Total Drama Action Redux

by Hideki Sohma

Welcome back for the 3rd season of Total Drama Redux! This time we're finally off the island and onto a movie studio! With Chris and his Co-host Lisa, we're going to have more alliances, money, and villainous acts than ever before! With this blend of OC's and Canon contestants, get ready for a wild ride that will only end when the winner is decided!

10. Chapter 7: Like Looking In a Mirror

Previously on Total Drama Action, we had a special guest run the challenge, my good friend Gordan Ridgewood. Our remaining 12 contestants took on the task of being chefs and servers in "Inferno's Kitchen" and had to create palatable dishes for couples. But not just any couples, couples from our previous seasons. Both sides had their ups and downs, but the downs were especially on the Grips side as Gordan determined that they were the ones who lost the competition. The team had to choose two competitors to put on the chopping block. Both Jason and Neos were chosen, but in the end, the final decision was Gordan's and he decided that Neos' spilling plates of food onto customers while trying to show off was just too much of an error and booted him off the show, sending him out of here on the Lameozine. With just eleven competitors to go, who will be the last person to not make the final ten? For this answer and more, you'll just have to tune into today's exciting episode of, Total. Drama. Action!

The six Gaffers are all sleeping soundly in their beds, as the camera pans over all of them sleeping. In an instant though however, alarms begin to go off, causing Tyler to fall out of bed in surprise. The alarm stops as Chris kicks in the door. "Good morning Gaffers! Oh! Good to see you're all already awake!" Harold has his hand over his chest. "Gah! My heart!" and falls out of bed. Chris has his hands behind his back as he looks over to him with an uncaring face. "Walk it off Harold. Anyway, come on guys, we need you guys to come with us. Come on, let's move!"

Brad raises an eyebrow. "Shouldn't we at least change out of our pajamas?" Chris shakes his head. "No time for that. Just make sure you're decent for TV and come on out." All three of the boys grumble as they leave everything behind and follow Chris.

The girls were in the same situation as Lisa bounds into their room. "HI GUYS!" She says excitedly, as she jumps onto April's bed. April looks up to her. "Uh…hi?" Lisa nods. "Good to see that you guys are awake. You gals have to come with us. Ella, Elena, April, let's go!"

*Confessional*
April: Gah. So….early to be…so peppy.
*End Confessional*

The girls, all making sure they are wearing enough clothes, follow Lisa over to where she's leading them. Eventually, they all reach a communal area where they all meet up with each other. Ella looks over at Brad, seeing him in his silk pajamas.

*Confessional*
Ella: Oh, even his pajamas are adorable! Do I know a song about pajamas? Well I'm sure I can think of one…let's see now. Pajam-… no. My prince's… no. I'll think of one. Give me a moment.
*End confessional*

Brad meanwhile glances over to Ella's pajamas, just for a moment, then immediately looks back, doing his best to pretend he didn't just look. Instead, he leans over to Tyler. "So what's this? The Pajama review?" Tyler snickers. "Don't know dude, but the view isn't too bad from where I'm standing." He says as he steals a few glances towards Elena. Brad smirks. "Subtle Tyler, subtle."

Elena on the other hand is trying to steal glances as well as Tyler while April and Harold are looking at each other. The whole thing looks quite amusing as they zoom out, everyone's eyes are darting back and forth.

Chris then stands in front of the group and smiles as he looks over the six contestants. The Gaffers, attention now moved from their attire, look at each other a little confused as they don't see the Grips anywhere. There's a bit of silence for a few moments before Elena raises her hand. "Uh, 'scuse me Chris, but where ah' the Grips?" Chris merely puts his hands behind his back in response. "That's a very good question Elena. The answer to this, lies in the fact that they're not eligible for this bonus challenge. You see, there are six of you left and only five of them, so, to make things fair, we're going to have a little bonus for you guys." He gestures behind him to show Lisa who is presiding over several Jack-in-the box shaped boxes.

"There are six boxes here. One of them holds a Chrissy, the other five hold a…. surprise." He pauses a moment as a sly grin appears on his face. "If you get the Chrissy, you are not allowed to compete in today's challenge, however, if your team loses tonight, you're immune. So basically you get a free day. The challenge for this is all luck. Go ahead and pick a box." He says as he gestures to the boxes behind him.

The six look between each other and back to the boxes.

*Confessional*
Brad: Knowing Chris, whatever's in these boxes is going to be either humiliating, painful, or stupid. Or all three.
*End Confessional*

Taking a deep breath, Tyler steps forward. "I'll go." He says as he makes his way over towards the boxes. Looking between them he puts a finger to his chin. "Um…I'll take…the third from the left." He says as he points to a box. Lisa nods and hands him the box which he takes gingerly. Slowly and carefully he begins to turn the crank as it plays the "Pop Goes the Weasel" music. After a few moments, the music stops, the top opens, and a boxing glove pops out, hitting Tyler in the face, causing him to fall over.

Chris lets out a laugh as this happens, wiping away a tear. "Oh my god. That was amazing. Okay, obviously he didn't pick the right one. Next?"

Elena however has run over to Tyler who is laying prone on the floor. "Oh mahy gosh! Ah you all right Taila?" Tyler however, is woozily swaying his head. "I'm okay mommy…really." "Ah! Elena! Thank you for choosing to go next!" Chris says to the southern belle. Glancing up she looks back to Tyler. "Um…I..i guess so."

Placing Tyler's head gently down, she points to the first box. Lisa hands it to her, to which she begins to slowly crank it. The music plays again. She closes her eye in anticipation as the box opens. For a moment, nothing comes out. Daring to open her eye she looks inside. A second later a cat pops out and latches onto her face causing Elena to flail her arms, running away, dropping the box.

Chris snickers. "Safe to say, that wasn't the right one either."

*Confessional*
April: Jesus, Chris is on a bit of a sadistic streak today
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Chris: What can I say? Ratings took a little dip. The producers thought we needed a little pazzaz. And what am I, if not accommodating? Ha!
*End Confessional*

Brad, fixing his pajama sleeve, takes a few steps forward. "Fine. Let's just get this over with." He points to the fifth one. "That one." Lisa takes it and hands it to him. Brad then, as if in an attempt to get it over with, rapidly spins the crank causing the music to speed up before the top opens, and a lemon meringue pie crashes into his face. The Gaffers who aren't currently preoccupied can't help but stifle a laugh at the sight. Brad merely blinks through the pie filling and puts the box down and walks back to the line.

*Confessional*
Brad: (Face still covered in pie) Well…that could have gone worse I guess
*End Confessional*

Chris looks at the three remaining boxes. "Three boxes left. No one's found the immunity. Who's up next?" Ella raises her hand. "I'll go Mr. McClean!" She says as she takes a step forward. She looks at the three remaining boxes. "Um… I'll take that one." She says as she points to number two. Lisa hands her the box as she slowly turns the crank. After a few cranks, the top pops open. A moment later, a skunk peeks its head out, turns around, and sprays Ella, who drops the box in shock.

*Confessional*
Brad: BWAHAHAHAHA oh my god. That was amazing
*End Confessional*

Chris makes an "eww" sound. "Well that definitely wasn't the immunity. And the tomato juice is over there." He thumbs over to a table. "That leaves two of you and two boxes. Who wants which one?" April and Harold glance over to each other. "Which one do you want?" Harold asks. April blushes slightly. "Um, I'll uh..I'll take the fourth one." She says pointing to the box. Harold shrugs. "Guess I'll take Six." He says as Lisa goes over and hands each their box. They both grab their boxes in tandem and glance over to each other. Taking a deep breath the two of them begin to crank the box. The camera zooms in on the two of them, sweating as they crank the boxes, each note getting closer to the end. Finally, simultaneously, both tops popped open at once. After a moment, an explosion of black smoke burst from one of the boxes. As the smoke clears, Harold begins to cough, black soot covering his face. "Ugh." He says annoyed.

Looking down, April sees a Chrissy on the end of a spring, staring up at her. Seeing it, she smiles.

*Confessional*
Harold: Honestly, if anybody had to get the immunity, I'm glad it was April. She deserves it.*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
April: YES! Immunity! Man, normally my luck is TERRIBLE. I guess this is making up for all those bad dice rolls in chutes and ladders back in the day.
*End Confessional*

Chris turns to the pair. "Congratulations April. Even if your team loses, you are immune for the night. However, you also cannot compete. So enjoy being a spectator. Because starting from now, you cannot help your team in any way. I will see you all in an hour. Get breakfast, changed, and" he glances over to Ella. "Take a shower."

The Gaffers then turn around, most of their faces being covered in skunk spray, pie, scratches, bruise and explosion dust.

*Confessional*
Brad: That is not the best way to start the morning
*End Confessional*

We cut to everyone in the commissary where they are all sitting in their groups, eating breakfast.

*Confessional*
Noah: I have to say, with the loss of Neos yesterday, the guy's trailer has become a lot more….(he pauses to think of the word) taciturn. It just being Jason and I, there's not exactly a lot of….communication going on.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Jason: Honestly, I'm kind of glad that anime guy is gone. It's a lot quieter in the room. Noah is so quiet I actually forgot when I woke up that I actually HAVE a bunkmate.
*End Confessional*

Staci is once again bothering the person who is closest to her, which unfortunately happens to be Erika.

*Confessional*
Erika: (she adjusts her glasses) I know it's important to get as much information as you can when studying someone's psyche but… (she lowers her eyelids to half as she flips through a book filled with writing) this is ALL STACI
*End Confessional*

Jason meanwhile is sitting next to Noah, his feet up on the table. Noah glances over to him. "Not being very sanitary are we?" He asks Jason with a raised eyebrow. Jason looks back at him. "Is it really any less sanitary than the food here?" Noah smirks. "Touché." He tilts his head towards Heather who is getting her own food. "You still trying to get rid of princess over there?" Jason moves his eyes back towards Noah. "What in the hell do YOU think?" Noah looked back at his book. "Thought so."

*Confessional*
Noah: This Heather vs Jason thing is getting a bit out of hand. The Gaffers have basically reconciled all differences and have no infighting going on. It's not a coincidence that we've lost the last two challenges. One of those two has got to go.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Heather: As annoying as she can get, Staci really is the only one I can count on here. But that only gives us two votes. Jason is ALWAYS going to vote against me, so that just leaves the nerd twins until the merge. As long as I can get Erika on my side, I should be fine. But she's not going to be as easy as Staci to manipulate.
*End confessional*

After the group finishes their breakfast, they hear the usual call of Chris and head towards the meeting location. They all take random seats, however they all seem to hover towards their teams as usual.

Standing in front of the eleven of them is Chris, who has Lisa's outfit on, and Lisa, who is wearing Chris' clothes, both complete with wig. The group looks to Chris, who tilts his head over to Lisa. They turn their attention to her, who begins to speak. "Hello to our remaining eleven competitors! Today, if you haven't guessed is going to be quite the interesting challenge. Why are we dressed up as each other? Well that's because that's what your challenge is going to be. You will pull a name out of this box. It will be the name of someone on the opposing team. You will have one hour, then you will swap clothes and have to impersonate that person onstage here. The better the impersonation, the better the score. Get it? Good." Lisa says, using Chris' body language and mannerisms.

*Confessional*
Chris: Gotta say, girl's good at being me
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Lisa: (she is looking at her nails) I've spent a lot of time looking at Chris. (she looks to the camera and smirks) interpret that as you'd like
*End confessional*

"So, without further ado, come get your impersonation challenge! First up, The Gaffers!" Lisa finishes as she holds up a blue box. Everyone on the Gaffers, minus April make their way to the stage. First up is Ella who reaches into the box. "Ooh! I'm Erika!" There are several snickers from the crowd at her selection. She moves on as Tyler reaches in. He soon pulls out a name. "Noah." He raises an eyebrow in surprise.

*Confessional*
Tyler: Oh geez, Noah? How does he act again? Bored right?
*End Confessional*

Next to step up is Elena who daintily puts her hand in the box and pulls out a name, her eyes widening. "Oh dea'….I have to be Jason."

Suddenly laughter bursts forth from the crowd, as several people, including Heather are seemingly finding this far too amusing.

*Confessional*
Heather: Oh my god. Miss plantation is going to pretend to be Jason. This is going to be HILARIOUS!
*End Confessional*

Taking a deep sigh, Brad steps up to the stage, placing his hand inside. He then pulls out a name. Looking at it, he sighs. "Staci." He announces as he reveals his paper to the crowd. Once again, the crowd bursts out laughing.

*Confessional*
Jason: Honestly, I don't care if we even win this one. Seeing Brad as Staci is going to make my freaking WEEK
*End Confessional*

Seeing only one left causes Lisa to smile. "Welp, that means Harold, that you're going to be…" She pulls out the last paper. "Heather."

Heather can hear Jason snicker from behind her to which she does her best to ignore.

"All right Gaffers, you have your assignments. Grips, you're up!" The Gaffers move back to their seats as the Grips step up towards the stage.

First to step up is Heather who reaches her hand in. She pulls out a paper and looks at it with an indifferent expression. "Huh. Brad. Okay, I can do that." She says nonchalantly. Stepping back down, Noah raises an eyebrow as he moves forward and reaches into the box. He then looks at the paper. "Elena. Oh boy." He says in a monotoned sarcastic voice.

*Confessional*
Brad: (Snicker) Noah as a southern belle. That's kind of amazing.
*End Confessional*

Jason walks up and reaches his hand in. "All right. Who am I gonna be here…Harold….Ty…" He freezes as his eyes go wide, one of them twitching. The camera zooms in on the word "Ella."

Seeing the word on the big screen above him, the entire audience begins laughing uproariously, even members of his own team.

*Confessional*
April: Oh my god, Jason as Ella…I just…I can't! BWAHAHAHAHA (she falls off the chair in the confessional laughing)
*End confessional*

Rolling her eyes, Erika closes her notebook and steps up. "I suppose I should go next." Reaching her hand into the box, she pulls out a name. Looking at it, she turns around. "Tyler. Wonderful." Several snickers are elicited from the crowd at this.

Lisa then turns to Staci. "Well Staci, that means you're Harold." She says, handing the last piece of paper to Staci. "You guys have one hour to get ready. So switch your clothes and get your speech patterns practiced. We'll see who's better at being themselves. Ha!" She added, using Chris' patented additional 'ha!'.

*Confessional*
April: I'm a bit disappointed I'm going to miss this challenge, this one actually looks like it would be fun. Ah well, immunity no matter what happens lessens that.
*End Confessional*

Lisa then looks at all the contestants. "All right everybody. You've got one hour. See you then!" She and Chris step from behind their podiums and walk away offstage.

As everyone begins to walk towards each other to speak to their counterpart about switching their outfits, April sees Harold and walks over to him. "Oh! Hey! Harold!" Harold stops and turns to her. "Oh, gosh, hey April" he puts his hand behind his head. April, now seeing his face, blushes slightly. "Um, I uh, I just wanted to say, you know, I know i'm not competing in this event, but, good luck. I know you'll do fine." A little shocked at first, Harold blushes. "Gee uh, thanks April." There's an awkward pause as he looks away and then back. "Uh, April?" Her attention is now entirely on him. "Yes?" "Gosh, I was just wondering if-" "Oh! there you are Harold!" A voice came from behind them. They both turn to see Staci. "Hey there Harold! I was just looking for you. I need your outfit! By the way, did you know that the term 'outfit' was-" As she begins to berate Harold with questions, April slinks away quietly

*Confessional*
April: Ugggh! SERIOUSLY Staci? right now?
*End confessional*

A very akward couple of interactions later, everyone, about an hour later, makes their way, now dressed up as each other, towards the auditorium.

Lisa, who is sitting in Chris' seat, is sitting next to Homura, who is wearing Chef's outfit. After all the contestants take their spots, Lisa begins to speak, using Chris' speech patterns. "All right contestants. Here's how this is going to work. Every time one of you comes up, you'll act like the contestant you're dressed as. Both Chef and I will give you a score of 1 to 10. Total out of 20. Highest total number from all five of you added together wins. Simple, wouldn't you say Chef?" There's a short pause before Lisa nudges Homura with her elbow. This action causes Homura to jostle back to her senses. "Oh! Yeah. Uh..suckas."

Lisa snickers at Homura's embarrassing attempt at acting like Chef. "All right, first up, let's have a member from the Grips! Heather, you're up first." Heather stands up and makes her way to the stage. Everyone's eyes are on her as she adjusts her sleeve in a typical Brad mannerism and moves an errant hair out of place. She is dressed exactly like Brad, down to his slicked back hair. Suddenly, a slightly deeper voice comes out of her. "Seriously? I'm still stuck on this stupid show? Can I go home already? No Ella, I don't want to sing about animals with you." Heather lowers her eyebrows to half as Brad often does. "If we're done here, I'm going to go sit over in the corner and ignore you people."

As Heather finishes, the entire audience begins to laugh, but none so much as the Gaffers. April nearly falls off her seat, and Tyler and Harold find themselves uproariously laughing as well.

*Confessional*
April: I know she's on the other team, but oh my god, she nailed Brad PERFECTLY
*End Confessional*

Lisa, who was laughing herself silly holds up a 8 while Homura smirking, holds up an 7. The Grips all clap for her as she steps off the stage.

*Confessional*
Brad: (has his arms crossed) okay..fine. that was pretty good
*End Confessional*

Heather snaps her fingers derisively as she walks by Jason, giving him a snarky smirk to which, Jason grimaces at her. This is actually quite amusing considering his outfit.

"Next up, the Gaffers! Brad, you're up!" Lisa announces as all eyes turn to him. Sighing, Brad, now clad in a bright pink jumpsuit with a bow on his head, steps up onto the stage. Several snickers already are coming from audience before he even speaks. As he reaches the front of the stage, he looks to the audience and takes a deep breath.

*Confessional*
Brad: I normally don't care about getting voted off, but I swear to god, if I get voted off today after this if we lose, I will be PISSED.
*End Confessional*

Suddenly, Brad's disposition changes as he starts to speak a mile a minute, throwing on Staci's vocal speech patterns. "Oh my god guys! This challenge is so cool! Did you know that my great, great grandfather invented impersonations? Before that, everyone acted like themselves and no one could pretend to be anyone else."

Brad's energetic interpretation of Staci has everyone laughing so hard, that several of the members on both teams are crying and clutching their sides.

*Confessional*
Tyler: HAHAHAHAHA! Dude, I can't…my sides (he's laughing so hard, he's holding his sides)
*End confessional*

As Brad finishes, a massive round of applause comes from them. Brad's face however is nearly as pink as the jumpsuit as he steps off the stage. Lisa, still laughing, holds up an 8 while Homura also holds up an 8. Despite his embarrassment, he gets encouragement and a few high fives from his teammates.

*Confessional*
Elena: Brad reallah did well this challenge. He is quite different from his fi'st day heah. I'm kinda glad Ella did what she did. (there's a pause) Not that I don't miss Beth! I mean… oh mahy stahs…
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Staci: Huh. How did Brad know about my great great grandfather? He really DID- (she is cut off)
*End Confessional*

After the laughter subsides, Lisa continues. "Next up, Staci!" Staci, who seems preoccupied, hearing her name, stands up. She makes her way up to the stage and looks out over the crowd. She's dressed exactly like Harold, down to his hair and glasses. Taking an inhale she begins to speak. "Like, gosh. This is so cool. I have an audience. Let me show you my sweet nunchuk moves." Staci pulls out a pair of nunchuks and hits herself in the face with it. "Ow!" She says in a Harold-like way.

Everyone in the audience laughs. Not as hard as the previous two, but her imitation was pretty good. Harold still blushes at the impersonation

*Confessional*
Harold: I honestly think I'm far better at nunchuks. Watch! (he pulls out his nunchuks and hits himself in the face while attempting to do a trick. He then falls offscreen) ow! (he puts his finger up back into frame) gosh. okay, maybe it wasn't that bad of an impersonation.
*End Confessional*

Lisa smiles as she and Homura both hold up a 6. A bit dejected, Staci makes her way back to the team. "Hey, don't worry about it." Noah says, looking up from his book. "A 12 is still better than half. We'll make it up next time." He then shrugs. "Besides, I thought it was good. Brad dressed as you is just a hard act to follow."

*Confessional*
Noah: Honestly, Staci isn't one of my favorite people here, but at this point, the last thing I need to do is pointlessly irritate people. Heather and Jason already have the monopoly on that.
*End Confessional*

Lisa looks back to the crowd. "Harold, you're up!" Harold, who is hilariously dressed up in Heather's khaki shorts and maroon top, along with a wig of her black hair, steps up to the stage. Arriving at his designated spot, he removes his glasses.

"Jason, seriously?" He whips his hair back. "I seriously can't take you right-WHOA!" His impersonation is cut off, as suddenly, without his glasses to aid him, trips over an errant floorboard and falls flat on his face. Everyone in the audience including the judges recoils at the crash.

"Harold! Are you okay?" April calls out. Harold puts up a thumbs up from the ground. As he begins to stand up, Homura and Lisa look between each other and pull out a number, each of them revealing a 3.

*Confessional*
Harold: Gosh! I can't believe I blew it like that! I knew I should have gotten those contacts. (he crosses his arms)
*End Confessional*

"Sorry about that Harold, but that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes, or in this case, the nerd. Ha!" Lisa uncharacteristically says, causing Homura to shoot her a look

*Confessional*
Homura: Wow. Lisa's really getting into this 'act like Chris' thing, isn't she? Um… I mean… (she furrows her brow and puts on a deep raspy voice) Lisa's really takin' it to those maggots! (she stops and holds her throat with her hand as she winces) ow
*End Confessional*

"Next up, from the Grips, Noah!" Lisa announces. Hearing his name, Noah sighs and puts his book down." His massive book down, everyone finally gets to get a good look at Noah, who is dressed in Elena's ornate southern belle dress along with a curly black wig and parasol. Hitching up the dress, he daintily walks up to the stage.

Suddenly he begins to twirl the parasol slowly and opens his eyes wider. "Oh mahy stahs! I can't believe ahm on total drama." He closes the parasol and pulls out a fan and begins to waft himself with it "I do declah, everyone heah is so naice. Thin's are so different than heah on the plantation. What's that? You want me to take off my gloves for this challenge? Mahy mahy. You ah so brash mista mclean."

The audience laughs as Noah does his best impression of the southern belle. All things considered, his accent is pretty good, and while his impression isn't very hilarious, it's actually very accurate. Once he finishes, everyone claps and a few whistles are heard. Lisa smiles, holding up a 7 while Homura holds up an 8.

*Confessional*
Erika: (Her eyes are open wide) Noah makes a scarily convincing southern belle. (she writes something in her book)
*End Confessional*

"Not bad sucka!" Homura says as Noah walks back to his set. "Agreed Chef. Next up for the Gaffers is Elena!" Lisa announces as she nods, and stands up. The camera finally gets a good look at her. And she could not look any more different than usual if she tried. Instead of her usual dress and long, curly hair, she is wearing a stained workshirt that's partially untucked along with Jason's unkempt slacks. Walking up to the stage with her hands in her pockets, she pulls an unlit cigarette out of her pocket and put it on her mouth.

"That stupid Christian." She says, taking the cigarette out of her mouth. "I can't wait to rub in that tub of lard's face just how much farther I got in this competition than him. Ha!" Everyone's eyes grow wide as all sense of accent has disappeared from her voice, replaced with one eerily close to Jason's, only with a bit of her higher girl's voice showing through.

"Holy crap. Is Heather still here? This is ridiculous! Why can't you just kick that idiot off! I swear. Ah the hell with this." She then calmly walks off the set.

Following her performance, everyone in the audience is stone silent, their eyes and mouths open wide in shock. Slowly but surely, Homura and Lisa raise up two 9's.

*Confessional*
Jason: That….that was good
*End Confessional*

Taking a moment to collect herself, Lisa cleared her throat. "Right, next up, Jason." She turns to Jason. "Tough act to follow Jason. Think you're up for it?" Jason merely smirks as he steps up to the stage. Clad entirely in Ella's princess getup, Jason looks absolutely hilarious. Everyone in the audience is already laughing as he takes the stage.

*Confessional*
Jason: This is going to be humiliating as all hell, but there's no way in hell I'm going to lose to Heather.
*End Confessional*

Suddenly, Jason's disposition changes as he smiles in Ella's standard wide grin and puts his hands together. "Well hello everyone at Total Drama! It's oh so wonderful to be here! Every day is a treasure. In fact, I believe I feel a song coming on!"

Everyone holds their ears as Jason opens his mouth to sing. To everyone's surprise though, an airy baritone comes out

Everyone here thank you for welcoming me
I feel as if I am part of your family
I know one day my prince will come
and life will be what it was meant to beeee

As he finishes, several of Ella's animals make their way over to him, including a bird, landing on his finger.

At first, there is silence as everyone merely stands there. Then, a single clap can be heard. Everyone turns to see Ella standing and clapping, a tear in her eye. Brad smirks, stands up and follows suit. Soon, everyone is giving Jason a standing ovation, including Lisa and Homura, who are each holding up perfect 10's.

As the applause subsides, Jason steps off the stage and as he walks by Heather, snaps his finger and gives her a derisive smirk.

*Confessional*
Heather: Damn it I hate that guy! Still though, as much as I hate to admit it, that singing was actually pretty good
*End Confessional*

Lisa looks back to the crowd. "Fantastic job Jason. Who knew you could sing? Speaking of singing, Ella, you're up!" Nodding and smiling, Ella makes her way to the stage. The moment she steps onto the stage, she removes her smile and adjusts her glasses she was now wearing. Her outfit fit her precisely as, if seen from behind, she could easily pass for Erika. She looks out over the group before writing something in her notebook. "Really, the fact that such an eclectic group of humans can somehow work together and get along, yet be in a competitive field is most interesting." She adjusts her glasses again. "Some specimens are more interesting than others. I hope they provide me sufficient research information."

Closing her book, she, without any emotion, steps down and goes back to her seat. The audience claps loudly once they realize that she was done. Homura holds up an 8 while Lisa holds up a 7. Brad, still dressed as Staci, leans over to Ella. "Hey, not bad." He lightly taps her on the shoulder with his fist. At first, she is a bit shocked, but hearing this reaction from Brad caused a goofy smile to come over her face.

*Confessional*
Brad: Hey, good is good. (he shrugs) I just hope she doesn't take it too much to heart or think too deeply into it.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Ella: My prince complimented me! (she sighs dreamily with her hands to her face. This looks rather odd as she's still dressed as Erika) This is one of the happiest days of my life! In fact (music swells) IIIIIIII-
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Homura: Is it just me, or did I hear someone singing in here a minute ago?
*End confessional*

Lisa looks over to the Grips. "All right Erika, you're the last one up for your team. Time to bring it on home for the Grips!" As Erika stood up and began to walk towards the stage, Lisa continued. "Just so you know Grips, you're in the lead by 7. So if Erika can pull out a 14 out of 20 on this, she'll lock the Gaffers out of a win regardless of their final person's score. So good luck Erika!"

Erika hearing this, looks a little nervous as she makes another step onto the stage.

*Confessional*
Noah: Thanks Lisa. You know, no pressure or anything. She really IS getting into this Chris thing, isn't she?
*End Confessional*

Making her way to the front of the stage, dressed in Tyler's sweats, she clears her throat. "Whoa! Hey there you guys!" She then stops and thinks for a moment. "I'm not entirely sure that's correct grammar. Does Tyler speak with correct grammar or not?" She says to herself out loud. "Let me check my notes." She then proceeds to pull out her book and look over her notes.

"Uh…Erika?" Lisa asks confused after a few moments have passed. "Just a moment!" She responds as she looks through her notes more. In the audience, Jason smacks her face while Heather clenches her fists in irritation.

*Confessional*
Heather: I swear, if little miss research causes us to lose, she is ABSOLUTELY gone tonight
*End Confessional*

"Oh for the love of-" Jason says irritated as he picks up Tyler's football. "Here! Catch this!" Picking it up he launches it towards Erika, who, shocked at first, reaches out her hand and catches it perfectly. All of the Grips let out a groan as she does so.

"No you idiot! You're Tyler! You can't catch for crap!" A loud "Heyy!" Comes from Tyler on the Gaffers side.

Lisa and Homura look between each other as they pick up two signs, Homura revealing a 2 and Lisa a 3.

Seeing the scores, The Grips groan while the Gaffers cheer.

*Confessional*
April: As a good sport I don't normally like seeing people mess up, but WHOO! We have a chance!
*End Confessional*

As Erika steps down to the seats, she has her head down and isn't looking at her teammates.

*Confessional*
Erika: Curse my need for research and perfection. I sincerely hope I don't cause my team this challenge. I was the only person to score under a 10. I think they would hold it against me if we were to lose
*End Confessional*

Noah, who is sitting next to her looks up from his book over to her. "Don't let it bother you. Everyone can't be good at everything. It's a statistical impossibility." Erika merely nods sadly. "That's true." A moment of silence passes by. "Noah?" He looks back up from his book. "Thank you." She says, giving him a small smile. He looks back to his book. "You're welcome."

Lisa turns back to the contestants. "All right everyone! Thanks to Erika's…interesting performance, that means the Gaffers still have a chance to take the gold! In a twist, all the Gaffers need to win is a 13! And that brings us to our last contestant….TYLER!"

Tyler, who is dressed up In Noah's sweater vest and pants, now without his trusty headband, gulps as he steps up onto the stage. "All right Tyler, you can do this." He says quietly to himself as he takes the final step up. Standing on the stage, he pulls open a book and opens it up. Looking up from it he begins to speak. "Ugh, you want me to do WHAT now? I can't-" Unfortunately for Tyler however, his football from when Erika was onstage, and stepping forward, it falls directly beneath his feet, causing him to slip and fall backwards.

The pressure on the ball causes it to rocket forward and bounce around the room as he throws the book up in the air. Everyone in audience's eyes are following the bouncing ball, ducking out of the way as it comes towards several of their heads. The ball eventually finds its mark in hitting Tyler as it bounces back onto the stage. The collision causes him to fall backwards as the book then lands on his face. Everyone in the audience slowly lifts their heads back up as they inspect the situation. Lisa and Homura slowly move upwards, each shakily holding a 2.

"Um..Grips win." After a moment of silence, the Grips realize what just happened and begin to cheer. The Gaffers on the other hand, hang their heads down in defeat.

*Confessional*
Jason: Wow, female Noah got really lucky that Tyler messed up as bad as he did. If we had lost, well, lets just say this would have been the first time I didn't vote for Heather. (There's a pause) okay i'm lying. I'd still have voted for Heather.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Brad: Seriously guys? I dressed up in this pink track suit for nothing? (sighs as he turns sideways, crossing his arms and legs) well, at least I know no one's going to vote for me tonight.
*End confessional*

*Confessional*
Elena: Oh mahy! Poor Taila. I hope he isn't too upset ova what happened. We all make mistaykes.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Tyler: Ugh! Stupid stupid Tyler! Man, I can't believe I messed up so bad. I totally blew it for us!
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Harold: Aw man, I totally blew it!
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Tyler/Harold: I'm so getting booted tonight
*End confessional*

As the Grips leave the area, Tyler is being comforted by Elena. "S'all right sugah. Don't worry about it. No one's gonna vote for you just because you messed up one time." Meanwhile, April is talking to Harold. "They're not going to vote for you for this one time." Both April and Elena turn towards Brad and Ella at the same time. "Ain't/Isn't that right Brad/Ella?" They ask in unison.

Their eyes open wide in surprise as they're standing side by side, both Brad and Ella shift their eyes towards each other nervously.

We then cut to that night. Lisa looks over the six campers sitting in the auditorium, all of them back in their normal outfits. Half of them don't look nervous in the slightest. Brad is simply sitting there, arms crossed with an air of indifference, April looks a tad concerned, while Tyler and Harold look nervous. "Well, it's been a few days, but it looks like the Gaffers are finally back at the elimination ceremony. Sorry guys, your streak couldn't last forever. That being said, five of you will be safe tonight, while the last one will take a ride on the lameozine. Okay everybody, it's time. Place your votes!"

Several of the contestants look between each other before the buttons are pressed. After a few moments, Chris, who is dressed as Lisa, receives a letter from offstage which she hands to Lisa. "Thank you Lisa. Okay, let's see here. Well, these results are pretty obvious for the most part considering how things ended up with the two of you guys." Lisa smirks as she looks over to Tyler and Harold who are looking very nervous. "Of course, since April won the box of mystery challenge this morning, she is already immune." April smirks and shows off her Chrissy to verify this. Lisa nods and turns back to the rest of the cast. "However, that means that 5 of you are up for possible elimination. But, the following people are safe with 0 votes. Ella, Elena, and Brad. Like I said, no real shock there." Chris throws each of them a Chrissy which they each take with little reaction. "Now, to the reason we're all here." Lisa says, savoring the two contestant's worry. "Tyler, Harold, you both messed up the challenge bad. Real shame. You guys would have had three wins in a row if you two had been just a little less…terrible at impersonations. That being said, we only have one Chrissy left and there's two of you. The votes were pretty clear cut being 4 to 2. So, since we know who April, Elena, Tyler, and Harold voted for…guess it all boils down to you two." Lisa says, looking at Brad and Ella. Brad raises an eyebrow indifferently as Ella has her hands together in a sad, almost apologetic manner. "Right, right we get it Lisa, just get on with it." Brad responds annoyed. Lisa puts her best Chris grimace on. "Fine. Anyway, without further ado, the one who is safe for another night, and gets the last Chrissy is…

….

….

Harold and Tyler look nervously between each other as they eye the last award. Lisa draws this out even longer as the music swells.

….

…

"Tyler."

Chris throws Tyler the last Chrissy who barely catches it in shock. Lisa looks over to Harold. "Sorry Harold. Looks like it's time for you to get going." Standing up, Harold sighs. "Gosh. Bummer."

*Confessional*
April: NOOO! Seriously?! We just, I mean, I was about to- GAHHH!
*End Confessional*

As Harold takes his suitcase he makes his way towards the lameozine. "Wait!" April screams as she runs over to him. "Harold! You can't go" Harold smiles back at her and then rubs his hand behind his head. "Like, gosh April I've got to." April looks at how unshaken he is by leaving and sighs. "How can you stay so calm?" She asked, clearly starting to get upset. "Gosh, it's not like I'm leaving forever. I'll be back in the finale." Seeing his calm demeanor, April sighs and wipes her eyes. "You're right. I'm gonna miss you though you idiot." She admits, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"Huh? Why would-" But before Harold can continue, April pushes into him, crashing her lips against his. Shocked at first, Harold eventually accepts it. After a few moments, Chris begins to open his mouth to speak before Lisa puts her hand over his face. Chris gets the hint and stops.

After what seems like an eternity, they break apart. "That's so you don't forget about me." April says, looking away, a deep blush on her face. She adjusts Harold's shirt as an excuse. "There's like no way I'd forget about you April." April turns back to Harold, her eyes shimmering. "You better not. I'll see you soon. I mean..if you want to that is." Harold smiles in response. "Gosh, of course."

Finally they step away from each other as Harold picks up his suitcase again. Turning back, he waves at the rest of his teammates and steps into the limo. After getting inside he pops his head out of the roof and continues to wave. April waves after him, a sad smile on her face.

*Confessional*
Harold: It stinks that I got kicked off, but who cares about that? April is awesome! I consider this a win in my book.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Tyler: (Tyler has his hand behind his head, rubbing it, a solemn look on his face) Okay, that was wayyy too close. I totally thought I'd be the one to get the boot. It pretty much WAS all my fault we lost. It's a bummer that Harold had to leave. Still though, I'm really happy I'm still here. I just have to make sure I don't mess up that bad again. (he looks to the camera and puts on a sad smile) Thanks guys for giving me another chance.
*End Confessional*

*Confessional*
Brad: Yeah, I voted for Harold. When it all boiled down to it, it was either going to be Harold or Tyler, I was definitely off the radar this time. (he crosses his arms) Tyler really stepped up during the Oceanworld challenge and I really felt like if anybody deserved a second chance, it was him. Wouldn't be cool to knock him off after that….(there's a slight pause) also the fact that I'll only have one roommate after this and I would have to bunk with either Tyler or Harold until the merge. And honestly, push come to shove, I'd rather hang with Tyler.
*End Confessional*

As the Lameozine fades into the distance, Chris turns back to the remaining contestants. "Gaffers, the rest of you are safe for the night. Welcome to the top ten. You should be proud of yourselves. Nearly half of you are gone, and we're rapidly approaching the finale. Head back to your campers, and we'll see you all tomorrow.

The contestants turn around and solemnly walk back to their campers

*Confessional*
Elena: 'onestly, I ratha liked Harold. I don't think theah was a single person I really wanted to leave from owa team. Howeva I guess that's the name of tha game. I'm actually still shawked I'm still heah. But I'm glad ah am. April and Ella are wondaful girls and ahm happy to call them mahy friends. And…. I'd be lyin if I said I wasn't happy Taila was still here. (She blushes slightly)
*End Confessional*

As the contestants head off, Chris turns to Lisa, who is still wearing his outfit. He raises his eyebrow. "You know Lise, you CAN change back into your own clothes." Lisa, complete with her Chris wig on, shakes her head. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I am Chris Mclean. The greatest host in the world." She puts her hands behind her back in stereotypical Chris fashion. "Ha!" She adds at the end.

Chris rolls his eyes. Reaching behind him he puts on the large bulky sweater and a brown wig that looks like Lisa's hair. "Ooh! I'm Lisa Westbrook! Everything is so exciting and wonderful! I love everyone! Look at my shipping sheet!" He says holding up a piece of paper.

Finishing his spiel, Chris turns back to Lisa, who is now wearing an irritated look on her face. This causes Chris to blanche backwards. "You're forgetting one thing in your impersonation of Lisa." Lisa says eerily calmly as she reaches up and takes the Chris wig off her head. This change in personality causes Chris' eyes to widen slightly in shock. "Um.. ? What's that?"

Reaching towards Chris' head she slowly removes the wig from his head as well. "You forgot the fact that despite everything" She places her hands on his shoulders as the grimace fades and is replaced by a soft smile "she loves Chris more than anything." And plants a kiss on his lips. Shocked at first, Chris eventually accepts it, placing his own hands around her as the screen fades to black.

Eliminated
17th: Shawn
16th: Beth
15th: Cody
14th: Killian
13th: Dana
12th: Neos
11th: Harold

Remaining Contestants
Killer Grips: Jason, Noah, Heather, Staci, Erika
Screaming Gaffers: Ella, April, Brad, Elena, Tyler

Votes
April: Immune
Ella, Elena, Brad: 0 votes
Tyler: 2 votes
Harold: 4 votes

April, Harold: Tyler
Brad, Ella, Tyler, Elena: Harold

AN: Oh no! Harold's gone! Oh Harold. I have to say, in the original TDI, he was actually one of my favorites (mostly because they eliminated most of the interesting characters early on in TDI). However, due to having many interesting characters this season, it actually became a little difficult to pick who was going next. I knew that The Gaffers had to lose this time around as the Grips had already lost twice in a row. The question was, who to get rid of? Several things factored into this decision, but ultimately, it felt like the one I could do the least with story-wise was Harold (also considering I just got rid of 3 OC's in a row, it was time for a canon to hit the road)

As for the challenge, I always liked the idea of it and considering how nuts the previous challenge was, I thought was nice to have another more relaxing challenge. Don't worry though, we're going to get back to crazy soon enough. I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter! Let me know in the comments! Also, if you haven't already, check out the important poll. See you next time!