See? Look how much I can get done when I have a free weekend for once. This is the end of the film portion of the story, but it's nowhere near the end. I'll start taking chapter ideas from you all, so let me know what you want to see.
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Enjoy the chapter!
Once the Traynors had shed their television room jumpsuits, they were led to the nearest room. It was dimly lit and had some miniature medical supplies hanging around the room. Perhaps this was a Oompa Loompa doctor's office. It made sense to have it by the television room. "Take a seat over here," the Oompa Loompa said, motioning to a nearby coffee table. Maureen led her daughter to the table and sat her down. He took out a small flashlight and turned it on. "Let me know if you see brightness." Laurie nodded and tried to keep her eyes open. Maureen could already see how bloodshot they were. The Oompa Loompa shined the light into Laurie's eyes, probably checking out her pupils. "Anything?"
"It gets a little brighter sometimes, but I can't really make anything out. The spots are gone, but now everything is just really blurry," Laurie said.
"What can you make out?" the Oompa Loompa asked.
"Mostly just colors. No shapes at all," she replied. The Oompa Loompa nodded and walked over to a cabinet. He took out a small, blue orb-shaped candy and a pair of sunglasses.
"Mr. Wonka was right," he said. "I'm pretty sure that this is just a corneal flash burn. Take the Eye Candy and then wear sunglasses for the next few days while your eyes heal. The candy will help your vision, but it won't completely heal your eye. Mr. Wonka is still working on that." Laurie took the blue candy and ate it. She smiled as she swallow it.
"Of course it's delicious," Laurie said with a faint laugh. Maureen couldn't help but laugh with her. Suddenly Laurie widened her eyes and gasped. "Oh my god! Shapes! I can see shapes! This stuff is awesome! Why hasn't he sold any yet?"
"It's doesn't do enough for him, apparently," the Oompa Loompa replied. "Like I said, it won't heal your eyes, but it will restore your vision." Laurie nodded and smiled. "What can you make out now?"
"Your face, my mum's face, the room, that weird lamp thing over there…"
"So basically everything in this room?" Maureen asked. Laurie nodded and put on the sunglasses. "So is she good to go then?"
"Pretty much," the Oompa Loompa said. "Just wear the sunglasses for a few days and you'll be fine."
"Thank you," Maureen said with a smile. "What's your name?"
"Rusty," he said. "At least, my English name is Rusty. Even Mr. Wonka has trouble pronouncing Loompish names."
"Well thank you, Rusty," Maureen said. "How do we get to Mr. Wonka's office?"
"Straight down the hallway, take the third left, and then you should see his door," Rusty told them.
"Thank you!" Laurie said, hopping up from the coffee table. The three walked over to the door and exited the room. "By the way, you guys have mad improve skill."
"Who said we improvised?" Rusty said with a knowing smile. He turned around and headed back towards the television room, leaving behind two confused humans. Laurie's eyes were wide as she turned to her mother.
"Now I'm concerned," Laurie said. Maureen only nodded silently, before turning around and walking down the hallway. "I wonder how the other kids are doing. I mean, most of them were assholes, don't get me wrong, but I still wonder."
"Mr. Wonka probably took care of them," Maureen said. "He took good care of you."
"Because my thing wasn't entirely my fault," Laurie said. "I mean, I admit to the corneal flash burn thing to being partially my fault for not covering my eyes like a moron. But the rest of the kids only ended up in their situations because of their own greed or stupidity. He might treat them differently."
"Maybe," Maureen said. "He'll make sure they get out alright. Though if I know him, he'll make sure they have something to remember the consequences of their greed."
"Yeah…" Laurie said. "I also might have gotten such good care because I'm your daughter."
"You would've gotten that care even if he and I weren't childhood friends," Maureen said. She heard Laurie groan and roll her eyes.
"Are you two really that oblivious!?" Laurie asked.
"Laurie?" Laurie tensed her jaw and sighed.
"You two have been bloody flirting all bloody day and I guess neither of you realized it," Laurie said with a very clearly annoyed tone. "I saw it, Charlie saw it, I wouldn't be surprised if any of the parents saw it, the Oompa Loompas most definitely know because they seem to be magical all-seeing beings…"
"Laurie, Willy and I haven't been flirting," Maureen said, rolling her eyes. They passed a group of Oompa Loompas.
"Hey, guys!" Laurie called out. The Oompa Loompas turned and faced the Traynors, looking clearly confused. "Have you been watching the tour?"
"Yes," one of them replied.
"Have Mr. Wonka and my mother been non-stop flirting?" Laurie asked.
"Oh, definitely," the Ooompa Loompa answered. Laurie motioned to the Oompa Loompas in an 'I-told-you-so' manner. Maureen dropped her jaw and looked from the Oompa Loompas to Laurie. "You two are so oblivious."
"That's what I said!" Laurie told them. "Sorry if I kept you. You can go now if you need to." The Oompa Loompas nodded and Maureen stood there frozen in shock. Now she wasn't sure if she had been flirting or not. Now she was mentally analyzing every single interaction with Willy that day. "Let's go. Your knight in shiny armor awaits." Maureen rolled her eyes and lightly thunked Laurie on the back of the head. As they made the left, they heard loud shouting from the office.
"Wrong, sir, wrong!" she heard Willy shout. "Under Section Thirty-Seven B of the contract signed by him it states quite clearly that all offers shall become null and void if-and you can read it for yourself in this photostatic copy: 'I, the undersigned, shall forfeit all rights, privileges, and licenses herein and herein contained, et cetera, et cetera… fax mentis incendium gloria culpum, et cetera, et cetera... memo bis punitor delicatum!' It's all there, black and white, clear as crystal! You stole Fizzy Lifting Drinks. You bumped into the ceiling which now has to be washed and sterilized, so you get nothing! You lose! Good day, sir!" As Willy ranted, they Traynors could only stand awkwardly outside of the office, frozen in shock.
"Oh my god…" Laurie murmured.
"You're a crook!" Grandpa Joe shouted. "You're a cheat and a swindler! That's what you are. How can you do a thing like this? Build up a little boy's hopes and then smash all his dreams to pieces. You're an inhuman monster!"
"I said good day!" Willy interrupted. The door cracked open and Grandpa Joe came through.
"If Slugworth wants a Gobstopper, he'll get one," she heard him muttered. Charlie placed a hand on his Grandpa's shoulder and turned around, walking back into the office. Grandpa Joe looked up and stared at Maureen, clearly looking disappointed. Laurie stepped into the office to see what Charlie was doing. Maureen peered into the office. She was shocked to see that everything in there as cut in half. Half a painting, half a clock, half a sink, half a desk… Why was everything in half?
Charlie walked up to the desk where Willy was writing and smoking a cigar. "Mr. Wonka?" he said as he put the Gobstopper on Willy's desk. He turned to leave and neared the door when Willy placed his hand over the candy.
"So shines good deed in a weary world…" he said. He sat up and turned around. "Charlie!" Charlie paused and turned around. Willy smiled and said, "My boy… You won! You did it! You did it! I knew you would; I just knew you would." Willy walked up to Charlie and spun him around in a hug. Maureen and Laurie entered the office. "Oh, Charlie, forgive me for putting you through this. Please, forgive me." Willy turned to them and hugged Laurie. "And Laurie! Sweet girl! You've won as well! I never doubted you for a second. I knew your mother would have taught you to have a good head on your shoulders."
"I'm so confused right now," Laurie said. "You're not actually mad at Charlie?"
"Well, I do have to sterilize the ceiling, but it's nothing that hasn't had to be done with almost every test," Willy said with a broad smile. "Come in, Mr. Wilkinson!" The door opened and a man Maureen had never seen entered the room. He wore glasses and had a scar on his face. Laurie immediately dropped her jaw and covered her mouth. "Meet Mr. Wilkinson."
"Pleasure," the man said.
"Slugworth!" Charlie gasped.
"No, no. That's not Slugworth. He works for me," Willy said. "I had to test the two of you. You both passed! You won!"
"Oh…" Laurie said, covering her mouth. "Oh no, I'm an asshole." Maureen arched her brow in confusion. "Um… Mum? I have to tell you something… He told me he was Slugworth and tried to get me to steal an Everlasting Gobstopper. I said no, and I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry."
"That's fine, but you should have told me," Maureen said. Her daughter looked down and bit her lip.
"That wasn't all I said…" she said. Laurie leaned up and whispered into her mother's ear. When Maureen heard the words, she dropped her jaw and stared at the sheepishly looking girl in shock.
"You told him to WHAT!?" Maureen snapped. "Laurie Elizabeth Traynor!"
"I'm sorry!" Laurie said. "You're lucky I didn't punch him in the face or something…"
"Laurie!"
"I didn't though!" Maureen sighed and shook her head. The entire time, Willy and Mr. Wilkinson were laughing. Grandpa Joe and Charlie just looked confused.
"Maureen, relax," Willy told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Mr. Wilkinson and I found it funny more than anything." Laurie immediately turned bright red and let out an embarrassed sounding wail. It was easy to see how mortified she was.
"Wait, what did we win?" Charlie asked.
"The jackpot! The grand and glorious jackpot!" Willy said as he grabbed his hat.
"The chocolate?" Charlie asked.
"The chocolate, yes, the chocolate," Willy said as he grabbed his coat. "But that's just the beginning. We have to get on, we have to get on; we have so much time, and so little to do. Strike that. Reverse it." He grabbed his cane and led the four people to another door. "This way, please. We'll take the Wonkavator."
"Do you just stick your last name in front of everything?" Laurie asked with a smile and a laugh. He shook his head and opened the door to the Wonkavator.
"Step in, Charlie, Laurie, Grandpa Joe, Maureen," Willy said. They all piled into the rather small elevator. Maureen could feel Willy's hand on the small of her back as she entered the elevator. They all sat down. Laurie and Charlie sat on one side while she and Grandpa Joe sat on the other. In the center sat Willy, who happened to be right between Charlie and Maureen. "This is the Great Glass Wonkavator."
"It's an elevator," Grandpa Joe said.
"It's a Wonkavator," Willy corrected. "An elevator can only go up and down, but the Wonkavator can go sideways and slantways and longways and backways…"
"And frontways?" Charlie asked.
"And diagonalways?" Laurie asked.
"And squareways and frontways and any other ways that you can think of," Will said. "It can take you to any room in the whole factory just by pressing one of these buttons. Any of these buttons. Just press a button and ZING! You're off. And up until now, I've pressed them all… except one." He pointed to a red button on the top of the Wonkavator wall. "Go ahead you two."
"Us?" Charlie asked. Willy nodded. Laurie motioned for Charlie to press the button. Charlie stood up and pressed the button. The Wonkavator began to shutter and everyone gripped onto something.
"There it goes," Willy said. "Hold on tight. I'm not exactly sure what's going to happen." Maureen watched as they went shooting upwards. Willy's eyes were fixated on the speedometer. "Faster, faster. If we don't pick up speed, we'll never get through."
"Get through what?" Charlie asked. Willy laughed and pointed upwards. Maureen went wide-eyed at the implication.
"You mean we're going..?" Grandpa Joe asked, pointing upwards.
"Up and out," Willy said. Maureen tensed her jaw.
"William Nigel Wonka," she hissed, enunciating each syllable. "I am going to murder you in your sleep for this."
"But this roof is made of glass," Grandpa Joe said. "It'll shatter into a thousand pieces. We'll be cut to ribbons!"
"Probably," Willy said.
"Your middle name is Nigel?" Laurie asked.
"Priorities, Laurie!" Maureen snapped.
"Hold on, everybody!" Willy said with a smile. "Here it comes!" Suddenly the Wonkavator crashed through the roof. Maureen grabbed onto the nearest thing and squeeze her eyes shut. "Open your eyes, Maureen." The pianist opened her eyes and looked around. They were all safe and they were in the sky.
"Congratulations, Mr. Wonka," Grandpa Joe said. "We did it!"
"Look around," Willy said with a smile. Maureen looked down and realized that she was latching tightly onto Willy's arm. "Maureen, was the use of my middle name really necessary?"
"Considering we might have been sliced up, yes. It was," Maureen said, letting go of Willy's arm. She stood up and looked outside of the window. "Oh wow," she breathed out, looking at the sights.
"Our town looks so pretty from up here," Charlie said.
"Look over here, Charlie," Grandpa Joe said. "I think I see our house."
"Which one is it?" Maureen asked.
"That one," Charlie said, pointing to a small, crumbling shack. She frown and looked down at the little boy.
"You live there?" she asked. Charlie nodded. He ran over to the other side and gasped, "There's my school, Grandpa."
"This is amazing!" Laurie said, smiling at the beautiful town below.
"How did you two like my factory?" Willy asked.
"I think it's the most wonderful place in the world," Charlie said. Laurie nodded in agreement, sporting a large smile.
"I'm very pleased to hear that," Willy said. "Because I'm giving it to you. Both of you." Everyone but Willy dropped their jaws in shock. Maureen couldn't believe it. He was giving the factory to her daughter?
"You're giving them the..?" Grandpa Joe was too in shock to finish the question. Willy nodded and let out a soft smile.
"I can't go on forever, and I don't really want to try," Willy explained. "So, who can I trust to run the factory when I leave and take care of the Oompa Loompas for me? Not a grownup. A grownup would want to do everything his own way, not mine. That's why I decided a long time ago I had to find a child. A very honest, loving child to whom I can tell all my most precious candy making secrets. And I was lucky enough to find two. Two children who can share ideas and come up with amazing things together. You both have amazing imaginations. Just think of what you could create." Laurie smiled and looked at Charlie.
"That watermelon thing was a good idea," Charlie said to Laurie. He turned back to Willy and said, "So that's why you sent out the Golden Tickets."
"That's right," Willy said. "So the factory is yours. You can move in immediately."
"And me?" Grandpa Joe asked.
"Absolutely," Willy said. "You too Maureen." Maureen let out a smile and shook her head. She was still trying to wrap her mind around this.
"What happens to the rest of-"
"The whole family," Willy said. "I want you to bring them all." Charlie grinned and hugged Willy.
"The kitty babies?" Laurie asked. Willy tilted his head in confusion.
"We have five cats," Maureen clarified.
"Of course!" Willy said. "I can make a room just for them. You understand I can't let them wander the factory freely."
"Wouldn't expect any less," Laurie said.
"But don't forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he always wanted," Willy said.
"What happened?" Charlie asked.
"He lived happily ever after," Willy said. Charlie hugged Willy again and this time Laurie joined in. Maureen covered her mouth and smiled. This was like something from a fairy tale. The hug between the chocolatier and the two kids ended and Laurie sat back down.
"Mr. Wonka, have you gotten everything you always wanted yet?" Charlie asked.
"Not quite," Willy said. Maureen could swear he had a faint twinkle in his eye as he said that. She could also swear that he looked right at her for a moment. She heard Laurie groan and saw her roll her eyes beneath the sunglasses.
"Do you realize how painfully obvious you two are being?" Laurie asked. "I mean, I see it. Charlie sees it. Grandpa Joe probably sees it. Just… ugh!"
"What are you talking about, Laurie?" Willy asked. Laurie tensed her jaw and shook her head.
"You know what, if you guys wanna be oblivious then I will let you be oblivious," Laurie said. She turned around and looked out the window. Maureen shook her head and sighed. "So where are we actually going?"
"Don't worry about where we're going for now," Maureen said. "Just enjoy the view."
"Which I can I actually do thanks to Mr. Wonka's Eye Candy," Laurie said with a smile. Everyone in the Wonkavator laughed as they enjoyed viewing the beautiful little town below them. All seemed to be absolutely perfect.