Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

This was done as an early Christmas gift for Ryunn Kazan.

"I don't like it."

"Come on, Rum. They're cute."

Mr. Gold continued to frown as he watched Draco run around the snowy park. Normally, he didn't mind this, but today Draco was running with a friend. A beautiful Dalmatian had stolen Draco's chew toy forcing the larger dog to chase after her. So far, the Dalmatian had been able to outwit Draco causing him to land in a pile of snow, but he refused to give up.

"You know what happened in the story. If Draco fathers fifteen puppies, they're not staying with us."

Belle shook her head and took another sip of her hot chocolate. "They're just having fun. I wonder who owns her."

Across the park, a man duck to avoid a well-aimed snowball. It missed his face, but his top hat was not so lucky. The dark hat was hit by the snow and fell off his head. This was followed by another snowball that hit its mark. Jefferson laughed at this as he wiped the cold snow off of his face and retrieved his hat. A few feet away, a little girl laughed as well.

"I finally got you, papa!"

"That you did Grace." Jefferson put his hat back on and the saw that Grace shivering. "Come on. Time to go in and warm you up."

Grace raced over and took her father's hand only to stop once they started leaving the park. "Papa. What about Penny?"

Jefferson mentally cursed himself for nearly forgetting Penny. The Dalmatian had been his one tie to Grace during the curse. Left secretly by Jefferson near her house around her birthday, Penny had been quickly adopted by Grace and for years had been the only gift he was able to give her. When the curse broke, Grace had happily moved back with her papa with Penny in tow.

"How could I forget?" He turned around, but Penny was nowhere in sight. "Penny! Penny! Here, girl."

The hatter even whistled, but the dog still didn't come. Grace looked up at her father fearfully.

"What if she's hurt in the snow, papa?"

"I'm sure she's fine, Grace. She's probably playing and can't hear us. Let's go find her."

After walking around the park for a bit, Jefferson spotted Penny playing with a familiar gold-colored dog. He then noticed the two figures sitting on the bench and bent down to whisper in Grace's ear.

On the bench, Mr. Gold had just taken a sip of his own hot chocolate when he felt something cold hit the back of his head. He whirled around, ready to snap at whoever had thrown the snowball, only to spot Jefferson and Grace laughing. Belle soon joined them when Grace pointed at her father who did his best to look innocent.

"Hello, Rumpel. Fancy meeting you here."

Belle tried to stifle her laughter but failed miserably. Jefferson and Rumpel were both grown men, but when they were together, they acted like small children.

"Hatter," Gold growled, getting to his feet.

Jefferson quickly realized his mistake and took off running. Gold raised his hand and made the snow around them rise and chase Jefferson. In his haste, the hatter ran into the two playing dogs and tripped. Jefferson and both of the dogs were covered by a heap of snow. After a moment of struggling, all three of them dislodged their heads from the snow, and Penny licked Jefferson's face.

"Well, you did find Penny, papa," Grace said between giggles.

Satisfied with his victory, Gold sat down again and watched Penny get out of the snow and run to Grace. Draco quickly followed suit and ran to her as well. The young girl's laughter soon echoed throughout the park, and Jefferson sat down beside the Golds smiling.

"You seem cheery for once," Rumpel said to Jefferson with a knowing smile.

"I finally get to spend Christmas with my daughter. We set up a tree, hung the lights, and I'm making dinner. Grace is so excited."

Both Golds knew that Grace wasn't the only one that was excited about Christmas. The gleam in Jefferson's eyes told them that he was really into the Christmas spirit.

"Papa, can Uncle Rumpel and Aunt Belle come over for Christmas?"

The two men were at a loss for words, but Belle smiled at Grace. "Of course we'll come."

Mr. Gold looked at his wife. "What?"

"You were complaining yesterday about how Snow and Charming's party is all everyone's talking about and that you wanted to get away from it all. Jefferson's house is in the middle of nowhere. No offense."

"None taken. I like my privacy, and it beats the pink doll house you live in."

"It's salmon," Gold snapped, but Belle did have a point. A quiet Christmas in the woods would be nice. "Fine. We'll come. Just tell us what time."

"Dinner was great, papa," Grace sad when her father walked out of the kitchen.

Jefferson had gone all out for Christmas. A huge tree sat in his den, and stockings hung on the mantle above the fireplace. Mr. Gold had snapped his fingers and started a fire upon his arrival, warming the entire room. Penny and Draco were currently fast asleep together in front of the fire having eaten their fill at dinner.

"You have your aunt to thank. The glazed ham was her idea. I'm starting to see why Rumpel's gotten fat."

The imp's head shot up at this. "Fat?!"

Belle giggled at patted his stomach. "You have put on a little weight, Rum. Maybe you should cut down on the Christmas cookies."

"Do you hear that, Grace? They're insulting me after I got you all presents."

Grace giggled. "It's alright, Uncle Rumpel. I don't care if you're fat. Now, what did you get me?"

Gold couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm and pointed with his cane to a little silver box under the tree. "That one's yours."

The little girl practically ran to the tree and tore open the box. Inside was a gold charm bracelet. A top hat, teacup, and a grinning cat head were just some of the charms that hung from it. While Grace awed at the gift, Gold leaned over and whispered to Jefferson.

"There's a protection and locator charm on it. As long as she has it on, she'll be safe and able to find you." Gold reached into his jacket and pulled out and envelope. "Here's your gift."

Jefferson smiled at him and shook the envelope. "Thank you. This had better not be money."

"Just open it."

The hatter did just that, and pulled out a single sheet of paper. It was old and on it was a drawing. It was a woman sleeping with her hands resting protectively on her stomach. Beside her was a man, Jefferson, fast asleep as well with his head on her shoulder and one hand over hers. A small smile had formed on both their lips, and the woman looked just like Grace.

"Papa, why are you crying? What's wrong?"

Jefferson hadn't realized that he was crying until Grace spoke. He sniffed and dried his eyes with his sleeve. "Nothing's wrong, sweetie. Why don't you open the rest of your gifts."

Grace didn't need to be told twice and went back to crouch beneath the tree.

"How?" Jefferson asked, turning back to Gold.

"I drew that the night the night you two came to celebrate Alice being pregnant with Grace. I was the last one awake and decided to sketch you both before bed. I wanted to give it to you sooner, but I never found the right moment."

Jefferson looked at the picture again before pulling Gold into a hug. The pawnbroker let him and patted his back. Jefferson pulled away and quickly went to help Grace unwrap her gifts.

"That was sweet of you," Belle said nudging her husband.

"I do know how to be nice, you know," he replied smiling.

She touched the gold rose pendant that he'd given her this morning and smiled back at him. She then wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer. "Oh, I know."

TBC

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!