Paulina Timeline and Summary

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• After Leontes throws his pregnant wife in the slammer, Hermione gives birth to a daughter (Perdita). Paulina shows up at the prison where Hermione is being held and demands to see the queen.
• Paulina is outraged. She proclaims Leontes a lunatic and says she's going to try to talk some sense into him. Maybe if she shows Leontes his newborn baby, the evidence of Hermione's innocence will convince him that Hermione is a faithful wife. Good plan.
• The only problem is, King Leontes isn't exactly acting rationally. When Paulina shows up with baby Perdita in her arms, Leontes refuses to acknowledge that he is the baby's daddy. To make matters worse, Leontes orders Antigonus to take the little "bastard" for a ride out to the Bohemian "desert."
• Paulina is having none of this. She reprimands the king for abusing his wife and daughter like this, and then she storms off. So what if she gets a tongue-lashing (or worse) from Leontes? She's going to stand up for what she knows is right.
• Later on, we check back in with Leontes and Paulina, who are buddy-buddy again. Sixteen years have passed, and that's enough time for Leontes to repent for what he did to his family. Even Paulina has forgiven him.
• The only problem? Leontes can't forgive himself for what he did to Hermione and the kingdom. It's all his fault that his wife is dead and Sicily no longer has an heir to the throne (since Mamillius is dead and Leontes basically threw away his baby daughter).
• Paulina steps up and sweetly reminds Leontes that he's responsible for killing the perfect woman and warns him that he shouldn't bother trying to find a new wife, since no woman can ever be as great as Hermione.
• Leontes sincerely thanks Paulina for reminding him that he basically "killed" Hermione by putting her on trial for adultery.
• Cleomenes grumbles that Paulina is being cruel. He sort of has a point, right? We know Paulina must have a reason for being a mean girl, and pretty soon we find out what it is.
• Paulina invites the entire crew to her place, where she unveils a statue of Hermione. Everyone oohs and ahs over how lifelike the statue is.
• Paulina says she bets she can convince everyone the statue's real but they might accuse her of using "wicked" magic. In order for the trick to work, everyone in the room must believe. Cue the dramatic music.
• Suddenly, Hermione is no longer a statue and is very much alive. Paulina commands an astonished Leontes to embrace his wife. Hurray.
• Leontes then announces that Paulina should get hitched to Camillo. Since Paulina's late husband, Antigonus, was eaten by a bear on account of Leontes and all, everyone thinks this is a good plan.