Review responses!!!!
Seriously Obvious the Alien- Well, thanks! I hope this is soon enough!
Ophelia Russel- Is this unfortunate enough for you?
Blue Acorn- Wow. A little heavy on the reviews, ne?
Rock Sunner – Maybe I should read your version sometime!
Bellatrix – Yes I found it, don't worry.
Chapter 24 – A Very Unfortunate Christmas Present to You
Now the ballroom was long empty, since all the guets had left to go to sleep. If you had been outside the headquarters that fateful night, you would've seen that only a handful of lights were still on, one of which was in the small bedroom adjoining the library. Inside was the librarian, Beatrice, who had just changed out of her extravagant – a word which here means "stunningly beautiful" – costume. What made her different from all the other people who had attended the ball was the fact that she wasn't change her clothes to get ready for a long night's sleep.
She was dressed in some long pants with a warm jacket, a buttoned up flannel shirt, and some sturdy boots. She didn't know what the future would bring, so she dressed ready for any unfortunate circumstances that could come her way.
Her right gloved hand drummed nervously on her desk as her left was writing a letter to a man who she had to inform of an important decision. After a minute, she put the paper in an envelope, wrote a name on it, and slipped it into a drawer next to another envelope, which she took out and studied for a minute. This envelope was much thicker than the other one, and must've contained at least a hundred pages.
She gave a relieved smile as she put it back in the drawer. "At least I won't have to tell him this any more," she muttered to herself as she threw it back into the drawer. That envelope had the name of a man who was very dear to her on the back.
She grabbed her coat and a small suitcase that was next to her chair and turned out her small desk lamp. But just as she was about to walk out of the room, a tall, thin figure emerged out of the shadows to block the doorway.
"Who are you?" Beatrice asked. She didn't recognize this man, but she had a vague feeling that she somehow knew about him. He took a step closer to her without saying a word.
"If you need help finding a book, it'll just have to wait," she said, hoping that the mysterious man only wanted a book. Clutching her small suitcase nervously, she tried to walk around the figure, but he just kept walking in front of her. She was now close enough to see his shiny, grinning eyes.
Suddenly she caught her breath in fear. Those eyes… Something about those eyes was familiar to her. It couldn't be him. It just couldn't… Her eyes widened as Beatrice realized who this must be.
"Olaf?" she murmured more to herself than the man in front of her.
The man lit a match, illuminating his drawn face. "The file," he said with a grin, "will be destroyed with it's creators. Tonight, the file and the one who keeps it will be lost in a terrible accident. And, thanks to you, that nosy Snicket will soon be out of the picture as well."
She tried to yell for help, but the words seemed to get stuck in her throat. Olaf grinned as he saw her eyes search the room.
"There's no escape, dear," Olaf said cheerfully. He walked over to the slightly open door and took a strange object from a familiar, manicured hand.
"Here you are, Olaf," came the voice of Esme from behind the door.
"Thank you, darling," Olaf replied. He turned to face Beatrice as he placed the object on the floor nearby the door. "It was nice talking to you," he said as he left, shutting the door behind him.
Beatrice ran to the door, but it was too late; Olaf had already locked it. As she pulled on the door handle in vein, she heard Olaf's faint voice through the door. "I'm sick of giving the Snicket all the credit; I want it this time!"
"That's okay," said Esme's voice. "Arson is in this year!"
Beatrice knew there was no escape, and she was absolutely right. She managed to scream the name "Lemony" once more in fear and hope.
And before she knew what was happening, the room burst into flames.