A/N: First things first, thanks to my friend Crivus for giving me the idea for this fanfic. Also, copyright: None of the Resident Evil nor the Tokyo Ghoul characters belong to me.

Enjoy the story!

An RPD cruiser pulled to a halt outside a three story building surrounded by a wrought iron fence. Two officers stepped out, and one pulled the rear door open, revealing three teenaged boys, one of whom was clearly older than the others, dressed in gothic black leather with several piercings in his ears and one in his nose.

The officer gripped the older one by the arm, and carefully extracted him from the backseat, his partner assisting the two younger boys on the opposite side. When the older one came into view, it was pretty clear that he'd recently gotten into a fight; a swollen lip and two large bruises on his cheeks, plus a cut below his left eye. His expression beneath the injuries was a mixture of severely annoyed and deadly serious.

"This the place, young man?" The officer released the boy's arm, indicating the building before them. A silent nod. "Alright, bring those two boys inside. You did a good thing stopping that man from taking them at the park."

As the three boys looked up towards the building, they were met by a lethally stern gaze from the woman that suddenly appeared at the building's front door.

"For God's sake, Tobias! What have you gotten yourself into this time?!" The woman came marching down the steps and straight towards the older boy, who instantly changed his stance and stood his ground, becoming angry in an instant.

"Are you his legal guardian, ma'am?" The officer beside him asked the woman immediately. The woman stopped in her tracks, met by icy blue defiant eyes and a police badge.

"I'm a social worker, this is an orphanage. He is in my care, yes." The woman explained. "May I ask what he's done this time, officer...?"

"Kennedy. Officer Kennedy." The cop shook the woman's hand briefly. "And to be honest, ma'am, he's a hero."

"I'm sorry?" The social worker was momentarily stunned at the announcement. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Well, he saved these two boys from being kidnapped at the park." Officer Kennedy gestured to the other boys, who had fallen utterly silent when the woman came outside. "Several witnesses reported to us that he'd been working at the park's concession stand when he spotted an unfamiliar man talking to the boys. He immediately ran to their aid when the man attempted to take them away by force. Though he and the man began violently fighting, it was still a noble deed. You should be proud of him. He saved the boys without a second of hesitation."

The woman's eyes narrowed at Tobias, who was still staring at her in defiance, as if daring her to challenge the claim. But, a glance at his wrists revealed that Tobias wasn't in handcuffs made her nod in silence.

"Thank you, officer Kennedy. Will that be all?" she gestured for the three boys to come inside, but stopped Tobias gently.

"Just giving the boys a ride home, no charges, don't worry, ma'am." Kennedy shook his head with a smile. "Have a good afternoon!"

Both officers got into the cruiser and left, leaving Tobias and the woman standing outside for a moment before she turned to Tobias and spoke quietly. "Clean yourself up, there's someone here to speak to you."

Tobias glanced at the woman, suspicious, but said nothing as he slowly walked inside the orphanage.

After cleaning his face and treating the cut under his eye, Tobias returned to his room to find a blonde woman in a suit seated at his desk, staring at him as he stopped in the doorway, assessing the situation in his customary silence.

"Tobias Darkwood?" The woman spoke with a small smirk. Tobias nodded, still not moving from the doorway. "I'm pleased to meet you. My name is Alice Abernathe."

Alice held out her hand, which Tobias momentarily stared at before shaking his head.

"Not a fan of handshakes, I take it?" Alice smirked, oddly amused at Tobias' refusal to shake her hand. "Not a big deal. You trust your instincts. Well done."

Tobias narrowed his eyes, growing more and more suspicious of Alice by the second. What was going on here?

"I heard about the incident in the park earlier. I take it you won the fight, yes?" Alice smiled suddenly, her honey dipped hazel eyes gracing Tobias' injuries for a moment. "You have a good heart, and strong morals. Very admirable."

Tobias was growing suspicious, but Alice suddenly stood up, and approached him, about half a head taller than he was. She leaned close to him, and whispered into his ear. "I'm considering adoption... You're at the top of my list, Toby."

Without another word, Alice pressed something into Tobias' hand and gracefully walked past him and down the hall, leaving Tobias to stare at the red and black business card she'd given him.

Alice Abernathe.
Head of Security.
Umbrella Corporation, Board of Directors.

Later that night, after Tobias and the rest of the orphanage had eaten dinner, Tobias laid on his bed, staring at Alice's card in silence.

From first impressions alone, Alice seemed like anyone in her position should be; confident, charismatic, and authoritative. She knew what she wanted. She was also quite observant and attentive. Probably really smart too.

Even as the rest of the boys were talking and having fun, Tobias continued to lay on his back in total silence, ignoring their din of noise, and not even caring to turn on his light as the sunlight outside his window began to fade from orange to a dull blue, shrouding him in darkness.

"Tobias? You in here?" One of the social workers leaned her head into his room, only able to locate him due to his icy blue eyes standing out in the gloomy darkness. "There's a phone call for you, a lady named Alice."

Tobias slowly rose from his bed, quickly slipping Alice's business card into his sleeve with a bit of sleight of hand, then followed the worker downstairs.

As they walked, the worker inwardly wondered why someone was calling for Tobias, considering that she'd never heard him speak. In fact, she didn't even know if he could speak!

As they arrived at the phone, Tobias slowly raised the handpiece to his ear, feeling the plastic clink against one of his earrings.

"Hello, Toby." Alice's voice spoke up, sounding like she was amused by his silence yet again. "I was just calling to see if you would like to meet me at the park, say, around 3 PM? I'd like to get to know you a bit, if that's alright."

Tobias said nothing, considering his work hours at the concession stand. His shift ended at 3... Did Alice know his hours?

Alice let out a small chuckle before speaking again. "If you agree, just hang up the phone, Toby. If not, stay on for a few more moments."

Tobias let out a silent breath through his nose, then hung up the phone. Without a word, he returned to his room, withdrawing Alice's card from his sleeve with a flick of his wrist, staring at the white text on the card, a tiny smile tugging at his lips as he laid back on his bed in the comfortably silent darkness.

Alice slowly lowered her desk phone, hanging up with a smile forming on her face as she leaned back in her chair. Out of the six boys she'd met that morning, the only one that really clicked with her was the mute Tobias. She'd have to review his files again to find out why he was, but she was looking forward to the following afternoon already.

The next day, Tobias went back to the city park, opened the concession stand at 9am, and began his work shift, just like he did every morning since school ended for the summer break. However, this time he was keeping an eye out for Alice in the passing crowds. Not to mention keeping an eye out for more creepy men trying to kidnap the children playing in the playground.

It wasn't until about 2:30pm that Tobias caught a glimpse of Alice walking along the paths, accompanied by what appeared to be a very tall bald man wearing sunglasses... a bodyguard, perhaps? She was on the Board of Directors for the Umbrella Corporation, after all.

Alice seemed completely at ease with the large man following her, so it must be when he wasn't with her that eyebrows would be raised. Tobias gave it no further thought when some kids came to the stand to buy snacks, distracting him long enough that when he glanced back up to find Alice again, both her and the bodyguard were gone.

Tobias continued to provide the snacks and drinks until his shift ended. He only had to wait for the other summer employee when someone tapped on his shoulder while his back was turned. He assumed it was someone requesting a snack, so he turned on his heel, only to come face to face with a beaming Alice.

"Hey, Toby. How're you?" Alice's eyes sparkled with amusement, knowing she wouldn't get a reply, no matter how hard she tried. It was still fun to watch Toby's reactions.

Tobias took a second to register that Alice wasn't wearing a suit like yesterday. She was wearing a casual summer dress and sandals with her sunglasses on her forehead. It was quite the shock to see her like this.

Tobias blinked once, his gaze lingering on a scar that adorned Alice's left collarbone, then he noticed her bodyguard staring him down. He stood his ground, remaining silent, despite Alice's question hanging in the air.

"Malcolm, please..." Alice held out her hand for a moment, to which the bodyguard reached inside his long brown coat and produced a wallet, clearly Alice's due to not having a purse or pockets to store it. "Can I get... a bag of Skittles, and something for yourself, Toby. My treat." Alice smiled as she slipped a twenty dollar bill from her wallet and slid it towards Tobias.

Tobias glance between Alice and the money for a split second. He was still considered on duty until the other employee arrived, so he couldn't take anything for himself... But Alice's willingness to buy him a snack meant she actually cared about him enough to overlook the rules.

Tobias silently retrieved a bag of Skittles from the display and handed them to Alice, quickly taking the twenty and giving her the change for just the Skittles. He was doing the right thing, in his mind. He couldn't put himself in such a risky position. Especially after the incident yesterday...

"Oh, I forgot... sorry." Alice held up her hands apologetically. "Your shift isn't over yet, is it?"

Tobias slowly shook his head, glancing past Alice for a moment to see the other employee approaching. He breathed a silent sigh of relief and moved aside as the other boy took over the stand, shooing Tobias away with a grin.

"How can I help you, ma'am?" He spoke with a beaming smile, but Alice held up her treat and smiled at Tobias as he exited the stand.

"Already covered. Thank you, Toby."

Tobias could feel the boy staring at him in surprise. It was well known he didn't talk, but to hear someone calling him by an obvious pet name, it was enough to stare in confusion. Even more confusing was the fact that Alice and Tobias walked away together, unlike how Tobias usually went back to the orphanage right away... Which was also in the opposite direction.

As they walked, Alice seemed to be enjoying the mutual silence. She did have something she wanted to say to Tobias, but she was waiting for a bit to allow Tobias to relax after working at the stand. He seemed at ease by the time they reached the park's large pond, taking a seat on a picnic table under a willow tree.

"Want some?" Alice offered him the now open bag of candy, but Tobias shook his head, staring through the hanging willow leaves across the water.

Alice didn't have to think hard to know he had something on his mind. His beautiful blue gaze wasn't as bright now as it was just moments ago. Her thoughts were suddenly broken when Tobias turned his gaze towards her... and spoke.

"How was your day, Alice?"

Alice was momentarily stunned at the revelation that not only did Tobias talk, but he also had a very sexy deep voice, complete with a Russian accent.

"I had an average day, so far. Though I am a bit surprised to hear you speaking. I thought you were completely mute." Alice smiled, relief washing over her knowing that she as wrong in her assumption.

"Silence was the only way I could express myself properly." Tobias spoke very calmly, almost monotonously. "Words and tone can be misinterpreted, but a silence cannot."

"Well, don't let me break your image, Toby." Alice teased him slightly. "I do actually like the silent brooding look you've got going on. It really suits you, for some reason."

Tobias smiled at Alice's honesty. It was true, silence was his strength, his armour and his signature weapon. But, for some reason, Alice seemed to get past his weapon, foil his strength, and defeat his armour. She was different than the other potential foster parents over the years that tried to break the silence around him.

They tried coercing him, pleading, begging, even childish tricks like tickling him when he was smaller. None succeeded, and the silence only strengthened as the years went by... Until now.

Alice had a strange way of dancing past the silence, through the veil, and entered the inner sanctum of his voice. He couldn't explain it, but it was pretty clear that the two of them shared an unknown connection.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Tobias spoke up suddenly. "Why do you call me Toby instead of Tobias?"

"I think it's cute." Alice beamed towards Tobias for a moment, then became serious. "Why? You don't like it?"

"I was curious. It's alright, Alice." Tobias actually smiled for the first time, and it lit up his otherwise sombre face brightly. "I kinda like it too."

Alice couldn't help by smile even more when she saw Tobias smiling. Despite his dark appearance and his silence, he was a positive kid, responsible, had strong morals, and above all, she actually thought he was incredibly intelligent for his age.

"You're one of the oldest at the orphanage, right?" Alice asked, and Tobias gave a nod. "Seventeen, if I remember correctly... yes?"

"Yes. My birthday is August first." Tobias replied. "When's yours?"

"September twenty third." Alice replied with a cheeky grin. It was less than two weeks until Tobias' birthday. This was good for Alice, in the end. "I'll see what I'm allowed to do with you for your birthday, not sure about the orphanage's rules."

"What makes you think I'm going to wait that long?" Tobias grinned. "I'm more than willing to let you adopt me the moment we get back to the orphanage."

Alice's eyebrows shot straight up at Tobias' comment. Had she already won Tobias over?

"Then again... The choice is yours to make when you want to." Tobias continued, glancing at Alice with a smirk.

Elsewhere in the city park, in a secluded clearing deep in the forest, a girl with long purple hair was feasting on the corpse of a man, her mouth and hands coated solid red with blood.

She suddenly stopped feasting upon the man's intestines, sniffing the air as she looked over her shoulder. A moment later, her red and black eyes narrowed as she let out a low hiss of satisfaction.

"Out doing some hunting, I see... Alice..."

A/N: Rate and review, since this is a new idea and an anime I'm not very familiar with quite yet. Let me know what you think, and any changes/suggestions I should make.