Dwarves

"There are no female dwarves. Dwarves don’t fall in love, dwarves don’t get married, and dwarves don’t have children. Why do you think you were hatched from an egg?""

- Bossy to Dreamy

Dwarves are a humanoid species featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. They are native to the Enchanted Forest, and first appear in the first episode of the first season.

Several dwarves are derived from characters featured in the fairytale "Snow White".

Before the Curse
In the Enchanted Forest's underground mines, a dwarf named Watchy pays careful attention to eight very large eggs that are on the verge of hatching. Dwarves are born from eggs, though how they come into existence is not known as there is no such thing as a female dwarf, and all dwarves that hatch from eggs are male in gender.

Up above in the skies and clouds, a clumsy fairy, Nova, spills fairy dust from her bag down to the land below. Some of the dust falls onto one of the dwarf eggs, which prompts the dwarf inside to be hatched earlier than his fellow brothers. After all eight have broken out of their egg shells, they are cleaned up and taught by the lead mine dwarf, Bossy, on the structure and work duty in their lives as dwarves.

Each dwarf receives a pick axe designated for him that generates a suitable name for each. The eight dwarves are named Sleepy, Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Happy, Sneezy, Dreamy and Stealthy. They learn to use their pick axes to mine for precious diamonds in the underground mines, which they operate machinery to crush the jewels into powdered fairy dust.

One day, a year later, Nova comes to the mines on the orders of the Blue Fairy to collect some fairy dust. She turns on a switch to get the dust to pour out into her bag, but when she is unable to pull the switch off, Nova panics. Dreamy comes to her rescue and helps to stop the fairy dust from continually pouring and overflowing Nova's bag. She is very grateful, and Dreamy is shocked to see she is the same woman from his dream while he was still inside his egg. Though Dreamy had previously mentioned the dream to Bossy, he was told it didn't make sense because there are no female dwarves. It is here Dreamy realizes he was actually dreaming about a woman that is a fairy. He helps Nova again when she accidentally places her bag on a moving conveyor belt that is headed for a furance by grabbing the bag with his pick axe. Nova is embarrassed at her own clumsiness, but Dreamy lightens her mood. They introduce themselves to each other. Nova mentions she might be making a stop at Firefly Hill on the way back, and hints at the possibly of them going together, though she doesn't say it outright. Dreamy does not catch on and instead wishes her a good time. Nova leaves the mines disappointed.

During a night out at the tavern with his brothers, Dreamy is distracted and can't stop thinking about Nova. He is encouraged by a woman, Belle, to spend more time with Nova, despite Bossy warning that dwarves simply don't fall in love. He gains insight from Belle that Nova telling him about Firefly Hill meant she wanted to spend time with him. Dreamy meets with Nova at the location, and after a period of time together, they decide to run away and have a future together. The night Dreamy plans to leave with Nova, Bossy and the Blue Fairy stop and shake sense into him that a dwarf and fairy have no place together in the world. Dreamy goes to see Nova one last time at Firefly Hill, and breaks up with her. He leaves to return home a changed and more hardened dwarf rid of his imaginative daydreams and fantasies. His pick axe breaks, and he receives another one with a new name for himself--Grumpy. Despite coming to a conclusion a future with Nova could never happen, and his place is in the mines, Grumpy is still in love and using all his wage earnings he buys a diamond to propose to her. However, the diamond turns out to be a stolen one, and though he is no thief, Grumpy takes the blame and is thrown into jail in King George's castle. He is trapped alone until receiving a cellmate, Snow White, who attempts to escape so she can be with the man she loves. Grumpy tells her the sad tale of his own unhappy love story with both himself and Snow White sharing the similarity of landing themselves in jail all in the name of love.

Stealthy sneaks into the castle to break Grumpy out of his cell, and in the process, Snow White is also freed. She suggests they leave through the back of the castle, but instead the two dwarves go through the front and are apprehended by the castle guards. Stealthy is shot dead by a stray arrow, and the same nearly occurs to Grumpy until Snow White rushes to surrender herself to King George so he won't be harmed. She urges him to flee, which he does. Grumpy regroups with his six other brothers, and later they join up with Snow White after she has left the castle. Snow White is depressed over being forced to reject her love, Prince Charming, on the orders of King George, and is so heartbroken she almost drinks a forgetful potion, which was given to her previously by Rumplestiltskin. Grumpy stops her and says suffering is what makes her who she is, and it's better to live with pain than forget.

The dwarves help Snow White recuperate by allowing her to stay with them in their home. Even so, Snow White decides to secretly take the potion to forget about her prince. The day Grumpy hears news of Prince Charming calling off his engagement with his arranged marriage partner, Abigail, he runs to tell Snow White, but it is too late as she has no recollection of Prince Charming. The forgetful potion has terrible consequences in not only wiping out Snow White's memory of Prince Charming, but also completely changing her personality into a cold-hearted and stingy young woman. The dwarves are alarmed by the change of the person they once knew, and how uncaring she has become to her friends. They call a meeting with Jiminy Cricket to try and make Snow White understand what her actions have wrought. They set examples such as when she brings hay into the house when she knows Sneezy is allergic to it, or how she broke Happy's mug. Snow White appears to understand her behavior is making her friends very unhappy, but then turns her anger onto the Evil Queen, and at a whim decides she is going to kill her. Grumpy chases after Snow White, who has just stolen a knight's armor and clothes so she can disguise herself as such when she enters the castle. Grumpy warns her plan will not work, and makes her come with him to Rumplestiltskin so he can undo the potion's effects.

When they get there, Rumplestiltskin plainly states there is nothing he can do about Snow White's current condition. Snow White is interested in how Rumplestiltskin can help her kill the Evil Queen, and he gives her a enchanted bow that always finds its target. Grumpy finally gives up since there is no way to deter Snow White from her plan, and so he leaves.

She returns to the dwarves' cottage after her memories are restored with Prince Charming's true love kiss. Snow White apologizes for all the the trouble she caused. The dwarves are relieved she has returned to her normal self. She laments that Prince Charming has been captured by King George, and the dwarves offer to help her get him back. Snow White, Red Riding Hood, Red's Granny and the dwarves plan an assault on the castle. When Red gives a signal the coast is clear, they scale the castle walls and take the guards inside by surprise. For a moment, they become surrounded, but extra help is given in the form of the Blue Fairy and her army of fairies who powder the guards with their dust, which knocks them out. Unfortunately, Snow White discovers the Evil Queen already took Prince Charming off of King George's hands, and can only get him back if she agrees to meet with the Queen in a specific location unarmed. Red, Granny and the dwarves worry for her safety, but Snow White is adamant in following the Queen's terms. They go searching for her when she hasn't come back, and find Snow White dead on the ground; not knowing she appears to be dead because she is under a sleeping curse. In their grief, the dwarves build a glass coffin in the forest for Snow White to rest in forever, and adorn the sides of the coffin with flowers. They are mourning the loss of their friend when Prince Charming appears on the scene. He pleas to at least say goodbye, and the dwarves lift the glass coffin cover off for a brief moment. Prince Charming gives Snow White one last kiss; not knowing the power of it is true love's kiss that breaks the curse she is under. Snow White and Prince Charming battle it out with King George and the Evil Queen's forces to take back the kingdom. They capture the Evil Queen alive by freezing her with squid ink. On their kingdom's war council; with notable members on the council such as one of the dwarves, Grumpy, and Red Riding Hood and Granny; they come to the decision the death penalty would be most suitable as punishment for the Queen's horrible deeds. On the day of the execution, however, Snow White puts a halt to it out of remorse, and instead, the Queen is exiled. Many months later, the dwarves attend and happily watch Snow White and Prince Charming officially marry in the castle. The ceremony is interrupted by the unprecedented arrival of the Evil Queen. She comes bearing a special gift, and declares she will destroy everyone's happiness in the worst way.

Sometime following this, Cinderella makes a deal with Rumplestiltskin, and in return, he asks for her first born child. Because Cinderella doesn't want to go through with her end of the bargain, she tricks him into signing a new contract with squid ink that magically freezes him in place. He becomes a prisoner in a dungeon cell made specifically by the dwarves. ("Pilot", "The Price of Gold")

Due to the impending danger of the Evil Queen's plans, the war council tries to strategize against her. Snow White and Prince Charming find out through speaking with Rumplestiltskin that the Evil Queen plans to cast a powerful curse to take everyone to another land. The key to beating the Evil Queen is their unborn child, who will rise up as the savior in 28 years time. The Blue Fairy brings to them the last enchanted tree, which is carved into a magic wardrobe by Geppetto and Pinocchio. The wardrobe has the power to protect and send one person to another land to be unaffected by the curse. It's decided the pregnant Snow White will be the one to go through it.

On the day the curse is cast, Grumpy and Sleepy are on the lookout on top of the castle. While Sleepy is dozing off, Grumpy spots thick black smoke in the air quickly approaching, and signals the bell to let everyone know the curse is coming. At the same time, Snow White unexpectedly goes into labor and gives birth to a daughter, Emma, with the assistance of Doc. With little time, she and Prince Charming realize Emma must be sent into the wardrobe, or all hope is lost. After the infant Emma disappears safely into the other world, the curse engulfs the inhabitants of the Enchanted Forest.

Trivia

 * The seven dwarves were originally unnamed in the Snow White fairytale. They first received names in the 1912 play, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In the play, they were named "Blick", "Flick", "Glick", "Snick", "Whick", "Plick" and "Quee". They were renamed in the 1937 Disney animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, where they were given the names used on ABC's Once Upon a Time.