Leverage Ot3 - Tumblr Posts
My favourite ship dynamic: straight passing bi couple, and their guy™️
not only did the three “die” holding hands, the two of them that were in a romantic relationship didn’t. eliot was in the middle. he held both their hands. you would think a show would put their long-time building romantic relationship together and have them hold hands as they died, right? nope. not leverage. most shows wouldn’t even consider having their two male characters hold hands. especially in such an intimate, emotional scene. most shows wouldn’t have one of their male characters hold hands with his friend’s girlfriend as they were dying. leverage showed us how important their relationship was by eliot’s placement. eliot meant so much to both hardison and parker and they meant so much to him. and this was nate’s story. nate came up with this, told people how the three thieves died together, holding hands. he had to make sure people knew that eliot spencer , alec hardison , and parker loved one another so so so so so much
Imagine Parker stumbling over Hardison's fanfiction about them. He started that after he found some conspiracies, headcanons and even RPF about them written by some of their clients, and surprisingly even one or two collaterals (ppl working for the CEOs they took out), so now he's fueling whatever he feels like. Imagine Parker starting to write (maybe even poetry) because "writing is cool, even though I haven't understood the use so far."
Now I am just imagining some bad guy they put away being told to channel their anger into writing for therapy reasons, and that writing turns into some kind of weird revenge fantasy on the team. The thing is, this is at a time when none of them are together, not even Hardison and Parker, and this dude is clearly writing them as some kind of romantic triad???
Which, you know, may or may not, lead Hardison down a rabbit hole where he stumbles upon fan-fiction or similar “therapy writing exercises” about them from other criminals or clients. It makes him weirdly happy that people see them like that, even if it is kind of weird.
Cut to four years later and Hardison may have several aliases he’s carefully cultivated over the years where they are all in a relationship. There’s back story, drama, how they met, how they got together, their daily routine. The works. He justifies it by telling himself it’s not fantasy, just pragmatic. You know, in case they ever have to go into hiding and don’t feel like splitting up.
Hardison gets such joy out of creating these aliases. It’s almost like his version of The Sims. He loves imagining all these other lives they could have. And yeah, one day Parker is being nosy and stumbles across them. At first Hardison is embarrassed and still tries to play it off as nothing more than back-up plans but it’s no use because it’s painfully obvious some of the aliases would be of absolutely no use if push came to shove and they needed to get out of dodge, like the alias where Eliot is a Professional Cowboy (”what does that even mean, Alec? Does he wear hats and big belt buckles for a living?”).
Of course, Parker doesn’t make fun. Instead, she begins to add to them and comes up with all sorts of quirky new details, even suggesting some brand new aliases to add to the collection.
They don’t tell Eliot; Hardison, out of embarrassment, and Parker because she doesn’t actually realise they aren’t telling him.
Of course, this all comes to a head one night when Parker says she wants to do role play in the bedroom and Hardison is left speechless when Eliot comes into the room, more than a little smug, decked out in full cowboy gear saying, “the lil’ lady told me you got a wild west fantasy?”. And the drawl is so strong and Hardison is going to kill Parker, but not before he swoons just a little at the way Eliot tips his hat at him and winks like a 40s movie star, lets Hardison haul him in by his *cough* massive belt buckle and kiss him senseless. (Parker doesn’t understand the appeal of the cowboy look but she does like the low voice Eliot uses for the character and the way Hardison can’t take his eyes off of him.)
After that, Hardison is much more willing to share his aliases with Eliot and Parker (even if he does get mocked for some of them- “professional dinosaur wrangler, Hardison, seriously??”).
The Rundown Job was really the OT3 episode, uh?
I knew they worked well together, that's been obvious for a while. But in an episode of just them, it really hits how in sinc they are.
Hardison and Eliot doing their little handshake after watching Parker do her acrobat thing through a lazer grid.
Eliot's first concern being to get Hardison and Parker to safety. Them refusing to let Eliot go up against a terrorist attack. Parker's line about how they change together, for better or worse.
Eliot not being scared of the terrorists attack because he has Hardison and Parker on his side and he believes in them more than anything.
Also when Eliot put his hand on the back of Hardison's neck and looked into his eyes? That was so intimate. The tension was serious with undertones of sexual. It had the same tension as Parker diffusing the bomb.
The silent communication. The celebrating each other's victories.
Eliot throwing down the crutch in favor of leaning on his partners.
I'm sure other stuff I missed, it being only my first watch through and all. But that's the stuff that stood out the most to me.
Ok I just finished rewatching The Rundown Job and so far I have -
The most ridiculously peacocking display of competence porn. What do you mean "'sup Eliot." What do you mean "who needs luck". Where is your damn shame? Where is hundred more episodes of just like this? 10/10 worth every watch.
'I've got a hacker *enter bf*, and a thief *enter gf*'
Only Parker noticing 'too many cops'. It's such a cool detail throughout the show how observant she is just offhandedly, unlike Eliot who observes actively.
Parker pretending to promptly fall asleep as soon as they're in the truck, only to have the handcuffs off in seconds.
"What do they say about me? I hope they gave me a cool nickname." I'll bet all the kudos on my most popular fic that he hacks into his own pentagon file regularly to make up his own nickname.
"Hell your girlfriend's already out of the cuffs" *Parker smiling and sliding them off* AND IT'S DIRECTED NOT TO HARDISON, HER EXPLICITLY STATED BOYFRIEND, BUT AT ELIOT, THEIR BOYFRIEND.
Putting Hardison in those glasses. Those damn glasses. I need a glass of water jfc it's hot in here
'For better or worse, we change together'. Aaaaaand that's on wedding vows.
"I'll drive." "Hold on." "Exactly." "No, I mean hold on. (Our gf is a former gateway car driver)". "Oh. Oh you mean. Yeah."
The hand on the wrist and eye contact and saying 'I'm not afraid. I got the best thief and the smartest guy I know chasing this guy'
HAND ON THE BACK OF THE NECK AND PULLING CLOSER 'HEY LISTEN TO ME YOU'RE THE SMARTEST GUY I'VE EVER KNOWN HARDISON I NEED THAT BRAIN TO GET ME TO HIM. GET ME TO HIM'. Screaming crying frothing at the mouth et cetera et cetera
Figuring out the job TOGETHER
This is Hardison. Hardison likes his personal space. These are Parker and Eliot. Parker and Eliot also like Hardison's personal space.
The eyes on each other's lips during unlocking doors and saying thank you
'Kiss for luck?' the sequel: love boogaloo
HACKING THE MF CAR HORN WITH AN SOS THROUGH A MOBILE PHONE
"BOOM MY BOY THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!!" first of all that's his boy so jot that down
Also side note this episode shows the fascinating way Hardison uses his brain and I wish we saw more of it because it's fascinating how he derives what he does from the few bits of data he gathers
"He's on the train!" "Yeah well so am I." "When you pick him out of the crowd-" "No. I'm ON the train! 🙄 Never mind..."
Two good ole boys behind the wheel 🎶 chasing the target and their gf in a million dollar car 🎵 two good ole boys-
*Hanging by her fingertips from a running train roof almost mashed into pulp by signage" WOOOOOO HOOOOO
The way Parker picks him out, not by using thief sense, but mastermind sense that he's immune -> got vaccinated -> pain in the arm. Brilliant way to pick someone out from a crowd while not raising panic
Keeping him talking till she takes the briefcase that he HANDCUFFED to himself right under his nose. How? Well, she's Parker.
"I kept one diamond. Sorry." I love her
Finally "kiss for luck" the trilogy comes to an end
*casually endangers self* "Fire is the only thing that kills it right?"
"Don't do that to me, I can't lose you. Do you understand? I can't lose you. Don't scare me like that. I can't-"
Eliot Spencer: *Barks 'Alright!' at the guy touching him to literally patch up his bullet wound.* Also Eliot Spencer: *ditches crutches so he can lean on his girlfriend and boyfriend*
"I work with them now." Would you like to stay for dinner? "Honor among thieves? Something like that." WOULD YOU LIKE TO STAY FOREVER??!!!
"I don't do hospital." "I told you, he takes getting shot very lightly." Uh huh, you know what I smell? LOVE. In the air! Might be some blood from those bullet wounds too ig.
What a show.
okay i literally just started s4 and i'm sorry but,,, the long way down job is literally out the gate with ot3 moments (also are they seriously just called leverage ot3? do they have a better ship name??)
hardison hugging eliot to try and steal his body heat and eliot allowing it for like 3 seconds before shoving him off
hardison trying to be weirdly overprotective of parker and and her just leaving when he tries to hug her, so eliot hugs him instead. bonus points because he says "At least Eliot hugged me."
Parker teasing Hardison about sucking at climbing + Parker going "seriously?" when Eliot does that thing where he recognizes people through innocuous details of their clothing or some shit
Parker and Eliot stuck in the cave.
ELiot: "Hey. It's a good thing it was us." Parker: "Because we'd leave him." Eliot: "Because they would have kept trying and they would have froze to death right next to him. Especially Hardison. So it was a good thing it was us. The two of us, we do things they can't. Won't." Parker: "That make us bad?" Eliot: "It makes us...us. Now you can take that as a gift or take that as curse. That's up to you."
Them finally leaving the cave and comms come back on and Hardison being so relieved he tears up and both Parker and Eliot tell him to shut the fuck up LMAO "I was so worried...You my peoples..."
I bet the first time Nana meets Eliot- she sees the God fearing, flag wearing 18 year old boy. (The one that Eliot looks for in the mirror and can't find.) Nana doesn't see a criminal. Doesn't see a man who has blood on his hands. She doesn't see a warrior bleeding and crying out for mercy. Just a over tired, stressed, broken 18 year old- trying to prove to the world he's worth fighting for. That there's hope in saving him. Nana doesn't question Eliot's roaming eyes. Roaming eyes that are either looking for danger or looking for exits. The older woman simply smiles and pulls him to the kitchen. Makes him sit down and puts a mug of coffee near his callous hands. Nana doesn't react when she hears screams, moans, and groans at night. Nor in the morning does she make a remark about walking by the room and seeing Hardison and Parker next to Eliot on the twin bed. (Eliot is in the middle.)
I bet when Nana first meets Parker, she doesn't question her habits at all. Some how (Hardison, obviously,) has Parker's favorite candy and cereal. Some times, Parker will sit right in front of Nana with a brush and a hair tie. Nana will gently brush her hair while she plays with whatever child is in front of her. She doesn't slap Parker's hands away when she grabs extra food. And she definitely ignores seeing Parker sneaking into the room Hardison and Eliot share. (Nana saw it when they walked in- Parker feels safe with them.) In the mornings and the windows are open- she looks out to see Parker and Alec on a bedsheet curled up to each other. She smiles. Nor does she comment on missing things after they leave. Especially since a few weeks later- those things return outta the blue. Nana has no qualms when Eliot shows up with both Parker and Hardison behind him- Parker sick and Hardison injured.
"Sorry, Nana," Eliot apologizes, looking meek at coming to her place, "I can't get them to list'n. Can't get 'em to rest." And together- Nana and Eliot get the two trouble makers on the couch. She might not question the reason why Eliot showed up with the two. However she does give Eliot a sparing look. She see's the ragged, tired look. It doesn't take a whole a lot of brain power to know that the two so called trouble makers- got Eliot into the dog pile. (He was suppose to follow her into the kitchen- he didn't. She knows Parker and Hardison grabbed his wrist.) (What can anyone say? She has eyes on the back of her head.) (Eliot allows to get pulled onto the couch with only mild, gruff, complaining.) When she goes back to the living room to check on her charges- she finds Eliot in squished in the middle- being used as a pillow. (He's knocked out too.)
Nana doesn't mind Parker teaching her kids how to pick locks. Or watching Eliot teach them self- defense. She doesn't question it when she see's little four year old Becca with pig-tails- standing by the counter helping Eliot with breakfast. Nana hums when she opens the door on a Saturday morning and see's Eliot, Parker, and Hardison (though Hardison begrudgingly-) with a tool box. After all she had left a message to Alec that her sink was leaky.
Instead, she makes coffee and pulls out Parker's favorite cereal. She asks if They are staying for lunch and even dinner. Makes causal remarks about one of her more difficult children- and watches as Parker and her baby Alec go and find the kid.
None of them comment about Parker recruiting half of kids that come from Nana's house. They keep it hush- hush when neighbors stop by for a cook out. Many of the neighbors ask about the trio- and Nana only replies with a smile.
"They're my kids." She says fondly- watching as Eliot grills as Parker is poking and prodding the chef. And Alec is simply smirking as he's showing Isak how to hack.
I bet Nana treats Eliot and Parker like her family. Because they are Alec's family.
gajeel redfox is so elliot spencer coded
Eliot would win an arm wrestle, Parker would win a thumb war.
That’s it. Enjoy.
Eliot would win an arm wrestle, Parker would win a thumb war.
That’s it. Enjoy.
Eliot would win an arm wrestle, Parker would win a thumb war.
That’s it. Enjoy.
So I read a leverage & Jurassic park fic and now I really love the idea of the leverage crew (more specifically Parker, Hardison and Eliot) working at Isla Nublar with dinosaurs! I feel like Hardison would work in the tech department (obvious I know but he’s just so well suited to it), Eliot as security or looking after the baby triceratops, and Parker as a form of Owen Grady character, taking the crazy risks and stuff. If anyone else has an leverage & Jurassic park ideas please share!!
The severe lack in Leverage: Redemption fic’s on ao3 is really bothering me. Are they hiding under a different tag because I’ve checked under leverage and I couldn’t find a leverage redemption tag. So if anyone knows where they might be hiding or has any recommendations, especially OT3 I would very much appreciate them.
Leverage OT3 Recs: The Return
About two years ago, I made a series of Leverage OT3 fic rec posts that are still being reblogged in the fandom today. That’s great! But some really good Leverage OT3 fic has been written since 2016, so it’s time for an update, everybody!
a chair is not a house by greenurr (7,634 words)
An AU where the OT3 are not world-famous criminals, but manage to get together anyway. I love that this fic really delves into Eliot’s status as a war veteran and what that could mean for him. The sex is also scorching hot.
A Trio in Orange by ijemanja (1,664 words)
Just three really cute vignettes about the OT3 eating breakfast. Pure domestic fluff.
and sat him doon at her bed feet by takiki16 (1,875 words)
Three vignettes about each of the OT3 being a selkie, and how their partners respond to that. Quietly beautiful.
Birthdays and Blowtorches by page_runner
Eliot refuses to say what his birthday is. Hardison takes it as a challenge. Fluffy and very, very funny.
Eliot Spencer’s Good Day by Ramblingandpie (3,456 words)
Like so many of my fave OT3 fics, it’s established relationship, just a nice day in the life of Eliot Spencer. He cooks, he exercises, he gets a massage, he has great sex with his partners. It feels very sweet and everyday.
The Food Cart Job by page_runner (21,452 words)
This isn’t so much an OT3 fic as a rollicking romp of a post-canon casefic where it’s just taken as a given in the background that the OT3 are together. Peggy comes to Portland, befriends Eliot, and gets entangled in a food cart conspiracy.
For Morale by lbmisscharlie (5,179 words)
This fic is focused on the Eliot/Hardison leg of the triangle, but is still very much an OT3 fic. In this fic, Hardison and Eliot start hooking up casually in S3, then start to catch feelings, and then Parker joins the fray. It’s funny and sexy and the Hardison POV is so vivid.
If We Go, We Go Together by mardia (2,142 words)
An AU where Sophie, Eliot, and Parker are werewolves. Hardison makes it work with Eliot and Parker across species lines. It’s really cute.
In Bloom by celestialskiff (3,855 words)
The OT3, 15 years post-canon. They’ve gotten out of the crime game, dealing with middle age and the consequences of the job, but still loving each other and doing good in the world. Achingly tender and sweet.
Motion Parallax by Laughsalot3412 (8,606 words)
I liked this fic so much I recorded a podfic of it. It’s Amy Palavi POV on the OT3 getting together post-canon. It’s also a casefic where the OT3 have to help Amy. Satisfying on both the case and the romance fronts.
Solicited Noods by lynne_monstr (9,663 words)
Another fic that’s more of a post-canon casefic with the OT3 taken as given in the background. I love the easy way the OT3 work together and believe in each other.
Triptych by Thorinsmut (29,802 words)
Like all of Thorinsmut’s Leverage fic, this fic is so good, so hot, and slots very smoothly into canon. The OT3 get together, Eliot gets cold feet, and Parker and Hardison have to figure out why.
Volta by greywash (1,769 words)
A story about the Leverage OT3 aging, and what that means for Eliot most of all. I love how greywash portrays Eliot’s way of breaking it to his partners that he can’t fight anymore.
The Way Back by Raine_Wynd (36,890 words)
The OT3 are together, but Eliot hasn’t told his partners anything about his family. That is forced to change when Eliot’s brother gets into the kind of trouble only Leverage can solve. I really liked reading about Eliot reconciling these two aspects of his life.
Okay but think of the comedic potential of the Leverage OT3 having been together for years by the time of Redemption, and at one point the others find out.
Breanna would be like "oh my god how did I not see that". Sophie would go "oh that explains a lot of things". (And yeah, it would also be on board for her to know, but one, it's been established that unconventional relationships are kind of a blind spot for her, and two, Parker is weird enough and Eliot's act is good enough that it would help throw her off the scent.)
(Harry wouldn't care much probably.)
And the possibilities of how it could happen. Like. Hardison is up in space, Eliot and Parker are doing something for a con, they see someone coming, Parker is like "quick, let's make out", and throws herself on Eliot. Eliot is like "no, not the lips", but he goes along with it, and then when they're in the clear, he's like "why do you always bite my lips? you didn't have to bite my lips", to which Parker replies "I was playing a character. Clara is a lip biter", and Eliot goes on an angry rant about the whole thing, but also the others overhear it, and Breanna checks in like "Eliot always says it? how often do you guys make out on cons?" and Parker goes "Eliot's not talking about the cons."
OR Parker is upset by something, and leaves the room, and Eliot goes after her, and when he doesn't resurface for a while Breanna goes after him, and they're kissing, and Eliot shouts at her to get out, but she's like "Okay. This is not cool. Eliot, you're super scary and I can see you're pissed at me right now, but I gotta call Hardison," and they're both like no, you don't have to do that, but he's already on call, and Breanna tells him everything. Eliot is facepalming and sighing the whole time. Parker is just like "what? they had to find out eventually." And then Breanna finishes, everyone is dead silent, waiting for his reaction, and Hardison is like "So y'all wasted my time with this? [five-minute rant about how busy he is]" Breanna is flabbergasted. "So Eliot makes out with your girlfriend and that's your reaction?" So Hardison just goes "Damn sis I better damn hope that when my girlfriend is upset our boyfriend would go and comfort him. Get yo act together." He hangs up, camera cuts to Breana, her face frozen while trying to process the information. Then she just goes "HOLY SH-" [commercial break]