A/N: Sorry it's been such a wait! Life has been getting a bit crazy with exams coming up very soon, and getting prom over with, plus Aidan is leaving at the end of the month for five weeks in Colorado, so like I said, life's a little bit crazy! That said, prom was amazing and if anybody happens to want to see pictures, they're on my twitter ( Castle_Fanatic). So here's this chapter. It's really long and was even longer originally but I decided to split it up, so Christmas shall continue through Chapter 12 as well. Thanks for being wonderful and awesome, you guys are the bestest. Let me know your thoughts!

Cassie

"Katie."

Kate Beckett's warm, hazy silence of sleep was broken by the quiet call of her name. She opened her eyes to find a small redhead with bright blue irises that were currently shimmering with excitement staring at her.

"It's Christmas," Alexis whispered when she noticed that Kate had woken up. Kate smiled at her.

"Merry Christmas, Alexis," she said.

"Merry Christmas, Katie," Alexis said happily. Kate eased herself out of bed to join Alexis, who grinned up at her, dressed in pink pajamas of a shade that clashed horribly with her red hair.

"Come on, we have to wake up Daddy," she said. Kate hesitated just for a second before following the little girl toward the stairs, to creep quietly into Rick's bedroom.

"How are we going to wake him up?" Kate whispered. Alexis looked up at her, grinning mischievously, looking so much like her father in that moment that it was striking.

"We're gonna jump on him," the little girl replied. Kate calculated quickly in her head. She had to be careful here. She was in general not very cautious with Rick, never feeling like she had to be. She found him inexplicably easy to trust, easy to be with, just easy to get along with. But without being too close for comfort, and without disappointing the little girl that had brought them together in the first place, Kate had to somehow jump on his bed. So, when Alexis began counting to three, Kate devised her plan. She would jump, but to the side, allowing Alexis to jump on top of her father, so that Kate would be participating in what Alexis wanted her to do, but she wouldn't be too close or too intimate. By the time Alexis reached three, Kate was ready. She had it all planned out.

But what she didn't know was the the sleeping writer was far more aware than she realized, and he had a plan of his own. The loft was soon filled with the screams of a little redhead and a tall brunette. Kate had expected to jump to the side, but Rick had suddenly come to life, grabbing them both with his arms, his nimble fingers tickling them mercilessly. When, finally, he had ceased his ministrations, they lay there, fighting to tame their giggling and catch their breath, overlapping one another in a mess of limbs.

"Merry Christmas, ladies," Rick said quietly, mirth still evident in his voice.

"Merry Christmas, Daddy," Alexis giggled.

"Merry Christmas, Rick," Kate said, turning her head to smile at him.

"Alexis, will you go and wake Grams up, and then meet us in the kitchen?" Alexis nodded, slipping from Rick's bed, her feet hitting the floor with a soft thump before she was off, running to roust her grandmother. Rick turned to Kate, meeting her eyes.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," she replied. Kate was suddenly struck by the intimacy of this whole situation they were in; the two of them sprawled across his bed in their pajamas on a Christmas morning that was already promising to be one of those beautifully memorable days.

"How'd you sleep?" he asked.

"Well. You?" He grinned and Kate couldn't help but wonder what was flashing through his mind just then.

"I slept well, too," he replied. He stood then, the motion of sliding from the mattress and bringing himself to a vertical position so very fluid and graceful. He extended his hand to Kate, who took it and smiled, allowing him to pull her to her feet.

Together, they went through his office and into the kitchen, having time to start coffee before Alexis succeeded in awakening Martha and the two of them entered the kitchen.

"Good morning, darlings," Martha yawned.

"Merry Christmas, Mother," Rick replied. Kate smiled at her, wishing the older woman a merry Christmas as well.

"Daddy, look!" Alexis squealed. She excitedly pointed to the now-empty plate of cookies and glass of milk. "Santa ate the cookies!" Rick couldn't help the tiny smile that crept onto his face when he exchanged a quick and furtive glance with Kate.

"I see that, Pumpkin," he said. "I bet they were good." Alexis nodded.

"Can we do presents now?" she asked. Rick laughed.

"Of course we can," he answered. The four of them made their way into the living room, where Alexis retrieved their stockings first. The little girl excitedly handed an olive green cloth stocking to Kate, who shot Rick an inquisitive look. He shrugged.

"We though you may as well have a stocking, too," he explained nonchalantly. Kate rolled her eyes, a front for the warm tug she felt at the sight of her name embroidered on the stocking in satiny gold thread. Their stockings proved to be full of Christmas treats; citrus fruits accompanied with soft peppermint sticks, Hershey's kisses, old-fashioned ribbon candy, and a tree ornament for each of them. Kate and Alexis had matching ceramic ballet slippers, Rick a stack of books, and Martha a delicate peacock feather. After having hung their respective ornaments on the tree, Alexis dug into her Santa gifts first. She had received the doll house she'd wanted, which was intricate and pretty, with its pastel colors and Victorian architecture. She'd also gotten fencing swords from Rick, which she was thrilled with. It amused Kate that a child could be equally excited about swords and a doll house. Martha had gotten her a VHS copy of "Barbie in The Nutcracker" and "Barbie in Swan Lake".

"Is this one from you, Daddy?" Alexis asked in reference to a brightly wrapped package. Rick shook his head.

"No, that one's from Katie," he said. Alexis smiled and tore off the paper to reveal the Disney mirror Kate had gotten for her. Alexis squealed with delight and hugged Kate tightly, thanking her for the gift.

"You're welcome, Alexis," she laughed. Martha opened her gifts next, fawning over the scarf Kate had gotten her and the perfume from Rick, as well as the "Grandma" mug from Alexis.

"Who's next?" Rick asked his daughter.

"Katie!" she said excitedly. Alexis reached for the two gifts they'd gotten for Kate.

"Which one should I open first?" Kate inquired.

"That one," Alexis answered, pointing to the bag she knew contained the framed photo. Kate obliged, pulling out the tissue paper and carefully extracting the gift. She smiled at the sight, her expression tender as she gazed at the photograph.

"Do you like it?" Alexis asked excitedly. Kate smiled brightly at the little girl.

"Of course," she said. "I love it, Alexis, thank you." Alexis smiled, proud of herself for coming up with the perfect gift.

"Okay, open that one," Rick urged, the anticipation evident in his voice. Kate reached for the small box, and carefully pulled the paper away. Her movements stilled as she reached the Tiffany box. She met his eyes, sparkling as they were with hopeful anticipation.

"Rick."

"Open it," he said. She did, not able to suppress the gasp at the sight of the rose bracelet. Kate found herself suddenly torn. The bracelet was beautiful, but she didn't even want to consider how much it had cost. She hadn't spent much on his gift, which was suddenly feeling very inadequate. And, while she knew it didn't really matter one way or the other, that the price of his gift wouldn't matter to him, Kate was overwhelmed by the feeling that it would never be good enough, couldn't possibly measure up to the Tiffany bracelet.

"Kate?" She looked back up at him to find that the hopeful joy had slipped from his gaze, replaced by hesitance.

"Rick, can I talk to you for a second?" she asked. He nodded almost imperceptibly.

"Alexis, darling, let's take a hot chocolate break, shall we?" Martha suggested, an idea which Alexis agreed to immediately. The two redheads headed for the kitchen while Rick and Kate stepped into his office, the blue box still clutched in Kate's hand.

"Rick, why would you do this?" Kate asked. He appeared confused.

"Do you not like it?" he asked. He'd expected her to scold him, but not react quite so harshly.

"No, it's beautiful," she said. "I love it. Who wouldn't?" She sighed, shifting the box from one hand to the other, back and forth between her palms like a metronome, the bracelet clicking against the side lightly.

"I don't even want to think about how much this cost," she said.

"It doesn't matter," he protested.

"But it does!" she insisted. "You spent all this money on me, and while the bracelet is beautiful, it was completely unnecessary and no doubt way more expensive that what I got you."

"Kate-" he began.

"I just feel bad that you got me something so nice and your gift is just...it feels so insignificant." She was beginning to regret saying anything at all. She should've known that he would buy her something expensive. She should've just accepeted it for what it was, should've known it would be like this. Now, she'd said her piece but was left embarrased and avoiding his gaze.

"Hey." His voice was soft and when she looked up, it was to find that he'd taken several steps forward to stand right in front of her. He reached out, taking her hand.

"Kate, look at me," he said softly. She looked up at him.

"I'm sorry it upset you," he began. "I knew you would object to it on some level, but I didn't realize it would bother you this much. But it shouldn't. I got you the bracelet because I wanted to, and because I thought you would like it. Not because I wanted to get you something expensive. And whatever you got me, I will love it. The price doesn't matter one way or the other, okay?" He smiled slightly. "You're my best friend, Kate Beckett. That in itself is a gift." She rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help but smile.

"C'mere," he murmured as he pulled her to him, enveloping her in a hug. He smiled at her, that warm and genuine smile, before leading her out to the living room, and Kate suddenly found herself thinking that maybe her gift to him would be satisfactory after all...