R_S: Sorry for the delay, haven't had time to write much.

Chapter 6

Free Show

The boys finished their holes one by one, filing into the tent for some downtime while they waited for the showers to open up. You had your outliers, like fast little zero and the slow newbies, but most of the camp finished around the same time, within an hour or two of everyone else. That meant there was often congestion around the spigots around that time. It was also a good opportunity to have your shower tokens stolen, so D-Tent often hung around to kill time until it quieted down. Armpit was last that day, shuffling in tiredly to collapse on his cot while the others played with various cards and other diversions they had managed to sneak in or trade for. He sighed tiredly, and they glanced up.

"How's the new girl doin'? Didn't look like she was very far when I left."

"She ain't." He replied, voice muffled into his pillow, before lifting his head to continue. "Can't barely hold the shovel anymore. Too tiny for the heat, I think. She's got at least another foot or two left, but I think she's gonna listen to me- I told her to stop before we found her out there all crispy like bacon. Looked like she was about to head back when Mom came to check up on her." The boys hummed in response, unsurprised at the special treatment. They had expected her to pass out by the end of the day; she certainly spent most of it looking like she was about to.

"So," Squid asked, turning on his side in order to face his friends, "what do you guys think of her?" X-Ray shrugged.

"She's a'ight, I guess… too sickeningly innocent though. They gonna eat her alive here if she's not careful." He answered, as Armpit nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, but how innocent could she be having killed a guy?"

"I thought we said she didn't kill him." Zigzag pointed out.

"No," Magnet corrected, "we was sayin' the story didn't make sense how she said." The tall blond shrugged.

"Whatever, dude… I changed my mind about her; she's not a government agent sent to keep tabs on us like I thought."

"But," the Latino grinned back, "she is damn hot, like we all thought- even with that mess she was this mornin'." The others grinned and chuckled at his comment.

"Man… did you see her last night? I think I may begin to worship that thing." Zigzag jerked his head in the direction of Katrina's curtain. They all laughed.

"Oh, we know what you mean."

"Mamasita!"

"Damn fine."

"… ya know, that chica did the weirdest thing this morning." Magnet commented, thinking back to earlier that day.

"Did she say something into a microphone on her shirt or write something in a secret notebook we didn't even know she had so that it could be relayed to government industries conspiring to sell us all to Martians on alien planets?" Zigzag asked, flipping over immediately.

"No…" Magnet answered slowly, a little freaked-out, "she pulled away from me when I tried to put a hand on her shoulder… I thought you changed your mind about that government thing, homes?" Zigzag shrugged, lying back again.

"Just makin' sure." He countered, "Old habits die hard."

"Riiiiiiight…" the Latino nodded slowly.

"Hey," interrupted X-Ray, "stay focused morons."

"Yeah, Mag, what d'you mean? Did she backed away from you or brush your hand off, or what?" Squid questioned, leaning forward a bit more. His friend pulled the home-made t-shirt do-rag off and scratched the back of his head. He had noticed no such issue when he had touched her earlier that day. Then again, his had been a protective touch rather than a friendly one. She sure as hell was not their friend yet, more like an abused puppy they adopted.

"No," the Mexican answered, "she tried not to make it obvious but the chica definitely did not wanna be touched, ya feel? Ella esta loca."

All was silent for a moment, "… Say wha?" Armpit asked.

"She's crazy." Magnet clarified with a shrug.

"Naw," Zigzag quipped with a grin, "maybe she's just a l'il paranoid." The boys laughed.

"You must be thrilled, Zig; you're not the only weird one now." More chuckling followed X-Ray's joke.

"I guess…" he answered, pretending to cry a bit, "B-but, I'm not special no more…" placing his head in his hands, fake bawling was heard throughout the tent. The juvenile convicts cracked up.

"Well I dunno about you stinkin' lot," Magnet quipped as he stood, "but I don't wanna smell when the lady returns. I'm hittin the showers." X-Ray nodded, as if ending the discussion like a judge with a gavel. They all made their way out toward the spigots or restrooms, stretching out their sore backs.

"Yo, you think if we ask all polite Kat'll let us use her fancy stall? Bet it's real nice." Squid wondered. X-Ray shot him a wicked smirk.

"Maybe if you're really lucky, she'll let ya share shower tokens to save water." The group left laughing and catcalling. They were so wrapped up in the conversation they almost did not notice a handful of the C-Tent boys step into their way, freshly showered.

"Hey," one greeted with an upward nod, "where's your smurfette?"

X-Ray raised an unamused brow, "What's it to you, Diesel?"

"Listen bro, I ain't one of those A-Tent douchebags- you can be straight with me, man to man. What's the story with that kitten, huh? None of us here seen a girl in a real long time, and we wanna know how to get some'a whatever you're gettin'."

"What we're gettin'." Squid repeated flatly, adjusting the shirt he had slung over his shoulder.

"Yeah man, I seen you touch her a couple times. Look, she just been slowing you down since she got here, so you wouldn't mind lookin' the other way to help a brother out, yeah?"

Armpit snorted, " Yeah, I ain't your 'brother.' You're gonna wanna step away now."

"Look," Squid ground out, stepping into the boy's face, "here's how this is gonna go down: Y'all are gonna lay off 'fore we make you lay off. Warden made it really clear that if anything happens to the girl it's our asses on the line, too. So we got a bit of vested interest, 'yeah.'" He mocked coolly.

"Get lost. We won't get in trouble for you, not when we got a sweet easy time for just walkin' her places." X-Ray nodded sagely, as if dismissing him with his final, godly word. Diesel pursed his lips in annoyance but seemed to get the picture, backing off with his lackeys. X-Ray immediately turned on Squid with a discerning gaze.

"So you've been touchin' her? You better not be causing our tent problems, Squid. We could really have a sweet deal here with all this." Zigzag fixed him with a curious look, head cocked like a puppy. The other boy shrugged gruffly, moving his toothpick to the other side of his mouth.

"Just pushin' her along this morning. If we don't keep her on a leash, I swear she'll get lost. Wouldn't be surprised if she find her way back and sleeps in a damn hole."

"We could call her Lady," Magnet said thoughtfully, "like from Lady and the Tramp, y'know? Since she's like a puppy and all delicate like a Lady." X-Ray summarily dismissed the name, pushing him forward roughly. She still did not deserve a title.

"Magnet, you better get into the shower n' wash the bad ideas out of your head."

"Man, what is with your obsession with dogs?" The teasing and mocking drifted away as they neared the stalls, not reaching the lone girl out in the desert as she reconsidered her position.

By 2:00, all the boys from D-Tent had finished their holes. Zero was first to be completed, leaving at 12:00, and the other boys followed in suit. Armpit was last, advising her to retire for the day. Kat dug for only another moment before agreeing to call it quits at about 3 feet down. She was coated in a layer of dust she was not sure would ever come off. Pendanski swung by as she collapsed against the edge of her hole, thoroughly worn, watching the boy's large form disappear into the distance.

"You havin' a nice first day, Katrina?" He asked, all springy stepped and peppy toned.

"Yessir." She answer politely, gently tossing her shovel beside her. Getting out of there with her hands all roughed up was going to be a bear and a half, she noted. His smile widened at her obedience.

"Good, good… warden wants to keep tabs on your progress this first week, see how you're handlin' it. Let's see how this hole looks then, hmm?" He peered down into where she leaned, looking nonplussed.

"That's it?" He asked, sounding somewhat affronted.

"I'm not very good at this." She acquiesced tiredly. For a moment, she thought she saw coldness flash across his features, but he was back to his pandering smile so quickly she was sure she must have imagined it.

"Well, I'm sure it'll get easier. You're more than halfway done now."

"Yeah… yeah, I'll probably finish it tomorrow."

"You do that, Katrina. You do that." With an awkward wave-salute hybrid, Pendanski marched off to the vehicle and took off, leaving her alone in the heat.

"Could've offered me a ride…" Kat muttered bitterly. She was sore, she was miserable, and she wanted to cry. In fact, she allowed herself an indulgent moment of tears away from the boys. God, it was so awful. She was hot and sweaty and gross. Her hands no longer moved quite right, her back ached, and her legs felt like jelly. She could already feel the sunburn and its searing pain radiating up from her face and arms. This was not character building, she sobbed to herself, this was just fucking torture. How the boys did it day in and day out, she could not fathom. The idea of herself doing the same only made her cry harder. She let it all out, face buried in her knees, the salt of her tears burning the blisters on her hands, until it felt as though there was no more air in her lungs. To calm herself, she ruminated on the day, splashing her face with leftover water from the canteen.

Crying, she decided, had been a stupid decision. Now she had to sit and wait for her face to un-puff in the hot sun, lest the boys pick up on her girly weakness. It did not escape her notice that she was entirely alone for nearly the first time since meeting D-Tent. They were loyal guard dogs, it seemed, unless the sun came out to play. She wondered idly how much of it stemmed from gentlemanly duty and how much from fear of the repercussions if something happened.

"Damnit," she said aloud to herself, shaking her head, "how did it get to this?" There was no answer, none said aloud at least. Katrina already knew how.

She lay there a few more minutes, soaking in unnecessary sun before forcing herself up. With any luck, the boys would assume she was just sweat logged or worn down from the heat. Grunting, she dragged herself over the edge of her hole and climbed out. Picking up her shovel, she trudged back to Camp Green Lake. Stopping at the 'Library', she deposited her shovel and continued onward towards the tent, deliberately ignoring the attention she was receiving from other campers. She hated walking through there alone, missing Squid's protective touch and Zigzag's suspicious gaze and all other manner of personalities that usually surrounded her. Finally reaching D-Tent, she threw open the flap.

An embarrassed yelp escaped her lips as Kat flipped around, stalking briskly from the towel and boxer clad boys. Her cheeks burned a fiery red from shock and embarrassment. Some people had heard her scream and were staring at her oddly, but she paid them no mind. That figured, didn't it? It just would be the cherry topping to her day. She was pretty sure she caught a side view of ass on the way out, which just figured. The girl placed the back of her hand to her forehead, letting out an annoyed groan. What she wouldn't give to go home…

She jumped at the placement of a hand on her shoulder.

"You can come in now." It was just Zigzag smirking down at her, "But there's no more free peep show." She nodded and blushed, following him back into the tent. Upon entering, she couldn't help but notice their condescending smirks.

"Hey girl, you like what you saw?" Magnet asked cheekily, flexing his muscles. Laughing, Squid joined in, and Zigzag ran up to do the same. Kat flushed, suppressing a nervous smile. At some point, they had begun awkwardly pelvic thrusting, but they lacked the grace to make it sensual, instead appearing comical. Without being able to help it, she giggled at the display.

"Hey, well will ya look at that," Zigzag grinned, "first a joke n' now a laugh. Pretty soon she's gonna be actin' just like us."

"Yeah," Armpit snorted from where he lay, "just suck up the testosterone like a sponge."

"Damn I hope not." Magnet cut in, looking Katrina up and down before shooting her a wink. She wondered if it was possible to get any redder.

"'Ey," X-Ray cut in, "you guys done flirting? New girl, how was your first hole? How far you dug?" The mirth drained out of her, and she seemed to shrink under the leader's gaze.

"Um, it was…" she looked at Armpit out of the corner of her eye and shot him the tiniest hint of a smile, "ok. I'm more than halfway done… I guess that's pretty bad, huh?" To her surprise, the boy just shrugged.

"Eh, like the warden said- you're a girl. Anyway, usually newbies dig slower the first few weeks." Informed X-Ray, "Once some kid from another tent was out there until dinner before he was finished."

"Oh… when's that?"

"What, dinner? 5:30."

Katrina let out a low whistle, eyes wide. "That's a long time to be digging." The boys nodded, but did not say anything. She made her way over to her cot, looking for a clean change of clothes.

"Anyway, we're heading over to the Wreck Room. Wanna come?" Smiling kindly, she shook her head at Zigzag's offer. It was sweet of him to invite her. Whatever distrust he seemed to have had earlier was evidently gone and making him eager.

"No thanks, I really just gotta take a shower… Maybe I'll meet you there afterwards, though?"

Squid frowned, "Need one of us to walk you?"

"Oh, um, I think I'll be ok." Really, the offer seemed tempting, but she was not sure if it was a test. It was better not to risk it, she decided.

"… Ya sure?"

"Yeah… yeah, I'll see you after in the, uh, wreck room, I guess." The boys grinned and nodded.

"Cool," the blond grinned, "see you later, then." She nodded with a giggle.

"Yeah… later." She offered another soft smile in return to their friendliness. Perhaps hazing time was over? A day seemed short, but then again, they were acutely aware of her womanhood. Turning, they sauntered out of the tent.

End of Chapter

R_S: That's all for now, but things will pick up soon. I find some of the guys very difficult to write, especially in a big group... Please leave a review!