Series of Unfortunate Events One-shots, What-ifs, and Drabbles

Imagine: Klaus

Imagine Klaus Baudelaire, age 16. He is a sophomore in high school. He is top of his class in most of his classes because his mind absorbs information like a sponge. Except for his Physical Education class, which he is failing. Klaus tries and tries, but every day, his Phys. Ed. teacher tells his class to run three laps around the track. 

And Klaus can't help but remember being forced to run lap after lap, and his mind growing dull, and almost getting expelled, so when he is asked to run those three laps, his legs seize up and he can't move, can't, for the fear of falling over, and his teacher yells at him, "Baudelaire, get moving," which reminds him even more of Olaf's taunts as he and his siblings ran lap after lap, and he breaks down crying almost every P.E. period.

So finally his teacher requests a meeting with his parents and gives him a note to take home. Klaus opens his mouth, then closes it, unsure of how to explain that he will be meeting with Violet, his sister, who is only two years older than Klaus himself.

He takes the note home to Violet, who, as always, is tinkering away in her workshop. He gets her attention and wordlessly hands her the note. Violet reads it and understands, immediately. Her face softens, and she takes the ribbon out of her hair. "Klaus, it will be okay. We will work through this."

Klaus nods, but then mutters, "It's messing with my average..." 

"Your- Klaus, what are you talking about?" Violet asks.

"My GPA, Violet, my grade point average! It's suffering! I- Violet, I know I can be a top student, I know I can! I have to!"

Violet stares at her brother, then finally says, "I suppose it does make sense. All that time, your mind feverishly working to help us survive, you've developed this want to always be working. Klaus, you can relax. He is dead. We have been proven innocent. It is okay."

"I don't want to fail, Vi. I can't." Klaus looks down. "I- I need to do this."

Violet looks at Klaus tenderly. "Klaus, if it really means that much to you, we can start running together. A little at a time, we'll build endurance and slowly, when you think of running, you'll think of me, not him."

Klaus looked up. "Thank you, Vi. That would be... that would be really nice."

"'Course, Klaus. Of course."

Yo, it's Queenie. Still trying to think about the What If for Book the Eleventh. Enjoy this little bit of fluff in the meantime.