The Chocolate Factory Feud
A Sequel to the great "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"
Based off the 2005 movie by Tim Burton
Story by: Christine Lennoire
Part One: Once a Bad Nut, Always a Bad Nut
It had been nearly two months since Charlie earned the right to the Chocolate Factory. It was more like a permanent home to him now, with his family, too. But things were as strict as ever. Being in training like he was, Charlie was always kept busy with new work. His jobs were important, and Willy Wonka kept him in check. Although he was close to the kid, his business was still the most important thing to him, although his new 'family' was a very close second. It just so happened that they were taking second place to a very important convention, at which Charlie was going to officially be given the rights to the Chocolate Factory. As long as Willy Wonka was living, he would retain a right to half of the 'Chocolate Empire.' But after his death, Charlie would inherit the entire thing. That was why this meeting was so important. If Charlie missed it… Oh, the disasters that would become of it!
Actually… Charlie would just lose his rights as heir. That's why Wonka made it so very clear to him that he HAD to be there. Mr. Wonka had been very serious about it, which made Charlie even more excited. He WANTED that more than anything.
Charlie woke up early that morning, with nothing else on his mind. He planned to dress nicely and make a good first impression, however, he doubted that anything could go wrong with the great Willy Wonka at his side. His mother helped him pick out a perfect outfit: a suit they had bought him for just the occasion. The suit itself was dark black and very… 'Fitting' considering the crowd. It had a nice flair to it's style: loose fitting and it also gave him the air of an older gentleman. Charlie was impressed.
He cleaned up extra well and combed his hair until it just fell into place. His Grandparents had all given him the okay, except for Georgina, who was quite certain that they had been talking about dogs…
After all that, he was sure he was ready, and took off on his own, on his way to meet Willy Wonka. Unfortunately, some boys who knew him before his so-called 'fame' decided that it was still fun to pick on the boy. "Hey, Bucket! You off to see your eccentric boyfriend again?" The oldest boy laughed, grabbing a hold of the back of Charlie's nice new coat. "Isn't he a little too old for you?" The other boys chuckled, each taking turns pushing him around in a circle, making him a bit dizzy as he watched everything as it span around him.
"Hey! Leave him alone, okay? Besides…" A girl about Charlie's age stepped out. "You're just jealous that you can't get any!" She giggled. The brutes looked a little scared, although Charlie couldn't figure out why. She was small and thin and, quite oddly, very pretty. It wasn't normal for someone like her to be walking around here. The three of them left, sulking. Charlie straightened up, catching his breath but instead, caught a glimpse of the girl that saved him from the beating of a lifetime. "Are you okay, Charlie? Did they hurt you, those stupid brutes? They really are just jealous… everyone's jealous of YOU! You're Charlie Bucket!" She smiled.
"W-who are you? Why did you help me?" Charlie asked, looking at her. She was only a bit taller than him, but she was thin with fine feminine features, although she didn't seem any older than he was.
"Who, me? You mean, you don't recognize me, Charlie? It's me! Varuca Salt… you know." She said, trailing off. "It's been such a long time." Varuca looked pained. Charlie looked up at the girl. He could hardly believe that it was her. Looking at her face, he knew it was the same girl, but somehow, she had changed… he knew that what Mr. Wonka had done was meant to teach them a lesson, but… seeing the after-affects of everything seemed kind of… disturbing and unreal, however, he smiled in complete trust. She had helped him. Maybe Varuca wasn't so bad after all…
Charlie held out his hand. "Varuca. It's… good to see you again. My, you really have changed." Varuca smiled and shook his hand.
"Don't YOU go getting all eccentric on me, too, you know!" She smiled. "How about it? A small drink… we could talk. We never really got to be friends before, since we were all so busy competing for the prize. I would appreciate it if you gave me this chance to make it up to you… you know, for being such a brat." Charlie thought about it. Without a second thought, he nodded.
"Of course I will. Besides, I owe it to you. You did send those bullies packing for me a while ago." But somehow, he felt as if there was something… somewhere, that he was forgetting about…
A few hours later…
"Ahh… Varuca. It was nice talking with you again. I feel like I'm finally getting to know you. You're not so bad, now that I think about it." Charlie smiled. But Varuca smiled even wider.
"Oh no, thank YOU!" She said, grinning.
At the Meeting…
"Seeing as your HEIR didn't show up, maybe it's time you find someone new, Mr. Wonka. It seems you've been stood up." Willy Wonka sat in his chair very calmly and unmoving, but he didn't look happy. His eyes were half closed and his hands were folded neatly in his lap. He stood up slowly and gracefully, watching everyone in the room carefully.
Wonka sighed. "Perhaps I should…" 'Charlie… my dear Charlie… where are you? I hope you have a good excuse for this one…' If not… he might just have to choose an heir out of the four others he had cast out before. He knew Charlie was the one, but… this was a business. No matter what, his Chocolate Factory was number one on his list, although, for a while, he had seriously began to wonder about it.
At the small restaurant…
"Look how late it is… I should be getting home." Varuca said, smiling mildly.
"Late… WHAT?" Charlie bolted out of his seat. "NO!"
"Is something wrong, Charlie?" Varuca asked sweetly. "You look positively ghastly!" And suddenly, Charlie realized what he had forgotten in the rush, the moment Willy Wonka stepped in the small restaurant, seeming so out of place. She followed his eyes and smiled. "AH! Mr. Wonka! What a pleasure!" Varuca said, bowing and smiling.
"Oh dear… it doesn't seem to me that you have a good reason for skipping out on me, then, do you, my dear Charlie?" Wonka asked. His voice held a small amount of disappointment, although he didn't raise his voice. But to Charlie, it hurt just as bad… maybe worse. How could he have forgotten? This was his dream… this was supposed to be the greatest day of his life…
"No, sir." He said softly, unable to look Wonka in the eyes anymore. He silently waited to hear Mr. Wonka's deliberation.
"You are that bratty girl, are you not? One of those four devils that came to my factory that day not so long ago, right?" Wonka asked, looking at Varuca, who seemed very pleased with herself, and nodded.
She bowed slightly. "Yes, Mr. Wonka. I'm pleased that you remember me. I'm Varuca Salt." She said, stating her name again, because, secretly, she hated it when he called her 'girl' all the time. He remembered Charlie's name easily enough… Wonka seemed to look her over silently cursing himself Was this really what was best for his business? Could he honestly hand over part of his Chocolate Factory to her? Maybe a test was in order. For now… he knew what he had to do…
"I'm sorry, Charlie." Was all he said to the terrified boy. "This… is not final, but… I want you to come with me, girl. You might just have a chance yet." He said. "Do you accept? Will you do anything to make sure my Chocolate Factory lives on strong and powerful, always?"
"Oh, yes, Mr. Wonka! It is my greatest wish! And… my NAME is Varuca." She said, reminding him once more.
"Yes, yes… well. Goodbye Charlie." He said, sighing. With one hand, he reached out and touched the boy's hair, softly resting it in his nice hair. "You would have been perfect." He said, pulling his hand back. "Well… come on, girl. We have much to do yet. I'm not so sure yet." Charlie watched the two of them walk past him. As Varuca passed, he heard her whisper.
"Too bad, little boy." Her voice was cold, just as it had been before. She hadn't changed at all. Charlie looked up abruptly and silently whispered back, so that she would hear, but not Mr. Wonka.
"Bring it. I WILL get MY Chocolate Factory back…"
Varuca smiled and turned to look at him. "Hmm…" However, she seemed to just shrug it off again.
"Come, girl." Wonka said, noticing that she had stopped. Charlie noticed that he was still using the elevator. When he turned, he heard a loud thud, and didn't have to look to know what Willy Wonka had ONCE AGAIN ran head-first into his own glass elevator for the eleven-hundredth time. "Yes, well… one day I'll stop doing that." He said, a little wearily, opening the door and stepping inside with Varuca. He looked out at Charlie sadly. 'Never give up…' He thought. 'If it's your dream… I know you'll earn it back. Show me…' Wonka thought, as if he imagined his thoughts could reach Charlie.
"I will…" Charlie said to himself. He knew that he belonged there and he would do ANYTHING to get his position back. Wonka was just testing him. He KNEW that Wonka would take him back. Charlie only needed to regain his trust… AND knock out all the people who tried to get in his way. 'What a dirty trick…' He thought. 'But it worked…'
And so the feud that was the competition for Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory had TRULY begun…
Okay, so this was an idea that I came up with along with a friend. I think you get the idea. I hope you like it. I want to make this into a nice long, cool story. Please review! I live on reviews… well, more like I WRITE based on reviews, but… you know what I mean! Thanks to all my former supporters! I hope you still love me.
Christine Lennoire
