Disclaimer: We truly wish that we owned everything Wonka (chocolate-wise and Oompa Loompas), but sadly, we don't.

AN: We're very sorry that there hasn't been much Willy Wonka this far into the story, but he will really start showing up more at the end of this chapter and in the next one. Also, we truly hope that people enjoy this story…it will get better, we promise!

Chapter Two: Memories:

Watching the children run around and point at animals, Danika Sinclaire could only smile at the charming picture. Little Kylie raced around like a hyperactive rabbit, chasing her fellow classmates to all of the exhibits. The little girl's red hair was several shades lighter than her older cousin's, Kylie's blue eyes sparkling with mischief as she ran. Leaning against a nearby bench, Nika smiled and watched the little ones have their fun.

Despite what she had told Kylie before, Danika truly did wonder what went on in that factory. When she had been five-years-old, she had plopped her little red-haired self on her father's lap, begging for stories to send her into happy dreams. In the darkness of night, Nika would listen as her father had told her all sorts of fantastic things about the humongous chocolate factory, spinning her tales of the mysterious man who created the best candy and sugary treats in the world. He would look her in the eye, green meeting sparkling green, and tell her of unmeltable ice cream, gum that never lost its flavor, and of chocolate birds that moved and sang like the real thing. When storytime was over, Danika would head off to bed and dream of the treats her father had told her of.

When she had reached ten years of age, a still-curious Nika had asked her father how he knew of the wonderful things being made by the magnificent chocolatier. It was then that Walter Sinclaire had told the truth: he had once worked for Mr. Willy Wonka in his candy shop (and, eventually, his factory), but had stopped and moved to the States not long after Danika's brother had been born.

"Don't get me wrong, Pumpkin," he hurriedly said, trying to stop a long tirade from his little girl. "I loved working for him, but the thought of a better job for me and a better life for my kids was more important to me than making chocolate."

"Nothing's more important than chocolate!" protested a disgusted Nika. Her father had merely laughed and sent her off to play with her toys.

When her father had run out of stories about the candy, Nika would always ask about Willy Wonka himself, wanting to know more about the man who made people so happy but who still, for some reason, avoided people at all costs. Her father had merely shrugged and shaken his head, not able to give her an answer.

"He always was a strange one," was the response. "He was always flitting from one spot to another, never standing still unless it was to somehow improve his candy."

But Nika wanted to know more about Mr. Wonka, the man behind the chocolate. If he liked making people so happy with his work, why didn't he go outside and talk with them? Surely he wanted to meet the people who so loved him and what he'd done for them! And if not, why? She so many questions, and there had only been one way to get her answers: she had to go and find them out for herself.

At 23, a graduate from the local community college and unable to contain herself any longer, Nika had written to her aunt in England and asked if she could come for a 'visit.' Of course, her real motive was to move closer to the infamous factory of legend; what really helped was that her aunt had married a very popular dentist that lived near the factory. Aunt Marian was ecstatic when she heard her beloved niece was coming for a visit, and had told her daughter, Kylie, that a cousin was coming to be a new friend for her to play with.

A week later, Nika was on her aunt's doorstep with much more than the promised two weeks worth of baggage. Aunt Marian and Uncle Geoffrey had been less than pleased when Nika had announced her intention to move into their home in England, but after much pleading, they had agreed to let her stay until she'd found employment and a home of her own. Coincidentally, Uncle Geoff had an opening for a file clerk at his dental office, and had graciously hired Nika for the position. His excuse for hiring her was that his willowy, red-haired niece with the bright green eyes would be better at greeting guests than an old man like him (even though he was only in his mid-40s).

Sighing, Danika again turned her attention towards her young charge. Kylie had become quite attached to the cousin she had only known for six short months. The family resemblance was undeniable: the two girls had the red hair that ran in the Irish side of their family (Kylie through her mother and Nika though her father), though Kylie's was lighter and more golden because of Uncle Geoff's blonde locks. The two could even be mistaken for siblings, and often were whenever Nika volunteered to go on Kylie's school field trips. Even though Nika had green eyes and Kylie had pretty blue-grey eyes, it was still sweet to have people come up to them and exclaim what a wonderful pair of sisters the two of them made.

'Not to mention we share the same love of everything Willy Wonka,' Nika thought, smirking to herself.

Honestly, was it truly her fault that Kylie loved the stories about Willy Wonka as much as her older cousin did? Well, perhaps it didn't help that Nika kept the little girl up past her bedtime, enchanting them both with stories about what possibly went on behind the closed doors of the factory only eight blocks away. It still blew her mind that she lived so close, and yet so far away, from the man her father had worked for so long ago.

'I refused to give up, though,' Nika thought as she tried to focus on keeping Kylie from getting too close to the lion cages. 'I want to find out how he makes those wonderful flavors and where he gets his ideas from. I want to see the machines that make the candy and the ice cream that won't melt.'

Letting out a dreamy sigh, Danika tore her mind away from Willy Wonka just long enough to prevent one of the boys from trying to arm-wrestle a chimp through the bars of a cage.

The walk back to the school was uneventful, for the most part. Most of the kids stopped to stare at the factory for a good five minutes before Mrs. Baker moved them on, but the rest of it was quiet. The kids had worked off the rest of their energy at the zoo, and now their teacher and her volunteer aid could think in peace.

"Nika?"

Well, peace for the most part…

"Yes, Kylie?" Nika replied, trying not to rub her eyes in exhaustion.

"Do you remember what I said earlier, about sneaking into Mr. Wonka's factory?"

"Of course," she replied, smiling fondly at the little girl next to her. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, if I managed to sneak into the factory, what would you want me to get for you?" Kylie asked, giving her most innocent look as she spoke.

Nika raised an eyebrow. "Well, first of all, I'd like a chance to go in with you so I could talk to Mr. Wonka about all of his ideas and everything," she slowly replied. "But besides that, I'd like a chance to get one of his candies before he put them out for the public to eat." Nika looked down at her cousin with suspicion written all over her face. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason!" Kylie quipped as she skipped down the street towards her cousin's apartment, which was two blocks away from her own. "Are you coming to dinner tonight?"

"Sorry, kiddo, but you guys wore me out," Danika joked, though she somewhat meant what she said. "I need to go home and rest before work tomorrow; your dad has lots of patients coming in to get their teeth cleaned, and I've got to be ready for them."

"Oh, okay."

Nika could hear the disappointment in the little girl's voice, but there was nothing she could do about it. She really did need to get home, and that was that. Well, maybethere was one thing guaranteed to cheer Kylie up...

"I promise to take you out for hot fudge sundaes tomorrow, though," she said, holding her hand up to swear. "Then I'll tell you even more about what I think is going on in that factory."

"Yay!"

It was just the response Nika was looking for. Smiling, the two girls made their way home.

That night:

Taking a quick glance around, Kylie Murdock made sure the coast was clear. She could get in a lot of trouble for this, but if it made Nika happy (and got Kylie some sort of fame among the other kids), then she was all for it! Her parents would probably ground her for life for breaking-and-entering, not to mention theft, but it was all worth it for this opportunity!

So, taking one last look around, Kylie slipped through the gaps in the bars of the huge iron gates of the Wonka factory, intent on getting a prize for her cousin and for herself.

A pair of violet eyes widened in disbelief at what they saw. How dare a person try and sneak into his factory! Well, people had tried it before, but they had always given up when they couldn't make it past the gates or the walls surrounding the property. This person was small enough to slip through the bars of the gate, and was too small to be a grown up, so it had to be a child…a fairly brave one, too, to actually get the nerve to try and get past his walls. Turning, he decided to deal with the little lawbreaker himself.
Nika had thought a short walk in the brisk autumn air would do her some good, considering she couldn't sleep. She was going to be dead on her feet tomorrow at work, but who cared? Uncle Geoff wasn't a demanding boss; he might even let her take a nap during lunch if she felt she needed it!

Breathing in the crisp air, Nika decided to walk past the factory and take a small sniff of the chocolate air that floated around it. The delicious, warm, sugary smell always soothed her and would likely be just the thing she needed to get her in the mood for sleep. Besides, she'd run out of that vanilla hot chocolate mix which usually put her to sleep, so a small whiff of chocolaty air might have an even better effect, wouldn't it?

She was walking by the front gates when she spotted a tiny figure she'd recognize anywhere.

"Kylie?" she gasped, not trusting what she was seeing.

Sure enough, there was her little cousin, slipping ever closer to the front doors of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory! When she finally reached the three huge doors, she saw the little girl raise her hand and feel around as though searching for a doorknob. To her surprise and horror, Danika saw a hidden door suddenly slide open and a cold pale hand reach out to grab her cousin and pull her inside.

Panicked, Nika rushed towards the gate, intent on saving her cousin. There was no other way for her to get inside other than to climb the impossibly tall gates that barred her from getting to Kylie. Fortunately, her feet were slender enough to fit between the bars of the gate, holding her up as she climbed, worried for her cousin's safety. Nika wasn't a very physically active person by nature, but the need to help her cousin gave her the adrenaline she needed to clamor over the one thing which blocked her way inside.

Once over the gate, Nika let herself drop to the ground and raced for the huge entryway she'd last seen Kylie approach minutes before. She somehow managed to get one of the doors open…and came face to face with a cold amethyst stare and the palest skin she'd ever seen in her life.

"Here to steal my recipes no doubt..."

AN: Well, there's chapter two. Sorry about the lack-of-Wonka, but he'll be in the next chapter, we swear! Please let us know what you think, we love input from readers!