Day Nine
Another day divisible by three, another immunity challenge. But Day Nine also means almost halfway to Day Nineteen, the day that the remaining members of our two tribes will merge. The day I'll actually be able to speak to Malfoy, to find out why he's here, so I can figure out some way to beat him.
In some ways, the days are flying by. At other times, time seems to almost come to a standstill. I'm wavering between desperation and desperation; first I'm desperate for the next nine days to speed up, so I can find out what's going on in the brain behind those silver eyes. Then I'm desperate for the next nine days to be the longest nine days since the dawn of time, to delay the moment when I'm going to have to actually get close to that handsome face and golden body. I'm perfectly willing to admit, he's turned out gorgeous. But I have to stop thinking about his sexiness and start thinking about his evilness...which is turning out to be the biggest personal challenge yet.
Since I get to see Malfoy again today (Get to? I mean AM FORCED to! Malfoy is not some sort of yummy treat!), the time until challenge flies by. Seems like we barely had time to make a water run, and we have to head off to meet Marcus and Fetia Rai. On our way through the jungle, I manage to end up walking next to Kiki.
I lean toward her as we walk, and whisper so only she can hear. "Hey, thinking ahead?"
She gives me a sideways glance, and whispers back, "why do you ask?"
"I've been checking out the members of the other tribe, to try and figure out where their strengths and weaknesses lie. We're going to end up merged with them, after all."
"Gotcha," she mutters. "I'll give them the eyeball today, we can talk later."
"Ladies, lovely ladies! Would you like to share with the class? Oh, but if you're discussing my devastating good looks, I may blush." Pete swaggers up between us and throws an arm around our shoulders. It's all I can do to keep from punching him in the stomach. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Kiki flinch under his touch.
"Gee, Pete, it wouldn't be nice to single out anyone. I think ALL the men of Miti Matai are great fellows." I manage to speak without gritting my teeth, which is quite an accomplishment, considering my frustration. Not only can I not finish speaking to my alliance partner, but now we've been called out as conspirators in front of the rest of the tribe.
Of course, just then we emerge into the competition clearing. Fetia Rai is already there on their mat. And of course, Malfoy's eyes find me instantly. And here I am, with one of Pete's arms slung around me like we're the oldest and best of chums. Malfoy raises one eyebrow with amusement. Before I can stop myself, my sarcastic nature takes over, and I roll my eyes back at him while shrugging Pete's hand off my shoulder. Malfoy cracks a genuine smile, and I have to look away; he's especially good-looking when he's smiling. I have to remember to encourage a glower, a smirk or a scowl from now on. Kiki has also worked her way out from Pete's clutches, and we find our way to the opposite side of our green rug.
Marcus explains the rules of today's game, and shows us two enormous spiderwebs of ropes wound at waist height around wooden posts. We're each tied by the wrist to various points on the ropes, and we have to unwind the web around the posts and each other until the entire length of rope is free. He gives us the signal to start, and pretty quickly I realize that this is a very diabolical puzzle. Without teamwork, we could not only NOT untangle ourselves, we could get into even more confusing knots. Geoff is on one side of me, and Ellen is also nearby. With quick discussion of our moves, I hop over one rope and hold my arm up so Geoff can cross underneath the rope attached to my wrist. Then Ellen amazes me by squeezing in between two lengths of rope. Our end of the puzzle is much looser, and we each find another teammate to unwind. I'm now nearer to Bob, and between the two of us, we almost completely free ourselves. This one is so confusing, I haven't even thought about using a spell, not that I would know what one to use. I think we're doing pretty well, until Marcus breaks his running commentary with the ugly phrase, "that's it! Fetia Rai wins immunity!" We all look over in shock, to see the other tribe all unwound and standing in a line with their rope laid out on the ground. I look to Malfoy, and the smirk is back. He makes a motion to me that is unmistakable, but would make no sense to Muggles -- the casual "swish, flick" of his hand, holding an imaginary wand, that we learned so long ago in school.
Well, question number one answered. He has his wand. And question number two. He is indeed using magic to "cheat," just as I am.
And now I have to find Kiki, and discuss our answer for tonight's question: who's leaving?
* * * * *
It's not easy to find private time. We get dinner together when we return to camp, then sit around the fire eating. Kiki and I are communicating mostly in glances. I look at her across the fire and raise my eyebrows in a questioning manner. She looks down at the fire briefly, then flicks her eyes quickly at Bob before looking down again. It was also my choice; over a week of hearing him snore all night is more than enough. Add in that he's out of shape, takes a lot of "rest breaks," and has only hiked into the jungle for water once, and he's probably everyone's logical choice. Kiki looks back at me, and I nod slightly. We're on the same page. Now, if we can each convince one other person to follow our vote, we have a majority. After dinner, Kiki and Ellen take the cooking pot down to the lagoon to rinse it out. Before I can decide on my choice of conspirator, Pete grabs my arm and pulls me over toward the shelter. He grabs some loose palm fronds from the roof and pretends to straighten them out.
"I know you and Kiki are teaming up. Don't try to deny it."
"I don't know what you're talking about. Even if we were teaming up, and I'm not saying we are, it's all part of playing the game." Oh, I'm so clever! I should have been a secret agent during the war! Granger, when will you learn to just shut up, smile and shake your head?
He gives me a sly smile. "You should let me in. You know I'm going to outlast most of these people. Maybe if you're nice, I'll take you to the finals with me."
I actually consider his offer. Distasteful as I personally find him, he's strong and seems to be on the good side of most of the other players. I think only Kiki and I get to see his lecherous side; to the rest of the team, he puts on a friendly, innocent act. But he's right, he'll probably go a long way in this game. But I can't make this decision alone, and tell him as much. I motion for him to follow me, and we find Kiki, back from her conversation with Ellen and wearing a smile on her face. I pull her back to the shelter, where the frond adjustment begins anew. As Pete makes his spiel, I roll my eyes at her.
"So, ladies, what will it be? With the three of us working together, we'll make it to the end."
"Well, I think we can trust you just as much as you trust us." I turn to Kiki, with my back slightly to Pete, and give her a broad wink. "This could definitely be advantageous to all of us. If we vote as a block, we can shape the tribe the way we want. I'm in, Kiki?"
"Sounds like a plan. Let's decide who we're voting for tonight, then we can get together later to discuss future strategies." She says the last three words while looking directly into my eyes, and I understand. We'll accept Pete's offer now, then get together later and discuss what to do about him. We tell Pete about our plans to vote for Bob, and he lets us know that he was already planning on putting down Bob's name tonight.
After dark, we make the trek to Tribal Council. As usual, Marcus makes some comments about how difficult our time on the island has been so far, and asks direct and pointed questions, proving once again that the production staff has reviewed footage of secret meetings and written Marcus a series of direct and pointed questions.
This time it's Kiki's time to shine in the spotlight. "Kiki, what do you think will influence your vote tonight? Have you already made your decision? And have you discussed that decision with the rest of your tribe?"
"Well, Marcus, I've thought about it a lot, and perhaps some people aren't working as hard as the rest of us. I think that may influence my vote. But the others are free to vote however they want." Very nice, truthful without being the flat-out truth. It's a shame I'm going to have to eventually be pitted against her, but I can't afford to let feelings of friendship get between me and the million that could help save the wizarding world. However, I plan on taking her with me as far as I can.
One by one we hike up to the voting area, write down our chosen names, give our little speech to the camera, and return to the Council area. The only thing I can think of to say about my vote is, "I'm sure you're a very nice guy, but the snoring is driving us all batty."
I don't feel as much suspense. I know Bob has at least four out of seven votes. As Marcus reads them, the only surprise is one slip with Geoff's name, in among four Bobs. Must have been Bob's vote. Of the four Bob votes read, mine isn't among them; Marcus tells us that four votes is enough, and he doesn't need to read the rest.
Bob's torch is snuffed, he waves goodbye, and off he goes down the path. On the way back to camp, the main topic of conversation is we're not sure we'll be able to sleep in that much quiet.
Another day divisible by three, another immunity challenge. But Day Nine also means almost halfway to Day Nineteen, the day that the remaining members of our two tribes will merge. The day I'll actually be able to speak to Malfoy, to find out why he's here, so I can figure out some way to beat him.
In some ways, the days are flying by. At other times, time seems to almost come to a standstill. I'm wavering between desperation and desperation; first I'm desperate for the next nine days to speed up, so I can find out what's going on in the brain behind those silver eyes. Then I'm desperate for the next nine days to be the longest nine days since the dawn of time, to delay the moment when I'm going to have to actually get close to that handsome face and golden body. I'm perfectly willing to admit, he's turned out gorgeous. But I have to stop thinking about his sexiness and start thinking about his evilness...which is turning out to be the biggest personal challenge yet.
Since I get to see Malfoy again today (Get to? I mean AM FORCED to! Malfoy is not some sort of yummy treat!), the time until challenge flies by. Seems like we barely had time to make a water run, and we have to head off to meet Marcus and Fetia Rai. On our way through the jungle, I manage to end up walking next to Kiki.
I lean toward her as we walk, and whisper so only she can hear. "Hey, thinking ahead?"
She gives me a sideways glance, and whispers back, "why do you ask?"
"I've been checking out the members of the other tribe, to try and figure out where their strengths and weaknesses lie. We're going to end up merged with them, after all."
"Gotcha," she mutters. "I'll give them the eyeball today, we can talk later."
"Ladies, lovely ladies! Would you like to share with the class? Oh, but if you're discussing my devastating good looks, I may blush." Pete swaggers up between us and throws an arm around our shoulders. It's all I can do to keep from punching him in the stomach. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Kiki flinch under his touch.
"Gee, Pete, it wouldn't be nice to single out anyone. I think ALL the men of Miti Matai are great fellows." I manage to speak without gritting my teeth, which is quite an accomplishment, considering my frustration. Not only can I not finish speaking to my alliance partner, but now we've been called out as conspirators in front of the rest of the tribe.
Of course, just then we emerge into the competition clearing. Fetia Rai is already there on their mat. And of course, Malfoy's eyes find me instantly. And here I am, with one of Pete's arms slung around me like we're the oldest and best of chums. Malfoy raises one eyebrow with amusement. Before I can stop myself, my sarcastic nature takes over, and I roll my eyes back at him while shrugging Pete's hand off my shoulder. Malfoy cracks a genuine smile, and I have to look away; he's especially good-looking when he's smiling. I have to remember to encourage a glower, a smirk or a scowl from now on. Kiki has also worked her way out from Pete's clutches, and we find our way to the opposite side of our green rug.
Marcus explains the rules of today's game, and shows us two enormous spiderwebs of ropes wound at waist height around wooden posts. We're each tied by the wrist to various points on the ropes, and we have to unwind the web around the posts and each other until the entire length of rope is free. He gives us the signal to start, and pretty quickly I realize that this is a very diabolical puzzle. Without teamwork, we could not only NOT untangle ourselves, we could get into even more confusing knots. Geoff is on one side of me, and Ellen is also nearby. With quick discussion of our moves, I hop over one rope and hold my arm up so Geoff can cross underneath the rope attached to my wrist. Then Ellen amazes me by squeezing in between two lengths of rope. Our end of the puzzle is much looser, and we each find another teammate to unwind. I'm now nearer to Bob, and between the two of us, we almost completely free ourselves. This one is so confusing, I haven't even thought about using a spell, not that I would know what one to use. I think we're doing pretty well, until Marcus breaks his running commentary with the ugly phrase, "that's it! Fetia Rai wins immunity!" We all look over in shock, to see the other tribe all unwound and standing in a line with their rope laid out on the ground. I look to Malfoy, and the smirk is back. He makes a motion to me that is unmistakable, but would make no sense to Muggles -- the casual "swish, flick" of his hand, holding an imaginary wand, that we learned so long ago in school.
Well, question number one answered. He has his wand. And question number two. He is indeed using magic to "cheat," just as I am.
And now I have to find Kiki, and discuss our answer for tonight's question: who's leaving?
* * * * *
It's not easy to find private time. We get dinner together when we return to camp, then sit around the fire eating. Kiki and I are communicating mostly in glances. I look at her across the fire and raise my eyebrows in a questioning manner. She looks down at the fire briefly, then flicks her eyes quickly at Bob before looking down again. It was also my choice; over a week of hearing him snore all night is more than enough. Add in that he's out of shape, takes a lot of "rest breaks," and has only hiked into the jungle for water once, and he's probably everyone's logical choice. Kiki looks back at me, and I nod slightly. We're on the same page. Now, if we can each convince one other person to follow our vote, we have a majority. After dinner, Kiki and Ellen take the cooking pot down to the lagoon to rinse it out. Before I can decide on my choice of conspirator, Pete grabs my arm and pulls me over toward the shelter. He grabs some loose palm fronds from the roof and pretends to straighten them out.
"I know you and Kiki are teaming up. Don't try to deny it."
"I don't know what you're talking about. Even if we were teaming up, and I'm not saying we are, it's all part of playing the game." Oh, I'm so clever! I should have been a secret agent during the war! Granger, when will you learn to just shut up, smile and shake your head?
He gives me a sly smile. "You should let me in. You know I'm going to outlast most of these people. Maybe if you're nice, I'll take you to the finals with me."
I actually consider his offer. Distasteful as I personally find him, he's strong and seems to be on the good side of most of the other players. I think only Kiki and I get to see his lecherous side; to the rest of the team, he puts on a friendly, innocent act. But he's right, he'll probably go a long way in this game. But I can't make this decision alone, and tell him as much. I motion for him to follow me, and we find Kiki, back from her conversation with Ellen and wearing a smile on her face. I pull her back to the shelter, where the frond adjustment begins anew. As Pete makes his spiel, I roll my eyes at her.
"So, ladies, what will it be? With the three of us working together, we'll make it to the end."
"Well, I think we can trust you just as much as you trust us." I turn to Kiki, with my back slightly to Pete, and give her a broad wink. "This could definitely be advantageous to all of us. If we vote as a block, we can shape the tribe the way we want. I'm in, Kiki?"
"Sounds like a plan. Let's decide who we're voting for tonight, then we can get together later to discuss future strategies." She says the last three words while looking directly into my eyes, and I understand. We'll accept Pete's offer now, then get together later and discuss what to do about him. We tell Pete about our plans to vote for Bob, and he lets us know that he was already planning on putting down Bob's name tonight.
After dark, we make the trek to Tribal Council. As usual, Marcus makes some comments about how difficult our time on the island has been so far, and asks direct and pointed questions, proving once again that the production staff has reviewed footage of secret meetings and written Marcus a series of direct and pointed questions.
This time it's Kiki's time to shine in the spotlight. "Kiki, what do you think will influence your vote tonight? Have you already made your decision? And have you discussed that decision with the rest of your tribe?"
"Well, Marcus, I've thought about it a lot, and perhaps some people aren't working as hard as the rest of us. I think that may influence my vote. But the others are free to vote however they want." Very nice, truthful without being the flat-out truth. It's a shame I'm going to have to eventually be pitted against her, but I can't afford to let feelings of friendship get between me and the million that could help save the wizarding world. However, I plan on taking her with me as far as I can.
One by one we hike up to the voting area, write down our chosen names, give our little speech to the camera, and return to the Council area. The only thing I can think of to say about my vote is, "I'm sure you're a very nice guy, but the snoring is driving us all batty."
I don't feel as much suspense. I know Bob has at least four out of seven votes. As Marcus reads them, the only surprise is one slip with Geoff's name, in among four Bobs. Must have been Bob's vote. Of the four Bob votes read, mine isn't among them; Marcus tells us that four votes is enough, and he doesn't need to read the rest.
Bob's torch is snuffed, he waves goodbye, and off he goes down the path. On the way back to camp, the main topic of conversation is we're not sure we'll be able to sleep in that much quiet.