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Will was losing his patience. He’d thought wandering around the open-air stalls and pop-up tents of the Celebrate Baltimore Summer Festival would be the perfect date idea -- plenty of pretentious wines and cheeses to sample for Hannibal, and hopefully some interesting booths for Will to look at, too. The only problem was, Hannibal was a little too engaged.
“The southern quarter next, dear, and then we can make our way back up the left side,” Hannibal said, squinting down at the map of the massive event. Will should have known he would treat it like a project -- needing to visit every single booth and charm every vendor, dazzling them with his ‘person suit,’ before bidding them a cordial adieu (or in some cases, asking politely for their card). Will loved Hannibal’s attention to detail, his thoroughness, so characteristic of a doctor. But it was getting excessive. The sun was beating down on the both of them, and Will had done far too much socializing for one day.
“Hannibal,” Will began, using the gentle tone of voice he knew Hannibal was weak for. He even slid his hand into Hannibal’s for good measure. “I’m getting a little tired. Let’s just stop at a few more, then head home.”
“You’d really miss the fisherman’s wharf?” Hannibal peered up at Will, all confusion in his own haste to win at Festival-going.
Will offered him a thin smile to conceal just how willing he was to miss the wharf. And all the other booths they hadn’t yet seen. “Let’s just head back. Please.”
“Very well, my dear. But let’s go southwest anyway. It’s the fastest route back to the apartment.” Fine, Will could take a compromise. As long as they could leave soon -- the less time in the thronging, chattering crowd, the better.
Still hand in hand (which Will couldn’t deny caused a little flutter in his stomach, despite his annoyance at Hannibal), the pair made their way past tents of smiling girl scouts and cheery artisans. Will thought they were home free, and he could see where the rows upon rows of booths finally came to an end, when-
“Oh, Will. Look at that. Beautiful…”
That, it turned out, was a massive yellow and black spotted snake, which was draped over an a-frame sign proudly proclaiming the Maryland Herpetological Conservation Society. The snake lifted it’s head and lazily flicked it’s tongue as they approached.
“Hannibal. What are you doing,” Will murmured sharply, as Hannibal pulled them both toward the thing. Will had never really liked snakes. And besides. Home. He had almost been free.
A teenager with a buzz cut and a t-shirt matching the logo on the a-frame sign materialized from inside the booth, all too chipper, especially considering the four foot iridescent snake draped around their neck.
“Hey there! Ah, admiring Sparkles, I see,” they grinned, gesturing to the yellow and black monstrosity that was eyeing the large pockets of Will’s cargo pants with interest. He instinctively took a step back, but couldn't move far with his fingers still laced through Hannibal’s.
“Sparkles?” Hannibal seemed only marginally taken aback, before smoothing over his countenance.
“Yeah. He’s a pretty boy, isn’t he?” the teen cooed at Sparkles, who flicked his tongue in Will and Hannibal’s direction once more.
“Gorgeous. Is he native to Maryland?” Hannibal asked, seemingly genuine in his interest.
Oh, God, no we were so close to leaving.
“No, Sparkles is actually a carpet python, so he’s native to Australia. He’s great though, we show him off a lot in our ‘Snakes of Maryland and the World’ program,” the teen replied, honing in on Hannibal’s enthusiasm while Will languished beside him.
“Remarkable. He takes well to handling, then?”
“Ehhh… he’s alright, he can get a little wiggly, though. Evelyn here is much more calm,” they explained, gesturing to the iridescent snake around their neck. “Would you like to hold her?”
“Yes,” Hannibal replied immediately, at the same time as Will’s inner voice screamed NO. Will dropped Hannibal’s hand and edged away as the snake’s handler began unwrapping it from their arms.
“She’s super sweet, don’t worry,” the teen smiled reassuringly.
“Thanks, but I’ll just stay over here,” Will mumbled.
“There’s no need to be afraid, Will,” Hannibal smirked in amusement. Evelyn was now draped around his neck, and seemed to be investigating the collar of his shirt.
Unfortunately for Will, Hannibal insisted on staying at the booth for a further twenty minutes, inquiring further about the Conservation Society’s mission, and the ins and outs of caring for the over forty snakes used as ambassador animals. Meanwhile, Will stood by uncomfortably, minding he didn’t get too close to Sparkles on the sign, and prayed for Hannibal to just fucking finish up already. It felt like a miracle when, after handling at least four of the snakes the booth had to offer, Hannibal finally said his goodbyes.
~~~
“I’m sorry about the Festival, dear. It seems the excitement of it all got away from me. Thank you for coming with me.”
They were laying in bed, Will in Hannibal’s arms, freshly showered, and pressed close enough to Hannibal's chest to smell his soap.
“S’alright,” Will mumbled. “I’m glad you had fun.”
Hannibal kissed the top of his head gently, and Will hummed happily. He began to drift off.
“I’m thinking of getting a pet snake.”
“Don’t you fucking dare.”
~~~
It turns out Hannibal did fucking dare, and Will, being hopelessly in love with his weird-ass partner, didn’t have the heart to stop him.
“As long as you make sure it won’t fuck with Winston,” he’d sighed, defeated. Hannibal looked for all the world like it was Christmas morning.
And so came Lilith the ball python, the new addition to their household. Hannibal bought her a ridiculous bioactive enclosure, complete with live plants and an extensive lighting system to ensure all her UVB and heating needs were met. Lilith’s enclosure was in the sitting room, a place Winston rarely frequented, and at least Will could feel marginally better knowing that Winston, even when in the same room with Lilith on her move-in day, seemed to have no idea she existed.
Hannibal loved that stupid snake. Will had even caught him cooing at her, though Hannibal had immediately denied it. At least a few nights every week, Hannibal took Lilith out of her enclosure and sat with her on the couch. Will declined any and all invitations to join them.
“You’re lucky I allowed that thing in the house, Hannibal. Don’t make me come snuggle with it.”
“Lilith is much too dignified to snuggle , Will, she simply seeks warmth in the crevasses of your clothing.” Lilith was halfway up Hannibal’s shirtsleeve, and it looked a lot like snuggling from where Will was standing. “I’m sure you’d like her if only you gave her the chance.”
“I’ll pass.”
“You’ve hurt her feelings, Will,” Hannibal sighed sadly.
“Hannibal. I’m not sure her little reptile brain is complex enough for her to have hurt feelings -”
“You underestimate her. Snakes have been revered for centuries as symbols of divine wisdom. In ancient Greece, it was said their hissing was really them whispering the secrets of the gods. Tell me, Will-”
“I can’t do this tonight. I’ll be in bed. You can come join me when you’re ready, but without the snake, please.”
~~~
Will was determined not to like Lilith. She could stay in her little orbit, and Will in his. Unfortunately, Hannibal was called away to speak at a psychiatric conference, and was gone for four days. And Will pitifully, embarrassingly missed him. To the point of distraction.
The first night without Hannibal, he barely slept, nightmares waking him up with such frequency that eventually he changed the sheets for how wet with sweat they had become. It was three AM, Winston was peacefully snoring on his back in his doggie bed, and Will had given up on getting any rest.
Begrudgingly, he made his way to the sitting room. Lilith was coiled asleep on one of the branches in her (ridiculously large, Will had noted to Hannibal when his partner had set it up) enclosure. Will went up and unlatched the door.
“Alright, you dumb snake,” Will sighed. “God, I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
Will gently, fearfully lifted Lilith out of the enclosure and carried her to the couch, setting her down on a cushion before sitting down on the one adjacent. Lilith seemed almost groggy from being woken, but lifted her head and began to scent the air with her tongue.
“I miss your stupid dad,” Will whispered to her, fully aware of how ridiculous it all was. “I bet you do too, huh? Can you do that? Miss people? I wonder if you can tell the difference between the two of us…” Lilith flicked her tongue, seemingly indignant, and began to shift.
“Anyway, I don’t know, but maybe if I sat here with you it would remind me to miss him less. It’s just… it’s so weird, isn’t it? I’d never met someone like him, anyone who made me feel the way he does, and- shit, no what are you doing ?” Will’s voice rose in pitch to a near-squeal as he noticed Lilith inching toward him. Will froze in fear.
This is it. You took his snake out, you sentimental bitch, and now it’s finally going to kill you.
Will felt the weight of Lilith as she slithered onto his knees, then toward his chest. Toward all my vital organs. Why the hell did I think this was a good idea. Will hadn't been thinking rationally, he was surely fucked-
Lilith nosed gently at the hem of his shirt, then slithered inside, seeking the warm, dark safety it provided.
She was… weirdly soft. And the weight of her was grounding, almost. Will let out the breath he had been holding, though he knew his heart still raced, and tried to sit back into the couch without crushing Lilith.
It was nice to think that Hannibal had done the same so many nights in a row. Yet another way the two of them were intertwined, two sides of the same coin.
“You’re still on thin ice,” he murmured to Lilith, who was now tucked happily against Will’s side. When it got to an appropriate hour, he would call Hannibal. Think of some mundane excuse, so he wouldn't suspect Will had gone and missed him , or anything.
And under no circumstances would he mention that maybe, maybe, Lilith was starting to grow on him.