Paintball Deer Hunter
POV. Third person
Chris is standing on the dock of shame, "Last time on Total Drama Island. Both teams set up on a canoe trip to deadly Boney Island", we see scenes of the gloomy island with a mountain in the shape of a skull, "during the excursion, Cody revealed some facts about his intriguing and mysterious past, strengthening ties with crazy Izzy and gaining a deranged friend in the process", Izzy and Cody are seen hugging in their canoe, "better take care, buddy. However, he had to reject Izzy's very tempting offer afterwards, in order to save his team and all of us from a possible curse, you are a true hero boy, no one can blame you for rejecting Izzy's attributes.", Cody throws the cursed idol into the jungle, "On the Bass side, Courtney, following the advice of an unlikely friend, led her team like a true leader would, breaking free from their losing streak once and for all.", the Bass cross rapids and reach Wawanakwa Island first, "In the end Izzy left the competition in an unexpected and very strange elimination ceremony hahahahaha", Izzy yells at the helicopter and runs away, "Will we discover more of our most mysterious Gopher? Can my teeth possibly get any whiter?", he smiles at the camera, "find out this week on TOTAL… DRAMA… ISLAND!".
-0-
POV. Cody
I was wandering through a fog bank, I hope I'm not back on the island of bones. I didn't find the usual guys anywhere, it seems I was alone.
I walked for a long time, I don't know how long exactly, but it felt like a long time. I wonder what's going on, for some reason I started getting chills and was itching in various parts of my body.
"Squawk".
I looked up in the fog and saw a seagull flying in the air, "Hey, you up there," the seagull began to fly away, "Wait, I'm lost! Do you know where I have to go?" I must be crazy if I'm already starting to ask a bird things.
Finally, after looking for that seagull for a while, a silhouette became visible through the fog, I walked towards it and the closer I got the more familiar it looked.
Now it was clear who was in front of me. She was sitting meditating on a giant mushroom. She was a short person with pale blonde hair, her complexion was also pale, she had dark circles under her eyes and her ears were somewhat pointed, like those of an elf. A dream catcher was hanging around her neck, it was a black ring with blue embroidery and some decorative feathers.
Despite never having seen her in person, I knew exactly who she was.
"Hey, I know you, you're Dawn the aura reader, right?" What was she doing here?
"Greetings, Cody the perverted geek," something tells me she's making fun of me, "I'm your spirit guide," she said as she made graceful hand gestures.
"Spirit guide? Isn't that supposed to be an animal?" Why was I arguing about this?
"I'm here to guide you through the complicated trial you're about to face," she said instead of answering me, that was rude.
"Tri-," the fog cleared completely and I now knew exactly where I was. "Oh no," I looked at the blueberry bush right in front of me, that damned, damned bush.
*FOOTSTEP* The earth began to shake with the footsteps of something very big, I was also shaking, *FOOTSTEP* a huge shadow landed on us, Dawn didn't even flinch, I on the other hand was sweating like crazy.
"The trial, it's the thing you're most afraid to face," Dawn said.
I turned around slowly, only to see the furry, brown fur, accompanied by paws with sharp claws. Against my better judgment, I looked up... and I looked up... and then I bent my neck, did it always look so big?, I held up my head only to realize it had deer antlers, and behind me there was a fluffy tail, like the ones we used during the challenge.
"GRRRRRRRRRRR!", the huge beast roared, the entire forest trembled and shook, I was on the verge of a panic attack, I was having a hard time breathing.
Then he looked at me. I froze in place, just like a deer in the headlights.
He loomed over me and opened his enormous jaws. I was doing everything I could, not to run or stand firm, but to not faint.
He lunged at me, getting closer and bigger, ready to swallow me in one bite, I just stood there paralyzed, helpless, shaking like a leaf.
"I CAN'T DO IT!", I bent over on the ground and covered my face with my arms like a coward, waiting for my inevitable end, "AHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Before biting me, the bear dissipated into the mist and disappeared. But I remained in the same position shedding tears, I didn't feel relieved that it was fake, in fact I was frustrated, because it wasn't even real and yet it proved that I can't face it, I didn't have enough courage to do so.
I could feel Dawn standing behind me, but she didn't say anything. I didn't want her to see me right now, it was really pathetic, "I didn't lie when I said I was fine with bears. I really stopped being afraid of them a long time ago... I faced deadly challenges, giant condors, aliens, I survived to Sierra and many other much scarier things... but when I think about that day... how scared, how helpless I was at that moment..."
"..."
"Sometimes I still dream about it, I was comforted by the fact that I knew it was in the past and that I would never face a similar situation again... but then I came here and everything became very... real, that moment would happen again late or later, I tried to ignore it and convince myself that this time it would be different... but fate has already proven that it always tends to correct its course and I don't know what will change and what will stay the same.
"..."
"...and that scares me a lot. If I can't manage my own destiny? How can I save that of others? I can't face a bear, I'm not Owen, Izzy, Duncan, Courtney, I'm not even like Heather, I don't have her strength, her luck, or her anger," that was what I was really afraid of. Despite all the good things I had done, I was still afraid that things would stay the same, just because I am not capable of fixing everything on my own.
"No, you don't."
"And running away is not an option. Because if I do..."
"What other difficulty will you run away from later?"
"I'm just...a normal person."
"You definitely are."
"I don't understand, why me? Why was I the one brought here? For what purpose? I haven't given it much thought, but doubts were always in the back of my mind, nostalgia and excitement kept my judgment numbed until now, keeping me from going crazy, imagining that at any moment, I would screw it up and the future could become even bleaker than it already was, the fear that that would happen because of me. The talk I had with Izzy , along with the inevitable confrontation of my trauma, brought the doubts back to the front of my head, Was I really sent here to fix things? Or was it just what I assumed? If that was the goal, there were others who were much more more capable, I know I wasn't the only one who regretted our separation, so..." I finally raised my head and looked at her with my desperate, tear-filled face, "Why?"
"...", She just smiled softly, "Who knows?" She started to wander around me, "those are a lot of questions that seem important, but... are the answers important?" I didn't understand, what did she mean?, "Maybe there was no reason for it to be you, you just were and that's it, maybe you didn't come to fix the future, but to face the past, maybe you don't have anything that makes you stand out from the rest and you're just a normal person or maybe that normality is what makes you special compared to others."
"That all sounds too ambiguous," it almost seemed like she was just rambling.
"It's because it is... there's no point in thinking about 'maybes', right? If you want something more concrete, then do what you've done so far," she told me.
What I've done so far?... I widened my eyes when I realized, "Don't think about it so much, just try to find a way for everything to end well", that's the first thing that came to my mind when I arrived here, I didn't worry about the 'Why' until now, just 'What's next' and 'What can I do now', without realizing it, I had already chosen a course from the beginning, why should I start worrying about whether or not I can do it at this point?, I smiled, "No, even if they hadn't sent me away for any of those reasons, it's not like I could stand by and watch everyone I care about destroy each other, could I?"
She shook her head, "no, you can't, because Cody is an optimistic and perverted person," that last bit went without saying. She approached me and put her finger on my chest where my heart was, "you help your friends for the simple reason of doing so and that hasn't changed in here, you never let difficult situations get the better of you, you looked at them with optimism and you you laughed, that's what makes you a normal person... and also, what makes you a special person."
I smiled at this, "it's true, that's who I am. I'll deal with it when the time comes, that's what I've done until now... no, that's what I've always done, even if I'm still scared," I said as I clenched my trembling fist.
"As for your problem, you always have the third option," Third option? The sun began to peek over the horizon, "it seems our time is up," Dawn said.
I looked at her, "Why are you helping me?"
"A mutual friend asked me", at that moment the seagull from before landed on her arm, it was the same seagull that I had freed in the first challenge and that I had seen roaming the island several times.,"You've been nudging your friends for the better all your life, it's only fair that someone gave it to you now, when you need it most. As long as you stay true to yourself you'll be fine, although you should stop catching your female colleagues in lewd moments so much, even if that's just how you are", she said that last thing while holding back her laughter, now I'm sure she's making fun of me., "Although now that I think about it, that's also who Cody is.", she finished thoughtfully.
I looked at the seagull in surprise, "Is this really a dream? Are you... real?"
She just smiled and began to fade into the mist, "Good luck Cody."
"Wait!" I tried to reach for her with my hand, but she was already gone.
Then I woke up.
-0-
I still had my hand extended forward, it was early in the morning and the others were still sleeping. I sat on the bed, I was a little dizzy and drenched in sweat, I put my hand on my face to make sure this was reality, "that didn't feel like a dream, it was so real."
I went outside the cabin to try to get some fresh air. Today would be the hunting challenge, I couldn't hide how nervous I was. The last three days since Izzy left, I looked for the place where I met the bear the first time and tried to make a plan against it, but the truth is that I couldn't come up with anything very useful. I'm good with computers, not nature.
"Squawk".
I heard a seagull, so I turned around and saw it on the steps of our cabin. It had something in its beak, it left it there and then it flew away. I approached the place where it had been and was surprised by what I saw.
"Impossible," I said, very surprised, I took the object in my hand to take a closer look. It was the blue dreamcatcher that Dawn had in my dream, why did the seagull have it? Now I was really shocked, "Wasn't it just a dream?"
I looked at the article and then I hung it around my neck, I said I wouldn't think about it so much and that's what I'll do.
"Hello Cody," Courtney's voice scared me, making me jump, I had forgotten that she is also a morning person, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she apologized with good humor, it seems that winning the Boney Island challenge still had her quite happy.
"It's okay, I wasn't paying attention," I should be more attentive to whoever I'm around when I'm talking to myself, I wouldn't want misunderstandings to form.
She looked at me worried, "Are you okay? You're a little pale and I can see you've been sweating a lot," she narrowed her eyes, "and I think you have dark circles under your eyes. Aren't you sleeping well?", not in the last three days.
"Huh?" I touched my face to check that I wasn't too sweaty. And in my distraction I didn't notice that Courtney had walked up to me and placed her forehead against mine, "What?" I could feel her warmth, and her fragrance didn't smell bad either. She didn't seem to care that I was a little sweaty or nervous about our closeness; her commitment to being a counselor was impressive at times...when it wasn't driving her crazy.
Finally, she turned away from me, looking calmer, "You don't look like you have a fever, but don't hesitate to visit the infirmary if you feel sick."
I rubbed my forehead, "t-thank you, I'll take that into account."
She now seemed more uncomfortable, she looked both ways before speaking, "listen, I wanted to thank you for your advice the other day, it really worked for me," she said happily, "but since we won the challenge, I didn't know if it would be appropriate to talk to you at that time. "I didn't want you to have problems with your team if someone found out, or to be upset about losing and not want my thanks," she said, scratching the back of her neck uncomfortably. I guess I would have my doubts too after winning because of a rival's help.
"It's okay, it's not like I told you how to win the challenge, you solved that yourself, besides, sooner or later everyone will leave at some point, there can only be one winner after all", this was true even if neither team wanted to be at a disadvantage.
"You're right," she agreed, "thank you," she said sincerely, and I know she was sincere because I know what she's like when she lies.
Out of nowhere, we both heard the sound of a helicopter. Chris had arrived to wake everyone up with his eccentric ways as always.
"You don't know how much I hate that guy," Courtney said, annoyed.
"Believe me, I actually do."
"OH, HIT THE DECK! THEY ARE COMING, MAN! THEY FOUND US!", we heard Duncan's frightened scream from his cabin.
We looked at each other, "hahahahaha," and couldn't help but laugh.
"Ok, that makes the helicopter worth it," she said as she wiped away some tears, "I better get back to my team so they don't get the wrong idea."
"Yes, good luck in today's challenge."
She looked at me and I hesitated for a moment, "same," then she walked away. It's not a huge change from the previous Courtney, but it's a work in progress.
-0-
As I was walking outside the women's bathroom (and not for any perverted reason this time, I swear), I could hear the sound of the showers, but this time there wasn't a long line, so Heather wasn't hogging the water again. , which was good.
"Hey Lindsay, tell me the truth. What's the secret to them being so big?"
I froze when I heard Gwen's voice asking Lindsay that.
"Uh, what secret? One day they, BANG! were just like that, didn't that happen to you?" Ouch, that was a pretty low blow Linds, even if you don't know it, but I didn't know that Gwen was one of the who cared about these issues, I suppose everyone does at some point, especially if there is someone to compare with.
"..."
"Why are you asking that all of a sudden? I don't think it's a big deal," Courtney said, I hate to say it but you're not one to talk, Courts.
"Easy for you to say, right? Just look at the size of those things," Heather commented.
"Hey!" Courtney said, covering herself with embarrassment I imagine.
"I'm a little sorry for you Bridgette," Heather went to the other Bass.
"And what does that mean?" she replied, annoyed.
"Don't listen to her, girls, the prom queen is just jealous," LeShawna said.
I'm surprised how easy it is to hear through these walls.
"Yeah right, because I definitely wish I had everything as big as you," Heather replied.
"Excuse me!?".
"Beth, put cream on my back, it's dry."
She sighed, "Yes Heather."
"Lindsay stop playing and fix my hair."
"Oh, of course."
Just what I feared, Heather may have respected our non-violence agreement, but she still hasn't completely changed. She's still a grumpy and moody dog, she didn't change much on World Tour either, we'd just become friends. It's clear there's still tension between her and the other girls, not to mention her run-ins with Bass every chance she gets. When the merger comes she will probably still be a problem, especially since I won't be able to keep an eye on her all the time and I could be a target too, so I'll have to watch my back on top of everything.
"I hope you're ready for the most challenging challenge yet. Breakfast in three minutes at the campfire pit", Chris announced through the megaphones.
It's time... I better get out of here before I get in trouble.
-0-
We were all already gathered at the campfire waiting for Chris to explain what the next challenge would be.
"Alright campers, are you ready for today's extreme max impact challenge?".
"We are ready! Hehehehehe", Owen answered with the same enthusiasm as Chris, LeShawna only shook her head in disappointment at him.
"Incoming!" Chris threw cans of beans at us, "This is breakfast".
"No, breakfast are crepes, croissants, even Chef's yucky burned eggs", Heather complained, it seems like she was particularly grumpy today.
Owen started singing a song about beans, but was knocked out by a can.
"Thank goodness", Noah commented, uncovering his ears.
"Today's challenge is about survival. We're going hunting", Chris said, pulling out a paintball gun.
"That's more like it", Duncan said excitedly, Owen was already devouring his beans, I wasn't particularly hungry right now.
"Isn't that a paintball gun?" Harold asked Chris.
"Why yes, Harold, it is", He proceeded to shoot him with it, knocking him down with one shot. Either Harold is very weak, or that thing hits hard. I'm not in the mood to guess which one.
"So we won't be killing anything?" Bridgette asked, I don't think this show could handle the lawsuits if we did it.
"Negatory", Chris said easing her worries, "this is the first ever paintball deer hunt. I'll announce the teams once we get into the woods. So, finish breaky".
Owen had already finished the cans of beans., "Got any more?".
"Dude, that's so wrong", Noah said upon seeing him.
-0-
Chris took us to the outskirts of the forest where they already had all the equipment for the challenge.
"And now for the team breakdowns. The Killer Bass hunters are, Geoff and Bridgette, locked and loaded with bass blue paint", he said throwing guns at each one, "and using orange paint are the Gopher hunters LeShawna, Beth, Owen, Lindsay and Noah".
"¡Woo hoo! This is awesome, man!" Owen said already eager to start.
"You also get these stylin' glasses and wicked camo caps!", he said with the accessories on, "The rest of you are now deer. Here are your antlers, noses, and little whitetails hahahaha".
"Yeah right. I am not wearing that", Heather protested.
"There is no way I'm a deer," Duncan said.
Chris put the accessories on him, "Take these off and your team is toast".
"Well, well, well, it looks like the roles have been reversed for once." Noah said to Duncan arrogantly.
Confessional.
Noah
"Finally, a chance for the nerd to get revenge on the tough bully, I can't help but feel excited."
End of confessional.
"Pff, you wish, nerd, you won't be able to keep up with me."
"Sure, whatever you say," he replied, it seems like Noah really wants to take advantage of this opportunity.
-0-
The deer from both teams went into the forest first to hide. And as expected Heather was already being Heather.
"This may be the lamest thing I've ever done in my life", Gwen commented, just wait for the future, friend, "Are you coming?", Gwen asked Heather, who had already sat down to file her nails.
"No. I'm going to wait for Lindsay and Beth and make them protect me for the whole game".
"Wouldn't that be against the rules?".
"Do you see a rules person anywhere? Worry about your own fluffy tails".
"Cody?", me pregunto a mí.
"Go ahead, I'll stay."
She looked at me, probably getting the wrong idea, "sure, don't do something too scandalous you two," she said mockingly.
"Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean?" Heather got upset.
"Bye Heather," Gwen said as she left, not giving her any response.
She just grumpilly watched her leave, it's funny, but with the type of clothes she was wearing, her deer costume looked comically good on her.
"Don't think you're doing me a favor by staying here," she told me, "just so you know, I don't need your services on this occasion," she filed her nails again.
"As you wish, but let me give you some advice as the guy who always has good ideas," she actually looked at me, "you should change your location, this place is too exposed, even if Beth and Lindsay come to protect you, you will probably receive one or two shots and Harold has already shown that they are not pleasant."
She seemed to consider it, "I'll... keep that in mind," it was the best I was going to get, so I left.
-0-
POV. Bridgette
We were ready to start the challenge, but I still had my doubts, I didn't want to shoot the other campers, violence wasn't my thing.
Harold approached me seeing my doubts, "Okay, you do realize that this is all just pretend, right? And that it's just paint?", yes I know, "so, say if you, like, hit Heather..." .
"Wait, Heather is a deer?", now that changes everything. Time to get back at that scrawny bitch for implying my boobs are small.
Confessional.
Bridgette
"I can't tell you why, but I've had a personal grudge against Heather since this morning and now, I have the perfect opportunity to get back at her."
End of confessional.
-0-
POV. Noah
"Start your paintballs! Game on!" Chris announced over the megaphone, the challenge has officially begun.
"All right! Let's go bag some deer!" Beth said as optimistic as ever.
"Aha! I am down with that", said LeShawna.
Then we saw Owen pour a yellow liquid on himself, don't tell me he...
"What are you doing?", Beth asked him, bad idea.
"Masking my scent so the deer don't smell me coming", Are you serious?
"Tell me that isn't pee", LeShawna told him disgustedly.
"Believe me, that's just what it was," I replied, dismayed.
"Yes, my little buddy is right," I wish I didn't.
"Owen, we're not hunting real deer, unless someone has a super sense of smell that we haven't been told about, there's no need to go that far," I replied.
"You mean, I collected all this pee for nothing?" I'm afraid so, he threw it into the air near us.
"Dude. You are one sick ticket", said LeShawna.
I'm not going to argue with that, I walked away from the rest and entered the forest on my own. It probably would have been best to stay together. But Lindsay and Beth will surely go looking for Heather, I for one had a specific deer to hunt.
-0-
POV. Cody
I was wandering through the woods when I ran into Beth just like last time, only this time, it was in a different location, it seems that Heather really changed her hiding place.
"Hi Beth, running errands for Heather?" I asked her.
"She's a complete tyrant! I risked my life to get her some measly chips!" she complained.
Confessional.
Beth
"In an alliance we're supposed to collaborate with each other, like she does with Cody, but she treats Lindsay and me like we're her slaves, I don't know how much more of this I'm really willing to take."
End of confessional.
"How do you do it? She never orders you to do things for her and almost always listens to your ideas. How do you make her respect you so much?" she asked me.
"I guess it's a matter of initiative," I replied after pretending to think about it.
"Initiative?" she asked.
"Yes, I never seek her opinion, nor am I aware of what she may say, she listens to my ideas because they work and are the best option, not to mention that I actually have something to blackmail her with. If you want her to respect your opinion then tell her what you think."
"I see, thanks Cody, that's very helpful," she looked at the chips in her hands, "she probably won't even eat them, do you want them?"
I was going to refuse, but my stomach growled, of course I hadn't had breakfast, you can imagine why, "I'll take your offer". She gave me the chips and went to look for Heather.
I walked in the other direction, after making sure the bag didn't spill any crumbs. Heather will probably want us to expel her if we lose this challenge, it may seem like I have betrayed Beth, but she was going to rebel anyway, this was something necessary for her, because it would not only mark her independence and awaken her initiative, but also It would be what shapes her personality for the next season, it would also leave Heather with one less ally.
Besides, I couldn't keep an eye on the alliance today, I had my own thing to deal with and no, running away or avoiding it wasn't up for discussion, who knows what could happen if I'm not there when the bear shows up and I'm pretty sure he will, it was simply too big a risk to leave that matter unattended, even if I didn't want to do it yet. I tightened my hands on the dream catcher that I had hung around my neck and began walking towards my predestined reunion.
-0-
POV. Third person
Owen's eyes were seen inside a bush, right in front of him, was Sadie standing in a clearing looking at some flowers, "Suddenly, our hunter spots a magnificent buck in the clearing. If he's to succeed, the hunter must demonstrate patience and control", then he farted.
Sadie looked at the bush in alarm and began to run.
"No, damn beans. The hunter begins the chase, his prey is agile, but he is more agile.", Owen ran after Sadie, she wasn't particularly fast, but neither was he, "The prey is very evasive, but the hunter will not give up so easily", From time to time he fired a few projectiles hoping to hit her, but his aim was terrible.
...
After a while, they were both panting and leaning against some logs. Since they were running at the same speed they were the same distance from where they started.
"The hunter... pant... needs... pant... to... pant... recover", he fell to the ground exhausted.
"It's my... pant... chance", she also fell to the ground exhausted.
...
They both walked quite tired up the hill, Owen throwing in the occasional paintball.
Finally, Sadie stood in front of the cliff of the first challenge, without Katie next to her she didn't have the same courage to jump, she was cornered.
Owen stood behind her smiling, "finally the hunter has managed to corner his prey just like he had planned from the beginning," he pointed his gun at her and she took cover from it.
*Click*
But Owen was out of ammunition.
They both stood there, not knowing what to do, "and, now what?", asked Sadie.
"...AHHHHHHH!", he ran to capture her. But Sadie ducked, causing Owen to trip and fall down the cliff and into the water, "AAAAAAHHHHHH! MOOOOOOMMYYYYYYYY!".
"I'm sorry", she apologized, then left the cliff.
...
Owen emerged from the water soaked and tired, "You can leave the hunter… with less ammo than he thought he had… you can throw him over a cliff… you can even leave him with a case of toe crabs… but you cannot break his spirit!" At that moment Owen heard something.
Duncan walked calmly down the trail, without realizing that anyone was watching him.
-0-
POV. Noah
Somehow, I ended up running into LeShawna while hunting, now we were both hunting for deer together.
"What's that sound?" she asked.
It sounded like an argument. We peeked through some bushes and I could see Beth arguing with Heather in a clearing.
"If you don't treat Lindsay and me with more respect, then I don't want to help you anymore, find someone else to put cream on that flaky, dry lizard skin!" Beth said, Ouch, that must have hurt.
"Hah, take that back", I doubt she's going to do it.
Next to me LeShawna squinted trying to see, "uff, I knew I should've gone to the optometrist before I came out here, is that the target?", she asked me.
"Yes, shoot the tallest figure, that's the target", I told her, oh how I'm going to enjoy this.
She shrugged and shot, "Ouch!", she hit Heather right in the butt ha.
"Who did I hit?".
"You just shot Heather in the butt".
"Really? Great," she said, happy instead of angry for shooting someone on our team.
"Well, I'll leave you to deal with this, I have a punk deer to hunt," I said as I left.
"Good luck with that know-it-all".
-0-
POV. Duncan
I was already tired of this challenge, it wasn't the same if I wasn't the one shooting the rest of these losers, plus I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was following me.
I went to a river to drink water, at least the water here was not contaminated, I can't say the same about everything else.
*PFF*
I heard the sound of a fart near me, the air started to stink, "Beans", then I saw some leaves fall from the tree above me, "Owen!" Now I know who followed me, "Nice try Farticus! You almost had me!" I ran away before he could get off, this was too easy.
-0-
POV. Cody
Finally I was here, the scene of the incident, I won't lie, I felt too tense, this was all like in the dream this morning, I was trying to breathe deeply so as not to panic.
Over the last three days I had come up with several plans to deal with the bear, but these would not work like the previous ones, since they depended on me being able to confront the bear the instant I saw it, which I clearly would not. what I could do after that dream showed me the truth. I really had few options.
I took another deep breath and squeezed the dreamcatcher again, listening for any noise.
"¡Hi Cody!".
"AHHH!", or so I thought, since I couldn't notice when Lindsay came out from behind the blueberry bush, "Lindsay? What are you doing here!?" I asked, alarmed.
"Oh, Heather ordered me to look for blueberries," she was using her camouflage cap to carry a large amount, "Although after picking so many I got a little hungry and ended up eating some," in my panic I hadn't noticed that her face had blue spots and he smelled faintly of blueberries.
If I was panicking before, it was much worse now. Why was Lindsay here? I know Heather sent her to pick blueberries. I watched the episode. But she herself supposedly came looking for her as support in her outburst against Beth.
"You should change your location, this place is too exposed, even if Beth and Lindsay come to protect you, you will probably receive one or two shots and Harold has already shown that they are not pleasant."
"I'll... keep that in mind."
Heather changed locations. She's not in the same place as last time, that's why I found Beth on a different path, Lindsay doesn't know about her dispute, now she's here because of me.
"Linds you have to-", I saw Lindsay's eyes widen. A huge shadow loomed over me, I felt a breath on the back of my neck. Against my better judgment, I slowly turned around, knowing he would be here regardless.
Couldn't I be wrong this time?
Standing there in front of me, about three to four meters tall (my mind is not working well at this point), with razor-sharp teeth and claws and his brow furrowed in a bad mood, was my mortal enemy, the bear.
"GRRRRRRR!", this was the first time I had run into a bear since I came back here, it was the first one I had run into in years and as expected I was not ready.
My entire body froze, my scars burned like fire, my vision was swimming in black, I think I was about to faint, while that monster stood right in front of me, angry, maybe this was his blueberry bush, I didn't know. I asked last time, why was he so angry with me that time? I don't remember, shit, my mind is starting to wander.
"CODY!", a hand squeezed mine in desperation and fear, it was as if Lindsay's scream had brought my feet to the ground suddenly. It's true, she's here too, I completely forgot about her for a moment.
As if on reflex, I grabbed Lindsay's hat full of blueberries and threw it in the bear's face.
"Grrr", he was surprised and covered his face.
"Run!" I yelled at Lindsay as I pulled her with me in my mad dash to get away from the bear.
"GRRRRRRRR!", which was now angrier.
Confessional.
Cody
"Yes, I made a bear angrier than it already was, yes, my first action after that was to run, something no bear expert would ever recommend, but I will ask you to keep in mind, I am not the bravest person , so my judgment was a little clouded at that time, and I made a hasty decision, something that happens a lot since I came to this program."
Bear
He was wiping the blueberry stains off his face with a towel, "Grrrr".
End of confessional.
-0-
POV. Noah
I was walking through the forest when the sound of a particular conversation reached me.
"Why do you smell worse than normal?"
"It's Owen's stink. It's following me around like my juvenile record."
"Bingo, I found you delinquent deer", that was definitely Courtney and Duncan, two annoying birds with one stone, doubly cool.
I headed towards the place where I heard their voices trying to be as quiet as possible.
"Well, I'm heading back. This stupid game must be almost over by now."
"You're going the wrong way."
"Excuse me? I was a CIT, remember? I have a natural sense of direction. Camp is this way."
"No. It's that way."
*Bang*
Finally I found them, and I had to hold back my laughter when I saw them, both of their antlers had gotten tangled, they were stuck.
"Very funny. Now let me go!" Courtney said.
"Hey princess, this isn't my idea of fun either," he replied.
"Great, Duncan."
Confessional.
Duncan
"Sure, we could've taken those lame-o antler hats off, but Miss Counselor-in-Training would probably go blab to Chris and have us disqualified. And hey, I kinda liked it".
Courtney
"Yes, taking those hats off would have been the easy solution, but I know Chris is watching us and a disqualification is the last thing our team needs."
End of confessional.
"Now what?", asked Courtney.
"Now..." I responded, coming out of the bushes and surprising them, "You can be good deer and stay still while I hunt you."
"Oh shit, it had to be you of all people, nerd," the angry criminal replied.
"Any last words?" I asked them as he pointed at them, he was seriously enjoying this.
"Yeah," out of nowhere Duncan kicked a can of paint snatching the gun out of my hands, "It won't be today, nerd! Run!"
He and Courtney tried to run in opposite directions, but ended up falling to the ground, "Ouch! Any other idiotic ideas?" Courtney asked.
"I meant in the same direction!" I was able to retrieve my gun and started shooting at them immediately, but they got up and started running together.
They were too fast to be stuck, "Get back here!", I wasn't going to last long with my terrible physical condition, I had to hit them before I exhausted myself.
...
From one moment to the next, I lost sight of them, they must have hidden, I looked around trying to hear their footsteps, where had they gone?
*Crack*
I heard a branch snap, I turned around a tree and there they were... with Duncan holding a very flexible branch, oh no.
"Sweet dreams, nerd," he dropped the branch which hit me in the face. As everything faded to black, the last thing I heard was the delinquent's laughter and Chris's voice announcing the end of the challenge.
-0-
POV. Cody
Lindsay and I took shelter in a huge hollow log, I could hear the bear roaring nearby. He was following us.
I took a handful of mud, and rubbed it on my body, I also rubbed it on Lindsay's face.
"Hey, what are you-", I quickly silenced her by putting my hand over her mouth.
Outside, we could hear the bear's heavy footsteps looking for us, "he can smell our scent," I whispered, "stay still and don't make any noise," I begged a little desperately. I could feel her head nodding.
We stood still, while our furry attacker stalked us outside. My hands were shaking like crazy, and I was sweating a lot. Lindsay gave my hand a comforting squeeze, but she was scared too.
After a moment we couldn't hear anything anymore, we both breathed a sigh of relief.
*CRACK*
"GRRRRRRRRRR".
"AAAAAHHHHH!", until the bear's big paw pierced the wood and almost reached us. We ran out of the log taking advantage of the fact that the bear was stuck.
"Quick, climb that tree," I told Lindsay, it seemed like a bad idea considering bears are good climbers, but the first time we went camping, the bear didn't chase us when we climbed the tree, I was hoping this time it would be the same.
I climbed first to help Lindsay up, I held out my hand for her to reach me.
*Crack*
"¡Waaaa! ¡Ouch!".
"Lindsay!", but the branch she was standing on broke, sending her to the ground.
"I'm fine," she answered from the ground, but the bear stood in front of her, very angry, "I lied, I'm not fine at all," she told me desperately.
At that moment, time seemed to stop for me, as I saw Lindsay cornered by the bear, I imagined her in the same situation that I experienced back then.
Then I made the worst decision I had ever made in both of my lives. I continued climbing the tree.
...
...
...
"AAAAHHHHHHH!", and then I launched myself onto the bear's back.
"CODY!" Lindsay shouted worriedly.
"GRRRRRRRRRR!", the great beast began to squirm from side to side, trying to throw me off.
I clung to his fur for dear life, I know I hadn't been thinking straight for much of the day, but I can assure you that nothing was going through my head while I was performing this stupid, suicidal act of heroism.
The bear's paws were moving very close to my face, one of those blows would destroy my face or leave me in a coma and it would be game over for me.
On his careless path, the bear walked backwards towards a slope that was hidden by some bushes.
"AAAAHHHHH! / GRRRRRRRR!", we both started rolling down the hill, I couldn't hear Lindsay's voice anymore, I was holding on to the bear for dear life as we fell.
Between turns I could see that we were heading towards a ditch. Just before we fell, I saw there were some branches with vines on them.
Thinking quickly, I grabbed onto one of them and let go of the bear.
"GRRRRRRrrrrrr!"
*Boom*
I heard him fall to the bottom, I was suspended over the pit trying to catch my breath. I swung a couple of times and made it to the shore, then collapsed right there in disbelief of everything that had just happened.
"I...did it...really defeated a bear", I was not happy, I was shocked, I never thought I could do something like that.
"Grrrrrrrr", I gave a slight start I could hear the bear below.
I looked out of the hole and saw him trying to get out, but the terrain was very steep. He was trapped.
I got up and tried to walk away.
"Grrrrrr," he roared again, but this time he seemed more desperate.
I stopped for a moment, "it's just an animal, an animal that tried to kill me twice and my friend too, I don't owe it anything," then I continued on my way.
...
POV. Third person
The bear fell back to the bottom of the pit after his third attempt at climbing, so he gave up, he sat there bitter about his plight, he would probably starve to death, he just wanted to eat his favorite blueberries and now he was stuck here.
"Grrr".
Out of nowhere the sound of something crawling came from above, the bear watched as a bunch of intertwined vines fell into the moat, making a makeshift ladder.
The bear was surprised, but he leaned on the vines so he could climb the edge of the moat.
Finally he was able to come to the surface, the vines were tied to a nearby tree and there, watching to make sure they didn't break, was the young mountaineer who confronted him.
...
POV. Cody
Yes, I definitely wasn't like Duncan, Courtney, Owen, Izzy or Heather, I didn't have their luck or their strength. And I definitely couldn't hold a grudge against an animal, even if it tried to kill me.
Because Cody is a good guy, even if it gets him in trouble.
The bear and I approached each other, I wasn't trying to pretend to be brave, honestly... I was too tired of being afraid, at this point I couldn't feel afraid anymore, not after everything I had been through, already. No. Just cold resignation.
We stood in front of each other, he still had a frown on his face, "look, I'm sorry I came near your bush, we didn't mean to bother you and at this point I don't feel like running anymore, I can't and I don't want to, so if you go get even, go ahead, just do it", I closed my eyes expecting the worst, but this time I didn't back away or curl up scared. I don't know if he could understand me, but the animals on this island always showed themselves to be smarter than average, so who knows.
"¡GRRRRRRRRRRRR!".
I could feel him growl in my face, his breath smelled fishy, he reminded me a little of Izzy, once he stopped I thought he was going to attack me...
...
...
...
...
...
But nothing.
I opened one eye to see what was happening, the bear had turned around and was walking away slowly on all fours.
He let me go.
My legs shook and I collapsed sitting on the floor, releasing the breath I didn't know I had been holding, I felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from my shoulders, after many years. I just saw him leave. I wonder why he just left.
Confessional.
Noah
He had a red mark across his face, "funny thing about bears, they don't really have any interest in people, as long as you don't get between them and their food or let them see you as a threat, then they usually won't mess with you."
End of confessional.
I looked at the dream catcher on my neck, "There's always the third option, right?" I said while smiling. Thanks Dawn.
"Cody!".
"Uff", Lindsay arrived and tackled me in a hug.
"That was incredible! You saved my life! And you fought a bear to do it! I don't know how to thank you," she said excitedly, shaking me with each sentence.
"Could you let me breathe," I choked out as she squeezed my neck.
"Oops, sorry," she said as she freed me, "I'm really glad you're safe too, that fall seemed really long, it took me a long time to get to the bottom."
"It's okay, I couldn't let that bear hurt you," especially since it was my fault you were there at the time.
"Where is the bear?" she said, looking around worriedly.
"Over there," I indicated the place where the bear could still be seen leaving, "don't worry, it's no longer interested in us."
We stood there for a moment, watching the bear leave, taking in everything that had happened.
"Hey Linds, that bear...did he always look so small?"
"Uh, what are you talking about? Didn't you see it before? It was huge," of course she didn't understand the true meaning of my question.
"Heh, you're right it was huge", that was a bad joke.
"Attention human wildlife and hunters! Please report back to camp! It's time to show your hides and tally up the scores!" Chris announced.
"Well it looks like it's over, let's go back."
...
We walked in silence back to camp, it felt so weird, "Hey Lindsay, I want to thank you."
"Uh, why?"
"If you hadn't been there, I probably would have stood there paralyzed while the bear attacked me."
"Not at all! You saved my life, I know you could have done it even if I wasn't there," she said without believing my words.
"No, I couldn't have, the truth is that I'm not that brave on my own, it was the fact that I didn't want anything bad to happen to you that made me act, in fact, I'm quite a coward on many occasions," it wasn't a lie, I may have the mentality of an adult, but there are things that you never stop being afraid of and in this program there are many of them.
"..."
"..."
"...well, I don't care if you can't always be brave, I haven't seen anyone here who doesn't get scared at some point, Noah and I weren't even able to face our fear... but you, you always seem so calm and prepared for everything, you give security to the team, if you say it's not because you're brave, then it's because you're kind instead and I think that's even better," she told me, smiling.
I wasn't expecting that kind of response, especially from someone like Lindsay, but she's been showing great growth for a while, at least now I can say that she and I have become great friends.
"Thank you Linds, you are an amazing friend."
"No problem," she said happily.
-0-
We reached the edge of the forest, the others were already there. LeShawna, Beth and Heather were covered in paint.
Owen was dirty and wet just like last time, Noah had a huge red mark on his face, as for Gwen and Trent, they both looked as good as last time.
As for the Bass, they were all unharmed, Courtney and Duncan were nowhere to be found, I guess they must have a hard time moving with their horns stuck.
"Tsk tsk tsk. Stealing from Chef. Eating chips in the woods. Fighting with the local fauna", my eye twitched, I'm not in the mood Chris, "Do you know what I see here? I see a very undisciplined group. I see a disgraceful mess. I see a massive waste of paint product. And I have to say… that was awesome!", sure, since it wasn't you out there, "Haha! When you guys opened fire on your own team? Wicked TV, guys and that man versus bear confrontation, you're crazy, man", I just rolled my eyes.
"Hey. Where are Duncan and Courtney?", asked Harold.
They appeared at that moment, with their antlers still tangled.
"Oh, this is too much.", Gwen said humorously.
"Hahahahahaha, Duncan, you sly dog, you!", said Owen.
"The girl can't keep her antlers off me", bad choice of words my friend.
She kicked him in the kiwis, a bit too hard.
"Uff, Can't even bend over", Duncan said with a tear coming from his eye.
"Hahahaha, I feel better now", Noah commented, I'm going to assume the mark on his face was Duncan's fault.
Geoff and Bridgette helped them part ways while Chris continued, "Well, since three members of the Gophers are dripping in paint and some of them aren't even deer. I think we have our winner!", the Bass began to celebrate their victory, "Bass, You're off to a hunting camp shindig! Gophers, I'll see you at the campfire ceremony. Again".
-0-
I was on my way to the cabin alone, when Heather came up to me very angry... and covered in paint.
"Beth is leaving this island," was all she said.
I only blinked slowly once, "Are you sure? Isn't she one of your allies?" I'm not supposed to know that they fought.
"Not anymore, she decided to rebel, after everything I've done for this alliance," I would be surprised if you actually believed that.
"So it would be, You, me and Lindsay, do you have a plan to get more votes?"
"Owen won't be a problem, he owes me," I guess for the canoe trip, "and I already have someone else in mind, but I'll take care of that, I just need to know if I have your vote."
"Of course, on one condition," I said seriously.
She crossed her arms with narrowed eyes, "Speak."
"You need to have a girls' night out with Lindsay," was my response.
"Why?" she asked me, already upset with the idea.
"Because, you're asking us to expel her friend, not to mention that today she almost got eaten by a bear, it wouldn't kill you to pretend to be friends with one of the few allies you have left."
"...Why do you care so much about how I get along with others?"
"Besides keeping the team together? I guess it's because I don't think you're really that bad deep down, you're just grumpy... and very moody.
"Of course I'm not bad, I just don't hang out with losers."
"... tell me Heather, do you still have the photo you took with this loser?" I said, pointing at myself.
"..."
"Spend time with Lindsay, that's the only condition for my vote," I didn't wait for her response, I just went to the cabins, I'm exhausted today.
Confessional.
Heather
"I can't guess what's going on in that nerd's head."
End of confessional.
-0-
POV. Noah
It was already getting dark, it would soon be time to vote and I still hadn't decided who to vote for.
I was thinking when Heather of all people approached me, "great, just when I don't have a glass of water to throw at a witch."
"Spare me your smart-aleck sarcasm," that wasn't sarcasm, "listen, you don't like me, and I don't like you."
"Excellent deduction."
"But I'm willing to forget our mutual hatred, if you help me eliminate Beth."
I thought about it for a moment, I wasn't particularly close to the farm girl, plus, from today's discussion of her, I know she was working with Heather, so eliminating her leaves her with one less ally of hers. I could vote against Heather, but I don't know who else on the team besides Lindsay is with her.
"What do I gain if I help you?"
"How about not getting revenge for telling LeShawna to shoot me in the butt?" She replied angrier, shit, I hoped he wouldn't find out about that.
"I guess your boyfriend, Cody, will vote with us too," I said waiting for a reaction, I know he usually hangs around her, I don't know if he's just keeping an eye on her or if he's part of her alliance or even if he's just trying to get in. in her mini shorts. The first and third seem more likely to me when it comes to him.
She didn't say anything for a moment, her face also showing no emotion, "Tks, I was hoping to keep it a secret longer," she said annoyed.
Good thing Heather, but I don't believe you at all, "Well, I'll vote with you with one condition."
"Oh great, you too, let's listen to it."
"Tell me what Cody's secret is."
She raised her eyebrow in confusion, "Uh, didn't I just do it?" So she doesn't know, and her being genuinely confused also means that their relationship is a lie, she should at least suspect that something is up if she really does. had interest in him. But she doesn't seem to know what I'm talking about.
"I thought he would tell his girlfriend some embarrassing secret, too bad."
She just rolled her eyes, "Vote for Beth and I'll forget about paintball," with that said she left.
What are you up to Cody? I don't think you help her just out of the goodness of your heart.
-0-
POV. Cody
We were all at the bonfire ceremony, this time Heather wisely stayed silent.
Confessional.
Beth
"I know I'm probably going to go home tonight since I rebelled against Heather, but I couldn't feel more free and I never thought I'd actually stand up to her...plus bombing her with paint was so much fun."
End of confessional.
Chris had given all of us our marshmallows except Beth and Heather.
"Campers, this is the last marshmallow of the night, and it's for...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...Heather", He threw the marshmallow at her, "I'm sorry Beth, you're going home."
She sighed, "it's okay, I really had a lot of fun, I'm going to miss you all," she told us.
"We'll miss you too girl," LeShawna replied.
"Heather...", she looked at her, "you're a bitch and something terrible will probably happen to you during the competition," she said, making her eyes widen, we all had to hold back the urge to laugh, "so I wish you the best of luck."
"Well, that's what I call a goodbye, hahahahaha," Chris laughed at the situation.
Heather didn't know what to say to her, so she just watched her leave like the rest of us. Beth walked along the dock of shame and left on the losers' boat, disappearing into the distance.
-0-
We returned to our cabins, it was time to sleep and I was contemplating the dreamcatcher on my neck.
"Dude, I swear, every time I see you you get a little hippier," Noah told me.
I just shrugged, I had survived, no I had overcome my biggest trauma yet, I can't help but feel excited for whatever comes next, I feel like I can handle anything right now.
-0-
POV. Heather
I watched Lindsay brush her hair and sighed, I didn't want to lose another one of my allies, I needed to regain Lindsay's trust, I hate when that geek is right, it makes him seem like the brains of this alliance and that's clearly me.
"Hey Lindsay, now that Beth's gone, I thought you'd like to do girly things... with me," I said hesitantly.
She looked surprised, "Really?"
"Of course."
"YES! There's so much we can talk about," she said excitedly as she pulled out a bunch of magazines and beauty products from her suitcase.
I opened my eyes wide, I think I made the wrong decision.
-0-
POV. Third person
Chris is standing on the dock of shame, "and that concludes this week's challenge. Can Heather still control the game with one less member in her alliance? Is Noah any closer to knowing Cody's secret? What next challenge do I have planned for these campers? Find out next week here on TOTAL… DRAMA… ISLAND!