sorry for the wait! school hit me really hard, followed by the holidays, and i have been working on college applications nonstop. i really hope you enjoy this chapter because it's super cute and funny, which is needed for the absolute emotional mess that the next chapter is going to be. please review! tell me who your favorite is, your least favorite, your ships, and who you can see winning! i will be doing a poll, because i want to hear who you think is going to win! thank you guys! 3

"Previously on Total Drama Return!" Chris began the show, shots from the previous episode taking over the screen. "It was a battle of temptation between the Gophers and the Bass, as Noah's challenge beautifully twisted the camper's minds!" The scene where Maeve and Mariana pulled their cords flashed on screen, followed by Johnathon. "Some campers dropped out within minutes, and despite Brittany and Joshua both battling it out to the end, Brittany pulled her rope due to hearing of a secret plan between Daniel and Lauren's alliance to get rid of Maeve!"

"In a shocking turn of events, Daniel blindsided his own idea and voted off Danny, the good country oaf, and much to Lauren's displeasure!" A replay of Lauren slapping Maeve appeared on screen, followed by a stream of content chuckles from Chris.

"Due to fear of staying within her own cabin, Maeve opted to cuddle it up with Albhe, but cuddling turned into some lip-lock for these two fishies!"

Chris roasted a marshmallow, watching it catch flame with a smirk. "You think it can't get more dramatic! Well, you are incorrect! What will this challenge bring this group of teens? Who will win this challenge? Find out this, and more on,

TOTAL! DRAMA! RETURN!"

(OPENING INSTRUMENTAL OF THE THEME)

It showed a sped up exterior of the island, just as the camp was being built atop of it, from day to night.

(DEAR MOM AND DAD I'M DOING FINE, YOU GUYS ARE ON MY MIND)

The camera followed Chris as he walked across the dock, his face being dabbed with translucent powder by an anxious looking intern, while another held his Diet Coke, which he sipped with a cocky look on his face. As the powder accumulated in a cloud on his face, he sneezed, spitting the sticky, soda contents onto the poor intern that was serving him his drink.

(YOU ASKED ME WHAT I WANTED TO BE, AND NOW I THINK THE ANSWER IS PLAIN TO SEE)

The camera zoomed in on the beach, where Graham was building a sandcastle, and Cami stepped across it, paying homage to the famous monster movie, 'Godzilla'. She laughed, and Graham rolled his eyes, face-palming in exasperation.

(I WANNA BE FAMOUS)

The camera showed a shot of the center of the camp, with Jayden approaching Sara with a water gun, who was facing away from him. Suddenly, Sara sharply pivoted, revealing herself to be holding a water gun of her own, which she unleashed on Jayden with a maniacal cackle, chasing him off frame.

(I WANNA LIVE CLOSE TO THE SUN)

Brittany sat outside of the Killer Bass cabin, wearing her white bikini, her figure being shaded by Danny, who was holding a large lead canopy over her, shaking his head in annoyance.

(SO PACK YOUR BAGS CAUSE I'VE ALREADY WON)

The camera moved into the Killer Bass cabin on the boy's side, where Daniel laid snoozing on his bed, only to be awaken by Johnathon, who was trying to pick between two polo shirts, each of them slightly different hues of white. Daniel threw his pillow at Johnathon, causing Johnathon to scream.

(EVERYTHING TO PROVE, NOTHING IN MY WAY, I'LL GET THERE ONE DAY)

The camera scooted to the stairs Gopher cabin, where Joshua and Sarah were doing impressions of celebrities, making Lawrence laugh, and then eventually fall backward.

(CAUSE I WANNA BE FAMOUS)

The camera scooted inside of the dining hall, where Ricky and Adam were idly talking, Hannah watching eagerly from the side and nodding her head in approval. Chef watched, clearly fuming in anger as Mariana snuck into the kitchen, adding herbs and spices to whatever gruel he was cooking, prompting her to be chased out of the back door.

(NANANA'NANAANA NANA NANA)

The camera zoomed out to reveal the theatre, where Rosa cheered over Lauren's performance, until she was pushed offstage by Ximena, a spotlight casting onto the female as she began to dramatically monologue, making Rosa cringe at the sight.

(I WANNA BE, I WANNA BE, I WANT TO BE FAMOUS!)

The camera quickly moved into the forest, where Henry was swinging from the vines, Elizabeth latched onto his back, who was laughing hysterically. Henry released the vine, sending them both splashing into the water.

(I WANNA BE, I WANNA BE, I WANT TO BE FAMOUS)

The water got onto Jerry, who was laying on the ground, making sand-angels, all while Nicole watched, maniacally moving her fingers against each other, a murderous grin on her face. Suddenly, Jerry tossed sand into the air, the sky changing from daytime to nighttime.

(WHISTLE)

The camera moved to show Maeve standing in front of the campfire, Albhe desperately trying to woo Maeve. Just as he leaned forward to rest his arm upon her head like an armrest, Maeve stepped backward, causing Albhe to fall flat to the ground.

The camera zoomed out, revealing the campers surrounding the fiery inferno, the words 'Total Drama Return' appearing on the screen.

(START OF SHOW: LUNCH)

"Are you saying that The Incredibles is worse than Toy Story 3? That is the most false statement I have ever heard!" Mariana exclaimed over her lunch, gesturing wildly to Larry with wide eyes. "The Incredibles is one of the best Pixar movies of all time."

Larry held up his finger, shaking his head in wild disagreement. "False! Toy Story 3 has one of the best endings in a Pixar movie, no one can deny that." He folded his arms over his chest, his brow raising in a cocky manner as if to say 'top that'.

Mariana opened and closed her mouth, the means to articulate a counter-argument suddenly not coming to her. "Okay, I give in." She raised her napkin, waving it in surrender as if it were a white flag. Larry cheered, slapping palms with Joshua. Henry raised his head from his forearms, peering up at the group through his bangs. "I have never seen those movies." He mumbled, his voice muffled due to his words being pushed into the skin of his arm.

"D-Don't worry! We can watch them together sometime." Elizabeth offered with a shy smile, rubbing his back. Henry straightened his posture at the feeling of her hand on his back, his eyes growing wide. "Y-Yeah! That sounds great!"

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

Joshua popped a potato chip into his mouth, chewing it with a smile on his face. "Elizabeth and Henry dig each other, it's clear to see. Too bad for them, it's like driving through a heavy fog." He tapped his chin, shaking his head. "Mark my words, I am getting them together before the end of this show!"

(END OF CONFESSIONAL CAMS)

On the Killer Bass side, there was quite the commotion. Sara and Daniel had gotten into a water drinking contest, with the avid support of Jay, Albhe, Lauren, and Adam, who were all chanting "Chug! Chug!" like a bunch of fraternity boys. Daniel tapped his hand rapidly against the table, shaking his head and backing out of the contest. "I give up! I will definitely have to pee later."

Sara smiled in pride, resting her hands on her hips. "Ante up, boys." A series of junk food was thrown to the center of the table, which Sara took within her arms with a chuckle. "So, I guess it is true what they say. Sara swallows!" Albhe joked, backing away as Sara lunged across the table, clawing at him. "You creep! I'm going to gut you like a fish!"

"Don't talk about my woman like that!" Jay pointed harshly at Albhe, the comment causing Sara to do a double-take. "Jay! Stop hitting on me! It's super creepy!" She interjected, thumping the male on the side of the head.

"Unwanted flirtation is a misogynistic microaggression." Hannah looked to Jay, narrowing her eyes at him. "Your depraved mannerisms will not stand with m-" A large pile of oatmeal hit Hannah in the face, cutting her off. Brittany was revealed on the other side of the table, brandishing the spoon that committed the act. "It is much nicer when your mouth is closed."

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

Daniel chuckled, rubbing his chin in thought. "Brittany proved herself last week. Sure, she threw the challenge, but she helped Maeve stay in the game. Maybe she isn't some Daddy's girl cheerleader type after all."

(END OF CONFESSIONAL CAMS)

"Campers! Take your lunches to go and meet by the ampitheatre in five, we have a challenge to get to!" Chris ordered as he made his way into the Dining Hall, clapping his hands together.

"Amphitheatre? Maybe this is a talent contest! I will actually be able to sing something!" Lauren patted Adam's arm, a bright grin taking over her face. She looked across the table to see Maeve, her head stuck in a book. "Adam? Penny for your thoughts?"

Adam looked up from his bowl of spaghetti, which occasionally crunched as he bit down onto it, due to the varying cooking times between each batch of pasta. "No penny required. What's weighing you down?"

Lauren laid her head upon the table, emitting a sigh. "I feel bad for slapping Maeve. I was in shock, and I didn't think things through." She peeked at Adam, shaking her head. "What should I do?"

"Apologize! Pull her aside, and have a good for honest heart-to-heart. I am taking everything I know from Full House, but it really works in that show, so why not this one?" Adam advised, hoping the humor in his statement wouldn't overshadow the genuine nature of his statement. Lauren giggled, rising to her feet and moving her fingers through his hair. "You're the best, Adam!"

(OUTDOOR AMPITHEATRE)

"Today's challenge is based around everyone's favorite, beautiful man-" Chris began, only to be cut off by Ximena. "Alejandro! He was absolutely gorgeous, the most beautiful man to grace this show." She interjected, Ricky glancing at her incredulously. "Uh, false. I'm partial to Geoff, it probably helped that he always had his shirt unbuttoned." He hypothesized, narrowing his eyes in thought.

"Maybe if you guys didn't keep interrupting, we could continue on with the show!" Chris clapped his hands together, silencing the hormonal teens around him. His frown dissipated into a bright grin, which he maintained in an eerie fashion as he spoke. "Today's challenge is based around everyone's favorite, beautiful man, Justin!"

A less than enthusiastic murmur rang through the teens. "What? No love for Justin?" Chris observed, blinking at the teens.

"The guy pulled a Lindsay Lohan, Chris. He had a public meltdown and pretty much roasted every contestant of this show, and then was arrested for hitting one of the guys that rings the bell outside of a grocery store for the Salvation Army." Albhe adjusted his collar, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth. "So, that explains the lack of Justin enthusiasm."

Chris rolled his eyes, grinding his teeth together. "Leave the explanations to me, pretty boy." He hissed through a clenched jaw, turning back to the camera. "This challenge will utilize three aspects of fame; dancing, singing, and acting! A manager will be randomly assigned for each portion of the time, and they will get the acts together. Once the acts are assigned, those contestants will not be allowed to participate in the next portion of the competition," Chef walked onstage, reprising the sequined, hot pink dress from Total Drama Action to present two bowls filled with slips of paper, one with a red Bass logo, the other with a green Gophers logo.

Sarah removed her glasses at the sight of Chef, figuring it would be better for her sake if her vision were blurry. Chris plunged his hands into the bowls, pulling out one from the Bass, and one for the Gophers. "For the Bass, the manager for the dancing portion will be Jay, and for the Gophers, the manager will be Cami. For the dancing challenge, the managers will assign a dancer, and a background dancer. You have an hour!"

(BASS SIDE)

Jay circled his teammates up, peering around them. "I say that Sara does this challenge!" Jay assigned, causing Sara to remove herself from her position in the back of the crowd, and move to the front. "I don't dance, Jay. Don't blindly put me places because you have a dumb crush on me!"

"Cheerleading and dancing are two different things. Count me out of this one." Brittany popped a bubble of gum, fumbling with her acrylic nails, which had begun to fall off since the start of the competition. Jay sighed in desperation, gesturing around him. "Does anyone on this team dance?!"

Albhe raised his hand, raising Maeve's as well. "We can do it!" He volunteered, bumping his hip against Maeve. "We will waltz." He rested his chin atop her head, rocking from side to side as he held onto Maeve's shoulders.

"False, I do not dance. Albhe is free to go, though." Maeve looked up from the top of her book, pulling away from Albhe. Johanathon reluctantly stepped forward, putting his hand up. "Albhe and I will represent the Bass in the dance portion of this challenge."

"Great! Get rehearsing, you two!" Jay pushed them forward, following after them and speaking about work ethic and the importance of dance as if he were a true dance coach.

(GOPHER SIDE)

"So, I think this is pretty simple!" Cami's cheerful soprano rang through the Gophers as she hopped up and down, pointing to Joshua. "Joshua is a great dancer! He should do this part!" She assigned, a nod moving through the Gophers.

"You guys make me blush!" Joshua teased, looking beside him to Ximena. "Ximena! Want to salsa together?" He asked her, bowing like a true gentleman and extending his palm to her.

"Oh, Joshua! I would love to! But what will this mean for the acting and singing portions of the competition? I will not be allowed to participate." Ximena pointed out, taking his palm, but stopping where she was so she could properly address Cami, who seemed confounded by the situation.

"It is a calculated risk! Ximena and Joshua will take this first round for us, and I think that Lauren will be used in the singing part of the competition, so we will just have to stick someone up against her that will give her a run for their money!" Cami planned, looking to Graham with a wide smile on her face. "That's a good plan, right?"

Graham chuckled, his lips forming into a small, toothless grin as he patted her head. "Yeah, it's a great plan."

Cami thrusted her fist into the air, skipping over to Ximena and Joshua, taking their hands and dragging them off. "Then let's win this thing!"

(ONE HOUR LATER, MAINSTAGE)

Chris walked onto a blackened stage, a single spotlight following his movements. Instead of his traditional ensemble, he adorned a light blue tuxedo, with a red bowtie. "Ladies and Gentleman, welcome to the dancing portion of this competition! Judging not only this competition, but the next two that will follow, are myself, and Chef Hatchet!"

The camera panned over to a judge's table, where Chef Hatchet still wore his ill fitting dress. The camera moved back over to Chris, who moved his hands upward, a drum-roll sound effect ringing in the background. "First up, for the Killer Bass, manager Jay will introduce his contestants!"

Jay walked onstage, wearing his formal attire, which consisted of a white shirt, a black jacket thrown atop of it, as well as a belt, black pants, and black shoes. Taking the mic, he spoke into it. "It is my honor to introduce two male dancers that will give the guys from Magic Mike a run for their money, introducing Albhe and Johnathon!"

As Jay meandered off, the stage went to black, a familiar swill of music filling the air. Sara tipped her head, leaning forward in her seat. "No freaking way."

The camera flashed to the left, showing the Gophers' set of seats. Ricky concealed a smile behind his hand, shaking his head. "No way they are doing this dance."

The stage was washed in bright lights as the song "Bye, Bye, Bye" by *NSYNC got into full swing, Albhe and Johnathon already on stage. Johnathon looked sharp in a white dress shirt, with a blue tie beneath a black jacket and black pants, Albhe equally as sharp with a white dress shirt and suit, skinny black slacks, and a black tie. To add a special touch, a small, white peonie boutonnière attached to his suit jacket.

The pair launched into the iconic choreography from the music video, step by step. Lauren rose to her feet, clapping along with the beat. "Work it, boys!"

Maeve looked up from her book, her wide, dark brown gaze the only thing visible about her face, her eyebrows raised in mild interest. Albhe looked out to the audience, shooting a wink in her direction.

As the dance finished up, there was roaring applause, which ended as Chris graced the stage. "My dudes, that was wicked! Chef and I gave you an eight out of ten, points deducted because you pretty much just did a pre-established dance, but it was made up for because of your dedication!"

Albhe and Johnathon high-fived each other, walking offstage. Chris cleared his throat, the noise prompting the spotlight to fall onto him. "Next up to introduce the Gophers' act, is their manager, Cami!"

Cami bounded onto stage, wearing a black suit jacket, a neon pink button up shirt, black pleated skirt, cat stockings, and neon pink Mary Janes. "Hey, Total Drama! My two stars need no introduction, because they are both so incredible! Please give a loud welcome to Ximena and Joshua!"

The moment Cami walked off, loud salsa music permeated the air, Ximena and Joshua entering from opposite sides of the stage. Joshua, from stage left, wearing a black tux, black jeans, and black sneakers, and Ximena from stage right, wearing a bright red, knee-length dress with an A-line cut, with white high-heeled boots that extended to her mid-calf.

The pair joined hands, beginning to salsa, and the statement that the air was electric was an understatement. With every pop of an instrument, Ximena and Joshua moved their hands outward in a poignant fashion, or Ximena extended her leg to great lengths. The two were experts in knowing when to be dramatic, and when to let the music do the talking.

"There is no way that the *NSYNC tribute can top this!" Mariana hypothesized as she bobbed her head to the music. Jerry nodded his head in agreement. "I have to agree, the quality of this dance has far surpassed that of the Killer Bass."

At the end, Joshua lifted Ximena in the air, as she landed gracefully onto the ground, her hand on his shoulder. Both were drenched with sweat, breathing raggedly to display their hard-work. "Dang, you two! That was some spicy salsa!" Chris walked onstage, beaming at them. "On a scale of one to ten, that gets a ten! The Screaming Gophers take this round!"

Joshua and Ximena embraced, Joshua twirling the girl in the air as they joined their respective team. "The next competition will be the singing contest! For this part, the manager will assign a main singer, as well as either a background vocalist, or an instrumentalist!" Chef re-entered, holding out the bowls to Chris. "The manager for the Killer Bass will be Adam, and the manager for Screaming Gophers will be Larry! Make it work!"

(GOPHERS SIDE)

"Guys, that was incredible!" Cami gushed to Ximena and Joshua, jumping up and down in front of them. "If we can continue displaying talent like that, the Killer Bass won't know what hit 'em!" To add extra emphasis to her point, she struck the air in front of her like a boxer would, making small whooshing sounds as she did.

"B-But Ximena can't be apart of this round, so who is vocally talented enough to go up against Lauren, undoubtedly?" Larry worriedly rubbed the bridge of his nose.

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

"This was my chance for Elizabeth to see a different side of Henry!" Joshua determined, a thought suddenly popping into his head. "Maybe for Graham, too?"

(END OF CONFESSIONAL CAMS)
Joshua draped his arms over Graham and Henry's shoulders, pushing them forward. "These two guys actually informed me that they had an unknown talent for music!" Henry and Graham shot a glare to Joshua, though that ended for Henry when Elizabeth smiled hopefully. "Y-You sing, Henry? Oh, I would love to hear it!"

Henry groaned, taking Graham by the shoulder. "We'll do it." Graham opened his mouth to interject, but Larry cut him off. "Oh, that's spectacular! You guys are great, really, I can't thank you enough."

Graham hung his head, mumbling sourly beneath his breath. "I will sing.." He compromised, holding his hand out. Larry gladly shook it, chuckling happily. "It's a done deal, and I know exactly what song you will sing."

(BASS SIDE)

Adam gestured over to Lauren, reasoning with the team. "Clearly, Lauren should be our singer. She's known for it, and it would guarantee the team a great vocalist. But, who will sing background, or play an instrument?"

Sara scoffed, holding her hand out to reject the offer. "Hell no, I don't play or sing that pop crap." Hannah shook her head after, chuckling awkwardly. "I simply do not know the nuances of music!"

"I play violin." Maeve's voice pushed into the conversation as she set her book down, raising an eyebrow in a bored fashion. "I am able to learn music by ear, so perhaps if Lauren's song is played for me, I can adjust to it." She looked to Lauren, shrugging her shoulders. "This is for the team, not for you."

Lauren stepped forward, looking directly to Maeve. "I'm sorry for what I did. It was wrong, and stupid, and totally unlike me. I am a chill person, and I hope we can start over by working together." She regarded Maeve optimistically, hoping for some fashion of a response.

Maeve bit the inside of her cheek, but nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's logical."

"Well, that's as good of an apology as I think we will get, so let's get this ball rolling!" Adam cheered.

(ONE HOUR LATER; MAINSTAGE)

"Campers! We have danced, we will soon act, but now, let's hear the beautiful melodies that each team came up with! For the Screaming Gophers, I present the manager, Larry!"

Larry shyly made his way to the stage, taking the mic from Chris as he walked by. Larry appeared quite handsome, wearing a red tie, black jacket, white shirt, black top hat, black shoes, and a belt. "H-Hello, campers, viewers, and cross-dressing Chef," He gestured down to the judge's table to Chef, then looked back to the camera. "T-To pay homage to one of the best Broadway shows of 2016, we have Henry and Graham singing 'Dear Theodosia', the reprise, from Hamilton!"

Henry was the first to walk onstage to sing Aaron Burr's verse of the song, wearing black dress pants, a white shirt, a black vest, black tuxedo jacket, a red tie, and black dress shoes. Despite being raised in such an unideal environment, the way he sang was nothing short of beautiful. Musicality was a talent that didn't require expensive lessons or a nice background to tend to, and it was clear as Henry poured his heart and soul into the lyrics.

Soon, Graham joined him to sing Alexander Hamilton's verse of the song, dressed in a black dress shirt with a green plaid tie over-top a white t-shirt, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. A small, barely noticeable black hanky was tucked within his pocket, too. The two harmonized together in a mellifluous piece of music, which had people clapping and wiping their eyes at the end.

"Man, you just don't get music like this anymore." Chris articulated as he moved onstage, wiping his eyes. "That, folks, gets a 9! How will the Bass top this? Let's introduce manager Adam, to find out!"

Adam zoomed onstage, wearing a purple dress shirt with black slacks, a black tie, and black shoes. "Hey, guys! My name is Adam, and I had the pleasure of serving as a temporary manager to a world-famous popstar! Introducing the Countess Contessa, singing one of her own songs with a new instrumental, played expertly on the violin by Maeve!"

Lauren and Maeve walked onstage, Lauren wearing a beautiful purple dress with gold trim, and purple heels, and Maeve wearing a burgundy, long sleeve dress, with lace sleeves, which extended down to her mid-calf, and black high heels. She carried on her violin, which she positioned and waited for Lauren to begin singing.

"Let the melody be heard as it sounds out in our heart…" Lauren began to sing as Maeve joined her on the violin, the tempo of the song slow to fit the violin. The song, originally an upbeat ballad about love, suddenly held a different meaning with the inclusion of the violin. It was as if this was a last goodbye to a departed lover, or an accumulation of all the words that couldn't be said.

"Oh, they are good." Sarah pushed her glasses up her nose, gazing in awe at the stage, which was washed in blue light. "We have to bring out A-game in the final round."

Once the song finished up, the Killer Bass jumped to the feet, cheering for the two. Lauren laughed, embracing Maeve, whose facial expression, unshockingly, did not change. "How masterful! Wonderful! A ten out of ten! The Killer Bass take the singing round!" Chris declaimed, waiting for the contestants to make their way back to their teammates.

"Now, for the final round, I will not only be drawing a manager, but a script advisor! The script advisor will be in charge of writing the dialogue for the final contest, an acting competition! The manager will oversee the process, and elect the actors needed to complete the task." Chris plunged his hand into the bowls, humming in content as he fished out two pieces of paper from each bowl.

"For the Killer Bass, the manager will be Sara, and the script advisor will be Hannah! For the Screaming Gophers, the manager will be Ricky, and the script advisor will be Jerry."

(BASS SIDE)

Sara could hardly handle Hannah's excitement for this challenge, though she knew that if anyone were to write a script, Hannah would. "Okay, so Brittany and Daniel are the last two people that haven't done anything, so they are our actors. Will that work for you, Hannah?"

Hannah nodded her head enthusiastically, scribbling down on her pen and paper. "Trust me! My years of Fanfiction writing have prepared me for this moment!" She confirmed, giving Sara a thumbs up.

"Oh, kill me slowly…" Sara murmured, turning to Daniel and Brittany with a less-than-happy grin. "There's no point in me asking if you will be up to the task, because you will have to be."

Brittany rolled her eyes, spitting her gum out onto the ground. "This is worse than my vacation to Cozumel." She pouted, Daniel shaking his head in response. "Nothing like working with a spoiled Daddy's girl."

Brittany abrasively turned to Daniel, folding her arms over her chest. "You want to try sassing me again? Please do so, you useless-"

Sara slapped a hand atop of Brittany's palm, dragging both her and Daniel off to rehearse. "Yeah, yeah, save it for the stage."

(GOPHERS SIDE)

"Looks like this will be a three person scene." Ricky gestured to Mariana, Sarah, and Elizabeth. "I say we do something that really matters, sort of like a nice commentary on-"

He turned to address Jerry, only to see that he wasn't there. "Where did Jerry go?" Ricky asked Mariana, who chuckled nervously. "He said something about needing alone time to flourish his muse, or something like that. I think we're gonna do great!"

"Analytically speaking, we have the odds of creating something quite beautiful here." Sarah added on, gesturing over to the Bass side. "With Sara and Hannah at the helm of their scene, as well as Brittany and Daniel, I predict that it's going to crash and burn very quickly."

"Hopefully, you're right." Ricky looked off, rubbing the back of his neck.

(ONE HOUR LATER; MAINSTAGE)

"Ladies, gentleman, fish, land mammals, you have all stuck through two rounds of rigorous competition, and we have not even reached the apex! Here, on this stage, we will not only see the debut of new actors, but also new scripts! To get this ball rolling, let's have Ricky for the Screaming Gophers, with screenwriter, Jerry!"

Jerry was the first to walk on, wearing a powder blue tux. Chris, who extended the mic for Ricky, who was wearing a white button down shirt and black pants, was shocked to see that Jerry intercepted the piece of technology. "My piece of work is beautiful, and avant garde, and I doubt the minds of simpletons will even get it. But, alas, we will try. Debuting my new work called, 'Attack of the Killer Squash', here are Mariana, Elizabeth, and Sarah!"

Confused clapping made its way through the crowd, most of the campers exchanging confused glances. Ricky sat down beside Graham, who tapped him on the shoulder. "...Did you even get a word in about possibly changing the theme?"

Ricky shook his head, hiding his face to avoid watching the show. "Jerry said I couldn't watch, that it would taint the creative process, or something like that. This is my first time seeing it too."

The stage lit up to see Mariana, wearing a white long-sleeved t-shirt beneath a green sleeveless dress, with white shoes. "Oh, Farrah! The squash apocalypse has taken everything from me," she dramatically gestured to the other side of the stage, where Sarah entered, wearing a knee-length green dress and white heels. "But, not you."

The two embraced, Sarah pulled away in an overly dramatic fashion. "Oh, my, I am bursting with pheromones, my lovely lover, Blossom!"

Joshua gaped at the stage, quite shocked at the horrible display before him. But, Jerry was sitting smack-dab in the front, his lips moving with each word that expelled from the two women's lips.

Elizabeth moved on next, holding a fake gun, and a long, black dress, and a white ribbon in her hair. "Hey, I overheard some talk of love, and that doesn't last in a squash-pocalypse." She pretended to shoot the gun. "Bang."

Sarah fell to the ground, as if she were shot. "Oh my, I have been shot! The agony, the pain, my dear, sweet, Blossom, I will soon be one with the soil, which plant the squash that hath taken so much from us!"

On the Bass side, Albhe clenched his hand over his mouth, trying his hardest not to burst out laughing at the sight before him. "This is the best day of my life!" He squeaked.

Mariana joined Sarah on the ground, taking her hand. "Farrah! Oh no!" She rose to her feet, pointing at Elizabeth. "Who are you, mystery gunswoman!?"

Elizabeth looked directly at the audience. "I am you, from the future. I am here to tell you that this Farrah was actually the one who began the squash-pocalypse in the first place."

Mariana dramatically gasped, the stage all of the sudden fading to black.

"Wait, that was it?" Larry questioned as Jerry began clapping, joining the three women onstage. "What even was that?!" Larry further pressed, looking at his teammates.

Chris unsurely crossed the stage, clearing his throat into the mic. "Well, that was...creative, to say the least. We give it a solid four out of ten...we think?" He shrugged his shoulders, gesturing for the Gophers to clear the stage. "Next up, for the Killer Bass, we have Sara, and screenwriter, Hannah!"

Sara entered, wearing a black dress shirt and white jeans, with Hannah hot at her feet, wearing a black and pink knee-length dress. Sara took the mic, tapping atop of it to confirm it was on, nodding her head in confirmation when the sound moved through the audience. "Hey, so, there is not much I can say about this piece, other than that it is a," she pulled out a notecard, one that Hannah had clearly written for her. "A tale of pride and love between two people of different backgrounds." She read, her face morphing with pitied disgust over the words. "But, here is Hannah to explain more."

Hannah snatched the mic, looking eagerly to the audience. "For some background, Daniel is a commoner attending a school of the rich, and Brittany is the daughter of one of the school's man endorsers, and she is in an arranged marriage, but the two want each other!" She squealed, jumping up and down. "Here is my show, which I didn't title, because their love does not need a title!"

Sara sat down beside Jay, her head shaking rapidly. "Lord, take me now." She muttered, Hannah sitting beside her with her script open.

The stage lit up with Daniel and Brittany, Daniel in a white button-down shirt, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. Brittany stood across from him, in a beautiful gold and white cocktail dress, which was scoop-necked and long-sleeved. She wore white heels, her blonde hair down instead of up.

"You must believe me, Maekar, our financial incomes may be different, but our love is the same as any others!" Brittany recited the lines, her blue eyes displaying annoyance with the dialogue she was given to say.

"Elysha, you are to be married. Who am I, a poor man, and what can I offer that your fiance cannot?" He took her hands, Brittany cringing against his touch.

"Clearly, if you could offer me something, you wouldn't be a poor man." Brittany rifted, raising her eyebrows in challenge to Daniel.

"Why do you do that?" He shook away from her, looking at her with mild frustration. "You act so intelligent one second, and then the next you are back to being an intolerable bitch."

Hannah flipped desperately through the pages of her script, her eyes growing by with each passing piece of paper. "They're off book. This isn't in the script!" She whispered to Sara, who looked to the stage with wide, frightened eyes. "Oh, shit…"

Brittany laughed, resting her hands on her hips. "Well, Dan- Maekar, I don't know if you realized, but calling me a bitch isn't exactly the kindest thing, right?"

Daniel raised his hands, a cackle of disbelief escaping him. "What do YOU know about being kind!? The entire time I have known you, you and that dumb friend of yours are always putting people down!"

Johnathon looked from left to right, pointing to himself. "Is he talking about me?" He whispered to Lauren, who nodded her head in confirmation.

Daniel continued forward in his angered statements, clearly holding back some fury to Brittany. "You are the reason that people are awful, Brit-Elysha! Do you even realize the impact of who you are?"

Brittany pushed the male forward, narrowing her eyes. "What the hell? Please, stop taking whatever drugs you are on, because you are CLEARLY delusional!"

Daniel paused, approaching her and standing close to her face. "Delusional, huh? Am I delusional for being a poor, sad guy that has a thing for a blonde girl that would have looked right past me if it hadn't been for this?" He gestured around him, his voice suddenly kind, and soothing, which alarmed Brittany, who had stopped speaking entirely.

"Please tell me they are on script." Sara tapped Hannah's arm rapidly, who shook her head. "No. But this is so much better than what I had written!" Hannah confirmed Sara, shushing her after.

"Elysha," He paused, trying to keep his tangent within the context of the scene. "You are unbearable. You never say the right things, and you use your smarts to get back at those who wronged you. You are mean, bitter, and hateful, but I like that about you."

Brittany fumbled with her words, her gaze skirting from left to right as her chest rose and fell rapidly. He pushed himself forward, his lips pressing to hers in an attempt to silence her. Brittany froze in place, Sara's pace of hitting Hannah's arm only increasing. When Daniel pulled away, he kept his face close to hers, peering at her delicate features. "I may be a poor man, but I would give my life for you."

They both stopped speaking, the stage going to black. During that blackness, Brittany stormed off, leaving Daniel by himself. The crowd roared in response, Hannah laughing and waving her hand to everyone. "No one is to know about our off script fiasco." Hannah threatened Sara, who also waved.

"Oh, that's for sure." Sara agreed, silencing herself as Chris came onstage. "Drama! Romance! Fighting! Everything that Total Drama stands for! The Killer Bass take the last challenge, and are the winners of this entire competition! Their reward will be a movie-night, right here in this ampitheatre!"

"As for the Screaming Gophers, time to send one of you packing!"

(GOPHERS CABIN; GIRL'S SIDE)

"Didn't Graham have a nice voice?! Like, I knew he had a talent in something, but I had no idea he could sing!" Cami swooned, collapsing atop her bed. "Oh, happy day!"

Elizabeth laughed, adjusting her sailor's hat. "Henry also has a l-lovely voice.." She blushed, looking to her feet. "I hope he sings for me sometime."

Mariana flopped atop her bed, shaking her head. "Jerry has to go. He was the reason this competition was a flop!"

Ximena nodded her head in accordance with what Mariana was saying. "I agree, even an actress as brilliant as me would not be able to perform with such horrendous dialogue. Plus, he is not sociable, and he is an annoyance."

"Then we all agree, Jerry will be voted off tonight." Sarah shrugged on her everyday shirt, glancing in the direction of the boy's part of the cabin. "I have a feeling the boys will agree with us."

(GOPHERS CABIN; BOY'S SIDE)

"Okay, Jerry is in the shower, so we all agree that he has to go?" Ricky asked for confirmation, looking around the room to each of the guys in the cabin. They all nodded, either in a state of disrobing or dressing themselves. "What the heck even was that script? It reminded me of an awful student project." Joshua chuckled, remembering the way that the three girls on his team sounded as they presented the god-awful dialogue.

"Too bad none of them will have this archived forever…" Henry trailed off, realizing the error of his ways as soon as Larry cut into his words. "W-We are on national television, Henry, and I am sure this will be uploaded to every social media platform."

"I have seen better plot and dialogue from the clips of porn introductions on Youtube." Graham joked, a rift of laughter moving through the males in the cabin.

"Do you frequent those often, Graham?" Larry alluded.

"Oh, bite me, Lawrence."

(CAMPFIRE CEREMONY)

"Screaming Gophers, welcome to the campfire ceremony. If you do not receive a marshmallow tonight, you will proceed to the Dock of Shame, get on the Boat of Losers, and never come back!" Chris gave his usual spiel, holding a plate of ten marshmallows. "The first marshmallow goes to, Elizabeth!"

She pumped her fist, moving to claim her treat, and key to staying in the competition. "Henry and Ximena!" The pair moved forward, Henry bumping Elizabeth gingerly with his elbow, earning a small grin from her to him. "Graham, Joshua, and Cami!" Cami and Graham walked side by side, high-fiving each other with red cheeks, while Joshua watched them with fond grins.

"Ricky and Sarah!" Ricky sighed in relief, moving forward and grabbing his marshmallow Sarah at his feet, leaving Mariana and Jerry behind. Mariana appeared quite relaxed, and shockingly, so did Jerry. "Campers, there is one marshmallow left. The camper that will be staying is…

"Mariana!" Chris tossed the marshmallow to her, Mariana catching it in mid-air. Jerry rose to his feet, feverishly glaring at the campers before him. "But, my script was beautiful! They just didn't understand!"

"Please, Jerry. Save yourself the humiliation. Attack of the Squash was as big of a flop as Birdemic." Graham snapped, gesturing for the male to leave. Jerry hung his head, mumbling sourly in French as he made his way to the dock.

"This competition is heating up! What will happen next week?! Find out next time!" Chris pointed at the camera, concluding the outro for the episode.

(OUTDOOR AMPITHEATRE)

"The killer is in the house!" Sara yelled to the projector that displayed the flunk of a film, One Missed Call. "This girl needs to learn how to throw objects at windows." Jay pretended to yawn, his arm extending to put over Sara's shoulders, which she slapped away. "I will cut your arm off." She snarled.

Maeve threw some popcorn into her mouth from the back of the crowd, Albhe sitting beside her. Maeve's gaze was unmoving from the screen as she extended her hand downward, Albhe glancing to the side and doing the same, intertwining his fingers with hers with a cocky smirk.

"The last time I saw this movie, it was with this chick I was trying to get with." Lauren told both Hannah and Adam, who she sat in the middle of. "She got scared, so I cuddled her the entire flick!" Lauren laughed, Adam joining in, though he stopped, as if he longed for something. He looked to the Screaming Gophers cabin in the distance, a long sigh escaping him. Lauren followed his line of sight, a sympathetic look crossing her face, but she wouldn't say anything. Not yet, anyways.

Daniel flopped down beside Brittany, who nearly gagged at the sight of him. "Kissing wasn't in the script, Daniel." She spat, glaring to the male in seething rage. "That was unwarranted!" She whisper-yelled, folding her arms over her chest.

Daniel shook his head, stealing a bucket of popcorn from her. "Brittany, it meant nothing. The script was garbage, and I knew if I were to get a rise out of you, we could get something great out of it. So, unwind your scrunchy, because none of it was serious." He reassured her.

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

"If it meant nothing, then I believe him." Brittany threw some popcorn into her mouth, shrugging her shoulders. "No reason for me not to. Plus, it makes me feel a hell of a lot better. Our types don't work together at all." She popped some more popcorn into her mouth, appearing rather bored.

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

"Holy hell, it meant nothing!" Daniel yelled once more, shaking his head in exasperation. "You people are desperate to milk every interaction as if it has some bigger meaning. Brittany is the worst, and she is not my type." He reassured the camera.

(CONFESSIONAL CAM)

Hannah giggled sadistically, scribbling down more notes in her notepad that she had gotten to write her script in. "My ships always become canon! Adam and Ricky, Brittany and Daniel, just you wait! You'll see!" She continued to giggle, just as the camera faded to black.

(END OF CONFESSIONAL CAMS)