I made the half-hour drive to downtown Estancia to shop for Raven and picked up a couple t-shirts, a black pair and a dark gray pair of basketball shorts, and some boxers. All from Goodwill, mind you. I obviously got boxers that were new though, because 'used'...ew.
I got boring shirts. A black one. A white one. A blue one. And a second black one.
I stuck to the basics, having no idea what he'd like. But I didn't want to take him a red one, because then I wouldn't be able to tell if his injuries were bleeding. And he seemed like one of those 'dark and mysterious' guys who was going to want to wear black, you know? Also, could be good for going outside under the cover of night. Well, first we had to get him rehabilitated.
Once I got home, I went upstairs to my room after once again stealing Grandma's sewing scissors. In the back of the shirts, I cut out two long slices in the back from the bottom, and closed off the last few inches with a zipper. This should be perfect... Then, to finish it off, I hemmed the edge of the hole so the fabric wouldn't fray.
So proud of myself for completing my project, I excitedly presented the gifts to Raven.
When I climbed up through the closet in the hallway just outside my door, I discovered him in the middle of a workout, doing push-ups while his wings bobbed up and down on his back with him.
Well, that must be where those muscles came from... I was pretty sure I couldn't even do one real pushup. As he pumped one out after another like it was nothing, he watched a movie on the tiny, old TV. It was 'How to Train your Dragon.'
At that view I was taken aback. Wow. No lie, he's hot. Despite not being a part of society and sometimes acting kind of like an animal, he was as sculpted as a model. If things had gone differently for him, he probably could've had a really good, normal life. When I appeared, he looked over his shoulder at me.
"You've seen that movie three times," I noted, chuckling a little. He's so weird. "I do have others."
He shrugged and hauled himself to his feet. I wonder if he still skips the parts where the dragons get locked up.
I tried not to stare at his scars, which luckily hadn't reddened at all. I hadn't done anything to them besides apply antibiotic ointment, but they were healing like no other, with speeds as inexplicable as the science behind his wings.
I had originally considered some of the cuts in need of stitches, (unfortunately I lacked the expertise,) but they seemed to be healing themselves like magic, and my mind was completely boggled.
Healing that fast is definitely not possible, but I'm definitely not seeing things...
I don't even know how... I blinked hard, and recollected myself, as well as most of my expectations of reality. "So...I got the shirts done. Want to try it on and see if it fits?"
He raised an eyebrow.
I don't even know how long it's been since this guy last wore a shirt. "Please? I just spent an hour modifying these for your wings."
He still looked hesitant, but nodded.
I smiled, trying to contain my excitement as I unzipped the zippers and stepped to be right in front of him.
"But won't it get...?" he murmured as he slipped the shirt on. I moved around him, zipping the zippers up, then stepped back to see how he looked.
"Comfy?" I asked. Fits perfect, just like I expected.
"Strange..." he muttered, but his disorientation was melting into a slight smile that twitched as he tried to hold it down.
"Have you ever even worn a shirt with sleeves before?" I asked.
He shook his head.
"Well...I can always get rid of the sleeves if they bother you," I offered.
"No, it's perfect," He shook his head, gazing down at the cleanest shirt he'd worn in years. "This...is mine?"
"Yeah, I made it for you. It's yours now. And I'm also making more, so you can have a couple changes of clothes. I got you shorts and boxers too."
He erupted into a smile he couldn't hide, and wound up subtly covering his mouth with his hand to self-consciously hide it instead.
"Th-thanks," he said, a slight huff of joyful laughter lightening his voice, admiring himself in an old, cracked mirror leaning against a post.
"You're welcome." I beamed to see him grin so openly for the first time. I didn't even know he could smile, after all he'd been through. "You don't have to hide that," I said as he began shoving the grin back down. "You have a nice smile."
He bowed his head, the grin jumping right back onto this face. His hand shot in front of his mouth instinctively, but he slowly pulled the hand back down to let the smile show.
"Thanks," he repeated, finally locking a moment of eye contact with me.
I glanced away as my cheeks burned, not sure what to do, so I started rambling. "So...want to do anything? Play a game, read a book, maybe even go for a walk on our trails if no one else is out there. Or...watch a new movie, I mean, don't get me wrong, I love How to Train your Dragon...but I mean, there are lots of good movies out there."
He shrugged, and resumed examining his new shirt in the mirror.
"Aren't you feeling cooped up? Surely it's safe in the yard. Grandma's napping right now."
He shook his head.
"We could go out at night, maybe?"
He shook his head.
"So no outside? At all?"
He pursed his lips, deep in thought.
Well...I found him two miles from here...he couldn't have flown far from wherever he escaped from...
Whoever hurt him was somewhere around Manzano Mountain. Somewhere nearby was the monster that did this to him...
I bit my lip. "They're closeby, aren't they?"
He slowly dared to meet my eyes.
He nodded.
I swallowed. I took a deep breath, my hands feeling a little sweaty. Just knowing someone capable of that was nearby...
"It-it's safe here though," I told him, halfway just trying to convince myself too. "I'm sorry I can't find somewhere farther away for you...but...no one's come by this house in years. Even our mailbox is all the way down the road."
Should I be fleeing? Should I get in the car with Raven and just...drive, while we still can? What would've happened to him if I didn't happen to find him?
I gulped. If someone could do that to someone as strong as Raven, what could they do to me?
I tried to push it to the back of my head before I could focus in on the thought, as I'd done for days, but I couldn't tear my eyes off the bruises and scrapes that laced his arms.
Is that a bite mark, in his arm? A big, toothy dog bite... And that burn is too straight to be anything but a whip... And how did that one ever possibly heal without stitches?
That collar burn on his neck had to have been a shock collar, on a person, for god's sake... And all this happened so close to home. For all I know, Raven was being tortured just a few miles away from here... That thought sent a shiver down my spine. Whatever evil psychopath did this to him has always been just miles away...
"Melody?" Raven asked, peering at me, having correctly guessed where my mind went.
I sucked a deep breath in, jerked back to the present. "Sorry, just thinking," I apologized, trying to recover. How is he even still alive?
"He can't hurt you. I won't let him," he promised me firmly. He had only known me less than three days, but I was already everything he ever had. "Ever."
A huff of breath escaped me as my heart melted a little. "Thanks." That didn't really lift my fears...but it was at least a little comforting. 'I won't let him,' he'd said.
Oh, uh... He turned to me and picked up my hands, staring down at them and taking a deep, calming breath, running his fingers across my palms. I wondered at first if he was going to say anything, but the touch itself was all he seemed to have in mind to wordlessly voicing what he meant.
His eyebrows furrowed as he spotted some old cat scratches up my arm, reaching up to brush his fingers against them — fingers that were infinitely more scarred than the tiny marks on my arm.
"Mreeeh!" Potatonut meowed loudly, brushing against my leg.
"Sh*t!" Raven burst, scrambling away from the bird-chasing creature winding between my legs that I stooped to pet.
But as soon as I reached down, the little pest scurried away. What a b*tch. Off towards Raven, who scurried away from her.
Clearly finding it amusing, Potatonut then proceeded to chase Raven around the attic, who seemed to fear a single touch from that evil cat would drop him dead on the spot.
"Potatonut, you b*tch, cut it out!" I snarled, infuriated.
Raven, cornered, took a deep breath and flapped his wings hard and fast, sending the attic up in a dust storm.
My long hair flew everywhere as I coughed, trying to cover my mouth.
When he finally stopped and the dust settled, Potatonut was still sitting there, staring at him. He glared that cat down.
"F*ck off," Raven hissed at the cat, his leg poised to threaten a good kick; mind you, I knew he'd never kick that cat, not on purpose anyways. But it was a good threat.
She licked her whiskers and padded off and out of the attic. Well, at least he stood up to her this time instead of trying to run away. Baby steps.
"Sorry," I apologized for the cat. "She's declawed on her front paws, though, so she can't hurt you...unless you try to give her a bath."
Bathing Potatonut was a living nightmare, my arm could attest to that.
"Anyways...here's your underwear and shorts." I set the grocery bag down and started down the ladder dropping into the closet. "I'm going halfway back into town... Grandma waited until after I was back to ask me to grab her a few things. Be back soon."
Raven nodded, regaining his poise as I went downstairs, deciding to make a stop at the library to grab some books and movies for him besides 'How to Train your Dragon.'