Wild West

A/N: So, this takes place after my unfinished Back To Future/Karate Kid crossover in which Marty McFly and Daniel Larusso go to Meiji Japan in order to help Mr. Miyagi's ancestor learn kung-fu, fight off bullies and defend his dojo, and after the most likely never-to-be-written sequel in which they went to the future to "do something" about Daniel's kids (That is also why Daniel has seen Brokeback Mountain. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.) While trying to get back to the 1980s, they accidentally wind up in the Wild West (I wonder how I come up with these ideas!). Then they lose the DeLorean somehow, possibly because Mr. Miyagi and Doctor Brown took it out joyriding, or to park somewhere. Anyway, on to the fic!

Marty names his horse DeLorean, after what they've lost. His previous owner had been reluctant to part with him, saying that no man could travel the length of Main Street in under ten seconds and that trick with wheels on a plank was dirty, no good cheating, but Daniel had managed to change his mind. Mr. Miyagi had disapproved of spinning kicks, but Daniel found them to be quite effective.

Marty and Daniel claimed a small table in the corner of the bar and sat in silence for a moment, nursing their beers. Marty had thought that they deserved a little alcohol after the day they'd had, and anyway he remembered how well ordering a water had gone the last time. He thought, a little morosely, that one day he would understand the intricacies of ordering beverages in every time period, and on that day it would be time for him to retire.

Marty jumped a little at the feeling of a warm hand lying over his own and looked up into Daniel's warm eyes. "You're brooding," the karate kid said. "What's wrong?"

Marty gave a dry chuckle and glanced around the two-bit tavern they were currently residing in, from the stained and warped wood of the walls to the suspicious sticky spot on their table. He pulled his hand out from under Daniel's, murmuring, "Don't do that stuff here. We don't need anymore fights."

Daniel let out a little snort of laughter. Marty looked up in surprise at the unexpected noise and Daniel quickly muffled his giggles with his hand. "Sorry," he gasped between sniggers, "I just-" Daniel broke off for a particularly intense bout of giggles, "Wish I knew how to quit you." At this point, Daniel had to stuff his hand in his mouth to muffle his laughter.

Marty relaxed despite himself. "Look," he said, "Daniel…I'm sorry. For all this." He made a wide gesture with his left hand, managing to encompass not just the dingy bar but the whole territory, the whole time. Marty swallowed nervously and continued. "It's one thing for me to strand myself in the outer reaches of time but another to drag you back with. I should… I should have been more careful. Because I was tampering with your fate as well as my own." Marty took a deep breath. "And for that, I'm sorry."

Throughout this speech, Marty had been staring at the far wall as if it contained a neatly labeled diagram of a time machine, but now he managed to wrench his eyes back to Daniel's face. To his amazement Marty found that Daniel wasn't glaring at him with hate or recrimination, but staring thoughtfully into the distance. "I don't know," he said finally. "I seems like it could be okay. I figure I'll walk the earth like Caine in Kung-Fu or something." Daniel leaned back in his chair, as relaxed as if he'd been in his own house. "You know. Righting things that once went wrong and stuff."

Marty gave a startled laugh. "Really?" he asked. "Just like that?"

Daniel leaned forward and gave Marty a suggestive smile. "You can be my getaway driver." he leered. The seemingly tame words brought a hot flush to Marty's cheeks.

They smiled soppily at each other for a long moment. Marty was about to lean in and kiss him, heavily armed cowboys be damned, when a loud and highly irritating sound suddenly derailed his thoughts. If he didn't know any better, he'd have thought it was a car horn.

Marty and Daniel shared a long look of amazement before bolting for the door. It would seem that they weren't quite as stranded as they thought.