Louisa.
It was all Louisa. The one behind all the bullying, the one who had been working with Zeus, the one behind my suffering…
But why would she do that? How did she get in contact with Zeus? How did she find me? How was she able to stay in Poptropica? How did she get to Poptropica at all, for that matter? Was it due to the power of the prophecy?
I sighed. Louisa was dead. The true villain was gone. My heart ached, but a tiny, tiny part of me felt relief, too. The witch was dead… would I finally be free?
"Alice," Fierce Fox's voice appeared near my head. "Hey, Alice."
I woke up. I was inside Fierce Fox's clubhouse again. It had been a while, but I recalled the posters, the large bed… the barrenness… yep, I was glad to be back.
"What's going on…?" I asked.
"You woke up passed out, so I brought you here," Fierce Fox explained, sitting on the bed. "How are you feeling?"
I shrugged. "I don't know… it's complicated." I stared at some posters on the wall. "Are those from Mocktropica Island?"
They were depicting made up islands, such as Tux Cut Island, Aqua Knights, and more.
"Family forced me to put them there," Fierce Fox frowned.
"I see," I breathed out. "So, after the fight with… Zeus… what happened?"
Fierce Fox crossed her arms. "Alright. So, there was this massive explosion, then we were off the mountain, safe and sound. We didn't know where you were. Then this goddess - Athena, I think - showed up, and told us Zeus had been defeated. She also said you'd gone back to your world. She said well done and all that, then we went our separate ways. Though we're keeping in contact over you."
"Oh," I said, chewing my lip. "So they're all okay?"
Fierce Fox nodded. "Yep." She looked away. "Though, that girl with the pigtails and glasses…"
I sighed. "I… I don't know if I wanna talk about Louisa right now." I stood up. "Honestly, I… I think I could just use one of these."
I leaned forward, embracing Fierce Fox. She muttered a few curses, patting my shoulder.
"Alright," she grumbled, though I could see her grin. "Let's… not get carried away. We've got an island to complete, remember?"
"I know, I know," I replied, backing away. "Just one more question…" I grimaced. "Do… do you think it's a good thing that Louisa died?"
Fierce Fox made a face. "Well… that's a hard question to answer… no one deserves to die like she did, but at the same time, she was an awful person."
"Should I feel bad?" I asked.
What about Chrissi? I thought. She must be heartbroken… did she know Louisa was using her?
"It's not your fault," Fierce Fox told me. "Louisa did this to herself… and she paid the price."
I sighed, looking away. "I guess, but…"
"It's all good now," Fierce Fox grabbed my shoulder. "Let's just focus on the future, okay?"
I grimaced. "Alright, alright…. let's just go to Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory now."
It was snowing on Charlie and The Chocolate Factory Island, but I didn't feel cold. I tugged at my grey scarf regardless.
It was… strange being inside one of Roald Dahl's books. I'd been a fan of his work for a while, but I'd never really related to many of the characters from his books… aside from Charlie Bucket himself.
Speak of the devil (although that term is far from what he is), a blond boy with pale, clammy skin was hanging outside the candy store. This was our protagonist Charlie Bucket, and he loved chocolate. A lot. He'd do anything for a Wonka Bar, but he didn't have any money. Book accurate, I'd say. So Fierce Fox and I went to get him some money.
We passed by some grey apartments, brick houses, and tall buildings. We also passed a complete dump of a house… which unfortunately was Charlie's house.
Fierce Fox and I fiddled with some phone boxes and managed to find a silver coin. We gave it to Charlie, cheering him up. He rushed to the Corner Store and bought a chocolate bar.
Now, if you've read the book or at least seen either of the movies, you'll know that Willy Wonka - a world famous candy maker - was hiding golden tickets in his chocolate bars. People who found the tickets got to go to his factory and get free chocolate and other cool stuff.
My luck wasn't great… but this was Poptropica. So of course when I opened Charlie's chocolate bar, there was a golden ticket inside.
"Really?!" Charlie cried, jumping for joy. "Could it be?! We found a golden ticket!"
"How did he manage it?" an outraged townswoman complained. "Twenty bars a day I've been buying!"
"That's great," I said, pressing my fists together. "But this is Charlie's! Shove 'em, Fierce Fox!"
Fierce Fox and I shoved the townspeople out of the way; Charlie burst through the door. The townspeople chased after him, and we chased after them.
We threw things like rubbish at the feet of the townspeople, so they would slip and fall down. It took a while, but eventually Charlie was safe from being 'torn up like a chocolate wrapper'.
The next morning, Fierce Fox and I were hanging out in front of Willy Wonka's majestic factory. It had big, red gates with golden print. Thick, brick walls surrounded the outside of the factory.
Townspeople were standing there, curious about where Willy Wonka could be. I chewed my lip. Only one ticket was supposed to come out of the factory… which meant someone would miss out. I frowned at that.
"What's up?" Fierce Fox asked, noticing my expression.
I was about to answer, when the golden ticket fluttered out of the factory.
"Go after that." I told my partner, biting my lip. "That'll get you into the factory."
Fierce Fox shrugged, but chased after it. I sighed and stared at the entrance. Would things be different because of me? Or would they be the same? I didn't know, and I hated it.
Well, all of the ticket holders get to take a family member with them… maybe I could be that family member for Fierce Fox…
I decided to head inside the factory's outdoor entrance and pretend to be Fierce Fox's… cousin. Well, we were sort of a family. I was her voice, after all.
I didn't really talk to the other kids, though they looked at me oddly. I wondered if they knew about the prophecy business. Possibly. Fierce Fox soon arrived, and I patted her shoulder.
"Well, you've got the ticket," I said, smiling. "I'm gonna be your 'cousin'. All the other kids have their family members… so here I am."
Fierce Fox just stared at me.
Suddenly, Willy Wonka opened a golden door, leading to the factory. He wielded a cane and a fancy top hat. A huge grin was spread across his face. He looked fairly book accurate, more so than the movies if you ask me.
"Welcome, my little friends!" he said cheerfully. "Welcome to the factory! Please come forward with your golden tickets!"
The children approached Willy Wonka in this order: Augustus Gloop (he's an obese chocolate lover), Veruca Salt (rich and spoiled), Violet Beauregarde (obsessed with gum), Mike Teavee (T.V and video game lover), Charlie Bucket, and finally, Fierce Fox.
"Ah, Fierce Fox, wasn't it?" Wonka eyed her, then me. "And this is…"
"My cousin, uh, Allie," Fierce Fox got out.
"You look familiar…" Wonka tapped his chin at me.
"So, uh, that chocolate, huh, cousin?" I burst out laughing.
"Yeah," Fierce Fox sweat beaded.
"Hmm, I'll be keeping an eye on you two," Wonka stepped back. "Regardless, come on in."
The inside of the factory was quite spectacular. It was chocolate brown (what other colour would it be?), and full of candy-related things such as colourful inventions.
All the children except Fierce Fox and Charlie became a little over-excited, and rushed down some downward slopes that led to various rooms. Their families followed them.
Wonka sighed in disapproval. "Hmm, look at that. Children misbehaving. We'd better find them before they mess everything up."
"Which way do we go?" Fierce Fox asked.
"Why, the right way of course!" Wonka answered cheerfully. "Do me a favour and fetch my cane and we'll see if we can't do something about this."
Fierce Fox shrugged, and went to get Wonka's cane.
Wonka turned to me and winked. "And you be careful, little hero. I don't have anything in store for you… but others might."
I blinked, but he was gone.
Wait… I thought. He… he knew who I-
Fierce Fox appeared behind me.
"Where'd he go?" she asked, raising her brow.
"Let's go to the Chocolate Room." I answered, feeling a shiver down my spine.
We had to go through quite a few corridors, but eventually we made it to the Chocolate Room.
Like the name suggests, the Chocolate Room was made out of chocolate. The grassy mountains, biscuit fences, lollipops, chocolate ocean, everything was chocolate. Except the pipes. But apart from those, everything was chocolate.
Augustus Gloop was in there, drooling. He leaped into the chocolate river, but was pulled up a pipe. His mother freaked out and started crying. Fierce Fox and I got to work.
I pulled a valve, which dragged the chocolate with Augustus upwards. Fierce Fox tugged another valve, and Augustus was dragged another way. His mother continued sobbing.
"Augustus Gloop!" some Oompa-Loompas sang. "Augustus Gloop! The great big greedy nincompoop!"
"Seems accurate." I whispered to Fierce Fox.
She snorted. "Come on, we've gotta go help them."
She and I entered the Fudge Room, which was the room where the chocolate went; where it was made into candies and bars. There was technical equipment on separate levels with different purposes.
Augustus Gloop landed on a conveyor belt, and started moving across.
With my instruction, Fierce Fox pressed a series of buttons, so Augustus wouldn't get hurt. I pressed some other buttons, doing the same thing.
The hardest part was the end, where there was a conveyor belt moving through a fiery zone. It was still a bit of a challenge, even though there were two of us. We may or may not have had to restart once or twice.
Anyway, Augustus Gloop came out alive- and chocolatey. His mom was ecstatic; Fierce Fox and I high-fived. The Oompa Loompas sang their song, then raced off with the Gloops.
Fierce Fox and I returned to the corridors, heading to the Inventing Room next (we were doing it in the order of the book).
The Inventing Room was like a basement full of bright colours, like if you were to mix a blacksmith's with a rainbow. There was a giant gumball machine, standing on a coloured keyboard, I guess you could call it.
I stepped on one of the keys. Inside the gumball machine, a gumball was being created. It reached the end of the machine.
"Oh, boy!" Violet Beauregard cried. "Gum!"
"Right you are!" Willy Wonka said, smiling. "It's the most amazing and fabulous and sensational gum in the world!"
Violet Beauregard, looking eager, ate the gum. She chewed it with a big, fat grin.
"It's tomato soup!" Violet exclaimed. "It's hot and creamy and delicious!" She gasped. "It's changing! It's roast beef! It's tender and delicious." She gasped again. "Blueberry pie and cream! Oh my, it's perfect."
Suddenly, her skin turned to the colour of her name, and she began swelling up like a beach ball. The Oompa Loompas, singing their song, rushed in and took her away.
I sighed. "Are kids really that stupid?"
"You goody two-shoes," Fierce Fox rolled her eyes. She cocked her head towards a door. "They went in there. Do we-"
"Yes, we do," I replied.
We walked through the door, and came to the Juicing Room. It was clean and white... if you save all the juice and fruit scraps lying around. There was a section of conveyor belts, and machinery. The machinery did different things to the fruit- we wanted them to squeeze the juice out of Violet.
It was not as hard as saving Augustus Gloop. We just had to put Violet in the correct place. Then, the machine reached down and squeezed her; her skin returned to normal. She and her dad left after that, surprisingly nonchalant.
The next room was the Nut Room. There were certainly a lot of nuts; they sat on a conveyor belt. Squirrels sorted them out, checking if they were good or bad.
I picked up a walnut, then gestured to Fierce Fox to follow me. Veruca Salt and her dad were there, checking out the squirrels.
"Hey, Daddy!" Veruca cried. "I've decided I want a squirrel! Get me one of those squirrels!"
"Don't be silly, sweetheart," Veruca's father replied. "These all belong to Mr. Wonka."
"I don't care!" Veruca whined. "I want one!"
She leaped up to the squirrels to try and grab one. However, they knocked her down and checked her out. She was a 'bad nut', so they put her in the trash, and did the same thing with her father. Then they turned to us.
"All right, all right." Fierce Fox grumbled.
We headed over to the trash, and jumped in. In there was another conveyor belt, which led to a blazing fire, which was where Violet and her father had landed. I shook some rubbish off my foot and faced Fierce Fox.
"Okay," I instructed. "Up on that platform is some whipped cream. Grab that, then pull a handle. A gumball will come out. Push that into a fan, then get another one. Put that in front of this door-shaped entrance. Then, turn the generator off."
Fierce Fox nodded, and headed off. I went underneath the conveyor belt, and pushed a bin in front of a door-shaped hole. I grabbed a bottle of fizzy drink, like the ginger ale from Lunar Colony. Then I turned a generator off, a few moments before Fierce Fox did hers.
A squirrel began running around in a hamster wheel; the power turned back on. I leaped up to Fierce Fox, and handed her the walnut. With my instruction, she coaxed the squirrel away from the wheel, and everyone was saved.
Oh, and Fierce Fox and I got to drink some fizzy drink and float up a pipe, returning us to the corridors.
…
To say the Television Room was bright was probably an understatement. It was beaming with light - everything was white, glossy and shiny. There was a ginormous, camera-shaped object that could transport people through television. Mr. Wonka was standing nearby, smiling proudly.
"I shall now send a bar of my very best chocolate from one end of this room to the other- by television!" he explained.
The camera-object shot out a beam of light, and sucked up the chocolate bar, sending it through TV.
"Ha ha, there you have it!" he cackled.
"Look at me!" Mike Teavee cried. "I'm going to be the first person in the world sent by television!"
He ran up to the giant camera; it shot a beam and took him away.
"He's gone!" his mother cried. "He's gone!"
That was our cue. Fierce Fox and I raced towards a large television, which looked like it was from the eighties.
We fiddled with the antennas- yes, it was that old- until Mike appeared on screen. Mike's mother began freaking out, while an Oompa Loompa appeared on the TV and asked Mike to follow her. Fierce Fox and I headed to the next room: the Bubblegum Room.
Mike was stuck in the middle of a metal circle; clawed hands rotated around him. He was quite small, though probably a bit bigger than C.J and I when we were shrunk on Shrink Ray Island.
Bubblegum was stashed all over the place, and the floor was soft and pink. Violet probably would've had a major fangirl session.
Anyway, Fierce Fox and I, using the metal claws, stretched Mike back to his normal size. He was a little taller than before, but apart from that he was fine. He and his mother left after that.
Fierce Fox and I left as well, heading back to the Chocolate Room. It was much more pleasant now that we didn't have to rescue Augustus Gloop. Willy Wonka and Charlie were waiting for us.
"There you are!" Willy Wonka greeted. "I must thank you both for your help. Now, the tour is almost over, and I have a surprise for all three of you! One of you will be given the keys to the factory. But first-"
Suddenly, a piece of chocolate hill Charlie was standing on was carried away by the river.
"Help!" Charlie cried, floating helplessly away.
Mr. Wonka chuckled nervously. "Well, I was going to ask the three of you to convince me why you should get the keys, but it seems the choice is up to you two!"
"Shouldn't we help him?" Fierce Fox asked.
"It's up to you: rescue Charlie or take the keys to the factory," Willy Wonka replied. "All the same to me which you choose."
"There's no way I can run a factory!" I said, shaking my head. "I… won't be here all the time, anyway. We'll save Charlie."
Fierce Fox glowered. I stared at her.
"Yeah, you're right," she chuckled. "Let's save the kid."
"Go!" Willy Wonka shouted, pointing to the distance. "Save him!"
I pulled out the canister of whipped cream, and created platforms for Fierce Fox and I to jump on. They felt soft beneath my feet, like marshmallows. We leaped on a few, and used some floating objects like patches of grass as well.
I almost slipped and fell a few times; thank goodness Fierce Fox was there. Eventually we reached the end, which was a waterfall. Charlie was stuck near a rock, underneath a branch.
"Go on the branch," I told Fierce Fox. "And pick Charlie up with your crane."
My friend nodded, and leaped onto the branch. She reached down with the crane; Charlie grabbed on. She hauled him up, bringing him to safety.
Willy Wonka grinned once we were safe. "Well done! You two chose the harder path, and shall be justly rewarded. Charlie, I give you the keys to the factory." Charlie seemed pleased with that, and accepted the keys.
Wonka turned to us. "Fierce Fox and Alice Manchester, you have much else to do in Poptropica. To you both, I give a lifetime supply of chocolate, and an open invitation to visit my factory whenever you'd like. Oh, and this medallion, of course."
He handed us the medallion, and then it was time for the bonus quest.
An Oompa Loompa arrived, and complained to Mr. Wonka about some people stealing his candy. When she was done, Willy Wonka had a frown on his face. He explained about his rivals stealing his candy, and he needed Fierce Fox and I to stop them. Because, well, who else was going to?
The glass elevator floated down from the sky, awaiting us. I shrugged at Fierce Fox, and then we entered.
The glass elevator took us into the grey, stormy sky. That didn't make me very happy- I don't want to see another storm for a long time. Some guy in a red plane was flying around, carrying Wonka's recipe.
The battle setup reminded me of the one with the Red Baron on Great Pumpkin Island. Fierce Fox was driving the elevator, thank goodness. We went in front of the red plane, releasing a candy trail that would gum up its engine.
We had to keep refilling the candy, by collecting little clouds of candy that popped up here and there. Then we returned to pursuing Wonka's rivals, spewing them with candy trail. Finally, the red plane exploded, but only to be replaced by a blue plane.
The process repeated all over again, until the blue plane exploded. Fierce Fox and I saved Willy Wonka's recipes, making Wonka himself very happy.
"You saved the day again!" he cried. "I want to share with you a super-secret confection that I've been working on. Use it carefully."
He handed us a packet of Heli-gum. That's when my vision turned white and I returned to my world once again.