STORYBROOKE - PRESENT - NIGHT
Pan still inhabiting Henry's body, approached the wishing well with Felix. In his hand, he carried the scroll.
"You never cease to amaze me, Peter," Felix said. "Outwitting the Evil Queen in less than a day. It's impressive."
"She loves the boy. That makes her weak." They stopped at the well's opening. "This is it. This is where we'll cast it. The ingredients?"
Felix handed Pan a bag. "When it's done, will they all be dead?"
Pan took a bottle out. "Of course. They will be slaves to this new land we're making with no idea who they once were. Death is final, Felix. Their suffering will be eternal." He continued setting out various bottles as ingredients, and dropped one into the well. As it hit the bottom, the water changed to a greenish hue.
"Another curse?" Mary Margaret asked.
---
Belle, David, Emma, Henry, Hook, Mary Margaret, Neal, Regina, Derek, Odette, holding Alise, and Tinker Belle were gathered outside the vault building with Mr. Gold.
"It's happening again?" Mary Margaret questioned.
"Gold, this curse, is it going to work like the last one?" Emma asked.
"The last one was created to service the Queen's wishes," Mr. Gold replied. "This will be done per Pan's desire. I would count on something hellish."
"The curse was built to be unstoppable," Regina said. "There's nothing that can be done."
"Well, it is possible to stop it."
"What?"
"By using the scroll it itself. It can only be undone by the person who used the scroll. That's you, Regina."
THE WISHING WELL
Pan eyed one of the ingredient bottles. "What she did is child's play compared to what I have in mind." He dropped the bottle into well as the water glowed green once more.
"I knew you'd win," Felix said. "Peter Pan never fails." Pan flashed him a smile. Another bottle went into the well.
"What do I have to do?" Regina wondered.
OUTSIDE THE VAULT BUILDING
Mr. Gold said to Regina, "You must destroy the scroll. Both yours and his curses shall be ended, but know this—there will be a price; a steep one."
"W-what do you suggest?" Regina asked.
"Instead of going to him, bring him to us with a spell." Regina gave him a confused look.
"One that will return Pan and Henry to their own bodies."
THE WISHING WELL
Felix looked from inside the well to Pan and asked, "Are we missing something?"
"Yes," Pan replied.
"What is it?"
"The heart of the thing I love most."
"You mean your son's heart? Rumpelstiltskin?
"No, uh, I never loved Rumple."
Felix asked in a perplexed tone, "Well, then, whose heart do we need? Who do you love?"
"Love can be many things, Felix. It doesn't just come from romance or family. It can also come from loyalty; friendship." Felix's expression shifted to fear. "Only one person has always believed in Pan."
"That's me."
"Don't be afraid. Be flattered." He moved to take out the heart.
Felix yelled, "No, no, no!"
Pan reached inside his chest as Felix gave a pained grunt. Pan tore out the glowing red heart and began to squeeze it as Felix dropped to the ground in anguish. The heart was pressed to dust into the well.
OUTSIDE THE VAULT BUILDING
"If I'm back in my own body, that means I'll have the scroll," Henry said. "I can bring it to you guys."
"You need to be careful, Henry," Derek told him.
Henry nodded. "I know, Derek. I will be."
"Exactly right, Henry," Mr. Gold told him.
"Even you aren't powerful enough to cast such a spell," Regina reminded him.
"Well, given the proper tool, I could be."
"The Black Fairy's wand," Tinker Bell stated. "One of the most powerful fairies that ever existed. Well-versed in dark magic. The Blue Fairy exiled her, but before she did, she took her wand."
"I assume our dearly departed Mother Superior has it hidden in her residence."
"Well, what are we waiting for?" David wondered. "Let's hit the convent."
"Can I come?" Tinker Bell asked. "I should pay my respects to Blue, after all." David nodded in agreement.
"Then it's settled," Mr. Gold decided. "The rest of us should get back to my shop and prepare Henry for the spell."
Everyone began dispersing from the group. The Shadow loomed above; having overheard everything. A moment later, it flew off.
THE WISHING WELL
Pan finished pulverizing the heart, and opened his palm to let the remaining dust fall into the well. He watched with satisfaction as a thick green smoke rapidly rose to the surface.
THE ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST - CASTLE - BABY NURSERY
A pregnant Snow White approached the Blue Fairy as Prince Charming listened in.
"What if it fails?" Snow White asked. "A magic wardrobe? It's a long-shot. We all know this, so, what do we do if this plan doesn't work?"
"Then the Queen's curse will transport us to a new land," the Blue Fairy replied. "We will lose our memories and become slaves to her darkest desires. So, we have to have faith your child will find a way to save us."
"If we don't know who we are and we can't tell her that she's the savior, how will she know what to do?"
"One day, when the time is right, our story will reveal itself to her."
"Story?"
"You have to trust me."
"O-our story? What does that mean?"
"You don't know yet. But I do know it will happen."
"Then how can you be so sure?"
"Because I have the one thing you now need more than ever." Snow White gave her a questioning look. "Hope. Good luck, Snow. Have faith." She flitted out of the room.
Snow White turned to Prince Charming and said, "That's easy to say when you have magic wings and a wand."
"What can we do but choose to believe her?" Prince Charming asked.
She didn't answer and walked over to stare sadly at the unicorn mobile hanging over the baby crib. "This was supposed to be hers. We had such plans."
"Listen to Blue. Have hope we can prevail."
"This curse has destroyed every dream this family ever had."
"We don't know what the future holds for us."
Snow White turned around. "How do you know it holds anything good?"
"Because the unknown isn't always bad." Snow White looked at him in disbelief.
"Life is full of twists and turns you never see coming. This curse—it's just another turn."
Snow White was in tears. "But all I ever wanted was for us to raise our child together. That was our happy ending and now it's gone."
"The future we imagined is gone, but that doesn't mean we can't find another one. An unexpected one." He grasped her hands. Snow White contemplated his words for a moment.
"I choose hope." She turned around to glance at the unicorn mobile. "I can believe it."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT - MR. GOLD'S PAWNSHOP
Mary Margaret stared longingly at one of the unicorns on the baby mobile while touching it with her palm. Emma walked up to her. At the counter, Mr. Gold was consulting a spell book.
"This mobile hung above your crib," Mary Margaret said as Emma looked at her in confusion. "Uh, um, it was supposed to hang over your crib."
"I like the unicorns," Emma told her and they both smiled.
"Giving you up when the curse hit was the hardest thing I ever had to do."
"I know."
"Every time I look at you, I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't had to."
"I do the same thing with Henry."
"You were doing your best. You were giving him—"
"His best chance." She sighed. "Yeah. But still, things would have been very different I had kept him. We would have had a life together. A normal one."
Belle, Henry and Regina walked in from the backroom to sit down.
"Back in Boston or someplace else," Emma said. "But I guess all that was just not meant to be." She smiled at Mary Margaret, then walked over to Henry. "You doing okay, kid?"
"Yeah," Henry replied. "Just ready to be me again." Emma nodded.
Odette smiled lightly as she patted Alise's back. "You'll be yourself soon enough."
Mr. Gold was still looking at the spell book. "Not much longer now, Henry." He turned a page. "Not much longer." He snapped the book shut. "Once we have the wand, all will be as ensured."
CONVENT
In the convent, Mother Superior's body was laid in an open casket as three of her fellow nuns were in mourning. David, Hook, Neal, Derek and Tinker Bell approached from behind.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we need your help," Tinker Bell said.
"With what?" nun one asked.
"The Black Fairy's wand is here," Neal replied. "We need it."
Nun one backed away slightly. "We can never..."
"Yeah, yeah. It's a terrible thing, but what's coming is worse," Tinker Bell warned. "Where is it?"
Before the nun could answer, a pounding noise came from outside. They all turned to see something flying at high speed around the building windows.
"What the hell was that?" David wondered.
"Pan's shadow," Hook answered.
They saw the Shadow on the other side of a stained glass window attempting to get in.
"What does it want?" nun one asked.
"The wand," Hook and Derek said.
"Run, run run!" David yelled.
The nuns ushered out of the room as the Shadow entered the convent.
David said to the Shadow, "Get the hell out of here!"
"Stay covered!" Hook ordered. "Over there!"
They ran to hide behind the church pews.
NEVERLAND - PAST
Hook and one of his crewman, Smee, were traversing through the island jungle.
"Mr. Smee, you might want to pick up the pace," Hook said. "It would do our journey and your physique some good."
"Sorry, Cap'n," Smee apologized as he stopped walking and heard a brief rustle in the bush. He turned to look, but there was nothing. "It's just this place gives me the creeps." He resumed walking, and didn't see the watching eyes poking out from the bush. He then said to Hook, "Don't you think we should head back to the ship?"
"Not until I've found a way off this accursed island. We've dawdled here for too long. Now that I know there's a dagger to end the Dark One, we must return to our land. My purpose is renewed." He walked off.
"Why can't your purpose be back at the ship where it's safe?" As he moved to follow, someone knocked him out.
Hook turned around. "Smee?" Suddenly, a knife was held to his throat by Tinker Bell as she grabbed hold of his hair.
"Aren't you a little old to be a Lost Boy?" Tinker Bell asked.
"I'm not part of Pan's brigade and I can assure you I am anything but a boy."
"Who are you, and why are you here?"
"I'm the captain of the Jolly Roger and I'm here—" he winced as Tinker Bell tugged harder at his hair, "—looking for some magic to help me make my way back home to my land. You don't have any, do you? Magic?"
"Fresh out." Hook wriggled free.
"I don't buy that for a second." He forced her back a few steps. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you are a fairy."
"And if I didn't know any better—" she glanced down at his attire, "—I'd say you're a pirate."
"Guilty. So tell me, fairy, can you help me?"
"Help you?" She pressed the blade to his throat and dragged it along his skin. "Aren't you worried about me slitting your throat?"
Hook set down his lantern on a rock and moved his face closer to hers. "Well, that's not the fairy way. You should be helping me find my "happy ending" or something else equally as precious."
"I was a fairy. A long time ago. But then my wings were taken away. As for your "happy ending", you're on your own." She pulled out another weapon when she saw Hook take something out of his pocket. "Watch it!"
Hook grinned. "It's not a weapon." He pulled out a bottle. "In the traditional sense." He uncapped the top and offered it to her. "Rum?"
"What's so important back home?" She took a sip.
"The Dark One murdered the woman I love. And I intend to make him suffer for it." He drank. "My fellow captain, of her own ship mind you, is... I don't yet know what she is to me, but I care for her deeply."
"And killing him is your "happy ending"? Even by doing so, you could end your own existence."
"I'd risk my life for two things; love and revenge. I lost the first, and if I die for my vengeance, then that's enough satisfaction for me."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT - CONVENT
"So all we have to do is light the candle, right?" David asked. "That's how you trapped it in Neverland?"
"Yeah," Neal replied. "This time I say we get rid of it for good."
"I'll draw its fire," Hook said.
"You sure you want to do this?" Tinker Bell questioned.
"It's the only way to prevent this bloody curse from obliterating us all, then it's a risk I'm willing to take."
"I thought you'd only risk your life for love or revenge."
"One other important thing—me." She climbed out from behind the pew and yelled to the Shadow, "Hey!" Hook ducked as the Shadow lunged down at him. He flashed a smirk. That the best you got?" The Shadow roughly knocked him off his feet; sending Hook sprawling onto the ground. David and Derek rushed to pull him back behind the pew.
"Can you trap it?"
"No, it's too high," David told her. "We gotta get closer."
"And I can't fly up there," Neal added, coming to a realization. "Tink."
"If you didn't notice, I don't have my wings," Tinker Bell reminded him.
"Use pixie dust."
"It doesn't work."
"Tink, you made it work once," David told her. "You can do it again."
Tinker Bell slid out of the pew and uncapped the vial of pixie dust. It began glowing green. She closed her eyes in concentration, to which the dust began working for her. Neal handed her the coconut halves. She lit a flame on the candle and flew into the air to entrap the Shadow inside. Once the lid was placed on, she came back down to dump the coconut halves into an open fire.
Hook said to Tinker Bell, "Look who's still a fairy."
"Look who's still a pirate," Tinker Bell shot back. "You are right?"
"Well, I lost the hand once. It's nothing."
"For the record, I know why you risked your life back there, and it wasn't for yourself or revenge. It was for Emma."
Mother Superior said, "Well done, Green."
Everyone looked behind to see Mother Superior; restored to life.
"Blue. You were..." Tinker Bell trailed.
"Gone. I know. But when you killed the Shadow, mine was returned and I was revived. Thank you. You finally believed in yourself, Green. Tinker Bell. Welcome back."
"I'm a fairy again? Even after I disobeyed all your rules?"
Mother Superior laughed. "I might have been overly strict. You deserved your wings, Tinker Bell. And you have earned them back many times over."
Tinker Bell replied tearfully, "Thank you."
"As for the Black Fairy's wand..." She materialized it in her hand and held it out to them. "Go, save us all." She handed the wand to Neal, who departed from the convent with David, Derek and Hook.
PAWNSHOP
Emma, Odette, holding a sleeping Alise, and Regina were sitting with Henry when they turned to see David, Hook, Derek and Neal arriving in.
"She's back," David informed. "The Blue Fairy. She gave us the wand."
Emma asked Mr. Gold, "Do we need anything else?"
"Only one more item," Mr. Gold said as he opened a cabinet to take out a bracelet.
"What is that?" Mary Margaret and Odette wondered.
"This is one of the only useful things that I managed to pilfer from Greg and Tamara before they left for Neverland. It renders anyone with magic utterly powerless."
Regina said disdainfully, "I haven't forgotten about all that, by the way."
"Let me see your wrist, Henry." He cuffed it on Pan's arm. "I want to make sure when my dear old Dad awakes that he is weakened. This will lock his powers."
"So what happens now?" Henry wondered.
"I enact the spell, you fall into a deep sleep and when you awake, you're back in your own body," Mr. Gold answered.
Regina turned to Henry before saying, "Then you hang into that scroll and come find us as fast as you can." Neal handed the wand to Mr. Gold.
Henry sighed and said, "I gave my heart to Pan. I thought I was being a hero. I'm sorry."
"You aren't the one who needs to be sorry," David told him. "Pan is."
"It's time," Mr. Gold said and Henry laid down on a cot. "Keep your eye on the wand."
Henry closed his eyes as Mr. Gold casted the spell. Pan's body began convulsing.
"What's happening?" Emma inquired.
"Henry's spirit is leaving Pan's body."
The shaking continued and gradually subsided.
"It worked," Regina said.
"Let's go find our son," Emma decided.
Everyone began leaving the shop. Belle and Neal followed suit. The pair stopped when they noticed Mr. Gold wasn't budging from his spot.
"You're not coming?" Belle asked Mr. Gold.
"No, no," Mr. Gold replied. "I think not. My father and I have, uh... some unfinished family business."
Belle left him to it. Neal lingered for a beat longer and stared silently at Mr. Gold.
STORYBROOKE - PAST - OCTOBER 2011
On the outside school grounds, Henry looked at a family tree assignment he was supposed to complete. It wasn't filled in. He tucked it into a folder and slid it under his open lunch box.
Mary Margaret walked up to them and said, "Henry? You didn't turn in your homework again. Is there a problem?" Henry didn't answer, so she sat next to him. "Oh, Henry. Things really will change if you just believe it." He closed his lunch box. "Life is unpredictable."
"Is your life unpredictable?" Henry retorted. "Because it seems to me like everything is pretty much the same around here. Except me. My birth mom didn't love me. Regina says she does, but she doesn't. I-I don't belong here."
"You do belong here, Henry. You are loved." Her expression perked up as she came up with an idea. "I wanna show you something." She reached for something in her bag. "This morning, I was cleaning out my bedroom closet. Like I've done every week, thousands of times, and do you know what happened? I found something. Something I've never noticed before." She pulled out a large book, entitled in golden letters as Once Upon a Time, and places it down in front of Henry. "It was just there. Like magic."
"That's not possible."
"Well, of course not." Henry began opening the book and Aubree leaned in closer for a better look. "But it happened. This book somehow arrived." Henry turned to a page with a drawing of an older man and a young boy. "Was it given to me? Did I forget about it? I don't know, but there it was. And do you know what I saw when I looked inside?" Henry looked at her expectantly. "Hope."
Henry glanced down at the book. "Looks like fairytales to me."
"And what exactly do you think fairytales are? They are a reminder that our lives will get better if we just hold onto hope. Your happy ending may not be what you expect, but that is what will make it so special."
He placed a hand on the book. "Can... can I borrow this?"
"You can have it."
Henry smiled. "Really?"
"Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a powerful thing. Think you could use it." She got up and patted him on the shoulder. "I'll see you in class." She left.
He flipped to another page of a princess and her prince and called, "Ms. Blanchard."
"Yes?"
He looked up and was stunned to see her dressed as the same princess in the book. A moment later, she appeared as normal.
"Thank you."
Mary Margaret smiled. "You're very welcome." She continued walking away.
Henry flipped to a page of a princess and prince with an infant child and stated, "Emma." He turned to another page, seeing a blonde woman with her prince. "The Swan Princess and Prince Derek? Huh."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Belle, David, Hook, Emma, Mary Margaret, Derek, Odette, still holding Alise, and Neal were following on the streets as she sniffed out Henry's location.
"I've got a scent," Granny said. "He's nearby."
"The tower?" Mary Margaret asked.
All approached the clock tower building as Henry, now back in his original body, ran out from the library.
"It's me, it's me! It worked!" He rushed to hug both Emma and Regina. "Mom, Mom... I just saw you guys. You guys just saw me."
"But we didn't see you," Regina told him.
"He's got it," Emma said. She was handed the scroll from Henry. When she gave it to Regina, a burst of purple light came from the scroll and the mayor passed out onto the ground.
"Regina!" Emma and Odette called as all converged around Regina in concern. "Regina!"
PAWNSHOP
Pan regained consciousness in his own body as Mr. Gold stood watch nearby.
"Hello, Papa," Mr. Gold greeted.
Pan was still lying down as he said, "Thought you'd kill me in my sleep, laddie." He sat up. "I guess you changed your—" he noticed the bracelet on his wrist, "Oh, wait. I see." He scoffed. "You've taken away my magic. That's why it's so easy for you to strut around and pose now, isn't it?"
"I wanted to talk to you. I wanted you to see me and think about what you've done."
He grinned. "Of course. To look at my son here at the end and really see him and think about what might've been. Is that what you want? Because I do. I remember looking at you... the littlest babe. Helpless and all mine. Those big, big eyes full of tears... pulling at me... pulling away my name, my money, my time. Pulling away any hope of making my life into something better for myself." He said vehemently, "This pink, naked, squirming little larva that wanted to eat my dreams alive and never stop! How old are you now? A couple hundred? Can't I be free of you?"
"Oh, you will be." He picked up a sword. "In death."
"Then, one last lesson, son. Never make a cage you can't get out of." He ripped off the bracelet from his own wrist as Mr. Gold looked shocked. "I made this cuff, you know. Doesn't work on me. But on you..." He materialized it on Mr. Gold's arm. "Down, boy." He magically flung Mr. Gold backwards into a shelf. "Let's see how you do without magic." Mr. Gold crawled towards the fallen sword, but Pan kicked him away from it.
Mr. Gold said frantically, "I've come too far for this. For them."
"For your son? No. It's too late. Soon, that fine green smoke will fill their lungs and fog their brains. Not like the rest of this town. I'm not just going to take their memories. No. Because of their special meaning to you, I'm going to take their lives. And you won't do a thing to stop me. Do you know why? Because without magic, you are right back to where you started. The village coward." Pan left the shop.
In fear, Mr. Gold attempted to pull off the cuff, to no avail.
THE ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
In his castle, Rumpelstiltskin was lighting a candle in honor of Baelfire's birthday.
"Too many years to count, Bae," Rumpelstiltskin said. "But I've counted every one." He blew out the separate wick used to light the candle.
From behind, Belle tip-toed in with a small basket of flowers as he noticed her presence.
"I-I'm sorry," Belle apologized. "I didn't know you were in here."
"Go away," Rumpelstiltskin retorted.
"I'll just put these flowers down." She approached the table.
"Go away." He burned out the candle light with his fingers.
Belle notices a shawl on the table. "I'm, uh, so sorry. It was a remembrance, wasn't it? How old would he be?"
"Well, he's not dead. He's just lost."
"Lost?"
Rumpelstiltskin touches the shawl. "Today is his birthday. I should be with him... celebrating. We had a chance to be happy together, but I was afraid."
"Maybe it's not too late."
"I hope not." He moved away from table. "No, my ending shall not be a happy one."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT - PAWNSHOP
Mr. Gold was still struggling to tear off the cuff, which was completely ineffective. Desperate, he eyed the sword and picked it up.
STREETS
Emma and Derek tried to shake awake Regina and called, "Regina!"
Regina woke and said, "Emma. Derek." She got up.
"What happened?" Emma asked. "You okay?"
Regina, in a pensive, distracted tone, replied, "Yes, I'm fine."
"What is it?" Mary Margaret asked. "What happened when you touched it?"
"I saw what needed to be done."
"Mom, are you going to be okay?" Henry questioned.
Regina placed a hand under Henry's chin and said, "The important thing is you will be." Henry grabbed her hand in reassurance. Suddenly, the scroll disappeared from Regina's palm.
"No, he won't," Pan said. "She won't be either." He walked up to the group.
They all backed away, stunned.
"He has the–" Hook and Odette began as Pan bound everyone in place with a freezing spell.
Pan held up the scroll. "Curse? That I do."
PAWNSHOP
Mr. Gold pulled up his sleeve to unveil his cuffed wrist. He took the sword; contemplating using it to cut off his arm and be free of the bracelet.
STREETS
Pan stood before the frozen group of townspeople. "Look at you all. A captive audience. I could play with you like a pack of dolls, couldn't I? I think I'll start with these two." He walked over to Belle and Neal. "Hmm. You both look so adorable. Hard to tell who to kill first." He shifted his gaze between both of them. "No, it isn't." He pointed to Neal. "You. You first."
From behind, Mr. Gold clamped a hand on Pan's left shoulder and tugged him away from Belle and Neal.
"Stay away from them," Mr. Gold ordered.
"How about this?" Pan said. "The worm has teeth." He spoke in a mocking tone. "You're here to protect their "loved ones"."
"I'm not gonna let you touch either one of them."
"Oh, I'd like to see that."
"Oh, you will. Because I have a job to finish, and I have to do whatever it takes. No loopholes. And what needs to be done has a price. A price I'm finally willing to pay." He looked to Neal. "I used the curse to find you, Bae, to tell you I made a mistake. To make sure you had a chance at happiness." Pan openly laughed at his words. He looked between Odette, Alise, Derek and Hook. "I could break a heart so easily. Take away the woman the deputy loves. Or kill the darling wife or daughter."
"And that happiness is possible. Just not with me. I accept that."
"Pretty, pretty words."
Mr. Gold said to Neal, "I love you, Bae." He looked to Belle. "And I love you, Belle, you made me stronger."
"Stronger?"
"Yes."
"But still no magic."
"Oh, but I don't need it. You see, you may have lost your shadow, but there's one thing you're forgetting."
"And what's that?"
Mr. Gold spoke triumphantly. "So have I. I sent it away with something to hide." He raised his hand into the air; summoning his shadow back with the dagger. As Mr. Gold took hold of the dagger, the shadow went back into him. Then, he forcibly held Pan against himself.
Pan struggled to get free. "What are you doing?!"
"You see, the only way for you to die, is if we both die. And now... now, I am ready." He stabbed Pan in the back with the blade, but also impaled himself with it in the process. Pan screamed in pain while Mr. Gold remained silent.
A cloud of black smoke covered Pan, who disappeared. As the smoke dissipated, Malcolm appeared in his place.
"Hello, Papa," Mr. Gold greeted.
"Rumple, please. You can stop this. Remove the dagger. We can start over," Pan begged as he smiled. "We can have a happy ending."
"Ah, but I'm a villain. And villains don't get happy endings." He twisted the dagger to embed deeper into both their wounds. Malcolm gasped in agony. A golden light peeked out from the blade and began to shine even brighter. As Malcolm stopped resisting the inevitable, Mr. Gold placed a kiss on his cheek. The light engulfed them as they both disappeared out of existence.
The remaining scroll dropped to the floor while the freezing spell on the group wore off. All were visibly in shock over the unexpected turn of events. Belle collapsed on the ground in a fit of grief.
---
The group was still reeling from witnessing Mr. Gold's sacrifice. Belle, unable to hold back her heartbreak, began crying.
"No... Rumple!" Belle cried. "He's-he's gone!"
Regina slowly knelt to pick up the scroll.
"Regina?" Mary Margaret called. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Regina replied as she stood.
Emma said to Neal, "I'm so sorry."
Belle quivered as a tear slid down her cheek.
"My father did what he had to do," Neal said. "He saved us. Regina, don't let him die for nothing." Regina didn't respond. "Regina?"
"What?" Regina asked.
"We've here for a reason, love," Hook reminded her. "Pan."
"Is dead."
"His curse remains. Can you stop it, or shall we all preparing our souls 'cause mine is gonna take some time."
---
The curse's green smoke crept out of the wishing well in a continuous stream as it spread.
"It's here!" Leroy yelled.
---
Leroy, in a panic, ran up to the group pointing in the direction the curse was approaching from. "It's here!! The curse, it's here! It's coming from all sides! There's no escape."
Neal hugged a worried Henry.
"It's not too late," David said. "We can still stop it, right? Regina?"
"Yes," Regina answered. "Yes."
"W-what's the price?" Emma asked. "Gold said there is a price. What is our price?"
Regina turned to face the group. "It's not our price. It's mine."
"What are you talking about?"
"It's what I felt when I... first held it. I have to say goodbye to the thing, the things, I love most."
Emma turned to look at Henry, who approached forward to stand beside her and looked back at Regina. "Henry?"
"I can never see him again. I have no choice. I have to undo what I started."
Mary Margaret came to a realization and said, "The curse that brought us to Storybrooke?"
"That created Storybrooke. It doesn't belong here, and neither do any of us."
"Breaking the curse destroys the town," David reminded her.
"It will wend out of existence as though it were never here. And everyone will go back to where they are from. Prevented from ever returning."
"We'll go back to the Enchanted Forest?" Emma asked.
"All of us. Except Henry. He will stay here because... he was born here."
"Alone?"
"No, you will take him. Because you're the savior. And you were created to break the curse. And once again, you can escape it."
"I-I don't want to. We'll go back with everyone."
"That's not an option. I can't be with him. If I don't pay the price, none of this will work."
The curse's thunder sounded near in the distance.
"Emma, you have to go," Mary Margaret said.
"I just found you," Emma replied.
"And now it's time for you to leave us again. For your best chance. For his."
"No. N-no. I'm-I'm not... done. I'm the savior, right? I'm supposed to bring back all the happy endings. That's what Henry always said."
Mary Margaret smiled. "Happy endings aren't always what we think they will be. Look around you. You've touched the lives of everyone here."
"But we're a family."
"Yes, and we always will be. You gave us that."
"You and Henry can be a family," David told his daughter. "You can get your wish. You can be like everyone else. You can be happy."
"It's time to believe in yourself, Emma. There's time for you to find hope."
Regina said to Emma, "I've known you for some time and all I wanted was for you to get the hell out of my life so I can be with my son. But really..." Her voice broke. "What I want is for Henry to be happy. We have no choice. You have to go."
"Okay," Emma agreed reluctantly.
Hook looked at Emma with a solemn expression.
HOSPITAL - PHOENIX, ARIZONA - ELEVEN YEARS AGO
On a bed, at exactly eight-fifteen, Emma was giving birth.
The doctor told Emma, "Okay, now, big push, big push!"
Emma pushed in labor and cried, "Aaaaaaah!" The lights flickered and went out as she collapsed on the bed in a sweaty mess.
The doctor wrapped the newborn in a blanket. "Great. Here we go. Good, that's good. Beautiful." He cradled the infant in his arms. "It's a boy, Emma." She refused to look at the baby and turned away.
"Emma?" the doctor called and Emma shook her head.
A nurse approached the doctor to whisper something to the doctor.
"Oh. Emma, just so you know, you can change your mind," the doctor told her.
Emma replied hoarsely, "No. I can't be a mother."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT - TOWN LINE
Everyone was gathered at the town line where Emma's yellow bug was parked. Archie, the rest of the dwarves, Mother Superior and Tinker Bell had joined them as well. Emma spoke to both Archie and Belle, then made her way over to David and Mary Margaret. She threw herself into their embrace as did Henry who pulled away to say goodbye to Regina.
"This isn't fair. It's all my fault," Henry said.
"What do you mean?" Regina asked.
"If I had never gone to get Emma, if I just lived under the curse with you, none of this would have ever happened. I thought I was alone. I-I thought you didn't love me. But I was wrong."
"Henry. I was wrong too. It wasn't your fault, it's mine. I cast a curse out of vengeance and I'm-I'm a villain. You heard Mr. Gold. Villains don't get happy endings."
"You're not a villain," Henry told her. "You're just my mom." He hugged Regina.
Emma moved from her parents to Neal and said, "Neal. I'm sorry."
"Don't be," Neal replied. "You got a boy who you've got to keep alive here."
"And you have to go back there."
"Yeah." Emma embraced him, and he pulled away a moment later. "Hey, this isn't over. I'll see each of you again."
Emma walked toward her car, but was stopped by Hook.
Hook said jokingly, "That's quite a vessel you captain there, Swan." She gave him a small smile. "There's not a day that won't go by that I won't think of you."
"Good." They smiled at each other.
Odette hugged her friend and said, "Take care of your boy, Emma. And take care of Alise. Tell her stories of Derek and I."
Emma nodded, hugging her friend before taking the baby. Derek gave a wave and walked up. He kissed his daughter's head, as did Odette, and the two smiled sadly.
"Emma," Regina called. "There's something I haven't told you."
Emma sighed. "What now?"
"When the curse washes over us, it will send us all back. Nothing will be left behind. Including your memories. It's just what the curse does. Storybrooke will no longer exist. It won't ever have existed. So these last years will be gone from both your memories. Now we'll go back to being just stories again."
"What will happen to us?"
"I don't know."
"Doesn't sound like much of a happy ending."
Regina chuckled. "It's not. But I can give you one."
"You can preserve our memories?"
"No, I can... do what I did to everyone else in this town. And give you new ones."
"You cursed them and they were miserable."
"They didn't have to be." She grasped Emma's hands. "My gift to you is good memories, good life for you and—" She turned to look at Henry who came to her side, "—Henry. You'll have never given him up." She spoke tearfully. "You'll have always been together."
"You would do that?"
"When I stop Pan's curse and you cross that town line, you will have the life you always wanted."
"But it won't be real."
"Well, your past won't. But your future will. Now go. There isn't much time left till the curse will be here any minute." Henry gave her one last hug. She kissed him on the forehead.
Mary Margaret approached a tearful Emma with a smile and planted a kiss on her temple. The curse was rapidly surging toward the group as Emma, holding Alise, and Henry walked toward the car and got in.
Derek took Odette's hand as a soft sob escaped her lips.
Regina tore off a piece of the Dark Curse scroll as it glowed purple. She crumbled it into a ball and generated it into magic on both her hands to strike the massive cloud of green smoke as a counter effect.
Emma began driving out of town as both the green and purple smoke mingled and engulfed all the townspeople. Once they crossed outside of town, the line on the ground was no longer visible. Henry, who was holding Alise, looked from where he was as the town disappeared. Emma glanced down at him briefly. Meanwhile, the curse was spreading through the remaining parts of town. It reached Henry's old room while the storybook was swallowed up, too. Emma and Henry's memories changed.
HOSPITAL - PHOENIX, ARIZONA - ELEVEN YEARS AGO
Emma had just given birth.
"Emma, just so you know, you can change your mind," the doctor said. Emma still refused to look at the infant, but suddenly, her expression changed.
"Wait," Emma said as she looked up. "Let me hold him." The doctor brought him over into her arms. Emma happily looked down at her son, and touched one of his tiny hands. She laughed.
ROAD - PRESENT
Emma was driving while Henry sat beside her in the passenger seat. She glanced at him briefly again.
STORYBROOKE
The town line faded out of existence.
NEW YORK CITY - ONE YEAR LATER
The building room alarm clock chirped at eight-fifteen a.m. Emma reached over to turn it off as Charley's Girl by Lou Reed began playing in the background. For breakfast, Emma made scrambled eggs for herself and Henry as they watered plants in their apartment. She smiled at Alise who crawled into the room and picked her up while making a whooshing sound, causing the little girl to laugh. She set down two plates of pancakes with the eggs as well as matching cups of hot chocolate for both of them. She then buckled Alise into her high chair.
"Mom, you forgot something," Henry said.
"Right, cinnamon," Emma said, grabbing the sprinkler and gave it Henry, who poured cinnamon on his hot chocolate. They clinked their cups before drinking.
Suddenly, a knocking came from outside the door.
"Someone coming over?" Henry asked.
"No," Emma answered.
The knocking resumed as a loud pounding.
Emma got up to check. "Henry, wait here." As Emma headed to the door, she turned off the music player. Upon opening the door, she saw someone dressed in pirate clothes. A blonde woman stood behind him.
Hook smiled. "Swan. At last—" He tried to enter the apartment.
Emma blocked him with her hand. "Woah, do I know you?"
"Look, we need your help," Odette said, stepping forward. "Something's happened. Something terrible. Your family is in trouble."
"My family's right here. Who are you two?"
"An old friend," Hook replied. "Look, I know you can't remember me, but... I can make you." He planted a kiss on her lips.
She kicks him in the groin and shoves him back. "The hell are you doing?"
Hook grunted in pain. "A long-shot. I had to try. I was hoping you felt as I did."
"What you'll feel is the handcuffs when I call the cops."
"Look, I know this seems crazy, but you have to listen to me. You have to remem—"
She shut the door in his face.
"Who was that?" Henry wondered.
"No idea. Someone must have left the door open downstairs. Come on, let's eat." She walked back to the table.
Outside, Odette and Hook shared a confused look and the former said, "Well, this will be more complicated. Are you all right?"
He nodded. "Aye. I will be."