Because he doesn't hurt me. He doesn't physically abuse me. He does not lock me up in a cage or look at me as if I am the number one thing he hates. He holds no malice ill-will towards me. He may treat me a bit differently, but he doesn't mistreat me in the slightest. Sure he can be a bit demanding and a little bit obnoxious, but not once had he made me feel like I am worthless. Yes, it is true he is a bit odd, well more like he is deranged, but he means well in his own special way. It is nice that when he looks at me he just sees me and nothing else, and I am glad that I can do the same for him. I treat him as himself, not changing anything, or mistreating him in any way to change his actions. Sure he doesn't understand social norms, but he does try, at least I think he does. But he treats me as myself, he doesn't try to change anything, and he doesn't mistreat me in any way to change my own actions. I may not always understand his particular norms, but I do try, and I think he knows that. I guess you could say I do have a crush, but I don't hang out with him all the time because of that...I hang out with him because he likes my presence around and I like his. I feel like I can be me without judgment and I think, in some small way, he feels like that too when he is around me.

These were the comments she wish she could make to answer Nadya's query. Yet Raven could not bring herself to deliver such a lengthy response. It was far too personal for Nadya's ears let alone for Alexis as well. As a damaged creature it was not like her to allow others to delve into her personal thoughts. She hardly spoke to Alexis about such personal things, preferring to talk about other things than her opinions or herself. Such a modest individual, one might think, but in her mind she didn't consider herself to have any sort of worth or that her opinions held some value. So, she kept that honest and personal response to herself. Deciding it was wise of her not to be so open, she slowly brought built up her walls once more, providing the girl a smaller response. Her voice barely hinting just how guarded she was, her answer though honest was the much shorter version than the one running in her head.

"Well, I do spend a lot of time with him, but sometimes he is the one that finds me...and he asks. But, I do like spending time with him...is it that obvious that I do, as you say, have a crush on him?"

Perhaps spending so much time with Tobi had allowed the feelings to grow and surface. Though really she wasn't always out looking for him when she was by herself. Sometimes he would just show up and make her do some silly shenanigan he wished to take part of. But there was no doubt that she had been spending far more time with him during the day or night. It would seem that over time she was getting used to his presence, starting to trust him more and more each time and thus allowing those feelings to arise. Yet it was not something she thought so be discussed or taken a look at, thinking it best to keep it quiet. While Nadya spoke about her clothing this time, one hand would stroke the itchy sleeves as she murmured softly, pulling down on it to cover her wrist.

"I wear the long sleeves to cover."

Quietly she turned around heading for the wall Nadya had pointed at towards the blouse she had mentioned. It didn't bother her to wear long sleeves all the time, but this particular material, for some reason, just made her skin itch. Every now and then she didn't mind wearing shorter sleeves, but she couldn't blame Nadya for thinking as she did about her particular taste in attire. Returning toward Nadya, now perched on a table, Raven stood beside the feline holding the short-sleeved blouse loosely. Nodding her head at the Were-feline's comment her own shoulders would shrug, softly replying weakly.

"This is true, it is a bit...overwhelming. Well, as soon as she gets back out why don't you run off and gather the items you'd like, and don't worry about the quantity...you deserve something for your trouble."

The very thought that there was a good possibility there would be another trip was quite an overwhelming thing to imagine, but perhaps it was a good thing they were going through this bit by bit. Besides, she needed to get Alexis safely back home, especially when she noticed Azrael running about earlier. The last thing she wanted to do today was run. Hearing Alexis's troubled notes coming from the dressing room caused the lupine to frown slightly. Keeping a mental note to address this issue later, she called out gently to the fox-girl with a ring of encouragement.

"That's good you'll be right out...you can actually see the skirt Nadya found for me, and maybe I can finally see you in something that doesn't swim on you."

I'd Rather Feel Pain Then Nothing At All

Raven