Family Comes First- ASOUE

Chapter 83: On The Road Again

*No POV*

"Are we ready?" Olivia asked after the last bag was put into the backseat.

"Yeah, just give me a second." Isadora answered, and tossed the map marking the way into the city onto the lawn and climbed into the back with Klaus. Violet, Duncan, and Sunny sat in the middle, with Quigley ready in the passenger's seat. "Hopefully that'll throw him off if he finds it." She added and handed the real map to the Calagari area towards the front.

Fifteen minutes into the drive, the middle trio were out cold and Quigley was continuing to help navigate. Isadora continued to watch out the window, watching the horizon for a following car perhaps... Klaus, of course, noticed and squeezed her hand lightly.

"Why did you choose after lunch to leave?" He asked her in a whisper.

"It'd be less expected... So he wouldn't know we'd gone until it was too late for him." She answered quietly.

"So you don't have to watch for his car because he won't know. And even then, there's the fake map that will literally take him in the opposite direction, like in the book you read, where you got the idea. It's okay. Get some sleep; you need and deserve it."

Isadora yawned slightly. "Okay... But only if I get cuddles." She negotiated. Klaus chuckled and pulled her into his arms. "Thanks, Klaus... For everything. I love you..."

"I love you too, Izzie," he said quietly and kissed the top of her head.

Soon everyone in the backseats were asleep and getting their much needed rest, getting almost as much sleep in one sitting as they had in the past five days total. As the minivan pulled up to Last Chance General Store, the Baudelaires, Duncan, and Isadora were feeling a thousand times better than they had been previously.

"Everyone get out and stretch," Olivia called to the sleepy children in the back. "We still have a few more hours on the road."

"I'm hungry..." Violet mumbled as she climbed out. Several made noises of agreement as they followed. The group stretched as Olivia fished through her purse for her wallet.

"You guys are hungry?" She asked to confirm she had heard correctly. The kids nodded. "Okay well there's seven of us... So... This should be enough for a snack and a drink," Olivia handed Violet some cash. "Just an iced tea for me." She added.

Klaus, Isadora, and Quigley grinned and went into the store, while the eldest stayed outside for a moment more.

"Stayoo?" Sunny asked.

"If Olivia is fine with you staying then yes you can."

"I'm fine with that! She can be my little helper! Go get your snacks, you two, and don't forget something for Sunny."

Violet and Duncan nodded and left the two, hand in hand.

"What do you want," Duncan asked, swinging their arms slightly.

"Juice, I think," she answered. "Crackers, maybe... A kiss sounds nice too..." She added jokingly.

Duncan chuckled. "Oh does it?" He asked, continuing to walk on.

Violet giggled. "Yuh-huh," she said.

He grinned and stopped to lean in, giving her a quick kiss so that they could get back to looking for snacks quickly, but Violet placed both hands on either side of his face, keeping Duncan in place a couple moments longer.

"I missed doing that," she giggled again, still holding both sides of his face.

Duncan grinned and took both of her hands in his and placed a little kiss on them too. "I'm sure you did." He replied teasingly, making her roll her eyes.

"Oh, come on now," she said, her bright smile opposing the playful annoyance in her tone.

Duncan chucked and patted her hands, which he was still holding. "You know I'm joking. I missed this too. Hopefully all this will be the start of a better life for our family."

Violet nodded in agreement, and the couple continued walking, getting snacks for the two of them and Sunny, and Olivia's tea of course.

"Speaking of our new start, do you think we'll get actual answers to all our questions at this carnival?" Violet asked.

"I'd like to think Quigley has us on a good track," Duncan said. "If not, we got away from Olaf at the very least."

"That's true, but I'd still like to know about everything that we can't see causing these problems."

"Oh, me too! Don't get me wrong I'm naturally curious, but we also should know for our own safety, you know?"

"Yuh huh," Violet agreed. "And with more knowledge, we'll be able to take control of our lives again. We have so much to look forward to, don't we?"

"Watching Sunny grow up," Duncan offered. "She's already such a swell kid; I can't wait to see how she turns out."

Violet grinned at the idea of Duncan being excited to see her sister grow up. "Yeah, I'm so ready for her to grow up so we can do much more fun stuff together. I'm sure Klaus would want her to stay young forever if it were possible. You're an older brother; you know how it is."

"Yeah, I do, but I can't stop Izzie from growing up either. It'd be hypocritical of me to want to stop that considering how we're born minutes within eachother."

"True," Violet smiled. "At least she's with someone you trust, and isn't that the most difficult part of a little sister growing up? Protecting her from relationships that won't be good for her? That job is over then. I don't think Klaus and Isadora see an end to their relationship..."

"Oh obviously," Duncan said. "Those two are gonna get married, no doubt about it."

"Not before we do though," Violet giggled. "Cause we're superior." She joked.

"We definitely are," he agreed, laughing, "but if we ever get to meet Quigley's Fiona he's mentioned, it's possible that we could be demoted."

Violet laughed too. "Maybe, who knows! She'll be fun to meet though... "

"Heh, yeah! I would love to meet her. Quigley was barely like this before, so I'd love to see what Fiona's like if she's his encouragement to better himself."

"Same, if the change was really that drastic, I want to meet her too one day."

Violet giggled to herself. "This is nice..."

"What is?"

"Getting to talk to you about our future... It gives me... Hope."