And we're back! Thank you all for your patience. This chapter was a touch difficult to write, but I'm finally putting it out after so long!

This is the chapter that features a challenge unique to the season, but I'd like to take the opportunity to suggest to you not to set your expectations too high for anything crazy or the like. You'll see what I mean when the challenge starts, but just know that it isn't going to be anything wild or wacky. It's more along the lines of simple, which pretty much defined the third-to-last and second-to-last challenges in canon Pahkitew, and was what I was going for. I do hope you'll enjoy it nonetheless!

Also, to those who have yet to see it, I've posted the first chapter of a new story under the title Psyche Shift, which you can find on my profile! It is essentially a competition story centered around the idea of the cast of Pahkitew Island having their… 'bizarreness' toned down a smidge. It's still really in a conceptual stage right now, and unlikely to get another chapter anytime soon, but it's out there and I'm interested in seeing where I can go with it and what you guys think of it!

Also also, another reminder that Twinning With a Twist has a TV Tropes page, and I'd be very thankful if you could go on there and add to it!

But enough about that - enjoy the chapter!


Chapter 11: The Starving Artists of Pahkitew Island

For the first time since being transferred to the other team, Sammy actually woke up normally.

The sun glared into her unopened eyes and elicited a grouchy growl from her. She had slept… relatively peacefully throughout the night, despite all that had transpired, though she did wake up once or twice covered in sweat. No nightmares to be had, thankfully, but the thought of the island randomly exploding refused to let her get any real rest. Luckily, she passed right back out soon after waking up, so when she woke up again for the last time, she wasn't as tired as she expected to be.

Her dirty uniform had been an effective sleeping mask, but at some point it had vanished from her face, and now the brunt of the sun was shining through the window and square into her eyes. Groggily she opened them, unsure what time of day it was. It was likely late afternoon, given that the sun was level with the window and not higher in the sky. The challenge is going to be soon, right? I should probably get up now.

But the bed was so comfy. Or at least, it was compared to what she'd been using before now. The opportunities to just rest nowadays were few and far between, and she doubted anyone would care if she rested for just a bit longer. Just enough to makeup for the time she lost trying to sleep on the hard ground for the last week and a half.

Sammy felt herself slowly dozing back off, and was content to let it happen, but the sounds of footsteps on the wood flooring kept her from falling completely. And in the haze of half-unconsciousness, Sammy realized the steps weren't making the sound of loafers, or clunky hiking boots - instead it was the sharp clicks of heels. And there's only one other person here besides me who wears them.

"You're still in bed?" Amy asked, not bothering to keep her voice down. "Even on a crazy robot island, you're just as lazy as ever."

"Gimme a break," she said in a daze, her eyes still closed. "After last night, I deserve all the sleep I can get."

Amy sighed, walked into the room, and placed something on the bed. "Here. Eat."

Turning over, Sammy spied a basket full of freshly picked fruit. Her stomach growled greedily - it had been several hours since she last ate, and that particular meal caused her food poisoning and memory loss. Figuring she was awake for good now, Sammy sat up, stretched, and started to tear into the basket. "Thanks," she said between bites.

"Yeah…" Amy said slowly. "You're welcome."

"Did you get this yourself?"

She opened her mouth, closed it again, and restarted. "Jasmine did most of it. I just helped a little, that's all."

Unconsciously, Sammy paused mid-bite. Stopping herself from claiming all the credit, and saying she only helped a little? Wow, she's grown a lot in a few hours. I guess she really does want to change.

Amy looked back at her, and quirked her brow. "What are you smiling at?"

Ah, crap. "Oh, nothing. Just surprised how good a person you can be when you actually try."

Her sister only grunted. "Whatever."

She stayed at the windowsill and observed the horizon as Sammy ate, and they lapsed into a weird, but comfortable silence. She was doing her best to not show it outwardly, but on the inside Sammy was elated - this was the sort of stuff she'd been hoping from Amy all her life. Being able to stay in the same room as her and not have to put up her defences because of it. Having quiet moments like this, not necessarily talking, was probably the best they were going to get at the moment, however. Baby steps, she reminded herself. She needs time to learn first and foremost. But she'll get there.

Once Sammy had her fill, she set aside the basket and retrieved her top from the floor. When she put it on, she saw Amy once again looking at her. "I never really brought this up, but Coach won't be too happy when she sees your uniform," she said, motioning to her sister's bare arm.

Sammy could have slapped herself. She completely forgot to tell Amy the news. "Ooh. Uh, yeah. Actually, I gotta be honest, I'm sort of… planning on quitting cheer squad when we get back."

Amy stared at her for several seconds. "…Huh." Her mouth formed a thin line, and she took another moment to think that over. She nodded after a bit. "I, uh, guess that's fair."

Sammy was expecting her to have a fit, and was relieved that she didn't. "Yeah. It's… more your thing than mine."

A frown adorned her lips. "I…" She folded her arms and hunched over. "I guess."

Now it was Sammy's turn to stare. "What is it?"

Amy struggled with whatever it was, but in the end dropped it. "Nothing. Uh, hey, listen, I wanted to ask…" She looked even more uncomfortable for a second. "I don't really know the details, but does Ella… you know…" She held up her wrist and drew a few lines across it.

Sammy winced, but nodded slowly. It wasn't exactly that much of a secret anymore. "Yeah, unfortunately. That's why she was always wearing those gloves."

"And she lost a glove, so you gave her your shirt to cover it up."

"Yep." Sammy really wished she could forget that particular day. "Then I cut off the sleeve and gave it to her to keep. She's been wearing it ever since."

"I see." Amy squirmed on the windowsill. "I don't really know much about that stuff. Cutting, and… junk. I've never really thought about it before."

"Me too. At least, before now."

"Is it, like… difficult to talk to her about it?" Amy asked. "Like, real question."

"Uhm… Not really? We don't talk about it all that much. The first time we really did was in the cave that one time, but it wasn't all that bad. Ella did most of the talking about it, anyway." She frowned once more, deeper than before. "Then again, there was the day after that, where we… had a bit of a scare."

Amy stopped to recall that. "Uhh… Oh, right. The day after we swapped teams."

"Yeah… In the end nothing happened, but at the time I was pretty terrified."

"I bet."

"It's… good for her to not focus too much on it, since the more she thinks about it the more of an urge she might get to do it. But at some point I think we'll have to address it properly."

"That makes sense. What, uh, caused her to start doing it, anyway?"

Sammy, slightly caught off guard, slowly shook her head. "That's… something I'm not gonna talk about."

"Why not?" Amy asked, raising a brow. "You talked about all the other stuff."

Sammy gave her a look. "Yeah, that stuff is okay, to an extent. But her reasons are personal. I'm not gonna spill her secrets because someone asked."

Amy paused. Whatever thoughts were going through her mind, ended up not mattering as she soon relented. "Oh, uh… Right. You're right. Sorry."

Sammy merely hummed and nodded. It wasn't fair that Amy expected her to share all of Ella's secrets, but at least she backed down from it without a fight. She wasn't sure if Amy had a reason for prying into it, or if it was just the leftovers of how she used to operate before last night. Or… this morning. Or something.

But whatever the reason, she wouldn't get anything out of Sammy. Ella had told her her past in confidence when they were alone - As alone as we can be when we're surrounded by millions of cameras, at least - and Sammy intended to keep that close to her chest, or at least until the season aired. She'd learned to keep as many secrets as possible from Amy growing up. Now that she knew something particularly private about her closest friend (and possibly girlfriend, maybe, hopefully), she wasn't about to betray that trust.

"Where is Ella, anyway?" Sammy asked, changing the topic. "And Sky and Jasmine, for that matter? Oh, and, what time is it?"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Dunno, out running, down near the river, and like, 3:30? Jasmine thinks we're gonna get called soon."

"Then I'd better go to the confessional while I can," Sammy said. She grabbed and put on her skirt and boots, and exited the room. "And… thanks again. That was a good breakfast."

Another half smile. "Yeah. Sure."

Sammy smiled back, and left her alone. She hoped that soon, those smiles would become larger and much more natural.


Pahkitew Island was one of the most beautiful places Sammy had ever been to (though that wasn't really saying much since she barely went anywhere fancy). It was a perfect representation of what a deserted, hospitable island would look like. Now that she knew everything here had been built from the ground up, this wasn't all that surprising.

What was surprising was how… empty everything suddenly felt now. Before, while there were rarely any animals about, she could at least hear the sounds of birds in the distance or the shuffling of tree leaves (both most likely coming from hidden speakers). Now, not even the wind was there. She recalled Chris mentioning last night - this morning, whatever - that the island was on shutdown mode, though what that exactly entailed she wasn't sure. Did that mean everything was turned off?

Sammy came across a tree with a hole in it, where squirrels would probably store their food, only to find it devoid of all life. It seemed that everything on the island was controlled in the bunker: all of the animals, the various TVs just hanging from trees, the cameras without any crew operating them…

You know, I bet that storm that showed up when we were on the zeppelin was made by the island too. What sort of crazy technology is able to suddenly make lightning appear out of the sky and only in a single, localized spot? And seriously, how much money did they spend on everything?

Now though, everything felt quiet and lifeless. Was it because she knew it was all fake? Or was it something else entirely?

She didn't have much time to ponder it, as being lost in her thoughts made her run right into Sky. Literally.

The two bounced off each other and fell onto the ground. Sammy, dazed and confused, wasn't as quick to recover as Sky was. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, swiftly found her feet and helped Sammy to hers. "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"No, not at all," Sammy reassured. "I was just lost in thought, that's all. Are you okay? You sorta smacked into me at hyper speed."

Sky laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I kinda lose focus when I'm in the zone. Plus, all the stuff from last night has been on my mind…"

"I know exactly what you mean," Sammy replied with a bitter laugh. The countdown, the robots, the Chrises, Scarlett… everything flashed before her eyes in a second, and she tried to shake them away. "It's, uh… It's a lot to process, isn't it?"

With a sigh, Sky said, "We almost died. Like, seriously died. I think my mind is only now starting to realize that. If we were any later getting into the control room, we could've actually been blown up with the island…"

"Yeah… And the fact that Scarlett was willing to just let it happen? Totally messed up." First thing I'm doing when I get home is finding a good therapist. I wonder how many in the world have had clients with experiences like mine?

"You can say that again." Her eyes went out of focus, like she was watching something in her memories. "And all those killer robot animals, with their skin and fur peeling off and bits of metal sticking out… I know this show is dangerous, but I did not sign up to have to do something like that."

"Gosh," Sammy said quietly. "We really only had to deal with a fire-breathing cat before we joined up with you guys. Sounds like you had it worse than we did."

"We had to deal with a bear, a crocodile, and a deer. It was the worst."

"A… deer? That doesn't sound-"

"You might say that, but it still kept coming for us even after we sliced its head off."

"Okay that's straight up nightmare fuel."

"Mm-hm," Sky mumbled. She rubbed at her eyes with her hand. "I barely slept last night."

Sammy nodded sympathetically. "That's relatable. A lot of the crap they're making us do here is really screwing up my sleep schedule."

Her friend gave her a look over, at her tattered and messy uniform, at the way her hair probably glistened from the grease that she wasn't able to properly wash out, to the severe lack of makeup on her face after being dunked in and splashed with water one too many times. Sammy was just about to start feeling self-conscious when Sky spoke up again. "Hey, Sammy?"

"What is it?"

Sky hesitated on replying, and with a sigh said, "This show is… dangerous, to say the least."

"The very least."

"And at the same time… a million dollars is a lot of money."

"It's definitely a lot of money. But, uh, I'm not sure where this is going."

"I'm just… wondering," Sky looked at her with a pained expression. "Do you think… it's even worth it anymore?"

Sammy blinked. Sky was someone who took this competition seriously - maybe the one who took it the most seriously, even more than Jasmine or Shawn. She challenged herself every day to do better than her best, and had aspirations for the Olympics of all things - there were so many people who dreamed of it and only so few of them that made it, but Sky seemed like someone who would actually be able to pull it off. If she was dreaming that big about the Olympics, she was likely dreaming that big about Total Drama as well. So to have her ask that, with such an anguished look in her eye, really said a lot about what she was thinking.

With a sigh, Sammy rubbed the back of her neck. "You know, I've been wondering that too. I know a million dollars is a lot of money, but like…" She raised her hand and started listing. "Skydiving with the chance of not having parachutes. Having shock collars put on us without them being tested beforehand. Getting kidnapped and chased by bears, and deer, and all sorts of other freaky robot animals. Getting lost in an underground network of caves and nearly squashed underneath those falling boulders. Being forced to tiptoe through a lion-infested area, with actual honest to goodness babies in our hands - unless they were all robots too, I don't actually know. Getting crushed under a mountain of snow. Getting food-poisoning, which probably could've led to something even worse if it wasn't pumped out of our stomachs. And then to top off literally everything else, we almost have the island self-destruct on us and kill us in one swift blow. So honestly? At this point, no, I don't think the million is worth it, if our lives and well-being are constantly on the line."

Sky was nodding along with everything Sammy was saying, the look of uneasiness in her eyes continuing to get worse. "I completely agree with you. But… as much as I don't like it, I think we're too far in to back out now."

"You do?" Sammy asked with a tilt of her head.

"Well… It's complicated." Sky wiped some lingering sweat off her brow, and started walking in a circle around Sammy. "Basically everything we've done up to this point has been dangerous and terrible, and what we'll have to do next is likely going to be more. But there are only four challenges left to get through, counting the finale… We're so close to the end I can almost taste it! All the other competitive sports I've been a part of and… well, you know, won, only gave out trophies and medals as rewards. Sure, those were nice, but I'll be honest, a million dollars sounds a lot more appealing to me." She stopped when she had done a couple of full loops around her. "Or at least, I thought it did. Now I'm not so sure."

"And you're trying to figure out if risking our necks every day for two weeks straight is worth it."

"Pretty much, yeah. I don't know what to think. I know I want to win after coming so far, but if you had told me all of the crap we'd have to put up with before I auditioned, I would've said no to it all without a second thought."

"That… sounds like a smart thing to do, if you were warned beforehand. I'm probably in the same boat, for the most part."

Sky quirked a brow her way. "'For the most part'?"

"Well, yeah. I guess…"

At this point, it wasn't just about the money. The money was honestly third on her priority list before coming here, the first being to get away from Amy and the second to try and make friends. Those priorities ended up shifting around in the last few days, and now involved sticking with Ella as far as she could and helping Amy try to be a better person. When it came to the money, though, that just went further down the line. Winning would be nice, but it wasn't the main reason she came on the show. Besides, Mom had a good job and Sammy was receiving a pretty good allowance (and with Amy no longer stealing from her, it was all hers' now). If she ended up winning Total Drama, great, wonderful, she'd be richer for it. Truth be told, it didn't really make her feel all that more motivated to keep going.

But Ella…

An apartment where the walls are thin enough to hear the neighbors' whispers… The desire to own an entirely new wardrobe… Maybe even a chance to get away from her parents and school for a while longer… It was sounding as if Ella needed the money far more than Sammy did. Besides, since they were planning on splitting the cash, staying in the game meant a higher chance that one of them could win.

Not only that, but most of Sammy's top priority goals had been accomplished by this point. And Amy could be monitored at home, away from this stupid island. So really, the answer was simple.

"The reason I'm still here is because of Ella," she said plainly. "I really, really like her. I know it hasn't been all that long, but I know I have a lot of good feelings for her, and they're crazy strong."

Sky giggled behind a hand. "I'm pretty sure that's the least surprising reason you could've given me."

Sammy's own laugh was awkward, as she was berating herself for being far too obvious. "A-Anyways… Risking our lives for some cash is kinda… stupid, when you think about it. But risking your life for someone you like… To help them win? It's… still kinda stupid. But I mean, if they can be better off because of it then I'm willing to try and help them as much as I can. Does, uh, that make any sense?"

"Yeah, it does." Sky replied. "That said, even if I may not like the direction this show has gone in, I am still gonna try and win for myself." She smirked. "So maybe I'm stupid."

Sammy's face blanched and her stomach dropped. "Ah, no no no! I didn't mean it like that! I mean, uh, you know-"

Despite her laughter, Sky held up her hands to placate her. "I'm just joking! Take it easy Sammy," she insisted. "You are right in saying it's ridiculous. But I've come too far to quit, dangerous or not. I don't like it, I really don't, but my head keeps telling me it's gotta be done. Besides, we made it through everything mostly unscathed, right?"

Sammy moaned, and looked away with a frown.

Sky grimaced. "Uh… maybe don't answer that. The point is, they've already peaked at trying to blow up the island. While they could throw some curveballs at us, I think we're all able to overcome them if we managed to get past that."

She shrugged. "I guess you're right. I think at this point I do just want to be done with it all, but I'm sticking around for Ella, so I'll try and tackle anything they make us do."

Sky smiled at her warmly. "You guys are so cute together, you know that?"

Sammy found herself blushing. "I-I guess so! I mean, we're still not 'together' together yet. We haven't had the time to talk about it. But she's so nice and kind and special and I just wanna be there for her, you know?"

"And that's why you two are meant for one another," she replied matter-of-factly. "Though you did kinda botch the confession part, but given what was happening at the time, I guess it was fine."

Sammy frowned at that. "Wait, I'm sorry, what?"

"I'm just saying, I know there wasn't a teacher around, but you could've passed the note to me and Jasmine could've taken it and read it, so it could've worked… Oh! And the robot Chrises would've been the other students! Ahh! It could've been perfect! If, you know, our lives weren't on the lines."

Sammy stared, quietly trying to work out what Sky was saying. "Um… Yeah, sorry, I don't know what you're talking about."

Then Sky was staring at her. "Your love confession?"

"Um. Okay, yeah, I got that part, but what's this about a teacher and other students?"

The athlete gasped and covered her mouth. "You don't know how to properly tell someone how you feel about them? Seriously?"

Now Sammy was even more confused. "I'm pretty sure I did it last night…?"

"No no no!" Suddenly Sky was right in her face, forcing her back a little. "The right way to confess to someone is to write a note to them in the middle of class, asking if they like you back. Then you give it to your friend so that they can give it to your crush. But then the teacher has to catch everyone in the act, take the note, and then read it out to the whole class! Then you find your crush in the hall during lunch and ask for their answer! Everyone knows this!"

"Uhh…" Sammy was taken aback both by how contrived that sort of confession would have to be, and also by how important this seemed to be for Sky. She really wasn't sure what to make of that. "I don't think that's how they do it in my school…"

Now Sky looked absolutely confused. "They don't… What?"

Sammy held up her hands. "Okay, obviously we have very different ideas about how confessing to someone should happen. The point is, I told Ella I like her, we're kinda-sorta dating now, probably, and she's my motivation for staying here on this broken island."

Sky still seemed befuddled, but didn't put up a fuss. "Right, uh… Right."

"And, hey, if you want to try that on someone yourself, don't let me stop you." Sammy then headed off in the direction she was already headed. "Anyway, I really need to use the confessional. I'll see you at the challenge?"

"Uh… Yeah, sure. See you."

Sky seemed lost in thought, but Sammy was beginning to get a little desperate for the bathroom. Well. That was weird. Who wants their crush for someone to be announced to their entire class like that? If that ever happened to me I'd-

She passed a camera as she jogged and slowed to a stop, staring at it.

Dang it.


Sammy found the outhouse with almost no problem, and she finished her business and recorded her confessional before too much time passed. Unfortunately, the second she walked back into fresh air Chris called them all to that familiar clearing in the woods. Sammy sighed and headed in the direction she knew it to be. She had wanted to take a moment and have a much-needed talk with Ella, but clearly that wasn't happening now. I doubt we'll have time during the challenge, so… tonight or tomorrow, then.

After one uneventful walk, the clearing came into view, and Chris, Chef, Sky and Jasmine were already waiting. Jasmine tipped her hat to her in greeting, and Sammy waved back, and it was only then that she noticed the giant tarp behind them, covering… something up. It wasn't cannon-shaped, that was obvious, but she wasn't able to make out what it was from this angle.

Amy came in shortly after Sammy arrived, and soon after her was Ella, who had one of the brightest grins Sammy had ever seen on her face. They waved and Sammy felt something warm and bubbly rise in her chest, which normally would give her cause for alarm but she knew this was a good feeling. She was about to dive right into conversation with her, but Chris cut to the chase the moment she arrived. "Afternoon everyone!" he greeted them when they were all there. It was like he had forgotten what had happened last night entirely. "Hope you all got enough sleep!"

"Kinda hard to do that when you can't turn off the sun," Jasmine replied.

"I know. We would've done exactly that, but the island's been almost completely turned off, so no artificial cloud covering." Glaring off to the side, he added, "No thanks to someone who will henceforth remain nameless on this show."

Unable to keep to herself, Amy piped up, a devious smirk on her face. "What was her name again…? Crimson? Violet?" She turned to her sister. "Something like that, wasn't it?"

Normally, Sammy wouldn't approve of that sort of mocking behavior. But since this was Chris who was on the receiving end… "Yeah, it had something to do with a color, right?"

Amy gave her a mischievous grin. "It did, didn't it?"

"You two be quiet," Chris commanded in annoyance. "Unless you want today's challenge to actually be a challenge."

That shut the sisters up, and prompted everyone to cast confused glances at each other. "What do you mean 'actually a challenge'?" Sky asked the question everyone had on their minds.

With a huff, Chris explained. "Yeah, see, legal called - again - and they weren't too thrilled about the whole 'self-destruct sequence blowing up the whole island' thing from last night, so they're making some… restrictions for this challenge in particular."

Despite that being a cause for celebration, no one was celebrating. "Alright, what's the catch then?" Jasmine asked. "There's always a catch when it comes to the 'easy' challenges."

Chris donned a look similar to that of nausea. "The catch is that, unlike before, we're only going to simulate the danger."

That still didn't really answer anyone's question. "What does that mean?" Ella asked.

"It means," Chris said testily, "that there won't be any danger in this challenge at all. It's just going to look like there is."

That got the final five to start murmuring to themselves. If the legal team was forcing the hosts to make the challenge not dangerous, then the hosts would likely see it as causing their precious ratings to go down. So the only way to work around that would to make it seem like there was danger here, while allowing the kids to stay safe. That was a pretty smart work around to it, but all the same Sammy still didn't really trust it.

"How do we know this won't end up being another trap?" she asked warily. "You could just be telling us the danger will be staged, and put us through hell on earth all over again!"

"Because he's been expressly forbidden not to do that," said Chef Hatchet, who was standing over by the object hidden by the tarp. "Do you know how much he was whining because of it? I could barely even sleep 'cuz'a him!"

He pointed to the bags under his eyes to prove it, causing the girls to recoil and shudder, but Chris shushed him from speaking further. "C'mon, when have I ever given you guys reason not to trust me?" he asked the teens innocently.

Every single one of the contestants, as well as Chef and the interns out of the camera's shot, gave him the stink eye.

Noticing this, Chris scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Figured that wouldn't work. I guess you just won't be able to trust me then, because we're doing this whether you want to or not."

"I guess there's really nothing we can do about it then," Sky said evenly, to which the rest of the girls nodded. "So? What's the challenge?"

His plastic smile came back in full force. "I'm glad you asked. For today's challenge, you all will be… painting a picture!"

This lone statement confused the girls, but they had no time to process it as Chef threw off the tarp. Underneath it sat a circular structure that, from this angle, looked to be divided into five sections, each one separated from the one next to it by high walls. In each of these sections was a typical artist's easel, stool, supply of paints and a palette for them to use. But what caught Sammy's eye more than the supplies was the fact that each section had a different kind of wallpaper on the walls - one was a deep green with what looked like leaves painted on it, along with a yellow bed; another one had blue wooden walls, a bed, a lamp, posters and trophies and, oddly enough, a cute little dreamcatcher hanging right in front of the window; and the last one she was able to see from this angle was a bright orange room with pink highlights, a fancy-looking bed, several stuffed animals and a vanity to the far left.

It didn't take long for the others to pipe up. "Hey, wait, that looks like my room!" Sky announced, pointing to the blue one.

"And mine too," Ella said, staring at the one with the stuffed animals.

"I think they're all like our rooms," Jasmine said. She turned to Chris. "What gives?"

"We figured, in order to help ease you into today's challenge, we'd offer you guys the opportunity to work in an environment familiar to you," Chris said. "Each segment has been painstakingly recreated based on the rooms you were in during your audition videos. We wanted to give you a nice, homey feel to take the strain off of you from having stayed on this island for so long."

Amy snorted dismissively, and walked around to the other side of the structure. "Is that before or after you decide to push us down a mountain while we work?"

Chris ignored her. "You all will have an hour to create something meaningful to the best of your ability. You will be judged on creativity, colors used, and being able to stay inside the line. Any questions?"

"So it can be anything?" Sky asked.

"As long as it has something to do with the show, yeah, everything's fair game."

"Who's going to judge us?" Sammy asked, trying to find her room.

Chris grinned. "Me, of course!"

Sammy lightly groaned. "Yeah, probably didn't need to ask that."

"The person whose painting I feel the most emotion from gets an advantage in part two of the challenge," he continued. "More on that when we're done here."

"And what exactly is the danger in this challenge that you're making us not go through?" Jasmine asked him.

Chris chuckled, which was never a good sign. "You'll see it when we're ready to show you."

Sammy began to look for her room, and when she found it she was surprised to see that it was right next to both Ella's and Amy's. Her queen-sized bed was adorned with textbooks and her headphones, and she did everything in her power to ignore all of the second place medals and trophies littered around. Despite that, and the fact that it was all just painted on the walls, it was an immense relief to be able to stay in familiar territory again.

"Hey, hold on! This isn't my room!" Amy's outburst caused Sammy to look over at the segment next door, and a quick inspection proved that it was in fact their house's guest room. There were tons of suitcases and other assorted luggage piled up in the very center, and aside from that and a picture on the wall there wasn't anything that stood out from it.

"I told you we used the room you were in during your audition tapes," Chris called from the other side of the structure. "We were just using what we had to work with!"

Amy growled, but said nothing more and entered her section.

"That sucks," Sammy told her, unable to come up with anything else.

She sighed and sat on the stool. "Whatever. At least it's home."

"True enough."

Sammy then walked to the segment on the other side and examined Ella's 'room' - it was just as comforting to be in as she expected. The colors made her feel more at ease than ever, and the adorable plush animals littering the bed and floor warmed her heart.

Something else that warmed her heart was seeing Ella admiring the work that went into it. She was examining a toy pig sitting on the vanity, brushing her fingers against the wall fondly. It was obvious that Ella missed home as much as Sammy did.

"So this is your room?" she asked, stepping in just a little ways.

Ella grinned at her, making Sammy's own grin widen. "It's what my room looks like, at least. It's a very nice reminder to be given." She gave a brief sigh of contentedness. "We're lucky the legal team is looking out for us this time. Who knows, we may actually get a meal this evening!"

"Ah, man, don't get my hopes up," Sammy replied with a laugh. "One of the things I've been wanting most is food that isn't fruit or dunked in grease. When I get home, I'm ordering the biggest steak I can get at the restaurant near my place. I've been craving it for days."

"Yeah?" Ella strode up to her. "I'm not the biggest fan of meat, but there is a nice sushi place downtown that I've been interested in trying…"

Oh oh wait, idea! "H-Hey, if we do decide to meet up once all this is over with, would you maybe… um, like to…"

"Yes," she interrupted, "Yes I'd love to."

Sammy couldn't hide the grin on her face, though she did her best to hide her squeal of joy. It didn't really work. First time asking a girl on a date and she says yes! This is, without a doubt, the best day ever.

"Alright, to your places, people!" Chris called out, and with a wave goodbye Sammy re-entered her room. "There shall be no talking during the challenge, as you all should focus on working. If you have any questions, please be informed that I will not be answering any of them."

Sammy sat down on her stool and examined the tubes of paint provided. All the colors of the rainbow and more were available, and the palette was large enough that she could reasonably get all of them on there and have enough room left over for mixing if need be. All she needed was something that she could paint… something that happened on the island, that meant more to her than anything else.

Psh. As if I need to think about that.

"Also! As mentioned, your time limit will be one hour." A whirring sound started up, and Sammy looked behind the easel to see something rising out of the floor. "You will be able to keep check of the time from these handy little bombs we've put in your rooms!"

She inhaled sharply, but had to remind herself that these were (most likely, probably) fake. That said, a bomb this soon after the last challenge was in pretty bad taste… At the absolute very least, she could see how much time she had left.

"And begin!" Chris called out before anyone could complain. Not wanting to waste any time, Sammy got to work on mixing red and white together…


In the end, her painting sucked. She had started with the background, but she somehow mucked it up and made painting the foreground much more difficult. When she had asked for a do-over, Chris refused and forced her to keep what she had. What was more, she wasn't all that familiar with color mixing, and messed up even more when attempting to find a good peach for their skin (and she couldn't use the pink she already had used or else it would just look weird and likely not okay for TV). She had to settle for an off-color dark yellow, which got muddled even more when trying to paint on top of the background. All in all, it was a complete disaster, and whatever advantage she could have gotten was absolutely off the table now.

One by one everyone finished their paintings before the timers finished their countdown, with Sammy being the last one done. None of them were able to find out if the bombs were duds or not, but it wasn't like she wanted to know that information.

The five contestants lined up in a row, starting with Jasmine on the far end, followed by Sky, Ella, Sammy herself and Amy at the other end. Each individual painting had been covered by a cloth, and Chris walked up to them starting with Jasmine.

"I call it," she said as she threw off the cover. "'An Explosive Adventure'."

What she revealed could hardly be called better than Sammy's, and that was putting it nicely. The general idea was apparent - Jasmine herself standing on top of a cliff and examining her surroundings, which were likely meant to represent Pahkitew Island - but the painting itself looked as though it were made by a child using finger paints, and the Jasmine on it was nothing more than a stick figure in a hat.

"I, uh," Jasmine stammered at Chris's scrutinizing stare. "I've never actually taken the time to draw or paint anything before, so…"

"Hmm…" The host appraised it carefully, muttering to himself all the while and just low enough that Sammy couldn't hear it. He was likely just doing it to make Jasmine sweat, and it was working - in fact, Sammy was starting to get nervous as well.

"This piece…" Chris started, rubbing his five-o'clock shadow in thought, "really stinks."

Jasmine sighed. "I figured as much, but you don't have to rub it in."

"No, no, I really think I have to," he insisted, to her surprise. "Like… did a dog paint this? No, actually, it would be better than this if one did."

"Oh for the love of-" Jasmine grumbled. "Enough with the stalling, just tell me if I win or not!"

Chris looked her dead in the eyes. "What do you think?" She just groaned and ran a hand down her face. "Next!"

Sky was up then, and she didn't look any more confident than Jasmine was. "To be fair, I've been focusing more on my athletic abilities than my artistic ones."

"Don't care, brah," he said dismissively, and threw her painting's cover off himself. Sky's painting was perhaps the best one so far, but that really wasn't saying much. She had put herself on the first place spot on a podium, trophies in each hand and medals around her neck, and a toothy grin on her face. Behind her was a crowd that looked vaguely like the rest of them, cheering and clapping for her.

"I may have gone overboard with the awards," Sky said sheepishly. "But, um, I call this… 'The Victor'. I guess."

"You guess?"

"I didn't know we were supposed to name them."

Chris grunted and looked at the painting once more. "I can see emotion in it, but it's just not calling to me, you know? Like it's missing something…"

"It's literally about winning," Sky said. "Isn't that something that speaks to you?"

"It does, but only when I'm the one winning. You guys have to know that I don't at all care for you, right?" Sky folded her arms and looked at him pointedly. "Next!"

Ella released a quick breath, and Sammy lightly jabbed her with her elbow. "You got this," she whispered. "You're the most talented person I know."

With a soft smile, she replied, "Singing and painting are two completely different fields. But thank you." Chris approached her and waited with an uninterested gaze. "Allow me to introduce my work for you." With a flourish, Ella threw off the cover and presented her painting as if it was in an actual art gallery. "I give you, 'A Song of Love from Darkness to Light'."

If there were any lingering doubts that Ella didn't like Sammy the same way she liked her, the painting she made chased them all away. It was a simple image - Ella and Sammy dancing and singing with one another, music notes flying away from their mouths, and nothing else besides them in a spotlight. It made Sammy feel so many positive emotions, she was having a tough time keeping them in. Now I kinda feel self conscious about my own work. It's not nearly as good as this.

That said, it was only passably better than the others' paintings, though it still wasn't all that good. Ella was right when she said that singing and painting aren't the same, but if anything, she probably had the best shot at winning the advantage.

Although Chris didn't seem to think so. "It's a weird mix between bland, sappy, and cute. And that does not make me feel good things."

"But you are feeling things, right?" Ella asked. "And you didn't specify what emotion you had to feel the most of."

Chris gave her a flat look. "I don't appreciate having my words twisted like that. There's no fun or enjoyment in it. It's only good when I twist them myself, or I twist yours."

An awkward look appeared on Ella's face. "We're still talking about words, right?"

"Next!"

Sammy had the pit of anxiety in her stomach since the beginning of the challenge, but now it was heavily amplified. This feels like presenting a project in class… Hidden behind the back of the painting, Ella gave her hand a squeeze for comfort. Like the many times she had done so, it was sorely needed.

"Um," Sammy stammered. "So. This is my painting." She gently tugged off the covering and allowed the others to see it. "It's called, 'The Light of My Teenage Life'. It's not very good but I put a lot of effort into it and-"

"You're right, it's not good," Chris interrupted, causing Sammy to moan in misery. "Did you just randomly pick what colors to use? Because by the looks of it, you were blindfolded during that part."

"Do you have to do this?" Sammy desperately asked him.

"As a matter of fact, yes!" he replied with a nod. "I've gotta make your time here as miserable as possible. And with no real danger involved in this challenge…"

"Alright, alright! I get it."

"Besides, you're clearly ripping off Ella's work, title and all."

"What?! But we didn't even see each other the whole time we were working, how could we possibly-"

"Don't care! Next!"

Sammy gave him the best glare she could muster, but sighed in defeat when he paid no attention to it. She had put a lot of effort into the painting, even if it did turn out like crap, and to have it just glossed over like that was pretty demoralizing.

"I like it." But leave it to Ella to give her the boost that she needed. "Don't listen to him. You did a good job and it really means a lot to me that you painted us."

"Yours means a lot to me too!" she quickly told her. "It's a lot better than mine…"

And that was objectively true. While Ella focused on the two of them entirely, Sammy tried to do a bit too much with hers. She had herself and Ella front and center, holding hands, and looking at each other with smiles as bright as the sun. The background consisted of green fields, a bright blue sky peppered with clouds, and trees and mountains dotting the landscape. It was all a bit too busy, and didn't focus enough on the main part of the painting. Plus, the offbeat colors did it no favors.

"Hey now," she said admonishingly. "While it's probably not going to be the next Mona Lisa, I still think you did a wonderful job."

Sammy's mind told her she was just saying that out of pity, but she quickly told herself off and thought more positively. "Thanks," Sammy said earnestly.

"Quit yammering," Chris said in a groan, causing the two to quiet down. "We have one painting left. Amy, if you would?"

Amy was beginning to look nervous herself, but was hiding it much better than Sammy was. "'Mkay." She took off the covering without much elegance or grace, and presented her piece. "It's called 'Chris is Still Kinda Really Really Hot'."

Literally everyone made noises of repulsion and immediately leaned over to look at it, as if trying to find out if she was being serious or not. But no, it was just as she said - the painting Amy created was Chris. And not just any Chris, it was him in his Pharaoh costume during the first challenge of the third season. Plus, he seemed to be much more muscular than normal, with larger biceps and a wider chest. It still looked like crud, and was probably the worst painting done by any of them so far, but it was clear as day what she was going for. The only question was-

"Why?" Sammy asked aloud in utter disbelief.

"Why not?" Amy countered. "Besides, it's not your turn, so shush."

"Yeah Samey, shut up a second," Chris chided, his eyes glued to the painting. "Because, wow, this painting sucks, but I like it, you know?"

"Uhh… thanks?" Amy asked tensely.

"You can not be serious," Sky groaned.

"Hey, appealing to my vanity is a viable tactic. Amy had the right idea." Chris paused. "Shockingly."

She gaped at him and put a hand to her chest in shock. "Excuse me?"

"That's not to say that the painting's good, because wow, it absolutely sucks. But it does put a touch of feeling in this cold, dead heart of mine." He eyed the painting once more. "Especially considering you beefed me up. That's the sorta stuff I like."

At the far end of the line, Jasmine faked gagging. Sammy meanwhile felt she was actually going to start gagging.

"Sooo… Do I get the advantage or what?" Amy asked impatiently, yet with a touch of hope in her voice.

Chris took one last glance at the four paintings that came before, and merely shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Whatevs."

"YYYES!" With a holler she leapt in the air and pumped her fists, startling Sammy and forcing her to lean back. "Finally I get something!" Then, with a look in her eye that reminded Sammy all too much of days past, Amy pointed at the four of them and laughed. "Ha! In your faces, you asswipes! I win! I finally win! I beat you all and I-" She came to a screeching halt as her eyes went wide with fear and her hands flew to her mouth. "Oh shit! Shit, shit, shit, I'm sorry! I didn't- I didn't mean any of that! That just came out without any warning and I couldn't stop it! I'm sorry!"

Sammy frowned, but kept her thoughts to herself. This was something that she had been afraid might happen. Thinking about it, it was actually pretty similar to how she herself was growing and changing - her mind would continue to act on its own as if nothing was happening, and it was only after negative words or thoughts automatically occurred did she realize what was being said or thought. Even though she knew not to belittle herself, internally or externally, sometimes it still happened, and she was working to fix that. And Amy just proved that it was happening to her too.

Then again, catching onto it so quickly is probably a good thing, really.

And while, yes, Amy going back to her old self for even a few moments irked Sammy deep down, she knew she was trying. If things failed to improve over the course of a few months she'd deal with it then, but for now she was just starting off and thus she needed more time. So more time Sammy will give her.

"It's okay," Sammy said reassuringly, yet stern enough for Amy to know it wasn't appreciated. "It was just a slip up, it happens to everyone. No real harm done."

The relief in Amy's eyes was immeasurable, and she let out a sigh of equal magnitude. "Okay," she said after a second. Nonetheless, she smiled a bit, and it wasn't the least bit malicious. In fact, it was somewhat bashful. "I still won though."

With a half smile herself, Sammy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I guess you did."

The others grumbled lightly, whether at the result of the challenge or having been called out Sammy wasn't sure, but no one put up a real fuss. Amy eyed the host with curiosity. "So what is my advantage anyway?"

"Good question," he said, after having an intern cart off the paintings. "We're going to keep things simple - unfortunately. Meet me by the beach in 30 minutes. I'll explain everything then." Chef pulled up to him in a jeep, and the two of them drove off into the forest.

Ella decided to approach Amy and put a hand on her shoulder. Her sister visibly tensed, but eased up when she saw Ella's face. "For what it's worth, congrats," she told her.

"Oh, uh," Amy stammered. "Thanks?"

Jasmine came up then. "You don't actually think Chris is hot, do you?"

Amy mimicked puking in response. "Oh my gag! No way! Absolutely not! Never in a million years!"

"Well that's a relief."

"Then what on earth made you draw him?" Sammy asked.

To that, Amy shrugged. "I just realized that Chris is selfish, and if he's the one judging then I should make something that appeals to him, y'know?"

"And the thing that appeals to him most is himself," Sky observed. "That's actually a smart way to do it. Man, why didn't I think of that?"

Amy awkwardly rubbed her neck. "I mean… I know how to read people, to find out what makes them tick. It was kinda obvious what Chris might want." She let out a sigh. "Honestly it's probably the one thing I'm actually good at."

That pretty much spoke volumes on how she was able to manipulate Sammy growing up. Before she could say anything about that though, Jasmine said, "I don't know you well enough to say that it is, but you oughta put those skills to good use, yeah?" Her face lit up in a smile. "Like last night! Your cattiness was useful in getting Ella to stay in the game. If you use what you know for good, then that's better for you, right?"

Amy took a moment to mull over that. "You… really think so?"

"Sure," Jasmine said with a shrug. "Use your strengths to your advantage. Or, maybe in this case, other people's advantages."

"I guess," Amy said, "but what sort of job lets me yell at people like that?"

They thought for a moment, and an idea came to Sammy. "Why not a lawyer? Like Mom? A tough lawyer who gets the info they need out of suspects and witnesses?"

"Or maybe a saleswoman?" Sky suggested, slapping a fist into an open palm. "I bet you'd have no trouble finding out what people are looking to buy, and then you could sell it to them along with other stuff they don't really need."

"That sounds kind of scummy," Ella noted, distaste in her voice.

Sky shrugged. "I guess, but it is something."

Amy stared at them, but ended up bursting out laughing and covering her eyes as she did so. "Oh god," she said. "I can't believe we're having this conversation right now. It's a bit early for me to be seriously thinking about this, but, uh, thanks I guess. I'll keep those suggestions in mind?"

"You don't have to commit to either, but sure," Sky said with a laugh of her own.

"Anyway, I think we should get going," Ella told them, beginning to walk in the direction Chris and Chef had left. "Before we give Chris another reason to hurt us again."

"Yeah, we really don't want that," Sammy said with a shudder, and the five of them left the area.


"Welcome to part two," announced the host when the five girls arrived. The beach was easy to find, thanks to the tire tracks the jeep left behind, but it didn't really look like there was much happening here. The only thing that stood out was a starting line set up not too far from them. "Now, you might be thinking, what does painting a portrait have to do with running a race? The answer is… nothing!"

"A race?" Sky asked, and pumped her fist in the air. "Finally, something suited for my skill set!"

"So it's… just a race?" Jasmine asked. "Not like, a race to the end before the robots start chasing us again, or a race over super dangerous terrain or something?"

Chris shook his head. "Nah, not really. There are some hidden surprises in the sand, but just like before they won't hurt anyone." He grumbled, "Unfortunately."

"Huh," Sammy mused. "The island turning off must've hurt your challenges a lot, if we're just racing."

"Of course it did!" Chris folded his arms and pouted. "We had to dump all of our original plans, since everything we had designed made use of the tech we have here. Without the island functioning at full capacity, none of it will work properly, so we had to come up with challenges on the fly."

"If this was all last minute, why did we have such detailed painting areas?" Ella asked with a raised hand.

"Legal wanted comfort, I gave you comfort. Sadly, we may have lost a few interns along the way."

The girls gasped, but no one was louder than Ella. "You what?!"

"Yeah, kinda sucky. Point of caution, paint fumes should not be inhaled for lengthy periods of time."

Chef Hatchet rolled his eyes and shook his head. "He means they just passed out from it, and are recovering in the infirmary. Stop tryin' to give these kids heart attacks, man!"

"What's the big deal?" he asked his assistant. "I gotta find my fun somewhere."

"Can we just get on with this?" Amy asked loudly. "What's my advantage, anyway?"

"Your advantage is…" He paused dramatically, but there was really no need. "A head start!"

He was met with silence from everyone. "That's it?" Amy asked. "Seriously?"

"It was pretty anticlimactic," Sammy said.

"What were you expecting? The backpacks full of heavy rocks that we could've used to slow everyone else down are locked away in a storage room we can't get at. This was the next best thing we could think of!"

Amy scoffed and folded her arms. "Wow. Talk about lame. That's so lame, it's almost as lame as Saaaaa…" She trailed off, briefly glanced at Sammy's pout, and tried to recover. "Uh. S-Something that's lame."

Sammy huffed, but kept to herself.

"Mm, right," Chris said with little interest. "Anyways. The goal for this one is to make it to the finish line on the other side of the island. Sounds simple, and it really is, aside from the few non-lethal traps we have here." He cringed at that sentence. "Man, that word is weird." He put his smile back on. "That said, there's gonna be a bit of a twist here."

"And there it is," Jasmine groaned.

"Keep your slouch hat on," Chris replied. "It doesn't have to do with the challenge. Rather, we're going to do something a little different with the elimination, now that we're in the home stretch. The first person to cross the finish line wins the traditional Pahkitew Island post-challenge dinner, and is not allowed to share with any of the other contestants. At the same time, the person who comes in last will also be fed."

"What? They get food too?" Sky asked, a brow raised.

Chris grinned devilishly. "Not exactly. They'll be fed… to the cannon. Without the need for voting."

Sammy breathed in sharply at the news, along with the others. This is it. No more votes. Everything's based on performance now. Things are gonna get much more difficult from here on out. …Well, maybe not right this second since there's no danger. But I have to absolutely not come in last, for Ella's sake.

"Is this going to be like the bicycle challenge from season one?" Ella asked. "As in, the last person to cross the finish line loses, regardless of if there's anyone able to continue or not?"

"No, this isn't like that," Chris replied. "Although you have to admit, that was pretty hilarious. Some of my best work, honestly."

"I liked you a lot better back then," Sky replied.

"Yeah, I think we all did," Amy agreed. "You were halfway decent, astoundingly."

Chris ignored them. "When the first person crosses the line, we'll issue a countdown timer - not strapped to a bomb this time. The placement of each person along the beach when that timer finishes will determine who gets sent home. Farthest from the goal is the automatic loser. All clear?" No one had any other questions. "Alright! Amy, you get a 15 minute head start. As soon as that's done, everyone else can go! You ready?"

With a calming sigh, Amy removed her heels and tossed them aside. Her leg was still wrapped up in bandages, and while they looked clean they were rumpled and wrinkled after wearing them for so long. "Ready as I'll ever be," she said, and crouched down.

"On your mark… Get set…"

Chris blew his airhorn, and Amy took off.

…At a sprint.

"Aaaand she's sprinting," Sky stated when Amy was out of earshot. Her sister didn't let up in the slightest, even when she disappeared behind a cliff. "Yeah, she's already lost this."

"Welp, that makes it easier on us, doesn't it?" Jasmine asked.

"Shouldn't we tell her…?" Ella quietly asked.

"I think we're past the point of being able to say anything," Sammy replied.

"I suppose so."

"That said, she did have the right idea with the boots." Sammy bent down to take hers off. "Running on sand in these would be a nightmare." She tossed hers near Amy's and started stretching along with Sky. She was in the middle of stretching out her back when Ella laughed lightly. "What're you laughing at?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing!" Ella quickly told her. "It's just… sometimes I forget we're roughly the same height only when you're in heels. And when you're not…"

Sammy folded her arms and pouted up at her. "I'm not that short. You're just a few inches taller than me, that's all."

With a grin that Sammy couldn't stay annoyed at, Ella wrapped her in a hug and quite deliberately placed her chin on Sammy's head. "And what a world of difference those few inches make."

Sammy groaned in embarrassment as Ella laughed further, but she didn't pull away from the hug.

The next few moments involved more stretching and idle chatter. At one point however, they heard an explosion and nearly screamed at the sound of it. Chris turned on the TV that was nearby and showed footage of Amy, covered in something that resembled soot, but was otherwise okay. She was standing several feet from what looked like the blast zone of whatever bomb just went off, and the sand around her was molded in a way that looked like she had been sent flying forward a little bit. "Jesus Christ," she was saying, patting herself down to make sure she wasn't missing any limbs. The signs of fatigue were evident in her voice. "I'm okay. That actually didn't hurt. Huh. Maybe McLean's telling the truth after all."

"Of course I am!" Chris shouted into a microphone, prompting Amy to look around her and find the speaker. "Now get back to it or you'll mess up your lead!" She didn't need to be told twice, and went right back to sprinting.

"So was that just like… a mini bomb or something?" Jasmine asked.

"Not sure, I don't make the props," Chris said. "Whatever it was, it's good enough to fake the danger, right?"

"I guess."

The group resumed waiting, and once the 15 minute mark was nearly up Chris signalled them all to get ready. "I trust I don't need to say anything else on the challenge?" Everybody shook their heads. "Alright. You're free to go in three… two… one… WAIT!"

"What?!" Sammy screeched as Sky fell face first into the sand. "Why are we waiting?!"

Chris burst out laughing and pointed at the sand-covered Sky. "No reason!" he said between laughter. "Just wanted to see what would happen!" After a few more chuckles, he wiped away a tear. "Anyway, get going."

He blew the air horn with a pompous grin, and the four girls glared daggers at him as they started. "You're the worst, McLean," Sky spat at him.

"That means so much, coming from you," he countered. Sky just growled and kept going.

They stuck together for as long as they could, but due to several factors - being naturally faster, Sammy wanting to slow down for Ella, and so on - Sky and Jasmine ended up pulling ahead of them sooner rather than later. "Sorry, mates, but the race is on!"

"Good luck you two!" Sky shouted back at them with a wave. "Try not to come in last, okay?"

"Uh, yeah! Thanks!" Sammy would have said 'You guys as well', but they were highly unlikely to come in anything but first and second. "See you at the end!" Once they were far enough ahead, Sammy said to Ella, "You know… they are so working together now."

"They kind of have to, honestly," Ella replied. "Seeing as we're a team now, and… Um."

"No one really wants to pair with Amy," Sammy finished for her. "It's harsh, but also kind of true."

"Do you think we should let her join us instead?"

"Mm… probably not. I mean, I want to help her get over her issues, sure, but I don't really owe her anything other than that."

"I suppose that's fair. It's a shame though. The only person who would even consider teaming up with her was Scarlett."

"And that did not end well, did it?" Sammy asked, a humorless laugh in her voice. "As weird as it is to say… I think the painting actually did help me calm down a little bit from everything that happened last night, you know? Even if the end results were trash."

"Painting can be pretty therapeutic, you know," Ella said. "I should look into doing it more when we finish the show. I kind of had fun!" She frowned. "Minus the bomb. That wasn't fun."

"Yeahh, I really could've done without the bomb, all things considered. Though I guess I should be thankful nothing happened, especially considering how awful the next few days are likely going to be."

"Mm, well, that may be true… But we should focus on the positives! We actually get to relax for once, and we don't have to worry about getting hurt-"

The second Sammy put her foot down to take the next step, a bear trap closed itself on her leg. Both Sammy and Ella screamed to the high heavens, for perhaps several seconds longer than necessary, but Sammy quickly stopped when no pain made itself known. "…Wait," she said to Ella, getting her to stop as well. She pointed to the trap's teeth, which while uncomfortable did not penetrate her skin and were just sort of sitting there. "It's… It's a fake."

As Sammy went to pry the thing off, Ella let out a heavy sigh of relief. "Good lord, that gave me the fright of a lifetime. You sure you're okay?"

The bear trap was easy to open up, and Sammy stepped out of it like nothing even happened. "Oh yeah, I'm just fine. Let's keep going."

"Okay…"

They did so, and they resumed their conversation. "So… after like… uh, how many days have we been here, exactly?"

"Umm…" Ella, still shaken, took a breath and began counting on her fingers. "This is our… ninth day here, isn't it?"

"Really? It feels like more."

"That's because this is our third challenge this day. The Juggy Chunks, the self-destruct, and now the painting."

"Oh, wow, you're right! So after nine days and ten challenges that were either difficult, or dangerous, or both, we're finally allowed to catch a break, even if it's just for one day. Case in point," she jabbed a thumb back towards the counterfeit bear trap. "And honestly, after everything we've been through, I'll take what I can get."

"I completely agree," Ella said. "That being said… We should be trying to not come in last for now. I'd prefer it if one of us didn't get sent home because we weren't trying our hardest or something."

"Yeah, that's fair," Sammy said with a nod. "You really do want to win this, though, don't you?"

"Of course! I know I may have risked a bit much over night, but now that I've been given a second chance, I really want to put it to good use. I'm not sure how I'll get past Sky and Jasmine, but I feel like I've got some chance at winning."

"I think you do, too. And I'll do whatever I can to help you get there!"

"We already agreed on that, but thank you for reconfirming it! And I'll do the same for you!" Sammy grinned back at her.

They entered into a comfortable silence, though they made sure not to slow down their pace. Sammy was keeping an eye on their surroundings as they ran - she really didn't want a repeat of what just happened, fake or not. And who knew what else the host left in the sand for them?

But after a few more minutes of jogging, Ella broke the silence.

"I know we're in the middle of a challenge and all, but can we talk about, ah… us?"

She tore her eyes from the ground to look back at the girl running beside her. "Oh, yeah, absolutely. I was gonna wait for tomorrow morning when we were a bit more free, but now works too."

"Okay," Ella said. "I didn't actually say it last night with everything going on, but…" She took a big breath. "I really, really like you too." Her face flushed red and her grin split from ear to ear, and she put her hands on her cheeks. "Phew! Saying it out loud after so long takes a load off my mind, you know?"

"Oh, trust me, I get that," Sammy laughed, her insides warming her to her core. "So, how long have you known?"

"Mmm," she hummed in thought. "'Known' is tricky, I think, but the feelings started when you pulled me out of the water that one time." Remembering it, she actually moaned in embarrassment and hid her face behind her hands. "Specifically it was… when you put my shoe back on."

"When I put your…" She had to think back and recall that memory, but she did remember that happening. "Huh. I had forgotten that part. So that was the exact moment when it happened?"

Ella nodded abashedly. "I was still thinking of things like fairy tales then, and so-"

"Wait," Sammy interrupted, a laugh in her voice. "Wait wait wait. Was, was it because that ended up being a low-budget recreation of that scene in Cinderella?"

Ella whimpering and hiding her face further told her the answer.

"OMG!" Sammy cooed. "Aww, Ella, that's so adorable!"

She smiled awkwardly and quickly ushered the conversation forward. "Th-Thank you. Moving on, I was trying to figure things out afterward. Like I mentioned last night, it was the first time I had ever had feelings like this for a girl, so it threw me off a bit at first."

"Oh, right," Sammy said. "So… I'm guessing by this point, you don't see it as an issue."

"Absolutely not!" Ella replied. "I absolutely do not have any sort of issue with it. In fact, I've never had one with it. Love is love, after all, and love is… beautiful. That said, those feelings got me thinking, and I realized that the same applies to me. It's still a little early to tell, but I believe that for me, it doesn't matter the other person's gender or what they identify as. As long as they're a good person, have a good soul, then that would be enough for me."

"So, you're pansexual then," Sammy offered. She was acutely aware of the different forms of sexualities a person could be, having looked them up online herself when she was younger and had only just discovered her own. It was intriguing to find out what sorts of sexualities there were… and also heartbreaking to learn that not everyone thought people identifying as these deserved any sort of love.

Ella clapped her hands together. "That was the word! Yes, that sounds about right for me. Before now, I think I only thought of myself as liking boys because… well, that's what was in movies and such all the time. Girls like boys, boys like girls, and rarely, if ever, anything but."

"Media really tries to force people into thinking that, doesn't it," Sammy said with a sigh. "It's better nowadays, but still nowhere near perfect."

"I see that now. But…" She motioned to the camera that was automatically keeping pace with them on a track near the water's edge. "If all goes well, we'll be able to change that!"

That was highly optimistic of her, though it really was in her nature. "I don't think it would be as easy as that…"

"Mm, maybe you're right. But there's no harm in trying, right? And I think I may have mentioned this, but maybe someone, somewhere will take inspiration from us and want to confess to the person they like, despite the pressures of doing so."

Sammy remembered Ella saying that in the cave, and she gave her a bright smile. "Your endless optimism is really refreshing, you know that?"

"That's one of my best qualities, I've been told," Ella said with a proud grin. "So what about you? When did you find out?"

"Me? I've known I was gay for a couple of years now," Sammy answered. "One day I just realized that I had more attraction towards girls than guys, and then a lot of things fell into place."

"It must have been a relief to figure it out."

Sammy giggled. "Oh yeah, it was. It, uh… was also something I kept to myself until now though. Back then, my preferences in romantic partners wasn't something I could just casually bring up at the dinner table. It probably still isn't."

"Um…" Ella looked past her and at the camera again. "Not to be the bearer of bad news, but I think you've passed the point of secrecy already."

Sammy sighed heavily. "Yeah, I know."

"But, think of this as a new stage in your life!" Ella tried happily. "A new opportunity to be yourself even more than before!"

"That's what I want!" Sammy told her. "I'm just… so scared of the backlash I might get because of it. I'm scared that I'm going to have to suffer again, and this time at someone else's hand. Maybe even a lot of people's hands."

This was what had her so afraid amongst all of the joy. She had just found this joy, this happiness at feeling like she belonged and was loved and able to love, and the chances of her having to deal with abuse once again because of it was way too high for her liking. A vast chunk of the world didn't respect people like her, and was very unlikely to change its ways just because she came out on a TV show. Heck, with Total Drama being as popular as it was around the world, it might even end up worse.

And she knew she had been psyched up to confess to Ella and not care what other people think. But now that the adrenaline had worn off, the worries all flew right back into place as if they never left. It was going to be so very hard dealing with everything now…

Ella, however, seemed to not be having any of that. She grasped Sammy's hand and squeezed as tightly as she could. "Then we'll suffer together!"

"What? Really?" Sammy asked her in astonishment. "You'd do that for me? Are you sure?"

"Well, yeah! I'm in this as much as you are!" Her smile turned crooked and she let out a strangled moan. "That said, I'm already rather disliked at school. It's probably going to get pretty difficult for me now…"

"Oh," she mumbled. She knew that just by being attracted to Ella, the songbird was going to get some amount of ire aimed at her, but now that it was clear she reciprocated Sammy's feelings? She was likely going to have a lot more to deal with than Sammy was…

"But that's okay!" Ella declared. "Because I know that you love me as much as I love you, and that will make things so much easier."

Sammy felt her grin widening, her cheeks flushing, and her chest warming at that. Love. It's… really weird to say, especially now that we're not in a do-or-die situation, but… Just hearing it makes me feel so much better about the future.

"I guess we have no choice but to stick together on this, then," Sammy said with a light laugh. "You know… It's actually really relieving that you feel the same way. I don't know what I would have done if you didn't…"

"I'm sure you would've found someone else if not."

"It probably wouldn't have happened for a long time," Sammy admitted. "But I'm glad it's you. Right now I wouldn't want anyone else."

Ella cooed and put a hand to her chest. "You're sweet, you know that?"

"If either one of us is sweet, it's you."

"But that doesn't mean you're not!"

"Okay, well, you're more-"

"Oh my god will you both shut up?!" yelled Chris as a monitor popped up from the sand alongside them. Sammy screamed in surprise and tripped over her feet. "You are literally giving me cavities over here!"

Sammy coughed and spat out sand, and Ella helped her brush it off her clothes. "Was that really necessary?" Ella asked bitterly.

"Absolutely," Chris said. "The audience isn't gonna be interested in something sappy like this!"

"Aren't romances a big selling point for the show, though?" Sammy asked, wiping her jawline and rising to her knees.

"They are, but only when there's a lot of misdirection and shouting. These relationships need conflict, and yours' lacks it entirely!"

The girls shared a look. "Isn't that more of a good thing?" Ella asked.

"Not here it isn't."

Sammy thought it over for a moment. No way was she just going to start yelling at Ella, she didn't deserve it in the least. But she really, really wanted to get Chris off her back… "Huh," she said as inspiration struck her. "Ella!"

"Huh?" Ella whirled on her in surprise. "W-What?"

"You… You have an awesome singing voice!" she shouted at her. "And honestly I love your hair! It's just so poofy and bounces whenever you move! It's really cute!"

Confusion quickly became etched on her face, along with the red from her blushing, but soon enough her eyes lit up in understanding. "Oh! Uh, thank you!" she shouted right back, hands balled into fists. "Your hair is just as nice! It's so flowy and full of life!"

"Thank you!"

"No, thank you!"

Chris was sputtering behind the screen. "Hey! That's not what I meant when I said shouting!"

Sammy stood back up and took off running again, Ella hot on her trail. "You didn't specify!" she called out in a sing-song voice as Ella laughed mirthfully.

They ran and shouted at each other random compliments - from Ella having a cute nose, to Sammy having a beautiful laugh, to both girls admiring the other's determination in both the game and their desire to be better - before they started asking each other simple and harmless questions.

"What's your favorite color?!"

"Pink and white! It's a tie! What about yours?!"

"Blue! But if we want to get technical it's actually called cobalt! Yes I looked it up, please don't judge me!"

"No judgement at all! It's a lovely color! What's your favorite movie?!"

"I really liked Spirited Away! But I haven't seen many movies recently that interested me! I really need to change that when I get home!"

"I will gladly watch movies with you if you want to! I know of a computer app that can let us watch Netflix together from entirely different locations!"

"That sounds incredible! Thank you! What about you?!"

"Pretty much all the Disney movies! Even the not so great ones from the 80s! They all hold a special place in my heart!"

"That is such a 'you' answer!"

"Is that a good thing?!"

"Yeah! Of course!"

Favorite foods, dessert, season, time of day, places they visited, places they want to visit, favorite school subjects, least favorite subjects… They kept shouting aimless questions at one another until their throats started to hurt and they devolved into painful laughter.

And as ridiculous as it sounded, Sammy needed that. Something silly and funny to help with the destressing. The painting helped plenty, for sure, but she needed an excuse to have her mood lightened, and a shouting match with Ella with no anger or animosity proved to be the key. Now she just needed some water to soothe her throat…

And to quench her thirst. The running was beginning to get to her.

Unfortunately, all of the positive shouting ended up taking their eyes off of the sand, and when they heard the next click from under their feet they weren't ready for what came next. A cloud of sickly-looking green smoke burst out from the ground, and the girls quickly started coughing.

"Gah- Ack-" Ella coughed and hacked. "Oh god- Stink bomb! It's a stink bomb!"

"Move, move!" Sammy cried.

The two of them burst from the clouds and fell to their knees to cough up their lungs. They looked at each other, at their eyes puffy and red from the foul-smelling smoke. And despite it all, they broke out into even more uproarious laughter at the entire situation.

They resumed their run, and though the scent lingered on them it didn't last for very long. They soon entered a comfortable silence, penetrated only by their quick breaths, and it wasn't even a few minutes afterwards that they came across someone else. Amy was hunched over the sand, coughing and dry heaving. A gross looking puddle sat in front of her, beneath her face, and Sammy didn't need to ask what had happened. Nearby, another monitor had risen from the sand with Chris's face on it, and he seemed to be speaking to Amy with that same old smug grin of his.

"What happened to her?" Ella gasped.

"I think she just pushed herself to the limit," Sammy answered. "Sprinted for too long, and now she's paying the price."

"Should we stop?"

"Nah, this is all on her. She'll learn from this. Hopefully."

"If you say so."

They approached her, their pace remaining the same. Amy was gripping the sand harshly, her eyes full of anger and frustration as either sweat or tears (or both) poured down her face. She looked at them as they passed, and her expression changed from rage to surprise, to realization, to defeat. "Dammit," she grumbled.

"I'm sorry," Sammy said to her evenly. "But you really shouldn't have sprinted-"

"I know!" Amy yelled at her. "I don't need to be told that a third time!"

"Yeah, I was already making fun of her for it," Chris said when Sammy and Ella looked at the monitor. "Turns out she's really touchy about her failures!"

"Shut up!"

"You see?" He laughed cruelly.

Sammy hadn't wanted to punch someone in the face as badly as this before. That said, Amy did kind of deserve it - the few good things she'd done since last night were a great start, but not nearly enough for Sammy to want to save her from Chris's onslaught.

"Just try to pace yourself from now on," she told her sister instead, and pressed forward with Ella close behind. Amy didn't reply as they left.

"Are you sure you just want to leave her?" Ella asked when they were far enough away.

"I'm sure," Sammy answered. "I've already decided to give her a chance to be a better person. Anything else would be undeserving, I feel."

"I know, but…"

"Consider it punishment for what she did to me." Sammy reconsidered her words. "Actually, it's more like the start of her punishment. An 11-year-long one."

With that, Ella conceded. "I guess you're right. It wouldn't be fair otherwise."

Her hesitance was not lost on Sammy, however. "You're a really good person, you know? To feel all this pity for someone like her." She herself felt some pity towards Amy, but not enough that it would stop her from helping her with everything. Wanting to see her recovery through was one thing - helping her win the game was another.

Ella offered a small smile and shrugged slightly. "It's just who I am. I look for the best in everyone." With a sigh she added, "Whether I know I shouldn't or not."

Sammy placed her hand on Ella's shoulder. "Hey, it's a great quality to have. Not many people in the world can say that they have it. In fact, more people should look for the best in others. Or, well, at least they should look for the best in people who aren't total creeps."

"I always thought, if people were just a bit kinder to others, the world would be a much better place," Ella said.

"Well," Sammy said, the desire to become sappy rising in her once more. "I know my world is a much better place now."

Ella's face turned crimson and she buried her face in her hands. "Ohh, goodness," she said breathily.

Sammy couldn't hide her grin. She was going to have just as much fun teasing Ella as Ella would have teasing her.


The island was a lot bigger than Sammy remembered. They'd been running for a good while now, and her legs were starting to turn to jelly. Poor Ella was having it worse, asking to stop for breaks several times during the course of the challenge, and in the end the two chose to walk the rest of the way rather than run. It was a good challenge for someone who regularly did something like this, but definitely not for either of them.

Thankfully, aside from a mishap with a rope trap Sammy tripped over and a few special surprise balloons being lobbed at them (which ended up containing sticky maple syrup), they managed to stay out of harm's way for the remainder of the challenge. About two hours in, around the time Ella was going into detail on exactly why Frozen was so popular (not that Sammy particularly cared, but listening to Ella's passionate talking was a treat in and of itself), Chris's voice erupted over the loudspeaker. "This just in! Jasmine has taken first place, and wins tonight's dinner! Everyone else has 30 minutes of challenge time left, and as a friendly reminder, whoever's in last is getting the boot!"

Sammy turned her head around to see the empty expanse of beach behind her. "I think we know who's getting that boot."

"Looks to be that way," Ella said with a quiet sigh. "Are you sure you're okay with that?"

Sammy smiled wryly. She wasn't getting fed up with how often Ella was asking - in fact, her ability to find the positives amidst the negatives was rather appealing. "I think so. She was going to get taken out eventually. No way would she be able to beat Sky and Jasmine in anything athletic, and that's what a lot of these challenges have been."

Ella gave her a confused look. "Couldn't the same be said about us?"

Sammy blinked. "Uhh… At least we know how to pace ourselves."

On they walked, continuing to chat idly until their time ran out. Chances were they were nowhere close to the finish line, but they had no intention of just stopping and waiting for the clock to run its course. In the distance, however, it appeared that someone had intended to do just that.

"Sky?" Ella called out when they got close enough to her. She was sitting at the shore, bare feet in the water and relaxing with her head thrown back. She looked over to them when she heard her name. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, hey," she said back, standing and approaching them. "Resting. I already went for a run this morning, and it's never a good idea to overexert the body with exercise."

"Makes sense," Sammy said. "I'm kinda surprised though. I expected you to at least try and cross the finish line before stopping."

She shrugged. "I guess normally I would. But I didn't really have much reason to."

Sammy and Ella shared a look. "Wouldn't winning be enough?" Sammy asked. Seeing Sky choose not to try and win the challenge tailor-made to her skills was a little jarring and somewhat worrisome.

"Normally, yeah, but I dunno," Sky said. She kicked at the sand in idle thought. "I just wasn't feeling it today."

"Well," Ella said, and gestured onward. "Did you want to walk with us then? The more the merrier."

"You totally should," Sammy added, hoping to bring Sky out of her funk. She looked back over her shoulder. "We're, uh, not in any danger of outright losing, anyway."

Sky hummed and nodded. "Yeah, I'll walk with you guys." She picked up her shoes and the three kept going forward.

Every now and then Sammy looked back, just to see if Amy had found her second wind and was sprinting again, but for the next few minutes she was nowhere to be found. "Unless something drastic happens, I doubt there's even going to be enough to use as an episode," Sammy noted. "Not much has happened." The other two gave her a startled look. "N-Not that I wanted anything to happen! Just thinking out loud is all!"

Both of them looked relieved. "I do see where you're coming from," Sky said. "There's not a whole lot of urgency today, despite all the… pranks."

"Not that that's a bad thing!" Ella shouted out to the island, as Chris was likely listening. "We quite like this change of pace!"

"That'll probably upset him more," Sammy told her.

"Oh, I'm well aware," she said with a cheerful, knowing smile.

"Guys, listen," Sky said suddenly, drawing their attention. She was frowning and fidgeting her thumbs together. "I have a confession to make."

Sammy, surprised, wasn't sure what that confession could be, but Ella apparently had an idea. "It's okay. We already figured you were teaming up with Jasmine."

"Oh!" Sammy nodded. "Yeah, it's understandable why. Ella and I are teaming up ourselves, so…"

Sky sighed. "I guess it was pretty obvious, huh. Yeah, Jasmine and I are partnered together now. It's the best option either of us have right now for winning. So… I'm sorry."

The girls shared a startled glance. "Sorry? Why are you sorry?" Sammy asked.

"Because I told you last night, before we… we eliminated Shawn, that I wasn't going to turn my back on you guys. And yet here I am, pairing up with someone else. It… sucks. And I don't like it."

"Oh, Sky." Ella stopped walking and wrapped Sky up in a hug, the shorter girl yelping as she was drawn in. "Are you worried we're going to be mad at you for this?"

Sky remained silent, and after a moment only nodded her head.

"Hey, we can't be mad at you for that," Sammy told her, getting in on the affection and wrapping her arms around them both. "We're all trying to win, and if working with Jasmine is what's best for you, then we can't fault you for that."

"But," Sky said. "This is gonna make it so much harder on you guys. And neither of you deserve that."

Ella smiled softly and stroked Sky's hair. "Who said winning a million dollars was going to be easy?"

"True that, it hasn't been easy this whole time. And besides," Sammy said, "We've already accepted we'll be against you from now on. It was kind of a no-brainer."

"But that doesn't mean we like you any less than before, okay?" Ella told her gently. "We're still friends. And hopefully we'll all stay as friends, us and Shawn and Beardo. Maybe even Jasmine if she's up for it too."

"She'd totally be up for it," Sammy told her. She gasped suddenly. "We should like, get everyone's contact info and have Zoom calls with each other when we get out of here! That would be so awesome! Being able to keep in touch with everyone would be perfect!"

Ella cast a confused glance her way. "Sorry, uh, what's Zoom?"

"Oh, it's like… Skype? But newer, I think." And the only reason I know that is because Amy uses it.

"Huh! Well, that makes more sense."

A laugh sounded out between them, and Sky shook her head in astonishment. "You guys are something else, you realize? I don't think I've ever met anyone as kind and understanding as either of you. You're both one of a kind."

Sammy blinked at that and smiled bashfully. "Oh, gosh, I dunno about that…"

"It's the truth!" Sky insisted.

"She's right," Ella said. "You should take the compliment!"

"Oh, uh. Looks like I don't have a choice," Sammy said with a chuckle. "I'm sure I'll get used to accepting compliments one day."

"You seemed just fine accepting them earlier," Ella pointed out.

"Well, yeah, because they were coming from you."

With a blush and a laugh, Ella said, "Ah, I see!"

"You guys are adorable," Sky said, and broke free of their hug. "And, um, thanks, for not getting mad. I was really starting to get worried."

"You don't have to be worried about making us mad," Sammy told her. Ella nodded in agreement.

"That takes a load off my shoulders," Sky said. "Seriously, you two are like, the best possible friends I could ask for. I'm starting to think you're more trustworthy than Keith is…"

Sammy's thoughts came to a grinding halt, though Ella kept going. "Why, that's very nice of you to-" And then she stopped abruptly. "Um. Hold a moment. Who is Keith?"

Sky stared at them, and then looked like a bug caught in a spider web. "Ooh. Crap. I've never mentioned him, have I?" Both Sammy and Ella slowly shook their heads. "Right. Um. He's… kinda sorta my boyfriend from back home."

It took a moment for that to sink in, and when it did, the girls' screams of shock and surprise were likely heard from the other side of the island.


After that conversation was discussed and wrapped up, the 30 minute mark had come and gone. Amy was nowhere to be found, and the finish line was just visible in the distance. It was obvious what would happen next, but for some reason Sammy wasn't all that thrilled about it. She had pretty much accepted this outcome from the get-go, but it still left a bad taste in her mouth.

Despite the challenge being over, the three of them kept going until they reached the finish line. Jasmine was there sitting on the beach, but Chris and Chef were absent. "Hey Jasmine. Is it just you?" Sammy asked.

"Yep," she replied. "Chris went off to fetch Amy in that jeep of his. Said that he wants the final shot of the challenge to be at the finish line."

"Then I'm glad we kept going," Ella said, sitting down herself. "But for now, I must rest. My legs really need a break."

"Me too," Sammy said, plopping down onto her back with a groan. "I don't think I've moved my legs this much in my life. They feel like they're about to collapse in on themselves any second."

"Man," Sky laughed, still standing. "Neither of you would be able to handle one of my full workouts then."

"Shush!" Ella scolded lightly as Sammy stuck her tongue out at her. "Some of us aren't as dedicated to getting abs as much as you are." Sky stuck her own tongue out right back at Sammy, and laughed at the childishness of it. Ella took the opportunity to keep talking though. "How are you doing?" she asked Jasmine casually. "Congrats on winning, by the way."

Jasmine seemed genuinely taken back by both of those sentences, as if the number of times Ella and Jasmine spoke could be counted on one hand. "Oh. I'm doing alright. And thanks, though it really isn't much to congratulate me for. This was probably the least challenging challenge they could've thought up."

"You're right about that," Ella agreed. "Still, I believe it warrants a congratulations all the same, especially since you're the one getting dinner. So, congratulations!"

Jasmine giggled behind her hand and shook her head. "Alright, there's such a thing as being too nice to the competition." To Sammy she said, "Maybe you oughta teach her how to trash talk."

Sammy was unable to imagine Ella ever trash talking someone. But a bit of assertiveness wouldn't do her any harm - she knew that first hand. "Maybe I should!" Sammy replied with a laugh. "Ella, try coming at me with your best trash talk!"

Immediately Ella looked unsure of herself. "Oh, gosh. I don't know if I can do that."

"I'm not gonna take offense, I promise."

"Mm… I still don't know…"

Sammy stuck her little finger out. "Pinkie promise!"

Ella snorted and laughed. "Well, now I have to do it." She shook it with her own pinkie, and cleared her throat. Hesitantly, she pointed at Sammy. "Y… You're not going to win, you… you… blonde… person!"

Sammy snorted herself and attempted to hold back. But in the end she couldn't and ended up bursting out laughing, clutching her stomach and kicking her legs. "OMG!" she shouted in between. "Ella, y-you are so precious!"

Sky and Jasmine got in on the laughter, though Ella seemed less eager. "I don't like trash talking! It's too rude!"

"Either that, or you're just not good at it," Jasmine said, grinning. "You ever been in a fight before?"

"Me?" Ella asked, incredulous. "Never! I've never hurt anyone before!" She paused. "At least I hope I haven't."

"Welp, that explains it." Jasmine tipped her hat back to scratch her head. "You know, it's kinda crazy you made it this far without so much as a bad bone in your body."

"I don't think it's crazy," Sky told her. "It's pretty admirable, actually. Besides, she deserves to be here just as much as anyone else."

"Especially after last night," Sammy added.

Ella's face lit up like a beacon and she waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, no, I don't think it was anything that special… But I do agree that I deserve to be here as well. I think all of us do." Another pause. "Except Scarlett."

"And that's why she was ejected from the island," Sky laughed.

"And good riddance, too," Jasmine noted. "The less I think about her, the better."

"For real," Sammy shuddered. "I've talked about her enough for one lifetime. Let's talk about literally anything else."

They did so for another bit longer, until Chris and Chef returned with Amy now in tow. She had been provided a towel and bottle of water, and though she didn't look all that happy, she also didn't look all that upset. Sort of like she also knew this result was coming and had come to terms with it. I mean we did just spend an hour or so ahead of her… She's had time to do some soul searching, I'd say.

"Congrats to Jasmine, for beating everyone else," Chris said after he lined everyone up at the edge of the finish line. "For your reward, you get not only exclusive bragging rights, but you also earn tonight's meal: a proper, home-cooked five-star dinner courtesy of Chef Hatchet!" He held up a tablet that was showing a video, specifically of the long, fancy table from last night, decked out in steaks, fish, salads, fruits, desserts, and everything in between.

The five contestants gasped at the sight, unable to tear their eyes away, and no one was laughing more joyously than Jasmine. "Are you serious?!" she cried out. "Bloody brilliant, that is! Finally, some good freaking food!"

"I didn't even think that the food would be proper this time!" Sky grumbled, double-palming her face. "If I had known that, I would've actually tried to win! Argh, I'm such a-!"

Chris's airhorn rang out, effectively shutting everyone up. "Simmer down!" the host called out. He sent his smirk over to Amy. "On the other end, we have Amy in last place despite her head start, earning her the title of 'Queen Loser' and a one-way trip out of here!"

Amy scoffed, folding her arms and looking away. "Whatever. It's time I left this piece of shit island anyway."

Chris ignored her. "The rest of you are neither winners nor losers, but don't rest on your laurels right yet - we've still got at least three more challenges filled with pain and suffering ready to go!"

The rest of them groaned and huffed. "Can't we keep doing challenges like this instead?" Sammy asked, although she immediately wished she hadn't.

"Not on your life, dude. The techie guys tell us that the island will be partially back online by tomorrow morning, so we can resume with some of our regular, danger-induced challenges." His plastic grin widened considerably. "And trust me, you're gonna love 'em."

Sammy gave him an exasperated look. "Yeah, gonna say no to that."

Jasmine's excitement for her meal vanished all of a sudden, and was replaced with a look of startled concern. "Hold the phone. Chris, is this video live?" she asked, pointing to the host's tablet.

"Yep," he replied with a cheerful nod, "we've already had the food prepared so that whoever won could eat the second they were able. Why do you ask?"

Everyone zeroed in on the tablet and recoiled in disgust. "Mate, there're gulls picking at it!" Jasmine shouted, pointing emphatically at the screen. Two or three seagulls had landed on the table and were beginning to eat away at the multitude of meals. Clearly they were real ones, likely drawn to the smell of the food from off the coast of the island.

Chris flipped the tablet around and laughed at what he saw. "Oh, that I wasn't expecting. Good for them!"

"Chris! Shoo them away!" Jasmine pleaded, running up to the man and grasping his shoulders. "Don't let them eat the food!"

Unperturbed, Chris casually pushed aside her hands. "I'm thinkin'… nah."

Jasmine, along with the rest of the girls, gaped at him. Likely realizing she was losing an impossible fight, she instead asked, "Then where's the meal?! At least let me get some of it before it's gone!"

"Oh, you'll find it on the other side of the island, where we had our challenge last night." He turned and looked in the direction the main area was. "I'd say if you sprint, you'll make it in time to get, say… enough for a snack?"

Jasmine clenched her fists and seethed with anger, but let it all out in a cry of frustration as she took off at a run into the forest.

Chris paid her no mind. "The rest of you should be getting back too. I'm due for an early sleep tonight, so the sooner you return to camp the faster we can get the elimination over with."

"Can't you just bring us back in your jeep?" Ella asked, pointing to the machine.

"And give you guys a free ride that none of you deserve? No deal, brah." He and Chef walked by them, hopped into the vehicle, and took off. "See you in a few hours!"

The remaining girls groaned even further, Amy even deciding to give the host a double flip of the bird. "Screw you, too, McLean!" she called out at the same time.

"So we run to the other side of the island, tire ourselves out, and now we have to walk back?" Sammy asked aloud, flopping down onto the sand once more. "This may have been a relatively-stress-free day, but it has not been easy…"

"I don't know if I can do anymore walking," Ella moaned, likewise falling down. "Can someone carry me? That would be nice."

Sky lightly chuckled and playfully nudged Sammy with her shoe. "C'mon, you lazybones, up and at 'em. There's only a few more hours til sundown and we don't want to make Chris mad."

"I know," Sammy whined. "But the sand is so… comfy…"

She would've stayed lying down for just a bit longer, but without uttering a sound Amy started following after Chris's jeep through the forest. Sammy watched her go, and all of a sudden there was a twinge of sympathy in her heart. Without any further thoughts or words she rose to her feet and hurried after her.

"Hey," she said once they started through the trees. "You gonna be okay?"

Amy didn't look back as she shrugged. "I guess. It sucks but like… I knew this was gonna happen eventually."

Sammy had figured that, but hearing it come from Amy herself left a whole different taste in her mouth. "Yeah?"

"Well, yeah. I'm not stupid. I know I'd never be able to beat Jasmine or Sky at anything this show could throw at us. The painting was just a dumb fluke, and definitely not something I could rely on to win." She sighed and scratched her head. "I mean, yeah, sure, obviously I wanted to win. We all wanted to win. But I'm not going to kid myself and think that I have a shot anymore. And that's ignoring the fact that I've already officially lost."

Sammy could think of a few ways Amy could try to win - manipulate her way to first place, use the skills she demonstrated on Chris to get herself a few advantages over the others. Whether it was because she didn't want to use them or she didn't even think of using them, it was clear that Amy wanted to go about this fairly. Despite this Sammy frowned, and looked back towards the path. "I suppose."

She knew her sister wanted to change - given their talk last night, that much was obvious. And she knew that with change, she was going to start acting differently. But this wasn't really what Sammy was expecting. She knew Amy to be the kind of person to always go for what she wanted, even if it meant doing something underhanded to get it. But this was on a whole other level - now Amy was admitting defeat without fighting for victory, and it caught Sammy off guard. It was like the wind had left her sails entirely.

Not that it was a bad thing, of course. Just surprising.

Amy finally looked at her. "What's that smile for?"

Aw dang it, not again. "Just thinking. Nothing to worry about."

She only grunted in response.

The two continued on, side by side, no animosity from either of them. Sammy did her best to control her smile, but on the inside, she was actually feeling the fledglings of hope. Hope that maybe, one day in the far future, they could be proper sisters and perhaps… even friends.


The sun was set. The campfire was lit. The cannon was prepped and ready to go.

It was time to say goodbye to Amy.

Sammy stood with the others, watching with mixed feelings as her sister stepped forward. She had fallen back with Ella and Sky during their return trip, and hadn't really had a chance to say anything else to Amy. Not that she was even sure what to say - how do you console your enemy-turned-not-quite-an-enemy-anymore of a sister when you're not even sure she needs you to talk to her? Sammy knew many of Amy's tells from growing up, but they were limited to lying, backstabbing, and tormenting. Anything more genuine and close to the heart was new territory for her.

Amy stood ahead of them, staring at the cannon listlessly. She let out a sigh and rubbed her arm, and took a look back at the players still in the game. Ella did the same, looking to see if anyone was going to say anything first, and in the end she actually took a quick step forward. "Um, thank you again for last night," Ella said quietly to her, taking Amy's hands and holding them tightly. "You gave me a second chance at this game, and I really don't know how else to thank you. So… I really, really appreciate it."

Amy smiled wryly and shrugged. "It's whatever. Not like I didn't enjoy it, anyway."

Ella grinned brightly at her, and walked back to the group. "Good luck, wherever you land," she said.

Amy frowned then, reminded of the trip she was about to take. She then glanced at Sammy, stared at her for a moment, and turned towards Chris. "Can… I have some time to talk to her?"

Sammy blinked in surprise as Chris sighed heavily. "Fine. You have one minute."

Amy scowled at him, but turned her attention back to her sister. Sammy stepped forward, unsure of what to expect. Another apology maybe? Or maybe she'll go back to before and chew me out or something. She silently chided herself. Ugh, come on, don't be ridiculous. She's passed that now.

The two of them stood stock-still for a handful of seconds, both awkwardly shifting from leg to leg. Sammy was tempted to say something to get her started, but it wasn't needed. Amy took a haggard breath and said, "Thanks."

At first she thought she heard wrong, and she shook her head in surprise. "Sorry, what?"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Thanks. For like… you know…" She deflated even more than she already was. "Giving me another chance."

Literally the last thing I was expecting her to say. Out loud, Sammy said, "Oh."

"You know, if I were in your shoes," she continued, "I probably wouldn't have offered to listen. I probably would've just left me alone to my thoughts out of spite."

That, Sammy didn't doubt. Of the two of them, she knew Amy was the one more likely to write someone off the moment she decided they no longer deserved her attention. If Amy had to deal with someone like herself, they'd be gone like yesterday's rotten leftovers.

But Sammy wasn't like her sister, and by now that had become obvious. She believed in second chances (though not thirds), and she wasn't going to abandon someone if they were feeling remorseful about what they'd done. She'd make them work for redemption, no doubt about that, but she'd never deny them the chance to turn themselves around and change for the better.

Amy was no exception. Her sister had hurt her so much during her life, and those feelings of pain and suffering lingered and would linger for a long, long time. But what kind of person would she be if she ignored someone else suffering themselves?

Not the kind of person I would want to be.

With a lopsided smile, Sammy shrugged. "Well," she said, "good thing you're not in my shoes."

Amy blinked in surprise, and smiled. It wasn't a big one, but neither was it small, but it was genuine, and proof of just how grateful Amy was of her.

And with only a second's hesitation, Amy strode up and hugged her sister.

Sammy was caught off guard - this was a new experience. Amy was never an affectionate person, even when their mom tried to give her hugs. But Sammy was distracted for only a few seconds, and eagerly returned it. Amy still had a long way to go, and Sammy knew it wasn't going to be an easy journey… But at the very least, she was starting off strong.

"Thanks, S-"

Sammy tensed.

"…Sis."

And she let out a sigh. So close, yet so far.

Amy groaned into her sister's shoulder. "Sorry."

Sammy rolled her eyes and smirked. "It's fine. We'll get there," she said, patting her sister on the back.

"Okay, time's up," Chris declared, and Chef immediately hauled Amy away. She was given a helmet, stuffed into the cannon, and looked down at the rest of them in mild fear. "Last chance for some final words, Amanda." He waved his remote around threateningly. "Better say something good!"

She clearly had no idea what to say. "Uhh," she started, but didn't get any farther than that as the cannon chose then to spit her out at over 100 kilometers an hour.

Her scream dug deep into their brains, and it wasn't something Sammy was particularly fond of hearing (mainly because there was a small part of her that was). "Good enough," Chris said with a shrug, and signed off on the episode with a twin-related pun that Sammy didn't bother laughing at.

She turned back to her friends with a melancholic edge to her lips. "So," she said to them. "That happened."

No one really knew what to say. "How… do you feel?" Sky tried uncertainly.

"I really wish I knew." She laughed humorlessly. "Then again, it's not like she's dead. I'll see her again in a few days. I just… I dunno. I don't know what I'm feeling. It's sort of like," she put a hand just over her heart, "empty, here, or something. You know?"

Sky and Jasmine shared an uneasy glance, while Ella approached her and took her hands. "I bet you wanted her to stay around a bit longer, didn't you? So you could help her even more?"

Was that it? Was she feeling like this because she was leaving something half done? She wasn't necessarily glad Amy was gone, but she likewise wasn't sad to see her go. She was in that weird middle ground of neutrality, unsure what to feel one way or another. She thought she had been fine with it earlier, but now that it's actually happened she wasn't too sure.

"Maybe. I dunno."

Silence reigned over them, no one knowing what else to say. I think we should just go to bed. The sooner we finish the game the sooner I can stop feeling like this.

Then Ella perked up with a glint in her eye and a smile on her face. "I know something that can cheer you up."

Sammy blinked. "You do?"

"Mm-hm. Follow me." Ella led her by the hand up the slope, a bit faster than she was expecting. To the other two she said, "We'll see you guys later."

They left the clearing before the others could say anything, and walked through the forest along the familiar pathway. Sammy found herself staring up into the night sky, and tried finding any sound to listen to. Finding none, she frowned and decided she'd rather listen to anything else.

"So where are we going?" Sammy asked after a while. The departure of her sister still weighed on her mind, but Ella's mere presence was helping to lift her spirits. She was getting used to having her around, which made thinking about the next few days even more terrifying. Don't focus on then. Focus on now.

"You'll see," Ella replied with a smile. Sammy's heart fluttered at the sight, and she grinned herself as Ella seemed to unconsciously put a skip in her step. She didn't say anything about it, and hoped she kept doing it. Ella may have said she wanted to move away from acting like a princess, and a part of her was rooting for her to do just that, but she also couldn't help but adore this almost innocent side of her. It just showed that despite the changes she would undoubtedly make, she was still the optimistic and kind-hearted soul Sammy had met not a week and a half ago.

They kept walking for another while. Sammy almost asked her to stop and rest, after having moved her legs so much that day. But soon, something came into view. Something she was surprised to see, and not at all expecting.

"The… confessional?" Sammy asked skeptically. "I… kinda used the bathroom earlier, thanks."

Ella laughed and shook her head. "No, silly! I just brought us here for directions."

She stared at her. "Okay, now I'm confused."

"I found this place on the island earlier today, just after I finished going myself. Since everything's technically shut down, it shouldn't have moved since then. So I think I know how to get there without any trouble."

"Oh," Sammy said, still unsure what exactly this place was. "I guess danger-free challenges aren't the only thing the island shutting down was good for."

"That's what I thought too," Ella said. They walked past the outhouse and deeper into the forest. A path leading from it, one Sammy had yet to see before now, guided them past the foliage. Nighttime on the island was now just as quiet as it was during the day - barely any sound could be heard, and now that she was thinking about it Sammy figured all of that was fabricated as well. Is there anything on this island that isn't fake?

After a few more minutes of walking, she got her answer.

"Ta-da!" Ella cried, spreading out her arms to present it all.

Sammy's jaw dropped when she saw it.

It was a flower field, wide and vast as far as the eye could see. The moon shone bright enough that she could see many different types of flowers, none that she could put a name to immediately, but the variety of colors and styles were almost enough to overwhelm her.

She was never really a flower person - taking care of something so fragile was a challenge when she was unable to even take care of herself. But she knew that there was beauty here, that even this godforsaken island could have something that made her gasp in awe.

"It's… breathtaking," she said quietly. The moon's light helped radiate and highlight the field before her, the clouds nonexistent as everything was in full view. The backdrop of the forest on the other side of the field, plus the night sky filled to the brim with stars helped make this feel like it was straight out of a painting.

"Isn't it?" Ella replied, taking the first steps into the field. She was careful not to step on any of the flowers, and avoided them like she was dancing. "I can't believe something as gorgeous as this was hiding on the island this whole time." She spun as she moved forward, her hair and skirt flowing around and chasing after her. She wore such a peaceful and carefree face that Sammy could almost feel all of her troubles melt away just by looking at her.

"Neither can I," she said. She wasn't sure whether she was talking about the flowers or the girl.

Sammy followed her, her eyes drifting from her and onto the flowers brushing at her legs. She took a moment to run her hands along one's petals. They felt real enough, but would there honestly be someone here properly tending to all of these flowers? And regardless if they were real, what was the point of them? Would there have been a challenge requiring them to find a specific kind of flower amongst them all? Were some of these dangerous? In all honesty, probably, but she had no way of knowing which ones. Besides, the sheer majesty of what laid before her told her to not worry about it, to enjoy the night as best she could. I doubt there's anything lethal, at the very least. Maybe.

Ella stopped near what was most likely the middle of the field and took in everything around her. Sammy stared at her, at her form, at the flowers around her, at the night sky and the moonlight causing her eyes to twinkle, and decided that she didn't care what this was all for. She just wanted to be here with Ella. That was all that mattered.

Breathing deeply, Ella fell to her knees and sat in the midst of it all, and patted the spot beside her as an invitation. "Come, sit. Let's try and relax for the rest of the night, before we have to worry again tomorrow."

A night free of stress was very appealing at this point. Without any other prompting, Sammy quickly plopped down next to Ella. "That's just what I need, really."

"Great." Ella made sure to wrap her hand around Sammy's. "We're just going to spend tonight talking, and unwinding, and easing ourselves out of any negative feelings we might be having. Okay?"

"Okay," Sammy said simply. She took a long, deep breath, and finished it off by placing her head on Ella's shoulder. "Is, um, is this okay? I don't want to overstep any bound-"

Ella's answer was to put her own head on Sammy's.

"Oh," she said giddily. "Guess that answers that."

The two of them took a moment to appreciate the silence between them. It wasn't awkward, they weren't trying to fill the quiet - they simply basked in each other's presence, in the scenery around them, and found themselves releasing all the tension that had built up over the last week and a half. Sammy made sure to focus on Ella's breathing - light, slow, and so easy to get lost in. If she knew they didn't have work to do tomorrow, she would never want to leave.

There was one thing on her mind that she needed to ask though, and now was the best opportunity she could find.

"Hey, Ella?"

"Hmm?"

"What… What are we?"

Ella paused in consideration. "Well… last I checked, we were humans."

Sammy snorted and playfully bopped Ella on the arm. "No, silly! I mean… what are we, you and me? Are we… um…"

"Dating?"

She swallowed thickly. "Y-Yeah."

Ella was silent again, and for whatever reason Sammy was nervous of the answer. She knew she shouldn't be, she knew that Ella made her feelings known, but the pause was still making her anxious.

"I think…" Ella started. "I think… it's still a bit too early."

Sammy felt the anxiety go away, but in its place came sadness. "O-Oh. I see."

Ella seemed to pick up on Sammy's lackluster reaction and quickly spoke again. "Not because I don't want to! I do want to! It- It's all I've been thinking about lately."

The sadness morphed into something akin to hope. "Really?"

"Yeah. But despite that… it's only been a little over a week since we met. We may have spent a lot of time together, but we… we still don't really know each other, do we? And, and I know we've been throwing out the words 'love' and all, and I want to think that's what I'm feeling, but… maybe it might be best to wait until we're off the island before we decide on anything."

That was a very good point. With no personal experience in being in a relationship, Sammy was apparently all too ready to jump into it at the first chance. She supposed it was due to how TV shows would portray them, like they were romanticizing the romance. The characters always hook up by the end of like, 12 episodes, and that's not always in real-time. I guess I was jumping the gun a bit.

Besides, Ella was right - they barely knew each other. Sammy knew the minimum of Ella's character, and some of her more personal secrets and history at home, and Ella likewise knew her's. But she had no idea how Ella lived on a day-to-day basis, what her schedules were like, what kind of person she was outside of the show. Granted, Sammy doubted heavily that much would be different, but it was still a wise decision to not rush into things.

"I understand," Sammy said. "So once the show is over, we can at least… try?"

"Yes. I'd very much like that," Ella replied.

The only thing to put a damper on Sammy's mood now was the potential difficulty of it. "Then again… long distance might be hard, you know? I've never been in a relationship before now, let alone one with someone who lives far away from me, so…"

"We can still try," Ella encouraged. "If you want this as much as I do, we can make it work."

To be reminded that Ella was in this as much as she was was invigorating, to say the least. "Alright. I believe you."

Sammy could feel Ella smile against her head, and she decided to wrap her arms around Sammy's waist. "Maybe it isn't 'love' right yet, but I think- I know there's something there. Something that could become love in the future. And I… I kind of want to find out if it is."

"I do too," Sammy replied. She lifted her head off her shoulder and looked her in the eyes. "I want to see where this goes. And I really hope it goes somewhere good."

The softest, most heartwarming smile radiated on Ella's face, and she gave Sammy a quick, yet lingering kiss. "I hope so too."

They leaned back into each other and simply stared out over the field of flowers. Never before did Sammy feel as comfortable as she was now - and once she left the island and returned home, she was bound to feel even better. She couldn't wait to leave, either with the million or not, because she knew she'd be walking away with something - or rather, someone - worth even more.

She sighed heavily in satisfaction, and allowed herself simply to be.

"Did I ever tell you about that time I was a fire-breathing dragon?"

Sammy snorted loudly and covered her mouth as she laughed. "Ahahaha- W-What?!"

"In one of my first plays!" Ella said, her smile brimming with amusement. "I was about five years old at the time. It was pretty spectacular, if I do say so myself."

Recovering from her laughing fit, Sammy gave Ella a smile just as wide. "I haven't heard this one, no! Do tell!"

She nodded. "Well, I originally wanted the part of the princess, but it turns out that this princess had a secret… When she got angry, she turned into a huge, green dragon!"

Ella continued her story, and Sammy couldn't help but be mesmerized by the lights dancing in her eyes. Heart, you made a wise choice falling for her. Good for you. Good for you…


And there we go. My longest chapter so far, clocking in at just over 22k words. I really hope you enjoyed it! This one was the chapter that had gotten me caught up earlier in the summer, mainly because I was writing this from scratch with no guidance from the show, so it was a bit more difficult getting things to flow properly (and even then they probably could've been better, but I'm at the point where I'm satisfied with what I've got).

Like I said before, this wasn't a chapter with too much urgency or desperation from the cast. This was meant to be more of a cooldown / breather chapter after the events of the previous couple. Trust me, the girls really needed this to get their heads back on straight. Of course, Chris being Chris, he couldn't simply just let them play without being an ass about it, and threw in some harmless bombs to throw them off their game a bit. Thankfully it was a lot less risky than other days.

Something I want to elaborate on right quick - Ella was the one to suggest they hold off on dating until after the show finished. If one thinks of Ella, you'd probably assume she'd jump at the chance to get in a relationship. But I considered that she'd at least now be aware of herself enough to catch on to that, and decide to do things differently. Underneath her princess façade, she's a smart cookie.

Aside from that, I think that's all I wanted to say. Unless there's something I'm forgetting, which is very likely. Ah well. Thanks for reading everyone! Be sure to leave a review if you have something to say, and don't be afraid to add to that TV Tropes page! I'm not afraid to selfishly promote it.

See ya, and take care of yourselves!