Her Glass Heart [SwanQueen]

Chapter Two: March 11, 2008 - Regina

An entire month had passed since the day Regina discovered what she was capable of, and she had yet to tell a soul. She spent each night tossing and turning, unable to quiet her racing mind every time she closed her eyes or quell the soft pull she felt toward the mirror in her room.

Every moment she had to herself, she'd spent her free time trying to gain a better understanding of what she could do with this newfound ability, hoping that if she could understand it, she wouldn't feel so afraid.

So far, she understood that her powers only gave her an ability to manipulate glass somehow, and that her blood was required to make it happen. Or so she had thought.

The days were growing longer with spring on its way, and she took advantage of the extra hours of daylight to explore the grounds.

She hopped on her horse and rode down to the large lake on the eastern side of her land. Unmounting her horse, she sauntered into the cool water, her camera hanging by its sturdy strap around her neck.

Once she was settled onto a rock that stuck out from the surface of the water, she looked out into the distance, noting that she was alone. An idea popped into her head and she tugged a small compact mirror, round with a golden frame, out of her back pocket.

She opened up the folded mirror, then brought it up to eye level, staring at her reflection for a moment. Her brown eyes were dark as she brought the fragile mirror down hard, feeling it smash against the rock's rigid surface. It cracked with ease, and she cautiously tugged at one of the shattered pieces until it came free, the familiar adrenaline warming up inside her bloodstream. This time, she was expecting it.

She held the tiny piece of glass in her left hand, careful not to cut the flesh on her palm just yet. Her curiosity piqued as she wondered how the glass would interact with a regular stone and was determined to find out what else she was capable of.

She peered over her shoulder once more, and when she was certain nobody was in sight, she brought the edge of the glass down beside her and pressed it into the rock she was perched on, slowly thinking of what she should attempt to try next with her magic.

As she continued to think of an idea, she nervously fiddled with the piece of sharp glass, letting it glide over the rock to carve small cuts into the dark grey stone.

Suddenly, her heart began to race as the warm rush and tingling feeling washed over her entirely. She was slowly becoming a little too comfortable with the way using her magic felt, a little too much so, perhaps, but it was addictive, exhilarating almost.

She looked down at the glass in her hand, expecting to see nothing but a scraped rock in the spots where she carved the small slashes, but gasped audibly when she took in the sight of the rock below her. The regular stone was slowly transforming into glass, its dull grey surface becoming reflective before her very eyes.

She dropped the small shard she was holding, flipping her palm over to see if she had cut her hand without realizing, but there wasn't any blood visible against the tanned skin.

"That's... not possible," she whispered to nobody but herself.

But, by the time she picked up the piece of glass again, the entire rock had been encased in delicate glass, and Regina saw her bewildered expression staring back at her from the glass below.

She picked up the compact mirror and placed the broken shard back in place, and under her careful touch, it mended back together, for the first time, without the need for her blood.

She was now certain she couldn't tell anyone what she was capable of, for she would be seen as a monster — as someone to be feared. Little was understood of magic and those that wield it.

Never in her seventeen years had Regina come across another human being who possessed magical abilities, aside from the sorcerer who healed her, and her memories of that day were hazy at best. His existence was acknowledged only in hushed tones among those in the castle who crossed paths with him on a regular basis.

If she felt isolated from the world before, words couldn't even begin to explain how she felt now as she tried to quiet the screaming thoughts running amuck in her head.

"Did the sorcerer know I would have magic when he healed me?" She wondered aloud to herself, certain that the man's magical healing of her heart was the source of her abilities. She pondered over whether she should reach out to him somehow, knowing she'd be able to track him down now that he opened that antique shop on Main Street.

While the idea was a good one, fear that he wouldn't be able to understand or help her, or worse, that he'd spread the news of her possessing magic, made her dismiss the idea completely. She couldn't have the rest of her realm fearing her when she was going to be their queen one day.

She gulped down a breath, trying her best to stabilize the shakiness she felt in her limbs, as she shoved the fully-restored mirror back inside her pocket and waded to shore.