A/N: So I've been wanting to get my hands on that last scene of Mizumono for a while, because it was seriously one of the most interesting scenes so far in the show. Also I just love the relationship between Will and Hannibal, whether they're friends, lovers, or trying to kill each other, or all three. So I hope you guys enjoy it.
Thanks for reading.
"Do you know what an imago is, Will?" Hannibal asked, looking at Will over the carcass of the lamb that had been their supper, the bones picked clean.
"It's a flying insect." Replied will.
"It's the last stage of a transformation."
"When you become who you will be?" said Will with a hint of recognition.
"It's also a term from the dead religion of psychoanalysis." Hannibal said leaning closer to Will. "An imago is an image of a loved one, buried in the unconscious, carried with us all our lives."
"An ideal."
"The concept of an ideal. I have a concept of you, just as you have a concept of me." Said Hannibal.
"Neither of us ideal."
"Both of us are too curious about too many things for any ideals." Replied Hannibal, a hint of disappointment in his expression. "Is it ideal that Jack die?"
"It's necessary." Replied Will, taking a sip of wine. "What happens to Jack has been preordained."
"We could disappear now." Suggested Hannibal. "Tonight."
Will looked at him, like he was truly seeing him for the first time, his curiosity piqued.
"Feed your dogs, leave a note for Alana and never see her or Jack again." Continued Hannibal. "Almost polite."
"Are you asking me to run away with you?" asked Will, surprised.
Hannibal smiled, bemused. "In a manner of speaking."
"Just the two of us?" asked Will. "I can't imagine that is your ideal."
"Can't you?" Hannibal asked. "You know I'm surprised at you, Will?"
"Oh?"
"An empath such as yourself should have seen long ago the nature of my feelings for you."
Will met Hannibal's gaze and saw with perfect clarity the feelings Hannibal spoke of. "I saw, I just didn't believe." He said.
"Is it so hard for you to believe another could love you?"
"Yes." Replied Will bitterly.
"We have caused each other a great deal of pain in the past. I know I do not deserve your forgiveness, but you must know that there is no manipulation here, no ulterior motives. How I feel about you is genuine and true."
"I wasn't aware you were capable of genuine emotion."
"Nor was I until recently. What I mistook for curiosity I know now to be affection…love."
"And what do I say to that?" asked Will.
"You needn't say anything, I know there is no reciprocity in your feelings for me."
"You know Dr. Lecter, I'm surprised at you." Will said, pausing a moment before continuing. "A psychiatrist of your caliber should have seen long ago the nature of my feelings for you."
"I saw, I just didn't believe." said Hannibal with a smile. "We have blinded ourselves to the truth, one of mankind's most common defense mechanisms."
"And what are we protecting ourselves from?" asked Will. "What truths?"
"What truths indeed."
Neither of them spoke for a long while, until Hannibal stood and began gathering the dishes from dinner. "I'll let you think about it." He said as he exited the room.
Will followed a moment later. He found Hannibal at the sink, jacket removed, shirt-sleeves rolled up, doing dishes. Will walked up behind him and wrapped his arms around the older man's waist with a familiarity he had always longed for. "Those can wait till morning." He whispered into Hannibal's ear.
Hannibal dried his hands and turned in Will's arms. "As you wish." He said, bringing their mouths together in a tentative kiss. They parted a moment later. Hannibal cupped Will's cheek gently. "I have wanted this for so long." He said.
"So have I." replied Will. Their lips met again, this time with more urgency. Hannibal buried his hand in Will's hair, deepening the kiss. Hannibal took Will's hand and led him into the bedroom.
They stood before the bed, Hannibal gently stroking Will's cheek. Will refused to meet his gaze and Hannibal turned his chin up, their eyes meeting at last. "What is it?"
"Nothing," replied Will unconvincingly. "It's just been a while."
A small smile alighted Hannibal's usually austere features. "For me as well." he admitted.
"Be gentle with me." Will said only half-jokingly.
"Of course." Hannibal said sincerely.
Hannibal reached out and slowly began undoing the buttons of Will's shirt. He dropped it to the floor a moment later. He paused a moment to appreciate the way the expanse of Will's bare skin was illuminated from the moonlight through the window.
Hannibal rested a hand on the side of Will's neck, drawing his thumb down the column of the younger man's throat. He felt Will's pulse quicken. "You're beautiful."
Will laughed derisively.
"It's true." said Hannibal, running his hands down the lightly muscled planes of Will's chest. Hannibal gently laid Will down on the bed before moving to unfasten the button on Will's trousers. He pulled them off and tossed them onto the floor.
Hannibal looked down at Will, who looked up at him with a vulnerability Hannibal had never thought him capable of. "You are truly an exquisite creature, Will." he said.
Will said nothing, but Hannibal heard him swallow audibly as he unbuttoned his shirt. Hannibal slowly undressed as Will looked on, his expression hungry. Hannibal climbed onto the bed and Will leaned up, pulling him into a kiss.
Hannibal pulled back and proceeded to kiss a trail down Will's chest, tweaking a nipple as he went. When he reached Will's lower abdomen he could feel the flutter of tensing muscle beneath his lips. He looked up into Will's eyes as he slowly slipped his boxers off.
Hannibal took Will's half hard cock in his hand, stroking him, working him to an aching hardness. A bead of precum dripped down Will's shaft and Hannibal caught it with his tongue. Will moaned and thrust upward, Hannibal pulled away teasingly.
He moved to the nightstand by the bed and brought forth the small tube of lube he had stored there on a whim. He returned to Will, settling between his legs. He placed a kiss to the inside of Will's thigh. "Are you ready?" he asked, breathe ghosting over Will's erection.
"Yes." he replied, voice hoarse.
Hannibal proceeded to slick two of his fingers with lube and pressed his index finger to Will's hole. He circled his entrance, feeling the flutter of the ring of muscles there. Hannibal gently pressed his finger inside, relishing the gasp he elicited from Will.
He twisted his wrist and thrust his finger deeper before pulling it out again. He fucked Will with his finger, thrusting in and out several times before adding a second. Will was so tight, his muscles clinging to Hannibal's fingers, pulling him deeper. Hannibal scissored his fingers, opening Will. Will moaned softly and thrust down onto Hannibal's fingers.
Hannibal smiled at his eagerness, and added a third finger. He thrust them in to the knuckle, watching them disappear into Will's tight heat. He felt a white hot bolt of lust shoot through him at the sight. He quickened his pace eagerly. He had Will shaking and all but begging before he pulled his fingers out.
He wasted no time in stripping his boxers off, finally releasing his aching cock from the confines of the clinging cotton. He slicked his cock with lube while Will watched him hungrily. He finished and settled between Will's legs, leaning down to kiss him deeply.
He pulled back a centimeter as he lined himself up and began to push inside. Will gasped against Hannibal's mouth as he slipped inside Will's tight hole. He slid in, inch by inch until he was fully sheathed in Will's body. "You feel incredible." he groaned into the column of Will's throat.
"It'd feel even better if you were moving." said Will thrusting his hips upward.
Hannibal chuckled softly. "So impatient." he said sliding out of Will and thrusting back in swiftly. "Is this more to your liking?"
"Yes." Will gasped as Hannibal fucked into him again, harder this time.
Hannibal set a rhythmic pace, rolling his hips, fucking Will deeply and thoroughly, brushing his prostate with every thrust. Will clutched at Hannibal's shoulders, holding on and riding the waves of pleasure that each thrust sent rocketing through him. He moaned loudly and without abandon, bucking his hips up to meet Hannibal's every time.
Hannibal leaned down to kiss Will, hot and messy as he fucked him into the mattress. Hannibal felt the tightening in his abdomen and knew he was close, it really had been a while. He buried his hand in Will's hair and fucked him harder. "You're mine."
"I'm yours." Will gasped. "I'm yours."
Hannibal slammed into Will one more time and came, sparks of pleasure alighting along his spine as he spilled his seed. The force of Hannibal's orgasm triggered Will's own and he came with loud cry, painting their stomachs with ropes of cum, his cock entirely untouched.
Hannibal rolled off him and they both lie back, panting. After several moments had passed Hannibal got up and fetched a rag to clean them up with, fastidious as he was. Hannibal climbed into bed beside a bonelessly postcoital Will and gathered him in his arms, covering them both with a blanket. "My offer still stands." he murmured against Will's ear.
"I'd like to stay," Will said, cuddling closer to Hannibal. "For a little while, anyway."
"Of course." replied Hannibal stroking Will's hair. They drifted off to sleep like that, forgetting for a moment the storm that was headed their way, the reckoning. They slept peacefully, warm in each other's arms and for the first time in a long time, there wasn't an ounce of mistrust between them, no resentment, just love. But like a cresting wave, what goes up must come down and who's to know who'll be drowned.
Days passed and Will found that he was losing himself in Hannibal. He had spent so long denying what he felt and now that he was finally able to accept his feelings he knew that he shouldn't. He knew what was going to happen, the reckoning he had promised was coming, he just hoped that he would have the strength to do what he and Jack had set out to. He wished he had more time, just a little more time to be with Hannibal the way he'd always wanted. He wished things could be different, but it was too late for that now.
He ached with guilt when he thought of what he was doing to Hannibal. It was absurd, Hannibal was a murderer, a murderer whom Will loved and who made him happy. Just lying in Hannibal's arms at night, talking softly in the quiet of his room, he'd finally found peace. He thought he had known whose man he was, now he wasn't so sure. The creeping doubt began to invade his mind, twisting through the sinews of his brain insidiously. What he did know was that he would have to make his decision soon, lest it be made for him.
The call came two days later. He answered the phone, "Hello?"
"It's Alana. Is Jack with you?"
"No, why?" replied Will, tension flooding through him.
"They've issued a warrant for your arrest, Will. For acting as an accessory to entrapment. And for the murder of Randall Tier. They're going to arrest Jack as well." Will heard her pause, and in those few seconds he saw his happiness slip away, the love he'd found with Hannibal crumbling around him. "Will?" she asked uncertainly.
"Goodbye Alana." He said, looking out his window and seeing the unmarked cars pulling into his driveway. He hung up and retrieved his gun from where he'd stored it. He snuck out the back and began dialing immediately.
"Hello?" answered an achingly familiar voice.
"They know." Was all he said. The time had come, Will just hoped he had the strength to make the right choice.
He drove as quickly as he dared, but when he pulled up in front of Hannibal's he knew it was already too late. He ran to Alana, bleeding and already soaked through from the rain. He knelt beside her, assessing her wounds. He pulled out his phone and dialed, praying that this was the worst of it.
"This is Will Graham, I need ERT at 5 Chandel Square." He said before hanging up without waiting for a response.
"Jack is inside." Alana said through pained and ragged breaths and Will's heart sank further. "Go."
He obeyed her and entered through the front door that stood ajar. He'd just entered the kitchen when he heard movement behind him. He turned and almost dropped his gun, because he couldn't be seeing what he thought he saw. It was just another ghost, but she was so real, much realer than his nightmares had ever been.
"Abigail?" he asked, lowering his gun.
"I didn't know what else to do, so I just did what he told me." She looked like a little girl, lost and so afraid.
"Where is he?" asked will, but as he did the question was answered for him. He turned to see Hannibal, covered in blood and more disheveled than he'd ever seen him. "You were supposed to leave." He said.
"We couldn't leave without you." Hannibal replied and when Will looked into his eyes he knew that it was over. Hannibal reached out to him, placing a gentle hand on his cheek and there was sorrow in his eyes. Will let him, closing his eyes for a second, pretending the walls weren't caving in around him. He felt no pain when the curved blade sliced its way through his shirt, into the soft tissue of his abdomen, tearing him open.
A small gasp was torn from his throat as he clutched at Hannibal for support. Hannibal pulled him close, held him like he had done before, but Will could smell the carnage, could taste the blood in his mouth. Hannibal stroked his hair, the knife still in his hand. "Time did reverse, the teacup that I shattered did come together. The place was made for Abigail in your world. Do you understand?"
Will shook his head, he didn't want to believe Hannibal, he couldn't, otherwise none of what he had done would matter. Hannibal held him tighter and continued speaking. "The place was made for all of us together. I wanted to surprise you." He said pulling back to look will in the eye, and the sincerity in his voice broke Will's heart. "And you, you wanted to surprise me."
"Hannibal," Will said and it was the closest to begging he'd ever come. He realized how wrong he'd been, about the whole thing. "Please, I'm sorry."
Hannibal ignored him, uninterested in his apologies. He let him go and Will fell to the floor, unable to stand any longer, the blood still pouring from the wound in his stomach.
"I have let you know me. See me." Hannibal said and Will could see the tears in his eyes, could hear the betrayal in his voice. "I gave you a rare gift, but you didn't want it."
"Didn't I?" Will countered.
"I have loved you with everything I have and I thought that you loved me, yet you would deny me my life."
"No I didn't want any of this. I was wrong, Hannibal. I- I love you." Will gasped out through the pain, determined to make Hannibal see, to make him understand that it wasn't all an act, wasn't all a cover.
"You have deceived me, Will. You have broken my heart." Said Hannibal, as a tear slipped down his cheek. "How did you think this would end? Do you believe you could change me, the way I've changed you?"
"I already did." Replied Will and he knew it was true. There would be no moving on from this, no forgetting for either of them. They would never escape each other, no matter how many miles Hannibal put between them.
"Fate and circumstance have returned us to this moment when the teacup shatters. I forgive you, Will. Will you forgive me?" And for the first time all evening, Will was afraid, well and truly.
"Oh don't." He begged. "Don't"
"Abigail, come to me." Hannibal said, gesturing towards Abigail who had been watching their exchange in horror. But she went to him a single tear slipping down her cheek, knowing that she went to the arms of the devil himself. Hannibal put the knife to her throat.
"No, no, no, please!" Will shouted, his own tears falling freely now. Hannibal wanted to hurt him the way he had been hurt, but this was too much. The panic in Will's chest was choking him, and when he looked up at Hannibal, begging him, he saw nothing but pain and determination. And he cut her throat, reopening the old wound, blood spurting forth in great streams. She fell to the floor beside Will.
Hannibal knelt beside Will. "You can make it all go away." He promised, and his voice sounded calm and inviting. "Put your head back, close your eyes and wade into the quiet of the stream."
"It'll never go away." Will whispered. "Never."
And with that Hannibal placed a gentle kiss to his brow and was gone. Will crawled to Abigail and pressed his hand to her throat, as he had done so long ago. He tried to stem the flow of blood, but it kept coming, streaming through his fingers. He held her and wept and wondered where everything had gone so wrong.
He collapsed to the floor, too weak this time to save her. He lie there and after a while her ragged breathing ceased. The darkness came for him soon after and he wished with all he had that this was all a nightmare, that he would awake in Hannibal's arms, warm and safe and loved. He hoped and wished and let the darkness take him.