Lottie Morgan decided to visit her Uncle Andrew and his family at Wonka's Chocolate Factory. Little did she know that she was about to enter a magical, delectable world and capture the heart of the sweetest of men.

"All that is gold does not glitter; not all those that wander are lost."

J. R. R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, 1954

Based on the 2005 Tim Burton film, starring Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka.

"Life seemed to be merely a quick succession of busy nothings" mused Lottie, as she lay down that night on the little mattress on the floor of Charlie's room. The Wonka-inspired décor all around her did nothing to quell her thoughts about a certain enigmatic chocolatier.

Could he be a kindred spirit? She thought of Mr. Wonka's remarkable understanding and perceptiveness as far as she was concerned. He seemed almost to "fly on the wings of imagination itself," she reflected breathlessly. In her mind's eye, she saw someone who was singularly well-matched with herself, who could scale the heights of Fudge Mountain as easily as she built her own castles in the air.

A bump from downstairs quickly brought her back to herself. Brushing a hand through her chestnut hair, she resolved to get her mind on the task at hand.

Her laptop open in front of her, she proceeded to read her emails. Her eye quickly darted to a message from her friend Moira Barnes with a subject line of "I found a guy for you!" She quickly opened the message, and this is what she read:

From: Moira Barnes Charlotte Morgan (cmorgan I found a guy for you!

Hi Lottie! How are you? I hope you're doing okay up there in Candyland. How are your relatives doing? Did you eat lots of chocolate:)

Well, I hope you didn't gain too much weight, since I found a guy I think you'd like. He's a cousin of my friend, Alex (you remember, the X-ray technician with the beard?) His name is Cyril Bettenhausen and he's a tax account with Blake Industries. He assesses the effects of taxes on business decisions and performs tax planning to lessen the impact of taxes on businesses. He's also writing a book entitled Personal Fiscal Management: The Perils and The Pleasures.

Anyway, he seems stable and dependable and well versed in the tax code. Let me know if you'd like to meet him and I'll arrange a double date! I know a legal researcher I've had my eye on...

Talk to you later!

- Moira

Lottie sighed, considering that Moira never really understood her flights of fancy. Of course, Moira was a back-end programmer with a specialty in Oracle databases. Fantasy was not Moira's forte.

Lottie considered Cyril's description. Stable. Well, that's not so bad. Dependable. Sounds nice. Well versed in the tax code. Lottie had no serious objection to fiscal responsibility.

Lottie hit the Reply button her on laptop, intending to allow Moira to fix her up with this tax accountant. It was time she got serious about her future and stop dwelling on things that could never be. It was time to grow up and except responsibility- to walk calmly along life's path.Pondering what to write, she looked around the room.

Her eye was drawn to the large picture of the chocolatier himself hanging on the wall of Charlie's room. Her breath caught in her chest as her thoughts were again drawn to this remarkable man…

Only in their dreams can men be truly free.

'Twas always thus and always thus will be.

Yes, Lottie thought, Mr. Wonka was absolutely right. She would not throw her dreams away on reason and pragmatic concerns. This was, after all, her own heart.

Jaw set, Lottie looks down at the keyboard on her laptop and, after replying to her inquiring of her relatives' health, began "I'm sorry, Moira, but I'm not really interested in a tax accountant…"

Lottie smiled and caught her reflection in the mirror. No, she thought, she could never be content with an average life. Whether Mr. Wonka was attracted her or not, she must be true to herself. She mused…

Still round the corner there may wait

A new road or a secret gate,

And though I oft have passed them by,

A day will come at last when I

Shall take the hidden paths that run

West of the Moon, East of the Sun!