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Years after being given the Chocolate Factory Charlie was now 22 and running it on his own. He wasn't as withdrawn as the previous owner was, so here he was returning with his own magical ingredients, hiding them from his rivals. The Chocolate Factory wasn't open to the public, so seeing two strangers at the front gate seemed kooky, considering no one was invited for over 11 years now, Charlie being the last. He walks up to the two women, one looking to be in her 40s and the other about 13 or 14.
"Evening ladies, what can I do for you today?"
"Oh, sorry. I thought this was Willy's factory." The older of the two says. Charlie smiles as the kid gives the lady, who looks like she could be her mom a weird look as if to say, "This man doesn't look familiar."
Charlie laughs, the older woman smiles fondly. "You might not be him but your laugh tells me who raised you."
The kid stares at him, "Who are you exactly mister?"
Charlie crouches slightly to look at her, "Well, my Little Apple Strudel, I am Charlie Bucket the owner of this magical factory."
The adult raises an eyebrow. "What did you just say?" She asks, lost slightly in her own thoughts.
"Oh just a name a friend of mine says," Charlie chuckles.
"I could have sworn I heard.. oh never mind. I'm Noodle, this is Z. We were stopping by to see an old friend of mine," the mom smiles.
Charlie stares at her with white eyes, "Noodle? Well why didn't you start with that? This friend of yours retired ages ago, making 1965 his last year."
Noodle looks surprised then saddened, "Sorry for bothering you then."
The chocolatier widens his eyes again, sticking his cane out to stop them from leaving, "Woah! Don't you want to see the wonders he's made?" He could see Noodle thinking, so he gestures his head to the gates. "Come with me and come see." Charlie smiles when he sees familiarity cross Noodle's face.
Noodle laughs a little and nods. The man smiles and walks through the gates that open automatically for him. He takes them through the main entrance and then through a shrinking room, opening the doors to a room made out of candy. Charlie hears a gasp from his side, glancing over to a surprised Noodle.
Noodle sees that Willy made his dream come true, sharing chocolate with the world and still keeping his land of candy alive, seeing it live on with Charlie made her happy. She sees two houses, the closer one being a lot bigger than the one by the chocolate river.
Noodle follows the river to a waterfall. "Mixes the chocolate to make it just right." Both Charlie and Noodle say in unison, then they share a laugh.
"Oh you sure sound like his boy... are you too another one he adopted?" Noodle smiles and tilts her head. "Speaking of Wonka, where is he?"
Charlie nods at her first question, smiling fondly at memories of his childhood and up till now. "In there." Charlie uses his cane to point to the bigger house. "But he doesn't have time nowadays for visitors."
Just then the door opens and an older man in his late 50s steps out of the house. "Charlie you know I'm never too busy for you my bo-" Just then Wonka stops in his tracks and stares at the woman next to Charlie. "Noodle?" He gasps and Noodle comes running to hug the man, Wonka lifting her off her feet in a spin. "Noodle! I never thought I'd see you again!"
Noodle giggles like a little girl again. "Neither did I, Willy, neither did I."
Z stares at her mother in confusion while Charlie smiles fondly at his mentor and his kid. They all had been waiting for this day, though none of them knew if it was ever going to happen again, not since Noodle had moved away to go to school 36 years ago.
"How've you been, Apple Strudel?" Wonka smiles brighter than the candy sun they installed a few years back.
"Not bad. Though Piper and Lottie wish you had a phone installed around here and maybe checked mail once in a while." Noodle chuckles and puts her hands on her hips. "And Larry misses having his biggest fan up front and centre." Wonka's face drops at the lack of Abacus Crunch. "And... and Abacus passed away a few years back... we invited you to the funeral but... you were busy with your own thing clearly," she giggles and gestures back to Charlie.
Wonka's upset he missed Abacus' funeral but Noodle was right, he was training Charlie how to run the factory. "What's been going on with your life? I see you have a young one of your own. A little Apple Strudel!"
"Yeah. Yeah that's Z, my daughter! Decided since I'm Noodle, someone should carry on my blood dad's name in some form, though her middle name is Will," she whispers the last part with a small smirk.
Wonka stares at her with surprise then smiles. "You sly tricky trickster!" he exclaimed, but he's secretly very proud and very honoured that his honorary adopted daughter would use his name in such a beautiful and meaningful way. "I love you kiddo. Anything else exciting in your life?"
Wonka sees Noodle smile shyly before pulling out a purple leather bound book with golden corners and Wonka written on the front. "I'm a writer and this.." the woman gestures to her book again. "This is my best book I've ever written yet!" Noodle giggles, a proud blush spreading across her face. Showing it in the same Willy Wonka fashion she had seen him do so many times before. His face lights up with a fatherly twinkle of proudness he had given to Charlie and her so many times.
Wonka stares at the book and feels his eyes welling up with tears. "Noodle... this... you never forgot about our adventures?"
Noodle laughs, one filled with love Wonka knows, "Not for a second Willy. It was a moment I forgot to feel sad, how could I ever forget you and your silly adventures?"
Z smiles. She couldn't believe she was standing in front of someone her mother had only told stories about. She notices Willy eyeing her, and she suddenly feels very shy. "Well well well, are you my little Apple Strudel's baby girl?" He asks her, leaning on his own cane that had clearly started to wear away after so many years of usage, but Willy being as stubborn as he is refuses to get it changed, as he deems today's technology simply too 'out there' for his eccentric tastes.
Z nodded. "Yep! I'm Zalia! But, I prefer the name Z." She says proudly, and Willy can definitely see his own influence magically woven within Noodle's own daughter. Willy smiles at her, a hand coming to rest upon the girl, the same tenderness he often gave Noodle in the little glances he often gave her.
He smiles, remembering those times. It’s strange, really, how can someone be the same person, but have changed so drastically in the decades they hadn’t talked? How could this ingenious orphan be just as amazing as a young independent woman as she was back then? That’s the way of the world he supposed. Something Noodle had told him at least once or twice. But he supposes that’s what she meant when she said it all those years ago. She had always been a smart girl. He mustn’t have given her enough credit back then.
He turns his attention back to her daughter, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Z looks at him, hands on her hips, just like her mother.
“Huh,” the man ponders. “Huh.” The girl echoes.
“Double huh!” Noodle says. She then turns to her honorary father figure with the knowing look in her eyes she always came to know. “I know that look. What are you planning, Willy?” She asks, knowing the answer would be just as convoluted as her adoptive father himself.
The older man chuckles, yep, she definitely was the same girl, always quick to not believe anything, but he knew that she would come around eventually. She always had.
“Oh, nothing, Apple Strudel, me and little Zberry are just getting to know each other.” he tells her, giving Z a knowing look that is clearly holding more than he’s leading on. “We’ll discuss this over some of my finest chocolate later, my little Zberry, alright?” Wonka whispers to Z, acutely aware that Noodle is discreetly trying to work out what they were talking about. But even someone as discreet as Noodle wouldn’t know everything.
Wonka hugs Noodle again. “We’ll talk later, Apple Strudel, we have a lot to catch up on.” Wonka says gently, placing a kiss on her forehead and glances over to see Charlie tipping his hat at them, smiling, then turning to Z and saying something.
Z stares at Wonka and her mom before Charlie says something next to her. “Sorry?”
“Do you want to try a flower? He asked.Charlie smiles and plucks a flower from next to the walkway. “Go on, try it.”
Z takes a bite of the flower and widens her eyes, it was better than what her mom described to her. “Can I have another?” She asks after finishing the flower.
Charlie chuckles and holds out his hand. “Come with me and you'll be in a world of pure imagination.” Z grabs his hand and he pulls her down the path, showing her a better part of the room. “Take a look and you'll see into your imagination.”
They look across the river, seeing Lofty laying in a lawn chair with a reflective sheet and eyewear on, Z thinks he looks comfy but Charlie has a knowing look that says the oompa loompa is actually paying attention to them all. She looks closer and can see a small grin on his face and smiles too. She has new adventures ahead of herself with Charlie. Everyone can feel it. Noodle watching her daughter experience what she experienced as a kid was being tears to her eyes while Willy watches with pride and his own tears forming in his eyes.