Once Upon A Fan

By Amy Degenstein-Hood

 In the winter finale this week, we finally discovered the identity of the Queen of Hearts, saw a history connecting some of our favorite characters, and learned if the Charming’s would finally make it home.  We are left with a cliffhanger to keep us talking through the winter hiatus.

     We begin in FTL of the past. A man disguised as a slave is bringing food to a prisoner in Regina’s castle. He fights with and kills the guard, and we see that he is Hook. Inside the cell, we see Belle, still the Queen’s prisoner, with marks on the walls showing that she has been locked up for a long time. Hook tells her he is there to rescue her. He says Rumple is attacking her father and he needs to know how to kill him in order to save Maurice. Belle says she doesn’t know how to kill Rumple, and even if she did, she would never allow someone hurt Rumple. Hook’s demeanor changes when he hears this. He says she is no help to him and that he is not actually rescuing her. He then backhand slaps her and knocks her out. He lifts his hook to strike her, and is stopped by Regina. Regina tells him she knows all about the “crocodile” he wants to skin in revenge for Milah. She offers to show him how to kill Rumple if Hook will do a favor for her. They share a drink and Regina tells him he must kill her mother, Cora. She also shares that she is about to enact a curse that will alter their land forever. She is taking everyone away, and does not want Cora to follow her. Hook asks where he can find Cora, and Regina tells him not to worry, Cora will find him.  Regina enchants his Hook so that he can rip out Cora’s heart. It will only work one time, for one heart. (This explains how he was able to take Aurora’s heart) Regina then says that Hook must take the dead body of the guard he killed because 2 must enter the portal in order for 2 to come back. Regina wants him to bring Cora’s body back so she can see her dead for herself. She pulls Jefferson’s hat out and tells Hook he is going to Wonderland.

     As Regina told him, once in Wonderland, Hook is captured. He is brought before the Queen of Hearts. She unmasks herself and reveals that she is Cora. She makes everyone leave and asks Hook why he came, and who he intends to take back with him. He swings his hook into her chest, and to his surprise, she laughs. She says that she is the Queen of Hearts, and does he really think she would keep her own heart in her chest. Cora then reaches in to Hook’s chest and demands to know who sent him. He tells her about Regina’s plan, and asks her to kill him. She refuses, and has another plan in mind. Cora wants to get close to Regina, so she can rip her heart out and kill her.

     Hook brings what Regina thinks is her dead mother back to the castle. Regina is all in black, with a single rose. She says her goodbye’s to her mother. Regina says that Cora was right, love is weakness. Regina says she loves Cora, and she can’t have any weaknesses when she enacts her curse. Regina cries and says she is sorry, places the rose on Cora’s body, then leaves the tomb. Hook then enters from another door and asks why Cora didn’t kill Regina. She says there was a change of plans. They will protect themselves from the curse, and Cora will return to Regina in 28 years. Cora says Regina will lose everything, and then she will need her again. She casts a spell, protecting the island and the corner of the land as the curse passes over. 

 In SB, Rumple and Regina discuss the state that Charming is in. Regina is convinced that he got the message to Snow, but Rumple is not. He says they must find the portal and destroy it to keep Cora from coming through. He convinces Regina that Emma and Snow will not be the ones coming through the portal. Regina does not want to lie to Henry, or to cause Emma and Snow to die, but she can’t allow Cora to come to Storybrooke where she could hurt Henry. Regina has been making an honest effort to be better to earn Henry’s love, but she knows how evil Cora is. Regina and Rumple leave Henry to look after Charming while they head off to look for the portal. Next to Charming’s bed is a great Alice in Wonderland lamp, made of teacups and teapots. Later on, in the mines below SB, Rumple uses the Fairy Godmother’s wand to pull all the diamonds down and turn them to dust. He makes the comment that no one is mourning for the Fairy Godmother. (Fans will recall that Rumple killed Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother and stole her wand  in season one episode “The Price of Gold”) This might be a small indication that in addition to a feud with Rumple, the fairies might not be as good as they seem ;)

     In modern FTL, Emma, Snow, Mulan and Aurora (who, unbeknownst to the others is still controlled by Cora) make it to Rumple’s old cell. They search for the ink, but first find a scroll. It is a tattered, worn piece of parchment with Emma’s name written over and over again. Mulan then finds an ink well, but it is empty. The ink is all gone. Aurora suddenly picks up a rock and hurls it at the cell door mechanism, causing it to shut and lock them in. Her friends are shocked, but then see Cora and Hook standing outside the cell. They explain that they had Aurora’s heart, and Cora has been pulling her strings. Cora uses magic and snatches the magic compass away. This compass seems to be similar to the one in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies as far as its power. In the films, Jack has a magic compass that points to whatever the holder’s heart most desires. In the case of our ONCE story, that is a way to Storybrooke. Before Hook and Cora leave, Hook shows Emma that he took a “trophy” from his conquest of the giant. He has the bean that no longer holds magic which the giant had been wearing around his neck in a previous episode. He may have just been rubbing it in Emma’s face, but I think he may have been trying to let her know something for the future. I believe he wanted to make sure she knew about the bean. 

 After Hook and Cora leave, Emma tries to break out of the cell. Her companions tell her that the cell was built to hold the Dark One, and no person could ever escape. Emma is losing faith, but Snow tells her to keep believing. Snow suddenly remembers that as a child she watched Cora use magic. She grabs the parchment that has Emma’s name all over it and blows. The ink wisps off the page and melts the cell door. Rumple used the squid ink to write the scroll. He had the power all along to escape back in FTL of the past. Aurora says she can’t be trusted since Cora has her heart, and makes them tie her and leave her. As they run out, we see Cora and Hook at the land that used to be Lake Nostos. The water is gone, but Cora waves her hand and it springs back up from the center. Cora give shook the wardrobe ashes to scatter in the water, and a portal opens. Cora tells Hook not to let go unless he wants to end up somewhere besides Storybrooke. She and Hook hold the compass, and as they are about to enter, an arrow knocks the compass to the ground. Snow, Emma and Mulan arrive to fight. The bag with Aurora’s heart is almost lost in the portal, but Hook lunges to save it. He gives it to Mulan to take back to Aurora. Mulan runs to save Aurora. Hook and Emma fight, and she knocks him out with the compass. 

     In SB, Leroy and Red discover that the diamonds and magic are all gone. The Dwarves and Red then find Henry, and tell him what has happened. He is devastated that Regina has lied to him. In the forest, Regina and Gold arrive at the well. They cast a spell that will kill anyone who enters the portal. Henry and Red arrive and try to stop them. Rumple uses magic to fling Ruby back onto the ground. Henry begs Regina to stop, and to have faith in him. He is sure that it will be Emma and Snow who come through. Regina turns to the well, and pulls the protection spell into her arms.

 As Emma and Snow continue to fight Cora, Emma jumps to save Snow. Cora reaches in and grabs Emma’s heart. She tells her love is weakness and pulls, but she cannot pull it out. Emma says Love is not weakness, its strength, and a blast of magic comes out of her and knocks Cora to the ground. She and Snow grab the compass and jump into the portal. On the other side in SB, we see Regina stumble backwards away from the well. She tells Henry she is sorry, but that it was too late to save whoever was coming through. Just then, we see a hand reach up through the well. Emma and Snow climb out and are reunited with Henry. Rumple walks away, and Regina watches as Henry hugs his other “mom”. He tells Emma that Regina saved them. Emma thanks her and they all rush back to Gold’s shop so that Snow can awaken Charming.

          In FTL we see Mulan with Aurora. She carefully places her heart back in her chest. Aurora tells Mulan that she believes they can still save Phillip, and they head off to try. At Lake Nostos, Cora tells Hook that they have failed. He smiles and shows her the bean, which he tosses into the magic water. The waters swirl, and another portal opens. 

Snow rushes to Charming’s side and kisses him. In a mirror image of what we saw when he woke Snow, Charming is woken by the magic of True Love’s Kiss. The Dwarves surround them, and everyone is happy…except Regina. Henry walks to her, and tells her that she really has changed, and he hugs her. In the other side of the shop, Emma tells Gold about what happened in FTL. She asks why he didn’t escape his cell. He said he was where he needed to be. He tells Emma he didn’t make her or give her powers. She tells him that Cora couldn’t take her heart, and he says that was all her. That she has magic inside her. She is the savior. Emma returns to the back and invites the Dwarves to accompany her, Snow, Charming and Henry to lunch at Granny’s. They do not invite Regina, and she is left alone once again. Rumple steps in and congratulates her on reuniting mother and son, and suggests that maybe one day they will care enough to invite her to dinner. Regina’s eyes well up with tears.

     As Emma, Snow and the happy group walk down the street to Granny’s, we see a fog rolling in on the horizon. In the fog is the Jolly Roger, Hook’s pirate ship. As we get a closer look we see Hook and Cora on the deck, finally having arrived in Storybrooke.