If the fairly mundane looking flying BMW that approached them as they materialized in the cloudy sky wasn't a sign enough that the time-travelers were back in their own time, the brightly-lit "Welcome to Hill Valley: Greenest Town of 2015" sign welcoming them certainly was. It was such a shame what Hill Valley had been through in the bad future, but they had previously been in a good future before that, so something just didn't add up.
"Uh, Doc? Why exactly did we see two different futures there?" Junior asked, as they came in for their landing.
"Simple, really. Cliff from the future went and gave the book to Griff at prison, clearly not thinking he was an impostor." Doc explained.
"Well, I don't think we should just sneak in there. I mean, I don't think sneaking into jails would look good on my permanent record." Suzy said.
"Don't worry, Suzy. Now from what I understand, you have a driver's license, but no car of your own, right?" Doc asked.
"That's right. I'm saving up money from my partial job at the Holomax theater so I can buy one." Suzy replied, as she opened the door for Junior and Doc. "So, you want me to drive around the Jaguar? Do I just say I'm borrowing it from a friend?"
"I mean, that's basically the truth, Suz," Junior replied. "And if you stop having that job, I'm gonna miss you smelling like popcorn."
"Very funny." Suzy laughed. "So, you'll just say you're an old friend?"
"Yeah, I mean, I did consider him my friend, when I was wimpier, back before the trip to 1955…it's strange. In some way, I'm not the Marty McFly Junior native to this timeline." Junior said.
"Doesn't matter to me. Good luck at the prison." Suzy replied, as she started the car up again..
"Well, you're being more nonchalant about this than I expected." Junior realized.
"Time-travel really changes you. You're living proof of it." Suzy said. She then lowered the window, and started to drive. Junior couldn't help but notice that she had dropped a picture of grass on the ground. Not wanting to bask in the mystery too long, he put it in his pocket. Doc noticed his concern.
"Missing Marlene, huh?" Doc wondered.
"Of course I still am, Doc. It's just weird. I mean, I know she won't be there when I go home tonight…" Junior complained.
"Tomorrow, Marty Junior. We may be in our home time, but there's still a mission. But what are some of your fondest memories of her?" Doc asked, hopeful.
"There's too many to name. I mean, there's that time we went skiing when we were eight, that time we were in that play about criminals…I think I even still have the costumes! They were quite big, although I unfortunately inherited my father's short height." Junior laughed.
"Wait, that's it! We'll just go to your house and get your costumes. Where do your parents think you are?"
"They probably just think I'm at Suzy's to study and do my homework. I can tell them the truth. I mean, Dad was the first human time-traveler, he's got to understand the situation."
"Maybe we shouldn't have time-traveled on a day so vital to our father's histories. I mean, your mere presence in 1955 could have made various changes…"
"Don't be silly, Doc. Nothing too drastic happened. Everything seems fine, I even seem to have a happier life in this timeline."
"I know your father didn't explain anything about the 2015 trip to you, only the 1885 one, but mine did to me. And he explained that Goldie Wilson Jr. was the mayor."
"What do you mean? He is the mayor."
"To you, maybe. This is the mayor I remember. Oldest mayor ever elected to office in Hill Valley." Doc produced a newspaper that said, "Mayor Caroline Gray, Oldest Hill Valley Mayor, Announces Retirement Plans".
"But that doesn't…" Marty Junior took a closer look at Caroline Gray. "Oh my god. Marlene."
"See what happened? You just left her there, and now she's mayor. Read the article."
"Born Caroline "Callie" Klein, Gray's husband Charles Gray died in 1999, before being able to achieve his dream of starting a publishing empire. Gray kept this on hold until 2010, when she started her own company to honor him and…" Marty Junior stopped mid sentence. "What are you trying to say, Doc?"
"The almanac never existed, Marty Junior. The one that created this parallel timeline our dads experienced. Marlene married the founder of its company, and somehow prevented the almanac from ever being made. That's why your dad returned to 1985, and why my dad decided to reward yours with a trip to the 1880s after his car accident, though it didn't quite go as planned. Your time-traveling has severely impacted your father's own time-traveling, although it might've left his memories a bit scrambled."
"This is heavy, Doc, I shouldn't have left her behind. I should've just waited for her. I mean, there's always trash to fill the Mr. Fusion. It's not like we had a deadline. I just didn't want to mess with our grandparents any more than we did. Or our dad for that matter."
"It's not your fault, Junior. Maybe it was a mistake to build a new time machine, but it's the best thing I've ever done with my life." Suddenly, it started to rain.
"I guess we should get going, huh, Doc?"
"Yes, we should." Doc replied, whipping out his umbrella. "Despite the unforeseen consequences of your time-travels and it being something my dad would no doubt disapprove of, we've got to focus on this. You're my friend, and I want to at least restore the 2075 we visited."
"That works for me, Doc. I'm glad you're more lenient about time-travel." Marty Junior smiled, as the two friends began walking into the town center that felt so familiar, and yet unfamiliar, at the same time.
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Marty Junior pressed his thumb to the front door plate, while Doc put the umbrella down. They were now outside of the McFly residence and the rain was stopping.
"Welcome home, Marty Junior." The house's automated system said, as the door swung open. The living room looked cleaner than usual, probably because Junior and Marlene hadn't been around all day. Except, it felt a lot longer than a few hours. Time-travel kept seeming stranger and stranger. At least they hadn't had much Thursday night homework, for a change, so Marty Junior was sure there would still be time to get it done.
"Everything looks okay. At least we have a specific timeframe of events." Doc said.
"Yeah, and a chance to make sure whatever mistake Marlene and I prevented our dad from making the first time doesn't come around again." Junior added. Marty Senior then walked up.
"Junior! I was wondering when you'd get home, buddy." Marty Sr. said, giving his son a reassuring pat on the shoulder. Junior couldn't help but take a look at the scar on his hand, the scar he had inadvertently caused by leaving Marlene in 1955. "Uh, good to see you too, Dad."
"I see you don't have Marlene, but good to see you, Verne!" Marty Senior said, turning his attention to Doc. "Say, how is Marlene? Have you seen her?"
"Marlene, well, that's actually a funny story…" Doc started.
"Okay, Dad, you know Caroline Gray?" Marty Jr. asked.
"Uh, yeah. The mayor, Caroline "Callie" Gray, nee Klein. Got your grandparents together. What about her? I mean, yes, it's cool to know the mayor on a more personal level, but she's a bit of a recluse." Marty Sr. explained.
"But don't you remember the trip to 1955? You met her…" Marty Jr. said, trying to get his father to remember.
"How would you know, I never told you…Verne, have you been taking my son on time-travel adventures?" Marty Sr. asked.
"Yes, I have." Doc admitted. "But for the greater good. And that's why Marlene isn't here in the present, because she's lost in time and becomes Caroline Gray, and erases the sports almanac from existence."
"What sports almanac?" Marty Sr. asked, backing away slowly.
"That's not important, because the content of one sports almanac is irrelevant in this scenario. There's an iPad with sports information that Griff Tannen is gonna use to get rich and famous, and we're here to stop that." Doc explained.
"You know, you've changed a lot, Verne. But Junior, is this gonna interfere with your studies?" Marty Sr. asked.
"Dad, do you really want to see me die aged 35 and you to get committed to a mental institution 10 years later?"
"That's very heavy, Junior. You know what, I'll definitely help you with this, especially if it means saving Marlene. Too bad Doc Sr's not here." Marty Sr. realized.
"He told me he's pretty much done with time-travel. That's why he dismantled the Time Train a few years ago, when he and Mom moved. We just have the Jaguar, now." Doc explained.
"A Jaguar…wait a second. I remember now. It was in 1955. You were there, you and Marlene. You're Calvin Klein." Marty Sr. realized.
"In the flesh." Marty Jr. laughed.
"So, what do you need help with first, sport?" Marty Sr. asked.
"We want to use your jailbird outfits from Jailbird Day. Nothing to do with time-travel, we promise." Marty Jr. assured his father.
"Uh, yes. The high school is just doing a…Halloween Party at my mechanic studio. To celebrate mechanics, unsung saviors of cars?" Doc suggested.
"That sounds like something I'd come up with. I'm sure whatever time-travel mess this is, you guys can fix it. Let me see what I can whip up." Marty Sr. smiled, as both his son and his best friend's son entered the house.
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Suzy was relieved as she climbed into her bedroom window and was met with the sweet-smelling aura of her freshly washed sheets. Time-travel was a crazy ordeal, but maybe she had just dreamt it all. A world ruled by Griff, finding out her expiration date, and a world where people drove in cars lacking any sheet metal were not ideal in any way. As she turned on the lamp and selected a book from the shelf, her mother, Irene, entered the room.
"Susan! How was MJ's today?" Irene asked.
"Oh, you know, uneventful." Suzy lied. She didn't want to make her mom think she was crazy, but she actually had been at Marty Junior's house. She checked her pocket, and was relieved to see the picture was gone. Still, that didn't mean much.
"Well, that's good. Are you two absolutely prepared for your history exam on the Wild West tomorrow?"
"Um, no. Say, don't you have work to do?"
"Yes, but it can wait. I'm in no rush, honey. What about Marlene, how was she?"
"She's at theatre camp!" Suzy blurted out. "To get over her stage fright and hatred of acting?"
"Oh, that sounds very on-brand for Marlene." Irene laughed. "I've been paying attention when she comes over here to watch movies."
Realizing she didn't actually want her mother to leave just yet, Suzy decided to address the elephant in the room, which had been bothering her all day. "Mom, if you could time-travel, would you? And where would you go?"
"Maybe to make me and your father want to live in Hill Valley a lot sooner, but not much else, really. Why do you ask?"
"What if Dad went back in time, changed the past, and when he got back, he didn't have quite the same personality or remembered you being a completely different person?"
"I'd still love him anyway. Sometimes, people change, and we just have to accept it. Is everything okay with Marty Junior?"
Although appreciative of her mother's advice and feeling more calm, Suzy noticed Marty Junior's green Chevrolet truck parked outside. That meant it was time to put the plan into action. "Yeah, everything's great." Suzy smiled.
"Well, good night, honey. Good luck on your exam." Irene walked out of the room, and Suzy wondered if she'd really be able to pass it, considering her track record not being the best. But there was no time to dwell on that right now. However, as she got to the window, she was met with a surprise. The person that came out of the truck was not Marty Junior, or even Doc. Even though it was a rainy night, the streetlights still illuminated the gold plates on the face of Cliff Tannen. Not only was this a version of Marty Junior's truck from the future, but Cliff was the one giving it to Griff and most likely going to get him through some decoy trick. He took a red, rectangular object that had to contain the iPad almanac out of the truck bed, and took it in with him. Suzy wasn't sure she could reach Marty Junior and Doc, so she opened the window and climbed through it easily, considering her dad had removed the protective screen long ago because he didn't like cold air. The rain messed with her walkie-talkie, and her cell phone wasn't a good bet, either, so she didn't really know what to do.
"Let's get you to my dad. Ziff and Driff would be so proud of me." Cliff laughed, getting the wheel going. Suzy jumped into the truck bed.
I didn't want to do this, She thought, pulling a convenient punching bag over her like a blanket. But I guess I have to, for the timeline's sake.
