It's the final chapter of TGG! ENJOY!

Chapter Thirteen: Strangers

Klaus Baudelaire

It was horrible to contemplate my own life as Fiona betrayed us the way Jane had, as well as many of our former companions. Two people that I cared for very much had broken our trust. I could see Jane out of the corner of my eye. She seemed to be frozen almost, her eyes still locked on the place where I had stood. I knew she was hurt and I was glad. At least now she'd understand how much she had hurt me. I could barely look at her right now. It was bad enough that Fiona joined Olaf's side. Jane had done something so terrible. It broke my heart because I really did like her. But not after this.

"Tell them, Triangle Eyes," Count Olaf said with a wicked smile. "Tell the Baudelaires that you've joined up with me."

"It's true," Fiona said, though her eyes glanced sadly at the floor. "Count Olaf said that if I helped him destroy the last safe place, he'd help me find my stepfather."

"But Count Olaf and your stepfather are enemies!" Violet cried. "They're on opposite sides of the schism."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Esme Squalor said, as she stepped through the broken porthole. "After all, Captain Widdershins abandoned you. Maybe he's decided volunteers are out—and we're in."

"My brother, my stepfather, and I could be together again," Fiona said softly. "Don't you understand, Baudelaires?"

"Of course they don't understand!" Count Olaf cried. "Ha ha half-wits! Those brats spend their lives reading books instead of chasing after fortunes! I should have guessed Blondie would be with them! Now, let's remove all the valuables from the Queequeg and we'll lock the orphans up in the brig!"

"You won't get away from us this time!" the hook-handed man said, whirling the noodle in the air.

"We didn't get away from you last time," I said. "You helped us sneak over here, to save Sunny. You said you wanted to come with us when we escaped in the Queequeg and joined V.F.D. at the last safe place."

"V.F.D.," the hook-handed man sneered. He flicked one of his hooks scornfully and popped one of the balloons. "All those silly volunteers with their precious libraries and complicated codes—they're fools, every last one of them. I don't want to sit around reading idiotic books! He who hesitates is lost!"

"Or she," Fiona said. "Aye!"

"Yes," Count Olaf said, "let's not hesitate a moment longer, Hooky. Let's tour this submarine and steal anything we want!"

"I want to come, too!" Esme said. "I need a new fashionable outfit!"

"Of course, boss," the hook-handed man said, going over to the door of the Main Hall. "Follow me."

"No, you follow me!" Count Olaf said, pushing ahead of him. "I'm in charge!"

"But Countie," Carmelita whined, hopping off the table and doing an awkward spin. "I want to go first because I'm a tap-dancing ballerina fairy princess veterinarian!"

"Of course you get to go first, precious," Esme said. "You get whatever your adorable little heart desires, right Olaf?"

"I guess so," Olaf muttered.

"And tell Triangle Eyes to stay here and guard the orphans," Carmelita said. "I don't want her to take all the good stuff for herself."

"Guard the orphans, Triangle Eyes," Count Olaf said. "Although I don't think you orphans really need to be guarded. After all, there's nowhere for you to go! Tee hee traction!"

"Giggle giggle gaudy!" Carmelita cried, leading the way out of the Main Hall.

"Ha ha hair trigger!" Esme screamed, as she followed.

"Tee hee tonsillectomy!" Count Olaf shrieked, walking behind his girlfriend.

"I also find this amusing!" the hook-handed man yelled, slamming the door behind him. We were left alone with Fiona and Jane.

"Traitor," Sunny said.

"Sunny's right," Violet said. "Don't do this, Fiona. There's still time to change your mind, and stay on the noble side of the schism."

"We received a Volunteer Factual Dispatch," I said, showing her the telegram. " V.F.D. is in desperate need of our services for a most urgent matter. We're meeting the volunteers at Briny Beach. You could come with us, Fiona."

"Greenhut!" Sunny cried. She meant something like, "You could be of enormous help," "You wouldn't abandon your sister," Fiona said before any of us could translate. "Aye! You risked your lives to save Sunny. How can you ask me to abandon my brother?"

"Your brother is a wicked person," Violet said.

"People aren't either wicked or noble," Fiona said. "They're like chef's salads."

I glanced at Jane briefly, understanding how true that was. I thought Jane was noble but she had done something so villainous. It didn't make sense to me.

I picked up picture of Fiona's family from the table to give it to Fiona. "This doesn't look like a chef's salad to me," he said. "It looks like a family. Is this what your family would have you do, Fiona? Send three children to the brig, while you help a villain in his treacherous schemes?"

Fiona glanced at the photo, and tears glistened in her eyes. She blinked.

"My family is lost," she said. "Aye! My mother is dead. Aye! My father moved away. Aye! My stepfather has abandoned me. Aye! My brother may not be as wonderful as you Baudelaires, but he is the only family I have. Aye! I'm staying with him. Aye!"

"Stay with him if you must," Violet said, "but let us go."

"Rendezvous," Sunny said.

"Take us to Briny Beach," Klaus translated. "We might be on opposite sides of the schism, Fiona, but that doesn't mean we can't help one another."

Fiona sighed, glancing from us to the photo. "I could turn my back," she said, "instead of guarding you."

"And we could take the Queequeg," Violet said, "and escape." Fiona frowned, and put down the picture.

"If I let you go to Briny Beach," she said, "what will you do for me?"

"I'll teach you how to repair submarines," Violet said, pointing out the telegram machine. "You could restore the Queequeg to its former glory."

"I don't need the Queequeg anymore," Fiona said. "Aye! I'm part of the crew of the Carmelita."

"I'll give you my commonplace book," Klaus said and held out his commonplace book. "It's full of important secrets."

"Count Olaf knows more secrets than you'll ever learn," Fiona replied.

"Mmph!" I heard Sunny say and realized that she had slipped away to the kitchen while we weren't looking. She was back with the poisoned helmet.

"Don't touch that, Sunny!" Violet cried. "There's a very dangerous fungus in there, and we don't have any more antidote!"

"Mycolo," Sunny said, and put the helmet at Fiona's feet.

"Sunny's right," I said, shuddering as I glanced at the helmet. "Inside that helmet is the bugaboo of the mycological pantheon—the Medusoid Mycelium."

"I thought you destroyed it," Fiona said.

"No," Violet said. "The Medusoid Mycelium grows best in an enclosed space. You said that the poison of a deadly fungus can be the source of some wonderful medicines. This is a very valuable specimen for a mycologist like yourself."

"That's true," Fiona confessed, and looked at the helmet.

As I stared at the helmet, I thought of our journey into the grotto and being trapped by the Medusoid Mycellium. I recalled how horrified we had been when we discovered the Medusoid Mycellium inside Sunny's helmet and the shock when we came back to an abandoned submarine. I remembered being captured by the Carmelita and meeting our worst enemy inside.

"We're back!" Count Olaf announced, bursting into the room along with his associates. Esmé and Carmelita were looking into a small, shiny box. The hook-handed man was carrying a bunch of uniforms and diving helmets. "There wasn't much to steal, I'm afraid—this submarine is not quite up to its former glory. Still, I found a small jewelry box hidden in the barracks, with a few valuable items."

"I think the ruby ring is very in," Esmé purred. "It would look wonderful with my flame-imitating dress."

"That was my mother's," Fiona said quietly.

"She would have wanted me to have it," Esme said quickly. "We were close friends at school."

"I want the necklace!" Carmelita demanded. "It goes perfectly with my veterinarian stethoscope! Give it to me, Countie!"

"I wish we had those carnival freaks with us," the hook-handed man said. "They could help carry some of these uniforms."

"We'll see them at the Hotel Denouement," said Count Olaf, "along with the rest of my comrades. Well, let's get out of here! We have lots to do before we arrive! Triangle Eyes, take the orphans to the brig! Ha ha hula dance!"

Count Olaf began to hum a strange tune and did his own victory dance that caused him to stumble over the diving helmet on the floor.

Carmelita giggled maliciously as Olaf rubbed his tattooed ankle. "Ha, ha Countie!" cried Carmelita. "My dance recital was better than yours!"

"Get this hat out of here, Triangle Eyes," Count Olaf snarled. He picked up the helmet and started to give it to Fiona, but the hook-handed man intercepted him.

"I think you'll want that helmet for yourself, boss," the henchman said. "I prefer a smaller, lighter hat," Count Olaf said, "but I appreciate the gesture."

"What my brother means," Fiona explained, "is that inside this helmet is the Medusoid Mycelium."

We gasped and I looked at my siblings in horror. Even Jane seemed frightened as Count Olaf looked into the window of the helmet with eyes wide. "The Medusoid Mycelium," he murmured, and ran his tongue thoughtfully along his teeth. "Could it be?"

"Impossible," Esmé Squalor said. "That fungus was destroyed long ago."

"They brought it with them," the hook-handed man said. "That's why the baby was so sick."

"This is marvelous," Olaf said in a raspy voice. "As soon as you Baudelaires and Blondie are all in the brig, I'm going to open this helmet and toss it inside! You'll suffer as I've always wanted you to suffer."

"That's not what we should do!" Fiona cried. "That's a very valuable specimen!"

Esmé stepped forward drapping a tentacle around Count Olaf's neck. "Triangle Eyes is right," she said. "You don't want to waste the fungus on the orphans. Besides, you need one of them alive to get the fortune."

"That's true," Olaf agreed, "but the idea of those orphans not being able to breathe is awfully attractive."

"But think of the fortunes we can steal!" Esmé said. "Think of the people we can boss around! With the Medusoid Mycelium in our grasp, who can stop us now?"

"No one!" Count Olaf howled. "Ha hunan chicken! Ha ha hamantaschen! Ha ha hors d'oeuvres! Ha ha h—"

Before Count Olaf could utter another word, he stopped and gestured at the sonar detector in which the letter Q of the Queequeg was in the same spot as the eye that represented the Carmelita. However, I could see a third shape, the one shaped like an enormous question mark.

"What's that cakesniffing shape?" asked Carmelita Spats. "It looks like a big comma." "Shh!" Count Olaf hissed, covering Carmelita's mouth. "Silence, everyone!"

"We have to get out of here," Esme murmured. "This octopus is no match for that thing."

"You're right," Olaf muttered. "Esme, go whip our rowers so they'll go faster! Hooky, store those uniforms! Triangle Eyes, take the orphans to the brig!"

"What about me?" Carmelita asked. "I'm the cutest, so I should get to do something."

"I guess you'd better come with me," Count Olaf said wearily. "But no tap-dancing! We don't want to show up on their sonar! In fact, Blondie, you're coming with me too. I want a word with you before I toss you into the brig."

"Ta ta, cakesniffers!" Carmelita said, and waved her pink wand at us.

"You're so stylish, darling," Esme said. "It's like I always say: You can't be too rich or too in!" Esmé and Carmelita exited the Queequeg followed by the hook-handed man who waved awkwardly at us.

Count Olaf paused before he exited and drew his long, sharp sword to aim it at us. "Your luck is over at last," he said, in a terrible voice. "For far too long, you keep defeating my plans and escaping from my clutches—a happy cycle for you orphans and an unprofitable one for me. But now the tables have turned, Baudelaires. You've finally run out of places to run. And as soon as we get away from that—" he pointed at the sonar screen and raised his eyebrow menacingly, "you'll see that this cycle has finally been broken. You should have given up a long time ago, orphans. I triumphed the moment you lost your family."

"We didn't lose our family," Violet said. "Only our parents."

That wasn't completely true. It felt as if we'd lost Jane and we used to consider her as one of us.

"You'll lose everything, orphans," Count Olaf replied. "Wait and see." He said no more as he leaped out of the porthole. "I said you're coming with me, Blondie. Hurry up!"

Jane glanced at me and I could see her eyes pleading with me to forgive her. But I couldn't. Nothing could erase what she did. Things could never be the same between us.

"I think you should go, Jane," I said, "in fact, I don't think we should be friends anymore. You're a stranger to me now."

"But Klaus—" Jane started, her mouth agape. A tear ran down her cheek.

"I said hurry up!" Olaf growled.

"Go," I said, blinking back the tears in my eyes.

Jane was frozen for a brief second. "I'm sorry," she whispered, brokenly. Then, at last, she turned and hurried out of the porthole to follow Count Olaf. She was gone.

Jamie Murray

I followed Olaf out of the porthole, zombie-like. I felt like I was about to burst into tears at any moment. Everything was spiraling out of control and I didn't know what to do. I wish I had someone to go to for advice, but I had no one. The thought hit me like a knife had gone through my heart. I lost Violet and Sunny. And I lost Klaus. They were all I had and they hated me. No! That couldn't happen. I had to do something. I had to tell Klaus how I felt. Now.

I glanced back at the Queequeg, expecting the Baudelaires to be following at any moment.

Olaf pressed the eye button on the wall and the doors slid open. He walked through, not bothering to check to see that I was behind him. Now was my chance.

I dropped back and headed in the direction of the Queequeg. I could hear voices coming from inside the submarine and even though we were in a terrible situation, I kept thinking about Klaus. This was my chance to tell him what I felt about him all along.

I reached the submarine at last and peered through the porthole that Olaf had destroyed with his sword. The Baudelaires were talking to Fiona and they didn't see me. "I'll miss you," I heard Klaus saying. "Won't you come with us, Fiona? Now that Olaf has the Medusoid Mycelium, we'll need all the help we can get. Don't you want to finish the submarine's mission? We never found the sugar bowl. We never found your stepfather. We never even finished that code we were going to invent."

Fiona nodded, looking sad, and went over to the wooden table. She picked up the book, Mushroom Minutiae, and then faced Klaus.

"When you think of me," she said quietly, "think of a food you love very much." At that moment, she stepped forward and kissed Klaus on the mouth.

I moved back from the window to where I couldn't be seen. I watched as Fiona left the submarine, without noticing that I was standing nearby and followed after the villains. I stared after her until she disappeared through the door. I glanced through the portal hole again, and saw Klaus had his hand up to his lips where Fiona had kissed him. I found myself suddenly unable to breathe as if I were the one being poisoned by the Medusoid Mycellium. It felt as if my heart had shattered all over the floor. I watched, numbly as the submarine began to edge its way back through the tunnel from where it had come. In only a few minutes, the Baudelaires were gone for good, Klaus taking my heart with him. I felt as though I were going to burst into tears. But all I could do was stare blankly ahead.

"What do you think you're doing, Blondie?" Olaf growled viciously as he entered the room.

"They're gone," I managed in a toneless voice, so quiet that I wasn't sure if I even spoke it aloud.

Count Olaf's eyes rested on the spot where the Queequeg had been and widened. "Drat! They've escaped me again!" He hurried over to me. "You had something to do with this, didn't you?" he growled.

I didn't answer, staring blankly at the floor. Olaf growled and grabbed the back of my diving suit.

"Can you let me go?" I managed, so quiet I could hardly hear myself. "I want to be alone."

"I don't care," Olaf said, "you're coming with me and…Carmelita."

He began dragging me along with him as he headed to the control room. Carmelita met up with us in the rowing room where Count Olaf informed Esmé about the Baudelaires escaping again. After a few bitter words over his defeat, I was shoved in the direction of the control room while Carmelita skipped obnoxiously in front of me. The kids who were rowing looked up as I passed with sad expressions. I assumed they thought our plan was over with. Honestly, I didn't think I had the energy or the desire anymore.

I barely paid attention; in fact, I had to be practically dragged the whole way to the control room because my legs were nearly frozen. All I kept thinking about was Klaus and Fiona.

Olaf dragged me over to the spot I had sat in earlier and shoved me onto the seat. Carmelita sat down in another seat.

"What's with that look on your face, cakesniffer?" Carmelita asked, rudely. Olaf went to the controls and was staring at the sonar screen. The question mark was still there and he looked a little nervous. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

I looked away from Carmelita, feeling as if I might cry. All of my hopes, all of my dreams were crushed. Suddenly, I couldn't stop myself and I felt more tears falling into my lap. Carmelita was staring at me and I wiped my eyes with the back of my hands hastily. I never let Carmelita see me cry. The last time she had caught me was when I was five because I missed my parents. She teased me about that for weeks, calling me a crybaby.

Carmelita sneered at me. "Look, Countie," she said, "Jane is crying." She snickered. "Janie the Cry Baby, Janie the Cry Baby." She singsonged the same thing she would say when we were younger.

"Quiet, Carmelita!" Olaf growled.

Carmelita pouted, sticking out her lower lip.

As I sat in the control room with the girl who had never ceased to make my life miserable and a horrible man who had done the same, I found myself unable to keep my tears in. Klaus hated me and it was all my fault. Now he was in love with Fiona. I ruined everything!

The question mark disappeared again and Count Olaf relaxed. Slowly, he turned to look at me, with a raised eyebrow.

I put my head in my hands. They couldn't see me cry. They would only make everything worse. I wished I could be with someone who wouldn't make me feel uncomfortable for crying. Someone like Klaus…But I couldn't have that anymore either.

"What are you so upset about?" Olaf said in a mocking tone. "Are you upset because your boyfriend left you behind?"

"N-no," I choked through my tears. It wasn't entirely true. In a way, he did leave me behind.

Count Olaf narrowed his eyes at me for a brief instant. Then, they were shining brightly.

"Carmelita," the villain said, "now that the danger has passed, you can go back to performing for the rowers."

"Yay!" Carmelita cried, and did a twirl as she began to exit. "Later cakesniffer!" she called to me as she left.

I scooted back in my chair, afraid of what was going to happen this time.

"Now, Jamie," Olaf said in a voice that attempted to be sickly sweet, making me shudder, "why don't you tell me what's wrong?"

He looked at me expectantly. I blinked back my tears, wishing I never let him see me crying. I looked down at my hands. "Nothing's wrong," I said, though tears stung my eyes.

"Of course there's something wrong," he said, "you're crying."

"Why do you care anyways?" I said, "Aren't you happy when I'm miserable?"

Count Olaf gave me a slow grin. "But this is different," he said, "this time it wasn't me who made you cry."

I looked down at the ground, sadly.

"I suppose it's because your friends escaped again," Olaf said when I didn't speak with an edge of irritation at the thought of the Baudelaires getting away. "But why should that make you sad? Is it because you've finally realized that they've abandoned you?"

"No, of course not," I said, though I wasn't so sure if that were true.

"So you let them escape!" he accused me. "You helped them do it!"

"Not this time," I said, quietly. "I was about to tell Klaus that…" I couldn't bring myself to say it aloud, "...but then something stopped me."

He looked surprised. "What was that?"

"I won't say," I said, biting my lip so I wouldn't cry again.

"Tell me this instant," he growled, aiming his sword at me.

I gulped and looked away as I said, "I-I saw something…Klaus…Fiona…um…well." I just couldn't bring myself to say what I knew was true aloud. It would just make it that much harder. I took a shaky breath and started again because Count Olaf was pointing his sword at me again. "As I got to the submarine, I…I…well…Fiona was…" I trailed off and felt more tears coming.

"What?" Olaf growled impatiently.

"I saw her kiss Klaus," I blurted and unleashed my tears. I began to sob brokenly.

"And you're jealous," Count Olaf said.

"Sure," I said, "but there's more to it than that." I let my head fall as I spoke. "Klaus hates me."

"And why is that?" Count Olaf asked.

"Well, your henchman told them about how you stole my notebook and then how I tried to push Madame Lulu into the lion pit," I said.

His eyes widened. "So you're the one who killed her," he said in a half growl, half amused voice. "I knew it was you. You killed baldy too."

"I didn't kill any of them," I said. "Klaus only thinks I killed Madame Lulu."

"Don't be ashamed, Jamie," Olaf said, "I don't judge you for being a murderer." I cringed at the thought. "In fact, I'm overjoyed. Now I know you're capable of being a perfect henchwoman."

"I don't care," I said as more tears streamed down my face, "Klaus said we shouldn't be friends anymore and then he kissed Fiona. And then they left."

"Poor Jane," Olaf said, "What is there to do? I can only think of one thing that might help. Revenge! That's right! My offer from before is still available, you know."

"No," I said with a shudder, "I won't do that…it's not as if he cheated on me or anything. It's my fault. I should have been more careful."

"I can't say that I disagree," Olaf said, "But you're also too blind to see what is true. Not only did bookworm kiss the mushroom bookworm but the Baudebrats left you behind altogether."

"N-no," I said, quietly. "T-that can't be true."

"How could you still care about them?" Olaf said. "When all those brats have done is abandon you just like everyone else you've ever known?"

I paused for a moment, feeling tears filling my eyes once more. "They haven't left me," I said quietly, more to myself than to Olaf. "They wouldn't abandon me. Would they?"

Olaf placed his hands on either side of my chair and leaned forward so that his face was level with mine. "They already have, Jamie," he said. "Why else are you still in my clutches? They've had plenty of opportunities to help you. Whether you believe it or not will not change the nature of truth. Afterall, bookworm hates you. Nothing you do will ever fix this. Trust me, Jane, I know all about love."

"Yeah, right," I said, "you wouldn't know what love was if it punched you square in the nose."

"Well, it seems I know a lot more than you do," Count Olaf said.

"They didn't abandon me!" I cried. "Stop this! The Baudelaires didn't abandon me!" But even as I spat those words at him in my anger, I knew it was the truth. Klaus would probably never forgive me.

"You can't deny it, Jane," Olaf said, "The Baudebrats aren't your family, little girl. Would family abandon each other?"

I averted my eyes so I wouldn't have to look him in the eyes anymore. I looked down at the floor instead. I kept trying to make up excuses for the Baudelaires. But maybe I was kidding myself.

"Everyone you've ever known has failed you," Olaf said, "But if you joined me, things would be different. You would have Esmé as your aunt. Don't you want Esmé to be proud of you? Don't you want her to appreciate you? You can have memories of your own that the Baudelaires would never be able to fulfill."

"It's not the same," I said, "I mean, all I really want is for someone…anyone to care about me. Even a little. Why should I believe that Esmé will care about me if I agree to be a villain?"

"Look at how she treats Carmelita," Olaf said, "and they're not even related. You're her niece."

"She does seem to care a little about my mother," I said, "they were close, right?"

Olaf frowned. "I told Esmé not to say anything," he grumbled. "What else did she tell you?"

"Nothing that I would label as important," I said, "at least not to you. Only simple things…like my mother's favorite flower. I like to know anything about my parents. However, even if Esmé cares a little, it shouldn't change anything. She's still not a very good person."

"But Esmé's the closest thing to family that you'll ever encounter," Count Olaf insisted, "You're not going to find it anywhere else. You can go around and claim people are your family but it'll never make it so. You'll always be alone. Just like you are now."

I grimaced. "I don't like being alone," I said quietly, "I've always been alone. It's not fair."

"Life isn't fair," Olaf said bitterly.

"I know life isn't fair!" I cried. "I don't need you to remind me of that! If life was fair, I'd be with my parents and none of this would have ever happened…" I trailed off, miserably. "Fair would have been if Klaus felt the same way I do…I've dealt with unjustices my entire life," I said. "Since the day I realized I didn't have parents." I shuddered as more tears escaped. "You would think after suffering all those years, that the rest of my life might be a little brighter. But I've lost everything. Things that were never mine in the first place."

"And sometimes it makes you wonder why it happened to you," Olaf added, stealing more ideas from my notebook. He wore a strange expression on his face…of sympathy almost but perhaps I was just seeing things.

"I meant it when I said that the most people would ever do for you is make you suffer," Olaf said, "And now you're crying over the Baudelaires even. Of course, if you joined me, I wouldn't make you suffer anymore. Perhaps you could teach those noble volunteers about what misery really is. You can make them pay for all the times you suffered."

"I…I don't know," I said, softly.

"Even if you decided not to join me and you somehow escaped my clutches," Olaf said, "Where would you go?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I-I…um…" I pursed my lips. "Okay so I wouldn't have anywhere to go."

"Exactly my point," Olaf said, "No one on this planet would care about a poor orphan. It's how the world works. The poor and helpless suffer while the rest turn a blind eye to it all. You're nothing to the people out there in this dreadful world."

I lowered my head and stared at my hands. Olaf put a scraggly hand on top of my head and I glanced up. "You see," he said, "you're all alone in this world and you've suffered a great deal, but you're not the only one. Like those freaks who joined my troupe recently. They were all alone and people made fun of them for things they had no control over. Then I came along so they decided to get revenge on all the people who had ever laughed at them. Now, they're not alone and helping me with my ultimate scheme. No one will ever laugh at those freaks again once they've seen how treacherous they can be."

"But it doesn't make any sense," I said, "Why should that make me want to join you?"

"Because, Jane," Olaf said, "my troupe is about welcoming those who aren't welcome anywhere else. In my troupe, you'll be apart of something. You could make others pay for what you've lost. The world isn't all black and white, Jane. Just like people aren't either good or evil. I knew both sides of your mother. In fact, you might not have enjoyed the thought of your mother being wicked. But you're no different from the person she was. She was just as alone as you and then she made the decision to join me to fight fire with fire. I think I changed her life for the better."

"Is that why you're so villainous?" I said, softly. "Because you know what it's like to suffer?"

Olaf's eyes darkened for a moment and then they were back to normal. "If you joined me, Jane, you won't be forgotten," Olaf said, "You're a bright girl and you can act. Besides, wouldn't you rather be with your real family?"

"I've always wanted to be with my family," I admitted.

"Then what is holding you back?" Olaf said, "What reason could you have for not joining me?" Olaf leaned forward so his face was close enough for me to smell his horrid breath. "What do you have to lose?"

I fumbled in my brain for the right words to say. 'What did I have to lose?' I thought. But I found nothing. Olaf was right. Even if I chose a different path, what was the point when I had nothing. If I tried to escape and follow through with that plan to take over the submarine, where would I go? Sure, I could go to Hotel Denouement, but I would still be a stranger to everyone. I wouldn't be able to decide who was a friend or foe. And I was just a poor orphan girl, parentless before I was barely two years old and alone. It was like that suffocating feeling that consumed me whenever I was claustrophobic. As if I were reaching for something that wasn't there. I was alone and I always have been. The Baudelaires had abandoned me here. Afterall, Klaus said we were strangers. And their abandonment hurt more than when Kate and Christina humiliated me in front of everyone. It hurt more than when I found out Esmé wasn't the nice guardian I had thought her to be and it hurt more than when I found out Monty Kensicle lied about his identity to me. It felt like everyone was leaving me behind. And this was a truth that I had to face. The Baudelaires hated me. They abandoned me. Maybe Count Olaf was right. I'd lost the only people worth fighting for so what was the point of trying to be good anymore? I wanted to agree with Olaf so I could do something that could help erase all of my pain. Still, I knew what that kind of agreement entailed and I was afraid of where it might lead me. Nevertheless, where else could I go? What other choice did I have? What did I have to lose?

"I've lost everything," I said tearfully.

"I know," Olaf said, sounding sympathetic and patting the top of my head.

I looked up at the villain and my heart grew heavy. "Okay," I said, feeling resigned as I pushed back all of my fear. "I'll join you."

Review!

Also, i've always wondered why Sunny seems to know more French words than English words lol

TPP and The End will be published as a separate story so look out for that soon! I'm sooo excited that i've made it soo far in this story! Thanks to all you readers and of course all of my totally awesome reviews!