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Title: Fight Or Flight
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Will Graham/Everett Hobbs (Original Character)
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Author's Note: Everett's face is Benedict Cumberbatch.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Will Graham or Lee Fallon, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

Everett sighed softly, glancing over at Will.

He had a proposition to put to the other man, and he hoped that Will would accept it. He hadn't been sure that he should ask, but he felt as though he needed to.

They had to get away from Wolf Trap. He didn't feel safe here, and he didn't think that Will did, either. And they weren't safe. Not as long as Hannibal was out there.

If they went to his home in London, then it would be harder for Hannibal to get to them. He could follow them, of course, but somehow, Everett didn't think he would. He was sue that Hannibal wouldn't be able to get away from his practice; after all, he had to earn his living, didn't he?

Will could take a sabbatical from his teaching position at the FBI Academy. Perhaps he could even work for Scotland Yard, now that he'd been exonerated of any wrongdoing.

He just wanted to get the two of them out of Wolf Trap, and out of Hannibal's reach. He would feel safer in his own home, in a place that he was used to.

But convincing Will of the need for that might not be easy.

Will would want to bring his dogs along, and of course, Everett had room for one or two of them. But all six? No, that would be impossible. Not in the middle of a busy city.

He had come to love the dogs, too, he realized, a small smile on his lips. They had become familiar to him, and he had to admit that he felt safer with them around. He knew that if anyone, even Hannibal, tried to get into the house, that the dogs would at least bark a warning.

Not only that, but they were good companions. They never complained, and they were all affectionate animals. He'd gotten used to having them all around.

No, they wouldn't be able to leave any of the dogs behind easily.

That was one stumbling block in moving to London. Or even in staying there for a short time. Everett was sure that Will wouldn't want to leave his dogs in a kennel, or even in the care of friends.

So that put something of a damper on the idea of their even spending any time in London, Everett thought, sighing again. How would he convince Will that it was the best thing to do?

Will put down the book he was reading and looked over at Everett, frowning slightly. "What's wrong?" he asked, his voice soft. "And don't tell me nothing, Everett. You've sighed twice in the last five minutes, so I know that there's something on your mind that you don't want to talk to me about."

Everett had to laugh at that astute assessment. "You know me too well," he admitted, smiling a little. "Actually, I do want to talk to you about something, Will."

Will nodded, looking serious. "What is it? You can tell me."

Of course he could. He could tell Will anything. That was one of the things that he loved about this man; he felt entirely comfortable with Will. There was no awkwardness between them.

Still, Everett knew that this wouldn't be an easy subject to approach, and he wasn't sure of what to say, how to broach the subject of leaving Wolf Trap.

He cleared his throat to speak, then hesitated, unsure of how to start this conversation.

"Everett, whatever it is, just spit it out," Will told him, his voice soft and gentle. "I'm not going to grow a second head and snarl at you. I promise. Just tell me."

Everett nodded, taking a deep breath. "Will .... I think that the two of us need to get away from Wolf Trap. Not forever -- but just for a while. I think you need to be free of Hannibal for a while, to be out of the sphere of his influence. And I think that you'd be safer if you're far away from him."

Will sighed softly, closing his eyes. "He doesn't influence me, Everett," he said, his voice steady and even ."Not any longer. I know what he is. He's a monster."

That was a good sign. Everett let out the breath he'd been holding; Will obviously didn't have any kind of fascination with Hannibal. That was one worry taken care of.

But what did he think about the idea of leaving Wolf Trap, even temporarily?

That was what Everett was most worried about. He didn't want this idea -- which they didn't have to act on, of course -- to drive a wedge between the two of them.

"I don't know how easy it's going to be for us to be away from this place," Will said, sounding thoughtful. "I mean, I'd have to find somebody to take care of the dogs. I doubt your place in London is big enough for more than a couple of them at the most. But you're right. We need to get away."

Everett blinked, almost unable to believe what he was hearing. He'd expected Will to be completely against the idea -- and here he was, agreeing with him.

That was completely unexpected, but very welcome. And reassuring.

"We can take a couple of the dogs with us," Everett said slowly, hoping that Will would agree with him. "I hope that someone here would be willing to keep the rest of them until we get back."

Privately, he hoped that they wouldn't have to come back; what he wanted to do was to find a house in the suburbs of London where they could keep all of the dogs.

But first things first, Everett told himself firmly. First, he and Will had to make plans to leave Wolf Trap, and find a person who would take care of the dogs for them. Once they had been in London for a while, then he could bring up the possibility of Will staying there permanently.

There was no need to rush into it -- but there was every need to get away from Wolf Trap. Everett almost felt as though a trap was starting to close its jaws around them.

He didn't feel safe here -- and he didn't think that Will did, either. Hannibal presented a very real threat, one that he wanted to get away from as quickly as they could.

Once they were in London, they could discuss their next move.

"So, it's fight or flight -- and we really don't have the resources to fight at the moment," Will said, sighing. "You're right. Getting away from here would be best."

Everett nodded, finally finding his voice again. "We'll find someone to keep most of the dogs for an indeterminate amount of time. I'm sure that of all the people you know, at least one of them would be willing to do that. I wouldn't want to keep them in a kennel for too long. They wouldn't like it."

Will smiled ruefully, shaking his head. "You're right about that. So I'll start asking people tomorrow. And you can start looking into flights. The sooner, the better."

Everett could almost feel a huge weight lifting from his shoulders.

When it came to choosing fight or flight, at the moment, they were on the side of flight. They didn't really have any other choice; they needed to be better prepared before they went up against Hannibal.

But they would do just that, Everett vowed silently. They would take that monster on, and they would win. And hopefully, they would manage to put him behind bars, where he belonged.

If they didn't, then they would face even more danger than they did now.

That was something he didn't even want to contemplate, Everett thought with another soft sigh as he reached for his laptop, intending to check into flights to London.

They were already in more than enough danger, what with Hannibal obviously feeling that Will somehow belonged to him. Everett didn't doubt that there would be an explosive confrontation in the future.

All he could do was hope that he and Will would be the winners of that final battle.

Yes, they were choosing flight now, but later, they would stand and fight.

With any luck, they would find the path to victory.

***