Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory franchise or any characters associated with the franchise. All rights belong to Roald Dahl, Mel Stuart, and Paramount Pictures. This is not my intellectual property, and no financial gain is made from this nor will be sought. This is purely for entertainment purposes only.
Author's note: I'd like to thank the guest reviewer "mr harry" for his/her (I'm assuming his) review of my story, "Next in Line". mr harry said, "Why not do a one shot where in the 1971 movie they all have the fizzy lifting drinks instead of just charlie and grandpa joe also can we find out what happend to charlie's family." In regards to finding out about Charlie's family, I don't know if he meant that for this story, or for "Next in Line". Anyway, the Fizzy Lifting Drink scene was one of my favorite parts of the 1971 movie, so I must thank mr harry for inspiring me to write this oneshot! Besides, I found it refreshing to write a story based on the 1971 movie, since most of my stories take place in the 2005 universe.
One other thing: it's been exactly one year since I published the first chapter of "Where All the Bad Nuts Go", which was my first entry in this wonderful fandom! If you haven't read that story yet, I strongly suggest you do so (it's on my profile). With that aside, on with the story! :)
"Something very unusual in here," Mr. Wonka said as he guided Augustus, Violet, Veruca, Mike, Charlie, and their guardians into a room which was filled with glass bottles. There was an intimidating-looking, spiked machine in the center, and an endless stream of bubbles were floating up from it. "Bubbles, bubbles everywhere, but not a drop to drink...yet."
"What's it making, Mr. Wonka?" Charlie asked as everyone gathered around the machine.
"Fizzy Lifting Drinks!" Mr. Wonka replied enthusiastically. "They fill you with gas, and the gas is so terrifically lifting that it lifts you right off the ground like a balloon!"
Everyone looked up towards the domed ceiling, which was made of stainless steel. At the very top was a large, spinning fan.
"Oh, isn't it high, gosh!" Veruca exclaimed in amazement. Augustus was busy popping as many bubbles as he could with his fingers, and the other three just stood where they were, mesmerized.
"Can ve have some?" Augustus asked.
"I'm going first, before anyone else!" Veruca proclaimed, making a dash for one of the bottles. "I want some now!"
"Can it, you nit!" Violet yelled as she sprinted towards her rival and snatched the bottle from her hand. Veruca responded by growling at her like an angry dog.
"As long as you take just a small amount," Mr. Wonka said, trying his best not to notice their squabble, "I'll let you all have some. No more than a small sip, though. I won't dare sell it to anyone yet. It's still too powerful."
"Thank you!" Veruca joyfully exclaimed, smiling genuinely for the first time since entering the factory. "Give it to me, now!" She forcibly grabbed the bottle back from Violet, but she decided to watch the others try their drinks first in order to see their reactions.
Violet sighed and grabbed a bottle for herself, as did the other three children. Even Grandpa Joe decided to join in on the act. Mike, however, took the time to read the warning label on the side of his bottle:
"WARNING: NOT TO BE CONSUMED IF YOU HAVE ACROPHOBIA OR STOMACH PROBLEMS! USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!"
"Uh, Mr. Wonka?" Mike asked the chocolatier, "are you sure that this is safe?" Willy removed his brown top hat, revealing his frizzy, reddish-brown hair. The others, who have not taken a sip yet, looked in his direction to hear the answer to Mike's question.
"My dear boy," he calmly replied, "as long as you take just a tiny sip, I promise you'll be quite all ri— AUGUSTUS! STOP IT, NOW! YOU'RE TAKING WAY TOO MUCH!" Sure enough, Augustus was standing by the table, and his bottle was completely inverted as he guzzled the frothy liquid down, right until there was nothing left. Seconds later, the German boy lifted off the ground, like what happens when you let go of a balloon. Everyone stared at him in shock and horror as he steadily rose towards the ceiling. Everyone, that is, except for Veruca and Mr. Wonka. Veruca was grinning evilly at Augustus, knowing that he would have no chance of winning the special prize. Mr. Wonka, on the other hand, stood like a statue, showing no emotion whatsoever.
"Augustus, you idiot!" Mike yelled, causing his mother to glare at him. "What the heck were you thinking, fat boy?" He cocked his toy pistol and shot in Augustus' direction, as if he could be popped and sent back to the ground.
"Don't just stand zhere, do somezhing!" Mrs. Gloop shouted at the chocolatier, who continued to stand still without showing any emotion.
"Help," Mr. Wonka said flatly as he placed his top hat back onto his head. "Police. Murder."
"Augustus!" Violet screamed as loudly as she could. "There's a fan up there! It will tear you to shreds!"
"Scheisse!" Augustus swore. "Help!"
Violet ran towards Mike and snatched the plastic gun out of his hands. "Look at me, Mike," she told him as her vision started to blur with glistening tears. Mike complied, reluctantly making eye contact with her. "You must do something!" She placed her hands onto his shoulders. "Please!"
"What am I supposed to do?" Mike asked her, with panic evident in his voice. "There's no off switch for the fan, and there aren't any tools anywhere! He's got ten, maybe fifteen seconds left, at best, before he gets—"
"Burp, Augustus!" Charlie suddenly exclaimed, silencing Mike. "That's the only way you can get down!"
"Of course," Mike groaned, snapping his fingers. "How couldn't I have known?" Violet let go of him before wiping away her tears with her sleeve.
"Help!" Augustus cried, now just ten feet away from the fan. He could feel the suction beginning to pull on his head, drawing him towards its spinning, razor-sharp blades. He tried pushing on the stainless steel walls in an attempt to stop rising up any further, but to no avail. "I can't!"
"You need to burp!" Mike yelled as loudly as he could. "It's the only way!" He squinted as he looked upward, and he noticed that Augustus was no longer being pulled in by the fan. "He must have done it. Yes, he's going down! Burp some more!" Augustus burped again.
"Zhat's my boy!" Mrs. Gloop exclaimed, smiling at her son as he slowly continued to descend, burping all the while.
Most of the group let out a collective sigh of relief as Augustus touched down. He ran straight towards his mother, who tightly embraced him for several seconds before letting go. Veruca glared at the Gloops with her hands on her hips, not saying a word.
"You did it, son," Mrs. Gloop said with a smile, pretending not to notice Veruca. She walked towards Charlie before hugging him, too. "And I must congratulate you as vell, for saving my son's life. You vere zhe vone who told him to burp in zhe first place."
"So, Mr. Vonka," Augustus asked, "vhat happens to me now?" The chocolatier glared at him, and the German boy backed away in fright with his arms up. "I-I'm sorry! Do I get my lifetime supply of chocolate?"
"No," Mr. Wonka replied. "You don't, because you broke the rules!" Charlie and Grandpa Joe gasped in surprise upon hearing their idol's angry outburst. "You didn't heed my instructions before you consumed your Fizzy Lifting Drink! You bumped into the ceiling—"
"No, I didn't!" Augustus whimpered. "I vas only trying to stop myself from being killed by grabbing onto zhe vall!"
"Doesn't matter!" Willy roared. "It now needs to be washed and sterilized, so YOU GET NOTHING! YOU LOSE! GOOD DAY, SIR!"
"So my boy is not eligible to vin his lifetime supply of—" Mrs. Gloop proceeded to ask, but the chocolatier sharply cut her off.
"I SAID GOOD DAY!"
"Let's get out of here," Mrs. Gloop told Augustus, and they quickly hurried out of the room. The whole area fell silent, except for the sound of the bubbles coming out of the machine. The four remaining children and their guardians, as well as Mr. Wonka, stared at the empty doorway for several seconds, never saying a word.
"Well," Mr. Wonka finally said, his voice calm again, "it seems that my Oompa Loompas haven't shown up yet to sing a song for Augustus. That's rather unfortunate. Well, off we go." He proceeded to lead everyone through the doorway. "You're going to be wild about this next room."
Author's note: I hope you all enjoyed this oneshot I penned here. I, myself, wonder how different the movie would have been if the Fizzy Lifting Drink scene went like this. Let me know what your thoughts are, and stay tuned for when I publish Chapter 19 of "Next in Line"! :)