The Secret of NIMH 2: Return to NIMH
A/N: Hey guys, it's me, Thomas Holmes II. In 1982, a director named Don Bluth released an animated movie called 'The Secret of NIMH', based on the book 'Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH' by Robert C. O'Brien. It was suspenseful, heart-warming, beautifully animated and had a simple, yet enduring story. It has recently become one of my all-time favourite films and is considered by many to be Don Bluth's greatest film in his entire career.
But, sadly, the film also has one of the worst sequels ever made. 'The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue' is so awful, it doesn't even seem like a real sequel; it seems more like a fan fiction spin-off made into a movie. I know this thanks to the reviews of the movie done by the Nostalgia Critic and Film Master Adam. Bottom line: it's an utter disgrace to the first movie and very insulting to the character of Mrs Brisby.
So, I'm doing my version of a 'Secret of NIMH 2' that will be without any doubt a hundred times better than the official sequel. So, without further ado, I present for your approval 'The Secret of NIMH 2: Return to NIMH'.
This story is done in memory of Elizabeth Hartman, the voice of Mrs Brisby before she committed suicide in 1987.
Prologue:
In the beginning, the Rats were just ordinary streets rats, scavenging food from alleyways and infesting human settlements. Then, one day, they were captured by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Twenty rats and eleven mice were given injections, altering their DNA and causing them to develop intelligence, allowing them to read and understand humans better. However, when they tried to escape NIMH, nine of the mice were lost in the ventilation shaft; the actual escape was made possible thanks to one of the remaining two mice, Jonathan Brisby.
The Rats took refuge in a rose bush on a farm owned by a man named Fitzgibbons, and they had to steal electricity in order to continue their research and expand their knowledge. However, as time went on, they began to develop a sense of morality and soon felt stealing was wrong. Nicodemus, leader of the Rats of NIMH and the smartest of them all, knew that NIMH would one day find them and he and the rest began to formulate a plan to move to Thorn Valley; Jonathan Brisby attempted to help with the plan, but was lost trying to drug the farmer's cat, Dragon. By then, he was married and had four kids, though they had known nothing of the Rats or NIMH.
Shortly after his death, his widow, Elizabeth Brisby came to the Rats for help. Her son Timothy was terribly ill and under threat from the farmer's plough. The Rats agreed to help her and Nicodemus gave her a special gift: a mysterious Stone that once belonged to Jonathan prior to his death. Mrs Brisby also agreed to help the Rats with the plan to move to Thorn Valley. However, the plan was almost foiled by one of their own, Jenner, believing the Rats should stay where they were. Though he managed to kill Nicodemus, his attempt at sabotage ultimately met with failure and he was killed.
After using the Stone given to her to move her home to safety, Mrs Brisby settled down in her new location with her kids, while the Rats departed for Thorn Valley. Her four children all longed to travel to Thorn Valley and meet the Rats and none more so than Timothy. Having been told by his mother of her adventure several times, he longed to have one of his own. He had no idea that soon, his wish would be granted in the most unexpected of ways…
It was a wonderful spring morning on the Fitzgibbons farm. The field was quiet but for the twittering of birds. The field was a lush green and the flowers stood tall in the sunshine. At the lee of the stone, Mrs Elizabeth Brisby was sitting outside of her home by herself, gazing out across the field and thinking.
It had been nearly two years since the Rats of NIMH and Mr Ages had departed for Thorn Valley after helping her move her home to a safe place from the farmer's plough and she still missed them very much, especially Justin, Captain of the Guard. While she was happy staying here with her family, she really wanted to visit Thorn Valley and see the Rats again and how they were developing in an ethical, self-efficient society. Justin had written to her quite a few times, delivering the letters via Jeremy the Crow. However, Mrs Brisby's reading skills were still rather rudimentary, so she barely understood half the words at times. However, she was able to deduce that because of her bravery, a statue of her had been erected in her honour and she was deeply touched.
In the meantime, things had settled down back to normal here on the farm. Jeremy had finally found 'Miss Right', as he called her and settled down with her; Auntie Shrew was still as bossy as ever, though she had improved since meeting the Rats, and her children were pretty much the same; all except for Timothy, her younger son. After recovering from his bout of pneumonia, he had asked Mrs Brisby to recount her experience with the Great Owl, the Rats and Dragon several times. He was just so touched at how far she'd been prepared to go to save him and he longed to go on an adventure of his own.
Mrs Brisby was happy, but something was bothering her quite a lot over the last two years; the Stone given to her by Nicodemus as a gift from Jonathan. She could still remember his words about it:
"Courage of the heart is very rare. The Stone has a power when it's there."
She had used it to save her family after they were nearly drowned in the swamp and even though she'd given it to Justin rather than keep it herself, she could still feel its presence in her heart; its pull towards her. And sometimes, when she lay in bed, she could often hear a voice whispering to her; the voice very reminiscent of her husband Jonathan…
Until she had met Nicodemus, Elizabeth had never known where her husband had come from. Like the Rats, he had come from the National Institute of Mental Health and had helped them escape. He could not tell his wife, because the injections that had genetically altered him had also slowed his aging process; she would have grown old while he stayed young and he couldn't bear to cause her any pain.
Elizabeth could remember the day she first met Jonathan Brisby; it had been about six years ago and from what she'd learnt, shortly after the Rats' escape from NIMH. It had been a rather shocking encounter…
Six years ago
Elizabeth Jennifer Frisby was hurrying through the field as fast as her tiny legs would allow. Why had she ventured into the field and put herself in danger from the farmer's plough? Now she was going to get chopped to pieces!
Elizabeth was hoping she could reach a crevasse or something where she could hide until the danger passed, but the plough was gaining on her fast and she was getting exhausted. Then, as Elizabeth was leaping over a large rock, her foot struck a protrusion and pain shot through her body as she cried out in pain. She fell to the ground and clutched at her foot; it was bleeding and she knew she wouldn't be able to run on it. What a terrible time for it to happen, when she was about to die.
Elizabeth looked back and saw that the plough was now only metres away from her. There was nowhere for her to hide; she closed her eyes and waited for the end to come…
Then, a hand grabbed her arm and she felt herself being dragged onto another mouse's back.
"Hold on, miss," a male voice said Elizabeth felt the mouse begin to run. She opened her eyes and found that the mouse carrying was running very fast, even faster than she had been running. Elizabeth looked behind her; the plough was still metres away from them and the gap was closing fast. Then at the very last second, the mouse carrying her dived into a small crevasse. He turned to look back and Elizabeth watched the plough move over their cover.
Both mice stayed in the hole and waited, as the plough's noise grew fainter and fainter, until they finally faded away altogether.
"Are you alright, miss?" the mouse asked Elizabeth. She couldn't quite make him out in the darkness of the crevasse.
"Y… y… y… yes," Elizabeth whimpered. She was too frightened to speak properly, or even say thank you. She had been a hair breadth away from being sliced into pieces. She fainted.
…
She woke up to the sound of soft, rushing water. She must be by the stream. Elizabeth opened her eyes to see that a red blanket was spread over her and her hurting foot had been bandaged.
She looked around. The mouse who had saved her was sitting at the side of the stream; he was a grey mouse with a brown patch on his back. He looked very strong for a mouse.
As Elizabeth sat up, he looked round. "Ah, you're awake. How are you feeling? I bandaged up your foot as best as I could; it's not broken thankfully, but it is badly bruised. You shouldn't put weight on it for at least a few days."
"Okay," Elizabeth said. "Thank you for saving me back there, sir. I thought I was a goner there."
The mouse waved a paw. "Just good to be of service to you, ma'am," he said. "But take my advice; don't wander around the field when the plough comes."
"I didn't know it was today, sir; I was just collecting some grain to eat."
The mouse sighed. "To be honest, I didn't know it was today. I guess we should both be more careful when wandering the field from now on.
"But what were you doing out here?" Elizabeth asked.
The mouse paused for a moment. "That's my business," he said finally. "What you can know is that I was hiding in that crevasse when I saw you coming. When you got hurt, I knew you couldn't make it to safety, so I hurried out to get you."
"Yeah… thank you, sir."
"Don't call me sir!" the mouse snapped. "I work for a living!" He paused. "My apologies; I never told my name. Name's Jonathan; Jonathan Brisby."
"I'm… I'm Elizabeth… Elizabeth Frisby…"
"Elizabeth… that's a nice name."
Present day:
Elizabeth was snapped back to reality when she heard her son Timothy calling for her.
"Mom, where are you?"
"I'm out here, Timmy," Mrs Brisby called.
Timothy Brisby stepped outside; he had grown considerably since his bout of pneumonia.
"Whatcha you doing out here, Mom?" he asked, sitting beside her.
"Just thinking, Timmy," Mrs Brisby said.
"About the Rats?"
"Yeah," Mrs Brisby said. "And Jonathan too."
"Yeah, I have been thinking of Dad too. If only we could have learned more about NIMH from him before he died."
"Timothy, believe me when I say you don't want to know what that awful place is."
"How bad can it be, Mom? You've never been there."
"But Nicodemus showed me what it was like and I know that it's a terrible place. I too do often wish Jonathan could have told us about his origin, but it was for the better. I hope you never get to go through what he and the Rats did."
"But I want to know more about the wider world, Mom. I want to have an adventure, like you did."
Mrs Brisby shook her head with a small smile. "Timothy, I only went on that adventure to save you, not because I actually wanted adventure. I understand your curiosity and adventurous streak; Jonathan was the same, but you're still a kid and while you live under my roof, you listen to me."
"Oh, Mom!"
"Cheer up! Since you, Martin and your sisters seem so keen to visit Thorn Valley, I have decided that there's no point delaying it any longer."
Timmy suddenly looked excited. "You mean we get to visit Thorn Valley and meet the Rats of NIMH?"
"Of course, Timmy; you kids have been very good and I feel that you deserve it."
Timmy hugged his mother tightly. "Oh, Mom, thank you; thank you ever so much! Hey, Martin! Theresa! Cynthia! Guess what? We're going to Thorn Valley at last! We're going to meet the Rats of NIMH!" And he dashed back inside.
Elizabeth, shaking her head in amusement, followed him. But at the door, she stopped, her fur prickling slightly. She had a funny feeling that she was being watched; she'd had that feeling before when visiting the Great Owl and when entering the rose bush to find the Rats. She looked around her cautiously, but she could see nothing. Still feeling on edge, she entered the house.
Her suspicions were, in fact, correct; she had indeed been watched, by a cloaked figure hiding in the brush. Though his face was hidden, he was grinning maniacally.
"So, that's Mrs Elizabeth Jennifer Brisby," he whispered. "She's more timid-looking than I expected. Still, no matter; I've finally found her and her children and now I have the chance to wreak my revenge on the Brisby family! You better enjoy your children while you can, Elizabeth Brisby, because you won't have them much longer! Timothy wants to know about the wider world, does he? Well, I'll give him an adventure he'll never forget! And this time, no precious Stone will be able to save him! Ha, ha, hahahahahaha!"