Chapter 8

Chapter 8 THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN UNWANTED COOKIE. Throughout the school day, Po kept thinking back to their encounter in the dungeon. What should they have done differently? How would they ever reach that door when their path was blocked by an evil knight on a fearsome dragon? And what would they find if they did get through that door? But he didn't have much time to dwell on it. It was a game day for his basketball team, and game days were always busy. Every kid he passed in the hallway extended their hand for a high

five. (It was supposed to be good luck.) Several of the cheerleaders had brought the team home-baked cookies, and he nibbled on them between classes. (Tony's were the best!) And there was a short pep rally right at the end of lunch period, where everybody sang the school song. (Well, almost everybody. Po knew that Morgan only pretended to sing, which was for the best.) Po appreciated the support. He certainly liked the attention. But it felt a bit hollow today. He knew most of his classmates would be staying at Woodsword for rehearsal tonight, while Po traveled to another school for

the game. He felt like he was missing the main event. But he was happy for the free cookies. He'd never turn those down. At his locker after school, Harper and Ash stopped by to wish him luck. "I wish I could stay here and help you with the play," he said. "Forget it," said Ash. "The lighting cues you wrote in your script are perfect. Someone else will be able to run the lights for one rehearsal." "And your team needs you!" Harper added. Po smiled. He knew they wanted to help him stay focused on the game. But he

wished that the play needed him, too. "Hey, Ash," said a voice, and they turned to see Theo approaching. When he saw Harper standing there, he grew suddenly awkward. "Oh. Hi, Harper. Nice to see you." "Nice to see you, too," said Harper shyly. The two hadn't really spent any time together since having a big disagreement a few months before. Theo had sabotaged the coral restoration project that the two of them had worked on. And although he'd had good intentions, Harper had been hurt by his actions. Theo turned back to Ash. "Ms. Minerva asked me to find you," he said. "She says she has some new ideas and might rewrite the ending." Ash's face flushed, and she clenched her fists. "The answer is no!" she said. "The script is set. We can't keep changing things!" Theo stepped back. "Don't blame the messenger," he said.

"Take a breath, Ash," added Po. "No time!" she said. They watched as she stormed off toward the auditorium. Harper turned to follow her. "Good luck, Po," she said. "Bye, Theo!" Theo rubbed the back of his head. "Hey, Po, you're in charge of the lights for the play, right?" he said. "I had some ideas for how to automate them. It might make your job easier, and it's a simple program…."

Po shook his head. "No can do, buddy," Po said. "Ms. Minerva might keep changing her mind about the ending, but she's one hundred percent against going high-tech." "Oh well," said Theo. "I figured it was worth asking. I'll get to show off my programming skills one day….Anyway, good luck tonight!" "Thanks," said Po. And once Theo had left, he realized the hallway had cleared out. He needed to get to the bus. But he looked longingly over his shoulder, in the direction of the auditorium, where laughter and music echoed.