Sherman ran all the way from the roof of the courthouse to the courtroom where the trial of his life was being held. He made it just in time to knock down the two men who were holding a little boy with spiky red hair and big, black glasses. They dropped the child quickly. "Come on Sherman, we have to stop this nonsense!" The two ran into the courtroom. "Your Honor, wait, I have one last testimony to give on behalf of Mr. Peabody and Sherman's case!" Little Sherman ran towards his father and nearly tackled him as he hugged him, the men having let go of him just seconds earlier.
Mr. Peabody was crying himself as he held the teary-eyed little boy in his arms and the two knelt down on the ground holding tight to each other. Mr. Peabody looked up at the man who was offering a testimony. He prayed with all his heart that this mysterious stranger would be able to help him keep his little boy.
"The decision has already been dealt, young man, you should have been here an hour ago." An arrogant Ms. Grunion exclaimed.
"Look, you try parking on the roof with a giant red ball of a time machine! See how easily that is! Now please, your honor, let me say my peace. You have to let Sherman stay with Mr. Peabody! You have nothing to lose by listening to me and everything to gain by doing so!" Peabody's eyes widened with fear and shock as he realized who the young man was.
"Just who are you, young man?" The judge asked. He was willing to let them stay together, if they had enough on their side to prove Peabody to be a good enough father.
The young man sighed and glanced at the two figures who were holding tightly to each other. Peabody gripped his son tighter, afraid that he was about to be taken away again. The young man then took out his wallet, a letter for the judge from Mr. Peabody's future self, and a small envelope addressed to Mr. Peabody. He handed his ID card to the judge and said, "I am Doctor Sherman Peabody. I came from the future in my father's time machine, the WABAC. I think I deserve the chance to explain what the young Sherman will go through if you take him away from Mr. Peabody." The whole room gasped.
The young Sherman looked at the man he would become and was scared. He didn't look happy, he looked tired. He looked like he was a poor man who had medical experience of some sort. He looked into his father's eyes and noticed the fear in them as well.
The judge looked over the ID and found it legit enough. "Alright, proceed, Doctor Peabody." Mr. Peabody grimaced. It seemed that Sherman was determined that no matter what, he would keep his name. Ms. Grunion shrieked at the "foolishness" as she called it. She couldn't believe that this was the little boy only older.
"Thank you, I bring to the court a letter from, in my time, the late Mr. Peabody." He was stretching the truth, but they didn't even know he was alive in his time, so they didn't need to know in this time. He handed letter from the envelope to the judge and then another to Mr. Peabody who tentively took the paper.
The Judge read off his paper: To the honorable judge of our trial, I am sorry you feel it within your judgment that I am not a good enough father figure for a boy that only I wanted. I wish that I could face you in person, but I have left directions for this to be brought here if my boy, and yes, I will forever call Sherman mine, does not like how his life has turned out without me. I may not have been the best of parents but please let me know, who is? I always heard of parents never being good enough. You're only human, and as you all love to put it, I am only dog. I can make mistakes like any other mammal. I did not have a good puppyhood myself and made it my responsibility to raise Sherman as best as I could. If you are reading this than it means that he thinks I was adequate enough for a father figure. Sincerely, Mr. Peabody.
Having finished reading the letter out loud, the judge looked down at the young man in front of him. He looked exactly like Sherman, save for the innocent eyes no longer being there. "I suppose you thought he was good enough?"
Sherman glared at him and then signaled for Mr. Peabody and young Sherman to come towards him. "Sherman, tell the judge just how good a parent, Mr. Peabody is to you. You will find that we both had the same amount of time with him, though my coming here has already extended his time with him. I on the other hand have the experiences of dealing with fifteen foster homes and an orphanage before growing up. I earned all my degrees online and alone."
Young Sherman looked to Mr. Peabody who looked back at him scared. He realized that his dad was just as worried about losing him as he was. Sherman hugged him quickly and then stood up. Mr. Peabody stayed where he was as Sherman walked in front of the judge, careful not to touch his future self.
The younger took one last glance at his father and then stared straight at the judge. "He's my dad, there's not much to say. He's taken care of me, listened to me, raised me, all on his own. Sure we go back in time often to meet people, but they're friends, he's never taken me to anywhere dangerous, and we've met some of the most amazing people in history! We've gone through things that you could only dream of or imagine! My dad is the most amazing person in history and he's taken care of me while helping all sorts of people! He's always there for me and he's never made me feel unimportant to him. If that doesn't show commitment to being my dad, I don't know what does!" Sherman nearly shouted at the judge as his father's eyes widened.
Mr. Peabody had had no clue that his son had thought of him like this. He had always assumed that he had thought it was a burden to have a dog for a father. Just then the Ms. Grunion who had from the child care agency shouted "He's a filthy dog, and a dog is no fit guardian for a boy!"
Both Shermans looked towards Mr. Peabody and then to each other and nodded. They looked towards the crowd and the judge all at once and said in unison, "If being a dog means always being there when I need him…taking care of me through thick and thin… making sure that I'm alright by the end of the day, and being loyal no matter what craziness we get into… if that's what it means to be a dog… Then I'm a dog too!"
The younger Sherman walked back to his father's side and held him in a loving embrace while the older stood his ground. Mr. Peabody was shocked but held his little boy tightly nonetheless. He hadn't realized that Sherman thought about him like that. "You've heard both our pieces and if I have to, I can show you all the evidence I need to prove Mr. Peabody is the better alternative." His glare was cold, hard, and strong, unlike the boy who was tightly holding the white beagle with black glasses and a red bow tie.
The judge shook his head and smiled. "I think I've seen all I need to by the fact that you've actually come back in time to speak at this case. I rule in favor of Mr. Peabody keeping Sherman."
It was the biggest commotion since Peabody had originally adopted Sherman. The only one not happy with the results was Ms. Grunion who was quickly taken away after trying to assault Mr. Peabody and the older Sherman. Thankfully, the older Sherman had come prepared with a force field he had been developing. The younger smiled at the sight of it. "Well what do you know, it works."
The older Sherman managed to get the younger and their father out of the courtroom while the people were crowding in on the enraged Ms. Grunion. They reached the roof and all three entered the WABAC. "Where's your scooter?"
"I walked. I needed the air, but my goodness Sherman, do you realize what you've done?" Mr. Peabody looked at the young man with eagerness and fear that was fitting of someone who was still afraid of losing his child.
"You haven't read your letter to yourself then, I followed your orders to the letter, now let's get you home." Dr. Peabody smiled as he drove the WABAC carefully over the city towards the tallest apartment building in New York.
Mr. Peabody frowned slightly and then read the letter to himself, "Dear self, Peabody here, if you are reading this then hopefully you may be allowed to keep Sherman when I could not. My heart is failing me at the moment, and with all my knowledge, I can only deduce it's from my depression. I've noticed my kidney failing me also, and no, I'm not sure which one. I have left instructions for Sherman, should he wish to, to return to your time and see if he can stop them from separating us. My hope and heart goes with him as yours does for your Sherman, sincerely yours, Mr. Peabody." Mr. Peabody lowered the letter from his snout slowly and looked over towards his own Sherman who was so tired from the ordeal that he had fallen asleep in his chair. He sighed in relief. They had done it and he had gotten to keep Sherman. He could keep his son.