Once they'd put enough distance between themselves and that ravenous beast, Abigail, Michelle and Willy stopped to take a breath, hidden by long grass near the edge of the meadow.

"You okay Michelle?" Abigail asked as Michelle breathed heavily, holding her chest.

Michelle nodded, trying to keep her windpipe from closing up again.

"I've got the inhaler if you need it," Abigail said.

"N-no, I'm okay," Michelle breathed.

"What about the others?" Willy panted, looking back toward the farm.

"We've got to go back and find them," Abigail said.

"But with that monster?" Michelle asked.

"I know…we need some way around that cat," said Abigail.

At that moment, a pebble bounced against the back of Abigail's head, knocking her down. Once they realized what had happened, Willy and Michelle rushed to her side.

"Abby!" Michelle yelled.

"Are you alright?" Willy said, trying to pick her up.

Abigail held the back of her head, wincing, before rolling over and sitting up. She just seemed to be getting hurt a lot today, "I'm…ow…I'm okay…"

Willy looked around, "Who threw that?!"

Abigail hushed him, "Shh, what if it was someone who wants to eat us?"

"Well they can't just go around throwing rocks!" Willy said angrily.

"Where'd the rock go?" came the distant voice of a girl.

"I dunno, it flew off in this direction I think," came a boy's voice.

Willy clenched his fists, ready to give them a beat down. There was rustling in the grass, and out of it emerged a teenage boy mouse with light brown fur, maybe a little older than Willy, and a girl closer to their age with yellowish fur. The boy was carrying a large stick.

"Hey, who are you guys?" asked the boy.

"You hit my girlfriend in the head with that rock," Willy said angrily.

The girl gasped, "We're sorry!"

"We were just playing stickball," said the boy, "Honest, we didn't mean it. There's usually nobody in this part of the field."

"It's okay," said Abigail, "I'm not hurt that bad…"

"Did you put that bandage on just now?" asked the boy.

"No, it was put there this morning. I'm having a rough day. Week. Month?"

"Maybe we oughtta take you to our mom, she's good at healing cuts and stuff," said the girl, "My name's Cynthia, what's yours?"

"I'm Abigail."

"Willy."

Michelle did a curtsey, "I'm Michelle."

"Well my name's Timothy," said the boy, "Come with us."

"Wait," said Abigail, slowly getting to her feet, "Our friends are back there. The cat chased us all."

"Cat?"

"Dragonson…" Cynthia whispered.

"We have to go back for them," Abigail pleaded.

"It's too dangerous," said Timothy, "Where was he when you last saw him?"

"On the other side of the fence," said Abigail, "But he didn't really chase us, he chased our friends."

"That's too close for comfort," said Timothy, "He guards the field all day looking for a meal until the Fitzgibbons come to get him in the evening. I hope your friends get away, but going in there now would be suicide. You better come with us, we'll look for them later."

"Well…alright," Abigail reluctantly agreed, looking to Willy, who still had a look of skepticism on his face.

Michelle took Abigail's hand, and the three of them followed the two siblings through the grass, until finally coming upon a mossy cement block behind a large stone, surrounded by bushes and grass, half-buried in the ground. It was very well-hidden.

"This is our house, come on," said Cynthia.

They walked toward a little door in the side of the block, and entered.

"Hey Mom! We're back! We found some other kids who seemed like they needed help."

"Oh? Some new friends?"

Timothy led them down a flight of little stairs. At the bottom an older mouse sat on a rocking chair. She wore a tattered red cape and small, round eyeglasses on her nose, her brown fur tipped with gray. She was in the middle of knitting a shirt.

"Why, hello there," she said to them, "My name's Elizabeth. Elizabeth Brisby. What seems to be the problem?"

They introduced themselves in turn. Mrs. Brisby seemed to take an immediate liking to the three of them.

"We're from Dapplewood. Or, Michelle and I am." Abigail said.

"I'm from Oakdale Meadow." said Willy.

"My, that's quite a ways from here by foot," said Mrs. Brisby, "That's somewhere in the woods, north of here, isn't it?"

"Yes. We flew here, in a plane we made ourselves," Abigail said.

"Flew?" Timothy asked, "On a bird, right? What's a plane?"

Willy snickered, "It's something you build that can fly like a bird. I almost thought I was the only mouse on Earth who didn't grow up knowing that."

"You look a little beaten up, Abigail," said Mrs. Brisby.

"I'm still patched up from my fall this morning, when the plane crashed. And my head still hurts from being hit in the head with a rock by someone…"

Mrs. Brisby narrowed her eyes and then turned to her children, "What did I tell you about being careful playing that game?"

"I'm sorry ma," said Timothy.

She shook her head, "Ever since Martin and Teresa left…what am I going to do with you?"

He looked down, and Cynthia stifled a giggle.

"Come here and let me have a look at you," said Mrs. Brisby. Abigail stepped forward shyly, and Mrs. Brisby felt around her scalp, being careful of the bandages. When she found the spot where Abigail had been hit, Abigail winced.

"This is going to be a bump. You poor thing. You don't have a concussion do you?"

"I don't really feel too different," Abigail answered.

"I'd hate to add even more bandages to your head, but do you feel alright?" Mrs. Brisby asked, taking Abigail's hands caringly, "There's no ice this time of year either, or else I'd put ice on it."

Abigail nodded, "It's okay, I think I'll be fine."

She wondered if this was what having a mother was like. If so it made her sad to think she'd missed out on it.

"So why did you three come here?" Mrs. Brisby asked.

"We're looking for these rats…" Abigail answered.

"Rats?" Mrs. Brisby's ears perked up.

"Mm hmm, we heard there were rats here from NIMH once, or that maybe there were. We were gonna ask the animals here if they knew anything. NIMH is this evil group of human scientists, they took our families away and destroyed our homes in Dapplewood, you see."

"Oh my, well…" Mrs. Brisby seemed hesitant, but deeply saddened at the same time. Timothy and Cynthia looked on silently, not knowing if they should say anything. "Go on"

"When we got here, that giant cat chased us and we got separated. There's four more of us out there."

"Dragonson got to you? I hope your friends are alright, but it's too dangerous to go after them now."

"That's what Timothy said," Abigail sighed.

"Were there any adults with you?" Mrs. Brisby asked.

"Yeah, two of them," Abigail answered, "And a fly, don't know if he's grown up."

"That's good," Mrs. Brisby said, trying to think of what to do, "I wish that crow Jeremy were around, he could fly up above and see if your friends are alright."

"Huh…hey, I don't think we need a bird, if we can get to the Ranger Wingamathing," Abigail said.

"The what?" Timothy asked.

"That's the name of our airplane," said Willy.

"Are you sure that's safe?" Mrs. Brisby asked.

"Of course, we flew it here from someplace far off in the deep woods. We have just enough passengers to fly it, three at minimum," Abigail said.

"But we've never flown that thing before," said Willy, "I mean, we cranked the winder-uppers, but the seat in front with all those buttons and that wheel thing…"

"It shouldn't be too hard to figure out." said Abigail.

"Are you sure you don't want to lie down first?" Mrs. Brisby asked.

"No that's all right, our friends need us, and they'd do the same for us."

"Well if you're that determined…" Mrs. Brisby turned her gaze to Michelle, "Are you taking the little girl too?"

"Hm? Well I thought so…"

"I don't think you should. With that cat around…"

Michelle pouted, "No fair!"

"Now now," said Mrs. Brisby, "Don't be that way. We're protecting you."

"I never get to do anything," Michelle sighed.

"You always say that Michelle, even when you do get to do things," Abigail teased.

"Maybe you and I can play something," Cynthia suggested, "It won't be so bad."

"And Timmy could show you two around the farm," said Mrs. Brisby to Abigail and Willy, "You be careful though. I don't want you anywhere near that cat. Come home in one piece."

"Alright, should be fun trying this plane thing out," said Timothy.

Abigail fished through her pockets, taking out the inhaler and giving it to Mrs. Brisby, who eyed it curiously, "That's in case Michelle has an asthma attack. You put that end in her mouth, and push on the top. She'll know what to do."

"What an odd contraption…" Mrs. Brisby turned her gaze from the inhaler to Abigail, "You'll have to tell me more about where you've come from later."

"We will. Then you can tell us about the rats, right?"

"I…well…we'll see, okay?" Mrs. Brisby hesitated.

"Okay, come on boys," Abigail said.

Willy and Timothy followed her up the stairs and outside.

"Where did you put that plane thing?" Timothy asked.

"Over near a stone building next to a river," said Abigail.

"Ah, the old mill. I know where that is," Timothy said, "Follow me."

Abigail smiled, happy that they'd met someone who knew the lay of the land. She and Willy followed behind him, Willy staying close to her.

After a bit of a walk they made it to the mill. Abigail and Willy walked to the bush where they'd hidden the Ranger Wingamathing and Timothy followed, the three of them working to pull it out into the open.

"Wow, look at this thing," said Timothy, running his fingers through his hair as he stared up at its wingspan.

"Okay, I'm gonna try to fly it," said Abigail, "I don't think either of you have had any piloting experience."

"Guess you're right," said Willy.

Abigail climbed into the front seat, "You two get in the back and crank the winder uppers."

"Got it," said Willy, somewhat relieved that she didn't ask Timothy to sit in front with her.

The two boys got in back, and Willy showed Timothy how to buckle his seat belt.

"There's no electricity right now, so this shouldn't be much different from piloting the Flapper Wingamathing," said Abigail, momentarily intimidated by all the buttons and levers, "Well, go to it you guys, lets get in the air."

The two of them turned the crank, and the wings flapped, slowly at first. It was harder with only two mice doing it, but eventually, the wings flapped faster, and the plane began to lift. Timothy looked over the side excitedly as they ascended. Abigail turned the steering wheel, and the rudder made the plane turn in that direction. Simple enough, she thought. But she wasn't sure how to climb or dive. The wheel didn't move like the more simply-designed Flapper Wingamathing. It must be one of the levers, she thought. But soon they were cruising over the field. They could see Dragonson walking along the rows of crops. It had either lost the others, or…the worst had already happened.

Russell was still catching his breath as he, Dale and Gadget hid behind a grate in the lower wall that led under the house. There was a hole in it small enough for them to squeeze through and still protect them from the cat. At any rate, thanks to Zipper, the cat hadn't followed them.

"That was a close one," said Dale.

"I know, Zipper sure does pull through for us,' said Gadget, "The problem now is where are the others?"

Russell looked through the grating, "I hope they're all right…"

He didn't like being without Abigail, Michelle and Edgar. They were like the last remaining family he had. He was even warming up to Willy.

"What's our plan now?" Dale asked.

"With that cat prowling around, we're stuck here until its gone," said Gadget, "Maybe we can send one of us out to try and find the others, but it's risky. I hope Zipper finds us, then we could have him do a flyover of the area."

Russell held onto the grating and stared outward, noticing what looked like a little bird flapping over the field. It didn't seem to have very good coordination though. It was then that it hit him.

"Hey, you guys! Someone's out there with the Ranger Wingamathing!"

"Huh?" Gadget looked out, shielding her eyes from the sunlight before she saw what Russell saw, "You're right, that's what it looks like. Whoever it is doesn't seem to have a firm grasp of the controls."

"It's gotta be at least three of them,' said Russell, "It must be the others."

"We've gotta get their attention, but how?" Dale asked.

"Hmm…I've got it," said Gadget, "I'll get a stick, and we'll tie something bright to it, like a shirt."

"Okay," said Russell, "Who's shirt will we use?"

"Gadget's got a bright white tanktop under her jumpsuit," Dale suggested.

"Dale! I'm not doing that. Russell's vest isn't bright enough. That leaves your shirt."

"Aw shucks, it's gonna get all dirty," Dale said, taking his shirt off.

Gadget took Dale's shirt and hopped out onto the ground, scouring around until coming upon a twig. She ran it through the sleeves of Dale's shirt and waved it in the air.

"Down here!" she yelled.

Abigail circled the field, not seeing anything. She gave a sad sigh.

"Well, would they have stayed in the field? We didn't." said Willy.

Abigail's ears perked up, "You're right, Willy. Let's look somewhere else."

"Try around the farmhouse,' said Timothy.

Abigail steered toward the farmhouse, "Keep looking you guys."

All of them looked over the side of the plane as Abigail steered. It was but a few minutes before Timothy spotted a red cloth waving back and forth on the ground.

"Hey look down there," he said.

"That's…that's Dale's shirt! They're alive!" Abigail cheered.

"Okay, take us down," said Willy.

"Uhh…" Abigail fumbled with the levers, pulling one that made the back rudder tilt downward, sending them flying up into the sky, "Eeeek!"

"The other one!" Willy shouted.

Abigail pushed the lever back into place and pulled the second one, which sent them in the opposite direction, straight down. The three of them screamed. Abigail pulled the lever up before they could crash into the ground, the force sending them spinning.

"We can't crash again, we just built this!" Willy yelled.

"I'm more worried about us!" Abigail yelled, "Unlock the wings and crank the winder uppers, that's how we descended in the Flapper Wingamathing right?"

"I don't know!"

"Just do it!" said Timothy.

The two of them began cranking, as the plane swooped up again, the flapping wings slowing them down until they leveled out.

"Slower flaps now," said Abigail.

They flapped more slowly, and the plane came down, landing a bit far from their mark but within walking distance. Gadget ran toward them, with Dale and Russell not far behind.

"Are you all all right?" Gadget asked as she ran up to them.

"We're…we're okay," said Abigail, quite out of breath, undoing her seatbelt, "I don't think I'm very good at flying this."

"I'll do it next time," said Gadget, looking at the three of them, "Who's this?"

"My name's Timmy…er, Timothy Brisby," he said with a smile, trying to lower his voice and appear more suave in front of this beautiful mousette.

"We met him and his family on the other side of the field," said Abigail, "Michelle's with his mom and sister."

Dale and Russell caught up with them.

"That was some fancy flying," Russell chuckled.

"Oh shut up," Abigail rolled her eyes and smiled.

Willy looked around, "Hey, are we missing someone?"

Abigail realized it too, "Where's Edgar?"

"He wasn't with you?" Gadget asked.

"Uh oh…" Abigail turned toward the field, "Where could he be?"

"Well what would he have done to get away?" Russell asked, "We all ran, so he must have dug!"

"Yes…yes that must be what he did. So he's still in that field somewhere."

"He dug?" Timothy asked, not fully understanding.

"He's a mole," Abigail explained.

"Oh…okay, makes sense."

"Zipper must be around somewhere too," Gadget said, "We've got to get those two out of there."

The group looked toward the fenced-off rows of crops, seeing that monstrous cat from a distance, sniffing around and searching for prey.

"W-well uh, good luck, let me know how it goes," said Dale, trying to walk away before Gadget grabbed his arm and tugged him toward the Ranger Wingamathing.