A Tale of Wretched Occurrences: The Beginning

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓞𝓷𝓮

The statue lowers her arms, dropping the spyglass down to her side as she steps off the pillar.

“A good labyrinth is full of secrets.” She smiles conspiratorially.

“Who are you?” Violet asks.

“Why are you dressed as a statue?” Klaus asks.

“What is that spyglass?” you ask.

“All excellent questions, Baudelaires,” she responds.

“You’re that actress from the weird zombie movie,” Klaus says.

“You work for Mr. Poe,” Violet says.

“That’s where we saw you before the movie,” you say.

“It’s more of a volunteer position.” The woman — you now remember her name is Jacquelyn — shrugs. “I’m sorry I arrived too late to help your uncle. But I can still bring Count Olaf to justice.”

“Uncle Monty had one of those spyglasses.” Klaus frowns. “What was he trying to tell us? And what’s in Peru?”

“Forget Peru. It’s been compromised.”

“Who sent the message? Who were we supposed to meet there?” Violet questions.

Jacquelyn begins to lead you out of the labyrinth. “I know you children have a great many questions, and I promise there are a great many answers. Find your Aunt Josephine. She’s a fierce and formidable woman. She can keep you safe and tell you everything you need to know. Let me handle Count Olaf.” She stops walking.

“Count Olaf stole something from me. I think it’s part of one of those spyglasses,” Klaus tells her.

“It certainly is. I will get it back to you, Klaus Baudelaire. I promise.”

“Every time an adult promises something to us, they always break that promise, and we’re always left to our own devices,” you say quietly.

“I know,” she agrees sadly. "You children have been through so much already. But I’m not Justice Strauss, and I’m not Mr. Poe. Once I get the spyglass back to you, you will be able to receive some real answers.” She motions to the path that will take you out of the labyrinth.

You all hesitate, but it’s clear there’s no more to say, so you walk away. As you leave the labyrinth, a stream of people walking out of Uncle Monty’s house comes into view. They’re all carrying his reptiles and loading them up into a truck.

“Who are you?” Klaus questions, but they ignore him.

Mr. Poe comes out of the house behind them.

“What are they doing with Uncle Monty’s reptiles?” Violet asks him.

“After I called the police, I rang up the Herpetological Society. They kindly offered to retrieve Dr. Montgomery’s reptiles. ‘Retrieve’ means ‘take away’.”

“We know what ‘retrieve’ means,” Klaus responds quickly. “Where are they taking them?”

“Well, they’re orphans now, so they’ll move onto other homes where their guardians hopefully won’t die on them like Dr. Montgomery.”

“Can we at least say goodbye?” you ask quietly.

Mr. Poe snickers. “After what you children have been through, I’d think you’d never want to see a reptile again. Besides, I have to take you to your new guardian.”

“No!” you all shout.

“We know where we’re going,” Violet says firmly.

“I know where you’re going, too. And I’m the adult, so I get to decide. You’re going to your–”

“–Aunt Josephine,” you all say at the same time.

Mr. Poe looks at you oddly before nodding. “She’s next on the list.”

㊋㊋㊋㊋

You and your siblings begin to walk upstairs to pack, but Mr. Poe stops you.

“I took the liberty of packing your things for you,” he explains. “You children spent so long playing chase in that labyrinth, and we really need to get going. Your suitcases are already in the car.”

“Oh.”

“You’re welcome. Now come along, Baudelaires. I’ve missed enough banking hours already.”

He gestures to the door and stares expectantly at you. Left with no other option, you all begin to walk out, but you stop.

“Hold on.”

You run into the Reptile Room. It’s far less inviting than it was the first time. The cages that remain stand empty, the chairs and tables are gone, and the windows have been covered. Two members of the Herpetology Society have just begun to unload the library.

“Wait!” you yell.

They turn to look at you.

“Miss, I understand you’ve lost your uncle, but it is our job to clear out Dr. Montgomery’s house.”

“I know. Just…” you frantically scan the shelves. “There.”

You grab all the drawings you made for Uncle Monty, not about to let the Herpetology Society have them. Then, you reach up to the top shelf and grab the photo of Uncle Monty, the one of him in the jungle with the lizard on his shoulder and the spyglass in his hand.

“Sorry to interrupt. You can get back to work now.”

With the drawings and the photo tucked under your arm, you walk out of the Reptile Room for the last time.

㊋㊋㊋㊋

There are times when the entire world seems wrong. The way a reptile room without any reptiles seems wrong. The way a bookshelf without any books seems wrong. Or the way a loved one’s house without the loved one seems wrong.

You and your siblings weren’t given much time with Uncle Monty, which seems wrong. Still, for the first time in a long time, you had found a place where the world seemed right, even if it was only for a short time. And, as you sit with your siblings in the back of Mr. Poe’s car, your head on Klaus’s shoulder, your last connections to Uncle Monty safely stashed away in your suitcase, you realize that if you found that once, there’s a good chance you’ll find it again.