Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25582606-20150211145702/@comment-24674051-20150320205320

Neal being Baelfire was kinda a surprise the first time watching the series, but on rewatching, he was cleverly set up so that it was not totally unexpected. I think the same thing with Lily. Some people may think it a surprise, but she was set up from the get-go to be someone special, and with the news of Maleficent's pregnancy, it almost becomes obvious.

The only real detail missing (other than the actual reveal, which means all of this is speculation) is how Lily (or Cruella and Ursula for that matter) ended up in the LWM, with no knowledge of Storybrooke (but their memories otherwise intact).