Black and royal blue

VIII. Botany and entomology

Two weeks have passed since I last saw Ana. She was in a hurry so she just waved and walked on. Ever since then, nothing. I wanted to see her so badly. We had unfinished business. Ieyasu told me, she's been spending more time in the library lately. Is she avoiding me? I had to confront her...

I found her there, surrounded by piles of books. She was studying something so eagerly, didn't even notice me until I sat down.

'Oh hi, Mitsunari! I didn't hear you, sorry!' She didn't look up from her reading. She looked very serious.

'What are you reading?' She almost dropped the book when she realised I wasn't who she'd expected.

'Masamune?' She looked genuinely surprised. 'What brought you here?' Her smile was so warm. I could kiss her right now.

'You. I haven't seen you in two weeks. I thought you might be hiding from me. But now I can see that you are actually busy. What are you studying so eagerly?' I flipped through one of her books. It was full of illustrations about flowers.

'Why would I be hiding from you?' She raised her brows.

'I don't know. Maybe because you always run away when I kiss you. Or try to kiss you.'

'Haha, I did run away, huh? She giggled and slightly blushed.

'So?' I motioned towards the books.

'Oh, yes the books. When I was out with Han, I saw numerous plant and insect species I didn't know. I really enjoy observing nature. I particularly find plants and insects fascinating. If I don't know one, I write down detailed notes about them so I can look them up later. I used to paint watercolour paintings of them as well.' Her eyes sparkled with fondness and enthusiasm. 'So I decided to go through all the books about botany and entomology I could find to learn more about the flora and fauna of this era. Unfortunately, I haven't found that many.' She pouted as she looked over all those books.

'This is not many for you?' I burst out in laughter. She was so adorable.

'You sound like a scholar.' Ana never missed a chance to impress me.

'You are flattering me.' She smiled shyly. 'But I do love science. In a sense, I was a scientist myself. I also love plants. I love taking care of them, watching them grow. It is very rewarding. Plants are my life. Or at least they were...' She fell silent.

'What do you mean by that?' I was interested but maybe she didn't want to talk about it.

She didn't answer me right away. She traced her fingers over an illustration in her book and sighed. Congratulations, you made her sad... What should I do now?

'In my time, I worked with plants. With grapevine to be more specific. I was a so-called plant doctor. I loved it so much. Do you know what a grapevine is?'

'I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you.' I curled a lock of her hair around my finger. 'Believe it or not, I actually know what a grapevine is. I've seen one once. A missionary brought it from Europe. What is a plant doctor? I've never heard of such thing.'

'Well, I'd say it's like a healer for plants. But it is not that accurate, because most of the time, when the damage is done, we can't do much. We focus on prevention. We help the farmers to protect their plants from diseases, pests and the elements. We have great responsibility in preventing famine and securing the farmers' livelihood.' The sparks returned to her eyes. I found myself lost in them as she spoke.

'So we can say that you are the warlord of fruits and vegetables.' I wanted to make her laugh. Her laughter brought me so much joy.

'Haha, yes, we can say that. In fact, killing enemies is a huge part of the job.' She laughed so hard she almost fell back. I laughed with her.

'The missionary told me that they make somekind of alcoholic drink from grapes.'

'Yes. It is called wine and I love it. Having the opportunity to contribute to the making of wine makes me so proud... In my time, wine and food go hand in hand. They are often paired with each other. Sometimes the wine is chosen to compliment the meal or the other way around. We even use wine in different dishes.' Her expression was nostalgic.

'Do you cook?' I got more and more interested.

'Yes, I do. I love cooking too. Back home, I cooked almost everyday. I know it doesn't sound modest but I think I am a pretty damn good cook.' She chuckled adorably.

'How many secrets can you keep?' I was amazed by her. 'You always show me a new side of you.' She was not only beautiful and kind but very intelligent too and I had a lot of fun with her.

'Oh, come on! These are not secrets. You just never asked. These are not even interesting stuff. You do much cooler things.' She winked. 'You know what? Ever since I came to Japan, I had difficulty with cooking because the ingredients here a totally different from the ones I'm used to. So how about..'

'...I teach you a cooking course? ' I must have guessed her thoughts because she nodded eagerly. 'Great idea! But in return, you teach me some of your recipes!'

'Let's make it more fun. Are you up for a challenge?' She straightened her back to level our eyes.

'Anytime, kitten!' I was excited about what she had in mind. Right now, I had her in my mind. Without clothes.

'We both cook three dishes and serve them to Nobunaga and the others and they will decided whose food is better. You defeated me once, it's time for me to take revenge!' Although, she was grinning, she looked very serious.

'Deal! The loser washes the dishes. All of them.' I was grinning too. This was looking fun.

She reached out her hand and I looked at her questioningly. I didn't understand.

'Where I come from, this is how we seal a deal. Just extend your right hand.' I did as she asked. She gripped my hand and shook it. This is a strange custom... But I couldn't contain myself. I gripped her hand and yanked it. She stumbled towards me. I caught her and pressed a kiss on her lips. Finally!

'And this is how I seal a deal.' I wanted to kiss her longer but I had to act cool. I left her speechless. I was proud of myself.

'See you, kitten!'