Killian Jones ruled out the idea of being a father years ago. He was a pirate, sailing the high seas. He didn't have the time to raise a family. Pair that with the fact that he was still scouting for his revenge on the Crocodile due to his love's untimely death, there was no way he was going to have a child.

Even when Emma Swan first dragged him towards her, her dainty hands gripping his collar as her lips crashed onto his did he believe there was a chance for a family. Because the thought would never cross his mind after all these years.

Not only that, but interactions between Captain Hook and children were all but few and far between. With the exceptions of Baelfire and the Lost Boys (who are more beasts than boys in reality), he couldn't tell you the last time he interacted properly with a child.

Henry Mills, Emma Swan's lad, was a different and new chance for him to rediscover how wonderful talking to a child can be. The kid was smart, full of quips and was so overwhelmingly brave. Just like his mother…

Killian Jones had never thought that any kind of love was possible for him again. But suddenly he found himself with a family and a girlfriend who loves him despite her walls. He was content, content with the small and dysfunctional family that is his. Hell, he even considered the damn dwarf, Leroy as some form of family. And that was enough for him, as he believed then.

The day he discovered that he and Emma were true love, was also the day he lost her. Again. He was already dead, killed by an ancient blade to save his family. But a small flicker of hope had entered his heart that was quickly diminished. Because he had to let her go.

He'd never felt relief like the kind that washed over him when he was back in Emma's arms properly, when she announced that she loved him with no walls, no barriers, no threat of losing one another. He knew it was a huge step for her, a step she once thought she would never take again.

And before he knew it, something was wrong. They were happy, finally living together in a big house with a view of the sea. And then, Emma revealed the secret that he knew she had been keeping. She was going to die. And it broke him. Broke him so hard that he pushed her away momentarily because he was so angry that she couldn't find it in herself to trust him.

He went down a dark path of rediscovery, endangering his love's son in the process. His reunion with his half-brother was rough and full of bitterness and hate. But something in that surprise meeting sparked something in Killian. Liam had mistaken Henry as his.

Of course, Killian cared for the boy, but he had never really considered the idea that he may be a fatherly figure to the lad. He froze up when trying to entertain Cinderella's lass weeks before, ending up with a sticky nose because apparently sticking whipped cream on the end of it and waggling your tongue is the right way to make a child laugh.

Could he be a father?

He really hadn't considered it, not since Milah died and Bae abandoned his ship hundreds of years before. But… It could be possible… There may be a chance that he could be good at it, raising a child…

The small idea kept blooming in his mind, festering away as he bought a ring, showed Archie the ring. It only continued to grow as he asked Charming for his blessing, asked Emma for her hand.

But, the idea was stripped from his mind when he was forced away from his love, a mere few hours after she had placed the ring that he had put so lovingly on her finger back in his palm. All he could think about was getting back to her, letting her know that he didn't abandon her like everyone else. Emma was his priority, he had promised her that she would be for the rest of their lives.

And thank god she found him, tied to a stake in Neverland with his imminent death approaching. Because how the hell could he die (again) without knowing if she ever heard him, knowing that she still wanted him. And she did… She accepted his proposal again and he had never been so happy.

Well, until a new ring was placed on her finger and another placed on his. Because after everything, after years of self-hatred, revenge and darkness, Killian Jones was married. He didn't get a chance to revel in his married life for long when he was ripped away from Emma again. But they always found each other.

Life was good, content, happy for a while. He and Emma sheriffed Storybrooke together, the perfect husband-wife team. Henry continued to live between their house and Regina's.

But something didn't seem to fit. Or at least, something seemed to be missing. And it wasn't until Emma took Killian's hand after dinner one night, sitting on the couch with an odd glint in her eyes, one he had never seen.

"Killian, I'm pregnant."

At first, he didn't know how to react. A million thoughts ran through his head all at once. Bloody hell… Pregnant? Me? A father? I can't do this… Yes I can… No I can't…

But, as always seems to be the case between Emma Swan-Jones and Killian Jones, actions tend to speak louder than words.

Killian didn't need to say anything, all he did was stand up, tugging his wife off of the couch and pulled her into his arms. He lifted her up, spinning her around slightly, making her giggle that special giggle that only he can make her produce.

They're going to have a baby…

It took Killian a while to adjust to the new additions to his life. Emma's hormone switches, the constant appointments, baby-proofing the house. But once he finally had his tiny baby daughter in his arms, with her blonde hair and blue eyes, everything was settled.

Everything was perfect.

Killian Jones never believed he would be a father, nearly up until the day he was one. And he knew, from that day forward, that he would never love anyone the way that he loved his daughter.

He didn't become a father overnight, not literally anyway. But, a man is always a father somehow. In the way he treats people; the way he cares. He had been a father to Baelfire, to Henry. And even though now he had a child of his own, Killian Jones always was, and always would be, a father.