HEY GUYS! This is the promised sequel! Exciting, right? I decided, instead of having half a dozen 3 part stories and one shots floating around fanfiction and you all maybe missing some and not knowing where stuff was, this is where I am putting all the short sequels for Hope's What We Crave! Within this will be multiple stories. So alert, favorite, because you never know when something else will show up in here! I hope y'all enjoy! :)

(I'll try to keep them in chronological order, but no promises. I'll always tell you when they are in the timeline, though.)

(set about a year after Hope's What We Crave)

Perfect Flaws

"Hawk the Hewold angels siiiing, glowwy toooo the newbown kiiing! Peace on earf, and mewcy mild, God and sinners weconciled!" Grace bellows through the house as Leah and Malachi decorate the skinny Christmas tree in the corner.

"Ugh," Malachi mumbles, handing her more multicolored balls. "Mom…"

"I think I prefer belted Christmas carols to silence," Leah says, smiling down at her son. She takes the ornaments from him and place them around the lights and tinsel.

"But it's so loud," Malachi complains.

"Joyful all ye nation wise, join the twiumph of the skyyyy," Grace hollers, coming into the living room. She has dressed up one of her dollies like an angel, cutting out pink construction paper wings for her. She is now flying her around the house.

"Can you use an inside voice, honey?" Leah says, trying to compromise. But Grace hasn't gained the concept of "loud" and "soft" in the year that she's decided to start talking –just "on" and "off."

Grace looks at her funny. "Mommy, I'm singin'."

"Oh. Silly me," Leah says, hiding an eye roll. "Malachi, you want to hand me the star?"

Malachi obliges as Grace resumes her song.

"Wif angelly toast pwoclaim, Cwist is bown in Befleheeeem!"

The doorbell peals cheerfully, finally fixed, and Malachi rushes to answer it, leaving Grace to warble the rest of her carol to Leah. "Hawk! The Hewold angels siiing, glowwy toooo the newbown kiiing!"

"Someone sounds like quite the opera star in the making," Elijah says, following Malachi into the living room.

"You're kidding, right?" Ky asks him. They share an amused grin.

"She was on key, for the most part," he points out.

"Well, someone's right on time," Leah says, pleased.

"Aren't I always?" Elijah asks.

She turns her face up to him for a kiss, and he obliges. She will never tire of his lips. "Yes," she admits with a smile.

"Where do you want me?" Elijah says, shucking off his jacket.

So many things pop into her mind, but she resists saying them, with a little bit of effort. The knowledge that Malachi is old enough to probably get a lot of innuendo helps, as well as the smirk hiding at the corner of Elijah's mouth. She's not going to take his bait.

"The kitchen," she says simply, smiling. "I was promised delicious goodness."

"And you know I keep my promises," Elijah says, rolling up his sleeves.

Yes, she knows full well. "Grace, do you want to help Elijah make cookies?"

Grace squeals. "Cookies, cookies, cookies!" With each syllable she bounces.

Leah smiles apologetically to Elijah. "She's been a ball of energy all day. You get to tire her out."

"I'm sure we can do that," Elijah says, gazing happily at her daughter. "Come on, Grace. What kind of cookies do you like best?"

"Chocolate," Grace says immediately. "And bwownies."

"Brownies aren't a cookie," he tells her.

"So?"

Leah chuckles as the two travel to the kitchen.

Three hours later, her kitchen is a mess of flour and sugar and chocolate, but she's got trays of chocolate chip cookies, Christmas fudge, and sugar cookies all over the kitchen, one man with some flour streaked across his cheek, and a very sticky five year old. Said five year old is currently slathering a glob of green icing over a tree-shaped sugar cookie.

"Someone had a good time," Leah says, reaching up to wipe the excess flour off of his cheek.

Elijah grins. "We did indeed. Are you satisfied with our end result?"

"Well, it certainly looks delicious," Leah says, eyeing the desserts. "And there's enough to keep us until far past New Year's, so… I'll say yes."

"You'd better try one, just to make sure," he says. "Close your eyes."

She gives him a funny look.

"I'm not going to smoosh anything in your face, if that's what you're thinking," he says, laughing.

"Okay…" she says, letting her eyes close and opening her mouth. "Mmmm." The sugar cookie tastes wonderful, so much better than store-bought. And the icing –ohhh, yummy. Is that homemade as well?

She swallows and opens her eyes to ask him, but stops. Elijah still holds out the cookie in front of her.

It's bigger than the others, with a lot of white icing and a shaky looking question mark drawn on it right above her bite. But above that, imbedded in the icing, is a diamond ring.

Her mouth is dry and she really wants some water to wash down the crumbs in her mouth. "Um."

"Grace helped me ice it," Elijah says quietly, watching her face.

"Um." She wishes she could form words intelligibly.

"I dwew the qwestion mawk," Grace informs her proudly from the kitchen table.

"I love it," Leah finally manages to get out, but she's looking at Elijah when she says it.

"Leah," Elijah says, reaching for her hand.

My word, why is she tearing up? He hasn't even… he's just holding her hand, it might not even be… "Is… is that…" she tries to say, looking up at Elijah, full of fear, full of hope.

"Leah Evangeline, I love you," he says. "I love you, and I love your children. This year that I've known you has been one of the best years of my life."

She laughs a little, because she knows how many years he has seen.

"It's true," he says with a smile of his own, and kneels down on her kitchen linoleum. Her hand goes to her mouth. "You have a rare inner beauty that captured my heart. You reach out to others without hesitation, and you want to heal the brokenness in everyone –even in me."

The tears are falling now, but she can't look away from his face –so full of the love he wants to pour into her. She is a broken vessel, unworthy.

"Neither of us is perfect," he whispers. "And I can't promise perfection; that would be foolish. But I can promise that I will love and protect you and your children until the end of time… if you will let me."

She is reminded of a time where he said much the same, asking for a chance to heal her and redeem her, if she'd let him. And it was scary and difficult, but she stepped out in faith, she decided to trust… and she's never had such joy before. She squeezes his hand, hard. "I love you," she whispers brokenly.

"Will you marry me, Leah?" Elijah whispers.

She nods as the tears stream freely down her face. "Yes, yes!" she says, and he stands and his lips come down on hers, and the taste of him is the sweetest thing she has ever experienced. He kisses away the salt on her skin and slips the diamond onto her finger, the place she'd never thought a ring would rest again. It's simple and beautiful, and she loves it.

Grace tugs on their legs with sticky hands. "Is 'Lijah goin' to be my daddy now?" she asks.

Before Leah can answer, Elijah kneels down again, taking hold of Grace's hands. "Do you want me to be?" he asks very seriously.

"Yes!" Grace says emphatically, throwing her arms around Elijah. He laughs and picks her up, spinning her around.

She wonders if hearts could burst with happiness. Leah turns to the kitchen doorway where Malachi lurks with the biggest grin on his face. She opens her arms, and he comes to hug her.

"You knew," she whispers into his hair.

"Yeah," Ky says. "Elijah asked me if I'd be okay with it." He smiles. "I am."

"He helped pick out the ring, too," Elijah says, as Grace giggles with delight. "You know, it's not so easy to pick out jewelry for the woman who makes it for a living."

"Oh?" she says, wrapping an arm around him.

He shakes his head, smiling.

"Surely a thousand years of experience…"

"I've never gone engagement ring shopping before," he says. "This was a completely new experience."

"I guess we'll just have to figure it out as we go along, then," she whispers.

"Yes," he murmurs, "We will." He kisses her again, and she knows that right now, with the four of them together in the kitchen, she is whole.

They are not perfect and she is a broken vessel but through the holes and cracks, love can flow out and make something beautiful.

They are not perfect, but your flaws are perfect for the heart that is meant to love you.