It had been a long day – much too long. To think, defeating the Wicked Witch of the West, you'd be able to have at least a day of rest, but apparently, relaxing wasn't in the cards for Emma Swan.

On top of answering all of the residents of Storybrooke's questions on what was going to happen, she had to deal with sorting out Henry's memories and not to mention the birth of her baby sister. The only thing missing to complete her horribly tiring was the one-handed pirate who had been oddly avoiding her today. And right on cue; just as she collapsed onto her bed, there was a knock on the door.

Emma grumbled before finally getting up and heading towards the door, only to find the infamous blue-eyed Captain Hook leaning on the doorframe once she opened it.

She sighed, turning away and walking towards the kitchen counter, but leaving the door open. He took this as an invitation and followed behind her.

"What do you want now, Hook?" she sighed while pouring herself a glass of whiskey. She sat down on the stool, facing him. She was much too tired to deal with his innuendo bullshit. "Come for another round of How-Long-Would-It-Take-To-Piss-Emma-Off?"

"On the contrary, lov- Swan," he caught himself. "You could say that I'm waving the white flag," he continued.

Instead of asking for an explanation, Emma simply just raised an eyebrow in question.

"Ah, well I thought it was time I did some adventuring on my own. I don't fit in here," he waved, gesturing to the area surrounding him.

Emma tried to look unaffected by this. She took another sip of her whiskey only to find the glass empty. As if to buy time, she poured another glass of it, before bringing the crystal to her lips again.

"So, where you off to?" she questioned with a flat tone.

"Wherever the wind takes me, lass. I've got to find my home." He gave her a smile. Not the usual smirk, or the smile that made his eyes light up even more, if possible. This smile had something sad hiding behind it.

"Back to being a pirate, huh?" she smirked, trying to lighten the conversation.

His eyes didn't even meet hers this time. He just looked to the ground and gave a short laugh. "You could say that."

They stayed in those positions for awhile – Emma, on the stool, with an elbow resting on the kitchen counter and a glass of whiskey in her hand, while he simply stood there, looking at his feet. She didn't know how to react to this. She was never prepared for a situation like this to come up, especially not with Hook being the one to be in it. She always thought he would stay. But maybe, he was tired of climbing and falling off of her walls.

He cleared his throat, pulling her away from her thoughts. "I, uh – You must be wondering why I came here." Oh, here goes, she thought. He was going to tell her that he loved her, begging her to ask him to stay. Instead, he busied himself with finding something in his black leather coat, pulling out a small pouch. "I have a farewell present for you, Swan," he said as he handed her the pouch. She peered inside of it and saw a single magic bean sitting at the bottom of it.

"How did you get one of these?"

"Well you see, lass. In my journey to finding a way to you in the god-forsaken city of New York," he shuddered at the thought of it, making Emma's lips curve upwards slightly, "I stumbled across a giant. I explained my situation to him and how it was a life or death situation for me to get to you, and he ever so kindly gifted me with 3 magic beans." He sat down on the stool in front of hers, taking his flask from his belt before pulling the cork off with his teeth. He raised his flask and clinked it with her whiskey.

"Three?" she asked.

"Ah, yes. I used one to get to you, while the other is currently in your possession. And, the last one, I'll be using to…" he paused, trying but failing to think of the right word to use, "leave."

"Right…" Now she was the one who couldn't look him in the eyes. He was really leaving, like really. And she didn't know what to feel about the matter. She was hurt that he was leaving, but she gave him absolutely no reason to stay. Every advance he made, she would push him back.

"Emma…" he started. "I'm unsure if this is good news or bad news to you, but," he paused, "I can promise you that this is not goodbye." He stood up, and Emma's eyes followed him. He leaned into her and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.

He trudged towards the door, as if he was waiting for Emma to call him back – but she didn't. Before closing the door shut behind him, he turned around to look at her one last time. "Just so you know, what I said back in Neverland… remains unchanged." With that, he shut the door, leaving Emma alone with her thoughts and whiskey.

He was gone.

Two Days Later

"Emma?" she heard her name being called. "Emma, are you alright?"

She was thinking of him again. How he had left her. Just like Neal had all those years ago. Hearing Mary Margaret call her name snapped her back into reality. "What? Oh, yeah, I'm good."

"Is this about Hook?" she whispered his name as if it were tabooed.

"Why would it?" Emma snapped, standing up from the dinner table. "Why must everything be about goddamn Captain Hook?"

"Emma…" David started. "Come on, sit down, we were having a nice dinner."

Mary Margaret on the other hand wasn't going to let it go. "I know you're hurting, honey. It hurts when you lose someone you care about, but that's life."

"Yeah, well it hurts even more when you find out that person doesn't care about you in return," she snapped. She had had enough. No one understood her.

"Emma, don't say that…"

"No, Mom. You know I'm right. I should've listened to the whole town. I trusted him, but he's just the same old pirate he used to be."

"Enough!" David stood up, his chair screeching as the friction between the legs of the chair and the wooden floor collided. "You and I both know that's not true."

"You – you're defending him? Seriously?" Blood was boiling in her. She couldn't believe her own father would be on the side of the man who left her high and dry.

"Yes, I am! Do you not remember what he went through? He went back to Neverland – the place he hates the most, he fought his sworn enemy, only to watch you drive off into a better life!" He was yelling now. Emilie's cries filled up their new house, and Mary Margaret went to take care of their baby. "He then crossed realms for you – selling his ship to the one person he hates more than Gold and Pan put together! He faced his father for you, and not forgetting the fact that he sacrificed his heart to the Wicked Witch! It was all for you, Emma. Even him leaving was for you! In his rum-filled mind, he thinks that you need time alone with Neal to sort it all out. He wanted it to be fair. Everything he does is for you," he pronounciated the last words slowly and clearly. Her mind was processing everything her father had yelled at her. "And you still dare think of him as the same pirate that came here with Cora," he sighed, sounding disappointed, as he slumped back into his chair.

"He – he what?" Emma stuttered. "He sold the Jolly Roger to save me? What're you talking about? His father?" She followed her father and slowly sat back in her chair.

"I wasn't supposed to tell you. But since it's out there, he sold it to his father, in return for the memory potion he was supposed to give to Henry."

"His father?" she asked again. "Shouldn't he be dead by now?

David gave a short laugh. "Didn't you know Blackbeard is immortal?"

"What? Blackbeard is Hook's dad?"

David simply nodded. "Look, Emma, I'm sorry for yelling at you. I just wanted you to understand that Hook's not a bad person."

"No, I get it. I'm sorry." Emma stood up slowly and David followed suit. "I'm going to go for a walk – to clear my head, you know."

"Yeah, of course." David walked towards the door and opened it for her. "Emma, in case you're too stubborn to see, he loves you," he said as he pulled her into an embrace.

Tears started filling her eyes as she nuzzled her face into her father's chest, letting a muffled, "I know," come out.

Somewhere In The West Indies

"This ship is a marvel, Cap'n Hook! Where did you find it?"

"You know, I think it's time for me to go back to Captain Jones, Johnny," Hook smiled at his new member of the nonexistent crew. The boy was standing by the deck, appreciating the fine lacquer of the ship. "Also, to answer your question, I've been a pirate for over 300 years – I have a few tricks up my sleeve."

"The CSS Alabama is a beauty. I can only imagine how the Jolly Roger looks like!" Hook had found young Johnny near the port. He had the same look in his eyes when Hook had asked him to join him on his journey that young Killian Jones had when his brother had enlisted him into the Navy. Johnny was young, lean and fit - his physique was perfect for the trip. Hook needed someone who was energetic and lively since it was just going to be the two of them on the ship.

"You remind me a lot of your father, Johnny. He was a good man – one of the best of my crew." Hook smiled fondly at the thought of his old crewmen.

"I barely remember him… He left when I was young," he smiled sadly.

"I apologise for that. I needed Ward aboard my ship, without him, god knows where I'd be. But trust me when I say, he didn't want to leave you."

"And I believe you, Captain."

"He would've been a good father to you, and those are hard to find," he paused, turning the helm ever so slightly. "Mine, on the other hand, left my brother and I aboard a ship when I was only a child – he… he was not a good man. I don't think I'll ever forgive him for that."

"I'm sorry, Captain. But if you don't mind me asking, why are we searching for him?" he asked, while opening the telescope to look into the horizon.

"He is in possession of something I hold dearly to my heart."

"Well then, you're in luck. If I'm not mistaken, that is the Queen Anne's Revenge coming towards us from the East," Johnny informed him.

"Oh, how I've missed our family reunions, father," Hook said to himself, with a smirk planted on his face.

A/N: Hopefully people like this enough for me to be motivated to continue! I just really wanted to have someone defend Hook for once and also a sentimental Hook remembering his old crew members. :)