Fear not, faithful readers! I haven't abandoned you. I've been busy all week preparing for the city swim meet, but now that that's over I have more time to publish chapters.
But first, a review response:
JustVildaPotter: Thank you so much! Your reviews make my day, as do your stories. Keep doing your thing, that is, keep writing!
And now on with the story!
Chapter Seven
When the five children climbed out of Count Olaf's trunk the next morning, the first thing they saw was the fortune-telling tent at Caligari Carnival. Printed on the side of the tent was an image of an eye. The orphans knew that if you looked closely at this eye, you could see it was made up of three letters: V, F, and D. Together, these three letters formed the name of a secret organization. They knew they were in the right place.
"It looks like we're in the right place," Klaus said. "If that's the fortune-teller Count Olaf was looking for, she might be able to tell us if one of our parents really is alive." Klaus was referring to a conversation the children had overheard while in the trunk of Count Olaf's car the previous night. Count Olaf had announced in a loud, villainous way that he was setting course for a fortune-teller at Caligari Carnival.
"Which fire do you think Jacques meant?" Isadora said, asking the question that had kept all five children awake last night.
"Olaf seems to think it was our fire," said Violet. "But I want to know how he found out about the Snicket File in the first place."
Isadora but her lip. She had not yet told her friends and brother what she had encountered in Heimlich Hospital's Human Resources office.
"We can't worry about that now," Duncan said. "We should disguise ourselves with those costumes from Olaf's trunk."
Violet nodded approvingly at the idea. "That would buy us some time. But what should we disguise ourselves as?"
"Bizzaro," Sunny suggested, pointing to a sign reading: Freaks Wanted.
...
The children had just put the finishing touches on their freak disguises when the hook-handed man emerged from the tent, muttering something about his sister and stepdad.
"Excuse me sir," Violet said in a fake Southern accent. "We're four freaks lookin' for work and we were wonderin' who we should speak to about that." A woman with big hoop earrings and a beaded headdress stepped out of the tent.
"It is too late for job interview, please. Come back in morning." she said, disregarding the fact that it was nearly afternoon.
Count Olaf stumbled up behind her. He was drunk somehow, though as I mentioned it was nearly afternoon. "Give the freaks a chance, Lulu," he slurred. "It can't be that hard to interview weirdos."
With a sigh, the woman called Lulu led the five children into the fortune-telling tent.
"I'm Beverly, and this is my other head Elliott," Violet announced to the occupants of the tent. At her feet, Sunny growled. "And that's Chabo."
"She's half wolf," Klaus chimed in. He was disguised as the other head.
"What about your little friends back there?" Olaf asked. The Quagmires stepped forward.
"We're acrobats," said Duncan and Isadora in perfect unison. "Olly and Izzy."
"We also do magic," Isadora added.
"We have no room in carnival for magical acrobats, please." Lulu said. "But we could use stagehands." She turned to Count Olaf and his troupe. "Now go. I interview freaks in private please. Spirits will bring answer through crystal ball in next morning."
The villains obeyed. Perhaps they were too intoxicated to protest, for Olaf left the tent slumped on Esmé's shoulder.
The children followed Lulu into the dimly lit room in back of the tent.
"What would you like us to do?" Violet continued to disguise her voice.
"I'm afraid there is no place for you in freak show, please. Caligari Carnival is on hard times, and pack of starving lions makes world very quiet here."
The two Quagmire triplets stepped forward. "Who are you?" they asked in unison.
At this, Lulu removed her headdress, earrings, and fake teeth that had disguised her appearance and voice. "An old friend." Standing before the orphans was a woman they had met in a previous episode of their unfortunate lives. Though her encounter the Baudelaires had been brief, the Quagmires has known her for much longer, and recognized her immediately.
"Olivia!" Isadora cried.
"How did you end up here?" asked Duncan.
"I would ask you the same question, Quagmires." And Olivia was off, explaining everything she had been doing since the children had last seen her at Prufrock Prep, such as searching for the Quagmires, joining V.F.D., and meeting Jacques Snicket. Olivia explained how she made a deal with Esmé Squalor to escape the Village of Fowl Devotees, which led her to Caligari Carnival. She took up the position of Madame Lulu and had been collecting materials on the orphans' case to aid her research for the position. "If you don't mind, I'd like to have a look at those notebooks of yours," Olivia finished, looking at the Quagmire triplets.
"Iz, that reminds me. I forgot to ask for my notebook back." Duncan turned to his sister. Isadora had gone very white, and not just because of the white powder she and her brother had put on to disguise their faces.
"Well, the thing is, Duncan..." She started nervously.
"What did you do?"
"I sort of...well..." Isadora struggled to find the words. She took a deep breath, and said quickly: "I traded them to Count Olaf and made him promise to stop chasing after our fortune."
Duncan stared at his sister, open mouthed. "You what?"
"I'm really sorry, Duncan."
"Sorry? You being sorry isn't going to fix this! You know how important those notebooks were!"
"I know-"
"Because of you, they're gone!"
"I'm sure Olivia can get the notebooks back," Klaus said in an attempt to defend Isadora.
"Sure," Duncan said sarcastically, "If they haven't been used as kindling to burn down Heimlich Hospital." With that, Duncan turned on his heel and bolted from the fortune-telling tent.
"Duncan!" Violet ran after him, leaving Isadora, Klaus, and Olivia with the awkward silence hanging in the air.
Sunny growled.
So yeah, if you haven't guessed it by now, I really like writing about family drama. I'll try not to make the story too dramatic, but there will be some triplet drama here and there.
A quick explanation of a literary reference: Isadora and Duncan's carnival aliases are the names of magical twins Olly and Izzy, from Neil Patrick Harris' Magic Misfits series.
And now a message to you, my readers! Please, please, please review to tell me what you thought of the chapter. Even if you hated it, I love reviews, and will respond to your review in the pre-chapter author's note of the next chapter. See you there!