Someone has ruined Lockely’s reputation and made him out to be some kind of transformation inducing scoundrel. It’s up to Junior Detective Calex to solve the case!
Faux Fox Follies
By CalexTheNeko
Lockely had just arrived home. The orange fox with black speckles was wearing a simple shorts and t-shirt combo as he got out of his car and moved to unload groceries from the back. He was almost done bringing the last load inside when a very angry squirrel suddenly appeared, almost out of nowhere, and kicked him in the shin.
“Ow!” Lockely gave a yelp and dropped the last bag of groceries, his tail suddenly whipping back and forth. Thankfully, there was nothing breakable in the bag. “What the heck was that for? Who even are you?”
“Oh that’s real cheeky of you to ask!” The squirrel spoke in an angry woman’s voice. She was about a foot tall, covered in gray fur and wore no clothes. “After running off before I even realized what you did to me!”
“I… What?” Lockely tilted his head clearly confused.
“Turned me into a squirrel!” The squirrel kicked Lockely in the shin again. “I was human six hours ago.”
“Ow! Ow!” Lockely shouted. “Stop kicking me! I don’t even know what you’re talking about! I’m not even capable of something like that!”
“Oh really now?” The squirrel narrowed her eyes. “Aren’t you that fox that hangs out with that orange kitten?”
“Orange… Do you mean Calex? I mean, yeah I’m friends with him but-“ Lockely didn’t get to finish it.
“I knew it! Another one of that miscreant’s friends! You spread chaos wherever you go!” The squirrel pointed a finger accusingly. “Mark my words you’ll pay for your wicked ways one of these days.” With that the squirrel walked off in a huff, occasionally shooting a glare back at Lockely.
“So… That happened…” Lockely muttered to himself as he bent down to pick up his groceries. “That’s the third time today. Something seriously weird is going on.”
“I know right?” A familiar voice asked. “And did she just call me a miscreant?”
“GAH!” Lockely dropped his groceries again. He turned to see an orange kitten who was only knee to him in comparison, sporting uniform orange fur, a single fang and not a stitch of clothing. “Calex? How… When? I didn’t even see you… Where did you come from?”
“What are you talking about?” Calex tilted his head as he sat back on the ground. “You’re the one who called me.”
“Oh, for the love of…” Lockely face palmed. “I didn’t call you! Someone else must have… Look, apparently someone who looks like me is going around trying to frame me cause it’s just been one thing after another.” Lockely’s shoulders sagged.
“Alright, first off.” Calex held up a paw. “You absolutely did call me here. If there was some kind of fake Lockely trying to call me I wouldn’t be able to feel it.”
“What do you mean fe-“ Lockely didn’t get to finish.
“You had a problem, and so I followed the little tug you made until I found you.” Calex looked thoughtful. “But… You say there are other people accusing you of things… We could be dealing with a doppelganger… Or…” Calex fell silent. “No, it’s best not to think about that.”
“Think about… what?” Lockely gave Calex a stern look.
“Well…” Calex rubbed the back of his head. “The thing is, you’re not really from this universe… And fox form felt right for you for some reason… It is theoretically possible that there was already a version of you that existed in this universe as a fox, and now you’re actually their doppelganger.”
”“A mirror universe copy of me… I was worried this might happen.” Lockely scratched under his chin. He had watched a healthy amount of science fiction in his time. So of course one of the first things he had thought about upon settling down in an alternate universe was if there was a some version of him that already existed here. “But, we checked for that when Odin forged my IDs, didn’t we? So if I do have an evil twin, where would they have come from? And would they have a goatee?”
“An excellent question.” Calex stood up. “Assuming that’s what we’re dealing with. This is quite the conundrum. No wonder you called me… But you don’t need a werekitten’s help for this…. You need… A junior detective!” As Calex spoke he leaped up onto Lockely’s car and held aloft a shining silver badge. “And… Lest you forget I am fully trained and certified as an official junior detective.” He paused. “Well trained anyway… The certification thing is a little hard because of the not legally existing thing.”
“Why doesn’t Odin just forge an identity for you too?” Lockely just went from being confused about one thing to another. So that was par for the course when Calex showed up.
“Well for starters, there’s the whole not aging thing.” Calex shrugged. “It’s gonna be hard to explain that especially when they expect kids my age to be enrolled in school. Even harder to explain I’ve had a full primary, middle, high school and college education. Also, someone a long time ago told me it would be best if I kept a low profile. Can’t remember who… I was a little baby at the time, for the first time.”
“Of all the things I’d describe you with, ‘low profile’ wouldn’t even make the top 100- Wait, you went to college?” Lockely rubbed his face. But, Calex might actually prove useful. The kitten was a ball of hyperactive easily distracted chaos, but he was also extremely experienced in dealing with weird things, and as Lockely had started to learn, possessed far more knowledge than his apparent age and emotional maturity would suggest.
“I’ve taken online courses under Odin’s name. And wondered into a few lecture halls in feral form. But that’s not important now. We have a mystery to solve.” Calex slammed one paw into the other. First off… Let’s establish a pattern.” Calex crossed his arms. “What all have you been accused of?”
“All of them claim to be former humans that I turned into animals.” Lockely explained.
“Okay… So, that narrows down the possible suspects to… Anyone with access to magic or the proper technology… So really about 90% of the population.” Calex looked thoughtful. “Going to need to approach from a different angle. When did these accusations start?”
“Let me think…” Lockely crossed his arms as he went back over his day. The first incident had been at… “I stopped at a café to grab a coffee before running errands. The barista accused me of turning them into a rabbit.”
“I see…” Calex tapped his paw against the ground as he thought. “Then that’s where we should start! We can search for clues on who is really behind this. Also, since it’s the rabbit’s job they’re probably still there and would likely be easier than tracking down the others… Unless the other victims also worked at places you visited today?”
“I don’t think so…” Lockely rubbed the back of his head.
“Alright, so to the crime scene! Wait, did they get changed at the café or somewhere else?” Calex asked.
“I have no idea! I tried to place my normal order and they just started yelling at me!” Lockely threw up his arms.
“Right then! To what may or may not be the crime scene!” Calex pointed dramatically. “Um… Could you like… Drive us, I have no idea where we’re going.”
“What about… That tug thingy you talked about?” Lockely asked. “Doesn’t that let you find anything?”
“Oh? What? That? Nah! It just lets me find people like you.” Calex grinned.
“Should I feel concerned on multiple levels?” Lockely muttered.
“By people like you I mean my friends.” Calex stated deadpan.
“Yup. Definitely concerned on multiple levels.” Lockely shrugged and shook his head. This felt like a bad idea. But, the kitten was more likely to figure out whatever shenanigans were afoot than Lockely on his own. Plus, if they ran into more victims of Lockely’s lookalike, if any of them bore a grudge it was nice having someone who could suplex a kaiju covering your back. “C’mon, let’s just go…” He held open the passenger door, “Up into the car.”
“What about the groceries?” Calex asked.
“I- Okay please help me carry them into the kitchen. And then up into the car.” Lockely sighed. Wanting to resolve this as fast as possible he had almost resigned all the dairy products in his trunk to spoil.
And thus, they embarked on a ridiculously over the top action-packed drive to the café. Which will not be featured in this story which is about investigating a mystery. There wasn’t much to see. Sure, a guy with a gun made out of chainsaws that shoots more chainsaws sounds cool on paper but in reality it’s actually really clumsy. And kaiju with tanks for hands really just raise a lot of questions about biology. It’s nothing worth talking about or anything anyone would want to see.
“We’re here…” Lockely pulled into the café parking lot. Every hair on his tail was puffed up as he twitched. “That… just… why?!”
“Yeah… Sorry. I probably should have warned you. The interstate can be a real monster during rush hour. Especially when it comes to life.” Calex was more collected. “But, it would cost the city more money to move the interstate than to keep it on the grave of an elder god so it’s kind of like that.”
“Elder g- I’m never using that highway again.” Lockely stated bluntly before getting out of the car. He took a moment to calm himself, patting his head fur down and letting the fur on his tail relax.
“Alright, the scene of the crime.” Calex leaped out from the other side and approached the café. It didn’t look much different from any others. A small local place. A few tables outside with some more slightly crowded tables inside. Every table but one was covered with a green tablecloth, and most of them were empty of customers. “Let’s get to work.”
“Uh, right sure.” Lockely had never actually seen Calex do any detective work. The kitten wasn’t about to let him forget it was his job, and was very proud of that ‘junior partner’ title, but Lockely was already having second thoughts. He suspected that Odin did most of the actual investigating. But, this was the best chance he had to get to the bottom of this right now. He supposed if it failed he could always ask the kitten’s partner and caretaker later. With a slight amount of reluctance, Lockely opened the door to the café.
“Oh, I know this place!” Calex beamed. “I’ve been here before… I think I came here with Kickaha earlier today actually.” He paused and scanned the café. “Speaking of which there he is! Hi Kickaha! What are you doing here?” He waved to a figure in a corner of the restaurant.
“Well…” Kickaha was a foxyote, half fox, half coyote, all mischief. With rusty orange colored fur over most of his body, he was dressed in a simple green cloak and nothing else. “Definitely not returning to the scene of the crime.”
“Okay, well, this is easy.” Lockely crossed his arms. “Like, another fox that hangs out with you, and immediately opens with something like that? He’s clearly responsible.”
“Didn’t you listen?” Calex asked. “He said he wasn’t returning to the scene of a crime. Besides, he’s clearly a foxyote, not a fox. Two completely different things. I don’t know how anyone could possibly get that mixed up. Now then where’s the witness slash victim?”
“YOU!” A white and brown rabbit scurried from behind the counter. Roughly two and a half feet tall he was dressed in only a very oversized apron. “You have a lot of nerve coming back here after what you did!”
“What?!” Lockely’s voice raised an octave, “I didn’t do anything!”
“Okay so guess we found them.” Calex looked them over as if there was some kind of invisible thing on the rabbit only he could see.
“Everyone that hangs around with that kitten is trouble! And now you have the audacity to come back again!?” The rabbit demanded.
“HOLD IT!” Calex shouted. “Lockely is innocent of all crimes. He told me so and I believe him.”
“Why should I believe either of you?” The rabbit demanded.
“For starters, I technically don’t know how to lie.” Calex beamed as if he expected this to be taken at face value. “And Lockely wouldn’t lie to me about something like this. Therefore, he has to be innocent.”
“Uh huh…” The rabbit crossed his arms. “Sounds like you’re just trying to get him off the hook.”
“No, I intend to find the true culprit behind this!” Calex pointed dramatically. “As one of the victims who claims to be transformed by Lockely, you’re a valuable witness. I’d like to get your name and testimony as to exactly what happened.”
“Huh that’s… Surprisingly reasonable coming from him.” Lockely wasn’t sure what he had expected. But it involved a lot less questions and a lot more tables being thrown.
“Hmph fine.” The rabbit growled as their ears lowered. “Davis Walters. I had showed up for my shift around noon when I heard giggling coming from behind me. No sooner had I turned around before I suddenly found the world getting bigger! For a few moments I was blinded as I got buried beneath my own clothing.”
“This is what I keep warning people about.” Calex gave a hefty sigh. “But no one listens.”
“Another tragic victim of pants,” Kickaha added, pausing to sip his coffee. “Tragic and yet so very predictable.”
“Turning into a rabbit isn’t a thing that normally happens!” Davis shouted.
“Oh, how I envy your naivete.” Lockely moaned.
“Alright… So, we know when the transformation happened.” Calex tried to get things back on track. “But what makes you think it was Lockely?”
“Well, I didn’t get the best look at him, but I saw it was a fox. Then I found out you had been in again.” Davis shot a glare at Calex. “And not just two minutes later he has the audacity to walk right up to the counter and order coffee.”
“Hmmmm.” The tip of Calex’s tail twitched as he thought. “Seems to be, your evidence is largely circumstantial. You only got the species of the person who saw you. No other identifying features.”
“But he just happens to be here right after it happened?” Davis asked. “Everyone that follows you around causes trouble.”
“Hey, I don’t follow him around.” Lockely objected.
“I mean you kind of do, but that’s not important.” Calex shook his head. “Right now we need more details on what you saw. Tell me, aside from them being a fox, can you recall any other details about them? Notice any markings, or if they were wearing anything.”
“I saw their fur was primarily orange…” Davis continued. “But… They weren’t wearing anything that could be considered clothing.”
“Well that proves it can’t be me! I wouldn’t be running around the back of a coffee shop naked!” Lockely objected.
“Really?” Davis looked at Lockely and then at Calex. “You can’t say that you’ve never had an out of clothing experience while hanging around that kitten.”
“N-no I, well…” Lockely started, clearly not wanting to talk about it as he absentmindedly patted his ’emergency scarf’ pocket.
“I mean lots of times really.” Calex chimed in. “Like when-“
“Calex! We’re getting off-track.” Lockely interrupted before the kitten could give details. “You said I came in only two minutes after this happened, right? I was fully dressed, and the fox you saw wasn’t, doesn’t that prove it wasn’t me?”
“It doesn’t take that long to put on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts.” Davis retorted.
“Hmmm, this isn’t helping figure out who did it at all.” Calex tapped a paw impatiently. “Anything else you can recall?”
“Well… I think they were short… Hard to tell suddenly being a rabbit… And pretty sure they had some kind of green cape or something.” Davis continued.
“Okay, it’s pretty obvious that they’ve mistaken me for Kickaha. Didn’t you even say you were with him earlier today?” Lockely asked. As he did Kickaha just waved eagerly from the corner he was in.
“But Kickaha is a foxyote… And he wears a cloak not a cape.” Calex protested. “It doesn’t match the witness’ testimony at all.”
“Maybe they just didn’t know it was a cloak, or what a foxyote was!” Lockely continued. “It’s gotta be him! Isn’t that like, his day job or something.”
“Comically swindling people out of their humanity is one of my many duties.” Kickaha added helpfully.
“See! See!” Lockely pointed at Kickaha. “He admits it!”
“But Kickaha already said he wasn’t returning to the scene of the crime. If he was the culprit, why would he say that?” Calex asked.
“Because he’s getting enjoyment out of it! He’s literally saying these things unprovoked! Isn’t it obvious?! He’s a fox, with a green cloak, who’s only like three feet tall! And he does this kind of magic all the time!” Lockely continued to point at the foxyote in the corner.
“Well, when things are clearly headed for some sort of predictable climax, I just like to throw in an unpredictable element. Maybe a dramatic plot twist. It adds a delightful bit of chaos and makes the scene more interesting for everyone. You’re welcome.” Kickaha smiled.
“Besides… I’ve already eliminated Kickaha as a suspect based on the evidence.” Calex wagged a finger. “After examining the witness’ testimony and the evidence I can say without a doubt the culprit was not Kickaha.”
“What- How?” Lockely demanded.
“Simple… Look at the tables in the café. Notice anything amiss?” Calex asked.
“What am I supposed to be looking for?” Lockely glanced around.
“The tablecloths. One table doesn’t have one.” Calex beamed. “The figure that Davis saw wasn’t wearing a cloak or a cape. But had a tablecloth stuck over them after leaving the restaurant. They must have been running around blindly before they got it off. May not have even seen who they transformed.”
“So once more that brings us back to him having done it!” Davis pointed accusingly at Lockely.
“Not so fast!” Calex shouted. “You said the figure was short? Lockely may not be super tall but he’s not really noticeably small either. The description doesn’t match him at all.”
“That’s right!” Lockely was glad for the kitten’s help. “So there’s no way it could have been me.”
“Oh really?” Davis glanced between the two. “I know for a fact that that kitten was in here last week small enough to fit in a teacup. So, you’ve never been smaller than normal around him?”
“Um well…” Lockely stammered. He had certainly experienced a couple losses in height from time to time.
“This isn’t good.” Calex muttered. “The evidence isn’t enough to prove anyone’s identity. But it seems like he’s gonna be stuck believing it was you unless we reveal the actual culprit. You might not be facing any real trouble, but I imagine the harm to your reputation is unwanted.”
“So, what’s next?” Lockely asked. “How do we get more information?”
“Hmmmm, that is a tough one.” Calex mused. “I’m pretty sure Davis has given us all the information he has. In fact, I know he has.”
“You do?” This made Davis stop in his rage for a moment.
“And from the sounds of it there weren’t any other witnesses…” Calex curled his tail around himself and tried to think. “We just need to find a crucial piece of evidence that points at the real culprit’s identity. Does this store have security cameras?”
“Yeah, but they’re just for show. None of them work,” Davis replied in an annoyed tone that suggested this was a sore subject for him.
“I suppose that would be too easy if we had video of who did it.” Calex tossed up his paws in a shrug. We could look out back but I doubt we’ll find anything other than an abandoned tablecloth. We might have to try to track down one of the other victims and see if they got a better look at the culprit.”
“If they did then shouldn’t they know it’s not me?” Lockely demanded.
“People see what they want to see. Your eyes don’t perceive everything and your brain fills in the gaps.” Calex wagged a finger.” If they already suspected you were a troublemaker it’s very easy for them to convince themselves it was you.”
“You know, this is, like, really weird, right?” Lockely asked. “You using logic, knowing about how the brain works, actually calmly deducing the facts… Like, I’ve never seen you like this before.”
“What?” Calex asked, his tail bristling. “I’m complicated and have lots of layers! Plus, I know how to do my job. There’s a time to ask questions and there’s a time to smash. Right now we’re still in ask questions mode. Maybe we can check if any of the neighboring shops had cameras that caught something… Though I don’t have any official authority to make them turn over the tapes.” He thought. “There has to be something… Maybe we should take a break and recharge to think.”
“I… need a coffee.” Lockely didn’t have any idea of where to go from here either. He wasn’t even sure how at least three people had mistaken someone else for him. There could be more out there.
“Oh sure, I’ll just go get that for you. Let me just shove a chair in front of the machine since I can’t reach it anymore.” Davis growled.
“I’ll just have cola.” Calex asked. “This place has one of the better tasting caffeine free colas.”
“We stopped serving caffeine free cola a week ago. There wasn’t a huge demand for it.” Davis’ ears could be seen behind the counter as he walked back and forth fetching different items to go with the coffee.
“So it’s only caffeinated now… Huh…” Calex paused.
“Here, one coffee, one soda.” Davis came around the counter and leaped up to place them up by Lockely, which also put them above Calex’s reach.
“Caffeine free cola…” Calex climbed up onto the counter to study the bottle. “That’s it! That’s the final piece of the puzzle! I know who the culprit is!” Calex posed triumphantly. “Everything has fallen into place.”
“So it’s Kickaha.” Lockely stated bluntly.
“No.” Calex shook his head. “Let’s review the facts. I was here earlier with Kickaha. Then Davis arrived for his shift. He was transformed by a small orange fox who was partially obscured by a green tablecloth. Two minutes later Lockely came through the front door. There’s only one person it could have been. I can’t believe I made such an oversight.”
“Well, if you think it’s someone else, who is it?” Davis demanded.
“Yeah, don’t keep us in suspense. I’d really like to clear my name.” Lockely pleaded.
“The answer…” Calex’s whiskers quivered in excitement. “The one behind everything is… ME!”
“WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?” Davis shouted.
Kickaha applauded politely.
“Whaaa-“ Lockely started to echo Davis, but then stopped. “Actually, no wait that tracks. But he saw a fox…”
“That’s right! I know it was an orange fox!” Davis insisted. “And you are clearly a kitten! Not sure what type of game you’re playing here… But you can’t be the culprit.”
“But I am.” Calex grinned. “You see, earlier in the morning me and Zeelo were playing in the field. We had gotten turned into kitsunes. Full nine tails this time. That’s a lot of magic.” Calex smirked. “After that, I was thirsty and came to the café. I met Kickaha along the way and we sat at the counter together to swap stories.”
“But why?” Davis demanded.
“The answer. Overstimulation.” Calex gestured at the cola bottle. “This was the last clue I needed. I’m not allowed to have caffeine. Seriously, I weigh like five pounds and it makes my metabolism go into super overactive mode. The simple fact is, I don’t remember anything I did while under the effects of caffeine or why. I must have gone into an extreme manic mode. I probably couldn’t even tell who I transformed… There’s a good chance I was just looking for a friend and accidentally made them into a species closer in size to me to play with.
“You did take off out of here at a pretty high speed earlier.” Kickaha nodded.
“Wait… Did you impersonate me!?” Lockely demanded.
“Well not on purpose.” Calex rubbed the back of his head. “Whoever worked the previous shift didn’t tell me the soda was no longer caffeine free. At the time I had the powers of a nine tailed fox. I likely ran around the café, got a tablecloth stuck on me, and took off outside and bumped into Davis there.”
“I can confirm he did run around the place at high speeds with a tablecloth over him while shouting about the sun having gone out.” Kickaha added.
“Holdup. You knew it was Calex the entire time?!” Lockely accused the foxyote.
“Of course. I was here and saw the entire thing.” Kickaha nodded.
“THEN WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY ANYTHING!?” Lockely demanded.
Kickaha snickered. “And completely short-circuit a delightful little mystery? Deny our junior detective a chance to shine? Without even giving you a chance to work your way through the red herrings and expose the truth? Not to mention spoiling an adorable twist on the unreliable-narrator trope? I am shocked that you would even contemplate me doing such a dastardly thing. Why, I will need the rest of this lovely coffee just to recover my composure.”
“So… He turned me into a rabbit and didn’t even know?” Davis blinked. “I don’t know if that makes it better or worse.”
“It means that waiter who gave me caffeine ought to get a talking to.” Calex muttered.
“Well… If it was you! Then change me back!” Davis insisted.
“Um… Not as easy as that…” Calex rubbed the back of his head. “I was a nine tailed fox at the time. Pretty powerful magic. Now, I’m back to my normal kitten self. I don’t have the ability to cast spells or do any of that magic now that I’m back to normal. I can’t reverse it myself.”
“Yeah, can’t do magic at all except for literally all the magic you do.” Lockely mumbled.
“I’m stuck like this!?” Davis demanded. “Wait… You! Foxyote! They said you had magic! Can you change me back?”
“I’d love to try!” Kickaha grinned. “But it’s only fair to warn you that it would involve stacking enchantments… And-“
“And we don’t want to do that.” Calex interrupted. “And when this is me being the voice of caution you know you REALLY don’t want to do that.”
“So, I’m just stuck this way!?” Davis screamed.
“I mean as long as you continue to hang onto the form like that you are.” Calex nodded.
“What do you mean hang on?” Davis asked questionably.
“Wait… I know this… He doesn’t want to be human!” Lockely had run into a similar problem himself not long after first meeting Calex.
“Bingo.” Calex nodded. “I saw it when I looked you over earlier… The original enchantment may have been cast while I was nine tails, but it’s largely being held together by your willpower. All you have to do to change back is not want to be a rabbit anymore.”
“But I don’t want to be a rabbit!” Davis protested. “I mean ok sure, it’s freeing not having to wear pants… And I’ve gotten a lot of remarks on how cute I am which is annoying, but my tip jar has never been fuller. I probably made more in tips today than I do working 40 hours a week. And I can move pretty fast.” Davis froze. “Oh my gosh, I don’t want to change back to a human.”
“And there it is.” Calex grinned. “No matter what form I may take, it’s still mischief kitten energy running through me… And that never sticks on anyone who doesn’t like it on some level. You just hadn’t realized it yet. Looks like the mystery was solved.”
“It was seriously you this entire time?” Lockely looked at Calex. “I’ve had a lot of people yelling at me today!”
“Three is hardly a lot.” Calex shrugged. “But I’ll track down the others, make sure to apologize and explain about how they just need to want to be human again. In the meantime… Shouldn’t waste these drinks.” Calex reached for the soda.
“Nope.” Lockely grabbed the bottle of soda before Calex could grab it. “We are not giving you any more caffeine after all this chaos.”
“Oh, right, that’s probably a good point.” Calex rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “How about a tea then?”
“That has caffeine too!” Lockely objected.
“Herbal tea?” Calex tried.
“That should be fine.” Lockely sighed. He liked Calex, even if chaos followed in his wake. He was an enigma of amazing wonders, coupled with unrelenting randomness. He didn’t even have to do anything half the time, things tended to just happen wherever he was.
“Anyway… With that mystery solved… I’m kind of hungry. Wanna grab a snack before we leave?” Calex asked.
“Eh sure…” Lockely shrugged. “I’ll treat you for solving the case I guess. Even if you were partially responsible.”
“Heh, sorry about that.” Calex lowered his ears. “But it does explain why I can’t remember most of the early afternoon now.” His ears perked back up as he stood up on the counter on two legs. “But once more! A case has been solved by Junior Detective Calex Nekato!”
“The case you caused.” Davis muttered.
“Just let him have his moment, he worked hard to figure out who did it… And he succeeded.” Lockely gave Calex a pat on the head.
“Once again! The day is saved!” Calex shouted. At this point one of the walls crumbled as a bunch of claws on long robot arms busted in. They appeared to be attached to a dome containing a giant brain.
“FOOLS! Your small business is no match for my new mobile Think Tank!” A cannon rotated around on the dome and aimed at the shop they were all in.
“Oh brother.” Calex gave a sigh. “So uh… I have to go save the day from Big Business now… But you enjoy your food.” With that, the kitten leaped out through the wall, tackling the dome and creating a small crater in the street where they landed.
“Um… Should we do something about that?” Davis asked.
“I’m pretty sure he has it under control.” Lockely explained. There was a loud explosion as the cannon tried to go off while shoved full of debris and blew itself up. “Yeah he has this… Now then… What’s on the menu?”
“Uh right let me get that for you…” Davis went to grab the menu. And like that, another normal day in what was now Lockely’s life continued. Still, at least he had gotten to keep his pants, despite the rabbit’s initial insistence to the contrary, throughout this misadventure. Definitely a winner in that regard.