Chapter Six

The ship horn blew through the cold December air. Ratigan watched as Meg stood by the baggage, shivering from the cruel wind. They had traveled by stagecoach, train, and now ship, to reach the mouse kingdom in Denmark. Meg had done beautifully in all her lessons. She held a certain dignity about her that made her seem strong and proud. She was almost ready to take her place as queen. Unfortunately, one glitch lay in Ratigan's plans. Anne had escaped!

It had happened last night, on the train. The girl had been locked up in a wooden crate in the baggage car, while two of his henchmen had been drinking. That very morning, they had awoken to find the lock broken, the crate open and the nun gone!

This was very bad for the professor. He didn't know how much the girl knew about his plans. He hadn't expected her to escape. And one she made it to a telegraph office, the whole country would be in an uproar.

The important thing was that Meg didn't know a thing about it yet. She was still under the impression that Anne was locked up, in the hands of her captors.

If she ever found out, Ratigan's plans would come to ruin! Meg was the only mouse he could find who even resembled the royal family. If Meg happened to escape too, because she knew Anne could no longer come to harm, Ratigan would not be able to find another mouse like her. Besides, it was vital to get to Denmark as quickly as possible now, before all mouse kind heard of his existence. He could not spend time looking for Anne, and Meg if she happened to run off.

Meg... she still was not his yet. She had asked to be married before she took the throne. But Ratigan had control over the girl. She had been obedient to him ever since that day she had tried to escape with Anne. They had found Anne after Meg had been caught. Ratigan had ordered that Anne be whipped for their attempted escape, and had told Meg that Anne would be punished for any mistake done by her friend. Meg had taken all of his orders and demands without argument ever since.

So young... so young.

You'll be mine soon, Meg. You'll have to say yes, or else all that you love and care for will perish.

So beautiful.


Anne dragged herself along the train tracks, shaking from mistreatment and the cold chill of the wind. Some mouse that had come into the baggage car last night had broken the lock for her. Anne had made a jump off the train, and had been traveling all night to find a telegraph office. Basil of Baker Street must know!

She did not realize Ratigan had two henchmen following her trail.

I despised him.

That immoral sewer rat had requested that I share a first class cabin with him. He said it was so we could continue my training more easily.

I told him I was sleeping on the floor.

He slapped me in the face and told me not to be so ridiculous.

He threatened to beat Anne again. I told him to go ahead; Anne wouldn't approve anyway. Strangely enough, he relented.

I shivered on the cold floor. Why did this have to happen to me! Was this payment for my disrespect to the sisters at the convent, to Basil? Maybe. How else would Ratigan have found out about the music box?

"No, Havers, you're stepping on her feet again. She's not going to be able to walk. NO!" Ratigan barked, as the mouse called Josh Havers and I had a waltzing lesson. I'm glad it was not with Ratigan. He said he was too big to be dancing about the cabin, so he employed one of his henchmen to help me learn. Unfortunately, the clumsy idiot kept stepping on my feet every other step.

"One two three, one two three, one- Sorry, miss."

"Ouch!"

"Sorry!"

"That's it!" Ratigan jumped up and pushed the mouse out of the way, grasping my paws. He seemed to have forgotten his comment about dancing before. "Like this, you clumsy fool!" We glided across the room. "You have to move your feet forward, you idiot! I can't believe I put up with all of you for so long!"

Even though I hated him, I had to admit he was a much better dancer than Josh. I didn't really have to move my feet that much. Ratigan was so tall, almost twice as tall as me! His arms made mine look like toothpicks.

Ratigan continued to insult Josh for quite so time. Once he looked down and saw me there. After that, he stopped his tirade.

I then realized how easily we danced together. It scared me.

All of a sudden, we slowed down, and stopped. Ratigan gave me another one of his queer looks. Wordlessly, he turned around and left the cabin.

"Boss? Boss!" Josh ran out into the hallway. A minute later the thug returned, looking shocked. "The Professor left."

"Where is he?" I asked.

"I dunno miss."

We waited for over an hour, silently waiting for his return. After a while I got bored and started talking to Josh. He had been working for Ratigan for a year, after his brother had been caught for stealing some of the professor's loot, and had been killed. Josh had to pay for his brother's mistake, and serve Ratigan faithfully for 15 years in order to get his freedom.

"You must hate him more than I do."

"Umm, not really, miss. The Professor's an okay guy, you know." I couldn't believe my ears. But then I saw him glance over his shoulder, as if Ratigan was really there. He was afraid of the villain's power.

"Josh," I said, a thought suddenly occurring to me. "How old is the Professor?"

"Well," he began, "he says he's somewhere around forty, but I think he's more like fifty five or sixty."

"Sixty!" I would have never guessed he was that old. "Then why isn't he married yet?"

"Not to be rude, ma'am, but do ra- I mean, mice, like him get married?"

I saw his point. "Then why is he marrying me? I'm seventeen, for one. I'm also disrespectful, especially to him. Why does he want to marry me?"

"Miss, you don't look seventeen right now. You look like you're at least twenty years old. You're drop-dead gorgeous, if you'll excuse me saying," Josh answered. I blushed. "Besides, Ratigan himself has said you're strong. He thinks you'll do better off with him."

"Josh, what would you be doing if you weren't working for Ratigan? What I mean is, you don't talk like the other mice that work for Ratigan. You seem more... gentlemanly."

"I once had a dream to be a violinist. But that was foolish. No one's dreams ever come true!" he spat out angrily. "And all because of."

"Ratigan," I finished for him. He suddenly looked worried. "I don't care if he hears me," I said. "He has ruined my life forever."

Anne was exhausted. She stumbled down a hill, rolling into a building. She couldn't move.

An elderly mouse helped her up, saying, "Oh my goodness! My poor girl, you'll get sick this way! Here, come with me, easy does it."

"Thank you," she gasped.

"Less talking will do you a world of good," the old mouse said. "Here, sit right here, on this bench." He helped her down. "Can I notify a family member nearby of your fall? Maybe they can come get you."

"No!" Anne answered. She held on to the mouse's worn paw. "Please, we must help Meg!"

"Meg? I'm sorry, but I do not know any Meg. Is she sick?"

"Get Basil, quick!" Anne whispered urgently.

"Sister! Where 'ave you been? We was so worried!"

The two henchmen ran up to Anne. "No!" she shrieked. "No, get away from me, scum!"

"What is this all about?" the old mouse asked.

"Sorry, sir. See, Anne 'ere is my sister, " GC answered slowly, trying to hide his gangster voice. "Eh. well, you see, she ain't, I mean, isn't right in the head. She 'appened to break open a window last night, and we've been looking for 'er ever since."

"She said a Meg was in trouble."

"Oh, you know, she gets hallucinations when she's out in the cold for long. She don't know no Meg, does she, right, Bob?" GC nudged Tom.

"Bob? I ain't Bob, GC. Bob's back on the - Ouch!"

GC laughed nervously. "Always the jokester, eh Bob?" He leaned in to the old mouse. "Bob's starting to catch the same sickness as my sister there. It's tragic."

By this time Anne had fainted, whispering, "Get Basil, Baker Street." before she sank into oblivion.

"Poor sis! Okay, Bob, let's get poor Meg, I mean, Annie, 'ere on the next train."

"Don't you think you should wait here? She doesn't look well enough to travel," the mouse asked.

"Naw," Tom said. "She's fine- Ouch!" He bounced on his uninjured foot.

"What ol' Bob means ta say is that poor sis 'ere gets mad fits once in a while. We couldn't risk it here." He lifted Anne up over his shoulder. "Well, thankee for your kindness, sir. You was a great help, really."

After they left, the mouse went to the telegraph office. He wanted to straighten this out with Basil of Baker Street, whoever he was.



RAEB: Hold on a minute. Ratigan's SIXTY?

Meg: Shhh, not so loud! Ratigan might be touchy about me guessing that he was sixty, and I still don't know where he or JWJ are.

RAEB: You could have at least made him forty. But sixty! That's disturbing. That's practically Lizz-marrying-Saddam-Hussein disturbing.

Lizz: I am NOT marrying Saddam Hussein!

Meg: Yeah, the Lizz Mafia doesn't deal with terrorists. I'll have to kick you out of the Mafia for that.

RAEB: I thought that mafia was named after Lizz, ergo "Lizz Mafia"?

Meg: We'll rename it the "Meg Mafia."

Lizz: We're really off track now.

Meg: Okay, on to Chapter Seven. And review people! Or else I'll have to send the Lizz Mafia after you all and make you marry old, sixty year old guys.