the_ninth_bow - Where the World Begins
Fandom: Supernatural
Author: the_ninth_bow
Title: Where the World Begins
Pairing: Dean/Castiel
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Slash, domestic, apocalyptic, romance
Word Count: ~49,300
Author spoilers/Warnings: AU after 5.08. Sex, very mild battle violence
Author's Summary: In the aftermath of a battle against demons, Castiel rescues an orphan girl, who then forms an attachment to the fallen angel. Dean and Castiel take her into their care, traveling highways and back roads, killing as many demons as they can, while Sam searches for an alternate way to defeat Lucifer. Amidst trying to end the Apocalypse, Dean finds his life a strange combination of broken, crumbling cities and a half-domestic life on the road. In the quiet moments they make for themselves among the chaos, Dean and Castiel become closer not only to each other but to their ward, and Dean finds his life taking a turn in a direction he never thought it’d have a chance to take.
Rating:
“Where the World Begins” is a brilliant example of how a prompt of “Something domestic… and Dean and Cas have a kid” can be fulfilled without resorting to excessive amounts of schmoop or turning the story into an AU. It is also an example of a kid!fic that I would recommend to readers who usually avoid those kinds of fics.
The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, where Lucifer is spreading fear and carnage wherever he goes. Dean, Sam and Castiel are doing what they can to help, and while trying to rescue some civillians come across an orphan toddler whom they, without other options present, are forced to take with them. the_ninth_bow surely and skillfully moves the story forward towards the final encounter with Lucifer, but it's in the slow and well-developed relationship between Dean, Castiel and the young girl the true brilliance lies.
While their relationship is both moving and at points fairly domestic it is tempered by the seriousness of the situation. the_ninth_bow manages to avoid the clichéd “MarySue”-like portrait of a child who instead feels like a normal three-year-old, doing things a toddler would do, like putting grass and flowers on Dean's hand or being scared of strangers.
The story is kept in present tense which helps the reader feel the tension and urgency felt by the characters. With just a few words the author is able to paint both a clear picture of the desolate world our protagonists are travelling in as well as the small intimate moments between our protagonist trio, although there is a certain overuse of the phrase “eyes gone wide”.
I do have a few problems with the story, though, but considering the sheer scope of it (it clocks in at almost 50,000 words) they are minor and I think it fully deserves those five slashes. But that being said, I would have liked to have known just a bit more about what is going on in the world. Other characters are scarce and we never really get any information on where they are or why the cities are crumbling around Lucifer and his demons so fast, considering the story seems to take place about 6 months to a year after the Devil has risen. Especially as the story is so long I feel a few more paragraphs devoted to the background wouldn't have been amiss. There is also the fact that while the author specifically mentions that the cell towers fall and the world has basically come to a stop, Dean and Sam are still able to communicate over their cellphones, which, considering the work the author has put into the details of the rest of the story, seems like an slip from her side.
Overall, the story really deserves to be read by anyone who likes a long, detailed fic with plenty of plot, a well-developed relationship and beautiful characterizations.
Rating:
Author: the_ninth_bow
Title: Where the World Begins
Pairing: Dean/Castiel
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Slash, domestic, apocalyptic, romance
Word Count: ~49,300
Author spoilers/Warnings: AU after 5.08. Sex, very mild battle violence
Author's Summary: In the aftermath of a battle against demons, Castiel rescues an orphan girl, who then forms an attachment to the fallen angel. Dean and Castiel take her into their care, traveling highways and back roads, killing as many demons as they can, while Sam searches for an alternate way to defeat Lucifer. Amidst trying to end the Apocalypse, Dean finds his life a strange combination of broken, crumbling cities and a half-domestic life on the road. In the quiet moments they make for themselves among the chaos, Dean and Castiel become closer not only to each other but to their ward, and Dean finds his life taking a turn in a direction he never thought it’d have a chance to take.
Rating:
“Where the World Begins” is a brilliant example of how a prompt of “Something domestic… and Dean and Cas have a kid” can be fulfilled without resorting to excessive amounts of schmoop or turning the story into an AU. It is also an example of a kid!fic that I would recommend to readers who usually avoid those kinds of fics.
The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, where Lucifer is spreading fear and carnage wherever he goes. Dean, Sam and Castiel are doing what they can to help, and while trying to rescue some civillians come across an orphan toddler whom they, without other options present, are forced to take with them. the_ninth_bow surely and skillfully moves the story forward towards the final encounter with Lucifer, but it's in the slow and well-developed relationship between Dean, Castiel and the young girl the true brilliance lies.
While their relationship is both moving and at points fairly domestic it is tempered by the seriousness of the situation. the_ninth_bow manages to avoid the clichéd “MarySue”-like portrait of a child who instead feels like a normal three-year-old, doing things a toddler would do, like putting grass and flowers on Dean's hand or being scared of strangers.
The story is kept in present tense which helps the reader feel the tension and urgency felt by the characters. With just a few words the author is able to paint both a clear picture of the desolate world our protagonists are travelling in as well as the small intimate moments between our protagonist trio, although there is a certain overuse of the phrase “eyes gone wide”.
I do have a few problems with the story, though, but considering the sheer scope of it (it clocks in at almost 50,000 words) they are minor and I think it fully deserves those five slashes. But that being said, I would have liked to have known just a bit more about what is going on in the world. Other characters are scarce and we never really get any information on where they are or why the cities are crumbling around Lucifer and his demons so fast, considering the story seems to take place about 6 months to a year after the Devil has risen. Especially as the story is so long I feel a few more paragraphs devoted to the background wouldn't have been amiss. There is also the fact that while the author specifically mentions that the cell towers fall and the world has basically come to a stop, Dean and Sam are still able to communicate over their cellphones, which, considering the work the author has put into the details of the rest of the story, seems like an slip from her side.
Overall, the story really deserves to be read by anyone who likes a long, detailed fic with plenty of plot, a well-developed relationship and beautiful characterizations.
Rating: