The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

Dwight shows up at the library wearing the ugliest sweater vest Kellen has ever seen: “Mostly I remember the puffballs all over it. It was barf green with a black stripe, but the puffballs were pink. Massive buttons and a big letter D on the front. On the back was an orange reindeer” (90). Harvey tells Dwight to take it off, and Kellen agrees. Dwight moves to another table.

Feeling guilty, Kellen goes over to Dwight and apologizes, but he still wishes Dwight would remove the vest. Dwight tells him to shut up just as Caroline walks in. Kellen, surprised, says out loud that Dwight likes her; angrily, Dwight gets up to leave, but a bunch of pencils spill from his things. Kellen picks one up: On it is printed Caroline’s name and a smiley face. Dwight rips it from Kellen’s hand, yells that Kellen has “ruined everything!” and storms out.

At homeroom, Dwight no longer wears the vest. Kellen passes him a note with a big apology; at lunch, things are back to normal.

In his comment, Harvey declares he’s the one who talked Dwight out of wearing the vest. Tommy is just glad he missed the whole thing.

Jennifer texts: “I askd Yoda who ws gng 2 gt kckd off American Idol + he sed Terrell + he ws right” (95). Harvey comments that Terrell is a “total loser” and that everyone knew he’d get booted. Tommy responds that he asked Dwight if he watches American Idol, and Dwight says his folks won’t let him. Thus, maybe Origami Yoda can see into the future.

At the library, Kellen tells Sara’s table that Mr. Stevens will spring a pop quiz on the life sciences class. He knows because Origami Yoda says so. Rhondella, whom Kellen is “clearly in love with” (98), asks him if he believes in the Yoda puppet. Kellen assures her that Yoda is real because he recently saved Kellen from trouble. He won’t say how, though.

The girls think it over. Amy and Rhondella open their science books and begin to review the week’s topic, but Sara protests that it feels like cheating. A pop quiz is supposed to be a surprise, so studying for it isn’t fair, and Sara hasn’t cheated once yet in school and doesn’t want to spoil her record. Amy says it’s not cheating: “All we KNOW is that one dork says another dork with a finger puppet says there’s going to be a test (99).” Rhondella tells Amy not to call Kellen a dork. Amy asks if she likes Kellen, and Rhondella says, “Ewww, of course not, but he’s not a dork” (99).

In science class, Mr. Stevens springs a pop quiz. The girls’ table gets 100s, as do Tommy and Kellen, but Harvey gets an 85 because he refused to believe Yoda’s prediction. Dwight only gets a 60: “[H]e didn’t listen to his own puppet’s advice! WEIRD!” (100) After class, feeling guilty, Sara confesses to Mr. Stevens that she knew about the pop quiz, but he says he didn’t know he was going to administer it until class began and he realized he didn’t have the movie he wanted to show, and he needed a time-filler.

Sara thinks there must be something to the Yoda puppet, especially when he was right about the Twist and the pop quiz.

Harvey insists he got a mediocre score on the quiz because he’d had stomach flu; on a re-test, he got a 96. Tommy agrees with Sara that knowing things ahead of time gives them an edge over the other students.

Kellen convinces Rhondella to ask Yoda a question. She doesn’t want to, but she agrees just to get Kellen to stop bothering her about it. She asks Yoda why Kellen bugs her all the time; Yoda replies that Kellen likes her and wants to kiss her. Kellen gets mad at Dwight and shoves him, and there’s some yelling.

Harvey says anyone would know that Kellen likes Rhondella. Tommy agrees and adds that enough of Yoda’s answers have been annoying that it’s time to list the bad ones.

One questioner asks Yoda how to solve a particular problem in a popular video game. Yoda replies that they should read a good book. Another student complains that their hair is always messy; Yoda suggests they should have a bald head like him. Someone asks if Yoda has seen the online video of Chewbacca dancing with a Jawa; Yoda asks what a Jawa is. He’s informed it’s a character from the first Star Wars film. Yoda says: “In that movie I was not” (107).

A kid lost his jacket and asks if Yoda can find it. Yoda wonders if the kid can remember where he last had it. Yoda defends Dwight when a kid asks why Dwight picks his nose all the time: “At least he eats it not, like you do” (108).

Lately, Tater Tot, one of the cool guys at school, is talking a lot to Sara, who’s not lately talking to Tommy. At lunch, Tommy asks Dwight for some advice from Yoda. Dwight replies, “Purple.” Tommy asks if that’s a yes; Dwight repeats, “Purple.” Tommy asks why Sara doesn’t like him. Yoda answers: “Does not says who like you she does” (111). Tommy reasons that Yoda’s answer is jumbled, and that the proper word order is “Who says she does not like you?” He asks Dwight if this is correct; Dwight replies: “Purple.”

Tommy calls Dwight a pain in the butt, then says he wants to ask Yoda another question. Dwight refuses, saying Tommy and the other boys are always mean to him except when they want advice from Yoda. Tommy apologizes but points out that Dwight saying “Purple” over and over kind of tests their patience. Dwight says he thought saying “Purple” was funny. Tommy suggests he ask Yoda if it’s funny. Dwight does so, and Yoda says it’s not funny.

As they walk to their lockers, Tommy asks if he can ask Yoda another question. Dwight replies, “Brown,” and walks away. Tommy gives chase, shouting, “Does she like me, Yoda?” (113).

Harvey comments that the only takeaway from this interaction is Tommy whining about whether Sara likes him. That, he says, is “magically pathetic.” Tommy admits that he’s pathetic. He also believes that Sara likes him, unless she doesn’t.