Main Hannibal Fan Fiction page | new stories page | Will/Hannibal slash page | other pairings page | gen stories page

Title: What They Both Want
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: gen
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,045
Author's Note: One-shot.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Will Graham or Hannibal Lecter, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

What did Hannibal want from him?

Will leaned his head back against the stone wall of his prison cell, closing his eyes. It was hard not to bang his head against the wall in frustration, but he refrained.

He didn't belong here. He was here because of Hannibal's lies, because of all the chaos that monster had created. He was the one who was paying for Hannibal's sins.

It was never going to end, was it? he asked himself, feeling a wave of despair wash over him. Even if he managed to get out of this situation, Hannibal would just create another one. He would be running as fast as he could and looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life.

For some reason, Hannibal had latched onto him and had decided to make his life as miserable as possible. Hell, because of Hannibal, he might not even have his life for much longer.

From in here, there was nothing that he could do to put a stop to Hannibal's evil machinations. He was completely helpless; he had no access to anything that could help him.

The worst thing was that everyone believed the worst of him.

Hannibal had set it up so perfectly, Will thought, anger rising within him to replace the despair. He had made sure that Will looked as guilty as he possibly could.

Even Jack and Alana, who he had always considered to be good friends, believed Hannibal over him. They'd had the wool pulled completely over their eyes.

It wasn't right. It was a twisted, depraved, perverted miscarriage of justice. But unless he could somehow manage to prove his own innocence, unless he could manage to make people see the truth about Hannibal, then he could very well spend the rest of his life in prison -- or lose his life.

His fists clenched at his sides as the rising tide of anger took over. No. He wasn't going to let Hannibal win. He wasn't going to go down without giving that bastard the fight of his life.

Somehow, there had to be a way to make Jack and everyone else realize just how evil Hannibal was. He couldn't do it on his own, though. He had to have help.

The problem was finding that help.

A frown appeared between Will's brows as he contemplated his problem. The only person he could think of who would probably help him wasn't someone who had any influence.

Matthew Brown. That guy who worked here at the prison. He had seemed sympathetic to Will's plight -- and it felt as though he realized just what Hannibal was capable of doing.

Maybe he could find help there. He'd have to feel Matthew out, find a way to talk to him for longer than just a few moments, at a time when they wouldn't be interrupted. And somehow, find somewhere that Chilton wasn't spying on him with those cameras that seemed to be everywhere.

Will's heart rose at the thought. There had to be a way to get himself out of this mess. Somewhere, somehow, there had to be a fatal flaw in Hannibal's setup.

If there was a flaw there, he would find it, and he would exploit it ruthlessly. The alternative to that was too awful for him to even being to contemplate.

He'd spend his life in here. Or he would be executed.

He took a deep breath, determined not to let the despair overcome him again. That would please Hannibal far too much. His nemesis wanted him to feel hopeless and defeated.

He refused to give Hannibal what he wanted. He refused to give up. It was going to take more than being thrown in prison on false charges to make him give, up, roll over, and die.

But Hannibal wasn't going to be satisfied until he'd achieved that goal, Will told himself. Instead of making him feel even more helpless, the thought galvanized him, made his spine stiffen with determination. He wasn't going to let Hannibal win. He was, somehow, going to turn the tables.

Hannibal wouldn't stop. He knew that. But he also knew that he was a match for that monster. He just had to collect his thoughts, put his mind to good use, and find a way out.

Of course, getting out wouldn't solve everything. He knew that, too. He had no doubt that Hannibal would still be after him if he managed to escape from this particular trap.

Hannibal wanted him to capitulate. Hannibal wanted to win.

But he'd made one miscalculation. He had thought that Will would be like the other people he'd murdered, thought that Will would give up and do what he wanted.

Will had no intention of doing that. He was going to fight, and he was going to win. He was going to expose Hannibal's evil, and he would make sure that Hannibal ended up where he was now.

He was going to come here for one last time when that happened. He was going to stand outside of a cell, free from the cage that Hannibal currently had him trapped in. And he was going to stand there and laugh, taunt Hannibal with the fact that he had won and that he was free.

Revenge. That was what drove him now. And it was going to taste sweet when he finally achieved it. Will didn't doubt that for a moment. He would savor every second of that revenge.

He would be satisfied to see Hannibal here for the rest of his life. But of course, that wasn't what Hannibal wanted. Still, they were two different people. His desires were far different.

He wanted his freedom, and to prove his innocence.

Hannibal wanted something far different.

Hannibal wanted his life.

And Will knew that Hannibal wasn't going to stop until he had what he wanted.

***