The Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanic Gardens, Mauritius
Saturday 29th January 1994
Did Chrissie have any idea, Krang wondered suddenly, looking around him with interest as he walked along the shady, tree-lined avenue, just how truly unique Earth was? This one insignificant planet had everything. Extreme desert that came close to rivalling anything Vulcan's Forge could offer. Icefields as coldly beautiful as those found on Andoria. Mountains, vast plains, oceans, freshwater lakes and rivers. It was nothing that could not be found elsewhere, but to find it all on one planet was unusual to say the least.
Earth's flora and fauna were as diverse as its geography. In this garden alone, the sheer range of plant life was just… breath-taking. The wildlife was equally spectacular. Both children had been fascinated by a neon green lizard with crimson spots all over its back clinging to the trunk and looking for all the world like a miniature dragon. Butterflies fluttered from flower to flower like living rainbows and overhead, parakeets flew, squawking loudly.
It was not Krang's first visit to the place; he'd been here a year or so ago with Koreth, although that had been a very quick visit and at the time, he had not truly appreciated the beauty of the lush, tropical planting.
It had been a good idea to come here, the Klingon reflected. He was pleased to see Chrissie looking so happy and content and very obviously in her element as she pointed out the different plants and flowers to the children, telling them educational stories that caught their interest while at the same time increasing their knowledge of botany.
In comparison, and somewhat to his surprise, Krang found that he felt out of place and very much out of his depth. He was an outsider, an alien interloper who did not belong. He knew absolutely nothing about Terran plants, nor for that matter, much about plants from his homeworld, odd as that might seem considering the stunning gardens of his own estate. But those had been his grandmother's and his mother's doing. Both had been keen gardeners and like Chrissie, they would have been in their element here. For himself though, whilst he could admire the beauty of a garden, he'd never had much interest in growing things or even in learning what made them grow.
"Mama, look at the banana tree!"
Krang turned his attention to the specimen Fina was pointing out. He knew what bananas were and had even eaten them, although he hadn't been impressed by the taste. They did not look how he had imagined - a long stem hanging down surrounded by layers of upward pointing fruits and at the bottom, a flower that was… interesting to say the least!
"It's not actually a tree," Chrissie was telling the children. "It's very special because it's actually the largest herb in the world. Look at this…" She gestured towards a dead stem that had been cut down at some point. "This is where the leaves were. See how the leaves wrap around each other?"
"There's no wood," Fina said. "It hasn't got a proper trunk."
"Exactly," Chrissie agreed, "and that's why its not a tree. Can you remember what the proper word is for a plant with no trunk?"
Toni thought for a minute. "Um… herbaceous?"
"Well done," Chrissie praised.
Listening to her, Krang almost sighed, fighting back feelings of inadequacy. Even the children knew more about plants than he did. She must think he was ignorant and uneducated.
Chrissie was thinking no such thing; too busy enjoying the gardens, she had lost herself in the happiness of being in such a wonderful place with her loved ones. She still couldn't believe she was actually here in Mauritius, visiting one of the most famous and historic botanic gardens in the southern hemisphere. It was a place she had never expected to be lucky enough to see, let alone in the company of such an amazing, kind, caring and thoughtful man. Not, she thought with a little smile, that he would appreciate being described in such terms.
He was a short distance behind her now. She turned to look at him and her breath caught. Even in jeans and tee-shirt, both of which she thought showed off his body beautifully, and more or less unarmed other than the inevitable knife hanging from his belt, he projected an aura of raw, dangerous masculinity. Nobody would ever mistake Krang for anything but the warrior he was. Her smile faded to something more serious. How was it possible that this man was hers? He was absolutely magnificent and right now, all she wanted to do was kiss him.
Meeting her gaze and completely misinterpreting what he saw in her eyes as disapproval, the urge to do something to impress her… to make her see him as a desirable mate… was overwhelming.
Just to his right, underplanted with a red-flowered plant he actually did recognise, thanks to it being planted around the shuttle-park at the Singapore office, he noticed a tree. It was a particularly showy specimen and he could hardly not notice it. Reaching to maybe three times his height, it was in full bloom, long racemes of golden-yellow flowers dangling down to just a little above eye level.
He remembered what Kay'vin had said to him after his 'security check' of this place and how amused his aide had been by the sight of the various human visitors stopping to smell the flowers. He could not pretend to be an expert on the plants, but maybe she would be pleased if he at least tried to show an interest.
Impulsively, he reached up and took hold of one of the longer filaments. "These yellow flowers are beautiful," he told her, pulling the strand down and drawing it towards his face.
"Krang, no! Don't…"
Her warning came too late. He'd already buried his nose in the golden flower and inhaled the fragrant perfume. Pollen filled his nasal passages, reacting with the membranes and causing him to sneeze violently. Almost staggering, he took a step backwards, sneezing again and in a gesture that was part instinct but also fuelled by anger and embarrassment, he lashed out blindly at the flowers, batting them away from him.
More sneezes followed and Chrissie could only stand and watch, helpless with laughter as the long strand of flowers came swinging back towards him, hitting him in the face and releasing another cloud of pollen.
She should not laugh, she knew she shouldn't, but he looked so sorry for himself. Those flowers were poisonous, to humans at least, and she had no idea if they were toxic to Klingons as well. That thought sobered her. Thankfully, other than the sneezing, he didn't seem to be in any real distress. Actually, sneezing wasn't a bad thing; it would blow the toxic pollen out of his system. Deciding that it would be a good idea to get him away from that tree, she took his arm and guided him towards a nearby bench. Somehow, she got him to sit down and then settled herself next to him as she tried, with limited success to stop laughing. He was able to read both English and French and the information sign clearly stated in both those languages that the tree was poisonous. "Just what did you think you were doing?" she chided him with exasperated fondness.
Another sneezing fit took him and between sneezes, she caught muttered words. "… to impress you."
Impress her? That didn't make any sense at all. Well, she'd get him sorted out first and then she could find out what on earth he'd been playing at. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out one of the bottles of water she was carrying, opened it and placed it in his hand. "Here… drink this."
About to refuse, he sneezed again and then decided that there was no point in arguing with her. Taking a long drink from the bottle, which he had to admit did make him feel better and helped stop the urge to sneeze, he handed the empty container back to her and rubbed the back of his hand across his eyes, grimacing at the stinging sensation.
Chrissie reached up and gently but firmly pulled his hand away. "Don't rub, you'll only make it worse," she warned him. "Now sit still and let me look." Yes, she could see the grains of yellow pollen in his eyes. She was going to have to rinse them out, she realised, retrieving the other bottle of water and opening it. There would doubtless be proper eye wash in the visitor centre but with his vision blurred he would be vulnerable to attack and she didn't want to leave him alone. Nor did she feel comfortable sending the children off on their own to get help. She threw a quick glance in their direction, making sure they were all right and hadn't wandered off. They were both giggling but now that the sneezing had more or less stopped and the show was over, they had turned their attention back to the banana plant. No, she decided, the bottled water might not be sterile but it was at least clean and would have to do the job. To her surprise, he did not resist, keeping very still as she tilted his head back and very carefully poured a little water into each eye before pouring the rest onto his hands to remove the pollen there as well.
"There… I think that's got it all," she said at last. "Feel better?"
Feeling utterly stupid, he nodded, looking at the ground, the bench, the nearby planting, at that g'dayt tree… anything to avoid meeting her gaze.
"Look at me, Krang." He did so with obvious reluctance expecting to see derision or contempt for the weakness he had shown. But there was none of that, only loving concern and just a little bit of leftover amusement warring with her worry for him.
"What did you mean, Krang, about impressing me?"
He let out a heavy breath, not knowing how to put into words what was instinctive to him. "You are my chosen mate," he said eventually. "It is expected that I prove my worthiness … I thought if…" He hesitated before continuing very quietly, "I saw other humans smelling flowers and I was going to pick one and give it to you. I just wanted to fit in… to do something to earn your respect and approval.
"Krang-oy," she sighed, moving closer again and placing a hand on his cheek, "you impress me just by being who you are. You are everything I have every wanted, don't you understand that? You chose to take care of two small children when they ended up in your prison cells. Anyone else would have handed them to social services and walked away. You were kind to them – and to me as well. You protect me, keep me safe. Even at your most angry and aggressive, you've never hurt me and I know that you never will. Everything you do… everything you are… impresses me. I love you, Krang."
Inevitably, they leaned closer together until their lips were almost touching and might have kissed but for the childish voices interrupting the moment and causing them to break apart.
"Ugh! Don't look Fina, they're getting all mushy!"
"Are they going to kiss? I want to watch!"
Giving Krang a heated look, silently promising that their discussion was being deferred rather than cancelled and that a passionate encounter was very much on the cards once the children were in bed that night, Chrissie got to her feet. "Come on then, let's go and see those giant water lilies."
Suspecting that the battle he'd just lost with the tree was about to become one of those funny family stories that would be told for years to come, and somehow not minding at all, Krang got up and with one last glare at the tree that had defeated him, he followed his mate.
The SSR Botanic Garden in Mauritius is a real place and is the oldest such garden in the southern hemisphere. It's particularly famous for its giant water lilies. The Indian Laburnum tree, Cassia Fistula, is a cousin of the laburnum that is popularly grown in Europe and is poisonous... although oddly, the flowers can be eaten and the plant does have medicinal uses. The little green and red lizard is also a real animal.
This was supposed to be a very short scene, a third of a chapter at most... it escalated a bit... and before anyone asks, yes, Krang is acting out of character in this scene. He is trying just a bit too hard to impress Chrissie.
As always, a huge thank you to JDC0, Solasnagreine and RobertBruceScott for your continued support and interest. Your comments are always welcome.