Episode Six: Sucky Outdoors

"Last time on Total Drama Island! The campers got a chance to show off what they think makes them special in our talent contest! Some exhibited a lot of potential while others just made it harder to watch them! Gwen got up in Heather's face, and Liam and Courtney got up in each other's faces! The teams were tied and it came down to Heather and Ella, the former of which practically handed the Bass the win when she read Gwen's diary in front of the whole viewing world; harsh! In order to save herself from elimination, Heather tricked Liam into voting off Justin, and despite not having done anything wrong, the model was the next to go. Who will follow his ridiculously gorgeous footsteps? Find out right here on Total Drama Island!"

Theme Song

Killer Bass Cabin- Girls

The sun crept slowly through the window to the girl's cabin, drenching the room in a dim light. It wasn't high enough to completely submerge the room yet, but the dawn brought about light that the room had lacked.

This did very little to stir the female Bass as they lay on their beds, dreaming the minutes away. Dressed in a white nightgown, Ella had let her black curls run loose instead of her usual bun, and was snoring away comfortably, clutching her sketchbook close to her body.

Bridgette wore a simple light-blue tank top with white shorts, snuggling warmly with her pillow as a lone ray of sunshine kissed her nose. The surfer also had her hair down, and was smiling peacefully in her sleep.

Izzy, on the other hand, was a lot less tranquil. Even in her dreams she was feisty and intense, sporting only a green bra and matching shorts, she gnawed on her pillow, eyebrows furrowed and lips curled in malicious delight.

Only Courtney, in her light-pink under garments, dreamed with her eyes wide open. The C.I.T was having difficulty sleeping, her thoughts certainly didn't help her. She had woken herself up from what was, admittedly, a wonderful dream. In it, she and Liam were walking through the woods together, talking and laughing; enjoying each other's company. It was nice. Too nice.

The C.I.T didn't want to be having dreams like that, not right now, in the middle of the competition. She needed her mind to focus in on winning $100,000. There were billions of boys in the world, but ways to win that much cash were very few. She needed to focus on her priorities.

But what about after she won? What would happen then? Would she try dating Liam? Would she just go back home and forget about him? He certainly wasn't on her mind before she arrived, the boy hadn't existed as far as she was concerned. But now he does, and he only does because of this competition. What were the chances of that happening?

One in a billion.

She began to wonder what he was doing at the present moment. She sighed, closing her eyes tighter, trying to make herself sleep for at least thirty minutes. She remained blissfully unaware that just across the grass in a cabin similar to hers, a certain Gopher sat wide awake, lost in thought and unable to sleep.

Liam too had a lot to think about, perhaps even more than Courtney did. For starters, the actor worried about Justin's elimination. Getting rid of the model put him at a slight disadvantage. While by no means a team player, Justin had no qualms with the actor, and probably could have made himself a useful ally. However, the curly-haired teen erred on the side of numbers in the most recent elimination. He knew that it was only a matter of time before the Gopher boys split, and Justin was not likely to share his. Cody, Owen and Trent, however, all seemed to get along well enough; at the end of the day Liam preferred being on their side instead of Justin's.

However, forming a shaky alliance with Heather came with certain downsides. Aside from the boost in numbers, the relationship was fragile and could shatter at any given minute, should Heather choose to get rid of him. She had made a valid point, Liam hadn't won the trust or loyalty of anyone outside of Owen (and even that was fragile as the jolly giant was easily manipulated), and they could all turn on him the moment Heather was gone. So long as the Queen Bee was in the game, the actor could rest easy knowing that there was a bigger target somewhere else.

Of course, Heather herself was quite an enigma. Liam would never admit, but he was awful at reading people. He had difficulty telling when the mean girl was being honest or deceitful, as he knew neither could be correct 100% of the time. He certainly didn't trust the girl, but he knew he would have to stay on her good side until he could find a way to get rid of her or her power. As of right now, he was in her well-manicured grasp.

Whether or not he truly desired to be grasped by the Queen Bee, he was unsure. Girls like Heather certainly never made moves on anyone without ulterior motives, and while he knew she had one, he couldn't help but think that it wasn't too farfetched to suspect that she might not be relying on just her motives. Desire certainly could be a factor, he was, after all, one of the more attractive guys on the island. If he were back at home, he would have no problem hooking up with a Heather; he was charming and charismatic enough.

But how often would he find a Courtney? He didn't know what it was he saw in the Bass girl that made him feel different about her. She was similar to Heather in personality: demanding, uptight, elitist, high-maintenance; the type of girl Liam found attracted him the most. But between Heather and Courtney, the actor couldn't help but feel like the mocha-skinned Portuguese-Canadian somehow stood out more. It was bizarre, to say the least, but perhaps it had something to do with that tango, being so close to her that they were practically one made him feel that he was currently missing his other half.

What had started out as petty flirtation seemed to be turning into a budding romance. Whether or not Courtney felt the same was up for interpretation, and bold ones at that. Yet the actor desired nothing more than being bold. He knew he would have to be, considering the person he was dealing with. Yet Liam was still apprehensive. Part of staying on Heather's good side meant not flirting with Courtney, at least not publically. Had he been caught dancing with her a couple of days ago, he'd have gone home for sure. He needed more privacy or more time, both horrifically scarce resources on a reality survival game show.

As the sun further enveloped the room, Trent's eyes began to flicker. The musician released a yawn and rubbed his eyes. His was the bottom bunk, where Justin had previously slept only two nights ago, that sat directly next to Owen and Noah's bunk, where, after much reluctance, Owen had finally come down to take Noah's old bottom bed. The bunk beds where directly across from the ones that Liam and Cody possessed, each boy getting a top and a bottom bunk due to the disproportionate ratio of campers to beds. Now there were four Gopher boys remaining, which essentially gave each boy a set of two beds.

Trent's bed happened to be the one directly across from Liam's making the first thing he saw that morning was the pensive actor sitting upright on his mattress. The musician, being the friendly soul he was, thought it best to strike a conversation,

"Mornin' dude, been up a while?"

Liam jumped slightly, not expecting anyone to be awake, then, before he could answer, he noticed the sunlight drowning the room and went to shield it from his eyes,

"Shit, what time is it!?"

Trent yawned, "I dunno, man, I just woke up. I thought you would know."

Liam's eyebrows furrowed, "Well, I don't!"

"How long have you been up, dude?"

The actor blinked, "I… I think all night!"

Trent's eyes went wide, "Oh no, dude, it's challenge day today! That's so not good!"

Liam rolled his eyes, "No shit, Sherlock, I hadn't noticed! You think I wanted to stay up so late?"

Trent raised his hands defensively, "Hey man, no need to get all riled up about it. Besides, the last couple of challenges have been pretty tame so far, I can't imagine anything too hard today either."

Liam sighed, rubbing his temples, "I'm sorry, Trent, it's just, I've got a lot on my mind. And, to be honest, I've been having trouble sleeping since the last challenge."

"Is it Justin?"

"Well, I would be lying if I said no, but I assure you it's nothing like Owen with Noah."

"Sure man, whatever you say."

"I promise you, I may have been his closest friend, but I barely got three words out of his mouth in the four or five times I actually talked to him."

Trent frowned, "Oh, that sucks dude, I'm sorry."

Liam waved his hand dismissively, "Don't be, we really weren't that close." The actor trailed off, starting to stare off in the distance. Trent got himself out of bed and moved over to place a hand on Liam's shoulder,

"Dude, I know we don't talk to much, but I want you to know that I'm here for ya. I'm thankful that you've been helping me with Gwen, and I'd like to know if there's anything I can do to help you with your problems, I'd more than happy to help."

The actor looked up at the musician and smiled earnestly, or at least, earnestly enough for Trent to take it as sincere. Whether or not it was genuine can never truly be deciphered when dealing with a man who takes joy in lying.

"Trent, I thank you for your concern and I appreciate your support. But know that my act in helping you with Gwen is one that I employ merely as a charitable act of good will and brotherhood! I require nothing from you in return for it, other than the pleasure of helping you secure your happiness!"

Although Trent couldn't decipher Liam's true emotions or intentions, he could decipher language and retorted back with a smile,

"Then consider it my own act of good will by helping you out in anyway that secures you your happiness!"

The actor chuckled, "Not quite as original or eloquent as I put it, but genuine nonetheless! I thank you Trent!"

The two shook hands.

Confessionals

Trent: I know that we may not be as tight as the Bass guys, but I've come to really appreciate the guys on my team. Owen, Cody, and Liam are three of the kindest, most genuine people I've ever met, I'm glad they're all still here! Even Noah and Justin weren't so bad, just a bit more anti-social is all. I'm sure they would've warmed up to us if they were given more time.

Liam: I can't believe I didn't see this before; Trent is the key to this team! With him on my side, I automatically win over Gwen, Cody, and Leshawna in one fell stroke! Combine that with Owen's blind faith in the inherent goodness of all who are nice to him and Heather's quadruple entente, I'm invincible!

End Confessionals

After an uneventful breakfast, the remaining twenty campers gathered around the campfire as their friendly-neighborhood-host-dude kindly explained to them the next challenge.

"Campers, today's challenge will test your outdoor survival skills! I'm not gonna lie to ya, some of you might not come back alive!" There was an audible gasp, particularly from the Gopher section, resulting in Chris defensively raising his hands, "Hey, I'm joking! Everything you'll need to survive is located at your campsites, which you can find using these nifty compasses and maps!"

Chris tossed said devices to the nearest members of the teams: Ezekiel for the Bass and Heather for the Gophers, however the host wasn't done with the explanation,

"Oh, and watch out for bears! I lost a couple of interns during pre-production! First team to make it back tomorrow wins invincibility and of course the losers get to send another loser home… because they're losers! Alright, good luck!"

As Chris exited the area, leaving the teams to mingle amongst themselves.

"Did he say there were bears up in here?"

Owen approached the nervous Leshawna,

"I had an encounter with a bear once!" He patted his chest proudly, "Let's just say, his head looks great on my mantle!"

As several Gophers exchanged concerned looks, a certain redheaded Bass girl bounded over to them,

"Oh, this one time, I saw a bear eating our garbage! He had old spaghetti noodles hanging from his big, huge teeth, it looked like blood and guts! It was so gross! And we thought it was eating the neighbor's cat, Simba, but it turns out he was just lost for a week!"

Izzy's madcap-recap was interrupted when she noticed the terrified expression on Lindsay's face. The crazy girl thought for a second before asking the blonde, "You didn't eat spaghetti last night, did you?" Lindsay shook her head causing Izzy to perk up, "Ok great! Hey Killer Bass! Wait for me! Let's go!"

As the redhead bounded off towards her team, the Gophers gathered around the map, reading it thoroughly. Finally, Heather asked,

"Does anyone know how to read this stupid thing?"

Owen let loose a sigh at the word 'read' and muttered, "Noah!"

The Gophers ignored the jolly giant. Cody piped up,

"I think we have to head that way, those tents have to be our campsite, so we just have to figure out where we are right now and direct ourselves there!"

Trent pointed at a spot on the map that looked to be a campfire,

"I think we're right here, so we should be walking in," he looked up and pointed, "that way!"

Leshawna was the first to move, "Alright then, let's go! The sooner we find the tents the sooner I can sleep and this challenge can be over!"

As the Gophers departed, the Bass were still trying to decipher who would lead the group, of course Courtney and Duncan were the ones fighting over that, or rather, whether or not Courtney should lead,

"You don't even want to lead, Duncan, why are you against me holding the map?"

The punk scoffed, "Because, princess, I don't take orders from chicks like you. Besides, I think farm boy over here might be little better at this stuff than a city girl."

Courtney scowled, "Are you really siding with that sexist nose-picker over me: an experienced C.I.T?"

Before Ezekiel could say anything, Bridgette stepped forward,

"I'm with Courtney on this one, of all the people you could have chosen, why choose the person we hate the most?"

Duncan raised an eyebrow, "Uh, says who? Zeke's got the dudes on his side, and we outnumber you now!" He turned and returned the map to the prairie boy, "Here, Zeke."

The homeschool pushed back,

"I doon't want to, eh?"

Duncan scowled,

"I didn't ask you if you wanted to, homeschool, I'm giving it to you!"

"Boot- "

"Take the damn map and walk!"

The punk shoved the map into Ezekiel's arms and proceeded to push him forward. When the two boys had gotten a few feet ahead, DJ, Tyler, and Geoff started to walk silently behind them. The Bass Bros were followed by Harold, Ella, Izzy, and Bridgette, and lastly by Courtney, who refused to move until her team was barely in sight anymore.

She was utterly furious at how rudely she had just been treated, and while she was glad that Bridgette had come to her side, she wished that the overly passive surfer girl would have done more. Or that anyone would have done something.

Confessional

Courtney: I can't believe I'm saying this, but: I wish Eva were here! She may have been psychotic and a danger to our wellbeing, but at least she would've knocked some sense into that stupid ogre and his sexist pig!

End Confessional

As Courtney walked, her mind slipped into an absent-minded trail of thought. She began to imagine in her head what would happen in various hypothetical scenarios: what if I was a Gopher? What if Katie or Sadie switched teams? What if Sadie, Eva, Noah, or Justin were still here? What the hell was that?

The last question came to her as she found herself face flat on the ground, although her body was not touching the ground, but rather bent over a large, weirdly soft object. Before she could attempt to process what the object was, it began to move from under her, trying to push her off of it. It didn't take too long to figure out that it was a person, and she would soon discover which person in particular.

"Oh shit, I think I messed up my hair!"

Courtney rolled over and picked herself up, watching the Gopher actor dusting himself off and doing the same. He stood up and made eye contact with her, as he wiped the dirt off of his sunglasses. His flustered scowl quickly melted into a coy grin,

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my brunette Juliet!"

Courtney rolled her eyes, "It isn't… I'm not your… ugh!"

Liam continued to gaze intensely into Courtney's eyes, leaving the C.I.T flustered and annoyed, mainly because she knew she couldn't look away. Finally, the actor broke the silence,

"So, where is everyone?"

The Type-A's eyes went wide,

"Oh my gosh! They left us here!"

"They what? Where did they go?"

Courtney bit her lip, "Well, we were supposed to go with our teams to our campsites and spend a night in the woods," then she let loose an angry puff of air, "How could they forget about me? I'm the most experienced person on their team, I was a C.I.T!"

Liam tapped his chin, "So, maybe we should try looking for our teams?"

"We?"

"Yeah, unless, you know, we get disqualified for not participating?"

Courtney crossed her arms, "Why should I help you, Gopher?"

Liam mocked shock, "You wouldn't leave me here all alone, would you?"

The overachiever smirked and raised her head in defiance, "Oh I absolutely would, we're on opposing teams!"

"But surely a true C.I.T would help another camper out when they need it the most? Especially when dealing with something as dangerous as a walk through the woods!"

Courtney opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Finally, she glared, "Ok, fine. But only because I don't want to be held responsible for your untimely death!"

The actor shrugged, "Works for me!"

Confessionals

Courtney: Just to be clear, I'm not helping him because I like him, I'm helping him because it's the right thing to do. He's nothing but an arrogant, immature, lazy, pretty boy who- her eyes go wide I don't mean "pretty" as in… like… ugh!

Liam: I must admit, I've never been asked out in such a blunt and horrific manner before... I can count this as a date, right?

End Confessionals

Wherever the actual Gophers are supposed to be

As the nine Gophers currently present walked through the woods, it took all of thirty minutes for someone to realize that a certain actor was being quieter than usual,

"Hey, has anyone seen Liam?"

While Heather continued to walk ahead, she was quick to eavesdrop into the conversation that followed Cody's question,

"…No, I haven't!"

Trent and Owen stopped next to Cody, the three dudes seemingly the only ones who were immediately concerned with the wellbeing of their team mate. As the others became aware of his absence, Beth, Lindsay, and Katie exchanged nervous glances,

"Do you think he got eaten by bearth?"

"Oh my gosh, bears ate Lemur?"

"You don't think they'll eat us next, do you?"

Gwen rolled her eyes,

"Liam didn't get eaten by bears, guys. He was in the bathroom when Chris was explaining the challenge."

At this, Heather got involved,

"You knew this and you didn't say anything?"

Gwen crossed her arms,

"Actually, Heather, I did say something, I said 'Hey, let's wait for Liam because he's in the bathroom' but nobody heard me, so we left assuming he was with us."

Leshawna cocked her eyebrow in confusion before Heather could retort,

"How do we not notice a guy who talks more than Chris and that Bass chick combined?"

While most of the others pondered this, Heather was reminded of her threat to Liam.

Confessional

Heather: I know exactly what that megalomaniac is doing. If we lose today, he's going home.

End Confessional

As the Gophers continued to trek on, mostly concerned with surviving the night and hoping Chris wouldn't disqualify them on Liam's behalf, the Bass were getting along a lot better without Courtney around. Of course, if enduring Izzy antics, Bridgette concerns, and Harold-ness were in Duncan's ballpark of comfort.

"We should have made sure that we were all here before we left! She could be lost, all alone in the woods!"

"For the hundredth time, Malibu, cool it! We get it, Courtney's not here, not our fault. We can't go back now because the sun is going down and we haven't even found our shit yet. If Miss C.I.T is so confident in her skills, we shouldn't have to worry about her! Now please shut the hell up so that I have one less mouth to worry about!"

Bridgette closed her mouth and scowled, looking away from the punk. Geoff, who was walking to the direct left of Duncan had turned to face the downtrodden surfer girl with a thoughtful look in his eye.

Confessional

Geoff: I like Duncan, he's my bud and all, but what he said to Bridgette was not cool at all! I mean, pickin' on Harold and messin' with Courtney is one thing, but Bridge is the sweetest, most honest and friendly person on this island! Dude needs to know when too far is too far!

End Confessional

"Dude, maybe you should just chill?"

The punk stopped dead in his tracks and turned to point a finger at the party animal, eyes wide and strained. Duncan was trying to look intimidating, but Geoff could clearly see that he was physically and mentally exhausted, which took the wind out of his confrontational stance a bit,

"Listen, pal, I don't need you chattering away either! I've had to put up with you guys and your constant nagging for the past hour and a half, the last thing I need is for you to come to the aid of your wannabe girlfriend!"

"Hey, that's not cool man!"

"And you, jockstrap, can it before I rearrange your face!"

Duncan waved a fist in front of Tyler's face before turning to face DJ, warning him off before the gentle giant could join in the intervention. The big guy got the idea and backed away a bit.

The mood had drastically become so depleted that not a single Bass dared to speak, lest they face the wrath of Duncan. However, there was one among them that did not give a damn about offending or annoying anyone, someone who, up until this point, had spoken (surprisingly) so little that everyone was convinced she was on the opposing team.

"Hey, does anyone wanna hear my bear impression? Grrrraoraoraoragaaaagaaagagagayyupyupyupkookaa! Oh look, berries!"

Izzy bounded off in front of her and plucked up some black berries from the nearby bush, flicking them into her mouth and squishing them messily with her teeth. Most of the juice seemed to miss her mouth and decided to land on her chest instead.

"Whoops, that looks problematic! Anyone wanna clean this off of me? Tyler? DJ? Ella?"

The Bass looked at one another then Izzy, then each other, then continued to walk in silence, ignoring the crazy, and sexually disturbed redhead.

In the meantime, the two missing campers had already found their campsite, which is to say, they didn't find an actual campsite, but were so lost and tired that they had mutually agreed to stop and rest in a cave for the upcoming night.

"I hope this doesn't disqualify us…"

"Hey, how do ya like this?"

The actor brandished a stick with a sharpened point at the end, holding it up with great pride despite the end being particularly dull. Courtney deadpanned,

"What do you expect to kill with that thing?"

Liam was not phased,

"With this spear, that I have forged with the skill of Hephaestus himself, we shall soon have a bountiful feast of the finest fish Wawanakwa can offer!"

Liam began to exit the cave but was stopped by a mocha hand to his arm,

"Wait, you're just going to leave me here? By myself?"

The actor grabbed the hand of the CIT and kissed it,

"You make a good point wherein it is among man's duties to protect the most sacred of his species, surely I have not forgotten that knightly virtue. However, there is an even older and more necessary job that proceeds that of present concern," he hunched over and imitated a caveman, "man hunt, woman stay."

With that, the actor took his leave.

Confessional

Courtney: That was either the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me or the most sexist thing anyone's ever said to me.

End Confessional

The actor's team was now less concerned on their missing thespian than they were with finding adequate sustenance. Having arrived at their campsite an hour ago, just as it had gotten dark, they had yet to make any progress on food.

"Maybe Lyle already ate all the food."

"Ugh, didn't Owen leave for food, like, an hour ago?"

Just as Heather managed to fire a complaint at Owen, the aforementioned jolly giant appeared with several raw fish in tow,

"I am man! I bring fish!"

Heather, ever the optimist, felt the need to criticize again, as her previous criticism had become invalid,

"Are you kidding me?"

This did little to affect the mood of her team, however, as they all made a beeline for Owen, thanking him and taking the fish to cook it on the campfire.

"How do you know how to fish?"

The question was meant to be taken as jab at how utterly useless Owen had been up to that point, but nevertheless he managed to think Heather was actually interested in his abilities,

"My grandpa taught me! I caught a shark once, it bit me in the butt! Check it out!"

As Owen mooned his teammates, the Killer Bass were still setting up camp. Ezekiel and Izzy had been sent to scavenge for food, DJ and Duncan were lighting up the campfire, Ella was unpacking the bags, leaving Tyler to help Bridgette and Geoff set up the tent. The party animal sensed an opportunity to make a move on the surfer girl by offering what he thought to be a sincere compliment,

"Wow, you pitch a tent like a guy!"

There was a silence between him and an uncomfortable Bridgette.

Confessional

Geoff: 'Wow, you pitch a tent like a guy'? face palm

End Confessional

Trying desperately to salvage what momentum he had, Geoff tried to clarify what he meant,

"I mean, you're not all girly about gettin dirty and stuff." He added a small, humble smile for good measure, which prompted nothing but a sarcastic, "Gee, thanks" from the object of his affection. As she went off to help Ella unpack, Tyler came up to pat Geoff on the shoulder,

"Dude, you totally bombed!"

Geoff lowered his head in defeat only to raise it up again when Ezekiel marched in, arms full of fish and berries,

"Dinner is served, eh!"

The Bass began to cheer until Izzy appeared from a bush, somewhat startling them with her bear noises. Ezekiel scowled and scolded the redhead,

"Aw, Iz, I toold you to stop making your bear noises, eh!"

Before Izzy could respond, however, a loud baritone growl was heard in the nearby distance. Ezekiel, quivering, slowly turned around and encountered a large brown bear standing almost directly behind him. The prairie boy shrieked with terror,

"BEAR!"

Throwing the food in the air, Ezekiel ran off with the rest of the frightened Bass, climbing up into a tree overlooking the campsite as the bear began to attempt to follow them, clawing and grabbing at them from the base of the trunk.

After a while, the bear relented and returned to the area where Ezekiel had thrown the food, happily allowing itself to take as much of it as it desired.

"Uhm, I guess we doon't have food, eh?"

"Whoa, that's so cool, it's like an actual bear! Isn't that so cool guys?"

There was a dead silence, and several scowls thrown at Izzy, who proceeded to ignore them,

"So cool!"

Confessional

Liam: So I'm not the most gifted spear fisher in the world, what can I say, my gifts lie elsewhere. However, I did find some wild berries, nuts, and the like, so I figure, why not make the girl a salad?

End Confessional

"I have prepared thee, salad."

"What happened to the 'bountiful feast of the finest fish Wawanakwa has to offer'?"

"They, uh, couldn't make it!"

Courtney gave a small chuckle before starting to eat of the assortment of nature's best before her. It tasted so fresh and ripe she couldn't help but moan in delight.

"These are really good!"

"Only the finest food for the finest female!"

Courtney blushed, although due to the darkness of the cave, Liam didn't notice. Courtney, however, noticed that the actor wasn't eating any of what he himself foraged.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

Liam smiled,

"How thoughtful of you, but I already ate and am no longer hungry!"

There was a loud rumbling sound that both Courtney and Liam determined came from a certain actor's belly due to absence of nutrition. A look of worry came upon Courtney's face,

"You should really eat something! Here, have some berries- "

"No, I didn't get enough food for the both of us, you should have it."

"I'm not going to let you starve, I'm not that cruel."

"Really, it's no problem."

"Liam, I swear to God if you don't take some of this food, I'll kill you."

Liam noted the seriousness in her tone and reluctantly took a few berries. The two ate in silence for a few minutes until it was shattered by an abrupt clap of thunder. Courtney jumped with fright ending up in the actor's arms. She had been to frightened to notice that the actor too had jumped in fright, but none of that mattered much to either of them, they now had something else to deal with.

Courtney and Liam looked at each, then quickly backed away, muttering apologies to the other and eventually laughing at how silly their actions had been. Finally, Liam stretched and stifled a yawn,

"Well, we're not going to be getting much of anything done now. Might as well go to sleep."

Courtney nodded in agreement and the two made off to the same spot a little further into the cave, away from the splashing rain. Courtney noticed a problem first,

"Uhm, could you maybe move to the other side of the cave?"

Liam arched an eyebrow, Courtney persisted,

"I just, don't feel comfortable sleeping next to a… boy. Besides, what if Chris counted it as breaking the rules?"

Knowing better than to fight with Courtney's logic, Liam shrugged and headed off to the other side of the cave, which was considerably damper, although Courtney didn't realize that.

"Good night, Courtney."

"Good night, Liam."

It seemed that only the two star-crossed lovers were enjoying a good night sleep, for while the Bass dangled from a tree the Gophers had their own troubles.

"How do you set fire to ALL of our stuff right BEFORE it starts to rain, Owen? Did your stupid grandpa teach you that too?"

Owen twiddled his fingers together nervously and apologetically uttered,

"Um, no, it just, he, I uh- Hey, leave my grandpa out of this, he was a better man than you'll ever be!"

Gwen rolled her eyes,

"You tell her, Owen."

Trent, ever the peacemaker, was quick to defend his chubby friend,

"Hey, it was an accident, how was he supposed to know it was gonna rain? Or that our stuff was gonna catch fire by twirling fire batons like Beth even though he has way less experience and skill in it than she does? I mean, come on, it's not his fault."

Trent paused,

"Ok, well, maybe it is his fault a little bit, but we're all in this together, we gotta-"

"I don't need any lessons from you, high school musical! If we lose, I'm sending Owen's ass home!"

Leshawna raised an eyebrow at this,

"On who's grounds?"

"Mine and my alliance, duh!"

"Oh really, well keep acting up like this, you might not have an alliance by the end of it! You really think Liam is gonna pick your scrawny, bossy ass over Owen? He's crazy, but he ain't stupid!"

"He will if he knows what's good for him! If you all know what's good for you!"

With Heather's vain threat came a clap of thunder that promptly scared the Gophers into silence.

The stormy night treated the campers differently, some of them slept wet and cold, some slept wet and cold in a tree, and, really, only Liam and Courtney got a good night's sleep. But regardless, life goes on, and the sun rises, and the storms subside, and nature takes it's course.

The cave-dwellers awoke at what appeared to be mid-morning. They yawned and stretched and did the other things one does when trying to get out of bed, even if there isn't a bed in the first place.

"That was actually quite comfortable"

"Y-yeah, not gonna lie, these rocks are more comfortable than the beds!"

Courtney gave Liam a smile to acknowledge his joke before placing her hands to her mouth and gasping,

"Oh my god, you're shivering!"

"Y-yeah, it's kinda cold!"

"I'm not cold!"

"Oh, then I guess I'm confusing that with heat then."

The actor's joke wasn't quite as funny as it would have been had Courtney not grown concerned with his health. Rushing over to him, she bent over and discovered that a puddle had pooled around him while he was sleeping.

"you're gonna catch a cold!"

Liam scratched his head,

"Huh, I guess I was feeling cold. Next challenge better be something hot, like building a hot tub, or- "

"THE CHALLENGE!"

Courtney grabbed Liam's hand pulling him up and out of the cave. They ran as fast as their legs could carry them, hoping beyond belief that they would make it before their teams.

"Chris! We're here! Did we win?"

Chris smiled his classic smile and begun a playful banter,

"That depends, are you guys competing together as a duo?"

"What? No! That's not… that's not a thing is it?"

Chris shrugged, "Not yet."

Liam nudged Courtney, "You want to just compete? The two of us together against everyone else? That'd be cute!"

"Shut up! So, Liam and I are here first then, right?"

Chris stroked his chin, "Well, one of you is here first!"

"Liam! Where the Hell were you?"

The actor winced as Heather stormed over to glare at him. Seeing him with Courtney made her even more violently rage-filled,

"I thought I told you not to talk to her?"

"Heather, this is all just a big- "

"Shut up, drama nerd, you had one last shot and you blew it! Consider yourself out of my alliance!"

Liam guffawed, "Your alliance? You think I was in your alliance? Are you crazy?"

Before Heather and Liam could finish their spat, Courtney piped up,

"Wait, does that mean that my team- "

"Wait, we lost?!"

Everyone turned to face the arriving Killer Bass, trudging in, clothes dripping and gazes downcast. There were mixed reactions when they saw their missing teammate.

"Courtney! Thank god you're okay!"

Bridgette ran up to bring her friend into a tight embrace, one that Courtney happily returned.

"Well, gee, I found the princess, guys!"

"Shut up, eh!"

Tired eyes shifted from Duncan to Ezekiel, who was shaking with apparent rage at the delinquent, who, among every onlooker, was taken aback at the homeschooled kid's outburst.

"Whoa, Zeke, chill dude. I was just- "

"No, eh, you chill! All you've done this entire time on the island is yell and complain and be mean to everyone for no reason! We're supposed to be a team, we're supposed to fight the Gophers, but we're too busy fighting each other!"

Before Duncan could respond, Chris interceded,

"Wow, that's a lot to unload right after a challenge, ain't it? Wonder how this will play out for tonight's elimination ceremony! I'll see you guys there!"

Confessionals

Liam: I on Heather's alliance? Is that what she thought? Well then, maybe I should be more clear that I'm the one running this game, not her!

Duncan: Prairie boy is lucky he's useful, otherwise I'd a) beat the snot out of him and b) kick his homeschool ass off this miserable island!

Heather: I fear that my grip is slipping on my team. I need to regain Liam's trust, or make sure that if we lose someone else is to blame. Whichever one is easier at this point will have to do.

Geoff: I'd be inclined to vote off Duncan, especially after what Zeke said, he's bein a real jerk lately. But hey, at least Duncan didn't make me sleep in a tree all night!

Courtney: I think my team hates me. I think my team might actually hate me!

End Confessionals

Campfire Pit- Killer Bass

"Killer Bass, tonight you all succeeded in proving once and for all that teenagers and the great outdoors are a very bad combo! You lost a member of your team, lost all your food to a hungry grizzly, and lost your marginal lead, one you might not get back. Let's face it, you guys suck."

Several Bass scowled, most sighed and hung their heads.

"Now, you get the opportunity to send another one of your sucky teammates home. You know the drill by now: when I call your name, you will receive this marshmallow as a token of your team's gratitude for not sucking that much! We start today with Ella,"

The artist walked up without much ceremony, nor much surprise, there were bigger targets that day.

"DJ,"

The gentle giant gently grabbed his symbol of safety and stood next to his shy teammate.

"Harold,"

For once, the alpha geek didn't have to worry about being the subject of cruel Bass attention.

"Tyler,"

The talentless jock refused to celebrate a cheaply won victory, he knew who was going home.

"Bridgette,"

The surfer looked worried, not for herself, but for the teammates left, knowing that she had to say goodbye yet again.

"Geoff,"

The party animal, for once, didn't smile, he wasn't in a party mood, the place was too dismal for his liking.

"Ezekiel,"

Homeschool sighed with relief, he'd worried that his outburst had been enough to condemn him. Now he had to face his actions.

"Campers, I'm left to say that all ten votes tonight were cast for the three of you who remain. Let's look at why that might be. Courtney, not only were you separated from the team, but you spent the entire challenge with a member of the opposing team, a member you've been seen near before. Izzy, you cost your team their food, their sleep, and quite possibly the challenge. While you may not have a hand in any of the drama here, you've definitely been a great hindrance to your team! And Duncan, Mr. tough guy, getting homeschooled today by arguably the weakest teenager on this island. That's sad, maybe be nicer? Tonight, the camper going home is…

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Izzy."

Duncan and Courtney looked at each other, then got their marshmallows and joined the rest of the team, leaving the crazy redhead alone amidst the stump seats. However, she didn't seem phased, as though she hadn't eve realized the implications of the whole ceremony.

"Oh well, we all gotta go sometime, huh?"

Without any speech or fuss, Izzy left the island in much the same manner that she'd stayed, without any real sense of importance or need to be there. Needless to say, everyone was quite confused at this.

Chris turned to face the camera,

"Well, that was anti-climatic! But it seems tensions are rising enough already! Will the Bass crumble even further with this rift in the Bass Bros? Or will Gopher infighting be enough to save them from an even wider margin? Find out next time on the most thrilling episode yet of Total Drama Island!"

A.N: Hey guys, it's been far too long! I'm sorry for my extended absence, school started up and, well, I haven't have much breathing time since! That muhc is probably obvious as it took it's toll on this chapter, and I'm sorry about that.

You might've noticed a few things about this that will probably make this among the weakest chapters of this story, it's by far the shortest of all of them, and there are several reasons for that. I've fallen into a habbit of preference for this story, since the first few chapters were all written in such close proximity to each other, they flowed a lot better coherently speaking, and Iwas more inspired with less interruption when writing them. That's not an excuse as to why this chapter is bad, but that doesn't change the fact that that's why. I don't like taking too long with these chapters, so I was driven with a desire to just finish it rather than trying to make it better than it's predecessor. That fact combined with my general dislike of some of the earlier episodes of the season, this one in particualr rubbing me a wrong way just did't add any excitement for me. Right now, it's a matter of setting up everything so the rest of the story can be kickass!

Also, a personal apology to Izzy fans, not just for the story thus far, but maybe in the future? I don't know, I guess I'm just not as interested in using her as a lot of authors are, which is weird, cuz I like her just fine. I just don't like writing for her in general, I think she's very hard to get right, or at least in a way that pleases her hardcore fans. She has a specific fanbase that seems to stem from what a lot of very creative and passionate writers have done with her before. Unfortunately for Izzy fans, she doesn't spark that much with me. I can promise that she will still be used, but unlike with Eva, I don't forsee her use expanding further than what she already has. A shame, but in a series like this, you have to really be picky with who you use and who you don't. It's a necessary loss, and I am truly sorry for having chosen her for that unenviable burden. But hey, that might change if I feel like it! Just don't get too hopeful!

Anyway, that's it for now. Again, I'm really sorry for the quality of this chapter. I just wanted to get it over with, it's definately been the longest to write, but only because half of it was done in August! I'm going to try and make sure I can really sit down and work on the next chapters in a relatively short burst like before, so it might be a while before that happens, because again, I'm super busy. Or it might not, I'll letcha know! Until next time y'all!

-That1guyeveryonehates