#don’t get me started on randall tier

[t3acupz]

the struggle of being obsessed with a minor character from a show is that there’s almost no content but i’m also super excited when i find anything that can add to his lore. matthew brown is in two episodes (barely the first one but still counts). the auxiliary content i have to work with are tucker’s interviews about matthew, his hannibal inspired photoshoot for adon magazine, the making of mukozuke documentary, and bryan fuller’s interviews about the character. i also base a lot of my headcanons on the many amazing brownham fics i’ve read, and other characters that tucker has played that help flesh out matthew’s backstory

[redlestat]

hannibal season 2 thoughts

this was my first time watching the show and all of this are all my own opinions. i do not have any knowledge of the show except of what i have watched

PLEASE DO NOT SPOIL SEASON 2 TO ME AS I HAVENT WATCHED IT YET

i genuinely don’t know where to begins my head was so clear in s1 but right now im 🙂

“did you think you changed me like i changed you” “i already did”

this exchange resumed the whole season perfectly.

when will will was in the BSHCI he changed, he accepted this part of him he tried so hard to refute for both reason :

- understand hannibal and dive into his darkness to catch him just like he would do to a crime scene

- everyone think im insane why fight it and just embrace it. he has nothing better to do anyway

as the season goes, it is evident will is becoming hannibal-like and we see that the whole season, the way he thinks, he even adopts hannibal’s sense of style and hairstyles. The empathy that once defined him isn’t that noticeable anymore.

for exemple he orchestrated all by himself and in his own mind hannibal’s murder by manipulating the nurse and hannibal in the process. he only had one purpose and it was to get hannibal and he was willing to do anything no matter the consequences. He doesn’t stop even after his release. he chose to go back to hannibal to enter his mind to uncover the truth, find evidences and expose him. He was well aware it meant being under hannibal’s manipulation again and i think Will lost himself in confusion between who he really was, what he wanted, his objectives and his feelings towards hannibal wether it was platonic or romantic.

When bringing human meat to hannibal was to please hannibal, to make him think they’re even more identical that he thought but also to understand hannibal’s world. We know freddie lounds isn’t dead and will would never bring animal meat as Hannibal would recognize the authenticity of the meat so in my opinion it’s Randal Tier as we saw that will had part of him in his refrigerator.

at the end will had to choose between his loyalty to justice and hannibal and he chose both. im convinced will was never going to let that dinner happen, but he couldn’t just run away with hannibal because his empathy couldn’t abandon jack and his sense of justice behind, he probably would have surrendered himself with proof that hannibal’s was the chesapeake rippers.

in the first half of this season, i really hated hannibal. I think it’s because we didn’t get to see his friendship with will wich balanced things out in season 1 . Plus he didn’t have a psychiatrist anymore, we couldn’t understand him or what he was doing. Not being able to understand hannibal was a big struggle for me this season, to connect or feel bad for him. he was unpredictable, unreadable.

hannibal started to become more like will, because he started to have feelings, started to have empathy and something/someone to care about. he saved jack’s wife because he valued their friendship, he killed the judge because he could not bear to have will get the death sentence.

hannibal didn’t kill abigail because he wanted to create a “family” with Will, he wanted to give will a child. family was never something he anticipated before.

his thing was alana was weird it showed us how far hannibal is willing to go, he obviously didn’t love her or have feelings for her it was all to manipulate her and to let will only have one person which is him. To me it’s also Hannibal's desire for control as he felt his influence over Will slipping. Controlling someone like Alana, who seemed more susceptible, gave him a sense of stability amidst the chaos. It showed his need to maintain power in his world, even as things fell apart around him. But in reality he still had will and everything under his fingers besides will being aware of the manipulation he still went in.

this whole season was how will and hannibal cannot bring to kill each other no matter how much they needed to. when hannibal sent randal tier he for sure knew will would kill him. He sent him to satisfy will’s need to kill more than anything else.

will pointed his gun at hannibal far enough to kill him but he was never able to pull the trigger. he told peter “i envy your hate because its makes it easier to kill”. that’s why he cannot get to kill hannibal because no matter everything hannibal has done, Will cannot get himself to hate him. he loves hannibal, he wants to spend time with him even if it in a very toxic environment.

in season 1 it was unclear what type of feelings they had for each other but it’s very clear this time, undeniable. it cannot have words to describe it but its beautiful in it’s own way.

no one knows them better than each other. Despite the lies, the covers they aren’t themselves more than when they are together. They never say it explicitly but they know. Every of their dialogue is a love letter.

here are my favorite quotes that are worth a thousands i love you

“ do you have a shadow peter?, someone only you can see, someone you considered a friend, he made you feel less alone”

“i would kill you with my hands” “guns lack intimacy”

“stay with me” “where else would i go”

i need to talk on this one. Hannibal made sure will had no one in his life expect him so when will said this, it’s a mix of resentment towards hannibal control over his life and entourage but also the fact that even with that he wants to be with him in such situations, because he feel safe and understood despite the facades and the danger.

“we know where we are with each other, shouldn’t that be enough?”

the achilles and patroclus dialogue

they both know they can kill eachother at any time but they can’t stay apart for too long. even at the end, when hannibal felt the most betrayed and vulnerable, he couldn’t get himself to kill will. yes he stabbed him but hannibal knowledge of the human body is far enough for him to know what and what not could kill a man. He could harm him without killing him. hannibal killed his own sister but couldnt bring himself to to kill will. When he hugged will , it felt like he was apologizing, to feel him one last time, to show him that he does love him despite all of this. Will understood hannibal bc he felt the same thing at the beginning of the season. that’s why he didn’t defend himself and even if he did it would just be a battle going nowhere with no death.

i was surprised when Hannibal killed abigail, im not sure why he did it. Maybe he thought will loved abigail more than he loved him, or perhaps he didn’t want them to be together without him when he left or even to show him what it is to lose someone you love. He showed his control over will’s life once again.

This season was a roller coaster, the killings were even more beautiful than the first season, and the killers even more insane, making hannibal kind of look good. The cinematography, the transition, the parallels, the soundtrack were perfect.

My favorite scene was the dinner between will and hannibal when will brought meat. it was just perfect.

side notes: i loved jimmy and zeller and wished we have seen more of their dynamic. i understand that it is due to beverly passing but they brought a bit of laugh and fresh air in this very dark and cold blooded show.

[sammysamstuff]

Ok but couldn’t Hannibal just love Will for he was? Why did he do the therapy and kept trying to force Will to kill and to become? Will’s becoming Hannibal kept trying to make him a killer why couldn’t he just love and accept Will for who he was? Why could he only love Will if Will killed with him abd became his murder husband or whatever

Hiya. With all due respect, there’s a few incorrect assumptions on your end. Let me try and clarify - I’ll provide canon examples further down:

1) Hannibal never turned Will into a killer - Will was already a killer, and enjoyed the sensations that it brought him. Hannibal simply helps him understand and accept that. With that understanding came Will’s change, his own acceptance of his dark nature.

Canon makes Will’s killing instinct and darkness very clear in various instances and to other characters also, not just Hannibal: for example, the FBI turned down Will’s application due to his unstable nature, he didn’t pass the psychological tests needed to become an agent. Alana had never felt comfortable being alone in a room with Will, she knew something was going on with him. Freddie Lounds was right about Will literally from day 1 - she’s annoying as hell, but she was right.

There was always something off with Will’s mind and personality and it was obvious to others too, not just Hannibal.

2) Hannibal absolutely loves and worships Will for who he is. The only thing is, Will Graham was faking a whole persona for a long time, wearing a mask until he met Hannibal and started therapy. It’s with Hannibal that Will finally drops the person suit and fully reveals his true self: a cold-blooded killer. So it’s not that Hannibal didn’t love the “Episode 1 Will Graham”, he did! Like Mads Mikkelsen said so himself, it was love at first sight for Hannibal. The only problem is,“Episode 1 Will Graham” is not the real Will Graham. It’s a mask, a person suit.

Here’s 4 examples that come to mind where we see the unveiling of the “true Will Graham”:

1st meeting at Jack’s office

When Hannibal meets Will for the 1st time in Jack’s office, it’s quite clear to him from a psychiatric POV that Will Graham is a) not comfortable in his own skin; b) is incorporating a persona “autistic-like, hostile, introverted, avoiding eye contact” to keep people away and to keep his own dark nature hidden; c) Will Graham lives in fear, he’s afraid of his own empathy- like Hannibal said Will’s mind is “shocked at the associations”. Upon meeting Will only once, Hannibal immediately understands that Will is ACTIVELY hiding his true self behind a façade - Hannibal detects a killer, a wolf in sheep’s clothing, Will just doesn’t know it yet, or doesn’t accept it yet. Hannibal read him like a book, which angered Will and made him storm out of Jack’s office “you won’t like it when I’m psychoanalysed”.

2nd meeting - breakfast at the motel/Will kills Hobbs

Sparked by love and curiosity, Hannibal pursued Will by bringing him breakfast and volunteering to go with him to investigate the Shrike case, which leads to Hobbs’ being killed by Will (all in a day’s work 😂). Upon meeting Will only a 2nd time, Hannibal promptly stated that he sees Will’s true nature: “you’re the mongoose I want under the house when the snake slithers by”. Criticise Hannibal however you like, but he’s a damn good shrink: again Will is caught off guard by the accuracy of Hannibal’s statement about him. Shortly after, when they meet Hobbs, Will brutally kills him. Later in therapy, Will tells Hannibal “I don’t consider Hobbs my victim, I consider him dead” and “I liked killing Hobbs”. So it’s with Hannibal that Will feels comfortable enough, for the 1st time in his life, to start openly unveiling his true personality and how he really feels about killing people.

Killing Randall Tier

When Hannibal is bandaging his hands after killing Randall Tier, Will confessed to him: “I’ve never felt as alive as I did when I was killing him”. It doesn’t get any more honest than this.

Dinner with Chiyoh at Lecter Castle

During dinner with Chiyoh and upon meeting her for the 1st time too, which is so interesting, Will is very clear and honest about his relationship with Hannibal and his own self-awareness: “I’ve never known myself, as well as I know myself, when I’m with him”. Will is confessing that before meeting Hannibal, he’s never known himself. Ever. How powerful and absolutely beautiful is that confession??? In his 30-something years of life, Will Graham has never known who he really was. He does now. It was Hannibal presence in his life that allowed that self-knowledge.

Conclusion:

Throughout the show, we start learning that Will is indeed a killer, that’s his true nature, he likes the power that comes with it and the violence, but he’s conflicted about it. Hannibal’s goal is simply to help Will embrace who he really is, not turn him into something he’s not. Will also corroborates that Hannibal is the one who fully understands him and the person who allowed his own self-knowledge.

Hannibal loves the real Will Graham, in all his glory, he’s only ever wanted to love the real person, not the person suit, not the mask. That’s the difference. The same way that Will Graham loves Hannibal Lecter the Chesapeake Ripper, not Dr Lecter, the person suit.

[slashyrogue]

AU-gust Day 2: Immortals

He doesn’t know why he’s nervous. 

Will stands outside the door trying to calm down his fast-beating heart, reciting the same shit by rote he has for decades now, and tells himself he’s going to make it through just fine. He’s never botched one of these check-ins, not ever, and yet every single time he worries this will be the one that gets him in trouble. 

The guard opens the door, the cut of his dark brown suit the same as all the others outside of every door in this long never-ending hallway. 

“You can come in now.” 

His robotic voice makes Will even more nervous, and he steps inside taking a deep breath only to look up sharply. 

“Oh.” 

Will has been to these meetings every single month for nearly eighty years, and yet not once in the last twenty has he seen the one face he thought he never would again. He blinks back tears as he walks forward, taking in the ten seated immortal monsters who every year go through hundreds of others like him to be sure they’re safe to live among the humans. Their faces are all familiar, all safe, save for one. 

Hannibal Lecter. 

The vampire who left him in the night two decades ago and never once let Will know why. 

The creature who makes him ache, whose scent he wants to drown in, and who rejected him after only one night together. 

One magical, special night. 

The woman in the middle of the council holds up Will’s file, Bedelia DuMaurier, a vampire like Hannibal himself, and reads with a smile. 

“Will Graham, werewolf, works in the FBI solving…” she looks up, “Murders? Are you a corpse sniffing hound then?” 

Will grits his teeth. 

“No, ma’am,” he says, not looking at Hannibal though he can feel the vampire’s eyes on him, “I…I get the whole of it through scent but I…I can…” 

“He can see the killers,” Hannibal finishes, making Will bite back a moan at the sound of his voice, “Can’t you, Mister Graham?” 

Will tries to hold in his tears as turns to look at him. “Yes, Sir.” 

Hannibal’s smile fades as they look at each other. 

“Do you…live alone, Mister Graham?” 

“Yes,” he says, shaking now, “I…I don’t have a mate.” 

“Odd,” Abel Gideon remarks, his voice almost a cough which is not uncommon for ghouls, “For a werewolf to not have a pack.” 

“I have dogs,” he says, trying not to glare, “I…I don’t need a mate. I’m perfectly fine on my own…Sir.” 

“Will,” Hannibal says, his voice like honey in Will’s ears, “Have you…not…a companion? No one to warm your bed at night or…” 

Will cannot hold in his tears as he looks at him and Bedelia scoffs. 

“I see the puppy is angry,” she says, “You’re not usually so skittish, Mister Graham. Do you have something to hide?” 

“No, I…” 

“You’re crying,” she taunts, “Any werewolf in tears is obviously hiding something underneath his puppy dog exterior. I think perhaps he…” 

“NO!” Hannibal growls, making everyone look at him. 

Bedelia stares at Hannibal angrily as Will feels like he’ll shift any second. 

“Are you questioning the council’s decisions, Mr. Lecter? This is your first year as a member and I’d hate to have you dissolved so soon on your first day. You’ve been exemplary so far,” she looks at Will, “Or is there something about this one? Do you like puppies?” 

Hannibal growls. “He is no puppy, Ms. DuMaurier, and you are out of line. This is not his first time, and you know he’s safe. Let him through.” 

“I think perhaps…’ 

“SHUT UP MRS. KOMEDA!” Hannibal yells, “OR I WILL SHUT YOUR MOUTH FOR YOU!” 

His eyes are red, angry, and Will can smell his scent so strong his cock is heavy between his legs. He falls to the floor, growling, and several things happen at once. Two other werewolves on the council get up, growling, and start to argue with Bedelia, Tobias Budge and Randall Tier, while Will hears a crash to the floor just as he feels his clothes ripping. 

And a second later Hannibal has hold of him. 

“Breathe, Will,” he whispers, his scent making Will dizzy, “Breathe for me.” 

Will’s vision is yellow, and yet he sees Hannibal so clearly, he whimpers. 

“I hate you so much.” 

A dark tear falls out of Hannibal’s eye, and he realizes that vampires cry blood. 

Why is Hannibal crying? 

“I know, Mylimasis,” Hannibal whispers, “I know, but…you cannot shift here. Breathe.” 

Will breathes in and out, calming, and Hannibal nuzzles his cheeks making him purr as his body relaxes. 

“HANNIBAL EXPLAIN YOURSELF!” Bedelia yells. 

Will’s eyes are heavy as he hears Hannibal growl. 

“He is mine,” he says, “And no one will throw him down with the discards. If you do not trust him among the humans, then he’s remanded to my care as of right now.” 

Will’s confusion makes him sigh. “What? You…” 

“You can’t make that choice, Hannibal, you…” 

“If you do not, I will kill every single person in this room. You know what I can do.” 

Everyone freezes. 

“You’re banned from this council,” Bedelia says, her voice shaking, “And…I never want to see that mongrel puppy again. He’s your problem now.” 

Will purrs as Hannibal pulls him up, nuzzling his neck. “Done.” 

He barely has time to take in his fate as Hannibal lifts him, confusing him even more, and he’s carried through the exit like a ragdoll. 

“What..what did…how…” 

“Sleep, Will. Just sleep.” 

The rest of Will’s worries fade away, and yet he has no idea of his new ones. 

Not that it matters when he feels so good.

[k-s-morgan]

Hey K :) do you think Will really intended to kill Hannibal via Matthew Brown? To me that was Will’s half-arsed attempt at vengeance and mostly because “he was curious to see what would happen” which is a recurring theme between Hannigram. I don’t think Will actually expected Matthew Brown to succeed because really, what were that guy’s chances trying to kill the Chesapeake Ripper?

I personally think that deep down Will didn’t expect Matthew Brown to succeed, and was surprised when he actually managed to almost kill Hannibal. Same thing with Hannibal sending Randall Tier after Will - it seems more like a game between Will and Hannibal, these half-attempts at killing each other. It’s like they know they will both prevail.

Thoughts?

PS: I know you wanna keep this blog to your fandoms and writing so I wont get into it but I hope all is well with you, your family and friends as much as it’s possible under the circumstances.

Hey! Thank you so much for your wishes and interesting questions, and for your support in general! <3

Hannibal is an easier character to understand, in my opinion, so I'll cover him and Randall first. I have no doubts that Hannibal didn't even consider Will dying. Hobbs, Tobias, Gideon - these were more of a test. Randall was a gift.

Hannibal always embraced the fact that Will is a more righteous kind of killer: ever since S1, he's been sending Will "bad people" as sacrificial lambs. At the same time, Will never risked turning into a vigilante because his motivation for killing is different - like he says repeatedly, he enjoys the feeling of power he gets, not the fact that he rids this world of the darkness. But Will needs excuses to justify his impulses. In E9 of S2, he tries to shoot Ingram, allegedly in defense of Peter. Hannibal warns him against it.

Hannibal: Don't do it for Peter. If you want to kill, Will, you have to do it for yourself.

He thinks Will's design has evolved enough to make him stop hiding behind the excuses. He stops Will's murder attempt. And he's right: in the next episode, Will admits he wanted to kill Ingram because he wanted to experience the same heady feeling he got after killing someone before. He complains to Hannibal that he lost this chance because of him.

Will: I regret what I did in the stables … The mistake was allowing you to stop me.

Hannibal: So, it's not pulling the trigger you regret. It's not pulling it effectively.

Will: That would be more accurate.

When Hannibal asks Will to imagine a scenario he wouldn't have regretted, Will imagines killing Ingram. To Hannibal's question of what he saw, he answers:

Will: A missed opportunity. To feel like I felt when I killed Garret Jacob Hobbs. To feel like I felt when I thought I killed you.

So Hannibal starts to plan. He sends him Randall as a gift in apology for his interruption - Randall is also a bad person, but the difference is, Will kills him for personal reasons, like Hannibal wanted. He throws away the gun and pounces; he murders him even when he's already incapacitated. He does it for himself, not under the pretence of protecting someone. Hannibal wanted to rectify the situation with Ingram by giving Will another, more appropriate and challenging victim. He never doubted Will would succeed, in my opinion. He took it for granted.

Another piece of evidence confirming Randall-as-a-gift theory is this deleted bit from the script: Will was supposed to attach a note to Randall's body when delivering it to Hannibal:

A piece of paper is pinned to his chest. On it is written: "Return to Sender."

With Will and Matthew, it's more complicated. From the text we have, I would say that Will genuinely wanted Hannibal killed. He was full of dark anger and bitterness; he hated the conflicting feelings Hannibal continued to evoke in him. Thinking Matthew is going to succeed is one of the reasons why Will sees himself turning into Will-digo, as the script calls him, aka Will's personal version of Stagman. This was his first conscious murder attempt, and he was committed to it enough for this transformation to happen. Later on, in the Randall episode, Will also admits he thought Matthew would succeed:

Will: [I wanted to] feel like I felt when I thought I killed you.

But was he having doubts and regrets? Yes, I'm certain of it. It's all in the show and in the script, as well as in Will's nature in general. He's incapable of confidently turning against Hannibal, the only person who accepts and understands him. After Matthew goes on his mission, Will is described like this:

Will Graham sits on his bunk, head down, contemplating Hannibal's murder.

Doesn't feel like he's happy or eager. When Alana comes to him:

Will looks at Alana. Wants to tell her.

Alana: Will? What have you done?

Will: What I had to.

He turns from the bars and walks back to his bunk. Alana watches him for a beat, but he doesn't look up.

Same here: he wanted to confess to Alana to give her a chance to save Hannibal. "What I had do" sounds forced: Will saw this as necessity but deep down, he didn't want it.

So I do think Will intended for Matthew to kill Hannibal, but he would have spent the rest of his life regretting this. This was the first and last time he came this close to seriously planning Hannibal's murder.

[questionablygourmet]

Will and Hannibal: participation and transformation

An anon prompted me recently to talk about why Will fell in love with Hannibal, and I’ll rarely turn down an opportunity to wax rhapsodic about certain themes in the show, so here we go!  

There’s a few key places where Will himself addresses the issue.  The first one I want to mention is in Contorno, where Will says of Hannibal to Chiyoh,

We afforded each other an experience we may not otherwise have had.

The direct context of this is that they’re talking about violence and influence, but it’s true far more broadly than that, as is referenced many times over the course of Hannibal and Will talking with each other and numerous other characters - their relationship with one another is a unique experience to both of them, being known and understood and accepted in a way they’ve not otherwise encountered.  

There’s a bit of commentary about this from Hugh that makes the rounds often enough that I’m not going to bother fishing up the direct quote, but to paraphrase, he says it’s like Will’s a chess master who’s never met another person in the world who plays chess, until he meets Hannibal.  It’s not just about Hannibal being very intelligent, as most of the characters on the show fit that description, but Hannibal being specifically equipped to operate on not just the same level as Will does, but the same wavelength.  To extend the metaphor, someone like, say, Alana doesn’t really play chess, but she’s an expert at Go.  People who play chess and people who play Go might have plenty to talk about and appreciate about each other, but they’re not playing the same game, so they can’t play together, at least not equally.  

This is something that we see starting to show itself even early in season 1 - Will’s initial standoffishness toward Hannibal rapidly dissipates as Hannibal shows that he’s not just another psychiatrist who wants to study Will, but someone who can understand and enjoy Will - his thoughts, his sense of humor, his company - as a whole human being and not just a “unique cocktail of personality disorders and neuroses” (thanks, Chilton).  Of course this gets rather tragically undermined throughout season 2, initially by the bombshell betrayal of Will’s trust, and later as Will sees a pattern in Hannibal’s patient history via Randall Tier and Margot Verger, but even through Will’s seething anger and distrust, the dynamic persists.  Even when they’re at odds, they speak the same language and connect to one another to an elevated degree.

(Incidentally, this is a really common - albeit not uniquely or exclusively - neurodivergent experience of deep love, be it romantic or otherwise.)

Continuing on that theme of both understanding and appreciation is a bit of a more esoteric discussion of different conceptualizations of love as represented in the show.  In Shiizakana, Will has a dream where he kills Hannibal via stag-powered squishing, and in the dream Hannibal says to him,

No one can be fully aware of another human being unless we love them.  By that love, we see potential in our beloved.  Through that love, we allow our beloved to see their potential.  Expressing that love, our beloved’s potential comes true.

This is a near-quote from Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl, which you could say both Will and Hannibal have diegetically read, since Hannibal gets to quote it in another scene in the waking world - “An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior” - or you could just say that Bryan Fuller has clearly read it and the characters don’t know they’re quoting something, but that distinction isn’t important here.  What is important here is that it’s coming from Will’s mind and it’s indicative of some of his attitudes about love - in a vacuum, one could perhaps argue that it’s just indicative of how he thinks Hannibal thinks about love, but then in Secondo, he says, with almost painful sincerity to Chiyoh,

I’ve never known myself as well as I know myself when I’m with him.

I think this is a really succinct and potent re-affirmation of that concept of love-as-actualization/transformation (self and other), which goes hand in glove with Will and Hannibal’s shared anxiety toward their love as a bringer of violent change to the self.  (Briefly, because s2-3 are positively brimming with relevant quotes, “Do you think you could change me, the way I’ve changed you?”  “If you don’t kill him, you’re afraid you’re going to become him.”  “We’re conjoined.  Curious if either of us can survive separation.” etc)

And I think the reciprocal aspect here is also very important: I don’t think Will would have fallen for Hannibal, or at least not nearly so deeply and inescapably, if Hannibal hadn’t also fallen for Will in a very similar manner (though the specifics of how it develops for each of them differ).  The mutuality of their otherwise-unique experience with one another is intrinsic to how special the relationship is, rather than incidental - to return to the chess metaphor, it’s not just that Hannibal understands the game of chess and can appreciate Will’s playing, but can and does play with him, which means he’s got his own pieces on the board and is responding to Will’s every move.  Or, because I can’t resist hammering on a parallel motif when I see one, he’s a participant, not an observer.  

[darling-i-read-it]

Naka-Choko

2x10 

Hannibal Lecter x reader x Will Graham 

Hannibal Re-Write Series Masterlist

Word Count: 3.4k

Warnings: spoilers for hannibal, murder, dead bodies, smut pretty much i go there a bit btu it’s not super graphic, threesomes, will being hot as fuck 

Author’s Note: I spent like this whole season being like ‘do i make the reader sleep with hannibal while will sleeps with margot’ ‘does will not sleep with margot?’ ‘does margot sleep with hannibal?’ and this is the product. I’m not quite sure about it but enough of you were wishing for a little more on Will’s reunion so I did it, I hope you guys enjoy! Ps: I love the sexuality of the reader kinda open, if she engages and such so you can imagine whatever you please!

I used some direct quotes from the script so some things may seem familiar 

Official Episode Summary :Will's readiness to go to dark places strengthens his bond with Hannibal -- and garners Jack's attention; Hannibal gives Margot advice about her brother's violent nature.

I don’t own these characters. They belong to author/director 

Tag List (is always open!) : @llperfectsymmetryll​ @ericacactus​ @vlightning95​

(not my gif)  (last three gifs are from @/rocktheholygrail)

` The house was still as Will backed up. He held his gun in his hand and you were on the ground beside him. You saw clearly as the window was breaking, shattered all over the ground as the suspect of the last crime scene you had been to in his robotic animal suit. 

He attacked Will and you stood up quickly but Will had tossed the gun. You grabbed it off the ground, the dogs behind you growling and barking. Will started to beat the guy to a bloody pulp and you realized suddenly, in the rush of adrenaline why he had tossed the gun. He felt like this needed to be personal. 

Will continued to beat him and you grabbed Will from behind. He glanced at you but only for a second as you leaned down, holding the man's hands down as Will stood up a bit before grabbing his neck again and snapping it. 

Both you and Will had blood all over you. It had sprayed all over your faces and clothes as you leaned over the dead body. You grabbed Will’s arm and he looked over at you, surprised for a moment that you also had blood on you. 

Not a murderer but a murder accomplince. Same difference

You just stared at each other for a moment and you let out a small sigh. You looked down at the lifeless body underneath your boyfriend.

“Did that feel good?” you whispered. Will whipped some blood off your face with his hand which forced you to look back at him. The blood only smudged. He leaned forward and kissed you.

-

Hannibal’s. 

You sat at his dinner table, Will stood at the head, Hannibal at the other head. The body in the middle.

“Consider it an act of reciprocity. One positive action begets another,” Hannibal said simply.

“Polite society normally puts such taboos on taking a life,” Will said cheekily. 

“Without death, we’d be at a loss. It’s the prospect of death that drives us to greatness,” Hannibal said. He looked over at you and then back at Will. He smiled a bit, almost proud to see the two of you in front of him. “Did you kill him together? With your hands?” 

Will held up his hands, bruised and bloodied. You would have washed them for him if you hadn’t gotten so busy. 

“It was very intimate,” he muttered and Hannibal wasn’t sure if he was referring to you and Will or the two of you and Randall Tier.

-

Will’s hands submerged under warm water. You sat on the counter beside where the boys stood, Hannibal washing over Will’s hands with some epsom salts. The water tinged pink. Will was staring absently as Hannibal treated his wounds. 

“Don't go inside, Will. You’ll want to retreat, you’ll want it as we want to jump from balconies, as the glint of the rails tempts us when we hear the approaching train,” Hannibal muttered. He applied a salve to the cuts and bruises. “Stay with us.” 

Will looked up at the both of you.

“Where else am I going to go?” Will whispered.

“You can go anywhere,” you whispered. Will and Hannibal looked at you. Hannibal was more surprised than Will at how you were handling this. When you killed the judge you were a shock filled crying mess. You were a hollow shell of the person he knew for a few days. This was so different from how you were then. 

Perhaps it was because you were with Will, your person. Perhaps you had just embraced yourself now. Either way, he liked it. 

“You should be quite pleased. I am,” Hannibal said. 

“Of course you are,” Will muttered. 

-

The BAU stared at the disembodied body of Randall Tier. You, Hannibal and Will all looked at it simply, hands shoved in pockets. Jack was there as well although he didn’t know quite as much as you three did. To an extent. 

“His killer chose not to dispose of his body, but to display it,” Jack inquired.

“A jarring reminder of deaths’ informality,” Hannibal muttered, looking it up and down.

“Randall Tier was denied a respectable end that he himself denied others,” Jack stated and he was right, in a sense. 

“Dissection is disgrace. This is humiliation, a final indignity,” Hannibal said. 

“He isn't mocking him,” you said.

“This isn’t disdain. He’s commemorating him,” Will finished.

“This killer had no fear for the consequences of what he’s done,” Hannibal said, eyeing the two of you.

“No guilt,” Will whispered and you looked at him. He was right. 

-

You and Will walked into the room where Freddie Lounds was residing. She had pinned up pictures on the wall with notebook paper beside them. Pictures of Will she had taken, pictures of you that you didn’t even know she had taken. One when you were at the observatory with Will, one when Will was arrested and you were hugging Hannibal. 

“I raised the ante on my publishing deal. There’s been movie interest. Hollywood is a fine place for the obnoxious and wealthy,” she stated. 

“You’re not wealthy Freddie,” Will quipped.

“I will be. I’m a pariah among journalists because I took a different faith. But I’m putting that faith in you Will.” 

“Let’s talk Chesapeake Ripper. Frederick Chilton. Who knew?” Freddie said as she put the record button on the recorder. 

“Who knew,” you muttered. 

“No one did. Nobody would. Not even you two and you’re both one for theories. You were both so certain the Chesapeake Ripper was Hannibal Lecter, so much so Will tried to kill him.” Will and you stayed close to each other.

“You neglected to say ‘allegedly’,” Will stated.

“No I didn’t.” She glanced over at you. “Dr. Lecter is your boss and your psychiatrist. What’s up with that?” she inquired. 

“I was wrong about him. That’s what’s up with that,” Will said calmly. 

“Maybe you were.” Freddie looked at you in the eyes and you wondered what she would say about you in her book about Will. “Maybe you weren’t.”

“Chilton was the Ripper,’ you said simply, despite not believing it. The recording beeped red.

“The Chesapeake Ripper had surgical skills Frederick Chilton did not.”

“They had the same profile,” Will said. 

“Except Dr. Chilton was a woeful surgeon. Dangerous, even. I’ve been chatting with his old medical school chums. They say he fled to psychiatry to avoid embarrassment.” Freddie was nothing if not thorough you had to give her that.

“Our story with the Chesapeake Ripper already has an ending Freddie,” you told her.

“Mine doesn’t. Do you really think Dr. Chilton killed Abigail Hobbs? I don’t. Even if I let this story go, i’ll never let that go.”

Will was silent. You were silent.

“Trust me, Freddie,” Will said after a moment. “Neither will we.” 

-

Alana and Hannibal sat on the bed together. Her fingers danced in front of her but she winced at the sounds that she was making. The theremin was unfortunate and nothing she would have tried had she not met Hannibal Lecter when she did.

“Sounds like I’m killing it,” she said laughing a bit. His hand laid on Alana’s arm, attempting to guard her. 

“Don’t kill it,” he whispered back at her. 

He straddled her. “A theremin is an instrument which can create exquisite music without ever needing to be touched. But it requires a rare gift of perfect pitch to play properly.” He smiled. “Smaller movements. Feel the vibration move through you.” 

“Like composing in thin air,” she whispered. 

-

You and Will were at home. You sat in bed together, your head resting on his lower legs as you looked up at him. He was touching your calves with his fingers, causing you to let out small sighs of pleasure. You swirled a half empty bottle of wine. Will took it from your hands and finished it off. 

Despite the blanket on top of you the fact that you were naked made Will smile. It made him want to lean forward and run his fingers through your hair. To take you back into his arms despite the fact you had only left them a few minutes before. You were resting now. Who knew a joint murder could bring a couple so close together. 

“What do you think Hannibal is doing?” he whispered. 

“Best guess?” He nodded. “Sleeping with Alana.” Will let out a chuckle.

“That’s a thing?” You nodded.

“I haven’t told you? Yeah when he couldn’t get me in bed he got her.” He smiled and gripped your arm that was dangling at his side. He played with your fingers.

“I’m proud that you’re not as easy as Alana.”

“Hey, I love Alana. She knows what she wants.” The doorbell rang and you glanced at each other. “Perhaps that’s Hannibal. Maybe he was listening,” you teased. Will rolled his eyes and slipped out of bed. He grabbed his boxers and put them on before grabbing his robe. 

You watched him leave the bedroom and then got up, wrapping the sheet around you tightly. Voices floated to your ears from the main rooms. 

“What happened to your window?” Margot Verger asked. 

“Stag lost in the storm. Came through the window. Got a few scratches getting him out,” Will said. 

“I handled most of it,” you teased as you walked into the room. She saw you and raised an eyebrow. 

“Have I come at a bad time?” You and Will shared a look and you were just tired and hot enough to shrug.

“No, come on in,” you said with a smile. “Let me grab a robe.” You came back quickly and Marogt put her wine bottle on the counter. 

“Are either of you scarred?” she questioned. 

“More than I probably know,” Will said. Your breath caught in your throat as you thought about your fingers on those scars, not long before this. 

“I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” Margot said. You raised an eyebrow and Will looked over at you again. 

“I have the wrong parts for your proclivities, Margot,” Will muttered.

“It’s not about proclivities, it’s about trust,” she said. 

“It’s good to trust. Better not to,” Will said and his eyes were carefully on the both of you. He was a smart man but he wasn’t sure if he was gauging the situation correctly. 

“My optimal level of trust is usually zero. But I trust both of you,” she whispered. 

“I don't trust you,” Will said. 

“I don’t need either of you to trust me.” 

“What do you need then?” you questioned. She walked up to you and started to unbutton her shirt. You raised an eyebrow and your eyes went back to your boyfriend who just laughed a bit, shrugging. You turned to him and he started to take off the top of his robe. You weren’t wearing a bra or anything but you dropped it to your shoulders where you had a few scrapes from over the years. 

“Who shot you?” Margot asked Will.

“A friend.”

Margot put her fingers on your shoulder where there was a scrape from when you killed the judge. One of the only fighting back scars you had. 

She kissed you. She pulled away and she kissed Will.

A mess of kisses, hands, bodies. 

Hannibal kissed Alana and as he lay underneath him he saw you, arching your back and heaving. He kissed her but her hair was not hers it was yours. 

Will kissed you as he leaned into Margot. Your fingers touched hers, his hands cupping your face, inside her. Bodies. Breathing. Whispers, finishing. 

Hannibal's eyes flashing to yours from miles away. Will’s fingers on your back but arching against Margots. 

Finally you lay on your bed again, happily catching your breath. Will laid down beside you and Margot laid beside you.

Hannibal moved to his side in his own bed and instead of Alana he saw you and beside you, Will. 

The three of you fell asleep peacefully, Margot and Alana leaving early in the morning.

-

You opened your eyes and met Will’s already open. You rubbed your vision to be clearer and gave him a droopy, slightly hungover smile. Then you turned to a curious look of confusion.

“Did we have sex with Margot Verger?” you questioned. Will laughed and nodded.

“I believe we did.” You looked up at the ceiling and then back at him.

“Who are we?” you asked, chuckling heartily. He shrugged and draped an arm around you before burying his face in your neck. 

“I think the drinks may have helped a bit.” 

“Also, how did she find out where we live?” 

“She said she looked in Hannibal's things,” he said. You prused your lips.

“The ones I’m supposed to be watching?”

“Those are the ones.” 

You paused and then both of you laughed, holding each other for a moment more before you had to get up for the day.

-

You were walking beside Freddie Lounds. She had called you to chat one on one unfortunately.

“I’ve always admired teachers. Mouling impressionable young minds. But you can only learn so much and live,” she said. You let out an annoyed sigh. 

“What do you want Freddie? Your book is about Will, not me.” 

“You’re the tag team, you can’t expect me not to add you whenever I can. You’re pure gold. Staying with him through the whole thing, it’s very romantic. I mean come on, everyone calls you the Grahams which I’m sure pisses Hannibal off enough” she said simply. 

“If you want to hear about romance I suggest talking to Alana Bloom,” you said, eager to get the talk away from you. 

“I’ll make note of that,” she said. “But you know right? You believe him?” 

“Know what?” 

“Will was right about Lecter.” You gave her a smile and pursed your lips. 

“I believe my boyfriend,” you said and left it at that. 

-

You sat at dinner with Will, Alana and Hannibal. An interesting mix of people, considering it all. 

“Freddie Lounds thinks the three of you are a paradox. She sees something no one else sees,” Alana said. You wondered what Freddie had said to Alana about you. Likely nothing true although she was more observant than you sometimes gave her credit for. 

“What’s that?” Will asked.

“That none of you are the killer she’s writing about, but together, you might be.” 

“Freddie Lounds must consider you a bland interview subject if she’s already resorted to fiction,” Hannibal said to Will.

“She won’t be fenced in by something as malleable as the truth. Freddie has no boundaries,” you stated simply, taking a bite of the dinner. 

“A person with no boundaries is a psychopath. Or a journalist,” Wil countered. 

“Freddie isn’t the only one without boundaries. Your relationships doesn’t seem to know many. Patient, therapist, lover, friend, enemy,” Alana said. You suddenly wondered if she felt threatened by you and Will. You liked the idea of it.

“Crossing boundaries is different than violenating them,” Hannibal said. 

“Boundaries are always subject to negotiation. It’s just hard to know where you are with one another,” Alana shrugged.

“We know where we are with each other. Shouldn;’t that be enough?” Will said and you smiled wickedly. 

-

Freddie Lounds did not find you or Will in the house which she was hoping to. She needed an interview with both of you. She walked to the back of the house and to the shed back there, where perhaps the two of you ewre. 

Freddie walked forward and found very quickly the suit Randall Tier wore to kill people. She pulled out her camera and took a picture. In the shed she looked around wildly. 

Freddie looked up and saw that Will was standing there, walking toward her. She pulled out a gun and raised it to him.

“There really is a very good explanation for all of this,” he stated evenly.

“I don’t want to hear it,” she said shakily. 

“You’re not the least bit curious?” 

“Get away from the door,” she demanded.

“I can’t let you go, Freddie. Not without hearing what I have to say.” Freddie pulled out her phone. “I know you’re scared. Only have to be scared a little bit longer. Give me the gun.” She fired the gun and missed Will. Behind her you jump out, throwing the gun away and holding a hand over the mouth.

“I’ve wanted to do this since we met,” you hissed. She escaped your grasp and started to run out of the door, hitting call to Jack Crawford. 

-

You, Alana, Jack, Will and Hannibal all stood in Jack’s office. He had just shown off the concerning voicemail he had gotten from Freddie Lounds.

“Freddie Lounds left this message for me three hours ago. Her cell signal dead now. Last call was traced to the nearest phone tower. In Wolf Trap, Virginia. We have her on security cameras at a gas station, filling her car. Six miles from your farm,” Jack said to you and Will. 

“Freddie was supposed to interview me. She never showed up,” Will stated. 

“Why are you granting interviews to Freddie Lounds?” Jack asked.

“I owed her one,” Will explained. 

“SurelY Freddie Lounds has more enemies than Will,” Hannibal reasoned. 

“Not in Wolf Trap, Virginia.” 

“Will and I were busy all afternoon. Together,” you stated simply. “I think I would have noticed if he decided to kidnap Freddie Lounds. Unless you're insinuating both of us are at fault.” Jack gave you a look but you just crossed your arms. 

“We live in the middle of nowhere, Jack. If someone wanted to take her, it’d be a good place to do it.” 

-

You sat at dinner with Will and Hannibal. It was a peaceful dinner. It felt right. 

“The meat has an interesting flavor,” Hannibal said. “It’s bracing. Notes of citrus.”

“My palate isn’t as refined at yours,” Will stated. 

“Apart from humane considerations it’s more flavorful for animals to be stress-free prior to slaughter. This animal tastes frightened,” Hannibal explained. 

“What does ‘frightened’ taste like?” Will asked. 

“It’s acidic.” 

“The meat is bitter about being dead,” you pointed out. 

‘This meat isn’t pork,” Hannibal said.

“It’s long pig,” Will retired. You took a bite and so did Will. Hannibal watched, proud. “You can’t reduce me to a set of influences. I’m not the product of anything. I’ve given up good and evil for behaviorism,” Will said. 

“Then you can’t say that I’m evil and Y/N is good,” Hannibal said. 

“Y/N isn’t good. And you’re destructive. Same thing.” You took another bite with a cheeky smile on your face. 

“Evil's just destructive? Storms are evil, if it's that simple. And we have fire, and then there's hail. Underwriters lump it all under "Acts of God."” Hannibal smiled. “Is this meal an act of God, Will?”

2x11

[anamelessfacelessnerd]

Not me rewriting the ending to Mizumono only to have a much better idea halfway through so as soon as I finished the first one I started on the second

Rating: Explicit

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category: M/M

Fandom: Hannibal (TV)

Relationship: Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter

Characters: Will Graham, Hannibal Lecter, Abigail Hobbs

Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Episode: s02e13 Mizumono, Smut, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Mild Blood, Rough Sex, Coming Untouched, Not Beta Read, Dark Will Graham

Language: English

Summary: “I need him to know.” Will looked into Hannibal’s eyes then, searching for the desperation he could hear in his words. “If I confessed to Jack Crawford now, you think he would forgive me?”

“I would forgive you.” It’s clear that Hannibal’s not talking about the murder, but the betrayal. He would still forgive Will for conspiring against him. “If Jack were to tell you all is forgiven, Will, would you accept his forgiveness?” The double meaning is apparent. Hannibal was asking Will if he would go with him knowing that Hannibal would forgive him. It’s an invitation. One that Will wasn’t sure he wanted to decline.

“Jack isn't offering forgiveness.” Hannibal wanted to say “I am”, but he didn't. “He wants justice. He wants to see you. See who you are. See who I've become. Know the truth.” Will takes another sip of his wine and Hannibal accepts his defeat. He really hadn’t wanted to hurt Will, but it seemed that it would be the only option.

“Still, I suppose we don’t owe Jack that do we?” Will spoke again.

Notes: Okay, I know I rewrote the ending of Mizumono yesterday, but I had this idea while I wrote it and I couldn't help myself.

“Do you know what an imago is, Will?” Hannibal asked.

“It's a flying insect,” Will replied.

“It's the final stage of a transformation. Maturity.”

“When you become who you will be,” Will said, catching on to the point Hannibal was making.

“It's also a term from the dead religion of psychoanalysis. An imago is an image of a loved one buried in the unconscious, carried with us all our lives.”

“An ideal.”

“The concept of an ideal always searching for an objective reality to match. I have a concept of you just as you have a concept of me.”

“Neither of us are ideal,” Will says after taking a long drink of his wine. Hannibal considered what Will had just said for a moment. He had nearly trusted an ideal. He thought that Will would leave with him until he smelled Freddie Lounds on him. Perhaps Will was right, neither of them were ideal.

“We are both too curious about too many things for any ideals.” Hannibal paused a moment, feeling a twinge of hesitation for what he was about to ask. It was completely out of character for Hannibal to grovel, but in recent weeks he had grown accustomed to the idea of running away with Will, and he wasn’t quite ready to give the fantasy up. “Is it ideal that Jack die?”

Will matched Hannibal’s pause. Most would not even notice the hesitation, but Hannibal did.

“It's necessary. What happens to Jack has been preordained.” Will’s voice was cold, free from any emotion. In any other circumstance Hannibal would be proud of how well he schooled his expression, but now it just frustrated him.

“We could disappear now. Tonight. Feed your dogs. Leave a note for Dr. Bloom, never see her or Jack Crawford again. Almost polite,” Hannibal was nearly begging now and Will knew it. Their eyes locked and at once Will understood. Hannibal knew and he was willing to forgive.

“That'd make this our last supper,” Will said, considering Hannibal’s offer. Now, just days away from the sting that he and Jack had planned, Will still wasn’t sure whose side he was really on. Part of him wanted to be good, he wanted to atone for his sins and clear his name for good, because even though he had been acquitted, there were still those who believed he had actually killed all those people.

The other part of him wanted to become what everyone thought him to be. Though he hated to admit it, he had felt a thrill as he killed and mutilated Randall Tier. Even worse was that now thinking about that feeling didn’t make him feel guilty or sick, only enhanced the adrenaline.

If he was being completely honest, half of the thrill was seeing how Hannibal looked at him when he knew what Will had done. The subtle adoration and pride that he was no doubt allowing Will to see. Hannibal’s gaze made Will feel things, things that he had never felt with anyone before, and he wanted to chase that feeling.

“Of this life. I am serving lamb.”

“Sacrificial? Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Will snorted.

“I freely claim my sin. I don't need a sacrifice. Do you?”

“I need him to know.” Will looked into Hannibal’s eyes then, searching for the desperation he could hear in his words. “If I confessed to Jack Crawford now, you think he would forgive me?”

“I would forgive you.” It’s clear that Hannibal’s not talking about the murder, but the betrayal. He would still forgive Will for conspiring against him. “If Jack were to tell you all is forgiven, Will, would you accept his forgiveness?” The double meaning was apparent. Hannibal was asking Will if he would go with him knowing that Hannibal would forgive him. It’s an invitation. One that Will wasn’t sure he wanted to decline.

“Jack isn't offering forgiveness.” Hannibal wanted to say “I am”, but he didn't. “He wants justice. He wants to see you. See who you are. See who I've become. Know the truth.” Will takes another sip of his wine and Hannibal accepts his defeat. He really hadn’t wanted to hurt Will, but it seemed that it would be the only option.

“Still, I suppose we don’t owe Jack that do we?” Will spoke again. Hannibal perked up almost imperceptibly.

“Perhaps a note will be sufficient. I didn’t want to leave the dogs alone, but they’ll be fine for a while. Knowing Jack he’ll send a cruiser to my place within an hour after I don’t show up in the morning.”

“Let us prepare then. I would like to be out of the country before Jack realizes that you are no longer his man on the inside.” Hannibal stood and began gathering plates to bring to the kitchen because of course he would want to leave the house spotless. Will helped him with the dishes and wiping everything down. They caught eyes several times, both revving with the anticipation of what was to come. Will considered apologizing for his conspiracy, but when he looked into Hannibal’s eyes he knew he was already forgiven.

It was a little intoxicating to know that he had this kind of control over hannibal. To know that he made Hannibal beg. He wondered how else he could compel him to beg. That was, once they stopped dancing around the physical aspect of their relationship and finally just fucked like they both wanted to.

Once they were finished they retired to the study to write a note. Hannibal wandered around, collecting particular books and knick knacks that he wanted to bring while Will drafted a note. After much thinking and many balled up pieces of paper, Will finally got it right. When he finished, he handed it to Hannibal to read.

“This will do nicely,” Hannibal said. He slipped the letter into an envelope and sealed it with blood red wax and a stamp that bore his initials.

Will watched as the wax dripped. The flow of the thick liquid was giving him all sorts of dirty thoughts. Thoughts of Hannibal pouring that warm liquid all over his body. Thoughts of being covered in other kinds of red liquid. Will had to take a deep breath to steady himself and bring some blood back up to his head.

When the wax had dried, Hannibal handed the letter to Will, fingers brushing against Will’s skin tenderly.

“I have a surprise for you,” Hannibal said, hand coming to grip Will’s wrist.

“Oh?” Will replied.

“Come with me.” Hannibal led Will upstairs, never letting go of his wrist. Will had only been to the upper floor of Hannibal’s house a few times, and never in the dark, so he didn’t really know where they were going. He had two ideas, one much more enticing than the other, but both equally likely.

As it turned out, neither of his assumptions were correct. Hannibal led him to a closed door at the end of the hallway and knocked.

“May we come in?” He asked. Will didn’t even have time to question who was in there before the door was being opened from the inside. Standing in the doorway was none other than Abigail Hobbs.

“Hi Will,” She said, a small smile playing on her chapped lips.

“Abigail?” Will asked, voice barely audible. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Had Hannibal drugged him? Was he hallucinating?

“How are you here? You’re dead,” Will said.

“Not dead, just misplaced,” Hannibal replied, “they never found a body, well, not a whole body at least. It was merely a charade.”

Abigail tucked her hair back to show Will the flesh where her ear had been. It was healed over by now, but it still brought a wave of bile up in Will’s throat.

“You’ve been here this whole time?” Will asked, choking down the anger that was building in him. There was no sense getting angry now, especially when he was teetering on the edge of a new beginning.

“I’m sorry,” Abigail said, tears welling in her eyes.

“I forgive you,” Will said. Abigail took two big steps forward and wrapped her arms around Will’s middle, burying her tears in his shirt. He brought a hand to her hair and stroked, both soothing her and assuring himself that she was really there and really alive.

“Thank you,” Will whispered to Hannibal. He wasn’t sure what he was thanking him for. Maybe for keeping Abigail alive, maybe for bringing him to her, maybe just because he didn’t know what else to say.

Hannibal’s hand came to rest between Will’s shoulder blades, fingertips shooting electricity down his spine.

“I do not wish to rush you two, but we must be going,” Hannibal said, “there is still much for us to do and little time to do it.”

Abigail pulled back from Will and wiped her eyes on her sleeve, sniffling a few times.

“Will, would you care to help me pack?” Hannibal asked.

“Yeah, sure.” Will cast one last glance at Abigail before following Hannibal to his bedroom.

“Everything in that top drawer must come,” Hannibal said as he set a large suitcase on the bed. Will began transferring the carefully folded garments from the dresser to the suitcase while Hannibal sorted through his suits to find the ones he liked best.

Will and Hannibal's hands brushed for what felt like the 500th time that night as they both attempted to place clothing in the suitcase at the same time. Their eyes met and there was a moment of contemplation before they pounced.

Will dragged Hannibal to the floor and straddled him, hands balling up around fistfulls of Hannibal’s jacket as he pressed their lips together. Hannibal kissed back with equal fervour, hands sliding back to cup Will’s ass. Will moaned into the kiss and rutted his hips against Hannibals. Hannibal bit Will’s lip, not stopping until he drew blood.

They broke away, panting and breathing each other in. Hannibal brought one hand to Will’s cheek and stroked, the pad of his thumb brushing over Will’s parted lips. Will sucked the digit into his mouth, tongue lapping at the sensitive skin.

Will ground his hips down, ass rubbing against Hannibal’s rapidly hardening cock. The older man stared up at him in wonder, lips parted and eyes blown wide. He withdrew his hand, swiping his thumb along the bleeding cut on Will’s lip until the skin was stained red. Then he brought it to his own mouth, his eyes rolling back as he savored the metallic taste of his lover’s blood.

“You taste divine Will,” Hannibal said, deep voice sending tremors through Will’s body. That was it, that was the breaking point for Will.

“Take your fucking clothes off,” He demanded as he scrambled off of Hannibal to remove his own clothes.

“Such crass language,” Hannibal scolded, clicking his tongue disapprovingly, “whatever should I do about that?”

Hannibal was trying his best to regain some of the power he had lost in this exchange. Will would let him believe that he did, if only to sate his ego, but Will knew deep down that he was in control. He had known since before Hannibal had pleaded with him that he was in control here. Hannibal had several layers to his persona. The first was the polite, yet slightly eccentric doctor who loved good food and opera, behind that was the calculating psychopath cold, and emotionless. His true personality was hidden deep within himself, but Will was able to see it, after all, he had not yet met a person he couldn’t read.

The person that Hannibal truly was was driven by his emotions. Anger and hurt bubbled under his skin, suppressed by years of burying everything akin to a feeling deep below the surface. He was intensely narcissistic and hedonistic. Everything he did was to fulfill his desires. He ate to satiate his hunger, he killed to assuage a compulsion. He acted solely in his own self interests, and right now Will was his interest. That gave Will ultimate power over Hannibal. He wanted Will in every sense of the word, and would do nearly everything to have him.

Perhaps what solidified Will’s control was the fact that he was aware of this while Hannibal wasn’t. Hannibal had spent so much effort repressing feelings that he genuinely believed that they were never there in the first place. Will knew about Hannibal’s nature, not from the beginning, no he was fooled like everyone else at first, but certainly longer than he let on. He only raised the issue with Jack when he was in danger.

Will put on the facade of being overly emotional, of being unstable, but deep down he was something different entirely. That’s why he was so good at “faking” the coldness he showed with Hannibal, it was never fake, the emotions were fake, and Hannibal was none the wiser. This was Will’s game and Hannibal was barely aware he was playing.

“Will?” Hannibal asked, pulling Will from his thoughts. He kneeled in front of him, now fully nude, his erection jutting out proudly from a bed of well trimmed blonde curls.

“Fuck me,” Will insisted, trying to pass his momentary spacyness off as fascination with the admittedly impressive cock that hung between Hannibal’s legs.

“As you wish.” Yes, as Will wishes. Hannibal will do exactly as Will wishes.

Will doesn’t wait for any more negotiations. He turns around and sinks to his elbows, thighs spread wide to accommodate Hannibal. He heard the older man’s breath catch as Will displayed himself.

“Oh Will, you truly are exquisite. Beauty incarnate.” Hannibal mused. Will watched between his legs as Hannibal reached into the bedside table for a bottle of lube. Hannibal poured the lube onto his fingers, then pressed them to Will’s hole, tracing the rim to get it nice and wet.

Will buried his face in his crossed arms to stifle a moan. The last thing he needed was for Hannibal to know exactly how sensitive he actually was and to exploit that fact. They didn’t have much time and Will was really just looking to be fucked.

Finally, one finger breached Will. It slid in with little resistance and Hannibal added a second. His thumb came to press against Will’s perineum as he scissored his fingers. Will let out a choked sob when Hannibal’s other hand tangled in his hair and pulled his head up sharply.

“I want to hear you Will. I want to hear exactly how much you like this.”

“God, just fuck me already Hannibal,” Will begged, “I’m ready, just get in me.”

Hannibal withdrew his fingers at once. Will didn’t even have a chance to get a word out before Hannibal was pressing his cock inside.

“There you go sweet boy, taking my cock so well, like you were made for it. Like you were born to take me.”

Will had never heard Hannibal speak so lewdly before, but he liked it more than he would ever care to admit. Not that he even could right now with Hannibal thrusting into him with punishing force, hitting his prostate every time.

Hannibal still had one hand in Will’s hair. The other was gripping his hip so tight he would undoubtedly have finger shaped bruises in the morning. He brought his lips down to Will’s shoulder, placing a few gentle kisses there, and that would simply not do. Will needed him to be rough, he needed to be fucked hard.

“Harder,” Will grunted, “come on Hannibal, you can do better than that. Do it like I know you want to. Hurt me.”

“Are you sure you can handle it?” Hannibal panted.

“Fuck yes, give it to be Hannibal, fucking ruin me.”

Hannibal complied immediately, using all of the force he could to pound into Will like he was trying to split him clean in half. He bit down hard on Will’s shoulder, just short of drawing blood.

Will rocked back to meet every thrust, letting out a litany of pathetic noises that he probably should have been embarrassed about. Hannibal was groaning now too, grunting like a beast in Will’s ear as he shoved in impossibly deeper.

Will’s orgasm was so sudden, he didn’t even feel it coming. In an instant his body went rigid as white hot pleasure coiled in his abdomen and he came completely untouched.

After coming for what felt like hours, he dropped to the floor, thighs shaking too hard to support himself any longer.

Once he had caught his breath, Will rolled over onto his back and spread his legs.

“Keep going,” he told Hannibal, “I want you to use me to make yourself come.”

Hannibal didn’t need to be told twice before sliding back into Will. He hoisted the younger man’s knees up over his shoulders to get a better angle as he slammed in over and over again.

At last, Hannibal gave a final hard thrust and spilled inside Will, coating his insides with his seed. He pulled out and laid on the floor next to him, breathing hard and trembling.

“I would have run away with you a long time ago if I had known that was in store for me,” Will panted, struggling to sit up.

“If I saw you every day, forever, Will, I would remember this time,” Hannibal said, reaching over to brush a lock of curly hair behind his ear.

Will smiled and kissed Hannibal again. It was softer this time, full of much more affection, especially on Hannibal’s behalf.

“I would sit here with you for eternity Will, but I fear that we must leave soon. We would not want to keep Abigail waiting.” Hannibal said when they pulled away.

“Of course, but first will you promise me something?”

“What is it that you desire?”

“Do that again as soon as we get to wherever we’re going.” Hannibal grinned and cupped Will’s cheek.

“I would gladly have you every day, my dear Will.”

Notes: Listen, we all know who's actually in control and this relationship and it's not Hannibal "Simp" Lecter.

[hannibals-hoe]

Hannibal Commentary

This is a episode by episode rating and discussion of the best show I’ve ever seen.

⚠️Spoilers Ahead⚠️

Season 1

Episode 1, “Apéritif”

Alrighty let’s get into this.

Opening scene- we are confronted with a typical true crime tv series type of landscape- police sirens, officers, dead bodies. The show starts off with a weird sense of familiarity. Then, we are focused on Will. He is immediately thrust in as the main character, despite the show’s title. If you look closely at his expression, you notice how uncomfortable and disturbed he is to be at that crime scene. And as his eyes close, the color gradient shifts as he does- from a casual investigator, into the mind of a killer. As he traces his steps backwards and finally stops outside the home, you can see the look in eyes change. This is vital to the rest of the show so I’m going to call this the “Will Graham Murder Eyes.” He closes his eyes for a moment- but when he opens them again- you can see the lifelessness of a killer’s eyes. The very first words we hear of the show are Will describing the crime itself- a relatively non violent and casual one considering the rest of series. This is why when I recommend Hannibal to someone I always say to get past the first episode because it’s way to basic for the show as a whole.

Anyways, once Will concludes his findings, we cut to his classroom. When Will converses with Jack, we notice his tendency to not make eye contact, as described later on. This is such masterful acting on Hugh Dancy’s part. When Jack asks Will for help, we can see Will’s reluctance. It’s clear he’s uncomfortable with his inner and outer thoughts even so early in the show.

The second time we see Will go into his “this is my design” phase, he is clearly more violent as we see him strangle Elise Nichols. The viewer is almost left with a feeling that Will is actually the one responsible, which is what will happen with those around Will later in the season. At least, that’s what I first interpreted during my first watch. You’re like, “wait, Will didn’t actually kill these people right?” But as the show goes on everything makes more sense about Will’s little mind trick.

Next, we see the sweetest part of Will’s character- his love for strays. One cannot help but smile watching Will care for Winston and his other dogs. It is such a stark contrast to what we have seen so far of Will’s character. And then, we watch him struggle to sleep with his nightmares. When he uses a towel as a blanket, we know that this is not new for him- that he has nightmares regularly. The first episode expertly characterizes Will in a way no other show I’ve seen has done before.

Then, in the bathroom scene with Jack, Will is describing the way this killer (Garret Jacob Hobbs) kills- he says, “he kills these girls quickly and-“ he pauses. This pause, I believe, is him stopping himself from straight up saying “with mercy” instead, he adds, “to his thinking, with mercy.” Will, once again, is fearful of his own dark thoughts and how those thoughts will be viewed by others, specifically Jack.

Then, we see Will at the autopsy table, and a beautiful yet disturbing image of Elise being impaled on antlers is seen. The antlers will become a running symbol in the show, later an elk, then the Wendigo. At this point, I do believe the symbol was not planned, but, I could give the creators the credit of intending for them the sign for evil- in this case, the evil of Garret Jacob Hobbs. When Will concludes that this killer is eating his victims, we cut to our first shot of Hannibal.

We don’t need to see explicit human organs being cooked yet- we know it’s cannibalism. The shot of Hannibal himself is quite stunning- barely any light surrounding his features, he appears almost like a skull in the darkness. We visually know he is supposed to be the villain. But as the episode goes on, it’s quite easy to forget that Hannibal really is a serial killer and cannibal.

Next, we are put in Hannibal’s office with Franklyn. When he places his dirty tissue on Hannibal’s table, we can see Hannibal’s visible resentment. He is once again characterized as the villain. Jack then enters the equation, asking about Hannibal’s secretary, who we never see, though I believe it is quite likely Hannibal killed her, as he only describes her having “romantic whims” and “followed her heart to the United Kingdom.” As Jack walks around Hannibal’s office, he looks through some of his drawings. If you look closely, beneath the art Jack is viewing, there is a distinctly visible drawing of “the wound man” I only noticed this after my fourth or fifth rewatch. It made me so angry because if Jack had seen that, we know Hannibal would have killed him right then and there. While Jack is looking, Hannibal does seem to wonder if Jack will notice the sketch. Hannibal picks up the scalpel, ready to defend himself, but when he is confident Jack is not investigating him, he places it on his desk, arranging it “just so.” Mads doing that was such great acting because we immediately know the Hannibal is a perfectionist, which works out to his advantage during his many murders, as he leaves no usable evidence.

And now, we go to Hannibal and Will’s first meeting. Instantly, Hannibal is able to notice Will’s lack of eye contact. As Will describes why he does this, Hannibal’s expression changes, he looks Will up and down, and gives a small smile. Right here- I believe with all of my being that Hannibal started to fall for Will right there. Will’s kind of sad, dark humor instantly is able to draw Hannibal in. However Will is not able to reciprocate these feelings just yet- he feels attacked by Hannibal’s accurate analysis.

Our next crime scene is more graphic than the first two by a good margin. This is the first of Hannibal’s murder scenes. As we cut between the crime scene and Hannibal’s cooking, we are confronted with the very obvious disgust of Hannibal being a cannibal.

One of my favorite shots is the next, with Will in the shower, (hehehe duh) then the stag. This symbol could be interpreted as either Will’s evil growing within him, or Hannibal- lurking in the shadows. In this case, I lean towards the latter, as the next shot is of Hannibal himself, bringing breakfast for Will. (As the show goes on this symbol will vary in meanings but don’t worry I’ll explain it as best I can.) Already, Hannibal has a want to help Will, by making sure he has a good meal. He could have very easily just traveled with Will to the construction site without food, but in a way, he could have wanted to self-congratulate himself by obviously providing Will with the evidence that could convict him. To me- Hannibal’s motive for bringing Will breakfast is a mix of him showing his nature of self-congratulation (described by Bedelia later in season 2) and wanted to provide for Will’s well-being in the only way he knows how. The next few lines are some fabulous foreshadowing. Will’s initial wish is for their relationship to be strictly professional- however we very well know this is going to change. Already, Hannibal objects to this statement, he is hoping they will become at the very least “friendly.” Next, Hannibal establishes the symbolism of the teacup, saying that is how Jack sees him. Will laughs out loud at that, and that is one of the only times we see Will have a strong expression of happiness. Yes, later on Hannibal becomes an object of resentment for Will, but I think this interaction is a strong indication of what life would be like for Will and Hannibal post-fall.

Now we head to the construction site and the discovery of Garret Jacob Hobbs. Hannibal is visibly impressed by Will’s ability to find Hobbs, and his admiration grows.

Hannibal then calls the Hobbs’ residence, warning that “they know.” It’s such a subtle yet powerful move in Hannibal’s part. I think the real reason Hannibal makes that call is to test Will. Hannibal knew Hobbs would react violently, and he wondered if Will would use violence back. He wanted to test Will’s potential and what he perceived Will to be- a troubled FBI teacher who has dark impulses he is deathly afraid of. Arguably, everything Hannibal does for Will from this point forward is to take away his fears. Will fears his own darkness and Hannibal wants him to finally find peace and beauty in that darkness.

Anyways, back to the show. There is a brief shot of Will, covered in blood, with the pendulum of his mind swinging back and forth. This tiny time jump serves the purpose of both suspense shock. We are left to wonder what Will has done- we can assume it was brutal, but was it evil? I’ll get into that later. So, Hannibal and Will arrive at the Hobbs’ home, and Will is confronted with a nightmare. Contradictory is Hannibal’s reaction to the scene. Even when Hobbs’ wife is bleeding out on the front porch, Hannibal is shown with a non caring and relaxed demeanor. Will makes his way inside and begins his journey to a troubling self-discovery. He shoots Hobbs 10 times, his fear for Abigail evident but more powerful is his hatred for Hobbs. When Hobbs’ falls, he utters that famous line, “see?” I think the completion of that sentence would be, “see, it feels good to kill.” Will is going to struggle with this the entire series and only with Hannibal’s help Will he be able to agree with it.

Will struggles to save Abigail, and Hannibal appears, less focused on Abigail and more on Will. Nonetheless, he uses his big, strong hands (sorry) to save Abigail’s life. As he does so he looks up at Will, perhaps thinking, “Ok, he does have that darkness inside him.” Once the scene clears, Will is back outside covered in blood. I will again bring attention to his expression. His “Murder Eyes” are back. He is reveling in the power that killing Hobbs made him feel. I would not say this is dissimilar to how he feels after killing Randal Tier in season 2 and Dolarhyde in season 3. He’s like an addict from then on- he would deny it, but killing Hobbs was a high he would chase for the length of the series.

The last scene of the episode is in Abigail’s hospital room. Will goes in to see Hannibal, sitting next to her bed and gently holding her hand, sleeping. It’s easily the most humanizing shot of Hannibal. Will takes a seat himself, watching Hannibal with what could almost be described as a loving gaze. In that moment, he completely trusts Hannibal with her well being, as Hannibal’s hands saved her life. In a very subtle movement, Will looks down at his own hands, sitting half open in his lap. It’s quite possible he is thinking that his hands had done something quite opposite to what Hannibal’s have- they have killed.

Wow that was a ride if you read all of that thank you so much. I’ll check for typos one of these days. Stay tuned for next episode ok I’m outttt.

[lotstradamus]

top 5 episodes of your favorite show

hHahahahahHHAHAHAHha let us, pray tell, fucking go

2.13 Mizumono: THE SEASON TWO FINALE. beyond a shadow of a doubt my all-time favourite episode of ANY television show, and 100% my most-watched. it’s stunning from start to finish, but my PERSONAL FAVOURITE ELEMENT is that Hannibal is HEARTBROKEN. in the previous episode Bedelia is like ‘if you think you’re in control of this situation, it’s because Hannibal wants you to think that’ but then you realise that NOPE, he ACTUALLY believed everything Will was saying, hook line and sinker, he thought they were going to run away and be together -- he was ready to be like HERE’S ABIGAIL, OUR SURROGATE DAUGHTER, SHE IS IN FACT NOT DEAD AND NOW WE CAN BE A FAMILY -- and when he finds out that Will is lying he destroys both of their lives. Will tipping Hannibal off, Will seeing Abigail, ‘you were supposed to leave’, the moment where the audience and Will both think that Hannibal is going to kiss him only to get STABBED IN THE ABDOMEN (us emotionally, Will literally). it’s just absolutely glorious from start to finish. nothing like burning down the entire structure of your show and salting the ground after you. special mention goes to the comedy beat of the episode: ‘Where’s Jack?’ ‘...In the pantry.’ 

1.01 Aperatif: sometimes I put this episode on just to soothe me. everything about it is phenomenal. the slow pan up Hannibal’s dining table laden with pomegranates and Mads Mikkelsen’s face half in shadow like a skull... the meet-cute, i.e. Will being rude enough to Hannibal’s face to get himself murdered 3x over but Hannibal instead being like hmmmm: this one... Will being unfriendly and prickly and weird and then the reveal that he rescues stray dogs and shows them so much love and affection... the chiaroscuro lighting throwing shadows over the two of them as Hannibal feeds Will for the first time... ‘I don’t find you that interesting.’ ‘You will.’... Garret Jacob Hobbs... Abigail... it’s a perfect encapsulation of the show in miniature! it’s so beautiful! there is so much shit coming and none of them have any idea! 

3.13 The Wrath of the Lamb: oooOOOH. LOVE CRIIiiIIIiII I IIiiii III iME. the back half of season three is such a shock to the system after the heart-rending intimacy and grief of the first seven episodes, and this episode is no different. planning Hannibal’s death, double crossing, faking deaths a few times over, Will manipulating Hannibal and Hannibal manipulating Will (their love language!), and then it flips the switch and dials up the intimacy and it aaaaall culminates in Hannibal and Will in perfect sync, doing what they’ve wanted to do for so long, working together and finally B E C O M I N G. they haven’t touched each other in three years. and then this. I will NEVER get over it. WHERE IS SEASON FOUR 

2.08: the episode with the dead body in the horse. also the episode with the guy sewn alive into the horse and then climbing out of the inside of the horse. on an Other Things level, Jeremy Davies’ performance as Peter Bernadone is insane. the man can do anything! Clark Ingrams manages to be a spine-chilling antagonist despite only being in two scenes, and WILL PULLING THE TRIGGER ON HIM AND HANNIBAL CATCHING THE TRIGGER WITH HIS HAND IS SUCH A #MOMENT. it kickstarts the Randal Tier, even stevens, killing Freddie and eating her together and just being gay as hell final 5 episodes. brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before, unafraid to reference or not reference, put it in a blender, shit on it, vomit on it, eat it, give birth to it.

3.07 Digestivo: THIS EPISODE IS BALLS TO THE WALL UNHINGED FROM START TO FINISH AND IT IS INCREDIBLE. Mason’s delivery of ‘You boys remind me of that German cannibal who advertised for a friend and then ate him... and his PENIS before he died’ and Hannibal nearly busting out laughing. Alana’s delivery of ‘Do you know what happens if we stimulate your prostate gland with a cattle prod? Hannibal does.’ -- and those are two of the more regular happenings in this episode! it also involves naked Hannibal, a botched face transplant, a pig incubating a human foetus, and a man deep-throating an eel to death. not to mention it ends with a) Hannibal bridal carrying Will to safety, b) Will breaking Hannibal’s heart AGAIN by dumping him AGAIN, and c) Hannibal being the world’s premiere petty bitch. turn it up! 

[murtaghsbeard]

Season 5 ep 10 - Mercy shall follow me

Old Pippin and Bonnet discuss their plans to get Bonnet’s record expunged and get custody of the plantation-owning toddler, Jemmy. Old Pippin is a lawyer evidently, but clearly a bad one because when he asks Bonnet to be compensated for his legal efforts he allows Bonnet to tell him “you’ll get some money somewhere down the line on the condition that the desired outcome of my complex plan is achieved.” That is not good billing practice, old Pippin!

Also your client is talking about bumping off people who stand between him and his money, so maybe read between the lines here. Old Pippin is getting swindled in the short term and probably getting dead in the long term.

Oh, no! They’ve dressed Ian up like some sort of Quaker! He interrupts a very Outlander conversation of “this man we are dealing with is a shady character and he may try to double cross us.” “Yes, that is very likely to happen, but let’s not bother to make any kind of contingency plan about that likely outcome, because .... I don’t feel like it?” “Ok” “ok”

Claire tries to get a new syringe made in Wilmington. But some malevolent force tdb is watching them

The girls go to the beach and have very forced dialogue about whales. The pod of whales does not inspire them to stick close together.

Roger begins to feel more macho about killing Bonnet, who does not show up to his pre arranged meeting with the Fraser’s Ridge lads. Just as well. Roger isn’t very good at fighting still.

Bonnet has gone whale watching as well it turns out. Brianna is thwarted by an unloaded pistol and gets kidnapped. They are on Bonnet’s private island. “My son’s father is Roger Mackenzie” she sneers. Why are you always dropping everybody’s full names, girl! That is what got you into this mess. You gave Bonnet your full name, address, social security number, and return envelope at your visit to the jail, which has put all this into motion.

Brianna grabs a fire iron, but then does nothing with it. Instead she puts on a fancy dress, deciding to play the long game I guess. Bonnet wants a lesson in table manners, but alas, this is not Pretty Woman. Now Brianna gets clammy about this sociopath knowing the names of everyone she holds dear.

Brianna opens some boring book about farming, but begins reciting Moby Dick from memory. I’ve never been inclined to read Moby Dick, so I can’t say for sure, but I assume she is paraphrasing and changing the story as she goes and she doesn’t start out in the first person. Will she snare Bonnet in a literary trap? She keeps this going for 200 pages?!? Sounds absolutely exhausting. Seems very elaborate just to provide some moral framework for this villain to perhaps take to heart. What is her end game? He will change his ways because of this cautionary tale about a sea captain?

Is Bonnet duping her? Sea Nightmares and an orphan backstory? Seems very crafted to elicit sympathies and get her to let her guard down.

The prostitute breakfast maid would suggest they are not so isolated as “private island” might suggest. Brianna’s problem is that she assumes Bonnet is dumb.

Maybe he is a little dumb and mostly weird? I can’t quite figure out if he is clever or devious without being clever (if that is possible). Does he really believe in this fantasy with Bri? Everything we know about him thus far suggests no, he wouldn’t be naive enough to believe a woman he has kidnapped at knifepoint will be his loving life partner, but the scene is telling us yes, this is his belief.

Very brief sex with the breakfast tray prostitute seems a bit of an unhinged choice. I do prefer it when the villains are clever. That’s why Randall and Sandrigham are god tier Outlander villains and Geillis and that snooty French duke are not. I find this whole episode very perplexing. Bonnet is effective as a villain, not just because he is ruthless and violent, but because he is canny and has skill at manipulating people’s sympathies and ambitions to achieve his own goals. It seems strange that he leaves himself open completely to that same kind of manipulation with Bri who is not particularly convincing when she tries to play up the romance farce. Would he really be so fooled by her motivations?

It’s all very strange, as it seems like they should be having a battle of wits and deception, but it all falls away and we have only what we first start out with: captor and captive.

Jocasta is up to some scheme. She orders old Pippin to dole out her fortune to every person under 40 at Fraser’s Ridge. Old Pippin is the worst criminal. He is practically bursting out of his chair in outrage as she bequeaths pound upon pound until he screeches “you can’t give away my money!” Jocasta got him to admit conspiracy in under two minutes.

Thank beezus for Ulysses. He comes in to asphyxiate old Pippin when he gets pillow happy with Jocasta’s face. A beautiful voice and charming company aren’t his only talents. We now know the glory of Ulysses’ biceps. Looks like old Pippin is swindled in the short term and dead in the short term.

Seems Bonnet is trafficking stolen women. He decides to sell Brianna to a sea captain. Was this his plan all along (if so, why the charade?) or a pivot following the failure of his original plan? On the beach they are intercepted by the Fraser Gang. Roger catches up to Bonnet while everyone else hangs back (???). Roger lands a punch on Bonnet, which the editor makes us watch twice. This very generous editor also bestows the gift of slow mo on Roger’s scuffling.

I’m sorry. They are planning to put Bonnet on a boat to sea? Like you have rifles. Have you learned nothing? Just shoot and be done with it. Oh, now Brianna wants him to go to trial. Why why why. You want to trust politicians?

Bonnet does get sentenced to execution. By drowning, but nobody sticks around to watch? Oh wait, Brianna turns up with a rifle to do what she could have done on the beach???

[one-piece-dumpster-fire]

And at last, the german Biscuithubby saga has reached its thrilling conclusion!

I've already watched the episode on monday but didn't manage to finish my review until now lol

What a goddamn ride this was xDD It started out kinda good, rendered me completely hopeless in the middle, then finished on a banger. Yep, Cracker sounded pretty good in the final episode! The dialogue was as usual rather abhorrent but I like what the VA's did with it👌🏻

BY THE WAY they changed the name of his final attack from "Crush Pretzel" to "Pretzel Fireworks" and in all honesty??? I kinda like that better fsgwgjekdkw it fits how Cracker's hair gets more intense as he launches the attack and all XDDD

Final verdict: All in all his voice reminded me a lot of Randall Boggs from Monsters Inc. That's not necessarily a bad thing 'cause the more sleazy tone did work in some places (and sounded great when he got angry) but I just wish they would have kept it more deep like in the beginning and that the VA didn't 'overact' in some of the episodes (don't know if I'll ever be able to watch 803 in ger dub again rip). At the end of the day it's not the absolute best top tier voice that makes love to my ears, but there's certainly a lot worse in german OP!!!! I'm giving this whole experience a hearty 6.5🍘/10🍘, will buy the dvd box set when it's released🙏🏻

[aragima]

hannibal questions! 🍖🔪

@nietzscheantrout @horrorlesbians and @hanniba1 wanted me to answer these hannibal questions and i wrote too much but oh well! thanks to all 3 of you ilu!!!

favorite episode and why: oh we’re just goin straight to the hard questions huh um OKAY so i think i can only do an ep a season - s1: SORBET SUPREMACY! you get to see the exact moment will looks at hannibal and thinks “.........shit. it’s him isn’t it. he’s The One. SHIT.” and that is so important to me - s2: this one is really hard maybe naka-choko? it’s so fucking gay and sexy. but tome-wan... but mizumono............ yeah idk - s3: torn between digestivo and the wrath of the lamb cuz they both hurt SOOO good much; i love will breaking up with hannibal and hannibal manipulating the situation so will can’t leave asldkjansk it’s so toxic we have to stan..... and for twotl i mean do i really have to give a reason every scene LIVES in my mind and it contains my favorite shot in the whole show:

that is LOVE baby! that is DESIRE! that is being ENTHRALLED!!!!

least favorite episode and why: i feel like they’re all so necessary that it’s kind of impossible to say but probably antipasto. i get sick of hannibal and bedelia’s shenanigans really quickly and as much as i hate to admit it... i miss will. i also think it was an extremely weak season opener and i blame it for getting the show canceled sjshshsgsg the resentment...

favorite side character: chiyoh or jimmy or actually wait— RANDALL TIER 🖤

if you could bring back one character who died, who would it be?: RANDALL FUCKING TIER. i want there to be a weird thing with him and hannibal and will going on. but also i love what his death did for will so idfk, other than him it’s gotta be beverly

dish prepared in the show that you would like to try eating/making: i was supposed to make hannibal’s osso bucco recipe like 3 weeks ago but it completely slipped my mind so i guess i’ll get on that my next grocery trip  

which side character would you kill off?: chilton just because for god’s sake just let the man DIE ALREADY poor guy <- i’m taking ava’s answer because YEAH

was there any scene that you didn’t like to look at?: nah. the skin ripping scenes at the beginning of either kaiseki or sakizuki (idk i don’t remember, i hardly watch s2a) are particularly brutal but i tough it out

biggest ship: i mean do i even have to say

why did you start watching hannibal?: my wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, and her dad were watching it as it was airing and i was like “oh cool hannibal lecter origin story” but due to inconsistent access to the episodes i would just watch it randomly and that is... not the way to watch hannibal. i gave up around the end of s2 but knew hannigram was It regardless. i decided to watch s3 for the first time earlier this year just to have finished it and was like HOLD UP and did an immediate rewatch that left me... well, how i am now

favorite hannibal fic if you’ve read any?:

oh boy. yall ready for this? all of these can be found on ao3 obviously (i’m so sorry this is so long but i guess i’ve been asked to put together a fic rec anyway)

as soft, as wide as air by blackknightsatellite, the ladders series by emungere, blackbird by emungere, consenting to dream series by emungere, taken for rubies by emungere, at first meeting by emungere, protect me from what i want by @alienfuckeronmain, god of the cold, cold wars by highermagic, the abyss smiled back by highermagic, pomegranate seeds by highermagic, absolute zero by highermagic, in the truly gruesome do we trust by sidnihoudini, TKO by sidnihoudini, oh dear by lunarwench, each according to its kind by chapparral_crown, a flood in our hearts by nanoochka, let me sinful be by darlingred, uncomplicated by stratumgermanitivum & youaremydesign, good bones by @damnslippyplanet​, like they do in babylon by @damnslippyplanet​, your obedient servant by kareliasweet, past our satellites by shotgunsinlace, only the tender meat by isagel, the shape of me will always be you by missdisoriental, a white-walled room by rodabonor, spleen et idéal by rodabonor, the paper doll series by rodabonor, a common point of interest by rodabonor [i do NOT like a/b/o stuff but if i did... it’s this fic], just thought you should know by earthsickwithoutyou, the sacrificial lamb by princesskay, transcendent suffering by itsbeautiful, not something polite by moistdrippings, leave your message after the tone by onewhositswithturtles, holes in the floor of the mind by feverdreamblood, crossing caina by feverdreamblood, the archipelago series by melusine10, but seas between us braid hae roar’d by kareliasweet

have you watched any of the hannibal films?: yeah all of them except manhunter! i grew up watching silence of the lambs because my mom loved it and i went thru a big edward norton phase as a teen so i’ve seen red dragon like 10 times

have you read the thomas harris books?: no and i’m not going to lmao #fakefan

favorite murder tableau: if we’re talking just hannibal’s- the judge. if we’re talking Murder Bad But Kinda Pretty like in general probably the mushroom people or the totem

favorite blood spill: will imagining hannibal while he beats randall to death or The Gutting of Will Graham

what’re some of your headcanons?: - will is good at shibari (backed up in canon: his fishing knots, the firefly man’s full body hishi karada harness) - hannibal rarely listens to modern, non-classical music but he’s a björk fan and he saw one of her chapel performances during the vespertine era and was Moved - will listens to classic rock (zeppelin, the doors, pink floyd) with some classic country (patsy, merle, johnny) and blues (billie, muddy, bessie) thrown in. he’s also a sucker for early/mid-90s college rock/alternative/grunge - will plays the piano (because of the piano in his living room) and the harmonica (because he’s country white trash); he’s kind of shit tho - hannibal fell for will somewhere between “my thoughts are often not tasty” and “you won’t like me when i’m psychoanalyzed” (love at first sight! at last sight! at ever and ever sight!!!) - will’s circumcised, hannibal isn’t 🤪 - hannibal’s a gemini!!!! adaptable, creative, intelligent, outgoing, impulsive, etc - will’s an aquarius!!!!! analytical, a loner, temperamental, unique, compassionate, etc - will’s mom was jewish go read my fic about it https://archiveofourown.org/works/26774326 - hannibal is an agender man (tbh i think of this as canon, it’s just unstated/undefined) - hannibal can speak russian, spanish, and a teensy bit of portuguese in addition to the other languages we know he speaks (lithuanian, english, french, italian, japanese) - will speaks limited amounts of french; he learned it as a kid in louisiana - ED TW will sometimes has a Difficult relationship with food due to food instability by the way of poverty as a kid and goes through periods where it’s hard to keep himself fed, but hannibal is so good for him in that way because he keeps him from going hungry 😓 (yes this is me projecting but also it makes SENSE) - hannibal typically bottoms but THEY DEFINITELY ARE BOTH VERS and will never stops being surprised by how much he loves catching a dick. every time is like religious experience. okay? okay - they’re also both very kinky and switches but tbh.... will was made to Dom hannibal like that’s the reason he exists he could drag that old bitch around by a leash and hannibal would be in heaven HANNIBAL WOULD CALL HIM SIR - the first time they have sex hannibal comes like immediately but he isn’t embarrassed because he’s hannibal fucking lecter and hannibal lecter doesn’t get embarrassed - i have a hc for their favorite sex positions but i’m not gonna put that here because i don’t want yall calling me crazy any more than you probably already do but if you wanna know just DM me all i do is think about them fucking it’s a curse - okay no more dirty stuff abigail called hannibal “dad” on more than one occasion and it was half-joking but it also felt comfortable to her; she never thought to call will “dad” because he’s a weirdo and never knew her as much as he knew his idea of her - hannibal taught her to play piano at the cliff house - beverly is pansexual!!! - brian and jimmy kissed one time when they were drunk and they NEVER talk about it EVER - chiyoh is straight probably. i know, i know, everyone says she’s a lesbian and if she’s a lesbian to you that’s awesome! she’s a lesbian! but idk i just think she’s SO fucking straight and tbh i mourn bc that’s my wife. she could MAYBE be bicurious... - chiyoh is non-monogamous and doesn’t do serious relationships, she doesn’t like the idea of being tied to one person ever since she left the lecter castle - she helped hannibal and will escape after The Fall; she told hannibal she would continue to watch over him and i think she did, she got them a boat and got them the fuck out of there - MOLLY IS DOING SO MUCH BETTER WITHOUT WILL. SHE’S SO GLAD SHE GOT OUT OF THAT WHEN SHE DID. she has a good, long talk with alana and finds out all the shit about him and hannibal that will never told her (and it was a lot), gets drunk and burns all his shit, and then washes her hands of the whole thing; moves to a different state, gets a girlfriend, and never thinks about will again

okay i’m capping it there or i’m never gonna stop!! i’m not tagging anyone cuz i think everyone has done this by now lmao but if you’re a mutual who hasn’t and you want to just do it and say i tagged you!! mwah!!!!

[i-want-anne-hathaway]

LEGALLY BLoOooOoooOooOOOnDE

I want to mention that I only know all the lyrics to Omigod You Guys because I’ve watched the video “Illegally Blonde for your consideration” about 10 times a month for the past three years.

My first exposure to Legally Blonde was through my sister, and it makes me think about the days where my sister was the theater kid.

I seriously urge you to watch Illegally Blonde because it is the funniest thing ever. The person who edited the video is the same person who edited Be More Chillegal for all of you Illegal Rich stans.

Legally Blonde but it’s just Kate and I. Legally Blonde led to the infamous Bree! Kate, and I feel like it should be appreciated for that.

Throwback to Kate and I performing all of Serious in the Brees mom gc. And no, I can’t say amenities. It’s a hard word, okay.

I’ve accidentally typed “Leggaly Blonde,” so proposal for an edit of a leg with blonde hair @lesducks

I don’t appreciate the East Coast slander from Elle’s parents.

What you want, you wanna be out because the sun is warm. What you want, you wanna be study-stuck inside your dorm. What you want, you wanna be partyin' with us all night long. What you want, you wanna be strong. What you want, you wanna be groovin' up and shake the room. What you want, you wanna be provin' something and to whom. What you want, you wanna be wonderin' where you your youth has gone. What you want, you wanna hold on

Elle using love as her reasoning for everything is the same vibes as Justin from 21 Chump Street in Cousin.

I’m not going to lie, there are a lot of Legally Blonde songs I don’t know. I’ve listened to them, but I haven’t listened to them enough to actually... care. But that’s the point of this. To force me to listen to the songs I don’t appreciate enough.

I could never be a lawyer because I could never defend somebody obviously in the wrong.

The first time the students say “blood in the water” it sounds like when Kate, Maya, and I try singing on the phone.

“We’re positive! KILL HER!” Why is that my two moods?

The fact that Elle was going to go brunette because she felt stupid makes me sad. I mean everything makes me sad but still.

I forgot how weird this musical was, and that’s a crime. I need appreciate how odd this entire thing is.

Ireland and Ireland (Reprise) make me think of Randall simping over Campbell in a Leprechaun suit.

Chip on my Shoulder is an eternal bop.

I used to think that Malibu was a place they made up in Barbie, and to be honest, I’ve yet to see any evidence that it’s not so like... I’m only half kidding

The Greek Chorus is superior.

There is another Illegally Blonde video, and it is also iconic. I feel like everybody should watch it.

I can’t imagine how weird I must look right now because I’m aggressively imitating drums throughout all of these songs as if I know how to play the drums it’s the band yearning

Lauren Zakrin’s So Much Better hits different though. She’s adorable, and I love her

This song makes me Confident™️

WHIPPED INTO SHAPE IS TOO FUCKING FUNNY, AND I’LL NEVER NOT LAUGH WHEN I HEAR IT.

I remember finding out that Chutney killed her father after seeing my sister in her production of Legally Blonde back in middle school, and I was like “:0! BETRAYAL”

The fact that Christian and Laura fought for Take It Like a Man to be included is just like *chefs kiss.* Icons.

“What’s that smell?” “Subtext by Calvin Klein”

The Prom 🤝 Legally Blonde

“Thank you” “no. Thank you”

LOOK! AT! MY! ASS! LOOK AT MY THIGHS!

I’m sorry, I had to.

Bend and Snap 🤝 It Ain’t No Thing

Groovy body positivity

Bend and Snap 🤝 Bring It On

Go, [insert name], go [insert name], go! Go! go [insert name]

A very specific connection, but a real one.

The first song I heard from Legally Blonde was There! Right! There, and little fourth grade me couldn’t figure out why I was so drawn to it.

It’s time to get sad. Legally Blonde didn’t have to destroy my heart like this, but here we are.

The Vivienne character development is immaculate.

“Proud to be American” HAH! That’s funny

LEGALLY BLoOooOoooOooOOOnDE

Find My Way is top tier, as is the entire musical.

The fact that Warner just dropped out and became a model is too funny to me.

I love that when Elle proposes to Emmett, he just starts “omigod.” But I will say that I thought they were going to do a Zazzalil and Jemilla and just go “no u”

I ALWAYS FORGET THAT THERE’S MORE TO THIS SONG! BUT NOT TODAY! I KNOW HE’S GOING TO COME AND START SPEAKING ABOUT A PACKAGE. IT’S COMING AND I’M READY

HOLY SHIT, I WAS NOT READY!

Final Judgement: Stan Vivienne for clear skin

Okay, but it’s a classic musical based off a classic movie. It’s got really good songs, and it’s just really likeable overall.

Next up is OBC Be More Chill. I may or may not post it because it’ll probably repeat a lot of things I said in the first BMC one.

[aconissa]

hannibal related questions ✌🏽

thanks to tumblr’s new activity layout I JUST saw that @acheforyou tagged me to do these questions lmao. thank you amie 🥰

favourite episode and why: god... i guess mizumono and the wrath of the lamb for how much they destroy me, but also all the hannibal/will flirting in naka-choko/ko no mono/tome-wan. and dolce because that scene in the uffizi fucks me up on the daily

least favourite episode and why: nothing really jumps out although some of the early s2 stuff with will in prison gets a bit dull at times, like around sakizuke/hassun/takiawase

favourite main character: mr will ‘bratty bitch’ graham himself!! two episodes in and I had already told a friend that I was totally in love with his character, and now he’s by far one of my fave characters in anything EVER. would die for that man

favourite side character: beverly!! every time she’s on screen my heart lifts 🥰 also, in complete opposition to her, I also really enjoy abel gideon lmao like eddie izzard just makes him SO funny & interesting

if you could bring back one character who died, who would it be?: despite what I literally just said about beverly I would bring back abigail, because she deserved to have a life beyond what others did to her (bev meanwhile was in a dangerous field and she was prepared for that). idk if I even would necessarily want abigail and hannibal and will to be one big happy family, i don’t think it would be sustainable (at least not as they are in s2 - maybe if she rejoined them post s3?), but would love for her to go off and grow and ~~find herself~~

dish prepared in the show that you would like to try eating/making: I’m going to hell for saying this but yknow when hannibal bakes gideon’s leg in clay..... like I am JUST saying I want to bake something in clay and eat it. obvs not human and preferably not meat at all but if there’s like a plant-based meat version I’d make it in a heartbeat

which side character would you kill off?: idk maybe just kill off mason earlier bc he’s so contemptible. also that would cut cordell from the show and he creeps me the fuck out

was there any scene that you didn’t like to watch?: I absolutely cannot handle the sorbet opera scene opening up with the shots of the woman singing from INSIDE her. hate it hate it hate it. 

biggest ship: as if it could be anything but will and hannibal.... like I WISH i didn’t go so hard for them for my own sanity but i do :/

why did you start watching Hannibal?: i avoided it when it first came out bc I found cannibalism too icky (since then I’ve become a lil fascinated by the history of survival cannibalism and now play games like ‘donner dinner party’ w my friends and it’s a running joke that I’m TOO into it.. what has happened to my life?) and then this summer two of my close friends started bullying me into watching it so I gave in. funnily enough those friends are both cishet dudes but they have some GREAT hannibal/will takes lol

favourite Hannibal fic if you’ve read any?: there’s two long post-s3 fic series i’ve loved so far (by inameitlater & mokuyoubi) and I especially liked ‘the abyss smiled back’ by highermagic (also post-s3 but years down the line) because clarice starling is will’s sister and their relationship was so well done

have you watched any of the Hannibal films?: I haven’t seen hannibal rising or manhunter but seen the rest! I’ve liked the silence of the lambs for years

have you read the Thomas Harris books?: I just read red dragon and look... it was fine... but I have no interest in reading the books once will isn’t in them and harris’s writing actually irritates me (bryan fuller really took everything worthwhile lmao)

favourite murder tableau: the il mostro primavera tableau is just objectively beautiful but the significance of the randall tier one... ooh boy. also I like sabre tooth cats lol

favourite blood spill: francis dolarhyde’s whole death scene but mostly because it gives us That Shot of will crouching and with blood on his teeth 😳

what are some of your headcanons?: idk i guess i like anything about will and bev getting to be friends and hanging out for fun outside work, even if he’s a bit thorny the whole time bc she’d brush it off anyway and he’d warm to her. also i like the idea that will is very well-read and has more art/music knowledge than people assume he would, he’s just self-taught and not a pretentious dick about it because he appreciates simplicity. OH AND!! will knowing he’s bi since he was young, he just doesn’t talk about it or act on it much. we know he avoids people anyway and his only relationship is with molly (other than kissing alana once and sleeping with margot once) so the idea that he knows he’s into men before hannibal is hardly a leap. I’m just very bored of fics that give him a sexuality crisis lmao

I’m pretty sure all my hannibal mutuals have done this already but if you haven’t then lmk and I’ll tag you!

[cayenne-twilight]

A fic about Uncle Randall interacting with Flora and/or Kat and Alfendi?

Flora peered dreamily out the car window, as she usually did when she could actually convince the Professor to take her places. Three days ago she organized a persuasive presentation proving that she was responsible and capable enough to accompany him on his trip to the city of Monte D’Or. It took informative posters on an easel and ten minutes worth of speaking, but soon enough Flora was packing her bags. Of course, by the Professor’s earnest recommendation, she regretfully pruned her luggage down to one suitcase and one duffel bag. Packing lightly may be befitting of a gentleman, Professor, but not a lady. Am I supposed to wear the same outfit in the morning AND the evening?

She watched the view transition from the metropolis near the airport to rusty desert. Apparently one of the Professor’s secondary school friends built the city, and the rest of their clique lived there as well. He always associated with the most curious people. Flora couldn’t help but imagine what the Professor must have been like as a teenager. Was he already obsessed with being the perfect gentleman, or did he act a tad immature at times like Luke did? Was he in the robotics club like she was now? And what sort of friends did he spend time with? She heard him mention some names over the phone with Emmy, but what were they like? She imagined a bunch of history nerds discussing the Azran over tea. Did they all wear top hats as well? Flora suppressed a giggle at the mental image.

“This is no Laytonmobile, but it has been keeping up just fine,” Layton said. The rental car was a much more modern model than his beloved little Citroen. With its neutral paint job and contemporary luxury features, the Professor almost seemed out of his element driving it. Flora would never say it out loud, but she preferred this car to his usual rickety ride, although she could admit it had its own brand of charm.

“So you’re visiting your old friend to share your findings on the Azran?” Flora asked, hoping to get more out of him than the last two times she asked this question.

“In part. Ever since- well. For the past few years my good friend Randall has had an aversion to the Azran despite his interest in the civilization in our youth. Recently, though, the spark seems to have reignited. I’m bringing over the thesis I published as well as Desmond’s, who turned down the invitation to come here seeing as his relationship with Randall is rocky. (I believe I will force them to reconcile one of these days.) The timing of it all is really quite queer now that neither Desmond nor I want anything to do with Azran research.”

“Wow. It took you two whole years to get your paper published and you aren’t even interested in the topic anymore?” Flora couldn’t imagine what it must be like to be so spontaneous. If she were to write an entire academic thesis, it would be on a topic she would never get tired of learning more about.

The Professor said nothing. He just drove on along the dusty road until Monte D’Or was visible in the distance like an island surrounded by all this empty sand. As they pulled closer Flora marveled at the flamboyant hotels and casinos. Up until recently she felt like a tourist in her own city, but this was the real deal.

Flora sat on a couch in the Reunion Inn lobby while the Professor checked in and arranged for their luggage to be brought up. She could hardly call this an inn. The establishment Beatrice ran was an inn. This place was massive enough to house all the residents of her little village.

“Now that that’s settled, my dear, let’s head down to the Ledore mansion to say hello. I’ll introduce you to my old friends.”

Flora nearly fell over because of the way she was trying to absorb every detail of her surroundings. She heard there was supposed to be an absolutely darling parade on this street at night, and she asked if they planned on watching it.

“Ah, I remember the parade from the last time I visited. They run it once a week, but it feels awfully special when you’re a tourist. Of course we’ll see it,” Layton said.

He rang the doorbell to the mansion, and a woman with blonde hair done up in curls answered, “Hershel!”

“It’s good to see you, Angela. Have you three been well?”

“Yes, of course. And you must be Miss Flora,” she said, extending a hand. Flora shook it. “I’ll call Randall and get Henry to set the kettle for tea. Make yourselves at home.”

The Professor took a seat on the expansive couch, sorting through the folder he brought along, while Flora examined a curio cabinet set into the wall. Randall must collect these pieces of archeological memorabilia, all sorts of carved pots and ancient coins and whatnot. She remembered talking to Luke’s father about how there was more of this stuff out there than one might think, hence how much of the museum’s collection was archived.

“HERSHEL!” a man with slicked back red hair and glasses entered with his arms outstretched. The Professor turned his hug into a handshake.

“I must admit, I missed this Randall,” the Professor said.

“And which one might that be?”

“The one that would rather excavate cities than bury them-“

“Oh bug off, Hersh.” Randall turned to Flora. “You must be the girl from the robot town.”

“Um. Yes I suppose that is me.”

“I’d love to visit one day. How do they work? I hear they’re indistinguishable from humans! Are they modeled after the ancient golems?”

“Leave her be, Randall. So what have you been up to these days? Not farming, I presume.”

“No, not quite,” he laughed. “That’s just the thing. Angela and Henry have the mayoral duties covered, and I don’t think they would want me to intervene anyways. And I’d make an awful stay at home husband.”

“He would,” Angela and Henry said in unison. Henry carried a platter with tea to the coffee table and poured five cups.

“You haven’t done the one thing I asked you to do today,” Henry said.

Randall stared blankly. “And what might that have been?” He smiled like a child caught in a lie.

Angela facepalmed. “Do you even enter the kitchen? The sink is piled up with dishes. I hate to grill you in front of guests, but if you won’t help out around the house in the slightest, you better get a full time job.”

“Yes, about that. I was thinking of curating the Monte D’Or museum. We have an impressive painting gallery, but I think it could do with a more historical exhibit. The city itself is quite new, but the area is rich in Azran history.”

“Well I think that’s a splendid idea,” Layton said. I do hope my research will be of help to you.”

Layton left with Angela and Henry to their office where they showed him the building plans for a new designer brand shopping mall. Randall remained on the couch, essays in hand, until his attention span promptly gave out ten seconds later. He looked to Flora, who was inspecting a still life on the wall.

“You haven’t even touched your tea yet,” He said.

“Ah. I didn’t realize Henry brought some for me too.”

“How’s Hersh been as a dad?”

Flora looked a bit startled. “A dad? Gee, I don’t know if that’s quite right. He’s more like a foster parent, really. I’m not sure how much you heard about his trip to my village, but when he arrived to solve a treasure hunt he wasn’t expecting to bring me home instead.”

“I did hear about the hunt your father arranged. I’m sorry for your loss, by the way.”

“It's been sort of a long time, but thank you.”

Randall’s eyebrows arched since Layton told him the Baron was recently departed. He didn’t pry in fear of touching on a sore subject. “Have you been liking the city life more so than the village?”

“I’m glad the Professor lives on a relatively quiet street, and I do like secondary school more than reading textbooks on my own. Quite frankly, it’s been hard for me to adjust to social situations, but I like working with my classmates more than studying alone.”

“And I gather you’ll be going to college not too far from now. Do you know what you’re going to take in uni? Not to alarm you, I’m sure you get asked that a lot these days.”

“That’s tricky. I was thinking maybe software engineering? Or robotics. Or perhaps criminology as well? I’d like to take some sort of design course if there’s room in my schedule, but at this rate there might not be.”

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough. You know, I don’t believe I actually ever finished my compulsory education because I fell into that chasm. No matter, trade skills served me well enough.”

“You what?”

“Look, it’s already gotten dark out. We should leave right about now if you want to catch the parade.”

Flora, Randall, Layton, Angela, and Henry left the mansion and made their way to the crowded sidewalk of the boulevard where many visitors awaited the procession. The sound of brass instruments pealed from the distance, followed by the drumming and jangling of marching band music. Flora clasped her hands and leaned forward, trying to gauge where the start of the parade was.

Squadrons of dancers and acrobats dressed up as suits of cards waltzed around the pavement, doing flips and spinning batons. The crowd cheered as they quickly assembled into a human pyramid and gracefully collapsed like dominoes. The marching band followed, and Flora had to cover her ears when they were right in front of them. Four floats rode by, driven by characters resembling the jacks, queens, and kings of each suit. They waved and popped confetti at the viewers. Finally, the giant clown balloon glided forward, attached to an equally large float. It looked like a tiered cake, with dancers standing on each level moving in perfect unison.

“You know, the performers on the clown float are all animatronics,” Randall yelled over the blaring band.

“For real?” Flora responded. “But they’re moving so naturally! It’s hard to believe they’re not human!”

“You’re one to doubt it, having grown up with robots. The float is actually an optical illusion in a sense. In reality, dancers on the top are a lot larger than the ones on the bottom, and same with the height of the platforms, but because of our perspective they look the same.”

“Really?” Flora shouted. “That’s so cool! Can I get a closer look at them another time?”

“Of course!” Randall yelled back. “I can take you to the garage tomorrow.”

The eardrum-shattering upbeat music faded, and the crowd began to disperse.

“Did the parade meet your expectations, my dear? Layton asked.

“I believe it surpassed them!” Flora responded.

They parted ways with Randall, Angela, and Henry and headed back to the Reunion Inn for the night.

“You told me you and Randall used to be best friends, but you drifted apart.”

“Yes, that is true. Why do you bring that up?”

“Well I think you should mend that friendship. He seems like a swell guy after all.”

Layton smiled. “Is that so? In any case, you are correct. I should make an effort to reconnect with him. Maybe I should challenge him to a sparring match like those from our youth. He was awfully quick, but now that he’s rusty I bet I stand a good chance.”

“Randall fences?”

“Yes. In fact he’s the one who got me interested in the sport myself. He also sparked my interest in archeology.”

“Wow. I didn’t realize the impression he made on you was so big.”

“That’s not all, he also introduced me to the world of puzzles.”

“RANDALL is the one who got you hooked on puzzles?!” Flora exclaimed. She should be trying to make friends like these in secondary school herself. Even if it’s just through impact on one’s character, friends really had the potential to last forever, huh.

@101flavoursofweird