I finished this chapter with less than an hour left of 2014 (at least in Canada) and I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while – I've been traveling a lot to visit family over the holidays and never seemed to have time. Anyway, hope you enjoy it :)

Regina POV

"What do you mean there's nothing you can do?" Captain Hook stood in my office, his daughter in his arms as he furiously demanded why on earth I couldn't help him restore Emma's love for their child. I had to say he really was starting to get on my nerves, though I couldn't really blame him. When Emma had lost her love for Karoline, he'd lost not only his co-parent, but also the love of his life. Emma wasn't herself after we returned from Wonderland. Though she was always usually a bit prickly, she had become sharp-tongued and at times plain rude. It pained me to see her the way, especially the effect it had on Henry, her friends, Hook, and even her stupid parents. I'd worked day and night to find something to help the blonde, but had come up empty-handed, much to everyone's dismay.

"I'm sorry, Hook," I replied. "I've tried everything. Karoline's kissed her. Henry's kissed her, hell her entire family's kissed her. Nothing's changed. You'll have to do what the Keeper said. You'll have to wait until your daughter's grown."

He stood silent for a moment, absorbing the information. In a rare moment of weakness, I saw a tear slip down his cheek. I knew full well how hard it was to be a single parent, let alone one with no modern knowledge. I'd been in the room for one of his many phone calls to Mary Margaret, asking how the hell he was supposed to use half the things Karoline needed; he was damn lucky he had Snow White for a mother-in-law.

"I refuse to believe that. There's always a way. Emma broke a curse designed by the bloody Dark One. Surely we can get around one made by a child."

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair, the month's events weighing on me like a ton of bricks. "Hook. I'm sorry. There's really nothing I can do."

He walked towards me; one hand carefully cradling Karoline while the other went to my shoulder. His hands were warm and strong; they reminded me of Robin. I was so shocked that I didn't even react, and his hand stayed on my shoulder. There was nothing romantic in the gesture, just support between – well I wouldn't really call us friends – two people who wanted the same thing: for our family to be happy. "Please Regina. This is my only hope for getting Emma back." I suddenly noticed he wasn't wearing any eyeliner (he must have forgotten this morning). His blue eyes were glassy with tears, and in that moment, he just looked scared. All of his pirate bravado was gone, replaced my pure sadness. I'd never seen him so vulnerable, and it reminded me of the way Emma had looked when she came out from that ice wall. Hook had been there to comfort her, and now when he needed comforting, she wasn't there. I felt tears gather in my own eyes and blinked furiously to dispel them.

Inhaling a deep breath, I said, "Okay. I'll keep looking. Maybe there's a book I missed."

"Thank you Regina. Thank you so much."

"Thank me when this is over."

19 Hours Later

Killian POV

"Are you sure that's what it is Mary Margaret?"

"She's got that goo in her ear right?"

"Yes. She did yesterday."

"Then I'm almost positive."

"Okay then, thank you." I hung up the phone and turned to Karoline, who lay in her bassinet, fussy and crying. I sighed. "Come one my lovely. We're going to the doctor's office."

Karoline cried out as I placed her into a stroller – yet another handy invention from this world to which I had become accustomed. I grabbed my keys and a leather satchel, refusing to carry those idiotic "baby bags". I'd sooner die, which, judging by my lifestyle, was a legitimate option for me.

I was about to head out the door when I was struck by a last-minute thought. I knew it was a long shot, but it was worth a try. I grabbed my phone, dialing Emma's number. She picked up almost immediately, the sound of running water in the background. "Hey Killian. I was just about to get in the shower. What's up?"

"Emma. Karoline's sick. I think she's got an ear infection, and a bloody awful one at that. Is there any chance you could come with me to the doctor's?"

She sighed. "Killian, you know how I feel about her."

I sighed as well. "Please love. You've done this with Neal. If you won't do it for your daughter," I emphasized the last word. "then do it for me."

"We've had this argument before. She's not my daughter to me – she's yours." My eyes watered at the thought of Emma hearing what she was saying right now.

"Okay, fine. Goodbye love."

"Bye."

I shook my head, locking the door to my home. The walk to the doctor's was long, but pleasant, the warm May air lifting my spirits slightly. Some day, I would have to learn to drive a car (which I figured couldn't be much different from the Jolly Roger), but today was not that day.

"Karoline Swan-Jones here for Dr. Whale." The doctor's office was luckily rather empty, meaning I wouldn't have to endure the pitiful stares of strangers as Karoline fussed and cried, tugging her ears.

"Now what are you doing?" I said playfully as I leaned closer to my daughter, smiling at her wriggling form. "Trying to pull your little ears off? Hmm?" I rubbed her tummy, trying to soothe her, and failed. She let out a loud cry, and I pulled her up on my lap. Mary Margaret had told me babies often felt it more irritating to lay down, so I sat her up, trying to relieve the pain.

Due to the quiet of the office, Whale didn't take long in moving us to a small doctor's room, much like the one I had visited with Emma while she was with child.

"Hello Miss Karoline," he said affectionately as he picked up several medical tools. I recognized only one as the "thermometer" Mary Margaret had instructed me to use to determine if Karoline was sick. "Now, Hook. What seems to be wrong?" I refrained from reminding the good doctor that I usually didn't use my hook while handling my daughter, and that I had only put it on to properly push the stroller, but I had feeling it wasn't the time for such an explanation.

"She's got a fever, and she's been very restless; not wanting to sleep and such. She's also been tugging on her ears a lot, and they've got this…I don't know, yellowish fluid in them."

Whale nodded. "Sounds like an ear infection. Mind if I have a look?"

"Of course." I handed my little lass over to him and watched as he appeared to look inside her ear. He shook his head fretfully as he handed her back to me.

I stroked her little blonde head as he said, "She does have an ear infection, and it is pretty severe. I'm going to prescribe some antibiotics to help clear it up."

Not wanting to embarrass myself, I held off asking what the bloody hell an antibiotic was and thanked Whale before beginning my walk home.

-ooo-

"Come on Karoline, you have to take this for me." My daughter wriggled as I tried to give her the medicine Dr. Whale had prescribed. She had been fighting me for the last half hour, and my patience was worn. However, it wasn't until one of her little hands jerked up and knocked the liquid from my own that I broke. "Please," I said, my voice shaky with exhaustion. I lifted her to me, stroking her hair as she cried. "Please my little girl. I'm all alone in this. You and I – we've got to help each other out, okay? We'll find a way to get mummy back, but until then, it's just the two of us." I kissed the top of her head, a tear sliding down my cheek. Her big blue eyes stared up at me, filled with wonder. I smiled sadly at her. "Can you be as strong as mummy was?" In a rare show of calm, a baby grin spread across her face. I laughed, my throat thick with tears. "Of course you can, my lovely. We can do it together."