Title: Only For A While
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Table: writers_choice
Prompt: #636, Search
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 Hannibal Lecter or Will Graham, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.
***
How long had he searched for Hannibal now?Will didn't want to think about that. It was far too long, and he got more frustrated with each day that went by with no clues as to Hannibal's location.
How was he going to catch the bastard when he had no idea where to start looking?
Will slammed his hands down on the desk in front of him in frustration; he heaved a sigh, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling, as though the answer might be written there.
Of course, it wasn't. There were no easy answers, not when it came to Hannibal.
Finding his enemy wasn't going to be easy. After all, Hannibal had the entire world in which to hide, and he was adept at making himself disappear.
But he had one fatal flaw, Will told himself. And that would ensure that he was caught.
Hannibal had too much pride, too much hubris, to keep himself hidden forever. Sooner or later, he would slip up, make a mistake. And then Will would be on his trail.
The search wouldn't be easy, but he would find his nemesis.
He had no choice, Will told himself. He had to bring Hannibal to justice, after that one slip he'd made had given the man his freedom.
Why had he been so foolish? He had berated himself for that mistake ever since.
But for a moment in time, just one moment, he had wanted to give Hannibal a fighting chance, though he'd known even as he was warning Hannibal that it was the wrong thing to do.
He wouldn't be that stupid again, he vowed to himself.
He should have known better than to warn Hannibal; that warning had cost Abigail her life, and it had left him scarred both emotionally and physically.
Will placed his hand over the scar on his side, almost feeling it throb under his fingertips, even though it rarely ever gave him real pain now. No, it was just phantom pain; he could still remember how it had felt to be gutted with that wicked little knife.
That pain would always haunt his nightmares.
But he wasn't going to think about that, he told himself firmly. It was over and done; it was in the past. He had to move forward and leave that past behind him.
He had to concentrate on catching Hannibal, not on reliving the past.
Yes, he had made some horrible mistakes, but they, too, were part of the past. The next time he saw Hannibal, he wouldn't make those same mistakes again.
He shouldn't have been foolish enough to make them the first time.
What had possessed him to do something so stupid? Will knew that he would always curse himself for that moment of weakness, and all that it had led to.
Abigail had died because of him. He would always carry that guilt.
That was one reason that he was so determined to find Hannibal and put him behind bars; he wanted to make that monster pay for killing her.
Of course, at the moment, Hannibal had vanished into thin air.
But that wouldn't stop his search, Will vowed. Somehow, no matter what he had to do, how long he had to search, he would track Hannibal down and confront him.
This time, he wouldn't make the same mistakes.
This time, he would be sure that he brought Hannibal to justice, no matter what it took. There would be no last-minute reprieve for that monster.
He'd let himself give in to momentary weakness once. He wouldn't do it a second time.
Whatever he'd felt that had made him do something so foolish, he definitely didn't feel that way any longer. He would give Hannibal no reprieve this time.
There would be no warning. There would be no softening.
No, this time, he would make sure that once his search was over and he had found Hannibal, his nemesis would end up behind bars -- where he belonged.
He had to pay for his crimes. He had to face justice.
Will knew that he was the only person who was capable of bringing Hannibal to justice. No one else knew how his mind work in the way that Will did.
The problem was that Hannibal knew his mind, as well.
He had no doubt that their final confrontation would be an explosive one -- and he doubted that they would both come out of it alive.
Though he hoped they would. He wanted to bring Hannibal to justice, not kill him.
If he was honest, what he really wanted was to see Hannibal behind bars, just as he himself had been when he'd been framed -- but Hannibal would never get out.
That would bring him full circle, and give him some closure.
Would it be enough for him? Will wasn't sure about that, but he had the feeling that as long as he could see Hannibal punished for his crimes, he would be satisfied.
But first, there would be a long search. One that he had barely started.
This wasn't the time to think about that search. He had other things to do, responsibilities that he couldn't let himself shirk. But it was always in the back of his mind.
He would find Hannibal. That was a promise to himself that he would keep.
Sighing softly, he stretched his arms above his head, then got to his feet. His students would be here soon, and he would be immersed in teaching his next class.
It would be good to forget about the search for a while. But only for a short while.
It would take over his life, of that Will was certain.
He wouldn't rest easily until that search was over and he could walk away.
***
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