Okay, so here's my next chapter. I know I skipped a week in time, but it is necessary to keep this story going. But guess what guys? As a special Christmas treat, I've got the next chapter already done! And I hope you guys like it too, but anyway, back to this chapter. I'm not expecting much from this one, as it is a fill in for what is to come, but I'll try to make it good, and we'll see what happens as I go along. Enjoy!

TDHS: EP 9

*One Week Later*

Zoey watched TV at home. She had been debating on what Harold had said a week ago, and had given the subject a rest for the day. Recently, she had been so conflicted over the recent events that her mind felt like it was going to explode with questions. The television flashed before her eyes as she watched her favorite program. Unfortunately, even its presence could not distract her from the matter at hand. Eventually, Zoey decided that the only way she could rest her mind would be to go to bed. She had already finished her homework for the day, so she didn't have to worry about anything. She then stood up from the sofa and slowly walked past her mother in the kitchen, who was reading a form. Before Zoey could even set a foot on the base of the stairs that led to the second floor or her house, her mother called her name. With a heavy sigh, Zoey walked back towards the kitchen and poked her head around the corner.

"Yeah mom?" She said drowsily. She really wanted to go to bed. Unfortunately, her mother had a tendency to ramble on subjects, no matter what they were talking about. They could be talking about what color she liked the best and her mother could create a sermon to explain why. Zoey's mother walked over to her and handed her a white piece of paper that required her signature at the bottom.

"It's a form from school. Apparently you're school is hosting a school dance tomorrow?" Her mother asked her for conformation. Zoey read over the form. Indeed it seemed that the school was hosting a winter dance party at 8. There would be food, and a DJ for the music. Zoey had forgotten all about the dance, but now was actually quite excited. She knew exactly who she wanted to meet there and maybe with a stroke of luck that someone would dance with her.

"I guess so mom…can I go?" Zoey asked. She wondered who her friends would go with. Shawn and Jasmine had returned two days ago, feeling much better. They had plenty of schoolwork to catch up on, but they were able to pull through the week. It was now Thursday, and the school dance was tomorrow. Zoey's mother eyed the form for a moment before responding,

"I don't see why not. Just make sure you hand in this note to the main office tomorrow. It says here you were supposed to hand in the form on Wednesday, but since you didn't do that, make sure you hand it in tomorrow." Zoey's mother said while putting the signed form for the dance in an envelope. She then handed the envelope to Zoey to put in her bag. Zoey accepted the envelope and stowed it in her folder in her bag. 'I can't wait to go to that dance with Mike, but I'm really tired right now. Better get some sleep…' Zoey thought as she climbed back up the stairs.

*Mike's house*

Mal had gotten the form signed on Sunday night. Mike had forgotten the sheet, but Mal sure didn't. To be quite honest, Mal could care less about a stupid dance, but he was interested about the opportunity to set his plan into action. He was disappointed that Zoey had rejected his offer to meet him after school, and was thinking about that Harold kid, but since this dance was coming up, it provided a very opportune chance to set his plan back into action. Still, Mal felt he would still have to act like Mike for a little while longer for his ultimate plan to unravel. Things were falling in place, and Mal was not going to let anyone get in the way of that.

*The next day*

Zoey woke up, and did her usual routine; she took a shower, got dressed, blow dried her hair, combed her hair, brushed her teeth, put makeup on, gathered her school supplies, and went downstairs. There, she sat with her parents at the kitchen table, eating breakfast. Today, they were eating cereal, so Zoey decided to just have some Cheerios. She grabbed the box from the shelf and poured it into her bowl. While she was doing this, her father spoke up,

"So Zoey…that dance is tonight, correct?" He asked. Zoey paused for a moment before responding.

"Yeah dad. Why?" Her father shook his head innocently.

"Nothing, nothing. Just asking, do you already know who you want to go with?" At this question, Zoey blushed.

"Well, yeah kinda. I was gonna ask Mike to go, but I think I'll just meet him at the dance and hang out with him there." Zoey said. Her father smiled,

"I knew you'd ask him. Good kid, nice parents. I'm glad you two are friends." Zoey smiled back at her father,

"Thank you dad. I'm glad you like him."

"Yeah. You know…you two look pretty good together…"

"Dad!"

"Alright! Alright I got the message sorry sweetie." Zoey's father smiled and left the room, carrying his coffee with him. Zoey blushed about what he had said. Did they really make a cute couple? Or was he just saying that to make her feel better? Either way, it was a kind gesture. Zoey finished her breakfast and boarded the bus. The trip to school was long since she had to listen to an annoying boy named Max on her bus. He went on and on about how he would soon rule the world with his new mind controlling helmet. Everyone ignored him of course. They soon arrived at the school, and Zoey hopped off her bus.

Once inside, she took off her jacket, and headed upstairs to the second floor, where her locker was. As she was walking, she heard about people's excitement about tonight's dance. She also heard how Noah had won school president and how Courtney was enraged. She finally reached her locker, put in the correct combination, and exchanged books with the ones she needed for class today. Once she finished, she noticed Mike (Mal) walking down the hallway to his locker. She headed towards him.

"Hey Mike! Are you excited or what?" Zoey said, pretty hyped. Mal looked at her as if he didn't know what she was talking about.

"What?" Zoey hung her arms and rolled her eyes,

"C'mon Mike, did you forget? The Winter Dance is tonight!" she said happily. Mal stared at her for a minute before nodding and putting on a fake smile.

"Oooooh yeah that! Totally forgot. Whoops. So, you're going right?" He asked. She nodded,

"Of course I'm going. Are you?" Mal nodded.

"Definitely. Anyway, how was your bus ride here?" Mal said trying to change the subject. He really didn't want to talk about stupid things about the dance, like what dress was she gonna wear, what did he think she should wear, would he go to the dance with her, would he pick her up, would their friends be there, who did he think they would be with, etc. Zoey seemed surprised by the sudden change of topic, but she sighed heavily and rolled her eyes again,

"Well, it was horrible. This annoying boy named Max on my bus, he kept talking about how he could use these mind controlling helmets to take over the world. He's crazy if you ask me." The second Zoey told him about this, Mal seemed very interested. Mind controlling helmets? Very interesting indeed.

"Really he said that? How does he think he'll control them?" Mal said, trying to press into this a little more. He needed details, this was very interesting.

"Oh I don't really know, he said something about a wrist controller. Doesn't matter anyway. So, did you do your Chemistry project?" Zoey asked him. Mal was disappointed that they had changed the subject, but nodded reluctantly.

"Yeah, right here." He held up a small tin that was supposed to look like a Geiger counter. They were supposed to choose a chemist/scientist and build something that represented them. Then, of course, was the hard part. The essay. Mal had that too; in fact, he was up all night working on it. He couldn't wait till he was out of the confined space of this school. Once he graduated, he would truly be a free man, and be able to do whatever he wanted. But for now, he was stuck in this 'prison'. After inspecting it, Zoey let out a 'Cool!' before bestowing hers. She had made a small pack of TNT for her scientist. The two talked to each other, as if it were still Mike and Zoey, and eventually left for class.

Time went by incredibly slowly for everyone. Everyone was excited for the school dance tonight, and was too busy thinking about it than thinking about school itself. Throughout the day, the teachers had to desperately try and gain their classes attention because of this. Even though Mal had attempted to avoid talking about it, Zoey still talked to him about things like what dress was she gonna wear, what did he think she should wear, would he go to the dance with her, would he pick her up, would their friends be there, who did he think they would be with, etc.

Mal, however, simply tuned her out and kept thinking about his plan. It was the only thing that kept him sane, and from exposing his true nature. He only hoped that Mike wouldn't gain power during this long painful day.

*Inside Mike's Mind*

Mike sat where he was, beginning to feel worn down. This was where he was supposedly going to spend the rest of his days, and even perish. This was Mal's way of getting back at him. In a way, Mike felt bad for him. Mike now knew how horrible the stay was down here, all alone, with nothing to do, and nobody to talk to. He was all alone, for eternity. Doomed into solitude.

"Mike?" Mike heard a feminine voice say. It was not Zoey's however. Mike turned around from his sitting position and saw a boy sitting there…only he was wearing makeup and eyeliner.

"Uh…hi….Svetlana?" he asked. It was a guess, but he guessed it was one of the other personalities in his mind. The girl nodded and sat down next to him. She was had iron balls chained to her ankles, and it looked as though she had dragged them on her way here. Did she actually drag them all the way here? Why would she hurt herself doing that?

"Hello Mike." She said in a Russian accent. Mike gave her a questioning look.

"Why are you here? Not that I don't enjoy your presence, it's nice to have someone to talk to…but why? Didn't that hurt?" Mike said pointing to her bleeding ankles. Svetlana shook her head,

"It does not matter, Mike. I needed to talk to you." She said. Mike looked at her curiously.

"About what?"

"About Zoey." She said. Mike looked down into the floor at the mention of her name.

"What about her…" he muttered. Svetlana sighed,

"Mike, you don't understand. She truly likes you! Can't you see that? She doesn't care if you have MPD!" Svetlana said, trying to convince Mike. Mike shook his head in disbelief.

"Really. I don't think so…not after she said that…well…when she said…'I'm sorry Mike, but I don't like all of this acting. It's starting to get on my nerves'…You see? She doesn't like me because if have MPD…why did I get stuck with this! It's not fair! I don't deserve it! I never did anything wrong! I've always been nice to people, I've respected my parents, I NEVER DID ANYTHING TO DESERVE THIS GODDAMN CURSE!" Mike said finally before collapsing onto his back. He'd given up, and was not entirely crying, but his eyes were watering. Svetlana sighed.

"Mike, you don't understand. She's worried about you. She truly loves you. I know! But you must believe she does, otherwise Mal will win! If you don't believe vat I am telling you here and now…then he vins…ve vill vin Mike…do you vant that?" She asked him. Mike sat up, and rubbed his eyes. Of course he didn't want that, but how could he trust if Zoey truly did like him. He'd rather spend all of eternity in here then here from her that she didn't like him for who he was. He'd gone through enough torture and bullying in his life to finally give up.

"Mike…please…look around you. Look where ve are! This is hell if Mal is in control. Ve have decided that you truly are the one who deserves this body, and ve vill support you if you fight against him. You need only believe what ve are telling you. I swear Mike it is the truth." Svetlana promised. Mike thought it over.

"And if you're wrong."

"Excuse me?"

"What if you're wrong Svetlana?" Mike said doubtfully. "What if she really doesn't like me for me? What if she hates me and thinks I'm a freak because of this…and you…and the others…and Mal." Svetlana shook her head,

"I'm not wrong." She said.

"But you could be…Zoey might hate me…but then again I could be stuck in here forever…" Mike thought aloud. "I could lose everything if she turns me down…and be in an even worse kind of hell…" Mike concluded. Svetlana put her hand on his shoulder.

"It's a risk you're going to have to take." She said. Mike glanced at the ground before staring back at her.

"Where are the others?"

*Outside Mike's mind*

Hours had passed, and school had just ended. Everyone was boarding their busses to go home. Mal followed Zoey to her bus. Not because he was falling for her or any trash like that, but because he had an idea. Mal said goodbye to Zoey, and told her he would meet her at the dance. He watched as she boarded the bus, and he waited. Just as Zoey had told him, a boy with purple hair, wearing what looked like a lab coat walked out of the school and towards the bus. Mal smiled to himself as he walked over to him. When he approached him, he realized how short the boy was, and how he kept muttering to himself.

"Are you Max by any chance?" Mal said formally. The boy looked at him distastefully.

"You have the pleasure of knowing my name I see! Good! Then you will recognize me when I rule the world! Mwahahaha!" The boy said, trying to create an evil laugh, but it came out as a child's laugh. He cursed himself and was about to walk away when Mal grabbed hold of his shoulder and turned him around.

"Excuse me, but I think you and I need to talk." He said, trying to stay civil while others were around.

"What?" he asked, suddenly getting nervous. Mal smiled, it was so much fun when he made other people get nervous. One time, he got a little boy to pee his pants he was so scared. Good times, good times. Memories aside, Mal led Max from outside and back into the school. The hallways were almost completely empty except for a few children who were having trouble getting their books. Mal led Max to the janitor's closet where he quickly shut the door and put his hand over Max's mouth.

"Ok, listen up weirdo. This is how it's gonna work. You're gonna make me two of those head controlling devices, and you're going to give them to me before tonight's dance. Understood?" Mal said. He let go of the boy's mouth so he could breathe. Max coughed heavily and took a deep breath.

"And why should I help you? I'm already busy taking over the-OW OW OK! OK!" Max squirmed as Mal held his arm behind his back. He was surprised how easily it was to convince this kid. Usually he had to pull the arm really far back, but for Max he only had to pull it back a little. Max was undoubtedly weak, and had the strength of a ten year old boy.

"Give me the headsets, before the dance. Got it?" Mal said, a little stricter this time. Max nodded furiously so that Mal would let his arm go.

"But…but it took me a week to get this right! You have to give me more time…"

"NO! Have it by tonight, or I'll make that arm pop out of its socket!" Mal nearly yelled. He calmed himself down after his outburst, and smiled at Max. "Have it by tonight, or I'll seriously cripple you. By the way, tell anyone, they won't believe you. Plus, I'll find you, and break you." Mal said, emphasizing the last words.

Max was sweating and nodded quickly. He tried to get out but Mal refused to let the door move. "Oh, and by the way, since you've been a pain in the ass to me already, I'm going to have to ask another favor from you Max." he said. Max shivered and looked up at Mal worriedly.

"Um…y-yes?" he asked. Mal leaned in closely and grinned.

"Be a good boy and meet me up at the rooftop around eight o'clock would you?" Max thought for a moment before realizing he had no choice. He nodded and Mal smiled. "Good. I expect that equipment at my house by six o'clock. If it's not there, there will be a penalty." Mal said. He handed Max a paper with his address on it. Max shivered, wondering what the penalty could be, and watched as Mal quietly left the janitors closet. As soon as he disappeared, Max slid down the wall and let out a heavy sigh. He was in trouble now that was for sure.

*7:00 pm (Darkness is beginning to cover the town and the party starts soon)

Mal waited expectantly in his nice clothing by his front door. The little twerp was late, as Mal had expected. 'I knew he would be late. Oh well, he'll have to suffer the consequences.' Mal said happily. He as actually hoping that Max would turn up late. The little boy was starting to get on his nerves, and he wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible. Twenty five minutes passed before Mal spotted a short, stout, figure running with a box towards Mal's house. At one point, the boy nearly tripped and landed on the box, but he caught himself in time, and continued running. As soon as he arrived at the front door, he handed Mal the box.

"Here….*cough, cough*…it's all…here…" Max said between breaths. Mal smiled as he examined the metal helmets inside. "Fair warning though…" Max continued, "If the wristwatch is damaged….the hosts with the helmets on will suffer some…major pain…." Mal grinned even further.

"I'll keep that in mind Max, thank you. However, I must be the bearer of bad tidings my friend, because you came ten minutes late if I'm not mistaken." Max coughed and groaned,

"C-C'mon! I had to make these things at such short notice and…"

"Shut up Max, I have no time for your insolence." Mal said waving his complaining off. Mal then walked back into his house, "Mom! I'm leaving for the dance now! I'll be back home soon!" Mal shouted in his best Mike voice.

"Ok, you have fun!" He heard her say. Mal rolled his eyes and handed Max the box.

"C'mon Einstein." He said walking towards the school. It would be a long walk. The two arrived at the school entrance around 7:54. 'Just in time' Mal thought. He then turned to Max, who was starting to get tired of holding the box. "Listen up, I want you to take those helmets to the bathroom, and wait for me there. When I arrive, you'll put the wristwatch on me, and then I'll discuss what to do from there."

"B-B-But I wanted to go to the dance to…"

"Max I do not care what you want. You're here to help me, and you will help me. Now do as I say!" Mal said raising his voice again. Max sighed and did as he was told. Mal straightened his tie, and entered the school through the front door. There, he found a few of his classmates in their best dresses and clothing, ready for the winter dance. Most of them were couples, like Duncan and Gwen, and Alejandro and Heather, and Scott and Courtney. Mal simply ignored those love birds and waited for Zoey to arrive. She had a major role to play in his plan.

Little did he know that Scott, Duncan, and Alejandro were not only watching their girlfriends, but also eyeing him? Scott had told them about his perfect plan a week ago, and now that his leg was better, they could put into action. But they had to wait for the right moment. They had everything set…

Zoey arrived at the front of the school with her red dress. It wasn't a crimson red, but more of a red the same shade as her hair. Her mother complimented her, saying that it matched her perfectly. Zoey was grateful for her mother's compliment, but she really wanted to hear it from Mike. Casually, she walked inside the school, along with the other students. In the main hall, snowflakes hung from the ceiling and 'Merry Christmas!' was written on a large red banner hanging from the ceiling. As she scanned the room for her friends, her eyes finally landed on Mike, who was standing rather awkwardly as if he was looking for someone. Zoey approached him slowly, and tapped him on his shoulder.

Mal turned around to see Zoey in her new dress. Now, If Mal hadn't been expecting something like this, he would've immediately lost control to Mike because of her appearance. Luckily for him, he had been expecting this, and was thinking all sorts of nasty thoughts about her to keep his emotions down. Thankfully, it worked.

"Wow Zoey, you look…nice!" Mal said in his fake voice. Zoey was expecting something a little more romantic, like 'beautiful', or 'amazing', but she wasn't going to be picky. She wasn't like Heather or Amy. So, out of courtesy, she thanked him,

"Thank you Mike, you look really good too." She said. Mal smiled and felt himself grow a little light headed. 'Don't you think about it squirt! Not when I'm this close you don't!' Mal thought as he felt Mike's presence get stronger. The pair walked over to the ticket booth, and bought their tickets into the gym. Inside, the lights were turned off, and there was a disco ball hanging from the ceiling. A DJ was set up at the center of the gym, and was playing all sorts of mashups of the year's best songs. On each side of the DJ, were long tables of food and drinks. Many of the students were dancing to the beat of the DJ, and seemed to be having a good time. Zoey looked incredibly happy to be there with Mal, (who wasn't happy at all) and was even urging him to get on the dance floor. Mal refused politely, saying that he wanted to drink and eat first.

Mal left Zoey alone on the dance floor, while searching for food. Once he arrived at the food table, he was about to take a chip when it was suddenly sucked away from him. Mal looked up in surprise, and saw Owen practically gorging on all of the food on the table. Luckily, two of the teachers told him to stop and eat a respectable amount of food. Mal squinted his eyes, hinting his distaste for the fat teen as he watched him walk away. As soon as he was out of sight, Mal looked at his watch, and realized it was time to put his plan into action. Quickly, he grabbed a can of soda, and ran up to Zoey,

"Sorry Zoey, I have to go to the bathroom, but I got you a soda." He said handing it to her. She thanked him for the soda and watched as he dashed off. 'What's gotten into him? I bet he's just nervous…' Zoey tried to convince herself. Zoey suddenly felt a small object bump into her.

"Oh, sorry Zoey! I didn't see you there." Cameron apologized. Zoey smiled,

"No, it's okay Cameron. Hey, did Mike tell you anything before coming here? He looks stressed…" Zoey asked. Cameron suddenly wished he had just ran away from Zoey instead of apologizing.

"Uh…no…n-not at all. W-Why do you ask? Hehe…" For once, Zoey caught onto Cameron's odd behavior.

"Cameron? Is there something you're not telling me?" Zoey asked. Cameron looked nervous now, as he was sweating. He pulled on his collar before responding,

"I-I-I wasn't supposed to tell you! I'm sorry Zoey, I c-can't! I promised." Cameron protested. Zoey put her hand on her hip.

"I'm Mike's best friend. He can trust me. C'mon Cameron tell me what's going on, I might be able to help!" Zoey persisted. Cameron looked like he was looking for any excuse to get out of this one,

"Wow, I really like this song…"

"Cameron."

"This soda's pretty good…"

"Cameron!" Cameron stopped babbling and looked at her. "Tell me the truth Cam. Please." Cameron looked desperately back and forth. He saw no escape for him this time. She was going to find out. Cameron just couldn't handle the pressure.

"Well…Mike…he told me not to tell you…but he…he…"

"What?" Zoey asked hastily.

"He has MPD! Phew, that's Soooo much better..." Cameron said, sighing heavily in relief. Zoey stared off as if she had suddenly come to a great realization. 'That would explain his different personalities! That would explain his acting…' Suddenly, she felt so stupid for not realizing it before.

"Why didn't he want me to know?" Zoey asked Cameron. He sighed again.

"He thought you'd hate him because of it. He thought you might think he's a freak." Cameron confessed. Zoey nearly laughed. Because he has MPD? That's what he was so afraid of?

"Seriously? That's what he's been so afraid of? It's not a big deal." Zoey said aloud. Then, Cameron's face turned more serious.

"Well…there's something else, there's something wrong with Mike Zoey, I can feel it…" Zoey looked at him curiously.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"What it means, is that he's been acting strange lately; I would keep an eye on him if I were you." Noah suddenly butted in. "Oh, sorry was this a private conversation?" He asked as if he could care less.

"Yeah, but I guess it isn't now…" Zoey said as she noticed her other friends suddenly appear around her from the crowd.

"See Zoey? I've been trying to tell you." Harold said.

"He has been acting weird…" Sierra spoke up, after continuing to dance with Cody.

"I'm telling you he's just fine. He's probably going through tough times, trying to hide his MPD from me. I'll go talk to him. Do you guys know where he went?" Zoey asked.

"Yeah! He went to the boy's bathroom." Sierra informed her. Zoey thanked her and made her way to the boy's bathroom.

When she was gone, Sierra looked at Cody,

"Hey, did you notice that Shawn and Jasmine are missing too? Where did they go?" Cody shook his head,

"Beat's me; I've been stuck to you this whole time…"

*Meanwhile, in the boy's bathroom*

Mal straightened the helmets on his new servants. 'Perfect' he said viewing his handiwork. By now, according to plan, Max should be on the roof. So would his servants. Mal then ran to his locker, grabbed a bag of things he stole, and ran back to the boy's bathroom. He then saw Zoey approaching his position. He smiled, and waved at her. She looked like she was going to say something before Mal disappeared behind the wall and ran down the hallway, dropping the items in the bag a she ran. He would leave a trail for her to follow. As soon as he finished laying down the items, he ran upstairs to the roof. It was time.

And there it is! The big secret revealed! I hope I did it right, cause it's a major point in the story. Anyway, where's Mal? What's he doing with those helmets? Find out next chapter!

Guys do not hate me when I said "Not because he was falling for her or any trash like that." Cause, I actually like Zal. Not that I'd make a fiction for it but I like it all the same. But yeah, not a hater. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I ESPECIALLY hope you enjoy the next one. I hope I fixed the climax well. Anyway, see you after Christmas! Have a merry Christmas to all of you!