#dean and the family finances

[scoobydoodean]

Okay actually going a little crazy over the heavy implications in 1.08 “Bugs” that Dean is having trouble making ends meet for him and Sam. The episode opens with Dean coming out of a pool hall with some cash and saying “Hunting’s our day job, and the pay sucks”. Dean wants to squat in an empty house instead of getting a motel room, and he directs them to an open house with free food.

Sam is clearly very aware Dean is struggling to keep them afloat in 1.08 and that credit card scams aren’t cutting it. But I guess it just hit me that despite seeing that Dean is having a hard time providing for them, Sam immediately jumps to insist they Dean will pay for a whole new fridge full of groceries destroyed by a poltergeist in the very next episode (1.09 "Home").

[yesimwriting]

been obsessed with coryo after watching tbosas 😭 please write more of bestfriend!coryo <3

so so adorable 💋 i love u tehe

me gasping like in that tiktok sound: oh my goodness i love this question!!!

in all seriousness i have so many more thoughts on this dynamic omg

----

thinking about bestfriend!coryo who knows your parents love him, and, more importantly, he knows how to use that to his advantage.

it's no accident, he's put in meticulous effort in making sure that they not only approve of the friendship, but that he's their favorite friend of yours. when it comes to a family as prominent and wealthy as yours, parental approval goes a long way, especially with how regularly your parents leave town for business.

your father's admiration isn't an easy thing to win, but coriolanus is no stranger to uphill battles, and you're worth it. with the way that you look at him, how could you not be?

so he puts in the work: being the perfect student in classes taught by known friends of your father, wearing his best clothing and practicing old capitol etiquette his grandma'am was more than happy to review with him before family dinners that you invited him to, and making sure to keep proper distance between the two of you whenever your parents are around, no matter how difficult it is for him to remember to not hold your hand.

the hardest part is the fact that most of your father's intimidation comes from the fact that he's the exact kind of man coryo wants to be. powerful, respected, and in a position to never worry about finances or status. but he keeps at it, taking more care than usual to make sure that the signs of poverty are never visible in front of your parents.

even if that means purposefully leaving leftovers of the best food he's eaten in years on his plate so that no one will think he's starving. even if you give him a look that only he can feel the strangeness of because even though you've never spoken of his financial status, you can tell that he's not as well off as everyone thinks. that's the only thing about you that digs beneath his skin--you can always tell.

he's unsure if his efforts are working because of your father's constantly stoic disposition even though you assure him that that's your father when he's relaxed.

but then one day, he's over on your father's last night at home before returning to the districts to oversee some business, and your father asks to speak with him in private. you're instantly snapping your head up from your textbook, wanting to make sure that your father won't say anything embarrassing or rude.

he's scared off other friends in the past and even though it hurts, you never fight back too much because your father isn't an easy man to talk back to. but this is where you draw the line. you're not going to lose your coryo.

coryo feels something in his stomach knot, especially at that bewildered look behind your eye, but he's not about to be openly intimidated, so he assures you that he's fine. when you push, asking what topic could possibly involve just coryo and him and be that private, your father says that it's just business from man to man.

coryo has to force down a smile because he knows he'll be hearing no end of it from you as soon as the two of you are alone together. then he starts to think that this might be it. maybe your father has found out about his true financial status or dean highbottom has finally gotten to him and he's about to be banned from seeing you.

he forces down his anxiety and follows your father into the hall. your father's quick to the point, letting him know that he's leaving for another long stretch of time and that your mother's social and professional engagements mean that you'll be alone often. he closes the statement by asking coriolanus to look after you until he returns.

the realization that coriolanus has made it hits him at the same time as the relief and for a second all he can do is stare. then his senses return to him and he's swearing to your father that he'll take such good care of you, your father will have nothing to worry about. then your father's clasping his shoulder and offering him a gruff but oddly genuine thank you, son before telling him to get back to your room before you get paranoid.

it's an odd way to end the moment, but coryo's so busy trying to convince himself to not mentally plan out your wedding (because let's be honest, that's a level of trust from someone like your father might as well be a pre-engagement) that he doesn't think of it.

when he gets back to your room, you ask as casually as you can manage what your father wanted. after telling you that your father just wants to make sure that you're looked after while he's away, coryo expects you to be happy. but instead of reacting positively, you just sort of nod and mumble something polite before attempting to go back to studying.

something in his chest hardens. he's your best friend, who you spend as much time as socially acceptable with, and you two are being given the perfect excuse to be around each other more and you're not happy.

he immediately pushes and you reluctantly tell him that this has to mean that he's in with your father. another thing that coryo thinks you should be thrilled about. the more your father approves, the closer the two of you can be. he's accusing you of being sick of him, of trying to get rid of him, of no longer wanting to be best friends with him.

that has you scrambling to defend yourself. there's little you consider more important than your friendship with him. it's the only bond you fully trust.

so you tell him that your real concern is that your father never gets along with your friends that way, and that the only similar reference point you have is the way he talks to people like him.

you then tell him that the people in your father's social circle aren't like coryo. at the very least, not your coryo, who's never harsh with you and would rather spend parties sitting with you than sharing cruel opinions to impress other men.

all coriolanus hears is that you don't see him the way you see the actually important men. the hurt behind his eyes has you moving to stand and reaching for him. he lets you take his hand but doesn't react, so you explain it as transparently as possible. people that your father likes are mean, and you don't want to lose him to that.

there's something about the way you say it, all round eyes and genuine worry. it reminds him too much of tigris, of the newfound hint of tension in their relationship that's become more prevalent. she's constantly reminding him of what his father's success turned him into.

coryo's pulling you into a hug, whispering promises that you could never lose him. you're hugging him back tightly, hand smoothing circles against his back.

he realizes he means what he's saying. he can achieve the prominence he wants without alienating you. there's a way to be stern with the world and just coryo to you. and even if his edges become a little sharper, he'll keep that away from you and you'll understand.

you may criticize some of your father's views and actions, but you do love him. coryo sees it in the way that you constantly strive for his approval, he sees it in the way your face lights up when he's home. if you can love your father through your disagreements, you can love him as well. he'll make sure of it.

feeling better, he starts semi-playfully chiding you for even thinking that anything could take you away from him. that you should know better than to not see this as yet another thing he's doing for you, for your friendship.

you don't want to admit it, but you're feeling a little bad for reacting like that. after all, coryo was so excited to tell you and you know your father's capable of scaring people out of your life. at least this means that nothing's going to get in between the two of you.

coryo recognizes your slight pout and the apologetic line between your eyebrows. the two of you so rarely argue that even a hint of conflict has you willing to do anything to make things feel normal again.

so he lets himself play into his hurt. you're quick to pick up on it, holding onto him a little tighter. the two of you stay like that for awhile until you break the silence, saying that you're happy that he has an excuse to be around more.

eventually the two of you end up sitting on your bed, both of you silently agreeing that you've done enough homework. instead you focus on reassuring him, holding his hand between both of yours, pressing the occasional chaste kiss against his knuckles and resting your head against his shoulder until he has to go home.

after your father leaves, coryo takes his promise to look after you seriously. he's already in the habit of walking you home after school every day, but he start staying over after every day. the lack of authority figures around makes it a little easier to accept the after school snacks your maid always prepares and sometimes he even lets you send some home with him.

his grandma'am's over the moon when he starts accepting invitations to school social events that he honestly considers painful because he's escorting you. she's convinced that the two of you are getting married and with your family's status and the snow name, there's no door the two of you won't be able to unlock. even though you're still just friends, he rarely reminds her. it's for her own sake, he tells himself, it makes her happy.

the promise to your father also makes him bolder. he feels more assured, more justified in his disapproval of those that show a little too much interest in you.

you still don't notice the way his jaw tightens when some unaware guy gets too close, or think anything of the way that it almost always leads to him grabbing your hand.

he also stays over more, sometimes leaving for a few hours in the late afternoons so your maid doesn't think anything's going on. your family's estate is so large it's easy enough to get him in and out through a secondary exit.

the two of you fall into such a good routine that when your parents do get back, they start trusting coryo even more. your father asks if he can take you to certain social events that normally you wouldn't be allowed to attend and your strict weekday curfew becomes more of a suggestion when he's around.

[cheynovak]

Between Power and Freedom

Part 3

Characters: Dean Winchester x Y/N Shurley Female character     

Summary: Y/N, the ambitious daughter of a powerful CEO, grapples with her father's choices, while she secretly takes a job with Dean Winchester, the rugged CEO of a rival company. Sparks fly between Y/N and Dean as they navigate their growing attraction amid corporate rivalry and family pressure.

Warnings: This story will contain parts that are 18+!

English is not my first language 

*Please do not copy my work, reblog/comments/likes are appreciated* 

The next week, I officially signed my contract with Winchester industries. It felt surreal—walking into that building, knowing I was a spy for my dad. Sam was there to greet me, and we went over the business, everything I needed to know as I settled into my new role. It wasn’t long before I met Bobby, the finance manager Sam had mentioned.

Bobby was an older man, gruff and not one for small talk, but it didn’t take long for me to realize he was more than just an employee. He was like a father to the Winchester boys, more so than their own had ever been, from what little they’d mentioned about him. Despite his rough exterior, I respected him immediately, and over the next month, we worked side by side as he started to trust me more and more.

It was about a month in when Bobby pulled me aside. He’d been grumbling about his health for a while, but that day, he told me he needed to take a long overdue vacation—doctor’s orders.

"I’ll be gone for a month, at least," he said, rubbing the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable with the idea of stepping away from the business. "I want you to take over while I’m gone, make sure everything runs smooth, can you do that kid?"

I was surprised by the offer, but honored that Bobby trusted me enough to handle things in his absence. "Of course, Bobby. I won’t let you down," I promised, and he gave me a short nod, the closest thing to a smile I’d seen from him.

The work was challenging but rewarding. Every night, though, my father would call, demanding a status update. “What have you found? Any cracks in the books? Anything I can use?” he’d press. But I had nothing to give him. Winchester industries was clean, their financials solid, and no matter how much I combed through the accounts, there was nothing shady to report back to my father. He grew more impatient by the day.

“Slow process,” he sneered during one of our calls, his voice dripping with disappointment. “I expected better from you, Y/N.”

But I no longer cared about meeting his expectations. I loved my work at Winchester. Bobby treated me with respect, Sam made sure I felt supported, and Dean—well, Dean was a different story altogether.

He was charming in a rough-edged way, always surrounded by women like Jo. But I was focused on my work, and I wasn’t going to get distracted by Dean Winchester, no matter how my heart might skip a beat whenever he walked into the room.

On Bobby’s last night before his vacation, he invited me over to his place for dinner.

It was a family affair, with both Sam and Dean there, along with Sam’s wife, Eileen, and Dean’s girlfriend, Jo. As soon as I arrived, I felt the tension between Dean and Jo. She had this loud, flashy persona that clashed with the grounded, hardworking energy in the room.

Jo wasn’t like Eileen, or even me. She seemed more interested in flaunting her relationship with Dean than actually being a part of his life. She gave off that sugar-baby vibe—more interested in what Dean could offer her than in Dean himself. It wasn’t hard to see why the two of them clashed.

Dinner was lively, with everyone sharing stories and laughing. I learned that Sam and Eileen had married last summer, and they were the picture of a perfect couple—gentle, caring, completely in sync. Jo, on the other hand, seemed to dominate the conversation, throwing little digs at Dean, complaining about how long it was taking for him to propose.

"Dean, when are you going to stop playing around and put a ring on it?" Jo teased loudly, and I saw the way Dean's jaw tightened. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

It was obvious she was pushing him, and I could see the discomfort it caused. As the evening wore on, tensions between them escalated, and soon enough, they were outside, having what seemed like their daily argument.

“Well, that didn’t take long,” Sam said with a sigh, shaking his head as he glanced out the window at his brother and Jo, now arguing on the porch.

I looked confused, turning to Eileen. "Do they fight often?" I asked, wondering how a relationship like that could survive.

Eileen gave me a sympathetic smile. "Every day," she explained, as if it was common knowledge. "Jo wants more—marriage, status—and Dean… well, Dean isn’t ready. He likes his freedom. And Jo doesn’t really understand that."

I nodded slowly, trying to make sense of it all. Jo wasn’t Dean’s type, at least not from what I could see. She seemed more like an accessory to his life than a partner, and it was clear that the tension between them was only going to grow.

I couldn’t help but wonder why he stayed with her, why he didn’t just let go. But then again, maybe I was projecting my own feelings. Maybe I was starting to care about Dean more than I should.

As the night wound down and the fight outside continued, I realized something. This family, despite its complications, was accepting me as their own. And no matter what my father said, they didn't use me in a way like he does.

I had found my place. And I wasn’t going to give it up.

Dean walked back into the room, his expression tense but composed. “Jo went home,” he said, almost nonchalantly, though I could sense the frustration behind his words. He apologized to Bobby, who just waved it off, clearly not bothered by the drama that had unfolded.

I was in the kitchen, finishing up the dishes. The last thing I wanted was to leave a mess after Bobby had been so kind to invite me into his home. Dean wandered over and stood beside me, his presence heavy but not unpleasant.

“So, how you feeling about the company?” he asked, his tone casual but curious.

I glanced over at him, surprised he was even asking. “It’s different,” I admitted. “In a good way. Everyone’s more�� open. It’s not just about numbers or control. I actually like it here.”

He nodded, but the silence that followed felt a little strained. I hesitated for a moment, my mind flashing back to the argument he’d just had with Jo. Against my better judgment, I spoke up.

“Are you okay?” I asked quietly. “It’s not really my place, but… if you want to talk about the fight with Jo—”

His response was immediate, cutting. “It is indeed not your place.” His voice was cold, his words sharp, and I felt the sting of them as if he’d slapped me.

I lowered my head, instantly regretting the question. I should’ve known better than to pry. Dean Winchester wasn’t the type to open up easily, especially not to someone like me, who was still relatively new in his world. The silence between us was thick, and I just focused on the dishes, trying to push away the awkwardness.

A few minutes later, I was ready to leave. I hugged Bobby goodbye, thanking him for dinner and telling him that if he needed any help during his recovery, he could always call me. Bobby grunted in his usual way, but I could tell he appreciated it.

Just as I reached the door, I heard Dean’s voice behind me. “Let me drive you home,” he offered. “You don’t need to walk in the dark.”

I was surprised—especially after how cold he’d been earlier—but I didn’t decline. “Alright, thanks,” I said softly.

The drive started out awkward, with only the sound of the car’s engine filling the silence. Dean kept his eyes on the road, his expression unreadable. I kept my hands folded in my lap, feeling small and unsure.

But then, after a few minutes, he spoke. “Hey,” he said, his voice softer than before. “I’m sorry for biting your head off earlier.”

I glanced at him, taken aback by the apology. Dean wasn’t the kind of guy who usually admitted when he was wrong, at least not from what I’d seen.

“It’s fine,” I said quickly, not wanting to make a big deal out of it. “I shouldn’t have asked.” He shook his head. “No, it’s not that. You were just trying to be nice. I shouldn’t have snapped at you.”

I offered him a small smile, feeling a bit of the tension ease. “Thanks. I just… I could tell something was bothering you. But I get it, it’s personal.”

Dean sighed, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter. “Jo and I… it’s complicated. She wants more than I can give right now. And I’m not sure I’m the guy who’s ever gonna be able to give her what she wants.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I just nodded, letting his words settle in the air. It was strange, hearing Dean Winchester—a man who seemed so sure of himself in every other aspect of life—admit to doubt and uncertainty.

After a few more minutes of silence, he pulled up in front of my apartment. He put the car in park and turned to me, his green eyes soft and maybe a little weary.

“Thanks for the ride,” I said, giving him a genuine smile as I unbuckled my seatbelt.

As I stepped out of the car, something clicked in my mind. Maybe Dean was looking for someone to be there for him. I hesitated for a moment, then turned back around and leaned against the open window, my heart pounding a little faster.

“Dean…” I began, trying to sound casual, “would you like to come in for a talk?”

I could see the conflict on his face, his eyes searching mine, unsure if he should accept the invitation. For a brief second, I thought he might decline, but then, almost as if the weight of his thoughts became too heavy to carry alone, he nodded.

We walked up to my apartment in silence. Once inside, I offered him a glass of bourbon, which he accepted with a quiet “thanks.” The dim lighting made everything feel a little more intimate, a little less tense. I could see the guarded expression on Dean’s face starting to soften.

He took a deep breath, staring at the glass in his hand. “I met Jo when I was in a bad place,” he began, his voice low. “My sister, Charlie, died in an accident. I was... I was wrecked. My dad, he was always tough—never the soft kind of guy—but after we lost Charlie, he became... unbearable.”

His eyes darkened at the memory. “Jo was my escape. She was wild, unpredictable, and I thought I needed that at the time. A way to forget, you know?”

I nodded, staying quiet so he could continue. I could hear the pain in his voice, and it was hard to imagine the confident, carefree Dean Winchester I’d come to know carrying all that weight. It was as if, beneath the exterior, he was still that little boy, yearning for his father’s approval, for something solid to hold onto.

“I thought Jo could fill that void Charlie left, because Char was wild and free, she loved to travel.” he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. “But now... I don’t know. I think maybe I’m just hanging on because it’s familiar.”

"There are days I don't even know what I do with the company. I kept it because it was my dads, but I'm sure if he was alive he'd smack my head for what I did to it."

I reached out instinctively, my hand finding its way to his shoulder. I gave it a gentle squeeze, feeling the tension in his muscles. “Dean,” I said softly, “you’re doing great. You’ve built something incredible with your company, and you’re an amazing boss."

He turned his head, locking eyes with me, and in that moment, the air between us shifted. There was something intense in his gaze, something raw and vulnerable, and before I even had time to process what was happening, his lips were on mine.

The kiss was sudden and fierce, his hand reaching up to tangle in my hair as his other arm wrapped firmly around my waist. His lips were rough, yet desperate, and when his tongue sought entrance, I froze for a second, startled by the sudden rush of it all. My mind was racing, caught between shock and the undeniable pull I felt toward him.

I quickly broke the kiss, my heart pounding in my chest. Dean pulled back immediately, his face full of regret, his hands dropping to his sides as if he didn’t know what to do with them.

“I—I’m sorry,” he stammered, his face flushing with embarrassment. “I didn’t mean to… God, I’m an idiot.”

He stood up, clearly flustered, running a hand through his hair. “I shouldn’t have done that,” he muttered, his voice thick with guilt. “I don’t know what the hell I was thinking.”

I stayed silent for a moment, my own emotions swirling in confusion. The truth was, I didn’t know how to feel either. The kiss had caught me off guard, but it hadn’t felt wrong. It was just... unexpected.

“Dean,” I said, my voice soft, trying to calm him down. “It’s okay. Really.” He looked at me, his expression still conflicted, but I could see the apology in his eyes.

“I just… I don’t know how to handle all this,” he admitted quietly, almost as if confessing it to himself. “I’m a mess, and you don’t deserve to get caught up in that.”

I shook my head, taking a step closer to him. “We’re all a little messed up, Dean,” I said gently. “But you don’t have to deal with it alone.”

Dean looked at me for a long moment, as if trying to figure out if he could let himself believe that. Then he nodded, his shoulders relaxing slightly. “Thanks,” he said, his voice more grounded now. “I mean it.”

I offered him a small smile, trying to lighten the mood. “Let’s just... chalk that up to the bourbon and a long night, yeah?” Dean chuckled softly, the tension finally easing a little from his face. “Yeah. Let’s do that.”

He stayed for a little longer, and we talked—about work, life, anything that wasn’t too heavy. When he finally left, there was no awkwardness, just an understanding that something had shifted between us.

I wasn’t sure where it would lead, but one thing was clear: Dean Winchester wasn’t as untouchable as he seemed.

--

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[le-trash-prince]

Dean & Kenta

So I am obsessed with the parallels between these two scenes in Episode 10, and I’d like to break it down a bit.

Here we have two characters who have failed their father figures due to their involvement with Charlie's accident. These conversations both begin with physical blows.

Both Kenta and Dean deny that they intended for Charlie to die.

Tony tells Kenta not to bother coming back if he messes up again (I interpret this as a veiled death threat—does Tony ever let people just walk away?). And Alan asks North to call the police on Dean. Both Kenta and Dean are each facing exile from their families.

There is, however, a contrast in the setting for these conversations. Tony and Kenta are at Tony's house, which we know is full of people. They are even out in the open, rather than in Tony's office. But they are completely isolated, as is the standard for this home. They are standing on a black walkway with a black doorway behind them.

Alan and Dean, on the other hand, are surrounded by the X-Hunter team, by people who are directly affected by what is happening. Even though it is just the two of them talking to each other, North is literally right there with them. They are standing in a beam of light with a bright window behind them.

I think there is a lot to be said about the connection these scenes draw between Tony and Alan, although I'm not equipped to comment on parenting styles (I welcome any input). But I don't think any other part of the series has drawn such a clear comparison between these two and the roles they are trying to fill. Their emotional reactions speak a lot to the difference in their character. While both are angry, Tony is filled with entitlement—his finances have been damaged by Charlie’s, while Alan is filled with grief—his family has been broken.

One thing I’d also like to highlight is Alan’s constant use of the word “family” towards his employees throughout the entire show (I know this can be problematic irl sometimes, but it’s quite apparent here that Alan really thought of them as his family), while that word seems to be entirely missing from Tony’s vocabulary, even though these people are legally his children. X-Hunter is Alan’s family, while the Chen Foundation orphans are Tony’s property.

Family is a recurring theme in Pit Babe (insert Fast & Furious reference here), and these scenes do a great job of showing contrasting perspectives on family. "Family is not everyone's safe zone." Family can hurt, family can heal, and family can fail you.

In the end, as seen below, Tony quite literally throws Kenta away from him, while Alan lets Dean slip from his embrace.

Kenta ends the scene framed almost completely by black, but his face is bathed in light, and he is standing upright, while Dean is the opposite; he is on his knees, bracketed by light, his face entirely in shadow.

I also find it interesting how much this dialogue of Dean's feels like it could have come directly from Kenta himself.

To me, Kenta and Dean are on very similar trajectories, but moving in opposite directions. They have both been background characters, observers in someone else's story, and they're both unhappy with where they are.

Dean was revealed in his scene to be a traitor to his people, and I think Kenta’s scene is showing us that he is in the same position—without coming out and saying it directly. In my opinion, it’s some very nice visual storytelling that’s doing a great job of building up what is coming for Kenta’s arc.

[destiel-news-channel]

Source 1 - P2025 website

Source 2 - Report from MotherJones

thank you very much for the news.

[Image ID: Depicted is the Destiel meme where Castiel tells Dean that he loves him. Dean's answer was edited to read '50 conservative think tanks in the US using dark money are pushing to completely control the government, turn the whole country into an even worse Christian theocracy, and completely erase all LGBTQ+ people from existence. It's called Project 2025' /.End ID]

Also a further note: This groups plan seems to rely heavily on a Republican win in the presidential election 2024 after which the whole U. S. federal government is supposed to be placed under direct presidential (Trump in this case) control. I don't know how feasible such a plan is even if the Republicans won, but let this serve as a reminder to

FUCKING VOTE!

[PT: fucking vote! /end PT]

Republicans rely on people who would rather vote Democrat than Republican not voting 'cause they don't see any sense in it anymore/also don't want to support Democrats 'cause "even though they are the lesser evil they're not good"! By not voting you just play into their hands. This Project 2025 is nothing than a direct attack on democracy and if you still want to have a vote that counts in the future please vote. An example of what they want to do is to bring the FEC (Federal Election Commission) which enforces the campaign finance law under their control by only instating Republican commissioners (right now there are just as much Republicans as Democrats).

Please, please get as many people to vote as possible. Tell your family and friends about this. Reblog posts about how voting helps and what Republicans have planned even if you may not be able to vote in America yourself share those things for your American followers.

[mittensmorgul]

Merry Beachmas Words: 3k Rated: T

Holiday 2024 mittens fic, featuring new holidays that still somehow go sideways, making it up as we go, found family, and toes in the sand!

It's set in the Evergreen 'verse, but it does stand alone as post-canon general happy holiday fluff fic :)

Read it now on AO3, or below the cut right here:

None of this was in the detailed plans they'd made five weeks ago. Jody had insisted they all were required to report in for a real family thanksgiving dinner. Not just the Winchester clan, but their entire extended network of friends and found family. Nobody objected, of course. It was a universally beloved idea. They all had a hell of a lot to be thankful for.

Nobody honestly could’ve predicted that gathering several dozen severely traumatized folks to break bread (and half a dozen pies) would’ve led to some general airing of grievances. That was supposed to be an entirely different holiday, after all. But in a world where so many holidays seemed to all tie directly back to Chuck and his own self-aggrandizing story, it naturally followed that while the idea of spending a holiday with the whole family like this was universally beloved and a tradition they absolutely wanted to continue as often as possible, they just didn’t think that the specific holiday of Christmas was necessarily the right way to go about that anymore.

“Well,” Garth said as they sat around the massive makeshift table assembled in Jody’s backyard after a long and leisurely meal. “If you still want a reason for the season that’s got nothing to do with Chuck, you can always make it about something else.”

Dean sat up in his chair so fast he nearly knocked over Cas’s beer on the edge of the table beside him. He looked over at Cas as he scrambled to catch his drink, and just stared at him for a second.

“You said it yourself, Cas.”

“I’ve said a lot of things, Dean.” Cas sat back in his chair, slightly aggrieved and this time holding on to his drink since Dean seemed to be gripped by one of this wild notions. “You’ll have to be more specific.”

Dean snorted out a laugh and shook his head as he sat back with his own beer cradled in his hands. His momentary wave of realization had congealed into a proper idea, though. He grinned around at the expectant faces of his friends before finally turning back to Cas.

“We’re making it up as we go, right?”

It took Cas a second to remember the exact moment Dean was talking about, but the instant he did, he understood what Dean was getting at. Sticking it to Chuck all over again.

“We can make up our own holiday.”

Dean nodded sincerely and took a sip of his drink. “Screw all Chuck's holly jolly crap. We need a toes in the sand kind of holiday.”

After a moment of silence, Garth asked, “So are we talking about a Caribbean cruise or is this strictly a sandbox event?”

Dean shrugged. “No sand out in the middle of the ocean. I was thinking more Cancun, less cruising. Maybe one of those all inclusive resort type deals, where we don’t gotta worry about anything for a week.”

“And you’re footin’ the bill, right?” Donna asked, waving a hand around the table at the crowd of interested onlookers all thinking this was just a slightly tipsy pipe dream and not the foundations of a real plan. “Those places don’t come cheap, especially during the winter break season.”

Charlie waved a dismissive hand. “Financing it isn’t an issue. If everyone’s in, we will make it happen.”

“Well, in that case,” Claire said, smirking at Kaia, “count us in for beachmas.”

Hours later when they finally took their leave from Jody’s house, arms full of leftovers, their plans had completely come together. Dean proclaimed effusive thanks to each and every person present, and then spent half the drive back to the bunker lovingly detailing all the amenities at the resort Charlie had booked them all into. After a few hours, Sam had grumpily complained from the back seat, half asleep and truly wishing he was entirely asleep.

“Don’t forget this still involves air travel, Dean.”

Dean glanced nervously at Cas beside him on the front seat. Cas simply stared calmly out the front window, lulled into a contented state by a full belly and the sound of Dean’s happy excitement pattering on as he drove. Dean swallowed hard. That had been the one part of this whole harebrained trip that he’d really been trying not to think too much about. Cas understood, though. He reached over and patted Dean’s knee reassuringly.

“I will be right there with you, and nothing bad will happen on the airplane, Dean.”

“Yeah,” Dean said weakly, gripping the steering wheel just a bit harder as Sam finally, blessedly had enough silence in the car to doze off.

Over the next few weeks, they’d fallen back into their usual patterns. There were a few odd hunts that kept them occupied, but while they were home in the bunker, Dean had been getting visibly more excited about their impending trip. He brought out his best tamale recipe— the one that had even impressed the old Death— and it had equally impressed even Sam. And that wasn’t the only Mexican delicacy that Dean had tried to perfect in the kitchen. By the time the day of their trip neared, Sam had actually suggested they might all be let down by the food at the resort after Dean had spoiled them so thoroughly.

Three days before Beachmas was set to begin— because of course Dean had adopted Claire’s name for their new holiday— Dean got a call from Krissy Chambers. He hadn’t heard from her in years, and had honestly assumed she and her little gang of hunters had gotten themselves out of the game. When he saw her name on his phone, he did a double take before answering.

“Krissy, hey, long time no see,” he said, as Sam made a startled face when he realized who Dean was talking to.

“Dean, it’s actually really good to hear your voice,” she said, sounding relieved.

Her tone was so rough that Dean was immediately on alert. He instantly went from being ready to casually tease her, or even invite her and her gang to the Beachmas Party, to being ready to draw the nearest weapon and rush to her aid. Unfortunately, that was actually what she needed from him.

“So you don’t call, don’t write, and then after what… six or seven years out of the blue you finally remember we exist?” Dean asked, putting her on speaker for Sam and Cas. “Shit must really be going down. What do you need?”

Krissy snorted. “Yeah, well, it’s not like you kept in touch much, either. I hear you’ve been a little busy taking down God and all, though, so I guess I can give you a pass.”

Dean laughed out loud. “Thanks for that.”

“No, thank you,” Krissy replied earnestly. “Though if you’d just let it all stay gone, I wouldn’t be here to accidentally trip all over whatever Christmas plans you may have had.”

“We don’t do Christmas anymore,” Cas said. “We celebrate Beachmas now.”

Krissy was silent for a moment, either trying to parse out what that meant, or else trying to figure out who exactly had said that. Dean saved her from having to do either.

“Yeah, that’s Cas. I guess you’re about to meet him, if you need our help with something. But he’s right. We gave up all Chuck’s old holidays and we’re inventing our own.”

Dean’s explanation only seemed to give Krissy more questions, which wasn’t ideal considering they still hadn’t learned why she’d called in the first place.

“Oooohkay? That sounds great and all, but I could still use a hand with a couple rogue ghouls out here.”

Dean glanced at Cas, and then at Sam.

“Where exactly is here?”

“About thirty miles north of Missoula, Montana. I can send you the exact coordinates.”

“Hey, Krissy,” Sam finally said. “It’s Sam. Are you still hunting with your friends, or are you on your own now?”

“Hi, Sam, and yes, Aidan and Josephine are still hunting with me most of the time, but Aidan’s been laid up with a broken foot after our last hunt, and Josephine’s handling a haunting down in Taos and can’t make it up here for another few days. I thought I could handle a measly little ghoul stirring up trouble, but three people have gone missing since I got here, and I’m pretty sure it’s more than one ghoul doing the snatching.”

Dean sighed, rubbing his face. “Well at least it’s not vetala this time.”

Krissy snorted. “Yeah, I wouldn’t have come alone if I’d thought it was.”

“Alrighty then,” Dean said, making the executive decision to abandon their dinner and leave Sam to do the dishes. “Cas and I will be out there by sunup. Text me where you want to meet up, and we’ll see you there.”

“Really? Just like that?” Krissy asked, as Sam expressed a minor disappointment looking around the kitchen at their taco bar mess.

“Just like that,” Dean replied. “Hang tight, and try to stay off the ghoul radar for the night.”

“Will do. And thank you.”

Dean hung up, put his phone in his pocket, and then clapped his hands down on the table as he stood up.

“Come on, Cas. We got packing to do.”

“Weren’t we supposed to be packing for Cancun?” he asked, but dutifully followed Dean to their room.

“It’s just a couple of ghouls. We’ll be back in plenty of time to catch our flight,” Dean replied, trying not to visibly shudder at the mention of their impending air travel. He really had been doing better about it. Having a month to psych himself up for it had actually helped.

Sam snorted behind them in the kitchen. “You better be back in time,” he grumbled.

Of course they weren’t back in time. Which brings us back to where this story began.

“If you hadn’t given Krissy our hotel room in Cancun, there’s a chance we still could’ve made it,” Cas told him as the two of them trudged back through the forest after slaughtering a ghoul family of five, slightly disheveled and smelling strongly of the bonfire they'd built to dispose of the ghouls.

Dean grumbled a little at that and hefted his gear bag over his shoulder, but he could always get Charlie to book them another room. They’d already had this argument when Dean had sent Krissy south to collect Aidan and Josephine on her way to Mexico the day before. Now that they were alone, and a light snow had begun to fall, Dean stopped and turned to Cas.

“We handled the hunt fine without her,” Dean said. “Admit it, she was too banged up to hike out here with us,” he added, waving a hand around the dense forest and rocky terrain. “She wasn’t much better off than Aidan with his busted foot.”

Cas sighed, finally relenting. “And our family trip was the perfect time to bring her back into the family.”

Dean draped an arm over Cas’s shoulder and laughed as they continued their march back to civilization.

“No time like the holidays, right?”

“Especially the holidays we just invented,” Cas replied.

By the time they made it back to where they’d left the car, it was snowing harder. Dean turned on the radio to try and catch a local weather report. Snow had blanketed the entire region, and wasn’t expected to let up for days. Roads were precarious, and some had even closed, and the weather man advised people to stay home at least until the worst of the storm had passed. Dean frowned at the radio, calculating the odds that they’d be able to make it back to Kansas ahead of the blizzard. It hadn’t looked too hopeful. He turned to Cas, who to Dean’s surprise looked perfectly content despite the potentially catastrophic news.

“So maybe we’re not gonna make our flight,” he said, and then laughed nervously.

Cas turned to him with a raised eyebrow. “You weren’t looking forward to getting on an airplane anyway.”

“Not particularly, no,” Dean said, frowning both at the fact that Cas seemed so calm about this potential vacation ruining travesty, but also at the fact that he may have a reprieve from getting on a plane. There was also a matter of probably not getting to lounge on a beach in Cancun with Cas at his side and a fancy drink in a coconut in his hand. With that specific lament front and center in his mind, he made a sincere admission. “But I was looking forward to everything else. Flying for that would’ve been worth it.”

Cas shrugged. “Charlie can probably get us on another flight in a few days. We can still get there in time to spend several days with everyone else.”

When Dean’s mood didn’t visibly improve, Cas leaned in close, his shoulder bumping Dean’s. “We could extend our stay past when the rest of the family has left and enjoy a few days on the beach by ourselves.”

Dean blinked at him, and Cas just stayed exactly where he was, looking up at him with knowing eyes. Dean gave him a kiss, surprising Cas, and then laughed as he pulled out his keys and started the car.

“Okay then. You get Charlie on the phone and explain what happened. Get her on the job of finding us another flight as soon as possible.” As he pulled out onto the road, he added, “Whatever you do, don’t call Sam first. He’s just gonna bitch about us bailing on flying.”

Cas nodded, understanding. “He can’t bitch if we already have new tickets.”

Dean shrugged, turning off the highway toward the one place nearby he knew he could hunker down for a couple days. They hadn’t been out to Rufus’s old cabin in a while, but it would shelter them well enough from the oncoming storm.

“He probably will anyway, but at least by the time we get down there, he’ll have had a few days in paradise to get over it.”

Cas was off the phone with Charlie by the time Dean pulled up to the little market in Whitefish, just a few miles from the cabin. They stocked up on food, and Dean even picked up a bottle of ready to drink margaritas. When Cas side-eyed him, and the obnoxiously pink bottle, Dean just shrugged.

“If we can’t drink one out of a coconut on the beach tomorrow, we’re gonna do the next best thing.”

As they were paying, Dean noticed a display of winter road supplies by the door, including large bags of sand to be used as grit to spread on ice. He dashed over and grabbed one, tossing it down on the counter with a thud. A small amount of sand escaped the bag and left a mess on the counter. The cashier, wearing a festive santa hat with a flashing holly garland pinned to it, made a pointedly un-festive face at him. Dean just grinned back as the guy scanned the bag and added it to their total.

“Merry beachmas,” Dean told the bewildered clerk as they carried their purchases out into the cold.

Half an hour later, holed up at the cabin, Dean had a roaring fire going as Cas finally came out of the bathroom having showered and changed into clothes that weren’t stained with ghoul goo and mud. On the floor between the sofa and the fireplace, Dean had dumped the entire fifty pound bag of sand into a little makeshift beach. Cas just stared at him for a second like Dean had lost his mind. Dean just grinned back like he’d had the best idea ever.

“I thought the sand was to gain traction over icy roads,” Cas said, as he slowly made his way toward their indoor beach, stopping to pull off his socks before stepping onto the sand.

Dean shrugged and handed Cas a margarita, poured into a plastic cup full of freshly fallen snow to chill it. It was more like a margarita-flavored slushie than anything they probably served at the resort, but it was good enough for their wintry celebration.

“It probably will be in a couple days, but for now it’s Winchester Beach.”

Cas just stood there looking down at his less-than-tropically prepared beverage as Dean flopped down on the sofa. Dean patted the seat beside him, and Cas finally stepped onto the sand, enjoying the feeling of his feet sinking down in it more than he’d expected to. He blinked at Dean.

“I can see why you enjoy walking on the beach now,” Cas said as he sat down and curled his toes down into the warm sand.

Dean nodded. “Yeah, and it’s even better when it’s been baking under the hot sun for a few hours.”

Cas lifted his foot and frowned down at all the sand granules that clung to his skin. He wiggled his toes and watched sand rain down onto the floor. “It’s very messy, though.”

Dean shrugged, taking a sip of his drink and stretching his legs out toward the fire. “Yeah, it kinda gets in everything. It’s still not as bad as glitter. Or pine needles.”

“So you don’t mind not having a traditional Christmas tree? All the holiday rituals of your childhood?”

Dean sighed, pulling Cas in close and settling in for a long few days in their own private paradise.

“What I miss is being with everyone we care about. But we’ll be there in a few days. Until then, I get to be here, with you.” After a moment’s thought, he added, “Plus my childhood kinda sucked anyway.”

Cas snorted out a laugh and leaned back into Dean.

“I’m glad to be here with you now,” he said. “Though I think next beachmas, we need to avoid going off on hunts where there’s a chance we’ll get snowed in and miss our flight.”

Dean grinned at him. “So you’re already planning on celebrating again next year?”

“That is how holidays work, right?” Cas asked.

“Yeah, that’s how they work,” Dean replied with a sigh. “Merry beachmas, Cas.”

link to the ao3 version for all your kudos and comments needs

[xanadontit]

Paging @bbcwhereareyou to the courtesy phone!

I watched Christmas in Notting Hill (Hallmark movie on Netflix) last night and it wasn't the worst? Stars Sarah Ramos (Parenthood and The Bear) and some British guy. The plot is pretty ridiculous obviously but the acting is decent and there's no over the top villain. But there's weird plot points that are introduced and then dropped:

Our protagonists meet colliding at a Christmas market (obvi), where British footballer who is recovering from an injury breaks American girl's vintage ornament. A semi-big deal is made about finding this ornament, which is just like one her dead mom had but was lost in a move. But the guy breaks it and she's upset for .2 seconds and it's never mentioned again.

American girl's dad is really into Hawaiian shirts and even brings one as a gift for his daughter's soon-to-be FIL. The daughters roll their eyes about the gaudy shirts but we never learn why Dad loves them or insists on wearing them during Christmas. Kept waiting for some mention of dead mom gifting them? Something?

A Very Big Deal is made about how Footballer and American girl are the WAY older siblings of their respective families but everyone looks vaguely 27-30 and there's really no mention of actual ages. Or maybe I just can't guess ages?

SPOILER: American girl is accepted to some sort of traveling special education teacher program and decides to go for it (instead of the predictable grad school close to home route) but the flash forward shows her cheering on Footballer at a Boxing Day match. Does she travel and come back to London?! What happens there??? Don't tell me this woman gives up her dream for Temu David Beckham.

Also: Footballer's brother is kind of a Clearance Rack Nicholas Hoult. He's also an investment banker and we know this because he's always in a fucking three-piece suit. Despite this he's a decent person. This is how we know this is fake as hell: a nice British finance guy? This is making Hot Frosty look like a documentary.

There's Ted Lasso references and a Gilmore Girls shout out (when mentioning her sister's exes American girl rattles off Tristan, Jess, and Dean lol) and so many cute hats and coats. Not a bad way to spend an hour and twenty-two minutes if you don't want to think too hard.

[moog-enthusiast]

FLOWER DEAN is 19 years old, 3 years older than her brother BASIL, putting her in the same age group as MARI & HERO. She’s a very bookish thing, she can almost always be found on her lonesome with her nose in a novel. She dyes her hair blue over her natural color, keeping it as a cropped pixie cut, often adorned with a daisy chain crown gifted to her by her younger brother. With GRANNY being old even when FLOWER & her brother first moved in, responsibilities often fell to FLOWER to take care of. She never really had the normal life of a kid, playing the maternal role for her younger brothers from a young age. GRANNY may have been the one to attend school conferences and such when FLOWER was young, but crippling chronic pains unfortunately left GRANNY bed-borne rather frequently. FLOWER was already a very caring, quiet kid growing up, but with this standard of being the adult figure of sorts, is the root of her emotional fragility, and her care-taker mentality. She made meals for her family regularly, cleaned wounds, handled finances, and varied chores around the house. This led to FLOWER becoming a sort of unofficial head of household, and a lot of self-isolation and social anxiety. MARI KANZAKI, one of FLOWER’s neighbors and classmates, takes interest in becoming FLOWER’s friend in elementary school— pulling her out of the house as they got closer between primary and middle school, so FLOWER could meet the other kids their age. They got even closer after their younger brothers became friends, as it meant they were now in proximity of each other a lot more, even if just to babysit. FLOWER became good friends with the older kiddos and developed a crush on MARI— her first love. This crush on MARI is written as a reference to FLOWER being described as a boring MARI personality wise by OMOCAT, and ties the KANZAKI & DEANfamilies all over again. Whether her feelings were requited or not is indeterminate. MARI may have been her best friend, but post-incident she finds a lot of comfort in HERO, as the two mourn and support one another together.

FLOWER’s real name is “PRIMROSE”, but she goes by FLOWER to almost everyone- a nickname given to her by her GRANNY. The DEANS’ grandmother referred to the kids as “SPROUTS”, affectionately, and a young FLOWER insisted she wasn’t a sprout anymore since she was the oldest- and earned herself a new name from the amused guardian.

She is always the older sister of BASIL, but in aus with other siblings, such as ROWAN variants, or ocs, she is perfectly happy as well! She puts a lot of her self-worth into being a good sister… to the point she ‘adopts’ many of the younger kids of FARAWAY, opening her doors to anyone hoping for a nice hot meal or general support. She often brings meals to AUBREY, though less frequently after she becomes aware of her bullying her brother. She has a hard time engaging in conversation with most of the old friend group, and opts for gifts and acts of service to show her support instead. She does not feel worthy of being known by her childhood friends.

BASE CANON

After the recital, BASIL goes home looking for comfort from his soft, quiet, older sister and tells her what he’s done. He needed someone to know- someone he trusted! He was small. 12 years old and the weight of his actions settling in. This puts a strain on FLOWER’s relationship with him, leading to her hiding at college (& work over the summer,) to try and avoid her family. She still cares very deeply about her brother, but has extreme difficulty with grappling with what BASIL has done— a very painful emotion, in conjunction with her sisterly instinct to protect him. As a result, BASIL worries he’s been abandoned again by the person he trusted most, and continues his downward spiral.

DREAMWORLD;

FLOWER in HEADSPACE appears on the picnic blanket with MARI, offering compliments when spoken to- until BASIL disappears. Upon BASIL’s disappearance though— her initial reaction is a panicked response begging OMORI to find him. Past that though, pretty much the only thing she will say to the player is a simple “…”. The exception to this is that at the start of every picnic, you can interact with her- and she’ll tell you “It’s important to stay hydrated, OMORI…!” to which the player finds a new juicebox in their inventory. Once you get your juice though, she goes back to radio silence.

she misses her brother… she’s worried..

Although FLOWER may be silent, her BLACKSPACE counterpart most certainly is not. Dubbed ‘WANDERER’, this entity exists to FLOWER as STRANGER is to BASIL. WANDERER acts as one of many of the STRANGER-friends you find, but is plenty talkative! When she sees OMORI alone, she can often be spotted pacing not far behind. When interacted with, she tells him that he “ruined” her family- and that he’s sent a divide into all the families through his hiding, and needs to be held responsible for his actions. Whether WANDERER knows the truth or not is left unclear, she’s very insistent that OMORI is at the heart of the ongoing issues she’s noticed.

BASIL loves his sister a lot! He encourages her to play hide & seek with them at the start, but doesn’t mind when she declines- simply giving her a hug, and scampering off to his friends. When he shows off his garden, he’s proud to display his daisy patch, in which he tells others why they remind him of his sister. When fighting with OMORI in BOSS RUSH, he’s quick to run to FLOWER upon winning, and telling her all about how cool OMORI is in battle.

—“These are DAISIES! I know they’re simple and rather common, but they represent ‘pure love’! These remind me of FLOWER because she’s always there for me, and is the best sister I could ever ask for. I guess what I’m trying to say, is that she provides me with pure sisterly love, and I feel the same for her!”

KEL views her as an older sister figure, and asks her lots of questions. He treats her like a human-encyclopedia, (lovingly), due to her vast array of knowledge picked up from her books.

AUBREY will go to her for comfort, [as seen in scenes when BASIL first goes missing, and AUBREY runs to FLOWER for a hug], but is typically very blunt in regular conversation, making comments about “You’re so boring, FLOWER…” with a pouting face, when FLOWER declines the offer to come with on their adventure at the beginning, and other varied pieces of dialogue akin to this. She sees FLOWER as an older sister figure too, though more of the straight-man compared to MARI, and even HERO.

HERO is very cheery with FLOWER, often telling her about the groups adventures when tagged— trying to help take her mind off things. He and FLOWER are good friends, and it can be seen in the OMORI route, when the two often share witty banter regarding their favorite nerdy medias- or sharing cooking tips & tricks!

MARI is worried about FLOWER, but tries to cheer her up by dragging her along to each of the picnics, and lightly teasing her. MARI is the one FLOWER is closest too, and in OMORI route, you can find FLOWER dancing to MARI’s flute music, or playing small games like truth or dare with HERO. (…Though, she always seems to pick truth?)

OMORI isn’t one to really make a comment on anyone, but he’s typically polite & respectful to her all the same. She’s BASIL’s older sister, after all.

PHOTO ALBUM;

FLOWER appears in a handful of photos, but typically is partially out of frame, or hiding. she’s a bit camera shy…

(3-2-1 DAYS LEFT in game);

In the OMORI game setting, FLOWER can be found working the first few days in the FIX-IT'S garden section, where you can chat a little- and get some anxious rambled dialogue about her brother.

3 Days Left

“Oh..! Hey, SUNNY… I don’t know the last time I've seen you on your own…”

“Say, SUNNY… You don’t happen to know anything about how BASIL’s doing right now, do you?”

2 Days Left

“SUNNY… could you drop a GINO'S order off at my house for me? I’m so busy with work, I might not be home to make BASIL dinner tonight…”

[*FLOWER gives you $25, but can be used for whatever. If you try to do as she says, you end up in the Pizza job mini game instead…. POLLY will make him something… probably.*]

1 Day Left

FLOWER can now be found inside her & her siblings home, cooking dinner with POLLY. If you try to talk to her, she mumbles something about her worries about BASIL, but otherwise incomprehensible due to sheer quietness.

(sprites by @/wario_car on twitter)

ENDINGS

FLOWER can be found in BASIL’s hospital room, lightly hugging her brother from beside the bed- very clearly worried.

Good (Secret) ending; With BASIL smiling, you are approached by your friends, and FLOWER wishes you goodbye with the rest of them. The forgiveness of BASIL allows her to move on as well :)

SUNNY route; After SUNNY reveals the truth, FLOWER leaves the room, and is not seen for the rest of the end. In an extended storyline she has gone into a mental spiral of sorts, but it’s not relevant to the game’s plot.

Neutral route; If BASIL dies at the sleepover, FLOWER is seen with her forehead pressed against his bedroom door and hand on the doorknob, crying and apologizing repeatedly.

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

OMORI route; dreamworld FLOWER is talking again! She shows some of the ballet dance moves she’s been trying to learn to the group if interacted with on MARI's mat, and features little chime-ins to chat with her & her brothers’ friends. MARI teases her, and she’s more willing to play with the others. She can be seen in boss rush, where she cheers on all your friends from the sidelines. So long as BASIL is back, she’s happy!

more flower content here:

[this-is-a-podcast-fanblog]

i need to hear your reasoning on janet coming back and also what you think will / want to happen when she does

Oh boy. Okay, to be completely honest based on Finknoriams' writing, in my heart of hearts I don't think she is going to come back. From a narrative perspective by all rules of how to write a plot, she should, but Fink and Cranor haven't been interested in following the rules of plot for a long time and Brie Williams only became an official writer after that season was already over. And they also said on Patreon that Janet Varney was only booked for a limited number of voice spots as Lubelle. So don't expect her to come back again based on one dyke on Tumblr saying she should. If she does ever return it will likely be years from now when they bring back older material, like what's happening now with Kevin.

However, they SHOULD bring her back, and here's why and here's what I want to happen.

Buckle up.

Narratively, the University of What It Is arc was just unsatisfying. The first time they were ever mentioned was all the way back in year three, when a faculty member named Sylvia Kayyali came to Night Vale while Carlos was in the Desert Otherworld. She told Cecil that Carlos had been missing for several decades. At the time, this seemed to fit into the whole idea of "time doesn't work in Night Vale", especially with the later reveal that time doesn't work in the Desert Otherworld but like, even more so. Except when Janet arrived, she didn't seem to think Carlos had been missing for years. She didn't even seem that interested in Carlos when she first arrived.

Janet's introduction came in the form of a post-credit voicemail, where she said that Kareem Nazari got in touch with the UOWII to tell them about Night Vale. Why would Kareem need to do that if they already knew what Night Vale was? Secondly, when Kayyali came to town over seven years ago, she said that her University had no science department aside from Carlos and ever since he left there were no scientists on staff. So how could Dr. Janet Lubelle, a dedicated scientist with a huge research team, have not only materialized in the University's staff but also become interim dean of their new branch over the course of just seven years?

In writing, there's premise and then there's plot. Sometimes the two don't line up. Take something like Repo the Genetic Opera as an example. The concept of that musical is a world where people can finance their organs from a large corporation called Geneco, which will repossess those organs if the lender doesn't pay. That's a really interesting premise, and the story could use it to talk about Capitalism and the insurance industry. However, the story isn't interested in those things, and it uses its premise as more of a backdrop for the actual story, which is a family drama and a coming-of-age. Just because a writer sets up a premise for their story doesn't necessarily mean that the premise needs to be explored in great depth.

Or, to use another example, take Breaking Bad. When Walter decides he'll start cooking meth for Gus Fring, there's already a lab built, and Gus already has a huge distribution system that he can easily plug Walter into. How he built that lab and got connected to this system isn't really important to the plot, because the plot can't continue if he doesn't have it. He has it because he needs to have it. But the story carefully gives us enough glimpses into Gus's past, his connections with the cartel, and his operation, that it makes sense for him to have this lab and network. It doesn't feel contrived, it feels realistic.

I mean, Night Vale itself sort of follows this idea, at least for the first few seasons. It's a town where every conspiracy theory is true. Why is every conspiracy theory true? Who knows! Here's the weather. Of course, by now the show has been going on for so long that the how and why have been fleshed out a little more, but it's ultimately not important to the story how Night Vale works. Until Doctor Janet Lubelle, who wants to know why everything is the way it is.

That's how she was presented, at least. But again with premise versus plot: the story says that Janet wants to understand why everything is the way it is, the reality shows that she wants to just explain everything away. As such, her motivations are really unclear. And like I've already said, you can have a premise that raises questions without needing to answer them all. The problem is that this season introduces so many questions to the point that they sometimes conflict with each other and ultimately the story of the season just doesn't make sense. This is all wrapped up in "Carlos, Explained", to a degree that doesn't actually make sense.

Q: Why did Kareem Nazari call the University of What It Is?

A: Doesn't matter.

Q: How did Janet get hundreds of scientists to come to Night Vale with her anyway, if Carlos was the only science professor seven years ago?

A: Doesn't matter.

Q: Does Janet want to understand how everything in Night Vale works?

A: No, she's just going to explain things away.

Q: Then does she not care how things work?

A: No, she just wants to prove a point.

Q: What is the point she's trying to prove?

A: That her version of science is better than Carlos's.

Q: And why is she trying to prove that?

A: Because Carlos took away all of her funding years ago.

Q: Then why didn't she come to town years ago if she knew Carlos was here all along?

A: Doesn't matter.

Q: Then why did she wait an entire year to explain Carlos away?

A: Because she wanted to destroy Night Vale first.

Q: But why did she want to destroy Night Vale?

A: To fuck with Carlos.

Q: Then why did she seemingly not care about Carlos at all for the entire year she was there or the entire seven years before that?

A: Doesn't matter.

Q: Then why did her team entirely abandon her if she'd brought them out here for the express purpose of fucking with Carlos?

A: That's not why she brought them out here.

Q: Then why did she?

A: Doesn't matter.

And the problem is that you can continue these circular questions forever. No, we don't need to know exactly how Janet recruited all her scientists or how she became Interim Dean, but her motivations and the story as a whole don't have enough internal logic. The only way to successfully conclude this arc would have been to give it way more time, and that just didn't happen.

But at the end of the day, what was the story of Janet Lubelle actually about? We've talked a lot about concept versus execution. Repo! the Genetic Opera is about taking people's organs for an insurance market, sure, but at the heart, it's about family. Breaking Bad is a story about a meth kingpin, but at the heart it's a story about change. Spirited Away is about growing up. American Gods is about religion and memory. Night Vale is a Jewish folktale and a love story.

What is the story of Janet Lubelle? Is it a revenge story? If it is, it doesn't set up the motivations for revenge, because I'm sorry but one episode where Janet says Carlos stole her funding is not enough of a motivation. Is it a story about how power corrupts? Then you have to give us some inclination of where her power stems from. Is it, as some people have suggested, a story about how a rigid system of conformity tries to erase queerness? Yes, this sounds right at first, but the text doesn't hold that idea up enough when we barely know anything about the University as a whole or Janet as an individual. Is the story just that some people are bad? To be honest, that's not a very interesting story.

I like all of these concepts individually, but they don't come together enough to create a satisfying narrative. Janet Lubelle as a character has a lot of potential, especially since she's the first person to permanently kill off some Night Vale regulars like Sarah Sultan and the Glow Cloud. I think her relationship to the town as an enemy is interesting.

What I would like to see, if she comes back, is exploring her relationship to the town as someone who can't leave. Carlos was a scientist who came to Night Vale with wide eyes and fascination, who fell in love with it easily and decided to stay in spite of his skepticism. It's also strongly implied throughout the show that if the town wants you, it's not going to let you go. I'd love to see Janet coming to terms with the fact that she's stuck in a town she tried to destroy. How could Night Vale challenge her worldview? How could it deradicalize her from her idea that anything unfamiliar needs to be destroyed? Could she accept that Carlos has won again, or would she be a permanent minor antagonist like Kevin, someone to come up and be foiled ever so often?

There's a lot left to explore with Dr. Janet Lubelle. It probably won't be, but I'll happily talk about her anytime someone wants me to.

[beardedmrbean]

A 29-year-old woman who stabbed to death a man who "loved and supported" her because he ran out of money has been jailed for at least 25 years.

Lauren Harris, of no fixed address, murdered David Mark Wilcox at his flat with accomplice David Webster, who bludgeoned him with a vodka bottle.

Webster, 43, of Lacey Street, Widnes, Cheshire, was jailed for at least 23 years after the pair were convicted last week.

Mr Justice Pepperall told Harris at Mold Crown Court the killing of the 65-year-old, who "had loved and supported you,” was "brutal and senseless".

A third man, Thomas Whitely, 33, of Colwyn Bay, had also been charged with murder but was cleared.

The jury heard that North Wales Police went to a property in Bay View Road, near Colwyn Bay town centre, in Conwy county, where Mr Wilcox was found stabbed and battered to death in an armchair.

He had been punched, kicked and stamped on and had broken ribs.

During sentencing Mr Justice Pepperall said: "I detect no remorse."

At one point as she was led into the dock Harris sang Shania Twain's Man! I Feel Like a Woman!

Andrew Ford KC, prosecuting, told jurors she had previous convictions for assault, including an unlawful wounding in 2022 in which a knife was used against a partner in a block of flats in Old Colwyn.

CCTV footage was played to the court and footage was also played of her assaulting men in the centre of Wrexham and Colwyn Bay.

Mr Ford said Harris also had a string of convictions for theft.

Harris had used Mr Wilcox’s bank cards at two ATMs in a bid to withdraw cash for drugs.

The judge said the murder may have happened out of anger that the money had dried up. Harris had crashed and abandoned Mr Wilcox’s car soon after the murder.

The court heard Harris took a “leading” role.

But the judge told Webster, who had a history of violence: "You were a willing accomplice in this brutal crime. It was you who bludgeoned your victim with a vodka bottle."

Mr Justice Pepperall said Webster lied about how he had Mr Wilcox’s watches.

"The appalling truth is you stole one of the watches from a dying man’s wrist," he said.

The court heard Mr Wilcox had moved to support Harris as he sought to turn her life around, but he started to struggle with his finances.

In the days before he was killed she began a relationship with Webster.

The court heard they spent money on drugs.

“This was a sustained and vicious attack in which you showed Mr Wilcox no mercy,” the judge said.

"From his defensive injuries it was clear the victim suffered greatly.”

Dean Quick of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Mr Wilcox was stabbed in his own home, suffering injuries that proved to be fatal.

“The CPS placed all the evidence before the jury who have returned guilty verdicts for Harris and Webster.

“Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Mr Wilcox who have had to deal with a terrible loss.”

Supt Sarah-Jayne Williams of North Wales Police called the killing “violent and senseless".

“Harris and Webster callously murdered Mark in his own home in a sustained attack, where he should have been safe," she said.

[scoobydoodean]

2.19 Folsom Prison Blues

[alienelvisobsession]

The Quentin Tarantino Connection

When he was a teenager in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Quentin Tarantino was by his own admission way into ‘50s rockabilly music. “I was like the second coming of Elvis Presley. I dyed my hair black. I wore it in a big ole pompadour”, he said in an interview. In his recent book Cinema Speculation, he writes about discussing cinema with his mom’s black friend Floyd, who was into blaxploitation. He loved hearing Floyd’s first-hand accounts of being a black Elvis fan back in the 1950s, also rebuking claims that the King of Rock ‘n Roll was racist. He even included “Elvis impersonator” in his early résumé and it must have paid out because he was cast as one in an episode of the sit-com The Golden Girls in 1988. Incidentally, Tarantino was born in Elvis’ home state of Tennessee, where his mother is from, and as a kid was even left there for a year, describing his family as “hillbilly alcoholics”.

Elvis often comes up in his movies. For example in a deleted scene of his now classic film Pulp Fiction (1994), Mia Wallace uses a hand-held video camera to interview Vincent Vega with either/or questions. She explains the game as follows: “There are only two kinds of people in the world, Beatles people and Elvis people”. Mia has no doubts about Vincent’s allegiance. With his swagger, callback to “Grease” and dance moves, John Travolta is an Elvis man through and through.

Of course, Mia and Vincent later go a to ‘50s themed diner called Jack Rabbit Slim’s, where they have the famous twist contest dancing to Chuck Berry’s “You Never Can Tell”. The waiters are all dressed like dead stars from the 1950s, such as Marilyn Monroe, James Dean and Buddy Holly. Even though, as Vincent would put it, the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll must have had the night off, in Mia’s words “an Elvis man should love it”. Tarantino said that the design for the diner, where the guests sit in booths made like ‘50s vintage cars and the dance floor looks like a tachometer, was partially inspired by the nightclub with race car motifs in one of Elvis’ movies, Speedway (1968).

Tarantino references Elvis here and there in his work. In the novelization of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood that he wrote, for example, Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie) is described by his agent Marvin (Al Pacino) as having spent all his career “running pocket combs through his pompadour”, which by 1969 not even Elvis has anymore.

His biggest Elvis homage came very early on in his career, though. As a matter of fact, to finance what would become his first movie, Reservoir Dogs (1992), Tarantino auctioned a script that he had written, True Romance. It was made into a movie by Tony Scott and it ultimately came out in 1993. True Romance begins with a casual conversation about pop culture in the style of Mr. Brown with his infamous “Like a Virgin” theory in Reservoir Dogs. Clarence (Christian Slater) is at a bar, chatting up a girl. Like Tarantino, Clarence prefers ‘50s Elvis and praises Jailhouse Rock (the movie not the song) where Elvis was everything that rockabilly was about: “Mean, surly, nasty, rude”. And then, obviously interested in picking up the girl, he continues: “Elvis looked good. I mean, I ain’t no fag, but Elvis was prettier than most women, you know. Most women. You know, I always said if I had to fuck a guy – you know, I mean, had to – if my life depended on it, I’d fuck Elvis”. Tarantino establishes the rules for his story right away: just like you have fantasies where you wish you were Elvis or as cool as Elvis, or you wish you could fuck him, this movie is a whole fantasy where you wish you were a hero who had a crazy adventure and passionate love story involving pimps, drugs and guns.

Clarence, an alter ego for the author, falls madly in love with Alabama (Patricia Arquette), a call girl. Clarence loves martial arts movies, comic books, hamburgers and Elvis, just like the film director. He also wears Elvis glasses and drives a purple Cadillac. Throughout the movie, Elvis pops up several times, in magazines, on T-shirts and on furniture or posters. The most striking appearance is obviously when Clarence sees Elvis (Val Kilmer) in the bathroom mirror, dressed in his gold lamé suit but anachronistically sporting his ‘70s big glasses. Elvis tells Clarence that he has to kill Alabama’s pimp, and there the adventure begins.

In Cinema Speculation, which sits halfway between film criticism and memoir, Tarantino goes back to Elvis several times. He writes that Elvis could have been the biggest movie star of the 1960s, if it weren’t for Colonel Parker’s greediness and for the weight of his own enormous success in the music business. He even mentions excitedly that Elvis was considered for the role of Sundance in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) opposite Warren Beatty, before the roles went to Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

Tarantino has always took a liking for B movies, so it doesn’t come as a surprise to learn that he’s not dismissive of Elvis movies as a whole and writes about a few of them in detail. He considers Flaming Star (1960), for instance, to be “a truly great fifties Western, and maybe the most brutally violent American western of its era.” According to him, the film director, Don Siegel, who would go on to direct Dirty Harry (1971), was a master when it came to film fistfights and chase sequences. This was because of his background in editing and his penchant for violence. Tarantino also praises Don Siegel’s unexpected use of shocking bouts of violence, of which there are several in Flaming Star. His protagonists, including Elvis’ Pacer, were often at odds with the society they lived in, which reflected the way Siegel felt around film executives and producers. “Pod people” is how he called them, in reference to his movie The Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and in this category he included Elvis’ nefarious manager, Colonel Tom Parker.

Tarantino recognizes that Elvis movies weren’t real movies but “ElvIs movies”, but he’s a fan of Roustabout (1964) nevertheless. He describes it as: “a pretty entertaining little picture chock-full of cool elements, Elvis entering the movie on a motorcycle—dressed head to toe in black leather […], a strong Big Valley era Barbara Stanwyck as his colead, a one-line bit at the beginning by Raquel Welch, the best soundtrack of any of Elvis’ color films, including a rarity for the King on film—Elvis singing a cover of somebody else’s hit, the Coasters’ Little Egypt, and the only film where Elvis gets to demonstrate his Ed Parker-taught karate moves.” Because of course Tarantino loves martial arts movies, just like Elvis did. And blaxploitation, hamburgers, comic books and being over the top. They would have been great friends.

Read here my previous posts on Elvis connections. So far I’ve written about Jimi Hendrix, Andy Warhol/Bob Dylan, the Clash and Jim Morrison.

[urne-buriall]

Dreamy Drabble Prompt: Adventure

It was between them and the family adventure park, and on Dean to convince the financer, Rich, to fund the money-sink of a blind horse rescue.

After a tour of the farm they clustered around the kitchen table. Dean paged through budgets, blueprints of new outbuildings, program plans for some small revenue. Cas' knee knocked against Dean's to stop it bouncing.

Rich sat back, looking around with long consideration, then pinned his eyes on Dean and Cas.

"You're together," he said. So flat and plain that Dean struggled to respond.

Rich took out his chequebook. "My Dave just loves horses."

prompts :: spirit of the west

[thesashawick]

DANDELIONS: CH. 1 ARRIVING LATE

The day was cold, and Peter was running terribly late.

Harley was going to kill him, and Peter wouldn’t stop him. He deserved it. What kind of friend forgot his best friend’s birthday party? Especially when Peter was the one who had manned almost the entire thing. Truly, he didn’t know what was happening in his mind, lately he had been so stressed with the finances of his little family, that he had no space left for any other things. May was barely holding her job as a nurse with all the harassment she received from the Dean, and Peter was juggling three part-time jobs that were quickly becoming the bane of his existence, and high school and patrol. His grades didn’t suffer, thank goodness, but he was slowly being so overwhelmed with everything that he wasn’t sure how long he would hold on. And now, his personal life was suffering too.

Harley was the only friend that Peter had, a real friend that didn’t care if he was a scholarship kid, or that he was loaded with money, nor did he want Peter near to bully homework from him. Harley only cared about Peter, the nerdy kid that liked Star Wars and who was a fan of his dad; the Peter that spoke for hours about this or that, or that was smarter than anyone would give him credit for. Harley was a true friend, and Peter didn’t want to lose him.

So, he ran faster, using his Spider Man abilities to run as fast as he possibly could without being suspicious, evading people and trash cans left and right. He had to stop at some point, he was still ten minutes away from the Tower, and he was two hours late to his best friend’s party. Darn it, Harley is really going to kill me. However, no matter if he gently shoved people away, or if he outright tried to find another way outside of the lot of people that had trapped him into moving at a snail’s pace, Peter still found himself stuck ten minutes away from the Tower.

If Mr. Stark didn’t like me before, he definitely doesn’t like me now. He will think I stood up Harley.

That thought made his heart clench and a tight knot form in his throat. If there was anything worse than losing his only friend, it certainly was losing his access to seeing his hero up close, to make the man of his dreams disappointed in him, that was truly a catastrophe. Don’t think that way! Think about your best friend and not his dad! He scolded himself, full of reproach. It wasn’t right to think like that, like Harley wasn’t important, and as if Peter only was Harley’s friend because of Mr. Stark. But that was the truth, wasn’t it? You only got close to him because being his friend was being a step near Mr. Stark. It was your fix before he introduced you to his dad. Peter clenched his jaw tightly enough that it hurt. No, he thought back resolutely, I would never use someone like that.

The cold had subsided, replaced by the uncomfortable heat of the bodies coming off from the people surrounding him. Peter tried to see above the shoulders of those in front of him, and cursed in his mind when he saw an ambulance and squad cars blocking the way. Peter blinked, when did that happen? He didn’t remember hearing the sound of an ambulance or that of a squad car. Nor did he remember there being an accident in any way. He looked around and found himself in front of the Tower. The group of people around him were in fact witnesses who seen the accident happen. That’s not… normal, I don’t remember arriving here.

There was a fog inside his mind, like there was some sort of fog machine obscuring his view of things. It was odd, and worrying and…an alarm ringed in his phone, waking him up from that train of thought. I’ll worry about that later. I’m already late to the party.

He shook his head, dismissing his thought about it. I’m probably just overwhelmed with things. It’s probably nothing. He turned around and walked into the Tower’s reception. Better late than never.

He went to the reception that managed the entry to Mr. Stark’s floors. The reception was brightly decorated, lived in, and painted of a soft pastel blue. It screamed of someone with a vibrant personality, someone exactly like the woman behind it.

“Hi, Albany!” He greeted the young receptionist with an animated wave of his right hand. “How are you today? Work’s been good to you?”

The young woman, with her bright pink hair and her wide smile, waved back. “Hello Peter! I’m fine, you know how it is. And yeah, work’s been good, I’m mostly on my phone or haunting the place.”

Peter laughed. “I’m sure everyone here adores you, and don’t consider you doing rounds around as haunting.” And he was sure of it, he wasn’t saying it just because. Albany was good company.

Albany gestured with her hand dismissively. “Bah, now you are just flattering little old me.” Then she got a secretive expression. “But you better get going, I’m sure you’re going to love it up there.”

“Okay…?”

That was weird.

Peter waved her goodbye and crossed the security point after chatting a bit with Dave and Jonas, the security guards that guarded the elevators. He was sure they had been Secret Service or something like that. Going up to the elevators, he chose the one Mr. Stark had always told him to use and got in after showing his bracelet to the little security pad with the camera. The doors opened for him, and once they were closed the voice of JARVIS greeted him.

“Good evening, Mr. Parker.”

He loved being in on the secret that was JARVIS, the wonderful creation that he was. Mr. Stark truly was a magnificent man with skilled hands and an incredible mind.

“Good evening to you too, JARVIS.” He said. “I hope Harley isn’t too angry with me?”

JARVIS’s belated response made him worry. “The Young Mister Stark did not seem to be angry.”

That eased his mind a bit. Maybe Harley knew that it wasn’t on purpose. Or maybe Peter had worried too much about nothing. It wasn’t like his best friend would be alone, he probably was having a lot of fun with his other friends.

“Thank you JARVIS.”

“You’re welcome, Mr Parker.”

The rest of the ride up was silent. And Peter did his best to look as good as he could in the brief moments that he had. He truly despised Miranda for convincing him to fill in place of Luke, but then again, he did need the money and she wasn’t aware that Peter had other things to do in his free day. So maybe he didn’t despise her, and instead, he despised his situation.

He shook his head, trying to get his hair to look good. Then, after a few seconds, he gave up with an exasperated sigh, it wasn’t worth it. He was in his work uniform, nothing short of changing and showering would make him look decent. Just as he lowered his hand, the doors of the elevator opened into Mr. Stark’s penthouse, it was empty, by the looks of it, even if the lights were on. He didn’t get off, his Spidey Sense going off like a brat being told his mom wouldn’t buy him what he wanted.

“Uh, JARVIS? I was supposed to get off on Harley’s floor…”

So maybe his best friend was angry at him.

“Sir requests that you meet him before going down.”

His heart began to pound against his chest, his hands clammy with sweat. The only thought in his mind was that Mr. Stark wanted to speak alone with him. Alone. With Peter.

He was stepping outside of the elevator before he could think better of it.

[movies-to-add-to-your-tbw]

Title: The Book of Henry

Rating: PG-13

Director: Colin Trevorrow

Cast: Naomi Watts, Jaeden Martell, Jacob Tremblay, Sarah Silverman, Maddie Ziegler, Lee Pace, Dean Norris, Bobby Moynihan, Tonya Pinkins, Geraldine Hughes, Jackson Nicoll, Joel Marsh Garland, Wass Stevens, Marjan Neshat, Maxwell Simkins, Donnetta Lavinia Grays, Mary Joy

Release year: 2017

Genres: drama, crime, thriller

Blurb: Susan, a single mother of two, works as a waitress in a small town. Her son Henry is an 11-year-old genius who not only manages the family finances, but also acts as emotional support for his mother and younger brother. When Henry discovers that the girl next door has a terrible secret, he implores Susan to take matters into her own hands.

[theangiediary]

happy wincest wednesday! what's your favorite headcanon for how femme John wanted Dean to be? Not at all, kind of blurry boundaries, panties & apron, etc --?

I'm not sure if I'm reading this correctly: fem!Dean (Deanna) or feminized masc!Dean? (I've only met guys irl that describe themselves as femme if they also identify as gay, which Dean canonically.. isn't). But I have two answers!

For Deanna, I think he would have wanted someone like Ellen Ripley (or Ellen Harvelle lol). Strong, brave, unfussy, but also beautiful, patient, maternal. A Man's Woman, not girly. Femme? Sure, but she probably wouldn't know that word.

And Dean.. well. I think he's very pretty, very malleable, and absolutely adorable when treated with tenderness. I love the idea of them getting into Moods where Dean acts as John's little wife, all sweet and servicing in his little pink panties 🩷. Role playing Sam as their kid (pillow talk about how Sammy's doing in school, what John needs to tune up in his truck, where their finances are, etc). But outside these moments they keep Dean's role as Big Brother, which isn't quite Mother. Simultaneous with the Protect drive is this.. sameness? Between brothers? There's an 24/7 ownership to Mother ("I'd die for MY baby") that looks more like duty in siblings ("sometimes he's my best friend, sometimes I hate him, but when it comes down to it I'll give my life for him bc I HAVE to").

I have no idea if that makes sense. Basically, no, for like 80% of the time, when they're not fucking, John and/or Sam don't want Dean to be femme. They can get what they need from him in masc form.

But Dean's got issues and insecurities up the wazoo, including about his appearance, sexualization, and soft hearted/family centeredness that comes from society/others, so pressing on those during sex is delicious. John stroking Dean's teary face, bc he's just so so full and it hurts, and calling him babygirl? Yes. John coming up behind Dean at the stove and putting one hand on his hip, the other on his tit, and nipping at neck and ears while telling him he "treats us so good"? Yeah. Sam can also do those things, but it'd probably be more "you're so beautiful" and "treats ME so good".

I also have a soft spot for them slow dancing, where John doesn't even think to let Dean lead, and Dean never asks 🥺.

(I play less often with Dean initiating any more than subtle flirting/begging, but I'm open to it. Silent communication after John gets back from a hunt, climbing into his bed at night, acting goofy with too much to drink and shaking his ass in John and/or Sam's face. Which is getting away from your ask, but during these things I imagine Dean's inner dialogue might skew towards femme-ish patterns, like "why am I acting like this I'm not Mary" "he probably thinks I'm so needy" "I want to wear his ring".)