Epilogue

     “Um…couldn’t they have come to an agreement earlier if it were going to be this easy?”
     “Could you exactly call this easy?” Strufis remarked. “And really, they still disagree. Now, though, I think they’re starting to listen to each other. It seems like this was the big chance to finally get back together to just talk for once. I guess the miscommunication really was a big factor.”
     Heather sighed. “Just like the Cuban Missile Crisis. Sheesh, do these things happen in all dimensions?”
     “There are people in dimensions, and where there are people, there are disagreements, emotions and misunderstandings,” Drew shook his head. “Just look in any good fantasy or sci-fi story.”
     “Well, then, now that the immediate crisis seems to have been settled,” Heather stated, “we can finally get to fixing our own dilemma.”
     Later, after the three men had paused their talks for the day, and Phillip had finally gotten his graphing calculator back, the five at last had some time to consult the Professor about how they were going to fix the problem they had set out to fix in the first place.

     “ ‘Morning, Mr. Brambleton,” Drew greeted as he walked into the classroom to chemistry class.
     “Good morning, Drew. You look a little tired, not that I’m surprised after all that excitement a few days ago.”
     “True enough.” He sat down at his seat as Anastasia and Heather came in the door.
     “Okay, so we’ll meet on Saturday to finish up the Calc project,” Heather confirmed with Anastasia before they went to their seats.

     “Ah, yes, your curious little predicament,” the Professor grinned. “Well, unfortunately there’s nothing I can really do to fix it. The source of the so-called problem is all of you yourselves.”
     “Why ourselves? And why ‘so-called’?”
     “Your quantum wavelengths seem to be intrinsically synchronized,” he explained. “Oh, all right, in layman terms: the essences of each of you seem to share something in common, personality-wise, mind-wise, soul-wise, etcetera, and therefore when you all met, the translator easily pulled all of you together. Kind of like...paperclips.”
     “Paperclips? We’re paperclips, huh?” Anastasia commented with amusement. “But you know, if it’s supposed to be based on how we connected with each other or whatever, that doesn’t explain how we got stuck in the first place…?”
     The Professor shook his head. “This technology is as new to me as it is to you. I don’t know everything about it. But I suspect that it’s analogous to…a dipole moment. Strufis, no groaning,” he interrupted at Strufis’s sardonic expression. “Meaning that it started with a random alignment perhaps, but as things progressed the synchrony became stronger and stronger, to the point where it was so strong even multiple major jolts wouldn’t separate you five.”
     “…And that’s why we didn’t get all mixed up like the others when we warped in rapid succession,” Drew concluded in awe. “And that’s what you meant when you noticed that those two warped together…”
     “It’s a fair hypothesis,” Professor Enstrite agreed.

     “Hey, Anastasia! Is it true that your car almost got stolen that day?”
     Anastasia shook her head in cheerful disbelief. “Yeah, I know! It was the weirdest thing! It was like, they were about to drive off in it but then changed their minds and just left it in the middle of the parking lot.” She put on a mock-offended look. “My car’s old, but it’s not THAT old, c’mon!”

     “And so, if you really wanted to return matters to their previous status, you would all have to go quite far apart for you two to separate,” he concluded. “Not only dimensionally, but probably interpersonally as well.”
     Drew started. “What…try and forget about all of this? Pretend we never met Strufis? …I’m sorry, but that just can’t be done,” he said, shaking his head. “Not for me, and I don’t think for any of the rest of us.”
     “What kind of an option is that?” Heather frowned as Anastasia shook her head fervently and Phillip looked strangely forlorn.
     Strufis’s face fell. “I guess…that would be really hard.” Almost inaudibly, he said to himself, “…I don’t…think I could…”
     The Professor nodded with a subtle smile. “So, I am going to prescribe another course of action for you all,” he said, turning to Strufis.

     “Say, where’s Phillip?” Mr. Brambleton asked. “Is he absent today?”
     “Oh,” Anastasia said offhandedly, “he’s just escorting the new transfer student around; he’ll be here soon.”

     “Go with them. And stay along with them.”
     Strufis was stunned. “Wha…what? You mean, live in their dimension?”
     “Why not? I think it would be good for you to learn in a new environment. You’ll also be amongst other students, and that’s one thing that’s been lacking here in this laboratory: your ability to work with people. Not just me, but your peers. I think with these four you’ll find a good chance to get to know others.”

     “…And, well, you know this place.” Phillip came in with a Strufis now dressed in his collared shirt and khakis, looking a bit edgy but seeming to get more comfortable.
     “Oh, the transfer student,” Mr. Brambleton noted. “Let’s see…you’re on here as, ‘Rufis Enstrite’, correct?”
     “Er, yeah,” ‘Rufis’ replied.
     “All right, you’re in. Why don’t you have a seat over at the table there,” the teacher directed.
     When Rufis sat down, he sighed. “I dunno if I’ll ever get used to this place.”
     “Somehow we did,” Drew attested, who sat in front of Strufis. “You’d be surprised.”
     The person who sat next to Rufis turned to him and asked, “Your last name’s Enstrite, huh? I’ve never heard a last name like that before. Where’s it from?”
     “Er, it’s uh,” he replied clumsily, “German.”
     “Oh.” It was evidently convincing enough anyhow.
     Gotta thank Anastasia for that one…
     After they began class, as they were reviewing the powerpoint of the chapter, Strufis took out a small device that resembled a TI-89.

     “And you know, Strufis, it’s not like you’ll be stranded there. In fact, I’ll be looking forward to a visit from all of you again soon.”

     He glanced at the dimensional translator and gazed around at his companions. He grinned, and placed it carefully back into his backpack.