Enchanted Forest: Charming struggles to escape Regina's prison. He disables a couple of guards, but then is confronted by two more. One guard shoots an arrow at the other. That one guard is our Huntsman, Graham. What the Horowitzing Kitsis? I love him, so. The Huntsman doesn't know Charming, but he knows Snow, so he helps Charming escape. Later, he lies to Regina that he will find Charming. Regina doesn't need him, though. It seems her Magic Mirror shows her everything, even what's going on in the forest, where there are no mirrors. Reflect on that. Sorry.

Charming runs into Rumpy, who magics Mama Charming's true love ring right off our faux prince. Rumpy enchants the ring such that it will grow ever brighter, as Charming nears Snow. Rumpy wants to make a deal, but Charming will have none of it. They have a sword fight, but Rumpy uses magic, so it's not fair. Rumpy bests Charming, but since he claims they both want the same thing (a Snow/Charming reunion), he contends that Charming should agree to make a deal. He produces a vial of true love and explains that while it can slip through one's fingers, it's the most powerful magic of all and can break any curse. Rumpy wants Charming to help him protect it, by putting it in a safe place -- inside the "belly of the beast."

Storybrooke: It only takes Emma seconds to wake up to the truth. Thank heaven! The Fairy Tale is reality, duh. It only takes her seconds more to get Regina to admit that truth. Henry is in critical condition. Regina says they need help from the one other person who knows the truth. Emma is all, "Mr. Gold." Regina corrects her. His name is Rumpelstiltskin, even if the show spells it incorrectly.

Meanwhile, David finds Mary. He is sorry he sucks like a vacuum. Unless she comes back to him, he's going to flee to Boston. Mary's all been there, done that, had the scarlet letter spray-painted on my car windows.

Regina and Emma go to see Gold, who chides Regina that magic comes with a price. My word processing software thinks the word chides is too archaic for you. It suggests I use scolds or reprimands, but I have faith in your literacy, gentle readers. Anyhow, true love is the only thing powerful enough to transcend any curse. He has some that he extracted/created/magicked out of Snow and Charming's hair. And? When he created the Dark Curse, he placed a small drop on the parchment as a safety valve. Emma gets it. That's why she's the savior and can break the curse. All she cares about is saving Henry, though. Gold tells her not to worry. He saved some true love for a rainy day. Emma says, "Well, it's storming like a bitch. Where is it?" Love her so much. Where it is -- isn't the problem. Getting it is. Regina tries to assert her parental rights, but Gold will have none of it. It has to be Emma. Regina warns Emma not to trust Gold, but Emma knows they have no other choice. Gold asks Regina if their "friend" is still in the basement. Regina's all, "You hid it with her?" At first, I think her = Belle, but oh no! Anyhoodle, Gold says it's not with her; it's in her. After some more back and forth, he gives Emma Charming's sword.

Emma visits an unconscious Henry, tells him he was right about the curse and apologizes for not believing him. She leaves his Once Upon A Time book by his bed, for when he wakes up. When Regina arrives, Emma tells her she has 10 minutes with their boy, but then they have to meet up. Regina cries as she tells Henry she's sorry. Jefferson emerges from the shadows and blathers about the difficulty of not knowing when one will see his child again. He wants to collect on his bargain with Regina. She points out that Emma was supposed to eat the apple. The deal is void. Jefferson may want to kill her, but Regina says he can't. He doesn't have it in him. She leaves to "save" her son.

Emma goes to August's room. He can't even open the door, so Emma breaks in. She can see he's turning to wood. Emma asks him how to stop this. August tells her to break the curse. She promises she will, but she needs to save Henry first and needs his help. He says she can do it on her own. She can save Henry and all of... He never finishes his sentence, because his face turns to wood.

I just deleted about 500 words, so I'd have something left to say in the full recap. Let's sum it up. Charming, back in his day, implants a golden egg (containing true love) in a dragony Maleficent. Emma, today, takes an elevator ride to the Enchanted Forest and retrieves true love from the belly of that same beast.

On his noble steed, Charming rides to find Snow is already "dead." He kisses her anyhow, because necrophilia for the win? She wakes. True love conquers all. Later, he gives her his mother's ring and proposes. Snow accepts, because OF COURSE. She just thinks they need to settle the little matter of his "father" and her step-mother. Her suggestion? Take back the kingdom. Together.

Storybrooke. David looks up at the clock tower, then hops in his truck and prepares to leave town.

Enchanted Forest. Emma rides the elevator back up to Storybrooke, but it conks out on the way. Gold is at the top of the shaft and tells Emma that Regina has abandoned her and sabotaged the elevator. Emma wants to climb out of the shaft. Gold tells her to toss up the magic-containing egg and promises Henry will be fine. Emma makes the toss. Gold leaves her. Emma climbs out. She finds Regina tied up and gagged, which is a good look for her. Regina says Gold tricked Emma and can't believe Emma gave him the magic. As they set out, they both get calls from the hospital. When they arrive, Whale and Sister Blue Boob break the news. They're too late. Henry is gone. Emma, as if in a dream, walks toward her boy. Regina watches through the glass in tears.

Back at his shop, Gold unlocks the egg and retrieves his true love potion. Just then, Belle walks in. She tells him what Jefferson told her to. Oh wait, that's part of what I deleted. Shoot. Anyhow, earlier, Jefferson broke Belle out of the hospital and told her to go to Gold and tell her Regina locked her up. Gold can't believe Belle is real and alive. He's horrified to learn what Regina did to her. He will protect her.

At the hospital, Regina sobs in Whale's arms. Emma approaches Henry with tears in her eyes. She smoothes his hair and whispers, "I love you, Henry." When she kisses him, bright magic rushes through the room. Henry awakes with a gasp. "I love you, too. You saved me." Regina is all, "You did it." Outside, that same bright magic whooshes over the whole town. It first strikes Mary, then Granny and Ruby, then Archie. Finally, we cut to David. He's just about at the town line when it hits him. He screeches his truck to a stop. Back at the hospital, people start wandering into Henry's room. Emma asks Henry what's going on. He says, "The curse. I think you broke it." Sister Blue Boob says, "That was true love's kiss." Regina is all, "No. No." Sister Blue tells "her majesty" to find a place to hide. Regina tells Henry that no matter what anyone says or thinks, she does love him.

David Charming finds Mary Snow outside the garage. Their memories leave them practically wordless. Finally Snow says, "You found me." He says, "Did you ever doubt I would?" Back at home, Regina clutches Henry's pillow and cries. Gold has Belle out in the woods, when she regains her memories she tells Rumpy she loves him. They embrace and Rumpy says he loves her too, but there will be time for that. First, there's something he must do. He leads Belle to the magical well (where August once took Emma). He explains the magical properties of the waters below, then drops the vial of true love into the well. Purple hazey magic rises and spreads out over the town.

Back at the hospital, Emma wonders why everyone hasn't gone back if the curse is broken. Back at home, Regina sees it approach. Gold's Purple Magic has come to Storybrooke. Emma says, "What is that?" Henry says, "Something bad." Out in the woods, Rumpy tells Belle magic is coming and magic is power. What does power do, children? It corrupts. Cue a smiling Regina. Cut to Snow and Charming. They hold each other as the purple magic rushes over them. The hands on the town clock click to 8:15, before the magic washes over it. Oh my word. Does this mean we're back to the beginning? What the heck, Show?

I'll be back with the whole story, in the full recap. In the meantime, please grade the episode at the top of the page and then come on over to the forum, where magic always comes with a price.