Hannigram would use baby voice, a thesis.
At first glance, the idea of Will and Hannibal using a baby voice with each other seems entirely out of character…something that contradicts their carefully curated personas. But if we strip away the operatic grandeur and treat them as real people rather than mythic figures, it becomes almost inevitable that they would engage in some form of age-regressive behavior.
Age regression, a psychological response to trauma, has some manifestations, and one is that it can happen as individuals unconsciously reverting to a younger, often idealized version of themselves. It’s a coping mechanism, a way to seek comfort and safety in a world that has historically denied them both. Given the immense trauma both Hannibal and Will have endured, Hannibal’s childhood horrors are well-documented, and while Will’s past is less defined, his symptoms speak for themselves, it would be unnatural for them not to display some form of regression when they finally allow themselves to be vulnerable and completely unshielded.
When all their defenses are stripped away, when they are safe in each other’s presence, their inability to voice their needs directly could manifest in subtle but unmistakable ways. Not necessarily a literal baby voice, but exaggerated childish expressions, playful pouting, overly tight clinging, muffled sounds of contentment, or affectionate gestures that mirror the uninhibited love of a child. Both men struggle to ask for comfort in explicit terms, so instead, they might demand it in ways that bypass adult self-consciousness altogether.
It’s tempting to view them as cold, calculated figures, monsters sculpted from Shakespearean language and untouchable intellect. But beneath that, they are still two lost boys who have spent their lives starving for connection. When they finally find it, the weight of their masks might slip just enough for them to seek solace in the most instinctive, human ways possible.
All of that to say, “pweaseee, baby? will you kill this man with me? 🥺”