Xalia Squalor; because sometimes being in is not enough

Is This Safe?

"What kind of a monster shoves someone in a bird cage?" Olaf yells. Sunny gives him a bit of a look, and I watch as they all drag him to the sea wall. I stare at Klaus, who mutters, "This is weird."
"So tell me," Ishmael says, "How did four children such as yourselves come to be shipwrecked with a man like that?"
"It's a long story," Klaus shrugs.
"Extremely long," Violet confirms. Ishmael nods, and Violet asks, "Is there a way off this island? We really need to get back."
"Depends on how you look at it," Ishmael says, "The seawall shelters us from storms, but I'm afraid sailing over those sharp rocks is nearly impossible. Once a year, the tide rises high enough to launch a boat by sailing it through the lowest point in that wall. We call it decision day, and that day happens to be tomorrow. Nobody ever leaves."
Ishmael takes us to a little area of people working together, and I sigh. Everyone seems so happy. Friday, and I assume her mother, invite us to eat foods with us, so we follow them. Everyone says their old lives feel fuzzy, and I panic slightly as Ishmael hands me a drink. I barely take a sip, spitting it back into the coconut. Klaus asks, "Are you sure we're safe from Olaf here? He could escape the cage, find the harpoon gun-"
"You don't need to worry about that," Ishmael smiles, "We send all the dangerous things to the other side of the island so they can't hurt anyone. As for Count Olaf, we've placed his cage by the sea wall, so when the sea wall floods tomorrow-"
"Olaf will drown?" I ask. Ishmael nods, and walks off. Klaus asks, "Does that seem cruel to any of you-"
"Here are your robes!" Friday's mother says, "You can have the furthest tent from here. Yours to use!"
We put the robes on, and sit in silence in the tent. Sunny babbles, "Comfortable!"
"These robes may be comfortable, but I'm not comfortable leaving Olaf to drown," Klaus argues. I sigh, "We're not the ones doing it-"
"We're not the ones stopping it either," Klaus points out. Violet sighs, "With Count Olaf gone, we'd be safe to go wherever we wanted. We've been on the run for a long time, and I'm exhausted. Ishmael said forget your troubles. Maybe it's time to start."

That evening, we sit round in a circle with all the people. I don't really eat, but wince as Violet asks, "Have you ever considered building a water filtration system? That way you could drink something other coconut cordial and have salt to put on your food."
Ishmael holds a toast, watching us expectantly to drink. We only take a few sips, all a little uncomfortable until the end of the meal. Violet is asked to stay behind, so I take Sunny and Klaus back to the tent. He is restless, and as Violet walks in, she sighs, "Ishmael is trouble. We have to leave."
Klaus asks, "And go where? We don't have a home to go to. We have nobody waiting for us. I don't know what the best thing to do is. I've been trying to think of our home life, with our parents, but all my memories are fuzzy."
"It's normal for memories to fade over time," Violet suggests. Klaus looks down at a picture, and says, "I can barely remember what their faces looked like. And why did they keep all these secrets from us? It's their fault these bad things keep happening to us. It's their fault we're orphans!"
I hesitate, before asking, "Did any of you tell Ishmael that you were orphans?"
Violet, Klaus and Sunny all shake their heads, and I explain, "At dinner, Ishmael referred to you as the Baudelaire orphans and the Squalor girl. You never told him that you lost your parents, and we told him we were siblings."
"He's hiding something from us," Klaus whispers, "We have to find out what."
I sigh, "He wont tell us."
"I know someone who will."

"I knew your annoying curiosity would lead you here eventually," Olaf scoffs, "Did you bring me a banana daiquiri?"
"We got you ceviche," I say, kneeling down at his bird cage. I slip the food to him, and he glares at it, before stuffing it in his face. He complains for a minute, before asking, "What do you four want?"
"You said you knew something about Ishmael," I say. Olaf smirks, "The Baudelaires aren't as stupid as you look, though that would be impossible. I didn't recognise him at first, not with that ridiculous beard, but he recognised me. That's why he's locked me in here, so I don't spill his secrets."
Olaf reaches his hand out, and strokes my hair, before pulling away. He sits, crossed legged and arms folded, smirking. He says, "Let me out and I might tell you the secrets."
"If you tell us, we might let you out," Violet sighs.
"Let me out first."
"Tell us first."
"Let me out first!"
"Ishmael is going to let your drown," I beg, "You can't die. If you don't tell us what you know, you'll die, Dad!"
"First time that sounded sincere," Olaf sighs, "Of course I'm going to die. That's the way of the world. Everybody runs around with their little secrets and schemes, trying to outwit one another, and then they die. Ishmael has locked me in here, but if you let me out, I can outwit him, and then you can be my hench folk! And then we'll take that boat, and we'll sail back to where the action is."
Violet says, "We don't want to play your games. Come on, he's wasting our time."
I stare at Olaf, and then back at the Baudelaires. They all know this is going to be difficult for me, so they're waiting a few steps away. I turn to Olaf, and whisper, "This is going to be the last time I see you."
"It is," Olaf agrees. I mutter, "I..."
I trail off. What am I supposed to say? Olaf shrugs, "This isn't goodbye forever, Xalia May. In some future life, I'm sure we'll meet again. And I'll be back with a new disguise. The best one yet!"