Okay, I just want to say that this is another one of my favorite scenes in the whole movie. And I'm going to say this, when Basil breaks out of the trap Ratigan set for him is another one of them. I hope you guys enjoy the rest of the story.

BTW: I'm not sure how much commentary I'll be making, but I know I'll do some at the end of the story. And again, PLEASE review!

Chapter Nine

Back at Basil's flat, the detective lit his lamp, then began studying the list with his magnifying glass, Jet and Dawson at his side.

"Well, Bas," Jet said. "What 'cha got?"

"Offhand," Basil began, "I can deduce very little, my young nephew. Only that the words are written with a broad pointed quill pen which has spattered, twice. That the paper is of..." Basil tossed it in his hand, testing the weight to determine what type of paper it was. "...native Mongolian manufacture, no water mark. And has..." Basil put the paper to his lips and smacked it several times. "...been gummed, if I'm not very much in error..." he then sniffed the paper. "...by a bat who has been drinking Rodent's Delight! A cheap brandy sold only in the seediest pubs."

"Hmm. Amazing." Dawson said.

Basil then began working at his desk for the next part. "Oh, not really, Doctor."

"We still don't know where it came from," Jet said as Basil put the paper under a microscope.

"Perhaps a close inspection will tell us something," Basil focused the lens on the letter. "Hmm-hmm. Hmm. Coal dust. Clearly of the type used in sewer lamps."

Dawson attempted to look through the microscope, only to have Basil take the list. He then held it over a small flame, and allowed it to catch fire. Jet slapped his forehead.

"Uh, but Basil, I-I-" Dawson stuttered.

"Shhh! Don't speak!" Basil quietly instructed.

Basil let the remains of the list fall into a bowl, then patted it down with a small wooden masher. He then poured the contents into a glass jar of some type of yellow chemical, causing the mixture to turn blue. Dawson stared at the liquid with his bifocals when Basil returned with a red liquid.

"Excuse me, Dawson." He then help the red chemical over the jar carefully. Steady hand..."

Basil let a single drop of the red chemical fall. A small puff of smoke came out as the chemical turned violet. He then set the jar below a glass spout and reached to the other side of the chemistry set, turning on a small flame. The green chemical inside a second jar bubbled up and slowly made its way through the tubes as Basil softly encouraged it.

"Yes, yes. Good, good. Come along, come along, come along, come along. Come along, come along, come along, come along...Haha...Yes, yes, good, good. No, bad. Good, good, oh, no. Come along, come on. Yes, come on."

Basil and Dawson watched intently as a single green droplet began hanging above the violet chemical. By this time, even Jet was watching. However, he was a bit further back than Dawson was, since Jet could guess what must come next.

"Yes...Yes..." The drop then fell, turning the chemical red, to Basil's elation. "Ah-ha!" Basil put his arm around Dawson in companionship. "We've done it, old fellow! This reaction could only have been triggered by the paper's extreme saturation with distillation of sodium chloride."

"In English, please," Jet said as Basil moved away from the table while Dawson continued to study the now-clear chemical.

"Salt water?" Dawson responded. "Great Scott."

Basil then began rummaging around his set of maps of the London area as Jet spoke. "So the paper has been around salt water. What does that prove?"

"It proves beyond a doubt," Basil began, "this list came from the riverfront area." Basil then used the darts from the dart board to pin the map to the wall.

"Ah, now steady on there, Basil." Dawson wasn't entirely sure.

"No, no. Elementary, my dear Dawson. We merely look for a seedy pup at the only...spot..." Basil marked the spot with a dart. "...where the sewer connects to the waterfront."