“Just what kind of cooperation do you need?” Flora asked cautiously.
“Mostly your time,” Mendel said. “Are you free now?”
“I have the afternoon off from my community service due to the exams,” Flora said.
“Excellent,” Mendel replied. “I have some things I need to set up first, but let’s meet at Soben fields in an hour.”
“What are we going to do there?” Flora asked.
Mendel’s eyes glistened with zeal. “Science,” he said.
************
“How is this going to tell me more about my dreams?” Flora asked as Mendel sat her down on a hollowed out log that he had dragged into place. She had just spent an hour telling Mendel about her entire blackout history, though she left out the part about the snow globe. It’s not that she wanted to lie to him, but the globe was her secret with her father. She wasn’t ready to share that with anyone.
“From the interview, I have deduced that while it is likely that extreme emotions do trigger your blackouts and thus your dreams, the historical data is too sparse and uncontrolled to rule out other mitigating factors,” Mendel said. “Before we move closer to understanding the cause of your dreams, I’ll need to perform some tests in a controlled environment to validate our current assumptions.”
“So you want to try to get me to faint?” she asked. “I’ve never purposefully blacked out before, well except -” She bit her tongue. It was going to be tricky to avoid talking about the globe. “Look, I don’t really want to black out anymore. I mostly try to avoid it.”
“And the best way to do that is to understand how they happen. Plus, if we can reproduce your blackouts in a controlled environment, then we may also be able to reproduce one of those lucid dreams.”
“Well, what if the Jane blackouts are different?” she asked. She didn’t like where this was going.
“Until we find evidence of that, our best strategy is to first induce blackouts, using extreme emotional triggers, and then vary the circumstances until a new lucid dream appears,” Mendel said.
“How?” she asked, just as Mendel threw a clump of dirt in her face. “Ow,” she shouted, standing up. “What are you doing?”
“For your safety, please remain seated,” Mendel said as he threw more dirt in her face. “I want to make sure you are properly cushioned when you fall.”
“I’m not going to fall,” Flora insisted, batting away another clump of dirt and some brush. “Stop that!”
“Would you describe yourself as angry?” Mendel asked clinically.
“Yes,” she said as she grabbed his arms to keep him from throwing anything else at her. “Look, I don’t think this is working.”
“I think we need to increase the intensity of the anger,” he said as he proceeded to stomp on her foot.
“Ow, stop!” she said. “No, you need to stop that now. This isn’t a good idea at all!”
“True, this may not be the right approach,” he said. “I am not certain that I can properly invoke anger as you see me as a compatriot rather than an enemy.”
“Yes,” she said. “I’d rather not -”
“Perhaps a love-based emotion would provide a stronger response,” Mendel said. He closed his eyes, puckered his lips, and thrust his head awkwardly towards her.
“Ew, no,” she said, slapping at his face. “What’s wrong with you?” But somehow he pushed forward with strength she never suspected, his lips getting closer and closer. “No.”
Flora woke up, lying comfortably on a bed of grass. “If you kissed me I will kill you,” she said immediately.
“It looks like I was able to invoke an anger response after all,” Mendel called out from beside a tree a safe thirty feet away. “I apologize for the intrusion on your private space. I stopped immediately when you lost consciousness.”
“Don’t ever do that again,” Flora said while brushing imaginary germs off of her face with her hands.
“Did that blackout spawn any lucid dreams?” Mendel asked.
“No, just blankness,” she replied.
“That’s to be expected,” he said. “We’ll have to repeat the experimentation until we find the right combination of stimuli.”
“No,” Flora said. “No more tests.”
“It was my understanding that you wanted my assistance in understanding your condition,” Mendel said perplexedly. “If that is no longer the case, then -.”
“It’s not that,” Flora said. “It’s just-.” For a moment, Flora considered letting Mendel continue, but the image of his lips so close to hers was stuck in her mind forever. “It’s just that there’s something else involved with the lucid dreams,” she admitted. “I haven’t gotten it to work more than those two times, but I know it’s important.”
“Oh, well why didn’t you disclose this during the historical interview?” Mendel asked.
“It’s a personal item,” Flora said. “You have to promise me that if I share this with you, it remains our secret. You don’t share this with anyone.” Mendel nodded.
Somehow she knew that he was genuine. It wasn’t just that he had no other friends to share her secret with or that there was no way she could look at his awkward body with fear. Over the last few weeks, Flora found that she had truly grown to trust him.
Flora began to explain about the cave. At first she had only intended to tell him about the globe, but it was such a relief to be able to share all the thoughts that had been squeezing her brain that everything eventually came pouring out. In one continuous stream, she shared how it felt to be pulled out of consciousness, how real it felt inside Jane’s head, how she almost cried when she thought back to memories of her father, and how she just knew that there was something bigger out there beyond the mountains. And through all this, Mendel listened, nodded, and then listened some more.
When she was done, Flora waited for Mendel’s response, fearful that he would diagnose her as clinically insane. But Mendel said just one thing. “I stand by my previous obligation to aid in the understanding of your blackouts.” That was enough for Flora.
************
Flora was bored out of her mind. She had been sitting at the desk since morning. Aside from eating the lunch she had packed, there was no break in the monotony of her day.
Working at the Mayor’s office wasn’t anywhere near as exciting as Flora had originally hoped. She had been going to his office every day after school, trying to get on the Mayor’s good side with the hope of learning some secrets about the Institute. But in the last few weeks, she had hardly seen him at all.
When she got there on her first day, his secretary, Lucy, sat Flora down at her desk for just five minutes and gave her three rules to follow:
One: Don’t let anyone, including herself, in to see the Mayor without an appointment. Two: All appointments must be made directly with Lucy in the morning. And Three: Someone must always be at the desk.
That seemed to be the extent of her duties, which had seemed very simple until she had to go to the bathroom. Lucy had gone out, leaving only Jerry, the big constable who had grabbed her from the square. Jerry didn’t talk much, but he was a real stickler, demanding that Flora leave something behind as collateral. She didn’t have anything on her that first day, so she had to give him one shoe and then hop her way to the bathroom. Flora smiled at the memory. Now she always made sure to bring something along for bathroom collateral.
Lately she had been trying to corner the Mayor, to get him to answer some questions, but he was difficult to pin down. Despite the rigorous appointment calendar, the Mayor never seemed to have any meetings. He was always either shut up in his office, or out on errands.
Today, the Mayor was once again on “important errands,” and Lucy had taken the day off, leaving Flora by herself. Jerry wasn’t even around to stare at her suspiciously.
She sat and stared blankly at the wall. After a while, the patterns on the wall began to blur. The moving patterns shifted into shapes: swirls
, a flower, and then the head-shaped boulder outside the cave where she had discovered the globe, a boulder that she had dubbed “Pompous Rock.” Her eyes remained fixed ahead as her mind slipped into the vision. She looked to the right and saw the cave. Glancing down, she saw delicate white hands in front of an even whiter backdrop. Snow. She looked up again, and there was Pompous Rock, surrounded by a flurry of snow. All too soon, the vision faded, and she found herself staring at a wall again.
Flora heard the door open and looked up, hoping to see Jerry or maybe the Mayor. Instead, her teacher, Mrs. Gardner, walked in looking especially stern. She marched up to the desk and then stopped, staring down her long, thin nose at Flora.
“Hello Flora, I have an important matter to discuss with the Mayor,” she said, precisely enunciating each and every syllable. “Please let him know I’m here.”
“Um.” Flora gulped. “Do you have an appointment?” Mrs. Gardner raised her right eyebrow and waited. “I have to ask,” Flora insisted. “It’s procedure.” She waved around a blank folio plant to emphasize the point.
“No dear, however, this is a rather important matter, so please go ahead and get the Mayor,” Mrs. Gardner said.
“If you would tell me the nature of your business, I can have Lucy make an appointment for you when she gets in tomorrow,” Flora said nonchalantly, finally glad for the three rules she had been given.
“This isn’t something I can talk about with you, so if you’ll please, just get me the Mayor.” Mrs Gardner’s tone had become forceful.
“I’m really sorry,” Flora said quite unapologetically. “My instructions don’t allow that.” She shrugged, giving Mrs. Gardner an innocent smile.
“Oh bother,” Mrs. Gardner said, dismissing Flora with a wave. She walked around the desk and opened the door to the Mayor’s office.
“He’s not here,” Mrs. Gardner said, surprised. “Why didn’t you just tell me he wasn’t here?” Mrs. Gardner looked really annoyed now.
“The Mayor doesn’t like people to know when he’s not in the office,” explained Flora.
“Well, when does he get back?” snapped Mrs. Gardner.
“No idea?” Flora responded, her voice rising.
“You’re not being very helpful, Flora,” Mrs. Gardner said accusingly.
“I really don’t know anything,” she insisted.
“Precisely,” Mrs. Gardner said, suddenly smiling. Flora didn’t know how to react to that, but luckily the Mayor and Lucy walked in at that very moment.
“Mr. Mayor,” called out Mrs. Gardner, recovering her composure. “We have something we must discuss.”
“Ah, Julie,” the Mayor replied cheerfully. “We haven’t chatted in quite a while. How’s Manthos doing?” The Mayor hung up his coat and gave Mrs. Gardner a big hug.
“He’s well, thank you,” Mrs. Gardner replied stiffly. “But as I was saying, I have something important to discuss with you right now.”
“Sure, sure,” the Mayor said, gesturing to one of the chairs in the waiting area. “Have a seat. Lucy can get us some tea, and we’ll all have a nice chat. Come, come.”
Mrs. Gardner didn’t budge. “This is something that needs to be discussed in private, your Honor.” Those last two words were spoken with extra precision as if they were secret passwords. Mrs. Gardner then walked over to his office and opened the door. “After you sir,” she said courteously.
The Mayor looked like he was going to protest again and then changed his mind. “Sure, sure,” the Mayor agreed. “To my office then. Lucy, I’ll be out in just a moment for the tea.” He walked into his office followed by Mrs. Gardner who closed the door solidly behind her.
Lucy sat down on the waiting room couch and gestured for Flora to join her. “There now, you don’t have to stay behind that desk all the time. I often take a break and stretch out on this couch,” she confided to Flora. “It’s been a real big help having you around the last couple of weeks. Thank you very much.”
Flora sat down beside Lucy. “Uh, you’re welcome I guess,” she replied. “Yes, it’s quite comfortable on the couch.”
Even though they didn’t really talk much, Flora found that she really liked Lucy. Lucy looked to be somewhere in her mid thirties. She was a little plump but had a pretty face and a warming smile. Lucy talked all the time, but she never really seemed to ask Flora any questions. Maybe that’s why Flora felt so comfortable around her.
Ten minutes later, the door opened and the Mayor stuck his head out. “Flora, can I see you in my office please?” he asked.
Flora crept gingerly into the office to see Mrs. Gardner standing in front of the Mayor’s desk looking rather unhappy. Flora hadn’t been in this room since the Blooming Festival, but it looked just as she remembered. The Mayor motioned for her to sit down in the same seat she had been dropped into last time. Unfortunately that put her right under the nose of her teacher.
“Julie, please take a seat,” the Mayor said, pointing out a chair along the wall. He then took up Mrs. Gardner’s post in front of Flora, barely giving her time to get out of his way. He ignored Mrs. Gardner’s faint protestations as he leaned back against his desk.
“Now Flora,” he said calmly. “The reason I asked you in here is because the validity of your final exam has been called into question.”
“Sir?” asked Flora, uncertain what he meant.
“Well, no one has ever gotten every question right on the test.” He paused. “You’re not supposed to get every question right.”
“Okay...” Flora said cautiously.
“So what I’m saying is that you’re either a brilliant genius, or a masterful yet contradictorily moronic cheater.” The Mayor then fixed his gaze on her. “Now, which is it?”
“Wait, are you saying I passed the test? I get to work for your office?” Flora asked incredulously.
“No. Cheating on the test does not constitute passing,” interrupted Mrs. Gardner forcefully.
The Mayor held up his hand. “Hold on a minute Julie. In her weeks working here, Flora has demonstrated excellent character, a trait that would serve her well at the Institute. Now, Flora, did you cheat on the test?”
“No sir,” Flora said insistently. The Institute? She had made it into the Institute? “I didn’t even know I had passed. To be honest, I was distracted during the test and didn’t have much time to think about my answers. I just wrote down what popped into my head.”
“See, I told you she had fallen asleep during the test,” Mrs. Gardner interjected. Flora glared at her teacher. Then why didn’t you wake me up?
“And this ‘popping into your head,’ has this happened before?” the Mayor asked, ignoring Mrs. Garner.
“No, this was the first time,” Flora explained. “I was just in such a rush to finish the test that I didn’t think about what I was writing.”
“Hmm, do you believe in destiny Flora? Have you ever thought you might be destined for the Institute?” asked the Mayor hopefully.
“This is ridiculous,” burst out Mrs. Gardner. “She’s not destined for the Institute. Flora cheated. We certainly cannot allow her to represent us at the Institute when there are other more qualified students who... Just ask her how she cheated.” Mrs. Gardner turned to Flora. “I don’t have an answer key, and the test arrived from the Institute early in the morning. How did you know what the questions were?”
“Silence!” The Mayor’s voice was deep and booming. Flora just sat there, petrified. He stood up slowly and started pacing around the room. After a good minute, he finally returned to his spot in front of the desk and made a declaration.
“Mrs. Gardner, you have thirty minutes to give Flora an oral examination. I will supervise. After the thirty minutes are over, I will decide whether or not Flora will be sent to the Institute.”
Mrs. Gardner looked surprised. “But...” she began to say.
“You may begin now,” the Mayor interjected forcefully.
“I haven’
t really...” Mrs. Gardner continued.
“Now,” the Mayor repeated, staring her down.
Mrs. Gardner pulled her chair up to face Flora, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then spoke calmly, “Very well. Let us begin.”
She thought for a few moments and then said, “Name some shared characteristics between bacteria and fungi.”
“Um, I’m really taking a test now?”
“Just say what comes to mind, Flora,” prodded the Mayor.
“I suppose...cell wall, DNA, and plasma membrane?” Each syllable came out a higher pitch than the previous.
“That’s correct,” stated Mrs. Gardner grudgingly. “Now please define for me photorespiration.”
“It’s when rubisco binds to oxygen instead of carbon dioxide. It loses energy in this reaction.” Flora looked surprised at what she had just said.
“Yes, true,” Mrs. Gardner continued, now getting into a rhythm. “And what is the equation for respiration?”
“C6H12O6 + 6O2 becomes 6CO2 + 6H2O + energy,” Flora said immediately.
“What is the ecological role of cyanobacteria?”
“It fixes both carbon and nitrogen.”
“In Fungi, what shape...”
Just twenty minutes later, the Mayor raised up his hand for silence. “Flora,” he pronounced in his most official voice. “Congratulations. You will have the honor that few have: to serve the people as a scholar of the Institute.” The Mayor gave her a wry smile and silently mouthed “destiny.”
Mrs. Gardner didn’t object, but she didn’t bother to hide her anger either. On the way out, her eyes lingered on Flora as if to say, “I’m watching you.” But even Mrs. Gardner’s devilish stare couldn’t dampen Flora’s spirits. Her life had just changed forever.
************
Flora ran, her heart pumping hard. The muscles in her legs burned, adrenaline fueling them as they starved for oxygen. She turned hard to the right, leaving her pursuer behind. She didn’t pause to check that she was free but kept running. She snapped her head to the right just in time to see the disc flying towards a spot ten feet in front of her. Two more giant steps, and then she dove forward, just barely managing to catch the disc with her left hand before her body fell onto the grass with a painful thud.