Living with Boys

“Every seeker approaches the father on his or her own path.” Trust a reaper to take that piece of advice as unbreakable law.
OR In which Sam and Dean run an errand for the reapers, in order to help Jack with his mission to take out Chuck. It's just a quick trip to Purgatory to find a dragon's lair. What could go wrong? Set in between "Galaxy Brain" and "Destiny's Child".

This work was inspired by a lovely and mysterious piece by tx_devilorangel as part of 2020's SPN Reversebang. Check it out and give it much love! TxDorA's art sent my imagination off in a number of different directions, but I finally settled on this path thanks to my husband, who looked at the image and immediately said, "Purgatory!" He is my first reader and beta, so how could I refuse? The setting merged with the title of the piece, which is now the title of the story, and ultimately led here. So if you like it, you have TxDorA and my husband to thank--as I do.

Art Post: on LJ or AO3.

( Here's the story )

I found this vid this morning, and I think it's a beautiful character study of Dean. The vidder made great use of the song (Wild Hearts Can't be Broken by Pink) and the black and white tap dance from last week. Enjoy!

This was written for this year's Summergen and posted here first. alyndra gave me a great prompt, "Jack starts to hear everyone's thoughts and things get uncomfortable." The story takes place after 14x15, "Peace of Mind", and finds Jack attempting to help his friends and find peace in the night.
( Read the story. )

I participated in Summergen last year, and this was my gift. I love so much about this illustration--the expressions, the colors, Sam's floppy hair--but most of all, I love the ghostly feet in the foreground. To me it's a good a piece as anything I've seen in a graphic novel; in fact, it reminds me of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez's Locke and Key series. I immediately wanted to write more of the story!

So when I had the chance to attend Seacon this year, I decided to bring it to have the J's sign. They both enjoyed it. yuriookino, this is really for you! Thank you for such a wonderful image--I hope you enjoy the autographs.

I might have to have the extra coffee today.

Since last Thursday I have seen a fair amount of SPN angst--there's the usual anger out there, and a fair bit of WTF. Not all of this is earned.( Read more... )

I was ready for the SPN Hellatus. Really. I have enjoyed the season so far, I think in part because I have made an effort not to become embroiled in fandom angst. I have also avoided “reading ahead” by way of sneak peeks, spoiler articles, and much of the speculation that flies around the internet. I would watch the trailer at the end of each episode, and avert my eyes to as much of the rest as I could, trying to hold myself to minor postings on a few friendly sites. (I’m pretty much on the fringes of the fandom, but I do like talking about the show, and there’s only so much my husband can take!) It helped.

But December is long, Christmas is over, and I have free time and itchy fingers again—I took a look around at what some of the bloggers and entertainment site writers had said about this season’s road. In spite of the expected differences of opinion, and varying degrees of critical approval, I found myself struck by a common sentiment—“How is Dean going to come back to us?” The affection that most of the writers hold for this character, and for Sam, shone through whatever critical comments they made.

It got me thinking (“A dangerous pastime.” “I know.” --Sorry).

( Wait, there's more. )

Is it just me, or did Supernatural give a shout-out to the most famous shower scene in cinema last night?



Supernatural "Meta Fiction"



"Psycho"

Now, I don't necessarily think that they are equating this:




With this:




Especially when the psyches of the two characters are considered. But I think there are some intriguing parallels here beyond the obvious. Both Dean Winchester and Marion Crane have recently committed a rash and morally dubious act as a way to achieve something that they value. Marion stole money from her employer in order to start a life with her lover. Dean took on the Mark of Cain as a "means to an end," specifically to kill the demon Abaddon. By this point, both have found themselves behaving in previously un-thought of ways, and have had their moorings, the aspects of their lives that have allowed them to define themselves, loosened. For both, the water represents spiritual cleansing more than physical.

There's a vital difference, however, and perhaps it's telegraphed somewhat in how the characters are positioned in the frame. Marion has decided to return the money. Her shower is a way of washing off her previous 24 hours, of actually returning to sanity, and her concept of self is therefore being restored by the scene. We as viewers are aware of her surroundings, the Bates Motel bathroom, and also of her vigorous and almost joyful actions in the shower, but we must also be aware of what she can't see coming behind her as she meets her fate.

For Dean, his struggle is clearly ongoing and getting worse. Here the storyteller wants to convey what is happening inside the character, and we are given an extreme close-up of his face from above. What menaces him is also a part of him now, and may be connected to his destiny. For all his attempts at control, Dean is not succeeding, and the water simply sloughs off his face as we watch him slowly open his eyes to that fact.

Of course, I can't say with certainty that the creators intended this parallel. Save for that shot of the showerhead. The scene in "Supernatural" does not contain any further shout outs to "Psycho." But now that this is in my head, I'm finding meaning in it, and in the way each fiction portrays these characters in relation to fate. Marion in her brief bout of madness ("We all go a little mad sometimes--") unwittingly puts herself in the path of a killer and becomes a victim of circumstance. Dean stands poised on the brink of having his humanity fall victim to the killer within.

In an episode titled "Meta Fiction," which asks its viewers at the outset to decide what role they play in defining a story, finding meaning in a single shot seems fitting, don't you think?