ᴄʟᴏsᴇʀ ʜᴀɴɴɪʙᴀʟ x ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ (Discontinued)

Chapter 3: Soft Spoken Boy

You stood before the mutilated body as other agents and investigators took photos of him and the surrounding area. You stared down at his already decaying face and your hand twitched. This was the man you murdered only a week ago. He was found by a few teenagers who had gone into the woods to smoke pot and upon further inspection by them, realized that he was not actually a dummy.

You allowed a small smile to form as you continued to study the man. His stomach was ripped open to allow his innards to be exposed. His chest had also been opened to remove his heart, which you had to admit was hard work with only having just a knife on you. But you were a persistent person. And finally, the man's jaw had been broken wide enough with his tongue removed. He was beautiful to you.

"What are your thoughts?" Came a voice which interrupted your thoughts. You looked to your left to see Will Graham coming to stand next to you, taking in the sight of your victim. Only he had yet to know that this was your victim. He looked to you now, a small, shy smile taking place on his handsome face. His eyes dared not to linger on yours for too long and he went back to observing the body.

You smiled back, still looking at him. "I was just thinking that whoever did this was a bit reckless." This was a lie, of course. You loved what you did, but you weren't a fool to compliment yourself in front of the very man that could basically look at you and tell you he knew you were a killer. He was the FBI's secret weapon. He was Jack's favorite weapon. "But," you followed up. "The guy still knew how to paint a picture with this one."

Will nodded. He had already studied the body alone, piecing together the steps of the perpetrator's design. Your design. You nudged him with your elbow lightly. "What are your thoughts?" You asked him, trying to offer a more genuine smile. You knew what Will could see. He was going to critique your work and you yearned to hear it. Could he see what you saw?

"Well," Once Will started talking, your heart fluttered in excitement. This man was just as intoxicating as Dr. Lecter. "The victim didn't know the killer, that seems abundantly clear. However, the victim somehow managed to do something to agitate the killer, he did something to make the killer feel as if he deserved this death." You nodded, eyes moving over the body as Will continued to speak. "His heart has been removed and is placed in his right hand, while his tongue has also been brutally removed and placed in his left hand. This might indicate that the killer thought he was heartless and that he possibly talked too much."

"Or that he spoke cruelly." You added, seeing Will look at you in the corner of your eye. He had a frown and looked a bit shocked and perhaps confused even that you might interpret that. You met his eyes and shrugged. "If we're gonna go with the heartless metaphor." You clarified. Will's frown became an awkward smile, his cheeks turning a slight pink. "Do you think this was the Chesapeake Ripper again?"

Will shook his head after a brief moment. "Not this one. Either this person is just as creative as him or wants to be just like him." You responded with a hum and you both stood in silence before Will cleared his throat. "So Jack has you working with us on these more 'serious' cases, huh?" Will chuckled, moving away from the body. You followed him, only glancing at the body one last time, only for a second.

"That's exactly how he put it when he told me he wanted me on the team." You responded, gently kicking leaves out of your path as you both walked to the edge of the crime scene, about to cross the yellow tape. "I guess he thought I could be of better help to you guys instead of sitting behind a desk filling out paperwork on the cases. And honestly," You bent below the tape and then stopped before him, both of you on one side of the tape. "I'm excited to work with you." At least you could admit to being truthful about that. "I've always admired your work and the way that you can really empathize with the killer enough to, well, catch them."

Will blushed more, offering a slight laugh. Of course he had heard this many times before. People were always fascinated with him and his ability. But most of it was, as he was told, a "professional" interest. "Y-You're too kind." He joked sarcastically, adjusting his glasses to sit further on his nose.

"I'm serious!" You laughed, lifting the yellow tape for him to climb under, which he did with still burning cheeks. "I know you get that a lot. But you really are cool. Really." The two of you continued to walk out of the woods, passed the various police cars and ambulances, until the two of you ran into Jack, who was fetching something from his own car.

"Ah! There you are, Will!" Jack started, closing the door of his vehicle and approaching you both. "I see you've already paired up with our dear (Y/N) (L/N). She's one of our finest." This made you laugh and Jack seemed to get joy out of making both you and Will awkwardly adjust yourselves away from each other.

"Thanks, Jack." You laughed "You're not too bad yourself." You winked and nudged Will again, encouraging him to say something.

"Yeah. She's pretty great." Will said, although his tone was that of someone who didn't know what to say in the first place about someone he just met formally for the first time. The two of them had only interacted a few times and each time was short. You felt amused at his behavior though, and this was going to be fun for you to be around him more.

"Well, I'm glad you think so as well. You both have plenty in common, I'm sure." Jack fiddled with something in his pocket. "I mean, you both see Dr. Lecter. That's an entire conversation there for you two to talk about and relate to." You and Will glanced at each other. Oh, this was even more interesting to you. You were going to have so much fun.

"That's definitely going to be a good conversation." You said. Jack then looked beyond you to the crime scene and his demeanor changed, remembering that there was a job to do.

"If you'll excuse me, I should probably be heading back there." He said, looking towards Will. "Will, follow me and walk me through what you found." With that, Jack gave you a nod and began walking away. You looked at Will, who was looking slightly uncomfortable.

"You gonna be okay?" You asked him. He nodded. "I'm headed back to take care of some of that lovely paperwork." You took out a small piece of paper from your own pocket and gently grabbed Will's hand, placing the paper in it. "That's my number. Call me if you need anything." Your emphasis on the last word made Will blush a deep red and it made you want to smirk. "I'll see you later."

You got into your car, watching Will through your rearview mirror as he disappeared with Jack into the woods. The simple fact that both of you were current patients of Hannibal Lecter excited you greatly and you wondered what advantages you could gain from that knowledge. You wanted to be close to Hannibal, but now that you had met Will Graham officially, you wanted to see how close you could get to him. Which one would really see you for who you are?