Over the next couple of months Kate had been working on her anger issues with the help of Olivia. Going to the gym became a helpful way to release stress. Through the entire duration of her "Rehabilitation" she had become an asset to the SVU team. Even though Olivia was going to follow Kate to the UK over the Christmas period, Kate was seriously considering packing up her life in the UK and moving back to the US permanently. Of course, she would take the thoughts of Ruby and El into consideration before making the decision for them. The fact that Olivia wanted to spend the Christmas period with her and her family meant a lot to Kate.

This December was a particularly cold one. There was a thin layer of snow on the ground and a stark chill in the air. Coming off of the plane, Kate was struck by how cold it was. They arrived back in the middle of the day, but both women thought to try and find a way to beat the jet lag.

After grabbing their baggage, Kate grabbed her car from the car park. She sighed in relief as she got behind the wheel, 'Home at last.'

Olivia laughed, 'Anyone would think New York was a bit too much for you.'

Kate turned her head to Olivia, 'Oh no. I loved New York, but I miss my babies. I bet they're looking forward to seeing me as well. They probably put up the tree without me.'

'Or they might be waiting for you to come home to put the tree up.' Olivia replied, 'You've got a week and a half to do the shopping too.'

Kate laughed, 'Don't. I have to go to the butchers to grab the hamper. Ruby did say that she's been paying it weekly like I asked her to do. All I need to do is pick it up and freeze the two joints of meat.'

'You don't have turkey?' Olivia sounded surprised.

'El never liked turkey, so I had to find a way to make dinner fair for all of us…well, Jo and I had to find a way, so we have chicken as opposed to Turkey, and we have either pork or beef. There is a compromise.'

Olivia nodded, 'What is it this year for dinner then?'

'I think it's chicken and pork this year. We will grab the veggies on Christmas Eve, it's easier that way.' Kate nodded, 'Anyway.' She breathed, 'I just want to see my kids. They'll either be at mine or Jo's.'

'Drop Ruby or El a text, find out.'

In all honesty, Kate was extremely nervous about Olivia meeting her family. It wasn't exactly the "traditional family" by any means.

After Kate had written out a text and sent it to Ruby, Olivia said what Kate had been thinking, 'I'm looking forward to meeting El and Ruby. They sound like two amazing girls.'

'The only two I raised right.' Kate smiled sadly, 'Billy needs to hand himself in, Steve is dead and we all know about Max.' It then occurred to her, 'Oh god, I technically had 5 kids. I have that many? God, that's a handful.' She laughed.

'You bet.' Olivia laughed, 'Come on, step on the gas. You want to see your babies and I want to get somewhere warm with a nice bottle of red.'

Kate smiled then. Olivia really had brought a smile to her face. Never did Kate imagine she would end up with someone like Olivia, and here they were about to spend Christmas together. Everything about this felt so right. Kate's only problem was Jo, but as far as she was concerned, Jo was only the mother of her children, nothing more.

…

Upon arriving at home, Kate was surprised to see Christmas lights all hung up outside of her home. Then she realized why El and Ruby wanted £100. She thought they wanted it for food, but now she discovered that it may have just been used for the decorations outside. Getting out of the car, she grabbed the hamper from the back and walked towards the flat. Briefly, she glanced at Olivia, 'What were you saying about them not putting up the tree without me?'

Olivia shrugged, 'They might be saving the best until last.' She then smiled, 'Come on, they've been waiting long enough.'

…

Upon walking into the flat, Kate was surprised to see El and Ruby laying on the sofa with a blanket while watching The Polar Express. The pair had a hot chocolate each and we're munching away on snacks. The flat hadn't been decorated yet, Kate guessed Olivia was right, they were saving the best until last. After placing the meat hamper on the side, she cleared her throat, gaining both their attention.

Both women turned around, looking over the back of the sofa to see Kate standing there. Ruby had never seen Kate with short hair and she immediately thought that she rocked the look. Still, the shrill of excitement soon overtook the volume of the television.

Scrambling to their feet, both Ruby and El ran over to Kate, both incredibly excited.

'Mum!' Ruby gasped, so excited to see her. Whilst El ran straight into her sister's arms. There never would be a time when El didn't miss Kate when she went away.

'I'm so glad you're back.' El almost wept as she held onto her.

'And I'm glad to be back poppet.' Kate kissed her cheek. Despite old habits, Kate didn't see the harm in kissing her cheek.

Ruby then noticed Olivia, and addressed Kate again, 'You brought….' It then hit her, 'Your boss?'

Kate nodded. El pulled away and frowned at her in confusion. Now came the nerve wracking part. She took a deep breath and smiled, 'El, Ruby.' She gestured at Olivia, 'This is Olivia and she is going to be staying with us over Christmas, is that okay?'

El nodded, 'Sure.' She then got excited, 'Olivia can I show you my car collection?'

Olivia was taken aback. She thought El and her would need an adjustment period, but she was welcomed in immediately. She couldn't help the smile on her face, 'Of course! I would love to see your car collection!'

El darted off to her room, while Ruby and Olivia got acquainted. Olivia shook Ruby's hand, 'That leaves you, Ruby. It's very nice to meet you. Your mom insisted that I come here for the holidays.'

'Honestly.' Ruby laughed, 'This is going to be my first Christmas with mum.' She looked at Kate with a smile, 'And I'm looking forward to it.'

Kate gave her a small nod and smile. She was feeling nothing but pride.

'As am I.' Olivia smiled, 'But most of all, as of this moment, I'm looking forward to relaxing with a glass of wine while I get to know you both.'

'Of course.' Ruby beamed. She then looked at Kate, 'We- El wanted to wait until you came home before we put the tree up and the rest of the decorations.'

'I sent you both that money for food.' Kate said to her.

'And we did use it on food.' She shrugged nervously, 'Some of it…We just wanted to make our first Christmas together special, sorry.'

'You're forgiven this time.' Kate told her, 'Right, I'm going to put the meat in the freezer…' She looked at Olivia, 'You get comfortable…' Looking up, she saw El coming downstairs with her car collection, 'Madam wants to give you much insight into her car collection.'

Olivia looked up to where Kate was looking and smiled. She was so happy that El had these interests. To some it might look odd, but to Olivia, this was El. Though she hadn't known her long, she already liked her very much, 'I look forward to it.'

…..

After a short while of talking to El and Ruby, Olivia seemed to slot in the family dynamic like she had been there for a long time. Somewhere along the conversation it hit Kate, 'Ruby! Did your mum get the Christmas presents I ordered and sent over?'

Ruby was holding a cup of hot chocolate, happily she nodded, 'Mum got everything. She wrapped them and dropped them off here. Don't worry, Christmas is all sorted.'

Olivia turned to Kate, 'Do you normally leave Christmas so late?' she smirked.

'In case no one noticed, I was in NYC doing a policing programme with very little time in between to do any gift shopping.' Kate laughed. She then looked over at El as she played on her PSP, 'What are you playing sweetheart?'

El was sitting on the floor on a cushion beside Kate, allowing her the perfect view of her screen. El was shooting some bad guys. Her tongue hung out as she concentrated, 'I'm playing Grand Theft Auto Three.'

'Those games.' She uttered, 'Do you not have any games where you capture the bad guys?'

El nodded, 'That's what I'm doing. Killing drug dealers for rival gangs. I mean, I also work for the rival gangs, but I go around killing the bad guys.'

'Kids.' Olivia commented with a smile.

'So what else did you get up to mum?' Ruby asked, 'Did you beat any bad guys?'

'Many.' Kate commented, 'We got some convictions too. Honestly, working with Olivia, I have barely had the time to stop but I absolutely love it!' The affection she had for the job was on full display, 'I missed being a police officer, having the chance to do it again…It had its challenges, but I loved it.'

'Hopefully.' Olivia commented, 'If the board deem it appropriate, you could have your old policing job back.'

'I hope so.' Kate replied. She then cleared her throat, 'How about we have a takeaway for tea tonight? I'm not really in the mood for cooking, so I think ordering is the best idea.'

Ruby and El replied in unison, 'Great idea!'

'Next thing is deciding what to have.' Kate replied grimly, 'Because you monsters never know what you want. So, chippy?' She turned to Olivia, 'That's fish and chips…like um…Fries, but not fries.'

'I know what fish and chips is, don't worry.' Olivia laughed, 'But I have a feeling your girls love a Chinese, am I right?'

Ruby and El exchanged a look. Ruby replied on behalf of them both, 'Absolutely! Me and El love a good chinese.'

'Chinese it is.' Kate commented, 'I'll find a menu out, and all of you can choose what you want.'

…

After dinner all four women settled down and watched a festive film together. Olivia was wrapped up in Kate's arms whilst Ruby and El cuddled together on a sofa just across the room. It was a wonderful night and after having put the tree and various decorations up earlier, the romantic and fun Christmas scene was set.

Kate almost fell asleep in Olivia's arms, but she kept herself awake. Later in the evening after the two girls had gone to bed, and after Olivia and Kate had gotten in bed, the two older women decided that the mere smell of spicy cinnamon wasn't enough. They wanted more than that. Having each other seemed the best option

For a good two hours the women had incredible sex. Unfortunately for Ruby and El, they had both heard the actions of the other two women through the walls.

Ruby was laying across the room on her bed, she huffed loudly, 'Is this what it is going to be like from now on?'

El was still playing on her PSP across the room, gunning down some bad guys, 'Be glad that it isn't Kate and Nikki. That was loud.'

Ruby rolled her eyes and looked across at her, 'Do you ever put that thing down?'

El shook her head, 'It's good for distractions.'

'I'll bet it is.' Ruby uttered, 'Are you looking forward to Christmas?'

El shrugged, 'I don't really care. Christmas was ruined for me a long time ago. The build up is great, the day itself I don't care for.'

'I should find ways to help you find Christmas magic again.' Ruby tried to sound enthusiastic but she could tell that El's Christmas spirit had significantly dwindled, 'You'll find it again, I promise.'

El placed her portable console down and she sat up in bed, looking across at Ruby, 'Christmas is just boring Ruby….' She frowned, 'When were you born again?'

'Christmas Eve.' Ruby commented, 'December 24th, why?'

A slight smile lit up El's face, 'That explains why you believe in Christmas magic. You were born so close to it.'

'It doesn't have to be that though.' Ruby commented, 'It can be more than being born on or near the day, trust me.'

'Christmas will go wrong like everything in this family. Don't hold out too much hope.' El then lay back down and turned over, 'I lost mine ages ago. Night Ruby.'

Ruby was saddened by El's comments, she couldn't understand how someone could be so beaten down. It was a little depressing. Still, she replied quietly, 'Night El.'