A/N: What the heck. I'm in the mood for another. I recently had a birthday, so here's my gift to you.
"Last time on Total Drama House Party…" Hatchet stood in the foyer for the recap. "My spaghetti bazooka made a comeback for the challenge as I hunted down the fifteen contestants in a game of hide and seek! On Team Thunder, Chappy tried to get Franklin to vote for Bailey, while Judy tried to bond with the chubby girl. On Team Chill, both David and Lauren considered swappin' over to the other alliance. Buncha traitors! On Team Flame, CJ started annoyin' Erica, while Barry started to wonder if he should keep tryin' to befriend the albino girl. Team Chill lost the challenge for the first time since the second challenge, and the votes went to Tucker and Jilly. After a tiebreaker, Jilly went home, dashin' any hopes these kids ever had of a party! Heheheh. How are things gonna go down this time? Find out ya fool! Only on Total! Drama! HOUSE PARTY!"
Team Chill had gone out to the backyard after the elimination ceremony.
"Well isn't that peculiar?" Lauren asked rhetorically.
"What?" David asked curiously.
"I voted for Jilly, but there was still a tie," Lauren admitted. "That can only mean that one of the guys voted for Tucker. I wonder who it could be."
"Oh, uh… me too," David lied.
"I'm not stupid, David," Ernie said, clearly holding back some anger. "I didn't vote for Tucker, and I know he didn't vote for himself. I highly doubt Jilly or Kiki would vote for Jilly. If what Lauren is saying is, like, true, then that can only mean that you voted for Tucker."
"You'd believe Lauren over your own alliance member?!" David gasped.
"Why would Lauren lie about that?" Ernie asked. "What benefit would she gain from claiming to vote for her own alliance member?"
"I don't know!" David panicked.
"Well, Tucker must say, he is truly hurt," Tucker said in a tone that didn't sound the least bit hurt. "All this after Tucker didn't blow your cover. Tsk tsk tsk…" Tucker shook his head condescendingly.
"So you knew David was planning on betraying his alliance?" Lauren asked. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Tucker has his reasons," Tucker replied.
"Come on, help me out here!" David turned to Kiki.
Kiki gave no response; she simply looked forlornly at the ground.
Confessional:
Lauren: Well, that worked out well, didn't it? Now all eyes are on David and everyone seems to have overlooked the fact that I betrayed my alliance as well. Maybe I can join the guys permanently, after we vote off Tucker of course, because, let's face it, Kiki's flat-out pathetic right now.
Tucker: Obviously Tucker had no idea David was betraying us. He was actually referring to the whole panties blackmail thing, but, let's be honest, nobody's going to believe Tucker if he says David's doing that. Tucker may be a pervert, but at least he's aware of it. Everyone will immediately suspect Tucker if he shows them the picture, so he'll keep it on the down-low for now. Just like how Tucker keeps his women on the down-low, if you know what he means. Heheheheh.
Everyone on Team Thunder but Judy had already fallen asleep in the basement.
The athletic girl sat on her bed, glancing at the duffel bag next to Bailey's bed.
"Should I do it?" Judy whispered to herself. She sighed. "I don't want to invade her privacy, but…"
Judy took a second to think.
"This is the only way I can help her," Judy decided. "It's for the greater good."
She quietly unzipped Bailey's duffel bag and rummaged through it until she found the shy girl's notebook.
"Sorry, Bailey. I hope you understand," Judy whispered to Bailey, despite the latter being asleep.
Judy flipped to the last page that had been filled out and began to read.
"She steps into the house with baited breath," Judy read. "Awaiting what will come within the game/ So full of confidence and happy thoughts/ With optimism, energy, and smiles/ And nothing can destroy her sense of fun."
"Is this about Susan?" Judy asked herself.
"But then one day the smiles are no more/ And jealousy has plagued her fragile mind/ Insecurity then takes its hold/ And she destroys a group of three friends close/ Now Susan's dead, and she's the one to blame."
"Oh my…" Judy frowned.
"I step into the house with baited breath/ Awaiting what awaits within the game/ I fully lack the smiles and confidence/ No optimism and no happy thoughts/ And I do not have any sense of fun."
"So now it's about Bailey?" Judy asked herself, confused.
"And then one day my friend just falls apart/ And I ignore her hidden cries for help/ And while she pleads for someone's sympathy/ Her trust is broken by her closest friend/ Now Susan's dead, and I'm the one to blame."
"So she does blame herself," Judy deducted. "Poor thing."
She heard Bailey stir in her bed, so Judy quickly put the notebook back and returned to her own bed.
Confessional:
Judy: Now that I know what's bothering Bailey, I can help her with her insecurities. She has no need to blame herself for Susan's elimination.
Bailey: (she is reading from a paper) For some reason, I felt rather restless last night. I was able to get to sleep, but I kept hearing this odd whispering in my dreams. I fear it's the voice of Susan torturing me for my traitorous behavior. (she shudders) I know that sounds irrational, but fear often makes one think irrationally.
Team Flame was now eating their breakfast of French toast and fresh fruit.
"So, it's nice that we've been getting first every time since we lost," Barry pointed out.
"Is it though? Is it really?" CJ asked with a glare.
"You might not agree, but we normal people happen to like not sucking," Erica spat.
"Is that any way to talk to your best friend?" CJ frowned.
"When did you two become best friends?" Nolan asked in a mix of surprise and confusion.
"Never," "Yesterday," Erica and CJ said respectively in unison.
"It's nice to see the whole team getting along," Rachel said with a fake smile.
The other four gave her a look of disbelief.
"Yeah, you're right. We can't stand each other, can we?" Rachel asked rhetorically.
"I wish things were different," Barry said glumly.
"Welcome to the club," Erica remarked.
Confessional:
Barry: How did this happen? I started out as optimistic as ever in an attempt to make everyone get along better, but it looks like the exact opposite is true now. At least I have God… and Rachel.
Nolan: I guess this team dynamic is a double-edged sword. On one hand, if we don't like each other very much, it'll be harder to win challenges. Of course, if we do lose, it'll be that much easier to get people to vote my way, no matter who I roll.
David found Kiki by herself in the ballroom.
"Hey," he greeted.
"Oh, hey," Kiki replied softly. "I… suppose you're angry at me for not defending you last night."
"Why should I be angry?" David asked. "It's like you said. You're testostephobic, or something like that. Ernie and Tucker were there, and you don't trust them. That's how it works, right?"
"Yeah," Kiki confirmed with a relieved smile. "…It's a shame we won't be having that party. I could kind of use one right now."
"Totally," David agreed. "I was gonna try and ask Yolonda too."
"The cook girl?" Kiki tilted her head.
"Yeah. Between you and me, I kinda like her," David admitted as he rubbed the back of his head. "She's really cute and nice and stuff."
"Huh. Who knew?" Kiki smiled to herself. "For what it's worth, I think you two would be cute together."
"I just wish I knew if she liked me back," David told her.
"You should ask her," Kiki encouraged.
"I dunno. I don't like getting rejected," David confessed. "In fact, I kinda hate it."
"Don't worry, I completely understand," Kiki assured him.
"Nice. We can be the Rejects Alliance!" David announced. "Or maybe the Anti-Rejects Alliance. Whatever works."
"You want to be in an alliance with me?" Kiki asked. "Not that I'm turning you down. I'm just surprised."
"Well, I doubt Ernie or Tucker trust me anymore, and you told me you did, so why not?" David decided. "And I don't think anyone trusts Lauren."
"Sounds good," Kiki agreed.
"Then let this forever be known as the day the Anti-Rejects Alliance began their conquest!" David declared.
Confessional:
David: I'm already feeling a ton more comfortable in this alliance than I was with the guys. It's a shame Jilly had to go. Then our alliance would have more than two people. But hey, what's done is done. I gotta look towards the future!
Kiki: A girl who goes against the mainstream and is afraid of most men, and a ditzy guy who's obsessed with heavy metal. I knew this was the kind of show that inspired odd friendships, but this is still kind of surreal to me.
Franklin and Bailey had retreated to the balcony.
"I feel it fair to warn you that Chappy wants you out," Franklin warned.
"I know," Bailey said quietly.
"You don't seem worried," Franklin observed.
"I'm not," Bailey confirmed. "I, um, probably deserve to go."
"What makes you say that?" Franklin asked. "Do you think you should go over Chappy at least?"
"Yes." Bailey nodded slowly.
"Well, do you want to talk about it?" Franklin asked. "You're starting to worry me."
"It's just…" Bailey looked at her feet. "Chappy, well, he, uh, he's loyal, to his friends, and, um, I'm, kind of, sort of, not."
"How so?" Franklin asked.
"I, I, I, I…" Bailey seemed to have trouble spitting it out.
"Hey, it's okay," Franklin assured her as he put his hand on her shoulder. "Whatever it is, I'm not mad."
"I voted for Susan!" Bailey finally shouted.
"To be completely honest, I'd already figured that out," Franklin admitted. "But it feels good to get it off your chest, doesn't it?"
"I… I guess," Bailey said unconvincingly.
"Just remember you can always talk to me if you have anything you need to say," Franklin reminded her.
Confessional:
Bailey: (she is reading from a paper) Nobody seems to understand my predicament, though I honestly shouldn't expect them to. My communication skills are extremely lacking. I'm happy that Franklin wishes to help, as he seems a lot more genuine about it than Judy does, but until I can get over my shyness and speak normally without having to write anything down, it likely won't happen.
Franklin: I get the feeling Bailey isn't telling me everything. Maybe she defected over to Chappy's and Judy's alliance. It seems unlikely, but so do a lot of things that have happened to me. But Bailey's my friend, and I trust her no matter what.
Erica had made her way to the game room, where Nolan was playing with his tarot cards once again.
"Ah, Erica," Nolan said as he noticed the albino girl enter the room. "What brings you here?"
"CJ's decided to start stalking me now, and I figured this is the last place she'd look, since you're always here," Erica explained.
"I see. Well, I appreciate the company," Nolan told her.
"I'm not here for your benefit," Erica sneered.
"Huh. I suppose you're not The Hermit for nothing," Nolan said offhandedly.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Erica scowled.
"Well, I've been playing some games with tarot cards – they were used for card games before they were used for fortune telling, you see – and my deck came with a brief explanation of the symbolism behind each major arcana," Nolan said matter-of-factly. "Out of curiosity, I took a look, and I noticed that each member of our team has a major arcana that applies to us. Mac is The Fool, CJ is The Hanged Man, Rachel is The Empress, et cetera."
"And I'm The Hermit?" Erica echoed.
"The Hermit at its worst represents isolation and loneliness. At its best, it represents soul-searching and inner guidance," Nolan lectured. "I figured it applies to you best because you tend to shut yourself away from the others."
"Yes, because you can define an entire person with a stupid trading card," Erica grumbled.
"I never said it completely defined us," Nolan responded. "My major arcana is the Wheel of Fortune, simply because it reflects my dice rule. Barry's is The Heirophant because of his focus on religion. Obviously there's more to us than just those things, but then there's a reason I don't believe in fortune telling."
"Then what was this whole lecture for?!" Erica snapped.
"Symbolism interests me," Nolan shrugged. "I wanted someone with whom to talk about it."
"Ugggggh!" Erica pantomimed strangling someone.
Confessional:
Nolan: It's possible that Erica is the main source of negativity on our team. I'd long suspected CJ, but with CJ, she's just trying to get herself voted out. Erica, from what I can tell at least, does want to win, but she's also rather lacking in the social skills department, to put it bluntly. Either way, we've only had to vote one person out so far, so I suppose I can't complain about a lack of morale causing us to lose.
Erica: Why is everyone on my team completely impossible?! Barry's fake, CJ's obnoxious, Rachel's gross, and Nolan… I don't even know how to describe what's wrong with him! Obviously he probably hates me like everyone else because I'm a freak. Maybe I'm a hermit because the alternative is having to deal with you, Nolan! Ever think of that?!
Tucker found Lauren reading a magazine in the rec room.
"Ah, Lauren. Just the girl Tucker was looking for," Tucker grinned.
"What do you want?" Lauren scoffed.
"Ernie sent Tucker to go talk to you," Tucker explained. "He would have done it himself, but he wanted to take a nap instead."
"And he trusted you to not hit me with a water balloon or something?" Lauren asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Actually, he confiscated all of Tucker's prank stuff until Tucker talked to you," Tucker admitted.
"What did he want you to talk about?" Lauren asked, still annoyed.
"Joining our alliance," Tucker answered. "It's pretty clear you and Kiki aren't really on good terms, so joining our alliance will put you in the majority."
"Yeah, but that would mean I'd be in an alliance with you," Lauren retorted. "Tell him I'm not interested unless you're out of the alliance."
"Will do," Tucker said as he turned to leave. "Also, Tucker told a tiny fib earlier."
"Did he?" Lauren glared.
Tucker took a small white capsule from his pocket and threw it on the ground, causing white smoke to spread throughout the room.
"That's itching powder! The prank war continues!" Tucker cackled.
"What?!" Lauren gasped. Sure enough, she started scratching her arms and legs.
By the time the smoke had cleared, Tucker was gone. Lauren growled in anger as she continued to scratch.
Confessional:
Tucker: Sure, Tucker's loyal to Ernie's alliance, but he also has his own agenda. And Tucker won't rest until he's had his revenge on Lauren. Heheheheh.
Lauren: So first he asks me to join his alliance, and then he covers me in itching powder? Tch. Brilliant move, MotherTucker. Whatever. I prefer the position of swing vote anyway. People will do anything to earn my vote. That reminds me, isn't David supposed to be my personal slave for the day? Where is he?
Judy found Chappy curling weights in the gym.
"Fancy seeing you here," Judy smiled.
"If I want to win, I gotta be strong," Chappy replied. "I may be large, but a lot it ain't muscle."
"Good for you for deciding to work out," Judy said as she gave him a thumbs-up. "Exercise is one of the most important things a person can do."
"If I keep it up, we might not have any weak links after Bailey leaves," Chappy nodded.
"Why does it have to be Bailey?" Judy frowned.
"Our only other option is Franklin. Would you rather see him leave?" Chappy asked gruffly.
"Well, Bailey's going through a lot right now. I don't think it'd be fair to vote her off," Judy explained.
"We need as much physical strength as we can get, Judy," Chappy insisted. "Getting rid of Franklin would be stupid."
"But do we want to risk carrying him to the merge?" Judy responded. "If he is as big a physical threat as you say, then he could be dangerous."
"Are you forgetting who you are?" Chappy asked gruffly. "You're a sports all-star. If anyone's a physical threat, it's you. Besides, we're not that far into the game. The merge probably won't be for a while."
"I still don't want to get rid of Bailey," Judy repeated.
"Then make sure we don't lose any challenges," Chappy responded sternly.
"Got it," Judy sighed.
Confessional:
Chappy: Winning this game is my number one priority. In order to do that, I need to make sure we don't lose any challenges in the team phase. Once I make the merge, I just need to get rid of whatever threats don't have invincibility. It's not difficult. But winning challenges as a team will be harder if we keep Bailey over Franklin. Judy needs to realize this.
Judy: Look, Chappy's my friend, and I feel like we are making progress with helping his disdain towards losing, but I still feel like it wouldn't be right to vote out Bailey, at least not until she gets her insecurities sorted out. He seems adamant, so my only option seems to be to dedicate my time to helping Bailey, because if I vote for Franklin, it'd be a 2-1-1 vote in their favor. Man, this game is hard.
Barry and Rachel both sat on a couch in the foyer.
"You seem distraught," Rachel noted.
"There's just so much negativity on this team," Barry sighed. "I thought being positive would help fix that, but I guess I was outnumbered."
"So you're letting them make you more negative?" Rachel asked.
"It's not a conscious thing," Barry told her. "It's just bumming me out that there's nothing I can do to help."
"Well, we could always vote out the negative ones," Rachel suggested. "CJ is easy, and Erica shouldn't be too hard either."
"I suppose so," Barry replied. "Wait, are you suggesting we throw challenges?"
"Not at all," Rachel answered. "I mean, CJ will probably do so anyway, but the longer we go without losing, the better. Even if the vote looks simple, you never know if someone's going to blindside you. I mean, look at Mac."
"Wow. You've really put a lot of thought into this," Barry said, impressed.
"You have to think about these things in order to survive," Rachel told him.
"You should be proud of how smart you are," Barry said with a blush.
"Aw, you're sweet," Rachel smiled as she gave Barry a hug.
Confessional:
Barry: It's nice to have a friend like Rachel around. She's really smart and really pretty, and she's always there for me when I need her. (he begins rubbing the back of his neck) I kind of want to ask her out, but I feel like now's just not a good time to do so. Maybe once the drama on the team dies down a little.
Rachel: Barry's a sweet guy. It's no secret that he has at least some feelings towards me, which was the intention, but I feel like the two of us could be friends outside of the game. For now, though, he's a vote, and nothing more.
The fourteen contestants had all met up in the foyer at Hatchet's request.
"Alright, listen up!" Hatchet barked. "Your next challenge might be the hardest you've ever had to face!"
Franklin gulped at this news.
"Y'all will be… cooking," Hatchet told them.
"That's it?" Chappy snickered. "I cook for myself at home all the time."
"I DID NOT ASK YOU!" Hatchet bellowed. "Now! The three teams will all share the same kitchen. Your job is to prepare a dish for me and two other judges to taste test. Each judge will rank what they've eaten on a scale of 1 to 10. Team with the lowest score will vote someone out! Y'all have an hour to pull this off. Now GO!"
The contestants all scrambled to the kitchen.
Confessional:
Ernie: Cooking? Can't say I'll be too helpful in this one. My expertise in the kitchen is limited to, like, microwaving Hot Pockets. I may be a genius, but that doesn't mean I'm, ya know, perfect.
Franklin: I've done my share of cooking in the past, since my parents forgot to do so ninety percent of the time. Hopefully nobody on the other teams is a master chef or anything, because I'm actually feeling pretty confident about this one.
Erica: Am I good at cooking? I guess we'll never know, because nobody would want to ask me. They probably assume that being a frightening red-eyed ghost means I do nothing but stay in my room avoiding people.
As the teams entered the kitchen for the first time, the first thing they noticed was its size. The kitchen was huge, enough to fit five teams.
"Well. This should make things a lot easier," Nolan decided.
Team Chill went to one area of the kitchen.
"So, what are we even making?" David asked.
"Ooh, how about lobster?" Lauren suggested hungrily.
"No way," Tucker insisted. "Absolutely out of the question."
"Why? Do you have, like, a shellfish allergy?" Ernie asked.
"Tucker's Jewish! Lobster isn't kosher!" Tucker loudly informed them.
"So? I'm pretty sure Judaism prohibits like 90% of everything else you do," Lauren pointed out. "Besides, you won't be eating it. Just preparing it."
"They don't even have lobster," David added as he looked in the freezer. "They have steak."
"Tucker is okay with steak as long as it's well-done," Tucker informed them.
"I'm glad His Majesty approves," Lauren muttered.
Confessional:
Kiki: So my team decided to prepare pan-seared rib-eye. Hatchet left us a cookbook, so all we have to do is make sure it turns out alright.
Lauren: Just when I thought I couldn't dislike Tucker any more than I did, he goes and forces his religion on us. It's not like gay marriage not being legalized is bad enough or anything.
David: I mean, if Tucker can't touch certain foods because he's Jewish, I don't mind. We managed to find a way around it, didn't we?
Team Thunder had gone to a different part of the kitchen.
"What kind of ingredients do we have?" Chappy asked no one in particular.
Franklin checked the pantry, Bailey checked the refrigerator, and Judy checked the freezer.
"There's a lot of stuff in here, but most importantly, there's a spice rack," Franklin informed the others.
"There are, um, a lot of, uh, vegetables, and, uh, fruits… in here…" Bailey added.
"I found chicken!" Judy announced.
"Is there anything we could make with those things?" Chappy wondered aloud as he racked his brain.
"If it helps, I also found dough," Judy suggested.
Franklin had an epiphany. "We could make chicken pot pie!
"That sounds good," Bailey smiled.
Chappy flipped through a nearby cookbook. "Got it! Here's a recipe," he told the others. "Now let's get to work!"
Confessional:
Chappy: Chicken pot pie should not be that difficult. Even Bailey shouldn't be able to screw this up. Today is the day we get first place!
Bailey: (she is reading from a paper) While I don't have very much experience in the kitchen, I feel that this challenge should be an easy one for us. My head is on the chopping block, so a victory of any sort would be much appreciated.
Franklin: Picking an easy recipe has a bit of risk and reward to it. On one hand, it won't taste as great as one of the more complicated dishes, but on the other hand, it'll be a lot easier to make without messing something up.
Team Flame had gone to a different part of the kitchen.
"Alright, so what should we make?" Barry asked his team.
Nolan rolled his die across the countertop. "I'll be preparing fish. I suggest the rest of you work on something that'll go with it."
"Oh, um…" Barry was taken aback by Nolan's bluntness. "Sounds good. How are you preparing it?"
"Good question." Nolan rolled his die again. "Beer-battered. Basically the kind of fish that goes with fish and chips."
"I'll work on the chips," Rachel offered.
"I'll work on dipping sauce," Barry suggested. "CJ? Erica? What are you two going to do?"
CJ was drawing something in her sketchbook. She then showed it to Erica.
"Hey, check this out," CJ said as she showed Erica the drawing, which appeared to be nothing more than a black pair of pants.
"What is it?" Erica asked, confused.
"It's you blinking in a snowstorm," CJ snickered.
"Oh, you're real freaking hilarious," Erica spat. "I thought I was your best friend!"
"You are," CJ smirked. "If you weren't, I'd be drawing pictures of you dying horribly gruesome deaths."
"How would you like me to draw a picture of a splatter with your blood?" Erica threatened.
"But that would take no effort," CJ replied with a grin. "Anyone could draw a splatter with blood. The least you could do is draw a stick man or something."
"That's starting to sound pretty damn tempting," Erica growled as she rolled up her sleeve.
"Er, could one of you do double duty?" Barry asked Rachel and Nolan. "I should take this."
Nolan rolled his die. "I can do the dipping sauce and the fish."
"Thanks," Barry smiled as he approached the girls.
Confessional:
Nolan: Fish and chips is an easy enough dish, I think. In fact, I've been having pretty good luck so far in this game. It's almost as if I mostly come up with positive outcomes for my dice rolls.
Rachel: Well this isn't great for my plan. I want Barry away from Erica. Of course, I can't really do anything about it, since I still have that dumb flirty girl façade to maintain. Guess I'll just have to grin and bear it for now.
CJ: Complaining doesn't seem to be enough to get me voted out, and Hatchet won't give me the rulebook, so I don't know what I can do to get myself disqualified, so I'm going to be outright malicious to my teammates. If that doesn't get me eliminated, I don't know what will.
Kiki had been slaving over the stove and Ernie had fallen asleep. The other members of Team Chill were discussing other matters.
"David, I'm thirsty. Get me some juice or something," Lauren ordered.
"Why can't you get it yourself?" David asked.
"Because Ernie said you'd be my personal slave for the day if I voted for Jilly," Lauren answered.
"If you're thirsty, Tucker can always satisfy you," Tucker said with a wink.
"Gross," Lauren winced.
"Gross? You made out with me for half a challenge because you felt like it! How is that not gross?!" David shouted.
"Um, I was in the mood, and you offered to. I'm so sick of having to explain this," Lauren sighed in annoyance.
"I did not offer! I mentioned what Ernie asked me to do!" David rebutted.
"Well you should have worded it better," Lauren shrugged. "Speaking of what Ernie told you to do, where's that juice?"
"Right here," Tucker said as he held up a glass of orange juice.
"Where did you get that?" David asked.
"Tucker has his sources," Tucker chuckled.
Confessional:
Tucker: Tucker went to the fridge while they were arguing. It really wasn't anything special.
Kiki: So apparently pan-seared rib-eye is a very easy dish that only needs one person to prepare, and since I'm the only one on our team with any kitchen experience, I ended up being the one to cook it. Oh well. Too many cooks spoil the broth, so to speak.
Ernie: So apparently, like, David turned on me because I kept telling him to do stuff he didn't want to. That's what I learned by pretending to be asleep, anyway. Uh, dude, that's how alliances work. You do what the smart one says, so you don't, ya know, get voted out. Kiki will just do the same thing to you.
While Judy had taken a break from preparing the crust, she approached Bailey, who had been chopping vegetables.
"So, I, uh… I read your poem," Judy admitted awkwardly.
"You what?!" Bailey gasped. "How… when… why…?"
"I just wanted to help. You seemed really distraught, and you wouldn't tell me why, so I did what I had to do," Judy explained.
"That… that was, um, private," Bailey frowned.
"What's going on?" Franklin asked as he approached the girls.
"Judy, um, violated my, uh, privacy…" Bailey told him morosely.
"It sounds so bad when you put it like that," Judy said in a bit of shock at what Bailey had said. "I just wanted to help Bailey out, and I did so in the only way I could."
"Care to explain?" Franklin asked.
"Well, I saw Bailey writing something in her notebook yesterday, but she wouldn't show me what it was," Judy explained. "I assumed it had something to do with her negativity, so I read it while everyone was asleep."
"Okay, Judy, Bailey's right. That was kind of messed up," Franklin said as he folded his arms.
"Nobody else was going to help her," Judy frowned.
"She turned to me, her friend, for help," Franklin refuted. "If Bailey doesn't want you to know something, then it's probably none of your business."
"Hey, Judy! Is the crust ready yet?" Chappy called.
"Coming!" Judy called as she returned to the oven.
Confessional:
Judy: I guess in retrospect what I did wasn't entirely morally ethical. I just wanted to help. If I'd known the others would make a big deal out of it, I would have left it alone.
Franklin: Judy's nice enough, but it seems like she feels like she needs to be everyone's big sister, which is admirable, sure, but she also doesn't seem to know when to mind her own business. I'm seriously debating whether to vote for her or Chappy next. It could be hard having a secret when she's around. It's like Preston all over again.
Bailey: (she is reading from a paper) I'm so angry with Judy. She's the kind of extrovert that introverts like me just cannot stand. Always trying to insert themselves into everyone else's lives. If I wanted to be Judy's friend, I would try to talk to her. *clears throat* I'm sorry. I just felt the need to get that out of my system.
Barry had separated CJ and Erica and had now stood between them.
"Now, CJ, why did you draw that picture and show it to Erica?" Barry asked.
"Because she's a horribly ugly sub-human whose mere presence makes me want to gouge out my eyes and eat them," CJ replied smugly.
"Okay… I don't even know how to respond to that," Barry winced.
"Don't bother with her," Erica grumbled. "I think she literally has such poor social skills that she thinks that's what best friends do."
"I don't. I'm being cruel to you on purpose for no other reason than my own personal enjoyment," CJ grinned.
"I always thought the thing about gingers having no souls wasn't real. Guess I was wrong," Erica retorted.
"I resent that," Nolan called from the counter.
"Okay, that's enough," Barry finally said. He pointed to one corner of the kitchen. "Erica, you go over there."
"Fine," Erica grimaced as she followed his instruction.
Barry pointed to a different corner. "CJ, you go over there."
"No," CJ objected with a malicious grin. "In fact, I'll go join Erica over in that corner."
Barry took a deep breath.
Confessional:
Barry: I'm trying. I really am. But CJ's making it so difficult. It's very hard not to lash out at her.
CJ: If this isn't going to get me eliminated, I don't know what will.
Erica: (she's blushing) I don't care that Barry defended me. He only did it because he felt like he had to. If it were, I dunno, Nolan instead of me, he would have done the same.
Tucker approached Kiki, who was currently pan-searing the steak.
"Are you almost done?" Tucker asked.
Kiki obviously gave no response.
"Hey. Are you almost done?" Tucker asked again as he started poking Kiki in the arm.
Kiki still gave no response, and nervously continued to work on the steak.
"Are you almost done? Are you almost done? You almost done? Almost done?" Tucker continued to ask as he kept poking Kiki.
Kiki looked visibly anxious as she grabbed the pepper shaker and began to shake, only for the cap to come off and cover the entire thing in pepper.
"Hahaha! You fell for it!" Tucker cackled.
Kiki looked to be on the verge of tears as she ran from the kitchen. David and Lauren glared at Tucker.
"I'm sure it was nothing," Tucker shrugged.
Confessional:
Kiki: I'm okay. I'm okay… (she takes a deep breath) Tucker needs to go. Now. I'm not even mad that he pulled that prank on me. I'm mad because he kept… touching me. Who knows how much farther he would have gone with touching me if I'd stayed?
Tucker: Nothing wrong with a harmless prank. Besides, Kiki's still on Tucker's list for the prank war. Heheheh.
Ernie: I actually saw the whole thing go down, but I didn't think it was, like, worth stopping or anything. Ah well. We can always vote her out anyway.
Chappy was currently putting spices on the pie before putting the top on and putting it in the oven.
"What kind of spices are you using?" Judy asked curiously.
"Cayenne pepper and saffron," Chappy said matter-of-factly. "The recipe didn't call for them or anything, but they're supposed to make anything taste better."
"Cool. Way to think outside the box," Judy smiled. "We're going to win for sure."
"You know we are," Chappy replied confidently. "And… done! You got the rest of the crust?"
"Right!" Judy remembered as she ran to the counter and grabbed it.
"Are we ready to put it in the oven?" Franklin asked as he and Bailey approached the pie.
"We are," Chappy nodded as Judy put the top of the pie crust onto the pie. "And I get the feeling this one's going to be a winner."
Bailey simply smiled at this news.
"Ready!" Judy announced as she held the pie aloft.
"Let's do this," Chappy grinned as Judy put the pie in the oven.
Confessional:
Chappy: If we don't get first place this time, I'm gonna be seriously pissed. This is probably the best I've done in a challenge, so I feel like I deserve something!
Judy: I wonder if there will be any pie left over when the judges are done eating it. It sure smelled good while it was baking.
Franklin: I didn't end up doing a lot in the challenge, but I was able to prepare the chicken, and I think I did a pretty good job with it if I do say so myself. Hopefully we don't lose, because I have no idea how the vote would go if we did, and I don't want Bailey or me to go home.
Nolan and Rachel were putting the finishing touches on the fish and chips.
"Looks like the chips turned out well," Nolan complimented.
"Thanks. Actually, it was my… first time… making fries," Rachel said in a flirtatious voice.
"I thought that flirty thing was a façade?" Nolan questioned.
"It is. But the others don't know that," Rachel giggled. "Anyway, how did the fish and dip turn out?"
"Very well," Nolan responded. "Actually, I didn't even use a cookbook, if you can believe that."
"I can't," Rachel denied.
"It's true. There's actually an old family recipe for fish and chips," Nolan continued. "If you want to know, you'll have to marry me. But then I'll refuse to divorce you, because I can't have my family secret going around, you see."
"What if I cheated on you and told other men anyway?" Rachel brought up.
"Fair point. Remind me to never make you a Gallagher," Nolan chuckled.
"I had no intention of becoming one," Rachel replied playfully.
"I'm glad we've reached an agreement," Nolan smiled.
Confessional:
Nolan: Rachel's cool to have around. It started out as us protecting the other's secret of being a competent strategist, but I think we've actually started to hit it off as friends. Hopefully the dice don't want me to vote her out.
Rachel: What do I think of Nolan? He seems like a cool person, but my relationship with him is strictly platonic at best. I'm actually hoping that being friendly with him will make him more likely to vote with me. It's basically what I'm doing to Barry, minus batting my eyelashes and acting all insecure. I realize he has the whole dice thing, but he's not dumb. He'll drop that sooner or later once it starts putting his game in danger.
CJ: If I make jokes that are in bad taste, do you think that will get me voted out? Like if I joke about rape or abortions or something? Eh, let's not. I'm trying to get voted out, but even I have standards.
Hatchet, Yolonda, and an overweight black woman in a gaudy purple outfit all sat at the dining room table, ready to be served. The contestants had all arrived in the room and stood across from the judges.
"Is that DJ's mom?" David asked in regards to the overweight woman.
"Yes it is," Hatchet confirmed. "She, Yolonda, and I will be your judges. Now. Team Thunder! GO GET ME YOUR FOOD!"
Bailey rushed into the kitchen and returned with the pie.
"You only made one?" DJ's mom asked. "How are we supposed to eat this?"
"We only really have to taste it," Yolonda told her as the former took a bite from her fork. "Not bad. I feel like there could be fewer spices, but overall, it's pretty good. I give it a 7."
DJ's mom took a bite from her fork. "Yeah, y'all put way too much spice in this pie! 6 points."
Hatchet took a bite. "I agree with my fellow judges. I'm also dockin' points for only makin' one pie! 5 points! Meaning your total is 18 points out of 30!"
"You gotta be-!" Chappy rolled up his sleeve.
"Chappy. Stop. We could still win," Judy assured him as she put her hand on his shoulder.
"Fine…" Chappy grumbled.
"Team Flame! Your turn!" Hatchet shouted.
"I'll get it," Barry volunteered as he went to the kitchen. When he returned, he held three baskets of fish and chips with dipping sauce, and laid them each out for the judges.
"Oooh, this looks good," Yolonda complimented. She dipped a piece of fish into the sauce and took a bite. Her eyes lit up. "Wow! No joke, this is probably the best fish and chips I've ever had. 10 points!"
"It can't be that good," DJ's mom said doubtfully as she started dipping one of her fish. Her demeanor changed when she took a bite. "It's good, but it ain't gourmet or nothin'. 8 points."
Hatchet wordlessly took a bite of fish. "Alright, I'll concede. 9 Points. Which means y'all have 27 points out of 30 and are currently in the lead!"
"Nice," Barry smiled as he shared a hi-five with Nolan.
"Great," CJ grumbled.
"Now. Team Chill! Get your food out here!"
"I'll get it," Ernie shrugged as she sluggishly shuffled into the kitchen. After a few minutes, he finally returned with three plates of unidentifiable black chunks.
"What is this?" Lauren asked harshly.
"I dunno," Ernie replied as he set the plates down in front of the judges.
"Oh, this should be good," DJ's mom said sarcastically as she took a bite. Her eyes became as big as saucers and she started coughing violently.
"That can't be good," David flinched.
"Are you kids *cough cough cough* tryin' to *cough cough* poison me?! *cough cough*" DJ's mom hacked as she fell out of her chair. "ZERO POINTS!"
"I'm not touching this. Sorry," Yolonda said apologetically.
"I believe I speak for my fellow judges when I say this dish warrants NEGATIVE TEN POINTS!" Hatchet barked. "Team Chill, y'all are in last place and will be votin' someone out tonight! Team Thunder's in second and Team Flame's in first, same as yesterday. Dismissed!"
Confessional:
Lauren: (she facepalms) Don't tell me nobody monitored the steak after Kiki left! This team cannot be that stupid! I mean, yeah, I didn't check on it, but only because I thought someone else was going to! Okay, keep calm, Lauren. You're not a target. You can do this.
Ernie: In retrospect, I probably could have, like, turned the heat off or something when Kiki left, but I figured after all that black pepper fell onto it, we were boned anyway.
Kiki: As if my team needed more of a reason to vote me off. Now I practically cost them the whole thing. Wait, no I didn't. That was all Tucker! Tucker's the one who pulled the pepper prank on me! Tucker's the one who kept poking me until I had to leave! Tucker's the one who didn't check the steak after I left! If anyone should be leaving tonight, it's Tucker!
Lauren had gathered her teammates in the backyard for a team meeting.
"Alright, let's be honest here. I'm a swing vote," Lauren professed. "So I'm going to give each side a chance to plead to me as to why I should vote on their side."
"Why would I do that?" Ernie asked. "You've voted on my side for, like, the past two eliminations."
"True, but I've heavily been considering voting off Tucker," Lauren responded.
"So then why should we try to convince you?" David asked.
"Because I've also been considering voting off Kiki," Lauren grinned. "After all, anyone who makes out with someone and then gets angry when they make out with someone else… actually, that sounds totally normal. But she's still currently my enemy!"
"Tucker could convince you in all sorts of ways. Heheheheh," Tucker snickered.
"Ignore him," Ernie interrupted. "What do you, like, want us to do?"
"You have until I cast my vote at 8pm to try to convince me to vote on your side," Lauren informed them. "Your time starts in half an hour. I have to go pee."
"It takes you half an hour to pee?" David asked, confused.
Confessional:
Lauren: I'm in an ideal spot right now. It would be foolish of them to vote me out now, because the next vote would be a tie, and, if Jilly's elimination is any indication, tie votes are unpredictable, and I don't think Ernie or Kiki want that.
Kiki: Could Lauren be any more arrogant right now? I'd vote her off if she weren't so valuable to my game.
Ernie had called Lauren up to the rec room to talk.
"Alright, so, I've come up with some reasons to vote for Kiki tonight," Ernie told her.
"Ah, please, do tell," Lauren said as she filed her nails.
"Well, for one, she's clearly, like, a strategic threat," Ernie began. "The fact that she, ya know, made a majority alliance so quickly was pretty smart."
"Tell me something I don't know," Lauren said disinterestedly.
"She's also extremely likely to flip if she makes the merge," Ernie continued. "I know for a fact that David is the only one left on our team she doesn't, like, totally hate right now. She could easily, ya know, get him to join up with people from some other team."
"Go on," Lauren said, having stopped filing her nails.
"Also consider that, like, she never talks around guys who aren't David," Ernie added. "Basically, she never talks. That means she won't be an obvious target. She could, like, coast her way through the merge by playing, ya know, under the radar."
"…I'll think about it," Lauren said. "Is that all?"
"That is," Ernie nodded. "I'm gonna go take a nap." Ernie sat in one of the beanbag chairs, pulled his beanie over his eyes, and fell asleep.
Confessional:
Lauren: Ernie does bring up some good points, but some things don't add up. How does he know a lot of that stuff? I didn't tell him, Kiki definitely didn't tell him, and he went out of his way to avoid Spankety and Jilly. Eh, I probably shouldn't overthink it. I still have other people to grovel for me.
Ernie: Fake-sleeping does wonders for knowing things you're not supposed to. Of course, real sleeping is also pretty great. Honestly, why doesn't everyone just sleep all the time?
Kiki found Lauren in the changing room to the sauna. The latter was wearing only a towel.
"Ah, Kiki. What a pleasure it is to see you," Lauren said in an extremely fake tone.
"Whatever," Kiki said flatly. "Do you want to hear why you should vote for Tucker or not?"
"Sure. Humor me," Lauren shrugged.
"Honestly, I'm not sure I really need to explain myself," Kiki said. "It's Tucker."
"You'll have to do better than that," Lauren scoffed.
"Fine. Tucker's a filthy, disgusting human being. He always makes gross jokes, he always hits on you, and he never shuts up. It's like all he cares about is sex. Oh, and pranks. Like, how old is he, seven?! Who even pulls pranks anymore?! I know I'd be tired of all the itching powder and fake spiders if I were in your shoes. Plus, he doesn't even contribute to the team. I at least tried to help in the challenge, and I was doing pretty well until Tucker went and coerced me out of the kitchen! He didn't even pick up where I left off! He's like negative one team member because of how much of a detriment he is, and you'd be stupid not to lose him!" Kiki ranted.
"…I'll think about it…" Lauren said, clearly taken aback.
Confessional:
Lauren: Wow, way to lose your cool, Kiki. You really are pathetic. I don't see Tucker calling me stupid for not agreeing with him, is all I'm saying. Of course, she isn't wrong. Tucker is gross beyond all belief. Looks like I really do have a decision to make.
Kiki: That might not have been my finest moment, but I feel like it was warranted. I didn't make it this far to get fourteenth place.
David and Tucker had met up in the attic.
"Okay, so Tucker has an amazing idea, but he needs your help to do it," Tucker told David.
"Why should I help you?" David asked.
"If you do, it could put you back into the majority," Tucker explained.
"I'm not joining your alliance again," David frowned. "I left for a good reason."
"Just hear Tucker out," Tucker insisted. "Tucker's thinking of convincing Ernie to vote for Lauren. Then, if we lose again, we can vote out Kiki."
"I'm still not joining your alliance." David folded his arms adamantly.
"You don't really have any other choice," Tucker told him. "Tucker's 99% sure Lauren's going to vote for Kiki tonight. What would you do if Kiki were to be eliminated?"
"I…I…" David struggled.
"Just think about it," Tucker said with a smirk.
Confessional:
David: Is… is Tucker right about something? I'm confused!
Tucker: Tucker's a genius. If anyone's running this game, it's him.
The five members of Team Chill sat on one of the couches in the foyer. Hatchet came down the grand staircase carrying an ice box. He set the ice box down next to him as he stood across from the contestants.
"So, how does it feel bein' the new Team Thunder? Heheheh," Hatchet taunted. "Don't answer that. I don't care. Y'all know how this works by now. If you get a soda, you're safe."
"David!"
"Ernie!"
"Kiki!"
"What?" Just about everyone was surprised that Kiki wasn't in the bottom two.
"Tucker! Lauren! One of y'all is goin' home!" Hatchet shouted. "But that person ain't…"
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"…Lauren!"
The look on Tucker's face could only be described as flabbergasted.
"Tucker! Time for you to go!"
"This can't be!" Tucker cried. "Tucker isn't supposed to lose!"
"Well he did. NOW GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE I WHOOP YOU INTO NEXT TUESDAY!" Hatchet roared.
Tucker whimpered loudly as he scurried out through the Door of Shame.
"Looks like y'all are down to four," Hatchet said to the surviving members of Team Chill. "If y'all don't turn things around, y'all are gonna regret it! Dismissed!"
Confessional:
Ernie: Well this sucks.
Kiki: (she's folding her arms smugly) Now that's what I call karma.
"Looks like things on Team Chill are as unpredictable as ever," Hatchet told the camera. "Will Ernie deal with losin' his most loyal ally? Will Judy end up helpin' Bailey with her self-esteem issues? Will CJ ever get eliminated? WELL BE PATIENT! YOU'LL FIND OUT! Next time! On Total! Drama! HOUSE PARTY!"
Votes:
Ernie: I vote for Kiki. Lauren's, ya know, a potential ally, and there's always the possibility of David crawling back, so Kiki's, like, my best option.
Kiki: Tucker, not to sound pretentious, but you are actual human scum who wouldn't be fit to wash my feet!
Tucker: Tucker didn't get a chance to talk to Ernie about it, but Ernie's not dumb. If Tucker figured out that he should vote for Lauren, then Ernie will too.
David: If anyone's watching and didn't know already: Tucker's been going on panty raids and blackmailed me to not tell! Also, I vote for Tucker.
Lauren: Yeah, Kiki's a threat, but I can always get her next time. I'd like Tucker out of the house as soon as possible, so I vote for him.
A/N: Going in, I knew Tucker was going to be the kind of character that readers would either love or hate. Tucker's the kind of villain who doesn't have any redeeming qualities because he really didn't need any. I knew I wanted him to not leave too early, but to last long enough to make an impact, and I feel like I did just that. So, love him or hate him, Tucker's gone. To his fans, I'm sorry. To his haters, you're welcome. XD