I sulked silently down the stairs. Who did he think he was, anyway? Acting so ungrateful. And after all I did for him, too!

I needed guidance. There was no possible way that my dad had to go through anything like that with my mom. Of course, there was no way I could ask him. I'd have to ask the next best thing.

My mom looked up at me the moment I entered the den with a sympathetic look. "How's it going, Sweetie?"

"He's not listening to a word I say," I mumbled.

"Of course he's not," she gently laughed. "He's in a new environment. He has a lot to learn about our ways, and a lot has already been thrown at him. Everything is a shock to him right now. After some time, he'll calm down."

She patted the seat next to her, silently asking me to come over and sit next to her. I begrudgingly did as she asked and plopped down.

"Did you ever kick Dad?" I asked, leaning my head against her shoulder. "Call him insane? Cuss him out for looking in your general direction?"

She laughed and ran her fingers through my hair. "I called your father every name in the book and cussed at him every chance I got. But no, I never once kicked him."

I sighed. Why is Raiden being so difficult?

"Aw," Mom cooed. "You picked a fighter, didn't you?"

"I guess... I don't know how to control him. How did..." I trailed off, not sure if she was okay with discussing those details with me. God, I wished Dad was there to help me...

"It's alright to ask, Sweetie. Without your father here to guide you, I know this'll be difficult. But if anyone can do it, I know it's you."

I nodded and she pulled me into her side.

"Do you want some help figuring out how to break him?"

I nodded again. She always knew exactly what I needed.

"Okay. Well, the most common technique your father told me about was rape."

"No." I stopped her thought short. "I'm not doing that. He already thought I was going to do that, and he got so scared... I can't put him through that, no matter what the circumstance."

"That's alright. You can decide what you're willing and not willing to do. I won't make you do anything. I'm just going through your options."

"I understand." I stood and walked over to the bookshelf with the picture of my parents. I picked it up. It was so hard to imagine this lovestruck woman was once as scared and distant as Raiden. It gave me hope though. If my father could pull such a strong-willed person such as my mother into the traditions, I was sure I could do the same with Raiden. "What else can I do?"

"You can hit, kick, or whip him. It's one of the most effective, but takes a toll on you too."

I nodded. "I'll leave that for when he does something really bad."

"That's a good idea," she agreed. "Next, you could threaten to harm his old family. On the opposite side, you could also tell him you'll let him see his family if he behaves the way you want. But of course, you can't actually let him."

My mind raced. There were so many things I had to remember. So many ways to get what I wanted, but so few I was willing to resort to. My mother assured me that once he came around to our ways, he would forgive me for all the punishments because he would understand why I did it. But I still didn't like it...

"But starving," she continued, "was the most effective technique your father used on me. It's not overly cruel, and you get your point across quickly."

I set the picture back down and turned to face her. "How does that work, again?"

"Well, it depends on what you want him to do. Start with something small. He'll be more willing to break down for something he deems insignificant, because he won't really consider it 'giving in.' As he gets weaker, you can increase the demand of what you want."

When she didn't continue, I realized that she was actually asking me what I wanted to do.

"I guess first off, I want him to let me get near him."

She beamed. "How cute! Well, don't worry. That should be easy enough to pull off. Every time you go up to see him from now on, start by getting close to him. Touching him. If he does something you don't like, scold him and tell him to stop. If he doesn't, scold him again and leave."

"How will he understand that I'm starving him?"

"He won't. He'll realize that you keep leaving before the mention of food comes up. Soon enough, he'll start doing behavior you like in order to get you to stay longer. That's when you bring up food again. He'll figure out that when you get what you want, he gets what he wants."

I nodded again, starting to understand how it all came together. "How often do I visit him?"

"As often as you see fit. The longer you wait, the more on edge he'll be, but you'll have less visits during the day. You'll have to find your own equilibrium."

I understood what she was saying, but I was already a little skittish. Barely any time had passed, but I already wanted to go try again.

"You can go ahead," my mom said, reading my mind. "But one last thing. Everything I can tell you to help you is from the opposite perspective. I can help you get into his head, but I've never had to use any of these methods on anyone and I don't know what emotions and obstacles you'll come up against. Please try to keep me informed so I can help you as best I can."

"Of course, Mom." But I was already out of the room and on my way back to the stairs.

I did think to stop in the bathroom and gather a few items for him first.

For a moment, I considered knocking on the hatch that led into the attic, but I decided against it. The stairs would make enough noise when I unfolded them, so it's work just the same.

I pulled the stairs down and walked back up. I noticed Raiden's neck was still covered in his dried blood and his hands were no longer restrained. He sat reclusively on the mattress, watching my every move carefully.

I just wish he would come around sooner.

I sighed and walked over to the edge of the mattress. He pulled into himself more as I kneeled down next to him.

"Come closer," I commanded. "I want to clean that blood off your neck."

He hesitated, but straightened up and moved over a couple inches.

When I reached up to his jaw, he didn't shrink away. I brought up the wet cloth and started to clean off the blood. To my utter delight, he didn't try to move or get me to stop.

The process went along similarly when I tried using rubbing alcohol, an antibiotic cream, and wrapped gauze around his neck.

Once I was finished fixing him up, I bent down in front of him an pulled his jaw around so he would face me.

"How does that feel? Is it too tight?"

His eyes wandered, not wanting to look directly at me. "It's fine," he mumbled.

"Good. Does anything else hurt?"

"No."

"Good," I repeated. I let go of him and walked to the other side of the mattress, sitting down next to him without a word. I reached around him and pulled him closer. But of course he wasn't going to be that easy. That would be too much to ask.

He pulled my hand away from him and tried to move away, but not before I grabbed onto his wrist to stop him. "Stay here," I commanded.

"Fuck you," he mumbled. I let him pull away and walk across the room to the window. He sat down and stared out of it, acting as if I wasn't there.

I sighed audibly and walked back down the stairs without another word. The trap door thumped loudly as it closed, mainly because I didn't bother to close it gently.

As I stormed back to my room, I made sure to punch every wall along the way within arm's reach. It was surprising that no holes appeared.

I threw myself onto my bed and sighed as I resisted the urge to break something.

Patience was never my best virtue.