A long taper lights a candle. We see two gnarled hands dip a pen into a pot of ink, and begin to write in a book.

WRITER
Jonathan Brisby was killed today while helping with the Plan. It is four years since our departure from NIMH, and our world is changing. We cannot stay here much longer. Jonathan was a dear friend. I am lost, knowing how to help his widow. She knows nothing of us, or the Plan. Perhaps best that I do nothing at present. I shall miss him.

With a flourish, the speaker signs his name: "Nicodemus"

CUT TO:

The gnarled hands cradle an amulet. It is a round red stone set in a gold base. We see Nicodemus' face dimly reflected in the stone.

NICODEMUS
Jonathan, wherever you are, your thoughts must comfort her tonight. She'll be waiting, and you will not return.

Nicodemus places the amulet into an ornate box, and closes the lid.

NICODEMUS
Farewell...my friend.

SCENE I:

On the Fitzgibbon farm, an abandoned threshing machine sits, rusting quietly. Suddenly an EXPLOSION shakes the machine and smoke begins to rise from its seams.

MRS. BRISBY (OOV)
Mr. Ages? Mr. Ages, is anybody home?

MR. AGES (OOV)
Go away!

CUT TO:

Inside the threshing machine, a small mouse wearing a red cape looks around nervously. This is Mrs. Brisby.

MRS. BRISBY
Mr. Ages!

MR. AGES (OOV)
What is it?

MRS. BRISBY
Mr. Ages, may I please speak with you?

MR. AGES (OOV)
What?

MRS. BRISBY
I said, may I please speak...

COUGHING, Mr. Ages pops up from inside the tangle of machinery behind Mrs. Brisby. With a GASP of surprise, she whirls.

MRS. BRISBY
...with you. Oh thank goodness! I'm so glad you're home!

MR. AGES
[still COUGHING] Confounded machine! You never know when it's going to up and blow!

MRS BRISBY
Yes...I don't suppose you would remember me...

MR AGES
Yes, you're Mrs. Brisby. And I am sorry about your husband's death. Now if you'll excuse me...

Mr. Ages disappears back into the machine. Mrs. Brisby calls after him.

MRS BRISBY
Mr. Ages!

Mr. Ages pops up again, in a different place.

MR AGES
Great Jupiter, woman, what do you want?

MRS BRISBY
Mr. Ages, I know you don't like visitors, but this is an emergency! Please!

Suddenly a second EXPLOSION shakes the thresher. Ages is knocked from his perch and goes sliding and tumbling down into the inner recesses of the machine, finally vanishing down a large vertical shaft. Mrs. Brisby races after him and peers over the shaft's edge. Ages is lying in a basket suspended by a rope.

MR AGES
Madam, that is an emergency.

Ages pulls on the rope, sending the basket rising up to the top of the shaft where Mrs. Brisby waits.

MRS BRISBY
Oh Mr. Ages, my son Timothy is so sick!

MR AGES
Timmy? The one with the spider bite? Oh, just give him some pepsissiwa root and...

MRS BRISBY
No! [she grabs Ages by the shirt and shakes him] No, he's sick with a fever!

MR AGES
[grudgingly] Well...I suppose I could fix up something...

MRS BRISBY
Oh thank you!

MR AGES
Follow me, but don't touch anything! Understand?

Mrs. Brisby nods and slides into the basket with Ages. Still MUTTERING to himself, he pulls the rope again, and the basket begins to descend into the shaft. It's not just suspended from a pulley apparently, but seems to be motorized.

MRS BRISBY
I do appreciate it...

MR AGES
Just how high is his fever?

MRS BRISBY
He's burning hot to the touch.

MR AGES
Hmmmmmm, yes.

MRS BRISBY
He's soaking wet with perspiration...

MR AGES
..yes?

MRS BRISBY
...and there's a raspy sound when he breathes.

MR AGES
A raspy sound you say? Well!

The basket reaches the bottom and they climb out. Ages leads Mrs. Brisby towards a round door with light streaming out of it.

MR AGES
Does he have a chill?

MRS BRISBY
Yes, he does.

MR AGES
Have you wrapped him in a blanket?

MRS BRISBY
Yes.

MR AGES
Now step inside, but keep your hands to yourself! I'm right in the middle of...something very important.

MRS BRISBY
I understand.

MR AGES
Oh, do you?

Ages laboratory is brightly lit, and filled with equipment. It's dominated by a human sized oil lamp in the center of room, and a variety of chemical equipment, also human sized, runs along the walls and ceiling. A bunsen burner is heating the contents of a large flask to a gentle boil. Ages crosses the room to his work table.

MR AGES
Look at this mess...Oh, shoo, shoo, go on!

Ages tosses a ladybug off the table like a cat.

MR AGES
Your son has pneumonia.

MRS BRISBY
Pneumonia?

Ages begins mixing powders and herbs in a bowl and grinding them with a pestle.

MR AGES
It's not uncommon, but you can die from it.

MRS BRISBY
Oh please dear God, no.

MR AGES
Your son must stay in bed. Bundle him up.

MRS BRISBY
Yes.

He pulls a string running over his head, and the bunsen burner turns to high, heating the fluid inside a large flask. A tube runs from the flask to just above Ages' head. The fluid expands, forcing a single drop out of the tube. Ages deftly catches it in his bowl.

MR AGES
Not to go outside...

MRS BRISBY
But how long must...

MR AGES
Three weeks. He cannot be moved for at least three weeks.

MRS BRISBY
But Moving Day is nearly here!

MR AGES
You asked my advice, and I gave it to you!

MRS BRISBY
I'm sorry.

MR AGES
He must stay in bed. Now, mix this...this powder in a broth and make him drink it. It'll bring down the fever.

Ages pours the contents of the bowl into an envelope and hands it to her.

MRS BRISBY
Oh, bless you sir!

MR AGES
And bless yourself, you'll need it. Now, you must excuse me...You know the way out.

MRS BRISBY
Oh, of course.

Ages leads her to the door and hustles her through it.

MRS BRISBY
Thank you once again...

MR AGES
Shoo shoo shoo. Go on now. Go on.

MRS BRISBY
Thank you so....

The door slams shut in her face.

MRS BRISBY
...much. Goodbye.

SCENE II:

Mrs Brisby runs home clutching the envelope to her chest. She enters a hollow log and stops. There's a disturbance at the other end. She climbs up through a hole in the top of the log, and approaches the sound from above. String is tangled in the branches at the far end. Mrs. Brisby peers over the end of the log, and sees a large black bird hanging upside down, tangled in the string and making frustrated noises. This is Jeremy the crow.

MRS BRISBY
Is everything all right here?

JEREMY
What the...Oh! Lady, don't sneak up on me like that!

MRS BRISBY
I didn't mean to frighten you...

JEREMY
[laughs] Oh, you didn't frighten me, I was just sort of...working out. You just broke my concentration, that's...

MRS BRISBY
You look more like you're all tangled up.

JEREMY
Er, yeah, I guess that's enough exercise for one day.

Jeremy pulls himself up to the top of the log and sits down.

JEREMY
Besides, I'm really after this terrific string! I'm working on a love nest for two. You know what I mean?

Mrs. Brisby starts untangling one of Jeremy's feet.

MRS BRISBY
Oh I see...you have a girl.

JEREMY
Well, not really, I mean...I haven't found Miss Right yet. But when I do, [sings] the whole world will hear us singing.....

While singing, Jeremy leans back too far, loses his balance and falls off the log. We hear a SPLASH. Dripping, he pulls himself back up.

JEREMY
Excuse me, pardon me.

MRS BRISBY
Well, you keep making all that noise and Dragon will hear you. If he hasn't already.

JEREMY
Wouldn't you sing too? I mean, if you felt... heh heh ... if you felt the call of the wild, but...

MRS BRISBY
[loudly] I would...[lowers her voice] I would not, if I knew there was a cat nearby.

Mrs. Brisby bites through one of the strings.

JEREMY
But...but SHE'S out there...somewhere...and when I find her I'll feel it, way down in my wishbone! I -- what cat?

MRS BRISBY
Dragon! He belongs to Farmer Fitzgibbons. Look towards the house. See if you can see him.

Jeremy spreads his wings and flies up to a branch sticking straight up in the air. Mrs. Brisby, holding onto the strings entangling him, is pulled along after him. She swings at the end of the string down at the bottom of the branch.

MRS BRISBY
[pulling on the string] Come back down here! He'll see you for sure up there!

JEREMY
Hey, there's a cat out there!

MRS BRISBY
Quiet! Does he see you?

JEREMY
No. [pauses] Yes!

MRS BRISBY
Stand perfectly still.

JEREMY
[weakly] Everything's fine...he's headed right for us.

MRS BRISBY
Don't panic! Fast or slow?

JEREMY
Medium. Make that fast. Very f -- I have to go now! Excuse me, I really....

Panicking, Jeremy tries to flap away, but keeps getting more and more tangled in the string. Mrs. Brisby is caught up in the flailing string, and ends up swinging upside down by one foot. Finally, Jeremy pulls with all his might...

JEREMY
Break!

...Mrs. Brisby jumps up and bites through the cord he's straining against, and he goes flying backward, nearly falls over the edge of the log again, then pulls himself up. They both look down inside the log and see something approaching quickly with a THUMPING noise.

JEREMY
[weakly] Oh my goodness.

Jeremy SCREAMS and tries to take off again, but is pulled up short by the string. He falls back down and ends up swinging in front of the entrance to the log, barely missing a rabbit that runs out of the opening.

MRS BRISBY
It's a rabbit!

Immediately Jeremy's panicked SCREAMING turns into LAUGHTER.

MRS BRISBY
Well of all the silly nincompoops! You got yourself all worked up over a rabbit!

Mrs. Brisby bites through the string holding him up, and he falls to the bottom of the log.

JEREMY
You should have seen yourself!

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Will you keep quiet?

JEREMY
You were scared stiff! A rabbit! I knew it all along!

Unseen by Jeremy or Mrs. Brisby, Dragon creeps up on them from inside the log.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Will you hush up?

JEREMY (OOV)
Admit it! You were scared!

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Oh...fiddlesticks. Hold still.

JEREMY
If I had actually been near a cat, I'd be sneezing my brains out. See, I'm allergic to ca...I'm allergic to caaaaa...I'm allergic to...mfffff...ah..ahhh-CHOOOOOO! I'm allerg...AHHH-CHOOOO!

Jeremy turns his head and SNEEZES right in Dragon's face.

JEREMY
Excuse me, pardon me.

Dragon ROARS. Jeremy SCREAMS and tries to take off. Mrs. Brisby dives for cover. Jeremy again is brought up short by the string, so Mrs. Brisby leaps out and bites through it. He flies up into the sky, leaving Mrs. Brisby alone with Dragon. He climbs up to the top of the log. Mrs. Brisby runs for her medicine, then doubles back, ducking under Dragon as he pounces. He smashes the dead branch to bits. Mrs. Brisby suddenly trips over Jeremy's string, and drops the medicine. It falls down into the water. Mrs. Brisby runs after it, Dragon forgotten for the moment, and tries to reach it. From above her, Dragon ROARS again, and leaps. She jumps clear, into the water and tries to swim away from the cat. From above, Jeremy grabs the cat's tail and tries to hold him back. A chunk of Dragon's fur rips out. Dragon lunges for Mrs. Brisby.

JEREMY
The string, quick! Grab the string!

Jeremy, trailing a length of string behind him, flies past Mrs. Brisby, Dragon right behind him. She grabs the string, and is pulled up into the branches of a tree. The string tangles in the branches, and she is knocked loose. Dragon leaps up the tree after her, chasing her out to the tip of a branch, overhanging a waterfall. She turns, sees Dragon leap toward her, and jumps backward, falling down into the water. Dragon follows as the branch snaps under his weight. The water is not deep, and he hits the bottom hard. Dragon decides he's had enough. Mrs. Brisby struggles with the pull of the waterfall for a moment, then breaks free and swims toward the waterwheel of the old mill, riding it up out of the water. A few moments later, Jeremy lands and enters the mill as well.

CUT TO:

Inside the mill, Mrs. Brisby sits CRYING.

JEREMY
Hey, Miss Mouse, don't worry, I'm ok. [he WHISTLES to prove it] See? I'm alright.

MRS BRISBY
That's not the reason I'm crying. I lost Timmy's medicine.

JEREMY
Aw, don't cry. I hate to see a woman cry...Hey! Was I great, or was I great? Did you see that cat out there? All dripping, and...and wet.....with water....[his voice trails off]

MRS BRISBY
I'll...go back to Mr. Ages tommorow, and....

JEREMY
You weren't so bad yourself. Hey, we make a pretty good team! Oh, here, you dropped this back there.

He hands Mrs. Brisby the envelope of medicine. It takes a moment for it to register with her.

JEREMY
Nobody messes with ol' Jeremy, boy. Nobody!

MRS BRISBY
That's it! Timmy's medicine! Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!

JEREMY
[distractedly] Huh? It i... what? It is? I mean, it is. Well, I saw it lying there, and I said uh......[remembers his manners] My name is Jeremy.

MRS BRISBY
I'm Mrs. Brisby. Thanks again! I have to go home now.

JEREMY
Uh, where's home?

MRS BRISBY
In the garden patch, by the stone.

JEREMY
Well....do you like me?

MRS BRISBY
Of course I like you! Bye now.

Mrs. Brisby tugs on a rope to be sure it's secure, then slides down it into an old lobster trap lying on the ground.

JEREMY
No! I mean...I mean, um....I mean, you don't think I'm clumsy or anything?

Jeremy loses his balance and falls through the hole that Mrs. Brisby just descended through, into the trap. Immediately, he gets tangles in the old netting.

JEREMY
Oh...sorry. Excuse me, pardon me.

MRS BRISBY
Oh. Well, if you're going to feather a nest, you've got a lot to learn about how to treat a lady!

JEREMY
Right. When you're right, you're right. And you're right. None of the girls I meet want to get serious!

MRS BRISBY
I doubt they'd survive.

JEREMY
Huh? Maybe it's my approach. Say! You were a girl once! You could teach me how to...you know, how to.....

MRS BRISBY
Behave yourself?

JEREMY
I'm not that bad! I just need a few pointers to polish my style.

Jeremy tries to strike a pose, and falls flat on his face.

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy, I have got to go home!

Jeremy follows Mrs. Brisby out of the mill, trying to shake a piece of netting off his foot.

JEREMY
Well let me...Let me fly you home! We can talk on the way!

MRS BRISBY
Oh, no thank you. I'm afraid of heights.

JEREMY
OK, then we'll walk.

MRS BRISBY
Bye now.

Mrs. Brisby crosses to the other side of the millpond, leaping nimbly from one lily pad to another. Jeremy follows, but the pads don't support his weight as easily, and he splashes across noisily.

JEREMY (OOV)
I think I got real potential, I mean, girls go for the athletic type, don't they?

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Jeremy, you're stepping on my tail.

JEREMY (OOV)
Oh! Oh, yeah! Excuse me, pardon me...

SCENE III:

At the Brisby home, her children await her return.

MARTIN (OOV)
Maybe I should go look for Mom.

TERESA (OOV)
I don't think so Martin.

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Brisby! Briiiiiisby!

CUT TO:

Inside the Brisby home.

TERESA
Oh! Auntie Shrew!

CYNTHIA
Oh Auntie!

MARTIN
Oh no....

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Brisby!

TERESA
She'll wake up Timothy!

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Brisby!

TERESA
[calling up the stairway to the entrance] She's not here!

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Brisby!

MARTIN
Why is she always coming around here, poking her nose in where she's not wanted?

TERESA
Martin!

Martin storms out of the main room into the bedroom, and swipes the cloth partition aside angrily. If there had been a door, he would have slammed it. Auntie Shrew enters at the top of the stairs. Teresa meets her and helps her with her shawl.

AUNTIE SHREW
Thank you child. I must speak with your mother.

The Shrew dumps her large shawl on Teresa, almost burying her, and starts down the stairs. Teresa shrugs, bundles up the shawl as best she can, and follows down the stairs after her.

AUNTIE SHREW
Your Auntie is exhausted! Why me? That I alone should be responsible for the welfare of the entire field is monstrous! Brisby!

TERESA
Mother isn't here.

CYNTHIA
Auntie Shrew, Timmy's sick!

AUNTIE SHREW
Cynthia dearest, don't pull me. She's not here? She left you children alone then?

MARTIN
[from the bedroom] I'm old enough.

AUNTIE SHREW
...rats in the field up to heaven knows what sort of mischief...Cynthia dear, don't fidgit! You're so like your mother!

MARTIN
I ain't scared of nuthin!

TERESA
She went to see Mr. Ages.

AUNTIE SHREW
To Ages? That old flim-flam! Whatever for?

CYNTHIA
Auntie Shrew, Timmy's sick!

AUNTIE SHREW
Patience, my pet. [to Teresa] Why to Ages?

CYNTHIA
Timmy's sick!

TERESA
Timothy is very ill.

AUNTIE SHREW
Timmy ill? How dreadful!

Martin emerges from the bedroom, swinging a stick.

MARTIN
I'm not afraid of the dark! I'm not afraid of the farmer!

AUNTIE SHREW
...I can't hear!

MARTIN
.....I'm not even scared of Dragon. I'm not even afraid of...of...of the Great Owl!

AUNTIE SHREW
Will you hush up?

MARTIN
Aw, you hush up!

TERESA
Martin! [shakes her head fearfully]

AUNTIE SHREW
Precocious monster!

MARTIN
Bossing bullfrog!

AUNTIE SHREW
Spoiled brat!

MARTIN
Loudmouth!

AUNTIE SHREW
Oh! Well! That will be quite enough, thank you!

Auntie Shrew holds out her arms, and Teresa scurries to drape the shawl around them. The Shrew heads for the exit, pausing halfway up the stairs. She doesn't notice that her shawl has caught on a projection.

AUNTIE SHREW
Cast not pearls before swine, I always say...and that includes impudent piglets! Good day!

She starts up the stairs again, but is pulled up short and then falls...or rather rolls... back down the stairs. Teresa and Cynthia can't help laughing. Martin doesn't even try.

AUNTIE SHREW
Oh! You impertinent little...

Mrs. Brisby appears at the top of the stairs.

MRS BRISBY
Martin! Auntie Shrew, what's going on!?

AUNTIE SHREW
Indeed!

Auntie Shrew pushes past Mrs. Brisby.

MRS BRISBY
Please...come back inside...

AUNTIE SHREW
Not for a king's ransom! I have just one thing to say: That child is a brat!

MRS BRISBY
Yes, I will speak to him.

AUNTIE SHREW
I came here to inform you that the frost is off the ground and Moving Day is at hand. Prepare to move your very very odd family. Good day.

The Shrew exits

AUNTIE SHREW
[muttering to herself] You never know what might be lurking about out here, what with rats and.....

MRS BRISBY
Well, children. now you've done it.

TERESA
It was Martin.

MRS BRISBY
The Shrew means well. She only wants to help.

Mrs. Brisby takes a kettle from over the fireplace, and fills a bowl with soup. She pours the contents of the envelope into the bowl and moves into the bedroom. Martin squirms guiltily.

MARTIN
Gosh, I'm sorry, Mom.

In the bedroom, Mrs. Brisby begins to spoonfeed the soup to Timothy. The song "Flying Dreams" plays over the scene. One by one, the other children gather around the bed. When the soup is gone, Timothy yawns, and falls asleep. He looks very thin.

CYNTHIA
Is Timmy gonna die?

MRS BRISBY
No, sweetheart. He's just very sick.

TERESA
What's the matter with him, Mother?

MRS BRISBY
Mr. Ages called it...pneumonia.

TERESA
Pneumonia....

CYNTHIA
When will he get better?

MRS BRISBY
Soon....I hope.

We see the Brisby family framed in the bedroom window. The camera pulls back slowly until the house looks qute small. The song resumes and concludes.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Off to bed with you now.

CUT TO:

An attic window on the Fitzgibbons farmhouse swings open. An extension cord snakes out, finally falling to the roof below with a CLATTER. We hear the Fitzgibbons talking.

MRS FITZGIBBONS
Dear, a man came by today, from NIMH.

MR FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
[sleepily] NIMH?

MRS FITZGIBBONS
Yes, you know! The National Institute of Mental Health. He was asking if we had noticed...anything strange...about the rats on the farm

Mrs. Fitzgibbons pulls down the bedroom shade, and outside, a group of rats carries the cord past her window.

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Well, I said 'No, nothing unusual.'

MR FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Beth, I have to get up early.

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Oh, it gave me goosebumps to hear him carry on that way! Like the rats might have some horrible disease!

MR FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Night, Beth...

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
I told him you'd call him back.

MR FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
[yawning] Uh-huh.

Outside, the rats disappear with the cord inside a large thorny rosebush in the Fitzgibbons yard. Weird lights flicker from inside the bush......

SCENE IV:

The next morning, Mrs. Brisby is awakened by the sound of an ENGINE trying to start. She gets up and clasps her hands to her chest as the fear strikes. Going outside for a look, she climbs to the top of the large stone next to her house, and sniffs the air. Behind her, the Shrew approaches. Mrs. Brisby whirls.

AUNTIE SHREW
What did I tell you? Moving Day!

MRS BRISBY
It can't be!

AUNTIE SHREW
It certainly can! I don't suppose you've packed!

MRS BRISBY
What about Timmy? The chill in the air could kill him!

AUNTIE SHREW
Well child, that tractor surely will. For the last time, get your children out of here, before it's too late!

It's too late. The tractor's engine suddenly springs to life with a ROAR. Auntie Shrew runs off to warn the field.

AUNTIE SHREW
Run! Run for your lives, run! It's Moving Day! Run! The plow is here! Run!

Heads pop out of holes, animals sit up to hear. Warning signals get passed. Soon, every animal is running out of the field as fast as they can.

AUNTIE SHREW
Run! Get out!

Mrs. Brisby runs from her home with three of her children in a chain behind her. Suddenly the Shrew appears...

AUNTIE SHREW
Brisby! Go get...Timothy!

MRS BRISBY
Please! Take the children out of here!

CYNTHIA
Mommy, we can't leave Timmy!

MRS BRISBY
Go with Auntie Shrew. I've got to try to stop that thing!

AUNTIE SHREW
Wait! You're out of your mind! Brisby, come back!

Mrs. Brisby doesn't listen, and runs alongside the tractor, grabbing hold of a dangling chain. She climbs up onto the plow, but quickly finds she's bitten off more than she can chew. She nearly falls into the churning blades, and clings desparately for a handhold, unable to move any further.

CUT TO:

Inside the Brisby bedroom, rocks and dirt begins to fall from the ceiling as the tractor draws near. Timothy, sleeping, cocks his ear at the sound.

CUT TO: The Shrew has joined Mrs. Brisby on the tractor. Brisby is still unable to move from her precarious ledge.

AUNTIE SHREW
Brisby! Hang on!

CUT TO:

The shaking of the Brisby home is getting stronger. More debris falls from the ceiling.

CUT TO:

Auntie Shrew runs further into the machine, and pulls one of the distributer caps off the sparkplug. It arcs wildly, flinging her from side to side. She's tossed against a fuel container, and when she sees what it is, she starts to pull with all her strength at the hose running from it. Finally, she succeeds in pulling the hose loose. Fuel sprays everywhere. Auntie Shrew falls alongside the tractor, which slowly grinds to a halt, the Brisby home lies in its shadow. Pushing rubble off herself, Auntie Shrew runs toward the rear of the plow. Mrs. Brisby is still huddled there, eyes closed, trembling.

AUNTIE SHREW
Brisby! Come on.

Auntie Shrew leads Mrs. Brisby away from the tractor. Together, they run into the safety of the tall grass. Behind them, the farmer picks up the fragment of hose torn loose by the Shrew.

MR FITZGIBBONS
Well of all the rotten luck...fuel line's cut.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
He'll come back tomorrow...I wish Jonathan were here.

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Well, he's not.

CUT TO:

Hidden by the grasses, Auntie Shrew and Mrs. Brisby collect themselves.

AUNTIE SHREW
Stupid!

MRS BRISBY
What am I going to do?

AUNTIE SHREW
We'll think of something. Come on, let's get out of here.

SCENE V

Nicodemus' Chamber. We see Mrs. Brisby and Auntie Shrew in a magical viewing device, a sphere of glowing green light with energy crackling across its surface. In it, Nicodemus can see and hear everything that the two are doing...

AUNTIE SHREW
The Great Owl would know what to do about this. You must go see him.

MRS BRISBY
Oh I...I couldn't do that. Owls eat mice!

AUNTIE SHREW
Well my child, show a little courage! We're fighting for Timmy's life!

Nicodemus sighs heavily as he watches this.

NICODEMUS
Jonathan, your wife, I fear, is in desperate trouble. A visit to the Great Owl may indeed be profitable. Go to the Owl then, Mrs. Brisby. Go there!

The image in the sphere changes, to a silhouette of a flying bird...

CUT TO:

The bird is Jeremy, and he is flying through the evening air with Mrs. Brisby on his back. He flies the same way he walks, extravagantly and recklessly.

JEREMY
Nice evening huh? I told you you'd love flying.

MRS BRISBY
I don't know how I let you talk me into this!

JEREMY
Aw, don't thank me, Mrs. Briz. When we get to the Great Owl, he'll know just what to do about everything!

MRS BRISBY
Owls eat mice!

JEREMY
Ummmm...only after dark....

Jeremy dives toward a stand of trees, and barrels among the branches at high speed, finally coming to light on a branch. Mrs. Brisby slides cautiously down his leg. Jeremy indicates a sinister looking tree a short distance away.

JEREMY
That must be the Owl's tree over there.

Jeremy takes to flight again, Mrs. Brisby cupped in his left foot. They land on a branch leading to a dark hole in the side of the tree. Cobwebs hang from everywhere. Slow breathing can be heard within...or is it just the wind?

JEREMY
Hello? Hello? Well, the place looks deserted. I guess we'd better get outta here.

Suddenly a loud HOOTING sound comes from within the tree, and a dusty gust of wind comes rolling out of the hole, as if something was flapping very large wings. Jeremy and Mrs. Brisby are both blown backward by it.

GREAT OWL (OOV)
Step inside my house....

Mrs. Brisby's eyes widen at the sound of that voice. She's not alone. We can see Jeremy's knees knocking together. He pushes her toward the entrance, and she is none too inclined to go. At the very doorstep, she pauses....

GREAT OWL (OOV)
Come inside, or go away.

She pulls her shawl about herself and gathers her nerve.

MRS BRISBY
Timothy...remember Timothy.

She enters the Owl's lair. She stumbles over a pile of mousebones, knocking them down into the inner recesses of the tree. She GASPS. A moth flutters in her face, nearly sending her racing back out. A spider stalks her, but just as it is about to attack, it is crushed by the Owl's foot. Mrs. Brisby cowers in terror at the sight of the Owl's glowing eyes.

GREAT OWL
Why have you come?

MRS BRISBY
Please...please forgive me for disturbing you...but my son's life is in great danger.

A fluttering moth comes too close to the Owl, and he gulps it down. Mrs. Brisby averts her eyes.

MRS BRISBY
The plow has come early this year and...

GREAT OWL
Move your family.

The Owl emphasizes his words with flapping of his huge wings. Mrs. Brisby is now in the center of a gust of wind like the one she and Jeremy felt before. She cowers as mouse bones dislodged from the ceiling CLATTER all around her.

MRS BRISBY
Yes...I would move, but Timothy has pneumonia. He can't even get out of bed.

The Owl considers this.

GREAT OWL
You must move it to a place where it will be safe from the plow.

MRS BRISBY
Please...there must be another way.

GREAT OWL
There is no other way.

Mrs. Brisby hangs her head in despair.

GREAT OWL
I must bid you good evening, Mrs...?

MRS BRISBY
Mrs. Brisby.

GREAT OWL
Brisby? Mrs. Jonathan Brisby?

The Owl, already half turned to go, suddenly turns back and peers closely enough at Mrs. Brisby that she can see her reflection is his eye. She pulls back as far as she dares.

MRS BRISBY
Why yes! He was my husband! But...how do you know about him?

GREAT OWL
[pulling back] That is not important. I will say this...his name is not unknown in these woods.

MRS BRISBY
Please sir...I'll do anything to save Timmy. Anything.

Again, the Owl considers for a second. Then...

GREAT OWL
There is a way. Go to the rats.

MRS BRISBY
But I don't know any rats!

GREAT OWL
In the rosebush.

MRS BRISBY
Oh yes...near the farmhouse.

GREAT OWL
Go there. Ask for Nicodemus.

MRS BRISBY
Nicodemus? But how can they help?

GREAT OWL
They must move your house to the lee of the stone.

MRS BRISBY
No rat could move my house! It's...

The Owl looms close again.

GREAT OWL
They have ways!

MRS BRISBY
[chastened] I don't understand...but I will do as you say.

GREAT OWL
It is night. I must go.

The Owl steps forward out of his alcove and heads for the door, leaving Mrs. Brisby to get out of his way as best she can. She watches him limp to the entrance. He turns once...

GREAT OWL
Remember...the lee of the stone.

The Owl proceeds past the cowering Jeremy to the end of the branch. He spreads his wings, and flies off into the night. Mrs. Brisby rejoins Jeremy at the entrance.

JEREMY
What...what did he say?

MRS BRISBY
He said to go to the rats.

JEREMY
Rats. What rats?

MRS BRISBY
[to herself, thoughtfully] The lee of the stone.....

SCENE VI

The Fitzgibbons farmhouse, front yard. Mrs. Fitzgibbons is hanging out the wash. Unnoticed by her, a baby's baptisimal gown suddenly comes to life and heads off across the yard towards the rosebush. It pauses as it passes Dragon, on his back asleep. The figure pulls the hood back, and we see it is Jeremy. He pauses to suppress a sneeze or two, and continues.

JEREMY
Mrs. Briz! Briz!

Jeremy reaches the rosebush and trips over a low branch.

JEREMY
Oh, excuse me, pardon me.

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy? What on earth?

JEREMY
[theatrically]I'm in disguise! [he cackles diabolically]

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy, please, not now! I'm trying to find the entrance, and these thorns are very dense.

JEREMY
Here, let me help you...

Jeremy sticks his head in among the thorns, and....

JEREMY
OW YEOWCH!!!

Mrs. Brisby jumps up and wraps her arms around Jeremy's beak, shutting him up. He makes muffled sounds.

MRS BRISBY
Will you be quiet? They'll hear you! I've got to find this Nicodemus before the farmer gets that tractor fixed!

JEREMY
I'll keep a lookout!

Jeremy tries to take off, but his "disguise" catches on the bush, and he ends up hanging upside down.

MRS BRISBY
Will you...! You're going to get us both killed!

JEREMY
I don't see anybody coming.

He falls to the ground with a THUMP.

MRS BRISBY
If you really wanted to help me, you'd go away.

JEREMY
Why that's very brave of you, Mrs. Briz, but I can't....I can't leave you here alone. Why, if anything were to happen, think...think of the children!

MRS BRISBY
That's it!

JEREMY
Huh? That's what?

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy, someone...strong should be protecting my children. In case that tractor starts up again.

JEREMY
Oh, in case the tra...Hey! How 'bout me?

MRS BRISBY
Oh....would you? [she flutters her eyelashes at him]

JEREMY
Yeah, sure! That'd be terrific practice! Girls can't resist a guy who's good with kids, you know, domestic type. Play games, help out, domestic!

MRS BRISBY
Yes. Yes, domestic. Now whatever you do, don't tell them where I am.

JEREMY
My lips are sealed, Mrs. Briz.

MRS BRISBY
Bye.

JEREMY
Good luck with the rats!

He salutes sharply, then pulls the gown back around himself. Mrs. Brisby turns back to the bush, but Jeremy comes back one last time.

JEREMY
Oh!....Where do you live?

MRS BRISBY
By that big stone in the garden. Just stay out of trouble?

Not to worry, Mrs. Briz. I love kids and kids love me. [Jeremy starts rapping] Kids love me and I love kids, I a-love-a kids, and-a kids a-love.....

Not watching where he's going, he trips over the cat's leg, which Dragon, still sleeping, immediately wraps around him. Suppressing sneezes, Jeremy tries to pull the gown out of Dragon's grasp. Finally, he sneezes, inflating the gown, and propelling himself into the air.

MRS FITZGIBBONS
Dragon! You lazy kitty! Go catch some of those rats out in the barn!

Mrs. Fitzgibbons retrieves the gown. Dragon opens an eye, then falls asleep again.

MRS FITZGIBBONS
[musingly] I've never seen a cat sleep so much.

Mrs. Brisby watches this, then returns to her search. She pushes on a small branch, which moves under her touch. A cleverly disguised door opens with a CREAK. Mrs. Brisby enters, and the door closes itself behind her...

SCENE VII

Inside the rosebush, weird lights flicker and crackle. Electrical current seems to flow all around her. She narrowly escapes being caught by some sort of animated vines that tangle together, drawing the thorns across the entrance tightly. Her escape blocked, she can only go forward. She proceeds through the bush, past sights wondrous and frightening, finally reaching a curtain across the way. She peers through it. On the other side, is a brightly lit space in the center of the rosebush, with an elegantly wrought footpath over a small pond, leading to an elaborate arch with a tunnel opening leading underground. She enters the open space, looking left and right at the beautiful landscaping, when suddenly a massive metal object crashes down to the ground directly in front of her. She looks up into the eyes of an enormous rat with a battleaxe!

MRS BRISBY
Er....hello. I'm...I'm Mrs. Brisby.

The rat says nothing.

MRS BRISBY
Umm.....ummm...I was told to see Nicodemus. Are you Nicodemus?

The rat lunges, striking at her with his axe. She jumps backward. He moves forward, axe poised.

MRS BRISBY
Please, I need help!

The rat strikes again, and again, chasing Mrs. Brisby out the way she came. He slashes the curtain behind her for good measure before turning back to the entrance. Mrs. Brisby ducks into a hiding place, but immediately an ominous shadow approaches...

MR AGES
Who goes there?

MRS BRISBY
Me!

MR AGES
Mrs...Brisby? What are you...what are you doing here?

MRS BRISBY
Oh! Oh thank goodness it's you!

MR AGES
How in thunder did you get in here?

MRS BRISBY
The plow has come early to the field....

MR AGES
Well, you had better march straight back out the way you came!

MRS BRISBY
...I can't bring Timothy out. The chill in the air will kill him!

MR AGES
That's another matter. That doesn't explain what you're doing here.

MRS BRISBY
...and that big rat chased me away. But I must see Nicodemus! The Owl told me to see Nicodemus!

MR AGES
Well, yes, perhaps you should.....[his voice trails off] The owl said?

Hesitantly, Mrs. Brisby nods.

MR AGES
Here now, what owl? What are you talking about?

MRS BRISBY
I went to see the Great Owl.

MR AGES
The Owl? You say you saw...the Owl?

MRS BRISBY
Yes, and he said I should ask for Nicodemus.

MR AGES
[distractedly] Er, yes, I know Nicodemus.

MRS BRISBY
He lives with the rats.

MR AGES
More specifically, he is the leader of the rats.

MRS BRISBY
You know him?

MR AGES
No one has ever seen the Owl...and lived to tell about it!

MRS BRISBY
Please...could you take me to see Nicodemus?

MR AGES
Well....[struggles for a moment] ye-e-ess, yes. But for your sake, I hope you're telling the truth! Come on.

MRS BRISBY
What about the large rat at the entrance? I can't go back there. I can't.

MR AGES
Oh, that's just Brutus. Follow me.

Mrs. Brisby still hangs back.

MR AGES
Well? Come on!

Reluctantly, Mrs. Brisby follows Ages back through the curtain.

SCENE VIII

Nicodemus watches Mrs. Brisby and Mr. Ages in his sphere.

NICODEMUS
Jonathan, your wife has come at last. Perhaps now I can repay you for your kindness to me. Yet Mrs. Brisby, who served the rats of NIMH far more than we her, Jenner I fear may do her harm...

The image in the sphere changes to a dark, sharp-featured rat, with a certain sinister handsomeness to him. This is the Jenner of which Nicodemus speaks.

NICODEMUS
...He is consumed by a lust for power.

CUT TO:

We see Nicodemus' hands again cradling the amulet we saw earlier.

NICODEMUS
Thus far, the amulet has remained safely hidden. But if he finds it, heaven help us.

CUT TO:

Mr. Ages leads Mrs. Brisby down a long twisting passageway deeper into the earth.

MRS BRISBY
Forgive me, I just noticed you're limping.

He is not only limping, but he has a cast around one leg.

MR AGES
That's none of your affair. Now, to what you are about to see and hear, you must swear absolute secrecy.

MRS BRISBY
Yes, I unders...

MR AGES
Swear it!

MRS BRISBY
I promise.

MR AGES
If any of this ever got out, we'd have humankind bulldozing their way down here to...to blow the place apart.

MRS BRISBY
Is it always so dark?

MR AGES
We're down three feet.

Suddenly, the tunnel is lit with several electric lights of different colors. Mrs. Brisby GASPS at the sight.

MRS BRISBY
It's the most beautiful sight I've ever seen!

The chamber revealed by the lights is quite large, and filled with a remarkable assortment of junk, most of it appearing to be children's toys. For example, a row of toy soldiers is lined up against the wall. Mrs. Brisby glances at them briefly, then moves on. Behind her and Mr. Ages however, one of the soldiers opens its eyes. It's actually a large rat. He breaks rank and creeps up behind them, finally reaching out and grabbing Mr. Ages around the throat.

RAT
[hisses] Reveal thy name!

MR AGES
Justin, you featherhead! Get your hands off me!

JUSTIN
Alright, alright, just a joke! I didn't mean any harm. The meeting's already in progress.

MR AGES
What's this all about?

Justin suddenly notices Mrs. Brisby. She has already noticed quite a bit about him.

JUSTIN
Who, may I ask?

MR AGES
Yes, yes, she can be trusted. This is no stranger. My dear, may I present Justin, the Captain of the Guard. Justin, Mrs. Brisby.

JUSTIN
Not...Mrs. Jonathan Brisby!

MR AGES
Yes, the same.

JUSTIN
[bowing grandly] It is an honor and a privilege, milady.

MR AGES
[sarcastically] If we could dispense with the formalities...?

Mrs. Brisby is all eyes for Justin.

MRS BRISBY
How beautiful...

JUSTIN
Ma'am?

MRS BRISBY
Oh! Er...the lights! They're quite lovely.

JUSTIN
Yes, they are. We've had electricity for four years now.

MR AGES
Five.

MRS BRISBY
Jonathan often spoke of electricity.

JUSTIN
But you see, our shame is that we're stealing it, from Farmer Fitzgibbons.

MRS BRISBY
Stealing?

MR AGES
All of that is going to change.

JUSTIN
He means we're working on a Plan.

MR AGES
I mean, that we have a Plan. And this stealing will stop.

Mr. Ages and Justin lead Mrs. Brisby to a deep hole in the ground. A lantern suspended from a cable is moored at the edge. Mr. Ages and Mrs. Brisby enter, Justin casts off the cable and leaps onto the lantern as it swings away from the edge. Then it drops, into water, and continues down.

MR AGES
Now...Oh yes. Why did you send for me?

JUSTIN
It's Jenner. He's at it again.

MR AGES
Hmmm. There blows an ill wind.

JUSTIN
He's before the Council now. This time he's attacking Nicodemus openly.

MR AGES
And the Plan, no doubt.

JUSTIN
Nothing will come of it. It'll pass.

MR AGES
Beware, boy, he's dangerous. Jenner will be the undoing of the Rats of NIMH.

The lantern elevator enters a dome-shaped room and touches bottom. A door at the top irises shut around the cable, sealing the room, which quickly drains of water. The three emerge from the elevator.

MRS BRISBY
I'm sorry to come here at such a bad time. I suppose...

JUSTIN
No, sweet lady, you are welcome here. We tend to take ourselves a bit too seriously.

MR AGES
Humph.

SCENE IX

The three proceed towards the Council chamber. The caverns are huge, arching, with extensive brickwork and rich appointments. The floors are paved. As they near the chamber, the sounds of ARGUMENT can already be heard.

JENNER (OOV)
The Plan is nothing but folly! A doddering old fool's fantasy! Nicodemus would have us destroy this colony only to lead us to starvation in some wilderness!

JUSTIN
Ahem. Good ol' Jenner.

Mr. Ages pauses outside the door.

MR AGES
Wait. Listen.

COUNCILMAN 1 (OOV)
Moving to Thorn Valley is a good plan!

JENNER (OOV)
Fie! We have everything we need right here!

COUNCILMAN 1 (OOV)
You mean we steal everything we need.

Justin picks up Mr. Ages by the back of his shirt, walks into the chamber and deposits Mr. Ages back down.

JUSTIN
Well come on, you suspicious old goat!

COUNCILMAN 2
If we stay here, humans are bound to discover us.

COUNCILMAN 3
They'd destroy us on the spot!

COUNCILMAN 1
I agree!

COUNCILMAN 2
He's right. We'll be killed.

JENNER
Not if we got them first!

COUNCILMAN 3
He means war!

COUNCILMAN 2
We'd be outnumbered.

COUNCILMAN 1
There are too many of them!

JENNER
Hear me! The Thorn Valley Plan is the aspiration of idiots and dreamers! We....

Suddenly Jenner turns and sees Justin and the others standing in the doorway. He CHUCKLES sarcastically.

JENNER
We were just talking about you.

JUSTIN
That's refreshing, Jenner, usually you're screaming about us.

The council LAUGHS. Jenner looks irritated.

JENNER
[points at Mrs. Brisby] Who is that? You know the rules, there are no visitors allowed here.

JUSTIN
May I present.... Mrs. Jonathan Brisby.

Mrs. Brisby curtseys shyly. A STIR runs through the council at the sound of her name. A short burly rat on the floor is not impressed. This is Sullivan, Jenner's chief cohort.

SULLIVAN
Jonathan Brisby is dead!

JENNER
She's not one of us. What's the meaning of this?

COUNCILMAN 2
Send her away.

COUNCILMAN 1
Let's get back to business!

MR AGES
Wait, wait! She has been to see the Great Owl!

Another STIR, louder this time.

MR AGES
...He has told her that we could move the Brisby home to safety.

JUSTIN
Her home was Jonathan's home.

SULLIVAN
We have urgent problems of our own. Let the lower creatures fend for themselves!

Loud ARGUMENT breaks out in the council. Sullivan is about to say something else, when Jenner catches his arm and whispers to him...

JENNER
Wait, my friend. I smell an opportunity.

SULLIVAN
What?

JENNER
Manoeuvers of this nature are dangerous. Accidents could happen...

COUNCILMAN 2 (OOV)
Jenner?

SULLIVAN
Accidents?

COUNCILMAN 2
[louder this time] Jenner?

JENNER
I'll explain later. Mrs. Brisby! A thousand pardons, my dear! Forgive the ill temper of my colleague. It would be an honor to assist Jonathan's widow in any way. We are but your humble servants.

MRS BRISBY
Th..thank-you.

COUNCILMAN 3
I second the motion.

COUNCILMAN 1
Hear hear!

COUNCILMAN 2 (OOV)
Motion has been moved and seconded. Those in favor make a show of hands. Very well...

MR AGES
[to Justin] He's up to something....Take Mrs. Brisby to the library. We'll approach Nicodemus when the meeting's over.

Justin escorts Mrs. Brisby from the room. Mr. Ages remains behind, eyeing Jenner suspiciously.

COUNCILMAN 2 (OOV)...motion carried.

SCENE X

JEREMY (OOV)
Ok now, wait a minute, this isn't what you think. You don't understand what I'm doing here!

Outside the Brisby home, Jeremy has encountered Auntie Shrew. She's got him tied up head to foot, and continues to wrap still more string around him.

AUNTIE SHREW
Think you can come snooping about, looting and pilfering, just when everyone's away?

JEREMY
Well uh...Let me explain about...Oh! What a lovely hat you're wearing!

AUNTIE SHREW
Don't you sweettalk me! I know you're in league with those awful rats!

JEREMY
[innocently] Rats? Ummm...what rats?

AUNTIE SHREW
Hoodlums, the lot of you!

JEREMY
Ummmm...why did you say rats?

AUNTIE SHREW
You think the world owes you a living, right?

JEREMY
Right.

AUNTIE SHREW
Wrong!

JEREMY
Wrong! Ohhhh...look, nice lady, you're making a mistake!

AUNTIE SHREW
The sooner you delinquents learn that you must earn your own way....

She loops the string around his beak.

JEREMY
Wait! Wait, can't we uh...Can't we talk this over?

AUNTIE SHREW
...the sooner, the better.

JEREMY
You can't leave me like this! There's a ca...ca...There's a ca...He's a very big...and he might..and he might...mlfffp!

The Shrew pulls the noose around his beak tight, cutting him off midsentence.

AUNTIE SHREW
Good! Good riddance! [calls the children] Teresa! Martin![to Jeremy] That's the least you deserve.

TERESA
Auntie?

AUNTIE SHREW
There you are! Keep an eye on this hooligan. Make sure he doesn't get away until I can fetch help. And as for you, you black buzzard, I wouldn't try anything! I shall return!

The Shrew leaves. Martin and Cynthia join Teresa around Jeremy. They look at him, then at each other. Martin shrugs.

MARTIN
Well, I guess we'd better untie him.

Martin shimmies up one of the ropes to Jeremy's head and starts pulling at the string holding his beak shut

TERESA
But Martin...

MARTIN
Hey, Mom helped a crow in the field the day before yesterday...

Jeremy starts making excited noises

CYNTHIA
He's trying to talk!

TERESA
He looks like a loony.

MARTIN
...He even took her to see the...the Great Owl!

TERESA
So?

MARTIN
This could be the same crow!

Jeremy begins nodding urgently, as Martin finally undoes the string.

JEREMY
That's me all...Whew! I am the crow. Untie me quick, I can't stand it!

TERESA
What are you doing here?

JEREMY
Oh, it's a good question, but don't ask. The legs...the legs...THE LEGS!

With his legs still tied together, Jeremy slowly teeters over and falls on his face.

CYNTHIA
Aw, the poor turkey fell down.

JEREMY
I'm not a turkey! Your mother...

TERESA
Where's our mother!

MARTIN
You big buzzard, where's our mother?

JEREMY
Wait! Hold it! No! Stop!

Martin jumps up on Jeremy and starts tickling him.

TERESA
What have you done with her?

JEREMY
You're tickling!

MARTIN
You'd better tell me, or I'll tie you back up again!

JEREMY
The...the rosebush! To...to see the rats!

TERESA
Did you take our mother to the rats?

MARTIN
Well I'm going to go look for her.

Jeremy blocks Martin's path with his legs.

JEREMY
No, no, listen, hold it, waitaminute. The rats, they're friendly! Good! Tonight...Stay!

Martin is in the process of climbing over Jeremy's legs. Jeremy shakes him off.

JEREMY
They're coming here to move your house where it's safe! Understand? Sta-a-ay....The Owl said they're good and smart. Get it?

MARTIN
[to Teresa] You're right. He's a loony.

JEREMY
Oh no..no, don't...You must...no, don't do this!...

Martin ties Jeremy's beak shut again.

SCENE XI

Mr. Ages leads Mrs. Brisby through the rats' tunnels towards Nicodemus' chamber...

MR AGES
Now don't tire him out.

MRS BRISBY
No.

MR AGES
Be brief.

MRS BRISBY
Yes.

MR AGES
Say what you want...and leave.

MRS BRISBY
I won't be a bother.

MR AGES
Justin bothers him enough with all his silly nonsense. Here we are.

MRS BRISBY
Thank you, Mr. Ages.

MR AGES
[under his breath] I don't know what Nicodemus sees in that boy...[to Mrs. Brisby] I'll come back for you.

Ages walks away, then turns.

MR AGES
Brief!

MRS BRISBY
Brief.

Ages wanders off, muttering. Mrs. Brisby turns to the door, reaches for the handle...which depresses itself before she can touch it. The door opens, and a flood of light and force streams out of it for several seconds. Mrs. Brisby braces herself against it as it tries to push her back. Then, as suddenly as it began, it ends. Mrs. Brisby cautiously gets up and peers into the open door.

NICODEMUS
Come closer, my child. Don't be frightened.

Mrs. Brisby approaches the figure of Nicodemus, sitting on an ornate throne in the center of the room.

MRS BRISBY
Sir...the uh...the Great Owl sent me to you.

NICODEMUS
Oh, did he? He is a dear comrade... Closer.

Mrs. Brisby gulps, and obeys, coming right up to the throne.

NICODEMUS
Ahhh, Mrs. Jonathan Brisby. What an honor this is.

MRS BRISBY
How...how is it that everyone kn-knows Jonathan?

NICODEMUS
He was a great friend to the Rats of NIMH. He himself came from NIMH.

MRS BRISBY
Your majesty, my family is...

NICODEMUS
I know of your needs. There is a book there. Read the words.

He gestures to a book sitting on a desk against the wall. Mrs. Brisby heads toward it.

MRS BRISBY
I can read, a little. Jonathan taught me. The children are better....

The book rises from the desk, and opens itself. Light streams from the pages. Mrs. Brisby's voice trails off.

MRS BRISBY
...than...than I am...

NICODEMUS
Read.

MRS BRISBY
[from the book] "Jonathan...Brisby...made...possible...the rats' escape...from the t...terrible cruelty of NIMH"[to Nicodemus] Jonathan?[continues] "He was ki.." [her voice breaks] "...killed today....while drugging the farmer's cat, Dragon." Oh, I....I never knew...just what happened. Why did he never tell me about any of you? Why?

NICODEMUS
To answer that, I must tell you about NIMH, and our Plan. Go! Look there!

Nicodemus points toward a familiar device in the corner. Two circles of metal set at right angles to form a rough globe, set in an ornate frame. The circles begin to spin, faster and faster. Energy plays across the surface of the globe described by its motion. Finally, the glowing green sphere we've already seen manifests itself. Nicodemus narrates the images we see...

NICODEMUS (OOV)
In the beginning, we were ordinary street rats, stealing our daily bread and living off the efforts of man's work. We were captured, put in cages, and sent to a place called NIMH. There were many animals there...in cages. They were put through the most unspeakable tortures to satisfy some scientific curiosity. Often at night I would hear them, crying out in anguish. Twenty rats and eleven mice were given injections...our world began changing...

We see nightmarish images of rats writhing in pain as their DNA twists and explodes.

NICODEMUS (OOV)
Then one night I looked upon the words under the cage door...and understood them. We had become intelligent. We could read.

We see a sign that reads "TO OPEN DOOR LIFT LATCH." A rat's hand reaches out of the cage and lifts it. The door swings open with a CREAK. Soon, all the rats and mice are escaping from their cages.

NICODEMUS (OOV)
The miracle was kept secret from the scientists, and in the quiet of the night, we escaped through the ventilation system. The mice were blown away, sucked down dark air-shafts to their deaths. All except two...Jonathan and Mr. Ages. We were trapped by a locked door on the roof. It was Jonathan who made possible the unlocking of the door.

Jonathan wriggles through a wire cover over the end of the airduct. The cover falls free and we see Jonathan sitting on top of the vent, looking very pleased with himself. Mrs. Brisby sighs as the image of her dead husband fades...

NICODEMUS
I have a gift. Come. Jonathan meant it for you.

Nicodemus opens the box containing the amulet, and lifts it out. The box simply floats away. Mrs. Brisby GASPS as Nicodemus holds it up to her.

MRS BRISBY
Oh...It's so beautiful!

NICODEMUS
It sleeps.

MRS BRISBY
Sleeps?

NICODEMUS
Yes. When worn by one with a courageous heart, the Stone glows red. It becomes a blinding radiance. Courage of the heart is very rare. The Stone has a power when it's there.

MRS BRISBY
Look! An inscription. [reads] "You can...unlock any door...if you only have the key." Oh, thank you. I will treasure it always.

Nicodemus places the Stone around Mrs. Brisby's neck.

NICODEMUS
Jonathan never told you about NIMH because the injections slowed the aging process. You see, you would have grown old while he remained young.

There's a KNOCK at the door. Justin sticks his head in.

JUSTIN
Nicodemus? The boats are ready and waiting. We can leave any time.

NICODEMUS
Good.

Nicodemus stands, and holds out his hand. His staff floats over to him.

NICODEMUS
My child, shall we journey to your home?

MRS BRISBY
Sir?

NICODEMUS
Tonight we shall move your house to the protected side of the stone.

MRS BRISBY
[the light dawns] The lee of the stone!

NICODEMUS
Yes.

As Nicodemus and Mrs. Brisby leave his chamber, Jenner watches from around a corner.

SULLIVAN
I don't get it, Jenner.

JENNER
With Nicodemus out of the way, what's to stop us from taking over?

SULLIVAN
Jenner, you can't kill Nicodemus!

JENNER
No taste for blood, eh? They've taken the animal out of you.

SULLIVAN
What if we're discovered?

JENNER
Ach, listen. The Brisby house is a large cement block. In the moving, what if it should fall?

SULLIVAN
An accident?

JENNER
Of course! Cut the lines, and the weight of it will crush his bones!

SULLIVAN
[rubbing his throat squeamishly] It's risky...

JENNER
Once rid of Nicodemus, the Plan will die. We can stay here as long as we like!

SULLIVAN
What...what about Justin?

JENNER
Leave him to me....

SCENE XII

On an underground lake, Nicodemus and Mrs. Brisby are riding in a gondola being poled along by Justin.

JUSTIN
Sometimes, when we have a large project that takes us into the open, Mr. Ages makes up a sleeping powder to give to Dragon.

MRS BRISBY
How do you get him to take it?

JUSTIN
Someone must go into the farmhouse kitchen and put it in his dish. The only way into the kitchen is through a tiny hole in the floor. Ages tried it yesterday. That's how he broke...

MRS BRISBY
Broke his leg.

JUSTIN
Right.

A large chunk of rock suddenly falls from the ceiling, narrowly missing the boat. It rocks wildly for a second.

JUSTIN
That was close.

MRS BRISBY
What's up there?

JUSTIN
The mill. It's falling apart. Hope it stays up there, at least until we've done with the Plan.

MRS BRISBY
Plan...what is the Plan?

NICODEMUS
To live without stealing, of course.

JUSTIN
It's wrong to take electricity from the farmer.

NICODEMUS
My child, we can no longer live as rats. We know too much.

JUSTIN
We're almost there.

Justin poles the boat to shore, and gets out to tie it off. The cavern ends behind the same waterfall that Mrs. Brisby had fallen into while running from Dragon.

MRS BRISBY
Um...your Majesty? I should go prepare the children, for tonight.

NICODEMUS
We shall wait here until dark...

MRS BRISBY
Um....About Dragon, maybe...Oh nothing. Goodbye!

Mrs. Brisby gets out of the boat and starts to walk away. She only gets a short distance before she comes running back.

MRS BRISBY
I volunteer! For Dragon.

JUSTIN
Oh no, Mrs. Brisby! Nicodemus, this is no job for her!

MRS BRISBY
Please.

NICODEMUS
As you wish.

JUSTIN
[heavily] All right. I'll meet you at the west side of the farmhouse at dusk.

MRS BRISBY
Thank you. [under her breath] Oh I must be crazy.

She walks away.

MRS BRISBY
Goodbye!...I must be crazy...

Other boats start to gather around, waiting for nightfall.

SCENE XIII

Running home along a pond, Mrs. Brisby's eye is caught by a water lily drifting a little faster than it ought to be. It bumps into the shore near her, and a small pipe sticking out from underneath goes astray. A second later, Jeremy emerges from underneath the lily, COUGHING.

JEREMY
Excuse me...pardon me.

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy?

JEREMY
Shhh! I'm being followed!

MRS BRISBY
Followed?

JEREMY
Shhh-hhh! There's a crazy lady with a hat! She's got big teeth! She tied me up! And then I...oh![his eye is caught by the amulet around Mrs. Brisby's neck] Ooooo! A sparkly!

MRS BRISBY
What?

JEREMU
You're wearing a sparkly! Can I hold? Oh, please, can I?

MRS BRISBY
Jeremy, listen...

JEREMY
Wow.....wow....

MRS BRISBY
...I need lots and lots of string.

JEREMY
Stuh...ring...

MRS BRISBY
To move the block!

JEREMY
Move....the block...[snaps out of it] Hey! I got string! I've been saving 'em!

MRS BRISBY
[innocently] You do?

JEREMY
Oh sure, red ones, blue ones, green, yellow....

MRS BRISBY
Pay attention!

Jeremy's head snaps back down to the sparkly.

MRS BRISBY
Go get all the string you can.

JEREMY
Ok. [suddenly realizes what he's agreed to] But that'll take all day!

MRS BRISBY
Good! Get going!

Jeremy picks up the hollow stick he was breathing through, and ducks back under the lily. Just as Mrs. Brisby turns to go, he comes back out, and looms very close.

JEREMY
I just thought I'd mention in passing....[evil whisper] I've always wanted a sparkly of my very own.

MRS BRISBY
Will you get going?

JEREMY
Sure! Uh...Excuse me. Pardon me. Bye!

Jeremy disappears under the lily again, and wanders off, hitting every rock in his path. Mrs. Brisby rolls her eyes.

SCENE XIV

Justin and Mrs. Brisby are under the farmhouse preparing to drug the cat.

JUSTIN (OOV)
It won't be long now. She's washing the dishes. Here's the powder. Nervous?

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Very.

JUSTIN (OOV)
Don't be. You'll be alright.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
I hope I haven't upset your plans.

JUSTIN (OOV)
Nonsense! What makes you say that?

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
I thought I might have caused an argument.

JUSTIN (OOV)
Oh you mean Jenner. No problem.

MRS BRISBY
Justin? I sincerly hope you make it to Thorn Valley.

JUSTIN
We will. Shh! Listen. Mrs. Fitzgibbons is filling Dragon's bowl. Get ready.

Mrs. Brisby crawls up through the hole into the kitchen.

MRS BRISBY
Oh my...

JUSTIN
Better leave that cape. Could get caught on something.

Mrs. Brisby drops her cape through the hole, followed a moment later by the Stone. Justin hangs them up nearby and passes the envelope with the powder up to her.

JUSTIN
Here's the powder.

From outside, we hear Dragon YOWLING to be let in.

MRS BRISBY
I don't think I can do this!

JUSTIN
Yes you can!

Mrs. Brisby shakes her head desperately.

JUSTIN
Now take a deep breath. Concentrate on the bowl. [another YOWL] Don't look at the door! Steady... [another YOWL]

MRS FITZGIBBONS
Ok Dragon, I'm coming.

JUSTIN
...steady....

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
There we go.

JUSTIN
Now!

Mrs. Brisby hesitates...

JUSTIN
Now!

Mrs. Brisby dashes out into the kitchen towards Dragon's bowl, and jumps up into it. More YOWLING can be heard.

MRS FITZGIBBONS
Coming, coming!

Mrs. Brisby dumps the powder, and runs for her life, scattering the catfood in all directions.

JUSTIN
Get back!

Mrs. Brisby runs toward the hole under the cabinet, but just before she reaches it, a colander comes down over her.

BILLY FITZGIBBONS
Mom! Don't let the cat in yet, I've caught a mouse!

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
A mouse?

BILLY FITZGIBBONS
Can I keep it? Can I?

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
No, Billy. Put it outside.

Below, Justin hears what's happened.

JUSTIN
Damn!

BILLY FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Aw Mom, please? I can keep it in Porgy's old cage.

MRS FITZGIBBONS (OOV)
Oh...all right. Come on, Dragon.

JUSTIN
I'll have to come back for you later.

Justin runs out of the farmhouse, as the rain begins to fall.

SCENE XV

In the Brisby home, Auntie Shrew and the children are doing the wash. They try to tell her what's about to happen.

AUNTIE SHREW
Rats? Rats?

MARTIN
They'll be here any minute...

TERESA
...to move our house over there by the stone!

AUNTIE SHREW
Wrong!

TERESA
...Actually move it!

AUNTIE SHREW
Not while I'm keeping watch!

CYNTHIA
Auntie Shrew? I'm not afraid.

AUNTIE SHREW
Afraid, child? I have no fear of those great hulking beasts. And should one of those hairy barbarians come through that door...

From outside comes the CLANKING sound of machinery.

AUNTIE SHREW
[fearfully] Oh! The rats!

CUT TO:

In the Fitzgibbons kitchen, all is dark and silent. Mrs. Brisby sits miserably in a birdcage hanging from the ceiling. A telephone RINGS.

MR FITZGIBBONS
I'm coming, I'm coming, hold your horses. [picks up the phone] Hello?...Who?....NIMH. Oh! Oh yeah, NIMH! Yes, yes, I know, you called about the rats.....Well, I don't know nothing about any special behavior, but the traps sure don't work....In the morning? Suits me fine...Oh no, no, you can bulldoze that rosebush right outta there, I want those rats exterminated! Uh, well, there's no...charge....? Good. Ok, well, I'll see you tomorrow then...Uh-huh... bye-bye.

He hangs up. In her cage, Mrs. Brisby has heard everything.

MRS BRISBY
NIMH...They're coming here? I must warn Justin!

She jumps to the door of her cage and starts rattling it desperately.

CUT TO:

The moving of the Brisby house is underway. The rats have set up an elaborate system of ropes, pulleys, and a huge wheel powered by about thirty rats marching in a circle. Slowly, the cement block starts to rise out of the mud.

CUT TO:

Inside the Brisby house, the children are trying to keep things from getting knocked about too badly. The Shrew is having a panic attack.

AUNTIE SHREW
Teresa!

She get knocked cold when a marble falls on her head. Teresa runs to check her pulse.

TERESA
Martin!

CYNTHIA
[grinning] Auntie's afraid!

CUT TO:

The house reaches the necessary height. The rats begin to move it transversely.

JUSTIN (OOV)
Pull on the end-haul. Careful. Careful! Easy does it...Keep it up!

Nicodemus is standing on the stone supervising the operation. Jenner and Sullivan lurk near the ropes anchoring the apparatus to the stone. Both carry swords.

JENNER
Nicodemus is cooperating beautifully...

SULLIVAN
Jenner...

JENNER
...he's standing in just the right spot!

SULLIVAN
Jenner, I...I can't do it!

JENNER
When that block reaches midway, you cut the line.

SULLIVAN
I...

Suddenly Jenner is at his throat with his sword.

JENNER
Don't get any ideas, my friend. You're in this up to your neck!

JUSTIN (OOV)
Come on mates! Put your backs into it!

CUT TO:

Having realized it's futile to try force against the door, Mrs. Brisby is trying to untwist the paperclip holding it shut. She strains with all her might to bend the wire, when it suddenly slips and snaps back on her. She falls back to the bottom of the cage. She's got a nasty slash on her arm, and goes to the water dish to clean away the blood. While bathing her arm, she suddenly notices that the waterdish is the sort that protrudes through a hole in the cage, and she can get out that way! She jumps into the water, but the dish is pushed too far forward for her to fit through the gap on the other side. She gets out, runs to the far side of the cage, and takes a flying leap at the dish. It shifts forward a little. She tries again to fit through, but it's still too small...

CUT TO:

Jenner is watching the block's progress carefully.

JENNER
Ready with the knife...Ready....Cut now!

He slashes through some of the ropes.

SULLIVAN
I.....I...

JENNER
Now! Cut it!

SULLIVAN
No!

Jenner leaps forward and cuts the last lines himself. The apparatus crumbles. Rats scatter as the machinery lifted off the ground and smashed. Nicodemus disappears in a storm of flying wood. The Brisby home crashes to the ground.

CUT TO:

Inside the Brisby home, all is bedlam. The furniture is flying. Teresa slides into a corner and SCREAMS as a candle overturns and rolls toward her, setting fire as it goes.

TERESA
Help! Martin!

The washbasin slides the same way as the candle, and overturns, putting out the fire.

CUT TO:

Outside, a crowd of rats, led by Justin and Mr. Ages, desperately fight their way into the wreckage.

JUSTIN
Ok, help. We've got to hurry! Come on, come on! We're coming! Ok, I see him! [he stops dead] Nicodemus....oh no! No!

Nicodemus' hand protrudes limply from within a pile of rubble...

CUT TO:

Mrs. Brisby takes another leap at the dish. She can now fit her head through the opening, but no more. She hooks her foot against the bars, and pushes for all she's worth. Then, all at once, the dish flies free, and falls to the ground. She nearly follows it, but manages to catch the edge of the cage tray, and pull herself back up. It's a long way down to the floor. Mrs. Brisby reaches through the bars and pulls a thread from an old sock Billy put in there for nesting. She swallows hard, and jumps. She slides across the floor, straight into Dragon, sprawled on his back asleep. One eye opens and peers at her. She crawls backward as quickly as she can, back to the hole in the floor and out of the kitchen, pausing only to retrieve her belongings...

SCENE XVI

Jenner is addressing the rats around the fallen block.

JENNER
Friends....we cannot move the Brisby home.

MR AGES
But we...we just can't leave it here...in the mud.

JENNER
The equipment is a shambles.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
[in the distance] Justin!

JENNER
One day we shall journey to Thorn Valley just as Nicodemus wanted...but not now.

MRS BRISBY (OOV)
Justin!

MR AGES
Mrs....Brisby?

JENNER
Come. Let us return to the rosebush. Where we belong.

Mrs. Brisby arrives and runs up to Mr. Ages.

MRS BRISBY
Oh, Mr. Ages! What happened? [she GASPS] The children!

MR AGES
They...they're fine. Nicodemus is...dead.

MRS BRISBY
Oh...oh no...

MR AGES
Oh y...[his voice breaks]

Mrs. Brisby can't spare any time for grief.

MRS BRISBY
You're in great danger. NIMH is coming!

JENNER
[quickly] Come come, let's return to the rosebush...

MRS BRISBY
NIMH is coming!

RAT 1
NIMH!

MRS BRISBY
In the morning!

RAT 2
NIMH?

MRS BRISBY
Yes. You will all die unless you leave the farm tonight.

JENNER
Lies!

MRS BRISBY
Please! You must believe me!

RAT 1
What if it's true?

RAT 2
We'll all be killed!

RAT 3
Don't panic!

JENNER
Don't listen! She's hysterical!

MRS BRISBY
Get out now...Auughhh!

With a vicious backhand, Jenner sends Mrs. Brisby flying. He shucks his cape and draws his sword!

JENNER
You get out! I've had enough!

MR AGES
Jenner!

Mr. Ages tries to block Jenner's path, Jenner sweeps him to one side with a SNARL and lunges after Mrs. Brisby. Sullivan runs to get Justin

SULLIVAN
Justin! Justin!

Justin sees what's happening, and runs between Jenner and Mrs. Brisby.

JUSTIN
Jenner, stop this!

Around Mrs. Brisby's neck, the Stone suddenly flashes bright red for a moment. Jenner is stunned.

JENNER
The Stone....

JUSTIN
Jenner...

JENNER
Get out of my way!

Jenner shoves Justin backward, and slashes at him with his sword for good measure. The sword connects with Justin's arm. He grimaces with pain.

JENNER
I want that Stone!

Jenner leaps at Mrs. Brisby, and tries to grab the Stone from around her neck. She struggles as hard as she can...

JUSTIN
Jenner!

Justin runs up and kicks Jenner off of her. Now it's Jenner's turn to go sprawling in the mud. Sullivan runs up...

SULLIVAN
Justin! Justin, my sword!

Sullivan throws Justin his sword. Jenner, in fury, slashes Sullivan open. He falls to the ground, still breathing...for now. Jenner turns to Justin, with an evil grin and the duel begins. They trade several blows back and forth...

JUSTIN
It was you...

Justin ducks, as Jenner's sword strikes chips from the rock behind his head.

JUSTIN
You did it! You killed Nicodemus. That was no accident!

JENNER
Yes. I killed him!

The fight resumes. Justin strikes furiously at Jenner, but Jenner's greater size and strength finally send Justin tumbling from the top of the rock face down into the mud. Jenner descends from the top slowly, savoring the moment.

JENNER
He wanted to destroy everything! I've learned this much: Take what you can, when you can!

JUSTIN
Then you've learned nothing!

Jenner raises his sword to strike, but Justin gets his feet under a piece of wreckage and kicks it up, blocking Jenner's path. Justin gets up and the fight continues...briefly. Justin strikes low, under Jenner's sword, piercing him in the belly. Jenner SCREAMS and drops his sword. A short distance away, Sullivan still breathes, weakly. Justin turns to the rest of the rats, and throws his sword away.

JUSTIN
Friends...tonight we journey to Thorn Valley. We will leave no tracks. No evidence that the Rats of NIMH ever existed...Come.

Behind him, unseen, Jenner has picked up his sword again and crept up the rock to get the drop on Justin. Mrs. Brisby points and GASPS. Justin whirls. Jenner raises his sword to strike, but Sullivan pulls a dagger from his belt, and with his last moment of life, throws it at Jenner's back. Jenner topples from the top of the stone and falls to the ground dead.

SCENE XVII

While the rats gather curiously around Jenner's body, Mrs. Brisby has no interest in such things. Sadly, she turns and walks away. She looks back once, but she knows the rats can no longer help her.

MARTIN (OOV)
Hello, is anybody up there?

Mrs. Brisby runs up to the side of her house.

MRS BRISBY
Martin?

MARTIN (OOV)
Momma!

TERESA (OOV)
Mother, are we almost moved?

MRS BRISBY
[voice breaking] Soon now...

In despair, she buries her face in her hands. In the mud, a bubble rises, breaks. Then another, and another. Suddenly Mrs. Brisby realizes the block is sinking!

MRS BRISBY
It's sinking...it's sinking...Justin, the block! It's sinking!

JUSTIN
What?

Justin sees the block sinking and jumps into action.

JUSTIN
Come on!

All the rats swarm toward the block. Mrs. Brisby has climbed to the top.

RAT 1
Oh no, it's sinking!

MR AGES
There must be a...a cave in below!

Justin has joined Mrs. Brisby on top of her home

JUSTIN
Here, tie these lines together. I'll get a line around the stone. Brutus, quick, get some rope. Tie off those blocklines. Hurry it up, come on! Move it!

CUT TO:

The Brisby home is rapidly filling with muck.

TERESA
Mother! Mother!

CYNTHIA
What's all that black stuff?

MARTIN
Come on, Teresa, get up on the table! [Cynthia is clinging to his leg] Cynthia...!

TERESA
What about Timmy?

MARTIN
Get us out of here!

TERESA
Mother!

CUT TO:

On top of the block, one of the makeshift lines snaps. Justin runs to the bank to get more rope, leaving Mrs. Brisby on the block alone.

JUSTIN (OOV)
Another line! Get some rope! Hurry!

MRS BRISBY
Justin!

Justin throws Mrs. Brisby a line. The block has sunk so far that anyone approaching risks being sucked down. The VOICES of the Brisby children panicking can be heard within. Mrs. Brisby struggles to attach the rope to the top of the block, but it's too big for her.

RAT 3 (OOV)
We're losing it!

CUT TO:

Inside the block, the children struggle to stay atop a tilting table. MARTIN
Hang on! Don't let go!

Cynthia slides off Teresa's back into the mud.

TERESA
Grab onto my foot!

CYNTHIA
I can't breathe!

Finally, Cynthia catches hold of Teresa's foot and is pulled up.

CUT TO:

The last line finally snaps. The house settles quickly into the mud, engulfing Mrs. Brisby along with it.

JUSTIN
Oh no! Come on!

Justin charges forward with a line attached to his waist.

RAT 1
It's sinking farther!

RAT 2
We're losing it!

They've lost it. The turbulent mud tosses Mrs. Brisby, and the Stone falls from around her neck. It disappears into the mud. Justin reaches Mrs. Brisby and starts pulling her toward saftey. She fights him as hard as she can to get back to her house and children, but he drags her back. She keeps struggling in his grip. Suddenly, without warning, the Stone erupts out of the mud, blazing with light. It drifts over to Mrs. Brisby and hovers there. She stares at it in wonder. Deep within it, she seems to hear the voice of Nicodemus...

NICODEMUS
Courage of the heart is very rare...the Stone has a power when it's there.

MRS BRISBY
The Stone....

Fearfully, hesitantly, she reaches up and takes hold of the Stone. It bursts into flame, and Mrs. Brisby GASPS and drops it. It seems to heat the mud around it to a molten boil. She tries again, taking the Stone in her hands, and not letting it go, as the power fills her. Then the power explodes out of her and she becomes calm. A rope drifts to her hand. She touches it, and the power of the Stone runs down it into the mud. Soon, the mud is glowing and churning. Slowly, the block rises, light streaming from it in all directions, finally floating free above the ground. Mrs. Brisby guides it over to the hole prepared by the rats, and lowers it into place. The power fades, leaving her looking very small and very tired. She falls to the ground unconscious as the rats stare in wonder...

EPILOGUE

The Fitzgibbons farm the following morning. Two tanker trucks are parked in the front yard near the rosebush. At the Brisby home, the sound of children GIGGLING can be heard. The Brisby's are gathered outside the bedroom window, while Timothy is inside looking out. Teresa is wrapping bandages around her mother's hands.

TIMOTHY
Momma, I'm tired of bed, I want to get up!

MRS BRISBY
Well, you're not getting up.

Timothy sulks.

JEREMY (OOV)
Miss Briz! Oh Briz! Where are ya?

MRS BRISBY
Over here!

JEREMY
Here it is! I brought the whole mess! [dumps a load of string] There's plenty more where this came from too, I got connections! Hey! Your house is moved! Oh no! What am I gonna do with all this string?

MRS BRISBY
You'll think of something.

JEREMY
[sighs heavily] Ah, what's the use? What's a guy like me going to do with a love nest anyway?

He turns and starts to walk away, head low. Then, from out of nowhere, another crow swoops down and crashes into his back, sending both of them sprawling into the tall grass.

JEREMY (OOV)
Excuse me, pardon me

MISS RIGHT (OOV)
Excuse me, pardon me.

CYNTHIA
Look Mommy! Another turkey!

Cynthia creeps closer to the grass for a better look.

JEREMY (OOV)
Stay right there.

Jeremy explodes out of the grass, sending Cynthia running for cover.

JEREMY
Miss Briz! Miss Briz! Lemme have the sparkly! I gotta have the sparkly! Miss B, I gotta have it! Girls can't resist a sparkly, oh please! Pleeeeeeese!

MRS BRISBY
I gave it to Justin.

JEREMY
Justin? Who the heck is Justin?

MRS BRISBY
The leader of the rats.

JEREMY
The leader of the rats!? How could you do this to me? What'll I say? Mrs. B, what'll I do?

MRS BRISBY
Well...just be, ummm...Be athletic!

JEREMY
Ah! That's right! Athletic! I'll just be a little...AAUUGHHH!

Jeremy runs back and trips over Cynthia, vanishing back into the grasses. Male and female LAUGHING can be heard. Cynthia peers into the growth, and sees Jeremy and the female crow completely tangled in his string, and laughing their heads off.

TERESA
Mother, did the rats really go to Thorn Valley?

MRS BRISBY
Yes, they did.

MARTIN
Will we ever see them?

MRS BRISBY
Perhaps.

CYNTHIA
Today!

MRS BRISBY
[laughing] No...when you're older.

AUNTIE SHREW (OOV)
Brisby!

TERESA
Oh! Auntie Shrew!

CYNTHIA
Oh Auntie!

MARTIN
Oh no!

Still tied together, Jeremy and his new love fly out of the grasses, and up into the sky. They disappear into the distance.

THE END