenshmirtz had completely isolated the net so Perry could not use them to escape. Perry looked around the lair, stumped as to how he was going to get out of it this time. Doofenshmirtz was almost through his speech. Perry was running out of time.
Just then Dr. Doofenshmirtz's dog hopped around the corner. His tongue hung out of his mouth, classic Only Son. Perry looked back at Doofenshmirtz, who was still talking animatedly at the machine. Only Son was creeping closer and Perry stuck his hand out one of the holes of the net. Only Son perked up and Perry chittered at him quietly. He bound up and pushed his head under Perry's hand happily. Perry pointed behind him to some of Doofenshmirtz tools.
Just behind Only Son was a laser cutter. That little gadget could cut through anything. Perry pointed to it urgently, hoping that Only Son would pick the right one. He looked back at Perry and then turned and padded over to the pile of tools. He sniffed around for a couple of seconds and then reached down and snatched up the laser cutter. Perry instantly flushed with relief and chittered a quiet bit of thanks. Only Son dropped the tool directly into Perry's hand and then flopped his head sideways to look up at him.
Perry stretched out and ran his hand through the dog's soft hair and then started using the laser to cut through the steel wires. Perry sliced through the steel like soft butter. Soon he had cut a hole big enough to slip out of. However, right as he finished Doofenshmirtz turned around. Perry froze above the hole. Luckily, he was able to cover all the cuts he had made.
"Soo, what do you think, Perry the Platypus?" Doofenshmirtz asked. "Is it scary?" Perry clicked disapprovingly.
Doofenshmirtz was taken aback. He cried out in anger and lunged to turn it back on.
"I'll show you dumb, Perry the Platypus!"
As Doofenshmirtz had his back turned, Perry instantly dropped down from the net and slipped off to the right side of the lab. Doofenshmirtz finished and a robotic voice boomed out a countdown until the laser was ready to fire. Doofenshmirtz laughed and turned toward Perry victoriously, only to be met with an empty net.
"What the-" Doofensmirtz started to say before Perry flew from the shadows and kicked him straight in the head, flinging him across the lab. Perry then ran up to the laser and changed the coordinates. In the nick of time, he pressed enter, and the laser shot into the sky, and straight into the sun, immediately getting absorbed in the sun's rays.
"No! That was the only laser beam. Now, I cannot destroy the moon!" Doofenshmirtz cried. "You outsmart me again, Perry the Platypus!"
Doofenshmirtz laid his head into his hands and cried. Perry paused and looked at him strangely. In all of their fights, Doofenshmirtz had never cried. Perry walked closer to Doofensmritz, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I give up, Perry the Platypus. You have all the virtues to defeat your enemies. You're fearless and full of resolve and truth, and you have too much foresight for me ever to trick you. I give up," Doofensmirtz said as he cried into his hands. Perry clicked sadly and patted his nemesis's shoulders letting him cry.
Bibliography
The Crocodile and the Monkey's Heart, in the Eastern Stories and Legends by Marie L. Shedlock.
The Crocodile in the River, by Vanarinda Jataka, in The Jataka: Volume 1 translated by Robert Chalmers
Only Son. (2021). https://phineasandferb.fandom.com/wiki/Only_Son