Holes Left Unfilled

by The Holes Posse

((HOLES)) Six fans of Holes, connected through the Internet, some even friends in real life, never expected that the thing they so admired would soon become very real . . . (Written by the Holes Posse Hangout)

2. Welcome to Camp Green Lake

Author's Notes:  Welcome to part two of Holes Left Unfilled.  (Wow, we sound professional.) 

Again, this was written by Elanna, Kate, Meta, Aly, Heather, Relina, and Shira.  Basically, the Holes Posse.  For more about us, click on our profile page. 

A big thank you to the people who reviewed!  We know the first chapter was long, thanks for reading it. 

~*~

Now to answer those reviews:

Hannah:  Thank you!  We're glad you like our story.

BertieBottsGeorge:  Thanks for finishing and leaving a review, even though it was long!  We're going to need the luck what with digging five foot holes everyday! Thank you Alison!

Shae Elven Heart:  Thanks for the review!  Did Tawnia then start muttering to herself about damn big hairy scorpions, then?  Unfortuantly, Elanna had only Kate to console her.  Thank you!

Tootsie87:  We're glad you like it!  Yeah, some of the strange, incredibly random comments are spawned from equally strange and random comments on our board.  You must have some awesome friends!  Good thing you like to read, because this chapter is 27 pages long on word.  Er, the counting was a mistake on Kate's part, who wrote the A/Ns in the first chapter.  (She apologises for not being able to count.)  She forgot to explain about Landis.  And Shira.  There will be a note about that after the reviews.  Thanks!

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This is something we (namely Kate) forgot to explain in the first chapter.  Landis is Heather's split personality, who came out in the story because it is sort of a parallel to reality.  Landis is a fan of holes through Heather, so also appeared in the Holes world.  For this reason, he was excluded from the count of six people.  Another thing Kate forgot to explain, was how Shira also wrote parts of this fic, and is in it, but doesn't appear until the third of fourth chapter.  Sorry about any confusion. 

Disclaimer:  The Holes Posse does not own holes.

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"Inhale, babe, inhale...now exhale...." said Elanna quietly to Kate, who was beginning to grown progressively weaker, "We're close."

Kate nodded, and stumbled a little bit, but all seven of them kept walking. Aly shoved her glasses back up on her nose and squinted out into the distance.

" . . .  We're not far."

Landis rolled his eyes and muttered something about having to go to the bathroom sometime in the near future.

"Just hold it," Heather muttered.

Suddenly Kate coughed, and fell onto her knees.

"OMIGOD!" Elanna shrieked, and barely caught her. Heather gasped. "Holy crap," said Aly. Landis and Meta said nothing. "She gonna be alright?" Relina whispered.

Kate coughed again, and nodded, and inhaled and exhaled heavily, as if she was trying to catch her breath. Everyone started to gather in around her to make sure she was still alive.

"Give her room to breathe!" Aly commanded.

 Elanna sat on the dusty ground, and pulled Kate into her lap, looking unsure, as everyone else moved further back to allow for breathing space. Meta and Relina has similar expressions on their faces.

Landis backed up slowly, running backward into Aly and Heather.

"Watch it Landex, we already have a man down.... literally."

"Don't joke," retorted Elanna. Kate moaned.

Landis rolled his eyes at Aly, and spoke, "Maybe one or two of us should run ahead to see how far away the camp is. I got a hunch it ain't too far, and maybe they can bring her," he glanced concernedly at Kate, "back some food, or definitely some water."

Aly nodded. "I'm still pretty strong," she replied, "You wanna come? Heather?" Heather shook her head.

"I'mma stay here, Lyss."

"Mmkay. Landex, me you, and someone else if they want?" She pulled a stand of purple hair back behind her ear and Landis nodded.

"ALRIGHT! Listen guys," Aly announced to the group, "Landex and I are gonna go run ahead, see if we can get to the camp, 'cause we don't think it's too far ahead. We're gonna see if anyone will donate some food or water or whatever, okay?" Everyone nodded. Kate groaned again.

"Anyone wanna come with us?"

Meta nodded her head enthusiastically.

"Alright," said Aly again, "Heath, Relina, you two stay with Elanna and Kate. Me, Meta, and Landex are gonna go ahead. We'll be back in a little while .... I hope." she nodded at Landis and Meta, and the three of them dashed off into the horizon.

".... Hopefully," mumbled Heather, as she watched them.

Meanwhile, while the three of them, running closer and closer in the direction of Camp Green Lake, passed more and more holes, Aly was convinced she could hear the sound of voices chattering in the distance.

Relina, Heather and Elanna watched Meta, Landis and Aly's retreating backs as Kate stayed cradled in Elanna's lap.

"You okay, hun?" Elanna asked concernedly, peering into Kate's face.

"Yeah, yeah, and keep your head like that, it's giving me shade," Kate joked quietly. Relina and Heather looked relieved that Kate was at least talking.

However, they all stayed quiet after that, hoping to conserve energy. Heather and Relina sank into sitting positions beside Kate and Elanna. Eventually, Elanna spoke again.

"Hey Relina . . . "

"Yeah?"

" . . . Do you have any idea how you got here?"

"Um, not really. I was just sitting at my computer one night and posting messages on a Holes message board I'm a part of - "

"Wait, is it called the Holes Posse's Hangout?" Heather asked excitedly.

"Yeah, it is actually. How do you know?" Relina asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Well, we're all members of it too! See, we think it may have something to do with why we're here, but we don't know much about it. All we know is that we were all at the Hangout the time we got taken here. What's your username?" said Elanna.

"I post there under 'slvrfng.'" Relina said quietly.

"Oh my god, you're slvrfng?!"

"Yep," Relina said proudly, glad she was recognized. "Who are you guys, then?"

"I'm Heather," said Heather, rolling her eyes slightly. "No big surprise there, that's what I get for using my real name . . . "

"I'm CELESTRA!" Elanna yelled, who probably would have started bouncing around if Kate hadn't been reclining quietly in her lap. " . . . Oh, and this is Man here," she said as a bit of an afterthought, motioning down to Kate.

"Aly and Meta - the girls who went looking for the water and food with that guy - they're WheelerChick and Cherrykoolaid," said Kate, who was looking a bit better because of the shade Elanna was providing, but not a whole lot. "And Landis is Heather's split personality come to life here. I guess he's technically part of the posse 'cause of Heather, so that's probably why he's here too." Kate continued.

"This is awesome! I guess I kinda know you guys then! Much better then being stuck in a desert with TOTAL strangers, in any case . . . "

* * * With Aly, Meta and Landis * * *

Aly, Meta and Landis were running through the desert, not as hard as they could for fear of depleting their energy and no longer being a help to anyone, but fast enough to get them to Camp Green Lake fairly quickly.

Meta risked a look behind her. "God, I hope they're okay. Kate's already down, so the others better stay all right too . . ."

Aly took a quick sideways look beside her at Meta while she ran. "They'll be fine as long as we get them some food, or at least some water." She said. Meta nodded and continued to run, pacing herself.

Landis hadn't spoken since they left, and he was running with an almost painful look on his face.

"What's wrong with you?" Aly commented, seeing his expression.

"I still have to go to the washroom," he grunted.

Aly and Meta stopped dead, both staring at him. ""WHY DIDN'T YOU GO BEFORE WE LEFT?!?!?!"" They both screamed at him.

Landis had stopped running and was doing what only could be described as a 'dance.' "Didn't want to waste time and Heather told me to hold it," he said. "Aagh, I REALLY gotta go," he near whimpered.

Meta stared at him with a look of disgust on her face. "Go on then, there's a hole over there!" She pointed. "We'll wait for you."

Landis glared before running to the hole. Making sure nothing was living in it, he jumped down into it. Meta and Aly stared determinedly in the other direction, grins threatening to crack on their faces. When Landis finished, he ran over to them.

"Did you have a good time?" Aly quipped.

"Shut up, and let's go."

The girls almost laughed but stopped when Landis gave each of them a murderous glare.

They continued to run. After a while, they came to a spot where there were holes everywhere, except for a path that was obviously there so the water truck could make its rounds. All around them, they head voices, and actually saw shovels flinging dirt into the respective dirt piles surrounding the holes in which people were obviously digging.

At the sound of footsteps, several heads looked up over the edge of their holes. However, as far as Aly, Landis, and Meta could see, they weren't in the area where D-Tent was digging.

"Oh my god, Aly," Meta breathed. "We're HERE. At Camp Green Lake. There are guys DIGGING right here."

"Wicked," Aly muttered, looking around quickly. "Listen, we'll look for D-Tent later, right now, we gotta get water to Kate and the others."

"Right," Meta agreed. She noticed all the boys in the holes had stopped digging, and were staring obviously at her and Aly. "WHAT?!" She screamed. "Haven't you ever seen a girl before?!" She stopped, realizing her mistake of the fact that most of the guys probably hadn't seen a girl for a while. "Never mind!" She called out. The guys just stared more.

"Come on, they're staring." Landis hissed, dragging Meta and Aly by the wrists and dragging them along the path the water truck had made. Aly and Meta both glared at him and wrenched their arms free.

"Right, we gotta find the . . . the Warden." Aly said quietly. "Much as I'd rather not, she's the only one who can get someone over there with water. The Warden controls the water, you know," she said, grinning at the in-direct book reference.

""Right."" Meta and Landis both agreed. "Look over there, you can see all the buildings and tents and stuff," Meta observed. "Her cabin's gotta be around there somewhere."

"Wonderful, now we get to run some more," Landis griped. Aly whacked him.

"Well, here's an idea," stated Meta. "If we run there while making some noise, it might attract her attention and we won't have to run all the way there."

"Might as well," Aly shrugged.

They took off running towards the cabin, screaming their heads off, much to the bewilderment of the watching diggers, who after all, had no idea who the strange people were, how they got there, or what it was they were whispering about.

* * * In the Warden's cabin * * *

Louise Walker (According to the IMDB  [International Movie DataBase] , 'Louise' is the Warden's real first name) was having a heated discussion with the two head counselors at her 'camp.'

"This is not working out," she hissed at Mr. Sir and Mr. Pendanski. "There aren't enough diggers in this camp to find whatever treasure Barlow hid out here. Too much desert, not enough campers! Why haven't you come up with anything yet?!"

Pendanski stepped forward. "I told you already, you should accept more campers so they cou - "

The Warden whirled around, coming dangerously close to slapping him. "And I told you already - - if we accept any more campers, the AG is going to get suspicious. They think this is just a detention centre, they have no idea what we're really doing here, and I do not plan on tipping them off. We need more diggers, but the AG can't know about them or else he'll call up an investigation wondering why we want more delinquents on our hands . . . "

All three of them were silent for a minute until they heard cautious knocking on the door of the cabin. Frustrated, the Warden called, "Come in!"

One of the counselors from another tent poked his head in. "Sorry to bother you, Ms. Walker, but there are three screaming kids out there saying they need to speak to the Warden . . . "

Louise Walker was a clever woman, and already, a plot was beginning to form inside her head. She grinned dangerously. "Send them in."

*   *   *  Somewhere in the desert *   *   *

"Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow."

"Elanna, hun, do you wanna shut up?" Kate asked, squinting up at her.

"My neck hurts," Elanna muttered. "Can I sit up?"

Kate laughed a little and Heather shook her head. Relina just rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you can." Heather said.

"I'll be strong and brave the sun." Kate said, and pushed herself up a little. The sun hit her unexpectedly; full force, and her vision blurred and became oddly soft and white around the edges.

"Kate? You okay? You're kinda pale all of a sudden." Heather asked. She looked at Elanna, who shrugged. Relina looked down at Kate and tilted her head sideways.

"Oh. Okay. Really don't feel good." Kate said suddenly. She swallowed.

"Breathe, just breathe, okay babe?" Elanna said. "In, out. Come on, you can do it."

"You puke on me and I'll be forced to hurt you." Heather said calmly. Relina gave a small smile and nodded.

"Okay. Sorry." Kate said quietly.

"Don't apologize." Elanna said immediately.

"Sorry." Kate said automatically.

"KATE!" Elanna yelled.

"Ow. Sorry.  Easy on the migraine. I mean, no, I'm very un-sorry." Kate whispered.

"Way to yell." Heather said to Elanna.

Relina laughed at the randomness of that statement. "I agree."

Elanna nodded, looking down at Kate who had her eyes squeezed shut.

"They'd better hurry."

*   *   * Back to the guy and girls storming Camp Green Lake *   *   *

"Is it just me, or is this just a little too easy?" Aly asked as she, Meta, and Landis were led by a counselor to the Warden's cabin.

"Maybe the Warden isn't really that bad," Meta suggested, earning a strange look from the counselor.

Landis shushed her and shook his head. "Are you kidding?" He whispered. He took on a really high squeaky voice. "Excuse me?"

Aly grinned and Meta giggled. As the counselor was a few steps ahead, he hadn't heard the quiet imitation.

"So what exactly are we going to say?" Landis asked. "We just suddenly appear out of nowhere in a desert and think to look for a camp?"

"And the problem with that is ..........." Aly asked.

"Well, come on, we have to find a reason to be in the desert," Landis explained.

"Other then wanting to pee in holes," Meta added, grinning at Landis.

"Shut up!" Landis said quickly, turning slightly red.

Aly laughed, but shook her head. "As much as I hate to admit it, Landex is right."

"Ha!" Landis grunted.

"How about we were on a plane, but it crashed in the middle of the dried lake? And we walked here. No way are they actually going to go out and search for a plane wreck," Aly suggested.

"Sure, why not." Meta shrugged.

"Okay, we were on a plane to where?" Aly asked.

"Uhm. Austin?" Meta said. "It's the only place I know in Texas."

"Fine. We were all on a plane to Texas, from whatever places we're actually from to explain our different accents."

The girls nodded.

"Hurry up, the Warden hasn't got all day!" the counselor said as he held open the door to her cabin.

"Jeez. We're coming. Chill." Aly muttered. The counselor glared at her.

"Well, we are!" Meta added. Landis rolled his eyes.

Aly, Meta, and Landis were quiet as they entered the Warden's cabin. After hours wandering the desert in the hot sun, the blast of the air conditioning made goose bumps appear on all of them.

 "Here are the children," said the counselor.

"HEY! We're NOT children! We're - " began Landis, until Aly clapped her hand over his mouth.

"Hello," said the Warden, in a cool, calm voice. "And what are two young women and one young man doing in the middle of a desert?"

"Well, we were on a plane, going to Austin, to visit, um, our grandparents . . ." began Meta, stumbling slightly as she said the story.

"Yeah, we're, uh, cousins!" Aly added to cover the silence. Becoming 'cousins' wasn't part of the original plan, after all. "But the plane crashed in the middle of the desert."

"We saw this ... place ... from a distance, and decided to walk here."

"Yeah, we were walking for hours and hours and hours and hours. I had to pee in a hole!" Landis exclaimed excitedly.

"Our other, er, cousins are still out there. One of them collapsed on the way here, and the others stayed behind to watch her."

"Alright. We will go out to get your cousins. You will lead us," said the Warden curtly.

"Okay."

*   *   * Back with Kate, Elanna, Relina, and Heather *   *   *

Three hours had passed, and the sun was still fairly bright. The four girls were beginning to get worried . . . . Make that three girls. Kate had fallen asleep, but Elanna, Relina, and Heather were as alert as ever.

"Where are they?" Heather asked.

"I don't know. I wish I knew," Relina responded. There was a little bit of hopelessness in her voice.

For the next few minutes the girls stayed quiet, listening to Kate's ragged breaths. They seemed to have made a silent pact that no one would talk unless absolutely necessary. Their throats were extremely dry, and it was hard to swallow, let alone put together a coherent sentence.

"Wait .... what's that?" Elanna asked. A fleck of moving light had appeared on the horizon. They heard a little noise, but couldn't figure out what it was. As the fleck of light drew closer, they could hear their own names being called.

"ELANNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAA! HEEEEEEEATTTTTTTHERRRRRRRRR! RELLLLLLLINNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!"

The three girls who were awake mustered up their energy and called out, in unison, "ALY?? META?? LANDIS??" This caused Kate to wake up, screaming.

"AUUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Sometime in the next few minutes, Aly, Landis, and Meta came running over to them, trailed by the Warden, Mr. Sir, Pendanski, and the counselor who had taken them to the Warden. The Warden's Cadillac as well as the water truck was parked on hand. Pendanski held a flashlight, and accidentally shined it right in Kate's eyes.

"OW!!! OW!!! STOP IT!" she yelped.

The counselor helped Kate up, and helped her walk a bit. As they approached some holes, the Warden spoke. In a nasty voice, she said, "You all will be staying in D-Tent. It's the largest. Mr. Sir here will put in new bunks for you tonight. You will be given orange jumpsuits, and you will wear them. Pendanski will explain what you are going to do. Right now, I suggest you conserve some energy. You will be waking up early tomorrow, at four o'clock."

"What? Why?" said Landis innocently. He knew perfectly well why they were waking up that early, but didn't want to advertise it.

"Excuse me?" said the Warden. This caused Meta and Aly to giggle, as they remembered Landis' impression form earlier. "I didn't say you could ask any questions. Welcome to Camp Green Lake."

The Warden surveyed the desert as Mr. Sir, Mr. Pendanski and the other counselor saw to it that everyone received water and some food. Mr. Pendanski had moved Kate off of Elanna's lap, and Elanna took the chance to stand gratefully. The other counselor hurriedly offered her water while the others crowded around Kate. Elanna gulped it, along with the food, and was going to join the others before Aly, Meta, and Landis circled around and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"Before the Warden took us here, we had to give her an excuse for why we're in a desert. So as far she knows, we're all cousins who were flying on an airplane to Austin to visit our grandparents, but the plane crashed and we walked here," Aly whispered.

"Sounds good. You must have been on the spot to think that up that quick," Elanna whispered, looking around.

"Kinda. But we gotta tell the others before they question them!" Landis hissed.

"Um, okay. Gotta think . . . I know. I'll distract Pendanski and you guys tell 'em quick." Elanna decided quickly.

"Nice," Meta commented. "All right . . . why are you shuddering?"

"I'm shuddering in disgust. I can't stand Pendanski, I never could. But anyways . . . "

Landis, Aly, and Meta crept behind the water truck towards the group while Elanna strolled determinedly up to the short, annoying counselor.

"Hi! What's your name?" She asked in a falsely cheery voice. Damn, was she proud of her acting skills . . .

"My name is Mr. Pendanski. Three easy words, pen, dance and key! What can I do for you?"

Elanna almost twitched because of how much she wanted to roll her eyes at the counselor. Inwardly though, she was amazed that he looked just like he did in the movie . . . Waving that thought aside, she did thumbs up to the others who were in the midst of explaining their hasty lie.

"I was just wondering . . . What did that Warden woman mean?"

"Oh, everything will be explained when we get back to the camp." Pendanski said hastily. Elanna peered over his shoulder and saw Aly signaling that everyone now knew the story. The Warden took that opportunity to walk by Mr. Pendanski.

"I wasn't kidding when I said we had to get going. And," She pulled Pendanski away from the blonde, who was being joined by her companions, "and I need time to think of a lie to count as a reason for those kids having to stay here. I don't believe their grandparents story because we would have seen the plane and the plane crash, but I don't particularly care about that as long as we have some extra kids digging up treasure." She tapped her cap, and moved away.

"All right!" She called. "You four," she pointed to Aly, Kate, Meta and Heather, "Will ride back with me in my Cadillac. The rest of you," she motioned in Elanna, Landis, and Relina's general direction, "will go back in the water truck. When we get there, I'm going to explain to you exactly why you need to stay here and dig holes, as well as the rules."

*    *    * At the camp *    *    *

Once everyone arrived at the camp, they were forced by Mr. Sir to assemble in a line facing the Warden, Mr. Pendanski and himself. The other counselor left to do rounds with the water truck.

"What are we doing in this line? I thought you told us to leave so we can get ready for digging." Landis said, doing his 'innocent' impression.

The Warden raised an eyebrow. "Don't you want to know why you're staying here?"

The girls all looked at each other, wondering why the Warden possibly wanted to keep them here and make them dig holes when they hadn't done anything. Landis, however, who was treating the whole thing as a joke, just shrugged and said he didn't care, really.

"Excuse me?"

Landis straightened, suddenly remembering the danger. He shook his head.

The Warden nodded, "Thought so." She began to pace up and down the line, scrutinizing each of them, while Mr. Sir left to do who knows what.

"You will be digging here," she started suddenly, "because you are trespassing on private property."

The girls and Landis gave a cry of protest, which died out as the Warden gave them all a deadly glare. "Do not pretend you're not guilty. I know you are lying about you all being cousins and visiting your grandparents with the plane crash and all. Don't you think we would have noticed a plane crash? And wouldn't you be with the pilots and other passengers? But I don't care about that. I don't care how you got here, or why you're here. Just know that because you are here, and because you lied about it, you will be serving time here. I trust you've figured out this is a detention camp?"

The girls and Landis started protesting again.

"It's not our fault we ended up here!"

 "How could we know this whole desert was your private property?!"

 "You can't just make us dig holes!"

 "Isn't this place for guys only?!"

"Shut up." The Warden said it quietly, but everyone stopped talking immediately. "The fact that you lied to the people who most probably saved your lives shows you all must have delinquent tendencies. Luckily, or unluckily for you, this happens to be a place where those tendencies are fixed. Now, each of you give me your names. Your real full names," she glared.

Hesitantly, each of the seven gave their names. The Warden smiled craftily. "I will be contacting the necessary officials about your actions of trespassing and lying to the superiors. Your parents will also be notified." In truth, the Warden had no intention of contacting anyone, but it felt so good, to her, when each of the girls (and guy)'s faces shone with anxiety.

"Mr. Pendanski will explain to you everything you need to know." The Warden turned on her heels and marched to her cabin. As they watched her go, they started whispering.

"Oh my god, I can't believe I'm being sent to a detention camp!"

"I can't believe I'm being sent to a fictional detention camp . . ."

"My parents are going to freak when they get the call . . ."

"My English teacher warned me things like this would ruin my résumé when I'm older!"

"SHUT UP, ELANNA! This isn't the time for your English teacher . . . "

"We have to dig holes, that sucks . . . "

"Is the Warden allowed to make us stay here?"

"Yeah, I mean, can those charges really be used against us?"

"This is unfair, they can't just make us stay here!"

"Yeah, we're supposed to go see our grandparents!"

"That was the lie Landis, remember?"

"Oh yeah . . ."

"D-Tent better be as good as I imagined if we have to actually dig holes while we're here . . . !"

Mr. Pendanski stared at the chattering group. "Ahem." He tried to get their attention, but they either ignored him or just couldn't hear him. Probably the former by the obvious way a certain blonde was glaring at him without acknowledging him . . .

"AHEM! Boys and girls!" He tried again. The group stopped chattering, looking at him with either mild interest or loathing.

"Now, I am going to explain the rules at this camp. Listen closely." Elanna rolled her eyes and Kate punched her lightly, grinning slightly.

"You will be digging one hole each day. The holes will have to be five feet wide, and five feet deep. Your shovel is your measuring stick, so you will need to be able to lay it flat down at the bottom of the hole in every direction. We won't be out there with you watching you dig except to bring you water and lunch, so the longer you take, the longer you'll dig and have to stay out there. Understand?" He waited for everyone to nod before continuing.

"You will be given two orange jumpsuits, one of which you will change into as soon as we get you settled in the tent. The first set will be your work set, and you will change out of it once done digging, and into your second set, which will be your relaxation set. This process will be continued for three days, then we will wash your dirty work set and you will dig instead in your relaxation set. On this day, you will be given a clean set of relaxation clothes. You will have the opportunity to shower each day. There's only one temperature, which is cold, and the showers only last four minutes. For you girls, we have a special shed behind the Warden's cabin that you can use to shower. Also, you will be provided with hats and canteens, as well as a crate for any things you might have."

The girls and Landis nodded, each one smiling slightly because of all the times they read speeches similar to this one - - from Holes itself.

Mr. Pendanski turned red and started to stutter. "If - if there's any - any per-personal feminine hy-hygiene issues, you can speak to the Warden about it."

"Yeah, the Warden would know, because it seems like she's on permanent PMS," Kate cracked silently to the group. The whole group worked very hard at concealing their grins.

"Now, the Warden says you're all supposed to be in D-Tent," Pendanski continued, "Or for me at least to be your counselor, but you all can't fit in the tent, so I'm going to see if you girls can get a private tent to share, and you," he pointed to Landis, "will just go into the guys tent. You'll all be in D-Tent though, we haven't got counselors to spare in any case . . . "

Mr. Pendanski turned away. "You seven, stay by the shower stalls. No, there's no one in them," he said, seeing some of the looks the girls gave him. "I've got to go see the Warden about erecting a separate tent for the girls, but if I find out that one of you has moved while I'm gone . . . Anyways, no one will be finished yet, but once the rest of D-Tent is finished digging, you can meet them."

Mr. Pendanski jogged off to the Warden's cabin. After he had left, the six girls began cheering. "OH YEAH!!! WE'RE IN D-TENT! THIS ALMOST MAKES UP FOR US BEING FORCED TO DIG!!!"

Elanna was shivering in anticipation. "I'm gonna meet Zero . . . and Stanley . . . and Squid and Zigzag and Magnet and X-Ray and Armpit . . . I can't believe this . . . "

"Calm down Elanna, do we need to instruct ya how to breathe?" asked Relina, grinning in spite of herself.

After similar reactions from each of the girls (including a "BOO-YAH! I'M MEETING THE HISPANIC BUDDY!" from Aly), they all calmed down a bit. Landis was a bit peeved seeing as the only other female beside the ones he was with already was the Warden.

Further away, Mr. Pendanski had told the Warden about how the girls would need a separate tent. She had agreed, and in no time, Mr. Sir had been able to erect a tent roughly the same size as all the others, and located a little behind D-Tent. From the storage room, seven cots had been brought out, and six of them were placed into the newly erected girls tent. Over the tent's door flap, a piece of cardboard with a hastily scribbled 'D2' hung to identify the tent. The seventh cot had been placed inside the original D-Tent.

" - but I don't see why you had to put them all in my tent, Louise!" Mr. Pendanski was complaining.

"You want to know why? Because you're the only counselor who'll actually treat the girls decently, and no one at all in D-Tent was put away for harassment or anything, that's why. As far as everyone else knows, these girls are criminals too, but I still will not have girls being treated badly here for any reason. Oh, and there's one more reason."

"What's that?"

"Because I said they were going into D-Tent, you pig. That should have been good enough reason."

"Yes Ma'am."

"Now go give those girls and their guy-friend their jumpsuits, canteens and hats. Mr. Sir and I'll find blankets, pillows and crates and all that other crud."

"Yes, right away."

The Warden watched as he scurried back to Mr. Sir's office to retrieve the jumpsuits and what not. "Didn't even have to call the AG," she smirked.

******************

"So now what?" Meta asked as the girls sat on their cots. Their orange jumpsuits, canteens, boots, and hats sat in their crates, seeing as they really didn't have anything else to put in them. Landis sat next to Heather on her cot.

"Well, I guess we put on our famous sexy orange jumpsuits," Kate suggested with a smile.

Elanna shrugged. "Well, lets see how the jumpsuits look on girls." She stood up. "Alright crazy hair guy, out. OUT!!" She yelled pointing at Landis. "NO WAY I'm I changing in front of you!"

Landis rolled his eyes and walked out of the tent mumbling something about crazy girls.

The girls grabbed their jumpsuits, and after stripping down to their underwear and bras, pulled on the thick orange fabric.

"Uh. Are we supposed to wear our t-shirts underneath?" Relina asked.

Aly shrugged. "I don't know. I think the original D-Tent boys wore white t-shirts and undershirts, but that's gotta be hot wearing a black t-shirt like mine under one of these things." she said, gesturing to her jumpsuit.

"Well, I'm not going to. It's going to be way too hot." Kate groaned. Elanna nodded. "Me either."

After putting their clothes back in the crates, the girls lay back on their cots.

"These ....... things ....... are ........ so .............. uncomfortable!" Heather grunted as she tossed and turned trying to get comfortable. A knock on the metal pole supporting the front of the tent signaled Landis' return.

"You girls done stripping in there?" he asked as he timidly peeked in the flap.

"Oh shut up." Aly groaned, and threw her pillow at him. He caught it and sat at the end of Aly's cot.

There were six cots in two rows of three in the D2 tent, each row against the wall. From the far end were Kate, Elanna, and Meta, then on the other side from the far end Aly, Heather, and Relina. The crates were all piled at the far end between the rows.

Elanna's jeans fell from her crate to the floor, and she got up to put them back. Picking them up from the floor, she idly folded the fabric to shove it into the crate. Her fingers met a bulge in the back pocket. "What the heck?" she muttered, and sat down on her cot with the jeans. Kate went and sat beside her.

"What is it?" Kate asked.

Elanna pulled the rectangular object from her pocket. It was her sketchbook. She grinned, and flipped through it. She and Kate saw pictures of different Holes characters, and other random people and things.

"Like drawing much?" Relina commented as she came and also sat on Elanna's cot.

"Just a bit." Elanna said with a smile. She shoved the sketchbook, pencil, and eraser into one of the many pockets of the orange jumpsuit for looking at later.

"Hey, incoming Zero!" Meta said in a loud stage whisper to the rest of the tent.

This calm comment was met with six people jumping up and running to the entrance to the tent with various choruses of, "What? Where?!" and "Oh my god!" Aly pushed everyone back from the entrance and gave everyone a little 'D-tent' pep talk.

"Alright, you know the story of how we got here. Stick to it. And remember that they might not be exactly like they were in the book slash movie. And remember that you DO NOT KNOW THEM!" Aly said quickly.

The rest of the group stared at her, then Kate and Elanna simultaneously saluted her and said, "Yes, Ma'am!" Everyone else rolled their eyes and turned back to the entrance.

There was unmistakably Hector 'Zero' Zeroni, walking with his head down and his shovel over his shoulders. Elanna inhaled her breath for a girlish squeal, but Kate discretely elbowed her hard in the ribs.

Landis grabbed Heather and Aly's arms and pulled them a little ways back into the tent. "Don't you think it might look a little suspicious if we're all staring at the kid in awe?" Aly and Heather nodded, and sat down on their cots. Landis crossed his arms and leaned against the crates.

Kate, Elanna, Relina, and Meta watched from the tent flap as Zero put his shovel away and walked towards D Tent. Then he stopped and looked at the new tent with the hastily scribbled 'D2' with wide eyes. Slowly, the girls watching from the entrance of the tent filed out, and Aly, Heather, and Landis followed.

"Hi." Aly said.

*   *   * A little beforehand *   *   *

Hector Zeroni pulled himself, with some effort, out of his recently finished hole. He took off his green bucket hat and shook it free from excessive dirt that had piled on it throughout the day. Putting his hat back on, he dusted of his dirty jumpsuit before spitting in his hole.

"You done, Zero?" Stanley called from his hole, which was a little bit more then halfway done. Zero nodded before walking over to where Stanley was digging.

"I'll wait for you in the tent," he said quietly.

Stanley smiled slightly. "You may have to wait a while, I'm not even close to finishing."

Zero just shook his head, smiling slightly. He turned, picked up his shovel, which was still lying by his hole, and slung it over his shoulder. Grimacing slightly at prospect of the long walk in the hot sun ahead of him, he began to walk back to the camp.

As he walked, he recalled what Stanley had taught him the day before. Almost unconsciously, he spelled out some simple words for practice.

Soon enough, he arrived at the camp compound. Just like every other day, the grounds were empty and devoid of campers, as all the other campers were still out in the desert digging their holes. That's what happens when you're a fast digger . . .

Zero walked over to the shed marked 'Library' and placed his shovel inside it. As he turned around, closing the shed's door, he caught sight of Mr. Pendanski running towards him. He flinched, wondering if the man was going to taunt him again, as he did sometimes when Zero was the only camper in the grounds.

 Zero stayed where he was and waited for Mr. Pendanski. He caught up at last, puffing heavily.

"I thought I saw you finishing," he panted.

Zero remained silent.

"Well, don't you have something to say?"

Zero was quiet, staring at Mr. Pendanski, his eyes expanding as though challenging him to say something intelligent, for a change.

Mr. Pendanski did not meet him for his challenge, however, and said instead, "We have a few new campers that are going to be a part of D-Tent. They're over by the tents now, why don't you go greet them?" He didn't even wait for an answer before jogging off. Zero stared after him for a moment before heading towards the tents.

Zero wasn't really concerned about the new campers. He had seen campers come and go. Camp Green Lake was just a routine, something that happened over and over again. Sleep. Dig. Eat. Sleep. Dig. Eat. It ran on a continuous loop. Even when new campers came, they adjusted quickly, and the loop would start over again, only maybe with a different face that became familiar over time. Unfortunately, it was home to him, but in the end, it was all pointless.

'Well, not always,' Zero admitted to himself. 'Stanley was a new camper, and now he's the best friend I've ever had.' So Zero headed towards the tents, deciding he would give the campers a chance. In any case, his towel was in the tent, and he planned on showering before Stanley was free to go to the Wreck Room. It wasn't safe to have a reading lesson today because of the new campers . . .

When he came in sight of the tents, he started, and looked hard. His eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him - - there was one more tent, stationed slightly behind D-Tent. He squinted, and inspection revealed a piece of wood, or cardboard, with a capital 'D' and a '2.'

'D2?' he said to himself, 'Why is there another tent? Come to think of it, Mr. Pendanski never said how many new campers there were . . .'

As he stood in front of the tent, something that astonished him even more than the sight of a new tent made it's appearance. From the second tent, six girls - - six girls - - along with one guy, emerged. Zero felt his eyes widen in surprise. He couldn't even remember the last time he had been up close with a girl his age . . .

All six of the girls were fairly good-looking. There was a medium-tall punk-looking girl with short purple hair and small, black glasses. Standing beside her was another tall-ish girl with dark blonde hair. Next to her was the only guy, tall with blonde and red spiked hair. Next to him was a short girl with brown hair. Two girls were standing close to each other, each tall. The one with light brown hair pulled back into a ponytail was an inch or so taller then the other girl, who had wavy long goldish-blonde hair that frizzed out in some places. A little behind them was the shortest girl, with shiny black hair, and looked to be the youngest. All seven of the group were wearing the trademark orange jumpsuits, identifying them as indeed being the campers Mr. Pendanski had mentioned.

"Hi," said the girl with purple hair.

*   *   * Back to present *   *   *

Ever since Aly had broken the silence with that one single word, everyone instantly became silent, and the air around them was tense. The girls and Landis all looked at each other, than to Zero, than back at each other again. No one really expected Zero to answer. because not only was he known for his silent reputation, but his eyes were growing wider and rounder by the minute. In fairness to Zero, he recovered quickly, and actually acknowledged he had heard her.

"Hi," he whispered almost inaudibly. Mr. Pendanski really should have told him just how many campers there were, and mentioning the fact that almost all of them were girls in a desert full of guys would have been nice as well . . .

"Say something," Heather urged Elanna.

"What?! Why do I have to say something?!" Elanna whisper-shouted, suddenly becoming out-of-character by being shy.

"Because you're the outgoing one with the obsession with Zero, that's why!" Meta hissed quietly so that Zero wouldn't be able to hear, and she urged Elanna forwards.

" . . . "

" . . . "

". . . "

". . . "

"Now would probably be a good time to say something, wouldn't it?" Elanna said, mostly to Zero. Zero grinned slightly and looked away. Behind Elanna, the other Holes Posse Hangout members looked on expectantly.

"Are you part of D-Tent?" Elanna asked at the same time as Aly and Kate, who were all trying to put emphasis on making it look like they had never seen Zero before.

Normally, Zero wouldn't have answered a question like that and would have just kept his silence, but that didn't seem like the thing to do when all the girls were looking at him like that. So, he nodded yes.

"Oh, cool!" Elanna said, pretending to look like this was new information to her. "So, what's your name?"

Zero looked at his feet. "Are you all supposed to be the new campers for D-Tent?" he asked instead of answering. Normally, he didn't like asking questions. But seeing seven new campers at once, six of them girls, had definitely peaked his curiosity. He didn't think he'd mind them asking questions so much as long as his questions got answered, and boy did he have a lot of them . . .

"Um, yeah, we're the new campers," Relina muttered, also looking at her feet.

There was more silence, in which Meta again hissed not so quietly at Elanna to talk more. Blushing, she complied.

"Um, if you want to come sit down, we can introduce ourselves and stuff . . . I mean, we might as well do it soon if we're gonna be in the same tent . . . I mean, we're gonna have to learn eventually . . . I mean . . . yeah, we'll explain . . . "

"Elanna . . . sweetie . . . you can stop talking now . . ." Kate spoke, grinning at the girl's embarrassment.

"Yeah, I think I'll go in the tent. You guys can come if you want," she turned and walked into the tent. Literally. By mistake, she walked into the wall of the tent rather then through the flap. She bounced off the canvas and landed on her butt amidst laughter from the others.

" . . . ow . . . "

Zero was grinning. Maybe the new campers wouldn't be so bad, after all, they had all been reasonably nice to him so far and they seemed to be pretty fun. But he would still be careful, as you don't come to Camp Green Lake without a reason.

Kate pulled Elanna up from the dusty floor. Blushing like a tomato, Elanna walked straight into the tent without looking at Zero and collapsed on her cot. The other girls and Landis followed her in. Kate motioned to Zero, "Come, I promise we don't bite!"

Zero hesitated before following her in. He saw the blonde girl who had walked into the wall by accident was lying on her cot facing the wall. The smallest girl with black hair was pulling her arm.

"Come on, El, he laughed less then we did. It'll be fine." Groaning, Elanna allowed herself to be pulled up from her cot and moved to the other side of the tent, where Landis, Zero and the girls were sitting. Kate caught her eye and grinned at her, doing thumbs up and mouthing 'smooth move!'

"So, what's your name?" asked Aly.

Zero paused, uncertain what to say. "You can call me Zero," he mumbled.

"Oh, okay. Is that a nickname?" Heather asked, getting into the game.

"You could say that," he said uneasily. "What are your names?" ae asked quietly.

"My name's Alyssa. Call me Alyssa, Lyss, or Aly," said the girl with purple hair.

"I'm Heather," cried the girl with dark blonde hair, bounding next to Aly.

"I'm Relina," said Relina, almost as quietly as Zero himself.

"Meta," Meta grinned. "Nice to meet ya."

"The name's Landis. You can call me Landis. Call me Landex and die." Landis said simply. He took note of Zero's expression and realized that death threats were probably a little more unnerving whilst in a detention center. "Just kidding," he added lamely.

"Hey. I'm Kate. Welcome to our happy little tent. Well, actually, we're the newcomers here, but I'm sure you get the point." Kate grinned madly.

" . . . ."

"The Walking Catastrophe over here is Elanna," said Landis, motioning to the still crimson blonde. "Really, she's not normally this quiet. She never shuts up usually."

Elanna glared at Landis. "Yes, and I'm sure you'd be talking a mile a minute after walking into a wall by accident on your first impression with someone you've never met! Anyways . . . yeah, I'm Elanna. Nice to meet you, Zero," she extended a hand for him to shake. Zero stared at it. Elanna winced. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said, starting to draw her hand back in.

"No, it's okay. It's just not that many people have ever talked to me so . . . nicely . . . before," he said before shaking her hand. He shook everyone else's hands as well.

"So, do you all know each other or something?"

"Um, kind of." Heather answered uneasily.

"Um . . . how did all seven of you get into Camp Green Lake at once? Especially you girls? This place is supposed to be for guys . . . " Zero was surprised by how curious he was.

"Well, see, we were in the desert, and Kate here collapsed, so we went to the nearest building, which was this place, to get her some water and stuff. The Warden gave us the food and water, but when we told her we were in the desert because the plane we were flying on to go to Austin crashed, she didn't believe us. She said we were trespassing on her private property, and that we were pathological liars because we had lied to people who had just saved our lives. So she says we have to serve time here because of it, our 'delinquent tendencies' as she called them. That's why we're all here, and serving time even though this place is for guys." Aly said all of this very quickly, hoping that if she said it quick enough, her face wouldn't betray the lie.

"A plane crash?"

Aly felt uneasy under his gaze. It was so real, not at all like just looking at a picture of Zero's eyes. She didn't answer. Instead, she asked what he had done to get into Camp Green Lake.

Zero at once felt uncomfortable. He couldn't tell them the whole truth, but he felt he couldn't lie to them either . . . "I stole a pair of shoes," he mumbled, looking away from all of them.

"Shoes?"

"I won't talk about your plane crash, and you won't talk about the shoes, okay?" Zero asked quickly, almost panicky.

"Deal."

"So, all of you are in D-Tent?" Again, Zero was surprised by the number of questions he had, and  by how much he had talked in the past twenty minutes, but he figured that the new group definitely merited some curiosity.

"Yeah. The Warden said we were all supposed to be in D-Tent."

"But you wouldn't all fit in our tent, plus girls can't stay in the same tent as guys. Is that why they set up a new tent?"

Elanna looked at him. "Wow, you're a smart kid," she remarked. Zero blushed, unused to hearing that from anyone but Stanley. "Thanks," he murmured as the others echoed their agreement.

"Technically Landex here will be staying in your tent with you guys, they put in an extra cot. But we're all in D-Tent. We're D2!" Aly yelled happily. The others nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, I'll see you guys later. I have to shower, you know? The other guys should be back soon. You should talk to my friend Stanley, I think he'll like you all. Later," Zero walked out of the tent.

Elanna immediately collapsed. "That was the most humiliating moment of my life. The guy I like most watched me totally embarrass myself, before I even met him properly! Ugggggh!" She griped.

Kate grinned. "I think you recovered well, for someone who walked into a wall. He shook your hand at least!"

Elanna shook her head. "He shook your hands too."

"Well, I think he liked us. He talked to us, at least!" Meta smiled happily, doing a mini-jig with Relina.

"He thinks I'm a moron," Elanna said absent-mindedly.

"You are a moron," Landis sniggered. Heather hit him.

"Dude, you did fine." Kate said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "We know he likes us. Give it time."

*   *   * Out in the desert *   *   *

"Come on, Caveman!" Magnet yelled. "Hurry up, man!"

Magnet, Zigzag, Squid, X-Ray, and Armpit stood over Stanley's hole. For once the five had finished within a few minutes of each other, and decided to wait for Stanley, who still had a few more inches to dig.

"Dig that hole!" Zigzag cheered.

"Shut up, Zig." Squid muttered, squinting against the sun's glare. "And get your ass digging, Caveman, we ain't got all day!"

"I'm digging, I'm digging." Stanley grunted as he measured his hole with his stick. The other boys had been waiting for about fifteen minutes, the time since Armpit had finished digging.

"One of these days we're going to start smelling burning flesh."

'"Shut up, Zig." Squid groaned.

"Done!" Stanley cried, climbing out of his hole and spitting in it.

"Good going, man." Armpit said, punching him on the shoulder.

"Lets just get back and outta the sun." X-Ray said, wiping his dirty glasses on his orange jumpsuit to no effect.

D-Tent started to walk back, passing other random groups of boys digging their holes. They seemed to be one of the first ones done.

As they neared the camp, they saw Mr. Pendanski running towards them.

"What's Mom want?" Armpit asked.

"Dunno," X-Ray said.

Mr. Pendanski reached them and put his hands on his knees, gasping for breath.

"Yo, where's the fire?" Magnet asked, raising an eyebrow at Pendanski.

"There are new campers. They'll be sharing your tent." Mr. Pendanki said when he could breathe again. For a 'counselor,' Pendanski didn't seem to be that well in shape.

"Camper-s? Plural? Exactly how many?" X-Ray said quickly.

"Yeah, D-Tent ain't that big ya know." Squid agreed.

"Seven." Mr. Pendanski said, and when he saw their eyes widen, he added quickly, "Six will be sleeping in a different tent marked D2, so only one more cot will be in your tent, Alan."

"Holy shi-"

"Language, Alan."

"Whatever. But why so many newbies?" Squid asked.

"That's up to the Warden." Mr. Pendanski said promptly, and turned and walked towards the Warden's cabin.

"Well, that was interesting." Stanley said, staring after Pendanski.

X-ray nodded. "Come on, lets go see what's up with the new guys."

After placing their shovels into the 'Library', they slowly walked back to their tent.

"D2?" Armpit asked.

"Must be the new tent." Zigzag said,

"Original." Stanley commented, rolling his eyes.

As they got closer, they saw the flap open. A tall boy with spiked blonde and red hair stuck his head out, and then quickly pulled it back in again.

*   *   * In the tent *   *   *

"THE REST OF D-TENT'S HERE!" Landis managed to yell quietly in a loud stage whisper to the occupants of the D2-Tent. Six heads shot up, and rushed to the entrance to file out as they had for the 'welcome' of Zero. 'Awkward silence' would probably have been the better term.

The original D-Tent's eyes all widened automatically as the one boy and six girls filed out.

"G-g-g-girls!" Zigzag stuttered, his eyes wide and staring at the females.

"No, really?" X-Ray said sarcastically, but he too was staring with wide eyes.

The 'welcoming silence' commenced yet again as the two groups stared at each other. This time it was the D-Tent party that broke the silence.

"Well, this was unexpected." Armpit grunted.

Everyone looked at Elanna again, but she glanced at the wall of the tent and shook her head frantically. Kate rolled her eyes and stepped forwards.

"Hi. Thanks for the rather enthralling welcome." Kate said. "It was, er, invigorating."

"Kate, remind me to make you work on your adjectives." Aly groaned.

"ANYWAY," Kate continued, with a glare at Aly, "Let me introduce ourselves." She walked down the group of girls and the guy, and pointed to each one in turn.

"This is Alyssa, AKA Aly and Lyss; this is Elanna, the crazy one." Here she paused as Elanna glared at her, obviously not happy with her introduction. Kate ignored her. "This is Landis, our only guy member, poor soul; this is Relina, also Rel and other variations; this is Heather; and this is Meta." She stopped, the fact she was actually TALKING to the D-Tent boys finally kicking in, and she grew pale again and blinked.

"And that's Kate, the other strange one." Meta added, pulling Kate back and whispering in her ear, "Are you okay?" Kate nodded, and smiled.

X-Rays leader instincts kicked in again, and he stepped forwards.

"I'm X-Ray. We're the rest of D-Tent. We just weren't expecting girls, this is a boys' camp after all." X-Ray said. The girls (and boy) nodded.

"Magnet."

"Squid."

"Zigzag."

"Armpit."

"Caveman."

The newcomers smiled in welcome, each trying to look like they had never met the boys standing in front of them before.

Aly stared at Magnet, succumbing to the Hispanic cuteness once again. "What's with the names?" she asked for something to say.

"Nicknames." X-Ray said. "You'll all get one, eventually."

"Sweet." Relina commented.

"So now what do we do?" Meta asked, shielding her eyes against the sun.

"Wanna come to the Wreck Room?" Magnet asked.

"Sure." Landis said, and the girls nodded.

With that, thirteen of the members of D-Tent walked towards the Wreck Room.

Heather couldn't keep a massive grin from her face as she plodded along beside Landis on the way to the wreck room. "Nicknames," she murmured to Landis, fighting a happy sigh, "the D-Tent boys are actually going to give us nicknames.... "

"As long as it's nothing like Barf Bag," Landis mumbled cryptically, erasing the blissful look from Heather's face and causing her to continue on in silence the remainder of the short walk to the Wreck Room.

"So this is the Wreck Room?" Elanna asked casually.

"Yup. The one and only," X-Ray responded. Zigzag took his usual spot in front of the broken TV and began his ritual of staring at it intently.

"Ah ... what's with him?" Kate asked. The other D-Tent members shrugged.

Landis rubbed his forehead as he listened to the conversations that were taking place around him. This was definitely going to test his sanity.

Kate and Elanna turned and grinned at each other, then plopped down on either side of Zigzag to stare at the broken TV. Zigzag looked slightly surprised, then a bit nervous at having two girls close to him in who know how many months, then he smiled and stared at the TV again. Behind Zigzag's head, Kate winked at Elanna. The side of her mouth quirked up, and all three stared in silence.

X-Ray, Squid, and Armpit took up pool sticks, and Landis and Heather stood and watched them play on the tattered surface of the pool table. Relina and Meta sat against the wall, watching the boys play pool also. The boys were obviously showing off to their audience, much to Landis' amusement. Aly sat next to Magnet on a large chair, and was having an animated conversation with him about music.

Stanley and Zero sat in fluffy chairs talking quietly, and the newcomers knew they were having reading lessons, Stanley most likely spelling out words for Zero to figure out.

None of the newcomers or D-Tent boys realized that the rest of the Wreck Room's occupants were staring at them, mostly at the girls. Well, what could you expect at an all-boys camp?

*   *   * At the Warden's cabin *   *   *

"Well?"

"They've got a tent, ma'am, and all the original D-Tent has met them." Mr. Pendanski told the Warden.

"Have they been accepted?"

"Yes, well, they don't have their quaint little nicknames yet, but those will come in time." he said.

The warden smiled. "Good, all according to plan."

*   *   * Back at the Wreck Room *   *   *

After a few silent minutes of Elanna, Kate, and Zigzag all staring at the broken television set, Elanna finally decided to break the silence.

"So . . . You're Zigzag, is that right?"

"Yeah."

"Nice nickname," Kate commented.

"Um, thanks," Zigzag replied, reddening slightly at the female attention he was getting.

"How did you get it?" Elanna asked, genuinely curious this time, as she didn't believe it had ever been mentioned in either of the books, original or survival guide.

"My hair. It always stands up like this like I've electrocuted or something. They were gonna name me 'Lightning' but 'Zigzag' sounds cooler."

"Indeed," Kate giggled, while Elanna nodded, both interested and impressed, and perhaps wondering if she would get a nickname rivalling some of her own in weirdness.

Kate tilted her head and gave Zigzag a sideways look as he continued to look at the TV. "Does the TV work?" she asked curiously.

"No," Zigzag responded without taking his eyes off the screen.

"Um . . . Is it okay for me to ask why you're watching the screen then?" Kate asked cautiously.

Zigzag took his eyes off the TV for a moment. Kate winced and moved away slightly, wondering if he might attack her or something. Zigzag noticed and smiled slightly.

"That's an interesting question . . . do you mind if I tell you something?"

""Go ahead,"" the girls echoed.

"A lot of people ask me what I'm doing, so I tell them and they think I'm crazy for it. But no one has ever asked why, and maybe if they did, they'd understand me a bit better."

"Wow, that's really deep," Elanna commented.

"Anyways, I look at the TV a lot, mostly just to think and clear my head, you know? It's like when you zone out, and you're staring at something without even knowing 'cause you're thinking so hard. And I sit here because I like it here, and not too many people bother me."

"So that's good, right? But if you told them that, why do they still think you're crazy?" Kate asked.

"Beats me," Zigzag shrugged. "They also think I'm paranoid, but they'll come around when they realize the lizards really are the leaders behind this operation."

Zigzag said this so seriously that Kate and Elanna didn't dare argue.

"Besides, I don't care what they think. I can fight 'em if want," Zigzag said suddenly, obviously trying to make it sound like he fought often, as though to impress the girls. Kate and Elanna both grinned.

"Wicked."

While Kate and Elanna were over chilling with Zigzag by the television, X-Ray, Squid and Armpit were all playing pool, as Heather, Landis, Meta, and Relina all watched with interest. It was obvious (at least to Heather, Landis, and Meta as they were familiar with testosterone-pumped high-school males) that each of the boys were playing to the best of their effort because of their audience.

The pool table had obviously been at the camp for a long time, for there were several initial carvings all over it, even on the flat green felt surface, which therefore caused many bumps. Unfortunately, one pair of letters carved into the table, T.C., specifically, disrupted Armpit's careful shot and sent the ball veering off to the left of where he had been aiming at.

Squid grabbed the pool stick from Armpit. "Lousy luck."

Armpit grabbed it back. "Hey man, that shot was gonna bag me the win. It don't count if the ball goes off course 'cause of some lousy bump on the table!"

"Hey, not my problem, Pit!" Squid grunted, grabbing at the pool stick again. X-Ray raised an eyebrow, waiting patiently for them to resolve it so they could get on with the game.

"Do they always act like that?" Meta asked X-Ray in amusement.

"Occasionally, but I think they're trying to look tough mainly because of you ladies," X-Ray replied, grinning at her.

"That's great, I feel so special," Heather commented dryly while Landis snorted in laughter. Heather, Relina, and Meta all punched him. X-Ray laughed out loud at the sight.

"What?" Relina asked, grinning.

"It's just good to see girls again, you know? Not that we're gonna try anything if you don't want us to," X-Ray added as he looked at their expressions. "Us guys from D-Tent, we're good guys, and a whole lot better then some of the other people here. Besides, D-Tent's like family, and we stick together. That's gonna mean you girls too, you know."

"Ew, incest!" Meta joked. X-Ray burst out laughing. "Not like that!" He protested, smiling.

Landis rolled eyes and punched Heather lightly on the shoulder. "They're still fighting over the last shot," he commented. Heather rolled her eyes as well.

"Hey, dudes!" She called. Armpit and Squid both looked up at her, while X-Ray, Meta, and Relina looked on in interest. "Why don't you play rock-paper-scissors for the next shot or something? Or call a number?"

Armpit and Squid both looked at each and nodded. "Pick a number and tell X, a'ight?" Squid said.

"Sure." Heather thought, and decided on the number fifty-seven. She leaned over and whispered her chosen number to X-Ray.

"'Kay, guys, the number's between one and a hundred, closest wins. You can go first, Pit." X-Ray spoke.

"Twenty-nine," called Armpit.

"Forty-six," Squid guessed.

Heather pointed to Squid. "Squid's closest, the number was fifty-seven. Sorry, Armpit," she said while X-Ray nodded his agreement.

Armpit grumbled but gave the pool stick grudgingly to Squid, who promptly shot it, where it scattered a few balls, but not all. X-Ray moved in to take his turn, while Relina, Meta, and Heather cheered and called good shot. Squid took a couple of fake bows before Armpit pretended to clobber him. The girls watched on in amusement.

There was a large chair that seemed more like couch that was resting closest to the hole in wall where the fan rested, providing cheap ventilation, and Aly and Magnet were sitting on that chair having an animated conversation.

"So what kind of music do you like?" Magnet was asking.

"Well, I practically worship Matchbox Twenty, if that counts. I also dig Linkin Park, Maroon 5 and AFI among others. What do you like?"

Magnet shrugged. "I like some rap, and some rock, it depends mostly on the song or artist, you know? I've burnt some interesting CDs though, with that combination!" he laughed.

"Wicked, wicked. You're Hispanic, right?" Aly asked, grinning slightly because she knew already. You couldn't be the Hispanic Buddy without being Hispanic, after all.

"Si, chica," Magnet grinned.

"Cool, cool. Would you mind terribly if I called you the Hispanic Buddy sometimes?"

"I guess not, but try to call me Magnet around the other guys, they might laugh or get angry or something. Besides, you'll get a nickname soon too, so I can taunt you with that," Magnet grinned cheekily. Aly grinned back. "Just don't call me by my real name," he added.

"Why, what's your real name?" 'As if I don't know,' Aly thought to herself.

"José," Magnet said with a funny expression.

"And how did Magnet come from José?" Aly laughed.

"'Cause I'm the best thief in this camp; my fingers are like little magnets!"

"You got busted and taken here for stealing."

"That's right."

"Well, if you get busted, it obviously means you're not the best thief, doesn't it?!" Aly laughed and shoved him playfully.

"Hey, I got busted doing a good thing! I love animals, and one day I was passing by this pet shop and I saw this poor little puppy in a metal cage, hardly any blankets! I had to rescue it, and I would have made it out if my pocket didn't start barking!" Magnet protested, laughing a bit.

"Hey, that's awesome!" Aly grinned, again, before giving him a high five.

"How did you all get busted?"

"That's kinda a long story. I'll tell you sometime."

Kate and Elanna were still sitting beside Zigzag, staring at the broken TV. Elanna leaned backwards and tugged on Kate's sleeve to get her attention.

"Let's go talk to Caveman, we haven't spoken to him yet."

Kate giggled. "I kinda like it here," she motioned to Zigzag, who was still sitting beside her.

"Fine, you stay here, but I want to get to know all the D-Tent guys."

"Have fun, and don't embarrass yourself."

"Don't talk about that, and besides, Zero's there. We can all talk about stuff."

Kate perked up. "All right, you've got me convinced." She stood up and helped Elanna to her feet as well. Elanna poked Zigzag in the shoulder. "Do you mind if we go get to know the rest of D-Tent?" she asked.

"Nope. Have fun, I'll just watch TV. Maybe if I stare at it hard enough, the aliens will be nice enough it working again . . ."

Elanna and Kate made their way through the Wreck Room, which was very slowly starting to fill up with other campers done with their holes. They wound their way over to the under-stuffed but still somewhat poofy couch that Stanley and Zero were residing on.

"Talk," Kate grinned and pushed Elanna forward.

"Not this again," Elanna groaned. "Hey, do you mind if we sit with you guys? We're trying to go around and get to know everyone in D-Tent," she said to Stanley.

Stanley smiled up at her. "Sure," he said, moving over for them. "We haven't really introduced ourselves formally, have we?"

Elanna and Kate both smiled at him. He was just too nice for his own good, and very warm-hearted. No wonder Zero had been drawn to him of all people.

"Not really," Kate said, her mouth quirking into a smile. "As you can see, everyone else is already familiarizing themselves with you guys. We've only really spoken to Zigzag and Zero here," she waved at Zero. Zero smiled slightly and looked away.

"I'm Elanna, and this is Kate," Elanna said. It was really easy to talk to Stanley, she noticed, and she smiled at the thought.

"I'm Caveman, but I don't mind if you call by my real name. So, yeah. You can call me Caveman or Stanley."

"My friend's middle name is Stanley," Elanna commented randomly.

"That's . . . great, sweetie . . ." Kate said, raising an eyebrow.

Elanna blushed. "Sorry, random moment. I do that sometimes." She noticed Stanley looked uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" She asked concernedly, hoping she hadn't scared him or anything.

"Oh, nothing. It's just . . . um, well, girls don't usually like me," he blurted.

"Why?" The girls asked. Zero shoved Stanley lightly. "Sure they do," he said.

"I don't know, they just don't."

"Well, I like you," Elanna said a little loudly, but not enough to disturb anyone. "You're nice, and how many nice people do you find in a detention camp? I'm glad you two are in my tent!"

Stanley and Zero both blushed.

"So," Stanley began, "Zero was telling me about your gracefulness."

Zero reddened when Elanna set her gaze on him. She turned to Kate and Stanley, who were both chuckling. "Ha ha. Really, I don't usually do that. I've taken ballet for ten years, so I can be graceful when I want to. My brother's the nutcase who walks into walls, usually on purpose."

Stanley laughed while Zero smiled, an actual smile. Kate was sighing. "Hahah, I remember your brother. Crazy genes," she joked.

"Indeed," commented Elanna dryly. "Actually, I'm hungry. What time do we have dinner at?"

"Not for a bit," said Meta, who had just walked over with Heather and Relina. "X-Ray told us."

"Weren't you watching their pool game?" asked Kate.

"Yeah, but then we got bored. What do you guys want to do?" asked Relina. Elanna, Heather, Kate, Stanley and Zero all looked around at each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading!  Please review; it would make us all very happy!  Feel free to ask any questions you might have about us or the story, and we'll make sure to answer them in the next chapter's A/Ns. 

~Editing and Author's Notes done by Elanna and Kate