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creampuffqueen · 4 years

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Deep in the Heart of Texas - One

a/n: So, because I have zero self control, I went and wrote the first chapter of the ToG southern AU I was talking about. I did this instead of doing online school, so I’d appreciate some feedback! I’ll probably continue this, but you know, support is nice. I think it’s also important to note that Aelin would absolutely rock a southern accent. So would Aedion. It would be so hot. Just... imagine it.

Summary: Aelin Galathynius is ready for the best summer of her life. She’s home from college for the summer, and so are all of her friends. Even her cousin is on a break from the military. Everything is set up to be perfect. Until... her mother decides to let the son of an old family friend stay with them while he grieves the loss of a loved one. And Aelin is not going to let a party pooper ruin her summer.

Rowan Whitethorn has just suffered the biggest loss of his life: the death of his long-time girlfriend, Lyria. His family is sick of him moping around his tiny New York apartment, so they ship him down south for the summer. The last thing Rowan wants is to spend his vacation in Nowhereville, Texas, but he has little choice. Not to mention, the only people his age seem to hate him. How on earth is he going to survive 3 months of this?

Aelin Ashryver Galathynius is living the high life. She’s sitting in a chair outside in her backyard, beer in one hand, barbeque in the other. Her dog, Fleetfoot, is perched at her feet, just waiting for some scraps.

“So, little cuz,” Aedion says, sitting beside her. He reaches over to grab one of the ribs from her plate, but Aelin quickly slaps him away. “How was your junior year at A&M?”

“Pretty good.” Aelin concedes. She finishes off the rib she was eating and passes the bone to Fleetfoot, who immediately jumps to gnaw on it.

“How about you two?” Aedion addresses Aelin’s best friends and roommates, Lysandra and Elide.

“At least you two only have one more year.” Lysandra groans. “Next year I have to focus on getting into vet school.”

“You’ll make it, Lys.” Aelin assures her. “You’re the smartest person I know.”

“I still have to get into medical school.” Yrene sighs from her own seat. “And Nehemia, you’ve got to get into law school.” Their other friend nods and rolls her eyes.

“And this is why I’m just getting a business degree.” Aelin chuckles. “Four years and I’m out.”

It’s so good to see her friends again. They’ve known each other since high school, but only Lys and Elide stayed back home in Texas for school. Nehemia got accepted into Harvard, which they all saw coming. Yrene managed to get herself all the way up to Washington State. As for Ansel and Nesryn, they moved out too, scholarships taking them far, far away.

Aelin missed her friends. It’s so good to have them back. And Aedion, too. By some miracle or another, he’s managed to have a break over the summer. His next deployment isn’t until September.

When Aelin pulls herself from her thoughts, her plate of ribs is noticeably smaller. And her cousin has the tell-tale stain of barbeque sauce on his chin.

“You prick.” Aelin sighs.

“You weren’t eating them!” Aedion laughs. “I’m not letting good barbeque go to waste.”

Aelin, being the mature adult she is, just sticks her tongue out at her cousin until he laughs so hard he chokes. She stands up and takes her plate, smacking him on the back as she does. Aedion just glares.

“I need more food. Any of y’all coming with?” Nehemia and Yrene take their plates and follow Aelin up to the long table where the food is being served.

Aelin’s parents are sitting in camp chairs nearby, laughing. Evalin has a margarita in hand, while Rhoe’s got a beer. When they approach, suddenly all three girls find themselves pulled into a conversation.

“Are y’all having fun?” Evalin asks, smiling.

“Definitely.” Nehemia laughs, ever the polite one. “Thank you so much for inviting us, Mrs. Galathynius.”

“Oh, of course.” Evalin gushes. “I couldn’t just throw a welcome home party for my daughter without inviting all her friends, now could I?”

Aelin attempts to shrug off her mother, but it’s no use. Evalin Galathynius has perfected her Southern charm, and of course Nehemia and Yrene are defenseless against it.

So her friends and mother chat, about life, college, relationships. Evalin even gets Yrene to confess she’s been keeping a long-distance boyfriend, and Aelin is pissed that her friend didn’t tell her first.

But she gets more food; barbeque, mostly, but she heaps some beans and a roll on as well.

“Save some room for banana pudding!” Her mother warns.

“Mom, I will always have room for banana pudding.” Aelin grins. Finally realizing that they don’t have any food on their plate, Nehemia and Yrene pull themselves away and pile their plates high.

By the time they get back to their group of chairs, Aedion has managed to down two whole beers. Ansel and Lysandra are arguing, (or flirting, Aelin can never tell), and Elide is scratching Fleetfoot’s ears as the dog chews on another rib bone.

“Mom’s bringing out the desserts soon.” Aelin alerts her friends. Lys perks up at her words, glancing back towards the house, where all the food is.

“Please tell me she made banana pudding.” Elide groans. “I haven’t eaten it in like, years. Your mom always made the best.”

“Okay, but your mom makes really good butter cake.” Aelin laughs. “I mean, it’s got enough fat to give you diabetes with one slice, but that’s a problem for another day.”

“Mom didn’t make any for the party, though.” Elide pouts.

Before Aelin can respond, three kids crash into their circle, laughing wildly. It’s Evangeline, Lysandra’s little sister, along with Hollin and Terrin, the younger brothers of Dorian and Chaol. Who, for the record, Aelin didn’t know were invited.

“Sorry!” Evie chirps. She stands up again and runs off, the younger boys chasing after her. Fleetfoot, done with her bone, jumps up and dashes after them with a bark.

Lys just rolls her eyes. “Kids.”

Beside her, Nesryn nods in agreement. “Kids.” Aelin spots Nesryn’s older sister, Delara, with the rest of her very large family. Delara has a baby on her hip, while the other three helions run circles around their mother’s feet. Nesryn’s younger cousins soon join in, creating a whirlwind of small children. Aelin has to look away; they’re making her dizzy.

This time Nehemia joins in, a huff of laughter on her lips. “Kids.” She points to her two little brothers, antagonizing Rhoe Galathynius by the house, likely begging for dessert to come out sooner.

“Well, as nice as this is, I don’t have any siblings, so I cannot relate. Sorry to burst your bubble.” Aelin’s comment gets a laugh from all around their circle, and soon everyone is back to eating food.

“Look! The pudding’s out!” Aedion shouts, and all the college-aged kids drop everything and sprint to the house, shoving each other out of the way. Nobody is getting between Aelin and her banana pudding.

“Hey! Slow your roll!” Evalin scolds. “There’s enough pudding for everyone. As long as you only take a small scoop. Aedion, I’m talking to you.” She fixes her nephew with a stare, and Aedion winces.

“Yes ma’am.” They all chorus. Satisfied with their manners, Evalin serves them all dessert.

She’s in the middle of scooping out Aelin’s portion when Rhoe appears, holding her phone. “Honey, someone’s calling.”

“I know how to use a phone, Rhoe.” Evalin sighs. She scoops Aelin a little bit more pudding and then takes her phone, letting her husband go on dessert-serving duty.

Aelin links arms with Elide, the two of them grinning madly before plopping down right there, next to the dessert, digging in with their spoons.

The rest of their friends are soon to follow, and Aelin doesn’t miss how Lysandra chooses to sit a little bit closer to Aedion than is probably socially acceptable.

She chooses to ignore it, however, and instead focuses on interrogating Yrene.

“How long have you had a secret boyfriend for?” She demands.

“When I came home for Christmas.” Yrene laughs. “We went to the Havilliards’ party and I met him there.

The Havilliards, some of the most prominent people in their little cluster of small towns, have a reputation to battle even the Galathyniuses. And the Ytgers, for that matter. Their parties attract attention from all over, which was how Aelin’s friend group met each other.

Aelin and Elide had grown up practically as sisters, though Elide lived one school district over, in the neighboring town of Perranth. Orynth was the largest city in their area of South Texas, holding a whopping 10,000 people.

That was whopping to Aelin, at least. Elide’s town, Perranth, had around 8,000, with Rifthold nearby being 9,000. All the other towns that their friends lived in had even less than that, the smallest being Caraverre, Lysandra’s town, with barely 1,000 people.

The Havilliards, being the socialites of tiny Rifthold, have parties all the damn time. They even let their eldest son, Dorian, host wild gatherings of drunken teenagers.

Aelin and Elide, barely seventeen, had managed to sneak into one of these elusive parties. They’d met Lys, Nesryn, Ansel, Nehemia, and Yrene, although the last girl was only there because her friends dragged her there and then abandoned her. Some friends, they were.

“Okay, that doesn’t give us any clue as to who he is.” Lys points out, pointing her spoon at Yrene. “Everyone and their cousin goes to the Havilliards’ parties.”

“Chaol Westfall.” Yrene giggles. Aelin nearly spits out her banana pudding.

“Him?!” She yelps. Yrene’s laughter turns hysterical.

“Yes! Chaol Westfall is my boyfriend.”

“He’s here, though.” Ansel adds. “Why aren’t you over there with him?”

“Because I missed y’all.” Yrene says. “I haven’t seen y’all since summer last year. None of you came home for Christmas.”

“Too busy.” Aelin, Elide, and Lysandra say in unison. Yrene rolls her eyes.

Other people come for dessert, and Aelin scoots away as one of Nesryn’s nieces tries to peek over her shoulder. Delara scolds her and drags her away, and the whole group bursts into laughter.

Aelin looks up, seeing her father still serving. That’s strange, where is Evalin?

She sees her mother, standing on the porch of the house, hand over her mouth. Something’s wrong. Evalin’s porcelain face is ashen, the color drained from her cheeks. Aelin thinks she can see tears.

Before anyone can ask what she’s looking at, Aelin’s jumping up and rushing to her mother, bounding up the steps two at a time. She nearly crashes into her uncle’s rocking chair, but stops at the last second. Evalin hardly looks up.

“Of course. Of course he can stay here. For as long as he needs. Yes, please, send him my love. I’m so sorry.” Aelin catches Evalin’s eye, who holds up a finger, gesturing for her to wait.

When she finally hangs up, she just lets out a long sigh, putting the phone on the porch railing.

“Do you remember the Whitethorns, Aelin?”

The question catches her off guard, but Aelin nods, anyway. “I do. Sellene and Enda, mostly. And… there was another one, right?”

Evalin just hangs her head. “Yes. Rowan, that’s the other one. Poor boy, his girlfriend just died in a car accident.”

Now it’s Aelin’s turn to put her hands to her mouth. “Oh Lord.” She hardly remembers the Whitethorns, just that she met them a few times when she was young. She remembers that Enda and Sellene were nice and would play with her, while Rowan hung back, always saying mean things to her. She remembers Aedion beating him up one time, too.

Still, just because he was rude to five-year-old Aelin doesn’t mean he deserved this tragedy.

“If you call Mrs. Whitethorn again, please tell her I’m so sorry for their loss.” Poor Rowan.

“Well, here’s the thing, Aelin.” At Evalin’s tone of voice, Aelin knows she’s about to say something she won’t like. “Mrs. Whitethorn is very worried for him. They’re so busy up there, you know, they don’t always have time to check in on him. So… she asked if we would let Rowan stay down here for a bit.”

“Mama!” Aelin sighs. “I feel bad for the guy, but that doesn’t mean he has to come and live with us! All of my friends are down here! I don’t want him ruining my summer vacation.”

“Don’t you start sassin’ me, young lady.” Evalin snaps, her accent coming out in full force. “How can you be so heartless? Rowan is grieving.”

Aelin feels like a kid again, getting sent to her room for giving her mother attitude. So she relents before she gets embarrassed in front of the entire town of Orynth. And then some.

But she’s in a pissy mood, now. Of course she feels bad for him, but not that bad. Not bad enough to let him stay in her house over the summer. For all she knows, Aedion could be deployed all next summer. Lysandra might not be able to come home, being to busy getting ready for vet school. This could very well be their last summer together.

And Aelin Galathynius will not let Rowan Whitethorn ruin her summer.

~~~~

Rowan Whitethorn steps out of the Uber, taking in the sight of the small town. He’s flown into Houston, Texas from Doranelle, New York, and it’s cost him a stupid amount of money to get a car to take him all the way down here. They don’t even have taxis in this god-forsaken state.

Though, to be fair, it’s partially his own fault. His flight had gotten moved up, and he’d forgotten to text Evalin Galathynius the new time after she insisted she’d pick him up from the airport.

As the Uber pulls away, Rowan takes a long minute to glance around. He’d seen the sign as they’d driven in, had nearly felt his eyes bulge out of his head when he saw ‘Population: 10,000’.

He fingers the strap of his backpack, taking in the scenery. He’s in what must be a public park, but why anyone is outside is beyond him. It is so fucking hot outside.

However, the park is full. A pair of mothers with strollers, chatting as they walk along the park trail. Kids play on a playground in the distance. And a couple, seated at one of the picnic tables, have their hands clasped.

Rowan looks away at that.

There wasn’t any place he could go, or that his parents could ship him off to, where he could just forget about Lyria. She’d been the love of his life. When he had a bit more money saved up he was going to ask her to marry him. He wanted to start a family with her.

And it seems like she haunts him, because no matter where he looks there is something that reminds him of her.

Rowan sighs deeply, starting to walk. He needs to be away from this place, with so many… people. And he needs to get inside somewhere, away from the oppressive heat. How anybody manages to live in this weather is beyond him, being born and raised in New York.

He observes the town as he walks, taking in the architecture, the style. It looks fairly modern, save for the houses. The houses all look like miniature versions of that house from Gone with the Wind. The movie, of course. He didn’t bother to pick up the book.

This tiny town seems as if it’s been permanently frozen in time… in the Civil War era.

Rowan goes back to walking, searching for a store or something where he can step inside for a minute, pull out his phone, and turn on Google Maps. However, as he approaches the little chain of shops, he’s stopped by a slightly older woman.

“Are you visiting someone, dear?” She asks, smiling broadly.

“Uh, yeah.” He replies awkwardly. Why is she talking to him? Back in New York, it’s pretty much every man for himself. You find your own way or you don’t. Nobody ever offers help.

“Where are you headed?” She’s still smiling, and that puts Rowan on edge.

“Um, I’m looking for… Evalin Galathynius? Do you know her?”

The woman’s face lights up. “Oh, yes, I know her. You’re gonna want to walk down that street right there, then take a left at the blue house, keep going until you reach the small park, then-”

Rowan doesn’t know what to say. Her instructions drone on, and he just can’t pay attention that long. He’ll just take out his phone when the lady leaves.

“You got all that, sweetie?” Rowan jolts back to the present.

“Yeah, thanks.” She smiles, and keeps walking. Rowan lets out a sigh, and pulls out his phone, plugging in the address to Google Maps.

Fifteen minutes of walking. Rowan looks up, at the sun beating down on him. This is going to suck, isn’t it?

~~~~

Rowan holds a scowl as he finally makes it to the Galathynius house. Carrying both a backpack and dragging along a suitcase in the sweltering Texas heat is not doing good things for him.

He’d also gotten lost multiple times, even with the help of Google Maps, meaning he’d nearly doubled his walking time. All he wants to do now is to go inside somewhere they have some goddamn air conditioning.

Rowan drags his suitcase up the porch steps, nearly panting. He’d sweated through his shirt, which had only added to the awful heat.

There isn’t a doorbell; or not one he can see, anyway, so he knocks on the front door, hard.

He hears a muffled “I’ll get it!” before the door swings open to reveal a young woman, golden hair tied up in a messy bun.

Her expression turns suddenly sour as she takes him in, her turquoise eyes glaring. “Are you Rowan?”

“Yeah.” He says. “Sorry I didn’t let you know, but my flight got pushed up.”

“That’s what I thought. You weren't supposed to get here until this evening.” She sighs and opens the door. “Come inside.”

Rowan does so gladly, smiling as the cool air kissed his sticky skin. “Is your mom home? You look too young to be Mrs. Galathynius.”

“My name is Aelin.” She says. She doesn’t offer her hand to shake, just keeps walking further inside. “Do you want me to show you your room?”

“Sure.” Rowan follows Aelin through the house, marvelling at how… large it is. And, he’d noticed as he’d approached, it was on a massive piece of land, as well.

Aelin walks quickly through the house, pointing out a few things like the kitchen, dining room, living room. They come upon a large staircase, and she bounds up them. Rowan sighs and goes to dragging his suitcase upstairs.

Aelin even has the audacity to look annoyed at him for being so slow. Rowan resists the urge to snap at her. He’s exhausted, and just wants to lay down somewhere and sleep.

Aelin leads him down a long hallway, and points to one of the doors. “That’s your room. And the bathroom’s right there.” She gestures to another door across the hall. “All the other rooms are occupied right now, so no snooping.”

Rowan doesn’t answer, just nods. Stepping inside the room, he can’t help but notice how big it is. Just like this entire house, it’s giant. He’s got a four-poster bed, plush carpet on the floor, a dresser, and a closet. It’s more luxurious than anything he’s ever had.

He doesn’t bother to unload his stuff. Sleep is pulling at him, making his eyes heavy. So he quickly pulls off his sweaty shirt and collapses on the bed, sinking into the mattress.

He’s gone quickly, but right before he falls asleep, one last thought materializes in his head.

Lyria would have loved it here.

#throne of glass #tog #sarah j maas #rowaelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #aedion ashryver #lysandra ennar #elide lochan #yrene towers #nehemia ytger #ansel of briarcliff #nesryn faliq #galathynius family #chaol westfall #dorian havilliard #tog southern au

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whomst-am-i · 3 years

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Hey y’all, it’s getting serious time. We’re not reblogging shitposts here, this is straight from the shark’s mouth. It’s time to talk about college, and how trans teenagers are getting the shaft (and not in a fun way).

Discrimination shouldn’t exist-- we’ve fought too hard for litigation and protection to still be getting fired, getting rejected from applications, losing financial aid, and more. But it does. A trans teen is fired from their job at the coffee shop because they’re “not good with customers”. An application is waitlisted because they “don’t make a good fit” with the college’s standards. Deadnames are used on everything, because it’s “still the legal name”.

Look. Y’all. I go to a private Christian college deep in the heart of Texas. I’m not the only person living in a woman’s dorm who shouldn’t be. I’ve been up late at night, wondering if I’ll ever have the courage to stand up and say, to hell with it, I’m not dealing with this anymore. I know I’m not the only person who’s struggling with this. I came out as genderfluid to my mom halfway through the semester, and do you know what she said? “I’ll always love you, but I know that you’re just confused right now.” She said, “You’ll always be my daughter.” It hurt, to say the least, but I have to live with it because I have no other way to pay for college. Right now, I’m squeaking by on merit scholarships and graduation money. Other trans people don’t even get that.

And, like, it’s not just being able to survive through college payments and selling your soul to student loans. There’s more to living, and sometimes there’s more to start living. There’s so much else I could do if all my money wasn’t getting sucked up into college fees. I could get top surgery, or hell, even bottom surgery. I could get the genderfluid phoenix tattoo I’ve always wanted. I could donate to all of the posts I see on my dash begging for donations to help them out of a shitty situation, because my heart bleeds for them as it beats in the resonance of their pain.

Tl;dr, go donate to https://www.onlinedegree.com/transgender-first-scholarship/ if you can because trans people came to college to have a good education and are straight up not having a good time right now

#lgbtq+#trans rights are human rights #trans discourse #college #it sux yall #sorry for the long post

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kasdeyathebitterwoman · 4 years

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A Ninja Warrior Love Story - Part 1

Welcome back to the world of Lily and Henry! Honestly, I have no idea how I ended up deleting my old account, but I’m genuinely more upset that I had no backups of my original work. That aside, I am beginning the slow process of rewriting my original series, A Ninja Warrior Love Story. I hope you enjoy it!

Let me know of any other imagines or one-shots you’d like to see! Also, if you’d like to be added to the tag list, just send me a message!

CW: none

Word Count: 2,230

The Story: Lily is a single woman working at a parkour gym when she meets Henry Cavill. Are they meant to fall in love or is it just a one-time thing?

At 4:30 in the morning, Lily’s alarm went off. She rolled over in her small bed and smacked her alarm to turn it off. Groaning, Lily pushed herself out of bed. With two steps, she cleared the small apartment bedroom and entered the even smaller bathroom. With the efficiency of a well-known routine, Lily got dressed in simple workout clothes. She glanced in the mirror to see a tired face looking back. For the past six months, she had been working hard to earn extra income so she could afford time off and a plane ticket to see her best friend at college. So far, it wasn’t really working out, but she had been able to save some money.

Once dressed, Lily dashed out to her beat-up old truck right outside her apartment. At 4:45 am, no one was out on the roads, so she wasn’t concerned about being late for one of her three jobs. Lily worked at a gym - not just any gym though. This was a Ninja Warrior gym. About four years ago, Lily met the gym owner, Donovan, who offered her a chance to work out at his gym. He remembered her from her track days and wanted someone to open his gym in the mornings since he was, in his words, allergic to any time before nine am. Lily quickly and easily agreed and almost immediately found herself in a world of her wildest dreams. She loved working out and training on the courses there and even considered applying to be on the show one day.

Five minutes to 5 am, Lily pulled up to the Hustler Ninja gym in Taylor, Texas. Taylor was about 45 minutes outside of the DFW area. It was basically the middle of nowhere with one good Walmart, a ghosted - albeit historic - downtown square, and surprisingly a very fancy looking Hilton resort. The keys jangling in the lock, Lily opened the gym and began turning on the lights. Donovan rented the building which was incredible in size. Large enough to house two ninja warrior obstacle courses, a half rock wall in the back, a decent-sized free-weight section, and even an outdoor mini-course. The whole place was huge and everything Lily wanted in a gym. Within two months of working there, she’d been promoted to assistant manager. She was here every Monday through Friday from 5-9, then Monday through Thursday, she went to work at her uncle's barbershop. Finally, on Fridays and Saturdays, she worked at one of the three bars in town to earn as much extra income as possible.

After dropping her gym bag in the locker room, Lily stepped out into the gym and looked around. Donovan and Daniel, or The Dude, did a good job cleaning up last night. It was actually a little surprising considering they rarely did any cleaning. Lily usually spent most of her time cleaning up after everyone. Weird. Regardless, she enjoyed the reprieve and made her way to the free-weights to start a warm-up. After 15 minutes, she was ready to begin her real training. It started with the salmon ladder followed by a few balance obstacles and finally ending with a grip training on the waving board. She was enjoying herself and almost didn’t hear the front door open again. Glancing over, she saw a tall, long-haired figure striding past her towards the locker rooms.

“Morning, Dude,” she called out. The Dude smiled and waved at her and continued on to the locker rooms. A few minutes later, The Dude appeared ready to go in long shorts, a fitted t-shirt and his long hair pulled back in a low ponytail. The Dude was the only guy Lily could think that could pull off the man-tail well. He saddled up to her and watched her jump down from the wave board.

“Morning Luck,” The Dude said to her. Lily groaned and rolled her eyes.

“Can’t anyone forget about that?!” she asked, jumping down off the raised platform and stood next to him. In comparison, Lily looked relatively tiny. Where she was about 5’5” of lean muscle, The Dude was 6’4” of muscle and weight. He got his nickname from his long hair and easy-going attitude. The Dude laughed, throwing his head back a little.

“Nope, it was too adorable,” he replied, making Lily roll her eyes even harder. “So you excited about tomorrow?” he asked when he finally stopped laughing. Lily looked at him confused.

“What’s happening tomorrow?” she asked in response to his question. The Dude looked down at her stunned.

“Tomorrow? The big celebrities are coming by the gym to check it out?” he said as if she should know already. Lily continued to look surprised by his information. “It was in the email that Donovan sent like, two weeks ago.” Lily scoffed.

“You are aware I haven’t actually checked my email since probably about 2016, right?” This time The Dude rolled his eyes at her.

“Aren’t you a manager here or something?” he asked. Lily laughed.

“Or something,” she replied. The Dude laughed with her.

“Girl, get it together,” he said, gently pushing her shoulder. “Tom Cruise and that guy that played Super Man are coming by to check out the gym. They need parkour training and Donovan is going to teach them.” Lily’s eyebrows shot up.

“Are you serious?” she asked. Tom Cruise was major. She remembered watching some of his old movies with her dad. Suddenly a pain gripped her chest and she forced herself back into the present.

“100% serious,” he replied. Lily was shocked. She definitely needed to check her email more often. They stood there talking about their favorite Tom Cruise movies for a few minutes when the opening of the front door caught their attention. Much to Lily’s surprise, her old “friend” Celeste walked in the door. Celeste was a tall beauty with olive skin, long brown hair, and stunning green eyes. She had on a matching navy blue sports bra and leggings which showcased her olive skin perfectly. Her brown hair was pulled back into a tight, clean ponytail and even from the distance she was at, Lily could tell the woman was wearing makeup.

“Well I’ll be damned,” The Dude said under his breath. Lily watched incredulously as Celeste found them and made her way across the room to them.

“Hey guys!” she said awkwardly breathlessly as she stopped just short of the two of them. The Dude and Lily exchanged a look before turning back to Celeste.

“Hey Celeste,” The Dude said cautiously. Celeste gave him a wide, fake smile that made Lily’s intestines turn. “What brings you back to the gym? We figured you didn’t have a membership anymore.” He didn’t have to look at Lily to know what she was thinking. Celeste waved her hand dismissively.

“No, silly,” she started. “I just took a few months off; went back to Cali for a few weeks; saw my brother in New York,” she made a point to look directly at Lily. Lily immediately dropped her gaze and felt her ears grow warm with embarrassment. The Dude cleared his throat.

“Sounds fun,” he said, disdain evident in his voice. Celeste picked up on it and smiled warmly.

“I just wanted to come back and get back into my routines,” she said. A thought occurred to Lily and her eyes shot up.

“You were hoping to see one of those celebrities,” Lily said, more accusation in her tone than she meant. It didn’t matter because she was right. It was evident on Celeste’s face. Celeste shifted in her spot.

“No, of course not, why would I be excited to meet a celebrity? I’ve met dozens of them already,” Celeste replied. Lily smirked realizing she’d made her uncomfortable.

“They’re not here,” Lily said, causing Celeste to look her in the eyes. “They won’t be here until later.” Lily glanced over at The Dude to see if he would correct her. He didn’t.

“Oh, okay,” Celeste said, glancing around the empty gym. “Well, I guess I’ll go get ready to work out then. It’s been great catching up with you two,” and with a small smile and shoulder shrug, Celeste bounced off to the women’s locker rooms. The Dude and Lily watched her leave and once she was safely away in the locker rooms, Lily looked directly at The Dude who shared a similar look.

“Fuck,” she sighed.

—

At around 8:30, Lily dashed from the gym floor to the locker rooms. She quickly showered and dressed in her usual barbershop attire: dark jeans, a blue or gray t-shirt, and her black and white Converse. Her general wardrobe consisted of these same pieces, with a few variations in the mix. She walked out of the gym to find The Dude helping another regular, Megan, on the rock wall. Though he was tall, The Dude was nimble and able to understand situations that required a certain skill. She walked over to them.

“Watch your heels, Rapunzel,” Lily called out to Megan. Her nickname came from the fact that Megan had insanely long blonde hair. It was beautiful and well-kept, but extremely long. Lily loved it. Megan grunted in response and did her best to heed Lily’s advice, but unfortunately couldn’t quite get it. She stumbled backward and landing on her feet on the mat. Groaning, she turned around to Lily and The Dude.

“I’m never going to get it,” she said with pained certainty. Lily smiled at her.

“You’ll get it,” she said. “You just have to stop pushing it and start feeling it,” she looked over at The Dude who was rolling his eyes at her.

“Haha, very funny,” he said, making Lily and Megan laugh. Lily smiled at The Dude.

“Well, I’m out y’all,” she said waving at both of them. Megan and The Dude waved back and Lily headed out to her truck. It was a very old, very beaten blue Chevy Silverado. It was actually her dad’s, but he had no need for it any more, so Lily got it. One of the few good things her dad did for her. She climbed in, started the loud engine, and puttered off into town.

The barbershop where she worked was in the historic downtown square of Taylor. Her uncle Ray owned the shop and had for several decades. Ray was an older, stout man of 60. He had a decent sized beer belly, a handlebar mustache, and piercing blue eyes. Ray wasn’t actually Lily’s uncle, but he was as close to one as she could get. He took care of her during her senior year of high school and later on when she returned from college to find nothing and no one waiting for her.

Parking her car just outside the shop, Lily got out and darted across the empty street to the diner. Inside, she ordered four cups of coffee to go and a few donuts for everyone. When she got her order, she once again crossed the empty street and walked into Ray’s shop. A few regulars were sitting in their respective stylists' chairs. Lily’s station was towards the front. She pulled a cup of coffee out for herself placing on her station, then went around the room handing the other cups of coffee out. Everyone greeted her with kindness and respect. They knew what she had been through with her parents.

Once everyone had their coffee, Lily settled in at her station and waited for her first customer, Mr. Ortiz. At 9:15, Mr. Ortiz hobbled into the shop and straight to Lily’s station. She jumped up and vacated her chair for him. He sat down and told her he wanted the usual, which for him meant a general trim of his hair and beard. Lily immediately got to work and 45 minutes later she was done and checking Mr. Ortiz out at the register. She sat back in her chair after cleaning up the area and decided to check her email. It was overflowing with spam and other junk, so she specifically searched for the email from Donovan. It was there postmarked two weeks ago. She opened it.

Hello team,

I hope this email finds you well. I want you to be the first to know that I have accepted the chance to teach and train two actors for an upcoming movie. They’ll be filming the majority of it in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, but we are one of the best-rated ninja warrior/parkour gyms in the country (go figure!). That means they will be here for a while getting the hang of certain moves and choreography.

The two actors in question are Tom Cruise and Henry Cavill. They are going to be here on Wednesday, the 17th at 7 am. We all know Lucky doesn’t read any of these, so someone please tell her. Other than that, you are all amazing!

Best,

Donovan Troy

Lily rolled her eyes at the line that she wouldn’t read the email. Though it was true, she hated how easy it was for him to read her. Anyway, she easily recognized Tom Cruise and could think of several movies she had seen him in. But, who the hell was Henry Cavill?

----

@taglist:

@maeleeme

#henry cavill #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill fan fic #henrycavillfanfic #henry cavill fan fiction #henry cavill fanfiction #fanfiction #fan fic #writing #writer #stories #daydream #fantasy #a ninja warrior love story #henryxlily #henryxreader

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theowldetective · 6 years

Text

The above snippet is from the audition sides for Pappy Joe. It was originally supposed to happen right before the train animation. Obviously this line didn't make it to official canon, but it's still a glimpse into Jacobs's & Nelson's intentions as writers. It's a "peek under the hood," as it were, at the ideas they were playing with as they wrote the episode.

The primary point of the Texas Trilogy was that it was the first volley of heavy narrative artillery in terms of actually changing the status quo of the show, especially re: the romance arcs. The romantic status quo is severely threatened by the events of the Texas trilogy. Texas 1-2-3 is the first attempt to actually change the romantic status quo rather than simply hint at it, although that status quo partially reasserts itself in GMT3. [2018 Edit: this is SO LONG. It’s kind of a compendium of stuff I said in answers to asks, but I figured I’d let y’all have it even though it kinda trails off at the end. It’s also got old audition sides as a means of trying to discern what the writers’ intent may have been despite the cuts, and at this point I’m not stressed about posting them. Just add a mental “may have” in parts where I’m talking about the sides and skipped/forgot the caveat. There’s a lot of repetition, probably more than is necessary for the emphasis I was going for, but since I’ll probably never get around to actually editing this thing it’s all kind of a moot point now anyway...enjoy under the cut.]

I’m so exhausted by people who think the suggestion that the Texans and Riley may not have been entirely in the right to encourage Lucas onto the back of a 2,000 pound bull which could have easily killed or maimed him is tantamount to “hate.” If MAYA had been the one to push Lucas onto Tombstone while Riley took the other side, I would say exactly the same things I say now about the scene, only with the girls reversed. This is not about “making Riley look bad” because of ships. That’s major over-simplification of the situation.

Riley is not a villain by any stretch of the imagination, not in Texas, not ever. Not unlike her father when he was younger (and her mother, for that matter), Riley is simply an oft-misguided, insecure, overly-idealistic CHILD with the very best of intentions. (Yes, I consider 12-13 year-olds to be children, especially when they’re as naive as Riley.) Anyone who ascribes villainy, guile, or malice to Riley Matthews (or any of the kids) is IMO willfully misunderstanding her characterization. If you think I am ascribing any of those characteristics to her, then you are misunderstanding me.

Riley is not a monster. She believes the best of everybody (especially of Lucas) and that’s great on a base level, but she doesn't temper that attitude with realism as much as she should...which is why she needs Maya (and Farkle). Riley is also very easily influenced by the opinions of others (despite her growth in that department), and she regresses quite a bit on that front when taken out of her usual environment and dropped into Texas. Lucas also regresses in Texas in terms of caring about what other people say. Maya, however, does not. She’s still the most secure person in the room at the rodeo.

The Texas trilogy is nuanced as heck, and when you boil it down to Riley = bad and Maya = good (or vice versa), I think you're missing the point. But hey, most of my discussion on the matter has been limited to asks which I usually dash off pretty quickly, which means I’m not necessarily being as precise as I perhaps ought to be. If I haven’t made myself CRYSTAL clear about this, that’s on me. (Not to mention that my views on this whole thing have evolved over time and with temperance, so I know I’ve said things on the matter that I no longer stand by). So once and for all, here's my comprehensive, definitive take on Riley, Maya, and Lucas in Texas 1.

"When you see how other people live, it changes you." --Cory Matthews, GMT1

The girls "switch roles" in Texas. That’s what changes. Most people probably think this happened after Riley “stepped back,” but it actually began well before that. And what are their roles? Well, let's take another peek under the hood, back in the classroom again:

This bit comes right after Riley was going to say she’s headed to Texas too because she’s responsible for the situation and she wants to make sure Lucas comes back okay (in case you ever wondered whose idea this whole thing was in the first place; as if there was ever any doubt). It also comes right after a bit where Pappy Joe was holding Lucas over his shoulder while Lucas tried to escape.

(Lucas’s resistance to riding the bull is even stronger in the sides than what we got in the actual episode. There’s a slight GM Gravity callback too. Cory asks Pappy Joe, “Can we talk about this?” and then Lucas says “Mr. Matthews is right, we should talk about this.” To which Pappy Joe says, “Plenty of time for talking on the train!” It’s still pretty clear in the episode as it aired that Lucas is pretty much only doing this for Pappy Joe and not really for himself...but we’ll get to that in a minute). Here’s what we actually got though:

This is NOT the attitude of a boy who is raring to go down to Texas and ride Tombstone the Bull. Lucas is so intimidated by his grandfather that he would rather ride a bull than defy Pappy Joe's wishes. He didn't ride Tombstone because he wanted to. He rode Tombstone because he felt like he HAD to.

Notice also in the cut parts of the sides that Cory was going to get explicit credit for helping Lucas change for the better in an trilogy where Lucas eventually singles Riley out and appears to give her all the credit for his survival in NYC...even though Lucas owes just as much gratitude to the other kids and Cory as he does to Riley, and normally he says as much. But we’ll also get to that.

Anyway, point is: in the sides Riley self-identifies to Pappy Joe as "Lucas's girl. Maya self-identifies as "I make fun of him" and with being responsible for Riley. Those are still their “official” roles, despite the higher and higher-key romantic shift that's been happening all season. "I'm his girl" and "I make fun of him" is still technically the status quo for Riley & Maya + Lucas, despite the growing high-key romantic intensity between Lucas and Maya (and Riley and Farkle, for that matter, in timeline order), and despite the near total lack of anything resembling growing romance (by Jacobsland standards) between Lucas and Riley for most of S2 in terms of how they actually treat each other.

My best guess is that these lines were cut because they had a lot to pack into these episodes and the audience is already pretty darn aware of what the status quo was "supposed" to be when it comes to the girls and their respective relationships with Lucas. They actually cut most of the original Pappy Joe/classroom scene, probably because most of it was just set-up for all the kids getting permission to go to Texas, which we don’t really need to see to get into the heart of the story.

It's notable that Pappy Joe was going to say "Well so do I!" re: making fun of Lucas. Because the DIFFERENCE in Pappy Joe's (and the locals') taunting of Lucas versus Maya teasing Lucas is that they apparently MEAN IT and she doesn't. But she doesn't understand that until she gets to Texas and sees how these other people live. Anyway, in Texas, the girls shift and switch roles, essentially. They change when they see how other people live. (Farkle too, but this post isn’t about him). Riley becomes the person who makes fun of Lucas and who believes he’s a disgrace to the community so he HAS to ride the bull, Maya acts more like you’d expect “his girl” to act.

The shift of the girls' role reversal in terms of Lucas is more gradual than people realize, I think. It doesn't happen suddenly in the refreshment tent. It doesn't even start in Texas—it's built up in the preceding episodes too, allllll of them really, but especially SoL forward. Texas is the first major turning point for the status quo after the groundwork that’s been laid in the preceding episodes.

At the house before the rodeo, we get the "you both look good" bit, which puts BOTH girls in the "Lucas's girl" slot, and then, outside the refreshment tent, Riley mocks Lucas just as much as Maya does for being afraid of a "man-cow," which puts BOTH of them in the "I make fun of him" slot. Of course the shift is already underway, a little: at the house, Maya has the ha-hurr moment with Cletus (and Lucas just lets her), and outside the tent Riley actually mocks Lucas a little harder than Maya does.

But in effect, both girls take on both roles for these two scenes. There's a moment of near-equilibrium, as it were—with both girls filling both roles—before the full-on switch in the tent. Lucas treats them both like "his girl" at the house, and they BOTH make fun of him outside the refreshment tent. But from there? They keep going and they swap their usual roles.

"I just think you'll react differently when you actually see a man-cow!" --Lucas Friar, GMT1

The tipping point for the swap happens when the danger of bull-riding becomes more apparent to Riley and Maya, who were clueless beforehand because they weren't taking the darn hint. When the danger becomes more apparent to the girls, they don't react the way they normally would in New York. By the time the rodeo comes around, both girls have changed a bit in terms of how they treat Lucas after seeing how other people live, after seeing how OTHER PEOPLE perceive and treat Lucas here in Texas. But becoming more hip to the danger catalyzes the switch even more.

New York Riley vs Texas Riley

New York Riley, who vehemently said it was NOT OKAY for Billy to call Farkle a "nothing" over his childhood turtlenecks, who took over her father's class to run an anti-bullying workshop when someone went after Farkle, who would normally NEVER EVER stand for anyone to drag ANY of her friends down over something from their childhood, who would normally NEVER make fun of Lucas (except that one time in GM Pluto, when Lucas scolds her for it), well...that aspect of New York Riley just isn't there in Texas. Cory’s cut line, “There goes everything we’ve ever taught you” (after Riley goes all Southern for the first time ever in the sides) seems apt in light of this, because Texas Riley reacts to Lucas being bullied as a “disgrace” WAY differently than New York Riley reacted to Farkle being bullied as a “nothing.”

Texas Riley makes fun of Lucas along with the locals. And she keeps it up even after she sees other bull riders getting flung around like rag dolls on the monitors. She’s not reacting differently now that she’s actually seen a man-cow, and she still doesn’t think Lucas is in any real danger as long as he just tells her he’s not. That’s one aspect of New York Riley which remains intact in Texas: her unrealistic idealization of Lucas. Riley basically figures there’s nothing to worry about because her “hero” can do “anything.” This is not a rational or realistic way to view a normal eighth grade boy, which is what Lucas actually is. This is idealization and naivete. I’m not bashing Riley for that. Being idealistic and naive is just who she is for the most part, especially when it comes to Lucas. And that was fine when she was pushing him to run for class president. Downright adorable, even. It’s less cute when she’s pushing him into a life-or-death stunt mostly because of what other people are (wrongly) saying about him. (Riley’s concept of healthy, emotionally substantial romantic heroism is pretty warped, tbh, but that’s another post)

Texas Riley doesn't defend Lucas from people calling him a disgrace over something that happened TO him as a CHILD the way New York Riley defended Farkle in GM Flaws, the way she would certainly defend Lucas if anyone back in New York ever called him a “disgrace.” When Lucas tries to say that he's NOT a disgrace, Riley shoots back with "You are! I've been talking to people..." as opposed to "It's not okay that someone called you that!" (And we all know that even if she'd "talked to people" in GM Flaws, there's STILL no way she'd have said anything like "you are!" to Farkle being a “nothing” just because other people said he was). Farkle was not ACTUALLY a “nothing who didn’t deserve his friends” just because Billy said so. Lucas is not ACTUALLY a disgrace just because these yokels say so and he shouldn’t have had to pull a stupid stunt to “prove” otherwise.

And while some people might want to play that “you are!” moment off as a pure joke, as Riley only “teasing” Lucas no-big-deal, this ignores the fact that Riley is essentially backing up the people who MEAN IT when they call Lucas a disgrace, and they’re ignoring Lucas’s seriously hurt reaction (seriously, go watch it and LOOK at him, he’s totally wounded by Riley telling him he’s a disgrace to the community. Lucas sure as hell didn’t take it as a joke). Lucas is wounded by what Riley says, and Maya is shocked (horrified, even) that Riley is basically backing up this disgrace thing. Maya stopped teasing Lucas after she realized people meant it, she didn’t want to back them up anymore; she reacted differently when she actually saw a man-cow.

In Texas, Riley’s insecurity regarding what other people think comes back big time, despite her marked growth in that arena (confronting her bully alone, for example). She truly believes that what these complete strangers think matters enough for Lucas to risk serious injury or death just to prove a point to them. (Granted, she also thinks Lucas isn’t in any real danger because she’s not being realistic about the situation...this is more nuanced than Riley just plain not caring, okay?)

Riley reinforcing rather than dismissing what other people think contributes to bringing back Lucas’s insecurity about what other people think too. Riley calls Lucas a disgrace to the community, the waitress mocks him...and, well...I think that’s the moment when Lucas decides he HAS to ride the bull. He was only doing it for Pappy Joe before, and even then he was wavering and not happy about it. He agreed with Maya not wanting him “anywhere near that bull.” He asked the girls why they hated him. He was PISSED OFF at being forced into this situation from the very start, even though he was gonna go through with it, probably. But once Riley tells him he’s a disgrace to the community and that waitress “baa-aa-a”s at him, Lucas doesn’t think he has any choice. He HAS to do it.

(That’s also the exact moment Maya’s appeal is officially doomed, btw, because she’s not in a position to appeal to Lucas with complete honesty about why she doesn’t want him to do this...and complete honesty is probably the only way she could’ve stopped him once the “disgrace” thing was on the table. She might have had a chance before, but not after that. The bull ride becomes absolutely inevitable when it becomes about the Riley’s perception of him & the disgrace thing for Lucas instead of just Pappy Joe alone.)

In Texas, Riley essentially sides with the Texas people in terms of what she thinks Lucas needs to do and why. And why would Riley do this? Why would she buy into these problematic Texas values about shame and honor and childhood sheep-riding after everything her New York parents have taught her? Why has Riley decided that falling off of a sheep as little boy means you should risk your neck on the back of Tombstone the Bull?

Well, again, it’s partly because she’s convinced that Lucas can do anything because she idealizes him as a “hero who can do anything he wants” even in the face of possible injury or death. It’s also possible that Riley bought into those “Texas values” because she wasn't really fitting in with the Texas crowd the way she probably wanted to, because she’s supposed to be “Lucas’s girl.” (Remember, she was originally going to bust out a Southern accent for the first time ever when Pappy Joe asked if she was “Lucas’s girl.”) It’s likely that Riley realllly wants to fit into this aspect of Lucas’s life. But she doesn’t really. Not at first, anyway. This made it to canon a little bit with the Maya + Cletus ha-hurr scene (watch Riley’s face, she’s totally baffled by Lucas and Cletus), but again, let’s take peek under the hood, this time in the refreshment tent:

With this + the Cletus bit + what we know of Riley’s insecurity issues, it’s not exactly a stretch to conclude that perhaps Riley is buying into what the Texas people say Lucas HAS to do because shes’ feeling insecure about something...perhaps her position as “Lucas’s girl.” She’s been feeling that way on some level since at least the blonde beauty reveal, if not before (Lucas has done absolutely NOTHING to fix this, btw, and the “you both look good” bit definitely didn’t help). I’m not standing by this part 100%, but I think it’s worth mentioning as a possibility. So…why DID Riley throw in with the Texans? Why did she buy into the idea that it was rational for the locals to mock and shame and call Lucas a “disgrace” over something that happened to him as a child? Back home, Riley would NEVER stand for anyone to talk about her friends like that, but in Texas she reaffirms the locals’ ridiculous opinion rather than slamming it the way she did when Billy called Farkle a “nothing." So again…why? Well, perhaps it’s because she REALLY wanted to fit in in Texas. And the rodeo waitress made it clear that she didn’t. I kinda wish they’d kept that bit of dialogue because I think it would be a pretty clear-cut case of Riley’s Insecurity Strikes Again. (Especially what with Maya “Annie Oakley” Hart apparently fitting right in; which kinda makes sense what with finding out in S3 that Katy’s from Arkansas.)

Maybe it’s also because the last time her idealization of Lucas pushed him into something he wasn’t sure he could do, he succeeded and wound up taking her on a princess fantasy horsey ride.

But of course, running for class president is a far cry from riding a 2,000 pound bull.

Going against Maya, Riley has taken the side of the people who mock Lucas and MEAN IT, even if her reasons for doing so have more to do with her misguided & idealistic belief that he's a "hero who can do anything" than with actually point blank AGREEING with the locals. But there’s waaaaay more to it than Riley’s idealism or her “heroic” visions of Lucas, or her possibly wanting to fit into Texas life as “Lucas’s girl.” This next bit is what I would call “the whammy.” Let's go back to the classroom, before the kids headed out to Texas, for yet another peek under the hood:

Now, this idea didn't make it to explicitly stated canon either, but anyone watching the show with even half their brain functioning can understand that Texas Riley has essentially bought into this particular aspect of "stereotypical cultural reductionism." Texas Riley has, to an extent, bought into the Texas values that canon somewhat implied (and the early draft confirms) gave Lucas his temper in the first place. There's definitely more than a bit of an implication here that Riley believes the bull ride and subsequently "earning" Pappy Joe's pride/love and not being a “disgrace” anymore is going to "fix" Lucas's temper, which (let's face it) is a VERY Riley thing to believe. (And from a literary standpoint, mastering a bull as a metaphor for mastering anger/temper issues is pretty on the nose even if it ultimately doesn’t work out that way...)

So, OF COURSE Riley would encourage a stunt that she quite possibly believes will "fix" those issues and officially make Lucas the "hero she ‘knows’ he is" to everyone else. Here’s his chance to show everybody that he’s not “different than [Riley] thinks.” If Lucas can ride this bull, then *poof* he’s not a “disgrace to the community” anymore and *poof* his temper is fixed! *Poof* Lucas is exactly who Riley always thought he was and all that stuff she was upset about in Secret of Life and Rileytown goes away! (Yes, she WAS upset to find out that Lucas might not be what she thought, but I don’t have time for that argument right now because this post is already a novella).

Riley doesn't want that other part of Lucas to exist. She's tried to wallpaper over it with the vet thing, she's tried to scold it away. She wants it GONE. And hey, Lucas does too, unrealistic as that may be. It’s something he struggles to control. It’s not easy for him. Riley’s intentions are nothing but good! She.is.not.a.villain. She probably thinks this bull ride is going to HELP LUCAS FIX A PROBLEM. This is CLASSIC “fixer” Riley mode! But Riley is not being realistic on this front, because you cannot simply wallpaper over major parts of your personality by overcorrecting in the other direction and pretending/trying to be "Mr. Perfect the Hero." (The "Mr. Perfect" persona is as much an overcorrection as Donnie Barnes, Morotia M. Black, and S3 Maya "becoming Riley.") Riding a bull isn’t actually going to solve a decade or so of built-up issues. Riding a bull may help you face your fears, but Lucas wasn’t exactly a super-fearful guy in the first place...except when it comes to Maya. So of course it’s massively ironic that the bull ride is probably a huge part of what gave Lucas the confidence to push Maya to admit her feelings at the campfire even though he knows she doesn’t like to be pushed and he’s terrified of her. There’s a reason Maya was associated with Tombstone at the end of Texas 2.

And of course (mild spoilers ahead), the bull ride does NOT ultimately "fix" Lucas's temper, as you'll see Riley discover in GMHS1...

Even though she scolded Pappy Joe for mocking Pappy McCullough, Riley (for reasons and potential reasons detailed above) totally bought into the idea that Lucas needed to risk life and limb to "make up for" falling off of Judy, to earn his grandfather’s pride, as if falling off of a sheep is something to be ashamed of in the first place, as if anyone should have to risk their life & limb for their grandfather to be proud of them. And her original line called this out explicitly rather than simply heavily implying it via subtext as happened in official canon:

In short, Riley changes after “seeing how other people live” by making fun of Lucas in tandem with people who mean it, and by buying into the idea that he should pull a life-threatening stunt to prove to these people that he’s not a disgrace, that he is rather the “hero” she believes he is. She reverts to “caring too much what other people think,” basically. She buys into and reinforces the problematic aspects of “Texas values” that gave Lucas his temper to begin with, possibly because she thinks fulfilling the edicts of those values will fix Lucas’s temper, among other things. What doesn’t change is her idealization of Lucas, as well as her desire to help fix things when she thinks she knows how to fix them, which are normally nowhere near as problematic as they are in this specific situation, which is a life or death (or major injury) situation.

New York Maya vs Texas Maya

On the flip side you've got Maya, who was gleefully "ba-a-a-ing" at Lucas in New York, who was grinning like a fool when Pappy Joe first showed up and started going on and on about the "mud hole," who normally mocks Lucas with aplomb...but in Texas, Maya is NOT OKAY with the fact that the locals ACTUALLY believe Lucas is a disgrace. When she sees that they MEAN IT, she is DONE with their bull feces. It changes her. She stops mocking Lucas and unconditionally supports him as a person who is worthy of people being proud of him REGARDLESS of what happened to him as a kid (which would normally be more of a Riley thing, lbr, although this is not the first time Maya has shown unconditional support for Lucas as-is, see SoL). Even though Maya makes fun of Lucas in New York, she has never really meant it—teasing Lucas is a facade for New York Maya to hide her feelings. (And this is made explicit canon by Riley's realization in GMT1&2 as well as Maya's "it's my facade" line in GMT3).

New York Maya mocks Lucas mercilessly even though she doesn't really mean it, but Texas Maya perceives that the locals MEAN IT when they mock Lucas and she is NOT COOL with that. Maya does NOT buy into the Texas values that apparently gave Lucas his temper issues in the first place, to any extent. Rather, she wants him to buck those problematic values. She wants him to take off that stupid outfit and get out of here.

What’s going on with Maya is a lot simpler than what’s going on with Riley. Maya sees Lucas as a normal boy who could very well get hurt, who is great as-is, who shouldn’t put himself in such serious danger just because of what other people are saying. She also doesn’t see his temper as a problem to be solved or erased, to her, it’s just a part of him that he has to keep under control and only deploy for the right reasons. (Hell, the moment Maya emotionally falls for Lucas whether she realized it or not is most likely GM Sneak Attack, when he’s a total prick to Missy, who totally deserves it, and he didn’t even get remotely violent for that one.) When you set Riley up as the plain, black & white photo negative reverse of that, without accounting for all the complex REASONS she’s on the opposite side of Maya on this...it does make Riley look pretty bad. But that’s why I took pains to spool out the NUANCES of what may have been up with Riley in Texas in this post. Riley is only misguided, insecure, and naive. She is not being maliciously cruel when she calls Lucas a disgrace to the community. She is not purposefully knocking him down to build him up, although that is in effect what she does.

In short, Maya stops making fun of Lucas, and expresses implicit unconditional pride in who Lucas is when she “sees how other people live.” But what doesn’t change is how confident she is. Maya is absolutely secure in the idea that Lucas is great as-is and that he should not have to risk life & limb to prove anything to anyone. What she loses is her grip on hiding her feelings as much as possible (which, unlike Riley’s self-confidence, has actually been weakening prior to this episode, largely because of the stuff Lucas has been initiating with Maya, and possibly because she’s been daring to hope).

More from the GM Flaws perspective...

Lucas isn’t “better” in New York because he busted out grand gestures like princess fantasy horsey rides and asking Cory for permission to take Riley on a date. People change people, and there is simply no logical reason to believe that “New York” Lucas picked up not caring what other people think from Insecure Riley Who Cares Too Much What People Think. Riley definitely 100% inspired Lucas’ desire to change his ways: her appeal to Lucas in the cafeteria in GM Sneak Attack pulls him away from Missy and over to Riley’s side of the line, and he certainly tries his damnedest to live up to her idealized vision of him between Friendship & Secret of Life after jettisoning “the rebel” shadowing him...although it starts to fall apart after SoL because again: just like the other kids, Lucas needs balance, not overcorrection.

But even though Riley as the inspiration for Lucas to change must be acknowledged, Maya is clearly the person from whom Lucas picked up the practical application of owning yourself and not caring what other people think. It’s not exactly a stretch to conclude that picking up Maya’s self-confidence is an important part of what helped Lucas to largely overcome the temper issues he’s had as a result of his failure with Judy and the subsequent shaming he endured at the hands of his family and the locals. Picking that confidence up from Maya is just as important to Lucas’s growth as Riley inspiring Lucas to commit to change in the first place. (Maya also changes Riley in terms of growing to care less what other people think. All four of them have changed each other, and none of them would be what they are now without all of the others.) And people who honestly believe Maya’s "No! That’s what he wants! He wants you to be like him!” didn’t have a serious effect on Lucas in GM Flaws...I don’t even know what to say to y’all anymore. Riley did absolutely NOTHING when Lucas was about to pop Billy. MAYA was the one who slowed him down and made him stop. Did he calm all the way down to being as peaceful as a lamb? Nah. He was still pissed, and rightfully so. But Maya is the one who actually physically stopped Lucas from going too far in Flaws. Granted, she’s also the one who inspired him to nearly hit Billy in the first place, but she sees the error of encouraging that behavior and then does something about it. (Just like Lucas did for her earlier in the episode).

Riley and Lucas are a LOT alike. When Lucas goes back to his original environment in Texas, and after his go-to-ego-booster-Riley reinforces what other people are saying rather than calling bullshit...New York Lucas kinda disappears. Gone is the boy who delivers passionate, sincere speeches about not succumbing to what other people say you are. Gone is the boy who didn’t think he was actually a disgrace to the community. In his place is a very insecure boy who, because of what other people are saying, believes he MUST risk his life and limb by riding the fiercest bull around. And Riley reacts pretty much the SAME WAY to that stimuli...probably because she's a lot like Lucas. Maya, however, does not. Riley shakes Lucas’s confidence in himself, she shakes his confidence in the idea that he is NOT actually a disgrace, before she “builds him up” in terms of being able to ride the bull because he’s a “hero.” Maya wanted Lucas to be the guy she knows in New York, who doesn’t care so much what other people think in the first darn place.

Interestingly, it was Maya who delivered the equivalent of the "You are..." line to Farkle in GM Flaws. She meant it in a good way, but she was still kinda sorta reinforcing the negative crap Billy was saying to Farkle. Maya was saying that being “weird” is okay for Farkle as long as he has self-confidence and owns it. But that doesn’t get Farkle to come back to class. Maya is not a monster or a villain for that “you are” moment any more than Riley is monster or a villain for HER "you are" moment with Lucas in Texas. Maya was trying to help Farkle. Riley was trying to help Lucas. This isn't about who's "good" and who's "bad," it's simply about the DIFFERENCES in how the girls interact with, perceive, and feel about the boys, and how all of that affects whatever situation they’re in. It's about how seeing the way people act in Texas changes the way the girls normally act. That's it.

Lucas was essentially bullied (by the locals, Pappy McCullough, and Pappy Joe) onto the back of that bull just as much as Farkle was bullied into the janitor's closet. Pappy Joe was originally going to CARRY A PROTESTING LUCAS OUT OF THE CLASSROOM OVER HIS SHOULDER. Lucas was pissed off about being roped into the bull ride from the get-go even without the cuts to these scenes. Lucas didn't ride Tombstone because he wanted to "fulfill his dreams." Not one blessed word is spoken by ANYONE about this stunt being about Lucas’s “rodeo dreams,” which he gave up long before this episode. Lucas doesn’t even mention his “dreams” in EITHER of his grateful speeches to Riley. Lucas rode Tombstone because he felt like he had no choice but to prove he could, so people would stop calling him a "disgrace" for something that happened to him as a little boy, so he could “earn” the openly expressed love of his grandfather which OUGHT TO BE unconditional.

Lucas doesn't even keep the trophy, which is saying something for a dude as hyper-competitive as he is. He doesn't even sit there ADMIRING the trophy the way Farkle and Zay do back at the house. And he very pointedly takes a knee to reassure Timmy that it's OKAY that he fell off Judy—it's pretty clear Lucas is trying to prevent Timmy being as negatively affected by his childhood failure as Lucas was. And, with the Timmy/Lucas moment, the writers are pretty clearly letting us know that it was WRONG for Lucas to be treated so badly over the Judy thing to begin with. Lucas does for Timmy what NO ONE did for him, aside from Maya when it was already too late. What feeling was associated with being bullied, for both Riley and Farkle? Humiliation. Here are the stage directions for Lucas’s little chat with Timmy:

And what’s really interesting is that THIS is the moment that the Friars and the McCulloughs bury the hatchet. Pappy Joe and Pappy McCullough shake hands AFTER Lucas tries to save Timmy from a childhood full of shame just for falling off a sheep. Lucas’s bull ride didn’t end the feud, Lucas taking a knee and reassuring Timmy ended the feud. Lucas just being a GOOD GUY ended the feud. That was all Lucas ever truly needed to be to begin with, and he didn’t actually need to be bullied onto the back of a bull for that.

Dreamers + Realists

After the danger becomes apparent to Maya in Texas, she is 100% done with the BS. Maya gets hip to the danger when she sees the bulls on the monitors. Riley idealizes Lucas the “Hero” so much that doesn’t think there’s any real danger until she sees Tombstone in person. Maya ends up delivering a version of Riley's "it's not okay" line from GM Flaws with, "You're not proud of him if he doesn't do this?" It's very clear that Maya thinks it is NOT OKAY for people to be calling Lucas a disgrace (and meaning it) to begin with, and she thinks it's absolutely NUTS for him to risk his life and/or limb to "prove" he's not. To Maya, Lucas's safety was more important than what these people (wrongly) believed about Lucas. She was more worried about his safety than what anyone thought. She doesn't have Lucas up on a pedestal in terms of her conception of him, she doesn't believe he can ride this bull safely just because he (very insecurely) says he can. She has been given EVERY REASON to believe that Lucas is going to get seriously hurt or killed by riding Tombstone. She is not being “dramatic.” The danger was real. (And it’s hammered home over and over and over again, from “Death is the difference!” until the moment of the bull ride itself.)

Maya wants Lucas to be realistic and SAFE. She wants him to NOT CARE so much about what these people are saying. She doesn't want Lucas to be so affected by what other people are saying about him. She believes those people are WRONG to call him a “disgrace” at all, and she is right about that. She wants Lucas to BUCK this objectively problematic aspect of “Texas values,” which apparently/may have gave him his temper to begin with. And she doesn't need or want Lucas to pull a life-threatening stunt or "be a hero" just because of the awful things people are saying. She doesn’t think these peoples’ problematic and wrong opinions are worth Lucas taking such a massive risk. She wants him to think realistically, not idealistically. Here’s another little snippet of what she was originally going to say:

(I’m guessing they changed the bull’s name from Satan to Tombstone because it’d be kinda screwy to associate Maya with something named Satan. And also: Disney Channel Anyway.) Riley and Lucas, the dreamers, are NOT listening to the realist here. This is a potential life or death situation and they are not LISTENING to Maya. They’re too caught up in those crappy ideas about Southern honor, too caught up in the idea that Lucas MUST risk his life to “make up for” falling off a sheep as a kid, too caught up in the idea of Lucas as a “hero.” Riley and Lucas aren’t being realistic about this, and they’re caring WAY too much about reputation and what other people think. Perhaps it might be useful to think of this situation in terms of what Maya says about them both in GM Money (especially if you believe it’s supposed to come BEFORE Texas):

“I’m gonna dream with them, yeah. I always have. They’re the ones who taught me how. Just sometimes, I know better.”

Maya knew better in Texas. Riley and Lucas did not. (”You have these friends for a reason,” much?) There was no GOOD reason for Lucas to be risking his life, because Pappy Joe and the locals were WRONG to call Lucas a disgrace over something that happened to him as a child in the first place.

Riley’s idealization of Lucas is what makes her blind to the VERY REAL danger until she sees Tombstone in person, at which point she acts like veterinarian dreams can tame an angry bull. Riley is not being realistic about this. The show took major pains to hammer home that the danger was real and that it was extraordinarily lucky Lucas didn’t get seriously hurt. They even go so far as to SHOW us “the best” being rolled out on a stretcher as Lucas enters the ring. Riley may believe Lucas is “hero” and all (and WHY does she think that, exactly? That’s yet another post), but if “the best” can wind up in the hospital after riding Buttercup, then Lucas could’ve easily wound up in even worse shape after riding Tombstone. They. Got. Lucky.

But the issue here is not that Riley is some monster who just plain didn’t care about Lucas. The issue is that she cared too much what other people thought (same with Lucas). The issue is that she wasn’t being realistic about the danger (same with Lucas). This is a situation where the dreamers OUGHT TO HAVE listened to the realist, and they didn’t. They got lucky this time. But how many more times do you think Riley and Lucas can get into situations like this before their luck runs out and something goes horribly wrong because they both had their heads in the clouds? Is this out-of-touch-with-reality idealistic dreamer dynamic GOOD FOR THEM in the long run? As long as we’re only talking about running for class president in seventh grade, I guess. More importantly, does this dynamic make for an effective, possibly long-term partnership with room for constant growth? According to the writers...no. See: GM Belief, the implications of STEM.

The point of the refreshment tent scene was never "can Maya talk Lucas out of this?!" but rather to HIGHLIGHT the differences in the way the girls see the world, and Lucas himself—not to mention the difference in their feelings for him. Seeing how other people live changes the way the girls would normally act. What DOESN'T change though is the way the girls SEE and CONCEIVE of Lucas. Riley's idealization of Lucas doesn't disappear in Texas just because other people are calling him a “disgrace.” She's convinced that he's a "hero who can do anything," so even though the danger is becoming more and more apparent, Riley believes Lucas can ride a raging bull just because he says so, even though he is clearly unsure himself. Maya, on the other hand, sees Lucas as a normal kid and a normal good guy. She doesn't place him on a "hero" pedestal the way Riley does. She sees "the best" get carried out on a stretcher and she is 100% DONE with the idea that Lucas should risk his life and limb just to prove a point to a bunch of people who are WRONG to be calling Lucas a disgrace in the first place. She does everything she can think of to try and stop him, while also trying to not make her feelings known. And at this point Maya is the one who is acting the way you'd expect "Lucas's girl" to act in the face of a life or death stunt (especially by BMW/GMW standards). And Riley, well...she's acting more like his family and the Texans. Riley’s acting more like like Pappy Joe, who makes fun of Lucas and believes he HAS to risk himself with a life threatening stunt.

The Inevitability of the Bull Ride

But make no mistake: Even though it didn’t become 100% inevitable in the narrative until after the “disgrace” bit, that bull ride was always going to happen plot-beat-wise. Maya didn't have an actual prayer of talking Lucas out of it because this is FICTION. The bull ride is the action climax of the episode, and it's also how Riley gets hip to Maya's feelings. If the bull ride doesn't happen, then Riley doesn't get fully hip to Maya, and Texas 2&3 don't happen. The purpose of the refreshment tent scene (even after the cuts) was probably to highlight the differences in the way the girls see/perceive Lucas wherever they are geographically, as well as to highlight the way they change in terms of how they each treat Lucas in light of seeing how he grew up in Texas. Maya's attempt to talk Lucas out of it was ALWAYS doomed, which is why she has to push so hard that she slips up and makes her feelings obvious/undeniable/apparent—and although Riley doesn't quite 100% catch on until she sees Maya frozen and shaking in fear after Lucas is flung through the air, that post-rodeo moment is really just the catalyst that makes all the moments Riley's been noticing all season snap into place. And of course Lucas has NO IDEA what's up with Maya until Riley brings it up and Maya eventually explains herself at the campfire. He seems to think that Maya just doesn't support him or believe in him while Riley does.

I've had it just about up to here with people who aren't capable of grasping the nuance of Girl Meets Texas 1, or who think there isn’t any, especially with regard to the way the girls change once they get to Texas. Fact: Riley is naive and is often slow on the uptake when it comes to reality. Sometimes it seems like she's faking it, other times she really is just a lap behind. Riley can often be misguided when she thinks she knows what's best for everyone. The bull ride was the action climax of the episode and was going to happen NO MATTER WHAT, because of who these character are and where the story needed to go. But parsing out the _why_ of it all doesn’t mean I think there was ever a prayer of a Girl Meets Texas without a bull ride, or that it’s “Riley’s fault” there was a bull ride. Riley’s not real. There’s a bull ride because it was written that way. But the way they get to that plot point is, in my ever intense opinion, worth a closer look--especially because you don’t have to squint much to see it all as a piece of a much larger puzzle re: Riley and Maya learning to be combinations of light/dark and dreamer/realist rather than dichotomous extremes, entirely aside from the fact that in this case it’s got to do with Lucas.

#old draft post #girl meets texas #seriously i cannot believe this was probably going to be longer than it already is #actually i can #i could write a freaking graduate thesis about this show and still have more to say #if you read the whole thing congratulations #ugh i loved these episodes so much #analyzing riley and maya through any prism is my jam

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11likeswritingfanfiction · 3 years

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Haunt, chapter one: Stay out of my town!

Fandom: IT by Stephen King but like more based on the movies that came out in the recent years and not the novel or miniseries.

Summary: Shanice Hanlon and Her Brother Mike Hanlon move to Derry after the death of their parents and encounter something that will change their lives forever.IT.

Warnings: Murder, mentions of crimes and display of trauma

Word Count: 2,346

A/N: So, this basically turned into like an alternate, novelized version of the first movie's original script and partly aspects from the novel. Anyways I mainly wrote this for fun and to relieve stress so I hope you enjoy reading this!

Read one AO3

William Hanlon was a murderer.

Shanice wanted to not believe it. She hoped it was a nightmare of some kind, a really messed up one. The day he was arrested, it’d been a particularly nice day; she remembered watching fondly at her parents as they danced to Prince. Mike had out in the park playing with neighborhood boys.

She sat to herself, laid in a recliner, reading the newest issue of JET Magazine when she heard a knock--one that only she seemed to hear. Tossing her reading material to the floor, she walked from the living room to the front door, leaning up to look through the peephole.

Two officers, both white, looking very cold. Tilting her head curiously, she opened the door as the warm summer air hit her body.

Shanice’s gaze diverts from their path with a small voice she replies, “What’s up, Officer?”

“Hey, Sweetheart. Do you know William Hanlon?”

“Yeah, that’s my Daddy. What’s going on?”

Something wasn’t right.

She could feel it.

She didn’t answer but her eyes darted to her parents who were laughing and smiling. When she doesn’t say anything, the officers glance over her shoulder at the cheery couple.

“If you stand there and stall you for his protection, you’ll be obstructing justice, young lady.”

“What, you can’t--”

She feels her body shoved out of view as the men rushed into their small two-room apartment. She could feel her mother yelling and her father suddenly burst into a rage. Blood rushed to her ears, her wide, dark eyes glued on her father’s figure.

Chaos, pure chaos.

The memory she had of her father was nothing but a mask, a cover-up to who he was outside of their safe apartment.

Everything is a lie, nothing but lies!

“I ain’t goin’ to jail-that thing told me to do it. I ain't no murderer!” Tears started to stream down her cheek as--she wanted to holler, but she couldn’t utter a word or a sound.

“William stop it, put down that gun!” Her mother runs over trying to wrestle the gun out of her father’s hands, which eventually goes off and causes a stillness to go over the room.

Her mother’s body fell first, her eyes wide and petrified. Her breaths were shallow-- her body twitched as she bled out on the floor. She seemed to mumble something, something Shanice couldn’t make out.

Then, she was gone just like that.

It was surreal, intangible to her eyes.

“Sir put down the weapon.” As the officers urged him to stop, her father just stood there with a smile on his face.

“Ain’t no way I’m goin’ down without my Baby Girl." His arms stretched out, he calls out to her.

"Shanice, Baby girl. Come on to Daddy, everything’s gonna be okay. We're gonna be--” With her body trembling, the teenage girl rushes out the door in a sprint, screaming. As she dashes through her neighborhood, she flags down her brother on his way back down the street.

“Hey, Shay, what’s up? Why are there a bunch of cop cars out here? Why--Shay? Shay, what’s wrong?”

“Daddy he...he shot mom, h-he’s coming for us--we gotta run--”

A resonating gunshot fills their ears before Shanice could finish her sentence. She dropped to her knees, not caring about the harsh sting on the sidewalk.

When she saw the officers rush out, she knew one thing--her father was dead. Unknown if by himself or by an officer

He was dead.

When it was discovered that her father murdered twelve children between during his twenties--and more that investigators speculate.

Shanice and her brother Mike were condemned for his actions before their move because they were a ‘unit’ and the actions of one cemented them as a whole But where they were themselves, another league of victims that suffered due to his crimes.

A man died the day her father was arrested, not William Hanlon, the murderer, but the man she thought was her father along with her mother.

Moving to Derry was a lot for a fourteen-year-old who experienced the tragedy of seeing both of her parents and a thirteen-year-old who feels he should’ve been there.

It was a place they'd spent their early years at, it is held with some sort of nostalgia.

After climbing herself into the bed of her grandfather's truck, Shanice peered over at her brother with a small smile.

“It’s gonna be okay Mike--alright?” The young boy nods--Shanice wonders if she said the words only to comfort Mike or herself. After a month of being in state custody, being petrified and scarred was the least of her worries.

She was afraid. She hated that part of her, the part that made her human.

Being afraid is time-consuming; being afraid gives way for cowardice. Being afraid stopped her from being by her mother’s side, being afraid stopped her from confronting her father.

Moreover, she’d be the one to look after Mike when her grandfather eventually dies too.

Shanice was wearing jean shorts and a white, polo shirt, indicative of the summer heat. She hangs her head between her legs, the heaviness of her braids connected with her heart. Feeling emotional exhaustion, she curls up and forces herself to sleep on the bed of an unforgiving truck bed.

For the first time in a long time, she didn’t have a dream or a nightmare. What wakes her up is the sharp jerk of her grandfather’s truck and she finds him grinning a toothy grin at her.

“Alright Baby Girl, we’re here!”

A farmhouse, one she remembered playing in as a kid. Chasing around pigs and playing in the creek--she’d be happier to be there if it wasn’t for the circumstances. She quietly descends from the back of the truck, taking the bulk of their things. Her brother was as her grandfather described as ‘soft’ and the aforementioned man was already in his sixties, worn down from working diligently for years--she felt it was more than necessary.

“You shouldn’t be carrying all those things, let Granddad take it.” Shanice waves off her grandfather’s helping hand.

“It’s cool, Texas built me well. I’ve got it.”

....

“Go on now. Pull it.”

“I don’t want to do this.”

“People need to eat.”

“But how would you feel? Raised for food...” Shanice, who was drinking a glass of Kool-Aid watched as her grandfather attempted to teach her brother how--slaughter a sheep. She frowned. Her brother was such a sweet boy, couldn’t harm a fly even if he was forced to--and this was the exact opposite of the Patriarch.

“Like I’d want you to get it over with is how I’d feel... Remember what I told you? You gotta do this quick. If the animal senses what you’re about to do, if it starts to fear you, adrenaline courses through its body and changes the taste and the meat winds up tough.” Drinking the rest of the red liquid, Shanice sets her glass down and makes her way over to the barn.

“Granddaddy, forcing him ain’t gonna do you no good.”

“Babying the boy ain’t gonna do you no good.” He then turns to the machine and without an inkling of hesitation pulling the trigger, killing the sheep it was aiming for.

“You need to start taking more responsibility around here, Mike. Your Dad was younger than you when he took this over--”

“But what if I can’t? What if I don’t want to do this, be here.” His words made Shanice frown--Watching silently as their grandfather spoke on.

“Look at me--you too Baby Girl.” The old man points to the sheep lined up to be slaughtered--quietly, patiently.

Waiting to be consumed.

“Let me y’all about being here. ‘Cuz you two need to understand something. There are two places you can be in this world. You can be out here, like us. Or you can be in there, like those eager bastards right there”

He continues with, “And if you waste too much time hemming and hawing, that choice is gonna be made for you. ‘Cept you won’t know it 'til you feel the bolt blast right between your eyes.” Shanice blankly stares at him, unaffected by the words while her brother trembles in fear.

“Ok, ok. Here." She hands then both sandwiches wrapped in saran wrap.

"A cheese sandwich for Mike and a BLT for you granddaddy.”

While the two men in her life sit at the living room watching the news, Shanice looks outside, at the forest outlining their house.

She didn’t hate Derry but something about Derry left her feeling like there was something outlining--maybe she thought too much.

A few weeks passed, today was Shanice’s last day of class. Mike remained home, homeschooled by their Granddaddy who said, "The boy needs to learn about the land."

Finishing off her bowl of cereal, as her brother appears from his room.

“Remember to do that test so we wrap stuff off it mail it off, ok? I'll see you when I get home.” Shanice mutters to her little brother, giving him a tight hug.

“Ride safe--don’t speak to strangers.” Shanice blinks at her grandfather who has her blocked from leaving the driveway. Its been a minute since they moved to Derry, but he still went over the same Spiel to her every morning.

“Granddaddy I’m already fourteen, you know?" Shanice groan, feeling as if she was practically ancient at that age, "You’ve been saying that since we got here.”

“And? You’re prey to anything out there.” Shanice rolls her eyes, beginning to ride away.

“I’ll keep that in mind!”

Shanice arrived at the school--preteens, teenagers fill the entrance like crowded in herds like those doomed sheep at the farm. She gripped her backpack, it being empty--her knowing it was the last day and that she wouldn't bother trying to stay in class.

Watching students dispersing in to clear out their lockers, walking, she overhears a group of boys talking.

“How’s it work?”

“They slice part of his penis off.”

“That can’t be true. He’d have nothing left...”

She grimaces.

Boys discussing circumcision.

Nice.

Shaking her head, she gets to the girl’s bathroom, where she planned to attempt to wait until the bell rung.

She pauses when she hears a commotion coming from the lockers around the corner.

“...I think I can handle this.”

There’s a bang as if something or someone slammed against it followed by mocking laughter.

“Sure know how to spread ‘em, slut!”

Her face tenses up. She quickly debates whether or not to get herself involved-- resigning to help the girl. She slams open the door she's cooped up, letting her presence known. At her reveal, the girls stiffen--one, in particular, stood with a hockey stick in her hand. Her eyes glance at another girl, a redhead who seemed to be shaking. Her pale knees were bruised pretty badly. She glares at the girls, who quickly leave, like a gaggle of hens.

“Hey, you okay?”

When the girl nods, Shanice lets out a sigh of relief.

The last thing she could make out on the girl was her fiery hair as she ran off in the opposite direction, making her way to her destination.

It’s around four by the time the Shanice leaves school. After picking up Mike and dropping off his test materials at the post office, Shanice decides to stop for tv tray meals as a substitute for a dinner that didn't feel like cooking--she calls her grandfather at a payphone in advance that they’d be a little late.

Stopping and parking the car on the side of the street, there’s a woman frantically stapling a poster to a light post. It was a missing child flyer for a kid named Dorsey Corcoran. Right beside it is a sign that says, ‘REMEMBER THE CURFEW, 7 P.M.’

She spots the two siblings running over to hand the older of the two.

"Please tell me if you've seen my son. Please."

Both of the siblings stare at her retreating figure in silent sympathy, heading in the grocery store after a beat.

It was such a sign of fleeting hope.

“What’s up?” He asks her brother as they make their way through the small grocery store. He seemed to be off in his thoughts, so she felt like something was wrong. Ever since the accident, he’d gotten quieter, and quieter.

It was concerning.

The boy looks the other way and mutters, “Nothing.” and she drops it, for now.

Riding home, she glances over at her brother.

“Try to put up with Granddaddy this summer, ok?” ‘We’re the only people he has left.’ She wanted to add but decided against it.

He nods and she adds, “I’ll do the farm work too.”

His face brightens up and it cheers her up as well.

The next day, Shanice decides to look for work and to drop off meat at the Butcher’s with Mike after he insisted on going--probably because he didn’t feel comfortable alone with their grandfather.

After finishing those duties they head out on her bike, Shanice has a feeling she can’t shake.

The feel of being followed.

“I think someone’s following us.” She could feel her brother’s confused expression through his voice.

“Who?” He turns around. She sees some sort of sports car--it starts honking at them, not letting off. It starts to increase in speed, edging on them as if to swallow them whole. Her brother frantically goes faster and faster until they manage to crash into a tree.

Laughter and mischievous hollering emerge from the car, as well as a taunt.

“Stay the fuck out of my town!”

“Hey! What the fuck is wrong with y'all?” Shanice yells at the car as it flies away, helping her brother to his feet. She looks at themselves--he wasn't hurt too bad, neither was she.

The real damage was her bike--it mangled beyond recognition.

“Let’s just carry this thing to the house, Mike.” She says, turning to her brother, who seems to be locked in a trance by something.

“Mike?”

“Huh?”

She frowns.

“Let’s go home.”

#it stephen king #it 2016

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blacksiren · 7 years

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21 Supernatural Imagines

ok, so, in honour of @teamfreewill-imagine‘s birthday i have written 21 imagines for her because last year she wrote me a 7-day smutathon and i figured i had to pay her back at some point... i wrote over 10,000 words in four days - these were meant to be less than 400 words each but the longest one ended up being 742. whoopsies...

happy birthday, abii!!! ♥

Below the cut: 21 Supernatural and Supernatural RPF imagines.

Warnings: fluff, mild pain, (idk each imagine title pretty much tells the story so you can work out what it entails)

1. Imagine Danneel crashing your panel at a convention.

“I can’t believe they told y’all that! I freaking hate them so much,” you laughed along with the audience.

The fan at the microphone had just told you that Jared and Jensen had spoken about you at their previous panel. They had apparently told the story of you having a little too much to drink at the annual Christmas meal in Texas and how you ran through a water fountain fully clothed and in high heels before jumping into a bush and having to be rescued.

“Ok, y’all have to bear in mind that this was my first cast party where I was of legal drinking age in the States. I’ve been allowed to drink in Europe for the past 5 years, and I’m legal in Vancouver, but this year I turned twenty-one so I was allowed to drink at the party in Texas for the first time and everyone knew that,” you started.

You paused, unsure how to tell this story without coming across as someone who didn’t know their limit when it came to alcohol.

“People were buying me drinks all night because it was the first time they legally could and I also bought a few rounds purely because it felt exciting to purchase alcohol in America. I’m a weirdo,” you laughed again to ease some tension you felt.

You put your head in your hands to hide your embarrassment.

“Oh god, I can’t believe I’m telling this story!” you murmured.

“Don’t worry, you don’t have to. I will!” you turned your head at the familiar sing-song voice as the crowd drowned out the end of Danneel’s sentence.

You saw her walking out with a microphone in one hand and a bottle of water in the other.

She smiled at you knowingly and handed you the bottle of water.

You thanked her, undoing the cap and taking a much needed sip.

“So, where shall I start?” Danneel asked, winking at you.

“Are you really going to do this to me?” you asked her, getting up from your stool so that you were both standing, and putting your bottle under the chair.

“Hell yeah!” she started, “Any chance I can get to tell the story of how an inebriated twenty-one-year-old ran through a water fountain fully clothed, jumped into a bush, and had to be rescued by an also-slightly-drunk ‘gargantuan moose man’,” she finished, quoting Misha’s term for Jared that seemed to have stuck.

“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me,” you mock-complained.

She slung her arm over your shoulder, pulling you close to her.

“That’s what fake moms are for!” she teased, the side of her head against your own.

“Okay let’s get this show over with,” you relented, accepting defeat and preparing to be humiliated.

2. Imagine being pregnant with Sam’s child.

You clutched the scan in your hands, your heart pounding in your chest as you heard the Impala pull into the motel parking lot.

You heard the doors slam and the muffled noise of voices coming through the walls.

You quickly tucked the scan into your pocket as the handle of the room opened and Dean entered, followed by Sam.

“Hey boys!” you sing-songed, both of them picking up on your odd behaviour and going to ask what was going on.

“Are you-” Dean started.

“Can I speak to Sam?” you interrupted, “Alone.”

Dean looked between you and Sam before turning and heading for the door he just came through.

“I’ll go get some dinner,” he murmured on the way out.

“Hey, what’s up?” Sam asked, moving towards you after the door had shut.

You lowered yourself onto the couch, careful of how you sat with the scan in your jeans pocket.

“I-” you started, your throat suddenly dry.

Sam sat next to you, putting a hand on your knee and looking at you, concerned.

You decided to pull out the scan instead, holding it face down and fiddling with the corners.

“What’s that?” he asked hesitantly.

You handed it over to him and he turned it over in his large hands.

“I’m pregnant,” you blurted out, “I’m sorry. But… I’m pregnant.”

“You’re pregnant?”

“Yeah,” you breathed, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“Baby, don’t apologise,” Sam whispered, holding your hands in his own and smiling big, “We’re having a baby.”

“Yeah. I guess we are,” you smiled back.

3. Imagine Jensen coming home drunk.

“Hellooooo?”

You heard the voice hollering from the bottom of the stairs as you sat in bed reading.

You put your book down on the bedside table when you saw your husband poke his head around the bedroom door.

“Hello, my love,” Jensen drawled.

“Well hello there,” you chuckled.

He slowly and unsteadily made his way to the foot of the bed, throwing himself down on top of the sheets.

“You’ve still got your shoes on!” you chastised, noticing his boots dangling off the edge of the bed.

He kicked them off without even responding.

“Better?” he looked up at you with hooded eyes.

“Better,” you confirmed.

Jensen kneeled on the bed, pulling at your legs until you were lying flat on the mattress before crawling over you.

He leant in to kiss you sloppily.

“You taste like alcohol,” you laughed, trying to push him away as his scruff tickled you, “Oh my god, Jensen, you stink! Have you been smoking?”

He rolled his lips together, avoiding your gaze.

“Take your clothes off,” you ordered, “Before you make our bed gross,” you added when you noticed Jensen’s eyebrows raise in expectation.

He hastily tried to get his clothes off and you laughed at the uncoordinated commotion.

“We are not, I repeat not, having sex tonight. I can see it in your eyes and the answer is no, Ackles,” you told him.

“Someone’s bossy tonight,” he grumbled, climbing into bed beside you in just his underwear, facing away from you.

“Jensen’s not going to feel too fresh in the morning,” you whispered, slinging your arm over his waist and fitting yourself against his back.

“Jensen will be fine,” he murmured, “This is all Nesnej.”

4. Imagine Ruby asking you out for drinks.

You made your way outside of the motel room to get some air. You always hated being cooped up when you were restless and you just needed to walk it off, burn some energy.

You spotted Dean and Ruby talking in the parking lot, you didn’t want to pry so you stayed hidden behind a truck.

“I remember what it’s like,” you overheard Ruby say to Dean.

“What what’s like?” he asked gruffly.

“Being human,” she responded, her voice laced with sadness.

You emerged from your lurking spot, feeling guilty for eavesdropping and not wanting to impose on the conversation any longer.

Dean saw you approaching and straightened up, putting on his bravado-big-brother stance.

“Hey,” you said as you got closer, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“You’re fine,” Dean said, “I was just headed back in anyway, you coming?”

“I’m gonna stay out here a bit,” you told him, “I need to stretch my legs.”

He shot a warning look towards Ruby.

“You can trust her, Dean,” you told him, semi-annoyed at his inability to believe that Ruby was a good person.

He nodded slowly, making his way back towards the motel.

“I’m gonna take a walk,” you said to Ruby, “Wanna come?”

She didn’t respond but fell into step next to you when you turned and started moving away.

You walked for a couple of minutes in complete silence, side by side.

“I have a question,” Ruby asked, breaking the silence.

“Shoot,” you told her.

“Would you like to get a drink some time?” she asked boldly, no hesitation.

You let out a chuckle, tucking your hair behind your ear.

“How do you know I’m into girls?” you asked her.

“Please,” she drawled, “I have two eyes and half a brain.”

You laughed, “Okay, I guess I’m not very subtle.”

“About as subtle as that damn colt,” she teased.

You smiled and shook your head, thinking about your answer.

“So…” Ruby pressed.

You thought about it for a minute; thought about how your brothers would react, how they would tell you it’s a bad idea, how you shouldn’t get involved with a demon. And you knew all this anyway, you just couldn’t help falling for Ruby.

You felt helpless whenever you were around her, as if she had full control of your thoughts and emotions.

Of course, if you told her this she’d just respond with her same old line– ‘Uh, demon. Manipulative’s kind of in the job description.’

“Okay,” you admitted, “Yeah. I’d like that.”

You caught the smile that crept onto her face that she instantly tried to hide.

“It’ll be fun,” you murmured, to yourself as much as to Ruby.

She shot you a knowing wink, “Damn straight, cherry pie.”

5. Imagine Jared taking you to a Cowboys game.

“Where are we going?” you asked for the fifth time that weekend.

It was your birthday weekend and so far Jared had taken you shopping to buy a present, to the cinema to see a movie, out to a fancy dinner, and to breakfast somewhere out of your home city.

“This one is the biggest surprise,” he confirmed, not giving anything away.

“So… where are we going?” you repeated, looking at him as his eyes focused on the road.

He chose not to respond, knowing that anything he said would get questioned further by your naturally nosey attitude.

“Fine,” you relented, putting your feet up on the dash board of his car and staring out the window and the road.

You drove for another twenty minutes until Jared spoke.

He handed you a blindfold, “Put this on.”

“What? Are you crazy? I’m not wearing this.”

“Just…” he sighed, “Please. This is the last surprise. I have managed to keep this from you for the last few weeks so please, just put the blindfold on.”

You were taken aback by his pleading so you did as you were asked, curious but also not wanting to ruin Jared’s plans.

“Thank you,” he murmured, realising he may have been a little harsh.

“I feel ridiculous,” you told him, lightening the tension in the car, “You better not be planning on murdering me. Or if you are, at least take this blindfold off when you’re done – I don’t want to be found in this.”

He laughed and you smiled, turning to face him (or so you hoped).

“You’re pretty when you laugh,” you told him, grinning and trying to find his face with your fingers.

“You can’t even see me,” he told you, pushing your blindly groping hand away.

“I don’t need to. I just know,” you responded nonchalantly, facing the front again.

Another ten minutes passed before Jared pulled the car to a stop.

“You can’t take it off yet,” he ordered, and you heard the driver’s door shut.

“What-?” you were cut off as your door opened, “Is this one of your kinky games?”

Jared ignored you, lifting you down from the car easily and holding on to your hand as he shut the passenger door and locked the car.

“Now, just trust me,” he whispered into your ear, sending a shiver down your spine.

“Always.”

He leant down to kiss you chastely before beginning to walk you, holding you close to his side, still holding onto your hand as you brought your other hand up to cling onto his arm.

You could feel the presence of people around you but had no idea where you were or how many people were watching you walking around in a blindfold like an idiot.

Jared stopped you and you could feel him in front of you. You reached your hands out and placed them on his chest.

“Oh,” you said in mock-disappointment, “I thought you were going to be shirtless. I thought that was the surprise.”

He peeled the blindfold from your eyes and held your face in his large palms, leaning down to kiss you as your eyes adjusted to being in the light.

He stepped to the side of you so you could finally see where you had been brought to.

Right in front of you was the Dallas Cowboys football stadium and your jaw went slack in excitable shock.

“No,” you breathed, unable to believe that Jared had actually brought you to a football game.

“Yep,” he confirmed, laughing at your expression.

“You,” you started, leaning up to cup his face, “Are the best boyfriend in the world.”

You pulled him down into a kiss before Jared put his sunglasses on and you walked hand-in-hand into the stadium.

6. Imagine Genevieve throwing you a surprise party.

“Babe, have you seen my black heeled boots?” you shouted down the stairs of your house.

“Top shelf of the closet!” she yelled back.

“What would I do without you?” you muttered to yourself as you reached up to get your shoes.

You made your way downstairs, grabbing your clutch from the edge of the bed and hooking the thin chain over your shoulder.

You stopped in the doorway to the kitchen when you took in what your girlfriend was wearing.

Genevieve stood at the middle counter, her maroon dress swinging gently around her calves as she prepared something on the surfaces.

You crept up behind her, putting your arms around her waist and leaning your head on her shoulder.

“How did you even reach that top shelf to put my boots there?” you teased, “You’re so tiny.”

“Very funny,” she remarked, turning in your arms and leaning up to kiss you.

Gen took you by the hand and led you towards the garden.

“Where are we going?” you questioned inquisitively, laughing at her energy.

“I want to show you something quickly.”

“Babe, we’re going to be late. If I wanted to be late to dinner I’d have asked for some quick birthday sex before we left,” you joked, stopping on your back porch as Gen did.

You heard someone clear their throat and you looked out into the garden as a cacophony of voices hit you.

“Surprise!”

“Oh my god,” you breathed. “How did you-?”

You turned to Gen, a blush rising on your cheeks as shock filled your face.

“So we’re not going to dinner?” you assumed, raising a questioning eyebrow.

“No, we’re not. Is that okay?” she asked, concern in her eyes.

“That’s more than okay,” you assured her, kissing her firmly.

“I love you,” Gen murmured against your lips.

You leaned your forehead against hers, closing your eyes.

“I love you too,” you told her as your party guests began to sing happy birthday.

7. Imagine Sam and Dean rescuing you on a hunt.

You sat on the wet ground, cradling your left arm that was definitely broken at the wrist.

You could feel blood soaking your top as the fabric stuck to you.

“Fuck,” you muttered, looking around you and making out trees, and leaves, and plants.

No sign of getting any help soon.

You tried to get to your feet, momentarily forgetting the discomfort in your wrist and accidentally putting too much pressure on your left arm.

You screamed out in pain, falling back down and holding your arm tight to your chest.

“You fucking idiot,” you said to yourself loudly, frustrated at the situation, “You absolute fucking idiot! Who goes out at night alone, knowing the dangers in this world? You deserved to have this happen to you. You utter freaking moron!”

You heard footsteps approaching you suddenly and turned your head in the direction of them.

“Hello?” you called.

No response.

“Hello? Anyone there?” you said louder, “Oh god, please someone help me.”

Two tall figures appeared through the fog and you sighed in relief, forgetting that these people could be evil; they could not even be people for that matter.

Adrenaline-fuelled panic set in and you scuttled backwards on your bum, using your legs to push yourself away from the shapes approaching you.

“Hey,” one of them called softly, “It’s okay. We’re here to help.”

They got closer and you could tell that they were human, or at least were in human form.

“Christo,” you whispered when they were near enough.

Both of the men frowned down at you.

“Are you a hunter?” the taller one asked.

“Yes… Are you?”

“Yeah. I’m Sam. This is Dean,” he replied, nodding in the direction of the other man.

“Nice to meet you,” you said, sighing at your situation.

“And you are?” Dean asked.

“In a lot of pain,” you responded, not wanting to give away your name to two strangers.

They relented, crouching down to inspect your injuries.

“Careful-” you hissed, as Dean took your wrist in his hands.

“Yeah, that’s broken,” he admitted.

“Thanks, Sherlock,” you mumbled under your breath, pulling your arm back from his hold.

Dean rolled his eyes at your ability to make jokes in pain. It was a hunter thing.

“We should get you outta here,” Dean said, straightening up.

You agreed, moving to get to your feet before you were suddenly lifted in the air.

“What the fuck?” you asked, struggling half-heartedly against Sam’s arms, wincing as you stretched the gash in your side.

“Stop wriggling,” he told you, his arms constricting around you easily, “We’ll move a lot quicker this way.”

You silently agreed, stilling in his arms and letting him carry you out of the woods, walking behind Dean.

“Onwards, trusty steed,” you teased, leaning into Sam’s embrace, secretly grateful to not have to walk.

You felt his chuckle against your head as you let these strangers lead you away.

8. Imagine babysitting the Padackles children.

You’d been living in Texas for a while now, doing the odd jobs around the town to earn your keep whilst searching for a more permanent job.

You were at the park one sunny Saturday afternoon, pinning up flyers to the notice board offering your services out as a nanny, dog walker, cleaner, tutor, carer, general helping hand. That was when you were spotted by Genevieve and Danneel out walking with the kids.

You recognised both of them but, out of politeness, you kept quiet, wanting to respect their privacy and appreciating that they were in public with their children.

You got into conversation with them both, the kids taking an immediate shine to you as they asked questions about your accent and if you liked football and what your favourite animal was.

You answered all of them with a smile and even took time to interact with the twins, their animated faces looking up at you from their stroller.

You never expected to bump into them again or even hear from them so you were extremely surprised when you got a text on Monday evening.

Hi, this is Danneel. We met in the park on Saturday? I hope you don’t mind that I took your number from the posters you were pinning up. I wondered if you’d be available to babysit for Gen and I on Saturday night? We’ve been looking for a sitter for a while and the kids haven’t really met anyone they liked but they all seemed besotted with you! I totally understand if 3 kids and 3 babies would be too much for you so I can try to find someone else to have the younger ones. Thanks, D x

You thought about your answer before typing out your reply, eager to have a job and earn some money but not wanting to come off as too forward.

Hi Danneel, hope you’re doing well. Of course I’d be happy to babysit for y’all. I’ve had lots of experience with babies and I absolutely adore them so I would be more than ok having all the kids if you feel like you can trust me with them all. Just let me know what time I’m needed and send me over an address and I’ll see you Saturday! x

You got the time confirmations and the address sent to you along with a final thank you.

At 6pm on Saturday you made your way over to the location that Danneel had sent you, pressing the buzzer on the gate and parking your car in the large driveway.

Danneel was waiting at the front door, smiling at you and welcoming you in.

“Your house is amazing,” you told her, looking around admirably.

“Thank you,” Danneel replied, “Gen is already here with the kids, why don’t you come on through and meet everyone.”

You walked into the living room and felt instantly intimidated by the four celebrities that surrounded you; Jensen, Jared, and Genevieve greeting you in turn as you stood by Danneel. Before you had a chance to react, you were met by three little people running to you to shout ‘hi’ in their excitable voices.

“Hey guys!” you said, matching their enthusiasm.

Danneel showed you around the house telling you that the twins were already asleep in bed and that she had left feeding instructions in case they woke up. She had made a note of all the contact numbers you might need, leaving you the piece of paper before Gen took over and explained what to do with her kids for bed time and, in Odette’s case, a bottle feed.

Gen handed Odette over to you and you held her on your hip, shushing and talking to her in a soothing voice as the three other kids stood by your legs to wave goodbye to their parents.

You closed the door behind them, locking it on precaution and walking further into the house as Tom, JJ, and Shep all dispersed to continue playing.

“Okay,” you muttered to the little girl fiddling with your hair in her little hands, “We totally got this.”

9. Imagine coming home to a cooked meal from Jared.

“Honey, I’m home!” you sang as you entered the front door to your house.

You dropped your keys down onto the table in the hallway, leaving your shoes against the wall and hanging your bag on the hook.

You made your way through the house, following the delicious smell that was wafting from the kitchen.

“Mmm, something smells good,” you remarked.

You turned into the kitchen, stopping when you saw your husband standing with his back to you, an apron tied around his waist.

You looked at the small table made up with a cloth, two chairs, candles, and a vase of flowers in the centre.

“What’s all this for?” you laughed softly.

Jared turned around, licking his lips, a wooden spoon in his hand.

“Come here,” he beckoned to you.

You walked over to him, stopping in front of him and looking up at him.

“Try this,” he said, offering you the spoon to test.

You moaned in satisfaction, closing your eyes as the flavours burst out across your tongue.

“That good?” Jared teased.

“This is the best thing I’ve ever had in my mouth,” you admitted, opening your eyes when you realised what you’d just said.

You could see Jared’s mouth constrict against a laugh before he allowed himself to guffaw.

“You heard me,” you said, styling out your blunder.

“Note taken,” Jared murmured, leaning his head to yours, his breath fanning over your face.

You closed the gap between your faces, kissing him softly.

“Let’s eat,” you told him, turning away and seating yourself at the table.

Jared laughed, “Make yourself comfy, madam,” he teased.

“Oui oui, monsieur,” you winked at him, prepared to enjoy this meal and whatever came after it.

10. Imagine Misha picking you up from University.

You sat in class, watching the clock hands moving ever so slowly, waiting until 4pm so you could be done with your last class and go home for winter break.

Finally, the time came and you ignored your teacher’s last comments, packing away your things and zipping up your backpack, slinging it over your shoulder.

You tucked your chair in and made your way out of the classroom, murmuring goodbye to some of your classmates who you hadn’t quite made friends with but you still felt the need to wish them happy holidays.

As you walked out of your building you noticed girls huddled in little groups, pointing and hushing with each other. You walked past them sceptically, stopping when you saw what all the commotion was about.

Leaning against the wall of a building, with his arms crossed and one leg propped up on the wall, was Misha.

Your face lit up and you ran towards him, throwing your arms around his neck as he stood properly to hug you.

“Well this is a nice welcome,” he laughed.

“What are you doing here?” you asked confusedly, stepping out of the embrace.

Girls walking past you all whispered to each other, recognising Misha and scuttling away nervously. You even spotted a few phones poised in what people thought was a casual attempt at getting photographic evidence of Misha Collins on their campus.

“Thought I’d pick up my favourite little sister and travel home with her for Christmas.”

“You’re coming home for Christmas?”

“No, I was just going to dump you on the doorstep of the house and steal your car to drive back to Vancouver in,” he said sarcastically.

You rolled your eyes at his classic humour.

“Are you feeling fit and stealthy, old man?” you teased him.

Misha pushed you away jokingly.

“I’ve got a lot of boxes to load into my car,” you clarified.

“I’ve been working out,” he said, throwing his arm around your shoulder and leading you away from the gathering crowds.

“Have you now?” you laughed, “Well, my apartment is in the opposite direction to the one we’re walking in but if you’re feeling spritely we can take the long way around.”

“Okay, I haven’t been working out that much,” he said, letting go of you so that you could lead him the right way to your apartment.

“I can do a one-handed handstand though,” he told you, putting his hands in his pockets as you walked side by side.

“I saw your photo,” you admitted, looping your arm through his, “I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too, squirt,” he echoed, placing a kiss to the top of your head.

11. Imagine moving in with Jensen and Jared in Vancouver.

The decision to move in with Jensen and Jared came after they found out that you’d been living in your trailer over breaks and days off.

You explained to them that you couldn’t afford a place of your own and, even if you could, you had no idea how long you were going to last on the show. You didn’t want to buy an apartment only to get killed off and then be tied down with property in Vancouver stopping you from applying for jobs elsewhere.

They both came to the decision that you could move in with them, having only just bought a three-bed apartment to share downtown.

You reluctantly agreed, grateful to not have to live in your trailer anymore and being more than willing to pay your share of rent.

You moved what little belongings you had with you into the apartment the following week.

After having lived with them for three months now, you were becoming accustomed to life with Jensen and Jared. At first things felt a little awkward, you moving in with your co-workers, but you soon adjusted and you were all more than comfortable around each other. Perhaps a little too comfortable.

You were in the kitchen making dinner for all of you, you had become the apartment chef, when Jensen walked through in his boxers.

“Dude!” you complained, raising your eyebrows at him incredulously as he reached for a beer out of the fridge, gesturing to his attire.

“What?” he asked nonchalantly, “Most girls your age would kill to see me like this!”

“Most girls my age see you as less of a ‘dad’ and more of a ‘daddy’,” you explained, turning back to the stove.

“Gross,” he remarked, leaving the kitchen.

“You’re the one walking round in your underwear!” you called after him.

The next day you were sat on the couch going over your lines when you noticed something sticking out from behind the couch cushion. You pulled out a pair of socks and shook your head, closing your script and walking down the hallway, standing in between the doors of Jensen and Jared’s opposite bedrooms.

“Okay, fess up,” you ordered, holding one sock in each hand and through each bedroom door so the boys could both see one, “Whose socks are these?”

Neither of them responded so you balled them up and chucked one at each of them, hitting Jensen in the head and Jared in the chest.

“We need some ground rules around here,” you grumbled, striding back into the living room.

A week later you came home from set later than the boys, only to find them both sat in their underwear on the couch, playing video games.

“Okay, that’s it,” you murmured under your breath, walking to your bedroom and depositing your things.

You got undressed and put your comfiest bra and panties on, going back out into the kitchen.

“I’m grabbing a beer, anyone want one?” you asked over your shoulder, seeing both Jensen and Jared raising a hand.

You took three beers from the fridge and handed them over to the boys from behind the couch, walking around to lay on the adjacent one.

“Dude!” Jensen parroted, finally noticing that you were in your underwear.

“God, put some clothes on!” Jared protested, closing his eyes and turning his head away from you.

“Keep your panties on,” you told them, “Please, because that is the only thing keeping me from seeing little Ackles and little Padalecki.”

“This isn’t weird for you?” Jensen asked, deliberately avoiding you with his gaze.

“It became ‘unweird’ when I got fed up of dealing with both your crap. We either all wear clothes around the house or we drop this double standard and grow up.”

“Shit, okay,” Jensen yielded, his hands up in surrender.

Jared took a long sip of his beer, placing it on a coaster on the table and finally looking you in the eyes, nodding.

“Deal,” you all said at once, settling into your respective couches.

12. Imagine Dean taking you for a test drive in Baby.

“Hard right! Hard on!” Dean shouted at you from the passenger seat.

You pulled the car to a stop, turning in your seat to look at him.

“If you want me to be able to drive this car properly, you have got to stop saying things like ‘hard on’,” you told him.

“I don’t think you’re ready for this,” Dean tried to say, his right hand out the window of the car holding on to the roof.

“Don’t you dare flake out on me now, Winchester,” you warned him, “I’m a good driver, I promise. I’m just not used to the left-hand drive thing.”

He nodded minutely.

“One more chance. You have one more chance to stay in the right hand lane or we’re swapping over.”

“Alright, alright. Keep your hair on,” you murmured.

You put the car into first gear and started off smoothly, changing to second and third when necessary.

“It’s not like there’s anyone on this road anyway,” you muttered under your breath.

“That’s beside the point,” Dean reprimanded you, “You asked me to teach you how to drive an old, classic car, so you have to listen to my instructions.”

You set your jaw, never one to like being patronised.

The road opened up in front of you and you were moving comfortably in fifth gear.

You put your foot down on the accelerator, earning you a warning glance from Dean.

“It’s fine,” you told him, “Live a little, Winchester.”

The car got faster as you reached the top of the hill, you took your foot off of the accelerator and moved the gear stick into neutral, letting the car cruise downhill with your foot precautiously hovering over the brake.

You reached the bottom of the hill and prepared to hit the ascent, going into first gear and revving up the hill.

“Be careful with her!” Dean growled at you.

You made it to the top of the slope and went back to driving normally, leaving your formula one dreams behind you and carrying on sensibly.

“You told me you didn’t know how to drive stick,” Dean said, hiding his awe but narrowing his eyes at you once you’d settled back into a steady pace.

“I may have told a teensy-weensy lie,” you cringed, “I kinda just wanted to see how she ran. She’s got a nice engine”

“She sure has,” Dean bristled with pride.

“Let’s get this Baby home,” you murmured, setting off easily in the direction of the bunker.

Dean’s eyes never left you as he appreciated your comfort behind the wheel.

13. Imagine stargazing with Sam.

The sky overhead was a canvas of cosmic beauty; the bright white stars stood out against the velvety black sky.

This was the perks of working a case in the countryside, you figured.

You and Sam lay on a picnic blanket, pillows under your heads, and your hands so close you could feel the heat radiating off his palms.

“You see that one,” Sam said, breaking the silence and pointing directly above your field of vision, “That’s the Big Dipper. You see how the stars on the right cluster to make a quadrangle and then the ones on the left branch out of it?”

“Yeah,” you breathed, “It kinda looks like a pan.”

“Exactly!” Sam exclaimed enthusiastically.

You looked up, admiring the stars and wishing you knew how to map them as well as Sam could.

“What’s that one?” you asked, tracing its shape with your finger, “It looks like a headless man running.”

Sam chuckled softly at your analogy.

“That’s Hercules,” he informed you, “You see that wisp of smoke in the middle?”

He waited for you to locate it and nod before continuing.

“That’s the Hercules Nebula.”

“There’s another one,” you spotted, pointing out another cotton-ball like cluster.

“That one’s the Andromeda Galaxy. It’s a part of the Andromeda constellation but I’m not as familiar with the shape of that one,” Sam confessed softly.

You turned your head to the side, watching him look up at the sky, his hair billowing out over his pillow and his eyes wide with wonder.

You loved seeing him like this; so free, so content, so happy.

You focused your attention back to the stars above you.

“I can’t believe we can see all of this without a telescope,” you remarked in awe.

“A galaxy two and a half million light-years away,” Sam confirmed, “All with your unaided eyes.”

“Wow,” you breathed.

Sam sighed his agreement.

“All the shit we see on a day to day basis and still, at the end of the day, the stars will come out and always look this beautiful,” you thought aloud.

Your hand moved closer to Sam’s in the middle of the blanket until your little fingers brushed together and he linked his pinkie with yours.

“And out of all the centuries, all the worlds, all the galaxies... I get to share all of this with you,” he murmured, squeezing your finger reassuringly.

“Us against the world,” you whispered, as you both continued to stare into the night sky.

14. Imagine clothes shopping with Ruby.

“I’m not coming out,” you protested through the fitting room.

“Babe,” she laughed, “I’m sure it looks great!”

You stared at yourself in the mirror, the mini skirt showing way too much leg than you were comfortable with and the top exposing your waist.

“Nuh-uh,” you objected, pulling at the clothes that Ruby had picked out for you.

“Either you come out or I come in,” she warned.

“Fine,” you grumbled, pulling back the door slightly and poking your head out.

“Out,” she ordered, beckoning you with a finger.

You stepped out tentatively, earning a low whistle from Ruby.

You fought the urge to cover yourself with your arms, putting your hands on your hips in a stubborn defiance.

“I’m not wearing this,” you told her plainly.

Ruby ignored your complaints, “Here, put this on.”

She chucked you a chunky sweater and you caught it one handed.

“That’s more like it,” you sighed, going into the cubicle to get changed.

“With the skirt!” Ruby called through the door.

“I hate you,” you muttered back.

Ruby just chuckled, finding way too much humour in your discomfort.

You took the top off, not that you could even be sure it was a top – the thing looked like it would fit a two-year-old, pulling the sweater over your head and exhaling with the relief of feeling more like yourself.

You walked back out, twirling for Ruby and placing one hand on your hip, popping it to the side in a mock-catwalk.

“Yes, girl! Work it,” she laughed, “This is a look.”

“I’m not so sure about the skirt,” you confessed, “I feel naked from the waist down.”

“That’s exactly why I like it,” she said, winking at you.

“You’re insufferable,” you muttered, picking up a top from the floor and throwing it at her in a weak frustration.

“Okay, we’re done here,” Ruby announced.

“I’m not buying this,” you said, gesturing to the skirt.

“No. You’re not,” she stated, “I am.”

You relented, walking back into the fitting room and getting out of the clothes.

“Wait!” Ruby called, her hand appearing over the top of the door, “Try this.”

You looked at the thin lacy material she was holding, a tiny, delicate bodysuit hanging off of the hanger.

“In your fucking dreams!” you exclaimed, fighting the laughter that came automatically and putting your own clothes back on.

“You're damn right,” she mumbled, taking the lingerie back and undoubtedly adding it to her checkout pile.

15. Imagine Dean comforting you after a nightmare.

You woke in a panic, your hair sticking to your neck with sweat and your heart racing.

You sat up in the queen bed, looking over to where Sam lay in the other bed and Dean was sprawled on the couch.

Dean lifted his head, catching your movement.

“You okay?” he asked, making out your shadow in the dark.

“Yeah,” you breathed, not trusting your voice enough to say anything else.

“Wanna talk?”

You didn’t answer, instead taking a deep breath to try to compose yourself.

Dean lay back down on the couch, turning over and pulling his blanket over himself.

You settled down into the mattress, closing your eyes to try and go back to sleep. Your brain had other ideas, however, filling your thoughts with the nightmare you had just had.

You shifted in the bed, trying not to make too much movement and disturb the others.

“Dean,” you finally hissed, “Dean, are you still awake?”

“Yeah,” he mumbled.

“Please,” was all you could manage to say, your voice cracking on the single syllable.

Dean was up in an instant, crossing the room and crouching by your bed, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder.

“Hey, you’re safe. I promise,” he soothed, stroking your hair off your face and wiping the tears from your cheek.

He walked around the bed, climbing in the other side and putting his arm carefully around your waist, pulling you closer to him.

“This okay?” he asked, his voice against your neck.

You nodded softly, sighing and letting your breathing even out.

“Nothing’s going to hurt you, you hear me? I won’t let anything get you,” he assured you.

You knew he was right; you knew he’d rather sacrifice himself than let anything bad happen to you.

But that’s what also worried you.

“I got you,” Dead murmured, kissing the top of your spine and nestling into the bed.

“We got each other,” you finished automatically, linking your fingers over his as his arm tightened around you, letting the warm comfort of Dean send you to sleep.

16. Imagine Danneel teaching you to cheerlead.

“This is ridiculous,” you groaned, bending over to lean your palms on your knees, taking deep, grounding breaths.

“Come on, you nearly had it!” Danneel exclaimed.

“You’re too preppy,” you complained, collecting your pompoms from where you’d dropped them on the floor.

“Just take each count of eight one-by-one,” she encouraged.

You took one last deep breath before standing up straight.

“Okay, let’s do this,” you said determinedly.

Danneel moved to her phone and pressed play on the music, the tune ringing out on the Bluetooth speakers.

“A 5, 6, 7, 8,” Danneel counted you in, “And: skip skip, skip skip.”

You followed the instructions, counting in your head; skipping twice to the right and then the left, rolling your arms around twice in accompaniment.

“Single, single,” she called the next instruction out.

You skipped once to the right, throwing your left arm in the air and tilting your head right slightly. Then you skipped once once to the left, putting your right arm in the air and tilting your head left.

“Up and down,” Dannel reminded you as you kicked your right foot out in front of you, stepping forward into a lunge and lifting both pompom clad arms in the air.

“Spin, 2, 3, 4,” she called.

You span 360°, kicked your right leg to the side and put your right arm in the air before landing on your right leg and turning to face the right with your arms by your side.

“Contract, contract,” Danneel prompted you, as you rolled your body, your arms also rolling slightly with the movement.

You remembered to punch your arms out in front of you for the second contract, stepping back on your right foot so your feet were together and then back on the left so that your right foot was in front again.

“Good!” Danneel shouted proudly.

Your right hand trailed the pompom along your left arm and around your head, the left pompom getting held you your ear as you moved to face the other way and thrust your right hand in front of you.

“Jump, jump, jump, out.”

You jumped three times, landing with your legs open the fourth time, your arms both going up the first time, just the right, just the left, and both of them in to your chest on the final landing.

You bent your right knee in and then out, dropping your right arm and then bringing it back to your chest and doing the same with the left knee and arm as Danneel yelled, “In, out, in, out.”

You thrust your hips forward, Danneel’s voice in your head saying to ‘add some bounce’ into this move.

“And pivot,” she instructed.

You’d already dropped your hands as you bent at the waist, rotating your upper body in a half circle, your heels lifting and dropping.

“7 and 8,” you counted under your breath as you lifted and dropped your heels three times, bouncing your whole body.

“Woo! Your hair moved; that’s bonus points,” Danneel shouted.

You got through the rest of the routine; swaying and popping your hips, spinning your pompoms, raising your arms, and keeping up a cheery attitude throughout. Maintaining your smile proved to be the hardest part of all.

The entire routine only lasted about thirty-five seconds but, by the time you were done, your breath was coming out in short, sharp puffs.

“Yes!” Danneel exclaimed loudly, clapping her hands together and then lifting her arms above her head, “You did it!”

She pulled you into a hug and you panted in her arms, squeezing her tight in your euphoria.

“I can’t believe it,” you confessed, pulling back to see Danneel’s proud smile still in place.

“Next step: costume,” she sang, pulling a cheerleader’s mini skirt and crop top from her bag.

The pink and white material shimmered in her hands and you groaned when you saw the ribbons, white socks, white sneakers, and glitter that she also had in her bag.

“Oh, god,” you groaned, throwing your head back.

“A promise is a promise,” she insisted, passing you the costume and folding her arms.

You laughed, embarrassed, turning over the outfit in your hands.

“Go big or go home,” you muttered, admitting defeat and changing into the uniform.

17. Imagine Genevieve taking you horse riding.

“Okay,” Genevieve started, coming over to you with two riding hats in her hand, “You’re riding Doodles and I’m on Caspian. They’re both really good horses.”

You nodded, taking the hat she handed you and putting it on.

“Do you know the way we’re going?” you asked her.

“Sweetie, I’ve been riding this trail since I was twelve, I could navigate it with my eyes closed.”

“Okay, show off,” you murmured, nudging her with your shoulder.

You turned to the sound of hooves, seeing two gorgeous horses being led towards you. As they got closer you noticed their extreme height and you raised an eyebrow at Gen.

“Can you even get up that high?” you teased.

“Oh, you just watch me,” she said confidently.

She strode over to the large brown horse, taking the reins from the stable hand and pulling the stirrups down.

In one smooth motion Gen put both the reins in her left hand, sliding her left foot into the stirrup, bouncing three times and then jumping, swinging her right leg over the saddle and seating herself.

“Okay, pretty impressive,” you remarked, walking over to your horse.

You looked up into his dark eyes and ran a hand down his chestnut face, he lowered his head so that you could scratch between his ears and you chuckled softly.

“Hey, handsome,” you muttered, “Ready to ride?”

You took the reins in one hand like Gen had, stretching to put your foot in the stirrup and failing miserably.

You could hear her laughing and you shot her a look, opting instead to take up the offer of a leg up from the stable hand.

“I guess I’m a little out of practice, Lil Miss Yoga,” you said to her over your shoulder, placing your hands on the saddle, one on the pommel and the other on the cantle, lifting your left leg for the guy to hold on to.

On the count of three you jumped, the guy pushing your left leg up as you swung your right leg over the horse. You sat down softly and put both feet into the stirrups.

The stable hand checked your stirrups and saddles, making sure you and the horses were comfortable before sending you out.

“Enjoy your ride, y’all,” he called, as Gen set off in the direction of the trail and you settled into a steady walk behind her.

Five minutes in to the peaceful ride, Gen turned to you.

“How you doing?” she asked.

“Pretty good,” you admitted, running a hand down the neck of Doodles, “He was a little tense at first but I think he’s relaxing now.”

“Get up here,” Gen motioned to you, turning to face the front again.

You clicked Doodles on until he and Caspian were walking side by side.

“They’re both OTTBs,” Gen stated intelligently, “’Off-track-thoroughbreds’. They feel like they’re in competition with the horse in front if they’re not in the lead. It helps to have them walking at the same pace so they know this isn’t a race.”

You nodded in understanding, scratching Doodles’ withers underneath you.

“This place is beautiful,” you murmured in awe.

“Yeah, welcome to Idaho,” Gen said, smiling across at you.

Caspian snorted softly and you laughed.

“I guess that was him saying ‘welcome’,” Gen chuckled.

“Thanks, buddy,” you told the horse.

“Ready to pick up the pace?” Gen asked you, shortening her reins and preparing to go faster.

“Sure,” you replied, copying her movements.

“Okay. Let’s go,” she ordered as you both asked for trot and moved deeper into the trail.

18. Imagine JJ asking to have a sleepover with you and Jensen.

You had just finished dinner with Jensen and his four-year-old daughter, you stood to collect the plates from the table. Jensen, as always, telling you that you didn’t need to help tidy away and you insisting that it was the least you could do after he had cooked dinner.

You walked into the kitchen with the plates, scraping any food waste into the compost bin and placing the dirty dishes and silverware in the dishwasher.

You could hear Jensen and JJ talking in hushed voices and you smiled when you heard them laughing together.

You decided to give them a little longer alone, taking a cloth and some antibacterial spray and wiping down the surfaces.

You put the cleaning stuff away and went through to the dining room, sitting back in your chair and smiling at a giggling JJ, her hands clasped over her mouth.

“What’re you up to, monkey?” you whispered, leaning closer to her and bopping her on the nose with your index finger.

She shook her head, not giving the game away, and you sat upright in your seat.

“Who wants dessert?” you asked, your eyes wide with overexcitement.

“JJ wants to ask you something first,” Jensen said, smiling at you kindly.

“Oh really?” you said, smiling back before looking at JJ again.

“Nuh-uh!” she protested, “Daddy does.”

“I’m not asking, Justice Jay,” he said, laughing as she ran over to his chair at the table.

He lifted her up onto his lap and whispered something in her ear that you didn’t catch.

“Y’all are freaking me out,” you said, your eyes flitting between Jensen’s and JJ’s.

“Will you have a sleepover?” JJ asked, so quietly that you were sure you’d misheard her.

You frowned in confusion.

“I don’t think she heard you, babygirl,” Jensen encouraged his daughter.

“Will you please have a sleepover with us?” she repeated, louder this time.

You gave a puzzled look towards Jensen and he nodded his approval to you. You looked at JJ’s hopeful little face and knew that you wouldn’t be able to say no even if you tried.

“Of course, princess!” you said sweetly, “I’d love to have a sleepover with you.”

“And daddy, too,” she emphasised knowingly; too knowingly for a kid her age.

“Only if we can paint his nails,” you whispered teasingly, pretending that Jensen couldn’t hear you.

“And do make up!” JJ exclaimed, running off of her dad’s lap to grab your hand and pull you up from the table.

“Okay, okay, I’m coming,” you assured her, getting up from the table and placing a kiss to Jensen’s cheek as you left the room to prepare your sleepover.

19. Imagine Misha coming into your work.

You stood by the coffee machine, making three flat whites since you were the only person in the store who knew how to.

It was a busy day in the shop and you were already tired after half of your eight-hour shift.

You took each coffee over to the correct customer tables, smiling politely and clearing away a few empty mugs and plates on your way back to the counter.

"Need you on tills, please," your manager said to you as she passed you on the floor.

"Sure," you muttered, just wanting the day to end.

You got to the till and asked the next customer for their order, looking up at their face but not registering anything.

"I'll have an Americano please," a familiar voice said.

"Is that all?" you asked, ringing up the coffee.

"What do you recommend?" the man asked you and that's when you finally realised why you recognised the voice.

Misha Collins stood the other side of the counter from you, ordering his coffee from you, and asking you what he should order.

“Sweet or savoury?” you questioned.

“Hmm,” he thought for a moment, “Sweet I think.”

"Okay, well the brownies are really good, and a customer favourite," you said honestly, "But I always prefer a flapjack."

"I'll take one of each, then," he said, getting his wallet out of his jeans pocket.

You smiled, "Eat in or to go?"

"Eat in, please."

You plated up the brownie and the flapjack, surprised at how casually you were handling this situation. You and everyone else in the café.

You told Misha his total and he handed over way more money than necessary.

You looked at what change he was owed and started counting it out when he interrupted you.

"Don't worry about that," he winked, "Add it to your tip jar."

"Are you sure?" you asked incredulously, a good wad of cash in your hand.

“Absolutely,” he confirmed.

“Thank you. So much. I’ll bring your drink over as soon as its ready.”

You handed over his receipt with a smile.

No one was behind him so you watched to see where he sat and set about making his coffee. You put it on a tray with a small jug of milk and some sugar before making your way over to his table.

“One Americano,” you announced, placing it down in front of him along with the extras, “Anything else I can get you?”

You noticed him cover up the paper he was reading from, probably an episode script, before he smiled up at you.

“No, thank you,” he said, “These are delicious, by the way,” he added, motioning to the half-eaten treats in front of him.

“I’ll be sure to pass on your review,” you joked.

Your focus never left his table as your shift went on and on. He sat, and he read, and he ordered more coffees (which you didn’t charge him for seeing as he had given you more than three times the right amount of money).

You never let on that you knew who he was, respecting his privacy and also not quite fully believing the situation anyway.

When your shift was over you went to change out of your apron, hanging it up in the back room and grabbing your bag.

“See ya,” you called to your manager on the way out the door.

You glanced at Misha’s table and noticed that he’d already left, sighing at the fact that you’d missed saying goodbye to him. Or maybe he was never really there.

You stepped outside the shop, the crisp air hitting you in the face as well as the sight of Misha standing against the side of the building.

You smiled goodbye to him as you headed home but he pushed off from the wall, walking over to you and smiling.

“I’m really sorry if this is weird for you, but I’m new to this area. I’m only visiting but I have absolutely no idea what to do or where to visit,” he rambled.

“Well, lucky for you, my shift just ended,” you told him, “Need a tour guide?”

“That would be great, if you wouldn’t mind. I’m Misha, by the way.”

“I know,” you laughed softly, “I didn’t want to say anything; make it weird.”

“Thank you,” he said genuinely, “For being cool and for showing me around.”

“Of course,” you smiled, “Next stop: somewhere totally uninteresting and non-picturesque.”

20. Imagine watching Supernatural with Genevieve and Danneel.

“Have you got the ice cream?” you called through to the living room from the kitchen.

“Do you even know me?” Danneel shouted back.

You walked into the living room to see her sitting cross-legged on the couch, a tub of ice cream in her lap and three spoons in her hand.

She held one out to you and you took it as you sat next to her, curling your legs up under yourself.

“Gen, get your butt in here!” you shouted.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Gen replied, “I just got off the phone with Jared, the kids are all asleep and everything is okay.”

“Of course it is,” Danneel said simply, “We have the night off, you can relax now,” she added, passing her a spoon.

Gen took it from her as she flung herself down on the couch next to you and you all shifted closer, pulling one blanket over all three of your legs.

“I’m ready,” you insisted, as Danneel handed you the ice cream, pressing play on the remote.

The opening sequence started up and you removed the lid from the tub, taking the first spoonful of ice cream.

“Oh my God,” you breathed as a familiar face appeared on screen, “Why is JDM naked?”

You were, of course, referencing Jeff’s lack of facial hair, and both Genevieve and Danneel laughed softly.

You watched the opening sequence play out in silence, not being surprised when it got to Mary’s death scene since you already knew that was where things were going.

The title sequence flashed up noiselessly and you chuckled.

“What?” Danneel asked, turning to look at you.

“That was slightly less obnoxious than some of the title sequences they’ve had,” you explained.

Danneel and Gen huffed a laugh, leaning over you at the same time to get some ice cream.

You burst out laughing when the next recognisable face popped up – Jared.

“Stop,” Gen chastised jokingly, giggling herself.

“I’m sorry,” you said, “He looks… handsome.”

It was Danneel’s turn to chuckle then taking a big spoonful of ice cream.

“He looks like a twelve-year-old,” she said plainly.

All three of you laughed at that, continuing to watch the show.

The next two scenes played out as you all sat contently, eating your ice cream and making the odd sound effect here and there.

“I’d recognise that chiselled jawline anywhere,” you exclaimed, noticing the shadowy outline of Jensen.

Sam/Jared grabbed Dean/Jensen and they began a choreographed struggle.

“Damn, those fight moves,” you murmured sarcastically.

“The budget was low for the pilot,” Gen joked.

“And neither of them knew what they were doing,” Danneel added, in all seriousness.

You nudged Danneel in the ribs with your elbow as Jensen’s face came into the shot.

“I’d tap that,” Danneel muttered.

“Ew!” you complained, shaking your head to erase the thought.

You finished up the pilot a load more remarks and a whole tub of ice cream later, pausing before the next episode started.

“So, what did you think?” Danneel asked you.

“I think that you and Gen married people who are like cheese,” they both frowned at you confusedly, “They get better with age,” you explained.

All three of you were laughing as the next episode began.

21. Imagine surprising Jared on stage at a convention.

You’d been working on a movie up in LA for the last three months and you hadn’t seen Jared since your last day on set, the last night you spent with him in Vancouver.

You’d started seeing each other almost as soon as you began filming on Supernatural, quickly striking up a relationship that neither of you knew where was headed.

Trailer sex turned into sleepovers, sleepovers into weekend stays, and weekend stays into actual dates.

The night you left for LA, Jared was upset, he pleaded you to stay but you told him you were never going to be the girl who gave up her career for a guy. He wasn’t mad and he eventually let you go, you Skyped him often and you still felt a connection to him.

You decided to surprise him seeing as he was doing a convention in Vegas; driving up after filming on Friday night, catching a couple hours of sleep at a nearby hotel, and making it in time for his Saturday morning panel.

You found Rob and Rich backstage, both of them shocked to see you.

“What are you doing here, California?” Rob exclaimed teasingly, pulling you into a hug.

“I came to surprise Jared,” you told them, blushing slightly as you stepped back.

“Well get up there!” Rich encouraged.

“What? No! I was just going to greet him when he came off!”

“The fans will love it!” Rob pressed.

“Look at me! I’ve driven five hours through the night and only got a two-hour power nap in the hotel! I’ve got my glasses on and I’m wearing jeans and a sweater. I’m pretty sure I’ve still got yesterday’s filming makeup on and I haven’t showered for a disgustingly long time. There’s no way I can go out like this.”

As you finished your rant, Rob handed you a microphone. You looked at him fearfully.

“You have to do this,” he pleaded, “It will make Jared’s day.”

You couldn’t deny him that.

“Okay, but let me pick the right moment,” you requested.

Rob nodded.

“What’s the funniest thing that’s happened on set this season?” the fan at the microphone asked, Jared choking slightly on the sip of water he just took.

You planned your entrance based on this question. If Jared was going to say what you thought he was going to say, then this would be the perfect opportunity for you to make your surprise appearance.

You had entered the panel through the green room entrance, using your status and relations to get through the convention despite not being a scheduled guest.

Jared laughed to himself as he put the cap back on his bottle, placing it on the table beside his stool and adjusting himself to sit comfortably. Of course, in true Jared fashion, straddling the chair with his arms resting on the back of it that faced the audience.

“So, y’all know that we had a new recurring cast member join us this season,” he paused, waiting for the eruption of cheers to die down.

You nodded in the direction of Rob and climbed up onto the stage from behind.

“You did?” you asked into the microphone.

The audience went crazy, clapping and whooping as you made it further into the middle of the stage.

Jared’s face was a picture; he’d turned in his chair to the sound of your voice, his mouth opened in a small circle with the word ‘what’ still on his tongue.

It was as if he’d frozen, he was still in his chair as you reached him, wrapping your arms around his waist and burying your face into his neck, breathing in his familiar scent.

He got up then, propping his microphone on the chair and pulling you into a proper hug, leaning to whisper in your ear.

“Oh my god,” he breathed, “What even-?”

He couldn’t finish his sentence so you just whispered back, “Surprise!”

You pulled away from the hug, suddenly remembering the audience in front of you.

“Go on then, Jared. Tell everyone what the funniest moment on set was this season.” You teased for the benefit of the audience.

He groaned audibly, picking up his microphone and offering you the chair. You took it, considering the lack of sleep you’d had.

Jared stood behind you, one arm draping over your shoulders and across your chest, the other holding his microphone to his lips as he began to tell his story.

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