Remembering a Friend

by LDEJRuff

Chapter 4 - Picture of Brian, and the Story of Angus


The Griffins brought Scott home that night, and had given him a new blue collar with a gold tag. It was engraved with his name and the Griffins' home address. When Peter brought Scott into the living room, the first thing in it he saw was the couch.

"Well, Scott," Peter began, "welcome to your new home."

"Oh, my goodness," Scott said. "You have a nice couch. Purple, my favorite color."

"Glad you like it, Scott," Peter said.

"Besides yours truly, Lois is a good cook," Vinny said, coming into the living room.

"I agree," Lois added, coming into the living room. "You must be hungry. I'll make you some dinner."

"Oh, that's nice," Scott replied. "All that coming from a hard worker like you, Mrs. Griffin."

"Please, call me Lois," Lois said. "You're part of the family now."

"But you promised we'd cook Play-Doh food tonight," Stewie whined.

"What's with the baby?" asked Scott.

Vinny replied, "You'll have to excuse Stewie, Scott. He doesn't like it when things don't go his way."

"Well," Scott began, "maybe we'll make things for the better sometime."

"Grazie," Vinny agreed.

Scott then looked at both Meg and Chris.

"Well, Meg and Chris," Scott began, "I can't tell which hat of yours I like better. They're both good."

Both siblings gasped, looking at each other, and smiling

"Wow, Scott, look at you," Peter said to his new dog. "It's like you're already part of the family."

"Yeah," Vinny agreed. "The two of us is gonna get along just fine."

Suddenly, Scott noticed a picture frame on the coffee table.

"Hey, who's the white dog in the picture?" he asked, pointing at the frame. "He looks like a good buddy."

Vinny looked in that direction. It was a picture of himself and Brian. It was taken on Christmas day, around the time Vinny was purchased. Vinny sighed, remembering that time.

"Scott," Vinny began, "that's the dog who took me into the Griffin house on Christmas. His name is Brian."

"Brian, huh?" Scott said. "What happened to him?"

Vinny sighed and answered, "He left a month ago, before we brought you into the family."

"Oh," Scott said. "I know how it feels when a loved one goes away for a certain amount of time. It kinda reminds me of what happened to my previous owner, Angus."

"Angus?" Vinny repeated. "That sounds like a Scottish name."

"It is," Scott agreed. "Angus and I lived in a small cottage nearby Quahog, and we were close friends. He was like the whole world to me. Then, one day, everything changed."

"So," Vinny began, "what happened to him?"

Scott answered, "He was called away to help solve a crisis, and he left me alone. He never came back."

"Really?" Vinny said, widening his eyes.

"Yes," Scott said. "I reported him missing, but no sign of him was found. Anyway, I guess he was kinda like my Brian."

"Did you get over him?" Vinny asked.

"Mmm-hmm," Scott nodded. "That's why I met you guys at the pet shop. When you were looking for another dog, I sensed you were all going through the same feelings like I did. And I thought that I was meant to find you guys. Maybe we were meant to be together."

"Well, Scott," Vinny began, "that's true, and I'm glad to have met a friend like you."

Scott chuckled. "Come here, Vinny," he said, offering him a hug.

With that, Vinny gave Scott a heartwarming hug.

"Anyway," Scott began as Vinny let go, "I sure do hope Brian returns. I really want to meet him."

"Yeah," Vinny replied. "He'll be glad to have you in the family. I just wish he'd get back soon."

"Me, too," Scott agreed.

"In the meantime," Vinny began, "You wanna see some cool stories to catch up on? We have most of 'em on DVD."

"Oh, wow!" Scott said, amazed. "Are the DVDs in Volumes?"

"Mmm-hmm," Vinny nodded. "We can share these stories with Stewie someday."