Drabbles 88
The Drabbles88 was a prompt table I made specifically for BTTF-verse fic -- 88 prompts all related in some way to Back To The Future. Of course, since I'm an AU junkie, a lot of AU fic made its way into the table -- and since Secundus is part BTTF crossover, a few prompts focusing largely on Doc and Marty's POVs appeared. They are shown below. Enjoy!
62. Disease
Doc closed the door of the room with a sigh. Part of him said that he was doing something very stupid – Victor needed to be monitored carefully, to prevent further incidents. But the young man was freshly sedated. They could risk giving him a bit of privacy to sleep, he was sure.
He leaned his head against the door, wondering how the hell all this had happened. Victor Van Dort, a victim of Atypical Scientific Neural Disorder? It was almost beyond belief. The young man was the last person in a million years Doc would have suspected of having the disease. Victor was too quiet, too shy, too – mundane. Yet he’d been there when Victor had made his dramatic entrance, killed the Queen, then gone off on a rant worthy of a Frankenstein (or hell, maybe even a Heterodyne). He’d seen the fire in the young man’s eyes, heard the distinct change in tone that signaled Creativity. Not to mention what the boy had actually done to the Queen (and to Emily, though she had assured everyone multiple times she was really all right. . . .)
“Doc?”
Doc turned to see his assistant behind him. Marty was rather pale, and still disheveled from their earlier adventure. His blue eyes were wide with fright, his voice strained. “He’s – he’s gonna be okay, right?”
Doc studied Marty for a moment. The kid looked terrified. That was a change – he’d always seemed so at ease around the Touched before. But Marty had never seen anyone’s first time going Creative, he didn’t think. And the teenager simply couldn’t understand, being a Regular. Couldn’t understand the way the ideas built up in your head, churning and burning and spinning until one day you just snapped and all of them came pouring out of you, the wonders and the horrors of the universe opening up to your mind, making you–
He squeezed his eyes closed for a moment, getting a grip on himself. It wouldn’t do for Marty to see both his best friends break down in one day. “I--” he started, then stopped. How could he say he didn’t know? But neither did he want to give Marty false hope. New Touched were notoriously unstable – Victor could end up killing himself, or surrendering completely to the madness. And the young man was already so fragile, so unsure of himself. . . . It had taken Doc considerable time and willpower not to lose himself to the constant storm in his mind when he’d gone a bit Creative. What hope did Victor have?
But Victor has something you didn’t, a little voice suddenly said. He has people to look after him. People who can help. People who understand.
Doc considered that for a moment. Then he reached down and pulled Marty into a hug. “We’ll look after him,” he said softly. It would be hard, he knew, adjusting to their new situation. But he also knew that Victor was their friend. Maybe, together, they could keep Victor – Victor.
64. Healing
Marty McFly was never one to complain all that much. Sure, he had his moments of griping and whining, but overall he knew he’d had a pretty good life. He had a wife that loved him, two wonderful children, a home in the most amazing city in the world, and two best friends whom he’d do practically anything for. He really couldn’t wish for anything more.
But there was one little thing he occasionally wanted. A little niggle of a thought that popped up every so often when he was in Doc’s or Victor’s respective labs, or when they were all just hanging out together somewhere. The wish that, somehow, some way, he, Doc and Victor could have been related. He considered it a bit of a shame that he hadn’t met either of them until he was in his teens – he could imagine the messes (and fun) they could have gotten into if they’d grown up together. He sometimes fantasized about what it might have been like to have Doc as his uncle, or Victor as his brother. Not to say he wasn’t perfectly content with their friendship as it was, really – he just wished he could refer to them as his “family” and not get odd looks from people.
Then one day Doc’s oldest son Jules came over and politely asked Marty for Marlene’s hand in marriage. Two days later Douglas announced the news that Victor’s daughter Lorina had accepted his proposal. Marty could hardly believe it – both of his kids were getting married to one of his best friends’ kids? That meant that – that they’d all be in-laws.
They’d all be family.
Maybe it wasn’t quite as good as being uncles and brothers – but Marty would definitely take it.
83. Green
Doc didn’t like to admit it, but he sometimes envied his younger friends. Not for their youthful energy, or their wonder at the world around them – he felt he’d kept those things very well. No, what he envied was their luck in love. Marty had been dating Jennifer for as long as Doc had known him. And Victor – well, he’d met the love of his life his second day in Secundus. Even Richard and Sir Christopher, who he’d been sure would join him in eternal bachelorhood, had found significant others. Seeing the latter three get married, and the former one starting to plan his wedding, made Doc all too aware of the void in his life. He’d always wanted one day to get married and have children of his own. But somehow, he’d never met the right woman. The one who would put up with all his eccentricities, who would share the same passions he did. And gradually, he’d ended up devoting his life completely to science, neglecting the opposite sex all together. Saddened, he decided that the only solution was to try and be the best “uncle” he could be to his friends’ children.
And then, just mere days before Marty’s wedding, he saved Clara Clayton from falling into Shonash Ravine. And the instant he met her eyes – he suddenly realized he’d found the love he’d been looking for all his life.
33. Thunder
Doc looked up from his tinkering as Victor entered the shop. “Ah, there you are! How did–”
He stopped as he saw the expression on his young friend’s face. Victor looked – rather drained. “Victor? Are you all right?” he asked, going around to put a hand on Victor’s shoulder.
“I – I’m better than I was,” Victor said, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. “I stopped by the church before coming here. I needed to talk to Father Gale.”
“Why? What happened at lunch?” Doc asked, now getting really concerned.
“They disowned me,” Victor said, and although he tried to keep his tone neutral Doc could tell just how hurt Victor was. “I was s-sort of expecting it, but – to actually hear them say it. . . .”
Doc nodded, squeezing Victor’s shoulder. “I know. At least it had to have gone better than my confrontation with my parents.” He laughed, a bit bitterly. “Of course, that isn’t hard, considering what my father did. . . .”
To his shock, Victor shook his head. “I – I don’t think it did. I a-almost would have preferred a gun, in fact,” he said quietly.
“What? Why?!”
Victor looked down at his shoes for a long moment. “They – they said they wanted me fixed,” he whispered finally. “And when I told them no psychiatrist could d-do that, Mother – Mother b-brought up Baron Wulfenbach’s father--”
Doc felt his blood turn to ice. Had Victor’s parents really – oh God. He never thought anyone could be worse than Elias Von Braun, but this. . . “They. Said. What,” he said, his voice quiet but his face turning the color of storm clouds.
“They didn’t really m-mean they’d send me to the old Baron,” Victor said quickly. “Mother b-backpedaled immediately, s-said she only meant him as an example – but still. . . .” His eyes began to tear up. “To s-say they want me f-fixed. . . .”
Doc shoved the anger away in favor of embracing and comforting his young friend. There was a time and a place for his rage, and this wasn’t it. Right now, he needed to be there for Victor, reassure him that there was truly nothing wrong with him.
But if the Van Dorts ever dared show their faces in his shop again – there were going to be Words.
62. Disease
Doc closed the door of the room with a sigh. Part of him said that he was doing something very stupid – Victor needed to be monitored carefully, to prevent further incidents. But the young man was freshly sedated. They could risk giving him a bit of privacy to sleep, he was sure.
He leaned his head against the door, wondering how the hell all this had happened. Victor Van Dort, a victim of Atypical Scientific Neural Disorder? It was almost beyond belief. The young man was the last person in a million years Doc would have suspected of having the disease. Victor was too quiet, too shy, too – mundane. Yet he’d been there when Victor had made his dramatic entrance, killed the Queen, then gone off on a rant worthy of a Frankenstein (or hell, maybe even a Heterodyne). He’d seen the fire in the young man’s eyes, heard the distinct change in tone that signaled Creativity. Not to mention what the boy had actually done to the Queen (and to Emily, though she had assured everyone multiple times she was really all right. . . .)
“Doc?”
Doc turned to see his assistant behind him. Marty was rather pale, and still disheveled from their earlier adventure. His blue eyes were wide with fright, his voice strained. “He’s – he’s gonna be okay, right?”
Doc studied Marty for a moment. The kid looked terrified. That was a change – he’d always seemed so at ease around the Touched before. But Marty had never seen anyone’s first time going Creative, he didn’t think. And the teenager simply couldn’t understand, being a Regular. Couldn’t understand the way the ideas built up in your head, churning and burning and spinning until one day you just snapped and all of them came pouring out of you, the wonders and the horrors of the universe opening up to your mind, making you–
He squeezed his eyes closed for a moment, getting a grip on himself. It wouldn’t do for Marty to see both his best friends break down in one day. “I--” he started, then stopped. How could he say he didn’t know? But neither did he want to give Marty false hope. New Touched were notoriously unstable – Victor could end up killing himself, or surrendering completely to the madness. And the young man was already so fragile, so unsure of himself. . . . It had taken Doc considerable time and willpower not to lose himself to the constant storm in his mind when he’d gone a bit Creative. What hope did Victor have?
But Victor has something you didn’t, a little voice suddenly said. He has people to look after him. People who can help. People who understand.
Doc considered that for a moment. Then he reached down and pulled Marty into a hug. “We’ll look after him,” he said softly. It would be hard, he knew, adjusting to their new situation. But he also knew that Victor was their friend. Maybe, together, they could keep Victor – Victor.
64. Healing
Marty McFly was never one to complain all that much. Sure, he had his moments of griping and whining, but overall he knew he’d had a pretty good life. He had a wife that loved him, two wonderful children, a home in the most amazing city in the world, and two best friends whom he’d do practically anything for. He really couldn’t wish for anything more.
But there was one little thing he occasionally wanted. A little niggle of a thought that popped up every so often when he was in Doc’s or Victor’s respective labs, or when they were all just hanging out together somewhere. The wish that, somehow, some way, he, Doc and Victor could have been related. He considered it a bit of a shame that he hadn’t met either of them until he was in his teens – he could imagine the messes (and fun) they could have gotten into if they’d grown up together. He sometimes fantasized about what it might have been like to have Doc as his uncle, or Victor as his brother. Not to say he wasn’t perfectly content with their friendship as it was, really – he just wished he could refer to them as his “family” and not get odd looks from people.
Then one day Doc’s oldest son Jules came over and politely asked Marty for Marlene’s hand in marriage. Two days later Douglas announced the news that Victor’s daughter Lorina had accepted his proposal. Marty could hardly believe it – both of his kids were getting married to one of his best friends’ kids? That meant that – that they’d all be in-laws.
They’d all be family.
Maybe it wasn’t quite as good as being uncles and brothers – but Marty would definitely take it.
83. Green
Doc didn’t like to admit it, but he sometimes envied his younger friends. Not for their youthful energy, or their wonder at the world around them – he felt he’d kept those things very well. No, what he envied was their luck in love. Marty had been dating Jennifer for as long as Doc had known him. And Victor – well, he’d met the love of his life his second day in Secundus. Even Richard and Sir Christopher, who he’d been sure would join him in eternal bachelorhood, had found significant others. Seeing the latter three get married, and the former one starting to plan his wedding, made Doc all too aware of the void in his life. He’d always wanted one day to get married and have children of his own. But somehow, he’d never met the right woman. The one who would put up with all his eccentricities, who would share the same passions he did. And gradually, he’d ended up devoting his life completely to science, neglecting the opposite sex all together. Saddened, he decided that the only solution was to try and be the best “uncle” he could be to his friends’ children.
And then, just mere days before Marty’s wedding, he saved Clara Clayton from falling into Shonash Ravine. And the instant he met her eyes – he suddenly realized he’d found the love he’d been looking for all his life.
33. Thunder
Doc looked up from his tinkering as Victor entered the shop. “Ah, there you are! How did–”
He stopped as he saw the expression on his young friend’s face. Victor looked – rather drained. “Victor? Are you all right?” he asked, going around to put a hand on Victor’s shoulder.
“I – I’m better than I was,” Victor said, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. “I stopped by the church before coming here. I needed to talk to Father Gale.”
“Why? What happened at lunch?” Doc asked, now getting really concerned.
“They disowned me,” Victor said, and although he tried to keep his tone neutral Doc could tell just how hurt Victor was. “I was s-sort of expecting it, but – to actually hear them say it. . . .”
Doc nodded, squeezing Victor’s shoulder. “I know. At least it had to have gone better than my confrontation with my parents.” He laughed, a bit bitterly. “Of course, that isn’t hard, considering what my father did. . . .”
To his shock, Victor shook his head. “I – I don’t think it did. I a-almost would have preferred a gun, in fact,” he said quietly.
“What? Why?!”
Victor looked down at his shoes for a long moment. “They – they said they wanted me fixed,” he whispered finally. “And when I told them no psychiatrist could d-do that, Mother – Mother b-brought up Baron Wulfenbach’s father--”
Doc felt his blood turn to ice. Had Victor’s parents really – oh God. He never thought anyone could be worse than Elias Von Braun, but this. . . “They. Said. What,” he said, his voice quiet but his face turning the color of storm clouds.
“They didn’t really m-mean they’d send me to the old Baron,” Victor said quickly. “Mother b-backpedaled immediately, s-said she only meant him as an example – but still. . . .” His eyes began to tear up. “To s-say they want me f-fixed. . . .”
Doc shoved the anger away in favor of embracing and comforting his young friend. There was a time and a place for his rage, and this wasn’t it. Right now, he needed to be there for Victor, reassure him that there was truly nothing wrong with him.
But if the Van Dorts ever dared show their faces in his shop again – there were going to be Words.