Well my updates may be not be so often now. My husband and I are having problems and are looking at a divorce.
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Hannibal sat and stared at his daughter. He couldn't believe what had just came out of her mouth. Clarice and him had always been so careful. The last thing he had ever wanted was for her to find out who he was.
"I've known since I was thirteen," she said
"How did you find out?" he asked still in disbelief.
"I heard mom call you Hannibal," Mischa explained. "At first I thought I was just misunderstanding something but I kept hearing her call you that. I figured there must a good reason for you lie to me about your name. Of course I knew she was lying about her name too. I'd heard you call her Clarice tons of times."
"I guess we should have been more careful," Hannibal said with a sigh. "So I guess then it was just a matter of going to the library and typing our names into yahoo."
"Yes," she said. "I wasn't really expecting to find anything so I was shocked when I pulled up what I did."
"Why didn't you come to me?" he asked. "We could have talked about it."
"I dealt with it in my own way," Mischa explained. "At first I decided I wanted to be just like you. That's why I got into horrible movies and cannibalism."
"This sure does explain a lot," he said shaking his head. "I just don't what I say. I guess you understand why we didn't tell you."
"You didn't know how I'd handle it," she said. "I know that. That is one reason I didn't come to you about it."
"I'm glad it is out in the opening now though," Hannibal said patting her back. "I never wanted there to be any secret between us. Just promise me you won't tell your mother about this."
""Don't worry," she said laughing slightly. "I know she'd freak out if she found out I knew."
"Are you ok with who I am?" her father asked. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?"
"You changed," Mischa said. "You didn't kill anyone else. You married mom and had two great kids. You've always been the best father to me. I don't have any reason to hold it against you."
Hannibal smiled pulling his daughter into a hug.
"I don't want you to die," she said snuggling up against her father.
"This operation is my best shot," he said rubbing her back.
"I know," she admitted.
"So are you going to be ok with me getting it?" he asked.
"Of course," Mischa said smiling. "I just want you to be alright."
"I'll be fine," Hannibal said. "Lots of people get this done every day."
There was a long moment of silence between them. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence. It was a good moment and Hannibal wished that it could have gone on forever.
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Hannibal lay in his bed staring up at the celling. He was thinking about everything. He was thinking about the operation, about his family, and about himself. He couldn't believe Mischa had been so understanding. He wondered if he her opinion would be different if she knew he had killed a year ago.
A wild coughing spell got Clarice's attention. She groaned rolled onto her side.
"Are you still awake?" she asked glancing at the alarm clock. "It's two in the morning."
"I can't sleep," he admitted.
"Thinking about the operation?" she asked.
"I'm thinking about a lot of things," Hannibal said sitting up. "I'm thinking about you, Mischa, and of course Julie."
"Mischa is a strong girl," Clarice said sitting up as well. "You don't need to worry. Everything is going to be alright."
"There is always that chance something will go wrong," he said more to himself than to his wife. "So I really should tell you."
"Tell me what?" she asked in a concerned voice.
"Don't tell Mischa I told you this," he said turning his full attention to his wife. "She knows who we are ."
"What?" Clarice asked growing upset quickly. "How did she find out?"
"She over heard us talking," Hannibal explained. "It's all right though. She excepted it years ago. She doesn't have a problem with it."
Clarice didn't say anything. She laid down and shook her head. She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
"The reason I'm telling you is because I need you to promise me something," Hannibal said lying down next to her.
The movement caused him to start coughing. Clarice gave him a concerned look and patted his back. When he finally got his breath again he looked at her.
"If something happens to me I want to you to get the family consulting," he said. "And I want you to talk to Mischa about who we really are."
"I will," Clarice said rubbing his arm. "I promise."
"Thank you Clarice," he said kissing her. "I know this family can't be as normal as most families but I want to try."
"We're happy honey," she said cuddling against him. "We're a great family. You're..."
Clarice didn't finish her attention. Hannibal looked down to find her fast asleep. He smiled and pulled her close to him.
"Goodnight baby," he said and kissed her on the head.