Chapter Text
The heavy bedroom curtains blocked the majority of the light, leaving little clue as to whether it was morning or evening. Hannibal carefully shifted the motionless omega in his arms to retrieve his wristwatch from the nightstand; just past five am and, he estimated, the fourth day of Will’s current heat. The satisfying days had been filled with copious amounts of sex and brief resting moments he had used to keep the barely present omega nourished and gentling him into a few hours of sleep.
Will whimpered softly without waking entirely but instinctively stretched his throat out for the alpha, letting his legs splay a little further apart. Hannibal let an approving growl rumble through his chest and pressed a kiss to his mate’s curls while hands roamed over his mate’s body. The omega’s soft keens continued as fingers teased over his nipples and down his back before finally sliding down to between his parted thighs to feel the slick collected there.
As much as he would always prefer Will lucid and delighted to be the centre of the man's attention Hannibal could not deny how fascinating it was to see his mate succumb to heat; his unique mind addled by hormones and reduced to a primitive state. He would never tire of the sight of Will in his bed, nor fail to feel a smug satisfaction that he was the only one to reduce his beautiful omega into such a debauched state. By the final day his omega was a rather pliant lover, reduced for the most to soft moans and purrs, and happy to let his body be arranged and used as the alpha saw fit.
Hannibal breathed in the omega’s scent, nuzzling through his hair down to the gland in his throat, grazing over the old mating scar. The smell of heat and omega pheromones were significantly weaker than even a few hours earlier but neither that or the fevered flush had quite left Will’s body. The press of lips and tongue against the scar tissue there drew a surprised squeal but was soothed with a gentle press against his lower back.
It was not difficult to maneuverer Will into a comfortable position on his front, covering the prone form with his own and entering him again. Hannibal kept his pace steady with slow, deep thrusts mindful of the younger’s sore body; he would have preferred to drag the final orgasm from his mate slowly- to wring pretty and increasingly desperate whimpers from the omega as Will squirmed around a fourth finger or the alpha’s tongue- but found himself unable to deny the omega.
It didn’t take long for Will to come and with his mate finally satisfied Hannibal continued to rut into him a little rougher and less even till his knot tied them together.
Will was already drifting back to sleep again by the time Hannibal resettled them both on their sides to wait out the tie, entwining their legs and letting one arm drape protectively around Will’s torso. He continued to murmur assurances and sweet nothings into the omega’s curls, meaningless at this point, and gently caressing his flat stomach long after his breathing evened out to a sleeper’s rhythm.
Despite repeated assurances to the contrary Will had taken each negative test since they’d agreed to begin trying for a child just over four months prior as a personal failure, entirely of his own. Ridiculous, of course, but not surprising when the man’s perceived value of himself was already unfoundedly low.
“This time,” he thought aloud, tugging his mate closer, the same words he had uttered during each of the five heats he’d shared with Will.
…………………………..
Will woke up alone although the bed had been carefully remade and several pillows arranged to minimise the discomfort in his thighs and lower back. While a heat could be turned from agonising to very enjoyable with an appropriate partner nothing made the morning after a cycle ended any easier. Aches, tenderness, nausea and dehydration were unavoidable as well as the sticky feel of filth after days worth of sweat and other fluids drying on his skin.
Will struggled out of bed and to the bathroom to shower. He wrapped himself in a dressing gown before going downstairs but refrained from underwear and proper clothing as his lower body was still sore.
Hannibal, already fully dressed, looked up from plating identical dishes of fluffy protein scramble as his mate sat down at the island. A smug smile turned up the corners of his mouth at the still slightly debauched look of the younger man. Will rolled his eyes but couldn’t bring himself to chastise him, simply accepting the offered breakfast with a quiet word of thanks.
The comfortable silence as they both ate was interrupted after a few minutes by the landline; the alpha pressed Will back into his seat with a hand to his shoulder before going to answer it.
“He is still on leave till Monday.” Hannibal’s voice rose slightly allowing it to carry from the hallway. A pause as the other spoke. “That borders on unprofessional Agent Crawford.”
Will fought the urge to groan as he followed after his mate. Most would not be able to recognise the agitation in the older man’s face at the intrusion on his mate’s recuperation time as little showed beyond a slight tightening of his mouth, voice still polite and professional if a trifle colder as he passed Will the phone.
“Hello Jack.”
“Will, there’s been an emergency at the BSHCI,” Jack said without pause. “One dead and possible new information I need you to confirm. I’m about ten minutes away.” The line disconnected.
Will turned back to his mate. “I’m sorry.”
“This cannot continue Will,” Hannibal replied, steeping closer to lay one hand on Will’s waist and gently cup his chin in the other. “It is not part of your job description to drop everything at Jack’s convenience. The added stress he piles on you is not healthy; neither is his lack of respect for professional boundaries.” As much as he respected qualities about Jack Crawford the man’s blatant discourtesy often showed to his subordinates and aptitude for ignoring professional guidelines were not acceptable.
The words left unsaid- stress is a primary deterrent for conception and if Jack cannot prevent himself from imposing beyond what is acceptable now how can he be expected to do so in the future if their circumstances were to change hung uncomfortably in the air between them. The hand on Will’s hip drifted over to let the thumb graze his flat navel through a gap in the thin material, reminding him without words of how- they hoped- in the near future it would be more than Will’s health and wellbeing in question.
“It’ll only be a couple of hours at most,” Will said after a guilty pause. “See you back here at lunch?”
“Of course.” Hannibal pressed a kiss to the other’s brow, lingering a heartbeat breathing in the sweet, fresh scent of the omega’s skin before letting him hurry back upstairs to get dressed.
He pondered the smell of his mate’s flesh as he exited the house and as he was driving to his office. It was a faint change, no doubt echoed in the taste of Will’s skin if had taken the time, but with the decrease of heat pheromones the scent of slightly increased estrogen and progesterone was unmistakable. At three days at most after conception it would not have been noticeable to many alphas but Hannibal was aware that his particular sense was above average, especially when focussed on such a familiar and delicious source of stimuli.
It would be difficult to hide the delight he felt at having successfully impregnated his omega through his tedious morning patients, not to mention refrain from letting Will know for at least the few days before the man would take a home test without prompting. Still, the occasion deserved celebrating and as he pulled up at a red light an idea of a perfect recipe and business card had already formed in his mind.