FOUND: A Hannigram Devil AU REWRITTEN

Chapter Six

Will wandered the hospital like a zombie, unsure of where exactly he was going. He paced, raking his fingers through his hair and fighting back tears. What the hell had he done? What kind of spell had come over him for him to be that stupid?

He still wasn't sure if he had hallucinated all of it. He'd been so distraught from the death of that girl that maybe he'd still been halfway out of it. Maybe he was still trying to cope.

He went into the bathroom, turning on the sink and letting the water pool in his hands. The splash of the cold water shocked him awake. The rest of the room slowly faded as he took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

"It's okay," he said to himself. "It's gonna be fine. It's all gonna be fine."

He kept breathing. All around him, the sound of the churning air vent morphed into an autumn breeze. The buzzing of the fluorescent lights turned into the chirping of crickets.

Will.

He opened his eyes with a gasp.

All around him were the silhouettes of large oak trees enveloped by a white fog. He couldn't see far in front of him, just the little bubble that he stood in, and he started walking down the path covered in fallen leaves. Someone was weeping, and the cries echoed through the forest. The cloud parted for him, and with each step he heard the sound getting closer and closer.

He came to a clearing, where the trees broke apart and created a large circle. In the middle stood the shadow of a massive creature, a creature with broad wings and a pair of antlers that stretched so far upwards that he couldn't see the end of them. Its eyes were glowing against the dark shadow of its skin, and kneeling on the ground in front of it was the source of the crying: a lone man, keeled over at the feet of the being, begging with all of his might, please please please please--

He was startled out of his reverie by a hand on his shoulder. He jumped, stumbling backwards against the sink. He was expecting to see Hannibal, watching him once again, but it was just Jack-- who, to his surprise, looked just as downtrodden as him.

"You need to go home," he said. "Go home, rest, and come back on Monday. I'm ordering you to rest, Will, you got it? That way you'll be in good condition to keep up the work."

His head in a fog, Will nodded. Hannibal was nowhere to be found, so he was able to slip out unnoticed and begin the drive home.

He drove in complete silence, watching the faint rain come down onto his windshield. The whirring of the car along with the movement was relaxing, and he took the time to let himself think. He couldn't help but feel somewhat ashamed of himself, but he wondered if that was just hindsight coming back to bite him. Back at the hospital, with the creature standing right in front of him, it seemed like his only choice was to comply. Hannibal had evoked some kind of desperation in him that he'd never felt before. Standing there with Hannibal's undivided attention, offering him everything he'd ever wanted — it had sent him into a frenzy. He was almost unwilling to let go of his hand, as if holding on long enough would bring them closer together. His beauty was something else, something spectacular.

Still, he'd made a deal with the Devil. Any sane person would advise him against that. And now he couldn't shake the feeling that he was trapped.

His cabin in Wolf Trap was a welcome sight, even though he'd just come back the previous day. He hadn't been present then; he'd simply wandered in a stupor, feeding the dogs and then going right back to the hospital.

He got out of the car and turned towards the sunset. It was nearly gone, the sky a rich purple as the last sliver of sunshine sank into the earth. He anxiously awaited the arrival of the dark.