#post twotl

[enbymurderhusbands]

i feel like hannibal would download life 360 on will’s phone without him knowing

[sixtorches]

Am I the only one who headcannons that Hannibal and Will are just like... happy and settled post TWOTL? I feel like they got most of their issues out. Will tipped them over to let fate decide if he gets to be happy so... if they survived, he gets to let go of his reservations and just... be himself. With Hannibal.

[ashfdhfgdsfk]

[lunairka]

“The Fall”

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Closeups, different versions and more under the cut!

HOH BOY. THIS PIECE PUT ME THROUGH ACTUAL HELL. The LENGTHS I had to go to get this done man. BUT NOW ITS HERE. ITS DONE. Anyway, I had to watch The Fall on repeat in order to make this, and I think that I’m completely mentally destroyed from that! The things I do for you all <3

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Despite everything, I’m still really proud of how this came out, and I hope you all enjoy!

[carrythatwayt]

I will survive (threat)(promise).

[crimsondinnerparty]

Hannigram: The Ultimate Zero-Sum Game

If there’s one thing *Hannibal* nails perfectly, it’s the complex, borderline insane dynamic between Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter. But what makes their relationship so captivating is how it's a zero-sum game from start to finish.

One of them has to lose for the other to win—and sometimes, it feels like winning is the worst thing that could happen to either of them.

What Is a Zero-Sum Game?

In basic terms, a zero-sum game means that for one person to gain something, the other has to lose an equal amount. It’s like a tug-of-war where both sides can’t win at once. And that’s exactly what Will and Hannibal are doing the whole time—pulling each other apart in this twisted dance of love, manipulation, and survival.

Hannibal Wants to *Consume* Will

Let’s be real: Hannibal doesn't just want to be friends with Will. He wants to **own** him. Hannibal's love is this dark, possessive thing where he needs Will to embrace the darkness completely, to be his mirror. Think about it—every time Hannibal talks about "seeing" Will, it's always about how *he* sees Will’s potential for violence and darkness, and how Will just needs to step into it.

Season 2, “Mizumono”: Hannibal’s attempt to flee with Will wasn’t just an offer; it was an ultimatum. For Hannibal, Will’s refusal to fully join him led to one of the most violent, heart-wrenching betrayals in the series. Hannibal leaves Will bleeding out on the floor not because he’s rejected but because Will *failed* him by not becoming what Hannibal wanted him to be.

Will’s Struggle: To Keep His Soul or Surrender It

On the other side of this is Will, constantly fighting against Hannibal’s pull. What makes this a true zero-sum game is that if Will gives in to Hannibal—really gives in—he loses who he is. Will’s whole battle is about preserving his empathy, his sense of right and wrong, but the deeper he goes into Hannibal’s world, the more that slips away.

Season 3, “Digestivo”: When Hannibal lets himself get caught just to stay close to Will, it shows how far this game has gone. Hannibal’s giving up his freedom, but it’s all part of trying to win the ultimate prize: Will’s loyalty. Will is trapped because any attempt to leave or resist Hannibal brings him back into this twisted love, even at the cost of his sanity.

The Finale: Both Can’t Survive

Fast forward to the series finale, and we see the game come to its ultimate end. When Will finally acknowledges his attraction to the darkness Hannibal represents, he’s no longer just resisting—he’s accepting that there’s no middle ground for them. It’s all or nothing. So what does he do? He takes them both off the cliff. In a true zero-sum game move, Will realizes that for either of them to win, they both have to lose. And so they fall together.

“The Wrath of the Lamb”: That final scene is the perfect metaphor for their entire relationship. Will’s decision to pull them both into the abyss is the only way to escape the endless push and pull. They can’t just be together; they can’t just walk away. If Will fully embraces Hannibal, he’s lost to the darkness. If Hannibal lets Will go, he loses the person who sees him most clearly. So, they fall.

Endless Cycles of Power-

Even when one gains the upper hand—Will trapping Hannibal, Hannibal framing Will—this only pushes them deeper into each other’s worlds. Hannibal sees Will as a masterpiece in progress, something to mold. But the second Will truly gives in, he stops being himself. The balance between them means that love, survival, and destruction are all the same thing.

In Conclusion: Their Love Is a Zero-Sum Game

The Hannigram relationship is tragic because it’s unsustainable. They are trapped in a game where the only real "win" comes from total domination or destruction. Hannibal's love is about consuming Will, and Will’s love (or resistance) is about holding onto whatever is left of himself. Every moment of their relationship is about pushing the other to a breaking point, and neither can win without annihilating the other.

In the end, love isn’t just complicated between these two—it’s a weapon, a means of control, and a game where survival means the loss of something essential. **They can’t exist together without breaking each other apart.**

---

Hannibal once said, “Killing must feel good to God too… He does it all the time, and are we not created in His image?” In Hannigram’s case, this line rings true: their love is all about creation and destruction. To love, for them, is to annihilate.

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[cartsandhorses]

who’s up will grahaming their wednesday

[tethered-heartstrings]

I know that was a joke post but now I am genuinely curious what Hannibal would want (and be allowed) to have as his last meal.

let me start off by saying this started one place and took a huge turn (sorry) but... this got me thinking. my assumption is he was tried in maryland. maryland abolished the death penalty in 2013, but if he was tried under federal and not state, death penalty is still technically on the table in all 50 states.

unlike other states, maryland does not offer a special last meal to those about to be executed, and they are offered whatever is on the menu at the prison they are residing. i don't think that if he was charged federally it would have necessarily changed his food situation.

given that hannibal was held at bshci, he probably would have had whatever they were serving that day. we saw in s2 with will that it wasn't anything particularly exciting. canned/processed/boxed food. the more gourmet meals he got while imprisoned were definitely due to a special deal he had with alana. it's not directly specified in the show to my knowledge, but pretty sure he got special privileges for helping her and margot. but also if it means hearing him complain less, all the better.

that being said, there is a chance alana would break the maryland tradition and actually offer him a special meal. most requests deny alcohol or tobacco, but again, we're humoring a special meal.

now for the fun part. obviously hannibal wouldn't be given human meat. some inmates in other states asked not only for a meal but to share the meal with someone. and i think hannibal would definitely request to have a last meal with will since the last meal they had together (at least on screen) was the meal before mizumono.

and i think it would be well within the realm for hannibal to want to recreate this meal, maybe even going so far as to ask to make it himself. +/- if alana would allow for that, maybe if everything was precut and he wasn't near anything sharp. if he wanted will to share the meal with him, i'd be curious to see what will would do. he'd know hannibal was on death row, it'd be all over the news, jack would tell him, etc. and i think he would seek out the result of hannibal's trial if he was not sitting in the room as he was sentenced. knowing he indirectly put him there, and i'd place bets on him opening that hand written letter asking for his company one last time and he'd go to see hannibal and share that meal with him. to dine one last time together.

and i wonder how each of them would see it. will never answering if he wanted a sacrifice, yet one now sat across from him. how during the mizumono meal, will said "that'd make this our last supper" to which hannibal responds "of this life" which now truly is the last meal of this life, of hannibal's life. maybe for will, too, in a way. for how good could food taste or sate knowing your conjoined, blurred half is about to die, and that nagging guilt in your chest that it's your fault. and the question of if they could survive separation. and maybe the question was more up in the air when it was possibly hannibal who had to live without him, but now will is faced with the reality that he has to live without hannibal. and in some alternate life it would have been easier to stay with his wife and never see hannibal, but knowing he was alive was enough, and he'd no longer have that crutch.

but hannibal seeing it as almost a redo for before the slaughter in his kitchen. going back to a moment they had some peace, even if brief, life as he knew it was brief now. but still, someone he loved, the only person he loved, sitting across from him eating and drinking wine together. maybe in silence, i don't know. smiles would be exchanged; hannibal's genuinely happy and will's a bit sad. to be so fully and deeply and intimately seen. now there was no running away together anymore. will would leave and hannibal could only hope will would go to his execution.

and i think will would go. i don't know if it would be a "want" situation, but a "need". to see hannibal lecter taken down almost so effortlessly. the unkillable finally killed. the man he couldn't shoot the two times he had a gun in his face, the man he dropped his gun for and let himself be gutted and held by, the man he pulled a knife on and still couldn't take down. ultimately, in a way, will took him down. hannibal surrendered because will rejected him. will didn't need a weapon, he just needed words and a closed off heart. and within minutes, it'd be over.

but what happens after? the remains of inmates not claimed by family get kept in the prison cemetery. hannibal has no family to claim him, will is the closest to family he has. but what if will claims him, then what? will doesn't know what hannibal's final wishes are; to be cremated, buried? maybe he does know without hannibal having to explicitly say. to eat you like the sacrificial lamb you are.

my guess is a body executed via lethal injection (chosen method for maryland) would not be safe to eat. sodium thiopental is a barbituate like the one used for animal euthanasia, but it isn't the part of the "cocktail" that actually causes death. i know animals euthanized (with a different barbituate) and eaten can kill the animal that eats them, so there is a chance eating hannibal could do the same thing. consuming potassium chloride (the deadly part of the injection) in large quantities can cause a lot of side effects/health detriments and in theory, eating enough can cause cardiac failure, but i don't know the oral bioavailabity in comparison to iv.

as romantic as it seems, i don't think will would eat hannibal knowing it could kill him, and tbh, i don't see hannibal wanting will to knowing his death might be imminent. even if it meant being together in the afterlife, that wasn't how will was going to die. like yeah "death only by my hand" but it's not the same. maybe part of will's punishment is having to stay alive without him. i do think hannibal might if the roles were reversed, though.

if will ended up giving hannibal a graveplot (probably unmarked so it doesn't end up desecrated), or even sprinkling his ashes somewhere, i know will would visit him again. maybe not for awhile, maybe denial or anger, but he would go back. i know hannibal said he could never go back to lithuania, so maybe will takes him there and buries him next to mischa so they can be together, finally and forever. maybe he doesn't take him home, knowing how much hannibal stayed away when he was alive. there are a lot of things will could do, tbh.

[clear-what-i-was-seeing]

LOVE CRIME IS BACK ON SPOTIFY I REPEAT LOVE CRIME IS BACK ON SPOTIFY AS OF NOVEMBER 29 2022

[wolfie-art]

the view from the bottom of the cliff 😔👎🏽

[fixedteacup]

thinking about that one line from love crime "[I will] win this deadly game" and its implications that hannibal and will's "game" of deception, lies, betrayal, and forgiveness is over now that it's won by the both of them, now that they've fallen off the cliff. and if the game's over, if they've stopped working against each other and started working with each other, then their dynamic must have changed – meaning when they came for bedelia('s leg) in the after credit scene, it's the first time where they've decided to commit acts of violences not because they're playing a game with each other but because they're playing games now with others together as a solidified duo as murder husbands.

[ineffably-graham]

the way hannibal is looking at his lips. like he expects to kiss him, but hasn't convinced himself to do it yet. because he's afraid he'll scare will off, especially after everything they've been through.

disclaimer: i'm actually fine with the kiss being cut. i think their relationship is beyond normal standards of romance and intimacy, and their interaction was just as powerful (if not more) than a kiss would be. kisses are not the only form of intimacy, and that scene was the most intimate thing i have ever seen.

although i would enjoy to see them kiss.

[lunairka]

Crying about how for his whole life, water has been a safe haven for Will. From lakes, to the ocean. It’s where he goes when the world is too much around him. It’s safety and familiarity. And down he pulls himself and Hannibal into the Atlantic. On his own terms, they fall.

[somewhere-in-the-trees]

This may have been said before but for Hannibal, Will’s anger and violence is the wrath of god because Will is his god. I heard the phrase the wrath of god and it just connected that the final episode, The Wrath Of The Lamb is The Wrath of Hannibal’s God (Will). In this we can further understand why he is so joyful at Wills decent into a fugue state, it’s a religious exultation for him to bathe in the wrath of his god, something larger than life like an Old Testament act upon humanity. He soaks it in like the glory of the sun warms him because such an explosion of fury is quite literally miraculous. All of his influence and design over Will has been pushing towards this experience, and while he could not predict how it would manifest, he knew the glory of his god would rain down on him and create an experience far greater than anything in his life up until this point.

[parkitaco]

i have like. 6 or 7 wips rn that are all at roughly the same stage of writing which is fuckin crazy bc i literally do not know which one is going to get posted next. no idea. i’m working on all of them at the same rate. this is a roulette situation. send help

[that-void-boy]

Hannigram and Wishbone by Richard Siken

I love this poem so much , and I need to talk about it for a second , especially since certain lines can link so well with hannibal and will , I tried to keep each part as short as possible ,,,

all the quotes are straight from the poem :]

' I took the bullet for all the wrong reasons, I’d just as soon kill you myself '

ok , so starting out with a fairly obvious one , this aligns well with their overall dynamic , especially on will's side in the earlier seasons when he had more conflicting emotion towards hannibal . like in s2 when he sends mason after hannibal but ends up saving him before he can be fully lowered into the pig pen , this idea of wanting the other dead yet not wanting it at the same time , ' can't live with him , can't live without him '

' I say I want you inside me and you hold my head underwater, I say I want you inside me and you split me open with a knife '

' I want you inside me ' can easily refer to a number of things , though in the poem it does mean it in the literal more nsfw sense ( which does also work for will and hannibal ) , it can also refer to the more obvious comparison of cannibalism , and also the idea of being behind the veil or between the stitches of the person suit that they both wear , I want you inside me as in I want you to be within me to be able to properly see me and know me .

this line from the poem works well in the context of s2 when they are both attempting to kill each other as a way of flirting , especially since will sent matthew brown to kill hannibal when he was swimming , hence the ' and you hold my head underwater ' . and then also in mizumono when hannibal guts will , this aligns with ' and you split me open with a knife ' . the line shifts from hannibals point of view at the end of s1 and the start of s2 where he has framed will and wants him to understand and see him , and yet he is rejected at first as will is very determined to have him killed or convicted , this is the whole ' I want you to see me and be with me behind the veil and you need to be here in order to understand that ' and yet will ultimately tries to kill him for it at the start . then as the point of view shifts to will at the end of s2 when he realises this is what he actually wants and he returns to hannibal and chooses him in the end , it is too late and his betrayal is too great , and so he is also rejected as punishment for his actions .

they both clearly want to be seen and understood by eachother at this point , especially in s2 as they begin to interact with this part of their relationship more and more , even if it is still part of the honeytrap plot , its undeniable that will had awoken something inside himself and saw something in hannibal that led him to choose him and continue to follow him .

' I swear, I end up feeling empty, like you’ve taken something out of me, and I have to search my body for the scars, thinking Did he find that one last tender place to sink his teeth in? '

s1 will graham through and through , the vulnerability he ended up having with hannibal , the manipulation , how hannibal began isolating him and became his main support structure . will sleepwalking and losing time , having to 'search [his] body for scars ' when he comes around again because he doesn't know what has happened , and even more so from an audience perspective when we see things in s2 like hannibal putting abigails ear down his throat while he isn't conscious

also the idea of ' sink his teeth in ' is very visceral and I love it , shows the more animalistic sense hidden behind the person suit while also being a haha cannibal joke

' I’ll be your slaughterhouse, your killing floor, your morgue, and final resting '

hannibal and will have a form of obsessive love for one another that becomes all encompassing , hannibal even moved to a whole other continent with a different person and yet all he could think about was will , and the same goes to will when we consider how he was able to find hannibal and how he always went back to him .

this line really speaks to their relationship as a whole , its somewhat grotesque yet powerful and alluring , and there is a sense of quiet peace , like the calm in the eye of a storm . they could only ever die by eachothers hand , and neither would have it any other way , they will always find each other , and in a way , they were eachothers ' final resting ' . whether you believe they survived the fall or not , they definitely were able to find that peace within eachother in the moment before they fell off the cliff , that sense of belonging and that this could not have gone any other way , this was always what was meant to happen . they are equals , and they were predestined to die by eachothers hand , either during the fall or long after

' Don’t you see, it’s like I’ve swallowed your house keys, and it feels so natural, like the bullet was already there, like it’s been waiting inside me the whole time. '

will realising how he is so alike to hannibal towards the end of s2 and the whole of s3 , these acts he commits feel so natural to him and its as if he has tried to conceal this part of himself for so long , hidden behind the cold and off-putting exterior he puts on for his job , yet beneath it he knows what he is capable of , hannibal saw it and will saw it ripple beneath the surface the moment he pulled the trigger on hobbs . from that point onwards , he has an internal battle with himself until admitting to hannibal that what he did felt powerful

furthermore , in s2 , when he kills and displays randall tier with hannibal as part of his becoming , it seems to be no bother to him , he doesn't at any point seem to regret his actions or think about any repercussions he may suffer from them , he is already comfortable with this nature of killing and he willingly then eats tier alongside hannibal , it comes easily to him , as if its ' been waiting inside [him] the whole time '

' Do you want it? Do you want anything I have? Will you throw me to the ground like you mean it, reach inside, and wrestle it out with your bare hands? '

I think that this quote can be likened to hannibal in s3a where he is so desperate for will , and he is able to see how far will has come in his acceptance of this part of himself and they each gain eachothers forgiveness , now that hannibal knows about will and knows that he's still chasing after him , even after the events of mizumono , he so desperately wants to be wanted by him , and seeing will doing so is such a relief

the part ' will you throw me to the ground like you mean it ' after will in s2 saying how often he wanted to kill hannibal himself ' with [his] (bare) hands ' alongside the idea of will now being able to as he is much more comfortable with this part of himself in s3 , and hannibal wants that , he wants to see will kill and he wants to see him mean it fully . especially after his betrayal at the end of s2 , hannibal needs to know that will is no longer fooling him and that he can indeed be the person that belongs behind the veil with him . they aren't kidding around anymore and will isn't honeytrapping , they are able to be themselves

' If you love me, Henry, you don’t love me in a way I understand. '

will being confused by his own emotions towards hannibal , from s1 right through to the end of s3 , going from annoyance to reliance to need to fear to anger/hatred to realisation to acceptance to betrayal to sadness to forgiveness to love . ultimately culminating in the line ' is hannibal in love with me ? ' and bedelia confirming that he does have a very unique way of loving will , and yet it is still the most all-encompassing thing , will is very unsure about his own feelings towards hannibal in s3b up until then when he pieces it all together and I do believe that is when he realises that he does love him back . will's silences tend to speak louder than words , and his silence after bedelia essentially asks him if he also loves hannibal , speaks volumes , and almost definitely shows him having this realisation and finally coming to terms with it even if he does not fully understand how or why these feelings have come about

' There’s a bottle of whiskey in the trunk of the Chevy and a dead man at our feet staring up at us like we’re something interesting. '

this links back to s1e1 with will claiming ' I don't find you that interesting ' and hannibal replying ' you will ' , this line links to them later on in the show , perhaps with randall tier in s2 or later in s3 when they do eventually kill together or have some resemblance of that , the idea that they are now so much more intertwined with eachother and now they are much more ' interesting ' to one another

also will drinks whiskey so uhh , there's your other link

' This is where the evening splits in half, Henry, love or death. Grab an end, pull hard, and make a wish. '

this is reminiscent of their dinner the night before the kitchen scene of mizumono , hannibal knowing about wills betrayal and still offering him that chance to confess and suggesting that they leave that night and not leave a trace except for a note for alana , he gave will an opportunity to choose between ' love or death ' , and when will did not end up confessing , hannibal toasts ' to the truth then , and all its consequences ' , a thinly veiled way of showing his knowledge and how the future events will proceed , that is where the evening splits in half , that is when hannibal had to make his decision about how the next evening would plan out , even though will was technically still undecided about whose side he was on , he had unknowingly sealed his fate with hannibal

.

bam , I highly recommend reading the full poem , here is a link if you would like to :

https://anotherhand.livejournal.com/86133.html

there's obviously a fxck ton more I could talk about but I shall leave it at that snvdsbdb

:]]]