Rootgrove and the audience

I should have been a storm chaser

am i terribly fond of this one? no. but it was all i could think of AND it inspired a lot of humorous ideas which you may find in the tags. And, as a plus, it is a continuation of Day 18!

All three of them jumped as one of the walls of the photo kiosk caved in.

"We should probably leave before the police arrive," Doc said, his voice tinged with regret. "Can you two stand?"

"Can we- Doc, you just got shot!"

Lizzy leapt back like she'd been burnt. "Great Scott, Dad, why didn't you say anything?"

"I'm fine," he insisted, waving them off. "I'll just be sore later, I've had worse."

Yeah, no. The teens helped him to his feet, each taking one arm. Doc huffed and insisted that he was fine, but neither paid any attention.

"Hold on-" he glanced around the parking lot- "where's the DeLorean?"

Marty and Lizzy shared a guilty look.

"We...sort of left it in the town square," he admitted. "It wouldn't start, and we were in a hurry."

Doc stared at them, aghast. "Why would- what if someone had taken it?"

"Well, if it won't start, that'd be quite the task," Lizzy pointed out. "Besides, even if someone figured out how the time circuits worked, he couldn't do anything with it since there's no plutonium."

"We need to gather that up," Doc muttered, staring at the mess around them. "Let's- Lizzy! Why didn't you tell me you were bleeding?"

"It's a minor abrasion," she replied, rolling her eyes. "I hit the asphalt too hard and skinned my knee."

"It could still get infected." Turning her around, he searched her for any injuries. "Let's load up the van, pick up the DeLorean, head back to the garage and get you patched up."

Crossing her arms, Lizzy stared at up at her father defiantly. "Nuh-uh. There's no way I'm receiving first-aid from someone who literally got shot and still won't seek medical attention. If you want to bandage my knee, you need to let me look at your bruises."

Watching the pair bicker, Marty felt a visceral sense of being a third wheel. Doc's got his daughter back- does he even need me anymore? He cringed at his own thoughts, but...ah, geez, is this how Lizzy felt all week?

Marty grabbed the case of plutonium (and wow that thing was heavy) and began lugging it towards the van, doggedly not listening in on their conversation.

"Alright," Doc conceded quietly. "Once we get back to the garage, we can pack each other up."

"The ga-" Lizzy cut herself off. "Dad. You were hiding from terrorists, yet you drove around in a van with your name on it?"

Marty had to stifle a snort. If Doc still wanted him around after this, he was pretty sure he would enjoy hanging out with Lizzy. Of course, the odds of that were pretty low- his mentor had barely even looked at him since he'd gotten back. I feel like a heel, but c'mon- I saved his life! She's his daughter, and they haven't seen each other in 30 years. Still-

"Marty?"

Nearly dropping the case, he spun around in alarm to see Doc with a concerned expression on his face. "Y-yeah?"

"Are you alright? I've been calling your name; you seemed a little...out of it."

"Oh- uh, yeah, 'course, just- just tired."

"Of course," Doc replied sympathetically. "We've all had one hell of a night. Would you rather I just drop you off at your house?"

Marty blinked, his mind going blank. I kinda assumed that was the plan? "No, not really," he blurted, before immediately backpedaling, "but if- I thought maybe you and Liz-"

"Don't worry about that," Lizzy broke in. "You two probably have- uh- stuff to talk about. I can...uh..."

Doc's head swiveled from Marty to Lizzy and back again. Something dawned in his eyes. "Alright. Both of you, get in the van," he directed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't know how I didn't notice this before, but there's a conversation we need to have, and I'd rather not do it in the Lone Pine Mall parking lot at 1 in the morning." Rolling his eyes good-naturedly, he began to gather the rest of his equipment.

Something about that statement rubbed Marty the wrong way, but it wasn't until they drove past the sign that he realized what it was. "Wait- Lone Pine Mall? It- it's always been Twin Pine Mall, what's- why's it different?"

Doc looked over his shoulder, confused. "Marty, as far as I know, it's always been Lone Pine Mall. Is there anything you might have done in 1955 that could have changed that?"

He tried to remember, but the adrenaline that had kept him going all night was wearing off, leaving his brain foggy.

"Didn't this used to be the Peabody farm?" Lizzy piped up, staring out the window. "You said something about crashing into his barn when you first got here- uh, I mean, to 1955."

"Yeah, and when I tried to apologize, he shot at-" his eyes widened. "I ran over one of his pine trees when I was trying to escape! Is that- so I changed the present? Or the-" Baffled, he ran his hands through his hair. "Doc, why do I remember it differently than you? If I changed it- if it was always Lone Pine 'cause I killed one of them- why do I remember it as Twin Pines?"

Doc drove in silence for a few minutes. "I'm not sure, Marty. There's not exactly a textbook for this sort of thing. Give me some time and I'll come up with a few theories."