Boston….18 Years Ago
A young Emma lives in a group home. The children stand outside and watch one of the girls leave with a family. As the children return inside a tearful Emma does not follow. A woman gives her words of encouragement that her day will come.
Tallahassee
Emma watches Neal skillfully pick a lock. He and Emma visit a carnival after hours. They sit on the carousel and get to know each other. Neal explains life was good once and then his father changed. He tells Emma that you know you had a home when you miss it.
Storybrooke
Henry catches Emma off guard when he tells her he has been searching classified ads for an apartment.
I have a romantic evening with Robin in front of the fireplace. Over kissing and eating we talk about how we feel responsible for our lost loves. We are lucky to now have each other and open up again. I admit that Tinkerbell once led me to him and I recognized his tattoo. He chuckles over this.
Rumpelstiltskin hides his dagger. Belle enters the shop and tells him that holding what she thinks is the real dagger is too much for her. She asks of him to store it. He insists that she keep it. He changes the subject to their upcoming marriage.
At the Diner everyone celebrates. Henry looks at the book of Fairy Tales. Mary and David reminisce over pictures in the book. Hook makes an implication that Emma intends to leave Storybrooke. This causes alarm for myself and Henry. Emma walks out. Hook means to follow her. He is given the book of Fairy Tales. Henry is the first to notice a light coming from the portal. They all agree that until they figure out what happened no one should go near there.
I head to Zelena’s jail cell. It is empty. Immediately I believe that Rumpel did something. He looks us in the eye and denies this. We decide to replay camera footage. Rumpel is able to alter it making it look like Zelena killed herself.
David tries to call Emma and warn her about the portal. She ignores his calls. Hook joins her with the book. Emma tells Hook that if he looks through the book he will not find any pictures of her or her story. He reminds her that her memories of New York are not reality. Emma notices the light shining from the portal and immediately runs to check it out. Hook follows her. Hook pleads with Emma not to go near the portal. Emma is being sucked in and Hook holds on to her. He finally loses her and goes in the portal after her.
Enchanted Forest
Emma and Hook arrive in the Enchanted Forest. She immediately figures out where in history they are when she sees wanted signs for Snow White. Emma and Hook look through the book. She gets an idea to seek out Rumpelstiltskin. They hide as they see my carriage approach. I emerge from my carriage and terrorize the people. To further my point I display a woman being held as my prisoner for assisting Snow White. I tell them that she will be executed and so will anyone else who gets in my way. Emma wants to help the woman but Hook reminds her they must find their way home without altering the past.
Emma changes into more time period appropriate clothing. The corset dress pleases the pirate. Emma and Hook wander into the moment when Snow and Charming should meet. Emma makes a noise which causes Snow to fall from a tree. Snow does not ambush Charming and Katharine. Instead the mix up allows Charming and Katharine to arrive at their new home in Midas’s castle. Snow goes her separate way to seek passage from Blackbeard who fortunately for them has little interest in helping her as she has nothing to pay him with.
Emma and Hook find the Dark One. Rumpelstilstkin immediately attacks Hook. Emma catches his attention when she mentions his son. Emma goes on to tell Rumpel about his plan to enact a curse so he could find him. Rumpel listens when Emma and Hook explain they are from the future. At Rumpel’s castle Emma asks for his help to open the portal. She admits a mistake was made and that the meeting of Snow and Charming never took place. They are interrupted by Belle who at this time is Rumpel’s servant. It is hard for Emma to to contain herself. Rumpel rudely dismisses Belle and is surprised when Emma mutters she is surprised they fell in love. Rumpel finds it absurd he would fall in love with the help but immediately switches back to the matter of Snow and Charming. The Book of Fairy Tales is now half blank. Rumpel tells them that Snow and Charming can meet at the royal ball. Hook devises a plan.
Hook sees his past self drinking. Emma means to distract him while Present Hook talks to Snow White. Present Hook goes out to his ship where Smead finds his behavior strange. Hook goes to a lower deck to speak with Snow. He tells her that he will offer her safe package in exchange for Charming’s wedding ring he carries. Meanwhile in the tavern Emma and Past Hook get drunk and she flirts with him. She can no longer put him off and finally agrees to go on his ship with him. Smead is confused and wonders why Hook’s vest keeps changing. Past Hook dismisses Smead. Emma goes to the lower deck and finds Present Hook. Past Hook makes his way down there and begins kissing Emma. Emma means to distract him so Present Hook can leave but Present Hook instead punches his past self out in jealousy. He tells Emma tomorrow his old self will blame it on the rum.
Outside Midas’s castle Hook and Emma wonder if the plan will work. Rumpal appears. Rumpel acts as a fairy godfather and gives them an invitation to the ball and alters their appearances and clothing.
In the castle the couple is approached by King Midas. Emma calls herself Princess Leia and introduces Hook as Prince Charles. Emma sees people dance. She is surprised when Hook leads her into a waltz. Outside Snow scales the castle walls. Inside Katharine rejects a dance with Charming claiming her feet hurt. Annoyed by this he sarcastically offers to get her different shoes.
I enter the ball which causes silence. My knights follow. Hook tells Emma not to panic.
Snow finds the ring. Charming finds her. Katharine walks in on them as Snow knocks out Charming. Katharine yells out that Snow White is here. Snow manages to escape. She is almost caught by an arrow but Emma intercepts the knight. I have my knights take Emma captive.
Emma is in my prison. Next to her is the same woman I captured earlier in the day. The woman is fearful for her family so she will not reveal her identity. She warns Emma that everyone in the prison will be executed the next day.
Charming catches Snow in the forest. The meeting is almost the same as it was in the past except Snow had dropped the ring. Emma has it in the prison. Hook comes on the scene and tells them this. Snow tells them that she knows the castle and can rescue the princess and get the ring back making everyone happy. Charming agrees to this. They smuggle Snow White in a carriage driven by Hook. Meanwhile Snow and Charming talk and get to know each other better. Once they are close to the castle Snow leaves them to prepare. Over a bonfire Hook tells Charming that he can see he is not happy about marrying Katharine. A woman in a red cape comes and introduces herself as Red. As she removes her cape she tells them Snow sent her to help them.
Emma plays with the wedding ring. She finds a wooden spoon. She removes the wire and uses it to pick the lock just like Neal had taught her.
A knight is caught off guard by a werewolf. He means to escape but is instead taken out by Charming. Emma finds them. She has also freed her cellmate. Hook advises against this reminding her that saving this woman is altering the past.
Snow enters my chambers. She means to use dark fairy dust on me. I am able to stop this as I use dark magic. I have my guards take her so I may finally execute her. I have Snow tied to a stake. At this moment Emma, Hook, Charming, Red and the woman see but cannot stop me. I throw a fireball at her.
Emma is later comforted by Hook. She then realizes if she is alive then Snow is too. There is a ladybug on her. Charming stops them from killing it remembering that Snow told him dark fairy dust can transform someone into an insect. The Blue Fairy comes. She recognizes Emma but does not give away her secret. Blue transforms Snow. Emma hugs her mother who looks confused and does not recognize her. Snow walks away with Red. Hook mutters to Emma that they are back on track.
Snow thanks Charming for saving her and offers to fill his canteen. Hook is still concerned about their new guest. She does not want to come to the future even though Hook and Emma explain she is supposed to be dead. Emma knocks her out.
Charming realizes Snow took the ring. He follows her to the bridge. Again this was part of the story except now Snow already used her fairy dust. Hook and Emma race to the bridge. Snow is able to trick the trolls into thinking she has fairy dust. It works and they leave. Emma is relieved. The pages come back the book of Fairy Tales.
Emma and Hook return to Rumpel’s castle. He tells them that he cannot open the portal but he is making himself a Forgetting Spell. He tells them only the can open it and gives Emma a wand. He then banishes them to the room where he keeps his dark artifacts. Hook tells Emma that she has her magic back. She does not believe this. Emma tearfully tells him that Storybrooke is home and she want to go back. Hook shows her that she has her magic. The wand is illuminated. Emma opens the portal. Hook goes through with the woman. Emma is about to follow but instead is grabbed by Rumpel. Impressed they opened the portal he demands to know what happened with his son. Emma admits he found Bae and that he would die. She pleads with Rumpel not to change this as Bae died a hero. He finally lets her leave. Rumpel drinks his potion as the portal closes. He looks around the room confused wondering why he was in there.
Return to Storybrooke
When Emma and Hook return she asks him to stay with the woman until she wakes up. Emma runs to the Diner.
Emma explains what happened. At the Diner they look through the book. There is now a picture of Emma at her first ball dancing with Hook. David grabs everyone’s attention. He announces that the baby has a name. They will call the boy Prince Neal. This announcement pleases Rumpel.
Emma goes outside to find Hook. They believe everything is back to normal. She asks him how he escaped the last curse. Hook admits that he traded his ship to run and help her. Emma leans in and kisses him. They continue to kiss.
Meanwhile in the forest a private wedding ceremony takes place. Archie and Belle’s father watch as Belle and Rumpel exchange wedding vows.
I am so happy at the moment as I walk with Robin and Roland. We make our way to the Diner. Emma is concerned the woman will be fearful of me. She comes to me and warns me of what took place. I see the woman and my heart sinks. It is Marion. Marion is reunited with Robin and Roland. I am so angry with Emma. I make sure she knows she has just destroyed my happiness as her mother did years ago.
At the site of a ritual a bottle appears. It opens. A form materializes. It is Elsa of Arendelle.