This story is set during the Season One episode, "Gadget Goes West." This will be primarily from Brain's viewpoint. Since this story took place well before Penny invented her canine translator, which allows Brain to speak like a human in my later Gadget stories, he cannot actually talk in this story. Therefore, we will see what is going through Brain's mind. Text that is italicized, like so, will be what Brain is thinking.

"You know, all I really wanted was a dog biscuit. Is that too much to ask?" Brain stood next to Penny, watching as Uncle Gadget had used his tie lasso to inadvertently tie up a large bodybuilder outside of the supermarket. Brain wondered if Uncle Gadget was about to get beaten up, right there in front of his niece. Then, Chief Quimby had delivered an assignment, and the self-destructing message stunned the bodybuilder long enough for the Gadget family to depart.

When they arrived at home, Uncle Gadget dropped off Penny and Brain, then said goodbye to them as he backed the Gadgetmobile back out into the street. "Amazing… he actually didn't hit the neighbor's trash cans, for once." Brain looked over at Penny as the Gadgetmobile disappeared down the street. "It's going to be more dangerous than Uncle realizes. You'd better protect him, Brain!" Brain whimpered slightly at this. "You just said yourself that this will be dangerous… but you're not coming with me? Sigh… here we go again…" Despite his misgivings, Brain hopped on his little motorcycle with his helmet and backpack of disguises. Penny stopped him just before he started the bike. She gave him a warm hug. "Good luck, Brain! I'll keep in contact with you." This was enough to put a smile on Brain's face as he started his motorcycle and puttered off down the street.

By the time Brain arrived in the Western town, he could see that Gadget had already been there for a while, and was, as usual, bumbling around in a clueless imitation of a police investigation. Brain hid his motorcycle and helmet, and put on a disguise of a poncho and large sombrero. He waited in the saloon, and sure enough, Gadget eventually stumbled in. He went up to the bar and was talking to the bartender, then turned around to look over the people in the saloon. Brain could see that the bartender was preparing to bash Gadget over the head with a large glass bottle.

"And, here we go! Captain Clueless over there has no idea how much danger he's in..." Brain grabbed a bullwhip off the wall and used it to grab the bottle right out of the bartender's hand. He then snickered as Gadget managed to free his foot from being stuck in a wooden table, and kicked the bartender right in the face. "Okay, that was pretty good, I'll give him that. Too bad it was entirely accidental." The bartender rapidly recovered, and slid a glass of 'milk' (actually, explosive nitroglycerine) across the bar. Gadget missed the glass, and it exploded on the floor. This aroused Gadget's suspicions.

Brain watched as the bartender lifted a barrel over his head and snuck up behind Gadget. Brain attempted to use the whip to pull the barrel away from the bartender, but the evil bartender turned the tables on poor Brain by grabbing the whip and stuffing him into the barrel, then rolling him out the door of the saloon. The barrel rolled across the street, and smashed apart against a trough full of water for the horses. Brain sat there dazed for a moment. "One of these days, that fool is going to have to learn how defend himself! I can't keep doing this forever." However, Brain's strong sense of duty and loyalty made him get up, and go back to the saloon.

Brain was just in time to see the evil bartender burn a rope that was holding up a large, heavy metal light fixture on the ceiling. Inspector Gadget (naturally) was oblivious to the danger, so Brain rushed over and shoved him out of the way, only to take the full force of the falling metal light himself. "Oh, my gosh… that really hurt… I think I'm bleeding here…" Brain's thought was interrupted as Gadget walked over and admonished him. "You should mind your manners; it's not polite to push people!" This infuriated Brain. "So, I saved him, again, and he doesn't realize it, again. Why… WHY do I put up with him?"

As Brain crawled out from under the large metal light, he heard the evil bartender leading Gadget out of the saloon. He promised to select a very fast horse for Gadget to ride. Brain knew that this could only mean disaster. "I need Penny to come here and help me. Keeping this fool out of the hospital is a full-time job, but how can I do that and investigate the MAD plot?" Brain watched as the evil bartender, whom Brain had determined must be a MAD agent, led Gadget into the barn. Brain activated his collar radio and summoned Penny. The response she gave him didn't exactly lift his spirits.

"I can't come now, Brain; I have homework to do!" Brain was flabbergasted. "Are you serious, Penny? Your uncle is being led by the nose by a MAD agent, but you have homework?!" Brain used his doggy pantomime to make it crystal clear to Penny that her uncle was in serious danger. She finally agreed to come out to help. After Brain ended the communication, he couldn't help but think, "If you had come out here with me in the first place, maybe we could have solved this whole case already!"

Brain peered into the barn, and saw the MAD bartender tricking Inspector Gadget into sitting on a large red rocket that had a false horse head and tail attached. The MAD bartender then lit the fuse, and Gadget was propelled right through the side of the barn, and as Brain watched, he eventually landed on the very stagecoach that was delivering Penny in disguise. Brain noted that Penny walked right past her own uncle, and although he did lift his hat and greet her, he failed to recognize his own niece.

Brain hid himself and watched as Gadget returned to the barn. He told the MAD agent that he wanted a real horse. The MAD agent brought out an angry bull instead. Gadget remarked that it was the ugliest horse he had ever seen. "Does he actually believe that bull is a horse?! You've GOT to be kidding me…" The angry bull proceeded to kick Gadget through the wall of the barn. Brain watched as Gadget lassoed the bull with his necktie lasso. The bull proceeded to throw Gadget around. "Well, there's my cue; time for me to save that moron from his own stupidity."

Brain switched disguises from the poncho and sombrero, to a cactus. Brain hopped over to where the bull was, and picked up a stick, meaning to swat the bull with it, to distract him from Gadget. The bull had other plans, however. It sat directly on Brain, which resulted in the stick poking the bull in its rather large butt. Brain was squished into the ground by the very heavy bull, but fortunately it was soft ground. "That… SUCKED… am I dead yet?" However, the bull ran away out of sight, so in the end, Brain had succeeded in his intention of getting the bull away from Gadget.

Brain was still lying on the ground, trying to decide if he was alive or not, when his collar radio activated, and he heard Penny's voice summoning him. "Come in, Brain!" She was oblivious of the suffering that he had already endured, and continued; "Brain! We've got to find that stolen money!" Brain forced himself to get up. "Oh, my goodness, that really hurt… but, Penny's here, and she needs me." Brain switched back into his poncho and sombrero, and dashed to the saloon. He was watching the MAD agent attempting to move the stolen money, when Gadget slapped his handcuff on Brain. "You're under arrest." As Penny watched, Gadget dragged poor Brain off to see the sheriff, leaving the MAD agent alone to continue to move the stolen money.

As he was being dragged away, Brain saw out of the corner of his eye that little Penny was sneaking in to the saloon, where she would be alone with a MAD agent. Brain's frustration boiled over. "DAMN this useless, incompetent so-called Inspector! While he's dragging me around town, my little Penny is headed directly into danger!" Indeed, once Gadget and Brain were out of view, Penny was apprehended by the MAD agent/bartender, and tied to a chair. She immediately recognized the voice of Dr. Claw, and had deduced the entire plan after being in town for approximately ten minutes.

Gadget finally arrived at the sheriff's office, to hand over Brain. The instant Gadget released the handcuff, Brain took off running back to the saloon. Brain ran through the streets back to the saloon. Gadget was behind him, hollering out, "Come back here! Stop in the name of the law!" Inside his head, Brain thought, "Oh, shut up, you useless moron!" Brain ran in the back door of the saloon, and paused long enough to untie Penny. She happily said to him, "Brain! You've got to stop him. I'm going to call Chief Quimby." Brain thought to himself, "Yes, please, do that. Get a lawman with a functioning brain out here." Brain took off in pursuit of the MAD agent, who was carrying the stolen money. Gadget stopped Penny, and despite looking her directly in the face, failed once again to recognize her, even when she called out, "But, Uncle…!"

Brain ran out in the street, and saw the MAD agent toss the stolen money onto the stagecoach, then start to get away. Brain hopped up on the back of the stagecoach. Gadget was outraged that someone would try to ride a stagecoach without paying, and gave pursuit in the Gadgetmobile. Brain thought to himself, "Yeah, that's right, you dumbass; follow me! While I do your job for you."

Gadget was so fixated on Brain riding the back of the stagecoach, that when Dr. Claw appeared in the MAD jet and fired missiles at the Gadgetmobile, he merely thought it was a 'big buzzard.' Gadget activated the car's water cannon, and proceeded to blast Brain with it, attempting to knock him off the stagecoach. "Are you F***ing kidding me?! Now he's trying to knock me loose? Doesn't he even recognize Dr. Claw and the MAD mobile when he sees it?"

Just then, Brain's radio collar activated, and he heard the sweet voice of Penny. This made him feel much better; it meant that she was safe… for the moment. She instructed him to crawl under the stagecoach and disconnect the steering mechanism. "Sure, why not… yes, it's dangerous, but at least then, that idiot won't be able to blast me with the water cannon." Brain crawled under the speeding stagecoach, being pelted with flying rocks of various sizes. "Ouch… OW! That was a big one. Now I KNOW I'm bleeding." Nevertheless, Brain managed to do as Penny asked, and disconnected the steering. She took over control of the stagecoach remotely with her book, and steered the stagecoach away from the MAD mobile.

Brain returned to the back of the stagecoach, so that the MAD agent driver wouldn't see him. Penny happily declared, "It's working, Brain!" While he felt very good at being able to help her, Gadget was not done with his witless torment of Brain. He attempted to activate the Gadgetmobile's gadget claw, to physically pluck Brain off the back of the stagecoach. Naturally, Gadget pushed the wrong button, accidentally firing the glue rocket out of the back of the Gadgetmobile, temporarily immobilizing the MAD mobile.

Unfortunately for Brain, Gadget finally located the correct control for the gadget claw, and tried to grab Brain off the stagecoach with it. "I don't believe it! That moron has Dr. Claw literally right behind him, and he's trying to grab ME because he thinks I'm trying to get a free ride on the stagecoach! He's beyond stupid, he's—" Brain's thought was interrupted as the stagecoach re-entered the town, and crashed into a building, sending Brain flying. He landed in a trough of water. Brain immediately knew he had been badly injured. He couldn't move his left arm, and when he tried to move his legs, he felt the horrible feeling of the broken ends of bone rubbing against each other, inside his right leg.

Penny immediately ran up to him, and with concern in her voice, asked "Are you all right, Brain?" Then, she glanced down at the water in the trough. It was turning red. She lifted Brain out of the water, as gently as she could. As she started to lead Brain away to safety, they overheard Chief Quimby. "Great work, Gadget!" Then the town's sheriff appointed Gadget an honorary deputy. This was almost as painful to Brain as his injuries.

Penny took a second to change out of her old west disguise, and they went to Brain's hidden motorcycle. As gently as she could, Penny placed Brain on the seat, then climbed on behind him. She had bandaged the worst of his wounds, and tied splints to his left arm and right leg. Penny placed the helmet on her head, then said, "Okay, Brain, now try to hold on as well as you can. I've got to get you home before Uncle Gadget gets there." Penny started the little motorcycle, and Brain held on with his good right arm. Penny was very concerned for her little friend. He had suffered terribly on this mission. He had at least two broken bones, and those would take time to heal. Whenever the motorcycle hit some uneven spot in the road, the vibration jolted Brain, causing him to whimper, and even yelp a few times.

Penny and Brain made it home well before Uncle Gadget did. This gave Penny plenty of time to literally carry Brain to her room, and properly clean and bandage him. Sure enough, he had a fractured left arm, and a broken right leg. He also had a deep laceration in his left ear, and some smaller cuts on his head. Penny gave him plenty of loving attention as she carefully bandaged up all his wounds, after cleaning them with ointment. She then gave Brain a crutch to use, so he could move about the house. His left arm was in a sling, and Penny fashioned a cast for his right leg. While Brain was grateful for the loving attention from his best friend, he couldn't help but think to himself. "You know, other dogs… all they have to do is act cute, take a walk around the neighborhood with their owners, and they get all the food and attention they need, with none of these cuts and broken bones. Why me?!"

When all the bandages were applied, Penny looked sorrowfully at Brain, then ever so gently hugged him. "Oh, Brain… I'm so sorry that this happened to you." She gently patted him on the back, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You really were wonderful out there, Brain, as always. I couldn't have done this without you. And, thank you for saving me, when you untied me." Brain gratefully accepted Penny's praise and affection, and thought to himself, "I only wish that HE had half the competence of this sweet little girl. It would make things so much easier."

At that moment, Penny and Brain heard the garage door opening. Uncle Gadget was home. Penny told Brain, "Don't worry, I'll think of something to tell Uncle. Come on down and join us; you must be very hungry!" Penny ran down the stairs to greet her uncle. Brain followed, and paused at the top of the staircase. "No, hey, it's ok, no need to help me down the stairs. It's not like I have a broken leg or anything." Brain gingerly took each step one at a time, holding on to the rail with his right hand, until he reached the downstairs level of the house, and made his way into the kitchen.

Uncle Gadget was sitting at the table with Penny, when he saw poor Brain hobbling in with his many bandages, leg in a cast, arm in a sling, and using a crutch. However, rather than show Brain any sympathy or compassion, as Penny had, Gadget accused Brain of chasing the neighbor's cat. Brain was so flabbergasted, that he couldn't even try to defend himself. "Unbelievable… this half-witted moron actually thinks I was injured this badly… from chasing a cat?! I… I can't take much more of him…" Meanwhile, Uncle Gadget had lapsed into giving Brain a lecture about safety. He was listing points off one by one, counting on his fingers, when he accidentally fired his gadget laser. If Brain hadn't been paying attention and ducked, it would have taken his head off.

To Brain's shock and disappointment, Penny seemed to find this amusing! She actually giggled at this, as Gadget stared at his smoking laser finger. Uncle Gadget stood up, and said, "Err… yes. Well, Penny, I have to go to the police department for a little while, and write my report on that last assignment. It won't take long. Then I'll come back home and we'll have dinner." A fuming Brain thought, "So, no apology for almost taking my head off? Ok, I see how it is." Penny cheerfully replied, "Okay, Uncle! I have some homework to catch up on myself." As Gadget left, Brain turned around and slowly hobbled back to the door leading to the living room. Using his good right arm, Brain slammed that door in frustration. A startled Penny jumped in her seat, then hurried after Brain.

"Brain, wait a minute! What's wrong?" She put a hand on his uninjured shoulder and guided him over to the couch. They both sat down, facing each other. "Please, Brain, tell me what's wrong? Why are you angry?" Brain used his pantomime, (as well as he could, with one arm in a sling) and vented his frustrations to Penny. "I am sick to DEATH of following him, and bailing him out of trouble! Often, you don't see how badly I get my ass kicked on every mission." In a way, Brain was glad that he had been so severely injured this time. It forced Penny to see and acknowledge his suffering. "He's clueless, he's incompetent, he couldn't catch a cold. And just now, he almost killed me with his clumsiness. He almost took my head off, and you laughed?! YOU?! Please tell me what was funny about that?"

Penny sat and watched Brain, letting him get it all out. She nodded as she understood all his points, even though it upset her that Brain thought so poorly of her Uncle Gadget. However, there was no denying that Brain was absolutely correct about his last point. Penny should not have giggled at her uncle nearly killing Brain with his clumsiness. She lowered her head in shame, then looked Brain in the eyes. "You're completely right, Brain, I never should have laughed at that. I don't have any excuse. You were nearly killed, and I'm very sorry about that." She leaned over and gently hugged him in apology. Brain, however, did not return the hug. He stayed stiff and borderline hostile. Penny released her hug.

"Now, about the rest of what you said… I really wish you wouldn't think of Uncle Gadget that way, Brain. It won't make you feel better, only worse." Brain made a "Hmph" sound, and looked away. Penny became just a bit upset. "Now listen, Brain. There's some truth to how you feel about him, BUT, you know why he's like that as well as I do, and he really can't help it." Brain sighed, and rolled his eyes. He thought to himself, "Yeah, I know, Penny. Your Uncle Brown was nearly killed, and they turned him into Inspector Gadget, and when they transferred his mind, it turned him into a clueless dumb-ass who couldn't catch a shoplifter, let alone defeat MAD on his own."

Although Brain wasn't using his hand signals, Penny knew her little friend very well, and could practically see the nasty thoughts flashing through his mind. Now, Penny herself became a little bit frustrated. She felt caught in between her Uncle Gadget, and Brain; both of whom she loved dearly. "Okay, Brain, let's just cut to the chase. We've been over this before. If we don't help Uncle Gadget, he will be killed by MAD. And what then? I'll go to an orphanage, because I don't have any other living relatives. You'll go back to the animal shelter, because they surely won't let me take you with me to the orphanage. And MAD will run unchecked all over the world. Yes, we pay a price, and it's often not easy, but we HAVE to do this. Now, if you need me, I'll be up in my room, doing homework."

Penny walked upstairs to her bedroom and shut the door. She walked over to her desk, and sat in her chair, gazing down at her math homework. She was still very upset, but partly because she knew that Brain was right to be extremely frustrated with her Uncle Gadget. She had some idea of how much poor Brain suffered physically on many missions, but there was no alternative, as far as she could see. In the past, she had tried to play if off as a joke, but that didn't work very well when Brain suffered two broken bones and deep lacerations on a mission. And, it definitely didn't help matters when she had giggled at Brain nearly being killed by Uncle Gadget's finger laser. Penny sighed, and forced herself to dive into her homework.

Downstairs, Brain gazed out the window as he processed what Penny had said. At least she had apologized for laughing at the laser incident, unlike Uncle Gadget. However, she was correct in her other point. If they stopped helping Gadget, he would be killed. There was no doubt at all in Brain's mind about that. He had saved him enough times to be certain of that. And, she was also correct about the consequences of Gadget's death. None of this made it any easier for Brain to accept the two casts on his body, or the multiple bandages.

After about an hour of silent reflection, the front door quietly opened. Brain hadn't heard anyone approaching. Uncle Gadget walked in, and went over to where Brain was on the couch. "Brain, old boy, I need to talk to you." Brain tilted his head with confusion. Gadget was being humble, and speaking like a regular person, not his typical loud, vain, blowhard self. Gadget spoke to Brain. "Brain, I've had time to think, and I'm really very sorry about that incident with the laser. You could have been killed, and it was all my fault. I hope this starts to make it up to you." Gadget took a plastic-wrapped object out of his trench coat, and it was a juicy steak bone, with lots of meat on it. Brain's mouth watered.

Gadget continued: "I know you take very good care of Penny while I'm away on missions, Brain, and you don't know how much that puts my mind at ease. You deserve to be treated well. Here you go, boy. I hope you enjoy this." He set the bone in front of Brain, who sniffed it, then looked up at Uncle Gadget. Brain couldn't believe it. For a moment, he saw traces of Inspector John Brown, who had been serious, careful, and very competent. Back before the awful accident that turned him into Inspector Gadget. Gadget carefully petted Brain on the head, taking care to avoid his bandaged areas, and said, "You really are the greatest dog in the world, Brain, and I want you to know that. I wouldn't trade you for anything." He then left Brain to his bone.

Brain stared at the delicious-looking bone. He was stunned. Just when he had convinced himself that Gadget was irredeemably stupid and incompetent, not to mention ungrateful for anything that Brain did, something like this happened. It showed Brain that deep, DEEP down, Gadget was not completely lost; that he could, on occasion, recognize Brain's worth and show him some gratitude. This did a great deal to raise Brain's spirits. "Wow… I'll be darned. Maybe he isn't a complete idiot after all. I never would have predicted an apology like that. Now, where does that leave me and Penny?"

Up in her bedroom, Penny had long since finished all her homework, and was now sitting at her desk, with her chin in one hand, and the other hand tapping on the desk. She was pondering how to resolve this issue between Brain and Uncle Gadget that she felt was ready to escalate out of control. While she could certainly understand Brain's anger and frustration with the physical trauma he had endured on this past mission, and then the incident with Gadget's laser, she also knew that Gadget needed help to make it through his missions. And Penny couldn't do it alone. Many times, Brain had rescued her as well. She absolutely HAD to have him on her team, or else, all would be lost.

Penny was considering how best to plead with her little friend, when the door to her bedroom opened. Penny glanced back, and she saw Brain hobbling in on his crutch. Penny felt hopeful when she saw that he didn't appear to be upset with her any longer. He hobbled right up to Penny, leaned his crutch against the desk, and reached up to her with his right arm, asking to be lifted up into her lap. Penny gladly obliged, and then was quite surprised when Brain affectionately licked her face, then lay his head against her chest. His tail was wagging. Penny giggled and returned the hug. Obviously, he had come up to her room to apologize for their argument, so Penny took the opportunity.

"Brain, I'm sorry if I seem to take you for granted sometimes. I can see now that you do suffer quite a lot when I'm not there, and I promise to try to help you out more in the future." Brain wrote Penny a reply on a piece of her school notebook paper. "And I'll try not to judge your uncle so harshly. He just showed me that he can recognize more than I ever thought he could, and show gratitude." Penny very gently hugged Brain a little tighter, and thanked him. Brain continued to write. "Besides, I have to remember how much you do on those missions. Sometimes I just focus on how frustrated I am." This was true. On a typical mission, it was Penny who was responsible for getting her and Brain to the scene of a mission, figuring out Dr. Claw's plot, keeping an eye on her Uncle Gadget, searching for clues, and instructing Brain on how to protect him, and then solve the case; all without being seen by Uncle Gadget or Dr. Claw. She had quite a burden, even if she didn't physically suffer nearly as much as Brain did.

Then, there was a tap at the door. It was Uncle Gadget. "Penny, Brain, are you two ready for dinner?" Brain nodded, and Penny cheerfully said, "Yes, Uncle Gadget! …Umm, as long as it's not that purple stuff you talked about making…" Uncle Gadget laughed, and assured her that was not the case. Then he looked at Brain. "Here, Brain, let me give you a lift downstairs." He gently picked Brain up out of Penny's lap, and his gadget arm extended out of his hat, and retrieved Brain's crutch.

The three of them had a wonderful dinner, then Uncle Gadget did the dishes, then they sat in the living room and watched a little tv. Penny sat between her Uncle Gadget and Brain. When Brain glanced over at her, he saw a look of happiness on Penny's face. He then fully understood: this was the payoff of their suffering. They were all alive, all together, with plenty to eat, in a free country, and Dr. Claw was not in control. True, there had been setbacks and pain, but that was inevitable in life. The Gadget family just had to deal with a little more than most other families. Brain continued to look at his two humans. "Maybe Gadget isn't such a dimwit after all… and, as for Penny, just look at her. My best friend. How could I possibly let her down?"

After their program ended, Uncle Gadget turned off the tv, and Penny started to get ready for bed. She hugged her Uncle Gadget goodnight, then took Brain's right arm and helped him up the stairs. Brain arranged himself as comfortably as he could on the foot of Penny's bed while she was in the bathroom brushing her teeth. She returned to her bedroom, turned off the light, and got into bed. After a moment, she sat up and whispered, "Brain?" He lifted his head and looked at her. She put her arm around his shoulders, and said, "I just want you to know that I love both you and Uncle Gadget very much, and I couldn't stand to lose either one of you. Everything we do is to keep us all together. Do you understand, Brain?" He silently nodded, and Penny kissed him on the cheek, and wished him goodnight.

After a few moments, Brain could tell from her slow breathing that she was asleep. Brain thought to himself; "She is so amazing… and, she's right. I was thinking before, 'Why do I put up with him?' And I get it now… I do it for HER." With that, Brain allowed his eyes to slowly close, and he drifted off to sleep.

AFTERWORD

I happened to re-watch the episode "Gadget Goes West" recently, and I thought, 'Wow, poor Brain really got hurt badly this time.' He really did have a crutch, a cast on one foot, and an arm in a sling at the end of the episode. And, Inspector Gadget really did almost take Brain's head off with his laser. And then, Penny laughed at this?! I wondered how Brain reacted to that, and that's where this story came from.

By the end of this story, Brain has made peace with his role in the team; however, one of my other stories deals with what happens when he's finally had all he can take, which is: "Brain quits the team, and Dr. Claw: dead or alive?" He quits and walks out on Penny and Uncle Gadget.

The solution that really ends Brain's frustrations appears when he and Penny join the Metro City Police Force, and are able to work openly with their Uncle Gadget, and not sneak around behind his back. We see the very first steps of this in the "Brain quits the team" story.

This was just meant to be a short little story, about how Brain must have reacted after one particularly challenging mission that caused him a lot of harm. I wrote it mostly from his perspective, because he's my favorite Gadget character, just ahead of Penny. (Barely.) Brain gets the edge because of all the crap he has to put up with. I hope you liked the story.