There is something wrong with her father.
Abigail isn't fully aware of this, but there's a part of her ─ the one led by her child's instinct, probably ─ that sometimes stiffens when he takes her in his arms or when he brushes away a lock of hair from her forehead. She doesn't know why.
And then there are the dreams. Nightmares where the Big Bad Wolf eats Little Red Riding Hood and the Huntsman, but to deceive them it doesn't disguises itself as grandmother, but as dad. And the bogeyman in the closet ─ when she dares to look at it ─ seems to wear something like her father's hunting coat.
Abigail doesn't think about these things, though. Not during the day, and not voluntarily. After all, it's her daddy that we are talking about. The man who buys her dolls and gummy candies that looks like vampire teeth; the man who puts her to bed and reads her bedtime stories; the man who kisses her mother on the mouth, making her giggle; the man who throws her in the air, so high that she feels like she's flying, and then catches her without hesitation, making her scream with joy and never, never with fear.
But the nightmares are so vivid and awful that sometimes ─ with her great shame ─ she wets the bed. And so her mother begins to worry.
Things didn't improve after her parents decide to take her to see a nice lady who asks her a lot of questions, while Abigail draws things in her studio, twice a week for an hour and a half every time.
The fact is that Abigail doesn't know what the problem is, and it is impossible for everyone else to find it out for her.
Because the problem ─ the one that warns instincts that Abigail doesn't recognize, because she doesn't even know she has them ─ is in the way her father looks at her: as if he wants to eat her. And even if Abigail could actually translate this thought into words, no one would give it importance. A lot of fathers are really proud of their little girl, and it's not uncommon to become a bit possessive, is it? Always better than those who beat their children, anyway.
So Abigail invents Elsewhere and the man who lives there.
.
.
.
Elsewhere ─ despite its name ─ is a rather precise place, and Abigail goes there all the time she's left alone: she just have to close her eyes.
It is an office ─ a study, in fact ─ very similar to Dr. Alana's, but darker, with no colorful drawings on the walls and no photographs of smiling children scattered everywhere. There are so many books, though. High, high shelves full of books, just like in the library. Yet Abigail doesn't feel intimidated, she actually likes it a lot.
And she also likes Hannibal.
Hannibal is a kind, tall, and very smart man. And he isn't afraid of anything.
"I will teach you how not to be afraid too, Abigail" he says.
She doesn't believe him, but she pretends to because she doesn't want him to get angry. Only he never gets angry. He's always very nice to her and even if he doesn't throw her into the air to make her feeling like she's flying, he still manages to make her feel safe.
Hannibal tells her fairy tales too (usually when her parents are too distracted to do it themselves). Only his stories are very different from the originals, and much more exciting. Hannibal doesn't change Red Riding Hood's hair color to make her look like Abigail (like her father does), instead he tells her of how ugly and rude the little girl was, and what a good thing was for the Big Bad Wolf to eat her (even at the cost of a tummy ache!, Hannibal usually adds, with wide eyes and a comical face, and Abigail always laughs with her hands pressed over her mouth, because the idea of the Big Bad Wolf with a stomach ache is without doubt very funny).
Truth is, Abigail has a little crush on Hannibal. But there is nothing wrong in this: all the little girls have a small crush on their dad.
.
.
.
Sitting on the corridor's bench, Abigail listens, without really interest, the conversation between her parents and the nice lady.
"There is nothing to worry about her having an imaginary friend", says Dr. Bloom. "Almost all the children have one, it's a normal stage of childhood. And considering that Abigail is also an only child, isn't unusual at all that she created a friend to play with."
Sitting beside her, Hannibal rolls his eyes and Abigail laughs. From the other room a short silence welcomes her laugh, but she doesn't notice. Hannibal is always so serious, it's so funny watching him make silly faces.
"Sure, it's a bit strange that this friend is an adult", continues Alana after a few moments. "But Abigail is a very quiet and introspective little girl, and I don't think she has problems with other children, I think that she just prefer a less... noisy company" there's a hint of a smile in her voice, and Hannibal smiles too, giving Abigail the thumbs-up. The little girl laughs again.
"Anyway, we're just at the beginning. I'm sure that in a few sessions, when we'll know each other better, Abigail will tell me something more about her Hannibal, and... "
Abigail stops listening and raises her eyes to meet Hannibal's. He's firmly shaking his head.
"The less she knows about me, the better for everyone", he whispers to her. "Elsewhere doesn't concern her" he says. And he sounds a little threatening.
"And my other dad neither", Abigail mentally adds, shaking her head too. She understands the need to keep a secret, since she's actually very good at it.
For example, she never told anyone that sometimes, when daddy takes her to the zoo or the amusement park, he asks her to befriend some little girl dressed like her, or that looks a little bit like her. She didn't say anything even when she saw the picture of one of those girls on the TV, with the word "disappeared" written under it in big red letters.
She kept the secret because her dad told her so, and she always obeys her dad. The old, same instinct that she isn't aware of having, suggests her that it's better this way.
N/A: Written for the challenge Maratona in Piscina #2 piscinadiprompt prompt "Abigail/Hannibal, AU Abigail is a little girl with an imaginary friend named Hannibal" and for the COWT #3.5 maridichallenge, prompt "elsewhere".
- English is not my native language, so please let me know if there are any mistakes :)