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As something cannot die if it were never alive, something that is technically not awake cannot dream. This was especially true in the case of the SHSL Robot, Kiibo. His creator, Professor Iidabashi, had never programmed it into him, and he doubted that it was a feature he needed his classmate Miu to add. While his classmates were able to sleep, Kiibo had almost 8 hours of time where there was nobody to talk to. What was one to do during all those nights, where nothing was happening at all?
Develop various, odd hobbies, obviously.
It was something he had started to do a long time ago, so it wasn’t odd for him, but it had amplified slightly now that he was away from the lab. His room, covered with electronics, materials for future repairs and more, also contained various odd toys and gadgets. Drawers had decks of cards, dominos, and other various distractions for a single person, and in the corner of the futuristic-looking room was an almost perfect, miniature replica of the Statue of Liberty made entirely of Lego bricks. However, as time went on, the distractions he had available became boring habits, things he could do without thinking. He needed something new to focus on.
At first, he considers going to the gym and trying to see if there were any physical activities he could do. He wound up deciding against it after a bit of wondering if it would be beneficial for him. He then considers going to the library, which he figured was a good idea. The library was filled with books of all genres, and would likely have something he could read and learn from, or a manual of sorts for a hobby he could get into. He puts the deck of cards he had been shuffling in the drawer of his desk and leaves his room, careful to lock the door, even if nobody seemed to be awake at 5 in the morning.
Kiibo arrives at the library in a few minutes, expecting to be alone due to the time-- however, that was not the case. Sitting at one of the mahogany desks was his classmate, the SHSL Maid, Kirumi Tojo, reading a mystery novel. She seems to be at peace, though only for a second as she notices the robot’s heavy footsteps, and slams the book shut suddenly and stands up as stiff as a board to face him.
“Ah, good morning, Kiibo-san.” She greets, bowing slightly. (he’s caught slightly off-guard by the action and bows slightly back) “Do you need any assistance?” The robot shakes his head.
“No, I am fine, thank you. You didn’t have to stop what you were doing-- my apologies for interrupting you, Tojo-san.” He replies, feeling slightly guilty for catching her off guard.
“You did not interrupt me at all, I should not have been on break-- I should have expected someone to be awake at this hour.” Kiibo frowns a little at her protests, which causes Kirumi to change the subject before the robot could start scolding her. “Though, if you don’t mind me asking,” she says after a small cough to clear her throat, “what are you doing here at this hour?”
“Oh!” Kiibo blinks, as if he had just remembered. “I am not programmed to sleep, so I was looking for something new to keep me occupied through the night. More hobbies, I suppose. It gets rather boring shuffling cards back into their packaged order without looking every night.”
The maid looks mildly confused with this new discovery. She didn’t particularly know much about machines, and learning more about them was never really a thought that came to mind-- even with a mechanical classmate. She figured that, similar to laptops, he had a sleep mode or something of the sort and never thought anything else of it. “I… see.” She hums, holding a gloved hand to her chin. “What kind of hobby are you looking to get into?”
Kiibo pauses and Kirumi begins to feel twinges of exhaustion. “It’s alright if you don’t know, Kiibo-san. Perhaps you could help me with one of my personal hobbies?” She pauses to think briefly. “Hm… Yes, I think it would definitely suit you.” She nods to herself with a soft smile.
The robot tilts his head, though awkward with his metal collar. “Personal hobby?” He echoes, “What do you mean? What are you planning on showing me?”
“I was thinking about working on some gardening sometime today, but perhaps we could begin rather early. The sun will be rising soon, so we can till the soil, and ensure that it’s fit to plant the seeds once it is lighter out.” The soft smile remains on her face as she speaks. While she is perfectly content without a helping hand in the garden, it would be nice to have someone (something?) to talk to as she went about her business. Kiibo, on the other hand, looks mildly confused with her suggestion.
Gardening had been something he had considered trying, but Kirumi could ask just about anyone else to help her. Rantaro’s talent was still a mystery, perhaps he was a gardener? On top of his wide knowledge of bugs, Gonta was also rather knowledgeable on plants due to his time with his wolf family. Tenko would also be more than willing to help Tojo as well. But… she had asked him to help her, so… “Very well! I’d be glad to help!” He hums proudly, putting his hands on his hips. Kirumi can’t help but smile and suppress a small laugh at his strange but proud stance.
“Then, shall we be on our way?” Her question is answered with a firm nod from her classmate, and they begin to walk to the garden. (kiibo isn’t too good with small talk, leaving kirumi to have to initiate them and kiibo turning those small topics into full-blown conversations.)
.
After a rather long walk up numerous flights of stairs, they reach the 5th floor’s greenhouse. While the sky outside was still rather dark and only beginning to get lighter with the upcoming sunrise, the room was lit by numerous lamps attached to the glass ceiling. The flowers were of all different shades, and Kiibo swore that he could see a few species that were classified as extinct. While the mechanical boy admired the flora, Kirumi had pulled out their supplies. Hand forks and trowels, seeds, and a watering can, all placed near an empty patch of soil in the indoor garden. Kiibo moves over as the maid finishes setting up.
“So… how do we begin?” He asks, furrowing his brows slightly as his gaze goes from the tools, to the soil, and back to Kirumi.
“It’s rather simple, actually. Allow me to show you.” She replies, “You begin by loosening the soil, either with the trowel or the fork.” She hands Kiibo the tools as she speaks, and uses the fork to begin tilling the soil. Carefully, he copies the maid’s actions in the dirt in front of him. “Normally, you would add compost and wait a few days before planting, but the soil here is remarkably high quality, we can plant right away. Kiibo-san, could you please open your hands?” She opens a package of vegetable seeds-- eggplant. Summer had just begun, so having some home grown eggplant would be nice to make for everyone.
Or, well… not everyone. She had nearly forgotten that Kiibo couldn’t eat.
Either way, the robot opens his hands and allows some of the seeds to fall into his palms, and he tenses considerably-- something Kirumi doesn’t miss. “Is… everything alright, Kiibo-san? Are you afraid of the seeds..?”
“N-no! Of course I’m not afraid of the seeds! Don’t assume such things, Kirumi-san!” He huffs, remaining tense. “I’m merely worried about them slipping into my joints, so I must be more careful with my movements.”
“I see…”
There’s an awkward pause between the two before she resumes the gardening lesson. “Next, you plant the seeds, I will dig the holes, and you will place a few seeds in each hole before covering them back up with soil. That should be an easy task, yes?”
“Of course!” He replies almost instantly, and after the maid makes small holes with the trowel, Kiibo pinches a couple seeds and slowly, with robotic movements, he places them in the hole after her. (though by the time he does so, she’s already made about two more holes.) The process repeats itself slowly. He pinches the seeds, moves them into the hole, and puts them in, then carefully moves to pinch up some more and Kirumi nearly finds herself nodding off when he chirps that he’s finished placing the seeds in the hole.
“Ah! Good work, Kiibo-san.” She says quickly to cover up the fact that she had nearly fallen asleep on him. “Now, you need to cover them with soil. This is where you should use your hands, it’s much easier.” She motions to the bag of soil beside her, and moves it closer to Kiibo. The robot purses his lips as he stares at the bag.
“... Understood.” He says after a bit, carefully taking a handful of dirt and silently lamenting about how he’d have to deep clean his joints. This went faster, though messier, than the process of planting the seeds, much to the maid’s delight, but… Kiibo had neglected to pat down the sloppy mounds of soil.
“Kiibo-san, you also need to settle the soil. It’s more for the aesthetic value, but I feel as if it helps the plants grow.”
The robot looks at Kirumi curiously. “How do I settle it?”
“It’s simple-- you just pat the soil down gently, until it’s level.”
“... gently?” He echoes, sounding unsure.
“Yes, gently. You should be able to do such a task, correct?” She wonders if she should have done this task by herself, now, but before she knows it Kiibo begins to protest.
“Of course I can!” He huffs, sounding mildly offended. “I am programmed to be almost exactly like a human, I can most certainly complete this task! Please do not assume any less of me because I’m a robot!” With Kiibo’s mini-rant over with, he fixes his attention on the soil. It was just… patting down the soil! It couldn’t be too hard! He brings his hand down to the soil…
… and barely grazes the surface.
Kirumi nearly lets out a groan, her patience beginning to wear rather thin. “You need to apply more force… is everything alright? You seem to be rather tense. Should I get Iruma-san?”
“N-no, I don’t need any repairs, thank you. It’s just that…” he presses his index fingers together with the soft sound of metal clinking. “What if I press down too hard? I don’t want to harm the seeds, or do anything to prevent them from sprouting.” Kirumi’s eyebrows raise slightly, before she covers a soft smile behind a gloved hand.
“You have nothing to worry about, Kiibo-san. I assure you, I doubt that you will not cause the seeds any harm.” She notices that he still looks rather nervous, though. “If you would like me to, I can take care of this part. I do not wish to cause you any distress.”
Kiibo pauses, considering the options, before nodding. “I would appreciate that. My apologies for creating such an issue over something so small.” He moves his hands away from the mounds of dirt, and Kirumi moves to pick up where he left off.
“It isn’t a problem, Kiibo-san.” She hums, settling the soil with soft, rhythmical pats. “It’s very… courteous of you to care about harming the plants. Do you worry about restricting your strength often?” She glances over at him as she asks.
He shakes his head. “No, actually,” Kirumi looks mildly surprised, and Kiibo withers slightly in embarrassment as he continues, “I’m about as strong as a senior citizen. I just wasn’t sure how firm the soil needed to be, and how much force would be required to properly settle it.”
“I see…” She hums, glancing him over again. Kiibo honestly looked as if he could be rather strong, but looks could be deceiving after all. She quickly finishes with settling the soil, and wipes her hands off on her apron as she stands up, passing the watering can to the robot as he stands up as well. “You don’t need to give them too much water, so this part should be simple.”
Kiibo looks concerned again and Kirumi decides to try to put it in terms she was sure he would understand. “You should drizzle water upon the entire bed for about… 5 seconds. Be sure to water them evenly, and not spend too much time on one section.”
He found this easier to comprehend, giving the maid a firm nod in response as he began to carefully water the soil as she had advised him to. Once the five seconds were up, he stopped watering the seeds and placed the watering can down, a proud smile on his face.
“Well done, Kiibo-san. I believe that should be it for now.” She hums, though she notices that after she said this, he seemed slightly… disappointed?
“Ah… really? I was hoping that there would be more to do…” He sighs, before shaking his head, that little proud grin coming back. “That’s fine, though! I had fun, and I believe that this was very educational! Thank you for introducing me to gardening, Tojo-san!”
The maid blinks in mild surprise, before a soft smile graces her face. “There is no need to thank me, but… I thank you for your assistance. When I check on them again, I will be sure to let you know.” She bows slightly, once more catching the robot by surprise and causing him to stumble before bowing back. As she straightens back up (he does so as well,) she seems to be thinking about something, causing Kiibo to look slightly concerned.
“Is everything alright, Tojo-san..?”
“Yes, I was just thinking,” She holds a gloved hand to her chin, stroking it in thought. “I don’t know all that much about robotics, and I figured such information would help in assisting you further. If it isn’t presumptuous to ask, could you perhaps educate me further on the subject?”
Kiibo seems to light up, looking excited at the chance to be able to gush about the functions Professor Iidabashi had given him. “Of course! I am usually free, so whenever you aren’t busy, I would be delighted to educate you on the intricacies of robotics!” He chirps, putting his hands on his hips and making that dumb, proud stance he did. “After all, friends help each other, don’t they?”
The maid is visibly shocked by the robot’s statement. Friends? Her dedication to being a maid left little time for such trivial things such as friendship, so it came as a genuine shock to her when Kiibo called her his friend. Though he was rather oblivious to body language, he did notice her expression change and hesitates. “Erm… Tojo-san, did I say something wrong? I apologize if I assumed anything.”
She shakes herself out of her thoughts. “N-no, no-- You did nothing wrong, Kiibo-san.” She composes herself, prim and proper like usual. “Yes, that is certainly what friends do. Thank you for agreeing to teach me.” She smiles, and the robot can tell that this is a genuine smile.
Kiibo’s smile returns to his face. “It’s no problem! As I said-- it’s what friends are for, correct?”
Kirumi nods. “Yes,”
“What friends are for.”