Author's Notes:
Hello again! Apologies for the delay, I had to get some things sorted out so I got extra busy! I would ramble a bit about how the fanfic writing is going, but the review-answering bit will be long today, so I'll be succinct here.
I may not post the next chapter in a week, either. I have surgery scheduled and I will be recovering, which will put me away from my computer for a while, so I won't be able to post chapters. Yes, I know I could theoretically post two chapters to make up for the lack of chapters in the gap, but I'd rather not doubling-down.
As per usual, taking some time to respond to the reviews left during the previous week (for all chapters that have been reviewed, of course.
DanSpector: Thank you! I do like how the setting has been going so far, so I appreciate your opinion regarding it! Don't worry, we all gotta learn somewhere, so making mistakes and typos is only normal!
Gucci Mane LaFlare: I was debating about letting Alejandro and Amy manipulate LeShawna to vote with them, but the element of surprise right before the elimination ceremony is what sold me. Normally, I doubt she'd fall to their schemes, and she could probably argue her way out of the mess, but giving a one-sided beef with everyone right before the vote is almost guaranteed to work. Yes, those people will each have their moment in the limelight, so stay tuned! Once again, thank you for reviewing and for the kind words!
Iris Nightingale
Wow, this is one big review! Due to its massive length, I will respond to specific things, but I want you to know that I've read all of your reviews at least twice, so if I don't mention something, it's not due to skipping it!
Chapter 1
Yup! That was something my friend had pointed out to me, so as you saw in the future chapters, I broke off from that confusing writing style, still, thank you for taking the time to review it! Don't worry, you didn't sound patronizing at all.
I did feel like certain characters weren't as fleshed out, but as you've said, we can't always have the cake and eat it too... And similarly, you'll notice I'll be branching out a bit with the characters, given the 'maybe O.O.C.' in the first chapter. While they'll follow their canon versions, I don't wanna stick too much.
Chapter 2
I do agree with you, sometimes there is much more of a focus on the interactions but hopefully, future chapters won't hinge too much on that. Scarlett's lack of subtlety was actually intentional as weird as it sounds... She would be somewhat stale in front of her peers if there was no reason for her to change how she handles things, which is why the next chapter has some focus on her.
Yeah... I do admit even I missed out on the Owen bit... When I drew out the roster for the fanfic, I did groan at seeing Owen, so that was my bias coming through, and for that, I am sorry. I do think I need to work that out, cause even characters that we dislike don't deserve to be literally ignored during an entire chapter...
Chapter 3
The couples are actually something that I really like writing about, mostly due to how much drama there is imbued in them. Worry not, a lot of these things that you find weird are intentional (though some are definitely mistakes on my end!) so while I can't be outright about it all, I do appreciate your time and effort in commenting about them.
I also did notice Scarlett has a lot of focus, and that's something that happened due to her being one of the antagonists of the season. Of course, this isn't to say it's justified she receives far more attention at all times, so I did try to lessen her role in the following chapters, but I do hope you understand why she had such focus. Owen is certainly someone I'm willing to write more, but for that, I actually need to come up with something fitting, and I, by no means, wished to write dream sequences and farting compilations like canon did...
Chapter 4
To be entirely honest, Dawn's elimination could have been handled better. This was also pointed out by a friend, but I actually ended up embracing Scarlett's rashness. In a way, we all know Scarlett is calculated, methodic, and robotic, but writing her to be arrogant and prepotent is intentional. I know this felt rushed and OOC for someone like Scarlett, but I ask you to trust the process. (I hope this doesn't sound condescending.) You can still comment about what you felt was weird coming from her, I don't wanna disparage you from reviewing, of course.
I do enjoy writing these two dorks, but I did notice they outshone everyone else, even the eliminated, who normally receive focus during their elimination episode. I am trying to police myself to at least make the remaining cast compelling enough to read, but sometimes I don't mind if there are "chapter protags" per sé.
There! I tried to not ramble on for too long, since it could clog the notes! Apologies if it was super long for everyone else who had to read, I just felt it'd be unfair to not speak about all reviews left out by the amazing Iris Nightingale! Thank you all for writing, and a special thanks to everyone who's willing to even read it!
Iris, and Gucci, you two are fantastic for always commenting! Gaxxot and Dan, thank you too!
Episode 6: The Sucky Outdoors
The shot showed Chris where he usually stood during episode recaps. "Last time on Total Drama Island! A talent contest brought out the best in our campers, it was awesome! The Screaming Gophers struggled to find enough talents," The shot showed Mickey being captured by Brick and Shawn's trap, Kitty crying, and several missteps during rehearsal. "While the Killer Bass had so much to show, they had to implement a vote!" Scarlett tallying up the numbers and subsequently losing appeared.
"Courtney gave in and appealed to the masses, and eventually won the challenge for her team, whereas LeShawna was exposed by Amy and Alejandro, leading to her being ostracized by her team!" LeShawna's outhouse confessional speech was shown once again. "It was not close at all, and LeShawna was voted off in the most dramatic campfire ceremony yet!" LeShawna was shown talking one last time with Kitty while walking toward the Dock of Shame.
"Who'll be the next one to walk up this lame dock? Find out tonight on Total… Drama… Island!" Chris motioned to the area around him, emphasizing his words with each step.
Introduction Song
The shot began with Courtney and Cameron chatting by the dock. "You know, it's been a while since the last time we had some decent one-on-one time," Courtney commented to the scrawny boy. "The challenges and Scarlett's presence always ended up coming between us, haha." Courtney laughed at her own insinuation.
"Yeah…" Cameron mulled over which made Courtney raise an eyebrow toward him. "Oh, it's nothing… I've just had something on my mind, that's all." Cameron commented cryptically.
"Penny for your thoughts?" The C.I.T. tried. "I'm only half joking, Cam. You can talk to me." She offered.
"Well… Don't you think Scarlett has been a little… much? Lately, I mean." Cameron asked as he lowered his voice, in fear of Scarlett popping up from behind them.
Cameron - Confessional (6)
"Look, I still appreciate Scarlett, but lately she seems to suffer from tunnel vision!" Cameron complained to the outhouse. "She's really starting to make me worry about her…"
Cameron - Confessional - End (6)
"Well, that is true, she even spoke to me the other day. She said we needed to lay low a little bit, to avoid being targets for some reason." Courtney thought back at her friend's behavior and realized Cameron may have a point. "Then again, she was the one who seemed to be fuming about not being voted to participate in the last challenge…"
"Yeah, I'm not saying we should just dump her or anything… But maybe pay more attention to how she behaves?" Cameron offered to the Hispanic girl. Courtney nodded and they walked back.
As the shot panned over, Devin and Sammy were sitting next to each other, both seemingly nervous and bashful, despite the confessions done during the previous challenge.
"So…" Devin started, but did not know where to go from there.
"So…" Sammy parroted him. "Wanna tell me what you meant by 'not wanna raise suspicion'? You did say we could continue this chat once the challenge was done." Sammy smiled lightly at him, blushing due to the events that occurred and led to this.
"Oh yeah, that I did, didn't I?" Devin laughed and rubbed his neck. "Well," He spoke before looking around and not noticing anyone nearby. "Remember during the tiebreak? When we had to face each other for the Dodgeball challenge?" Sammy nodded at that. "Well, when you suddenly went Ranbo and eliminated me, Scarlett thought I had thrown the challenge on purpose since she saw the two of us hanging out…" Devin spoke with true sadness seeping into his voice.
"Oh…" Sammy realized what that meant. "So you were avoiding me to stay on the competition… All because Scarlett misinterpreted a situation." Sammy then locked eyes with Devin. "I'm sorry, I should have realized something was wrong, rather than believe you were suddenly being a jerk." Sammy looked down, avoiding looking at Devin in shame.
"Hey, hey, it's all right. Look, despite everything, we pulled through! That's awesome for us!" Devin wrapped his arm around her waist, cheering her on and making her blush even more. "I just wanted to make sure you understood why I acted the way I did. Well, hurling the ball at your face was a dick move, but I just wanted to get the heat off of my back."
Sammy - Confessional (8)
"I still can get this through my head… Devin actually likes me, and I like him too!" Sammy squealed in her seat. "O.M.G.! Wait! Does that mean that we're dating…?" She asked with a confused look on her face.
Sammy - Confessional - End (8)
"Well, I-" As Sammy had begun, Bridgette approached the couple (?) to inform them about Chris' call.
"Oh, sorry, I hope I'm not interrupting anything, haha." She giggled at the sight of the two hands blushing over their closeness.
"No! I mean, no, you're not." Sammy replied hastily. "Is something the matter, Bridgette?"
"No, nothing much, I just came here 'cause you were missing when Chris popped in the mess hall. He wants to meet us at the campfire, pronto." Bridgette explained while pointing in the general direction of the meeting point. "I'll catch you two there?" When they both nodded, Bridgette giggled again and walked off.
Bridgette - Confessional (6)
"I'm glad Sammy and Devin managed to work things out." Bridgette smiled serenely at the camera. "From what Geoff told me the other day, and from chatting with Sammy, this is the first guy she's actually managed to get close to before Amy drove them away." Bridgette then frowned. "Talk about a family bond, sheesh…"
Bridgette - Confessional - End (6)
After the campers reunited at the campfire, Chris began his speech. "Campers, I'm very glad to see all eighteen of you have made it here. To reward you for getting past those challenges, I've spoken to the producers and they greenlit this idea." Chris then pulled a wooden figure off his own head. "I present to you the Chris McLean Life Idol! This novelty-rare item is a life-saving tool here on the island. If you manage to find it, it'll allow you to save yourself once when you were about to get voted off, nulling every single vote directed to you, and eliminating the person who got the 2nd highest amount of votes!" As Chris explained the rules, all campers were shown with a hungry glint in their eyes, clearly wanting to attain such power.
"BUT! This beauty will be hidden on the island, in such a secret place, most of you won't even come close to finding it! You're allowed to search for it at any given point of the game, just make sure your teammates don't sniff it on you and steal it for themselves!" Chir spoke, emphasizing the 'stealing' bit. "Oh, and the only way any of you can figure it out it has been found is by it being used, so you could end up spending a whole day looking for it while it sits hidden in someone's bag, haha! Make sure to check all places, 'cause it may just be your ticket to surviving one more day!" Chris laughed sardonically.
Shawn - Confessional (5)
"Wait, what?! Why didn't he say such a thing existed from day one?" Shawn asked, flabbergasted at the notion. "But I'm fairly confident I'll be the one to find, I already scouted these woods for two weeks, if anyone would find it, it'd be me!" Shawn declared proudly.
Shawn - Confessional - End (5)
Scarlett - Confessional (10)
"Breathe, Scarlett… Breathe…" As she calmed herself, her true emotions rose when she looked at the camera. "The addition of that thing could ruin my plans! Now I need to play extra carefully, in case someone uses the idol and gets me out of the game by proxy!" As Scarlett seethed, she thought again. "Either that or I find it myself… Hm…" A malicious smirk began to appear on her face, showing the viewers exactly what she intended to do.
Scarlett - Confessional - End (10)
As the campers looked at each other warily, Chris basked in their nervousness.
Chris - Confessional (3)
Chris appeared bearing a shit-eating grin on his face. "OK, so, the producers wanted me to add the 'Life Idol' later down the line, but then I suggested we added it this season because the ratings would go crazy!" Chris declares as he slaps his knee due to laughing so much. "Can you believe how paranoid they'll become? Man, it's gonna be great!"
Chris - Confessional - End (3)
"Campers! I know I just dropped a pretty big bomb on you, but pay attention because your challenge will begin in 10 minutes and I'll explain the rules!" Chris bellowed out after the campers began to whisper among themselves.
As the muttering and whispering finally died down, Chris smiled and began to explain the challenge. "Today's challenge will test your outdoor survival skills. I'm not gonna lie to you, some of you may not come back alive." Despite the ominous words, Chris maintained a smile on his face. Mickey looked shocked after hearing that, quivering on the spot he stood.
Mickey - Confessional (7)
"W-what did Chris mean by 'not coming back alive'?! I hope he got the memo about all of my possible allergies and scares…" Mickey rubbed his head. "I really hope we don't encounter any animals… in… the wild…" With each word, realization began to dawn on him. "I wanna go home…"
Mickey - Confessional - End (7)
"All you have to do is spend one night in the woods, everything you may need is at your team's campsite in the forest. You just gotta find it~" Chris spoke with a teasing tone. He then pulled out two separate compasses and maps of the campgrounds from a backpack. He tossed the map and compass to Brick and Courtney, who caught the items handily.
"OH!" Chris exclaimed, catching the attention of all campers. "Watch out for bears, we've lost a couple of interns during pre-production," Chris declared while grimacing a bit. "First team back for breakfast wins invincibility!"
As Chris declared the challenge's start, some of the campers made a headstart while a few of the more reluctant campers only got up afterward.
"Did he say there were bears…" Sammy asked in fear of the idea. Shawn nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah, but no worries. If we ever come across one, it'll be just as easy to get rid of it!" Shawn reassured the good twin. The blonde looked at him with fear and confusion but proceeded all the same. "Hey, wait up!" He shouted while following her.
The camera panned to Kitty walking with a frown on her face, dragging a bit behind.
Kitty - Confessional (7)
"I can't believe what happened last challenge." Kitty started with a pout. "I should have at least listened to LeShawna speak, that was rash of me…" After Kitty said, it finally dawned on her. "Wait, I was so stuck on the idea that LeShawna said those things I forgot how my phone got returned! Someone used it to record her and I didn't even realize that!" Kitty exclaimed with barely contained anger. "I need to find out who did that! They obviously did that in order to eliminate LeShawna!"
Kitty - Confessional - End (7)
Trent, watching Kitty from behind, tried to approach her but decided otherwise. Bridgette saw that and came up next to him. "Hey." She started with a small smile.
When he noticed her presence, he smiled back and greeted her. "Hey, Bridgette. What's up?" He asked, trying to not let his eyes veer toward the sad girl in front of them.
"You tell me, it seems like you really want to talk to Kitty," She supplied while looking at him with a knowing glance.
"I've been there for her the past few days, you know that, hell, we were there together at some point but…" Trent started. "I feel like right now she could use some space. It's all." The musician replied with a sad look.
"I get what you mean," Bridgette said as she slowly patted him on the back. "Let's just make sure she doesn't do anything rash."
"Yeah… I'd rather watch her closely, but it may have been suffocating. Let's get a move on, the others are already ahead of us." Trent finished while the two sped up their paces to catch up with the rest of the Gophers.
The next shot showed Tammy trailing behind Sam, Geoff, and Devin. None of the guys were really speaking much, bummed out about having to spend the entire day trekking to then sleep on the hard ground. As she was walking, her foot got stuck on a branch and she fell, making a thud, which alerted the people in front of her.
The three aforementioned boys came back to her, to see if she was OK and ready to go, to which she promptly replied. "Yes, yes, it wasn't anything serious, only a small tumble I took." She smiled at them but noticed some very familiar blue ceramic bits on the ground. She hurriedly opened her pocket to see her favorite instrument had shattered from the fall. "Oh, dear!" She announced to the people in the vicinity, who had stopped to see what was wrong.
"Woah, did you break your thingy?" Geoff asked with a frown. Tammy nodded and raised the broken ocarina, with a sad look eclipsing her face now. "That sucks, man…"
"Yes, tragic, but we have the challenge to complete." Scarlett dryly remarked as stepped near the group. "May we get a move on?"
Some of her teammates looked at her with concerned expressions, but she remained stoic. Knowing they were gonna judge her for her straightforward approach she quickly added.
"Look, Tammy, I know that your ocarina was extremely important to you. But we need to move on, or else we'll take longer to reach the campsite." Scarlett reasoned as she approached her. "I promise you I'll try to come up with something for your problems, but we really can't afford to lose time with this," Scarlett explained with as much sympathy as she could muster.
Tammy looked at her, looking for any signs of foul play, but relented all the same. "You're right, we can't be delayed because of this." Tammy collected the broken shards of ceramic and went back to the trail. "And… thank you, Scarlett, for offering to help and putting my head in the right place. I needed that." Tammy shot back the redhead a smile and walked behind Courtney, who held the compass and map in her hand.
Tammy - Confessional (6)
"I hope Scarlett was being truly selfless when she said that. I know some of her actions were dubious the past week or so, but maybe she really just wants to help the team." Tammy declared with a guilty look, obviously remembering she voted for Scarlett in one of the ceremonies.
Tammy - Confessional - End (6)
Scarlett - Confessional (11)
Scarlett was once again cleaning her glasses with a handkerchief, sporting a neutral expression. "Did I do that out of the kindness of my heart?" She raised an eyebrow at the question. "Obviously not. However, that doesn't mean I'd like to see her being debilitated by her loss. After the past events, I've been reconsidering my list of possible threats and allies, and I have to pay extra attention to Courtney. She's very crafty, so unless I get my hands on that Idol, I refuse to not play it safe." Scarlett declared with an unreadable expression, but the tight grip she held onto her skirt was enough to deduce she was not happy about the turn of events.
Scarlett - Confessional - End (11)
As the Bass returned to the challenge, Sam heard some rustling, which in turn made him look around but after finding nothing, he caught up with the group.
Sam - Confessional (5)
"Aw, man. Camping and hiking are not something I enjoy a lot. My dad and I once went camping for a whole weekend, and I got lost, got bitten by several animals, and then got dehydrated…" Sam expressed with sadness. "I just hope I don't eventually get lost and cause our team to lose or anything…"
Sam - Confessional - End (5)
Mickey appeared on the screen, once again shivering in fear of what the forest held for him. He was fairly lucky within the past challenges, but ever since his foot got jammed in the cables and the trap went wrong? He knew for a fact his bad luck streak was starting.
Brick, who had given, albeit reluctantly, the compass and map to Alejandro, had taken note of the situation, and approached the scrawny boy.
"Mickey, you all right, soldier?" Brick asked, the answer to his question was obvious, but he still made an effort to be helpful. The unlucky boy jumped a bit from the sudden approach but tried his best to calm his nerves.
"Y-yeah, I mean, yes! Haha…" Mickey tried, unsuccessfully, to convince Brick he was fine. He was not. "Why do you ask?"
Brick raised an eyebrow, clearly trying to understand why Mickey was putting on a tough act. "Well, it seems like you'll pass out at any moment, so I wanted to see if you wanted to take a break or something." The soldier clarified with a look of worry. "You don't really need to overexert yourself, Mickey!" Mickey looked at Brick with slight confusion but conceded.
"You're right. Maybe I just need to relax a bit…" He said. "I just… Being away from my twin brother for so long generally means something bad is gonna happen… Last time we separated, he got stuck on a Ferris wheel and I got stuck in a chemical bathroom." Mickey told Brick, which clearly made the cadet dazzled.
"I feel like this is the type of conversation we'll be having later on. For now, try to calm down and remember the battalion is all here, so if anything bad happens, we'll help each other out!" Brick declared with a proud look. Mickey managed to shoot him a small smile, warming up to the cadet. "And if anything bad happens, I'm sure you'd be able to handle it by yourself, but calling for help is never a bad thing!"
Brick - Confessional (4)
"Speaking with Alejandro lately has been a blessing. Being able to follow a chain of command allows me to focus on the task at hand, so I'm trying to do my best for Mickey too!" Brick declared with a proud smile. "I just hope I didn't give him the wrong idea, last thing we need is Mickey thinking we see him as a liability…"
Brick - Confessional - End (4)
Mickey took the words to his heart and solemnly nodded at the soldier. His quivering stopped, true, but the words struck deep. As the duo went on following their team, the camera showed the day was quickly dwindling, and as the sun set, the teams were finally starting to make progress through the challenge.
Courtney was leading her team and pointing in a specific direction, while Alejandro appeared pointing in the opposite direction. The most trouble the teams had was Tammy's tumble, and even that was solved pretty quickly. However, each team divided itself into several sub-groups, maintaining small talk to avoid dying of boredom.
Harold and Sam were shown laughing while trailing slightly behind the team. "You gotta see what kind of games I have back at home. I've been collecting them ever since I 8!" Sam declared proudly, but deflated afterward. "I just wish I had more to do than play video games, hehe…" Harold looked at his friend in a contemplative way but decided to change the conversation.
Harold looked up ahead and behind them, noticing they had a fair bit of space to chat about more sensitive things. "Have you noticed the way Scarlett's been behaving?" Harold asked, but still lowered his voice. "I mean, at one point she's basically acting as the team leader, but then she acts like she's above us! Don't you think that's bogus?" Harold sneered at the brainiac.
"Wel… I agree that she could probably be kinder, but you saw how she acted toward Tammy's ocarina! She showed that she cared and she's only looking out for us!" Sam replied. "Uh, that's how I see at least…"
Harold - Confessional (7)
"Gosh!" Harold groaned. "How can they all be so ready to welcome her back with their arms open?! Didn't they see how she acted in the past challenges?" Harold questioned the camera, despite not receiving a reply. "I swear, Scarlett is plotting something, she's not as innocent as she feigns herself to be."
Harold - Confessional - End (7)
"Look, my point is: we shouldn't let our guards down. I know for a fact Tammy, you and I wouldn't vote for each other, but we're still only a third of the group." Harold explained while raising his fingers. "Scarlett, Cameron, and Courtney are another third. Geoff, Devin, and Crimson are up for grabs, and you are friends with both of them. I say we try a temporary alliance to get rid of Scarlett." Harold finished his strategy while eyeing Sam.
Sam, feeling pressured, broke away from his friend and went ahead. "Sorry, let me think about it…"
Sam - Confessional (6)
"Is it really OK to go after Scarlett like this…?" Sam contemplated what his friend said. "Scarlett's still a member of our team…"
Sam - Confessional - End (6)
Back with the Gophers, Alejandro appeared talking with both Sammy and Shawn, who had decided to stick around the cheerleader because of his previous comment.
"I assume we won't be given any sort of food, so we'll have to rely on our hunting and foraging skills." The casanova started. "I mean this because people like Bridgette may not want to eat any of the animals we hunt, so they can't spend the night with their stomach empty, lest they wake up worn down," Alejandro explained his train of thoughts while leading the group.
"Oh, that's true. Bridgette is vegetarian…" Sammy spoke with realization. "Good thinking, Alejandro!" Sammy smiled toward the casanova, who shot her a smile back but proceeded forward.
"I have some experience hunting, so if we can find a stream, I bet I can get us some bass or something." Shawn declared, pointing to himself. "Of course, two people hunting together is probably for the best." Alejandro nodded and replied.
"I concur. I'll accompany you, my friend. We'll come back with plentiful bounty." The Latino then turned to Sammy. "And as for foraging, do you believe you could do that?" He asked but then lowered his voice so only the three of them could hear him. "I'd ask Amy, but I fear she wouldn't be able to separate a berry from a pebble." He smirked as the two teens laughed at that.
"Yeah, I'll go look for some berries, I'll ask if Kitty or Bridgette wanna come with me." Sammy smiled as their plans were being formed.
Amy, who was trailing behind, could only fume at the scene.
Amy - Confessional (7)
"Seriously? Ugh, Sammy always tries to take what's mine, and she's trying to do that with Alejandro too!" The cheerleader shrill's voice rang through. "Well, she better watch her back!" Despite the hypocrisy, Amy was sure to get back at her sister.
Amy - Confessional - End (7)
The scene showed the Killer Bass finally coming near the campsite. Scarlett sighed, finally able to rest her legs. "All right, Bass. We've reached our destination." She addressed her team, all of who were tired from the trek, but still perked up at her voice. "I say we divide ourselves into different groups, assign each group a task and then reunite," Scarlett stated. "Does anyone have any objection?"
The campers looked between themselves but knew her plan was logical, which prompted her to carry on.
"Seems like that's a 'no', then." The redhead contained herself, knowing she couldn't overstep. "We have to: hunt an animal for protein, forage for sustenance, mount the tent and find water to then purify it. My group can be responsible for the water. Please divide among each other your tasks and groups." Scarlett fixed her glasses and then turned to Tammy, much to the surprise of the team. "Would you like to come with me, Tammy?"
Tammy looked surprised but nodded anyway. Courtney raised her hand. "May I come, too?"
Scarlett looked back at her with a cryptic look but shook her head. "Don't worry, Courtney. We're only looking for some water, I'm sure you can help with some other matter while we're gone." Shocked at being dismissed, Courtney could only watch the duo as they retreated into the woods.
Courtney - Confessional (6)
"What was that?" Courtney asked. "Scarlett and I always do things together, and sure, I was worried she was too harsh, but going with Tammy? She didn't even like Tammy! What is going on?" Courtney exclaimed, baffled at the scenes that occurred.
Courtney - Confessional - End (6)
Scarlett - Confessional (12)
"I have been paying more attention to my surroundings, and like I said: Courtney can become a threat." Scarlett declared. "So, in order to prevent this threat from growing, I should do some internal managing, which involves finding new allies. Tammy, here, is the perfect example of someone who's just thirsty for a chance to win." The brainiac smirked at the camera. "She'll be much easier to remediate once we reach the merge, whereas Courtney would thrive on individual challenges. And threats must be annihilated." She coldly declared.
Scarlett - Confessional - End (12)
"Well, uh, Courtney?" Cameron shook the C.I.T., who was still astonished. "We should decide what we have to do next." He informed her. "We have seven people and three tasks. Maybe we should the group organize itself…" Courtney nodded and addressed the rest of her teammates.
"Right, so, anyone has any preference for what they have to do? We should have another two duos and a trio." Courtney supplied. Devin and Geoff high-fived, while Harold tried to smile at Sam, who looked away.
"Uh, Devin, can I come with you two?" Sam asked while rubbing his head, avoiding Harold's questioning look on the back of his head. The jocks looked at him and grinned.
"Yeah, dude! Of course!" Geoff hugged him sideways and flagged Courtney. "Hey, Court! The three of us can go hunt something!" Courtney nodded while turning to Cameron.
"Well, it's the two of us, Crimson and Harold. Wanna come set the tent?" She asked with a hopeful smile. Cameron nodded at her and they went to the remaining two campers. "So, Cameron and I have decided to set the tent, which leaves the two of you to go forage us some berries. Can we count on you to do that?" Courtney asked.
Crimson stared at her, not saying a word, but Harold briefly nodded and turned his back to her. "Crimson, do you wanna come?" He asked her, who didn't verbally respond but followed him.
"At least there were no arguments…" Cameron muttered as the two went to set their tent.
Back with the Gophers, things were sailing as smoothly as they wished for. Alejandro and Shawn had gone off to fish for their dinner, Sammy and Bridgette went foraging while Brick had been told by Alejandro to set the tent with Kitty and Trent's help. Amy was happily filing her nails as she waited for the remaining campers to come back. Mickey, however, had not been seen for a while.
As Brick finished his side of the tent, he went to make a headcount. Quickly noticing Mickey was missing, she turned to the only person that wasn't busy at the time. "Amy, have you seen Mickey? I was too busy setting the tent and didn't see him leave." The soldier asked the cheerleader, who looked up.
"I think he said he was gonna use the bathroom or something, I don't know, I didn't pay attention," Amy replied with a carefree smile on her face, going back to filing her nails. Brick grunted at that.
"I think this soldier could stand to be a little bit more observing, no?" Brick asked Amy while raising his brow. Amy rolled her eyes but knew she couldn't be too overtly mean again.
"Fine, I'll keep an eye out for him in case he comes back, and say you were looking for him. Happy?" Amy asked with a neutral tone. Brick smiled at her attitude and saluted while stalking off to see if Kitty and Trent needed any help.
Brick - Confessional (5)
"I'm glad Alejandro has been putting some sense into Amy's head! She came to the camp with a nasty attitude, but she's been acting better… Well, aside from her remark toward LeShawna last episode… But still!" Brick tried to remain optimistic, but failed to convince the audience.
Brick - Confessional - End (7)
The camera then panned to Mickey, who had finally gotten back from his bathroom trip. "Next time, I have to remember to bring those dual sheet toilet papers, in case we have another challenge in the woods…" He muttered to himself as he came near the campfire.
Amy looked up and noticed he was back. "Oh, it's you. Everyone else went to do something for the challenge, so sit down and don't wander off." She remarked while moving her eyes back to the fire. Mickey nodded but went toward the tent.
Trent and Kitty, who were somewhat apart and silently finishing their side of the tent, noticed Mickey's approach. "Hey, dude, good to see you around," Trent said with a soft smile, and Kitty smiled a little at him, but otherwise went back to her chore. "Brick was looking for you, he's by the other side of the camp." Trent directed him with a nod of his head. Mickey thanked him and left the two of them to converse.
"So… Are you OK, Kitty?" Trent asked as the silence had become too much to bear. Kitty sighed but slightly shook her head. "I'm always here in case you wanna talk to someone, you know? Sammy, Bridgette, and I all care about you, and LeShawna did too." Trent informed her with a smile.
Kitty turned to look at him, guilty ridden on her face. "I think we made a mistake, Trent… We didn't even let her explain herself…" Kitty admitted, but despite wanting to cry, she knew she had cried far too much the past few days.
"Kitty…" Trent dropped his hammer and came near her, hugging her and letting her sob at his shoulders. "You gotta remember you weren't the one who eliminated her, she said a bunch of things we didn't agree with, and so we voted her off at the heat of the moment… That doesn't mean she wasn't our friend, though." Trent tried his best to alleviate the situation, but it was clear Kitty just needed to let it out.
Trent - Confessional (5)
"I really feel bad for Kitty right now, but she gotta understand LeShawna was still at fault," Trent said with a frown. "Even then, someone went out of their way to record her confessional, which is really fishy."
Trent - Confessional - End (5)
"I… I know. I still feel bad." As she cried, Trent hugged her firmer, but their moment wasn't private enough. Amy was watching from behind the tent, smirking slightly at the scene.
Kitty - Confessional (8)
"I really appreciate Trent's behavior these days…" She sniffed a bit but looked up with a small smile. "I'm glad I've met him."
Amy - Confessional (8)
"Seems like Alejandro's plans came to fruition, which means my plan should have a chance to shine too." She smirked sinisterly. "Oh, Sammy… You'll get your comeuppance soon…"
Amy - Confessional - End (8)
"Thank you, Trent…" She smiled at him as they both finished setting the tent and went to snuggle near the campfire.
The next shot showed Scarlett and Tammy, who had apparently found a pail in the campfire, and were now looking for the river nearby. Tammy decided to strike up a conversation.
"Scarlett, I have to say. The way you've been acting lately is nothing short of surprising, and I mean the good kind!" She declared while lightly clapping her hands together. "Some of our teammates were a bit apprehensive about the way you and Courtney were bossing us around, myself included, so I'm glad to see we were proven wrong!" Tammy continued with glee in her eyes.
Immediately, an idea started to formulate inside Scarlett's head, so of course she put it into action. "I agree. I tried to tell Courtney we needed to be more understanding, but she was the one who insisted on us taking the reigns!" Scarlett declared, exaggerating her gestures as she went. "It took some time, but Cameron and I managed to talk sense into Courtney." Scarlett finished with a carefully constructed facade.
Tammy made a gasping noise at that, suddenly the new information made a lot of sense to her. "I was not aware you were trying to do the opposite! That's very nice of you, Scarlett!" Tammy expressed her gratitude by reaching into her pocket, but then she recalled her broken instrument and retracted her hand meekly.
Soon, they both arrived at the small stream and quickly began to scoop some water. "Don't worry," Scarlett said midway through the process. "My only concern is… well…" She feigned uncertainty. "I just fear Courtney is planning something behind our backs, you know?" Scarlett said with a guilty look on her face. "She sometimes… she began to speak about how some of our teammates weren't being useful enough. She sounded callous…" The brainiac remarked and turned from the LARPer, smirking at the worry seed planted.
Tammy looked down after hearing that. "That's sad to hear…" And before they knew it, they both turned and began to make their way back.
Tammy - Confessional (7)
Tammy was seated at the outhouse with a shocked look on her face. "I can't believe Courtney was doing something like that… I knew she was competitive, but going this far?"
Tammy - Confessional - End (7)
Scarlett - Confessional (13)
"As I had mentioned previously, Courtney will need to leave at some point, but not quite yet. She's a valuable asset, but it's never a bad thing to plant the seed of doubt in people's heads." Scarlett declared with a cold smirk. "Then, when I feel she's exhausted her usefulness, it's much easier to get rid of her."
Scarlett - Confessional - End (13)
As the Gophers were mostly back, with the exception of Alejandro and Shawn, some of them began to chat in a circle. "So… Are we gonna talk about what that fiasco with LeShawna was?" Amy said with the most neutrality she could muster, holding back a smirk.
"What's there to talk about anymore?" Trent asked from beside Kitty. "She said some messed up things about us, we disliked and then we voted her off. Isn't that enough?"
Amy pursed her lips but carried on anyway. "Well, we gotta wonder how that recording ended up in Kitty's phone, and she played it after we lost the challenge." Amy started as if it was only small talk. "Gotta say, that was pretty crafty of you, Kitty." She turned to look at the pigtail girl, who tried her best to avoid the subject.
Trent - Confessional (6)
Trent appeared in the outhouse with a glare. "Seriously? Can Amy chill for even a second? I wonder how Sammy even deals with her on a daily basis, for all her life!" Trent exclaimed.
Trent - Confessional - End (6)
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Bridgette asked taking a stance against Amy.
Before Amy could reply, Mickey was the one who spoke up next. "W-well… It was pretty strange." Much to the shock of his teammates, he seemingly agreed with Amy. "N-not that I think she did it on purpose, but… Who else would have access to Kitty's phone?"
Sammy spoke up next. "It's not like Kitty even had her phone with her for a while. Remember she had to part with it for the Awake-A-Thon?" Sammy asked, hoping to refresh her teammates' memories.
Amy scoffed at her, unsurprisingly. "Oh, please, Samey. Do you really take us for fools? She could have easily hidden her phone to fabricate an alibi for herself and pin the blame on others." Amy explained as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "Not that I blame her, her plan did end up working just fine." She then smirked maliciously.
Kitty, who had only so recently gotten better from her stasis, broke down again at the accusations. "LeShawna was my friend… I wouldn't have set this trap…!" As she cried even louder, Bridgette, Sammy, and Trent all glared at Amy, who simply shrugged at them.
"Seriously?!" Bridgette exclaimed with a frown. "Why are you playing the blame game, Amy? What do you gain from this?"
Before it escalated even further, Alejandro and Shawn finally came back with some trout tied together and pails of water. "Uh, are we interrupting something?" Shawn asked, raising an eyebrow at the scene.
Brick, who had stayed mostly silent up until now, finally spoke up. "We should really focus on completing the challenge… Waking up famished and tired will lag us behind the other team…" Bridgette glared at Amy, who simply shot a smirk toward the other blonde, but otherwise remained silent.
Bridgette - Confessional (7)
"I normally don't like saying this, but Amy is starting to piss me off!" Bridgette exclaimed. "What was that for? She saw how devastated Kitty was, so why would she suggest that? Is she gaining something from behind cruel like that?" Bridgette fumed, clearly pissed at how Amy was behaving.
Bridgette - Confessional - End (7)
"Glad to see you've worked it out, Brick." Alejandro smiled at the soldier while presenting them with the fish. "Sammy, can you show us where the berries are?" Sammy nodded and got up to retrieve the foraged berries.
Alejandro then shot a questioning expression toward Amy, who winked at him and smiled, going back to filing her nails.
Alejandro - Confessional (8)
"That girl… She's seriously playing with fire." Alejandro tutted at the cheerleader's behavior. "It's kinda hot, I gotta admit, but she has to play her cards more safely." He said with a raised eyebrow. "Just because I developed a plan to eliminate LeShawna, doesn't mean I can suddenly save her from being eliminated, not when she's putting a target on her back every other day."
Alejandro - Confessional - End (8)
Back with the Bass, Sam, Geoff, and Devin had managed to find a small rabbit, so it was decided they were to head back after that. Devin and Geoff who were mostly joking around had noticed Sam's quietness and decided to inquire about him. "Dude, are you OK?" Devin asked.
Sam slowly shook his head but spoke soon after. "It's just something that Harold had told me… He said he wanted to form an alliance to get rid of Scarlett…" Sam confessed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I think he's being hasty. Scarlett isn't that bad… right?"
Devin and Geoff exchanged looks but reassured him all the same. "Well, I've had a few chats with her, and she's very intense, but I don't think she needs to be cut," Geoff admitted.
"I personally wouldn't mind seeing her leave, but doesn't it seem like he has a personal vendetta against her?" Devin asked. "Well, she did something I disliked, but she wasn't wrong, per sé."
Devin - Confessional (6)
"Well… I did lie a little bit to them. I'm still mad at her for threatening to kick me off, but I don't wanna make it seem like she was right, so I'm mostly keeping it hidden." Devin said awkwardly. "Not that I'm trying to be fake or anything!" He hurriedly added.
Devin - Confessional - End (6)
"Oh… He wanted me to convince you two to vote her off, but I don't think I wanna do that." Sam confessed. "I guess I'm just not focused on the game that much."
"Hey, man. Nothing wrong with being chill! Look at me, I'm chill too and I haven't had that much trouble." Geoff said with a big smile, trying to cheer his friend. "I even managed to become friends with one of the Gophers, and Devin is even super~ close to another one. There's no problem in taking things at your own pace, you know?"
Sam looked up, smiling at the new perspective brought by the surfer. "Yeah, you're right. Maybe I should just do things at my own pace." Sam then shot a smile toward the two. "I'm glad you guys are cool, normally jocks were jerks from where I come from, hehe."
Sam - Confessional (7)
"Man, I'm glad these guys were willing to listen. I'm just glad they're understanding. Maybe I should talk to Harold directly next." Sam declared with a slight frown. "I like him, but I don't want to be like that so soon…!" Sam exclaimed.
Sam - Confessional - End (7)
As they finally returned, Courtney quickly began to prepare the fish with Harold's help, since he apparently had won a badge for gutting fish…? Courtney preferred not to get into too much detail, but she accepted the help either way. Once all Bass were present, the conversation came and went, flowing naturally since they knew they had to stay optimal.
Crimson, however, had called Tammy, wishing to talk to her. As the two went to a more secluded spot, Scarlett noticed the two gone, but did nothing more than purse her lips.
"Yes, Crimson?" Tammy asked in slight confusion, wondering what kind of subject the goth couldn't speak about in public.
"What has Scarlett told you?" Crimson went directly to the point, making Tammy widen her eyes a bit.
"Uh, well, it was a private conversation…" Tammy said nervously. Crimson stared at her intensely but gave her a warning either way.
"Listen to me: Scarlett is not to be trusted. She got Dawn voted off because she had caught on to her plan, so I recommend you watch your back near her. That is all." Crimson said and began to walk away. "Do it before it's too late…"
Crimson - Confessional (7)
"Despite Scarlett's actions, I know I can't simply spew out these accusations. Her loyal army of subordinates would vote me off faster than I could imagine." Crimson spoke. "I need to make sure the others know what they're dealing with, in case I don't stay for too long."
Crimson - Confessional - End (7)
After the trouts and berries were prepared and shared, most campers were retiring inside the tent, ready to hit the sack. Mickey, however, had stayed awake for a bit longer, marinating Brick's words in his head.
"And if anything bad happens, I'm sure you'd be able to handle it by yourself, but calling for help is never a bad thing!"
"Does that mean they see me as some sort of liability? That I can't do things by myself…" Mickey lowered his head as he came to the unfortunate conclusion. Noticing he was the only one awake, he then put out the flames, lest some accident happened while they were sleeping. As he trudged inside the tent, he failed to throw away the remaining trout, which could only lead to one thing. Wild animals abound.
Luckily, the tent Chris had given them was big enough that they didn't need to stay right next to each other, but Trent and Kitty still decided to cuddle a bit, mostly for the latter's peace of mind.
Some of the campers tossed and turned, but one, in particular, couldn't sleep at all.
Mickey - Confessional (8)
"I won't let them think I'm some sort of liability!" Mickey declared with finality. "I need to prove to them I can do more than just stay awake for twenty-four hours straight!"
Mickey - Confessional - End (8)
Soon, they heard a light drizzle begin to hit the tent, said drizzle then became a downpour, waking up the Gophers. Shawn, who had begrudgingly agreed to sleep inside, was the first to speak up.
"Wait, did anyone ever throw away the fish?" Some of his teammates looked at each other and shook their heads. "Oh crap! There are wild animals in the forest, some of them can be led here by the smell of cooked fish!" And before any of them could react, loud steps came from outside the tent, confirming their worst fear.
Alejandro briefly opened the flap of the tent, and the Gophers could see a huge grizzly bear sitting down next to the fish by the campfire, sniffing and biting into the remains. "I fear we may have some company…"
Shawn - Confessional (6)
"Seriously? The one time I agree on sleeping inside a freaking bear shows up?!" Shawn exclaimed in surprise.
Shawn - Confessional - End (6)
"Shawn… What was that about being easy getting rid of bears…?" Sammy asked the zombie aficionado, fear present in her eyes. "Can you show us, please?"
Some of the other campers turned to look at Shawn, expecting him to come up with an answer, but all he could do was slightly shrug and avoid looking at them. "Well, this isn't exactly how I had predicted this would happen, but while the bear is distracted we could hatch a plan." He spoke toward his teammates, who all exchanged uneasy looks.
Back with the Bass, the rain seemed to be pouring even harder on their side, but luckily they had a big tree nearby, so it offered some protection.
"Great, all we needed was the rain falling down. What's next? Thundering?!" Courtney exclaimed from where she was laying. As if on cue, thunder was heard across the camp, which made Courtney facepalm.
Courtney - Confessional (8)
"Seriously?" Courtney asked with a deadpan look.
Courtney - Confessional - End (8)
"It has barely rained during the last few weeks, strange how it only rained when we had an outdoor challenge like this…" Cameron stated.
"I'd say Chris is doing this on purpose, but I don't think even he can mess with the weather." Geoff joked, receiving some laughs from the group. "Let's just hope the tent holds up nicely."
"It should unless Courtney and Cameron didn't do their jobs properly," Scarlett stated from her corner but added up subsequently so as to not sound too harsh. "I still trust them, I don't think they'd do a half-cocked job." She spoke with a small smirk, despite not being seen by anyone else.
Cameron - Confessional (7)
"Was that a compliment?" Cameron asked while thinking to himself. "Knowing Scarlett, that was one of the closest things she could say…"
Cameron - Confessional - End (7)
"I can assure you, the tent will hold just fine-" Before Courtney could finish, lightning stroked directly against the tent itself, luckily not hitting anyone who was inside, but burning it down to a crisp. Courtney looked shocked about the outcome but spoke anyway. "I'll shut up now."
As the Bass all glowered due to the outcome, it began to pour down even harder, which made them scramble to secure the map before it got too wet. "We can't spend the night here, we need to find somewhere else!" Devin shouted to his team while they tried their best to stay dry.
Scarlett, who had taken off her sweater to envelop the map and compass, agreed and shouted back. "Let's look for a cave, there's a chance there's one nearby. All we need to do is scare off any animal that potentially lives inside!" Some of her teammates looked scared at the prospect, knowing damn well Chris had let bears roam around the woods. "Oh, please. As if there are any bears on this island! Let's go!"
As she shouted, the Bass all began running toward the closest dry spot they could hopefully find, and luckily it didn't take long for them to find a cave.
Back with the Gophers, Shawn had explained his plant to his teammates. They would pick up their things and silently scurry back while someone else made noise on the opposite side. "Since I came up with the plan, I guess I'll be the distraction, I'll probably climb a tree or something, just make sure you find a decent place to stay." Shawn gulped at his own words.
Shawn - Confessional (7)
"Why did I say that bears wouldn't be a problem?" Shawn asked while pulling his toque down. "Of course, they'd appear after I said that! I jinxed the team!
Shawn - Confessional - End (7)
"Are you sure, amigo?" Alejandro asked. "That's a pretty big risk you're putting yourself in."
Shawn solemnly nodded but decided to carry on. "It's my plan as I said. I can't ask any of you to do that…!" However, someone else spoke up.
"I'll do it," Mickey said with confidence. Most of his teammates looked at him like he had grown a second head. "I'm tired of being scared of everything, so I'll play bait as you guys run for safety." Despite his words, it was clear the idea hadn't completely removed Mickey's sense of fear.
"Mickey, you really don't have to do this, you know?" Brick asked from behind him. "How about we let someone more athletic like Shawn do it?" Despite his tonality, all Mickey could understand was that he was being called weak.
"No, I'll do it! If I don't do this, you all will keep thinking I'm weak!" Mickey shouted, which made the nearby bear turn around for a bit but otherwise go back to eating the fish.
The Gophers all looked at each other, not sure what to tell him. They couldn't deny, he was one of the physically weakest campers, but most of them never really thought of him as expandable or a liability.
"Mickey, are you sure you wanna do this? You don't have to prove anything to anyone, you know?" Kitty asked from beside Trent. "We'd hate if something were to happen to you…" Mickey shook his head but steeled himself.
"I suggest you guys pick up the necessary things and run, I'll signal you!" And before anyone could protest, he had taken off toward the other side, where the bear could see him. "HEY, YOU STUPID BEAR! COME GET ME IF YOU CAN!" Wisely, Mickey took off even deeper into the woods. The bear soon gave chase, almost as if it understood what Mickey said.
His teammates looked between each other but knew they could do nothing to stop him, so they grabbed their things and went to someplace else before the bear returned.
Trent - Confessional (7)
"What just happened?" Trent asked with a horrified expression. "Who put that idea in Mickey's head even?"
Trent - Confessional - End (7)
Sammy - Confessional (9)
"O.M.G.!" Sammy exclaimed. "Why did Mickey suddenly run off?"
Sammy - Confessional - End (9)
Brick - Confessional (6)
"Did Mickey offer himself as the bait because of what I said…?" Realization slowly downed on Brick, who would have to burden the guilt of his own words in case anything happened to Mickey. "My God, what have I done?!"
Brick - Confessional - End (6)
"C'mon, let's go search for a grotto or something!" Amy shouted as she tried her best to not trip with heeled boots. Suddenly, they heard thunder strike down. Some of the campers screamed, and in the confusion, they took a turn in the wrong direction, sending them further into the forest. As they ran for a while, someone finally pointed at something.
"Wait, I see something ahead!" Alejandro shouted over the downpour. Slowing down ever so slightly, the Screaming Gophers managed to find the Killer Bass' charred tent, but none of them were in sight. "Dios mío…" Alejandro murmured as they stopped near the remains.
"Wait, was this where the lightning struck?!" Trent asked, flabbergasted by the idea of being hit by it. "Does this mean someone could be hurt?"
Brick then replied while still shielding away some of the instruments. "Let's hope not and look for a dry place to rest, lest we wanna risk being struck too!" Following the new discovery, they took off once again, unknowingly running in the same direction the Bass ran.
The camera then panned to somehow show Mickey, who was being relentlessly chased by the bear, screaming for his dear life.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" His headgear was already smeared with mud from a previous stumble he took, his hair was partially covering his vision due to being wet from the rain and he almost sagged due to the weight of his damp clothes. The bear was slowly catching up on him, which left Mickey no choice but to run as fast as his asthma allowed.
Mickey - Confessional (9)
"Why did I ever think running away from a grizzly bear was a good idea?!" Mickey shouted from inside the outhouse, looking like he had just run away from the bear. Before he could continue, a loud growl came from outside the outhouse, and the building was shaken, implying the bear had waited for Mickey to enter. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" As he screamed, the camera cut to black.
Mickey - Confessional - End (9)
Back with the Bass, they were shown finally having found a place to settle down while the sky relentlessly poured on them. Most of them were dead tired from such activity, while some others were just shocked from almost being hit by the lightning.
"Well… At least we found a place to stay for the night…" Cameron commented. "I guess it beats staying in the rain…"
Crimson, who was seated beside him, replied. "Do you think the Gophers were hit by lightning too?" Cameron's eyes widened while he hastily shook his head.
"No! I don't even wanna think about it!" He shouted, drawing some slight glares from his tired teammates. "Sorry…" He sheepishly said. "Matter of fact, I hope nothing happened to them…"
Courtney, who was drying her hair with her hands commented from nearby. "Being entirely honest? Our chances of winning this challenge aren't exactly high, so for one, I hope something has happened to them." She barked out at no one in particular.
Some of her teammates looked at her worriedly but made no comments.
Geoff - Confessional (6)
"That's not cool, brah," Geoff said with a frown.
Geoff - Confessional - End (6)
"That's not cool, brah," Geoff said with a frown. "Something bad could have happened to them, you know?"
Tammy nodded and added. "Yeah, it's one thing to want to win, it's another thing to wish harm on the other team." She scolded the C.I.T., who was slowly realizing what she said was out of line.
"Well… I didn't mean it like that…! It was…" Courtney tried to defend herself, but Scarlett interrupted her.
"We get what you meant, Courtney, but that doesn't mean it sounded any better." Scarlett raised an eyebrow at her friend. "Their safety shouldn't come after our victory." She said with faux sympathy.
Internally, the redhead smirked at her cornered friend.
All Courtney could do was sit back and wait until the challenge was over and done with.
Courtney - Confessional (9)
"Is it just me, or are things looking really bad right now?" Courtney asked with a nervous expression. "I just wish Scarlett didn't add fuel to the fire…"
Courtney - Confessional - End (9)
On the other side of the cave, Devin was pacing back and forth, clearly worried. He kept muttering something to himself, which made Sam and Geoff both exchange looks.
"Uh, Devin, you good?" Geoff asked tentatively. When that didn't catch his friend's attention, he got up and stopped him. "YO! Earth to Devin!" His friend finally looked at him and shook his head.
"Sorry, I'm just worried."
"We can tell," Sam said from the floor. "Are you worried about Sammy?" He asked.
Devin made a pained face but nodded. "Not just her, but I can't lie and say I'm not worried specifically more about her." He said and turned to look at them. "What if something bad happened? What if their team got chased by a bear? What if-" Geoff clamped a hand over his friend's mouth and shook his head.
"Dude, we don't know, and you're not helping yourself by being stressed. I'm worried about the Gophers and Bridgette, too, but I trust they can take care of themselves and get to safety." The blonde said with a slight frown.
"Yeah, even if a bear did find them, they'd still be safe if sticking together," Sam said with a small smile. "Let's just hope they're all right and-" As Sam was giving a slight pep talk, all Bass members heard a battalion of footsteps nearby, followed by the cries of relief from the same campers were talking about just now.
"Look! A cave!" They heard a girl's voice shout and said footsteps ran toward their hiding spot.
Lo and behold, most Gophers came inside the cave, completely drenched from the downpour and tired from running for so long. It took a while for anyone to say something, given the fact they were supposed to be away from each other for the entire challenge.
When Sammy looked up, she noticed all of the Bass staring at them. "Wait, what?!" She raised her voice, drawing the attention of all campers. Once the sight was clear, they all gasped at the scene.
Devin - Confessional (7)
"She's fine!" The jock said full of ecstasy. "Oh thank God! I was imagining the worst!" He cried in relief but quickly recomposed himself. "I'm glad all of them are safe, actually."
Devin - Confessional - End(7)
"Wait a minute. How come you guys came here?" Scarlett asked from where she was sitting. "As far as I know, your campsite was in the other direction, so how come you guys ended up here?"
Some of the Gophers looked between themselves, but none was able to respond to the inquiry.
"I guess running for so long on the rain warped our sense of direction. We also heard the thunder so in the confusion we probably took the wrong route." Bridgette said from her group. "I guess we really went the wrong way…"
Harold noticed the amount of Gophers present and asked them. "Wait, why are there only eight of you? Aren't you missing someone?" He asked, which made all Bass look at them too, wondering where the missing person went.
"Don't tell me they got eaten by a bear…!" Crimson said from behind but was promptly ignored.
Brick, ashamed of what happened before, stepped up. "Mickey he… he decided to act as bait. A bear found our campsite and we had to run away without raising its attention." The soldier said, clenching his fists. "If only… If only I hadn't spoken to him…!"
Courtney gasped, realizing what she had said had become true.
"So… What do we do from here?" Harold asked from his place. "How do we proceed?" Some of the campers exchanged uneasy looks. "I hate to be that guy, but this is still a challenge…"
Tammy turned to him. "Yes, but there is not much we can do. We can't physically kick them out, and I doubt any of us would be callous enough to send them back into the bear-ridden downpour out there." She said with a frown.
The campers unanimously agreed in letting the Gophers stay, as they had to spend the rest of the night together and wait for the rain to stop. Some of them were more than fine with chatting away with people they were fond of. Shawn and Harold, Bridgette and Geoff, Sammy and Devin, and so on.
Scarlett took that opportunity to do some… networking. She approached a tired Alejandro and made some motion for him to follow her discreetly. He carefully raised an eyebrow, but followed her, leaving Amy to fend for warmth for herself.
"May I help you… Scarlett?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, but still whispering so their conversation wasn't heard.
"Yes. In fact, you can." She replied with a small smirk. "Impressive work last challenge. I must admit, it takes some craftiness to get a player like LeShawna voted off."
Alejandro had to contain himself so his expression didn't give away. "I'm… sorry? I don't follow. LeShawna was voted off for talking behind our backs, not because of my meddling." Despite his serious attempt at fooling the brainiac, she was not having it.
"Drop the act. I know you and that cheerleader, Amy, were involved in that." She declared coldly, still carefully maintaining her voice low enough that only they could hear. "I saw how you were awfully content about seeing the scene play out, and given Kitty's reaction was genuine, it's obvious you both set up the trap and got LeShawna voted off."
Alejandro - Confessional (9)
"What?! How does she know? I thought I would only need to care about my own teammates finding out!" He declared angrily. "Her knowing could throw a wrench on my plans!"
Alejandro - Confessional - End (9)
Alejandro's eye finally twitched a little but he conceded. "Fine. We did plan that, and got her voted off." He continued. "But what of that? Is this some sort of blackmail?" He asked suspiciously.
Scarlett rolled her eyes but explained her plan. "No, I have no use for blackmailing you. However, what you did does intrigue me." She said with a smile. "It doesn't hurt to have someone as ingenious as you on my side."
Alejandro, surprised at what she said, raised an eyebrow. "'Your side'? Elaborate, please."
"Simple." She said with a huff. "How about we form a hidden alliance?" She offered with a calculated voice. "It'd do well for the both of us if we knew of each other's threats before the merge eventually arrives, and we'd be securing our place as being some of the smartest campers on the island."
Alejandro thought for a while, but he eventually smirked. "I see your point." He shook her hand. "It's a deal, but only the two of us."
"What about your bimbo girlfriend?" Scarlett sneered at the blonde. The Latino shook his head.
"Amy has too much going on for her to truly be an ally. She'll be a useful vote, but I don't plan on her sticking around for too long." Scarlett smirked and shook his hand back.
Scarlett - Confessional (14)
"Was I being serious with all I said? Partially. I would like to know all about the other team's weak points to explore them to my advantage, but that doesn't mean I'll trust him entirely."
Scarlett - Confessional - End (14)
Alejandro - Confessional (10)
"A second alliance, aye?" He rubbed his chin. "Scarlett may think she has me fooled, but I will be the one laughing in the end. I'll play along, it's good to have a backup plan in case things go awry."
Alejandro - Confessional - End (14)
As quite some time had passed when all of the events began to happen, the campers could hear birds chirping away and the sun was starting to rise again. They all went outside after the rain finally stopped and marveled at the scene. After the most intense rainfall, the most beautiful sun was starting to rise, which left the campers primarily speechless.
It was only after someone coughed that they realized the day had begun, which in turn made them focus again on the challenge. Courtney was the first one to start running and shouting at her team. "Let's go! We have the challenge to win!" And just like that, all campers took off in the same direction, hoping to not be the cause of the team's loss.
After a long time, Chris was shown standing near the campgrounds, holding a megaphone in his hand and smiling as wide as he could. "Man, these campers had it rough! There were all kinds of misfortunes happening left and right, I can't wait to see their faces, haha!" He laughed at the prospect. "Oh, and here they come!"
Some of the most agile campers amongst all 17 were leading the pack. Alejandro, Brick, Devin, Geoff, Shawn, Courtney, Sammy, and Bridgette all arrived first, with some of the others coming afterward.
The next batch of campers to arrive were Trent, Scarlett, and Kitty. Tammy and Harold trailed behind them, while the remaining ones fought to arrive before the others.
It was only when Amy crossed the campgrounds before Crimson, Cameron, and Sam that the Gophers all cheered.
"We've won! We've won!" Kitty cheered as they were seemingly safe from elimination. The remaining Bass arrived and had to take a breather from running so much, while their teammates all looked downcast.
"Uh-uh! Wait a minute!" Chris blared out. "Aren't you forgetting someone? A certain incident-inclined twig?" He asked sardonically.
Brick then clamped his hands against his head and shouted. "Mickey! We forgot about him!"
"Wait, does that mean that we've won?!" Courtney asked from her group.
Chris nodded and commended them. "The Killer Bass are the winners of this challenge!" As they all cheered, he turned to the Gophers. "Gophers, one of your fluffy tails is gonna be sent home tonight! We need Chef to locate Mickey and bring him here!" As the camera panned, Chef was shown looking bewildered.
"Uh… Chris, man! You gotta come to check this out!" A smile left Chirs' face as the campers went to see what Chef was referring to. As they approached, they all saw Mickey had been mauled by the bear, and seemed to be hanging on for (literal) dear life.
"Ow…" Was all he could mutter, as Chef dragged him to the infirmary.
"Hehe…" Chris nervously laughed as the campers all looked uneasily at each other. "I do know there were bears, but I wasn't sure they'd be after you guys… Anyway! As Mickey is being treated, Killer Bass! You're all going on an all-expense-paid trip to… The tuck shop!"
And just like that, all Killer Bass cheered and ran toward the supposed tuck shop, leaving the Gophers to look mildly annoyed, but deeply bothered by their yet again loss.
Shawn - Confessional (8)
"I know this is something bad to think… But man, do I wish one of the Bass got mauled so we could be eating that stuff."
Shawn - Confessional - End (8)
Brick - Confessional (7)
"I've let down my team! I let Mickey be mauled by a bear because I put ideas in his head!" Brick cried as he sat in the outhouse. "I'm a disgrace to my team, my battalion and I deserve to be voted off!"
Brick - Confessional (6)
The shot then panned to show all Screaming Gophers sitting on the stumps, whereas Mickey was wheelchair-bound and covered in bandages. Chris had a plate with eight marshmallows in front of him.
"Campers, you've all cast your votes. The camper who does not receive a marshmallow must immediately hit the dock of shame, grab the boat of losers and get the hell out of here! And you can't come back ever!" Chris emphasized. "Now, I can see you're all tired, so tonight I'll just throw them to you," Chris said expressing the littlest amount of sympathy.
"Amy!"
"Bridgette!"
"Shawn!"
"Kitty!"
"Sammy!"
"Alejandro!"
"Trent!"
With each thrown marshmallow, the campers sighed in relief. Brick was starting to get more nervous as the names were being called.
"Mickey, Brick, you've both received votes tonight. Mickey, you were, well, mauled by a bear! So I'm guessing these votes were done to spare you the pain of staying, given you won't be exactly useful! And Brick, I'm not even sure why you received votes, dude!" Chris said with a raised eyebrow. "Either way, the last camper to be safe is…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
Suddenly, Brick jumped from his stump and cried out. "It's OK! I accept my peers chose to vote me off for betraying them!" The soldier said while crying. "I've failed you all and let Mickey get hurt! I deserve to be eliminated!"
Chris then shushed him. "Dude, shut up! Let me create the tension!" Chris said frowning. "And anyway, you're safe! Mickey, sorry, dude, you're out!"
Without being able to talk, Mickey sighed in relief but slightly nodded as he began being wheeled by an intern to the docks. Brick ran up to him and apologized once again.
"I'm so, so sorry, Mickey! I should have been clear with my speech yesterday! You were strong enough as you were! I hope you can forgive me…" Mickey managed to slightly smile at him and nod, even going as far as to raise his arm as much as he could to salute the soldier.
"At… ease…" But before they could continue, Chef arrived and placed Mickey on the boat, and soon sped off.
Chris then narrated as the boat sped off and Brick kept saluting toward it. "And this concludes yet another episode of Total Drama Island! Stay tuned, because next week we'll have more!"
Cue the ending scenes.
Votes for the ceremony:
Alejandro: "I have to say, I wasn't planning on eliminating him this early, but it can't be helped. I vote for Mickey."
Amy: "So long, Mickey."
Brick: "There's only one person that deserves to be voted off, and that person is me! I vote for Brick, I mean, myself!"
Bridgette: "I wouldn't vote for you, but since you got mauled, I hope you have a fast recovery, Mickey."
Kitty: "That is so sad, but I'm voting for Mickey. I hope he gets better."
Mickey: *Mickey doesn't say anything, he just slightly raises a picture of himself and nods.*
Sammy: "I can't believe he got actually mauled… I'm sorry, Mickey, this is for your own good."
Shawn: "I think he'd prefer if we voted for him so he could rest and heal properly. Sorry, Mickey."
Trent: "I hate to do this, but I'm voting for Mickey. He needs to get checked up by a proper medic."
Brick (1): Brick
Mickey (8): Alejandro, Amy, Bridgette, Kitty, Mickey, Sammy, Shawn, and Trent
Contestants:
Screaming Gophers: Alejandro, Amy, Brick, Bridgette, Kitty, Sammy, Shawn, and Trent (8/11)
Killer Bass: Cameron, Courtney, Crimson, Devin, Geoff, Harold, Sam, Scarlett, and Tammy (9/11)
Rank of Elimination:
18th: Mickey - The Unlucky One
19th: LeShawna - The Sister with 'Tude
20th: Dawn - The Moonchild
21st: Owen - The Funniest Guy Around
22nd: Beth - The Wannabe
Hello friends. Hi. How are you? I hope you're all doing fine.
Let me cut to the chase here. Mickey was never exactly a character that was gonna stick around. I debated several times where to boot him, but this episode presented a perfect chance at removing him out of pity and giving Brick some slight development, given his martyrdom in his debut season. I hope the last scene was fun to read, given I was stuck on how to proceed for the last bit for a while.
It was fun to give him some interactions and highlights this episode, but I don't want you guys to think this is something that will always happen when a character is going to be eliminated LOL. The only reason he received this much attention was due to the need to focus on Mickey and let the fear fester inside.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, it was definitely a doozy to read! Review, favorite, follow or read, I just enjoy knowing you guys gave this fanfic a shot! Ciao!