Thanks to everyone that reviews. It means a lot!

~JM

For rockndasha

Will thought it was another one of his vivid imaginings when he dreamt of a cold wasteland, palms calloused by the hilt of a sword, and the rhythmic pounding of hooves on near frozen ground. He turned in bed, nothing but the sheet to cover him, and he found Hannibal staring back at him. The doctor's eyes shifted and flashed in the dim light.

Will opened his mouth, meant to call the doctor's name but whispered, "Tristan." Forgotten names, spoken so long ago they had become legend.

And for a moment it didn't quite click and then, like an atomic explosion, it did. They were hit with a myriad of sensations. Thoughts and feelings collided together, high speed trains on a collision course. Old and new combined in a mushroom cloud of morbid beauty and frightening brilliance. And yet it took no time at all.

"You haven't changed," Hannibal murmured in the oppressive silence as he propped himself up on an elbow.

"You...you're different. So different." Will stared in mild confusion as he tried to collect what pieces of himself he could. It was like assembling a two separate jigsaw puzzles, the pieces all mixed together. "Did you remember? Before?"

"No."

Will sat up and ground the heels of his hands against his eyes until he saw stars. "How the hell did this happen? Why now?"

"I don't know," was all Hannibal could reply.

"You finally cut your hair." There was a beat of silence. "I remember this, lying next to you."

"I remember you biting my shoulder to keep quiet."

A quiet laugh. "I thought Dagonet was going to kill us for waking him." Will leaned over and kissed him suddenly, roughly until they were breathing recycled air.

Hannibal pulled back. "What was that for?"

Will pressed his lips in a tight line, the corner of his mouth going up in the hint of a sad smile. "Because I had to bury you."