How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
[Melliphant] enjoyed picking on Tom, who was small and shy and had no friends to stick up for him. (1.23)
Poor no-friends Tom. This can account for a lot of things, like his hero complex. Perhaps by saving the day, he can impress someone into being his friend...
Quote #2
[Hester] tried to smile. It was the first time [Tom] had seen her smile: an ugly, crooked thing, but very welcome; it made him feel that she was starting to like him and didn't just regard him as an annoyance. (8.34)
Okay, this is a complicated sentence—just like Hester, who is a complicated person. Tom? He's kind of like a puppy (a puppy who criticizes others' appearances). He wants to find a friend and be loved. Hester? Friendship is hard for her. She has to "try" to smile just like she has to "try" to find friends. Why is this so difficult for her to do?
Quote #3
"Even if Valentine has sent someone after you, you are among friends." (12.14)
This might be the first time Tom has found a friend. Heck, it might even be the first time the word has been used in the book. Still, Tom rejects Anna Fang's friendship because he believes her to be a political traitor. Should ideological differences come between friends?
Quote #4
"I'm sorry I never got a chance to say good-bye..." (12.33)
Sounds like Hester and Grike might have been friends... at least as much as a girl bent on revenge and a soulless cyborg can be friends. They're no Harry and Ron, but they're close.
Quote #5
"He wouldn't kill me, he wouldn't!" (12.42)
The italics here specify: yes, Grike would kill. No, he wouldn't kill Hester. At least she doesn't think so, because she thinks they have some sort of friendship. He raised her—but that doesn't mean they were friends.
Quote #6
"I'm already a monster!" [Hester] shrieked. "No, you're not!" Tom managed to heave himself to his knees. "You're my friend!" he shouted. (22.36-22.37)
Of course, Tom also desperately wants to be friends with Valentine. He's kind of a monster, too. Maybe being a monster and Tom's friend aren't mutually exclusive. Maybe it's even easier, or more meaningful, to be friends with someone who isn't perfect. (We haven't tried being friends with, you know, actual monsters. So we can't offer our perspective on that.)
Quote #7
[Tom] had grown used to that face and he would miss [Hester's] lopsided smiles. (26.15)
Tom and Hester might be friends now, but will he ever let her forget that her face has been slashed? Let it go, man. Just. Let. It. Go.
Quote #8
I shouldn't have stopped you [from killing Valentine] before, but I'm glad I did, because the Gut Police would have killed you and then we'd never have met. (29.10)
"And I never would have learned that sometimes killing other people is for the best. At least we have that in common, Hester," says Tom in our little fanfiction universe.
Quote #9
[Hester] wanted [Tom] to know that he was the best thing that had happened to her. (33.56)
Hester starts to feel like she's friends with Tom way after he feels like he's friends with her. They really do complement each other. Hester shows Tom what it means to be independent, and Tom shows Hester that being alive isn't all bad.
Quote #10
[Katherine] smiled, pleased that she had met her half sister at last, and wondering if they were going to be friends. (35.37)
It's sweet that this is one of the last thoughts on Katherine's mind before she dies: she wants to be friends with Hester. We're not sure if they would be friends or not. They both kind of want their own father dead, though, so they have at least one thing in common.