empathicfault | IC Inbox

"He sees you as intertwined in some way," Malcolm remarks. "Isn't he the one that dated her?" Will had wanted to, if he recalls correctly. Then Hannibal framed him and she believed it.

"He is," Will replies, feeling his mouth go dry.

"And I- I was so angry when I got here. At her, especially. Because she was so smart but couldn't figure out she was dating a murderer. Because she tried to save me and failed. Hannibal would absolutely use that to try and cement my...new life."

Malcolm tilts his head slightly to look at Will.

“Your ‘new life’ with him?” he clarifies with a more cautious curiosity.

"...yes." Will lets out a sigh as he thinks about it further. "But there was also...he said to me- well, to Francis, but he knew it'd make it back to me- that 'blood and breath are only elements undergoing change to fuel your radiance.' Well...my 'radiance' was too newly formed. He'd want to protect his new baby monster, until I figured out what I actually wanted."

He opens his mouth, but doesn't say anything for a long moment, before seemingly acknowledging something to himself and continuing. "And if it served his own interest, all the better, right? I doubt he'd understand why I'd be hesitant to kill Alana, if I was so angry with her."

He hopes he'd be hesitant. He hopes he'd keep Hannibal from going through with it. Maybe she's not one of the best people in that world, but she was still trying. She does not deserve to be livestock.

“He made the same mistake with you and him that people make with me and you,” Malcolm notes. “He thinks because you connected so strongly that you’re the same.” He puts the drawing to the back. “You’re not the same.”

He studies the next picture. “I feel like I should have… some reservations about how well he could draw you from memory. Like. Every little detail, down to where you carry your tension.”

"Parts of us are the same," Will gently corrects. "But not that. I wouldn't want to 'get back' at Alana, not when she was doing her best with the information she had. Even if the circumstances...make me angry."

The next drawing is less his usual style. However, it still features Will, leaning over a desk with dark creatures in the dark behind him, growing increasingly grotesque as one looks up and back. Notably, the wendigo and ravenstag are both there, antlers merging near the top of the drawing. Both are looking accusingly at the viewer, eyes a stark white. Winston looks at Will with concern from the bottom right. And yes, even asleep, Will looks tormented, shoulders drawn together, hair scraggly curls. He's wearing what he usually wears to sleep, an undershirt and boxer briefs.

"Yeah, I'm wondering if I'm ever wearing a full outfit in any of these..." Will murmurs. "But I always suspected he had an eidetic memory. And he's probably pushing that angle anyway because he's jealous. He wants both of us to know how intimately he knows me. He expected I'd treat you like Molly, and...leave out some things."

“Parts of you are the same and it tricked him into thinking everything was,” Malcolm says. He’s sure of this. He smirks at Will’s assessment of Hannibal’s jealousy. “It would be petty to enjoy that, right?”

Will smirks and snorts in amusement. "It is, which means you should indulge that feeling. Try it on, like a suit. I think that one would fit you well, personally."

But he seems more than happy with Malcolm's assessment. He suspects the full reason might not be quite that simple, but that's probably a big part of why Hannibal 'miscalculated' here.

"He doesn't usually draw things like this." He notes, finding himself continuing to stare at it. "He prefers classical beauty, and usually saves the beautifully macabre for his 'other' art."

“I… don’t think he killed anyone here. He needed the outlet, maybe.” Malcolm tilts his head to look up at Will again. “Is it weird that I don’t think he even intended to kill me?” he asks.

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