I sighed and put my head on my fist in boredom. Really, could this boat ride get any worse? 'No, wait.' I thought to myself. 'Yes, it could. That moron I'm forced to call a brother could be here.' I shuddered at the thought before lifting my head at the foghorn of the boat. An island was coming into view now.

"Hey girly!" yelled the driver from the wheel. He flinched lightly at my glare but continued anyway. "That's where you're stayin'!" My glare didn't leave his figure. He started shifting, almost like my gaze unnerved him. "Don't look at me, look at the island!" I still didn't move my head. The man began sweating and backed up a pace. "What do you want from me!?"

My sudden grin must have thrown him off a bit. "Nothing, really. Just wanted to creep you out." I couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling up and out. On its own accord, my body turned to face the quickly approaching island, the wind blowing my waist-length hair behind me. It was a fair island. Not too big, but big enough to register on a map. But...I took the brochure out of my bag and did a few double takes. "Oi!" I shouted to the driver. "You sure this is the place!"

The driver nodded without looking at me. "Yeah, got the map right here." He drove into the dock.

Almost as soon as my feet touched the deck, a geeky dork stood in front of me, a creepy smile on his face. "Why, hello there." He said, attempting to be smooth. That was kind of an epic failure, since his voice cracked. "My name is Cody, but you may call me sexy."

My first reaction was to punch him and tell him off, but I had a better idea once I saw a bruise forming on his face. I let out a soft gasp. my eyes opening wide. "Oh my gosh, what happened to you?" I lightly touched the bruise on his face. "How could anyone do that to someone as cute as you?"

His face started to go beat red and his next words were stuttered. "D-do y-you-" but I cut him off.

"Oh wait, I'm sorry!" I pretended to apologize. "That came out wrong. Please, allow me to rephrase that." At his weak nod, I smirked. My voice became dull and scornful, border-line bored. "Don't care. Now get out of my way." I walked straight past him, shoving him with my shoulder. I approached Chris, the one I was told would host this little show. He was bent over, holding his stomach in an attempt to control his laughter. "Yo, dude!" I called, flashing him the peace sign.

Chris straightened himself, wiping away an imaginary tear. "And here is our final candidate, Kyran!"

Within two seconds, I had a fistful of his shirt and hoisted him in the air. My glare was different from the one I gave the driver. This one promised a slow and painful death. I should know, I've perfected it on my friends. "My name..." I growled out, "is Flare. No one here will call me anything besides that, or will have to be removed from the island for immediate medical attention. And that includes the host."

I can't believe I just made a grown man whimper. Alright! I let Chris drop to the ground and turned to find the cousin I loved so much. Hm...Dark skin...Facial Hair...Gawking and slightly fearful face...A sadistic grin stretched across my face as I finally recognized him. He pointed a shaking finger at me, his mouth working to make audible words. "F-Flare!" He squeaked.

My grin widened a bit at his feminine sound. But I noticed one thing that changed about him....No, I'm not talking about the cowardice that's pretty much seeping off of his skin. I'm talking about.... "My god, you've gotten buff." Was my greeting.

Two great big arms suddenly swept me into a rib crushing hug. "Duuude!" yelled a voice in my ear. "This is going to be SSSSSOOOOO sweet!!" Unfortunately, I didn't have the air to reply. The one attempting to murder me by suffocation didn't seem to notice my face going from normal to blue to purple.

At least until a resounding thwap sounded behind me. I dropped unceremoniously on the floor, flopping around like a fish. "Gah, air!!!" I gasped deeply. I dimly heard a commotion behind me; probably someone scolding whoever tried to kill me; but I didn't bother to listen. I liked living too much, so I filled my lungs with the air I could.

I felt a hand begin to rub my back, trying to help my air passage. "You okay?" asked a concerned female voice. When I caught my breath and looked up, I saw a surfer chick with blond hair and green eyes. I nodded mutely, causing a breath of relief from more than just one person.

Someone grabbed the back of my shirt and picked me up to my feet. I turned to see DJ, my beloved cousin, glaring at a fat guy with blonde hair and a red hand print on his face. I lifted my hand to anyone who could see. "Whoever slapped that beast off of me, I thank thee very much."

"No problem girl." Said a girl with black hair and brown skin. She didn't turn as she glared at the fat one as well. "Just what was going through that mind of yours?" She asked him sarcastically. "You could have killed her!"

The fat one pouted. "I was thinking about making a new friend!" He looked over her shoulder (which probably wasn't very hard for him) to give me an apologetic face. "I'm sorry if I almost killed you. My name is Owen."

I smiled at him. He was too nice to stay mad at. I learned everyone's name after that. Here's a list:

Fat man: Owen (TOO HAPPY!!!)
Goth Chick: Gwen (She's a'ight.)
Chick that saved my ass: Leshawna (*sings angel chorus* my savior!)
Crazy chick: Izzy (I think she's my favorite so far)
Conceited chick that scares the crap out of little children: Heather (Hate her already)
Stupid prep (And I mean REALLY stupid): Lindsay
Somewhat geeky chick: Beth (She just....looks weird)
Cool guy: Trent (I want...his shirt. It's awesome!)
Nerdy as hell guy: Noah (Lazy bum...)
Hottest guy ever: Justin (Hello hotness!!)
The dude that hit on me: Cody (*grin* He is so going to be made miserable)
Surfer chick: Bridgette (She's awesome.)
Scary chick that could kill a bear-tiger-lion hybrid with her bare hands: Eva (*shudder*)
Goody-goody chick: Courtney (Really don't like her...)
Fat chick: Sadie
Skinny chick that has the same outfit as Sadie: Katie (Heh, they rhyme...)
Athlete with no athleticism: Tyler
Meh cousin(But I already knew him): DJ
Juvie punk: Duncan (Oh, he's going to be fun to mess with...)
Party dude: Geoff
Geeky dude: Harold
Moron with the hat: Ezekiel (Dammit, how do you pronounce his name?)

Oh joy, this is going to be so fun! Can anyone else sense the sarcasm? "Alright, group photo!" Chris shouted. He started shifting us around, and I ended up, somehow, between Sadie and Katie. They started crying that they weren't next to each other. And OH MY GOD, I have NEVER wanted to hurt anyone as I did then.

At about the third, "But I want Katie/Sadie!" I released an animalistic snarl and literally threw Katie into Sadie. And trust me, that girl is not as light as she looks! As they squealed and gushed, I launched myself at DJ's back, wrapping my arms around his neck in an attempt to stay on his back. "You are now my mule." I said in a tone that gave no room for argument. I gave a disgusted sigh as the sweat on his neck soaked into my sleeves. 'He is so paying for dry-cleaning after this.' I growled to myself.

Soft snickering drew my attention to the juvie brat, Duncan. Really and truly, I love that Mohawk. 'Note to self.' I thought. 'Ask him how the HELL he did that.' But for the moment, his laughter annoyed the hell out of me. "And just what, may I ask, is so funny?" I growled, glaring at him. "Aside from the fact that, you know, you look like a porcupine with all the piercings."

My jab didn't seem to phase his smirk. "Just the fact you've got that dude whipped." He nodded his head to DJ, standing impeccably straight and shivering slightly.

In a brief attempt to calm him down, I patted his head awkwardly, trying to hold on to his monstrous size at the same time. "Chill, cuz." I offered, smiling the friendliest smile I could muster as he turned his head to look at me from the corner of his eye. "I swear, I won't pick on you the entire stay here." DJ visibly relaxed and hoisted me further up his back, helping my grip very much. "Thanks dude!"

I turned my head to continue my conversation (cough argument cough), but a sudden creaking from the dock pulled everyone's attention down. My face got pale when I saw a crack running through the wood. Right under where Owen was. "Oh....hell." I muttered, right before the deck fell apart and we all splashed into the lake.

Water broke into my mouth and nose, choking me for a brief second. Immense and blinding panic flooded into my senses, and I instinctively clutched DJ's neck, possibly cutting off his air. But then suddenly we broke the surface and I gaped loudly, coughing up all the water that had tried to drown me. All the other campers broke surface right after us, Chris took the shot right then, with me clutching DJ and DJ gasping for breath, turning blue. He's out of the water, he should be...

"Crap!" I yelped, loosening my grip on his neck immensely. "Sorry Deej." I muttered apologetically. DJ took a deep breath similar to the one I took when Owen tried to crack my spine in half before smiling at me. He started to swim to the shore, where the other campers were already gathered. As soon as I knew his feet touched the sand, I dropped from behind him and caused a mini-waved to ripple around us.

Can you guess who suddenly burst out laughing? Did you guess Duncan? Oh my god, you're freaking psychic! It was the juvie brat laughing! "O-Oh man!" He said through laughter. "Y-You look like a poodle!"

I felt an involuntary twitch in my eye. I...HATE...Poodles. But he doesn't know that..."Aw!" I pretended to gush, lying through my teeth. Poodles...stupid rat dogs...

It was extremely hard to suppress my laughter at his look. "You're insane." He said simply, stalking away to the other edge of the gathering. I rolled my eyes, leaned against a tree, and broke out my mp3 player. I'd have to show these people when I'm being sarcastic or not. No one tried to talk to me after that. I was just a silent observer of all the interactions.

Chris stood in front of us all. Most of us gave him immediate attention. He began speaking, and already I wanted to go explore. He's so...so...I can't describe it. He just has that aura that makes me want to hurt him! ...Okay, that may just be because I'm a violet person, but still! "This…," He gestured to the camp behind him. It was just a collection of run-down cabins and a few sheds, "is Camp Wawanakwa; your home for the next eight weeks. The campers sitting around you will be your cabin-mates, your competition, and maybe even your friends. Ya dig?"

Competition, I would live with. Friends, I'd gladly have. But...I have to live with...I glanced at Lindsey, powdering her face, and shuddered. Please, please, let me be in the other cabin. Chris continued. "The camper who manages to stay on Total Drama Island the longest, without getting voted off, will win one-hundred thousand dollars!"

Duncan stepped forward, drawing attention to himself. "Excuse me," he said, approaching Chris, "What will the sleeping arrangements be? Cause I'd like to request a bunk under her." He jabbed a thumb to Heather.

Heather looked disgusted. Can't blame her, can I? Who would want to sleep anywhere near, insert shudder here, him? "They're not co-ed, are they?" She asked in a disgusted tone.

'Oh, I hope they are.' I thought to myself, scooting a bit closer to DJ and eying Justin's who was eying himself in a compact...That sentence was so wrong in so many ways.

Chris answered with a strange look on his face. "Nooo...Guys get one half, girls get other half." I felt a pout cross my lips, but I pushed it back down. I'd get over it in about three...two...one...Oh, look at that, I'm already over it!

Lindsay, I think her name was, raised her hand. Hooray for pretending we're in school during the summer! Not. "Excuse me, Kyle! Can I have a cabin with a lake view, since I'm the prettiest?"

.....Okay, truly, I think she's going to be my main mode of entertainment. Truly, TRULY, she is an idiot. I barely heard Chris's reply over my mental laughter. "Okay, you ARE, but that's not how it's going to work here. And, it's Chris." He added with a smile.

The twins, Sadie and Katie, started hugging each other. "I HAVE to be with Sadie, or I'll die!" Said Katie, the skinny and tan one.

Sadie started to nod in agreement. "And I have to be with Sadie, or I'll break out in hives! It's true." She nodded, sounding far too sure of herself to know if she was lying or not. And that wasn't something I was happy about, cause I know when someone is lying to me!

Gwen, on the edge of my hearing, muttered under her breath, "This cannot be happening!"

If she was trying to be discreet, she had failed miserably. This was proved when Owen pulled her and the jock into a hug, similar to the one that almost cost me my life on the deck. "Aw, come on guys!" He exclaimed, a grin on his face. "It'll be fun! Like a giant sleepover!"

Tyler shot a nervous look over Owen's squishing arm. Also on the edge of my hearing, he whispered to Gwen, "At least you don't have to sleep next to him."

I followed his gaze, curiosity pricked. My eyes met Duncan giving a deer a noogie. Le gasp, the fiend! In an attempt to save the poor forest creature, I picked up a random pinecone and threw it at the back of Duncan's head. It hit dead on. Duncan's grip on the deer relaxed, letting the deer wriggle free and run away. Duncan turned around slowly, his glare promising pain in the very near future. "Who. Threw. That?" He growled out each word. Most everyone flinched away from him. I didn't move.

Okay, I did, but I didn't flinch away like they did. I stepped closer to him, my own eyes narrowed into a glare. "I did." I hissed out. Immediately, his glare snapped to me, becoming even deadlier. If looks could kill, he'd be arrested for tenth degree murder right now. "You gonna do something about it?" I dared, walking until I was within hitting range of him.

Duncan growled dangerously, bending down to meet my eyes. Damn, being vertically-challenged sucks. "If you ever throw something at me again, I will hurt you. Am I clear?"

I raised an eyebrow, silently daring him to hit me. "Ya think so?" I asked softly. My tone promised pain just as much as his glare did. At least, it would have, if a small grin didn't accompany the subtle threat.

His teel eyes darkened with threats not yet worded. "I don't think, I know."

His response only made my grin that much wider. "Wow, you know, I think you're psychic!" His unibrow rose in question. "I was just thinking you don't know either!" Funniest thing ever, a unibrow twitching in agitation. His fist clenched at his side, and I readied myself, just in case he did try to hit me.

Chris got in between us, flashing a grin at either us or the camera. "Hey now, we can't afford a law suit on the first day!" Duncan and I growled at each other one more time before turning our backs on eachother and walking away.

Instead of going back to my spot leaning against the tree, I stood between Bridgette and Gwen. Bridgette winced as she watched Duncan stalk away. "You know, I don't envy you, making an enemy this early in the game."

I shrugged off her concern, if it was concern, and turned in time for Chris to start talking. "Here's the deal! We're gonna split you into two teams. If I call your name out, go stand over there." He pointed to the spot I was just in, then listed, "Gwen, Trent, Heather, Cody, Lindsay, Beth, Katie, Owen, LeShawna, Justin, Noah, and Ky-Flare." He caught himself before saying my name. He smiled. "From this moment on, you are officially known as… The Screaming Gophers!" He said, then tossed a rolled up flag to us. I caught it, and it came unraveled in my hands. On the rag was a gopher in a fighting pose. That's....just plain wierd.

Owen, in all his massive glory, threw his hands in the air and let out a loud cheer. "Yeah! I'm a gopher!"

Under my breath, I muttered, "I'd rather be a chipmunk. So much cuter, ya' know?" I wasn't as quiet as I'd hoped I was, because I got a wierd look from Gwen and Trent. I shrugged at them in a 'what' gesture. They shrugged back and turned forward.

"Wait!" shouted Katie. "What about Sadie!"

Chris turned his back on her, facing the others. "The rest of you, over here! Geoff, Bridgette, DJ, Tyler, Sadie, Izzy, Courtney, Ezekiel, Duncan, Eva, and Harold. Move, move, move, move!"

Sadie didn't move as every shifted to the Bass side. "But Katie's a gopher! I have to be a gopher!"

One of the fish girls, Courtney I think her name was, went to Sadie's side. "Sadie, is it? Come on, it'll be okay." I mentally rolled my eyes. Some people are just too nice in these competitions.

And as I watched DJ stand between Duncan and Geoff, one thought crossed my mind. I turned to the closest person to me, Leshawna, and spoke my mind. "I'm going to die here, aren't I?"

Leshawna simply nodded, glaring lightly at the other team. "I've a feeling that juvie man is going to make sure of it, hun."

((The story will be in first-person. And I don't know the whole series play-by-play, so I'm going to have to improvise where I'm not sure exactly what happens.))