Hannibal rarely took pictures on his phone. He preferred fine paintings and expensive art décor to fill his home. He supposed if he had family he would have pictures of them to fill his personal space, but even then he stored the more private keepsakes in his memory palace.

Hannibal watched as Will gracefully swam through his tank. He was playing hide and seek with the seal pup. Hannibal suspected Will knew where the seal was but was prolonging finding him to let the game last longer. When the merman decided to end the game, he captured the seal pup and wrapped his arms around him. A large smile encompassed Wills face as the seal pup nosed against him. It was a beautiful sight.

Hannibal put Will's meal down and took out his phone. It wouldn't hurt to take a few photos. It might prove beneficial during social gatherings. He would be the envy of all.

Hannibal snapped a photo.

"Oh, Hannibal, he's beautiful," Komeda cooed as Hannibal showed her the photos of Will. "I never would have guessed he was close to death before you took him in."

As Hannibal had guessed, Will was a success. He was currently at a dinner party hosted by Komeda. He had to give her credit; she waited at least an hour before asking about Will and demanding to see photos. Word soon spread that Hannibal had a merman. Hannibal, of course, showed off. Everyone agreed the merman was in splendid shape; his aquarium was the most extravagant they had ever seen. Hannibal enjoyed the attention.

"Magnificent," Hannibal's colleague, who had told him about Will in the first place, said. "Crawford was a fool to allow such a creature to wither under his care. How did you do it?"

Hannibal smiled as he pocketed his phone. "I feed him only the finest fish and meats."

As the party progressed, Hannibal became aware of the stares from a man from across the room. He was a newcomer to Komeda's parties, but there was already heavy gossip about him.

"You didn't hear it from me," one party goer whispered. "But I've heard ever since he's shown up people have reported items missing from their homes. They can't prove it's him, but it is suspicious."

"Better keep an eye out, Hannibal," another chimed in. "People would do anything to get a mermaid."

Hannibal was getting ready for bed when he heard a creak come from downstairs. He paused and cocked his head to the side. He listened as the sure sounds of footsteps moved below him.

Hannibal carefully made his way downstairs, making sure to avoid any step that might give way his position. He found the kitchen exactly how he had left it, his dining room, however, had an open window he knew was closed before he retired.

Hannibal stepped to close the window when he heard a new sound. A very beautiful sound.

Hannibal was able to restrain himself from gasping as he realized Will was singing. It was the first time he had ever heard his voice, and it was beautiful. Still cautious, Hannibal followed the singing to William's room. There, he found Will near the top of the tank enthralling a man who was leaning over the water.

Hannibal watched, entranced, as Will raised his hand and cupped the man's face. His song never ceased. The man, completely under Will's control, lean into the touch.

A flash of movement, a loud splash, and the water exploded into billows of red.

Hannibal approached the tank with no hurry to his steps. The cloud of blood was too thick to see through. A pity, he thought. He would have enjoyed watching Will eviscerate the man.

He climbed to the top of the tank and waited behind the fence as the churning water settled to a slight ripple. Bits of human flesh and clothes floated to the surface. The filtering system for the tank was top notch and any traces of the unfortunate man would be long gone by the morning. Hannibal was confident in that. He waited a little longer before stepping onto the ledge.

"I see you are enjoying yourself, William," Hannibal called out to him. He still couldn't see his William, but he was confident he wouldn't attack him. "I fear your treat as been spoiled. I was going to fetch you a meal you would have found very satisfying in sinking your teeth into."

A pity, but it might have been for the best. Hannibal was finding it more and more troublesome in finding ways to get Jack Crawford for his William. It wasn't completely off the table just yet, but Will would have to be a little more patient if he wanted to receive a visit from his old owner.

"Also, I must say I'm a little upset with you. You would sing for a stranger but not me?"

The water bubbled. Will popped up from the red water. His eyes were wild and his sharp teeth bared in a fearsome smile. He trilled before coming close to the ledge. He raised his hand and held out the heart of the unfortunate thief. Hannibal smiled.

"Thank you, my dear William."

A few days passed since the incident with the intruder. Will became more affectionate. Whenever he had the chance he would rub his head against Hannibal's hand at feeding time, or he would try to involve Hannibal in the games he and the seal played. Hannibal would always oblige. He would stroke Will's head or throw a toy for the seal. Hannibal also began to release live fish in the tank for Will and the seal to chase. Hannibal noticed that while Will chased the fish down he would never eat them. He left that for the seal.

Their days fell into an easy rhythm. It was, however, disrupted by a surprise visit from Alana Bloom. She as in town only for a few days and wanted to catch up. Hannibal, of course, invited her to dinner. After dinner, he introduced her to Will.

"Oh my. He is beautiful." Alana placed her hand on the glass of the tank. Will approached, curious, before swimming away He was still leery around strangers and preferred to keep his distance. "You did a wonderful job bring him back to health."

Hannibal thanked her and soon the two were talking. Hannibal said something that made Alana laugh, and Hannibal noticed Will returned. He watched them, a blank expression on his face.

Alana placed a hand on Hannibal's shoulder. Will frowned and his fins fluttered in agitation. Before Hannibal could do anything, Will swam in a circle and rammed the glass. Alana jumped. She had not been paying attention to the tank and was unaware what was happening. She turned just as Will swam away to a corner hidden by kelp.

"I apologize, Alana. It slipped my mind that it is William's feeding time." Hannibal lied. "He gets a little agitated when he doesn't get his meal. I fear it may stem from his time with Jack."

He ushered Alana to follow him back to the main living area. He turned back to see Will curled in on himself in the kelp bed.

"I never would have imagined you as the jealous type, William." Hannibal gently chided. "I wonder what else you've been hiding from me."

Will crossed his arms and swam to the corner furthest away from Hannibal. The seal pup followed suit.

"Come now, William, don't be like that. Jealousy doesn't become you."

Will dived underwater and hid in one of his caves.

Hannibal sighed. He left and returned again with food. He set the plate on the ledge for Will, but the merman didn't come from hiding. The seal pup came in his stead and grabbed a piece of flesh to return to the cave.

"Really, William?" Hannibal muttered. If he was going to be petty, so could Hannibal. "You know, that was rude of you to act like that in front of a guest. I'll have to find a way to make it up to Alana. Perhaps a bouquet of flowers. Or maybe her favorite meal."

Hannibal left the ledge. He would allow Will a moment to calm down. His step faltered when Will began to sing. He resisted, but his body was no longer listening to him. He found himself back at the ledge where Will was waiting for him. The merman sang with a sweet smile on his face. He crooked his finger, and Hannibal found himself bending closer. Will raised himself out of the water and put a hand on Hannibal's face. Hannibal tried to force his hand to his pocket where he kept his scalpel, but his body was frozen. He leaned into the taloned hand. Will's face grew closer and closer.

Will pulled Hannibal into the water. The cool water shocked Hannibal out of his enthrallment and he struggled to the surface. He gasped as he breached the surface. Will was in hysterics.

"You should have seen the look on your face."

Hannibal scowled as Will swam circles around him.

"I knew you could talk," Hannibal accused. Will shrugged a shoulder as he continued to swim around him. "And how dare you enthrall me."

"You said you wanted to hear me sing," Will reminded him. "Consider it payback."

"Payback?" Hannibal asked. The seal pup joined in on the game and was now circling Hannibal with Will. "For what? Your misguided jealousy?"

"You should have known better." Will said as he stopped to pet the seal. He cooed at him before turning his attention back to Hannibal. "It's rude to accept a courting gift and then bring a potential love rival to their territory."

Wait. What?

Hannibal had little time to process what Will said before the merman was crowding his space. He wrapped his arms around him, and before Hannibal knew it he was lying on the sandy ledge bed with Will on top of him.

Will nuzzled Hannibal's throat as his talons ripped apart his clothes. Hannibal tried to protest, but Will had already begun to lave kisses on his jugular.

"You stink of her. How could you allow her to touch you after you accepted my gift?"

"I think there may be a misunderstanding." Hannibal managed to get out before Will placed a finger against his lips.

"It doesn't matter now. I've declared you mine, and no one else will have you."

Will swiftly dove in and kissed Hannibal. He was patient. He nibbled gently on the lips he'd been dying to kiss for weeks now. It took a few more moments before Hannibal finally began to participate. Will smiled and broke the kiss. He trailed back down to Hannibal's neck and continued his kissing. Hannibal wove his fingers in his drying hair. Will purred. He was only slightly sorry for what he was about to do.

Hannibal shouted as Will's teeth sunk into the junction between his shoulder and neck. He went to pull Will off, but the merman was already pulling away. His mouth was ruby red and dripping blood. He smiled.

"There. Now everyone will know you belong to me."

Hannibal sat up and gripped his neck. He expected to find torn flesh, but instead he found the wound was already healing and the bleeding stopped. He looked at Will, stunned. Will just blinked at him.

"You know surprisingly very little about my kind." Will sighed. He leaned in and nuzzled Hannibal's face. "But don't worry. I have confidence you will be a fast learner."

While his mind was still wrapping around what just happened, Hannibal chuckled and stroked Will's face.

"I should punish you for that. First, you ruin my clothes and then you scar me."

"Hmm. You seemed to enjoy both."

"That is up for debate, dear William."

The seal, not wanting to be left out in the snuggle fest, joined them on the sandy ledge and plopped down onto Hannibal's legs, effectively keeping him in one place.

"I'll make it up to you." Will said. He nuzzled the now healed scar on Hannibal's neck before giving it a single kiss.

Hello everyone!

I was going to wrap this story with three chapters, but I've thought up other ideas so I'm extending it to two more chapters.

Thank you all for reading. I truly appreciate all of your comments and favorites. May you all have a good night.