A Captain Swan Christmas One Shot - couldn't let the festive period go by without writing one!
The house was completely silent, and her eyes adjusted to the dark, the soft glow from the clear night sky pooling at the end of the bed. She glanced over at the clock on the bedside table, delighted to read 4.07. Several delicious hours more sleep ahead of them.
Having been used to sleeping alone for so many years, she was surprised at how comfortable she was being completely entangled with him. His arm was wrapped around her waist, holding her against him, him on his back and her snuggled into his side, her head on his chest. It just all felt so easy and natural and right.
Now that she was awake, she found herself watching him sleep - something she had never done with anyone before. He looked so peaceful, his dark hair splayed messily against her white pillow, and his breathing calm and even. It had been a big day for both of them, but they had survived it together.
How ironic. They had faced Pan in Neverland, defeated Zelena, found their way home from the past, survived the Snow Queen and put his heart back where it belonged after it was stolen by Rumplestiltskin, and yet Christmas Day had made her so nervous she hadn't quite known how she'd get through it. For a start, it had taken a lot of explaining for him to even understand the concept, and after the constant chaos they had been living among lately, having a normal Christmas - scrap that, having a normal day, felt like a foreign concept. But somehow, surrounded by everyone she loved, she had gotten there.
Henry had, much to her delight, been the first to insist that Killian be there - not just for dinner, but for the whole day. Since she and Henry had finally moved in to their new place, down by the water, he had been pretty much a permanent fixture. He hadn't officially moved in, but really, he might as well have. When it had come to Christmas day, however, he had been very quick to suggest that he would stay away. "It seems like a family holiday, Swan…" he had offered, uncertainly, a week before when the subject of Christmas dinner had come up. Before she could even respond, Henry, who had just appeared in the room, had completely dismissed Killian's concerns, and the look of genuine happiness that had spread across his face hearing Henry refer to him as family had just about made her heart explode.
She wasn't quite sure why she had volunteered to host Christmas Dinner - other than the fact she was the only one to have grown up outside of the Enchanted Forest (or other magical realms), she did not feel qualified to host an actual dinner party. Her culinary skills stretched little further than excellent hot chocolate. And yet she had ended up with Henry and Killian, her parents, baby Neal, Regina and Belle (who was struggling since banishing Rumple from Storybrooke) around her dinner table. Having spent several days in panic mode, she had eventually resorted to asking Granny and Red for some much needed help. The dinner, as it turned out, was a massive hit with everyone.
When the meal was over, everyone had moved into the front room, fire blazing and Christmas tree lights on, like some sort of bizarre Christmas card come to life. David had taken Neal upstairs and put him to bed in his pram, while Snow and Belle had settled on the sofa in front of the television. Regina was in the chair beside them, with Henry lying stretched out on the floor in front of her, complaining about how much he had eaten, while they had cleared the table. He helped her pack everything away into her brand new dishwasher, mumbling about how bizarre he still found the contraptions they had in this realm, and she poured them both another large glass of wine.
He raised his eyebrow when she handed him the glass and clinked hers against it.
"What? I think we did a pretty good job of hosting. We deserve this."
He grinned and took a sip, and then leaned over and kissed her, taking full advantage of the first moment they'd had alone all day. Since that morning, when they'd taken far longer to get out of bed than she had intended, on a day when she had so much to do. He just had that effect on her. On days that Henry was at Regina's, and the town wasn't under siege by some monster or another, she could quite happily stay in what she was quickly finding herself refer to as "their" bedroom, all day.
The evening had been lazy, everyone sprawled in front of the lighthearted Christmas tv, and when everyone had eventually started to doze off on their various chairs and couches, she knew from the warm feeling in her chest that this had, without a doubt, been the best Christmas of her entire life. She had, without thinking, found herself sitting on his knee on the chair they had retired to, trying desperately to ignore Snow's smile as she watched them together. Secretly, she loved that her mother responded so positively to their relationship. David still needed a little convincing, but that would come with time. But Snow just beamed, every time she spied him make her laugh, or grab hold of her hand.
Eventually everyone had left, Henry leaving with Regina, and they hadn't even made it upstairs before they made the most of having an empty house.
Several times.
And now it was after 4am and she was awake, smiling to herself as she watched him sleep, tracing patterns across his chest with her fingers, pressing her lips against his shoulder and wondering how on earth this had happened. She didn't let people in, yet somehow he had managed to make his way into her life, her home and her heart, and she couldn't imagine being without him. She didn't trust people easily, yet she would trust him with her life. More importantly, she'd trust him with her son's life. Their life was crazy, one insane, magical disaster after another, it seemed, but somehow they had found a way to create some sense of normality amongst it. He was right. They had to make the most of the quiet moments, and since she had allowed herself to start doing that, life had become so much better.
His body shifted and his eyes opened, sleepily, a smile curving at his mouth when he saw her watching him.
"Enjoying the view, Swan?" he mumbled, his voice rough with sleep.
"It's not bad."
She snuggled closer to him pulling herself up to whisper in his ear.
"With someone as devilishly handsome as you in my bed, surely you can't expect me not to stare…"
He laughed and reached up to tangle his fingers in her hair and pull her mouth towards his, pausing just millimetres from her lips.
"I'd expect nothing less."
And with that he was kissing her, and it took every ounce of strength to pull away, even just for the minute it would take for her to say what she wanted to say.
He blinked up at her, confusion washing over his face as he brushed a stray strand of hair back behind her ear.
"Everything alright, love?"
She couldn't help the grin that broke out across her face, and she pressed the lightest of reassuring kisses to his mouth before pulling back again, leaning against his chest and fixing her eyes on his.
"Everything's great. I just wanted to say that today was perfect."
He smiled and nodded, his thumb brushing lightly across her cheek.
"That it was, Swan. You're a hell of hostess."
"It was a team effort. And I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciated you being there today."
He grinned wickedly, signature eyebrow quirked.
"I think you let me know that after everyone left earlier-"
She playfully slapped his chest before he could finish the sentence, rolling her eyes and trying her best not to laugh.
"I'm trying to have a sincere moment here, Captain," she said, sighing, "What I'm saying is that today was perfect and I hope we have a lot more days like this to look forward to in the future… together."
His eyes softened and he was looking at her that way he sometimes did that took her breath away. For so long, the intensity of that look had terrified her - the love he had for her written all over his face. Now it just filled her with hope and happiness, and she hoped he could see that she felt exactly the same.
"I love you so much," she whispered, "And I know it took me a while to get here, but I cannot imagine not having you in my life."
"I love you too, Emma. More than anything in this world."
She paused, taking a deep breath and preparing for her next sentence, knowing that it would change nothing and everything at the same time.
"So, I was thinking, we should make things official. What do you say you move in here, with Henry and me. Permanently?"
He stared at her for a moment, a look of genuine surprise on his face, despite the fact they had rarely spent a night apart since she had moved in. And then suddenly, before she even realised what was happening, he had flipped them over, his lips pressed against hers and his warm body resting above hers.
Moments later, he pulled back, his eyes bright and shining and a huge smile plastered on his face.
"I'd be honoured."
The next afternoon, when they finally decided to leave the house, he paid Granny his final instalment of rent for the room he had been staying in, and moved himself in.
It really had been the perfect Christmas.
Hope you enjoyed this little festive one shot - this was supposed to be super short and somehow it ended up being a bit longer!
Hope you've all had a lovely Christmas :)