Here we go. The ice cream challenge from canon had Courtney's notorious elimination chart. Without that around, things will go quite differently. I'm first replying to reviews that came in since I posted the last chapter.
acosta perez jose ramiro: Of course Mal will get rid of threats; he's not foolish enough to just let them stay.
GlitchWarrior: Your guesses on the votes are correct. Read on to see if you were also right on the elimination order. I already know who gets 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st place, but am not spoiling that here.
Phenomenal Ultra Instinct: Sam's departure had a similar rationale that Alejandro's did in canon; win the boat race, find out about Mal when visiting the hotel that night, confront him on the matter, and then get set up for elimination as a threat to the demon's plans. I really enjoy the gamer, and he's one of my top 3 favorite TDROTI contestants along with Zoey and Mike (undecided on exact rankings), but realized this was a natural course of action after having him win the first post-merge challenge of this fic. Sorry he couldn't go further. At least he got past the merge here.
SideshowJazz1: Sorry if I overused "the pigtailed girl" before; it's only used once in this chapter and I just didn't want to use the name "Zoey" too often. That would've gotten overly repetitive. Thanks for the suggestions on synonyms for her.
That British Guy: Definitely not happening in this fic.
TheNoobyBoy: I'm not spoiling things here. Just read this chapter to find out.
BrandonKR: Yeah, there was no way I could kick Duncan off without giving him his comeuppance (jail time). I strongly despise him as well for cheating on the CIT without remorse and for often shamelessly being a general jackass (largely towards Harold). Tossing that dingo at Cody in TDWT was going way overboard. Not heroic at all, though Chris liked to torment him (both here and in canon) with his placement on the Heroic Hamsters.
jthm7izim: Glad you've enjoyed my story so far! As for Fang, I cannot comment on him now due to spoilers.
By the way, kudos to GlitchWarrior for giving this fic its 100th review. Quite a milestone there.
Time for the final five!
Today is a big day. Why do I say that? Because it's when I made that stupid chart which spelled my end. So not happening again. Lindsay is still asleep when I wake up. I hear a knocking on my door. Is that Chef with our breakfast or perhaps Scott? Better go open it. Our cook is here with a basket of apples. Nice to start my morning with something more edible than yesterday or the day before!
I take one of the apples and bite into it. Like when first living through this day, even though there are some bruises, it's a vast improvement over the burnt English muffins and the smelly oatmeal I ate before. If only I got the winner's breakfast this morning. Better save some for my boyfriend when he shows up as well as my sleeping cabinmate. Once I finish eating an apple, I go get dressed and clean my teeth in the communal bathroom.
The ginger and the blonde are awake by the time I get back. Both are eating from the basket. Since their mouths are full and we still have some time before the challenge starts, I simply wave as I pass by and head for the confessional. Time to let the public know something. Once I've reached and entered the outhouse, I tell its camera "Call me crazy if you must, but I have a gut feeling Sam was telling the truth about those stolen marshmallows and got framed. Do any of you really think he would ever steal things from our host like that? I sure don't after watching the last season and interacting with him in this one. It's too out-of-character for me to believe given how he's one of the nicest guys to compete on this show. Yes, McLean is a terrible person who doesn't deserve even half of his luxuries, but the gamer wouldn't go out of his way to do anything of the sort. Proving this right now is admittedly difficult when I above all else am going off instinct. I'll probably find out for sure today who did that since Chris said he'd review the camera footage of his stash to see who ravaged through them. Any recording of the ordeal will help."
Shortly after I exit, Chris announces through his speakerphone "Attention punching bags; please gather in the forest clearing and bring your padded undies because today's challenge is a butt-kicker!"
Time to make my way over. Oh boy. Once I met up with Gwen and she asked for reassurance about finale plans on this day in the original timeline, I lied and said we would go there together when the truth was that I wanted to go with Scott. I would subsequently state in the confessional "Gwen is great, but if you ask me, winning is everything. This is the farthest I've ever made it on Total Drama, and I am going all the way!" before going into my plans to eliminate Zoey that day, followed by Mike, and then having Ms. Goth finish in third with my boyfriend going to the finals and ignorantly presuming he would let me win the thing.
As you know, I deeply regret the whole ordeal. Scott became so mad over the chart that he was fine with anybody else winning. It's a sign he was one of the people who voted for me that night. I reluctantly voted myself off as well since there was no other way to regain Gwen's trust. The truth is I also wasn't thinking straight then as I left that thing in the confessional outhouse, plus the farthest I really went was in season 2 where I got fourth place, not this one where I ended up in fifth place because of that chart. Having the goth around for the challenge this time would've been quite nice. If the multi-personality teen wins immunity again, then I'll stick with yesterday's choice and opt to flush his girlfriend once more as she remains my next biggest threat, regardless of whether the main man or Mal is in control. He otherwise has my vote.
Without the stupid chart around, it's harder for me to predict how this challenge will go. All I know is that Mike needs to lose in order to oust his evil persona. How could I expose him without endangering myself if I lose the challenge, though? Directly confronting Mal didn't go very well for Sam yesterday. I have no doubt it led to the demon stealing those marshmallows and framing him for it, thus giving others a reason to vote the gamer off. There was also getting held by the shirt collar and blackmailing him into keeping quiet on their exchange.
As for yesterday's 3-2-1 vote, I figure Sam voted for Lindsay while Scott and I voted for Zoey and everyone else voted for the gaming nut. It's much more likely than Mr. Gamer voting for Pigtails as they had become friends to at least some extent, though Mike was probably closer to him than she was, and I can't think of any good reason why Scott would vote for the blonde when he had the chance to take out one of his enemies. What I can't tell is whether Mal voted Sam off to complete a scheme or Mike did after being shocked by the marshmallow ordeal. Part of me wishes Dawn could be here as her ability to read auras could detect Mike vs. Mal moments, but that would also be bad for yours truly as she'd surely sense how I've gone back in time and expose it, effectively destroying my chances of winning as the others would surely want me eliminated for having such an advantage.
Scott thankfully seems to be in a better mood now than he was after last night's elimination ceremony. He smiles when holding my hand as we walk over. I understand being upset over a friend getting the boot, especially given how down I felt when Gwen was voted off two days ago. Hopefully I can avenge Sam and get the demon eliminated today. Does Chris yet know the truth about his marshmallows? Only time will tell.
The five of us head for the woods. I just wait for instructions even though I already know what we're supposed to do today: gather three scoops of ice cream (one chocolate, one strawberry, one vanilla) with a cherry, some peanuts, and some chocolate sauce. We then bring all of that to Chris's interns for them to supposedly eat it only for the host to change his mind at the last minute and have us eat our own sundaes, with immunity going to whoever finishes eating first. Mike/Mal won't win today if I can help it. Here we go.
"You look very goop-I mean good-today!" my boyfriend compliments on the way with a nervous chuckle, and I simply smile as I give him a "Thanks, and I can say the same." in response.
OK, so he can still apparently get at least somewhat flustered around me. Did he forget the gamer's words on rehearsing or just slip up due to nerves? Not really complaining either way as I know he just wanted to say something nice. Scott really has been a gentleman with me so far. I'm quite grateful for that. Experienced or not, he knows how to treat a lady well.
"If you need help lifting anything, just let me know." the ginger adds and briefly releases my hand to stop and flex his muscles, awkwardly adding "Yeah, that's the stuff; arms like a cheetah!"
Same bragging line as when I first lived through this challenge? Should've seen that coming. Lindsay can be seen through the corner of my eye quickly facepalming at the line. Even she knows how odd that sounds. Then again, the blonde knows more about romance than him given her relationship with Tyler. I reply with "Though I appreciate the offer, you don't need to show off when I'm already yours."
Scott simply shrugs his shoulders and we continue onwards. When approaching Mike and Zoey, he tells them "Hope you two got lots of sleep because I'm feeling as strong as an ox!" while flexing his muscles again.
Time for a major game changer. This was when Mr. Multiple Personalities questioned "Don't you mean strong as a rat?" in the original timeline and exposed my chart with Scott having a rat tail. Now he can't ask such a thing when I didn't make it this time. Gwen was so angered by the revelation that it made her think I was only pretending to want a friendship. That of course wasn't the case as I told the goth when begging for her not to boot me off, even though I—very reluctantly—ended up voting for myself that night as the only possible way to regain her trust and already sensed I was getting flushed regardless. Let's see what happens now.
The multi-personality teen stays silent while his girlfriend insists "It was enough to be alert for today." and adjusts the flower in her hair a bit as we resume walking.
Once everybody has gathered, Chris announces "Behold; my sad, skinny, interns!" as he gestures towards a male intern and a female one, and the female groans in hunger before he adds "I totally forgot to feed them this week."
"You truly are fucked up!" Lindsay chastises before anyone can say anything else, and I must agree with that statement.
"That doesn't matter; today's challenge is a race to make a delicious sundae and serve it up to gold old what's-his-name and who's-it over here." he replies.
Our host has just been lazy and cruel with the interns. I damn well would make sure anybody I hired was fed. Thankfully the blonde has actual integrity and called him out on his shit. On another note, I don't hear any laughs from Mal like in the original timeline after hearing the interns were unfed, and I know the real Mike would never laugh at others' pain like that (or my misery after the chart exposure). That was one instance I caught him when re-watching this episode. Though it irked me when I lived in the moment, I didn't suspect anything about the demon back then as I thought Duncan was just making crazy talk when trying to warn Gwen and me about him, naïvely thinking no such evil persona existed. No laughing at their hunger fortunately means the main man in is control now.
"It sadly doesn't surprise me that you can't think of their names." Mike comments.
"Whatever." The host dismisses as Chef walks over to give us empty bowls, then gesturing towards a screen displaying a map of the island and where we need to go as he continues with "To make this fun for me, you'll have to travel to the most dangerous areas on the island to procure the ingredients of this dessert. Your ice cream awaits at the top of the diving cliff, which the ice machine has been making nice and slippery all week. The maraschino cherries are perched on a rock in the swamp. You'll find crushed peanuts in the old cafeteria, and the final ingredient—chocolate sauce—can be found in a pool surrounding a recently planted mutant fire flower."
All week? I was just at the top of the diving cliff three nights ago with Scott (where we shared a romantic kiss in the moonlight) and it didn't at all feel cold! Maybe he started count with the day after that. Oh well. After said flower flames a bear close by eating some chocolate, it loses all fur yet somehow lives. I tell McLean "Clearly you like inflicting pain on others again and again. Chances are that if I had a nickel for every time, I'd own the bank, or maybe enough to buy this show from you. Sick bastard." as our cook hands us the bowls.
"What can I say? Prison changed me for the better!" he retorts and then chuckles before adding "The first person to have their sundae completely consumed by the interns wins. Oh, I almost forgot something; I reviewed camera footage from last night and found out Sam never took from my load of marshmallows. Time to show you what really happened. It's frankly disgraceful."
We all gasp even though I already sensed the gamer was innocent. Chris looks angrier ever since mentioning his marshmallow stash. The screen shows a recording of the marshmallow stash. Evil chuckling is heard. I'd know sound that anywhere. A sinister voice comments "Sam knowing that I'm Mal and how his buddy Mike doesn't have full control means he needs to get eliminated. Time to make sure that happens in case he goes breaks his promise not to share our exchange with others. He'd be an idiot not to abide by my blackmail if he wants to keep his game systems intact. Still surprised the gamer caught on to me either way. Michael's ignorance is my gain as the fool hasn't even got much idea what's been happening to his body lately. So long, Samuel. Try talking your way out of marshmallow getting on an old game system when Chris sees that and how his supply is short! Your friend is bound to vote you off for stealing if he somehow regains control of this body in time for the elimination ceremony and learns about the incriminating console, or I'll be sure to do so myself. Good thing Mike winning today's challenge also means I'm safe from going home tonight." as Mal is shown smudging some marshmallow onto the game system, eating some of the marshmallows, and tossing out all except for five of the others.
The demon laughs as he exits the marshmallow room and leaves the console near what remains. Just as I suspected. All eyes are on Mr. Multiple Personalities now, who has a look of pure horror on his face as he drops his bowl in shock.
"Michael Albright, you're very lucky to have had immunity last night and how that was just an alternate personality raiding the stash instead of the real you. I believe you know what I'll do if that happens again." Chris angrily states.
"Mal came back!? OH, DEAR FUCK NO!" Mike panics in despair, then rants "I'll be damned. That's a personality I thought I got rid of long before joining Total Drama! I'm beyond sorry for anything he did or plans to do! It all makes sense now. No wonder I've been blanking out from time to time or felt like something was wrong with me! He must've been what came back when Manitoba Smith got knocked out with a shovel that day on the beach and who Chester was trying to warn me about before fading away. Not blaming Scott since he couldn't have known what would happen with that whack plus it was a complete accident when turning to run from bees. After losing contact with my other personalities following that day, another shovel hit from somehow thankfully brought them back after Zoey and I thought that could work like a reset button, though doesn't seem to have gotten rid of that evil thing. I'm still thankful Courtney was willing help us test out that theory by giving the hit as it reconnected me with the other personas. What's worse is that Chester seems to have disappeared for good last night without a trace along with Manitoba and Svetlana earlier this morning! Chances are Mal wiped them out somehow. Of all my alternate personalities, I'm stuck with a demon from hell that I thought was long gone, and Vito the douchebag. I need help to get rid of that evil thing and owe Sam an apology for voting him off last night when Mal tricked us with the marshmallow ordeal. Yes, I heard the warning last night about immediate disqualification, and won't let those get stolen again. One thing I do remember about him in the past is that he doesn't have any specific trigger unlike my other personas. Run and save yourselves if Mal turns up again as I'd hate for him to hurt anybody!"
Zoey puts her own bowl down and gives her boyfriend a comforting hug as he catches his breath. She assures him "It's not your fault. I know you're better than Mal. Fight him from within. If you can remember how you first got rid of that persona in the first place, then do it again."
He seems calmer now. They release, and the multi-personality teen responds "I wish it were simple. To do that-" before getting cut off by Mal interjecting with "Nope, Michael won't take me down so easily!" as hair drops over one eye.
"Stop possessing Mike's body, Mal!" Lindsay commands.
"Oh right, you people saw me on camera. Looks like the jig is up. I've had on-and-off control ever since that shovel hit on the beach. Mike previously thought he got rid of me, but I had just been laying low for a while, and now am in charge! Too bad he had to find out about my return like this. Chester had to get erased as he got in the way of my plans. Same with Manitoba and Svetlana. Vito hasn't given me any trouble yet, so I'll spare him for now. I have no shame and am indeed powerful enough to get rid of them like that. Let's just get on with this challenge so I can get closer to winning the million. No need to repeat it as I heard what Chris said while stuck in Michael's mind even if I couldn't take control sooner today." says the demon as he picks up a bowl.
"Get real; you can't expect anybody to let you win!" Scott snaps.
"Challenge time already!" Chris impatiently butts in while pulling out an air horn, telling us "On your mark, get set, go!"
We all start running once the horn is pressed. Taking down Mal should be easier now that everybody knows about him. Sam, you will be avenged. The demon unfortunately is running rather quickly and we're all struggling to catch up to him. Scott comes closest and shoves his way past the demon as they climb the snowy hill, telling him "Out of the way; you have to lose, I mean I have to win!" while climbing up the cliff.
Very nice shove right there. As he gets to the top, Chris announces "This just in: Scott is first to reach the ice cream!"
"Yeah!" I hear my boyfriend cheer as I reach the top, but then caution him with "Watch where you land!"
Scott slipped on the ice and is headed for the edge! As much as I want to defeat Mal, I can't let the ginger fall off this cliff. He quickly goes "No!" while slipping and I place my bowl to the side to run over and help him.
A little before he can fall off the edge, I manage to grab his free hand and pull him back. Last time around he barely caught onto an icicle and somehow managed to climb up with the bowl on his head. Not letting him go through such agony again. He gives a grateful hug and thanks me with "I owe you big time for that!"
"In return, help me make sure Mal loses so we can flush him tonight." I reply as we let go from the hug.
McLean then informs everybody "Mike/Mal has scooped up first place!"
"Consider it done." Scott tells me as we scramble for the ice cream stash, getting one scoop of each flavor and then sliding down the hill.
Lindsay and Zoey are both struggling to climb up. Too bad we can't stop to help them without the risk of a monster getting too far ahead. On the plus side, that bear whose fur got burned off didn't come up before the ginger and I exited today unlike the original timeline where it got angry at him for accidentally knocking ice cream onto its head and chased him to the swamp where it would fight an alligator. At the bottom, I see a certain somebody stop for a moment and ponder "Ice cream in my bowl already? I don't remember collecting any of this."
While Mike evidently regaining control is quite nice, he still needs to lose this challenge. His inner demon needs to be gone ASAP. That persona unfortunately seems to have quickly taken back over as an evil voice can be heard commanding "Can't stop now, Michael; there's a challenge to win!" and resumes running.
I really wish I could help the real Mike. He doesn't want innocent people to get hurt. Better keep up with his demon in the meantime. There's no other choice right now. We follow him towards the swamp for those cherries, gaining some speed as we approach it. By some miracle, I happen to pass Mal right before I enter the swamp and trudge ahead. Our host can be heard saying "Courtney's first to the cherries! Will she keep her lead? Not if Snappy has anything to say about it." as I approach the cherry bowl and take one for my bowl.
Hold on, Snappy? That's the alligator that raids this place! It shows up and looks hungry. I scream at the sight when I turn around. This doesn't last long as Mal knocks the alligator away by stomping on its head after swinging in on a vine, and then he pushes me into the swamp! So not cool. Good thing I kept my sundae clean, though, as things didn't go well for me when a bird vomited on mine when first living through this challenge.
"And Mal retakes the lead!" McLean informs us.
That better not last for long. I see Scott slowly making his way through the swamp, wary of Snappy. Worrying about gators is understandable, though I personally wouldn't opt for his pace. Our blonde approaches the swamp while I make my way towards the cafetoria and I caution "Watch out for alligators when you go for the cherries!" as we cross paths.
She nervously gulps after hearing that. How would you react upon hearing such dangerous beings could cross your path? Lindsay just can't let that slow her down. Not sure where Zoey is, but falling behind is bad right now. Continuing to speed my way ahead, I see our demon entering the cafetoria as Chris tells us "And Mal is the first one to enter the crushed nut zone, where he'll face off against the newly rebuilt Total Drama Machine!"
That machine happens to be what Alejandro was placed inside to heal after being burnt my lava. The robot attacking others was quite scary. I'd hate for it to pummel me! Making my way inside, I see it has already gone after Mal, who then sidetracks the machine with "Look who showed up; Courtney!"
What a sly fucker! It turns around to face me. Better start running and get my peanuts fast. This is no simple task when I could easily get hurt. I dodge as the robot swings its hammer at me, and I can't help noticing that it the only damage was a repaired cut down the middle of its torso, though the hammer was added on here just like the last time I lived through this challenge. It obviously is because Duncan cut that open to get Alejandro out of the suit when I exposed its identity instead of it being ravaged by sharks like in the original timeline. The head is intact since Chris removed that before the robot was cut open. I keep dodging it some more, grabbing some peanuts just as the pigtailed girl enters this room. Better exit while I can. Sorry Zoey, but you're on your own with that robot unless Lindsay and/or Scott can help you, both of whom I see running towards here in the distance.
Getting back to the game, I pick up speed and try to catch Mal. He can be seen approaching a rock near the fire flower and chocolate. Once our demon reaches that, the host can be heard announcing "And Mal is the first to reach the chocolate fire zone!" before the evil persona mutters "Sweet!" and then Chris continues "But Courtney is hot on his heels and seems determined to beat him, so it's still anybody's game!"
That's right I'm catching up and am hellbent on winning! How fast is this guy, though? Did he perhaps inherit Svetlana's athleticism somehow? Maybe having a big target on his back after being exposed for the marshmallows and not being Mike is motivating him to try harder to secure invincibility. I know it did for me after the big chart reveal. Without stopping, I go and grab some chocolate while the evil persona is still behind that rock. The big fire flower attacks me, and I just barely manage to dodge its attack and not get hurt. Time to get running again. Chris tells us "Courtney exits the fire zone and retakes the lead!"
It feels nice to not have burnt chocolate coals this time; Mal destroyed the fire flower last time around by plugging its mouth with a rock, burning the chocolate in the process. I took some anyway as I was sure all ingredients were necessary. Scott just opted for dirt (to my disgust). Those coals would melt my ice cream. It didn't work well for me. After I pointed out how Mr. Multiple Personalities had purposefully burnt the chocolate and asked whether it would've been better to skip that ingredient altogether and Chris affirmed it would be, I nervously added "Well, now I know for next time?" before we all had to eat our sundaes. Little did I know then there'd be a "next time" that I'm living in right now.
Good thing I don't have to repeat that fiasco. Better not let that bird vomit on my ice cream again. Speaking of birds, I just realized I passed by that shortcut I took last time around while caught up in running and my thoughts plus the bird doesn't show up near the fire flower until later. Too late to turn back now. On the plus side, it can't spoil my sundae this time. I foolishly thought the starving interns would be grateful to have anything to eat at all once I gave them my bird vomit sundae until our host revealed the twist that we had to eat our ice cream instead.
Mal is catching up as I look behind me instead of staying back to burn the plant. It goes to show how determined he is to reach the finish line first this time around. Can't let him win now! As he passes ahead, I accidentally trip and grab onto part of his shirt. The thing rips off as I hit the ground. Good thing my sundae remains intact. A New Jersey voice then goes "Ey, the Vito has arrived, and there's ice cream here? Cool!"
Looking up, I evidently brought out Vito without trying to. His hair is even slicked back. Even he is welcome over the evil persona. He reminds me of a guy known as "The Situation" from Jersey Shore. Rather obnoxious and I do understand why Zoey wouldn't be too keen on this personality even if the also-obnoxious Anne Maria wasn't into him. I guess only people like Ms. Hairspray find any appeal in Vito, especially given her own resemblance to Jersey Shore's Snooki. Anyway, as I get back on my feet, Mal unfortunately regains control and snaps "Keep out of this, Jersey boy; I have a victory to claim!" as the hair falls again over one eye and he resumes running.
That didn't last long. I get back on my feet and collect my own ice cream before I sprint onwards to catch up with the demon. He somehow manages to find some spare T-shirt lying around in the woods and quickly put it on without losing his lead. This run to the finish line is rather long. Everyone else manages to gather their ingredients and come closer to Mal and me before it can be seen. Scott has used chocolate sauce instead of dirt this time since it never got burnt by the fire flower exploding. We all gain on closer on our main target. As the finish line approaches, the first one to cross it is…
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Lindsay!
I don't know how, but she apparently got some sort of last-minute speed boost and barely passed the line before I do. Mal crosses it after me, followed closely by Zoey, and finally the ginger.
"I won it all!" the blonde cheerfully exclaims.
Sorry, I wish it was that simple, but McLean has something else in mind. He announces "Surprise! Change of plans; you have to eat your own sundaes!"
This worked against me last time around with bird vomit on my dish. Good thing I don't have to repeat that here. As some form of punishment for trying to give that to the interns, our host wouldn't let me eat anything else until my sundae was finished. I just couldn't stomach that and never finished the thing. After a bit of cheering as this ice cream does admittedly look quite tasty, Chef gives us all spoons as Chris instructs "First to finish wins immunity. Everyone else is on the chopping block, so dig in!"
We all promptly start chowing. Not gonna lie; this sundae tastes very good when unspoiled. I eat it as quickly as I can to secure immunity. The first one to finish is…
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Mal!
The evil persona has unfortunately gotten another victory. He holds his bowl up triumphantly, proclaiming "All done!"
Our host says "Boom! Just like that; Mal wins the challenge and immunity!"
The rest of us groan in defeat. This sucks big time. Now I know who to vote for. While I have nothing against Zoey as a person, she's the next biggest threat to my victory with Mal being safe from the flush tonight. Not a spiteful vote at all. Only strategy.
"Can we still finish this ice cream, though?" Lindsay inquires. "It tastes so good!"
"Fine by me." Chris answers, and we do so.
"Hold on, did someone win yet, and why am I suddenly wearing a different shirt?" Mr. Multiple Personalities ponders.
I'm grateful Mike has retaken control again. Even his hair is back up to its normal style. At the same time, I need to make sure he loses the next challenge to get Mal out of the game. In the meantime, I answer "In a way, both you and Mal won at the same time when he finished eating the ice cream before anybody else. Your other shirt got ripped and Vito briefly surfaced before that demon took back over and found some other shirt lying around. Probably did that to keep control. How that shirt got in the woods is beyond me."
The multi-personality teen seems conflicted by this. I feel the same and am sure everybody else does too. He responds with "Though Vito can be a pain in the ass, he's now the only non-evil personality I have left other than my main self, and I'd much rather have him surface than Mal. Feel free to take my shirt off to bring him out if you have no other way to keep the evil thing out of control. The less Mal is out and about, the better. Chances are I'll go visit a psychiatrist after the season ends no matter how often he surfaces."
My boyfriend is known to be enemies with Mike, but in a rare moment of sympathy for him, he says "That probably be for the best. Though I know we didn't get along before, your anguish isn't something I'd wish upon even my worst enemy, and I'm very sorry you've suffered such agony. Hope this gets sorted out sooner than later."
"Thank you, Scott. That means more than you know." Mike replies as the two shake hands.
I never thought I'd see anything like that happen between them. Lindsay then asks us "For tonight's vote, no hard feelings regardless of who gets the flush, agreed?"
The rest of us all affirm "Agreed." and then part ways.
OK, I feel rather anxious now. This was where I went out last time around. Though I didn't repeat my mistakes from the original timeline, the others might end up targeting me with Mike/Mal having invincibility. I obviously have no chance in hell of talking him into voting off his girlfriend. Could Lindsay be persuaded to join me, though? Might be worth a try. Chances are the ginger is already set on doing so anyway. I don't need to worry about his choice to flush, though hope he survives too. Having that immunity idol still with me would be nice. Oh well.
On my way back to the main camp grounds, I pass by the confessional outhouse. I decide to enter it and tell the camera "My instinct was right; Sam didn't take those marshmallows after all. Mr. Gamer has too much integrity to do such a thing. I really do feel sorry for Mike suffering with Mal taking over his body. The sooner that evil personality is gone, the better. Getting professional help would be a wise choice when he has the chance."
Exiting the confessional, I make my way back to the losers' cabin. Our busty blonde is sitting on the doorsteps and applying some lip gloss in front of a mini mirror. May as well talk to her when nobody else is around. I walk over and say "Lindsay, there's something you need to hear. First off, I'd like to say sorry for being a major jerk to you and Beth in the past. I was totally out of line in the past and you both had every right to resent me for it. Re-watching past episodes showed me how wrong my actions often were. Should've told you this sooner. Even if you aren't willing to forgive me right now, I had to say it while I could. Please also give her my apologies when you get the chance unless she's already watching the show now." and then turn to the camera to add "Beth, if you ever see this episode and it doesn't cut me out here, then I'm sorry for all that happened between us when we competed on Total Drama together. I was a total twat in the past, especially during season two, and really shouldn't have been. Hopefully we can put that behind us."
Lindsay takes a moment to process my comments. She replies with "Thank you for all of that. It probably wasn't easy to say."
"Owning up to my faults has been a struggle, yes, but I've gotten better at it over time." I affirm, and then add "Secondly, I hope we can vote together at least this once. I'm voting for Zoey tonight as she's a threat in this game and Mike/Mal is immune. We'd both have an easier time winning the million with at least one of them gone. Something for you to think about. Scott will probably opt to vote her off as well. Just please don't tell the others about this conversation."
"I'll give it some thought." she responds, and then heads into the cabin.
The blonde is a swing vote right now with Mike and Zoey likely voting together. Hopefully my case is convincing enough to join Scott and me in a joint vote. In the meantime, I should talk to him. After several minutes of searching, the ginger can be found near some water skipping rocks. I go up and say "Scott, I feel we should talk about tonight's vote."
"Since Mike and his Mal persona are safe from being flushed today, please tell me you want Zoey gone. My choice was for her to go home last night instead of Sam."
That officially confirms my suspicions on how the previous vote went. I affirm "Yes; she's a bigger threat than Lindsay and I certainly won't vote you off or myself. I of course know how you became enemies, even if your conflict has toned down since last season, though that has nothing to do with my choice. Personally, I have no grudge against her and it's only strategy. Lindsay might vote with us after I talked to talked to her earlier. Here's hoping we make the final four together."
"I hope so too. See you at the ceremony." he affirms, and then we share a brief kiss before parting ways.
To pass the time until we flush somebody, I decide to walk around the camp grounds. A few hours pass before the sun starts to fade. I then make my way back to the cabin. Once I reach it a couple hours later, I can't help noticing one of the tape recorders has been smashed and its remains are lying in front of the cabin steps. Not good! Thankfully the other one is intact when I look underneath the steps. I read its label to find the recorder that hasn't been destroyed is marked as "Fight It". Now that I think about it, this is better than only having the "Distress" tape around as I need something to bring Mike back in case Zoey is gone and Mal resurfaces.
Something tells me that demon wrecked the "Distress" tape. That would mean he has come back at some point. Did Mal play it first, though? Too bad I can't find out for certain. I take the "Fight It" tape and put it in my bag within the girls' side of the cabin. Not willing to risk this getting wrecked before I can use it. I then go over to the boys' side, which really is just Scott's side tonight (assuming he isn't voted off at the upcoming elimination ceremony) with Mike taking the hotel again. No answer when I knock on its door. Where could he be? In the meantime, I go back to my side of the cabin.
I grab my sketch pad from my bag. This time, I make a sketch of my boyfriend and me holding a giant check for one million dollars. Let's hope one of us truly wins that money. It takes about ten minutes to finish. That drawing goes into my bag. I then take out my law book and read for another hour. The multi-personality teen then knocks on the door and informs me "Chris says it's time for everybody to gather and vote."
"I'll be right there." I reply as I put the book away and then exit.
The others join us on our way to the campfire ceremony. Here we go. As we take our seats, McLean says "Elimination time! Tonight, Mike got immunity. Hard to say who will go home now when his Mal persona is also safe by extension. Chef thankfully got more marshmallows in time for the ceremony. I took four of them with me just in case and have those ready, but there thankfully was no raiding from my stash today. I checked the cameras. Now, it's time to vote!"
As Mr. Multiple Personalities won another challenge, he again gets the first vote. Scott goes up next. Zoey follows him. I then enter the confessional to cast my vote. Since Mike (and by extension Mal) can't be flushed tonight, I vote for his girlfriend as she remains my next biggest threat, drawing a big X over her portrait and signing my name on its back. Lindsay finishes it off once I exit. We all wait for Chris to review the footage and count the voting tally. He walks out with four marshmallows on a plate.
"Here we are everyone: the marshmallows. Again, these were kept with me in case of another marshmallow raiding. With Mike winning another challenge, he again gets the first marshmallow of the night." Chris says as he gives him said marshmallow, and then adds "I'll tell you now that Lindsay is also safe, and so is Scott."
They both get marshmallows. Uh-oh! That means Zoey and I are in the bottom two. We exchange very nervous looks. I'm sweating bullets right now and anxiously gulp. Maybe she and Mike talked Lindsay into voting me off. Did I just relive this season only to finish in the same spot as before? Were my efforts all for nothing? I wish I still had my immunity idol!
McLean holds the last marshmallow in his hand and continues with "Ladies, only one of you is going to the final four, and that is…
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Courtney!"
Thank God! I take a big sigh of relief and wipe the sweat away from my face as he hands me the final marshmallow. The next challenge will be harder when I haven't previously lived through that, but I'm ready for it tomorrow.
"Talk about a bummer." the girl with a flower complains as she frowns and sighs dejectedly.
"Sorry Zoey, but this is the end of your road." says the host.
"Seriously? She deserves to go further!" Mike protests.
His girlfriend then gets up to request "Please do whatever it takes to deal with Mal, OK? Don't let him get the better of you. I also hope you win this game for us both!"
"Of course!" he affirms while standing up. "I'll miss you dearly."
"You know I'm gonna miss you as well." She replies as they lovingly share a goodbye hug and a romantic kiss that lasts for several seconds.
"Enough with the affection! I need to flush her now." an impatient Chris interjects.
"Don't ruin their moment!" Lindsay remarks, which only makes the host roll his eyes and reply with "Whatever. Time to head for the docks and send Zoey home."
McLean takes everybody down to the toilet and places tonight's flushee inside it. He then turns to tell the audience "Alright! I've tabulated the votes, and tonight's loser with two votes in a 2-1-1-1 vote is Zoey!"
"Good luck Mike! I love you and will meet you back home or at the finale if Chris brings back the eliminated contestants." Zoey tells her boyfriend.
"I love you too, Zoey. It's a shame you got the most votes. If I win the money, then I'll be sure to split it with you!" he replies.
"Consider yourself lucky that you won today, or it would be you in the toilet now instead of her. You are so on your own for the next challenge." Scott remarks.
"Good point from Scott, now farewell!" Chris says as he presses the button and our loser of the night screams while getting flushed.
I'm not sure why, but the cameras didn't show any marshmallow distribution for this episode when I re-watched it. All that got shown after Chris saying the ginger and I were "on thin ice" and why that night (he had no more allies left while I backstabbed and tried to give interns a bad sundae) before giving the voting totals was a confessional of my boyfriend where he rhetorically asked "After that chart, who can ever trust Courtney again?" and saying he didn't look like my drawing at all. Hold on a moment. 2 votes got Zoey cut from the contest? That means Lindsay didn't vote for her tonight and that everyone other than Mike got a vote. Oh well. Not sure who voted for me, but the important thing is I survived this elimination ceremony. So glad I'm not in the toilet! That ended up taking me to some beach with sharks where I tried offering them my sundae to avoid getting eaten (Chris insisted I take that with me for my flush). It revolted the creatures so much that they vomited over my head. I admit I deserved it then for my actions even if it was super disgusting.
Something Scott said about me following my flush in the original timeline was "Well, she wasn't ALL bad." after Chris and the other contestants made clear I wouldn't be missed. It did give me hope when re-watching the episode that there was still something between the ginger and me even if he voted for me (which seemed quite likely given his question about how I could be trusted) and refused to give our relationship another chance after the chart ordeal. With both of us making it to the next challenge, one of us really needs to win as there will be a double elimination and I want Scott in the finals with me. Mike will inevitably get eliminated tomorrow unless he wins yet again.
"Congrats on making it to the final four. Mike, the spa hotel is all yours now because from now on, winners can't anyone along with them." our host tells us.
The multi-personality teen sighs dejectedly and responds with "My choice for a hotel guest got flushed anyway." before walking away.
Mike has a very sad look on his face. It of course is quite understandable when his girlfriend is out of the game. Part of me now feels guilty for voting her off. At the same time, I know it would be tough to defeat Zoey in the finals. Is there some way to console him without giving away how I'm partially responsible for tonight's elimination?
Another cliffhanger ending! Mal has been exposed, but got lucky and won the challenge! Mike is horrified at his return. Thankfully he's in control right now instead of the demon. It's a painful loss for him to see Zoey booted off. Chapter 16 will explore his emotions. I should have that and Chapter 17 up before February 2019 begins, though the next challenge could take a while for me to write as Courtney will enter new territory there and I'll have to come up with new ideas for her.
Reason for elimination: With Mike securing immunity again, Courtney's strategic side knew his girlfriend was also a major threat and opted to kick her off to have an easier time in the next challenge. While I really like Zoey, this was a natural course of action with Mal trying extra hard to avoid getting flushed after today's exposure, even if Lindsay didn't vote with the CIT.
Elimination Order:
Sierra (14th place), Lightning (13th place), Jo (12th place), Duncan (11th place), Heather (10th place), Alejandro (9th place), Cameron (8th place), Gwen (7th place), Sam (6th place), Zoey (5th place)
Remaining Players:
Courtney, Lindsay, Mike, Scott
Chapter posted: January 6, 2019.