Blame this one on one of the older "Hooked on Phonics" commercials.
This one is set during DOOM, and our bikers are actually a year younger than they are in previous DOOM chapters (Valon's 13, Raphael is 20, and Alister is 16).
Don't worry if you can't see that this has been updated—FanFiction's alert system is down yet again.
"Whatcha doin', Raph?"
The blonde blinked, looking up at the teenager in surprise. He had been deeply immersed in his book, and he hadn't even heard Valon come into the room; he was reading one of his more favorite novels since he had the afternoon off as a break. The blonde, remembering the question, held up his book for Valon to see the cover. "I'm reading a book. It's pretty good," he replied conversationally.
The brunette frowned, staring at the cover. "Wha's it called?" he asked.
Raphael gave him a perplexed look. The title on the book was big enough for the Australian to see, so there shouldn't be a problem in reading it. Then again, the younger biker was across the room; maybe he couldn't see the title from where he was. After a moment of debate, Raphael bookmarked his page and tossed the book to the teen. "The title's on the front," he explained.
Valon caught the book and looked down at it. The teenager actually tilted his head as he stared intently at the book, biting his lip and looking down at the book with a furrowed brow. Raphael watched the boy silently mouth words as he stared at the book, and the brunette continued to give the book a baffled gaze.
After watching Valon for some time, something inwardly clicked and Raphael realized why the Australian looked so lost.
"Valon, can you read?" asked the blonde carefully, not wanting to offend the boy but also wanting to know the answer to his question.
The other teen stiffened, looking anxiously at the older man. Had this been anyone else (like Alister, who the teen did not get along with all that well), Valon would not have even acknowledged the question. But this was Raphael, who was much friendlier to Valon than everyone else was and who also humored a lot of his "mundane" questions. Therefore, the teen felt slightly more comfortable in answering the question.
"…No. On the streets, I never really bothered t' learn. I figured that I wouldn' need t' learn m' letters if I could just punch m' way through things," replied Valon at last, squirming uncomfortably under Raphael's steady gaze.
Raphael looked at the teen wordlessly for a moment before he rose from the chair. "Wait here," he said simply, leaving the room.
Valon wondered if Raphael was mad at him for something, though he couldn't imagine why the blonde would be angry. All Valon had said was that he didn't know how to read…perhaps his older companion was offended that Valon was not literate? No, that didn't seem right; Raphael wasn't that stingy to begin with. That seemed something that Kuriboh-Gurimo would do, not Raphael.
He looked up as the blonde re-entered the room, carrying with him a notepad and a couple of pencils. He set those on the coffee table before looking up at the brunette with ice-blue eyes. "Come on over here," said Raphael, gesturing to a spot on the sofa.
Valon cautiously stepped forward, sitting down and staring at the notebook quizzically. "Wha's this?" he asked.
Raphael opened the notebook to a blank page before he wrote a big letter 'A' and a little letter 'a'. "Can you copy both of those?" he requested, handing a pencil to Valon.
The Australian frowned for a few minutes at the blonde before his stormy expression cleared and he realized what Raphael was doing. "You're gonna teach me m' letters?" he asked in surprise.
Raphael shrugged. "Why not? Everyone needs to at least know the alphabet; certainly, it would be helpful that you knew how to read if we give you written directions or if Master Dartz gave you written instructions."
"You don' 'ave t' do that, mate. This's your afternoon off," began Valon in protest.
Raphael shrugged and gestured to his book. "I've read that three times before. I just like rereading books to catch things I didn't notice the first couple times," he said simply.
Valon looked at the older man for a moment longer before he hesitantly picked up the other pencil. Painstakingly, he copied the letters that Raphael had written on the page. His handwriting was wobbly and shaky, since he was unfamiliar with what he was doing, but he nonetheless copied the letters.
"All right, that's the letter 'A'," said Raphael instructionally. "It's the first letter of the alphabet, and it can have several different sounds to it depending on the word you use."
Noticing the lost expression on Valon's face, he said with a hint of amusement, "Don't worry. We'll get to that point eventually."
He then picked up his pencil again and wrote 'B' and 'b' on the page. "Now copy this one."
They continued in this manner until they got to the letter 'J', at which point Valon asked, "Am I goin' t' learn 'ow to write m' name?"
Raphael paused at the simple question, looking over at the boy. He noted the rather hopeful gleam in the Australian's eyes. He nodded, his own expression softening as he looked back at Valon. "Of course."
"And…your name, too? As well as Alister's?"
"If you want to," replied Raphael with some surprise, since Valon and Alister got along about as well as oil and water did.
Valon grinned widely at the blonde, but said nothing further as he once again copied the letters on the page. His handwriting, though rather shaky still, was steadily getting better. "This's better than goin' t' school," said Valon after another moment of silence.
"Really?"
"Yeah. I don' 'ave t' worry 'bout any detentions or 'omework, and you aren' laughin' at me for not knowin' 'ow to read."
Raphael looked over at Valon once again. "Why would I laugh at you for that?"
"It's kinda embarrassin' t' not know 'ow to read…" Valon trailed off uncomfortably.
"Don't worry about that now. By the time I'm done with you, you'll be able to read better than you were before," replied Raphael kindly, understanding Valon's discomfort about admitting that fact.
The rest of the afternoon passed in amicable silence, punctuated only when Raphael would explain what he had written and Valon dutifully repeating it.
"'ey, Raph?" asked Valon as the two of them stood up to go to dinner.
The blonde looked over at Valon. "Yeah?"
"Would it be too much if…er, if I, uh, if…ah bloody 'eck…"
"Yes, Valon. I'll do this again with you if you want me to," replied Raphael with mild amusement. "I don't mind."
The teen gave a sheepish grin, nonetheless following after the older man. "Thanks, mate," he said, cuffing the blonde's shoulder lightly.
Raphael didn't reply, but Valon spotted the smile and understood the silent, "You're welcome."