Timeline / Once Upon a Time

With an extremely detailed backstory which is subject to change on a dime, Once Upon A Time's timeline is a mess.

Warning: Due to the very nature of this page, expect massive unmarked spoilers ahead. Also, please help.

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The Time of Myth/Coronation of Zeus, the death of Kronos and banishment of Hades

• In ancient times, the deity Kronos rules Mount Olympus and fathers two children, Zeus and Hades. He eventually chooses Zeus as his heir and gives him the throne of Olympus and the owner of the Olympian Crystal making Hades jealous. Hades later kills Kronos and tries to kill Zeus with the Olympian Crystal. Zeus stops Hades' heart, breaks the Olympian Crystal and banishes him to the Underworld. Hades takes the broken Crystal halfs with him and spends thousands of years trapped in the Underworld where he establishes an iron rule over it.
• At some point in time the Holy Grail, a creation of the Gods ends up in the Mortal Realm in Fairytale Land in a desert which would later become Camelot.

• At some point the deity Poseidon comes to the Mortal Realm and to Fairytale Land and makes the Seas his kingdom.

The days of Merlin and his Apprentice

• In these days, a man named Merlin also discovered The Holy Grail. He first asked permission to be granted a slack of his thirst on finding it in the desert, and after drinking from the cup he was granted immortality and magic.
  • Merlin wandered about in his life for 500 years, until he fell for a peasant girl named Nimue. Desiring to live with her, Merlin plans to rid himself of his magic and immortality to be with Nimue. To that end, he reforged The Holy grail into a sword he named Excalibur using a spark from the forge of Prometheus. As the grail gave magic, so Excalibur could take it. Before Merlin did this though, Nimue drank from the grail too, also gaining immortality and power.
  • However, clouded with thoughts of vengeance against Vortigon, a warlock who destroyed her home when she was young, Nimue crushes his heart to pieces. This corrupts her soul, turning her into the first Dark One: a being of great power, but also great corruption and evil.
    • To keep her power, Nimue broke Excalibur's tip off and took the spark so it couldn't be fixed. However, Merlin then used his magic to turn the tip into The Dark One's control dagger, so that whoever wields it could then control Nimue so she could never do evil to excess. [S5, Ep. 7] Merlin then embedded the rest of the sword in a stone, prophesying that the true king of Camelot would then draw it to unite the people.
    • Merlin then confronted Nimue, intending to kill her so she could do evil no longer, but his grief over her corruption gave her an opening to seal Merlin in a tree.[S5, Ep. 5]
    • Sometime in the future, Nimue would be stabbed with her own dagger, thus beginning the cycle of the Dark One, wherein the powers would be passed on to another through death.
• Eventually, the Sorcerer's Apprentice becomes the keeper of his master's secrets, including his magical hat. One time, when Zoso is still the Dark One, he breaks into a vault and tries to steal a box that contains the Sorcerer's Hat, but the Apprentice (appearing like an old man, at this time) stops him.[S4, Ep.4]
• In the earliest days of the Enchanted Forest, a great being comes into existance: the Author, who records all the stories of the Enchanted Forest [and possibly other lands], with a magic quill and ink. The role of Author will pass from person to person, with many different people taking on the role, including a guy named Walt.[S4, Ep. 19 and S4, Ep. 21 imply the Apprentice and the Sorcerer are in charge of selecting the next Author.]

Rumplestiltskin's First Days

The First Ogre War

• Malcolm, apprenticed to a blacksmith, grows up in a hard life, working the furnace. To ease his harsh circumstances, Malcolm escapes to his dreams to a place called "Neverland".
• Malcolm has a son with a woman named Fiona. On the night of his birth, two fairies, the Blue Fairy and Tiger Lily, come to give their blessings to the child, since he is predicted to be a "Saviour".
  • Worried about her son's destiny, Fiona asks Tiger Lily to bring her tomes of fairy lore to learn about his role. Taking advantage of her friendship with the fairy, Fiona uses the wand to become one herself.
  • Now a fairy, Fiona joins Tiger Lily in searching for the "great evil" her son is destined to fight: a person with a moon mark on the wrist.
  • With Tiger Lily's help, Fiona enters the Fairies' Sacred Vault in search of ingredients for a new spell: a "Dark Curse" that shall banish every child born on the same time as her son, to avoid the prophecy. Tiger Lily advises Fiona to take a less drastic measure: use the Shears of Destiny to cut off her son's role. Fiona still rips apart Tiger Lily's heart and becomes the "great evil". The Blue Fairy banishes Fiona to a Dark Realm.
  • The Blue Fairy and Tiger Lily go to Malcolm to tell him that Fiona died. Blaming his son, he names the baby Rumplestiltskin. [S6, Ep. 19]
• Angry to be saddled with a son after expecting his life to get easier, Malcolm fails to appear in the Ogre War, instead running off to the other world of Neverland to live out a life of eternal youth and ease for as long as he can. He takes on the name of his son's doll Peter Pan as a reminder.[S3, Ep. 8]
• Saddened by his father ditching him, Rumplestiltskin grows up under the care of weavers and shearers, learning the craft that he would eventually use: spinning wool into cloth.
• A young Killian Jones and his brother Liam are sold by their father Brennan to pirates. [S5, Ep. 11]
• Meanwhile, Lieutenant Killian Jones and his admiral brother sail to Neverland, looking for a plant called nightshade for their king. Peter Pan warns them that the plant will kill anyone who leaves Neverland, and sure enough, when they leave, Killian's brother dies. Outraged at this perceived betrayal by his king, Killian has the whole crew turn to piracy as an act of disobedience and revenge.[S3, Ep. 5]
• Rumplestiltskin grows up, derided as the son of a coward. Eventually he marries a young lady named Milah, and when the time comes to fight in the Ogre Wars personally, he happily signs up to forever shake the stigma of cowardice from his family.
  • However, the night before the battle, he runs into a blind seer, who tells him that with the actions he takes on the battlefield, he will be separated from the son he will soon have. Frightened of dying in battle, Rumpelstiltskin breaks his foot with a hammer, rendering himself unfit for service. [S2, Ep. 14]
  • Dishonorably discharged, Rumplestiltskin returns home to Milah and his new son, Baelfire. However, Milah is disgusted that the brave man she thought she married was apparently more cowardly than she thought, [S2, Ep. 14] and so takes to drinking and flirting in the taverns around their village rather than supporting their son.[S2, Ep. 4]
• Some years into their failing marriage, Baelfire is bitten by a snake and Milah insists Rumple kills a local healer named Fendrake to steal the antidote. Being too much of a coward at this point, Rumple makes a deal with him and gains the remedy, in exchange for his future second son. Meanwhile, Milah goes to a tavern and meets Hook for the first time. [S5, Ep. 14]
  • One night, Killian runs into Milah in the tavern, and unhappy with her lot with Rumplestiltskin, she runs away with Killian. Rumple tries to get her back, but his limp and a lack of conviction makes a mockery of him when Killian challenges Rumple to a duel for her freedom. He leaves in disgrace.[S2, Ep. 4]
• Meanwhile, the giants around this time choose to seal their borders from humans, taking most of the magic beans with them.
• Sometime later, Baelfire grows into a young lad, now fit for service in the continuing Ogre Wars. Rumpel tries to flee from the village with him, but their baron Hordor catches them. After being humiliated again, Rumplestiltskin shows compassion to a man nearby: Zoso, who tells them of the powers of the Dark One, with which he will be strong enough to keep Baelfire safe forever.
  • Stealing the Dark One's control dagger, Rumplestiltskin summons the Dark One and kills him. This turns out to be Zoso wanting release from his centuries of living, turning Rumplestiltskin into the new dark one. With his new powers, he kills Hordor and all his men, horrifying Baelfire.[S1, Ep. 8]
• Afterwards, Rumpelstiltskin enters the battlefields, destroys the Ogres' power and brings the children home.
• Sometime later, Baelfire is snatched by Peter Pan, who in doing so goes by the name the Pied Piper. Rumpelstiltskin confronts his father, asking for his son/Peter's grandson back, so Peter has Baelfire make the choice. Rumple steals Bae away at the last moment, before finding out to his shame that his son would have come home anyway.[S3, Ep. 4]
• Rumpelstiltskin slowly slips into paranoia and violence, lashing out at anyone who could be a threat to his power or his son. Deeply disturbed, Baelfire contacts the Blue Fairy who gives him one of the last magic beans not controlled by the giants. With this bean, Bae and Rumple could finally travel to a land without magic to start over without power, danger, or old baggage.
• However, when Baelfire tries to send them through the bean's portal, Rumpelstiltskin's cowardice gets the better of him, and Bae falls through the portal alone. Shocked at his actions afterwards, Rumple talks with the Blue Fairy for any other way there, and learns of the Dark Curse as a possibility to reach A Land Without Magic (where Bae was sent). Though the fairy says it's impossible, Rumpelstiltskin makes it his lifelong mission to reunite with his son, promising, "I WILL FIND HIM!" [S1, Ep. 19]

Rumplestiltskin's First Efforts

Trouble with Captain Hook

• Running into the Blind Seer from before, Rumplestiltskin kills her to gain her powers of foresight to help with his quest. Though the powers are overwhelming at first, the seer's last breaths promise him that "A child will lead you to your son, but he will also lead you to your undoing." Nonplussed, Rump remarks, "Well then I'll just have to kill him." [S2, Ep. 14]
• Rumplestiltskin makes a deal with a Mr. William Smee for a magic bean in order to reach his son the easy way. However, before he can get it, Smee is taken prisoner by Killian Jones's crew, which he joins despite Rumplestiltskin promising Smee eternal life for the bean.
  • Running into Killian Jones once again, Rumplestiltskin's new warty look gains him a nickname from Jones of "Crocodile". Challenging him to a duel, Rump at first seems poised to kill him, but then Milah runs up, asking for his life in return for the magic bean he wanted.
  • Aboard Killian's ship, the Jolly Roger, Rumple talks with Milah and Jones about their mistakes, angry at his wife for leaving their son for him to raise alone. In punishment, he rips out Milah's heart and kills her. Killian says that he'll have to kill him for the magic bean in his grasp, but instead, Rumplestiltskin just cuts off one of his hands and takes what he thinks is the bean for himself. Striking Rumple with a deck hook from his other hand, Killian promises that he'll one day find a way to kill him.
  • Rumplestiltskin returns to his home, only to find that using a sleight of hand, Killian still has the bean.
  • Killian, inspired by his last attack on Rumplestiltskin, attaches a hook hand to his missing hand, formally becoming the infamous Captain Hook. He also takes on William Smee as his first mate, promising him a place to live forever on his crew. That place he then travels to with his crew via that magic bean: back to Neverland. [S2, Ep. 4]

Baelfire's Unfortunate Adventures

• Meanwhile, Baelfire ends up in Victorian London (in our world, not Alice's world, which is different). Wandering the streets, he is taken in by the Darling family.
• Wendy is kidnapped by Peter Pan's shadow, promising to bring one of her brothers back in return for her leaving.
• Sacrificing himself for his new family, Baelfire is carried off to Neverland. [S2, Ep. 21]
• However, he's abruptly dropped into the ocean, and rescued by Hook, who takes him along as a cabin boy to be safe from Pan.
• Discovering his true heritage, Hook sadly turns Bael over to Pan and the "Lost Boys" he captures as the Pied Piper. [S2, Ep. 22]

Hook's servitude to Pan

• While sailing in Neverland, Hook and his crew listen to a mermaid's singing and almost crash the Jolly Roger. They manage to avoid crashing.
• Meanwhile, Poseidon scolds his daughter Ursula, for failing to drag the pirates to a watery grave, as part of Poseidon's revenge against the pirates who killed his wife.
• Later, Ursula, using a bracelet she stole from her father's vault, works at a tavern to gain enough gold to sail to Glowerhaven. Hook finds her at the same tavern and comments how her voice soothed his inner desire for revenge.^note Hook says he nurtured his thirst for revenge "for almost a century". This helps place "The Crocodile" at least 100 years before "Poor Unfortunate Soul".
• Hook betrays Ursula and snitches her to Poseidon, taking her singing voice in a magic shell.
• Later, Ursula steals her father's trident and uses it on herself to change her fishtail to eight octopus legs, and says her father needs to fear her.[S4, Ep. 16]

Cora's Rise

The Cricket's Burden

• Around this time, a boy named Jiminy Cricket grows up the son of con men. However, his conscience is bothered by the lifestyle they're living, and when he grows up, he goes to Rumpelstiltskin for a way to be free of his parents forever.
  • However, due to a slight of hand, he accidentally turns an innocent boy's parent's into puppets. Overwhelmed with shame and guilt, he wishes on a star to be saved, but the blue fairy (responding to his wish) says that it's not possible. As an alternative kind of penance, Jimminy wishes to be turned into a cricket to watch over the boy (Gepetto) for as long as he lives. [S1, Ep. 5]
    • Sometime later, he will acquire a speaking horn that will allow him to be understood by humans rather than just make cricket noises.

The Humiliating Beginning

• Roughly half a generation before she was born, Prince Leopold and Princess Eva of neighboring kingdoms are betrothed to be married as they grow older.
• Cora is born a simple miller's daughter, whose father is a lousy drunk, forcing her to run the mill and do barkeeping on the side as well.
• She falls in love with a traveler claiming to be a prince, but when she becomes pregnant by him, he abandons her.
• Leopold meets Cora, and becomes enamored of her. He considers breaking off his marriage to Eva for Cora, but Eva finds out about this, and unearths Cora's past, having Leopold swear her off.
• Angry at the source of her frustration, the daughter by the traveler, Cora leaves the baby abandoned in the woods in order to get herself ahead. However, in a freak storm, that baby is carried off to Oz, where she will be given the name Zelena. [S3, Ep. 18]

Her Famous Story

• Trying to do deliveries of flour to the neighboring kingdom of Xavier, Cora runs into Eva again, and gets humiliated. Trying to get revenge at a costume ball later on, she's exposed, but after claiming to be able to spin straw into gold, Xavier offers her a chance to prove it.
• While at first Cora thought of escaping the tower where she is being kept, Rumplestiltskin pops into her tower right away, offering training in magic to spin straw to gold in return for her firstborn child. With nothing else to lose, Cora begins learning the ways of magic.
• Cora and Rumple grow an attraction for each other, even planning on running away from Xavier later on with their firstborn belonging to Rumple rather than a firstborn in general. However, when talking about power and love with Xavier, Cora changes her mind, deciding to hold onto her new power rather than the love she seemed to find with Rumple. Rendering their deal void and removing her heart, she goes on to marry Xavier's son: Prince Henry. [S2, Ep. 16]

The Tales from Arendelle (Concurrent with The Rise of Cora and the Evil Queen)

• Three sisters live in the kingdom of Arendelle: Gerda, Ingrid and Helga. Ingrid is born with magical ice powers. However, she was only afraid of these powers, and so wanted to just hide them with gloves rather than learn to control them at all.
• The Duke of Weselton was set to marry Helga, but tried to cheat on her with Ingrid. Outraged, Helga calls it off, but in the struggle, Ingrid accidentally froze Helga solid, effectively killing her when her body then shatters.
• Angry at seeing this, Gerda traps Ingrid in a magic urn, and then asks the troll leader Grandpappie to erase all memory of her two sisters from everyone but her mind.
• Sometime later, Gerda marries, and has two daughters, Elsa and Anna. However, Elsa inherited her aunt's ice powers, and after an accident with her sister, ends up locked away for years trying to figure out her powers.
• The royal couple sets sail for the Enchanted Forest's mainland to see if there's a way to get rid of Elsa's powers. However, before they leave, Gerda finally realizes the error of her ways, and plans to bring back memories of her sisters, but dies before her plan is carried forth.
• Roughly around this time, the modified plot of Frozen (2013) happens here. Modified, because in this continuity, there was no Olaf to save Anna, come to life and help during the adventure that we know of (although he may exist as Elsa asked Ingrid had she ever made a Snowman come to life before).
  • Afterwards, Anna and Kristoff begin a period of courtship. Also during this time, Anna began taking sword fighting lessons so as to be strong enough to fight off any more Hans's.
• Then the wedding rolled around, but at the last minute, Anna found her mother's note, and desiring to find out the truth behind her parents's death, leaves before Elsa can stop her.[S4, Ep. 1]

The Rise of the Evil Queen

The Death of Queen Eva and the birth of the true lovers

• After she marries prince Henry, Cora gives birth to Regina and declares she will be queen one day. [S2, Ep. 16]. However, some time in Regina's earlier years, Cora's family lose the throne, and relocate somewhere in the countryside.
• A young baby girl is born to Queen Eva and King Leopold during winter time. In honor of the season, they name her Snow White. [S2, Ep. 15] [exposition given by Johanna, Queen Eva's former maidservant]
• Still living in the countryside, young Regina lives a solitary life, playing with her dolls. One day, she accidentally hurts herself with one of her mother's magic wands, and Cora has to resort to bringing Zelena back into her life to heal her younger half-sister. Zelena and Regina find out they are sisters and begin a friendship, but Cora, using a forgetting potion, makes them forget each other, and sends Zelena back to Oz. [S5, Ep.19]
• Around the same time, a peasant named Ruth gives birth to twin brothers: James and David. Due to hardships on the farm, their father trades James to Rumplestiltskin in order to ensure that the farm survives. [Season 6 Episode Murder Most Foul establishes that Ruth's husband, Robert, made the deal to save his sons' lives.]
• Around this time, King George's wife is cursed with barrenness, and so Rumple gives James to George, ensuring he has a son for his kingdom.
• Snow grows up into a privileged princess, but her mother, having sobered up from her earlier years, tells her to love and care for her subjects instead of subjugate them.
  • Right before her birthday, Eva falls sick, a victim of Cora's magic. Then, posing as the Blue Fairy, Cora tries to convince Snow to use a magic candle to save her mom's life by giving up another person's life.
  • Unable to do such a cruel act, Snow apologizes to her mother for being unable to save her, but Eva forgives her, proud of her kindness putting others before her. With no other cure, Queen Eva dies on Snow's birthday, the whole kingdom coming out to mourn her passing.
  • Cora has her own private goodbye to Eva, promising her that she'll destroy Snow's good heart, and in doing so, finally have her complete revenge on Eva.[S2, Ep. 15]
• Gepetto meets Jiminy Cricket who tells him all about how he messed up with his parents. Gepetto grows into an old man, and never managed to have a son. He then wishes upon a star, and the Blue Fairy brings a puppet he crafted to life. The puppet's name is Pinocchio.^note By Season 1's standards, Pinocchio was recently created by Gepetto, since, by the casting of the first Dark Curse, he is but a few years older than baby Emma. However, come Season 6, Pinocchio is at least as old as Charming/David and James.
• Some ten years later, Ruth's husband regrets his deal with Rumplestilskin and tries to find his son James. He learns from Pinocchio (by this time, still a puppet) that James has gone to Pleasure Island, an island/amusement park. He finds James there, and so does King George, who retrieves his adopted son.
  • Robert returns to land and is attacked and robbed by highwaymen and their leader: Hook! The pirate orders his men to dowse the man in heavy drink, place the body in a cart and drive it off a cliff, to make people think that Robert fell off the cliff. This event haunts Ruth and David for years after, unbeknownst of the truth. [S6, Ep. 12]

Daniel's Tragedy

• Now a young maiden, Regina has fallen in love with her family's stable boy: Daniel. However, knowing her mother's ambitions for her, she keeps the relationship a secret.
• Leopold begins a travel of the lands, searching for a new mother for Snow. He won't love her like he loved Eva, but he wants Snow to have a mom again. [S2, Ep. 15]
• Scaring Snow's horse, Cora sends her off to her lands, where Regina saves Snow's life from the runaway horse.
• Hearing of this kindness to his daughter, Leopold approaches Regina, and proposes to her. Cora accepts on her behalf.
• Regina plans to run away with Daniel, but Snow overhears them talking, and runs away in shock. However, after talking with Regina on what True Love really means, Snow promises not to tell anyone about them running away.
• Taunted by Cora and the loss of her mother, Snow tells Cora about Daniel.
• Arriving at the stable, Cora at first seems receptive to Regina standing up for herself, but then kills Daniel. Overcome with grief and regret, Regina seemingly has no other choice but to marry Leopold, ruefully stating, "I should have let her [Snow] die on that horse."[S 1, Ep. 18]

Zelena's Apprenticeship and Rise to Villainy

• In the Land of Oz, a teenage Zelena is mocked for her powers, but makes a friend in a woodcutter named Stanum.[S6, Ep. 18]
• Zelena growns up into a young woman woth developing powers, and tired of her abusive father after the death of her loving mother, she heads off to the Emerald City of Oz to make herself a new life.
• Reaching The "Wizard" of Oz, she is given a portal to the Enchanted Forest, where Rumpelstiltskin trains her in the ways of magic.
  • Unfortunately, as Zelena loves Rumple more than anything, he refuses to have her cast the Dark Curse due to this issue of him not making it to the land without magic.
  • Angry, Zelena reveals that her silver slippers could easily have gotten Rumple where he wanted, but with this rejection, she leaves for Oz again and takes the slippers with her.[S3, Ep. 16]

Regina the Apprentice

• Days before her wedding to King Leopold, Regina is advised by her father to summon Rumpelstiltskin for help with her mother. As part of her initiation, she's given a looking glass for Wonderland to push her mother through. Determined to be free of her influence once and for all, she pushes her mother through, but with her success, Rumple offers to train her in magic so she can have power and happiness as a queen. [S2, Ep. 2]
  • In the training, Regina resists becoming cruel for so long, wanting the magic to bring Daniel back, but as that is a limit magic cannot overcome by itself, she is rebuffed.
  • However, in an elaborate scheme to finally corrupt Regina, Rumpelstiltskin comes into contact with two different beings. First, with Jefferson, a traveler who uses his magic hat to move between worlds. Second, Dr. Frankenstein. Hailing from a land of only black and white, Dr. Frankenstein goes along with the ruse as a way to get an enchanted heart to revive his dead brother, while Jefferson wants a royal pass to travel freely from Regina.
  • Together, the two men trick Regina into thinking that Frankenstein's procedure didn't work. Saddened and embittered, Regina kills Rumpelstiltskin's new apprentice, now that much closer to evil. [S2, Ep. 5]

The Frankenstein problem

• Returning to his land, Dr. Frankenstein tries the procedure for real, and seems to revive his brother. Unfortunately, the pain experienced upon revival throws his brother into a rage, killing their father by accident. However, Frankenstein refuses to give up on his brother, locking him away and swearing that he'll find a way to save him without killing him. [S2, Ep. 12]

Zelena falls deeper

• Seeing Regina being loved and mentored by Rumpelstiltskin, Zelena turns herself green with envy, discovers the wizard of Oz was a fake, and turns him into the first of her flying monkeys.[S3, Ep.16]
• However, as a way to show Zelena she doesn't have to hold onto bitterness, Glinda the Good Witch of the North invites Zelena to be the Witch of the West in the witch's council of Oz. Happy to be considered important again, Zelena loses her green coloring for a few years.
  • This all changes when Dorothy arrives in Oz from the land without magic. Adored by the witches as the potential savior of Oz, Zelena's envy returns, and she plots to get Dorothy out of her life and get back to her work at revenge on Regina and Rumpelstiltskin.
  • To this end, she fakes her death via bucket of water to Dorothy, getting the witches to send Dorothy home to Kansas. With her gone, Zelena begins to take over, imprisoning Glinda in another realm and turning the fake Wizard into a Winged Monkey, and takes on another moniker: The Wicked Witch of the West.[S3, Ep. 20]

The last hope

• Seeing Regina sinking lower, the fairy Tinkerbell tries to help Regina one last time before she becomes completely evil, giving her some fairy dust to lead her to a second true love. It leads her to Robin Hood, but Regina doesn't follow on it.
  • Angry at her going behind her back, The Blue Fairy strips Tinkerbell of her wings, and banishes her to Neverland.[S3, Ep. 3]
    • During her time on the island, Tinkerbell eventually meets up with Captain Hook, and both discuss their own issues with revenge. [S3, Ep. 11]

The Death of Leopold

• Now fully embracing Rumplestiltskin's methods, Regina finds an old book in her mother's belongings, with a reference to a dark magic user named Maleficent.
  • Following Rumple's advice, Regina meets a broken and defeated Maleficent, at this time dowsing herself in a diluted version of the Sleeping Curse, feeling sorry for herself now that Queen Briar Rose and King Stephan bested her.
    • Regina convinces Maleficent in regaining her (literal and metaphoric) fire, and they invade Aurora's chambers to force the princess, Briar Rose's daughter, into the cursed state of the Sleeping Curse.
    • Rejoicing in lessons learned with Maleficent, Regina pricks Snow White's prized horse with a Sleeping Curse-infused needle, and explains to Rumple that she will take away everything the princess loves. [S4, Ep. 14]
• As part of a secret campaign to humiliate her step-daughter, Regina pays some outlaws to attack the borders of her kingdom. While her husband Leopold is away, she convinces Snow (by this time, a teenager), as acting ruler, to find a way to banish the outlaws and protect her subjects. With the help of Hercules, Snow does it, and both part ways amicably. The event also serves as a Call Forward to Snow's time as a bandit. [S5, Ep. 13].
• Years later, Snow White a young woman, Leopold discovers a magic lamp containing a Genie, who offers him three wishes along with a warning that they may not turn out the way he hoped. Leopold uses just two wishes: to set the Genie free, and to give the remaining wish to him.
  • The overjoyed Genie takes up residence in Leopold's palace, where he falls in love with the now miserable Regina and comes to resent Leopold for standing between them.
  • Regina learns of the Genie's feelings and uses them to manipulate him into murdering Leopold with a box of "Agrabahn" Vipers, who dies bitterly saying that the Genie was right about wishes.
  • Regina then haughtily rebuffs the Genie and reveals she feels nothing for him in return, to which the Genie retaliates by using the lamp to make his own wish that he could look on her face forever. However, this traps him inside any mirror Regina looks at, to which she makes use of him as her Magic Mirror.[S1, Ep. 11]

The Wanderings of Snow White

The First Friends

• Deciding the death of her husband provides a perfect timing to also kill Snow, Regina, pretending Snow is the one who killed her father, hires a Huntsman (raised by wolves) to kill Snow White in exchange for safety for the wolves. However, after reading Snow's farewell letter to her stepmother, the Huntsman spares her life, giving her a grass whistle and allowing her to escape.
  • However, due to the magic of her vault, Regina finds out that the Huntsman switched Snow's heart with a deer heart, and so takes the Huntsman's heart to be her slave for his treachery.[S1, Ep. 7]
• Snow, just starting her wanderings, sells some heirlooms to a nobleman, but she is sold out to a bounty hnter named the Woodcutter and locked in a cage. Meanwhile, poor shepherd David is convinced by his mother to try and sell their farm, but he is ambushed by the same Woodcutter. Snow, from inside the cage, holds the Woodcutter's arm, which allows David to kill him. Never seeing each oher, Snow gives David some of her savings, while he encourages her to stay in he kingdom. Withou them noticing, a spark of true love originates from their touch and creates a sapling.[S6, Ep. 7]
• On the run, Snow stumbles upon a village haunted by a "wolf" and makes friends with a village girl: Red Riding Hood. Together, they try and find the wolf, only to discover too late that Red is in fact a werewolf whose cloak protects her from transforming. Upon realizing she ate her boyfriend Peter, Snow and Red go on the run together, while Red's Grandmother Widow Lucas buys them some time to escape.[S1, Ep. 15]
• On the run from Regina's forces, Snow begins to learn survival techniques from Red. During one escape, Red discovers her mother Anita and a tribe of werewolves she lives with. With her help, Red learns to master her wolf form. However, when Regina's forces find their secret lair, Red is forced to kill her mother after Snow accidentally causes the death of Anita's lover. Burying her, the two move on.[S2, Ep. 7]
• Still searching for Snow White, Regina in frustration decides to massacre an entire village who refused to give up information on Snow's location. Angry at her petty campaign against her stepdaughter, the people of her kingdom begin calling Regina "The Evil Queen."
  • Wanting to learn more about this issue, Regina gains a spell from Rumplestiltskin that will allow her to disguise herself. In return, she cuts off trading to King George's land, crippling his kingdom.
  • Rescued by Snow due to a misunderstanding, Regina almost changes her mind about being evil, but upon finding the massacred village, Snow rejects her stepmother, and drives Regina away.
  • Regina finally embraces her moniker as "The Evil Queen." [S2, Ep. 20]
• In one daring escape from the Evil Queen's troops, Snow White jumps off a cliff into the ocean below, and is rescued by the mermaid Ariel. Ariel explains that Sea Goddess Ursula granted a boon to mermaids: they can walk on land for 12 hours until the next hight tide. Snow encourages Ariel to pursue the human prince Eric, and the best opportunity is his upcoming ball to honor goddess Ursula. She goes to "Ursula" for help (actually Regina in disguise), and at first seems to gain what she wants. [S3, Ep. 6]
  • Around this time, Regina also went to Rumpelstiltskin for help in dealing with "a certain mermaid" [implied to be Ariel], but due to the loss of Belle, he refuses her.[S1, Ep. 12]
  • Eventually, when Regina finds out Ariel helped Snow escape again, Regina takes away Ariel's voice, leaving her helpless as Eric sails away to Agrabah.[S3, Ep. 6]

Arendelle's new troubles

• David grows up under the thumb of the evil warlord Bo Peep. However, on her travels to understand her parents's journey to meet the Dark One, Princess Anna stops by David's farm. Vowing to help him grow and live rather than just survive, she trains David in swordfighting, and together they defeat Bo Peep. Thanking Anna for her help, David's life has a time of peace. [S4, Ep. 2]
• Anna meanwhile meets with Rumplestiltskin, and gets tangled in a plot for him to steal the hat of the Sorcerer from his Apprentice. Thankfully, Anna manages to keep this power from Rumplestiltskin, and decides to return home.
• Meanwhile, Prince Hans manages to charm his brothers into infiltrating and attacking Arendelle while Anna is away. Kristoff and Elsa manage to hold their own, but it's only upon the release of Ingrid that they are able to fully fight off Hans, with Ingrid freezing him solid.
• Elsa begins learning and bonding with her "Aunty snow queen".
• Anna returns home, irritating Ingrid, wanting Elsa all for herself with her magic.
• On Anna's birthday, Ingrid casts the spell of shattered sight on Anna, making all her secret bitterness come out, causing her to trap Elsa in a magic urn that Rumplestiltskin will eventually grab up. Angry at Anna and Elsa for ruining her plans, Ingrid freezes all of Arendelle solid, then leaves. [S4, Ep. 8] Arendelle as a country will remain frozen for the next 30 years, though all its people frozen will remain alive.

Happy Endings for the Villains?

• Secretly, Rumple sends invitations to Ursula and Cruella de Vil to convene at Maleficent's Forbidden Fortress. After some intitial friction between the three ladies, Rumplestiltskin appears to them with a proposition: since their world seems to be rigged against the villains, he knows of something that can grant their happy endings.
• Rumple, Ursula, Cruella and Maleficent go to Bald Mountain to find the Dark Curse, the three ladies using their abilities to bypass its obstacles. They find the Dark Curse's orb in a deep cave within the mountain, and its guardian, Chernabog.
• Rumple slips away, leaving the three Queens of Darkness to fend off the demon Chernabog. However, they make a lucky escape by a small opening in the ceiling.[S4, Ep. 12]^note Rumple later gives the Dark Curse's scroll to Regina, his former apprentice.

(Beauty) In the eye of the beholder

• Belle's father Maurice arranges for his daughter to meet with Sir Gaston. During an outing, they come across a young ogreling and bring it home. Belle believes the creature is harmless, but Gaston thinks otherwise. Trying to prove she is correct, Belle examines her father's library checklist and notes references to a mirror that can see into the person's soul. She leaves Gaston with the ogreling while she goes to fetch the mirror. When she returns, Gaston is visibly injured and blames the ogreling. Belle thinks there is some misunderstanding, and, in an argument with Gaston, he breaks off the mirror. Belle gets some of its shards and sees Gaston's evil glare reflected. Later, Maurice tells Belle the ogres are coming to their kingdom and intends to marry her to Gaston, so they can have resources to fight the coming army. [S5, Ep. 17]
• After the ogres destroy her home and kill her mother, Belle has forgotten what happened to her. Desperate to remember, she sneaks away from her castle to a land called Arendelle. There, she meets princess Anna and they try to help each other. Anna tells her of her adventures with the Dark One. They go to the rock trolls and Belle receives her memories in the form of a purple stone. On the way down, Belle is conflicted between choosing between saving Anna and the memories, and ends up losing both. She returns home. Her family is going to make a deal with the Dark One to end the Ogre Wars.[S4, Ep. 6]
• In the negotiation, Belle offers to go with Rumple as part of their deal, and ends up working as his maid.[S1, Ep. 12]
• At first she is treated poorly, locked in a dungeon, but after she appeals to his good side to save Robin Hood, Rumple spares Robin Hood and gives Belle a library.[S2, Ep. 19]
• One day, Belle asks Rumple about a gauntlet he brought from Camelot. The Queens of Darkness capture her in exchange for it. During a verbal confrontation with Rumple, Cruella explains their objective: even the odds in favour of the villains. Rumple reluctantly agrees to give up the gauntlet for Belle's safety. [S4, Ep. 11] [The gauntlet reappears in Storybrooke, in Gold's pawnshop, which implies it was retrieved by Rumple at some point]
• In another flashback, Rumple kidnaps a baby from a couple, in order to lure a being named The Black Fairy, since the fairy is known for stealing babies. On a moonlit night, Rumple uses the baby as bait to summon the Black Fairy - his mother! Their reunion is short-lived, as Belle comes to rescue the baby and deliver him to their parents, Jack and Jill. [S6, Ep. 9]
• Rumple and Belle start to grow closer and eventually fall in love. On a walk, Belle meets the Evil Queen, who, pretending to be on her side, says that she can cure him of his Dark One curse with True Love's Kiss, hoping to weaken him. Belle takes this advice and kisses Rumple. Upon realizing she's breaking his curse, he lashes out at her, thinking she is acting maliciously, and she calls him out for being afraid to love her before walking out. Later, Rumple is told by the Evil Queen (falsely) that Belle is dead.[S1, Ep. 12]

A Charming beginning

• Some time before George's visit, King Midas's daughter Abigail falls in love with a brave knight from her father's guard: Frederick. However, in a forest ambush, Frederick defends King Midas's life, and due to his having a curse to turn all he touches with his hands to gold, Frederick is trapped.[S1, Ep. 13, exposition by Abigail] Due to him wearing his helmet, True Love's kiss doesn't work. From then on, Midas wears gloves to protect others from his magic.
• Growing up under King George, Prince James becomes a ruthless adventuring prince, who with his girlfriend "Jack" plans to take gold from the last giants to help with the kingdom's financial woes.
• Meanwhile, the giant Anton goes down to the ground in order to learn more about humans.
• Tricked by Jacqueline (Jack), King George's army storms the beanstalk, and kills all the giants but anton. Responding to his father's last wishes, Anton salts the fields above so no more magic beans can be grown. During the battle, bags of gold are looted, but Jack dies in the struggle, abandoned by Prince James. Sadly, the gold fails to last for very long. [S2, Ep. 13]
• Seeking financial aid from King Midas, James wounds the Behemoth, earning Midas's interest in defeating a dragon which plagued their kingdom. However, the Behemoth kills James.
  • Calling on Rumpelstiltskin for help again, George is told about David, James's surviving twin, and in exchange, gives the location to a family fairy for his own purpose. [S1, Ep. 6]
• Roped into becoming the new prince James, David does indeed slay the dragon thanks to Anna's training and his herding skills. However, the payment Midas decides to give is instead his daughter to unite the kingdoms.
  • Threatened by George, David is forced to play along with this for the sake of his mother, receiving her father's ring in order to find his true love.

The Other Shoe

• Cinderella's stepmother, noblewoman Lady Tremaine, receives invitations to King Charles's grand royal ball. Cinderella wishes to go, as well as her step-sister Clorinda, who is in love with a footman.
  • After her step-family goes to the ball, Cinderella is approached by her fairy godmother. However, Rumpelstiltskin kills her and takes her wand for himself. Cinderella makes a deal with the strange man to go to the ball, and in return, Rumpelstiltskin will get a payment in the future.
    • Cinderella goes to the ball, and in turn, she and Prince Thomas fall in love, allowing Cinderella to marry out of her old life. [S1, Ep. 4/S6, Ep. 3]

The courtship of Snow White. (slightly altered due to the meddling of Emma and Hook where noted)

A Grumpy beginning and the capture of Belle

• A clumsy fairy named Nova spills some fairy dust on a dwarf egg. A dwarf hatches from the egg soon after along with 7 other "brothers." Taking a pickaxe to tell their names, they become the 8 dwarves: Doc, Bashful, Happy, Dopey, Sleepy, Sneezy, Stealthy, and the fairy dust dwarf Dreamy.
• While confused by his feelings at first, Belle, who's been living at a nearby tavern for some time since then, recognizes Dreamy's feelings for what they are, and encourages him to follow up on them.
• Dreamy falls in love with Nova, with the two of them planning to run away from their "destinies" to share love together.
  • His brothers seem to accept his choice to leave, but his supervisors Bossy and the Blue Fairy discourage him, forcing him to break up with Nova, calling off their running away.
  • Angry at losing love, Dreamy breaks his pickaxe, getting a new one, with a new name: Grumpy.[S1, Ep. 14]
  • Some time later, Grumpy changed his mind, and decided to try to win Nova a second time. However, the gem he got was stolen, ending in him framed, and imprisoned in George's dungeons.
• Sometime before leaving to see Nova, Dreamy gives Belle some fairy dust and his thanks, encouraging her to go off on another adventure.
  • Perking her spirits up, Belle joins a caravan seeking the Yaogai monster that's been terrorizing the area. While kicked out of the caravan due to sexism, she's rescued from the beast by Mulan, who's been traveling alone after the beast as well.
  • Recognizing the Yaogai's markings on the ground as cries for help, Belle uses the fairy dust on it, revealing it to be Prince Philip, cursed by Maleficent. Thanking Belle profusely, Philip and Mulan set out on their own quest to find Aurora, his betrothed, while Belle resolves to return to Rumplestiltskin and make up for being kicked out. Unfortunately, Belle is then captured by Regina to keep as emergency leverage against Rumple just in case. [S2, Ep. 11]

The first Courtship of Snow White

• Traveling back to George's kingdom, their carriage is stopped, and when the pouch with his mother's ring is stolen, David gives chase to the thief, only to discover that it's Snow White.
• Blackmailing her into retrieving his rings, the 2 of them grow to appreciate each other for their spirit and their nobility. They part ways on good terms, but privately can't help but feel enamored of each other. Snow also gives him the nickname Prince Charming as a derivative, but it sticks due to her fondness for him. [S1, Ep. 3]

The second courtship of Snow White (the previous events of courtship were overwritten due to time travel)

• Emma and Hook accidentally interfere in her parents' meeting after getting dropped in the past by Zelena's spell.
  • In the Enchanted Forest's path, after they botch her parents' first meeting, Emma tells Hook they need to find Rumplestiltskin, so they can sort out this temporal mess. Rumple appears to them and takes them to his castle. Inside the castle, they discuss the time travel problems and Emma finds Belle, who, by this time, is still the Dark One's slave/maidservant.[S3, Ep. 21] ^note Of note are the following events: 1.Belle's presence here, simultaneous with the events of S1, Ep. 3 "Snow Falls", serves to better locate the events of "Ariel" and "Skin Deep", wherein Regina seeks Rumple's help to deal with a mermaid; 2.Hook is in the Enchanted Forest at this time, with Smee as his first mate and still with the Jolly Roger. This serves to better locate the events of "Queen of Hearts": Hook must have left Neverland and gone back to the Enchanted Forest, then, near the time of the casting of the first Dark Curse, searched for Belle in Regina's dungeon; 3.Prince Charming (David-as-James) and Abigail are at Midas's castle for a celebratory ball. Perhaps this was their original destination in "Snow Falls".
  • After failing to steal Charming's ring, Snow White tries to hire a ship to flee the kingdom, first by pirate captain Blackbeard, then by Future!Hook (impersonating his past self).
  • Zelena, surviving in her pendant, follows them in, kills the real Maid Marian, [S4, Ep. 17] and is brought forward in time to present day Storybrooke. Unbeknownst to them, they also bring with them an urn from Rumpelstilstskin's secret vault. [S3, Ep. 21-22]

Charming on the Run

• Unable to forget each other, David invites Snow to come to George's castle in order to resolve his love once and for all.
  • Traveling in, Snow is captured by George's forces, and is imprisoned next to Grumpy. When Stealthy comes to break them out, they all try to escape. However, Stealthy is killed in the escape, and in order to save Grumpy, Snow turns herself in.
  • George forces Snow to tell David he doesn't love him, and is heartbroken. Released to the woods, Grumpy and the other 7 dwarfs take Snow under their wing, promising to care and heal her together.
  • Also around this time Queen Regina kidnaps the siblings Hansel and Gretel to steal her poison apple back from the cannibalistic Blind Witch. Though it was a close call, they succeed. However, for choosing their father over her, they are banished to the Forever Forest, doomed to roam the forest until the Dark Curse strikes.[S1, Ep. 9]
• Pondering what Snow had decided, and choosing to woo her in rebellion rather than live with someone he doesn't love, David runs away from his marriage. He's captured by Abigail's men, and he finds out about Frederick. However, he then goes to nearby Lake Nostos, killing the guardian siren thanks to his knowledge of true love. Taking the water to Abigail, Frederick is released from his curse, him and Abigail planning to marry later.[S1, Ep. 13]
• Riding to the edge of the forest, David encounters Red Riding Hood and finds out about George's deception. Together they run from his forces, until one night where Red gives Charming space to continue his search while she holds off George's men.
  • Around the same time, Snow takes a forgetfulness potion she got in exchange for one of her hairs from Rumpelstiltskin. It makes her forget about Charming, but in turn makes her mean and angry. With her new cynical outlook on life, she determines to kill Regina to get her throne back.
    • Against the advice of the dwarves and Jiminy Cricket (who was called in to council snow), she gains a special bow from Rumpelstiltskin with which to kill the Evil Queen.
  • David arrives soon afterwards, and trades his cloak for a map to where Snow will kill Regina.
    • David catches up with Snow and tries to break the potion's spell, but since she doesn't remember him, true love's kiss doesn't work.
    • Saved by Jimminy, Charming takes the arrow meant for Regina, also professing his desire to die for her rather than to let her do evil. Kissing him in awe, Snow remembers him, just in time for George to capture David.
    • Returning to the dwarfs, Snow apologizes for her behavior, and together they plan to rescue Charming from George.
• Meanwhile, using the hairs of both Snow and Charming, Rumpelstiltskin finishes his true love potion.

The Apple and the Kiss

• Reuniting with Red, Granny and talking with the fairies, Snow and her team mount an attack on King George. However, they're too late, as a few days before, Regina had ransomed David from George, taking him to her castle.
  • As part of parley for Charming's life, Regina reveals to Snow about how Daniel was killed, and tells snow that unless she takes the poison apple, she'll kill David. Snow complies, falling under the sleeping curse. The apple is grabbed by a time manipulating Regina thanks to Jefferson 29 years later, grabbed for her own purposes. [S1, Ep. 21]
• On route to execution, Charming is freed by the Huntsman, allowing him to go after Snow. Charming is imprisoned in the forever forest, but Rumpelstiltskin gives charming a bargin: a route out of the forest to Snow White, in return for placing the true love potion in Maleficent.
  • In an epic battle, Charming succeeds, and finally hastens to Snow's side. He's shocked to find her seemingly dead, but kissing her goodbye, true love's kiss breaks her spell. Shortly afterwards, David proposes to Snow, and she accepts. However, due to them still being fugitives from their own kingdoms, they resolve to take back the kingdoms together. [S1, Ep. 22]

Taking Back the Kingdom

The initial war with Regina

• Regina is alerted by the Magic Mirror her Sleeping Curse was broken. Snow, Charming, and the dwarves are living on the outskirts of town. Regina tells Snow to give up the crown and in return, she will let them keep living there. Charming asks for Rumple's help in getting the Sword of Excalibur to assuage Snow's doubts, but they can't access it. He ends up deceiving Snow with a fake sword, which restores her confidence. When Regina visits again, she rejects her offer. When Regina attacks her, Snow ends up scratching her cheek with the sword, giving hope to the couple that Regina is vulnerable. [S3, Ep. 2]
• Henry becomes so desperate to save Regina's soul that he has the Mirror contact Cora for help, unknowingly allowing Cora to return to the Enchanted Forest. She arranges for Regina to crush Snow's heart and complete her turn to villainy, but Henry turns the tables and returns it to Snow. Regina punishes him by shrinking him down and trapping him in the heart box, before banishing Cora back to Wonderland permanently. Cora spitefully snatches the box to take with her.[S5, Ep. 12]
  • Regina gets magical hat maker Jefferson to create a portal to Wonderland, not telling him the true purpose of her mission to rescue her father. Since the same number of people must leave Wonderland as entered it, Jefferson is left trapped there, and desperately tries to create another magic hat to escape, becoming the Mad Hatter.[S1, Ep. 17]

Organized Conflict with King George

• Sometime later, Snow and Charming now have an organized army, and are fighting against King George with Ruby as their scout. However, a surprise attack ends up with Snow captured by Lancelot, who's become a sell-sword and general to George, who curses her with barrenness as his special kind of revenge against her.
  • Outraged at this, Lancelot defects, allowing Snow to return to Charming.
  • However, Charming thinks that Lake Nostos can restore her. A complication arises when Ruth (Charming's mother) is hurt in an attack. The water of Lake Nostos could heal her, but after the siren's death, there's only 1 sip left. Wanting Snow's happiness over her own life, Ruth gives up the sip to Snow, then has them do a private wedding in her presence so they can know she died seeing her son married.[S2, Ep. 3]

The Wedding and the Threat

• After prolonged conflict [estimates by writers say roughly a year], the Charmings exile George and defeat Regina. While initially sentenced to die for her crimes, Snow wants to give her one more go to prove some of the old Regina is in her. The Blue Fairy creates a test of this, but as Regina's hate is greater at this point, fairy magic kicks in, rendering her unable to hurt the Charmings. In sadness, the couple exile her to Leopold's old castle.
  • Now at her exile, Rumplestiltskin visits Regina and mockingly refers to the upcoming wedding of Snow White and Prince Charming. Regina replies that the wedding couple cannot be harmed in their land. Her former mentor hints that she can use the Dark Curse to go to another world where she CAN hurt the Charmings.[S2, Ep. 10]
• With their kingdom business seemingly wrapped up, Snow and Charming have their formal wedding in front of their kingdom and friends. However, Regina barges in, promising that this day is her wedding gift, and that after this, she'll take away their happiness "if it's the last thing I do." Charming throws his sword at her in response, but she returns to her castle, and the sword doesn't hurt her.[S1, Ep. 1]

The Days Before The Dark Curse

Leading up to the Dark Curse

• Snow is obsessed with defeating Regina. Charming wants her to get her mind off and go on their honeymoon. Snow brings them to her father's summer palace where he would take Eva. It is revealed soon after that she actually wanted to slay the Gorgon in a nearby cave so that she could turn Regina into stone. Charming goes with her, saying he knew who he was marrying, and Regina peers in on them through her magic mirror and taunts Snow. Snow, realizing that she's gotten too caught up in revenge, saves Charming and they leave the cave. They go back to the summer palace and continue their honeymoon.[S3, Ep. 10] It is implied that Emma is conceived here.
• On the same day, the Evil Queen pays a visit to her friend Maleficent to retrieve the Dark Curse scroll she traded for the Sleeping Curse. Maleficent tries to dissuade Regina from using the curse, but, after a brief scuffle, the former monarch gets the scroll.[S1, Ep. 2]
• Somewhere around this time, Cinderella and Thomas are married, with Snow and David attending. The two princesses seem to have some kind of connection, but it's also around this time that Rumplestiltskin reveals what he wants for his payment: Cinderella's firstborn.
  • Distressed, and pregnant, Cinderella wants to run away in fear of what this would do to her marriage, but Thomas steadfastly promises that they'll find a way out of this mess. So, with help from Charming's kingdom, they conceive a plan to get Rumplestiltskin under control forever.
  • Lying to Rumple, Cinderella tricks him into using magic ink (of the same variety as was used on the Evil Queen), and manage to imprison him in the mines below George's castle. However, as punishment for this trickery, Rumple makes Prince Thomas disappear.[S1, Ep. 4]^note Cinderella is heavily pregnant when Prince Thomas vanishes, and still is by the time the Dark Cruse strikes, so much so the curse keeps her pregnant for 28 years.
• Right after Regina gets back the Dark Curse, the Queens of Darkness (Maleficent, Ursula and Cruella De Vil) assemble and approach the Charmings with a proposition: they must seek the Tree of Wisdom to discover a way to stop Regina's plans.
  • Snow and Charming approach the Tree of Wisdom in the woods and it recognizes their valour, but the couple is pushed away by the tree's magic. Surprised at the tree's reaction, Snow learns she is pregnant, and her unborn child has the greatest potential for light or darkness, which explains why the Tree rebuked them.
    • Later on, Maleficent goes to Snow's bedroom and bids her help them, especially Maleficent, who is also pregnant. In response, Snow refuses her request, saying she would not ally herself with dark beings to save her kingdom.[S4, Ep. 13]
• Worried about their unborn child's nature, Snow and Charming chase a unicorn to peer into their child's future in a vision: Charming sees a baby in a cradled, while Snow sees a teenager stealing her heart. Fearing her vision, Snow and Charming go the Sorcerer's Apprentice's house, who tells them of a way to keep Snow's child pure and heroic: by removing her potential for darkness and placing it in another vessel.
  • Alerted by a humble peddler (the Author, in disguise), Snow and Charming invade Maleficent's cave nest after her egg to use it as the vessel for darkness. Despite Maleficent's pleas, from mother to mother, Snow goes through with her plan and brings the egg to the Apprentice. He casts a spell and opens a portal to another realm to send the egg after it has absorbed darkness from Snow's baby. Cruella and Ursula try to rescue Maleficent's egg, but fall through the portal to the land Without Magic.
    • Back at the castle, Snow is having second thoughts about their deed, while Charming tries to comfort her, choosing to believe that Maleficent may have lied about Regina and her plans to use the Dark Curse.[S4, Ep. 17] ^note Charming says Cinderella gave them a unicorn mobile.

The Author's Betrayal

• After transferring the darkness in Snow's child to Maleficent's egg, the Apprentice finds the peddler, who is the Author, and traps him inside the Once Upon a Time book, in the picture of a door.[S4, Ep. 17]

• Pinocchio and Gepetto have all kinds of adventures, but in their final one, they're trapped on a raft at sea, with the Whale Monstro about to eat them. In order to save his father, Pinocchio gives him the only flotation device, claiming he would float being made of wood. Gepetto survives, but sadly Pinocchio seems to lose his magic in this sacrifice. However, the Blue Fairy then returns, and because of his Heroic Sacrifice, finally turns Pinocchio into a real boy. Father and Son thank the Blue Fairy for her generosity, while Blue for her part promises Pinocchio that he will always be a real boy so long as he stays "Brave, Selfless and True."[S1, Ep. 20]
• Regina hires Edmond Danté, the Count of Monte Cristo, to kill Snow and Charming, since Rumple's spell protects them from harm in their land. The Count disguises himself as a servant and is hired by the Charmings as their cupbearer. Regina gives him a vial of Agrabahn viper venom to poison Charmings' drinks.[S6, Ep. 2]

The deals for hope

• Still uneasy about the Queen's threat, Charming and Snow - heavily pregnant at this time - consult with Rumplestiltskin about what they should think abut it. He prophesizes that their child will save them from the Dark Curse on its 28th birthday, beginning "the final battle". As payment, Snow tells Rumple the name she plans to give her: Emma.[S1, Ep. 1]
  • Still in his underground prison, Rumple furiously writes down Emma's name in a small piece of parchment with squid ink, and hides it in a small niche of the cave.[S2, Ep. 9]
• Also realizing the threat awaiting them, the Blue Fairy goes to Gepetto's family, asking for their help in facing the Dark Curse with an enchanted tree. Worried about Pinocchio's safety during the curse, Gepetto forces the Blue Fairy to give Pinocchio one of the two spots to be protected from the Dark Curse, despite Jiminy's objections.
  • Charming wants to wage war on Regina now that they know more about the Dark Curse, but their moral compass (Jiminy) advises against it, and Snow is in despair about the whole affair. The Blue Fairy arrives with the magic tree that will protect the child from the curse. However, as per her arrangement with Gepetto, she lies and says it can only hold one.
• Also around this time, Regina tries casting the Dark Curse for the first time, only for it to fail out due to her horse's heart not being strong enough and loved enough. She goes to Rumpelstiltskin as well,^note Regina explicitly says "the curse you [Rumple] gave me." This implies she got the scroll and traded it to Maleficent. and for information on what she truly loves most, she promises to give Rumple comfort and wealth in the new world, as well as a guarantee to do whatever he says there when he says please.[S1, Ep. 2]

Small Changes

• Having returned to the enchanted forest at some time in the past, Hook tries to get information about Rumpelstiltskin from Belle in the queen's castle, but she refuses to cooperate.
  • Regina catches him before he kills her, and in return for his life, he does her a favor of going to kill her mother in Wonderland using Jefferson's hat.[S2, Ep. 9]
    • As proof of his mettle, Regina sets a test for Hook: he has to kill his own father, Brennan. Now an adult, Hook finds hisfa ther, who explains to him he was put under a sleeping curse after he abandoned his sons, but a woman nursed him, they fell in love and she broke his curse. At first, both seem to make amends over their shared past, but after seeing that Brennan had another son, whom he named Liam, Hook kills Brennan. [S5, Ep. 11]
  • Now back at the castle, Regina enchants Hook's hook to take out her mother's heart.
  • Captured in Wonderland, Hook decides to spin his situation around, tricking Regina that Cora's dead when she's actually faking it.[S2, Ep. 9]

The last Day

• Gepetto and Pinocchio finish the wardrobe.
• Realizing what she has to do to get the Dark Curse cast, Regina sacrifices her father's heart to her evil spell, activating the Dark Curse. She pays her respects to her dead father, [S1, Ep. 2] then goes to Rumple's underground cell to gloat to her former mentor that she succeeded in casting his Dark Curse. Rumple, however, warns her about Snow and Charming's child, who will become a saviour and break her curse. Regina then claims she just has to get rid of the baby. [S3, Ep. 9]
  • Regina takes all her remaining knights, and launches an attack on Snow and Charming's castle. [S1, Ep. 1-2]
• Realizing that Snow will have her child before she can enter the wardrobe, The Blue Fairy pleads with Gepetto to allow Snow and her child to go through together, before going to rejoin the other fairies before the curse hits.
  • However, still afraid for his son, Gepetto instead sends Pinocchio through, making him promise to care for "The Savior," and that in time, they'll look on each other proudly again. Jiminy Cricket also reminds Pinocchio that in the new world, he'll need to follow his conscious to save them.
• Emma is born, and trying to give her the best chance outside of Regina's curse, David fights his way to the wardrobe, places Emma inside, and is promptly mortally wounded.
  • Weak, but determined, Snow makes her way to the wardrobe. Regina also confronts Snow about Emma going missing from the wardrobe, but realizing that Emma has escaped Regina's grasp, Snow confidently stares down her stepmother, declaring, "Good will always win."
• The Dark Curse overtakes the lands.[S1, Ep. 1]
  • Jefferson is dragged from Wonderland to the land without magic, given wealth and means, but forced to know who they were, despite nobody else knowing.
  • Dr. Frankenstein is dragged from his world without color, unable to save his brother's condition.
  • Cora erects a magic barrier that prevents the Dark Curse from transporting a part of the land, but freezes her, Captain Hook, Aurora, Prince Philip, Mulan, Robin Hood, the Merry Men (except Will Scarlet), Ariel and others in time for 28 years. [S2, Ep. 9]
  • David's wounds will land him in the hospital in the new world, in a coma, but still alive.
  • All other fairy tale characters are dragged to our world: The Land without Magic.
    • As an added layer of cruelty, Regina's imprisonment of Belle is maintained into the new world, only she's left with no new memories as well.[S1, Ep. 12]

The 28 years of Waiting

Emma's Story

• The Wardrobe brings her to the Land Without Magic, along with Pinocchio.
• Emma and Pinocchio are placed in a group home, but Pinocchio soon runs away, leaving Emma. Emma is taken in by a family, but they send her back when she is three.
• Emma grows up being bounced from foster home to foster home, never knowing who her real parents are.
• While visiting a movie theater in Minnesota, a young Emma is visited by Merlin. He tells her that someday she will have the chance to pull Excalibur from its stone, but warns her that she should leave the sword alone. [S5, Ep. 1]
• As a girl Emma runs away from a group home one winter and hides out under a bridge. She's found by a teen boy (who later turns out to be August, Pinocchio's teenaged self), who gives her a pep talk about believing hard enough to change her fate, using "The Ugly Duckling" story as an example.
• August brings Emma to a police station where when she is asked her name, and chooses to take "Swan" as her last name after being inspired by August's words.
• Emma as a young teen runs away, convinced she will never be adopted. She meets Lily, who claims to be another foster kid, and the two become friends.
• When it comes out that Lily was lying and has a family, Emma leaves her and never looks back. She is moved to a foster home run by Ingrid.
• Ingrid and Emma become close and Ingrid plans to adopt Emma. However, she gets carried away trying to bring out Emma's magic and ends up endangering Emma's life. Emma loses faith in Ingrid and runs away.
• Later Emma meets Baelfire, who in this world goes by Neal. They fall in love, but then, on a tip from August (Pinocchio, now all grown up), Neal leaves Emma so she can fulfill her destiny as the Savior. Neal frames her for his crime, leaving her in prison in Arizona.^note Baelfire was a teenager when he was sold to Pan in Neverland. Neal/Baelfire seems to be in his early- or mid-twenties here, implying he escaped Neverland someway or another to the Land Without Magic.
  • Neal plans to give Emma compensation and his car for hurting her like that, but Pinocchio takes the money, leaving only the yellow Volkswagen beetle for her once she gets out of jail. [S2, Ep. 6]
• While in jail, Emma finds out she is pregnant. She has a son, whom she gives up for closed adoption.[S2, Ep. 11/S3, Ep. 9]
• After getting out of prison, she becomes a bailbondsperson.

Regina's Boredom

• While at first jubilant with her victory, Regina quickly becomes bored with the town being under her thumb.
• When a boy and his father are caught in the magic feedback, she tries to steal the boy away.
  • However, the father, Flynn gets the boy (Owen) away. With the magic preventing him from returning, Owen vows to find his father again.[S2, Ep. 17]
• After 18 years of boredom, Regina finally decides to adopt a child to fill her boredom and emptiness.
  • Through some serendipity, Emma's child is chosen as a potential adoptee. John and Michael Darling are the second choice, planning to get the child for Peter Pan, but Regina eventually does adopt Emma's son.
  • Upon discovering the child's lineage, Regina is at first irritated, but wanting something so badly for her life, she takes a memory potion to remove her from knowing that the child is related to Snow White and Prince Charming. Unfortunately, as per the side effects Snow White exhibited when she took that potion in the past, she loses some of her warmth, coupled with her bad upbringing turns her into a somewhat emotionally distant parent for the child, whom she names Henry Daniel for her father and lover.[S3, Ep. 9]
  • Henry grows up in Storybrooke. At first, the lack of aging doesn't bother him too much. However, one day he finds a storybook in Mary Margaret's (Snow White's) desk. Reading through it, Henry realizes the truth, and upset at his current life, makes a plan to fulfill Rumplestiltskin's prophecy and bring his birth mother back to save the happy endings.[S3, Ep. 11]

Breaking the First Dark Curse

Settling in

• Traveling to Boston on Mary Margaret's credit cards, Henry seeks out Emma.
• Emma does work on her 28th birthday, then returns to her apartment to light a single candle on a cupcake which has a star on it. Making a wish that she wouldn't be alone on her birthday, she blows out the candle. At that moment, Henry rings Emma's doorbell, convincing her to come back to Storybrooke as part of his hope to get her to stay and fix everything.
• While skeptical to everything, Emma does notice some things are off, and is suspicious of Regina's treatment of Henry. So, she decides to stick around for a little while in order to make certain of Henry's happiness.
  • Right around the time Emma decided to stay, August (Pinocchio) suddenly felt a great pain. Due to Emma beginning to weakening the curse, August begins turning back to wood as punishment/a side effect of him abandoning Emma and having the land without magic effect him. He begins to make plans to return from Singapore (his own "pleasure island").
  • Also around this time, a woman named Tamara begins her own journey to figure out where Storybrooke is as part of a plan to destroy the magic in it.
• While getting in spats with Regina almost daily Emma eventually moves in with Mary Margaret, as a way to sooth her.
  • Thanks to Snow reading to David, he wakes up from the coma he was in for 28 years, but without cursed memories.
    • Due to a ploy by Regina, David eventually regains his memories sometime later, deciding to give his "marriage" to Katherine Nolan (Abigail's cursed persona) a second chance.
• Meanwhile, Emma manages to help Cinderella (now named Ashley) keep her baby from being taken by Rumplestiltskin, by promising a favor for later. Ashley has her baby, and Sean (Prince Thomas) gets back together with her, ending Rumple's curse on them.
  • Emma decides to put down roots in Storybrooke, and becomes the town deputy under Graham (the Huntsman).
• Emma is also responsible for bringing the crickets back to Storybrooke by helping Archie (Jiminy back in human form) find his courage and conscience again.
• Growing closer to Emma thanks to work, Graham begins to dispute his position with Regina, and when he kisses Emma one night, he begins regaining his memories. Henry tells him about his lost heart, and finally defying Regina's hold over his life, he receives a kiss from Emma, restoring his old personality. However, in punishment for his defiance, Regina crushes his heart, killing him almost instantly.
• In the subsequent sheriff's election (proposed by Rumpelstiltskin), Emma is made to seem like a hero by Rumple, but she defies taking the easy way up, and so earns the election fair and square anyways.

Emma The Sheriff

• In her first case, she manages to reunite Hansel and Gretel with their father at last.
• Meanwhile, David and Mary Margaret are trying to keep their feelings for each other at bay. Unfortunately, they couldn't help themselves due to their true love, and begin seeing each other privately without Kathryn's knowledge (the cursed Abigail).
• Also around this time, "a stranger" arrives in Storybrooke. A storyteller, he is in fact August, finally returned to help break the curse and give Emma the push she needs to fulfill her destiny.
• Meanwhile, Sidney Glass (the magic mirror) begins acting as a double agent for Regina, pretending to be Emma's ally while reporting to Regina.
• Also during this time, Rumpelstiltskin kidnaps and attacks Moe French (Belle's cursed father) on the anniversary of Belle disappearing. After being jailed, Rumple is forced to reveal to Regina that he also has kept his memories thanks to hearing Emma's name when she first moved in.

The Affair and the Murder Case

• Deciding it's time to come clean about how he doesn't love her anymore David tries to tell Katherine about not loving her anymore, but due to his own cursed cowardice, he leaves out Mary Margaret.
  • Because of his cowardice, the town turns on Mary Margaret when they find out the truth. Because of this, Mary refuses to be with David for now.
    • Katherine though eventually forgives them, realizing that what they have is unique, and wants to find it for herself outside Storybrooke. However, thanks to Regina's machinations, the letter of forgiveness intended for David is burned, and Katherine is kidnapped.
• Also around this time, August borrows the storybook, adding in his story to the pages to prepare Emma for his introduction later.
• At the next lantern festival, with the help of Mary Margaret, Leroy (Grumpy's cursed name) manages to to help the nuns (fairies) sell candles through some sabotage and perseverance, all to gain some favor from the nun Astrid (Nova's cursed form).
• Ruby (Red Riding Hood) gets tired of working at the diner, and decides to work for Emma for a while. However, realizing how horrifying the work can be at times, she eventually returns, making up with her grandmother as well. It's also in this time that Emma finds a box that supposedly contains Katherine's heart with Mary Margaret's fingerprints on it.
• With the investigation having issues, and David receiving his cursed memories in the wrong place, Mary runs away with Regina's trickery, but then is kidnapped by Jefferson.
  • Going after her, Emma thinks Jefferson Mad, and escapes with Mary Margaret, convincing her to prove her innocence rather than run away from her problems.
• While goaded into making herself look bad by the cursed king George, and losing evidence of Regina's potential involvement, Emma finds out about Sydney being The Mole, and makes peace with August. Then Ruby finds Katherine alive behind the diner.
  • Questioning her, there's not a lot of information to go off of, but without a victim, Mary Margaret is released, though the scars of the time has her refuse to be with David.
  • Then August tries to trick Rump into thinking he's his son, but when Rumple figures out the truth, he decides to go along with August's plan to have Emma believe, since breaking the dark curse will allow him to go looking for Bael.
  • Sydney meanwhile takes the fall for Regina, but in retaliation for this little stunt, Emma promises Regina that she's coming at her for Henry now.

The Last Days of the Dark Curse

• While Emma is interested in winning Henry in a legal battle, Rump and August reach a deal wherein August will try to convince Emma of the truth, and Rump will hold off on helping with a legal battle for now.
  • Unfortunately, due to a combination of skepticism, bad memories and denial, August's wooden leg fails to appear to Emma's eyes, and in the end, she remains disbelieving as ever.
  • Afterwards, Emma tries to kidnap Henry to leave town, but Henry drives her off the road, pleading for Emma to remember that her family is here, and she can't leave.
• The next day, Emma talks with Archie (Jiminy) about the custody hearings, but is sad to hear of no psychological case for changing custody. Out of options, she goes to Regina to make a deal: Henry stays with Regina, and Emma will leave town, but she gets regular visits.
  • However, trying to get Emma defeated and gone forever, Regina recruits the mad hatter to grab her poison apple to give to Emma to lock her down forever.
• While Emma plans to leave town for Henry's sake, Henry finds out, and seeing Regina's parting "gift", he eats it, falling under the sleeping curse, his soul falling into the netherworld. His body meanwhile falls into shock under the effect of the magic.
  • Without any scientific explanation to explain this condition, Emma finally realizes she can no longer deny what she's been shown and told. And in righteous fury, she begins wrestling with Regina, finally confirming from her that "it's true." With no easy way to get Henry out of the curse that they know, the two women are forced to go to Rumpelstiltskin for help.
  • Rump promises that the true love's potion in Maleficent could help Henry, and so sends Emma down to defeat her as a final test of character for her victory.
  • Right before her quest to slay the dragon, Emma visits August, seeing him turn to wood completely, giving her some parting encouragement about how important she is before his consciousness slips away.
  • Going down below the library, Emma fights with Maleficent in her dragon form, finally destroying her body, and retrieving the potion.
• Also during this time, David plans to leave the pain around being near Mary Margaret by going to Boston for a new life.
• However, Rumpelstiltskin tricks Emma and Regina, taking the potion for himself. Then the two of them hear about news from the hospital about Henry, and upon arrival, it seems that Henry has died from the curse.
• Kissing Henry goodbye, Emma gives Henry true love's kiss, breaking the sleeping curse, while simultaneously weakening The Dark Curse, allowing all the remaining fairy tale characters to remember their true selves. (including stopping David from leaving town by restoring his memories)
  • Also beforehand, Jefferson releases Belle from Regina's asylum, directing her to Rump as payback for not helping him reunite with his daughter who was with another family under the curse. When the curse weakens, Belle regains her memories, and she and Rump lovingly hug again, admitting that they love each other.
    • However, after the Dark Curse is weakened, Rumplestiltskin brings magic to Storybrooke using the true love potion.

The War with Cora

Waking Up, Changing Times

• Emma meets up with Snow and Charming, now both of them remembering their true natures, and overjoyed with seeing their daughter.
  • They prevent Regina from being lynched, but Rumpelstiltskin, after finding out from Belle about her being locked up by Regina, goes to Regina, and curses her to be killed by a wraith.
  • Working with Jefferson's hat, and thanks to Emma accidentally restoring Regina's magic, the wraith is banished back to the enchanted forest, but in the process, Emma and snow are sucked down as well.
• Meanwhile, back in the Enchanted Forest, Mulan and Philip begin moving again, Philip finally rescuing Aurora with true love's kiss.
  • However, when the wraith sweeps in, it steals Philip's soul. Finding Snow and Emma, the women assume that they're responsible for the wraith and capture them.

(The next two parts happen concurrently)

Trapped in the Enchanted Forest

• Taken to safe haven as prisoners, Emma and Snow are imprisoned with Cora.
  • However, upon meeting with a camp leader "Lancelot", they are released, and given passage thanks to Mulan to get back to the wardrobe and get home.
• Aurora tags along, and due to a scuffle among the women, it attracts Ogre attention, but thanks to Snow's returned archery skills, they kill it, making it to george's castle safely.
  • "Lancelot" meets up with them, but is revealed as Cora. To keep Cora from traveling straight to Storybrooke, they burn the wardrobe.
  • Finally realizing just what her mother gave up when she sent Emma to earth, Emma forgives Snow, beginning to rekindle their bonds, only now as mother and daughter.
• In retribution, Cora kills the people of safe haven, and plants Hook as a scab for Emma and crew.
  • While not entirely convinced, even finding out Hook's true identity, Emma's crew allows Hook to lead them to a magic compass that would help direct them back home, found at the top of the giants's still standing beanstalk.
    • Emma and Hook climb the beanstalk, and through some tricks, manage to stop Anton from killing them. Emma even spares Anton's life to try and prove that Jack and James weren't the rule, but not trusting Hook, Emma forces Anton to give her a head start holding hook for a while.
• Rejected by Cora, Hook is still trying to figure out how he's going to get to Rumpelstiltskin and kill his crocodile, so he plans a new strategy.
  • As such, when Cora captures Aurora, he frees her but takes her heart to give to Cora as a gift.
• When Aurora finds out that she and Henry can meet in the Netherworld, they make plans on how to defeat Cora and bring Emma and Snow back.
• Using Aurora's heart, Cora traps Snow, Emma, Mulan and Aurora in Rumpelstiltskin's old cell, taking the compass for herself.
  • However, determining the meaning of Rump's advise, Snow uses squid ink on a piece of paper in the cell to escape. Together, they confront Cora and Hook.
    • When Emma regains Aurora's heart from Hook (who saved it from falling), Mulan takes off, returning the heart to Aurora, and together the two of them set off to find Philip's soul.
• Meanwhile, Emma and Snow temporarily defeat Cora, escaping through the Siren's lake bed back to Storybrooke.
  • However, using a shriveled beanstalk and a bit of magic, Cora then takes Hook's Jolly Roger to Storybrooke as well.

The beginning of The Evil Queen's Redemption

• Regina gets her magic back, and uses it to take Henry for herself. However, he confronts her about her behavior, saying that he doesn't want to become like her. Realizing exactly what her son thinks of her, she gives Henry up to David, wanting to get her act together rather than keep Henry by force.
• David meanwhile gives an inspirational speech to keep everyone from going over the town line, which now reverts people back to their cursed personas if crossed without protection.
• Talking to Jefferson, Henry finds a way into Regina's vault, but thanks to Regina relaying the danger to David, they save Henry from the Agrabah vipers, and David decides to start training Henry to be a hero to help occupy his time. Jefferson meanwhile finally reunites with his daughter.
• Frustrated with Rumpelstiltskin's inability to let go of magic, Belle thinks of starting a new life apart from him, but is kidnapped by her father. Rescued by David, Ruby and Gold working together, they save her from losing her memories, Belle and Ruby striking up a friendship in the process.
  • As a show of good faith about letting her go, Rumpelstiltskin gives Belle access to the Storybrooke Library (which was closed down during the curse). Admitting his own weakness as a coward and how he wanted to use magic to find a way outside Storybrooke to save his son, Belle decides to live apart from him in the library, but not cut all ties, so agrees to a lunch date in the future.
• Dr. Whale, trying to get favor with Regina (whose going to therapy with Jiminy) uses his procedure on Daniel's corpse which was still preserved below Storybrooke. Unfortunately, just like when he used it on his brother, Dr. Frankenstein's revival turns Daniel feral.
  • While teaching Henry to care for a horse, Daniel wanders to the stables, almost hurting Henry. However, discovering Whale's work, Regina and David protect him. Regina briefly manages to get Daniel to regain his senses thanks to their love, but the procedure just doesn't work fully, and to end his pain for good, Regina has to Mercy Kill him, finally letting him go from her life.
  • Whale meanwhile is forced to admit that magic has its uses to Gold, and gets his arm reattached.
• The Dwarfs finally discover fairy diamonds to create fairy dust and physical magic from.
• King George attempts to frame Ruby for killing Gus (who was one of Cinderella's mice) when he did it instead. As it was the first full moon since the curse broke, Ruby thinks her wolf side got the better of her again.
  • However, with faith, trust and detective work, Granny and David discover the truth and save Ruby from being lynched. Unfortunately, in the confusion, George destroys Jefferson's hat, making it even harder to rescue Emma and Snow.
  • Also in this time, Henry is given a charm to deal with the fire of the netherworld now that he's been under the sleeping curse.

Cora VS Storybrooke

• With Cora in Storybrooke, Regina is convinced to turn back to evil, joining her mother.
• Meanwhile, Hook stabs Rumplestiltskin with a poisoned blade. The poison is so potent that not even the Dark One is safe.
• Snow retrieves the candle she'd received from Cora as a girl and goes to Regina's vault to look for Cora's heart.
  • She burns the candle over Cora's heart, but on her way out, she's stopped by Regina. She manages to convince Regina that the only way to regain her mother's love is to restore her heart.
    • Putting the cursed heart back in, Cora's life force is siphoned straight to Rumpelstiltskin - which saves his life, as Cora dies in Regina's arms. [S2, Ep. 16]

The War with Peter Pan/The Undoing of the Dark Curse

The Home Office Crisis

• Greg and Tamara begin accelerating their plans to destroy Storybrooke, beginning by taking Captain Hook to the clocktower to gain his allegiance.
• Realizing that Henry was kidnapped and taken to Neverland, Emma, Snow, Charming, Regina, Rumpelstiltskin and Hook join together, using the last magic bean to follow them to Neverland. [S2, Ep. 22]

In Neverland

The last battle

• In a last bid to protect his family, Rumplestiltskin commits a murder-suicide with his father, but too late to stop Pan from casting his dark curse to bring everyone into a "New Neverland". The only solution to save them would be to undo the original curse.
• With Regina undoing the Dark Curse, all the fairytale characters are returned to their land, leaving Emma and Henry alone, but with new memories of Emma keeping Henry instead of giving him up.[S3, Ep. 11]

1 Year in the Enchanted Forest

Rebuilding the Kingdoms

• Returning to the Enchanted Forest, Snow proposes to her stepmother setting up a diarchy. While heartbroken over losing Henry, Snow's encouragement is enough that Regina agrees to soldier on and help.
• Regina meets Robin Hood, who encourages her to stay strong in another moment of weakness.
• Also during this time, David helps Princess Rapunzel overcome her fear and anxiety to take over running her kingdom, using his courage to help Rapunzel find her own.[S3, Ep. 14]

Zelena's Return

• Zelena attacks the survivors, giving Regina new purpose to destroy this new rival to her family.
• Meeting with Glinda, who's been trapped in another dimension, Snow and Charming are advised to return to the land without magic to get their daughter to help fight Zelena.
• Snow casts a new Dark Curse on the Enchanted Forest, using Charming's heart for the catalyst. However, Regina divides up Snow's heart, and due to their bond of true love, David and Snow are both able to live through the next curse.
  • However, Zelena tampers with the new curse with her own magic, causing all the characters to forget the year in the forest. [S3, Ep. 19]

The Return to Earth/The War with Zelena

Bringing Emma Back

• Upon return, Captain Hook arrives at Emma's new home to convince her to return. While she doesn't remember him due to the new curse's conditions, he gives her a memory potion to remember, and when her date turns out to be a flying monkey, Emma is convinced to return home to fight for her family.

The War with Zelena

• Zelena and Regina duel in the streets. While Zelena is victorious, she cannot find Regina's heart which she needs for her spell.
• Kissing Henry, Regina's true love breaks Zelena's spell, bringing back the year of memories.
• Rumpelstiltskin is freed from his prison, and with his first act, stabs Zelena with his dagger. However, rather than killing Zelena, it transfers her spirit into her pendant.
• As a consequence, the spell is activated, creating a time portal to the past. Emma and Hook fall in, leading to the 2nd courtship of Snow White detailed above.
  • Also, Zelena manages to go through the spell as well, and murders Maid Marian, taking her place, and then allowing herself to return to the present when Emma rescues her in the past.
• Rumpelstiltskin and Belle marry now that their troubles are seemingly over.
  • Snow and Charming also finally have their baby, naming him Neal after their late son-in-law.
  • Emma and Hook also begin a formal relationship with each other.
  • Regina though is rather put out that Emma chose to bring "Marian" back, thus forcing Robin Hood to stay with her, even though his heart has moved on.
  • However, along with Marian, returning to the present also brought with them Elsa's urn, and the impact of landing broke it open, freeing the queen of Arendelle at last.

The Arendelle Crisis

Elsa moves in

• Confused by the modernities of Storybrooke, Elsa creates a new version of Marshmallow, who proceeds to wreak havoc and cause all kinds of distress to the town until Emma and Regina manage to stop it.
• Elsa erects giant ice walls around the town, effectively creating a new magic barrier until she can find Anna.
  • Accidentally getting trapped in an ice cave together, Emma and Elsa talk with each other, before David finally arrives, giving Elsa the encouragement to have full control over her powers again. However, despite the new control, she is unable to lower her ice wall due to Ingrid's influence.

Ingrid's Ploy

• As part of her plans, Ingrid rescues Sydney (the magic mirror) from Regina's asylum. He then helps lead Regina into a trap. While the trap fails, Ingrid is true to her word, and releases Sydney from her service, finally freeing the Genie once again.
• With Ingrid captured, Emma tries interrogating her, but Ingrid eventually goads Emma to have a magic flare which frees her.
• With the power of the wishing star, Anna and Kristoff are saved from drowning just in the nick of time, reuniting them with Elsa at last.
• Shattered sight is cast, bringing out all the darkness within the people's hearts.
• Seeing her sister's letter, Ingrid finally realizes that she's become the monster. Realizing she needs to fix her mistakes and save her nieces, she reverses Shattered Sight, killing herself but restoring the light of Storybrooke.

Detente and Betrayal

• Using a magic door, Anna, Elsa and Kristoff return back to Arendelle, Elsa and Emma tearfully saying goodbye.
  • Upon return, the 3 of them retake the kingdom from Hans and his family.
  • And with their troubles over and done with, Anna and Kristoff can have their wedding at last, Elsa giving Anna away at the altar.
• Belle banishes her husband from Storybrooke for his manipulations, to which, he then goes to Ursula and Cruella in New York for help getting back to Storybrooke.

The Saga against The Queens of Darkness

Rumplestiltskin Out and Back Again

• Six weeks later, Storybrooke falls into a routine. Belle and Hook try talk about Rumple's deception, while Regina and Emma discuss the matter of the Author and the Storybook.
• Rumplestiltskin passes himself off as an academic professor from our world and helps Belle translate ancient runes to reverse the spell of the Sorcerer's Hat and release the fairies/nuns. It works, but it also releases Chernabog in Storybrooke.[S4, Ep. 12]^note Chernabog being released from the Sorcerer's Hat implies it was captured at some point.
• Released from the Sorcerer's Hat, Mother Superior/The Blue Fairy has a drink in Granny's Diner and is approached by Regina in regards to the storybooks found at the Sorcerer's house. Mother Superior says the Sorcerer and the Author are not the same person.
• Regina discovers that "Marian" was never brought back at all. It was Zelena Back from the Dead all along. While this could mean that Robin would leave her, Robin reveals that she's pregnant, and thinks it improper to abandon Zelena like this.

The slow fall of Emma

• Emma accidentally murders Cruella without knowing of the Author's Thou Shalt Not Kill rule put on her.
• Emma finally brings Lily back to Storybrooke. While angry at Emma and the Charmings, her mom Maleficent tries to get her to move on so they can be a family at last.

The Mad World

• Using the necessary ink, Isaac rewrites the reality of the fairy tale characters, turning heroes and villains into their antithesis.
• In this mad world, the villains are getting happy endings, while the heroes are EVIL. However, as a twist, Regina is a fugitive from Snow White in this reality, hinting that she's a hero now at heart.
• Crashing Zelena's wedding to Robin Hood, Regina takes a blow for Henry, proving once and for all that she now has light in her heart.
  • With Regina's blood (the blood of the light savior), Henry takes up Issac's quill, rewriting reality back to how it's meant to be.
    • With it all wrapped up with her half sister, Regina happily gets back with Robin Hood.
• Henry breaks the quill, promising to never abuse his power as the author.[S4, Ep. 21-22]
• Emma stops the darkness of the Dark One from overtaking Regina. However, she is then deputized as the new Dark One. [S4, Ep. 22]

The Savior, The Dark One AKA the quest in Camelot

• Missing from Storybrooke and reappearing directly over the Dark One Vault, Emma Swan is greeted by a hallucinatory version of Rumplestiltskin (the previous host of the Dark One's darkness). [S5, Ep.1]

The return from Camelot

• On-screen text states that the group is teleported back from Camelot to Storybrooke "six weeks later". [S5, Ep.1]

Saving the Underworld

Hyde and The Black Fairy

• The Charming family sits down for a meal at a diner. All the living ones and extended family.

The New Enchanted Forest

• Many, many years ago, Gothel is a forest nymph, daughter of Mother Flora. She lives in a sacred grove full of nymphs like her, but she sneaks out to spy on some girls trying out some dresses for an upcoming ball among the humans. Gothel is invited by Isla to the same ball. That night, Gothel is humiliated by Isla and others in the greenhouse. Gothel returns to the grove and finds it entirely destroyed, her family and the other nymphs killed by humans. With her dying breath, Mother Flora begs her daughter not to take revenge on the humans. Despite her last words, Gothel returns to the ball and summons deadly plants to kills every human she can. She spares another human named Seraphina, who, like Gothel herself, also has powers. The duo return to the grove and find the last magic bean. Gothel explains that, with the death of the nymphs and the destruction of the grove, their entire world has become the first "Land Without Magic". She then uses the bean to transport herself and Seraphina to another realm, until they find the opportunity to return.[S7, Ep. 19]
• After the Final Battle with Gedeon and the Black Fairy, a 17-year-old Henry decides to leave Storybrooke in search of his own story. Using a magic bean, he creates a portal to a random realm and rides August's motorbike through the portal. [S7, Ep. 1]
• In the New Enchanted Forest, a girl named Rapunzel marries a man named Tremaine and has two daughters, Anastasia and Drizella.
• Tiana's father, a cook, marries a princess named Eudora.
• Eventually, when she is an adult, Tiana's family's fortune wanes due to her father's death, and they have to sell their belongings. Drizella Tremaine visits their sale and mockingly calls it a fête de faillite.
  • Tiana seeks a magic user named Dr. Facilier and meets a prince named Marius, who asks for her help in rescuing his true love.[S7, Ep. 5]
• Mr. Gold/Rumple and Belle are able to raise their son Gedeon in Storybrooke. Worried about him leaving forever and losing Belle, he looks for information on how to get rid of the powers of the Dark One's dagger for good. Perusing tomes of ancient lore, Belle discovers a way: they need to relocate to a place called "Edge of the Realms", and Rumple must drop the dagger down a bridge. The plan does not work, but Belle and Rumple live out their days together, until she dies of old age. Rumple then enters a portal to the New Enchanted Forest, and is almost run over by Henry Mills on his motorbike. He also meets New Enchanted Forest!Alice. [S7, Ep. 4]
• Some years later, Henry Mills, now an adult, rides his motorbike through a forest. He suddenly runs over a princess on her carriage. When he goes to check on her, he sees that she lost a shoe of her famed glass pair, and deduces the princess is the Cinderella of this new land.[S7, Ep. 1]
• During her stint as the Wicked Witch of the West (black garments and green skin), Zelena faces the Gingerbread Witch and is injured. A blind woodcutter named Ivo (father of Hansel and Gretel in the New Enchanted Forest) rescues her and nurses her back to health. As a thank you, Zelena goes back to the Gingerbread House to save his children, but finds out they have escaped. The Gingerbread Witch faces Zelena again, but her sight is stolen by Zelena. Zelena then returns to Ivo to restore his sight, but his children, back home, denounce her as the Wicked Witch. Feeling dejected, Zelena magically manipulates the flames in the fireplace to burn Hansel's arms. [S7, Ep. 17]
• Hansel and Gretel go their separate ways. The boy eventually adopts the moniker of Jack to forge a new identity and escape his past.
• Princess Tiana prepares a resistance movement against Lady Tremaine and the king.
• Regina, Wish Realm Hook, adult Henry Mills and New Enchanted Forest!Cinderella join forces with Tiana's Resistance. [S7, Ep. 3]
• Now freed from the magical tower prison, Gothel begins to assemble a group of powerful witches. In one of her outings, she gathers possible recruits, among them Drizella and an adult Gretel. Gothel puts them through an elimination process in a forest. Both girls forge an alliance at first, until Drizella discovers that Gretel was also on orders of eliminating her rival. Drizella stabs Gretel with her sai/dagger. Gothel appears and welcomes Drizella into her Coven.[S7, Ep. 15]
• Some years into the New Enchanted Forest, Henry and Cinderella marry, and she gives birth to a daughter named Lucy. Drizella, now part of the Coven of the Eight, appears to the happy first-time father and his family and threatens them with the Dark Curse. To her surprise, her mother, Lady Tremaine, shows up and tells her she provided her enemies with blood to encase Drizella in stone as part of a blood magic spell, so she cannot harm anyone.[S7, Ep. 10]
• Just before her coronation, Tiana is visited by Dr. Facilier, who reads the cards before her and warns of a incoming danger. Tiana herself goes to investigate and meets Prince Naveen. The prince of Maldonia tells Queen Tiana he is after a giant crocodile that killed his brother. Tiana and Naveen row the boat to the lake where the animal was last seen and are attacked by the crocodile. Tiana kills it, and takes a badly injured Naveen ashore. Facilier appears to them, cures the prince and poofs him away as part of his bargain. Later, after the coronation, Tiana, her mother Eudora and friends agree to protect the kingdom. Soon after, Regina stays behind and greets Facilier, who shows her a necklace the crocodile has swallowed. They kiss.[S7, Ep. 11] [Although the necklace appeared on her before the Dark Curse, in S1, Ep. 1, it is only now that becomes a plot point.]
• Eight years pass. When Henry, Cinderella, Regina, Tiana, and the other are celebraing Lucy's birthday, Mother Gothel assembles the Coven of the Eight to release Drizella from her petrified state and to prepare to cast a new Dark Curse on the New Enchanted Forest. They kidnap Henry Mills to force Regina to once again cast the curse.[S6, Ep. 21-22/S7, Ep. 10]

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