III : The Confectioner
A/N- I'm going to try to update this at least once a week, but no promises.
Ummm I own this laptop but that's about it.
The bell above the door rang it's familiar tinkle and the woman at the counter straightened up to greet them. Charlie bit his lip in disappointment. She was not Miss Montgomery. She was, in fact, what Charlie imagined the opposite of Miss Montgomery would be.
"May I help you with anything this evening?" she asked in a distinct American accent.
"Er, actually I was wondering if Miss Montgomery returned yet?" Charlie queried.
The lady nodded, slightly confused. Her boss was nearly always absent, but she wasn't aware her boss had ever been exactly away in the way this boy implied. "She's in the back if ya wanna see her ... "
"Please," said Charlie, grinning from ear to ear. Beside him, a ruffled Willy Wonka whispered something about forced interaction with his adversaries.
The plump woman stuck her round face through the French doors behind her. "Francie, there's a little boy and some fop to see you," she pronounced.
"If you call me "Francie" one more time, I can't be held accountable for my actions," retorted Francis, dusting flour off her lilac apron. She removed said garment and hung it on a hook by the door.
The assistant rolled her eyes. "If ya like I suppose I could stay after and close up for ya. Since you'll undoubtedly be occupied with your guests. "
"Actually, why don't you take the afternoon off?" suggested Francis. Seeing the other woman pause, she added, "I don't like people listening in on my private conversations like I am well aware you do. Now skedaddle!" She waved a hand a shooing motion, turned on her heel, and opened the double doors with a flourish.
Charlie bit back a yelp of excitement and flung his arms around Francis. "I'm so happy to see you again!" he exclaimed.
Francis smiled broadly down at him. "It's nice to be back." She looked up Charlie's companion. "And I see you've brought a friend, Charles."
Charlie bounced back and forth on his heels. "Yep! He's Willy Wonka!"
One of Francis's arched eyebrows traveled several inches north.
Willy smiled back somewhat awkwardly at her. Social situations were not exactly his forte.
Charlie looked as if he could have gone to space on merely his happiness. "So, where did you go?"
"Before? I had business to attend to internationally that took longer than expected. I'm terribly sorry I couldn't give advance notice." She did look terribly apologetic, perhaps over-dramatically so. "I've been back for several months now, though I can now understand how it would prove difficult for you to pop in."
She turned her attention to the chocolatier. "Would you like some coffee, or tea? That is, if you're not in too much of a rush. I know how business gets during the holidays."
Charlie was acutely aware of Willy's impending declination, so he hurried to cut it off. "Tea would be excellent, please!"
Willy wished fervently for a natural disaster to interrupt his imminent 'fraternization with the competition.'
They sat at a little round table in the window, sipping purple tea from a curious transparent tea set. "Unfortunate that I wasn't here for the contest," said Francis, stirring yet another mint green sugar cube into her tea. "I heard it did marvelous things for the tourist industry."
Charlie was still glowing and unable to sit still. "It was fantastic!" he exclaimed, putting extra emphasis on the last three syllables. "And now I'm heir to the factory!" Out of the corner of his eye he could see his mentor slowly sliding as far away from Francis as he could without attracting her attention.
"So I heard. The newspapers were in quite the tizzy." She took another sugar cube - although this one was light pink - and dissolved it into her tea.
"I had to quit school 'cause of the reporters; that's partly why I didn't come by for ages," explained Charlie. He wasn't sure how else to explain his lack of visits.
"You really didn't miss much, except for Gwendolyn takes over when I'm absent," Francis assured him. "On the other hand, I missed quite a bit. Perhaps I could have you over for dinner sometime, and you could get me all up to date. You ought to bring your family, or someone. I've never met them!"
Charlie was surprised at her offer. All their previous visits had been at the shop, and although he assumed she knew he took the sweets she gave him home to his parents, they had never had a conversation about the matter. Come to think of it, they had never had a conversation about parents at all. Perhaps Francis, like Mr. Wonka, was touchy about the subject. No matter, he was an expert at dealing with Mr. Wonka's quirks, so surely Francis's would be no big deal.
"That'd be fantastic!" he agreed. "Just let me know when!"
A/N: Don't! Go! Into! Strange! People's! Houses! Even! If! They! Are! Friendly! And! Give! You! Cake!