This Sunday's episode of "Once Upon a Time" featured Peter Pan giving Emma a map of Neverland, which can help her find Henry- that is, if she can find the way to unlock it.
Meanwhile, in fairytale land, Snow White's (Ginnifer Goodwin) awakening has elicited the ire of the Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla). Upon learning that her malevolent plan was foiled once again, she offers Snow White and Charming (Josh Dallas) a deal: give over your claim to the kingdom, and you both can live happily ever after. Snow is not happy with this proposal, but Regina says that she'll kill one of the kingdom's subject each day she delays her decision. Rumplestilskin (Robert Carlyle) gives Charming a sword for Snow to use to fight off the Queen, but it's not just any sword--he claims it's Excalibur. Yet, after Snow goes after the Queen with it, she finds out that the sword is a fake. (As any fairytale fan knows, only King Arthur can wield Excalibur.)
In Neverland, Pan (Robbie Kay) hands Emma (Jennifer Morrison) the map, and says that she will be able to read the map once she stops denying who she is. During a battle with Pan and the Lost Boys, Emma says that she realizes how the Lost Boys feel, because she too was an orphan. With that statement, the map comes to life, showing Emma sites such as "Pan's Secret Hideout" and "Pirates Cove."
We then see that Charming suffered a wound during the skirmish from a sword tainted with Dreamshade, which will lead him toward a slow, painful death.
Josh Dallas spoke with reporters about his character's deadly ailment. "Dreamshade is a nasty, nasty, nasty deal," Josh Dallas said, according to TVLine. "And [Charming]'s going to have a major secret on his hands." As for the symptoms Charming will suffer, Dallas said, "I think it does change his personality, because it changes how he thinks. He's living a kind of duality in front of some people."
"It's going to test him, and that's what Neverland does," he added. "Neverland tests all these characters."
Co-producers Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis answered some burning fan questions for TVGuide, hinting at what fans may see this season.
The co-creators said that there will be more flashbacks to when Regina was raising Snow, and there might be flashbacks into Emma's life while in foster care. In the first 11 episodes of the season, there will also be more of Maleficient (Kristin Bauer van Straten), Aurora (Sarah Bolger), Mulan (Jamie Chung) and Phillip (Julian Morris), as well as more insight into the lives of the fairies. The Darlings will also reappear.
Horowitz also said that Charming's circumstance will get "worse and more complicated." But, Kitsis added, "The way he deals with adversity is truly practicing what he preaches. He's going to put his family first even at the risk of his own life."
Belle (Emilie de Ravin) will also reemerge in upcoming episodes, and may even befriend a mermaid.
On the next episode, "Quite a Common Fairy," Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) suggests that Tinker Bell (Rose McIver) could help the group locate Peter Pan's lair. There will also be a flashback that reveals how Regina knew Tink back in the day.
A promo for Sunday night's episode shows the Queen venting to Tinker Bell, who offers her an interesting solution to her plight: some of her famous pixie dust.
Watch the promo for the next episode of "Once Upon a Time," which airs Sundays at 8 p.m. on ABC.