"Papa!"

Alexander's adorable daughter, Anya, rushed up to him in glee. He immediately went to one knee and received his daily dose of a warm hug.

"Anya, what did I tell you about staying inside the Palace? The outside is very cold you know, you might catch a cold from it and it would be problematic to me."

"Sorry, papa, I'm just excited to see you. That's why I'm waiting for you outside," she said gleefully.

"You little…" Alexander pinched her cheek gently with one hand and ruffled her hair lightly with the other. "Well, it doesn't matter anyways. Even if you get sick, your papa is there to save you. But you must know that prevention is better than...?"

"Cure!" Anya finished as she grinned and nodded.

"Yes, yes, that's my girl," Alexander smiled affectionately as he stroked her hair once more. "Now, where is mama? Does she know that you are outside?"

Anya shook her head. "I snuck out papa," she told her father while pouting slightly.

"Ngh...!" Alexander's eyes widened and carried her in his arm. "You snuck out?! Quick, we have to enter the palace before she comes out of the..." he trailed off as the main door of the Winter Palace opened. Sophie walked over to them menacingly.

"Honey? Is that our dear Anya you are carrying?"

Anya gulped as she immediately buried her face in Alexander's shoulder, not wanting to meet the gaze of her mother who was seemingly looking at her with a grim look on her face.

Alexander can feel Anya's body shivering from fear, realizing what she had done.

"Anya, didn't I tell you to not go outside without me saying so?"

Anya kept her mouth and eyes shut, afraid to answer.

"Now, now. It's okay darling. She just wants to welcome me, that's all. You don't have to worry about it. Come on, let's go inside, it is getting cold out of here," Alexander suggested as he approached. He tried to pull her arm but she refused to budge."No, I made it clear to her, darling. That she should not go outside, especially in this winter season. What if she got lost or something like that? She loves to sneak out of the palace that I have to scramble our guards and servants to find here."

"Look, I understand your worries, honey, but we should speak of this matter inside," Alexander darted to the imperial guards and the servants who are presently watching them.

Sophie realized it but it was too late, Anya noticed the stares of the imperial guards and the servants through her instincts and started to tear up.

"Oh baby don't cry," Alexander hushed softly as he kissed her cheek. Alexander proceeded to walk inside the Winter Palace while gently pressing a hand onto the back of Anya's head, preventing her from seeing people around them.

,m In a brightly lit warm palace, Sophie trailed behind Alexander who somberly looked ahead as they went into a small room.

Once Sophie closed the door behind her, Alexander placed Anya down on a chair while stroking her hair. "See, there's no one around except your mama and papa."

"I'm sorry dear," Sophie said apologetically. "I'm not mad at you, mama is just worried about you. You see, when you are not by my side, I get nervous, thinking what if something happens to you? Mama will be sad. You don't want mama to be sad right?" she asked hopefully.

Alexander smiled softly at her attempt to cheer Anya up.

Anya slowly looked up at her mother before nodding in agreement. "Sorry mama, I promise I will never do it again."

"That's my girl," Sophie praised her sweetly before embracing her tightly into her arms.

"That's right Anya, you are our girl. And if mama is sad, papa will be also sad. You don't want us to get sad right?" Alexander said as he rubbed her back comfortingly.

Anya responded with a nod.

"Great!" Alexander beamed and shifted the topic. "So, what do I look like on the television? Did you watch it?"

"You look cool papa! Though I don't understand what you were talking in the television, still, you look and sound cool!"

"Thanks love. And to give light your curiosity, the language that I'm speaking is Chosonese, the language used by the people of the Choson Empire. Do you want to learn their language?"

"I don't think I can take any more language classes, papa. I'm already struggling with mama's native language," she solemnly replied.action

"It's okay, I won't overwork you in your studies anyway. We'll just keep a steady pace. Don't worry, mama is here to teach you about the Deutsch language. Did you know, mama don't speak Ruthenian when she and I got married."

"Eh?! Really?" Anya couldn't believe her ears. Her mother didn't speak Ruthenian when she met her papa. How did they communicate? Was the first question she came up with.

"If that's the case, how did mama and papa speak with one another?" Anya asked curiously, her eyes sparkling with interest.

"Papa is a genius man, he can speak a lot of languages including English and Deutsch. But we often speak English because I want to practice my language skills in English."

"Can I be as great as papa?" Anya beamed.

"Well, my dear daughter, if you work hard and have a lot of dedication to strive for the betterment of yourself, you can be as great as me, or even greater than me!" Alexander winked playfully at Anya who giggled at her father's antics.

"Are you saying that just to make me feel good, papa?" Anya teased him as she poked his nose lightly.

"Of course not!" Alexander exclaimed in a playful tone. He picked her up in one swift motion, twirled her around, and then sat her on the sofa. "Well, papa might be portrayed as perfect and genius but in reality, papa has his own flaws and that's okay since not everyone is born perfect. Only we can accept who we truly are, don't let the opinion of others drag you down. Just try and live happily without worrying too much. That's how you enjoy life. Got it?"

"Mhmm." Anya nodded, her cheeks slightly pink.

"Okay, I have to go now. Your auntie, Tiffania, is waiting for me in my office about her exams. Sophie, I will leave Anya in your care."

"I will take her to her room and read some nighttime stories," Sophie said as she sauntered over to Alexander. "I will pray for Tiffania to pass her exam."

"I hope so too," Alexander agreed. "I promised her something if she passes the exam. I wonder what her answer would be."

"Who knows, you'll only find it out once the exam ends," Sophie said, smiling adoringly, before kissing Alexander on the lips.

Anya, who just saw her mama kiss her papa, got jealous and demanded a kiss from him. "Papa, kiss me too."

Alexander gave her a peck on the corner of her lips. "Behave yourself okay, we will meet each other again at dinner."

"Okay papa, goodbye!" Anya waved as Alexander walked towards the door.

As soon as Alexander left, Sophie let out a sigh, regretting something.

"I couldn't bring myself to tell him the news," she muttered ever so softly as she ran a hand around her belly.