The Assembly Ball
Will, while he found crowds of people suffocating, attended the assembly ball at the request of his family. They also insisted on putting him in ridiculously superfluous attire, which he strongly fought against but was eventually worn down and allowed it. He wore a corset underneath a linen shirt, a fairly drab dark overcoat over it all. For the rest of his body, form-fitting dark breeches with knee socks and scuffed up black heeled shoes. He didn't have a cravat, he believed it was a unnecessary frill on top of the already unnecessary frill of the outfit. He tried to have fun despite the outfit, but he could never have much fun around people anyhow.
All sound escaped the room when the Bingley's entered the room, parting the crowd like Moses did the Red Sea. What sent murmurs through the crowd, however, was the unexpected third member of their party. His cold deep red eyes swept over the room hungrily, as if an animal searching for prey but disguising the feral urge behind a mask of pleasantness and compassion. His eyes met Will's, lingering for a moment longer than he had on the others before continuing his sweep. The doorman announced them, "Mr. Mason Bingley, his sister Margot Bingley, and Mr Hannibal Lecter."
Will nudged Alana with his elbow, causing her to take her eyes off of Margot whom her eyes had been intently fixated on. "Where do you suppose Mr. Lecter is from...?"
Alana looked at Will suspiciously for a moment before answering " I've heard he comes here from Lithuania, on lord knows what kinds of business, with Mr. and Ms. Bingley. A wealthy gentleman from far off lands, who seems to have caught your eye." She teased, receiving a sour look from Will. "Or, rather, you've caught his." Alana nudged her head towards the front of the room where Hannibal stood, eyes firmly settled on Will and Alana. He offered a wave and looked away, yet he didn't talk with the two he had come with. An occasional woman would approach him but she would return to her group disappointed.
Mrs. Bennett collected her children and brought them all up to introduce themselves to the wealthy newcomers. They gave a bow, and the trio did the same. Margot couldn't seem to take her eyes off of Alana, just as Alana couldn't seem to keep her eyes from meeting the other woman's. Mrs. Bennett left them to their own affairs, leaving faith in fate and her ability as a matchmaker. Will stood beside Alana, trying his best to avoid making eye contact. He could feel both Mason and Hannibal giving him the same stare and he didn't appreciate it. Margot and Alana were absolutely enamored with each other almost immediately, leaving the men alone in favor of dancing together. Will was desperate to escape Mason's hungry gaze. While he didn't like being looked at this much by anyone, the look Mason was giving him made him feel like a piece of prime meat being eyed by a hungry vulture. He turned to Hannibal, lips turning up in a somewhat smile as he at least attempted to look friendly enough to dance with. "Do you dance, Mr. Lecter?"
Hannibal's face wrinkled as he smiled a bit wider. " While I do not usually dance with those I do not know, I feel I owe you a dance after such hospitality." He gently took Will's hand, leading him towards the crowd of gay dancers and pulling Will off into a hidden side, away from Mason's invasive looks.
"While I appreciate the assistance, Mr. Lecter, I did very much want to dance with you." Will looked up at him, noticing how close they were and that Hannibal was still holding his hand and not saying anything about it for the moment.
"I am not very confident in those I do not know, William. While I feel you are different from the rest, you have not quite breached the barrier between trusted friend and untrusted stranger." Hannibal explained, bringing Will's hand up and pressing a kiss to the back. "I simply wanted to get you away from Mr. Bingley. I've seen what he does to his partners, and I would hate to see something happen to that pretty face of yours." He smiled at Will, bidding him goodbye and intermingling back with the crowd of guests. Will took a moment to be sure Mason was properly distracted before he let himself search the large ballroom for Alana. He spotted her dancing with Margot and relaxed a bit, leaning against the wall and watching the two dance. He spared the occasional glance to the mysterious Mr. Lecter, somehow feeling both relieved that the two would never meet again. His sister's were after the Bingley's, not eccentric mystery men who came from far off lands and didn't dance. Besides, Will didn't like the energy the stranger put out. It gave him gooseflesh.