Author's Notes: And the plot thickens.

Recap

"Last time on Total Drama Island: The Screaming Gophers kicked butt in the Awake-a-thon when Eva knocked herself out while trying to maul Cody, and the Killer Bass took their second loss in a row. Harsh. Heather orchestrated the first Total Drama Island alliance by convincing Lindsay ad Beth to join forces with her, then pocketed Eva's MP3 player and framed Katie, who in turn accidentally framed Ezekiel for the misdeed. Talk about a back-up plan for a back-up plan! Nicely played Heather. Even though Eva could've pretty much kicked anyone's butt here, in the end it was her temper that got her kicked off. She became the second camper to rock the Boat of Losers."

"Who will break the rules of their new alliance? Will Cody be able to stay awake until the end of the episode? And who will take the next humiliating walk down the Dock of Shame? Stay tuned for the most dramatic campfire ceremony yet on, Total! Drama! Island!"

"You guys don't look so good," Noah observed mockingly, a smug smile on his face as he eyed the sleep-deprived members of the Killer Bass. "Ever heard of beauty sleep?"

Courtney glared at him while massaging her temples, clearly irritated. "Forgive me if I don't act very accommodating, but Harold snored all night yesterday."

Ezekiel yawned, toque covering the brunette's eyes. "The guy's just a heavy sleeper, eh."

The red-head simply gave an affirmative grunt in response, still face-down on the wooden table's surface. The CIT rolled her eyes at the pair.

"Wow does it suck to be you guys," Chris chuckled, shaking his head as he strutted into the mess hall. "Four nights with no sleep? That's harsh dudes."

The Killer Bass all gave him death glares.

The host ignored them. "By the way, anyone seen Cody around?"

"I have him," Trent announced, dragging a sleep-deprived Cody behind him. The guitarist propped the unresponsive brunette up on a seat, looking concerned as he turned to Chris. "I think the dude really needs a nap."

Gwen raised an impressed eyebrow. "I'm surprised Cody of all people lasted that long. If I stayed awake any longer, I probably would've turned into a walking zombie."

Trent chuckled as he took a seat at the far end of the table. "Hey, at least you'd be a cute zombie."

Gwen smiled.

Heather made a gagging motion, looking disgusted as she turned to both Beth and Lindsay. "Ignoring that love fest, let's talk about our alliance's rules. Number One: I am the captain of this alliance, so I get to make the rules. Number Two?"

The blonde fashionista looked thoughtful. "Breaking the rules can result in getting kicked out the alliance?"

The queen bee nodded in agreement. "Good. Just remember that's it's all for your own good, alright?"

The two girls nodded happily.

"Great, now let's have some fun." Heather grinned to herself as she stood up, making her way over to the Killer Bass's side. "Hey fish-huggers! Good job on kicking out your strongest player! Why not just spare yourselves the humiliation and give up now?"

Courtney snarled, launching a spoonful of food that the black-haired girl easily dodged, resulting in Cody getting splattered instead. He shot up with a startled snort, looking confused at the sudden disturbance.

The CIT gasped, looking apologetic while the queen bee laughed.

Chris clasped his hands together, regaining the attention of the teenagers in the room."Alright campers listen up; your next challenge begins in ten minutes! And be prepared to bring it!"

Ezekiel looked confused. "Bring what? Did we need to get something?"

Lindsay looked panicked. "Oh no! It wasn't homework, was it? I forgot to bring mine!"

The host stared at the pair.

Dodgeball Court

Chef blew a whistle as he trudged through the court, shooting glares at the teenagers nervously eyeing him and his referee outfit. Chris chuckled as picked up a ball, enjoying their discomfort as he spoke. "Today's challenge is the classic game of dodgeball. Anyone know what the first rule of dodgeball is?"

"Do not talk about dodgeball?" Noah deadpanned, earning a laugh from Owen. The sarcastic teen smiled at the blonde.

"As I was saying," the host continued, looking annoyed. "If you get hit with a ball," he suddenly threw the ball, hitting Courtney square in the stomach. "You're out."

The CIT shot the older man a glare, throwing back the ball with an angry grunt. Chris grinned, catching the ball and holding it up to show off. "If you catch the ball, the thrower gets sent out and the catcher gets to bring another team member out on the court."

The Indian-Candian boy rolled his eyes. "Throwing balls. How mentally challenging."

Lindsay nodded, apparently unaware of sarcasm. "I know, right?"

Owen and Noah shared a look as their host continued. "Okay now Geoff, try to hit me."

He passed the ball over to the party animal before turning to Chef, who handed him another ball to use. "If you're holding a ball, you can use it to deflect a ball. But, if it knocks the ball out of your hands, you're out!"

The bandanna-wearing blonde looked confused. "So what do I do again when the ball comes at me?"

Ezekiel nodded in agreement, scratching the back of his head. "I'm a little confused, eh."

"You dodge!" Chris answered, quickly holding up his ball to deflect Geoff's sudden toss, redirecting the projectile over to Lindsay's face, which ricocheted off and smacked onto the homeschooler's crotch.

They both let out pained whines as they collapsed. Harold quickly came to his friend's aid while Heather looked somewhat concerned. The red-head shot a glare at the host.

Chris simply gave the two an irritated look. "You were supposed to dodge!"

Lindsay stood up with a groan, a large bruise now swelling in the middle of her forehead. "Right."

"You have one minute until game time. Gophers, you'll have to sit one person out each game."

Heather nodded before turning to her teammates, eyeing each of them critically as she spoke. "Okay, we can't get lazy. The Killer Bass are going to be trying extra hard to catch up; who wants to sit out the first game with buck teeth over there?"

Noah opened his mouth to speak, only for Owen to suddenly wrap him in a hug that felt more like a chokehold. The huge blonde seemed unaware of his friend's need for air, and continued to laugh.

The queen bee raised an eyebrow before finally pointing at the blonde fashionista. "Fine then. Lindsay, since you're already injured, you can sit out the first game."

The female teen nodded obediently as Heather gathered the first five people to play onto court.

The dark-skinned boy groaned, still stuck in the bigger blonde's tight embrace. "Figures."

Leshawna, Owen, Noah, Heather, and Gwen stood on the Gopher's side, while Courtney, Tyler, Ezekiel, Harold, and Katie stood on the Bass's.

Heather wagged a mocking finger at the opposition. "Bring it, guppies. Otherwise winning three in a row won't feel as satisfying."

Tyler made an offended noise. "Oh yeah?! Well we're gonna bring the dinner to the table, and then we're gonna eat it!"

Courtney face-palmed while Katie rolled her eyes. The queen bee laughed in agreement. "I agree. You guys are gonna eat it!"

"YEAH! Wait, no-"

"Both teams ready?!" Chris yelled, standing in front of the referee's chair. "Best of five games win! Now, let's dodge some balls!"

Chef blew his whistle as the teenagers on the bleachers began to cheer and holler for their respective teams.

Gwen threw the first shot, narrowly missing Tyler's head as the athlete glared. The sweatband-wearing teen began to spin around, missing the opposing team completely and hitting a cheering Sadie right in the face.

Katie gasped, dropping her ball. "Oh my gosh, Sadie are you okay?!"

Courtney face-palmed, glaring darkly at the gaping brunette. "Nice job. Now let's see if you can hit someone on their team!"

Owen let out a battle cry as he charged forwards, suddenly launching a ball straight into a shocked Tyler's gut, sending him flying into the court's walls. Chef whistled, jabbing a thumb in the bleachers' direction to signal that the athlete was now out.

The Gophers on the bleachers cheered as Owen fist-pumped in victory. Tyler whimpered as he trudged over to his teammates, clutching his stomach in pain. Sadie didn't bother resisting a chuckle at his expense.

Heather eyed the goth distastefully as the girl scratched the back of her head, looking sheepish over her missed throw.

Chef whistled for the game to continue on as Harold narrowed his eyes at the opposing team. "Time to unleash my wicked skills!"

"Yeah?" Leshawna raised a challenging eyebrow, taking a battle stance. "Then bring it string bean, let's see what you got!"

The nerd inhaled, taking the fighting position of a crane. He made a strange noise before suddenly slamming the ball down, sending it flying into the air. Unfortunately it landed quite pathetically, coming to a stop right in front of Leshawna's foot.

The red-head screamed in fear before getting smacked with the ball, landing face-first onto the floor with an undignified shriek. Chef blew his whistle once again, signaling another out as Harold walked back to his seat.

Several outs, misses, and catches later, a certain blonde fashionista walked up to Owen, holding up the ball with a confused look on her face. "What am I supposed to do with this again?"

A ball suddenly smacked her in the face before she got a response, followed by another whistle. The blonde whimpered as she stood back up, a new bruise on her face as she retreated back to the bleachers. Tyler winked at her, earning a giggle from the injured teenager.

Heather's eyes narrowed at the gesture of affection, letting out a growl before she hurled the ball straight into Tyler's crown jewels. The athlete let out a whine of pure agony, a single tear rolling down his cheek.

Courtney gaped. "Ref! What the heck was that? He wasn't even on the court!"

Chef raised an eyebrow while the black-haired girl shrugged. "Oops. My hand must've slipped. So sorry."

The CIT snarled, angrily chucking a ball in the black-haired girl's direction. Owen quickly caught it before it could make contact, sending out the Bass member. The brunette looked down as Chef pointed to the bleachers, sighing as she trudged her way out the court. The burly man then turned to the Gophers, gesturing for one of them to go in.

Cody, who was haphazardly slumped over the bleachers, let out an exhausted yawn. He glanced around before stretching, slowly standing up from his seat before wordlessly shuffling over to the court.

Just as he passed through the court lines, a ball flew past Owen's head and onto Cody's, knocking the sleepy brunette onto the floor and out of the game.

DJ winced, looking apologetic for his aim. "Sorry dude."

"Oh no, I'm fine," Cody slurred, looking completely out of it as his blonde teammate helped him up. "Everything's cool duude…"

The black teen simply raised an eyebrow as he watched the brunette stumble back to his seat.

Pretty soon, most of the teens on both sides were sent out, leaving Katie and Ezekiel on the Killer Bass's side, and only a lone Noah on the Gopher's. He let out an exasperated sigh. "Of course."

"C'mon Noah , you can do it! Go Noah go! Go Noah go! Woo-hoo!" His huge blonde friend cheered wildly on his spot in the bleachers, earning an amused eyeroll from the dark-skinned boy.

"Easy out guys!" Courtney announced. "Easy out!"

Noah looked annoyed at the CIT's deduction before smirking, walking as close as he could get to the center line before plopping himself down on the court's smooth flooring. He raised a challenging eyebrow, looking bored. "Go ahead."

Heather grit her teeth. "What is he doing? Is he trying to make us lose?"

Ezekiel eyed the other brunette with a wary expression on his face. "It looks like he's planning something, eh. Katie, we should-"

"GRAHHH!" The girl let out a fierce battle cry as she shot the ball straight for the last Gopher, who still looked completely unimpressed.

Noah let out a disinterested yawn before dodging, the ball hitting the spot where he had just been before ricocheting straight into the other female teen's gut, then proceeding to bounce off it and onto the homeschooler's injured face.

Most of the campers winced, the Killer Bass looking especially concerned as Harold ran down from the bleachers to help out his unlucky friend.

Courtney's jaw dropped as two more whistles blew through the air, the brunette blinking in shock before turning to the amused host with an incredulous expression. "T-That seriously doesn't count as an out, does it? Noah didn't even touch the ball, much less throw it!"

Before Chris could reply, the Indian male in question answered for him. "Sorry Courtney, but Chris said and I quote; "if you get hit by a ball, you're out". Sounds pretty specific to me."

The host shrugged. "Can't argue with that. The Screaming Gophers win this round and get a point!"

Harold sighed, shaking his head in frustration. "C'mon guys, we can do this! We just have to believe in ourselves!"

The CIT's eyes narrowed. "Oh yeah, I believe. I believe that you SUCK!"

"Yeah!" Tyler agreed. "You throw like a girl!"

Sadie and Katie gasped while the normally calm Bridgette's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"

Courtney roughly jabbed a finger onto the athlete's chest, growling. "Look who's talking! You didn't even score us a single point before Owen knocked you out!"

"I, uh…"

The brunette male swallowed as the girls of his team began to surround him, all looking varying degrees of furious. Ezekiel shuddered, clutching his bruised nose as he gently elbowed the red-head beside him while giving him a thankful look.

Courtney snarled before pinching the bridge of her nose in irritation. "Let's just forget this clown. We need to win!" She walked back to the court, signaling for the others to join her. "Tyler, Harold. You're both sitting this one out!"

The two males nodded, Tyler looking especially fearful as the girls shot him glares before walking over to Courtney's side.

Back on the court, Lindsay, Owen, Beth, Noah, and Izzy stood for the Gophers, while Katie, Sadie, Courtney, Bridgette, and Geoff played for the Bass.

Thanks to a determined Courtney, Lindsay was the first one to be sent out, adding another bruise onto her swollen face. Tyler looked on in worry, but quickly glanced elsewhere once he spotted a glowering Heather.

Bridgette caught sight of a distracted Noah and immediately went for the kill, shooting the ball at the dark-skinned boy's stomach and effectively sending him out.

Owen gasped. "Great Gatsby that is it!" He let out a battle cry as he snatched a ball up from Izzy. "GAME OOOON!"

The other team let out collective gulps.

In just a few minutes, the Killer Bass's numbers were completely decimated to zero, resulting in the Gophers cheering as yet another point was added to their score.

Heather laughed triumphantly. "Hey! It's 2 – 0! How does it feel to suck so much?"

Harold sighed in defeat. "Not good."

"I-It's not over yet!" Courtney stated, forcing a smile on her face as the queen bee raised a questioning eyebrow at her false positivity. The Korean-Canadian teen snorted before rolling her eyes, retreating back to the bleachers to regroup with her own team.

The CIT bowed her head down, groaning. "It's so over."

"Hey," the homeschooler placed a comforting hand on his teammate's shoulder. "We can't just give up now, eh. There's still three more rounds to play."

Bridgette nodded, a new fire lighting up in her determined eyes. "Zeke's-"

"It's Ezekiel."

"Ezekiel's right! All we have to do is get Owen out, then we might have a fighting chance!" The blonde surfer gestured to herself. "Gather around guys - I have a plan."

Heather eyed the Killer Bass's group circle suspiciously as she crossed her arms, huffing. "Alright guys. Who's playing next game?"

Chef blew the whistle after several minutes of calm between the teams, signaling for the first five players to step out into the court.

Courtney, Bridgette, Geoff, Katie, and DJ held their heads high as they walked in, staring down at the other team with determined frowns. Izzy, Gwen, Owen, Justin, and Leshawna already stood on the Gopher's side, confidently grinning at the Bass's selection.

Gwen and Leshawna threw the first shots, narrowly missing both Bridgette and Courtney as the two girls ducked. The two balls sailed past the pair and smacked into the wall, where a waiting Katie quickly collected and handed them to her teammates.

Coupled with Geoff and DJ, who already had their own balls, the CIT and surfer grinned as they readied their aim at their main target: Owen.

The large blonde's eyes widened, unable to respond to the barrage of balls being thrown at him before he was finally hit, knocking him unconscious and out of the game.

The Gopher's gaped as their opponents cheered, excited now that their biggest obstacle to winning was now gone and dealt with.

Once Chef blew his whistle to resume the game, the Killer Bass continued their onslaught on the other campers, sending out teen after teen in the span of just a few minutes. The queen bee grit her teeth in anger as the final Gopher was hit out, giving the other team their first point.

Beth and Lindsay gave their 'friend' worried looks. The brunette spoke up first, hesitantly tapping the other camper's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

The Korean teenager remained silent for several seconds before speaking. "…Haven't you noticed, Beth?"

"Noticed what?"

"Gwen. She's been struggling with the challenges this whole time." She turned to her teammates with a look of sickeningly false concern, sniffling. "I'm just so worried about her. If she's having a hard time now, there's no telling how she'll do in later challenges. After all, she's missed all her shots today, and just yesterday she gave up during the Awake-a-thon, even when she made it to third place. I don't want to have to do it, but if we lose I'm going to have to vote her off. I just don't want her to suffer…"

"Aww, that's so sweet of you Heather!" Lindsay commented, moved by the queen bee's words.

Heather chuckled. "Do you guys wanna help me – no, help Gwen?"

The girls nodded.

"Then vote her off with me. That way we can send goth – er, I mean Gwen back home to get some well-deserved rest."

"Of course!"

The queen bee smiled appreciatively, unaware of a certain camper listening in on their conversation.

Confessional: Heather

Heather examines her nails, looking annoyed. " I don't plan on losing. But if we do somehow lose to those fish-heads, then I want goth girl to be the one to go."

The queen bee holds up a picture of Gwen, completely defaced with drawings of facial hair. "Not only is she Leshawna's friend, but I've had enough of her and Trent's vomit-inducing love-fest. Ugh, those two aren't even dating and they're already acting all sappy around each other!"

She huffs before leaning back onto the stall. "But whatever. It's not like I really need her gone. We won't be losing anyway."

Heather let out an irritated growl as she walked out the confessional booth and back into the dodgeball court, unaware of her team's current situation. She turned to a gawking Trent, curious. "What'd I miss?"

The sound of Chef's whistle seemed to answer her question as Chris announced the Killer Bass to be the winners of round four. Her jaw dropped. "What?! How did they win?! I was in the confessional for only like, a minute!"

"They're better than we anticipated." Noah admitted, clutching his stomach in pain.

The queen bee growled, shooting a glare at the other team.

Their host looked around, enjoying the tense atmosphere between the two teams. "Okay, this is it! The final tie-breaking game!"

Bridgette looked around her team's huddle. "Who's playing next?"

"I think it's my turn." Harold commented.

Courtney shook her head. "No way. We actually have a chance to win this!"

"Hey, give the guy a break!" Ezekiel frowned. "He's trying his best, eh. Why not give him a chance?"

The brunette girl raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. She huffed. "Fine, whatever. But if he screws things up for us," She jabbed an accusing finger onto his chest, glowering. "You'll be the one paying for it."

The homeschooler stood his ground, glaring right back at his female teammate.

Confessional: Courtney

"Okay," Courtney breathes, looking annoyed. "I know Harold's his friend and all, but he sucks at dodgeball! I can't just let our team lose thanks to one stupid decision without punishment!"

The CIT crosses her arms, narrowing her eyes at the camera. "Sorry Zeke, but if Harold blows this, you're gonna be the one going home tonight."

Just then, a loud accented yell comes from outside the booth, briefly shocking the girl sitting in confessional.

"IT'S EZEKIEL!"

"Gophers, Bass! Let's send this sample to the lab, and see what you're made of!"

Both Lindsay and Ezekiel looked confused, but before either could say anything Chef blew his whistle, signaling the final game's beginning.

At this point, all bets were off.

Balls were being thrown everywhere and in no time at all, multiple campers were simultaneously thrown out. A flurry of teenagers flowed in and out of the game as the minutes ticked by, Courtney nervously glancing around as the numbers of both teams began to dwindle.

In just fifteen minutes, both teams were down to their last camper; Owen for the Gophers, and Harold for the Bass.

Their teammates on the bleachers stared at the final two campers, silence engulfing the dodgeball court for several seconds before cheering erupted on the Gopher's side. The CIT let out a defeated sigh, shooting a warning glare at the prairie boy sitting in front of her.

The huge blonde in the court grinned, playfully juggling a ball in his hand. "Sorry dude," he laughed. "But you've gotta go down."

The two boys stared each other down before Harold began to move, taking the fighting stance of a crane as he motioned towards himself. Owen raised an eyebrow, grabbing all the balls on his side of the court before punting them over to the red-head.

Harold simply smirked, expertly dodging every single one without breaking a sweat.

All the campers stared in shock before Bridgette quickly ran up to the referee, requesting a time-out. Chef shrugged, blowing his whistle to bring the last game to a pause.

As the last Bass member walked towards the bleachers, his teammates quickly surrounded him with similar looks of disbelief and pride written all over their faces. Courtney spoke up first, looking impressed. "Where'd you learn to dodge like that?"

"Figure-skating." Harold answered proudly.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Geoff complimented. "But dodging isn't enough."

The CIT nodded in agreement. "He's right. To win this, we either have to throw him out or catch the ball. We already know throwing him out is out of the question for you. Do you think you can handle catching it?"

"Definitely."

"Great!" Ezekiel patted his friend's back. "I know you can do it!"

The nerd grinned gratefully at his friend before standing up, puffing out his chest as he strode back into court. Owen narrowed his eyes at his opponent as his team hollered behind him. Even the normally apathetic Noah cheered for the huge blonde.

The last two players engaged in another stare-down. As the whistle blew through the air, Owen quickly picked up a ball and began to spin it, putting as much energy as he possibly could into the single ball before releasing, sending it straight for the other teen's gut.

The circular projectile whizzed through the air before slamming into Harold, sending him flying across the court and onto its the clear walls. The members of the Killer Bass held their breaths as the red-head slumped over, remaining completely still from his spot on the floor.

Several tense seconds passed before the nerd finally moved, slowly raising an arm.

In it, was the last ball.

"The Killer Bass win!"

The Bass cheered as they ran over to their teammate, whopping and hollering as they lifted Harold into the air and carried him out the court, laughing and celebrating all the way as the Gophers watched on in stunned silence.

Owen looked apologetic as he approached his teammates, a saddened look on his normally cheerful face. Noah placed a sympathetic hand on the blonde's side.

The Gophers eventually dispersed, each of them walking out in their own slow and disappointed pace. Heather looked especially upset as she stomped out, roughly bumping shoulders with whoever was unfortunate enough to be in her way.

The queen bee growled as she made her way to the confessional, looking eager to vent out her anger before a hand suddenly took hold of her wrist, stopping the angry girl in her tracks. She whipped her head around to tell off the offender when the familiar face of a certain male supermodel smiled back at her, making the teen pause.

"I heard about your plan to vote off Gwen," Justin stated smoothly. "And I want to help out."

The black-haired girl stared back at the brunette, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. She remained silent, feigning ignorance.

The Hawaiian smiled deviously. "You know what I mean. I want in on your alliance." He relaxed his grip, allowing the other Gopher to remove her wrist. "In return, I'll get you Owen and Noah's vote - my own included of course."

"…That's tempting," Heather deadpanned, raising an eyebrow. "But what exactly do you get out of joining my alliance?"

"Just keep me safe, and I'll help you vote off whoever you want."

The queen bee remained silent, looking thoughtful. She growled, crossing her arms before finally speaking. "Fine. But you better do what I say when I say it, got it pretty boy?"

"Of course."

The black-haired girl huffed. "By the way, how are you so sure you'll get bookworm's vote?"

"I have my ways."

Screaming Gopher's Cabin

"Reading again?" Justin questioned, raising an eyebrow once he spotted the bored teen lying on one of the cabin's beds. Noah didn't look up.

"No, I'm just looking at a collection of blank pieces of paper. I can assure you it's way more entertaining than reading."

"Interesting." The male supermodel's smile grew broader as he closed the door behind him, approaching the other brunette in a slow stride. He stopped just in front of the Indian boy's bed.

"Vote off Gwen."

"Excuse me?"

Noah put down his book with an annoyed frown. "And why should I do that?"

"Because I have leverage."

Justin didn't miss the nervous look that briefly took over the other boy's features. He chuckled in response, leaning in to whisper into his teammate's ear.

"…"

Noah's eyes widened as the other male pulled away, grinning.

"So, what do you say?"

Bonfire Ceremony

"Campers."

Chris walked in front of the losing team, holding up a plate full of marshmallows.

"Welcome to your team's first elimination ceremony. You've all already cast your votes and made your decision. One of you will be going home, and you can't come back. Ever."

The Gophers gulped in fear, the atmosphere dropping in several degrees as the teenagers shared nervous looks with each other.

"Those who have one of these sweet treats, are safe. The one camper who doesn't… " The host chuckled. "Well, the boat of losers is over there."

"First one up is… Owen."

"Cody."

"Trent."

"Beth."

"Justin."

"Noah."

"Izzy."

"Leshawna."

"And Heather."

The Gophers called out stood around the host, each safe camper glancing curiously at the final marshmallow. Trent and Leshawna gave Gwen worried stares while Heather frowned nervously at the confused-looking Lindsay.

Chris held up the last marshmallow as he looked between the two girls. "This is the last marshmallow of the evening ladies."

Gwen swallowed, fixated on the squishy treat.

"The last person…"

Lindsay tightly gripped her skirt, beads of sweat beginning to form on her forehead.

"Safe tonight is…"

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Lindsay!"

The goth's jaw dropped as the blonde ran up to the grinning host with a gleeful cheer. Heather smiled deviously, patting a giggling Lindsay in a congratulatory gesture.

"I'm… eliminated?"

"Pretty much."

Gwen stared at the floor in shock. Chris rolled his eyes as he snapped his fingers, signaling for Chef to deal with the unresponsive girl. The burly man suddenly picked her up, dragging her towards the boat of losers and throwing her onboard before getting on himself. The boat quickly rode off into the distance, leaving behind a stunned Trent and Leshawna.

Heather silently chuckled to herself, sharing a look with a smiling Justin who winked in response. The queen bee rolled her eyes, yawning. "Well, looks like weird goth girl's gone. I'm going to bed. Lindsay, Beth, you coming with?"

The two girls nodded, Lindsay quickly stuffing the last marshmallow in her mouth before running off with her alliance-mates.

Trent stared at the empty dock in confused silence. "She's… gone."

"Excellent deduction Sherlock." Noah grumbled, whipping around to trudge back to the cabin with a dark frown on his face. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to sleep."

The remaining Gophers murmured in agreement before dispersing, eventually leaving only the still-stunned musician back at the docks. Chris raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"Okay, so that wasn't the most dramatic campfire ceremony yet. But whatever, I still get paid so BONUS!"

Voting Confessionals

Owen

Owens holds up a bag of potato chips, happily stuffing its contents into his mouth. He chews as he speaks, spraying crumbs into the camera. "Man these chips are good!"

He licks off the powder still stuck on his fingers, pausing once he catches sight of the camera. "Oh yeah. I'm voting for Gwen. Justin told me to vote for her since, uuuuuuh… he said so. Sorry Gwen."

He lets out a loud burp, shaking the camera.

Cody

Cody sits asleep on the confessional, loudly snoring to himself. He suddenly wakes up with a jolt, looking confused before realizing his whereabouts. "Oh right, the ceremony thing…"

He yawns, eyelids drooping once again. "I'm voting for Lindsay… I'm… I'm so tired…"

He finally slumps over, unconscious once again.

Trent

Trent sighs as he sits up on the stall. "Man, it sucks that we've gotta vote someone off. Oh well, I'm voting for Lindsay. Sorry."

Beth

Beth nods to herself, beaming a brace-covered smile. "I'm voting for Gwen! Hope you get better soon!"

Justin

Justin grins confidently at the camera. "I'm keeping up my end of the deal. I'm voting for Gwen."

Noah

Noah glares darkly at the floor, looking murderous. He refuses giving the camera even a glance before venomously spitting out a name.

"Gwen."

He growls before storming out the stall. Justin can be seen standing by the entrance, looking satisfied.

Izzy

Izzy cackles as she hangs upside-down from the confessional. "Izzy votes for Heather!"

The ceiling suddenly gives way, resulting in the auburn-haired girl falling head-first into the toilet screeching.

Leshawna

Leshawna glares at the camera, crossing her arms. "Heather. That white girl has got to go."

She looks up at the ceiling with a frown. "What's up with the broken roof though?"

Heather

Heather files her nails, looking bored. "Weird goth girl, obviously."

Lindsay

Lindsay smiles obliviously at the camera. "I'm voting for Gary!"

She pauses. "Wait, it wasn't Gary. Geff? No, what was it again…?"

"Oh yeah, Gwan! I'm voting for her."

Gwen

Gwen hums thoughtfully. "Well… I guess I'm voting for Lindsay. Heather's… well, Heather, but she did a pretty good job in today's challenge."

She frowns. "I can't believe I just said that."

Ending Notes: Gwen and Owen won't be the last two, if anyone's curious. That's why I had to kick her off here, and why she couldn't be winner of the Awake-a-thon. Noah's also got a secret he doesn't want anyone to know about. Oh, how the tables have tabled.

Also, an easy trivia question about this story: There is a running gag in this story unique to Ezekiel. Can anyone name it?