Chapter 2
Monday, February 9th
7: 42 P. M.
Everything went black for a moment. Then Doc found himself being helped into a chair. "What happened?"
"You fainted," Jennifer informed him. "Right after Mom--" She looked at her mother. "Pregnant? You just told us--"
"I was wrong," Josie said in a voice about an octave higher than normal. "Apparently age makes no difference."
Doc got up from his chair, despite the others trying to hold him down. "Please tell me you're not kidding," he begged.
"Do I look like I'm kidding? I took one of those pregnancy tests Clara and Dr. Brown have. It came out positive."
Doc stared at her for a moment, then smiled. "Oh, Josie!" He ran to her and gave her a big hug, laughing. "I'm going to be a father again!" He turned around and scooped up Marty and Jennifer. "And you're going to have a sibling. Isn't that great?"
Marty and Jennifer seemed less enthusiastic. "Yeah, that's cool," Marty said, trying to add some punch to the words.
Doc didn't notice. He released them and proceeded to hug everyone else in the room. It was only after squeezing Doc-2 that he noticed that no one else was as happy as him. "What the heck is wrong with all of you! Josephine's having a baby!" He smothered his wife in kisses.
"The test could be wrong," Josie said meekly.
"We'll confirm it somehow. Even if we do have to visit a human doctor."
Marty and Jennifer slid closer together. You thinking what I'm thinking?
If it's about when Mom and Dad met up again, yeah. I mean, it is great that Mom's gonna have another kid, but – well, what if they start ignoring us again? It was bad enough that first time, when we split.
At least we've got each other this time, Marty thought, giving Jennifer's hand a squeeze.
"What do we tell Josephine's friends?" Clara asked.
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
Doc's excitement was becoming contagious. Marty-2 extended a hand to Josie. "I think it's terrific. Congratulations, Josie."
Josie shook it, then turned to Doc with her own concerns. "Emmett, I'm just as happy as you, but I don't know how to take care of a vampire baby! I mean, how does a vampire pregnancy work?! I'd be a lot more excited if I was better informed."
"You said you'd talk to Louis tomorrow. Maybe he knows something. Or he has a friend who knows something. There's a vampire out there who knows everything there is to know on this subject, and I'm prepared to go to the ends of the earth to find him!"
Josie smiled and pulled Doc into another hug. "You're such a sweetheart. . . . I can't believe this. I'm actually going to have a baby." She started to cry a little, but swallowed her tears. "Marty, Jennifer come over here. I'm sure you're in shock, but I know you'll make a great big brother and a great big sister."
Jennifer let some of her nervousness show. "Mom, I was an only child."
"And I was the youngest," Marty said. "That usually means you're spoiled. . . ."
"Stop doubting yourselves," Doc said. "If you two can live together after all you've been through, you'll be fine with a new baby."
Doc-2 took charge. "I've very happy for all of you, but we do need to address the questions raised. Otherwise we might have some nasty scandals on our hands."
"You mean the old biddies of Hill Valley might talk? Let 'em."
"I'm also talking about your friends and common acquaintances. They'll be curious too, and a refusal or inability to answer might result in some strained relationships."
Doc felt his naturally-cautious side coming back. "Well, if you insist. For Josie's sake."
"Question number one is whether or not there is a baby," Josephine reminded them. "Was that a future test, or just an ordinary one?"
"Just an ordinary one. I can get you one from the future, but it might be a good idea for you to see a doctor as well."
"What's he going to say when he sees the vampire virus in my bloodstream?"
"I'll fashion a cover story for you," Doc promised. "He won't know what it is."
"Question two: What does Josephine have to do if she is pregnant?" Doc-2 posed.
"Like I said, she'll talk to the people at Darkness Falls. With any luck, one of them will know something."
"Question three: How do we keep 'the old biddies' from talking?" Marty-2 asked. "You can only ignore those jerks for so long."
Doc frowned. "I could come out of hiding. Pass myself off as Dr. Brown's twin brother."
"That could work, but we'd have problems later in the future," Doc 2 admitted. "Specifically when they adopt thumb-print payment plans. We have identical fingerprints. That should be our emergency back-up plan."
"I have a made-up social life I use with Jill and the others," Josie said. "One of my invisible boyfriends can be the father."
"Perfect."
Marty noticed motion near the doorway and went to investigate. "Uh-oh, look who's up," he reported, carrying Jules in.
"Good grief, how can a seven-month old keep climbing out of his crib?" Clara sighed, trying not to laugh.
"Abababa lalalala," Jules explained.
"Guess what, Jules," Doc said excitedly. "Josie's going to have a baby too, just like your Mommy."
"Bebadada?"
"Yup," Marty grinned. "There's gonna be two new babies running around – Josie's and Verne."
"Vahnie?"
"That's right, Verne!" Clara said proudly. "Emmett, did you hear that?"
"We both did," the Docs echoed. "Very good, Jules! But you do have to go to bed."
Jules shook his head petulantly. No bed, he thought. No bed. He began screaming as Clara carried him away. No bed!
"Would you rather sleep on the floor?" Jennifer asked him jokingly.
Yes.
The vampires looked at each other. What the --
You know, I don't want to know, Jennifer admitted as Clara carried Jules out. I wonder if all kids are like that. I don't think the baby books say.
Guess we'll have to learn on our own. Josephine was getting more and more excited by the minute. She loved Marty and Jennifer, to be sure, but giving birth to a baby was something she'd wanted most of her mortal life. To think I might finally get my wish over a 1000 years later! Oh, please God or Gods, don't let this baby turn out to be the last.
Clara came back, looking rather worn. "He really didn't want to go to bed. Just think," she added sarcastically, "you have all this to look forward to."
"I know. I can't wait."
Wednesday, February 11th, 1987
Hill Valley
7: 10 P. M.
Josie came in the door with a sigh. "Hey, how'd it go?" Jennifer asked.
"Terrible. I kept falling asleep throughout the entire examination. He's probably going to think I'm a narcoleptic."
Doc gave her a quick squeeze. "When will we have the test results back?"
"In a week, max. With any luck, a day or two from now." A shiver slid up her spine. "It's going to be torture, waiting."
"Precisely." Doc shook his head. "I never expected to become a father at my age."
"I never expected to become a mother at mine!" Josie laughed briefly. "You guys think of anything to explain away the fact I'm a vampire?"
"We're listing all we know about vampires," Marty told her, perched on the edge of the cot. "Should I add 'narcolepsy,' Dad?"
"No need. It's the same thing as 'sensitive to sunlight.'"
"Okay, that's nine things we've got on here. How are we gonna make a disease out of it?"
"The first thing to do is to get rid of any supernatural references – fangs, wings, regenerative ability. We don't want her to appear to be a different species." Marty dutifully crossed off the fitting items.
Jennifer grinned. "Whatever it is she's got, she has to be on a liquid diet."
"And we might as well put my conduct in the doctor's office to good use. Keep 'sensitive to sunlight' on there."
"Same with 'increased sensory input.' Diseases can play havoc with the senses."
Marty frowned. "That leaves us with three symptoms."
"True, but for an ordinary human, those would be three doozies," Doc smiled. "Now we just need a fake name for it."
"Draculitis?" Marty joked. Everyone rolled their eyes.
"I'm talking about a scientific name." Doc began to pace, brow wrinkling with thought. "Hmmm. . . . what's a disease that causes at least one of those symptoms?"
Josie sat down, thinking hard herself. "Sleeping sickness is an obvious one. And isn't it the same with Lyme disease?"
"Could be. I'm not really a practitioner of medicine. You're going to laugh at this, but I used to get rather squeamish at the sight of blood."
Josie chuckled. "You seemed to know a bit about how to make up one."
"That's more theory, I'm comfortable with that." Doc sighed. "You know, that 'draculitis' joke could be our name. Josie's doctor could very well pick up on the similarities to vampirism."
"Then how about a disease that makes you look like a vampire?" Jennifer suggested.
"There is porphyra. Trouble is, I don't have purple urine."
"We could make him believe that you do."
"Yeah, but that seems like more trouble than it's worth. Why don't we just make up a name?"
Everyone nodded their agreement. Doc took the lead. "Let's say – Vampis something or other."
"Vampis virus," Marty said.
"Vampis bacteria," Jennifer said. "Heck, we don't know if it's a virus or not. Could be anything."
Doc laughed. "Then let's not give him a hint of what it could be. Vampis vireria. We'll combine the two names and let him figure it out!"
Josie grinned, a touch evilly. "Perfect."
"I'll forge a doctor's note as well, just in case he gets nosy. Give me a fresh piece of paper, Marty."
Friday, February 13th, 1987
Hill Valley
10: 30 A. M.
The buzz of the phone finally penetrated Doc's sleeping mind. He blearily opened his eyes to the sunlight. "Damn, people never learn," he grumbled as he got out of bed and stumbled over to the phone. "Hello?"
"Is this Miss Josephine Grey's residence?"
It took a moment for the information to sink in. "Just a minute," Doc yawned. He toddled back to the bed. "For you, honey," he said, poking Josie awake.
"Ugh," Josie complained. She forced herself into a sitting position and took the phone from him. "If this is a telemarketer. . . ."
"Miss Grey? It's Dr. Masters."
Josephine came fully awake immediately. "Dr. Masters! Sorry, I was having a catnap."
"We got the results of your blood test in today. First off, yes, you are pregnant." Josie felt a surge of elation. "But we also found something -- odd. We're not quite sure what it is, but it looks to be a bacterial infection."
"Oh, that. I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you before. I've got a very rare disease called Vampis Vireria."
"I don't believe I've ever heard of that."
"I would be surprised if you did. Basically my stomach rejects all solid food, and I'm prone to narcolepsy and intense sensorary input." It's times like these I'm glad Emmett acts like he learned to talk by reading a dictionary. "My last doctor, Dr. Elisabeth Wells, wrote me a note explaining everything."
"That's all right. I'll give Dr. Wells a call later. What's her number?"
Josie froze. "Ah -- 555-1817. It's nothing to worry about, really. . . ."
"We have to be prepared for the possibility of it affecting your fetus, Miss Grey. A special diet plan is in order at the very least. I'll call back tonight to set up another appointment."
"Okay."
"Fine. Have a nice day."
Josephine said a weak goodbye and hung up. Joy and worry warred within her. On the one hand, her baby was real. On the other, Dr. Masters was on the verge of finding out the truth about her.
Joy won the chance to go first. Smiling, she woke up her family. "What -- Mom, it's still daylight."
"Josephine. . . ."
"It's positive."
Everyone sprang up, shocked excitement allowing them to temporarily ignore the effects of the sun. "Positive? You sure?" Marty said, eyes wide.
Josie nodded. Doc threw himself on her, ecstatic. "Oh, Josephine! This is wonderful!"
"Careful with me, Emmett!" Josephine laughed.
"I'm sorry, I'm just so happy. . . ." He swept Marty and Jennifer into a hug. "Can you believe it?"
"Not really," Marty admitted. "I never expected to be a big brother."
"Or a big sister," Jennifer added. "I hope I'm up to the job. . . ."
"I'm sure you'll do fine." Josie looked down at her belly. "Emmett, which would you prefer? A boy, or a g -- Hold that thought." She leapt up and made a mad dash for the bathroom.
"I know this is gonna sound really crude, but didn't any of your friends get pregnant?" Marty asked, as gently as possible. "Mom never did -- I think that's why Biff started fighting with her so much. He hated us, we were McFlys."
"Well, yeah, I knew one girl who did. Had morning sickness that was worse than Mom's. But--" Jennifer's voice dropped. "Our pimp beat her so hard, she miscarried. He didn't want to support a pregnant girl. We were supposed to do all the work for him. She committed suicide the next week."
Marty slid his arm around her. "I'm really sorry, Jen."
"You wouldn't know. You were the privileged rich kid to us." She considered that a second. "Maybe not privileged, but rich."
Doc gave them both a hard squeeze. "At least the new baby won't have to be born in that world," he whispered. "God damn it, I'm glad we're out of there."
"Us too, Dad. Us too."
Josie emerged from the bathroom, wiping her lips with some toilet paper. "I'll be glad when this morning sickness goes away. It hurts."
Doc suddenly frowned, eyes frightened. "Marty, Jennifer, can I have some alone time with your mother?" Puzzled, the teens nodded and excused themselves. Doc turned to Josie, starting to shake from fear. "Josie -- do you think I'm going to make a good father? I -- I was institionalized. What if I really am crazy? I don't want to hurt our baby, or Marty and Jennifer. . . ."
"You'll be fine," Josie said, a little surprised. She hadn't even suspected that he was feeling scared. Guess he's still pretty talented at hiding his emotions. "Aren't you the one who told Marty and Jennifer they shouldn't worry?"
"I know, but -- do you think --"
"If you are crazy, it's the fault of that damn Dr. Adams, I'm sure," Josephine reassured him. "She was a witch."
"Replace the 'w' with a 'b.'"
"Well, no matter what you call her -- I doubt you're crazy, Emmett. You've gone this long without hurting anyone. Biff was just trying to shove you down, you know that. Marty and Jennifer love you. And I know the new baby will love you too."
"You honestly think so?"
"I know so. I know the type of man you are. I trust you. Why don't you trust yourself."
Doc sighed and smiled. "You're right. I've been trying so hard to keep you three thinking positively, I didn't even consider my own fears until now. It just hit me how terrified I was of being a biological father. When we adopted you, we skipped all the early stages. Even with occasionally looking after Jules, I'm still not sure how exactly you change a diaper."
Josie patted his shoulder lovingly. "I'm not either, so we can all learn together." She called the teens back in. "Is everything okay?" Marty asked in concern.
"Yes. Just an attack of the willies concerning my new biological fatherhood," Doc confessed.
"Come on, Dad, you're a great father," Marty told him. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me. In any case, you're a lot better than Biff."
"If you can keep us from killing each other, you can take care of a baby," Jennifer said, smirking.
"You see? Now, back to my original question. Which would you prefer, a boy or a girl?"
"I don't care. I'd be happy with either."
"Me too. I've never been a biological mother either."
"Never?" Jennifer repeated, looking incredulous. "Not even as a human?"
There was a distinct flash of pain in Josie's eyes before she answered. "No," she said softly. "Never."
Doc frowned. "Josie?"
"Never," she repeated in a stronger voice, making it clear that she really didn't want to discuss the subject right then. "Unfortunately. I wanted to be a mother when mortal."
Doc took the hint and dropped it. "What about Dr. Masters, did he buy your excuse?"
"Oh, shit! I nearly forgot! Emmett, he's going to try and call our bluff! Literally!"
"Excuse me?"
"He asked me for my former doctor's phone number!"
"Damn. Looks like I'll have to go in and have a 'talk' with him tonight."