Hi guys, so sorry it's been a while but the new chapter has arrived! Que the happiness! Thanks for all the reviews: you guys seem to like the idea of the family reunion, so I think I'd better get on with, hadn't I? Hope you like this and feel free to review ;)

Hannibal – Plus One

The rumbling engine of the stolen car was switched off as they pulled up across the street from the home of Clarice Starling. Night was still thick upon them and all that Hannibal could hear was his own steady breathing and the chirps of nocturnal animals. However, one other noise was far from peaceful. Hannibal's maroon eyes travelled to the back seat where, beneath a tattered blanket, Anthony lay on the back seat, furiously battling with the invisible demons of sleep. The boy's eyes were squeezed shut tight and he was grasping at his own hair as he moaned and whimpered in his sleep.

A hand reached into the back of the car and rested itself on the boy's forehead. Hannibal shushed the boy until the frights died down. Anthony had been reluctant to sleep at all in his presence, but after a day of setting up Paul Krendler's lake house, the boy was visibly fatigued. All through the day he'd asked questions about why they needed all the cooking equipment, the tailor made suits and if the lake house was Hannibal's. The man would often answer with cryptic answers that baffled Anthony, leading to him not questioning anything further.

Once certain the boy was safe and settled, Hannibal left the car parked and locked before proceeding the creep through the night towards the house of Clarice. It was too easy and simple to get into the supposedly locked front door. Hannibal made a note to bring up her lacking security.

Inside, the house was calm and silent. Clarice had clearly not intended to fall asleep, as she had left the cupboard light on, as well as the sitting room. Hannibal moved slowly with formality, as if he'd practiced. In a sense, he had practiced: on their last day together, he had left as silently as he could, not to disturb the beautiful Clarice who had laid in a tangle of sheets. He cautiously made his way into the sitting room and reached out to switch the lamp off, encasing the room in a blanket of darkness as his shadow moved around the room. Clarice had fallen into slumber within an old floral patterned chair in her sitting room, a tumbler of cheap looking alcohol resting on the arm. Hannibal gently placed the glass on the side table, making as little noise as possible. In the dark, he moved to stand before her, drinking in her features of sleep – identical to the last time he'd laid eyes on her. He could not help himself as a hand reached back and stroked her hair back behind her ear. She leaned into the touch but remain asleep. As she moved Hannibal heard the distinctive sound of paper crinkling. Upon inspection of Clarice's form, he noticed the paper tucked between her and the chair. Carefully as he could, he retrieved the papers and stood back from Clarice as he eyed them.

There were two: a Missing Person's flyer, featuring the face of the sleeping child in the car. All the biography needed in a missing person's report were displayed below the picture and Hannibal memorized every word. The last object was an envelope, smelling of age and dust. It had been opened but Hannibal could tell Clarice had been too afraid to remove its contents. There was only one thing within: A single photograph. Hannibal held it in his hands as carefully as he could, as holding the photo was as close as he could ever get to cradle the newborn shown on the image. The child looked merely days old, dark hair already thick upon the small head, whilst dressed in a blue body suit which somehow held a resemblance to his old blue prison garb.

Hannibal decided to let the sleeping child sleep. He set up all he needed in Clarice's home and left, the photograph safely within his pocket.

XXX-xxx-XXX

Clarice heard the buzz of the phone in her dreams before she awoke. She would never admit it to herself, or anyone else, but she wished she could have stayed with the dream, with the two others she'd dreamt about. But the phone was resilient and determined to be answered. She opened her blue eyes blearily to see the flicker of the two candles before her. She looked down to the magazine, displaying the advertisement for the label, the cutting of her head placed where the model's should have been. Lying next to the magazine, placed neatly was the missing person's flyer for Anthony Howell. She hadn't done any of this and she remembered to be holding the flyer before she fell asleep.

Her thoughts trailed instantly to whom could have been in her house. She remembered the ringing phone and left the chair to answer it. All her suspicions were answered when Dr. Hannibal Lecter's voice filled her ear once she answered with 'Hello'.

'Hello again Clarice. Now, the power in that battery is low. I would have changed it but I didn't want to wake you. You're going to have to use the other one, in the charger; hopefully the light on it is green by now.' Clarice listened as Dr. Lecter spoke of her not abandoning her duties. He gave her three seconds to swap the batteries. She managed it in two and began rifling through her closet for her gun. Dr. Lecter praised her fast skills and began discussing the fact that they both knew Clarice would take a firearm with her. But Clarice didn't listen to him. She tried to strain her ears to hear anything on the other end of the phone, or rather, anyone. But of course Hannibal Lecter would know what she was trying to do.

'Now Clarice, I assure you he is perfectly fine. In fact, I think he want's to say hello.' Clarice felt her blood freeze and her heart stop. She heard a faint discussion in the back ground, but couldn't make any words out until a child's voice could be hear – not at the phone, but rather calling out to it.

'Hello Agent Starling?' The voice was gone as soon as it was there and Clarice lost the feeling in her legs as she slid down the wall of her home, the gun lay un-thought of at her feet. Her pulse was erratic and tears dared to spill over the edge of her eyes.

'If you are wondering, Clarice,' Lecter was back. 'He does not know anything. I was rather hoping you would be kind enough to shed the light for him. I found out myself by chance and it was rather a shock, I'd rather have it explained to him.'

He doesn't know

Clarice stood up and retrieved her gun. She checked the amount of ammunition within the weapon before leaving her home and climbing into her car. Her heart was racing manically within her at such a fast rate she was shocked the beating muscle hadn't burst her skin. As she drove off she was briefly aware of the van behind her that seemed to be tailoring her. Was it just her nerves playing hell?

She drove out into town, her heart really pumping now. Where was he telling her to go? Would he make her drive to him? Would she see them both?

'The reason we're doing this like this Clarice, is because I like to watch you as we speak. With your eyes open.' The Doctors voice was playing on every word he could as he spoke and directed her towards where ever he planned to meet up. As she drove towards where ever, Clarice kept her eyes peeled, especially with the van she was now certain were tailoring her. It wasn't the FBI, nor did it seem to be Doctor Lecter behind the wheel. She diverted her attention as Lecter, over the phone, told her to head towards Union Station. If he was inside she'd have a hard time finding him.

XXX-xxx-XXX

'…my life? What is there to say about my life? I've been in a state of…hibernation. A little inactive. But now I'm back home. I've very happy and very healthy. Along with my new companion I picked up on my travels. What were the odds, Clarice? That I would find him?' Hannibal turned in his driver's seat to the now awake Anthony besides him, the young boy focusing his attention on the toy he'd brought with him, unaware of the turmoil and conflict surrounding his parentage and the world around him.

'You though,' Hannibal continued. 'It's you I'm worried about.'

'I'm fine.' Clarice's voice buzzed through the headphones.

'No you're certainly not fine Clarice. You fell in love with the bureau: the institution only to discover after giving them everything you've got, that it does not love you back.' Hannibal caught Anthony's attention after seeing Clarice pull up not too far away for the young boy to follow in leaving the car.

'…that in fact it resents you. More than the misunderstood child you gave up to it.' Hannibal saw Clarice freeze as she got out of the car at the last statement.

'Think about it, Clarice, how one word, one accusation would lead to an unforgiving child, wanting nothing to do with you, believing that the bureau was far more important than his life. Tell me Clarice, why do you think? Why do you think you are so resented by the bureau?' Hannibal and Anthony mingled into the crowds leading into Union station pretty well. Hannibal gave the boy some coins to place in a busker's hat before they moved into the station, ahead of Clarice.

'You serve the idea of order, Clarice. They don't. You believe in the oath you took. They don't. You feel it is your duty to protect the sheep…'

Anthony trotted behind Hannibal as they made their way deeper into the station. As Dr. Lecter spoke to whomever the 'Agent Starling' he was told to say hello was. The station was thriving with people enjoying the many forms of entertainment surrounding them. Anthony followed Dr. Lecter's gave to the back of a brown haired woman across the open balcony on the second level. Was she Special Agent Starling? Where had he heard that name before?

Just before they sunk back into the crowds, Anthony saw the brown haired woman look over in their direction and just made eye contact before the swarms around them got thicker.

'Sir, where are we going?' Anthony asked up to Dr. Lecter who placed a finger on the boy's lips and silently shushed him. Dr. Lecter grasped Anthony's hand in his as they continued to walk through the station. Bright lights and music could be heard up ahead and for second, Anthony forgot everything as he let go of Lecter's hand and ran into the arcade area. He stopped before the carousel and smiled with glee at the bright lights designed to attract his young mind.

A hand sprung from nowhere and gripped his shoulder back, dragging him against a solid chest. He looked up to see Dr. Lecter glaring at him for being reckless and running off. The blare of the music was loud and Dr. Lecter knew Clarice would hear it on her end so he decided the best way to blend in was to climb the carousel with the young boy in tow. The ride came to a halt and Hannibal wrapped his hands around Anthony's waist and lifted the young boy up onto a horse. Anthony clutched at the pole extended from the horses head as the carousel began to chant music and turn. Dr. Lecter stood besides him, holding onto the edge of the horse himself. As they spun on the ride, Anthony believed to see the brown haired woman approach the ride, her eyes scanning for…us? She talked into a headphone, similar to Dr. Lecter's and Anthony knew that this was Special Agent Starling. Anthony had been told to say hello to her, but had never met the woman before, although her name seemed to be rather familiar.

Agent Starling turned on the spot, away from the ride as she spoke into the headphone, conversing with Dr. Lecter, who reached out from the ride, his hand just brushing through her hair. Dr. Lecter pulled Anthony off the horse and the two left the ride in the opposite direction, the young boy clinging to the older man's hand as they traveled through the crowds and out of the arcade, both of them fully aware of Agent Starling following them a much closer proximity.

Anthony moved his legs fast to keep up as the Doctor led them through the station towards the food court where nobody could hear themselves think.

Clarice herself struggled to keep up as they moved through the food court, having lost sight of Dr. Lecter and the young boy holding his hand mere seconds ago. She noticed an emergency exit was hanging open and she charged through the crowds, determined not to lose them now, after coming so far and following Dr. Lecter through the station like a lost puppy. She only hoped this was his own precaution due to her followers, rather than just leave her in the station.

However, once Clarice made it outside the back of the food court, she saw her two followers had some hoe gotten ahead and were now tackling Dr. Lecter into the back of van, the license plate missing. Clarice saw one of the men gripping Anthony by his hair and shaking the boy as he fought back, but his small stature and height being a completely overwhelming disadvantage. Clarice felt her hand grip the handle of her gun before she even processed reaching for it, all the focused on the men hurting her son. The man holding Anthony shook the boy before halting upon Clarice calling out:

'Let him go! Now!' She screamed as she advanced. The two men watched silently before throwing Anthony in the back of the van with Dr. Lecter. Clarice screamed her words again and advanced before feeling the blow to the back of her head, her world spinning and flashing numerous different colours. Hands grabbed her sides and she was hauled into the back of the van rather painfully. One man climbed in the back and pulled the doors closed as the engine began to rumble. Clarice saw the man punch Dr. Lecter several times before the man passed out, small flecks of blood donning his lower lip. Clarice saw the man cuff both Dr. Lecter and herself to the wall of the van before using some wire to wrap both of Anthony's wrists together. All the time Clarice never took her eyes of Anthony until the man with the Sardinian accent slapped her and all went black as the van rumbled on.

So…not the family reunion you were expecting. It's rare I give people happiness until the end of the story. Hopefully that will satisfy you all until the next chapter. Again, sorry about a long wait. SO I hope you liked it and please feel free to tell me what you think, bad or good I really don't mind – I need to know if I'm giving you all what you want.

Until the next chapter guys.