Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-1475805-20150331011255/@comment-26103640-20150331152139

We're dealing with the Author, who has the ability to change how things happen, and Zelena, who figured out time travel. One of the two could be re-writing the past, which in turn effects Gold/Rumple in the present. It's a long shot, but if something in the past is altered, and for whatever reason Rumple never becomes the Dark One, maybe he's slowly dying or returning to being mortal, because somewhere in the past he doesn't kill Zoso.

Whatever is going on, I'm certain we'll see it played brilliantly by Robert Carlyle.