Making Our Mark

Chapter 5: Oozma

"Diagnostic assessments evaluate a student's prior knowledge of a subject," I explained, my hand in the air for the umpteenth time that day. "Formative assessments evaluate the learning process in which the student is engaged."

My professor for the course, which was aptly called Assessment and Evaluation, nodded with a broad smile. "Correct again!"

I smiled proudly and mentally praised myself for being able to keep up with the readings for my classes. It helped that doing so was part of the routine that I had gradually eased into: I would wake up, grab breakfast in the cafeteria, and go to my classes throughout the day. In between classes, I would do schoolwork either in my dorm room or, if the weather was nice, on a picnic table outside. Whenever Brynn was not busy trying to impress the members of Slugma Slugma Kappa, she joined me to do work, to eat a meal, and to enlighten me on the latest campus news.

"Well, that's it for today everyone," my professor, Leonard Clark, announced cheerfully. "See you next week and don't forget that your diagnostic assessment assignment is due next Thursday."

There was a rustle of papers as students hurriedly shoved their belongings into their bags and rushed out the door, seemingly eager to be anywhere but in a lecture. It had been two weeks since classes had started and I found myself to be thoroughly enjoying them. Whether the content was related to Spanish Studies or to Education, I always found what was being taught quite intriguing. It was a good indication that I was going into the right profession.

After packing away my notebook and pencil case, I swung my messenger bag over my shoulder and crossed the classroom to the door. There were about a dozen students in the corridor when I stepped out; they were either chatting in groups or travelling from one classroom to another. Snippets of different conversations reached my ears, ranging from the casual tentative plans for the upcoming weekend to the outrageous rumour that a Jaws Theta Chi fraternity brother and a Python Nu Kappa sorority sister were caught in a very compromising position behind the clock tower earlier in the week.

The sound of objects hitting the floor, followed by a yelp of objection, shifted my attention from the waves of corridor gossip.

"Hey!"

Looking to the left of me, a two-headed monster, each with one eye and brown horns, frowning in the direction of another monster who was larger in stature and had snickered as he sauntered off with his buddies. The twins groaned and knelt down to collect the books and papers that lay scattered around their striped tentacles.

I wasted no time in hurrying towards them and crouching carefully to the floor since I was in a dress and did not wish to flash the entire corridor. I helped to gather the books and papers that remained on the floor below the twins, making sure to stack the pages in a neat pile on top of the books. Once finished, I glanced up at them to find them staring at me, their expressions a mix of surprise and apprehension.

Smiling kindly in reassurance, I held out their books and papers to them and said, "Here you go."

The monsters exchanged glances before slowly reaching out to take their school materials back, with the taller twin saying to me, "Thanks."

"You're welcome," I replied, getting up as gracefully as I could and smoothing out my dress.

"That was nice of you," the shorter twin remarked with a smile as he and his brother straightened back up.

I shrugged it off the compliment humbly. "I just wanted to help."

"Not many monsters do," said the shorter twin, his smile fading quickly. "Most are like the one that just pushed us."

"Well, if it makes you feel better, I'm not like them," I assured them before pausing. "At least I like to think I'm not."

"You seem nice," said the taller twin, tilting his head to the side in curiosity. "Are you new here?"

"Yeah, I'm a freshman," I answered.

"Nice, well, welcome to MU!" the shorter twin exclaimed, his tone oozing warmth. "What's your name?"

Before I could answer, my professor from Assessment and Evaluation popped up beside us, having just exited the classroom himself. "Excellent participation as usual, Miss Worthington."

Trying to ignore the burning and accusing gaze that the twins suddenly projected towards me, I nodded gratefully at my instructor and said, "Thank you, Professor Clark."

"Keep up the great work," Professor Clark encouraged with a proud smile before he continued down the corridor, completely unaware of the awkwardness that he had just created.

Forcing my eyes to shift back to the twins, I noticed that the taller one was indeed looking at me as though I just murdered their mother while the shorter one simply stared at me with his mouth agape.

"You're Johnny's sister?" the taller twin questioned with narrowed eyes.

I sighed. "Yeah."

The taller twin shook his head in disbelief. "You don't act like him at all."

I forced myself to chuckle in an attempt to defuse the awkwardness. "I hope that's a good thing."

"Oh, it is," said the shorter twin with a reassuring smile. "He's not exactly the nicest monster on campus, so it's a relief to know that his sister is."

I smiled kindly. "Well, thank you. Trust me, I don't plan on strutting around like I own the place because I don't. I'm just here to do my own thing."

"That's fair," said the shorter twin, holding out his hand. "I'm Terri with an 'i'." Nudging his head in his twin's direction, he added, "My brother's Terry with an 'y'."

"A pleasure," I said, shaking Terri's hand. "I'm Danica, Spanish Studies and Education."

"Nice to meet you," said Terri. "I'm a Dance major."

"And I'm not," Terry drawled unenthusiastically.

"English," Terri clarified for his twin. "Say, do you have any plans for lunch?"

Remembering that Brynn was having lunch with Slugma Slugma Kappa today, I shook my head.

Terri beamed at me. "Well, in that case, why don't you join us for lunch at our frat house?"

"You're part of a fraternity?" I asked with interest.

Terri nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, Oozma Kappa."

I paused, picturing the layout of Frat Row in my mind with ease because of my strong visual-spatial skills. "I don't remember seeing your house on Frat Row."

"That's because we don't have one there," said Terry dryly. "We're not exactly welcomed by the Greek community."

I nodded sympathetically. If Terri was correct in saying that they were pushed around by many monsters at Monsters University, then they must not have much of a social life on campus. It made me smile slightly, however, to know that the Oozma Kappa fraternity brothers had each other to lean on when they felt alienated by the rest of the campus community.

"One of our frat brothers has a mom who lets us use her house as our frat house," Terri explained. "It's not too far off campus."

"It's very kind of you to invite me for lunch, but I don't wish to impose," I told them. "Your frat brother's mom already has an entire fraternity under her roof. It would be rude of me to show up as another mouth to feed, especially without any prior notice."

"Don't worry about it," Terri insisted politely. "Ms. Squibbles loves having company over and she's a great cook. I'm sure the guys would love to meet you too."

I gave the invitation some thought before nodding. "In that case, I gladly accept."

The Oozma Kappa fraternity house was a quaint two-storey building in a cozy neighbourhood just a few blocks away from the Monsters University campus. It was made up of yellow walls, curtain-covered windows, a wooden porch, white columns, and a chimney that was billowing smoke. A peach-coloured van, most likely belonging to Ms. Squibbles, was parked in the driveway. A well-kept front yard of lush green grass, various plants, and a maple tree was surrounded by a fence of neatly-arranged stones.

"This is an adorable place that you guys have here," I remarked as we travelled up the path to the house.

"It's not much," said Terry, "but it's a roof over our heads."

I nodded, trailing the twins from behind as we climbed up the steps and onto the porch. Rather than knock, Terri simply opened the door and he and Terry walked inside as though they owned the place. I hesitated, not used to simply waltzing into a place without knocking first, before entering the house and closing the door behind me.

It appeared that we were standing in the living room of the house. There was a circular rug, sofa, and armchair that were just as flowery in design as the wallpaper that surrounded the room. A clock sat atop the fireplace while a beautiful antique grandfather clock was ticking against the wall. In the corner of the room was a wooden display case that held delicate pieces of fine china, just like the ones that were arranged neatly along a shelf above a nearby door. The ceiling lamp and floor lamp gave the room a very homey feel. Definitely not a typical frat house, but the Oozma Kappas seemed to have added their fraternity touch to the place by painting the wooden fixtures along the walls, windows, and doors in olive green.

"Hey, guys!" what appeared to be the oldest member of the fraternity greeted the twins joyfully from his place in the armchair.

"Hey!" Terri replied merrily as he and Terry stepped aside, allowing me to see that there were two other monsters in the room in addition to the one that had greeted the twins.

"New friend?" the oldest member asked, his warm eyes darting to me.

"Yeah," Terri confirmed, gesturing to me. "This is Danica Worthington."

"Worthington?" the small pudgy monster with five eyes squeaked, recoiling deeper into the couch in fear.

I sighed and said, "I take it you know my brother, Johnny?"

"Relax, Squishy," Terri assured him gently. "She's nothing like him."

Squishy paused before sitting upright again in his seat. He looked at me cautiously before mumbling a shy, "Hi."

"Johnny threw him into a trash can one time," Terry explained to me when I gave him a look of confusion. "He's been like that ever since."

Smiling sympathetically at Squishy, I said, "It's nice to meet you, Squishy. I'm sorry to hear that my brother did that to you."

Squishy cracked a small smile, probably realizing that I meant no harm. "It's okay."

"We hope you all don't mind, but we invited Danica over for lunch," Terri explained to the group.

"Well, any new friends of the twins are friends of ours," said the oldest member with a chipper voice. He pushed himself off of the armchair and came over to shake my hand. "Don Carlton, President of Oozma Kappa."

"A pleasure," I replied, shaking his hand.

"And I'm Art!" the purple arch-shaped monster declared enthusiastically, making his presence by the coffee table known. "So nice to meet you!"

"Likewise," I responded, amused by his excitement.

"Did I hear talk of a new friend?" a female monster gushed, sticking her head out of the doorway that separated the living room from what was either the dining room or the kitchen. She appeared to be a female version of Squishy, except older and seemingly more outgoing. Her blonde hair was wrapped in a set of brightly-coloured rollers and she donned a flowery dress. I assumed that she was the Ms. Squibbles who owned the house.

"Yeah, Mom, this is Danica," said Squishy as his mother entered the living room. "Terri and Terry met her and invited her for lunch."

Before I could express how nice it was to meet her, Ms. Squibbles enveloped me in a giant hug as though I was one of her own children and had just returned home after a year abroad.

"It's so wonderful to meet you, dear!" the matriarch squealed before pulling back to smile brightly at me.

"It's nice to meet you too," I replied, a bit taken aback by the sudden gesture of welcome, but I smiled in appreciation nonetheless. "Thank you for having me over."

"There's no need to thank me," Ms. Squibbles assured me. "Any friends of my boys are welcome over anytime!"

I smiled graciously towards her. Ms. Squibbles seemed to be quite motherly given how she welcomed her son's entire fraternity, and now me, into her house with open arms. They may not receive a lot of compassion from their peers at Monsters University, but they seem to receive plenty of it from her, and it warmed my heart immensely to know that Oozma Kappa had someone loving and supportive in their corner.

"Is lunch ready yet, Mom?" Squishy asked eagerly.

"Just got done with it!" Ms. Squibbles answered proudly. "Come, come, don't want the food to get cold!"

There were a series of blurs as Art, Squishy, Terri, and Terry scrambled towards the kitchen, colliding with each other as they attempted to force themselves through the open doorway at once. Don and Ms. Squibbles chuckled and giggled respectively before following them at a more leisurely pace. I trailed the two adults from behind, admiring the décor around me.

Upon entering the kitchen, I was immediately greeted by the enticing aroma of marinated chicken. Looking to the table that sat eight, which was draped with a lacy tablecloth, I noticed six china bowls of piping hot chicken noodle soup, a towering plate of subs filled with assorted meats, and a giant pitcher of freshly-squeezed slimonade with a stack of clear glasses.

"This looks great, Ms. Squibbles!" Art gushed excitedly as he clambered onto a chair.

"I'm starving!" Squishy exclaimed, seating himself next to Art.

"Over here, Danica!" Terri called, patting the empty seat next to him and Terry.

I snapped out of my amazement at the inviting sight of the table and went to sit next to the twins while Don seated himself at the head of the table.

The next hour was full of laughs and chatter as we filled our stomachs and got to know each other better. The fraternity, despite knowing that I had a notorious brother, seemed eager to get to know me better. My explanation was similar to the one that I had given Javier during our campus walk: I was born into a family full of successful monsters and decided early on in life that I would make my own mark on the world, regardless of the career that I would pursue, without relying on my family name to open doors for me. To my utter relief, they seemed quite understanding and perhaps impressed of my willingness to work for what I wanted in life.

As Don refilled our glasses of slimonade, he shared that he was a mature student who used to be in sales, but the economic downturn propelled him to return to school. Through a mouthful of bread and bacon, Art managed to get out that he was a New Age Philosophy major who often jotted down his thoughts in a dream journal. Squishy admitted to not having declared a major and that his real name was actually Scott. They revealed that they all used to be Scaring majors, but had been removed from the program because Dean Hardscrabble believed that they lacked the potential to be great Scarers.

Sipping my glass of slimonade, I couldn't help but feel a sense of sympathy towards Oozma Kappa. Sure, they didn't look like what Johnny called 'real Scarers', but they were still monsters and seem capable of unleashing the beasts within themselves if they tried. My mother always told me that you could achieve anything if you worked hard enough and I truly believed that Oozma Kappa would surprise the entire campus with their scaring abilities if given the opportunity.

Don was in the middle of telling a joke when an antique cuckoo clock on the wall nearby chirped, indicating that it was one in the afternoon and causing me to gasp in surprise.

From her place by the sink, Ms. Squibbles cast me a look of concern. "Is everything okay, dear?"

Looking to the matriarch, I nodded. "Yes, but may I pleased be excused? My Introduction to Literary Studies class starts in half an hour and I have to get back to campus."

"I completely understand, dear," said Ms. Squibbles with a gentle smile. "It's been a pleasure having you over. Feel free to drop by anytime."

Don nodded in agreement. "Yes, our door is always open to you, Miss Worthington."

I smiled amicably as I removed the napkin on my lap and placed it on the table. "Thank you and thank you for having me over."

"We'll walk back with you, Danica," said Terri as he and his twin stood up with me. "Terry's Contemporary Literary Theory class starts soon too."

"So does my Extentialism class," Art piped up. "I'll come with."

Once Terri, Terry, Art, and I collected our belongings from the living room, we bid goodbye to Don, Squishy, and Ms. Squibbles and began the short trek back to campus.

The journey back to Monsters University from Oozma Kappa's frat house was brief, but cheery, mainly because Terri and Terry entertained Art and me with a variety of their magic tricks along the way. They expressed their desire to perform during the campus-wide talent show at the end of next semester and I was certain that they would blow the audience away with whatever was up their sleeves, literally and figuratively.

Although our majors were different, they all fell under the umbrella of the liberal arts, meaning that all four of us were bound for the School of Liberal Arts and Monstrosities for our respective classes. Personally, I was excited for my Introduction to Literary Studies class and the upcoming class discussion that we would be having for the first novel that we were assigned to read.

"Danica!"

Turning in the direction of the angry voice that barked at me, I spotted Johnny glaring at me venomously from the troll bridge, his hands clenched tightly by his side.

"Johnny doesn't look too thrilled to see you," said Terry, eyeing my brother suspiciously who was storming up to us.

"And I think I know why," I mumbled before speaking up. "You guys go on to your classes. I'll see you later."

"You sure?" Art asked, eyeing me carefully. "We can wait for you."

"I'm sure," I replied confidently. "I know you guys aren't too fond of Johnny, so you don't have to stick around if you guys don't want to."

Terri smiled gratefully. "Thanks for understanding, Danica."

Terry jutted his head in the direction of the School of Liberal Arts and Monstrosities, signalling for Terri and Art to continuing walking. "Let's go."

Art nodded. "See you later, Danica."

I nodded, watching Art, Terri, and Terry walk past the bookstore. I sighed, feeling my heart break for not just Art and the twins, but for Don and Squishy as well. All they wanted was to feel part of the Monsters University family and most of that family did not seem to want to include them. The optimistic side of me held out hope that one day, in some manner or another, Oozma Kappa would find a warm sense of belonging on campus.

Once Johnny reached me, he snarled, "Just what do you think you were doing?"

"Uh, walking?" I answered, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I mean, what were you doing walking with the Oozmas?" Johnny questioned accusingly, resting his hands on his hips.

"We just got back from lunch and were on our way to class," I explained simply, trying to maintain a calm composure.

"You had lunch with them?" Johnny roared, causing a few monsters passing by to jump in alarm.

"Yes!" I cried with an air of exasperation. "Seriously, what's with all the questions? It's not like all that we did was illegal."

"No, but it's downright embarrassing," Johnny growled, seemingly appalled by my actions. "Do you have any idea how this looks?"

"Uh, it looks normal," I guessed, "unlike this scene that you're making."

Dragging a hand down his face in frustration, Johnny snarled, "It looks bad for monsters like us to hang out with monsters like them."

"How so?" I questioned in puzzlement.

"They're not scary and they never will be," Johnny explained firmly. "They are nothing but an embarrassment to the monster race."

"That is awfully rude of you to say, especially since you don't know them at all," I responded boldly. "I may have only met them today, but they are a very nice bunch of monsters."

"Niceties don't get you into a scare company," Johnny pointed out. "That's why they didn't last in the Scaring program."

"Life isn't all about scaring," I reminded him. "I'm an example of that."

Johnny sighed. "I know, sis, but I'm just saying that you and I, like the Worthingtons before us, are successful at what we do and we shouldn't be associating with those beneath us."

"Oh, the Oozmas are suddenly inferior because they're not Worthingtons, Rioses, Gundersons, Thompsons, or McCays?" I scoffed incredulously.

"Exactly," Johnny replied with a sigh of satisfaction, assuming that I was finally understanding where he was coming from.

"Look, we may all have different last names, but cut us open and we all bleed blood," I pointed out.

Johnny huffed, folding his arms in front of him. "Your point?"

"My point is that we're all monsters who are here at Monsters University to pursue the careers of our dreams," I elaborated. "We all deserve to be here and we all deserve to be treated with respect, regardless of the career paths that we go down and the backgrounds from which we come."

"You had me until that second part," said Johnny with a chuckle.

Rolling my eyes, I said, "You're entitled to your own opinion, Johnny, and so am I. Clearly, we don't have the same perspective on the matter, so let's just agree to disagree and move on, yeah?"

Johnny grumbled. "Fine, but stay away from those Oozmas. They're only going to drag you down and make you look weak in the eyes of other monsters."

"Okay, firstly, you don't know that," I told him, holding up a finger. Adding a second one, I continued, "Secondly, what you should know by now is that I don't care what other monsters think of me." With a third finger up, I added, "Finally, you should also know that you can't tell me what to do. You're older than me and, for that, I respect you, but I would like you to respect me and my decisions, and that includes who I hang out with."

Johnny scowled at me as though I had just asked him to fling himself off of the top of the clock tower. "I refuse to stand by and let you make the biggest mistake of your life."

"Then at least stand by, so I can get going to class," I told him, the tone of my voice indicating that our conversation was over. Spinning on my heels, I said, "See you around, Johnny."

Johnny's sudden growl of protest from behind stopped me in my tracks.

"Hey, what are you doing, man?"

I quickly realized that Johnny's question was not directed at me. Turning back around, I saw Javier standing in between Johnny and me, glaring at his fraternity's president with narrowed eyes. Seeing him grip Johnny's outstretched arm tightly by the wrist while another hand was facing me in a protective manner caused me to exhale in surprise.

"Easy there, amigo," Javier said calmly to my brother.

Johnny stared at his right-hand monster in astonishment, probably questioning his sudden appearance out of nowhere.

Javier must have been able to decipher the question behind Johnny's facial expression because he said, "Don't look so surprised to see me; you were easy to find since the whole campus probably heard you yelling. Shouldn't you be heading to class now?"

Johnny roughly jerked his arm out of Javier's grasp, gave me one last warning glare, and sauntered off, his tail coiled in fury.

"You okay, chica?" Javier asked me, the tone of his voice gentler, yet with a hint of ire.

"Yeah," I answered, looking up at him curiously. "How much did you hear?"

"Enough to know that Johnny didn't have a reason for laying a hand on you," Javier answered. "Actually, there is no reason for laying a hand on you, period, on any girl really."

I shook my head at Johnny's retreating back. "Was he really going to hit me?"

"I don't think so," said Javier, watching Johnny cross the bridge. "I saw him reach out to you, maybe to grab your arm or something, but I had a feeling it would hurt since he looked extremely pissed off at you. I couldn't let him do that."

I smiled at Javier's actions and thoughtfulness, both which surprised me. "Well, thank you. I appreciate that."

"De nada," Javier responded with a small grin. Giving me a gentle punch on the shoulder, he added, "Don't let Johnny tell you what to do."

"I never did and don't plan on starting now," I assured him with a smirk. "See you around, Rios."

"Hasta luego, chica," Javier replied with a bow of his head and a cheeky smile.

As I turned my back to Javier and proceeded in the direction of the School of Liberal Arts and Monstrosities, I reflected on the events that had just transpired, particularly on the one when Javier willingly stood in front of Johnny and physically restrained him out of concern for me. Perhaps there was another side to him that he was slowly starting to show and, if truth be told, I wouldn't mind seeing that side of him more often.