It was a Wednesday after school, mostly specifically, the day of the science fair. Bastian and Lucas were struggling to carry the project out of his locker without dropping it. "Do you really think we're gunna win this?" Lucas asks sarcastically. "With Mr. Blank doing the evaluations, maybe in an alternate universe." Bastian sighs. "Of course Mr. Clark is sick, perfect time for Blank to step in." Bastian adds as he rolls his eyes. "Too bad Mrs. Finnegan isn't back yet." Lucas shrugs. "What even happened to her anyway?"
"You guys, watch it!!" Marley calls out from behind as Lucas's side of the flying machine starts to tilt down. "If you guys drop it we're really not getting a passing final grade for science." She says as the three walk into their homeroom and find a spot to set up. Since Bastian felt so bad about being distant, he did the whole project board for them, along with helping build the flying machine model itself.
After about 20 minutes Mr. Blank walks in the room, leaving loud stomps behind as he does so, causing the class to slowly fall silent. "Well today's the day, I hope you all have worked hard on your….projects." He announces in his usual ominous tone. "I will start out with…." He trails off as he glances a side eye over at Bastian and his friends, who just continue to stare at him back, except Bastian, who doesn't hold the eye contact. "This lovely trio over here…" He says with a smirk as he walks over to them.
"Hm, let's see…" He implies as he examines the project board for a moment then back at the flying model before holding up his clipboard as he's about to write. "73/100. Seven for spelling errors and 20 for false interpretation." Bastian furrows his eyebrows. "How? We wrote this down all from a book written by Leonardo himself." Mr. Blank clicks his tongue, leaning down towards Bastian's level. "Well perhaps you've read it wrong."
He then eyes the other two. "As for you two I recommend paying more attention to what this one is doing, or maybe even doing it yourselves. Maybe you would get an A." The three just look down, knowing there was no point in fighting it so they just stay quiet.
After getting through everyone, winner of WestMount Park's science fair ended up being Maria Sanders, a girl in the grade below Bastian who did nothing but capture a lizard in a jar, similar to the lizard Xayide had disguised as a butterfly to spy on the Empress earlier in Fantasia's day. "I can't believe it, you put a horny toad in a jar and you win the science fair."
"That would be horned toad Lucas." Mr. Blank corrects from behind him. "It's just that kind of ignorance that's reflected in your project." He says as he looks over at Bastian, whom he had for the most part called stupid underlying way. "I can't believe it, a C-minus for all this work." Lucas rants as they start to take the project apart. "I told you Blanks out to get me.." Bastian mumbles as they turn around to see of course, Conner and Fallon who came to gloat.
"Here's to everyone who got a C-minus." He congratulates sarcastically with his hand up. "Welcome to Underachievers Anonymous." Fallon adds. "It's so not right, I've never gotten below a B in my life." Marley says. "How is it that we're happy, and you guys are sad, but yet we both got the same Mark? Explain that." The three of them just roll their eyes, not really caring about the dumb project anymore. "Let's use the scientific method. You spend what? Hundreds of hours working on that thing? We spent 12.50 on a tooth."
"Conclusion?" Conner adds as he looks over at Fallon. "You're big losers and have no lives," she says in a slightly more blunt tone. "And Mr. Blank is a judge and jury so your fate was sealed from the get-go." Conner explains as if it was the most simple thing ever. "Even a moron like Conner can see that Blank is on my case." Bastian says as he continues taking apart the model. "That makes me think, why is he always after you? Like what did you do?" Bastian doesn't answer for a minute, not even knowing what he specifically was on him about himself, even though he knew how he was here and who sent him. "Couldn't tell you."
Meanwhile, Atreyu and Fly girl are making their way through the storms of The Nothing. However only one was able to make it without getting sick, and it obviously wasn't Fly Girl with all of her experience of constantly reading her grandfathers maps he made when he built the machine and giving lost places their names, heart, and soul. She did this so much that she didn't even have much time for her main mission, which was looking for the luckdragon. Since Xayide has cleared so many places, many of Fantasia have been forgotten, and would turn into nothing but molten lava and rock figures.
Once Atreyu told Fly Girl he couldn't be her Navigator, she started to land, telling him that he couldn't be a passenger, but in reality, Atreyu was just too embarrassed to say he wasn't brought up to know how to read, being the reason why he was flustered when she told him to read the maps to her while she was flying.
Subsequently after reading about that, Bastian learned from his dad that had a similar story that matched his. As a business associate he had a creepy boss named Mr. Alexander, similar to Mr. Blank, always being on his case. Eventually Michael kept such a low profile to hope he would leave him alone before people forgot he was still working at the company, even got his parking spot and desk taken by someone new. This gave Bastian an idea.
"I figured something out to get Mr. Blank off my case. By following the footsteps of famous people who dealt with social and political pressures." Bastian says as he and his friends are walking to lunch. "Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela.." He starts listing before Lucas cuts in. "And you're following in their footsteps how?"
He asks. "It's called Satyagraha. The method of Passive Resistance." Whatever Mr. Blank chooses to dish out, I keep a low profile and let it roll off my back, like water off a duck-" He explains before being cut off again, this time not by either of his friends, but the one who has been following and secretly listening to him the whole time….
"Mr. Bux!" Mr. Blank calls from behind as the 3 turn around quickly. "The works of Charles Dickens, Classics of English Literature. How fortune that Mr. Dickens has been dead since 1870 because had he read this book report on Oliver Twist, by Bastian Bux, it would have killed him." He says saying each word Sardonically as usual, handing the paper to him. "Um, what are you giving this to me for? This isn't mine."
"You're denying authorship?" Mr. Blank asks he gives a mock look of surprise to his friends. "I didn't write this." Bastian says again. "That is correct Mr. Bux, you didn't write it. You plagiarized every word from the internet site ." Bastian looks down at the essay. "No sir, by report was on Journey to the center of the earth…" He insists. "And yet, this is your name in the upper right hand corner..?" Mr. Blank points to the corner of the wide ruled notebook paper. "Yeah it is." He admits, still with a perplexed expression.
"But I didn't write this paper-" He starts right before Mr. Blank cuts him off. "Lucas, how well do you know your friend here?" He asks as he stares him down. "Uh, real well." Lucas replies as Mr. Blank holds the paper in front of his face. "Isn't this his handwriting?" Lucas studies the papers briefly before stuttering. "Well I don't know…I mean, I'm no expert but-" He looks up at Mr. Blank, who was giving him a mock look for his stuttering. "I guess it kind of looks like it."
Lucas says eventually before Blank slowly lowers the paper down. "If this were a court of law….the judge would say, case closed, and Mr. Bux would receive his sentence. A failing grade." He sneers as he hands him his papers and walks away. Bastian just stares with a muddled expression. "So much for that low profile thing." Lucas says once Mr. Blank is close enough away. Bastian huffs and starts to head off towards his locker. "Where are you going?" Marley asks as the two follow him to his locker."
Once he approaches it unlocks and opens it. "I swear that wasn't my paper. I got the proof right here." He says as he reaches for the high shelf. "We believe you Bastian, honest." Marley says. "And just because Lucas is a big wimp." "Hey, easy for you to say. Blank wasn't giving you the hairy eyeball." Bastian hands them the papers. "Here it is, my rough draft with all my notes." Lucas starts reading it out loud to himself. "Did I write this or not? Since you're the handwriting expert." Bastian says slightly sarcastic.
"They're both the same." Lucas replies. "Someone forged an entire essay in your handwriting? They must really want to get you." Says Marley. "Who would be so twisted to do something like that?" Lucas adds. "Mr. Blank." The three all acknowledge at the same time.