Thanks so much to all who reviewed! They really got me pumped to write this chapter up. Unfortunately it took a little longer than it should have due to me working on… um… another TDI-related project of mine that you don't need to know about yet. And for all who might be wondering on exactly how long it'll be before the newly revealed Behind the Scenes Extra is written, here's a general summary of how I have the next few episodes planned out:
Next Challenge: Long awaited ninth challenge I've been hyperventilating about
Tenth Challenge: Involves road rage, really nothing special
Eleventh Challenge: Readers vote somebody off
Twelfth Challenge: Has a game-changing surprise
Thirteenth Challenge: Readers vote somebody off, a challenge I think you'll really like, and another huge twist
Fourteenth Challenge: Another surprise… or two… or three
Behind the Scenes Extra!
After that all the challenges keep going as usual. I have a couple times you guys can vote in there too. But for now, here's the next chapter!
Warning: There're a whole lot of one-challenge characters (and maybe some we'll hear from later) to keep track of in this one. There'll be a list at the end of the chapter for if you get confused.
Chapter Twenty-One: Guess Who's Staying Past Dinner
"Last time on Total Drama Island: Again!" Chris stood on the dock with a plastic shopping bad in hand. "We got up close and personal with a sugary sweet diary entry from Kyra and the discovery of Glisa creepily stalking- I mean watching over an unconscious Morty."
(Footage of Kyra writing and Glisa explaining her situation to Daphne rolls)
"I then read the campers a special letter from Loserville from our one and only Haley to get an update on how the voted off campers are doing. They seemed pretty okay. Still boring as heck though." The host rolled his eyes.
(Unaired footage from Playa des Losers shows Haley and Jolt lounging by the pool, Corin shiftily looking around her before carrying off some supplies to a large sheet set up behind the resort, Bren writing in a notebook with a sinister smile on his face, Betsy chasing after a girl in a Sailor Moon costume, and Riley sulking under a palm tree flash onscreen)
"But back to the more interesting stuff. The challenge was revealed to be a Total Drama favorite: Phobia Factor! Needless to say, it was a great day for the viewing audience because of all the failures."
(Shots of Sienna running in the direction Tanya is pointing, Glisa hopping out of the dog pen, Kit-Kat fainting, and Addy falling off the wooden pole show)
"There were a few wins though, surprisingly enough…"
(Joe shocked by lightning, Irving eating the disgusting pie, Jayna littering, Kestrel getting almost devoured by crows, and finally Morty diving into the steak sauce)
"Besides the challenges though, the drama was heating up as Kyra went cuckoo after failing her challenge. She became paranoid and actually bit Blair. When they got into an argument, it all seemed to be over for the seemingly innocent girl."
(Kyra biting Blair, the confrontation during Blair's challenge, and the Tortoise girls locked out of their cabin)
"And when the Tremendous Tortoises lost the challenge, it was all over for Kyra as she was sent packing. Hopefully the crew over at the Playa can cheer her up." Chris laughed. "I doubt that…"
"With the loss of one of their nicest campers, will tensions grow on the Tortoise team? What will be the challenge for today? And most important of all… what will the campers have to use these for during their challenge?" Chris dug into his shopping bag and pulled out a pair of handcuffs and a blindfold. A cameraman whistles off screen. "Push any kinky thoughts involving these items out of your head and find out on the next exciting episode of Total Drama Island… Again!"
The sun was just peering over the horizon and Camp Wawanakwa had never looked more peaceful. After all of the humiliating experience from the two days passed, everybody just wanted a good night's rest. And for once, there wasn't a bullhorn or a steam roller or a helicopter coming to wake them up.
"Ah… ah… ACHOO!"
There was however, one nature loving camper who had unfortunately caught a cold from his night spent in the rain.
"ACHOO!"
Jake flinched as Joe F, who was sleeping in the bunk beneath him, jumped upward in surprise at the sneeze and hit his head on the bottom of his mattress.
"Sorry!" Jake leaned down with an embarrassed frown. "I must've caught a... ah… ACHOO!" Several of his teammates groaned and pulled their pillows over their heads to try and block his sneezing out. "A cold."
"It's fine, I guess." Joe replied groggily, rubbing the throbbing spot on his head. "You did spend last night in the rain. I'm sure Chris was going to wake us up any-"
As if on cue, the sound of the microphone connected to the loudspeaker being pressed too close to somebody's mouth squeaked through the air. "Good morning campers! Breakfast is in a half an hour, so anybody who wants to shower better get their butts in there."
A harmonized groan rang through the camp.
"Isn't this too early to be up?" Blair whined as she waited in line for the showers.
"We're on Chris's time schedule, remember?" Carrie dully replied. "The bloke's off his rocker."
"Actually, she's right." Kit-Kat said from her spot in front of them in the line. "Kyra had an alarm clock that she left behind. It's a little over two hours earlier than we usually wake up."
"Ugh." Blair practically collapsed. "It's too early!"
"Kyra had an alarm clock?" Carrie questioned. "That's actually pretty… um…"
"Smart to have?" Kit-Kat finished. "Keep in mind it plays the Teen Titans theme song at full blast every morning. Sienna's trying to figure out how to shut if off now."
"ARGH! FORGET IT!"
The three girls turned to see a bright yellow and black alarm clock go flying through the window of the Tremendous Tortoise cabin. The clock hit Russell, who was walking near the Deer cabin, in the head. Sienna stomped out of the cabin in a huff, carrying her signature outfit with her. She walked to the back of the line and crossed her arms in frustration. The little alarm clock could still be heard screaming "T-E-E-N-T-I-T-A-N-S! Teen Titans! Let's go!" even from the line.
"You look like you're having fun." Blair rolled her eyes.
"Hmm, forget that bee thing I said earlier about your clothing." Carrie said, observing the queen bee's black nightdress. "You actually looked good in yellow."
"I don't really care what you think." Sienna sneered, and then quickly added, "But thank you."
"Ugh, who's the wise guy that left this in the showers?"
"Ah! My eyes!" Blair covered her face in disgust as Tanya marched out of the showers wearing nothing but her towel. She was holding out a baseball cap like it was a dead animal.
"Oh ha-ha, because I'm sure if you were doing the same it'd be such a pleasant sight." Tanya sneered in Blair's direction. "But I'm serious, who put this in the showers?"
"What is it?" Kit-Kat asked.
"Maureen's baseball hat." She turned the hat so it was facing them, revealing the familiar white letters reading "CAMERAWOMAN". "I stuffed it with dirt the other day and now it's back to haunt me."
"Creepy." Kit-Kat commented. "But can I use your shower stall?"
"Oh, go ahead." Tanya said. "I'm off to question the boys."
As she stomped off, Carrie called after her, "Try and put on some clothing before you go in front of them!"
"Are you actually mad at Tanya?"
"What do you think Kestrel?"
"Um…"
The artist really had no clue what Addy's opinion on the drama queen was at this point in time. He just made a face of confusion at the hyper girl who sat across from him on the stairs to the Devious Deer cabin.
"Well?" Addy asked.
"I have no idea." Kestrel replied.
"Well I don't either!" Addy threw her arms up in the air. "All I did was listen to Sienna ventilate-"
"Vent?" Kestrel hesitantly corrected.
"Yeah, that," She waved her hand casually, "and Tanya yelled at me. But she talks to Sienna all the time."
"Tanya's never actually nice to Sienna though," Kestrel said. "Maybe she's just mad at you for being nice to her?"
The pair was silent as Addy considered this. "…Or maybe…" she considered, "Tanya's just mean."
"Huh." Kestrel nodded. "Maybe. She's kind of nice to us though."
"She wasn't all that nice to me yesterday when I told her I was talking to Sienna!" Addy pouted. "I don't think she actually likes us-"
"'scuse me, coming through," The sound of a cabin door opening and several plastic objects falling to the ground caused the artist and hyper chick to turn around. "Crap, could you grab those for me?"
There stood Lacey with an armful of CD's, three of which had fallen to the floor behind her teammates. Kestrel picked the fallen CD's up and handed them back to her.
"What're you doing?" Addy questioned.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Lacey replied, attempting to balance the three cases on the other ones.
"If I knew, I wouldn't have asked."
"Good point. It doesn't matter." The brunette shrugged, almost losing another CD. "Kestrel, is Joe still on your side of the cabin?"
Kestrel and Addy exchanged a confused look before he answered, "I think he is, but why-"
"Okay, thanks." Lacey turned away from them and kicked the door to the guys' side of the cabin a few times. "Knock knock!"
"Nobody's here if you're who I think you are." Joe H's unenthusiastic voice replied from inside.
"Hey, I'm actually doing something nice for you, so open the door. I have my hands full." No response, just the creak of somebody sitting up on a mattress with rusty springs. Lacey rolled her eyes. "Please?" After a moment, the door squeaked open and she walked right in. "Took you long enough."
"It's too early to argue with you." The movie geek replied from inside the cabin. "Oh, and watch out for the shoes in front of you-" THUMP! CRASH! "Forget it."
"By the way, your Aerosmith CD is so badly scratched it almost busted the ancient walkman I've been using."
"Good."
Addy and Kestrel just watched in shock as the door shut.
"Were they actually just having a conversationje?" Addy asked, her brown eyes wide.
"I think so." Kestrel answered, his face showing a lot less disbelief than Addy's.
"What the hedge maze is going on?"
Confession Cam
Addy: "Okay, so first there's that and then Blair told me at breakfast that Carrie had actually complimented Sienna on her outfitje?" The freckle faced girl's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Weeeeird…"
Kestrel: "I might not be the brightest crayon in the box, but I can tell when somebody's using somebody when it's obvious. Even though it's something as little as music, Lacey's definitely using him." The artist adjusts his glasses in thought. "Now if only I could tell if Tanya is using us…"
End Confession Cam
"Do you even know what this is supposed to be?"
"Nope." Irving grimaced when Chef plopped a spoonful of what might have been grilled cheese that had gone through a blender onto his plate. "But I don't have to eat it, now do I?"
"No, I guess no-"
"ACHOO!"
Irving stopped mid-sentence when a flurry of nasal wastes flew in his direction, splattering across his plate. He turned to the camper beside him with a glare. Jake gave him an embarrassedly guilty smile.
"Um… sorry?"
The jock gave him a look that was somewhere between a sneer and a "whatever" face and then turned to Chef. "Please say I can get another plate?"
"Even I'm not cruel enough to make ya eat snot." Chef nodded as he spooned a clump of the questionable substance onto Jake's tray. The nature lover walked past the disgusted athlete towards the Tremendous Tortoise table. When Jayna cut in front of him with a slightly distressed look on her face, he instantly stopped.
"Are you okay?" She asked. "I heard you sneezing this morning. What's up?"
"I think I just have a co… co… CACHOO!" Jake sneezed away from Jayna, just missing a passing Carrie with the spray. "A cold."
"Do you need something for it?" Jayna questioned. "I'll bet Kit-Kat makes a pretty good chicken soup even though she's a baker and not a cook. And Glisa might know her way around the medical tent and might be able to find you some aspirin since she was there so long yesterday. I'm sure one of us could get them to-"
"Jayna, I'm fine." Jake put a hand over her mouth. She stopped talking with a surprised squeak. "It's just a runny nose. My arm wasn't cut off."
"You're sure?" Jayna asked.
"Positive." Jake smiled.
"Okay then." She leaned upward to kiss him on the cheek only for him to hold her back.
"Ah… ACHOO!" When he turned back from his sneeze, he just gave her an apologetic smile accompanied with a shrug. She smiled and blew him a kiss from a distance instead before walking back to sit at her table.
When Jake got to the table he walked straight into a milk chug-off between Aaron and Joe F. The nature person just rolled his eyes good-naturedly as Tom, Morty, and a slightly disgusted Kit-Kat cheered their teammates on. Sienna and Daphne looked on with disgust while Glisa was too busy trying to keep her "breakfast" on the plate as it was bouncing up and down.
"Who's winning?" Jake asked Kit-Kat as he sat in the cleared space between her and Morty.
"I don't know." Kit-Kat shrugged. "I'm definitely cheering for Aaron though."
"Because he seems like he could do better because he's bigger?"
"No. I just like Aaron better." The pastry chef smiled and then went back to cheering on the overeater. Eventually it was the larger teen that slammed his glass down first.
"The reigning champion!" He threw his arms in the air. Kit-Kat clapped for him as he took mock bows. "Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week."
"Rematch." Joe told Aaron, his eyes glaring but a smile spread on his face. "Tomorrow morning. I'm definitely going to beat you then."
"You're on, little man." Aaron agreed, wiping the milk moustache from his upper lip.
The next few minutes were pretty much eventless. Everybody was attempting to eat the sludge on their plates (which by taste might actually have been seafood and not grilled cheese), which stopped moving if you stabbed it enough. Chris entered as he usually did mid-meal with his usual door slam.
"Morning campers! I'm sure you all enjoyed your early wake up call."
A harmonized zombie-like moan sounded in reply.
"I'll consider that a yes." The host smiled. "And I hope you're all done with your gruel, because it's time to head down to the lake!"
The campers-turned-zombies groaned once again.
Confession Cam
Tom: He glares at the camera. "Screw you Chris McLean."
Joe F: "At least the food wasn't good enough to want to keep eating." He shrugs and then frowns. "Unfortunately it's the only thing we have to eat."
Blair: The tomboy seems to have collapsed onto the floor of the outhouse. "Too. Freaking. EARLY!"
End Confession Cam
The sun had finally rose when the campers stood (or collapsed in a heap on the ground if you were Blair) in a clump on the dock impatiently waiting for Chris to announce a challenge.
"Aren't you going to say anything?" asked an impatient Sienna.
Chris smirked. "Just wait. It'll speak for itself."
Another minute of silence passed before Daphne pointed into the distance. "Is that a boat?"
All heads turned to where the edge of the lake met the sky. A dot was quickly growing on the horizon until getting close enough for the shape to be made out as a small boat. An unfamiliar figure stood on the deck…
…unfamiliar to all but one camper.
"Is that…" Tanya cupped her hand over her eyes to shield them from the sun. "Rachel?"
"Rachel?" questioned the other campers.
"Tanya!" The boat pulled up to the dock and the newcomer walked over to the drama queen and gave her a hug. The campers stared. "It's like you've been gone so long!"
"Wait... there's something familiar about her." Addy observed "Rachel" with narrowed eyes and her tongue sticking out of her mouth. "Are you guys related?"
"Rachel's one of my many siblings." Tanya commented, slipping away from her sister's arms and straightening out her clothing. As she spoke, she almost instinctively stood on her toes and straightened out Rachel's shirt collar. "The big question is why the hell are you here?"
"Chris asked me to come." Rachel smiled.
All eyes turned to Chris McLean. He just changed the subject by pointing towards the lake. "Is that another boat I see coming?"
As soon as he said that, another boat pulled up to the dock and a girl in a pink sweater stepped off of it. She was fairly attractive with light brown hair and generous curves.
"Hey, when'd you get that white piece of hair?" Several people stared in disbelief as she put one hand on her hip and casually pointed at Joe Freeman with the other.
Joe froze up at the sight of her. "I… I… I, um, l-lighting."
"He got shocked by lightning to win his challenge." Aaron translated.
"Oh. That makes sense I guess." The girl shrugged as Aaron pushed Joe from the crowd. The comic artist nervously began fiddling with his clothing.
"H-h-hi J-Jamie." He stuttered with a meek wave. Jamie walked up to him and slapped the palm of his waving hand, obviously mistaking it as a gesture for a high five.
"It feels good to be standing here with the future winner of Total Drama Island." She winked at Joe as another boat pulled up to the dock.
Off of this boat stepped a male with a baseball cap propped on his ink black hair. He stopped and examined the crowd with teal blue eyes before shooting a crooked smile in the direction of a certain pastry chef.
"Hey Kathleen."
Kit-Kat's eyes bugged in horror for a moment. She looked like she was about to say something before crossing her arms over her chest and turning away from the newcomer. Her lower lip was jutted into a pout.
"Kat, please don't be like that. I've told you I'm sorry a million times!"
"I don't want to see you right now." Kit-Kat replied, still not looking the newcomer in the eye.
"But Kat it's been, what, eight years? I've told you I'm sorry so many times-"
"Kyle, I still don't want you here. This show is my chance to do what I want and help out Mom. Go away."
"I can't." The newcomer, now defined as Kyle, answered. "I was invited by Chris."
Kit-Kat didn't answer him, so Kyle took the liberty to introduce himself to a few of her teammates. "I'm Kyle McCartney, Kathleen's older brother. Hopefully she hasn't told you too many bad things about me since they're not true-"
"Oh RUUUUUUUUSSSSELLLLLLL!"
All eyes turned from Kyle to the new person on the dock only to be surprised by the sight of… a second Russell?
"Shelly?" The actual Russell cried.
"That's right babe!" The Russell-look-a-like exclaimed in a distinctly feminine voice before running up to the comic addict and grabbing him in a bone-crunching hug. "And I can't wait to express our looooove to all of your teammates!"
Everybody on the dock was gaping at the sight (except for Chris who was, of course, laughing his head off) of Russell being hugged by his clone. The two were practically identical in hair style, wardrobe, and glasses choice. The false Russell, however, had a more feminine facial shape and was quite a bit shorter than the original.
"I can't wait to see your cabin and tell all your teammate about our first date and our first kiss and go skinny dipping in the lake-"
"Sh-Shelly!" Russell struggled to speak through his doppelganger's grip. "Shelly!"
"What is it honey lumps?" Shelly asked, thankfully releasing the brunette.
"We still aren't dating." Russell muttered, back to his shy self in front of the few new people on the island.
"Oh, sugar lips, stop being in denial!" Shelly grabbed his hands in her own. "You know you secretly have a shrine of me in your closet that matches the several I have of you in mine! I've tried to find it on those nights that I sneak into your room to watch you sleep, but you've got it hidden real good-"
"You watch me sleep?" Russell squeaked out in fear.
"Of course I do, my azure eyed Adonis." Shelly smiled. "I can't tolerate being away from you for so long! I have to be close to you, even when you're deep in sleep!"
"Whoa," a new voice interrupted the reluctant love fest, "did I get off on the wrong island or something?"
Standing on the dock was a curly haired brunette wearing a t-shirt and jeans. She was looking onto the situation with Russell and Shelly in a creeped out fashion, her eyes widened in shock and her upper lip upturned in a grimace.
"Tara?" Jake stepped towards the newcomer.
"Jake!" Tara walked across the dock up to the nature lover. He held up a hand as if to high five her or maybe put a hand on her shoulder, but she grabbed him in a hug instead. "I've missed you! We have this huge new project going on involving humpback whales that you would just be crazy about!"
"I'm sure I would be- ah- ACHOO!" Jake stumbled from Tara's grasp in time to turn his head to sneeze. "Sorry about that. Spent two nights ago in the storm-"
"I think you might need these." A poke on his shoulder had Jake turning around to be face to face with Jayna holding out a package of Kleenex. He pulled several from the pack and blew his nose in them with an embarrassing trumpeting noise.
"Thanks."
"It's the least I could do since you won't let me help you in any other way." Jayna replied, giving Jake a smile before standing back in the crowd. Jake then turned to Tara again.
"I can't wait to show you some of the animals there are on this island. They're some of the strangest I've ever seen!"
His nature loving friend smiled in excitement as they stood with the other campers whose friends had arrived.
The next boat pulled up and a blonde, green eyed male stepped onto the dock. He gave the cast a charming smile that highlighted the light sprinkling of freckles on his tan cheeks.
"Now where's my favorite younger sister?"
Nobody responded.
"Come on Addy, I'm not embarrassing at all. You could at least say hi."
"Ugh, fine." Addy walked out from her spot hiding behind Kestrel to approach the teenager on the dock. "Hi Chris. How's your rat?"
"Hey, don't talk about my girlfriend like that!" Her brother shouted. "Chelsea's never mean to you!"
"Not when you're watching she isn't!" Addy argued. "But behind your back, she's an evil sea witchje winding her tentacles around me and making fun of me while she squeezes my insides out!"
An amused smile spread across her brother's face accompanied by a slight laugh. "You always knew how to tell a story, Ad."
"You never did." Addy sneered.
As the Meisner siblings walked over to join the other pairs already lined up, a tall bespectacled male with spiked rust blonde hair stepped onto the dock from another boat. He was tucking a cell phone into the pocket of his pants, muttering something about not getting any service.
When he finally became aware that he was on the show, he scanned the crowd with a playful smile. "Huh, guess he's not here."
"Hey! I'm right here!" Morty, who was in the front row of the waiting campers, glared with a smile. "It's not my fault we can't all be giraffes like you Axel."
"You know I'm just joking, Small Fry." The newcomer 'Axel' and Morty met up and did a fist bump.
"Me too, Tree Trunk… though you do look a lot smaller on my laptop."
"Web cams do that to you." Axel shrugged as they joined the group of already partnered campers and their guests.
The next person on the dock was an attractive male with dark hair and amethyst eyes that looked too good to be his true color. He looked secure in his stride as he walked across the wooden planks beneath his feet, though he didn't give off an overconfident vibe.
"Jonah?" Carrie questioned in a disbelieving tone.
"Who else?" The newcomer smiled as the designer walked towards him. He seemed to be reaching out to embrace her, but she just put a hand friendlily on his arm.
"Have the fans figured out I'm not even in the country anymore?" Carrie asked with a laugh.
"I doubt the barmpots (1) have." Jonah replied. "There was a person with a sign that said 'My lovely Miss Carrie, it's you I want to marry' standing outside the boutique the other day."
"Aw, poor guy must've been so disappointed when he found out I wasn't there."
"Who said it was a guy?" Jonah grimaced. Carrie made a similar face and then they both laughed. "It's been boring without you."
"Same to you." A smile spread across Carrie's face. Meanwhile another dark haired, violet eyed being stepped onto the dock with a thick soled high heel. This newcomer, however, was definitely female.
The tall, tan, and curvy stranger got the attention of every male as she walked her way down the dock, though a word was never uttered from her scarlet lips. The grace in her stride just oozed a feeling of seductive mystery that any man or boy would want to get his hands on.
One of the campers in particular had his eyes the size of saucers and his jaw practically on the ground. The mystifying new arrival just flipped her long, ink black hair over her shoulder nonchalantly.
"Aaron," was the suave greeting she gave him.
"Veronica," Aaron replied, the fact that he was totally turned on by her presence clear in his voice. She walked over towards the group of other newcomers. Aaron followed like a lost puppy, his eyes clearly craned onto the sway of her hips as she walked. Kit-Kat gaped at his actions from her spot next to her brother before crossing her arms and putting a totally not jealous pout on her face.
"Well, does every guy on this island get a girl like that?" A shaggy haired, blue eyed male stood on the end of the dock looking approvingly in the direction of Veronica. The cocky smirk on his face combined with his outfit clearly shouted "I'm a rebellious jerk", as did his gait when he started down the dock. "Ladies, I'm Jason, recently single due to an incident I really don't want to talk about, and if any of you are over eighteen I just might be interested."
A few eye rolls and one "damn it, just two years off" were the only reactions to Jason's assertive flirting.
"Wow, tough crowd." He smirked. "I like that."
"Ugh, will you just shut up already." Joe H stepped up to Jason and glared. "I'm sure Chris didn't send you here to get arrested again."
"Do legal rules really apply on this island? I mean, where the hell is this place anyway?"
"Did you burn down the apartment yet?"
"No, but I did burn down all of your movies with the help of all the hot girls I've had over."
"And I've been telling the world that you're secretly gay through the Confession Cam."
There was a pause between the two before they surprisingly high fived and started to laugh.
"Let me guess," Blair said from the crowd. "Your unlikely best friend from back home?"
"Older brother." Joe replied.
Blair rolled her eyes. "That's kind of cliché."
"Blair Myracle, stop being so mean to everybody! Do you know what mom's saying about you?" All eyes turned to the girl stepping off of the newly arrived boat with a handbag thrown over her arm.
"Is that your sister?" Joe asked Blair.
"Yep." The tomboy replied, a slightly venomous tone to her voice.
"And you think I'm cliché."
Blair's sister was very blonde and had a perky demeanor to her. Her dark eyes were narrowed in frustration at Blair, who was making a very similar expression back. When the newcomer realized most of the others' eyes had turned to her, a bright smile spread across her face that quickly made her seem as innocent as Kit-Kat.
"Oh, hey everybody," That smile stayed on her face as she approached the campers, the locket hanging around her neck glinting in the sun. "I'm Juliet. Nice to meet you."
"You're related to Blair?" Tanya asked, her jaw dropping in disbelief.
"Oh, you mean Blake?" Juliet put a hand on her hip. "Yeah, that's my little brother."
"Yeah, and that's my older snob of a sister." Blair commented, going to stand next to Juliet. She glanced between Juliet and Tanya before smirking. "Sister snob, meet my replacement snob for my time on the show."
"Wow, such a great relationship with your teammates." Juliet rolled her eyes. "It's a wonder why you haven't been voted off yet."
"I know, right?" Tanya smiled. "Finally somebody sees where I'm coming from!"
"Tanya!" Rachel elbowed her sister in the arm.
"Ladies, ladies, ladies," a new voice interrupted. "There's no need to fight over me before I've even arrived."
Already walking down the dock was a well-built tan male with spiked red hair. He stepped up to where the Myracle-Tulasvies sisters conversation was going on and gave the four a smile, giving each girl a once over from their shoes to their hair. When he got to Blair, he paused.
"You're a girl, right?"
"As much as she wants to deny it." Juliet answered for her sister.
The smile spread across the newcomer's face once again and he gave Blair the same once over he gave the other three girls. When he got to Blair's face, she already had her fist drawn back.
"You wouldn't punch a stranger, would you?" The new redhead questioned.
"Considering that stranger's a douche, then yes."
"I'm still a stranger."
"Fine then, what's your name?"
"Todd Sherman at your service."
"Okay then Todd, how'd you like a black eye or two to show- wait a second." Blair dropped her fist. "Sherman?"
"Oh my god!" Tanya exclaimed in realization. "Sherman as in related to Daphne Sherman?"
"No shit, Sherlock." Todd smirked, pretending not to hear the sound of a pair of Mary Janes walking across the dock behind him. It was until the shadow of Daphne's umbrella passed over him and the ashen-skinned girl was standing next to him that he even acknowledged her existence.
"Daph."
"Todd."
"You should see all the attention Dad's getting from sharing that he got you out of that challenge. He was pissed at first until you pointed out that all the attention he'd get."
"That's nice." Daphne said, making her way towards the edge of the group of already partnered campers.
"Okay, you stand over there!" Todd shouted to his sister as he slid himself in between where Veronica and Jamie were standing. "I'll be over here with these lovely ladies." Jamie giggled at him, causing Joe F to sneer at the redhead. He opened his mouth to say something, but the smile Jamie flashed in the direction stopped his speech completely.
The next newcomer on the dock was a male with long black hair. Heavy black eyeliner and lipstick covered his pale face. In his hands he was holding a-
"OH MY GOD, WHAT IS THAT?" Sienna exclaimed, clinging to the arm of the camper to her right. When she realized that camper was Jayna, she gave her an awkward smile before switching over to the camper to her left (who conveniently happened to be Irving).
"What, you've never seen a snake before?" the newcomer raised a dark eyebrow as the huge, forest green snake started slithering up his arm, twisting around his upper arm.
"Nocturne, how are you not burning?" Kestrel ran towards the Goth with the snake, a frantic look on his face. "We need to get you some shade now!"
"Kestrel," the be-snaked newcomer, obviously Nocturne, said, "It's fine. I have new vampire sun block."
"Oh, phew," Kestrel wiped his forehead in relief. "I wouldn't want to see you burned to a crisp."
"Vampire?" Jonah questioned.
"He's a bit bonkers, but you'll get used to him after a half hour or so," Carrie replied. "In other words, don't ask."
"Are you going to suck the blood out of that snake?" Kestrel asked.
"No, I found him on the boat over here and figured I thought he was cool. I was thinking about keeping him-"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A green-eyed brunette male rushed up to Nocturne and removed the snake from his arm, quickly releasing it to slither into the wild. "Snakes are a very important part of the environment. They eat rodents and insects which prevents the need for chemicals used in the soil and air to help get rid of them. Not to mention the fact that they prevent anemic biodiversity in an area." (2)
Nocturne glared at the newcomer. "How do I know that's true and you're not just being mean?"
"Trust me. I'm probably the person here that the most informed about the environment." The newcomer turned his head towards where the six un-partnered campers were standing. "Isn't that right, Jayna?"
"This is why I hate you, Baxter!" The environmentalist shouted back.
"You didn't think that when you dated me, darling!"
"I have bad taste in guys!" Several campers gasped and turned to Jake, whose mouth was wide open in shock. Jayna's eyes widened. "Had bad taste in guys. I meant had!"
Baxter gave a stiff laugh and walked over to where Jake stood. "You're Jayna's new boy toy, are you?"
"Yes I am." Jake said, standing up tall and confident.
"You're dating her?" Tara exclaimed from beside Jake.
"Yeah," Jake replied, "I thought you could tell."
"From what? The fact that she gave you a tissue?"
"Haven't you been watching the sh- ah, ah, ACHOO!"
"Ugh." Baxter dug into his pocket and pulled out a tissue. "Here. 100% recycled material."
"I wouldn't trust that, Jake." Jayna stomped up to Baxter with a glare. "He's probably lying. Since that's what liars do, they lie." She gave a triumphant grin towards her ex. "Isn't that right Baxter?"
The teen just shrugged nonchalantly. "Hey, you're the one who believed it."
"You no-good, lying, good for nothing but the environment, waste of precious air-"
"Whoa, those are some big words for a fit bird like yourself." A new voice tried to interrupt.
"-selfish, careless, kindergarten-aged maturity level, brainless- I have no idea who you are, but did you just call me a bird?"
Jayna (and most of the other campers) turned to the handsome, black haired teen who had spoken with a British accent standing on the dock grinning at Jayna.
"Well I was just saying how you're a bit of a dish is all." He said, the smile not leaving his face.
"Are you making fun of her?" Baxter questioned. Carrie, Jonah, Irving, and the newcomer laughed from their spots on the dock.
"Harper, stop confusing them. You're in Canada now." Irving walked over to the newcomer and exchanged a fist bump and a masculine pat on the back with him. "They just don't get slang."
"Wait… are you encouraging him to insult me?" Jayna asked.
"Not at all!" Harper spoke up. "I was just commenting on how I find you attractive."
"Oh," Jayna smiled. "Sorry but I'm taken."
"That's fine. Plenty of other girls here to chat up." Harper turned to Irving. "Any recommendations mate?"
"I'd recommend you don't touch de bonita chica with de multi-colored shirt and cowboy boots if you want to get off of dis isla in one piece." A long shadow stretched over Irving and Harper's heads as a thickly accented voice sounded. The two Brits turned around to find a brown skinned man with a buzz cut and several tattoos (the most apparent being a cobra swirling around his left arm) standing behind them.
"Hehe," Harper nervously laughed. "Can do."
"Dat's what I t'ought."
"EDDY!" Glisa quickly ran across the dock and hopped into the air, clamping her arms around the intimidating newcomer's neck in a tight hug. "Te extraño tanto."
"Yo también, Glory. Tú estás haciendo bien aquí, ¿verdad?"
"Por supuesto, Eddy!" (3) Glisa laughed.
"Your name is Eddy?" Harper questioned.
"It's Eduardo. Only Glisa calls me dat." Eduardo glared. "And didn't I already talk to you?"
"Don't be such a ruined activity!" Glisa laughed, giving her brother a playful elbow in the arm as she dropped back to the ground.
"I think you mean spoil sport." Kit-Kat corrected.
"Right. Dat's what I meant-"
"LAAAAAAAAACEEEEEEEEEEEEY!"
All voices went silent at the strange sound filling the air.
"Was that a bird?" Kestrel questioned.
"LAAAAAAAAACEEEEEEEEEEEEY!"
"Maybe a dying one." Nocturne commented as a boat stopped at the end of the dock. A tall, gangly male stumbled off of it, his bushy head of blonde curls bouncing as he tripped. Most of the campers and guests just gave him an eye roll.
Lacey however had a bright smile spread across her face. "Dave!"
The newcomer looked up with wide gray-green eyes. "Lacey!" He then proceeded to launch himself across the dock and rather clumsily engulf the much smaller teen into a hug. "I missed you! I'm so excited to be here! Oh, and Ozzie's been using your room even though I told him not to. He's putting magazine cutouts of Gerard Way all over the walls." (4)
"Ugh, damn it!" Lacey instantly slid out of the hug. "I told you not to let him touch my room!"
"Well maybe if you didn't mess up before you left and make mom and dad remove the door I could've-"
"You guys are related?" Sienna interrupted the rather strange argument. Dave and Lacey gave her a confused look.
"Of course," Dave said. "You couldn't tell?"
"Yeah sis, you couldn't tell?" Sienna's face quickly curled into an expression of frustration at the sound of the new voice.
"Tyler…" she sneered. "Of course you're here."
"Of course," A cute teen with shaggy brown hair made his way down the dock to stand in front of the queen bee with a smile. "Who else would be able to tolerate you for an episode?"
"I don't think I can tolerate you." Sienna glared.
"My girlfriend knew you'd say that."
"Of course she did." Sienna rolled her eyes.
"She's great, isn't she?" Tyler followed Sienna as she marched across the dock to the partnered up campers. He gave Veronica a wink when they passed by her.
"Well Chris, who'd you send for me?" Tom, the only remaining un-partnered camper, questioned.
"Well, she was supposedly to be here already…" Chris looked out into the distance. A boat finally appeared on the horizon a moment later. "That boat had better move faster."
Eventually the boat pulled up to the dock and a skinny girl with red-tinted brown hair stepped down. She had at least ten piercings in each ear and a casual smile on her face.
"Well Tom, what'd you say this time that caused everybody to move away?" She laughed, putting her hands on her hip. "Nothing like what you said to Lorraine when she-"
"Okay, nobody needs to know about that." Tom interrupted the girl.
"Oh come on, it's not as bad as what I said to her." She crossed her arms triumphantly. "But seriously, why're you alone?"
"Because you're last to arrive, Liz," Chris, ever the impatient host, explained. "Now would you get over there so I can explain why you guys are here?"
"Fashionably late as always." Liz smiled, walking over to the group with Tom. "This is gonna be fun."
"Okay," Chris stood in front of the group. "So now that you all have a friend/family member/worst enemy/crazy stalker/ex/whatever else there is with you, you're probably wondering why they're here."
"To torture us?" Addy asked.
"To scare us?" Russell questioned, Shelly wrapping herself around his arm.
"To hang out with us?" suggested Morty.
"Ha! Who are you kidding?" Chris laughed at Morty's suggestion, "The first two might apply, but dude. Do you know me?"
"I tried." Morty shrugged.
"Well, they're here of course for a challenge!" the host exclaimed. "The challenge is called Two is Better Than One and will be three parts long. Since the first part is probably going to take a long time and we're required to provide you with both lunch and dinner since we have guests, only the first and second parts will be done today."
"Wait," Kit-Kat said. "Does that mean-"
"Yes, our nineteen guests will be staying overnight. Technically they'll be staying until the Bonfire Ceremony tomorrow night where somebody will be voted off." Chris explained. "We'll have sleeping bags, cots, pillows, and whatever else you prefer set up in the Mess Hall after dinner for them since we are not letting them sleep anywhere near you guys. Teens and their sexual tension, if you know what I mean?" The host gave the group a wink. Several of them gagged in response.
"The first challenge will be starting as soon as possible, so if you guys could go meet Chef Hatchet out by the Mess Hall I'll meet you there!"
Confession Cam
Tom: "If this challenge is working together to do something, Liz and I have it in the bag. We are so going to win this for the Tortoises."
Jayna: "Hopefully this challenge involves being against our guest considering there is no way I'll be able to work with that lying, heartbreaking, backstabbing, immature-"
Joe F: "I can't believe Chris brought Jamie here!" The comic artist's brow is wrinkled in a mix of stress and excitement. "Out of all people, he had to bring the girl I have a crush on? I'm a bundle of nerves around her, knowwhatImean?"
Blair: "Juliet? Really Chris?" The tomboy crosses her arms. "I'll work with her just so I won't get voted off if I really have to, but I won't like it."
Jayna: "-bragging, stereotypical, embarrassing, way too easy to make fun of-"
Tanya: "Chris definitely made the right choice when sending over Rachel. I think we balance each other out well." The redhead pauses for a moment before adding, "Plus I think she'll listen to me if I have to boss her around in the challenge. A lot of the newcomers seem like easy competition anyway… though I do like Blair's sister."
Aaron: "Veronica..." He visibly swoons just at her name. "She's here! With me! And she… she said my name!"
Jayna: "-plus, what guy is named Baxter Worthington and isn't British? He should sound like Irving's friend!"
Carrie: "It's great seeing Jonah again. I just hope he hasn't changed his mind on the whole 'not meant to date' thing now that I've been gone. He doesn't really think when the situation calls for it."
End Confession Cam
"You're here already?" Chef Hatchet asked when the groups started arriving. He was carrying a box out to a picnic table behind the Mess Hall. When seeing that the number of campers had doubled, he groaned. "It just kicked in that guests mean that instead of 19 of you fools there're 38."
"Wow, I didn't expect you all to make it here in one piece." Chris rode up behind the campers on a golf cart driven by the intern who'd almost gotten Tom eaten alive. "I thought one of you dudes would've clawed each others' eyes out by now."
"He needs a golf cart to go from the dock to here?" Axel questioned.
"He needs a golf cart to go from here to the bathroom." Morty responded, pointing to the communal bathrooms less than twenty feet away.
"As for your challenge," Chris walked over to the box that Chef Hatchet had just put down and pulled out one of the objects inside. "Each camper and guest group will need a pair of these."
The campers all stared at the object he held up.
Handcuffs.
"Yay!" Shelly exclaimed, grabbing (once again) onto Russell.
"No way, Chris!" Addy shrieked. "I'm not handcuffing myself to… the other Chris!"
"What?" Addy's brother asked in complete shock.
"Same here." Blair agreed. "I don't want my eyes clawed out."
"Like I'd want to be stuck with you anyway." Juliet glared.
"Rules first, whining later." Chris insisted. The girls just pouted. "You and your partner will be handcuffed together by some body part and will have to make it from here to the top of the giant cliff on the other side of the island by running through the woods. Ribbons tied around trees will show you the route. The two paths are nearly identical for each team, but we had to separate you guys because it would be way too many people on one path at a time. So Tortoises, look out for the yellow ribbons, Deer the blue.
"Along the way you guys will have to make it through four obstacles along the way: monkey bars, a rock wall, one of those wire spider web mazes, and… well, I'll leave the last one a secret for you guys. You can work with other groups of partners to help you through the obstacles, but in the end you can only move on if you and your partner make it to finish line.
"You guys will get to pick the body parts you want to handcuff together at the Mess Hall. There's a booth set up between the rock wall and spider web maze where an intern will have keys if you want to change the body part before the maze and the last challenge. It can be any part you want. A wrist and a leg, two legs, a foot and a ponytail-"
"The first guy to handcuff themselves to their partner using an explicit part gets twenty bucks!" Liz called out. Tom snickered beside her. Chris McLean glared. "Sorry, go on."
"As I was saying," Chris glared, "if you can't stand your partner for that long, get lost, or can't figure out how to get past the obstacle there's always the Loser Key available. Just shout to the cameramen and they can give it to you. Using the Loser Key puts you and your partner out of not only this challenge but the other two parts too. If you can manage to make it to the end of the course, you'll move onto the second, much easier round of the challenge. Got it?"
"No!"
"Good. Come up and get your handcuffs."
After taking a few minutes to decide which body parts to handcuff together, the nineteen groups lined up in front of their team's path. Jake and Tara, Tanya and Rachel, Tom and Liz, Kestrel and Nocturne, Irving and Harper, Morty and Axel, and Carrie and Jonah had thought of a similar method: locking the handcuffs around their ankles and running in a three legged race style. Jayna and Baxter, Russell and Shelly, Joe F and Jamie, Sienna and Tyler, Joe H and Jason, Daphne and Todd, Kit-Kat and Kyle, and Blair and Juliet had locked their opposite wrists to each other so they could run side by side. Glisa and Eduardo, Addy and Chris, Lacey and Dave, and Aaron and Veronica had locked the same wrist together so they would have to run one behind the other or… something.
"Okay, on your marks…" Chris stood on top of the picnic table with a starter pistol in hand. "Get set…" He loaded the pistol. "G-"
"ACHOO!"
"Jake!"
"Sorry."
Chris sighed. "I swear I can't have any dramatic tension around here." CRACK! "Go already."
The groups ran off with that gunshot, Eduardo picking up Glisa so he could run without having to worry about her, Aaron nervously asking permission before picking Veronica up bridal style, and Lacey hopping onto Dave's back before they went down the path.
Chris laughed at the pairs running off into the woods… that is, until a crow with a bullet through its wing landed on the ground in front of him.
"Again?" he shouted. "Why do they even give me the gun if they know it's going to cause lawsuits?" When noticing that the camera was on him, he gave it his trademark smile. "Oh, right, ahem…
"How will this first part of the challenge go over? Who will finish the obstacle course? Will Juliet and Blair get over their sibling rivalry? Will Joe F work up the courage to speak full sentences to his crush? Will Shelly get over Russell?" The host laughs sadistically. "I highly doubt that.
"As for you watchers who might be having trouble remembering who's who, here's a handy dandy list for you:
Connected by the Ankles (three-legged race style):
Jake and Tara (friend)
Morty and Axel (friend)
Irving and Harper (friend)
Tom and Liz (friend)
Tanya and Rachel (sister)
Carrie and Jonah (friend, ex)
Kestrel and Nocturne (friend)
Connected by the Opposite Wrists (right and left):
Joe F and Jamie (crush)
Kit-Kat and Kyle (brother)
Daphne and Todd (brother)
Sienna and Tyler (brother)
Russell and Shelly (stalker)
Joe H and Jason (brother)
Blair and Juliet (sister)
Jayna and Baxter (ex)
Connected by the Same Wrists (left and left or right and right):
Aaron and Veronica (longtime crush who possibly doesn't know he exists)
Glisa and Eduardo (brother)
Addy and Chris [not McLean] (brother)
Lacey and Dave (brother)
"We'll be back after this commercial break!"
1. Barmpots- British slang for idiots not used as a serious insult.
2. True fact. Snakes, no matter how disgusting, are good for the environment.
3. –"I missed you so much."
– "Me too, Glory. You're doing good here, right?"
– "Of course, Eddy!" (Note: I did the Spanish myself. That means it's probably not completely right, but it's close enough.)
4. Ozzie is one of Lacey's other older brothers.
This chapter was seriously supposed to be a lot longer than it was. Most of the groups were supposed to have been past the rock wall by now. Then I realized it might be a bit easier to just leave the chapter as is and do the entire first part of the challenge all in one chapter.
As for the chapter itself, lots and lots of new faces here... and of course the aftermath of the phobia challenge on one camper, the mysterious reappearance of Maureen's hat, Kestrel (and maybe Addy) realizing that Tanya might not be looking for friendship and just a way to get farther in the game, a not-so-subtle reminder that the Deer guys have that stereo (keep that thing in mind. It comes into play in the next episode!), and a milk chug-off.
With the guests: if certain aspects of the character (whether it's their relationship with the camper or a piece of their personality) aren't mentioned yet, I didn't forget them. They just haven't come out yet. We'll figure them out in the upcoming chapters.
Sorry for making Baxter such an utter jerk. I was really hoping to be able to write one of the characters that way, and though Todd was pretty close, he wasn't the right kind of jerk. As for the over usage of British slang with both Jonah and Harper (but more with Harper) I really like writing such English characters. I'd have Carrie and Irving use it more but it sounds kind of funny when I write it for them. Plus, I'd need to somehow translate for them in or after the chapter.
The next chapter should be up must faster than this one now that it's summer and it's a pretty easy to write chapter. I won't start writing until after my birthday (on Monday) unfortunately. Oh, and Happy Independence Day in advance for American readers!