Diligence 1

Taffy did not like Primrose. Not one bit. She had a general disdain towards those with prickly and sour attitudes, and the cherubun’s literally-holier-than-thou demeanor only made him more infuriating to her. She was willing to be civil and force herself to act cheerful as usual when he was nearby, but the truth was that his presence never failed to sink her mood.

She assumed that the feeling was mutual, that Primrose found her entirely unpleasant to be around, too. However, when Taffy visited the Embassy one day, Primrose willfully approached her and started a conversation that wasn’t immediately critical. He asked her to follow him and help out with something, sort of like how one would flag down a friend for a quick favor. His tone was the same as usual, of course, but it felt somewhat… chummy.

Curious, Taffy poked the subject as they walked. “You must be really desperate for help if you’re resorting to asking me, of all people!”

“I suppose so.”

…Not as illuminating of a response as Taffy had hoped. “Soooo… what did you want me to do? And seriously, why me?”

Primrose sighed. “Last time you were here, you insisted that you have far more diligence than I was giving you credit for. I still find it rather difficult to believe you, but I happen to need help at the moment with a task that requires much dedication and care.” He stopped walking and turned back towards Taffy. “Were you being honest with me or weren’t you?”

That seemed like a flimsy reason; anyone can say they have this or that abstract trait in order to win an argument. If someone you don’t know very well tells you they’re trustworthy, do you immediately hand them your purse while you leave the room to take care of something? 

Taffy was very intrigued at what the true reason may be. Besides, it would be much more difficult to stand by her diligence claim if she bowed out of this task just because she didn’t want to.

“Yup! You can count on me! Just let me know what I need to do!” she responded with a cheerful grin.

With a nod, Primrose resumed walking. “You will be planting and tending to flowers in the Embassy greenhouses.”

Taffy clapped her hands in front of her as a little bit of bounce entered her step. “Cuuuuute! I love flowers!”

“Do not take this lightly!” Primrose shouted as he whipped around to face Taffy again. “Every cherubun in this place relies on these flowers! It is imperative that you do not waste the seeds by allowing the flowers to die!”

Startled out of her excitement, Taffy returned her arms to her sides. “...Okay. I understand.” It was, for once, a fair enough reason for Primrose to freak out at her.

The two of them soon arrived at one of the Heavenly Embassy’s greenhouses. The moment Primrose opened the door to the garden, Taffy’s eyes immediately began to water at the dazzling glow of the multitudes of flowers that had already been cultivated, along with the gleaming light filtered through the glass roof of the greenhouse. She stepped inside carefully, shielding her eyes until they adjusted. 

“It’s so pretty…” she remarked simply, the profound beauty muting her usual high energy like how the light softened color.

“It’s a pale imitation of home,” Primrose responded as he stood next to Taffy, “but it’s certainly more beautiful than the rest of this horrid realm.”

Taffy couldn’t hold back a huff. He just had to ruin the moment for her, didn’t he? She quickly pushed her annoyance down to flash an enthusiastic smile Primrose’s way. “Okay! I’m ready to get started!”

“Right then. The seeds and other necessary equipment should be on that shelf near the opposite entrance.”

“Alrighty!” Taffy chirped as she bounded over to the shelf in question. She grabbed a packet of seeds before scanning the rest of the shelf for tools. One tool in particular caught her eye. “What’s this for? Is it for when people get hungry?” she asked as she held it up for Primrose to see.

“...No. That is a gardening fork, not a dinner fork,” Primrose responded, unamused. “It is used for loosening the soil. You will not need it. Put it back.”

Primrose’s words were met with Taffy puffing up her cheeks in a childish pout. Eventually, he had to break the standstill.

“Fine. You may use the fork to dig the planting holes. As long as you don't complain when digging turns out to be more difficult than you expected.”

Taffy's pout was replaced with a beaming smile. “As long as you don't lecture me on which side of the plate I should put it on!” she shot back as she made her way over an empty garden bed.

“What plate? There are not going to be any plates!” Primrose exclaimed, exasperated, as he followed the succubun.

Though using a gardening fork did make things a touch more difficult, Taffy was doing a fairly decent job at planting the seeds. At least, she assumed so, since Primrose wasn't correcting her very often as he observed. About halfway through, Taffy looked up at the cherubun from where she was kneeling in the flower bed.

“Hey, so… why are you still here?”

Primrose furrowed his brow. “What do you mean?”

“You're just standing there watching me.”

“Of course! I must observe you so that you do not wreak havoc in this hallowed garden!”

“Okay… but you said that you needed help.” Taffy closed her eyes and shrugged. “I dunno, if that was the reason, I would think that you’d either leave so that you can take care of other things or join me in the work. If it only takes one person and you have nothing better to do, you would’ve just done it yourself, right?” She looked back up at Primrose with a smug expression. “If you wanted to hang out, you could've just asked.”

“I… That is not…! I just…!” Primrose strained and choked on his words, seeming to prefer popping a blood vessel over admitting to Taffy's claim.

Satisfied, Taffy returned to planting. “Whatever the reason, I’m happy to keep doing this! It's more fun than I thought, and I still gotta convince you that I’m diligent.”

No more words were exchanged between the two until all of the seeds were planted. For just those few moments, they were able to sincerely enjoy each other’s company. It was nice, not getting on each other’s nerves for a while, glittering light showering them.

Once all the seeds were planted and given a little bit of water, Primrose broke the tranquil silence between them.

“That is all that is needed today. I hope you remember that your duties include tending to the flowers, not just planting them. I may even let you help me make ambrosia out of them.”

“I understood that!” Taffy smiled down at the little mounds where the flowers were planted. “How often should I come back to water them?”

“After the initial watering, they should fare well for about two weeks. However, I do recommend checking in on them a couple of times before then.” Primrose crossed his arms and donned an expression more stern than usual. “If you can even bother yourself to remember.”

“I look forward to hanging out with you, too!” Taffy responded as she waved goodbye.

Before Primrose could retort, Taffy had already bounded away, giggling.