Chapter 15

)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(

The day after arriving back home, Saskia woke up and just swore. Her nose was blocked. She was cold. Her head was hurting. Muscles were aching. And those damn chills wouldn't go away.

At barely quarter past six, a time Saskia never actually woke up at but rather went to sleep on nights where she just wrote, she made her way downstairs with a pair of joggers over warm tight and a hoodie over a turtleneck. A pair of socks and a pair of even thicker socks were forced on.

Miserably, she sulked towards the kitchen to find Hannibal already up for the day. He was dressed in a three piece charcoal suit with black shirt and a deep red tie. Saskia knew the coffee had been made by the fact that he had prepared two cups already, one for Will who would be down soon enough and one for himself.

Without even turning around, Hannibal said, "Good morning, Saskia. It seems like you've come down with something, haven't you?"

She hummed in agreement as she sat in the chair in the corner of the kitchen, rubbing her face with a yawn and a sigh. "I blame Will."

"And I blame the outfit you wore on the day I was ill," Will's voice appeared before he did at the doorway of the kitchen. "Morning."

"Morning," Saskia got up and walked towards the island just as Will did. "I can't disagree with that. I regret wearing that outfit now, even though I looked amazing in it."

"That you did," Will said, thanking Hannibal as he passed him the coffee cup already prepared. "It seems like someone will be drinking a certain tea. Hannibal, do we have any theraflu tea? I thought we had some from last winter."

Saskia shook her head, grimacing as Hannibal put the kettle on and rummaged through a drawer of tea bags and loose tea he always had on hand. Within minutes, Saskia found a cup of disgusting yellow tea in front of her.

"I need to be going, Jack wants me to see the scene where the woman was found in a horse. No, Saskia, you are not coming along," Will pointed out as her sad face lightened up at the thought of a crime scene. "You are ill. You don't need to get any worse. Besides, Jack doesn't like you near crime scenes unless it's for the Miscreant Killer."

"How boring," Saskia mumbled, looking glumly into the rancid piss colour in her cup. She refused to even put it up to her nose, let alone drink it.

"Good luck," Will said as he placed a hand on Saskia's shoulder as she pouted. "Try and get some rest. Don't even think about going on a run, not when you're ill and it's still snowing."

Will was always the first to leave in the morning, having lectures at the academy or scenes to get to. He was always busy in some way or form, especially after taking a short vacation now and being out of touch with the FBI for two weeks.

Hannibal was next. With his policy of having twenty four hour cancellation, he had to plan a day or two ahead at all times. He was always the first up in the mornings, Sakia knew by his footsteps, and then always put the coffee on before going back upstairs to shower. Will was then getting up to join him.

The only time Saskia was up before either of them was because a) She hadn't slept, or b) Countess woke her up to be let out.

Saskia shook her head, "No."

"Drink the tea,"

"No."

"If you drink the tea, you will feel better soon,"

"I rather be ill than drink that Theraflu shit, Hannibal" Saskia said miserably, looking into the cup of lemon and honey tea medicine with clear malice. She left that there and got another cup, filling that with milk before putting it in the microwave. "Even with sugar, there's something about it that makes me feel worse. The taste is repulsive."

"Theraflu is good for cold and flu," Hannibal said, placing the back of his hand on her forehead. "You're burning up. I think you either caught what Will had or something more severe."

Saskia shrugged as the microwave pinged and she took out the hot cup of milk, stirring in two spoons of honey before she began to drink it. "Probably the same thing. When I become ill, I'm ill. I'll be fine within two days though."

"Hmm. You definitely have a fever," Hannibal said, looking at the laser thermometer in his hand. "You need to keep an eye on the fever. You're at 102.8 F right now. Anything higher than a 104 F and you should go to the hospital."

"I know," Saskia sighed. "At least I can finish editing the story for Abigail. Just need to get her to approve it and I can send it off."

"Good," Hannibal smiled, quickly checking his watch. "I should be going. Have a good day."

"Have a good day," Saskia yawned into her milk and honey drink.

The day passed quite easily for her. She was kept busy with her laptop and apparently lap dog as Countess kept trying to sit on her lap as she typed away at the table. Moving into the living room again, Saskia put a pillow on the floor and sat with her back against the sofa. Countess draped herself over her legs, allowing Saskia to use a detachable keyboard as the dog kept her legs warm.

"I want to cry," Saskia rubbed her hands into her eyes, groaning as the screen was starting to hurt her eyes. She kept reading and rereading the last paragraph she had written in the last twenty minutes.

Hannibal and Will were sitting on the sofa, both dressed down again for comfort and lounging with glasses of wine leftover from dinner.

"When you say that, you mean you are so frustrated that crying is the only way to get rid of it but you don't actually want to cry," Hannibal raised an eyebrow as Saskia sent him a huff.

"For a writer, you're bad with words," Will commented as he watched her gently press into the inner corners of her eyes, trying to keep her frustrations from overtaking her emotions. "You're adorable when you're frustrated, Saskia."

"I'm gonna slit your throat in your sleep, Will. Shut it and let me think." Saskia muttered as she tried to remember the specific word she needed. It was a word that was commonly used and she had the picture in her head. She knew exactly what she meant and what she wanted but she couldn't get the word. It was on the tip of her tongue, and for fuck's sake, she didn't know the Lithuanian word for it so she couldn't ask Hannibal to trans— "Orkaitės!"

"What?"

"She was having trouble remembering the word for oven, and sometimes saying the Lithuanian word helps her remember it," Hannibal said. "Were you looking for the word for oven?"

"Yep. Tip of the tongue and I couldn't reach it. I had the image in my head but I couldn't link it to the word," Saskia said as her fingers glided across the keyboard with ease as she spoke. "My older sister used to have the same problem. She knew the Lithuanian word for cucumber but not the English. It is a very annoying trait of being foreign."

"Hannibal is foreign and I haven't ever heard him have the same problem."

"Hannibal was taught like five languages, and I was surrounded by around five different variations of Russian, mostly Lithuanian, sometimes Dutch and German. Then French in school didn't help, and I never actually got taught any languages but English, French and German in school."

There was a comfortable silence besides the tapping of keys and slight snores from Countess and the rest of the dogs. The mini pack layed all around the living room, staying on the ground saved for Winston on Will's lap and Hades laying on Hannibal's feet

The house didn't need the fireplace tonight, it was warm enough with just the heating on and a few blankets. With Saskia coming down with the flu, Hannibal had stated it wasn't the common cold but a moderate flu, Saskia sat with a water bottle tucked into her hoodie for extra warmth and to outlast the fever she still had. It had gone down to a safer temperature later in the day.

"Do you remember the Vergers?" Hannibal asked, quickly gaining both of their attention as Will turned to look at him and Saskia paused in her typing. "Margot Verger seems to be coming to therapy because she attacked her brother."

The corner of her lip twerked up at the thought of the attack but it went down again as she processed this. "But he is alright?"

"I would believe so,"

Saskia frowned. "Pity."

"Why is that?" Will asked.

"Met him once and I never want to do it again," Saskia continued to type the final edits of Abigail's book before saving it. "There's something about him that makes my skin crawl, and to get my skin crawling takes a lot of work."

Saskia felt Will's finger gently run down the back of her neck, down from her hairline until it tugged at the turtleneck and stopped. She flinched, almost jumping forward and dislodging Countess from her lap with a hiss.

"Don't do that!" Saskia felt chills going down her skin as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Gods, I hate when someone does that."

"But you didn't mind very much during Christmas or while we were in Lithuania,"

"That was different,"

"How so?"

"I don't know!" Saskia stated. "It's just was. I almost elbowed Hannibal when he tried to sort out my collar once. Probably survival instincts or something."

"Hannibal, what do you suppose it is?"

Hannibal thought for a moment. "There was a thought that the way you died would resurface as a fear or a birthmark in your next life. It might be because you were beheaded in your last life, or because you affiliate the back of your neck with pain because of what Leroy Harris did to you in your twenties."

Saskia shook her head. "No. I hated having my neck touched since before that. My mother used to grab me by the neck before I became a teen, holding me in front of her as she yelled. It probably stems from that and instincts to survive."

"The instinct to survive is deeply ingrained into all of us." Hannibal began. "Even if we are human beings, we are still animals that need to obey the laws of survival and evolution. We are creatures that could do unimaginable harm if we were not controlled. Just as wolves have alphas, even if the parents are the ones to be in charge, we have governments and heads of monarchies and democracies that rule what we can and cannot do."

"They all say that life is a human right but that right is always taken away from the people at the goverments' choice."

"What do you think of life then?" Hannibal said, passing Will his glass as the other man went to get more wine,

"Would you like some wine, Saskia?"

"Sure," Saskia said as she watched the dogs around her sleep. "Hannibal, life is not a right that can be given or taken by governments. Life is a privilege given to us by chance and either it is given a right or it is taken from us. In simple terms, life is only electric impulses within a biological host."

Will came back into the room with the glasses and placed the bottle on a side table. "Then why do people put such emphasis on the fact that life is so sacred?"

"Because we need to survive as a specie." Saskis took the wine glass and sipped at the red liquid before swirling the wine in the glass, watching the liquid stain the edges. "To evolve, we need to reproduce and to reproduce we need to get to adulthood. But allowing those who are weak to evolve has caused us as a species to devolve at the same time. Some of us go forwards while others go back."

"Survival of the fittest,"

"Survival of the best,"

"Death to all others while we put them to the test."

)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(

Near Will's house was a large lake that he fished at. Now the lake was still firmly frozen over in the middle of January, creating a beautiful place to ice skate. Abigail had come back for a weekend to finish everything with the book, and decided to visit the lake.

"Saskia!" Abigail called from the frozen lake as she and Hannibal were on the ice, both wearing ice skates. "Come on with us!"

"Maybe later," Saskia called out from the shore where a blanket had been placed down as a place to sit. Will sat on there with her, chucking an array of balls for the dogs to catch as both of them watched. "Countess will come on with you instead."

"Why don't you go on now?" Will asked.

"Why don't you?"

"If you do, I will,"

Saskia paused before cringing as she admitted, "I can't skate."

Will looked at her for a moment before laughing. "Is that why you are so reluctant to go on the ice?"

"Last time I went on the ice, I was about sixteen… and I belly flopped the ice… Don't laugh!" Saskia gasped and shoved Will in the shoulder as he continued. He stood up and held a hand out for her. "No. Not happening."

"You don't even know what I was going to do,"

"You looked to the ice skates before the ice where Abigail and Hannibal are. We brought four pairs and you want me to go on the ice," Saskia stayed sitting down, stubborn to not get up. "I can't ice skate to save my life and I'm not going to embarrass myself in front of you all."

Will shook his head before calling out for Hannibal to come over. The man was dressed similarly to Will, wearing jeans and a shirt with a thermal jacket over it. He skated over until he reached the edge of the ice, only a metre or two away from where the blanket was.

"Something wrong?" He asked, smiling as he watched Saskia glare at Will and Will just smile.

"Someone doesn't know how to ice skate,"

"I was never taught!" Saskia snapped. "There was never a need for me to learn. I've only been on ice once in my life and I don't want to kiss it like I did last time."

"There might be a time you could use the skill, Saskia," Hannibal said, gesturing to the ice as Abigail skated around with Countess running and sliding around her. "It might be some good bonding time between you and Abigail."

"Fine," Saskia said as Will handed her a pair of skates that would fit. She tugged them on and tightened them easily but was just able to balance to get up. She hobbled over to the ice. "Just so you know, if I fall on my face, I will blame you, Will."

"Even if Hannibal is the one teaching you?"

"Yep!"

"I'll be on in a moment,"

Hannibal grasped both of her forearms as Saskia was able to balance herself properly. Her hands were white with how hard she gripped his arms, afraid to let go and fall again like she did years ago. He gently slid backwards until there were a few more metres between them and the shore. Will joined them quickly, the dogs running behind him until he stopped and they couldn't.

The dogs slid on until they reached Abigail in the middle of the lake. Hades and Countess were skidding rings around the girl while Spike and Winston just sat there, trying to keep from falling.

"I feel like a penguin," Saskia muttered.

Her knees were bent and arms out a little to keep her balance as she marched forward in tiny steps. Will stood next to one side of her as Hannibal stood on the other. They would try and keep her on her skates instead of the floor.

Saskia leaned forward a little too much, making her muscles quiver as she had to rebalance herself before she fell.

"Careful," Hannibal said, readjusting her posture.

"I'm—" Saskia yelped as she fell forward and onto her knee and hands. "Falling. For fuck's sake. Will, stop laughing!"

"You truly look like Bambi on ice," Will shook his head as Saskia put one leg up properly, using both of her hands on that knee to get up. "Stiffen your stomach to activate your core muscles. It will help you keep from tilting forward or back too much."

"I'm gonna have a bruise tomorrow," Saskia complained as she did as he said.

"We'll ice your knee when we get in," Hannibal mused as Saskia was able to slide a few feets without falling again. After she got the technique down, it was down to practise. "Now try and do it without your arms out."

"Still feel like a penguin," Saskia laughed as she was just about able to skate a metre or two without falling.

"Try going a few metres and then stopping," Hannibal suggested, watching as she tried. "Dig your skate in and twist a little so you don't fall completely or debalance yourself again. There you go."

"Never thought I would be able to do this," Saskia smiled as she went back to them again, stopping easily. "Thank you."

It was hard for Saskia to ever say apologies and her thank yous were never sincere, but this was a time that she was truly thankful for their help.

"Has she figured it out yet?" Abigail suddenly stopped next to them, making both men pause in question at what she asked.

Did Abigail already figure out what both knew? She couldn't have known what both men were barely able to understand themselves. Being a duo was easy for them, they knew what they expected from each other and what they would get in return.

Saskia was an anomaly in their lives, welcome or no, they didn't yet know.

Her input had been greatly welcomed, however. Her presence made them want for little but each other and her. There wasn't much they couldn't decipher with Saskia. She was open with her past, leaving little detail out unless there was an actual reason. But her true self was still hidden mostly from them, mostly from Hannibal.

Will had seen her kill but Hannibal hadn't.

Hannibal had been told of what had happened by both Will and Saskia alike. They didn't feel a need to keep it a secret since Saskia knew what they were and they knew what Saskia had done.

Since Hannibal didn't know what Saskia's true goals were or what she was capable of, he was wary of what she could do to ruin him, ruin him and Will, ruin them. With this unknown factor of her intentions, Hannibal had tried to keep her at a distance but it seemed like it didn't work for Will.

The only times Hannibal had ever seen Will smile a truly happy smile was when he was looking at him, and now Will was staring at Saskia trying to bend down to pet Countess without falling.

With Saskia, Hannibal knew that he couldn't kill her without being caught or maimed by her dog. If he hurt her dog, Saskia would hurt him. There was something thrilling about knowing that you were going against something so similar yet different than yourself, knowing their instincts would fight for them to live on.

If Saskia had truly meant to injure him during their little arguments a few months back, Hannibal knew Saskia would have done every dirty move until either she was dead or she was satisfied.

While Abigail would be easy to kill if there was a need, Hannibal couldn't get Saskia to blindly trust him without him ending up trusting her. Like Will, Hannibal would regret having to hurt her if there was a need for it. He would try and prevent it, of course, but if it came down to it, he would put himself first just as he knew Saskia would.

As Saskia smiled back up at them, her hands in Countess' fur as Hades tried to topple her over again, Hannibal answered for both of them.

"I believe she has."

It never occurred to him that Abigail might be speaking of ice skating.

)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(

Randall Tier's body laid on the dining table just as Hannibal walked in. Saskia had already received a phone call from Will, telling her what had happened. Will somehow got the body into the house and laid it out like a present.

Saskia made Will sit at the head of the table, the first aid kit and a bowl of water next to him as she wiped the blood off of Will's knuckles. "I'm not even going to ask what happened. I don't care but next time, don't bring the body here."

Will huffed in amusement as Hannibal walked closer. "Polite society usually puts a taboo on taking a life."

"Without death, we would be at a loss," Hannibal said as he took off his gloves and looked at the body. "The prospect of death drives us to greatness."

"Without death, there would be no point of life as it would drag on," Saskia said, finishing up the cleaning of Will's knuckles. "Without the fear of death coming for us, we wouldn't have advanced to where we are now. Why did he go after you?"

"I don't know," Will muttered, looking at his now clean knuckles before gazing at the body. "The FBI have been looking into the recent killings of an animal that we suspect was a person because the bite marks resembled a creature that has long been dead. He thought me a threat because he heard of what I could do. What I see."

"He went after you to diminish the chances of being caught," Hannibal nodded. "What will we do with the body?"

"Display it." Will said instantly as Saskia went into the kitchen to get rid of the bowl and replace the first aid kid. "We will give him the same end he gave the others, unallowing him the respect of a good death. Since he was so careful to act like an animal, we will displace him as such."

"I'm off to bed," Saskia said, giving both of them a dark look before gesturing to the body. "I know nothing. I saw nothing. I was in bed. Good luck, boys."