"That's it..."

Sometimes Velma's own brain was her worst enemy. Having overheard something earlier, her mind had latched upon an idea and wouldn't let it go. To the point of utter frustration! It was such a nagging idea, that she couldn't think of anything else. The idea floated around her brain that all she could see… was it.

You should just get rid of it. It's old and falling apart… Velma recalled Daphne saying earlier, which got her thinking. She didn't mean to overhear the comment, but she couldn't help it. Daphne hadn't been really very quiet about it, being loud enough down the hall the sounds of the conversation had reached her room easily. Then again, it most likely didn't matter to Daphne, not like it mattered to her. Velma understood fully how meaningful something could be to someone.

"I'm going to do it."

Giving into her mental prodding, Velma got up from where she had been working to peer out her bedroom door. Her heart skipping a beat, she breathed in and out a few times before she collected herself. Scouting out the hallway just outside, she didn't see anyone. She listened just in case, but she couldn't hear anything that indicated someone was near. And as Daphne had demonstrated earlier, she really wasn't one to be quiet.

"If I'm going to do this, I better do it now..." Muttering to herself, she had to convince herself to do what she had planned to do. Gripping the door, she pulled herself into moving. Fearing that if she didn't get going soon, her mind would kick in an argument that might stall her plan. Making more indecision then she already was fighting against. And she couldn't have that happen.

It didn't help that she was feeling the tension similar to being on a case; each step striding towards her goal, yet cautious at what could be around the corner. Just like one of her mysteries, though confusing her at the same time since she was at home. And no monster was going to be jumping out of the shadows at her. Yet she still felt the thrill of the event, along with her heart beating rampant in her ears.

Crossing the hallway quickly, she only stopped long enough to peek into the closet on the way. She had hoped it would have been there. But it was no surprise that it wasn't. She wasn't lucky enough to have what she needed in such a convenient spot. Not seeing what she was looking for, there was only one place it could have ended up. Knowing that, Velma's destination was then the basement. Steeling herself, she made for the basement door. It was only down the hall and to the right, but she wasn't expecting what she found as she turned around the corner!

"D…Daphne!"

The hallway had two archways that led to the living room, and the various rooms off of the hallway itself. It also was the only way to get either to the basement, on one side; or the second floor, on the opposite side. So when Velma was making a beeline to the basement, she had to pass by the archway… Where Daphne had just happened to have stopped, and turned to stare at her friend when she came into view.

"Oh! Hiya Velma. You scared me there! Heh, what you up to? I thought I last saw you bent over a project in your room. What you doing out here?"

~!~

Seeing Daphne, Velma locked up in shock and confusion. Not have expected the redhead to be right there! But before Velma's brain could catch up to her being caught off guard, Daphne realized where they were standing in front of. Looking around at where they were, she placed a closed fist into the palm of her other hand. Putting two and two together, she chided herself for even asking the silly question.

"Oh, silly me. Sorry Velma, I'm a bit off today. I should have realized that you were heading to the basement for something." Pausing, Daphne smiled at her friend before continuing. "For your project, right?"

Finally getting past her surprise, Velma was able to put two thoughts together long enough to realized that Daphne had just made up her own excuse for her! She hadn't expected to run into her taller companion, and since she was sneaking around she was already on edge since she didn't want to get caught in her masterful plan. She had easier time fooling a ghost of monster in the middle of a chase sequence, then trying to pull a fast one on Daphne in their own house. The tension was there, but not to the extreme that gave her a better reaction time against such spur of the moment happenstance. The problem was the fact that she knew Daphne so well, since it was easier to fool someone that you didn't know, and didn't know you back.

"Y…yeah. I need something from the basement." This wasn't a lie, thanks to Daphne's own words. Not that it made Velma feel any better for fooling her best friend. But she didn't want her to get suspicious at what she planned to do.

"I better get that, so I can finish my project." Velma said with more confidence, her mind being able to catch up and help her calm down not to give it all away already!

"Ok, have fun! Good luck!" Patting her friend on the back, Daphne wasn't the wiser. Watching the woman turn away, Velma had to hold in her breath as she watched Daphne leave. This was a mental sigh of relief for the sneaking Velma. Letting her friend get back to work, Daphne continued to where she had been heading anyway. Giving the kitchen door a push, Daphne cautiously peered into the room before continuing inside. Giving Velma a perfect time to grab her 'project' and get back to her room before Daphne came back, or anyone else in the house might notice.

Pulling herself downstairs, she placed a hand upon her chest to try to quiet her own thumping heart. Not that being found out would be anything bad, but she didn't want to be embarrassed at her soon to be actions. It was harder to get away with something, when you got caught in the middle of doing it. Rather than finishing and then at least it would be done. She wanted to do this, without being found out. And it was hard to not be discovered doing something sneaky, in a house full of detectives!

Getting to the bottom of the stairs, Velma looked about the basement making sure no one was down there. A quick check of the rooms double checked her first assessment and with relief she went to work. Moving to look in a few of her drawers, it took her a bit to find the box she had been looking for. Her rush made a bit of a mess, but she would clean that up later. Thankfully, it wouldn't be the first time she did this, nor the last. So at least the mess didn't seem out of place.

With box in hand, she made her way into the back of the basement to find what she had been searching for. For a second she grew worried that someone had gotten to it before her, but after a bit she finally found it. Snatching up the material, she rolled it into a ball and thrust it into the box she was carrying, hoping that if anyone caught her on her way back to her room, she could hide the material away from prying eyes.

"Gotcha!"