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Title: The Darkness Within
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Table: 1drabble
Prompt: 25, Darkness
Author's Note: Sequel to "Chasing the Visions Away."
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Hannibal Lecter or Will Graham, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

"Will, what is around your body in these visions of yours?"

Will looked up, surprised by Hannibal's question. "What does that have to do with anything? I'm not looking at what's around me. I'm looking at myself."

Hannibal shook his head, putting down his fork and leaning back in his chair, his gaze fixed on Will's face. "Are you surrounded by darkness, or light? If you are surrounded by darkness, that is a fairly good indication that you meet your death by some sort of foul play."

Will's lips quirked in an approximation of a wry smile. "Given what I do for a living, I'd say that's pretty much a foregone conclusion, isn't it?"

Hannibal shook his head, a slight frown marring his brow.

"No, Will, it isn't," he said, his voice gentle. "You could very well die of something like a heart attack, given how hard you push yourself when you're working."

Will sighed, looking down at his plate. Hannibal was probably right about that; he knew that there were times when he should take a few steps back, but he could never quite bring himself to do so. He always felt that the had to give as much as he could to his work.

He owed the victims of the crimes he investigated that much. He couldn't simply go halfway and then back off. He had to give his all, until the cases were solved.

"So do you think that a darkness follows me around, that I attract it?" Will said, interested in where Hannibal might be going with this theory. "I always thought I attracted light."

Hannibal shrugged, eating a mouthful of pasta before he spoke again. "I think that you are a curious mixture of both dark and light, Will," he said, his gaze resting on the younger man's face. "We all are, but the darkness in you is always fighting to take control, though it never quite does."

Will felt a chill go through him at those words; he didn't like what Hannibal was inferring. He didn't want to think that any darkness could ever take him over.

"What do you mean by that?" he asked, his tone challenging.

Hannibal put down his fork, leaning back in his chair, his gaze never leaving Will's face. "I mean that the darkness in your soul is always fighting for dominance."

"It won't happen," Will stated succinctly, feeling a sudden rush of anger. "I'm a decent person, Hannibal. I might spend time inside the minds of killers, but I'm not like them. That kind of darkness isn't a part of me. It's not who I am, and it's not who I want to be. You've got it wrong."

Abruptly, he pushed back his chair and stood up, starting to clear away his plate. He didn't want to continue having this conversation. He wanted to put it out of his mind.

He wanted those uncomfortable words to go away -- though he knew that they wouldn't.

***