"A Matter of Principle"

[blueiris08]

Title: A Matter of Principle
Rating: PG
Category: Gen.
Characters: Sam, Dean, Original Character, and a bit of John.
Word Count: 5300
Summary: Wherein a school administrator from days past nearly blows Sam and Dean's cover.
Author’s Notes: The setting is post-'Nightshifter/'Folsom Prison Blues.' Thanks to just_ruth   for superfast beta and the title idea.

Comments

[alleysweeper]

I love outsider POV story's. You did an excellent job with Beverly!

Thank you,
Alley

[blueiris08]

Thanks! I really appreciate posters' comments on Beverly, because it was my first foray into an original character pov.

[inane_nana]

This is a very nice story. Johna came out great, and the outside POV was just delightful. great job.

[blueiris08]

Thank you!

[coell]

Good story. I had a little chuckle -- I'm from Flint.

[blueiris08]

I'm from Flint.

In which case, you know that there isn't a double campus with a middle school and high school on the same or adjoining property. That bothered the hell out of me, because I shoot for having the background details right, but in the end...well, Flint. No one would have trouble buying the carjackings.

Glad you chuckled.

[coell]

Close enough, I suppose. Flint's an industrial ghost town since the mid 80's, about when the boys would have been there. The city schools have a "white flight" problem, so the typical question: "Do you want your kids to go to such dangerous schools?" is a thinly-veiled way of asking: "Do you want your kids going to such black schools?" No question the academics suffer terribly for the increased security and low incomes. The racial segregation in Flint is so strong that a mere ten-minute move in any direction can get you out of a 70% black school district into 99% white suburbs. If John really was staying in the cheapest housing possible, in a neighborhood that would support knife-carrying youths, it would have been a city public school for sure, which 9 of 10 are rated less than 5/10. In most cases though, the middle schools are within jogging distance, so the campus question didn't even bat an eye. Since you responded, I'm curious - what brought you to pick Flint as your setting?

Why Flint?

[blueiris08]

I slacked off on my feedback: sorry, and thanks for the info on the middle school/high school locations. All I could find were street addresses, and none of them seemed to be on the same streets

[delphinapterus]

This was wonderfully beautiful. I really love how you put the flashback in because it fit so well and didn't seem forced at all. Having her figure it out not from their faces so much as how they reacted to each other was excellent. I really like your OC because she was smart, couragous and level-headed about everything even when she's sure that Sam and Dean are just as bad as their wanted posters make them out. See them tense and go into defensive mode when the siren hits was great - I really like how she's scared by them and regreting coming but at the same time is still evaluating them. Dean's "What does a rude one say?" line was hilarious and sounded really in character. Also Sam's name was a wonderful touch - it was so playful yet the undertones are darker - great choice.

[blueiris08]

This pretty much encapsulates the way I wanted the fic to come across to readers, so, yay! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment.

[innie_darling]

Ooh, that's an interesting take on how someone might remember them! Nicely done!

[blueiris08]

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting!