Making Our Mark

Chapter 28: Toxicity

The first week of January passed by with little fanfare as the students adapted to their new schedules. My second semester schedule, although slightly different from my first, still allowed me to teach my Latin Fusion dance classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday nights. The free time that I did have was spent at the RΩR house or with Brynn whenever she wasn't busy with Scare Games prep with her sorority. The Perry twins invited me over for dinner one night, but I politely declined and insisted that they spend that time getting better acquainted with Mike and Sulley, especially if they were going to rely on them to get back into the Scare program. So much was riding on their success in the Scare Games and it was important that they took every opportunity available to prepare with their team and new fraternity brothers.

Upon arriving at the RΩR house one Saturday morning, I reached into the mailbox nailed next to the door to fish out the mail and then turned to the front doors. I then stepped on something that was unusually soft in comparison to the thick fibers that made up the doormat. Glancing down, I was surprised to find a cashmere sweater of baby pink laying under my feet. I picked it up and examined it closely, only to roll my eyes and sigh heavily. Draping it over my arm, I turned the doorknob and smiled to find it unlocked, telling me at least one monster in the house was awake.

Javier, who was lounging on the couch with an open textbook in his lap, raised his cup of coffee to me in greeting. "Bueños días, amor."

"Good morning to you, too, mi cielo," I greeted, shutting the door quietly behind me. "Is Johnny still asleep?"

Javier nodded. "Sí, he -"

"Got it," I interrupted, holding up a hand.

"What do you mean you got it?" Javier asked, sounding confused.

Holding up the pink sweater for him to see, I said, "I found this on your porch."

Javier took one look at the white Greek letters embroidered on the sweater and chuckled knowingly.

"So there's probably a Python Nu Kappa up there with him," I told him, pointing upwards. "Not sure which because they all look the same to me."

A door opening and closing caused Javier and me to look towards the staircase. Just as I predicted, a shirtless Python Nu Kappa with lavender waves and matching coloured skin appeared from the corridor, shielding her bare chest from view with a scarlet bedsheet. She hobbled down the staircase, only to freeze when she got to the bottom and glanced up to find us staring at her with questioning expressions on our faces.

"Hola, Naomi," Javier spoke up with a knowing smirk.

"Morning, Jav," Naomi replied sheepishly.

I cleared my throat as I passed her the sweater. "I take it this is yours?"

"Thanks," said Naomi, swiping the sweater from me rather quickly.

After tucking the mail under my arm, I stepped forward and helped unwrap the bedsheet from Naomi with dainty claws because, well, we both knew what kind of action it saw during the night and I didn't want to touch it any more than I had to. I was able to hold it up enough so that it still shielded her and she could have the privacy to put on her sweater. I glanced over at Javier who had respectfully averted his eyes to the ceiling until she was done.

"Thanks again," said Naomi gratefully as she stepped out from behind the makeshift curtain and straightened her sweater.

"Don't mention it," I replied, dropping the tainted bedsheet to the floor. I meant those words in more ways than one.

Naomi looked up at me again and, this time, her face paled in realization. "Oh, you're Johnny's sister."

"Last I checked," I answered with an arched eyebrow.

Flushing red in embarrassment, Naomi muttered, "This is awkward."

"Nothing I haven't seen before," I confessed with a shrug. I was an unfortunate witness to Johnny's numerous one-night stands sneaking their half-naked selves out of our house over the years. If anything good came out of it, it's that it barely phases me now when it does happen before me.

"Yes, well, I guess I should go," said Naomi before hurrying to the door. "Nice to meet you."

"Wish I could say the same," I mumbled as the door opened again and then shut behind Naomi. Pinching the spot between my eyes in exasperation, I said, "Oh, Goblin help him if he gets a girl pregnant out of wedlock. Our parents will kill him."

Javier, who turned back to me, raised an eyebrow at that. "Yeah?"

"Mmhm," I answered with a loud exhale. "I mean, I know my dad goes on and on about the importance of producing an heir to the Worthington name and fortune, but I'm sure he would prefer it if Johnny got married first."

Speaking of the giant puffball, a door opening and closing sounded again, followed by a drained and possibly hungover Johnny stumbling aimlessly down the corridor towards the staircase. We watched him drag a hand down his face as though he was trying to wipe away the fatigue that lingered on it.

"Morning, Johnny," I spoke up with a hand on my hip.

Squinting down the staircase, Johnny asked, "Hey, what brings you here so early?"

"It's never too early to tell you that I'm too young to be an aunt," I said, pointing to the discarded bedsheet on the floor. "One of you needs to burn that thing immediately."

Johnny laughed as he descended the stairs. "You saw Jackson, huh?"

"Wouldn't be the first time I saw one of your one-night stands doing the walk of shame," I reminded him.

"Well, what can I say?" said Johnny, puffing his chest out arrogantly. "I'm good at what I do."

"Gross, bro," I remarked, shuddering at the mental images forming in my mind.

Javier laughed as he pulled me to him and kissed my temple. "I suppose your appetite is ruined for breakfast? I was just about to get started on it."

"We'll see," I said as we walked towards the kitchen. "Can I help?"

"You can, but I won't let you," Javier told me.

"What?" I exclaimed once we were in the kitchen. "Cooking breakfast for six monsters is a lot of work as it is, but for seven?"

Javier shrugged and pointed out, "You do it all the time when you cook for us."

"Only because it's not fair of me to feed Johnny and not the rest of his frat brothers," I countered. "Not that it's something I mind or anything."

"Don't worry, amor, feeding an extra mouth isn't a big deal," said Javier, a yelp slipping from me as he lifted me by the waist and then sat me on the counter. "Especially one worth kissing senseless."

My giggle at Javier's flirting was cut off when he captured my lips in a kiss. I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him back eagerly. I loved it whenever Javier took me by surprise with his public displays of affection; they were unwavering reminders of how crazy he was about me and how he was not afraid of shouting it to the monster world.

"Oh, Goblin, really?" Johnny questioned in dismay from the doorway. "We put food there, you know!"

Breaking the kiss, I shot Johnny a glare and said, "That's for earlier with Naomi."

Johnny grumbled something about siblings and hating life as he shuffled over to the other side of the kitchen to pour himself a rather large cup of coffee from the pot that Javier had made.

Javier winked at me before turning to open the refrigerator and rummaging through it for the ingredients that he needed.

Whistling a merry tune to brighten the mood in the kitchen, I busied myself with the morning mail. After unrolling the Campus Roar and skimming through the front page article ("Underdogs Unexpectedly Join University Scare Games: Undergraduate Undertakings Uncertain"), I turned to the only other piece of mail that the RΩRs received: a dark envelope with a red seal. Flipping it over between my claws, I noticed that there wasn't a return address, just the logo of their fraternity in its respective colours.

"What's that, sis?" Johnny asked, bringing his cup of coffee up for a sip.

"It was in your mailbox," I answered, holding it up for him to see, "but it doesn't say who it's from."

Upon seeing the letter, Johnny's eyes lit up and he grinned. "That's for the first event of the Scare Games. Open it!"

"What's the magic word?" I asked in a sing-song voice.

"Now!" Johnny demanded.

I sighed, "Goblin, if you weren't my brother, I would have guessed that you were raised in a barn."

Javier spun around from cracking eggs and nodded at the letter in my hand. "Please open it, amor."

"That's more like it," I hummed, slicing the seal open with a flick of my claws and opening the note hidden inside. "Nice to know that someone in this house has manners."

Johnny stuck his tongue out at me childishly before gulping down some more coffee.

Honestly, I was expecting to come across a folded paper with a formal explanation several paragraphs long regarding the first event of the Scare Games. Instead, there was only one sentence on one plain index card.

"So?" Johnny prompted impatiently. "What does it say?"

"A child's room is where you scare, but avoid the toxicity lurking there," I read before tucking the card back into its envelope. "What does that mean?"

"Children's toys are toxic, so effective Scarers have to avoid touching them when navigating their bedrooms," Johnny explained. "The challenge will probably be similar to that."

"Sí, whatever we're going to do in the challenge, we'd probably have to dodge something harmful to us as we go about completing it," Javier added.

"Sounds dangerous," I remarked, biting my bottom lip. The idea of Javier and Johnny putting themselves in harm's way didn't sit well with me. Sure, it was good preparation for the dangerous career that they were both pursuing and I fully supported them, but it doesn't mean that it made me worry any less for their well-being.

Javier must have sensed the concern dripping in my voice because he turned around while whisking the eggs and said, "Not to worry, amor, it's nothing we can't handle."

I nodded slowly, wondering whether to believe what he said or not. "So, where would this challenge be taking place?"

Johnny paused to scratch his chin in consideration of the question. "Not sure, maybe somewhere dark to simulate a child's bedroom."

"If Howlaween was any indication, the HSS house would be a good place," said Javier.

"True, though I think the sorority girls wouldn't be too pleased to have their entire place littered with toxic stuff just for the purpose of a challenge," I pointed out.

"Good point, amor," Javier agreed.

"I would guess under the troll bridge," I began, "but I can see the river interfering with that easily."

"Plus, there isn't much room under there for all the fraternities and sororities to move around," Javier added.

"Hey, what about the sewers?" Johnny proposed with a snap of his claws.

"Yeah, that seems like a likely place," I said, nodding in agreement. "It's dark down there and anything toxic used for the challenge can easily be disposed of."

"We should all go down there sometime this week to scope out the place," Javier suggested to Johnny who nodded approvingly at the plan. "Get a better idea of what might be in store for us and how to prepare."

"You'll come out to watch the Scare Games, right?" Johnny asked, looking to me expectantly.

"Why wouldn't I?" I questioned with a smile. "It'll be interesting to watch you all in action."

"It'll be better than watching Johnny stress out," said Javier, shooting a look at the monster in question. "It gets worse the closer we get to a Scare Games event."

Johnny scoffed. "I don't stress out."

"If you RΩRs don't get your tails down here in the next ten seconds, I'll flush your dinner down the toilet along with your careers!" Johnny yelled.

I snorted to hide my laughter as footsteps thundered down the stairs and into the dining room where I had just finished setting up dinner. I looked up in time to see Javier casually stroll into the room first, followed by an eager Bruiser, an excited Chet, an alarmed Chip, and a timid Randy.

"Chill, amigo," said Javier resting a hand over Johnny's shoulder.

Johnny huffed, the tension in his shoulders visibly easing at Javier's touch. He joined the rest of his frat in taking seats around the table.

"What's on the menu tonight, Danica?" Chip asked, eyeing the steaming dish on his placemat.

"Well, you guys need a good energy boost for tonight's event," I explained, "so I thought karahi chicken with sautéed vegetables and a side of basmati rice."

"Mmm, smells good!" Bruiser exclaimed, his mouth watering more than usual.

"This looks great, amor," said Javier, pulling out the chair next to the one on which he usually sat.

"Gracias, mi cielo," I replied, sitting next to Javier's chair, "Enjoy everyone."

The RΩRs did not need to be told twice and proceeded to dig into their plates. There were nods and murmurs of appreciation at the meal, which brought a smile to my face.

"Delicious as usual, Danica," Chip praised with a grin.

"Thanks, Chip," I said warmly.

"Take note, Boggs," Johnny told the serpentine rookie. "When my sister cooks, seconds don't last long in this house, so if you like what you're about to eat and want more, don't wait."

Randy nodded meekly and continued to nibble on his chicken.

"As flattered as I am by your compliment, Johnny, I wouldn't overeat tonight if I were you," I warned. "Sure, this will give you energy, but stuffing yourself will drag you down and you don't want that to happen before a Scare Games event, do you?"

"Hm, fair point, sis," Johnny agreed with a nod and then looked to his frat brothers. "Eat enough guys, but don't tear it up."

The RΩRs nodded and resumed eating, this time with a sense of self-control and purposeful bites.

"So," I said after swallowing a piece of broccoli, "how are we all feeling tonight?"

"Pumped," said Chip, flexing his arm. "We got this first challenge down."

"Damn right we do," Johnny agreed more confidently now that his fraternity brothers were all present for dinner and ready to go for the big event. "We're going to go out there tonight and set the standard for the Scare Games. Then we'll kick ass at every challenge after until we're the last group standing."

Cheers erupted from around the table at the encouragement from their president. Randy weakly waved a fist in the air, clearly still not used to the expressive nature of the RΩRs.

The sun had fully set by the time the RΩRs and I arrived at the sewers. The atmosphere was buzzing with excitement at the first event of the Scare Games and it appeared that almost every monster on campus, if not all the monsters on campus, were looking to be in attendance. Many had gathered in groups near the stage that had been set up at one end of the sewers while others secured spots on ledges to get a bird's eye view. Lisa, one of my classmates in my Pedagogy of the Arts class, graciously offered to save a spot for me around the finish line, which I accepted without hesitation.

"Well, I'll leave you guys to do your thing," I told the frat. "Good luck."

"Don't need it, sis," Johnny replied pompously.

I rolled my eyes and turned to cup Javier's face in my hands. Looking him in the eyes, I said, "I'll see you at the finish line."

"With a kiss, I hope," said Javier, raising his eyebrows at me with a cheeky grin..

I smiled back before my face turned serious. "Please be careful."

"I will, amor," Javier reassured me, patting my hands gently.

After giving him a quick kiss, I watched as they descended the hill towards the area around the stage. The size of the crowds in attendance told me that the event would be starting soon and I didn't want to miss a single moment of it, so I exhaled and turned to begin my stroll to the other end of the sewers where the finish line would be. During the journey, I sent a silent prayer to whoever in the universe was listening that Roar Omega Roar, Slugma Kappa Kappa, and Oozma Kappa would come out of the event with little to no injuries.

Arriving at the other end of the sewers, which was located in a courtyard outside of a large building, I was greeted by a crowd of monsters about the same size as the one around the stage and their enthusiasm was just as contagious. I slithered my way through, trying to find Lisa. Eventually, I spotted her at the front near the finish line and I smiled to see her sporting the signature colours of Eta Hiss Hiss.

"Hi, Danica!" Lisa chirped as I appeared next to her. "So glad you could make it!"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," I said to her. "Seriously, I would have a bunch of monsters disappointed in me if I did."

Lisa laughed. "I'm sure you would with your boyfriend, your brother, your friends, and some of your dance students all competing."

"Yeah, so if coming out tonight means keeping the peace, I'm all for it," I joked, causing Lisa to laugh again. Pointing to her black and purple sweater, I continued, "So I see you're rooting for HSS."

Lisa nodded. "Rhonda is my cousin."

"Ah, got it," I said with a nod. In the distance, I could hear Brock announcing each of the teams competing for the Scare Games. "So do you have any idea what the teams are supposed to do for this challenge? From what I gather from the clue given, they will have to dodge something dangerously similar to human toys."

"You got that right," said Lisa. "The teams will come face to face with such obstacles tonight."

"How do you know that for sure?" I asked her.

Lisa smiled. "My boyfriend is on the Greek Council who is in charge of setting up the Scare Game events. He told me that the fraternities and sororities will be racing each other in the sewers. He also let me in on the obstacles that they will be facing down there."

"Will they be able to see them though?" I asked her. "It's got to be really dark in the sewers."

Lisa paused. "Do you really want to know what they are? I don't want it to stress you out."

I nodded without hesitation. "Please."

Lisa exhaled and whispered loud enough for me to hear, "Stinging glow urchins."

My eyes widened at the revelation. While I was certainly not a science major, I read enough books to know that stinging glow urchins, like human toys, are not to be touched without protective equipment. I mean, their name itself implies the damage that they could do if they came into contact with a monster's bare skin. There was no way Monsters University officials would approve of the idea of subjecting some of their students to some of the most dangerous organisms known to monster kind.

"Courtesy of the MU biology department," said Lisa seriously.

I shook my head in disbelief and said, "You're telling me that my boyfriend, my brother, my friend, and your cousin are just moments away from running through a dark sewer littered with stinging glow urchins just to prove their worth as future Scarers?"

"Guess so," Lisa replied with a shrug, "I mean, the teams will have to face that kind of toxicity in the human world when they go to work as Scarers one day, so why shield them from that reality?"

"I could think of a list of reasons," I answered, twiddling my claws nervously. "Oh, Lizard, this is beyond dangerous. Surely the Greek Council couldn't come up with something that wouldn't give the competing teams' loved ones a heart attack?"

"I think the fun idea of throwing urchins at the running monsters during their dash trumped that concern easily," said Lisa.

"Fun?" I yelled incredulously, not caring that anyone surrounding us could hear me. "Pelting stinging glow urchins at monsters isn't fun, it's insanity!"

"Danica, calm yourself," said Lisa gently, resting a hand on my shoulder. "They'll be fine."

"Fine?" I exclaimed, silently questioning if Lisa even knew the definition of that word. "This is far from fine. Who knows what could happen down there? Monsters could trip, they could run into a pillar, they could step on an urchin or be hit with one and blow up a limb, and all for what, a freaking trophy?"

The sound of Brock's roaring voice kicking off the race caused my eyes to dart away from Lisa and towards the exit of the sewers. I could feel my heart racing and not in the same way that Javier usually makes it beat. I felt anxious, terrified, and worried beyond belief. I gripped my claws together as if in prayer and closed my eyes, hoping that the race was a short one and that all of the teams made it out safely.

"Roar Omega Roar wins!"

Upon hearing Brock's announcement, my eyes flew open in time to see Johnny, Javier, Chet, Chip, Bruiser, and Randy exiting the sewers to cheers and thunderous applause. Their various limbs were raised victoriously as they basked in the glory of their triumph. I smiled brightly in their direction, both at their accomplishment and the fact that, from what I could tell from where I was standing, they appeared to be physically unharmed from the race.

Javier eventually spotted me and quickly hurried over to lift me into a hug.

"You're okay," I said, wrapping my arms around his neck. With my head resting on his shoulder, I could see the rest of the fraternity walking over to join and surround us.

"Was there ever any doubt, amor?" Javier asked with a smile as he lowered me back to the ground.

I was about to respond when I heard a pair of screams and turned in time to see Sulley and Mike come flying out of the sewers looking like a pair of badly distorted bean bag chairs. They landed face first on the finish line, momentarily disoriented, but they managed to push themselves to their feet in time to yell at each other.

"Take that Wazowski!" Sulley barked at him.

"Are you delirious?" Mike questioned, pointing a bloated finger at him. "I beat you!"

"Get your eyes checked!" Sulley retorted through puffy lips.

"Oh, way to blow it Oozmas!" Chet called out.

"Hey, second place ain't bad!" Mike pointed out, sounding pleased.

"Second place, Jaws Theta Chi!" Brock announced, causing Mike and Sulley to pivot in surprise and confusion at the orange and yellow fraternity happily galloping out of the sewers.

"Your whole team has to cross the finish line," Johnny explained to them with an amused smile.

"Third place EEKs, fourth place PNKs!" Brock announced as Brynn's fraternity ran out of the sewers, followed by the PNKs who high-fived each other upon emerging. "Fifth place, HSS!"

Eta Hiss Hiss cheered past Mike on their way across the finish line and to Lisa on the sidelines, ignoring the horror on his swollen face when he realized which team had yet to exit the sewers.

"And in last place, Oozma Kappa!"

The crowd fell silent as Squishy rolled out of the sewers looking like an oversized marshmallow. Don, Art, and the Perry twins were right behind him, not looking much better. While Art looked like a lopsided feather duster and the Perry twins' heads could easily be mistaken for large peaches, Don looked like a beaten-up pizza and he simply fell forward in exhaustion.

"Oh shocker," said Claire sarcastically as she tugged Oozma Kappa's plank out from the bottom of the leaderboard and tossed it aside, "Oozma Kappa has been eliminated."

I barely had time to register the declaration when I spotted Dean Hardscrabble land behind Mike, looking unsurprised by the results of the first event of the Scare Games. Mike, who bumped into her by accident, jerked around to look up at her. Whatever she said to him, I couldn't make out, but it was interrupted by Brock.

"Attention everyone!" said the Greek Council vice-president with a raised hand. "We have an announcement: Jaws Theta Chi has been disqualified."

There was murmur of shock and disbelief that travelled across the crowd in attendance. Even I was at a loss of words at the news.

Holding up a glass jar for everyone to see, Brock explained, "The use of illegal protective gel is cause for elimination."

Everyone followed Brock's angry gaze to the members of Jaws Theta Chi standing nearby. They all looked untouched by the urchins, though I noticed at this point that they either had glossy skin or greasy fur. Big Red tried to play it off with a protest of confusion until a referee tapped an urchin against George's left leg. Nothing happened at first, but then he wiped off his leg with a rag and touched the urchin to his skin again, causing it to inflate and George to yelp in pain.

"Which means Oozma Kappa are back in the game!" Brock announced, his disappointment in the cheating replaced with his bubbly enthusiasm. "It's a miracle!"

Dean Hardscrabble, astonished by the turn of events at first, narrowed her eyes before she said one final thing to Mike and scuttled off.

Brock removed Jaws Theta Chi's plank from the leaderboard while Claire slid Oozma Kappa's back onto the display, so that it was last out of all the remaining teams still in the Scare Games. While I was thrilled that Oozma Kappa still had a shot at winning the Scare Games, I knew that it was going to take a lot of teamwork between them to make it happen, and if the hostility between Mike and Sulley was any indication, their fraternity had a long road of preparation ahead of them.

"So," said Johnny, interrupting my thoughts, "what did you think?"

"I'll get back to you on that once I process everything," I answered, still speechless from the night's events.

Javier chuckled, wrapping an arm around me. "We're okay, amor."

"At least you guys are," I said, patting his chest lightly.

"Yeah, but there were a few close calls," Johnny mentioned, looking to Chip in concern. "Is your arm okay, bro?"

Chip nodded, jutting out his left elbow. "Yeah, the urchin grazed, but my jacket protected me."

"That's good," I said. "How about we head back to the house for some hot chocolate and you can tell me all that went down in the sewers?"

"You had me at chocolate," said Bruiser, drooling eagerly.

"Marshmallows?" Chip asked, offering the bowl of sugary clouds to me.

"Thank you," I said, scooping a small pile into my steaming mug.

After placing the bowl back onto the coffee table in front of us, Chip leaned against the back of the couch, which he shared with Chet and Reggie, to enjoy his own drink. Johnny was busy stoking the flames in the fireplace while Randy was curled up on the floor by it, close enough to enjoy its warmth, yet still able to partake in group conversation. Javier shared the loveseat with me, his right arms draped around me comfortably.

"So," I said, stirring the marshmallows into the chocolatey goodness, "how was the mad dash through the sewers?"

"Crazy," Reggie commented. "There were urchins flying everywhere and they were all over the ground too."

"But we breezed through it easily," said Johnny, placing the poker on its stand and heading towards the empty armchair with his mug in hand. "It'll take a lot more than silly little urchins to throw us off our game."

"Too bad the Oozmas can't say the same," said Chet. "The purple dude slid on his belly across the ground and grabbed urchins like they were daisies. The scream that he let out when they stung him was hilarious!"

Sound like something Art would do, I thought as I took a sip of my drink to hold myself back from scolding Chet for talking poorly about Art. I figured Oozma Kappa was seeking medical attention at the moment for their injuries, so I made a mental note to check in on them first thing tomorrow morning.

"Those Oozmas kept getting pelted by urchins at one point, but we ran over them easily," Johnny bragged before gulping down some of his hot cocoa

"Can't believe they're still in the Games though due to JOX cheating," said Chip.

Johnny shrugged. "They just got lucky this time, they'll be out after the next event."

"When is it and what is it?" I asked curiously.

Johnny shrugged his shoulders again. "We'll find out once the next letter comes in. Until then, we wait."

"Well, for the sake of my sanity, here's hoping the next event is tamer," I said before taking another sip.

"No chance, sis," said Johnny. "The events only get harder from this point forward."

"Oh, joy," I remarked with feigned enthusiasm. "You're all going to make me go grey before I turn twenty."

Javier chuckled, rubbing my arm tenderly. "Well if you do, you'll still be beautiful to me."

I smiled adoringly at him, ignoring the distinct sound of Johnny choking on his drink in disgust.