Despite Will Graham's best efforts to unite them in death, Hannibal had indeed survived.
Hannibal returned to consciousness to the feel of a soft, delicate, familiar hand resting on his bare torso. What he had not felt until looking down at the owner of the hand, was that she was sewing the bullet wound in his lower abdomen. Chiyoh briefly met his foggy, unfocussed gaze, assessing the extent of the damage. Bad, but not irreparably so, she considered to herself.
"You watched over me…," Hannibal whispered, groggy from the dull ache of exhaustion and pain.
"I watched your Dance with the Dragon. It was very beautiful. In my moments of doubt, Hannibal, I can always rely on you to remind me well why a beast such as you should not be caged."
"And I watched over you as promised," she continued, keeping her attention focussed on the task of mending her broken mentor. "You taught me to always keep my promises, Hannibal. For broken promises are a dangerous thing."
He allowed himself a small smile despite the pain, because of the pain in fact. The pain told him he was indeed very much alive.
"Will?"
Chiyoh snipped the suture before replying. "When last I saw him, he was lying unconscious - or perhaps dead, I cannot be certain - on a small outcrop of rocks close by to where I rescued you. I made the decision not to rescue him."
"Why?" Hannibal asked, allowing himself a momentary pang for the loss of something precious.
"Two missing, unaccounted for bodies, and the FBI would never give up their search for you and your empath," she replied calmly as she packed away the first aid kit. She tucked it under the bed and continued while placing her hands folded on her lap. "In this way, I have assured you a modicum of freedom. If fate is kind to Will Graham and he has survived, he will protect you as you protected him. He will convince the authorities that you are dead." Despite years spent apart, Chiyoh's ingenuity never failed to impress Hannibal. But she did have an excellent teacher. "If he is dead, then so be it."
"So be it indeed," said Hannibal, feeling the exhaustion wash over his mind again, allowing the thought of his final kiss with Will to calm his adrenaline-thumping body, working over time to repair the inflicted damage.
She looked at him straight in the eye as though reading his thoughts. "And if he has survived, should you wish to resume your relationship when you are both fully recovered is something I am certain both of you will give its due consideration."
Hannibal remained silent as Chiyoh pulled the blanket back up over his now bandaged wounds, leaning over to whisper gently in his ear. "I am glad you are alive, Hannibal. I am not sure I could survive this world knowing you no longer existed." She bestowed a light kiss on his cheek before withdrawing. "But as you know, passion and earthly desires will kill a man quicker than any knife or bullet. Be careful in yours, Hannibal."
In no frame of mind for intellectual discourse on the subject, Hannibal allowed his body to relax as best it could. As his eyes slipped closed he asked, "where are we, Chiyoh?"
She stood to exit the room and leave him to his rest. "We are where I thought you would want to be." She stood at the bedroom door and looked over her shoulder. "When you wake, we will eat. The table is set for three and I am sure, despite Will Graham's absence, Dr DuMaurier will appreciate the company…"