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Maureen felt herself get shoved into the back of the dead end hallway as the rest of the ticket winners filed in. The psychedelic black and white patterns on the walls only made things worse for the claustrophobic situation. "There is no other door!" she heard Mike squeal.

"There's no way out!" Veruca screamed.

"Well I know there's a door here someplace," Willy said. He started forcing his way through the crowd of people, knocking on the walls as he did so. Maureen felt an elbow dig into her spine and she let out a slight hiss.

"This is worse than Solo and Small Ensemble last year!" she heard Laurie shouted. Ordinarily, Maureen would have smiled at the memory of too many instrumentalists squeezed into one warm up area. However, at the moment, all she could do was try to avoid getting squished by Mr. Salt and Mrs. Gloop.

"Help! Mr. Wonka, help! I'm getting squashed! Save me!" she heard the German woman shout. A few seconds later, she felt a body get shoved against her back, pressing her into the wall. She saw a flash of purple by her and knew that Willy had been heaved against her.

"Is it my soul that calls upon my name?" Willy suddenly said. Maureen immediately understood the reference to Romeo and Juliet. She could have laughed if she were actually able to breathe at the moment. She was suddenly glad that Laurie was a flautist; her lung capacity was greater than the average person's.

"Let me out or I'll scream!" Veruca (ironically) screamed.

"You already are!" Laurie shouted back.

"Somebody's touching me!" Mrs. Teevee shrieked. Maureen was able to turn around enough to see Mr. Salt grab Willy's shoulder.

"Now look here, Wonka-" the red-faced man started. Willy interrupted, though, before Mr. Salt could say anything more.

"Excuse me, question time will come at the end of the session. We must press on. Come along, come along..." Willy forced his way back towards the original door. When he reached it, he said, "Ah! Here we are!"

"Don't be a darn fool, Wonka," Mr. Beauregarde snapped. "That's the way we came in!"

"It is? Are you sure?" Willy asked, looking up and down the glass door.

"We've just come through there!" Mr. Salt said. Willy raised his brow and leaned on the door handle.

"Huh," he said. "How do you like that?" The door suddenly opened and revealed a new hallway. The white hallway was lined with various brown doors while the floor had a brown, circle pattern on it. Maureen smiled and looked up at Willy. She had no idea how he did it, but it sure was amazing!

"What is this, Wonka? Some kind of fun house?" Mr. Salt demanded.

"Why, having fun?" Willy asked with a teasingly glint in his eyes.

"I am!" Laurie shouted.

"I've had enough," Mrs. Teevee said. "I'm not going in there."

"Come on, Violet," Mr. Beauregarde said, taking his daughter's shoulders. "We're getting out of here."

"Oh, you can't get out backwards," Willy said, walking forward. "You've gotta go forwards to go back. Better press on." Maureen saw Laurie shrug and walk forward, following Wonka. Maureen saw no reason why she shouldn't follow her daughter, so she squeezed through the ticket winners to catch up to Laurie. As they went forward, Maureen noticed the room was getting smaller. Willy was crouching as he continued down the hall.

"Hey! The room is getting smaller!" she heard Charlie exclaim.

"No it's not," Mrs. Teevee argued. "He's getting bigger."

"How does that make any sense?" Laurie questioned.

"Nothing makes sense in this factory!" Mr. Salt snapped.

"Where's the chocolate?" Mike asked.

"I doubt if there is any," Mr. Beauregarde snorted.

"I doubt if any of us will get out of here alive," Mr. Salt muttered. Maureen crouched down next to Laurie at the end of the hall, where Willy was waiting for everyone.

"Oh you should never, never doubt what nobody is sure about," Willy said.

"That's not entirely reassuring, Willy," Maureen said with a faint smirk.

"You're not squeezing me through that tiny door," Mrs. Gloop said.

"You're off you're bleeding nut, Wonka," Mr. Salt said. "No one can get through there."

"My dear friends, you are now about to enter the nerve center of the entire Wonka Factory," Willy said, looking around at all the contestants. "Inside this room, all of my dreams become realities. And some of my realities become dreams. And almost everything you see is eatable. Edible. I mean, you can eat almost anything."

"Let me in, I'm starving!" Augustus wailed.

"Now, don't get overexcited," Willy said to Augustus. "Don't lose your head, Augustus. We wouldn't want anyone to lose that! Yet." He pulled down a little flap on the door and a small keyboard appeared. Maureen's eyes brightened. Did that mean he still played? The little keyboard had just over an octave in range, far less than Maureen was used to. "Now, the combination... this is a musical lock." With one hand, Willy quickly played the starting notes to Mozart's Marriage of Figaro Overture. Maureen let out a loud laugh, causing everyone to look at her.

"You don't understand," Laurie explained. "That piece has been stalking her for the last six months."

"Rachmaninoff," Mrs. Teevee said approvingly. Maureen suddenly turned and glared at Mrs. Teevee, her eyes darkening considerably.

"It's Mozart," Maureen said. "More specifically, the Marriage of Figaro Overture. The two composers aren't even from the same musical eras. Mozart was Viennese Classical and Rachmaninoff was Romantic era. Their styles don't even sound the same."

"Geez, lady," Laurie joking added. "Know your music history." Mrs. Teevee just stood there stunned, ignorant to the growing smile on Willy's face.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Willy said, not even addressing the mistake of composers. "Boys and girls..." He opened up the door, which was suddenly very, very large. The ticket winners piled out of the door, every one of them stopping to look at the amazing sights. "The chocolate room." Maureen could feel her breathing stop when she looked at the amazing chocolate room.

Sunlight beamed into the room from the large windows on the walls. In front of them were rocky formations, covered with what looked like moss (possibly candy moss). The floors had stone pathways between various sections of green meadows. The meadows had candy cane trees and lollipop flowers, creamy mushrooms and giant gummy bear plants. Vines climbed up metal poles and ornate lamps. Candy balls scattered the room, possibly filled with all sorts of sweet stuff. In the center of the room was a giant waterfall that fell into a brown looking river. It had to be chocolate; what else could it be in this amazing room. Pipes carried the chocolate from the chocolate room to who-knows-where in the factory. The scent of fruity candies and chocolate wafted about the room, filling Maureen's nostrils. This was the most amazing thing Maureen had ever seen.

"Hold your breath," Willy said. "Make a wish. Count to three. Come with me
And you'll be
In a world of
Pure imagination
Take a look
And you'll see-"
Willy swung his cane in front of the Beauregardes and Veruca, emitting a loud swoosh. "Into your imagination." Willy danced down the first set of stairs, the Golden Ticket winners following him. Maureen looked at Laurie, who's eyes were full of wonder, amazement, and curiosity. She was uncontrollably smiling, unable to stop staring around the room. Willy suddenly spun around, nearly hitting the Teevees. "We'll begin
With a spin
Traveling in
The world of my creation,"
Willy paused and leaned against his cane, using his other hand to motion to everything in the room. Maureen now found herself uncontrollably smiling. This world that Willy had created was beyond anything she could have imagined. "What we'll see
Will defy,"
Willy stood and swooshed the cane in front of Veruca and Violet, emitting a loud crack when it hit the metal banister. "Explanation."

Willy rested the cane on his shoulders and danced down the next set of steps to the Chocolate room. Laurie laughed as she played his little, dance like game up and down the stairs. He swung his cane against the stair banister again and sang, "If you want to view paradise
Simply look around and view it,"
Willy began to play with Mike's hair. "Anything you want to, do it
Wanta change the world?"
He plucked out a hair on Mike's head and flicked out into nothingness. "There's nothing to it." Willy danced down the final steps to the chocolate room, followed by the eager steps of the children and adults. Willy suddenly turned around, holding out his arms to halt the tourists. He smirked as he looked at all of them, before motioning for them to enjoy with a spin of his cane and a bow. Laurie took Maureen's arm and ran off in a random direction.

"Come on, mum!" Laurie squeaked with a large smile on her face. Maureen laughed as she ran through the room with her daughter. Laurie found a candy cane tree and plucked a leaf from it, placing the leaf on her tongue. She moaned in delight and plucked a leaf for Maureen. "It's mint! It tastes amazing!" Maureen tried one and felt the sweet mint flavor melt onto her tongue. She went over to a mushroom and scooped some of the crème from the little spots. She tasted raspberry and vanilla as it slid down her throat.

"You're good for this," Maureen said to Laurie. "It's not strawberry." She looked over and saw Willy with a mushroom cap on his cane, strolling along and singing.

"There is no
Life I know
To compare with
Pure imagination
Living there
You'll be free
If you truly wish to be."
He looked over at Maureen and smiled, grabbing a nearby candy cane and tossing it to her. She caught it and laughed, watching as Willy took the mushroom cap off of his cane and roam about the room. He knocked down some gummy bears for Violet, poking a colorful tree and releasing tons of small candies to Mike, and kicking some of the candy balls around the room. Maureen caught a smaller one and tried to open it up against a rock. Laurie had run off by Charlie and his grandfather and was eating candy apples with him. Willy stood against a candy cane tree and start to sing once more. "If you want to view paradise
Simply look around and view it
Anything you want to, do it
Wanta change the world?
There's nothing to it."
Willy took off his hat and sat down in a small field of butter cups. "There is no
Life I know
To compare with
Pure imagination
Living there
You'll be free
If you truly
Wish to be."

Willy took a sip from one of the buttercups. He then ate a bite out of it, emitting a loud crunch. Maureen had since given up on the candy ball, as it wasn't opening easily. Willy noticed her and motioned for her to sit down next to him. Maureen smiled and obliged. When she sat down, she was given a buttercup by Willy. "It's so good to see you again," he told her with a smile.

"I know," Maureen said. She let out a sigh and took a sip of the buttercup. She immediately taste lemonade in her mouth and smile. "This is all so amazing!"

"I'm glad you think so," he said. "How have you been?" He took another bite of the buttercup as he leaned back. "I heard from interviews that you and Jonathan aren't together anymore."

"We divorced shortly before Laurie was born," Maureen said. "I got pregnant with Laurie, he suddenly said he didn't want to have a child, not to mention he thought I should give up the piano to be the perfect little housewife, and then asked for a divorce. The fact that he openly admitted to cheating on me with another woman made the process go faster." Willy frowned and placed a hand on top of Maureen's.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Willy said. "I never liked the man, but at the same time I know you cared about him."

"I should have listened to you," Maureen said with a faint smile. "Last I heard, he was living in the states with his fourth wife. The arse actually sent me an invitation." Willy grimaced and Maureen sighed. "Laurie decided on her own that she never wanted anything to do with him. We're actually good friends with his second wife and her new family. I'm still not entirely sure how I ended up friends with the woman Jonathan cheated on me with." She let out a faint laugh and watched as Laurie explored the chocolate room.

"Well, he clearly didn't deserve you," Willy said. "Asking you to give up the piano would be like asking me to give up chocolate."

"Exactly," Maureen said with a giggle. "I was worried about you when I heard that you closed down your factory. I wanted to contact you but I didn't know how... not to mention I wasn't sure if you'd want to talk to me."

"Why ever would you think that?" Willy asked. "Of course I'd want to talk to you. In fact, I'd probably have welcomed it during that time. I was trying to contact you as well, but I kept looking for Maureen Abbott rather than Maureen Traynor." Maureen widened her eyes in shock.

"You tried looking for me?" she asked. Willy nodded. "Well I feel like an idiot now."

"Don't," Willy said. "I feel like one for not thinking of searching for you by your maiden name when I couldn't find you by your married name."

"Why don't we just agree that we were both idiots?" Maureen suggested, taking another sip of the lemonade buttercup.

"Alright," Willy said. He held out his buttercup and said, "To us being idiots and not reuniting sooner." Maureen looked over and saw Laurie and Charlie sword-fighting with candy canes while Grandpa Joe laughed and ate another candy cane. Maureen started laughing and shook her head. "You did an amazing job raising Laurie by yourself. She seems like a good kid."

"She is," Maureen said. "A lot like me. Though she chose to play the flute rather than pursue piano. Speaking of which, you still play?"

"Of course," Willy said. "Why wouldn't I? I'm not nearly as good as you though. Which reminds me..." he took out a piece of paper from his coat pocket and unfolded it, along with a pen. "Sign this?" Maureen took the pen and signed her name.

"Why?" Maureen asked as she signed.

"So I can say I have the autograph of a world renowned pianist," he replied. Maureen looked at the paper and suddenly realized it was a program. She took a closer look and saw that it was from when she performed as a soloist with the Surrey Philharmonic six months prior. She widened her eyes in shock and looked up at Willy.

"Where did you get this?" she asked.

"From your performance six months ago," Willy said, putting the program back into is inner pocket. "You performed beautifully, by the way."

"You were there?" she questioned incredulously. Willy nodded. "Why didn't you come say hello? They would have let you backstage; you're Willy bloody Wonka." Willy smiled and chuckled lightly.

"I didn't want to steal your spotlight," he said. "The ticket contest had just been announced. It was your night. I wasn't going to interfere."

"I have plenty of spotlight nights," Maureen said with a light, teasing slap to Willy's arm. "I wouldn't have cared if you stole it that night!" Willy was laughing as he finished eating his buttercup. Maureen couldn't help but laugh along as well. At that moment, they weren't a famous pianist and a genius chocolatier; they were simply two friends reuniting after so many years.

Suddenly Laurie ran up to them with two candy canes in hand. She dropped one at Maureen's feet and said, "En garde!"

"Really?" Maureen asked with a smile. "Why are you fencing with it instead of eating it?"

"Because according to Charlie, it's strawberry," Laurie said. Maureen nodded in understand and looked over at the confused Willy.

"She's allergic to strawberries," Maureen explained.

"Ah," Willy said. He put on his hat and took the other candy cane. "Allow me to take on this challenge, Madame?"

"Of course, good sir," Maureen jokingly responded. Willy stood up and handed his cane to Maureen while he took the candy cane and assumed a fencing position.

"En garde, pret, allez," Willy said. Laurie and the chocolatier began fencing with the candy canes. The danced about the room, play fighting with the candy-cane swords. Maureen sat in the buttercups and laughed as she watched her daughter square off against Willy. The chocolatier then let Laurie get a hit on him, exclaiming, "Arrêt! Touché!" Willy fell to the ground in fake anguish, dropping the candy cane next to him. Laurie laughed and set her own candy cane down, helping Willy to his feet. The two walked back to where Maureen sat, who was now unable to stop laughing at the antics of the two.

"You were right, mum," Laurie said. "He is awesome." She bounded over to a gummy bear tree and grabbed an orange on as Willy walked back to where Maureen sat, still uncontrollably laughing. Willy held out a hand and helped Maureen to her feet. It was almost as if they were in high school again.