"So, a dinner invitation? How… original…," said Will with a roll of his eyes and a flare of his aura as he recalled the many times he had been duped into sharing the fruits of Hannibal's kill at his table.
"To my recollection, we established quite a successful and altogether fulfilling relationship, as well as enjoying much intellectual discourse over quite a few shared meals," replied Hannibal, momentarily focussing his attention on Will and the warmth that accompanied the projection of his emotional ebb and flow, before returning it to admire in equal appreciation, the magnificence of the Omega Nebula. Experiencing the Universe at this level of intimacy Hannibal would never bore of, in any incarnation. It was simply unfortunate that in so many incarnations, he found himself residing amongst minds much less enlightened than his own.
Hannibal turned his thoughts back to Will. He was tempted to probe Will's mind, just to see how he was coping with this adjustment, but knew that an invitation would be required or he'd simply retreat further away. As always.
"Do we always seek each other out?" Will asked. "Is there no other path for us than towards each other?"
"Always. And we always find each other. We are simply…"
"Inevitable."
"Indeed."
Will sighed. "I get the distinct impression in the infinite variations of timelines we traverse, Hannibal, you always get the better of me and this timeline will be no different. Even, when I'm allegedly the cunning one!"
"The eternal struggle, Will. Is it not beautiful in its pure ambiguity?"
"For my own preference I much rather a clear delineation between light and dark, black and white…"
"You and I?" asked Hannibal.
Will kept his thought on that particular subject to himself.
"Yet the soup of the matter is so much more fulfilling," Hannibal continued simply, giving form to his wings so as to bask in the feel of the elements pouring from the Nebula between the feathers, allowing the separation to melt into oneness, shifting the form of his wings between colours that didn't exist on the Human visual spectrum, but did exist, somewhere in the known and unknown Universe. His mind closed for the briefest of moments while he focussed on the sensations. When he opened himself again, he found a Demon staring at him, captivated. Will's gaze quickly tore away. Mmmm, thought Hannibal. Perhaps a little nudge was in order…
Here is my card with my personal phone number. Please call me when you decide a date for our dinner. I merely require 24 hours notice.
Will smiled as he pushed the card back into his shirt pocket, climbing into his car to make the journey home. He hadn't failed to notice Professor Lecter on the day they had met at his interview, nor since. He permeated the space around him, as though he could take the fabric of any situation and weave a tapestry that suited his own design. To say Will found him intriguing was an understatement. He had been wondering how to get to know him better, how to approach him on a more personal level but, aside from the fact that they taught wildly different disciplines, his empathic senses had continually made it very clear to him that he was not interested, or at least, resistant. The dinner invitation was an unexpected, but wholly welcome turn of events that he couldn't have hoped to orchestrate through any amount of intricate planning. The world works in mysterious ways, he thought, with a playful smile on his lips. Will then turned his thoughts to the boy who had inadvertently brought them within striking distance of each other.
Michael Verger.
An intriguing mind as well, truth be told. Will had read his file and found his history, both genetic and phenotypic, to be the perfect ground on which to seed a mind that could blossom into greatness, a design that, while Will could not foresee its longterm outcome, would shine like the beacon in the night it was meant to be, guiding those with no direction of their own to their Fate.
It was on that satisfying thought that Will felt the collision of another vehicle as it rammed into the side of his own. A split second passed before his world went black.
"Are you next of kin?"
"No," said Hannibal. "And I am at a loss as to understand why the hospital called me given that I am not."
The nurse gave a small, I-wish-I-could-help shrug before another female voice made herself known behind him.
"Professor Hannibal Lecter?"
Hannibal turned to be greeted by one of the resident doctors. He tilted his head in question.
"I am sorry that we were forced to call you but we only had a driver's licence as identification for Dr Graham and there was no indication of a next of kin contact on his person, but we did find your business card in shirt pocket. Are you friends?"
Hannibal briefly considered the question. "We are newly acquainted." trained a look of concern on his face. "Is he alright?"
She turned to walk down the corridor, gesturing Hannibal to follow which he duly did. "His injuries are extensive but he will survive. We've induced a short term coma to speed up the healing process," she said with trained professionalism as she opened the door to a private room.
Life. It is such a fragile thing, thought Hannibal.
