Sunday, September 6th, 1885
Marty glared as he walked down the dusty street, sarape over his shoulder, ready for the showdown, trying to ignore everyone laughing at him and calling him a "chicken". Except it wasn't high noon. In fact, he hadn't even had his breakfast. Still, he had to go through with this. He clamped down on the tiny cigar in the comer of his mouth. "Aim for the heart, Ramone." he said.
There was the sound of someone clucking. Marty woke up. All he could see were feathers. He realized he was staring at the chicken on top of Doc's egg-frying machine, a contraption that managed to break open and fry the egg while making the coffee and there was the ringing now! Even setting off an alarm clock.
Marty sat up and turned off the alarm. He was just as glad he was awake. Those Western dreams were almost as bad as real life. He rubbed his eyes as he looked around the room. "Doc?" he called. "Doc?"
"Whoa... full moon is out early today, isn't it?" Cherry remarked.
"Huh?" Marty asked before he glanced over his shoulder, seeing that some of his butt was exposed and he yelled out, then covered himself.
Cherry chuckled and smirked a bit, unable to help it.
"Hey, uh, have you guys seen Doc?" Marty then asked the others.
"Uh, no, not since he left last night for a visit," Cherry replied as she rubbed her eyes with a yawn. "How 'bout you guys?" she then asked her group of friends.
"Ah, nope."
"Nuh-uh."
"Sorry!"
"Thought I did, but I didn't."
"That'll be a no from me."
"Sorry Marty, we haven't seen him in a while." Cherry then said.
"Huh..." Marty murmured to himself. "I wonder if he came back at all last night?"
"I just hope wherever he is he knows what he's doing." Sabrina remarked.
"Agreed." Atticus added.
Marty stood up and in front of him, strapped over a straight-backed chair, were the gun and gunbelt the salesman had given him the night before. It was a real Colt Peacemaker; the gun that won the West. He owed it to himself to at least try it on and see how it looked in the light of day. "How do I look?" he then asked them.
"Lose the pajamas and you could be perfect," Mo advised as they all began to get out of bed and get ready for the day. "Though you're no Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver."
"Hm, now there's an idea," Marty smirked at that comparison before he looked around the barn a bit.
There was a mirror on the far side of the bam. Once Marty had the gunbelt in place, he sauntered over toward his reflection. The mirror was covered with all sorts of marks and hastily scribbled notes. Doc must be using it for one of his experiments. Still, Marty could see himself well enough between the notations, and—he had to admit—the gunbelt was definitely—heavy. He drew the gun, then reholstered it. No, it didn't look quite right. He pushed the belt down a little bit on his hips, then stared in the mirror. Yeah. Much better. "You talkin' to me?" he demanded of his mirror image. "Are you talkin' to me, Tannen?" He glanced to either side before he smirked back in the mirror. "Well, I'm the only one here. You talkin' to me?" He whipped the gun from its holster. "Go ahead," he snarled. "Make my day."
"Now you're a real Clint Eastwood." Thor nodded at their friend.
Still, even Marty's own gun wasn't going to help him if he couldn't get Doc to help them to get back to the future. "Where he could be anyway?" he then murmured aloud to both himself and his friends.
"Maybe Doc had simply gotten up early and gone out for a morning stroll?" suggested Atticus.
"Or maybe sparks are flying between him and Aunt Zelda." responded Lionel.
"Sparks flying?" Sabrina asked.
"Yeah, you know," Cherry smirked. "Like whenever Atticus and Mo are alone together."
Atticus and Mo blushed nervously at that.
"Or me with Jennifer." Marty then said.
"Exactly." Cherry smirked and nodded.
"It's nice that Doc met someone, but..." Marty began to say.
"But what?" Thor frowned. "What's wrong, Marty?"
"Well, I know that I should be happy that my old friend had found a woman he could really relate to," Marty began to explain. "But it's too bad Doc had found her here and now, in 1885, with somebody about to shoot him in the back and those words we saw on his tombstone."
"Beloved Clara." The group memorized and said together.
"Suddenly I don't feel so good." Marty then said, suddenly feeling helpless.
"Now, just relax, Marty, we're gonna be in this together," Atticus advised and comforted. "Everything is going to be just fine in the end, I know it."
Standing around here wasn't going to do Marty any good, either. So he decided he'd go out and take a look around for Doc, and the others agreed to join him. He walked out of the bam and closed the door behind him. A number of well-dressed townspeople; the men in suits, and the women in primly starched dresses were walking down the main street.
"It's Sunday," commnented Atticus. "Everybody must be going to church."
"I hope you're not gonna nag us about going too." Cherry remarked.
"Never." Atticus promised.
"Good." Cherry smirked.
"Momin', Mr. Eastwood," one of the local men called as he passed.
Marty waved back at him.
"Top of the momin' to you, Mr. Eastwood," a second man said as he doffed his hat. "Good luck tomorrow. We'll pray for you."
"Yeah, thanks," Marty replied, managing a smile.
"Guys, I just thought of something." Thor spoke up.
"Oh, God." Cherry muttered.
"What if Marty really does have to face Mad Dog Tannen tomorrow?" Thor asked as he began to freak out. "Can he really out-think a gunslinger or outdraw him?"
"Hey, come on, there's nothing to worry about." Marty reassured him as he smiled and waved as more of the townsfolk ambled past.
"But what if Marty doesn't face Mad Dog?" Thor then asked. "Would he take it out on the townspeople?"
"Gosh... I never thought about that..." Marty murmured as he gripped the handle of the Colt. Carrying a gun brought a real sense of responsibility.
An even more dapper fellow, who was dressed sort of like Abraham Lincoln, in a black suit and stovepipe hat, stopped in front of him. "Can I interest you in a new suit for tomorrow, Mr. Eastwood?" the newcomer asked in a voice both slow and incredibly deep.
"No, thanks." Marty replied.
"Yeah, no need to buy a new suit of clothes since we're leaving town tomorrow morning." Sabrina muttered at that.
"I just wish that these townspeople weren't quite so concerned with our welfare." Marty said to them.
"Guys! I found Doc!" Atticus suddenly exclaimed.
"Oh, no," Marty groaned out loud once they all found the inventor in question. "This was even worse than I had imagined."
Doc's hair was ruffled by a gentle breeze, a warm wind that carried the rhythmic chanting of a thousand insects and the sweet songs of a dozen different species of birds. He didn't think there could be a more perfect day. And, of course, there was this bunch of flowers in his hand, flowers clasped together by Zelda's pin—the one with the large letter C, for Clara in this case. Doc put the bouquet to his nose. He sighed. He didn't think there could be a more perfect bunch of flowers.
"Doc, what are you doing?" A young man's voice interrupted.
Doc looked up to see Marty staring at him. Quickly, he then cleared his throat and stuck the flowers behind his back. "Huh?" he began, trying to force his brain to consider Marty's question. "Oh, nothing. I was just; out enjoying the morning air." he smiled. "It's lovely here in the morning, don't you think?"
Marty looked up in the sky, but there was a certain air of exasperation in the way he did it as if he wasn't looking at the beauty so much as, say asking for some heavenly intervention. "Yeah, real lovely," The teenager implied impatiently. "C'mon, Doc, we gotta get the DeLorean loaded up and ready to roll."
"Yeah, we gotta make like Michael Jackson and beat it." Cherry added.
"Make like Michael Jackson and beat it?" Atticus repeated curiously.
"I am not saying making like a tree and get out of here," Cherry defended. "I'm not an idiot."
"Fair point." Atticus then had to admit it.
"Oh, well," Doc sighed to the kids. "I can't expect children of your tender years to appreciate the depth of my feelings."
"Oh, brother." Thor sighed and rolled his eyes at that.
"Guys, look!" Marty suddenly exclaimed.
Doc and the others suddenly turned around to see where the auburn boy was pointing. There, on the far side of the street, was a stonecutter, chiseling away on a brand-new tombstone: a stone with a shape that was very familiar. The mason had cut two words on the stone: HERE LIES.
"Whoa... it looks like Dr. Brown's gravestone." Sabrina muttered.
"Marty, let me see that photograph again!" Doc demanded urgently as he feared the worst, but wanted to make sure he wasn't jumping to conclusions.
Marty pulled the photo out of his shirt pocket and handed it to Doc.
"My name!" Doc exclaimed, pointing at the photograph as he noticed that it did change. "It's vanished!"
Marty leaned over to look as Doc once again examined the picture. Yes, the gravestone was the exact same shape as the one across the street, and written on it were here lies and died—September 7, 1885. But now there was a blank space between the two—a space where Doc's name used to be.
"But that's great. Doc!" Marty cheered. "It's gotta be because we're going back to the future tomorrow. It's all being erased!"
"Yet only the name is erased," Doc explained to Marty and the others. "The tombstone itself, and the date, still remain. That doesn't make sense," "Hmmm," he continued, thinking aloud. "We know that this photograph represents what will happen if the events of today continue to run their course into tomorrow."
"Yeah?" Marty asked. "So?"
Doc paused thoughtfully, but he wasn't sure what else he could tell the teenagers.
The teenager jumped as Mr. Phipps stuck a tape measure next to his leg. "Excuse me, Mr. Eastwood," Phipps said, doffing his stovepipe hat. "Just want to take your measurements."
"Hey!" Marty objected. "I told you I don't want a new suit!"
"Oh," Mr. Phipps, the local undertaker, answered with his all-too-pleasant smile. "This isn't for a suit. This is for your coffin."
Marty turned rather pale. "My... coffin?" he asked, his voice cracking with surprise.
The undertaker nodded smartly as he stretched his measuring tape across Marty's shoulders. "Odds are running 2 to 1 against you." he added jovially.
"Well... that's inspiring." commented Lionel dryly.
"Might as well be prepared." The undertaker shrugged in defense as he replaced the notebook and pencil within his coat, doffed his hat again, then hurried down the street, whistling cheerfully.
Doc pointed back at the snapshot, then looked straight at Marty. "So it may not be my name that's supposed to end up on this tombstone. It may be yours."
Marty glanced down at the picture. He looked even paler than before. "Great Scott!" he whispered.
"I know, this is very heavy." Cherry remarked.
"Now what do we do?" Atticus wondered.
"I guess we just hope we can go back home without being seen." Thor shrugged.
Doc had never seen his teenage friend so shaken before, but he also noticed something else, something very disturbing, that he hadn't seen in his previously lovestruck moment. "Marty, why are you wearing that gun?" he then asked. "You're not considering going up against Tannen tomorrow?"
Marty glanced a little guiltily down at the weapon at his side. When his gaze met Doc's again, he shrugged and tried to smile. "Hey, Doc, tomorrow we're going back to the future, with you," he then explained as he patted the gun handle self-consciously. "But if Tannen comes looking for trouble, I'm gonna be ready." He stood up straight, squaring his shoulders, ready for an imaginary gunfight. "You heard what he called me last night."
"You shouldn't let people get to you just cuz they call you a chicken." Cherry advised Marty.
"Your friend is right, Marty, you can't lose all sense of judgment just because someone calls you a name," Doc instructed. "That's exactly what causes you to get into that accident in the future that-"
"What?" Marty interrupted. "What about my future?"
Oh, dear. Doc Brown realized, a bit too late, that he shouldn't have mentioned that incident in 1985, when Marty's new Four-by-Four got into an accident—Well, would get into an accident, really—with that Rolls-Royce. It was all the result of a stupid drag race, down near Hilldale. The teenager had gotten pretty banged up, and then the owner of the Rolls had sued—the whole thing hadn't been very pretty, and it had broken not only Marty's hand, but his spirit, too. The teenager had gotten so depressed—-would get so depressed, Doc reminded himself—that he had even given up playing the guitar. [as mentioned in "BTTF2: The Next Radical Adventure"! —Lionel]
"The point is, you heard what Seamus said last night," Lionel stated as he noticed Doc's hesitance and saying too much about 2015. "About his brother Martin and getting stabbed."
"Yeah, I guess..." Marty replied before looking over. "Uh, Doc?" he then spoke up.
"I can't tell you," Doc admitted. "It might make things worse."
"Worse?" Marty yelled. "Wait a minute, Doc, what's wrong with my future?"
But Doc had said too much already. "Marty, we all have to make decisions that affect the course of our lives," he then nodded sadly to himself. "You've gotta do what you've gotta do," He reached into his pocket to curl his fingers around the flowers. Zelda. What was he going to do with Zelda? After a moment, he added: "And I've gotta do what I've gotta do."
"Which is what exactly?" Atticus wondered.
"That's a need-to-know basis." Doc replied.
"Lemme guess, you're gonna do something with, uh, Miss Clayton?" Sabrina asked.
"Let's just say I gotta do what I gotta do." Doc replied assertively.
"I guess this is a good plan, guys, but I still can't help but shake that something wrong might happen." Marty said to his fellow teenagers.
"Try not to worry about it too much or you might make yourself sick." Sabrina advised.
"I just hope it works," said Lionel. "And maybe we should see what's going on with the others. We've been so focused on stuff with Aunt Zelda we've lost track of Hilda and Drell."
"You're right," Cherry nodded. "Maybe we can try to look for 'em."
"Hmm..." Thor paused as he was looking at one building.
"Think, guys... where could we find Hilda and Drell in The Old West?" Cherry pondered.
"Well, I definitely don't see Drell as a blacksmith type," Mo remarked. "That suits Dr. Brown more."
"He seems more like the type to throw out rowdies..." Lionel responded. "Like a bouncer."
"A bouncer for what though?" Mo wondered as Maggie, Grace, and Mrs. Calloway came into town as well before looking at what looked like a flyer that Thor had found.
"I dunno." Sabrina shrugged.
"Hey, guys?" Thor spoke up.
"Maybe we could try the saloon again and see if Chester the Bartender knows something?" Cherry suggested.
"Guys!" Thor called a bit louder.
"I guess we could ask him," Atticus shrugged. "Unless there's something we missed from the archives."
"...GUUUUUUYS!" Thor bellowed, knocking everyone to the ground.
"I sense there's something Thor wishes to inform us about." Lionel commented dryly.
"Okay, big guy, you got our attention," Cherry said before she stood up again. "What's up?"
"I think I found someone." Thor then said.
"Really? Who?" Atticus wondered.
"Check this out." Thor said as he took out a flyer for a woman known as Lili von Shtupp.
"Hey, that looks just like Aunt Hilda!" Sabrina realized.
"I think it is Aunt Hilda!" Thor said with a hopeful smile.
"And where there's Hilda—there's Drell!" Lionel remarked.
"You think so?" Atticus asked.
"I know so." Lionel nodded.
"Does it have an address of where they are?" Mo asked Thor.
"It just says she was the biggest hit of that town called Rock Ridge and she's scheduled to make a visit in Hill Valley very soon." Thor informed as he took a look at the flyer.
"Let's hope it's soon enough for us." stated Sabrina.
"Mm-hmm!" The others agreed hopefully.
"It sure is lovely today, isn't it, children?" Doc smiled at them as he still seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.
"Get out of La-La Land and help us, Dr. Brown," Cherry urged. "We have more important things to do than gush about the wonderful feeling of falling in love."
"Cherry, I do believe the doctor is out for now," stated Lionel. "We'll have to find Drell and Hilda ourselves."
"Guh..." Cherry sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine, if it must be that way."
"Sometimes it has to be." Atticus replied.
"Looks like we're gonna deal with Doc a bit later for more of the plan." Marty said to his friends.
"Yup," nodded Lionel. "We're branching off into a subplot."
"Uh, right," Marty said before shrugging. "I guess we should move along then."
"Yes, let's do that." Cherry agreed.
"Mind if we tag along?" Maggie asked as she came by with her fellow dairy cows. "We don't have much going either."
"Aside from making sure you guys can save this town from Mad Dog Tannen of course," Grace added with a small smile. "The last biggest threat this town had was a cattle rustler by the name of Alameda Slim."
"Alrighty then, looks like we're gonna be traveling buddies." commented Thor.
"Oh, boy! Maybe I can sing my new travel song on the way." Grace offered.
"Home on the Range again?" Maggie asked.
"No, something different." Grace replied.
"Oh, no." Maggie and Mrs. Calloway both moaned nervously.
"Aw, come on, how bad can it be?" Atticus asked them.
"He just had to ask, didn't he?" Maggie rolled her eyes.
"2, 3, 4!" Grace counted before she began to sing her travel song as they headed away from Hill Valley for a little while together. "Yes, a travel song, When you gotta go somewhere, Cuz the fun is getting there, Yeah. Oh, what the heck, I must confess, I love a road trip!~" she then started to sing in a very tone-deaf sort of way as Maggie and Mrs. Calloway were already cringing since they knew how "well" the ditzy cow could sing. "Sing a song, Hit the trail, Forget the maps, Forget the guides, Before ya know it, you've made strides with me, And I know all I need - all along, Is a path and a pal - and a song, So I'm singin', And I'm pallin' with you, See? Makes the time go by faster~"
"I need to learn how to keep my big mouth shut." Atticus mumbled to himself.
"...well, you said it, not me." Cherry responded with a smirk.
Atticus groaned and rolled his eyes as he brought that out on himself.
After a while, they saw a group of men surrounded by a poster on a wall that said "Wicked West presents Lili von Shtupp in The Teutonic Titwillow soon to appear in The Hill Valley Saloon".
"This must be the place we're looking for." Cherry soon said once she saw the poster as Grace continued to sing.
"All right, Grace, that's enough!" Mrs. Calloway told the younger dairy cow as she continued to sing, lost in her own little world. "You can stop now!"
"Oh, okay, we're here?" Grace smiled once she stopped singing.
"That and no one demands an encore." Maggie deadpanned.
"Alrighty then!" Lionel cracked his neck. "Let's head on in."
They soon went into the building where there were men eagerly awaiting to see "Lili" in action.
The kids headed for the dressing room where they saw the name on the star before they stopped briefly. They could hear someone singing inside the dressing room and they took turns looking in the keyhole to see that Hilda was in there with her hair styled differently, wearing a fluffy pink robe at a vanity table. Eventually, there was a knock on the door as she was practicing her singing.
"Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome!" Hilda answered in a bit of a German accent. "Come on in."
Soon, Sabrina came into the dressing room while everyone else waited outside. "Aunt Hilda?" she then called.
"I'm sorry, you must be mistaken, my name is-" Hilda started to say in her new accent until she turned around and looked wide-eyed, seeing her niece. "Sabrina?!" she then asked in her normal voice.
"No, that's my name." Sabrina smiled bashfully.
"Sabrina..." Hilda whispered before she stood up from her seat and hugged her niece right away. "Oh, Sabrina! It's so good to see you."
"It's good to see you, too, Auntie," Sabrina beamed as she hugged Hilda in return. "We were so worried about you!"
"We? Your friends are here too?" Hilda asked.
"Yeah!" Sabrina beamed. "Come on out, guys!"
"Surprise!" The rest of the group announced as they came to see the adult witch.
"Oh, Cherry, Atticus, Lionel, Mo, Thor," Hilda smiled warmly. "It's good to see all of you again, I was worried we'd never see you again."
"Ditto!" Lionel responded. "Also, Zelda is doing fine, in case you were curious."
"I was wondering about her after she decided to become a schoolteacher," Hilda replied. "We all sorta split up after the DeLorean got struck by lightning and you guys were left in 1955, sorry about that by the way." she then added.
"No hard feelings, it wasn't your fault that happened." Atticus reassured her.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Drell glared as he came into the dressing room, not recognizing Cherry and her friends at first. "Nobody sees Lili von Shtupp alone! Not nobody not know how!"
"I see someone's seen The Wizard of Oz." Mo commented to herself.
"You guys are outta here, I oughta-" Drell glared until he did a double take, then took off his glasses, blew on them, then wiped them on his shirt, and put them back on. "Sabrina? Cherry? Lionel? Mo? Atticus? Thor?" he then asked out of shock.
"That is us, yes." Cherry responded with a small smirk.
"Oh... Oh, kids! It's good to see ya again," Drell smiled. "I see that the old Doc's letter was able to come through."
"But where's Marty?" Hilda wondered.
"We left him back in town so that we could come see you guys," Cherry replied. "Think you can help us out on this Wild West adventure?" she then added.
"Oh, gee, I'd love to, but not right away," Hilda explained. "I have a show starting very soon and people often expect me to come up on stage when needed."
"Especially with gifts." Drell added, pointing to several bouquets of flowers and various gift baskets that were all for Lili AKA Hilda.
"I see Miss von Shtupp has no shortage of admirers." noted Lionel.
"You could say that, yes." Hilda replied.
"We did say it." Thor remarked.
"Right," Hilda muttered. "Anyway, what's the job?" she demanded.
"Basically, we need to get out of here and back to the future, all of us, before Mad Dog Tannen has to throwdown Clint Eastwood." Cherry explained.
"AKA Marty in the Wild West." Atticus added.
"Oh, is that all?" Drell replied.
"So you'll help us out?" Mo asked the two adult witches hopefully.
"We'd love right now, but..." Hilda began to say.
"But we're really busy!" Drell added.
"What?!" The group cried out.
"I'm afraid Drell's right, dears." Hilda remarked.
"As usual." Cherry rolled her eyes.
"Yep!" Drell smirked boastfully.
"I'm sorry, but I have a show to do very soon," Hilda told the teenagers apologetically. "Maybe you could stay for the show and see if you like it? You can be our VIP guests." she then offered as an apology.
"Well... alright," shrugged Lionel. "I suppose we could do that."
Drell and Hilda nodded at them.
"Now go on and shoo, kids," Drell then said, trying to act like he didn't care about them. "Ya bother me."
The group rolled their eyes at that before they went to sit down in the audience as the show was about to start.
"Well, at least Drell, Hilda, Zelda, and Doc managed to keep busy in this century." Atticus remarked.
"The former three are probably used to it." Cherry guessed.
"Could be," replied Lionel. "Guess it comes with the territory."
The others nodded as they got comfortable along with a very eager group of cowboys who came to see the show. Chester the bartender soon came by and gave them all mugs of sarsaparilla AKA "root beer for cowboys". Drell was hugging Hilda around her waist and leaning in eagerly.
"Come on, Drell, I've got work to do with the big boys," Hilda told him before she changed her voice to sound sexy and European. "I mean... 'Wet's get down to bwass twacks'."
"Yes." Drell nodded as he began to lead her out of her dressing room.
A piano tune began to play and the cowboys cheered as Drell ran out on the stage to meet the audience. "And now, folks, the gal you've all been waiting for... the Bavarian bombshell herself! Let's hear it for Lili von Shtupp!" he then told them as they went wild and some sexy music began to play for the main attraction before he left the stage.
"Looks like the show is about to start." Atticus said to himself.
"Ya don't say." Cherry deadpanned.
Hilda soon stepped out on stage with black feathers in her hair along with a feathered black cape and wearing black lingerie, tights, and heels.
"Whoa..." Atticus whispered and blushed nervously at the sight of Hilda.
"Blimey," Lionel remarked as he took a sip from his mug. "...well, that's gonna make for some interesting mental images."
"I have no words." Thor muttered.
"Ditto." Sabrina agreed.
Mo just rubbed her eyes as she couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"Here I stand, the goddess of desire, Set men on fire, I have this power, Morning, noon, and night, it's drink and dancing, Some quick romancing, and then a shower, Stage door Johnnies constantly surround me, They always hound me with one request, Who can satisfy their lustful habits?, I'm not a wabbit, I need some re-e-e-est," Hilda started to sing, moving around in a bit of a sexy way to woo the men in the crowd. "I'm tired, Sick and tired of love, I've had my fill of love, From below and above, Tired, tired of being admired, Tired of love uninspired, Let's face it, I'm tired!, I've been with thousands of men, Again and again, They promise the moon, They always coming and going, And going and coming, And always too soon, Right girls?~" she then added before bouncing her breasts briefly as the men whistled and called out to her. "I'm tired, Tired of playing the game, Ain't it a crying shame, I'm so tired, God dammit I'm exhausted!, Tired, tired of playing the game, Ain't it a crying shame, I'm so tired~"
A set of soldiers soon came on stage to accompany Hilda on the stage to go with her song. "She's tired (She's tired!), Sick and tired of love (Give her a break!), She's had her fill of love (She's not a snake!), From below and above (Can't you see she's sick?), Tired (She's bushed!), Tired of being admired (Let her alone!), Tired of love uninspired (Get off the phone!), She's tired (Don't you know she's pooped?)~" they all sang.
"I've been with thousands of men, Again and again, They sing the same tune, They start with Byron and Shelley, And jump on your belly, And bust your balloon~" Hilda continued to sing while the group waited for her to finish up. "Tired, tired of playing the game, Ain't it a freakin' shame, I'm so...~" she stopped singing before she spoke her next line and did a pelvic thrust. "Let's face it. Everything below the waist is kaput!" she then exclaimed.
"Tired!~" The soldiers soon concluded as they carried Hilda off.
The cowboys in the crowd hooted and hollered in excitement after the song had ended and Drell soon snuck over by the kids.
"Dressing room, five minutes." Drell whispered to them so the horny cowboys wouldn't hear him.
"Ut?" Lionel blinked. "...right."
Drell then headed away again while the cowboys continued to catcall for Hilda, demanding an encore, but they wouldn't get one.
Hilda was soon packing a bag, getting her stuff together with her magic as her dressing door was closed until she flinched and heard a knock on the door. "Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome. Come on in~" she then greeted in a sultry voice.
"Aunt Hilda, it's us!" Sabrina whispered behind the door.
"Oh, good!" Hilda said in her normal voice before opening the door. "Come on in, guys, I'm almost ready to go." she then told them.
"Great!" Thor responded. "The sooner, the better."
Hilda smiled at them as she soon began to get her things ready to go with them.
"So, what're you guys gonna tell the audience about 'Lili' leaving show business?" Atticus asked curiously.
"They'll learn to cope after we don't come back for a while," Drell smirked as he helped Hilda out a little. "Besides, we need to go back to 1985 where we all along."
"It's like my sister Vesta says," Hilda added before quoting her and Zelda's elusive sister. "'The 80s are the best decade in any century', but I prefer the 1980s over the 1880s right about now." she then added.
"Splendid," nodded Lionel as he tipped his hat. "So now let's slip out through the back."
"Ready to go, Hil?" Drell asked the witch he loved.
"Ready, Drelly Bean." Hilda nodded.
"Easy, only my mother can call me that." Drell smirked.
"Whatever." Hilda smirked back.
The group of teenagers chuckled a bit as they began to sneak out the back together as Maggie, Grace, and Mrs. Calloway waited for them to return.
"They rode a blazing saddle, they wore a shining star~" Grace began to sing to pass the time.
"Someone needs to make a hamburger out of her singing career." Maggie grumbled.
"Okay, we're ready!" said Cherry as she and the others came outside to rejoin their bovine allies. "And not a minute too soon, I see."
"Thank God." sighed Maggie in relief.
"Aw, I forgot what I was singing." Grace pouted.
"Never mind that for now, Grace, let's get out of here." Mrs. Calloway advised maternally.
"Sure thing, Mrs. C." Grace nodded at that.
And so, they went away together to get back to the main part of Hill Valley to check in with Doc and Marty about the ETA on when to get back home to the future.
"So, how's it going?" Cherry asked Marty once they made it back over.
"Everything is going exactly according to plan." Marty explained.
"Then why do you seem so nervous?" Thor asked curiously.
"Nervous? Me? Who's nervous?" Marty chuckled nervously.
The others gave him a bit of a long look.
"Oh, okay, okay," Marty sighed in defeat. "It's just that Doc is acting differently than he usually acts. He keeps talking to himself and he's barely looking me in the eye anymore and he seems to forget what he's doing and keeps staring into space."
"Oh, gee..." Maggie winced.
"I say he's quite smitten if I had to guess." Mrs. Calloway remarked.
"Love? No way!" Marty shook his head. "It's something terrible, but what could be so terrible that Doc would act like that?"
"Maybe he's just worried about time paradoxes or something?" Sabrina suggested with a shrug. "Though what could happen in the past that couldn't happen because somebody wasn't in the right place at the right time."
"Well, I can't do anything about it right now," Marty shrugged. "Before we worry about the future, we have to worry about the past."
"Right." The rest of the group agreed.
Besides that, Doc was looking at him again. This time, for a change, the inventor didn't look away, although—from the grim look on Doc's face—Marty half wished he would.
"Children, I've made a decision," Doc said rapidly. "I'm not going with you tomorrow. I'm staying here."
Marty shook his head. This didn't make any sense at all. "What are you talkin' about, Doc?"
"There's no point denying it," The inventor added firmly. "I'm in love with Clara. You were right about this man-woman thing. I can't explain it, but I just know that she's the one," He gasped for breath as he pounded his fist on the edge of the wagon. "She even likes Jules Verne, Marty! She has all of his books!"
"Oh, no. I was afraid that something like this would happen." Marty said to the others.
"What can I say, really?" asked Lionel. "Love makes folks do the craziest of things. Believe me, I know."
"I think most of us do." Atticus added.
"I gotta talk Doc out of this," Marty said before he spoke to his friend out of determination. "But, Doc, we don't belong here, neither one of us. It still could be you that gets killed tomorrow," He pulled out the photo again and waved it under Doc's nose. "What if this is your future?"
But the inventor was adamant. "Marty, the future isn't written. It can be changed. You know that. Anyone can make their future whatever they want it to be." He pushed the photograph, and Marty's hand, away. "I can't let this one little photograph determine my entire destiny. I have to live my life according to what I believe is right in my heart." he then added as he put his hand to his chest.
"Yep, Doc's really gone loopy and completely off the deep end." Marty sulked.
"But Dr. Brown, we understand you're doing the greater good for true love and everything, we don't blame you and if we were back in 1985, we'd let you go for it, but this is 1885," Cherry spoke up wisely to the inventor. "We need to go home where we belong after all and that includes you."
"Cherry's right," Marty agreed. "You're the Doc. So tell us. What's the right thing to do up here?" he then added as he pointed to the inventor's forehead to make him think with his brain and not his heart.
Doc blinked, then sighed, then nodded; he knew Marty was right. He reached past the teenager to pull the release lever on the side of the wagon. The DeLorean ran down the temporary rails onto the train track.
"I'll be back in an hour or two, Marty," Doc said sadly. "I've at least got to tell her goodbye."
Marty shook his head. The inventor wasn't thinking straight. "Doc, you can't. What are you gonna say? 'I've gotta go back to the future?' If you tell her the truth, she'll think you're lying. And if you lie to her, well... There's just no way you can make her understand this thing."
But Doc was being as stubborn as ever. "She'll understand, Marty," he insisted. "I know she will."
"No, she won't, Doc," Marty replied softly. "Hell, I'm in it with you and I barely understand it myself."
"What should we do?" Thor wondered.
"What can we do?" Marty replied. "I know that I would never leave Jennifer behind if this were my situation."
"I have an idea!" Atticus spoke up suddenly. "Dr. Brown, I don't know if it's a violation of all that space-time stuff, but maybe we could take Miss Clayton with us?"
"To the future?" Doc asked, quite startled by the idea.
Atticus nodded hopefully
Doc frowned and shook his head. "As you reminded me, children, I'm a scientist, so I must be scientific about this. I cautioned you about disrupting the continuum for your own personal benefit. Therefore, I must do no less," He took a deep, but ragged, breath. "We shall proceed as planned. And as soon as we return to 1985, we'll destroy this infernal machine. Traveling through time has become much too painful."
Marty nodded again. Everything that had happened since they all had gotten into the DeLorean had been one long, never-ending mess. This, at least, was one thing both the kids and Doc could agree on.
"All right, let's hook up a sports car up to some train tracks." Mo then said once they were back on track.
"Also, I think Zelda will understand," said Lionel. "She knows you're a time-traveler, she did get zapped to the past with you and the others."
"I guess I'm just thinking too much." Doc admitted.
"It can happen to the best of us," Thor nodded. "Even me."
Cherry glanced at the warlock teen at that.
"Watch it, Cherry." Thor warned the perky goth before she could say something stupid.
Cherry grinned bashfully with a shrug.
"So she'll come with us then?" Doc asked the teenagers.
"Of course she will," Sabrina nodded. "Aunt Zelda has to come home because we need her."
"Goodness knows that Sabrina needs a strong female role model in her life besides Hilda" Atticus added.
"But yeah... let's get the DeLorean ready." said Lionel.
"Right then." Doc nodded at them.
Once the DeLorean was set up on the train tracks, and in its proper place for the following morning, he and the teenagers had finished setting up camp, and, after a campfire meal of beans and beef jerky—which, quite frankly, was still not quite sitting right in Doc's stomach, though Lionel and the others shared marshmallows and hot dogs for anyone who wanted something else; they had unrolled their bedrolls in preparation, for sleep. Marty had drifted right off. With the amount of work they had done, Doc should have fallen into an exhausted sleep as well, but he couldn't. His eyes wouldn't stay closed. His mind kept returning to Clara. He had to see her one more time.
Meanwhile, the other teenagers were talking among themselves before they would head to sleep for the night after Marty.
"Oh, guys, maybe there's something we can do to help?" Thor pondered. "Like how some of us had to trick George McFly into asking Lorraine out to the dance so Marty would be born." he then added as a reminder.
"You mean to make sure Zelda is still coming home or what?" Atticus asked.
"Something like that, yeah." Thor nodded.
"I hope we don't make things worse." said Lionel.
"Oh, come on," Atticus replied. "How could we make things-"
Cherry then pinched her fingertips over Atticus's lips with a smirk. Atticus then muffled and glared at Cherry.
"How about we just get started before you say something else stupid?" Cherry suggested.
"I think we can vouch for that!" Lionel stated. "So let's get a move on, then!"
"We'll see you guys later." Cherry then said.
"Okay, but hurry back so we can all go home!" Marty told them as they began to leave yet again.
"Can-do!" Thor responded as they took off.
The group then went away from camp while Marty stayed behind with Doc in the meantime.
Zelda was shown to be at home, sitting in a rocking chair and reading by lamplight as she read the Jules Verne book she was attached to known as 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea which she had told Doc was her favorite. Cherry made it to the front porch first and soon knocked on the door as everyone else came to follow after her.
Zelda turned and glanced out the window. She smiled when she saw the group before she put her book down and jumped from her chair to answer the door. "Oh, children!" she then said with a small smile. "Why don't you guys come on in? I didn't expect company at this hour."
"Thanks, Aunt Zelda, but we're here on official business." Sabrina said before she and the others came inside.
"Aye," agreed Lionel as they made their way indoors. "This concerns our time travel situation."
"Is everything okay?" Zelda asked them softly.
"Everything is fine, we're all clear to go as soon as possible," Mo replied. "Drell and Hilda are already ready to go and now we're just waiting for you."
"Yeah, so come on, Aunt Zelda!" Sabrina added. "The future awaits us."
"Back to the future?" Zelda asked.
"Yeah! Where else would we go?" Atticus replied with a smile.
"Yeah, we'll help you pack." Thor added.
"Oh... I... I'm not going back to the future." Zelda soon told them as she seemed to have that weighing down on her mind for a while.
"WHAT?!" exclaimed the group.
"But why?" Sabrina asked.
"It's my decision." Zelda said firmly.
"Yes, but... but... why?" Atticus asked with wide sapphire eyes.
"You belong in the 20th century with us, Auntie!" Sabrina added.
"I'm sure you all feel that way, but I never really felt like I fit in with the 20th century," Zelda tried to explain to them. "I always just felt out of place, but I guess that's what happens when I've been alive for 900 years."
"...oh," blinked Lionel. "I mean... wow, I never realized you felt that way."
"It's a very long and complicated story, kids," Zelda sighed as she got up and looked out the window a bit. "I've seen so many things come and go in my time on this planet. The Bubonic Plague, several wars, people discovering worlds and places you all learn about in school."
"But you want more than that?" Mo asked. "Or something like that?"
"Something like that, yes," Zelda nodded. "I've always been old-fashioned and while I do enjoy taking care of Sabrina like my own daughter along with Hilda, I sometimes wonder what it would be like if I settled down and made a name for myself."
"Do you not want me to call you Aunt Zelda anymore then?" Sabrina asked her older paternal aunt.
"No, that's not what I mean, sweetie," Zelda chuckled and tried to explain as she looked back at the young group. "I guess I just want to spread my wings and enjoy my own life and freedom, such as staying in a place like this. I can't explain it, I love Dr. Brown very much, but... I feel right at home over here. I'm not sure if any of you could possibly understand."
The young group looked very bittersweet.
"Have a safe trip back home, okay?" Zelda said to them emotionally. "I just belong here and now in the 1880s, I hope you all understand."
"...I guess so," said Sabrina, her voice a little quiet. "I'm going to miss you a lot, Aunt Zelda."
Zelda frowned as she seemed as emotional if not more than the kids.
The group then left her home and went to come back to camp.
"Man, guys, how are we gonna tell Doc?" Atticus sulked.
"We can't leave without Aunt Zelda." Thor added.
"But she's happy here for some reason," Cherry remarked. "We shouldn't stand in her way if she wants to stay here while Drell and Hilda come home with us."
"True, besides, I think Doc will be pretty happy with her," stated Lionel, tapping on Atticus's head a few times. "They've both always felt like outcasts in the present, and to rip them from here would just be kinda selfish."
Atticus stuck his tongue out and pushed away Lionel's hand.
"But Doc is coming home with us," Thor reminded his friends. "How can we tell him that he's never gonna see her again?"
"I don't know, but we'll have to think of a way or something." Mo suggested.
The group then decided to get some sleep and unknown to them, Doc seemed to overhear them talking about how he was never going to see the woman he had loved for the first and only time never again. He soon got onto his horse he called Archimedes and rode right into town while the teenagers went to get some sleep.
"What'll it be, Emmett?" The bartender called cheerfully. "The usual?"
"No, Chester," Doc replied. He had made his decision before he had even stepped into the Pair ace Saloon. "I need something a lot stronger tonight."
The bartender nodded. "Sarsaparilla?" he suggested.
Doc shook his head. He had made it to the bar. It was time to drink his troubles away. "Whiskey." he then demanded.
The bartender's smile disappeared. "Whiskey? Emmett, no, you can't. Remember what happened to you on the Fourth of July-"
But Doc wouldn't be talked out of it. He had thought about this over and over again as he had ridden Archimedes back into town: If he couldn't mend his broken heart, he would try to wash it away.
"Whiskey, Chester," he repeated solemnly.
The bartender whistled softly. "I hope you know what you're doing, Emmett." He reached behind the bar for the whiskey bottle.
A fellow in a checkered suit and derby hat, undoubtedly one of those salesmen that were always passing through town, shook his head where he stood farther down the bar.
"It's a woman, right?" he called to Doc.
Chester poured him a shot. Doc nodded his head.
"I knew it," The salesman said to a fellow next to him dressed in pretty much the same style as the man who was speaking. "I've seen that look on a man's face a thousand times, all over the country," He looked back at Doc. "All I can tell you, friend, is that you'll get over her."
Doc stared down at the shot glass filled with whiskey. "Nope," he then replied. "Zelda was one in a million. One in a billion. One in a googol-plex," A sigh escaped from somewhere deep inside. "The woman of my dreams, and I've lost her for all time." Doc put his fingers around the shot glass.
The first fellow in plaid moved down the bar toward Doc. "I can assure you, sir, that there are other women," he said, his voice somehow both jovial and full of concern. "If peddlin' barbwire all across this land has taught me one thing for certain, it's that you never know what the future might bring."
"The future?" Doc scoffed as he let go of his glass. "Oh, I can tell you about the future..." he then started to talk as he would forget about Zelda one way or another.