SPN FIC - Hale-Bopp

[ficwriter1966]

There was something in the sky, some years back -- something that was (at least partly) responsible for the deaths of thirty-nine people.  Thirty-nine dead, thanks to the whims of a madman ... when John had spent two weeks of blood, sweat and tears to save just one.

Two hours ago, John had been behind the wheel of his truck, letting the road unspool

Comments

[saberivojo]

You amaze me anew...how you take Hale Bopp and the buckets of crazy that was Heaven's gate then seamlessly roll it into post hunt Winchesters.

John's voice is so very John - I'm not quite sure how you do that. But it is not only that it is the little things like

Half an hour, maybe forty minutes' worth of wet heat, aimed at everything he'd hunched and contorted while he was driving so he could protect that wrenched shoulder from further insult.

Because that happened, it did. It just speaks to John's getting older and feeling the physical aches and pains more. Not to mention the psychological aches and pains that being the dad in a horrible situation brings.

Anyhow. Wonderful and thank you.

[ficwriter1966]

I have NO idea where this came from. I knew I wanted to do something with John, and then all of a sudden I was thinking about the comet and 39 dead people. My brain is strange.

I have kind of fond memories of Hale-Bopp, though. I was sitting in my apartment one night, and they were talking about it on the news. I thought, well, I'm gonna go outside and see if I can see it. I had my PJ's on, so I threw a coat on and walked outside. Couldn't see it from my front steps, so I walked a little ways down the street and still couldn't see it. Thought, well, dammit, then, I'm gonna get in the car and drive until I can see it.

Ended up in Brentwood, standing in the middle of the street in my PJ's and coat, staring up at the comet, surrounded by million dollar homes.

Good think nobody was looking out their window.

Anyway. Glad you enjoyed it! My shoulder has hurt like blue blazes all day (I think I pinched something...again) so I could definitely identify with JDub. 'Cept Dean wasn't offering to cook me eggs.

Hale Bopp

[catsintheattic]

I really liked this. It radiates John's weariness and exhaustion, and what a hard time he must have had at that period in their lives, knowing he would have to bury all his hopes of the family business of three.

And yet, this particular part about Dean made me flinch the most, because it seemed so cruel and unfair: That Dean had spent most of his life doing that - trying to help - but his track record, the level of success he'd hit, was for the most part no better than his high school transcripts.

John was focused so much on Sam's compliance and spent so much energy fighting with him that not only he took Dean and his loyalty for granted but wasn't even able to see what Dean contributed to the family business, and would never have given Dean a shred of praise. And that makes me sad - especially because it rings so true with what we see of Dean's serious lack of confidence when it comes to pleasing his dad.

Re: Hale Bopp

[ficwriter1966]

It's true of so many people who spend their lives trying to fix an impossible situation.

The most unfortunate part of all this for Dean is that he wasn't aware of the *depth* of the problem. At first, he was a child who couldn't have handled the truth - yes, he knew about monsters, but it seems that John knew about the demons wanting Sam fairly early on, and didn't pass any of that knowledge on to Dean. If John did any real disservice to Dean (and to Sam), it wasn't dragging them from place to place and denying them a sense of "normal" - it was that, once the boys were adults, he didn't sit them down and tell them what he knew. Understanding the truth might have gone a long way towards healing the dynamic amongst the three of them.

Although, underlying all that is my belief that Mary should have told John the truth right from the get-go. I think being blindsided by Azazel's invasion started John off on a very problematic foot.

(And I'm delighted that you enjoyed the fic! Thanks for the comments.)

[irismay42]

You captured all three Winchesters here so well - John tired, and, in a lot of ways, longing for the Normal Dean would find himself longing for years later, Sam pissed off at the unfairness of life in general, and Dean just desperate to keep his family together and happy.

I liked how you kind of wrote Dean in the peacemaker role in a more literal sense here - helping John turn off the TV, close doors and windows, until there's some kind of peace and quiet restored that Dean obviously realises John needs.

And inspired how you tied it all in to Hale-Bopp too!

[ficwriter1966]

Thank you!

I think it must have been terribly wearing on John, as time went on - it could be that his awareness that he was fighting the tide with a pitchfork, saving one or two people when so many more were being lost to "normal" tragedies - and perhaps that contributed to his obsessive, laser focus on finding and defeating Azazel. He's really one of the most fascinating characters in TV, and I would love to see a series focused entirely on him, someplace like HBO or Showtime.

[phebemarie]

This fall, my school took 40 kids on an overnight trip to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. We saw a production of Hamlet, which was extremely kid-friendly and gloriously acted. It was absolutely the best trip I've ever taken with students. Most of them were 9th graders (Sam's age in this, I think), so I'm 100% on Team Sam here (and that's generally not the side I take). I can't appreciate the terrific John and Dean interaction because I'm pouting with Sam about his missed opportunity. (Although I'd love to think that somehow John relents when a persistent and compassionate teacher intervenes

[ficwriter1966]

My experience with the Stratford (CT) Shakespeare Festival: I was a freshman in high school. Showed up one day in my gym suit (Superman blue one-piece that snapped up the front) with a skirt over the top, because it was gym day. The sophomore English teacher, a friend of my mom's, grabbed me and said, "There's an empty seat on the bus. I called your mother and she said you could go." And I was like...WHAT, now? Huh? I don't wanna! But I got dragged to Connecticut in my gym suit, entirely mortified. MORTIFIED. I know I saw Jane Alexander, can't remember the play at all.

That whole Heaven's Gate thing was mind-blowing. You just really, really have to wonder how and why people can be so gullible and desperate.

No need to apologize - rambling is always welcome! Glad you enjoyed the fic. :)

[borgmama1of5]

Winchesters...this made me ache as I read, wanting to somehow fix things for them.

John's perceptions of his boys, esp. Dean, are very bittersweet to read.

[ficwriter1966]

This whole show is about massive aching, isn't it? I've got my fingers tightly crossed for more eps like Weekend At Bobby's and Frontierland. Monster Movie. Even It's a Terrible Life! Some FUN. We can has that, plz, Show?