Disclaimer: Despite all our efforts at winning over Tim Burton for even a moment's custody of Willy Wonka, he and his factory are not ours.
AN: This is going to be a shorter chapter, because I'm running out of steam on this story. Soon, it'll be finished, but not for another couple chapters (at most). Please review! Thanks!
Chapter 9: Concerning Charlie: Part 2:
Willy woke up with a headache and a sense that he'd probably inhaled too many candy fumes, which had probably led to his weird dream about Danika saying that she was pregnant.
'Yeah, like that would happen!' he thought with a smile as he cracked his eyes open. When he saw what sat there on the side of the bed, he grinned.
There was Danika, lovely in a red sundress with red and violet ribbons trimming the short sleeves, sweetheart neckline and skirt. Her red hair was pulled up in a bun and there were little styled curls falling around her face and forehead –she was adorable. Actually, in this light, she seemed to be glowing.
"Hi there, handsome," she whispered, one hand toying with his hair. "I was worried about you."
"Why?" He was confused.
Danika looked at him in amusement. "You fainted, silly. Remember? In the doctor's office?"
Willy felt himself go pale as his hands began to tremble. "You mean that was real?" he asked. "You mean that you're really…that I'm going to be…"
His wife rolled her emerald-green eyes and sighed. "Yes, Willy Wonka, you're going to be a father," she retorted.
All suddenly seemed to go quiet as Willy Wonka, the World's Greatest Candy Maker, appeared to zone out of reality. Danika swore that he looked exactly like that when he had been leading the Golden Ticket winners through the factory, when he was pretending to have a flashback. He looked so surprised and dazed that she immediately became concerned and grabbed a small vial from the dresser beside the bed, pulling the stopper out to wave the escaping scent into his nose.
The intense smell of three kinds of mint oil snapped Willy back, making him cough and clearing his head. "Thanks, Starshine, I needed that," he gasped.
"That's what I'm here for." She smiled and put the tiny bottle away. "Now get up and clean yourself up. I was able to spend about an hour with your dad before coming up here to keep you company. I had to pass him on to Charlie, who is presently giving Wilbur a very brief tour of the Chocolate Room."
"Oh, my, gosh, I completely forgot about Dad!"
Panicked, Willy leaped out of bed and began running to the bathroom, leaving behind a laughing Danika as he began washing his face, combing his hair, and changing his clothes. He managed to accomplish everything very quickly, as there was a troop of Oompa Loompas handing him objects and taking them away once he was finished.
Finally, just as the last hair was set in place and a black top hat sat on top of his head, Willy went out to greet his wife. To his surprise, she had added several purple ribbons to her red hair, making her look utterly eatable.
"You look delicious," he murmured, taking her hand and pressing it to his lips.
"Thank you, Willy," she giggled.
As she was turning to leave, Danika was surprised when Willy forced her to turn and face him, his rubber glove-clad hand reaching out to touch her stomach. Gently, he traced the barely noticeable swell that was forming there, the bump which held the tiny miracle of life he had helped create.
"Starshine," he whispered. "Are we really having a baby?"
Smiling through the tears of joy forming in her eyes, Danika smiled and kissed him.
After spending nearly fifteen minutes together, admiring the fact that a child was actually growing inside of Danika's belly, Mr. and Mrs. Wonka headed downstairs to the Chocolate Room.
Even though Danika had wanted to take the Glass Elevator or the candy boat to their destination, Willy refused to put her through the chancy ride of either device, and made her walk instead. As they traveled through the hallways, Willy tried to think of an easier way to get his wife around the factory without making her tired. Sugar-powered golf carts might be a good start…
Through the glorious Chocolate Room they went, over grassy hills and fields of flowers made of every flavor you could imagine, they finally arrived at the tiny house that the Buckets called 'home.' Smoke rose from the chimney, and Danika could smell a roast cooking in the oven. Apparently they were expected.
"Hello, Buckets!" Danika said, stepping inside. She'd quickly adopted the family's way of greeting everyone when entering the house. Considering the Buckets were quickly becoming a family to her, it was only fair.
"Hello!" everyone called out.
Sitting at the table were Mr. and Mrs. Bucket, Charlie, Wilbur Wonka, and Grandpa Joe (as Willy and Danika had been asked to call him). Mugs of coffee or hot cocoa sat before them, and a welcoming smile donned four out of the five faces. Privately, Danika wondered if Dr. Wonka smiled at anything.
"Willy, Danika," Wilbur said with a nod. "Mr. and Mrs. Bucket just invited me to stay for dinner. I understand you eat here often since they've moved in."
Danika smiled and nodded. "It's sort of a new 'family tradition' that I started, since I figured it would be nice to have us eat together like a family. It's nice, since I'm so busy helping Willy run the factory that I don't really have the chance to visit my parents or my family in town a lot."
Wilbur looked at her in surprise. "You have family in town?"
"My Aunt Marion, Uncle Geoff and my cousin Kylie," she replied. "I'll have to show up at Kylie's middle school graduation ceremony in a few months, though, or else they'll never forgive me!"
"But sugar pop, would it really be a good idea for you to go outside when you're having a-" Willy choked up on the last word, apparently still unable to come to terms with becoming a father.
Charlie perked up. "What are you having?" he asked, looking worried. "Is it surgery?"
Danika blushed and looked down at her feet. She had wanted to wait to tell everyone, but her husband had opened the door and now she would have to step through it. She took a deep breath.
"Actually, I'm having a baby."
After the wave of congratulations had died down, everyone in the room seemed to realize just how significant Danika's pregnancy was. If she and Willy had a baby, then that meant there was an actual heir to the Wonka candy empire, which led to the question that was on everyone's mind: where did that leave Charlie?
"Well, this is a pickle, isn't it?" Mrs. Bucket said into the tense air of the room.
Danika sat at the head of the table with Willy on her left side, holding her left hand and stroking it with his thumb as he looked at her, violet eyes full of concern. A cup of milk and a bowl of cabbage soup sat before her, both half-empty. To her other side was Dr. Wonka, who looked incredibly thoughtful about the whole thing.
"Obviously, you've just named Charlie as your heir to the factory," Wilbur said in his firm voice. "The whole world has seen you pick up their house and bring it inside the factory, so they clearly know that the Bucket family is very close to you."
"Which means that there's no way we can UN-declare Charlie as the legal heir without looking bad," Danika said while clutching Willy's hand. "It won't do any good providing interviews to talk to the public about this, either; you know all of those tabloids will do everything they can to smear Wonka Industries."
Willy nodded. "Danika's right. We can't cut Charlie off without making the factory look bad. Plus, who says we want to pass over Charlie in the first place?"
The Buckets all stared at him. "You mean you still want Charlie to receive the factory?" Grandpa Joe asked incredulously.
Danika gave them all a warm smile. "Well, Willy and I are fond of you all, and Charlie has been such a great sport in helping Willy get in touch with his father and restoring his faith in the idea of 'family,' so it's only fair that he get something totally cool out of it."
Charlie blushed. "You don't have to give me the factory because of all that. The lifetime supply of candy would have worked out just fine…"
Red hair tossed back and forth as Danika shook her head. "No, Charlie, you deserve to get this factory," she firmly told him. "You are a good person with a good heart and a heck of a creative mind for making great candy. You were meant for all of this, just like Willy."
To her left, her husband squeezed her hand and gave her a loving smile. Danika returned the smile. "So it's decided that Charlie will remain the heir to the factory," she said. "Now all we have to do is think about what's going to happen when the baby is born."
"But once the child is born, he or she will become the rightful heir to everything Willy has made," Dr. Wonka put in. "After all, the baby will be a Wonka by blood and will have a birthright to this candy empire the two of you have managed to build. It isn't right to take all of this away from him, or her, especially if they grow up knowing that this factory belongs to the Wonka line but is probably going to pass into another person's hands."
Mr. Bucket spoke up. "The child might be hurt and angry after he or she finds out that the factory they call home won't always remain that way."
Both Willy and Danika knew that this was very true. How awkward would it be explaining to their child that the magical factory which was their home would eventually belong to Charlie? The child would be confused, sad, and probably angry that their father's greatest work was being pulled out of their hands and into another's. It didn't seem right, but Willy and Danika knew that they couldn't go back on their word to Charlie now.
Sighing, Danika was about to take a sip of milk when she felt something tug on her skirt. Glancing down, she was surprised to see Sally and wondered how the Oompa Loompa had gotten inside without being noticed. Meanwhile, the tiny being was looking at Danika in an annoyed fashion as she held up a vitamin, indicating that her mistress should take it.
"Oh, Sally, I don't think I need those yet," the red-head said.
The Oompa Loompa merely frowned at her and held the pill up higher. Knowing that her faithful servant wasn't going to back down on this, Danika took the pill and downed it with a gulp of milk. Satisfied, the Oompa Loompa smiled, and then began to speak in the hand gestures of her people.
Fascinated, the Buckets and Dr. Wonka watched the hand gestures, trying to figure out what the heck was being said. Of course, Willy and Danika had no trouble following along, and so provided the translation needed for the others.
"Sally says that we are so busy worrying that we do not see the obvious solution," Willy said. "Apparently she thinks that we should just divide the whole thing in half, one part going to Charlie and the other going to our child."
Danika looked thoughtful. "We could do that. If we raise our baby in the factory and teach him or her along side Charlie, the two of them might grow up to be friends. That way, our child won't be upset or jealous about half of the factory not being theirs!"
A bright smile spread across Charlie's face. "I'll be happy to give up the factory if the baby grows up and decides that he or she wants it. You could always build me another one of my own somewhere else, if it makes everyone comfortable."
"Given that you're bound to want your own place eventually, that can easily be done," Willy said, holding out a hand to sake on the deal. Charlie reached out and took it. "Great! Now, Charlie, what do you think about little raspberry kites that fly like real ones?"
Charlie's eyes lit up. "With thin red licorice instead of string?" he said.
Everyone shook their heads in amusement as Willy and his apprentice began to "talk shop."
AN: Short, but that's all I had planned for this chapter. Please leave a little review! Thanks!