Just when the Careers seem to think they have things under control, they find themselves in a new battle. The Friendship Games are here, and Crystal Prep is looking for the usual walkover. What they get, to them, is a complete shock.
Book 2 of the Equestria Games Rewritten Series.
Note: I don't own any of this, only Cameron. Also, the cover.. it’s a bit meaningful to the story, once you get to the end. Won’t spoil anything else though.
Cato and Cameron both stood by the door to the Loud House, each of them dressed in rather formal attire. Since the two of them had been shoehorned by their parents and grandparents and the Louds’ parents and grandparents into having what was effectively a dinner date with the Loud Family, who after the Fall Formal incident they were back on good terms with after giving Lincoln back and making them swear that they wouldn’t treat him that badly again, both boys were justifiably nervous. Though, at least in Cameron’s case, he was happy at the thought of getting to spend time with the only son of the Loud Family, who in the brief time they had known each other so far, he was already considering to be like his younger brother.
Either way, it was nice to be able to visit the Louds since five of Lynn Loud Sr's 10 daughters were dating Cato and Cameron combined and his only son was practically best friends with the two, so partially to make some memories with the Hadleys, partially to rebuild the shattered confidence in himself as a parent after Cameron's outburst when they were all blaming Lincoln for being bad luck, it was a matter of honor that Lynn Sr. agreed to this.
Cato rang the doorbell once. To the two's dismay, there was no immediate response. Cameron sighed and went to ring the doorbell again, but Cato stopped him.
"They're probably still getting ready" Cato said to his adopted younger brother, who wasn't amused.
"I call party foul, dude. I mean, we got ready in what.. 10 minutes? And they take longer.." Cameron started, then stopped. He then smacked himself on the forehead for being an idiot. "Because it's a bigger home. Dag nab it, I'm being stupid."
"We'll just wait it out" Cato says, just as both boys hear footsteps coming up to the door. When the door opens, on the other side to greet them is Lisa, the second youngest child.
"Greetings, my sisters' boyfriends" she says, smiling. Cato and Cameron sighed.
"For the record, Lisa, that's Cato and I'm Cameron" Cameron said, pointing to Cato and then himself. "Remember that please, will you?"
"Duly noted, Cameron" Lisa replied. Cameron glanced up the stairs where he could hear noises of frenetic activity.
"How's Lincoln and your older sisters, and Lori?" Cato asked.
"Knowing my brother, he's more excited than usual about getting to see you too again. As for my elder sisters... dear god. They won't stop talking about you two" Lisa snapped, going on a rant. "It's more than I can stand! So tell me, how many people did you two have to beat up in order to get my elder sisters to talk about you two this much?"
Cameron thought about it for a moment. "I think it was 12 out of 26 combined the first time for me and Cato, and then I had to take on at least 35 the second time alone" he answered. Lisa smirked, curiosity clearly visible in her eyes.
"35 against 1.. incredible. And with one cut cheek from what I heard.. very incredible" she says, as the rest of the Loud Family starts coming down the stairs.
"Hey Lisa, have you seen.." Lynn Jr starts, but she stops the minute she sees Cameron waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Luan, Luna, and Leni stop as well, as does Lori when she sees Cato. Compared to the more formal Louds, the two brothers are wearing blue pants, belts, t-shirts underneath light sweatshirts, and dress socks and shoes. What the two brothers see in the Louds they are respectively dating, however, it can only be described from their own words as being in the presence of goddesses.
It was too much for Cameron, who was seriously trying not to have a nose bleed over what he was seeing in front of his eyes after a few seconds of staring. He was still in a state of shock and awe, so he didn't know what to think. Cato, on the other hand, regained his bearings after a while just as Lynn Sr came around the corner.
"Seems like my daughters are quite the lookers, am I right?" he asked, only to be noogied by Cameron. "Hey.. Hey! What was that for?"
"Maybe not refer to your daughters as lookers.." Cameron hissed as he walked to the table. Lynn Sr turned to Cato, who sighed.
"He's a bit antsy over being the boyfriend of so many girls, so proper terminology and all that are his pet peeves for now.." Cato explained, as he and the Loud Family walked over to the table.
"Point taken" Lynn Sr responded as Cameron basically stared at what Lynn Sr had prepared for them. "Now, it's time for Lynn Sr's meat extravaganza! Steak, sirloin, salmon, meat central.. with side courses of applesauce, peas, baked beans, green beans, and corn on the cob.. dig in, boys!"
No sooner were the last three words out of his mouth that Cato and Cameron were already stuffing themselves full of meat, corn, beans, and applesauce faster than any in the Loud Family could get down to eating. The two Careers were like pigs with a large meal, though in their defense, they had the table manners to make up for it. Either way, it was rather shocking for the rest of the Loud Family to see two people take to eating Lynn Sr's cooking like a duck to water, since normally, Lynn Sr's cooking wasn't exactly the best. Either way, Cato and Cameron didn't really seem to notice all that much.
"Dear lord, hun.." Rita said to her husband. "Those two are practically making mincemeat out of your cooking and the kids haven't even taken a bite!"
Unfortunately, that was true. In typical Lynn Sr cooking fashion, Cato and Cameron had got the good quality end of the stick and the rest of the Louds.. not so much. Eventually, however, Cameron did take notice and he started fuming.
"Lynn Senior.. I honestly do have to say, if you wanna be a great cook, then you should think about making the same quality that you gave us for the rest of your family! Like, what's wrong with you?" Cameron said, annoyed. He then passed what was left of his food around to the Loud children, who smiled.
"Hey Hey!" Lynn Sr pleaded. "Aren't you going to eat the rest of that?!"
Cameron got up from his seat. "In all honesty, Lynn Senior, I do believe that your kids deserve it more than I do." He then walked over to the couch and glared at Cato, who after a little while longer, gave what was left of his food to the Loud Kids as well and joined his adopted younger brother on the couch. After a while, Lori, Lincoln, Luan, Lynn Jr, Luna, and Leni all got done eating and left the table to join their boyfriends on the couch, who had plugged up the Xbox One they brought with them and were now playing Plants Vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2.
"Eat my whole mini-gun, you stupid plants. I got a chainsaw rate of fire with this" Cameron yelped as his zombie quarterback practically mowed down wave after wave of plants with his weapon. Luan gently leaned onto his right shoulder while Luna was on his left. Lori was leaning on Cato's left shoulder, while Leni and Lynn Jr decided to wrap their arms around Cameron's legs. Even though he began showing signs of a nose bleed, the weird part about the whole situation was it didn't seem to stop Cameron while playing the game. Even as Luan had to wipe the blood off of Cameron's nose with a napkin, he was still concentrating hard, emptying his entire magazine of ammo into a flaming Torchwood.
"Do you really think you even stand a chance against me?! I didn't think so!" Cameron taunted the Torchwood as it died on screen. Then, he sees a golden sunflower queen and his mood changes to one of fear.
"Sunflower Queen!" he yells, and Cato turns his character around to see Cameron's character literally emptying his entire clip into it, trying to cause as much damage as he can before he goes down.
"Hang on bro, I'm coming!" Cato says, as he begins hitting the Sunflower Queen with multiple snipes from his zombie pirate class weapons. It isn't enough though, and soon, the boss type plant overpowered and destroys both boys' characters. Cato and Cameron look at each other and fist bump.
"Now that was fun! Seriously, nothing can beat playing Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 with your brother! We're the ultimate tag team!"Cameron says, and the girls giggle, making him blush. Then, like the flick of a switch, the four girls start trying to seduce the boy.
"If you and Cato are the ultimate tag-team, then does that mean we're dating the perfect boyfriend, Cammy?~" said Lynn Jr, using the girls' pet name for Cameron. It only served to make said boy blush even more. Even Lincoln couldn't help but giggle at the sight that was unfolding in front of him. Cameron, on the other hand, it was like he was on Cloud 10.. words couldn't really describe how he was feeling about this right now. By now, even the other Louds had come out to watch this wondrous scene unfold.
"Cameron, I agree with Lisa's opinion about you" Lana said. "You really are something."
Her twin, Lola, only sighed in disgust a little bit. Lucy didn't really say much, but if you looked closely, you could see one corner of her lips bent up like a smile. Rita and Lynn Sr. just smiled. It was beyond their comprehension how one boy swept four of their children off their feet, but since that boy had also improved the morale of the kids in the house, they weren't complaining. Cameron was many things, but a boy that verbally stated he really didn't want to have to break the girls' hearts under any circumstances if they dated him was possibly the rarest part about him. He had a extraordinary level of compassion and affection that drove him partially in his own actions, almost like their own son, Lincoln. As with Lily, well.. no one could really tell what she thought about Cameron. She mostly just kept it to herself, like Lucy. But as for the four loud sisters all seductively toying with Cameron at the moment, what they felt about him was nothing but pure, unstoppable love. After all, it took a special kind of person to stand between them and their tormentors twice after learning about how they were practically abusing their younger brother between the first and second times. Even as the chaos of battle swirled around him, Cameron put his anger to the side and let his skills show to devastating effect. Aside from the sliced cheek, he took down all of their tormentors single-handely and even managed to defeat a hypnotized and demonized Robbie in a follow-up round. There was something really special about Cameron that none of them could even begin to understand, and to be honest, they were all okay with that. All they wanted was to be with him.. in the safe bubble that he offered where no one and nothing could ever bring them down. They were stronger when they were around him.. and they knew it.
It was a poster hanging on the wall in the entrance to Canterlot High that first let the Careers know that the Friendship Games existed.
“The Friendship Games? What kind of a name for a competition is that, guys? It just sounds non-fitting, in my opinion” Urchin spoke as the four just stood staring at the sign, waiting for their friends and girlfriends to arrive.
“I mean, Urchin does have a point. Like, I’m getting chills just thinking about what to expect at this, and I don’t even know why” Marvel stated.
It was then that Cameron noticed the two schools participating in this.
“Crystal Preparatory Academy, or Crystal Prep for short.. hmm.. interesting choice of words for what seems like a public high school” he muttered to his friends, only to hear someone else call out and all four of them jumped.
“Guessing you four never heard of the Canterlot High - Crystal Prep rivalry then” said a janitor who just happened to be walking by. Cato looked at Cameron, who looked at Marvel, who looked at Urchin, confused.
“Uhm..” Cato said awkwardly after a moment of silence. “You would be correct?”
The janitor leaned against the wall and sighed. “In that case, boys..” he said in a moody tone. “..I’ll tell you all you need to know.”
The four Careers tuned in, eager to hear what the Janitor had to say.
“No one really knows why Canterlot High and Crystal Prep were always fierce rivals. It just seemingly sprouted right when the two schools first opened, and it’s been like that ever since. A few years ago, former Principals Sombra and Faust of Crystal Prep and Canterlot High respectively came up with the idea of the Friendship Games to try to promote unity and quiet the feud down. Unfortunately, however, when Sombra left Crystal Prep to teach at a university, he picked possibly the worst choice to replace him as the principal of Crystal Prep, Abacus Cinch" said the Janitor, as the four boys listened intently, though two certain members were already getting very pissed off at what they were hearing. "Under Cinch, the friendship games lost its meaning, and she turned it and Crystal Prep into a unfriendly environment where the feud between both schools basically hit new lows, with Canterlot High going onto a losing streak in everything it faced Crystal Prep in. It gets worse, too. The Crystal Prep students also rub it in this school's students' faces every chance they get, even going as so far as pranking them and making their lives miserable. Heck, this school was already miserable from all that before Sunset Shimmer came around. If I were you four, I'd think twice about taking on Crystal Prep. This school is just cursed to lose to them. Well, good day you all."
The janitor left, leaving the four Careers standing there, processing their thoughts. Marvel was livid, Urchin was clenching his fists, Cato's face kept twitching and switching between calm and fury, and Cameron.. one look at his face and you think the kid was plotting to kill someone, he was that mad. They felt betrayed, they felt lied to, they felt stupid. They all felt dumb for not asking their girlfriends after the Fall Formal incident if there was anything else that was making them miserable. But as much as they wanted to blame themselves, they all knew that it wouldn't solve anything, for the real people to blame were Crystal Prep.. and that Abacus Cinch woman. Cato was the first of the Careers to move on from the self blame after a few more moments, and after several more moments of thinking, he got an idea.
"Well, this is great" Marvel said, pissed. "We wanted to improve the lives of our friends and classmates and it turns out, even after all the shit we've already been through, we're only halfway fucking done."
"Marvel, calm down. As a wise man once said, the status quo is always meant to be broken" Cato replies, and it only takes seconds for the other three to figure out what Cato means and they all get devious grins, all except Thresh, who had been standing right behind them almost the entire time and quietly listening in on the conversation. Then, Cato points to a filer for a pep rally today in the afternoon and chuckles.
"You guys thinking what I'm thinking?" he asks, enthusiastically. The other three boys get stupid grins on their faces.
"Yup" says Cameron.
"Count me in, Cato" Marvel chimes in.
"Time to kick some Crystal Prep ass!" Urchin hollers, as the four fist bump each other and head off to class, not noticing Thresh still standing in plain view of them.
After the four are gone, Thresh sighs and facepalms himself. Here we go again, he thought. Maybe Glimmer was right in saying you four have a death wish.
After classes ended that day, our four protagonists all piled into the gym for the pep rally. Needless to say, the amount of doom and gloom they saw in everyone's faces was enough to stun anyone.. unless you happen to be Cato and Cameron, that is. Those two didn't even seem to be fazed by it, as compared to the other two, they had a lot more motivation than the other two, although combined, all four had more motivation to compete and beat Crystal Prep than anyone else in the school. Walking on over to their friends and girlfriends, the four Careers sat down and began talking to each other.
"Talk about dooms-ville" Urchin stated.
Cameron nodded his head. "Agreed, dude. Guessing it's really hurt hard. Time to change that this year" he says, causing almost everyone in the room to turn and stare at him with a look on their face that basically was asking if Cameron was out of his mind. Cato just smirked, because he knew his adopted younger brother like the back of his hand, and he knew for a fact that Cameron wasn't out of his mind. His family's trademark defiance of the status quo was at it again, and he knew it. He didn't mind it at all, since right now, he was feeling the same way. Then, Bobby Santiago stopped by. He was Lori's friend since Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, Bobby's younger sister, had hooked up in the aftermath of the Fall Formal incident.
"Hey Cato, Hey Cameron" he said, and the two boys waved back. "Up to something again?"
Cato gave a nod, and Bobby sat down by Lori, knowing that things were about to get moving. Then, Principal Celestia walked into the gym, and all attention immediately shifted to her.
“Welcome, everyone. I am here now to choose who will represent Canterlot High in this year’s Friendship Games.”
Nobody showed any positive emotion, except the four Careers, Flash, and Bobby. “Well then. Now, I will draw names out of a bucket. If your name is called, come down and stand by me. Of course, anyone can volunteer to take someone’s place” Principal Celestia continued.
As she talked, the four Careers whispered to each other. “So, which one of us is going to volunteer?” Marvel asked, causing Cameron to smack him on the back of the head. “Ow!” he groaned quietly.
“All of us, Marv. Isn’t it obvious?” Cameron retorted, as Celestia stuck her hand into the bucket and pulled out a little slip of paper.
“Micro Chip-“ she started, but then everyone heard something remarkable.
“I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!” Cameron shouted out loud, shocking nearly everyone in the room. In the history of the Friendship Games, no one had ever volunteered in Canterlot High before. Getting picked to be in the Friendship Games there was regarded by the student body as like a death sentence. No one in their right mind would ever think about volunteering. But now, in a instant, Cameron had broken that trend all by himself. It took a second for Principal Celestia to even recognize that Cameron had volunteered, and she then called him down to stand by her. In the next couple of minutes, Cato, Marvel, and Urchin all volunteered, surprising every one even more. After that, the only volunteer that even stepped up was Lynn Jr, which wasn’t surprising. Rounding out the lineup was Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Sunset Shimmer, Clove, Adagio, Bobby and Flash. Needless to say, the four Careers volunteering had an effect on the students, who start cheering them on and brightening their moods, just as Cameron hoped they would. ——————————
And it was so that Canterlot High was finally having a sense of hope that they could finally beat Crystal Prep on the eve of the Friendship Games. Whether neither side knew, even as the Crystal Prep team entered Canterlot High the next morning, was the events that were about to unfold or the series of events and revealed secrets that would follow for 2 years after this fateful day.
While they were concerned about Rarity's and Fluttershy's powers being drained by a unknown person, Cameron being especially concerned, it didn't seem to detract from the brothers' confidence as they, along with Marvel and Urchin, waited in the shadows near the corner of the gym where they still had a view of Flash, but practically no one else except Flash could see them. Ryan could also see them though, he was just positioned in another dark corner of the gym where he could see the stage and alert the guys. They were too busy waiting and trying to tune out the party noises going on around they all didn't see Sci-Twi drain Pinkie Pie's energy when she tried to pony up. All four of them were just waiting, eager to show Crystal Prep that this year, things were going to be different.
“This is what we have to go up against?” Marvel whispers to Cato. “Seriously, I thought they were going to be stronger than this.”
Cato looks back at Marvel. “Don’t underestimate them yet, dude" said Cato. "They are basically like us, academic and athletic skills honed to a fine edge. From what it looks like though, they sent their very best apparently.”
“Okay, bro" Marvel replies.
Soon enough, however, Cato's phone rang. Ryan was calling. Cato picked up the phone and answered. "What have you got, Ryan?" he asked.
"Crystal Prep Principal at..." Ryan said, but was interrupted by a deafening and painful screech as the party music cut out. "..Stage Mic."
The Careers turned, noticing the Crystal Prep students, who had been partying with the Canterlot High students up till that point, get sad looks on their faces, return to their classmates and resume their arrogant looks. It was confusing to Marvel and Urchin, but for Cato and Cameron, they already had a theory about why. Then, Principal Abacus Cinch started speaking at the microphone and from that point on, Marvel and Urchin swore that Cato's and Cameron's auras began to go from calm to silent murderous evil.
“I like to thank Principal Celestia for her.. unconventional welcome” Principal Cinch said while standing at the mic. “It’s been four years since the last friendship games..”
"Four years, they hold this every four years? That's a long time to prepare" Marvel whispered to Cameron, who flicked him on the forehead.
"Be quiet. I'm trying to listen" Cameron snapped back as Cinch continued to speak. Cameron was already beginning to hate Cinch, and Cato even more so from what he had heard Crystal Prep had done to his friends and girlfriends and Cameron's girlfriends in the past from Flash, Thresh, Noah, and Ryan. It was only due to self control methods he had learned from Flash, Fluttershy, and Applejack after the Fall Formal incident that he had learned to control his anger, which he had developed during his years in Panem City, which meant that he was able to keep his emotions at bay for now.
All the while, Cinch kept talking. “..but it feels if as though nothing has changed.”
Cato smirked. That’s what you think, he thinks to himself. He knows in his heart that Cinch is dead wrong and can’t wait for the right moment to start the seed of truth to sprout in her brain.
Cameron, on the other hand, only let out a barely audible growl of anger in response to that statement. That's because you made your school basically gloat on Canterlot High so hard that you made them become depressed about this every time it happens, you witch! he thinks in his mind. At this point, Cameron is already thinking of multiple ways to shut her god damn mouth up. He was seriously annoyed by her voice.
“..Canterlot High continues to pick its competitors in a popularity contest that has no real meaning of determining skill level..” Cinch continued, as Cato and his friends noticed the sad looks of Crystal Prep and Canterlot High students alike. That’s when Cato and Cameron realize something, one simple truth that changes their whole perspective and only intensifies their burning hatred of Cinch. Most of them are not that way because they want to, Cato thinks in his brain. They are that way because of her.
“..and Crystal Prep continues to field its top twelve students. It is a comfort to know that even after so many years of losses..”
The way Cinch placed emphasis on that word, Ryan swore he saw a vein pop on Cato and Cameron's foreheads. Clearly, the Crystal Prep Principal was really getting on the brother's nerves way more than their visual expressions noted. Cato turned, and looked at Flash, who was deliberately standing at the back of the room now. Flash looked back at Cato, waiting for the signal to do his thing.
“..your school remains committed to its ideals, however misguided they may be.”
Cato clamped a hand on his mouth to prevent himself from screaming. The only fucking misguided thing around here is you, you bitch! Cameron, meanwhile, was looking away from Cinch, but even Urchin and Marvel could tell he was glaring daggers at the floor, which would bounce all the way back over to Cinch.
“..I wish you all the best of luck contestants, regardless of the inevitable and usual outcome that is sure to happen to Canterlot High every time we do these games” Cinch finished with her smug smirk still on her face, just as Cato nodded at Flash. By now Canterlot High and Crystal Prep had separated into two packs, leaving Flash with a clear line of sight to the stage and vice versa. Flash nodded back and took his cue.
“You know what they say, the status quo is always meant to be broken” Flash speaks up, catching everyone in the room by surprise. Cinch chuckles and looks down at Flash with a smug look on her face, thinking he was just ignorant of the past.
“Oh really? Do you think Canterlot High has even any chance of defeating Crystal Prep?” she asks smugly. Flash doesn't even flinch.
"Yeah. This year is going to be the year that Canterlot High finally defeats Crystal Prep" Flash says defiantly, causing Cinch to laugh maliciously.
"Oh you silly little boy! There is absolutely no way that Canterlot High can ever defeat Crystal Prep!" she says angrily, as Cato takes his cue.
“Newsflash, Principal Cinch. Yeah, we do have a chance this year to defeat Crystal Prep” Cato says out loud, the sound of his voice causing everyone on Crystal Prep’s side to jump. Cinch searches the auditorium, looking for the person who said that.
“Which one of you Canterlot High Students said that?!” exclaims Cinch, startled.
“Um, that would be me” Cato says as he steps out from the shadows, walking to the center of the gym while Flash walks to a spot just in front of him, facing Cinch and the Crystal Prep students.
The effect was instant. The Crystal Prep girls either couldn’t stop staring in awe and adoration at the drop dead gorgeous hulk that just made himself known, while most of the boys were visibly intimidated and even scared at the sight of the monstrous hulking boy. None of them had even seen a Canterlot High student so towering and so massive, it was just mind blowing to them. Even Cinch couldn’t find the words immediately to bring up her rebuttal at the sight of Cato.
“W-what I-in the n-name of god are you?” she asks. Flash answers it for her.
“He’s a recent transfer here. And he’s not alone.”
One by one, the others walk out from the shadows and take their place in a line facing the Crystal Prep students. If the boys were intimidated or scared before, they were probably practically peeing their pants at the sight of Cameron, Marvel, and Urchin.
“H-Holy crap” said someone from the Crystal Prep side.
“Our top twelve have to go up against that?” exclaims another.
Then, a rather arrogant voice rose up through the crowd.
“Guys, come on! They can’t be that challenging! Heck, the big blonde probably has more brawn than brains!”
Cato chuckled, for he knew that whoever said that was really underestimating him. He then stared down the Crystal Prep students with a glare so cold that even the girls had to back up a step away from him. He then turns towards Cinch, and he speaks to her with every hating fiber of his being.
“The name’s Cato Hadley, and this is the year Canterlot High wins these games. Prepare to see your school go down for once, Principal Cinch, because if there's one thing my family's known for breaking, it's the status quo" he says, staring Cinch with another glare so cold Cinch actually start shivering while standing at the mic.
Applejack, Lori, and Clove all look at Cato and see the fire in his otherwise piercing cold, ice blue eyes. All three sigh in anxious breaths and by coincidence, think the same thing in their minds. Cato, I hope you’re not biting off more than you can chew right now, love.
