Sorry for the delay! School has been crazy these past four months! Thank you all so much for your patience!
I dedicate this chapter to EllisSummer because of the amazing TDIR artwork that she did for me that really inspired me and kept me on track for this chapter when my time wasn't entirely consumed by my extensive amount of schoolwork. And also to Jane Austen for writing Pride and Prejudice (you'll understand why I also dedicate this chapter to Jane Austen by the end).
I don't own Total Drama.
Review Replies (this is a huge section):
DaleJr.88 – Glad you liked it, dear!
Munchlax Jr – I'm really glad that you really enjoyed the last chapter. Hopefully you think this chapter is just as awesome.
Applause2014 – We'll see. ;)
The Prime Writer – I'll hopefully be updating more frequently now that I am on summer holidays. The past eight months have been crazy busy. College has been keeping me crazy busy, which is why I haven't really been updating as often as I would like to.
Guest – I apologize. It must stress you out that I deviate from canon so much.
Shiny – Gwen just hates Heather and she's friends with Duncan right now so she doesn't want him to fall for Heather's wiles. xD
JapanRules555 – Don't forget Jo! She's not really a complete villain, but this power struggle with Alejandro is really pushing her!
acosta perez jose ramiro – Thanks my darling!
Titans vs Gods – I'm always accepting suggestions for challenges. There aren't enough canon challenges for the number of contestants in the game, so I have to make up at least a few more challenges. Also, what do you think of Izzy/Cameron?
Knifez – Ahhh, sorry for making you ship Troey. Even though I think the two of them would go well together, I'm not sure if that will be the route I take. I have a lot of other plans for everyone, so we'll see how this goes.
Videsa – I'm working on it, but I'm not always able to incorporate the plot points I want to in each chapter because they don't always work with the flow of the chapter. I'm trying though.
FoxfaceFan1 – I'm glad you're a fan of my Zoey! Thanks! :)
CrossoverFan – Haha, sorry for doing that to you. But I'm cruel and I wanted people to be rooting for lots of different people. It's no fun if we're all rooting for one person to win!
The Pyromaniac Fire Queen – All in good time, my dear. All in good time.
KatieK101 – I have plans for both Scott and Bridgey that I hope you'll enjoy when they are fully realized. I didn't have any more Aleheather in this chapter, but there is more Lightning, so that's a plus? I hope.
CallMeTeletubby – Thank you for your compliment darling. It means a lot to me that you think I'm doing a good job of keeping things canon but fresh. That is my biggest goal for this fanfiction – to have everything believable for the characters, but still keep it interesting and have it something that hasn't been done before.
TheQueenofBooks1000 – I'm quite excited for my plans for Bridgette and I'm really hoping that you'll enjoy them too.
Pinkdogtags – 1. I can't answer that one, my dear. My apologies. 2. That leverage that Heather has over him is pretty intense, huh? 3. That's cool. Noah is my favourite of the male cast members.
Screaming Gophers: Dawn, Alejandro, Anne Maria, Noah, Cody, Trent, Zoey, Jo
Killer Bass: Duncan, LeShawna, Geoff, Gwen, Heather, Harold, Beth, Tyler, DJ
Thrashing Bears: Sadie, Cameron, Courtney, Scott, Lightning, Izzy, Bridgette, Mike
"Last time on Total Drama Island, our competitors participated in a food fight of epic proportions. Heather proved a negative influence on Harold when she had him insult Zoey, seriously affecting Zoey's confidence. After some of the teens almost got eaten by sharks in the beach part of the challenge – which would have been awesome – Scott struck a bargain with Sadie and agreed to let her in on Bridgette's alliance – but with a catch: she has to obey his every command. Cody almost got himself eliminated when he ate almost all of the Screaming Gophers' ammo, but in the end, it was Dakota's desperate fame-mongering that caused the Screaming Gophers to lose the challenge, so they sent her home. But not without a sweet goodbye kiss to her knight in shiny armour, Cody. I bet he's bummed, ha ha! With the Killer Bass up a player, will they be able to keep their lead? Find out today on Total Drama Island!"
Cue theme song.
Zoey sat at the table in the mess hall, studying her reflection in a spoon. With a frown, she gently touched the flower that she'd clipped into her hair, wondering if it was the right touch. She didn't want to look like she was trying too hard.
"Hey Zoey, what are you up to?" Trent asked, setting his tray on the table as he sat beside the girl.
"Nothing!" Zoey exclaimed with a start, slamming her spoon down on the table. With wide eyes, she regarded the dark-haired musician for a moment before she realized who was talking to her and she relaxed visibly. "Oh, it's just you. Morning, Trent."
"Oh. Only me. I see how it is." Trent said with a teasing smile.
Zoey raised an eyebrow. "You know I didn't mean it like that."
"Yeah, yeah, sure." Trent teased, taking a bite of his gruel as Zoey picked up the spoon and continued to study her appearance. With an amused chuckle, Trent spoke. "I'm sure DJ will think your hair is fine the way it is."
Zoey lowered her spoon with a look of alarm. "W-what makes you think this is for DJ?"
It was Trent's turn to raise an eyebrow at his friend. "I've seen the way you look at him, 'bump' into him every chance you get."
Zoey's cheeks flushed red and she put her head on the table. "Is it really that obvious?"
"Nahh, it's alright." Trent said, smiling. "Besides, it's probably only something a friend could pick up on anyway."
"Are you sure? I don't want to seem desperate."
"You don't." Trent said. "It's kind of sweet, actually."
Zoey pursed her lips before nodding. "Okay, well if you're sure."
"One hundred percent." Trent assured the girl with a grin. "Now, go grab some breakfast. Chef's gruel is almost edible this morning."
Zoey nodded and went to stand in the lineup, shooting Trent a quick 'thank-you' glance when she realized that she would be waiting in line right behind DJ.
Confessional
Trent sat in the confessional, looking somewhat pleased with himself. "Zoey is a great friend, and I'm happy to give her a nudge in DJ's direction. He seems like a really cool dude." Then he became rather bummed out about something. "I just wish Gwen felt the same about me as I feel about her. DJ is such a lucky guy."
Static.
"I don't like this one bit." Beth said, shaking her head. "If DJ starts dating Zoey, it'll distract him! I mean, Bunny needs both of his parents – I can't be a single Bunny-Mom!"
"Bass, Gophers, Bears – today's challenge is a true summer camp experience. You'll be paddling your canoes across the lake to Boney Island!" Chris began, standing beside an easel with a map on it. "When you get there, you'll have to portage your canoes to the other side of the island, which is about a two-hour hike through treacherous, dense jungle-like conditions.
"We've got to pour what?" Geoff asked, looking confused by the instructions they'd been given.
"'Portage'." Chris repeated, frowning as Geoff stared blankly. "Dude – walk with your canoe."
"Oohhhh." Geoff said, grinning as he was finally able to understand what the host was saying.
"Idiot." Gwen commented, face-palming at the blonde male's stupidity.
"When you arrive at the other end of the island, you will build a rescue fire that will be judged by me. The first team to paddle home and return their canoes to the beach will win invincibility. Move, campers, move!" Chris said, signalling the start of the race. The teens bolted towards the shoreline, only to have Chris stop them seconds later. "Oh, wait! One more thing I should mention. Legend has it, if you take anything off the island, you'll be cursed forever!"
"Haha! A cursed island sounds so fun!" Izzy exclaimed, an excited grin on her face.
"Now get in your canoes and let's have some fun!" Chris said, officially dismissing the contestants. As the teens began to make their way towards the shoreline, another camper came sprinting up to Chris from the opposite direction, a piece of toilet paper stuck to their shoe.
"What'd I miss?" Lisped Beth as she paused in front of Chris's map.
"Canoes." Was the only explanation Chris gave as he jabbed a thumb in the direction of the shore.
Confessional
"All I know is that I don't want to get stuck with the rodent whisperer again." Noah said, rolling his eyes. "She'd probably call her fish friends -" Noah raised his hands and wiggled his fingers as though mocking the performance of a magic trick for effect. "- and get them to push the canoe to the other island." Rolling his eyes, he scoffed at the preposterous idea.
"Zoey, be my partner?" Trent asked with a grin as the two made their way to the shore.
"You know it!" The redhead replied as the two move to claim their canoe.
"Oh! Oh! Cameron! We should team up!" Izzy exclaimed, grabbing the nerd's hand.
"But – Izzy -" Cameron exclaimed in protest as the ginger-haired girl dragged him towards the nearest canoe.
"Ugh! Ha!" Izzy said as she released Cameron's arm and pushed the canoe, but tripped and did a somersault into it. "Just follow my technique! I'm 1/87th Cherokee, you know. So the tribe could totally, like, claim me at any time."
Confessional
"Sometime last week would have been nice!" Cameron told the confessional camera meekly, looking very distressed. "Izzy's nice and all, but she's also, you know, completely terrifying!"
"Extreme!" Tyler shouted, offering Harold a high-five but missing and doing a faceplant right next to the ginger-haired geek.
"Gosh, are you alright?" Harold asked in concern, looking at his canoeing partner as the sporto lay face down in the sand.
Tyler's only response was a thumbs up.
"Hey DJ!" Beth lisped, grabbing hold of the tall boy's arm. "Will you be my partner?"
DJ looked confused at first, but nodded. "Sure."
Confessional
"I just needed to make sure that DJ wasn't into Zoey." Beth said. "Because I'm not ready to be a single Bunny-Mom! I'm just not!"
"Hey buddy, would you do me a huge favour?" Scott asked, elbowing his tall, dark and handsome jock friend as they walked towards the shoreline.
"Sha-sure." The jock said with a nod.
"Do you mind partnering up with Sadie for me? And keeping a close eye on her? I'm not so sure about her being in the alliance and all, but I know I can trust you to look out for the team. I'd go with her myself, but the old ball and chain wants me to go with her instead." Scott explained. "So what do you say?"
"You can count on Sha-Lightning!" The jock said with a nod, springing up to Sadie to ask her to be partners with him.
Reaching the bottom of the steps, Scott made his way towards Bridgette, who had already claimed a canoe for the both of them.
Confessional
"Lightning may not be all that bright, but that's why he's perfect for this little alliance." Scott said with a grin.
"Cody, would you like to partner up with me?" Came a gentle voice, stirring Cody from his trance-like state.
"Huh?" Cody asked in confusion, finding a wide-eyed blonde standing before him.
"I asked you if you wanted to be my partner for this challenge." Dawn restated, offering a reassuring smile.
"Oh, sure." Cody answered with a shrug. "Whatever."
Confessional
"I sensed that Cody was still quite upset about Dakota's departure, and that he might want to talk about it." Dawn explained. "I'm always there to lend an ear when people are in need of one."
"Looks like it's you and me, egghead." Jo commented to Noah as the two made their way to claim a canoe. "And you'd better not touch that book of yours. If you think I'm doing all the work, you're mistaken."
"Yay me." Noah quipped in his signature deadpan tone.
"Hurry up homegirl, before we end up stuck with Her Royal Bossiness." LeShawna said to Gwen.
"You really know how to motivate people." Gwen replied with a wry smile before the two sprinted into the water to claim a canoe.
"I guess that leaves just you and me." Courtney said to Mike, offering him a smile as the two made their way to the last of the canoes in their team colours.
"Could I maybe tag along with you two really strong, buff guys?" Heather asked in a sweet and flirty tone as she made her way up to Duncan and Geoff, whose eyes roamed her body in unison before they nodded mutely.
"Hey Al-baby, what do you say to me and you grabbing a canoe just you and me, huh?" Anne Maria purred, running her hands up the Latino's muscular arm.
"Nothing would bring me more pleasure." Alejandro answered smoothly, glancing over at Heather with a venomous glint in his teal eyes.
Confessional
"Vito's gorgeous and all, but Ale-hunk-dro is totally into me and how could I pass up a chance with a total babe like that?" Anne Maria gushed to the confessional camera.
Static.
"If eternal fame and one hundred thousand dollars weren't being dangled in front of my face, I wouldn't even give Anne Maria the time of day." Alejandro admitted with a repulsed look.
"On your marks, get set," Chris said, pointing a small gun towards the sky as he observed the line of canoes along the shoreline. "Paddle!" He said, firing the gun into the sky. As the teens began paddling away from the beach, a large bird fell from the sky, having been struck by the bullet Chris had fired into the air.
"Yo, man, I thought the producers said to only put blanks in." Chef commented, observing the dead bird at Chris's feet.
Chris shrugged as he looked down at the dead creature. "That's gonna provoke some angry emails."
"Cody, would you like to talk about it?" Dawn asked, glancing back at the brunette with a gentle smile.
"About what?" Cody asked, distractedly.
"Dakota." Dawn said. "You've been very upset since she left, and I thought you might want someone to talk to."
"I'm fine, thanks." Cody answered, looking as though he would be content to slip back into his trance-like state.
"Are you sure? Because it will feel a lot better if you talk about it." Dawn told him. "And I won't breathe a word of it to anyone. You can trust me."
Cody breathed a reluctant sigh. "Alright."
"And then these bushmen taught us how to properly catch and cook crocodile, as well as koala!" Izzy was telling Cameron as they paddled towards the other island.
"Uhh, Izzy, isn't killing a Koala bear illegal?" Cameron asked, his eyes growing wider with distress with each passing moment spent with Izzy.
"Oh, I don't know. Probably. Yeah." Izzy answered, laughing as though Cameron had told a very funny joke. "Probably, it's illegal."
Confessional
"So Zoey's actually a really nice girl. We haven't really spoken that much, but from what we have, she seems really nice." Courtney said. "So I figured that I may as well find out for her what's going on with Mike. So that they can, like, exchange phone numbers or whatever after the show is over. When Mike won't be distracted from helping the team win challenges."
"So, what do you think of the other teams?" Courtney asked, smiling at the spikey haired brunette at the front of the canoe.
"They're alright, I guess." Mike said with a shrug, looking somewhat puzzled by his teammate's question as they paddled across the lake. "Why do you ask?"
"Oh no reason, just curious." Courtney replied, glancing down at the water's surface for a moment. "I wouldn't want to be stuck on the same team as that Heather girl after what she did to that goth girl. That's not how you treat a teammate."
Mike glanced back at her with a raised eyebrow. "You banished members of our team during that one challenge where we had to spend the night in the woods."
Courtney frowned for a moment before she sighed. "I guess I kind of overreacted a little bit."
"A little?" Mike asked her in good-humoured disbelief.
"Okay, maybe a lot." Courtney said with a reluctant grin, almost seeming amused despite herself. "But I don't plan on making the same mistake twice. Our team is stronger together – not divided."
"That's good to hear." Mike said with a nod. "But yeah, I've gotta agree with you there. That Heather girl seems like bad news."
"And I would never ever want to get stuck on the same team as Duncan. We really dodged a bullet there when Chris put him on a different team. I bet he doesn't even know how to make a list."
"Yeah. . ." Mike said in a very neutral way, glancing across the lake as though seeking a distraction.
"Zoey seems really nice though."
"Zoey?" Mike's attention was suddenly on Courtney.
"Yeah, you know that pretty redhead on the Gopher's team."
"Right, the redhead." Mike said with poorly feigned ignorance.
Courtney raised an eyebrow slightly at her teammate's response, a small smile playing off her lips. "When we got stuck on that ledge together, we ended up spending like three hours together. She actually seemed really nice. Have you ever spoken to her?"
Mike shrugged in the most noncommittal manner he could. "Once, I think. When we first got here."
"She's a real sweetie. You should get to know her sometime."
Confessional
Mike scratched the back of his head in confusion. "Well, that was weird. Quite possibly the weirdest conversation I've had here so far. I mean, why would Courtney just mention Zoey out of the blue? I thought she was dating Trent?" Mike frowned. "Except, what Scott said . . . about Bridgette trying to protect the alliance. . . what if she lied to me?" Mike suddenly looked rather distressed. "What if Bridgette really isn't the person I thought she was? And . . . she knows my secret. . ."
"So, DJ. . ." Beth began, glancing back at her teammate with a grin.
"What's up Beth?" DJ asked curiously, offering and encouraging smile to his teammate.
"So I have this super big question for you." Beth said. "It's super duper important."
"Okay, shoot." DJ said.
"So, I was – uh – wondering if you like anyone here at camp."
"Uhh. . ." DJ responded, obviously having been stumped by Beth's unexpected question.
"Like maybe Zoey?"
"I don't know, to be honest." DJ said with a shrug. "She's a sweet girl, no doubt about it. I'm not really sure what to say. She's pretty?"
"So you do like her."
"I don't know, Beth." DJ said. "I haven't got that part figured out yet."
"Oh, okay."
Confessional
"I guess that will have to do for now." Beth said. "I guess as long as he doesn't know, he's not going to leave me as a single Bunny-mother."
"What's that?" Mike asked, suddenly leaning forward and using his paddle to fish something out of the water.
"What's what?" Courtney asked, glancing up to see what Mike was doing.
"It's a hat." Mike said in bewilderment, taking the soggy brown fabric off the end of his paddle. Holding it up with one hand to inspect it, he grinned. "Oh cool, I've always wanted a hat like this."
"Well put it on the front of the canoe to dry and keep paddling! We're falling behind!"
"Roger that." Mike said with a nod, placing the brown fedora on the peak of the canoe's bow. Gripping the handle with both hands, he began to stroke the water with the paddle to speed up the canoe.
"Let's speed this thing up, shall we?" Courtney asked before she began to chant. "Stroke, stroke, stroke!"
"I don't know, I guess I'm just surprised that a girl like Dakota would actually go for a guy like me." Cody said with a devastated sigh. "You might not know this, but I'm not actually as good with the ladies as everything thinks I am."
Dawn nodded in a very neutral fashion, pausing her paddle a moment to glance through the water's glassy surface into the dark depths below.
"And I didn't even get to exchange phone numbers with Dakota, so I probably won't stand a chance with her after this is all over." Cody said, sighing again. "Not that having her phone number would do me much good. I bet she's forgotten who I am already."
"You don't give yourself enough credit." Dawn commented. "And by selling yourself short, you're selling Dakota short too. I think she'll remember you just fine after all this is over."
"You think so?" Cody asked hesitantly.
"Oh, definitely." Dawn said with a nod. "Besides, she did call you her knight in shiny armour after all. Dakota doesn't seem like the type to call just anyone that, does she?"
"Are you sure?"
"Positive."
"Well, okay then." Cody said, perking up a little. With a hesitant grin on his face, he glanced across the water at their competition, his eyes finally coming to rest on the goth girl he'd been crushing on since their very first day at camp.
Confessional
Cody seemed almost back to himself in the confessional now, leaning back with his fingers laced together behind his head. "So what if Gwen wasn't ready for my charms? I can't say no to a pretty girl like Dakota." His good mood suddenly seemed to spoil and he slouched. "I mean, it would have been pretty awesome if Gwen and I had hooked up, but we didn't, so . . ."
"Get outta the way, slowpokes!" Called a female voice with a thick Jersey accent as Mike and Courtney paddled in the direction of Boney Island.
Courtney whirled around in her seat to see that Anne Maria and Alejandro were right behind them. Her dark eyes narrowed, she spoke, frustration edging her tone. "What are you doing?! You're too close! This is dangerous!"
"Move it or lose it, freckles!" Anne Maria said, paddling harder to the point where the front of the Gopher canoe rammed the back of the Bear canoe, giving it a jolt of extra speed just before there was a nasty scraping sound as the Gopher canoe slid along the side of the Bear canoe.
"I call foul!" Courtney cried out, very angry. "This is sabotage!"
"Don't worry sheila, I'll get us out of this mess!" Mike announced in an Australian accent suddenly, the now-dry fedora having been blown off the bow of the canoe and conveniently landing on Mike's head when the Gophers had slammed their canoe.
Rocking the canoe violently as he stood up and then stepped to the centre of it, making Courtney grab onto the sides of the canoe for dear life, 'Mike' slammed his paddle between the two canoes and used it like a fulcrum to force space between the two canoes.
"Mike, what are you doing?!" Courtney cried out in alarm as Mike remained in the middle of the canoe. "You're going to tip the canoe!"
"Don't worry, sheila, I know what I'm doing." 'Mike' insisted, although the look on Courtney's face made it quite clear that she didn't believe him.
"Ooooh, that looks so fun!" Izzy exclaimed from a canoe behind them, laughing. "I wanna try it!"
"Izzy, no!" A terrified Cameron cried out moments before there was a loud splash! Courtney looked back at the canoe behind them still gripping the sides of her and Mike's canoe so tightly her knuckles had begun to turn white, to see Cameron sputtering as he resurfaced next to their overturned canoe.
Courtney turned to face the front once more, about to give Mike a piece of her mind when she realized that they were suddenly canoeing through thick fog. Pausing to survey the situation, she frowned. "Where did all this fog come from?!"
As the canoes reached their destination, a soggy Izzy jumped out of the once again upright canoe she'd been sharing with Cameron and shook dry like a dog. Righting herself, she looked around with eager eyes. "Okay, did you see that skull? It's like this place is haunted or something!"
"Let's just get this over with." Gwen said, casting a glance at LeShawna, who nodded in response. The duo hoisted their canoe over their heads and took off down the trail.
"I wonder if we'll see any dead bodies!" Izzy exclaimed as she and Cameron lifted their canoe up. "Wouldn't that be so cool?"
"Um, no!" Cameron replied, looking extremely uncomfortable.
"I've always wanted to see a real live cadaver up close!" Izzy exclaimed, seeming to take Cameron's discomfort as enthusiasm.
"Yes, a real live cadaver." Noah quipped.
Noah's sarcastic tone went right over Izzy's head and she beamed at him. "We should find one!"
"No thanks, I'm good. Really." Noah said, rolling his eyes as he and Jo picked up their canoe and began to make their way after their teammates along the trail.
As the teens sprinted down the trail towards the other side of the island, Dawn began to slow, looking uneasy.
"Tired already? You're worse than bookworm!" Jo barked at the blonde, but Dawn only shook her head in response.
"I resent that statement." Noah quipped, frowning.
"What? It's true!" Jo retorted, rolling her eyes.
"The energy here, it's off." Dawn commented with a frown, ignoring Jo and Noah's banter as the teens all halted on the trail.
"Here we go again." Noah said in his signature deadpan tone a half second before the bushes ahead of them began to rustle.
"I think I saw something." Cody said, fear and unease edging his tone as he surveyed the bushes.
Suddenly, a nearby tree crashed to the ground by the campers, startling them all. Then, a massive brown furry creature emerged from the undergrowth. At first, the campers assumed the creature was a bear, for it was a similar size, but as more creatures began to step out from the vegetation, the teens noticed the goliath tusks protruding from the beasts' jaws.
"MONSTER BEAVERS!" Cody screamed in terror before all three teams fled in the opposite direction.
Confessional
"A remnant of the Pleistocene era, the woolly beaver is a day-active rodent indigenous to Boney Island." Chris said, looking very pleased with himself. "Oh yeah, and they're meat eaters!"
"Not that way!" Dawn cried out, suddenly veering off the path and leading Cody down a smaller trail. "This way!"
"Where are you going?!" Jo called after her two teammates when she saw them veer off to the side trail.
"The other trail will not provide sanctuary! It is home to another threat!" Dawn called back to her teammates. With an angry sigh, Jo and the rest of the Screaming Gophers veered off from the rest of the group and began to make their way down the side trail.
"Come on, Gophers!" Alejandro called encouragingly to his teammates.
"Guys! It's a dead end!" Mike called out in alarm as the group splashed into a small pond at the base of a rock ledge.
"I'm thcared! I don't want to die!" Beth cried out.
"Who will look after Bunny?!" DJ said.
"Guys, they're leaving!" Courtney announced, amazed as the woolly beavers halted in their tracks, turning away from the pond and vanishing back into the woods.
"SHA-TAKE THAT!" Lightning called after the woolly beavers. "Sha-Losers!"
Unfortunately, Lightning's bragging awakened another threat. Massive birds began to emerge from the surrounding undergrowth, hissing and flapping their wings.
Confessional
"Boney Island is also home to a cousin of Terror Birds – Canadianis Fearus, an ancestor of modern Canadian Geese." Chris smirked. "They're pretty vicious, so it's best if they aren't disturbed."
"What do we do now?" Zoey asked, sighing with exertion as she lowered her canoe onto her shoulders. The path that Dawn had lead them on instead had quickly turned narrow and before long, the forest seemed to have closed in on the whole team.
"We can't go back." Jo said with a strong tone of annoyance in her tone. "It'd take way too long and I bet the other teams are almost there by now as it is!"
"Well, while you're all trying to figure this out, I'm going to take a break." Noah commented, putting down his end of the canoe and taking a seat on a nearby rock.
"Don't you dare!" Jo snapped, but Noah put the canoe down anyway. Lowering her own end of the canoe, Jo walked over to Dawn and jabbed a finger into the girl's chest. "This is all your fault! If we'd just gone the same way as everyone else, we wouldn't be so far behind everyone right now!"
"If we had followed the others, we would have been trapped between two threats." Dawn insisted calmly. "We will find a way through this, I can sense it."
"Dawn is right. The Gophers are a strong team. We will make it through this challenge." Alejandro said, offering Dawn a smile.
Confessional
"If we lose tonight, Dawn will be going home after she lead us all astray." Alejandro said with a shrug. "If she doesn't, I'm still trying to buy her allegiance. She'll either join me or she'll take the fall."
As the teams were walking, a gust of wind blew through the woods and tore Mike's hat from his head, carrying it through the canoe like a wind tunnel and landing on the underside of Courtney's seat.
Mike gasped. Moments later, he glanced around in confusion. "Where are we?"
"I have no idea." Courtney said honestly, looking around. "Hopefully we're pretty close to the shore."
Mike glanced around again. "Where did the Screaming Gophers go?"
"Who cares? With any luck, they're lost in the woods and can't find their way out." Scott said with a shrug.
Confessional
"That's a terrible thing to say!" Bridgette said with a mildly upset look on her face. "I mean, I'm sure my sweet Scott was just joking, but it's still a mean thing to say about a person, even if you are joking!"
"We can't go back and we can't go around," Jo said, more so to herself than to everyone else. "We'll have to go through it."
"What?" Zoey asked, looking to the blonde jockette for direction.
"We have to go through it." Jo repeated. "Come on! We have to get moving before the other teams beat us to the finish line!"
"Are you serious?" Zoey asked, looking at the thick undergrowth in the direction in which they hoped to go.
"Completely." Jo answered firmly.
"This would be the best option." Dawn said with a nod of agreement. "I sense that not all the offered paths are quite as safe as Chris would have us believe. We would do best to make our own."
The Killer Bass had halted side by side at a fork in the road.
"Which way are we gonna go?" DJ asked, glancing around at his teammates.
"I say right, bro." Geoff said to his friend.
"Let's go!" Heather told her team. "Before the other team catches up!"
"How about you try carrying the canoe for once, sweetheart?" Duncan snapped, glancing back at Geoff, who was helping him carry the canoe they had shared with Heather.
"Drop dead." Heather retorted, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
"I can see the other team!" Sadie called out to her teammates as she and Lightning sprinted at the front of the pack with their canoes hoisted high above their heads. "They're taking the trail on the right!"
"Sha-losers!" Lightning shouted.
Confessional
"I would just like to thank my best girl Eva for pushing me! I would, like, never have been able to, like, keep up with Lightning without her motivating me to get fit!" Sadie said, smiling at the confession camera. "Eva, if you're watching, I totally miss you right now!"
"If the other team is going right, then we should definitely go left!" Courtney told her team.
"The right trail is wider though," Bridgette commented. Courtney frowned but didn't argue.
Suddenly another gust of wind picked up. Seconds later, Izzy spoke. "Oh, hey, Courtney, you dropped your hat. That is like, a way cool hat. It's an adventure hat!"
"Oh, that's not mine. It's Mike's." Courtney replied.
Mike halted. "I was just wondering where that went."
"Here!" Izzy said, dropping to all fours to pick up the hat with her teeth, then flinging it towards her teammate.
Mike caught it, and though he looked mildly disturbed by the small patch of drool that the redhead had left on the rim of his hat, but he put it on his head anyway. He gasped.
"So, what path are we taking, guys?" Sadie asked her teammates.
"The left one, sheila." Mike responded in an Australian accent. "Adventure awaits!"
"I don't know, Mike, I think the right one might be better. It looks safer." Bridgette said skeptically.
"Danger? Awesome!" Izzy cried out, beginning to sprint towards the left path and dragging Cameron with her in the process. "I love danger! Let's go!"
Mike seemed to take that as confirmation of his choice, and began to follow the redhead, a determined look on his face.
The Bass were making their way down the trail they had chosen, and things seemed to be looking good. They had covered a lot of ground with little hassle and appeared to be in a good place in regards to the competition.
Unfortunately, their good luck was not destined to last.
"AH!" Geoff suddenly cried out in pain, dropping to the ground and clutching his leg. "Oh the pain! I'm down! I'm down!"
"Why are you stopping?" Heather asked in annoyance, her hands on her hips as she stalked to the front of the group and gave Geoff a dirty look.
"Dude's hurt." Duncan answered, rolling his eyes.
"Well suck it up! We have a challenge to win!" Heather commanded, clapping her hands twice. "Chop chop!"
"Maybe we could if you'd pitch in and help us out! But I don't see you carrying any canoes!" Duncan snapped.
"For once, I agree with the scrawny white delinquent." LeShawna said, shooting Heather a look. "You could always try pulling your weight and see how much further it gets this team."
"Hey, watch who you're calling scrawny, sister." Duncan said, shooting LeShawna a look of annoyance.
"Oh, sure, that's all you get from what I said. Typical." LeShawna said, rolling her eyes.
"Guys, now is not the time!" Gwen said, surveying her team with a look frustration.
"Why did this have to happen to me?! Why? Whyyyyy?!" Geoff exclaimed dramatically, before reaching for Gwen. "You have to go on without me."
The goth girl just rolled her eyes and responded in her typical monotone voice. "I'd love to, but Chris will probably make up a rule about having to have all our team members present to win if we show up without you."
Confessional
"I didn't know if I was going to make it." Geoff said, looking both pained and thankful to be alive. "It was touch and go."
Static.
"We should have just left him behind." Gwen said, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
Static.
"The man just kept going." DJ said, looking touched by his friend's commitment. "Dude's got heart."
As the Thrashing Bears made their way through the forest towards their destination with Sadie and Lightning still leading the pack, the pair at the front of the group suddenly began to grow shorter.
"Oh my gosh! Like, help! I'm stuck!" Sadie cried out as she suddenly found herself unable to move.
"Sha-what?!" Lightning exclaimed in alarm. "The Lightning is shrinking!"
Confessional
"How was The Lightning supposed to know that was quicksand?" Lightning said, looking irritated. "It looks just like sha-regular sand!"
"I've got you, sheila!" Mike announced, dropping the canoe, sprinting to the nearest tree. Grabbing onto a thick green vine, he gave it a firm yank and pulled it to the ground.
"Mike, what are you doing?" Courtney cried out, pushing the canoe off her shoulders and glaring at her teammate.
"Don't worry your pretty little head, sheila. Let a man handle this." Mike said to Courtney, making the brunette sputter with rage as he fashioned a lasso out of the vine he had pulled from the tree. Swinging the vine lasso, he roped the looped end around a branch above Sadie and Lightning, before swinging over to the duo on his rescue vine.
Unfortunately, as Mike extended his hand to rescue Sadie, a gust of wind tore his hat from his head and it landed in the quicksand, quickly vanishing into its depths. Mike gasped, and looked confused for a moment before panic spread over his face as he realized where he was. Clutching the vine in terror, Mike found Sadie clutching his free hand and couldn't help the feeling of panic spreading through his body as the girl pulled herself up the vine and to safety.
"We're never going to make it to the shore at this rate!" Jo snapped at her teammates. "Hurry up, or we'll lose – again!"
"We're goin' as fast as we can." Anne Maria replied, giving the blonde jockette an irritated look. "Ya need to take a chill pill or somethin'."
"No, I won't take a chill pill! We lost the last challenge and thanks to elf-girl, we're going to lose another one!" Jo snapped, casting a dirty look in Dawn's direction. "We've been walking through the woods to who knows where for hours, and we don't seem to be getting any closer to where we're supposed to be going! We're going to lose if we don't get a move on! So hurry up!"
With her last three words, Jo gave her canoe a huge shove, accidentally tripping her partner Noah when the weight of the canoe being shoved forward off-balanced him on some loose rocks and he did a faceplant. The entire weight of the canoe now on Jo, the front of it dug into the ground and pushed her backwards, making her bump into her teammates, Dawn and Cody, who were carrying their canoe behind Jo and Noah.
Almost as off-balanced as the pair in front of them, Dawn and Cody stumbled in unison before pushing their canoe over on its side and getting the weight off of them.
"Amiga, Anne Maria is right. The terrain makes it difficult to cover ground very efficiently." Alejandro said as. "But we are making progress, even if it is slow."
"What is your problem?!" Jo snapped, turning back to Dawn.
"Jo, that wasn't our fault." Cody replied, frowning. "Give us a break. We've been trekking through rough woods for like two hours."
"Hey guys?" Noah called from the front of the group.
Jo whirled to face Noah's direction, glaring with anger and irritation. "What do you want, Noah?"
"Your concern for my well being is absolutely touching. I'm fine, thanks." The bookworm stood up, frowning as he pulled a bramble vine off of his arm. "And as much as I enjoy the team tension, I thought you might want to see this."
And with one arm, Noah pushed aside the bushes to reveal an expanse of water before them, with golden sands stretching out to connect them to the water's edge.
They had finally reached the beach.
The Gophers were, miraculously, the first team to arrive on the beach. Quickly they got to work fetching twigs and logs and other things that would burn to prepare their rescue fire. It wasn't long until the Bears arrived on the scene and quickly got to work on their fire as well.
The Bass were the last team to arrive on the scene, but they were the first team to have their fire started as Duncan was in possession of a lighter. Courtney began to sputter angrily at the unfairness, but Chris deemed that having a lighter was not against the rules and told Courtney to stop complaining.
The Gophers had their rescue fire started not long after the Bass had theirs going as they had a headstart, and as they began to sprint around to find fuel for the fire to make it bigger, the Bears managed to get theirs lit as well.
Desperately trying to find things that would burn, Beth bent down by a rock and found something rather unexpected. It was a cute wooden idol that she couldn't see any harm in taking from the island. It was definitely something that she would have liked to take home from the camp at the end of the summer.
So she picked it up, intending to keep it as a souvenir.
As she turned and began to walk back to her team's fire to throw on the handful of twigs and dried leaves she had managed to collect, there was a massive BOOM! And Beth was throw backwards, the idol flying out of her hands as Beth hit the ground.
Blinking, it took her a moment before her hearing came back to her and even then it was rather muffled. Glancing around at the others in confusion, Beth guessed that, judging from how cautious the Thrashing Bears were looking and how far from their fire they were standing, Izzy had probably thrown one of her explosive balls on her team's fire like she had thrown on the Bass's burning fort in the previous challenge, and the explosion had been big enough to knock them all back.
Beth heard a muffled voice and couldn't really comprehend what was said, but after the voice ended, all the teens began to move back to their canoes and Beth guessed that Izzy's little trick had earned the Bears a point towards the win.
Her ears still ringing, she followed her friend Heather towards the shoreline.
"Where did you learn to do that?" Courtney asked her teammate in bewilderment as the duo got into a canoe together, blinking as she glanced back at the massive fire that Izzy had created on the beach with her explosive sap ball trick.
"Oh, you know, I spent a summer training with the reserves." Izzy told her, putting her hands on her teammate's shoulders, not even caring that her face was covered with soot and other remnants of the explosion. "I got into some trouble there and, like, blew up the kitchen by accident which is why the RCMP is still all over my butt. I'm so totally AWOL."
The final canoe race was a close one, but it was Lightning and Sadie of the Thrashing Bears who hit the shores of Camp Wawanakwa first, followed moments later by Duncan, Geoff and Heather.
Upon seeing that the two other teams had arrived before them, Jo cried out in anger and frustration. Gritting her teeth for a moment, she stormed over to Dawn and Cody's canoe and jabbed a finger into Dawn's chest. "Argh! This is all your fault!"
"Calm down Jo." Cody said before Dawn had a chance to speak up in her own defence, rolling his eyes. "She didn't do anything wrong."
"Yes she did!" Jo snapped. "She took us on that stupid detour through the woods and got us lost! You cost us this game and you're going to pay for it tonight."
"And that 'stupid detour' got us to the beach before anyone else! Us losing wasn't Dawn's fault." Cody pointed out, silencing Jo, who seemed as though she wanted to argue more, but could not think of anything more to contribute to the argument. With a grunt, Jo turned on her heel and stormed away to the Gopher cabins.
Dawn put a hand on her teammate's shoulder. "Thank you for defending me."
Cody shrugged. "Anytime, Dawn. And hey, thanks for lending me your ear today. You're a good friend. I definitely feel a lot better."
"Oh, how touching." Noah quipped sarcastically. "Dakota must be upset to find out that you think she is so forgettable, huh?"
Dawn narrowed her eyes and turned to the bookworm. "Thank you for your input, Mr. Darcy."
Noah's mouth was agape for just a second. "What did you just say?"
"Surely someone who prizes literature as much as yourself understands that reference." Dawn retorted before turning on her heel and walking away, leaving all who remained on the beech in a state of shock at her response.
Confessional
"I don't normally lose my temper like that." Dawn said, taking a deep breath. "But I just spent the day consoling Cody and Noah had to go and say that. Cody was very upset that Dakota was eliminated, so Noah's comment probably hurt him a great deal." Dawn took another deep breath, then smiled. "There, my zen has been restored."
Tyler was making his way from the bathroom and heading towards the Bass cabin to grab something before he headed over to the mess hall for supper when he heard voices coming from around the side. Unsure what he should do, he was about to ignore the voices and go straight inside when he heard something that made him stop.
"Or I'll tell the entire team how much of a traitor you are."
Halting in his tracks, Tyler crept to the edge of the cabin and glanced around the corner as inconspicuously as he could manage, and saw Heather talking with Harold.
"You wouldn't." Harold said.
"How long do you think you would last if everyone knew the truth, dorkwad?" Heather asked, tapping her foot impatiently. "Do as I tell you or you'll regret it."
His breath catching in his throat, Tyler stepped back as quietly as he could, but stepped on a creaky board on his way up the stairs. Freaked out by the possibility that Heather and Harold would catch him and think he was spying or something, he sprinted up the stairs and dove into his bed, wrapping himself up in his blankets and immediately pretending to be asleep, an act which he continued when Harold walked into the cabin, sighed, and began to get ready for dinner himself.
Confessional
"Harold is a traitor to the team? So not extreme." Tyler asked in dismay. "That sucks, I thought that guy was pretty cool."
"So, who are we voting out tonight?" Zoey asked as she looked around at her teammates who were all sitting on the steps of the cabin.
"I think we should vote for Jo." Cody said, earning a glare from the blonde jockette. "What? You've been a total tyrant lately."
"Okay, I admire your nerve kid for saying that to my face, but if you vote me out tonight I will rearrange yours." Jo said, giving him a dark look.
"Well then who do you propose we vote out tonight?" Cody countered. "And don't say Dawn because she has done absolutely nothing wrong and doesn't deserve to go home yet."
Dawn smiled at her friend as Jo scanned the group, eventually coming to focus on the hot blooded Latino across from her. "How about Alejandro?"
"Nuh-uh. I'd take Al-baby over you any day." Anne Maria said, reaching into her pouf for her can of hair spray. Withdrawing something cylindrical, she was about to spray it on her hair when she realized it felt wrong and had no spray button. Holding it in front of her face, she stared in disbelief, her face suddenly contorting to a look of anger. "Ok, fess up. Which one of you losers stole my hairspray and replaced it with this stupid thing?"
Zoey looked at the small idol in Anne Maria's hands. "Where did that come from?"
"Don't play dumb with me, red. You probably stuck it in my pouf to hope I wouldn't notice when you stole my hairspray." Anne Maria said, throwing the idol at Zoey, who somehow managed to catch the thing.
"Why would I steal your hairspray?" Zoey asked, frowning. "And where would I even get a wooden idol like this? I haven't seen anything like this anywhere."
"Well if you didn't, who did?" Anne Maria demanded before storming up the stairs into the cabin to find a replacement can of beauty product.
"I wouldn't touch that if I were you." Dawn said to Zoey, eyeing the idol with caution.
"Why?" Zoey asked, turning the thing over as she, Trent and Cody studied the thing.
"That's better." Anne Maria, having found a replacement can of hairspray, now stood at the top of the stairs, tending to her pouf.
"Because it's full of negative energy and darkness." Dawn answered. "I think it must have come from Boney Island."
Zoey dropped the thing as though it had suddenly become a thousand degrees. Reluctant to touch it, she kicked it off the steps of the Gopher cabin. "This must have been one of the things that Chris warned us about taking from Boney Island."
"Oh good going Anne Maria, you got the whole team cursed forever." Noah quipped sarcastically, waving his hands about to mock the so-called curse.
"Oh, so you're framing me, huh, pixie dust?" Anne Maria asked, pointing the hairspray can at Dawn. "You must'a took it from Boney Island to frame me so you could save yourself."
"I would never do such a thing." Dawn insisted, looking hurt by the accusation. Turning to her other teammates, she focused on Cody. "You don't think I would do such a heinous thing, do you?"
"Of course not." Cody said, turning to Anne Maria. "You're being ridiculous."
"What if we are cursed now?" Zoey asked in alarm. "What if we lost today because the team is now cursed?"
"You don't seriously believe what Chris said about the cursed island, do you?" Noah asked in disbelief. "It's all stupid superstitions. You know that, right?"
"Why would you take the idol though? Even after Chris said not to take anything from the island?" Zoey asked, looking at Anne Maria.
"You must be mentally defective if you think I'd leave a can of hairspray for that piece of junk." Anne Maria snapped before storming down the steps. About to head over to the mess hall, she turned to her teammates and pointed the can of hairspray at them. "And jus' remember. When I find out which one of ya stole my hairspray – you're dead. I'll give you the biggest beat-down of ya life."
As the team watched Anne Maria retreat, Jo stood up and walked to the bottom of the stairs. "So, I think we know who's going home tonight."
And with that, she kicked the idol further from the Gopher cabin and the team scattered about the camp.
"Jo and Anne Maria, you are our bottom two tonight." Chris said, pausing dramatically.
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"Just give me the marshmallow already." Jo said, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
Chris glared at her. "You kids just don't understand the meaning of the word dramatic pause, do you?"
"That's a phrase, actually." Noah commented, earning a dirty look from Chris as well.
"Are you doing to give me my marshmallow or not?" Jo demanded.
"What makes you so sure you're gonna get the last marshmallow tonight, miss Tyrannosaur?" Anne Maria asked, raising an eyebrow at Jo.
"Miss Tyrannosaur?" Jo asked, looking puzzled at first, then she shook her head. "Never mind. I'm sure I'm going to get the last marshmallow because I am." Jo said, opening her hand as Chris threw her the last marshmallow.
Anne Maria glared, grabbing her hairspray from her hair and pointing it at Jo's face as though it was a can of mace. But the jockette slapped the Jersey girl's hand away and the can of hairspray went flying.
"Oh, you're gonna regret that." Anne Maria said, looking as though she was about to punch Jo before Chef grabbed her arms and began to drag her towards the Dock of Shame.
Making her way out of the cabin and towards the mess hall for dinner, Beth tripped over something and ended up sprawled on the ground in front of the Bass cabin. Feeling around for her lost glasses, she found the item that she tripped over, and then her glasses. Putting her glasses back on, a huge smile spread over Beth's face as her vision was restored and she was able to see what had tripped her.
"Well that was lucky." Beth commented, grinning to herself before she hurried up the steps of the cabin to put the tiki idol from Boney Island by her pillow before she continued on her way to the mess hall.
The Votes:
"Sorry mi amore." Alejandro said insincerely. "Anne Maria must go."
Static.
"I can see in her aura that Anne Maria did not mean to curse our team, but she brought it upon us and for that we must send her home." Dawn said.
Static.
"Princess Pouf has got to go. Better her than me." Jo said.
Static.
"They can't seriously believe that we lost because Anne Maria took an idol from Boney Island, can they?" Noah asked in disbelief. "I vote for Alejandro. I still think he is too slimy and cannot be trusted."
Static.
"Pixie dust framed me. She's gotta go." Anne Maria said. "And I'mma give her a beat-down she won't soon forget too."
Static.
"I vote with the rest of the team – for Anne Maria." Trent said.
Static.
"I still think Jo should go. She's been a huge jerk lately, but I think everyone else is voting for Anne Maria, so it doesn't really matter who I vote for." Cody said. "I think I'll vote for Jo anyway."
Static.
"Anne Maria may have cursed our team with that idol. I guess I vote for her." Zoey said.
Eliminated so far:
37th: Katie
36th: Staci
35th: Sierra
34th: Sam
33rd: Eva
32nd: Owen
31st: B
30th/29th: Lindsay & Ezekiel
28th: Justin
27th: Brick
26th: Dakota
25th: Anne Maria
Still in the Game:
Screaming Gophers: Dawn, Alejandro, Noah, Cody, Trent, Zoey, Jo
Killer Bass: Duncan, LeShawna, Geoff, Gwen, Heather, Harold, Beth, Tyler, DJ
Thrashing Bears: Sadie, Cameron, Courtney, Scott, Lightning, Izzy, Bridgette, Mike
Constructive criticism always appreciated! Please review!
I commissioned some artwork of some TDIR scenes from an amazing artist on deviantART. If you'd like to check them out, you can find links to them on my author profile!
Also, thank you for being so patient with me. This past semester at college was crazy busy, but it's summer holidays now so I'm hoping I'll be able to get at least a few more chapters up this summer before I head back to school, and some decent progress on my new multi-chapter AU story featuring Duncan and Katie.