The Power of Chocolate.

My friend and I used to go on these photo safaris, we’d walk around the city with our cameras out just looking for cool stuff to film when, one day, we came across a factory. It began in a dark alleyway near Steem Lane that seemed to be a total dead end, yet as he leaned against the wall drinking a can of Fanta, the bricks shifted. It shimmered and our surroundings faded. Instead, we found ourselves within the crumbling courtyard of an abandoned Georgian manor house. An ornate sign hung proudly above the door inscribed with the words ‘The Power of Chocolate'.

The front door was smooth, solid mahogany and without any trace of a handle. Slowly, I touched my fingers to the grain; then we stood back in amazement as a wide gap appeared. We walked into the entrance hall and were immediately struck by the fact that inside was spotlessly clean, before following lit signs for the ‘Tasting Room'. We opened the door then gasped and quickly stepped back, at first not at all sure what we were seeing. On tall red plinths were hundreds of chocolates of all shapes, sizes, and colours. They looked so fresh, as if they’d been handcrafted this morning but that couldn't be right could it?

Each plate of confectionary had a handwritten sign which read ‘The Taste Is Ours, But The Choice Is Yours’ and then a tiny description that mentioned flavours and, oddly, side effects. We looked at each other, shrugged and I reached for the nearest chocolate - ‘Feather Light With Happiness'. I popped the small, round morsel into my mouth and a super sweet, creamy vanilla sensation exploded onto my tongue followed by hints of caramel! However delicious, the taste was nothing compared to the aforementioned side effect. My friend frantically started pulling on my leg as I’d suddenly become a human bubble! I signalled to him ‘get me down!’ He took another look at the card and held up ten fingers while flashing his hands. Luckily, I could already feel myself floating gently downwards.

‘Wow,’ I muttered ‘these are some crazy weird sweets.' We slowly wandered among the rows sampling treats and marvelling at their strange effects. ‘The Truth, The Whole Truth’ a pink raspberry lemonade flavoured treat left you unable to lie for ten minutes. I used this to my advantage, and laughingly asked him whether it was him that broke my PS4 controller the other week? Of course it was! Another chocolate was labelled ‘Squidgy Squodge, Mold your Podge’ which, if ingested, would let you mold your body fat into any shape, maximum of again ten minutes. Luckily my body returned to normal, otherwise I would've had some very large bingo wings on my arms.

We were both incredibly curious about a platter labelled ‘Tick Tock, Rewind The Clock'. Apparently, this would give us the chance to erase one bad mistake from our lives, but after ten minutes we’d forget about it. He immediately grabbed one and even though I couldn't hear what he was saying I understood just how desperate his plea was. When he opened his eyes I saw a flash of gold in them and then for a few moments he couldn't stop crying.

I chose to leave that tray well alone and instead plumped for one that advertised ‘Your Future’s Bright Tonight'. It promised a ten-minute preview of what my life could be ten years down the line, but would give me no directions on how to get there. I realised, before popping the lemon scented candy in my mouth, that this would drive some people stark raving mad. Vague images flashed before me; Steemit functions, family celebrations, a wedding, babies, a kids tea party but the picture flickered like an old cine movie, and I could tell that nothing had been set in stone.

Some of the chocolates were a lot more serious than others. A jet black liquorice one whose sign read ‘Last Goodbye’ would give you the power to speak to someone who’d died, one more time, hug a beloved pet who’d passed over long ago or even have a final confrontation with an ex-partner.

Finally, we chewed our way to the other side of the room and saw another door marked ‘Office.' Well, what the hell, we’d come this far! We pushed it open and entered what looked to be, on first sight, a rather cluttered library. In the centre sat a small, impossibly old woman who looked up at us, eyes twinkling and in a soft, quiet voice said ‘did you enjoy my chocolates?’

We were both utterly speechless. Had someone been watching us all this time? ‘Don’t worry’ she said. ‘My family made these chocolates for people to enjoy, but sometimes things would get a little out of hand.' She chuckled, as if half remembering something now lost in time and squeaked ‘It’s a real pleasure to have people visit the Tasting Room once again.' She invited us to sit by the fire and revealed that long ago, when people still believed in magic, her family were responsible for granting what we’d call wishes. None of that fake wand and glitter stuff, instead they would create treats for humans, that would, depending on the choices they made, change their very lives.

Business was brisk, but over time people turned their backs on the old ways, and now hardly anyone felt the strange pull of the alleyway; so in a hurry they were, and always glued to their electronic devices. She politely explained that the factory was no longer in business ‘on this side at least’ whatever that meant and that technically she was breaking the rules. When we questioned this, she just smiled enigmatically, telling us that once we left we’d always have the memory of the factory, but we’d never be able to come back. She stood, beckoned and the two of us walked through a white door only to find ourselves back in the alley. I looked down at my watch on instinct and realised it had all been, yes to the very second, exactly ten minutes.