The Beloved One!

Chapter 09

"Ash honey, this is your father." Ellen placed her hands on her seven year old daughter's shoulders as she stood behind her.

'Damn The Beloved One!! Why is he even more sparkly and handsome than before?' Ashnah thought. 'But him coming to get us now has occurred more quickly than I concluded. From the small hints that had been sprinkled in the otome game, they indicated that he had caught mommy and the original Ashnah when they were about to leave the kingdom.'

"Uh.... um." Anzor did not know exactly how to begin a conversation with his daughter. The silver head Archduke always had desired to have a proper chat with her, especially after that small encounter they had. He gazed into her amethyst eyes that were just like her mother's. An idea was delivered to him. Then he reached into his pocket. Crouching down to reach the seven year old's height somewhat, he pulled out the herb that Ashnah had given him before. It was made into a bookmark. "Do you remember when you gave me this?"

The child nodded her head, answering. "I gave you that during the Beast Festival, because you had a scrape on the back of your hand."

"Yes." He agreed, speaking to her very cordially. "That was the first time you have ever spoken to or smiled at me. When you did, an intense warm tingling feeling spread from my heart to throughout my entire body. I was very, very happy still am now because of .... you. But then .... when I thought about how much those precious actions of yours meant to me, I thought about all the first moments I missed with you. I became very, very saddened by that."

'... Anzor.' Ellen thought. She could have really see the love in his eyes for Ashnah.

Anzor wryly smiled. "Like how I missed when you were born. When you first opened your eyes. When you first smiled. When you grew your first pair of teeth. When you learned how to sit up. To crawl. To say your first word. To walk. To run and to ......many, many more. Ash, my name is Anzor Morley. And like your mommy said, I am your father. But you do not have to call me father because of all those moments, those years I missed with you. The reason I was not there for you or mommy was because..." He pondered how he should the describe the reasons as to why without revealing too much for a child of his daughter's age to comprehend.

She decided to lend a helping hand. This was for her daughter. It was not for him. "....... Was because of several situations involving his family, Ash. It was not safe for us to be around him. That's why your father and I made a decision that when you were still inside of me, that I will move to Misty Village and have you here until otherwise. Also because of the dangers, this is why I barely spoke to you about him. Forgive mommy for not telling you."

"It's okay, mommy. I understand. You just wanted us to be safe."

"Ashnah, will you please grant me the permission from this day forward to make up for the time I have lost with you and be the best father as I can possibly be for you?"

Her amethyst eyes shifted from her father to her mother.

Ellen consented with a nod of her head.

This was for she had been waiting for. Ashnah took a step closer to Anzor then happily smiled, holding out her pinky finger. "Then it's it promise isn't it?! You have to make it up to mommy as well... daddy!"

••••

Tazanna's eyes grew as large as saucers in shock. "El-Ellen-san-" She started then continued, "-Ellen-san has a daughter with Cousin Anzor?" Her grip grew tighter on the tea cup handle as she asked to make sure if what she had just heard was true.

"Yes, Your Grace." Peter answered with closed eyes.

"How....how old is she?" The Archduchess of Morley questioned.

He answered with no emotions whatsoever in his eyes or voice. "She was born January 1st so she is currently seven years of age."

'Two months ..... Two months.' She repeated in her mind. 'She's two months older than Lila. Ellen-san was pregnant around the time Cousin Anzor and I...' Tazanna stood up from the table where Peter had served her tea, walking towards the window. "Peter, please tell me. How long has Cousin Anzor known about Ellen-san being alive with his child?"

"He has known for six years."

'Six years. Could Cousin Anzor's obligation to I, Lila and the Morley Family be what has kept him away from Ellen-san and their daughter? He suffered all this time .... because of us?' Tazanna Morley went deep into her thoughts. 'But why did not Ellen-san come back to Cousin Anzor then, especially when she was pregnant with his child? He loves her so very much. He dissolved our engagement before he got together with her. Could just hearing about a wedding or marriage put so much doubt within her that she did not even confirm his side of the story and true feelings?'

Peter watched as conflicted emotions surfaced on the silver head's face.

She twisted her white silk handkerchief. 'He has not stopped loving and thinking about her in all these years even during the time he thought she was dead.' A sharp pain diffused throughout her heart, hot tears pricking her azure blue eyes. '... As I thought, she does not love him.'

At first, she had wished for Anzor and Ellen to meet was so Anzor would come to terms that Ellen did not have feelings for him anymore. Then he would get over her. Then maybe just maybe she would have a chance with him. But now, she had discovered that Anzor and her had a child. The child was a connection between the two of them and he loved Ellen more than enough as it was.

In the beginning, she had loved him liked anybody would have loved someone close to them like a brother.... a sibling, but after their wedding, she had slowly fell for him. And when she had realized her feelings, she did would whatever she could to make him fall in love with her. But it was so, so very hard competing for love over a person she had thought was dead. She had spent many nights sobbing over this. Her feelings was never returned mutually.

Then she had found out that Ellen was still alive, living a happy life. She deduced since Ellen never came back to Anzor that, she did not love him anymore. Now, it seemed like her younger cousin would never get over Ellen because there was a child between them. From how they were arguing before, she knew that her cousin would surely use the child to get back together with Ellen.

A tear finally slid down her cheek.

What about her?

And another one.

What about Lila?

Then the rest poured out.

She did not desire for it to end even though Anzor did not love her, but at least he was still by her side.