Norman had been spending a lot of time keeping himself busy. When he was busy, Mother was less active. When he had things to do, she kept to herself up in the second floor bedroom. Every so often, Norman could feel her staring at him from the window, but as long as he kept up with lots of semi-meaningless busy work, she let him be. And, for Norman, that was very relaxing. He hadn't been lying to Hannibal when he said that he'd returned home without Mother. He really had. Or, at least, he thought he had. When Mother wasn't around everything was so quiet and peaceful. And Norman felt like he had a greater sense of control about himself. It was exhilarating. It was uplifting. It made him feel ... free.
But now? Now everything was back to the way it used to be. Only, this time, Mother was taking a backseat to Norman's driving. And that unnerved Norman very much. He didn't trust her when she was so quiet. She must be planning something, he thought to himself.
But what?
Norman had been cleaning out his extra room off the front room of the main cabin. The room with his taxidermy collection. The room where he went to have lunch most of the time. Sandwiches with milk. His Mother used to make good sandwiches when he was younger. Now Norman made them for himself.
It was the sounds of the door opening that caught his attention in the other room, and he quickly hurried out to meet this new stranger at the counter. Norman smiled. A wide and awkward grin. A grin that only Norman could pull off.