--cheek, Shivero seemed to quietly nuzzle against it even more; using the hand on the back of her head to pull her closer to him, and rest her head against his chest.
For some reason, she felt like home, to him...
She had herself to thank for the easing tension around them. Frankly, she'd prevented him from leveling the trees within their line of sight, after something stepped on a twig.
He'd become putty in her hand, since she'd managed to make him so incredibly docile. Hell, his--
--original caretaker could never get him this calm, even on his best days!
So long as she didn't try to put her fingers in the space between skin and mask, and tug, she was fine rubbing her thumb gently over his mask. It felt nice... Relieving, even.
While she caressed his--
--For a moment, he considered retreating out of discomfort, but...
For some reason, his body told him not to; allowing her to cradle his cheek, which in turn made him lean into her hand. And was that...
An odd purring noise? Must've been.
So long as either someone else learned her technique, or she stayed by his side, it would benefit him in the future, certainly.
Perhaps she was feeling the same soothing effects she had on him, with his peculiar act of affection. At least, that's what he thought, when he--
--heard that faint noise of hers.
Her smile, yet again, managed to keep him tame and happy, himself; a sort of content hum of his own muffled by the mask that made up part of his face.
For a moment, however, he'd tense; oculars shrinking as she reached for his facial area.--
pupils, to suggest that his intentions weren't ones that were meant to bring harm to her. He couldn't speak, but he could use his actions, couldn't he?
From how his eyes remained docile-looking, it was very likely that Tater could come to that conclusion, that his sound was one of positive meaning.
The brighter the woman's smile became, to the one called a freak by many, the safer he felt around her; likely making her feel--
--forehead rested against hers, the arm that mimicked her own arm's actions would slowly withdraw from contact with her; instead reaching behind her head, and beginning to caress her head with his blue thumb. His eyes would reopen, to look into hers; revealing his enlarged--
Oddly, it seemed to work, though not even those who knew him would likely be able to explain how or why it worked.
Her genuine smile would get a muffled hum out of him; indicating... Joy? It was hard to tell. Since her movements were soft and slow, he didn't perceive them as--
--he at ease? It seemed quite like it.
When he was calm, he seemed to have no malicious thoughts. However, what she didn't know, was that this was the first time in a long time for him, to be docile. As such, he would gently lean his forehead against hers; closing his eyes as--
--brushing that she was performing on his wrist and hand. His breathing slowed, considerably.
Once again, he'd mimic her movements and touches; tilting his head, and letting his tail stop hitting the ground so violently.
Who knew what went on behind those eyes... What thoughts he was having, at any given point in time? It was impossible to tell, except for the few times his body language gave hints.
Unlike others who came close enough to touch him... She was gentle, like someone else he knew.--
--started to feel less tense; finally loosening his grip on her chin.
Her soft voice seemed to get his pupils to enlarge; as if making him appear more docile, compared to when they shrank. Slowly, he'd remove his hand from her chin, and put it on her own wrist; copying the--
--callously smacked the ground beneath them several times, as though remaining there only agitated him more. He couldn't speak; leaving him incapable of communicated, other than a growl.
She at least caught on quickly; sparing her for, at the very least, a few seconds longer.
Once her cheeks flushed, had he noticed it in time, he would've poked them with his free hand. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
Frantically breathing, and with his eyes darting--
--that was on her chin. Or, more specifically, his wrist. Rubbing it softly would make his head slowly turn back to her; heavy, fast breathing and wild eyes indicating that he was on edge.
Still, he'd tilt his head; his other hand slowly lowering to his side.
"..." His tail--