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Chapter Text

Friday, October 26th 2018

Hill Valley, California

In a small house of a deprived neighborhood, a sixteen years old girl named Frisk was making breakfast for herself and her little sister Tina out of the little food they had. The last bits of cereal have been eaten the previous morning, so Frisk picked from the nearly empty fridge a jar of peanut butter, which was half-empty as well. Frisk then picked the remainings of the bread loaf and checked for any spots of moldiness. Thanksfully, there were none, but the bread was getting dry. There was just enough bread to make one peanut butter sandwich for Tina and one for herself, though she'd get a smaller slice from what was left. Frisk always prioritized to feed her baby sister over herself.

Quickly enough, Frisk made the two peanut butter sandwiches, just as little Tina made it to the kitchen, all dressed and ready to go to school. Her long brown hair has been braided into two pigtails by Frisk herself earlier in the morning, and she was wearing her favourite worn pink sweater with a pair of black pants. Frisk noted how the sweater had a few tiny holes on the sleeves, no doubt because of moths, which she'd need to fix, though she was thanksful they lived in California, where the weather was breezy at most that time of the year.

"Here, eat up, sis." - Frisk said, handing Tina the peanut butter sandwich, before taking the nearly empty bottle of milk from the fridge.

"Thank you." - Tina replied before starting to munch her sandwich eagerly.

Frisk noted how there was enough milk to fill only one glass, which she handed to Tina without hesitation. She could do without milk for breakfast.

"You don't have any milk for yourself?" - the seven years old asked.

"Don't worry about it, I'm not that thirsty." - Frisk replied as she started eating her smaller sandwich.

"You can have half of my glass." - Tina said - "I don't want a full glass anyway."

"Tina, you're a growing kid, you need it more than I do."

"You need it too!" - the kid insisted, then she drank half of her glass, before handing the rest back to Frisk - "Here. Drink."

Tina had her arms crossed, her face a little pouty, showing that it was not up to debate. Unable to resist Tina's adorable obstinancy, Frisk gave in and drank the milk. She got to admit, she needed it after the peanut butter and dry bread.

As they were done with breakfast, Frisk put on her jacket that looked floaty on her very thin form, as well as her school bag, while Tina grabbed her own. Wasting no more time, Frisk and Tina left their house, going in the direction of the primary school. Frisk has always been the one to drop and pick up Tina at school, since their parents wouldn't bother. In fact, anything that was supposedly their job, Frisk did it instead. Make dinner, keep the house clean, help Tina with homework, pay the bills... Frisk had to take care of it all. She pretty much raised Tina ever since she was a baby, and Frisk would do anything to make her happy, just like a (good) mother would. And as long as Tina was happy, Frisk was happy as well.

"Now, how about we practice for your spelling test?" - Frisk suggested.

"Sure! Give me the hardest words you have!" - Tina replied happily, up for the challenge.

With a chuckle, Frisk started to give words for Tina to spell out, and they made it to the Hill Valley Elementary School too soon for their liking.

"I know you'll pass your test with flying colors." - Frisk praised her sister, ruffling her hair affectionately - "Now, I have to go. I'd like to check on Doc on my way to school."

"Okay. Tell Mister Brown I say 'hello'." - Tina requested with a smile.

"I will. Bye Tina, see you after school!"

The two girls waved each other goodbye one last time before Tina crossed the school gate, and then Frisk rushed in the direction of Doctor Emmett Brown's home. Doctor Brown, whom Frisk affectionately nicknamed "Doc", was a scientist and inventor whom Frisk met three years ago in the town's garbage dump. Frisk was looking for things she could take home and fix, while Doc was there looking for scrap metal and parts for his science projects. Despite an awkward attempt to make small talk, Doc ended up telling about his inventions, which Frisk got fascinated about. When the girl admitted she wished she could learn how to make things like that, Doc told her with a smile that maybe she could and that he'd use a hand in the lab. Frisk accepted his offer at becoming his assistant, and even though she did so out of a need for money, soon enough the two developed a true friendship. Despite the age gap of three generations, they understood each other like no one else could, and Frisk was grateful to have Doc Brown as her friend.

Frisk smiled as she made it to Doc's house (or rather, a garage turned into a house), before picking up the key hidden under the entrance mat, unlocking the door and entering. Doc told her she was free to come in whenever she liked and make herself at home, and although it took her a while to get this comfortable to do just that, Frisk eventually grew to see Doc's home as hers.

"Doc?" - she called gently as she entered the house - "Hello? Anybody's home?"

No response. Frisk then tried to call Doc's dog.

"Einstein, come here boy!"

But the fluffy dog didn't show up either, which meant he and his owner weren't at home. Frisk sighed in mild disappointement, as she really would've liked to see her friend. She hasn't seen Doc around for days, which made her wonder where he was and worry a little. She hoped he's just been busy and didn't get in trouble. Brushing the worry aside for now, Frisk looked around her and noticed how Doc's equipment has been left turned on during his absence, as evidenced by the burned toasts in the automatic toaster (the same toast has been cooked over and over without there being anyone to switch it for a fresh one), as well as by the dog food overfilling Einstein's bowl (some of it even being on the floor). This meant that the automatic dog food can opener has been working daily non-stop despite that the dog himself wasn't there to eat any of it. The radio and the television were on as well, the news playing on the TV and the news lady telling something about stolen plutonium, which Frisk didn't really pay attention to. With a fond chuckle, she shook her head and threw the black toasts in the trash bin. "Typical Doc..." - she thought to herself. The man could be absent minded at times. Frisk gave a quick glance at the dozens of clocks hanging around the house, she saw that it was seven fifty, concluding she had a bit of time ahead to do some cleaning around.

First thing she did was to turn off Doc's equipment. It was unknown when Doc would return, plus Frisk didn't want to risk for a power overload to happen any further. It could be very dangerous. Once the devices were off, Frisk took care of Einstein's bowl. She threw away the unfresh dog food, then washed the bowl in a sink located at another end of the house. After that, Frisk proceeded to tidy up Doc's working space. She preferred to leave any plans and blueprints on the table just where they were, but when it came to different books and others long unused tools, Frisk proceeded to put them back on their respective places. Doc tended to be messy, as he was too carried away with his experiments to care about tidiness in his house. Frisk remembered the days when the place sometimes looked more like a dump than a living space, but after she became his assistant and took the initiative to clean after the experiments, the place became a little tidier than it could be. Frisk smiled to herself as the main area started to look much better after her slight reorganization. At that moment, the phone rang. Frisk rushed to answer it, hoping it was Doc calling.

"Hello?" - she said as she picked up the phone.

"Frisk, is that you?" - the familiar voice replied.

"Hi, Doc." - she said, smiling happily - "Where are you?"

"Thank God I found you." - Doc said, not really noticing the question - "Listen, can you meet me at Twin Pines Mall tonight at 1:15? I've made a major breakthrough; I'll need your assistance."

"Wait, 1:15 in the morning?" - Frisk asked, slightly taken aback.

"Yes."

Frisk briefly wondered what was that Doc needed her for that couldn't be done in the day time. But yet again, Doc had his quirks, so Frisk decided to not question it too much for now. She was more concerned about his days long absence.

"What's going on? Where have you been all week?" - she asked.

"Working." - was Doc's only answer.

Frisk expected a more detailed explanation, but she guessed she'd find out that night. She was just glad nothing bad happened.

"Where's Einstein? Is he with you?" - she then asked.

"Yeah, he's right here."

"Good... You know, Doc, you left your equipment on all week." - Frisk informed him.

"I did?"

"Don't worry, I turned it off and took care of the mess it made." - Frisk reassured him with a light chuckle - "Oh, and Tina says 'hello'."

"Tell her my 'hello' in return." - Doc replied warmly, before getting more serious - "Alright, I'll see you tonight, Frisk. Don't forget, now, 1:15 a.m., Twin Pines Mall."

"Got it." - Frisk said with a nod, even though it couldn't be seen on the phone.

Right at that moment, all the clocks in the room started chiming at once. A startled Frisk quickly covered her other ear with her hand, wincing at the loud and kinda unpleasant sound.

"Are those my clocks I hear?" - Doc asked on the other end of the line.

"Yeah... It's eight o'clock." - Frisk replied, speaking up in the noise.

"They're late. My experiment worked!" - Doc exclaimed excitedly - "They're all exactly twenty-five minutes slow!"

Frisk's heart skipped a beat and her eyes widened.

"Wait a second... Doc, are you telling me... it's 8:25?!"

"Precisely."

"Damn it! I'm late for school!" - she exclaimed - "Bye!"

She then hung up the phone without even waiting for Doc's reply, then rushed out of the house. She ran to her school at full speed, almost tripping and falling a few times on her way. Even though it wouldn't be the first time for her to get in trouble at school, she really hoped she could avoid being caught by the principal, Mr Strickland. She didn't feel like getting a lecture today, not when she had other things to worry about, especially when it was (finally) Friday. Frisk could feel her lungs burn from the fast running, but she didn't pause. If she did, she'd be even more late. Not that a few minutes would do anything, but still. If only she had her own watch... There was no point in dwelling on what couldn't be changed though.

The teenage girl let out a long sigh when she saw the Hill Valley High School building in front of her, then paused at the front steps to breathe for a minute. Her legs were shaking, her breathing was unsteady, but she finally made it. When she felt a little better, she went up the stairs, then long the big hallway. After a glance at the clock hanging nearby, she figured that at this point, sneaking in between classes would be a better idea. She didn't want to be scolded by the teacher in front of the whole class and be the laughing stock. All she'd have to do was to hide in the restroom in the meantime. But as she was about to take the turn in that direction, she came face to face with Mr Strickland. "Just great..." - Frisk thought to herself. Just the man she wanted to avoid. The school principal was a bald man, wearing his usual grey suit and bow tie, giving him the look of an uptight guy, which he in fact was. Mr Strickland was well known for his obsession for discipline, who called anyone who didn't fit his mold a "slacker".

"Late for class, Miss Adams?" - he asked rhetorically.

Frisk didn't answer anything, since there was no point to.

"So, what will your pathetic excuse be?" - Mr Strickland taunted, and as Frisk stayed silent, he went on - "Nothing? Let me guess... perhaps you were caught in a street fight on your way here with other slackers like you?"

"No, sir." - Frisk said, putting up a calm front.

She couldn't really blame Mr Strickland for thinking that way, considering she's been caught in fights at school a few times... It still kinda stung though.

"Then perhaps you were too busy stealing from some respectable person?" - the principal took another guess, a sarcastic grin on his face.

"I wasn't stealing anything." - Frisk replied, doing her best to not show how the accusation upset her.

Granted, she had for habit to steal food or sometimes money from other students' lunch trays or their bags, and outside of school, she occasionally swiped unattended things and kept them for herself instead of even trying to find the owner. But even then, she only stole when she was really desperate.

"Not today? Then I suppose you were wasting time with that troublesome hack of a scientist again."

This time, Frisk tensed at the principal's words, and her face must've shown he guessed correctly, because he shook his head, with a hint of a satisfied smirk.

"Tss-tss-tss... Here is your tardy slip, Miss Adams." - Strickland handed her the paper, which Frisk took without saying a word - "Now let me give you a nickel's worth of advice, young lady. This so called "Doctor" Brown is dangerous, he's a real nutcase. You hang around with him, you're gonna end up in bigger trouble than you ever did before."

Frisk couldn't resist, she sent a dark glare at her principal. She could take insults directed at her, but not insults directed at people she cared about. She hated it when people insulted or made fun of her friend Doc. It took all of her willpower to keep her mouth shut though, since Frisk knew snapping at the principal would only send her to detention. But was it some student instead, she wouldn't stay quiet.

"Don't give me that look, young lady." - Mr Strickland called her out for her look - "You've got an attitude problem, Adams, you're a slacker and a delinquant! You remind me of your parents when they went here, they were delinquants too. They never amounted to anything, and you'll amount to about the same!"

The principal's face had reddened a bit, his posture and stern gaze getting more intimidating with his every word. Frisk did her best to not make her voice tremble, as she said quietly but firmly:

"Can I go on, Mr Strickland?"

"You are dismissed." - he said just as firmly, still on edge after his rant.

The two then parted ways, and Frisk walked in the direction of her class, fighting back upcoming tears. She hated that she's been compared to her parents. This was why she hated school so much. She knew there was nobody here she could turn to with her problems, everyone already thought the worst of her. True, she stole food from other students sometimes, but she couldn't help it that she was so hungry and barely ate at home in the morning. Yes, she also got in fights on occasion, but she never initiated those. Bullies picked on her for no real reason, so she had to stand up for herself! Frisk tried her best to just stay out of bullies' way, but it didn't always help... Last year, Doc gave Frisk a new watch as a present, which made her very happy, but only a few days later, someone stole it from her when she was at her gym class. Frisk never found out who stole her watch, and it still hurt to think about the incident. (She at times wondered if it was karma for her own thefts, but Doc didn't believe there was such thing.) Bullies always went after her, even when Frisk did her best to be invisible.

Her teachers didn't see her as very bright either, since her grades rarely went above average, not to mentiion that she sometimes fell asleep in class. But how could she help it? Frisk lacked time and energy to properly study and do her homework, as she was more concerned by earning money and taking care of Tina, since her parents did neither of those things. Her home duties, as well as being malnourished made her feel tired most of the time, making it difficult for her to focus on the lessons (or to even stay awake). Thanksfully, Frisk's grade weren't as bad as they could be, all thanks to Doc's help. He helped her understand the subjects she struggled with the most, algebra and science, preventing her from totally failing these classes. She still lacked time to study for her tests, but at least she could hand over her science homework without shame. Frisk had to admit that without Doc's help and encouragement, she might've dropped high school by then. She's considered it at some point, until Doc reminded her of his old saying: "You can accomplish anything if you put your mind to it." Frisk was certain that was Doc's life motto and that he reached his achievements thanks to it, but she still struggled to see it applying to her. And yet, despite the struggle, it still motivated her to not give up. Frisk didn't want to disappoint Doc, not after the support he gave her.

When Frisk finally made it to her class, she decided to not think about anything Mr Strickland said to her and focus on more positive thoughts. It was Friday, she would see Doc tonight for a new experiment, and Tina might tell her cute stories about her school day. Today didn't have to be a fully bad day.

...

The day at school went relatively well, and Frisk was walking in the direction of the elementary school, passing by the town square. The center of Hill Valley was full of life at this time of day. Frisk could vaguely hear an election sound van broadcasting a campaign speech for Mayor Goldie Wilson's re-election. All the open businesses were welcoming customers, and a few ladies were leaving the aerobics class taking place in a nearby fitness center. Busy men and women entered and exited the old courthouse, which had for speciality to have a stopped clock at its top that hadn't chimed in over a decade. But Frisk didn't really care about the rising life in her town, she just wanted to go home after picking up Tina at school. She was very tired, and she still had dinner to make, possibly help Tina with homework, then go meet Doc at 1:15 in the morning...

"Save the clock tower!" - a voice suddenly startled her.

Frisk looked up and saw the voice belonged to an old lady who stood in front of her, holding a donations can in one hand, and an armful of flyers in another. The woman's grey hair was tied in a bun, she was wearing a nice floral shirt and a big pair of glasses. On her blue cardigan, there was a pin with the photo of the courthouse and the inscription "Save The Clock Tower". She looked rather nice, so Frisk smiled to her politely, thinking there was no harm in hearing what the lady had to say.

"Save the clock tower." - the woman repeated, then proceeded to explain the goal of the collected donations with passion - "Mayor Wilson is sponsoring an initiative to replace that clock."

The old lady pointed at the clock on the courthouse behind Frisk, making the teen briefly turn around to look at it.

"Seventeen years ago, lightning struck that clock tower, and the clock hasn't run since." - the woman went on - "We at the Hill Valley Preservation Society think it should be preserved exactly the way it is, as part of our history and heritage."

Frisk didn't really care whether the clock would be fixed or remain the same, having no sentimental interest for it whatsoever. But the old lady was clearly passionate about it, so Frisk didn't have the heart to dismiss her. And she didn't want to come off as rude or uncaring.

"Well, I really don't have much to give..." - she said with her polite smile, checking her pockets.

She couldn't give a lot, she was planning to pick some groceries the next day. She found a quarter she didn't mind to give away, then dropped it in the can.

"I hope this will do?" - she said.

"Anything helps, really. Thank you." - the old woman smiled brightly, looking happy and grateful for the small act of generosity - "Don't forget to take the flyer."

She handed her a light blue sheet of paper, which was a reprint of an old newspaper article about how the lightning struck the clock during a storm. As the old lady went to talk to another passer-by, Frisk tucked the flyer in her jacket pocket, quickly moving along. She didn't want to make Tina wait for too long.

...

Frisk wasn't too thrilled to see that her parents, Lola and Eric, were back home after being gone for the entire previous day. After partying the whole night at some creepy friends' place, which mostly consisted in drinking alcohol and taking drugs, they were now in the middle of a withdrawal. Lola, a woman with short brown hair and blue eyes, wearing slacks and a grey sweater, was lying on the couch staring at the ceiling with an empty gaze. Physically she was there, but mentally she was very far away. It was the same for Eric. The blond man was sitting at the table, his head cupped in between his hands, his brown gaze just as unfocused as his wife's.

Knowing how snappish those two could be during drug withdrawal, Frisk knew she and Tina should stay out of their way. She turned to her sister and whispered:

"Let's go upstairs, Tina. We shouldn't bother them now."

"Mom and Dad are sick again because of the bad pills?" - Tina asked quietly, as the two girls went up the stairs.

"Yes, they are." - Frisk said, keeping her tone neutral.

"What else is new." - she mentally commented, but didn't say it aloud to not sound bitter in front of Tina and to spare the kid from negative thoughts. After quickly dropping her oversized jacket and backpack in her room, Frisk went to Tina's.

"Now, do you have any homework for Monday?" - she asked.

"I have a few calculations and a text reading." - Tina answered.

Considering Tina had little homework to do, Frisk figured they could do it the next morning, since it was the weekend. They both needed some rest.

"Alright. We can do it tomorrow. I'm now going to make us dinner. How about you pick a book you want me to read you tonight?" - Frsik suggested with a smile.

"Okay!" - the seven years old nodded eagerly, loving when Frisk read her stories, then remembered something - "Oh! Did you see Mister Brown this morning?"

"I talked to him a little. He's been working a lot, and he says 'hello' to you." - Frisk replied, smiling at the latest part.

She preferred to not tell Tina that she had yet to see him face to face, and that she'd go meet him at night. Tina would just worry and possibly be unable to fall asleep. The mention that Doctor Brown returned her "hello" visibly made Tina happy, which was all Frisk ever wanted. Making Tina happy was basically what she lived for. Ruffling the kid's hair, Frisk said with a fond smile:

"Okay, I shall start that dinner. You must be hungry."

Then Frisk went downstairs and straight to the kitchen. She checked the pantry, and although they didn't have much in there, she was glad to see there was still some canned goods and two boxes of rice. She picked one box of rice and a can of green beans, wasting no time to start fixing dinner. As the rice cooked in the bowling water, and the beans roasted in a smaller pot, Frisk smiled as the smell soon filled the kitchen. Her stomach growled, and she really hoped her parents wouldn't walk in and take most of the food before she and Tina had the chance to fill their plates, forcing the girls to share what little was left. That's why Frisk tried her best to cook quietly when the parents were home. When everything was cooked, Frisk mixed the beans and rice together, then proceeded to fill her sister's plate and then her own. Frisk was hungry and she was tempted to scoop herself another spoon of the rice-beans mix, but then shook her head and resisted the temptation. If she left "too little" for her parents, they would just yell at her. Putting her own modest portion and Tina's slightly bigger one on the table, Frisk walked to the stairs and called for Tina to come down.

"Dinner's ready!"

"Do you have to be so darn loud?!" - Eric called off his eldest daughter, with an irritated look on his face.

Frisk just ignored him, as Tina happily went down the stairs, having been impatiently waiting for dinner. Eric and Lola, gaining some more life in them from the smell of food, went to fill their own plates. It wasn't long before the two joined the girls at the dinner table, and of course, Eric had to comment on the amount of food Frisk left for them.

"You know, you could've left us some more." - he said, sounding annoyed and tired at once.

"I left you plenty. Tina and I have to eat too, you know." - Frisk remarked dryly.

It was true. She left them about the half of what she cooked, even slightly more.

"Cut off that attitude, Frisk." - Lola said on her turn, her tone harsh, though not really making eye contact.

Frisk forced herself to just ignore that remark, and the parents quickly moved on, too hungry and tired to care further. And of course, they didn't even thank their daughter for making dinner, like they never have. But Frisk was long past the stage of expecting anything from them.

While Lola and Eric ate their food in silence, Tina couldn't help but happily tell Frisk about school. More precisely, she was telling about a future Halloween celebration at her school, since it was only a few days away. Last week, her class was told they could all come dressed up, and even though Tina knew it probably wouldn't be possible for her, Frisk told her she could try to make something simple but cute.

"A lot of girls will come as witches, or fairies, or even as black kittens. A boy said he'll come as Darth Vader, and others will dress up as superheroes or vampires." - she was babbling at a quick rate - "I was thinking I can go as a ballerina, because it's cute and not a hard costume to make, but then I thought... they all dress up as what they love most. And so I got a better idea. I want to dress up as YOU!"

Frisk's heart melted at Tina's implication. It wasn't the first time she realized Tina saw her as "her hero", but it always felt strange to be looked up to this much. Frisk wasn't certain she was worthy of such admiration, but she certainly tried her best to be a good big sister.

"Aw, Tina..." - she breathed out with a soft smile - "I think I can make a 'me' costume for you."

She had a blue shirt somewhere and she could sew two pink horizontal stripes to it.

"Your hair's a bit long to be me though." - Frisk then remarked with mild amusement.

"It's okay. You can style my hair like two buns on the sides, to make me look EXTRA cu-"

"Will you stop your unsufferable babbling already?!" - Lola then finally snapped, dropping her fork on the table, while rubbing her temple with her left hand - "Can't you see I have a headache?!"

Tina's eyes widened at the sudden outburst, then looked down as tears filled her eyes.

"I'm sorry..." - she said quietly.

Frisk glared at her mother, feeling angry for Tina's sake. Tina was just being excited for something fun, she wasn't doing anything wrong, their mother didn't have to ruin her mood like that!

"She was only talking. You didn't have to yell at her like that." - Frisk said coldly.

"Her 'talking' sounded just as loud to me." - Lola replied, more quietly this time, looking down at her nearly finished plate, rubbing her temples again.

"Let's just go to your room, Tina." - Frisk then told her sister, while still glaring at her mother.

"Yeah, go and leave us alone already." - Eric complained on his turn.

Frisk and Tina went upstairs without saying any other word, and once in the youngest girl's room, Tina asked with a sniffle:

"Why were they so mean again?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, Tina." - Frisk reassured her sister, giving her a comforting hug - "They just don't know how to be kind."

"They'll... They'll never get better... will they?" - Tina then asked, looking at her big sister with big vulnerable eyes.

It really hurt Frisk to see little Tina this way. The question that came out of her mouth made it sound like the little girl was on the brink of losing some of her childhood innocence and of her faith in their parents. Just like Frisk once lost it once a long time ago. Having blind faith in their parents was unhealthy, sure, but Frisk just didn't want her baby sister to grow up too fast, like she's been forced to. She hoped that Tina would still preserve her positivity for longer, her faith in a bright future. Frisk might have no real future of her own in sight, but Tina still had hers, and Frisk would do everything in her power to make Tina have it.

"Even if they never do, there are a lot of good people out there, Tina." - Frisk told her gently - "Focus on them, not on the ones who hurt you. You understand?"

"...I understand." - Tina nodded softly.

"Good. Now, did you pick the book you want me to read?" - Frisk asked, wanting to move on to a nicer topic.

With a nod, Tina gave her the book she chose earlier, then the two girls sat on the bed, and Frisk started to read aloud, giving characters distinct voices, making the story sound even more fun. Soon enough, Tina cheered up after the dinner incident, though Frisk didn't leave her room for the rest of the evening, until it was bedtime for Tina. After she kissed her goodnight, Frisk said softly:

"I'll take your pink sweater, okay? It has holes I'd like to fix."

"Okay... Thank you. Goodnight, Frisk." - Tina said with a yawn.

"Have nice dreams, Tina." - Frisk replied, smiling, before leaving the room.

She then went in her own bedroom, just as small and almost empty as her sister's. Her backpack was lying on the floor, unmoved since she returned from school, and her oversized jacket tossed on the bed. The teen moved the backpack to put it under her desk, then moved the jacket a little aside, but not hanging it in her wardrobe, since she'd need to put it on again soon. With a tired sigh, Frisk set up her alarm clock to ring at 12:30 in case she fell asleep, which would give her enough time to make it to the Twin Pines Mall on time. Currently, it was 9:10 p.m., thus Frisk had some time to spare until then. She took her sewing kit, sat on the bed and started to fix the holes on Tina's pink sweater. It didn't take very long, after what Frisk picked all that she needed to make Tina's "Frisk costume". She had Tina's blue sweater and an older pink dress that was too tattered and a little short for Tina to wear anymore, but which Frisk still kept in case its fabric would come off handy. After making some measurements, Frisk took her scissors and cut two strips from it. After thinking for a minute, Frisk decided to stitch those around the sweater at only a few points instead of all long, so she'd be able to cut them off easily after the Halloween school party. The blue sweater was still good to wear and she'd rather not alter it permanently. Carefully, with her trusty reading glasses on, Frisk worked on Tina's costume. As she sewed, she couldn't help but think about what she told Tina earlier. Focusing on the good people rather than on the bad ones... That's what she's done those past three years, ever since she met Doc. Despite what everyone in the town said about him, Doc Brown was an eccentric, but a good man. People called him a "nutcase", a "lunatic", and whatever not, but Frisk knew better. Doc was like nobody else she knew, but after all the bad she's seen in many people, Frisk saw it as a good thing. Despite Doc's reputation, he was the only stable adult influence in Frisk's life. In the last three years, he's done for her more than her own parents had in her lifetime. Frisk may not have loving parents, but she had the most adorable little sister and an eccentric scientist best friend, and Frisk wouldn't want it be any other way. Thinking more positive things relaxed Frisk more, to the point she started feeling sleepy. After a brief look at the clock, she put the sewing kit back on its place, looked contently at the mini Frisk shirt before putting it down on her desk, then decided to read a book while she waited. She picked one of the few novels she had, "From the Earth to the Moon" by Jules Verne, which she got as a Christmas present from Doc. As Frisk read in the silence and the dim lighting, her eyes quickly grew heavy and she dozed off, her glasses still on her face and her book on her lap.

A sudden ring made Frisk jump up at once and, turning her head, saw that it was the house phone that she had installed in her room, instead of her alarm clock. It was 12:25 a.m. The teen wasted no time to pick up the phone, not wanting her parents to wake up and then yell at her for allowing people to call her in the middle of the night. As she held the phone, she quickly changed the setting of her alarm clock with her free hand to not make it ring too.

"Hello?" - she said quietly and tiredly.

"Frisk, you didn't fall asleep, did you?" - Doc asked.

"Uh... maybe a little." - Frisk admitted as she rubbed her eyes - "Sorry, I didn't mean to, but I set up my alarm clock, so I-"

"Hey, it's okay, don't fret about it." - Doc told her gently, before moving on to the subject of his call - "Listen, this is very important, I forgot my video camera, could you stop by my place and pick it up on your way to the mall?"

"Of course. I'm on my way, Doc." - Frisk told him with a smile, before hanging up.

The young girl stood up from her bed, put on her worn sneakers, before putting her jacket over her blue and pink striped t-shirt, making her sigh in contentment. It was a bit chilly at nights, so the warm fabric felt nice against her bare arms. She brushed her unevenly cut short brown hair, while having no mirror in her room to check herself in, nor did it really matter. Lastly, she removed her reading glasses and put them in their box, which she then slid in her jacket pocket. After turning off the light, Frisk very quietly sneaked out of her bedroom, just as quietly closing the door behind her. She held her breath to hear if her parents woke up, and after hearing no sound coming from their room besides a faint snoring, Frisk tiptoed downstairs and straight to the front door. Making as little noise as she could with her keys, she walked out of her house, sighing in relief that her sneak-out was a success. She stood no longer than a few seconds on the threshold, hoping that Tina would be alright without her there. As she told herself she probably wouldn't be gone for very long, Frisk started to walk away, in the direction of the mall without forgetting to pass by Doc's house first. Despite the mild cold, the darkness and the silence of the night, Frisk couldn't help but smile just a little. This little adventure was giving her a certain sense of freedom. Frisk felt lighter and happier inside, quickening her pace, excited to see her friend Doc again. She had no idea what experiment she was about to assist to, but she was certainly curious to discover what it was all about.

What Frisk didn't know yet was how life changing said upcoming experiment would be.

Chapter Text

Saturday, October 27th 2018

Frisk, with a small bag containing Doc's video camera hanging on her shoulder and across her upper body, walked at a quick pace to the Twin Pines Mall. She smiled when she saw the digital clock on the big lit signboard showing 1:15 a.m., meaning she was right on time. At this hour of the night, the vast parking lot was lit up but almost completely empty. The only vehicle in sight was a familiar white truck with a large inscription on its sides: "DR. E. BROWN ENTREPRISES - 24 HOUR SCIENTIFIC SERVICE". Right besides the truck, sat patiently Einstein, a big shaggy furred dog. Frisk ran to Doc's companion with a smile and greeted him by petting his head and scratching behind his ear. In retrun, the dog nuzzled and licked her hand, making her giggle. Frisk noticed that Einstein had a LED digital watch attached to his collar.

"Hey Einstein, boy, where's Doc, huh?" - Frisk talked to the dog with a happy, albeit a little tired, tone.

Just as she voiced her question, the truck door suddenly started to open, catching Frisk's attention. Once the door was fully open, a DeLorean slowly drove out of the truck and down the drop-down gate onto the parking lot. Frisk looked at the car with curiosity. DeLoreans were a rarity on the cars market, but also, it appeared that it went through several modifications. She squinted to read the licence plate, which read: "OUTATIME".

Then the driver's door opened and Doctor Brown came out of the car. The man was old, but still full of life and energy. He had big lively brown eyes, and wild white hair that made it look as though he's just been zapped. He was wearing a white radiation suit. Frisk smiled brightly at the sight of her friend and greeted him:

"Hi Doc!"

Doc Brown turned around to his friend and assistant at once, and his own face lit up, obviously glad to see her too.

"Frisk, you made it!" - Doc said joyfully.

"Yeah."

"Welcome to my latest experiment. This is the big one, the one I've been waiting for all my life."

"This sounds promising..." - Frisk commented, realizing just how important it must be for Doc - "So, what's up with the DeLorean?"

"Bear with me, Frisk, all of your questions will be answered." - Doc promised, then instructed - "Roll the tape, we'll proceed."

With a nod, Frisk quickly put her reading glasses on (to make sure she pressed the right buttons on the camera), before taking and turning on the camera. Still, she couldn't help but ask:

"Why are you wearing a radiation suit?"

"Never mind that, never mind that now." - Doc replied in a slightly rushed tone, making the teen move on from her unanswered question.

"Alright, I'm ready." - Frisk said, focusing her camera on Doc.

The scientist wasted no time, instantly proceeding with the introduction for his experiment.

"Good evening, I'm Doctor Emmett Brown. I'm standing in the parking lot of Twin Pines Mall. It's Saturday morning, October 26, 2018, 1:18 a.m. and this is temporal experiment number one."

Doc then turned his attention to his dog, leading him into the car.

"C'mon Einy, boy, get in there. Get down, that's it." - he spoke gently to his pet, who obediently sat in the driver's seat.

Einstein was calm, not minding in the slightest being subjected to a science experiment. He was a smart dog, and in the years he lived with Doc, he was used to it. Frisk used to worry that Einstein felt nervous during experiments, but she calmed down about it after Doc taught her dog body language. Einstein showed no signs of stress whatsoever, and so Frisk wasn't worried. She must've grown used to this as well.

After Doc buckled Einstein in with the seat belt, he held up a LED digital watch of his own right next to Einstein's, speaking for the camera again.

"Please note that Einstein's clock is in complete synchronization with my control watch."

And he was right, as just when he said that, both clocks went from 1:18 to 1:19 in perfect sync.

"Right. Check, Doc." - Frisk said with a nod as she captured the detail with the camera.

"Good. Have a good trip Einstein. Watch your head." - Doc said as he closed the wing door of the DeLorean.

He then stepped back and picked up a remote control unit, just like the ones for radio-controlled toy cars, but bigger. Frisk blinked in mild surprise as she asked:

"You have it hooked up to the car?"

"Watch this."

At those words, Doc sent the DeLorean down to the far end of the parking lot. As Frisk watched his actions, she turned her head, as well as the camera, at Doc out of unspoken curiosity.

"Not me! Not me! The car! The car!" - Doc told her rushedly.

"Sorry." - the word came out instinctively as Frisk turned her focus back at the car.

The car then quickly turned around from the other end of the parking lot. Doc gently took Frisk's wrist and pulled her along to a spot that was in the car's path.

"If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits eighty-eight miles per hour, you're gonna see some serious shit." - he then said with a little smile.

Frisk couldn't help but chuckle. She had no idea how Doc managed to sound serious and casual at the same time, but he did, and she loved it. After his statement, Doc flicked a switch to keep the car in place, then started to push the accelator joystick up, making the car gain speed, as evidenced by the number on the LED speedometer going up. Frisk could hear the tires move faster from the distance. As the number on the speedometer kept going up, Frisk grew nervous and started to slowly move aside, to be out of the car's way when it took off. But then she felt Doc's gaze on her, and saw that he was indeed eyeing her as though he was wordlessly questioning her trust in him, so Frisk moved back closer to him. She trusted Doc, she knew he would never jeopardize her life and safety.

When the car reached the speed of 65 miles per hour, Doc flicked the switch back, making the car dart off its spot, drivng straight in their direction. The speed kept going up. Survival instinct kicking in, Frisk tried to move aside again, but Doc pulled her back, half-whispering hastily:

"Watch this, watch this."

Frisk stood still, but her heart pounded like crazy. Soon enough, the DeLorean reached 88 miles per hour, then got suddenly engulfed by a blinding light. Before Frisk could even process the phenomenon, the car just disappeared right in front of her and Doc, leaving behind trails of fire where the tires were supposed to be. Doc and Frisk felt a blast of air, as they turned around to look at the fading fire trails around them. Frisk looked at the trails wide eyed, trying to process she just saw an entire car vanish from existence. But while she stood dumbfounded, Doc exclaimed in happiness and excitement:

"Ha! What did I tell you?! 88 miles per hour!"

He was jumping in place at this point, but Frisk was barely paying attention to him, looking in pure shock at the spot where the car disappeared. The only thing that was left of it was the lisence plate, lying on the concrete ground. But if the car was gone, then what happened to Einstein?!

"The temporal displacement occurred at exactly 1:20 a.m. and zero seconds!" - Doc went on, visibly sharing none of Frisk's concerns.

"Doc, you... You just disintegrated Einstein?!" - Frisk blurted out, looking as shocked as she did moments ago.

"Calm down, Frisk! I didn't disintegrate anything!" - Doc replied as he started to take some notes in a small notebook - "The molecular structure of both Einstein and the car are completely intact."

"Then where the hell are they?!"

"The appropriate question is, 'When the hell are they?'! You see, Einstein has just become the world's first time-traveler!" - Doc explained excitedly - "I sent him into the future!"

Doc stroke a dramatic pose at his latest sentence, while Frisk's mind went blank.

"One minute into the future, to be exact." - Doc then clarified - "And at precisely 1:21 a.m. and zero seconds, we shall catch up with him and the time machine."

At the words "time machine", Frisk's eyes widened while her brain slowly went back in gear.

"Time machine...?" - she breathed out almost inaudibly, then looked up at Doc - "You actually built a... time machine?"

Doc just nodded eagerly with a big smile, mouthing out a silent "yes", looking excited and amused by Frisk's astounished expression.

"But why a DeLorean?" - Frisk then blurted out, her thoughts still somewhat of a scrambled mess.

"The way I see it, if you're gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style?" - Doc reasoned, then moved to the scientific aspect - "Besides, the stainless steel construction made the flux dispersal-"

His explanation was cut short by the sudden beeping of his watch.

"Look out!" - Doc then exclaimed.

He quickly pulled Frisk away, just as the DeLorean reappeared in a flash of light, barely missing Doc and Frisk on its way. The two watched how the car drove a very short distance before fully stopping. Doc and Frisk were frozen for a second, before exchanging a look, then looking back at the car. The two proceeded to slowly walk towards it, while Frisk made sure to hold up the camera. Despite the shocking revelation, she didn't completely forget why she was here to begin with. She noticed that the DeLorean was now covered in a layer of ice, which was a curious detail. Doc then tried to open the car door, but quickly withdrew his hand and shook it as though he's been burned.

"Frost bite?"- Frisk guessed, looking concerned for her friend.

"Yes... It's damn cold." - Doc replied, before opening the driver's door with his foot, revealing his beloved dog - "Einstein, you little devil!"

With a happy laughter, Doc gave a quick kiss to his dog, then he held up the two digital watches like earlier, which Frisk made sure to record.

"Einstein's clock is exactly one minute behind mine, it's still ticking!"

And it was true, because while Doc's watch showed 1:22, Einstein's showed 1:21. After Doc unbuckled his dog, Einstein ran into the white truck with a bark. As Frisk looked him run, she breathed out in relief:

"He's alright..."

"He's fine, and he's completely unaware that anything happened. As far as he's concerned, the trip was instantaneous. That's why Einstein's watch is exactly one minute behind mine. He skipped over that minute to instantly arrive at this moment in time." - Doc explained, then said with a more excited smile - "Come here, I'll show you how it works."

Doc sat on the driver's seat, and Frisk crouched by his side, focusing the camera on the controls of the car. Now that her mind cleared, she felt her own excitement grow too, along with her interest for Doc's world-changing invention.

"First, you turn the time circuits on." - Doc said as he did just that, then he pointed at three date readouts located to the right of the steering wheel - "This readout tells you where you're going, this one tells you where you are, this one tells you where you were. You input the destination time on this keypad. Say, you wanna see the signing of the Declaration of Independence?"

With these words, Doc typed the numbers on the small keypad, making the destination time readout display "JUL - 04 - 1776".

"Or witness the birth of Christ?" - Doc went on with another example.

After he changed the date on the keypad, the readout displayed "DEC - 25 - 0000".

"But Jesus wasn't born on December 25th... nor in the year zero." - Frisk remarked.

"I know, I meant it hypothetically." - Doc replied with a smile, then added - "But I'm glad to see you studied for your history class."

Frisk smiled and blushed happily at the small praise, which pleased Doc.

"Now, here's a red-letter date in the history of science, November 3rd 2001." - he typed in said date on the keypad, making it go on display, then he paused as though to process it again - "Yes, of course... November 3rd 2001!"

He then laughed to himself at the memory of the date, which picked Frisk's curiosity.

"What happened on that day?"

"That was the day I invented time travel." - he replied with a smile, then shared the story with his young friend - "I remember it vividly. I was standing on the edge of my toilet hanging a clock, the porcelain was wet, I slipped, hit my head on the edge of the sink..."

Frisk winced at the mental image.

"...and when I came to, I had a revelation. A picture in my head. A picture of this." - Doc pointed at a device installed on the back of the car, smiling proudly - "This is what makes time travel possible. The flux capacitor."

Said device looked like a Y shaped set of transparent wires, with yellow lights running through them, the whole encased in a square box.

"Flux capacitor..." - Frisk repeated to herself, looking impressed.

Which she indeed was. She always knew that her best friend was a genius, but he just revealed he invented a time machine, something she thought would forever remain in the world of fiction. He made time travel possible. Frisk looked at Doc with admiration, as this was exactly what she felt for him at that moment.

"Amazing..." - she breathed out, her voice sounding a little dreamy - "No, this is wonderful..! And you, Doc, are incredible."

The look of sheer admiration in Frisk's eyes was admittedly touching, making Doc feel warm inside. Even though he didn't really care what other people in town thought of him, it felt really good to have someone who not only liked and supported him, but also looked up to him this much. And Frisk has always been very admirative of him and his work, since day one. Doc only wished Frisk could see her own potential as well.

"It's taken me almost seventeen years to realize the vision of this day. There have been ups and downs, but in the end I did it, because..." - Doc then paused, before asking - "Can you tell me why, Frisk?"

"...Because you put your mind to it?" - Frisk guessed with a little smile.

"Exactly!" - Doc confirmed - "I'm glad you remember my words."

"Well, you do say it a lot." - Frisk replied with an awkward chuckle - "It's... a good saying."

Doc could tell that Frisk still didn't fully believe in it, or rather didn't believe that his words also applied to her. But Doc would keep telling her this over and over until she finally did. Just like he reminded her this now. He hoped that someday, Frisk would see in herself what he saw in her. Someone who could accomplish great things too. A grain of sand on its way to become a pearl. And Doc was determined to help Frisk shape into a very precious pearl.

"I know." - he then said in response to his friend's earlier statement, standing up from the car seat - "It paid off pretty well, don't you think?"

"It sure as heck did." - Frisk agreed eagerly, then tasked with interest - "Anyways, does the time machine run on regular gasoline?"

"Unfortunately, no. It requires something with a little more kick. Plutonium." - Doc answered.

"Wait, what?" - the teen blinked in surprise, then she tensed - "Hold on the phone... Are you telling me that this sucker's nuclear?"

"Hey, hey, keep rolling, keep rolling there!" - Doc ordered, making Frisk quickly turn the camera back on, then he explained - "No, no, no, this sucker's electrical. But I need a nuclear reaction to generate the one point twenty-one gigawatts of electricity."

"But Doc, you don't just walk into a store and ask for plutonium..." - Frisk said, trying to figure how Doc managed to get a hand on the rare nuclear substance, then she gasped as realization hit her - "You stole it?!"

"Of course." - Doc replied with a hushed tone - "From a group of Libyan Nationalists. They wanted me to build them a bomb, so I took their plutonium and in turn gave them a shoddy bomb casing full of used pinball machine parts!"

While Doc looked amused at how he tricked a group of terrorists, Frisk stood there in shock for a moment, completely baffled. "What the heck, Doc?" - she thought to herself. Sure Doc had his quirks, but stealing plutonium from Libyan terrorists was a new level of craziness. But then again, they wanted him to make a freaking atomic bomb. Thus by stealing the plutonium, Doc saved thousands of innocent lives. This perspective made Frisk feel better.

"Let's get you into a radiation suit." - Doc said, getting her out of her daze - "We must prepare to reload."

Frisk nodded and decided to not dwell on this any further. Doc then gave her a yellow radiation suit, as well as a pair of yellow radiation gauntlets, while putting his own pair on. As Doc watched Frisk put on her radiation suit, he noted how floaty it looked on her. Well, these suits looked a little floaty on anyone, but it did even more so on his thin protege. If he didn't have to do his temporal experiment at night, he'd take Frisk for a bite to the Burger King built right next to his house, like they often did after a successful (or not) experiment. Doc pretty much had the urge to feed Frisk every time she came over, ever since she became his assistant. Though at times, it ended up being the other way around, and it was Frisk who made dinner for him. Doc himself had relied on takeaway foods for years, because he tended to overfocus on his experiments to think about making himself dinner. But Frisk was such a caring and eager to please girl, that at an early stage of their partnership, she started to make him dinner when she was at his place. Although her care really touched Doc, he knew it wasn't right to allow Frisk to feel like she needed to do this for him, like she had to repay him for his kindness. She was his friend. And so, for his young friend's sake, Doc started eating a little healthier and cooking dinner himself more regularily, so he could share it with Frisk (and sometimes little Tina when Frisk brought her along) whenever she came over. Of course, old habits died hard, so he still often got takeaways from the Burger King next door for Frisk and himself, but at least she was fed. And it took Frisk a long while to stop trying to pay him back. Just like she has tried to repay him for the reading glasses he bought her three years ago. But Doc was a persistent man, and eventually, Frisk grew to see that his friendship was free.

And Doc Brown couldn't be prouder to call Frisk his best friend. Frisk's genuine care for him and his work was the reason why she was the only person Doc would ever trust to show his time machine to, despite that he's kept this project secret from her until tonight. But now he couldn't be happier to share the experience, his excitement and his upcoming studies with her. Now, after putting on the flappy breath filtered helmets, they were ready and protected to reload the flux capacitor with a new pellet of plutonium. Frist, Doc twisted and removed the reactor cap on the DeLorean. Then, he opened his big yellow case and, very carefully, took out a transparent container that contained a red vial surrounded by water (to contain some of the radiation), which he just as carefully inserted and rotated into the fuel slot. Frisk stood at a short distance, capturing everything on the camera. When the vial of plutonium got pulled into the fuel slot, Frisk and Doc couldn't help but blench just a little. But everything was going well and after Doc replaced the reactor cap, he removed the helmet, prompting Frisk to do the same as he said:

"Safe now, everything's lead lined."

Frisk breathed out in relief, the tension leaving her body. As Doc put the empty container back into the plutonium case, he instructed:

"Don't you lose those tapes now, we'll need a record."

The girl nodded, while wondering where Doc was planning to go on his time machine.

"Wup, wup! I almost forgot my luggage." - the scientist then said, grabbing his suitcase and putting it in the car boot - "Who knows if they've got cotton underwear in the future. I'm allergic to all synthetics."

"The future?" - Frisk asked - "Is it where you're going?"

"That's right, twenty-five years into the future." - Doc confirmed with a bright smile - "I've always dreamed on seeing the future beyond my years, seeing the progress of mankind."

"Why not." - Frisk said, conceding that it could be an interesting trip.

She still felt a little nervous for her friend. They had no idea what awaited Doc in the future, and she had no way to know how things would be going for him. She almost wished she could go with him, just to not worry about his wellbeing, but she knew he probably wasn't bringing her along to not endanger her safety, and Frisk certainly wouldn't want to get stuck in another time era and leave Tina fend for herself. But in the end, she knew Doc could take care of himself, even in a different time era, so she just hoped his trip would go well and that he'd be back before she knew it. She then thought of something.

"Doc? Look me up... when you get there." - she requested softly, looking shy and vulnerable.

"Indeed, I will." - Doc promised her with a light nod and a gentle smile, before going back to business - "Roll 'em."

Frisk turned the camera back on, while Doc opened the wing door of the DeLorean. After clearing his throat, he spoke for the camera.

"I... Doctor Emmett Brown... am about to embark on a historic journey." - then he paused, realizing something, then laughed at his own absent mindedness - "What have I been thinking of! I almost forgot to bring extra plutonium! How did I even expect to get back; one pellet, one trip? I must be out of my mind!"

Frisk gave him an unamused look, but it was a brief one. At least Doc remembered about the plutonium before departing...

Suddenly, Einstein, who was sitting in the truck, started barking, as though alerting about something.

"What is it, Einy?" - Doc asked, looking at his dog curiously.

Then he looked in the same direction Einstein was looking in, and that's when he saw at a distance a vehicle driving towards the mall parking lot. It didn't take him long to recognize it, and Doc's expression quickly turned into one of fear.

"Oh my God... They found me... I don't know how, but they found me." - he said quietly to himself, before shouting to his friend - "Run for it, Frisk!"

"Who?" - Frisk asked as her body tensed, turning off the camera.

"Who do you think?! The Libyans!" - Doc, who at this point ran closer to his truck, pointed at the approaching van.

Turning around, Frisk saw a blue Volkswagen van, and a man standing through the sunroof holding an AK-47. Frisk's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat.

"Holy crap!" - she cried out.

After the gunner shouted something in a foreign language to the van driver, the vehicle drove faster, while the gunner opened fire at Doc. Frisk hid crouching behind the DeLorean, while Doc barely dodged the bullets that hit the door of his white truck.

"I'll draw their fire!" - Doc then declared.

Frisk watched anxiously as Doc picked up a gun... only to realize with horror that it wasn't loaded. Doc then decided to try outrun the terrorists to the mall, and Frisk, terrified for his life, called out:

"Doc, wait!"

The scientist didn't go far when the van stopped at a short distance from him. There was a pause. Doc looked at the Libyan gunner with a terrified expression, slowly raising his hands and dropping his empty gun on the ground. Then, without a word, the Libyan fired a burst at Doc.

Frisk watched in horror how the bullets mercilessly ripped into Doc's chest, how her best friend then fell inert on the concrete ground.

Doc has just been killed.

He was dead.

"NOOOOOOO!" - Frisk screamed, her voice broken and high-pitched - "BASTARDS!"

As she yelled her insult at Doc's murderers, Frisk jumped up on her feet, revealing herself to the terrorists. As the gunner looked at her, Frisk realized she just made a huge mistake. These terrorists would not leave the witness of their crime alive. So she ran to hide behind the truck, hiding from the next shooting sequence. When the fire stopped, Frisk tried to run off, but the van made a U-turn from behind the truck, making her stop. She knew she couldn't run away, she'd be gunned anyway. Frisk closed her eyes, preparing herself for the upcoming demise. But the shooting didn't come. As the terrorist started to swear at his jammed gun, Frisk realized she still had a chance to get out alive. Wasting no time, she darted off to the DeLorean, practically hopping into it, all while the Libyan cursed at his "damn Russian gun". Frisk sent one last glance in the direction of Doc's lifeless form lying behind the truck, and tears pricked her eyes. "Doc..." Frisk then shook her head and slammed the wing door shut. Now wasn't the time for tears. Doc died trying to save her, so she better make it out alive. She had to survive this for Tina! If she died, there would be nobody to take care of her sister. And so, Frisk turned on the engine, driving away from the terrorists' van as fast as she could. The van chased the DeLorean, with the gunner trying hard to fire at it, but always barely missing the target. While taking sharp turns and zig-zagging to dodge the bullets, Frisk didn't notice how she accidently turned the time circuits on.

"C'mon... move..!" - she muttered as she tried to accelerate some more - "Damn it..!"

The speed started to rise, but then dropped when Frisk had to take another sharp turn. After that turn, she had a bigger space to drive in a straight line, giving her a better range to accelerate. Frisk gave a glance in the inner rear mirror, and her eyes widened when she saw that the gunner was now aiming at her... a freeaking rocket-propelled grenade!

"Holy crap!" - she exclaimed - "Let's see if you bastards can do 90."

With these words, she accelerated like never before, the car taking off further away from the Libyans' van. The enemies were now far behind, as the speedometer kept rising, approaching the 88 miles per hour. Frisk then saw that she was about to crash into a photo booth, so she closed her eyes preparing for the impact.

That's when the flux capacitor behind her emitted a bright glow, a blinding flash taking over the car.

Chapter Text

The flash of light was gone as soon as it came. Frisk opened her eyes and looked baffled to see that the photo booth she was about to crash into was nowhere to be seen. It was as if it's never been there to begin with. But too scared of the Libyans at her tail, Frisk didn't think longer on the matter. She sent a quick glance at the inner rear mirror, and saw that the Libyans' van wasn't in sight either.

"I must've outran them..." - she thought nervously.

But even if she did, she knew she wasn't out of trouble yet. The terrorists saw what she looked like, and what car she drove off in. They could still track her down and kill her, just like they already killed Doc... Frisk felt a lump in her throat at the thought of her dead friend, but tried to focus on the problem at hand. If these bastards went after her, they might as well kill Tina! This perspective terrified Frisk; she couldn't let this happen! The only solution she could think of in the immediate was to flee the town with Tina. Frisk has been involved in a matter concerning stolen plutonium, the police might not believe in her innocence. She didn't want to go to jail, neither could she allow this to happen. Investigation would make authorities find out about the girls' living conditions, and Tina would be put in the foster system, and likely end in a bad foster home! No, Frisk had to take Tina now, ditch the DeLorean, then take the train to San Francisco. Or anywhere else, really, just really far away from Hill Valley.

As Frisk drove back to her neighborhood, she kept glancing in the mirror to check if she was being followed, but to her relief, she wasn't. When she made it home, she stopped her car at a certain distance from her house, before going out, slipping out of her yellow radiation suit which she ditched on the passenger's seat, then ran to her house. Once she made it to the door, she grabbed her keys with shaky hands, and after one unsuccessful attempt to insert it in the key hole, she finally opened the door. But once inside, what she saw left her completely stunned.

The house was completely empty.

None of their furniture or few personal belongings were in sight. Frisk tried to switch on the light to investigate further, but the lights just didn't turn on. It was strange, because Frisk had paid the last electricity bill. Her heart pounding, Frisk ran upstairs, straight to Tina's room, mentally praying that her sister was alright. But when she opened the bedroom door... Tina wasn't there. Nor were her things. There was no bed, no dozens of drawings taped on the walls... It's as though the little girl had never lived here in the first place. Frisk started to panic.

"Tina? Tina?! Where are you?!"

Frisk frantically searched the whole house for any sign of Tina, and even of her parents, of anything that indicated this house was inhabited! But her searches were futile. Frisk entered her own, now completely empty room and fell on her knees, feeling helpless. What the heck happened? Where were their things, where was everyone?! It didn't make any sense... Her family couldn't have just disappeared! Even if her parents ran off and took Tina with them for some reason, the furniture would've been left there! Needing to breathe some fresh air, Frisk shakily walked to her window and opened it, inhaling slowly. The dawn lit up the dark sky, and the neighborhood was still calm and silent. Frisk looked around her, trying to think of a way to find out what the heck was going on. Her gaze then fell on her neighbor's backyard, and she noticed that something about it was different too. Her neighbor loved to grow tomatoes in his backyard, thus he had a vegetable garden there. But now, the garden was plain, without any sign that any vegetables have ever grown here. But it didn't make any sense... The only way for her neighbor's garden to look like this was to be brand new, before its alteration...

Frisk's eyes widened, as an insane thought crossed her mind. But that couldn't be... right? There was only one way to find out. Frisk rushed downstairs, then outside, and after locking the front door again (to not clue its owner in that someone's been in there), she ran back to the DeLorean. As she sat back down in the car, Frisk turned the time circuits on and what the "current time" readout showed made her heart skip a beat.

"NOV - 3 - 2001"

Everything made sense now. So this was why the Libyans were no longer after her. This was why her house was empty, as though nobody's lived there in a very long time. Frisk has time traveled. She went back in time. She was in 2001, at a time period she wasn't even born yet.

"No... I... This cannot be..." - she said to herself as she tried to process the situation - "I have to go back, I have to go back to Tina, I-"

This is when the alarm of the Plutonium Chamber sounded, and a flashing red light of the roentgen meter blinked the word "empty" over and over. Frisk realized that she needed to refuel the time machine with plutonium, if she wanted to go back. One pellet, one trip; that's what Doc had said before he...

Tears filled Frisk's eyes again. She still couldn't believe that her best friend, the one person (besides Tina) she cared for the most, was dead. He's been mercilessly murdered by terrorists, before he could even make his dream to travel across time come true. This wasn't fair, Doc shouldn't have died like this! Tears fell down Frisk's cheeks. She couldn't help it this time, the loss of her friend hurt too much. Gripping onto the steering wheel, she leaned her head against it and just cried for a while, trying her best to suppress her sobs, with mixed results. The scene still haunted her. Frisk could still hear the sound of the gun firing and Doc's scream of pain, and the image of Doc falling lifeless on the groud was just as clear. Frisk couldn't make sense of why this had to happen, why she had to lose her friend like this. What would she do now that he was gone? How would she even explain this to Tina?

The thought of her sister made Frisk slowly wipe away her tears. No matter how much she was heartbroken, she had to work on getting back to her time. She recalled everything Doc had explained to her about how his time machine worked. Basically, she needed to type in her destination time, refuel the time machine with plutonium... It shouldn't be difficult, since she's seen Doc do it, and she still had her radiation suit. But before Frisk reached her hand to pick her yellow bodysuit, she gasped and her eyes widened at a horrific realization. She didn't have any plutonium to refuel the time machine with. The case had been left behind on the Twin Pines Mall parking lot... in 2018!

"No... no, no, no..!" - Frisk started to panic again - "How am I supposed to get back to Tina, if I can't make the time machine work?! Am I... stuck in the past?! But I can't be, Tina needs me! I can't just wait for seventeen years!"

The thought of being stuck in the past made Frisk feel sick in her stomach and she began to hyperventilate, while still trying to keep it together and try to think of something. But coming up with a plan felt impossible, since she would be unable to get plutonium on her own. And Doc wasn't here with her to help, he was dead...

"Wait a minute." - a realization then hit Frisk - "Doc died in 2018... But now I'm in 2001, in the past, which means that here Doc is... still alive!"

Frisk's heart beat faster, this time in happiness. Suddenly, the situation no longer felt desperate, there was still hope! If she went to the younger Doc and explained him the situation, he certainly would be able to help her! Even though he hasn't invented the time machine yet, he was a genius and would be able to come up with some good plan. Granted, he might not believe her at first, but Frisk was certain she could convince him. Doc would send her back to her time, she'd return to Tina... and maybe she could even save Doc? If she warned Doc about the terrorists beforehand, he just might avoid this terrible fate! There was still a chance for everything to be alright again.

The idea that she could still save Doc from death filled Frisk with determination. She felt much better now and with the new resolve, Frisk stood up from the car seat, looked around and saw that the sun was rising. Frist things first, she had to hide the time machine from curious eyes. The teen looked around and saw that there was a spot in the bushes just a litle further away, which would be perfect to hide the DeLorean in. After a few frustrating and unsuccessful attempts at turning on the engine, Frisk finally drove the car a little further in the hiding spot, before turning it off and slamming the wing door shut. Frisk then picked a few dead branches lying around and a few handful of tree leaves, which she used to cover the DeLorean some more. Once Frisk was convinced the car was well hidden, and after one last glance at her future house, she proceeded to walk long the street she didn't live in yet, in the direction of Doc Brown's home.

She wanted to take the same road she usually did, the one that also led to the elementary school, but to her mild annoyance, she saw that this way was closed off due to roadworks. She figured she had no choice but make a detour, then take a different way. It would be longer, as she'd need to pass by the town square. At least, she'd get to see how different the town looked like in 2001.

Frisk walked rather slowly, not wanting to catch anyone's attention. Plus, she admittedly felt tired and her legs were somewhat shaky after everything that happened. And she couldn't help but pause sometimes, to mentally note the smaller changes she saw in her future neighborhood and other familiar places. When Frisk finally made it to the town square, the sun was now higher in the now bright sky. Frisk looked around, taking in the details proving she was indeed in the past. The movie theater displayed different promotional posters. The most noteworthy one was of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". Even though Frisk was far from being a cinema expert, as her family didn't even have a TV at home (let alone a computer and internet), but even she knew that the Harry Potter movies franchise has ended a while ago... in the time era she came from, at least. But in 2001... it was only just starting. "If I went to see it now, I'd have the unique privilege for my generation of seeing this movie at its release in theaters." - she thought with light amusement, before moving on from the movie theater to other things. Another change that caught her eye was the fitness center no longer being one, but a cafe instead. The coffee smell coming from the building made Frisk's stomach growl. Frisk winced at the sensation, but ignored it. She's skipped breakfast before, she could bear it now. Frisk was too afraid to go interact with people from the past, irrationally fearing they'd see through her and identify her as a time traveler. "Don't be stupid, Frisk... Teens in 2000's didn't look THAT different from teens in 2010's." - she scolded herself for her own nervousness - "It's not like I went 100 years back in time!" But still, she knew it was wiser to limit her interactions to the minimum. But when she thought that the cafe might have a phone, Frisk almost considered entering and using it to call Doc beforehand. She made a few steps towards the cafe, but then she stopped. "No, I can't do that. If I call him now to tell him I'm from the future, he'll just think it's a prank call and hang up on me." - she reasoned, as she went to sit down on a bench. It was way better to just tell Doc everything once she made it to his place. Frisk felt somewhat nervous at the thought of meeting Doc's younger self. At this point of time, Doc didn't know her yet, nor could he, as Frisk herself wouldn't be born until a few months later. This was all so crazy to think about...

Suddenly, there was a loud sound that almost made Frisk jump up on her feet. The girl looked up and saw that it was the big clock of the courthouse, chiming as it stroke 9 o'clock, like any normal clock would. Frisk stared at it in awe, hearing the sound of the clock bell for the very first time in her life. It felt a little surreal, and almost magical to witness something that's long been a thing of the past. Maybe going back in time wasn't so awful, after all.

Frisk sat there for a while, feeling too tired to keep walking now. She couldn't risk collapsing on the street. It would've been better if Frisk could have some sleep, but considering her situation, just resting on the bench for some time would have to do. After a while, when Frisk no longer felt like her legs would give in, she stood up and walked in the streets with her goal in mind. She was probably midway to her destination when she made it to some residential area. Suddenly, something made her stop on her way. Screams and curses were coming from a house just a little further away. Frisk discreetely approached it to have a better look, and her heart ached at what she saw. A young girl of around her age, with short spiky brown hair, dressed in a punk style, was violently pushed out of her house by an adult man, who didn't hold back any insults.

"We're not letting a bitch like you live in our house!" - the man yelled.

"No! Please..! Let me stay in, I-I have nowhere else to go!" - the girl tried to plead.

"You should've thought of it before getting laid, you tramp!" - the man responded, throwing the bag of the girl's belongings out, which landed next to her, barely missing her - "Take your things, and don't you DARE to EVER show your face here again!"

Feeling her blood boil in anger for this girl's sake, Frisk rushed up to her side and yelled at her... father? Other caretaker? It didn't matter what their relation was though, either way the man's deeds were unacceptable.

"Hey! Don't you treat her that way! You could've knocked her out!"

The distressed girl looked up at her in shock, surprised to see someone stand up for her.

"Who the hell are you?!" - the man yelled - "Move along, that's none of your business!"

"No matter what she may have done, you can't kick your own kid out of her house!" - Frisk yelled with a dark glare - "You're supposed to take care of her!"

"That bitch is NOT my kid! Thus I don't owe her anything!" - the man spat out with a look of disgust.

He didn't say anything more before slamming the door of his house shut, showcasing that the girl he just kicked out was no longer welcome in this house. Frisk just let out an angry huff, before kneeling down to help the stranger up on her feet.

"Are you okay?" - she asked with concern, giving her a hand.

"I'm nowhere near 'okay'." - the other girl replied, then sighed and took Frisk's hand - "But thank you for trying to help me."

"I couldn't just stand here and watch this jerk mistreat you like he did." - Frisk replied, then looked around - "We should find a more private place to talk."

"There's a bench down the street."

Frisk picked up the stranger's bag, then the two girls walked to the end of the street, where they took a turn to a playground, where stood a bench nearby. Once they sat down, Frisk asked:

"So... if you don't mind me asking, who was that guy and why did he get so mad at you?"

"That was my foster father. My foster parents have always been assholes, just like all the previous ones." - the other girl said bitterly.

Frisk clenched her fists. She knew from her own mother that the foster system was screwed up, and that if you ever ended up there, there were high odds of being put in a bad family, and that siblings usually got separated. That's why Frisk never told the authorities about her home life, because she didn't want to be separated from Tina, and for her sweet little sister to end up in a even worse home than their current one, without her being there to protect her. The mere thought of it just terrified Frisk.

"I... heard pretty bad things about the system." - she said quietly.

"It's just awful." - the stranger confirmed, then sighed - "Granted, I screw up a lot... But I guess the pregnancy test in the trash bin was the last straw, so they lost their shit."

"You're pregnant?" - Frisk breathed out.

"Yeah... I'm three months late, and I guess I should've waited Monday to do the test at school... But they would've found out later anyway."

"I'm so sorry you have to go through that." - Frisk sympathized with the girl in distress.

"Eh... Here I'm dumping all my crap on you, and I don't even know your name." - the other girl said with a humorless chuckle - "So what do they call you?"

"My name's Frisk."

"'Frisk', huh? That's... quite a name."

"My parents must've been very high when they named me." - Frisk responded bitterly, getting an almost concerned look from the stranger, so she moved on from it by asking - "And what's your name?"

"I'm Lola."

As soon as the name was spoken, Frisk's eyes widened, a realization hitting her. This young girl she just defended against an abusive foster family... was actually her mother. The bronze skin tone similar to her own, the short dark brown hair, these blue eyes... Frisk almost wondered how she didn't see it sooner. But in fact, the answer was obvious; this Lola was younger and looked prettier, since drugs didn't take a toll on her looks yet. And she looked distressed and vulnerable, a state Frisk has never seen her mother in. The only moods she's ever seen Lola in were anger, annoyance and apathy. (And euphoric when she was high.) And it was both crazy and upsetting to realize that their current talk was the nicest one Frisk has ever had with her mom. But no matter how surreal the situation felt, here she was, talking to her mother's teenage self, who happened to be pregnant... with Frisk.

"Something wrong?" - Lola asked, noticing the change in Frisk's face and posture.

"N-No, it's... nothing." - Frisk shook her head, trying to keep her composure - "So, um... what are you going to do now?"

"I... don't know... I guess I could go to the shelter for women, the time I figure out what to do next." - Lola said thoughtfully, then she looked at Frisk, her eyes vulnerable - "Could you maybe... come with me? Sorry if I'm asking you too much, I just... don't want to go there alone."

Frisk hesitated. One part of her, the one that was hurt and angry at her mother for having been so uncaring to her and Tina for her entire life, wanted to just cut their interaction short then and there, to walk away and let Lola go to the shelter by herself. But her naturally caring side just couldn't bear the idea of abandoning another girl in need, when she was in such a bad situation. In the future, Lola might be her neglectful and overall terrible mother, but here and now, she was just a teen like herself, looking so vulnerable at such a simple request... Frisk believed in helping these in need, and she wouldn't brush off her own principles out of a grudge for something that this Lola hasn't even done yet. And, no matter how hard it was to admit, in other circumstances... they might've been friends.

"Okay. I'll take you to the shelter." - Frisk replied with a nod.

"Thank you, Frisk." - Lola replied.

These were simple words, but Frisk felt so strange to hear these from her mom. Her parents have never thanked her for anything she's done. "Why can't my mom be more like this in my time?" - she thought to herself sadly. But she tried her best to conceal her negative feelings, to not make Lola suspicious.

The two girls slowly walked in the direction of the shelter, which to Frisk's unconvenience, was the opposite way of where she was originally going. At first, they walked in silence. Frisk was thinking of the situation Lola was in, and she had to admit it was crazy to think of the fact that Lola was currently pregnant with her. But this also made her wonder if her father already knew about her.

"Does your boyfriend know about the baby?" - she asked.

"N-No, I haven't told Eric yet." - Lola sighed - "I'm not even sure if I should."

"How so, 'you're not sure'?" - Frisk suddenly stopped on her tracks.

"Well, I don't want to dump this responsability on him. I don't know if he even wants to be a father." - Lola explained - "It wouldn't be fair to force him to do something he doesn't want to."

"And what about the baby?!" - Frisk then exclaimed - "It's not just about you, Lola, or about Eric, it's about your child! You may have not planned it, but it happened, and you guys must act responsibly!"

"I-I know, but-"

"Look, whether you want it or not, you're gonna be a mother. So act like one! Now your duty is to put your child first."

Frisk then realized she might've been too intense, but she couldn't help it. There were years of frustration behind her words. As for Lola, she was looking at Frisk with wide eyes and unshed tears. Frisk was about to apologize for snapping like this, but then Lola surprised her by saying:

"You're... You're right. I must think of what's best for my baby."

"I got a little carried away here though... Sorry." - Frisk replied quietly, averting her gaze.

"No, it's okay. I think I needed to hear that." - Lola said, smiling sadly.

The two resumed their walk to the shelter. After a while, they finally made it, and once Frisk helped an upset Lola to explain her situation to the owner of the place, Lola got assigned a small room, where Frisk accompanied her to help her settle and unpack her things. When everything was done, Lola then looked at Frisk and said, sounding genuinely grateful:

"Thank you for all your help, Frisk."

"...You're welcome." - was all her future daughter managed to respond to this - "Look, I... gotta go. Will you be fine by yourself?"

"I will. I'm used to being alone, so no big deal." - Lola tried to sound neutral on the second part, but Frisk could tell she was putting up a front - "Will I get to see you around?"

"You might see me later. Much later..." - Frisk muttered the last part more to herself.

She awkwardly waved her hand and walked out of the room, then out of the women's shelter. Once out, she almost ran away, feeling stressed after the encounter with her own mother's younger self. Frisk felt so many mixed emotions inside, and she had a real urge to see Doc after this. As her legs got a little shaky again, she slowed her pace, but her resolve to find Doc was just as strong. She stopped thinking about her mom and focused on the thought of saving her best friend from his future death. But this part would have to wait just a little bit; Frisk couldn't dump this on him right away, not until Doc came up with a way to send her back.

Finally, she made it to the familiar garage-turned-house, not really looking any different from how it did in 2018. The area was pretty much the same as how Frisk knew it. Her stomach growled again when she smelled the scent of fried food coming from the Burger King nextdoor. What she wouldn't give for some chicken nuggets and a juice... But she immediately chased the thought of food away. Her hunger could wait, she had a much more important problem on hand. She slowly walked to Doc's house, her heart beating faster in nervousness. How would Doc react to her and to time travel?

"Here goes nothing." - Frisk thought to herself as she stood in front of the door. Taking a deep breath, she knocked. She waited for a few moments until the door opened, and Frisk's heart fluttered happily at the sight of the familiar face.

"Doc?"

Chapter Text

Saturday, November 3rd 2001

Hill Valley, California

Frisk looked at the younger version of her best friend who just opened the door. Doc didn't look much different from his future self, but his face was obviously smoother, and his hair was blond rather than silver white. His eyes, however, were the same; brown, vivid and curious. There was a bandage on his forehead, covering a fresh bruise. Doc was also wearing a strange device on his head, a sort of a helmet with a geodesic framework, composed of smaller cylindrical devices pointed at his head, all of them connected by electric wires. Frisk guessed Doc was testing a new invention of his, which was nothing unusual, so the sight didn't catch her off guard in the slightest. Frisk also felt a strong desire to hug him, happy to see him after having seen him die, but she kept her impulse under control, as she knew that for this Doc, she was a complete stranger. So she decided to start by introducing herself:

"Good evening. My name is-"

"Don't say a word." - Doc cut her off.

After a quick glance around, he pulled Frisk inside, closing the door behind them. Frisk tried to talk to him, but Doc didn't let her, while removing a suction cup, connected to some machine, from his dog's head. Freed from his test subject role, the small dog just trotted off somewhere.

"I don't want to know your name, I don't want to know anything about you." - said Doc.

"Listen, Doc-" - Frisk tried to speak again.

"Quiet." - the scientist cut her off again.

"Doc, please, I-"

"Don't tell me anything!" - Doc instructed her, a little impatiently.

"Doc, you gotta help me-"

"Quiet." - Doc instructed one last time, sticking the suction cup on Frisk's forehead.

Said suction cup was connected to the same machine Doc's strange helmet was, and Frisk briefly wondered what this invention was designed for.

"I'm gonna read your thoughts." - Doc informed her, answering her unspoken question, and after he flicked a few switches, he gave it a first try - "Let's see now... you've come here... from a great distance?"

"Yes, exactly!"

"Don't tell me." - Doc shushed her again - "Uh... you are selling movie theater annual subscriptions?"

"No!"

"Not a word, not a word, not a word now!" - Doc waved his arm urgently to emphatisize his order - "Quiet. Uh... donations! You want me to make a donation to the Single Moms Support program!"

"Doc..." - Frisk let out a sigh, removing the suction cup from her forehead, then she got to the point, telling him the incredible truth carefully, yet confidently, never breaking eye contact - "I'm from the future. I came here in a time machine that you invented. Now, I need your help to get back to the year 2018."

"My God..." - Doc shook his head as he looked at Frisk with a somewhat dazed look on his face, then he walked closer to her, grabbing her shoulders - "Do you know what this means?"

Frisk looked at him intensely, hopeful and relieved that Doc believed her. But her hope got instantly shattered, when a frustrated Doc exclaimed:

"It means that this damn thing doesn't work at all!"

Removing his helmet, Doc went back to his worktable, intending to recalibrate his invention, while Frisk rushed after him. Doc was the only one who could help her get back to her time, to Tina, so Frisk pleaded with him:

"Please, Doc, you gotta help me. You're the only one who knows how your time machine works."

"Time machine..?" - Doc said in a half-whisper, instinctively touching the bandaged bruise on his head - "I haven't invented any time machine..."

"Not yet. But you will." - Frisk told him gently, wanting to reassure him after his frustration about his mind-reading device not working, then she got an idea and pulled her wallet out of her pocket and showed him her identity card - "Okay, look at my ID card. Look at my birthday, I won't be born until next June!"

"You may as well have gotten a fake card. Teens do that a lot nowadays." - Doc replied, not looking impressed.

Frisk put her ID card back in her wallet and pullet out something else instead. It was a photo of herself and Tina, taken two years prior, after the Christmas choral Tina took part in with other kids from her school. Tina was wearing a custom jumper ordered by the choral leader, with a printed logo written in a nice holiday font.

"Now look at this picture. It's my little sister Tina and me. Look at her jumper, Doc. It says "Hill Valley Elementary Choral 2016"." - said Frisk as she showed him the photo.

"Pretty mediocre photographic fakery. Your sister blends into the background." - Doc replied after a glance, shaking his head.

"Doc, please, I'm telling the truth!" - Frisk pleaded with a desperate sigh - "You gotta believe me!"

"So tell me, Future Girl." - Doc said, sounding like he was humoring her - "Who's president of the United States in 2018?"

That was when Frisk almost felt like she was screwed. Because if she told Doc who was president in 2018... no way he'd believe her after that. Frisk was about to give him a honest answer, preparing herself for the blow, until she realized... she didn't have to.

"Doc, I'm from the future, not from the past." - she told him, her tone calm and patient - "No matter what I answer, you'll have no way to check if I'm telling the truth or making things up."

"Huh, you're a clever one, aren't you?" - Doc said, raising an eyebrow, almost looking impressed - "But not clever enough, I'm afraid. So far, you've got nothing to back up your story."

"But I-"

"Look, I've had enough of your practical jokes, good evening Future Girl. The door's that way!" - Doc pointed at the door behind Frisk - "Now excuse me, I have actual work to do, and you go prank someone else."

"I know how you got the bruise on your heead!" - Frisk then blurted out.

Doc stopped all movement at once, while Frisk felt a little stupid for not having thought of this sooner. She made a step towards Doc, who still had his back turned to her, and retold him the same story his future self told her just a few hours ago (from her perspective).

"You were standing on your toilet, and you were hanging a clock. You fell and you hit your head on the sink. That's when you came up with the idea for the Flux Capacitor... which makes time travel possible."

With each Frisk's word spoken, Doc's body tensed some more, and when she finished telling the story that he experienced himself earlier that day, Doc turned around to face her, his eyes open wide in shock. There was no way for Frisk to know this, unless...

"How do you know this?" - Doc breathed out.

"You told me this story yourself." - Frisk replied, looking in his eyes, hopeful that he believed her now - "Or rather... the future you will."

"And why would I tell you about this?"

"Because in the future, you and I are best friends." - Frisk gave him a shy, yet gentle smile.

There was a silent pause for a moment. Doc tried to process what this girl just told him. Her story sounded unbelievable, and yet... the only way this girl would know the story behind his bruise and about the Flux Capacitor was if she was telling him the truth. That she indeed was from the future. Deciding he should give Future Girl a chance, he asked her:

"Where is the time machine?"

Frisk's face lit up, happy she was getting through Doc, and so she explained.

"I couldn't drive around in a time machine, or I'd catch people's attention. So I hid it near my future house, at the end of Ebott Avenue."

"That makes sense..." - Doc said, nodding thoughtfully - "We'll have to wait for the sun to set. Then you'll show me."

"It's a good plan." - Frisk nodded in response.

Doc looked at the young girl for a moment. She acted so level-headed and serious, nothing like a young prankster Doc first thought her to be would. Doc then realized that he still didn't know the girl's name.

"What's your name, kid?" - he asked, speaking gentlier than he ever did since her arrival.

"My name is Frisk." - the girl smiled more, this simple question visibly making her happy.

"Frisk..." - Doc repeated to himself, taking in the name of the girl who'd apparently be his friend in the future.

He still had some trouble wrapping his mind around everything Frisk just told him. Apparently, he invented a time machine in the future (which he still needed to see for himself), and it looked like he and Frisk were pretty close, considering he'd show her an invention of such great importance. Could it really be?

"Is everything alright?" - Frisk then asked with concern, as Doc wasn't saying anything for a minute - "I... I know it's a lot to take in."

"It's just that... It's a little surprising that I'll have a teenage girl for best friend in the future." - replied Doc.

"Are you bothered by the "teenage" part, or by the "girl" part?" - Frisk asked almost teasingly.

"I'm not "bothered" by either, I more meant that it's unusual for kids your age to hang out with... people like me." - Doc clarified.

"You and I are both social outcasts of a sort." - Frisk briefly looked down, before looking back at Doc more joyfully - "But I just really love what you do and I enjoy your company, because you're a very nice and fun person to be around."

Doc felt a little warm inside at her words, not having heard anyone compliment him in a long time, though felt a little concerned about Frisk saying she was a "social outcast" herself. He didn't have time to question it further though, as his little dog showed up again and started sniffling the guest curiously.

"I don't think I know this little one." - Frisk said with a smile, kneeling down and gently petting the pup's head, before asking Doc - "What's his name?"

"His name is Copernicus."

"Copernicus... A clever name for a clever dog." - Frisk complimented the dog, looking happier and more relaxed, pets seemingly having a positive effect on her.

And Frisk seemed to have a positive effect on Copernicus too, as he started to wag his tail like crazy, then licking her, eliciting a light giggle from Frisk. Doc felt good seeing Copernicus act so friendly towards Frisk, because even though Doc could tell by himself this girl was honest and had no ill intentions, it was nice to get a confirmation from his dog.

Soon enough, when Doc saw that the sun started to slowly set, he asked Frisk to show him the way to the time machine. When she sat in his car, she told him the street name again and warned him that the direct road was closed. It took them a few minutes to make it to their destination, just when only twilight lit up the otherwise dark sky. Frisk led him to behind some bushes and proceeded to remove the dead branches she used to cover the modified car, which turned out to be a DeLorean. Doc examined it with the help of a flashlight and he could tell why Frisk didn't dare to drive around in it in the daylight. Not only DeLoreans were rare nowadays, but the modifications would definitely prompt questions from people, especially from cops. Before Frisk had the chance to open the door to show him the inside, Doc decided to show her the schematic diagram he drew earlier that day.

"After I fell off my toilet... I drew this."

Frisk squinted her eyes a little, pointing the flashlight at the drawing, instantly recognizing the drawn object, even though it was upside down.

"The Flux Capacitor." - she said with a knowing look.

She then opened the passenger's wing door and turned the real Flux Capacitor on. Energy was running through it with a crackling sound. Doc looked at it astounished, then he fell on his knees and his whole face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"It works..." - he said overjoyed, then he laughed happily and shouted - "IT WORKS!"

Doc then turned to face Frisk, the living proof of his future scientific breakthrough, and he just couldn't help it; he stood up and happily twirled her around. Frisk let out a small startled gasp, and Doc instantly put her down, while still holding on to her shoulders.

"I finally invent something that works!" - he exclaimed with delight.

"Of course it works. You made it." - Frisk told him with a gentle smile of her own.

Even in the darkness, Doc could see the look of pure faith in her eyes, and just like her compliment earlier, it touched him. When was the last time someone believed in him this much? Doc didn't even know her, but she apparently knew him well, and here she was, fully believing he could help her despite that he technically didn't invent time travel yet. But he would in the future, which he had evidence of.

"Now we gotta sneak this back into my laboratory." - he said glancing briefly at the DeLorean, then looked into Frisk's eyes and said with resolve - "We've gotta get you home!"

...

Doc and Frisk sneaked the DeLorean back into the scientist's home without any trouble. After Doc checked the car over once more in a properly lit room, Frisk decided to show him the tape of himself and the temporal experiment, thinking it might help him understand the functioning of his future invention. Doc was surprised to see how small and light the video camera was, as the ones currently on the market were usually bigger and heavier, not to mention that this one didn't record videos on actual physical tapes. Frisk told him that photography and video recording became mostly numerized in her time, which fascinated Doc. Once Frisk turned on the video she recorded before she time traveled, the camera screen displayed the older Doc saying:

"Never mind that, never mind that now."

"Why that's me! Look at me, I'm an old man!" - Doc exclaimed with excitement at the view of his future self, then added with relief - "Thank God I still got my hair."

Frisk couldn't help but chuckle at this, thinking that his comment about his hair was cute.

"Why am I wearing a radiation suit though?" - Doc then asked her.

"Bear with me, Doc. All of your questions will be answered." - Frisk said with a smirk, mimicking what Doc told her on the parking lot.

But she then instantly felt sad, realizing that this younger Doc wouldn't get her reference. Deciding to focus on the important matter instead, she fast forwarded to the part about the Flux Capacitor and what it took to time travel.

"Okay, this is it, Doc." - she said, handing him the camera.

"No, no, no, this sucker's electrical. But I need a nuclear reaction to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity..."

"What did I just say?" - Doc asked, looking pretty alert.

Frisk replayed the explanation.

"No, no, no, this sucker's electrical. But I need a nuclear reaction to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity that I need..."

"One point twenty-one gigawatts?!" - Doc exclaimed, this time looking horrified - "One point twenty-one gigawatts..! Great Scott!"

Panicking, he rushed to the bedroom section of his house. Confused of what freaked out Doc this much, Frisk rushed after him. She hoped this wasn't too bad...

"What's the matter, Doc?" - she asked him, as she saw him pace around in the room - "Is there a problem?"

"How could I be so careless? One point twenty-one gigawatts!" - Doc spoke to himself, ignoring Frisk's questions, then he picked Edison's portrait hanging on the wall, and spoke desperately - "Tom, how am I gonna generate that kind of power? It can't be done, it can't!"

"Doc, look, all we need is a little plutonium." - Frisk said, hoping this would reassure him.

But it didn't.

"I'm sure that in 2018, plutonium is available at every corner drug store..." - Doc said sarcastically, while Frisk bit her lip (since this was not the case at all) - "...but in 2001, it's a little hard to come by. Frisk, I'm sorry, but I'm afraid you're stuck here."

"Stuck here?" - Frisk's eyes widened and her face went pale - "But... But I can't be stuck here! I have a life in 2018! I... I have my sister!"

Frisk started to tremble at the thought of Tina being left all alone with their parents, with nobody else there to take care of her. Who would feed her, buy her new clothes? Who would help her to do her homework, to prepare her for tests? Who'd read her bedtime stories? Who'd make her Halloween costumes to not make her excluded from her classmates? Who'd get her Christmas presents?

"Doc, I... I have to go back to my time..! Tina needs me, if I'm not there to take care of her... n-nobody will..! I'm the only one who does, and if I stay here, Tina will be all alone out there, and... and..." - Frisk looked at Doc with teary eyes and begged - "Doc, please... you're my only hope. There must be something you can do."

Doc's expression grew more sympathetic, Frisk's distress having clearly touched him, but he still looked sorry.

"Frisk, I'm... I'm sorry about the situation with your sister..." - he said gently and apologetically - "But the only power source capable of generating 1.21 gigawatts of electricity is a bolt of lightning."

The last three words instantly rang a bell in Frisk's memory.

"W-What did you say?"

"A bolt of lightning." - Doc repeated - "Unfortunately, you never know when or where it's ever gonna strike."

Frisk's brain immediately went in gear, remembering how after school this old lady told her the story about how a lightning struck the clock of the courthouse, fully stopping it. She said it was seventeen years ago, but when was it exactly? Frisk's hand went into her pocket at once and pulled out the flyer she completely forgot about until now. After unfolding it, she read it and her face lit up. She then handed the flyer to Doc, smiling a little:

"We do now."

Doc picked the paper and soon his own face lit up too, the passionate twinkle returning to his brown eyes.

"This is it!" - he exclaimed - "It says here that the bolt of lightning is gonna strike the clock tower at precisely 10:04 p.m. next Saturday night!"

Frisk smiled as she watched how Doc started thinking out loud about what he could try to do. She certainly liked it better to see Doc excitedly brainstorm ideas instead of sinking into despair.

"If we could somehow... harness this bolt of lightning... channel it into the Flux Capacitor... it just might work."

As Doc excitedly voiced his idea, this filled Frisk with hope again. She knew it, she knew Doc would have an idea if given the proper clue!

"Next Saturday night, we're sending you back... to the future!" - Doc declared as he struck a dramatic pose, pointing his finger in front of him, as though to emphasise the "future" part.

"Yes! Yes, that's perfect! You're... You're amazing, Doc!" - Frisk praised him, Doc's excitement visibly being contagious.

"Now, I still need to come up with the actual plan." - Doc reminded her.

"I know you'll come up with a plan in no time." - Frisk said confidently, never stopping smiling.

Her words once again made Doc feel good inside. Her trust and faith in him was genuine, so pure... Doc saw the twinkle of admiration in Frisk's big brown eyes, and he couldn't deny he felt flattered. For so many years, nobody in Hill Valley took him or his work seriously, called him crazy behind his back, and usually didn't even bother to try to know him better before making up their mind about him. But Frisk... she was different. She admired his work, she believed in his inventing abilities, and she genuinely liked him. Oddly enough, the idea of having a true friend felt about as surreal as time travel did hours ago. But it was real, and since this young girl put all her faith into him, Doc didn't want to disappoint her.

"Let's get into work then." - he told her with a nod and a small smile.

The first thing Doc did was to give the time machine a thorough examination, to understand better how it functioned on a more technical level. He was amazed by the prowess his future self would accomplish someday, with how perfectly everything was put together. Building a time machine into a car made perfect sense to him, though he wondered why he picked a DeLorean specifically. Frisk happily gave him the answer.

"You said it was to do it with style." - she said with a chuckle - "It also had something to do with the stainless steel body and the flux dispersal, but you had no time to explain it further, as that's when the DeLorean reappeared after its time hop. It's all on the video."

"That's alright, I think I know what my future self had in mind..." - Doc said with a thoughtful nod.

"See? It proves you're the one who invented this thing." - Frisk joked.

Doc smiled a little at this, then went on with his examination. The most important part for him to look into was the Flux Capacitor, especially the plutonium chamber in the reactor. This was where, according to Frisk, pellets of plutonium were inserted to fuel the time machine, which meant that this was where Doc would have to somehow channel the bolt of lightning. After carefully studying this part of the time machine, Doc started to see clearer of how he could do what he had in mind. The structure of the fuel slot was perfect for this, with very little (if any) alterations necessary.

"This is it. I know how to do it. Now I need to make calculations, to set up the-"

Doc stopped mid-sentence as when he turned around to face Frisk, he saw that the young girl fell asleep. The position she was sleeping in was an uncomfortable one, as she was sitting on a chair, leaning against his worktable, one arm going limp long her body.

"Frisk?" - Doc called gently.

But Frisk didn't respond to her name, her soft breathing being the only sound she emitted. When Doc gave her a brief gentle nudge on her shoulder, she barely even moved in reaction. "Poor kid..." - Doc thought to himself with a sigh, realizing how exhausted she must be. He had no idea for how long she's been in 2001 before finding him, but it must've been hours, and judging by the video she showed him, the time travel occured sometime before 2 a.m. for her. Not to mention all the stress it certainly put her through. Frisk definitely needed proper rest after this.

Doc carefully picked Frisk up bridal style, with minimal reaction from her besides subtly snuggling closer to him, he carried her into his bedroom section and laid her down on his bed. Doc himself wouldn't get much sleep that night anyway, so he didn't need the bed as much as Frisk did. He carefully removed her shoes which he placed by the bed feet, then covered her with a blanket. In her sleep, Frisk snuggled into the pillow, indicating she was comfortable. Doc looked at her sleeping form for another minute, thoughtful and concerned. Without her coat on, he saw how thin she was. Doc had already somewhat noticed how light she felt when he spun her around earlier, though didn't think much of it in his excitement. But when Doc carried Frisk to the bed, he felt she weighed less than a girl her age should. Doc thought back to what Frisk told him in distress when he told her she was stuck in 2001. Apparently, Frisk was the only one who took care of her little sister, which made Doc wonder what was the situation with their parents. Did they not take care of their children? Were they even still around? Frisk hasn't mentioned them once ever since she arrived, which meant they either weren't alive, or... they just weren't missed. If it was the latter, then it explained her thin frame, her worn clothes... and it made better sense why Frisk always looked at Doc with such adoration. The poor kid was in a desperate need of adult guidance, and she found it in him. Was he the right person to fill such role though? Doc wasn't sure, but Frisk thought he was, and he found himself wanting to not let her down.

Copernicus trotted into the room, then jumped on the bed and laid down next to the sleeping Frisk. Doc smiled and gave his dog a pat on his head, saying quietly:

"You watch over her, Copernicus."

The dog just yawned and laid his head down. Doc decided to leave the two sleep, then walked back into the working section of his home. He wanted to start making his calculations. But curiosity got picked and he decided to look through the things of his future self. He saw the suitcase in the car trunk earlier, so he picked it up and opened it. It looked like he was originally meant to time travel and had prepared himself for such journey, but somehow it was Frisk who time traveled instead under mysterious circumstances. Doc wondered how things happened the way they did, and he had been tempted to ask this to Frisk earlier, but he had restrained himself from doing so. Doc knew he shouldn't know too much about his future, to not disrupt the natural flow of events, to preserve the space-time continuum. Knowing too much was too dangerous, so the only right thing to do was to just help Frisk return to 2018. But watching the video (which he planned to do later) or looking through his future self's personal belongings shouldn't be too bad. The future him certainly wouldn't mind.

When Doc opened the suitcase, he saw that it didn't contain much. It was just a normal set of necessities for any type of trip, including a hair dryer and a few spare underpants. Doc was pleased to see they were made of cotton, glad that humanity didn't switch to disposable paper garnaments like he (for some unknown reason) assumed they would by 2020. Then, Doc saw something shine under the pile of clothing, which he instantly picked up. When he saw what it was, he paused for a minute to contemplate it. It was a framed photograph of himself and Frisk. He himself looked pretty much the same as in the video, while Frisk looked younger than she did now (by roughly two years, Doc estimated). They both looked happy, although Frisk's smile seemed a little shy. Doc then looked in the direction of his bedroom where Frisk slept, still holding on to the frame tightly. If his older self was planning to take this photo on his trip to keep it near, it could only mean one thing: in the future, Frisk would mean to him just as much as he meant to her. As he finally put the photo back into the suitcase, Doc's resolve to help Frisk grew stronger than ever. No matter how hard the task might turn out to be, he could not allow himself to fail. 

Chapter Text

Sunday, November 4th 2001

When Frisk woke up in the morning, the first thing she saw was a fluffy dog lying by her side, the dog certainly not being Einstein. "Copernicus..." - Frisk remembered, and the previous day events all came back to her. She accidently went back in time, and now she had to stay in 2001 for a week until next Saturday, when the bolt of lightning would hit the courthouse clock. As Frisk was thinking, she was slowly petting Copernicus, which helped her to stay calm.

"Oh, you're awake." - said a familiar voice.

Frisk turned her head, seeing Doc looking at her from a distance. She noticed that his blackboard was all written over by complex calculations and formulas. Doc must've been working on his plan to harness the bolt of lightning, and likely for quite some time.

"Morning, Doc..." - Frisk said as she slowly sat up on the bed - "What time is it?"

"It's five past eleven." - Doc answered after a brief glance at his clock.

"I slept for this long?" - Frisk gasped in surprise.

"Well, considering what you went through yesterday, I'm not surprised." - Doc replied with a shrug - "You needed the rest."

"I guess..."

Frisk then winced in pain and her hands went to her stomach. Seeing this, Doc quickly walked up to her and sat on the bed.

"Does something hurt?" - he asked with concern.

"It's nothing..." - Frisk tried to dismiss his worry with a light hiss - "Just stomach pain..."

"I wouldn't call it 'nothing'." - Doc remarked with a frown.

"I'm fine. I just... kinda skipped dinner yesterday, as well as lunch... and breakfast..."

Frisk's expression grew more embarrassed with each new statement.

"Great Scott..." - Doc breathed out, a look of disbelief on his face - "Are you telling me you haven't eaten anything for a whole day?"

Frisk didn't say anything and just averted her gaze under Doc's intense one. Doc immediately stood up and put on a coat. After he picked some medicine from a cabinet and filled a glass with water, he handed it to her, saying:

"Take this, it should ease the pain. I'll be right back."

Saying no more, Doc stormed out of the house, leaving Frisk alone with Copernicus. Frisk gave the dog a brief look, before swallowing the medicine. Drinking plain water with an empty stomach felt pretty unpleasant, but she had no choice but to bear it. The teen lied in bed in a fetal position for a few minutes, while gently petting Copernicus' head, until she felt the ache fade away. Frisk then stood up and made Doc's bed, smoothing down the covers. Copernicus was just watching her all the time.

"Let me guess, you don't see your owner do his bed often, right?" - Frisk then joked, remembering how messy and distracted Doc could be sometimes.

The dog obviously couldn't respond anything to her words, he just kept staring. Suddenly, Copernicus turned his head towards the door, then ran to it, just before it opened and Doc walked into the house... holding a Burger King bag. He looked at Frisk, up and seemingly feeling better than earlier, then put the bag of fast food on the table, saying:

"Come here, Frisk, I got you some food. I know it's not the ideal thing to feed you with now, but it was the fastest option."

Frisk almost teared up at the simple, yet kind gesture. It was so much a thing the Doc she knew in her time would do...

"That's okay, Doc." - Frisk said with a smile, as she walked up to the table - "I'm so hungry that I'd gladly eat anything."

"You should be more careful, you know." - Doc told her as he took a crispy chicken salad out of the paper bag and handed it to Frisk - "You should've told me last night you were hungry."

"I just thought we had a more important problem on hand." - Frisk told him - "And I sort of just forgot about my hunger."

"Frisk, really..." - Doc shook his head - "Do you do this often?"

"I..." - Frisk looked down - "I'll let you judge after you meet me in the future."

Realizing that talking about this might feel uncomfortable for Frisk, and not wanting to put her on the defensive, Doc decided to let go. He would make sure she ate well during her stay in 2001 though. The two ate their Burger King meals almost silently for a while. Then, after glancing at the blackboard, Frisk decided to ask Doc about his progress in making his plan to send her back to the future.

"I see you've done a lot of work while I slept... Did you figure out a plan?"

"In the matter of fact, I did!" - Doc said with a nod - "I found the perfect way to harness and channel the bolt of lightning."

"That's awesome, Doc!"- Frisk's eyes lit up - "You're always so fast at coming up with ideas."

"Well... I had to. We can't have you be stuck in the past, right?" - Doc said with modesty - "So now I need to make material preparations. Today I'll go to the store to buy a few electric cables and other parts."

"Can I come with you?" - Frisk offered - "I'd like to help you in any way I can."

"Frisk, as much as I'd like you to come with me, that's out of the question." - Doc said very seriously - "You must not leave this house. You must not see anybody or talk to anybody. Anything you do could have serious repercussions on future events."

Frisk's face went pale at Doc's words. She almost forgot how she ran across her mother the previous day! (Her mind likely wanted to block out the incident due to it having been upsetting for Frisk.) The chat they've had wasn't exactly small or casual, and Frisk had even walked Lola to the shelter! Could it already have altered the timeline? What kind of consequences should she expect?

Doc, noticing Frisk's look on her face, realized his warning might've came too late.

"Frisk." - he said, looking into the girl's eyes - "You interacted with anybody else yesterday, besides me?"

"I... I met my mother." - Frisk said quietly and fearfully.

"Great Scott..!" - Doc exclaimed, looking very alarmed - "Let me see that photograph again of your sister!"

Frisk instantly went to her coat to find her wallet, then pulled out the photo she's shown Doc the other day. Doc instantly grabbed it and his eyes widened when he got the confirmation of his suspicions, and Frisk's heart hit her stomach when she saw it too.

"Just as I thought, this proves my theory. Look at your sister!" - Doc said, pointing at Tina.

"She's transparent..." - Frisk breathed out.

Indeed, Tina was. The photo looked mostly normal, except that the background could be seen through Tina. Frisk could even see her own arm wrapped around her sister behind her back.

"It's like she's fading away." - she remarked.

"Fading... from existence." - Doc confirmed in a half-whisper.

The two exchanged a very worried glance, before Frisk started to panic.

"No... No, no, this cannot be! It... It doesn't make sense! My parents are already together, and my mom's even pregnant with me!"

"They might be together now, but they can still break up later." - Doc reasoned.

"But why would they?! They never broke up despite how screwed up our family is!" - Frisk exclaimed - "So now you're saying they won't stay together, and that Tina won't be born, all because I talked to my mother once?!"

"Your interaction with your mother likely had some sort of influence on her future choices." - Doc explained - "Try to remember what you talked about with her. What did you tell her?"

Frisk thought back to her encounter with Lola and she retold the events to Doc. How she defended Lola against her abusive foster father, how they talked on the bench about the system, and how it was Lola's name that clued Frisk in to who she's been chatting with. How Lola requested her to walk her to the shelter for the time being to figure out what to do about Eric and the baby. How Frisk... lost her temper.

"Her words came off as selfish, so it kind of stroke a nerve, and I... I just lost it and told her she needs to... act like a mother and put her child first." - Frisk then put her head in her hands, feeling awful at the realization her words had such a huge impact on the future - "Oh gosh... She must've taken it more seriously than I thought, maybe she considers to break up with my father for my sake... And now... Tina won't be born because of me."

"Tina hasn't fully faded from the photograph yet, so we still have a chance to fix this." - Doc told her - "If it's your words that convinced your mother of something, you should be able to make her change her mind. Tomorrow is Monday, you could pay her visit at school and convince her to tell your father about you. The baby you, I mean."

Although Doc's suggestion was reasonable, for Frisk it was easier said than done. Frisk just had no idea how to communicate with either of her parents, she didn't know what kind of advice would get through them. Nothing she ever said did. The only time Frisk has ever confronted her mother on her uncaring behaviour was when she was twelve. She had threatened to call the CPS on her parents when they left their Euphoria pills on the table and a three years old Tina almost ate them, mistaking them for candy. Frisk had challenged her mother to finally start acting like one, but a pissed-off Lola had only scared her by telling her how bad the foster system was, which made Frisk sink into despair. From then on, Frisk feared the CPS like plague, and she lost all hope that she and Tina would ever get out of their so-called home. Frisk had never tried to confront her parents since the incident, figuring she simply didn't have the power to knock some good sense into them.

"Me, convincing my mother?" - Frisk let out a nervous laugh as she looked up at Doc through unshed tears - "My parents never listen to me, yesterday was a first. The only time my mother has actually listened to me ended up being horribly dangerous!"

Doc could tell by Frisk's near hysteria and the way she spoke about her parents that the issue was really serious and that their parent-child relationship was more problematic than he could imagine. But he stayed calm for Frisk's sake.

"I don't know what your parents are like, Frisk. But odds are that the people they are today aren't the same as the ones you know." - Doc told her - "You said it yourself, your mother has no family of her own, and you are the girl who helped her at a tough time. So if there's anyone she'll listen to in her current situation, it's you."

Frisk figured Doc might have a point. It's true that in her time, she couldn't get through her parents, who were far too gone in their drug addiction. But here in 2001, Lola took Frisk's rant to heart, subverting all of her expectations. Besides, Frisk couldn't just give up, she had to preserve Tina's existence. It was her own fault Tina was fading from existence, so it was her duty to fix this. And Frisk couldn't bear the idea of a life where her sister didn't exist, nor would she ever forgive herself if Tina ended up never being born because of her.

"I have to fix this... and I will." - Frisk said, some of her inborn determination making it back to her voice, though she still sounded shaken.

"You have time until tomorrow to figure out what you can say to your mother." - Doc told her, trying to sound reassuring despite his own worry - "How about you think this all through while I'm gone to the store?"

"Sounds fine..." - Frisk nodded, still on edge of tears.

Doc wished he could comfort Frisk somehow, but he just didn't know what to say. The situation was dreadful, and he couldn't lie by saying everything would be fine. Because there was still a chance it wouldn't be, that the parents just didn't get back together despite Frisk's best efforts. But that certainly wasn't something Frisk needed to hear from him, she clearly already knew this and felt bad enough. The best thing they could do was to wait until tomorrow and see how the events play out, then adapt from there.

"We'll figure it out, Frisk." - Doc ended up saying, giving her a gentle, although a little awkward, squeeze on her shoulder.

The girl didn't say anything and just nodded again. Doc could tell that Frisk wasn't okay, and he didn't want to leave her all by herself right then, but he really needed to go buy what was needed for his plan. The sooner he started to work on it, the better, as they only had a week until the fateful storm. He would talk with Frisk after his return. After Doc told Frisk he'd be back in an hour or two, he left the house, and so Frisk was left alone with Copernicus. The small dog looked up at Frisk and, sensing her distress, started whining sadly. Not wanting to make Copernicus sad too, Frisk told him gently through a sad smile, wiping away a single tear that ran down her cheek:

"Everything's gonna be alright, Copernicus."

The pup probably wasn't convinced, but he still stopped whining, likely to not make Frisk even sadder. Frisk sat down on Doc's bed and tried to collect her thoughts. So, her saying that Lola needed to put the baby first might've made Lola question her relationship with Eric. This meant that Frisk would need to convince Lola that staying with Eric and letting him know about her pregnancy was the best for their child. Which was a complete lie. Frisk knew it too well first-hand. Before Tina was born, Frisk had sometimes wished she's been adopted by a kind and loving family, where she'd be happy like her classmates. But after Tina entered the picture, Frisk no longer had such thoughts, because the love she felt for her sister made all pains and sorrow she endured in their house worth it. Frisk swore, after holding a six months Tina in her arms, that she'd always protect her. And despite her occasional not-so-exemplary behaviors (like stealing or getting into fights), Frisk did everything in her power to be a good big sister. But now that Tina was fading from the photograph... Frisk no longer believed she was. "I'm an awful big sister..." - she thought to herself, tears filling her eyes again - "I promised myself to protect her and give her a happy life, and instead I jeopardized her existence!"

As tears started running down her cheeks, Frisk mentally reprimanded herself. "Come on, Frisk, don't be a baby!" - she thought angrily at herself - "You're supposed to be strong! Be strong for Tina!" But she couldn't keep it together and when Copernicus walked to her again, Frisk lost it and she held the dog in a tight hug as she cried her eyes out. "What can I even do..? How can I tell my mother to stay wih my father?" - she wondered as tears kept coming - "I'm supposed to tell her lies just for Tina to exist... I'm not that good at lying, what if I can't convince her? Then I'll lose Tina, just like I already lost Doc..." Well, Doc still had a chance to survive, as Frisk just needed the right moment to tell him about the terrorists, but even then it wasn't certain if he'd escape his fate. The mere idea that she might lose the two people she loved the most forever terrified her. "I can't lose them, I just can't!" Copernicus started nuzzling Frisk in an attempt to comfort her, which she greatly appreciated despite that tears just kept coming.

Progressively, her crying subsided, and Frisk started thinking more clearly, despite her lack of confidence in her plan. "I'll start by telling I came to check on her, then I'll ask what her further plans are. If she says she wants to break up, I'll advise her to reconsider, to give it a chance with her boyfriend. If she listens, they just might stay together like they did before my interferance, despite all the toxicity in their relationship..." Frisk never really asked herself the question, having grown apathetic to her parents' life (just like they were to hers and Tina's), but why did they even stay together for seventeen years? They've never shown any sort of affection towards each other, they barely even talked together when they were both at home, unless it was to complain about something. Frisk guessed the only times they might act more like a couple was when they were high on Euphoria. So, were the drugs really what kept them together for so many years? But the 2001 Lola seemed to be clean, she looked fine. "Something must've attracted them in each other... Something other than drugs." - Frisk mused. She'd need to figure out more about their relationship while she talked to Lola. It should give her a better clue on the right words to say.

Frisk's tears stopped by now, but she didn't let go of Copernicus. She's often hugged Einstein in her time when she was too upset about something, and it usually helped her to feel better. Even though Copernicus wasn't Einstein and was much smaller than him, his presence was just as comforting. Frisk briefly tightened the hug just a little more and kissed his head to thank him. Frisk had no idea how much she's been thinking and sitting with Copernicus in her arms, her emotional turmoil making her lose all track of time. But when Copernicus ran to the door wagging his tail, Frisk almost felt disappointed until realizing this meant Doc was back. And it turned out to be true, as the door soon opened and Doc entered carrying a few plastic bags. Wiping the tear stains off her face, Frisk walked up to him, and asked:

"Did you find everything you need?"

"Yes, I did!"- Doc confirmed, taking the bought material out of the bags - "So I shall proceed-"

He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Frisk's face. The reddened eyes and the inflated nose told him everything about how she's been doing while he was gone.

"You've been crying." - he stated, his voice soft.

"I'm fine now." - Frisk replied, averting her gaze.

"No, you're not." - Doc shook his head, then put his hands on Frisk's shoulders, making her look at him - "Look, I know the situation got more... complicated, and I understand why you're scared. I would be too. But everything's not lost yet, okay?"

"I'm just... I'm just not sure my mother will listen." - Frisk said with a sniffle - "And I'm afraid to lose Tina."

"I know... But listen." - Doc knelt down some, to be more at Frisk's level, then said gently - "Making someone change their mind isn't always an easy task. But if you put your mind to it, you-"

"...can accomplish anything." - Frisk finished for him, finally smiling a little.

"Looks like you've heard it a lot?" - Doc guessed.

"More times than I can count." - Frisk chuckled, blinking away some unshed tears - "Thank you, Doc."

She then did something that Doc didn't expect. She hugged him, burying her face into his chest. Doc froze in place, not used to that kind of physical contact, not having had any with anyone in many years (except with his dog). Frisk, sensing how tense Doc was in her embrace, started pulling away.

"I-I'm sorry. I should've asked if it's okay..." - she apologized.

"It's okay. I don't mind." - Doc told her, finally returning the embrace, stroking her brown hair a little.

Frisk smiled, happy to finally share a hug with her friend again, and Doc relaxed as well, realizing that it actually felt really nice. After a little while, they parted away and Frisk seemed to feel a little better. Doc then remembered something that might cheer her up.

"Now, while I was gone to the stores, I got something for you as well." - he said with a smile and handed her one of the bags.

Frisk looked into it and saw that these were new clothes. She instantly took them out of the bag to give them a better look and her face lit up. There was a pair of blue jeans, a red sweatshirt with a single salmon stripe, a couple of other shirts and a set of PJs. The fabric of the red sweatshirt felt so soft and nice, so Frisk couldn't help but smile. Doc was pleased to see that this time her smile made it to her eyes.

"Doc, you didn't have to... but thank you." - Frisk told him.

"You're welcome. I figured you'd need some spare outfits during your stay here." - Doc replied - "And maybe I didn't have to, but I wanted to. Even when the shop girl gave me an odd look for looking up girls' clothes."

Frisk couldn't help but giggle at this, the mental image being admittedly amusing. As for Doc, he was glad to see Frisk laugh.

"You feel better now?" - he asked.

"I do." - Frisk replied with a smile - "I mean, I'm still very worried about Tina, but... I'll do my best to fix things."

"I know you will. Now, I shall start working on the pole and hook meant to capture the lightning into the Flux Capacitor. Would you like to help me build it?"

"Gladly!" - Frisk's eyes lit up more.

And so, the two spent the day building the pole and hook until dinner time. Helping Doc to build something helped Frisk to relax about her problem on hand, and it felt just as good as like the times she's helped the Doc from her time. "I just hope this project won't be our last..." - she thought to herself. But she pushed the grim thought away for the moment. She'd try to tell him about his death the next day, after she talked with Lola. Doc didn't deserve to have so many problems dumped on him at once. He was visibly very happy to know he'd invent a fully working time machine and make a huge scientific breakthrough in the future, so Frisk wanted to give him that for now.

...

Monday, November 5th 2001

The next day, dressed in her new sweatshirt and jeans, Frisk was standing in front of the Hill Valley High School. Doc stood by her side, waiting with her. They had decided that the best moment to approach Lola was at the end of the school day, so Frisk would have all the time she needed to have a calm long talk with her future mother. Frisk fidgeted nervously while waiting for the school bell to ring. Even though she knew how to start her conversation with Lola, she couldn't predict where it would go later. Plus, Frisk didn't feel comfortable to chat semi-casually with her mother, as they've never done so in her time. But Tina's existence was at stake, so Frisk was ready to bear the awkwardness and her own conflicted feelings for her mom.

"You're too tense, Frisk. Try to relax." - Doc advised her gently.

Frisk didn't say anything, but she nodded in response, then took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

Finally, the school bell rang.

Chapter Text

Monday, November 5th 2001

After the school bell rang, students started to progressively exit the building, the crowd getting bigger and bigger. Frisk and Doc stood on the front yard so they could spot Lola when she walked out more easily. After a while, Frisk finally saw her future mother and discreetely pointed at her for Doc to see.

"That's her." - she said without any enthousiasm.

As Doc looked at Lola from the distance, he noted that the two girls looked a lot alike. They had the same skin tone, short brown hair, and even many common facial features. The biggest difference was the eye color; Frisk's eyes being brown, while Lola's were blue. If Doc didn't know the incredible truth, he could easily believe them to be sisters.

"I can see the resemblance." - Doc said with a light nod.

"Which doesn't go beyond looks." - Frisk replied in a mutter, crossing her arms, making Doc think he might've said something he shouldn't have, despite that he meant it as a compliment.

"Now, go talk to her." - he instructed her - "Remember, you must convince her that telling your father about you is the right choice to make."

"I can't believe I'm doing this..." - Frisk sighed heavily - "Here I am, about to force two toxic people together, just so I can ensure Tina's existence."

"'Toxic'?" - Doc frowned in confusion - "Is their touch poisonous or something? Is this some dangerous disease in the future?"

Frisk almost smiled at this, amused by Doc's very literal understanding of the slang.

"No, Doc. It means they're bad people who negatively affect others' mental health... mostly mine." - she explained.

"...Oh." - Doc paused, now looking concerned.

"Anyways, I'm going talk to her."

There was no point in delaying the difficult part, not to mention that this morning Tina grew just a little more transparent than the day before. As much as Frisk hated what she had to do, her little sister's life was at stake. After taking a deep breath, Frisk called after Lola, walking to her at a fast pace. Doc stayed at a distance, but still followed discreetely.

"Hey, Lola!"

Lola stopped on her track and turned her head in her direction. She was surprised to see Frisk there, and despite her inner distress, she found herself smiling just a little.

"Hi, Frisk." - Lola greeted her - "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on you." - Frisk told her - "You know, I've been thinking a lot about you and our encounter. How are you doing by yourself?"

"Honestly? Not great." - Lola replied - "It's not been easy to avoid Eric. I'm not so sure it would be a good idea to tell him about... the baby."

Lola said the last two words in a whisper, clearly out of fear that anyone would hear them. Frisk gave a quick glance behind her, seeing Doc at a distance. She did her best to tell him by subtle signs to stop following them, gesturing to his car with her head, then making a discreet dismissing hand wave. Luckily for her, Doc undeerstood the message and went back to his car to wait for Frisk to return. Doing her best to act normal, Frisk asked:

"Why so? Is he bad guy?"

"N-No! Eric is a great guy!" - Lola defended her boyfriend, then paused - "He's an amazing boyfriend, though he does have... one serious flaw."

Lola then paused, biting her lip, as though unsure if she should be talking about this. Frisk understood Lola's hesitation, so she offered her gently:

"How about we sit down here."

She gestured towards the nearest bench. Lola nodded slowly, then the two girls sat down. After she was certain there weren't many passers-by who could hear them, Lola decided to confide her concerns. She's never been that open with people she barely knew, but Frisk has really helped her two days ago, more than anyone else would have. For some odd reason, she didn't feel threatened to talk about these things with her. Maybe it was because the way Frisk has defended her against her foster father reminded her of how her oldest brother Alex used to protect her from their abusive birth parents years ago, before they've been separated by the system and spread all across California. Chasing these memories away, Lola started to explain her problem.

"The thing is... my boyfriend, he has a... a d-drug addiction." - Lola said quietly, quickly glancing around to see if anyone's heard her - "He takes Euphoria."

Frisk has obviously already guessed, before being told, what was the problem Lola was worried about. It looked like Lola hasn't yet lost herself in drugs though, so it confirmed Frisk's earlier guess that something other than the Euphoria pills brought her parents closer. In a way, this made Frisk's task to convince Lola more difficult, considering she'd have to force this young girl into a choice that would doom her to a life of drug addiction...

"That... can certainly be a problem for your future kid... or yourself, for that matter." - Frisk told Lola looking down.

"It is. I thought about it yesterday and realized it couldn't be good for my baby to have a drug addict for a father." - Lola said, looking genuinely concerned - "So maybe... it would be best to just... not tell Eric about my pregnancy? I could try to raise the kid by myself, or..."

Lola paused. Her latest statement was said very unconfidently, as the odds for her doing a good job as a single mom were very low and she knew it.

"D-Don't make any rushed decisions, okay? I mean, Eric can't be that bad, right?" - Frisk tried to encourage Lola in the opposite direction, inwardly beating herself for doing so - "Sure there's a reason why you like him and think he's a good boyfriend."

"He's amazing. With him around, I feel happier than I've ever felt in my life." - Lola said with a shy smile and a light blush - "Eric makes me laugh, and he has a very nice smile."

Lola's eyes were shining at this point and it felt surreal for Frisk to see her mom as a smitten teenager, having never seen her parents act romantically with each other in her life. She now had a proof that her parents have been in love with each other for real at some point in their life.

"He always remembers things that are important to me... like my birthday!" - Lola went on - "Eric was the first person in years to remember my birthday, which was so sweet of him."

"I wish he could also remember mine or Tina's." - Frisk thought bitterly. Neither of her parents have remembered the girls' birthdays even once. They've never got them presents or cake, nor did they simply wish them a happy birthday in the morning. Frisk knew she shouldn't expect anything from people who can't even keep track of the week days, but it still hurt. And now, it hurt even more to find out that her parents were capable of remembering these things, but just didn't bother in her time.

Thanksfully, Lola didn't notice Frisk's sorrowful look as she kept talking about how awesome Eric was.

"He even crafted me a gift himself!" - she said with a smile, then showed off the bracelet on her hand, which had a wooden badger charm on it - "He carved the charm himself. I didn't think he'd also remember I like badgers."

"Eric likes crafting?" - Frisk asked with surprise.

"Yeah, he's freaking good at wood carving! And very creative."

Never had Frisk thought that her father loved to craft things, just like she did. It felt strange to find out that her own love for crafting came from her father, that they had a common interest. For the very first time, Frisk felt a scrap of connection to her father. She has never seen Eric craft anything at home either. (Not that he spent that much time at home to begin with.) Frisk couldn't help but wonder if under different circumstances, she and her father could've been crafting nice things together, if he'd be teaching her his carving techniques... But this dream scenario could never be reality. The (harsh) reality was that her father was absent and uncaring, and Frisk has already found another person she worked on cool projects with; Doc Brown.

"Your boyfriend sounds awesome." - Frisk said, doing her best to not sound sad.

"He really is." - Lola nodded - "Eric never judges me for my mistakes and he always listens to my problems. He's been a great support when my foster parents... were being assholes. Eric has even offered to kill them for me once. Of course I said no, but it felt good to know he'd stand up for me."

"...He sounds like a supportive and protective guy." - Frisk remarked - "These are good traits for a father."

"Yeah... I guess you have a point."

"So... How about you try to talk to Eric about the situation. Looks like he's the type of guy who'd understand."

This time, Frisk almost didn't feel like she was lying to Lola's face. From what Lola just told her, the younger Eric seemed to be a rather cool boy to hang around, not taking the drug problem into account. And originally, before Frisk time traveled and altered the natural flow of events, Eric did stay with Lola after she told him about her pregnancy (even though their marriage apparently didn't stay loving for very long).

"...Maybe." - Lola said hesitantly, then looked at Frisk with that same vulnerable look in her eyes as two days ago - "But what if Eric gets angry at me? What if he... stops loving me?"

In that moment, Frisk's heart ached for Lola, as she could relate to the feeling too well. Before Tina's birth, Frisk has been so alone and unloved, and she was afraid to ever feel that way again. And now she was under the threat for this to happen. If she didn't save Tina and Doc, she'd return to a 2018 where her loved ones wouldn't be in her life... So when Lola expressed her fear to be unloved by her boyfriend, Frisk could only feel sympathy for her future mother.

"I know the feeling... the fear to lose a loved one." - Frisk said with a sad smile - "But here's a situation when you'll have to put your fears aside."

"So, you really think that telling Eric would be the best chance for the baby? For us all?" - Lola asked, clearly seeking for a friend's confirmation.

Frisk felt uneasy at her question, because a lie would be the only answer she was allowed to give in this situation. She decided to answer through a different approach.

"It's a Schrödinger's Cat case here." - Frisk started, and as Lola frowned in confusion, Frisk realized Doc's nerdy nature has rubbed off on her - "It's a theoritical thought saying that if you lock a cat in a box with something that can kill him, you won't know if he's dead or alive until you open that box. As long as you don't, the cat can be considered as both."

"I... see..?" - Lola said, clearly not quite getting the point.

"Just like with the cat, you won't know if Eric's good or bad father material until you actually talk to him." - Frisk explained - "Now you can see him as both. But don't you want to know for sure?"

"That makes sense..." - Lola said thoughtfully.

"So don't be scared to 'open the box', Lola. And honestly... the sooner you do, the higher are odds the cat's still alive."

"You're likely right. Thanks, Frisk." - Lola smiled again, although a bit weakly - "I gotta go back to the shelter. Shall we meet here again for a chat on Wednesday after school? But no pressure, that's only if you want to."

"Yes, I'd like to. Wednesday's perfect." - Frisk smiled and nodded eagerly - "Hopefully, you'll have some good news by then."

"No promises."

The two girls then stood up from the bench and went in opposite directions. Lola shyly waved her hand one last time to Frisk, who surprisingly waved back more happily and less awkwardly than the previous time.

Frisk made it to Doc's car and sat down on the front passenger's seat, letting out a sigh, releasing her tension. Doc couldn't tell by Frisk's expression if things went well or not, though the absent look in the girl's eyes concerned him.

"How did it go?" - he asked her.

"Not bad, I think. I nudged her in the right direction." - Frisk told him - "I'll see her again in two days. She'll tell me what then."

"I hope your mother will change her mind by then." - Doc said as he turned on the engine.

"Yeah, I hope so too..." - Frisk replied distantly, leaning against the car window.

The ride back to Doc's home was pretty silent, and Doc noticed that Frisk didn't seem alright. Of course, it was normal for her to feel down and nervous considering her situation, but even then, Frisk looked bluer than she's been before her talk with Lola. Doc decided to wait until they were home before asking her about it. It would be his chance to ask about the concerning things he picked up from what little Frisk said about her home life.

When they made it back to Doc's home and entered the house, Doc saw that Frisk still looked sad. Even though Doc was well too used to silence in his home, he realized he actually now liked more to hear the sound of Frisk's soft voice. Doc had to admit he's already grown fond of her talkative demeanor, and thus seeing Frisk being so withdrawn and silent felt somewhat wrong. But Doc had a nasty feeling that this kind of behavior might actually be Frisk's default mode, and he had a nastier idea as of why.

When Copernicus ran up to them wagging his tail, letting out small excited barks, Frisk knelt down and gave a few pats on his head. She smiled at the dog, but her smile was weary.

"Frisk, there's something I've been wanting to ask you." - Doc started.

Frisk looked at him and she wondered if he'd ask her about the circumstances of her arrival in 2001. She's been hoping he'd ask this first, so she could tell him about the terrorists and his death with a little more ease.

"What is it, Doc?" - she asked softly.

But the question Doc then asked her wasn't the one Frisk has been expecting.

"Are your parents treating you well in your time?"

"Oh..."

Frisk looked down, disappointed that Doc didn't ask about the fateful night, but also a little unprepared to talk about her home life with the younger Doc. It wasn't that she minded telling him about these things, but she felt like she's already burdened him enough with her problems and she didn't want him to worry about her even more.

"It... doesn't really matter how they treat me, Doc." - Frisk shook her head - "In my time, you know my situation well and you've already helped me a lot."

"Frisk, it does matter. I'd rather know now." - Doc said seriously, yet gently - "Because whatever will happen in the future, it clearly causes you distress whenever you must talk to your mother now."

"It does..." - Frisk admitted with a sigh - "But I already dumped so much on you, and-"

Doc gently put his hands on her shoulders, making her stop.

"Frisk. Didn't you say you and I are best friends?" - Doc asked, making Frisk nod - "And isn't a best friend's duty to help the other? I only want to help you feel better. I'd like to know what happened during your talk with your mother that saddens you so much now."

The young girl felt touched to see that this Doc, despite yet lacking the history of three years of friendship, was being just as caring to her as the Doc she knew in her time has always been. Not that it surprised Frisk, as the two versions of Doc were the same person, it just felt really good to still have her best friend by her side despite this crazy situation. Frisk realized she didn't mind telling Doc about her home life in the slightest. She's already opened up to him in her time, so there was no reason not to here and now. Frisk knew first hand that Doc would understand.

"...You're right." - she finally said - "As you probably already guessed, my parents don't treat me and Tina well. They... They never hit us or anything like that. But... they don't take care of us. They never make sure we have food on the table, nor do they ever get us new clothes, and they even less pay the bills. And the reason they barely ever pay for anything is because they... they waste what little money we have on... d-drugs."

"Great Scott..." - Doc breathed out, looking shocked.

The situation was worse than Doc first imagined. He had guessed that Frisk was a victim of child neglect (thanksfully not of abuse), but drugs? This was another level of gravity. This explained so much, like why Frisk was so malnourished, why her clothes were so worn out, why she spoke bitterly about her parents... but most of all, why she behaved more like an adult than a kid her age.

"I'm the only one to take care of all these things and make sure Tina does well at school..." - Frisk went on - "That's why I panicked when you said I was stuck in here. Because if I d-disappear, nobody will take care of Tina. Our parents wouldn't care to try..."

Frisk then sniffled, tears prickling her eyes. Thinking about this started to hurt again, especially after her talk with Lola and the things she found out from her.

"And this is also why I... kinda lashed out at my mom the other day." - she explained - "It hurt that she and my father never put me and Tina first. They only care about getting high."

"Oh, Frisk... I'm so sorry you had to go through that." - Doc said, instantly pulling her into a hug - "Now I understand how hard it must be for you to talk to your mother."

"It's so very hard." - Frisk confirmed with nod, trying to hold back her tears, though not very successfully - "I've h-hated my parents for so long, and n-now I see my mom being this scared and n-nice girl, and I no longer k-know how to feel about her..."

"Humans are very complex beings. They can be good, bad and anything in between. And sometimes, drug addiction can bring out the worst in people. Maybe your parents used to have more good than bad in them, but then drugs reversed the ratio. But that's not an excuse for how they treated you and your sister. You deserve better, Frisk."

"Thanks, Doc..." - Frisk wiped away her tears - "I just... wish my parents could be more like the people they are now. I found out my father likes crafting, just like I do. He makes gifts for my mom's birthday and all... And my mother, she said 'thank you' more times than she did in my time..."

Doc felt sad for Frisk and tightened his embrace just a little. His young friend didn't deserve to go through such turmoil. Her parents should've been more loving and caring, they should've made better choices. If not the dangers of disrupting space-time continuum, Doc would go find Frisk's parents and knock some sense into them. But he couldn't do that, all for the sake to minimally alter the timeline, and besides, these two wouldn't take him seriously anyway. Doc couldn't alter the past, but what he could do was to help and support Frisk. Judging by how much she liked to hug him, Doc could tell that his future self did a good job at making her feel safe around him. Just because he didn't live up to their years long friendship yet didn't mean he would stop doing so. After all, they now were friends in time.

"I know that I cannot do much about your parents..." - Doc gently pulled away from the hug, but kept his hands on Frisk's shoulders, looking into her eyes - "...but remember you can talk to me whenever your mother makes you feel upset."

"I will. And like I said, you've already done so much for me and Tina in my time." - Frisk said with a smile - "You made my life much more enjoyable."

"Well, I'm glad." - Doc said, smiling on his turn, then ruffled Frisk's hair a little.

The contact made Frisk smile more, which Doc was pleased to see.

"Now, how about I make us some old good comforting home dish?" - he then suggested, his tone getting more upbeat.

Doc walked into his small kitchen and Frisk followed him. After Doc checked his fridge, he asked his friend:

"What do you say about shepherd's pie?"

"I love shepherd's pie." - Frisk said with a bright smile - "Do you want me to help you make it?"

"No, you get some rest. I'll take care of dinner."

"Are you sure? You already gave up your bed for me... and you've been working long hours on the plan to send me back home. Sure you'd like to enjoy your bed for a little hour?"

"You should already know that I don't feel tired when I work on something exciting!" - Doc remarked, smiling brightly and his eyes twinkling with unspent energy - "And it's just a bed, I don't mind you borrowing it. I'll have all the time to enjoy it after you make it back to the future."

"Still, I'd like to make you dinner one of these days." - Frisk replied - "I like cooking for you."

"Well then, I'm looking forward to taste your cooking. I bet it's amazing." - Doc said, meaning it one-hundred-percent - "But today's not the day. My mind's already set up to make you dinner tonight, so it's not up to debate!"

"Alright, I don't feel like arguing with your genius mind." - Frisk said with a happy giggle.

Hearing Frisk's light laughter was like music to Doc's ears; he was happy to see the cheerier and more playful side of his friend again. As Doc started making the shepherd's pie, he wondered how he's lived so many years without having anyone's laughter fill the air in his small house. Sure, he liked Copernicus' barks, but Frisk's happy voice was something else entirely. That wasn't the only thing Doc liked about his friend though; she was a great helper and mature for her age, she was very kind and she liked dogs as much as he did. (Doc was especially glad that Frisk and Copernicus got along so well.) And Frisk was also a potentially great cook, which was a very nice bonus point! What did he do to deserve a friend like her? It was probably the only question Doc didn't mind not having an answer to.

As Frisk stood next to her friend and watched him handle the ingredients, she couldn't help but think she should tell him about his future. Her heart pounding, she spoke up, her voice a little hesitant.

"Um, Doc?"

"Hm? What is it, Frisk?" - Doc asked, sounding as though he's been pulled out of his thoughts, then turned his attention to her.

As Frisk looked at Doc, she could tell he was currently in a very peaceful state of mind. She really needed to tell him about his terrible fate so she could change it, but she couldn't bring herself to ruin his mood. He's just listened her talk about her bad home life and comforted her, there was no need to freak him out more with talks about his future death. So instead of telling him about it, Frisk said:

"...Thank you for everything you do for me."

"That's what friends are for, isn't it?" - Doc replied her with a smile.

Frisk only nodded in response. She knew she still had five entire days to tell Doc about the terrorists, but she also knew she shouldn't wait for too long. The sooner she told him, the better. She wouldn't see Lola until Wednesday, and thus she'd spend the entire next day in Doc's house. It would be the perfect opportunity to have this talk with Doc. "Yes, I'll tell him everything tomorrow." - Frisk told herself with resolve.

Chapter Text

Tuesday, November 6th 2001

It was early morning in Hill Valley, the sun yet nowhere to be seen in the sky. Frisk was sound asleep in Doc's bed, with Copernicus lying by her feet, "guarding" her like instructed by his owner. But as of Doc himself, he's been awake for a while now, likely because there were too many things on his mind. The scientist tried to fall asleep again, but he then figured his thoughts would just keep him up, so he quietly stood up and folded back the bed. Copernicus, hearing his owner up, raised his head to look at him, then he jumped off the bed and trotted up to Doc, wagging his tail a little.

"Now, it's early, Copernicus. Go back to sleep." - Doc told him in a whisper - "Don't make noise, or you'll wake up Frisk."

As though understanding Doc's words, Copernicus soon settled down on the dog bed nearby, while still staring at his scientist owner. In the early morning silence, Doc walked up to the DeLorean and just stood there looking at it thoughtfully for a while. It still felt somewhat surreal to look at the time machine or work on it, to have his own future invention at hand's reach. He tried not to mess with the time circuits and other added components too much, to not influe on his future decisions when he'd be actually building it all from scratch. He wasn't even supposed to know how his time machine would look like, but since fate gave him some information anyway, he had to handle it wisely. He already knew more than he should, and yet knowing what he did made him happy. Like that photo of himself and Frisk, his future best friend. Doc has wondered a few things about it. What was the occasion for snapping this picture of them together? The photo was framed, did it mean he normally had it hanging on the wall somewhere? Did Frisk have a copy too? All tempting questions to ask, but Doc knew better than doing so. He wanted this moment to come naturally, for it be a surprise. If Doc knew beforehand, it would lose its charm and any possible emotional meaning. Doc wanted to snap this picture because he felt like it in the moment, not because he was "supposed to".

The same principle applied to any other knowledge, like how the time circuits were built, or how he met Frisk. The latter was something Doc was the most curious about, but which he knew he could not ask about. If he was told beforehand, there would be a risk for it to not happen at all, because replicating events was a tricky task. No, it was better for Doc to just meet Frisk the way fate originally wanted him to without any prior knowledge that this would happen. Otherwise, their meeting would no longer be special. And Doc wanted to preserve the quality of his friendship with Frisk as much as possible.

Doc briefly glanced in the direction of his bedroom, where he could see the sleeping form of his friend under the covers. He then walked to one of his tables, where he set up a town model to visually demonstrate his plan to Frisk when she woke up. He's been working on this model for two nights, and now it finally looked satisfying enough. The model was off-scale and it was bland due to the lack of colors, but it would do to make his explanation clear. Doc really hoped that his plan to send Frisk back to the future would work like he pictured it to. If everything went according to plan... Doc would see the car disappear from the main street of the town square and thus witness time travel for the first time. Then, after living to the night when Frisk would return home safely, he would finally be able to experience time travel himself. He'd take the time machine and travel to a future beyond his years, see all the progress mankind would make. He'd start small, going perhaps twenty years or so into the future, just to test the waters, and then he could expand the horizons by visiting the 22nd century... Heck, maybe even the 30th century, if the forecast about the humanity's fate was positive enough! Doc was thrilled by the idea to discover future inventions, all the scientific progress, the evolution of popular ideologies... And if the future was a safe era to travel to (as he dared to hope so), he could even bring Frisk along and show it to her. Time travelling with a good friend should be more fun than doing it alone!

But that wouldn't happen until seventeen years later. Doc yet had to actually invent his time machine! The wait would be long, but there was quite a lot of work to do until the big day. Doc then glanced at the video camera lying on another table. He still didn't get the chance to watch that video fully. Doc really wanted to get a little sneak peek of this future he had to wait for seventeen years. This desire didn't align well with his resolve to not know anything substantial about his future. But Doc reasoned that the video of his temporal experiment was just that, a recording of an experiment. If it was anything like the video or audio recordings he had for habit to do for any of his experiments, it wouldn't contain much of personal information. As long as the video didn't touch upon personal aspects of his future life, watching it shouldn't do any harm. Doc then took the camera, turned it on and switched to the watching feature. He would watch this only once. Memorizing what his future self did or said would be a bad idea, as it could make him not behave naturally when the day came, thus risking to disrupt the natural course of events. Taking a deep breath, Doc pressed the "play" button.

The video started like any normal experiment recording, with Doc simply describing the setting for his temporal experiment number one. But then, the video showed Doc settling his future dog in the car seat, and Doc felt sad at seeing that it was a different dog than Copernicus. Doc reasonably knew that Copernicus wouldn't be alive by 2018, but seeing the evidence of him being gone still made his heart ache a little.

"Please note that Einstein's clock is in complete synchronization with my control watch." - said the Doc from the video.

So he'd name his future dog Einstein, after his biggest scientist idol. Doc wasn't surprised he'd do that, and the name really fit this shaggy furred dog. Doc realized this information was already a more personal one, and he mentally cursed himself for not having considered this possibility (as it wasn't unusual for him to feature his pet during his experiments), but it was too late now. But knowing himself, Doc knew he'd want to get a new dog after giving himself proper time to grieve Copernicus, so the knowledge about Einstein didn't really make a difference.

The video continued showing Doc using a remote control, which made perfect sense considering dogs obviously can't drive. Doc watched holding his breath until the point when the car vanished from sight, and when it did, Doc was amazed to see how the temporal displacement looked like. So the car would leave trails of fire, which was admittedly a stylish effect. The video then mostly showed the ground and sometimes Frisk's feet, meaning Frisk had lost focus on her filming task, which Doc understood. The girl has clearly been dumbfounded at that moment, as evidenced by her asking worriedly if Einstein's been disintegrated. Doc listened with amusement how excited the future him was, as well the amazement in Frisk's voice when she realized he built a time machine. He couldn't wait to actually live this moment and see the look on Frisk's face.

Then the image got shaken up, as the older him apparently tackled Frisk out of the car's way, as a bright light flashed behind him. Doc noted that the return of the DeLorean was decently captured on camera, despite the circumstances and Frisk being caught off guard. The image on the video got clear and steady again, and Doc watched curiously how his older self walked to the ice covered car, then getting frost-bitten after his attempt to open the wing door.

"Frost bite?" - said Frisk's voice instantly.

Doc noticed the motherly undertone in Frisk's concerned voice. As though she instinctively identified the injury for her to go treat it right after. Doc realized that Frisk must be experienced in treating injuries, considering she's raised her little sister Tina and that she's probably also witnessed him get injured during an experiment a few times. (He was generally very careful, but accidents still happened every now and then.) Frisk really was such a caring soul...

The interesting part started soon afterwards. The future Doc was showing and explaining to Frisk the time circuits! Its functioning got explained by typing in date examples, though Doc frowned when his older self dialed 25th December 0 as Jesus Christ's birth date. He knew very well this wasn't Jesus' actual birth day, so why would he do that? The dialogue that followed quickly answered his question.

"But Jesus wasn't born on December 25th... nor in the year zero."

"I know, I meant it hypothetically. But I'm glad to see you studied for your history class."

Doc, seeing his future self's smiling expression, realized it must've been just a way to boost Frisk's self-confidence, by prompting her to express a knowledge and then praising her for it. It was something he heard some parents did to help their own kids grow confident in their abilities. Doc's soul ached at the thought that Frisk likely struggled with self-confidence, considering how bad her parents were.

Then came the part that explained why Frisk time traveled to the day Doc hit his head and came up with the Flux Capacitor idea. The future Doc had dialed that date as an example and has been reminiscing. So this was when he told Frisk the bruise story. After the video zoomed closer to the Flux Capacitor for a few moments, Frisk's voice spoke up again.

"Amazing... No, this is wonderful..! And you, Doc, are incredible."

Doc could clearly hear the big smile in Frisk's voice. As sappy as it sounded, Frisk's compliment warmed Doc's heart. Doc briefly recalled the distant times when he needed someone to believe in him. He eventually grew out of it, and his own perseverance had helped him to build his confidence. But even though he no longer relied on others' faith, having someone who fully believed in him made him truly happy. It just felt amazing to know he had a true friend.

Then the future him prompted Frisk to say his old life motto, which wasn't surprising at all. He would totally do this even now. In fact, he already did it two days ago, when he comforted a tear-stained Frisk. But when the older him expressed his pride of Frisk remembering his words, the young girl replied with lesser enthousiasm than what Doc expected.

"It's... a good saying."

The hint of hesitation in Frisk's statement confirmed Doc's earlier suspicions. The young girl clearly struggled to believe in herself, and Doc knew it was the result of the emotional damage inflicted by her parents. And it looked like his future self did everything he could to help her with that, but Frisk should've had better parents to begin with. Why couldn't they appreciate the amazing kid they had?

As he started to get upset for Frisk's sake, Doc decided to focus on the video to stop the unpleasant thoughts. Came the part Doc has already seen, the one about 1.21 gigawatts. And then, the video showed Doc wearing the breath filtered helmet to go with the radiation suit, carefully reloading the time machine with plutonium. Doc found himself holding his breath while watching, feeling a little nervous. Radioactive substances needed to be handled with carefulness and precision. But everything went well and Doc relaxed again when the future him closed the reactor cap. If just watching this made him nervous, he wondered how nervous his older self felt while actually handling the plutonium...

In the next scene, Doc was already standing by the DeLorean with its wing door open wide, looking proud and determined. He was apparently about to embark on his first journey across time. Doc felt his anticipation rise, wondering what would happen next.

"I almost forgot to bring extra plutonium! How did I even expect to get back; one pellet, one trip?"

Well, it seemed that his distractions got the best of him even in the future. At least, this gave him another piece of the puzzle, explaining why there wasn't any extra plutonium to refuel the time machine when Frisk made it to 2001.

Then the expression on future Doc's face suddenly changed. He looked like he got really scared of something... or someone.

"Oh my God... They found me... I don't know how, but they found me. Run for it, Frisk!"

And then the video ended. Doc sat there staring at the darknened screen for a few moments, trying to process this last scene. He then decided to rewatch that last part again, so he rewinded the video back a little.

"Oh my God... They found me... I don't know how, but they found me. Run for it, Frisk!"

This part raised many questions in Doc's mind. What happened that the video stopped so abruptly? Who were the people that came after him and why? He told Frisk to run, so was this how she accidently time traveled? What happened after the video ended?

And why had he looked so scared?

Doc had to admit the look on his future self's face filled him with discomfort, even a certain sense of dread. Maybe it was for the best that he didn't know fully what happened. He probably shouldn't have watched the whole video to begin with. Yet, he couldn't help but rewind this part again, as the chaotic ending still intrigued him.

...

Frisk blinked slowly as she woke up from a dreamless sleep. She slowly rolled over in Doc's big bed and reached her hand to the nightstand, to pick up the picture of herself and Tina. She was disappointed to see that Tina was still transparent. Tina looked more like a ghost as time went by, and Frisk blinked away her tears. Why couldn't things just get back to normal? Why couldn't Lola just get back with Eric already? If Tina's image didn't become normal again by tomorrow, Frisk would... she wasn't sure what she would do exactly, but she really wanted to yell at Lola, to just drag her to Eric and make her tell him everything. But Frisk knew well this was more likely to cause even more damage. She just wished she knew the magic words to say that would instantly chase all Lola's doubts and fears. And Frisk couldn't really blame her mother for how she was feeling, but she was just really scared for Tina.

She then put the photo down on the nightstand, made the bed and walked out of the bedroom. She was about to go to the bathroom, but stopped when she heard the painfully familiar words spoken by her friend's voice. Frisk saw that Doc was watching the video recording on the camera, his back turned to her and unaware that she was awake.

"Oh my God... They found me... I don't know how, but they found me. Run for it, Frisk!"

Frisk's heart ached as she remembered what happened next that night. The image of Doc being gunned down by the Lybian terrorist replayed in Frisk's mind, which she tried to chase away by focusing on the present, even though it wasn't easy.

"Doc?" - she called gently.

Doc blenched a little, then turned around to face Frisk, looking awkward.

"Oh, good morning, Frisk. I didn't know you were awake. " - he said somewhat nervously, as though trying to compose himself - "You've got some good filming skills, by the way, you did a good job there."

Frisk figured this was the perfect opportunity to tell Doc about his fate, now that he's just watched the video recording and which he likely had many questions about.

"Listen, Doc... You know, there's something I haven't told you about the night we filmed that video..." - she started.

"Please, Frisk, don't tell me." - Doc interrupted her as he went to briefly check up the big hook that he and Frisk have built together - "No man should know too much about their own destiny."

"You don't understand-"

"I do understand." - Doc cut her off again, sounding very serious - "If I know too much about my own future, I could endanger my own existence!"

"But Doc..." - Frisk tried to protest again, wanting to tell Doc that him not knowing would endanger him more.

But Doc was persistent in not letting her speak. He explained his reasoning to her, his tone calm but just as serious.

"Frisk, you've seen the consequences of interfering with time, even by accident or when well meaning." - he reminded her gently, without any hint of blaming in his tone - "Even small things can disrupt the flow of time and I don't want to endanger my own existence or yours."

Frisk looked down, upset that Doc didn't want to hear her out. She knew well he had a good point, as she herself was now dealing with Tina fading from existence after one careless talk with their mother. But even though Frisk knew where Doc was coming from, she still hated the idea of having to lose him.

"Y-You're right..." - she said reluctantly, looking sad.

Seeing the upset look on her face, Doc decided to make a demonstration of his plan now. Hopefully, this would cheer her up a little. With a smile, Doc gently led Frisk to the table he set up the town model on.

"Let me show you my plan for sending you home. Please excuse the crudity of this model, I didn't have time to build it to scale or paint it."

Frisk looked impressed at the replica of the Hill Valley town square. The model was built out of paper, cardboard boxes, bottles and metal containers, the whole thing painted in a solid grey color. Despite not being colorful, the model looked really freaking good! The attention to detail was amazing, and Frisk especially liked the detail of a watch being implemented in the courthouse model to replicate the clock.

"It's good." - she complimented, smiling a little.

"Oh, thank you, thank you." - Doc replied, happy that his young friend liked it, then proceeded with the explanation - "Okay now, we run some industrial strength electrical cable from the top of the clocktower down to spreading it over the street between two lamp posts."

He pointed at the wire he attached to the nail (imitating the lightning rod) at the top of the clocktower model and that went down to the two little lamp posts (another cutely replicated detail!) located on both sides of the street.

"Meanwhile, we out-fitted the vehicle with this big pole and hook which runs directly into the flux-capacitor." - Doc reminded, briefly pointing at the hook sticking out of the DeLorean, then he took a small windup toy car for the next part of his explanation - "At the calculated moment, you start off from down the street driving toward the cable accelerating to eighty-eight miles per hour."

As he explained, Doc slowly ran the toy car up to the wire between the lamp posts, the small added hook touching the wire. Frisk thought (not for the first tiime) that if Doc taught science at her school, she'd have much better grades in the subject. Doc has always been great at explaining her things she didn't understand with cool visuals and in overall more fun ways than just memorizing the boring formulas.

"According to the flyer, at 10:04 pm lightning will strike the clocktower, electrifying the cable, just as the connecting hook makes contact, sending one point twenty-one gigawatts into the flux-capacitor and sending you back to 2018." - Doc then handed Frisk the toy car and instructed - "Alright now, watch this. You wind up the car and release it, I'll simulate the lightening."

At those words, Doc plugged in a power source and put on a pair of safety goggles. Then, he picked up a set of two alligator clips that were connected to the power source, while Frisk wound up the toy car.

"Ready?" - Doc asked, prompting Frisk to nod in response.

Doc then clipped one of the alligator clips on the second lamp post and held the other clip close to the nail at the top of the clocktower model.

"Set..." - he instructed.

Frisk put the car down on the table but still held it in place.

"Release!" - Doc ordered.

As Frisk did just that, the car drove fast long the table straight to the cable. Doc clipped the alligator clip on the nail, timing it perfectly with the toy car intersecting with the cable. The miniature lightning generated a small explosion.

"Woah!" - Frisk exclaimed as she saw sparks come off the cable.

At this point, the toy car was in flames, quickly driving off the table and straight into a pile of dirty cloths... setting it on fire! With a panicked gasp, Doc instantly grabbed a fire extinguisher and quickly put out the fire.

"We can't have that now." - he muttered to himself as he checked the fire was out for good - "Last time it happened, I lost my house, I can't lose the garage too!"

Frisk knew Doc used to have a mansion a long time ago, and that it burned down, but she didn't know how it happened, nor has she ever asked about it as she didn't want to bring up bad memories.

"Is this how your house got on fire?" - she asked carefully - "An experiment that went wrong?"

"Something like that, yes." - Doc replied, removing his goggles.

"Please be more careful, Doc." - Frisk requested, gently squeezing his arm.

She meant more than just with fire or while experimenting at home. She meant it generally, hoping he'd remember this simple advice when getting involved with the terrorists. Frisk's heart ached again, even more so now that Doc refused to hear her warning.

Doc noticed the extremely worried and sad look in Frisk's eyes, but he mistook it as her being worried about his plan working in real life.

"Don't worry, Frisk, I've got this." - he reassured her - "I'll take care of the lightning, you take care of your mom."

"Right..." - the teen sighed, then she went to sit down on the nearest chair - "Tina got a little more transparent this morning... My mother still hasn't changed her mind. What am I doing wrong, Doc?"

"You aren't doing anything wrong, Frisk." - Doc said as he walked up to her - "Your mother, on the other hand..."

"She's not that bad... at this time. She's trying to figure what's the best thing to do." - Frisk protested, surprising herself that she was actually defending her mom - "There's just a mismatch between what I want and what's right."

"You wanting your sister to exist isn't "wrong" either, you know." - Doc reasoned - "If you look at it from the perspective of the space-time continuum preservation, ensuring Tina's existence is the right thing to do. Who knows how the erasure of an entire person from history could affect the future?"

Frisk shuddered at the thought of Tina being denied her chance at living a full life, at becoming a veterinarian or an artist when she grew up like she dreamed to. Tina deserved to achieve her dreams, to grow old and start her own family! And if Tina was fully erased from existence, she'd not only be gone from Frisk's life, but from anyone's who ever knew her in a distant future they haven't experienced yet. All of her future achievements would be forgotten by the world, she'd no longer be someone's special one... and her own kids and grandkids wouldn't ever be born either.

"And if you look at it from a more personal perspective..." - Doc went on - "...it's only right to save the life of a loved one. Your attempts to save Tina's life shows you're a good person, Frisk. So keep up being that kind of person."

This time, Frisk thought of her situation with Doc. How could she save Doc's life if he wouldn't let her? He said clearly he didn't want to hear about his future, so was he really doomed? Frisk refused to believe this. There had to be some way to prevent his death!

Suddenly, an idea crossed her mind. Looking up at Doc and trying to smile, Frisk said:

"I will do my best, Doc."

She then excused herself and headed to the bathroom. As Frisk washed her face and brushed her teeth, she thought about the idea she just had. If Doc didn't want her to tell him about his future, she'd write it down to him. She'd write him a letter explaining the situation that she would leave somewhere Doc would easily find it when she'd have returned to her time. He couldn't shush a letter the like he shushed her, and even though he might not want to read it right away, he might change his mind after a while. The fact that Doc watched the video recording, and how nervous he looked when Frisk caught him watching, suggested that he was more curious about his future than he dared to admit. This led Frisk to hope that after Doc calmed down enough, his curiousity would take over and he'd eventually read her letter.

Frisk knew this wasn't an ideal solution, because there was still the possibility that Doc would never read it. But it was also the only thing she could do if Doc persisted in silencing her like he just did. She'd try to tell him again later, and if her attempts failed, she would write that letter and pray he'll read it. Despite her fears and worries, Frisk dared to hope that her best friend wouldn't discard something coming from her. In her time, Doc has always accepted and kept preciously anything she crafted for him, and even Tina's drawings.

As long as their friendship was strong... there was hope.

Chapter Text

Wednesday, November 7th 2001

Frisk was pacing around in front of the Hill Valley High School, waiting for Lola to show up. Unlike the previous time, Frisk came there walking alone. She had to reassure Doc that she wouldn't talk to other people unless talked to, and that even then she'd keep her interactions short. She also told him that she really needed a walk in the fresh air after staying in his house for so long, which made Doc give in, as he realized she was right.

Soon enough the school bell rang, and students started to walk out of the building, while Frisk had her eyes locked on the front door, waiting for Lola to walk out on her turn. But as time went by and as crowds of students grew smaller with Lola nowhere in sight, Frisk grew more anxious. Where was she? Did she get in trouble? Maybe she was at the principal's office or got detention? Did Lola even show up at school at all today? "Even now you make it all hard for me, Mom." - Frisk thought to herself.

As Frsik fidgetted nervously, she looked around, hoping she might have just missed Lola exiting the building and that she was somewhere nearby. Suddenly, she heard a male voice calling:

"Lola! Hey, Lola!"

Frisk instantly turned around, hoping to spot Lola nearby, but then her eyes widened when she recognized the teenage boy who was walking fast towards her. The young man was blond, tall, had brown eyes much like her own, and better looking than he ever was in Frisk's lifetime, but there was no doubt this boy was her father, Eric Adams.

Eric then stopped when he got a closer look at Frisk, seemingly getting embarrassed.

"I-I'm sorry..." - he muttered, averting his gaze - "I mistook you for my girlfriend."

"That's alright..." - Frisk replied, then decided it was her chance to find out more about the current situation - "You're Lola's boyfriend Eric, right?"

"You know Lola?" - Eric's face lit up and as Frisk nodded in response, he asked - "Do you know what's going on with her lately? She's been avoiding me for days now."

"She has?" - Frisk asked back, inwardly feeling desperate.

If Lola still avoided Eric, this meant she still hasn't told him about her pregnancy, which was why Tina kept fading from the photograph.

"Yeah, whenever I spot Lola in the hallways and try to call for her, she sneaks into the bigger crowd and disappears before I can reach her!" - Eric explained, looking desperate and frustrated - "I just don't understand... I thought we were happy together. Did I do something that upset her? Does she... want to break up with me? Do you by any chance know anything about it?"

Frisk bit her lip. She couldn't tell Eric about the pregnancy herself, as this could mess things up even more than she already did. Eric could get angry at Lola for not having told him. The best chance at a proper reconciliation was for Lola to be honest and tell Eric everything herself, rather than Eric finding it out from a complete stranger. Besides, it was Lola's secret and it was up to her to reveal the truth at her own terms. And Frisk didn't want to break Lola's trust.

"Lola and I aren't very close..." - Frisk started, which wasn't really a lie - "And whatever's bothering her, you guys must talk it through together by yourselves."

"You're right. Sorry for bothering you..." - Eric paused - "...um, what's your name?"

"I'm Frisk." - the girl replied.

"Nice to meet you." - Eric then looked at her thoughtfully, mentally debating about asking something else.

"What's that look for?" - Frisk asked.

"...Are you related to Lola?" - Eric then blurted out.

The question took Frisk off-guard, but she tried to not show it. Thanksfully, Eric didn't notice anything too odd about her facial reaction.

"You just look a lot like her, hence why I mistook you for her earlier." - he explained his weird question - "So I thought you might be her cousin perhaps? You can't be her sister, as I know Lola only had brothers."

"No, I'm... not her cousin." - Frisk shook her head, then went to a more important matter - "By the way, have you seen Lola at school today?"

"Nope. I think she skipped school today. She didn't attend any of her classes. I checked through the classroom windows. I really hope she's alright..."

Frisk wondered if Lola skipped school to avoid Eric or if it was for another reason. Either way, she was making the guy desperate enough to try catch her for a talk by the classroom doors. Frisk was impressed to see how much concern Eric expressed about Lola, which was now slightly less surprising after everything that Lola said about him the other day. And it seemed that Eric was just as afraid to lose the girl he liked as Lola was afraid to lose him. It was incredible how relateable the parents Frisk barely knew became...

"Alright... Thanks for the info, Eric. Good luck with Lola." - Frisk told him.

After Eric nodded in response, Frisk turned around and ran back to Doc's house. She had to find out what Lola was up to and fast! Frisk had only three days left before she went back to the future, which really wasn't much time.

When Frisk made it to Doc's house, she rushed inside and straight to the phone. She took the phone book lying next to it and proceeded to frantically flip through pages, without paying any attention to Doc looking at her with a confused look.

"What's going on, Frisk?" - he asked - "What happened with your mother?"

"Nothing, and that's the problem!" - Frisk replied, sending only a very brief glance at the inventor - "She didn't go to school today, so I must call the shelter to ask her what's going on! Um... you don't mind me using the phone, do you?"

"No, of course not." - Doc reassured her.

Before Doc had the chance to ask further questions, Frisk found the phone number of the shelter and proceeded to dial it. It took two rings for the receptionist to answer the phone.

"Good evening, miss. May I please talk to Lola Bardales?" - Frisk requested - "She's the teenage girl who arrived at your shelter last Saturday."

"Can I ask who's calling?" - the reception clerk asked.

"I'm her... friend Frisk."

The reception lady then politely requested Frisk to wait for a moment, the time for her to inform Lola she's getting a call. Frisk stood leaning against the wall as she waited, and thanksfully it wasn't very long until she heard Lola's voice on the other end of the line.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Lola. I found out you weren't at school today." - Frisk stated - "What happened? We were supposed to meet this afternoon."

"Sorry about that." - Lola replied with a sigh - "But I had nausea this morning, so I didn't go to school."

"Oh. I hope you're feeling better now?" - Frisk asked, genuinely concerned.

Even though Frisk has never been pregnant and thus never experienced morning sickness, she's felt nauseous from not eating, thus she knew how much it sucked going to school when sick in the stomach and she empathized with Lola.

"Yeah, I'm better now. Thanks." - Lola replied - "I... don't know if I'll be at school tomorrow though, so maybe I could... come to your place to talk?"

"Um, sure, why not." - Frisk agreed.

"I'd invite you to my home instead, but you know, I don't have one." - Lola stated, her tone apologetic with a bitter undertone - "And the shelter isn't great for private talks."

"I understand. Don't worry about it." - Frisk told her softly, wanting to let her know it was okay.

"So where do you live?"

"I'm currently staying at a... relative's house." - Frisk said awkwardly, then blushed when Doc gave her a weird look - "The address is John F. Kennedy Drive 1646. It's right next to the Burger King."

"Okay, I see where it is. I'll drop by sometime in the afternoon." - Lola told her - "See you tomorrow, Frisk."

"See you tomorrow."

When Frisk hung up the phone, she let out a sigh. She then looked at Doc and apologized:

"Sorry about saying you're my "relative", it's the only thing I could think of on the fly."

"All's fine. It just caught me off-guard a little." - Doc brushed it off casually - "Now, what's going on with your mother?"

"Well, she didn't go to school today because she was nauseous. She wants to come here tomorrow so we could talk."

"But my house is a mess! It looks exactly like the house of a crazy inventor would look like!" - Doc protested - "Your mom will think the rumors about me are true!"

"Relax, Doc, we'll chat outside. When did you become self-conscious anyway?" - Frisk asked, tilting her head.

"I'm not. I just don't want a bad impression to prevent us from meeting in the future." - Doc looked away, sighing softly - "If your mother thinks badly of me, she won't want you to be my friend."

"Aw, Doc, that won't happen." - Frisk reassured him with a smile - "My parents don't know anything about my life, nor do they care. And even if they found out I'm friends with you, they wouldn't give a damn and just be glad you keep me from bothering them."

Doc felt pain at how casually Frisk was saying it, except for a hint of bitterness in her latest statement. It wasn't normal that her parents kept no track of what was going on in their daughter's life. When Doc used to be a young boy, even though his parents never shared his interest in science, they still knew to an extent what he was up to.

"It's crazy how apathetic they are, while here they love each other so much..." - Frisk then remarked - "My mother looked kinda smitten talking about my father, while he's freaking out that she's avoiding him."

"Hold on, how do you know your father's freaking out?" - Doc asked her - "Did you... interact with him?"

"I swear I didn't mean to! While I waited for my mom earlier, my father approached me, mistaking me for her. But I kept our talk short and I didn't tell him any substantial information." - Frisk explained, her tone getting a little rushed.

"What did you two talk about?"

"Nothing much. My father was the one to tell me my mom hasn't showed up at school today, and when he asked me if I knew why she's been avoiding him, I told him we're not that close and that they must talk things through by themselves."

"Good, good." - Doc nodded approvingly - "At least, it shows your father won't give up on your mother easily. It's just a matter of her understanding that."

"Maybe if I tell my mom how much my father cares about her, it will give her the confidence to go tell him everything?" - Frisk thought out loud.

"You certainly should try this." - Doc replied.

Frisk nodded, before glancing at the photograph. Tina was close to looking like a faint shadow at this point.

...

Thursday, November 8th 2001

The next day, Frisk sitting at the table, was staring at one of Doc's clocks hanging on the wall. It was close to 4 p.m., and Frisk was wondering when her mom would show up. As she looked at the hypnotic movements of the sweep hand, her thoughts shifted to the concept of time. Time was probably the most powerful thing in the world; you couldn't go back and change what's already been done, nor could you skip through the unpleasant parts of your life, and neither could you stop it to pause your life and plan things in a stress-free way. No, time just moved forward at its own natural pace, and you had no choice but go along with it, which didn't leave much room for mistakes in life.

Until Doc invented the time machine. His invention defied all the rules of nature, opening the possibility to jump across time in either direction. But such power had to be handled with the greatest carefulness, as the smallest mistake could have huge repercussions on the already written history. Frisk learned it the hard way. Had she just kept her mouth shut when she met Lola, Tina wouldn't be fading from the photograph, and Frisk wouldn't need to work so hard to fix it with so little time on hand. But time travel wasn't all bad, as it gave a unique chance to prevent terrible disasters... such as Doc's demise. If there was one good thing that came out of Frisk's accidental temporal displacement, it was this possibility.

So whether time travel was involved or not, time could be both merciless and merciful. A huge power above anything, until Doc defied it with his Flux Capacitor, and Frisk wasn't afraid to defy its power once more in order to ensure a brighter future for the two people she loved the most. And maybe a little for herself too, since she saw no future without Tina and Doc in her life.

"Are you trying to hyponitize that clock, kid?" - Doc suddenly snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Huh?" - Frisk turned her look away from the clock to face her friend, slowly processing his words - "...More like the clock almost hypnotized me."

"I figured." - Doc said with a light chuckle - "You seemed so deep in thought. What's on your mind?"

"I was just thinking about time itself." - Frisk replied - "Its power is fascinating, and the fact you could defy it is even more so."

"It is surreal to think about, yes." - Doc agreed with a soft nod - "That's why any journey across the space-time continuum must be planned very carefully, especially when going to the past. Though I'm personally more interested to visit the future."

"You told me you wanted to see the evolution of mankind."

Frisk said it with a light smile, though it held a hint of sadness. Doc didn't notice it though.

"Exactly! Can you imagine all the new technologies we'll see in the twenty-second century?" - he said excitedly, his eyes twinkling passionately.

"Maybe flying cars will finally be invented by then." - Frisk said jokingly, then grew more serious and concerned - "I just hope the future will be a peaceful and safe place for you to time travel to."

"For us to time travel to!" - Doc corrected her, making Frisk look at him with a surprised, yet touched look - "What, you thought I'd invent a time machine and not share the experience with my best friend?"

"I... No, I guess you wouldn't do that. We just never had the chance to discuss this."

"Oh, but we certainly will when you safely make it back to 2018!" - Doc said enthousiastically, missing the sad look on Frisk's face at her statement - "At first I'll travel alone, of course, to make sure the future is safe, and then I'll bring you along to show it all to you! I'm certain that's what my future self planned, as he is still me!"

"I can see that. It's a sound plan."

"And what time era would you be curious to visit, Frisk?" - Doc asked.

"I don't know, I never thought about it." - Frisk said with a shrug - "I want to make it back home for starters."

"Well, of course, but maybe you still have a faint idea? Any era that appeals to you?" - Doc encouraged his friend to use her imagination.

"Let's see... Hmm..." - Frisk pondered on it for a minute - "Maybe the era before the settlement? It would be nice to look, from a safe distance of course, at the Native Americans' lifestyle. I'd like to see them just enjoy their lives true to their culture before the settlers' arrival."

"That's an interesting choice. It certainly suits your character." - Doc said with an approving smile.

Before Frisk had the time to ask Doc what he meant by this, there was a knock on the door. Doc and Frisk both looked at the door, then at each other.

"Must be your mom." - Doc stated, before glancing at the uncovered DeLorean - "Quick, let's cover the time machine!"

As Frisk nodded, she and Doc went to grab the tarp and completely covered the time machine with it. Doc then went to open the door and Lola shily walked in. The teen's face lit up a little when she saw Frisk.

"Hi, Frisk." - she greeted her.

"Hi, Lola. How are you feeling today?" - Frisk asked her.

"Better than yesterday, thanks." - Lola replied with a nod.

She then glanced at Doc who was standing there without saying anything, so Frisk realized a brief introduction was in order.

"Uh, Lola, this is Doc... Brown. He's my... distant relative. A very distant relative. So distant that I don't recall how we're related exactly. But that's okay, 'cause he's really cool and I like him a lot, and it's all that matters, haha." - Frisk rambled nervously, mentally scolding herself for sounding so stupid.

Doc unnoticeably shook his head a little at Frisk's rambling. He wondered if she just wasn't comfortable lying, or if she felt awkward at him and Lola being in the same room, as they apparently never even met in the 2010's. Though it admittedly pleased Doc to hear Frisk say she liked him a lot.

"And Doc, this is Lola." - Frisk then introduced Lola.

Lola and Doc looked at each other, and Lola smiled politely to him, despite not being at ease around strangers. It was difficult for her to trust others, especially adults, considering all her bad experiences with foster families and even her own biological parents. But Frisk said this Doc Brown was cool, so it reassured Lola a little bit.

"H-Hello." - she said awkwardly.

"Hi." - Doc greeted back, feeling about as uncomfortable as Lola.

He then walked some further away to give the girls more space, while keeping his eye on them. Lola stepped closer to Frisk and spoke in a quiet tone, her posture reserved.

"I have important news regarding..." - she sent a brief glance at Doc standing at a distance - "...the situation."

"We can go talk outside, if you like." - Frisk offered.

She guessed that Lola understandably wasn't comfortable talking about such delicate things around a stranger and likely feared to be judged.

"I'd like that." - Lola said with a nod.

Frisk turned to Doc and told him:

"We'll be on your frontyard."

As Doc nodded in reponse, Frisk and Lola walked out. As Frisk closed the door behind her, Doc quietly walked closer to it and briefly considered to eavesdrop the conversation, but decided against it. Even though a part of him worried Lola could somehow upset Frisk, Doc knew it would be wrong to invade Frisk's, or even Lola's, privacy. Even though Frisk always appreciated Doc's help and support, Doc knew she wouldn't like him to get overprotective of her. Frisk knew how to handle problems on her own, and Doc would offer his help or comfort when Frisk needed him to.

On the other side of the door, Frisk and Lola stood leaning against the house wall. Lola quibbled the cords of her plum hoodie, as though thinking through what to say next and how to say it. Frisk was looking at her expectingly, yet patiently. She knew better than rush her to speak her mind. Frisk herself didn't like being pressured into talking about sensitive subjects, so this was another thing she and her mother had in common.

"A box full of clothes and toys has been donated to the shelter yesterday." - Lola finally spoke - "These were second-hand things of course. But the moms were still happy to get these toys for their kids."

Lola then partially unzipped her hoodie and showed off a heart pendant. It was simple, and clearly not made out of gold or silver, but it was shiny and it had the words "Baby Mine" engraved on it.

"I snatched this thing from the box." - Lola went on - "I'll wear it until I give birth, then give it to my baby."

"That's sweet..." - Frisk breathed out, almost tearing up.

It was the very first time her mother was getting her any sort of gift, so Lola's gesture definitely touched Frisk. But then Lola looked down sadly, letting out a sigh, and then she said:

"That way my child will at least have some souvenir from their birth mother."

Frisk's heart skipped a beat.

"W-What do you mean, Lola..?" - she asked in a half-whisper.

Dread filled Frisk's being, as she mentally prayed that Lola's words didn't mean what she feared they meant.

"Frisk, I... I'm putting my baby up for adoption."

Chapter Text

Thursday, November 8th 2001

Frisk stared at Lola for a few seconds in total shock. Her mother was planning to put her up for adoption... But it couldn't be happening! If she was put up for adoption, her life would be completely different! Not only Tina would never be born, but Frisk would likely never meet Doc either! And if they never became friends, Doc would die alone in the parking lot... Frisk knew she couldn't live without her only friend and her sister.

Why did Lola have to make this decision? Well, Frisk actually knew why, as she knew better than anyone that Lola and Eric were unfit parents to the point she used to wish she had been adopted by a better family. But she couldn't let this happen when she would lose her two loved ones. Finally regaining her ability to speak, Frisk asked:

"Lola, p-please don't make any rushed decisions... Y-You still have time to think things through, and..."

"Frisk, I already contacted the adoption agency in San Francisco." - Lola shook her head sadly - "They're a good agency and take care of everything for me. They'll find a good adoptive family for my baby. I'm leaving there tomorrow."

San Francisco? Even though it wasn't too far away from her native town, in the current circumstances, it felt like the other end of the globe to Frisk. Now she knew for sure that if she was adopted, she would not meet Doc, as she wouldn't live in Hill Valley.

"No... No, cancel this trip! You must talk to Eric, h-he really cares for you!" - Frisk spoke more and more rushedly, despite trying hard to not surrender to panic - "I-I saw him at school yesterday, he's very concerned about you, and he wants to understand what's going on and he's afraid to lose you!"

"I'm not happy leaving him, but I have no choice..!" - Lola exclaimed, tears filling her blue eyes - "I've been thinking this through for days and nights, and I realized that adoption is the best I can do for my kid!"

Frisk almost gasped hearing these words from her mother. Lola went on, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"You said that I must put my child first, and you were right. Then I had a realization; with how my life is now, keeping the baby won't do them any good - in fact, it would be selfish! My baby deserves better than... well, me. I have nothing to give them, so I better entrust them to people who can and will raise them properly."

Frisk's eyes filled with tears too by now, a painful lump forming in her throat.

"It's... It's the Shrödinger Cat thing again." - Lola added with a sad smile - "If I raise the kid, I don't know if the cat will be dead or alive. I'd rather not risk it be the former. So... by giving up my baby for adoption, I'll ensure the cat makes it out alive."

"Lola..." - Frisk breathed out.

"I know it makes you sad, but I made up my mind." - Lola said with a sniffle, then wiped away her tears with her sleeve - "The train to San Francisco leaves at 3:40 p.m. tomorrow, if you wanna come say goodbye."

Frisk nodded, but couldn't bring herself to say anything. If she tried to speak, she'd burst in tears and sob uncontrollably.

"Sorry for upsetting you like that, Frisk. I... I should go back to the shelter, to make it there before dark." - Lola said sadly - "Take care."

"Y-Yeah... Take care, Lola." - Frisk managed to say, her voice trembling.

After Lola walked away, Frisk went back inside Doc's house. The scientist saw the very distressed look on Frisk's face and he instantly knew things were bad.

"Frisk?" - he said, putting one hand on her shoulder - "Frisk, what is it? What did Lola have to say?"

"My mom is putting me up for adoption." - Frisk said with a broken voice, her eyes scared and teary.

"...What?"

"She's not telling my father about me. She's leaving for San Francisco tomorrow, where there's an adoption agency." - Frisk explained.

"San Francisco?! She's out of her mind!"

"Ironically, that's the sanest decision she's ever made. But... But we must prevent this! If she leaves, Tina will fade completely, and... you and I will never become friends!"

Doc instantly let out a loud gasp, one that slightly startled Frisk. Judging by the horrified look in Doc's eyes, Frisk guessed it was about something more than their friendship never happening.

"Great Scott!" - Doc exclaimed - "This is terrible! If you're adopted and raised in another town, and we never meet, this could create a major time paradox!"

"Time paradox..?" - Frisk breathed out.

Her heart started beating faster. This didn't sound good at all.

"If you and I never become friends, I will never show you my time machine. And if I never show you the time machine, you'll never time travel. This will create a time paradox, the results of which will cause a chain reaction that will enravel the fabric of the space-time continuum and destroy the entire universe!"

"Oh God..." - Frisk's eyes widened in horror.

Feeling like her legs would give in, Frisk made it to the armchair and sat down, while her breathing accelerated at the thought that she would be responsible for the destruction of the universe.

"We can't let this happen, Doc... Gosh, this is all my fault..!"

Unable to help it, Frisk started to sob uncontrollably, putting her face in her hands. She found it more difficult to breathe, but she didn't really care. She was too overwhelmed by the horror of what would happen if she didn't prevent it, and by the guilt of having caused this in the first place.

"Nice going, Brown." - Doc mentally scolded himself, seeing what state his friend got in after his catastrophizing speech. He realized he shouldn't have been this blunt, considering Frisk already felt bad enough after hearing the bad news from Lola. And now, she was having a breakdown, possibly a panic attack. Doc went to his small kitchen and filled a glass with water, before dripping in a few drops of valerian. He then walked to the sobbing Frisk and gently shook her shoulder.

"Frisk, look at me. Try to breathe, all right?" - he requested her.

The girl just shook her head, having trouble to inhale smoothly.

"Please make an effort. I'm sorry I freaked you out like this. We will figure this out." - Doc kept talking to her, then he pulled her in a hug and gently rubbed her back in hopes that this would help her a little bit - "We won't let the worst happen, Frisk."

When Frisk's breathing became steadier and her sobs lessened some, Doc handed her the glass of valerian.

"Drink this. It's valerian." - he said - "I know it tastes bad, but it will calm you."

Frisk drank the tranquilizer, not without making a face. After a minute sitting in Doc's embrace, she finally managed to speak more calmly.

"I'm such a screw-up, Doc. Anything I do, I do it wrong."

"No, don't say that." - Doc replied, shaking his head - "You're not a screw-up, and you certainly don't do everything wrong."

"Oh, really? I caused my mother to leave my father and to give me up for adoption. A time paradox is about to happen because of me. This wouldn't have happened if I just let Lola walk to the shelter alone."

"You were acting following your conscience." - Doc reminded her - "If you really were a screw-up like you say, would my future self have trusted you to record my temporal experiment?"

"Probably not..?" - Frisk replied, finally looking into her friend's eyes.

"If there's anyone I can trust to help me with experiments, it's you. In the present and in the future." - Doc said, his tone confident and honest - "You just made one mistake, but we all do. I don't do everything right at the first try either. And I'm sure I'll make a few more mistakes until I get it right with the time machine. It's a matter of keeping trying and finding the right way to fix it."

"I wish I knew how to fix the problem on hand..." - Frisk sighed - "My mom is resolved to leave without telling anything to my father."

She then paused. After thinking through her idea, she looked at Doc and suggested:

"Doc, maybe I should tell my father about it. I think he's the only person who can stop my mom from leaving. They still love each other at this time."

"Frisk, are you sure? It's a delicate matter here..."

"I know, but at this point the situation can't really get any worse."

Doc thought about it and realized that talking to Frisk's father was the best and only option they had. Frisk's parents were still very young, and youths tended to think with their heart more than with their head when making big decisions. If Eric directly told Lola he loved her and wanted them to raise the baby together, high were the chances that Lola would change her mind about adoption.

"I think there's a good chance this will work." - Doc said with a nod.

"I'll catch my father after school tomorrow and tell him everything. Lola said her train leaves at 3:40 p.m. tomorrow, so we'll have to hurry."

Frisk then checked the photo again, and her heart ached at the sight. Tina was barely even visible.

...

Friday, November 9th 2001

Frisk paced in front of the school main entrance even more nervously than the two previous times. She was mentally begging Eric to show up, even though the school bell hasn't even rang yet. Frisk wondered how Eric would take the news that he was about to become a father, especially that he would be told by someone other than his girlfriend Lola. Frisk hoped Eric wouldn't get too mad, and that he would actually want to stop Lola from leaving. But what if he decided he was better off without her? Or what if Eric begged Lola to stay and then she left anyway? Those were all terrible outcomes to think about, so Frisk prayed none of these would come true.

She looked at the photograph again and her eyes filled with tears. Tina almost totally vanished from the picture, and Frisk had to squint to see any evidence of her sister having had existed. "If I don't succeed at convincing our parents to stay together... I'm very sorry, Tina." - Frisk thought with a sniffle.

When the bell rang, Frisk blinked away her tears and her gaze basically drilled through the front door and the excited crowd of teenagers rushing out. As soon as Eric finally walked out of the door on his turn, Frisk rushed towards him, almost tripping right in front of him.

"Woah! Frisk? What's the rush?" - Eric asked.

"Eric, I came talk to you, it's very important." - Frisk said seriously - "It's about Lola."

As soon as he heard these words, Eric dismissed the guys he's been chatting with, telling them he'd join them later. As he and Frisk walked further away from the crowd, Eric asked with concern:

"What is it? Is Lola okay?"

Frisk went straight to the point.

"She's pregnant."

"W-What?!"

Eric's eyes widened, and his mouth was slightly open. In other circumstances, Frisk wouldn't have told him this bluntly, but there just wasn't much time.

"Lola's expecting a baby, and you're the father." - Frisk rephrased, hoping it would make Eric process faster.

"So I'm... I'm gonna be a dad?" - Eric asked, the look in his eyes getting a certain softness Frisk has never seen before - "B-But why didn't Lola tell me? So that's why she's been avoiding me?"

"Lola didn't tell you because she decided to put the baby up for adoption." - Frisk answered very seriously.

"Adoption?! But why?! She doesn't want the baby? And she didn't want me to even know?" - Eric exclaimed, getting obviously upset.

"Lola still cares about you a lot, Eric. She spoke quite highly of you." - Frisk said gently, hoping this would calm him down a little - "But she was afraid you would reject her and the baby. ...Not to mention there's your Euphoria problem."

Eric quickly glanced around to see if anyone heard this. Thanksfully, no one was looking in their direction, which meant Frisk's remark was unheard.

"Not so loud." - Eric told her in a half-whisper - "So you know about this too, huh?"

"I do." - Frisk said, her arms crossed - "So it's a valid reason of concern for a future mom."

"I guess my addiction doesn't translate as 'father material'..." - Eric admitted with a sigh - "But still... why Lola wants to give up our baby?"

"It's not out of bad feelings for you or the baby." - Frisk explained, speaking gentlier this time - "She just isn't certain she can raise a child by herself."

"But she doesn't have to raise the child alone! Doesn't she know I love her? If she just told me..."

Frisk noted how vulnerable her father looked and sounded, and she felt sympathy for him, for the second time since her stay in the past. But was Eric just as resolved to be with the girl he loved and his unborn child? As she looked into her father's eyes, Frisk asked seriously:

"Do you want the baby and to be with Lola?"

"Yes! More than anything!" - Eric said with a firm not, his tone filled with a new resolve - "I lost my family once, so I'm not losing this chance at a new one!"

Frisk wondered what he meant about his family, as she didn't know anything about it. It wasn't the time to ponder on it though.

"Then you have to go tell Lola this now, before she leaves Hill Valley." - she told Eric.

"Lola's leaving the town?" - Eric's eyes widened a bit.

"She's about to take a train to San Francisco. It leaves at 3:40 p.m."

Eric checked his watch and he gasped.

"That's in twenty minutes! We gotta hurry!"

The two teens rushed out of the school territory and in the direction of the train station. There was a good distance to run, but the station wasn't too far away and Eric knew he could make it in fifteen minutes or less. As he glanced at Frisk running slightly behind him, he finally asked:

"Why did you tell me about all this?"

"Because I figured you'd want to know." - Frisk replied, panting slightly in between words.

"You guessed right... Thank you..." - Eric said, sounding grateful despite the rush.

A few moments later, Eric asked another question, obviously quite curious about this new Lola's friend.

"Where did you meet Lola?"

"Defended her against her foster parents... They kicked her out of their house..." - Frisk explained.

"These bastards!" - Eric exclaimed, his anger enhancing his running pace, making it harder for Frisk to keep up - "I should've killed them..!"

"They're... not worth it..!" - Frisk replied.

Noticing that Frisk was getting tired running after him, Eric gently took her hand to help her keep up with his pace, while slowing down just a little bit. Frisk gave him a grateful look, almost smiling. It was the first time she was getting any kind of help from her father.

"You're right..." - Eric agreed, trying to calm down - "Where Lola's been sleeping then?"

"At the women shelter."

"At least she wasn't sleeping on the streets..." - Eric remarked sadly.

Then, his eye catching something, Eric stopped abruptly, causing Frisk bump against him.

"Why did we stop?"

"I should buy a toy for the baby!" - Eric said, pointing at the small toys store.

It had a few soft toys that looked pretty cute on display. Frisk felt touched that her father wanted to buy her something, but as soon as Eric entered the store, Frisk quickly remembered how little time they had. Following Eric inside, she told him urgently:

"Eric, we don't have much time!"

"It'll just take a minute." - Eric reasoned.

The young man quickly checked out the toys, then picked a light purple teddy bear and walked to the cash desk.

"How much is this teddy bear?" - he asked the seller.

"It's 18,95 $." - the lady replied after a quick check.

Stepping away from the cash desk, Eric checked his wallet and paused. He had a bill of twenty bucks there, but...

"What's wrong? You're short?" - Frisk asked.

"No, but I was saving to get more Euphoria pills tonight." - Eric said with a kind of annoyed grumble.

The soft feeling Frisk got earlier from Eric's decision to get her a toy was instantly replaced by hurt. Of course he'd rather buy drugs for himself than a toy for her. That's what he always did, why would it be any different now?

Eric noticed the look in Frisk's eyes, which he identified to be some form of disappointement, and he felt ashamed of himself. He realized what he said sounded very selfish and not fatherly in the slightest. Eric knew he had yet a lot to learn to be a good father, but if he really wanted to convince Lola to stay and for them to raise the unborn baby together, he could as well start now. With a smile, he took the 20 $ bill out of his wallet and walked back to the cash desk, saying:

"I'm taking it. Here you go."

"Thank you for the purchase, sir." - the sales clerk said with a smile, handing him the toy and the change.

With a quick "thanks" to the seller, Eric rushed out of the store, followed by Frisk. As the girl looked at the younger version of her father, she couldn't help the smile appearing on her face. She still couldn't believe that Eric just spent the money saved for drugs to buy her a cute teddy bear instead. "Ever since I came here, my parents keep surprising me."

"We're almost there..." - Eric said, more to himself than to Frisk, then checked his watch - "Eight minutes left..."

"Let's get moving then!" - Frisk exclaimed to boost them up.

And boost them it did, as the two ran faster, and before they knew it, they made it to the Hill Valley train station. They quickly spotted Lola standing on the platform, holding her luggage bag in one hand.

"Lola!" - Eric called for her.

The girl instantly turned around and gasped seeing Eric there.

"Eric..? W-What are you doing here?"

"Lola, please don't leave!" - he said as he ran to her - "I know about the baby; Frisk told me everything. But you have nothing to be afraid of! I would never reject you or our child."

"What?" - Lola glanced behind Eric and saw Frisk standing there at a distance - "Why did you tell him? You weren't supposed to..."

Frisk felt bad at upsetting her mom like that, although she had no other choice but do what she did.

"I'm sorry, Lola." - she told her future mother, looking sheepish - "I just... did what felt best."

"Don't get mad at her, Lola. She did the right thing to tell me. It's something I'd have preferred to find out from you though." - Eric remarked seriously - "But I get why you tried to hide it from me, so I'm not holding it against you."

"So you're not mad at me?" - Lola asked vulnerably.

"Of course not, Lola." - Eric replied reassuringly - "I love you, Lola. I want to be with you more than anything. I want us to raise our baby together, like a true family."

"Eric, I..."

At that moment, the train made its noisy arrival. When it finally stopped, the doors opened allowing the passengers to board in. Lola's gaze switched between the train and Eric. Frisk looked at the photograph, Tina still being nothing but a very faint shadow.

"I don't know... You and I are still teenagers, we don't know anything about parenting." - Lola said anxiously - "None of us have our parents to help out, and... and where are we even gonna live?"

"I know it won't be easy, but... but I promise we'll figure it out together." - Eric said, sounding truly determined.

"Eric, I don't want you to feel obligated to stay with me because of the baby, nor to raise them." - Lola said seriously.

"I want to do this not out of a sense of obligaation, but because I love you with all my heart." - Eric told her, making her blush, then he took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze - "And even though I haven't met our child yet, I know I'll love them just as much."

Lola's eyes were filled with tears at this point, clearly wanting to just give in, though she couldn't help but send a quick glance at the train. There was less than a minute left before it departed.

Eric then pulled the teddy bear out of the shop bag and handed it to Lola, making her eyes widen in surprise. With a tender smile, Eric said:

"So what do you say, Lola? Wanna give us a chance?"

Lola picked the toy from Eric's hands and stared at it for a few seconds. Then, with a small sob, she threw her arms around her boyfrind, and the two held each other in a tight embrace. Eric then cupped Lola's face and their lips quickly met in a loving kiss, just as the train doors closed and it started leaving the station.

Frisk instantly checked the photograph. A big happy smile spread over her face and happy tears filled her eyes; Tina was now fully visible again. "I did it! My baby sister will be alright!" - Frisk thought happily. She then looked back at her parents and felt strangely warm inside. It was the very first time she's ever witnessed her parents share a kiss. It felt nice to see them in love, and Frisk decided to ignore the thought that this happiness wouldn't last. For now, Frisk wanted to be happy for her parents, as well as about Tina being saved.

Deciding to leave Eric and Lola be by themselves, as they likely had a lot of things to talk about, Frisk turned around and slowly walked back to Doc's house. She couldn't wait to tell him the good news! After one last check on the picture to make sure Tina was still there, Frisk smiled to herself. Her little sister was now safe and sound in 2018, blissfully unaware of the danger she's been in.

Now Frisk just needed to save Doc.

Chapter Text

Friday, November 9th 2001

Doc, who's been going over the calculations for his plan all over again to make sure there were no mistakes, jumped up slightly when he heard the door open with a bang. A visibly happy Frisk rushed to him, almost forgetting to close the door behind her. Frisk was smiling widely and her eyes were twinkling. Copernicus wagged his tail at the sight of her, likely sensing her good mood.

"Judging by the look on your face, I guess your mission was a success?" - Doc remarked with a smile of his own.

"Yes! I did it, I got my parents stay together, and Tina's fully visible on the photo again!" - Frisk said, showing Doc the picture as proof.

Doc took a look at the picture, which indeed looked normal now, and he felt happiness and relief for his friend's sake. Now Frisk could go back to her same old home, where she'd still have her little sister.

"That's really good." - Doc said - "So, what happened exactly out there? Tell me everything."

Smiling widely, Frisk was way too happy to oblige.

"Well, when my father went out of the school, I told him about my mom's pregancy and that she was leaving. My father instantly knew he wanted to be with my mother and to raise me with her. So we both rushed to the train station, running as fast as we could!" - she was telling the story excitedly - "Though he stopped as soon as he saw a toy store, and decided to buy a teddy bear for me. I mean, baby me. He almost didn't buy it, because he was saving the money for drugs, but then he changed his mind and bought the cute teddy bear! Doc, it was the first time my dad chose to buy me a gift instead of drugs! He never did it before!"

"...Never?" - Doc asked, looking surprised.

"No..." - Frisk shook her head, then noticed the somewhat thoughtful look on Doc's face - "Why? What's the matter, Doc?"

But Doc waved his hands casually, as though brushing off whatever was on his mind.

"Nothing. So, what happened next?"

"Then my father and I made it to the station, and then he told my mom he wanted to be with her and raise the baby." - Frisk went on, smiling again at the memory - "My mother hesitated at first because they're teenage parents and all, but then, when my father handed her the teddy bear and asked to give their family a chance, she threw herself in his arms, and then they kissed just as the train left the station! It was such a sweet sight!"

Frisk looked absolutely delighted, and Doc smiled at the sight of his young friend being so happy. He was glad to see her smile again, after days of worrying and crying.

"Well, I'm really glad everything worked out." - he told her.

"So am I! I'm so relieved Tina's fine now, you have no idea."

Frisk then looked at the happy Copernicus by her feet and, with a smile, she knelt down to pet him. It was then that she remembered her small promise from a few days ago.

"Now that this problem is solved, and since I'm leaving tomorrow..." - she started, looking up at Doc - "How about you take Copernicus for a walk, and in the meantime I make us dinner? I promised, remember?"

"I will be happy to try your cooking, Frisk." - Doc agreed to her suggestion.

He then picked the leash and called for his dog, to which Copernicus responded with excitement, wagging his tail like crazy. Frisk watched the two leave the house with a smile, then she went to the kitchen and checked the fridge. Noting that Doc had all the needed ingredients for what Frisk had in mind, the teen immediately put on an apron and got started. It was certainly a good thing Doc bought some fresh groceries recently, which Frisk knew he did because he wanted to feed her with good food during her stay in 2001. He really wasn't much different from the Doc she knew in 2018. But tonight Frisk would show him her gratefulness for everything he's done for her during the week by making him his favourite dish.

...

Doc returned home with Copernicus after a long walk, having preferred to take his time to give Frisk space, and as soon as he entered his house, he was greeted by an amazing smell of homemade cooking. The scientist briefly closed his eyes at this, remembering that the last time he had this experience was many years ago, when he used to live in the family mansion with his parents. Copernicus, having spent his energy during the walk, just quietly trotted to his dog bed, where he settled himself for a nap. After Doc hung his coat, he walked to the small kitchen, where he could see Frisk busy working on the dinner. The girl's posture was relaxed, and her movements were light. She was humming a tune to herself while expertly handling the ingredients. Doc could tell Frisk had a solid cooking experience, but he also saw how happy she looked. Doc was pleased to see Frisk being the happier girl he first met again.

Then teen then noticed Doc's presence and she let out a slight startled gasp.

"You startled me..." - Frisk then said with an embarrassed half-smile - "I didn't hear you come in."

"It also happens to me, when I get too absorbed by a task." - Doc commented with a good natured shrug, then walked closer to the counter to have a look at what Frisk was making, and he quickly recognized his favourite dish - "Is this...?"

"Yep. It's your favourite chicken and dumplings." - Frisk confirmed with a bright smile.

"You know about this too..." - Doc said softly, looking touched.

"Of course I know your likes, you're my best friend." - Frisk replied lightly - "I've known you for-"

"No, don't tell me." - Doc gently cut her off, raising his hand in a stop gesture - "I mustn't know when or how we met."

"Right. Sorry." - Frisk blushed, embarrassed by her goof.

"That's fine, you just got caught up in happier thoughts." - Doc reassured her, gently patting her shoulder - "Now, I'll leave you be until dinner's ready. I'll go through my plan once more, to make sure I didn't miss anything."

"I'm sure you got it all right, Doc." - Frisk smiled again - "But you're right, it's always good to double - or triple - check."

"Tomorrow night is a big one after all, there's no room for any mistakes!" - Doc declared.

With these words, the inventor went back to the study section of his house, leaving Frisk alone with nothing but her own thoughts and the ingredients waiting to be cooked. As she went on working on her dinner, Frisk thought back to her earlier goof. It made sense Doc didn't want to know how they met, and even Frisk agreed it was better for him to find it out naturally. But this made Frisk concerned that Doc wouldn't listen again if she tried to warn him about the terrorists. She was already planning to write him a letter, but she still would've preferred to tell him face to face. Frisk decided to put this worry aside until they'd have dined. She just wanted to spend one nice evening with her best friend (especially if it would turn out to be for the very last time). Now that the Tina problem was solved, the warning letter could wait just a little bit longer.

As minutes went by, the smell of the chicken and dumplings got even more delicious, and it was just as comforting as the dish cathegory name suggested. Frisk smiled proudly at the golden mixture, then proceeded to carefully scoop it into plates. Frisk placed them on Doc's dining table and, once everything was set, Frisk walked to Doc, who was reading through his notes.

"Dinner's ready." - she told him with a smile.

Doc instantly looked up at her and put his notes aside.

"Good, I was getting really hungry." - he said as he followed Frisk into the dining space.

As they both sat down, Doc took a moment to admire his plate of steaming chicken and dumplings that looked very appetizing. Then he took a bite and his eyes instantly widened. Not only the dish tasted just as good as it looked, but... it also reminded Doc a lot of his mother's cooking. Having someone who cared for him make a comfort dish for him, his favourite one no less, felt nicely different than whenever he made one for himself (which was a pretty rare occurrence to begin with). Doc could taste all the care Frisk put into the dish in the tenderness of the chicken, the carefully chosen herbs for the dumpling dough, the finely cut vegetables and the seasoning of the broth.

"Frisk... This is the most amazing chicken and dumplings I ate in years." - Doc complimented her, eliciting a happy smile from the girl.

"I'm glad you like it." - Frisk replied.

"I don't just like it, I love it!" - Doc said, before taking another bite and after a moment, he added teasingly - "I think it's your cooking I'll miss the most."

"My cooking? That's it?" - Frisk feigned offense, making a pouty face.

"Of course not, Frisk. You're an amazing young woman beyond your cooking skills." - Doc told her gently, meaning it one hundred percent - "And I'm happy to have you as my friend."

"Thanks. You're amazing yourself, Doc." - Frisk replied, blushing a bit at the praise.

The two friends ate and chatted happily for a while. Doc told Frisk why he rarely cooked anything complex, the reason being that he often got distracted and caught up in his invention ideas that he'd accidently let the food burn (something Frisk already knew). And Frisk told him a funny story about how she and Tina once made a soup explode all over their kitchen, which happened because Tina added in yeast that she mistook for salt. Chuckling in amusement, Doc said jokingly:

"Note to myself - never let Tina in my kitchen!"

Frisk giggled in response, secretely agreeing with him about it. As much as Tina was adorable trying to help at everything, she was a pretty careless cook. Not that Frisk would ever tell this Tina, of course. She wanted her sister to be able to improve through positive enforcement, something Frisk never got much of herself until she met Doc.

"You'll like her being around anyway." - Frisk told Doc, smiling.

"If she's anything like you, then I certainly will." - Doc replied, making Frisk look shy again.

Soon enough they were done eating and Frisk went into the kitchen to wash the dishes. Doc suggested to do it himself since Frisk did the cooking, but Frisk insisted she was fine doing it. Once the dishes were drying by the sink, Frisk put the leftovers of the chicken and dumplings in a plastic container, which she put in the fridge, for Doc to eat the next evening. After Frisk washed the pot and carefully wiped it with a towel, she went to see what Doc was up to. She saw him standing by the DeLorean, looking at it thoughtfully.

"Thinking about tomorrow night?" - Frisk asked as she approached him.

"I am." - was all Doc replied.

The two friends just stood there silently for a short moment, until Doc spoke again.

"You know Frisk, I'm gonna be very sad to see you go. You've really made a difference in my life, you've given me something to shoot for. Just knowing, that I'm gonna be around to see 2018... that I'm gonna succeed in this!" - he gestured at the time machine - "That I'm gonna have a chance to travel through time!"

Frisk looked down at these words, her heart aching, knowing that Doc wouldn't actually get the chance to time travel himself, unless something was done about it.

"It's going to be really hard waiting seventeen years before I could talk to you about everything that's happened in the past few days." - Doc went on, looking sadder, and Frisk struggled again to maintain eye contact - "I'm really gonna miss you, Frisk."

"...I'm really gonna miss you." - Frisk breathed out, doing her best to not let her voice quaver.

Doc had a hint of questioning look in his eyes, almost wondering what Frisk meant by this, but he instantly let go. Just as he turned around to walk back into the living room, Frisk finally managed to speak up to try warn him again.

"Doc, about the future..."

"No!" - Doc exclaimed firmly, turning back to face Frisk and spoke to her firmly and seriously - "Frisk, we've already agreed that having information about the future could be extremely dangerous. Even if your intentions are good, they could backfire drastically."

Frisk looked down, doing her best to keep it together despite Doc's stubborness to not hear her out.

"Whatever you've got to tell me, I'll find out through the natural course of time." - Doc reasoned, the look in his eyes begging Frisk to just let go.

"But when you find out, it'll be already too late..." - the teen thought to herself, feeling a painful lump in her throat. Was it that hard for him to understand she was only looking out for him? But Frisk wouldn't give up on him, no matter how much Doc persisted to not hear her warning.

...

Later that night, when Doc was in the bathroom, Frisk was sitting on his king-sized bed, quietly writing the warning letter. When she was done, she mentally read it through again.

Dear Doctor Brown,

On the night that I go back in time, you will be shot by terrorists. Please take whatever precautions are necessary to prevent the terrible disaster. I know you didn't want me to tell you about your future, but please understand that I care about you and I don't want to lose you again.

Your friend,

Frisk

The girl nodded to herself; this was good. She then folded the paper and put it inside an envelope on which she wrote: "Do not open until 2018". Frisk figured that if Doc was against knowing his future too far ahead of time, him reading the warning the same year was a decent compromise, as it would still give him ten months to prepare for what was coming. Once the letter was sealed, Frisk wiped away a tear and laid down under the covers. She prayed that Doc would read her letter and that he'd be alive when she made it back home.

...

Saturday, November 10th 2001

The next day, Frisk was feeling pretty nervous. It wasn't only because of the situation with Doc and the letter, but also because that night would be when she was supposed to get back home. Frisk looked forward to return to her time, to be with Tina again, and she really hoped that Doc's plan would work. Frisk had full faith in her friend's genius, but she naturally worried a little. Crossing the space-time continuum using the power of a lightning was a serious deal after all.

The morning and the afternoon went by casually and without any incidents. When the sun started setting, Doc and Frisk put the electric wires and necessary tools in Doc's car, and then Doc proceeded to attach the DeLorean (covered by a tarp) to his car for the tugging. While he was busy doing so, Frisk used the chance to slip her letter in the pocket of Doc's coat.

"Now, we are ready to leave." - Doc said after a while, putting on his coat.

Frisk looked down at Copernicus, who was staring at her with sad eyes, or at least that's how it looked like to Frisk because she was a little sad herself. Frisk knelt down, picked up the dog and held him in a tight hug.

"Goodbye, Copernicus." - Frisk said softly and sadly, gently stroking his fur - "You're a very good dog and I was happy to meet you."

Copernicus whined in response. When Frisk finally put him down on the ground, she gave another soft pat on his head and said:

"Look after Doc while I'm gone, alright?"

Taking Copernicus' silent stare as a promise, Frisk stood up and walked back to Doc, ready to go now. Doc gently patted her shoulder, understanding perfectly she'd miss his dog. The two then went into the car and slowly drove off, the DeLorean tugged behind.

They soon made it to the town square and parked by the two street lamps Doc had shown Frisk on his model a few days ago. The sky was already dark, the streets were illuminated by the street lamps, windows and neon signs. The courthouse was closed at this time, which was why Doc had waited til the evening to set up his plan. While Doc was picking the equipment for the plan from his car, he listend to the weather report on the radio.

"This Saturday night, mostly clear, with some scattered clouds. Lows in the upper forties."

"Are you sure about this storm?" - Doc asked, looking at Frisk.

The teen remembered the times she regretted not having picked her (broken) umbrella just in case while running the streets in the rain. This had caused her to get sick sometimes, but thanksfully Doc has always been there to care for her (all with Tina's help) at his home, which was a way better place for recovery than the girls' cold and unsanitary house.

"When could weathermen predict the weather, let alone the future?" - Frisk remarked to her friend.

Doc nodded in agreement in response, conceding Frisk had a good point. He then climbed the ladder and proceeded to work on attaching the wires, and Frisk helped by handing him the requested tools. Frisk smiled to herself; it felt nice to work on something with Doc again. She just hoped that this wasn't the last time...

But their working session got soon interrupted by a familiar female voice.

"Frisk! Hey there!"

Frisk instantly turned around, and smiled at the sight of her parents walking up to her. Eric and Lola were smiling and holding hands, looking like a happy couple.

"Hi Lola. Hello Eric." - Frisk greeted them - "How are you guys doing?"

At this point Doc went down the ladder, staying at a distance but keeping track of the conversation.

"We've been at the courthouse earlier, to set a date." - Lola said, briefly pointing at the building, then smiling happily - "Eric and I decided to get married!"

"Wow..! Congratulations guys!" - Frisk's smile grew at the news.

"Thanks! I didn't expect a proposal, but I'm so happy." - Lola replied, looking at Eric with a loving look.

"It was a bit of a spontaneous decision, but it just felt right." - Eric replied somewhat sheepishly - "If we want to be a real family, we better make it official."

"I'm... happy for you guys." - Frisk said, her heart aching despite her smile at the thought that someday her parents would no longer be this happy - "So, when's the wedding?"

"The closest date they had was in a month and a half, so we took it." - Eric replied.

"At least, it'll give us time to save money for some decent clothes." - Lola added - "I'd like to at least wear a nice blouse on my wedding day."

Frisk nodded, knowing the struggle too well.

"Hey, maybe you could come to our wedding?" - Eric then suggested excitedly - "You could be Lola's witness, or something."

"Oh yeah! That would be awesome!" - Lola's eyes lit up at her fiancé's idea.

"I'm... really flattered, but... but I'm actually leaving the town tonight." - Frisk said sadly - "So I can't attend your wedding. I'm sorry."

"Oh... It's a shame." - Lola looked down in mild disappointement - "Will we ever see you again?"

Frisk paused briefly, not sure how to answer this question. She decided to tell the simpliest truth, with a half-smile.

"Someday, you will."

Lola nodded sadly, understanding it likely wouldn't be anytime soon. Then she remembered something else and her face lit up again.

"We have some other news! We saw a doctor today, thanks to the shelter manager who got me an appointement, and we found out the baby's gender!" - she said excitedly.

"It's a girl!" - Eric said before his girlfriend had the chance to, smiling brightly.

As Frisk saw her future father smile for real - not under drug influence - for the very first time in her life, her heart skipped a beat at the familiarity of it. Eric's smile was the same as Tina's. This discovery was admittedly heartwarming.

"Now I'm even more excited to meet her!" - Eric went on happily.

"You already have." - Frisk thought to herself with irony. She felt sad again, wishing she could see her parents this happy and nice again in the future. But even though they would be their neglectful and nasty selves when she returned home, at least Frisk had more positive memories of them that she could hold on to during hard times.

"Congratulations on this too, guys." - Frisk told them - "You know, meeting you both has been... educational."

"I can say the same about meeting you, Frisk." - Lola replied with a smile.

"I agree." - Eric added, wrapping an arm around Lola - "Thank you for all your help."

"It was nothing." - Frisk briefly looked away.

"Well, I guess we should go." - Eric said - "Have a safe trip home... or wherever you're going."

"Thanks, Eric."

Lola then pulled Frisk into a brief hug, which took her by surprise, not used to any affectionate gestures from her mother. But then she relaxed and returned the embrace, before the two pulled away.

"Take care, Frisk." - Lola told her with a smile.

"Take care, M- Lola." - Frisk felt a little sweaty at nearly slipping - "You too, Eric."

They then parted ways, waving each other goodbye as the couple slowly walked away. Eric soon noticed Lola thinking of something with a little smile on her face.

"What's on your mind, Lola?" - he asked her.

"'Frisk' is a nice name, don't you think?" - Lola said, looking up at her boyfriend.

Eric quickly caught on what she meant. Smiling, he nodded in agreement.

Frisk was standing at the same spot, looking at the shrinking figure of her parents in the distance, feeling a little blue. When she felt a comforting hand on her shoulder, she turned around to face Doc.

"I'll miss the young Lola and Eric..." - Frisk confided to him sadly - "They've been so nice to me... like my parents will never be in my time."

Doc almost opened his mouth, as though to say something only to decide against it.

"Your feelings are understandable." - he finally said after a short pause, then moved to the important matter on hand - "Shall we continue with our plan? There's still a lot to do."

"Right, Doc. Let's get back to work." - Frisk replied with a nod.

The two friends resumed setting up the plan. They started by putting the wire between the street lamps. They've been briefly interrupted by a cop once, him asking Doc what he was up to. Doc had casually answered he was doing a weather experiment, and when the cop asked if he had a permit for that, Doc just quietly bribed him, making the cop walk the other way. Other than that, the plan set-up went without any incidents. When it came to attaching the wire at the top of the clocktower, Doc requested Frisk to go buy them some drinks, to spare her from the stress of watching him climb the roof. By the time Frisk returned with Doc's order, he was nearly done on the roof. When Doc descended back on the usual firm ground, Frisk handed him his bottle of soda with an unamused look.

"You knew this part had to be done." - Doc told her, taking a sip.

"Yes, but I still worry for you." - Frisk replied, sipping from her own bottle of Pepsi.

"I know. This is exactly why I didn't want you stand here and watch." - Doc explained.

After the short break, they resumed their work. After connecting all the cables and making sure everything was well secured, Doc went with his car to the other end of the street to paint the start line, while Frisk stayed behind to keep an eye on the DeLorean. The wind was already starting to slowly rise, which made Frisk's stomach get tied in knots due to her nervous anticipation. Very soon, she'd be back home in her time. She thought of her letter again and prayed this was a sufficient warning to save Doc from his terrible fate.

When Doc returned and went out of his car, he instantly sensed the change in the atmosphere too. He checked the time on the clocktower, which showed 9:35 p.m.

"The storm..." - he breathed out, looking amazed.

Even though he knew this was supposed to happen, it was still incredible to witness something that was history in the future come true in the present. Frisk walked closer to her friend and she said quietly:

"So it's almost time, huh?"

"Almost." - Doc confirmed with a nod - "Twenty-nine minutes before the lightning strikes."

As Frisk paced around, rubbing her shoulders from to the rise of the cold wind, she thought about how soon the moment of truth was. Would Doc's plan work? Would Doc be alive when Frisk made it back to the future? Oddly enough, Frisk was more confident about the former than about the latter, but she forced herself to hope for the best. "Everything will be okay." - she was telling herself over and over in an attempt to ease her nervousness. It wasn't very effective, but that was the only thing she could think of. As for Doc, he kept checking the time every two minutes, and sometimes he'd even double check on his both watches (he always wore one on each wrist) when unconvinced by the clock of the courthouse. Clearly, even his nerves weren't immune to the waiting anxiety.

Although the wait felt longer, soon enough the big clock showed 9:50 p.m. Seeing this, Frisk said:

"I think it's time, Doc."

Checking the time himself, Doc nodded. Wasting no more time, the two friends quickly uncovered the DeLorean. Opening the wing door, Doc sat in the car, saying:

"Alright, let's set your destination time."

He then pointed at the "last time departed" readout, which displayed "OCT - 27 - 2018 - 01:35 a.m."

"This is the exact time you left." - Do said, then he dialed the destination time - "I'm gonna send you back at exactly the same time. It'll be like you never left!"

The "destination time" readout now displayed the same thing.

"OCT - 27 - 2018 - 01:35 a.m."

Getting out of the car, Doc proceeded explaining the last instructions of his plan.

"Now, I painted a white line on the street way over there..." - Doc gestured towards the far end of the street - "...that's where you start from. I've calculated the distance and wind resistance retroactive from the moment the lightning strikes, at exactly 7 minutes and 22 seconds."

Doc then showed Frisk a small alarm clock.

"When this alarm goes off, you hit the gas!"

"Right!"

Doc then placed the alarm clock on the top of the dash board.

"Well... I guess that's everything." - he then said.

"...Thanks." - Frisk said, looking at her friend potentially for the last time.

"Thank you!" - Doc replied with a smile, shaking his head, showing just how grateful he was for his encounter with Frisk.

Tearing up, Frisk pulled him in a very tight hug. When she felt Doc hug her back, Frisk clinged stronger on to him, burying her face into his coat. "I don't want to let go..." - she thought, as this hug could still be the very last one she shared with Doc.

Doc noticed how unusually strong Frisk's grip on him was, and he briefly wondered what that was about. He knew that Frisk liked hugging him, but now she was clinging on to him like for dear life. But maybe she was just sensitive to goodbyes?

"In about seventeen years." - said Doc.

"...I hope so." - Frisk replied, her voice almost cracking.

Pulling away, Doc reassured her with his usual energy in his voice:

"Don't worry! As long as you hit that wire with the connecting hook at precisely 88 miles per hour, the instance the lightning strikes the tower... everything will be fine."

"Right." - was all Frisk replied, talking seat in the car.

At that moment, when Doc put his hands in his pockets, he felt something in one of them. Something that felt like paper. With a confused frown, he pulled out what turned out to be a letter, and then his eyes widened when he saw the inscription on the envelope: "Do not open until 2018". Looking at Frisk, he saw that she had the look of a kid who got caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"What's the meaning of this?!" - he demanded.

"You'll find out in seventeen years." - Frisk answered.

"It's about the future, isn't it?! It's information about the future!" - Doc exclaimed, clearly freaking out, then he walked off with the intend to discard the letter.

"Wait a minute..!" - Frisk instantly ran after him.

"I warned you about this, kid! The consequences could be disastrous!" - Doc reminded her, raising his voice both because of the increasing wind howling and out of panicked frustration.

"Now that's a risk you'll have to take, your life depends on it!" - Frisk shouted desperately.

"Nooo! I refuse to accept the responsability!"

With those words, Doc ripped off the letter. Tears instantly prickled Frisk's eyes, Doc's gesture being a painful punch in her soul. He just did what she didn't dare to imagine him doing. But she wouldn't leave things like this. Doc might be very stubborn, but so could be Frisk when needed.

"In that case, I'll tell you straight out!"

But before she could tell him anything, there was a loud crack and a big tree branch fell off right on the cable. Doc and Frisk looked up and their eyes widened when they saw that the fall of the branch disconnected the plug at the top of the courthouse.

"Great Scott!" - Doc exclaimed, then instructed to Frisk - "You get the cable; I'll throw the rope down to you!"

"Right, I got it!"

Doc picked the rope, absent-mindedly putting the letter pieces back in his pocket, then rushed in the courthouse. As Frisk picked the cable, she noticed how frequent the thunder and lightnings were getting. Meanwhile, Doc was running up the stairs that led to the clock mechanism. Once at the top, he walked out of the small door that led outside. Seeing him, Frisk called to him:

"Doc!"

The scientist instantly threw the rope down to his friend. Frisk instantly attached it to the end of the cable.

"C'mon, c'mon, let's go!" - Doc said, starting to pull the rope back up.

"Alright, take it up!" - Frisk yelled as she helped to bring the cable up to Doc.

Once Doc got the cable in his hands, Frisk figured it was her last chance to warn him about his future.

"Doc!" - she shouted with her hands around her mouth.

"Huh?!"

"I have to tell you about the future!" - Frisk shouted as loudly as she could.

But Doc couldn't quite hear her in the storm.

"Huh?!"

"I have to tell you about the future!" - the teen repeated, trying to yell louder.

As Doc tried to hear her out the best he could under the circumstances, Frisk went on with the warning.

"On the night I go back in time, you get-!"

BONG!

Just as Frisk was about to tell the important part, the clock started to strike 10 p.m. Startled by the loud sound, Doc almost fell off, but thanksfully held on to the gargoyle and found balance again.

"Doc!" - Frisk screamed, covering her mouth.

BONG!

BONG!

Leaning against the wall for safety, Doc then covered his ears as the bell of the clock kept ringing.

BONG!

Letting out a cry, Doc briefly wondered if that's how it sounded like to Frisk whenever she heard his multiple clocks chime at once.

"Go!" - Doc shouted, despite that the bell kept ringing.

"No, Doc!" - Frisk replied, looking more desperate.

"Look at the time!" - Doc pointed at the clock - "You've got less than 4 minutes! Please hurry!"

With a heavy heart, Frisk ran towards the DeLorean, as the clock kept ringing. As she took seat, she instantly turned the engine on and quickly drove to the other end of the street. When Doc saw the DeLorean drive by, he couldn't help it, he just cheered after it, then blew it a kiss in a good luck gesture. The car was quickly out of sight, and it was now 10 o'clock. Now that the bell stopped ringing, Doc could get back to business. Carefully, he proceeded to walk long the cornice towards the cable, which wasn't an easy or safe task.

Meanwhile, Frisk made it to the start line drawn by Doc and, once the car was positioned right behind it, the teen went out of it to insert the connecting hook into the slot. When she was done with it, Frisk instantly sat back down in the car, then hit the steering wheel in frustration.

"Damn it, Doc, why did you have to tear up that letter?" - she exclaimed - "If only I had more time..."

And then it hit her. "Wait a minute... I got all the time I want, I got a time machine!" - she thought to herself, feeling her spirits go up - "I'll just go back earlier and warn him. Okay, ten minutes should do it."

As she typed on the keypad, Frisk gave herself eleven extra minutes, the one additional minute being for good luck. She watched with satisfaction at the date and hour on display on the time circuits.

"OCT - 27 - 2018 - 01:24 a.m."

"Time circuits on, Flux Capacitor... fluxing, engine running. Alright!"

Just as Frisk said that, the car engine went off. Frisk's eyes widenened in horror.

"Great, I jinxed it." - she said with annoyance.

She instantly tried to turn the engine back on, all while pleading aloud, but it just wouldn't.

In the meatime, Doc was slowly walking towards the hanging cable. He reached his right hand towards it, while using his left hand to both hold on to the edge of the clock on the wall and hold his other cable. Just as Doc almost reached the first cable, the cornice broke down under his feet. A terrified Doc instinctively gripped the clock needles with his both hands, dropping the lower cable that thanksfully didn't fall on the ground and just got hooked on his pants. As Doc looked on the clock he was holding on to, he saw it move on to 10:01 p.m. He focused back on his primary task; to reach the upper cable. All while hanging on the clock, he unsuccessfuly tried to catch the cable twice, the wind that moved it around making it difficult. Doc then waited the right moment to catch it and, at his third try, he finally did. He held on to it with his both hands and moved on to the next task. He sensed that the other cable was about to fall off his pants, so Doc very carefully lifted his foot up and when it was at his reach, he quickly grabbed the cable. Despite his unsafe posture, now that Doc had both cables in his hands, he let out a loud relieved sigh.

Meanwhile, Frisk still couldn't start the car engine. As the alarm rang, Frisk panicked even more.

"Please... please, c'mon..!" - she begged the stalled car - "Come... ON!"

Letting out an angry cry, she bumped her head against the steering wheel. As she did so, the engine suddenly let out a roar. Frisk instantly lift up her head with a bewildered look on her face and, not wasting a single second, she hit the gas. The DeLorean darted off in the straight line towards its destination point. Thinking about Tina and Doc, Frisk kept accelerating, her eyes reflecting nothing but determination.

On the clock tower, Doc found firm surface to stand on and was about to connect the two cables back together... only to find out the lower cable couldn't quite reach the upper one. Doc looked down and realized the tree branch that fell off earlier was blocking it. But he wouldn't let it stop him. After one strong pull, he brought the lower cable closer, making it connectable. But as Doc looked down again, he realized to his horror that the cable unplugged on the other end!

"Aaaahhh!"

After he let out his horrified cry, Doc checked the clock that just moved on to 10:03 p.m. There was only one minute left. Doc saw headlights of the DeLorean show up at the distance. "No, I cannot fail!" - he told himself with a determined look on his face as he connected the cables. Thinking fast, he secured the cable around the clock hands, then, forgetting all about any fears and worries, he slid down the cable to its other end, back on the firm ground. He instantly got back on his feet and moved the cable end from under the tree branch. He then ran to the cable end that was connected to the street lamps.

Driving at full speed, Frisk noticed with the corner of her eye Doc fussing over the cables.

"Doc..." - she said, glad to see he was alright and hopeful he would solve whatever problem remained.

As she got close to the street lamps, Frisk closed her eyes again, preparing for the final part of the plan.

The clock then moved to 10:04 p.m., then right on schedule, the lightning struck it. The electricity ran down the cable just as Doc connected the cables together (knocking him off his feet) and as the DeLorean connected to the cable with its hook. As soon as the contact happened, in a bright flash of light, the DeLorean vanished from sight, leaving behind nothing but two trails of fire. The only evidence of the car having been there was the connecting hook hanging on the cable between the street lamps. An astonished Doc looked around. Fading flames were going long the cables, showing just how powerful the lightning strike has been. Doc then ran towards the flames left by the DeLorean tires during its temporal displacement and, after the realization of his success fully kicked in, Doc let out a loud happy scream, followed by a brief laughter. Smiling brightly, he looked up at the clock tower.

He did it. He just performed a huge scientific prowess. He successfully sent a time machine - that he would eventually invent - seventeen years into the future.

But most importantly, Frisk made it back home.

Chapter Text

Saturday, October 27th 2018

As the flash of light dissipated, Frisk instantly hit the brake and turned the steering wheel to not crash into the building at the end of the street. It was a close one, but she succeeded her stunt. A moment later, the DeLorean turned around and stopped at a wider spot in the street, and Frisk briefly went out of the ice covered car. She looked around her with a smile. Hill Valley wasn't really that different from moments ago, but the neon signs were clearly moderner and more familiar to the girl's eyes. The street was silent and empty, with no people around except the local hobo, known as "Red" by the neighborhood, who was getting back to sleep after having been awaken by the noises the DeLorean made. Frisk smiled to herself at the realization that she was indeed back in 2018.

"I'm home... Everything looks great..!" - she breathed out, then checked the time on a big digital clock beneath a shop sign - "1:24, I still got time. I'm coming, Doc."

Frisk sat back inside the car and tried to start the engine... only for the DeLorean to stall again.

"No, not again..!" - Frisk moaned in exasperation.

Suddenly, while she was trying to start the car, a familiar blue Volkswagen van drove past her before taking a turn to the left. Frisk's blood went cold, instantly recognizing the van.

"Lybians..." - she said in a half-whisper.

Her heart pounding madly, Frisk dumped the DeLorean at once and ran after the van. She ran to the Twin Pines Mall as fast as her legs could carry her, although she reasonably knew she could never outrun the vehicle. Still, she mentally prayed to whatever supreme deity there was to not let happen what was coming. "Please, I can't lose Doc, I can't..! Please, don't let them kill him! Don't take my best friend away from me!" - she thought as she ran and her lungs felt like burning from the effort. After what felt like an eternity, Frisk finally saw the familiar lit signboard of the mall. As she ran to it shakely, she saw that she was too late. Her eyes filled with tears as she witnessed Doc being shot by the terrorist for the second time. Filled with grief, Frisk opened her mouth to scream.

But before she could, a familiar voice beat her at it.

"NOOOOOOO! BASTARDS!"

Frisk instantly recognized it being her own voice. She remembered screaming these same words when she witnessed the murder the first time.

Then, she saw herself - wearing the yellow radiation suit - emerge from behind the truck in an attempt to run from the terrorists, only for them to make a U-turn, making her stop on her tracks.

Frisk looked at the scene wide-eyed, seeing herself and the events she's already experienced from a third point of view being the most surreal thing ever.

She then tensed when the the gunner Lybian aimed his gun at the "other her", but then released a breath she didn't realize she was holding when the gun jammed and her younger self hopped into the DeLorean. Everything played out exactly as Frisk remembered. She then watched from the distance the car chase and soon enough, a white glow engulfed the DeLorean until it vanished in a flash of light. As for the Lybians, briefly disoriented by the flash and not having paid better attention to any obstacles in their way, crashed loudly into the photo booth (which Frisk was spared from thanks to ending in the past), getting what they deserved.

Now that the Lybians were no longer a threat, Frisk ran to her friend lying on the ground near his white truck.

"Doc..!" - she cried out as she ran to her friend, then collapsed on her knees, her shaky legs finally giving in.

When she turned around Doc's motionless body, she let out a sob and tears streamed down her cheeks.

"No..." - was all she could say, before looking down in heartbreak.

Her nails digging into the fabric her jacket, she let out a few broken sobs. This couldn't be real. "It's just not fair... It shouldn't be happening... I should've done more to prevent this, I should've given myself more time in the time circuits..." - she was telling herself as she cried. What would she do now that her only friend was gone?

Then Frisk heard some movement near her. As she looked up, her eyes widened when she saw that it was Doc, sitting up and looking at her. He looked like he was slowly recovering from shock.

"Y-You're alive..?" - Frisk asked hoarsely.

Without saying a word, Doc unzipped his radiation suit, revealing that he's been wearing a bullet proof vest underneath.

"Bullet proof vest..." - Frisk breathed out in amazement - "But how did you know? I never got the chance to tell you..."

With a smile, Doc pulled from an inner pocket a folded paper that he handed to Frisk. The teen took and unfolded it, revealing it to be her warning letter taped back together. Frisk looked back at Doc and, with a trembling voice, asked:

"What about all that talk about... screwing up future events... the space-time continuum..?"

"Well, I figured... what the hell." - Doc replied with a grin, hoping this response would make Frisk smile a little.

But his words didn't have the desired effect. Frisk looked at the letter again through new tears, her hands holding it trembling. Then, unable to hold it back anymore, Frisk trapped her friend in a hug, bursting into tears. She cried loudly and uncontrollably into Doc's shoulder, both out of sheer relief and the trauma she's suppressed for an entire week. Doc then returned the hug, holding Frisk close to him and gently stroking her head in comfort.

"I-I thought I lost you f-forever..." - Frisk said through uncontrollable sobs - "I wanted to t-tell you, b-but..."

"But I've been too stubborn. I know." - Doc gently replied, then, closing his eyes, he apologized - "I'm sorry, Frisk. I didn't mean to put you through this distress."

Frisk nodded lightly, as though silently telling that she wasn't mad at him for this. As the two friends stayed in the embrace for another minute, Frisk's crying subsided and she was feeling a little better, but very emotionally drained. After she wiped her tears with her jacket sleeves, Doc stood up and helped her up.

"Now, we should go away before the Lybians regain consciousness." - he told her.

"Good idea." - Frisk replied with a shudder.

As the two went inside the truck (without forgetting the plutonium), Frisk kept holding on to Doc in a side-hug, as though fearing he'd vanish into thin air if she let go. When Doc needed to take the driver's seat, he gently squeezed her hand and told her gently:

"I'm okay Frisk, I promise."

She reluctantly let go, knowing he couldn't drive if she kept holding him. A bark then made her spin around, and she smiled seeing Einstein in his custom radiation suit trotting to them. Frisk knelt down and ran her hand through his shaggy fur, which relaxed her to some extent.

"Hi, Einstein. I missed you, smart boy." - she told him - "All the shooting must've scared you... It sure scared me."

Frisk then snuggled with the dog for comfort and Einstein gave her face a lick. Doc smiled at the sight before starting the engine and in no time, they drove away from the Twin Pines Mall.

After Doc took care of his truck, he, Frisk and Einstein made it to the town square, where they found the DeLorean where Frisk last left it. The layer of ice has long since melted. When they took seat inside, Doc successfully started the engine.

"You sure have better luck with it than I do." - Frisk commented tiredly.

"I'll certainly need to look into the stalling issues." - Doc replied, thinking of the fact how lucky Frisk had been to catch the lightning on time (as Frisk told him about it a little earlier) - "I guess I'll just have to postpone my journey to the future."

"I'm sorry you have to postpone." - Frisk said, looking apologetic - "I know you've been really looking forward to it."

"That's alright; I've waited for seventeen years, so I can wait just a little longer." - Doc reassured her with a smile - "I better time travel safely."

There was another reason why Doc preferred to hold back on time travel, but he couldn't quite tell Frisk about it now. Besides, while he'd be at fixing the DeLorean, he might as well add in a neat feature he just thought of - a voice recognition system! He could make it so the time machine could activate only at his vocal command (and possibly Frisk's too, just in case), and that way, no one would be able to steal it and time travel without his accord. Doc didn't dare to imagine what could've happened had the terrorists got a hold on his time machine... So it was better to not risk its theft any further.

Doc then briefly turned his head to glance at the only person in the world he'd ever trust his time machine to. Frisk looked exhausted, both physically and emotionally. Her gaze was weary and a bit unfocused. But despite her weariness, Frisk found the strength to smile briefly at her best friend. She was just happy that he was alive and well again. And of course, she was just as glad returning to Tina, and she couldn't wait to give her a hug in the morning.

"I bet you're thinking of finally seeing Tina again." - Doc guessed her thoughts.

"You finally got mind-reading figured out, Doc?" - Frisk joked weakly, sounding a little sleepy.

"Nah, I just know you all too well." - Doc shook his head, smiling.

It was then that they made it to Frisk's house. When the DeLorean stopped in front of it, Frisk then briefly hugged Doc again, needing to feel him close before going home. Doc of course understood, so he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. Then Frisk let go, opened the wing door and walked out of the car.

"Oh Frisk, just one thing." - Doc started, making her look at him curiously - "After your trip to the past, the timeline might have some... surprises in store for you."

"Oh dear... Is it good or bad?" - Frisk asked worriedly.

"Definitely good." - Doc answered with a mysterious smile.

"Alright... I'll keep my eyes open." - Frisk nodded, though didn't have much energy to think about it further - "Good night, Doc. Bye, Einie."

"Have a good night yourself, Frisk."

Frisk then closed the wing door and watched the car drive away. When the DeLorean was out of sight, Frisk found her keys and quietly opened the front door of her house and walked in. Never had she thought she'd be happy to be back here. After locking the door, she went upstairs and then to her bedroom. She was so tired she didn't even bother to switch on the lights. Dropping her coat and kicking off her shoes, Frisk walked to her bed and collapsed on it, instantly falling asleep.

...

The sun was already high in the sky when Frisk woke up in the morning. As she looked at the alarm clock showing 10:20 a.m., she almost wondered if the whole time travel adventure has just been one long crazy dream, but she knew better than making such a simplistic assumption. The entire week in the past was very real, which Frisk knew for a fact. As she rolled on her back, her hand touched something soft, making her frown in confusion. Frisk picked the object and she smiled in pleasant surprise; it was the teddy bear her father bought for her back in 2001, although now it reflected the years of having been played with. "No doubt I loved this little guy." - Frisk mused. Then, as she properly looked around her, her eyes widened. Her room looked different from before.

Well, it wasn't too different, but there were more things furnishing it, unlike the plain and almost empty room Frisk remembered. The bed, the wardrobe, the desk and the nightstand were about the same, but there was also a bookshelf with more books than Frisk ever owned, there were more things lying on her desk than just the necessary schoolbooks, and there was even a mirror! Kid drawings decorated her walls like before, but this time there were more of them, some familiar, and some Frisk couldn't quite recognize at first sight. But drawings weren't the only thing that decorated her room; there also were a few trinkets, most of them handmade, and what looked like family pictures! "What's going on? Is this even my room and not some other girl's?" - Frisk started to freak out, but then rationalized - "It has to be; Doc would've told me I no longer lived here." Frisk stood up from her bed, wanting to investigate her belongings some further, but then froze on her spot when she caught eye of her own reflection in the mirror.

Slowly, she stepped closer to it, as she shockedly eyed at her reflection. She was still recognizeable as herself, but the changes made quite a difference nonetheless. Her hair no longer was a short haircut, instead it was long, going down to the mid-back. And her body frame now looked healthy, no longer malnourished. Frisk was still a skinny girl, just not in a sickly way. Her healthier shape also made it that she was... more developed. Running her hand through her long hair, Frisk couldn't help but wonder: "Is this... really me?" Then, a more substantial question came to her mind. Did her trip to the past cause these changes? Frisk then recalled Doc telling her that the timeline may have a few surprises in store.

But if she was now healthier and had more possessions in her room... did it mean that her family changed as well?

The only way to find out was to go downstairs and see by herself. With a pounding heart, Frisk nervously walked out of her bedroom. As she walked downstairs, she could hear happy chatting in the kitchen as well as the crackling of something cooking in the pan. Frisk instantly recognized Tina's voice, as well as her parents', although they sounded much more like their younger and kinder selves. But there also was another kid's voice, one Frisk didn't recognize. It sounded like it belonged to a young boy. When Frisk walked into the living room, her eyes widened at what she saw.

Her mother Lola was setting the table for breakfast, while her father Eric was listening with genuine interest at what Tina was saying, the little girl happily sitting on his lap. But the most surprising thing of all was that there was another child there, a little boy with brown hair much like Frisk's and Tina's, but with blue eyes like Lola's. His skin however, was white like Eric's, not bronze like the girls' of the house. The boy looked older than Tina, probably around nine years old.

Seeing his daughter awake, Eric gave Frisk one of his bright smiles and greeted her with a happy voice.

"Good morning, Frisk. Did you sleep well?"

Frisk only nodded in response, trying to not let her confusion show through.

"Frisk, you're finally awake!" - Tina exclaimed, jumping off her dad's lap - "Mommy made pancakes!"

Tina, followed by the unknown boy, ran to Frisk to get a good morning hug. Frisk instantly caught her sister in a tight hug, happy to do so after worrying about her for an entire week. She briefly noted that Tina was now better shaped too.

"Tina... Good morning, little sis." - Frisk said softly, doing her best to not tear up in happiness.

After a moment, she finally let go and ruffled Tina's hair, making the little girl giggle. The boy then stepped towards Frisk, asking with a big playful grin:

"No hug for your brother?"

"My brother?" - Frisk thought in shock - "So now I... also have a little brother, and not just Tina?" She started to panic again. She now had a new sibling she never knew. She didn't even know his name!

And then, a name popped up in her mind. Joshua. The boy's name was Joshua. Frisk then recalled images of memories involving her brother, like her meeting her newborn brother at the hospital, playing superheroes with him, reading stories to him and Tina... At once, Frisk felt a rush of love for Joshua like she's known him her entire life. Smiling, she pulled him in a hug.

"Of course you're getting a hug too." - she said - "Good morning, Joshua."

It was surreal to know she had a new sibling out of nowhere, but somehow it just felt right. Almost as though it's always been this way.

Frisk then walked to the table with her siblings and eyed with wonder at two small piles of pancakes on the table. One pile was with apple slices, and the other was with strawberries. There also stood bottles of juice and milk. Frisk couldn't believe this; she's never had such things for breakfast in her own home!

Or had she? New images popped up in her mind, memories of having scrambled eggs or french toasts for breakfast, as well as memories of occasional pancake days. Frisk figured these were memories from her other life, the one in this rewritten timeline. But how was this possible? How could she remember things she never experienced?

"Frisk, you look like you're seeing pancakes for the first time in ages." - Eric teased his eldest daughter, and as she looked up at him, he added - "We've had them only two weeks ago."

"Sorry, I... I was just thinking how beautiful they look." - Frisk quickly came up with an excuse.

"It's nothing special though, they're made of store-bought batter." - Lola said as she returned with a teapot that she put down on the table, then reached out to her daughter - "Good morning, my dear."

Even though her mother just wanted to give her a quick hug and a kiss, Frisk instinctively flinched, since she's never shared a hug with her mother besides that one time with her teenage self in 2001. Lola instantly frowned in concern at her daughter's reaction.

"Everything's alright, Frisk?" - she asked gently.

"...Y-Yeah, I'm fine." - the teen answered - "I just got startled."

"But why?" - Lola grew more confused.

"I... I'm probably still a bit sleepy." - Frisk lied, not liking to, but it was the only thing she could say.

Lola seemed to buy it though, as her posture instantly relaxed and she smiled in relief.

"I bet you stayed up late reading?" - she asked her daughter.

There was no way Frisk could tell her mother about sneaking out in the middle of the night to assist Doc at an experiment involving a time machine, almost getting killed by Lybian terrorists, and then being trapped in the past for an entire week. Thinking fast, she remembered how she's been reading a book before going to see Doc, so she went with that.

"Yes, I've been reading some Jules Verne again." - Frisk replied.

Satisfied with this explanation, Lola took a seat at the table, and Frisk then did the same. Frisk did her best to not show her surprise when Lola proceeded to put pancakes in her children's plates before taking one for herself. Her parents as she primarily remembered them always took food first, letting Frisk and Tina share whatever was left. But then, there were new memories of them on the contrary being selfless and caring, looking out for their children's interest before thinking of their own. "How am I supposed to concile these conflicting memories?" - Frisk wondered as she took a bite of her strawberry pancake. "Are the new ones even really mine? It feels like they are, but..." Frisk then looked at her parents and noted how better they looked now. Gone were disheveled clothes and messy hair. Now their clothes were simple, but neat. Eric's face was also properly shaved, giving him a much friendlier and trustworthy appearance. The constant bags under his and Lola's eyes were gone, and their eyes were now lively instead of being empty and unfocused. Basically, Lola and Eric were like their teenage selves from 2001, but with gained maturity and wisdom. Frisk had wished for her parents to be more like this for a long time, but now that they were... she didn't know what to make of it. Could she ever get used to this new life?

When breakfast was over, Lola went to pick something in the living room, which turned out to be two handmade Halloween costumes. She showed them proudly to Tina and Joshua, speaking with an upbeat voice:

"Do you like it, kids? Frisk and I worked really hard on them!"

Tina and Joshua cheered happily, clearly liking the final result. Joshua's costume was one of a superhero, while Tina's was a Frisk outfit, like in the original timeline, although it looked a little better. Frisk thought about it, and "remembered" spending evenings sewing these costumes with her mother, and how they finished it the previous night, mere hours before Frisk snuck out to see Doc. Frisk was happy that Tina still wanted to dress up as her even in the rewritten timeline, despite them having had a different life and thus having a slightly different sibling relationship.

But if Frisk's relationship with her family was different from what she remembered... has her friendship with Doc been altered as well? This perspective made Frisk more anxious than anything else. Doc was her only true constant now, the only person who knew about time travel and who's been her friend in both timelines. Doc has always been the person Frisk looked up to, he was the one she could turn to whenever she needed help at anything. They had bonded over being two outcasts, being able to truly understand each other. Frisk viewed Doc as not only her best friend, but also as her mentor, and even as family. But now, considering Frisk's different life experience, if her special relationship with Doc has been altered... she didn't know if she'd be able to cope with it.

But was she even still the Frisk Doc knew and befriended? Frisk remembered how she saw herself in the parking lot take the DeLorean and go back in time. In this timeline, Doc had read her warning letter and didn't die from the shooting. Which meant that in this timeline, Frisk has always had loving parents and two siblings. But then, where did that Frisk go? Was she trapped in the past? Would it mess-up the timeline again? What if the space-time continuum already all messed-up? Or, what if instead of being trapped in 2001, the other Frisk has been... killed? "Oh God... Can it be I killed my other self and stole her life?" - Frisk started to freak out - "Did I replace the Frisk my parents, Tina, Joshua, and Doc love?"

Frisk decided to get answers before she surrendered to panic completly. Without saying anythig, she rushed upstairs in her room (or was it even "hers"?), barely hearing Lola ask her if she was alright. Once in the bedroom, Frisk picked up her jacket, found her wallet and pulled out the photography with herself and Tina. She gasped at what she saw. It was no longer just her and Tina, but Joshua was there too. But Joshua wasn't on the photograph when Frisk made her parents stay together... Maybe it just took him time to appear, just like it took Tina days to fully fade? Frisk wondered if she'd have seen him had she checked the picture before departing to her time. But it was a different picture she was after right now anyway, so Frisk pulled out of her wallet the other photo she treasured dearly. The one of Doc and herself, taken on the first anniversary of their friendship. Frisk frowned a little, having expected it to change too, but... it didn't. It was the same as she remembered it. She then wondered if in this timeline, their first meeting was different from what she knew. She concentrated, thinking of the day they met. The only memory she had of it was the one she already knew. They met in the garbage dump, both of them seeking useful parts for their personal projects. The fact their first meeting was left unchanged already relieved Frisk, though didn't calm her fears yet.

"I'll go to his place and ask him directly." - Frisk decided. Checking herself in the mirror again, she brushed her hair and, after she looked into what appeared to be a jewerly box, she saw two ribbons in it and then used the pink one to attach her hair in a ponytail. Then she put her jacket on and went downstairs, and as she was about to walk through the door, she heard her mother ask:

"Where are you going, Frisk?"

There was no reproach in her question, just genuine parental interest to know where her child would be. It felt strange being asked this, considering Frisk would always go out and around the town without her parents ever giving a damn. A little taken aback and uncertain what kind of answer her mother would accept, Frisk answered with a small hesitation:

"I, um... have some... errands."

"Oh, I know well what kind of 'errands' you mean." - Eric then said on his turn, then smiled - "You're going to see Doctor Brown, aren't you?"

"Yes... I am." - Frisk confirmed, surprised.

She didn't expect her "new parents" to know about her friendship with Doc. But then again, in the context of this new timeline, it made sense. She briefly had images of Doc meeting Eric and Lola, but Frisk instantly chased those away. She'd think about it after she got a proper explanation of what was happening to her.

"Then you can directly say so, Frisk." - Lola said gently - "You know we approve of him being your friend, so you don't need to act skittish about seeing him."

"Sorry, Mom." - Frisk replied - "I guess my mind's not quite in the right place today."

"That's okay, it happens." - Lola said, sounding understanding - "Just don't forget to come back home before supper."

"I will." - Frisk promised - "See you later, Mom, Dad."

As she walked out, Frisk realized how strangely easy it was for her to call her parents "Mom" and "Dad" directly, which she hasn't done in years in the original timeline. Normally, she didn't call them anything. Maybe it was her other self's memories affecting her (explaining why it felt right), but maybe it was in part due to her learning to like them after getting to know them in 2001 (which was why she almost called the teenage Lola "Mom" during their goodbyes). It really was a confusing situation, so she hoped Doc could clear at least some of her confusion. But what if he was just as clueless as she was? "No. This is Doc I'm thinking of. He must have at least a theory." - Frisk thought to herself as she ran faster towards his home.

When she finally made it to his house, she found Doc at his desk, apparently drawing some plans. Under normal circumstances, Frisk would instantly ask him what it was about, but her mind was too preoccupied by her current concerns.

"Doc!" - she called as she rushed to him - "Doc, we have a big problem!"

The inventor looked up at her and smiled a little when he saw his friend had her usual appearance. Doc knew what was going on through Frisk's mind before she even said anything, and he's been expecting her to show up at his place as soon as she got to see the changes in her life.

"This is just insane... My mom and dad became completely different people, I look different, and I have a brother I didn't have before!" - Frisk said at a fast rate - "I also have these foreign memories showing up in my mind whenever I compare the life I know and this one, and it all makes me feel like I'm an interloper, and..."

"Frisk, Frisk, please calm down." - Doc told her as he stood from behind his desk, walked to her and gently put his hands on her shoulders - "You are not an interloper, you'll just need time to adjust to your new reality."

"But Doc, this life is nothing like the one I had..!"

"Your actions in the past had an impact on your parents' lives, your positive influence prompting them to make better life choices." - Doc explained patiently - "By encountering you, your parents learned to put their children first no matter what. Which encouraged your dad to quit taking drugs, and your mom never got dragged into the addiction to begin with. All because they wanted to do right by you, Frisk, and then by your siblings too."

"But is the Frisk they raised really 'me' though?" - Frisk asked - "I'm happy my parents ended better off, but... the Frisk you all know always lived this good life. So what happened to... that other girl?"

"Frisk, you are the girl they raised." - Doc stated.

"No Doc, you don't understand..!" - Frisk shook her head, looking upset - "I... I returned a little earlier than the time you set up in the circuits. I wanted to give myself more time to warn you about the Lybians. So when I made it back to the mall parking lot... I saw myself. Or rather, I thought it was myself, but that wasn't really me, was it? She was the Frisk who's always had good parents. Where did the other Frisk go, after she fled in the DeLorean?"

At this point, Frisk was on the verge of tears. Before Doc could say anything to soothe her worst fears, Frisk went on with a trembling voice.

"Did I... kill her, Doc? Did I steal her life?" - she asked - "And so I'm not... your Frisk? And you're not...?"

Frisk couldn't bring herself to finish the last question. At this point, tears were running down her cheeks, as she couldn't suppress them at the upsetting and terrifying implications. Doc, being the good friend he was, instantly pulled her into a hug.

"Of course you're still my Frisk." - Doc told her reassuringly - "I know this is a little confusing, but hear me out. You didn't kill or replace anyone. Tell me, are you familiar with the 'ripple effect'?"

"I... I think I heard of it." - Frisk nodded before looking up at Doc.

"When a change occurs in the past, it takes a little while for its repercussions to take effect in the future." - Doc explained - "And since you're a time traveler, it took a little bit longer for the ripple effect to catch up with you. There was no 'other Frisk'. It's always been just you."

"Are you sure?" - Frisk asked, looking vulnerable, yet hopeful.

"I am. If you weren't our Frisk, you wouldn't have memories of this better life, would you?"

"I guess... These memories are kind of a blur though."

"Give it some time. After a while, they'll become so clear that you'll feel like that was your only life."

"Will the memories of my old life disappear?" - Frisk asked, more worriedly this time.

"I don't think so." - Doc shook his head - "They might get foggier over time, but they shouldn't disappear completely. These memories are part of your identity, even more so that you're a time traveler. It also might depend on what you want to remember and what you'd rather forget."

"Good. There was a lot of bad in my former life but there were some good moments too, mostly involving you and Tina." - Frisk said with a soft smile.

"And Frisk, just because some aspects of your life changed, it doesn't mean our friendship did." - Doc reassured her, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

Frisk looked at him surprised. There were times when she really wondered if Doc was a natural telepath.

"There might be detail changes here and there, but the core of our relationship is the same." - Doc elaborated - "Although I don't remember the old tiimeline, I got to know you in 2001 and I picked on enough clues to know what we meant to each other. And after I met you again three years ago, that didn't change."

"You really mean it, Doc?"

There was a hint of vulnerability in Frisk's voice again, though this time she was smiling. Doc returned the smile and said with full confidence:

"I do. It doesn't matter if you were raised by loving parents or if you raised yourself. You are still the same skillful, smart and caring girl, and the best friend I didn't realize I needed before knowing you."

Frisk's face lit up more, touched that Doc not only saw her as being the same regardless of the timeline changes, but also valued their friendship as much as she did. Well, she already knew this, but it felt really good to hear him say it after fearing their friendship was lost.

"Thank you, Doc. You're the best of friends yourself." - she said, this time sounding happy.

"Do you feel better?" - Doc asked, and when Frisk nodded, he suggested - "Now, how about we start fixing the car engine? And while we're at it, I'll tell you all about a useful security feature I want to add to my time machine."

"Now you made me curious! What is it?"

And just like that, as Doc prepared his tools for engine reparations, he proceeded to tell Frisk about his voice recognition system idea with his usual energy and enthousiasm. Frisk smiled listening to him. She was glad to see that some things remained the same.

The timeline change didn't feel so frightening anymore. Her trip across time gave her and her family the chance to live a much better life, so Frisk wouldn't waste it, and she would do everything in her power to be happy. Frisk would certainly need some time to adapt to this new life, but with her loved ones being part of it, she knew she could do it.

As long as she put her mind to it.