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Title: First Glimpse
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Will Graham/John Reese
Fandom: Hannibal/Person of Interest
Rating: PG-13
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 Lee Fallon, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

John held back a sigh as he pulled a book from a shelf.

Will was in the front of the shop, helping another customer, and Winston was in his place behind the counter. John was doing his best to look like a customer.

But what he was really doing was watching Will. Now that he knew -- or was at least fairly sure -- that Hannibal Lecter had made an attempt to contact Will, he was reluctant to leave the other man alone. He didn't want Will to be taken by surprise, and for this to end before it even began.

He was determined to protect Will from that monster who apparently still haunted his life; he wanted to put Lecter out of the picture for good, no matter what it took.

John didn't stop to think about his motives for wanting Lecter gone.

It didn't seem to matter what his main concern was for himself; wanting Lecter to be out of Will's life would be good for Will, too. He'd be able to sleep at night, to live without fear.

If the two of them began some kind of relationship, then so much the better, John told himself. Maybe he should be at least a bit bothered by the fact that he felt so protective of Will because of an attraction to him, but he wasn't going to let that stop him from doing his job.

Maybe it was past time he began to care about someone, he told himself, sneaking a look at Will helping the customer select a book. He'd been alone for far too long.

If only there was some kind of book that could help him through a situation like this, he thought, his sigh audible this time. But he didn't think that he could count on any sort of help.

No, he would have to muddle through this on his own. He would have to sort out his feelings, and decide if he was doing this for Will -- or for himself. Or maybe, just maybe, he was doing it to benefit both of them. Was there really anything wrong with that, in the long run?

He didn't think so. They would both get what they wanted -- freedom from fear, and someone in their lives to lean on, to share those lives with. It would be a win/win situation.

Well, if that was what Will wanted, as well. He hoped it was.

He looked down at the book in his hand, smiling a bit when he saw the title. He hadn't paid attention to it when he'd pulled it off the shelf, but now it seemed almost prophetic.

Great Expectations. He'd read this one when he was much younger, and a part of him had identified with Pip. He hadn't thought about the book in years, maybe even decades. But he did have great expectations for a possible future with Will, expectations that he wanted to come true.

With any luck, maybe they would, he thought, closing the book and starting to put it back on the shelf before changing his mind and heading to the front counter with it.

He would buy this book, and he'd read it again, for the first time in years.

Maybe, he told himself with a smile, he would even be able to identify with Pip once more -- even though he was now much older than he'd been on that first reading, of course.

As he approached the counter, politely waiting for the other customer to buy their book and exit the shop, he happened to look out of the plate-glass window. He could see a tall, thin man standing outside on the pavement -- a man whose attention seemed to be focused completely on Will.

In a flash, John knew who it was. He didn't have to ask, or wonder. It was Hannibal Lecter, and he was here to confront Will in some way. John was sure of that.

He put the book down on the counter and nearly leaped for the door.

Lecter must have seen him, too, for when he got outside, there was no sign of him. John didn't know how he could have disappeared so easily, but he was nowhere to be seen.

He scanned the people on the sidewalk, sure that he wouldnt find Lecter, but hoping against hope that something would identify the other man to him. When that didn't happen after a few minutes, he sighed in frustration and went back inside the bookshop, going to the counter where Will stood waiting.

"He was there, wasn't he?" Will said, his voice low and shaky. "I didn't see him, but I could swear that I felt his presence. He's here, John. And he's not going to leave me alone."

John smiled grimly, shaking his head in negation of Will's words.

"Oh, he'll leave you alone," he said, his voice sounding menacing even to his own ears. "No matter what I have to do, Will, that monster is going to be out of your life."

He didn't know at the moment exactly how he was going to manage that, but he would do it. He would protect Will; he would make sure that no harm came to him.

Even if he had to challenge Lecter himself, in a fight to the death.

This had only been a first glimpse. Their next meeting, John was sure, would be much more insightful.

***