Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24892318-20140606234443/@comment-24892318-20140613213006

Emma said herself she's not used to someone putting her first. With Neal, she was stealing the watches for him and then was abandoned to pay the price. With her parents, she sees herself as being abandoned to be the savior. Even with Henry, she's his mother, she takes care of him, not the other way around. Hook is the first one to put her first. He lets go of his desire for revenge to help save Henry, he brings her back to Storybrooke, he supports her as she discovers her own power, he follows her back through time, and brings her home again. Finally, he gives up his home for her.

I love the scene on the beanstalk. It's my favorite scene in S2. "You're something of an open book." He knows then and there who she is and, like you said, that they are kindred spirits. I knew at that moment that they belonged together. I think deep down Hook knew so too. The seed was planted. Pun intended. From that moment on, he was challenged by her in a physical sense and a mental sense. Their chemistry and verbal sparing were undeniable. But once he realized he could be a better man, from that moment on, he was challenged by her in every sense of the word. And he went full throttle showing her that she could count on him. That he was in it for the long haul.

As good as Hook was for Emma, I think Emma was for Hook. He was just as broken as Emma was, in much the same way. He'd been abandoned by his father. He lost his brother and was betrayed by the King he believed in. His heart had been broken, and he'd spent 300 years looking for revenge. He didn't trust anyone other than himself. He relied only on himself. He did have Mr. Smee, but I don't think he ever let him in. His walls were up. Hook hid his good nature behind humor and sarcasm. He'd given up all his morals in the name of revenge. It wasn't until Emma came along and challenged him to be a better man that he was able to let go of Milah and start to see himself as the man he used to be. It wasn't until he wanted to put someone, Emma, ahead of himself, that he was able to become the man he was always meant to be.