Author's Note: Welcome back! I hope you're all doing well.
Before we begin the episode, reviews!
Dunsparce519: I'm glad you liked the chase scenes, they were pretty fun to write.
guest: Thank you!
LuckyLucyy17: (Chapter 5): Thank you! Donn't worry, I can see how it could be confusing, so allow me to explain: Junko actually never got scored for her performance since it didn't go as planned; those 10 points were meant for Mikan, who took the place of the third Gopher member that was supposed to perform. (Chapter 6): Thank you! As far as Ryoma, I'm not going to confirm nor deny anything for the sake of spoilers. (Chapter 7): Thank you! And you know what? You're right. If I get around to rewriting that chapter, I'll make sure to add that scene in. (Chapter 9): Thank you so much! Hiyoko's a favorite of mine, so y'know. Haha.
Alright, enjoy the chapter!
"Last time on Total Drama Island, our competitors became hunters. And the hunted! Tenko's game was way off, and thanks to Hiro and a bag of chips, it wasn't long before the Bass found each other, and then an ambush. Thanks to Celestia, however, it was Hiyoko who found herself boarding the Boat of Losers."
"With the teams now tied, will the Gophers manage to stay out of the fire? Or will the Bass finally manage to get ahead? Find out tonight, on...
Total...
Drama...
Island!"
Episode Nine: If You Can't Take the Heat...
The episode opened in on Yasuhiro's cottage, where he was getting ready for the day.
As he pulled a pair of pants out of a pile of clothes on the floor, a certain something fell out the back pocket.
CONFESSIONAL - YASUHIRO:
"Huh, I wonder how this got in here," he pondered, scratching his head with the statue. Then, he gasped. "If it made its way here to me, then it must be because some sort of good luck, right?"
An eagle flew through the cloudy morning sky as the camera panned down to show Chris and the campers gathered in front of the hotel building.
"Today's challenge will test your mind," Chris began with a tap of his head, "your teamwork, and your skills in the kitchen!"
CONFESSIONAL - SAYAKA:
"Ooh, I love cooking!" she beamed, smiling brightly at the camera. "I made dinner for myself every night since my dad works late, so I like to think no have some experience. Plus, it'll be nice to not be bound to just the ingredients in my kitchen."
"You'll be cooking a three-course meal and serving it to me, for tasting. The winners get a reward, and the losers will be sending someone home. Each team will appoint a Head Chef to create the theme of the meal, and to oversee the cooking. To cook, you need ingredients."
"No shit," Leon commented.
Chris shot the teen a dirty look before continuing. "Every morning, a truck brings us food. Today's task starts there."
Just then, a truck then backed up into the entrance of the hotel only for a dolphin, of all things, to lean out the driver's side window and salute the camera.
"Ooh!" Sayaka exclaimed, peeking inside the truck. "We could do a Japanese themed meal!"
Makoto, who was looking inside the truck as well, raised an eyebrow at her. "We should? But we're in Japan."
"Yeah, but Chris is Canadian, right?" Sayaka pointed out. "He's probably never tried anything from here before."
"Sounds good to me," Leon chimed in, squeezing between Sayaka and Makoto to climb into the truck.
Makoto glanced inside the truck before looking back at Sayaka. "Huh. Well, I guess that makes you Head Chef, then." He then climbed into the truck as well.
Sayaka blinked. "Really? Okay! Let's get the ingredients, then!" She then climbed into the truck herself.
Meanwhile, the Gophers stood about a few feet away from the truck to let the Bass collect their ingredients, while they decided on who should be Head Chef.
"Oh!" Kaede exclaimed, snapping her fingers. "Kirumi's a maid, right? I bet she's made tons of dishes before!"
Kirumi nodded. "That is true..."
"I-I second that!" Mikan agreed. "She clearly has the most culinary experience out of all of us!"
A couple more of the Gophers added in their agreements, causing Kirumi to curl her lips into a small smile.
"Very well, then. I shall take the position of Head Chef and secure our victory."
The Bass were now gathered in the kitchen, ingredients on the counter.
"Okay," Sayaka started. She donned a white apron and had her long hair tied back into a ponytail. "There's three courses and six of you, so... Who wants to make the appetizer?"
Junko shrugged. "Why not? Making yakitori can't be that hard."
"I can make the appetizer, too!" Leon volunteered, a bit too suddenly.
Junko simply shrugged. "Sure."
"Makoto and I shall take over the dessert," Celestia spoke, Makoto nodding in agreement.
"Guess that leaves us with the main course, then!" Yasuhiro exclaimed, about to put his arm around Tenko's shoulder, but suddenly thought better against it. Tenko huffed.
Sayaka smiled. "Great, then it looks like we're good to go!"
"Ladies," Kirumi started as the camera panned over to the Gjopher's side of the kitchen. Mikan and Kaede stood behind the counter with the ingredients on top. "You two shall be in charge of the appetizer: French onion soup.
Mikan nodded, while Kaede exclaimed, "We won't let you down, Kirumi!"
"I am certain you won't," Kirumi smiled. She then directed her attention to Ryoma and Rantaro, who were still carrying in ingredients. "Ryoma, Rantaro, you two will prepare the main course: duck á l'orange."
"No problem," Rantaro assured, placing his box on the counter. "Leave it to us, Kirumi."
Kirumi nodded and turned to face the last two members of her team. "And last, but certainly not least, Maki and Kaito. You two will be tasked with making our dessert: eclairs. I trust you two can handle it?"
"Eclairs?" Maki repeated, tapping her chin. "Yeah, I can do that. Whenever we had the chance, we'd make desserts for the kids. I like to think I've gotten pretty good at baking because of it, so—" She stopped herself once she noticed the smiles Kirumi and Kaito were giving her, and she began to play with her pigtails. "...Yeah."
Kirumi chuckled. "Well, I can clearly see you have this under control."
The camera switched over to Leon and Junko, who were now working on the appetizer; more specifically, soaking bamboo skewers in a large bowl of water.
After a few minutes of Leon occasionally glancing at Junko, he finally spoke up. "Hey, Junko... Can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"What do you think about someone cheating during the competition? Like, if they screwed with the votes or something?"
Junko paused what she was doing, only briefly, then hummed in thought. "It depends, I guess. As long as it didn't involve me, I guess I don't really care."
"Huh. Interesting. What if it did involve you?"
Junko stopped what she was doing completely to stare at Leon, brows raised. "What are you talking about?"
"Look, I'm gonna cut to the chase: Sayaka and I found some votes that have you crossed out on most of them. But the only time that you'd been at real risk of being voted off was during that talent show challenge."
Junko scoffed. "What, are you accusing me of being a cheater?"
Leon glared at her. "Uh, yeah. Who else could've done it?"
Junko narrowed her eyes at him. "And just what is your game here?"
"Exposing cheaters like you—"
Out of nowhere, a pair of hands put themselves on Leon's shoulders and pulled him away from Junko.
"Okay!" Sayaka exclaimed, looking between the two with a panicked look. "I can see the tension over here is a bit high, so... Junko, you go work with Tenko." Taking her hands off of Leon, she pushed Junko over to where Tenko and Yasuhiro were preparing the main dish. "Hiro! Come over here and work with Leon!"
"You got it!" Yasuhiro exclaimed, making his way over to where Leon and Sayaka were.
"What are you doing?" Leon whispered to Sayaka. "I was going to get the truth out of her!"
"I didn't tell you to do it so aggressively!" Sayaka whispered back. "Junko's probably gonna try and get us voted out now!"
Leon rolled his eyes. "I doubt it. Junko isn't stupid enough to try and cheat again."
Sayaka frowned. "Still... We should be more careful next time we confront her, okay?"
Leon stayed silent for a moment, peering intently into Sayaka's eyes. Then, he sighed. "Fine..."
CONFESSIONAL - JUNKO:
"Okay, this is bad," she admitted with a sigh. "I need to find a way to get Leon and Sayaka off my back, and fast."
Tenko was focused on cooking a pot of rice on the stove, unaware that Junko was now standing next to her. It wasn't until the blonde girl tapped her on the shoulder that she finally looked up.
"O-Oh!" Tenko exclaimed, a noticeable blush growing on her face. "I didn't see you there! I-I thought you were working with Leon?"
"I was, but then Sayaka decided to switch me and Hiro for some reason." Junko shrugged. "So, yeah, now I'm working with you."
Tenko's blush only deepened, and she wore a blank smile, as if her mind had crashed. "O-Oh, really?" She then shook her head, trying (and failing) to suppress the red in her face. "I mean! It's great to have you on board! I'm cooking the rice right now. Y'know, because that's what you're supposed to do. I think. I don't know, actually, I've never made shrimp fried rice before. Or cooked, in general. Oh god, I'm rambling, aren't I?"
"Hey, it's cool," Junko assured. "I don't know how to make any of this shit either, but I'm sure we'll figure it out."
Tenko stood up straighter. "Of course! We've totally got this!"
CONFESSIONAL - TENKO:
A full-blown blush now covered her face as she pulled on her twintails. "Junko is so pretty and nice and..." She covered her face and began mumbling incoherent words.
Meanwhile, Kaito looked between two canisters filled with similar white powder-like substances with a perplexed stare. "Hm... Okay..."
"Kaito, what is taking you so long?" Maki asked from somewhere behind him.
"just looking for the sugar!" Kaito replied.
"It's probably the thing that has "sugar" labeled on it."
"Right..." Kaito looked between the canisters again, then furrowed his brows when he realized that they weren't labeled. "Uh..."
CONFESSIONAL - KAITO:
"Okay, so maybe I'm not an expert at cooking," he admitted, rubbing his neck with an embarrassed blush. "But I've totally got this!"
Kaito stared at the canisters for a few more seconds, then picked up one at random.
Outside the building, Leon was carrying a small crate of ingredients out of the truck, unaware that a bottle had fallen out.
As such, when he began to walk back to the building, he promptly stumbled on said bottle, as it was blocked by the view of the crate. He crashed to the ground, letting out a pained yelp.
Unfortunately for him, the noise aggravated the beehive on the wall near where he was lying at, and consequently got stung by the bees that inhabited it.
"Don't go so fast with that," Maki said as her partner kneaded the pastry dough. "you need to give it enough time between folds."
Kaito stopped what he was doing and quirked a brow at her. "Huh? Why does it matter how fast I go with it?"
"Because," Maki replied, "if we don't make the pastry right, then it won't have the same taste and texture, which throws the whole thing off. And at that point, we might as well have been doing nothing."
"...Alright?" was all Kaito could say as he started to knead the dough at a slower pace.
CONFESSIONAL - KAITO:
He gave the camera a sheepish look. "Jeez, Maki's real aggressive about her baking, huh?"
Suddenly, Leon barged through the kitchen's doors, face swollen with bee stings.
"Whoa, dude, are you alright?" Yasuhiro asked as the rest of the Bass stared in shock.
"Yeah..." Leon heaved. "Totally. It's just a few stings." He held up the crate in his hands. "I got the other stuff we needed."
Yasuhiro took the crate from Leon, and Sayaka took his hand and led him somewhere off-screen to treat his stings.
Junko had just finished putting the rice in the serving bowl when the camera focused on her. She looked over just as Tenko brought over a small bundle of ingredients and set them on the counter.
"Alright, all we need to do is make the sauce." Junko grinned. "We're doing great! High-five!" She held her hand up for Tenko to slap.
"E-Eh?!" Tenko immediately became flustered as she slowly raised her hand. "Oh, s-sure..."
The two high-fived; however, neither of them pulled away, leaving them to look like they were holding hands. The girls soon realized this and pulled away, both blushing.
CONFESSIONAL - MAKI:
She started off with a sigh. "I'm trying to be civil. I am, really. But trying to work with someone who's incompetent at cooking is frustrating. Kaito used the wrong measurements—twice—when making the dough, and he grabbed the salt instead of the sugar and messed up the icing, so I had to send him back to the truck to get more chocolate..." She sighed and facepalmed.
Kaito carefully scoped out the grounds of the hotel as he walked as silently as could across it. "Okay... The bees should be somewhere around here..."
That's when he spotted the swarm of bees nearby, causing him to run to the truck and rummage through it as fast as possible, grabbing the first package of chocolate he saw before making a dash for it. The bees immediately chased after him.
The Gophers were finishing up their dishes when Kaito rushed in the kitchen, breathing heavily.
"Bees..." Kaito clarified at the quizzical looks he was getting. "I managed to outrun them, though. Probably a good idea to stay inside right now."
"Did you get the chocolate?" Maki questioned.
Kaito nodded and tossed the chocolate at Maki. She caught it, examining the package. "Not exactly what I was looking for, but it'll be fine."
Some time later, the camera panned over the Screaming Gophers' finished dishes; the steaming bowl of soup with bread and cheese on top, the roast duck, sliced and covered with orange sauce, and the crisp-looking chocolate eclairs.
"Man, I'm getting hungry just looking at this!" Kaito exclaimed. "We've got this in the bag!"
Kirumi chuckled, looking over the meals as well. "I sure hope so."
A gloved hand placed a vase of roses on one of the tables, adorned with a mint green tablecloth. The shot pulled back to reveal it was Kirumi, who stood at the end of the table which Chris sat at.
"Your meal shall arrive soon, sir." Kirumi bowed and backed away from the table.
At the other end of the table, Sayaka lit the candelabra that sat up in it before blowing the match out. "Your meal is coming right up!"
A close-up of the Killer Bass' meals was shown. First, the artfully arranged yakitori, then the bowl of shrimp fried rice, and finally, the delicious-looking dango.
"This looks great, guys!" Sayaka grinned, looking over the food. "I think we have a good shot at winning this!"
Yasuhiro chuckled. "Heh heh, yeah. I was beginning to think I was on a team of losers!" He caught the annoyed looks of the other Bass, and he immediately shut up. "Sorry."
Sayaka giggled and turned to her team. "Well, we better get going. Come on!" With a smile, Sayaka led the team out of the kitchen.
Unbeknownst to the rest of them, however, one Bass member quietly slipped back.
CONFESSIONAL - YASUHIRO:
"Assuming that this was given to me by good luck," he assumed, fiddling with the statue, "then I can use this to give my team an advantage, right?"
In the dining hall, Chris was tasting the Gophers' soup. Once he was finished, he smiled and gave a thumbs-up. "Not bad! Pass me the main course, please!"
Kaede smiled and Mikan let a sigh of relief escape her lips, while Kirumi replaced the bowl of soup with the plate of duck. Taking a moment to take it all in, he stabbed a piece of meat with his fork and took a bite.
Everything was silent as the host chewed and swallowed. Then, "Easily one of the best ducks I've ever had. Along with the soup, I'm giving you guys a combined score of fifteen!" The Gophers cheered, and Chris turned to the camera. "And how will the Bass respond?"
Just as Sayaka turned towards the kitchen to get the food, a loud boom behind the door was accompanied by the pungent smell of smoke.
Sayaka, along with Chris and most of the other campers rushed into the kitchen to see what the commotion was. They all gasped at the sight before them; half of the kitchen was completely covered in soot, and along the Bass' dishes that originally sat there were reduced to nothing more than a black crisp. In the middle of it all was Yasuhiro, who was covered in soot as well and looked just as bewildered as everyone else.
"Uh..." he started, breaking the awkward silence. "Do you happen to like your food spicy?"
"Hiro?!" a shocked Sayaka exclaimed. "What happened?!"
Yasuhiro held up the wooden statue, which was mysteriously untouched by the soot. "U-Uh, well, I was just had this statue, and—"
"Wait," Chris interrupted, peering at the object, "is that a statue from Boney Island? You know, the same place I specifically said not to take anything from or you'd be cursed?!"
"Maybe...?" Yasuhiro scratched his head with a sheepish look. "But I didn't take it from the island! I found it in my pants pocket this morning!"
While the majority of the campers shot him unconvinced looks, Celestia furrowed her brows at that last statement.
CONFESSIONAL - CELESTIA:
"How could that have happened...?" she muttered to herself, a conflicted expression on her face. "That statue was..." Her eyes suddenly widened in realization, and her expression twisted into a scowl. "...Kokichi!"
"Okay..." Chris said, leaning back into the dining hall. "Since the Killer Bass doesn't have any food to judge, I guess the win goes to the Gophers! And as promised, the winner will be enjoying a reward tonight: a five-star dinner, under the stars."
The Gophers cheered, leaving the Bass to harshly glare at Yasuhiro.
Outside the cottages, Sayaka, Junko, and Tenko were discussing tonight's vote.
"Well, it's pretty obvious who we're voting for, right?" Junko asked.
Tenko nodded, but Sayaka clasped her hands together and sighed. "Yeah, but..."
Junko raised an eyebrow. "But...?"
Sayaka sighed. "It's just... I don't know, I feel sorry for Hiro, I guess. He was only trying to help..."
Unnoticed by Sayaka, Junko rolled her eyes. "Seriously? Blowing up the kitchen is help?"
"Yeah!" Tenko chimed in. "And he's a degenerate male, anyway!"
"Besides, it's not like there's anyone else we can vote out," Junko added.
Sayaka sighed again. "I guess..."
The next scene showed a panicked Yasuhiro skidding to a halt in an aisle of Rocketpunch Market, where Celestia was looking through some make-up.
"Celeste!" he started. "You gotta help me! The others are planning to vote me out! You gotta do something!"
Celestia turned away from the shelves to level Yasuhiro with a nonchalant stare. She hummed in thought. "...No."
"Eh?! Why not?!"
"I told you last time," Celestia explained simply, "if you were the main cause of our loss again, you would be kicked out of the alliance. Besides, you have been pretty useless lately."
She smiled sweetly at Yasuhiro before turning back to examine the various mascara that the market had to offer.
"Useless?" Yasuhiro began to open his mouth to reply, but couldn't think of anything to say and just trudged off dejectedly.
CONFESSIONAL - YASUHIRO:
He buried his face in his hands. "Why did I do that...? This is all this stupid statue's fault!" Yasuhiro pulled the idol from his pocket and, in a fit of rage, threw it against the walls of the confessional, only for it to bounce off and hit him directly in the eye. "Ow!"
CONFESSIONAL - CELESTIA:
"Well, Hiro is completely useless now," she said, rolling her eyes. "On one hand, he will finally be out of my hair. On the other hand, finding a new alliance member will be...difficult, to say the least. Fortunately, I still have Makoto."
CONFESSIONAL - LEON:
He rubbed his cheek, which, along with the rest of his face, was mostly free of swelling. "Wow, this was not a good day for me. I guess it coulda been worse, though. I could be the one going home tonight."
As the elimination ceremony began, the majority of the Killer Bass were glaring at Yasuhiro.
"I have seven of you sitting in front of me, but onky six fluffy bits of sugary goodness." Chris grinned as he set the place of marshmallows down on the oil drum. "So... good luck! When I call your name, come up and get a marshmallow. Sayaka, Junko, Celestia, Makoto, Leon."
"Hiro, Tenko." The two perked up in anxious anticipation at their names being called. "It's down to you two! Whoever doesn't get a marshmallow must immediately walk down the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers and leave. Forever."
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
"Tenko," Chris finally announced.
"Yes!" Tenko pumped her fists, jumping up to collecting her marshmallow.
Yasuhiro sighed and stood up. "Well, it was fun while it lasted.. See ya, guys."
As Yasuhiro trudged past Chris, the latter grinned. "Well, that's all for tonight! Oh you guys might wanna burn some sage. You know, to get rid of any lingering curse vibes."
Junko raised an eyebrow. "...Are you gonna give us some?"
"Nope. So... Good luck with that."
The Bass shot Chris annoyed looks, but he ignored them in favor of the camera. "And that wraps up this episode! Tune in next time to see what exciting drama we have in store on... Total! Drama! Island!"
A wolf howled at the moon later that night as the camera panned down to show Kaede and Kaito at the beach, lying down on the sand.
"Look! It's the Aquila!" Kaito exclaimed, pointing up at a vaguely bird-shaped constellation. "It looks like an eagle, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it does..." Kaede agreed, a tired smile on her face. She yawned. "Alright, I'm think I'm gonna head to bed now."
Kaito sat up and looked over at her. "What, already?"
Kaede gave him a teasing look and replied, "We've been out here for almost two hours, you know."
Kaito blinked. "Really? Huh, time really flew by, didn't it?"
Kaede giggled and stood up. "That just means we were having fun, right?"
Kaito laughed and rose to his feet as well. "Yeah. Let's head back, then."
Kaede nodded and the duo started to make the trek back to the cottages, a peaceful and comfortable silence filled the air. When they reached the cottages, Kaede turned to Kaito.
"Thanks, Kaito. That was really fun."
Kaito chuckled. "Yeah, same here."
Neither Kaede nor Kaito made the effort to move and just stared at each other, still grinning.
Then, without warning, Kaede leaned in and wrapped Kaito in a warm hug. It lasted no more than ten seconds, and Kaito was too shocked by the gesture to do or say anything.
Once she broke the hug, Kaede waved at the boy before heading to her cottage. "See you tomorrow."
Kaito touched his red-hot face as he stared at Kaede. "Uh—Yeah. Y-Yeah, of course... See you tomorrow."
Trying to gather his bearings, Kaito rushed to his own cottage as well, swiftly shutting the door behind him.
Killer Bass - Celestia, Junko, Leon, Makoto, Sayaka, Tenko
Screaming Gophers - Kaede, Kaito, Kirumi, Maki, Mikan, Rantaro, Ryoma
Eliminated - Toko, Mondo, Shuichi, Ibuki, Kazuichi, Komaru, Kokichi, Hiyoko, Yasuhiro
Author's Note: Finally, another chapter done! Let me know what you thought!
Also, yeah, Yasuhiro's gone. I don't expect most of you to be surprised by his elimination. His arc for this season is pretty much finished, so I have no use for him anymore.
Well, we only have three episodes left until the merge (can't believe we're almost there), so stay tuned. As always, thanks for reading, and just know that I appreciate each and every single one of you!