R_S: Hey all! Thanks for so many positive and constructive reviews! I'm really flattered you notice the difference, CrossingtheDelaware, because looking back on my old writing always gives me such mixed feelings. I never know if I've actually grown as a writer or if I'm noticing how bad it is due to distance and really haven't improved. And Awesome Sauce, I'm not quite sure what you mean, but I'm sorry you feel that way. I just wanted to tone down Kat's sass, because I didn't feel like it fit her character, and make it somewhat more realistic (not that this premise or even that of the original work is at all realistic haha). I think you'll like it better in the chapters to come, where she faces unique stressors and the development of her relationship with D-Tent strongly diverges from that of Stanley's.

Chapter 5

The First Hole is the Hardest

Kat's POV

"This is where you'll be digging." Dr. Pendanski stated blandly, pointing to a space on the ground. I looked down to where he was nodded obediently, unease returning to curl in my stomach. Turning, the middle-aged man walked back to his truck and drove off back to camp. I decided to take a look around before starting. There was not very much to look at- just dirt and holes really. The boys had already begun to dig. It was probably best to get the majority done before the sun came out. I decided to do the same. As I pulled on the thick, standard issue gloves I had been supplied with, shovel balanced in the crook of my elbow, everyone looked up in order to watch me start my first hole. I suppose my misery and embarrassment would be the most entertaining thing to watch out in the middle of nowhere.

At first I tried to just push the shovel into the ground. It barely even scratched the rocky surface, so I attempted lifting the shovel up high with both hands and driving it into the dirt. I managed to get the tip in, but that was hardly any help. I thought about placing the end of the shovel on the ground and jumping onto it. It was worth a shot. Hopefully, the increased weight would force the primitive device further down. Jumping high, I landed perfectly on the back of my shovel only to bounce right off, falling flat on my ass. My shovel fell beside me, not having gotten much further into the ground than before. The laughter of D-Tent surrounded me as they pointed and mocked. I could feel myself blushing and looked down, tears pricking my eyes. I shook them away. I had already been warned about crying too many times.

Another pair of dirty, brown boots invaded my line of vision causing me to raise my head slightly. I wondered who was there. The chuckling that once filled the air dissolved into silent wonder as a gloved hand was extended before me. Looking up, I noticed a quiet Zigzag standing there, arm outstretched, waiting for me to accept his help. I did. Placing my hand in his, he yanked me up and handed me my shovel.

"Usually there are cracks in the ground, look for one and start there." He advised simply. I smiled back a bit and nodded.

"Oh, ok… thanks." I looked down and did a three-sixty, causing my smile to fade.

"Shoot…" I muttered under my breath. He must have heard my voice from where he was digging not far away, because he looked up at me questioningly.

"Um… Zigzag," I asked shyly, "what if there aren't any cracks to start from?" He walked back over and looked around at my space, brow furrowed. At this point, Magnet and Armpit had come over too.

"Damn, they gave you a tough first day girl." The largest, smelliest boy stated blankly.

"Yeah, chica, looks like you're losin' some of your water." The Latino smiled sheepishly and went to put a comforting hand on my shoulder. It was heavy and warm, already sweaty. I moved away without being obvious, but I think he must have noticed, because Armpit and he left me after that. I furrowed my brow, still confused.

"What does he mean?" I asked turning to Zigzag. I could almost hear Squid roll his eyes from where he was digging.

"Soften the ground with your water and get digging." He growled, and Zigzag nodded. The tall blond took the liberty of doing it for me, pouring out a carefully measured portion.

"Oh, ok, that makes sense… thanks."

"Better get to work, chica," Magnet advised, grinning, "the first holes the hardest." The boys howled with laughter at his comment while I smiled softly. That was clearly some joke I did not get, but I really hoped it was true. Zigzag returned to his hole chuckling, and we all went back to digging.

I tried not to focus on how hard the work was. I let my mind wander and daydreamed about random things, not really thinking about what I was doing. I figured that my work would be easier if I was not completely focused on it, but I was probably wrong. Manual labor had never been my forte, and I could honestly say I had never had to dig a hole in the hardened earth before. It was heavy and rock hard, taking all my energy just to get the shovel in. I had decided to do the harder, outer layer first while it was cooler out, but honestly, underneath did not seem any easier. That was just how the rest of D-Tent was doing it, though, so I thought I would follow their logic. After a while, my arms began to feel heavy, and I stopped for a rest. My hands felt like they were on fire from the shovel's chaffing, my legs ached from standing, my back throbbed from being hunched over. I leaned back, earning a satisfying crack from my back, before clicking my knuckles and rolling my wrists for the same effect. I rolled my neck to release the tension while flexing my knees a bit. Sighing tiredly, I sat myself on the edge of my hole.

Glancing down, I went to check my watch before I realized they had confiscated it and groaned. I looked down and estimated the size of my whole by comparing it to my shovel. I surmised that it was nearly wide enough, maybe a foot too small, but not even a foot deep. That wasn't great considering how much further I had to go, and I was already panting. On average, the boys had the length across finished and were at least two feet deep. Clearly, they all had digging down to an art.

I wanted more than anything to complain. To moan and scream and yell about how hard this was and how worn I felt would have made my day. I could already feel tears of frustration pricking behind my eyes, and I was not even half-way done. Mentally, I started bargaining with myself. If I got the width right, I could just go down a couple feet and finish the next day, couldn't I? Or was it better to just do the whole thing in one day and just dig every other day? No, I could not risk that- they might decide that I could handle a full hole a day- the male counselors certainly seemed nonplussed by my special treatment. And anyway, it seemed unlikely that I was capable of it. I was weak, covered in blisters, and sore down to my bone. I had to settle my voice before picking on someone to talk to. I needed food, badly.

"Hey, um, Magnet," I called out, trying hard not to sound whiny. I don't think it worked.

"Si, chica?" the Latino looked up, along with a couple of other boys.

"What time is lunch?"

"11:30 if you go by what they say, but it takes a few minutes to get lunch passed out to the tents before us."

"Okay… what time does the water truck come?" It didn't really matter when the truck came- I was only a little more than halfway through my gallon of water. But, when it came, I could dump the rest into my hole and soften up the soil.

"8:30," this time X-Ray answered, to my surprise, pausing his work to turn and lean on his shovel, "give or take a few minutes because of the other tents."

"Oh, thanks…" I tried to figure out how they could tell time but felt stupid asking. About half an hour later, by my unreliable estimate, the water truck arrived. There was a specific order all the boys had to get their water in, though, so I waited until everyone else was in line to step behind Zero for some water. I had already gulped down some of what I had left and poured the rest into my meager hole… it was shaping up to be one of the worst days of my life.

Narrator's POV

Filling Kat's canteen, Mr. Sir chuckled.

"So, how's your first day of diggin'?" he asked, smirking down at the young brunette in a condescending fashion. Her hands balled into nervous fists, causing her to wince. The palms of her hands were rubbed raw, the beginnings of blisters starting to form. The next day was going to be brutal. Honestly, she did not know how she was going to survive it. She nearly broke down but offered him a watery smile.

"It's ok…" she muttered, but she could tell he saw right through her. Her eyes were watering, he knew.

"Ok, hmm? Well then, let's see how good yer doin'. Take off yer gloves n' let me see yer hands." Ordered the man gruffly. Pealing off her hands' coverings, she put out her arms and slowly turned her hands over. He grinned maliciously at her. The skin was red and irritated looking, even worn away and bleeding in some places. Once he looked away, she brought her hands back to her sides, tearing up.

"Look at you, delicate flower." He chuckled. She could feel the boys' eyes on them in calculating observation as Mr. Sir talked to her and nervously chewed her lip. "This too much for you? Wanna quit or do something easier?"

She could not hold back the hope in her eyes, "Can I really?" He laughed in her face.

"Ha! Sorry, princess, but you gotta deal with what's comin' to ya. But I'll tell ya what, I'll be real nice n' give ya some water so y'don't die." Laughing, he thrust the heavy canister of water forward so some sloshed out. To her surprise, none of D-Tent joined in with his mirth. Evidently their distaste extended farther toward Mr. Sir than to her.

"Thanks." Kat whispered softly, taking her now full canteen from his hands. She turned away in humiliation and walked back to her hole, sitting tiredly at the edge. She would see how far she was when the boys finished, she decided, and make a plan of action based on that. She just hoped she could have maybe a foot dug by lunch, though that was likely a tall order.

"Happy diggin', princess!" Mr. Sir called out with a last guffaw. Some of the boys flipped off the back of the truck as he drove away. To her surprise, X-Ray snorted and shook his head as he got back to digging.

"Forget Mr. Sir," he said, "he's a jackass. You're just lucky enough to get stuck in his least favorite tent. Keep your nose down n' he'll leave well enough alone." Katrina nodded, fiddling with her canteen. She had caught on pretty quickly that Mr. Sir was not to be trifled with, not a joke like Pendanski. Even Squid deferred to him obediently, eyes down and tone respectful. That was probably what unnerved her the most, that he could take all the fight out of the guy she felt safest with. It undermined what little comfort she had.

"And on the bright side," Zigzag offered, jamming his shovel deep into the earth of his hole to the best of his abilities, "Mom usually delivers the lunch, so that's always good for a laugh." Squid snorted in agreement, but everyone returned to digging without another word. Time seemed to drag and fly by at the same time. Soon it was lunch, but by the time Pendanski arrived, she was starving. Zero was almost completely finished with his hole, and the boys were about four feet down. Kat was less than two feet down but had widened her hole to the proper amount.

Sighing, she sat on the edge of her hole with her lunch; shovel standing erect as a result of being imbedded in the ground. Her hands ached wretchedly, fingers difficult to move. It was difficult to handle her lunch but managed to try and fake it. Opening the bag, she peered inside to find a sandwich, apple, and carton of orange juice, filling her with sarcastic joy. The sound of shuffling snapped her out of her reverie. Looking up, she was surprised to find that most of D-Tent had moved to eat lunch with her. Zero was too much of a… would 'introvert' be the right word, she wondered? And X-Ray just didn't seem to like her, despite his kind words from earlier. The company was nice after hours of silent digging, even if it ended up just being an opportunity to tease the new girl.

"So," asked Magnet, taking a seat next to her, "how's your first day of Camp Green Lake so far, chica?" Kat shrugged, taking a bite of her sandwich before grimacing slightly. She was disgusted to find it had honey that made what evidently passed as cheese and some sort of meat-like substance slide against each other. It was seasoned with an unappetizing dusting of sand for a final finishing flavor. She swallowed quickly and continued eating. It was either the vomit-worthy sandwich or starving.

She did not know what the right answer to his question was (and by then, she had learned that all questions at Camp Green Lake had right answers), so she offered her usual response of a noncommittal shrug and "Ok, I guess."

"Girl, I'm gonna ban you from saying 'ok' if you don't stop usin' it." Armpit rolled his eyes and glared at her slightly.

Meeting his gaze, she offered a small smile and a wry "Ok."

"Woah-ho-ho!" Squid threw his arms back, smirking, "Did she just make a joke? Careful, your presence might start being bearable." He punctuated the barb with a large chomp on his sandwich. Zigzag elbowed him. As the girl flushed, gaze dropping back down.

"Man, lay off a bit- you're bein' a dick." Squid just shrugged him off with a dirty look, and the taller boy backed down. Their hierarchy was nothing if not noticeable, Kat observed while fiddling with her sandwich wrappings. The boys were already eating, but she was having some difficulties maneuvering her hands. She made a valiant attempt to hide it, but her fumbling was obvious and the pained change of breath noticeable.

"Jesus," Armpit muttered through a mouthful of food before swallowing, "how'd you rip up your hands so bad?"

Even Squid looked somewhat affronted, "Damn, ain't you ever worked with your hands before?" For a moment, Katrina considered lying, but instead she simply shook her head. Zigzag let out a low whistle.

"Dang," Magnet shook his head, "this gonna be a long sentence for you." She just shrugged noncommittally and held her sandwhich carefully between her two injured palms. They sat there for a few minutes just eating and talking. Mostly it was to each other, but Kat felt included. On the outside, she was only smiling weakly, but on the inside, she was flushed with relief. She felt as though the group was really starting to accept her; even X-Ray had joined the conversation, though he chose not to move any closer. She had a feeling that was more of a power play than anything else, asserting that he was the leader and thus would not bow to her whims. Only Zero sat quietly in his hole, not taking part in their activities. Sure, there was still some slight tension between the boys and her, being that she was the only girl on the premises, but at least she no longer felt quite so alienated. Who knew getting bullied by the assistant warden was the way to win them over?

"Magnet," she asked finally, "is the first hole really the hardest?" The boys laughed until they noticed her big, earnest eyes staring up at them. Squid shook his head, leaning on his shovel.

"You are a gullible little thing, ain't cha? From now on, anyone tells you something, you check with us to make sure it's true. If we're not careful, you'll get us all in trouble."

On that final note, everyone stood up and returned to their holes. The sooner D-Tent finished, the sooner they could head to the Wreck Room and relax.

End of Chapter

R_S: So this is still sorta setting up her life at CGL. More action should be coming shortly, though, so no worries! Please please please review!