
Hannigram AU: The Devil & The Dog Lover
The first time he saw them was late one evening while the other dogs were doing their nightly business. A pair of bedraggled dirty looking things that growled when Will grew closer but seemed to love the leftover steak he had from last night’s dinner. They ran off after the meat was gone and Will didn’t give chase, he knew better.
But they came back several times that first week, closer and closer with each feed, and seven days in he got to touch one of them. The hair was coarse and looked almost burned. Will’s lip curled at the idea of someone hurting these poor things with fire.
He started to call them Moe and Curly, and got his first lick when he took a warm rag to Curly’s bloodied snout.
Two weeks in he got them inside to sleep, fed them both wet food in a separate space so they were comfortable, and closed the door while they slept on a pile of blankets in his unused bedroom.
Three weeks in, Moe and Curly were bathed and brushed revealing perfect white beauties whose eyes looked almost red sometimes but Will was sure it was just a trick of the light.
Four weeks in, he met Doctor Lecter for the first time.
The expensive looking car pulled up Will’s driveway just after dark, the man at the wheel just what Will would’ve expected. He wore a grey and red plaid suit that should’ve looked ridiculous but on him seemed like a second skin. His hair was slicked back to perfection and Will wanted to ruffle it out of place.
He stood on the porch both dogs at his side and the others flanking them.
“Hello, may I help you?”
The way the man looked at him was equal parts annoyed and amused.
“Yes, I do believe so. You see I’ve been looking for my two borzoi wolfhounds, who seem to be right beside you.”
Will put his hands on the collars he’d given Moe and Curly. “You’re the asshole who kept them looking like they’d been burned and tossed in a pile of mud?”
The man took one step forward and both dogs growled so loud Will’s hands felt the vibration. He held out his hand for Will to take. “They can be quite hard to handle at times, I assure you I haven’t been harming them. Doctor Hannibal Lecter.”
Will didn’t move. “I’m not letting you have them.”
“Sir…”
“Get off my lawn before I call the cops.”
Will turned and headed inside the house with his pack. He wasn’t surprised when both Moe and Curly hung back to growl at the closed door. Doctor Lecter stood on the porch with his hands out.
“All I want is my property.”
Will stomped up to the door and put his hands on the dogs’ heads. “They don’t want you.”
Doctor Lecter’s eyes seemed to glow the same as the dogs for a moment and Will felt the air around him grow warmer. “I will return.”
He was gone so fast Will could barely understand, and when he went inside his newest pack members climbed into his bed.
Will wouldn’t let them go with that monster.
He didn’t expect to see Doctor Lecter grace his door again.
Which was true, he didn’t.
Instead the man appeared at his job, arm in arm with one of his colleagues.
“Will, let me introduce you!”
They shook hands and Will felt like his skin was on fire before he pulled away.
“Nice to meet you.”
“You as well.”
Hannibal Lecter became a fixture at every one of his lectures, at crime scenes, and when Jack assigned the good doctor as his personal shrink Will reached his limit.
“You can buy new dogs,” Will mumbled as he looked everywhere but at the man across from him.
“Not like these,” Hannibal said, “They’ve been in my family for quite some time. I…”
“If that’s true then why did they run off? Why…”
Hannibal leaned in and smiled. “I believe that they were drawn to you in some way. I confess I am not a very affectionate or warm type of pet owner.”
Will glared at him. “The burn marks in their hair?”
“I prefer to be around a warm fire, it was not deliberate. Romulus and Remus also do not enjoy my touch, which was why they were so dirtied.”
Will scoffed. “Romulus and Remus? Really?”
“What do you call them?”
“Moe and Curly,” Will whispered, “And I still don’t want to give them back. I just…I don’t trust you.”
Hannibal folded his hands and frowned. “I do not wish to call authorities, Will. They belong to me, I assure you.”
Will’s eyes filled with tears. “Can I just…I’ll bring them by your house tomorrow night. Just to see you with them. If I knew they were comfortable, maybe it wouldn’t be so hard.”
“Yes, I believe that sounds reasonable. I can make us dinner and show you how missed my hounds are.”
Will smiled. “I didn’t mean that we had to…I mean that sounds like a date. I don’t think I could stand you for that long, no offense. I don’t find you that interesting.”
Hannibal leaned back and Will saw his eyes flash red again.
There was no way to pretend he hadn’t.
“You will,” Hannibal said, “I do not have romantic ulterior motives, I assure you. Just a friendly dinner.”
Will gripped the chair tight. “Your eyes.”
“My mother used to call them crimson,” Hannibal teased, “She called me her little devil.”
Will licked his lips. “Are you a devil, Doctor Lecter?”
Hannibal smiled. “I can be, Will. I can be.”