Neil raced down the hallway, all excited.

"Charlie, Charlie! I got the part! I'm gonna play Puck! I'm gonna play Puck!" He pounded on Charlie's door. He barely registered the others lounging in the room, eyes focused on Charlie who straightened from lying on his bed and stopped tossing a small cloth ball into the air.

Maria, who was sitting at Charlie's desk spun around quickly when Neil ran into the room.

"I got the part! I'm gonna play Puck!" Neil said again excitedly, eyes darting over the people scattered around the room.

"Puck?" Pitts asked from where he sat on the floor, leaning against Charlie's bed next to Meeks.

"That's the main part!" Neil said, bouncing on his feet.

"That's amazing, Neil!" Maria gushed with pride. "That's so amazing!"

Neil smiled widely.

"Great job, Neil!" Pitts and Meeks said, standing up from the floor and giving him solid claps on the back.

"I can't believe I got it, Charlie," Neil said when Charlie got up to give him a congratulatory hug.

"Congratulations! Good for you, Neil. Good for you." Charlie said, patting Neil on the back before he darted out of the room and into his own where Todd sat on his bed working on some homework.

"You got the part?" Todd asked right as he entered.

Neil grinned, eyes twinkling with joy and he nodded quickly. "I did, Todd! I got the part!"

"Congratulations, Neil!" Todd said truthfully and watched as Neil sat down by his typewriter. He followed, taking a seat on Neil's bed and watching him.

Neil shook out his hands. "Okay, okay, okay, okay," he said, feeding a piece of paper into the typewriter.

"Neil, how are you gonna do this?" Todd asked.

"They need a letter of permission from my father and Mr. Nolan," Neil said simply, settling further into his chair and pulling his typewriter closer to the edge of the desk to make it easier to type.

"You're not gonna write it," Todd said disbelievingly.

Neil turned to him with a mischievous grin. "Oh yes, I am."

"Oh, Neil. Neil, you're crazy," Todd said, shaking his head.

Neil giggled, making a funny squeaking noise which caused Todd to laugh.

Neil began typing. "Okay, I am writing to you on behalf of my son Neil Perry..." Neil laughed manically, stomping his feet up and down. "This is so great!"

••●••

Knox stood at the front of the room with his poem in hand. He swallowed, hesitating for a moment, until he caught Maria's encouraging thumbs up from where she sat at the front.

"You got this," she mouthed to him.

Knox smiled at her, giving her a quick nod. "To Chris," Knox read softly.

Charlie looked up from his desk at the back of the room with a grin and leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Who's Chris?"

"Mmm, Chris."

Knox ignored the murmurs in the classroom and read:

"I see a sweetness in her smile.

Blight light shines from her eyes.

But life is complete; content is mine,

Just knowing that ..."

Several students began to snicker and Maria whirled around, curls bouncing at the motion and frowned, shushing them quickly.

Knox cleared his throat. "... just knowing that she's alive," he finished dejectedly, before crumpling up his poem and walking back to his desk where Maria instantly reached over and gave his hand a gentle encouraging squeeze. "Sorry, Captain. It's stupid."

"No, no," Keating shook his head. "It's not stupid. It's a good effort. It touched on one of the major themes, love. A major theme not only in poetry, but life." He gave Knox an encouraging smile and Knox instantly felt a little better.

"Now," Keating looked around the classroom. "Mr. Hopkins, you were laughing. You're up."

Hopkins slid out of his seat and slowly walked up to the front of the class. He unfolded his piece of paper and read: "The cat sat on the mat."

Maria snorted and quickly placed a hand over her mouth to hide her laughter, but the other boys in the class didn't bother with that sort of tact and they all laughed openly.

Hopkins rolled his eyes, giving the class a lazy smile and shrug before he returned to his seat.

"Congratulations, Mr. Hopkins," Keating said sarcastically. "Yours is the first poem to ever have a negative score on the Pritchard scale. We're not laughing at you, we're laughing near you. I don't mind that your poem had a simple theme. Sometimes the most beautiful poetry can be about simple things, like a cat..." the class laughed again, "...or a flower or rain. You see, poetry can come from anything with the stuff of revelation in it. Just don't let your poems be ordinary. Now, who's next?"

Keating approached Todd's desk and the boy instantly shrunk. "Mr. Ander -"

Maria caught the panicked look in Todd's eyes and raised her hand quickly, "I can go, Uncle John," she said, deciding to save Todd this once and give him a little bit more time before the inevitable happened.

Keating turned to his niece, eyes twinkling, but nodded once. "Why, of course, Maria. Go on," he said and turned briefly to Todd. "You're safe for now, Mr. Anderson."

Maria stood from her desk, clutching her notebook with her poem tightly in her hand. She walked to the front of the class, feeling the eyes of her classmates on her. She took a moment to take in her friends' encouraging looks and instantly felt a little better.

She took a deep breath and began to read:

"Silent footsteps in the hallway,

Whispers echo in my ear,

Faint memories of a distant past,

Of a man I've never known, but hold quite dear.

Through the halls of his old school,

I wander with a curious mind,

Tracing his steps, feeling his presence,

His spirit, forever intertwined.

I may not have his face to remember,

Or his voice to soothe my fears,

But I carry his legacy within me,

His bravery and strength, through the years.

Echoes of a father's love,

Resound in my heart each day,

Guiding me to be fearless and bold,

As I walk along life's way."

The classroom was quiet for a moment - a little dazed at the sound of Maria's reading voice.

Keating was looking at her with a mixture of surprise and pride and then he clapped, startling the rest of the class to follow quickly. "That was beautiful, Maria," he said, looking at her with a gentle expression "Your father would be very proud of you, I know it."

Maria beamed at him. "Thank you," she said softly before scurrying back to her seat where Knox was quick to give her an excited thumbs-up.

"Now, Mr. Anderson. I see you sitting there in agony. Come on, Todd, step up. Let's put you out of your misery," Keating said turning back to Todd who had shrunken so far back into himself that he resembled a turtle halfway in his shell.

"I, I didn't do it," Todd said stiffly. "I didn't write a poem."

Keating paused for a moment, looking him over.

"Mr. Anderson thinks that everything inside of him is worthless and embarrassing. Isn't that right, Todd? Isn't that your worst fear? Well, I think you're wrong. I think you have something inside of you that is worth a great deal," Keating said offhandedly.

Keating walked up to the blackboard and began to write. "'I sound my barbaric yawp over the rooftops of the world.' W. W. Uncle Walt again. Now, for those of you who don't know, a yawp is a loud cry or yell," Keating said, looking around the class. His eyes landed on Todd. "Now, Todd, I would like you to give us a demonstration of a barbaric 'yawp'."

Todd physically recoiled, half-rolling his eyes at Keating's antics and half-wanting to dart out of the room right that second.

"Come on. You can't yawp sitting down. Let's go. Come on. Up."

Todd reluctantly stood and followed Keating to the front.

"You gotta get in 'yawping' stance," Keating said.

"A yawp?"

"No, not just a yawp," Keating said. "A barbaric yawp."

Todd sighed, rolling his eyes, and said quietly, "Yawp."

"Come on, louder!" Keating urged.

Again, Todd repeated the ridiculous word, his frustration with Keating growing. "Yawp."

"No, that's a mouse. Come on. Louder."

"Yawp."

"Oh, good God, boy. Yell like a man!"

"Yawp!" Todd finally shouted, when Keating darted towards him, causing several students to jump up in their seats.

"There it is," Keating grinned widely - wildly. "You see, you have a barbarian in you, after all."

Todd hurried to return to his seat but Keating stopped him with a hand on his shoulder and chest. "Now, you don't get away that easy." He turned Todd around and pointed at a picture on the wall. "The picture of Uncle Walt up there. What does he remind you of? Don't think. Answer. Go on."

Keating began circling around Todd.

"A m-m-madman," Todd said.

"What kind of madman?" Keating snapped his fingers. "Don't think about it, just answer it."

"A c-crazy madman."

"No, you can do better than that. Free up your mind. Use your imagination. Say the first thing that pops into your head even if it's total gibberish. Go on, go on."

"Uh, uh, a sweaty-toothed madman."

Keating stopped circling Todd for a moment to grin at him. "Good God, boy, there's a poet in you, after all," he clapped Todd on the shoulders. "There, close your eyes. Close your eyes. Close 'em. Now, describe what you see," Keating put his hands over Todd's eyes and they began to slowly spin around.

"Uh, I-I close my eyes."

"Yes?"

"Uh, and this image floats beside me."

"A sweaty-toothed madman?"

"A sweaty-toothed madman with a stare that pounds my brain," Todd said.

"Oh, that's excellent. Now, give him action. Make him do something."

"H-His hands reach out and choke me."

"That's it. Wonderful. Wonderful," Keating said, removing his hands from Todd's eyes, but Todd kept his eyes closed as he stood there in front of the class.

"And, and all the time he's mumbling."

"What's he mumbling?"

"M-Mumbling. Truth. Truth is like, like a blanket that always leaves your feet cold."

Some students began to laugh and Todd abruptly opened his eyes, but Keating quickly gestured for him to close them again. "Forget them, forget them. Stay with the blanket. Tell me about the blanket."

"Y-Y-Y-You push it, stretch it, it'll never be enough. You kick at it, beat it, it'll never cover any of us. From the moment we enter crying to the moment we leave dying, it will just cover your face as you wail and cry and scream."

Todd opened his eyes.

The class was silent.

Todd swallowed, looking around for his friends' faces. Maria was looking at him with a look of pure pride, her eyes watery. Knox was giving him a proud look too, coupled with a quick thumbs-up and him mouthing the words "Good job, Todd." Even Meeks, Pitts, Cameron, and Charlie were looking at him in a way that he had never seen before.

Neil, especially, was looking at him with a face of pure adoration and Todd felt - gosh, Todd felt so proud of himself at that very moment.

Then the class began to clap and cheer.

Keating clapped his hands on Todd's neck and whispered, "Don't you forget this... Don't you forget this, Todd."

And Todd knew, he certainly wouldn't.

••●••

Maria watched the soccer game with bated breath, eyes following her friends as they ran up and down the field. She stood at the edge of the field, cheering loudly as Neil passed to Todd who expertly dribbled the ball past a defender.

Her uncle stood next to her, clapping and cheering on the boys. "Let's go, boys! Go! Go! Go!"

Charlie stood as the goalie, his frame crouched low to the ground, ready to black any incoming balls. Maria couldn't help but admire the way he moved, the way he seemed to anticipate every move before it even happened.

Todd took the lead, his nimble feet quickly moving the ball past his opponents. Knox, Neil, Meeks, Pitts, and even Cameron were scattered around the field, yelling for Todd to pass the ball to them or ready to assist him at any moment.

As the game progressed, Maria found herself getting more and more engrossed in the action. She jumped up and down, cheering loudly as the boys made a particularly impressive play. She could feel the excitement bubbling up inside of her, filling her with a sense of joy and absolute camaraderie.

"Yes! Yes! Go, Todd!" She shouted alongside the other boys who whooped and hollered in celebration when Todd scored yet another goal.

Finally, after a particularly tense moment after Charlie saved a shot that seemed destined for the net, Todd managed to score the winning goal.

Maria shrieked in excitement, gripping her uncle's shoulder in giddy joy and he laughed loudly in return, never having seen that much energy from her in a very long time.

The boys whooped and hollered in celebration, rushing over to lift Keating onto their shoulders and carry him away.

Maria watched as the boys celebrated their victory, feeling a deep sense of pride and contentment. She thought about the other day - the day they all had to share their poems out loud and Todd's moment at the front of the classroom.

Something about that day had changed something.

It had brought them all closer together, forging a bond that was arguably unbreakable.

As the boys carried Keating away on their shoulders, Maria felt a sense of awe wash over her. She couldn't believe how much they had grown and changed in such a short amount of time. Even she herself had changed in unbelievable ways.

"Come on, Maria!" Charlie rushed over to her, interlocking his fingers between hers, and pulling her along quickly to join the celebrating group. And for the first time, since she got to Vermont, Maria felt hopeful about the future and knew that this was truly just the beginning.

••●••

The group sat in the cave, smoke quicking filling up the space as they lit their pipes.

Pitts coughed as the sucked in a breath from his own pipe.

"Attaboy, Pittsie, inhale deeply," Charlie said, breathing out a trail of smoke from his own.

"My dad collects a lot of pipes," Meeks said.

"Really? Mine's got thirty," Charlie said.

"Your parents collect pipes? Oh, that's really interesting," Pitts said sarcastically as he tried again with his own and the others laughed at that.

"Come on, Knox, Maria. Join in," Charlie called out to the two of them who sat closer to the entrance.

Maria shook her head. "I don't do pipes, gentlemen," she said.

"Then, Knox?" Charlie nodded his head. "What's up with you?"

"Yea, Knox, we're from the government. We're here to help, man," Meeks said teasingly.

"What's wrong?" Charlie asked with concern.

"It's Chris," Pitts answered for Knox. "Here's a picture of Chris for you." He held up the centerfold that Charlie had brought to the first Dead Poets Society meeting.

"Smoke that," Meeks said. "Put that in your pipe and smoke it."

"That's not funny," Knox said with a light glare.

"Knock it off," Charlie said, whirling on the others. "Smoke your pipes."

"You all right, Knox?" Maria asked, tapping his arm lightly.

Knox simply shrugged.

"Neil!" Meeks called out when the boy appeared at the front of the entrance.

Neil entered the cave carrying a beat-up light stand. "Friend, scholar, Welton men, lady."

"What is that, Neil?"

"Duh. It's a lamp, Meeks."

Neil removed the shade from the lamp, revealing the shape of a man as the base of the lamp. "No, this is the god of the cave," Neil grinned.

"The god of the cave," Meeks repeated.

Suddenly, Charlie began making loud noises with his saxophone.

"Charlie, what the hell are you doing?" Pitts asked, whirling on him while some of the others laughed.

"What do you say we start this meeting already?" Charlie said, standing up and clearing his throat. "Gentlemen, and darling lady," he winked at Maria, "'Poetrusic' by Charles Dalton."

He began playing erratic notes on the saxophone, causing some of the group to wince and Maria to press her hands against her ears to try and block out some of the loud noise.

"Oh, no," Meeks mumbled playfully.

"Someone give me earplugs."

"Laughing, crying, tumbling, mumbling. Gotta do more. Gotta be more," Charlie recited, following the words with more erratic sounds.

"Chaos screaming, chaos dreaming. Gotta do more! Gotta be more!" This time, Charlie started playing a real tune on the saxophone.

Maria couldn't believe her ears as Charlie transitioned from the chaotic sounds to a beautifully played tune. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she found herself captivated by the melody. Charlie played the saxophone with such ease, it was like he was born to play.

Maria felt her heart swell with admiration, and she couldn't help but smile. He was certainly much more than a pretty face sometimes, wasn't he?

Todd nudged Maria's arm and whispered into her ear. "You've got some drool," he said with a teasingly lilt, "right there," he pointed to the side of her mouth and Maria blushed, swatting his hand away.

Todd looked at her, eyes crinkling and Maria shook her head good-naturedly.

"You've gotten cheekier, Todd Anderson."

Todd only grinned, the tip of his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth.

"Wow!" Meeks breathed.

"That was nice. That was great," Pitts said with quick nods. "Where did you learn to play like that?"

"My parents made me take the clarinet for years," Charlie said.

"I love the clarinet," Cameron jutted in.

"I hated it," Charlie said, nailing him with a look that made the others laugh. "The saxophone...The saxophone is more sonorous."

"Ooh."

"Big word, Dalton."

"Vocabulary."

"Your playing is amazing, Charlie," Maria said, her eyes sparkling.

"Thanks, doll," Charlie said with a grin. "I'm glad you liked it, especially."

The other boys in the cave rolled their eyes, exchanging knowing looks.

"Oh, get a room already," Neil whistled from the side, laughing.

Charlie laughed, sliding his tongue over his tongue. "Shut up, Perry," he said but didn't hide the smile that spread over his face. He looked over at Maria whose cheeks were that pretty sort of pink and nudged at her. "A room does sound -"

Suddenly, Knox interrupted, jumping up. "I can't take it anymore. If I don't have Chris, I'm gonna kill myself," he proclaimed.

Charlie looked over at him quickly with wide eyes. "Knoxious, you've gotta calm down."

"No, Charlie," Knox said, shaking his head firmly. "that's just my problem. I've been calm all my life. I've gotta do something about that."

"Where are you going?" Neil said.

"What are you gonna do?" Charlie asked.

"Knox?" Maria called out to him.

Knox face changed. "I'm gonna call her," he said, chuckling to himself and nodding. "I'm gonna call her." He rushed out of the cave.

The others quickly grabbed their coats to follow him.

••●••

The group stood around Knox at the payphone. They perked up when the other line answered, but quickly deflated when Knox freaked out and immediately hung up the phone. He turned to the others, face a little pale.

"She's gonna hate me," he breathed. "The Danburrys will hate me. My parents will kill me."

"Knox," Maria said softly, reaching out to squeeze his arm. "If you don't want -"

"All right, all right, goddamn it," Knox said, still a little too in his head. "You're right. 'Carpe diem.' Even if it kills me." He turned to put another coin into the payphone and called again.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Chris?" Knox asked.

"Yes."

"Hi. This is Knox Overstreet."

"Oh, yes. Knox. I'm glad you called."

Knox pulled the phone away from his face, pressing a hand to it and looked around giddily. "She's glad I called," he whispered.

"Listen, Chet's parents are going out of town this weekend, so he's having a party. Would you like to come?"

"Would I like to come to a party?"

Charlie slid up beside Knox. "Yes. Say, yes."

"Friday? Um -"

"Well, sure," Knox said quickly.

"About seven?"

"Okay, great. I-I'll be there, Chris," Knox said.

"Okay."

"Friday night at the Danburrys'. O-Okay. Thank you."

"Okay. Bye."

"Thank you. I'll see you. Bye," Knox said and then with weak hands placed the phone back into the receiver. He leaned against the wall, a look of pure, unadulterated joy on his face and then he bellowed, "Yawp! Can you believe it? She was gonna call me. She invited me to a party with her."

"At Chet Danburry's house," Charlie said slowly.

"Yeah."

"Well?"

"So?" Knox shrugged.

"So, you don't really think she means you're going with her?" Charlie said.

"Well, of course not, Charlie," Knox said dismissively. "But that's not the point. That's not the point at all."

"What is the point then?" Charlie asked.

"The point, Charlie, is, uh -" Knox hesitated for a moment.

"Yeah?"

"...that she was thinking about me," Knox said and that love-sick expression took over his face again. "I've only met her once, and already she's thinking about me. Damn, it. It's gonna happen, guys. I feel it. She is going to be mine. Carpe. Carpe Diem!"

Knox flipped his scarf dramatically around his neck as he walked away and climbed the stairs.

The others looked around at each other.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Maria mumbled softly as the others nodded in light agreement.

Charlie shrugged. "He'll be fine," he said, swinging an arm over Maria's shoulder and guiding her and the rest of the group along to follow Knox. "Knoxious is a big boy. He'll be fine."