Fic: 'Like Waves Crashing on the Beach' (A Series of Unfortunate Events, gen, G, 1/1) Title: Like Waves Crashing on the Beach Fandom: A Series of Unfortunate Events Characters: Klaus Word Count: 339 Rating: G Spoilers: Full series, I suppose. Challenge: Leap for Prompts (10/29): ASOUE, Klaus/Violet Disclaimer: No one mentioned belongs to me. Summary: Klaus had never possessed any particular thrill for the beach.
Like Waves Crashing on the Beach
Klaus had never possessed any particular thrill for the beach. It was Violet that enjoyed it, the way the waves crashed in a rhythm like slow-clicking gears of a device, the way the wind aided her in blowing hair off the back of her neck when she needed to put it up. She was easily more content indoors, like Klaus, surrounded by inventions like he was surrounded by books, but they were both intelligent enough to recognize that ideas could not be contained to any single room. Books were easily portable. Inventions could spring in any location. And so they went to the beach.
It was on Briny Beach that Mr. Poe had arrived to tell the Baudelaires about their parents, thusly changing their lives forever. Klaus knew it was irrational, but in his mind, large expanses of sand running parallel to dark and ominous seas would always be... well, dark and ominous.
Their island, naturally, had a beach, as islands do. Klaus has long since fallen into the habit of thinking of it as "theirs," the place he could now call home. Once upon a time, home had been a big mansion filled with endless books and two smiling parents. These days, he was left with the cool and cramped shelter of a cave, one big book with endless text, and he was now one of the two smiling parents.
In their own series of increasingly unfortunate events, Klaus had learned that even the most trustworthy of adults had a great weakness. Distaste for arguments, or cowardice in the face of a crowd. Klaus was beginning to realize that his weakness was his love for his family. He would do anything for them, even subject himself to a beach trek every morning, littered with occasional detritus and far more bad memories.
And yet, while a beach had been the site where his family had (in a sense) been taken away, it was at the beach where a hole was once again filled, and he got a family back.