On

bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top in each hand, like an old-stone savage armed. he moves in darkness as it seems to me, not of woods only and the shade of trees. he will not go behind his father's saying, and he likes having thought of it so well he says again, 'good fences make good neighbors.' which best describes the speaker's tone in this passage?

a. he admires his neighbor's strength by the way he handles the stone.

b. he distrusts his neighbor because they have such little interaction.

c. he is critical of his neighbor because he believes that he is stuck in the past.

d. he fears his neighbor because he threatened him with the stone.

Read this passage: byron and mitch are co-captains of the mathletes, their high school's academic team. they are backstage with the five other team members, preparing to compete in the state math quiz. byron sits on the floor with his eyes closed and his earbuds in, listening to classical jazz, which him focus his mind and energy. suddenly, he feels a presence beside him. he opens his eyes to see mitch staring at him. "mathletes! mathletes! " mitch chants loudly. mitch gives byron a thumbs-up and then proceeds to strut around like a peacock, high-fiving the other team members, as byron shuts his eyes again and does his best to refocus his mind which statement best summarizes the passage?