(A/N: Okay, this is my first attempt at a story in this section, so please
be gentle! Anyways, this is just a story that has been floating around in
my head for a while and only managed to get down on paper during math and
French class. I'm not sure if I'm liking it or hating it so far, so you can
be the judge. Oh and sorry if my memory's a little rusty where the
characters and other details are concerned, I haven't seen the movies in
the longest time and I have yet to read the books. So yeah, enough of my
rambles...)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story, except for the characters that I've made up myself.
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light..
Chapter 1: Dead Bodies Everywhere
Another night, another death.
Driving down the road, Special Agent Clarice Starling shook her head in disbelief. This had been the fifth night in a row in which another body had been found, each one getting more disturbing than the last. The two things that had really grinded her nerves, however, was that there was no clear evidence on who the killer could possibly be other than a signature in brail that had been carved onto all of the victims so far, identifying the killer only as 'Chimera'. The other reason being, all these late night calls to yet another body was more than taking its toll on Clarice's sleeping cycle. Add to the fact that her sleep was already terribly unstable, she was so tempted to just use up the rest of her sick days just so that she could call into work dead. As stupid a thought as that may seem, to Clarice's dreary exhausted mind at the moment it seemed like pure genius.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she pulled her rental mustang into the parking lot beside an old abandoned warehouse, though at the moment it was buzzing with activity. Police and FBI were running around all over the place, all the while trying their best to fight off the vultures that were the press, and keeping the curious public at bay on the sidewalk. Clarice held back the urge to slam down the gas pedal and run over a few of the increasingly annoying reporters, if for anything, to release at least some of her growing frustrations. Luckily, she was able to keep herself from playing 'Bowling for Reporters' with her car just long enough to park it among the police cars and other various vehicles.
Stepping out of her car and into the cold midnight air, Clarice was quickly greeted by one of the voices that she was not in the mood of hearing. "You're late Starling."
Clarice shot a glare at Clint Pearsall and muttered, "If you had given me better directions other than 'that old warehouse' then I might have avoided having to drive all over this goddamn town checking each old warehouse until I found find the right one!"
Pearsall rolled his eyes but said nothing. Even if he didn't show it, Clarice could tell that he was enjoying her predicament. After her last encounter with Dr. Lecter, the whole Bureau seemed to have taken upon itself to make her life an even more of a living hell than it already was. Nobody would say it to her face, but Clarice could tell that she had lost a lot of trust and respect after that incident, not that she really cared these days.
"This way Agent Starling." Pearsall walked ahead of her, motioning her to follow. She was quick to comply, thinking that the quicker she could get this over with, the quicker she could go back to her crappy hotel room and get some much needed rest.
The inside of the warehouse was no better than outside, cold, dark, and a lingering stench of old forgotten fabrics and foods. The few dim lights revealed police and FBI running to and fro, though the most were situated around one particular spot on the floor. Clarice knew that that spot was where she had to go, nobody needed to tell her.
She picked up her pace and walked ahead of Pearsall, paying no mind to the irritated look that appeared on his face. Clarice wove through the other people, bumping into a few of the clumsier ones on the way. She just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.
Finally finding her way to the object of interest, Clarice forced herself not to cringe as she bent down for a closer look. She felt a slight brush against her side as another person kneeled down beside her. "Fifth one so far," a female voice with a slight accent wearily growled.
Clarice nodded and turned to face the new person, "And I assume no new evidence either Monroe?" she asked to woman. Special Agent Jadis Monroe shook her head sadly, her forest green eyes fixated on the body in front of them. Clarice had a growing liking to the newer agent, probably because they were so similar. Both were orphans, both having scars that will never heal, and both having a great disliking for Pearsall. And, at the moment, both would have rather been in bed asleep, instead of looking at a blood- spattered body in a rat infested warehouse with the biggest rat of them all, Pearsall, hovering over their shoulders.
Clarice looked back down at the body. An older male, probably in his late sixties, wearing ripped clothes and that telltale brail signature carved neatly on his stomach. His eyes were wide, the obvious terror of the sight of the sewing needles coming for his pupils could be clearly seen, along with the firmly entrenched needles. His fingernails were just hanging on to his fingers by a small flap of skin, the lead of a sharp pencil embedded underneath a couple, along with small shards underneath the others. His lips were gone, ripped none-to-cleanly off with crazy glue and a metal beam, or at least it was presumed. Clarice knew that there was much more, but these were the ones that really stuck out with a single glance. This man had obviously suffered greatly before his death.
"Any idea who this man is?" Clarice asked.
Jadis shook her head. "Not right yet, there has been no missing persons report in this area that matches him, so I'm assuming that he was kidnapped, tortured, and killed within a few hours."
Clarice nodded her agreement. "Must be a thrill killer, as far as I can tell, there's nothing to link any of the victims, they seem completely random. But then again, I just have this feeling.." She trailed off, getting lost in her own thoughts for a few seconds until Pearsall shoved something into her hands. Looking down, she saw that the file was already a fairly large size.
"Anything at all that you two can find on this case," Pearsall told the two women, "find as quickly as you can. I'll have the profiles of the victims delivered to you tomorrow." He stole a glare at Clarice and said, "Don't let me down."
Clarice stood up and returned Pearsall's glare but said nothing in reply. Jadis lingered on the ground for a few more seconds before standing up as well. She gave Pearsall a look of disapproval but decided to keep her fool mouth shut. Instead, she followed Clarice back outside to their cars.
"You feel up to this Monroe?" Clarice asked the young agent as she fished in her jacket pocket for her keys.
Jadis grinned. "Well, I didn't expect my first major case would be tracking down a serial killer in a small town in the middle of nowhere with the famous Special Agent Clarice Starling, but I think I can manage it, hopefully." She said as she pulled her own jacket closer to her body and pushed her long, dark hair away from her face. Without her hair in the way, a person could clearly see a large scar across Jadis' right cheek, right underneath her eye, obviously put there by a knife at a young age.
Clarice let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, well, you quickly learn to expect the unexpected in this business. The downside is that you never seem to get used to some of the stuff that pops up over and over again. Just try not to let it get to you." Clarice let out a sigh, her mind starting to drift again.
"Starling?" Jadis inquired, causing Clarice to snap out of her thoughts. "Are you okay? You seem to be somewhere else."
Clarice looked at her and shook her head. "No, don't worry, I'm fine, just need a good night's sleep that's all."
The other woman nodded her agreement. "Yeah, I know the feeling, unfortunately. Well, see you tomorrow then Starling."
"Yeah, good night Monroe." Clarice responded back to Jadis as they departed for each of their individual cars, both more than content to be going back to their beds.
****************************
The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon as the first new issues of 'The Tattler' newspaper were being placed on the stands, fresh off the press. At one particular small shop on the waterfront of this small town, a dark silent figure was reading his newly purchased copy of the paper, his attention fixated on the headline article, 'Chimera Killer Strikes Again, Fresh New Details About The Case'.
Hannibal Lecter had been following this case with great interest, mostly due to the fact that there wasn't much else exciting going on in the world these days. His eyes, more or less, just scanned the text before stopping on one particular sentence:
'Sources confirmed that Special Agent Clarice Starling of Hannibal 'the Cannibal' fame and newly acquired Special Agent Jadis Monroe of the FBI are now working together on this case in hopes of identifying this killer before he or she claims more victims.'
Hannibal couldn't help but grin at this new development. He hadn't originally planned to do any visiting while enjoying his stay here, but he was suddenly very tempted to change his plans. Walking out of the shop and into the crisp, clean morning air, he mentally started to make preparations for a little reunion, with a slight indication of a grin still planted on his face.
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(A/N: Okay, so there is the first chapter. I hope that it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Sorry about any mistakes or whatnot I've might have made along the way, also sorry if this first chapter was a little boring. So yeah, let me know if I should continue this or not! And thanks for reading!)
-SP
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story, except for the characters that I've made up myself.
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light..
Chapter 1: Dead Bodies Everywhere
Another night, another death.
Driving down the road, Special Agent Clarice Starling shook her head in disbelief. This had been the fifth night in a row in which another body had been found, each one getting more disturbing than the last. The two things that had really grinded her nerves, however, was that there was no clear evidence on who the killer could possibly be other than a signature in brail that had been carved onto all of the victims so far, identifying the killer only as 'Chimera'. The other reason being, all these late night calls to yet another body was more than taking its toll on Clarice's sleeping cycle. Add to the fact that her sleep was already terribly unstable, she was so tempted to just use up the rest of her sick days just so that she could call into work dead. As stupid a thought as that may seem, to Clarice's dreary exhausted mind at the moment it seemed like pure genius.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she pulled her rental mustang into the parking lot beside an old abandoned warehouse, though at the moment it was buzzing with activity. Police and FBI were running around all over the place, all the while trying their best to fight off the vultures that were the press, and keeping the curious public at bay on the sidewalk. Clarice held back the urge to slam down the gas pedal and run over a few of the increasingly annoying reporters, if for anything, to release at least some of her growing frustrations. Luckily, she was able to keep herself from playing 'Bowling for Reporters' with her car just long enough to park it among the police cars and other various vehicles.
Stepping out of her car and into the cold midnight air, Clarice was quickly greeted by one of the voices that she was not in the mood of hearing. "You're late Starling."
Clarice shot a glare at Clint Pearsall and muttered, "If you had given me better directions other than 'that old warehouse' then I might have avoided having to drive all over this goddamn town checking each old warehouse until I found find the right one!"
Pearsall rolled his eyes but said nothing. Even if he didn't show it, Clarice could tell that he was enjoying her predicament. After her last encounter with Dr. Lecter, the whole Bureau seemed to have taken upon itself to make her life an even more of a living hell than it already was. Nobody would say it to her face, but Clarice could tell that she had lost a lot of trust and respect after that incident, not that she really cared these days.
"This way Agent Starling." Pearsall walked ahead of her, motioning her to follow. She was quick to comply, thinking that the quicker she could get this over with, the quicker she could go back to her crappy hotel room and get some much needed rest.
The inside of the warehouse was no better than outside, cold, dark, and a lingering stench of old forgotten fabrics and foods. The few dim lights revealed police and FBI running to and fro, though the most were situated around one particular spot on the floor. Clarice knew that that spot was where she had to go, nobody needed to tell her.
She picked up her pace and walked ahead of Pearsall, paying no mind to the irritated look that appeared on his face. Clarice wove through the other people, bumping into a few of the clumsier ones on the way. She just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.
Finally finding her way to the object of interest, Clarice forced herself not to cringe as she bent down for a closer look. She felt a slight brush against her side as another person kneeled down beside her. "Fifth one so far," a female voice with a slight accent wearily growled.
Clarice nodded and turned to face the new person, "And I assume no new evidence either Monroe?" she asked to woman. Special Agent Jadis Monroe shook her head sadly, her forest green eyes fixated on the body in front of them. Clarice had a growing liking to the newer agent, probably because they were so similar. Both were orphans, both having scars that will never heal, and both having a great disliking for Pearsall. And, at the moment, both would have rather been in bed asleep, instead of looking at a blood- spattered body in a rat infested warehouse with the biggest rat of them all, Pearsall, hovering over their shoulders.
Clarice looked back down at the body. An older male, probably in his late sixties, wearing ripped clothes and that telltale brail signature carved neatly on his stomach. His eyes were wide, the obvious terror of the sight of the sewing needles coming for his pupils could be clearly seen, along with the firmly entrenched needles. His fingernails were just hanging on to his fingers by a small flap of skin, the lead of a sharp pencil embedded underneath a couple, along with small shards underneath the others. His lips were gone, ripped none-to-cleanly off with crazy glue and a metal beam, or at least it was presumed. Clarice knew that there was much more, but these were the ones that really stuck out with a single glance. This man had obviously suffered greatly before his death.
"Any idea who this man is?" Clarice asked.
Jadis shook her head. "Not right yet, there has been no missing persons report in this area that matches him, so I'm assuming that he was kidnapped, tortured, and killed within a few hours."
Clarice nodded her agreement. "Must be a thrill killer, as far as I can tell, there's nothing to link any of the victims, they seem completely random. But then again, I just have this feeling.." She trailed off, getting lost in her own thoughts for a few seconds until Pearsall shoved something into her hands. Looking down, she saw that the file was already a fairly large size.
"Anything at all that you two can find on this case," Pearsall told the two women, "find as quickly as you can. I'll have the profiles of the victims delivered to you tomorrow." He stole a glare at Clarice and said, "Don't let me down."
Clarice stood up and returned Pearsall's glare but said nothing in reply. Jadis lingered on the ground for a few more seconds before standing up as well. She gave Pearsall a look of disapproval but decided to keep her fool mouth shut. Instead, she followed Clarice back outside to their cars.
"You feel up to this Monroe?" Clarice asked the young agent as she fished in her jacket pocket for her keys.
Jadis grinned. "Well, I didn't expect my first major case would be tracking down a serial killer in a small town in the middle of nowhere with the famous Special Agent Clarice Starling, but I think I can manage it, hopefully." She said as she pulled her own jacket closer to her body and pushed her long, dark hair away from her face. Without her hair in the way, a person could clearly see a large scar across Jadis' right cheek, right underneath her eye, obviously put there by a knife at a young age.
Clarice let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, well, you quickly learn to expect the unexpected in this business. The downside is that you never seem to get used to some of the stuff that pops up over and over again. Just try not to let it get to you." Clarice let out a sigh, her mind starting to drift again.
"Starling?" Jadis inquired, causing Clarice to snap out of her thoughts. "Are you okay? You seem to be somewhere else."
Clarice looked at her and shook her head. "No, don't worry, I'm fine, just need a good night's sleep that's all."
The other woman nodded her agreement. "Yeah, I know the feeling, unfortunately. Well, see you tomorrow then Starling."
"Yeah, good night Monroe." Clarice responded back to Jadis as they departed for each of their individual cars, both more than content to be going back to their beds.
****************************
The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon as the first new issues of 'The Tattler' newspaper were being placed on the stands, fresh off the press. At one particular small shop on the waterfront of this small town, a dark silent figure was reading his newly purchased copy of the paper, his attention fixated on the headline article, 'Chimera Killer Strikes Again, Fresh New Details About The Case'.
Hannibal Lecter had been following this case with great interest, mostly due to the fact that there wasn't much else exciting going on in the world these days. His eyes, more or less, just scanned the text before stopping on one particular sentence:
'Sources confirmed that Special Agent Clarice Starling of Hannibal 'the Cannibal' fame and newly acquired Special Agent Jadis Monroe of the FBI are now working together on this case in hopes of identifying this killer before he or she claims more victims.'
Hannibal couldn't help but grin at this new development. He hadn't originally planned to do any visiting while enjoying his stay here, but he was suddenly very tempted to change his plans. Walking out of the shop and into the crisp, clean morning air, he mentally started to make preparations for a little reunion, with a slight indication of a grin still planted on his face.
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(A/N: Okay, so there is the first chapter. I hope that it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Sorry about any mistakes or whatnot I've might have made along the way, also sorry if this first chapter was a little boring. So yeah, let me know if I should continue this or not! And thanks for reading!)
-SP
