Once Emma Swan stays at Storybrooke, the clock moves, which is something it hasn't done in 28 years. Henry's mother, Regina, is looking through the book and wants to know where the last few pages are. Regina goes over to Emma's hotel and gives her an apple as well as some dark threats that she should leave Storybrooke. Regina wants to know what Emma's history is so she hires someone to look into her past for information, but nothing is discovered in the end that is of any use to Regina. She tells the person who is responsible for the search to keep looking into Emma Swan and her past.
In the fairy tale world, the evil queen threatens to get rid of everyone's happiness with a dark curse. She goes to the person she traded with for the curse and asks to get it back, but she doesn't want to. It is the orb above her staff. The two of them fight for it and the evil queen wins. She takes the dark curse and leaves. The evil queen gathers all the people with the darkest souls and needs a lock of hair from each of them. She tells them the final ingredient is a heart from her childhood steed. Nothing happens and some of them laugh, but she turns them to stone.
Henry has a code name to get Regina off their trail as they try to break the curse that only Henry really knows about. It is called "operation cobra." Henry gives Emma the last pages of the book to help her believe. Regina tells Emma that Henry is in therapy and Emma goes to ask his therapist because she wants to know why he is. Henry's therapist gives her the file. Once she leaves, the therapist calls Regina and tells her that Emma was there and that she took the file. The sheriff goes to Emma's hotel room and says that Henry's therapist said that Emma demanded the file and he said no, so when the therapist left she went back and stole them. Emma is then arrested for this false accusation. Regina goes to the school to tell Henry what has happened. Henry and Mrs. Blanchard, his teacher, go to the police station to bail Emma out. After they do this, Emma goes to Regina's house and starts to cut down the apple tree in her yard.
Back in the fairy tale world, the evil queen has to go back to the person who gave the curse to her in the first place, Rumpelstiltskin. She leaves to see him and he reveals that Snow White and Prince Charming have been to visit him too. He tells her that Snow White's child is the key. The man she goes to see asks that in the new life they are thrown into that he received a good and happy one. The evil queen agrees. Rumpelstiltskin tells her she has to sacrifice a heart and she tells him she sacrificed a steed, but he says that a horse won't do. He says, "Great power requires great sacrifice. The heart you need must come from something far more precious, it most come from the person you love most." She has to kill her father. Her father tries to reason with her, but she stabs him and takes his heart. She puts the heart into the fire with all the other ingredients.
In Storybrooke, Emma has to leave because they can't have any felons living in the hotel. Regina wants the sheriff to arrest her again because of the tree. Regina calls Emma and asks her to come to her office. She tells Regina that Henry thinks everyone in this town is a fairy tale character, and says that it's crazy to think that. Henry walks in when she says this. Regina knew Henry would be there when Emma was talking about him; she planned it.
Emma goes to see Mrs. Blanchard and pays her back the bail money. Emma tells her she wants to leave. She tells Emma that the reason she wants to leave is why she should stay. Emma goes to Henry's Therapy session and says, "The only reason I stayed here was because of you." He accuses her of thinking he is crazy. Emma explains to him that she only thinks the curse is crazy, not him, and that this doesn't mean it isn't true. Emma says, "The only way to break the curse is by tricking the evil queen, that way she isn't on to them." Emma reads the pages that Henry gave her and burns them. Henry hugs her and says, "I knew you were here to help me." Mr. Gold comes to see Regina and he reveals that he knows something about Emma Swan.
The episode ends there, leaving the audience wondering what will come next. The plot just keeps getting better and better. If you haven't started watching this show, you should start. It is a show every person can enjoy. "Once Upon a Time" comes on at 8 p.m. on ABC.
