Last weeks episode of “Once Upon A Time” began with Belle taking Ariel to find Eric. Once they find Eric he’s chopping the heads off fish and Ariel thinks he must hate her. Belle tells her to go talk to him and once he sees her he smiles and they kiss. As Belle watches, she hears a noise in the sky and when she looks up she sees the Jolly Roger coming from the sky for the dock and smiles. The whole town assembles at the docks to greet everyone . Emma asks Henry/Pan how it feels to be home and he tells her that it’s better than he’s ever imagined. The Lost Boys come off the ship followed by Wendy, who is ecstatic to be reunited with her brothers. As everyone is hugging and telling stories, Emma says that they would never have made it out alive if it hadn’t been for Regina.
In a flashback we see the Queen at Snow and Charming’s wedding promising she would destroy their happiness. Once the wedding is over, Snow tells Charming that she wants to storm the Queen’s castle and steal her magic, but he tells her that she can’t win a fight over her happiness on the battlefield. He says they should go on their honeymoon and forget about the Queen, and they can go anywhere she like. Snow tells him she wants to go to the Summer Palace where her parents honeymooned. As Charming leaves to make the preparations for their journey, Grumpy comes in and tells her the castle is secure and he wonders if this is a good time for a trip. Snow tells him that there’s something at the Summer Palace that can help them defeat the Queen.
In present day, Charming asks Gold what they should do about the Shadow, but Gold tells him that it’s fine because the only person that can release it is locked away in Pandora’s Box….or so they think. Henry/Pan walks over to Felix and Felix asks what next and Henry/Pan says that he needs to be punished so he calls for his parents. As Felix looks at him confused he tells Felix that they need to trust him. Regina agrees that Felix shouldn’t walk free so they take him away to jail. Meanwhile, Gold locks Pandora’s box under his shop floorboards and seals it with a spell only he can open. Henry/Pan asks if he’s sure it’ll work and Gold tells him not to worry because he wants him trapped as much as he does, and that as long as he’s alive Pan will never see the light of day.
Back at Granny’s everyone is celebrating the safe return of Henry and the search party. Emma gives Henry/Pan his fairytale book and he looks at it confused. Emma starts to get suspicious and is surprised he’s not overjoyed to have his book back. Neal goes over to Hook and asks why he’s staring at Emma, and Hook says he’s backing off so Henry’s parents can have a fair shot of being together, but Hook say’s he’s in it for the long haul and he’s not sure Emma will have him back. Regina and Tink go to Mother Superior and demand that she give Tink her wings back. Mother Superior tells Tink the problem is if she can’t believe in her own self how can she expect other people to believe in her. Neal tries to awkwardly ask Emma on a date, and she tells him she’s not sure. He tells her he’ll be at Granny’s for lunch tomorrow and he’d love to see her there.
In a flashback, we see Snow and Charming arrive at the Summer Palace for their honeymoon. He tells her that he’s glad he was able to talk her into coming and when he goes to untie her cloak she tells him not so fast, she has plans for tonight. When Charming goes to stable the horse, Snow takes off her cloak and she’s wearing her hunting gear and then pulls out her sword and arrows and runs into the woods, but guess who’s waiting for her? Charming tells her that he knew something was up because she had that look. Snow tells him about Medusa and how she can turn people to stone with just a look. She tells him that she wants to cut off her head and take her to the Queen. He tells her that there’s no way he’s going to let her do something that dangerous alone.
In the present at Granny’s, Emma tells Henry/Pan that it’s bedtime, but he flips the tables and says he wants to stay the night with Regina. Emma agrees, while being supicious and tells him to call her in the morning and she’ll pick him up. Once Henry/Pan is in his old room, Regina comes in and tells him lights out. He then asks her if she brought the vault over front he other world with all of her magic and she tells him of course, but he knows that. He tells her he may ned the magic in it to protect himself from Pan if he escapes, and she tells him magic isn’t the answer and she’ll protect him. Regina tucks him and and turns the light off. Henry/Pan gets up immediately and opens the window and says it’s time, and his shadow loosens from the Jolly Roger’s sail and flies across the town.
In a flashback, we see Snow and Charming walking through the forrest, and she asks if he’s mad and he tells her he knew what he was getting into when he married her. Charming then reminds her that she stopped the Queen’s execution before and asks why she’s willing to let he be turned to stone now. Snow tells him it’s because this time she threatened the whole kingdom and not just them. Then they come upon the crypt where Medusa is rumored to live and head in.
In the present, David and Mary-Margaret are eating at Granny’s when Gold gives David a brown bottle and tells him to drink it. He tells them its an elixir to cure him permanently. David asks him he owes him anything and Gold says it’s on the house and then reminds him that they’re family now. He drinks it and Snow asks him how he feels and he reaches across the table and kisses her and tells her he wants to start having kids, but instead of answering him Mary sees Neal waiting alone, no Emma. Charming says he’s got this and leaves.
David finds Emma near the shore and she asks if Neal sent him and he says he came on his own because he saw Neal waiting alone. She tells him Neal isn’t he problem, it’s Henry. She tells him he hasn’t been acting like himself lately and she can’t help but feel like something bad is about to happen. David tells her that she has to look for moments instead of looking for bad things in the future. She asks if he thinks having lunch with Neal is a good or bad thing and then she says she’s not ready, but he says she should go anyways.
Hook meanwhile, runs into Tink at Granny’s and asks if she’s okay. He offers her a drink of his flask and she tells him she knows he’s just trying to get with her to take his mind off of Emma. Tink says it’s never going to happen, then they hear a scream and run outside. Emma and David also hear it and run into Tink and Hook. They run in the direction of the scream and it’s Mother Superior being chased by the shadow. Then the shadow rips her out her shadow and she collapse to the ground, David checks her pulse and she’s dead. Tink asked why the shadow killed her and Hook said he’s not sure but he does know is that the only person it takes orders from is Pan.
Henry/Pan sits reading the fairytale book when Regina calls him and tells him to come with her because something happened. After she leaves, he gets an evil smile on his face.
In a flashback, we see Snow and Charming in Medusa’s lair as they creep along the hallways she tells Charming to keep his eyes down. They hear Medusa and he says he’ll draw her out so Snow can finish her. Charming runs down the halls yelling and Medusa heads after him, Snow slices through her neck but the sword dissolves. Charming finds a metal helmet and throws it to distract her and they try to escape. Medusa grabs ahold of Snow and drags her back, and Charming tries to save her but she grabs him and stares into her eyes. He turns to stone and Snow screams.
In the present, Regina asks what happened to Mother Superior and they tell her it was Pan’s shadowed. Regina asks how it got loose and they all decide it must be Pan. Neal goes back to get the candle and shell to trap the shadow. Henry/Pan says that Pan can still hurt him, but Regina quickly reassures him, then Emma says he’s right he could be a threat after all. He asks Regina if she’ll protect him and Emma looks on curiously. Emma tells Regina privately to keep a close eye on Henry because he hasn’t been the same lately. Regina thinks Emma is jealous, but Emma says its not about that and just to keep an eye out.
Henry/Pan asks Regina where she’s taking him and she tells him the one place in Storybrooke where the shadow could never get, her magic crypt. Once they’re inside, she asks hi to promise not to touch anything, and he promises with an evil smirk on his face.
In a flashback, Snow is trying to figure out how to save Charming when Regina shows up on a shield and asks if she’s enjoying her honeymoon, then Snow tells her this is all her fault. After the Queen’s face disappears she notices that the shield has a reflective surface and peals off the rest and uses to to defeat Medusa, but turing her into stone. Once Charming is human again, he asks how she defeated Medusa and she tells her that she let her defeat herself.
In the present, the gang run up to Gold’s shop and demand that he give them Pandora’s box. They tell him they need the box to defeat Pan, and Emma says she has a plan. They drive to the city line and Emma has Gold open the box while she holds a gun. Out of the box comes Pan/Henry and he says “mom.” Gold says shoot him, but Pan/Henry begs her not to, and tells her that Pan switched their bodies before he went inside the box. Emma tells him to prove it by tell her something only Henry would know. He tells her the moment they first connected, and they realize that it’s actually Henry standing in front of them. They step over the city line and Pan/Henry hugs his grandparents, and they all wonder they same thing…where is Pan?
The real Pan is in Regina’s crypt with all of her magical items. He tells her how lucky he is to have her protecting him then hugs her while taking a magic potion and opens it, knocking her out.
In a flashback, Charming tells Snow he’s sorry they were unable to defeat the Queen, and she tells him she wants to start a family which is why she needs to stop the Queen. He tells her they’ll find another way to stop her.
In the present, the gang all walk to find Regina and the real Pan. Once they get to the crypt they find the door locked tight. Finally Gold is able to open the door and they find Regina on the floor but no Henry/Pan. Gold revives her using magic and she asks what happened. They tell her how Pan switched bodies with Henry and then she’s horrified that she fell for his tricks. She says all she wanted to do was be a good mother, then Pan/Henry walks in and hugs her tell her that she is. Neal asks the question everyone has been wondering…what did Pan come down here for? Gold asks Regina, “You didn’t keep it down here did you?” and she says, “Where else would I keep it?” Emma asks what Pan took and they realize it was the curse.
Pan and Felix stand on a hill, and he shows the scroll to Felix and tells him that this is the curse that tore everyone from the Enchanted Forest and brought them to Storybrooke. Pan tells him he broke him out of jail because this curse is going to give them everything they ever wanted.
Regina asks what Pan would want with the curse, and Gold tells her he could cast it again and without Emma’s parents love woven in, there will be no way to break the curse. Pan tells Felix that if it’s cast, no one will remember who they are and they would be trapped and time would stand still. They would be in charge of the whole place, and when they’re done with it, it’ll be the new Neverland.
Catch the Winter finale of “Once Upon A Time” tonight December 15th on ABC at 8pm!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE1LQ00BRFA]