Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-34924658-20161031211322/@comment-25375217-20161101024131

uh, or maybe merlin was trapped in a tree and wouldn't be freed from it for centuries when emma and regina arrived in camelot after the curse?

I still think there was a voice in Rumple's head, you can disagree if you want but I'm keeping my headcanon until I feel it's disproven.