Hannibal's house (where Jono's around somewhere), Sunday evening

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal could have gone all-out with a gourmet dinner for Sparkle's birthday. But this was Sparkle's birthday, so he'd opted for something else - his own touch on food that Sparkle would be more familiar with.

So, when Sparkle arrived for dinner, he'd find the house smelling of poutine with pork confit and foie-gras sauce, steamed fiddleheads with wild leek greens, and butter tarts with caramel sauce. There was also a very good homemade beer to go with it all.

Happy birthday, Sparkle!

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[myownface]

Sparkle's mood was much improved by the time his shift at the Demon Marcus was through. He'd gotten some gifts even if the people sending them hadn't been around, and it had been good to talk to Minako. He knew she was busy, and that it was late in her neck of the woods, and all. But actually getting to go and sit down to a meal that had been made with him in mind, with actual real human company right there?

Look, he didn't make a big deal of his birthday, like, basically ever. But that didn't mean he wanted to spend tonight alone. So he was looking forward to this.

Smiling, he rang the doorbell. Hey, look, he'd gotten better at using that thing over the years!

[sharp_as_knives]

And Hannibal's doorbell appreciated it.

Hannibal smiled as he opened the door. "Welcome. I hope your day has been enjoyable so far?"

[myownface]

"So far, so good," Sparkle agreed as he stepped inside. If he sounded a little bewildered about that fact, that would be because he actually was. "I guess twenty is the year when people give food and sharp things as birthday presents. See, if I'd known that, I would've even been looking forward to today."

He liked both of those things!

"How're you?"

[sharp_as_knives]

"Oh, dear." Hannibal let him in and led the way to the dining room. "I'm afraid I'll be doing the same thing."

Fortunately, neither was something you could have too much of.

"I'm well, thank you for asking." He showed Sparkle to a seat with a pair of large boxes next to the place setting, then uncovered the beautifully plated food. "Where would you like to start?"

[myownface]

... That was the prettiest poutine Sparkle had seen in his entire damn life. He needed to kind of stare at it for a moment before blinking up at Hannibal, wide-eyed.

"With the food," he said, because that was basically a no-brainer. "Did you actually make me poutine for my birthday?"

With greens! And butter tarts?

[sharp_as_knives]

"A somewhat more gourmet take upon it, but yes," Hannibal answered solemnly. "Tastes of where you came from, and where you are now, perhaps to show where you may be in the future."

He smiled. "Don't tell Jono that I've made you fried potatoes; he'll be terribly jealous."

Yes, he already knew, Hannibal was certain. That wasn't the point.

[myownface]

That was actually really thoughtful. Sparkle ducked his head a little bit, grinning.

"Your secret is safe with me," he chuckled. "I know I don't plan on leaving any evidence."

Because this all looked and smelled amazing, and Sparkle was at least mostly sure that wasn't just normal gravy on those fries. It smelled better than any corner pizza shop slop stop he'd ever made, for a start.

[sharp_as_knives]

Yes, well, the corner pizza places were unlikely to have foie gras on the menu.

"Eat the evidence." Hannibal nodded and smirked. "It's the best method of disposal."

[myownface]

Really, most of them weren't terribly likely to know what foie gras was.

"Nobody would ever think of the evidence being eaten?" Sparkle was making a reach for his fork, oblivious to how patently untrue that was. Especially when it came to Jono's suspicions about how Hannibal disposed of anything incriminating. "See, the world would be a way better place if that worked on anything you wanted to hide."

Sparkle stop.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Well, I imagine it would work less well with things like money."

Hannibal poured Sparkle a glass of beer. "But for food, it seems the perfect idea, don't you think?"

[myownface]

"Genius-level criminal," Sparkle decided, nodding his thanks as he reached for the beer. "Especially when you're doing the cooking. What's this gravy, anyway? It's fantastic."

Sparkle suspected it was made of magic and possibly unicorns.

[sharp_as_knives]

Well, since Hannibal was actually a genius-level criminal...

"A foie-gras sauce with white wine," he answered. "I'm pleased you like it. I know it isn't quite traditional."

[myownface]

Hey, Sparkle would be calling out the cheese cubes before the gravy, if tradition was a concern of his. As it stood, he was shrugging his shoulders and looking pretty impressed.

"Hey, tradition is only important to people who care about that sort of thing." He shrugged his shoulders and sampled the fiddlehead greens, next. "I'm not exactly what anybody would consider traditional, anyway."

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal chuckled and raised his glass. "To twenty years of being non-traditional, and may you have many more opportunities and years in which to do so."

[myownface]

"I'll drink to that." Sparkle raised his own glass and gave Hannibal a grin. "There's nowhere to go but forward from here, right? There'll be plenty of opportunities, even if I end up having to make them myself."

He sure as hell wasn't letting the past year come back to haunt him if he could help it, at least.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Sometimes those are the best kind," Hannibal said. "You're doing well so far."

[myownface]

"Sometimes I catch myself wondering," Sparkle admitted, a little wryly. "But that's less fatalism these days and more just kind of laying out all my cards and seeing what hand I can play from here. I know I basically shot myself in the foot back in Toronto."

He shrugged.

"In retrospect, the burning revenge thing was probably not my smartest move."

But it had been really really satisfying.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Next time, you just need to think of that in advance," Hannibal pointed out.

And not get caught.

"But you do seem to be doing better now."

[myownface]

Sparkle paused to consider that over another mouthful of beer.

"Yeah," he said, finally. "I guess I am. I mean... place to live. Steady job. That's kind of the opposite of 'homeless and wanted by the cops.'"

... Not that he wasn't still wanted by the cops.

[sharp_as_knives]

To be fair, so was Hannibal. And for a lot more than jumping bail and possible arson.

"And you have friends here now," Hannibal said. "I met Leto the other day. I like him."

[myownface]

And that right there was a good way to get Sparkle to duck his head and smile like a total dork. Yep.

"He's pretty great, isn't he? I mean... I don't know... fun and smart and he doesn't expect me to be something I'm not. He's... you know. A good friend."

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal grinned back. "That's good. It's good to have someone to understand you and accept you. And for other things," he added, since he himself and possibly Atton fell into that first category, too.

[myownface]

"Aaand for other things," Sparkle replied, after barking out a sudden, half-startled laugh. "But I'm not talking about those."

Those things were kind of like the cherry on top of a super casual relationship that was whatever the hell was between himself and Leto. They'd never really bothered to define it.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Nor would I expect you to," Hannibal assured him with a chuckle. "We can talk about whatever you like. It's your day."

[myownface]

"Honestly... I'm kind of just happy to have the company," Sparkle admitted. "I mean, things have been quiet lately. I'm not used to that. There's always someone around."

That someone was usually Atton. Atton who, granted, hadn't been gone much longer than Sparkle was used to Atton being gone yet, but he wasn't answering his comm, even if he was dropping the occasional hint that he wasn't dead yet.

It kind of scared him.