Long nimble fingers would work diligently through his long dark locks, trying to make the process as painless as she possibly could. Even though his hair was very sticky that wasn't the only reason why his hair seemed to be all over the place. There were more snags and tangles that were there way before his slopped s'mores all over himself. Seeing how this was the opportune moment to fix such a mess, she would take advantage of it. Observing him carefully making sure his form remained relaxed ignoring the soft snorts of disdain coming from him. For such a deranged boy he could be quite unperturbed when he wanted to be. As she hummed the melody softly a small grin slowly crawled onto her lips when she heard the boy trying to mimic the notes. Without pausing she would increase the volume, only slightly so he could hear better, allowing him to follow the pattern. When the song's pace would pick up tempo he would trail right along unfazed by the changes and when the tempo returned to a slower pace he wouldn't mess up and continued following along. The once tense atmosphere in the kitchen seemed to evaporate as soon as there was a state of calmness falling not on just Tobi, but herself as well. In the back of her mind she was always afraid that he would attack her, and he did, but it was mostly out of self-defense rather than just simply wanting her to hurt her for fun. So, the wariness she originally had, left and was replaced with a small dose of understanding, which for anyone dealing with Tobi was a rather a large quantity. As the dark-haired boy shook his head, she would let go of his hair as she took a small step towards the right, wanting to be in his peripheral view as she lowered her upper torso, getting him to eventually look at her. Kind slate eyes looked into his darker gaze, her voice holding a steady reassurance as she attempted to make him understand that the others were wrong and he could think a dissimilar way of himself.

"You are not weird, you are just different...and that is not a bad thing."

Really she would have to have a talk with Nadya about how her words were affecting the poor boy. Without any prior knowledge about him, only with her opinions, did she think that his pack-mate should treat him a bit more kindly. Treat him as something good and not something so low. Within her own pack she was treated unkindly and fully believed that she was nothing, and it was a very difficult thing to overcome that even now she was having a hard time believing that she could be anything else. Words were dangerous and should be used properly. It was beaten in her skull that she was of no importance to anyone and even now with them gone she still believed such a thing. Which could explain why she was trying so hard to get the unhinged male to understand that he wasn't as bad as he thought he was. If no one could make him see that then she could only hope and try. Perhaps if he realized such a thing then she could feel a little shred of contentment that after all these years and all the things she was told she could never accomplish, perhaps this triumph could be proof that she could do something right. Shaking her head she would grab the bowl of water standing full up right speaking softly before heading for the sink to wash the bowl and her hand.

"You can are good for teaching, I'm sure I could teach you something...Anything in particular you want to learn?"


If he could follow and hum along a complex tune then Raven assumed that he could learn well. Whatever methods others used on him she was sure she could do far better than they ever could. From what she could understand about her feline friend was that he was a prideful creature, clever in his own right and in his own way. Her vocabulary had to change and the tempo of her speech had to slow down, all for his benefit to help him comprehend what she was trying to tell him. It was a routine she had to figure out herself through trial and error and she found it to be very successful, allowing him the chance to be understood for a change. Though she would still have a hard time understanding him completely, at least she was taking the steps in the right direction. Drying her hands with another towel the curly-haired woman would turn and walk in his direction stopping only when he stood up and came towards her. Although his dark hair remained unruly it looked a tad bit better than before, his hair free of the knots and tangles if only for a short time. Grooming him would not become a part of their daily routine, this she knew, but at least he could feel somewhat better, maybe he'll actually feel the difference in the way his hair moves and how he can see a little bit better without it all matted and falling in his face. Nodding her head slowly at his demand for one of the favors she owed him, she noticed how his fingers would hold up the number three, puzzled as to what he had in mind. Realizing that she had been staring at him for a little bit longer than normal that familiar shade of pink would dance along her cheeks. Blue-grey eyes watched carefully when his hand slowly moved towards her face, her head pulling away from him slightly. The last time someone touched her face it was when she received those marks and she wouldn't let anyone try to touch her again, her own pink lips pulling back to show him her teeth, a silent warning should he get too close for comfort. Hearing his approval of the change of color in her cheeks only caused her to blush even more as she shyly looked away, long golden-brown locks covering the mutilated side of her face as she looked to the doorway watching him go.

Hearing his request she would nod quietly and obediently follow after him. Pulling her curls from her eyes she would walk behind him, only stopping when they reached the laundry room grabbing one of the blankets she had just washed out of the dryer. Earlier that evening he had requested her to sleep beside him in the hammock and why he felt like he needed to repeat her request after promising to do him 7 favors she couldn't understand. It was possible he had forgotten, or, which she doubted, but this was his plan all along. Taking a tentative step towards the riser underneath his hammock, she would climb in the hammock after him, as she slowly brought her lithe frame to be next to his. It felt odd being this close to him, both their personal spaces being violated by the other. Biting her lip, the fear that she could not get out of this spot suddenly hit her. He could easily hurt her here and now and she couldn't get away. If she tried to escape she could easily miss the catwalk and fall down to the ground of the warehouse and most likely not wake up. Lying on her back she would bring the blanket over her, as she normally would if she was in her own bed. Before she could try to close her eyes and get some sort of sleep, she would lift her upper torso, blue-grey eyes searching for his wanting to have some reassurance that he would not harm her should she continue to put herself in such a vulnerable state.

"Hey Tobi...my pack always hurt me when I fell asleep....you won't hurt me when I sleep, right?"

When she was younger she managed to train herself to sleep with one eye open, always wanting to move and protect herself should she be attacked. Always they would come, unlocking her cage and dragging her out only to succumb to their violent desire to place harm on the pariah. Not knowing if Tobi would find joy in such a thing she would grow quiet waiting for his response, hoping it was one that would at least let her know she could allow herself to sleep. Hearing his words she would nod and fall back down on her back for a moment before turning to her side, her face away from his and as she curled her smaller frame into the fetal position, drawing her blanket close to her. With the his presence near her a strange feeling of protection could be felt as a part of her felt somewhat safe being beside another, a natural instinct that delighted in such a thing. Closing her eyes she would try to force her body to not be as tense as it was, slowly trying to get herself to calm down and sleep, and it would take a while, but it would work. Not thinking she could keep herself awake any longer, trying to show she could trust him she would say her final words before her breathing would slow down and she was whisked away into a dreamless sleep.

"Goodnight Tobi...and thanks."

What she was thankful for it could be numerous things: the toy leopard, the ability to clean his hair, admitting he would not harm her in her sleep, or simply showing some form of kindness and letting him sleep beside her, it just couldn't be targeted to one thing. So, he would never know. But at least she followed one of his requests, he wanted her to sleep beside him and whether or not this was what he meant by 'sleep,' he now had 6 requests left.

I'd Rather Feel Pain Then Nothing At All

Raven