Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock Hound/Meitantei Holmes, Danger Mouse (2015), the original Sherlock Holmes or any canon characters. They are the property of their respective owners. I do own the mentioned Emma White.
Notes: Contains references to the Danger Mouse (2015) episodes From Duck to Dawn, The Hamster Effect and Mouse Fall, the Danger Mouse (1981) five-parter The Four Tasks of Danger Mouse, the Sherlock Hound/Meitantei Holmes episode A Small Client, my Sherlock Hound/Meitantei Holmes fic Hope and my Danger Mouse (2015) fics More Than One Kind, Children of Mercy, Troubled Time and Never Want to Lose You.
HWDP
We were going along at a snail's pace first, but then Smiley led Stiletto to a horse-drawn dog-cart. We were able to pick up speed at that rate, though still had to be cautious neither of them realised we were following them.
"Professor Moriarty, Baron von Greenback, Brunel and Crumhorn the Fourth...could there be any worse combo...?" Penfold moaned.
Danger Mouse sighed. "We should thank our lucky stars Count Duckula isn't with them. It's bad enough he wants to be regarded as famous in our world, imagine if he'd spread his horrible performances to other worlds...they'd utterly collapse!"
"Mr. Mouse, this is no joking matter," Hound scolded.
"I'm being dead-serious. Count Duckula is a vegetarian vampire duck who wants to make himself the most famous being in our world. One of his current incarnation's earliest plots was hypnotising his audience and turning them into literal vegetables to get them to watch his ridiculous show."
"Hmm...they're leaving the city...just where is their hideout this time?"
An idea came to mind and I voiced that surely they would be in an industrial area, for where else could they keep such a machine hidden without drawing suspicion?
"Well done, Watson, that has to be it!"
I smiled at the praise. "Well, it's not like Moriarty hadn't done that before. He would've known an ideal area and directed the others to take the machine there."
"But, what about Stiletto and that other bloke?" Penfold asked.
"Moriarty and Todd, another of his henchmen, would've gone ahead, but he had Smiley, the one you saw, stay behind to find his missing monocle. As for your criminals, when the baron noticed his ring was missing, he'd had Stiletto stay behind, entrusting him and Smiley to find their way to their hideout. Smiley would've had prior knowledge to the location," Hound reasoned.
"Makes sense to me!"
HWDP
After a half hour, we found ourselves in the countryside. Smiley had steered the cart onto a side road.
"DM, do you think you have enough power to see if your iPatch can spy a large, industrial shed down that road?" Penfold asked.
"I need to save it for our climactic battle. But, I can try a very quick glimpse."
Hound pulled over so Danger Mouse could see what he needed to clearly.
He reached up and hit the button, switching on his iPatch. "Activate iPatch: Distance Scan. Track any large buildings." There were some soft beeps that sounded from the device as it lit up. After two seconds, he switched it off once more. "There is a large building down that road, it would be perfect for concealing the Interdimensional Transporter."
"For now, let us go and investigate. Once we have the data, we can inform Scotland Yard," Hound voiced, restarting the ignition and driving down the same road Smiley had steered onto.
HWDP
It was another ten minutes before we could see the large building. There was a smaller one next to it, more than likely the living area. I could only hope no poor souls found themselves forced out of their home.
"You need not fret about that, my dear Watson, that old house has been abandoned for twenty years. It is the perfect hideout for criminals for that very reason."
Hound had eased one of my concerns at least. But, dear reader, we would soon have more to worry about. For there was an incident that occured during our investigation. Once again, I am getting ahead of myself.
Hound pulled over and we all pushed his car behind the large shed. "Are there any windows?" Danger Mouse whispered as we snuck around the perimeter.
Hound shook his head. "However, there is a skylight. There is a grappling hook and rope in the car that we can use, but the chances of the hook making too much noise aren't slim." He closed his eyes and puffed at his pipe. His eyes snapped open and he looked around, beaming in satisfaction at finding an old ladder lay in the grass nearby. He tested its sturdiness and nodded in satisfaction that it wouldn't snap under our weight. "It has aged, but is still sturdy. We can use this to climb to the roof."
The four of us quietly and cautiously erected it, leaning it against the shed and clambered up it, being sure to mind our steps. Hound was the one to lead the ascent, then Penfold, Danger Mouse and finally, myself. Once on the roof, silent as the grave we tiptoed to the skylight. Being careful not to cast shadows, we kept our eyes and ears open while keeping out of view.
"There's a hole in this panel," Penfold hissed, grabbing our attention. We'd all moved closer to the broken panel and found it was much easier to hear the discussion from inside.
HWDP
"You fool, Stiletto, how could you have not found my ring?" a toad had demanded. That had to be the nefarious Baron von Greenback.
"Lucky for you I carry spares, Smiley," Professor Moriarty had added as he reached into a case.
"Baron, Professor, I do believe we have bigger concerns than lost accessories. If they couldn't be found in the courtyard, then there is no question that certain individuals had found them." A doberman had made that remark in a smooth voice. I looked to Danger Mouse and saw him mouth the name Crumhorn.
"Wight! So now Danger Mouse and your meddling detective know we are here, Pwofessor!" a monkey screeched. Process of elimination concluded he was Brunel.
Moriarty glared at Smiley and Stiletto as he demanded to know if they had been followed. While both of them denied it, our very presence proved otherwise.
"Hey, Professor, is it just me, or is it gettin' too cold in here?" That voice belonged to Todd. He'd glanced up at the skylight and frowned. "There's a hole in the skylight! It looks like we're expectin' more snow tonight, it could damage the machine!"
Much to our dread, Moriarty ordered Todd to do something about it instead of making complaints. We had to descend from the roof posthaste!
Hound, Danger Mouse and I had made it and were about to hurry to the car, but a shriek from Penfold caused us to pause in our tracks. We hurried to hide, knowing nothing could be done if we were all caught. From our vantage point, we could see that Todd was about to climb up the ladder just as Penfold was on the third-to-last rung.
"Oi! Who are you and what are you doin' here?" Todd demanded to know.
Penfold's cry had brought out the criminals and it was all Hound and I could do to hold Danger Mouse back.
"Well well, if it isn't little Penfold. And where is Danger Mouse, hmm?" Crumhorn asked smoothly.
Penfold decided to try deceiving them and claimed he had woken up to find himself in the area but Danger Mouse was nowhere to be found.
Unfortunately, they didn't believe it for a second. Stiletto and Todd had tackled Penfold, bound him up and carried him inside while Moriarty and Crumhorn discussed luring us to their hideout. "After all, this little chap just so happens to be very precious to Danger Mouse, and I doubt your adversaries would allow him to come on his own. So, an exchange is in order; our freedom for the Hopeless Hamster."
"Mm, yes, I quite like that plan! Very well, Mr. Crumhorn, I'll write out the telegram."
"How do you know they aren't here?"
"Oh, I suspect they are. But, Hound is no fool; he'd know to keep well out of sight, even if it means sacrificing that little pest. So, instead of wasting valuable energy trying to track him down, we may as well just send a message to Baker Street with our demands."
Danger Mouse was scrambling fiercely, he wanted to escape Hound's grasp and rescue Penfold, even if it meant endangering all four of us.
Hound slapped a paw over Danger Mouse's mouth, preventing him from saying anything. He whispered for me to hurry to the car, grab our emergency tow rope and bring it back immediately.
I knew what Hound had planned. I also knew Danger Mouse would absolutely despise us for it, but we had to get him out of the area without drawing any attention. I sprinted to the car, grabbed the rope and returned, binding Danger Mouse with it.
Hound picked Danger Mouse up and carried him to the vehicle, sat him in the passenger seat and started the engine. I climbed onto the back just seconds before he drove off.
HWDP
By the time we had arrived back at Baker Street, Danger Mouse had turned red with rage. "You'd better have a room I can destroy right now or I just may turn my rage upon the pair of you!" he growled.
"Mr. Mouse, we understand how you feel, but if you had given away our position, none of us would've been able to save Mr. Penfold," Hound reasoned in a firm tone. "You need to remember to use your head on the field, not your heart."
"You don't have to worry about that because if something happens to Penfold, my heart will be too broken for use."
I frowned in concern. "For now, Mr. Mouse, we have to wait for them to send word. Once they have, we'll go right to Scotland Yard for back-up. There are far too many for us to deal with." I released him from his binds. "Come on inside, we'll regroup and you'll be able to focus." I offered to assist him with stepping out of the vehicle, though he slapped my paw away instantly. I honestly couldn't blame him for such a response, I fear we may have betrayed his trust.
HWDP
Our home had not been invaded while we were out, much to our relief. Danger Mouse sat on the divan, he was still fuming over having to leave Penfold to the mercy of his captors.
Hound moved to sit beside him, but thought otherwise at the last second, instead sitting on the armchair opposite.
"This will be the third time Greenback has used Penfold for leverage, the second time Crumhorn threatened his life because he knows how dear Penfold is without knowing the true depths and the second time Brunel has interfered with our lives. Did you know Brunel once made it so Penfold and I had never met? Or that Greenback once threatened to kill Penfold if I failed to collect certain ingredients for him? Or that Crumhorn..." His voice choked.
I quickly realised what he was about to say. "Crumhorn once tried to kill Penfold, you tried to take the hit instead."
"Penfold told you of that..." Danger Mouse was trying to repress his anguish, though the tears shining in his visible eye were showing his failure to accomplish that. "Even years later...I still have nightmares of something happening..." He lifted his right paw and covered his eyes. "I just...I can't lose him...Penfold has been my best friend for so many years, I've loved him for so long. We're engaged to be wed in the future...I've seen what life is like without him in it, I refuse to live it again."
I heard Hound rise from the armchair. He crossed the floor to the divan, crouched and placed his paws on Danger Mouse's quaking shoulders. "I am going to tell you what Mrs. Hudson told me the night I feared I would lose Watson. Don't give up hope, keep faith that all will be well."
"Hope gets us nowhere." He lowered his paw, revealing the tears running in rivulets down both cheeks. "I encouraged Penfold to keep hope for Emma to recover while trying to hold onto it myself. She died the next afternoon. What use is hope?"
"Mr. Mouse..."
"When it's Greenback, Brunel and Crumhorn, how can I have hope that Penfold will be alright? Neither of them care what should happen to others unless it benefits them! Greenback was going to use a cure for cancer as leverage for world domination and Crumhorn doesn't care who's under his feet, he can afford the legal bills." He shook his head. "And now that they have joined forces with Moriarty...there is no hope..."
"Is that how you would want Mr. Penfold to hear you speak if he was here right now?" I demanded to know. It would have to be up to me to get Danger Mouse to snap out of his mood. I remembered when I lost hope, it often happened on the battlefield. But, falling into despair did naught for those who needed me. So, I summoned my most authoritative tone; I wasn't Doctor Watson, I was Major Watson. "He needs you to buck up your chin and face forward, not wallow in despair while claiming all hope is lost! He is depending on you to save him, so that you two may return to your world and resume living your lives the way you had been! You say you're to be wed someday? That won't happen if you aren't capable of finding the strength to face forward, charge towards your foes, strike them down and set him free!"
He turned a steely glare in my direction. "You make it sound like it's that simple."
"Because it is! I have fought in a war, I know what true hopelessness and despair looks like. You at least still have a chance!" Inhaling to calm myself, I added, "Mr. Penfold spoke highly of you yesterday while we got to know each other. He told me that you always came through, no matter what. If he saw you speaking of how you feel hopeless about saving him, he'd be very disappointed. You can and will save him, we'll be beside you the whole time. Scotland Yard will assist in taking care of the criminals, we'll continue to be your allies until the very end."
Hound nodded. "Just as Watson said, we are your allies. You are not alone in this. We'll assist in every way we can."
Danger Mouse sighed and reached up to wipe his eye, then his cheeks. "You're right. I'm sorry I lost myself there. It's just..."
"I understand. Just as I can't bear losing Watson, you can't live without Mr. Penfold." He gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder before standing upright and moving to the window. "You are the sort to act rashly, even when logic must be applied. If we gave away our position earlier, all of us would've found ourselves in a great deal of danger. I assure you that I am also unhappy about our having to leave Mr. Penfold behind, and after this is over, you may take it out on me as much as you desire."
Danger Mouse sniffed. "No. I have no right to take anything out on you. You're absolutely right. I've actually had to be accompanied by a fellow agent for fear I would let my emotions take control over my actions, something very risky on the field."
"Another agent, you say? By any chance, are you speaking of the one named Danger Moth?" I questioned.
He nodded twice. "Since you know about Emma, you must know of when Danger Moth and I had to rescue her and Penfold. Did Penfold ever tell you of our mission to take down Jonathan Baker?"
"No, never even heard that name."
"He was the monster responsible for the deaths and serious abuse of orphaned children, among which was Emma. Professor Squawkencluck was concerned I would fail to comply to protocol and torture the fiend before murdering him in cold blood. As much as he deserved it, I wasn't going to. Still, Danger Moth volunteered to accompany Penfold and I on the mission to ensure I did not suddenly lose my composure. Ohh, how much I wanted to take down that smug sod when he decided he was going to chase down the ambulances to finish off the ten we could save. He had also threatened the lives of my good friend and dearest beloved, so I kicked his gun away and knocked him unconscious. Oh, I do wish I was able to wrap my paws around his thick neck and squeeze the final breath from him as he pleaded for mercy; I so wanted to make him feel at least a little of what he'd put innocent children through. But, I held back."
"Did you express your violent thoughts to Danger Moth?"
"Yes. She understood how I felt, believed it was the least of what that monster had deserved, but still made certain that I didn't breach conduct."
"I empathise with your thoughts, Mr. Mouse." Hound had turned away from the window, shooting me a quick glance before focusing his attention on the quietly fuming rodent. "As you already know, I once almost lost Watson during the denouement of a case. If it hadn't been confirmed that the criminal had been killed instantly by Watson's bullet, fired due to his finger being on the trigger when he was shot, I would've stormed right to wherever the Yarders were keeping him and killed him myself." He let out a soft sigh. "Vengeance wouldn't have achieved anything though. I would've been charged with murder instead, and while I do understand your justified fury towards the one responsible for young Emma's death, as well as many other children, it wouldn't have brought any of them back."
"I know. That's why I forced myself to focus. Penfold and I love Emma much like if she was our own daughter, so her loss has been most painful for us. Understanding we'd be in no condition for any missions, we were granted bereavement leave for as long as was required. Thankfully, we had Danger Moth and the professor to see us through and after a few months, we were back in action."
Hound was about to say more, but his left ear twitched and he cast a surreptitious glance out the window. "Hm? Ahh, the telegram has arrived. Watson, grab your coat and ensure you have your revolver. Mr. Mouse, you must promise you will stay focused on our task at hand, only after may you allow your emotions to take reign of your actions once more. If you are unable to make that vow, then you are to remain here." He moved to the hatstand and plucked off his thickest coat.
"I promise. You've heard me state that I can do so, however peeved I am."
Hound nodded and departed from the sitting room just as the doorbell sounded.
"You might want to quickly wash your face too, Mr. Mouse. It won't do for them to see you were affected," I advised.
Danger Mouse nodded, rose to his feet and followed Hound's previous steps out of the room.
I made my way to the desk, opened the top left drawer and drew out my old service revolver. That weapon has proven invaluable on some of our more perilous adventures. I quickly checked to see it was loaded and satisfied with the result, then I, too, left the sitting room, grabbing my warm winter coat on my way out.
HWDP
The three of us had a rendezvous right by the front door. Hound looked up at Danger Mouse and I, his gaze sharp. "We have no time to send a telegram to Lestrade, we shall have to stop by Scotland Yard on the way. The criminals have changed their location once more. The address is familiar and only provokes caution from me." He handed me the telegram and I saw exactly why he was so concerned. "Our only comfort is knowing that the airfield will be free of civilians today." Hound led us out the door and right to his treasured automobile.
"Why the airfield?" Danger Mouse asked as he climbed on the back.
"Due to the hangars, we would have to split up to search, meaning more chance of springing traps or being caught outnumbered. It also means that Mr. Penfold may find himself in more danger than we thought." Hound climbed into the driver's seat while I manually started the ignition, turning the small wheel at the back of the vehicle. Once it was running, I hurried to jump into the passenger seat and we were on our way.
HWDP
Our first stop was at Scotland Yard. Hound had Danger Mouse and I wait in the car while he dashed inside, presumably to inform Lestrade of the current developments.
"There's something I'm wondering. Even if it is just us three, we could still take down all of the fiends. So, why is Mr. Hound insisting the police get involved?" Danger Mouse asked me.
"When you deal with those three and other criminals in your world, do you take them to gaol?"
"Yes. We have the authority to sentence them to prison."
"There's your answer. You don't have the authority here and while Hound and I assist those who uphold the law, neither of us has the authority to make any arrests. We need Lestrade and his men for that. Besides, Hound likes solving cases for the thrill of it, as well as because of his sense of justice. He doesn't ever claim credit for it though, he's content to just have The Yard take the credit."
Hound sprinted out of the building. "Inspector Lestrade is rounding up his finest men and shall meet with us one hundred yards from the airfield." He practically leapt back into the driver's seat and we were off once more. "Now, let us be off and deal those criminals swift justice!"