The Orb of Time

Part II - Remember

by LDEJRuff

Chapter 5 - Brian and Stewie

It was on the same pet shop that Lois bought Todd from. She, Peter and their two young children, Meg (who was nine at the time) and Chris (who was six), had entered the shop so they would find a new pet.

"Okay, guys," Lois began. "Time to find a new family dog."

With that, everyone went to the dog cages so they would find a dog to replace Todd, who was just put down.

Upon careful inspection, Peter had found a White Labrador Retriever puppy in a top cage, similar to Coco, only this one was wearing a red collar. It was Brian as a puppy.

"Oh, aren't you the cutest little thing," Peter said to the puppy. "So, what's your name, little fella?"

"This is Brian," the pet shop owner answered him. "We just got him from Austin, Texas, this week. We hope your family has a good home for him."

"That's good," Lois agreed. "We need a puppy like Brian to replace our now-deceased family dog, Todd."

"What do you say, Brian?" Peter asked the puppy. "You want to come live with us?"

Brian yipped happily.

"I guess I can take that as a yes."

With that, Peter opened the cage, picked up Brian, and purchased him.

"And that was how I became part of the family, Stewie," Brian concluded. "And as I got older, I started reading, talking, walking on twos, and became intelligent."

"That's the most wonderful story I've ever heard, Brian," Stewie responded. "It kind of reminds me of the time we were at the mall during the Christmas Carnival, after you returned."

"Yeah," Brian agreed. "You should hear about what happened last Christmas..."

It was right after Peter convinced his father in-law, Carter Pewterschmidt, to bring back the Christmas Carnival. The Griffins were all inside the mall, and in line for Stewie to see Santa.

"Oh," Peter began, "this Christmas Carnival has everything: games, food... Oh, my God, it's the carolers from A Christmas Story."

As Peter pointed out, the Chinese carolers were singing "Deck the Halls," but they kept having trouble with their L and R sounds.

"That's right, America," Peter reminded, "don't forget. Your beloved holiday movie is incredibly racist."

"And flom not that rong ago," one of the carolers added.

It was now Stewie's turn to see the Mall Santa.

"Oh, Stewie, you're next," Lois said, bringing her infant son to the Mall Santa's lap.

"Ho, ho, ho," the Mall Santa began. "Mall Santa is brought to you in part this season by Chipotle. Between good and garbage, it's Chipotle. So, what do you want for Christmas?"

"Oh, what do I want for Christmas?" Stewie asked himself. "What do I want for Christmas?"

He looked at his family, especially at Brian, then turned to the Mall Santa with a smile.

"You know what, Santa?" Stewie continued. "I think I already got what I wanted for Christmas."

"What do you mean?" the Mall Santa asked.

"Some time ago," Stewie replied, "I wished to have my friend back."

"Your friend?" the Mall Santa repeated.

"Yes," Stewie answered. "My best friend: my dog, Brian. And several months ago, my wish came true."

With that, Stewie started shedding tears of joy, looking at his dog, who smiled back at him.

"Well, if that made you happy," the Mall Santa responded, "I bet something else might make things better. Anything else you want for Christmas?"

"Well, uh," Stewie replied, "I'd like a bike, too."

On that, Stewie saw that two parents had bought their son a bike.

Later that night, while Stewie was watching A Year Without a Santa Claus or Sex on the living room couch, Brian approached him.

"Hey, Stewie," Brian greeted.

"Hey, Brian," Stewie greeted back. "What brings you along?"

"I just wanted to say that I'm happy you got me back," Brian replied. "And since you've been so nice for telling the Mall Santa you already got your present, I just wanted to give something to you a little early." With that, Brian handed Stewie a gift-wrapped box. "Here you go, Stewie. Merry Christmas."

Stewie opened the box and found a picture frame with a picture of Brian in a Santa hat and Stewie in an elf costume. Engraved on a gold tag below the picture was a message that said "Friends forever".

"Brian," Stewie began, "it's wonderful. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Stewie," Brian replied. "And you have given me the greatest gift of all: a place back with the Griffins."

Stewie gave Brian a heartwarming hug.

"And that's what happened," Brian concluded. "Stewie was grateful for having me back in the family."

The other five dogs have shed tears of joy upon hearing Brian's story, and applauded Brian.

"That was wonderful, Brian," New Brian responded. "I just wish I could tell Peter, Lois, Meg and Chris about my being back, but a secret must be kept."

"And by the way, N.B.," Jasper said to New Brian, "here's something that's going to remind you of home. Ricardo and I picked this out for you soon after Death awakened our memories."

With that, Jasper handed New Brian a white box. Inside was a green collar with a gold tag on it.

"Oh, Jasper," New Brian replied in awe. "Thanks for giving this to me. It's going to remind me of the timeline we have to save."

As New Brian took off his bandana and put on his collar, Stewie said, "Well, now that we have shared our stories, we must stop Bertram, retrieve the orb, and get our timeline back."

"And it looks like you guys may need some help," a voice similar to Brian's said, getting everyone's attention.

"Who said that?" Brian asked.

"I did," an orange dog with black ears and a green collar replied. He was the owner of the voice.

"Who are you?" Stewie asked.

"My name's Steve," the dog answered. "Steve Cummings. Death brought me along from the fourth-wall predecessor universe. As you can tell, I'm Brian Griffin's fourth-wall predecessor."

The seven friends stood frozen in surprise upon hearing this.

To Be Continued...