6

Fedli pulled out a chair next to Anderson at the teachers' dining table and sat down. 

"Mind if I join you?" she asked, as he plopped his huge frame into the seat and signaled to a waiter for service.

 "My pleasure," Anderson smiled. He looked out at the room filled with blazer-clad girls eating lunch.

 "Quite an interesting class you had today, Mr. Anderson," Feldi said in amazement.

 Anderson looked up. "Sorry if I shocked you." 

"No need to apologize I liked it," Fedli said as he shook his head, his mouth already filled with the mystery meat of the day. 

"It was quite fascinating, though it was." Anderson raised his eyebrows.

"You think so?"

 Fedli nodded. "Undeniably. You take a big risk encouraging them to be artists, Todd. When they realize that they're not Rembrandts or Shakespeares or Mozarts, they'll hate you for it." 

"Not artists, ELiza," Anderson said.

 The girls all turned as Nora Parker walked quickly into the dining room and sat down with them.

 "You guys won't believe this!" she said, puffing breathlessly. 

"I found his poetry book in the library." 

Nora looked toward Anderson, who was engaged in animated conversation with Mrs. Fedli at the teacher's table. She opened the book and read the dedication:

 "'For Neil, you got taken so soon and for that, you will always live in my heart along with the dead poet's society.'"

 The others tried to grab the book.

 "What is the Dead Poets Society?" Katherine asked as she leafed through the book of poems.

 "No other mention of it." Nora looked through the annual as Charlotte nudged her leg.

 "Staten Spawn," she hissed.

 As the dean approached, Nora passed the book under the table to Collins, who immediately handed it over to Talia, who looked at her questioningly and then took it.

 "Enjoying your classes, Ms. Parker?" Agatha asked as she paused at the girls' table.

 "Yes, Ma'am, very much," Nora said. 

"And our Mr. Anderson? Finding him interesting, girls?"

 "Yes, sir," Charlotte said.

 "We were just talking about that, sir."

 "Good," Agatha said approvingly.

 "We're very excited about him. He was a Welton scholar, you know." 

The girls smiled and nodded. Agatha walked to another table. Talia pulled out the book from under the table and leafed through it on her lap as she finished lunch.

 "I'll take the book back," Nora said to Talia, as they got up to leave the dining room.

 "What are you going to do with it?" Talia asked hesitantly. 

"A little research," Nora said, smiling smugly.

 After classes, Nora, Charlotte, McCall, Pirece, Collins, and Talia headed back to the dorm together. They spotted Mr.Anderson wearing his sports coat and a scarf, walking across the lawn with an arm full of books.

 "Mr. Anderson?" Nora called after him. "Sir? O Captain! My Captain?" Anderson stopped and waited for the girls to catch up with him.

 "What was the Dead Poets Society, sir?" Nora asked. 

For a split second, Anderson's face reddened.

 "I was just looking in your poetry book," Nora explained, "and …" 

"Nothing wrong with some light reading," Anderson said, regaining his composure. The boys waited for him to say more.

 "But what was it?" Nora pressed. Anderson looked around to make sure that no one was watching.

 "A secret organization," he almost whispered. "I don't know how the present administration would look upon it, but I doubt the reaction would be favorable."

 His eyes scanned the campus as the boys held their breaths. 

"Can you boys keep a secret?" 

They nodded instantly. 

"The Dead Poets was a society dedicated to sucking the marrow out of life. That phrase is by Thoreau and was invoked at every meeting," he explained.

 "A small group of us would meet at the old cave, and we would take turns reading Shelley, Thoreau, Whitman, our verse— and the enchantment of the moment let it work its magic on us." Keating's eyes glowed, recalling the experience. 

"You mean it was a bunch of guys sitting around reading poetry?" Katherine asked, bewildered. Anderson smiled.

 "Ms. Osborne. And believe me, we didn't simply read … we let it drip from our tongues like honey. Women and men swooned, spirits soared … gods were created, laddies."

 The girls stood silent for a moment. 

"What did the name mean?" Nora asked. "Did you only read dead poets?"

 "All poetry was acceptable, Ms. Parker. The name simply referred to the fact that to join the organization, you had to be dead." 

"What?" the girls said in chorus.

 "The living were simply pledges. Full membership required a lifetime of apprenticeship. Alas, even I'm still a lowly initiate," he explained.

 The girls looked at one another in amazement.

 "The last meeting must have been seven years ago," Anderson recalled. 

He looked around again to make sure no one was observing, then turned and strode away.

 "I say we go tonight," Nora said excitedly when Anderson was out of sight.

 "Everybody in?"

 "Where is this cave he's talking about?" Pierce asked.

 "Beyond the stream. I think I know where it is," Nora answered. 

"That's miles," Pierce complained.

 "Sounds boring to me," Collins said. "Don't come, then," Charlotte shot back.

 "You know how many demerits we're talking about here?" Collins asked Charlotte. 

"So don't come!" Charlotte said.

 "Please!" Collins relented. "All I'm saying is, we have to be careful. We can't get caught."

 "Well, no kidding, Sherlock," Charlotte retorted sarcastically.

 "Who's in?" Nora asked, silencing the argument.

"I'm in," Charlotte said first.

 "Me too," Collins added. Neil looked at Knox, Pitts, and Meeks. 

Pierce hesitated. 

"Well …"

 "Oh, come on, Pierce," Charlotte said. 

"His grades are hurting, Charlotte," Mccall said in Pierce's defense.

 "Then you can help him, Mccall," Nora suggested.

 "What is this, a midnight study group?" Pierce asked, still unsure. "Forget it, Pierce," Nora said. "You're coming. McCall, are your grades hurting, too?" 

Everyone laughed. 

"All right," Mccall said. "I'll try anything once."

 "Except sex," Davis laughed. "Right?" 

Mccall blushed as the girls laughed and horsed around him.

 "I'm in as long as we're careful," Collins said. "Katherine?" Charlotte continued.

 "I don't know," she said. 

"I don't get it." 

"Come on," Charlotte encouraged.

"Fine".

When off in the distance a bell rang, summoning the boys to dinner. After dinner, Nora and Talia went to the study hall and sat down at a table together.

 "Listen," Nora said to her roommate in a hushed voice. "I'm inviting you to the society meeting." 

Nora had noticed that no one had asked Talia if he was in.

 "You can't expect everybody to think of you all the time. Nobody knows you. And you never talk to anyone!"

 "Thanks," Talia said, "but it's not a question of that."

 "What is it then?" Nora asked.

 "I—I just don't want to come," she stammered.

 "But why?" Nora asked. "Don't you understand what Anderson is saying? Don't you want to do something about it?"

 Nora quickly turned a page in his book as a study proctor walked by, eyeing the girls suspiciously.

 "Yes," Talia whispered after the proctor was out of earshot. "But …"

"But what, Talia? Tell me," Nora begged.

 Talia looked down. 

"I don't want to read."

 "What?" Nora looked at her incredulously.

 "Anderson said everybody took turns reading," Talia said. "I don't want to do it."

 "God, you have a problem, don't you?" Nora shook his head. "How can it hurt you to read? I mean, isn't that what this is all about? Expressing yourself?"

"Nora, I can't explain it." Talia blushed. "I just don't want to do it." 

Noral shuffled his papers angrily as she looked at Talia. Then he thought of something.

 "What if you didn't have to read?" Nora suggested.

 "What if you just came and listened?"

 "That's not the way it works," Talia pointed out. "If I join, the guys will want me to read." 

"I know, but what if they said you didn't have to?"

 "You mean ask them?" Talia's face reddened.

 "Nora, it's embarrassing."

 "No, it's not," Neil said, jumping up from her seat

. "Just wait here." 

"Nora," Talia called, as the proctor turned and gave him a disapproving look. Nora was off before Talia could stop her. She slumped miserably in her seat, then opened her history book and began to take notes.