Her Hero for the Night

Summary: "Well, well, well, guess great minds think alike, huh?" Came an interjection from the voice of the /exact/ delinquent she'd had her mind trained on. She'd never been more relieved to hear his voice.

Rating: T

Pairing: Gwuncan

AN: Now that I've begun to rewatch Total Drama All Stars, I've been reopened to the unfairness of how they display Gwuncan. I loved the sensitivity and affection Duncan was showing Gwen, but Gwen was totally blanking him and I felt there needed to be an explanation for it. For finally achieved Gwuncan, they did a sloppy job with it.

I'm all over the place with the fanfics I'm working on. Life has been not so kind to mind for the past eleven days and it's showing in my constantly leaping from show to show to try and distract myself. It sucks to miss people.. I just know that I have a real knack for adoring best friends falling in love. Pretty ironic if you ask me. Stefan and Caroline from the Vampire Diaries, Nikki and Jonesy from 6teen, and Gwen and Duncan. It's a neverending list.. It's really frustrating that I've been drawn to the latter two for the past eleven days, :|

Anyway, this is set directly after "Saving Private Leechball".

Enjoy.

[OoOoOoO]

Two losses in a row wasn't the most encouraging score for the Villainous Vultures - especially Gwen. She was feeling more and more like a villain with each passing day, not to mention her negative progress with Courtney was about as reassuring as having a bucket of leeches dumped on /herself/.

But that wasn't even the worst - the worst was the fact that Duncan had been moved to the Heroic Hamsters. She'd been a horrible girlfriend throughout the entire time of being on her team and she felt awful about it. It hadn't quite hit her until he'd taken the leech for her during the challenge. The Goth had been so wrapped up in getting herself back in Courtney's good books, as well as trying to press teamwork to the villains and working on proving /not/ to be a villain, that she'd completely dismissed him.

Whether it was at the beginning of the challenge today, or if it was the kiss on the first day, she just /knew/ she'd been a terrible girlfriend.

Not to mention the sweet kiss on the cheek she'd received when he left.. how sweet he was on her had been a shock. Ever since the Island, she'd only ever seen his devious delinquent side, as well as the fun and flirty side, at least aimed towards her. She'd never seen him be sweet like this with her.. and it made her smile. He'd had his flirty moments during World Tour, but this was a whole new world of sweet.

He was like air; it's always there so much so, that she just kind of takes it for granted. But when it's not there, it's a HUGE deal. He was a huge deal. And it made her feel ridiculously remorseful.

"Better that we got rid of Jo today, huh? I've heard enough of her bossing and going on about Lightning to last a /lifetime/." Heather began, drawing Gwen away from her thoughts about Duncan. They'd once again had to retire to the girl's section of the crusty loser's cabin. Heather and Gwen would have been the only girls, but after tonight, Courtney had joined in place of Duncan and now the three of them were forced to share a cabin.

Gwen couldn't even allow herself to be relieved that Jo was gone, or for the fact she had a better chance of making amends with Courtney now that they were on the same team.. she was just really missing Duncan.

The Goth looked up briefly, before shoving her suitcase under the bed and taking a seat on the creaking piece of furniture. "Yeah.. one less liability for the team." She breathed a sigh of relief, half-and-half on the girl's departure.

As fun as it was to hold some of the power reign around here, it also got old with the constant debate over who could get closer to her. One less teammate pawning for her was a good thing, especially with it being Jo. Heather and Alejandro were overbearing enough on their own, and Courtney would soon prove even harder to work with.

"Where's Courtney?" Gwen asked suddenly, realizing that the CIT wasn't even in the cabin. She hadn't seen her since the flushing of Jo.

Heather's eyes narrowed and she shrugged. "I don't know and I don't care! Gotta say, though. I /am/ looking forward to eliminating her quickly. She'll go if we lose the next challenge - which /won't/ happen, but worse case scenario, she's out of here! You with me? Or do you want to humiliate her a little more for the camera?" She winked, cracking a devilish smirk.

The Goth groaned in defeat, thankfully not having to defend her case any longer, for Courtney walked in and any conversation about her with Heather wouldn't continue. She didn't bother trying to speak to her and fled almost as soon as she entered the cabin.

Gwen just had the /best/ luck with trying to make amends with Courtney, so she decided fairly quickly that she'd give it a rest for the night, maybe try and walk around to ease her mind. All of the revelations and changes the day had brought had shoved any exhaustion and exertion she felt from today's challenge out the door. She just needed a little solitude and Gwen time. She felt buzzy, like she'd drank too much coffee or something.

Her hands rubbed up and down her arms rapidly, shivering from the night air as she wandered around the camp. If it wasn't ridiculously humid during the day, it was freezing cold at night. Her eyes wandered to the winner's cabin in envy; sighing from the faint memory of luxury she'd had just a few days prior. And how accessible Duncan had been, too.

Now she didn't have /any/ of that. Her hopes sunk farther and farther into the ground.

Unbeknownst to her, the Goth had wandered to the little creak Duncan and her had wandered to during the second season of this fiasco. A small feeling of happiness churned in her stomach and she smiled, cautiously stepping on the unsteady bridge. At the time, it'd been awkward and fumble-y, because seconds after Duncan had been daydreaming about Courtney, they'd tumbled to the ground in a very compromising position.

She was certain that was the evening she'd first begun to feel for Duncan. Before, he hadn't even passed her mind as possible /boyfriend/ material. They had a lot in common, while also having a lot of differences. He'd been a good friend to have all through the seasons, but suddenly it'd become less and less platonic and the chemistry had built.

Gwen leant an elbow on the wooden railing, looking up at the stars in a similar manner to how Duncan had that night, sighing blissfully in remembrance. As much trouble as their relationship had caused for the both of them, Gwen didn't regret their kiss on the plane for a minute. Duncan was a really great guy - it'd just taken a while to see it.

"Well, well, well, guess great minds think alike, huh?" Came an interjection from the voice of the /exact/ delinquent she'd had her mind trained on. She'd never been more relieved to hear his voice.

She turned her head to spot Duncan, standing right at the entrance of the little bridge with a sack thrown over his shoulder. "Duncan!" She exclaimed, racing over and enveloping him in an embrace. It was the /very/ least she owed him for his little display of valor earlier in the day.

He accepted the embrace, though full of surprise by the overzealous affection from a girl who'd been blanking him in that category ever since the first episode, really. He dropped the sack and wrapped his arms around his girl, chuckling to himself. "Well, nice to see you too, doll face."

It took her a few seconds to let go, letting the solace of his presence wash over her before she released him. "What're you doing here? And with a sack? Up to some uncanny /villainous/ tasks, Duncan?" She teased, referring to his new 'hero' status, knowing it irked him about as much as it irked him making jokes about her villain status.

He sent her a look, but didn't take his hands away from her waist, milking this brief moment of affection for as much as he could. "Hardy har, but isn't that /your/ department now?" Oh, she returned the sour look very quickly. "Now, now, don't get grumpy! I'm actually being /really/ kind to you right now, so you should appreciate it."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

Finally, Duncan released her to attend to his sack, crouching down and rifling through the sack. "You'll see." He said promisingly as he dug, pulling out a few bunches and setting them down individually. She stared at him, perplexed by what he was doing, until he opened the first one.

Her eyes widened in not only shock, but filled with an unbridled affection for him. As if he couldn't make her feel even /guiltier/ for how she'd been treating him, he'd had to do this /too/.

"I figured you could use some /suitable/ grub, because that slush that Chef serves to the loser's cabin just isn't - natural." He said, eventually unfolding all of the bunches to reveal various dinner dishes. It ranged from a bundle of chicken wings, to some biscuits, to even some chocolate chip cookies he'd no doubt snubbed just before now.

Gwen swallowed, her stomach growling almost ironically, and smiled wryly. "We didn't even get anything for dinner." Chef had missed the dinner trip, not that it mattered because she wouldn't touch any of the slime with a ten-foot pole.

His uni-brow shot up in surprise. "Seriously? Well, even better that I did this, then." He realized it wasn't the most - villainous act to do, and was probably sealing his fate as a hero even more if the cameras caught on, but he couldn't help it when he thought about Gwen and how she'd been stuck in the loser's cabin /again/. He would have had to suffer with her had the change not been made, but it still sucked to be on opposing sides, now.

She was his girl - he couldn't exactly encourage her to eat even a /morsel/ of the slop, because he wouldn't do it himself. If he would take a mere leech for her, he wasn't going to risk her eating the sludge. "Dig in! I had way too much for dinner /and/ dessert, you don't have to worry about leaving any for me." He insisted with a grin.

Gwen knelt down beside him and didn't hesitate in winding her arms around his shoulders again, leaning her chin on his shoulder. She just couldn't believe him, sometimes. Just when she thought he couldn't be any sweeter, he was.

The same look of confusion appeared on his face, one of his arms circling her to pat her shoulder blade gently. "Not that I'm complaining, Gwen, but what's with all the affection tonight? You haven't been exactly forthcoming lately."

She winced inwardly as he verbally stated his acknowledgement of her prior coldness, drawing back just to look at him. "I know.. I just, I don't know, I've been so wrapped up in everything else! You know, being a villain and all, trying to get Courtney to stop giving me the evil eye at every turn, leading the team.. I just forgot about you." Her heart quivered as she took in his expression at the words 'I just forgot about you'.

"No, no, Duncan! It wasn't intentional! Really, it wasn't.. It was just me being really selfish and being a terrible girlfriend. There's no excuse for it.. especially with you being so nice and affectionate and just - perfect. I owe you a really big apology. I'm /so/ sorry." She insisted, eyeing him with nothing but remorse and regret.

He sighed, shoulders slumping in the slightest. "Yeah, I've been wondering why you've been blanking me even more than /Courtney/ lately. Can't say it hasn't bothered me a /little/." Per usual, he was the rough and tumble guy, the 'no emotion' one.

"And I'm really sorry. Honestly." She reinstated with as much sincerity as she could muster. "I certainly /feel/ like a villain." A sigh eliciting as soon as she'd completed her statement.

Duncan shook his head with a small smile. "I'll tell you what, you try not to blank me for the rest of this competition, and we're cool."

Gwen returned the smile easily. "I think I can manage that." But she had to add this /just/ incase. "But if I /do/ accidentally blank you once or twice, it wasn't intentional! I swear!"

Now he couldn't help himself. "Just like you /accidentally/ did all those things to Courtney?" He joked, amused by her rampant facial movements as soon as he said something.

"It WAS accidental!"

"I believe you." He chuckled, looking her in the eyes. "And for the record, you don't really have a villainous bone in your body. At least when it's not involving Courtney - /or/ blanking me." She took one of her hands and punched him lightly in the shortly, at least accepting his statement in a light heart.

It /was/ serious beneath the joking, after all. "Shut up." She muttered with a smiling face, leaning her forehead against his and just relaxing in his presence. He was about the only thing keeping her sane in this entire competition.

Duncan realized this would be one of the few times he'd be able to steal a kiss from her without interruption or just it being the wrong time, so he took the opportunity in front of him and kissed her. There was no pulling away or hesitation from Gwen to kiss him, responding with a renewed interest.

But Duncan may have thought too soon, because only a minute after it began to rain heavily, and they just happened to be a few unhelpful inches away from the overhang.

"Save the food!" He exclaimed as soon as they broke the kiss, grabbing the bunches of food and putting them back in the sack to salvage, ushering for Gwen to follow him and duck back in under the overhang.

They sat together, backs against the bannisters just to try and keep dry from the sudden onslaught of rain. This time Gwen took the initiative to link their fingers as they sat, calming down from the sudden move they'd made. "So what made you think to come out? I've been rotten to you for the past few days, /and/ we didn't make any prior arrangements." The odds of them actually running into each other was slim to none; Duncan would have made the trip for nothing.

He shrugged, turning his head to look her way. "Just had a feeling you'd be here."

She smiled to herself and dug a hand in the sack to pull out a random bundle, her appetite renewed. "You brought a really good variety. This is really nice, Duncan." She insisted in appreciation, quick to tuck in to some of the chicken wings, relieved to taste anything that was /actual/ food.

"Just don't speak a word of it to anyone else! I already have enough people thinking I'm /nice/ now." He grimaced at the thought.

"Well, you /are/ nice." Gwen confirmed. "To me, at least."

Duncan shrugged once more. "You're my girl."

That sentiment alone brought Gwen a world of happiness and she scooted over a little more, laying her head against his shoulder. Never would she thought to find such love in a delinquent, but something about that thought wasn't concerning in the slightest.

He'd be a Heroic Hamster tomorrow, but he'd be her Hero for the night.

[OoOoOoO]

AN: If anyone understood where this "He was like air; it's always there so much so, that she just kind of takes it for granted. But when it's not there, it's a HUGE deal. He was a huge deal. And it made her feel ridiculously remorseful. " came from, you gotta mention so in a review. Because you're golden if you know what show that came from.

But regardless, hope you enjoyed.

Reviews are my life; don't kill me.