Mickey couldn't keep a smile off his face as he moved through the crowd, whistling a little tune. He had work to do here, of course, but he still couldn't stop himself from looking forward to one aspect of that work. Minnie had become a great source of information these past few weeks, there was no denying it, but that wasn't the reason he looked forward to seeing her. He looked forward to their conversations… their everyday banter about their daily lives. She loved hearing his stories about his family, and he loved laughing at her stories, and impressive imitations, of particularly stuffy courtiers.

A happy little bark made him look down at Pluto, who was trotting along beside him. Grinning, he reached down to scratch the dog's ears.

"Looks like you're in a good mood today too, pal," he said. Pluto let out another bark, his tail wagging. Call him crazy, but Mickey was grateful for his support. Goodness knows he'd never get it from Oswald… the rabbit would probably have his hide if he knew about his meetings with the Princess. Mickey still hadn't managed to convince his brother to trust her, though it certainly wasn't for lack of trying. The mouse let out a quiet sigh; well, if words wouldn't convince Oswald, he'd just have to hope actions would.

As usual, he had arrived at the tavern well ahead of time, knowing Minnie would follow soon. He moved to their usual table, which fortunately was open, and sat down. But almost as soon as he did, he saw a large, rather heavyset cat quickly moving toward him. His face was set in a frown, which brought a twinge of unease, and Mickey sat up a little straighter. The stranger rushed straight to him.

"I know yer a friend of Her Highness," he said without preamble. That put Mickey on his guard right away, his eyes narrowing.

"Who says so?"

"There's no time," the cat said, voice tense. "She's in trouble."

That set Mickey's heart pounding, but he controlled himself with an effort.

"What d' ya mean? What kinda trouble?"

"The King's agreed to the match with Prince Mortimer. She sent me t' get you… says you can get her away b'fore it happens."

Mickey felt a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach and shot to his feet, but he still hesitated. Letting out an impatient huff, the cat lifted his cloak.

"I'm one a' her guards."

Under the cloak, Mickey could see the armor and silver badge bearing the crest of Anaheim; only royal guards wore that. There was still a feeling of unease gnawing at him, but other thoughts were swirling in his mind too. If this guard suspected him of treason, he'd have certainly just arrested him on the spot. And Minnie… if Minnie really was in trouble…

The thought of her being forced into something that she didn't want, that he knew would make her utterly miserable, made him feel sick and angry beyond words. A soft whimper made him look down at Pluto, and he saw that the dog was looking at him with concerned eyes. Managing a smile, he reached down to give his head a pat.

"Don't ya worry, boy… it's fine." He faced the guard, his mind made up. "Okay. Lead on."

…

Minnie slipped out of the hidden passage and headed toward the street beyond the castle walls. She couldn't help smiling at the knowledge that there was one thing she knew that no one else there did. It served as her passage to the only true freedom she had ever known. As the bustle of the main road grew more audible, she drew up her hood and quickened her steps, eager to reach it. She found herself wondering if Mickey was just as eager for this meeting as her, and for some reason a blush heated her face.

Where did that come from?

She was nearly there when suddenly, a dog leaped out of a nook in the alley. Minnie couldn't hold back a startled cry, and her bewilderment increased when she recognized him.

"Pluto? What on Earth are you doing here?"

The dog ran to her, took the hem of her cloak in his teeth and tugged, whining. Minnie saw the distress in his eyes and took a slow step in the direction he was tugging her. Seeing that she was coming, he let go and raced back the way he'd come. Minnie quickened her pace and entered the nook to find him standing over a sprawled form. Minnie moved closer, squinting, but froze when she saw what… more appropriately, who… it was.

"Mickey!" She couldn't stop herself from crying out as she ran to him.

He was lying on his side, breathing very heavily and seemingly unconscious. No other sound came from him as Pluto whined again and nudged his head with his nose. In the half light, Minnie saw something dark seeping into the ground near Mickey's upper torso. Moving his arm, which was draped over his body, her stomach lurched, and she gasped in horror.

Thinking fast, she tore off the scarf she was wearing against the evening chill and wrapped it tightly over the deep stab to the side of his chest, hoping to slow down the bleeding. Clearly whoever inflicted it had been aiming for the heart and hadn't realized that they missed. Then, slowly and gently, Minnie turned him onto his back and began trying to wake him.

After several attempts, Mickey let out a weak cough and his eyes opened about halfway, but they were glazed over and didn't seem to see anything. Minnie swallowed hard; if he didn't bleed to death, the shock would kill him. He needed help, and fast.

Being as careful as possible, she pulled him up into a sitting position, then placed one of his arms around her shoulders and stood. After waiting a few moments to make sure his wound wasn't bleeding any more heavily, she began to walk him out of the alley, Pluto close at their heels.

As Minnie moved as quickly as she could onto the alley, she began to wonder what Mickey had been doing there, so close to the castle. She felt him shudder and cough again as his weight grew heavier, and she bit her lip in fear. He was too badly hurt to go on for very long and probably wouldn't make it to a local doctor, even if she could risk taking him to one.

With no other options, Minnie took a deep breath and turned toward the castle; ironically, that was probably the safest place to go. Certainly, no one would think to look for him there. When she reached the secret passage, she managed to pull it open with one hand and close it once they were all through and in the small, unlighted hallway. Mickey's breathing grew even shallower as they moved, increasing her fear. She clutched his arm tighter.

"We're almost there. Just hold on, not much further now."

When they finally reached the end of the hall, Minnie reached out and felt for the hidden lever. Finding it, she pulled it and the seemingly dead end swung inward to reveal the drawing room of her chambers. Almost dragging Mickey by now, Minnie quickly crossed the room and laid him on the couch. Then she ran to the adjoining bath and grabbed a towel before hurrying back and pressing it to his wound. She smiled grimly when he winced a little. That he was responsive was a good sign. He might not be too far gone… there might be a chance of saving his life.

"My Lady?"

Minnie's head snapped up as Daisy entered the room.

"I didn't expect you back so soo-"

She froze midsentence, staring with complete shock at Mickey. In that moment, Minnie found herself thanking heaven that her and Donald were members of the Resistance… if Daisy thought she had just brought in a random person off the street, she would have certainly raised the alarm.

"I found him in the alley," Minnie said quickly. "Listen to me, Daisy… I need you to find Doctor Sheckles, now. He's the only one we can trust to be discreet."

Daisy stood a few moments longer, apparently still processing the situation.

"Daisy! Please, you have to hurry!"

Finally, the duck seemed to come back to herself. With a quick nod, she turned and rushed out without asking any questions. Minnie turned her attention back to Mickey, her throat tightening at the blood seeping into the towel.

"Don't you give up on me," she muttered as she pressed harder. "Don't you dare."

….

Mickey had never felt so much pain in his life, and what was even stranger was that he didn't know how it had happened. Everything was a blur. All he could see was a red mist swirling in front of him, and it seemed to be getting darker by the minute. He couldn't even hear anything but a buzzing in his ears, and it slowly dawned on him that it was fading too. But he was too weak to be afraid. Consigning himself to it, he allowed his mind to turn to what he wanted to be his last thought.

Minnie…

But the moment he thought that, panic swept into his mind as some memory returned. She was in trouble… someone… someone had told him that… he had followed that person… been looking for her… a metallic flash in the corner of his eye… terrible, sharp pain… Minnie…

Mickey tried to call out, but he couldn't speak. He focused on taking increasingly ragged breaths. He had to hang on; he had to get to her somehow.

Minnie…