Einstein claimed that energy equals the mass times the speed of light of squared. Through his theory of relativity, he also claimed time travel was possible… if we could ever exceed the speed of light, which physicist have noted is very difficult to do indeed, because energy equals the mass times the speed of light. It seems nature had, if time travel were a possibility, locked it down and denied us passage. Perhaps within the scheme of things, the universe contains some sort of knowledge, and made an attempt to fence time in, keep it moving forward at a relative pace, and prevent paradoxes by establishing a set of laws very, very hard to break. But then came Doctor Emmett Brown, who by almost fracturing his skull due to the law of gravity, was given the epiphany of the Flux Capacitor. It was a vision definitely beyond the confines of nature, true thinking outside of the box. Brown had found a way to traverse around Einstein's rules with only eighty eight miles per hour, one point twenty one gigawatts of electricity, and of course, the mysteries within the Flux Capacitor.

Otis Peabody jumped up from his recliner at the sound of a thunderous crash outside their home. His son Sherman, who was reading a science fiction magazine, was the first to the door as Otis grabbed his shot gun and the family ran out into the yard. Sherman was sure, due to the magazine in his hand, that they had just seen an alien mutating into human form inside their barn. Being an avid reader of all things futuristic, and also being the only member in the house hold who could fluently read, Sherman's words were taken to heart and Otis opened fire on the Delorean which was speeding away.

The Peabodys stood with blank and confused gazes while the Delorean disappeared into the night, each slack jawed. Sherman said, "Did you see that pa? Did you see that? It looked like some kind of space car."

Otis scratched his head, "Yeah. Some kind of space car. I bet that alien is a commie from a commie planet, come to take over."

Sherman scratched his own head, "Why would an alien need a car if it has a space ship?" Then Sherman's eyes grew bright, and he dashed into the farm house. He raced to his bedroom and began to toss around a litter of magazines. There were publications of all sorts, and he knew which one he was looking for. Not the 'Science Daily,' nor the 'Popular Mechanics.' He was looking for something more general.

He had found it, and jumped on to his bed beneath a poster of some alien creature tramping beyond an atomic explosion in the back ground. There was a skimpily clad, voluptuous female in the alien's arms. She favored the females on the calendars his dad had hung in the barn, but Sherman barely noticed her. He had not entered the age where aliens would lose ranking to humans of the blond, brunette, and red headed species.

He held the magazine close to his face beneath the pale light of his bedside lamp. It was a magazine called 'Car Lovers,' and Sherman had flipped open to the only place in the only car magazine he owned which he enjoyed. The title of the article read, 'A View Of The Future.' Images of odd shaped automobiles were stacked below the title, and then Sherman saw the image which had been filed away in his young mind. It was a silver car, slightly more rounded than the Delorean, but close enough to trigger a resemblance.

Sherman's jaw dropped open once again, not with confusion in his eyes as out in the yard, but with revelation and enlightenment. "It's not a space ship. It's a car from the future. A time traveler."

Otis Peabody rubbed his eyes the next morning after being awoken by the yard Rooster, Henry. Henry could be a quite confrontational bird when he chose to be, yet he always crowed on time. Sherman jumped out of bed early that morning and went about his normal routine, plus a couple of extras. He had barely slept any the night before, and one would think he would have been tired. Pure adrenaline was driving him now.

Sherman crept into his mother's room and behind an umbrella, hanging on a hook fastened to the wall, was a camera. For some time in his life, he had thought it read Kodiak on the face of the camera, and had wondered why it was named for a bear, but as his reading improved he discovered it actually read Kodak. Looking both ways up the hall, he tucked the camera by his side and tip toed back to his bedroom.

Once inside, he unplugged the belly of his piggy bank and shook the contents on to his dresser. He raked the money quickly into his hands and crammed his pockets full. He froze in fright while placing the camera in his book back when he heard his mother's voice calling, "Sherman?"

He braced himself for a question like, "What are you are placing in your book bag?" or "What do you have there?" or "Have you seen my camera?" Instead she called again, "Sherman?"

"Yes ma'am?" Sherman winced; he never called his mother ma'am. He usually said mama or ma'.

"Ma'am?" she said from somewhere beyond the hall. "How polite. Have you had breakfast, Sherman?"

"No ma'am," he said, using the polite word, why break the rhythm when things seem to be working. "I don't want any this morning. Not hungry… ma'am."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure… ma'am."

"Alright. I will pack an extra sandwich in your lunch bag in case you get hungry."

Sherman hastily shoved the camera into his book bag and tossed it around his back, "Okay, thanks."

Sherman always rode his bike to school; it was only three miles up the road. He straddled his bike and looked behind carefully. Looking down in the dirt he saw the strange tire marks left by the car from the future. He peddled on, following the tracks. Soon he was upon the new construction site for Lyon Estates. Sherman noticed the tracks left the road and trailed behind the huge ad sign.

After tossing his bike in the grass, Sherman pulled the camera from the bag and ditched the bag. He ran behind the ad sign and saw the car buried in lumps of limbs and shrubbery. He removed enough to get a good view of the car from the future and took two shots of the automobile, just to be sure. He scattered the limbs and shrubs back over the car and scooped his book bag, looking around, wondering if he was being spied on by the man from the future. Seeing no one, he got back on his bike with the camera in bag and carried on in to town.

Sherman's first stop in town was to the drug store, where he handed over the camera to the man behind the soda counter. Sherman said, "I will be back after school to get the pictures."

The man said, "Whoa, whoa. It will be at least two days."

"Two days?" whined Sherman. "How come so long?"

The man smiled, "Well, we don't live in a world where we can just take a photo and instantly share it with the world, do we?"

"I guess not. How about tomorrow afternoon?"

The man thought, "Sherman, I have a lot of photos to do in front of these."

Sherman said, "Yeah, but these photos are important. A matter of life and death."

"Life and death, huh? Don't you think that's a matter for the police?"

Sherman said, "Yeah. As a matter of fact, I am going to see Sherriff Mike when I leave here."

"Oh yeah?" asked the amused soda fountain man. "Won't the Sheriff wonder why you aren't in school?"

"I'm on my way," said Sherman. "But this is more important. I took some pictures of a car from the future."

"Fancy cars? That's what all this hub bub is about?"

"No, not a fancy car. A car from the future, traveling to the past, to now, to here."

The soda man raised an eye brow, remembering that Sherman was the most avid reader of comics from the drug store, and said, "Uh huh."

"So, can I get the pictures tomorrow?"

The soda man smiled and leaned over the counter, "Sherman, it is going to be two days…"

Sherman dug into both pockets; yanking out all of his money and smacking it all down on the counter. "I will give you all I have, please?"

The soda man paused and scratched the back of his neck, squinting slightly. He pointed at the money, "It's okay, Sherman. Put your money back in your pockets. You don't pay me until the photos are developed."

Sherman held his head low, "Okay."

"When I have them developed tomorrow, since it's such an emergency."

Sherman was astonished and a great, wide grin was from one ear to the next, "Really?"

"Yes, really. I wouldn't want my favorite comic customer to spend all of his money at once and miss buying all the fine comics I get in."

Sherman shook the fountain man's hand, stuffed money in his pockets, shook again while gleefully thanking, and stuffed more money in his pockets. Like a rocket, he was on his bike and down the street to the Sheriff's office.

Sheriff Mike was on the phone in his office, "Yes Miss Blare, I know you are concerned, but there is no law against Elvira's daughter wearing a poodle skirt – yes Miss Blare – yes, back in your day I know such things weren't tolerated, but that doesn't change the fact that it isn't against the law, and I can't do much – yes Miss Blare – yes – yes – well I will keep my eye out and make sure no one is abusing the any skirt ordinances. Okay Miss Blare – thank you."

Sheriff Mike hung the phone up with, "Phew," and dropped his forehead into his palm over his desk.

The deputy asked, "Miss Blare?"

Mike said, "Yes."

"Sorry about that. I was just wondering, while you are in a good mood, you know the high school is having that dance this week…"

The Sheriff groaned, "Yeah."

"And you know every year some wild bunch of boys will show up in town, burning tires, yelling, or something…"

The Sheriff groaned again, "Yeah."

"So, I was just wondering, this year, if one of us was going to patrol the town during the dance, and a little while after." The deputy waited but got no answer, "Just so we don't have Miss Blare call and give us all the news from anything."

The Sheriff raised his head, just in time to see Sherman bursting into his office as he answered, "Yeah, sounds like a good idea. I will take it."

"Sure you don't want me take it?" asked the deputy.

Sherman had begun to butt in, "Sheriff, sheriff."

The Sheriff answered the deputy, "I'm sure, I will patrol that night." He then turned his attention to the bouncing boy in his office, "Sherman Peabody. Shouldn't you be in school?"

Sherman said, "I'm on my way, late. Sheriff, I gotta tell you something awful important."

Sheriff Mike said, "Okay, Sherman. Calm down first."

Sherman caught his breath and said as calmly as he could, "I took a picture of a time traveler's car, from the future, it's out hiding behind the big sign where they are building Lyon Estates."

The Sheriff gave a bemused smirk to the deputy, who grinned back. Sheriff Mike said, "Is that so? Saw a fancy car did you?"

"Not fancy," said Sherman urgently. "It's from the future. I took a photo of it. Aren't you going to drive out there and check it out?"

"Well show me the picture," said Sheriff Mike.

"I can't. Hasn't been developed yet."

"Okay then," said Sheriff Mike. "You bring me the picture, and if I think it needs looking in to, I will drive out there and check it out."

"Okay," Sherman's voice plainly was disappointed.

"Now, you run along to school before I have to call your pappy."

Sherman turned and slumped out of the office. The deputy asked, "What do you think that was all about?"

Sheriff Mike shrugged, "I don't know. I guess he saw one of those rich executive's cars. Probably never seen anything like it before."

The deputy laughed, "Yeah, that's probably it."

The phone instantly rang, and the Sheriff looked over at the deputy with dread, "It can't be."

He answered, "Sheriff's office. Hello Miss Blare. What's that Miss Blare? A strange young man in town – you say he has long bangs and is dressed strangely. Yes Miss Blare. I will keep an eye out, Miss Blare – yes Miss Blare – me either Miss Blare, no – no I don't want vagrants in this town either."

The Sheriff hung the phone up again and asked the deputy, "Is it quitting time yet?"

The next afternoon the drug store was busy, and Sherman came bursting in on his way home. He dashed up to the busy soda fountain and buzzed around in front of the soda fountain man until he received the attention he wanted. The man said, "Hello Sherman. I have something for you."

Sherman lit with joy. The soda fountain man reached down behind the counter and pulled up a thick white envelope. He raised a finger, "I developed these myself just for you."

Sherman eagerly held his hands out, "Did you see it?"

The soda fountain man nodded, "I saw something… unique there."

"I told you. It's a car from the future."

The fountain man handed the envelope to Sherman and said, "That will be a buck twenty five."

Sherman reached in his pocket and pulled the money out. He was waving the envelope in his hand and heading out the door when he yelled, "Thank you."

The fountain man smiled and waved, and then returned to his fountain customers.

Sherman made a direct run for the Sheriff's office, where inside he found the Sheriff busy looking over a map hanging on his wall. He called out to the Sheriff, "Sheriff Mike, Sheriff Mike."

The Sheriff turned to see the boy and said, "Well, hello again Sherman. Did you make it to school today?"

"Sure did," Sherman popped an envelope on the Sheriff's desk and pulled out two photos. He lifted one and pointed it towards the Sheriff, saying, "See, I have those pictures you wanted."

Sheriff Mike took a sip from a coke bottle and said, "You do now?" In a very nonchalant manner, the Sheriff took his seat behind the desk and inspected the photo. "What am I looking at here, Sherman?"

Sherman walked around the desk and looked, then he snatched the photo from the Sheriff's fingertips, rotated it upright, and placed it back in his fingers. Sherman took his index finger and began to trace elements on the photo and said, "See, that's the tires, and the door, and there inside is the steering wheel."

Sheriff Mike asked, "Are you sure this isn't some sort of new tool they are using at the construction site?"

"No, Sheriff Mike, honest. It's a car from the future. I saw the driver and everything. It crashed into our barn. If it's a tool, then why is it hiding behind the sign instead of being out with all the other tractors?"

"Yeah," Sheriff Mike popped his lips together a couple of times, "Yeah. It's something Sherman. But I don't really think it could be a car with a time traveler in it."

"You ain't going to even go check it out?" asked Sherman.

"Sherman, I am kind of busy right now. I don't have time to…"

Then there was the sound of squealing brakes and a crash from outside. The Sheriff jerked his head to attention, and with the photo in his hand, he dashed out the door, saying, "Sherman, you stay here."

The Sheriff stepped out the door and saw a convertible automobile had rammed a manure truck in the rear. Inside was a group of teen aged boys. The Sheriff recognized the driver and scowled, "Biff Tannen. I should have known."

The Sheriff marched to the car and said, "Biff, what is going on here?"

Biff looked up, covered in manure, and said, "Sheriff, it wasn't my fault. Really."

The Sheriff looked at the load of spilled manure and fanned at his nose, "Oh yeah, Biff? Whose fault is it this time?"

"I don't know. It's some kid out of nowhere, never seen him before. About my age."

The Sheriff was about to pull out his ticket book when he said, "What's that? Say again."

"Yeah, some kid, with long bangs and dressed strange. He could be a greaser, I don't know."

For the first time, Miss Blare may have had the right to be concerned over something. "Long bangs, dressed strange, never seen him before, stranger you say."

Biff growled, "That's what I said."

The Sheriff gave Biff a stern glare.

Biff apologized, "I mean yes sir. A stranger. He calls himself Calvin Klein. He's a real trouble maker. He started a fight at the diner and then jumped on this board, being pulled by a car…"

"Wait, a board pulled by a car?"

"Yes sir."

Sheriff Mike looked around at the other boys, "Is that true fellas?"

The rest of the boys agreed with what Biff had said. Biff asked, "You aren't going to write me a ticket are you Sheriff?"

The Sheriff said, "No. Not this time Biff." Sheriff Mike took another sniff and fanned his nose again, "This time I think the crime is the punishment."

Biff thanked the Sheriff, who was in deep thought as he walked away from the fender bender. He looked at the photo in his hand and remained in deep meditation. There were many strange things going on at one time now. A relatively quiet boy was startled and taking strange photos, a group of boys was behind him with a car full of manure: the gut instinct the Sheriff had developed over the years was telling him something was wrong. And nothing nagged at his gut more than the fact that Miss Blare had been right for once.

The Sheriff walked over to the office and began to enter his patrol car. Sherman was on the walk by the door to the office, and he called out, "You going to check it out Sheriff?"

The Sheriff looked at the photo one more time and thought about Miss Blare, then he replied, "Yeah… Sherman… I think I better go check this out."