Hannibal

[alcuin]

Alcuin had never done this before, and he realized that it might be a bad idea when one of the girls who worked at the brothel talked to him for a few minutes, then gave the person working the bar a Look and then went down the hallway in the direction of Hannibal's office. Where she informed him that Alcuin had been drinking gin martinis at a steady clip for the last hour.

... he really should have gone somewhere else. Or just gotten a bottle of gin and brought it to his room.

When he heard Hannibal's familiar footfalls behind him he said without looking, "I truly hope you're not here to scold me."

Comments

[alcuin]

“He didnt upset me,” Alcuin said hastily. “I mean. Well I suppose he did but I was already upset. I was drinking because - “

He stopped, watching Aaron. “I don’t understand why you’re being nice to me•

[quitollis]

"You looked like you needed some help," Aaron provided. "Our history aside."

[alcuin]

“I don’t deserve your sympathy,” Alcuin said miserably.

[quitollis]

"I don't believe anyone is beyond redemption," Aaron replied. "And our personal history shouldn't interfere."

[alcuin]

Alcuin still looked fairly miserable, but he just nodded.

“Should I start at the beginning? The beginning isn’t that long ago, because I remember literally nothing before I was sixteen. I just appeared on a street corner with nothing but an ID.”

[quitollis]

"At sixteen?" Aaron asked, incredulously. "You remember nothing from before that?"

[alcuin]

“Nothing,” Alcuin sighed. “Just a blank abyss. Years ago I saw a psychiatrist who told me it must have been a trauma response. That something terrible happened to me. I learned later that my parents died in a fire, so I always just thought… I must have seen something terrible, or maybe even there were terrible things before that. But I recently found out - “ He took a gulp of the tea. “Apparently my memory was wiped with magic.”

[quitollis]

Aaron watched him gulp down the tea as if it were scotch. "Must have been powerful magic... But tell me about what you do remember."

[alcuin]

“Before that? Nothing… And I just… lived on the streets for a while.” Shame flickered across Alcuin’s face as he thought of the things he’d done. “Until Hannibal found me. He said he’d been looking for me, that he knew my parents. He rescued me.”

[quitollis]

That sounded... highly suspicious. "He found you and took you in?"

[alcuin]

“Yes…” Though then Alcuin added hastily, “I know that sounds bad, that I was so young. But we weren’t together, not like that, until I was older. And I seduced him.” Because he really did believe that. That it was his idea.”

[quitollis]

"Alright," Aaron said, entirely unjudgemental, though he did have some reservations here. "And he already owned a brothel at that time?"

[alcuin]

“Yes,” Alcuin said.

He looked down at his hands. “Look, I’m really… I’m not… I don’t work there, exactly. I just - I pretend to, to gather information.”

[quitollis]

Aaron heard the words, but only got that Alcuin wasn't even being paid for what he did. "But you sleep with clients?"

[alcuin]

“I… yes, sometimes…”

Alcuin had no idea how to explain this in a way that didn’t seem terrible. “But I don’t mind, really - “ Okay, that wasn’t helping.

[quitollis]

No, of course not. The poor young man had never known a different life. But, of course, he didn't judge.

"So... what happened that got you drinking?"

[alcuin]

“I found out that my memory was intentionally taken from me,” Alcuin said quietly. “I tried as hard as I could to remember and it just… gave me a headache. So I started drinking.”

[quitollis]

Aaron nodded, understanding. "Do you know who did it?"

[alcuin]

“No,” Alcuin said. “Not who, or why. And I thought Hannibal would understand my distress, but he was… dismissive. And.” But the didn’t finish.

[quitollis]

"And?" Aaron asked gently.

[alcuin]

“And he reminded me there was work for me tonight,” Alcuin said softly. “But I think - I think he didn’t really understand why I was upset. He loves me, he does.”

[quitollis]

"I promised not to judge you and I won't," Aaron said. "But it doesn't sound very... healthy for you."

[alcuin]

Alcuin looked down at his hands. His cuticles were ragged as if he’d been picking at them. That was new.

“I’m just… a bit of a mess lately.”

[quitollis]

"Because you feel your life has not been your own?" Aaron asked. He could sympathise with that, certainly.

[alcuin]

“Yes, perhaps but… it isn’t about him. It’s not his fault.”