#and would’ve likely been proud of all the planning Benny did for Yes Man if it wasn’t for it being against him

[dykedvonte]

A Defense of Benny Gecko

Benny is more of a capable leader and person than people give him credit for.

Seeing as no one challenged his position as head Chairmen for 7 years and even then he only loses the position if he’s caught, killed or forced to leave. Yes, it’s also likely House wouldn’t have allowed him to be killed but he sure as hell would of found a way to remove him if he was causing too much unrest within The Tops power structure. Even Swank and Tommy don’t outright dislike him and more so are concerned with his recent secretive and shady behavior, emphasis on recent.

Taking all we know into consideration, Benny likely knew the future direction that he wanted to take Vegas but was so caught up in the plans to acquire Vegas that he didn’t think of how to make his dream a reality. Something he admits to in canon. I see this being used as the main argument that Benny doesn’t know what he’s doing at all but I see it more in the same vein as you can’t really plan something from nothing. The transformation of Vegas is a sensitive thing that he can’t really work on until he has it. The only reason he ran to the Fort prematurely is the Courier who was causing so much of a stir he would’ve likely been found out much faster, making all that planning for nothing if he didn’t take that chance.

Benny is careful (well a lot more careful than he is regularly depicted in fanon), the Courier being able to trace him was dumb luck on their part and his hair being noticed at the Fort is a realistically small oversight that even Caesar is disappointed in because he admits Benny got farther than he should’ve been allowed by his legionaries. The fact he can plan an ambush on the Courier or tries to quickly and concisely clean up lose ends that don’t lead back to him shows he’s not just acting on impulses or in the moment decisions. Or rather he’s quite good at thinking them out, whether they work depends on how you play really. This is all to say it’s 100% believable that Benny could lead an independent Vegas (house was basically setting him up to do that). If he had known explicitly that House was setting him up to replace him, he likely would’ve bought more time by getting in closer, learning more of the system to then flip House’s edge to his favor. Again something he was doing already but likely without the knowledge of House’s feelings on him personally.

No matter what, Vegas’ future was tied to Benny; House’s plans for him, having to get the chip and if he had somehow succeeded. It’s also interesting that of all the people vying for control of the dam/Vegas, Benny’s plans are the only ones actually oriented towards a new future, not a recreation of something long past.

[mycasandstarrs]

SPN 8x23: “Sacrifice”

THE ROAD SO FAR: Kicking ass, taking names. Dean got out of Purgatory. Sam hit a dog. Kevin discovered the way to close the Gates of Hell forever. Abaddon is in the wind. Naomi mind-controlled Cas. The trials are “purifying” Sam. Metatron. Crowley is putting the Winchesters in a difficult place. What will they do now?

(Set to the show’s official/unofficial theme song.)

Aww Jody!

Roderick. Crowley used his human middle name as an alias.

Why must I always be reminded of what Jody went through?

Man, Jody was just trying to get back on the dating scene. She didn’t deserve to almost die.

“You have less than one minute before a very dear, attractive, and slightly tipsy friend of yours snuffs it.”

“Call it off, Crowley.”

“Because?”

“Because it's over, you son of a bitch. We want to deal.”

Did the Winchesters already have their plan?

“First, I need to hear two little words -- I surrender.”

The show never let us hear Dean say “I surrender”. Good.

Nice location.

“You hid the Demon Tablet underneath the devil? Seriously?”

Sam looking like a real supermodel.

“All right, listen, this is a secret lair. You understand me? No keggers.” Kevin’s our next guest in the Bunker.

Houston, Texas. (Aaayyyy, my hometown!)

“What was he like?”

“Who? Oh. God? Mm, pretty much like you'd expect. Larger-than-life, gruff, bit of a sexist. But fair -- eminently fair.”

Hmm. I’d say that’s a good description.

The second “angel trial”: retrieve Cupid’s bow.

:Cas didn’t want to kill again.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota. 

At Bobby’s old scrapyard. (I bet it was Crowley’s idea to meet up here.)

There’s Bobby’s car. :( (Isn’t there any way they can take it with them and have it at the Bunker?)

“You know why I always defeat you? It's your humanity. It's a built-in handicap.“ Huh, didn’t Soulless Sam say something similar?

Who’s plan was this?

“Sooner or later, you're gonna have to face it -- you're ours. Which means that your demon ass is going to be a mortal ass pretty damn quick.”

“What's he mouthing on about?”

“You're the third trial, Crowley.”

Oohh!!!

“Would you say that you're looking for, uh, a partner in crime... ...or, uh, someone who's into nurse role-play and light domination?”

“Brother, it's 10:00 a.m. on a Tuesday.”

I love Cas.

(Okay, but tell me that doesn’t describe Destiel. Partners in crime, where one is into nurse role-play, Cas, and light domination, Dean.)

NOO, NOT THE BARTENDER.

“Stop. Please, Castiel, don't make this any worse. Please.”

“How you feeling?”

“Honestly, for the first time in a long time, it feels like we're gonna win. I'm good.”

Aww.

“You ever, uh -- you ever done the ‘forgive me, father’ before?”

“Well, once, when we were kids.”

What did Sam say back then?

“I have no clue what to say now.”

“Well, I mean, I could give you suggestions if you want.”

“O-okay. Yeah, sure.”

“All right. Well, I'm just spit-balling here, but if I were you, uh... Ruby, killing Lilith, letting Lucifer out, losing your soul, not looking for me when I went to Purgatory--”

Yeah Sam, you got a list.

“Well, that was you.”

“...Carry on.”

Pfftt. 

We won’t get to see Dean’s confessional until S10, I think.

“Okay, um...if anybody's listening, here goes.” I would’ve liked to have seen Sam’s confession.

Cas has come to Dean for help.

Metatron, meet Naomi.

Who would’ve known that between these two evils, Naomi was the lesser one?

"Of the blessings set before you, make your choice and be content." I do like that.

“Metatron, the guy who was full-on crazy, cat-lady-hoarder angel yesterday -- now he wants to save Heaven?”

“Yes, he wants to. But I'm the only one in who can. I can't fail, Dean, not on this one. I need your help.”

NOOO. What did I say about being the “only one” being shady??

“Now, if anybody needs a chaperone while doing the heavy lifting, it's Sam.” Of course that’s when Sam had to walk in.  

“Start the injections now. If I'm not back in eight hours, finish it, no questions, no hesitation.”

The third trial has officially begun.

“According to your own words this morning...this is not what I do. It's what I did. You told me I was out, Dean.”

“There is no out. Only duty.” Damn, Cas.

“...until the day you cease to exist, and then another Prophet takes your place.”

I love that Cas has to add that technicality.

Owww, Crowley! That hurt me.

He got a good amount of blood too.

Oh, we ‘bout to get it!!

“Your, uh, buddy over there thinks you saved his life.” AWW. Cas probably went over and healed him after the angels had left.

This could’ve been one of the last times Dean and Cas have a conversation...and it’s about whether Cas might die soon.

“So this is it? E.T. goes home.” You know damn well Cas doesn’t understand pop culture.

Gail, our Cupid.

“Damn, that's sweet.” “ Damn, that's sweet.”

There it was.

"Nice to Be with You” by Gallery.

Dean’s just in total awe.

I’m so proud my hometown is canonically the location of that scene.

Crowley would be singing that song. “Changes” by David Bowie.

“Hello, boys.”

Ouch. There went Sam.

“Give us your bow.” Slow your roll, Cas.

“Talk first, stab later.”

“Do you know what I find the most shocking about time-traveling through a closet and landing in the year 2013? Somebody thought it was a good idea to make you the King of Hell.”

“Right now, you and I are gonna talk about regime change.”

Burned Abaddon to a crisp. Good job, Sam.

Cas acquires cupid’s bow.

“...to sit at God's feet, to be asked to write down his word? The ache I felt when he was gone, telling myself, "Father's left, but look what he's left us -- paradise." But you and your Archangels couldn't leave well enough alone. You ran me from my home. Did you really think you could do all of that to me and there'd be no payback?”

Naomi ain’t buying it...but she seems to have figured out what he’s really up to.

Oh, is this the scene with Crowley?

It is!

“We just shared a foxhole, you and I. We beat back the Tet Offensive, outrun the --the Rape of Nanking together! And still you're gonna do me like this?! Aah! Aah! ‘Band of Brothers’? ‘The Pacific’? None of this means anything to you? All those motels, you never once watched HBO, not once? ‘Girls’? You're my Marnie, Moose. A-and Hannah -- she just --she needs to be loved. She deserves it.”

Wow. Fine acting form Mark Sheppard there.

“Would it be possible, Moose...I'd like...to ask you a-a favor, Sam. Earlier, when you were confessing back there...what did you say? I only ask because, given my history...it raises the question... Where do I start...to even look for forgiveness?” Mark Sheppard is truly doing a great job.

Human!Crowley was wonderful.

“Come on, Kev! We're on the one-yard line here.”

“Okay, a-and I should have mentioned this six months ago, but the sports metaphors -- y-you want to motivate me, "Magic" cards, "Skyrim," Aziz Ansari.”

“What? Yeah, I don't know what those words mean.”

Pfft.

“Metatron isn't trying to fix anything. He's trying to break it -- an act of revenge for driving him away.”

“Break it how?”

“Expel all Angels from Heaven, just as God cast out Lucifer.”

“Cast you out? To where? Hell?”

“Here. Thousands of us, walking the Earth.”

Naomi’s telling the truth.

Dean can stop a powerful warrior with one touch.

“If Sam completes those trials, he is going to die.” Oh dear.

“I will listen.”

“Dean, I'm not wrong. I'm going to fix my home.” I’m not sure which I consider more painful: that Cas was wrong, or that Cas still considered heaven his home.

Now knowing that Naomi’s still alive, it’s kinda obvious that a drill to the head wouldn’t have killed her and she was just catatonic here.

“She told you I lied, didn't she? You should've listened to the bitch.” Metatron, you asshole.

“What's going on? Where's Cas?!”

“Metatron lied. You finish this trial, you're dead, Sam.”

“So?”

That one little word shattered my heart.

“These were never trials, Castiel. This is a spell. And what I'm taking from you now -- your essence, your Grace -- is the last piece.”

The moment that changed Cas forever.

“Think about it. Think about what we know, huh? Pulling souls from Hell, curing demons, hell, ganking a Hellhound! We have enough knowledge on our side to turn the tide here.” 2 of these 3 things will come back. They’ll work a case that involves killing a hellhound in S12, and even sooner than that, they’ll cure demon!Dean.

“You want to know what I confessed in there? What my greatest sin was? It was how many times I let you down. I can't do that again. What happens when you've decided I can't be trusted again?”

(So Sam was jealous of Cas?)

“Hold on, hold on! You seriously think that? Because none of it -- none of it -- is true. Listen, man, I know we've had our disagreements, okay? Hell, I know I've said some junk that set you back on your heels. But, Sammy...come on. I killed Benny to save you. I'm willing to let this bastard and all the sons of bitches that killed mom walk because of you. Don't you dare think that there is anything, past or present, that I would put in front of you! It has never been like that, ever! I need you to see that. I'm begging you.”

Dean loves his little kid brother very much, and it is the backbone of this show.

“Hey, listen,we will figure it out, okay, just like we always do. Come on.”

“Castiel?! Where the hell are you?” Cas can’t come to the phone right now.

And where the hell was Kevin gonna go??

What a tragic and beautiful shot.

“Angels. They’re falling.”

[edgy-fluffball]

Hawkins, 2000 - Chapter Two

Chapter Two is online on Ao3

The cat woke him up. Fews jumped onto his stomach and curled up on top of his blanket.

‘Morning, monster’, Steve patted her and sighed.

The sun shone through the window onto the couch he still lay on. One of his legs dangled to the ground, wrapped in a blanket. He could only imagine the state of his hair but couldn’t care less. Fews still purred into his chest, clawing lazily at his shirt.

‘Ouch, Fews, can you stop that please? You can still stay there, just pull in the claws,’ he hummed quietly, stroking her soft fur and melting into the sofa’s form, ‘yes, that’s better, good girl. Do you enjoy that? Do you like my belly rubs? Yes, Fews, I know I give good ones – do you think I should give some to Dustin? Do you think that it would make him forget about the stuff he wants me to do while I’m here?’

‘Please do not give me belly rubs.’

Steve grinned up to where Dustin leaned in the door frame, looking down on him with a shock in his eyes that filled him with a sudden joy. Dustin’s hardly hidden disgust was the best thing about his morning, and it hadn’t even started completely.

‘Morning dickhead,’ he said with the widest smile he could muster, ‘don’t worry, Fews keeps me occupied to the fullest. She is the only girl that matters.’

‘Sweettalker! Breakfast is about ready. But for real, man, put a shirt on. I don’t want my Mum fainting in the kitchen because you show too much skin.’

Steve groaned, lifted Fews off his chest and set her down before grabbing his jumper from the arm rest and pulling it over his head. He followed Dustin on bare feet, yawning because the long drive still took its toll.

‘Oh sweetie, here you go, a nice warm cup of coffee to get you started,’ Mrs. Henderson pressed a hot cup into his hand and motioned towards the table, sit down and eat something, who knows when you’ll get something the next time, hm?’

‘Tonight, Mum,’ Dustin interrupted, ‘we meet all the other’s tonight at the diner.’

‘Did you arrange for that, Dusty?’

‘Yes, Mum. I can operate a telephone, pick it up and call my friends. I’ll just drag Steve along if he resists. Will you resist?’ he turned his head to look at Steve.

‘Do I have another option?’ Steve buttered a piece of toast and slid onto the kitchen bench.

‘Would you look at this,’ Mrs. Henderson smiled softly, her eyes watering dangerously, ‘my two beautiful boys, sitting here –‘

‘– having breakfast, Mum,’ Dustin sighed.

‘Who would’ve thought I would have you here at this age still, I mean – thirty-four and twenty-eight! And my little Dusty at Harvard, Steve in New York City. You wouldn’t believe how proud I am, of both of you, of course. Oh Steve, don’t you think it might be a good idea if you came over to Hawkins more regularly. You would always find a roof over your head and people to feed you.’

‘Thank you, Mrs. Henderson, but –‘

‘How often, Steven?’

‘I’m sorry, Claudia, but I don’t think I will. This reunion is pretty much the only exception to the rule,’ Steve finished his coffee and smiled, eyelid starting to twitch again.

Mrs. Henderson sighed, but didn’t say a thing in response. Steve was almost convinced it had to do with Dustin motioning something in her general direction behind his back.

‘So what do you guys have planned for today?’

Dustin started to elaborate on different options they had, as far as Steve followed the conversation. He got another cup of coffee and looked out of the kitchen window. The sun shone down on the earth cellar just outside. He still heard the metal doors slam shut after all the years.

‘Come on, Steve, we should get going,’ Dustin pushed his chair back and got up.

He pulled a cap over his curls and his leather jacket on. Steve followed him with an apologetic glance sideways. Fews followed him as he stepped into his shoes.

‘Are you sure about the jacket, it’s June!’

Dustin rolled his eyes at him, ‘I’m almost thirty, I can pick my own clothes.’

‘I’m almost thirty-five and I still struggle to pick the right coat just by judging the brightness outside.’

‘Yah, that’s because you’re Steve. You are the walking mess,’ Dustin grinned, ‘now come on, they expect us!’

‘You said tonight,’ Steve yelled after Dustin, ‘what about tonight?’

Mrs. Henderson waved after them, standing in the door with a dish towel in the other hand, as Steve jumped into his car. He turned onto the road, driving towards the town centre.

‘We’re we headed?’ he glanced to the side where Dustin lounged back in his seat, ‘You need to tell me, Dustin, I don’t know what you planned with the party. Good-for-nothing dipshit!’

‘No need to insult people,’ Dustin sighed and returned his attention to the road, ‘go to Benny’s.’

‘But that place closed –‘

‘Reopened under new ownership. It’s really good, Mum and me go there whenever I’m home. It’s no longer just a burger joint, they serve a whole range of cool foods now.’

‘No locals then,’ Steve set the turning signal.

‘Hey, do you think we could pick some people up?’

‘Dustin!’

‘Just Joyce and her boyfriend. Will has to work until later and Jonathan and Nancy have to get to the joint from the school.’

‘It’s not graduation today, is it?’ Steve took another turn, ‘And did you say boyfriend?’

‘Uhm, yes it is. Down Grant, Steve, don’t you remember the proper way to get to the Byers’?

They drove down the road, past Mirkwood, that godforsaken shortcut, and towards the dirt track that led up to the secluded property. There was only one car in the front, a police jeep that Steve knew too well.

‘Do you by any chance mean Hop when you say boyfriend? Oh please tell me they got their act together!’

‘They did,’ Dustin smiled carefully, ‘they grew closer after they had to sort out the whole mess. They became a unit after that, then Lonnie came back to harass Jonathan into leaving Hawkins because he had talked about NYU fifteen years ago. Hopper decked him.’

‘Of course he did. Does he know we pick them up?’

‘He asked me to, Steve. When will you finally understand that all of us still stand behind you? You can try whatever you want, in the end you will have to accept that one of us is taking an interest in you.’

Steve stopped the car, ‘Go on then, get them. I’ll wait here for you.’

Dustin walked up to the door, knocked and took a step back, waiting. He could see him sway on his feet from the car, Steve wondered for a brief moment if he was nervous. Then he realized that he projected his own worries. He had to force himself to steady his breathing. His knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel too tight by the time Hopper and Joyce came towards the car.

Steve felt both hot and cold. He had managed to ignore that Hopper was going on sixty. The police chief still looked on the verge of being fit, but his hair was greyer and a bit thinner than Steve remembered. He held Joyce’s hand in his and looked out onto the car with a frown. Dustin, now a few steps ahead, seemed to talk nonstop.

Ere Steve knew, he had gotten out of the car, closed the distance between them, and lunged himself at Joyce to hug her. He felt her arms close around his shoulders, one hand patting at his hair whilst holding him close.

‘Hello kid,’ Hopper nodded, ‘good to have you back.’

‘Hop,’ Steve fought the urge to bury his face in the crook of his neck and breathe in, ‘good to see you, too. God, I really missed you guys apparently.’

Joyce stroked his hair, holding him back at an arm’s length, and studying his face, ‘You look well, a grown man. Oh, what am I talking about, you look amazing, sweetie!’

Steve allowed himself to feel home for a moment, because whatever he had tried to erase from his mind over ten long years didn’t hold back anymore. Joyce felt warm and soft, her softly shaking hands tracing his face reminded him of late nights spent worrying over each other and so many more. It was a sentiment that felt oddly familiar and strange at the same time.

‘Okay, hugs and kisses, we know the drill. Can we go now? There are more people than just you two who haven’t seen Steve in ages,’ Dustin looked incredibly pleased with himself when Steve swatted at him to get him back into the car.

Joyce refused to let go of his hand, which lead to Hopper squeezing into the backseat with Dustin because Steve still drove. He could hear them discuss a matter of utmost importance that no one else should hear about – which meant that both Joyce and Steve tried their best to converse about anything else with raised voices, drowning out their secret council.

‘Who reopened Benny’s?’ Steve turned back onto the main road, glancing at Joyce.

‘Nice couple. They moved there. He is a chef, she is a great manager – it works, and Hawkins has a new place for people to hang out at. I hear the boys get together whenever all of them are in time. Nancy and Jonathan go there after school, have coffee before they go home and…live their lives, I guess.’

‘They aren’t married yet?’ Steve surprised himself how un-scary the mere thought was to him.

‘No, you would have been the first one to get invited. Although – I think Jonathan might have an idea. About the upcoming future. I didn’t tell you anything, if it comes up.’

‘Of course not, Joyce,’ Steve turned into the parking lot in front of the diner that had been Benny’s Burgers. The new board above the entrance announced that Nova’s Food Corner sold the best food for miles. Steve looked around curiously. Whatever had happened to the place, he liked it. The seats in the cosy booths in front of dark wooden walls were coated with red leather, making it seem like diner furniture had been moved into a restaurant.

‘How does it work?’ Steve shook his head and followed Dustin towards the biggest booth in the back, ‘This shouldn’t work, especially not in Hawkins. A place this innovative seems more likely somewhere in California or NYC –‘

‘Hey guys! Oh my God, you really got Steve to come – I thought you were joking or just unshakably optimistic!’

Steve felt himself being pulled into a bone crushing hug, executed by a young girl. It took him a moment to recognize her, but in the end, her ginger hair gave her away.

‘Hi Max, it’s great to see you again. How are you? You have to tell me everything, okay?’ he hugged her back, grinning at the energetic flick of her hair that seemingly hadn’t changed ever since she graduated.

‘To be honest, I am surprised. We didn’t expect Dustin to succeed, you had just been gone for too long – which makes it all the better that you really are here!’

They sat down in the booth where Lucas waited for them, high-fiving Dustin before patting Steve on the back, ‘Man, to see you back here is really something. The likelihood was down to one-digit numbers, when he called saying that you would actually come back we felt like having a party!’

The door opened again, Steve turned around and felt the smile creep over his face. The newcomers were dressed too nice to have just come in to join them. The first young man was lanky, tall enough to almost hit the door frame. He looked a bit sour, like someone who had been forced to wear a suit all morning without feeling comfortable. There was a woman following him who was frantically looking for something in her handbag. Steve smiled to himself. He would still recognize her anyway. Jonathan followed after Nancy, talking to another young woman, Steve didn’t even want to think about who it was.

‘Steve! You really are here,’ Jane pushed past Nancy and Mike, who was left to stare after her as she crossed the room with a few steps before throwing herself at Steve, ‘I had to promise the guys not to check in on you. It nearly killed me.’

‘You seem pretty alive to me,’ Steve joked and held her at an arm’s length, ‘You look perfectly radiant. Good for you!’

Jane rolled her eyes and showed him her blinding smile before joining Hopper and Joyce in the booth. Mike joined her after a quick hug for Steve. The last ones to greet him were Nancy and Jonathan, both dressed sharp enough to make an impression.

‘Well, aren’t you looking good,’ Steve grinned at Nancy, ‘honestly, did you age at all? You still look no day older than –‘

‘Don’t over-do it,’ she interrupted him quickly.

‘- twenty. Hey, that is reasonable!’

‘You’re an idiot, Steve Harrington!’

They sat down just as a waitress came over to them to take their orders. It seemed like all the others had established their personal favourites already, Steve went with what Dustin was having before leaning back and looking around.

‘I have to say, I missed this.’

‘You could have had it at any time. Only thing keeping you from it –‘ Lucas interrupted him, most likely because Max’s foot had hit him in the shin.

Steve cleared his throat and examined the centrepiece on the table closer, ‘So – graduation day?’

‘Yes, finally,’ Jonathan smiled and nodded, ‘Nance and I could tell everybody just wanted to leave.’

‘It was Holly’s graduation as well, so Mike and Jane had to join,’ Nancy explained, mentioning something that had Steve’s jaw hit the floor.

‘Holly?’

‘She’s clever,’ Mike chipped in, ‘I know, she wasn’t even ten when you left, but she wanted no big party anyway and allowed us to come here for lunch, and maybe dinner. Depends on how long she can stand Mum and Dad on her own.’

‘Wow, little Holly graduating would be the last thing I thought about,’ Steve scratched the back of his head, ‘I have missed pretty much everything, haven’t I?’

His dinner companions exchanged knowing looks. Dustin put a hand on Steve’s forearm, prompting him to look at him.

‘You know about me. A doctorate attempting to compile every science into one research field because I couldn’t decide which one to focus on,’ he sounded serious, his lisp hardly audible, ‘and you know we’ll tell you whatever you want to know. Ask away, ten years are a long time and there are a few things that changed.’

‘Nancy and Jonathan haven’t come to see us in a few weeks because of the preparations for the reunion,’ Mike began, ‘they are just here because it’s you.’

‘That’s not true,’ Nancy nudged her brother in the side, ‘Mike and El have been discussing having children.’

Someone spluttered their drink. Steve looked around and couldn’t hide a grin.

‘Well, judging from Hop’s horrified look I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know,’ he leaned back, ‘you telling each other’s secrets is actually entertaining. So what is there to say about Max and Lucas? What has been going on in California?’

‘We’ve opened a restaurant,’ Max took Lucas’ hand and looked at him, ‘we are doing good business, and sometimes we can take a few days off because we have staff to take care of everything.’

‘Just like this week,’ Lucas completed, ‘it works perfectly.’

‘What did I miss, has Steve really shown up or has Dustin sent us on a wild goose hunt?’

Steve looked up just to blink at the young man leaning down between Joyce and Hopper. His dark eyes glinted, he looked healthier and happier than Steve had ever seen him.

‘Will?’ he asked and got up to hug him close, ‘how are you? What are you up to these days?’

‘I’m a nurse, that’s why I’m late – shifts.’

‘Don’t believe him,’ Mike interrupted, ‘we might not have found out who his mystery girlfriend is, but there is someone! Definitely, and we are going to find out. The party is together for a whole week, that is enough time for us to accomplish anything!’

‘Guys, I don’t –‘

‘Don’t deny it,’ Dustin slammed his fist on the table, ‘there is something an we’ll find it out.’

‘Max –‘ Will looked to her, maybe to find help, but Max just grinned and shrugged.

‘So, what about you? Are you happy in New York?’ Nancy had everyone’s attention back on Steve with her question.

‘Yes, is it like on Friends?’ Max leant forward, a sparkle in her eyes.

‘Of course it is,’ Steve deadpanned, ‘Except more realistic. I work long hours without having a lot of people around. My father would be proud of the way I retreat in my office without showing my face to even my co-workers.’

He laughed it off, took a sip of his drink and leaned back. There were still a few eyes on him, Hopper frowned so dark that he half expected a deep-cutting question next. Joyce, next to him, seemed worried as well, and at least three of the kids were whispering to each other. He caught Dustin’s eyes who tried an uplifting smile, but had to fail. Steve could imagine what they all thought, it was a topic they should avoid if they wanted to continue to have a pleasant conversation, he knew it and there was no way the others didn’t.

It was the arrival of their food that allowed them to start on different conversations. Dustin had told him what the others were doing whenever he visited him in New York, but hearing about shiftwork from Will, troubled kids coming in for help in Indianapolis from Jane and the time a co-worker had almost electrocuted himself from Mike made him feel like he was part of the group again.

Nancy and Jonathan told him about everything that had changed around the school, including the new gym, ‘Now we have PVC floor. They chugged out the old wooden floor coating and renovated it completely.’

‘There are plans to have a reunion tournament,’ Jonathan reached out to get the salt shaker from the middle of the table, ‘wouldn’t you be interested in joining in?’

‘I haven’t played basketball in fifteen years, I wouldn’t be able –‘

‘Neither have your teammates,’ Nancy smiled at him and took his hand over the table, ‘you wouldn’t believe what some of them look like today. Most of them are still here and I see them down at the shop almost every other day. You aged well, they didn’t.’

‘Thank you,’ Steve frowned, ‘I try.’

‘They have a gym in the office,’ Dustin chipped in, ‘Steve is there all the time, I bet.’

‘It was a mistake to allow you to come to work with me that one day, right?’

Dustin huffed and crossed his arms, ‘You said it was boring anyway because no one cares about what you do. I was only reasonable in helping you out one day to keep you from dying of boredom.’

‘Yes, sure you did,’ Steve could still feel Hoppers judging gaze burning into the side of his neck.

Joyce ordered them all ice cream for desert, proving the thesis that some things would never change, no matter how old they got. Their eyes lit up when the cups were carried over towards them, everyone got a colourful array of flavours set in front of them. Steve looked round as the others started to dig in. He couldn’t bring himself to see anything but the six kids he had driven around so many times he couldn’t tell how often exactly.

What had started out with him being hijacked by Dustin, had turned into a taxi service for whoever’s mother couldn’t take them where they needed to be. He had driven Dustin around to his friends’ houses whenever Mrs. Henderson didn’t feel comfortable with her Dusty cycling through the night, he had taken Mike to Hopper’s cabin for him to visit Jane, and he had taken on the taxi duty for Will as well once Jonathan stayed at the Wheeler’s with Nancy. Even Max had been in need of his service a few times in order to get home on time when she had snuck out without her brother noticing.

He had experienced all sorts of trouble in his old Beemer, including Mike’s insecurity about his relationship with Jane, Lucas’ ever-growing crush on Max, and Dustin’s fear of ending up alone. It had him kept involved in their lives, even when there were no monsters to hunt.

It all had turned sour.

‘Ten years are a hell of a time,’ Hopper stared at him and for a moment Steve thought he might know, ‘we shouldn’t overwhelm you with what has been going on here, we have a whole week, after all!’

Steve felt his shoulders relax again, the voice in his head calmed down again. Of course Hopper didn’t know, none of them did.

‘Ten years,’ he said instead, willing his voice to remain calm, ‘it seems crazy once you think about it.’

‘Especially since you didn’t tell anyone why you left,’ Hopper leaned in, just slightly, but it was enough for Joyce to grab his arm.

‘I think we all know why Steve left and needed a break from Hawkins.’

[renegadewangs]

For the writer questions: since your DGS2 fic isn't complete yet, I'll ask 6 and 9 of Planes, Trains and Automobiles, and 2, 3, 5, and 7 of Phantoms and Mirages (which can be split into parts if you want lmao). Also, I'll ask 10 about A Magician's Fire, and 1 about everything :D

Oh my gosh, hahahaha, thank you! =D

Planes,Trains and Automobiles:

6:Which scenes did you cut, and which were added in P, T & A?Well,if we’re talking in terms of scenes that were actually in the movie,the main one to come to mind is the one where Del is driving the car(while Neal is asleep) and he tries to take off his coat, and somehowthey end up on the wrong side of the road and sandwich the carthrough a narrow passage between two trucks. That whole thingwould’ve been too difficult to translate into fic form, because it’sall slapstick physical action and more troublesome than that, Simonwould’ve been asleep for half of it and it’s kind of written from hisPOV. That’s why I swapped it with the scene where they try to look atthe map to figure out where they are and, through plotmcguffin ofBobby’s lighter, the entire car is set on fire.

Ifwe’re talking more liberally, away from the plot of the originalmovie, I had an additional/optional ending in mind where it turnedout Bobby was the Phantom. He purposely kept seeking Simon out (sotheir encounters were not at all coincidences) and all the accidentsthat happened along the way were outright sabotage. Simon would bereflecting on it from a prison cell, as Metis Cykes would’ve beenmurdered and the psych profile taken. In the end, I didn’t haveenough energy/time to write that last bit. Feel free to assume that’slegitimately what happened if you enjoy that turn of events, though!9:Which idea came to you first in P, T & A?Difficultquestion, because basically… I was watching the movie (for thefirst time, because I’m Dutch and Thanksgiving movies are not a thinghere) and I just kept comparing the two main characters to Bobby andSimon. So really, the first idea was “this entire plot right here,but with minor tweaks to suit those law goofs”.

Phantomsand Mirages:

2:Which scene was your favorite to write in P&M?It’sso hard to choose! But I think my favorite was the one where theychase Mirage to the roof of the courthouse and along the scaffolding,and then the whole construction breaks and the Phantom almost fallsto his death but Simon catches him by the handcuffs. It looked WAYcooler in my head than it actually came out in the fic, but I’m stillproud of the results I produced.

Also,that chapter where Lex regains his lost childhood memories andrealizes why he was living out on the street in the first place.Because, y'know, I have some friends who refer to me as aProfessional Feels Crusher and I think that chapter demonstrated itpretty nicely. (which reminds me… that time Benny gets shot andfalls down a cliff. You’re welcome.)3:Which part of P&M was hardest to write?Courtroomscenes. Oh my gosh, the courtroom scenes. It was easier in the secondLex Luster trial, because I didn’t have to do anything with evidenceand instead relied on testimonies with a very specific outcome, butthat very first trial about Lex Sr.’s death? Good LORD. And that’sstill nothing compared to the Five Nights of Turnabout trialsessions, in which I actually had to stick to ‘gameplay chronology’100% and make Phoenix use evidence he’d gathered during theinvestigation portions. OOF…5:Did you make an outline for P&M? Did you stick to it?Yes!I always make outlines. They’re usually very rough indications ofwhat I want to do, but they help me keep track of my plans. Ibrainstorm so much about fics that it’s hard to keep all the usefulideas in a straight line.7:Who was your favorite character to write in P&M?Atfirst it was Lex, because of his incredibly dry and direct remarks.Later it was Benny, because I enjoyed hiding foreshadowing in hisactions and dialogue, and also passive aggressive politeness. I’llalways have soft spot for Domestique too. (Ironically, pretty muchall these traits are now present in one of the three main charactersof my original novel. Silvian is like a horrible mishmash of thesethree guys.)

AMagician’s Fire:10: Whatare some facts readers may not know about AMF?Hmmm…I don’t know if there’s anything specific about thisfic, but I did consider continuing the P&M verse by integrating aplot about the Gramaryes, who seriously would be revealed to beinternational criminals. I mean, come on, they made yachts disappearand opened enormous safes and whatnot during their shows. Besides,Magnifi and Zak were both kind of awful people. A link would’ve beencreated both through Lex, who’d dealt with the Gramaryes as thePhantom in the past, and by Benny, who used to be Roger Retinz’stherapist and considers the man 'one of his greatest failures’.(Because it sure seemed like Roger was slowly getting better abouthandling his past spite, but then he went and killed a guy with acrazy revenge plot.) So basically, they’d go and get some info fromRoger about the Gramaryes’ past crimes, he’d casually namedrop thePhantom, then they’d question Lex about it… And maybe Manov hadonce picked up some hints about past crimes while dressed as Mr.Reus, and that would’ve been an additional motivation for Roger tosilence him. Like, for example, Manov would’ve come up to him allscared because some thuggy-looking guys followed him after aperformance and accused him of things, and Roger would’ve told himnot to worry about it while secretly cursing the Gramaryes forgetting him involved in things of a shady nature.

Butidk, I never really developed the idea beyond that point and becauseI got so busy with my novel series, it all sank away into oblivion.

EVERYTHING:1:Of the fics you’ve written, which is your favorite and why?Phantomsand Mirages! Because, well, it’s enormous and I got to do everythingI really wanted with it. More importantly, I got a lot of positivefeedback on it, which means it brought good vibes and entertainmentto other people. Even now, I hear that some readers still rememberthe characters and that makes me so happy.