Belfast, the doctor noted, was a very warm place despite the amount of rain the city received. Even now, as he was getting ready for his first day at work, he could hear the gentle pitter-patter of raindrops on his roof and against the window of the large bedroom. Every now and then, those maroon eyes would travel over to the window to watch as the raindrops splattered against the window, and that sinister grin ghosted across his lips for barely a moment.
It had been one month since Hannibal Lecter had escaped from Agent Starling, and already he had gotten surgery for a prosthetic hand. Although the doctor would never forget Clarice Starling, he was very sure that he would never run into her again. It was unimportant now, he had a new identity, a new job, a new life.
He had gotten a job recently at Alexandra Gardens Day Hospital under the pseudonym of David Collins – he would be working as a psychologist, as always. He was almost eager to start his new job, to see the patients that he would have – what they would be like and how interesting they would be…
When he made it to the office, Lecter smiled when he spotted his first patient already lying down on the brown leather sofa. Before he said anything to her, he took in her appearance. Slightly chubby and short, her hair was a very different shade of tomato red, and her eyes were a cardboard box brown. Just by looking at her facial expression, Hannibal could see that she didn't want to be there, and that she was not going to talk to him easily. Also, by looking at her facial features, he could tell that she was far too old for her age, which was, maybe, about eighteen years old.
Her outfit was very outrageous – a lime green and white striped hooded shirt with a matching beret atop her head, and a pair of light blue jeans. The shirt and hat were certainly things that not too many teenagers wore, this told the doctor that she had individuality. She would indeed be very interesting, and he knew that this hour long session would be amusing.
Taking a seat, Hannibal picked up the red folder that was sitting in the middle of his desk, on the front, it read "Ginger-Lynn Hennessy". Opening it, the doctor skimmed through the notes, a frown slowly crossing his lips. Closing the folder again, Lecter placed it down on his desk, folded his hands and rested them on top of it, and gazed down at his patient. She looked very bored.
"Ginger-Lynn Hennessy?" He spoke kindly, his voice as soft and gentle as he could possibly make it for the moment, in case he might scare her.
The girl looked at him, nodding slowly with a friendly smile to let him know that she wasn't sensitive and that he could speak up. "Aye, you're my new doctor, then?" Her own voice was even softer than the voice Lecter had used, her accent was strong, and it made it very clear that she was born and raised right there in Belfast, Ireland.
"Yes, call me Doctor Collins. I see you've had several other doctors before myself, is there any particular reason as to why you've been through so many?" He was very curious, as she seemed fairly normal. Very calm and at ease, but then again, she could be hiding many a secrets.
"I don't talk to them," Ginger-Lynn replied, "I don't want to be here because I don't see any reason as to why I should be here. Besides, I don't tell things to my friends, why would I tell all of my problems to complete strangers?"
This made perfect sense to Lecter, and it gave him a couple of ideas about the girl. "You're paranoid," he began, tapping a pen on his desk for a moment before he stood, turning to face a small stereo so that he could press "Play", and instantly, soft, classical music filled the room. Miss Hennessy didn't seem to mind it. "You're closed in, you're afraid."
"Excuse me?" Looking over at him, Ginger-Lynn raised a brow, and to Lecter, this was the patient's defensive stance. "You're getting all of this from the fact that I don't want to talk to complete strangers about the goings-on n my life?"
"No," sitting back down, Hannibal watched her intently, making sure to pay close attention to every move she made. "Why don't you tell your friends what goes on in your life? Are you not close with them?"
Ginger pressed her lips together tightly for a moment, beginning to chew on her thumbnail as she thought. "I'm quite close with them, yes, I just don't care to trouble others with my problems."
Instantly, Lecter could see she was lying, and he was very quick to call her out on it. "You're lying to me, Miss Hennessy. Why are you here?"
"My father believes it's necessary for me." She didn't enjoy being called a liar, but she decided to stay quiet, because, unfortunately, the doctor was very right.
"You appear old enough to control your own life, Ginger-Lynn," the doctor leaned forward now, suddenly finding this patient quite interesting. "Why do you listen to daddy? Does he beat you, Ginger? Is he forcing you to be here?" She was taking that defensive stance again. A raised brow, and now she was pulling her hood over her head and sitting up. He watched her intensely as she drew her legs to her chest and rested her chin in her knees. Something was wrong.
"He does not beat me, he is not forcing me to be here, I just listen to my parents. Is that wrong, doctor?" Sure, it was a bit unusual for a teenager to obey their parents, but Ginger liked her parents.
"I think you want to tell somebody your problems, Ginger-Lynn," Lecter replied, slowly licking his lips. "Something is stopping you from telling people, and daddy knows, but you don't know daddy knows…"
She didn't like this, not one bit. "I have somewhere to be." Ginger stated slowly, grabbing the camouflage bag that was beside the sofa on the floor. "This session is over."
When she reached the door, Lecter looked over at her slowly, that grin once again on his face, and he could see her shuddering, the pure fear in her eyes. "You're running, Ginger-Lynn." He decided that he would not push her any farther. "I'll see you next week, Miss Hennessy."
As the door slammed behind her, Ginger-Lynn listened as the classical music grew slightly louder, and with one final shiver, she rushed off, certain that she would not return next week.