Trust Me

"Trust Me" is the 2nd episode of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland.

Summary
In Wonderland, Alice concocts a plan to find Cyrus and uses his genie bottle as bait to find out who she's up against and who her real friends are. Meanwhile, the Red Queen and Jafar face off. In the flashbacks, we learn how Cyrus came to Wonderland and how he and Alice fell in love.

Plot
"No one believed Alice when she spoke of her adventures in Wonderland..."

Alice is crouching beneath a giant magic mushroom, on top of which is the Caterpillar, in Wonderland. Later, Alice uses said mushroom to shrink herself in the Queen of Hearts' mazes, causing her to get swept aside and a guard runs past. "Of how she fell in love with a genie named Cyrus..."

The shrunken Alice steps into a bottle where she meets the genie Cyrus. The two are next seen standing over the boiling sea, and kiss passionately after he proposes to her. "How the Red Queen tore them apart..."

The Red Queen and her soldiers approach Alice and Cyrus. The Queen waves her hand and uses her magic to push Cyrus off the edge of the cliff, causing him to fall into the boiling sea as Alice screams for him. "She was locked away in an asylum..."

Alice is seen being escorted by two doctors through Bethlem Asylum. Meanwhile, in Storybrooke, Maine, the White Rabbit tells Will Scarlet that Alice needs help. "So the Knave of Hearts and I brought her back to Wonderland to search for her true love."

Alice, Will and the White Rabbit are seen running as they escape the asylum. After the rabbit digs a portal, Will and Alice jump through it, ending up in Wonderland. Alice is seen wandering along a tree branch, trying to see the Mad Hatter's house, meanwhile, Cyrus is locked in a giant birdcage in Jafar's dungeon. Alice later tells Will, regarding Cyrus, "He's here. I can feel it!" "There are those who would try and stop her!"

Jafar flies away on his magic carpet. Alice is seen being restrained by the Red Queen's soldiers as her majesty approaches. At another time, Jafar tells the Queen that what they want can't be accomplished until Alice has made all her wishes. We see Alice staring down the portal to Wonderland, and she's later seen to be holding her three wishes in her hands, which take the form of red jewels. "But Alice's greatest adventure has just begun..."

- White Rabbit

Alice, Will and the White Rabbit make their way through Wonderland with the aim of finding Cyrus.

Teaser
Many years ago in Agrabah

We are shown a far off shot of a desert city in the land of Agrabah; the end of a raggedy carpet is seen making its way towards the city as we watch from the rider's point of view. In the city itself, a merchant is seen within his home, snacking on something and taking a sip from a small cup. Someone steps into the store and bangs on the entrance to make themselves known, causing the merchant to turn and ask the potential customer if he can help him. "We shall soon find out," says Jafar, dressed in a turban and carrying his serpent staff; the merchant stands to his attention. Jafar says that the man is Farzin Shamet and that he sells scarves, to which Farzin asks if his customer would like one. "May I?" Jafar nonchalantly asks, taking a few steps forward and looking around the store. He states that the merchant gains very little income and yet his home is well acquainted, and Farzin thanks him. Jafar, however, states very coldly that it wasn't a compliment, but an observation. He goes on to point out that Farzin has a bounty of fresh vegetables in his garden and, something which he couldn't help noticing, two camels outside, as few men in Agrabah can even afford the one, yet here he is, with two.

Farzin tells Jafar that he has been very fortunate, and the latter comments that it appears the merchant has everything a man could possibly wish for - "Perhaps you've met someone who could grant them? Wishes." As he says this, he squares up to Farzin, but Farzin steps away and assures Jafar that he does not know what he means; his good fortune is due to a family investment that has finally begun to pay off. Jafar appears blatantly skeptical but Farzin assures him further. The kettle is then heard whistling in the back room and the merchant offers to explain more to Jafar, should he be allowed to go and turn off his stove. Snidely, Jafar comments that he wouldn't want Farzin to overcook water, and tells him to go on. The merchant then makes his way into the back room, shutting the door firmly behind him, but does not bother to remove the whistling kettle from the stove. Instead, he runs straight to his cupboard and removes a bottle, opening it and allowing red smoke to emerge. From this red smoke, Cyrus the genie is formed, and he states, "Master mine, my will is thine."

Farzin warns Cyrus that "he's here", referring to Jafar, who he was told carries a serpent staff. Cyrus tells the man to remain steady as it's not him he's after, but Farzin frantically says that he'd like his third wish now. Whilst Cyrus warns him against it, Farzin wishes for the genie to be as far from Agrabah as possible. At this, Jafar bursts into the back room and goes to grab the genie, however, he returns to his bottle in a flurry of red smoke and the bottle itself disappears, leaving Jafar with nothing to grasp. He yells with fury before aiming his palm at Farzin, who is suddenly pinned to the wall and choking thanks to Jafar's powerful magic. As the merchant is lifted off his feet, still choking, Jafar asks him where he sent Cyrus, but Farzin doesn't know. Jafar then asks the man what it is he desires, and, exasperated, barely able to speak, he yells, "Mercy!" "Well then," says Jafar, "It appears neither of us are going to be getting what we want today." He continues to use the magic to crush Farzin's windpipe and Farzin screams in agony as the shot moves into the merchant's pained reflection in Jafar's left eye. Cyrus' bottle is seen spinning through the sky, and inside, the genie himself is being rattled about amongst his furniture. Eventually, the bottle lands, and Cyrus, wanting to know where he is, stands up and approaches the grate on the bottle's bottom. As he looks out at this strange new land he's in, we are shown that the bottle is lying at the foot of the hedges of the Queen of Hearts' extensive maze, meaning that Cyrus has come to Wonderland. Once Upon a Time in Wonderland

Act I
In present-day Wonderland, the Knave of Hearts, also known as Will, is seen sleeping on the forest ground with his head rested against the roots of a tree as slashes of a sword are heard nearby. Suddenly, a branch falls atop Will's head and he awakes with a start, uttering, "What the bloody hell?" Alice, who's been hacking at a plant with her sword, sarcastically comments on him being awake, implying that she woke him on purpose. She continues to do battle with the plant, leading Will to ask her what she's doing, and Alice replies that she's "getting ready", as she believes her skills with a sword are a bit rusty. More slices are taken at the plant by Alice whilst the Knave spits out some bits of forestry; he comments that now she's gone and hurt the tree, asking if she's happy. Annoyed, Alice exclaims that she'll be happy once they get Cyrus back, saying that they need to get moving as they've been in Wonderland for too long and their enemies know they're there. Will seems surprised that they already have enemies, asking who they are, to which Alice replies, "Excellent question."

She helps him to his feet and tells him that she has a plan, but he merely points out that she's wearing a new outfit and asks her where she got it. Alice tells him that the clothes horse came by and he replies with a simple "Of course it did" whilst Alice continues, saying that their biggest problem is that they don't know where Cyrus is; he could be trapped or captured. Will, who's barely listening, asks if there's any chance of a coffee horse coming round, but Alice, who's not listening in turn, carries on in saying that they don't need to know where Cyrus is because they know something nobody else does: the whereabouts of the bottle. The Knave tells her that she's not too clear on what the word "we" means, but Alice ignores him, explaining that she's devised a two-step plan: "Step one - we find the bottle. Step two - we make three harmless wishes, and no matter where he is, he'll just get drawn back inside." Will reminds her that she said there's no such thing as a harmless wish, but she explains that that only applies to wishes for something big, but if you were to wish for something small and innocent like a cupcake, then that should be fine.

"Which brings us to you," she says, pacing, telling Will that he'll have to rub the bottle so Cyrus can reappear, and the two of them will be together again; after that, they can figure out a way to truly free him once and for all. This then leads Will to point out that, once he rubs the bottle, Cyrus will be his genie, but Alice says that she'll just have to trust him. "Right then," says Will, "Where do we find this bottle." Alice tells him that it's buried in the Mimsy Meadows beneath the Towering Tum Tum Tree: a place where no one goes. "With a name like that, why would they? Unless they were a care bear," Will jokes, but a confused Alice merely asks him what a care bear is. He tells her never to mind, and upon hearing the snoring sounds of the White Rabbit, he asks if she'd like to wake him, or if he should do it. Alice declares that they are to leave him be as the poor rabbit's been through enough, and Will points out that that's Alice-speak for "he's slowing us down". As the two of them prepare to set off to find Cyrus' bottle, we see that the White Rabbit is't asleep at all, but listening in whilst making fake snoring sounds. Alice clutches her true love's magical red necklace and states that it's time to get Cyrus. "Alice!" Cyrus exclaims, waking up in his giant bird cage in Jafar's dungeon as he again feels his true love's presence in Wonderland, thanks to his magical necklace. He clutches his chest and the old prisoner who's in a nearby cage asks Cyrus what's going on and if he's alright. Cyrus does not respond, merely continues to hold his hand over his heart in worry for Alice.

In the Red Queen's chess-themed palace, a drum is seen being repeatedly banged in the throne room, and to little effect, whilst Wonderland's villager yell in complaint. "One at a time!" yells one tweedle. "Her majesty demands order!" yells another. The Queen herself is seen to be sitting tiredly on her throne as villagers yell at her about water supply and dying crops and dodos, demanding help; eventually, she tells them, "Darlings, can I be honest with you? Your problems bore me." The villagers begin shouting amongst themselves, outraged, but suddenly, a red light ensues over all of them and they magically freeze. The Red Queen notices this and stands up with excitement on her face, knowing that the culprit is "Dear Jafar..." and wanting to know where he is. As she walks through her people, Jafar says behind her that he doesn't know how she can stand to listen to them say in and day out. "I'm the Queen," she reminds him, "It's my job!" He, however, tells her that it's her flaw as she's trying to earn their respect as appose to taking it. She points out that she took her throne and Wonderland, but Jafar points out that it's still not enough. "If either of us were satisfied with what we already had," she says, "We wouldn't be messing around with Alice and her genie, now, would we?"

Jafar says that if she can't find that bottle for him then perhaps this is all just a waste of time. She tells him that she's more concerned with whether or not he's able to do what he says he can, asking if, with the bottle's power, he'll indeed be able to change the laws of magic. "Making the impossible, possible," he declares, and the Queen remains awestruck as she's told she must hold some truly unholy desires, and she assures her fellow villain that she does. She asks again if he can do it and he answers positively, commenting that this talk is foolishly premature until they have the bottle. He advises her to stop wasting time with peasants and focus on the task at hand, but she reminds him again that, whether she likes it or not, she is the Queen and thus has responsibilities. Jafar, however, simply waves his hand and causes each villager to explode in a cloud of dust. He touches the Queen's neck, gently grabbing her throat, and tells her that he's cleared her day; "Now find the bottle so I can get Alice to make those wishes... and you can have your tweedles sweep her up too." He then lets go of her and vacates the throne room, walking amongst the dust that once was Wonderland's residents, and the shaken Red Queen watches as Tweedledee and Tweedledum sweep up what's left of them.

In the woods of Wonderland, Alice is seen cutting her way through the trees with her sword as Will follows. She tells him to hurry up as they're making good time, commenting that if they keep going at this pace then they'll arrive at Mimsy Meadows before midday. Will advises her to lower her voice as the walls in this place have ears, literally - they're walls with actual ears - and they don't want the whole of Wonderland to know where they're going. "Of course not," she replies, and Will says that he's been thinking about what happens if they find Cyrus (Alice corrects him - when they find Cyrus), and asks her what if it's nothing like she thought. She stops and turns, wondering what he means, and he tells her that, in order to protect herself, she may want to start accepting the possibility that things may be "different"; she's been gone a long time. Alice assures her comrade that Cyrus is waiting for her and needs her, and Will asks why he hasn't contacted her yet. "If you know where he is, surely he knows where you are too." Alice says that the only reason he hasn't contacted her is because he must be in trouble, and that's why they need to pick up the pace. Will suggests that Cyrus has moved on, but Alice immediately shoots down this idea, saying that he wouldn't understand what she and Cyrus have. "No..." he utters, "I suppose I wouldn't." They continent through the woods, Alice cutting down the forestry with twice the aggression, and she states that nothing can get in the way of the two of them being together. She arrives at an opening and stares out in shock; the Knave joins her and she adds, "Except possibly this." We then see that the Towering Tum Tum Tree of Mimsy Meadows is only accessible past a very vast lake.

Trivia

 * The title card of this episode features the fairy Silvermist.

Production

 * The title of this episode was revealed by executive producer/co-creator Adam Horowitz, via his Twitter account, on August 9, 2013, along with a photograph of the script's cover.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills released to promote the episode.