Will's Insight | Opt-In Post

[empathicfault]

In the series Hannibal, Will Graham is shown to have a unique ability- he calls it 'interpreting the evidence', whereas Hannibal calls it 'pure empathy'. It lets Will know what the people around him are feeling, often to Will's detriment. Will frequently appears to be overstimulated by the outside world, slumping in chairs and avoiding eye contact. He finds comfort in dogs and being alone.

However, this ability can often be extremely useful for determining motivations, desires, and fears. When he uses it at crime scenes, the series shows murders taking place as if Will were the culprit. He sees fantastical visions and metaphorical imagery as he places himself in his target's place, seeing the world as they see it.

I'd like to write out some of this imagery in narration as I roleplay, but I also don't want to infomod. So if you are interested in letting Will into knowing your character through this ability, please reply here.

What I'd like to know (feel free to copy+paste, or just write out what you'd like)--
<b>1. What would you like him to be able to suss out about your character? </b> He works in emotions, so fears, desires, motivations, immediate wants, all that sort of thing is good. <b>2. Is there a character trait or emotion you absolutely do NOT want brought up?</b> Will isn't magic and he's not always right with this ability. It's easy to veer off of any topic you might want to avoid. <b>3. Is there any visual imagery you associate with your character, and/or is there anything specifically that you'd like Will to visualize?</b> Sometimes he sees things that don't seem to make a whole lot of sense until later- I tend to interpret that as him integrating evidence that he hasn't logically noticed yet. <b>4. Any plot threads or development you'd like to actually get going through this mechanic?</b> Let me know, I'd love to plan with you! Will could be a good way to weasel info or feelings out of someone who would otherwise keep them hidden, if that's something you'd like. I'm also very happy to just see where things go.

Thanks, and please let me know if there's anything else you'd like me to know or talk over with you.

Comments

[forensicks]

1. What would you like him to be able to suss out about your character?

Note: I reserve the right to say things that seem contradictory like "he's very indifferent" versus "he has a distinct moral empathy" because he's a character we have to observe from the outside through his actions in their context so I just say things off the top of my head to get general ideas, please be patient with me...

Also Barge!Misty is Barge!Misty, Future!Misty from Walter's own canon point is Future!Misty.

Walter is masking very heavily in multiple ways. There's standard nicey masking, affable eccentric masking kinda like this, straight up deliberate manipulation masking where he seems pitiable/etc, and confident threatening criminal masking (rare). You could say he's always writing the story of his life rather than living his life.

ALSO although he is "a freak and proud" he is honestly rather privileged in his society both in general being male, etc, and especially after his windfall of money you could call him outright spoiled. He's kinda lost all his tools for control on the barge and has to actually work, not for the first time in his life but enough that it is not fun with his asthma and other ailments, and so he's barely bottling up how this is driving him kinda crazy. To say nothing of the actual drama and bloodshed that has happened.

2. Is there a character trait or emotion you absolutely do NOT want brought up? So the thing about Walter and my writing style for him is that he has basically, like, three important canon memories. #1 His grandma was imprisoned for murder, #2 he almost died in an accident, and #3 he became obsessed with Misty Quigley in relation to the Adam Martin murder case. That's it. That's the whole character. He is very protective of that last piece of information (#2 is very public and #1 is slightly more private but ultimately whatever). But at the same time the dissemination of this information is essential to his character arc. So I like to use a breadcrumb technique and split plot cookies between multiple characters and multiple threads. I'm absolutely down for Will finding out a hundred percent of it gradually over time if he becomes committed to it. As well as anything else like barge shit.

However if it's easier to you to simply work from the beginning with what info is available and what's not, "Future!Misty killed Adam Martin" (ACTUALLY NOT EVEN TRUE LMAO...) is pretty much off limits as an instant discovery.

3. Is there any visual imagery you associate with your character, and/or is there anything specifically that you'd like Will to visualize?
Stuff I write on my own is gonna mostly focus on just a few things. My unused concept for Walter's daemon is similar to what I think would be going on (note the Sherlock Holmes references in the names). He is a spider spinning his little webs all the time. Future!Misty is Sleeping Beauty in cobwebs. Barge!Misty... This is in flux, I'll cue this based on what has happened by the time it comes up in a thread. There is a thin thread connecting him to Malcolm that he is not consciously aware of (they met as little boys in the dream and didn't introduce themselves. It's cute).

Pink/red/orange/yellow represent passion and love which are always good even though others might not agree. Blue is the color of control which can be yielded for good or bad. Purple is for drugs including the opium of the people, administering them or taking them. I could sort people into these colors but Walter isn't a guy who sees the world in black and white, or any other color category. These would be patterns within the vibes.

Walter moodboard where I'm trying to do the same thing as other people wrote but I don't actually vibe with this: Broadway in New York City with its musicals and marquees. Phantom of the Opera and Cyrano de Bergerac - the masks of that. Stage magicians with top hats. Morse code and flashlights and swiss army knives. Sailboats on the open sea. ...he likes cats but I don't think cats belong in here... Sherlock Holmes stories (he is Moriarty). Computers... he is a hacker...

4. Any plot threads or development you'd like to actually get going through this mechanic?
Again, as above, I would be very interested in Will uncovering this information as long as there is an element of organic development. The main thing that I think would be great to have happen this way would be Misty's entry in the Warden Ledger, particularly since I'm given to understand that Will and Malcolm often share Warden-Inmate info. It's evidence. It's bait. He did need to vent his feelings a little. He doesn't think of himself this way, but he is a stalker and it's part of how he's a criminal.