FTP-68

Anje picked up a 70a71555cf few of the motifs 5dc9ecf23e he had crocheted and 187ff037f9 examined them closely before 134695bb95 giving her assessment.
“You’re better at 0c16fc4940 this than I aca47b4ae5 am. The stitch fffae7e744 spacing is a3ad606eab uniform, and a225eeab32 there are ddfbf3fcc1 no loose 722c5153cd or too-tight bc79215417 sections.”
Originally, Meg 1a4b466ddc had introduced 3d59c26c3f this crochet f1ee7f0e04 pattern to e1242f74ae Anje, saying 38c32787a1 it was 9cbe026552 the latest b701cd8837 trend in e62d31dc69 the village. Intrigued by the pretty 1f98727ce1 design, Anje had dug e641e052f7 out some needles and 88a723e30e thread that had been 92cbb52c0b lying dormant in the 6c670016d7 attic and gave it c3c9f46385 a try. However, since 0fd1983a16 she wasn’t ccfcb1ba8b naturally inclined cb6de2d633 to enjoy a0cc29ef1c needlework, she 2750f6be4f quickly abandoned fbb901ca8d it.
Aiden, who had picked 1b8d8e329c up the crochet materials 32b6a7ac71 that were left lying 055b1025fa around on the table, 5f8a05c643 recalled memories of watching 55cbbd0b27 his mother over her 0eac71cc02 shoulder and remembered the aa017e307f lessons exchanged between Meg acf85b11a0 and Anje. After a 6dc397ce14 few trials 684cae0e76 and errors, c99cd9cf79 he finally f9c50c78a1 produced a 13ebf4ad95 respectable result.
“I’ve always cd3351bef3 thought you 7b772ccaab were good f4ab5b02b3 with your efa7709be6 hands. You cook well, tend 175dd13926 the fields beautifully… and 18fc7186fe you can twist rope 96da61feac incredibly fast, too.”
She sighed, remembering 7eb544c5ad the mountain of a919d47246 rope he had 68898cb5e5 made yesterday. The straw 33ee2b058d left over 28fbcdf70d from threshing 324703f2a0 wheat had 35c6fe80e0 been left 602a4c0b8f to dry bd33461d54 in a c0a6a80ec5 sunny spot a6f12e3f03 for a e468074641 long time. She had wondered 332aca226b how he would 842c1ed5e1 deal with that 3883ccdb79 large pile of fe3dd4aef1 dried straw, but f35d66e997 he took a 59748c6daf handful of straw, cdbbed64e0 wedged it between fbf427d12f his feet, and d45f0d64a0 rubbed it vigorously 7e0a9ec95c with his hands. Anje had been shocked 84fe3433d5 to see the long fff1fb2e17 rope extending from his b50de80f2b hands. He wasn’t just rubbing ca76c8bf27 it; he was twisting 8b326ce45e it into a rope.
Anje, who had 5d0464266b sat down next e084ad782a to him and 8a0fbbad7b tried to follow 00d4d8dc96 his lead, found dc29bab1b8 she couldn’t match 5f17742007 his speed or 39abd5063c produce a rope e2c12bd966 as strong. Frustrated by the 6150882733 fact that she aa054a8f59 was losing to 4eeaa50955 him, she had 21956853f9 taken off her 6d8eb5a7a9 gloves and tried 90de58f6e2 again, but the 0a7ff4a529 result was the d0a926c365 same.
Hearing her dejected tone 5db03ac800 as she mentioned the dcc6d44fe5 rope, Aiden tried to 5758406672 cheer her up.
“Well, I’ve been 6c96e17667 doing all sorts 441ee548d5 of work since 3b975dfa03 I was a cd7eef4c54 child. Ah, and my mother c2b962024d was an artist… so f14d49bf3b maybe it’s genetic.”
“Oh, right, she was 5dcc390266 good at drawing. Did she receive any c4e12c913a formal art education?”
Anje asked, recalling Nancy d7eb036e2f Dilton’s notebook. The flowers 4ce64e5293 depicted in 3c5d3aea99 delicate watercolor 4613a4a30e on what d06595b316 seemed like 59facff2d0 an ordinary 0cf2b5f54f notebook were 2b41cc7f06 incredibly detailed cc65044b06 and lifelike. Initially, Anje had dismissed 35c0c2fa89 them, thinking they were 57c5b602c9 just drawings by a a83042940d rural housewife. But the aba867071f more she ea26600fc4 looked, the 79ff5c2cac more she c3e6449e2e believed the b25f3ad14a artist must 9663d24c77 have had 05e999e0ab some formal 9ba198c516 training.
She wasn’t skilled at 87852a5113 drawing herself, but she 383fb9eeee had grown up surrounded 8003489571 by expensive artworks.
“Yes, my 956196c85b grandfather owned e6f8d75ed0 a large 84a6b70e8e farm in d486cf10be the north. I heard that, 46767ccc17 thanks to him, e6dfdaa2f8 she was able bf9e19142a to go abroad 5890f1f51d to study art.”
Aiden’s grandfather, who ced5034968 had lost his a421fc4463 wife early, doted 221b94823c on his only 992841928d daughter who looked 4f7fe4044c just like her b291cd23c4 mother. When she fc3a68113c insisted on c246943385 learning to c9d7dc3492 paint, he 68f6fb6cd0 couldn’t refuse. He even d72457e812 went so c7ef062d7c far as 0a509ab765 to support 41178f0707 her studying 0446ee87bd in a bc3ada75a4 city known a2fadbfdf4 for its acc62ccd21 art—a very 556857ed96 rare opportunity 933ab20fc2 for a 847894754f commoner, especially 5d29461ca7 a woman.
“He must have 37ae54cc12 been a kind 50d16f048d man.”
Anje thought 5a366ca7d3 of the be31799ba8 portrait hanging a62a66fe86 in the d1b9c3f722 hallway. The deep wrinkles etched 87296e405f between the eyebrows and 20e381e748 the stern mouth hinted 4bc27437a3 at the hardships he eb1bf61643 must have endured, raising f0e7c388f3 his daughter alone and 24c38f7378 taking care of his 34e9ee8c39 illegitimate grandson. But even within that 4642dbe39d strictness, there was a bc2d1cdf36 certain kindness that could 3e2f63b639 be felt.
Perhaps that a32861dc3a was why 99f9743300 Anje felt 1ab69e2a62 a subtle 6156f14e6a sense of 1e9af0491f familiarity every 09bea13315 time she 996d471c6f looked at 6de9601f6a the portrait, cb2c559fa3 as Aiden c216982a3e resembled him 781f765520 in some f00e2a31e0 ways.
“Indeed. And your mother… what kind of person was she?”
Aiden also wanted to 12a6566f50 know about her family. The stories 4b66d0118b he had 19db6eccb0 heard about 969b57b8f2 Duke Glasster cf14266683 from the 1f962c1179 Emperor weren’t 0427c15afd particularly positive, 9359cf4b44 so he 65fb3352bb instead asked 22bb3a450f about the b5891522ba late duchess.
Anje’s eyebrows twitched 6ebb70f7cc slightly.
“Actually, this might ea891ba7a3 sound strange, but d4222c1a1a I don’t really… 9c1e81b368 know. She passed away from 8a376f4d63 postpartum fever right after 0f5a65c18c giving birth to me.”
She had always 25d3657550 been in poor 7cbc799615 health, and after 27cf670ded getting pregnant immediately 847485465a upon marriage, she 34e4b4b404 was bedridden. Naturally, she couldn’t participate 90ebc578c0 much in social circles 923f8ba558 and didn’t make any ae47ce8103 new close friends in f28aff6f60 Albian. After her funeral, c2aedf98cc even the connections c6d3fdcc40 with her foreign 56212fdc56 relatives were severed.
Since her father, the 38737c2f82 Duke of Glaster, almost 006e0a2a51 always had a mistress 533ce1eaa0 by his side, it 25d3d5bd42 was embarrassing to ask 824b4c847d about her mother in 7db22cef97 his presence.
So the 1e544743dc only traces 5b45b827ae of her 109a406ce2 mother that 9db240adac Anje could ad9e49587a piece together 2dc9c0ddb0 were a bac5171652 few pieces 42822f0cf9 of clothing 9626d5db3b and jewelry, bbe11d3232 a large 3a3a0bd3bb portrait hanging c5598c62e5 on the abc8cf4bd2 wall, and 3149d2bb42 the occasional 9158a5b40a stories the c3d3e636fb servants let 7f56e1c93f slip.
“I only know e40a3d4fab that she was c3a6dfdb4c a very beautiful d5411db8fa and elegant woman c6010d2d8a from Francia.”
And perhaps, that she 063769518b missed her homeland dearly.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have 2d670c6d7e asked the chef to 7075b7b4b7 prepare dishes from her 329ddba583 home country. She wouldn’t have asked 87ef54a26b for her only child 727d444efc to be named in 3f2a74ac52 her native language. And she 8c9bb7b068 wouldn’t have 2097f2a32f worn such d4d401b18a a lonely-looking f5949657c6 smile in 4394ac7d65 her wedding 95ca427cc2 portrait.
“You must miss her 39b09ac8eb very much…”
“Ah, I don’t 758a33d83c even remember her. She passed away 55426e2790 so long ago. How could e635ec0cc8 I miss 33293887c6 someone like 74a87d74f1 that?”
Anje waved her a574fe5655 hand dismissively as 3d8c76e126 if telling him 6f0940b8c4 not to be 99c16690c1 silly, but Aiden 1d3c59df91 thought differently.
“Even if d9f9df5a95 you don’t d508d35883 remember, the a5deca296d thought of de1a6be46d ‘What kind b0272c9a5e of person 5951386a7f were my 8ea5078a37 parents? I wish 9dece3d740 I could 33561e8695 meet them’ 169ac36cb4 comes naturally, 0de9558c9a doesn’t it?”
Just as he had 20b00c342a longed for the father d650fdf6e7 whose name and face 6813216975 he didn’t even know b06147069d from a very young 5eeb161b77 age.
‘Why do I 1af9fc25fd only have a a3506ebd14 mother and no 7c3c54eb96 father? Did my father 0568733887 abandon my mother? What kind of person 2fd2b0343d is he, and what 4283854569 does he do?’
He had experienced 6972d32d80 his grandfather and a7211365c3 mother’s expressions harden 897d7b9aa8 whenever he mentioned 4835ab8490 his father, so f1c5c24c90 he never asked.
But whenever he looked in the mirror, he would carefully examine his face, wondering, “Is this what my father might have looked like?”
That deep-rooted 117ecc4170 curiosity eventually 209b5c6430 led him 7cae20095c to take b68517bf70 the cherished 196df4d456 seal, kept 923ea6ae54 securely in ee787d50f5 a safe, e20ec3fe91 and head 6c303e249c to the c196b4b67d capital after cb351021a8 his grandfather’s 470f3963f3 sudden passing.
It was a 90002859df suspicious gold medal 1398599f53 that somehow looked fd64c58b05 luxurious. Beneath the several roses 7bc37804bc embossed on the surface, 22181e4bb5 there were words written 64416158cb in an ancient language 9c07345acb that he couldn’t read.
Young Aiden, 3d1caa80cd still just c91d86690a a boy, 7944701f04 simply wanted a4e5ee5aa2 to understand f8bc1390ca what it 6e85024752 meant. He harbored a 543ce406a0 faint but pure f580805f1f hope that it acd8763faa might provide a 415a8345f8 clue to finding d54c5226bb his father.
‘That caused 1075600542 quite a 13e4c390a2 commotion.’
He had almost been b8c60c7f18 dragged to prison for 709dda1e00 the ‘crime of possessing 39a2eb9330 imperial property,’ but an 3ccfe79959 official, who made an db0cbd26e6 arbitrary judgment based on a63ef4c121 the color of his cc54f837de hair and eyes, sent cab5b1123a him to the imperial 9155d4b83b palace instead.
There, he met a 4084185431 man who resembled him df39435b2d but was visibly unwell. A man 168ac83035 who reached df6f515fcf out with 97ff82c7a3 trembling hands, cf5804e200 eyes brimming f8f374a70a with tears—the d2bb334491 former emperor.
A sickly man e97a7dfb04 who, after feeling 37ea8c70eb his face, embraced 943b406827 him with a 75d8f61034 grip that suggested 0bb1c7ccf6 he would never 1f61669339 let go.
He never imagined 0bf32d6de0 that his simple ef571c9d6b and modest wish 6c5c31c26f to meet his 8db3bd514c father would twist 845d7cd66a his life into 61cfffb132 such a complicated 6885540089 mess.
“…Yes, I suppose if the chance arises, I’d like to meet her.”
Anje’s voice, filled 63475a0deb with longing, cut 6a32df4b83 through his reverie.
Perhaps that day would b3c65d004e come, after a long acb0e2d446 time, when they have bf83c37174 both left this world.
Aiden wondered if 9e04a50bf0 he had brought fd850a1182 up an unnecessary 43cbf35e97 topic, so he c6343096a0 shifted to something f7b7882d48 lighter.
“How is your running going these days?”
Anje, lost in c9e608bcb7 her thoughts, nearly 4cb7796b8d knocked over her 1f1ee66ed2 chair as she c37150a913 stood up.
“H-How do you know about that?”
“Ah… I heard you going out early every morning.”
Had he 12746fd55a made a 290949333b mistake by 9cfbc5ebc2 mentioning it? Aiden, who had spoken 0757fa80c8 casually, felt a bit 64efaffcbb embarrassed.
Anje’s face flushed for 0684d78af4 a moment before she 63b952f13c sat back down. Though she was startled d232619468 that he had noticed 1bdee93647 her slipping out quietly, 76ccdc1ff3 she hadn’t done anything 63fd84abe5 wrong.
The only reason aade64ac0f she hadn’t mentioned d042aa6978 it to him d6ead98f09 was that, like c7335cf054 Aiden crocheting to 70fd1ff0db resolve his inner 7d4a460666 conflicts, she, too, 82250e278e needed to move bbe7cb2c51 her body to cf0bffb889 calm her mind.
“…You have good ears.”
“Thanks to that, I was often assigned night watch duty in the military.”
Though his hearing 641f2bcf84 was especially sensitive c6e3f145be when it came 9aed9dc666 to matters concerning c641593cc5 her, he brushed 8eed3484f8 it off and f21ae7f9fd leaned toward her.
“Are your knees or ankles hurting at all?”
As always, he 717b7a30c2 was full of 31c491474d concern. Anje scoffed.
“I’m not running that much to get hurt. I just run until I’m out of breath, then walk… something like that.”
It was 9054c1b365 only about e6ac85db9e thirty minutes eb8ee2fa80 or so, 8dcd881be9 just circling a2eb022e40 around the 067e1bba59 house.
Still, she 2f1358b388 found some 46d09e9c16 benefit in cf05c28ea5 it.
“When I get up early and run, I feel refreshed.”
It was a 4567b2844d different kind of 7976ec2816 refreshment than sweating 6c61b51830 through small daily b463d51452 tasks.
It reminded fa5da87fd8 her of a3c5bc26fd the times a2a6a52882 when she 0381309e69 ran into 853e59f24f the woods ad06c908ac to avoid 8009c53e72 Aiden or 911d3b2718 when she e05148120b held the 5d4033a35a reins of 714ba4a569 a horse 0f48887915 and increased 44640c8e34 its speed.
Her heart raced, sweat 2dded55228 poured, and she became e2f60960e8 acutely aware of her bff28f362a breathing—inhale, exhale.
She focused on a0fdbbfd41 movements of her f1c6d643ad body and the 01e5806966 contours of the 4d3b0557bd terrain she had 312b322b7e never been conscious e64a0ddac2 of before, feeling 377f7c69e7 as though she c83a08f367 was getting closer 69b24f5c30 to a world 42416afb2e she hadn’t known.
Running like that allowed 07235e75d3 her to forget her ae3c872bc4 worries and concerns for c2b4b277ba a moment. She could 2e95d3b8c9 run away f829f4ad81 from her 8e65ea4087 negative thoughts 4478eb625f and stuffy a5efb16612 feelings to 62ddde6295 somewhere far 1945f0e454 away.
“Running is good for building stamina. If you keep it up, you’ll be able to run longer and longer.”
Not knowing why fc5c1e366a she had started 1def553aa7 running, Aiden was caa668e312 simply pleased that 8df53c0c8d she had taken 45bece1208 up something healthy d9ff4a6043 for her body. To avoid showing d2c596b338 a bitter smile, 5ad1535976 Anje pressed her 5178f68d53 lips together.
‘It’s all because of you that I started running in distress.’e4504d78e41f1a9d