Once Upon a Time: Season 1, Episode 4 – The Price of Gold

This week’s episode started with another familiar story. Cinderella was weeping as her stepsisters went off to the ball, but her fairy godmother shows up…but she “explodes” and Rumpelstiltskin appears and takes her wand. He makes a deal with her, but she promises to give him anything he wants in return. (I’m noticing a trend…every character at some point is making a deal with Rumpelstiltskin. I’m going to predict that he turns out to be more of a villain than the Evil Queen, since she herself is indebted to him.) Anyway, he turns her rags into a beautiful gown and sends her off to the ball in her glass slippers.

In the real world, the sheriff approaches Emma and offers her a job as his deputy, which she declines. Regina finds Emma and tells her that she’s done a throughout background check on her, in an attempt to scare her once again. She suggests that Emma take a “clean break” from Henry. Emma spills her cocoa on her blouse and while she’s washing it in the back of a restaurant, she meets the present-day Cinderella, who is mysteriously pregnant. She goes to a strange building and runs into Mr. Gold, who knows her now as Ashley. She pepper sprays him and says she is going to change her life. (She then breaks into a safe behind a painting and takes something.) Mr. Gold goes to Emma, saying he wants help finding Ashley.

Back in the fantasy world, Cinderella is at the palace celebrating her wedding to her prince. Rumpelstiltskin shows up, saying he wants her first born child. Cinderella tricks Rumpelstiltskin into using an enchanted quill to sign a contract, which freezes him in his place so that the castle guards can imprison him. He says that no matter what, he will have her child. She feels dizzy, so her prince goes to fetch her water and disappears. Rumpelstiltskin says that Cinderella will never see Thomas again unless she gives him her baby.

In the real world, Emma tracks down Ashley’s ex, but his father reveals that Mr. Gold has paid to take Ashley’s baby. (So really, Mr. Gold was having Emma track down the baby for him.) Emma finds out that Ashley is trying to leave for Boston, so she chases after her. She discovers Henry hidden in her backseat, who warns Emma that “bad things” happen to people who try to leave Storybrooke. They discover Ashley sitting outside of her car right at the Storybrooke border, and she is in labor.

Emma brings her back to the hospital, where she has the baby. Mr. Gold shows up to collect. Emma threatens him, but Mr. Gold says that Ashley can keep the deal if Emma is willing to make a deal with him. She accepts, so she now owes Mr. Gold a favor. (See what I’m saying, he has power over everyone!) We flash over to Regina, and it appears that a “meeting” she had to attend was a visit with a man, who is now showering as Regina is finishing getting dressed. (But we don’t see who that is…interesting.) At the end of the episode, Emma calls the sheriff to say she will accept the job. he offered her. On the other end of the phone, the sheriff is getting dressed in the same room that Regina was just in.

This episode opened the door for a whole new wave of scandals to hit Storybrooke.