Is there only one person left to root for in the Once Upon a Time universe? After tonight’s season 4, episode 19, where does your allegiance lie?

Forget the cute animated dalmatians from the Disney classic, on tonight’s Once Upon a Time season 4, episode 19 as Cruella’s back story winds up leading to a final chapter not even the Author saw coming.

Even with the freedom of starting with a blank slate, Cruella’s backstory takes a familiar route as a young Cruella is locked away in her attic to lead a life of solitude. As she comes of age in the time where the familiar medley from the Disney classic sends the toes of a swinging era tapping, interest in her mother’s expert training skills extends beyond their compound and a newspaper man, Isaac is on call to gather the scoop.

The episode’s title sake suggests your sympathies sway towards Cruella, however it is Rumple’s tale that may have pulled your heart strings. Regina’s made her decision to head off to New York and save Robin comes at the cost of turning over Emma to Gold. But she has a few tricks left up her sleeve and pulls out the big guns convincing Belle to take part. Belle calls Rumple into the woods and it is here that we see Rumple’s darkened heart with only a glimmer of life left flickering deep inside. Once that light extinguishes, Rumple will not die per say, but any ability he had to love will be gone forever. That flicker reminds Belle of that goodness she once saw in him and with a kiss she laments that she may have given up on him too soon.

If you turned off your television and swore to give up on Belle and Once Upon a Time forever, you missed out! Regina appears with Belle’s heart using her as a puppet. Either the Savior remains out of his plans or Belle’s heart gets a nice squeeze.

Back in the loft damage control takes over, as Mary Margaret and David try once more to get Emma to understand their choice. Regina arrives to give them a break and announces her plan to go save Robin from her no-so-dead-wicked-sister. (Hook is also in attendance brooding in the corner of the shot. At least put him in focus every now and then!)

In the past, with the Author downstairs from Cruella, it is only a matter of time before the pieces start to fall together. He manages to get the key, get her out, and they ride off in his black and white Panther Deville car. Her Cinderella story, however, falls apart as quickly as the Author tries to draw connections. But he does get his dish and gives a little of his own revealing that his quill and ink are enchanted with the ability to change stories. But take care around the ink, once spilled there is no telling what it will do. The paper, it seems, does not matter.

Once Upon a Time once again opens the door to another portal of wonder as the Author reveals that he is not only able to travel between realms, but that the 1920s posh scene Cruella finds herself, is merely one of many lands that needs its story told. Isaac has his eyes set on only one story worth documenting — his and Cruella’s story. To prove his power, the Author writes a simple plot twist: Cruella will have the power to control any and all animals.

All the glitz and glam of the roaring music, the glasses filled to the brim with gin, and the devilishly charming grin of a woman keep calling him to the light across the bay. Fitzgerald’s Gatsby becomes too literal as the Author hands over the keys to his car, which carries Cruella and her magical weapon to commit murder. However, the act of killing her mother is on purpose in this tale.

The Author’s quill requires special ink as we learn in the present. More of a Fitzgerald in the past, the Author takes on a more Thoreau-like reflection of the lives he had a hand in creating in the cabin. While Rumple is called away Cruella pays her old pal a visit hinting that one more secret stands in the way to achieving her goal. Rumple has eyes everywhere and spies on their shared history.

The first step towards the conclusion of this season kicks off here. A person looking for vengeance is the easiest to manipulate as Hook’s storyline can confirm. Cruella wants the Author dead and to accomplish this she turns to Emma and Regina. Her selfie arm is strong and her video message ultimatums are even stronger, either the Author dies or Henry does.

Emma decides that heading into the woods to face Cruella is best done with two people who have never claimed to be something they are not. Since we only see Emma every other week, her pouting seems to be running on forever. Emma has bigger dogs to tame. (Did Hook get a haircut in his weeks of downtime?) While Regina and Hook are misled by conch shells echoing Henry’s cries, Emma comes face to face with Cruella, a cliff, and her son.

But first, a little more about the sinister gin-soaked gal with a dark side like no other. The Author anxiously awaits Cruella’s return, but it met by an elder de Vil with a story all her own. Three husbands behind her, each poisoned by a young girl with a twisted mind. Once the flower beds, the source of the poison were ripped up, the killing was over, but the darkness was left to settle. The Author started stirring it up again. When mother dearest returns home, her protective spotted friends do little to guard her from Cruella’s new trick — kill.

With mother removed and the puppies turned into a nice fur, Cruella meets the man responsible for her dive into darkness. As he tries to retrieve his quill, Cruella is doused by a spill of ink transforming her into the black and white villain she is today. Before the ink gets away, a limit is written into her magical twist — Cruella de Vil can no longer take away the life of another. This note makes it into the present, giving Gold the upper hand once more.

As Cruella moves Emma into what appears to be checkmate, Emma uses her magic on the defenseless Cruella sending her to her death. Darkness: 1 Savior: 0.

Watch Once Upon a Time season 4, episode 20, “Lily,” Sunday, April 26 at 8:00 p.m. ET on ABC.