soundsfaebutokay:all-things-breathing:pieklalat:2x06: The Top Hat JobYou kids stop fighting or we wi

soundsfaebutokay:

all-things-breathing:

pieklalat:

2x06: The Top Hat Job

You kids stop fighting or we will turn this van around

My favorite thing about this is that everyone Knows™️ what Eliot is capable of, but they tease him anyway because they know it’s safe for them to do so. They know that not only will Eliot never hurt them, but they can safely test that in a way that shows how deeply they trust him to never cause them harm.

It’s like… how do I say this. They poke him with a stick to show him that they know he won’t bite, he isn’t violence incarnate. He’s family, and family gets on each other’s nerves and they tease each other, and they’re showing him he’s family. 

Parker first, because she’s the one who runs into danger with glee. Eliot snitchesinformsthe team dad Nate about it, expecting him to reprimand her. Instead, Nate also pokes Eliot. On the surface, it says “you’re our trusted teammate, we get have fun with you.” But on a deeper level, it says “She’s right, you’re not dangerous to us. We trust you, and you’re family.”

Nate and Parker are always very in sinc when it comes to pushing people the right way (it’s The Mastermind in them), and their love language is pushing people in a way that brings them closer, in a way that reveals how close they’ve already gotten. 

Because there’s only a handful of people Eliot will let touch his bruises, his most tender spots, and walk away with their hands intact. And those people are all in the room with him.

My other favorite thing about this is how childish it is. They’re like kids in kindergarten, with Parker being a little shit and Eliot telling on her to the teacher Nate. These two, the ones with the darkest pasts and most unspeakable traumas in the crew.

Where else could they have acted like this? We’ve seen Eliot with the men he considers his friends: with them it’s all macho posturing, war stories, serious professionalism, or some combination of all three. He hasn’t been a kid in a long, long time, in a way that’s measured by more than just years.

And Parker, as far as we know, never had anyone for very long. She lost her brother young, was betrayed by those kids who taught her to steal cars, and she was moved around too much in the foster care system to make lasting friends. She would not have been like this with Archie. She even called him “sir.” There was love in that relationship, but not much room for playfulness.

The way that they are with each other, the way that they are with this team, is indescribably precious. When they poke and prod at each other, when they tease Hardison, when all three of them get so deep into fun but impractical plans like the Batcave that Nate and Sophie have to step in, they’re getting a little bit of their childhood back. They’re losing a little bit of the weight they carry. And I’m glad we get to see it.