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It was 3 in the morning when Hannibal’s alarm system alerted him to someone’s presence at his front door. It wouldn’t be the first time a patient had showed up at this time, needing to be talked down from some ledge or other, but since losing Franklin he had only one patient left. He quickly threw on his robe and headed for the door.
Will was standing just on the other side of the door in nothing but a t-shirt and boxers, eyes half-lidded and staring blankly. “Will,” Hannibal said his name, and when he didn’t respond he said it again louder, “Will.” Will continued to stare straight ahead without the slightest change. Hannibal brushed the curls back from Will’s forehead so he could feel it with the back of his knuckles. He was burning up with fever. Gently as he could, Hannibal put an arm around his shoulders and led him inside, locking the door behind him.
He led Will through his house, guiding him with slight pressure on his shoulders, as well as saying things like “Take two steps up, they’re right in front of you,” and watching with delight as Will followed his directions with perfect obedience. When they got to Hannibal’s spare bedroom, he laid a towel down the bed and tucked Will in. The hardest part was getting Will to lie down, and even after he did, Will remained tense like he was going to rise again at any moment for more wandering. Eventually, the only thing that stopped Will from making little aborted attempts at standing up was Hannibal lying in the bed beside him and putting an arm across Will’s chest.
They both dozed like that, Will completely unaware of Hannibal, and Hannibal all too aware of Will, until an hour or so later when Will started becoming more restless. He squirmed and pressed against Hannibal’s arm that pinned him to the bed. When Will started making whining sounds Hannibal pushed himself up on an elbow so he could stoke Will’s face in an attempt to calm him. It didn’t seem to work. Will’s feet began twitching as well, which drew Hannibal’s gaze downward. He found himself staring at Will’s boxers, which were obviously tented. Will squirmed again, making needy noises in his throat and suddenly Hannibal had an idea.
Watching Will’s face carefully for any sign of awakening, Hannibal palmed Will through his boxers. Will’s response was immediate. He pressed up into Hannibal’s hand with his entire body, a low moan escaping his lips. His eyes remained closed, but his body was humming with energy. Hannibal pressed upward, rubbing against Will’s hard length. Will whined and spread his feet further apart to better leverage his hips upward.
Hannibal set a slow pace, using Will’s breathing rate to judge how close he was and when to speed up. It wasn’t long before Will’s entire body was arched off the bed, the towel beneath him clinched tightly in his fists. Hannibal moved his hand faster, still using just enough pressure to stimulate him but not to hurt when finally Will cried out and shuddered hard against Hannibal’s hand. Hannibal eased him through the orgasm, helping to gently lower Will back onto the bed. For the first time that night he was still, lying flat and making no attempts to stand up as his breathing slowed back to normal.
Hannibal took the opportunity to stand up and stretch after lying in such an awkward position for so long. He was going to get himself a glass of water when Will’s eyes fluttered open. He took in his surroundings with what looked like subdued horror, then nearly jumped out of his skin when he noticed Hannibal looking at him from the doorway. “D-Dr. Lecter?”
“Will, you’re up. Try not to panic; you’re safe now. You’re in my house, you walked here, do you remember?”
Will looked around again, as if trying to put Hannibal’s words into context. “No,” he said after a moment. His eyes finally traveled downward to the bed and towel beneath him, taking stock of his disposition. “I walked here?”
“You were sleepwalking. I attempted to wake you but when that failed I thought it best to put you in bed and hope your feet would understand what your mind did not.”
Will covered his face in his hands and took a shaky breath. “I’m sorry to wake you, I’ll get out of your hair.”
“Nonsense,” Hannibal reassured him, “It’s late and you’ve done enough wandering tonight. I insist you stay till morning.”
Will thought about this for a moment. “I suppose I should thank you.”
Hannibal chuckled. “Get some sleep, Will.”
Will nodded and sat up, wincing as he did so. Hannibal was about to close the door and leave when Will interrupted him. “Um, I don’t mean to impose more than I already have,” he said carefully, “but I think I may need another towel.”
“Of course,” Hannibal said softly, as one might speak to a child, “there’s a linin closet in the bathroom right there,” he gestured to the second door in the room. “You have nothing to be ashamed about,” he added, “It is not unheard of for nocturnal emission to accompany somnambulism. Both are completely involuntary and I do not judge you for either one.”
Will froze. Hannibal suppressed the urge to smile at his discomfort. “Thank you, Dr. Lecter,” he said after taking a deep breath, “And good night.”
“Good night, Will,” Hannibal said almost cheerfully.