It was Emma's night shift at the sheriff station. David thought it might be a good idea to cover the nights, just in case Grumpy decided to drink more than he was allowed to (and let's face it, everybody knows how much that dwarf loves to cause trouble). But to do that, they needed to hire more people, so until they found the right person for the job, the night shift had to be distributed between Emma and Charming.

That's how Killian found himself alone in their king sized bed in the middle of the night. He was reading one of the books Henry had told him about, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Apparently there were 6 more books after that, and 8 movies to watch, so both Emma and Henry had convinced him to read them before watching the movies because "they are so much better". Not that he would know, but he couldn't deny anything to either of them.

And so he lied fully awake, with only a pair of pajama pants and his bedside lamp on, reading- no not reading- devouring the book, when he heard little footsteps approaching his room. When he looked up, he saw his little princess Leia right outside his door frame, getting closer to the bed with her favorite stuffed unicorn clutched tightly to her chest.

Killian opened his arms and Leia ran towards him as fast as she could with her short legs, jumping on the bed and hugging him tightly, the unicorn trapped between them, long forgotten now that she was hugging her favorite person in the world.

"Hey princess, what's wrong?" he asked with his lips pressed to her blonde curls.

"I had a nightmare." Her lip was quivering, trying hard not to cry.

"And it scared you didn't it?"

The little girl nodded with tears in her bright green eyes.

"Do you want to tell me what it was about?"

Leia shook her head, burying her face in his neck instead.

With no other word spoken, Killian laid back down, with Leia over his chest, until her whimpers stopped. He thought she had fallen asleep, when her sweet voice spoke from his shoulder.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, princess?"

"Can you sing to me?" She looked up at him, almost begging him to sing just like he had done countless times when she couldn't sleep. But she really didn't need to beg. He would always do everything she asked him to. She had him wrapped around her tiny finger, and just like with her mother and older brother, he couldn't deny her anything.

And with that, Killian's voice started echoing in the silence of the room, an old sea-themed lullaby his mother used to sing to him slipping past his lips. Leia was now laying beside him, comfortable against the warmth of his chest, hugging tightly her stuffed unicorn.

When the song finished, Killian looked down to see her daughter sleeping with a tiny smile gracing her face. At that sight, he closed his eyes and fell on a dreamless slumber.

When Emma returned home the next morning, she couldn't help but take a picture of her pirate and her princess sleeping peacefully, pressed to each other, with Leia's head almost over his chest, and Killian's hand laying protectively on her back. Quietly, she tiptoed around the room, putting her pajamas on, and climbing on the bed behind her daughter, pressing a featherlight kiss on both of their heads, before falling asleep herself.