(Not Very) Secret Garden

“Well, I suppose having thick skin is pretty helpful for things like that, yeah! But um, won’t having thick skin make it difficult if someone needed to operate on you?” Obie said, trying to pass along another small joke as he got more used to talking to his Captain.

Captain Lakshmi Ma’am has a lot of rumors though? I suppose that she’s been alive longer than I have, so I suppose that makes sense… I don’t even think I have many rumors about myself, though… Obie quickly noticed his Captain’s expression turning more serious after his mention of being protected, and he tried to move quickly… not serious her.

“O-Oh… I mean, I um, wasn’t expecting anything bad to go wrong!” Obie waved his hands frantically in front of him as he tried to make his question a bit clearer. “I just meant like… In the worst-case scenario kinda thing… But umm… I feel safer now, thank you!” He gave Lakshmi a small, reassuring smile as he nodded at her. Wow, Mister Kaimu sounds really strong too! I don’t think Lieutenant Mia mentioned anything about that when we met… "Oh! Nothing's wrong I was just... wondering if fanservicey stuff comes up a lot in the Fourth or something, n-nothing important!"

“But um, I actually have a lot of tea in my… my room. So you won’t really have to worry about buying any extra kinds! I’ll just bring over my tea making stuff whenever you want tea and everything will be good then, mmhm!” Obie nodded happily at the very idea of more tea-making opportunities. If they were as calm and relaxing as this one, that’d be great! Not to mention her reassurance that nothing too troubling was on the horizon was also nice, and he relaxed even further.

“R-Right! I’ll um, be sure to do my work as well as I can, yeah! And even if there’s not a lot of tea times, they can still be good tea times!” Fourth Division was nice!

"Luckily we have magic healing powers to fall back on just in case, so my thick skin is not an issue." Lakshmi joked right back, her smile still warm as she enjoyed this relaxing break. It would have to end soon, she had been gone far too long from her work but the Captain merely sighed at that thought and ignored it.

"It is fine to have worries and I hope you will come to me if you have more." Obie seemed intent on reassuring her and she allowed him to do so with a soft chuckle. He didn't have to go that overboard with the hand waving really. "Welcome! Please ask as much as you need to reassure yourself, even if it on my powers and combat capabilities. I have no issues doing so... And no. It really does not even with all my teasing about fanservice."

Lakshmi briefly looked rather shocked at Obie's offer of using his own tea and tea making items before her face softened into pleased smiles once more. "Ah! I see. That sounds wonderful then, I would love to try them all. Next time will be quite fun I imagine Obie."

"Speaking of work, I should really get back before someone comes looking for me. Thank you for all your help Obie, I appreciate you joining my squad and improving the gardens and salves. Maybe next time I can teach you a spell that helps improve the capabilities of the salves or ones that can be used in conjunction with them as well?" Her empty cup was set on the tray as she moved to stand, stretching her arms out with a pleased sound.

“Mhm, yeah! A-And I might not be the best at healing kido, but I’ll certainly try my best!” Obie nodded emphatically. He had a long way to go in order to be one of the best healers around, but Obie wasn’t one to slack off on the job either. Not to mention that every chance that he could get to learn more was always appreciated! “And don’t worry, If I have any questions, I’ll be sure to ask them, Captain Lakshmi!”

The day had certainly taken a turn for the better for poor Obie. From cowering in his own garden from the noisemakers to enjoying a nice relaxing tea with his Captain, he had gotten to experience a whole range of emotions (most of them being terrified), but things had ended quite well! There wasn’t even really that much fanservice stuff either! Good day Obie, good day.

“O-Oh, I’d be glad to show you all of the different teas and things that I have as well! I have a um, p-pretty big selection and stuff so um, you’ll have a lot to choose from…” He looked back down at his own empty tea cup, slightly embarrassed. People don’t usually have rooms full of tea and tea accessories, after all. Usually. And most likely not buried under mountains of pillows either.

He noticed Captain Lakshmi Ma’am getting up to leave, so he quickly put his own cup on the tray and picked it up, giving her a slight bow. “You’re welcome, Captain Lakshmi! Umm, thank you for giving me the gardens to work with and e-everything too! And I um, am glad that you’ll put a board out there for me and everything. This has been a… very nice day, yeah…” He smiled brightly over at his Captain and nodded happily.

Until she also said that she’d be willing to teach him ways to improve his salves and everything. His eyes grew wider and he began bowing faster, his hair making a white blur in the air at his rapid thanking. “Y-Yes! I would greatly appreciate that very much Captain! Thank you very much!”

"That is good to hear. As long as you try your best and ask for help when you need it, I doubt there will be many problems for you here." Lakshmi's smile turned quite soft, wanting to reassure Obie he would be fine even more. The man seemed to need such things and it wasn't hard to do so, so she would reassure him all he needed.

"Aha, thank you then. I would love to learn more from the resident expert~" Teasing lightly to bring his focus from his obvious embarrassment over his admittance, Lakshmi continued to smile reassuringly. The captain stepped closer to him, her hand going to his chin and gripping it lightly as he bowed to pull him back up to standing. "It sounds like a nice hobby to have. Do not be so ashamed of it, Obie. Making a delicious pot of tea, I am told, is a delicate and hard task to accomplish. You did wonders with the basics today, so be proud of your achievements and skills no matter what they are. Afterall, only you can do them the way you do."

"You are welcome, thank you in fact for dealing with them for me. I am glad you turned out to be as amazing as I felt from your profile. It really has been such a nice day! I got to meet my wonderful third seat." She let go of his chin, allowing him to move on his own again as he thanked her quite strongly. His captain just grinned and patted his cheek before turning to leave. "If you wish for anymore lessons or help, please come see me or Kaimu. He will know to send on any requests you have immediately after today, so please keep up the good work~"

Obie nodded his head several times in agreement with Lakshmi. He would try his best! It was the least that he could do for her and the 4th Division after all! And hopefully not having many problems in the future was something to look forward to as well! Problems were... problematic... But if Captain Lakshmi Ma'am said he'd be fine, he believed it!

"O-Oh, I wouldn't call myself an expert or a-anything, hehe..." Obie stammered, scratching at his cheek as he bowed to her. "I just... had a lot of time to... practice." His eyes grew slightly wider as he felt his Captain's hands on his chin as she lifted his head up and smiled at him. C-Captain was... nice. Very nice.

"Y-You thought my profile was a-a-amazing?" Obie lowered his eyes again as a slightly blush spread on his cheeks and his thumbs began spinning in overdrive. "I um, a-am glad I got to meet you as well, C-Captain Lakshmi! I'll um, work hard and everything, j-just you wait and see!" Obie was prepared to till all the fields and make all the teas necessary to make sure Captain Lakshmi Ma'am could be proud of his work.

His thumbs twiddled more as she patted his cheek and turned to leave, Obie only silently nodding with her instructions as he continued to look down on the floor. "R-Right! I'll be sure to ask Mister Assistant Kaimu if I have anything else, mmhmm! Thank you for today..."

Is she... Is she gone? Obie heard the small, frightened voice of his zanpakuto call out.

It's okay, Chikyū! Captain Lakshmi Ma'am is actually very nice! We won't have to worry about anything with her here. H-Hopefully!

Oh! That's... that's good... I don't like worrying.