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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Jan 21, 2013 17:07:19 GMT -8
Charlotte smiled as Calli took it upon herself to make sure they could leave unseen.
"Coast is clear."
"You will forever endear yourself to my aunts in no time," she said, grinning happily at that thought.
Finally, a friend she didn't have to hide from her aunts. She was sure that her aunts would like Ruby as well but the circumstances in which they met meant that she had to hide their friendship from her aunts for the time being, especially since their friendship had led Charlotte to breaking the rule of staying out of sight. That was in no way Ruby's fault as it was Charlotte's idea to bake the pies and bring them to the diner but she wasn't sure her aunts would see it that way.
Charlotte pulled her hood on and locked the door behind them. "Right this way," she said, heading for the woods.
***Calli and Charlotte leave for The Woods***
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Nov 12, 2013 20:58:12 GMT -8
***Charlotte and Henry enter from The Woods***
Charlotte pulled out one of the stools tucked under the big island full of baking utensils. "Have a seat right there while I get things going."
She was definitely in high spirits as she hummed while gliding around the kitchen in an almost dance-like way. The ovens set to preheat, some milk warming in a pot on the stove, hot chocolate fixings set out, pies set to warming in the oven.
The flitting around done with and now stationed at the stove, she was finally able to pay the proper amount of attention to her guest. "Have you always lived in Storybrooke, Henry?" she asked over her shoulder as she slowly stirred freshly ground chocolate into the pot of warming milk.
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Post by Storyteller on Nov 18, 2013 5:50:36 GMT -8
"Have you always lived in Storybrooke, Henry?"
Henry took a moment to come out of his haze, brought on by the delicious smells of the bakery, and gave his attention back to Charlotte. He gave a shrug, "I was brought here when I was a baby. I don't know where I lived before then."
Henry didn't bother asking the question back since he knew what the answer would be. It was the same with all of the citizens of Storybrooke. None of them had any memory of ever living somewhere else. Yet anyway. A wry smile crossed Henry's face as he thought about Emma and the now moving clock.
"Do you like fairy tales?"
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Nov 18, 2013 22:16:30 GMT -8
Charlotte poured the hot chocolate into two mugs and placed them on the tray with the warmed chocolate chip muffins, listening as he answered.
"Do you like fairy tales?"
Any follow-up questions regarding Storybrooke were forgotten as he brought up her favorite subject. "Oh, I love stories. Especially fairy tales," she said as she put the tray on the table and took a seat. Charlotte placed a cinnamon stick into a hot chocolate and gave it a couple stirs before placing it and one of the muffins in front of Henry and then did the same for herself. "I take it you ask because you are a fan of them as well?"
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Post by Storyteller on Nov 27, 2013 11:11:02 GMT -8
"Oh, I love stories. Especially fairy tales," "I take it you ask because you are a fan of them as well?"
"You could say that. Mmm, this is great!" Henry replied, taking a big sip of the hot chocolate and leaving a little over his top lip before taking a bite of muffin. He'd definitely be frequenting the bakery from now on. "I have a big book of them. They're a little different than the ones everyone knows though," he continued, getting back to the topic at hand. He gave her a mischievous grin over his mug, "You know, you kinda remind me of one."
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Dec 3, 2013 20:55:39 GMT -8
"You could say that. Mmm, this is great!"
She beamed at him. "I'm glad you like it." It was a wonderful feeling to hear firsthand compliments about her baking and to see the enjoyment it brought.
"I have a big book of them. They're a little different than the ones everyone knows though,"
"Oh?" she said, her interest peaked.
"You know, you kinda remind me of one."
"Really?" she said, placing her mug down as she continued the conversation with enthusiasm. "I always try to picture myself as one of the characters in a story whenever I read one. It's lovely to hear that I actually remind someone of one."
Far too enthused to finally talk to someone who shared her love of stories, she paused to catch a calming breath. "So who is it I remind you of in this fairytale book of yours?"
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Post by Storyteller on Dec 21, 2013 7:17:22 GMT -8
"So who is it I remind you of in this fairytale book of yours?"
"Well, you sing and you live in the woods with your three aunts and you're friends with Ruby. So that makes you Sleeping Beauty!" Henry grinned. It was nice talking about his stories to someone who didn't laugh at them or think he was crazy. Not that he thought Charlie would believe in the curse but at least she might humor him. "Oh, Ruby is Red Riding Hood by the way. In The Enchanted Forest, she was one of the only people who knew about Briar Rose."
Henry took another sip of his hot chocolate and waited to see what sort of response he would get. Though he knew that Emma was the only one who could break the curse, he always did hope that just by hearing their stories he could get one of the denizens of Storybrooke to remember.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Dec 22, 2013 0:19:07 GMT -8
"Oh, it would be wonderful to be her. I like her story." Charlotte thoughtfully sipped her hot chocolate as she pondered it.
Her brow furrowed. "But I'm a little confused. I don't recall a connection between Briar Rose and Red Riding Hood. Aren't those two separate stories?"
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Post by Storyteller on Dec 22, 2013 0:50:07 GMT -8
"But I'm a little confused. I don't recall a connection between Briar Rose and Red Riding Hood. Aren't those two separate stories?"
"I told you my stories were a little bit different!" Henry laughed. "Here, I'll show you!" He pulled his book from his bag, glad that Emma had returned it to him the day before. Placing it carefully on the counter, he flipped through the pages until he came upon an illustration of Briar Rose and Red Riding Hood in the forest. It was one of the truer illustrations of the book and there was a strong resemblance between the drawn figures and their real life counterparts. "See."
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Dec 22, 2013 1:31:41 GMT -8
"I told you my stories were a little bit different!" "Here, I'll show you!"
"You have it here?" Charlotte pushed her mug aside as soon as the book appeared. She excitedly scooted her chair closer.
"See."
"May I?" she asked before pulling the book closer to examine the page. She sat back, blinking as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing before once again taking a closer look. "This is... amazing," she said in awe as she gingerly touched the drawing. The book itself was amazing and the time it must have taken to put it together... "How is this possible?" she asked her thought aloud before looking at Henry. "Who made this?"
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Post by Storyteller on Dec 22, 2013 1:47:05 GMT -8
"This is... amazing,"
Henry proudly watched as Charlie poured over the book, almost reverently taking in the page. He would have to be careful not to scare her but maybe he really could get Charlie to believe. She seemed like she could be open to it! And then she could help him with Emma!
"How is this possible?" "Who made this?"
Henry shrugged, "I don't know. My teacher, Ms. Blanchard, gave it to me." He paused before continuing, "I was having a hard time at home and wasn't doing my work in school. And then she gave it to me- she said she found it in the back of her closet one day. She'd never seen it before even though she cleaned her closet every week. It just appeared there, like magic. And she said that she was giving it to me so it would give me hope. And it did!" Henry never told anyone that story before, not even Emma. But he thought that Charlie would understand and maybe it would help her believe him.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Dec 22, 2013 19:50:33 GMT -8
"That's very nice of her," she said. "Ms. Blanchard sounds like a lovely lady."
She studied the image of the blonde woman. "It looks so much like me," she said to herself. "What a wonderfully creative idea to turn the people of the town into fairytale characters and with a unique spin to interweave stories, no less. Though I wonder how they could have gotten such a good likeness when I've been hidden away until recently." She was too ecstatic at the thought of being written into a story to worry about that last fact.
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Post by Storyteller on Dec 23, 2013 1:55:00 GMT -8
"Maybe it was magic." Henry quipped, a sly smile on his face. It was almost time for him to go meet Emma at the diner but he figured a few more minutes couldn't hurt. Not when it involved Operation Cobra and a potential new ally. He could use all the help he could get. "Maybe you are all actually these people from my book and the Evil Queen put a curse on you so that you don't remember who you really are. Do you believe in magic, Charlie?
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Jan 5, 2014 20:35:52 GMT -8
"Maybe it was magic." "Maybe you are all actually these people from my book and the Evil Queen put a curse on you so that you don't remember who you really are.
He spoke with such conviction that he managed to draw her attention away from the book. An odd sensation overcame her as the drawing on the page flitted through her mind not as a drawing, but in the form of a real life snapshot of a memory. She studied him as she considered what he'd just said.
Do you believe in magic, Charlie?
The way he spoke about it; the way he wholeheartedly embraced this notion that this book was a collection of facts rather than fiction made her consider the possibility. "I want to." She looked at the page again and gently ran her fingers over the picture as the image of the surroundings beyond the edges of the drawing flitted through her mind. "I really want to believe."
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Post by Storyteller on Jan 18, 2014 18:33:37 GMT -8
"I want to." "I really want to believe."
"I do believe." Henry replied. "No one else does. But I just know it's true. It's all in the end of the book." It was a lot to ask someone to believe. Henry knew that and he knew that most people in town thought he was crazy. Charlie seemed different though. She was open to the idea and that was more than anyone else had ever been. Even Ms. Blanchard, who had never told him outright, seemed to think that it was just 'a coping mechanism'...whatever that meant. He heard Archie say it once. A knock at the window interrupted his train of thought and he looked over to see a pretty girl standing there carrying a bag from Granny's. He recognized her from his swimming lessons at the rec center. "Do you want to borrow it? You can if you want."
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Jan 18, 2014 20:53:11 GMT -8
Charlie looked toward the knocking and gave a smile and wave to Calli as she hopped off the chair and headed for the door.
"Do you want to borrow it? You can if you want."
Charlie paused halfway to the door and turned back toward Henry. "I can?" she said with a beaming smile. "I would love to! I'll take very good care of it." With her hand on the door, ready to open it, she paused once more and spoke quietly. "Do I need to keep the book a secret?"
She wasn't sure how exactly to handle such a thing. If it was indeed a collection of stories documenting an alternate life of everyone in town, what were the implications of others knowing of its existence? Henry did say that the few who already knew of it didn't believe but what if there were others such as herself who considered the possibility?
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Post by Storyteller on Jan 18, 2014 22:29:23 GMT -8
"Do I need to keep the book a secret?"
Henry thought carefully, "Just be careful who you trust. The book isn't a secret but if the Evil Queen thinks that you believe...well, it could be bad." His face brightened as he considered her question though. By the time Charlie finished reading the book, he would be surprised if she didn't believe. And that meant a new member of Operation Cobra! One who he didn't have to convince. Things really were changing!
He waved goodbye to the women as Calliope entered the shop. It was time to go meet Emma.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Jan 18, 2014 23:24:06 GMT -8
"I will," she said. "Thanks Henry. Don't be a stranger," she called after him before closing the door.
Charlie beamed at Calli, speaking and signing at the same time. "I made a new friend," she said proudly.
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Post by Storyteller on Jan 19, 2014 0:11:23 GMT -8
"I made a new friend,"
"I see that!" Callie replied, amused. "Henry's a good kid. Just watch out for his mom. She's super scary!" She approached the counter and began unpacking the contents of her bags, setting the styrofoam containers on the countertop. "I brought breakfast!"
As she finished emptying the last bag, she looked back over at Charlie, "So, how did you meet Henry?"
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Feb 6, 2014 21:42:43 GMT -8
"I see that!" "Henry's a good kid. Just watch out for his mom. She's super scary!"
Charlie made note of Calli's warning. But surely the person who raised that bubbly, enthusiastic child couldn't be all bad.
"I brought breakfast!"
"Oh, wonderful!" Charlie said as she grabbed some plates and placed them on a clean corner of the counter before clearing hers and Henry's dishes.
"So, how did you meet Henry?"
"In the woods as I was walking to the bakery," she said over her shoulder as she placed the dishes to soak in the sink. She picked up Henry's book and put it in her satchel hanging alongside her coat, thinking of the handful of people she'd encountered in the woods in just a couple days. Ruby, Aidan, and now Henry. All those years of wandering the woods without running into a single soul.
She returned to the counter with a clean, damp towel. "You know, my woods are getting awfully crowded," she said as she wiped down the counter. She liked the idea of randomly bumping into people for a friendly chat and a little company but was also leery. It went against her aunts' rules and they may start questioning if they should allow her to keep running her bakery when part of the deal was that she could easily slip in and out through the woods without being seen. She decided not to let herself worry about it. The last couple days were probably just a fluke.
Charlie looked at the containers of food, recognizing them. "Granny's? How's Ruby?"
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Post by Storyteller on Feb 15, 2014 17:34:32 GMT -8
"You know, my woods are getting awfully crowded,"
"I'll say!" Callie signed back and leaned against the counter. "It's weird, I never really noticed so many people hanging around out there before. Seems strange that it's suddenly so popular."
"Granny's? How's Ruby?"
Callie grimaced as she remembered the incident at Granny's. "I think she's had better days. Guy problems, it looked like. Do you know Kitt Walker?" Without waiting for an answer, Callie continued, "I guess he has it bad for Ruby. This morning he serenaded her in front of the entire breakfast crowd at Granny's. I'm talking full out Bruno Mars complete with jumping on tables. She seemed pretty embarrassed. Just dropped what she was doing and ran out of the diner."
Dreamily, Callie bit her lower lip, "It was pretty romantic though. I'd love it if a guy ever did that for me." The thought brought up an unbidden image of Christian to mind and she couldn't stop the goofy smile that spread across her face. "Speaking of guys....I may have met somebody this morning..."
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Feb 15, 2014 17:54:26 GMT -8
"I think she's had better days. Guy problems, it looked like. Do you know Kitt Walker?" "I guess he has it bad for Ruby. This morning he serenaded her in front of the entire breakfast crowd at Granny's. I'm talking full out Bruno Mars complete with jumping on tables. She seemed pretty embarrassed. Just dropped what she was doing and ran out of the diner."
Charlie rested her fork on the corner of the food container, looking concerned. Kitt must be the 'hot guy with potential' she'd told her about. The gesture sounded very romantic, even though she didn't know who this Bruno Mars person was. She thought any girl would have been flattered at the grand show of affection.
"It was pretty romantic though. I'd love it if a guy ever did that for me."
She nodded in agreement on both counts.
"Speaking of guys....I may have met somebody this morning..."
"Really?" she said and signed, her frown of concern blooming into a huge grin. "Is it that Bruno Mars gentleman you mentioned?"
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Post by Storyteller on Feb 15, 2014 18:14:47 GMT -8
"Really?" "Is it that Bruno Mars gentleman you mentioned?"
Callie looked confused for a moment before she burst out laughing. "No! Bruno Mars is a pop star. Though wouldn't it be something if he ended up in Storybrooke!" Unable to contain it anymore, she began to spill the events of the morning. "His name is Christian. I met him while I was waiting at the diner. He is so cute and really nice and best of all? He signs!" Once again Callie marveled at her good luck. For as long as she could remember, she had been so alone. Now here she was gabbing to a good friend about an awesome guy she just met. It almost felt unreal. Things were finally falling into place. She sighed dramatically, "It's fate, I just know it."
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Feb 15, 2014 18:46:38 GMT -8
"No! Bruno Mars is a pop star. Though wouldn't it be something if he ended up in Storybrooke!"
"Oh," Charlie said sheepishly even though she had no idea what a 'pop star' was. She couldn't help grinning at Calli's reaction. Once again, her isolated life had caused her to make a fool of herself but it wasn't so bad. Calli and Ruby had laughed at what she said, not at her.
"His name is Christian. I met him while I was waiting at the diner. He is so cute and really nice and best of all? He signs!" "It's fate, I just know it."
"He does?" she said in surprise. "It has to be fate," she said in full agreement. Glancing at the clock, she noticed it was opening time soon and her aunts would be arriving. "Will you be seeing him again?" she asked as she began cleaning up and moving around the kitchen, checking on the ovens and removing a tin of muffins. She paused to look back at Calli for her answer.
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Post by Storyteller on Feb 17, 2014 17:07:43 GMT -8
"Will you be seeing him again?"
"Tomorrow morning, we're having breakfast at Granny's." Callie signed back before slipping on an oven mitt. She took the tray of muffins from Charlie and placed it on the cooling rack. Then, removing the mitt, she placed the final three food containers in a spot out of the way from the working section of the counter. "So, did Henry tell you about his book?" she asked before she began to wipe down the counter to make sure that no stray bits of syrup remained from her and Charlie's breakfast. She would have been surprised if Henry didn't. He had been talking about it a lot lately.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Feb 22, 2014 11:45:19 GMT -8
"Tomorrow morning, we're having breakfast at Granny's."
"I'm really happy for you, Calli," Charlie beamed as she handed the tray of muffins to Calli. "I can't wait to hear about it!"
"So, did Henry tell you about his book?"
"Oh, you know about the book?" Charlie kept her smile even though she felt a slight damper on her excitement, thinking it had been more a private secret. But when she thought about it, Henry had been extremely determined to make her believe as fiercely as he did so it only made sense that he was on some sort of mission. "What did he--"
Charlie stopped as the back door opened. She quickly looked at Calli and put a finger to her lips to indicate that the book should be kept secret from her aunts. It would lead to questions of where she'd gotten it which would then lead to a flood of questions and she didn't think she could weave the web of lies needed to answer them all.
"Good morning, aunties!" she said in a sing-song voice as she gave each a kiss on the cheek.
The aunts smiled as they added their own variations of good mornings to the girls. "Are we all set, girls?" asked Aunt Fae as the other two headed to the front, each carrying a tray of fresh baked goods.
"All set, Auntie Fae!" Charlie handed one of the cooled trays to Fae and picked up the last herself. Fae gave her a look and Charlie sullenly held it out to Calli.
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Post by Storyteller on Apr 18, 2014 0:43:10 GMT -8
"All set, Auntie Fae!"
Callie saw the look of disappointment flash through Charlie's eyes as she handed off the tray to be taken up front. It had to be hard always being so careful not to be seen. Her new friend's joyful disposition definitely hid it well but Callie knew that it must bother her a great deal. As she scooped up the three other food containers in her empty hand, she made a mental note to ask the aunts about the secrecy. In no way did she want to overstep her bounds but maybe there was something she could do to help. For the moment, she just gave Charlie an encouraging smile before going to deposit the tray up front. Once the freshly baked goods were situated, she placed the containers before the aunts.
"Breakfast!" she signed, simplifying what she wanted to say and carefully taking her time in hopes that they would understand.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Apr 18, 2014 20:43:16 GMT -8
Charlie allowed herself a second to pout when the room emptied. She busied herself in the kitchen, cleaning up pans and trays and preparing new batches to place into them. She smiled as she imagined herself working at the counter, greeting people and socializing with the town folk in a casual, familiar manner, asking after their families, how their day was going, inquiring as to the progress of whatever project or hobby they were involved in.
She wandered over to the door that led to the shop area and peaked through the little window, watching her aunts and Callie. The front door opened and she instinctively jumped away, pressing her back against the wall. That was close, she thought as she sighed and shuffled back to her work.
~*~
The three ladies watched curiously as Callie placed the containers in front of them, each looking up at her with tentative smiles as Callie's gesture couldn't be accompanied with a simple, casual verbal explanation.
"Breakfast!"
The three ladies watched her, Merry and Ivy both looking to Fae for translation. Of the three, only she had had the patience to indulge Charlotte when she'd tried to teach them sign language. It had been helpful to Charlotte in becoming fluent but Fae hadn't had the time to perfect it herself.
Knowing it was regarding the food helped her to determine what Callie had signed. "What a dear you are," Fae said with a smile as she affectionately patted Callie's cheek. "Callie has brought us breakfast," Fae explained to Merry and Ivy.
Ivy's usual stern expression melted into a smile. "Thank you, dear. That was kind of you. Wasn't it, Merry?" she said, elbowing Merry.
Merry eyed the breakfast with skepticism as she did with any gesture of kindness. She grunted as Ivy elbowed her and pushed away the offending elbow before looking at Callie. That sweet and innocent face and those open and honest eyes held not a glimmer of a shrewd schemer hidden beneath. She really was a sweet child, reminding her much of her own Charlotte, she grudgingly admitted, and her usual grimace was spoiled as the corners of her mouth twitched up into something resembling a smile. Catching herself, she cleared her throat and resumed her grimace with a mumbled "thank you".
The three had only taken a few bites before a couple of customers entered. Ivy and Merry tended to them as Fae remained beside Callie and began setting the freshly baked items into the display counter, sneaking a bite of breakfast here and there.
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Post by Lady Lee-o on Oct 9, 2014 7:53:06 GMT -8
Regina was in the mood for something a bit sweet and savory, today was turning into a hell of a day. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she stumbled upon this place and wondered what she would find inside. She gave it a once over before entering inside, she loved a good bakery and maybe this would be something special? Walking around the shop she stared into the glass cases and smile, all of it looked very good but she would have to keep her glee off her face.
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Post by Hollywood Heidi on Oct 11, 2014 16:54:54 GMT -8
Ivy packaged the order while Merry rang up the customer.
"Here you go, sir. Have a lovely day," Ivy said with a grin. The patron wished them the same in return as he headed for the door. "Ow, what is it, Merry?" Ivy growled, rubbing her side and giving a glare toward Merry's offending elbow.
Callie was more familiar with the town and it's people. Merry pulled Callie close to them and whispered. "Isn't that..." Merry began but Fae confirmed it before Merry finished her question.
Fae rolled her eyes at her sisters and moved to the spot behind the glass case across from the woman. "Good morning, Madam Mayor. Welcome to our new bakery," she said with a friendly smile. "What can we get for you?"
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