#they are all the best at what they do (the leverage ot3 is included in nate and sophie’s team competence though)

[leverage-ot3]

neal caffrey and peter burke are nate and sophie in a different font and here’s why- *gunshots*

[thebiballerina]

Suggestions for More Varied Polyamorous Ship Tournaments

For me, half the fun of fandom-focused brackets is to learn about media that people are passionate about, maybe even ones that you are totally unfamiliar with. While I love Leverage (2008) with all my heart, it has gotten a little repetitive to see Hardison/Parker/Eliot win or place in so many OT3 or polyamory poll tournaments (at least five that I know of—see footnote), when I know there are so many interesting polyamorous ships out there. Since I understand the appeal of the H/P/E OT3 and I know Leverage fans will be dedicated no matter what, I propose that it could be helpful (and fun) to see a wider variety in types of polyamory poll tournaments. After all, there are many different ways that fans might consider a ship to be "best".

Thus I have developed a list of suggestions (thank you @doctorbeverlycrusher and @mary-louise4760 for your assistance here). This includes a mix of aspects that a ship can be ranked as "best" in, and specific ship dynamics. Feel free to ask for clarification or examples of any of the list items, add your own suggestions, and use these as inspiration for poll tournaments. (Some of these might need to be combined/altered to get enough potential contestants.)

Aspects/Dynamics to Rank Polycules By

"Do not separate them.": It is difficult to imagine any relationship within the group without the whole set being involved, whether romantically or queerplatonically. e.g. Many fans say this is why they would favor the Leverage OT3 over other polyamorous ships.

"Please do separate them.": Two or more partners should keep other partners firmly in-between them at all times. Keeping the polycule together is essential to continued civil interaction.

Rejection of canon love triangle/infidelity: Fandom took one look at that plotline and said, "No way. They have two hands." Or whatever the equivalent statement is when one runs out of hands for applicable partners.

Shipping Wars: The best resolution. Fixes many things.

Shipping Wars: The best non-resolution. Fixes nothing, but is good anyway.

Shipping Wars: Worst but technically effective resolution. Fixes the war, but creates new issues.

Shipping Wars: The funniest resolution. May overlap with some of the above three.

In-Universe Wars (or Conflict/Politics): The best resolution. Diplomatic!

In-Universe Wars: The best non-resolution. Undiplomatic!

In-Universe Wars: Worst but technically effective resolution. Diplomatic with respect to this issue, but also creates new ones.

Unexpected package deal: Essentially, the opposite of the identity porn trope where someone has feelings for multiple people that turn out to be a single person.

Seduction plans rapid-pivot: e.g. Sometimes your plans require seducing someone that turns out to be happily in a relationship, so clearly the only choice is to seduce both them and their partner.

Jealousy plot rapid-resolution: Sometimes you think someone will be angry or jealous about you having feelings for or ending up in an encounter with someone they also have feelings for, but they are very much not upset. Maybe even the opposite of upset.

Fake relationship rapid-resolution: Life hack! Turn the fake/arranged partner(s) into additional real partner(s). Often a subset of the above bullet point.

Hands-on instruction: So dedicated to helping their friend with romance/sex that they end up demonstrating. Thoroughly.

Couples (or established polycule) bonding exercise: We can fix them. Or make them worse. Or just seduce them.

Couples (or established polycule) unbonding exercise: Have you ever seen a couple mildly argue about how one of them caught up on a TV show alone when they were supposed to be watching it together? This, but with seduction.

Organization/scheduling proficiency: Have you ever tried to handle finding overlaps between multiple schedules? It's difficult. So I think there should be a competition for polycules that handle that best.

Sneak attack potential: "What's this? It's their third, with the steel chair!"

Heist crew

Band: This one can work for many different sizes of polycules, if you are flexible with the type of music group.

Ship^2: The ship crew. Works for ocean ships, starships, airships, and any other varieties.

Witch coven or assorted magical circle

Supernatural leaders: e.g. vampire colony, fairy council, werewolf pack where the alpha wolf only exists as much as it does in real wolves, etc.

Competition champions: The ideal team. Could be sports. Could be trivia night. Could be that they are just killing it at karaoke.

Competition contestants that somehow make everyone lose

Accidental legal polygamy: They weren't trying to all end up legally intertwined, but untangling that seems more effort than it is worth.

Canon co-parents: A canon plot means a kid has 3+ parents or parental figures. The ship writes itself.

"It takes a village," ("and the village takes each other"): One child (or set of children) takes so much wrangling that the polycule is just efficient.

Most awkward stepparent(s) configuration

Most chaotic potential family gatherings: e.g. In-laws who have to awkwardly try to get along when they hate each other, now with even more in-laws!

Best pet owners: Sometimes joint custody of a pet is a lot of work, and consolidation is ideal.

Using These Suggestions

All are welcome to use these ideas, altered or unaltered, in your own poll tournaments/games. No additional permission is required, though I would appreciate it if you linked this post somewhere on the poll blog, so others can find it. Also, if you let me know you have a tournament along these lines (whether directly inspired by this list or not), I will be happy to give you a shout out in the notes.

Footnote

Here are the poll tournaments I'm referencing when I say Leverage's H/P/E has won or placed in five that I know of.

Champions

@powerpolyculeshowdown (2023-03-09): Won in the final against Yoo Jonghyuk/Han Sooyoung/Kim Dokja from Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.

@polyam-ship-showdown (2023-02-28): Won in the final against Ninth Doctor/Rose Tyler/Jack Harkness from Doctor Who.

@throuple-tournament (2024-04-04): Won in the final against Thanatos/Zagreus/Megaera from Hades and Nathan/Vlad/Ursula from Hunger Pangs: True Love Bites.

Placed

@ot3showdown (2023-05-12): Runner-up, lost in the final 49%-51% to Kirk/McCoy/Spock.

Ongoing

@bestpolyshipbracket: Currently in the final round, so H/P/E will either be in second or first place.

[digitaldiscipline]

Since I offered to share my "lazy chicken noodle soup" recipe to @leverage-ot3 the other day, here it is.

Is it the best, most delicious recipe? Probably not.

Is it easy to prepare and cook? Absolutely.

Cut up a couple of chicken breasts or thighs into 2" hunks, or whatever works for you. Be swarmed by cats who know they get some of the trimmings.

Distract cats with trimmings, and put chicken into the pot (in my case, an 8qt dutch oven) over medium heat, stirring occasionally as you do the remainder of the prep work. Season it however you feel like (today's batch used Montreal steak seasoning and some medium Mexican hot sauce that's got a nice barbecue flavor to it).

Cut up your veggies into similar sized chunks of 1-2" - I always include carrots and onions (about a pound of each), often celery (half a bunch), but today I substituted that pack mushrooms for the celery.

Add those to the pot, and then pour in a quart of broth (this is optional; you can absolutely make it with tap water and just add a few more seasonings throughout).

Stir, cover, and let simmer over low/low-medium heat until you can't stand how good it smells, stirring every so often (every half an hour or whatever).

Boil water and make noodles as usual; it's best with egg noodles, but all I have today is whole grain spaghetti. (You can also skip the noodles and add potatoes with the other veggies instead.)

Ladle some of the soup over the noodles in your bowl, season as necessary, and enjoy. Should make several days' worth of soup, and because I have more of everything except the mushrooms, I will cut up more chicken and veggies and add it to what's there as I consume it, so I get like a week's worth of lunch and dinner from a pack of five chicken breasts.

Prep time is about fifteen minutes plus the occasional stir (and however long it takes to boil the noodles); the only cleanup is the cutting board and prep knife, plus the pot, your stirring spoon, and whatever you eat it with.

ETA:

[evilwickedme]

For the fic questions - number one? (Which work of yours would you recommend to someone who’s never read your stuff?)

Hi anon! Thank you so much for asking <3

The thing about this question is that the correct answer isn't necessarily my best work, but rather one that represents me as a writer overall. I have a few crack/comedy fics that are my most successful fics numerically, and they're pretty fun, but they're definitely in the minority when it comes to my writing. I also want to rec something relatively recent, to represent my current writing style, despite having plenty of works written before the pandemic. And I still want to make a good impression, obviously. I gravitate, in general, to multi-chapter fics or short series of oneshots, and my general disposition is towards character studies, angst, slow burn romance, and slow narratives in general. My alternate universes are usually mishmashes of different canons or very subtle changes (for want of a nail type of aus), although I have a lot of canon compliant fics. I have smutty fics for sure, but the smut is always secondary for me to the character, and although I enjoy a good PWP when reading, I prefer to write sex scenes that move the plot forward. Also, I've written almost no non polyamorous romance stories since 2019. I nearly always have happy endings, because unless it serves a specific purpose, I don't enjoy unnecessarily grimdark endings. I've let my characters suffer, they've gotten through it, and they're better for it. I prefer fandoms with a lot of source material - TV shows, book series, comics.

So I have two answers. The first is a series of three one shots, and might not count, but I feel like it includes all of the above - stay here (all I know is that I'm not running towards the safest thing). It's a leverage (tv show) au where eliot doesn't join the team until mid-season three. It's a character study for eliot, features an ot3 - eliot/parker/hardison, and is a very subtle au overall, mostly following canon except for the consequences of this one change. Has a happy ending. I will say the romance, while not instantaneous, is also not particular slow burn, but the plot is secondary, with the fics focusing on eliot's journey towards healing over the course of all three fics. I haven't written for leverage in over a year, but it's some of my best work, while still representing my writing style as a whole.

But if we're only accepting single fics rather than fic series, I have to pick I'm a mess (but I'm the mess that you wanted). It's a mix of a few different canons - it's mainly a spider-man into the spider-verse fic, but features details from spider-man, deadpool, and spider-gwen comics, and it's basically entirely canon compliant for all of them, because it happens post canon. It's an angsty spideypool fic, a pairing I've been writing for since 2015 (damn), but also features petermj pretty heavily. It also features a lot of character study elements for peter, and focuses on his mental health and grief for gwen. the romance isn't as slow burn as some of my other fics, but it's an 11k word fic, and peter and wade don't get together till the very end (spoiler, lmao). It also features a lot of my more abstract writing and has a bunch of parallels and time jumps, which I love doing and absolutely is something I do a lot and have since I started writing fic (I've been doing time jumps since my first major longfic, Of Three Times Lily Evans Changed Her Mind About James Potter, which I started in spring of 2014).

So yeah, long answer, but that's what I'd suggest as starters for my fics.

[girl-of-salt-and-stars]

Leverage OT3 headcanons

@girl-next-door-writes

Eliot is the best classical dancer of the three.

Hardison isn’t bad, per-se, but he can’t quite get his feet under him during more complicated waltzes and tangos. 

Parker is technically astounding- having an expert level of control over every inch of her body certainly helps, but she’s stiff- too technical- she doesn't feel the music. 

Parker and Hardison both steal Eliot’s bandanas. He pretends to be grumpy but doesn’t mind. 

Eliot and Parker both steal sweaters from Hardison. He only complains when he says Eliot's big muscle stretch it out (but really he will sacrifice any day to see Eliot in his clothes)

Hardison buys most of their clothes because Eliot really doesn’t care and Parker has better things to do than clothes shopping most of the time. 

On that note, every single item he buys for them is perfectly tailored. From funny t-shirts to formal wear, every item goes through the best tailor on the west coast. 

Eliot buys 90% of their food, on the other hand. 

It makes it easier to limit the amount of orange soda and chocolate his partners consume. 

Parker…. Parker doesn't really have a theme in what she buys. One day it might be ten boxes of cereal, the next a diamond necklace she might’ve stolen for fun. 

Parker is really, really good at giving gifts. 

Eliot and Hardison have never once guessed what she got them for Christmas. Never. It drives Hardison insane. 

They rarely sleep three in a bed. 

Could they? For sure. Hardison has a California king with plenty of room for all three of them to sleep comfortably. 

But, none of them have normal sleep schedules, which makes it hard to coordinate sleep times. 

Also, Eliot or Parker need space sometimes, which is why there are two guest rooms with full-sized beds. 

They usually sleep in the same bed about twice a week, though it can be more or less just depending on what happens.  

When they all sleep together Hardison sleeps in the middle,on his stomach.  Eliot lays flat on his back, on the side nearest the door. He does usually lay up against Hardison. Parker usually sleeps curled up on her side facing the window with her back pressed against Hardison’s side. 

Eliot has a favorite cooking knife that No One touches.

Eliot’s love language is acts of service. 

Parker likes the idea of cooking. She usually gets bored with it halfway through, if she tries it alone, but likes to help Eliot in the kitchen. 

They don’t usually wear rings because those can get caught on things too easily, which is particularly dangerous for Eliot and Parker. 

They are also very easy to lose.

Instead, they each have a small tattoo on their hip. They took a recording of each of them saying I love you and tattooed the soundwave on their hip. It’s small enough to cover easily if a con calls for it. 

Sophie did not realize they were //together// until she saw the tattoo on Parker and asked what it meant. 

They all assumed she knew, including Nate. 

Amy is in charge of telling Hardison all the rumors the new Brewpub staff members come up with about their relationship and about what they do.

The current theory is that Hardison and Parker, a couple, are in witness protection and Eliot is their Marshall. They also think that Parker is cheating on Hardison with Eliot. 

Amy and the two other long time staffers just keep quiet. 

First, because they think it’s hilarious (Hardison does too), and second, because Eliot and Hardison are the best bosses they’ve ever had and they don’t want them to get in trouble. Amy is also in charge of making sure that the rumors don’t go too far. 

Amy deserves a raise. 

Hardison also likes to dispel the relationship rumors by giving Eliot a quick kiss in front of the staff. 

Eliot thinks it’s silly but doesn't really mind. He can humor his partner. 

Parker just doesn't care. If any of the staff were brave enough to ask her she would tell them the truth.

However, no one will ask her because while she is very friendly, if a little strange, they have all seen her drop out of the rafters randomly. Also, the story of her thwarting a kidnapping still runs rampant and Amy refuses to confirm or deny them. 

[lets-go-steal-a-hardison]

Good Days and Bad Ones

New Leverage ot3 fic! Warning for gun violence and gun wounds. Fluff then angst then fluff again. ~2.9k words | Teen

Can read below or on my ao3 account here.

It had been a good day.  Eliot should have known not to trust that, but lately, he had been having a lot of good days.  The worst part was that what happened wasn’t even on a job.  They didn’t even see it coming.

Eliot had woken up surrounded by his partners.  The fact that he couldn’t move from being so entangled in their arms and legs should have felt suffocating, but instead, it just felt safe.  He started to move around, wanting to get up and go start his morning routine, and Hardison nuzzled into his neck.

“C’mon man, I gotta get up,” Eliot whispered to him.

Hardison grunted, still mostly asleep, then kissed where he had just nuzzled.  He did relax his arms though.

Okay.  One down.  One more to go.

Eliot turned to look at Parker and saw she was awake, already looking at him.

“I gotta get up, sweetheart, you gonna let me?” he said with a small smile.

Parker was wrapped around his arm with a leg thrown over him.  She pouted a bit, then kissed his shoulder before letting him go.

“Thanks, darlin’.  I’ll make pancakes later, kay?”  

Parker grinned at him.  “With whipped cream?”

“Only if I can add blueberries,” Eliot bargained as he got up and pulled on a shirt.  He had to get her to eat fruit somehow.

“Fiiiiiine,” Parker said, moving into the warmed spot Eliot had just vacated and wrapping around Hardison, who octopused onto her the moment she was in arm’s reach.

Eliot took a moment to stare at them.  Sometimes, he still couldn’t believe that they chose to love him.  Change with him.  It was humbling, their love for him.

He was one lucky bastard.

Eliot did his morning workout, then showered.  By the time that he was going into the bedroom to get clothes, towel around his waist, Parker was up.  She took off Hardison’s old shirt, which she had been using as a pajama shirt, and kissed Eliot one more time before taking the next shift in the shower.  Hardison was still passed out on the bed, but as Eliot walked in, he started to stir.

Letting the towel slip off, Eliot bent over to pull on underwear and heard an appreciative rumble from Hardison.  It took a while for him to be coherent in the morning, unless he had stayed up all night.  That caused a different kind of incoherence.  

Eliot grinned at him from over his shoulder as he continued to get dressed.  “You snooze, you lose,” he teased.  

Hardison let out a sleepy groan, then made grabby hands towards Eliot.

“Hell nah, I’ve got to get started on Parker’s pancakes,” Eliot said, already walking forward anyway.

“Mmmmm… pancakes,” Hardison hummed as he pulled Eliot in.  Eliot could feel his boyfriend’s smile against his lips.  He pulled back and kissed him once more, on the forehead this time, and moved away.

“They’ll be ready in a bit, you just gotta be up for them!” Eliot called as he walked out of the bedroom.

It was a good morning.

It didn’t last.

___________________________________

The first gunshot rang out at 1:12 pm.  Eliot knew because in the moment, everything froze and he took in everything in the kitchen of the brewpub, including the time.

The screams came next.

Eliot immediately put himself in between the doors to the kitchen and the waitstaff and cooks.  “Run.  If you can’t run, hide.  If you can’t hide, fight.  GO!” he said, jerking his head to the back entrance, hoping he wasn’t sending them into a trap.

“ALEC HARDISON!” a voice roared.  “COME OUT, YOU PIECE OF SHIT.”

Eliot felt himself move before he had really thought about it.  He cut across the kitchen and made his way quickly but effectively towards the living part of the brewpub, where he had left Hardison and Parker at their dining room table.

Too late.

Hardison came out of the back room with his hands up and Eliot redirected his attention to the rest of the room, immediately assessing the three men with guns in the middle of the room.  The patrons of the brewpub were cowering in their seats and on the floor.  There was one man by the door too, covering the exit.

It didn’t look good.

“Sinclair,” Hardison drawled.  If Eliot didn’t know Hardison as well as he did, he wouldn’t be able to tell how tense he was.  He kept it hidden in the flex of his back muscles and his hands.

It was a very distinctive flex.

“Haven’t seen you in years.  How you been, man?” Hardison continued, arms still raised.

“Well, prison is a bitch and those anger management classes just didn’t take.  So, here we are,” the man in the front, Sinclair, said as he waved the hand not holding his gun to take in the scene.

“What do you want?” Hardison asked, his face and voice becoming serious.

“Need your help with a job.”

“And you thought coming in guns blazing into my day job was the best way to ask?” Hardison asked derisively.

Sinclair smiled grimly.  “This isn’t asking.  Either you will help me or I will shoot you where you stand.”

Hardison shrugged.  “I’ve got my own crew and while they don’t mind me working freelance, I think they would object to the job conditions.”

“You’re damn right,” Eliot growled, moving into the room.

“Oh hell no,” the guy who was guarding the door said.  “You didn’t say Eliot fucking Spencer was part of the target’s crew.  I’m out.”

He threw open the door and ran out the brewpub.

One down, three to go.

The other two men shifted nervously as Eliot stared them down, looking between them and the man Hardison had called Sinclair.  Eliot didn’t like how steady Sinclair’s aim was at Hardison.

“Fellas.  Now we can either have y’all walk out of here alive, or there’s gonna be a need for body bags.  Which is it gonna be?” Eliot said.

The two men glanced at each other.  One shook his head, but the other one started sliding towards the door.

“Don’t you dare, Clancy, don’t you dare!” Sinclair shouted.

“Man, I got a baby at home.  I just needed the payout, but she needs me more,” the man, Clancy, said.  He turned and was out the door.

Two on two.

Eliot liked those odds.

“You sure you won’t help?” Sinclair asked, and Eliot started edging towards Hardison, ready to move if he needed.  

Suddenly, Sinclair’s gun was pointed at Eliot.

“Not even if I threaten to shoot your buddy here?”

“Whoa.  Now, hey man, you didn’t have to go there.  We had our moment, I said no, and you just had to keep pressing.  They always keep pressing, don’t they, Eliot?”

“Hardison…” Eliot cautioned, cause he knew what Hardison was doing.  He was trying to get himself back in Sinclair’s crosshairs, even though Eliot was much more comfortable being the one with the gun pointed at him.

“Nah, man, I know you’re doing your macho shit right now, and I for one do not appreciate it.  You are trying to kill him just with your glarey eyes and guess what, man?  Doesn’t work.  I know, cause otherwise I would be at least slightly damaged by now.”

“Oh my God, shut UP!” Sinclair said.

He turned.

Eliot jumped.

And Hardison gasped as the bullet hit his shoulder.

Sinclair watched as Hardison stared disbelievingly down at the bloom of blood on his shoulder.  He took a gasping breath of air, then his knees went out.

Eliot caught him before he could hit the ground.

“Put pressure on it, Alec.  Come on, you know the deal,” Eliot encouraged, pressing down himself.  He could sense Sinclair in his peripheral vision, but Hardison was his priority.

“It’s d-d-different wh-when it’s you,” Hardison stuttered.

He was going into shock.  Eliot needed to finish this so that they could get Chicken Parm down here, get him to help Hardison.

Eliot forced himself to take his attention off of Hardison and place it firmly on Sinclair.

He looked disconcerted at the look on Eliot’s face.

Good.

“You lost your chance to walk away when you pulled that trigger,” he said to Sinclair.  He turned to the last man standing, who flinched when their eyes met.  “Last chance for you.”

The man nodded.  Dropped his gun.  Walked out.

“You fucker!” Sinclair said, sighting his gun on Eliot.

Only for Parker to drop down from the ceiling, right on top of him.

The gun still went off, but Eliot was unscathed.  He rushed forward, diving on top of Sinclair who fought tooth and nail to keep his gun in his hands.  Eliot saw Parker crawl across the floor towards the gun the last man had dropped out of the corner of his eyes.

In the moment of distraction, Sinclair’s finger found the trigger and pulled.

Eliot felt the bright burn of the bullet going into his hip, but he just grunted and pulled back a fist, bringing it crashing down onto Sinclair’s temple.

He went limp.

Eliot forced himself to stand.  He turned and Parker nodded to him from where she was standing, gun pointed at Sinclair. 

“I’ve got him, you get Alec,” she said.

Eliot nodded.  He pulled out his phone as he went over to Hardison and put pressure on his wound, making Alec whine, high and full of pain.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart, gotta keep pressure on it.  Help’s coming, Alec, just hang on, kay?” he murmured as the phone rang.

“P-parker okay?” Hardison whispered.

“Yeah, she’s-” Eliot glanced over to Parker and froze.  “Parker.”

She looked at him from keeping an eye on Sinclair.  “What?”

“Your leg.”

She followed Eliot's gaze and looked down to her thigh.  The right leg of her sweatpants - actually Eliot was pretty sure those had been his as some point - was soaked with blood.

She looked back at Eliot.  “Huh.”

Then she collapsed.

“SHIT!” Eliot shouted.

“Hello?”

Eliot remembered the phone in his hand.  His head was swimming and he blinked repeatedly to clear it.  “Parm, altercation at the brewpub.  Three GSW’s, Hardison n’ Parker are down.  You need to- to… aw, hell,” he slurred.

Then he fell forward onto Hardison’s chest and the world went black.

_________________________________

Dragging himself out of inky black unconsciousness was one of Eliot’s least favorite things in the world.  It didn’t happen often, but when it did, it sucked.

He was definitely on drugs, cause his brain took way too long to connect to his body.  He was floating a bit even when he realized who he was and started registering his body and surroundings.

He was definitely in a hospital.  The smell, the sounds of the intercom, and the feeling of an IV in his hand were too distinct for him to be anywhere else.

Eliot wasn’t as bad as Nate, but he still wasn’t a fan of hospitals.  The catheter alone was enough to make him wanna punch someone.

Forcing his eyes open, he looked around the room.  There was an empty bed next to him and no one else in the room.  He wanted to jump up and find Hardison and Parker, find out if they were alright, but the ache in his hip made him grimace as he sat up.

He settled for hitting the call button.

“Hello, Mr. Dubois, how are you feeling?” the nurse who came in asked.

“Sore and floaty.  Can we reduce the meds?  I hate this feeling.  Rather have the pain,” Eliot said.

The woman pursed her lips.  “We can, though I will ask you to start taking tylenol in its place, so you still have something in your system.”

Eliot nodded.  “The others at the brewery,” he started, not sure what cover he should be working with, how he should be referring to his partners, “are they alright?”

“The gunman has been taken into custody after getting treatment for his concussion.  The man and woman who were also injured are stable.  I’m sorry, that’s all I can say,” she said, working with the machine next to Eliot. 

He hoped that the floating feeling would leave soon.  He needed to come back to his body, pain or no pain.

“Alright, call if you need to get back on the morphine or if you need assistance with anything else.”

“When can I get up?” Eliot asked.

“We can do a walk around this evening, but we’re leery of moving before in case the stitches are disturbed.  We can take out the catheter at that time as well, as you will be able to get up for bathroom needs at that point.  Sounds okay?”

It didn’t, but Eliot forced himself to nod again.

The nurse had been out of the room for about a minute when Eliot heard something overhead.  He grinned at the ceiling, then frowned.

“Parker, should you be up yet?” he asked.

“The doc said that I could get up to see to my needs, and I needed to check on you,” she said through the vent.

“They meant the bathroom, Parker, not my sorry ass,” Eliot said.

“Yeah, yeah.  How you feeling?” she asked.

“They reduced my meds, but still disconnected a bit.”  He knew she would get what he meant, so he didn’t elaborate.  “Alec okay?”

“Yeah.  He was still sleeping, but his vitals looked good.  He lost the most blood of us, so he’ll probably be in here the longest,” Parker said.

“He’ll love that,” Eliot grumbled, already imagining the havoc that Hardison could produce if left in a hospital bed for any extended period of time.

Of course, he would have to be awake to cause havoc…

Eliot shrugged away the thought, reminded himself that Parker said he was doing well.

“How long you gonna be here?” Eliot asked.

He heard a rustle and imagined that Parker had shrugged.  “Bullet went through and through, just bled a lot.  Once they are sure that it’s closed and healing, I’ll be good to go.  They had to dig the bullet out of your hip,” she said, her voice getting quieter.  “So it might be longer for you.”

“I figured that, darlin’.  It’ll be alright.”  He glared at the grate without any real heat.  “Now get back to your bed and to healing.”

“I’d rather be here with you,” she said, her voice soft.

“That ain’t fair,” Eliot said, staring at the grate.  He felt the ache in his hip and now he had one in his heart.  “You gotta go back, Parker, cause if you’re here, you aren’t getting your meds.  I’m being good and taking mine, you gotta too.”

“Fiiiiine,” Parker said.  “I’ll be back though.”

“I would be worried if you didn’t,” Eliot said.

He didn’t hear her go, but felt when she was gone.

It was going to be a long stay in the hospital.

___________________________________

Hardison had woken up later that evening and Eliot had been able to see him when he was doing his walk around.  Alec was still pretty out of it, but he smiled up at Eliot.

“Knew you would take care of it,” he said, only slurring a bit.

“Get some sleep,” Eliot said, resisting the urge to touch him.  Their cover stories weren’t partners.  

Parker got out of the hospital first.  Eliot missed her voice coming out of the ceiling, but was checked out the next day anyways.  

The brewpub wasn’t the same without Alec around.  Eliot ended up stocking a bunch of the meals that Alec liked in the fridge for when he came home and Parker installed a new security system.  They cleaned the whole back area of the pub they called their home, working in tandem as they washed sheets and clothes, scrubbed down the kitchen and bathroom, and tidied the rest of it.  They didn’t sleep much.

By the time Alec got home, the place was spotless and stocked with orange soda and Eliot’s food.

Hardison eased onto the couch and looked around.  He turned to his partners and grinned.  “You missed me.”

Parker rolled her eyes.  “Course we did, dummy.”

Eliot inclined his head, conceding.  “Maybe.”

“You hungry?” Eliot continued.

“Eliot made all your favorites,” Parker said.  Eliot narrowed his eyes at her, cause he wanted that to be a surprise.

“Did he?” Hardison said, smile turning toward Eliot.  “You know I’d never say no to Eliot’s cooking.  Mind bringing it here?  Have y’all eaten?  Let’s just all eat here, pull up some movie.”

Eliot nodded.  Parker jumped up from where she had been sitting next to Alec, kissing him on the top of his head before she followed Eliot into the kitchen.

They settled in, food and movie at the ready.  They finished eating long before the end of the movie, but their plates lay forgotten on the coffee table as they cuddled as close as their wounds would allow them to.  

Eliot felt sleep come slowly towards him, but didn’t do anything to fight it.  He trusted Parker, and by extension, her security system.  He knew that both Parker and Hardison were safe and healing.  More bad days may come, but they would face them together.

In the arms of his two best friends and loves of his life, he let himself rest.

[pale-silver-comb]

I have a meta question for you. As much as we would love to believe that our Leverage babies will be taking down the baddies forever. Eventually, especially for Eliot as his body is abused more often than the other two, they will have to retire from actively working cons. Do you see them training the younger generation to one day take over for them? Similar to the Avengers at the end of AOU.

I LOVE IMAGINING THE OLDER OT3.

I think Hardison and Parker would very much stay in the game - adapting their roles as they got older - but I think Eliot would eventually semi-retire. He even tells Sophie that’s how he sees his future, running “Hardison’s pub”. (Like that boy didn’t buy it FOR YOU, Eliot.)

 I think Eliot would still go on jobs - particularly jobs that meant something to him - but largely I think his life would become about running and cooking for the brewery and maybe bringing in kids/young adults to teach them skills and help them get back on their feet. If the OT3 did adopt older kids, or bring older kids in to train, you bet Eliot is teaching them how to cook and that each one of those kids will have at least a Saturday job working under Eliot at the brewery as long as they are with the team. 

(I have this thing it would 100% be older kids they took on, rather than adults. Older kids who have been crushed, cheated or let down by the system. Parker and Hardison have a particular interest in this, knowing what it’s like growing up in the foster system, but it’s always Eliot who is bringing kids in, a sucker from day 1. Even if the kids aren’t interested in the Robin Hood gig, he’s still teaching them the art of crème brûlée, okay?? Stop looking at him like that Hardison, crème brûlée trains you in at least 17 different skills, including self-defense!)

As much as I hate the idea of things coming to an end, I can totally imagine Parker training new master-minds, Hardison teaching the next world-class baby-hackers, and Eliot training kids to defend themselves. These kids learning to grift on the job from Parker, Hardison and Eliot much like Sophie taught them to grift better on the job. One of the kids managing to perfect Hardison’s video-game based con, The Double Pronged Monkey (he’s so proud).

And just like that, suddenly there are just mini-Leverage teams across the world, all trained by the very best. But more importantly, supported to become a family by the very best. Some of them even do the odd job with Sophie and Nate when they cross paths.

I think out of everyone Parker would get pretty restless staying in the one place over the years. Portland is home but I think the OT3 would travel a lot the older they got: Parker seeing it as prime locations for cons, Hardison seeing each one as a well-earned vacation, and Eliot grumbling the whole time but always instantly made happy when he finds some new ingredient for a recipe to bring back to the brewery. (That and he’s just a big ol’ softie who is content so long as he’s with Hardison and Parker and they aren’t causing too much trouble.)

Also can we please just imagine Hardison making things to keep them comfortable as their bodies get that bit older? Like installing a heated pad into Parker’s harnesses because her hip is a little stiffer these days. Custom making a mattress for the three of them to sleep on because Eliot can’t sleep on a firm mattress like he used to without feeling sore the next day. 

Eliot squeezing fresh orange juice for Hardison every morning for, like, forty years, because it’s the only way Hardison will be tempted away from starting each day with orange soda. Parker is harder to dissuade which is why Eliot also always finds himself making her whatever she asks for every morning and doing his best to load it with vitamins. 

Parker making sure Eliot takes his “old-man” medication, which annoys Eliot to no end. But he can’t refuse because she always brings it to him in a wee cup which she’s personally drawn a happy face on and proceeds to change to a frowny face if he begins to protest. (It’s better for everyone if he just takes the damn meds before she starts giving the face The Sad Voice.)

Oh. Also. They have a dog. They 1000% have a dog. Sometimes two, if one has happened to follow Eliot home or Parker has decided one was looking just a little too sad at the shelter. Hardison has a permanent subscription to several different dog-food companies because each dog they foster always has some kind of specific food needs due to health problems orrrrrr have become terribly fussy after being exposed to Eliot’s cooking for longer than a week.  

Honestly, I could talk about older Parker, Hardison and Eliot all day. I love reading all the posts and fics about it. It makes me terribly happy!  

(Pssssst, Eliot gets to live to a very old age, okay? He's prepared to die for Hardison and Parker - expects it, even - but THAT. IS. NOT. WHAT. HAPPENS. They all get to grow very old and very happy together. Okay??? Okay.)

[smallblueandloud]

some leverage: redemption reactions

i finished leverage redemption today! and i don't have anyone to talk to about it so, here we have my reactions for all eight episodes, both positive and negative. please feel free to reblog/comment -- discussions are what i'm here for! (under a cut because spoilers and also this ended up being 2k. whoops!)

EPISODE 1: the too many rembrandts job

the "aww, this guy is trying to pull his first heist! how cute" job

what they chose to do with nate was... interesting. it might just be that i read too many of those cracky "here's how they should explain nate's absence" posts, but i was expecting something funny. the grief permeating this episode -- it makes SENSE, but it was still weird. leverage doesn't usually have sadness like this. pain, yes, rage, certainly, but sadness? not usually

the way sophie immediately spots the signs of a con and slips into a character? phenomenal. i'm here for EXPERTS BEING EXPERTS and this show does NOT disappoint

harry wilson is a really solid character! most impressively, he's not flynn, which is impressive enough that i'm making a whole bullet point about it. i was worried that noah wyle was kinda a one-trick pony, but it appears not! good for him tbh

i'm LIVING for the ot3 moments in this episode. "what happened?" "we happened" YESSSSS!!! i wish we'd had more domesticity, but i know they did what they could

"he gets it from his father" FUCK!!!!!

the discussion about redemption in this episode is FANTASTIC but personally i am still delirious with excitement about "my nana leads a multi-denominational household" so expect those thoughts in 3-5 business days

EPISODE 2: the panamanian monkey job

the "flash electropop concert" job

BREANNA INTRODUCTION! i love her so MUCH, y'all. we only got to see her dynamic with hardison in this one episode, but man, it manages to be one of her best dynamics anyway. i just! i love her! i love the way the team works with her!

"in our field, you're one of the best. but there, you're the only one." god we have ELIOT/HARDISON rights and i am NOT OKAY. just!! them!!!!!! being supportive!!!!!! they have learned how to be sweet with each other! they work together so much better (in part because we're seeing them from harry's outsider pov instead of nate's insider pov, but STILL)

midway through this episode, i thought "huh, leverage always focuses on specific people, when really the problem is systematic, and pretending it's anything different is just an excuse to not fight for change". and then at the end harry talks about how the system itself is broken! i love knowing that john rogers and i were reading the same tweets last summer. it's a good feeling to trust the people making a piece of media

who let noah wyle speak spanish. whoever it was, they need to rescind their permission

god, the parker/hardison in this episode. THE PARKER/HARDISON IN THIS EPISODE! they KILL me friends they KILL ME!

also just like, hardison in this episode in general. he made a star trek reference! he made a doctor who reference! he decides there are other people who need him more! the way they wrote around gina bellman's maternity leave in s2 was good but this was phenomenal.

also i'm here for ot3 crumbs so "is this like the time when eliot wanted us to say no" is going on my ot3-is-canon conspiracy board

this is a tiny detail but eliot taking out the drone with a goddamn ORANGE was so good. he's so good at his job!! they're all so good at their jobs!! i know i literally just talked about this but AAA

EPISODE 3: the rollin' on the river job

the "sometimes you just want to rob a vault wearing a floofy dress, and that's valid" job

i did... not. like. how the villain in this one was an immigrant whose exploitable weakness was a "desperation" to be included in the upper crust. and the fact that they beat him with a literal southern belle who explicitly beats him BECAUSE her family has been in the area for "hundreds of years"? it just feels Iffy.

also iffy about this episode was breanna's characterization. it felt inconsistent. she feels inconsistent across the whole season, but this episode in particular... she tells harry she's only with the team because she's desperate, that she doesn't believe in hope, and then at the end of the episode she tells parker she wants to be there to change the world. and like, even in the first place, she's not here out of desperation! SHE asked to join the team! like, i can see how it all kinda fits together, but it just feels... inconsistent. idk. i think these scripts all could've benefited from an extra round or two of editing.

anyway! i loved the way they tied hardison into these episodes, even though aldis hodge couldn't be there. he has binders! breanna doesn't want to read them! parker did! he put in big letters, "when in doubt, trust the person in the van". i'm just so !!! about how much i love him and how much he loves his team and how much his team loves him. FOUND FAMILY, BABY!

all inconsistencies in breanna's characterization aside, i really liked her speech at the end. i know how she feels! it's really nice to have someone on the team who's from -- not my world, really, but a lot closer than any of the others. it's a nice feeling! i love her a lot. i hope her writing gets more consistent

lol, parker ate eliot's carrot cake. i love the parker/eliot rights we get in this show, they're so domestic and it's wonderful.

EPISODE 4: the tower job

the "hardison made his partners learn klingon" job

watching this episode was what made me go "they're not going to make us sit through a harry/sophie romance... right? right?"

i'm still not sure they're gonna let us avoid it but it COULD work so... i've decided to just not worry about it for now

i liked the number of ways the con goes wrong! it was fun to watch them work on the fly like that. i think them not having a dedicated Mastermind(tm) is a good watsonian explanation for their plans being pretty haphazard in general, but it's good, they think well on their feet

nate was a chessmaster. he had the whole situation in his mind from the beginning, accounting for every possible outcome. parker and sophie are much more adaptive, and it's cool to see. they can rely on their respective skillsets a lot more than nate could

a really solid episode! probably one of the strongest ones in the season. i liked it a lot.

(ALSO as mentioned above the klingon lines were fantastic and not just because they were a star trek reference -- every time eliot and parker both mentioned hardison, together, it added a year to my lifespan)

EPISODE 5: the paranormal hacktivity job

the "sophie was worryingly prepared to fake her death" job

i know why they characterized the client as a skeptic, i really do, and i loved the format of this episode, but also. But Also. she should've been a love interest for breanna and I'm Right.

having a girl's episode was the CORRECT choice. they do crimes in their free time! they fleece newbie, cruel criminals! it's so good!

it would've been cool to have eliot around for the assassin guy, but it was also cool to see the others take him out without having eliot to rely on. it's like getting to see how they'd take out eliot, if they were ever on opposing sides.

PARKER CANONICALLY USES SCRIPTS IT'S THE BEST THING EVER

breanna bristling about letting the criminal into the theater's electric system was so good god i love her so much. she knows hardware! i bet she likes to work with her hands. i bet she stims. i bet she has adhd

actually, sidenote, but i LOVE these headquarters. they look so nice! the stage is so nice! i loved having an episode set in and around it, it was such a good choice.

EPISODE 6: the card game job

the "FINALLY AN EXPLICITLY QUEER LEVERAGE CHARACTER" job

QUEER BREANNA QUEER BREANNA QUEER BREANNA QUEER BR

UNFOLLOW ME NOW THIS IS GONNA BE THE ONLY THING I POST ABOUT FOR THE REST OF TIME

GOD, what a good way to reveal it. it's fully about her! i love queer romances, of course i do, but i don't think i've ever seen a character come out without a romance being their reason for doing so (however indirectly). i still think she should've gotten a date with the client from 1x05, but i really liked this too.

this episode just felt like a love letter to fandom, and i love that. i love how much it shone through. i'm used to writers specifically going out of their way to make fun of fans and laugh at them, so it was just. really nice to have someone stand up and go, no, this is important for a reason! people love this for a reason! it MEANS something!

very fun to watch eliot swordfight. very fun to watch sophie recite a sonnet in her classic fashion. very fun to watch parker work at being a good mentor. breanna was so excited about the card game! they're all so good!

oh, and i guess harry's here too.

EPISODE 7: the double-edged sword job

the "harry is addicted to mobile games, which is a mood" job

hot take alert! i think this is the weakest episode of the season by a LOT. it needed so much more editing. it felt so disjointed, so all over the place. the plot was haphazard but in a muffled way, where you had no idea why they were doing what they were doing. the climax was sudden and didn't make any sense. it was just weird.

i'm not the person to comment on this but it feels kind of lazy to cast an east asian guy to play a socially-awkward tech genius. just a thought.

oh, of course jonathan frakes directed this episode. sometimes his stuff is really good but other times (ahem, ds9 3x02) it's disjointed and all over the place. i'm not even surprised it was him.

idk if i have anything else to say about this. oh! some of the team moments were great -- mostly involving eliot. i loved the moment of him recognizing the headshot, i LOVED the ten seconds of everyone teasing him. he and parker talked about the wellbeing of their friend, the woman whose ex tracked her down!

separate bulletpoint to say how much i LOVED his conversation with breanna outside the house. he's so good at reassuring! he could go deeper there, talking about being better than your worst day, but he knew when not to push! it was so good.

"first off, this guy can't TOUCH hardison" deserves its own bulletpoint because like. y'all. Y'ALL.

EPISODE 8: the mastermind job

the "eliot is more than just a pretty face" job

oh man this post is so much longer than i thought it would be. okay just one more episode and then i'm done.

the callbacks to original leverage were SO well done and made me feel emotions without feeling overbearing.

i didn't like the central premise -- that nate would share so many details with a random insurance agent -- in the first place, but i did like how it allowed them to bring back nate without actually hiring timerty mcasshole.

i liked eliot's insistence that he's more than just the muscle! he is, and it's really good to know, textually, that the writers do too!

me, watching the resolution of the episode: ah, yeah, insurance fraud. a classic!

harry bonding with his guard had "they don't even have dental!" energy and i am SUCH a fan. i know it was all for the con but also give me harry, unable to stop advising people, even when they're actively holding him hostage

parker! on the phone with hardison!!!! ADORABLE

is it just me or was someone else expecting the accountant's name to be something significant? with the way they led up to it, i was waiting for a "sterling" or something else. my sensors were pinging for another tara reveal. i'm still convinced we're gonna get this guy dramatically revealed in the season finale.

a really nice episode! i had a lot of fun with it. and now i want to rewatch the rashamon job, but tbh i ALWAYS want to rewatch the rashamon job.

and that's a wrap! overall, a fun season, i enjoyed it a lot. not as solid as original leverage, but it's the very beginning, and it was put together during a global pandemic, so i'm cutting them some slack. also levar burton is gonna show up at some point. that's a big reason of why i'm cutting them so much slack.

my personal ranking of the episodes is 1x04, 1x06, 1x08, 1x01, 1x02, 1x03, and finally last (and least), 1x07.

what did you guys think of the new season? what was your favorite episode? do you agree with any of my opinions? disagree with any? let me know, please, i'd love to discuss!

[afraschatz]

Leverage - Nate Ford, not a nice man

Let me talk about Leverage some more because, well, it’s Leverage. And let’s talk about Nate.

Mastermind Nate Ford.

When you first watch the show, Nate is the character that you possibly just kind of tolerate while you instantly fall in love with Hardison (or Eliot / Parker / Sophie). Nate is probably not the one you’d name as your favourite.

And let’s get this straight: John Rogers repeats over that Nate Ford is not a nice man. And boy, he isn’t kidding. Nate Ford is, in fact, a massive dick.

One of my favourite, and soooo not-talked-about-enough things about Leverage is the reason why the team comes together: Dubenic kinda underestimates just how vengeful and smart Nate is, yes, but he is spot on when he - very deliberately - picks Nate Ford, a supposed white hat, to CONTROL a group of the world’s greatest criminals.

I think we tend to underestimate just what that means at that moment. That’s because we all know very early on - thanks in huge parts to the tongue-in-cheek nature of the flashbacks - what good people Parker, Hardison, and Eliot actually can be. And because of that we underestimate who they are at that moment, to the world: Eliot is Moreau’s favourite and most efficient killer (“Please, don’t ask me, Parker”), Hardison is the a brilliant hacker in the age of the geek whose fingertips could unleash the collapse of civilization, and Parker is a loner thief who actually blew up her parents’ house as a kid, with them potentially inside. These are SERIOUSLY dangerous people.

Yes, Dubenic kindles Nate’s need for revenge and strokes his ego by telling him that he needs an honest man. But the real reason why he picks Nate to wrangle those three is that he rightfully assumes that Nate is both smarter AND more ruthless than the world’s best criminals combined.

Nate Ford is not a nice man.

Nate is the one who figures out that Dubenic withheld the money in The Nigerian Job, so he can get them all in one place to kill them. And his reaction is to LAUGH OUT LOUD and wait with a fucking smirk on his face until the slower kids in the class figure it out, too.

Nate is the one who, throughout the show, easily plays the sleaziest of lawyers, the hardest of CEOs and five-star-generals. Sure, because the cons often call for such a character (someone the mark can focus all their hatred on, distracting him from what is really going on), and someone has to do it. But it’s usually Nate playing them because he really doesn’t mind being the asshole that everyone hates and wants to get rid off.

Nate is the one who goes after the world’s most influential and ruthless villains with just his brain as a weapon, and he is not afraid, not for a single second. Nate takes on Moreau, the man even Eliot is fucking afraid of. It’s very likely that he kills Chesney - a man who was perfectly okay with letting a boy die, so he could get the donor heart - with just his voice and over the fucking phone. And he absolutely manipulates Dubenic and Latimer into killing each other (the look when he walks away and the two of them fall in The Last Dam Job? SO underrated).

Nate is the one who has Jimmy Ford for a dad, a character even less likable than Nate himself - apparently near to no empathy, very egotistical / self-centered, hella manipulative, very set in his ways. And it’s Jimmy who actually kind of fears Nate, not the other way around; he fears both his incredible cleverness as well as his ruthlessness, even if he does a good job of hiding it behind contempt.

Nate is the one who runs a con on his own team in season two and who deliberately keeps secrets from them in season three AND four. Hell, he runs a con on US throughout the entire first half of the series’ finale by making us believe everyone died.

Nate is also the one who, week in and week out, has to run dozens of scenarios in his head, including several in which members of his team die. “Hardison dies in plan M” is played off as a joke in The Nigerian Job, yes, but The Long Goodbye Job lets us experience first hand what that ACTUALLY means. I am still fucked up from that, even after seven years, and even though the OT3’s death is fiction within fiction. Nate lives with that scenario week in and week out.

Nate Ford really is not ‘hard on the outside, soft on the inside’. He is granite on the inside.

And yet?

Maggie, “the most honest person we know”, loved him and - even more importantly - still loves him. Eliot, who time and time again proves that he has the best people skills of them all (fight me on this), trusts his judgment right from the start. (Seriously, watch The Nigerian Job solely for the interactions between Nate and Eliot, oh God, it’s soooo good. - Parker and Hardison are great as well, sure, but nearly all of the serious conversations have Nate and Eliot at the center - and for a reason!).

Sophie loves him. Hardison loves him. Parker loves him.

Why is that? Is it because Maggie doesn’t see the ‘real’ Nate behind the insurance man? Is it because Nate plays to Eliot’s own need for revenge (and eventually: redemption)? Is it because Sophie is forever blinded by her crush on him, Hardison too naive, Parker too broken to know better?

We know it’s not that.

Maggie is fucking smart, and we get ample proof for that in The Second David Job alone, where we also see how well she understands Nate. Eliot is the team’s shield from the moment in The Nigerian Job where he hauled Hardison out of the warehouse. He can kill people with an horsd’oevre; he knows how to run risk assessment. Sophie proves time and time again over the course of the five seasons how well she knows Nate, Hardison’s heart is never wrong, and Parker? She understands Nate as well as she understands herself (which is, I realize, an ambiguous statement, but one to explore in another post :)).

They trust Nate because Nate IS granite on the inside. Because his moral code is unwavering.

They trust Nate because Nate is smart enough to surround himself with people to call him on his bullshit. They compensate with their compassion what he seems to lack. They could very well get by on their own but chose that they are better together. They know that he might run the occasional con on them but he would never try and twist them into something they aren’t or don’t want to be.

And they love Nate because Nate’s capability to love is unconditional and boundless. All it takes to prove that to us is that gut-wrenching six second long scream when Sam dies. Watch that scene again, I dare you, and then try to contradict me. And if you then haven’t tortured yourself enough yet, watch the bookend scene to that in The Long Goodbye Job when he pretends to grieve for his dead team. That grief is so real because Tim Hutton is a brilliant, brilliant actor, and it’s so real because that is what Nate feels, every time he thinks of fucking plan M.

I love him so much. I love Leverage so much.

[teddy-tries-writing]

TsubaMari: Crossed Wires and Crossed Hearts

Just an idea I had for a fic I will probably never write. If anyone is interested in writing this fic, full speed ahead! Credit optional, feel free to exercise creative liberty with anything written here. Drop me a PM on FFN or reblog this post with a link if you’d like me to check out your fic.

Characters: Maria Cadenzavna Eve, Tsubasa Kazanari, Kanade Amou, Finé | Ryouko Sakurai, Nastassja, and others.

Pairing: Tsubasa/Maria, optional Kanade/Tsubasa/Maria.

Trope: Fake dating on steriods, AKA fake marriage.

Summary: Tsubasa and Kanade inflitrate Finé’s organization to find out more about and potentially sabotage Finé’s next big plan. Finé wants Tsubasa’s money and other resources, so she orders Maria to seduce Tsubasa. Both Tsubasa and Maria accidentally catch feelings. Will they get their happy-ever-after or will they end up a modern Romeo and Juliet? Will Kanade accept a bribe and step away or will she have to fend off assassins?

Length: one-shot or multi-chaptered, any number of words.

Story notes after the cut.

Crossed Wires and Crossed Hearts: Tsubasa/Maria Fake Dating AU

“I understand that we need a convincing story to effectively infiltrate FIS, but this—” Tsubasa shakes her head in utter bafflement.

“C’mon, Tsubasa,” Kanade winks at her, “You know I’m quite the catch! Definitely worth running away from your ultra-conservative family so that we can elope in America where homosexuals can legally marry. Arson will make for a fun, unique honeymoon!”

Tsubasa rolls her eyes, muttering, “Be serious, Kanade.”

Ogawa says, apologetic but firm, “The best lies have a grain of truth in them. We know this is above and beyond what we usually ask of our operatives, but what FIS is researching and implementing warrants an extraordinary response. Moreover, the marriage would protect you from being asked to enter a political marriage of insurance, at least while they work to either suborn Kanade or remove her from your life.”

“This is going to be like a soap opera, except with more espionage and murder!”

***

Being the (figure) head of the organization means Maria usually has nothing to do with new recruits; in this case, however, one of the new recruits is high-profile enough to merit a meeting with high command.

Tsubasa Kazanari is a woman just two years her junior, valuable in her disillusionment with the establishment but also in the leverage she brings with her: Tsubasa Kazanari is not only the heir to the Kazanari clan of Japan, but she is also a favorite of their parent clan, the Azuma assassin syndicate which operates on a global scale. The resources this woman could bring to FIS have most members of high command ready to do anything it takes to secure her loyalty. Or, more accurately, her neutered compliance.

“It would have been nice to tie her to us through marriage. Well, we can still give it a try. It’s not likely to work, but do your best to seduce her. Considering that she was willing to elope, I doubt she will leave her lover of her own initiative; still, we could have the lover removed and have you sweep in to comfort her in her grief. Hm, we shall see.”

Never has Maria felt more like a pawn than now. And Tsubasa Kazanari, for all her supposed power, will also be little more than a pawn. After all, spoiled rich heiresses have zero defenses against psychological warfare.

***

FIS [or whatever organization] is working to hijack the moon and take over the world [or something else equally nefarious]. Tsubasa and Kanade go undercover to gauge the extent of [FIS’] abilities, sabotage what they can, and feed information to [S.O.N.G]. Their cover story is that Tsubasa, madly in love with Kanade, has issued an ultimatum to Fudou to let her American marriage stand in Japan or lose his perfect heir [note that the marriage and ultimatum actually happen, so as to convince any scrutinizers that the cover story is real even if TsubaKana relationship isn’t necessarily real]. While in America, the plan is to get themselves recruited by FIS and work as high up the chain as they can. On the [FIS] side, Nastassja and Finé want to secure the resources Tsubasa has; Finé decides to weaponize feelings, just for funsies. They order Maria to seduce Tsubasa while they bribe or eliminate Kanade. Maria doesn’t want to seduce anyone, much less a spoiled rich heiress [2nd Div’s activities are top-secret and Fudou has begun parading Tsubasa in front of the media], but she will because her mother asked it of her. Unfortunately for Maria, she finds herself actually liking Tsubasa. Ver is somewhere, maybe as a sleeper/double agent in [S.O.N.G./2nd Div] or working in [FIS]. Chris’ story line ties into Kirika and Shirabe’s story line in Japan. If including Hibiki and Miku, then the Symphogear must exist and HibiMiku are in the background but definitely working to tip the scales in SONG’s favor.

Thus, three main story lines:

1.       Maria seducing Tsubasa, accidentally falling in love, then trying to arrange an escape for Tsubasa and Kanade (whom she assumes Tsubasa genuinely loves given the way Tsubasa talks about her). Cliché or not, Maria doesn’t discover the truth of Tsubasa’s feelings until FIS HQ is literally falling apart around them and they’re seconds from becoming prisoners and it seems they’ll have to leave someone behind.

2.      Tsubasa evading commitment of her money, personnel, and influence as long as possible, accidentally falling in love with Maria, then trying to arrange an escape for Maria while also collecting as much information as possible. She can’t admit the truth yet, but she’s sure Maria understands that their love is mutual.

3.      Kanade playing coy with bribery, dodging impatient assassination attempts, sabotaging what she can without detection, perhaps getting a bit of revenge on Finé on Chris’ behalf, and investigating Maria to ascertain her suitability as a partner for Tsubasa by playing the jealous, territorial wife. Escape? We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it! OT3 is also a totally valid option.

Optional three side story lines:

1.       Shirabe and Kirika are in Japan, doing something. Double agents? Something with Ver?

2.      Chris is maybe also in Japan, maybe doing something. Possibly related to #1 or #3. Or she’s with Finé and secretly plotting against her.

3.      Hibiki is about to become the savior, and Miku proves invaluable as her emotional support.

[leverage-ot3]

notable moments from The Second David Job

leverage 1.13

parker AND eliot were both using lil flip notepads when they were casing the museum

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they were apart for three months. THREE!!! MONTHS!!!

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the whole scene where parker, hardison, eliot and sophie are casing the place and just narrowly missing each other until it all blows up in their faces? BIG doctor who vibes from the episode where donna and the doctor keep barely missing each other until they see each other through the windows and get caught

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aww the last dammit hardison of the season

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(Hardison drops his helmet as he rounds a corner, followed by two guards)

Hardison (to Eliot): Help me.

Eliot: I got you.

Hardison: Help me, help me!

(Eliot grabs Hardison’s arm and flips him, then gestures to the other guards)

Eliot: I got it.

Eliot: All right, check one floor up. I think I saw another guy dressed just like this one.

Guard: Got it.

Guard 5: Let’s go.

Eliot: Move! (pushes Hardison into the elevator)

Hardison: I'm gonna kick your butt.

Eliot (pushes Hardison): Stand over there!

Hardison: I'm gonna kick your butt

🥰 chaotic boyfriends 🥰

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(Sophie walks toward the doors. Parker drops down in front of her)

Parker: Oh! W- Where did you --

Parker: Run now. Talk later

- - - - -

sophie took off her heels to run

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okay but I NEED THAT SCENE OF ELIOT, HARDISON, AND PARKER SQUISHED INTO THE BACK SEAT OF NATE’S CAR AS THEY SPEED AWAY, HAVING NOT SEEN EACH OTHER FOR THE PAST THREE MONTHS

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Hardison: How'd you know we'd be there?

Nate: Last week before the exhibit opens, security almost in place, but not fully staffed. Best time to case the joint. Plus, I did chase all of you at one point or another.

- - - - -

Eliot: Is she in on this?

Sophie: "She" can hear you, okay?

Hardison: Wait a minute. There is no "this," Eliot.

Parker: Sophie did come back for me.

(Nate walks over to the table, which is covered in plans)

Eliot: Wouldn't have had to if she wouldn't have lied to you.

Hardison: No calls for three months. I don't need you people.

Parker: What do you mean, you don’t need us?

Sophie: I’m sorry, I seem to remember a certain job with horses where I backed your play, actually.

Eliot: I don't care! You don't con your crew!

(the four of them begin arguing, talking over each other. Nate whistles to get their attention)

parker immediately backing sophie up? we love a trusting daughter

hardison acting all dismissive and parker IMMEDIATELY calling him out? amazing

eliot having trust issues? we’re sad to see it but not surprised at all lol

- - - - -

Nate: Glen-Reeder security system here.

Parker: And that's not the worst of it. (walks over to table)

Nate: Hmm?

Parker: The Davids are under bulletproof glass on a motion-Detector pad.

Nate: Really?

(the others join them, Nate takes a step back)

Parker: Mm-Hmm.

Sophie: Environmentally sealed…

Nate: Really.

Sophie: …kept at a constant temperature and humidity in the case. I saw them working on the airflow.

(Nate walks away, no one notices)

THE FAMILY BACK TOGETHER AGAIN

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Nate: Why'd you come back? We agreed to scatter for six months. All of you–all of you—made an amateur move being there.

Parker: It's too hard to leave a job undone. It's like an itch.

Hardison: I put a lot of work into us, into that office. It was like my second home. I blew up my second home.

Eliot: As annoying as you people are, I quit this crew when I quit this crew. Nobody makes me leave.

Sophie: I just, I really wanted to hurt Sterling.

THEYRE A FAMILY, YOUR HONOR

- - - - -

eliot smiled when nate said he taunted them bc:

1. fuck with sterling at all costs,

2. typical nate, and

3. he MISSED THIS

ALSO

hardison and sophie look exhausted and annoyed when nate said he told them he was going to steal it. meanwhile, parker and eliot fucking smile because yeah, get on their level. they Get It™

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the team sitting around the table like old times ,,,

ALSO hardison’s worktable tho,,, half eaten bag of chips, empty bottle of orange soda, mini basketball, etc. we love to see how this man works

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Sophie: Hey, I think the roof's the way in, but it looks like they've rigged alarm sensors to the skylights.

Parker: I can get around those.

Eliot: Really? And end up on one of the new 20 cameras they got down there from our last little trip to the basement?

Parker: That was fun.

Hardison: Yeah. Could we talk about that?

Parker: Talk about what?

hardison: can we talk about the kiss or ???

parker and eliot are sitting next to each other :)

also eliot is wearing flannel now and we love to see it

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Eliot: How'd we miss that?

Nate: Grifter, hitter, hacker, thief. You were all trying to solve your version of the crime instead of just trying to solve the crime. There was a reason we worked together.

- - - - -

Parker: What about Maggie?

parker likes maggie

+

Parker: Okay, look, you always have a plan "b," right? So, fine. Without Maggie, what's the plan "b"?

MASTERMIND PARKER IN SEASON ONE

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Nate: You know, I had to ask her out 10 times before we even got a coffee --

Eliot: Coffee? I would love to. Yeah. What time--? In an hour? I, yeah, I would love to. Let me write down where you want to go. I know exactly where that place is at. All right. I'm looking forward to it. (hangs up)

Nate: Yeah, all right -- No.

Eliot: She probably just really wants some hot coffee.

Nate: Shut up!

Eliot: It's not like a date. (pulls his hair back)

Nate: Are you kidding me? You're fixing your hair?

Eliot: Because I’m playing the professor Sinclair dude!

maggie’s thirst + nate ready to die LMFAO

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parker, hardison and sophie watching the button cam footage like a soap opera (sophie is literally eating gummy bears lmfao)

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(Parker, Eliot and Hardison sit on the stairs as Maggie and Nate stand in the dining room, arguing)

Eliot: I feel used.

lmao poor eliot. although we love to see the ot3 sitting together as a unit

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eliot using a tight alias and then using his real phone number? big dumbass energy

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Nate: So we replace the rebar, reinforce the concrete, with any luck, they'll never know what hit 'em. And that, that's the plan.

Maggie: You actually expect this to work?

Nate: Um…

Hardison: No, no, you're supposed to say, "wow. That's just crazy enough to work."

Sophie: Incredibly, chance does seem to bend itself to his bizarre machinations.

Parker (whispers): That's his superpower. (smells Maggie)

in this house we love and respect maggie

also dnjsjsjjdnsn under the cork boards there are two (2) big cases of orange soda and beer for eliot

+ now parker is wearing a very pretty flannel that I want

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Maggie: I have to check museum inventory.

Nate: Oh. Easy.

(Nate looks at Hardison, who types on a laptop, then shows monitor to Maggie)

Maggie: This is confidential. (takes laptop) You're not reading my e-mails, are you?

Hardison: No. No.

(Maggie looks down at the laptop. Hardison nods to Nate while she’s not looking)

LMFAO

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Sophie: Okay, why don't you run up to him? Being just a little bit out of breath, it changes the speech rhythms—

[Blackpoole Gallery]

Sophie: --makes it harder to detect a lie.

(Maggie passes Parker, taking Lloyd’s phone, and starts to run)

Maggie: Lloyd!

[Mansion Dining Room]

Hardison: See? Like that right there. It's informative.

Eliot: You learn and you con

it’s true, your honor

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Nate: Okay. What's he found?

Hardison: Oh. Well, looky here. Dr. Ernst Volk, University of Berlin, dead. Dr. Schliemann, London museum, dead. Oh. Oh, and also the three guys that actually discovered the tomb. Eliot, what does that say?

Eliot: It says "dead."

Hardison: D-E-D, dead, baby.

Eliot and Nate: D-E-A-D.

Hardison: I-I know how to-- I was throwing a little style on it, Just a little bit, a little style. I know how to spell "dead," damn it. I can steal a bank, I can spell "dead. (annoyedly drinks orange soda)

give him a break pls

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Sophie: Wrap it up now, Maggie. You're doing great.

THEY HAVE CHEMISTRY

john rogers said that they had a fling in canon (I’m thinking during sophie’s absence in season two) and bless his soul for giving that to us

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Eliot: You need something?

Sophie: I was just trying to make myself useful.

Eliot: Yeah, well, last time you tried that, we had to blow up the office.

Sophie: That's not fair.

Eliot: I was just getting used to it.

Sophie: What? Having an office?

Eliot: Being part of a team.

Sophie: Look, I didn't mean, you know, it wasn't supposed to go down like that.

(Parker walks in and tosses a bag on the floor near Eliot)

Parker: What's going on?

Eliot: Sophie here was just trying to apologize.

(Hardison carries the painting into the room)

Sophie: No, I wasn't.

Parker: She tried that with me earlier. She kind of sucks at it.

Eliot: A little bit.

Hardison: Oh, did she give you the speech about how we're thieves and about how this is what thieves do and if we were in her shoes, we'd have done the same thing?

Eliot: No, I think she was just getting to that part.

(Eliot puts the part he was working on down and stands up)

Eliot: You apologized to him first, huh? Why am I last?

Sophie: I wasn't apologizing. I...

Eliot: That's the problem.

Sophie: I just wanted to see if w-we… we were all okay with each other.

Eliot: Okay. There it is.

Parker: I forgive you.

Hardison: Apology accepted.

Eliot: Yeah.

they give sophie shit but they still love her

also eliot is such a sap he misses the office and even admits that he liked having a team what a SOFTIE

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Geary: Pictures have been distributed. We're scanning every guest that comes into the museum.

Sterling: Eliot Spencer?

Geary: Eliot Spencer, (referencing files) wanted in five countries, including Myanmar—

(Eliot walks behind Geary and Sterling, pausing to listen for a moment as they walk away from him)

Geary: --which is offering a half-million-dollar bounty on his head.

Sterling: Bringing Spencer to justice and getting paid for it? It's icing on the cake.

(Geary and Sterling get into an elevator)

[Museum Lobby]

(Geary and Sterling walk out of the elevator)

Sterling: Parker?

Geary: Parker. Wanted in nine countries, including Brazil and Yemen.

Sterling: Yeah, tough choice. I'll have to flip a coin.

(Parker is working in the gift shop of the lobby, watching them walk by)

Sterling: How about Sophie Devereaux?

Geary: England, France, Spain, Luxembourg -- Europe, basically.

Sterling: France. Wonderful shopping, horrifying prisons.

(they walk past Sophie, who stifles a laugh)

[Mechanical Room]

(Hardison turns on a light on his hat, opening a panel and attaching clips)

Sterling: Alec Hardison.

Geary: Well, he better not show his face in Iceland

I LOVED THIS MONTAGE

also we love to learn more about the team

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on hardison’s phone when it shows their synchronized countdowns, he has himself down as “big h”

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Ian: Conspiracy to commit robbery is what, five years? Catching him in the act, 20.

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nate rappelled in this one!

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nate snatching the gun right out of blackpool’s hand? eliot taught him that and you CANNOT change my mind.

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Ian: Maggie!

(Ian walks over to Maggie, followed by Nate and Sterling)

Ian: Well, you understand –

(Maggie punches Ian in the face. He falls to the floor)

Maggie: Screw therapy. That felt really good. (walks away)

we stan a QUEEN

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Sterling: Of course, you know your entire plan depended on me being a self-serving, utter bastard.

Nate: Hmm. Yeah, that's a stretch.

(Nate hands Sterling the gun and heads for the door)

Sterling: I'll call you when it's done.

Nate: You do that

- - - - -

(the team stands in a circle, dressed for travelling)

Nate: Thank you, all of you. You surprised me.

Eliot: We had a good run.

Hardison: It's a good time to move on.

Parker: I'm going somewhere... else.

Sophie: A fresh start.

Nate: We made a difference. Remember that.

Hardison (to Parker): Where you going?

Parker: Let's see how hard you look.

(the team separates reluctantly, each going a different direction. They all pause for a long moment, then the screen goes to black)

parker and hardison are still cute, parker is about to cry, hardison and eliot look very sad and almost tearing up, and sophie is actually crying

also hardison was the last one to turn around and that’s so in character it hurts my heart

+ the ot3 were each wearing leather jackets (plus eliot wearing a hoodie underneath = bix2)

I hate the scenes when they split up and the producers said that they ended every season as if that was final anD B O Y IF I HAD TO WATCH THAT AND HAVE IT BE THE END I WOULD HAVE R I O T E D

[dangcommaannie]

So I started thinking about Leverage OT3 and then remembered I had another OT3, my Criminal Minds OT3 (Well...OT4, actually, but...I’m sorry, Luke, my sweet baby child. You’ll be included next time.) and I have come to the conclusion that both ships would get along like a house on fire.

I’m not sure how I want them all to meet. There are many possibilities. McSweeten could introduce Parker and Hardison to the BAU team. But also, the thought of Hardison and Penelope meeting first is so good too. They could meet in the middle of some hacking thing, maybe even while dealing with Chaos. But also, I love the idea of these two nerds becoming friends over a game of some kind.

Actually, wait, better idea. Combine the two. Hardison and Penelope become gaming friends and then when McSweeten introduces Parker and Hardison, they have no idea it’s each other, but they do respect each other’s hacking skills and then eventually figure out they’ve been friends the entire time.

Morgan, Reid, and Eliot are hesitant at first. After Penelope got shot and seeing how friendly Hardison can be, he’s a bit concerned. Reid, on the other hand, is shaken by the fact that Parker looks a lot like Maeve. Eliot is just protective of his partners, both because that’s just who he is and because he can tell these people aren’t like McSweeten. They can probably see through whatever bs they make up and that worries him.

Parker is just curious in seeing another throuple, but also, she does find Reid interesting too.

Since I mentioned Chaos, maybe they end up together to work on a case that he’s somehow connected to. He won’t be an unsub because I can’t do that to Wil Wheaton, but maybe he got paid to do some things he shouldn’t have or didn’t have a full idea of what it was for and now, he’s got the FBI and the Leverage crew coming after him as they try to find the real perpetrator. That’s when both of them fully meet and have to start working together, all brought together by McSweeten.

Like I said, Hardison and Penelope work out fine. They’re both nerdy and geeky together, and they 100% have a little fun competition between the two of them to keep things interesting because it’s not often they find someone who can keep up with them and also shares the same interests. They also probably jokingly flirt as friends too and then immediately act scandalized and be like, “Excuse me! I am happily taken, thank you very much!”

Morgan and Eliot are more hesitant. They won’t say it, but there’s tension as they size each other up. Morgan can tell these people know more than they let on and Eliot is doing his best not to give too much away. They don’t start to try and get along until they both end up in a tussle of some kind and they end up protecting each other, or someone else that they care for. Morgan is intrigued by Eliot not liking guns, but by the end of the case, Eliot is teaching Morgan some things that he knows in the middle of a bar, instead of drinking. They also bond over football too because of course they do. They never really talk about what Eliot’s done, but after meeting Penelope, Eliot wouldn’t be surprised if she dug up stuff on all of them and is either keeping it quiet or she’s managed to get the others to keep quiet about it after she mentioned the pertinent things to them. Either way, his past isn’t something that comes back to bite him in the ass and he’s thankful for that.

Parker and Reid are a bit shakier. Parker finds Reid interesting. He has a lot of knowledge and information that he rattles off and a part of her gets that because she’ll do the same with safes and locks, whether people actually care or not. It’s not her fault though. It’s just what she knows. But she also takes note of how Reid avoids her and she thinks it’s something she’s done. She’s doing her best, but he’s still wary and when she voices her concerns to Hardison, he does a little digging with Penelope who mentions not to worry about it since it’s a Reid problem and not a Parker problem. Still, Parker wants to figure out what it is and eventually finds out about her resemblance to Maeve. They have a little heart-to-heart after that and get a better understanding of each other. Mainly over losing people and how to move on from that, but also over the two of them learning how to get along and understand people more. They talk about navigating relationships, let alone being in one with two other people instead of one. I wouldn’t say they’re best friends for life, but there’s an understanding between the two of them and the recognition that there’s someone else that also gets them and isn’t in a relationship with them.

The case wraps up and they separate, but still try to keep in contact with each other. If the BAU team ever has a case nearby, they try to stop by to at least say hello to the Leverage crew. The BAU team has certainly figured out what the Leverage crew actually do, but if someone else ever tries to bring it up or if someone gets suspicious, Penelope isn’t against speaking up about the fact that she’s technically done some illegal stuff to help them get information for cases either or throw them off their trail for a little bit.

They 100% have double (triple?) date nights together.

[veliseraptor]

What are your top favorite characters of the decade?

Are we talking about favorite characters who came from this decade, or favorite characters I personally adopted this decade? Because those I think are two different answers. 

Let’s go with “adopted this decade” because that’ll be easier for me. Also limited it to 15 because otherwise I could probably go on forever, and the more I thought about it the more characters I thought of.

Natasha Romanov: Both in comics and in the MCU. What a glorious character. She was the character who got me reading Marvel Comics for the first time ever, who got me into superhero comics as a whole, who I still love passionately.

Loki: I mean, obviously. I’m cheating and including all versions of Loki in this. All iterations thereof. Every one of them. You can’t stop me.

Sameen Shaw: Rewatching Person of Interest this year I kept going “where is Sameen. where is she” because she was probably (narrowly) my favorite character in this show, and is also just a spectacular character who is very unique in the media landscape, imo.

Charles Vane: Not the character I expected to come out of Black Sails attached to, but he’s the one I did! I think I just sometimes fall for semi-feral characters. I rewatched the last episode of season 2 again recently and god!!! so good.

Ishamael/Moridin: Yes, he’s from an old series that I read well before this decade, but he’s a new adoptee after my reread so I’m putting him on here. I love a good fatalistic villain who just wants everything to end! Who literally thought himself into evil because it seemed like the best option! What a good boy.

Laura Kinney: I think about “I do not need to touch them. I am made of stars” and “I can have what I want. I can change. Watch me.” at minimum once a week. I love her so goddamn much. My girl, made as a monster and a machine and figuring out that she’s as human as anyone. God. So good.

Lucille & Thomas Sharpe: You know I love a good pair of incestuous murder siblings. Doesn’t help that they’re both pretty as hell.

Tommy Shelby: New but boy do I love him. Slams all my character buttons several times and also those cheekbones, dammit Cillian Murphy, you got me. 

Nebula: I have a very specific “fucked up younger siblings with inferiority complexes” type and she hit it right off the bat.

Catra: I cruised into the She Ra show for fun and came out of it with a new villain couch adoptee and I have no regrets.

Morrigan (Dragon Age): Basically from the second she showed up in Dragon Age: Origins I loved her and that has not changed. You know I love a character when I cosplay them, and I’ve been cosplaying Morrigan for a few years now, no matter that it means some creepy guys trying to put their arm around my waist.

Cullen Rutherford: I liked Cullen in Dragon Age: Origins because he was a mess, but what really sold me on him was his arc through Inquisition, and the more I thought about him (and talked about him with @portraitoftheoddity) the more I loved him.

Steve Rogers: He’s a good boy. I feel like I partly fell in love with Steve via @ameliarating as well as writing him over seven years in Remember This Cold but he’s mine now. 

Clytemnestra: I read Agamemnon by Aeschylus in freshman year of college and fell in love. 

The entire cast of Critical Role. It’s cheating, but I can if I want to. My top favorite fluctuates, as I’ve said, at least three times per episode, and every time I start to be like “but especially” someone else sticks their head in there. So I’m just going with “all of them.” The most recent additions to this list and I’m happy to have them.

I will refrain from including Francis Crawford of Lymond (narrowly missed at 2008) or Felix (also narrow miss at November 2008) because even though I had a very strong resurgence of love for them both I did still love them very much the first time around.

Same goes for Crowley, actually. Resurgence of love but even if the TV show was new this year I don’t feel like I can actually count him as a new-to-me character.

But god!! there are so many more I could have chosen. And I’m almost certainly forgetting a whole bunch because it’s been a while, and there are others that I wanted to put down but felt like I needed to draw the line somewhere. Like…Faith Lehane and Angel from my Buffywatch? Baru Cormorant? Hela? Root? Wanda Maximoff? Josephine and Vivienne from DAI? The Leverage OT3? Kaz Brekker? too fucking many good characters.

Which. Good problem to have, but does make writing a list like this a challenge.

[evilwickedme]

ok so to sum up my feelings for leverage: redemption, season 1(a): (long post warning, there’s a tl;dr at the end)

I knew that Hardison wouldn’t be in most of the season due to Aldis Hodge being a busy bee nowadays, but I didn’t realize that meant he’d only be around for the first two episodes. He was sorely missed, not only because of my attachment to him, but also because he’s usually the grounding factor in the group dynamic, and his role as info guy and tech guy was split evenly between two characters who had their own issues.

That said, Hardison is absolutely a highlight of the two episodes he’s in. his speech about redemption was everything I could’ve hoped for (plus, more evidence for the Jewish!Hardison pile...). I wish we’d gotten to see more of his dynamic with Breanna because what we saw was funny and sweet and we don’t generally get to see Hardison taking care of somebody who so desperately needs taking care of. I hope that Aldis Hodge is around for more episodes in 1(b), because what we’re left with feels a little hollow.

Sticking to original leverage characters for now, for the most part the leverage crew still felt true to the original series as characters, even if the show itself was a little bit confused at times. The actors understand their characters and embody them so well that I think one could give them the trashiest script ever and they’d still sell it. Sophie is a particular focus in 1(a) because of Nate’s death, and she’s particularly well written as a result.

That said, I’m super bitter that we saw little to no mastermind!Parker. Parker’s character being given the mastermind role was a big deal and it feels like they’re walking it back because they feel uncomfortable with it. It is eventually given an in-text excuse, but literally in the last episode, and it was not a particularly convincing reason, and in fact contradicted moments from previous episodes (Sophie leaving for a client meeting and ignoring Parker in ep3 comes to mind). It’s frustrating, it makes the end of the original leverage feel pointless, and letting Parker make a decision once in a while is not the same thing at all. The original series repeatedly showed us that while everyone in the team had their strengths, Parker works problems and solves them in unique, interesting ways, and other characters’ days in the limelight tended to be comedic or even failures. It’s a broken promise, and a pretty major broken promise at that.

On a more positive note, Parker’s dynamic with literally everyone was fantastic. She’s possibly the best written character this season. They’ve taken the autism out of the subtext and into the text (although obviously still undiagnosed), and given her coping mechanisms that were taken seriously in the text even when they were played for laughs, which I appreciated. Her attempts to mentor Breanna were sweet, her friendship with Sophie was electric and at times (CRIMES) hilarious, and as usual, she has a fantastic dynamic with Eliot that makes my heart burst. If you don’t think they’re romantically involved, at least acknowledge there’s a life partnership here. They’ve spent the last decade together.

(We’ll get to Harry.)

Eliot isn’t given much arc-wise, which is frustrating since he’s my favorite. He’s being presented as the goal at the end of a redemption arc, ie to keep working at it every day until your soul heals or whatever, and it doesn’t reflect the message they’re trying to convey via Hardison’s speech and our two new characters. He’s got his moments, but I think they under utilized his potential.

Breanna!!! Breanna’s my new favorite, except for Eliot. She’s hilarious, she’s insecure, she’s nerdy and excited in a way that’s similar to Hardison but still distinct in its inherent teenage-girl-ness and I LOVE IT. Unlike the previous series, where Hardison’s “age of the geek” was often a joke played on Hardison, we’re at the point where Eliot and Parker are both right there with him, and so they accept and even appreciate Breanna’s nerdiness. Also, canon gay character? In YOUR Leverage? It’s more likely than you think.

(No, I never thought they’d make ot3 canon on screen. I hoped, but I didn’t think it would actually happen.)

I think Breanna’s the character that will be the most interesting to see grow. She’s got a lot of potential and a list of crimes a mile long (or more). I adore her with all my heart. I want to see her tiktok account.

Harry. Oh, Harry.

It took me a while, but I do like Harry. It took a while, because the narrative positioned him at the same level as Nate back in episode 1 of original Leverage. But in episode 1 we didn’t know the other characters. We had Nate as the POV character, and so we cared about him because we were seeing the world through his eyes. (This is TV Studies 101. I know this, because I took TV Studies 101 in 2019.) In Leverage: Redemption, we no longer have a POV character, for several reasons:

Nate, previously the POV character, is dead.

As it is, by mid-season 3 of leverage Nate was no longer a POV character. This is, coincidentally, the point where the leverage writers realized they had four other characters in the main cast they could do something with, and in-universe, Nate accepted that he was a thief, not a special Good Man.

Sophie is sort of a POV character for the first episode of the revival, but only for the first few minutes. Afterwards, the series settles into the groove of seasons 3-5, i.e., the entire crew is our POV. We know our crew, and we love them as is.

Narratively, however, Redemption insists on positing Harry as the POV character, because it is his redemption we are pursuing most vehemently. And I think they really relied on us already knowing the actor - I’ve never seen him in anything before, so to me he was a completely fresh face and they put almost no effort into selling him to me. Beyond being competent and consistently mildly baffled by the antics of the leverage crew, I honestly don’t know who this man is by the end of EIGHT episodes with him. I have a much better handle on Breanna by the end of 1(a), and I can tell you I knew all five of the original leverage crew better by the end of the first episode of the original series than I do Harry. What’s the name of his daughter, John Rogers. Is he still married. How old is the daughter. Why is none of this worth mentioning. Give him a sense of humor that isn’t reacting to other people’s shenanigans. I’m so frustrated. It’s bad writing.

I did manage to grow to like Harry by the end, but I’m pretty sure this is down to Noah Wyle’s charismatic portrayal of an under-developed character, at least partially. And I never stopped being frustrated at not knowing who this man is at all.

The two highlights of the season are undoubtedly episodes five and six. Episode five was the first time I felt like the episode was more than a collection of good moments between the main cast and mediocre moments between the main cast and also the main plot. The issues with pacing and tone that I suffered through for most of the season were mostly non-existent in ep5 and 6, and at least in episode 5 I attribute that to the pared down cast. They had time to focus not only on our actual characters - Sophie, Parker, Breanna - but also on the case. This is the only client from 1(a) I am going to remember next week without googling it first, mark my words.

Episode six worked for the exact opposite reason - it completely disregarded the client and plot and immersed itself in the characters. Breanna gets a moment to shine, but everybody else gets their bits and I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the script that was most fun to write. The characters felt natural, real, and captured the found-family dynamic that’s been missing all season for the first time.

While episode 2 is the weakest episode, I don’t actually have much to say about it. I am disappointed in episode 8. For a mid-season finale, I really expected them to do something. Instead, it was an episode about Nate Ford that copped out of being about Nate Ford (both with fake-Nate and with the new version of him being relayed to us). I would have told the writers to give that energy back to episode 1 and write an episode that’s about anybody who isn’t Harry, oh my God. I know I said I grew to like him but so many episodes were about Harry. He’s the newbie! Why didn’t Hardison get an episode that was actually about him, considering he was only around for two episodes? Why does Eliot have to be the butt of the joke when the theme of the series should directly tie back to him in a much more meaningful way? The last episode parodies their own tagline by saying Eliot isn’t just a hitter, but it deftly avoids noticing that they’ve turned him into nothing more than very muscly comic relief, including in that very episode!

Also, I hated the Marshal. Eliot actively looked uncomfortable around her.

tl;dr

The season took a while, that’s definitely true. But it did find its footing eventually, and by the halfway mark of 1(a) it finally felt cohesive again. The characters were played fantastically even when they weren’t well-written, and if nothing else, the humor landed every time. It still has its kinks and problems to work out, but if you look at it as a brand new show rather than a continuation of one that went off the air over eight years ago, it’s actually doing rather well. I’m choosing to judge it in both lights - according to its own standards, it establishes its identity in episode five; according to Leverage standards, it establishes its connection to its roots in episode six. Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed 1(a), and continue to have high hopes for 1(b).

fic writing will commence in three, two, one...

[mj-spooks]

Challenge accepted. You shalt become tumblr famous via Leverage. But then that means I gotta branch out to more topics and parallels. Okay. For starters, howabout Leverage Crew as Disney Princesses?

You’re hilarious. For the record when you send asks and I never reply, it’s usually because I don’t have any coherent responses and mean to get back to them, but never come up with anything. I’m not ignoring them I swear. Moving on.

Okay so I’m not going to cheat at this, I’m only using princesses that were actual Disney properties when they were created. No Princess Leia cheats. I’m also not using Shuri, even though Black Panther was made after Disney’s acquisition of Marvel, for the same reason. OG Disney Princesses ONLY.

HOWEVER

I am being loose with the term “princess” in that I’m using female characters who are included in Princess marketing, regardless of actual royal status.

The main reason for that being Nate, who I think is Mulan. HEAR ME OUT. Lived according to the rules expected of him, up until a certain point in his life where following said rules had gotten him all of nothing to show for it. Saw injustice, went around the system to correct said injustice. Picked up a ragtag band of rough around the edges companions who assisted him in his heroic endeavors. Saved China a lot of innocent people from the Huns corruption and ruin. Inventive and resourceful. Good at improv. Also, picture Sophie singing “Make a Man Out of You”. *chef’s kiss*

Parker is Rapunzel. Abusive parental figure that acts less like a proper parent and more like a friend one second and an evil jail warden the next, lots of random and seemingly useless skills. Socially awkward due to isolation. Hyper af, attention span of a gnat. Except when something’s of particular interest, then suddenly she’s on it like white on rice. Falls for a guy that’s not half a suave as he likes to pretend, is in fact actually a huge dork, for all that he tries to be a rogue (this could refer to either Hardison or Eliot, though I do tend to picture Hardison more as the Flynn Rider type).

Speaking of Hardison, I think he’s Kida from Atlantis. Firstly because obviously one of them had to be. That movie is just. The frikkin best. But also because they’re both highly intelligent and quick-witted. No hesitation to snark, sure of themselves, friendly and animated but also fiercely protective and with a big heart. Would do anything for the people they care about. All around badass. Could probably win most fights but would rather use other means to succeed if possible. This one is funny though in that he’s basically also Milo. He’s both. Eliot is his Audrey and Parker is... probably his Vinny, I can totally see her doing the “look, I made a bridge!” bit.

Eliot took me a while, but I finally settled on Tiana. Humble beginnings, hard-working, resilient. Works hard, doesn’t know when to quit. Can and will prove every single person wrong about every rude thing they’ve ever thought about him. Culinary genius. Seems hard on the outside but is secretly hiding a big, soft heart. Smarter than he’s given credit for, just wants to be left to do his thing and make beignets. Fell in love with a big goofball with his heart in the right place but who does dumb stuff like. Basically all the time. Again this could be either of the other OT3 members.

Sophie is hard for me! But I eventually settled on Jasmine. Mostly because of the scene where Jasmine distract-seduces Jafar to help Aladdin out. Not many of the princesses are capable of that level of duplicitousness. She’s smart, she’s sexy, she knows how to use these traits to get what she wants. Also, Jasmine is clearly the grifter of the princess roster, considering both the seduction and the bit where she pretends to be a beggar earlier in the film. A little self-obsessed, I think, because Jasmine never really considered what life was like outside the palace until she snuck out and saw for herself. Still, she has a good heart, and a good head on her shoulders.

[cactusspatz]

October recs

Audience: 822,000 and Homeland Security by @werewolves-are-real​ (Leverage, gen/OT3)

Hardison starts a live-stream for Dragon Age to show off his new mods. And he kicks ass. But his viewers are actually a bit more concerned about the angry guy in the background of his videos, and the blond chick who keeps peering through his windows.

"Is this some kind of performance art," asks peskytroll341.

*laughs endlessly* I love a good outsider POV, especially when there are bonus ninjas.

Stuck on the Puzzle by thespectaclesofthor (Dragon Age, Iron Bull/Cullen)

Once, back in Kirkwall, Cullen had an arrangement with a member of the city guard that satisfied his needs. But time changed all things, and he despaired of ever finding a similar arrangement again - that was, until he met The Iron Bull. Problem being that Bull seemed to care far more about sorting out the nitty-gritty of such an arrangement than Cullen ever has.

I don’t even go here, but how could I resist such a long, well-written h/c BDSM epic? Highly recommended for a day-long read in bad weather with hot chocolate (and it probably will take at least a day, because it’s 235K long!).

And Then One Fine Morning by missbecky (Kingsman, Harry/Eggsy)

Eggsy isn't doing too badly, considering the hand he's been dealt in life. He's got a job working nights and he's doing his best to take care of his mum and sister. And then one morning he meets a stranger at the bus stop, a handsome man named Harry who offers to share his umbrella when it starts to rain. Before the day is through, Eggsy is head over heels in love.

What's even more amazing, Harry seems to be falling for him, too. Right up until the day he sees the medal around Eggsy's neck.

Yesss, the romcom AU based on the Hollies’ “Bus Stop” that I’ve always wanted. Terribly charming, and eventually dovetails into the events of the first movie.

Obscura by @manic-intent​ (Magnificent Seven, Goodnight/Billy)

Goodnight tended to lie about how he met Billy. It was a tiny lie, by any measure of the word. In the Texan saloon, the fistfight was bare-knuckled for only a minute, right until Billy smashed the nose of his first opponent with the heel of his palm and cracked the skull of the next against a pillar. After that, in fine Texan tradition, everyone, including the whores and the piano player, had drawn their guns.

I’m weak for how-they-met stories, and this one was extremely satisfying. They are THE MOST married, good lord.