-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(A young Cora arrives home to find her father passed out drunk on a wheelbarrow of sacks of grain. Next to him, is another wheelbarrow full of sacks of prepared flour.)
Cora: Father. Father!
Miller: What? I'm resting.
(She grabs the bottle from his hand and smashes it against the ground.)
Cora: You're always resting. The flour was due to be delivered this morning. I, for one, would like to be able to eat this week.
(Cora takes the wheelbarrow of flour and heads towards the castle.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Cora arrives at the castle and begins unloading the flour. A young Eva is there, along with King Xavier, Henry I, and the rest of their escorts. As the royal party walks past, Queen Eva trips Cora, causing her to fall on her face and drop her bags of flour.)
Cora: You stupid, foolish girl!
King Xavier: What happened here?
Queen Eva: Oh, the peasant fell. As they do.
King Xavier: Are you alright?
Cora: I'm fine.
King Xavier: Not you. Eva. Are you alright, Eva?
Queen Eva: Well, she ruined my slippers.
Henry I: I don't think the girl meant any harm.
King Xavier: You shall receive no money for the flour, and you will apologize to Eva.
Cora: Apologize? The wench tripped me.
King Xavier: Curb your tongue. This is Princess Eva from the Northern Kingdom, our honored guest. She's a very important woman.
Cora: She's a girl.
King Xavier: And who are you, miller's daughter? What's your name?
Cora: Cora.
King Xavier: Then kneel, Cora.
(Cora reluctantly kneels.)
King Xavier: Now apologize. Apologize, or this will be the last bit of flour we'll take from you. There are other millers out there.
Cora: I beg your pardon, Princess Eva.
King Xavier: Stay down until we have passed. You are where you belong.
-[Storybrooke]-
(The New York group is sailing on Hook's ship towards Storybrooke. Henry and Neal are steering the ship, while Emma tends to Mr. Gold below deck.)
Emma: You don't look comfortable.
Mr. Gold: The poison racing towards my heart will have that effect.
Emma: Tell me about this, uh, knife of yours. Cora and Regina... If they do have it, they can make you do anything?
Mr. Gold: Indeed.
Emma: Like... Kill us all?
Mr. Gold: Yeah. You're hoping I bleed to death now, aren't you?
Emma: You're Henry's grandfather. We're family now. I'm going to save you.
Mr. Gold: Oh, I feel so reassured.
[SCENE_BREAK]
(In Storybrooke, David is talking to Mary Margaret on his cell phone.)
David: Hey. I just talked to Emma. It's a bad wound. She says it's poison. They can only cure it back here in Storybrooke. They're taking a ship home.
MMB: Well, let them know that they have the knife, okay? Who knows what that wicked woman would do?
(The scene switches to Regina's office, where Cora and Regina are listening in to the phone conversation. Hearing enough, Cora knocks the speaker off of the desk, cutting off the connection.)
Regina: Mother.
(Regina gets up to retrieve the speaker.)
Cora: I don't like what that enchanted box was saying. I'm not... I'm not wicked.
Regina: It's not an enchanted box. It's a phone tap.
Cora: I don't care. What matters is, they've been warned. Rumpelstiltskin's smart. And now, he has time to think.
Regina: But he's injured.
(Cora looks at the dagger and notices that Rumpelstiltskin's name is slowly disappearing from the blade.)
Cora: More than injured, I'd say. He's dying. And when his name disappears, all of that power of his will just... Boil off into the air and... Then there will be no new Dark One.
Regina: Okay. So we have to use him to get Henry back before he dies.
Cora: Not in his condition. I don't want to kill him faster. No, there are no other options. I have to stab him with this knife, and take his power as my own. I have to become the Dark One. And with his power, there's nothing I won't be able to do.
Regina: But Henry's never going to forgive that. And the whole point of this is... Wait. What is the point of all this?
Cora: To protect our family.
Regina: Or you gaining your power.
Cora: Whatever power I gain is for us - to protect you, to protect Henry. If we lose this battle, we'll spend the rest of our short lives on our knees in front of them. And that, my love? Is something I'll never do.
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(King Xavier is throwing a masquerade ball at the castle. Several masked couples are dancing when Cora arrives donning a red dress. She grabs a stray mask and puts it on, and then joins the people standing off to the side.)
Cora: Has the King really brought all these wealthy women here to vie to purchase his son? Poor Prince Henry.
Henry I: You're very Frank.
Cora: Well, I... Oh, my. You're him. You're the Prince. I am very, very... I'm... I'm a goose, aren't I?
Henry I: I don't know, let's find out. Can a goose waltz?
(Henry I and Cora join the others on the dance floor.)
Cora: But I wouldn't want to stand in the way of someone purchasing you.
Henry I: Then what are you doing here?
Cora: I just came for the free food. Exquisite mutton, by the way.
Henry I: Thank you.
(King Xavier interrupts their dance.)
King Xavier: Excuse me, my boy. May I cut in?
Henry I: Of course, father.
(King Xavier takes Henry I's spot and resumes dancing with Cora.)
Cora: Your Majesty. I didn't expect this honour.
King Xavier: Tis no honor. Did you think a stolen gown and pilfered mask would keep me from recognizing you? There's straw on your dress. You carry the mill with you, miller's daughter.
Cora: You've got some nerve, disparaging me. You're selling off your own flesh and blood.
King Xavier: You're an insolent girl. The kingdom has been strained by righteous wars, and we need our gold, yes. We are still miles above your kind. So now go. There's nothing you can offer us other than errant strands of straw.
(He picks a strand of straw off of her dress.)
Cora: That is nothing but delusion.
King Xavier: What could you possibly have to offer us?
Cora: I can turn...straw into gold, and solve all your woes.
King Xavier: Really?
Cora: But, as you've insulted me, you shall not reap the benefits. Good luck whoring your son.
(Cora begins to walk away, but King Xavier grabs her arm and makes an announcement to the crowd.)
King Xavier: My loyal subjects! We have a very special personage with us. This woman tells me that she can spin straw into gold.
(The crowd laughs.)
King Xavier: And she's going to demonstrate it for us! Fetch a spinning wheel!
Cora: It takes...time, to gather my thoughts.
King Xavier: Oh. I tell you what, my dear. Spend the night here, locked in a tower full of straw. Spin it into gold tomorrow, and you can marry the Prince. Fail, and you die.
-[Storybrooke]-
(David, Mary Margaret, and Ruby arrive at the docks to meet Emma and company. Neal and Ruby help Mr. Gold off of the ship.)
MMB: Are you okay?
Emma: Yeah. Yeah, we're alright.
(David takes over Ruby's position, and he and Neal head towards the truck with Mr. Gold.)
Henry: Uh, I drove a ship.
David: Did you now?
Henry: Yeah, my dad showed me how.
Neal: That's...me.
(They set Mr. Gold on the back of the truck.)
Mr. Gold: Thank you, thank you.
David: Is Cora trying to control you with the dagger?
Mr. Gold: Oh, you'd know if she was, cause most of you would be dead by now.
MMB: Well, then we'll just have to take the fight to her before that can happen.
David: We will.
MMB: And this time, we finish it.
David: Mary Margaret...
MMB: David. She needs to be stopped. She needs to be killed. This is our family. We are going to protect it.
David: Of course we will, but what you're talking about goes beyond that.
MMB: Does it? Because she is the reason you've never met my mother.
David: I know. I know what happened to Queen Eva, and I have zero problem with Cora dying for it. But not by your hand, and not out of vengeance.
MMB: Why?
David: Because you wouldn't be able to live with yourself. You have the purest heart of anyone I have ever known. That's who you are, and that's who you're going to stay.
Emma: You okay?
Mr. Gold: Ah, I'm beginning to feel a bit stronger. Take me back to my shop. There's magic there that can protect us.
Henry: Let me guess. I get to go with Ruby.
Emma: You got it, kid.
Ruby: I'll keep him out of the crossfire.
MMB: Thank you.
Henry: Don't look so worried. You'll stop Cora. You won't let her get away.
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(Cora is locked in one of the towers in the castle with a spinning wheel and bunches of straw. She looks out the window to the ground and moat below her. Rumpelstiltskin appears.)
Rumpelstiltskin: That's never going to work. I mean, you'll escape, but you'll be dead. Kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?
Cora: Who are you?
Rumpelstiltskin: Who are you?
Cora: Cora.
Rumpelstiltskin: Not a very pretty name, is it? Sounds like something breaking.
Cora: How did you get in here? If you got in, I can get out.
Rumpelstiltskin: If I understand your situation, this is your way out.
(He gestures to the spinning wheel and sits down. He begins feeding straw into the wheel.)
Rumpelstiltskin: And what a marvelous coincidence, that spinning straw into gold just so happens to be something that I like to do. Yeah, it's... It's almost like... Like... Like... Like fate.
Cora: No one can spin straw into anything, and no one can make...
(Suddenly, Rumpelstiltskin magically transforms the straw into a strand of gold.)
Rumpelstiltskin: Oh, well, well. Would you look at that?
(Cora grabs the gold strand to check for herself.)
Cora: You want to help me?
Rumpelstiltskin: No, I want you to help me. And you will, because the future? Is my gift. Well, in a manner of speaking.
Cora: What could you possibly get from me?
Rumpelstiltskin: Funny you should ask. Can you read?
(Rumpelstiltskin magically produces a contract. He hands it to Cora, who then proceeds to read it.)
Cora: My firstborn child?
Rumpelstiltskin: She is quite important.
Cora: She?
Rumpelstiltskin: Yes, I see the future. Weren't you listening? Anyway, I only get my payment if you live past tomorrow.
Cora: You can turn all this straw into gold by morning?
Rumpelstiltskin: And you can parade in front of the royals, and demand the hand of the dimly lit Prince. And have them kneel before you. That's what you want, eh? You want them to kneel-
Cora: No.
Rumpelstiltskin: I... No... What?
Cora: Teach me. Don't just do it. Teach me. Make it part of our deal.
Rumpelstiltskin: You are a spicy one, aren't you? Oh, well. Rumpelstiltskin.
Cora: What?
Rumpelstiltskin: My name. Do believe you just earned it.
(Rumpelstiltskin waves his hand, causing the contract to briefly glow. He then takes out a quill and hands it to Cora.)
Rumpelstiltskin: Now... Let's begin.
-[Storybrooke]-
(The group has arrived at Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop. They set Mr. Gold in the back part of the shop to rest. Emma enters with an empty glass container.)
Mr. Gold: Emma, did you find it?
Emma: Yeah. There's nothing in it.
(Emma shakes the container, creating a clinking sound.)
Emma: What the hell?
(She sticks her hand inside the container and takes out something that seems to be invisible.)
Mr. Gold: Invisible chalk. Use it in the front doorway. Draw a line. The rest of you, you might want to prepare for battle.
(Everyone goes to leave, but Mr. Gold stops Mary Margaret.)
Mr. Gold: Oh. Oh, wait, wait. Please. Can you... Get me a warmer blanket? In that cabinet.
(Mary Margaret goes to the cabinet and opens the door. Inside, she finds the 'candle of death' that was previously given to her by the Blue Fairy. She slowly takes it out and holds it in front of Mr. Gold.)
MMB: Why do you have this?
Mr. Gold: For a rainy day.
[SCENE_BREAK]
(At the front of the shop, Emma draws a line with the invisible chalk in front of the door. Neal watches her.)
Neal: Missed a spot.
Emma: You're hilarious.
Neal: I didn't know you were magical.
Emma: Oh, my. Are you getting judgey about this? Cause you're not allowed to have opinions about surprises, Mr. Son-of-Rumpelstiltskin.
Neal: Oh...
Emma: What 'oh'?
Neal: I didn't mean for Tamara to be a surprise.
Emma: You think I care that a guy I dated a decade ago is engaged?
(David enters.)
David: We're all clear outside. Everything okay?
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Mary Margaret and Mr. Gold are still conversing in the back of the shop.)
MMB: You're not getting any better, are you?
Mr. Gold: The candle can save me. There's nothing else.
MMB: I wouldn't use this to save my own mother. What makes you think I would use it for you?
Mr. Gold: Because you're all grown up now. And for once, our interests are aligned.
MMB: She dies instead of you.
Mr. Gold: I know you can do this. I know you want to do this.
MMB: There's no coming back from murder.
Mr. Gold: And there's no coming back from death, either. And that's what will happen to your loved ones.
MMB: Even if I were to do this... The candle only works if you whisper the victim's name over them.
Mr. Gold: The heart will do.
MMB: Cora's heart - it's not in her body.
Mr. Gold: Use the candle, curse the heart. And then... Here comes the tricky part.
MMB: That's not the tricky part?
Mr. Gold: You have to put the heart back inside Cora's body. She will die, and I will live.
MMB: There's another way. I get Cora's heart, I control her and make her do the right thing, and I let you die. Takes care of two evils at once. Mr. Gold: I'm just imagining poor Henry's face when he finds out that you killed his grandpa.
(Emma enters.)
Emma: I drew the invisible line. I...think. What now? You cast a protection spell?
Mr. Gold: No, no. You're going to do that for me. I'm relying on you.
Emma: I can't cast a spell. I can spell 'spell'.
Mr. Gold: You can. It's in you.
Emma: How? Here? Like, from my brain?
Mr. Gold: Just try.
(Emma closes her eyes and concentrates, but nothing happens.)
Mr. Gold: Stop thinking! Conjuring magic is not intellectual endeavor. It's emotion. You must ask yourself, 'why am I doing this? Who am I protecting?' Feel it.
(Again, Emma closes her eyes. This time, a wave of magic passes over the entire shop.)
Mr. Gold: Oh, yeah. You feel it?
Emma: Yeah... I think I did.
Mr. Gold: Good girl. Very good girl.
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(In the tower, Cora is attempting to spin straw into gold without much success. Rumpelstiltskin watches her.)
Cora: Ugh! It's not happening.
Rumpelstiltskin: You just need to stop thinking about it. Magic is about emotion. Summon up that moment that made you so angry, you would've killed if you could.
Cora: You do that?
Rumpelstiltskin: I do.
Cora: What's your moment?
Rumpelstiltskin: Once, a man made me kiss his boots in front of my son. Now, in my mind, I go back and I rip out his throat, and I crunch his veins with my teeth. And that, dearie, is how magic is made.
Cora: Bloodlust.
Rumpelstiltskin: I like the phrase. Let me help you.
(Rumpelstiltskin puts his hands on Cora's shoulders and sits behind her at the spinning wheel. Cora resumes her attempt at spinning straw into gold. Cora talks in an almost trance-like state.)
Cora: They made me kneel. I didn't do anything wrong, but they made me apologize - to a child. I realized, no matter how good I was, or how hard I worked... I was never going to be more than I am now.
Rumpelstiltskin: What do you want to do to them?
Cora: I want to make them bow. I want their kneecaps...to crack and freeze on the stones. I want their necks to break from bending.
Rumpelstiltskin: Look.
(Cora snaps out of it as the spinning wheel jams. She sees that the piece of straw has turned into gold.)
Cora: I did it. I'm going to live.
Rumpelstiltskin: You're going to do much more than that, dearie. Don't stop... Until they are on their knees.
Cora: Let's keep going.
(They continue spinning.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(In front of a crowd at the castle, Cora successfully spins straw into gold for King Xavier. Rumpelstiltskin watches from the audience, as she brings a strand of gold to the King for appraisal.)
Cora: Here. Here's your gold.
King Xavier: This... Did you really do it?
Cora: You saw it with your own eyes.
King Xavier: You're just a miller's daughter.
Cora: I am so much more.
King Xavier: You've earned him.
(Henry I gets on his knee to propose to Cora.)
Henry I: Cora... If you will do me the honour of accepting my hand in marriage.
Cora: Yes.
(He kisses her hand. Cora makes eye contact with Rumpelstiltskin as he does so.)
-[Storybrooke]-
(David and Mary Margaret are keeping a lookout for Cora and Regina. David notices that Mary Margaret looks disturbed.)
David: What's wrong? Did Gold tell you something?
MMB: No. I mean, he just said that Cora's determined to hurt us.
David: I won't let that happen. We'll do whatever needs to be done.
MMB: You're right. You're absolutely right.
(A tremor surges through the building. David enters the back of the shop to warn the others.)
David: It's them. Regina and Cora - they're here.
(Outside, Regina and Cora conjure a magical fireball together. They throw it against the door, which easily breaks Emma's protection spell. When they enter the shop, they find Emma, Neal, and David armed with swords.)
Emma: Regina. Think about what you're doing.
Regina: Don't talk to me.
(While everyone is distracted, Mary Margaret sneaks out the side door. Regina creates a magical fireball and hurls it at the group, but David deflects it with his sword. Annoyed, Regina magically throws David out the front door and locks him out.)
Emma: David!
(Cora magically blasts Emma backwards and Neal lunges at Cora in retaliation. Cora disappears in a puff of purple smoke, but drops the dagger on the floor in the process. Regina attempts to magically strangle Emma, but is momentarily distracted when Cora reappears. Grabbing a knife from the counter, Emma gets the upper hand and holds the dagger to Regina's throat. With the dagger still on the floor, Neal and Cora face off.)
Neal: What's it going to be?
Regina: Mother!
Neal: Choose wisely.
(Cora summons the dagger to her hand. Emma then throws Regina into Cora, and the two of them fall into the glass counter.)
Emma: Fall back to Gold! I have the chalk.
(Emma and Neal flee to the back of the shop. Emma draws a line in front of the door with the chalk, creating a protective barrier.)
Cora: Help me take out Rumpelstiltskin, and then we'll go back-
(Cora suddenly stops talking. She appears to be in minor pain and disorientated.)
Regina: Mother, what is it?
Cora: My... My heart. It's with my things in your vault. Someone's there.
Regina: Mother?
Cora: Go. Go!
(Regina exits. Cora stands in front of the barrier and gets to work at attempting to break it.)
Cora: Really, Rumpel. Hiding's beneath you.
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(At the castle, Cora is trying on her wedding dress. Rumpelstiltskin appears behind her.)
Rumpelstiltskin: Enjoying the view as much as I am?
(They kiss.)
Cora: How dare you. I'm a married woman.
Rumpelstiltskin: Not yet. Wedding's tomorrow.
(They kiss again.)
Cora: Hm. Well, then it's alright.
Rumpelstiltskin: Love the dress.
Cora: Royal brides have to be snow white.
Rumpelstiltskin: When you see the future, there is irony everywhere.
Cora: You know, I thought I wanted this. White and bright, all the admiration. But then I look at it. Fifth in line to be Queen. That won't happen without an awful lot of bloodshed. And what you give me...
Rumpelstiltskin: I can give you nothing but darkness and isolation.
Cora: And love.
Rumpelstiltskin: Yeah. And love.
Cora: I want that.
Rumpelstiltskin: What if I, uh... What if I, uh... Amended, our contract? Instead of you owing me some random firstborn child, you owe me my child?
Cora: I can make that deal.
Rumpelstiltskin: As can I.
Cora: Rumpel, can we really do this? Can we really have this?
Rumpelstiltskin: If you truly wish it.
Cora: There is one...
Rumpelstiltskin: What?
Cora: It's the King. He humiliated me. He made me feel the way you've shown me I never have to feel. I want to kill him. I want to show him his heart before I do it. So he can see it and know what I'm doing as I crush it.
Rumpelstiltskin: And that is why I love you.
(Cora puts her hand on Rumpelstiltskin's chest. She can feel his heart beat beneath her fingers.)
Cora: Show me.
Rumpelstiltskin: I will show you everything.
Cora: Then I'll do it tonight.
Rumpelstiltskin: Let's seal that promise.
(Once again, they kiss.)
-[Storybrooke]-
(Mary Margaret has broken into Regina's mausoleum. Inside, she navigates the chambers until she comes to one with several chests and cabinets.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Outside of Mr. Gold's shop, David comes to. He calls Emma, who is still in the back room, on his cell phone.)
Emma: David?
David: Are you safe?
Emma: For now. I've got the spell up in the back room.
David: Is Mary Margaret okay?
(The scene flashes to Mary Margaret, who is rummaging through the boxes in the chamber.)
Emma: She's not with you?
David: No. Where the hell is she?
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Still searching, Mary Margaret opens one of the cabinets and finds the inside filled with small boxes containing hearts. The box where Cora's heart lies is glowing and a heart beat can be heard. She removes the box and opens the lid. When she sees the beating heart, Mary Margaret quickly slams the lid shut and closes her eyes. Making a decision, she reopens the box, and lights both ends of the 'candle of death'. She holds the candle over Cora's heart and whispers the name.)
MMB: Cora.... Cora...
(The name echoes throughout the chamber. Mary Margaret then blows out the ends of the candle.)
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(Cora enters one of the castle's towers and finds King Xavier winding the strands of gold onto spools.)
Cora: They told me I'd find you counting your treasure.
King Xavier: Well, you've made us a rich kingdom again. How can I help you?
Cora: I don't love your son.
King Xavier: I didn't expect you to. Not much there to love, frankly. But this is not about love. It's about alliances.
(King Xavier stands up and approaches Cora. He takes her hands in his.)
King Xavier: Love is weakness. It isn't for hard women like you. That should make your choice easier.
Cora: What choice?
King Xavier: Run off with the evil imp you don't think anyone knows about, in the name of love, or stand next to my son with a crown on your head and citizens at your feet.
Cora: If the choice is love or power, then even having a heart is a liability.
(Cora places her hand on his chest and over his heart.)
Cora: Don't you think?
(Elsewhere in the castle, Cora is shown heading back to her room with a box containing a heart.)
-[Storybrooke]-
(Cora is still attempting to break the protective barrier with magic. Emma, Neal, and Mr. Gold are still stuck in the back room.)
Neal: It's getting weaker. She's going to get through.
Mr. Gold: Maybe it's for the best. At least this cursed power will pass from this world.
Neal: No. No, you're not dying.
Mr. Gold: I am dying. That much is certain. I need to talk to Belle. Emma, please.
Neal: Who's Belle?
(Emma dials a number and hands her cell phone to Mr. Gold.)
Emma: Your dad's girlfriend.
(Belle, who is still in the hospital, answers the phone.)
Belle: Mr. Gold, I... I told you before, I... I-I don't remember you.
Mr. Gold: I-I... I know. I know. It's just... Sweetheart, I... I'm dying.
Belle: Oh. I'm, uh... I'm... I'm so sorry.
Mr. Gold: I know that you're...confused about who you are. So, I'm going to tell you. You are a hero, who helped your people. You're a beautiful woman, who loved an ugly man. Really, really loved me. You find goodness in others. And when it's not there, you create it. You make me want to go back. Back, to the best version of me. And that never happened before. So, when you look in the mirror and you don't know who you are, that's who you are. Thank you... Belle...
(Mr. Gold hangs up the phone. Neal clears his throat and breaks the awkward silence.)
Neal: Didn't know you had that in you.
Mr. Gold: Oh, I'm full of love. I've spent a lifetime looking for you. For a chance to say I love you. And I'm sorry.
Neal: I didn't think you would go back on our deal.
Mr. Gold: I just made the wrong choice. May I?
(Mr. Gold extends his hand to Neal.)
Neal: I'm still angry.
Mr. Gold: I know...
(Neal takes his hand and the two of them have a moment.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(On her way out of the mausoleum, heart box in hand, Mary Margaret runs into Regina.)
Regina: You have no right to be here. And you have no right to that!
MMB: I was going to give it to you.
Regina: What?
MMB: She can't love you, you know. She doesn't have her heart. With it, maybe she can. That's why you've never felt she loved you. She doesn't have her heart. But I do.
Regina: You're doing this for me?
MMB: Think about it. What would happen if Cora had her heart back? Back inside her?
Regina: She told me she took it out to protect herself.
MMB: And did it work? The person she was before... Do you think that person survived? She can't love, so she can't love you.
Regina: She always wanted the best for me. That's love.
MMB: Imagine real love. You'd have a mother, and a start on making a family Henry could be a part of. Or, you could have her be the Dark One. The choice is yours.
(Mary Margaret holds out the box containing Cora's heart.)
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(Rumpelstiltskin is waiting by a tree in the middle of the forest. Cora arrives with the heart she was shown with earlier.)
Rumpelstiltskin: I was starting to grow concerned.
Cora: Well, here I am.
(They kiss.)
Rumpelstiltskin: Something's not right.
Cora: Yes. You're correct.
Rumpelstiltskin: Well, what happened? Couldn't you take the King's heart?
Cora: No, I was able to do it. I chose not to.
Rumpelstiltskin: Ah.
Cora: I'm sorry, my dear Rumpel. I'm not going with you. You see, I have a wedding to go to - my own.
Rumpelstiltskin: Whose heart is in the box?
Cora: Don't make this harder.
Rumpelstiltskin: You lied to me. Whose heart?
Cora: Mine. I had to. You told me not to let anything stop me until they're on their knees. My heart was stopping me.
Rumpelstiltskin: You never loved me. Never. You're not getting away with this. We had a contract. I'll take your baby!
Cora: You changed the contract, Rumpel. You only get your own child. And any baby I have... It won't be yours.
-[Storybrooke]-
(Still unsuccessful at breaking through the barrier, Cora looks at the dagger. Rumpelstiltskin's name has almost completely disappeared.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Mary Margaret is sitting on the steps of Regina's mausoleum with her head in her hands. David finds her.)
David: Mary Margaret! Are you okay?! Are you... What did you do?
MMB: You were right. This isn't me.
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Finally, Cora breaks through the barrier and enters the back of the shop. Emma and Neal are armed and prepared to fight.)
Cora: You two - out of the way.
(Cora magically teleports Neal and Emma out of the room. They appear on a random path in the middle of the woods. Cora and Mr. Gold are left alone.)
Mr. Gold: A vision told me about you. Told me this day would come. But it didn't tell me everything. Didn't tell me what I really wanted to know.
(Cora sits next to Mr. Gold on the bed.)
Cora: And what's that?
Mr. Gold: Did you ever love me?
(Cora strokes the side of his face.)
Cora: Why do you think I had to rip my own heart out? You were my weakness. You are the only man I ever truly loved.
(Cora stands up and raises the dagger above Mr. Gold. Before she has a chance to stab him, Regina appears and shoves Cora's heart back into her chest. The dagger falls to the ground and Mr. Gold seems to instantly recover. Cora staggers backwards and looks up to see Regina. Cora's demeanor completely changes and she smiles. Hopeful, Regina smiles back.)
Regina: Mother...
-[Fairy Tale Land - Past]-
(Cora, King Xavier, and Henry I stand before a crowd of people at the castle. Cora is holding a newborn in her arms.)
King Xavier: Princess Cora, please. Tell me, daughter, what's her name?
Cora: Her name is Regina, for one day, she will be Queen.
(Cora holds up baby Regina and the crowd before her kneels.)
-[Storybrooke]-
(Cora continues with her strange behaviour and begins to laugh. Confused, Mr. Gold checks the wound on his chest and discovers that it has completely healed over. Cora pauses and looks down, where she finds a hole has developed in her chest. Regina catches her as she collapses to the ground and she holds Cora in her arms. Mr. Gold retrieves his dagger from the floor.)
Regina: Mother? Mother? What's wrong?
Cora: This... Would've been enough. You... You would've been enough.
(Cora stops talking and her eyes shut.)
Regina: Mother? What's going on? Mother? Don't leave me, please... What am I going to do?
Mr. Gold: Your mother did you no favours.
Regina: Shut up! You stole her life! You cast some spell.
Mr. Gold: I did nothing.
(A frantic Mary Margaret rushes into the room with David trailing behind her.)
MMB: Regina! Stop!
Regina: You did this.
-[End]-
Plan: A: Cora; Q: Who wants to be The Dark One? A: reality; Q: What is Cora's desire to rid herself of Rumplestiltskin one step closer to becoming? A: a dying Mr. Gold; Q: Who does Cora and Regina try to overpower? A: Mary Margaret; Q: Who is tempted by dark magic? A: the fairytale land; Q: Where did Rumplestiltskin agree to offer his services to a younger Cora? A: the king; Q: Who calls Cora's bluff? A: her bluff; Q: What does the king call when he orders Cora to follow through on her boast of being able to spin straw into gold? A: gold; Q: What does the king order Cora to spin straw into? Summary: Cora's desire to rid herself of Rumplestiltskin in order to take his place as The Dark One takes one step closer to becoming reality as she and Regina try to overpower a dying Mr. Gold, and Mary Margaret is once again tempted by dark magic. Meanwhile, in the fairytale land that was, Rumplestiltskin agrees to offer his services to a younger Cora - for a price - when the king calls her bluff and orders her to actually follow through on her boast of being able to spin straw into gold.