Disclaimer: I don't own Total Drama, lol.

Authors Notes: Welcome one and all to the long awaited second chapter to Noah's Gambit!

Firstly I'd like to apologize: This is sort of like a second part to the first chapter. This chapter in its entirety takes place between the Jumbo Jet flying from London to Athens. But not to worry! This chapter is still packed! Right now it is clocking in at a gargantuan sixteen-thousand-three-hundred and ninety-nine words! Which is why I want to make these authors notes brief.

Basically the chapter is how Noah plans to move forward with his blackmail, how Gwen and Duncan handle the fallout from their kiss, and insights into Duncan's past, specifically how he made it from Egypt to London! Yep, that's right! I was always super bummed how in the show they never showed how our favorite delinquent got from Africa to Europe, as well as him getting to know the band of the Der Shnitzle Kickers.

Also, chapters have titles now! The First Chapter will be renamed: The Gambit Begins! while this one will be called... well... you'll see.

Timeline Note: Total Drama Island takes place in Summer 2007, the same time it originally aired in Canada, in this story. It took place for six weeks. After a three day break (one was the Total Drama Island special, the other two were the days specified Chris told the fourteen players of TDA they had until they had to report to the film lot) Total Drama Action takes place for another forty-two days (six weeks.) Then there is a three months reprieve until the events of the Total Drama Action special, which kick off the events of Total Drama World Tour. This season is about a month in, and because we know the episode Awwwww Drumheller! take place on April 1st (thanks Sierra) let's say right now it's...mid to late February-ish? Yeah early to mid to late February-ish 2008!

And now I proudly present: Sirens of Guilt and Screeches of Doubt! First with a flashback! (again.)


(Heathrow Airport, London, United Kingdom. One hour after the events of "I See London")

Despite it being the dead of night, one of the many airports in the capital of the United Kingdom was still bustling. Throngs of businessmen were seated in the waiting area looking at the dozens of monitors to catch up on the news while rich families of British descent were scrambling to board planes for spring holiday. Workers were scurrying about to attend to various problems, and coupled with the passengers the airport seemed awash with a sea of people.

Three of them were currently waiting for their flight to Canada, all seated next to each other on the chairs facing one of the many monitors propped up high on the wall.

"Sanders, what's the time?" The one on the left most chair spoke.

"Probably about five minutes after you had just asked me, MacArthur." Sanders drawled, her eyes glued to the monitor.

MacArthur drew a deep sigh, stamping her foot on the ground. "This is so boring! The other times we did this weren't this lame. For that DJ guy we got to go to Jamaica!"

"MacArthur!" Sanders sat up in her chair used her pupils to motion to the man sitting next to them as she whispered, "Don't be rude, he's right there."

"Believe me, no offense was taken." The man spoke in a monotone voice. He turned towards Sanders, "Again, is it really necessary for you two to be here? What would I have to gain running away?"

"Sorry Al, ever since that Duncan kid ran away the network hired us to make sure each of you when you were eliminated wouldn't bail." MacArthur yawned. "Your butt is mine until we get to Canada."

Alejandro rolled his eyes, "Wonderful."

Sanders gave the Arch-Villain a worried look and put her hand on his, "Hey, I know it must be hard for you losing. But cheer up, you get to see your family again soon!"

"That's what I'm dreading the most." Alejandro grit his teeth. He turned his loose hand into a fist, prompting Sanders to flinch away from it, "But the moment I land I will find out who orchestrated my downfall."

MacArthur's brow perked up, "Wait," She fumbled around in her pockets, "I remember Chris texted me to show you this when we found you, ah there it is." Alejandro and Sanders both turned towards MacArthur, who had pulled out her phone. After she had unlocked it and scrolled through her text messages, she tossed her phone to Alejandro, making Sanders reel back in the process.

"MacArthur, you almost hit my nose!"

"Aw come on, I wasn't even throwing that hard."

"It's a video…" Alejandro blinked, "But…why?"

"Chris said it's something he made some guy named Chef, wait hold the phone is Chef actually the guy's name? Like his name is his job? That's like I was named the strongest glutes around gal."

"I am holding your phone but please get to the point."

"It's a figure of speech but all you gotta know is the host guy made that Chef guy edit together some clips explaining how you got eliminated in order for us to show you." MacArthur leaned back on her chair.

"Wow, we never had to show any other contestants how they were eliminated, Chris must've really liked you." Sanders told him in a happy tenor, hoping to cheer him up.

"Or hated you," MacArthur snorted, earning a frown sent her way from her partner, "Just play it, and let us watch! I've been bored out of my mind all day."

Alejandro drew a deep sigh, "Very well. Sanders, may you change seats with me so we can all watch my humiliation."

With both of them exchanged seats, Sanders and MacArthur were on both sides of Alejandro. After he made sure he held the phone at the proper height so all of them to watch, the Arch-Villain pressed play, eager to see how he could have possibly been eliminated.

He would soon find out it would not be a pretty sight.


Like most times, the cargo hold on the Total Drama Jumbo Jet was silent, apart from squeaks from the rats. For the past hour the large room was drenched in white fluorescent light from the ceiling. The rats, insects and even Ezekiel who had managed to sneak his way back on the plane were all there, as usual. But now they all were hiding behind the various boxes and challenge equipment that lay scattered in the massive room. At first the creatures' eyes burned to the lighting, but once they adjusted they all were fixated on the lone woman sitting in the center of the hold.

They had first scattered into their hiding places when she entered. She stood tall, though they could all detect nervousness in her voice. She kept mumbling to herself,

"You need to tell… no."

"She needs to know, I'm her friend now and…ugh,"

Only Ezekiel could tell she was trying to rehearse what to say, but to the other creatures they stared curiously as the woman seemed to be talking to herself.

Eventually she ceased speaking and began pacing back and forth. They saw her fixated to the door as her eyes pleaded with it to open. Sometimes footsteps could be heard from outside and the woman would freeze, and the creatures would see relief on her face. Seconds later that relief would turn into bitter disappointment as the door remained close.

Now an hour in, she still remained cross legged on the floor. Eyes were still fixated at the door, but the nervous anticipation that glittered from her was gone. Realization set in that he wasn't going to come, but the woman still was there on the off chance that she was wrong.

"Duncan, please."

Ezekiel's ears perked up as he hid behind his box. "Didn't he quit in Egypt?"

As the homeschooler was mulling this over, millions of questions that Gwen had planned to properly articulate to him raced into her mind.

Why did you kiss me?

Was it just to get back at Courtney?

Do you like me?

Why aren't you here?

This new question stuck out like a sore thumb to Gwen. They had agreed to come and talk because there was so much they needed to sort out! What to do with Courtney, if they even wanted to start a relationship, what to do if he told everyone what they had done.

She caught her breath as she heard a quiet rumble from the door. Her heart jumped into her throat.

This was it.

Or so she had thought.

He had entered.

"Noah," Gwen growled.

The bookworm who was standing at the foot of the opened door gave a dry laugh, "I appreciate the warm welcome."

He closed the door behind him as he walked inside.


The door to the confessional bathroom shot open as Duncan stumbled inside. He was on his knees, using the toilet to prop him up by the torso. The moment Chris had announced Alejandro's elimination the delinquent made a rush to the bathroom to deal the immense pain he was feeling in his gut.

It all started after… whatever happened with Gwen. Something didn't feel right with him. And now he was feeling that "something" was going to make him pass out.

Cocking his head upward, he cursed as he spotted the confessional camera. He hadn't used the real bathroom on the plane since the flight to Egypt and now had forgotten where it was. His face began to feel hot, not from illness, but something that Duncan had rarely experienced: embarrassment.

Memories all throughout the show that caught him in a bad light flashed through his mind: From being caught sleeping on the toilet during the Big Sleep challenge to losing to Beth in the finale of Total Drama Action. Closing his eyes, he grunted as he fixated on the particular memories that showed him at his most vulnerable:

Courtney

Leaving him injured by the beach during the race for the case, demolishing him in their wrestling match during Total Drama Action, and everything in between with her to Duncan had left him looking so weak and gullible in front of the camera. His nostrils flared as he thought about all the jokes he heard from his friends' back home when he returned from the second season empty handed. It didn't bother him then and the punk had just laughed him off. She was a bit of a bitch, he conceded to them, but she was hot and being with her gave him a rush that no girl ever did before.

But now… after what had happened with Gwen.

No one was going to see him in this sick and weak. Adjusting himself, his arm grabbed the camera from the wall and threw it to the ground.

Duncan stood up, his eyes honed on the door. Hearing the smash of the camera on the floor seemed to snap him back into reality. The pangs in the delinquent stomachs stopped aching.

As he opened the door to the hallway, he smiled, the first genuine one since he was brought back by…

Courtney and Gwen

"Shit," Duncan stumbled over and crashed into the wall opposite of the confessional, bringing him to his knees. He heaved as he clutched his head, the sweat seeming to pour out of it.

"Oh my gosh, Duncan!"

The delinquent turned to the source of the noise, eyes turning wide, "Courtney?"

The C.I.T sprinted towards him so fast that Duncan was half expecting she would collide with him on the spot and he braced for the impact. Instead she knelt down beside him and felt his forehead, "You're burning up!"

"Court-"

Before the punk could comprehend what was happening he was on his feet, being led down the hall by Courtney, "One of my biggest worries when you left was how sick you'd get being in all those different countries on your own! You barely wash your hands and-"

Duncan glazed over what she said, seemingly only having the capacity to take in his surroundings while Courtney led him by her arm as they entered economy. He spotted Tyler and Owen talking on the bench before both pairs of eyes were centered on the punk being dragged along by the C.I.T. Owen mimed a wolf whistle, seemingly thinking that the punk was getting dragged off by his girlfriend to get some "action." Tyler gave him a somewhat worried look, noticing how pale the delinquent was. Duncan was too tired to even respond to his new teammates and soon found himself in another hallway. Though he realized someone was missing…

"Where's Noah?"

Duncan thought out loud amid the sea of chatter coming from his guide, turning his head back to the economy area they had now exited.

"What was that?" Courtney ceased her monologue and turned her head halfway as she continued to lead the way.

"Er…" Duncan whipped his head back around, struggling to think up a reply, "Where we going?"

Courtney rolled her eyes, "First Class, Duncan."

"First Class," Duncan whispered to himself. Arching his eyebrows, he struggled to remember what exactly that place was. He had zoned out most the tour of the plane Chris gave them on the first episode and due to his early exit he was still unfamiliar with the planes layout.

"And that's…"

"Where the winners stay at," Courtney answered. "Myself, Gwen, and the rest of the Amazons. Have you not been listening..?"

As she continued to jabber on, Duncan's eyes widened as he heard that name. He sure was listening now, and the last thing the delinquent wanted to do was to be in a room with her right now, not until he sorted things out for himself. But both of them.

"Actually Court," Duncan wiggled out of the C.I.T's grip of his arm, "I'm feeling alright now." He turned to try to make a hasty retreat but Courtney grabbed his arm.

Duncan braced himself. He knew what was about to happen, as it occurred so many times. Courtney wasn't going to budge. Duncan surely wasn't going to budge either, there was no way he was going into that room with her and Gwen, and soon they'd both devolve into a shouting match. Past arguments throughout their relationship during the six-month interval between last season and this one sprang to his mind. Immediately the punk was hit with a flash of anger.

He turned to face her, itching for a fight.

Instead he was immediately disarmed.

The face of the angry Courtney that he encountered so many times was nowhere to be seen. Gone were her arched eyebrows and frown and in their place was the friendly smile and eyes that mesmerized Duncan since he had first saw them on Total Drama Island. Indeed, the form of the wrathful girlfriend in Courtney had vanished and in its place was the sight of the girl the delinquent was smitten since they were placed together on the Killer Bass.

"Duncan, I'm not going to yell at you." She took the shocked delinquent's hand and locked it with her own, "While I was mad at you for leaving, I realize that part of it was my doing…"

The delinquent couldn't believe his ears. Even the tone of her voice had changed. The shrill voice used to reprimand him throughout Total Drama Action and then some had been replaced by the cute tenor from Island. Pleased by this new development, he had forgotten for a moment about Gwen and chuckled, "You're apologizing to me? Little Miss Know It All got it wrong?"

Courtney chuckled and flicked a strand of hair back in a playful manner, "Shut up. I did not apologize… yet."

"Sure seems like it," Duncan was grinning now. He could practically hear the birds chirping back on Wawanakwa.

"You're so annoying," Courtney rolled her eyes. "Look, Gwen left in order toread her book in the cargo hold so I have no one to talk to. Heather just pouts by the bar and then there's Sierra fawning over Cody… bleah." She shook her head. "Just hang out for a little while, please? You'll most likely feel better eating food up here then whatever Chef serves you down there."

Duncan eyes grew but he quickly tried to hide them. Her mention of Gwen snapped Duncan back to reality. This wasn't Wawanakwa. He was on an airplane standing in front of the girl he... cheated on. While he no longer had to worry about her being in First Class, Gwen was waiting for him in the cargo hold so they could talk about a game plan of what they should do next. Noah had caught the both of them and was using what he saw as leverage to advance in the game. Duncan knew Gwen deserved his time after all of this and they needed to come up with a plan about Noah.

And yet…

As he looked at Courtney, he couldn't have just leave. Her eyes glittered with anticipation and the delinquent was once again mesmerized by them. He had already tried to leave once, he reasoned, and it was fruitless.

Gwen was a big girl. She could wait. It would only be fifteen minutes at most.

"Sure Princess," Duncan smirked. "I'll hang."

"Thank you," Courtney smiled. "We have a lot to catch up on." After walking a bit forward for a few seconds they arrived at the door which Courtney opened for him. As Duncan walked inside, he was stunned.

First Class was massive, putting economy to shame. In front of him lay a long red carpet that stretched to the end of the room. On both sides were golden painted recliner chairs and farther he could even spot a private bathroom. To his immediate left, he spotted a bar where Heather was drinking a smoothie and a blonde haired woman in a stewardess garb was drying off glasses with a towel, both not noticing he was here yet. Looking forward again, he spotted a girl he could only vaguely remember and Cody seated on two of the recliners to the left of the carpet. She was babbling about something that Duncan couldn't quite hear while Cody looked straight onwards in his and Courtney's direction with a bored expression on his face.

Soon the tech geek noticed the two at the door and blinked, "Duncan?"

"What?" Heather swiveled around in her seat to face the two. Glaring at Courtney, she pointed at the delinquent, "Why did you bring him here?"

"Duncan will be staying here as long as he likes." The C.I.T didn't even give Heather a glance. She gave a quick tug at Duncan's arm and they both walked forward down.

Though the punk couldn't see it, Heather was seething, "Well he better not be here too long!"

"Feeling's mutual." Duncan grunted under his breath, remembering he was under a time crunch.

Luckily Courtney hadn't heard him, "Just ignore her. She'd have been gone a long time ago if we didn't win every challenge." She gave a little chuckle before returning to her serious mode, "Let's get you some food." She pointed to a couch that Duncan didn't catch before that was near some of the recliners, "Sit down and make yourself comfortable. I'll get you something from the bar."

As Courtney went towards the blonde woman near the bar, Duncan took a few paces and found the sofa, taking a seat. As he felt the cushion against his back he let out a moan. It felt like forever since he sat on actual furniture, "That's the spot, I could get used to this…" He slowly closed his eyes, and for a moment almost dozed off.

Almost.

"Hi Duncan!"

His eyes shot open. Right in front him was the same girl that he couldn't recognize before standing tall over him. Cody was by her side, though the girl was clutching his right arm in a tight grip with hers and he had the same bored expression from before.

"Welcome back by the way, but I just have to know who got the boot from your team!" The girl squealed. "I predicted it would be Noah, so I just gotta know!"

Duncan had to blink a few times, but it hit him.

She was the reporter from the Gemmi Awards. The same girl who had managed to convince him and the other twenty-one of the Total Drama contestants to try to hijack the Orpha show. But her name still escaped him.

"Sierra!"

Courtney walked back over to the couch carrying a tray of food, "Stop bothering my boyfriend, he's exhausted!" While Duncan couldn't tell what was on it yet, the smell caused the punk to immediately start salivating and he instinctively held his stomach as it rumbled.

"I was just asking him who got kicked off!" Sierra defended herself.

"Can I have my arm back?" Cody asked in a bored tenor. Only Duncan heard him, but he didn't care to speak up.

Courtney let out an irritated sigh, "If he tells you will you leave us alone?" Sierra nodded her head happily.

All eyes were now on Duncan, he even noticed Heather turn around on her stool to face the group.

"Alejandro."

"WHAT!?"

Heather jumped out of her barstool and ran over to the group. Duncan was taken aback; she looked petrified. "Alejandro? You guys kicked off Alejandro!?"

"Awww, is someone sad her love interest is gone?" Sierra teased with a giggle.

"N-no!" Heather tried to recover, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. She crossed her arms and turned her head haughtily to the side. "As if I'm as stupid as some people to fall for his… ew." She shook her head.

Duncan was quick to put two and two together and laughed, "Who knew a bootlegged Justin could throw drama queen off her game!"

"Shut it, gutter punk!" Heather shot back, her face red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. "I was just surprised you four were stupid enough to kick off your strongest player."

Duncan could tell Courtney was about to go ballistic on the queen bee, but someone unexpected stopped her.

"Heather does bring up a good point." Cody rubbed his chin with his one free hand. He turned to Duncan, "I mean, did you even vote for him?"

"No!" The punk answered back sharply. His eyes grew wide for a moment but he quickly blinked them away. He obviously did vote for Alejandro, but he hated to admit even to himself that someone as pathetic as Noah managed to force him to do so.

Cody took a few steps back, holding up his free hand. "Yeesh, it was just a question-"

"And I only promised one of them." Courtney cut him off. She glared at the three. "Leave us alone."

Heather glared right back at Courtney, and it looked to Duncan that she wasn't backing down. He had known both girls for long enough to realize that they both hated to be told what to do, especially Heather. Telling her to not do something was a sure fire way to make her do it even if it was something they didn't want to do so initially. Sierra and Cody seemed to understand this to and took a few steps back from the impending nuke of an argument.

Though it turned out to be a dud.

"Whatever." Heather walked away towards another door that Duncan and Courtney didn't enter from.

After the four watched the Queen Bee storm off, Sierra yanked Cody towards the recliners they were previously sitting at, "Come on Cody-Kins! Let's update my spreadsheet of eliminations!"

"Oh great…"

With Heather storming out of First Class and Sierra and Cody returning to their recliners (the tech geek forcibly so) Duncan was finally alone with Courtney. She sighed and sat down next to him, still holding the tray, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize they'd all gang up on you like that."

"It's whatever," Duncan shrugged. "Heather is Heather. What I don't get is that Sierra chick chaining herself to perv-nerd."

"I know, ever since day one she has been obsessed with Cody." Courtney admitted. "I almost feel bad for him." She put down the tray on the small coffee table in front of them and for the first time Duncan could see what was on it: roast beef with gravy and mashed potatoes. Duncan's stomach erupted in rumbles and his mouth lay a gape.

"Dig in." The C.I.T smiled, proud of the choice of food she brought for him.

And indeed he did. As if he was Owen, Duncan practically inhaled the food Courtney brought for him. After a few minutes of mindlessly stuffing his face, the plate was mostly clear.

"Oh my gosh, I had no idea you were that hungry."

"Believe it princess. I hadn't had a decent meal in about a week." Duncan grinned, setting down the plate and utensils on the coffee table.

"In a week!"

"Okay, maybe I exaggerated. But when I was in London all the band could afford was crappy fast food."

"Speaking of London," Courtney shifted herself sideways to completely face him, bringing up one of her legs onto the couch while letting the other one touch the floor to the side. "How on earth did you get to the United Kingdom from Egypt?"

Duncan was shaken a bit as he looked at her. The position she was in was so… casual. The friendly smile that she was giving him the twinkle in her eyes as she posed the question captivated the delinquent.

Is she really that happy to see me again?

"After Chris booted me off the plane I landed in Cairo." Duncan began to explain, "I only had the parachute with me so I pawned that off at the bazar for some money and I used that to pay off a smuggler to get me to Europe." He shuddered. "Trip was brutal and packed with bullshit, but I made it to Greece. I washed dishes at a restaurant for a bit until I made enough money to get to London. Then I met the band,"

"The dershnitzle kickers?" Courtney giggled.

"Yeah, them. They were alright." Duncan shrugged. "They needed a drummer and since I'm kind of an expert at smashing things, I got the job. Brighton knew I'd accept it without pay if it meant I could get a decent place to sleep for a change. The bastard." The punk chuckled cynically, remembering the slime ball of a band manager.

"For a change?" The C.I.T repeated what he had said earlier. With the realization coming over to her, her eyes widened and in a whisper said, "You weren't homeless in Greece, were you?"

The punk was surprised she was showing this much concern of him, but successfully masked it, "I crashed at Maximos'" Courtney gave him another puzzling look, "A buddy I meant while working at the restaurant. His apartment," Duncan flinched instinctively, the memories coming back. "It stank like hell; his whole family was with us so we were all crammed in. I'd have stayed in Greece if I could have found another place."

While in London I slept in the bands tour bus, which was much better. It was only my third gig with them when you and…" Duncan paused. "Gwen snagged me."

Courtney pursed her lips, "You never tried to call the network… or your parents?"

"If I did I would have had to go back to Canada and wait around to do those dopey Aftermaths." Duncan snorted, "Pass. I was sick and tired of being bossed around by Cou-" Realizing who he was talking to, Duncan changed tact, "-Chris."

"But you could've returned to the game. And you came so close last time…" Courtney spoke up. Disappointment seem to ring out in her voice.

Duncan winced. Truthfully, if Chris hadn't crammed everyone in the tent back on the movie lot, where he wasn't surrounded with everyone cheering as the host announced the new season with them all on it, he had probably wouldn't have signed another contract to play the game again.

"So I can make it to the finale again only to lose in some bullshit vote?" Duncan scoffed bitterly, "I knew the Network was sending goons to bring me back but I thought it was so to do Aftermath bullshit, not to bring me back in the game. Especially when Chris let me quit originally."

"That's a good point! Why did Chris want to find you so badly when he allowed you to leave in the first place?"

"Maybe cuz the ratings plummeted after they lost their most popular contestant." Duncan flashed a grin.

Courtney chuckled and rolled her eyes, "Well whatever the case, I am glad you are back Duncan." She looked down and to the side, somewhat bitterly. "My team sucks."

"No kidding." He replied. They both cast a glance to Sierra babbling to Cody up at the recliners. "She's Izzy on steroids. And from the film lot I know what it's like dealing with Heather on your team."

"Exactly." Courtney sighed. "Maybe it's a rite of passage for all of us? I had lucked out twice before, but now I have to deal with her…" She shook her head. "The strange thing is, even though we're so dysfunctional, we keep winning challenges."

"You've never lost?"

"We came in last once, but that was just a reward challenge."

"Huh…" Duncan furrowed his unibrow, "Didn't Chris bring seventeen of us? This can't be everyone you started out with, right?"

Courtney wore a questioning look on her face. This was familiar to the usual Courtney he knew as she always looked this way when Duncan asked something that was dumb. He hated that because it would make him think he was dumb, "There were three teams originally."

"Really?"

"Yeah… have you not watched the show since you've left?"

"Nope." Duncan replied. "The restaurant never had it on and whenever it was played anywhere we were at in London I'd usually duck out quick so I wouldn't get recognized. But you said there were three teams? I guess that means Chris split one up eventually. It's not like one so shitty that they lost every challenge or something now that they're only two." He laughed. When he looked back up to Courtney nodding her head he stopped, "Seriously?"

"Seriously. They came in last basically every time and I don't really understand why; it wasn't like it was loaded with losers." Courtney held at her hand, starting to count one on every finger, "Ezekiel, Harold, Bridgette, Leshawna, Lindsay, DJ…"

"Bummer." Duncan yawned. He felt slightly bad for DJ, but didn't have any positive feelings for anyone else she mentioned.

"Speaking of eliminations – and I know they just bothered you about this – but it's weird how your team got rid of Alejandro." Courtney wondered aloud. Duncan immediately tensed up, "You couldn't have known, but he was a really strong player in the game."

"I only talked to the guy like once," Duncan replied, trying to buy time to find the answer to the question that would inevitable be thrown his way. "What was he like?"

"Well…" Courtney bit her lip as she thought. "My team has won so much, and with their being separate compartments for winners and losers I haven't spent a lot of time with him." She quietly laughed, "Gwen and I always thought Heather had a crush on him, and from her recent performance, I think we were right. But from what I've seen in challenges he's basically great at everything. Highly intelligent and physically strong. Everyone seemed to love him on his team too."

"So… a threat?"

Courtney blinked and looked a bit taken aback, "Yeah now that you're saying it… it's probably only three or four challenges until the merge." Courtney drifted off before her face lit up, "Did you guys dump him because he was a threat? Wait, no." Courtney shook her head. "He's close with Owen and Tyler… but even you said you didn't vote for him, so at least one of them must have turned against him… Oh I got it!" Duncan leaned back as Courtney slammed her fist in her palm. He had been on the receiving end of her fist before and wanted to be as careful as possible. She turned back to him, "I know Alejandro and Noah were mad at each other, and from our teams' time in economy class before today's challenge I know that Owen really likes Noah."

"Huh." Duncan said behind gritted teeth. He was hoping to try to ditch the blackmailer the first time they lost. Owen really liking Noah threw a gigantic wrench in that for a four-person vote.

"Noah must've gotten Owen to vote with him to boot Alejandro then." Duncan snapped back to his attention to Courtney as she continued, "But then that's only two votes…" She looked him straight in the eyes and asked the question Duncan had been dreading, "Who did you vote for?"

Why couldn't I just have admitted to that geek I voted for Alejandro before.

The punk mentally chastised himself, remembering what he told Cody mere minutes before. He couldn't say he voted for Alejandro now, and as much as he wanted to, he couldn't say he voted for Noah either. Alejandro also voted for Noah, so it would be a tie, and he knew Courtney would catch him in that lie. After a few seconds of racking his brains, he inwardly breathed a sigh of relief after finding a suitable answer, "Tyler. Dude is so lame he's scared of what I ate for lunch." Duncan reasoned that this could be true. If circumstances had changed and if Noah wasn't already being on his team, he would've voted to oust the jock.

To his relief, it looked like Courtney bought it. "Can't say I disagree," She replied. "Do you remember how he almost lost us the dodgeball challenge back on the Island?"

"Without wonder nerd making that clutch catch we'd been toast." Duncan agreed, remembering Harold's shining moment. Now on a roll to resolve this quickly so the topic can be dropped, he added, "Tracksuit probably voted for me because of us voting together for Lindsay back at the film lot. That's what split the votes for Al to get screwed."

Courtney blinked, "That's… remarkable a good analysis of what happened Duncan." She smirked, "I'm glad I'm finally rubbing off on you."

"Hey I've played this dumb game twice now," The punk leaned back to the chair of the sofa, putting his hands behind his head, "No problem for me to figure out what happened." Eager to change topic but also relieved he lied his way out of trouble he asked, "So did anyone else get booted from my team already?"

"Just Izzy, if I'm remembering correctly."

"Good. Chick's a whack job."

"It was from injury," Courtney clarified. "With Owen around I doubt she would have been voted off."

"Damn." The punk whistled, "Sucks for Owen."

"He'll be fine." Courtney waved her hand dismissively. Duncan frowned, but said nothing. That was something he recognized from the usual Courtney. Just casually insulting the people he hung out with.

"I'm sorry." She shook her head. Duncan perked up, surprised and turned himself so now he sat sideways to face his torso towards hers, "He's your friend, I shouldn't have said that."

"It's fine." Duncan shrugged his shoulders, trying to mask his surprise. Veryrarely did Courtney ever apologize to him, let alone for something as small as that, "It's not like he's never going to see her again."

"Actually, I heard that they broke up before Izzy was evacuated."

"Oh."

There were few people on the show Duncan could say he was friends with but Owen was one of them. He knew how much he had pined for her on the Island and saw on the film lot how enthralled he was with her. They'd had even hung out a few times during the three-month gap and had once even had brought Izzy along. Duncan found her annoying, but he didn't notice that anything was starting to grow wrong between them.

No one thought you'd grow apart from Courtney either

Duncan shook his head, trying to rid himself from the voice inside him. Turning his head to the side, he struggled to think of something to break the awkward silence that was beginning to stew between himself and Courtney, but she was the one who broke it.

"Listen, I wanted to finish what I was trying to say when we were in the hallway."

The delinquent turned towards her, face painted with intrigue, "Shoot."

"Okay," Courtney took a deep breath before she began, closing her eyes. Again, this reminded Duncan of the calm, level headed Courtney from the Island. He could see the flicker of fire that excited him all those months ago, but she wasn't overcome by wrathful wildfire that Duncan remembered during the -month gap. "Ever since the start of the season, and probably a fair amount before, I've realized I was being really annoying and judge-y towards you. Trying to make you something that you're not, bossing you around and all of that.

I've rarely asked for your opinion, hell I practically made you sign the contract to compete again without even asking if you even wanted to. And throughout the bus we took to the airport I was bombarding you with strategy and to make sure you stood close by so we would've been placed on the same team. And then on top of the pyramid when I was in that stupid argument with Gwen…"

Gwen

Duncan gulped. Courtney hadn't notice and continued, "I guess it's partly her fault to, but I did initiate it. Then you quit and I was so mad at you that I didn't even see you off when you left…"

"Courtney-"

"Please," She held up her hand. "I'm sorry I just need to finish this." Duncan, feeling dread in his stomach, nodded his head. "The point is; I am sorry for all of it. I haven't been a good girlfriend towards you for a while now." She began to breath heavily, lowered her head slightly. "I keep remembering all those times I was so shitty to you, like abandoning you when we were looking for that stupid case on the Island. I can't believe I even did that. And all those times I accused you between seasons of cheating on me with Gwen when you hung out with her. I'm sorry for all of it Duncan…"

She started to close her eyes and began to whimper, "At first I was mad after you left but then I was so scared that I might have lost you. That you leaving the show meant that we weren't together anymore or if you would breakup with me the second you saw me again. And now," More tears began to pour and she tried to wipe them away, "I'm crying in front of you, which I didn't even want to happen and," She stopped herself, trying to contain the tears with heavy breaths.

Duncan was stunned. He could see Sierra and Cody standing from afar near their recliners. The fan girl tried to walk forward to intervene but Cody quickly put his hand in front of him and shook his head where he mouthed "Don't go over there."

The delinquent was paralyzed. But it wasn't from Courtney. It was from within himself.

She's pouring her heart out and you betrayed her.

She was right all along about you and Gwen.

And now you're too much of a coward to admit your mistake.

Last time you lost the money to a geeky farm girl and this time you're going to lose her.

There's nowhere to run.

She will find out.

Duncan was overwhelmed as he was bombarded by the demons in his head. Time seemed to freeze as he felt the sweat pouring from his head and aches in his stomach, worse than they had ever been. He needed it to stop. He just needed more time to think. He needed the voices to stop.

I don't deserve to be put in this situation.

I was dragged back by both of them!

I didn't ask for this!

SHUT UP!

And he shut them up by the only way he knew how.

He kissed her.

The impact of his lips on hers jolted Courtney's eyes open. The surprise she felt soon vanished and her emotions took over, wrapping her arms around him. As Duncan felt Courtney's hair graze his head, he suppressed the voices that plagued him ever since his kiss with Gwen.

Don't think.

Just.

Don't.

Think.

It was working. As he was kissing her, the sweat and aches vanished. He felt a surge of energy and pulled Courtney close to him.

There's always tomorrow to come clean…

As the voices ceased their condemnations of him, Duncan pulled away. Courtney was blushing madly and breathing heavy, but her tears had stopped.

"It's okay." Duncan choked out a reply. His mouth felt like cotton. Looking up from Courtney he could see Sierra and Cody staring at them, but once they caught his gaze they rushed quickly back to their seats.

Courtney was lacking of speech as well and hugged him. She embraced him for a full minute before managing to reply, "Thank you, Duncan. You mean the world to me."

As she hugged him, a single voice from his mind began to screech once again about his betrayal. But Duncan shut them up with his own voice, "You too, Princess."

As Courtney leaned back from their hug, the delinquent yawned. Hearing that she said, "I guess that was too intense. And you're probably exhausted from today." She stood up, "If you want you can sleep here. I doubt you'd get a good rest down in economy."

Duncan stood up as well and followed her lead. "With Owen's farts? Doubt it."

Courtney giggled, "Sounds good then." In a few moments they were at the very last recliner at the very end of the room, at the opposite end from where Sierra and Cody were seated. As Duncan sat in the golden recliner Courtney blushed and looked downward timidly, "This challenge was pretty stressful, and last time our team was in economy, so would it be okay if I… just snuggle with you."

"Hey, Duncan's do not snuggle." He reprimanded playfully.

Courtney put her hands on her hips and gave him a sideways grin, "Courtney's don't either. But we are over international waters, so I will make an exception."

"Seems like I'm rubbing off on you too, Princess." Duncan leaned back.

Courtney got on the chair and within in seconds was lying next to him, her head nuzzled on his chest. "This will be so relaxing." She yawned. "Although I do hope Sierra and Cody stay on their side."

"Well if he doesn't I'll punch that perverts lights out." Duncan yawned, faintly remembering Cody's antics from season one.

Courtney giggled, "I would love that. Gwen feels sorry for him but after how much of a weirdo he was around her, I don't feel any sympathy at all for that little runt."

Duncan's eyes widened as she mentioned the goth.

You need to go see her.

What would Gwen think if she saw you with Courtney right now?

Fifteen more minutes, Duncan thought. He looked down to Courtney who after what she said had her eyes closed. A slight whistle was coming out of her nose and Duncan can feel her body rhythmically going up and down. She's exhausted, Duncan reasoned. All he had to do was wait fifteen minutes until she was fully asleep and he could quietly run back to the cargo hold. Gwen would only be waiting thirty minutes then. She was laid back; she wasn't like Courtney. She could wait…

But she would be waiting a lot longer than thirty minutes.

Duncan had passed out, exhaustion overtaking him.


It was a sight the bookworm wasn't expecting.

Since the first challenge of the game he went to the cargo hold to read; he always needed to do some reading before falling asleep. It was a simple routine: open the door, flick on the lights, and find a box to sit on while he read. Once he found Cody hiding from Sierra. Another time he caught a glimpse of Ezekiel. But other than that it was a pretty mundane endeavor that Noah embarked on every night since the beginning of Total Drama World Tour.

This time was different.

As he opened the door he was greeted by the fluorescent lights that had were already on. Everything else was in the place as it would normally be. Brown boxes were stacked neatly against the walls in the area closest to the door, but one could go see as they went farther down that they gradually morphed to be opened crates with various colors protruding from the top until it became a rainbow of already used challenge equipment that would never see the light of day again. The middle of the room was just the same. First it was a sleek, silvery colored metal floor but as one would go farther down was hidden beneath various challenge equipment. Yet in the midpoint between those two, there was an unusual color that Noah immediately noticed.

Blue.

Centering his gaze to his unfamiliar color, he realized it was Gwen, with the blue he recognized being the highlights of her hair. She was sitting cross-legged, staring at him. It was only for a moment, but as Noah stared back at her he could see the goth at her most vulnerable. Her mouth was slightly open and her face was painted with a look of surprise. Seeing her mascara still running mascara led him to deduce that she had been waiting here ever since he left the confessional. This was the first time he had noticed her right hand was marked by a clear pigment of crimson.

Is her hand… sunburnt?

"Noah." His thoughts were broken by Gwen's low growl.

The silence was broken, and part of the vulnerability that was visible to Noah was gone. But only a small part.

"I appreciate the warm welcome," Noah dryly laughed. He walked forward as the door clicked behind him. Gwen's eyes were on him like a hawk, but it didn't faze him, "Did you figure things out with Duncan?"

The goths eyes widened, "W-what!" She scrambled to her feet. Putting her hands on her hips she asked, "How did you know I was meeting him here?"

"I could still hear you both after I walked out of the confessional." Noah drawled. Upon hearing this, the goth crossed her arms and deepened her glare at him. He knew she was pissed at him, but how she looked amused him. Her running mascara were like black tears which stood out on her pale makeup. Coupling that with her face all scrunched up as she frowned, she looked like the splitting image of Noah's six-year-old sister. The bookworm couldn't help himself, "If you're trying to turn me into stone, it's not working." She deepened her glare. "Come on, you look hilarious."

Gwen wasn't having it, "Duncan already voted for Alejandro. What else do you want, for me to sabotage my own team or something? Because I already did that once and I am not going to ever again."

Noah raised an eyebrow. "I know it's easy to confuse me with hunky Hawaiian male models but I am in fact, not Justin." He furrowed his brow, "Why do you think I'd want something like that?"

Gwen dropped her glare, "Because… you're here?"

"To read." Noah held up his hardcover book of Dracula. The challenge had put him in a mood for some horror, "I waited an extra hour to make sure you guys had finished." He gave her a questioning look, "So why are you still here?"

Gwen frowned and huffed through her nostrils. Noah could see her fists all balled up and she looked to the side. It then hit him, "Did he not show up?"

As if saying so confirmed it for herself, the goth let out a sigh. Her hands relaxed and she slumped over a tad. Seeing Gwen in this state made Noah feel something he hardly ever felt for anyone else in the game. It was… something but he couldn't quite place it. Normally in this circumstance he'd make a quip at Duncan's expense, but a force compelled him not to.

"For what it's worth," She rose her head toward his as he spoke, "I'm sorry, Gwen."

The goth gave him a look of perplexity, as if he was speaking another language. Though like before, it was quickly gone and she held up her guard. Scoffing, she crossed her arms and turned to the side, "Why do you care?"

Noah narrowed his eyes. For some reason, this irked him. His moment of sincerity was smacked down without a second thought, "Silly me, why would I ever care about your Romeo and Juliet bullshit? But if you're done sulking, I'd like to get some reading done so I don't have to deal with Tyler acting like a paranoid weirdo around me." He gave a gesture towards the door.

Gwen narrowed her eyes right back at him, "What are you going to do? Tell on us if I don't leave?"

"And lose my leverage? Not likely." He turned around and began to walk to the door, patience wearing thin. "I don't need this."

"Fine!" Gwen fired right back. Her disappointment at Duncan's absence turned to a fiery rage that was hitting its boiling point, "You were right before Noah. You're just like Justin!"

Just as Noah put his hand on the doorknob, his eyes widened.

You're just like Justin.

Memories of who he called the "anti-me" poured through his mind. He had mostly steered clear of him when he competed on Wawanakwa, but his real dislike of the model soon grew after he had dumped Izzy during their time on at the first Playa des Losers. It was rough; he and Eva took up the job of consoling her throughout the night of the breakup.

With hindsight, Noah was thankful that he was there that night to console her. From then on Eva and Izzy became his closest friends in the game (though he was bonding quite considerable with Owen this season.) But the crazy girl revealed some dark stuff that Justin had done to her and others, which painted him in a light that was even worse than the vain manipulator that Noah already thought he was. He had to restrain Eva (which was an impossible task) from going and beating Justin to a pulp right on the spot. For him to be compared to that…

He turned around, and for a rare moment truly lost his cool. "I am nothing like Justin."

The bookworm was fully expecting the goth to launch another tirade at him like she did before. Now he had no reservations of launching one right back at her.

He was done with today.

Getting captured by Ezekiel while being trapped in the smog of Owen's noxious fumes on the bus, losing First Class despite winning the challenge, and Tyler acting like a paranoid loser around him all triggered an anger that bubbled to the surface despite the many years of sarcasm and deadpan he used to mask how he truly felt. He had hoped eliminating Alejandro would somehow unleash a well-deserved kick of serotonin, dopamine, anything, but it was nowhere to be felt in his skull. Now he had the perfect opportunity to take it all out on Gwen. All she needed to do was fire back something equally as forceful as what she said before, and the dam would give way to all the bent up frustration he had built up since Noah was thrusted upon this worldwide quest for a million dollars.

But she didn't.

As if they had completely swapped roles, Gwen gave him a bitter laugh, "Did I strike a nerve? Wasn't it you who asked me why I cared about what those idiots thought of me? That it made me look pathetic?"

For the first time, maybe in his entire life, Noah was speechless. After making his confessional earlier, only an hour ago in fact, he remembered a glimmer of the conversation he had with her over half a year ago in the aftermath studio. Now she was using it to push the metaphorical knife deeper into his ego.

She took a few paces towards him until they stood nose to nose. Looking him dead in the eyes, she ended in almost a whisper, "So why are you looking pathetic, caring about what this idiot thinks of you."

Knowing she had won, Gwen took a few steps back to get a better look at her victory, crossing her arms with a smirk. Verbally vanquishing one of the two men that were giving her so much grief this very night was empowering.

As she waited for his response, Noah was floored. Gwen had completely turned the tables on him. Yet she also managed to sap his immediate anger at the surface. Rationality returned to him, and he began to feel shame that he allowed himself to get so worked up by her. Though there was another unmistakable emotion that he felt at the moment.

Attraction

Few people (honestly only Izzy) could leave Noah without a comeback. Though unlike the feisty redhead, it wasn't through incoherent babble, but of wit. Gwen had bested him, caught him falling for the same trap of caring about self-image that he had called her out for back on that fateful day of the Total Drama Action Aftermath. Noah had always known that the goth was smart, but for her to be that smart to catch him tripping up gave him a certain feeling that the bookworm couldn't quite place or shake off.

Noah could also appreciate the physical side of her as well. When he looked upon her in the confessional, he thought she looked terrible, but now he couldn't look away. The fluorescent light bouncing off her running mascara and smudged blue lipstick looked to Noah like Gwen was a heroine in a horror film. Like Ripley from Alien, it looked like she was giving a look to the camera after just killing the Xenomorph. She was battered and exhausted yet still gave off a sexy and badass charm.

And she was waiting for his response.

He began to weigh his options. Gwen was basking in her moment of triumph. And honestly after today, the bookworm thought she deserved it. He didn't regret what he had done to her and Duncan, but it was still stressful to her all the same.

Not wanting to be completely one upped, the bookworm slowly began to clap his hands together. The once smirking Gwen blinked, "That's it? You have a comeback to everyone and now you're… clapping?"

"You beat me." Noah shrugged. "Caught me being a hypocrite, rather. We all have an image we want to preserve around people and I shouldn't have given you a hard time about in the Aftermath studio. I was wrong to make you feel like I was somehow better than you for not caring about it, because of course I do. I'm sorry."

Like he expected, Gwen was stunned by this sudden admission. He was too, in a way. He hated admitting fault in himself.

"Anything else you want to apologize for?" Gwen gave him a wary look.

"Sorry, but I don't." Noah shook his head, knowing what she was getting at. "I still want to win this game. Trust me, blackmailing Duncan didn't just save my skin. It helped all of us."

Gwen crossed her arms. Though unlike before, her face was now painted with annoyance. "Yeah, you being here makes everyone's life so much easier."

"That's so kind of you to say that," Noah chuckled, ignoring her sarcasm. "But hey, could we just talk?"

"Talk?"

"Yes," He pointed to two boxes near the leftward middle section of the room before the floor gave way to the heaps of challenge junk, "We both have nothing better to do. I want to explain myself so we can have some sort of a truce. Tyler's become a paranoid mess and your boyfriend is as averse to me as homeschool was with basic hygiene." Gwen let out a chuckle in spite of herself as Ezekiel sighed quietly to himself in his hiding place, "The last thing I need is someone on the other team glaring at me all the time."

Gwen pursed her lips as if she mulling over Noah's proposal. It took her quite a while, to the point where the bookworm expected she would rebuff him, but she eventually sighed, "Fine. We do have nothing better to do,"

Noah nodded his head and they both walked down to the crates. Many of the creatures already there had to scramble to find new hiding spots from the two humans, including Ezekiel. Noah had caught a glimpse of him running behind another crate to the right wall of the room, but said nothing.

As they both settled down in their seats on the crates, Noah placed his book next to him on the box. Being a hardcover, it made a sound from it hitting the wood that Gwen picked up on, "Is that… Dracula?"

"Good eye," Noah murmured, holding up his copy. "You've read it?"

"I devoured it," The goth, almost absentmindedly took the book from Noah's hand and inspected it. After a few moments of looking at it, her head rose to the bookworms, "Sorry, it's just, I think this is the same edition I had. I haven't seen it in so long, and for you to have it," She looked to his eyes and chuckled, "I always thought someone like you would be too cool for horror."

"Believe me, I thought it was corny and lame. And I still do for a lot of modern horror films." Noah chuckled, memories from the second season of Total Drama Action pouring back, "Until Izzy forced Eva and I to watch all of the universal monster films. Then I was hooked. I did a marathon of all the Brammer films and read the books they were based on, including Dracula."

As Noah was explaining himself, Gwen couldn't help but start laughing, "I'm sorry I just can't picture you out of all people watching those movies. I love them, but they're so cheesy sometimes. I would think you would just make fun of them all while watching it."

"Oh, I do plenty. One time during Son of Dracula I went so overboard in mocking it that Eva threatened to throw my head in the ceiling. But I've watched them enough times to understand what they did with the technology they had was groundbreaking. Bella Lugosi is incredible."

"Exactly!" Gwen yelled exasperatedly, causing Noah to lean back a bit. Her eyes widened, realizing how loud she just was and coughed, "Sorry. It's just, you're the first person on the show I know who likes these movies as much as me."

"Really?" Noah found this hard to believe, "Not even Duncan?"

The bookworm for a split second thought he had made a mistake in bringing up his name, considering the circumstances they were in. To his relief Gwen just shook her head for a moment, "All he likes is horror from Halloween onwards. Which is fine, some of them are really good, but I was never able to get him to watch any of the classics. He always thought they were too cheesy."

"Oh they definitely are. But cheese comes in many forms."

"I can see being teammates with Owen is rubbing off on you."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he has." Noah admitted. "But I still standby my analogy. You can forgive the old movies for their cheese because of the technology they had. Now with all the modern garbage after Halloween it's all jump scares and tomato juice for blood; bad kind of cheese."

"Okay, I get what you mean." Gwen smiled. "But some new horror is good. The first two Halloween's were great and the Alien series."

"Before the sequels ran it into the ground," Noah scoffed. "Aliens was basically an action movie. And the third one was just a weird prison flick." He gave a look to Gwen, "Slashers don't really do it for me."

"Kind of expected that."

"I've dealt with Izzy." Noah yawned. "I'm more scared of her than any slasher villain."

Gwen gave a little laugh at that, before saying. "Back to Alien, I actually thought the 'weird prison flick' was the best of the three."

"You're kidding." The bookworm's eyes widened. "Everyone from the second film died for no reason at the beginning, and then Ripley killed herself."

"But see that's why I liked it." Noah saw the goths face seemed to light up. Talking about this stuff made her previously sour mood vanish. She was now leaning forward to face him, holding her hands up to assist her in what she was describing, "It's so unexpected. The first movie was a traditional haunted house movie, the second was an action movie, and the third one was dark and depressing. And it showed that you sometimes have to sacrifice yourself for the ones you really care about…" Gwen drifted off, tilting her head to the side. It was as if explaining this made her realize something in herself.

"Well now you have the best of both worlds,"

Gwen snapped back to reality, "What do you mean?"

"You can talk to Duncan about new horror crap and you can talk to me if you want to wax nostalgia about the oldies."

"Wax nostalgia?" Gwen snorted. "Who are you? Chef?"

Noah shook his head with a smirk, "Couldn't be; Chef can't handle horror movies." Gwen looked intrigued, prompting the bookworm to continue, "When I was Chris's assistant, during the gap from last season until this one, he and Chef went to see the latest Paranormal Activity."

"Which one was that?"

Noah gave the goth an incredulous look, "Does it really matter? They all suck."

"Okay, point taken. Continue."

"Forty-five minutes after they left I got this call from Chris telling me to bring me to bring a new pair of pants and underwear to them because Chef pissed himself he was so scared."

"Oh my god!" Gwen covered her mouth, trying to contain her laughter. "Chef!?"

"I swear on the fifty bucks Chef gave me to keep my mouth shut about it. Which I obviously already spent." Noah turned to one of the cameras he knew was in the room recording them, "Sorry Chef."


Chris and Chef were at the hosts quarters in the hot tube, watching the footage being recorded of Noah and Gwen from the cargo hold on a monitor the host had rigged up on the wall. Chris was laughing hysterically, pounding his fist on the wall of the hot tube while Chef was crossing his arms, giving a glare to the screen.

Chris was howling so hard tears were streaming down his face, "I had almost forgotten about that, and for him to bring that up again is hilarious. Where did this Noah come from? I love this kid!"

"Fifty bucks for nothing." Chef grunted. Though Chris hadn't heard him, another bout of laughter overtaking him.


After about thirty seconds, Gwen recovered from her fit of giggles, "Oh my god, Noah. You're terrible."

"Am I as terrible as the girl who's laughing at it right now?" Noah deadpanned through a smirk.

"Okay, okay, I know I shouldn't be laughing." Gwen raised up her arms in defense.

"You totally should. It's hilarious."

"But poor Chef…"

"Poor Chef?" Noah snickered. "He'll be fine, Gwen. I watched enough of Eva's secret stash of romantic comedies to know that this will only help him in the end," He blinked, returning his gaze to the camera. "Sorry Eva."


A few days into the future, Third Playa Des Losers Resort.

"I knew it!" Izzy hollered at Eva from her bed. The two were sharing a room through their stay at the third Playa des Losers resort, and were watching the newly aired episode of the show. Eva was seething at the television.

"I will kill him!"

Izzy giggled and pounced on the iron woman's bed, "No you won't. Where's your stash of movies? Izzy wants to watch some of them!" She bounded off the bed and turned the television to the DVD setting before racing back to Eva, where the musclebound girl was stunned.

"Izzy, what about the episode?"

"Oh that's being recorded, we can always watch it later." Izzy waved her hand, "Besides, after what she saw with Noah and Gwenny over there, Izzy's gotten into the romance mood!"

Eva only grunted in frustration. She knew it was pointless to argue with the redhead once she had made up her mind. She started to duck over and get her stash of romance movies, but stopped when another thought struck her.

"What did you mean about 'Noah and Gwenny?'"


"For someone who's so realistic, I'm surprised they're using something as cliché as a romantic comedy as evidence that Chef will have a good dating life." Gwen drawled.

"Art imitates life far more than life imitates art." Noah said in a low tenor, trying to sound prophetic. "But yeah, it's mostly bullshit."

Gwen gave him another long stare. She was leaning over to look at him so closely that Noah caught a glimpse of her cleavage. Luckily she hadn't notice and he averted his eyes, "What?"

"It's just," She paused, looking away from him now, "I'm still angry."

Noah crossed his arms, letting out a small inward sigh. For a moment when he was talking to her, he had forgotten the reason he pitched the idea of having this conversation, which was to set the record straight on their "relationship" alliance wise. Shooting the breeze about horror movies was fun, but more pressing matters needed to be attended too. "At me I'm assuming?"

"Of course." She lowered her head to the ground, not facing his eyes. "But it's not just you."

Noah's eyebrows perked upward, "Well I am glad I get to share your wrath. But you're going to be a bit clearer."

The goth straightened her back, "Clear? How can I be clear when I don't even know if the guy I've been in love with even likes me back or is just using me to get back at his girlfriend!" She stood up abruptly and took a few paces away from Noah in the opposite direction. He stood up as well as she continued, "And his girlfriend is Courtney! The person who's been accusing me of trying to steal him from her ever since the second season! And I was so sure before I didn't see him that way! I told her and Geoff and everyone on those stupid Aftermaths that we were just friends!"

She twirled back towards Noah, not realizing how worked up she was acting, "And after Beth won and we all went home I still felt that. But then he started visiting me every now and then and… it just kind of happened." She deflated, hunching her shoulders over. "I thought the feelings would go away, but they never did. And then this season started and I was so determined to bottle up my feelings. And it worked! I even made friends with Courtney of all people! We were winning challenges!"

She turned her face toward a glare, prompting the bookworm to take a few steps back, "But then we just had to find Duncan in London. And the confessional lock just had to be broken and we kissed. The same guy I had been secretly in love with for three months kisses me, and you see it. And the worst part is- "

"That you have no idea how he actually feels about you." Noah finished for her. Gwen blinked, and looked over herself as if she had just remembered she was talking to someone and not venting to herself.

"Yes, and I'm angry at him for that." Gwen finished. "I've been waiting here for over an hour for him and he's not showing up." She walked back to the box she was just at and sat down again. Head to the floor, she ran her hair through her blue highlighted hair and let out a sigh, "But I'm also angry at myself. When Heather kissed Trent back on the Island, I was devastated. Now I just did the same to Courtney."

"You just said that Duncan was the one who kissed you," Noah raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't stop him either." Gwen mumbled. "That's why I want to come clean to her." Her head jerked upward, a frown on her face. "But Duncan doesn't want to!"

"Duncan's an idiot." Noah rolled his eyes. He returned to his box and took a seat. "I don't know why I'm saying this, it actually hurts me in the long run if I do tell you this, but you're right in wanting to come clean. Like you said in the confessional, if you two don't come clean about this Heather or someone else will find out sooner or later on their own. Though hopefully for my sake Duncan is too petrified of Courtney to listen to you. I do not need to deal with a tiebreaker if we lose; I need his vote."

Gwen just murmured a non-response, her head still hanging down to the floor, and a momentary silence filled the void of their banter. The goths blue highlights masked her face as she stared downward and for a moment her cleavage caught the attention of the bookworms yet again. But then his eyes widened and he looked at the whole picture of her.

He had just experienced a roller coaster of emotions with this Gwen. First they were angry with each other to the point that they almost began a shouting match and then they were bantering about horror movies. But now the anger and laughter that served as walls to guard her vulnerability were dropped. Whether intentionally or subconsciously due to exhaustion, Gwen was showing Noah how she was truly feeling at this moment. Her utter exhaustion from today's challenge added to the crazy ninety minutes from when Duncan first kissed her in the confessional led to this distraught form of Gwen that Noah never witnessed before.

He could rationalize that he was doing Gwen a favor. That by blackmailing Duncan he got rid of Alejandro, someone who could use the knowledge of her secret kiss with him for far more nefarious ends than Noah. And even if that was true…

His looming threat of revealing what they had done was still causing Gwen grief. A spider of guilt began to crawl up the back of Noah's skull. With a sigh, he realized what he needed to do to squish it.

"Look," Gwen raised her head towards him as he spoke. "We aren't friends, and I'd hazard to say that this was the most time we talked together is right now. I can't help you with Duncan. But I can make a promise," She immediately perked up, "If you promise to keep your side of it."

"What are you talking about?"

"I promise I won't tell anyone about what you did with Duncan. Basically I'm not going to blackmail you two anymore. On the condition that you never tell him that I'm not."

Gwen frowned at him in confusion, "What?"

"I still need his vote. Alejandro had Tyler around his finger and Duncan's smart enough to team up with him to try to kick me off. The best I can do is force a tie with Owen. Unless I threaten Duncan that if he doesn't team up with Owen and I to oust Tyler I'll tell everyone what you two did. But that will be a lie."

She shook her head, "I'm not getting this."

"I'm telling you right now that even if Duncan betrays me by voting me off in the end even after I threaten him, I won't say a word about what happened between you both. Even if I lose the tiebreaker with Tyler and am being thrown out of the plane I won't breath a word of what happened."

"But," Gwen looked to be in a complete daze, "Why wouldn't you?"

"If I'm eliminated, the game is over for me. It wouldn't benefit me to say anything about it. Doing so would just hurt you and Duncan. And believe me, as much as I want to get back at him for pulling my pants off of me back in season one," He paused, and for a moment let a bit of his own vulnerability slip out,

"I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have."

Gwen was rendered speechless. It was only a few moments and now she was buried under an avalanche of new information.

"Do you understand?"

Noah's voice snapped her back into focus, "I-I think so." She balled her hand to a fist and put it to her lips, clearing her throat. "You're going to tell Duncan to vote with you and Owen for Tyler next time your team loses or else you'll reveal about our kiss. But you're telling me right now that you're only doing this to gain his vote and have no intention of ever doing so?"

"Only if you promise not to tell him. Because then my leverage is completely lost and I'm in a tiebreaker scenario." Noah snapped his fingers. "Obviously you realize I can just be lying to you, bu-"

"Oh no." Gwen waved her hands. "I get it, I accept. I won't tell Duncan that you're not actually intending to reveal us."

Her eyes glittered in a mixture of confusion and relief and Noah sighed an inward breath of relief in himself. The spider of guilt was squished. But in its place an ominous voice rang out in the bookworms' mind.

Are you really risking your whole gambit just because you felt guilty?

Pathetic weakling; you've succumb to your emotions!

She could be lying to your face right now and tell Duncan the moment you're gone!

Alejandro is laughing at you.

"Look, Noah." The bookworm shook his head of the insecurities and looked back up to her. His heart began to beat faster as he gazed on her face. Beneath the running mascara and smudged lipstick was a face of something that the bookworm hadn't seen in Gwen since he thrusted himself into the confessional and witnessed her kiss with Duncan: happiness. "I don't know what your problem with Alejandro was, and I would still rather if you didn't blackmail us in the first place, even if you were going to get eliminated. But you did what you had to do to do for the game."

"Believe me, I would have kept my mouth shut about it if I wasn't about to be kicked off." Noah felt his face flush.

"If someone had to see us, I guess I'm glad it was you." Gwen admitted.

"Imagine if Owen caught you two," Noah put his hands to his face, putting on a faux nasally voice, "Oh my gosh I'm so happy for you two, haha!"

As Gwen laughed at his impression of their blonde friend, Noah felt his chest tighten. His palms began to sweat and his face began to flush even more so. He knew this feeling as he had it before, and it was coming at the absolute worst time.

Thankfully someone came to interrupt it.

"Gwen!"

Noah and Gwen shot up from their boxes and looked to the door.

Duncan had arrived.


"Gwen!"

The goth shot up like a rocket and looked directly towards the door. She knew the sound of the voice, but for a split second thought it couldn't have been him. Waiting for this long had been torture for her, and she had given up hope that he would actually come once Noah stepped foot in the cargo hold.

Yet here he was.

"Duncan?" The goths mouth was as dry as a desert.

She watched Duncan take a few steps forward, blinking his eyes to get used to the bright florescent lights.

As he approached, albeit gingerly, Gwen looked herself over. She hadn't washed up at all since their encounter in the confessional, and it was one of those rare moments where the goth did care about how she looked.

The punks starry eyed expression turned to a frown, and he tilted his head a bit to the side of her as he walked closer. "What the hell is he doing here?"

Gwen gasped and turned to Noah, who replied. "He just came here to read because he thought you and horror show would be done by now." The bookworm looked Duncan dead in the eyes. "But someone was late."

Horror show?

Is that what Noah called her? Gwen didn't know whether to look insulted or to laugh. The moment soon passed to do either.

The delinquent grit his teeth, "Watch it, dweeb."

"You should watch the time," Noah deadpanned. "Seriously, if you weren't here with her for the past hour and a half, where even were you?"

Gwen saw Duncan's eye twitch for a second, as if he was flinched. He attempted to recover, "Why do you care where I am?"

"I don't." The bookworm crossed his arms. "She does."

Gwen saw his attention to the bookworm go towards directly to herself. He tried to open his mouth to speak, and for a moment she heard his voice, but nothing else came out. Noah had thrown him off his guard, and it was the first time that Gwen had saw someone render the delinquent like this besides Courtney.

"I think it's best you leave, Noah." Gwen lowered her gaze to the delinquents red sneakers. She had waited for Duncan to come for so long, but now that he was finally here she was hit with a feeling of dread.

She sensed a pause from the bookworm. "Alright." As she heard his footsteps walking towards the door she raised her gaze towards his back. Once he put his hand on the knob he tilted his head back towards her, "See you around, horror show."

Once the door was closed with Noah behind it, Duncan walked towards her, "Is he telling you who to vote for too now?"

The goth shook her head, turning her attention back to him. "No. He did mention he wanted to see you about something, but we basically just talked about horror movies and junk."

The punk frowned, "What are you friends with him now or something?"

Gwen turned her head to the side. The tone he was using was so aggressive and unfamiliar to hear from him, "I was bored, Duncan. And really nervous." She locked eyes with him, "Before we get into anything: where were you?"

Like before with Noah, Duncan seemed to flinch backwards. Seeing that made the pit in the goths stomach grow even larger. He drew a deep sigh, "Alright, I wasn't feeling so hot after we booted Al and," He scratched the back of his head, "Courtney found me."

An invisible hand just punched Gwen right in the gut.

"She practically begged me to go to First Class with her to rest or whatever," The delinquent shook his head, pinching his forehead, "I had to deal with that purple haired chick, plus with Courtney asking me where I've been all this time I guess I just conked out."

As Duncan was giving his explanation Gwen was biting her lip so hard that she recoiled, "Alright well does Courtney… you know… suspect anything?"

"What? No?" Duncan shook his head. "Honestly," The goth could see the punk shifting his eyes to the left side wall before returning to hers, "She was in a pretty good mood."

The pit in Gwen's stomach had now become a canyon.

"Look, Duncan." It took most of her energy not to be shaky, and a rare form of nervousness began to creep into her voice. "I need to tell you something, just…" She let out a deep breath. "Crap, I never get like this." She shook her head and chuckled, "Why is it so hard to find the right words, I've known you for half a year."

"Take your time, pasty." He was now giving her one of his signature smirks, which quickly turned the canyon back into a small pit. "I've kept you up for so long, so you can take your time."

"The world doesn't revolve around you, ya know?" Gwen rolled her eyes with a smile.

As Duncan approached her ever closer, the goth began to size him up. With everything that happened in the challenge and the confessional, she hardly had a chance to truly look at the delinquent. The bright lights from above were hitting the watery sweat on his hair to create a truly blinding green light. Moving down from the top of his head was his face, which Gwen noticed had a bit more facial hair than since she had last saw him in Egypt. His signature skull and crossbones shirt was damped from sweat which helped show his pecs under the fabric. If Gwen wasn't this exhausted she would think twice but now she couldn't help but stare weakly at them.

Noticing this, Duncan wiggled his eyebrows, "Like what you see, Pasty?"

"Ugh, stop." Gwen giggled as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. They both quietly embraced each other for a moment, with the goth feeling his chest before the delinquent pulled her in to kiss her. She almost let him, but remembered why they were here and said, "Before we do any of… that, we really need to talk."

Duncan leaned back, "About Noah?"

"I guess sort of, but I mean about us."

"Oh." His voice fell to a bored staccato, as if Gwen just popped a balloon filled with his excitement.

Duncan took a few steps back, allowing the goth to begin, "I know you like to go with the flow with stuff like this, but I have to ask point blank: why did you kiss me?"

"I wanted to." The punk shrugged. Gwen gave him a pointed look, and Duncan sighed, "Alright I wasn't planning on it. But I had princess breathing down my neck and then I saw you… it just sort of happened." He crossed his arms, and shot her a sly grin, "Plus I knew you were into me."

Gwen felt her face warm up like a frying pan, "How did you know?"

"Well," Duncan put his hands behind his head and seemed to lean back on an imaginary wall. It was so odd; someone acting this arrogant would usually turn off Gwen immediately, but when Duncan did it had some unexplainable charm, "I always kind of thought so since after the show, during the times we hung out. But then I saw that clip of your show on YouTube…" [1]

"You saw that…" Gwen whined, remembering that she had blurted out how he was "hot" during a livestream. Duncan seemed to smirk over this, and not wanting to be outdone, Gwen posed her question, "So where were you all this time?"

"I told you, Courtney found me."

"No, not from this, from the game?" Gwen gave him a serious look, "I know it's only been about a month, but it's been forever since I saw you, and I just want to know, you know?"

Duncan looked back into her eyes, where the goth could already see the disappointment in them.

You're acting too much like Courtney

Gwen did all she could to throw that thought out of her mind. Duncan had kissed her; he certainly owed her an explanation of how he got into London.

Right?

The punk across from her let out a low gravely sigh, "Pasty, can we not do this now? I already explained it all to Courtney."

Despite the nervousness now ringing inside her Gwen was firm, "Look, I know you're tired. And I'm sorry for us dragging you back on the show because I can clearly see you didn't want to-

"Don't speak for me!" The punk suddenly erupted at her. The goth took a step backwards from him, and the delinquent blinked, "I didn't mean to speak that loudly."

"You yelled at me."

"Look, I do want to be here. In the game, with you," Gwen's heart skipped a beat, "Believe me I was kicking myself for quitting when I was…" The delinquent shook his head, crossing his arms. "Alright, I'll spill again what happened with me. Is it alright if we sit though?"

Gwen nodded her head and the two soon made way to the pair of boxes that she and Noah were just sitting at. Once they took their seats by the boxes, Gwen saw Duncan look to the side of his box, "Is this yours?" He questioned, holding up a black book.

"That's Noah's book." Gwen replied.

At the mere mention of his name Duncan frowned as he inspected the hardcover, "Dracula?" He chuckled and returned his eyes to Gwen, "Is he into those lame-o black and white movies like you?"

"Actually, yeah. We were talking about them before you showed up." Gwen bit her lip, wanting to just get on with it.

Unfortunately, Duncan took another hard look at the book before eventually saying, "Do you think if we hold this hostage from the dweeb that he'll keep quiet?"

"Duncan."

"Alright, I'll start talking." The delinquent tossed the book lightly over to Gwen, "But I ain't returning it to him,"

"I will," Gwen murmured as she caught it. After settling it down to the side of the box, she looked at Duncan as he began his tale.

In spite of her brain saying it was ludicrous to be so, she felt guilty in her heart having Duncan recount to her what he had been through to get to London from Egypt. Despite seeing that he was okay (she was sitting in front of him) hearing the details about him being trapped with several others on a truck and then by a boat in order to get Greece had Gwen instinctively flinched in fear of his safety. His stay in Greece, while safer, gave her proper context of how tired he was. Working long days at the restaurant only to return to an overcrowded apartment of a new friends' family where he at most got three to four hours of sleep was something Gwen couldn't think she can possibly endure, and this was her third season of Total Drama!

And after working for enough money to get to London, he had exhausted it all, leaving himself at the mercy of the slime ball rock band manager in Brighton with a choice: be their drummer and live in their bus for no pay or sleep on the streets. Even though Gwen had never seen him, Duncan described Brighton so eerily well that she knew exactly what he looked like. An overweight man with sideburns with a real affinity for unfiltered cigars that made living in the bus unbearable.

Now she wasn't guilty anymore in the slightest for her and Courtney taking him back to the show.

"And then you and Courtney found me," Duncan yawned, finishing his saga. "I cut out a lot of the rough bits when I told it to princess, so telling it again wasn't the boring."

"Wow," The goth didn't notice her mouth was open as she tried to process the information dump just given to her, "I'm kind of sorry for keeping you here with me then after all of this."

Duncan waved his hands away, "Look it sucked. And as much as I want to go to sleep on a hard bench in economy… shit, I do have to sleep there aren't I?" He shook his head, "At least I get to see you." He narrowed his eyes, which frightened her, "I'm done with Courtney. She's a total bitch and she's probably only acting like a saint right now because she's happy that I'm back. Screw her."

"I'm sorry, but I need to interrupt." Gwen held up her hands, emotions coming up. "I thought for so long after the film lot that we were just good friends. But about the time after we first met up after the game I felt something." Duncan was caught off guard by her sudden speech and the goth held her arms up to help describe what she was saying, "You were with Courtney, so I didn't say anything. And even when you guys broke up I still didn't say anything because I knew sooner or later you guys would get back together like you always do. So do you feel the way you do about me because you're mad at Courtney, or do you genuinely like me the same way that I do? Because if you are just going to get together with her again then whatever we have can never happen."

At the end of her quick speech, Gwen could see that she had basically done the equivalent of slapping the delinquent across the face. In the back of her mind she hoped for him immediately tell her no, but his hesitance made her worry for the worst, "I really like you Duncan. And I'm sorry if that scares you but this is how I feel." Pausing again, she was met with more silence, and now she was truly fearing the worst.

He had only kissed her on an emotional impulse to get back at Courtney.

Gwen's stomach was now becoming a void of despair, and the goth did all she could to fight back the tears as she stared into the delinquents' gape expression.

You were blackmailed.

You ruined a friendship.

You ruined a relationship.

All for Nothing.

Gwen closed her eyes, trying to drive the sirens of guilt out of her head. They repeated themselves into a furious crescendo that caused the goth to feel like she was spinning.

Until she felt a pair of lips meet her own.

Her eyes fluttered open, seeing Duncan crouched and kissing her. Startled, she first tried to pull away but soon succumbed to her emotions. Both of them rose from their positions until they were standing as Duncan pulled away slowly from her face, "Look," He choked out weakly, "I kissed you because I was pissed at Courtney. I admit it. But in Greece, I was talking to Maximos about the show and brought you up. He told me that we would make sense together. It didn't really click for me. But now…" He took a step backwards from Gwen, still breathing heavily. "I'm bad with this sappy shit."

"Clearly," Gwen whispered.

The punk chuckled, "Yeah, I am. But what you said just now made me realize that I'm done with Courtney. I thought I was before, but now I know I'm really done. I'm tired of being with someone who treats me like shit." Duncan began to smirk, "I want to be with you, because you said that you do care about me. And I guess I never knew how much that meant to me until now."

The goth swallowed as she gazed upon him. If it wasn't for the emotional and physical rollercoaster, she would have questioned him more. But like Duncan she was completely exhausted, and decided that this would be a more than sufficient answer.

A wave of fear and anxiety departed from her, and she walked up to kiss him again. "That was really sweet, Duncan. You've made me feel so much better after all of this. I know you like to go with the flow with this stuff, so why don't we let things happen. No pressure, no planning, no pookums, 'kay?" [2]

"See, that there is why I like you." Duncan smiled. "I know I was against it before but I'll breakup with Courtney tomorrow and tell her about us."

"Really?" The goth was shocked. "You'd… do that?"

"Sure. It'll suck. But I'd rather have Courtney on my ass then having to take orders from Noah. Are you sure though, she's going to make it hell for you on that team."

Gwen drew a deep sigh, "Yeah, I'll be fine. I already had to go through this stuff with Trent last season. I can handle being unpopular." Her eyes drifted to the side, "I do feel terrible about what we did to Courtney though, we were actually starting to become friends."

"Really?" Duncan chuckled. "I thought you two would be at each other's throats."

"We were at first, until we decided that Heather's neck felt the best to strangle." Gwen joked. "But Duncan, what we did was-"

"I know," The delinquent nodded his head, "Courtney's a bitch, but no one deserves that." She saw his eyes get distracted by the fluorescent lighting before saying, "Shit, I'd love to lock lips with you some more pasty but I'm beat."

"Yeah, it's pretty late out. Or its just late for us, who knows which time zone we're in right now." Gwen smiled, "Alright I'll head out first. You go out five minutes later so Heather doesn't catch us together or something, okay?"

"Sounds great. See you tomorrow." Duncan grinned.

As Gwen walked to the door, she was feeling surprisingly confident. Guilt was still weighing on her from what she had done to Courtney, but she couldn't be happier at how things turned out with Duncan. It would be hard, but it meant the world to her that he felt the same way about her as she did towards him. She could worry about Courtney tomorrow. Now she could sleep peacefully knowing that she was in a relationship with one of her best friends from the show.

Though as Gwen exited the room, she couldn't see the grin Duncan had on his face quickly vanished with a look of fear. "Damn it."

Gwen never saw Duncan tumbling to his knees. She never saw his stomach contracting and sweat pouring from his face as the screeches of guilt sounded through his mind. Five minutes passed and the delinquent clutched his stomach and wandered out the door to economy class, hoping sleep would rid himself of his mental demons.

Both of them had forgotten Noah's book was still on the box.


The bookworm yawned as he stepped through the curtains out of economy class. It had been two hours since his talk with Gwen in the cargo hold, where he realized he had left his book. He was secretly thankful that he had forgotten to take it back with him, as being out of economy let him be alone with his thoughts. Once he had gotten back from the cargo hold originally he was talking with Owen, who was strangely the only person in economy (he knew where Duncan was all to well, but why Tyler was missing was a mystery that he didn't bother to ask Owen the answer to.) Sooner or later though the delinquent and jock returned and after some awkward pleasantries they all tried to sleep. Normally he could use that time to review the day in his mind but Owen was snoring exceptionally loudly that night (or maybe it was day; he hadn't looked out any windows) so he couldn't even begin to do so.

And it was certainly a lengthy review. Ever since the challenge ended Noah thought he would be toast. Then in a miraculous reversal of fortunes he had eliminated his top adversary in the game while putting himself in an advantageous situation. If Noah played his cards right, he could very well make it to the finale!

Until he gave up all his leverage at the drop of the hat.

Okay, it wasn't all his leverage, but it was quite a fair amount. His promise to Gwen not to say anything and for them to pretend he was in order to fool Duncan into ousting Tyler was something Noah was still kicking himself for. He hardly knew Gwen, and she could have simply told Duncan what he had told her.

Why did he do this? Why did he forfeit such an advantage, the votes of potentially two people in this now nine-person competition?

His mind flashed an image of Gwen. Lipstick smudged, hair a mess, like a badass horror movie heroine…

"Hey!"

Noah blinked. He was at the door to the cargo hold, but someone was blocking it. They had their arms crossed and seemed to tower over the bookworm.

"Can I help you, Heather." He drawled.

"Yes," The Queen Bee narrowed her eyes, "How did you get rid of Alejandro?"

It was now Noah's turn to narrow his, "Excuse me?"

"Come on, you and I both know your puny butt was supposed to get eliminated. Alejandro had Tyler wrapped around his finger. Spill it!"

"I know you're sad that your chances to lock lips with evil-jandro are gone but I have no idea what you're talking about." Noah stayed calm, "Honestly it was a pleasant surprise to me that Duncan voted with Owen and I. Or perhaps Tyler came to his senses? Either way, please move."

Despite his best attempt at sounding sincere, Heather did not budge, "Well do you have any idea what you were doing with Gwen and Duncan in there?"

The bookworm widened his eyes and in the muted lights he could see The Queen Bee give him a smirk, "I knew it!"

"Don't flatter yourself. I'm just surprised you have enough free time on your hands to spy on me. Who are you, Sierra?" While he managed to recover from that slip up, Noah's mind was racing.

"Um, hello?" Heather pointed her finger past his shoulder. "Past there is the mess area, where I was. I saw you walk through here. Then I saw Duncan race through. I already knew weird goth girl was already there reading." She put her hands on her hips, "So what? Did she rope you and Duncan in some cross team alliance?"

Noah spat back a dark chuckle, maybe a bit too quickly, "Hilarious. Yes, Gwen has gotten someone she barely knows along with Duncan to get into an alliance to eliminate Alejandro… who isn't on her team. Also, and I don't know if you picked up on this, but Duncan and I don't exactly to see eye to eye." He held up his hands, "If you must know, Gwen and I were simply reading to ourselves before Chris's favorite criminal burst in. He came in to catch up with her, and I left. Now as much as I'd like to entertain your fanfic-y notions, I'd like to retrieve my book. Please move."

Heather glared back at him and drew a deep breath, "Fine, here." The Queen Bee pulled the black book from behind her back that Noah hadn't caught a glimpse of her holding before and tossed it towards him, which luckily he caught. "Whatever, dweeb. Just know that I'm going to get to the bottom of whatever you and goth girl are planning." She towards him, brushing against his side before continuing on from where Noah came.

The bookworm didn't have time to think of a clever quip. He stared at his book, muscles tightening. Heather was onto him, Tyler was wary of him, and Duncan wanted to kick him off.

And he had just thrown away his leverage.

Yet somehow, his nervousness didn't show. Because for the first time he was actually trying to win this thing.

And he wanted a challenge.


End-note: [1] - This is the same line Gwen told Duncan in the canonical version of the "Ex-Files"


Authors Notes: I hope you liked it! Noah is (very very very slowly) to starting to have some feelings from Gwen. Heather is growing suspicious. Tyler is distraught. Gwen/Duncan are now a couple...ish and Gwen/Noah are now friends...ish

We also found out some other information to round out this stories canon universe: Beth won Total Drama Action. For the sake of formalities, I will also clarify that Owen has won Total Drama Island in this story as well.

Also a retcon! Ezekiel has spoken in the first scene so he isn't completely feral in this version, I mean he's still messed up, but yeah.

But there's also some other questions uncovered as well:

What's with Duncan's odd behavior?

How will Alejandro react when he sees how Noah defeated him?

Will Chef ever get over the shame of Noah admitting to the world he wet his pants!?

Seriously though, while the majority of this story is dramatic, I did try to throw a bit of humor in there with the Chris/Chef and Eva/Izzy cutaways. Did you like them or nah? Also feedback on character banter helps! It's something I feel like is one of my weak points, but I think I did a good-ish job, especially with the Gwen/Noah scenes. Also feedback on Duncan! I really want to make sure I'm portraying his "torn between two sides" plot well. This chapter has been predominantly Duncan/Gwen focused but once we hit Greece it'll be mostly Noah, where he will blackmail (or fake blackmail) Duncan into ousting Tyler and stave off his new enemy in Heather. Plus Owen and Tyler will start appearing in substantial ways!

But yeah, I guess I don't want to breakdown everything that happened to ask y'all feedback on, so have a good one! :D

oh god I'm tired...haha...

-ewisko