You'd followed Danny downstairs after a moment of silence, a pause to enjoy your life once more. You had stepped into the kitchen, surprised to see the whole place empty except for Brahms preparing plates of food.

"Where is everyone?" you ask, though you're answered by Freddy slinking from the dining room.

"Good morning, Kitten," he waved his gloved hand, leaning on the counter and eyeing the food as it was prepared. "How'd you sleep?" Freddy purred, tilting his head, "I was tempted to spend some time with you, but I thought you deserved some beauty sleep."

"Thanks, Freddy. I slept well, actually. I feel better today than I have in a long time." you lean against the counter as well, watching Brahms' fluid movements, completely comfortable in your pink, floral-patterned apron.

"Y'know you were pretty hot killing those bastards, all covered in blood with that crazed look. Good job, it was brutal." Freddy's smile was amused, and you smiled back, rolling your eyes.

"Well, thank you, I guess."

"Do you feel guilty, at all?" standing up straight, Freddy watched as Brahms juggled the plates on his arms like a pro and prepped to move off to the dining room. You hesitate, then shake your head, smiling nervously.

"I probably should, but I... I just..." you frown, and stare at the ground, a guilt clawing at your stomach; not a guilt for actually ending their lives, but a guilt because you were... almost happy they were gone. Freddy was about to speak again, but Brahms, seeing your discomfort, cut in,

"Breakfast, (Y/N), Freddy." he tilted his head as you lifted your gaze to meet his, nodding and letting him take the lead. You and Freddy follow close behind, and you're greeted by the dining table, bustling and filled with chaos. "Calm!" Brahms almost snaps, and everyone goes immediately silent. He nods, satisfied, and begins to set the plates down in front of those sitting around the table. You take a seat at the head of the table, one Danny was frantically motioning towards. To your left was, of course, Danny, and to the right was Jason.

"This is very nice, Brahms!" you smile, Brahms setting down the last plate at the other end of the table where he would sit. He seemed to buzz with pride and happiness, and even from across the table you could see the brightness in his eyes at your praise, the way the corners of them would crinkle with his smile.

"Why thank you, (Y/N). That is very kind." he takes his seat, and the moment he nods his head as an 'ok' everyone digs in. The only empty seat was the one Michael would have sat in, and you made a mental note to bring him his meal once you were finished. Jason lifted his mask to expose his mouth, shrinking into himself as he did so. You catch his eye for a heartbeat, smiling, and he smiles back. It's adorable, and you find your heart melting into putty. You take a bite of the omlette on your plate, savouring the tomato, spinach and cheese held within. It's a burst of outstanding flavours, perfect together. Jason suddenly perks up, reaching for a notepad on the tabletop you hadn't noticed, scribbling with a red ballpoint pen and holding it out to you.

'(Y/N), I have a question'. It reads, and you nod in a way that says 'please, continue!'. He takes back the notepad, scribbling once more.

'I want to get better, and not worry you. Can you check my traps so I may rest?' he pushes the pad back to you, tilting his head like a puppy as you read. Your face splits with a smile and you nod almost immediately.

"Of course, Jay!" you chide, and Jason, now satisfied with your response, returns to his food. He seems much happier already, more confident with his half-exposed face.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Ms. (L/N)," Hannibal nods to you, and then to Brahms, "And you as well, Mr. Heelshire." at the name 'Mr. Heelshire', Brahms almost seems giddy, shivering with excitement at the thought of being seen as a 'Mr.'.

"Of course, Dr. Lecter." The thick british accent modifying the child's voice made the short phrase somehow even more adorable, his attempts to be serious and formal totally foiled by this fact and drawing a giggle from yourself. "Is the food alright?" Brahms asks, clasping his hands together, suddenly nervous.

"The sausage is great!" Danny says through a mouthful, scowling at Freddy as he snickers to himself.

"It's v-very good!" Norman smiles as well, breezing past the unintentional dirty joke. You smile at the sight of everyone getting along, glad that your slasher roommates are being nice, and cooperative and sweet to one another.

"So, (Y/N), what's the plan for today?" Hannibal asks, "You need rest as much as the others, even if you aren't as physically harmed as they are. You've been through a lot." you can see real concern in his eyes, his voice laced with it as well.

"Well, Jason wants me to check his traps and make sure everything in the forest is in order, so after breakfast I'll do that." you explain, pushing your food around with your fork as you spoke then taking a bite. After chewing and swallowing, you added, "I should also probably get some work done. I'm supposed to go into work today, but I'm sure I can convince my boss to let me come tomorrow instead in exchange for an article." you glance at Danny as you speak and he smiles,

"An article I'd be honoured to help you write!" he said.

"Good, good. I'll make sure Michael, Jason and Danny are taken care of, so you won't have to worry about them." Hannibal promised with a slow blink, and you smile at him.

"I don't need babysitting!" Danny claimed, crossing his arms in a blatant form of defiance.

"Yes you do." a new voice jumped in, one that made your smile widen. You turned to face Michael, his mask on his face once more, but he'd really spoken in front of everyone. He had a hand on his chest over one of his gunshot wounds, and you could tell it was a struggle to have walked all the way down here. He lowered himself slowly into the free seat between Danny and Norman, obviously trying to stop himself form grunting in pain.

"You shouldn't be out of bed, Mr. Myers." Hannibal said in an almost scolding tone. Michael turned his head slowly to face him, and he simple nodded before speaking quietly,

"I know." He turned his head to face the table again, Brahms hopping from his seat and scurrying into the kitchen to rab Michael's plate. He hurried back, setting it in front of Michael who, surprisingly, nodded in thanks and lifted his mask to expose his mouth, still a little too nervous to show off his face in front of this huge group.

"I do not need to be babysat, Mikey! I'm not a child!" Danny brings back the previous topic, determined to get Michael himself to admit Danny was, in fact, independent enough to live without watch.

"I'm sorry Mr. Danny, but you really aren't all that responsible." Brahms' voice was soft, apologetic, but the light in his eyes showed his amusement, and you couldn't help but smile at Danny's shocked expression, "Your poor leg could be healing right now, but you had to go and hurt it over and over!"

"Brahms, I thought we were friends!" Danny gasped, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead dramatically. Brahms lowered his head, tilting it, almost looking hurt.

"We friends, Danny! I promise!" he squeaked. Danny dropped his arm and smiled.

"I know, don't worry Brahmsy. Thanks for caring about me." he returns to his food, and everyone else does, too.

The rest of the breakfast goes by smoothly, light chatter and gentle laughter filling in whenever the scraping of the silverware on the plates has quieted. The moment Michael had finished eating, Hannibal, with the help of the much taller, stronger Brahms, ushered him eagerly back up to his room to rest. Danny had begged and pleaded to come with you to check the traps, but Jason had picked him up and thrown him over his shoulder, heading back upstairs with Danny so the both of them could lie down and not rip out their stitches again. Norman had excused himself, heading upstairs to his room as well. Freddy was gone in an instant, too, claiming he had some children in need of tormenting, so you had been left alone to check the traps. You slipped into your shoes, tying the laces tightly and grabbing a sweater from the coat rack. It was still raining outside, much more lightly than earlier that morning. The forest would be wet, and you didn't really want to ruin your pyjama pants, but you were also much too lazy to bother changing, so you settled with rolling your pant legs up past your knees and praying they stayed there. You reached for the door handle just as someone came down the stairs. Turning, you spotted Brahms, still wearing your pink apron.

"(Y/N)?" he asked, hurrying to stand in front of you, shoulders hunched over nervously, hands clasped together.

"What's up, Brahms?" you ask with a smile, stuffing your hands into your pockets.

"I was wondering if I could tag along to check the traps! I would do it a lot when I was younger, with my father." Brahms tilted his head, leaning forwards eagerly as you inwardly sighed with relief. You craved calm company, and Brahms was the perfect kind of person to hang out with and just chill out.

"Of course, I'd love some company!" you say, and Brahms brightens, hopping in place as he lets out a happy hum. He leaned down to slip on a pair of sneakers you'd bought for him the day Danny had freaked out, slipping into them and waiting for you to lead the way into the rain. You grab the clear umbrella from one of the hooks on the wall, opening it up as you stepped outside onto the front steps.

Brahms seems to open up like a flower in May as he steps outside, straightening his back as the fresh air, not plagued with dust, fills his lungs as best as it can through his porcelain mask. You weren't sure when he'd last been outside to breathe clean oxygen, but you could tell he was nervous and excited all at the same time. He turned to face you, catching your gaze as you stared.

"I haven't been outside in a long, long time." Brahms' voice falters at the end, morphing into that of a grown man for a split second, seeming almost surreal. "I always liked the rain." You hold the umbrella up to cover you both, but Brahms is so tall you almost can't. He snickers in a voice that doesn't sound even remotely close to the giggles of his childish tone, taking the umbrella and holding it at a nice level for you both.

"Do you ever talk in your..." you didn't want to say normal voice, but man's voice also sounded kind of weird.

"Real voice?" he finished for you, the term working well enough. You nod your head and set forwards, Brahms lagging for a split second before following alongside you. "Yes, I-" he cuts himself off, clears his throat, and speaks again, "Yes, I do sometime's, mostly to myself." your steps falter at the foreign tone. It's deeper than the child's voice, of course, but not as deep as Michael's or even Danny's.

"It's very nice, Brahms." you say, staring up at him. You have to crane your neck to do so, and you can see the crinkling in the corners of his eyes as he smiles.

"Thank you- Thank you, (Y/N)." the child's voice seems to be trying to almost 'break free', but the effort Brahms was making to talk in his real tone was heartwarming. You set foot into the forest, and as always you feel like all of your stress is dragged away by a thick barrier, a thick film of web brushing over you and peeling away your troubles. Brahms seemed to feel it too. Somehow, he stood even taller.

"Do you ever... take off... your mask?" you were hesitant to speak, not wanting to push any boundaries or make Brahms uncomfortable, but out here in the shadowed forest with the light, thrumming rain and the wonderful, clean, fresh smells you felt safe, invincible, real. You felt like you could take on the world. Brahms seemed to ponder for a moment, and then he lifted a hand to his face, gripping his mask and slowly pulling it off. You watched his slow movements, the porcelain mask peeling away from his skin like a cocoon off of a butterfly. The left side of his face was stunning, thick stubble on his chin with bright, emerald green eyes. His jawline was sharp, and his nose had most likely been broken before due to the shape of the bridge. Brahms then took a deep breath, turning to face you entirely and revealing the right side. It was burnt, the skin pulled tightly across his face, scarred and twisted. It was intriguing, and honestly, beautiful. You smile gently, and Brahms does too, the first smile you'd ever seen from him. His eyes crinkle just like you always saw through his mask, though this time you can see his dimples as well. He turns to stare at the perfect face of his porcelain mask, his smile fading.

"I always thought it was... ugly." His voice shifted from man to child as he fought to keep his cool. His hands were trembling slightly as he battled the urge to cover his face once more.

"It's not. You're pretty, Brahms." you say, and Brahms peels his gaze from his mask back to you. He smiles gently once more.

"Thank you, (Y/N)." he raises his head, catching sight of a nasty bear trap a few feet ahead, empty and prepped to snap shut on an intruder. You step around it, staring as you pass by as if looking away will make it come to life and snap around your leg.

You walk, silent, enjoying the rain and the gray and the sounds of your footsteps on the leaves, trap after trap, all empty and ready to be set off. You had almost checked all of the traps, Brahms leading the way and somehow knowing where they all are, claiming to have talked to Jason about their locations and memorized them all. There were 3 more, Brahms said, and you began to talk about the day you'd found Norman after he'd stepped into a trap.

"That would be funny if it happened again!" you chuckled, and Brahms laughs lightly too,

"Don't jinx yourself, you know how unlucky you are." he said, rubbing circles into the cheek of his mask absent-mindedly as you walked. Almost as if Brahms had conjured it, a loud, metallic clang was quickly followed by a pained wail. Your gaze snapped to meet Brahms'. You shared no words as panic flared inside your chest. You had not been expecting to have to actually deal with people being caught in these traps. You had no idea what to do now.