Title: The House at the End of the World
Author: Hermione Eveningfall
Fandom: A Series of Unfortunate Events (based off of book 1: The Bad Beginning)
Rating: G-PG
Disclaimer: The characters names and places do not belong to me. They are the property of Sir Lemony Snicket, and I am only borrowing them. I do promise to return the orphans, if anything, slightly bruised ;o)
Summary: No Summary Provided
Author Notes: As I have not seen the film version of the series, this story is primarily book-verse. (All righty! This has now changed, since I have just seen the film. Eeeeeeeee! *Squishes my Klaus* So I guess it'll be a bit of both at this point, though we'll just see how it goes. XD) Though in my head, I have Liam Aikan as Klaus, as he is in the movie-version. If that made any sense, whatsoever.
Bunny: #10
Feedback: Yes please! You know the drill!

It was unfortunate, in deed, that the virus chose that moment, that location, and that nose, to invade. The somewhat stifled sneeze rocked Klaus Bauldelare so violently, three of the fat spiders hanging from the decrepit rafters fell to the floor, scuttling away with embarrassment at having tbeen knocked from their perch.

He sat up, rubbing his sore eyes, and glanced at his elder sister Violet, who lay curled beside him. She slept on, her breathing steady, her face peaceful as could be considering their current situation. He peered over the edge of the bed at Sunny the infant, who was curled up in the filthy curtains. Only the tips of her tiny feet could be seen, and they kicked out every so often.

The room was freezing, and Klaus wrapped his small body in as many linens as he could, trying to keep warm. "Heptshhhh!" he groaned, a throbbing pain beginning just behind his eyes. Two days passed since the Baudelair children's parents and home perished in a terrible fire, and they were sent to live with their distant relative-the mysterious Count Olaf. While this may have turned out well for others, the Bauldelair orphans were prone to bad luck, and extreme misfortune almost always followed them wherever they went.

Count Olaf and his infamous theater troup were terrible people,  and were only concerned with the Bauldelare fortune, which Violet could only inherit when she came of age. Olaf vowed to stop at nothing that would come between himself and the money, and made the children as miserable as possible. "Hah-hahESHHHH!" Klaus buried his face in his arms, sniffling wetly. He didn't even want to imagine what would happen, if Olaf discovered that he was coming down sick. "Violet?" he sniffled again, rubbing his nose with the corner of his sleeve. "Violet!" he added, whispering a bit more loudly.

His sister shifted uncomfortably, her lips moving as she murmered something under her breath. "Violet, wake up," he repeated, and she finally opened her dark brown eyes.

"What's wrong?" she croaked, yawning, and propping herself up with her elbow. She suddenly noticed how pale and sweaty her brother looked, and sat up all the way. "Oh Klaus, are you not feeling well?" she asked, feeling his forehead with the palm of her hand. He shook his head, shivering.

"Awful. I feel awful," he replied, just as Sunny awoke with a "Bufa!" which probably meant, "What are you two doing up at this hour?"

"Shhhhh," Violet told Sunny, and glanced out the window at the pale moonlight. "You did seem a bit off most of yesterday," she admitted, and Klaus nodded.

"I was just tired then. But so were the rest of us, so I didn't find it necessary to complain. Besides, all Count Olaf would have done, was locked me somewhere."

Violet clucked her tongue. "Well, you are a bit feverish."

"Uh-KetSHHHH! HahKUSHHHH!" he turned his head away, and then lay back down against the flat pillows. "Beed sneezig all dight," he added, and Violet found a spare handkerchief in the pocket of her dress.

"Here."

"It's the only one you have," Klaus told her, not wanting to take away what few possessions his sister owned.

"I don't need it right now, and you do." Without another word, she shoved the cloth into her brother's hand, and slid down from the bed. Sunny clapped her hands as Violet lifted the baby into her ams, and walked over to the window. "Still so much time until morning," she spoke, and Klaus blew his nose gratefully.

"And you're disappointed?" he asked. The less time they had with Count Olaf, the better.

Violet set Sunny on the bed after a couple of moments, and joined her siblings. "Don't worry, Klaus. We'll take care of you." She rested her head against his shoulder.

"Uh-KSHHHH! HuhTSHHHH!  Oh never mind," he coughed. "I'm done for. Save yourselves." he lay down, burying himself under the blankets.

"Don't be silly," Violet snapped. "Of course you're not done for!"

"Finkel!" Sunny shrieked, nipping her brother's toe through the blanket.

Klaus poked the top of his head out from the quilt, and then sat up again, wrapping it around his body like a cloak. "Try to go back to sleep," Violet encouraged, easing her brother back down against the pillows. She felt his forehead with the back of her hand, grateful that he did not have a fever...yet. "Stay up here, Sunny," She added, when the baby began to crawl towards the edge of the bed.

"Inga." Sunny smiled, bearing her four, sharp teeth, and curled up in a ball on a free patch of mattress that she found. Violet slid under the covers again, pulling her brother close, and stroking his hair just as she'd seen her mother do on countless occasions. Eventually, the three orphans drifted off to sleep, trying not to think about the soon to be rising sun, and the next day they with Count Olaf they would have to face.

"Orphans!" Count Olaf's sickeningly cheery voice called through the door a few hours later. "Time to rise and shine!"

Klaus groaned, feeling more stuffy than ever, and his head spun as he attempted to sit up. Well, he also had trouble moving, as Violet's arm was around his waist. Sunny made soft "Few!" noises as she snored, and neither of them showed any sign of waking.

"Orphans!" Olaf burst through the door, startling Violet and Sunny, who each gasped and sat up straight. "Did you not hear me the first fifteen times I called, mmmm?" he narrowed his beady black eyes, and Violet wet her lips.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, and Olaf clucked his tongue.

"I am starting to loose my faith in you children. Now get out of bed immediately, and head downstairs to the kitchen. My troupe is coming over shortly, and they'll expect breakfast to be on the table by the time they arrive. Here." He shoved a list into Klaus's hand, ignoring the boy's bright red nose and dark circles under his eyes. "No time wasted!"

Violet took Sunny's hand as she wobbled over to her siblings, and the trio shuffled out of the room once Count Olaf swept away. "How are you doing?" Violet whispered, as they walked down the long, spiral staircase towards the lower floor of the mansion. Klaus sniffled, rubbing his nose with his wrist.

"Not so good." He croaked, coughing into his arm.

"You do look terrible." Violet knew her brother needed to see a doctor, but there was absolutely no way that was going to happen anytime soon. "Count Olaf will never know if you don't help us," she told him. "You can sit down and rest while Sunny and I take over the cooking this morning."

Klaus shook his head. "That's not fair," he told them. "We're all in this together, and it wouldn't be ri...HepTSHH! HuhMMPTSHH!"

"Bless you." Violet pushed the kitchen door open with one hand, being mindful of Sunny as she entered. No matter what they did to clean the room, it still managed to gain new piles of filth every day. Eventually she set Sunny down, and then the three began searching for the special utensils they would need.

"I wouldn't mind sneezing all over his breakfast," Klaus chuckled as he read over the list that he'd picked up from the large round table in the center of the floor. "Maybe I could...he'd never know after all, right?" he winked, and Violet laughed quietly.

"Let me see the list." She took the piece of parchment, and began reading the requests out loud. "Hot cakes, eggs, fried potatoes, bacon, coffee. All right. Sunny, you can help peel the potatoes since you have your sharp teeth."

"Diko!" Sunny shrieked, which probably meant something along the lines of "I'm on it!" and eagerly began her task once Violet put the bag of reddish baking potatoes on the floor in front of her.

"Klaus, you can mix the batter for the pancakes, and I'll take care of the eggs and bacon. We'll make the coffee last, since that doesn't take as long."

Klaus coughed, pulling a stool by the stove, and began to pour the ingredients into a large bowl. "Maybe this is a bad idea," he muttered, watching as clouds of flour sprung up after he poured each cup. Violet cracked an egg against the side of her bowl, carefully parting the two halves of shell so the yellow yolk could seep inside without getting all over the table first. Sunny sat amidst a quickly growing pile of potatoe peels, working quite efficiently.

"Ugh. So this is what bacon looks like before it's cooked!" she grimaced as she peered at the package of uncooked meat before her, touching it with the tip of her finger. It felt cold and slimey, and it was very hard to believe it was the edible food they usually had.

"HuhAKSHHHH! Ow!" Klaus gulped, nearly dropping the flour container.

"Goolu," Sunny called, spitting out yet another potatoe peel. She even took the time to cut the vegetable into halves once they were peeled, and beamed with pride at her work.

"Thanks," Klaus told her, sniffing wetly and mixing in a cup full of water.

"There. The eggs are all ready to be put into the pan." Violet found a spare one, and poured the yolk into that. "Scrambled eggs are all I know how to make, I'm afraid. I've seen Mama make them tons of times."

"I feel dizzy," Klaus grumbled, and Violet stared at him.

"Sit down for a bit, then. Just leave the bowl on the table," she added, when he attempted to bring it over to her. He sat down on one of the chairs, resting his head against his arms.

"How is it coming, orphans?" Olaf peeped through the kitchen door, and noticed Klaus lying down. "Did I give you permission to take a nap?" he asked, and Klaus lifted his head.

"Unnnn?" he coughed, and Violet glanced over her shoulder.

"He's..." she swallowed. "He's thinking about the exact consistency the hot cake batter needs to be."

"Well you can do that standing up, can't you? You're a bright...boy. To your feet, orphan."

Klaus felt as though he could cry...every limb ached, and he nearly fell against the table top as he struggled to his feet. Violet hurried over to steady him, and gave Count Olaf one of her most innocent smiles. "Breakfast will be ready very soon...sir." She had no idea what to call this man...Count Olaf was too dramatic, and no way would she ever sink so low as to call him "Papa". "Sir" seemed the most appropriate thing to say at the time.

Olaf raised an eyebrow suspiciously, making a small grunting noise. "Well good." He slammed the door, just as Klaus let out another sneeze.

"HuhKSHHHH!"

Violet shook her head, and Sunny bared her teeth in Count Olaf's wake. How she would have loved to bite him, though she was fairly certain he would taste just as foul as his personality. "Well...let's finish this up," Violet ordered softly, and helped Klaus walk over to where the bowl of flour mix still sat on the counter.

They spent the next half an hour frying the breakfast, and just as the doorbell to the mansion rung, the meal was complete. "Here we go," Klaus whispered into Violet's ear as they piled the food onto six plates. They heard the troupe chattering with Count Olaf as they balanced the food on their way towards the door, and Violet nudged it open with her knee.

They walked into the large dining room, setting each of the plates down on the table. "Breakfast is ready," Violet called, and the group immediately stopped talking.

"Hem, hem!" Count Olaf cleared his throat, and the orphans backed away.

"Hur...HuhAKSHHHH!" Klaus sneezed suddenly, attempting vainly to stall it, and everyone in the room stared at him in horror.

"What the devil was that, boy?" Count Olaf growled, as Violet's eyes widened.

"I'm..." Klaus swallowed, cringing at the soreness still in his throat.

"Spreading germs all over the place! Stay right there...everyone back away from this vermon!"

Violet was about to give Olaf a nasty retort, wanting to say that if anyone was a vermon it was him, and if anything spread germs it was his disgusting way of living. But she wanted to spare her siblings from further torment, and wondered where the man was going. Klaus held onto Violet's arm, staring at her.

"Nasty, disgusting, filthy," Olaf muttered as he returned, carrying the largest pair of metal tongs the children had ever seen. "Should have known..." he wrenched Klaus apart from his sister, and lifted the boy by the scruff of his neck with the tongs.

"Oh, don't!" Violet cried in alarm.

"Outside he goes! In the shed, away from the rest of us!"

"Violet!" Klaus hissed, reaching for her, and it took all the willpower Violet had not to chase after him. Sunny reached for her brother, babbling and fighting back tears. "Donbanu!" she whimpered, which probably meant something like, "You horrible, nasty, wretched man, let our brother go this instant or I'll sink my teeth into your leg!"

The troupe began laughing heartily, pounding their fists against the table so that the silverware clanged together. Violet felt her lips trembling, and hugged her arms around herself as she heard the front door open and close. Moments later, the troupe leader returned, wiping his hands together with a look of accomplishment on his face.

"Let us eat, shall we?" he asked the group of actors, who were bearing their terrible teeth with sick pleasure. He glanced at Violet and Sunny, who hadn't spoken a word, and pointed to the kitchen. "Get back to your chores immediately." He ordered, and the two Bauldelaire women dashed off. As soon as Violet closed the kitchen door behind her, she pulled the chair towards the window above the sink. Sunny watched as she climbed onto it, and peered through it.

She could barley make out the shed from where she stood, and it pained her to think of her brother freezing half to death in the damp, dark quarters. He would catch pneumonia if he stayed there long, but it was going to be nearly impossible for her to rescue him now. *There's always something,* a voice spoke inside of her head, and she realized she'd d forgotten to tie her hair back that morning. Violet was an inventor, and one could always tell she was coming up with new ideas when she pulled her hair into a ponytail behind her ears. She tied her green ribbon into a bow, and hopped down from the chair.

"There must be a way to help him," she thought in a quiet voice, not wanting to disturb the eaters in the other room. "After all, there's always something."

"Vinaugh," Sunny agreed, her own expression becoming very serious.

"I'm going to see if I cant try to get this window open," Violet murmered. "We have to see if he's all right..."

"Wanfunla!" Sunny replied, and Violet glanced down at her.

"You're right, Sunny. It might make a lot of noise climbing through the window, and we haven't finished cleaning up the breakfast dishes yet either. But oh Klaus..." she stepped down from the chair, and continued to work on the list of chores.

As she continued to read off of the long, seemingly never-ending list, one particular chore caught her eye. Laundry. She glanced at Sunny, a lightbulb suddenly going off inside of her head.

"I think I have an idea," she murmered, and Sunny blinked.

"Bin?" she asked, and Violet folded up the note, putting into the pocket of her dress.

"Come on." She lifted her baby sister into her arms, and the two of them made the treck towards the laundry room. "This is going to help us," she explained, after setting Sunny down, and pointing to the large, blue laundry basket in the corner. She cringed at the sight of piles upon piles of filthy, stinky laundry, and was grateful she hadn't eaten her breakfast yet. The room smelt of rotten eggs, and she kept her mouth covered as she picked through the pile.

She could hear Olaf speaking in a very loud, dramatic voice from down the corridor, and rolled her eyes as she began to stuff the laundry into the machine. After putting in the powdered detergent, she turned the machine on, and then picked up the basket. "Dilgah!" Sunny shrieked, and Violet pressed a finger to her lips, hoisting her sister on her hip.

"Shhhhh, Sunny, I'll explain everything when we get to my room. The next item on the list is to scrub the floors, but there is no point to doing that until after dinner." They carefully walked up the old, wooden steps, being careful not to step on any squeaky steps. When they reached the bedroom, it felt so strange and empty without Klaus.

"Now. What we're going to do, is lower this out the window. I'll try to make some sort of a hook to stick to the ground so I can climb down the side of the house, rescue Klaus, and then pull him up."

"Blini!" Sunny shrieked, which meant something like, "I knew you were brilliant!"

Violet searched the room for a long rope, and the only set of ropes she could find were attached to the curtains.

"I'll need your teeth for a few moments," she said, and lifted Sunny towards the end of the rope hanging from the top of the window. Sunny bore her four sharp teeth, slicing the rope down swiftly, and did the same with the other. "Thank you."

"Flon." Sunny replied, and sat down patiently on the bed as Violet attached one of the ropes to the basket.

"This should be just long enough,"she mumbled, lowering it out the window to test it. She couldn't see Klaus from where she stood, but hated the thought of him shivering and miserable in the cold, fall air. It came barely two feet above the ground. "Okay, there must be something I can use around here for a grip hook." She wet her lips, and finally, after searching all around the room, found an old metal fire poker. "This should work!" For once, she really did wish that Sunny was older...she felt a little strange talking pretty much to herself.

Violet sat down on the edge of the bed, and began tying the other rope to the end of the poker, double-knotting it to be safe. She stuck it into the umbrella holder by the window, using a roll of duct tape to hook it to the ground. When she was certain it was stable enough, she looked at Sunny, who was gnawing on the edge of the basket, the hardest thing she could find that was nearby.

"All right, I think we're ready."

Sunny stopped biting the basket, and watched as Violet brought the basket over to the window. With an "Oof!" she let the basket fall, watching as it bounced a little after the rope tightened.

"You're going to have to hold on tight," she added, and cling to the baby while she prepared to make the long climb down the side of the house. She held onto the rope with one hand, and grasped onto the wall with the other. She held her breath as they passed the window which looked into the room Count Olaf and his troupe were rehearsing in. They didn't seem to suspect a thing, and she had to stop herself from giggling as she noticed the troupe had fallen asleep in their chairs. Only Olaf was acting, and was waving his arms and moving in very dramatic motions.

They sunk lower and lower to the ground, and Violet touched the grass with the tipsof her shoes. "Ack!" she hit the ground with a small thump, and Sunny did a small tumble.

"Ack!" Sunny repeated, which is not a word in the English langage at all, by the way. It is generally used as an expression of surprise.

"Are you all right?" Violet asked, surprised that her sister did not start crying on the spot. Sunny merely whimpered, and Violet gave her a hug. "You are a brave girl." She kissed the baby on the cheek, and carried her towards the shed. When they carefully pushed the shed's door open, Violet gasped. Klaus lay in a corner, curled into a tiny ball. He was shivering, his glasses lying beside him. He cried out when Violet touched his cheek, and she instantly covered his mouth, trying to muffle the noise, so Olaf wouldn't hear him.

"It's all right, Klaus, it's all right!" she soothed as he struggled to fight her, clearly having been woken from some awful dream. At last he gave in, breaking down into tears. "Oh Klaus, don't cry...your tears will freeze on your face!" Violet held her brother close, allowing him to snuggle against her for warmth. Sunny wriggled her way onto her brother's lap, trying to add extra body heat, if what little she could provide.

"V-V-V-Violet?" Klaus shivered, his teeth chattering so hard that his head throbbed from the vibration.

"I'm here. It's me. You're safe now."

"I'm s-s-so cold," he whispered, and she nodded.

"I know. We're going to get you warm, Klaus. I have a laundry basket waiting for you."

Klaus didn't even begin to ask what she meant by that, but rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. "I-I had a dream bout the fire," he whispered. "I could hear mother and father screaming, and I...I couldn't help them." The tears began falling again, and Violet caressed his forehead.

"Oh Klaus." She helped him to his feet, after Sunny crawled off of his lap that is, and carefully slid his glasses back onto his face. He leaned on her, feeling so weak and exhausted that his legs were like jell-o. Sunny crawled quickly behind them, panting.

"This is dangerous," Klaus told Violet as she helped him into the basket. "If you are caught, I'd hate to even imagine what Count Olaf would do to you!" he began coughing, and Sunny frowned at him.

"Bino," she shrieked, which meant something like, "I don't give a bulls horn about Olaf!" and Violet agreed with her.

"We care more about you, Klaus. You're so ill, and we need to bring you inside."

Klaus sniffled, grabbing tightly onto the basket's edges as he watched Violet climb the rope with Sunny, amazed by her inventions. His head swam with dizziness, and he was afraid he'd throw up over the side of the bin. Luckily he managed to calm his stomach, and watched as Violet grabbed hold of the rope attached to the laundry bin. "Hold on!" Violet called, and Klaus did as he was told, holding his breath as well. He felt the bin slowly being lifted off of the ground, and listened to the scrape scrape of the rope against the side of the house.

When she finally managed to pull him through the window, she heaved the basket as hard as she could, gasping as he gave a cry, and fell onto the floor with a quiet thud. Violet hurried to his side and helped him stand, urging him over to the bed. He allowed her to remove his shoes and tuck him in, never more relieved to be warm. "You're burning up," she pointed out as she felt his cheeks and forehead, and he merely closed his eyes, sighing softly. "Sunny, guard the door, and I'll be right back."

Sunny sat by the door and bared her teeth, and Violet quickly hurried out and dashed down the hallway. She found the old bathroom, grabbing the basin and filling it with luke-warm water. She found a spare wash cloth, and then hurried back to the bedroom, finding Klaus to be asleep. Soon Sunny curled up by Klaus's head, sucking her thumb, and Violet tried her best to start an attempt to bring the fever down.

The three siblings cherished any quiet time from Count Olaf, and took this opportunity no differently. "We are somewhat lucky you know," Klaus whispered after a long time of silence, and Violet glanced at him.

"What do you mean?" she asked, playing a small game of "patty cake" with Sunny, who giggled whenever her older sister gently bopped her on the nose.

"I mean, yes, we lost our parents in the fire, we're stuck with Count Olaf for who knows how long, but we're really all right."

Violet smiled. "We are all right," she agreed, and Sunny added, "Fondul!"

Though bad things do happen in life, if you look close enough, there will always be a silver lining of hope shimmering down.