Hannibal's eyelids felt like they were glued together.
His head felt like it was broken in half and each half had splinters on them.
He managed to push himself up from the bed to a sitting position.
Then he remembered Luna and his heart dropped.
Where is Luna?
Where is the man that attacked them?
He stood up to switch the light on but he slipped.
The liquid that caused his fall smells like blood.
Did the blow to his head dull his senses?
He turned the lights on.
A pool of blood on the floor greeted him.
It was not enough to be cause of death and it did not emit the essence of maple and milk.
He was hopeful.
His senses however, are not working like they used to; there is still a chance it might be hers.
Hannibal assessed his surroundings, with a calm grace as usual.
He tried to remember what happened.
A hard object hit his head and he fell on the bed.
Luna's struggle; she fought him off.
She was yelling and crying "Don't kill him… I'll give you what you want"
Then she fell hard on the floor. The man was coming at him again and that's when he lost his consciousness.
What did he want from her? Hannibal asked himself.
He shook the confusing thoughts out of his head and decided to follow the blood drops instead.
It leads to the guest room.
He opened the door slowly.
This blood, It's his… Be dead... Be him… Be him… His thoughts repeated like a chant.
And there it was…
He finally exhaled all the worries out.
The man was on the floor.
He was stabbed with a variety of items… scissors, letter openers and knives.
The tools were sticking out of his body.
It piqued his curiosity and confused him at the same time.
It was similar to his "wounded man" except the man was not impaled; he was stabbed with the items.
The thrusts were lacking in depth he analyzed.
The cause of death is most probably the puncture on the neck.
It looks like majority of the bleeding originated from the carotid artery.
Then he heard dragging footsteps; Hannibal turned to see Luna.
His attention turned to her gait; she was limping.
He couldn't see her ankle; it was covered by her long dress.
Then she was finally standing by the door.
Her green dress was splattered with blood halfway up and soaked with blood halfway down.
Her eyes were shining like the first time he saw her but they were vacant.
There was something different about her.
He noticed the tools she held in her hands; his art.
He watched as Luna knelt beside the body.
"I have to… so he'd stop…" "You have to stop…" she kept saying in a low voice.
What did she mean?
She raised one hand and stabbed the man with one of his animal husks.
She did the same thing with the spear on her other hand.
"There… There… you can sleep now" she said as she patted the dead man's cheek.
She stood up intent to go out again; she passed by him as if he was invisible.
Hannibal caught her by the left hand and pulled her towards him.
He held on to her hands.
"Luna… look at me…" lowering his head to make a connection; she stared on his chest with empty eyes.
"Luna… are you listening to me" she remained blank.
He didn't carry his usual patience with him; it's been a long night.
He shook her… her eyes blinked once.
He shook her again and her eyes shut tightly.
"Luna…" he said her name gentler this time, her lids opened as if she was waking up.
"Luna are you with me?" Luna turned her head side to side to take in her surroundings.
"Doctor Lecter" an air of relief blew on Hannibal's face while an expression of surprise painted Luna's.
"He killed you" Luna said shaking "…he said I had to leave with him" her hands gripped his shirt tightly as if he was going to fly away.
"I said I would… but he still killed you" Luna finished her words with tear stricken cheeks; then she saw her bloody hands as she wiped the tears.
Her eyes grew wide; Luna looked down at her blood soaked dress.
"What happened?" she asked while she raised her skirt to look at her bloody feet.
Hannibal was too consumed by the scene unfolding right before him that he wasn't able to put an explanation together.
Then she saw the body behind Hannibal; It was the man.
She assumed he did it; she stepped away from Hannibal looking slightly disgusted.
"Did you have to do that?" she asked him.
"That wasn't me" Hannibal answered.
Luna's hands clutched her bodice.
Her heart was beating so loud it felt like it was breaking out of her chest; she tried to push it back.
"Then I did that…?" she asked; her voice breaking.
"I'm a killer too? Like my father?" she kept stepping back without knowing it.
"Like you…?" She turned and walked away.
Hannibal followed suit; he embraced her from behind and pulled her back in the room.
"How cruel of you... i don't want to see him" Luna's knees weakened and she broke down on the floor.
She rocked her body back and forth trying to calm herself down.
Hannibal realized something and he had to address it.
"Look at the body Luna…" he asked.
Luna shook her head, "No…" she turned away.
"Okay then. Look at me…" she refused.
"You can see clearly now Luna" he had to make his point.
There was silence. Luna stopped rocking;
Hannibal knelt in front of Luna to examine her eyes.
Luna stopped crying; her hands went up to Hannibal's face mirroring what he did to hers.
Hannibal stopped.
She continued; she traced his cheeks with her bloody fingers.
The sensation was starting to affect Hannibal.
"I see you doctor" Luna said amazed, and then she broke into a smile.
Hannibal closed his eyes, then without warning he lunged at Luna propelling her upwards and out of the door.
He devoured her mouth with a kiss.
Luna felt shock rush through her being; she almost lost her balance but Hannibal was quick and compensated for it.
Hannibal placed a hand on her nape and an arm around her waist pulling her towards him to close the gap.
The sensation became more intense and Luna felt her mouth was starting to bruise.
She opened her lips to allow him entry; that's when Hannibal eased on the pressure.
He was too magnetic she thought; how can someone pull away from him.
He had her pinned against a wall; his arms went down from her waist to the back of her thighs.
He prompted her to part and wrap them around him; once secured he pulled her up.
He opened the door to his room.
The bed sank under the force of their bodies.
His body weight was pressed on hers.
She couldn't breathe but she didn't protest.
Hannibal decided to give her a break.
With all the self control he had left, he separated himself from her so he could undress.
He watched her as she opened her eyes.
She is beautiful and she was his; waves of her hair spilled across the pillow.
Luna's arms extended upwards asking for him.
With her bloody dress acting as barrier, he started to explore her.
She wasn't certain but something inside her was starting to react in a way she couldn't depict.
She's was under a spell, the sensation is both strange and addictive…
Hannibal is set on a goal and that is to have her want this as badly as he does.
He could tell she wants him but could also feel her hesitation.
Then he realized; she can't take pleasure in something she doesn't understand?
How can she respond and participate when she doesn't know what to do?
Hannibal took her hands, and guided them both to his face.
"Do you feel the flush on my skin?" he asked, "That is all you"
He guided her hand down to his chest
"Can you feel how strong my heart beats right now? That is all you" it made Luna smile.
How can he want me this much? Luna's thoughts asked her.
Her body is starting to emanate heat like she had a fever.
Her hands started to move up and down his back.
She parted her thighs and moved her hips upward rubbing herself on him.
He smiled "That is all me" he thought…
She watched him enjoy the transfer of blood from her blood soaked dress to his skin
Her innocence was unraveling and he's turning it into passion.
Then a flash of light went pass her line of vision and it stung.
She gently pushed him away as she tried to sit up to focus on what she's seeing.
Hannibal used his body weight to put her back on the bed and returned to her lips more insistent…
Luna responded by opening her mouth, letting him in once more.
Her hips pushed and grinded up to him…
He knew she was ready; he ripped her skirt and without thinking he took her.
Luna gasped; her thighs clamped around his waist by reflex.
Hannibal embraced her with his body as if trying to absorb the pain.
"It will subside" he whispered in her ear to reassure her.
He kept on, trying his best to be gentle.
The pain was later on replaced by sheer pleasure.
They were moving as one, The way she keeps up with him amazed Hannibal.
The flashes started again; the headache started to worsen but Luna ignored it.
Until it became unbearable; her breathing became shallow.
"I don't feel okay doctor" she finally said it. "Hannibal… it's Hannibal Luna"
Hannibal lunged at her again; but she pulled back.
"No wait" she said "Something's really wrong" her hands were pressing on the side of her head.
"It hurts" she was crying now "I'm sorry" Hannibal said as she pulled her up to sit on his lap.
"Is this better?" he asked.
She nodded... she did feel better.
Hannibal kept their connection.
He was getting close to climax, but he wanted to wait for Luna, so he slowed down his pace.
Luna became quiet, she was getting heavier…
She is definitely tired he thought.
Then he noticed something on his white pillowcase.
"Shapes… blood shapes" Hannibal's hands went up from Luna's thighs to her head.
That's when he saw she was already dwindling into unconsciousness.
For the first time he didn't know what to do.
"What's wrong? Tell me what's wrong?" forcing her to connect with his gaze.
"My head… I had to... he was going to kill you" then Luna fell against his body, limp like death.