The movie had given way to infomercials selling some sort of cleaning product that was supposed to work wonders. Emma was glad that Killian was already fast asleep, his sock covered feet on the coffee table and his head thrown back over the edge of the couch. She knew that he would have been watching that infomercial with vigor, as he seemed to believe everything that the charlatans on television tried to sell. He was a veritable encyclopedia of slogans when they shopped together, asking her why she bought the cheaper laundry detergent. Did she want dingy whites?

Henry was on the floor, his head resting where he had been sitting beside them. However, when Hannah began to squirm and climb all over him and Killian in an attempt to play during the Christmas movie marathon that Henry had lined up for the family. Choosing to protect himself, he had slid down onto the rug and only suffered the occasional small foot to the head when Hannah shifted position. To his credit, he was patient with her movements and Killian's confusion, offering explanations before the pirate had to ask.

Emma was the only one still awake, a slumbering Hannah splayed out across her as a bed. Her blonde head is tucked into Emma's shoulder and her legs bent up under her with a set of knees piercing the sheriff's stomach. It's not the most comfortable of positions, but Emma chose to savor it as a sign that the child felt comfortable with her. Her own feet were in Killian's lap, having divested themselves of the warm blanket that he had covered them both with before settling down. Even in his sleep he was absently running his hand along the soft skin of the top of her feet. Her free hand reached up to touch the ring that is always there. Frowning, she came up empty and without the talisman that had gotten her through dark days and time away from him.

With a slight kick of her foot, she made him stir, his hair sticking out in odd directions. "I'm not trying to sound needy here," she said when his blue eyes fluttered and strained to pull her into focus, "but when do I get my ring back?"

"Demanding a proposal?" he asked, his voice thick. "Sounds pretty needy to me, love."

She huffed indignantly. "You assume I'm saying yes."

"I assume nothing, Emma. I only hope." He groaned a bit to pull himself up to a more comfortable position, ignoring her comments that he was getting old. "And would you? Would you say yes if I were to ask you now?"

She felt Hannah's knees dig deeper into her stomach. "I could be convinced, maybe."

"Your mother seemed to think I should at least make the proposal a bit special," he said, his nose crinkling up slightly. "This isn't the most romantic of locales, Swan." He gestured toward the remnants of their popcorn and gummy bears that they had all feasted on earlier. Empty cans of soda and juice boxes littered flat surfaces.

She followed his movement and let her eyes settled on the sight. To him it was a mess, a disaster of trash. To her it was lived in and real. This was a family, she realized. Her son was at her side, head cocked to one side and mouth parted as he slept. His socks were ones that she had bought him and the sweatshirt a cast off from one of her previous jobs. A fire was still burning in the fireplace, casting a warm glow on everyone's face. The tree, the one that Killian and Henry had found and decorated with Hannah's help was twinkling with colored lights – a debate that had been hard fought. The little girl who needed her just as much as she needed this child was curled up, breath warm on her collar. The man she loved was alive and well, half of her heart beating in his chest. She caught him so many times staring at her, silently communicating his love for her with a soft caress or slight twitching smile. The very sight of them all gathered there, creating their own traditions and habits. She'd never thought of herself in this way, never considered herself big on family. Yet just a few hours earlier she'd been making plans for dinner at her parents, wrapping a toy she found for her brother, and discussing signing Hannah up for dance lessons like she wanted to take. "I think this," she said softly, not wanting to wake the sleeping young people, "is as romantic as any field of flowers or a grand ball."

"This?" he asked, scanning the space again.

As gracefully as she could, Emma rose from the couch and placed the sleeping child back on the cushions, tucking the throw blanket around her. Holding her hand out to Killian, she wiggled her fingers to him, indicating that she wanted him to follow her. "Swan?" he asked, standing up and placing his hand in her own. "What are you doing, love?"

Holding her other hand out, she looked at him expectantly. "Give me the ring, Killian."

"There you go being demanding again, love." He did not let go of her hand, preventing him from digging into his pocket.

"You love it," she laughed. "I'm serious though. I need the ring here, Killian." She loosened her grip allowing him to pull out the ring and hold it between his thumb and forefinger.

"Right here and now?" he asked again, eyeing the dark stone and swirling design. "You're sure?"

"More than," she replied. Standing in front of the flames in the fireplace, she smiled at him and sank down onto the hearth. Her left hand patted the brick next to her. He moved as though he was not certain, his eyebrow permanently raised as he stared upon her.

"So, Killian," she said, covering his hand, curling his fingers around the ring.

He sounded quite exasperated as he breathed out. "This is not your normal demeanor, love. You are normally so guarded about such things. Why the change?"

The fire was warm against Emma's back and again she stared out at the children sleeping in front of them. "After I was old enough to realize that I didn't have what other kids had, I told myself it didn't matter. I told myself I didn't want those things anyway. After Neal left, I told myself I was fine because it would have happened sooner or later. And in those few moments I could remember from the time Regina ended Pan's curse to driving over the town line, I told myself that it was fine because my parents had each other and even you were going to be better off without me." She swallowed hard, blinking up toward the ceiling for a moment. "But the more I got to know you. The more you broke my walls down. The more that you became a part of my life. The more that I realized that Henry, my mom, my dad, love me and aren't going to go away just because they get tired or it gets too rough."

Killian said nothing, waiting for her to continue, his expression softening to one of happy admiration of the woman she was at that moment. "You see," she continued. "This is what I want. I've almost lost it so many times now that I realize I'm not scared of actually having what I want – a family, a home, you. I'm scared of losing it. I'm scared that I'm too weak to go on if I have everything that makes me happy and then it goes away."

She squeezed his hand a bit tighter. "What is it that you want?" Killian asked softly.

"I want you," she said just as softly. "I want you and all the craziness of our lives. I want you fighting next to me the next time something happens. I want you bringing me lunch and reminding me that there is more to life than files and patrols. I want to see you being a father to Hannah and worrying about her grades or the boy she likes. I want you to take Henry sailing and give him tips on how to be a true hero. I want the two of us to be so busy with them that we fall into bed each night exhausted but grateful to be in each other's arms. I want to look back on all this someday and be more in love with you each day."

Killian's eyes seemed to shine more than ever, whether from unshed tears or the lights of the tree. "That is quite a wish, my love. I don't know if I could ever live up to the expectations that you have set there."

"I don't know that I can live up to it either, but I would like to try. I want to try with you."

"Aye, as do I."

"So what do you say?" she asked, lifting her chin in that way that she did when she was being her most brave. "Should we go for it? Me and you? Forever?"

"Aye, nothing should make me happier than to link my life to yours in yet another way." He leaned in, brushing his mouth against hers before the kiss turned a bit more passionate. Pulling back, the mischievousness of his grin and the sparkle of his blue eyes reminded Emma of the innuendo laden pirate she first encountered. "Did you just propose to me, Swan?"

She laughed, a bit too loudly given the others being asleep. "I guess I did."

"Perhaps I should wear this ring then?" he teased, pulling his hand back and holding the circle of silver aloft. She reacted as he knew she would, saying his name in an incensed tone. "But I still think it would look far better on your lovely finger." Nodding toward her left hand, he moved the ring in that direction. "May I?"

She laughed again, a breathy sound and wide smile as he did. "I didn't mean to take over the proposal."

"Perhaps you were just giving me a nudge. But I can ask if you should like. Emma Swan, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

The ring already sat on her hand, glinting and glimmering as the low flames of the fire shone on it. She watched that for a moment before lifting her gaze to meet his. "I think I can be convinced."

***HOHOHO***

"But Regina already put on your paperwork for the adoption that you are married," Mary Margaret protested as they stood in the mayor's office with its modern décor and severe black and white theme. "If you want to do this, we should plan something. We could have a beautiful ceremony this spring or summer. Something on the beach?"

"We can do that later," Emma said to her mother, watching from the corner of her eye as Regina shifted a few documents on the desk. "Killian and I want to do this now. We want to be married and ready to become Hannah's parents as a team."

"This does seem a bit rushed," David added, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder. "Are you sure that you don't want to wait? You could still go ahead with the adoption."

Emma's dress was not white, instead opting for a pale blue one that she had found in one of the stores in town. Belle's father had provided her with a small bouquet of flowers when Killian suggested such a thing for them. That had been right before he had plucked one of the flowers and extended it to Hannah.

"I want to do this, Dad," Emma insisted. "I love him. He loves me. We don't need to wait. We've fought for this future together and I'm ready to start living it. I'm ready to accept those moments that come with him." She couldn't help noticing the way that David seemed to show a flash of acceptance in his facial expression before leaning in and kissing the top of her head.

"I'll go see what's keeping that groom of yours." His voice was gruff as he walked away from the mother and daughter.

Mary Margaret's own expression softened too. "I'm proud of you, Emma," she said, not hiding the crack in her voice. "And if you don't want the big fancy wedding fit for a princess, I can live with that. I want you to be happy. And Killian makes you happy. Hannah and Henry…well, they are lucky to have you and Killian looking out for them."

Having found what she was looking for, Regina approached. "I think we're about ready here," she said. "I know I can do this legally, but the occasion has not ever really arose. Are you sure you don't want Archie to do this? He has more experience." It was as modest as Emma had ever seen the dark haired woman.

"No, I think it is perfect for you to do this. You are family, Regina. You're Henry's mom. You're my mom's stepmother. You're essentially my step-grandmother. And you're my friend. I want you here and a part of this day." She could feel her mother sway into her, squeezing her shoulder.

"It will be my pleasure," Regina said stoically. "Though if you call me Grandma, I'm calling the whole thing off."

In the adjacent conference room, Henry was fiddling with Killian's tie. He had that same look of concentration that Emma would get while performing some tasks. Hannah seemed oblivious to the anxiety and nervousness as she and Roland were chasing each other with the two dump trucks that Regina had started to keep there at the office for visits from Robin and Roland.

"Let me," David said, nudging his grandson to the side. "I suppose this is not a task you're used to?"

"Not much occasion for those," Killian admitted wryly. "Though I suppose you are anxious to tie any rope around my neck."

"Can't say the occasion hasn't crossed my mind," David laughed, a sound remarkably similar to Emma's. "But I think my daughter might have an issue if I killed you again."

Killian cleared his throat. "You know I'll do anything to protect her. She and Henry will always be safe with me, as will Hannah or whoever else comes along."

Taking a step back to admire his handy work on the tie, David groaned so loudly that he heard Roland speculate that he must have a tummy ache. "Can we not rush into that? I'm not quite ready for any big announcements any time soon."

"But I thought you were getting onto mom about wanting her to have kids and a husband," Henry chimed in with his solid memory. "What changed?"

David never did get to explain himself as Regina called them forward for the ceremony. It was not overly formal or classic, but it seemed to fit their situation well. Emma was walked down the makeshift aisle with David on one arm and Henry on the other. Robin stood at Killian's side and Mary Margaret at Emma's when they exchanged vows in front of Regina. She kept it pretty traditional, only having to stop when the babies got fussy and Roland asked his father why they were doing all this. Henry used his camera to play photographer, snapping pictures of every moment. One of his favorite photos was when Hannah became restless with all the vows and repeating. The blonde child tugged on Killian's leg, having him lift her up and hold her as they finished the last of the ceremony. She hid her eyes as Killian and Emma exchanged what was a chaste kiss on the lips to seal their fate as husband and wife.

While Hannah and Roland had both been slightly miffed at the idea of kissing, they weren't too traumatized. In fact, they recovered in time for a reception at Granny's that had pie instead of wedding cake and onion rings as appetizers. Granny allowed them to move some of the tables and have all the traditional dances as the wait staff served the regular customers. She even offered one of the unoccupied rooms for a one night honeymoon while Hannah spent the night with her grandparents and Henry headed to Regina's for the evening. It might not have been the wedding of a royal princess, but Emma was smiling and Killian couldn't keep his eyes off of her as they thanked everyone and bid the crowd good night.

***HOHOHO***

"What could they possibly want for next year if we got them all this now?" Killian asked, lugging another stack of wrapped boxes to put under the tree. He knew that Emma had dreamed of the Christmas morning where they all bounded down the stairs and enjoyed the excitement of tearing into the packages. She'd said as much during movies and television shows about the holidays. However, when Henry announced that he would be spending Christmas Eve with Regina and Robin, the plans changed.

It was closer to lunch time when David, Mary Margaret and Neal arrived. Their own packages added to the growing pile. Hannah was entertaining Neal by making funny faces as Mary Margaret seemed absolutely enthralled by the sight.

"Children always find a way to want more," Emma said, holding the door open for him. "Don't worry. I think next year will be an even bigger list."

She admitted to herself that she had probably gone overboard. The wish list from Hannah was completely fulfilled with toys and anything the child had even looked at in the store. However, just as that first day they had met her, she was still wishing for a kitten. After a few discussions with David and a few internet searches, they had settled on just the right one to adopt. David and Mary Margaret had snuck her over that morning with their things.

"Joys of parenthood?" Killian asked, mimicking the phrase that she had said more than once.

"Of course," she laughed.

By the time everyone arrived and the presents were being opened, Emma had nearly forgotten to take pictures. However, she and Mary Margaret shared that duty and tried to capture the moments. There was Roland's face when he got his new ice skates and Robin's enthusiasm for a book that he had wanted to read. Mary Margaret had to wipe away the tears at a family picture of Killian, Emma, Henry and Hannah from the wedding. David even jokingly gave Killian a box with three clip on ties. Henry thanked both his mothers for the new computer and printer. And Hannah declared each present her favorite, giving hugs as thank yous.

Killian was about to go into the back room where the black and white kitten was curled up when the loud knock at the door interrupted them all. He frowned slightly, assuming it to be Gold – the only one of the blood relatives of any of them not there. However, it was not the pawn broker standing there on the large front porch.

"Archie?" Emma asked, stepping up behind Killian. "What are you doing here?"

"I apologize for the intrusion, but I thought you would want this." In his hand was a letter sized envelope. "I hadn't checked my email yesterday and missed this."

Eyeing him suspiciously, Emma extended her hand to receive it. "Is this…"

"Temporary order came down from the state court," Archie explained. "Hannah's records were revealed. Her biological parents gave her up at birth. No others have made any claim as to parental rights. So she is yours. They will ask me for an update in six months when an adoption order can be delivered."

Emma stared at the still unopened envelope. "Seriously?"

"Congratulations," Archie said. "I should let you get back to your guests."

"Thank you," Killian answered, realizing that Emma was still a bit shocked. "You have…"

"You're the ones providing a home to that little girl," Archie argued. "You are the ones doing something. I did the paperwork."

He ignored their request to join them, stating he was on his way to spend some time at the diner. However, he did linger for a moment after they stated their gratitude again and shut the door, watching them join their family there around the tree. There was not another word to describe it. It was a family. No, it wasn't orthodox or easy, but they were a group of people who loved each other and made room in their hearts for more.