Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hannibal glanced over at Will from the couch, the young man slumbering loudly with ragged snoring
in the reading chair a few feet away. His legs hung over one of the arm rests while he scrunched up
with a pillow between the other arm rest and mess of curls that stood up in various directions.

He smiled a bit, admiring the view of the exhausted thing. Standing up slowly from the couch,
he cringed at the sore healing wound in his abdomen. After a sigh, he walked over to the chair,
ghosting his fingers through the chocolate soft locks on Will's head, drawing a deep yawn from him.

Retracting his hand from the tousled hair, Hannibal blinked at the raised scar on the boy's cheek.
He was happy it had finally healed enough for him to feed Will a broader range of foods, relieved
that he didn't have to watch the injured man struggle and suffer through eating.

It had been almost 3 months since the fall, this being their second move to evade any chances of
being spotted or recognized. Hannibal was growing worried over Will, curious as to when he would
open up and talk to him.

Will wasn't giving him the silent treatment, but it might as well be considered so, with the short little
conversations they had. Always in regards to what to do to avoid capture, what they should eat for
dinner, even a simple half bicker-fight over what movie they were to watch for the night at the hotels.

Will always won, more than often choosing films with dogs as the main characters.

Hannibal dealt with it, usually ending up just basking in how much he adored spending friendly
time with the young man. His favorite part of the movie nights were when Will would pause the
flick in order to explain the plot, or excitedly inform him with facts about the dog breeds.

Once, Will barely grazed a drunken topic that finally bordered a personal conversation.

*****

| "Out of all the movies I've picked, which one did you actually like?"

"...you really want to know?"

| "Yeah, that's why I asked...?"

"Hm...to be completely honest, I'd have to say it's a tie between
Homeward Bound and Cats & Dogs. Homeward Bound has a
unique plot and very skillful training with the animals, while
Cats & Dogs I admit I grew quite fond of the white cat villian.
I seem to have failed to remember his name, though."

| "...you've lost all of my respect. Completely. That's a new low for you. Homeward Bound,
you get points for that, but Mr. Tinkles? Really? You would."

"I found him amusingly over-exageratingly evil, that's all. The
beagle was very admirable of course, I-...his name was
Mr. Tinkles??"

| "Yeah, Mr.Tinkles. You just admitted that you're favorite character out of all the movies I've
shown you is named Mr. Fucking Tinkles. A cat. Dishonor on you- dishonour on your
family- dishonour on your cow."

-Will paused through his slurred words, realizing what he had just said-
-Hannibal had only quirked his head at him, unsure what 'cow' he meant-

| "...I didn't mean to say, dis-dishonour on your family for real...it's a, it's uh, it's a quote from
a Disney movie. I'm drunk...don't listen to my crap, Hannibal...s-sorry.."

"Oh..don't apologize, Will...it's alright. Can I ask which movie is your
own favorite?"

| "101 Dalmations. Hands down. Did you see that house at the end? They had like, a, like a mansion
and a hundred miles of (hiccup) of field with maybe, like 230 dogs runnin' around!"

"I should have guessed as much." -he chuckles-

*****

Hannibal broke away from the memory when he noticed Will was looking up at him with one eye sleepily
cracked open.

"..wha-what's up...shit, was I snoring? I'm sorry..." Will grunted as he adjusted sideways in the chair,
struggling to open his eyes as they hung heavy.

"You're fine, Will. I was just checking to see how well your scar has been healing, also fixed the pillow beneath
your head so it wouldn't fall off the chair." Hannibal said, a light twitch of his nose as he looked down at the
tired boy.

Will blinked up at him twice, a short pause of silence between them before he spoke with a groggy hoarse voice.

"No you weren't. You were gazing at me, weirdo." Will grumbled and turned again, facing the inside of the chair
now with his back to Hannibal. Hannibal stilled straight at the statement, cracking an amused smile down at the
clever brat.

---

Chapter Text

Another month passed, Hannibal grew more satisfied that Will was finally being more open, expressing how he
missed his dogs, assuming Alana and Margot hopefully took them into their care. Once he even drunkly scolded
Hannibal for what he had done to Beverly Katz. That was the only time he had brought up Hannibal's past actions.

Hannibal knew better than to say anything about her wreckless decision to act alone, so only stuck to a
remorseful apology and admition of regret.

---

One night, Will had let Hannibal chose the film for the night, as well as deciding to actually join him on the couch.

Hannibal had selected 'Titanic'.

Not too far into the movie, Will had fallen asleep, leaning over with his uninjured cheek resting on Hannibal's
shoulder. Hannibal felt his heart warm with the position, smiling over the borderline intimate feeling.

When an unexpected loud scene played from the television, Will grunted, blinking hard as he sat up quickly.

Hannibal frowned at the loss, looking over to him as he rubbed his eyes.

"Urgh, sorry..." Will grumbled, running his hands through his messy curls. "It's fine, you're tired. Would you like
to go to bed already or take a nap?" "N-no..I mean...yeah, but..." Will paused, looking down at the expensive hotel
room's carpet.

"...what is it, Will?" Hannibal leaned forward a bit to try and catch the hazel blue eyes that seemed suddenly distant
in thought. "I don't..know...I just uh...I don't want to go to bed alone anymore. I have...nightmares, still."

Hannibal tensed at that, first wondering if it was an invitation to join him in bed- then what kind of nightmares
the boy was now suffering from. Will seemed to shy over his buried request, keeping his eyes away from Hannibal's.

"...if it's not strictly against your preferences, I would have no issue accompanying you to bed. I could keep
the bad dreams away best I can." Hannibal smiled sweetly at him, tilting a bit more as he placed a hand on Will's
knee.

Will finally looked him in the eyes, then broke the stare after a short moment and down to the man's hand.

"O-Okay...that'd be fine. If you don't mind." Will stood and left for the bedroom.

---

In the middle of the night, Hannibal woke to the sounds of Will whimpering in his sleep. Their backs inches from
each other, Hannibal turned over and adjusted himself so he could pull Will to lay on his back. He frowned
at the sweat that creased in the wrinkles of his tshirt, watching for a moment as the young man croaned and
writhed through the nightmare.

Hannibal shushed him, gently pushing the damp curls from his forehead and deciding to take a risk- he pressed
a light kiss to the boys forehead. He held his lips there, planted against the heated skin. When Will unconsiously
wrapped his arms around Hannibal's waist, he sleepily sighed, the nightmare suddenly dissapearing in the embrace.

Will breathed softly now, his body temperature regulating again as he drifted into a more peaceful sleep.

Hannibal closed his eyes, resting his chin on Will's head and smiling over the hug.

---

When morning came, Will woke with a yawn, lifting his arms up above his head to stretch his sore muscles.
He froze through the strain when his chest pressed into Hannibal's, opening his tired eyes fully now to see
the sleeping man facing him. Looking down, he had kicked he covers mostly off the both of them with his
usual tossing and turning. Hannibal's left hand laid limp on Will's hip, his chest expanding and contracting slow
as it pushed against Will's own chest every few seconds.

Will stared at Hannibal's features, eyes scanning down from the golden brown beadhead to the perfectly placed
creases on either side of his lips. He licked his own lips without thought, blinking sleepily as he studied the man.

Unable to fight much longer, he hazily stared at Hannibal's mouth, inching his face forward slowly. He closed his
eyes for a moment, pressing a light kiss to his lips.

Just a few seconds, Will stayed in that place, sighing quietly as he memorized the feeling of the longed for intimacy.

---

Hannibal woke with a few blinks, inhaling lightly when he realized Will was testing a hidden kiss.

Will opened his eyes just then, gasping as he recoiled away, seeing Hannibal's shocked facial expression.

"Will-" Hannibal stopped him from pushing back any further, a firm grip on his arm as his other hand slid up
to caress Will's cheek. Will simply stared at him, flushed red in embarrassment waiting for the next thing.

"I-I'm..." Will stammered, stopping when Hannibal pressed forward, a hard desperate kiss drawing eager moans
from the both of them. Hannibal's hand gripped the clean shaven jaw gently, Will's hands shakily rising to run through
and tighten into fists in the soft dirty blonde hair as they broke the kiss into a passionate makeout. The sounds of their
light panting and short pained grunts due to tightening hands and hair pulling the only noise in the hotel room.

Hannibal grazed his hand down Will's neck, passing over his torso to the edge of his pajama bottoms, just testing
his fingers across the hem line above the young man's very obvious thick member. Will whimpered in the kiss, feeling
Hannibal's thumb just barely ghosting over the clothed tip of his crotch, causing it to twitch once.

After that, Will gasped again, pulling away from the handsy heated make out, covering his groin quickly as he turned
his back to Hannibal.

Hannibal frowned and blinked at the back of Will's messy upstanding curls, wondering if he had pushed too much in
his excitement.

"I'm..sorry..." Will whispered, a sadness on his voice.

"It's okay, dear Will...I'm the one to apologize..."

There was a few moments of silence between them before Hannibal spoke again.

"...I'll go start breakfast."

---

Chapter Text

A week passed since their first kiss, the both of them secretly unable to stop thinking about it through the slow
moving days. Though neither bringing it up to the other.

Hannibal ached over the time, wondering when or if he should mention it, or if Will would do so first.

They changed to a new hotel, renting a top floor suite with a full view of the city through the large windows.
Will padded around in his socks, chewing on a stick of expensive beef jerky as Hannibal watched him over his book.

That night they went through their usual bickering over who choses the movie to watch, both using thorough
explanations as to why their choice was better than the other's.

Hannibal chose an old romance movie while Will insisted on a romance as well of his own choosing.

"Okay, seriously, Waitress is what we're going to watch tonight and I'm not even going to listen to you anymore
about it, you need to see it and I'm forcing you to. Now. It's important, and remarkable. It hits on all the points
that are needed. The abusive relationship, the supportive friendships, the twisted morals and new found independence,
it's going to be better than you expect. So, here we go." Will took charge and put in the dvd, dropping down
beside Hannibal on the couch, their thighs just brushing together on accident.

Hannibal glanced down at the close touch, then up to see Will wiggle his nose with a sniff, a tinge of rose pink
flushing on his cheeks as he kept his eyes on the television.

He smiled and joined him in watching the film. Hannibal found it entertaining to tease Will into thinking he would
ever deny him of anything he wished to do, or watch. The silly thing somehow thought he needed to justify his
reasoning for the film selection, when Hannibal would be happy sitting beside him through a four hour documentary
on the history of dogs.

---

Will had several drinks through the movie, talking over the scenes to voice his opinions, waving a drunken hand
to the screen as he explained.

"She's very pretty..." Will slurred, slouching low in the couch cushions as he stared at the girl in the film.

Hannibal looked over at the boy, eyeing the redness that heated his cheeks and neck from the alcohol in his
viens. He nodded once and sighed lightly, returning his gaze to the picture. "She is." He muttered.

---

Chapter Text

The next afternoon, Hannibal had left the hotel for a while, excusing himself to head into town for a few
errands. Will simply grunted as he devoured a leftover bit of jerky.

Will found himself bored again, playing with the strange buttons on the walls- the blinds slowly raising and
lowering electronically. He scoffed at the ridiculous expense.

"Hm...hello there-" Will stopped his pacing, spotting the new tablet Hannibal had bought. He grabbed it and
glanced at the front door, plopping down in the middle of the bed.

He pressed the small button at the bottom, then squinted at the random dots that appeared.
"Passcode, huh? Alright...I'll bite." Will scrunched his nose with a sniff and nestled his shoulders lower into the
thick pillows behind him as he tested various dates that he guessed could mean something to the man.

After many tries and many times being locked out- forced to wait a few minutes before trying again, Will
grew frustrated. He gave it one more shot, sure it was about to lock him out for good if he continues like this.
That, he wanted to avoid so Hannibal wouldn't see that he basically ruined his new toy.

The screen lit up brighter, opening to the main page. "...how the hell did he know my..birthday?"
Will let the question settle for later thought, eyeing the internet page that was left open on the device.

"What in the...strippers?!" Will shouted at the unexpected discovery, choking as he sat straight up
with wild confused eyes glued to the screen. "Is he..fuckin' desperate or something!?" Will heaved heavily
at the thoughts flying through his mind, unsure if he was furious or embarrassed to have found the search.

He closed the page and suddenly the upsetting feeling subsided momentarily, his mouth dropping agape
when he saw the picture set as the background. The movie poster for Homeward Bound behind the icons
and apps. His slack jaw curled up into a sharp grin as he snatched his own phone out, taking a snapshot
of the tablet before locking it again.

There were two knocks at the door then. He gasped and sat the device back to it's original spot on the bedside table,
leaping from the bed and padding in only his socks and red pajama bottoms across the hotel room to the
couch. Jumping over the back of it, he snatched the television remote and flipped to a random show to
seem like he hadn't been snooping.

After a few moments, the doorbell rang this time. Will raised a brow and waited. "...did you forget your key AGAIN?"
Will shouted, staying put in case it wasn't really Hannibal, who usually knocked twice before entering for 'courtesy'.

"Housekeeping, sir." A small innocent tone answered. "Oh-sorry, coming!" Will grunted as he stood, hurrying over
to open the door. As soon as he pulled it open enough to see the young woman, his eyes widened in confusion.

A busty young redheaded female dressed in a revealing risqué-maid outfit beamed a bright grin at him, winking as
she suddenly pushed him back into the hotel room with a finger to his bare chest, just below his healed knife wound
raised on his shoulder.

"Wha-!? Hey!!" Will held his hands up as he backed up quickly, sure that the girl was here for the wrong guy.
"I didn't think you'd be so handsome kiddo, I might give you an extra few minutes of my time sweetie!" She giggled,
forcing him further with her approach. He stumbled back, the couch bumping into the back of his knees.

"N-no, hey, no, I'm not-! I'm not the one who, you, you've got the wrong guy, chick!" Will stammered, tripping back
and stepping up onto the arm rest then grunting when his feet sunk between the couches cushions as he tried to
keep a distance from the girl.

"What's wrong honey? You like a little game of cat n' mouse, hm? Okay!" She chuckled and rounded to the front of the
furniture.

---

Chapter Text

Just then, Hannibal came through the still open door, a small fear in his gut as to why it was left ajar.

He straightened in shock when he saw the strange event playing infront of his eyes.

Will was standing on the furniture, one foot wedged between expensive cushions, the other foot on the back of the
couch as he was protesting against the giggling girl trying to tickle him with a feather duster.

"I'm serious! I'll pay you but you've got to g- AH!" Will shouted when the couch tipped backwards, dropping him
to the ground with a grunt, instinctively ignoring the painful fall and crawling backwards away from the clueless
young woman.

Will did a double take and finally noticed Hannibal in the doorway with a face frozen inbetween confusion and amusement.

"L-look! Him! Not me! Him! I didn't order you! Jesus!!" Will panted as he climbed to his feet, pointing at Hannibal.

The girl looked to Hannibal and raised a brow, now planting both fists on her hips with the duster in one.
"Mmno, sweetums, he paid me to come here. Unless it's gonna be that kinda party, I have to be honest you're
both a couple of hunks in a top suite, I'm available." She smirked and winked at Hannibal.

Hannibal cleared his throat and approached her, handing her a wad of cash, whispering something in her ear
that caused her to shrug and leave with a mischevious giggle and wave towards Will- who was blushing dark
rose red in his cheeks as he stood with arms crossed over his bare chest near the window.

Hannibal closed the door and locked it, sighing and turning to Will with a question on his eyes.

Will saw the question, which caused him to gawk in shock at the unbelievable man. "DON'T YOU DARE GIVE ME
THAT LOOK- YOU SENT ME A STRIPPER!?!? WHAT THE SHIT WERE YOU THINKING, HANNIBAL!?" Will continued to
burn bright as he scolded him, storming over to fix he tipped over couch. Hannibal helped return the fallen
cushions as he answered.

"I thought you may have missed being with a woman, being cooped up with me after all this time. I apologize,
I didn't know how else to go about it. I went to a mildly classy place that had good reviews on the girls...if she
wasn't your type-"

"WOW. STOP TALKING." Will said with both arms raised in disbelief, blinking straight at the man twice before
simply leaving to the bedroom and shutting the door behind him without another word.

Hannibal frowned, shrugging with a bit of satisfaction that Will definitely did not want the thing he dreaded.

---

When night came, Hannibal was already in bed while Will lounged on the couch for one more episode of
Law and Order. As soon as it finished, he groaned in exhaustion, sleepy from the few beers and two whiskeys
he had with a small 'breakfast for dinner' egg-ham-and-cheese croissant Hannibal had made him.

He dragged his feet to the suite's bedroom, yawning as he crawled into the bed behind Hannibal. With a small grunt,
Will nudged the man's hip with his own, beckoning him to scoot over to make room for him. Hannibal smiled in his
sleep and adjusted to let the young man in, feeling the curly hair and forehead press between his shoulder blades.

"You're an idiot..." Will mumbled, closing his heavy lidded eyes, wrapping his arms around Hannibal's waist and sighing
into his own slumber.

Hannibal huffed a small chuckle, lowering his hand over Will's, just below his hip bones and cracking one eye open.

"Apparently at times I am." He responded in a whisper, closing his eye again and falling asleep with Will clinging to
him like an infant koala bear on it's parent's back.

---