#I don’t know how many fics and art pieces I’ve seen of Crowley having nightmares and being comforted

[vintage-bentley]

About the fandom’s tendency to neglect Aziraphale’s trauma and focus on Crowley’s…I was thinking about how this manifests in the way their sleeping habits are treated.

Much of the fandom likes the idea that Crowley loves sleep, and that Aziraphale doesn’t bother with it. But then at the same time, they love the idea that Crowley has frequent nightmares, and barely depict Aziraphale going through something similar.

And while I completely understand the want for angst and hurt/comfort, and am guilty of enjoying it too…my question is this: why would somebody who has frequent nightmares love sleep? Wouldn’t they avoid sleep at all costs, especially if it’s not actually necessary for their health?

The “Crowley sleeps and Aziraphale doesn’t” headcanon is such a missed opportunity to explore Aziraphale’s trauma. Maybe he tried sleeping a few times, but each time he was shaken by some horrible nightmare. Possibly about his fear of Falling, or his guilt over loving Crowley. Maybe he frequently has nightmares about the impending apocalypse, and about not being able to protect humanity and Crowley from it. Maybe every time he tries to close his eyes and rest, he’s met with visions telling him how terrible of an angel he is, and the only way to escape is to keep himself awake and busy and immersed in the fantasy land of a book.

There is so much potential here.

[whispersandwhiskerburn]

Much Ado About SPN Results:

SPN Fanfic Writers Team Up With Shakespeare!

It’s April 23, 2017--453 years to the day since (historians believe) that William Shakespeare, one of the greatest English writers ever, was born...and 401 years to the day since the day the Bard died! :’(

However, his words live on in his plays that are performed each year, the movie adaptations, the sayings in everyday conversation...and now in Supernatural fanfiction!

When I hit 1.5k followers, I put out a rather daunting challenge to my followers: Write a Supernatural fic using a line from one of Shakespeare’s plays, and incorporate 2-3 SPN-themed words that begin with the same letter (I, like WS appreciate alliteration).

24 brave souls took on the challenge.

The results are below the read more link, along with a brief review/rec from me for each. I hope you enjoy these and take the time to share some love with the writers--this challenge was truly out of the box and they wrote some incredible things as a result.

Let the fun begin....

Thank you all for taking on this ridiculous challenge of mine. I was blown away by the submissions, and I truly hope you had as much, or at least half as much, fun writing them as I did reading them. Thank you so much!!

Fics are in alphabetical order by prompts, not by any preferences list.

“A Life I Would Have Known” by @buffylovesfoxmulder

Prompts: Anna, Angel Blade, AU (French Mistake/EndVerse) and “This above all: to thine own self be true. And it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man” (Hamlet I.3).

My Fangirling:  An episode rewrite of the French Mistake where Anna subs in for a much more earnest Balthazar and the reader has a surprise up her sleeve for the Winchesters. I loved it. Lengthy, but worth the read. :) 

“Wanted” by @arlaina28

Prompts: Benny Lafitte, Bunker, Brothers,  “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he to-day that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother” (Henry V IV.3).

My Fangirling: An absolutely lovely smut fic between Benny and the Reader that builds up in canon-style characterizations from first meeting to the “I love you” stage. An excellent read, and a brilliant use of her prompts.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Nothing Either Good or Bad” by @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog

Prompts: Donna Hanscum, Devil's Gate, Deals, and “ “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so” (Hamlet II.2).

My Fangirling:  Mimi delivered again! An angsty-suspense with flashes of fluff Donna x Dean fic around the danger of a Devil’s Gate—the one in Wyoming. I loved this fic, and it’s not even my ship, so definitely check it out….and hold onto your seat!

“The Valiant” by @littlegreenplasticsoldier

Prompts: Ellen Harvelle, EMF Reader, and “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once” (Julius Caesar II.2). 

My Fangirling:  I--I don’t know what to say here…it was beautiful and sad and it must have taken you so much time to create this, and I love it. It’s an angsty peek into Dean’s head during his time with Lisa, how he’s struggling to maintain, how he’s trying to cope with Sam’s loss—and it’s done in VERSE. You almost want to read it out loud. I just love this…and I think Shakespeare would be proud.

“Papa Don’t Preach” by @whatareyousearchingfordean

Prompts: First Blade, Fathers, “What’s gone and what’s past help should be past grief” (Winter’s Tale III.2)

My Fangirling: A Reader x Dean angst fic where she learns of a pregnancy that she hadn’t planned on and tries to explain to a Dean who worries about fatherhood. I loved the canon characterization.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“All Dogs Go To Heaven” by @rachelladytietjens

Prompts: Hell Hound, Hex Bags, Heaven, and  “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” (Hamlet IV.5)

My Fangirling:  With what was probably the coolest title in this challenge, she did an amazing job on this fic that had some really conflicting and challenging prompts! It’s short and sweet, with no pairing, but extremely intriguing and it raised so many questions for me. Brava!

“Not So Innocent After All” by @im-most-definitely-fangirling

Prompts: Impala (Baby), Innocence, and “If music be the food of love, play on” (Twelfth Night I.1).

My Fangirling:  A body-swap fic between the Reader and Dean that reveals a lot of what they’ve been hiding from each other. I loved this—besides, where can you go wrong when you end up riding Dean on the Impala? AmIright ladies? 

“Wine, Meddling, and Temptation” by @avasmommy224

Prompts: Jody Mills, John's Journal, Job (Hunting),  “Tempt not a desperate man” (Romeo and Juliet IV.3). 

My Fangirling:  I love it! The fluff with a hint of angst and reader being besties with Jody? Brilliant! She did a great job working in ALL of the prompts and this fic is fantastic. I absolutely love Jody as a matchmaker--I can just see her worrying about finding the boys the perfect lady. :) Dean x Reader with future fun times—nothing wrong with that!

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Just a Little Magic...” by @wi-deangirl77

Prompts: Meg Masters, Mark of Cain, Magic (Witchcraft), “I am one who loved not wisely but too well” (Othello V.2). 

My Fangirling: I was prepared for weird when I put Mark of Cain with Meg Masters and Magic, but Jess managed a canon style fic of angsty goodness that everyone should read. It’s MOC!Dean x Reader and...oh, it’s just lovely. Go read! She says it’s the start of a new series—and I, personally, can’t wait to read it!

“Chase the Nightmares Away” by @destiel-addict-forever

Prompts: Nephilim, Naomi's Room, Nightmares, “You pay a great deal too dear for something that’s given freely” (Winter’s Tale I.1).

My Fangirling:  This cute little fluffy drabble is a Daddy!Lucifer fic (not kink, reader is Luci’s kid), something I imagine we’ll see more and more of as this current series continues. I swear, when I made the prompt list and put Nephilim on it, I had no idea it would become such a big thing this year on the show! Great job.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Purple Moose, Orange Squirrel, and A Pink Dress” by @mrsbatesmotel53

Prompts: Pagan God (Not Loki/Gabriel), Pie, Pranks, “We have seen better days” (As You Like It II.7) and (Timon of Athens IV.2). 

My Fangirling: I absolutely loved this! It was beautifully characterized: witty reader, western-loving Dean, sassy Rowena, protective/knowledgeable Sam….and the way you combined your prompts…I just loved it. Comedy, alternate timeline, canon style…what is not to love here?

“Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by @roxy-davenport

Promtps: Queen of Hell (Abaddon), Quincunx (Hoodoo symbol), Quips, and  “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall. Some run from breaks of ice, and answer none, and some condemned for one fault alone” (Measure for Measure II.1). 

My Fangirling:  A rewrite of an awesome episode to include a reader insert and pairing with Crowley, this fic, like many of @roxy-davenport’s, shows a sentimental and charming side of the King of Hell in a way that even makes this Dean!Girl think fondly of the red-eyed demon. I loved the sassy way she broke down the Shakespeare quote in the fic.

“Together We Thrive” by @deansarms

Prompts: Ruby's Knife, Revenge  “I burn, I pine, I perish” (Taming of the Shrew I.1).

My Fangirling: I can NOT compliment this work enough. Absolute brilliance. It’s a poem that switches from Dean’s perspective (in italics) to Sam’s perspective. It centers around the Shakespeare quote, but it provides canon accurate characterization and plot in verse form, and it….ugh, just go read it. I think I’ve reread it like five times now. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.

“Friendships is Constant” by @atc74

Prompts: Samuel Campbell, Sigils, Souls, “Friendship is constant in all other things” (Much Ado About Nothing, II.1). 

My Fangirling:  Canon-style fluff and character analysis set in season 12, Angelina used all of her prompts, and created a catch-up moment between the boys and their mother that I think we all want to see happen on the show. Short, sweet, and adorable. 

“Goodnight” by @besslincoln-bruh

Prompts: Uriel, Uniforms (Outfits), Underdog, and “Strong reasons make strong actions” (King John III.4). 

My Fangirling:  An interesting AU with a future Dean x Reader pairing. Reader is a lawyer trying her first defense case—to prove Dean Winchester innocent when the world (and the evidence) is against him. It was hard to tear myself away from this fic, and a creative use of all the prompts. Well worth a read!

“Sweet Revenge” by @plaidstiel-wormstache

This is a completed series. The link above is to the masterlist. She wrote it at as one long one-shot with the quote at the end, but I encouraged her to make it a series--and the whole thing is fabulous.

Prompts: Vengeful Spirits, the Veil, Vessel, and “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?” (Merchant of Venice III.1).

My Fangirling: This friend went way above and beyond the call of duty and wrote a truly spectacular SERIES based off this prompt, with some inspiration in the form of a rather intriguing OFC. No pairing, but a beautiful use of all prompts in a canon-style fic set during John’s first solo hunt. Angst, sprinkles of fluff, some dark emotional stuff, and so much canon beauty…I love it. I don’t want to play favorites on this challenge, but this one is my favorite.

“Wrath” by @waywardjoy

Prompts: Werewolf, Wooden Stake, Wrath, and  “Is this a dagger which I see before me…or art thou but a dagger of the mind, a false creation” (Macbeth II.1).

My Fangirling: Short but strong, an angsty Dean x Reader piece where you see the unbridled danger that is a wrathful Winchester. My wonderful bestie worked in all of her alphabet prompts and her Shakespeare quote brilliantly. She also helped me put this whole challenge together, so extra kudos to her. :D

“Forgotten Rituals” by @thegreatficmaster

This is a completed two-part fic. The link above is to the masterlist. Both parts are for this challenge--@thegreatficmaster took on two prompts.

Prompts: Yellow-Eyed Demon, Yarrow, Youth, Zachariah, Zoroastrian Symbol, Zenith (the most powerful time), “Hell is empty and all the devils are here” (Tempest I.2), and “Pray you now, forget and forgive.” (King Lear IV.7).

My Fangirling: Nini created a very original reader here for a story the likes of which I’ve never seen before, and doubt I will see again. Azazel x Reader, sexy times, strange magics, manipulation of time and angels, old world religions, unexpected fluff…just wow….  I won’t be forgetting this series any time soon. Great job!

This link will take you to the masterpost I made of all of my celebration challenges!

Fics still to come for this challenge: 

C @bringmesomepie56, 15.  “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them” (Twelfth Night II.5).

G @therealdeanwinchester13, 10.  “Lord, what fools these mortals be!” (A Midsummer Night’s Dream III.2)

K @kalliravenne, 11.  “I do love nothing in the world so well as you: is not that strange?” (Much Ado About Nothing IV.2).

L  @hellssarcasticqueen, 19.  “The miserable have no other medicine, but only hope” (Measure for Measure III.1).

O @little-red-83, 18.  “Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt” (Measure for Measure I.4). 

Tagging my Forever Crowd, because you guys need to see these so very much!

@2wonderinsighlents, @adaliamalfoy, @alcpegasus22, @andrastesflamingtitties, @angelofwinchester17, @alexastacio, @anokhi07, @ariethegreat98, @arryn-nyxx, @autopistaaningunaparte, @avasmommy224, @bennyyh, @benjerry707, @bringmesomepie56, @bucky-thorin-winchester, @bulletscrossbowpie, @but-deans-back-tho, @captainemwinchester, @carry-on-ms-believer, @casownsmyass, @cfordwrites, @chaos-and-the-calm67, @dancingalone21, @d-s-winchester, @deafgirlsarecooler, @deandoesthingstome, @deanfuckingwinchesterrr, @deanscherrypie, @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog, @deanwinchesterforpromqueen, @deliciouslyshadowymilkshake, @demonangelimpala, @demondeansdomme, @end-lessnights, @faith-in-dean, @fandommaniacx, @feelmyroarrrr, @fiveleaf, @graceforme86, @i-is-for-inspiring, @ilostmyshoe-79, @impala-dreamer, @jalove-wecallhimdean, @jarpadandjensenaremyheroes, @jencharlan, @jensen-gal, @jotink78, @just-a-touch-of-sass-and-fandoms, @katnharper, @kittenofdoomage, @kristaparadowski, @lipstickandwhiskey, @littlegreenplasticsoldier, @leatherwhiskeycoffeeplaid, @love-kittykat21, @loreleilara, @lunarsaturn88, @luv4jensen, @marilynnlew, @millaraysuyai, @mogaruke, @moonstonemystyk, @mrsbatesmotel53, @mrsjohnsmith, @mrswhozeewhatsis, @mzpearlz, @nicolesyneah25, @nightmaredean, @notnatural-supernatural, @paintrider13-blog, @pinknerdpanda, @plaidstiel-wormstache, @rizlowwritessortof, @roxy-davenport, @rushernparadise, @salvachester,  @septicxsoulxdarkxmind, @scorpiongirl1, @skathan-omaha, @spnrvt, @supernatural-jackles, @supernaturalyobsessed, @theafinnerup, @thegreatficmaster, @vote-for-pedro, @waywardjoy, @wevegotworktodo, @wi-deangirl77, @wonderange, @withoutaplease, @writingbeautifulmen, @xtina2191, @yoursmilemakesmeloveyou, and @yume-deaimashou