Best Laid Plans (Once Upon a Time)
| "Best Laid Plans" | |
|---|---|
| Once Upon a Time episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 4 Episode 16 |
| Directed by | Ron Underwood |
| Written by | Kalinda Vazquez & Jane Espenson |
| Production code | 416 |
| Original air date | March 29, 2015 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
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"Best Laid Plans" is the sixteenth episode of the fourth season of the American fantasy drama series Once Upon a Time, which aired on March 29, 2015.
In this episode David Nolan and Mary Margaret tell Emma Swan the secret they have been keeping from her; and Regina is found out by Mr. Gold, Maleficent, and Cruella, while flashbacks show Snow White and Prince Charming's past with the Apprentice and with Maleficent.
A unicorn is shown galloping in the forest.
In the Enchanted Forest, before the first curse, Snow White and Prince Charming come across a unicorn and touch its horn to see what the future holds for their unborn child. Charming sees a happy baby Emma, but Snow sees a vision of Emma ripping out Snow's heart and crushing it to dust. Later on, the couple run into a peddler, who tells them that Maleficent has transformed into a dragon and has laid an egg. The merchant then advises the couple to follow a path that leads them to the Apprentice's cottage. The Apprentice tells the Charmings that their child is a blank slate, and either one of their premonitions could come true, but adds that it is possible to banish the darkness from a child, and in order to do that they would have to find another blank slate to contain the darkness. Snow begins to believe that Maleficent's egg is the ideal vessel to take on the darkness, as it will only grow into a heartless monster anyway.
The Charmings later return to the cave where Maleficent, as a dragon, is guarding her egg. As they attempt to take the egg, Maleficent awakens and pleads with Snow, but the Charmings take the egg anyway (although Snow vows to return it unharmed), and bring it to the Apprentice, who then transfers the darkness from their unborn child with a powerful, irreversible curse. Unfortunately, The Apprentice left out one detail; the creature inside the egg will become the darkest force ever seen. He claims that he has no choice but to open a portal and banish it to where it can do no harm. The egg begins to hatch to reveal a harmless human baby inside, and the Charmings beg the Apprentice to stop the spell to no avail. Cruella and Ursula arrive, furious and intent on rescuing the baby, and are sucked into the portal along with the egg. The Apprentice explains that all three have been sent to a realm where they will not hurt anyone again.
Some time later, the Charmings receive a unicorn-themed mobile for the baby's room. Snow does not want the reminder of what they had done hanging over their child, but Charming believes it is a reminder that they can become the best possible people that they can be, and that the mobile should stay. The couple then vow to never succumb to the darkness again, and to always do the right thing, for the sake of their daughter.
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