As Chris introduced the overnight forest camping challenge, I suspected we in the Screaming Gophers would lose. We won the first time because Katie and Sadie stopped to eat some blueberries on the way to the Bass campsite and arrived after our entire team did. I seriously doubt either Anne Maria, or Eva would be dumb enough to leave the group for some berries.

Maybe without Izzy pulling her prank, the real bear would not find us, so we could get a good night's sleep and be on form to race back to the firepit. But I doubted it.

"Oh," Chris added. "And what out for bears. Lost a couple of interns in pre-production,"

At the mention of bears, my hands trembled, my breath shortened, and a ringing started in my ears. In the corner of my eye, I noticed Dawn looking at me with sudden concern.

"First team back for breakfast wins invincibility," Chris announced before blowing the air horn. "Off you go!"

Leshawna held a fraction of the fear I currently felt. "Did he say there are bears up in here?"

"Who needs to worry about bears when we have an Eva?" Duncan said as he pointed a thumb at Eva, who proceeded to pick up a rock and smash it into pebbles over her head.

"I had a little encounter with a bear once." Owen bragged confidently with a pat on his flabby arm. "Let's just say his head looks nice up on my mantle."

Knowing how much of a scaredy cat he would be later, I thought this claim and his future story were made up. That was dispelled when Dawn gasped and glared harshly at Owen. "You monster!"

Thankfully, we found our assigned path relatively high spirits without Izzy to regale her disgusting story. However, the fear of the actual bear encounter loomed in my mind. My hands still shook, and a headache began stinging my forehead.

To distract myself, I looked around at the others. Unlike last time, Gwen and Trent walk together now that Gwen did not become gloomy from having her diary passages revealed. Dave and Ella kept close, and I noticed her animal friends were following at a distance.

The Fairy Tale Princess looked around the woods and sighed. "Usually, the beauty of nature fills me with joy. But I can't enjoy it, not while my heart is still heavy,"

Heather groaned. "Will you just get over Sugar already! It's been a week since she said those things! Why is it still bugging you?"

Dave glared. "Hey, depression is a difficult thing. Ella should have all the time she needs,"

I glanced at Dawn. The moonchild worked at the front with the map and compass and did not notice any of this. But, knowing Dawn, she must have known I was looking at her. She said she would handle the situation with Ella when the time was right, but how long would it be until that happened?

Then a conversation between Heather and Lindsay caught my attention. "I still can't believe you let creepy blonde nature lover get past you, Lindsay. I told you to keep watch,"

"Um, Heather, you only told me to look out for Gwen. And I didn't even know Dawn was in the cabin until you ran you,"

"So what?" Heather said, crossing her arms. "She can teleport? I can't believe that. How did she get into the cabin?"

"I used a shortcut," Dawn replied, catching Heather off guard at having her rant overheard.

Leshawna chuckled. "You are pretty loud, girl,"

About an hour later, we reached the campsite, in a primarily open area of the woods, where different supplies were waiting for them, such as a tent and sleeping bags. Owen put his hands on his hips. "Uh," the Big Party Guy let out nervously. "There's no food here."

Like last time I kept watch by the big tree. Last time I was looking for anything nearby to eat; this time, I watched for bear.

"This is a survival task," Trent reminded Owen as he looked over a piece of paper previously attached to the supplies. "Look at the instructions."

"I wonder if there are any bears around today?" Owen asked with a smile on his face. "Wouldn't it be funny if we made some bear sounds, and then they came?" he started fake roaring. "I'm a bear," he said in a deeper voice.

The ringing in my ears started again, and my headache worsened. "It's no laughing matter!" I snapped, causing Owen to stop and shuffle back.

"Would you please shut up?" Heather yelled. "I'm trying to read here!" the mean girl took the instructions from Trent and looked them over. "It says we're supposed to find our own food," Heather scoffed and looked around the campsite and still saw a complete lack of food. "I still don't see it."

"I think they mean in the woods," Trent pointed out as he pointed towards the woods around them.

I nodded. "This is a survival challenge. So that means we must survive off the things we can find around us, barring the tent and sleeping bags."

"I'll go!" Owen offered as he started walking into the woods. "I'm good at finding food!"

"And eating the food, too," Dave muttered as Owen disappeared into the foliage. He was about to take a step when he looked down and jumped with a shriek. The Germaphobe landed on a low-hanging branch of the main tree. I followed his eye line to the object on the ground. It certainly looked dirty.

Dawn walked over to Ella. "Perhaps we and your animal friends can search for a vegetarian option?" Ella smiled, and the two team nature lovers, with the five woodland critter in tow, went off into the forest.

"Well," Heather sighed. "At least this will be a good week for my diet,"

A nagging feeling tugged at the back of my mind. "I'd better make sure they don't get into trouble," I glanced at the others. "Can someone climb the tree and keep watch,"

Gwen nodded and swiftly clambered up the branches. I kept within visual distance of Gwen and followed Dawn and Ella's trail first. Owen, like before, would go to the river and do some kind of fishing. The girls, on the other hand, were an unknown in this challenge.

Soon I reached a clearing filled with the river flowing through it. Around the banks were brushes filled with berries, cherries, and other fruiting plants. Dawn and Ella were busying themselves by harvesting this bounty.

Then Dawn began a chat, "Now that we are away from less understanding individuals," her eyes darted to me, and I backed away behind a tree. The aura whisper continued, "Your aura screams out in sorrow, and you wear your heart on your sleeve," she took Ella's hand and rubbed it. "Unlike Heather, I understand how those awful words hurt you. Someone you felt a kinship with, someone who performs to impress and entertain others, betrayed your trust and made you doubt your thoughts."

Ella sniffed and brushed a tear away. "I thought Sugar was my friend. Those kind words and sweet songs were meant to comfort her. All for nought. She's always hated me, but why? I don't understand?"

"On the surface level, it is because she found you annoying, combined with her inability to correctly access the situation, her lack of brainpower, and her suspicious nature. However," Dawn sighed. "Sugar's reasons are more profound, perhaps further than she realises. She projects her insecurities onto everyone else, especially you, to make herself feel better."

Ella blinked. "Sugar hates me because she thinks I'm better than her?"

"Not consciously," Dawn explained. "Sugar spent all her life in competitions, most of which she won. But before being accepted on the Total Drama, Sugar never ventured beyond her local tri-county area. Then, upon stepping onto the campground, she was confronted with taller, stronger, smarter, and prettier girls. Plus, you were kinder and a far better singer. I do believe you are what Sugar wishes she could be, and thus she convinced herself you are, in fact, not, so she can remain blissfully unaware of her own failings,"

Another tear crossed Ella's face. "I, I can't help her then,"

"No, Sugar must help herself. But I can help you," Dawn pulled Ella into a hug. "I never had the chance to tell you, Ella, but your aura is by far the most pleasant I have ever seen. I would be honoured to be your friend,"

I left the pair to continue and went looking for Owen. I followed the river upstream as the Big Party Guy had gone north. And I quickly found him lasso fishing with a rope. "Need some help?" I asked.

"No thanks, Cody, I'm doing okay,"

"My help might speed things up; the others are likely getting hungry,"

"Do you know how to lasso multiple fish in one go?" he asked, chucking the line and pulling about five out, the loop tight around their tails.

"No," I admitted.

"Then leave me to it," Owen said. "Tell the other guys I'll be back soon,"

"All right, just watch out for bears," my mouth dried when the word passed my lips. And I quickly walked away.

Back at camp, Dawn and Ella were still away. Dave and Gwen were up different branches, with the Goth writing in her diary. The tent was up, and Trent started a fire. Heather, Lindsay, and Leshawna simply sat around waiting.

"Owen shouldn't be too long," I told them. "He's fishing,"

"Fishing?" Heather complained. "You expect me to eat nothing but smelly river fish?"

"Have you ever heard the phrase, beggars can't be choosers?" I sat down against the tree. "Now you've got the opportunity to know what it's like to have limited options instead of the luxury you live in. If Noah were here, he'd likely joke that camping is when you spend a small fortune to live like a homeless person. Besides, Dawn and Ella are making good picking of berries and fruit,"

Then Dave started groaning in disgust. We all looked up to see him grimacing down at his hand.

"What's the matter?" Trent asked as he got the fire going.

"Oh, look," Gwen observed. "Dave's found some bird droppings," the rest of the girls winced. "Where is it?" Heather asked, looking around the area.

"Well," Dave replied, deadpanned. "It's oozing between my right hand's second and third fingers. Good thing I'm wearing gloves," he removed the offending item, turning it inside out and held it out as far as his arm could comfortably stretch. At the same time, his left hand fumbled through his inside coat pockets.

"Hey, neat freak," Leshawna called. "Promise me when the food comes; you'll not touch anyone else's."

Dave sighed and brought out a bottle of hand sanitiser. He squirted a massive dollop into the glove, swapped the sanitiser for a handkerchief, wrapped the soiled accessory inside, tied the hanky up, and slid it into his pants pocket. As he took out another glove, Dave noticed his right hand, which formerly possessed the excreta, was near his face and nose. The smell made her wince.

I raised an eyebrow and questioned, "What're you pulling a face for? A bit of muck won't hurt you,"

Dave looked at me, unimpressed. "Oh, really? I noticed the bird soon got rid of it," he looked at his hand again and grimaced before sanitising it too.

We waited by the tent or around the fire a little later. Just in time for a repeat of the pizza delivery. As Heather complained, Dave asked, "There's a pizza restaurant near enough that they can deliver deep in the heart of Wawanakwa on foot within thirty minutes?"

Owen arrived with his catch, and Dawn and Ella returned with sacks of perishables. The deer somehow gain a basket too.

"How do you know how to fish?" Heather demanded an answer from Owen.

"My grandpa taught me," Owen said before bending around. "I caught a shark once; it bit me in the butt. Check it out," and he pulled his pants down.

Anticipating this, I covered Dawn's eyes. After everyone else cringed, I looked at the still-raw fish. "Can we stop wasting time? It's getting late, and we need to have the fish prepared and cooked,"

Dave nodded, and he took out a penknife from his coat pocket.

Soon enough, night came down, and the fish were gutted, skinned, boned, and skewered on a makeshift stick spit.

Dawn stuck to eating from the surplus she gathered.

"Okay," Owen said as he listed the campsite's activities. "Fire's hot. Fish are grilling. The tent is tenting."

Most of us Gophers were relaxed. Expect for me as I sat up against the big tree, and my eyes darted toward where to bear would emerge. I knew the first one from last time was Izzy in disguise, but with the subtle changes, I would not take any chances.

Dawn kept glancing at me, but she said nothing. Instead, she focused on the fruit. After Owen finished speaking, the moonchild tossed a few raspberries into her mouth. "Mother nature's candies and nourishment. It doesn't get much better than this."

"Nice going, man," Trent complimented the big guy. "Fish looks awesome."

"Thanks, man. I owe it all to Grandpa," Owen said as he recounted when he and his grandpa went camping, fishing, or hunting together.

"So, you and your grandpa actually fought a bear once?" Trent asked, pretty curious about the story.

I ignored Owen's story as he growled and stomped about; I kept my eyes on the woods.

"Yeah, right," Heather rolled her eyes, not believing Owen for even a second. "There's no way you took down a ten-foot bear." Dawn shook her head and gave Owen an icy glare.

"Of course," Owen finished. "Like I said, we used shotguns. That's nowhere as awesome as punching its brains out," he pointed with both fingers at me. "Right, Cody?"

I didn't say anything.

"Cody?" Dawn asked as she inched closer to me. "My morning tea leaves sad I should be worried about you, but I did not expect this. Is something the matter? Your aura is concerning,"

I didn't reply, mainly because I didn't register it. My headache returned, coupled with dizziness and confusion.

The time when Izzy disguised as a bear elapsed, but I did not relax. I knew what was coming. Owen continued telling more hunting stories and more bear impressions. Meanwhile, we all continued eating; Dawn needed to feed me, as I was unresponsive.

Suddenly the bushes shifted. Ella's animal friends flinched and raced away in all directions. The ringing in my ears came back loudly. My skin ran cold. A brown furry tank lumbered out and growled.

"Great Pyramid of Giza!" Owen yelled. My breathing hastened, and I was sure I had urinated like last time, and I scrambled for the tree. Meanwhile, the Big Party Guy ran around us in circles. "We're all going to die! We're going to get eaten alive by a bear! Oh, the horror! Somebody, help us! I want my mommy!"

At this point, Heather got annoyed by Owen's screaming and tripped him over before pointing at the tall tree. "The trees! Let's follow Cody and climb into the trees!"

I reached the top branch strong enough to support me and held the trunk with all my strength, my fingers gripping the bark. I felt dainty hands hug my neck. "It's all right, Cody. You're safe now. The bear can't reach us up here," this managed to calm me down enough to register what happened below my branch.

"So, what do we do now?" Trent asked while sharing a branch with Gwen and Heather.

"Don't look at me," Heather snapped back.

"It was your idea to climb the trees," Gwen stated.

"I was following Cody. Why don't you ask the bear-hunting experts?" Heather yelled. "Hey Owen, what now?"

"How should I know?" Owen yelled while clinging onto the tree for dear life.

"Dude," Leshawna replied. "You said you killed a bear!"

"I was being theatrical!" Owen cried.

"Indeed," Dawn added. "The unfortunate creature that Owen and his grandfather brutalised was an innocent, defenceless little bear cub that was lost and searching for its mother," she looked down at the ursine snatching some of the spare fish cooking.

"This is all your fault!" Heather yelled harshly at Owen. "If you hadn't been growling like that, we never would've attracted him to our site!"

"Excuse me for a living!" Owen cried as he started to bang his head against the tree.

Down below, the bear shredded our map.

Heather then called to me, "What about you, Cody? You punched a bear to death; why don't you do it again and save our lives?"

My grip tightened as my breath hitched. "I can't!" I wailed. "I'm frightened of bears!"

"What?" Heather, Leshawna, Owen, and Gwen all exclaimed.

I panicked and blurted out what truth I could say, "I got mauled by one when I was sixteen, five-foot-three and built like a twig! I ended up in a full-body cast and wheelchair!" Tears ran down my face.

Heather shouted, "Then how did you punch one died?"

"I didn't realise I did until it happened. I heard a roar, and I panicked!"

"An aggressive anxiety attack," Dawn explained. "Manifesting in an extreme instance of the fight or flight response," her hand stroked my shoulders. "It does not help that the bears here on Wawanakwa seem more carnivorous and willing to hunt than other American black bears. As such, they have higher aggression and predatory instincts."

"Can't you deal with it like you did the sharks?" Gwen asked.

"I can't get an animal above a certain aggression level to listen to me," Dawn explained. "Ella, try singing to the bear,"

The Fairy Tale Princess replied, worried, "But I don't know if my singing will still work. My heart still isn't healed,"

Leshawna's branch cracked, and the sassy sister fell to the ground. The bear reared up and towered over her.

Ella gasped and held her hand to her temples. "All right! I'll do it!" she started with a few instrumental bars.

The bear stopped, looked up at Ella, and smiled, clasping its claws together adoringly.

Ella smiled as she continued, sliding down the trunk and walking up to the ursine. "Time for walkies Mr Bear," she looked up at us. "I'll take him to the clearing with the fruit and berries; there was plenty of fish in the stream," the Fairy Tale Princess started walking away from the campsite and added words to her music. "Walking with a bear, it doesn't matter where. The stars are out, and I haven't got a care."

As Ella's voice faded, the others sighed and started climbing down. I, however, remained put. "I'm not leaving until Ella comes back with the bear, and another might come to,"

Dawn shook her head. "I've studied the bear behaviour here for the last few days. Most are only awake from dawn until dusk. It is doubtful another bear shall find us before sunrise,"

Somehow, Dawn's advice calmed me enough that my anxieties lifted. After taking some massively deep breaths, I let go of the tree and noticed the denting in the bark from both my tight embrace and the clawing from my fingers. I gulped and glanced back at Dawn. "Am I in trouble for harming the tree too?" I asked, whimperingly. The moonchild silently shook her head.

"Thank you," I said. "For everything," I looked down at the tent. "Care for a lift?"

Dawn smiled. "And there's the return of the gentleman,"

I was back on the ground before Owen was. The blubber buddy dangled from a branch. "How far is it to the ground?" he asked.

Dave surveyed before replying, "About forty-five centimetres,"

"Oh, crap," Owen wailed. "I'll never make it," his arms slipped, and he slammed to the ground.

Heather scoffed. "I've heard of having no head for heights, but you, Owen, have no arms, legs or eyes for them,"

Owen stumbled to his knees. "Like it on the ground. It feels so much safer on the ground,"

Dave looked up at the night sky. "I hope Ella does take too long," he pointed at several clouds coming over. "Looks like there's a storm coming,"

I glanced at the camera crew. "How about you guys? Any damages?" they shook their heads. The cameraman looked at the clouds. "Good thing we put the rain covers when we started."

Owen walked up to Gwen and Trent. "It's the only thing that worries me about going to heaven. Will I ever get used to height?"

Just then, Ella returned with her cheery smile back in place. Dawn walked up. "Your aura has much improved. I take it the bear is fine now?"

Ella nodded. "Yes, Mr Ant Clawer was very happy to learn about the clearing,"

Dave raised an eyebrow. "Ant Clawer?"

Heather blinked. "That thing has a name?"

"Everything has names, Heather," Dawn replied. Just then, a drop of rain splashed by the aura whisperer's feet. Followed by a few more and thunder. Let's just say the struggle into the tent caused a few brushes and became a real squeeze, with Dawn almost pasted to my abdomen and me sitting bunched up with my back against Owen's.

We did not enjoy a good night's sleep; it was undoubtedly better than the rain-sodden, hardwood restlessness of the previous timeline. Of course, this was average for our team. Despite Dawn's reassurances and Ella's excellent work, I was still paranoid that another ursine might sneak up. My sleep was fitful, like when I strung those bells around my preferred seat on the World Tour plane as a warning system against Sierra.

When morning arrived, the camera crew said we could leave the equipment as the interns would clean up today. Ant Clawer clawed up the map, so we had to retrace our route to the firepit, which slowed us down, despite running. But as I predicted, the Bass beat us to it, and all eight of them were accounted for.

In anger, Heather shoved Owen over. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't acted like bear bait all night, we could have gone to sleep earlier, still had the map and gotten here before them!"

"All right, Screaming Gophers," Chris pointed to us. "One of your prairie butts is going home tonight!" he addressed the Killer Bass. "Meanwhile, Killer Bass. You're going on an all-expense paid trip to the Tuck Shop! As much junk food you can handle, and you can use the Gopher's hot tub too!"

As the Bass cheered and ran off, everyone besides me, Dawn, and Ella glared at Owen. The Big Party Guy chuckled nervously and twiddled his fingers.

While the Killer Bass lounged in our hot tub, I went to the beach to calm my nerves. The memories of my past encounters with bears, including during the million-dollar wild goose chase, bounced around my head. I thought straying at the waves for a few hours would distract me from it.

I sat down on a rock out of sight of the campgrounds and started breathing in and out in time with the wave motions.

"Cody," a familiar voice said. I flinched and saw Dawn kneeling on the rock with her bin bag. The moonchild placed another piece of trash into the bag and then placed it down. "I came to speak with you,"

"I thought you didn't want to speak with me until my negative energy had gone. I'm still feeling pretty negative,"

Dawn shook her head. "I said until our negative energies had subsided. I felt irate that you killed that bear, and thus I was full of negative energy too. Perhaps I should have simply said when I thought we were both ready. And I think now is the time. Do you want to speak first?"

"I think I'd better," I said, looking out at the lake. "I didn't say how I was eliminated the first time," and I explained the circumstances, followed by the near-death cliff incident.

Dawn hummed. "This million-dollar search that leads into another season is interesting."

I then explained about the shark attack in Hawaii.

"So, that explains how you have a small fear of sharks too,"

I nodded and looked at my hands. "And I let that fear dictate my actions. I should have fought against it in those instances. Like you said, I could have swum away from Fang and run back to the dodgeball court when I heard the bear roar," I closed my fists. "But I didn't. I was weak in my emotions and became a violent brute abusing my physical strength. I don't care if it's hot to some ladies; I should be better."

Dawn placed a hand on my right fist. "And you acknowledging it is the first step to improving," she breathed. "And now it's time for my say," she patted my hand. "I forgive you, Cody. I am still unhappy that dear bear is dead, but I understand why it happened and if it happens again," she smiled. "Perhaps joining me in some meditation will help you cure your phobia,"

"It's worth a try," I said, and I followed Dawn's instructions.

That night the Screaming Gophers assembled around the campfire to see off another teammate, and I had a good idea who it would be.

"You've all cast your votes," Chris said as he held up a plate containing only nine marshmallows. "The camper who does not receive a marshmallow must immediately hit the Dock of Shame, grab the Boat of Losers, and get out of here. And you can't come back. Ever."

I glanced at Dawn, and she met me with a knowing expression; we both knew what Chris said was cobblers.

"I can see you're all tired," Chris said. "So tonight, I'll just throw them to you. Savvy?"

Chris steadily whittled down the names and threw the marshmallows over to us. Eventually, it came down to Owen and me. However, I was sure my inclusion at the bottom was only a formality for cheap drama. I couldn't think why someone on the team would vote to have me gone after this challenge, and strategic voting was yet to begin. I knew my size and strength, my demonstrated smarts, and my quick thinking would not do me any favours to the more cutthroat campers like Heather and Courtney. But those concerns lay in the new future.

I knew Owen would go this time, as even if his noisemaking hadn't attracted the bear, the fish he caught likely did. And because of that, the Killer Bass got to fool about in the hot tub we painstakingly built on the first day, which we were supposed to have the sole privilege of. The Bass enjoyed the luxury we won when they loused up their chance. Knowing how petty Heather could be, I would bet the sum of all the prize money from Total Drama that she voted for Owen because of that alone.

"Cody," Chris announced and threw the final marshmallow to me. I caught it in one hand.

Owen sighed and stood up. "I knew this was it for me," he looked at us mournfully. "I'm really sorry I attracted that bear, guys; I didn't think it would happen,"

Chris came up and patted the Big Party Guy's arm. "And I'm sad to see you go so soon, Owen, dude. You were a ton of fun. I thought you'd be around for longer,"

Besides Heather, we all joined Owen to bid him farewell from the Dock of Shame. I offered my hand to Owen, and we shook. "Look on the bright side; you'll see your little buddy again," I then glanced to check the distance of the camera mic, then I leaned in to whisper, "Don't say you heard it from me, but I know for a fact those eliminated are not immediately sent home, but to that five-star resort that was on the application form,"

Owen's jaw dropped. "Really?" I nodded with a smirk. "Think of it as a consolation prize,"

"All right then!" Owen cheered. "I'm ready to go," he clambered onto the Boat of Losers and caused it to rock a bit as he stumbled onboard. But he waved enthusiastically once recovered and on his way. "I'll see you guys! It's been fun! We should party next time we're all together!"

When the boat disappeared out of sight, we all scattered to do different things before bed. I stayed at the dock and thought about the next challenge. From what I remember, Chris made the Phobia Factor challenge on the fly after the camp-wide bonding over our different fears. It must have been a last-second decision for drama's sake, as Chris ignored his every three-day rule.

Chris abandoned that rule during World Tour thanks to the inconsistent distance and time between locations, and then switched to the challenge each day format in the Revenge season and afterwards, most likely to save on production costs for him to spend on himself.

The question now was what Chris would replace the Phobia Factor challenge with. Although part of me wondered what the fears for the swapped contestants would be. I guessed Dave would involve germs in some form, and Anne Maria's fear would likely involve a lack of beauty products. But I drew a blank for Ella and Dawn.

And frankly, thinking of Dawn afraid and scared witless frightened me as much as any bear or shark and certainly more than a trashcan bomb.

I brushed off my concerns and went to sleep with some techniques Dawn taught me, thinking I was safe for next time.