@hawksired said :  âwould you like company?â
   ITâS STRANGE, SEEING MATTHEW OUTSIDE THE CONTEXT OF THE HOSPITAL.  akin to plucking a character from their novel and placing them outside the constraints of fiction â  it sets will on edge, like sinking his teeth into something intolerably cold.  finding him there, stood on willâs front porch like some casual friend, had brought a mingled flare of irritation and interest; the baltimore state hospital for the criminally insane is a place in which he no longer wishes to linger.  and yet, matthew had admired him.  had been willing to kill for him.  and that is the sort of allegiance will could use.
   it hadnât taken long for matthew to settle into his home.  he strikes will as the sort to find root anywhere, the kind of seed that germinates in even the crudest of soil.  thereâs a resiliency about it that will respects, a kind of defiance that he himself aspires to.  persisting for the sake of persisting, flourishing in the name of spite.  he has had enough of ducking his head.  has had too many fingers fist willingly in his hair and force it down themselves.
   when the sun has long since dipped its head below the horizon, the house a tiny beacon in an endless expanse of darkness, will drains whatâs left of his whiskey and sets his glass on the table.  itâs a definitive gesture, and will leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees to punctuate it, lacing his hands between them.   â if youâll excuse me, â  he begins, empty pleasantry at best,   â i need to go pay a visit to a... mutual friend of ours. â
   is this not one of the reasons why he invited matthew inside in the first place?  was it not, in an echo of a tune familiar to hannibalâs fingers, an action taken for no purpose but to see what would happen?
   matthew closes his jaws around the hook, and will feigns surprise.  he arches his brows and leans back, as though the prospect has only just settled over his skin, and he is finding it gentle and warm.  a shadow of a smile twitches upon his lips, and he allows it to tug into something approaching indulgent.  there is something gratifying in making an assumption and having it proved right.  something powerful in pulling a string and seeing how it will make a thing move.
   â what did you have in mind? â
         MEME   /   ACCEPTING