Beneath The Surface

Echo chambers

In a sputtering flash of magic, the brothers were now back in their humble abode.

Storm gave out a sight, nearly contemplating on collapsing before he decided against it while Sniper happily frolicked over to the tv, turning it on and switching through the channels.

"Gee, I sure hope that Cookies and Anastasia are gonna be okay- do you think they'll allow cards? Maybe we could send them one! Or maybe a gift! Or a cake! Or a cake inside a gift with cockatrice noodle soup!" Sniper happily rambled, his tails wagging behind him.

"Yeah sure- but we've got work to do! Plans to make. If we want to catch that kitsune, we've gotta be on it's tails at all times!" he said in a determined speech, pacing back and forth in front of the tv.

"Okay but can I watch Super Lambie while you make the plan?" Sniper asked with a smile. Already sat on the couch.

Storm froze, blinking, then stepping out of the way of the tv. Looking rather unamused
"sure...now let's seee-" he pulled a book off the shelf, opening the secret door and levitating out stacks of supplies. Blueprint paper, graph paper, normal paper, pencils, colored pencils, pens and red string. You name it, he got it. Pulling the dining room table into the living room and laying his arsenal all across it.

He took a good long look, tapping a pen to his tongue and looking towards his ceiling covered in sticky paws for guidance.

Then, an idea came to him, eyes widening and his ears raising before he grinned, getting straight to work. Writing down whatever came to him in a frantic blur, pinning red string from one to another. Using the appropriate amount of colors with each stroke of a pencil. Measuring out Dr. Casserole's radar and jotting down notes.

He stuck his tongue out the side of his mouth, brows knitted fiercely
"hmm...carry the 1...and..hah! Got it!" he grinned

"you thought of a plan?!" Sniper excitedly asked, tails twitching against the couch.

"No, I just figured out an equation to a theory I've been doing!" he showed his brother the sheets of graph paper. Confusing math all over the place. "I've already thought about a plan ages ago" he waved him off

"oh...nice!" he smiled "but what's the plan? Do we get to go to space?!" he grinned, hopping off the couch to meet his brother.

"Nope, even better, and we can start right now" he grinned, tail wagging

"really?! What is it, what is it?!" Sniper jumped up and down.

"Basically, we just point this radar everywhere and see where it takes us until our legs give in on us." Storm enthusiastically replied

Sniper blinked. Not a thought behind those smiling eyes
"yaaayy!!! Camping trip!!"

"ehhh...sorta. But hey, we will need those kind's of necessities. Wanna raid the house with me?" he grinned, raising a brow

"yeah!!"

"alright! I'll go pack up all the stuff in the lab!" he zipped into the laboratory (thattotallywasn'tabasement), somehow fitting high tech gear into a backpack.

"okay, I'll go get my sticker sheets!!" he dashed up to his room, stuffing rolls of stickers and plenty of blankets into his rainbow saddlebags.

After successfully raiding their entire rooms, the brothers stood before the front door, smiling at one another. Saddlebags stuffed to the brim, and little Sniper holding a scroll that practically wrapped around him from how long it was.

"Alright, got enough food and water?"

"check!" Sniper replied, checking off a scroll

"enough blankets and pillows?"

"check!"

"enough scrolls?"

"doubly check!" Sniper said, fully wrapped up in scrolls like a cold mummy.

"Aand I've got the radar! Looks like we're good to go!"

"yaayy!!"

with a smile, Storm opened up the door. His eyes bugging as he saw all the mess of the traps left behind on his front lawn. The shack on their house shifting, nearly collapsing in on itself. Making snow from the roof fall right on them.

Their eyes popped out from the mounds, Storm looking unamused

"actually...maybe we should clean all this up before we go."

"yay shoveling!!" Sniper exclaimed

Storm rolled his eyes, amusement forcing them to crease.

And the brothers did just that, leaving only when the snow was cleared out and the traces of their traps and the embarrassing encounters with the kitsune were gone. Storm rambling to Sniper about something as he held up the radar to the wind, it's satellite spinning.

But meanwhile, back inside their home, the shadow of the couch grew up on the floor. Creating a foxy silhouette and sprouting slender violet eyes. Comedy and tragedy stretching up it's disembodied face like light piercing through a shadow.

It cackled, eyes flickering before everything cut to black.

                                                     The
                                                         End.