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northwestofinsanity · 3 years ago

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Trying something by request on my Supertramp post...

The "In the Beginning" story Soundtrack:

Three things before I get to it: -Honestly, in a month or so from now, I could randomly hear a song I don't have here and think it would fit perfectly, but this list includes songs I have always considered soundtrack since I wrote it, or for at least half a year at this time. -Yes, I'll consider doing this for other stories. This one is just easy to experiment with it here, because it's already been completed for some time, and it's not as emotionally complicated as some. -Sometimes I'll be heavily inspired by songs of the actual bands involved, but sometimes, I'll be inspired by bands with little to no relation. Winger doesn't exist in the timeline of this story, so none of their songs are involved, and surprisingly, none of Alice's songs are, either. 1) "Nervous" by The Moody Blues. This actually goes for most of my Winger stories where Reb is a main protagonist. In fact, as unlikely as it seems to anyone who didn't grow up on The Moodies, the first chapter got its title from this song. It very much applies in cases where Reb and Kip are apart in the late 90s, or in this case, have yet to form a bond, and Reb is losing riffs and struggling to find his way on his own. 2) "A Man I'll Never Be" Boston. Implied, and to a lesser extent to other songs on this list. I apply this song to a lot of characters who have a struggle living up to the expectations of someone in their life. In the first half of the second chapter, it's definitely a thing for Reb with his conversation with his father -but I'd say it applies far less to Reb than other rock stars I've portrayed with it, like Steve Clark. 3) "Bloody Well Right" by Supertramp. Goes a lot for the end of the second chapter, and the entirety of the third. Kip and Reb haven't figured each other out yet, they had a verbal clash, and they're both off in their own pissy moods trying to figure out what comes next. (Reb is frustrated that he has all these problems despite having been a star student in music school, and that nothing Kip has suggested is helpful to him so far. Feeling defensive, he indeed wants Kip to "shut his face", and while Kip doesn't want to talk bad of Reb, he's "bloody got a right" to complain to Alice about what just happened.) 4) "From the Beginning" -Dokken version (originally by ELP; choosing the Dokken version because A: slower and more pensive feeling, B: the connections Winger and Dokken have). This song was in my head when I came up with the main title of the story. I think it goes best with Chapter 4, which is the heart of the story plot, as it's where Kip and Reb really begin to work out their misunderstandings. Nobody meant to be unkind even if they came off that way. Kip wasn't blind to Reb's troubles as Reb first perceived him. They've both said some things they regret, and it's probably going to keep them up the night after their talk, but they can't take it back now, so it all falls to their ability to forgive and move on, and it so happens that they will, because they were "meant to be here", as all the lyrics suggest. 5) "Don't Look Back" by Boston. This song may be one of my crutches for optimistic scenes, but the breakthrough in the fifth chapter. The dawn is arriving on a solution to the problems here, and neither Kip, nor Reb want to go back to where they were before they sorted out their initial differences. 6) "Souvenirs" by Dan Fogelberg. Okay, *hear me out*, because at first listen, this is gonna be the hardest to justify, when it's not one of Dan's deep-cuts that proved he could rock out when he wanted to... and because it's slow and soft, it might not be what the average metal-head is used to hearing. We have lyrics about random-found trinkets the protagonist remembers parts of life -old places and people by. The slow instrumental behind everything, from the time I listened to this song first at the age of six -before I could even comprehend these lyrics -has always given the vibe of looking at black-and-white photo montages of old, written letters (or maybe this was my mind connecting the song to the

Civil War documentaries my dad always had on back around that time, but I digress). It makes a sleepy, nostalgic feeling to the whole thing. Then, in Chapter 6, Reb gets the letter from Kip with the track recorder -which is not only a souvenir in its own right, but something to also help Reb remember his riffs in Kip's absence. As the chorus of this song suggests, this is a pretty emotional event -and Dan's music can be pretty deep (someone who's never heard of him before tell me if growing up on his music is why I have this instinctive need to write angst!) Reb goes to sleep with this track recorder beneath his pillow and feels more relaxed than he has in some time, and the tune itself fits the chapter's end in the piano through the second half, and the gentle, vocal harmonies on the fadeout. 7) "Telephone Line" by ELO. By the seventh chapter, Kip's on the road getting his first taste of heavy-touring life, and while he and Reb are pretty good at planning up calls, it is a challenge, and it's a bit of a downer that their breaks aren't lining up so that they can see each other. Reb's also getting more frustrated, still being stuck in the loop of barely managing to live on session-work. 8) "Get Me Out Of Here" by John Lodge. (This was a new song when I wrote this in 2017. It's a solo-album track from the same member of The Moodies who sang "Nervous"!) Most of the eighth chapter goes without a soundtrack, as it's me spewing my nerdy-jargon from all the medical courses I've taken, and the first half is just utter chaos. As Kip's coming around in the hospital -and past dealing with the worst of the post-anesthesia symptoms, he's getting stir crazy to get out and find out what comes next. Meanwhile, trapped back at his apartment, Reb is verging on a nervous breakdown, getting nowhere with his efforts of finding new sessions and unable to reach Kip while not knowing why. (Waiting to be contacted after a working interview for my job last year after being trapped in my house, I found new appreciation for both this chapter, and this song). -I do not have an official song for the last chapter. It's honestly very open-ended, so it's hard to fit any one song to it. I can say, "Don't Look Back" could be a reprise here as Kip and Reb are set to go on to form Winger... I've also always liked the short, instrumental by Boston "A New World" that could capture all the anticipation in thirty seconds with no words... and at the time of writing it, I had "Big Talk" by Warrant stuck in my head. It doesn't really fit in what it's about, but Reb and Kip did indeed end up "backing it up" in terms of saying they'd have their own projects someday. Reader's choice on that call.

#Writing #fiction soundtracks #rockfic

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kayteonline · 7 years ago

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Strange Magic: I Put a Spell on You

Characters: Dean x Reader, Sam, Brad (OMC)

Summary: If you loved When Harry Met Sally… this isn’t it. But it’s got its flavor. Witches are bitches, and this one has a parting gift for you that stirs things up for you and Dean in a way you hope to never experience again

Warnings: Language

Word count: 4.3k

Series Master List

Tags: (At the end. I tag alotta of peeps, but you are never obligated and always appreciated. Feel free to let me know if I tagged you incorrectly or you would like me to take you off! I totally understand. Its been awhile so tagging was kinda hard.)

A/N: My beauties.. it’s been awhile! I’ve missed you. I’ve missed this! I’m so happy to be back. I hope you love a ride because this is definitely that. A total 17k word ride! Strap in ;) Italics in this part are flashbacks.

I had a lot of fun writing this. As well as set backs and writers block, life,etc... but I made it out and I’m excited to share this! It was born from a challenge put on by the wondrous @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog and her forever ago Romcom challenge with the prompt ‘Except for the part about my penis, that’s true.. It’s bigger than coins’, and a long ago spnkinkbingo square ‘Coming Untouched’. ELO’s song Strange Magic further inspired the title and also inspired Dean x Reader throughout. It’s so grossly late it doesn’t count of course but if you read it, I hope you enjoy it! THANK YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK to my patient, sweet, imaginative, encouraging beta @butiaintgonnaloveem for putting up with this beast and my huge fic ;) And more huge thank yous to my other great friends who looked this over and kept me going early on: @mrswhozeewhatsis @manawhaat and @saxxxology

I love hearing from you all! Thank you for reading! XOXO

*Aesthetic by my super talented wonderful friend @saxxxology <3

“I’m so glad that’s over and done with.” Dean’s smile held a sense of pride as he ducked into the Impala.

Sliding behind the wheel he nodded in approval first at Sam, who nodded back in agreement before he shifted and nodded at you next, a slight smugness pulling at the corner of his mouth. He didn’t wait for your nod before he turned back to stick the key in the ignition, firing up the engine.

You shook your head with a laugh, the attitude in his display not going unnoticed. “Yeah? Which part, Dean? The case, or Braaad?” You drew out his name adding a wistful sigh for additional effect knowing each time either you or Sam said it you’d get a reaction out of him.

He rolled his eyes, throwing on a face of disapproval, the corners of his mouth dimpling as he glanced at you over his shoulder. Sam caught his gaze and laughed in amusement, making Dean’s mouth fall into a hard line. “Whose side are you on?”

“He was your idea,” you reminded him with a self-satisfied smirk, coming to Sam’s defense, “or did you forget that part?”

He mumbled to himself, likely mocking what you’d just said, and threw the car into reverse without another word, pulling out of the parking spot in front of the motel room you’d just checked out of. It made you giggle in amusement, just as it had every other time he pulled this attitude, and what made it even funnier was if it weren’t for Brad coming to your aide, the three of you would have ended up with a cold case, or worse; you’d have ended up dead.

Dean dropped his phone on the table rubbing at the bridge of his nose with a heavy sigh. “So, we’re up shits creek here if we don’t find someone. And I’m not about to be this witch’s next meat puppet.”

“Me either, I’m all out too. You know just about everyone I do, and they’re all a day's drive or more away,” Sam conceded next, closing the thick leather bound journal and setting it beside him on the bed before tossing his phone there, too.

Scrolling through your contacts, you chewed your bottom lip when you saw the name. You hadn’t talked to this person in almost eight months now, and you’d hoped you wouldn’t have to reach out to them, but with Sam and Dean both coming up empty it seemed as though you had no other choice.

“I have one last person I can try,” you finally spoke up, breaking the short span of silence in the motel room. Meeting two sets of curious eyes, you let out a small sigh. “His name’s Brad. He’s a long time friend of mine that I originally began hunting with back in the day. He lives in Gary, just a few hours northwest from here, and last I knew he was mostly out, but available if needed.”

Dean scoffed. “Brad? That’s a stupid name. What kind of hunter’s name is Brad?”

You and Sam both looked at each other, eyebrows pulled together in question. “Uh, the kind you should hope is available to cover your ass. Unless of course you prefer to be witch souffle,” you shot back leaning back in your chair across from him.

His lips pressed into a flat line. “And how good is this… Brad?” He waved a hand around dismissively.

“He’s fantastic,” you smiled wide before continuing, “Smart, level-headed, there for his friends whenever you need him; he doesn’t let his his emotions get in the way of a case, he’s brave above all others’ fears or concerns of a situation, and strong of course... physically.” you added with a small smirk. As you continued to think about his other qualities, your words fell off and you stopped talking altogether as it dawned on you how closely you’d just described Dean if someone were to ask you about him.

Dean kind of stared at you as you spoke, the look on his face something you couldn’t quite read. It had you wondering if he’d caught on, and knew who you were actually talking about. He let out a heavy sigh then pulling you from your thoughts, seeming to concede to the fact this was the only option, and looked to Sam before his eyes returned to yours. “Alright, call him. If he’s annoying, even just a little bit, I’m shooting him first chance I get.” He stood with his last words and walked into the bathroom.

Pulling the car onto the main highway, Dean headed in the direction of the bunker, the three of you content with a closed case under your belt. You were after a witch; a powerful one at that. She was believed to have died long ago, and resurfaced after Lucifer was set free when the seals were broken. She’d succeeded in keeping herself concealed for years until a couple of hunters stumbled upon her during a summoning ritual she was performing, ending up as sacrifices, and popping up in a news feed Sam was subscribed to a day later.

Upon further research into the disappearances, and an eleven hour drive to Fort Wayne, Indiana, it was discovered the guys knew more about her than they had originally thought. Dean remembered reading something in their dad’s journal about a similar case he’d worked in the early eighties, where he killed an equally dangerous witch performing similar spells to summon a powerful demon that required multiple human sacrifices.

It sounded easy enough, find the witch and end her before any more harm could be done.

That, however, rapidly changed when they were conducting interviews in her neighborhood and ended up on her front porch. She’d recognized both Sam and Dean immediately as being the sons of John Winchester, the man who’d killed her mother, and attempted to trap them. She proved to be equally as powerful as her late mother, and a whole lot of pissed off; the boys narrowly escaping the swarm of bees she conjured.

Needing another way to get close enough to kill her, Dean had come up with “Plan B’’. With Brad available to meet you that afternoon, the two of you would be going in as new neighbors to get in and complete the job.

“I thought you were friends with cool people Y/N, not tools,” Dean snidely commented as the three of you watched Brad heading for the diner’s entrance when he arrived.

You could tell by his unsuccessful attempt at covering the shock on his face, he’d probably been picturing someone similar to Garth: gangly, a shy bookish looking type you would think had zero game with the ladies, and most likely couldn’t hold his liquor. So when he saw a good looking guy that resembled him a little bit from his younger years, he was having trouble hiding his jealous discomfort.

Brad was tall, an inch or so over Dean, but not quite Sam’s height, with a strong jaw and a perfectly proportionate body, his muscled chest on display through his snug t-shirt. With the days-old scruff on his face and open weathered flannel button down, he looked more like a man straight out of some lumberjack fantasy than someone who hunted monsters.

“His tool is none of your concern, Dean,” you shot back with wink. “He hunts as good as he looks.” Your smile was wide and proud, and you barely caught Dean’s rolling eyes from the corner of yours when Brad spotted you in the window. He waved your way, making Dean’s face light up in amusement.

He laughed low taking in the way you smiled at him as you waved back. “He's got a small dick, doesn't he?”

You balked at his direct question. “One look and two sentences, and you think you have him figured out?”

“One look and two sentences, and I know I have him figured out. Look at him. Walking like some Abercrombie model reject. He's compensating. Especially in that joke of a plastic truck.”

You should have said something in Brad’s defense, but your words failed you as your cheeks went hot knowing he was right. Why was he always right? “Ok, fine! He's ok.. I mean he might only be about as big as a roll of silver dollars, but he knows how to use it very, very well. Have I had bigger? Yeah. Obviously,” you gestured towards Dean. “Doesn’t overshadow the fact that he’s a great hunter.”

Sam’s head shot up at your motions, stuttering out a, “Wh-what?” that both you and Dean ignored.

“Gotta put that anger somewhere,” Dean remarked, a smug smirk pulling at the corner of his lips that made you want to reach across the table and smack him. Even more so when he continued to talk. “Told you I’d finally get you to admit you’d slept with him.”

Squinting your eyes in annoyance you had a great comeback for him, ready to fire it off when a familiar voice sounded just above your head. Your eyes widened, the heat flaring in your cheeks again to the point it felt like they were going to burst into flames from the pure embarrassment that he’d likely heard all of that. Slowly turning your head you looked up at him with a meek smile.

“Oh, we’ve definitely rolled around in the sheets a few times. Except for the part about my penis, that’s true.” His hand landed on your shoulder giving it a firm squeeze as he continued, “It’s bigger than coins, come on Y/N.” He nodded, eyebrows pulled high and gratified as he smiled coolly at the brothers blank expressions. “I haven’t met you guys yet, but I’d be happy to prove it if you like.”

“Yeah, we can go to the bathroom right now, and I’d be happy to show you what a real dick looks like,” Dean replied, his smile huge and condescending, keeping his eyes intently on Brad.

“Dean!” Sam scolded him under his breath with a shove of his knee into Dean’s thigh. “Dude, what’s gotten into you?” he hissed quietly.

“What? I’m playing nice,” he shrugged. He didn’t budge though, continuing his epic stare down with Brad, his smile still as self-satisfying as ever as Brad smiled back, unfazed by Dean’s attitude.

“I like him already,” Brad commented, breaking the growing tension as an elbow nudged into your bicep and he pushed into the booth beside you, signaling the waitress over. “So, what’s the low down on this big bad witch we’re after?”

You met Brad years ago through a close family friend that often partnered with him on cases, and the two of you hit it off immediately. You partnered up not long after when a horrific hunt left his friend severely disabled.

He was a genuinely great guy, that was not only attractive, but smart; he could make you laugh even on your darkest days and the two of you worked well together. You trusted him with your life in any situation you ended up in, and he always had your back.

Having him around again, it was painfully obvious the huge torch he still held for you, even after his eventful arrival. It made Sam snicker, while Dean turned ‘alpha male’ like he was marking his territory any chance he got. It had you double taking at the change in him given the fact you and Dean were only friends.

If you had to categorize it, you were basically friends with benefits, and neither of you seemed to ever care to put a label on it, or want to put anything more into it after any night you ended up in bed together; and that was fine by you. Throughout the 5 years you’d been hunting with the brothers, sex with Dean had been on occasion; usually after longer hunts and some heavy drinking. You cared about one another, of course, but it was never anything more than one friend caring for another’s safety in this line of work. You could only speculate that Brad’s arrival brought some of Dean’s deep insecurities to the surface.

One particular moment stood out to you from a few days ago as you and Brad got ready to head out to your temporary housing. You’d caught Dean eyeing a shirtless Brad as he dressed on the other side of the small room; his fitted black slacks hanging low on his lean hips, his bright smile infectious as he laughed with you at a story he was telling about one of the many crazy hunts you’d been on together. His scars from battles past were on full display, spread out over the expanse of smooth, set lean muscle, silently proving to them he was more than just a pretty face.

Dean’s eyebrows were pulled together in deep thought, not really giving the conversation his full attention, and he pulled his own shirt out, toying with the fabric and shifting uncomfortably in his chair, trying not to stare too long at him. You could have been misreading him, but he looked like he was comparing himself to Brad, physically, and it still made your stomach sink when you thought back on it. You found yourself wanting to go to him and tell him everything about him was perfect in your eyes, he was gorgeous, and there was nothing about him you would ever consider changing. As the thought crossed your mind, it had you stopping for a moment, wondering why that affected you like it did. You were all for boosting either brother’s self esteem when needed, but that was different.

Sam and Brad walked a few feet ahead as the four of you made your way around to the back of the house you and Brad would be borrowing when Dean quickly strode up beside you, leaning close as he spoke low. “I can see now why you’d be all googley-eyed for him. I thought he was just another douche, but, he’s admittedly a pretty cool guy.”

You eyed him curiously at his choice of words, but went on defense as you knew this was probably another attempt at phishing for information, like he’d been doing for the past few days, about yours and Brad’s previous relationship. It took you a minute to see it, but his sly tactics weren’t as well hidden as he thought. Why was he trying to get a read on your feelings?

“Ok, I am not, nor have I ever been googley-eyed for the guy, Dean. We’re just friends,” you hoarsely whispered back. “So we had sex twice, that’s as far as it ever went. He is wonderful, yes, and he deserves the best girl out there, but that girl isn’t me.”

His mouth pulled into a half smile and you could see his face visibly relax, looking like he was a little relieved to hear that. “Crazy drunk nights after a hunt. Been there. The road can be a lonely place.”

“... I wasn’t drunk,” you responded meekly. “And neither was he.”

“Oh,” he said, pausing for a relieving few minutes before speaking again, “So, what happened? He wanted more and you bolted?”

You let out a deep breath in an attempt to reign in the irritation his question sparked and shrugged, “In a way I guess… I went one way, and he went the other technically. We weren't seeing eye to eye anymore, so it was better for the both of us.” Coming up to the steps that lead up to the back door you quickly stepped in front of him placing your hand squarely on his chest to stop him. “What’s this about, Dean? You’ve been asking about him pretty often lately. What are you trying to get at?”

He scoffed, laughing low and averted his eyes the way he did when he’d been caught. “I just want to be sure I know who I’m dealing with. That’s it. We don’t know the guy, and it’s been months since you last saw him, let alone talked to him. What if he’s some crazy psycho serial killer out for revenge?”

You laughed out loud at the absurdity of his assumption catching his eyes, his cheeks turning pink at your reaction because he was partially serious about what he said. “That I know for a fact is not true, ok? You and Sam can rest comfortably knowing Brad’s harmless to anyone who’s not a monster,” you assured him, still giggling. “You know what I think? I think, that you’re thinking, I’m gonna ditch out on you at the mention of you wanting more because we’ve slept together.” You watched as all emotion fell away from his face. “Well I’m not, Dean. He just wasn’t the right person for me.” Holding his gaze for a beat longer, you turned on your heel and made your way up the steps not waiting for a response.

The brothers made themselves scarce after you were settled, only calling to check up on you throughout the day. It was mainly Sam, which didn’t surprise you after the last conversation you and Dean had. When you’d hung up with him after the last call, you made up your mind. After this case was finished you were going to find some way to get it out of him what was going on.

Working together again with Brad, things fell right back into stride. He was still the same ol’ sweet protective guy you remembered, and it felt like it had been only days, not months, since you last saw one another as you put together a plan of action to get close to the witch and take her out. His subtle attempts at making a move on you weren’t missed either. In his own roundabout way, he kept making it known he still carried feelings for you. And like Dean, Brad kept slyly prodding you for information about your other relationships to see how good his chances were at rekindling what you once had.

It made coming up with the best way to tell him the two of you were just friends that much harder, and that you and Dean often slept with each other; not to mention you admittedly kind of liked him. A lot. So you left it unspoken until the right words came to you, and instead prepared for part one of your plan; gain access to her home and find clues about what the witch was planning on summoning.

After successfully being welcomed into the witch’s house, things went sideways, fast.

Unknown to you or Brad during your light conversation, she snuck in a little something of her own into the brownies you’d made as a ‘new to the neighborhood’ gesture. As the spell completely immobilized you, Brad was able to get a good swing in on her before she could take him too and quickly ran out the back door.

Not bothering to go after him, she smiled knowingly at you as if to answer your unspoken question about why she wasn’t worried about him getting away. She revealed to you then she knew exactly who you two were the moment she answered the door. With the help of a location spell and some of Sam’s hair she’d snatched, she was able to eavesdrop on several occasions.

As she spoke, the pounding pressure in your head doubled, and you could barely make out the next words before you passed out; something about Dean caring about you deep down, and with you here, you’d become the perfect leverage on her quest for revenge.

After finally coming to, you found yourself shackled down in her basement as she readied the next part her plan. The Latin incantation she recited next was old, unlike anything you’d ever heard before, and with a puff of red smoke she had stolen your voice.

You could only stare in utter shock as she used it to mask her own, and lure Sam and Dean to her. It worked too as you listened in on her side of the conversation she was having with Dean.

To make matters worse, the spell she cast didn’t just take your voice, it was slowly constricting your throat with each breath you took.

Thankfully it wouldn’t take Sam and Dean too long to get to you, but she was ready for them. She had learned from the last attempt, and subdued them quickly. With the brothers writhing in agony on the concrete floor the moment they set foot in the basement, things were beginning to look grim for the three of you.

As your vision began to go fuzzy around the edges, your chest burning from the lack of oxygen, Brad barged in; gun raised and dirt smeared across his face as he demanded she let all of you go. He looked so angelic in that moment, standing tall above you, the light from the one hanging bulb casting a glow around him as he inched further in the room attempting to get himself between you and her.

Reciting another piece of Latin, she snapped her fingers and turned towards Brad. Before she could take another step, he pulled the trigger sending a bullet right between her eyes.

You’d never felt more relief in your life than that first deep breath after the spell was lifted. Whatever she cast over Sam and Dean was gone too, the two of them already up on their feet praising Brad on his perfect shot and thanking him for saving all of you.

With her body disposed of and your things collected, you all agreed a hot shower and a few stiff drinks would be a perfect ending to your brushes with death. The guys offered to buy the first round for Brad’s victory as Dean pulled up to the motel, but as he fidgeted in his seat, he kindly declined before asking to talk to you off to the side when the car was stopped.

“Is everything ok?” you asked when the two of you were a few feet away from the Impala. “I was really looking forward to you coming out with us tonight. We’ll be heading out tomorrow now that the big bad witch is dead, and I don’t know when I’ll see you next. I was hoping we could catch up some more.”

“Everything’s great, Y/N. People are safe again, the bad is gone.” He smiled sweetly down at you, shoving his hands in his pockets. “The thing is, I was kind of hoping it could be just you and I celebrating the win tonight. Alone. The last few days had me thinking about how good together we’ve always been, and how truly sorry I am about how things ended with us. So, I want to make it up to you... if you’ll give me the chance.”

You sighed heavily knowing this was coming, but hoping you’d dodged that bullet when it hadn’t come up. You were still feeling entirely unprepared to say what you needed to say right now, but forged on, “Brad,” you started, pulling one of his hands from his pockets as you put on your bravest smile and took a deep breath. “You’ve been one of my oldest, and closest friends I’ve ever had in my life. We are great together, we will always be great together in this life. I just... don’t see us being anything more than friends.”

“So us sleeping together back then… that meant nothing to you?”

“What? Of course it did. You were what I wanted… back then. It’s just, can you look at me and honestly tell me you felt something more for me after either time we had sex? Because the way it ended sure didn’t seem like it.”

He tore his eyes away from you after your last words, and slowly pulled his hand away, catching Dean's eyes when he’d glanced over from the Impalas open trunk. Following his gaze, you gave Dean a tight smile when your eyes met before looking back to Brad.

“Look, Brad, I’m sor-” your words were cut short as Brad’s hand came up.

“Save it, Y/N. Thanks, but no thanks. This is what I get for saving you today? A ‘Hey Brad, I have zero gratitude to show you for saving my life today. Let’s just be friends, I’d rather go celebrate with the Douche-chesters’.”

Your mouth fell open, completely taken aback at what he was implying. “You know what..“ you started, ready to lay into him when you were stopped short, catching Dean out of the corner of your eye already heading over having heard the rising anger in Brad’s voice. And by the looks of him, he didn’t miss the insulting nickname either.

“Hey!” he called out. “Why don’t you dial it back a little bit there, buddy. She doesn’t owe you jackshit for today. None of us do. So how about you apologize to her for your own douchebag attitude, and go find your gratitude with some local bar skank.”

Narrowing his eyes, he stepped closer to Dean. “You don’t have to tell me twice, buddy. Just remember, all of you would be dead right now if I hadn’t come to when I did,” he spat back. “So how about the two of you…. go fuck yourselves. Hmm? Sound good? Good. She’s a terrible lay too by the way; enjoy.”

Raising both of his middle fingers to each of your faces, he made sure to look at both of your dumbfounded faces one last time before stalking off. He grabbed his stuff from beside the Impala and tossed it into the back of his truck as you and Dean looked at one another, knowing smirks on your faces before you burst out laughing.

“Worse has been said,” Dean commented loud enough for Brad to hear, and threw his hands up with a shrug, the two of you still laughing as he shot you both one last dirty look before getting in his truck, speeding out of the lot.

When you woke that next morning, something felt off.

Part 2 - Do you believe in Magic?

Tags from my list, @mrswhozeewhatsis awesome list and the @spnfanficpond XO: @butiaintgonnaloveem @leatherwhiskeycoffeeplaid @quiddy-writes @aprofoundbondwithdean @manawhaat @winchesterenthusiast @littlegreenplasticsoldier @deandoesthingstome @salvachester @chelsea072498 @mirandaaustin93 @ohmychuckitssamanddean @kittenofdoomage @eyes-of-a-disney-princess @faith-in-dean @for-the-love-of-dean @thedevilinthedetails @skybinx-blog @myfand0msandm0re @winchesterfiesta @sandlee44 @mrsjohnsmith @supermoonpanda @samanddeanwinchester67 @feelmyroarrrr @beachy2014 @its-my-perky-nipples @gryffindorable713 @meganwinchester1999 @fangirling-instead-of-working @mamaimpala @notnaturalanahi @scorpiongirl1 @mysupernaturalfanfics @imadeangirl-butimsamcurious @babypieandwhiskey @jpadjackles @supernatural-jackles @faegal04 @jotink78 @mogaruke @autopistaaningunaparte @emoryhemsworth @taste-of-dean @sassysupernaturalsweetheart @supernaturalismylife @revwinchester @supernaturalyobsessed @just-another-winchester @there-must-be-a-lock @winchester-family-business @canadianjelly @deansbabygirl01 @pretty-fortune @kitchenwitchsuperwhovian

#dean x reader #dean winchester x reader #dean x reader mini series #dean winchester x reader mini series #spn fan fic #spn fan fiction #spn fanfic #spn fanfiction #supernatural fan fic #supernatural fan fiction #supernatural fanfic #supernatural fanfiction

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ultraxiaoyslucyus-blog · 6 years ago

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When do people buy valentine's gift for their partners?

I did an attempt to detect when people buy valentine's gift online for their partners- for my curiosity.

I got the e-commerce data from Kaggle: (https://www.kaggle.com/c/elo-merchant-category-recommendation). These datasets contain transaction data with numbers adjusted intentionally. I got a sub-sample of the transaction data, which lasts from 01/03/2017 to 03/16/2017. There is some reason that I got data after Valentine's day and I will explain later.

Figure 1-4 shows the number of transactions from 01/03/2017 to 03/06/2017. We can see the amount of transactions keep increasing, which will be an obstacle on discovering the difference before and after Valentine's day.

Figure 1: Number of transactions from 01/03 to 01/22

Figure 2: Number of transactions from 01/24 to 02/11

Figure 3: Number of transactions from 02/13 to 03/03

Figure 4: Number of transactions from 03/05 to 03/16

Another characteristics of the data is the seasonality of data. The number of transactions are comparatively low on Sunday, which we don't know the reason yet but I guess it might have something to do with the fact that people go out on Sunday. (Really? I don't go out on Sunday.)

From the data above it is not easy to have a guess when people shop online for valentine's gifts. We can see from 02/01 there is a more apparent jump of numbers of transactions, and the trend lasts until 02/18. Then the number of transactions decreased at the end of Feb but experienced another apparent jump since 03/05. It does not make sense if we say people buy post-Valentine's gift too which causes the increasing from 02/15 to 02/18. Obviously Valentine's gift purchasing cannot explain the increasing of number of transactions in March either.

Then I need to think from some other prospective. I have the following assumptions: 1. There will be higher consumption of some specific merchandise category for Valentine's gift, such as flower, chocolate, etc. 2. I will ignore the strong correlation of the timing and the merchandise category when trying to dig into timing pattern of buying Valentine's gifts. For instance, someone might buy a sweater for their partner two weeks ago as the valentine's gift, and at the same time he/she buys the flower on Valentine's day. My goal is finding the possible timing of somebody buys Valentine's gift, no matter it is a sweater or a bunch of flowers. It is possible that I ignore the timing of people buying flowers, but as long as I capture some gift-purchasing, then I am good with it.

Based on these two assumptions, I decided to look at the difference of some categories' goods consumption before and after Valentine's day. Due to the summary of transactions' data, there are 327 merchant categories. As these data were adjusted for confidential consideration, I have no chance to know what categories they are for real - or the thing would be much easier. I can only deduce them based on my guess.

I first constructed dummy variables for merchant categories. For instance, for the 1st dummy variable, if this transaction is purchasing from the 1st merchant categories, then the value of the 1st dummy variable is 1, if not it will be 0. The logic is the same for all other dummy variables. Then when I conducted the analysis on a daily basis, I counted the frequency of buying from that merchant category. For instance, suppose on Feb 14th, there are 100 transactions in total, and 2 of the transactions are for buying goods from merchant category A. Then the frequency of buying merchant category A goods is 0.02 on Feb 14th. Through this way I calculated the frequency of purchasing for every merchant category. Then I broke my sample into two sub samples, before and after Valentine's day. I tried to apply a two sample t-test for these two sub samples, hoping to find some merchant category that has different frequency before and after Valentine's day.

However, after I did a research on the data I found it didn't work well. Some merchandise has a higher frequency after Valentine's day. Even for the goods which have higher frequency of being purchased before Valentine's day, I found some of them had higher frequency of being purchased in the early January, and then decreased much right before Valentine's day, which obviously does not make sense either. Then I adjusted my t-test goal, to be: find the merchant category that has significantly higher frequency of being purchased in the two weeks before Valentine's day, than in the two weeks after Valentine's day. Here is actually an underlying assumption that people will buy something for Valentines' day in the two weeks right before Feb 14th. But I need this assumption, which seems reasonable though.

I found 8 merchandise categories out of 327 in this way. I then filtered the transaction data so that it only contains the transaction data of those 8 merchandise categories. Then I plotted the number of transactions from 01/03 to 03/16 as Figure 5-8.

Figure 5: Numbers of transactions of some categories from 01/03 to 01/22

Figure 6: Numbers of transactions of some categories from 01/24 to 02/11

Figure 7: Numbers of transactions of some categories from 02/13 to 03/03

Figure 8: Numbers of transactions of some categories from 03/04 to 03/16

If we look at those figures carefully, we will find the number of transctions increased since 01/29, and reached the highest value in the second week of Febrary (02/06-02/11). The highest values happen on 02/03 and 02/06, which is about a week before Valentine's day.

If my poor assumptions can support a bit, I want to draw a conculstion that I have a guess from the data, which is people buy Valentine's gift about a week before. But can I? Of course I cannot. There are many other situations that might influence this analysis, like the influence of keeping growing new users, the seasonality, or even- the 8 categories I picked out might not even be the gift people will usually buy for Valentine's day. The only fact this analysis can show, is-I don't have any other plans on this festival so I have time to guess when others buy Valentine's gifts.

In order to validate my results, would you like to tell me when do you buy Valentine's gift?

A. More than two weeks before B. One week before C. Less than 6 days before D. Right on Feb 14th E. Right after Feb 14th F. I don't buy Valentines' gift

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djrelentless · 8 years ago

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“The 57th Grammy Awards...Hit Or Miss?”

February 10, 2015 at 7:33pm

The music industry is all a buzz because of last Sunday's Grammys ceremony. From performances that reminded us why we love Annie Lennox to history repeating itself withKanye West storming the stage to disagree with an outcome at the awards…..people are definitely talking. There were a few surprises. Katy Perry really impressed me with her song "By The Grace Of God" and Rihanna was in great voice for her performance of her new single "FourFiveSeconds" with Kanye and Paul McCarthy. And of course everyone was waiting with baited breath to see Madonna's performance of "Living For Love".

I was not surprised by all the trophies handed to Sam Smith. "Stay With Me" was probably the most unescapable song of 2014. It was disappointing to hear that the song has elements of Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down". But as I have said many times….there are only so many notes and keys. Without even thinking about it there are plenty of songs that are simple rewrites of other songs. A perfect example was when another Blue-Eyed Soul singer, Michael Bolton claimed he had never heard the 1966 version of "Love Is A Wonderful Thing". The court immediately awarded the Isley Brothers 5.4 million dollars (the largest plagiarism case settlement in music history). Sam Smith a been crowned the new face of Soul Music. I'm not sure about that in my opinion. I actually believe Boy George did it better in the 80s, but didn't get the same proclamation because of the dress. With all this talk of appropriation that might upset some folks, I still applaud Sam for being so young and his last acceptance speech where he thanked the guy who broke his heart. He got four Grammys for that break up.

There has been a controversy over Beyonce at the Grammys (and no I am not talking about Kanye's wish that she had gotten "Album Of The Year"). R&B singer. Ledisi had requested to sing Mahalia Jackson's "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" but was denied and Beyonce was asked to do it. Many are saying that Ledisi was robbed of her Grammy moment and are upset that Beyonce accepted the invitation. Ledisi later was quoted as saying she understood why they chose Beyonce, but was very disappointed. The classy thing for Beyonce to do would be to invite Ledisi to perform with her on stage at a big event. I watched her performance and was not impressed. It was a Beyonce performance instead of a down home girl praising the Lord (and I know Ledisi would have brought it). Between Beyonce's see-through choir robe and stiff movements to capture her back lighting, I didn't feel the song like I should have. But Beyonce has bored me in the past with other performances like when she did "Ave Maria".

And speaking of Kanye West's words after the Grammys about Beck winning over Beyonce for "Album Of The Year"……I am afraid that he like Azealia Banks keep sabotaging their image and careers by opening their mouths. Has he not learned from the Taylor Swiftincident at the MTV Awards? Does he not realize that with all the racial tensions in the US right now, that his outbursts are not helping the situation. And Miss Banks needs to be banned from twitter with all her bullshit over being angry that her career has not gone as planned. Stop blaming Iggy Azalea for your shortcomings. Think before you react and you might appear more sane and level headed. As a Club DJ who watched the charts and singles, Beyonce had that award hands down out of the other nominees. But the Grammys are their own community and judge on musical merit. Beck is one of those artists who plays multiple instruments and writes his own songs. Beyonce is an entertainer who travels the world and excites audiences with her stage show but apparently needs four people to write one song. Yes….she is an amazing performer and I would prefer watching her anyway over Beck in concert. He lost me shortly after "Loser" back in the 90s. But a good example was back in 1981 when Christopher Cross' "Sailing" won "Song Of The Year" and "Record Of The Year" for a song that came out in 1979 I couldn't understand. And being a teenager I really couldn't comprehend why this song won anything. I was loving all the Pop dance songs on the radio back then. "Sailing" seemed boring. But after becoming a recording artist myself and working as a DJ in radio, bars and clubs I have learned to listen and appreciate music differently. I actually appreciate the simplicity of "Sailing" now. In a time period when New Wave Pop was coming in and Disco was dying, Christopher Cross sounded like a breath of fresh air.

And as I watch the twittersphere rumble over with the young ones calling acts likeMadonna, ELO, AC/DC and Annie Lennox old and tired, it amazes me to think that there was a time when Madonna and AC/DC would not have even been invited to the Grammys. These are the artists who have paid their dues and paved the way for all the ones who you adore and worship for a month and then move on to the next new thing. Many of her "Little Monsters" probably fell over when Lady GaGa announced that she was recording an an album with Tony Bennett. I understood it perfectly. In the old days, the new artists had to work with the legends in order to be taken seriously. It showed that you learned from the best. That the torch was being past. And even though GaGa has been accused of stealing from the greats like Bette Midler and Grace Jones, I believe she is a really talented artist and without all the gimmicks she can sing. Her voice is unique and distinctive. That's what you need to be a legend. Interesting enough…..Madonna doesn't have that range, but her talent is being an entertainer. I don't think anyone has macked the game like she has. I don't even think that anyone could ever do what she did again. Mainly because that time period has passed. Great voices like Annie Lennox will always rattle our souls. I was looking at her on the red carpet and I thought to myself…."she's cool because she's is her age". And when she hit the stage and went into "I Put A Spell On You" the fire and passion was still there because that's who she is. She has never been any of the gimmicks or costumes she wore in the 80s. I loved it! All of these acts were amazing on the Grammys because they have earned their place there.

I think all the young ones out there would be surprised to learn that the woman who is behind "Chandelier" and the hook for Flo-Rida's "Wild One" is not in her 20s. Besides Beyonce's non-church performance Sia's performance at the Grammys really made me upset. In my opinion….probably the worst performance of the evening. When you are on the Grammys it is the opportunity to show you can sing. Sia, darling….turning your back to the audience and facing a wall of a set while two dancers pranced around like in your music video did not prove you were a great vocalist. Her range is amazing but this hiding your face behind big wigs and production just does not do it for me. At least Katy Perry's performance had a cool effect with the shadow dancers.

Question: When did Country Music start using Hip Hop lingo? Miranda Lambert's performance of "Little Red Wagon" was more of a Rock song and the lyrics included the word "swagger" several times. I actually thought I had slipped back in time and was watching some late 70s special with Tanya Tucker. Back when Tammy Wynette recorded with The KLF I said that one day we would here some Country Rap Music. But I guess we had already heard that when The Charlie Daniels Band did "The Devil Went Down To Georgia".

Pharrell's Goth-like version of "Happy" was interesting. I saw some article discussing the deeper meaning of this performance. It was cool to hear the lyrics spoken in other languages but other than that it was just okay for me. Considering the song is almost two years old and was overplayed and even parodied by Weird "Al" Yankovich, I was kinda over it and the bell-hop outfit was cute but went no where.

Stevie Wonder's quick harmonica solo at the end of Usher's performance shows the genius and artistry of his musical legend. Can't wait to see his upcoming TV special for his album "Songs In The Key Of Life". And I was happy that John Legend and Common closed the ceremony. I looked at it as a nod to the "Black Lives Matters" movement. It seems funny to me that the industry will take stands on some issues and show support for some and then quietly back out on others. I noticed that Iggy Azalea didn't win any awards. I figured she would have been the new female Elvis at the end of the show. But the Grammys backed away from the new "Great White Hope". Why? I think to send a message that the drama surrounding appropriation is something that the Grammys doesn't want any part of. And after the nastiness of the Macklemore win last year in the rap category I think the Grammys decided to not get involved. And even though Eminem won "Best Rap Album", I am sure he got it because he is considered industry. He has earned his place with more than a decade of work. Iggy…..you are a clever girl and have a distinctive voice. That's what legends are made of, but I hope you can stay out of the online crap and just concentrate on your craft. Be The Teena Marie of rap and earn your place. And as Macklemore advised….."remember your place."

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