#yes if possible he would honor him as Hannibal would want

[authorafterhours]

I can see Will keeping Hannibal’s calcified heart as a keepsake if he outlived him.

[trenchcoathunnybee08]

Ok so I just finished Hannibal a few weeks ago and I need to talk about the choice to use a Windego as the depiction of the Chesapeake Ripper (Hannibal) in Wills hallucinations.

I’m going through a horror / folklore phase and that’s what got me to start the show in the first place. I’m sure it’s probably been said since the show came out but still I’d like to add my two cents.

In most folklore the Windego is a cannibalistic spirit that possess a person via a bight or their dreams and then kills and eats its victims (other people)

⬆️ [i actually didn’t know this part. I had just looked I up while I was writing this out. If anyone want to add to this bit go ahead. I’d love to hear more]

In other versions it’s a person driven to starvation who resorts to cannibalism and is then warped and changed by the act. (Normally minors lost in caves or early American settlers who run out of supplies during their travels)

The choice to have the Ripper depicted as that in Will’s hallucinations has such an important role in the story. If you go off the two routes of the creation of these creatures you can see that in a way they fit with each of them respectively. (Hannibal and Will)

That scene in the prison where Will is the one growing the antlers is a great reference to the fact that he’d been almost “possessed” to kill Abagail but it was really Hannibal who did it. (Yes I know she wasn’t actually dead but at the time Will believed he might have done it) From his prospective Will has no idea what happened to her. Not really at least. He can’t trust himself completely and nobody els dose either. He’s been warped by this unseen entity and has done things he would have never thought he could do before meeting Hannibal. And given they reveal later Hannibal had been manipulating him to have episodes/seizures and the blackouts it’s even more of a reference to the whole “possession” aspect of the monsters origin.

On the flip with Hannibal you can easily see he’s a cannibal so that obviously gives the connection to the creature. Here’s the part where I think I might be reaching so just stick with me. Hannibal in season 2 tells Chiyoh that he didn’t kill his sister but he did eat her. Now I don’t know what happened. I haven’t seen any of the movies and I haven’t read the books so this part is purely my own theory’s and speculation.

The theory goes like this- he and his sister were taken (Where I have no idea) bad stuff happens and one of their captors killed Mischa and somehow Hannibal escapes. Between her death and his escape either he is driven to starvation and thus is changed or he killed his captor and eats her as a way of honoring her death. Personally I lean more for the first. (In both situations he eats her as a forme of keeping her with him either for survival or simply emotional) Thus he is changed and she was his first step onto this new path.

(For this I’ll be going off my first theory)

So the way I pictured it things go as such, Mischa dies, he eats her, and presumably she becomes his first, then he escapes. The man who Chiyoh was guarding was likely their captor and caused her death. Given we know he was a cannibal we can also assume the possibility that Mischa died and Hannibal was driven to either starvation and ate her or the man forced him to eat her. After Hannibal was likely still young so say he escapes, after he gets back home enlists the help of Chiyoh and they captured Mischa’s killer. Hannibal tried to kill the man but Chiyoh stops him and instead they imprisoned him. Hannibal leaves at some point after and goes to presumably Florence where he becomes El Mostró. We have a general idea of what follows.

All this is to say that in the case of Dr. Hannibal Lector he was likely turned to cannibalism due to the death of his sister and connects directly to one of the possible origins for these cannibalistic creatures.

In the case of Will Gram his connection is via “possession” or through his subconscious/dreams at the hands of Hannibal. Will might have already had a darkness in him but Hannibal most certainly was the catalyst for its eventual release in season 3. Will might not have become a full blown cannibal like Hannibal in the end but if they did survive the fall and they were at Bedelias home about to eat her leg he clearly isn’t against it anymore and thus he has been changed.

The choice to depict Hannibal as a Windego was a perfect literary choice not only character wise but simply thematically and story wise.

It’s just such a fitting thing to have him depicted as that creature and then to have them parallel him with Will in the prison growing the antlers!? Genius! The writing for this show is insane! Dont even get me started on the individual murders and throughout the show! The tree?! And mural killer ??!? I could go for hours on those !

I’ve only just finished it but it truly is full of such good writing. Absolutely beautiful.

[note: i have the name of the creature crossed out and mentioned as little as possible because supposedly saying it can attack the creature like whistling at night and I don’t need that even if I’m not very superstitious so there is a reason for that. It is entirely unrelated to this post though]

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[young-dumb-and-vaccinated]

The Sommelier (Hannigram x Female!Reader) pt. 6

So we’re slowly but surely getting into the Hannigram shit I promised.

Someone with murderous intent finds y/n just as she thinks her life is beginning to improve. Little does she know, it will. 

@deadman-inc-bikeshop and @dovadokren here you go homies

Trigger warnings: Suicide bombing, graphic descriptions of violence, gun violence, death, cults, cult manipulation

You waited until he had left the restaurant to read that all-important scrap of paper. For some reason, you felt the need to hide in the bathroom to read it. It was probably just a name and phone number, but your brain was anticipating some kind of love letter. 

You carefully unfolded the receipt like it was your most treasured possession. Inside, it simply read ‘Hannibal Lecter’ followed by a phone number. 

You hugged the paper against your chest and a huge smile overtook your face. You couldn’t attach any rhyme or reason to why you suddenly felt so alive, other than you were completely and utterly infatuated. You felt like you could break into song. 

“Hey, [F/N]!” Charissa said, banging on the stall door. “Not to interrupt whatever this is, but could you take out the trash please?” 

“Oh.” You answered, your voice cracking. “Yeah. I’ll be right there.” 

Charissa trailed close behind you as you collected the bags from each can around the restaurant. She was uncharacteristically quiet, probably waiting for you to start spilling every detail of your night. The joke was on her, because you could let the silence go on forever. She wasn’t getting a word out of you. 

“So you’re not going to tell me?” She sounded deeply offended. 

“What’s to tell?” You said, hoisting a very full garbage bag over your shoulder. “Nothing happened.” 

“He sunk his teeth into you, didn’t he?” Charissa asked. At this point, you weren’t sure if she meant it metaphorically or literally. “That’s why you’re acting all, y’know, not downright miserable?” 

“Is that how I act usually?” You began to make your way to the back.

“I don’t know how to tell you this, but,” She prefaced. “You basically have two moods. Depressed and customer-service happy, which is just depressed with a facelift. And whatever is happening here doesn’t fit into either of those categories. So something happened.” 

“Detective Charissa Rodriquez does it again.” You rolled your eyes and put one hand on the back door. “Some things just have to stay between a bartender and her... possible love interest.”

You punctuated the last sentence with a wink, sending your friend into a righteous fury. 

“Holy shit, [F/N]!” She exclaimed, smacking her hands together. “Come on, [F/N], I’m your best friend. You’ve got to let me in.” 

“I’m still trying to process what happened myself.” You said in earnest. “Believe me, if I’m telling anyone, it’s you.” 

“I’ll hold you to that.” Charissa wagged her finger. 

You tightened your grip on the garbage bag and lugged it outside. The night had fallen, and the orchestra of cicadas and crickets was in full swing. The warm pre-summer air welcomed you. As much as you resented her for bringing it up, Charissa was right. You hadn’t been truly happy in a very long time. And, as terrifying as the thought may have seemed, in a way, you owed it to Chase Mulvaney. 

You hauled the garbage bag into the dumpster and slammed it shut. The crash echoed and you turned back towards the door. 

Someone grabbed your arm. Your immediate thought was that it was just Charissa playing a cruel joke, but then they twisted it back and shoved you against the wall. You felt the cold blade of a knife against your neck and you froze up. 

“You didn’t repent.” A manic voice hissed into your ear. You could feel your heartbeat against the cold brick wall. The hands that bound you were soft and the voice was much more female. This was noticeably not Chase. 

You sputtered as you tried to articulate any of your thousands of questions. “Who the fuck are you?!” 

“Silence, she-devil!” The girl slammed you against the wall. “Keep your forked tongue between your teeth or I’ll cut it out!”

Her voice and hands shook and she enunciated as if she were reading off a script with a gun to her head. The adrenaline turned to genuine fear when you felt something hard strapped to her midriff. You knew in that moment that she wasn’t going to use the knife. 

"I thought Chase wanted to kill me himself." You muttered.

“Did you really think vanguard would be stupid enough to come back here?!” She forced a laugh but her voice was broken with fear. 

“Yes.” You said back, resigning to at least die with honor. “And, why is Chase the one in charge?!” 

She tightened her grip on your arm and smashed your head against the wall. “Don’t you dare talk about vanguard that way!”

He ripped off his cult leader title from fucking NXIVM? You thought, fully aware that it could easily be your last thought ever. 

“No, but seriously, think about it!” You implored her, hoping that if you got her talking, she wouldn’t hit the detonator. If there was one thing you knew about evangelicals, it was that they loved to hear themselves talk. “Chas- er, vanguard attacked me in broad daylight in front of dozens of witnesses. You’re smarter than he is! You came after me when I was alone in the dark!” 

“Everything he does, he does for a reason.” She shouted. "It's not the unwoman's place to question vanguard!"

“Oh god, now he’s ripping off Handmaid’s Tale?” You said out loud this time.

“Vanguard told me that you would try to fill my head with lies!” She growled. “So long as you are alive, you stand in the way of god’s work! You spread only falsehoods about our savior!” 

“Is this about the TattleCrime article?” You ask. “Because I didn’t say anything about god, I only talked about--” 

Then it hit you, again. “Oh, so this is a cult cult.”

"It's not a cult!" The girl screamed. This was the first time you'd sensed any genuine emotion behind her words. "Vanguard takes good care of us. And he can take care of you, too [F/N] [L/N]."

"By sending someone to kill me?" You spat.

"No!" The girl exclaimed. "No, no, no, no, no! Silly! I'm here to save you. If you repent now, and let Jesus Christ into your heart, your earthly shackles will be broken!"

"And what's in it for you, huh?" You struggled against her grip. "The privilege of blowing yourself up for Chase Mulvaney?"

"I was a sinful being like you, once." She said. "My grand reward is to give my life to save another."

You heard the click of a gun behind you. “Put the knife down and take off the vest!” 

The girl grabbed you by the neck and turned you to face this approaching foe. She held the knife to your throat. “If you shoot, she’s dead.” 

You couldn’t make out the details of his face, because he was backlit by headlights. You could, however, see the face of your captor. She was completely emaciated with bones protruding from her skin. Her head was sloppily shaved and whatever instrument she used to shave it left deep cuts on her scalp. 

She reached a shaky hand into her pocket and pulled out a detonator. Tears streaming down her face, she began to chant. “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The man let off a shot, sending a bullet into her leg. She fell backwards, dropping the detonator and the knife and giving you an opportunity to run. The man gestured for you to get behind him and you obliged. He then let off a second shot, this bullet hitting her right through the skull. The girl collapsed backwards, her brain matter painting the side of the building. 

The man dropped his gun, mumbled something about a bomb squad into his phone, then turned to you. Finally, you could get a good look at his face. Immediately, you noticed his rich brown curls and a smattering of scruff around his jaw. His features were soft, comforting even. But a long enough examination of his face told you that he was just as deeply haunted as you were. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, weakly.

“You...” You said over desperate gasps for air. “You saved me.”

Soon enough, the first responders joined you. But for a few minutes, it was just you, the man and some unspoken mutual understanding words couldn't articulate.

[slashyrogue]

I posted 1,138 times in 2021

327 posts created (29%)

811 posts reblogged (71%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 2.5 posts.

I added 1,536 tags in 2021

#hannibal - 345 posts

#hannigram au - 211 posts

#hannigram - 198 posts

#fan art - 195 posts

#hannibal fan art - 157 posts

#hannibal lecter - 103 posts

#will graham - 100 posts

#my patreon - 77 posts

#my ao3 - 76 posts

#my writing - 74 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#i saw some people arguing on twitter about bottom hannibal and it pissed me off so i'm gonna reblog all my bottom hannibal shit tomorrow lol

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

Fake dating!!!!!!! Sincerely, a basic bitch

Will sat down in the armchair across from Hannibal with a long sigh. He seemed more exhausted than usual. 

“Is there something wrong?” 

He ran a hand over his face. “It’s...you don’t want to hear about it.” 

“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.” 

Will threw his head back and sighed louder. “There’s this student.” 

Hannibal’s lip twitched. “You’re having difficulties with them?” 

“She’s been bringing me gifts.” 

He squeezed his pen so tight it nearly cracked. “Oh?” 

Will shook his head. “I...I told her it’s inappropriate but she keeps reminding me she’s over eighteen and the semester is nearly over. She made dog treats for the dogs! She told me she’s knitting them sweaters!” 

Hannibal set his pen and notebook down on the table beside him. His anger felt like a living thing, so much so he was prepared to ask for this student’s full name and deal with her himself. “Will, perhaps you need to be more firm.” 

Will leaned forward, looking distraught. “I HAVE BEEN FIRM! I told her no in as many ways as possible! I’m worried she’s gonna follow me home one day and...” 

He nearly hissed at the various imagined ends of that sentence. “Perhaps...I can be of service.” 

“I don’t know how.” 

“I could...pretend to be your paramour.” 

Will blinked. “You want to be my fake boyfriend?” 

Hannibal smiled. “If it will help this young woman leave you alone? Yes.” 

Will let out a long breath. “You...I can’t ask you to do that, Dr. Lecter.” 

“Hannibal,” he corrected, “If I’m going to be your boyfriend you need to start calling me Hannibal.” 

He loved to see the slight blush to Will’s cheeks as he pushed the glasses up his nose. “I....you’re sure? I mean, I’m not exactly the type of guy you normally socialize with.” 

“Have we not been socializing, Will? I thought we were just having conversations?” 

Will smiled. “Touché.” 

“And as for what ‘type’ of person I socialize with....perhaps it’s time for me to change that. I enjoy spending time with you, Will. More time spent with you will not be a burden.” 

He saw the way Will relaxed at his words and wondered just how few times Will had been told that very thing. 

“Okay,” Will said, shaking his head, “It sounds crazy and I’m sure it’ll all come crashing down but I’m desperate. So...Doc...Hannibal, would you be my fake boyfriend?” 

Hannibal reached out and took Will’s hand, kissing it softly. “It would be an honor.” 

Will blushed. “I...no one’s here now to...” 

“True,” he said, still holding Will’s hand, “But I thought perhaps I should rehearse just a bit before my first curtain call.” 

“Oh.” 

“So...tomorrow? I can bring you lunch? What time is this young woman’s class?” 

See the full post

66 notes • Posted 2021-02-08 05:04:05 GMT

#4

Failed Twitter Attempts - Hannigram A/B/O AU: Where You Belong

Will never meant to become a nanny.

Betas were not known for their paternal instincts, normally assigned blue collar jobs that filled their days with hard work and little pay.  But the flier at the grocery store caught his eye and the rest was history.

ARE YOU AGED 18-35 LOOKING FOR A JOB? CALL 1-800-8475 WE NEED YOU!

It sounded like a scam right off the bat, some sort of scheme to lure younger people into something sinister, but the woman on the other end of the phone sounded sincere.

"You're a beta?"

He sighed. "Yeah, so any sort of job you have going I can probably do."

"Hmm...have you ever...looked after children before?"

Will hadn't, but he lied, and his first job, Missy Bennett, was a disaster.

He didn't know jack of shit about kids, and Missy was a terror that could not be calmed.

The agency tried three more kids before that, and Will realized he just wasn't cut out for this type of work.

Though on the fourth try that year somehow he was assigned to the Lecter household.

Hannibal Lecter had fired six others before him, all omegas, and Will came into the interview not expecting to be hired. The house, if you wanted to call it that but really the place could be considered a castle, shined and glittered as he sat across from Omega who seemed very little like an omega.

He was bigger than most, it was obvious he liked expensive pretty things, and his scent was sweet like most omegas were. But he just didn't seem like one.

Not at all.

"I see you've had similar troubles like I have," Hannibal said, smiling, "Not compatible with your previous employers?"

Will sighed. "I...can I be honest?"

"Please."

"I started this job because I had no other choice," he said, falling back in his chair, "I'm...not really all that good with kids, and I think if this doesn't work out I'll just go back to working in the lumber yard. Betas don't usually---"

"Daddy?"

Will turned and saw a little blonde haired girl peek out of the sliding doors that Hannibal had closed in the study. He felt an odd jolt to his heart at the sight of her.

She looked very much like her father.

"Desdemona," Hannibal sighed, standing as he walked over, "I told you to stay in your room, Darling. Daddy has to--"

Desdemona met him halfway, grabbing his legs, and looked at Will.

"Are you gonna be my new nanny?"

Will swallowed. "Um..."

"This is Will, Darling," Hannibal said, "Do you like him?"

Desdemona smiled. "He's pretty."

Will blushed. "I...um..."

Hannibal smiled. "He is quite handsome, yes," he said, making Will blush harder, though that is not what I asked."

See the full post

66 notes • Posted 2021-07-13 22:14:22 GMT

#3

Hannigram AU: Chomp

Every year there was an event. 

Monsters of all kinds were invited, though some were not exactly welcome in the same areas. There were many tiers of monsters: shapeshifters and vampires were among the very highest while the lowest of the low were creatures who could not easily blend in to polite society. 

Creatures like Will Graham. 

Will was born a zombie, which traditionally were made by bites from the walking dead. His mother had been human and his father a zombie who rose quite suddenly after death. They’d been happy for a while, or so he’d been told, until his mother found someone normal. 

His father died not long after Will graduated high school, and throughout he’d been ostracized for his gaunt deadlike skin, deep sunken in eyes, and strange abilities to read people. Will lived on brains but didn’t need much. 

That still didn’t keep him from being summoned to this event. 

He was, after all, a zombie born. Very few of his kind lived to be older than their teens and despite initial excitement that perhaps he’d be among people who would not look down upon him the minute he entered the lower rung Will knew differently. 

No one wanted him here. 

There were whispers, obvious ones, and he was there only an hour before he snuck away to the upper gardens. None of the more important monsters bothered to go there, the wine and booze were flowing inside, and he stared out into the darkness trying not to cry. 

He only needed to be here for a few hours and then he could leave. 

Hopefully they would not invite him again next year. 

It was there, in the garden, where Will met Hannibal. 

One minute he was chewing a fried brain stick and the next he was scared out of his mind when a man appeared out of nowhere. “Hello.” 

Will froze. 

The man was wearing a fine looking suit, three piece, and looked so human Will was almost certain he had to be. “I’m sorry.” 

“What are you sorry for?” 

“I’ll go,” Will said, standing so fast he nearly dropped his food. 

The man appeared just in front of him then, like magic, and reached out to touch Will’s face. “No, I’d like you to stay. I’ve never met any monsters who look like you. What are you?” 

He swallowed. “I...a zombie.” 

The man smiled. “You live on human meat?” 

“A little,” Will whispered, tears in his eyes, “Mister…” 

“Lecter,” the man said, “Hannibal Lecter. I’m the host of this event.” 

Will blinked. “Oh.”

“What is your name?”

“Will,” he said, his voice shaking, “Mister Lecter, I’m sorry that I came up here I didn’t…” 

Hannibal leaned in and sniffed at Will’s neck. He shuddered at the touch of his skin, so warm, and for the first time Will felt his body respond in ways it never had before. He hadn’t even been aware his body could respond quite like this. He groaned and to his shock he felt his cock fall off and roll out of his pant leg. 

His face turned bright red as Hannibal moved back to stare down at it. “I apologize, I was unaware that was a possibility.” 

He reached down to pick it up but his cock vanished before he could and Will felt it return between his legs. “I...thank you.” 

“You’re welcome. Do your body parts fall off that easily? I cannot smell you at all so I was unaware of any hidden dangers.” 

See the full post

79 notes • Posted 2021-04-07 13:24:10 GMT

#2

All these years of being in the Hannibal fandom and I still get irrationally upset when I see people spelling it "Lector". It's LECTER. Do you know how upset Hannibal Lecter would be with you if you spelled his name wrong?

163 notes • Posted 2021-01-26 17:41:57 GMT

#1

Late night cuteness from the princess.

183 notes • Posted 2021-06-08 03:28:27 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[darling-i-read-it]

And the Woman Clothed With the Sun...

3x09

Hannibal Lecter x reader x Will Graham 

Hannibal Re-Write Series Masterlist

Word Count: 3.1k 

Warnings: spoilers for hannibal, murder, dead bodies, nightmares, talk of children and having them 

Author’s Note: I really really liked this episode. I love playing with dynamics SO MUCH. I hope you guys like this? 

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

Official Episode Summary: As the search for Francis Dolarhyde (Richard Armitage) continues, Will starts imagining himself in Dolarhyde's tormented psyche -- and asks Hannibal for help with the serial killer's profile; a new woman (Rutina Wesley) enters Dolarhyde's life.

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

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

(not my gif)

“That’s the same atrocious aftershave you wore in court,” Hannibal said. He turned around slowly, acting as though he were not surprised to see you and Will together. The thin line of glass between the two of you Hannibal seemed so thick.

The truth was, you had never truly gotten over Hannibal. You had pretended to, for the sake of Will, but you had never really stopped thinking about what he could be doing. There was a link that the three of you had with each other that was unexplainable. You had started a new life. But your old one still called your name. 

“Hello, Dr. Lecter,” Will said simply. He was contained. You fed off of his energy to keep yourself in check as well. 

“Hello, Will. Y/N.” He stepped closer to the two of you. “I believe congratulations are in order. I apologize I couldn’t make it to the wedding. Alana gave me some pictures, to taunt me presumably.” You smiled. You thought about Hannibal holding the pictures of you and Will laughing, beaming at each other. “Did you get my note?” You nodded. 

“We got it. Thank you,” you said simply. You and Will stood close together. He had his coat draped over his arm and you held the papers from the cases. 

“Did you read it before you destroyed it? Or did you simply toss it into the nearest fire?” Hannibal asked. You scoffed a bit.

“We read it. Then he burned it,” you promised. He nodded. 

“And you came anyway.” Hannibal eyed you. “I’m surprised you let that happen.” 

“We all falter in some ways,” you said simply. 

“I want you to help me, Dr. Lecter,” Will said to break the conversation. He still didn't trust Hannibal with you. Reminiscent of the days you used to work with Hannibal.

“Yes I thought so. Are we no longer on a first-name basis?” Hannibal asked. 

“I’m more comfortable the less personal we are,” Will said. Hannibal looked over at you, eyeing your entire body. He made note of the scent. The scent off of both of you. 

“Your hands are rough Will. I smell dogs and pine and oil beneath that shaving lotion.” He looked at you. “Did you steal that perfume from my home?” he questioned. You stiffened. You had gotten some perfume from his home as they cleaned it out. You ended up liking and buying another bottle over the years.

“I’m here about Chicago and Buffalo. You’ve read about it, I’m sure,” Will said. 

“I’ve read the papers. I can’t clip them. They won’t let me have scissors, of course. You want to know how he’s choosing them,” Hannibal commented. You held up the case file. 

“Thought you might have some ideas.” 

“You just came here to look at me. Came to get the old scent again. Why don't you just smell yourself Will? Or your wife?” Will let out a sigh. 

“I expected more of you, doctor. That routine is old hat.” Hannibal nodded stiffly.

“Whereas you are new people,” Hannibal said. “Let me have the file. An hour, and we can discuss it like old times.” You nodded happily at that, pleased he would help. You shoved the file through the document tray and into the cell. Hannibal came close to collect it. 

“Thank you,” Will muttered.

“Family values may have declined over the last century, but we still help our families when we can.” He took the papers. “You’re both family.” 

Will grabbed you around the waist, eager to leave. Your eyes lingered on Hannibal’s for a moment longer before you and Will left the room, swallowing his true words. 

-

You looked around Alana’s office. You hadn’t seen it since she had moved in. It looked better than when Chilton had run it. Perhaps that was just because you liked Alana more. The problems you once had with each other had mostly scabbed over. She was maid of honor at your wedding. Interesting, considering the fact you had once fought feverishly over Hannibal.

“It’s good to see you looking well. But I can’t help wishing you weren’t here,” Alana said. She sat on her couch. Her suit was pristine, her hair perfect. You admired her. 

“You aren’t the only one,” you commented. 

“I was surprised Jack came back in one piece,” she said. You nodded, running a hand over your pants before sitting down on the couch beside her. Will stood up, looking out the window. 

“You weren’t the only one,” Will said, turning to both of you. 

“How did it feel to see him again?” she questioned. You looked at the ground. Will sat down beside you, in between you and Alana. 

“Like Hannibal was looking through to the back of my skull. Felt like a fly flitting around in there. I had the absurd feeling that he walked out with me. Had to stop outside the doors and look around, make sure it was just Y/N,” Will commented. 

“I know that feeling. At least Jack Crawford’s pleased.” You pursed your lips but stayed quiet. 

“He showed me pictures of the families. I looked at Y/N and couldn’t say no,” he argued.

“Damn my presence,” you joked softly. Will slung his arm around the couch behind you, his fingered brushing your shoulder. 

“And Jack was counting on it.” 

“Are you still with Margot?” you asked, eager to change the subject. She took a deep breath and nodded, thinking fondly of her wife. 

“Yes. We have a baby. A Verger baby. A son,” she said. You smiled. You and Will had talked about kids. You wanted one. You were working for one when Jack spiked both yours and Will’s stress levels. 

“Good for Margot,” Will said.

“Good for me. I carried him. He’s my son. He’s the Verger heir.” You smiled. 

“Then what are you doing here? You’re set for life,” you pointed out. 

“There are only five doors between Hannibal and the outside. And I have the keys to every one of them,” she said. A daily ‘gotcha’ to Hannibal. Will admired that. “Hannibal has never been great with boundaries. ‘He who sups with the Devil needs a long spoon’.” 

“I am not letting him in, Alana. Don’t worry about me,” Will said. She looked at you sympathetically. 

“Last time, it didn't’ end with you Will.” 

-

“I want you to stay here,” Will said, standing outside Hannibal’s cell door. He hadn’t stepped inside yet. Hannibal could not see him. You scoffed.

“We’ve been over this. I follow you, even if you say no.”

“This time, I mean it. I think I’ll get more out of him if he isn't’ distracted with you.” You raised an eyebrow.

“You sure you aren’t jealous?” He gave you a look. “Fine, fine. Please be quick.” 

Will stepped into the room, leaving you outside to wait. Hannibal looked up at him from his desk.

“This is a very shy boy, Will. I’d love to meet him,” Hannibal said. He looked around. “Just us?” 

Will nodded.

“Just us.” 

“Have you considered the possibility that he’s disfigured? Or that he may believe he’s disfigured?” Hannibal asked. 

“That’s interesting.”

“That’s not interesting. You thought of that before.” Will nodded. 

“He smashed all the mirrors in the houses, not just enough to get the pieces he wanted. The shards are set so he can see himself. In their eyes. Mrs. Jacobi and Mrs. Leeds. And their families,” Will said. Hannibal pulled out the picture of a dead Mrs. Jacobi. 

“Could you see yourself in their eyes, Will? Killing them all?” 

Will instantly regretted leaving you outside. 

The two boys imagined themselves in the crime scenes, looking across the dead bodies of the families. 

“The first small bond to the killer itches and stings like a leech,” Hanibal said. “Like you, Will, he needs a family to escape what’s inside him.” Wills head shot up but he did not look at Hannibal. “You know a fair amount about how these families died. How they lived is how he chooses them.”

“How is he choosing them?” Will asked.

“I was surprised to hear you actually married Y/N. Not because I thought you weren’t a match made in heaven but it made more sense for you to start a family from scratch. No one that had even an inkling of me in their eyes. Find a mom with a stepson or daughter, not having to breed. You know better than to pass the terrible traits that you fear the most,” Hannibal said. Will did not look at him. Hannibal continued. “But Y/N wants children with you. How will you stand to look at a child you may have ruined before they were even born?” 

Will desperately wished he hadn’t left you outside. 

“Why are there no descriptions of the grounds? I see floor plans, diagrams of the rooms where the deaths occured, no mention of the grounds. What were the yards like?” Hannibal continued, satisfied with how he had shaken Will’s personal life. 

“Big, fenced, with trees. Why?” 

“If this pilgrim feels a special relationship with the moon, he might like to go outside and look at it before he tidies himself up. If one were nude, say, it would be better to have outdoor privacy for that sort of thing. One must show some consideration for the neighbors, hmmm? Have you ever seen blood in the moonlight, Will?” 

Will suddenly saw himself in place of the killer, naked, drenched in pitch black blood. 

Will snapped back and nodded quickly.

“Thank you Dr. Lecter,” he said before stumbling out of the door. You sat on the outside in one of the waiting chairs. Will looked over at you and seemed to relax but not completely. 

“Will?” 

He grabbed you and you stood up quickly, hugging him tightly. He buried his head in your neck and you let him, rubbing your back.

“This is why you don’t go without me places,” you muttered. He scoffed but his breathing was already evening again. “What did he say?” He moved back and shook his head softly.

“We’ll talk about it later. I want to see the backyards.” You raised an eyebrow.

“Alright, I suppose.” 

He walked out of the asylum, holding your hand tightly. Freddie snapped a couple pictures from the bushes.

-

“Have you come to wag your finger?” Hannibal asked as Alana entered the room behind him. 

“I love a good finger-wagging.”

“Yes, you do. How is Margot?” Alana ignored the remake as she gleaned down at the picture of her as Botticelli’s Fortitude.

“Your cogs are turning, Hannibal. I can hear them clicking.”

“Click, click, click, boom,” he whispered. 

“I don’t know what you’re planning with the Grahams. But you’re planning something. Why wouldn’t you be? You’ve already cracked the lid, can’t resist peeling it back.” 

Hannibal pursed at the name. Alana noticed this. 

“You can’t comment on her last name anymore you know. They’re married. She is, in the eyes of the law, a Graham now.” Hannibal stiffened.

“They came to me,” Hannibal said, ignoring her words.

“Yes, they did.” 

“I advised them against it.”

“I’m sure.” 

“Are you suggesting I don’t have Y/N and Will’s best interests in mind?” he asked. Alana scoffed.

“I’m stating it as a fact.”

-

You stepped into the room with Hannibal’s cage. He looked up, quite surprised to see you. You held your purse in both hands, stepping closer to the cage. 

“Hello love,” he said quietly. You let his words fall off of you like rain. They stayed for a moment, dripping down your arm before hitting the ground. “I don’t imagine you’re here to talk about the murder cases.” You shook your head softly. He walked up to the glass quietly. You stepped close to it, so you were really only a couple of inches apart. 

“I came to yell at you,” you said. He raised an eyebrow.

“Whatever for?” You smiled gently and shrugged.

“Lots of things. Firstly, you didn’t kill Jack when you got the chance. I’ll never forgive you for not feeding him to me in soup.” His eyes went wide.

“Careful Y/N. Alana watches these tapes.” 

“She would probably agree with me.” You took a deep breath. “Secondly, not coming to my wedding. I know you were otherwise indisposed but I thought it was rather rude.” 

“I thought it was rude of you to get married.” You shook your head playfully. The same banter. Joking with a cannibal serial killer. Just another Tuesday.

“Third, I told you to leave.” The air seemed to calm. 

“Does Will know you’re here?” 

“No. I didn’t tell him.” 

“Did he tell you he’s scared of his own children?” You raised a finger, shaking it gently. 

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Will is no longer my boyfriend I dated a couple of months. He’s my husband. You can’t wedge yourself between us no matter how hard you try.” You wanted to put your hand against the glass but you didn’t. “But I miss you.”

“Where do you work nowadays?” You shrugged.

“I had to get another secretary job but I’ve mostly worked up enough to take this amount of leave. My last employer wasn’t exactly the best reference.” He laughed. 

“I suppose you’re right.” He paused. “Eating well?” 

“Better. No people in the diet these days.” 

“Pity.” 

-

“Will!” You broke Will out of his thoughts. You were standing in the back of the Jacobi house. Will had just found a small sign on one of the trees. He was about to get into it but you had broken him out of his mind. “It’s Freddie.” 

Will walked out from the trees and shoved his hands in his pockets. 

“Now are you just keeping America clean or is that evidence?” Freddie asked. 

“You’re trespassing, Freddie,” Will said sternly.

“I was trespassing before the blood dried.  When did they call you? Interesting to see The Bloody Valentines back at action. Beautiful ceremony by the way.”

“We aren’t talking to you,” Will said, grabbing your arm. You followed him.

“We’re co conspirators, Will. I did for you and your cause.”

“You didn’t die enough. You came into my hospital room while I was asleep. You flipped back the sheets and shot a picture of my temporary colostomy bag,” Will said, turning to her. 

  “Covered your junk with a black box. A big black box. You’re welcome,” she said.

“Justly so,” you argued carefully. 

“You culled us the ‘murder threesome’. Little crude, don't you think?” 

“You did run off to Europe together. Doesn’t help that the two of you ended up getting married. How does the Tooth Fairy compare to Hannibal Lecter? Haven’t seen anything like this since the Massacre at Muskrat Farm. Funny thing about that massacre. Not only did Dr. Bloom survived, she got rich. Lecter’s living in the lap under her care. What kind of arrangement you suppose they have?” Freddie asked. 

“A complicated one,” you said sternly. 

“Couldn’t be more complicated than your relationship with Hannibal. Both of you. You paid him a visit? Before you lie, know that I know that you did,” she said quickly.

“Good-bye Freddie.”

-

“I read your note before my office forwarded it to the Grahams,” Jack said, standing in front of Will. Hannibal swallowed, understanding. 

“To whet their appetite or yours? You’ve placed him back in the pot and you’re letting him cook.”

“We’re all in this stew together.” 

“Arguable considering how close Y/N is to drowning you.” 

-

You stepped into the hotel room where Will was already sitting on the bed. You ran a hand through your hair and let the chilly cold wash over you as you entered the warm room. 

“How are the dogs?” he asked.

“Good. The dog sitters said they were missing us but other than that, they’re okay,” you promised. You looked down at the dog that was laying on the ground beside the bed. “She’ll be right at home with them.” 

You sat on the bed and Will sat up, putting his arms around you from behind. You smiled about him, happy to see he was feeling better.

“I’m worried about the kids,” he whispered.

“The kids who don’t exist?” He laughed gently.

“Yeah. I don’t want them to end up like me.” You nodded slowly.

“So that’s what Hannibal said that got you worked up.” You took in the information. “If the kid isn’t like you I don’t think I’d be able to love them as much as I love you.” 

It was his turn to take in the information. 

“You’re just saying that.”

“Nope. I’m serious. I’ve never loved anyone as much as I’ve had the pleasure of loving you Mr. Graham.” He kissed your neck gently and smiled to himself. 

“I love you too Mrs. Graham.”

You let out a small sigh of relief. 

 -

Will screamed as he sat up quickly, sweating aggressively, blankets flying. You got up just as quickly, turning to him but he had already gotten up, rushing into the bathroom. You followed him, sleep that had just taken you over long gone. 

You practically ran up to him. He was looking at himself in the mirror, fear in his eyes at his reflection. You grabbed him quickly and he turned to you, wrapping his arms around you. You didn’t speak. You didn’t ask questions. You just held him as close as you could get him.

Nightmares had come back. Neither of you had had those in a while. You rubbed his back and let him breath. 

3x10

[writingwithadinosaur]

“Under the Knife” - Part 10 (Finale)

“Under the Knife” - Part 10 (Finale)

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Hannibal Lecter x Reader, Will Graham x Sister!Reader

Word Count: 3,800-ish

Key: Chunks of text in italics are (Y/N)’s thoughts. Y/N = Your Name, H/C = Your Hair Color, E/C = Your Eye Color

Warnings: Cursing, talk of violence, talk of death

Summary: You are Will Graham’s sister who works with him at the FBI. When you get offered a job promotion, life starts to change. Some changes for the better; Some for the worst.

Author’s Note: Well, we are finally at the final chapter. This has been such an incredibly challenging story to work on, but I have learned so much from this process that will no doubt help shape my future stories.

Thank you to all of the readers who have liked, reblogged, commented, messaged, and reached out to me. This has been the best response I’ve gotten on a story and it has filled me with a level of appreciation that I wasn’t expecting. <3 

With the sappy stuff out of the way, please enjoy the final chapter of “Under the Knife.”

This is beta-read by @theeactress​, but please let me know if there is something that we missed or that we should look at again! 

<3

- DreaSaurusREX

Tag List: @fruitloopzzz @theeactress @melconnor2007 @ashenfallsof @geeksareunique @all-by-myself98 @sj-thefan​ @fuck-your-bad-vibes-dude​ @ntlmundy​ @a-person-unlabled​ @germansarechill​ @rentheanonymous​ @liadamerondjarin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Taking into account that Henry Urik was left-handed, I was able to throw my head back, causing him to falter, and then lean to my right in order to escape his grasp and not have my throat sliced open. This gave me enough time to get back to the table and get my hands on the gun.” 

“Unfortunately, the gun was empty. It’s common for killers to use unloaded or fake guns as intimidation techniques with their victims. My mistake gave Henry enough time to stabilize himself and grab hold of me again, resulting in a mild concussion and being knocked unconscious until a few hours later. Luckily Dr.Lecter was able to fight, thus saving me until Special Agent Crawford and his team could come.” You looked around and saw a few people taking notes while others just nodded their heads. Checking your watch, you saw that you had a few more minutes left to fill up. “And with that, I have time for one or two questions before we leave.”

The lights faded up a little bit, nothing too harsh for you. You quickly scanned over the larger than the normal crowd in your lecture hall. 

The fact that you, a survivor of the Virginia Scalpel, were giving a lecture on the case had attracted the minds of not only your normal trainees but the higher-ups as well. 

It was a slightly dizzying feeling to see the faces of management in your lecture hall, but that could also be the still healing minor concussion from a serial killer slamming you into a table a little less than a week ago. Either way, you took this time to sit on your desk and drink some water as you pointed to one of the trainees in the first row.

“I don’t want to bring up anything too triggering, ma’am, but I--”

“Kid, if I wasn’t okay enough to jump back into the shitstorm named Henry Urik, I wouldn’t have agreed to be here today.” A scattering of chuckles echoed through the hall. You were glad to hear that your lighthearted comment helped ease the tension in the room. “Please, continue. I’ll be okay, I promise.” The agent nodded and took a breath, whatever they were going to ask must have been weighing on their mind enough to scare them. You could tell that they were trying to hide it, but your ability to read people's subtleties was strong.

“Thank you, ma’am. I wanted to ask for your advice. What should we be aware of if we’re ever in a similar situation with an unstable or unpredictable suspect? What do we do?” 

You nodded and thought for a moment before you responded. You had a feeling that this type of question would come up now or through an email later on. Fiddling with your ring, you spoke.

“To be honest, you have to be able to assess everything at the moment. I may have seemed to have a handle on the situation externally, but internally? I was a quivering, frantic, and terrified mess. With Henry’s focus being solely on me, I knew I couldn’t just sit there. I knew that if I froze, it could have cost not only my life but also Hannibal’s.” You took a deep inhale through your nose before continuing. The thought of losing Hannibal hurt your heart. “My advice: really focus on the suspect. What are they saying? How are they saying it? What are they doing? Are there any mannerisms o-or phrases that hint at any sort of soft spot?” 

You held up a finger and turned to your computer, scrolling back through your presentation until you found the slide you were looking for. It was a diagram showing how all of the victims tied to Henry as well as Henry’s symptoms. You turned back towards your class.

“While I knew a majority of this information before my encounter with Dr.Urik, I only knew the facts at face value. When he and I talked about his experiences with all of these doctors, Henry let his anger and annoyance towards these men out. His voice changed from the seemingly calm and confident man that had just had a gun pointed at me, to a frustrated patient who just wanted answers that he believed in.”

“Now if we want to talk about more physical tells, that is the premise for another lecture entirely. You can tell a lot about a person without either of you having to utter a word.”

You looked at the trainee, they were watching you, truly listening to everything you had to say. From the almost unnoticeably tensed jaw to the stiff posture, this future agent was using all of their power not to tremble in fear at the thought of being in a scenario like this. You saw the fear in their eyes.

“As long as you breathe, remember your training, and let yourself fully assess the situation at hand, you’ll do the best you can do. Trust me, there were two very distinct moments that night where I thought and accepted the possibility that I was going to die. That’s a risk we all take with this job. But I focused on what I could do next and kept going. And that’s what you’ll learn throughout your time in training and in the field. You cannot stop, you have to keep going.”

You ended with a smile directly to the trainee to try to calm their nerves even a little bit. They visibly took a deep breath and nodded, giving you a quiet “thank you” before writing something in their notebook. Your saw movement out of the corner of your eye. Will and Hannibal were now standing off to the side, letting you know that you were almost done. Will was more rigid than usual. You assumed he heard the part about accepting death and he did not like that thought. 

Hannibal caught your eye as he tapped his watch. Nodding, you looked back to the class, prepared to dismiss them. That was until you saw a hand near the back. Before you could say or do anything, the man with the raised hand spoke. 

“How were you able to confirm the Scalpel’s motive? What stood out with him that made him suspect number 1?” You took a slightly larger breath as you realized it was one of the assistant directors speaking. Blinking a few times and gathering your thoughts you tried to sound as professional as you could. 

“Well, we originally were looking for an active doctor. Someone who could have access to the equipment and drugs needed for these killings. But then we realized that it could be a former doctor who was now a patient of these doctors.” You gestured to the slide projected behind you. “As for motive, we could only theorize until we talked to Henry himself. And while talking to him face-to-face last week revealed a lot, we cannot actually confirm anything when it comes to his psyche.”

“But you said it yourself, he was frustrated at the answers that these doctors had given him. So wouldn’t the Virginia Scalpel murders be crimes of passion, making his motive emotional overload?” The man spoke. You were thrown off just a bit, but found your way back to correct wording.

“They actually weren’t crimes of passion. Those are usually impulsive and emotionally driven. The Virginia Scalpel crime scenes, especially that of Dr.Pencalt and his wife, showed us that Henry was methodical and purposeful.” 

“Yes, there could have been an emotionally charged aspect to it. He was upset with these men. I theorized with Dr.Lecter and Special Agent Crawford that these killings could have been some sort of pain relief for his headaches. The act of slaying these men took all of his focus, alleviating the pounding in his head.” 

“At one point, he said that killing was a form of mercy and life could be considered torture. So he could very well have just wanted to spare them from this mortal coil. Or maybe Henry saw these murders as a way of honoring them. Maybe there was even a thrill-seeking aspect that he got a kick from.” You stood up from your spot on your desk, feeling yourself getting a bit weary after so much talking over the last hour or so, and tried to politely wrap this all up.

“Where I’m going with this is the fact that we can theorize all we want-- Hell, we can even settle on what we believe his motive was. But that’s all it’ll be: A belief. We will never truly know because Dr. Urik was found dead in the woods behind his former office building, stabbed a handful of times, and had enough of his own paralytic drug in his system to take down an ostrich.”

They were out of your sightline, but Hannibal and Will both smirked at how well you had handled the situation. It wasn’t often that managerial positions were proven wrong in front of a classroom full of people. However, both of their smiles slowly fell as the assistant director continued.

“I guess his death is a breath of fresh air, right? You can sleep at night knowing that the Virginia Scalpel is no longer out there. No more target on your back.” The assistant director tried to say that as a lighthearted joke. Something to lighten the mood. But you forced a pained smile and spoke your mind.

“Yes. I am thankful that I don’t have to worry about a scalpel cutting into my cheek again, or almost slicing my throat, or finding Dr. Lecter chopped into pieces in his bed or maybe even Henry breaking his pattern and going after the last bit of family that I have left. I guess sleeping should be easier, shouldn’t it?” 

You looked directly at the man as you spoke, the gravity of your situation and the insensitivity of his statements hitting him. You shifted your gaze to the trainees that were in the first few rows and continued, straightfaced. 

“But I am curious as to what he would have to say and how that perspective could have helped us catch others like him. I hope that you all can find that same curiosity as I do. If we can catch them and talk to them, we could learn what makes them tick and get information that could help us catch the next one before it's too late.” You let a beat of silence pass, letting your words sink into the minds of the young ones. “Thank you all for your time. For questions regarding the Virginia Scalpel case, please contact Special Agent Crawford and he will see if you are authorized to view the file notes. If you need to reach me for any reason other than the Virginia Scalpel case, you all have my email. Stay safe out there.” 

You turned away from the class and shut down your computer, trying to gather your things as the room applauded. You raised a hand as a way of saying “thank you but please stop” and they all filed out of the room. 

“I think that went well despite Assistant Director Ass-Hat’s commentary at the end there” Will made his way to you, grabbing your jacket from the chair behind you and holding it in his hands, gripping it tighter than normal as if doing so would solidify in his brain that you were here and safe.

“Thanks. For someone with a shaken brain, I think I did pretty good today.” You joked back at your brother. Looking over your shoulder, you saw the beginnings of his brain spiraling with worry. 

If he was being honest, Will still hasn’t fully gotten over the events of last week. It was his exact fear almost coming true. And while he was forever thankful that you were alive today, he was worried that this near-death experience wouldn’t be enough to stop you from continuing to work active cases. The fact that you wanted to give this presentation so soon after you were released from the hospital validated his worry more and more.

“I still think it’s too soon for you to be back here.” 

“If you had your way, I would never step foot near this building again, Will.” You joke over your shoulder as you slide your laptop into your bag. “But I also think that that is just your way of trying to get me to be a 24/7 dog sitter.” Will huffed out a breath that sounded like a dry chuckle.

“I’m not saying that, but if you ask Winston or the others, I’m sure they would be all for that idea.” 

You finally turn fully to Will and lightly smack his arm. His face fades from a small smile to an unmasked face of worry as he looks down at the jacket in his hands that he is still fiddling with.

“I know this isn’t going to change your decision on whether or not you stay with Jack’s team, but I really don’t like that idea.” 

“You said the same thing the first time we had this conversation.”

“Yes, but that was before you got seriously injured while working a case.”

“I wasn’t seriously injured.” Will was going to interject, but you kept talking. “But I understand. What we do is dangerous. But I’m going to say the same thing I said last time: I have the chance to save lives, and that is a good enough reason for me to stay.” 

Before either of you could continue, Hannibal finally made his way over. His hand landed comfortably on your lower back for a long moment to alert you of his presence. 

You and Hannibal had talked about your mutual feelings for one another and agreed to start exploring a romantic relationship. That being said, you haven't told Will yet. Luckily, the gesture from Hannibal was easily passed as friendly to your unknowing brother.

“The assistant director wanted me to pass along his apology, (Y/N). He didn’t mean to insult you with his statements.” You waved your hand dismissively.

“I know he didn’t mean to. But it was a nice excuse to hand a ‘powerful male’ his ass in front of a whole room. I’m sure his ego will bounce back in no time.” You let a devilish smirk grace your features, earning a smile from Hannibal and a chuckle from Will. 

Hannibal looked to Will and saw how he was holding your jacket. Hannibal just offered his hand.

“I can take that, Will. You should go. You don’t want to be late for your own lecture. I will make sure your sister is safe.” 

The hospital discharged you, but you were still healing. The cut on your cheek was almost healed, but you kept a bandage on it to be safe. A scar would surely form, permanently reminding you of your first case. Most people would associate it with the fear of impending doom by the hands of a serial killer. But you were actually okay with it. You saw it as a reminder of what you were able to survive.

The most inconvenient thing was that you weren’t allowed to drive yourself. Between the healing concussion and the medications you were on, driving was not the safest thing. So Hannibal and Will took it upon themselves to compare schedules and be your drivers. 

When Hannibal had afternoon patients or had to work late on something, you would stay with Will. On days where Will was needed at work, you would stay with Hannibal. Sometimes you would stay in their homes, and sometimes they would crash on your couch. Well, Will would crash on your couch. Hannibal would share the bed with you, protecting you from anything that would try to get you physically or mentally. 

Even when you decided to stay at Hannibal’s home, you felt safe. The dining room was a bit haunting. But you knew that no matter what, if something felt off or if you were in any sort of danger, Hannibal would step up and help the best he could. 

Your boys (and the dogs) made sure you were safe no matter where you were.

 If there was anyone Will trusted to watch over you, it was Hannibal. He was the reason you weren’t the Scalpel’s ninth victim.

Will just nodded and struggled to hand over the jacket. Your heart ached because you knew how easily concerned he got when it came to you. But you could also see that he was trying to let go of some of that worry, letting himself see that Hannibal was a safe man to have in your life. You closed the gap between you and Will and wrapped your arms around him, feeling how tense and distraught he was. 

“I will text you as soon as I get home, alright?” Will nodded his head as he squeezed you just a bit tighter. You squeezed back, knowing he needed the reassurance. He pulled away and you patted his shoulder. “Don’t give your kids too much shit today.” 

You both snorted, knowing there was some truth behind the joke. Will said goodbye to Hannibal and left the room, leaving you and Hannibal alone. 

As much as you wanted to hurry up and get out of here, you had to lean against the desk as you zipped up your bag, really feeling your lack of energy now.

“Are you alright?” Nodding, you took a sip from your water bottle before speaking.

“Yes? Did a lot of talking and thinking today. I think I’m starting to get tired.” You let a chuckle-esque exhale come through your nostrils. “Gotta build my energy back up.”

Hannibal stood in front of you, gently placed your jacket down on the desk, and took one on your hands in his. To any normal person, it just looked like he was holding your hand to comfort you. But you knew him. He was gathering data: Pulse, temperature, if your hands were clammy, and whatever else he could find out. But he was also holding your hand to comfort you a little.

After determining your vitals to be manageable, he lifts his hand to brush a few strands of hair from your face, letting his thumb stroke your cheek for a moment.

“I think it's time to go home and rest, don’t you?” Hannibal proposed. You nodded and grabbed your jacket from next to you.

“My place or yours?”

“Your choice, my love.” You couldn’t help but smile at the new and special sobriquet that Hannibal had started using more frequently. Hannibal kissed the back of your hand before helping you stand up, putting your hand on his arm to guide you out.

“I think my place tonight. And maybe we can stop at the store on the way and you can finally show me how to cook something worthy of the esteemed food artist, Hannibal Lecter?” Hannibal smirked at your dramatics.

“Do you think you’ll have the energy for that?” 

“No. But I’d still like to try.” You leaned towards Hannibal and felt a pleading smile make its way across your face, knowing Hannibal was already going to agree to your idea. He still pretended to think it over before nodding. 

“That sounds like a lovely evening.” You felt yourself wiggle just a bit out of happiness, Hannibal smiled at the cuteness of the motion.

Hannibal reached out and touched the doorknob, but before he could open the door, you were distracted by your phone buzzing in your pocket. When you looked at the caller ID, your feet stopped moving and your heart dropped. You couldn’t tell if it was out of fear or excitement. Maybe a weird mix of both.

Hannibal turned to you, watching your face carefully as you answered.

“(Y/N) speaking.” 

“How you feelin’, (Y/N)?” You hadn’t heard Jack’s happy voice in a while. You weren’t sure if this one was real or fake. So you proceeded with caution.

“I’ve been better, but I’m also doing a lot better compared to a few days ago.” 

“Good. Good...” Crawford trailed off, his mind obviously on something else. 

There was an awkward silence. You knew Jack was trying to figure out how to phrase something without stressing you out after the last couple of weeks. You knew what that something was and you appreciated the effort to try and not overwhelm you, but you didn’t like this small talk part. So you took a deep breath before kick-starting the conversation that you knew Jack was trying to ease into.

“I get the feeling that this isn’t a social call, is it, Jack?”

“No. It is not, (Y/N). We have another odd case that we could use your help with.” 

You felt your thumb subconsciously go to wiggle your ring. You knew this conversation was going to happen eventually, but even knowing that didn’t lessen the anxiety you felt. Hannibal stepped closer and took your hand in his, lightly running his thumb across your knuckles. You knew he was trying to ease your mind with the small gesture. You mouthed “Thank you” to him and smiled. 

Jack continued before you could say anything. “You don’t have to give me an answer right now. But the sooner the better.”

“How about I get back to you tomorrow afternoon?” You stated more than asked. Jack agreed to that and hung up. Hannibal could see that you weren’t stressed but you also weren’t excited. 

“I take it Agent Crawford wants to borrow your mind again?” You nod your head, going back and forth in your mind about whether or not to take him up on his offer again or let yourself rest for a bit longer. “What’s stopping you from saying yes?”

“Not much to be honest.” You look at Hannibal and see him watching you, ready to react to anything you say or do. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.” 

“Could you be my partner, Hannibal?” You ask and almost fear his response. You didn’t want to be a burden. But very quickly you are met with that lovely rare smile of his. 

“It would be an honor to be your partner, in life and on a case.” You smile as you lean towards him and he meets you halfway, pecking your lips softly, his hand smoothing its way to your back. The two of you pull away and he ushers you out of the room. “After all, someone has to protect that beautiful and reckless mind of yours.” 

You shot Hannibal a look as the two of you walked to his car, ready for one more relaxing night before jumping right back into the chaos.

[beyond-the-mirror]

Music of the Night (V x Reader)

Welcome back to another chapter of Music of the Night!

From this chapter and on, this fic will continue a bit kinda like the musical and the movie albeit with a few changes on the plot. This is an AU after all, one that mainly focuses on our dear and mysterious Phantom and his relation with the Reader.

Tagging @minteyeddemon​ and @thedyingmoon​ as a special thanks for believing in this idea since before I started writing it. Hope you enjoy!

…………

Chapter 4: An Angel Ready to Take Flight

- Two years later -

“This trophy from our saviors, from our saviors from the enslaving force of Rome!”

The conductor signaled to the orchestra the start of the opera Hannibal’s Overture. Right on time, a parade of actors and actresses entered the stage from the side, marching while backup singers among them continued with the song.

“With feasting and dancing and song, tonight in celebration, we greet the victorious throng, returned to bring salvation!”

The scene flowed beautifully, the gorgeous red dresses and attires that the performers were wearing looked stunning from Trish’s place near the first row of seats. Next, the backup dancers appeared on stage, their choreography signaling the triumphant entrance of the war general Hannibal.

“The trumpets of Carthage resound! Hear, Romans, now and tremble! Hark to our step on the ground! Hear the drums, Hannibal comes!”

The soldiers and ladies of the court stepped aside to reveal the arrival of the great general, played by main tenor Ubaldo Piangi.

“Sad to return to find the land we love threatened once more by Rome's far-reaching grasp-“

“Gentlemen, gentlemen…” Interrupting Piangi’s solo, the conductor nervously tapped the stand before him, stopping the music altogether. “Monsieur Lefevre, we are in the middle of a rehearsal right now.”

Lefevre had sauntered into the stage accompanied by three other men.

“I am terribly sorry Monsieur Reyer, it’s only for a quick announcement.” Lefevre excused himself before quickly clearing his throat “Monsieur Rever, Madame Trish, ladies and gentlemen. Please if I could have your attention thank you very much.”

Making a brief pause and waiting until everyone gathered round, Lefevre continued “As you know, in a few weeks I will be retiring, it has been a great pleasure for me working alongside an extraordinaire crew such as all of you. And now, it is my pleasure to introduce you to these two gentlemen who now own our Opera House, Monsieur Richard Firmin and Monsieur Gilles Andre.”

He gestured to two of the men who stood by his side. One of them, which you presumed was Monsieur Firmin, stepped to the front and took the word. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. And we are deeply honoured to introduce our new patron, the Vicomte Raoul de Chagny.”

The third man in question was tall and with a lean figure, he had warm hazel eyes and curly blond hair. He was rather handsome and looked to be well-mannered considering his posture the entire time.

“My parents and I are honoured to support all the arts, especially Fortuna’s well renowned Opera House.”

“If you allow me Vicomte, gentlemen.” Lefevre interjected, beckoning Carlotta and Ubaldo. “Signora Carlotta Giudicelli, our current leading soprano; Signor Ubaldo Piangi, lead tenor of our fine Opera; and Monsieur Reyer, maestro in charge of our orchestra.”

“An honor Signor, Signora, Monsieur. I believe we are keeping you from your rehearsal. My apologies for the interruption everyone, you may continue with your duties.”

The three men retired to the side of the stage while Trish ordered to repeat the scene once more from the top. The premiere would be that same night and the last dress rehearsals must go according to the tight schedule programmed.

Lefevre invited the new administrators to stay and watch the performers first hand, soon enough Trish joined them so he could properly introduce her.

“Gentlemen, I proudly introduce you to Madame Trish. An unparalleled choreographer and dance captain that’s been gracing our beloved Opera for these last years.”

“An honor meeting you.” Trish responded politely before showing them the routine the dancers were currently practicing on stage. “As you can see, we take great pride in the excellence of our ballet. We primarily focus on the discipline of our ballerinas rather than their mere talent, in order to  ensure the success of our productions.”

The three man observed attentively at how the scene before them took place, impressed at the incredible skills and professionalism all the staff members showed for their work.

“Now I see why madame, especially that exceptional beauty performing over there.” Unbeknownst to you, Firmin pointed towards your dancing figure.

“(Y/N) (L/N).” Trish informed him. “A very promising ballerina Monsieur, one of the best this theatre has ever witnessed. Now please follow me gentlemen, we don’t want to stand in our performers’ way.”

As they gave the performers the space they needed, Raoul centered his bright eyes on you. He was enthralled by the swift flow of your movements, as if the choreography was basically second nature to you. The scene continued with the rest of the actors marching to the center, followed by a mechanical prop of a magnanimous war elephant.

“The trumpeting elephant sound. Hear, Romans, now and tremble, hark to their step on the ground. Hear the drums! Hannibal comes!”

A glorious crescendo filled the Opera House before the scene reached its finale. Silence took over for a few moments before the new administrators and the Vicomte clapped at the great performance they had just witnessed, not registering Carlotta’s frustrated voice as she strode towards them.

“That number was astounding! We are very excited about tonight’s gala-“

“All day! All they ever want is the dancing!” Carlotta rudely interrupted Andre “Allor… I hope you are as excited about dancing girls as your new managers, BECAUSE I WILL NOT BE SINGING! Addio a tutti!”

She stomped furiously to her personal assistants, ordering them to gather all her belongings for her. Carlotta’s sudden departure left Firmin and Andre in absolute shock, while the rest of the staff were simply unfazed by her attitude, already used to this kind of meltdowns from her.

“What can we do now?” With no other options at hand, the new owners had no choice but to follow Lefevre’s advice to this particular kind of situation “Grovel. Grovel, grovel.”

So of course, Firmin and Andre immediately took after Carlotta to stop her from leaving the stage, loudly exclaiming any possible compliment they could think of in order to appeal to her.

“Beauty!” “Principessa!” “Bella Dama!”

“Si! Si! Si!”

“Oh Goddess of Song!”

“If you excuse me, please.” Everyone turned to see the Vicomte approaching Carlotta with a rather calm and suave expression on his face “Monsieur Reyer, isn’t there a marvelous aria for Elissa in Act. 3 of Hannibal? Perhaps the signora-“

“Yes, yes, but no!” she angrily interjected “Because turns out I don’t have the right costume for Act 3 because somebody made a horrible disaster out of it! And I hate my hat!” She sobbed and lamented, very much like a spoiled diva in the eyes of the staff members. Raoul, however, remained unfazed by her sudden outburst and simply smiled warmly at her.

“I was wondering, signora, as a personal favor… would you give us the privilege of a personal performance? Unless of course, Monsieur Reyer objects.”

“No, aspette! aspette!” Taking in deep breaths, Carlotta composed herself, the Vicomte’s words having their desired effect. “If my managers command, Monsieur Reyer?”

“If my diva commands?” Reyer spoke in a mirth voice to appeal to her, which made her beam in joy.

“Yes I do!”

Reyer quickly returned to his position at the head of the orchestra, the pianist preparing himself for Elissa’s aria. Taking hold of his baton, the conductor signaled Carlotta.

“Signora?”

Carlotta first applied some throat spray and readied herself before confirming. “Maestro.”

Elissa’s aria ‘Think of Me’ was indeed an exquisite piece, only the most privileged voices could ever properly bring forth all the emotions contained in its beautiful lyrics. Carlotta Giudicelli may be an insufferable diva in the eyes of those who worked with her, but there was no denying that she had a rather wonderful voice. The entire theatre fell silent as a sign of respect to her magnificent singing, no one dared to interrupt her, no one dared to disrespect La Carlotta in such way.

That is until a snapping sound made everyone’s hearts drop, and the next thing they all knew, a heavy curtain was falling down right towards her.

“Signora!”

Panicked screams resonated through the stage. Raoul managed to pull Carlotta right out of danger’s way, her ample dress, however, ultimately made them both topple down due to the weight of its many layers of fabric. Many rushed immediately to help both the Vicomte and mostly the lead soprano, who was trapped beneath the heavy curtain.

“Oi Buquet! What in heaven and hell happened over there?!” Nico screamed furiously at Mr. Buquet, the man in charge of operating the changing scenery at the fly floors. “You are lucky nobody got killed for this!”

“It wasn’t me Nico, I swear! I-I remained in my position all the time, Lord Sparda knows I wasn’t near that curtain.” Buquet stuttered nervously, the poor man fearing the possibility of losing his job over this accident.

Adjusting her glasses, Nico walked around trying to look if someone else had been up at the fly floors tampering at the ropes, but couldn’t find nobody.

“What are you talking about? There’s no one else there.”

“Do you think… it could have been the Phantom?” Buquet murmured almost inaudibly.

“Please Buquet, don’t be ridiculous! Seems that I’ll have to examine the grid, the least I want now is a broken pulley or something.” She was sure Buquet hadn’t been responsible for the incident, for everyone knew he was a very hardworking and trustworthy person. So the only possible explanations Nico could think about were either one of the pulleys got damaged and broke down, or the rope wasn’t secured properly.

Meanwhile, the situation on the stage wasn’t looking pleasant at all.

“We are deeply sorry for this signora, I’m sure this kind of stuff tends to happen from time to time.” Andre tried his best, and failed, to calm down a ver altered Carlotta.

“Two years! For two whole years this kind of stuff has been happening! And has anybody done something to stop them? NO! So until you manage to stop this incidents, I refuse to set a foot in this Opera!”

As she stomped out of the theatre followed by her hurrying assistants, everyone could feel in their hearts that unlike her previous outbursts, she was not coming back this time. And now the question lingering in their minds was: What were they going to do now?

…………

The performers were gathered at the green room, already out of their costumes and in casual attire instead. All staff members were told to leave the stage so Trish, Lefevre and the new owners could discuss on how to proceed and find an imminent solution as soon as possible.

“I’m afraid we’ll have to cancel.” Firmin lamented as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. “We have lost our main star and there’s no way we can find another soprano for tonight’s premiere.”

“Calm down Richard. There must be a substitute, an understudy-“

“Understudy? With all due respect Monsieur Andre, but there’s no understudy for La Carlotta!” interjected Reyer who was visibly nervous about this turn of events.

Tension and concern filled the entire Opera, and as much as the Vicomte and Trish tried their best to control the situation at hand, still no plausible solution had been found yet. Firmin and Andre were mainly worried about the imminent decision of returning all the earnings, the Opera was having a full house that night after all and that could mean a terrible economic loss for the company.

You were currently sitting on the floor hidden behind one of the side curtains of the stage. Curiosity had completely taken over you and now you were secretly trying to listen to the discussion taking place on the stage. You didn’t mean to eavesdrop so rudely, but you were terribly worried and couldn’t help it. All the efforts of your friends, of the people you now considered pretty much your family. If a substitute is not found by tonight, then it all would be in vain.

“My nightingale, my angel of music…” a familiar voice filled your ears “Why are you worried? What is filling your heart with sorrow?”

You could feel his presence right behind you, but you dared not look back out of respect. The Phantom always kept his identity a secret, the least you could do to repay everything he taught you, was respecting his decision not to be seen.

“Our lead soprano is gone… if we don’t find someone, anyone, then…” you trailed off, fighting to keep your tears from falling. “Everyone has worked so hard for this production, I don’t want their efforts to be in vain…”

He remained silent.

A warm breath grazed your ear, making shivers run down your spine.

“I believe you are ready then…”

“Phantom? …What do you mean?”

“… I believe in you, my angel. Go forth, and bless the world with your divine voice.”

The presence behind you was gone.

“Phantom? Wait!” You turned around, but he was already gone.

Did he mean…? No, there was no way you could do this. You may have improved a lot since your first lesson with him, but were you truly ready to perform before a real audience? A full house? What if you get the lyrics wrong? What if you get nervous and stutter during a musical number? No, you couldn’t do this.

But the Phantom… he believed in you. The Opera, your friends… they needed you.

… Your father… he… he always believed in you.

Taking a deep breath, you slowly got on your feet.

…………

“Please excuse me everyone.”

Eyes turned to you, the discussion coming to a pause.

“(Y/N) is something wrong? You look worried about something.” Trish walked to you, concerned after noticing the few tears in the corner of your eyes which you quickly wiped away.

“Please, allow me to do it.”  the words came out of your lips in an almost inaudible whisper.

The others on the stage looked at each other in confusion. “Miss, you don’t mean…”

There was no turning back. With great strength in your eyes, you voiced your request with confidence. “If it’s not too much of a bother, please allow me to play as Elissa.”

Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise. Andre turned to Firmin “But she’s just a dancer, there’s no way she can do it.”

“(Y/N) do you have any idea of what this entails?” Trish was looking at you incredulously, genuine concern in her eyes. “This is the main role we are talking about, not just anybody can perform it correctly.”

“I know the choreography as well as the lyrics. I can assure you I’ll be able to do it.”

With a sigh leaving her lungs, Trish turned to Reyer. “Maestro would you kindly call your pianist over? Allow her to sing the Act. 3 aria and we shall see if she’s fit for the role.”

“Right away, Madame.”

As the pianist rushed to the orchestra pit, the Vicomte beckoned you to the front of the stage.

“Over here Miss, don’t be shy. For the moment let’s just hear the beginning of the aria, understood?”

You nodded. As Reyer and the pianist got ready, you closed your eyes and remembered the faith your family always had in you, your father’s words, and the teachings of the Phantom.

And so, the first notes to the aria sounded.

“Think of me, think of me fondly

When we've said goodbye

Remember me, once in a while

Please promise me you'll try

When you find that once again you long

To take your heart back and be free

If you ever find a moment

Spare a thought for me.”

Silence.

“M-Magnifique! Absolutely magnificent!”

With wide eyes and clapping hands, you were congratulated by the everyone in front of you.

“(Y/N) that was wonderful!” Trish added in utter surprise “Now why hadn’t you mentioned you could sing like that before, darling?”

“To be honest, I’ve never sung professionally before. But I’ve been receiving lessons for a while and seeing our current predicament well… I decided to at least give it a try.”

“And what an extraordinaire performance that was.” Raoul walked to you and joined Trish at her side. “Miss (Y/N), due to our current circumstances and your impressive demonstration, we are proud to inform you that you may play Elissa in tonight’s premiere. We believe you will be able to deliver a breathtaking performance tonight.”

You could feel your eyes water again at their words. All those days you practiced, they were finally bearing fruit.

“Then I promise I won’t fail you.”

Trish gave you a warm smile. “Alright then, the show must go on and there’s no time to lose. Come (Y/N), we must rehearse your lines and musical numbers.”

A shadowed figure in the long abandoned Box Four smiled down at what was happening on stage before retreating. After all, the Phantom had a very important gala to attend that night, and there was no way he would miss his beloved angel performing on her debut.

…………

As Nico finally reached the grid high above the stage, she took out her flashlight and started inspecting the pulley of the fallen curtain. To her surprise, however, the device was in top-notch condition. Nothing broken, rusty or unstable

“Huh? Well that’s weird.” She had also previously checked the rope. It had no signs to have been cut or damaged either, so the only logical explanation left was that whoever was in charge of tying and securing the ropes made a terrible job, either that or… someone untied it and let the curtain fall on purpose. Then again, she couldn’t find anyone else on the fly floors other than Buquet, and he was too far away to have done it.

“Argh… I’ve already told them over and over again to check their damn ropes.” She muttered to herself before getting out of the grid.

…………

After one last conversation with Firmin and Andre, Lefevre decided to retire for the day. However, there was something else he had to take care to before leaving the building. He reached for the inner pocket of his coat, pulling a sealed black envelope with no name or address written on it, its only prominent characteristic was a lilac wax seal on the back.

Lefevre stared at the envelope for a few moments before putting it back in his pocket and proceeding with his task. Entering the green room, he spotted Trish and (Y/N) going over Elissa’s lines.

“Excuse me Madame Trish, may I talk to you for a few seconds. I’m afraid it’s a very important matter.”

She stood up and after instructing (Y/N) to keep practicing her lines, she followed him out of the room.

“What happened Monsieur Lefevre? Did something happen?”

He gulped audibly before answering. “Trish. You have worked in this theatre for a couple of years now, enough for me to realize how valuable and loyal you are for the company that I basically nurtured for most of my life. Which is why I trust you fully to complete the task that I’m about to give you. Please listen carefully what I’m about to tell you, and please, promise me you’ll handle this with complete and absolute discretion.”

Lefevre reached for his inner pocket once again and handed her the mysterious black envelope.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand Monsieur. What is inside this letter?” She inquired worryingly.

Lefevre inhaled deeply before continuing in a whispered voice “Inside this envelope there are exactly 1,800 euros. At the end of every month, you must place that exact amount of euros in a black envelope like this one. I keep them in the third drawer of my desk, as well as some lilac sealing wax and a seal stamp with a design like the one in this envelope. Then, you must take the money to Box Four and slide it under the curtain. That box must remain unavailable for the public always. It is imperative that nobody, absolutely nobody, sees you when delivering the money.”

“What? But who is this money for?”

Sweat started forming on Lefevre’s forehead, and when he remained quiet, it only worsened Trish’s concerns.

“Just… promise me that you will do it. And please… don’t ask anymore questions to me or anybody else.”

She hesitated. She had no idea of what was it that got Lefevre so nervous, and then there was the fact that he was willing to pay an unknown person such an important amount of money every month.

There was something quite sketchy behind all of this. And yet, she somehow trusted Lefevre.

“Fine… I just hope this won’t get me in any trouble in the future.”

“Don’t worry, I promise you this is the only thing you have to do. Thanks for everything Madame Trish.”

And with those words, Lefevre left the Opera.

Trish examined the envelope in her hands and turned it around. Her eyes centered on the mysterious lilac wax seal, or more importantly, the peculiar design of the stamp.

A single yet elegant ‘V’ decorating its center.

[ladysophiebeckett]

a loophole

Santa Clarita Diet\The Good Place Crossover AU

(spoilers for both shows) 

for you my love, @ssaalexblake​ . happy birthday. I apologize for it being so late. And not making an edit for this.  also this is dialogue only. so, again, I’m sorry. pls enjoy

Summary: The Good Place fights for Joel and Sheila Hammond.

Joel: ‘Everything is Fine’? Everything is not fine. I’m dead. My wife is dead. We’re dead. We’re real dead! Like, for real dead!

Shelia: Joel, calm down. I’m sure this Judge—this very fair and might I add stunning—Judge, will explain everything.

Gen: Ya Dead.

Joel: Oh my god.

Sheila: I can’t die!

Joel: We can’t die!

Sheila: We don’t die!

Joel: We’re realators!

Gen: You know you lose points every time you mispronounce that.

Joel: FORK!

Shelia: Points?

 *****

Joel: So you can make anything appear?

Janet: Yes. Except people who are currently alive. I also cannot ‘make’ people. I already did that and my Void cannot go through that again.

Joel: Right, my Void can’t do that either.

Janet: You don’t have a Void. You are not a Janet. You are a Joel.

Joel: …Right. I’m a Joel. Huh. That feels oddly reassuring.

Janet: I’m here to help.

Joel: Thank you, Janet and if it is at all possible, I would like to request a quart of ice cream—

Janet: I physically cannot do that.

Joel: But—

Janet: I can give you frozen yogurt in any flavor. We have all of them.

Joel: I’ll have another shrimp cocktail.

Janet: Of course.

 ********

Shelia: So this is your house?

Eleanor: Yup. ‘Icelandic Primitive’.

Shelia: That’s your essence?

Eleanor: Um, no. I mean, yes. Now. What? You don’t think I can be Icelandic Primitive?

Shelia: I didn’t say that. I just don’t think it captures you.

Eleanor: You’re not a real estate agent anymore—

Shelia: Rea-Hm. Realtor.

Eleanor: Still can’t pronounce it huh?

Shelia: It’s a surprisingly hard word.

Eleanor: Real-tor. Real-TOR. Realator. Oh.

Shelia: See?

 *******

Shelia: Is it just me or does everything feel a little bit off?

Joel: You feel it too? It was the shrimp wasn’t it?

Shelia: Yes!

Joel: They said they were jumbo but they were medium at best. God, I miss writing yelp reviews. I would give ‘The Good Plates’ 3 stars.

Shelia: 3 stars? That’s a little harsh. You weren’t nearly as hard on Japopos and their clams literally killed me.

Joel: It’s the taste. It’s off. Like they’re using lemon instead of lime. They’re both part of citrus family but their taste is very distinct.

Shelia: …Right. That’s what I’m trying to say. It’s off. This is supposed to be paradise.

Joel: It is. Sort of. Except no ice cream. We can’t curse. We live in this house—which is not our essence at all.

Shelia: I thought this house was your essence?

Joel: Why would my essence be a Spanish Colonial? Yeah I want to spend eternity in a Chris and Christa Knock Off Home. I’d rather die again.

Sheila: Oh my god.

Joel: Shelia, we’re already dead, again. It’s not offensive.

Sheila: Joel.

Joel: Sheila.

Sheila: The Spanish Colonial isn’t my essence either.

Joel: But I thought---

Sheila: No. I’d rather spend eternity in—

Joel: Our starter home.

Shelia: This isn’t The Good Place.

 *******

Eleanor: Let me get this straight—this couple from Santa Clarita dies. They’re zombies—

Sheila: The term is ‘Undead’.

Joel: We don’t like the ‘Z’ word.

Eleanor: ---You pop into Earth for 5 seconds and in those 5 seconds you see these, Undead people, and you feel bad for them? So instead of being impartial, you hide them here?

Gen:  It’s complicated.

Eleanor: What about our experiment? This puts it in jeopardy. Somehow—I don’t know how but it does.

Gen: It doesn’t because this is case is different from yours.

Joel: Can someone explain what’s happening?

Eleanor: How is it different? They’re bad people and you’re trying to hide them in a controlled Good Place that’s supposed to help us show that your point system is flawed. That’s unethical. You’re being unethical.

Gen: If Chidi were here--

Eleanor: Don’t bring him up.

Sheila: Who’s Chidi?

Joel: That moral philosophy professor. We met at that welcome party. He couldn’t stop talking about almond milk.

Sheila: Oh. The guy with the stomachaches.

Gen: As I was saying—If Chidi were here—he would understand.

Eleanor: Well he’s not. And I am. So explain your oh so complicated reasoning.

Gen: Joel and Sheila Hammond are good people.

Joel and Sheila: Thank you.

Gen: But they’re also bad people.

Joel and Sheila: Fork.

*****

 Sheila: We’ve been judged on points our entire lives?

Gen: Yes. And when you died the first time your point system paused for approximately 20 seconds. And when you came back your points rebooted. While Joel…

Joel: Lost a lot. Because I’m the reason she died.

Shelia: It wasn’t your fault.

Gen: It was. Every murder you committed had a positive and negative impact.

Eleanor: You’re murderers?!

(Joel and Sheila stare at Eleanor)

Eleanor: Oh wait. I already knew that. Why am I surprised? Oh wait. It’s because you ate your victims. Mr. and Mrs. Hannibal Lecter everybody.

Shelia: I’m sensing judgement.

Joel: We only killed bad people.

Shelia: You’re taking this way worse than Abby ever did and she was only 16 when she saw us bury Gary in the desert.

Eleanor: What the fork? Ugh. I hate the swear wards. It’s a bunch of bullshirt.

Joel: How do you think we forkin’ feel? Abby would hate it here.

Shelia: I know. I miss her.

Joel: Me too.

Eleanor: Who the fork is Abby?

Sheila: Our daughter.

Eleanor: Zombies raising a daughter in suburbia.

Joel: Undead Realators doing our best to provide for our daughter.

 *****

Eleanor: So killing Nazi’s is okay.

Gen: Yes. Nazi’s are terrible people and them getting murdered was a good thing.

Joel: See? We’re good people.

Gen: But the point system gives you an even amount of good people points and bad people points.

Sheila: Because even though they were bad people, the act of murdering—

Joel: --Despite who you are murdering—

Gen: Correct.

Eleanor: …What are their points?

Gen: Are you ready? It’s a doozy.

Joel: But we saw our points when we got here.

Shelia: Unless…those weren’t real.

Gen: Yeah, they’re not. Take a look.

Eleanor: Oh. I wish Chidi were here.

Gen: Told ya.

 *****

 Shelia: Well then. The Solution is simple Gen. Can I call you ‘Gen’. I feel like we’re very familiar now that I see that you hold our afterlives in the palm of your hand.

Gen: You may. ‘Judge Gen’ was only fun for the first millennia.

Eleanor: This isn’t simple at all.

Joel: Yeah it is. Sheila goes to The Good Place—

Sheila: Joel no---

Joel: And I go to The Bad Place. It’s logical. The points are pretty self-explanatory. Which is something I never thought I’d say because I am very bad at math. Remember when I calculated our first commission and I was off by a 1000 dollars?

Sheila: There has to be something---

Eleanor: It’s ONE POINT! Can you just--

Gen: Why do you think I hid them away with you? I was buying time. As a Judge, I have to be impartial but when I saw their case—

Eleanor: You thought that if we could properly prove that bad people could change in the afterlife, it would show that the point system was flawed. But then they died, again, and they were already good people but the point system would separate them. And you were hoping that if our case succeeded it would support their case---

Gen: Yes.

Eleanor: So this whole time you were just hiding them from The Bad Place because if they knew about them they would go to some afterlife trial—like Mindy St. Claire’s case. And they would end up in some Middle Place but still not together.

Gen: Separate Middle Places. Yes.

Sheila: We’re not separating!

Joel: Shelia look at the points! They don’t lie!

Shelia: The points don’t matter! Haven’t you been listening! It’s flawed! Look, I don’t care about The Good Place. Let them take me instead. It’s my fault anyway. I’m the reason you died the first time.

Joel: And I’m the reason you died the first time.

Shelia: I’m the reason you died the second time! If I had been—

Joel: It wasn’t your fault.

Sheila: It was supposed to be date night---

Joel: Sheila, it’s okay. I made a vow that night. Do you remember? I swore to be loyal to you and only you. I promised to protect you, to protect our family—no matter what. No matter the sacrifice. This is me—honoring that.

Sheila: That’s not fair.

Joel: Maybe not, but it’s the right thing to do. I go to The Bad Place. How bad can it be? I used to eat people. And bleed black ooze. Which was gross to me every time. I never got used to that.

Sheila: There is no Good Place for me without you. As corny as this may sound…You are my Good Place.

Joel: And as corny as this may sound, you’re mine.

Eleanor: Fork. Does anybody have a tissue?

Gen: Here’s my sleeve.

*****

 Sheila: Thank you for letting Joel have ice cream one more time.

Gen: It’s the very least I can do. I recommended a burrito but he said no.

Shelia: He loves them, but they make him gassy. I tried to explain that that won’t happen here—

Gen: Oh it will. Trust me.

Sheila: Oh. Hmm. Well, look I’m not gonna pussy foot around it—I can say ‘pussy’? Huh. A loophole. Anyway, no time. I’m not gonna pussy foot around it. Let me take Joel’s place instead.

Gen: I can’t do that. The points—

Shelia: Fork the points. It’s one point. You managed to hide us here with fake points. So just—give him one of mine.

Gen: Do you know how hard it was to even to do that? It’s not easy Sheila. I know I make it look easy—these robes are very misleading. But—

Shelia: I don’t care. Let me take his place.

Gen: I will look into it. But I can’t make any promises.

*****

Joel: Did Sheila talk to you?

Gen: (sighs) Yes.

Joel: Did she ask to take my place instead?

Gen: No.

Joel: Okay, good—

Gen: She demanded it.

Joel: Dam it. Dam? Oh. Dam. Like the beaver or that thing that stores water. A loophole. Did not see that. Anyway, no time. Don’t listen to her. Whatever she told you. This—it’s the right thing to do. I just have one request.

Gen: You already had your last meal--

Joel: The ice cream was great, thank you, but no. Something else.

Gen: I can’t let you go back to earth and tackle Chris to the ground. He is 6’5, he would still win.

Joel: That’s not—Really? Even as a—

Gen: Those 3 inches make a difference.

Joel: Whatever. Not what I wanted.

Gen: It’s one of the things you wanted.

Joel: Anyway. I just—can you promise me—Can you guarantee that Sheila not only goes to The Good Place but that she’s happy? I’m not a big fan of this ‘soul mate’ thing—but I can’t stand the thought of Sheila being alone.

Gen:  I can promise you that she will get into The Good Place.

Joel: And?

Gen: That’s it. What happens after is beyond me. I can’t promise you anything.

 *****

Sheila: So he goes into one vault and I go in the other?

Gen: You’re gonna get a little sick but it’ll pass. Just don’t breath through your mouth. The vomit just flies---

Joel: Why does that sound grosser than anything we’ve ever done?

Eleanor: Are you sure there isn’t anything else you can do?

Gen: No. This is it. Say your goodbyes. Anymore time wasted and—well nothing happens. Time isn’t a thing here. We could all chill and catch up on Grey’s Anatomy. They have thirty-six seasons. Thirty-Six!  But we’re only delaying the inevitable.

Sheila: This is it then.

Joel: Forty-five years.

Sheila: We only made it to one Bop.

Joel: I have no regrets.

Sheila: I do. Just the one.

Joel: What’s that?

Shelia: We should have mailed that deed to Gary’s niece. It would have reduced our carbon footprint. And then maybe—

Joel: I don’t care. I would do it all over again.

Eleanor: (crying) How does keep happening to me?

*****

 Eleanor: I can’t believe it. They’re just gone? They’re good people. Like, real good people. I mean, a little problematic because of the murder. But it was just one point--

Gen: Yup. One point. Unless---

Eleanor: Unless what?

Gen: They were human and still accumulating points.

Eleanor: Wait. What?

Gen: Think about it.

Eleanor: You know I am not good at that.

Gen: You humans are so slow. On earth they were Undead. Then they died, again. When they arrived to your neighborhood Good Place, they were human. The points rebooted.

Eleanor: What?!

Gen: It’s complicated. Serbia is…complicated. Being dead and then undead and dead again—it’s everything cancelling each other out. It’s like—

Eleanor: A loophole.

Gen: I cannot confirm that.

Eleanor: You—their points---

Gen: Are even.

Eleanor: I don’t---

Gen: Let’s just say, they both asked something of me in their final moments. And it evened them out.

Eleanor: But they went into different vaults?

Gen: Leading to the same place.

*****

 Sheila: What are you doing here?

Joel: What are you doing here?

Shelia: I’m taking your place!

Joel: She promised me you would go the real Good Place.

Sheila: Unless this is—

Joel and Sheila: Fuck!

Sheila: Wait--

Joel and Shelia: Fuck?!

Sheila: FUCK!

Joel: FUCK!

Sheila: HOLY FUCKING FUCK !

Joel: MOTHERFUCKING FUCK !

Janet: Hello!

Joel: FUCK!

Janet: My name is Janet.

Shelia: We’ve met.

Janet: No, we haven’t. I’m your neighborhood’s Janet. There are millions of me for every Good Place neighborhood.

Sheila: Say that again?

Janet: Hello, my name is Janet—

Shelia: No, the other thing.

Janet: There are a millions of me—

Shelia: No—

Joel: This could take hours—Janet where are we?

Janet: This is The Good Place. Neighborhood #6969.

Joel: Wait—

Shelia: Later, Joel. No, not that like that. Well maybe like that—

  --Fin—

[rilldineth]

So a friend of mine told me that given that we are now in 2020, it will be fun if I did a top 20 ships of the past decade for me and boy, did I thought was a good idea and I have decided, why not right? I will be listing them here and...if followers decide to read it...well...

You will quickly notice that probably that most, if not all the ships fall on the following categories: a) rare-ships that are obv not canon; b) ships that are obviously crack; c) ships that had wasted potential, the ones hinted but never happened or briefly happened in canon and writers decided to fuck up. There’s also only one...one RL ship and I am ashamed yet not, but had to list it because I spent a long time hung up on it so don’t judge me.

So yes list...

Before the list, no list is complete without some honorable mentions, these are mostly ships I either got into the hype to recently (not being dedicated for years as the one I will list) or had my fancy then lost it.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Charlastor from Hazbin Hotel (recently got into it)

Clack from Final Fantasy VII

Cloud x Squall from Final Fantasy/KH series.

Hayffie from The Hunger Games.

TodoMomo from Boku Hero no Academia.

Gency from Overwatch series ( on and off )

RinMako from Free!

Terraqua from Kingdom Hearts series.

TOP 20 SHIPS OF THE PAST DECADE

20. Spuhura - Spock x Nyota Uhura (Star Trek original and reboot): Again this was another ship that I liked, since the original series, while everyone was Spirk this and that, I was like,’’yas, yas give me the sweet, sweet Spock and Uhura interactions’ and I was happy the reboot hooked them up, even if that ended dubiously but for a glorious moment, I had it.

19. Swarkles - Barney Stinson x Robin  Scherbatsky (HIMYM): This is one of those ships I am bitter, bitter and salty about, there are more in this list in fact next spot is another one. But I loved it and I did think they complimented each other better than the wet noodle they stuck Robin with, they took the time to know the other, grown separately and then together, the episode where Barney proposed to Robin gave me all the feels and it was so sweet, and then fuck the writers deciding to do what they did. It’s no wonder the finale of this show is so hated.

18. Lotura - Lotor x Allura (Voltron Legendary Defender): When they announced a new reboot to Voltron I didn’t think much of it. I had fancied Lotor x Allura in the original series, as dubious as that was, but then I started to watch this Netflix thing and there was something between them, something more tangible and I was happy. It was this strong woman with an equally strong man encouraging her strength and not putting her in the box of the exotic pretty princess, like a certain dude, and wanted to know her mind and interests, they discovered things together and for a brief moment knew peace and I was here so happy that we were getting something good and then fuck the writers again that decided ‘Nah bro, you’re not getting it’ and you know to fuck off again. I will always have fan fiction I guess.

17. VinTi - Vincent Valentine x Tifa Lockhart (Final Fantasy VII series): This is a ship that I think started to like during my second playthrough of the game, I always figured the both could work, both having loved people that for one reason or another couldn’t fully love them back (Lucrecia due to damn guilt and Cloud because of Aerith) and both were mature enough to fit together, I just like them okay.

16. Helsa - Hans x Elsa (Frozen): Truly, I have never made it a secret that I really dislike this movie, I truly do. The only good things were Hans (which I am still huh at the ‘turns out he is evil’ I still call trolls) and Elsa (because of her damn powers) and then the next step was shipping them and honestly, he should have gone for the older sister lmao, they make more sense and there have very nice fiction out there.

15. Yuzuvier - Javier Fernandez x Yuzuru Hanyu (Figure Skating): Ahh, we have reached my dreaded and dark secret only RPF fancy. Be it broship or more, I always liked the friendship and camaraderie these two skaters had with each other, they were rink mates and rivals but above all friends. I was kokoro break when Yuzuru was telling Javi that he couldn’t do it without him and stop it you two. I just like them, they are wholesome.

14. Victuuri - Viktor Nikiforov x Yuuri Katsuki (Yuri!!! On Ice): And here we have another precious figure skating duo when I started to watch this series it was only because it was a figure skating anime and I love figure skating, I never expected to see a wholesome and wonderful healthy relationship to explode in front of me. The relationship between Viktor and Yuuri is just so lovely, so mature, they both worked through issues, grew from them and accepted them even and I can’t I love it. (Special mention here to Yurio x Mila, as is another ship I love from this series and so underrepresented).

13. Jonerys - Jon Snow x Daenerys Targaryen (ASOIAF/GoT): Regardless of the stupidity committed in the series, I have shipped them since the books, because I can read in between the lines and there are too many parallels between them and their journeys, ones that at will some point collide and bring them together in a way that will be worth it, so better make it count George. 

12. Rhaegar Targaryen x Lyanna Stark (ASOIAF/GoT): Yes, mea culpa, I love tis ship and no one can shame me for liking it and boy has people tried to do so. Were these two smart of escaping like that and not saying a thing? Nope, they were so not. Was Brandon smart going to Kings Landing, knowing there was a crazy king with a penchant of burning people and demanding his heir's head? Nope, that was probably the stupidest move of all. Do I want to believe they loved each other? Why not? Martin has a penchant for tragic love stories, I know this ship is problematical for some, but I still love it and if you see spot 10 here, well I have varied tastes.

11. Soriku - Riku x Sora (Kingdom Hearts series): Come on, this is a given. Prior to Kairi appearing, it was clear Sora was Riku’s world and Riku’s was Sora, they were attached to the hip, the rivalry for Kairi more felt like Riku being jealous of Kairi and wanting Sora’s attention back. Then we have KH2 where Sora spent the whole damn game being all ‘Riku, Riku!’ and Riku doing his damn best to help him from the shadows, ashamed to be seen. DDD was more Riku protecting him and Sora leaning on him, even KH3 had Sora wanting to find and reach Riku, and then Riku going once again to find him by the end, so I am sorry but if there was a love story written here it was between these two. 

10. Hannigram - Hannibal Lecter x Will Graham (Hannibal): Quite honestly, from all the things I ship, they are probably what one will consider the most toxic one I guess, which fair considering one part of the ship is a charismatic yet cannibalistic serial killer. But there was something in the way this relationship was developed by Fuller and brilliantly brought out by Mads and Hughs that just hooked me, their soft moments, their violent ones, it just somehow worked for me. I guess this is also one of the few canon ships that I have, funny enough.

09. Rivetra - Levi Ackerman x Petra Ral (Shingeki no Kyojin): Who will have thought that a series about human eating titans was going to give me one of my most everlasting and also shortlived OTP’s. Years can pass by and I will still love this ship, my heart will still believe there was something more between them, something that was realized or something that wasn’t, I don’t know, but I will forever love it and even though years have passed since she died, I always enjoy the hints here and there that he still remembers her or hints where we are supposed to do so.

08. Squinoa - Squall Leonhart x Rinoa Heartilly (Final Fantasy VIII): People can say whatever the fuck they want ‘the love story was rushed’ ‘we hate Rinoa’ (fuck you btw) but it doesn’t change the fact that Squall fell in love with her and that Rinoa helped him to open up, to not take things for granted and Squall taught her to be even stronger and conquer her fears, they helped each other grow and it’s what matters in the end.

07. Feanor x Nerdanel (Tolkien): This is probably, from all the romantic relationships that Tolkien has gifted us, which I have loved the most and held my attention the longest. They have the happy times, the ones that were full of joy when they met and fell in love and had their children, then we have the tumultuous times when he became too obsessed with this craft, the separation when he left with their kids leaving her behind in her pain and then their possible reencounter when he leaves the Halls of Mandos and how they might deal with it.

06. ItaHina - Itachi Uchiha x Hinata Hyuuga (Naruto): Both the heads of two of the most important clans of their villages, both with heavy expectations upon their shoulders that nearly broke them, only one was talented from the start and the other had to learn, yet they are also similar. Both love their siblings to a fault, sacrificing so much for them and their happiness, both seem to hate conflict yet know is necessary and both are devoted and loyal to a fault, they would have suited each other wonderfully, in an AU probably they would have gotten engaged, who knows, but it would have been wonderful.

05. SessKik - Sesshoumaru x Kikyou (Inuyasha): A ship that could have been but that we didn’t have. This is a ship that has been with me for years and I don’t plan to let it go, they were the best players (in a sense) in that game against Naraku, also probably the strongest, both level headed and smart, not easily intimidated and calculating, together they would have been quite a formidable force and it’s a shame we didn’t get to see that.

04. Bethyl - Daryl Dixon x Beth Greene (The Walking Dead): Another wasted potential and gone so soon, not to mention forever salty at the waste. The way they were being developed promised so much, in the few time he was with her, well, she taught him to have faith and it’s something that apparently still shows from times to times (I am not sure as I stopped with this show) and imagine how it will have gone if they had more time. Just a waste.

03. Romanogers - Steve Rogers x Natasha Romanov (Marvel/MCU): I have been shipping them for years, like honestly, and when the MCU was showing me the seeds of potentiality I was happy, not even that stupidity with Bruce killed my hope, as they still had this steady relationship, he trusted her and she trusted him, something that she couldn’t say of many, they had each others back and took care of the other...but again another wasted potential right there.

02. Huddy - Gregory House x Lisa Cuddy (House MD): I spent years, kind of, season after season watching the delicious and lovely UST between these two characters, watching them snark and then help each other, watching the ‘won’t they will they’ dance, waiting for the moment when these two will finally collide and my lord was it glorious when they finally did, and I was eager to see where it went, as they both seemed to be in relatively good places, but no once again forbid the writers to stop House from being self-destructive and another ship I had waited years was ruined.

01. Terrence "Terry" Graham Grandchester x  Candice "Candy" White Adley (Candy Candy): And this is still my most important ship of the decade, I was forever bitter they never ended together and that their authors decided to make them suffer so much, but then Final Story came and all clues were pointing that aha they did found the other again and ended together as they were supposed to be, and before anyone says shizz, I did manage to read the novel and I do believe all hints were there to let us all know the identity of her husband was Terry and I am so happy.

And there it is, all the ships of the decade for me lol. Next stop, I should maybe make a list of mythos ships I like lmao.

[especially-heinous-ada]

Mankiller, Pt. 2

Hello, Chilton fans! As promised, here is part 2 of my Hannibal au, Mankiller! It’s a bit short, but I hope you enjoy it, nonetheless. In this chapter, Chilton and Sylvia get ready for their dinner date.

As always, feel free to holla at me in the comments (or in my asks).  I appreciate the feedback. Let me know if you guys like the series so far and if you think I should continue it. If you haven’t read the first part of the series, you can find it here. Without further ado, part two.

Her heart beat feverishly as she dialed his number. Its beat increased in tempo as the sound of ringing entered her ear, and skipped ever so slightly as the line was picked up on the other end.  

“The Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. How may I direct your call?”  Sylvia exhaled and her heart steadied as she realized it was an assistant. She couldn’t believe she felt nervous. How ridiculous.

“Yes, I’m calling for Dr. Frederick Chilton.” She explained, trying to ignore the fact that her face felt warmer than it had just a minute ago.  

“Can I ask who’s calling?” The young man asked.

“Sylvia.”

“And what do you-”

“He’ll know why I’m calling.”  She interjected, not having the patience to play customer service. The assistant paused a beat before speaking again.

“Please hold.” Wait music played and Sylvia rapped her fingers anxiously on the counter in front of her. She sincerely wondered whether he’d actually transfer her through to Chilton or whether he put her on hold to pretend like he was going to.

It’s close to the end of office hours. Maybe he’s gone? She wondered, as she continued to wait. She had decided not to call the doctor until the next day, in order to not seem eager. She’d done this enough times in her years as an assassin to know that appearing as if she didn’t care whether he was around gave her the edge, when it came to gathering information. He had to prove his worth with the value of his knowledge. Meaning, he’d tell her just about anything if he wanted her enough.

The wait music stopped abruptly in the middle of a saxophone solo, and so did her heart for a split second when she heard his voice.

“This is Doctor Chilton.” He announced in a velvety tone. Sylvia cleared her throat before speaking.

“Hello, Doctor,” she greeted seductively, attempting to meet his velvet with silk. Chilton chuckled from the other end.  

“To what do I owe the honor?” He schmoozed.

“I’m calling to hold you to that information you promised me.” Sylvia cut straight to the chase, but maintained her flirty tone. Frederick didn’t know whether to be irked, or turned on, but if he were honest, he felt a bit of both.  

“Information I only offered on the condition that you let me take you to dinner.” He reminded her, sounding thoroughly amused. He knew the mysterious beauty was only using him. He only hoped she intended to use him in some of the more fun ways, too—determined to enjoy a good thing while it lasted.

Though, he couldn’t figure out why exactly she was so interested in the Chesapeake Ripper. He supposed she was probably just a journalist. She was certainly attractive enough to be, though he’d never seen her around before—and he’d definitely remember a face like that. He shook his head.  

You’re overthinking this, Frederick. Just enjoy the ride.

“So? Do we have dinner plans...or no?”

“Yes, but you’ll have to pick the restaurant. I’m rather new to town.” Sylvia replied. Frederick smiled.

“Not to worry, I know the perfect place. I’ll pick you up around eight?”

He shouldn’t know where I live. It's a liability. Sylvia thought. Then again, he’s just a psychiatrist. What can he possibly do to me that I can’t handle?  

She let out a small, sharp exhale of air—not quite a laugh—before responding.

“What a gentleman.”

“I aim to please.” Frederick responded in a seductive tone, and she found herself more affected by it than perhaps she should have been. She gave him the details of her address before bidding him goodbye.

“I’ll see you then—and don’t be late, or I won’t bother opening the door.” She warned.  

“Not to worry, I pride myself on my punctuality.” Chilton responded a bit pompously. For any other man, it would have been an instant turnoff. Yet, somehow, Sylvia didn’t mind the doctor’s proud, boastful manner. It was almost cute how he tried to show off for her. Like a kitten attempting a lion’s roar.

That’s right. She reminded herself. Doctor Chilton is the inexperienced kitten. I’m the seasoned hunter. I can handle him easily. It’s all in a day’s work, for me.

She gave an amused chuckle as she strolled to her closet, contemplating which dress would best turn him on. Men were always so eager to help when they believed they had a chance at having sex with her.  

She settled on a glimmering, green dress that hugged all the right curves. She checked the clock. It had only just struck 5:00. She sighed, knowing it wouldn’t take three hours to get ready. Sitting down, she opened up the Ripper’s file once more and continued to read up.  

***

Across town, Frederick hurried out of his office, bidding his assistant a brusque goodbye. It had been a rather disheartening length of time since he had last gone on a date, and even though he was sure Sylvia was using him, he was still delighted to spend the night dining with such a gorgeous and fascinating woman. He'd chosen a very prestigious and visible restaurant, where he was sure to be noticed with this bombshell on his arm.  

For once, he will be a man to be respected and envied, not pitied and laughed at. He smiled to himself.  

If only Jack Crawford, Will Graham, or Hannibal were able to see me with Sylvia. They’d learn to respect me—as I should be respected.

As Frederick arrived at his home, he went straight to his closet to determine which fine suit he should wear on his date. He needn’t pick her up until 8:00, but this decision was going to take a while.

***

7:58. Sylvia read from the clock. No sign of Chilton yet.  

“I pride myself on my punctuality.” She mocked. “Apparently, you shouldn’t.” She paced to and fro as she waited, wondering why she was so bitter about his likely tardiness, when a rap came at her door. She frowned and approached the entrance to her home cautiously. Taking a look through the peep hole, she saw Dr. Chilton, fidgeting nervously as he waited. She laughed before swinging open the door.  

“Dr. Chilton, you were very nearly late.” She smirked, leaning against the door frame.  

“Nearly is the key word, now, isn’t it?” Chilton responded, smirking right back. Sylvia couldn’t help but chuckle. She didn’t think she’d targeted a man like him for information before. He was clever, with a quick wit and a handsome smile.  

This should be interesting. She thought to herself as she allowed Chilton to walk her, arm in arm, to his vehicle, which was just as proud and boastful as he.

[kyojuuros]

Chapter 93

aka I finally formed a connection with the new warrior kids

So all in all this was a good chapter! I had to take pause several times for several reasons. Pieck is Best Girl™ and I think that was one of my stronger initial responses to the chapter. I want more of her. And I finally think I’ve found a care for characters like Gabi, Falco and Colt. I’m not feeling so bitter about being away from the main cast for so long. Still, I will be happy when we return to them. 

I’m just going to break this down into parts to keep my thoughts more organized. I also have some things to say about Ymir and how she was handled, and I don’t think my opinion is the popular one (lol), but I think I will save that for last. Also I am basing this off of this translation. I have not the patience to wait for Crunchyroll right now, but I will be checking that out when it’s released. 

More under the cut. 

Hannibal The Marshall

So this guy is hugely dependent on the titan power and seems pretty distressed at the idea that Marley can’t rely on that power forever. It’s kind of shit to me how this guy is chill with persecuting an entire race of people for his own comfort but that seems to have been the Marley Way™ for a while now, so it’s expected. He even makes jokes about engineering a titan with wings for the inevitability that war will take place in the skies someday. Basically, this dude needs to get cut off before he takes everyone down with him. 

Although he does seem to understand the reality of the situation. They need to work on bolstering their military, as Magath pointed out that their navy was a huge hinderence to them during this war, as much of the war took place on the sea, it seems. 

Captain Magath

This guy is okay in my book for now. This is the same guy who allowed Gabi to take off her armband in chapter 91 and generally seems to have pretty open communication with his Eldian subordinates. He is the one who brings to light the fact that the titan power is dwindling and says they need to work on their military before the titans are completely obsolete. 

I enjoyed his banter with Zeke, how he fed into the titan ass commentary by joking that he wants to know everything down to the number of hairs that are on a titan ass. LOL Basically the gist of it is that he seems to be willing to put himself down on the same level as his subordinates. He encourages Zeke, telling him he did well in that meeting and discussing what Zeke might plan to do in Paradis over the next year. He seems to value Zeke’s opinions and insight. 

Later in the chapter, while Colt and the others are drinking and celebrating and making an awful lot of noise, a superior mentions something about going in their cart of the train and making them stop. Magath is the one who says not to, and to let them enjoy this night. 

Basically, if you’re looking for your Eldian sympathizer (looking at you @kyojinofbraveos), I’m pretty sure that this guy is it. So, at this time he is cool as far as I’m concerned. 

My Boi Zeke

Zeke is getting a massive side eye from me right now. And I mean that in the most positive and amazing way possible. With the talk of Zeke being a child prodigy, and how the Marley government has never had any reason to doubt his sincerity, only to be met with the fact that he’s eager to get back to Paradis and is hiding the fact that he’s royal... this chapter has made it so clear that Zeke has his own agenda. I had wondered if Marley knew that he was royal, and this chapter all but confirmed that Zeke has kept this as his Big Fat Secret™ this entire time. I have no wonder, has he been brewing up a scheme ever since he was that child who sold out his parents? 

So Zeke’s spinal fluid seems to be the key ingredient to his ability to transform and control titans, even at night. It’s indicated this is only because he has royal blood, and is not an ability of the Beast Titan. So, I’m glad to have this confirmed, because after last month this is what I suspected. 

All in all, I’m really looking forward to whatever it is that Zeke has up his sleeve. I imagine that he really is not on either side. Not Marley, not Paradis, and just wants to figure out a way to end it all (or a massive power grab, but I really think it’s probably the former). 

From Zeke, I’m led to the next thing....

THE LEGENDARY ACKERMAN CLAN

A LEGENDARY SUB PRODUCT OF TITAN SCIENCE!!!!

A LEGENDARY SUB PRODUCT OF TITAN SCIENCE!!!!!!!!!!

So many people have suspected this for a long time, that their bloodline has something to do with the titan power, and here all but confirms that to be the truth. Even the people outside of Paradis know about them. But they were only believed to be legends. I’m honestly so excited to get this revelation and I am really looking forward to getting some answers and having more elaboration on Mikasa and Levi’s power. 

My question is if they were created at the beginning when Ymir made a pact with the devil, or if it’s something that came along later down the line. What makes them immune to the mindwipe? And are they truly Eldian? So many questions! Please, Isayama, elighten me! 

That Zeke is pretty much pissing himself at the idea of seeing either of them again (well, he hasn’t even seen Mikasa yet, but I digress), also tickles me. lol Can’t blame him after his encouter with Levi. I sure wouldn’t want to be on Levi’s opposing side either. 

Reiner, Galliard and the New Warriors

So Reiner’s got some post-Shiganshina PTSD going on. He breaks my heart, and only continues to become more sympathetic to me. 

Galliard is a total dick to him and I really don’t think it comes from a place of love. While I believe that Reiner was probably close to Marcel, Galliard is another case, and I’m quite sure he harbors a lot of resentment to Reiner (and probably Bertolt, but what’s the point since.. ya know) and even if they were amicable in the past, I don’t think that will be a thing between them during this story. At the moment, Galliard is on my people I’m good without seeing again list. Bro, you have a really awesome titan form, but you’re a bag of dicks. Please get it together or I’m witholding your Loreal.

The revelation that Reiner’s Soldier Mode™ was most likely him just acting out Marcel’s behavior honestly broke me? His guilt not only comes from a place of ruining many lives of the people of Paradis and realizing they’re not the evil devils that he was taught they were, but it comes from a place where an old friend saved his life and he felt like he needed to compensate for that. It’s like Reiner was trying to fill in the gap that was missing because Marcel died. It makes me wonder how much more of a toll this took on Bertolt than we initially thought. Or how much of a toll it took on both of them when they realized Ymir was the one who ate Marcel. 

Reiner, I just want to give you a big hug. You deserved better. I will punch Galliard to defend your honor. 

On this note, Reiner seemed much more carefree around Gabi and the others. And I think for the first time in the manga we got to see him at his purest. He expressed great care for those kids and seems to want to look out for them. Soldier Mode Reiner wasn’t a complete lie. 

Oh yes, so there is the Reiner/Gabi/Falco love triangle in which Reiner is not an active participant. lol It’s funny. Gabi clearly has a crush on Reiner and admires him a lot. Falco clearly has a crush on Gabi. And he’s so clearly jealous of Reiner, telling him to go rest, getting angry with him for Gabi wanting his power. Falco, chill... You’re twelve. 

Reiner and Falco did have an interesting exhange though at the end. When Falco was acting like becoming a titan is really just a shit situation, Reiner knew he needed to get Falco to shut up before someone reported him for treason. Reiner of all people should know that getting the power puts you in a shit situation. You become a tool for Marley, and you basically lose your life. 13 years is a short life. But he makes Falco shut up the instant Falco implies that becoming a shifter isn’t what it’s chalked up to be so that he doesn’t get in trouble. He can see that Falco has a thing for Gabi, and uses that as leverage to inspire him to work harder to gain his power. Reiner also seems to want to protect Gabi from a dark future, although we’re still not too sure what she means to him exactly (he could just be playing big brother though which I think is likely). In short, I think Reiner really wants Falco to inherit the Armored Titan rather than Gabi. 

That being said, I don’t think the transfer of power will actually happen within the realm of the narrative. Reiner still has two years left, Zeke only has one, the story really needs to wrap up before their terms are over. 

And now the hard part. 

Ymir

So Ymir is dead, and this is the part of the chapter I really had to take pause at. I had been hoping for a long time that she would not have an off screen death. That she would still matter enough to at least get the respect of dying in a blaze of glory or something. And I was wrong. I think... Most of us were wrong. 

I sat there for a few minutes before I finally moved onto the next page. I had to take a breath and really absorb that Isayama did The Thing. 

I’m going to preface any future comments here with the fact that I love Ymir and she is one of my favorite characters. I am upset about her death, particularly by how she’s been dangling on a string in front of us this whole time. I wanted much more for her than what Isayama gave her. I wanted her to be as important as her name always implied her to be But I think this is where I start to split off from many others who have voiced their thoughts on the matter. 

Her death was hinted at as early as chapter 50, and in retrospect this should have been expected. I hate to sound like a blind Isayama supporter, but in this case I’m going to have to defend him and his writing. 

Galliard puts it perfectly, honestly. 

She was given a name that she could not live up to.

Ymir was never meant to be as important as we made her out to be. I think from the very reveal of her name we were lead to believe that she was some type of goddess, or princess, or anything that bears the weight of a Big Name Player on the chess board of Attack on Titan. 

The only Ymir that was ever meant to be a big deal was Ymir Fritz. 

That’s not to say that Ymir didn’t play important roles. She may still have a story yet to tell through Galliard. I’m particularly intrigued at the idea of what potential there is if Galliard is ever to come face to face with Historia. Will that trigger something fantastic? 

Ymir was there for Historia when no one else was. She sought out Historia because she related to her. In the end, she was the catalyst of Historia’s great character development that lead her to take the role of queen and by her own, determined choice. She gave Historia the courage to live as herself, to live with pride. Without Ymir, Historia would have given into the demands of her father. Ymir loved her greatly and it moved Historia so much that she realized she didn’t need to get the approval of anyone. Her life was hers. This is what Ymir taught her. 

Ymir’s character flaw is that she is just too damn kind. She masks it with banter and feigned disinterest, but she has always been sacrificial. From the time she was given a name and a role by a Grade A con artist, she grew to love the feeling of making other people happy. She played the role of Ymir, because it made others happy. Even when the man who took her in betrayed her, she continued to play that role, because she believed it would make people happy. She died for that. She was stoned and turned into a mindless titan because of that. 

When she awoke, she felt free, and she decided that her life was her own and she would live it as she wanted. That lead her to Historia, and I would argue those years with Historia were the best of her life, and exactly the way she wanted to live out her days. She saved Historia from herself, and I think that she was satisfied with that accomplishment. She would be thrilled to see what Historia has become today. I think she could die at peace knowing that she helped Historia learn how important it is to live for yourself. 

But despite her love for Historia, I’d argue she had overbearing guilt of taking the life of Marcel, even if it wasn’t particularly her fault. When she agreed to go with them, she knew she was going to die. She begged them to see Historia one last time because she knew this. She called herself a shitty person. She was almost willing to drag Historia with her for selfish reasons. And thank goodness Eren unlocked the coordinate or she never would have left Historia behind otherwise. Marley would have done the worst to her. 

She chose to save Reiner and Bertolt and it’s something that surprised even her, but in the end she was at peace with it, saying that it doesn’t feel so bad to be a goddess. Reiner offered her the chance to leave when they were on the wall at Shiganshina, and she opted not to, saying that she was just tired. She wanted to give the power back that she stole. This intent was clear when she left with them. And I believe she was already dead before they returned to Shiganshina. 

I think the mistake is that we all thought she had something up her sleeve so she could get away and continue living and find Historia again. 

She wrote to Historia, and in that letter declared she was basically marching to her death very soon. She says her one and only regret is that she was never able to marry Historia. And this is how her story comes to a close. Ymir lived a life that she was proud of, and chose to give it up to save two more people. Another mistake we made is believing that she was selfish. Her problem was quite the opposite. She was selfless to the core. 

I don’t think we’re done hearing about her. I’m sad she won’t be an active participant in the narrative again, but the fact that Galliard can recall her memories leaves me believing that we will still learn more about her, and may eventually see a better depiction of what happened after she returned with Reiner and Bertolt. 

I think this could have been handled better. But my defense for Isayama is that I really can’t figure out how he would have been able to give her an on screen death at this point. The time skip cemented that she would get an off screen death, and the idea that she was probably already dead before they returned to Shiganshina also cements that for me. He couldn’t have shown it earlier without revealing the biggest plot point in the series before he was ready to. Marley was not intended to be exposed before the basement. There was really no way around this. I just hope that he is able to do her more justice moving forward. 

I’m torn up over her, but I am trying to rationalize and process. I just hope... we’ll get more insight into her again, somehow. 

Predictions

I’m always bad at these. Next month will definitely be at least a final chapter of Marley perspective in order to wrap up the volume. I think after that we will pan back over to the main cast, so I’m holding out for July. I want to see what they’ve been up to the last three years, especially now after learning that they had sent a fleet of 35 ships over during the last few years that have never returned. I want to see Eren and Armin wrecking some shit. LOL

The war is coming. Zeke and Eren, I think, will be the biggest players out of everyone. And I hope that this is more than a hope, but I think moving forward we will finally get more revelation on the Ackerman issue. Hopefully the East Sea issue as well, but I’m slightly less optimistic about that. 

This was a good chapter. I know a lot of people are heartbroken. Just know I support you even if I think that ultimately it was a fitting death for Ymir, albiet handled a bit shaky. I understand there are those who were far more attached to her than I am. She still lives on in our hearts, and she will always be a part of the narrative, even if we have to backtrack to revisit her again. 

[nalyra-dreaming]

HannibalCon RDC3 - day 1. Personal recap

So yesterday was the day that so many of us feverishly anticipated and dreaded :), the actual possibility of meeting Bryan Fuller, Hugh Dancy, Aaron Abrams, Scott Thompson, Demore Barnes and Ellen Muth! I mean. What -are- the chances? I flew over Friday morning (having dreaded flying in that storm but it did die down that night, fortunately) with Alex and we made our way over to arrive at 10 am, to photos of other Fannibals on Twitter already, though the hotel was still very much empty. Good to take photographs :) I got upgraded to the next room level (which is why I can now drink coffee while writing this at 5:30 am (thank goodness)). By afternoon the lobby was filling slowly, flowercrowns everywhere. A truly elevating atmosphere, because even though I'm not really a flowers and frilly stuff kind of gal, it just is incredible to watch. Btw the bloody flowercrown @idontfindyouthatinteresting made for me drew many compliments (thank you, again!) Registration openend a bit early and people went queuing until the main ceremony started. Incredible, there were soooo many people there, so many beautiful cosplays already. @lovecrimecat came by and we distributed the flyers for @radiance-anthology flyers to those standing in line, managed to meet so many of those who signed up (yay), got little gifts in exchange from so many people (and everybody just gave me a second one when I asked so I could give them to Katrina who couldn't come - so awesome of you guys, thank you again!). I met so many people 'from' Twitter and it' so nice to recognize some from last time, to put name and face to the @s. *hugs at all* Opening ceremony. I have a gold ticket this year so I went up front and sat next to SpiceyScorpion, only to realize that -that- was way to much in front for my nerves .... *rolls eyes at self*. I went a few rows back and to the side, which was a good decision for later^^. "They" came in a few minutes to late, we saw Aaron and Scott do shadow theatre behind the scenes and Sean called them out one after the other. Demore seemed honestly happy to be there, addressing us with such kind words, upping the applause and calling backstage that that could not possibly be topped*fg*. Aaron came out and asked us to clap for Hugh because he was supposedly afraid he wouldn't get any ^^^^^, Scott said something along these lines as well, I think. Both very funny. Ellen was there^^ and addressed us with a few kind ords and then Sean announced Bryan next and the room (not in any way quiet before) went -wild-. And Bryan.... Bryan went "crowdsurfing". Meaning he ran through the aisles and high-fived us. You know that sitting to the side decision? Yeah.... What a moment, there's lots of pictures in the Tag #HannibalCon, go and look, it was.... incredible. God bless. Anyway Hugh came out last, announced by Sean as one of the best british actors, and boy, that was applause^^. He seemed a bit overwhelmed with the energy there^^ and honestly, I can't quite remember what he actually said but it was something along the lines that he was looking forward to a wonderful weekend. They came out together after that and we held up the signs that @the-winnowing-wind distributed - "Fannibals Forever".... They took videos and photos of us. Bryan posted some of it later. Incredible moment to have been part of. I'm even in Bryans video (yay^^ (and if you know where to look^^)). The gold ticket holders went across the hall next, to a slightly smaller room with tables set up and we were seated by group/friends. And then we waited, because they got something to eat first.... (darn^^^). Colleen got out some booze and we talked a lot and proverbially bit our nails a lot *g*. When they finally got in they were sent to the various tables for 4-minute-meet-ups. Only the meet-ups didn't stay at 4 minutes :P. Demore was first and I was soooooo nervous. (The seat next to me was free btw, and so the -all- ended up sitting right next to me (*still screaming about that*. .... ) I shook my hands in the air in an effort to get rid of some of the energy and he put his hand on my shoulder asking me why I was nervous and I brabbled something unintelligible and shook my head. Very sweet. We talked a bit about his fight scene with Mads and that we would have liked to see more of him^^ and I told him I can't wait to see him in American Gods and he rubbed my back when he left. *float* Next was Scott, who brought his pizza and drank some mooneshine with us^^, played Tarot with us and was generally just this very kind and interesting person. I wasn't -quite- that nervous anymore by then (thanks Demore (and Colleen for the prosecco)), meaning I actually talked a bit, though I can't quite remember what^^. Ellen was next and she was also very nice, we talked about the fact that her scenes are imho some of the most scary in Hannibal. She also wore some of the coolest jeans I'd ever seen^^. Ok. Next? BRYAN. He saw the Will!Faun scarf of @flying-rotten we had put on the table cloth and chuckled that he knew who -we- are waiting for and that he couldn't blame us^^. He asked us, if push came to shove, if we would prefer Will & Hannibal S4 or SotL. Our table was Hannigram, though there was apparently one that was 'done' with it.... He told us about it a bit, much the same that Hugh has said before as well, that it would be an inversion of S1 etc. I.... hope that push does not come to shove, because he told us a bit about how much he loves the lyric of Thomas Harris books and I would really love for him to be able to fully lay out his vision. I hope he gets to do this (we have to continue to fight, guys!!!). He also told us, that Thomas Harris apparently writes a new book and he.... poked Martha to get the rights to it already, without quite knowing what it was about yet *g*. I.... took all my courage then and showed him one of the Radiance-Flyers and explained a bit and we asked if he wanted to do a little something like a foreword for it. And guys - HE DOES! He asked when it would need to be done and I said May 1st and he looked at the flyer and indicated the twitter @ there and asked if he should send it there and I was like (you know this situation, where, once you start, your mouth kind of runs away with you?! At least mine did^^^) "Oh well, yes, or you know you follow me on twitter, you can just send it there if you want" and he looked at me (directly) and said "yes, I know." Well, RIP me. I answered with a very intelligent "ah" if I recall correctly and ducked my head and then Romina and I emphasized that it would be awesome if he actually wants to do that and finds the time. He asked us after what drew us to Hannibal, as he got feedback from a lot of the other young women (I thanked him for 'young', you know, once you're in it doesn't matter anyhow *another eye roll at self*) and we said that its not only beauty and connection, but also intelligence. You have to think with Hannibal. He recommended 'Legion' to us and asked if we'd seen it before and I said that some stuff hasn't made it across the big pond yet. And then Bryan went and .... not ranted directly.... but expressed his lack of understanding of the fact that things take so long to be legal and why series were not streamed worldwide because people would just go and pirate it anyway -because- it was not available legally. He went and made a (imho) very fitting anology with the conservative stance on abortions in contrast to piracy, meaning just because it's forbidden it doesn't stop people from doing so, it just gets unsafer and illegal. Oh and he took photos of our table and @dr3piecesuit s and another girls tattoo, because he loves them. :) And he told us that he brought something for Hugh to wear for the Cosplay contest. Can't wait *g* He was called away then, way past the 4 minutes^^ and .... he is such a precious human being?! Exuding so much warmth and honesty and exuberance. I feel honored that I got to sit there. A propos honored... Hugh was next and there I was again - nervous. Awesome. *third eyeroll* He complimented Camilles Will!Faun, saying it was very beautiful and then laughing that that was maybe a bit weird^^, and then telling us about all the gifts he gets and that he keeps the little plush Wills, giving them to his son to play with, even the bloody ones..... *fg*. The girl next to me (@OnTheVerger) talked to him about how much Adam means to her because she has Aspergers and then broke into tears and Hugh comforted and hugged her and it was sooo sweet. We showed him the Radiance flyers as well and he said "blood fueled embraces, indeed" *g*. Bryan ran by then and left a bitten off Babybel for Hugh. IDK if Hugh bit off that piece or if Bryan did but it was hilarious^^. Hugh had to leave then and Aaron came to our table last, I told him I backed him and he told us about the film he and Scott are in (Scott came by and set down next to him^^) and we talked about how much we would all want to see more of Hannibal. Oh and Scott said (before) that he was supposed to teach Clarice Starling - how awesome would team Sassy Science be doing that in SotL? Seriously? Anyway, I remember I touched Aarons shoulder in the spur of the moment talking about -something- but I can't remember what exactly and the panicking about that. ;)) I went to my room at 1:15am, got into bed by 2am and was wide awake again at 5:15 am. What. a. rush. PS: This is no photos because my cameras not that good - check the Hashtag on Twitter, there's TONS of them ;). Already ;)

[identically-different]

Will/Hannibal: Song bird (14/17)

Title: Songbird (14/17)

Authors: @destinyawakened @mrs-graham-lecter

Rating: M

Chapters: One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten | Eleven| Twelve | Thirteen | Fourteen | 

Pairings/Characters: Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter

Summary: Hannibal Lecter just moved to New Orleans for a fresh start. He never imagined that he’d find the most remarkable and rarest of Omegas there. Restraint on such a rare breed is almost more than even Hannibal can handle as he realizes he can’t live without Will Graham.

They went south to Bermuda, for now, and dropped off Will’s boat to be sold, and then bought another, untraced, unseen, untracked. Will moved everything onto the new boat, larger and more suitable for traveling across seas.

Most of their time was quietly spent, Will at the helm, Hannibal at kitchen unit making meals, or reading. They didn’t speak of their time apart much, Will decided he didn’t like thinking about it, but when he was alone still, he felt the dull ache seep into his chest and heart, and squeeze until he was breathless. Nothing would ever fix the loss of that night, not even Hannibal.

Late the next afternoon, as the sun was setting, Hannibal walked out onto the deck, wearing brown trousers and a white shirt. A bit casual, appropriate for the temperature. He knew there were certain things he could never make up for, things he wished he could undo, but they could only move forward from here and take the steps needed to rebuild. For now though, he wouldn't dwell on anything other than this moment. The cannibal stood next to Will, leaning on the rail, glancing over at him. "You look especially handsome, in this light, Will."

Some years younger, Will might have taken the flattery and ran with it, but now as soiled as his heart and soul were, he didn’t see a need to be so keen on it. He looked at Hannibal, their boat drifting along in the pale dusk, cascading orange and purple hues around them, rebounding off the silvery water.

“Thank you.”

Hannibal nodded, his hand in his pocket, clutching to something, the other on the rail. Despite Will's shortness, Hannibal decided to proceed.

With the pretext of adjusting his shoe, the Alpha got onto his knee, fishing the black velvet box out and opening it up. Inside, a simple white and yellow gold band flashed brilliantly in the light. Bermuda did not have many options and he knew his Omega would not be keen on anything audacious.

"William...I realize this might not be the right time, but as we have decided we can not live without the other," he paused, clearing his throat and reaching to take his mate's hand. "I wonder if you would do me the honor of making our union official. Will you marry me, William?" His tone was soft, wrought with emotion as golden iris' peered up, hopefully into sea-blues.

“Marry you?” Will was shocked, to say the least, and stared at Hannibal in utmost horror. He’d been gutted and left for dead, abandoned, their unborn child murdered… They had just begun to sync back up and Hannibal wanted to marry him.

If Will were not weary with his years and hardships, he would have said yes in an instant. He didn’t see his life without Hannibal, but a marriage left no room for an Omega.

"Yes, that is my hope," Hannibal whispered. He knew it was a lot to ask and even if Will declined, it wouldn't change their lifelong bond, but he had said he would prove his words to his mate. This was the first step towards that, in his mind.

“I need to think on it,” Will whispered, tugging his hand free from Hannibal’s. Honestly, he was a few weeks off all his medication, his mind was a wiry mess, up and down with his hormones.

Hannibal closed the ring box with a snap and stood up. His feelings were bruised, understandably, but he'd known this might be a possible outcome. Either way, at least Will hadn't said no. "Absolutely, Will, take all the time you need." With that, he went back to looking out over the ocean, contemplating.

READ ON AO3

[young-dumb-and-vaccinated]

Cult Girl: Doctorate (Hannibal x Female!Reader) pt. 5

Golf

Hannibal and cult girl have a long-overdue conversation about their future.

@wisesandwichshark

Trigger warnings: slight emetophobia, threats of violence, workplace sexual harassment, sexualization of a minor, body-shaming, ED

"[F/N], wait!" Anna called after you, snatching your arm in both hands.

You pulled your arm away and seriously held back the urge to smack her across the face. "What? What could you possibly have to say?"

"You can't just storm out of a funeral like you did my wedding!" She protested. She said this as if you leaving her wedding after being purposefully triggered was the worst affront to her existence to ever happen to her. Given her sheltered life, it very likely was.

She was looking for remorse and you had none to give. "Watch me."

You shoved the heavy doors open, only to find that the room was silent. Everyone's eyes were on you. Hundreds of eavesdroppers who saw your life as their soap opera suddenly caught a glimpse of the defiant, ungrateful granddaughter.

Their faces began to loosen and they started to go back about their business. Just when you thought it was of their own volition, you felt Hannibal's hand on your shoulder. You realized you were witnessing the effect his stony glare had on the room.

You grinned and watched the crowd part in your path. For a moment, you knew what true power felt like, even if it was just vicarious.

"Why won't you give your poor grandmother what she wants?" A particularly bold onlooker blurted out. "If I had a daughter like you, I'd beat some sense into you."

Hannibal fixed his gaze on the man, but you beat him to it.

"If I had a father like you, I'd put you in a home." You snapped back.

The path to the door seemed to stretch further and further away. By the time you reached it, you were practically tugging Hannibal's arm out of its socket.

Outside, the golf course slowly turned white as larger and larger clumps of snow fell from the clouds. In the absence of sunlight, the ocean was black as ink. You suddenly felt very lightheaded. You let go of Hannibal’s hand and clutched your forehead. The courtyard began to spin. 

Hannibal gently guided you to a nearby bench before you could collapse. “Darling, are you okay?” 

You knew it wasn’t what he meant, but your physical wellbeing was far from your mind. “I don’t think I’ve ever been okay even once in my life.” 

“You know what I mean, [F/N].” His voice was firm. “We can talk about the will in a moment, but I need to know that you’re not sick.” 

You wordlessly scooted closer to him, allowing him to examine you. 

He removed his glove and placed his bare hand on your forehead. “You are a little warm.” 

You saw what he was trying to do. You felt a bit comforted by it, but needed to assure him that you weren’t sick. “It’s twenty-five degrees outside. I think I’m going to feel a little warm comparatively.” 

“Weren’t you nauseated this morning?” He asked, feeling your cheek with the back of his hand. 

You released a breath, which froze as soon as it hit the air. “That’s what I said so I didn’t have to say what it really was.” 

Hannibal clicked his tongue. “Menstrual cramps?” 

You nodded. “Yeah. Those.” 

“I was a surgeon before I was a therapist, my love.” He reminded you with a soft smile. “I know what menstruation is.” 

You chuckled. “Yeah, I should hope so.” 

“This is a lovely country club.” Hannibal said after a moment of taking in the view. “Not exactly to my tastes, but the view of the ocean is beautiful.” 

You leaned back in your seat. “It gets old after a while. But I always preferred seeing the golf course all snowed over.” 

“Because it meant you didn’t have to spend your school holiday doing free labor for Beatrice, right?” He asked. 

“Yep.” You said, folding your hands into your armpits to keep them from freezing up.

Theresa was seventeen, Anna was fourteen and you were ten. 

Theresa learned how to drive a drink cart before she could drive a car. She was the only one allowed to make tips, so you coveted her job. You wouldn’t have, if you knew what all those disgusting old men were saying to her as the money passed into her hand. It shocked you, how many of the club members knew the age of consent off the top of their heads. Grandma made her wear tank tops and barely-passing-for-shorts shorts. She said it was empowering to use her ‘blossoming womanhood’ to make money. 

Anna was a student athlete in middle school. She ran track and field and brought gold home to a struggling athletics department. She was made to carry bags of clubs that weighed more than she did. Grandma reduced her to a beast of burden. She said it was to work off all those carbs. That one day, she might receive the honor of taking Theresa’s place on the drink cart, and that she too could be ogled at by men four times her age. But only if she made up for all that weight she had the audacity to put on. 

You were a blank slate. A tablet to be written upon. Grandma decided that she would put you in your place before you could develop a healthy sense of self. You fished balls out of the water trap. Grimy, disgusting golf balls that would just be thrown away regardless. It was Sisyphean, spending grueling hours in the summer sun, collecting perfectly useable golf balls, only to see them tossed out without a second thought. 

“Hannibal?” You said, bringing an end to your pensive silence. 

“Yes?” He answered. 

You kept your eyes facing forward. “I’m really sorry that Beatrice took away the opportunity to have this conversation in our own time.” 

“You are not responsible for your grandmother’s actions, [F/N].” He said, softly.

“But I am responsible for getting you involved.” You bit back a sob. “You’re like, the best thing that has ever happened to me. But every time I try to look forward, my past drags me backwards. And now it’s dragging you down with me.” 

"You've clawed your way out before." He assured you. "You can do it again."

You forced a laugh. "I guess the trick is to stop telling myself that it'll be the last time."

"Would you like to have that conversation now?" He posed.

You shook your head. "You already know my stance."

"Your stance is that you don't know." He corrected.

"So what's yours?" You said, realizing you only talked about this as a doctor and patient. Never as a couple.

He looked away from you. "In the affirmative. Strongly so."

"I didn't realize you had strong feelings either way." You answered.

"Just because I don't talk about them unless asked, doesn't mean they don't exist."

"And you want to do it with me?" You asked. "Or just, in general? Like, someday?"

"Darling, I am not in the habit of planning my life in abstracts like 'someday'." He admitted. "I know what I want, I know what I don't."

"Well," You said, stretching out your legs. "What does it look like, to you?"

"We get married this summer." He recounted. "I whisk you away to Italy for a romantic honeymoon. Then, you return to school. You finish your doctorate. Once you've established yourself as an authority, gotten a job, then we settle down. We'll have a child."

You felt yourself smiling. You rested your head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around you and held you tight.

"I like that. I like it a lot." You whispered. "But you know that means we probably won't get any money, right?"

Hannibal laughed. "We don't need the money."

"I know." You conceded. "But it would be nice to just... burn this whole place to the ground."

He tightened his embrace. "That could still be arranged."

"Please don't buy the golf course just so I can destroy it." You pleaded through laughs.

"Goodness, no." He shook his head. "Who said anything about buying it? I was thinking about some good, old-fashioned arson."

[the-fandom-newsletter]

Fandom Newsletter #8

Today is Friday, January 25, and it’s 2019! Welcome back to our first 2019 Fandom Newsletter, a provider for all things fandom!

Writers: Blackpurrl, Fyne, YoursTruly, and Atlas

Editors: Fyne and YoursTruly

“You don't have to be ruled by fate. You can choose freedom. And I still believe that that’s something worth fighting for.” -Castiel, Supernatural

Let's get started!

First up we have Fyne with the Supernatural, Sherlock, and Mythology fandoms!

Sherlock: Does Sherlock look up to/respect his older brother? Throughout the entire BBC show we see Sherlock being annoyed by Mycroft and at some points, Sherlock can be seen belittling Mycroft. But while the boys have a relationship that is rocky at times, I have reason to believe that Sherlock actually looks up to his older brother. In Sherlock's mind palace, when Mycroft is giving advice to further a case in some way, he is always higher up than Sherlock. Plus, Sherlock is always looking up at him. Is it possible that this is symbolism? Yes. Is it probable that this is just a cool coincidence? Also yes. Just thought I'd put it out there, folks. You decide.

Supernatural: Dean Winchester never saw his mother burning on the ceiling. I know, bold statement. But let me elaborate. When his mother's death was happening, Dean was a child in his room. When John ran in and told Dean to take Sam and run, I don't believe Dean ever even looked up and saw his mother on the ceiling. True, John probably explained to him later on how his mother died, but the image was mostly left to his little imagination. Fast forward some years later and Jessica is burning on the ceiling as well. Dean rushes into Sam's room to find Jessica, and he looks up with a face of absolute horror. This is the first time he's able to see what he had only imagined happening to his mother, and now it's actually happening before him. Something he had thought about his entire life, finally right in front of his eyes. And to be honest, it's probably even worse than he ever imagined. Hence the look of horror.

Mythology: This week's legend originated in Greek mythology and who we're talking about is Medea. Medea was a princess of Colchis, and she was known to be skilled in magic and sorcery. In the legend, she fell in love with Jason (son of Aeson and the boy who assembled Greece's bravest heroes to sail in the Argo in search of the fleece) and helped him (against the will of her father: Aeëtes) obtain the Golden Fleece (The Golden Fleece was the fleece of the gold-haired winged ram. The fleece in this legend is a symbol of authority and kingship). When Jason left Colchis, Medea ran off with him and even lived as his wife for years. Medea ended up bearing two of Jason's children during their marriage. But later on in the legend, Jason wished to marry Creusa (daughter of King Creon of Corinth). When Medea found out, she sent Creusa an enchanted wedding gown that burned the poor girl to death. Medea then completed her revenge on Jason by killing her own two children. (In some versions of the legend, the angered citizens of Corinth stoned the children to death instead of Medea). Afterward, Medea fled to Athens, where she later married King Aegeus.

Next, we have YoursTruly with the YouTube, Horror, Tim Burton, Hannibal, Movies, and Marvel fandoms.

YouTube: Fallout between James Charles and NikkieTutorials! Both makeup artists on YouTube uploaded a video of the same title with the same idea. No big deal, YouTubers follow trends all the time, right? Wrong. James Charles posted this video just a few days after Nikkie and didn’t credit her for starting the trend. He then tried to claim that he started the trend and Nikkie just so happened to have the same idea, despite him uploading AFTER her. We sure do love a good sister scandal!

Horror: The horror movie Escape Room is gaining major popularity online. The movie is set to be released next year, but they have started an online competition to see who can solve their puzzle. Anyone who is crafty enough to solve it is entered in a cash giveaway. Each day they change the puzzle. Can you solve the puzzle? Test your skill here, if you dare.

Tim Burton: Burtonists are all awaiting the release of Dumbo. Many fans can’t wait to see how Burton will put his dark twist on this Disney classic.

Hannibal: Fannibals are getting even more excited with continued talk of a season 4. Showrunner Bryan Fuller has begun talking about seriously giving the fans a fourth season following Alana and Margot. Will we get the season? Guess we’ll have to wait and find out.

Movies: Mary Poppins Returns starring Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda is a massive success! Fans of the original say that the movie perfectly continues the story of Mary Poppins and brings back the same characters and charm as before.

Marvel: Fans are starting to get their conspiracy theories about Avengers: Endgame circulating. Seemingly every fan has an opinion on who will die for good, who’s coming back, and how they will defeat Thanos. What are your thoughts? We’d love to hear what you have to say on the topic! Also, the backlash from fans after the newest movie from Marvel Into The Spiderverse mixed up Spider-Woman and Spider-Gwen! The movie introduces a character which is very clearly Spider-Gwen (identical costume) as Spider-Woman. These two characters are completely different, both in personality and very obviously in costume and appearance.

Then we have Blackpurrl with the Harry Potter fandom.

Harry Potter: If you’re big into Harry Potter I’m sure you already know this, but recently we’ve been told that Harry’s scar isn’t just a lightning bolt. It’s also the hand motion used when the spell Avada Kedavra is cast. 

And finally, we have Atlas with the Gaming, TV, Musicals, Celebrities, and Voltron fandoms.

Gaming: A Fisherman's Tale is a VR game where you break reality. Read more about it here.

TV: After spending an estimated $12-13 billion in 2018, reports estimate that Netflix will probably spend up to $15 billion in cash in 2019. The popular streaming platform continues to collect and create new content every month in addition to reinforcing its abundance of original programming – and there appears to be no slowing down for Netflix. Imagine how much they will spend in 2020.

Musicals: Lin-Manuel Miranda recently raps at a fan for filming his musical Hamilton. Anyone who has ever seen a show of any kind is probably familiar with the phrase, "The use of recording equipment is strictly prohibited," and knows that the punishment for breaking this rule is a risk of being tossed out of the performance. You would think that Lin-Manuel wouldn’t take to kindly to being recorded on stage, and you would be right. But the way he did it is absolutely legendary. In character, Lin-Manuel self-edit live on stage, as he changed the words to one of the show's songs to call out the lady. He sang: "Lady filming in the fourth row, please stop it." The line was originally: "The problem is I got a lot of brains but no polish.” What an icon. 

Celebrities: Demi Lovato posted a snap to her instagram in which she is wearing a one-piece bathing suit. She is a queen demolishing the thought that the only way for women to look sexy is by wearing a bikini. Demi has been known to fight against sexist stereotypes before, and we’re glad that she’s still up and kicking these assumptions and knocking them down. Thank you, Demi!

Voltron: The showrunner of Voltron made a post confirming the show was celebrating its final day behind the scenes. Joaquim Dos Santos, one of the show’s executive producers, shared the bittersweet announcement alongside a touching message. Excuse us while we dab our tears. “This is it...our last day at Dreamworks on Voltron. It’s pretty surreal. We started this ride in June 2014 and we just had our final watchdown on the final episode of Season 8. I just wanted to take a moment to say that is has been an absolute honor and privilege to work alongside such a talented and dedicated cast and crew, both at Dreamworks and Studio MIR, who came together (like Voltron) to make something truly special. To the amazingly passionate VLD fandom, we couldn’t have made this journey without you. Your passion, creativity and love is infectious and has helped us up in tough times and creative low points.” What a way to close such an amazing time in our lives. 

Now let's move on to our news segments, where Fyne talks about positive news, news about mental health, and news about the LGBT community, plus Blackpurrl talks about World News.

Positive News: 2019 is just around the corner, and 2018 is soon to be left in the dust. While this is a fairly good thing because of 2018 having some pretty horrid things go down during it, not all was bad. Here is a list of some good things that happened in 2018.

LGBT: India’s supreme court has gotten rid of a ban on gay sex that has been around for centuries. Gay sex became a criminal offence again in India in the year 2013. The law, named Section 337, was brought back into the limelight. But recently, the nation’s supreme court voted to throw the law out the window in September. There is a new ruling that consensual gay sex (among consenting adults in private) is no longer a crime. Yay for gay people in India!

Mental Health: Our veterans are people who sometimes have to suffer in silence. I mean, it can be hard to get people who feel a pressure to be what they believe to be strong to open up. But there's something that could be a way to help us access these vulnerable people and it's called fishing therapy. Psychologists say that fishing can be an effective way to help with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and reduce symptoms. It was discovered that: “It could be helpful for veterans by chance, after chatting about how going fishing cleared their heads while they were having a pint.” It has been shown that overnight fishing trips have reduced PTSD symptoms by at least 30% in patients! For some, it was even the first time the patients left the house in years. Progress! An article by Metro even interviewed a veteran who has suffered with PTSD for the past 20 years of his life. This man went on one of the trips. He said: “Fishing is so helpful because it is a break to completely turn your brain off. It is the quietness of it with no distractions. When I came back for the first week, I slept properly every night and I struggle to do that.” (Iraq and Northern Ireland veteran: Stewart Bayford, 48)

World News: On MLK Day, Trump reminded black voters of what they lost with his election. Read about this here.

And now for our weekly tidbits where Blackpurrl gives a test and a trivia fact and Fyne asks a question to our followers.

Weekly Test: Animals!

1. How many mammals lay eggs? A. One B. Five C. All of them D. Two

2. True/False? Bees can only sting once, but wasps can sting many times.

3. Which animal is a mammal? A. Fisher B. Lionfish C. Basilisk D. Toad

4.  Which of these fish is a shark? A. Parrotfish B. Lionfish C. Dogfish D. Catfish

5.  Which one of these animals is a bird? A. Fisher B. King fisher C. Marten D. Beagle 

Weekly Trivia Fact: Did you know that beavers are among the few animals that mate for life? Once beavers find a partner, they stay together for as long as they live. Talk about TIl death do us part!

Weekly Question: If you didn't have to sleep, what would you use the extra time for? Let us know.

And for our last segment, the personality quiz.

Which of the 7 dwarves is you?

Question #1 - When a stranger attempts a conversation with you, which of the following can describe how you act?

A. You try to be polite, but strangers make you nervous.

B. You acknowledge the person, but you really don't like to talk to strangers.

C. You tell them to go away because you're busy.

D. You tell them that it's nice to meet them and invite them to join you in watching some TV.

E. You greet them warmly and crack a few jokes to break the ice.

Question #2 - Do you think you're an optimist, a pessimist, or a realist?

A. Definitely a realist. That glass is just a glass.

B. Probably an optimist, but that can change.

C. Pessimist. That glass isn't just half empty, but its also filled with poison.

D. Realist. Why put so much thought into it?

E. Optimist. That glass is half full and also contains rainbows and sunshine.

Question #3 - Favorite color?

A. Red

B. Purple

C. Black

D. Blue

E. Yellow

Question #4 - Your crushes all have one thing in common. What is this thing?

A. They're all intelligent.

B. They're all shy.

C. What is a crush?

D. They're laid back.

E. They're funny.

Question #5 - Pick a Snow White character.

A. The Huntsman

B. The Magic Mirror

C. The Evil Queen

D. Snow White

E. The Prince

Question #6 - Pick a Snow White song.

A. Heigh-Ho

B. Someday My Prince Will Come

C. Whistle While You Work

D. I'm Wishing

E. With a Smile and a Song

Question #7 - Which of the following would you like to do after a long day of work?

A. Read a book.

B. Make something. Anything.

C. Shoot some darts.

D. Sleep/Watch TV.

E. Sing/Dance

Results:

Mostly A's - You are Doc! You're the leader of nearly every group you are put into, even if you're not very good at it. You're very wise and like to think carefully about problems when they arise. People look to you for advice and guidance, but it can take a while for you to give them a good answer to their questions because you're quite a nervous person.

Mostly B's - You are Bashful! You are very, very shy, but people love you for who you are. You tend to blush easily, and your hands are almost always fiddling with something. While you're not big on talking, you do really enjoy listening. You like stories and poems, and you are big on music. When you want to get someone's attention, you tend to just stare at them, and when they notice you, you probably unknowingly flutter your eyelashes.

Mostly C's - You are Grumpy! No matter what anyone says, you're always complaining. You see the glass not only as half empty, but thrown across the room and shattered. You never seem to agree with anyone, but if any of your friends need you to help them out, you're the first person to their rescue.

Mostly D's - You are Sleepy! You tend to be fairly lazy, and when you have nothing else to do you're probably in bed or on the couch. You enjoy the simple things in life and you're not afraid to indulge in some relaxing activities. You're probably the type of person who is always tired and yawning, but your friends enjoy spending time with you when they need some calm. 

Mostly E's - You are Happy! No matter what life throws at you, you're always laughing and trying to find the sunny outlook. You see the glass as half full, and you even see your favorite drink inside the glass. You get along with everyone, but people can get angry at you because you can never seem to take anything seriously.

That's all for today! Goodbye all for this year, and we’ll see you soon! Happy 2019 with another Fandom Newsletter!

Signing off,

Atlas, Fyne, Blackpurrl, and YoursTruly

Test Answers: Animals!

1. D 2. True 3. A 4. C 5. B

[zeroviraluniverse-blog]

10 Fast Facts About Get Out

Visit Now - http://zeroviral.com/10-fast-facts-about-get-out/

10 Fast Facts About Get Out

With a career that spans more than 40 years, 100 on-screen credits, and two Oscar wins (plus an additional three nominations), Gene Hackman has earned the right to be picky. Though he officially announced his retirement from Hollywood in 2004, movie fans around the world have long hoped to see him make a comeback. In the meantime, and in honor of his 88th birthday, we’re looking back at 10 famous movies—and one beloved sitcom—he almost starred in.

1. THE GRADUATE (1967)

In 1967, longtime friends and one-time roommates Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman found themselves as co-stars in Mike Nichols’s The Graduate, with Hoffman cast as floundering recent college grad Ben Braddock and Hackman as Mr. Robinson, the husband of Hoffman’s much older lover. Though Hackman was older than Hoffman, it was by just seven years—which didn’t seem old enough, and led Nichols to get rid of Hackman and recast the role just a few weeks into filming. Nearly 20 years after the film’s release, in 1985, Hackman admitted to the Chicago Tribune that, “It still hurts. I was going to play Mr. Robinson, Anne Bancroft’s husband. But Mike Nichols didn’t think I was doing it well and so—one, two, three, I was fired. Mike’s a nice guy, but he’ll fire you without blinking an eye.”

Though Hackman admitted that getting the axe didn’t do much to hurt his career—Bonnie and Clyde came out the same year and really helped to raise his profile—he said it was still “painful. Every time I look at the television schedule and see The Graduate coming on, or sometimes when I see Dusty [Hoffman], I think about it. And, you know, getting fired from The Graduate can stick with you.”

2. ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST (1975)

If Kirk Douglas had his way, he would have played the role of R.P. McMurphy in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest—just as he had on stage, when the book was adapted as a play in 1963. But by the time the film finally got off the ground with Miloš Forman as director more than a decade later, Douglas knew he was too old for the role, but had two specific actors in mind: Hackman and Burt Reynolds. Ultimately, the role went to Jack Nicholson, who won his first of three (and counting) Oscars for the film.

3. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)

Though it’s hard to imagine Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind without Richard Dreyfuss in the starring role of Roy Neary, he was far from Spielberg’s first choice. Spielberg had his eye on Steve McQueen, who reportedly said no because he couldn’t cry on cue. Spielberg then offered the part to a host of the biggest actors of the time—Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, and James Caan among them. They all passed, leaving the door open for Dreyfuss.

4. APOCALYPSE NOW (1979)

Five years after starring in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation, Hackman was the director’s first choice to play Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore in Apocalypse Now … but there was a catch. “The Apocalypse Now situation was touchier because I have such regard for Francis Ford Coppola as a director,” Hackman told the Chicago Tribune. “But he wanted me to work for points (a percentage of the gross, rather than for a salary), which I don’t think I should do.” Instead, it was Robert Duvall who got to famously declare: “I love the smell of napalm in the morning.”

5. ORDINARY PEOPLE (1980)

In 1980, Robert Redford made his directorial debut with the emotionally charged story of a family dealing with the death of their eldest son; Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore played the parents, and Timothy Hutton played the younger son (and won an Oscar for his efforts). But Sutherland’s role was originally going to be Hackman’s—until money got in the way. “I liked the script but couldn’t come to an agreement regarding the—how can I phrase it?—the compensation,” Hackman told the Chicago Tribune. “If I thought about it, I suppose I would have to have some regrets. So the thing to do is not think about it, don’t you think?”

6. BACK TO THE FUTURE (1985)

We’re not sure exactly how close Hackman got to landing the role of Doc Brown in Back to the Future, but in 2015, we learned that he was on the list of contenders to play the lovably mad scientist. Michael Klastorin and Randal Atamaniuk’s book, Back to the Future: The Ultimate Visual History, included a memo—dated August 21, 1984—that included more than 40 possible names to fill the role. Some of them are crossed out, some of them are bracketed, and some of them—like Christopher Lloyd and Gene Hackman—have a checkmark next to them, which seems like a good sign. (See a copy of the memo here.)

7. MISERY (1990)

Though the role of novelist-turned-captive Paul Sheldon in Misery might seem like the kind of part any actor would kill for (no pun intended), a long line of well-known actors said no to the film. In his book, Which Lie Did I Tell?, legendary screenwriter William Goldman recounted some of the names on that list, including Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Robert Redford, Harrison Ford, and William Hurt (who apparently told them no twice).

8. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)

Though Hackman has stayed mostly in front of the camera, in the 1980s he decided he wanted to see what it felt like to sit in the director’s chair and, along with Orion Pictures, purchased the movie rights to Thomas Harris’s The Silence of the Lambs for Hackman to both direct and star in. “It’s one of the most cinematic books I’ve ever read,” Hackman said. “As I read it, the movie was clicking in my mind.”

Hackman planned to take the role of Jack Crawford, with John Hurt as Hannibal Lecter. But in 1989, on Oscar night, Hackman had a revelation: Sitting in the audience, where he was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for Mississippi Burning, Hackman realized that he didn’t want to follow up one unlikable character with another. So he sold his part of the rights to Orion, and still has yet to direct a film.

9. THE FUGITIVE (1993)

In 1989, Hackman and director Andrew Davis clicked while making The Package, in which Hackman played a Green Beret tasked with transporting a prisoner, played by Tommy Lee Jones, back to America. When the time came for Davis to begin casting for the role of Chief Deputy Marshal Sam Gerard in The Fugitive, he considered Hackman—and John Voight, too—but eventually opted to re-team with Tommy Lee Jones who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for the film.

10. JACKIE BROWN (1997)

Jackie Brown may be the headliner in Quentin Tarantino’s adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s 1992 novel Rum Punch, but bail bondsman Max Cherry is integral to the twisty plot. And Tarantino had a pretty short list of possible contenders: Hackman, John Saxon, and Robert Forster. He went with Forster, which turned out to be a smart move, as the actor received the movie’s only Oscar nod.

11. THE BRADY BUNCH (1969 – 1974)

Remember that “beloved sitcom” we mentioned? Well, it’s none other than The Brady Bunch. Yes, you read that right. In his 2010 book, Brady Brady Brady, The Brady Bunch creator Sherwood Schwartz wrote that, “there were a number of men I wanted to interview [for the role of Mike Brady], including Gene Hackman. Paramount wouldn’t even okay Gene Hackman for an interview because he had a very low TVQ. (TVQ is a survey that executives use to determine the audience’s familiarity with performances. TV executives don’t admit to the existence of TVQs, but it is commonly employed in casting.)” Maybe it was all for the best—at least for Hackman. “The year after The Brady Bunch debuted, unknown Gene Hackman with no TVQ starred in The French Connection and won the Academy Award for Best Actor, and has been a major star ever since,” Schwartz added.