Minnie looked out her back door, worrying. She hadn't seen hide nor hair of Pluto or Figaro in days, and neither had any of her friends.

"Oh dear," she sighed. "I wonder where those two could be?"

As Minnie thought it over, her doorbell rang. She closed her back door, and went to her front door, only to find Mortimer standing there, grinning. The was about the last thing Minnie wanted right now.

"Hiya, Minnie!" Mortimer shouted. "What's new?"

"Nothing," Minnie said. "I can't chat with you now, Mortimer. I still need to find Pluto and Figaro. They've been gone for days!"

"Aw, they'll be back when they feel like it! Animals are like that!"

"Please, Mortimer, I'm really worried abut them! After all, Figaro's only a kitten, and . . . ."

"Come on, Minnie! Take your mind off your worries! Come away with me to the casbah!"

"No, thank you, Mortimer. I'm not in the mood! Besides, I'm not interested in going out with you!"

"Good grief, Minnie! Why not?!"

"Mortimer, I am not in the mood to list all your faults, and why I won't go out with you. Let me just say I won't go out with you, because I don't like you! Now will you please go away?!"

Minnie was about to slam the door in Mortimer's face, but he caught it before it could even close. He had one of those "if looks could kill" expressions on his face.

"For crying out loud, Minnie!" he shouted. "What do I have to do to get you to go out with me?! You realize what I've already done?! I stole that stupid emerald, I got magic powers from it, and then I used them to make it look like your stupid boyfriend murdered that stupid duck! And I also used them to cast a small spell to make everybody believe Mickey did it, as well! I figured you'd come right to me after Mickey was tossed in the slammer for murder! Then I had to send him to who knows where after he busted out of jail with his stupid dog, and your stupid cat! I couldn't have him coming back with that foul fowl! WHAT MORE DO I HAVE TO DO, ALREADY?!"

"What?!" Minnie shouted. "You did what?! You mean to tell me you framed Mickey?!"

"Uh oh . . . ." Mortimer said, after he realized he just blurted his plan out.

"I can't believe I fell for this!" Minnie shouted. "Just wait until I tell Daisy about this!"

"Sorry, Minnie, but you're not gonna tell anybody about this."

With that, Mortimer grabbed Minnie by the arm, and practically dragged her to his house. Then he pulled out the emerald.

"See this?" he said. "This is the emerald I swiped from the Duckburg Museum. Wake up, Cherno!"

The emerald glowed, and Chernoberus's image projected from it. Minnie stared at it, shocked.

"Cherno, meet Minnie," Mortimer said. "Minnie, meet Cherno."

"Chernoberus to you," Chernoberus said to Minnie. "Have we finally won her over, Mortimer?"

"Eeehhh, not quite," Mortimer said. "We gotta skip town. She knows too much."

"Oh brother," Chernoberus groaned. "You blew it, didn't you?"

"Well, nobody needs to know! Sheesh! Anyway, Minnie, we're off to my castle."

"Castle?"

"Yeah, castle, where I'm going to become king of the world, and you're going to become queen of the world!"

"I most certainly am not!" Minnie shouted. "If you think for one minute, just because you tried to frame Mickey, that I'm going to come to you . . . ."

"Actually, Minnie," Mortimer said. "You don't have a choice."

"Oh yes I do!"

Minnie slapped Mortimer across the face as hard as she possibly could. Then she grabbed a nearby potted plant, and hit him in the head with it.

"That does it," Mortimer said, and he began to "Hulk Out" again. "Now you've made me MAAAAAD!"

"Uhh, Mortimer?" Minnie asked, a little nervously.

Mortimer let out a gigantic roar as he grew to monstrous proportions once more, bursting right through his roof. Once he was out, he beat his fists on his chest, and yelled like Tarzan. Minnie let out a scream as he grabbed her in his fist, and held her up to his face.

"HAAA-CHAAA-CHAAA!" he shouted.

"Oooh! Mortimer!" Minnie shouted, disgustedly. "When was the last time you brushed?!"

Mortimer didn't answer. He just glared at Minnie, and started stomping off again. Once he was out of his house, he waved his hand, and disappeared into thin air. He and Minnie reappeared again in what looked like the middle of a forest. Mortimer started stomping off, grunting and slobbering a little. Minnie was trying to pull herself free, when she saw something in the distance. It was Pluto, sniffing around the ground. Mickey and Figaro were right behind him. Once Pluto saw Mortimer, he skid to a halt.

"Whoa," Mickey said. "Uhh, good work, Pluto. I see you've tracked him down, and . . . . huh? Wait a minute. What's that he's holding?"

Mickey pulled a pair of binoculars out of hammer space, and looked up at the monster's fist.

"Mickey!" Minnie shouted.

"Minnie!" Mickey shouted. "Stop right there, you . . . ."

Before Mickey could finish his sentence, Mortimer stomped on him as hard as he could with his foot. Pluto and Figaro cringed. Mortimer snickered, and stomped off. When he left, Mickey was reduced to an accordion. He popped back into his normal shape after playing a few notes. However, he was pretty dazed.

"Pardon me, boy," he sang. "Is this the Walt Disney World choo-choo?"

Mickey spun around in a circle, and then landed flat on his back. Pluto whimpered, and then began licking his face to revive him.

"Huh? What happened? What's going on?" Mickey asked, looking around. "Oh. It's only you, Pluto. Come on! We've got to save Minnie!"

And with that, the trio was off and running, following the giant rat's foot prints. They managed to catch up with him shortly afterward.

"Okay, you big palooka!" he shouted. "You put her down right now, or else I'm gonna get tough with ya!"

With that, Mickey gave the giant rat a kick in the leg. However, this only resulted in a sore foot.

"Yeeeeouch!" Mickey yelled. He grabbed his foot and began hopping up and down in pain.

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh, my foot!" he shouted. "All right, you asked for it, big fella! CHARGE!"

Mickey charged at the big rat, grabbed him around the leg, and began pulling, trying to pull the giant down to the ground. When he realized that wasn't working, he resorted to biting his adversary in the leg.

"YAAAAAHHHHH!" the giant rat screamed. Then he growled, and picked up Mickey in his other fist.

"Uh oh," Mickey said.

"Mickey!" Minnie shouted.

"HAAAA-CHAAAAA-CHAAAAAA!" the giant rat shouted, right in Mickey's face.

"Oooh!" Mickey cringed. "Limburger breath!"

"Mortimer, you put Mickey down right now!" Minnie shouted, pounding her fist against Mortimer's.

"Huh? Mortimer?" Mickey asked, confused. "You mean this is . . . . ."

"Right, Mickey," Minnie said. "It's Mortimer. He's behind you being framed for murdering Donald!"

"NOW I'M GONNA MURDER YOU, MICKEY!" Mortimer bellowed. He put Minnie down, but stepped on her tail to keep her from escaping. Then he took Mickey, tied his tail around his finger, and began playing with him like a yo-yo.

"WE'RE HAVIN' SOME FUN NOW!" he shouted.

"Whoooaaa!" Mickey shouted, as he whirled up and down over and over again.

When Mortimer grew tired of that, he snapped his fingers, and a paddle appeared in his hand. He put Mickey's tail through a small hole in the middle of it, tied a knot in it, and began smacking Mickey with it. Mickey had become a human (mouse?) paddle ball.

"Ooh! Ouch! Oof! Ow! Yow!" Mickey shouted, as he kept bouncing against the paddle.

"NOW FOR THE GRAND FINALE!" Mortimer shouted. He snapped his fingers again, and the paddle turned into a slingshot. Mickey dropped from the paddle into Mortimer's hand, and the large rat also picked up Pluto and Figaro while he was at it. He loaded all three of them into the slingshot, pulled it as far back as he could, and let the trio go.

"Yaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!" Mickey shouted, as he, Pluto, and Figaro sailed through the air.

"Mickey!" Minnie shouted, as Mortimer picked her up in his fist once more, and began stomping off with her, laughing all the way.

Mickey, Pluto, and Figaro wound up coming in for a landing, crashing right through the roof of Robyn's house, and landing right on her table.

"Ooof!" Mickey shouted. Pluto wound up landing right on top of him, and Figaro landed right on top of Pluto.

"Hello, Mickey," Robyn said. "Glad you could drop in."

"Anybody get the license number of that steamroller?" Mickey asked, dazedly. Then he sat up, and smiled, stupidly. "Ooooh! Look at all the pretty stars, and the cute little birdies!"

Robyn grabbed a glass of water, and threw it on Mickey. That seemed to snap him out of it.

"Huh?! Wha?! Who?!" he shouted. "Oh. Oh, thanks, Robyn. Whew, what a ride!"

"You okay, Mickey?" Robyn asked. "What happened?"

"Mortimer is what happened," Mickey sighed, standing up. "He's the one behind all this. Now he's got Minnie! I don't know how he got so big, but . . . ."

"He's under the influence of Chernoberus," a voice from out of nowhere said. In a flash of light, Yen Sid appeared in front of Mickey and Robyn.

"Ahh!" Mickey shouted, nervously, and hid under the table.

"Mickey, would you kindly stop that?" Yen Sid asked, calmly.

"Sorry," Mickey said, sheepishly, as he crawled out.

"Uncle Yen Sid, what are you doing back here?" Robyn asked.

"I received word that Chernoberus's spirit had been awakened," Yen Sid said. "I decided to find out what happened. Once I realized that Mortimer was Mickey's rival, I knew I needed to find Mickey."

"Do you think you can stop Mortimer, Master Yen Sid?" Mickey asked, hopefully.

"No," Yen Sid said. "Only you can stop him, Mickey."

"Me?!" Mickey shouted, incredulously. "Why me?"

"Chernoberus was my rival. Only one's rival will be able to defeat the other."

"But . . . . but Mortimer's got Chernoberus's magic! Doesn't that count? I mean, I can't defeat Mortimer! He just clobbered me back there in the forest and . . . ."

"Mortimer has Chernoberus's magic, that is true, but still, Mickey, you are the one who has to fight him. Here, you'll need this."

Yen Sid took off his hat, and handed it to Mickey. Mickey just stared at it, somewhat in shock.

"But . . . . but Master Yen Sid . . . ." he started. "The last time I used your hat, I almost destroyed your workshop, and . . . ."

"That was because you were using my hat to help yourself. This time, you are using it to help others. There's a big difference, Mickey."

"Oh gosh . . . . "

Mickey stood there, holding Yen Sid's hat. Then he looked up at the sorcerer, and began handing his hat back toward him.

I don't know if I can do it, Master," he said. "I mean . . . . I don't think I . . . ."

"Just remember, Mickey," Yen Sid said, taking his hat. "True magic comes from within."

With that, Yen Sid placed his hat on Mickey's head, and disappeared.

"Oh gosh," Mickey said, taking off Yen Sid's hat again. "I don't know if I can actually do this! I don't know if I'm ready!"

"Uncle must have at least some faith in you, Mickey," Robyn said. "He doesn't give just anyone his hat."

"Well . . . . yeah . . . . but . . . ."

Before Mickey could go on, he felt a small tap on his foot. He looked down, and saw Figaro standing there, looking up at him. Pluto whimpered a little, and looked at Mickey as well. Then he gave his master a slurp in the face, and Figaro began rubbing against his legs.

"See that, Mickey?" Robyn asked. "They have faith in you. And Donald and Minnie are counting on you."

Mickey thought that one over. Finally, he put Yen Sid's hat back on. Once he did, his red "Sorcerer's Apprentice" robe appeared on him. Finally, he turned to Figaro and Pluto.

"Come on, fellas!" he shouted. "We've got to find Minnie and Donald!"

And with a wave of his hand, Mickey, Pluto, and Figaro disappeared in a flash of light, and sparkles.