Elfbrat18: Here's a new fic! And it's my first CATCF fic too, so if we get some things wrong, please point them out! We'd really appreiciate it, cause niether Whistler or myself have gotten the dvd yet.

Whistler: scribbling things down on paper Oh believe me, it's on the Chirstmas list. And can anyone out there please tell us what Mr & Mrs Bucket's first names are? I can't find anything about their first names anywhere.

Across the Sea

"Charlie!" Mrs. Bucket called, "Come in here please!"

Mrs. Bucket was sitting at the table with Mr. Bucket when Charlie and Willy Wonka walked through the front door. It had been two years since Charlie had won the contest and became the hier to the Chocolate Factory. Willy's new hier was very enthusiastic about his job. And you'd have to be, Mrs. Bucket mused, with all those explosions going off and those two coming home to eat either black and blue or with elephant ears or-

Her thoughts were cut short when the sounds of chairs being slid across the floor let her know that they had just sat down. "For once, it's nice to see the two of you come back in one piece." She said with a grin. "Now, yoru father was coming home from work when the postman gave him this," she said, picking up a large box and placing it in the middle of the table. "It's addressed to all of us, and I wanted the two of you here when we opened it."

"Who's it from?" Charlie asked, leaning over to read the label. "I can't read the handwriting that well."

Mrs. Bucket looked over the handwritten label and for a split second her face broke out into a bigger grin, but she hid it. "I...I can't tell either, Charlie. Let's just open it and see who it's from." She was about to get up and get a knife to cut the tape but Mr. Bucket beat her to it. "Ah, thank you dear."

Someone clearly did not want this package to get opened before it reached it's destination because there was tape wrapped all around it. "Hey, it's from someone in the United States, we know that much," Mr. Bucket said, taking the knife from Mrs. Bucket and began to tear away at the tape and pull the box flaps open. Packing pellets were scattered across the tabletop as Mrs. Bucket pulled out an assortment of objects. Out came a purple envelope, a red envelope, and a black envelope with silver writing scribbled across each of them. Then there was a small box wrapped in dark purple wrapping paper with a silver ribbon tied around it. There was also another box, a much bigger one that just about filled up the bottom, wrapped in what looked like...broomsticks?

"Why would someone put broomsticks on wrapping paper?" Willy asked. Coming from Willy Wonka, that statement was pretty ironic.

Charlie shrugged his shoulders. Niether Mr. or Mrs. Bucket could supply an answer either. "It doesn't say on any of these who they're from," Mrs. Bucket said, indicating the envelopes. "But this one says, "Charlie: Open me first!" She handed the red envelope over to Charlie.

Looking hesitant, Charlie took the envelope and slowly undid the flap. He pulled out a red piece of paper that was written in the same handwriting, only it was much neater. "Whoever wrote this must have been rushed when they wrote on the packaging label," Willy said, looking at the letter over Charlie's shoulder. "Go on, read it Charlie," his mother said.

"Okay. Dear Charlie, this may seem strange to you as you read this, but I do in fact know you personally. You may not remember me, and that's alright, I understand. I hope this reaches you before the big holiday season begins, as mail delivery can be delayed. I know it's always delayed where I live. So when you get this package, do exactly as the directions say. The next thing you should open is the smallest box. Open it immediately."

Mr. Bucket handed Charlie the small box like it were a time bomb and only Charlie knew how to turn it off. The little box wasn't wrapped as tight, and Charlie was able to get it open with ease. When he lifted the top of the box off, he pulled out a brand new cell phone. A brand new cell phone that started ringing almost immediately, although, instead of the normal ringing, it played Someday by Nickelback. An odd choice for a ringtone in Willy and Charlie's parents opinion, but to Charlie it was tame compared to some of the ringtones he heard going off after school.

"Hello?" Charlie asked, not sure if anyone was going to answer.

"Charlie? Is this Charlie Bucket?" came a southern feminine voice from the other end.

"Yes..."

"Hi Charlie! I take it you got the package then?"

"Er...yes. But may I ask who this is?"

There was a slight pause on the other end, followed by, "Oh my god, I'm sorry! I completely forgot! Of course you wouldn't remember me. I'm Joss, your cousin Charlie."

"You're...You're my cousin?" Mrs. Bucket's eyes seemed to light back up again when she realized exactly who had sent the package.

"Aw, Charlie, I'm so sorry that we haven't gotten to know each other. This must be a real shock to you."

"It's alright. Yeah, I'm surprised, I didn't know I had a cousin in the United States."

"Yup yup! I'm living in Kentucky. My southern accent must be strange for you to hear, huh?" Joss laughed. "Say, can I talk to your mom for a minute?"

"Uh-huh, okay." He handed Mrs. Bucket the cell phone. "She wants to talk to you."

Mrs. Buckets eyes were tearing up when she placed the phone up to the ear. "Joss? Oh sweety is that really you?" While Mrs. Bucket was talking to her niece, Willy looked at the envelopes. "Charlie," he began, "It looks like this one's supposed to be opened next." He picked up the purple envelope that read "Charlie: Me next!" and passed it to Charlie.

When Charlie opened the next one, he pulled out a card from inside. On the front was a picture of a spiky tri-colored character with an odd contraption strapped to his wrist and in the other hand were cards. "Who is that?" Willy asked, looking at the card.

Charlie looked at Willy with a look that said, how could you not know! Then, remembering who he was talking to Charlie explained the show called Yugioh that aired on television. He opened the card to see the words Happy Birthday stretched across the inside, followed by a handwritten mini-letter that Charlie assumed must have been from Joss. "Dear Charlie, I'm sorry that I haven't been able to wish you a happy birthday all these years. I tried sending letters but they got returned saying you had moved a few times, so I finally was able to track you guys down to where you're staying now. I hope that I can make it up to you somehow. That's why there's such a big box in the bottom. Open that one up. Again Charlie, I feel just awful about not being able to send you something for so many years and that I will do all that I can to make it up to you. The cellphone is yours to keep, unless your parents want to hang on to it for you. I know you're responsible though. It's already paid off for a few years, and I'll continue to make payments on it until it's completely paid off, so don't worry about that and tell your parents not to worry about it either, cause I know they will worry. Love, your cousin, Joss."

Mr. Bucket picked up the large box and slid it across the table to Charlie, who began to tear into the wrapping paper like it was his first Wonka bar ever. With the help of his father, they cut past the tape and Charlie pulled back the flaps only to find more packing pellets. Charlie dug into the box and pulled out a large set of books, along with a folded over piece of paper. He opened the paper first and read it out loud. "Charlie, I don't think you have these books, and I thought they'd be a good addition to your collection. These are great reads and you can really get into them. I should know, I've got my own set at home! I hope you like fantasy books as much as I do! Happy Birthday Charlie! -Joss"

"What books are they, Charlie?" Willy asked.

"Well let's see..." Charlie began shifting through the stack of books. "Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone', 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets', 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban', 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire', 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix', and 'Harry Potter and the half-Blood Prince'...hey I know about these! There were some kids at school talking about these books! I heard they're making them into movies as well." Seeing Willy's confused expression, Charlie added, "They're books about witches and wizards, that's about all that I know."

Mr. Bucket pulled out a few more books. "Hang on Charlie there are a few more. Here you go son."

Taking the books from his father, Charlie looked over the covers. "The Lord of the Rings'...oh! It's three books in one! 'The Fellowship of the Ring', 'The Two Towers', and' The Return of the King'..."

"I think I read those back in high school, Charlie," Mr. Bucket added in. "Joss is right, those are good reads."

"There's also one called 'The Hobbit' here dad."

"Ah, now that's the prequel to 'The Lord of the Rings'. I haven't read these in so many years..." He said, taking another look at the books.

"What's this one?" Willy asked, picking up a thinner book. "Tolkien's World From A To Z: The Complete Guide To Middle-Earth...From The Hobbit Through The Lord Of the Rings and Beyond..."

"That must be a reader's guide to the books that Tolkien wrote about Middle-earth." Mr. Bucket said. "I wish they would have had that back when I first read these books, it would have helped a lot. You wouldn't believe how many times it took me to understand them," he added as an afterthought.

Mrs. Bucket's voice turned their attention back to the conversation she was having with Joss. "Okay dear. Do you want to talk to Charlie again? Alright. Charlie, Joss wants to talk to you again."

Charlie took the cell phone back from his mother. "Hey," he said in an excited tone.

"Did you open the next envelope and the other box?" Joss asked eagerly from the other end.

"Yes, and thank you! You didn't really have to do that, Joss."

"It was nothing! I wanted to get you something for your birthday, and I did. I'm still going to make it up to you, though."

"How? You're on the other side of the ocean?" Charlie asked.

"Oh! You haven't opened the black envelope yet, have you?"

"No..."

"Then open it!" Joss urged with a laugh.

"Okay, hang on." Charlie laughed. He hadn't even met his cousin face to face and he could tell that when she laughed it was contagious, despite the fact he was talking to her on the phone. He held the phone to his ear by tilting his head and propping it up on his shoulder as he tore open the black envelope that read, "Charlie: Save me for last!"

Charlie fished in the battered envelope and felt something that was thicker than paper, but it didn't exactly feel like another birthday card. What he pulled out happened to be...

"Plane tickets?" Charlie said over the phone.

"Uh huh." Joss was clearly getting riled up and it hadn't hit Charlie completely yet.

"Plane tickets..." he repeated, and then it dawned on him so quick that when he shot out of his chair it shocked Willy and his parents. "YOU SENT US PLANE TICKETS!"

"Yes! Give the boy a cookie!" Joss shouted over the phone laughing. It had been a journey and a half nearly just trying to track down her aunt and uncle and cousin for years on account of not being able to remember their previous address. With the help of some friends at the post office, and a lot of googling the internet, she was able to locate them. Joss felt so gulity for not being able to get ahold of her little cousin for so long she felt that she had to make it up to him somehow. So she went to the Barnes & Noble in town and bought Charlie the complete Lord of the Rings collection, The Hobbit, and a companion book that would help him understand Tolkien's world. She also bought him the six of the seven Harry Potter books that were released.

So to hear her cousin's voice over the phone for the first time, how could Joss not do a little dance of excitement in the middle of Starbucks?

"What is it Charlie? What's wrong?" Mrs. Bucket asked. Charlie was rooted on the spot, and his mouth kept opening and closing but nothing was coming out. Charlie eventually handed his mother the tickets.

"Charlie? Hey Charlie you still there?" Joss was back on the other line, waiting for his response.

"Huh? Oh, yeah I'm here Joss."

"What's the matter, kid? You sound kinda like you seen a ghost."

Charlie shook his head. "I'm okay, I'm just..."

"Suprised?"

"Yeah!"

"Well duh! I want you guys to come visit us in Kentucky!"

"Us?" Charlie said, confused.

"Oh I forgot to tell you. I've got a roommate. Her name's Marjee and she's really cool. She'd really like to meet all of you. We've got plenty of room and we wanted yall to come down for Thanksgiving and Christmas."

"Yall?" Charlie was even more confused now. He looked to his right to see Willy mouthing the word 'yall' with an odd look on his face.

"It's a Southern thang," Joss said, putting emphasis on the last bit. "So what d'ya say? Do ya wanna come and visit?"

Charlie looked at his parents for an answer. They looked at each other before his mother said, "Charlie, you and Willy can go to Kentucky."

From the bed they all heard the grandparents responding to what Mrs. Bucket said. "We'll be fine! Go on and have fun! It's not like we can't take care of ourselves," Grandpa Joe said.

"And there's the Oompa Loompas too," Willy added in. "They're quite taken with them so they won't be alone, and the Oompa Loompas won't let anything happen to them."

Mrs. Bucket still seemed hesitant to go. "I know Willy, but I just don't know if I should..."

Everyone could hear a distinct "Pleeeeeaaaaaasssssseeeeee?" from the other end of the phone. Mrs. Bucket laughed at her niece's method of persuading people. "Alright, Charlie you can tell her that we'll come to Kentucky."

There was a very loud "Yesssss!" from the other end of the line. "I think she heard you," Mr. Bucket said to his wife with a grin.

"Okay. Alright. Great, I'll see yall then? Okay. Bye Charlie!" Joss hung up the phone and did another little dance whilst she waited in line for her hot chocolate.

Many of the other customers at Starbucks gave her a few odd glances, but those that knew her couldn't help but smile at her child-like excitement. This was something big that she had been waiting years for. After paying for her hot chocolate Joss stopped just outside of the store and dialed another number.

"Hey, Marjee. Guess what..."

Elfbrat18: So what'd you think? Was it any good?

Whistler: This was sort of a last minute idea we got and we just had to see if it would work. And if anyone out there can help us with the first names of Charlie's parents we will be forever grateful!