Hey guys! I'm not really happy with how the last batch of season 2 episodes went, so I decided to do a little basic outline rewrite. If you wish to write a fanfic out of these ideas, feel free. These are not, once again, full episode rewrites. Just basic outline rewrites. Maybe I'll do one for STRAIGHT ON TIL' MORNING if you guys like these. I also have some ideas for season 3 as well.
THE MILLER'S DAUGHTER: The episode opens with Emma flipping through Henry's book, finding the last story in it, which is Regina's story and includes Daniel's murder, Cora's abuse of Regina, Regina being given away to King Leopold without her consent, everything from the episode The Stable Boy. Emma develops a better understanding of Regina. Henry says he's never read the last story in the book before, when she asks him about it. Emma and Regina get locked inside Gold's shop by Cora, so that Regina can kill her. They argue things out. Emma apologizes for what happened. She also asks about Daniel. Regina says having another heart in him must've made him crazy. Emma is sympathetic. They even talk about Snow. Maybe Regina tells Emma that she killed Graham. Although I guess Emma should've figured that out by now, huh? Regina asks why Emma is trying to help her, after everything. Emma says that it's because they're not completely dissimilar. They compare stories of abuse. Emma reveals that she had a foster father once who used to burn her with cigarettes. She tells Regina that in this world they have people who want to help and protect children who are victims of abuse, and that she can't imagine what growing up in a world without that, and with monarchy, magic, sexism, slavery and no one to help you when you need it, would do to a person. She calls the Enchanted Forest poisonous to anyone without power of some kind. Emma goes on to say that the worst abuse she can think of is having a parent who wants to usurp your identity, because then you don't know who are without them, even though they cause you so much pain. She says that that's what Cora did to her, and what she is trying to do to her now. Emma tells Regina not to be Cora's daughter, but to be Henry's mother, and she'll know that she can't let Cora have Rumpelstiltskin's power. Meanwhile, Snow works hard trying to find Cora's heart, which Rumpelstiltskin told her about, so she can kill her. Charming, Neal, and Rumpelstiltskin use the help of the Blue Fairy to keep Cora from using the dagger, which can only be used in the presence of the Dark One, by blocking any and all tracking spells using the last of the fairy dust, as Ruby and the rest of town hides out in the hospital, trying to keep Henry safe and Greg and Belle from discovering what's happening. This, of course, only makes them more suspicious. Cora manages to track down Rumpelstiltskin by breaking through the barrier of fairy magic and tries to control Rumpelstiltskin, but the dagger doesn't work. Rumpelstiltskin laughs at her, coming to the conclusion that the dagger must not be able to work in a world without magic, and even though he brought magic to storybrooke the barrier keeping the townspeople from leaving is also keeping the magic from spreading, limiting the power of the dagger. Rumple also doubts that it will give her his powers if she kills him with it as well. Regina decides to spy for the Charmings on Cora. Flashbacks are basically the same. Maybe have that creepy chick that can tell the future in it. Just show the origin of Cora's book as well.
WELCOME TO STORYBROOKE: Show flashbacks of Regina in the first days after the curse is cast, as she finds that this "victory" of hers may not be what she really wanted after all and comes into contact with a man and his child and realizes that she needs more than vengeance in her life. Basically the same, but tone it down in the last few flashbacks. In present day, Regina and Emma discuss how best to keep Henry safe, and what they should do about Cora. Regina doesn't want to kill her mother, so Charming comes up with the solution to use one of the magic beans they're growing to send her back to Wonderland. Snow wants to rid their lives of Cora, to ensure she never bothers them again. Emma disagrees. Snow tells Emma that they have to, because Cora killed her mother. Emma is sympathetic, but wants to try to do the right thing. Snow and Emma argue about it. Snow is upset because she thinks Emma's allowing herself to be tricked by Regina, like she has been. Emma says they can't stop Cora without her help, and that if there is one thing Emma knows it's that she can trust that Regina loves Henry will do anything to keep him safe, and will put him first always, and that's exactly what they need in a situation like this. Snow disagrees with that. Emma says that they were wrong before. Snow tells Emma she doesn't owe Regina any guilt for thinking that she was behind Archie's faux death. Emma says that that may be true, but she does owe it to herself to trust her gut on this that Regina can be trusted, at least for this. Snow makes a statement about how if it wasn't for Regina Emma would be a princess. Emma's says that she doesn't want to be a princess, she wants to be equal to other people, not above them, not making decisions for them, and even though she wanted her real parents to be with her and her life was rough and sucked in some places, she would never wish that the curse wasn't cast, because it's also the reason she has Henry. Snow thinks that Regina's trying to turn Emma against them, and she refuses to let her take someone else from her, like she did her Mother and her Father. Charming corrects her that Cora was the one who killed Eva. Snow blames Regina for that, saying that Cora did it for Regina, so it's still because of her. She decides to kill Regina before she can take Emma away too.
THE PUPPET AND HIS PUPPETEER: August is found hiding out in the woods. Basically the same stuff happens flashbacks and present day. But alter Tamara's part in August's story slightly. No Dragon crap. Maintain the continuity that this is a world without magic. Have Neal tell Tamara the truth. End the episode with revealing that Tamara is working with Greg and Dr. Whale, when she shows them she's brought Hook with her, and thanks Whale for the device she used to drain August's magic, which would be how she stops him from revealing her to everyone. Keep Snow involved in the August story. Same basic thing with that. Heck, maybe even keep August being turned back into a kid to save him. Snow decides to maintain her vendetta against Regina, despite Charming's advice. Emma is forced to tell Regina about Neal, and convince her that he's trustworthy, after she sees them playing in the park. Emma suggest that they all talk about it together.
BEAST AND BEAUTY: With Rumpelstiltskin struggling with his darkside and whether or not he can actually kill his grandson, Henry, he goes to an amnesiac Belle for validation, who, fed up with the lies she's been told, searches for answers by going to Ruby for help. Ruby herself struggles with whether or not she should tell her friend the truth, and goes to Snow White and Prince Charming for permission. When they decline, Ruby becomes angry with them, telling them that they are not her rulers in this world, and that she has the right to be honest with her friend. Ruby comes to the conclusion that Regina's curse simply forced them to sit with their negative qualities and the resentments and anger they have for themselves and others. Snow blames Regina for the lack of power they now hold as Royalty, saying that if she hadn't cast the curse they wouldn't even be in this situation. Ruby decides to tell Belle the truth, and does so by taking her out into the woods on a full moon and showing herself turn into a werewolf. Belle is scared at first but calms down when she realizes that it's really Ruby and that she won't hurt her, when the wolf licks her on the cheek. Belle puts Ruby's hood back on and lets her tell her everything. Rumpelstiltskin goes back to Belle, essentially having a mental breakdown, he grabs her, shakes her much like he did in Skin Deep, and yells at her to tell him he's a good man, to love him. Belle, completely done with this crap, yells at him back, telling him that she doesn't know what she was before, but she will not be his crutch now, and that if he wants her to see him as a good man, he will have to prove it to her by actions, not words. Ruby goes to her Granny and tells her that she knows that she lied to her about her mother, and that in the Enchanted Forest she tried to ignore the resentment against Granny for that lie, but it came out in this world, through her cursed personality, because, as she now understands, that personality was just a manifestation of her hidden anger and desire to rebel against her Granny for her lie. They take the first steps into patching things up between them. I suppose keep the same flashbacks. It'll play as a nice parallel to the beginnings of Rumbelle and the fall of it. Emma introduces Neal to Regina. They talk about how they're going to work out a way for all of them to have equal parenting rights and still maintain a schedule in what's best for Henry after they've taken care of Cora. Tamara, Greg and Dr. Whale introduce themselves to Cora and offers to work with her, Tamara saying she could use their help.
EVIL QUEEN: In flashbacks we show Regina's journey through the later years of motherhood. Henry, an outcast partially due to the town fearing Regina and partially because of his issues with being adopted, is given a book by Mary-Margaret. He reads it, and breaks into Gold's shop to steal Charming's sword that he recognized, but is caught and Gold says he'll press charges if Regina doesn't place Henry into therapy. Regina attempts to strong arm Gold, furious at the idea of her son being more of an outcast. It doesn't work. Gold forces her to by saying "Please.". Henry's furious at the idea of what he thinks is Regina forcing him to go to therapy, and after a few sessions with Archie, everyone starts making fun of him, causing Henry to become even more angry with Regina, and when Regina tries to talk to him after he's gotten into a fight at school, he calls her evil and Regina slaps him. Henry runs off to his room, leaving Regina behind trying to say sorry, horrified by herself and her action. Regina sits, pondering, and decides to tell Henry the truth about storybrooke. She goes to his room only to discover the window open and Henry GONE. Regina runs up to the window, screaming out of it for Henry. This flashback takes place just before the events of the Pilot. In present day Regina, Emma and Charming prepare to use the Beans to banish Cora back to Wonderland, when Cora discovers the existence of the beans thanks to information provided by Tamara, who was told by Neal, and attempts to destroy them all, but is stopped at the last minute only barely, when Regina tells the group, leaving only a single stalk unscathed. But they do manage to capture Hook. Snow White refuses to trust Regina, and plots for a way to prove her belief that she's going to betray them, so when Cora destroys almost all of the beans Regina and Snow get into a fight because she accuses Regina of betraying them to Cora and telling her about them. They yell, Snow calls Regina a murderer, and Regina throws all the people Snow has killed to achieve her own happy ending right back in her face, including the war they fought. Regina says to Snow, "We both know that you are just as much an Evil Queen as I am!" and Snow becomes furious and tries to kill her, but Regina rips out her heart, and tells her to stop. She then says, "For so long this is what I thought I wanted, but revenge... it's only made everything worse, and that isn't worth it anymore." she puts the heart back in Snow White's chest, finishing with, "Maybe it never was.". Meanwhile Cora tracks down a way to destroy the town line barrier, and finds one: King George, who, as it turns out, didn't really destroy the fairy dust. What he burned in Child Of The Moon was a bag of sand. He actually hid the fairy dust before Charming and Red came after him. Cora breaks King George out of the psych ward of the hospital, where he was locked up. She determines that with Regina's help, the one who cast the curse, and the fairy dust, they'll be able to rip open the barrier between Storybrooke and the Real World.
SECOND STAR TO THE RIGHT: When Aurora and Mulan search for a way to save Phillip, they run into a mysterious figure who offers them information on where the souls who are consumed by the wraith go and how to get there. Regina and Emma get into an argument about what do about Cora after she's found out about, and has destroyed most of, the magic beans. Meaning they don't have the element of surprise anymore, making their plan nearly impossible to pull off. Emma thinks that they might not have any other choice, but to kill her. Regina insists otherwise, saying that she can't make the choice to kill her mother again. Emma questions Regina's loyalty, saying that maybe Snow was right. Emma regrets it right away and tries to take it back, but it's too late. Regina is hurt by Emma's distrust. Meanwhile Cora, King George, Dr. Whale, Greg and Tamara prepare the spell to obliterate the barrier between Storybrooke and the Real World, as Neal interrogates Captain Hook and learns that Rumpelstiltskin killed his mother. Neal confronts his father about this and lashes out at him when he discovers that it's true. Belle overhears, and is disgusted by it. Rumple tries to convince Belle that she was okay with it before, but that only disgusts her even more, and she get the heck out of there, calling herself, and him, pathetic. Rumple, furious, makes a deal with Cora, telling her that Regina is working with the Charmings. When Regina goes back to Cora, she is knocked out. Cliffhanger is Aurora and Mulan appearing through a portal into Storybrooke. Flashbacks for this episode are basically the same.
