There seemed to be days where the dawn had to rise, dragging itself along as if it were not ready to come up, yet the schedule demanded the entrance and so the sun rose all the same. The rays were breathing brilliant color to what was hidden under the passing of starlit night by the time Hannibal and Will had gone through as much decipherable scribblings as was present in the remnants of the study.
With new light casting shadows aside, Will found himself transported from the nightmares produced by lantern flame and was met with a forsaken and neglected manor that had been reclaimed by the earth.
With every paper that had been deemed important stacked in Hannibal's arms, leaving Will with only the dirty sword to carry, the two of them wandered back through the crudely strewn books and over the soot covered wall so that they didn't have to wander the corridors on the way back to their horses.
Once the letters had been found, an urgent silence had fallen between them and the two immediately set to work separating novels from ledgers, letters from children's drawings, and the weather destroyed from the legible.
And all while Will strained to see with the lantern, his mind continued to repeat Hannibal's story over and over again. Each time the scene became clearer, louder, more vibrant to the point where Will thought he might scream with all of the trapped emotions churning inside him.
"When we get back, I'll start digging deeper into these," Hannibal stated as he shoved the pages into the satchel on his saddle. "There were some curious details written..." Hannibal's words faltered when he laid eyes on Will who appeared ready to fall over. "MeilÄ—?" He stepped closer and took his father's sword from the prince's grip. His other hand, that was coated in ash, slipped over Will's cheek. "Are you alright?"
A distant blue gaze met Hannibal.
"I'm tired," Will muttered though Hannibal didn't believe that to be the reason for Will's mood drop. They were both tired and Hannibal was planning to go straight to bed if King Sandford didn't have any meetings planned for him to attend. But this was more than exhaustion. Will's expression was one of internal conflict and Hannibal bit his bottom lip. "I'm alright," the prince assured with a nod, leaving a dark streak across his pale cheek from the dirt on Hannibal's hand.
"You could see it all, couldn't you?" Hannibal's hand slipped under Will's chin and directed Will's attention fully back on him. "Even when we were children you could see things that weren't there."
"Yes, I could see." Will inhaled deeply, his hand taking Hannibal's wrist and creating enough leverage that he could pull out of Hannibal's grip. "My mind has always enjoyed going above and beyond in its duties in making things palpable." There was a worn out laugh and a dirt smudged smile came to Will's lips. "I just need some rest is all."
"Can you ride?" Concern dripped from Hannibal's lips.
"Yes, I can ride."
"And you'll promise me that you'll rest before you start reading those letters?"
Will gave a hesitant nod. The letters. There were over a dozen of them in the satchel. A mixture of both of their writings. The conflicting emotions over the collective works only filled Will a thousand questions and he was certain that Hannibal had his own million to ask.
"How did they get here?" Will thought aloud, turning to look at the fortress that was more welcoming in the early morning's pinks and oranges.
"I haven't the faintest."
Will closed his eyes, slipping back through the night and everything they had found. It was blurred and rushed, unread and shoved into a pile so they could move onto the next thing. But the room that everything had been in. That desk. The desk that was fully burned when the rug beneath only tasted the flames.
The most important things they had found had been concealed in that desk. They had torn the crumbling cinders apart only to find more. They had done their best to keep the darkness of the fire from their fingers as they worked.
Why were they in that desk? Why was the second drawer locked? Why was the desk the most destroyed thing in that entire room?
Will took a few steps back from the castle and then broke into a slight jog back the way they had come.
"Will," Hannibal called, but Will ignored him, running out far enough where he could finally see the tree line beyond the study that was eaten by fire.
The trees were blackened and limbless, though the grass had begun to grow back in around them as did new saplings. But it was superficial at best. HIs brows furrowed as he eyes flickered over the damage that did not feel like enough for a forest fire. Directly beyond the first row or two of the trees, the forest stood tall and strong and untouched by the flame and Will's heart sank.
"It wasn't a forest fire," he muttered, turning back to find Hannibal trailing after him.
"What?" Hannibal questioned, following Will's gaze towards the remnants of his home.
"It started in the study."
Will wasn't tired anymore. His blood felt alive in his veins as he watched men with torches set fire to the study. The curtains, the tapestries. Books were thrown from shelves, others lit on fire as well. And then the desk. That desk made laughter break out when it took flame as if the men hadn't been expecting it to actually catch. And it burned long and hard, taking the chair along with it as the roof collapsed in around them and spread to the next corridor.
"Someone hid those letters and documents here. Someone wanted them destroyed and if not, then never found," Will concluded. "With the rumors of it being haunted no one would come looking."
"Will, I sent those letters. So unless there was a rogue carrier somewhere-"
"It was someone from the court." Will closed his eyes tightly, willing his anger to subside long enough for him to unclench his hands that were now fists at his side. He let out a deep breath. "I gave my letters to Alana to have them sent. She's who we need to ask."
"Where have you been?" Beverly gasped out, racing down the front steps hoisting her skirts up high enough that she didn't trip on them. Will's breath was knocked from him as Beverly threw herself at him and he stumbled into Hannibal as his balance was stolen. "I was so worried about you! We have been looking everywhere all morning and your father is in one of his moods."
"I'm afraid that I'm the one at fault Beverly," Hannibal said. His hands helped return Will to an upright position as Beverly straightened herself up, making sure she was put back together.. "We went out for a ride last night and fell asleep down at the pastures."
"The pastures?" Beverly chewed over the words, eyes narrowed as she took in the sight of the two men in front of her. Both were clearly worn, having not slept if the purple under their eyes was any indication. Both had black covering the knees of their trousers and hands and Will's face was painted in the same substance. Their hair was messy and as Beverly took in their expressions once more she found pain in them and Hannibal looked as though he had been crying. "Which pasture?" she challenged, hands taking her hips.
"Beverly," Will groaned with a roll of his eyes, moving past her. "I will get cleaned up and help you deal with my father."
"Not so fast." Will's arm was grasped and he turned back to look over his friend. "Unless you both decided to roll around a campfire, you were not at the pastures. What were the two of you doing? And why is your sword covered in blood?"
Will took a moment to register the hushed demand and glanced at Hannibal who held the satchel of papers in one hand and his father's sword in the other. Will blamed the lack of sleep for the slip up, or maybe it was just Beverly being Beverly. She had always been keen on picking up details that others would let slide.
"Can we discuss it later?" Will asked in a low voice as several of the staff passed by them, looking over them with a curious glance and Will's chest clenched oddly when he spotted Alana among them. "I need to speak to Alana." He absently pulled himself free and went after the group, leaving Beverly and Hannibal staring after him.
"Will!" Beverly called after him, but he ignored her, trotting to catch up.
"Alana," he said when he reached them. The woman stopped and turned to face him with a small bow.
"Your Highness. Where have you been? We've been searching everywhere for you. Why are you so dirty?" Will dismissed the questions with a wave of his hand and Alana frowned, but nodded. "What can I do for you?"
"Not here. Come with me." Will started his way towards the gardens and he could hear Alana following after him as her shoes sounded on the gravel. When they were deep in the center of the flowers Will finally turned to face the maid who had raised him since he could remember. She looked confused and tipped her head to the side.
"Have I done something wrong?" she asked with uncertainty in her voice.
"That depends on your answer," Will supplied. Alana took a step back and folded her arms across her chest. "When I was younger and I wrote those letter to Hannibal-"
"Not this again, Your Highness." The plea cut Will deeply. Alana's hand went to her head as if Will had caused her a migraine. "I thought we had moved past this. We have discussed Hannibal Lecter until you are blue in the face."
"Alana, I-"
"No." She waved her hand to silence Will who was so shocked by her interruption that he actually shut his mouth. "We are not discussing this anymore. It has been years, Your Highness. And your mother would turn over in her grave if she knew that you were still clinging to a child who lived with us for two weeks five years ago."
"What happened to the letters, Alana?" he finally got out and Alana blinked at him.
"What?"
"All of the letters I asked you to send to him." Will let the words come out harsh, his patience wearing thin. He was tired of the secrets and the lies and if he had to learn that anything else from his past had been perverted he might scream. "What happened to them? Why did they never reach him?"
"I'm not sure I-"
"Know that if you are lying to me I will make sure that you never see your son again."
Will was stunned when the words came from him, sounding so unlike him, and he wished that he didn't know where they had originated. He had heard his father threaten the same things to other staff or courtiers and he wanted to scrub his mouth out with soap at the idea that he was somehow becoming anything like his father.
The same shock engulfed Alana's expression and a lump grew in Will's throat at the complete and utter disappointment that was held in Alana's eyes. His hands had gone sweaty in his fists and he had to consciously force himself to release the grip.
"You can never leave well enough alone, can you?" she asked in a sad breathlessness. Her hands ran down the front of her skirt as if it needed to be ironed and she was trying to press it.
"I-I'm sorry."
"His Majesty ordered us to turn over any correspondence that you sent to or received from the Lecter boy," Alana explained, voice soft as if she were telling Will the secret to immortality and had to keep it away from anyone else who might have been within earshot, though there was no one else in the garden. "Any letter was given to him and there were other letters."
"But why?" Will's hand rose to his face and he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"He was banished, William." His chest constricted at the new information, something making it hard to breathe. "Your father thought it best that you have no contact."
It would be preferable if my real title and name were kept between us. Just for the time being.
That's why Hannibal had wanted it to stay a secret between them. If the truth of who he was somehow reached the king's ear then there would be more stripped from Hannibal than the title he had lost years before. Despite how irritated Will was with the man in question, he knew he would never be the same if Hannibal's head rolled.
"Why?" Will let his hand run through his curls, his fingers getting painfully tangled in the knots from the earlier rides. "What could Hannibal have possibly done to be banished?"
"He stole from His Majesty and hunted on the king's land without permission."
Your father's traps, the ones that were found, continued to be empty.
"He was starving!" Will shouted, the outburst involuntary. This was too much. There were too many things colliding in his head, excess information that still had yet to find where it belonged and settle itself. "You saw what he looked like! He was on death's door! And everyone knows that those traps are almost always empty during the winter."
"That does not change the laws," Alana defended and Will held back the scream at the ridiculousness of the entire matter.
"That can't be the only reason. That is-"
"He was also banished under the suspicion of killing his parents."
Will couldn't believe what he was hearing. His mind was stuttering as it tried to catch up with the words. He felt like he was unexpectedly on a ship, the shore approaching, and he had just realized that this time the destination was not a choice; the current was going to run him aground and he couldn't stop it.
"He was a child, Alana. A child wouldn't kill their parents." It was all Will could manage to spit out.
"He killed those men and I am well aware you were there to at least witness the after effects of the incident. Jack told me enough for me to know that you should have never seen any of those things to begin with. Do not get me started on how dangerous it is to keep someone like that around, even if they are a child."
"Jack has killed people and he hasn't been banished."
"Jack is under the crown to-"
"Hannibal was just trying to protect his sister and survive! He never touched his parents!"
Will's hands went to his head and his knees shook under him. He was spilling, overflowing and he couldn't contain it. How many more things had been kept from him? How many more things were whispered behind his back, put into motion without his knowledge? How many more lies was he going to have to uncover until he finally unraveled the entire universe? He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep pulling at the thread without it pulling himself apart too.
Will's body hit the ground as his knees gave way and Alana was immediately beside him, hands on his shoulders.
"Will," Alana gasped out, trying to pull his head to look at her, but he kept his head turned down. "Are you alright?"
"Don't touch me," Will muttered, trying to push her hands away.
Too much, his mind roared. Too much. Too much.
"Let's get you inside." Alana's hands were still on him and Will swore there were more than two now. "Get you some water and I'll send for Doctor-"
"Don't touch me!" Will blurted out and all of the hands on him dissolved immediately. He looked up and at Alana who was still on her knees in front of him and a worried Beverly who had taken several steps back. "Please, don't touch me."
"Alana, will you please have the physician meet us in the prince's room?" a deeply accented voice instructed and Will had to turn to find Hannibal. His eyes held concern, but his face was still as if he were trying to hide something. "I will make sure he gets inside. Beverly, would you please fetch us some water and have someone draw a bath?" Will could only watch as both women left without a word. "I thought I was the one who was meant to be breaking down." The words were meant as a tease, but Will couldn't find the jest in them.
"You knew," he whispered as Hannibal crouched down beside him. "You knew and you didn't say. When were you going to tell me?"
"Tell you what, MeilÄ—?"
"Don't call me that," the words were bitter and tired, fatigue pouring over Will's head like a bucket of cold water. Will glanced around to make sure they were alone and even though he found some eyes staring at them, they were well out of earshot. "When were you planning to tell me you were banished?"
Hannibal inhaled deeply and gave a small nod, licking his lips. "When it became relevant." Hannibal took Will's arm and pulled Will to his feet. "You should sleep after you're done being looked over."
"I don't know if I can sleep," Will admitted as he was gently pulled through the garden and towards the entrance to the castle. "It was him."
"Him? Him who?"
"My father stopped my letters from being sent and took any from you. He put them in your home."
"We don't need to think about that now," Hannibal hushed.
"What was he doing in your home?" Will pulled himself from Hannibal and nearly tripped over the stair he had realized he had been climbing. "Why did he try to burn it down? Why did-"
"We can worry about this later," Hannibal assured, reaching out for Will again, but Will pushed the hand away. "You really need some rest. It was a long night, for both of us."
"Where are the letters?" Will let his eyes wander Hannibal's person, finally settling on the bag still over his shoulder. He reached for it, but Hannibal's arm barred him from it. "Please give me the letters."
"I think you've had more than enough excitement for the rest of the day. After you have slept you can have them." Hannibal's normally smiling lips had turned downwards and Will could see the exhaustion grating against his person. Hannibal was working hard to keep himself in one piece and Will knew that the moment Hannibal was back in his chambers he would fall apart like he did the night of the funeral. Only this time there would be no celebration to drown out his screams. "I promise you, you can have them the moment you wake."
Will's head nodded slowly and he let himself be taken once more in Hannibal's kind grip and led towards his room. They reached the door and before Will could step in, he was pulled to a halt. His breath was stolen from him in a harsh kiss that made his mind turn deliciously blank, a much needed break from the vortex that had been there.
When the kiss was broken, Will's eyes flickered open to find a half smile from Hannibal as thumbs caressed over his cheeks. Distress still plastered those eyes though. Another kiss was pressed to his forehead before Hannibal finally stepped away from him.
"Get some rest, my prince," Hannibal urged, continuing to walk backwards back up the hall. "Come find me after and we'll exchange letters."
Will clutched the single candlestick tightly in his grip and stared at the door before him. It was late, the entire rest of the castle asleep and the moon high in the sky. But Hannibal had promised and Will was feeling infinitely better now. He knocked on the door, the thuds sounding louder than they actually were.
There was no answer and Will couldn't hear anything inside of the room. His mind and body fought with the want to enter the room and the proper etiquette of going back to his room until morning, but his body won because the door was pushed open.
Will glanced into the room to find a few candles lit on a table that had papers strewn about it. In a chair next to the table Will could see Hannibal's form slouched over, an elbow on the arm of the chair and his chin propped up in it.
He closed the door behind him and walked over to the body, gently calling, "Hannibal?"
There was a deep breath that shattered the peacefulness that had been there and Hannibal straightened up in the chair, a hand wiping his cheeks. When Will rounded the chair he was greeted with eyes that were red from crying. Will could smell the alcohol and quickly located the bottle and glass on the floor beside one of the legs of the chair.
"I'm sorry," Hannibal swiftly apologized, stretching his arms above his head and causing his back to crack. "I must have been lost in my thoughts. I didn't hear you knock."
"You don't need to apologize," Will assured, stepping around the chair so he could place his candle on the table. He then gathered the bottle and cup from the floor and placed them on the far side of the table, out of reach.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Much." Will returned to stand before Hannibal and he scanned the man's body head to toe. "You, on the other hand." Will's index finger caught Hannibal's chin and tipped the man's head towards the light to better see. "You look like you have been in this chair since we parted this morning."
"That is a possibility."
"Hannibal," Will scolded lightly, leaning over to be eye to eye with the man. "Did you sleep at all?"
Hannibal shook his head, Will tutted and brushed Hannibal's blond locks from his face. The touch sent Hannibal's eyes fluttering shut and his head tipped towards Will's hand with a deep breath. The warmth of Hannibal's hand covered Will's and Will's palm was brought to the knight's mouth. It was kissed and a shiver went through Will.
Will tilted Hannibal's head back far enough to finally claim his lips. His fingers tangled in Hannibal's hair and he straddled Hannibal's lap. The heat from Hannibal's hands spanning his back sent his blood racing.
He could remember the first time he felt this heat, the first time he had taken Hannibal's hand and felt a gentle breeze on a warm summer's night while it snowed outside. His sense had awoken at Hannibal's presence like the first start flickering in the twilight sky.
Will's thoughts had become an intricate tapestry of Hannibal's laughter, though he had heard little of it then, but he was more than happy to continue weaving each new laugh into the dosser.
Time had warped, compressing days into mere moments when they were together and stretching the hours into endless longer when they were apart. Each stolen glance, each brush of fingers set Will's soul ablaze.
Will stood at the edge of a cliff, looking at the ocean below, the height dizzying, but he was ready to plunge into the depths of uncertainty. He wanted to find those mere moments where they were invincible together, where they could conquer the world hand in hand. He wanted to share moments of vulnerability after realizing just how much was at stake.
There had been a piece of him that he had never known was missing and was just now realizing that it was Hannibal. It had always been Hannibal. Even as children, it was the two of them and maybe Will hadn't realized what this feeling was then or maybe it had grown every day they had spent apart, but he knew what it was now.
It took all of his strength to break the kiss and Will's head rested against Hannibal's as both attempted to catch their breaths. Will's heart raced in his chest as if it were trying to escape and he swore Hannibal would be able to hear it.
"I love you."
The words hung in the air, suspended like fragile crystal ornaments on the precipice of shattering, their weight incomprehensible. Time slowed to a crawl and the world around them blurred into insignificance. It was as though the universe had paused to bear witness to this moment, as if the cosmos had conspired to bring the two of them to this point in time.
Will looked into Hannibal's eyes, searching for any hint of hesitation or uncertainty. But all he found was vulnerability and a depth of emotion that left him breathless. In that instant Will saw a reflection of his own feeling mirrored back at him with a terrifying clarity.
"I love you too, Will."
Will was seized up in a harsh kiss. Hannibal rose from the chair and Will wrapped his legs around the man as they were walked over to the bed. It was soft as Will was pressed into it. The only sounds that could be heard were the soft sighs of their breaths as they kissed. Hannibal's body blanketed him in a heat that was enough to make him forget about everything else.
It could all wait. The world outside could continue to spin, but for them it would stand still. The letters could be read later. Everything could be explained to Beverly later. His father could be interrogated later.
"I need you," Hannibal breathed out in nearly a whine, breaking the kiss. "Please."
Will didn't need to hear Hannibal beg. He understood the meaning between the words. He pushed softly against Hannibal's chest until he was able to maneuver the soldier onto his back in the bed. Will leaned over him, gently caressing the man's face before kissing the tip of his nose.
"It's my turn to take care of you," Will whispered before touching another kiss to Hannibal's forehead. "You were strong all day. You don't have to be strong anymore."
There was a shuddering breath that escaped Hannibal and gratitude shone brightly in his eyes. Will kissed Hannibal again, the wine lingering on Hannibal's tongue. Will let his kisses find Hannibal's jaw line and he traced it until he could kiss the hollow at the back of Hannibal's ear. The knight's breath hitched and Will made a mental note to explore that reaction more in the future.
He kissed down Hannibal's neck until he reached the collar of Hannibal's shirt. He sat up, allowing Hannibal enough room to pull the shirt from over his head where it was tossed to the floor to be forgotten until the morning.
Will took a moment to admire the beauty that lay beneath him. The strength and the weakness, the vulnerability. It was enough to make Will's heart hurt. After everything they had been through together and they were both still here, both open to one another.
His lips paid reverence to Hannibal as he kissed down the man's chest and the line of his stomach. Will could feel each trembling breath Hannibal took and the whine that a kiss to the man's hip pulled from him brought a smile to Will's face.
His fingers worked at the lacing of Hannibal's trousers as he placed a kiss to the other hip. His curls were grasped, but this time the fingers were gentle, coaxing Will to keep going. Will crawled back over Hannibal's body and kissed him again, fingers tracing over the scars on his ribs.
"I'll be gentle tonight," Will informed, nuzzling his nose against Hannibal's. "But I want to look into your eyes when you come."
Will wasn't sure he had ever heard anything sweeter than Hannibal's weak whimper. The grip in his hair tightened and he gave one more fleeting kiss before pulling away from Hannibal completely to kneel at the edge of the bed. He made swift work of unlacing Hannibal's boots and setting them aside. Next came Hannibal's trousers. Will tugged the fabric down Hannibal's legs, kissing the muscles there as he went until he could properly kneel between Hannibal's legs.
"You're so beautiful."
A flush covered Hannibal's skin, rising up his chest and Will smiled when the man covered his face in embarrassment before the blush had the chance to reach his cheeks. Will supposed he could allow Hannibal to hide for the time being. He only needed his eyes for a single moment.
He allowed his hands to roam, to explore parts of Hannibal he hadn't been able to touch yet. His hands slid up the muscles of Hannibal's thighs and he swore he could feel them twitch beneath his fingertips. He pressed kisses there too, slowly moving higher until he let his tongue trail up Hannibal's length.
A moan greeted him and Will didn't waste time with more teasing. He wrapped his mouth around Hannibal, sucking softly. Those fingers were back in his curls in an instant as hips jerked. Will sunk further down, his tongue tracing Hannibal.
"Will." It was broken, shattered and accented with a sharp pull of Will's hair.
The rhythm was gentle, exactly what Will had promised. His fingers continued to explore Hannibal's muscles as he listened to sighs that tumbled from Hannibal's lips. He reveled in the way Hannibal writhed beneath him as if fighting the urge to escape.
"Will."
His name flowed like a fountain.
"Will."
Splintered, rent, torn.
"Will."
Will's eyes flickered up to watch the knight come undone, finally in his place, where he belonged. Under Will's devotion. Misty amber fluttered open and Will watched as Hannibal fractured, flooding his mouth. Will swallowed it down, eyes still locked with Hannibal's.
With a final, light suck, he released Hannibal and pressed a kiss to his stomach, working his way back up until he found Hannibal's lips. Hannibal's breathing was uneven, but he kissed Will back as if Will were his air.
"I love you," Hannibal muttered, exhaustion lacing every syllable.
Will laughed softly and nodded. "I love you." He pulled from Hannibal and got from the bed to see the man finally look like he was relaxing. Will went to the table, blowing out the candles there before returning to the bed.
He lied beside Hannibal and was immediately draped in a strong arm. Hannibal's breath was warm against his neck as Hannibal nuzzled against him. The yawn made Will grin.
"Good night, Hannibal."
