Prufrock Prepatory School ✓

day one and two in the mountains

(The car on the mountain driving backwards reminds me of this scene^)

Everything was happening so quickly. The car driving backwards down the mountain, the loud screaming of the passengers. Everything.

"What do we do?" Jenny screamed, clinging onto the seat for dear life.

"I don't know!" Violet screamed back. "I can't reach my ribbon!"

"Do not take your hands off the steering wheel!" Wyatt yelled at Violet.

"Okay, on the count of three, everyone jump out." Klaus said calmly.

"WHAT?!" everyone screamed in unison.

"Just trust me!" Klaus yelled. "One...two...three!"

The car doors flew open and the kids jumped out. Violet, Duncan, Isadora, Wyatt, and Francine landed safely along the wall of the cliff. Klaus, Jenny, and Sunny landed near the edge. They were about to tumble off, but Klaus grabbed onto the girls and the side of the cliff. They were able to stay safe. The kids rushed to the edge of the mountain and watched the car fall off and crash down below.

"No way we would've survived that." Francine said.

"Luckily Klaus thought of a plan." Wyatt said, rubbing Francine's shoulder.

Everyone nodded gratefully at Klaus. Klaus glanced at Isadora. The brunette smiled at him, then looked away. Klaus's face turned a shade of red.

"What do we do now?" Sunny asked the older kids.

Violet turned around and looked at the long road that lay ahead. "We walk."

"The whole way?" Duncan sighed. "That's at least two miles."

Violet shrugged. "We want to get to headquarters, don't we?"

The kids nodded and started walking uphill. They took turns carrying Sunny. While they walked, Wyatt and Francine were able to have a conversation.

"I'm sorry about your sister." Wyatt said.

"It's fine." Francine told him.

"No. It's not. Because everyone who says they're fine really isn't."

Francine sighed. "Fine. You caught me. She was the only family I had left. We were both ornithologists."

"Ornithologists?"

"It means I study birds. Why does nobody know what that means?"

"Well, I do now." Wyatt sent Francine a smile that contagiously made Francine smile as well.

After what felt like hours, the kids heard the sound of a car approaching.

"Great. Now the ghost of the car is haunting us." Wyatt joked.

"That's not a ghost..." Isadora said. The kids stopped. "You don't think..?"

Isadora didn't finish her sentence, but everyone knew what she meant to say. What she meant to say was "You don't think Count Olaf could have followed us up the mountain, do you?" The kids didn't want to take any chances, so they ran into the snowy woods as fast as they could, not looking back.

"Do you think we lost him?" Duncan asked aloud.

"Probably." Violet answered. "But Count Olaf never gives up."

"We could hide out there." Jenny pointed to a cave up ahead. "Until we're sure he's gone."

The kids silently agreed and walked towards the cave. They were about to enter when they heard a voice they thought they would never hear again.