Chapter 2

Hannibal looked down at himself and smirked.

"I'm still wearing my overcoat. How sloppy of me."

Will knew the man was buying time as he stood up to carefully put his coat away and straighten his jacket – as so often, a checkered one of the tweed variety – but he was too tired to protest anymore. He sunk into one of the soft leather chairs and watched the doctor's ministrations, almost transfixed by the smooth, elegant movements of the man. Almost... predatory. He shook himself and coughed. Hannibal turned around slowly, and made his way to the opposite chair. This was going to be a session, after all.

"Will, you need to understand that I'm not only thinking of your well-being – I imagine that you don't like a fuss to be made about your condition – but of that of many others, as well. Abigail, despite you killing her father, has taken to you. Jack is depending heavily on your work, and even I find myself more and more intrigued by your way of thinking. I believe your... particular gifts can help me in my field. And then there is Doctor Bloom..."

"Don't..." Will interrupted, and flinched.

Doctor Lecter put up his hands defensively and leaned back in his chair. "No offence intended. I am only saying, Will, that people depend on you and care about you. Your well-being is their well-being."

It was quiet again. Hannibal watched his friend from under heavy lids – he would definitely need to catch up on some sleep soon. Finally, Will spoke.

"My well-being... Should not even concern you or any other person out there." He leant against the desk. "I am merely a useful tool to solve… Things," he pointed out while he rubbed his fingers between his eyes to stay awake.

"William, you can't think that you are just an instrument because Jack uses you that way to solve his crimes." Dr. Lecter analysed the young man's face. "You're merely helping him, but you're not his tool, you are his colleague. Don't think so low of yourself, Will. As your friend, I would like you to be happy about yourself."

Hannibal saw the younger man's face lighten up a bit, but the confusion was still there, Lecter could almost taste it in the air.

"So I am not merely a tool to Jack or to you, Dr. Lecter... But what am I then to Abigail or to any other person around me?" He stared into the distance, looking at nothing except the inside of his own mind. He kept quiet for a long time, still leaning against the desk and forgetting the entire room around him, including Dr. Lecter.

When Hannibal saw the present fade from Will's eyes, he stood up and walked towards him. "Will." The young man came back to reality with a start and looked at his friend. "You are like a new father to Abigail Hobbs, and a wonderful person to the rest of them."

Will looked around the room and focused his eyes on a couple of books that where stacked neatly on a table.

"I view you as a good friend, William, not as a tool of any sort, so please keep that in mind when you doubt yourself next time," he said, and placed his hand on the young man's shoulder. "I want you to be happy as my good friend Will."

"I will keep that in mind Dr. Lecter," he said with a small smile on his lips.

Hannibal moved an inch closer to Will, just that little bit into his personal space, unobtrusively inhaling the young man's scent – the same cheap cologne, adrenalin and underneath it all, the broody sweetness of his illness. He moved his head almost imperceptibly up and down again, circling the outline of Will's head with his eyes.

"So, Will, how about our little arrangement?"

"Eh... What?" Dr. Lecter being this close to him sent shivers to all kinds of places, and his smell... Will's head was swimming, and he no longer remembered what he was supposed to do, but he would have agreed to anything under these circumstances.

"Yes."

"Yes?" Hannibal moved a little closer, noting the dilation of his 'patient's pupils and his apparent trouble breathing. Gooood...

Will nodded frantically, and finally let out his breath. He had no idea what he had just said 'yes' to, but he was too eager to let Dr. Lecter do what he wanted to do to really care.

Will closed his eyes when he felt the heat of Dr. Lecter on his own flesh. He couldn't move, his feet where glued to the ground and Dr. Lecter's arms were beside him, pinning him to the desk. The young man felt the warmth closing in on him; he knew that his personal space was taken over completely when he felt Hannibal's mouth stealing a kiss from his lips.

Will responded to that with enthusiasm and kissed Dr. Lecter back, his hands grabbing the bespoke jacket and pulling the older man closer, until there was no space left between them. Their bodies fit together perfectly, sharing heat through their clothing while their mouths where busy exploring each other. Will could feel the desk pressing into the back of his thighs and the press of the doctor's body against him, but he wanted more. More contact, more heat and more sweetness. More everything.

Hannibal enjoyed seeing how Will reacted to his every touch. He pulled back and looked at Will Graham. The young man in front of him had no intention of letting him go yet, the eyes of his patient-friend-whatever filled with lust. Will clearly wanted to attack him again, like he did earlier that evening, but this time, Hannibal was prepared. He took of his jacket, dropped it next to him on the floor and started unbuttoning his vest.

"Too damn slow," Will growled while he grabbed the tie and pulled Hannibal closer again, kissing his lips, making him taste the sweetness of the sickness that was buried deep inside him.

Hannibal responded to Will's touch and leant further into him, until the younger man fell onto his desk with a soft bump. Will could feel the doctor's appointment book pressing into his back and pulled it from underneath him; Hannibal threw it out of sight without even looking at the thing, predatory gleam in his eyes and a grin on his face. "That is not important now, William." Dr. Lecter's hands found their way under Will's shirt and were currently exploring the smoothness of his chest, eliciting a soft groan from the lips of his patient. The doctor still had a little smile on his face while he bit Will's collarbone teasingly, making the man lying on his desk writhe under him, enjoying his touch. He had never felt this way before, but Hannibal liked it.

Will's mind was getting more and more fogged by the doctor's ministrations, yet he still remembered that he, too, had hands, and that those hands could do some exploring of their own. He ran his left down Hannibal's back, enjoying the soft silk of his vest, then snaked his fingers under the garment, soaking up Hannibal's body heat through his shirt. His right hand effortlessly found its way to Hannibal's gorgeous round arse. He touched, then squeezed a buttock, making Lecter rut hard against him in surprise and arousal. Their rapidly growing erections connected a tad too hard, sending sparks to their heads.

Will tugged at the tie and demanded another kiss upon his lips. Hannibal's hands grabbed the desk frame and pushed his pencils off the side in the process of kissing the man with all the passion he had. His self-control unraveled more and more, and with each touch he forgot the room, his books, his paintings; he only saw, felt and smelled Will, his patient and friend.

"Dr. Lecter, what are you..?" They both came back to their senses when they heard a little voice from upstairs. They saw the girl they protected, their new daughter so to speak, looking at them in confusion. Will cursed quietly and dropped his hands to his sides.

"Abigail." Hannibal rose from the desk and helped Will up. Then he took his jacket off the ground and continued, without looking up: "What are you doing up there?"