He feels a little bad for flustering her, but he considers it not tough love, but tough comradery. These are the sorts of things new people will have to become accustomed to, just as he and others have done before.

"Well, only if you're sure you want to be wandering around listening to my never ending fountain of knowledge for god knows how long for absolutely nothing in return." He thinks she'd be too polite to say so anyway. "I'm looking for something like this." He circles a finger around a plant that looks suspiciously like lavender, with different leaves.