Franz rode his bike to the library after school, cutting through the park so he could see how many leaves had changed their color. It was a beautiful day in early autumn, and Franz delighted in the flecks of orange, red, and gold that now stood out among the canopy of green. In a few weeks, the whole forest would look like that, a golden hall through which the prince Franz could ride his noble steed, sir Huffy...
He day-dreamed all the way to the library, where he locked his bike at the rack and went inside. He found Ms. Lesen and Abby sitting together near the entrance, talking about books and drinking tea. Abby waved when she saw Franz, and Franz waved back. There was no sign of Margaret or Ellen.
Franz found a table, and sat down. He tried to read the titles of the books nearby, but soon found that boring. His thoughts then turned to yesterday's conversation with Mr. Eton, but after a few seconds shifted to what he'd eaten for lunch that day, and then to his ride through the park. I wonder what's for dinner tonight, he thought, then I hope I can learn this math better the second time around, then where's Margaret and Ellen, then If I get done before 4:30, I can play video games until dinner...
"You're late," came a ghostly voice from behind. Franz wheeled around. Margaret and Ellen were there, and they looked serious.
"I can't be late," said Franz pointedly, "you never set a time to meet. Just, 'meet after school in the library...'"
"Alright, fine," said Margaret hastily, breaking the serious tone she was trying to set, "but the hour is late, and there is much still to do."
"Quit talking like that, will you," snapped Franz. "You sound like a ghoul, and Halloween's still a month away."
"Okay already," said Margaret exasperated, returning to her usual voice. "But it's Monday--almost Tuesday really--and we have to get you ready for the first test on Friday. There isn't a moment to lose."
"She's right, you know," added Ellen, knowingly.
"So let's get started," said Margaret, setting her book-bag on the table before Franz could say a word. "Everyone knows that the secret to good test -taking is answering the questions as quickly as possible; it shows you're confident, and know the material well. So we had Mr. Eton run off a list of 100 questions from Chapter 1, and you're going answer them until you can do them in 30 minutes."
"100 questions in 30 minutes?" exclaimed Franz, "That doesn't seem possible."
"That's just the sort of thinking that holds you back," said Ellen. "Did Bannister say the 4-minute mile was impossible? No! And sure enough, after suitable preparation, he broke it. You have to believe anything is possible if you want to transcend your limits."
"I can believe many things," said Franz, "but answering 100 questions in 30 minutes isn't one of them."
"Well you better start," said Margaret, pushing a tall packet of questions across the table, "because you're going to be working on these a lot this week."
"And don't write your answers too dark," added Ellen, "because we only get one copy of these, and we'll need to erase your answers."
"But how many..." began Franz, dazed.
"Remember," interrupted Margaret, "Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will you." She glanced at her watch. "Your time starts...now."
Oh dear, thought Franz, hurrying into his bag for a pencil, and wondering what Rome had to do with math. He remained at the library a long time.
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