Killian was ten when he found his pet swan. The Captain had sent him on an errand and having finished it early he was walking, practically strolling, back to the ship when he heard squawks coming from the alley. An old tabby cat had cornered the grey cygnet but instead of cowering the bird looked ready to attack. Something about the way the cygnet was fighting even when faced by a cat three times her size made Killian intervene. Once the cat was gone the cygnet fell down and Killian thought it dead. But when he reached down and took the bird in his hand he felt the flutter of it's heartbeat. He couldn't just leave it there and so he carefully stuck it in his shirt and hoped no one would notice.

Two days later Liam noticed.

"Little brother, what is this?"

He pointed to the bird curled up in Killian's hammock.

"Don't tell anyone. They'll kill her." Killian turned pleading eyes on his brother.

Liam gave him a long look but he could see that Killian was already attached to the creature and they were already out at sea. He sighed.

"All right but you keep it well hidden."

Killian smiled and wrapped his arms around his brother as he agreed excitedly.

The swan stayed hidden. It seemed to sense when to be quiet and when to avoid being seen. The bird didn't grow at a normal rate but since Liam and Killian were not experts in swans they didn't notice. Killian named her simply Swan and though he wasn't given much to eat he always shared with her. At night when he felt she was sad and missed her family Killian would tell her stories. When they made port he would smuggle her out to the town and the woods that often lay beyond and she would stretch her wings. Eventually, with Killian's help, she learned to fly.

When Killian was fifteen he and Liam were set free, their debt finally paid. Somehow Liam managed to get them both commissions in the Royal Navy and they walked the long miles to the port where the naval academy was housed. Swan followed soaring above them for most of the day before settling down beside Killian to sleep each night. Liam had hoped the swan would run away but it seemed the bird was attached to Killian.

At the academy Swan spent the day on the pond on the grounds or soaring in the air. When Killian got out of classes he would open his window and she would fly in and perch on his head or his knee or on his bed. Killian would tell her about his day and she would honk and squawk as if she was trying to tell him about hers. At night she still curled up next to him and he still stroked her soft feathers and told her stories in the dark.

When he was finally commissioned, a few years after Liam, he was nearly a man. His facial hair had begun to grow and he was ready to take his place as an officer in His Majesties fleet. As he packed his bag Swan sat on his bed watching him carefully.

He looked at her and sighed. "I'm sorry, love. But you are just too big now. There is no way…"

She ducked her head and he trailed off. He moved to the bed and placed a hand on her head. "I'm an officer now. I have to be the example." She gave a mournful sound and Killian felt that if a swan could cry there would be tears in her eyes. He promised to visit her at the academy as soon as he could.

When his boat sailed away he saw her hovering in the sky above. She did not turn back. She followed him even as the land disappeared over the horizon, until it was too far for her to return and Killian felt his heart breaking. All day his eyes tracked her and when the sun began to set he stood at the prow in a near panic. She couldn't keep flying. She would die.

"Is your swan going to come in?"

Startled Killian turned to see the Captain at his side. "My swan?"

The Captain snorted. "Aye. Lieutenant Jones and his uncanny swan is the strangest tale to come out of the academy in years."

"Does that mean she can stay on the ship?" Killian asked his heart in his throat.

The Captain laughed. "I'd been counting on it."

She stayed on the ship and even helped with reconnaissance on several occasions. With a swan in the air they always knew when pirates were about.

When Liam and Killian were sent to Neverland she wasn't allowed to come. And Killian made her promise in the strange way of communicating that they had to not follow him. He left her with a friend in a port town and promised he would return in three weeks. The weeks came and went but Killian did not return. After a month and a half the swan flew away in search of her missing friend.

She found him months later on a beach. At first she thought it couldn't be him. For the man was dressed in black and reeked of rum. But then he looked up and through tear stained eyes he saw her.

"Swan?" He asked in voice as broken as his heart.

She went to him and he dried his tears on her feathers. Then they lay together in the sand and under the moon he told her of Liam's death and his descent into piracy. She nuzzled into him and he sighed.

"You are all I have now. I love only you Swan."

She tipped her head and pressed her beak to his lips. Killian drew back at the strange sensation and then jumped back as Swan began to glow. There was a flash of light and suddenly the swan was gone replaced by a young woman with gold hair and a white gown. He stared at her unsure if he was dreaming or if the rum was playing tricks on him.

He shook his head. "Swan?"

"My name is Emma," she replied.

She was a princess. She loved him. They had broken the curse. And after several more adventures they lived happily ever after.

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Author's Note: This little fairytale has become a set of three with different POV's of the same event.