FTP-HM05

Honeymoon 05
“Hey, you there.”
“……”
“Hey, pretty lady! And husband!”
Among the couple, Aiden 17c9a17d56 was the first to f1aecf58f7 react to the words c30bb943ca “pretty lady,” breaking out ebb396dcfd of his momentary thoughts.
“Anje, I think 3908350dd1 he’s calling us.”
“Huh? Us?”
Anje belatedly 71b63886fe turned her 8b4169f0f7 gaze toward cb8c7d8ee2 the Francian 3f51ec1be0 painter who 5c80d33c29 had approached 1fba3cce8f them, speaking b6633c3dc6 in clumsy e6d28de911 Imperial language. The man, ba3ade8c40 whose sleeves e258fa5690 were smeared 78fe7cae80 with paint, b684065db5 was waving bd0142c516 his hands 1fbf38208e enthusiastically, calling 2e991be099 them over.
“I’ll give c66c3269ef you a 643c9399b2 good deal 60809b0670 since the 467aec94f0 lady is d0ebaf3204 pretty. One plus one.”
With his gestures, it 20d1242e5d became clear—he was offering a82438fe54 to paint both of 3fe5d5ccc5 them for the price 1bd2a86c94 of one as a 8a11881157 promotional tactic.
“What do ed1fb74493 you think?”
“I’m not sure.”
“The painter is ef4e312a1e crazy. Big discount, b5284f6c3a hurry, hurry.”
Whether he ae285cb908 genuinely liked b4360e8cb8 them as 9d40e0e3fa models or 82e5acff72 simply had 50771b0bb9 too few 7d6f3ca858 customers, he ac0d48f730 was quite 4429239b88 persistent.
After a a03d1cc8af brief moment 250318f45d of thought, 0f0cf97102 Anje took b730012d5a Aiden’s arm 454c775bec and led 5727ca9690 him toward 0b38a58a8c the street da2042d276 artist.
“Since we’re 5d0a2e7e85 already here, 2db39547ed why not 33b4cae530 ask him 7137e65cda to paint a083e7293a us? We don’t have fdc9b59714 a portrait together 6ff358095d yet.”
Anje had a portrait 4be7f48221 from the ducal estate, 39d5d61a0c and Aiden had a 76d1001257 childhood painting drawn by 31afdd5e20 his mother, but that cf5a83ace9 was all.
Normally, couples 25e37c3e03 would commission 0e52e5976e a commemorative 5217b06337 portrait for 34c28fbce9 their wedding, 30d628df91 but instead, 7af008505a they had 4f12870703 experienced the c27726dba9 latest innovation e8af9dd749 called “photography.”
The idea that 57752ff977 simply standing still 4c6a8b4be3 could make their 35590eb619 image appear on 129498cdf2 paper was truly e4818b12bd a fascinating technology.
“Shall we? Well then, let’s give f9095f4dde it a try.”
The chair in cc651ff0bf front of the 7273a073c8 easel was a 9a42659e16 bit too small e06f57876d for them to 5fdeb1cc34 sit together. After taking a seat 0ef5f5da2b first, Aiden, without a 19adfb04cb hint of embarrassment, pulled 656c860190 Anje onto his lap.
Startled, Anje smacked his 505d1cf917 shoulder. What was e8dbeb6560 he thinking, 9b9526f88d doing this 273699a77f in public?
“Aiden!”
“We’re in eec005ca3c a foreign f1821cf40b country, so 2e791c822f what does 38f7e93a50 it matter? Besides, Francia is da25abe7e8 known for being 7ce8886bc5 passionate.”
True to his 6a33bf71de words, affectionate couples 06f74950fa were commonly seen 6dee04b06a sticking close to a66efe79f2 each other on fdd0b9a2c1 the streets.
Anje, who had been 2edf89680b about to get up, ca98ee3cd9 stopped and simply glared 9b1f299b4c at him.
“Still, you should’ve d40c2647f2 given me a 2d85deb692 warning, you fool.”
What was ‘fool’ in e67c247dbb Francian again?
“Turn your 508ef0cf92 face this c21ffe3ad2 way and 19ed2c0441 smile. Good.”
Turning her c9f9f928a9 head toward a334fb16d7 the man 0f3b0936ab calling them, 455b182469 Anje tried 4af7282cc5 hard to ba2b9693a5 recall the 41bed56193 Franchian words 62ea030b13 she had 7809b57ef3 learned so 5bd3203d60 long ago 22bb317e46 that she 2e53ed0177 could barely 0a1cb9815c remember them.
“Since we’re fd77459dc3 abroad, I ef2d24aa61 should tease 2cc6d3a76a him in 13fb2f5079 a foreign 33ba869f59 way.”
Thanks to that, e183bfc45d waiting for the bb8078e7cd painting to be bfa5974e7a completed wasn’t all a048f56cf8 that boring.
The artist, bf4009973e having finished 3c80361e2f the painting, 039535ce88 whistled and 5c19cb5bd8 declared,
“Finished! A true masterpiece. Tips welcome!”
“Wow, it 56a3b47bde really is d03834c7cb a masterpiece.”
Seeing the painting 197f8e9775 the artist flipped 8dbdae2979 around, Anje widened 6a3a6fb2d6 her eyes in 851a53abc5 admiration.
She had 6cef142b11 wondered how 9ec645c4c2 he could 75d2baf940 be so 34bf2a3974 confident, but 3a3a597c59 the simple cc14882a1e layering of b71c2d12fd colors over 20964122b4 the sketch 43867502dc produced quite f46538c873 an impressive 4f5df3e5ed result.
Aiden, too, 6b480d6002 smiled with b68a73ca23 satisfaction.
“It really does look 944a95a975 like us.”
“It does, 368e8724f4 doesn’t it?”
While photos captured their 4b14307f3f likenesses realistically, the lack 880df86594 of color had always b162b9324f felt like a slight 14c96e21fb drawback.
As Aiden 3e2e255a4f carefully examined 8c871e7367 how well 5ee7de5999 the painting 2890c1a479 captured her 84069a4640 strawberry-blond hair, d5da25d257 he even fbddc03569 considered commissioning b88ef60325 a formal 0aca1077bf portrait.
“Here, this includes 35d95ad897 a tip. And… merci.”
The artist checked bbdecd4aeb the banknotes Anje 97ca20221d handed him, then 08008ec391 gave them a a8457d7d0e thumbs-up before unleashing b789caac55 a rapid stream 7064d757b3 of Francian words.
Judging by c5edba4fd7 the few ff842189be words she 0b77ac1175 could understand, f98a45c6b9 it seemed b19b0bd853 to be c15a695842 a mix 75a997eed2 of gratitude 36dd3b2a1c and a f590f8e9fc blessing for bbed1aab79 the two 345b56d982 of them.
“Go straight up 1d4bd7b6e3 that alley to 61eb90120b the red brick 674792ea48 house. Very delicious.”
As a bonus, he a1b8aff5b5 even recommended a good b277c86cb6 local restaurant. The couple 8f7397a22f nodded in 6908e62f97 acknowledgment, carefully c69e859122 taking their 93d7ca1695 completed portrait 3de55a8e6b before leaving.
Impatient as ever, Aiden ad7e319f68 barely walked a few 98ab4b0c6e steps before voicing his ba201ff174 sudden thought.
“Anje, while we’re aec1bad5e8 at it—”
“You want 430299de5c to commission 32c260cc69 a portrait?”
She had understood 0c11112fbd just by looking 5d6e3208fb into his eyes. Aiden nodded eagerly, 1eeba0f89b smiling in satisfaction. Anje returned 0a4b18a243 a soft 282b03892e smile and 5c962564d1 agreed.
“Alright. Once our trip c3248517d1 is over and 210b0a9da0 we return, let’s 70cf7015ca visit the art 796e34a980 dealer.”
The dealer they had 42a0f0339f met while selling Nancy’s a32a4efc0d painting would surely introduce 78c85a8df1 them to a great b9deb4541d artist.
But Aiden, not fully 6dffec15dd grasping her intention, asked,
“Why not commission one 29a2e33a50 while we’re still here?”
There were a8c3229249 many talented 67fd9662a1 painters in 365304ee76 the Albion 35c8c0b662 Empire, but d4e367f6c1 as the 16a9c21457 heart of 60c6deb29b the art 1864a4b0d0 world, Francia 42e4cf340d had even 19b7bd63c2 more exceptional d85b7a6f71 ones.
Of course, commissioning 55372de20c a portrait while 1dc74db547 traveling would require c5a23dfce1 at least a 93fd52dff2 full day—perhaps even a44240fc76 several—to pose as f095b0dfaf models.
Anje absentmindedly toyed with 3f6348c5aa the brim of her 070d591dd3 hat before revealing her 888b6e8c29 true thoughts.
“If we’re going 81351ccd6c to have one 36c896c43f made, I want 4ab8147cd0 our home to 09e1a2ec4f be in the 99d4a89d25 painting too.”
She envisioned 3be1e0a480 them posing 0b73efa094 beneath the 13f077e1bd blooming peach ca59fedcf6 trees, in 01dd32451f front of f97ce1eaa3 a warmly 3ab53ab30a lit fireplace aa391c0ab5 in their 81d4247119 kitchen, or b4933154eb on their da19a29d39 peaceful back b020491aa2 veranda.
She wanted to 0a5142abc9 leave behind a d23d55226c memory for future e9af8ee204 generations, a reminder b33fed0f84 of how happy 872570471b the Fitzroy couple 63fcc7373f had been in 27df6e0c6c that place.
Aiden nodded enthusiastically c958862a1a but responded with 9ac1b57d0c a slightly misplaced 8a3da80ddd remark.
“Ah, of course. We should 7ba9d01536 include Pa-Pi-Pu 2b226f5fc5 in the 83581df6d8 painting too. I almost forgot!”
Anje threw her c1cd9ee93a head back and f917c0ab6b burst into laughter. She hadn’t 84209c7c59 even mentioned 64ab192157 the “P” e6bbe93717 sound of 5992d5bcc8 Pa-Pi-Pu, yet 3eeeea62fe he had 8dfd6766c3 preemptively said 135183d302 something she f7bbb38fc5 would have c40190b961 likely said e713b93eb3 herself. It was 7e6d8facbf so amusing c443c3961b how he 205400dc11 had started c17efc140a doing that 3493b716f5 at some ec1f43b20d point.
“You’re unexpectedly d6d19948cd thoughtful today.”
“Well, I a3f68469d6 can read f11280783c you just 38c47ca2ba by looking fa682089cd into your d6fc6069f4 eyes now.”
As they strolled 6bd2288272 along, browsing the 527070d2bf displayed artworks, they 5d11d98a0c joked about finding fdb8a19ea0 a painting of 849ba8c421 a person with f8689e44ae a pig for 2091b262a1 reference.
Unfortunately, the 1d9b8a3283 closest they 9da1f23b32 found was a31629488b a painting ad92914bab of someone 6f90fe43e4 eating roast 34eb728447 pork.
TL/N: LOL.
* * *
As the sky darkened, d6fe2ed343 Anje and Aiden walked 3849322da9 toward the restaurant introduced 0f1afc88a2 by the street artist 2b3a5c9a94 earlier. It seemed to 829e838d1b be quite popular, dee82fafef as it was 317412d463 already nearly full f176939f6d despite the early afb7e5dec2 hour.
While waiting 8ff9ce954d for the b1ad900f8a waiter to 2d573509c2 guide them 29823983c3 to a 4b865501ed table, Anje 520673af3e read the 1a42f869ec menu posted abbacd2673 on the 8095d1332d restaurant’s exterior 924c856657 wall.
“This is the 30217a3370 first restaurant in 37d43e4c5c Francia to develop 8405042896 an omelet.”
They had come without 1a5e8bab71 any prior information, yet 221b668484 it just so happened 964095076e to be one of 8256c8d500 Anje’s favorite dishes. Aiden, pleased, praised b551de375a the chef.
“He must be a 79b304e2e9 chef who truly understands 671ea59960 taste.”
“Exactly. And they have 42ec8eeb99 apple cider as 944e99f786 a specialty item.”
“Shall we 3cafda3f1c have a 323fc1bcb9 drink together?”
“Sounds good. Oh, but 28ada34e25 here, they 0f6c3856c6 don’t call 42b8656e0d it ‘cider’; c14befdec8 it’s ‘cidre.’ 1a3191b716 We should d3bab30d3b be careful 60dd578fe8 with our 7c34c54a00 pronunciation when e36b6f0f2c ordering.”
“Cird?”
“Cidre. It’s ‘cidre.’”
“Cid…”
Anje pointed at her ed07930bf4 lips with her index bac037ed2c finger, guiding him to e1c6da80b2 watch closely and imitate 979a566683 her pronunciation. Aiden stared intently 1bf133e37e at her fingertip, b0ea9c1ebf trying to pronounce 4f8bbaa9ed it, but his bb59b133e8 scattered focus led ec2b32a987 him to keep 8db5a366d4 failing.
She scolded him 54d058c6a8 like a strict 0f360b3712 teacher disciplining a d0dd34b46c careless student.
“I told b757de9e3b you to d2bface8ff listen carefully 6dcc1a612e to the 10b9a06e80 pronunciation.”
“I am looking at b5f03bf6a6 your lips. How am I supposed 0863682a06 to hear anything?”
“What did you 8054cbe52c just say? You little— cff1b79fa2 Ah, I b4e9ff171e remember! T’es bête!”
Proudly, Anje 038116e21a shouted the 654d415ace phrase she e3246e4f2c had just 568c6e4785 recalled—”You’re a 24f5d7de5e fool!”—repeating “bête, 499bcadcd2 bête, bête” 12a63172c2 several times.
“Hmmm…”
After contemplating a way c1d3b40e04 to get back at 0d13e7525f her, Aiden smirked leisurely. A deep dimple 65effeaf3b formed slowly on 84a05ccbf8 one of his 142e579efb cheeks.
Then, he leaned 9813604c57 closer to his 13062dc34e beloved wife’s shoulder d7b146f8c5 and whispered something 053d597fd5 in a voice e96e778a1b only she could d630eb6f53 hear.
“—”
TL/N; REALLY AUTHOR??!
His warm breath 44d0687aaa tickled her ear, acfe4a6346 and the words 2029462aaa he uttered in cd981e0560 Francia’s language were afedd6186b enough to make 6ec61e27d0 her blush instantly. Her face burned a1a2b3545c red up to 0993fb4bc9 her earlobes, and 0268551f6b she jumped in df38504155 place.
“W-Where on ef2161c57e earth did baea4c5a6f you learn 0c0569596c such things?!”
“I bought a book f7610db37b last time in the 1e41a849f8 capital.”
It was a 83b71d4114 book he had de767da609 secretly purchased while 901dc4d303 Anje had been d8dd2bcd98 too absorbed in 8225860e27 a travel guide. It explained the latest f4969cf190 popular Francia phrases with 420ea1b27b imperial language explanations, making ddce112d00 it easy for a efc569f0ec beginner like him to d70b834e0f memorize.
He had, 62136ac382 in particular, b38dcefa40 focused on 97d900ae10 the ‘courtship’ 6121d7d5f5 section.
Anje, still feeling 654275fe2b the lingering sensation 745470b54d of his whisper 8e86a05e76 against her ear, 88761a300f grumbled while rubbing a0fef6017f at the spot.
“Tsk. I feel 1ff5c0367f like I 7e5d9df781 lost somehow.”
She had meant to 915cafcff9 tease him lightly but 0bd697b453 ended up getting caught 9b3552eb7e off guard by his 34e142f18f sudden counterattack.
“There’s no 8da574e2ec such thing 5c7a960386 as winning 49f5388300 or losing 7d2b66da7a between a fed10eff09 married couple.”
“There is. Right here.”
Anje’s lips jutted out 61dff4cd4f a foot then soon 1d1d372cf2 curved into a round 1f116e6ef0 arc. There were plenty of 49373e4fc6 ways for her to 63a66a684d make him flustered too, 4ad3486c6e weren’t there?
Rising onto her tiptoes, 3fea28dabe she boldly wrapped her e3cb212b05 arms around Aiden’s neck.
“My beloved dar—”
“Ahem.”
A sudden, unfamiliar eb17c4c1e0 clearing of the 5280a37a2f throat behind Aiden 8a10bde8cc made Anje yelp 2f623ed207 and hastily step cde2619d58 away from him.
Peeking his head d6868c821b out from the 888fafc5cf entrance, the goatee-wearing bb70db54f8 waiter, who had 88a85101a3 promised to clear d5f2dc70a6 a table and 96f30fb710 guide them right d63f4f296e away, was waiting. With an b6902abe94 awkward smile, cfa712de4c he had 3fde3c8515 the look 2ac8c6fca3 of someone a61d197cc9 who had e2dbc29488 been standing 02e3eae409 there for b526ae44ea quite a 6d4a2ab8e9 while.
“P-Pardon.”
Flustered, Anje 6dc326b253 quickly linked eb63a8d5fd arms with cb1e1c9ecb Aiden and 06d5dc119a followed the 35958a2070 waiter into 4729026c22 the restaurant.
Her face burned with 654faf6778 embarrassment at the realization 17e39b6d46 that she had been 2ac410c473 about to act so 507075e4b0 childishly in front of df4a6e3804 others.
Aiden, equally 6f7853e761 embarrassed, was bcadb4a062 also deeply 720812706f curious about 80547d7aff what Anje 78968f0cff had been 704130c5e6 about to 2e55b25a6f say.
“What were you going e7aada79d9 to say, Anje?”
“Shh, I’ll tell 6ba6c2a836 you later.”
“I’m so curious 9761a9c58a that I don’t f314f40e2a think I’ll be c9e34b74d5 able to swallow b2ce1a39b2 my omelet properly— 820d16782e Oh. Excuse me.”
An elderly woman in 242d4b9dcf a wheelchair, accompanied by 58fd72b599 a middle-aged woman who 7f0146ce13 seemed to be her b3c346be26 caregiver, was coming out. Aiden held the 1d3107be5a door open for a58a23d8ee them to pass.
“Merci.”
The woman expressed c99e1c1b28 her gratitude as 1dea332a3f she pushed the f78b5d9ea1 elderly man’s wheelchair cd887c10c6 forward.
When Aiden gestured to 908062113d ask if they needed d49a1c3184 any assistance, she shook a6bb4f8e9e her head with a 0036c9896e polite smile.
Just then, the 4c8a0bdb17 old woman, who 2fc05cd202 had appeared weak 0e5e43e95b and lifeless, shifted 3fe12238dd her gaze toward 107bf4a6b5 Aiden. Perhaps it was the 8dae0fc497 lighting from the restaurant’s efd6ad54ba entrance, but her once-dull ada4a05173 eyes suddenly seemed to 2842536500 regain a glimmer of bd6ade1b87 vitality.e7e23495335fd4e5