Dandelion Clock

Synopsis:   A botanist obsessed with theoretical physics fuses the realm of the impossible/probable with a dandelion in seed form.  Once she perfects the formula, she tries an experiment and it returns her to the time her parents met.   The next time tells her future, but her future could affect much more than her happiness. 

Chapter 1—Amaryllis’ Devotion

          Doctor Natasha Amaryllis had been dedicated to developing a serum that would transport her back or forward into space time.  Her coworkers often derided her behind her back, saying that a ‘time serum’ could never be done.  Such a thing had never before been attempted and they felt Natasha was mad.   She wasn’t mad at all.  She simply understood the world in an innovative way and knew that certain substrates could be mixed to ‘tug at the threads of space and time’.   It was controversial.   The very fabric of space/time could be unraveled by her substrates and all it took was a simple action that needed to be tested.  

          One of Natasha’s lab partners, Igor Pushkin, actually believed in her work and observed in awe as he saw her first experiment come to pass.

          ‘This could very well unravel my molecules too, but I’m willing to risk it simply to see if it works.’, she said as Igor procured the first sample of dandelion clock for her.   It was a simple idea.  Put the serum on the dandelion clock, take a deep breath, see if a wormhole formed after the initial exhalation.   Igor dropped the serum delicately onto the puffy flower and held it, protected with goggles and proper PPE. 

          ‘Be careful out there.’, Igor said, tenderly.   She was oblivious to his affection for her even though he gave her flowers every day and subtly left her favorite Belgian chocolates on her desk.  He even went to the length of writing her a song, but she was so focused on her work that his advances were little more than a whisper in her ears.  Igor wouldn’t give up.  He had a feeling that the experiment would change things and maybe even change her.  He had faith that eventually, she’d come around because after all, they had been friends for years and their camaraderie was extraordinarily strong.  Soon, however, Igor sensed, the chords of love would be strummed and her heart would begin to beat in sync with his.  He had, if nothing, but time on his side.  

Chapter 2—Back to the Past

          The first initial whiff of air sent the dandelion puff into the sky and created a rift just as she had planned.   She had extra serum and another puffball with her for the return trip but thus far, the experiment had been successful. 

          Upon jumping into the wormhole, she saw visions of the past rushing at her that led to a familiar place.   It was back at a University, Yale, in fact, where her parents had initially met.   They were long since dead presently due to the unseemly wrath of cancer on both their parts.  Seeing them again was a jolt to Natasha’s system and it made her eyes well up with tears she couldn’t control.  

          Natasha had to remind herself she couldn’t create a grandfather paradox.   There wasn’t any reason for her to anyways, due to the fact she had no murderous intent.  She was there to learn and curious to see how her parents got together and how she came into the world.   

          Seeing Tiffany, her mother and Anatoly, her father, so young and doe-eyed was precious and amusing.   They were always so full of life, love and zest no matter what life threw at them.   Natasha felt voyeuristic, however and knew she couldn’t interfere.  Her position was almost compromised so she took the necessary compromise to return to the present.   On the way back through the wormhole, she met herself, but only at a glance.    It was a bit of a warning,

          ‘Keep…hold…’, it said before the voice faded.   She recognized the voice as her own but only more mature and wise.  She could see her face, calm and resolute through the passage before she arrived back in the lab.   Igor was there, ready to catch her.   His face had turned a bright red as she had fallen literally out of thin air and into his arms.    He couldn’t help but chuckle and adjust his glasses, which had fogged over slightly due to the excitement of holding his favorite and most precious possession in his embrace, if only for a few seconds.  

          ‘You came back so quickly.  It’s only been a few minutes since you departed.  That serum really is functional.  You may have come upon a new breakthrough !’, he said, almost dancing he was so avid about this new discovery.   She thought of the warning her future self, had given her.   She felt it cryptic and wanted to know more about what future Natasha meant.   

          ‘Yes, true, Igor.   For now, it is between you and I.’, she said, astutely.  Igor’s violet eyes sparkled gleefully.   He nodded.  

          ‘Tomorrow, we try again and see what the results are.  You are my faithful scribe.’, she said.  This time, she patted his hands, thanking him for his work.  She always was gracious in a small way through tactile approach, which Igor savored.  He had a feeling she was becoming warmer to him and perhaps, just perhaps, there were seeds of love growing even in the moments she had jumped from the past back to the present.  

Chapter 3—Forward to the Future

          Igor had opened the lab early for his partner and was waiting for her patiently to arrive, serum in hand, clipboard at the ready.  

          ‘I got here early before the others.  Shame they still trash talk you.  Some people.  Jealousy is such a sickness.’, he complained mildly, shaking his head back and forth.  She wasn’t worried about backbiting or petty thoughts.  The haters amongst her could continue hating.  It changed nothing.   

          ‘Experiment #2.’, Natasha said, beginning another leap with the serum in place.   This time, she was whisked forward.   It was an unimaginable world, full of technology, fused with organic matter.   Technology wasn’t the main forefront of this society.   People lived more in harmony than ever before. 

          There was a house that was formed out of an oak tree.   Everything inside it was alive, even the creatures in it.  There were sentry bots that surveyed the area, symbiotic with the nature in the room they inhabited.   The sunlight was the only source of illumination and solar panels gave the treehouse its energy.   It was a self-sustaining house, one that breathed and lived even with its tenant.   Upon appearing, or whooshing through the wormhole, Natasha landed in a mossy hammock. 

          ‘Who’s there ?’ a voice, familiar, answered.   It was the voice from before.

          ‘I could cause a paradox !’, she thought, becoming frightened.  

          ‘Don’t worry, I know myself when I hear myself.’, the wise, charming, charismatic and tender reply came.   A woman in her 100s, maybe older, came running down the stairs, undeterred by age or arthritis.  As far as those things were concerned, they didn’t seem to be prevalent in this era.   

          ‘What did you mean then by what you said when I was returning back to my own age, and how can I not be messing with the very fabrics of space and time ?’, Natasha began, clearly addled by this whole process.   Paradoxes could be a real bear and if nothing else, could wreck your brain quicker than a nasty brain freeze.  

          ‘Time is a river.  This is not a fixed point, but there will be a point in your future where you will be given an option.  That is the fork in the road.   Keep hold of your serum and the dandelion clock.  In the wrong hands it could prove devastating.  I yanked one of the threads in the continuum to bring you here.   Your serum was only the beginning in toying with the fabric of space/time itself.   I had to warn you just in case.  The fork incident has not happened yet.’, Future Natasha warned.  

          ‘It’ll be one of my naysaying coworkers.’, Natasha thought, shaking her head. If anyone learned other than Igor, it could have terrible consequences.   Future Natasha granted her wisdom and insight and let her in on a little secret.

          ‘You know, Igor ?’, she said, nudging her a bit. 

          ‘A bit of a spoiler alert, but this treehouse here is going to be filled with tons of grandchildren, great grandchildren, great-great-great grandchildren…You get the idea.’, she said, going into a full-blown guffaw.   She had always hidden the fact that she had been fond for her lab partner even though she didn’t let him know it.  She had always been appreciative of his kind, altruistic gestures.   That love song he had written played in her mind on her worst days and gave her reason to continue, especially in her determination to make certain this experiment worked.  

          ‘Love isn’t a deterrent or detractor.  It’s not even a diversion.  It is a wonderful, beautiful thing, and it is presenting itself to you !   Go for it !’, Future Natasha said.   Future Natasha already knew what the results were going to be, but present Natasha did not.  She allowed her face to be engulfed by a goofy, glimmering grin.

          ‘You know what, me ?  You’re right.’, she said, even though it sounded really unusual at the time.   It didn’t cause a paradox albeit Future Natasha hugged present Natasha.   She took a thread of time and space and yanked on it.  Natasha felt her whole body becoming light and airy and a wormhole formed above her head.   She had so many other questions to ask her, like how she had been able to manifest space/time itself in her own living room.  It was unreal, surreal in fact.  It was probably because Future Natasha was an alchemist and could control all elements in harmony with herself.  That was her conclusion and she stuck with it.  Besides, it was the only one that made any sort of logical and rational sense. 

Chapter 4—Ignoring Deriders

          After having opened her eyes, Igor was again, once at the ready to capture his beloved genius.   He merely helped her down from a gentle gust of wind.  The gossamer thread of time and space evaporated, tinkling in the light like a firefly and making melodies like a wind chime.    Igor feverishly wrote down all of his findings and was surprised that Natasha took the serum and gave it to him for safe keeping. 

          ‘This remains mum.  Understood ?’, she said, hoping no one else would ask her what she was doing or why she was acting so suspect.   

          ‘They’re all going to think you’re insane.  You know that right ?’, Igor noted, in a hush tone, obviously.   Natasha didn’t care.   She didn’t trust anyone else on that team other than her partner.   Igor had always been there to look after her and to stand up for her when she had been elbows deep into facts, theories and conjecture.  At least now she knew fact from fiction and whom to trust.   

          ‘You know I’m not though.  In fact, I was too blind to see how much you cared about me.’, Natasha said, feeling a little bashful that she was admitting to being wrong about ignoring him for such a lengthy period of time.   With that, she offered her hand and they began courting in earnest.   The soft touch of his hand and compassionate grip reassured her that her future self certainly was aware of what it had said.   Who was she to deny or doubt her own wisdom ?  

Epilogue

          The dandelion clock project was never breeched in the lab after the initial tests had become finalized.  No one else ever questioned its progress and it was literally swept under the rugs while more important research took place.   Natasha soon became a respected botanist for finding natural cures for cancer and even a reverse aging project.   It wouldn’t stave death entirely but it would keep the body rejuvenated, enacting telomeres to repair themselves.    It was only a smidgen of immortality, but she dared not play God.   She was close enough to divinity in the future, and apparently quite happy being a little lower than an angel.   

          Not too long in the future, Igor and Natasha were wed and had a brood of children of their own.   It didn’t bother their time spent to the dedication of science and the furthering of knowledge because the children grew up in an environment where curiosity was encouraged.   Natasha knew somehow, these babies would help her become an alchemist in the future; the oak house in the woods she saw during her quantum leap was proof positive of that.   

          It all lead to quietude at the end of the day after a long, arduous spell in the lab.  Oftentimes, it was just she and Igor, looking up through their sunroof at the milky way and counting (or trying to) the stars above, contemplating the mysteries of the Universe in its many forms.   Igor would hold her close, nuzzle her neck and kiss her softly before singing her to sleep with his love song.   That very love song had sealed the deal long before she ever acknowledged him, but thankfully Igor’s patience had paid off.   He had realized it in a dream he had experienced every night when he laid down to go to sleep.   He was aware of the power of intention and only now it had come to its ultimate manifestation.   In fact, as tribute and a way to send the Sacred Mind a bit of a thank you, he had dandelions grow in his backyard and would often celebrate happy occasions with a dandelion wine.  Others had no idea why but he and Natasha often giggled about this inside joke, knowing that down the road the right travelers and intellects would reap the benefits from the fruits of their labors. 

The End