Act 1, scene 1: Happy Accident.

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An insecure and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind. -Buddha

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They met in his office at 7:00, early considering Hannibal's usual afternoon sessions. Hannibal had beckoned Will in, and motioned for him to take a seat, entertain himself for a moment as he prepared a cup of coffee for each of them. As Hannibal stood not ten feet away from Will while he poured the scalding liquid into two individual cups, he allowed himself a moment of study.

William wore the customary plaid button up, which had clearly been halfheartedly tucked into his slacks as obvious from the way the material wrinkled when he moved slightly to the left. The stubble that usually was kept at a decently uniform length was a bit longer than normal, a slightly more gruff look that Hannibal found he enjoyed. Will's eyes bore the tired insecurities of a man being chased by something no one else could see.

Dr. Lector smiled to himself. He could tell that this was going to be an interesting session.

Sitting down in the leather chair opposite of the long yet formal couch in which his patients usually sat, Hannibal nodded his head toward Will, an indication for him to begin.

And after taking a large gulp of coffee, he does.

Will let a breath filter past his lips as he sinks onto the couch, involuntarily reaching for his glasses as he rubbed his eyes.

"I had an...interesting dream." Will said finally, as he pushed the glasses back along the bridge of his nose, staring at a spot just above Hannibal's shoulder.

"Tell me about this dream, Will." Dr. Lector urged, moving his hand to cup his own chin.

"I-I was..." He takes a breath. "There was a gun in my hand, and I was aiming at Hobbs." He stops as Hannibal quirks an eyebrow.

"Reliving the rescue of Abigail are we?"

"No. Not at all. He-Hobbs, was on the ground, trying to get away...He was unarmed and I still-." Once more William stops as he seems to take a moment to regain his composure. "After I shot him, I stood there for a while as if I was waiting for something, and then, you were there."

Hannibal allows a small hum.

"Was I?"

"Yes, you were, and you were so...proud of me."

Hannibal watches as Will looks up at him, eyes rimmed with a cocktail of worry and suspicion. He decides that a reassuring smile is most likely the best tactic in this situation.

" l want to help you, Will. Please relax." Suddenly Will seems to become annoyed. As if having grown tired of Lector's patronizing. He lifted the cup of coffee to his lips.

"If you have something to say Dr. Lector then just say it." He whispers quietly. Hannibal allows a fond smile to peak out at Will's display of anger. It's simply delectable.

"What are you fighting Will? We don't invent our natures, they're issued to us with our lungs and pancreas and everything else." Hannibal questioned calmly, testing. He needed to know the strength of the ground he stood on.

Will seemed a taken aback by this sudden turn of events as he puts the coffee down.

"How can I fight something that isn't there?" Will demands, secretly wanting to know the answer.

"Fear William. You are saddled by your fear, and it is the price of all of our instruments. Allow me to help you bear it."

Will doesn't respond, but instead stares in confused wonder. He looks down at his coffee for the first time since he's received it, and swears that he cringes.

While my patient looks away, preoccupied with his dreams, I prepare the refreshments. Inclusive of Coffee, cream, sugar and a healthy dosage of some sort of white powder. Most likely PCP.

This is my design.

Hannibal flashes him a smile that for some inexplicable reason, causes Will's knee's to go weak as he tries to stand.

"What did you-"

"Shhh. Do not worry. It is a non lethal dosage, and under my supervision it should help us quite extensively."

Will is too busy trying to figure out how much coffee he drank, how much he weighs, and the most likely amount of drugs he ingested.

It's getting hard for him to think.

"Please, Will. Sit down, it's rude to stand in the middle of a conversation."