5:30 PM PST
After searching for what seemed like hours, Marty finally found something. In an old newspaper from 1937, there was an obituary stating that Seamus McFly had died from pneumonia. In the obituary, it also said that Martin McFly had died on February 23, 1880 from being stabbed with a bowie knife.
'Jennifer,' whispered Marty, 'I found out the date that my namesake had died. It was on February 23 of 1880.'
Jennifer grabbed the newspaper from Marty, and said, 'Well, it certainly likes like Seamus lived a good long life. I do feel sorry for poor Martin, though. So you're wanting to go back in time to prevent the death, then?'
'Yes,' said Marty, with tears in his eyes, 'I feel that somebody is wanting me to go back and prevent that tragedy from happening. That might explain why I had that dream last night. Martin is so much like me.'
'You know that from just one dream?' Jennifer asked, amazed. 'We should go talk to Doc before using one of his time machines, you know.'
'Right, I understand that, Jennifer,' Marty said, with a sigh. 'Anyway, the dream I had last night was very vivid. I'd almost swear that I'm him reincarnated, except that I don't really believe in reincarnation. I also feel for Seamus. I remember how we have become quite fond of each other in the Old West. He was so sad about seeing me leave - and, to be honest, I was a little sad myself. Although, of course, I didn't want to stay in that time period. Plus I would really miss you.'
'So, Marty,' Jennifer said, slipping her arm around Marty, 'shall we go talk to Doc about this?'
'Sure,' replied Marty, 'he should be home right now. We should maybe grab a bite to eat first, though. How about McDonald's?'
'I'd rather eat at Ponderosa,' replied Jennifer. 'I'm in the mood for serloin.'
'Ponderosa it is then,' Marty said, smiling. 'Their buffets are always good.'
Then the couple left the library, to head over to Ponderosa.
oooooooooo
As soon as Marty and Jennifer had reached Doc's home, Marty had rang the doorbell.
Doc had answered the door, and said, 'Hello, Marty and Jennifer! How are you two doing?'
'Can we talk in private?' Marty asked. 'It's about the dream I told you about this morning.'
'I'm home alone right now,' Doc said, smiling. 'Clara took the boys to the roller rink.'
'Cool,' Marty said, smiling. 'Well, I was thinking that maybe I should go back in time, and prevent my namesake from dying. That might be why I had that dream. I found out that he died on February 23 of 1880.'
'Well, we shouldn't make such rash decisions,' Doc said, gently. 'If you have another dream like that, then we can go back in time and try to save his life. It was a terrible tragedy how your ancestor's brother died, but it really is not our place to go through times preventing deaths from happening.'
'Yeah, I know what you're saying,' Marty said, with a sigh. 'It's just that, there must be some reason why I've had the dream. Maybe Seamus' spirit is calling out to me, or something. I guess I'll see if I have another such dream tonight. If it continues, I'll let you know, tomorrow. I guess I just get real emotional thinking about the terrible tragedy that happened to Martin. I get real teary-eyed whenever I think of him. We have a time machine, so there must be way that we can help.'
Doc then gave Marty a big hug, and said, 'I understand how you feel, Marty. That's why I said that, if you have anymore dreams, then we'll go back in time and try to save his life. It's just not something that we should habitually do, though.'
Marty then did a quick calculation to determine how many lives have been saved. By writing Doc that letter in 1955, he had managed to prevent Doc from being shot by the Libyans. Then Marty had gone back to 1885 to prevent Doc from being killed by Buford. Then, in the Old West, Doc had saved Clara from falling into the ravine. That made three lives. Then therere was a fourth life if you counted preventing the death of Marty's father, George - as George had been murdered in the Hell Valley reality.
'Yeah, I understand what you mean,' Marty said, quietly, 'and I understand that you do have a good point. Still, the idea of knowing about what will happen to Martin, and doing nothing about it, really bothers me. I didn't just dream about Martin last night. I actually became him. I thought what he thought, and I felt what he felt.'
'I understand,' Doc said, gently. 'You must remember though, that you are not Martin. It's like how when Michael J Fox plays Alex P Keaten on Family Ties. During the duration of the time that Michael is acting, he becomes Alex, and feels what he feels and such. However, when he's not acting, though, then he's not Alex.'
'Doc has a point, Marty,' Jennifer chimed in, smiling. Then turning to Doc, she added, 'I didn't know you watched Family Ties, too.'
'I just I just love Michael J Fox,' Doc said, smiling, 'because he looks just like Marty.'
'Yeah, that's why I like watching that show, too,' Jennifer said, smiling.
'I see what you're saying, Doc,' Marty interjected. 'Still, it's not quite the same thing. When Michael Fox is acting, he knows that he is acting - especially when performing scenes against a blue screen. In my dream, though, I became Martin McFly. There was no awareness of being, well, me. You know what I mean. I could even smell the scents of the era around me.'
Doc then gave Marty another hug, and said, 'Let's just see if you have another dream of being Martin tonight. If so, then we can go after school tomorrow, okay?'
'Got it, Doc,' Marty said, swallowing. 'Jennifer and I were going to head over to my house for awhile. It was great talking to you, and thanks for listening.'
'You're welcome,' Doc replied. 'Call me tomorrow morning if you have another dream, okay?
'Will do, Doc,' Marty replied, as he and Jennifer left the house, to walk over to Marty's home.