A Curse that can't be Broken

The Magic Man, Part 2

Coal looked to Regina with wide eyes as she handed him her mother's spell book. Coal took the book and still gave Regina a very quizzical look. 

"What? I promise there are no strings attached." She told him holding her hands up in defense. 

Coal took in a small breath as he turned to the book. He placed a hand on the cover before slowly opening it. He stopped when Regina placed a hand over his. He looked up to her and found a worried look in her eyes. 

Regina had her eyes on the book for a moment. She looked to Coal and forced a smile. 

Regina could recall teaching Henry magic. Being able to do that again made a shiver run up her spine. It was like teaching Henry magic for the first time. 

"Sorry." Regina took her hand back quickly. 

This left Coal speechless. 

Regina cleared her throat as she regained her stature. She noticed that Coal had his eyes locked on her as she did so. "Ready?" she asked with a gentle smile. 

Coal slowly nodded. 

Edith hid behind the door frame as she watched the two intensively. She squeaked a bit when both Coal and Regina turned to the book. 

But both looked up when they heard her squeak. 

"How long have you been there?" Coal asked shutting the book quickly. 

Edith tried to hide herself behind the wall as best as she could. "Not long." She squeaked again. 

"Liar." Coal stated. 

Edith revealed herself from behind the wall and sighed roughly, "Maybe a few minutes." She didn't make eye contact. 

Coal scrunched his face and narrowed his eyes at her. "I know when you're lying." Coal pointed out. 

Edith let her shoulders drop as she dramatically dropped onto Regina's bed. "You caught me!" she whined. 

Coal rolled his eyes and shook his head at Edith. 

Regina couldn't recall ever seeing the two fight or get mad with one another. This side of them told her that they were still children in a lot of ways, despite how old they claimed to be. 

"She can join us." Regina stated. 

Edith tumbled off the bed and rushed over to her, wrapping her arms tightly around Regina. "Mom said I can." She gave Coal a snarky look. 

Coal just looked angered. 

"What could possibly go wrong?" Regina asked Coal. 

Coal gave her a very dull look and rose a brow at her. 

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Uther made his way slowly down the main street of Storybrooke. His eyes wondered as a joyful smile stuck to his face. As he passed others, he would greet them and watch them as they walked by. His eyes set on a small diner not too far out from where he was. 

The rain still continued to fall, but he payed no mind to it. Instead he seemed to enjoy the rain. 

He made his way into Granny's restaurant and immediately spotted a few things. A sly smirk came to his face as he made his way to the bar. 

"What can I get ya?" Granny asked as she pulled out her note pad and pen from her white hair. 

Uther looked to her and folded his arms on the counter as he leaned in. "Coffee if you don't mind." he told her. 

He glanced over his shoulder and turned back to her just as she was walking away. "And a slice of apple pie." He smiled. 

Granny nodded and went about getting his order. Leaving him to look about at the other customers. Within seconds his eyes locked onto a girl in the back corner. She was young, had fair pale skin and long black hair, which she had placed up into a careless bun. 

He looked back to Granny when she placed his order in front of him. Uther pulled out his wallet and placed a large bill on the counter. "Keep the change." He winked at her as he picked up his coffee and pie. He slipped from the bar stool and made his way to the back corner where the young girl sat. 

Placing his coffee and pie down, he took the seat right across from her in the booth she was quietly sitting in. 

The girl was startled and had to fix her thin black framed glasses. She looked to Uther with large green eyes before looking around the restaurant. "I'm sorry.. Do I know you?" The girl asked as she watched him take a sip from his coffee. 

Uther fluttered his brows at her and smiled brightly. He placed his cup down and leaned back in his chair. 

"You wont remember me, but we do." he told her. 

The girl frowned and sunk in her chair. "How?" She asked. 

Uther still held a large smile on his face as he leaned forward. "I know for a fact that you can't remember who you are." he told her. 

The girl narrowed her eyes at him. 

"No matter how many times you have lost your memories... You will always be a mystery to yourself." He tilted his head. "So what name do you go by these days?" he picked up his cup and took another sip. 

The girl looked down to her books that almost covered the table. She started to shut them quickly but stopped when the man placed a hand over hers. He shook his head at her. "You wont find your story in those." He picked one up. 

The girl gulped at Uther's words. "How do you know about my story?" she asked. 

Uther smirked as he shuffled through the books, finding one that seemed interesting. "The sword in the stone... what a classic tale." He opened the book. He looked back to the girl. "To bad they never got anything right." he shrugged as he dropped the book on the table. 

He looked over the other books and waved his hand nonchalantly. "But then again... They never really did get any of them right now did they?" he asked. 

"Katie is this man bothering you?" Granny asked as she stormed over to the table. 

Katie looked from Granny to Uther. 

"Old friends." Uther smirked. 

Granny wasn't buying it. "I think you should leave." Granny crossed her arms over her chest. 

Uther looked from Granny to Katie. "Do you want me to leave Katie?" he asked. 

Katie sunk further into her chair, "Yes, please." She almost whispered. 

Uther thinned his lips before nodding. He stood up and picked up his coffee. He downed the cup and took a bite from his pie. "Well then... I guess it's time for me to go." He stated as he waved his hand and his cane appeared with a pop. 

"We'll have to play catch up another time." He told Katie. 

He looked to Granny and gave her a nod. "Have a pleasant day." he walked past Granny and headed for the door. 

Granny watched him leave before turning back to Katie. "You let me know if anyone is bothering you." She pointed to the young girl. 

Katie nodded slowly. "I will." She fixed her glasses a bit. 

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Uther continued on his way, heading across the street to another famous landmark of Storybrooke. He glanced back at Granny's restaurant before heading into Gold's shop. 

To be continued...