Ep 9. True North

Emma and Sheriff Graham are cooking breakfast when they receive a call from two children, Hansel and Gretel, who are lost in the woods. Emma takes the call and agrees to help them find their father. Later, Emma and Graham head to the forest where they find the children's empty campsite. They eventually discover that the children's father is actually a conman who abandoned them.

Meanwhile, in the Enchanted Forest, Gretel and her twin brother Hansel are left on their own after their father abandons them in the woods. They soon stumble upon the Evil Queen's castle and are captured by a blind witch who intends to eat them. The witch imprisons them in her gingerbread house and forces them into a life of servitude to maintain the house.

Eventually, the two siblings devise a plan to escape with the help of a mysterious stranger named Nick, who gives them a magical compass that can lead them to their father. However, the witch eventually catches them and Nick is revealed to be an accomplice of the witch. Hansel and Gretel are able to outsmart the witch and use the magical compass to find their father.

Back in present-day Storybrooke, Emma agrees to adopt Hansel and Gretel; Regina is less than thrilled that Emma has found a potential new family for the children. Regina conducts a paternity test on Emma, hoping to prove that she has no right to adopt the children. However, the results prove that Emma is not only their mother, but also the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. Emma is shocked to learn the truth and Regina is left stunned by her own failed attempt to stop Emma from adopting the children.

In the end, Hansel and Gretel are happy to be reunited with their mother, and Emma takes her first steps towards accepting her newly discovered family history. Meanwhile, Regina is left to ponder what steps she will take after her attempted interference has failed.