Under the Cherry Blossoms

 It was true, the cherry blossoms frightened her. Maybe it was because she knew what fell under the blossoms that snowed like heaven. There was blood too and it was a violent act she'd had to watch as a girl. 

It was hard to understand her master since she thought he was only a scholar but that was not completely true.

He was wise in many ways, but he hid what he really knew and he was a master of the sword, after all.

Not that she had detected it in all these years. After all, he was a poet of wisdom and always made her feel a little stupid.

But she didn't hate him. No, she worshiped the ground he walked on. Why were masters that way?

She thought of him as arrogant but never deceiving. Yes, she'd loved him with all her heart from what she'd seen. After all, she'd been a silly fan girl, now hadn't she. 

Of course, he never liked her attitude. He'd told her more than once to keep her guard up. Of course, she couldn't ask what that meant. She followed the school rules. She did her lessons. She was cordial and quiet. Nothing out of the ordinary. 

And yet, she'd seen what he was capable of. His violence only made her curious. 

But the cherry blossoms always made her wary. It could make some men mad. Mad enough to kill.