Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon A Time or any of the characters and storylines in the show. This is just a fanwork made for fun.

So I had this scenario playing out in my head, where Rumple and Belle had a child before the curse and with her being caputered by Regina, Mr. Gold ended up taking care of their baby in Storybrooke. That would change things a bit and I needed to write Emma's reaction when she discovers that the town's most feared man was a loving father.

The sign in the front of the shop clearly says that the business is closed, but that never stopped anyone from entering before, not even the newest member of the town, Emma Swan. Mr. Gold never seemed to lock the door, and when she reached for it, that Monday morning, red leather jacket on, and blond hair fluttering behind her, it was very easy to enter the pawnbroker.

She looked around the front, only to find it empty. Apparently there was no one inside.

"Mr. Gold? Are you here?"

Silence was her answer. Emma turned around to get her way out, but them heard the unmistakable sound of a cane tipping on the floor, and a moment later saw the shop's owner appearing from behind the curtains that hid the back of the place. Her jaw immediately drop. Not that she was surprised to see Gold, because he always looked the same in his suits, while intimidating everybody with his words and his coldly gases, but what really mindblowed her, was the fact that he was holding a child.

The little girl that calmly laid her head on the town's most feared men, was probably the most beautiful one Emma had ever seen in her entire life. She should be around one year old, or something like that, had little auburn curls and warm brown eyes. A beauty in every way.

"Do you need something from me Miss Swan? Because clearly you must be desesperated to ignore the closed sign outside my shop." Gold said, sarcasm in his voice.

"I - I… What are you doing with that girl? Made another deal like Ashley's?" she asked, starting to wonder if it was a legal thing to trade babies like this in Storybrooke.

"No. She's mine."

"Yours?"

"Aye, Miss Swan I'm her father. Scandalous, right?"

Emma was speechless. Looking between Gold and the little girl, the only similarity she could find was the eyes, both dark and deep. Wise eyes, even when in a child's face.

"Her father?" the blond asked. "But how?"

Mr. Gold gave her a little smirk. "Well, I'm pretty sure you know how, but if you need an explanation, let's just easy the things by saying that I provided the seed that made her."

The sheriff rolled her eyes. "I know how this works, I just never imagined you as a father."

"Everybody knows I'm one." Gold answered simply, one of his long fingers tracing the baby's cheek and chin, causing her to giggle happily at him. "But don't worry I did not expected you to have that acknowledge, since you are new here, and I don't actually look like a father material. Who could ever guess that someone like me could make something so precious like her?"

"Where's the mother? Mrs. Gold is hiding in some other place or what?"

This time she seemed to have hit a hard point on him. His face became more dark and sad, almost painfully regretful.

"She died in childbirth. And she was never actually my wife, just a lover I never had the decency to assume."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, just be sorry for Rose not for me. She's the one who's never going to know her mother."

And in fact, Emma really felt sorry for the girl. The poor little thing would grow up motherless just like her and would spend a whole life wondering what a mother's love would be like. But at least, she had a father, something the sheriff had never know. "Rose is a pretty name." she said at last. "How have I never seen her before?"

"I usually drop her at daycare in the morning and collect her after closing the shop, so people don't usually see me caring her around the town everyday." Gold explained before kissing the top of his daughter's head. "The thing is today she was not feeling well and I thought it would be better if she stayed with me. Not that this is your business, anyway."

"No, of course not."

"So, what are you here for?"

Any motive came to her mind, although Emma knew she had gone to the pawnbroker because she needed something. Maybe discovering that the guy everyone in Storybrooke feared had a daughter that seemed to be his soft spot, had made her forgot completely about her own concerns.

"Actually, I forgot. But I must come back when I remember."

"I know." He replied, so certain of that, that she could almost see herself entering the shop in some hours again, with her ideas fresh to her mid once more. "Everybody comes here when they need something."

"Yeah, so it seems. See you around, Gold."

The last thing she saw of him, was Rose's little hands crawling his greying hair between the tiny fingers, while a huge genuine smile appeared in his lips. And just like that, Emma Swan knew he would die and kill for that baby girl. She just hoped that the "killing" part wasn't necessary as long as she was the sheriff, because she would not enjoy having to pursue him around town to get him under arrest.

When the blond crossed the street and stopped by her car's side, she saw Henry sat in a stool near it with his book open by his lap.

"Hey, kiddo. How are you going?"

"Fine, and you?"

"I just had the weirdest moment in my entire life. Did you know that Mr. Gold have a daughter?"

She sat by his side looking at the Pinocchio's illustration in the book.

"Everybody does." Henry smiled, like he thought she was being silly.

"Not me."

"You're new."

Well, she was not so new anymore. Emma had passed a lot of time in Storybrooke by there. Enough time to make herself the sheriff, what meant she was a part of that place now.

"So… Who are they?" She asked her son, softly. "In your book, I mean. I can't think any tale that fits Gold and his secret baby girl."

"Rose isn't in my book. There she was a real secret."

He turned some pages looking for the story he wanted to show her, and stopped in a page that showed a beautiful young woman, with bright blue eyes, auburn hair and a beautiful blue dress.

"See?" Henry pointed out. "This is her mother."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Belle? From The Beauty and The Beast? Not that Gold doesn't really act a little beastly sometimes…"

"Yes, who else would they be?"

"Oh, yeah, who else?" She laugh. That was her boy and his creative mind coming up again… Emma had no idea why she bought that stupid book up. She rose and held a hand for him. "Come, let's get some hot chocolate for you."

The two of them headed to Granny's. Mother and son bonding while inside the pawnbroker shop a father and a daughter also had their moments of light.

Author's Note: I really hope you enjoyed reading this and apologize if there is something wrong with my writing, because english is not actually my first language.