The chain of coincidences 4/11

"We've just left the Holmwood Research Centre," Peter replied. "It's about the only place left in this country where there's any open space. Everywhere else is built on. This whole area is known as Holmwood, although the buildings go on and on without any real signs that you're moving into another town. Do you really come from a parallel world, or were you just joking."

"I was quite serious," replied Jennifer Jane, "I live in a place called Holmwood as well but it's nothing like this."

By this time they had reached the city, which was crowded with people. Everyone was wearing clothes made of the same material as Peter and his Father. Several of them looked at her curiously; she supposed it was because she was the only one wearing anything coloured.

Her old blue boiler suit made her feel inconspicuous at home but here she obviously stood out in the crowd. She also discovered the reason for the comparative quietness of the place. The roads were thronged with cars as she would have expected but they all sounded like very much quieter versions of a milk float.

"Are all your cars electric?" she asked.

"Of course they are, we use solar power. Electricity is free once you've got a converter and they're cheap enough. Whatever do you have, assuming you have cars where you come from?"
"All our cars use petrol"

"You mean volatile fuel derived from crude oil?"

"I think that's right, anyway they're much more noisy and smelly as well."

Peter was absolutely astonished at the waste of natural resources and said so. Jennifer Jane decided to try the effect of her old standby the chocolate swiss roll. She took the one she'd produced earlier from her pocket, peeled off the silver paper and took a bite. Peter's astonishment continued.

"Is that little cake covered in real chocolate?" he asked.

"Of course it is, would you like one?"

Jennifer Jane turned away slightly and twiddled her fingers for another swiss roll. It was her turn to be astonished.

Nothing happened. Strange, the spell had worked all right in the laboratory.

A nasty thought entered her mind. Magic really didn't work in this world. The only reason she'd been able to produce her cake, must have been because a small part of her world had entered while the 'door' in the laboratory had been open.

She was still confident that she could operate the door when she got back to the research centre but felt she'd have to hurry back in case the small amount of her world's magic properties in the laboratory leaked away.

She broke off half of her roll and gave it to Peter. "I really must get back as quickly as I can; otherwise I won't be able to get home until your Dad has mended his valve."

She turned round and hurried back towards the research centre. Peter followed closely, eating his half of the chocolate swiss roll with the utmost enjoyment. Fortunately the gate man saw them coming and let them back inside without any fuss. They met

Professor Edwards just as he was about to leave the building. Jennifer Jane explained her problem.

"Don't be silly child. I'm not a fool you know, there's no such thing as magic. If you really did come through what you insist on calling a 'door', then you'll have to wait until the valve is repaired and I can activate the displacement area again."

Peter held out the remains of his swiss roll. "It's covered with real chocolate Dad and she says that they use oil fired cars where she comes from. If all that's true and she says she can do magic, why not let her try. There's nothing to lose and it'll only take a minute or two."

The professor studied the swiss roll, broke off a small piece of the chocolate and tasted it.

"That’s impossible! It seems like the genuine taste," he said "but oil fired cars sound really primitive. H'm, I suppose it could be argued that a primitive society might well be nearer to primitive beliefs and still have magic as a result. As you say my boy there's nothing to lose, let's conduct the experiment."

Jennifer Jane sighed with relief as they re-entered the building and went back into the laboratory. She twiddled her fingers and laughed at the amazement on their faces as she gave them each a chocolate swiss roll produced from thin air.

Before anyone could object, she faced the end of the building she had come through an hour ago and twiddled the sign for a door. The large metal framework hummed for a moment or two and then stopped. The wall at the end of the building remained solid. Jennifer Jane was horrified.