Lucky Sweetheart (Version 1)

Ch 12: The Nut Room

"Without the boat, we'll have to move double time just to keep on schedule." Willy told everyone as they walked down a red and white hallway. "There's far too much to see."

Ivy walked beside Grandpa Joe so he doesn't have a hard time following Willy Wonka. He was in the back of the group and Ivy didn't mind walking beside her grandfather.

"Mr Wonka?" Charlie piped up.

"Yeah?" Willy Wonka looked to Charlie.

"Why did you decide to let people in?" Charlie asked curiously.

"Well, so they could see the factory of course." Willy stated. It was a simple answer, but it seemed that there was more behind it.

Charlie inquired further. "But why now? And why only five?"

Mike pushed past Charlie and asked greedily, "What's the special prize, and who gets it?"

"The best kind of prize is a sur-prize!" Willy answered Mike and then laughed.

Veruca pushed past Mike. "Will Violet always be a blueberry?" The little spoiled brat asked. She seemed all to happy about the fact that Violet became a blueberry, and now she was out of the way.

"No. Maybe. I don't know." Willy answered her. "But that's what you get from chewing gum all day. It's just disgusting."

"If you hate gum so much, why do you make it?" Mike questioned.

"Once again, you really shouldn't mumble 'cause it's really starting to bum me out." Willy retorted.

Charlie asked yet another question. "Can you remember the first candy you ever ate?"

Willy came to a stop. He mumbled out "No", before he gazed off, growing distant again. He was like that for a moment, before Ivy placed a hand on his arm and snapped him out of it. "I'm sorry, I was having a flashback." He said dreamily.

"I see." Mr Salt said, eyeing Willy cautiously, pulling Veruca closer to him.

"These flashbacks happen often?" Mr Teavee asked, also eyeing Willy cautiously.

An off smile appeared on Willy's face. "Increasingly.... today." He continued walking and everyone else followed him. He brought
them to a room named Nut Sorting Room.

"Ah, this is a room I know all about." Mr Salt remarked. "For you see, Mr Wonka, I myself am in the nut sorting business." Mr Salt gave Willy one of his business cards, but without sparing even a glance at it, Willy threw it over his shoulder. Ivy laughed in amusement at this. "Are you using the Havermax Four Thousand to do your sorting?" Mr Salt asked, oblivious to the fact that Willy tossed away his business card.

"No." Willy said to Mr Salt. He laughed. "You're really weird."

Willy opened up the room, allowing everyone inside. The room was bright white, and beyond the railing everyone was standing behind, was a white floor with blue swirls on it with a hole on the middle of it. Large glass containers containing nuts were suspended in the air. Tubes were attached to the containers which dropped the nuts into stations. But the most amusing part about the room was the fact that there were about a hundred squirrels, each sat on their own stool. It would seem that the squirrels sorted the nuts.

"Squirrels!" Veruca chirped happily and wide eyed.

"Yeah. Squirrels." Willy nodded. "These squirrels are specially trained to get the nuts out of the shells."

"That's very clever." Ivy said with a smile and Willy smiled faced to her.
Mr Salt, however, seemed to have a different opinion on the matter. "You use squirrels? Why not use Oompa-Loompas?"