October 27, 1985
5:30 PM PST

Martin Seamus McFly, age seventeen, simply could not remember the last time he felt extremely miserable. For the fourth time, he had simply lost his close friend - Dr. Emmett Brown - and, this time, he was quite certain that the scientist would remain in the past. He would miss being able to swing by Doc's garage, when he felt like it.

Marty wept brokenly - as his girlfriend, Jennifer Jane Parker, held him closely. In spite of Jennifer's best efforts to comfort him, Marty really could not stop crying. He rather felt devastated. After all, from the time he was a little boy - Doc was there for him.

"What's wrong, Marty?" asked a young masculine voice. Marty lifted his tear-stained face, as the voice startled him - and he saw a tall blond boy, who really looked to be about his age. Something about the boy looked vaguely familiar to him. "Are you..."

"Oh, hi, Clint," greeted Jennifer, much to Marty's astonishment. After all, how did his girlfriend know that mysterious boy? "Marty is just feeling quite devastated, because he misses Doc. The thing is, Doc actually ended up..." Jennifer paused, as if she was uncertain of how to continue. "Well, the thing is, I don't think Doc is coming back."

"Who the hell are you?" blurted out Marty, as he stared hard at the blond boy. It felt very bad enough, losing his best friend - but now his girlfriend, for some reason, was casually telling the mysterious boy all about his troubles. "Uh, how do you know me?"

"I'm your best friend, silly!" replied the mysterious boy, as he burst out laughing. "As well as your second cousin. I'm Clint Jules Brown. I swear, you must be rather..." He then turned serious, as he added, "You must be still be upset over that rejection."

"Hi, children!" called out a mysterious older male's voice. "Actually, Clint, I can explain to you why Marty is... is acting a little... strange. I also would not quite blame him for not recognizing me." As Marty turned around, he noticed that the man really looked a lot like his scientist friend. "You see, my grandfather has invented a time machine."

"You, uh..." Marty felt uncertain of how to continue. "Well, I can't say I don't believe you. I'm sure I will remember you, as well as Clint - just as soon as I... I gain my new memories." Tears filled his eyes, as he added, "That must mean Doc won't be back."

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" demanded Clint. "Are you guys on drugs, or something? There is no such thing as a time machine! After all, time travel is rather not possible. Time travel is only something that exists in works of science fiction."

"Well, how do you explain this?" asked the older man, as he lifted up the framed photograph of Marty and Doc standing in front of the clock tower in 1885. "This quite would be hard to accept, I understand. The thing is, I was just told to... to meet you here. Marty, I presume that... Doc... gave you that... when he made his last visit."

"This is so..." Clint started to say, as his voice trailed off. "Well, I just don't know of... Well, Uncle Danny, I guess I rather have no choice but to... believe you. I do seem to recall seen that picture... from when I was a little boy. Still, this is certainly such a..."

"Uncle Danny?" Marty asked, confused. "Okay, if Doc is your grandfather - and Clint is your... nephew... This sure must mean Clint is also... Doc's descendant." He frowned, as he added, "But Clint just said he was my second cousin. How can that be possible?"

"Yes, how can it be possible?" Clint asked, as he sounded equally confused. "It is hard enough for me to just accept the idea of... Doc... inventing a time machine, and living a century in the past. I can also recall that your grandfather had the very same name as... Doc... Still, if Marty here is supposed to also be his descendant - then I..."

"Wait a minute!" gasped Marty, as he could hardly believe what he heard. "You mean to tell me that... that Doc is suddenly... my ancestor? But that really isn't possible. In fact, I'm quite certain that I don't have an ancestor with the same name as... Doc."

"I understand that it's very hard for you boys to believe," Danny replied, softly. "The thing is, Jules had two children: Hannah and Matthew. Matthew is the grandfather of Clint, while Hannah is Marty's grandmother. Thus, you boys are second cousins."

"But I really don't get it," Marty replied, frowning. "I don't have a grandmother named Hannah. My maternal grandmother was born Stella Alcott, who I always felt real close to - and my paternal grandmother was born Sylvia Larson, who quite... Well, she died twenty years ago." Suddenly, he gasped, "Hey, does anyone here have a mirror?"

"Well, Marty, you do look exactly like Michael J Fox," explained Jennifer, as sounded a little uncomfortable. "I'm nearly wondering if I should just leave, but I sure hate to... I hate to abandon poor Marty, as it looks like the poor boy has just been through a lot."

"No, Jennifer, you should stay," replied Danny. "It's important for you to know all this, as well. After all, you two agreed to adopt Verne - or you will. The thing is, Verne has opted to live in the future - so, as of 1894, he moves forward in time to... 2004."

"The future," muttered Marty. "I hope that Jenn and I are destined towards a better future, since I had opted not to race Needles - and, thus, I didn't... I quite wonder if I'm destined to become a big rock star." He sighed, as he added, "Well, that rather is not important - at least, not for now. I'm still so confused about my... my ancestry."

"Sylvia Larson was my grandmother," explained Clint, "and she had died, twenty years ago. Hannah is the one who simply married Arthur McFly, and she gave birth to George McFly - your father, and the author of A Match Made In Space. Hannah is..."

"I don't believe it!" cried Marty. "Well, I never really knew so much about Sylvia's side of the family - and, apparently, I didn't inherit any of her genes. I rather knew of her Swedish heritage, and she brought the tradition of fruit soup into the family - but..."

"Well, this is pretty heavy," Clint replied, sighing. "I swear, I'm gonna have to take a long nap. This is just too much to take in. So, Uncle Danny, what about you? If I can recall correctly, Emily is your mother. So, uh, who all did Doc have? I simply did know about Jules - and, apparently, there is also a Verne. I don't know what to make..."

"I'm not sure what year Doc visited us from," added Jennifer, "but they had two boys. Jules quite looked to be about two years older than Verne. I would actually guess that they were about five and seven. I don't actually recall there being an Emily, though."

"Emily wasn't born, yet," explained Danny. "It was in the fall of 1893 that Doc visited you guys, and picked up Einstein. In fact, the boys really were seven and five. After spending one more year in the past, Verne decided that he'd rather live in the..."

"I still can't believe that we're gonna adopt Verne," Jennifer replied, sighing. "I rather hope that our future turns out to be much better than it was, when Doc just dragged Marty and me there. I mean, our family was messed up - and Marty got fired from his job, as Needles goaded him into... doing something illegal. It was just so... scary."

"I just can't reveal too much about your future," replied Danny, "but, suffice to say, it does turn out to be a lot better. Now, you two better be very sure not to do anything to mess that up. Now, why don't I drive you to my house - where you can all relax?"

"Your house?" Clint asked, confused. "But you live an hour away from here. I can use a very long nap - and I sure think Marty can, as well. So can Jennifer, for that matter - although I'm not sure what all she's been through. I don't know if I can handle..."

"It's not too far from here," replied Danny. "I actually moved to Hill Valley, two weeks ago. I do have most everything unpacked, now. I sure had to avoid you lot, until this day came. I'll give all your parents a call, and let them know that you're really staying with me. It'll just take about 24 hours for the Marty's new memories to come to him."

"This is so heavy!" muttered Marty, as he stood up. "I mean, I already have two sets of memories to contend with. Gee, I simply wonder how I'm gonna be able to keep up with three of them. I guess it's something I'll learn to get used to, eventually."

"This will be a huge adjustment for all of us," agreed Jennifer. "I can remember things both ways, myself. I recognized Clint, as soon as I saw him - but I can also remember a world where... where he didn't exist. Well, I sure imagine that Marty will miss Doc."

"Yes, I really will," Marty replied, as tears filled his eyes. "Even if I really gained a new friend, and new relatives, in the process. So, uh, Uncle Danny... It just feels so weird to call you that. Since I don't yet remember you, I really was wondering what... What do you do for a living? You do seem to have a real grasp on this... time travel stuff."

"I'm a scientist," explained Danny. "You see, not only is Emmett my grandfather - but he is also... Well, as I was growing up, he was my best friend. He was the only other kid I knew, who also liked Jules Verne. We shared a lot of the same passions, and..."

Marty sighed, as he followed the older man. Jennifer and Clint looked to be every bit as confused as he was. In different ways, the three teenagers would just have a lot to get used to. Marty knew that one thing was certain: Doc was never coming back.

As Marty stepped into Danny's station wagon, he pondered over everything that he learned. It seemed odd to thing that his scientist friend was now his descendant. He didn't feel any different. He simply glanced at the framed photograph that Doc gave to him, and a tear slipped down his cheek. Indeed, Doc certainly would be missed.