Disclaimer: I do not own Back to the Future or A Series of Unfortunate Events.
November 12, 19874:00 PM PST
ASOUE Universe
Duncan Quagmire was sitting across the table from Jennifer Parker, as he pondered over how he had known her for over four years. It was quite like a date, except for the fact that they weren't eating alone. Both of them were now nineteen years old.
Duncan was the oldest of the triplets. Quigley was identical to him, and he was with Violet Baudelaire. Isadora was the youngest, and she was with Klaus - who was the younger brother of Violet. Sunny, the youngest Baudelaire, was just a young girl of seven years. Beatrice, who the Baudelaires had adopted, was only five years old.
It was a Thurday evening, as Violet had taken the whole crowd to Elmo's Rib - which was sure close to the Hill Valley Courthouse. Attached to the courthouse, there was the famous clock tower. Lightning had struck the clock 32 years ago, which fried the clockwork - but a sizeable portion of the townsfolk just wanted the old clock to stay.
Duncan thoughts turned to how all of them, except for Jennifer, were orphaned. Still, they were like family. The group had lived with the town's scientist, Dr. Emmett Brown - until Violet was old enough to receive her fortune. He was quite eccentric, but kind.
The group always addressed the aging scientist as Doc, and he was the sole resident of Hill Valley to belong to the VFD. The Volunteer Fire Department, that is. There was also Count Biff Tannen, but he happened to be on the arsonist side of the schism.
"You're real quiet, Duncan," commented Jennifer, with concern. As Duncan looked up, she added, "You really seem to be distracted about something. I know how you like to enjoy your food, as you eat - but you quite seem to be a little, uh, disturbed. I mean, you've been quiet all day. Is there something you'd like to talk about? I care for you!"
"I'm sorry, Jenn," Duncan replied, quite nervously. "I was just thinking about the clock tower, and how this seems to mean so much to plenty of people here. I got to wishing that we could've grown up here. As horrid as Count Biff is, he's sure not as bad as..."
"Count Olaf?" Jennifer asked, softly. As Duncan nodded, she added, "I know you've all just gone through so much, and I really don't blame you for feeling down. I guess the fact that the town marks a very important anniversary is what's... Well, I do like this town a lot - but I really don't see any reason why we can't have a new clock."
"Yeah, I never really understood what the big deal was," agreed Klaus. "Why do many people here object to Mayor Wilson's initiative to replace the clock? I mean, what good is a clock that doesn't even tell time? This town could end up being a laughingstock!"
"I think it's nostalgia," suggested Isadora. "If remember correctly, the clock has been in this town since the year 1885. That's really over a hundred years ago. I guess this means the clock is legendary. I guess the clock worked for just over seventy years."
"Doc doesn't want the clock to be replaced, either," added Duncan, as he thought of the scientist's fascination with clocks. "He believes that there might actually be a... a good significance to the event. He often mentions that there might just be a way for time travel to be possible. It would be so awesome, if we could travel through time."
"It would simply be nice to bring our parents back to life," Violet said, grimacing. "Of course, there's certainly no guarantee that time travel wouldn't make things worse. So, that being considered, it maybe is a good idea to not mess around with time."
"Hey, Violet," Quigley suggested, as he put his arm around her, "are you still thinking of getting a doctorate in science? I mean, you're quite good at inventing things - and you and Doc really can learn from each other. You really do have potential, Violet."
"Maybe the two of you could work together," Duncan suggested, smirking, "and, one of these days, you might invent a time machine together. Doc has suggested that, in order for a time machine to work properly, it would require a lot of electric power. It'll probably require, at least, one jigawatt of electricity. That really is a lot of power."
"An average light bulb is 100 watts," Klaus pointed out. "A jigawatt is one billion watts - so that would simply be like, uh, ten million light bulbs. A microwave usually operates on a thousand watts, or one kilowatt - so that would also be a million microwaves."
"That's a lot of power," agreed Violet. "Of course, we have many different theories to time travel. We have Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, for one. Doc sure even had the pleasure to meet the guy, and they both have real funky hair. He's a great man."
"Ain't that the truth!" Klaus agreed, nodding. "Doc had even named his dog after the great scientist - and, in many ways, the dog seems to be rather intelligent. Doc even has the ability to read his mind, with that mind-reading device you sure helped him to perfect. He's even thinking about just showing that off to the members of the VFD."
"I'm still amazed by how the two of you were never recruited," Isadora commented. "I can't say I'm too surprised by how Doc has been a member, from the time that he was four. He did mention that Albert Einstein was also a VFD member, and that's how..."
"... the two of them met?" suggested Klaus. As Isadora nodded, he added, "I wonder if Jules Verne was also in the VFD. I read his books, when I was eleven - but Doc sure inspired me to read them again. He's a wonderful author, and I love all of his books."
"When we're done eating," suggested Duncan, as an idea popped into his head, "why don't we check out the clock tower? There could be a little secret - and we might quite be able to... Well, I've quite heard that Lemony Snicket had typed many of his stories in the clock tower. Klaus, as you have big plans to write a book - that might be a..."
Duncan swallowed, as Klaus smiled at him. Suddenly, everyone around the table was laughing - and Duncan really felt pleased that his idea was well-received. It'd sure be good for Sunny and Beatrice, who he felt were become too hooked on video games.
oooooooooo
As the whole gang stepped into the clock tower, Duncan was so mesmorized. He had never been inside the clock tower. It sure felt good to be able to observe a landmark that was over a century old. He really understood why a very sizeable portion of the town wished to preserve the landmark. The interior certainly was an awesome sight!
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Beatrice asked, worriedly. "I mean, it could be real dangerous to come in here." As she looked around, she added, "It's so dusty in here, it's like this place hasn't been cleaned up for many years. Please! I'm very scared!"
"Relax, Beatrice," Duncan replied, as he picked up the little girl. "Anyway, we might be able to find some bats in here. Now, wouldn't that be rather interesting?" As he began to tickle the little girl, he added, "You really take after the other Beatrice Baudelaire."
"It is very ironic," agreed Sunny, who was very close to her adopted sister. "I never knew my mother, and you're not even biologically related to us - yet, you sure seem to have many things common with her. I mean, you sure seem to share much more - than just a name. I sometimes wonder if you might, uh, be a reincarnation of her."
"I'm not sure I believe in reincarnation," replied Quigley, "but it's an interesting idea. I really think you came up with a neat idea, Duncan! I could maybe just clean this place a little, and I could do some of my cartography here. I would like to map out Hilldale."
"Well, I could certainly see why Mr. Snicket likes typing in here," commented Klaus, as he looked around. "Well, I don't mean here here - but this could be a great place to come up with all sorts of inspiration. It's just too bad that the clock isn't working."
"We're probably not even supposed to be in here," Violet commented, with caution. "I know how a lot of people really feel about this clock tower - and, if we did anything to mess things up, they could... Well, they might have us arrested. I suppose there's no harm in walking up to the top, as long as we just make sure we don't touch anything."
"I might write some couplets on this place," suggested Isadora. "In fact, I could even try my hand at writing something quite similar to what I wrote the Baudelaires - when Duncan and I were trapped in the Fowl Fountain, at the Village of Fowl Devotees. An old landmark like this gives me inspiration. There are ten letters in clock tower, so..."
"That would be five couplets," replied Klaus. "Yeah, you could write the couplets - and I could write a short story. This is sure an awesome sight, but I still wish I could watch the gears on the clockwork turn. Hey, Violet, maybe you can find a way to fix the..."
"Forget it, Klaus," protested Violet. "This might not be our native town, but we still do have to respect the wishes of those who grew up here. You do simply remember how adamant the Hill Valley Preservation Society are about wanting to leave the clock..."
Duncan himself had mixed feelings about the Hill Valley Preservation Society. While he understood their passion, he felt the members were rather pushy. Carol Vincent, who was the leader of the organization, seemed a little rude. Several weeks ago, when he and Jennifer were about to kiss, Carol had shaken the can directly under their faces.
Granted, Carol seemed like such a perky and very good-natured type of person - but Duncan simply felt that she shouldn't be as pushy. Still, he really understood that the she had her heart in the right place - and she really cared about the town's heritage.
As the group headed for the stairs, Duncan saw a ripple appearing in front of him. He sure felt nervous, as he wondered if he was hallucinating. When he saw that the rest of the group looked shocked, he had a good feeling that he wasn't just seeing things. At that moment, the ripple was sweeping across Duncan and the rest of the group.