Last time on Total Drama Island…

Some time in the kitchen showed that our campers have more than a few things cooking. Liam and Courtney convinced Bridgette to join their alliance, helping them make up some of the numbers they lost. Owen, Ezekiel and Cody also had some bonding, while it seemed like Gwen and Lindsay might be getting along better.

These good feelings meant little compared to their cooking skills, however. And while Leshawna did a good job leading her team, DJ and Daphne's stellar rib-making sealed the deal for the Killer Bass. Following their loss, it seemed for certain that the Gophers were going to vote off the unhelpful Lindsay. But thanks to her friendship with Leshawna, it was Ezekiel that walked the Dock of Shame instead. Will any of these new friendships last? Just how much can they trust each other? Find out this week on Total… Drama… Island!

Breakfast a few days after the cooking challenge was the same as it had been the first day after. "Presenting, pineapple-steak-rice casserole!" Chef said as he scooped some 'breakfast' onto Gwen's plate.

The goth raised an eyebrow. "As in, more leftovers from the last challenge?" she asked.

He glared at her. "That's right. Is that a problem?!" he shouted.

"Nope! No problem… sir!" Gwen said, hasty adding a salute. Chef gave her one back, and she sighed in relief as she sat down to pick at her breakfast. As Leshawna sat down next to her, the larger girl gave her a raised eyebrow. Gwen just nodded in response.

At one end of the Bass table, Liam and Courtney were, as usual, seated across from each other and speaking quietly. "What do you think?" Courtney asked.

Liam lifted his gaze from the day's breakfast to glance at his teammates. "Bridgette and Harold are close enough that we shouldn't need to worry. As long as he stays, so will she. As for the others… we suggested DJ before. As long as it's just against Heather, we may also have his vote."

She smiled. "Great. This team can't handle two bosses; one of us has to go," she said frankly.

"And that 'one' should be her," he agreed, before looking over at the Gopher table. "I see Cody hasn't been idle either," he said.

Courtney looked back long enough to see him seated with both Owen and Justin, making her raise an eyebrow before she faced forward. "If they all make it to the merger, Harold might ditch us to join his old pal. And take Bridgette with him."

He nodded. "Precisely. But unless we're willing to sabotage the other team during a challenge, they're out of our reach for now," he pointed out.

She looked over at him. "And you're… against that?" she asked, sounding slightly surprised.

He shrugged. "It would be taking a big risk. I'd only do it if it guaranteed victory," he told her, making her hum.

At the other end of the Bass table, DJ was holding Bunny while he ate his breakfast. Once he finished chewing, however, he opened his mouth and let a mash of breakfast fall out to land in Bunny's open maw.

Tyler, sitting across from him, leaned back. "That's… gross, man. Almost as gross as Harold's underwear," he stated.

"Hey!" Harold called from further down the table, but was ignored.

DJ shrugged. "Bunny's teeth haven't finished coming in. I got to feed him soft food until they're done," he told him. Nonetheless, he took his next biscuit and simply soaked it in water before giving it to the rabbit.

Daphne chimed in "We've already made a deal with Chef for once he does. He adds some broccoli to the next food order he has shipped to the island, and we clean the kitchen for him."

The jock shuddered at that image. "Good luck to you both, dudes," he replied.

Once breakfast was finished, the campers were gathered at the Docks, Chris began "Campers, over the past few challenges, there's been a lot of friendly smiles. There's also been a lot of plotting and little real trust. So I thought the best solution… would be to exploit it for more drama!"

The campers gave him unimpressed looks and he laughed. "Therefore, today will have a series of challenges that require trust. Each one will require a pair of competitors from each team. And no, you won't be deciding the pairs; I will."

Chris then led them to a large rock wall, making some of them gulp at the sight "For the Gophers, we'll have Trent and Gwen for this challenge. Bass, your fates rest with Courtney and Heather. One of you will be climbing up this wall, while your trusted teammate attaches the harness and holds the belay in case you fall. I should warn you that the wall is also rigged with some 'minor inconveniences' such as… explosives, sharp nails and oil slicks. You know, the fun stuff," he told them.

"Awesome," Harold declared in awe.

At that, Chris gives them all a grin. "One more warning: Do not let go of your partner's belay while they're climbing for any reason. Their life may depend on it," he said, causing the pairs to look at their partners.

Confessional Stall - Gwen

"I trusted Trent with my life once already. And how did that turn out? With me in a box, trapped underground," she said with her arms crossed.

"I promise, I won't let go of the rope. Not for anything," Trent assured her. Gwen looked away without saying anything, but neither did she protest as he began to attach the harness.

As they stood there, both Heather and Courtney gave each other looks of blatant distrust… before the former sighed.

"Look. I don't like this, and neither do you. So let's just win this thing, stay ahead of the Gophers and be done with it, alright?" Heather said.

Courtney stared at her a moment. "Okay… but I'm watching you," the C.I.T. warned, getting her to roll her eyes as she placed the harness on.

As Courtney and Gwen began climbing, Courtney began to reach for a rock that promptly exploded beneath her hand, sending her flying off. She stared at the descending cliff, then looked back down to Heather as she fell in silent plea. The two of them locked eyes… and then Heather pulled the rope taut.

Her line went taut as well and Courtney's fall came to a halt. Heather then called "See? Trust. Now stop failing and climb that wall!"

Courtney glared but did as asked, getting back on the wall and climbing with all due haste.

Chris smirked. "Time for a surprise!" he announced, revealing a large water gun. Giving it a few pumps, he then aimed at Heather and fired a stream of not water, but hot sauce.

The blast hit her right in the face, causing her to cry out in surprise and pain. "Chris! What's your deal?! I can't see!" she called, letting go of the rope to wipe at her eyes. Seeing that, Courtney froze on the wall and didn't move an inch.

As he was doused, Trent yelled "That burns, man!" However, he didn't let go of the rope even as his eyes watered. Gwen looked back down in concern, but he called "Don't worry about me! Keep going!"

Confessional Stall - Gwen

"Is he trying to show he cares after he ditched me before?" she wondered aloud. "If so… there are worse starts than taking hot sauce to the eyes."

Gwen was now in the lead, but then her foot landed on a patch of oil. She immediately slipped and lost her grip. "Oh crap! Aaaaah!" she screamed, falling halfway back down before her line went taut thanks to Trent.

Heather, meanwhile, finished getting the hot sauce out of her eyes and grabbed the belay again. "I've got it!" she called, and Courtney began climbing like a madwoman while Gwen struggled to catch up. Then, just as she reached the top, Courtney saw a small red tube in the rock above her.

"Not this time!" she called, and pulled it out before tossing it below her.

Gwen's eyes widened as the dynamite went off only twenty feet above her head. "Hey! Watch it with the deadly explosives!" she yelled.

Courtney called down a distracted "Sorry!" before grasping the top of the wall and hauling herself up.

"And with that, Courtney and Heather win it for the Killer Bass!" their host said. The Killer Bass all began cheering at taking the lead. Except, that is, for Heather, who scoffed at seeing Courtney cheering high above her.

The next challenge began with Justin & Cody for the Gophers and Bridgette & Tyler for the Bass, who stood inside the main lodge. An intern dived and performed a front flip before landing behind an announcement podium. A moment later, Chris emerged from behind said podium. "Campers, the time has come for… the Trust Eating Challenge!" he announced. After his declaration, all the contestants noticeably watched the intern crawl away behind Chris, but since the host declined to comment on it, so did they. "For this challenge, one of your team will be making the dish, while the other eats it," he explained.

Cody turned to Justin. "So, I saw you helping Leshawna last challenge. How good are you at cooking on your own?" Cody asked.

Justin simply shrugged, making the geek say "Okay… How about I do it, then?" and the model nodded in consent.

Tyler turned to Bridgette. "Those cheese balls you made before were the bomb. Why don't you handle this one?" he offered.

She smiled. "I appreciate the vote of confidence. I'll do it," she said, and the two of them bumped fists.

"Great! Now, your meal will consist of a takifugu, the traditional Japanese blowfish," Chris continued. Chef then emerged from the kitchen with a small fish tank on a cart, floating in which were two blowfish. "According to the biologist we asked, a single fugu contains enough lethal toxin to kill thirty people. You'll have to trust your teammates to very carefully cut around any poisonous organs. So… good luck with that." Chef then tossed a blowfish onto each of their cutting boards, and Chris called "And now, begin!"

Picking up his knife, Cody gave his teammate a nervous grin. "Well… good thing I've had steady hands ever since that bomb went off on me, right?" he said, making Justin pale.

Bridgette, on the other hand, smiled confidently and picked up the knife. "Making fish? I've got this," she said bravely.

An hour later, both teams finished preparing their dishes. Bridgette revealed a plate of sushi rolls, while Cody presented a collection of small fried filets.

Tyler picked up a roll and looked at it nervously. "Uh, does the poison have an antidote?" he asked.

"Nope!" Chris happily replied, making him gulp.

Tyler then looked at Bridgette, who gave him an encouraging smile. Returning with a nervous one, he muttered "Hope Lindsay doesn't see my face if this goes wrong," then opened his mouth and tossed the roll in. Chewing a moment, he then swallowed… and then smiled. "Good stuff!" he declared, making Bridgette sigh in relief while both Gophers frowned.

Justin then speared a filet with his fork and eyes it, before beginning to eat it. Once he also finished, he swallowed, looked over to Chris… and shrugged.

"Well, that was anticlimactic," Chris deadpanned. "I might need to adjust future challenges so things are exciting whether they go right or wrong," he said. "For now, this challenge ends in a tie. More challenges to come after my lunch break, so get ready."

During the break, Liam approached Courtney as she was sitting on the bench next to the cabin. He was wearing his swim trunks, and said "Care to join me for a swim? We can talk strategy there privately."

Courtney tilted her head for a moment, considering. "Why not? Wait for me to get changed," she said, and stood up to go inside. Once they were both ready, they began to head for the front of camp.

However, as they neared the Dock, they could already hear sounds of splashing, making them frown. Sure enough, they could soon see DJ and Daphne swimming in the water while DJs pet Bunny was sitting on the lifeguard chair.

"Well, so much for privacy," Courtney remarked with a frown.

Liam shrugged. "They're pretty far out. We can talk here," he said, walking over to the chair to pick up Bunny and place them next to the chair while they sat in it. However, as he walked closer, Courtney saw a purple, scaled shape rising up the other side of the chair.

"Look out!" she called, and the snake reared its head up to hiss at him across from Bunny.

Neither Liam, Bunny or the snake moved. While Bunny was quivering in fear, the snake and Liam locked gazes. Both of them waited for the other to react, while Courtney looked between them. Then Liam slowly said "Back. Away."

In contrast to his normal disposition, the redhead appeared wide awake. More than that, he was, for once, visibly angry. His posture was tense, and an air of outright danger seemed to come off him. After a moment, the snake did pull back and slithered away from the dock with an annoyed hiss. Liam then quickly rushed over and collected Bunny without a word. Checking them over, he relaxed and sighed "They're alright."

Courtney then approached him and, seeing him gently cradling Bunny, had to shake her head at the feeling of whiplash. As a small smile appeared on his face, she remarked "You know… I think this is the kindest I've ever seen you."

Liam looked up at her. "...I admit that I'm lazy, conniving and can be merciless… but I have a weakness for small animals," he admitted. "Not babies; they annoy me. Mostly puppies."

The duo then heard DJ call "Guys!" and looked to see him frantically climbing onto the deck with Daphne behind him. He rushed over and Liam handed Bunny to him. "I saw what happened. Thanks for looking out for Bunny, man. I owe you one," he said.

Liam's smile grew. "It was no big deal, man," he said.

But the tall teen shook his head. "I'm serious. If anything had happened to Bunny, I don't know what I'd do. So seriously, thanks," he told him.

The redhead reared back, surprised. "Well… you're welcome, dude," he said, before looking at Courtney. "Maybe a dip in one of the rivers?"

"Sounds good," she said, and the two of them left while DJ and Daphne fussed over his pet.

Once the break and lunch was over, Chris regathered the teams in the forest. "Your next three challenges had been grouped into one. But thanks to last round's tie, I'm now scoring these separately. First up is the Blind William Tell." He then accepted two arrows and sets of orange protective glasses from the same intern who did the flip and dive.

He handed the glasses to Daphne and Owen, before placing the arrows on their heads. "For this challenge, one of your teammates will be blindfolded and tasked with knocking the arrow off your head with crabapples, like the famous William Tell himself," he explained. He then demonstrated by blindly shooting a crabapple at Owen.

The fruit bounced right off his stomach, making him rub the spot. "This won't be so bad," he replied.

Daphne, on the other hand, looked down at her much less doughy frame and muttered "Well, crap."

"Excuse me, Chris, but didn't William Tell shoot the apples with arrows?" Courtney asked.

"Oh, I wanted to have it that way," he told her. "But the producers said that the idea of contestants blindly shooting arrows at each other made them 'nervous'. Pssh," he said. "Anyway, the team that knocks off their apple while causing the least injury wins. Leshawna, Liam, take your best shots," he concluded, tossing them both a blindfold and a slingshot.

The shooters walked over to stand next to their apple crates a dozen paces away from their 'targets'. They placed their blindfolds on, and each took a crabapple and aimed with their slingshots. "Let's rock and roll!" Chris declared.

While Leshawna hesitated, not eager to potentially hurt a teammate, Liam made the first shot with practically no pause. His shot struck Daphne in the shoulder, making her wince while Owen took one to the chest with barely a blink. "Higher up!" he said while Daphne called "Up and to the left!"

"My left or yours?" Liam asked, and when she replied that it was his left he fired again. Leshawna's next shot got Owen on the chin, making him momentarily lose his smile as he rubbed that spot. "Almost. That was the bottom of my head," he told Leshawna.

Liam, meanwhile, fired and his crabapple soared over… towards Daphne… in the direction of her face. Her eyes widened and she had just enough time to say "Oh, fu—" before the apple struck her in the nose.

There was a low crunch.

"MOTHERFU—Ah!" she shouted, holding a hand up to her bleeding and broken nose as she instinctively tried to exhale through it.

Liam, hearing her shout, frowned and said "I hit something important, didn't I?"

Pinching her nose shut to stem the flow, Daphne glared at the blind redhead and managed to get out "You can say that." Some of her teammates, particularly Bridgette, looked ready to intervene, but she wasn't quitting. "Now go higher!"

Liam dutifully nodded and aimed slightly higher. Leshawna did the same, and while Liam's next crabapple went directly over her head, Leshawna's clocked Owen in the forehead. His gaze turned slightly glazed, and spots danced in front of his vision. "Just a bit more, Walking Pineapple," he said.

The other contestants gave him odd looks at that while Daphne said "A little lower. Just a little."

"Got it," Liam said, and fired his apple at the same time as Leshawna. This time, he struck the arrow and knocked it clear off Daphne's head, while Leshawna's hit Owen in the same spot. His smile turned more vacant, but the next shot was true and knocked off the arrow.

"And that's a wrap!" Chris declared, and the shooters quickly removed their blindfolds. Liam frowned at seeing his teammate injured and glaring at him, while the host examined the damages. "Well, I did say the winner would have the least injuries…" he said, looking from Daphne's face to Owen's. "And weighing a possible concussion against a very visible broken nose…" he continued, before smiling. "The Screaming Gophers win!"

Leshawna and the others began cheering, while Owen grinned widely. The Bass appeared generally incensed, especially Daphne. "Does this mean we get to ride the Steakmobile?" the large boy asked hopefully.

Chris paused and sent him another look. "Yeah… You know what? Why don't you two see Chef in the medical tent? The rest of you, follow me," he said, beginning to walk away.

Daphne just nodded and kept her nose pinched shut with one hand while she grabbed Owen's shoulder and began to steer him towards the tent. "Steakmobile this way?" Owen asked.

"It sure is, buddy," she replied absently, gently rubbing her nose. "This better set right…" she muttered.

Chris led them to the sight of the penultimate challenge, waving his hand to a pair of Trapeze lines suspended over a pool of water with a small platform on either end. "Welcome to the Blind Trapeze. As a forewarning, this pool was added to reduce injury… so I had it filled with live jellyfish!" The campers gasped, while Chris chuckled and handed a blindfold to Courtney and Lindsay. "You two will stand on the platforms until your teammates, who will be on the Trapezes, tell you to jump. If they time it right, they'll catch you and your team passes. If not…" Then he glanced at the water and chuckled. "Cody, Harold, you'll be the catchers," he said.

Their eyes widened and they looked at each other. "So… it's finally come to this. Directly competing with each other," Harold said gravely.

Cody nodded. "We always knew it would," he said just as seriously. Then he extended his arm. "May the best man win?" he offered.

Harold smiled. "Absolutely," he said, and grabbed his forearm with his before the two shook.

Chris faked a yawn. "Touching stuff, guys. Very manly. Now get on those ropes!" he snapped, and the two of them jumped before rushing to climb into position.

Once the geek and nerd were suspended over the water, Courtney and Lindsay placed their blindfolds on. "You better time this right!" Courtney said, unable to keep a small tremor from her voice.

"I can do that. Just trust me," Harold assured her.

That almost made her scoff. 'Trust? Not even my alliance with Liam is based on trust,' she thought. 'We're useful to each other, nothing more. Not one thing,' she mentally insisted. And now she was being asked to take a literal leap of faith and hope she wouldn't get hurt.

"Okay. Now one, two, three, jump!" she heard him call. She bent her legs and prepared to jump… then froze.

Did she trust Harold? Did she at least trust him to win this?

The moment passed and Harold grunted in frustration. "We're not gonna win this if you don't trust me!" he told her.

Right, winning. That was what mattered. And to win, she needed to jump. At least this time it wasn't over a pool of jello.

"...Alright. Ready!" she called.

"Great. One… two… three...jump!" he called, and Courtney sucked in her breath before leaping.

For a terrifying, heart-stopping moment, she felt nothing but the wind and pull of the earth. Her mind went blank. There was nothing but fear.

Then she felt a pair of arms grab hers and she exhaled. She barely even heard Chris announce that Harold caught her or her team's cheers due to the blood thundering in her ears. A moment later she was deposited on the platform and quickly ripped the blindfold off. "Okay, Gophers, see if you can match that!" Chris declared.

Cody smiled up at Lindsay. "You ready?" he called.

"Ready! Just tell me when!" Lindsay chirped.

"Alright. When you hear 'three', that's when you jump, got it?" Cody told her.

She nodded, and Liam went stiff on the sidelines as an idea hit him. A terrible, wonderful idea.

He was frozen. His senses of caution and schadenfreude warred with each other. 'I could—But should—? Sis definitely would. But it—' he rapidly thought. It would give his team the win. But he'd be exposing himself in a big way.

"Okay. One…" Cody began as he swung back.

Liam started sweating. He was a planner, a professional procrastinator. He couldn't make split decisions like this! He needed time to plan!

"Two…" He swung forward.

Screw it, he was doing—!

"Three!" a voice called, and everyone looked over… at Courtney.

Everyone, that is, except Lindsay, who obediently jumped on hearing 'three'. "Wait! Lindsay, don't!" Cody yelled, but by then her feet had already left the platform. As he swung away, the blonde had just enough time for her eyes to widen behind her blindfold before she landed in the water.

"KYAAAAH!" she screamed, resulting in horrified looks from not only the Gophers, but from most of the Bass as well. Even Liam and Heather appeared stunned, while Courtney winced.

"Ooh, that looks like it hurt," Chris said, stepping away from the pool as her thrashing sent some water over the edge. "But that does score another win for the Killer Bass."

None of the Bass responded, still preoccupied with Lindsay's flailing… which was slowing down. Chris quickly had a pair of interns pull Lindsay out. A pair of jellyfish were attached to her head and back, prompting them to begin carrying her in the direction of the medical tent.

With that handled, Chris began escorting them to the area of the last challenge. As they walked, the campers were mostly silent, reliving the previous scene in their head. Several of the Gophers were sending dirty looks at either the Bass in general or Courtney in particular. Some of the Bass, notably Bridgette and DJ, also had expressions of disapproval. For her part, the C.I.T. remained silent.

Then Leshawna split off from the Gophers. Both teams watched her, everyone aware of her and Lindsay's friendship by this point. Courtney remained silent as she approached, looking her in the eye without breaking away.

Once she was within a few feet of her, Leshawna said "What you just pulled, and just keep your team ahead in a challenge… that was cold. Real cold." Giving her a hard stare, she said "If that's what you're willing to do to win, I can't stop you. Just know that I'm watching, and I can take the kid gloves off, too. You hear me?"

To her credit, Courtney kept her voice even as she replied "Loud and clear."

"Good," Leshawna said, before walking away to rejoin her team. Once she was gone, the Bass began to slightly separate themselves. Heather and Daphne backed away. In the middle were DJ and Tyler, who looked at each uncertainly … before Tyler sent a glare at Courtney and walked over to Daphne's other side. DJ hesitated, looking back, before he followed him.

Courtney winced at that, then looked over at Harold and Bridgette. They had yet to walk away, but Bridgette did send her a glare. "I thought I said I didn't want to be a part of something underhanded," she said.

Courtney shook her head. "You said you didn't want to be in an alliance where we stabbed each other. I stabbed the other team. Metaphorically," she said. When that didn't cause Bridgette's glare to lessen, she continued "You wanted trust between us, right? I just trusted Harold with my safety. And you can trust that I would never, ever sabotage my own allies."

Bridgette crossed her arms, not responding. Then she looked over at Harold. "What do you think of this?" she asked.

Harold frowned and was silent for a moment. Eventually, he said "It was a dishonorable tactic… but it did get us the win. Now we just have to tie or win this last challenge, and we win the whole thing, right?" He gave Courtney a wary look. "And it's true that you haven't done anything you said you wouldn't… yet."

"And I won't!" Courtney quickly assured them. "I give you my word that I won't sabotage our team or this alliance! Scout's honor!" she said, even going so far as to salute.

Harold frowned deeply. "You should know I was in a scouting group. I take that very seriously," he warned.

The C.I.T. nodded. "I understand. And I still promise."

He leaned in and gave her a hard stare of his own. The intensity of it nearly made her falter; he could maybe even give Leshawna a run for her money on glares if he was pushed. Then he sighed, and pulled away. "I'm willing to believe her," he declared.

Bridgette looked from him to her. "...Then I suppose I can try," she said, making Courtney begin to relax. "But!" she added, making her straighten again. "Even if you mess with the other team, it can't be something that gets them hurt like that, okay?"

"Definitely," Courtney assured her, and she nodded before walking ahead with Harold.

Once they were far enough away, she exhaled and relaxed. "You'd think they'd be happier I practically guaranteed that we'd win…" she muttered.

Then she felt a bump on her shoulder, her left one, and looked behind her. Standing there was Liam, who was looking at her… and smiling. Her only teammate doing that.

"Hey," he began. "I just… thought that was clever, that plan with Lindsay."

...

"...You really think so?" she asked, smiling slightly in return.

He nodded. "I really do. What made you think of doing that?" he asked.

Courtney looked to the side. "I saw an opportunity and I… just jumped," she said.

When she looked back, Liam's eyes were fully open. "You're incredible, you know?" he said. And unlike whenever he just agreed with her on something or was remarking on her leadership skills, this look, this compliment seemed more…real.

Her smile widened, before quickly turning mischievous. "I know," she quipped, making him chuckle.

Then he looked ahead and frowned. "Still… I think we can give up recruiting DJ. Or Tyler, if you had plans for him."

"I was thinking about it. In case Harold couldn't convince Bridgette to join," Courtney admitted. "But it looks like the lines have been made. It's going to be the four of us against Tyler, DJ, Daphne, and Heather."

"One big chain of friendship…" Liam muttered.

She nodded. "Exactly. And now we can't do anything about Harold or Bridgette before the final four without them suspecting it. Which means we're stuck with them until then, for better or worse," she said.

"Perhaps," he replied, nodding. "Or… we just don't get caught." Then his smile shifted in a familiar smirk. "What was that expression? 'If camper gets voted out in the confessional, are they around to read it?'"

Fortunately, their fellow Bass were too far away to hear Courtney's muffled laugh.

"And now, the final of today's challenges: the Blind Toboggan Race. Each team will have a driver moving the Toboggan, and a navigator. The driver, of course, will be blindfolded. It's the navigator's job to give them the directions to avoid any obstacles as they both ride downhill. First pair to cross the finish line wins," Chris told them.

"Screaming Gophers, if you manage to win this one, don't worry, I have an explosive tie-breaker challenge saved up for ya," he said, making them groan at the confirmation. "For this one, we'll have… DJ & Bridgette and Justin & Gwen." He then handed a blindfold to DJ and to Justin.

As he took his, DJ looked down at his pet, who was resting in his arms. "Hey, Tyler. Can you hold Bunny for me?" he said.

"Sure thing, man," the jock easily replied, and gently accepted the rabbit. Bunny stared at him with wide, innocent eyes, making him smile. "Hey there, little fella," he said.

DJ smiled at seeing a teammate bond with his pal before heading up the hill. Once he was at the top, he gave Bridgette a thumbs-up before tying his blindfold on.

As Gwen and Justin also got ready, the goth said "It's a good thing you're not the navigator. You might have to actually talk." Justin smiled and nodded in agreement before sitting down at the front of the Toboggan.

Once both teams were ready, Chris stood between them with an airhorn while Chef stood behind DJ and Bridgette. "On your marks… get set…!" he began, and then blew the horn while both of them gave the Toboggans a push with their feet. The steepness of the hill caused them to quickly pick up speed, enough that the air rushed past them and tossed their hair. They soon came to their first obstacle: a wide tree.

"Left, DJ!" Bridgette called.

"Right!" Gwen shouted.

The teams followed their navigators' guidance, the wind whipping past them as they continued their descent. Gwen saw a rock coming up and yelled "Left!" The model did as ordered and they moved left, avoiding being sent flying.

As the two teams descended, DJ's greater weight was causing them to pick up speed. That meant they were the first pair around whom the ground started exploding. "What the heck was that?!" DJ cried out in fear.

Back at the top, Chris chuckled. "Oh, I love me some explosions," he muttered, before pushing down on another detonator.

Seeing a set of dynamite sticks ahead of them, Gwen quickly called "Left!" They moved but she soon spotted another one and frantically called "Right!"

Bridgette, meanwhile, tried her best to ignore the blasts and focus on the movement of the wood beneath them. If she pretended hard enough, it was almost like surfing. "Left, then another left!" she said, and DJ drove that way.

As the Gophers sped down the hill, the finish line came in sight with the Bass shortly ahead. Then another explosion went off right behind Gwen, pushing them ahead faster and past the Bass. "Looks like it's neck and neck!" Chris called with a megaphone. Leshawna and the other Gophers began cheering, as did the other Bass. Justin began to smile, as did Gwen behind them.

Then Bridgette blinked, remembering something. "DJ! Lie back!" she said, moving next to him to do the same.

"Got it!" he replied, and did so. Without the air resistance from their frames, they were able to pick up even more speed. They caught up to the Gophers, kept pace with them… and crossed the line with one foot to spare.

"Right on!" Harold called, while his other teammates either whooped or applauded.

Using his megaphone again, Chris called "And the Bass win the Toboggan Race, taking the challenge with it! Gophers, I'll see you tonight for elimination!"

After the challenge, as Trent was walking by the boathouse, he heard a voice say "Psst, Trent!"

"Huh?" he said, looking over at the building and seeing a single eye peek out from the door.

Once he came closer, the door opened fully and a few pairs of arms yanked him in. "Hey!" he began to yell, before claiming down at seeing who it was. Cody, Owen and… Justin? "What's going on?" he asked.

"We wanted to talk to you, man. We've got something important to tell you," Owen said.

Trent raised an eyebrow. "Well, don't keep me in suspense," he said.

"Okay. So, you know how Lindsay and Leshawna are in an alliance, right?" Cody asked.

"Makes sense. They're friends," he replied.

"Right. But here's the thing: Last week, I tried voting Lindsay off to break that up," Cody revealed. "And since Owen and Ezekiel owed me a favor, they voted for her too."

Now both eyebrows went up. "So there were three votes against her? But then, if Ezekiel was still eliminated…" he began.

Cody nodded. "Then Leshawna somehow got four people with her against him," he finished. "And I think Gwen was one of them. That she's joined their alliance."

"What?" Trent said, shaking his head. "I mean, I know they get along better than Gwen does with most people. But joining their alliance? She finds Lindsay annoying," he told them.

"Maybe. But if it wasn't her, it was two of us, and I don't think you voted for him, did you?" the geek said.

Trent was quiet, before crossing his arms. "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. Guy was a weirdo anyway. And even if all the girls voted together, that still leaves one of us," he pointed out.

Cody nodded, looking between him and Justin. "Yeah, and he says he didn't do it either," he said, to which the model nodded. "So here's my idea: we make a one-time guys' pact to vote out Leshawna before she gets rid of any of us. After that, we can do our own thing. Sound good?"

Owen nodded in agreement. "Sounds good to me," he said.

Justin held his hand out as his answer, which Cody and Owen quickly placed theirs over. Then Cody looked to Trent. "What do you say, man?"

Trent looked at them and then at their hands, considering. "...Just a one-time pact?" he asked.

Cody nodded. "This is just to stop the girls from teaming up while we have the numbers," he said.

That got him to nod. "Alright, then. Guys' pact it is!" he said, placing his hand in the center.

After an early dinner, a similar conversation was happening in the Gopher girls' room. "So, who are we gonna vote for this time?" Leshawna asked as she filed her nails.

Gwen shrugged. "I don't know. How about Owen? He's okay, I guess, but it'd be nice to not have to air out our cabin next time we win some food," she stated.

Lindsay frowned. "But I kind of like Otis. He may smell bad sometimes, but he's also really nice and super sweet. Like a big, smelly teddy bear," she said.

The goth frowned, but let it go. "So not Owen. Then who?" she asked.

"How about Cody? That steak over rice last challenge was his idea, and it cost us the win," Leshawna recalled.

Gwen shrugged. "Works for me. Guy's like an annoying brother at times. I already have one of those," she said.

"What about Justin?" Lindsay suggested. "He's the hottest out of all the guys, which makes him super dangerous."

Leshawna was about to remark on that when they heard a knock on their door. Since she was the closest, Gwen got up and walked over to the door. As she opened it, her expression turned surprised. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

At the bonfire just an hour later, the seven Gophers sat together in a tense atmosphere.

Chris soaked in and held up his platter. "Who wants a treat? A tasty marshmallow symbolizing safety, peace of mind, the chance to continue scrambling for that prize money. Well, only six of you are getting one. The one who doesn't has an appointment with the Boat of Losers, which they will ride and not come back on. Ever."

"Let's see. I got two here for Gwen and Trent…" he began. The two of them shared a look as they accepted theirs. Trent appeared apologetic, making her frown in confusion.

"One for Owen…" He caught his and immediately ate it, before sending a glance towards Leshawna.

"One for Lindsay…" She caught her marshmallow and smiled.

"One for Justin…" He caught it one-handed with a smirk.

"Just one left." Cody and Leshawna turned to face each other. Both of them had a confident smile on their face, not a hint of worry in sight. "And the camper going home tonight is…"

…

…

…

"Cody."

Leshawna's smile widened while Cody's vanished. "What? But… How?!" he exclaimed.

"Sorry, short stuff. Looks like you got outplayed," Leshawna taunted, catching her marshmallow and biting it in half.

He looked to his teammates. Lindsay and Gwen appeared unsurprised, which didn't surprise him. But all the guys appeared shocked as well. Then Chris said "The Dock of Shame awaits."

Cody stood and began to slowly walk away from the bonfire. As he walked, he muttered "But how? We had the votes, it was four-on-three…" Then, as he stepped onto the Boat, his eyes widened. "Unless…" he said, before his eyes narrowed.

"Trent," he muttered, glaring back towards the camp as he left.

Before he decided to read in front of Harold and go to bed, Liam spotted Daphne sitting on the bench next to the cabin. "Daphne?" he called. When she looked over at him, he suppressed a grimace at the tape covering her nose.

"Yeah?" she said shortly, not really in the mood to speak and irritate her nose.

He rubbed the back of his head. "I just wanted to apologize for… well, that," he said, waving his hand at her face. "If there's anything I can do to make up for it, let me know."

There was a moment of silence… then Daphne gave him a look. "And how does Courtney feel about my injury?"

He froze. That look… she saw him. Not just the slacker, the casual facade he kept up so much it barely was one anymore… she saw him.

But how? He tried to hide it, he let Courtney take the lead… there was no way she could have seen through all that so soon after joining the same team as him. So how did she…?

Oh.

...But then, if she had known about him, why was she with…?

…

"Ohhhhh," he said, eyes going wide. Then they narrowed and he looked at Daphne. "What does Heather think?"

Daphne's eyes narrowed as well. "...I think it's best if we don't speak with each other again," she eventually said.

Liam nodded in agreement. "For now, at least," he said, and she grunted before standing up to head inside.

As he watched her go, Liam frowned. His initial read was off. This was… worrying.

I'm keeping the votes on this one to my chest for a few chapters. Once one of two conditions are met (one more likely than the other) it'll come out in the open.

Eliminated:

1. Beth, the Wannabe

2. Noah, the Know-It-All

3. Duncan, the Delinquent

4. Eva, the Female Bully

5. Sadie, the Sweet Girl's Friend

6. Geoff, the Party Guy

Teams are reorganized.

7. Katie, the Sweet Girl

8. Izzy, the Psycho Hose Beast

9. Ezekiel, the Home-Schooled Guy

10. Cody, the Geek