First event of the Scare Games. A little shortened but that's because you guys know what goes down. I freaking loved writing this scene for some reason.

Chapter 8

'This is a frat house?' Was Thomas' first thought as he stood outside a small, suburban home.

At first he wasn't sure if he was outside the wrong house, but the frat's emblem above the doorway dispelled the thought. How did the entire fraternity live in something this small?

Thomas had woken up especially early to visit Randall, immediately after they opened the first letter from the Scare Games. He didn't confront the lizard the night before because he knew he needed to get ready to move in. The simple fact that Thomas' judgement wasn't all too fair at that point also held him back. This had gotten ridiculous so quickly. Mike just couldn't accept that he wasn't going to be a scarer. After being given a hard time from students, Sullivan, professor Knight at times and Hardscrabble outright telling him he wasn't scary, Wazowski still came back for more abuse.

Now he was dragging Randall into this and that's what got to Thomas. He couldn't sink alone, he had to pull down his roommate and a whole fraternity of monsters with him. It was pathetic.

Thomas sighed, rubbing at his neck. He'd started working himself up again, right before seeing Randall. He didn't want to make him feel bad for joining and saving Mike, but he wanted to get his point across that there was nothing for him with them except embarrassment and hurt.

The furry monster walked up the steps to the house briskly, quickly reaching the doorbell. He didn't want to give himself time to second guess his argument or make it seem like he only wanted Randall to leave so that ROR had less competition in the Games.
Randall was smart. He would go to the first logical conclusion and if Thomas said the wrong things, he would be suspected.

The bell rang with a winding charm, echoing from inside. A few voices were heard from far within but Thomas couldn't make out what was said. After a few more moments the door opened, revealing the small, pale monster. All five of his eyes widened as he looked up at Thomas.

"Hey."

"H-hey."

"Is Randall here?"

The monster blinked, looking behind him and stuttering, "Y-yeah, he's here."

They stared at one another for some the before Thomas shifted.
"Can I see him?"

"Oh! Sure," he stepped out the way, opening the door further, "come in."

Thomas was about to decline when Wazowski suddenly appeared, inquisitively looking around the door. He blinked in surprise at the identity of the guest.

"Ghola, what are you doing here?" He inquired, stepping passed the pale OK.

"Just wanna talk to Randall." Thomas replied flatly. He'd been hoping not to run into the green monster.
Said monster narrowed in eye, suspicion evident in his expression. However he waved a hand behind him, motioning to the staircase, and replied, "Upstairs on your second left."
He stepped aside as Thomas walked in, muttering thanks.

The red monster was hit with the unexpected interior design. He nearly stopped dead when he laid eyes on the inside. The wallpaper, the furniture, the China on the shelves. Was this really a frat house?

Thomas climbed the stairs swiftly, his frown deepening as he ventured further into the house. This seemed more like a family home, or something that someone close to retirement lived in.

Thomas slowed his pace as he reached the first floor, treading slowly over to the second door, which was partly open. He rapped his knuckles across it quietly, awaiting a response.

"Come in." Randall sounded from within. Thomas entered, finding a dingy little room with a bunk bed, dusty old dressers and a small desk by the window. The reptile was seated at this desk, back turned to Thomas. When silence ensued, Randall turned in his seat and recoiled.

"Thomas!"

"You look shocked to see me."

"No! Its just…" he hopped off his chair and approached, "I didn't think I'd see you so soon. Thought we'd see each other at the Games."

Thomas shook his head, sporting a friendly smile.

"No ways, buddy, I wanted to come over and see your new digs," He made a show of looking around the room more thoroughly, "you rooming with someone?"

Randall had been fidgeting this entire time, watching as Thomas' eyes roamed.

"Yeah. Still roommates with Mike."

"Makes sense."

"Yeah…"

Thomas hummed, scratching at his ear. Why was he so reluctant to bring up what was on his mind? He just needed to tell Randall what a bad idea this was. He would listen to reason, especially if it was structured soundly.

"Randy-"

"I'm sorry!" The lizard burst.

Thomas flattened his ears in surprise.
'Sorry'?

In a quieter voice, he repeated, "I'm sorry, Thomas."

"I'm not-"

"I didn't know what to do, and I only saw how dumb it was after you called me out." The lizard moved passed Thomas, shutting the door.

"Joining the Oozma's?" Thomas inquired, attempting to join Randall's line of thought.

"Mike looked desperate. He's been so down after getting kicked from the programme."

Thomas sighed and sat on the dresser directly opposite the bed.

"I'm not saying what you did was dumb,"

'It kinda was.'

"I'm just worried that Mike's just using you."

"Not in the way you're thinking," Randall sat on the lower bed, "he's genuinely happy that I'm here."

"And not just because you're helping him get what he wants."

"That's cynical."

"That's realistic."

Randall threw Thomas a look, making the monster quickly backtrack, knowing he was making no progress on that front.

"I just don't want you to embarrass yourself."

Randall frowned now.

"How? Because I'm not in a 'respected' fraternity?"

Thomas grimaced and Randall looked away.

"That's not-"

"I know," Randall interjected, "I'm just being difficult. I'll admit I felt pressured being asked to join like that, but there's nothing I can do about it now."

"You could leave."

"I'm not going to cost Mike the deal."

"So you're gonna go with it?"

Randall paused then shrugged.
"These guys aren't so bad. A little strange, but nice. You should of seen our initiation."

Thomas leaned back on the wall and chuckled.

"What?"

"When you said you were gonna join Oozma Kappa before, I didn't think you were serious."

The red monster continued to chuckle, Randall joining in shortly after. They devolved into a fit of giggles, laughing at nothing but each other now. Thomas enjoyed the sound of Randall's laughter, that same sweet rolling laughter he had come to know well.

It ended with Randall laying across his bed, staring up at nothing, Thomas likewise staring up at the ceiling.
Thomas spoke before he filtered his thoughts.

"I was afraid I'd come across as a jerk when I came here."

Randall moved his eyes to Thomas, focus entirely shifted. Thomas felt foolish for exposing himself like that but decided to continue under the reptile's coaxing gaze.

"I'm… still afraid they're gonna let you down somehow."

"Mike said he's going to carry the team so no worries there." Randall snickered. Thomas rolled his eyes.

"It's weird that- nah, whatever."

Randall stiffened in his position.
"Don't do that!"

"Do what?"

"Start saying something important then stop."

"It wasn't important."

A incredulous look from Randall made him pull a face. Thomas quickly changed the subject.

"So now that you're in a frat, I bet your crush has come to you."

"Shut up."

"So she has come knocking already?"

Randall sat up, being careful not to bump his head.
"We're going to compete in the most dangerous campus event tonight and you're going on about a monster I like."

Thomas shrugged.
"My priorities are set, Randy. Are yours?"

Randall blinked in surprise before his mouth broke in a wide smile.
"Are you actually Thomas Ghola? First you're talking about how afraid you are and now you're being nice."

Thomas crossed his arms and huffed.
"What do'ya know, I got feelings."

"I wished you'd use them more often."

"And I wish you'd wear your glasses more often."

Randall frowned. Thomas smirked victoriously.

"Fine."

"What?"

Randall got up and walked over to his bag where he rummaged around inside. He pulled out his glasses a second later and strutted over to Thomas.

"I wear my glasses from now on and you continue being sensitive."
He stuck out a hand.

"What does this achieve?" Thomas didn't budge.

"I get to stop squinting and you get to be nicer," he gave the furry monster an imploring look, "also proves you're not chicken."

Thomas reacted, huffing and rolling his eyes. He begrudgingly grasped the hand offered to him.

"This is dumb."

Randall slipped on his glasses, his eyes widening significantly.
"Use constructive words, Thomas, you're sensitive now."

"Must be nice to come back home again, Reggie." Javier teased as the RORs walked through the sewer entrance.
Reggie growled in response, the rest of the group chuckled regardless.

Thomas didn't laugh as energetically as the rest. He was nervous. Very nervous.

He'd tried to quench some of it when visiting Randall and mostly succeeded, but now that he was moments away from the first challenge, it felt like the exam all over again. His fur bristled uncontrollably as they ventured further into the tunnel, the roar of a crowd not far away.

"Relax," Johnny had slowed to match Thomas' pace, "the first challenge is gonna be a breeze."

"Hah. Yeah." The maroon monster replied sheepishly, looking down at his feet. Johnny sounded sure, so he probably had nothing to worry about. How hard could the first challenge really be?

The note had mentioned something about toxicity in a child's room. Javier immediately came to the conclusion that it had something to do children's toys. Quick deduction meant it was probably going to be an obstacle course of some sort, littered with toxic toys. It was no wonder monsters were sent to the hospital last year.

They entered the room, which opened up into a huge cavern of concrete and steel. It was packed full of crazed monsters, cheering and hollering. Metal struck metal all around the room, echoing off the plain walls.

Claire and Brock stood above the crowd on a walkway, beneath huge red letters that declared: 'SCARE GAMES'.

They were ready to begin.
The RORs pushed through the crowd to get closer to the walkway and ready themselves from the challenge ahead. Not long after the vice president began the ceremony.

"Welcome to your worst nightmare, the Scare Games!"

The ruckus tripled excitedly. Claire took over.

"Let's hear it for the frats and sororities competing in this year's games. Jaws Theta Chi!" She motioned down to the frat. The mentioned group exploded into a frenzy, Big Red going far as to break a plank over his head. Sullivan had Sanderson in a brotherly neck hold.

"Python Nu Kappa!"

The group of dainty monsters waved excitedly to the crowd.

"Slugma Slugma Kappa!"

The girls all pulled aggressive poses.

"Roar Omega Roar!"

The sound of his fraternity made Thomas' previous bout of nervousness dissolve. He threw his arms into the air with Chip and Javier, relishing in the cheers they got from the audience. Then it was over and Thomas' smile fell.

"Eta Hiss Hiss!"

The goth group stood stagnantly as their leader let loose an intimidating hiss.

"And finally, Oozma… Kappa!" The bird monster gestured somewhat awkwardly to the group, who stood just ahead of the entrance. They looked around in confusion, almost like they didn't expect to be called out. The crowd went silent, unsure of the status of this new fraternity.

Thomas felt himself biting his tongue, hoping Randall kept it together. A lone cheer sounded from above, to which the pale five-eyed monster replied, "Hi mom!"

Thomas dropped his head in his hands.

"Let's begin the first competition! The toxicity challenge!" Brock got everyone riled up again.

Claire began making her way down the walkway.
"Human children are toxic! And anything they touch is toxic."

"We don't have any human toys, but thanks to MUs biology department, we found a close second," she reached into a freshly opened yellow box- mist overflowing from its sides- with a pair of grabbers. She pulled out what appeared to be a glowing ball of needles, "the stinging glow urchin! Trust me when I say you are not gonna wanna touch this bad boy."

"And you certainly don't wanna touch any of it's friends." The president motioned to several archways. A large open space held up by pillars extended outwards, absolutely littered with the things.

The council members came up and explained the rules of the challenge before announcing the imminent start. Thomas crouched down beside Javier and Chet, having already stretched before hand. Then Johnny spoke.

"I'll take first position. We take this in a single line. Follow what the guy in front of you does and we'll get through untouched."

Everyone nodded. Thomas decided to be the last one in the row. Just to be sure he could see the urchins coming.

"Attention teams! One last thing." Claire sauntered over to a switch on the wall, grabbing ahold of it and saying menacingly, "Scarers work in the dark."

All the lights went off in rapid succession, leaving Thomas blinking stupidly as tried to comprehend what he was seeing. It was the urchins, glowing evilly in the darkness. Thomas barely heard one of the HSS mutter a curse. He was inclined to agree.

"On your marks!"

"Psst, hey, Ghola." A familiar voice came from the left. Thomas glanced and saw Sullivan, crouched and ready just as he was.

"Don't trip, I'd hate to see the RORs eliminated because of a careless mistake."

Thomas felt his lip curl in anger at the decisively smug look on Sullivan's face.

"Don't worry about him, when you're actually in the scare program these sort of things aren't much of a problem." Johnny spoke up from the other side of the group, providing the blue monster with an even smugger look.

"Get set!"

"I'll learn for myself when we win." Sullivan turned back to the archway.
Thomas gave Johnny a grateful look, but the monster was already facing the urchins, concentration furrowing his brow. Thomas did likewise, bunching up his muscles to prepare for the run ahead.

"Go!"

Thomas waited a split second for his teammates to edge ahead of him before leaping forward and sprinting after them. He was immediately distracted by a purple form yelling and jumping forwards into a pile of urchins, grabbing a few and nuzzling into them. Was he insane? Those things were as toxic as human toys, he'd end up going to hospital for sure. What happened though was instantaneous and disturbing. Where the needles had touched his skin, massive lumps of swollen flesh appeared. He screamed in agony as his entire body was engulfed by the masses.

Randall was at his side in a second, yelling something incoherent. That idiot was going to cost them the challenge. Thomas didn't really believe the OKs stood much of a chance, but with Randall on their team he hoped they would do much better. Appeared he was wrong.

Thomas was soon at a steady pace behind Chip, hopping over or sidestepping urchins along the way. It was surprisingly easy. He was soon in a rhythm. It was short lived however because the paths for each fraternity and sorority converged on a single hallway. Thomas was surprised to already see Randall and Mike legging it through before they quickly joined them. Thomas risked a glance back, looking for the rest of the Oozmas, seeing nothing but the JOX approaching with Sullivan at their head. The blue monster gave Thomas a wink, to which Thomas responded with a rude gesture.

As they entered the new hallway Thomas heard the crowds eager cheering burst forth again and Chet shouting for everyone to watch their heads. The walkways above were filled with monsters given crates of urchins to chuck down at them. They did just that. The single row plan took some strain as the RORs ducked and dived, avoiding urchins being lugged their way.

Mike was unlucky enough to be struck at the foot ahead of them. He collapsed in a heap, gasping at the pain of his leg swelling up. Johnny leaped straight over him, followed by everyone else. Randall had stopped and was returning to Mike to help him up, only to be shooed by the monster. "Go! I'll catch up!"

Thomas passed by them both, trying his best to give a reassuring look to Randall, who appeared panicked and fearful. Then they were left behind. Thomas hadn't seen the urchin being thrown his way, only noticing it after feeling it prick his skin.

An incredible burning sensation worked its way up his arm, centered around his forearm. He looked down to see the glowing ball stuck between his fur, the flesh around it huge in comparison to his other arm. He let out a shocked gasp as the pain tripled and the swollen area grew.

"Ah! God." He seethed as he continued to run, trying to keep up with his teammates. Chip was yelling something to Thomas, but the red monster couldn't hear it over the cheers of the crowd and his own shock. He pushed himself to go faster, attempting to shake off the pain. It wasn't long before the team had ducked under the walkways and now entered a new zone where urchins were strung up by strings all around. Everyone zipped to and fro, just barely missing them.

And not soon enough was the entire ROR team out and over the finish line, smiling victoriously. The Greek council vice president was already there with a large waiting crowd, which enthusiastically cheered.

"Roar Omega Roar wins!"

Thomas beamed, allowing himself to raise his uninjured arm up and wave to the crowd.
A girl with a white shirt quickly approached him.
"Let me get that." She grabbed the urchin sticking out of Thomas' arm and carried it away gingerly.

"You good, Ghola?" Javier was now before the red monster, motioning to his grotesque limb.
What he wanted to say was, 'No, I'm definitely not good, can't you see the size of my arm?' but instead he said, "Yeah, I'm good."

Javier smiled and patted him on his good shoulder, along with Chip and Johnny.

Then a victorious exclamation sounded. Everyone turned to the finish line to see a deformed Wazowski celebrating beside a shell shocked Randall. Thomas leaned to the side, trying to spot the rest of the side OKs but finding none. Randall was also staring back into the tunnel, fidgeting aggressively.
Why was Mike celebrating?

Chet snorted.
"Way to blow it, Oozma's!" He jeered.

Mike glared at the crab, pointing a swollen finger in his direction.
"Hey, second place ain't bad!"

He couldn't be serious.

Only when Brock announced the actual second place winners did Wazowski's smug expression turn to one of confusion.

"Second place, Slugma Slugma Kappa!"

Johnny sensed his confusion and decided to elaborate.
"Your whole team has to cross the finish line."

"Third place, PNKs! Fourth place, JOX!"

Mike stared as the different teams rolled in.
"No..."

"Fifth Place, HSS!"

"No, no, no!"

"And in last place, Oozma Kappa!"

The missing members of the fraternity appeared at the entrance, badly swollen and tired. The pale monster had to be rolled around.
Randall shrunk into himself, grimacing like the stares they got were weighing him down.

"Oh, shocker! Oozma Kappa has been eliminated."
Claire said as she dropped the OK plank from the board, officially eliminating the team from the games.

"No." Mike pitifully backs up, not realizing he was about to bump into the Dean.
But Thomas didn't care about him, he made his way over to Randall, who stood beside the malformed Oozma's.

"Randy."

The lizard whirled his head around at the calling, relaxing when he spotted Thomas. He was glad to see he was unscathed, unlike the rest of his team. Randall seemed to notice Thomas' injury almost immediately.

"You got hit." He observed.

"You didn't."

The reptile shrugged with minimal effort.
"I can go invisible."

Right.
"I'm sorry you guys didn't win." Thomas said somewhat mournfully.

"So am I," Randall crossed his arms and kicked at the ground, "in the chaos I forgot everyone had to cross over. I should've reminded Mike."

"No point in faulting yourself now," Thomas dropped a hand on Randall's shoulder and shook him slightly, smiling, "you did your best, it would of taken a-"

"Attention everyone! We have an announcement!" Brock called out, pulling the focus to him, "Slugma Slugma Kappa… has been disqualified!"

Everyone turned to the guilty looking girls gathered beside the podium and several referees. Brock continued, holding up a container and looking to the sorority with a disgruntled gaze.
"The use of illegal protective gel is cause for elimination."

A referee prodded one of the girls legs with an urchin, the explosive effect everyone expected didn't occur. When a towel was used to wipe off the area and the urchin used again, the leg immediately swelled up and the girl cried out in pain. Murmurs from the crowd started up.

Brock turned back to the crowd.
"Which means, Oozma Kappa is back in the games! It's a miracle!"

Thomas and Randall shared a look of utter horror.
"You're still in."

"We're still in." Randall gripped his fronds, eyes wide in what appeared to be fear.

Thomas barely heard Mike declare how difficult this was going to be and he found himself agreeing with the sphere.
It was difficult not to pity them.