The Delorean stopped next to Marty, but Doc didn't seem really pleased about his time-trip. The driver's door opened up, and Doc shook his head, meaning: "that test didn't work the precise way I expected it to."
- When did you land this time? Marty asked.
Doc clicked on some buttons of the Time Machine's board computer:
- Nine hours and thirty-seven minutes ago.
That was not good news at all.
- Ouch, Marty answered, considering the obvious miscalbrating problem of the time circuits.
- Frankly, it's starting to get a little difficult to avoid running into myself. Still, the time jump yielded some interesting new data on the flux field. I'll run some more tests and we'll see what we find.
Doc moved back to 1931 Edna Strickland and started to talk with her again.
Marty picked the young Emmett's Cleanser Spray Bottle out of the Delorean:
- Doc's trip aged the formula a few hours… Not enough to turn it to acid, though.
But he needed this formula to be at least 12 hours old, so it could dissolve young Emmett's suit. He placed the bottle back in the Delorean, expecting the chronometric analyzer's light to be green…
- Nope, no green light yet…
What does it matter? If Doc was able to recalibrate the time circuits, young Emmett's formula would not be aged as he wanted it to be in the nick of time.
- I need to talk to you…
- Excuse-me, my dear, Doc apologized, walking from 1931 Edna to Marty.
It seemed very hard for him to take his distance from Edna…
- Yes?
Marty decided to lie, hoping it wouldn't be catastrophic…
- Your chronometer's gone green again.
- Excellent! Let's hope this time my test run is a success!
Doc turned his back on Marty:
- I'm sorry to desert you again.
- Yes, well… 1931 Edna told. You've left me with plenty to think about.
Doc moved the Time Machine to the street and speeded it to the 88 miles per hour limit…
It was odd to see Emmett in this white suit, as Marty remembered him dressed up more colorfully and casually, but he had something more important to think about.
- You're a little hard to pin down yourself. I went looking for you last night, but…
- I believe I was off entertaining a beautiful lady! Ha ha…
- Ha ha ha…
- You know, I never really got a chance to thank you!
Marty was going to say something like: "Oh, it was nothing at all…", but Emmett got all wided-mouth and bug eyes:
- WATCH OUT!
Emmett pushed Marty down the street. A little bit confused, Marty only heard Emmett shouting:
- AAAAW!
Marty turned his head to see that Emmett has been strucked by…
- DOC?!
Doc left the Delorean and gone white:
- Oh, no, what have I done…
He kneeled down, taking Emmett's heartbeat:
- He's alive… But I guess he's unconscious…
- Wait… You're not supposed to be in the courthouse waiting for my signal?
- I guess my other self should.
- Where did you come from?
- Better ask: "when did you come from?"
Marty suddenly realized he wasn't talking to the Doc hidden in the courthouse, but more probably a several hours older Doc…
- I was running a test to make sure the time circuits were well-calibrated again… But it seems they totally weren't…
- Okay, so what are we going to do with… "You"?
The older Doc looked at the young Emmett lying down on the road.
- We'd better take my younger self to the lab and see what we can do for him…
Marty and older Doc put young Emmett in the Delorean, and Doc started to drive…
- Great Scott…
- What? What's the matter?
- I wonder what's happening by now…
Marty turned his head to older Doc: his hand was fading away.
- My timeline is going to be erased… Why…?
- Watch out!
Marty had to grab the Time Machine's steering wheel, as older Doc had totally disappeared.
- Carry on, Emmett. I'll find out what happened to "you"…
He succeded in driving to the lab, hid the Delorean and retrieved young Emmett in.
As Emmett was now on the rudimentary bed, Marty was making sure he was still alive…
- Come on, wake up…
He put his hand behind Emmett's head and lifted it so he could put an other pillow…
- Hey, what's this?
He noticed a bump on his head. A really big one…
- Okay, so old Doc strucked himself right in the back of the head…
That explained many things… And Emmett wanted to prevent Marty from being crushed…
- Ice… Ice… I got some!
Marty placed some iced packs under Emmett's head, hoping he would wake up soon…
- Huh… Where am I?
- In your lab, Emmett… Don't you recognize it?
- Emmett? A lab? Who and what are you talking about?
Marty took a few seconds to understand:
"Oh gosh, he seems to have a big memory loss…"
- And… Who are you?
- Sonny Crockett, you remember me?
- 'Morning, Mr. Crockett… Ouch!
- Your head hurts, hold still…
Young Emmett whispered:
- What happened… I don't remember a thing…
- Nothing at all? You saved me as I was about to be strucked by a crazy car!
- I did that? If yes, that means you're probably a friend of mine…
- Yes, sort of… Emmett, what's the last thing you can remember?
Young Emmett stayed quiet for a really long time.
He finally shrugged his shoulders, meaning "I don't remember a thing."
"Wow, that's a really big problem…"
- Could you just… Tell me more…?
- Yeah, sure… Your name is Emmett Lathrop Brown, you're Judge Brown's son. It's really important, because you are a scientist, and your father doesn't approve it.
- Me? A scientist?
Young Emmett seemed really confused: maybe too much informations to go with.
- A GREAT scientist. I was here to warn you about Edna Strickland…
- Edna-who?
- This name doesn't ring a bell?
- Absolutely not.
Marty wondered: well, it was good that Emmett didn't remember Edna, but if he couldn't remember anything else, it could cause a temporal paradox…
- What about your rocket car?
- A rocket car? I built a rocket car?
- Yeah! It was amazing!
- Can't recall that neither…
Marty managed to take some memories out of Emmett's mind, but…
- Great Scott, the lightning!
- What lightning?
- I do remember a sudden lightning…
- Probably before you were hit by the car… Anything else?
- Ahem… No, sorry… But…
Young Emmett left the bed and started to work on some papers.
- You should take a little rest, Emmett…
- Shh! Don't stop me!
- Oookay… Don't let me bother you, then.
Marty couldn't understand a thing about what Emmett was writing…
But a familiar drawing got a precise form out of Emmett's pencil. Emmett sensed that Marty was trying to see upon his shoulder, so he showed him the paper:
- While I saw this lightning, I saw this weird thing coming fast to me…
"The Flux Capacitor… Holy crap…"
- Does it make any sense to you?
- Yes… But I can't tell you anything about it.
Emmett raised an eyebrow:
- Why? This stuff has something to do with my amnesia… Please, can't you tell me?
- Emmett!
Marty turned to the door:
- Oh, Miss Strickland…
- Sonny Crockett? What are you doing here…?
Young Emmett turned his head to Edna. She approached him apparently in order to make sure he was doing well, but Emmett kept a minimal distance.
- What's happening, dear?
- Dear? Who are you supposed to be, Miss? Sort of relative of mine?
- You… You must be joking…
- Edna, I'm sorry, but he's been strucked by a car… He doesn't even remember himself.
Edna seemed really concerned about it:
- My poor Emmett…
- Can you explain me who are you?
- Edna Strickland… You and I are… You know…
- No. Sorry, Miss Strickland, I don't know.
- I'm your girlfriend!
Edna started to cry, and Emmett held her in his arms:
- Your pain is my pain, Miss… You almost gave me a key to understand why it feels so wrong for me to see you like this…
- You mean…
- No, I still don't remember you…
- I understand… But it's a complete disaster…
Emmett raised his eyebrows:
- Why?
- The Expo begins in a few hours, and you haven't completed the Mental Alignment Meter yet.
- The Mental-what?
- You don't even remember our creation!
- Don't be so rude with him… He's been almost crushed…
Emmett slightly pushed Edna away from him:
- Sorry, Miss. But you're not concerned about me.
- What do you mean?
- Apparently, this thingy you tell me about will allow you to raise the ranks in society, if only I finish it. And my health seems to be less important than this to you.
- I'm concerned about you, my dear!
Emmett turned his back on Edna.
- Emmett! Listen to me, sweetheart, I love you…
- I don't think so. Maybe I used to love you too, but I'm afraid my memory loss gave me a chance to discover your hidden face.
- My what? You know me, Emmett! I have no secret for you!
- I'm not sure of it.
Edna took a curious helmet with three lightbulbs:
- Let's see what you really think!
She put the helmet on Emmett's head and pushed a switch, making a projection of herself appearing on the wall. She turned her head to Emmett: a lightbulb on the helmet was flashing.
- The yellow one? You don't care about me?
- As I don't remember you, it's only logical.
Edna pushed a button next to the switch, and a projection of a man appeared:
"Is it the man who's supposed to have gunned down…"
Yellow light again.
- You're supposed to have a negative response, Emmett!
- I don't care about suspected assassins.
Edna advanced by pushing the button again.
A photography of Officer Danny Parker showed up. Emmett shrugged his shoulders.
- Yellow again?
- I don't know who this cop is. Why should it provoke any response from me?
Edna advanced. The next one was a bearded man:
- I don't know who this man is…
Emmett was looking at the picture, and yet the flashing light wasn't yellow:
- But he does remind me something…
The red light was flashing, and Emmett seemed to be terrified.
- This man is an old relative of Kid Tannen, Emmett.
"I wonder if he's remembering the day where Kid Tannen held him as hostage…"
Edna advanced the slide…
… And Emmett laughed out loud:
- That's funny! This kid is covered by necklaces… Oh! And he looks like you!
The green light on the Helmet was flashing. Marty was trying hard not to laugh:
"I remember that photo: it's Edna's brother, my principal…"
Edna advanced, outraging:
- And that woman?
Marty raised an eyebrow:
"It's Trixie Trotter…"
- Hey! I do remember this woman…
- You remember her and not me?
Marty looked around and found a record player:
"It's a Trixie's record! I wonder if…"
Marty pushed the button, and the song started:
- They say I'm crazy, got no sense, but I don't care… -
Emmett's helmet flashed green:
- They may or may not mean offense, but I don't care…
- Don't you influence him!
- Emmett, this woman is the artist who sings this song…
Emmett shook his head, meaning "That's why I like to see that picture":
- I remember the first time I went to the speakeasy just to listen to her…
- You went to the speakeasy?
- Yeah! I love her songs!
These memories seemed to be really pleasant to Emmett.
Edna pushed the button once again, and a green card filled with holes and titled "Brown, Emmett" get out of a weird typewriter.
- Well, I don't need to put this card in the M.A.M… Your reactions were about enough to convince me that you're not the man I took you for…
- I don't know who you thought I was, but I'm pleased our mutual mistakes are unveiled now.
- So am I. Goodbye, Emmett… I hope you'll recover your memory…
As Edna was leaving, Emmett throwed the helmet away:
- So that was this Mental thingy? A nice trick to impress people with no scientific knowledges.
- You think so?
- Yeah. Let's start over again with this…
He was showing Marty the Flux Capacitor.
- You know what that is. That means you're probably a scientist, too.
Marty shook his head:
- I'm not, Emmett. But I need you to recover your memory…
- I don't see how I could do that.
He was obviously working on the representation on the Flux Capacitor:
- So… E equals the square root of z times c squared…
"This calculus… I know it…"
Marty took Doc's notebook and discretely red it:
"Yes, it's that equation that's working to…"
- Hey, what's this?
Emmett was looking upon Marty's shoulder:
- It's the thing I saw! Gimme that!
- No, Emmett!
Too late: he was reading.
- "Flux Capacitor"? What?! Time travels? What the heck…
Bong.
- Sorry, Emmett, you didn't have to know it…
He retrieved Emmett to the bed, leaving the pot lid he used to hit Emmett's head.
- I'm taking this back… Oh, no…
The pages inside Doc's notebook were turning blank.
- Aaaww… What happened?
- Emmett?
- Sonny…?
- You recognize me, phew…
- But still, I don't actually know who I am…
Marty shrugged his shoulders: false alarm.
- You remember your name?
- Yes: Emmett Lathrop Brown. But I don't know who I am supposed to be.
- I'll manage to make you recall that.
Emmett smiled:
- Thank you, Sonny…
His eyes moved to the notebook:
- Hey! I remember I saw weird things in this… Can I look at it?
- Um… Yeah, sure…
No matter if young Emmett see this blank notebook: it could make him think that he dreamed about the whole time travelling thing.
- I don't understand… It wasn't blank…
Marty took the notebook back:
- It has always been blank, Emmett, he lied. It's a present I'm giving to my… Great-uncle…
- Oh, I see… But I wrote down…
Marty found before Emmett the notes he wrote.
- Wrote down what?
- I… I thought…
Emmett shook his head:
- I probably dreamt about this… Have you seen a lightning when this car hit me?
- Um… No…
- Doesn't matter… It gave me some ideas…
- About what?
- You told me about a rocket car I built, right?
He was rummaging in his notes:
- I got it!
"A plan of his rocket car…"
- Yes, I remember this… I ran a few tests in the park in front of the courthouse… But it wasn't working as well as I wished… I repaired it… And this man came… Great Scott! EDNA!
Marty raised his eyebrows:
- What does it have to do with Edna?
- I remember when she walked to me… Saying she wanted to apologize… And… When she showed me how grateful she was… When I…
- Are you okay?
- NO! No, I'm not okay at all! I've lost the Love of my life, I have to get her back!
Emmett found a ring in a box:
- I remember now… I wanted to ask her…
- No, Emmett!
- What?
- Edna is no good for you! You discovered what she really thinks, and…
- No, I don't know what she thinks. But I'm going to know it.
Emmett took the helmet:
- This thing is supposed to tell what people think… Well, we'll see that…
He turned to Marty:
- Sonny, could you tell Edna I have something to ask her?
- Yeah, sure… I can be… Pretty convincing…
- Thanks. I'm changing some pictures in order to do the test properly.
Marty really wondered what he was going to do anyway, but he found Edna, though:
- Miss Strickland!
- Ah, Mr. Crockett… How's Emmett doing?
- He recovers his memory each minute… He needs you… To… Listen to him.
- Why would I listen to him? He's not the man I thought…
- Are you the woman he took you for?
Edna whispered:
- What does he want?
- You'll see that with him.
- I'm coming with you.
Marty and Edna went back to the lab:
- Hi, Emmett!
He was working on the Mental Alignment Meter:
- Sonny! And…
He looked at Edna with puppy dog's eyes:
- Edna…
- Emmett… What did you send me Mr. Crockett for?
- I have something to ask you… But before, I want to run a little test.
Edna raised her eyebrows:
- A test?
- I want us to be equal, Edna…
He put the helmet on Edna's head.
- You're going to test me with the M.A.M.?!
- Yes. Hold still…
Emmett started the test: a picture of himself as he were now appeared.
- Green light… Sounds promising… Let's go with this…
A photo of the burned down speakeasy.
- Green light… What about this?
A picture of Einstein replaced the ruins.
Edna should be trying hard to hide his emotions, because the red light was flashing.
- I see… And now…?
"Doc!"
It was a picture of Doc known as "Carl Sagan", the suspected arsonist…
- Yellow… Weird…
- Emmett, what do those complete changes mean…
Emmett advanced the slide:
- Shh… Just look at the pictures.
The red light was flashing.
- You know who this is, Edna…
- Yes, it's your father… Judge Brown.
- You know only people with dark secrets can be afraid of him.
Edna kept a neutral face:
- Afraid? I'm not afraid! He chased the S.S.S. away from his precious manor…
She took Emmett's hand:
- And almost prevented me from being love with you, sweetheart…
The light gone green again as she was looking at Emmett.
- Just focus on the pictures!
He advanced the slide. It was an other picture of himself, but this time, he wore his casual clothes:
- Yellow… Just as I thought…
- That means nothing!
- That means you prefer to see me in that suit…
- Where are you going?
Emmett hid behind a wooden partition wall. Then, he came back dressed up casually, carrying the white suit on his arms:
- You can have it back.
- Why?
Edna was holding the suit carefully, looking at Emmett showing her the ring:
- I wanted to ask you to marry me, because I remembered that I… Used to love you…
He smiled:
- We've been mistaken on each other, Edna. You're not the woman I took you for.
- You don't even remember me! That makes no sense!
- All I remember, is that you're supposed to be right and law-governed. But you are the actual speakeasy arsonist!
- What?! You can't insult me that way just by seeing that helmet flashing!
Emmett whispered:
- I'm afraid I can, in fact. You judged me this way, remember?
- I'm sorry, Emmett…I should never…
- There is just one thing I need to hear, Edna… And I want you not to take a break before answering.
- I'm listening. Just ask.
- Do you love me, Edna?
Edna nodded to confirm:
- I love you, Emmett.
The green light was flashing.
- I could trust you without this stupid thing on your head.
He wrapped his arms around Edna, holding and kissing her.
"Oh, no… I really thought for a minute the test would be enough…"
Emmett was clearly too much in love. He would have forgiven Edna, no matter what she would have done or told…
- Sonny, please forget about the suspicion I had about Edna being the arsonist…
- You have no clues, what does it matter…?
- Thanks, pal.
- You're welcome…
Marty was about to leave, and Emmett kneeled down in front of Edna:
- So, Edna Strickland, my love… Would you accept to… Marry me?
"Emmett, no…"
- Sure I accept… Emmett Lathrop Brown.
Emmett crossed the ring in Edna's finger and kissed her again.
- Darling… There's something I want to do for you…
Marty stood up in front of the door, discretely listening.
- I confess I took you for a puppet in order to make you do things I want. Now, I want to help you making something you want.
- You're already forgiven, my love. But well, if you are willing to help me…
Emmett showed her the plans of the rocket car:
- This is what I want. But I need some help to make significant changes.
Marty looked at Doc's notebook again: the pages weren't blank anymore:
"Doc is back… He will invent the Time Machine…"
- I'm all yours, Emmett…
- Okay, I will be back… In time…
Marty went back to the Delorean, making sure nobody was looking at him.
"It's still there!"
He sat in the car and speeded it up to 88 miles per hour…
Marty stopped in front of Doc's laboratory: at least, Hill Valley seemed to be back to normal.
- DOC! Doc, are you there?!
He peeked inside through the windows: nobody…
Marty decided to hide the Delorean and look for Doc in downtown Hill Valley.
- Something's weird… I've been walking for two hours, and I haven't seen a car…
A horn rang above him.
Marty looked up: a flying car was landing. He ran away before being crushed.
- This is not the Delorean? Which other car could fly in 1986?
- Hi, Marty!
- Pop?
- A real jewel, nope? I've just bought it in Brown's airborne devices store!
Brown's airborne devices store?
- Where can I find the store?
- Easy! Just go right this way and turn left. Then you'll find it.
- Thanks, dad…
Marty followed his father's advice and found the specified store: a picture of Doc and Edna Strickland back-to-back in a round sign was on the front door.
Marty pushed the door and stopped for a moment:
- Emmett?
- Good evening, dear costumer. You're mistaken, Emmett Brown is my father. I'm Gene Brown.
Marty shook Gene's hand:
- Marty McFly.
- McFly? Father told me about you several times!
- Really?
Gene shook his head to confirm:
- Yeah, he says you're his best friend of all times!
- Of all times… He's actually back…
- HEY DADDY! GUESS WHO'S THERE?!
- What's going on, Gene… Marty!
- Doc! You seem so…
Doc held Marty in his arms:
- I'm so pleased to see you again! And you're right: I'm happy! Gene, my son, will you please…
- Leave you alone? Sure, daddy!
- Good boy…
- So, you sell flying cars with your son and Edna?
- Correction: with Edna and our son.
Marty looked at Gene as he were leaving:
- Gene looks so much like you at the same age, I've mistaken him with you… And he's Edna's son?
- Yes. Genetics are so unpredictable…
- And… How did it happen?
- Edna helped me to make my airborne device work. We earned subventions at the Expo for the whole new flying car, and I became able to product ten devices… Then… We opened the first store…
Marty shrugged his shoulders:
- And what about the Time Machine?
- Of course you don't remember, you're from an other timeline. Gene was at the store when we did the first test with the Delorean…
- So, you invented the Time Machine?
- After the flying car, I remembered this "Flux Capacitor" I've seen before being strucked.
Marty and Doc showed the same notebook at the same time.
- Great Scott… I should have known…
He looked Marty right in the eyes:
- Sonny Crockett?
- I guess so.
- So I owe it all to you… And that means I built the Time Machine in your own timeline…
Marty shrugged his shoulders:
- Who cares?
- Don't plan on overwriting me, please…
- No chance for it. This timeline looks fine to me.
- Emmett? Where are you, sweetheart?
- Right down here, Edna!
Edna showed up from upstairs:
- Marty McFly! The best student of Hill Valley's Highschool…
- Miss Strickland? You look so… Radiant.
- Why, thank you, Mr. McFly… Where's Gene?
- Back there, my dear.
- See you later, Mr. McFly…
Marty and Doc glanced at each other:
- My life wouldn't have been the same without you.
- You remember I was up to make you and Edna break up?
- Of course. But I won't have met her if you hadn't been around. Remember how we met?
- Um… Yes… When I "offered" the Stay Sober Society to meet in your father's house?
- Exactly! We fell in love this time, you know…
Gene came back with his mother:
- Ah, my son! You can leave the shop… Why won't you go out with Marty McFly?
- Me? With Mr. McFly?
Marty smiled:
- Just call me Marty.
- Fine. Call me Gene, then…
Marty and Gene came outside together:
- You know, I'm from an other timeline…
- Pop has told me about this time travel thingy. Well, I guess I'll be your guide! Follow me!
Gene was as energic as his father at the same age.
- By the way, Marty, do you play sandlot football…?