**11 years later **

Killian docked the Jolly Roger in the port of Westbrooke. He paid the dock merchant to keep his ship safe and sent his crew off shaking his head as many of them went in the direction of the local tavern looking for a warm body to share a meal and possibly a bed with. Killian only wanted a hot meal. He ate his meal in silence then took up a room in the upper level of the small tavern taking a bottle of rum with him. It had been nearly thirteen year since he was this close to Misthaven he didn't know what had brought them here but he was going to stay hidden while docking her not an easy feet when you have the most notorious pirate ship in the kingdom but he hoped he could stay away under the notice of the royal family. Word had reached him that the queen survived and the princess had not given birth to a live baby. His child had died before birth. He had not heard anything else for 13 years he sailed away in his grief and had not returned to the land

He pulled off his boots and padded barefoot to the bed removing his jacket and his vest and reached for the lacing on his pants. And someone knocked on his door. Cursing he strode to the door yanking it open he looked straight ahead expecting to see the intruder but he instead had to look lower at a young girl around twelve years of age she had pale blonde hair dressed in an expensive cloak, black leather breaches and a violet colored tunic and brown leather boots. It was her eyes that spoke to Killian they were green very green and familiar looking but he couldn't quite place it. The girl looked up at him.

"Are you Killian Jones?"

"Aye and who might you be?"

"My name is Arabella, but I go by Aria. And I'm your daughter." She ducked under his arm and strode right into his room. She sat on the corner of his bed bouncing then getting up and crossing to the mirror looking at her reflection he stood behind her.

"I don't have a daughter."

"Hate to tell you this, but ya kinda do. "

"I kinda do not. Look you seem like a nice girl but I don't have a daughter I don't have any kids."

Aria met Killian's reflection in the mirror and raised her eyebrows at him and suddenly he was shot a memory of Emma with the same expression. He stumbled back against the wall.

"It's not possible. I was told you didn't survive."

'Well obviously I did."

"Why are you here? How are you here?"

"I'm here to bring you to my mother."

Killian shook his head in disbelief. "Emma does not want to see me. I left her. After … well after."

"After you left her with child and accused her father of murdering your brother, my uncle?"

"Um … She told you about that?" Killian looked in to eyes that reminded him so much of Emma.

"Look I barely knew your mother we had a short-lived romance. Your mother told me about you the day I returned. I was mourning the greatest man I ever knew, Liam. I was in shock over his death and the obvious betrayal from the king. I left Emma; I did what I had to do. She hates me. She sent me a letter that said you did not survive. She lied to me just like her father."

Aria stepped closer to Killian. "My mother is not a lair. My grandfather is not a murderer."

Killian bent down and put his face close to Aria's and smiled a mean thin smile. "Did your mama tell you that too?"

"No actually, my mama is under a sleeping curse been that way since the day I was born. I have never heard my mother's voice; I have never had my mother's arms wrapped around me when I was scared." Aria cursed under her breath at the tears that fell down her cheeks, she had her father's pride." I have never heard my mother say I love you."

"A sleeping curse?" Killian whispered. "Regina?"

"I don't know." Aria raised wet green eyes to Killian's shocked blue ones and leaned against the wall and sank to the floor. "You're my daughter and you think I can break this curse?"

"Yes."

Killian let out a shaky laugh, closed his eyes and banged his head against the wall three times. Hoping to knock the pieces inside around enough to make it all go away to wake himself up from the dream. He opened his eyes to see the girl still staring at him curiously. He cursed.

"Are you helping me or not?" She demanded.

"I think not, I think you are crazy and your family must be very concerned about you."

"You are my family…." Tears shined in Aria's eyes. She stared at Killian with as much hope and

"No, Lass I'm not."

Aria wiped a tear away and he noticed a ring on her left middle finger. It was the ring he gave Emma but that didn't mean everything she said was true. It couldn't be true

Killian gently shoved her on her way determined that she would see her way home. It was all a dream anyway. But as he lay in bed the big green eyes with a tiny speck of blue and the pale blonde hair that looked so much Emma's ran through his mind. His mind immediately jumped to Emma and the day he gave her that ring. it had been a promise. A promise based on a lie. He hadn't come back to her instead a broken man full of grief had returned and he shoved her away, pushed away his chance at a family. Funny thing was he had just been thinking of Emma when this child showed up at his door and he turned her away. He turned her away in the night in a tavern, full of drunk pirates… what the hell was he thinking? Killian jumped out of bed grabbed a shirt and his jacket then wrenched open the door and tripped over the small girl sprawled in front of his door. He shook his head; relief filled every corner of his body in what he didn't understand as his first parental motion.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently.

"Mmhmm," She nodded and he led her back into his room and tucked her into his bed and pulled up a chair to sit beside the bed and watched her sleep. She opened one eye and raised an eyebrow at him "Are you going to sit there and watch me sleep all night?"

He smiled. "Possibly,"

She attempted to scowl at him and it turned into a smile. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight Princess," he leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees and watched the steady rise and fall of her chest as she fell asleep. He was father, how on earth did that happen?