#my man probably just walked in to see Sam getting mad at Jim and then seeing him leave his empty cup on the table went

[bardicious]

LMAOOOO. omfg, I just realized that Spock saw Sam leave his empty cup on Jim and Uhura's table, and then introduced himself with a "frustrating" while taking that empty cup and giving it to the waiter. LMAOOO SAM KIRK IS A SLOB AND SPOCK HAS HAD ENOUGH.

[adhdeancas]

Sunset Sound: God is Dead?

I might start updating twice a week because I am writing this story at BREAKNECK speed. this is my favorite chapter so far. enjoy! (special thanks to @friedchickenangelwings once again for sticking with me and my incessant rambling about this story at all hours during holidays)

Fic Summary:  Everything is the same up to the end of 15x20. Chuck has been “defeated,” but it was all a farce. When Jack absorbed Chuck, Chuck easily took over the 3 year old’s body and acted as if he were defeated. Chuck!Jack then had the Rusty Nail placed in the barn where Dean died, and with Cas gone, Dean didn’t fight it. Chuck did reimagine Heaven, but he’s fed the same lie to them all: that everything is perfect, they are free, they are in real paradise. Except it’s all an illusion insulated by blue skies and endless horizons. Because, just like the Good Place, people make Heaven into Hell for each other. And there’s nothing Chuck loves more than the natural order of tragedy. He “let it slip” to Bobby that he brought Cas back, when he really left him to rot in the Empty. Dean has to find his best friend before it’s too late, and he has to keep a happy face for everyone else, because Chuck is watching. Always watching. 

“You know?” Dean shakes his head. “What’s going on?” 

Charlie leans back against the bar. “Well, after Ash and I found each other-” they give a cute little nod of the head in sync, dorks, “through the frankly shitty wifi they’ve got up here, we got to talking.” 

“Yeah, we realized some shit just didn’t add up. Like angel radio.” Ash spins around and ducks into his backroom, coming back with a laptop that’s way more advanced than it was last time. Dean raises his eyebrows at it. “Yeah, man, it’s sick, right? Charlie upgraded my systems, it’s bitchin’.” he reaches past Dean’s shoulder to give Charlie a fist bump (enthusiastically returned) and Dean backs off. 

“Yeah, bitchin’,” Dean repeats with a grin. He’s too dumb for these people. But he sure is glad they’re on his side.  “Well, hey, show me whatcha got.” 

Ash nods and taps his temple. He mutters to himself and pulls the system toward him while Dean watches anxiously. Ash pauses and looks at him. “Dude. Gimme a second? This setup is a lil’ more complicated than your blackberry.”

Dean snorts and gives him space, followed by Charlie. “Dude. you’ve been dead too long. Blackberrys haven’t existed for like… ten years.”

Ash gives him a genial middle finger and Dean grins. Charlie sits up on the pool table and Dean leans against it next to her. “Listen, Charlie, I gotta. I gotta say sorry, again, for…” He clears his throat. 

“Dying?” Charlie asks lightly.

“Uh, yeah.” 

“Not your fault, Dean.” She shrugs, and she actually manages to look cheerful. Damn, Dean loves this chick. She puts her hand on his shoulder and shakes her head. “Seriously, Dean. Let it go! I have! Seriously, I got to spend a few years with my high school girlfriend watching Lord of the Rings - she was a cheerleader - and sneaking out to design some fucking world-altering programs with Ash! Being dead, for me, it’s kinda amazing.” She smiles at him. “Guessing you don’t feel the same though, huh?” 

Dean swallows. He doesn’t know how much he wants to say about that, but being dead… it definitely sucks. And not in the good way. “Guess it just feels like I got more to do. Now, at least.” Now that Cas is… and heaven is…

Charlie looks like she doesn’t know what to say. Luckily, they’re interrupted before she has to think of something.

“Eyo! Sorry, amigos,” he leans over backwards to look at them. “Found it.” 

Charlie jumps off the table and grabs Dean’s hand. After a few steps she shoves him with her shoulder until he bumps into Ash’s back. Dean bounces off his soft form and clears his throat. “Sorry,” he mutters, throwing a death glare back at his surrogate sister. She flashes him a smug grin before focusing back on the computer screen. 

Ash recovers from getting jostled in time to point. “Yeah, so, we got word on Angel FM that this Jack kid is goin’ real Jim Jones over here.” He holds a finger up at several paragraphs as he’s flipping through them. “Preachin’ all kinda love and peace and hippy commune shit, but if somebody even questions it, he snaps. Naomi no-likey,” He smirks up at Dean and points to a group of cuss-words even Dean barely uses. “Rough translation.” 

Dean shakes his head. “That doesn’t sound like Jack.” Jack, especially Jack-with-a-soul, almost never got mad. I mean, he’d spent quality time with Lucifer without blowing up. The kid is level-headed to a fault. “Anything else?”

Ash frowns at him. “Y’know, going through angels’ personal phone calls is a lotta work.” 

Dean rolls his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you’re a genius. Got anything else?” 

“Ash, what about the human rumors?” 

Ash looks at Charlie and they have a silent battle of wills, but Dean’s too impatient to see who wins. “What human rumors?” 

They pause and come to an agreement. “Fighting. People fighting. Couples. Families. Friends. All over, since the reboot. People are happy, but… it’s like earth. People can talk - people can fight.” 

“And?” Dean raises his eyebrows. There’s something they’re not telling him, and he thinks he knows what.

Ash raises them right back. He’s not about to divulge. “Hombre, this ain’t earth. People are supposed to be happy. If they ain’t… like a glitch in the matrix, y’know?

Dean grunts. “Anything else weird on the radio? Anything at all.” 

Ash’s sigh sounds labored. He leans back in his chair and wobbles, obviously sorting through all the enochian bullshit he’s read over the past… whenever. “Meh… I got… I don’t know, God was singing?” 

“Singing? Singing what?” Dean leans in, intent. If it was Taylor Swift, Beyonce, maybe Lizzo… 

Ash cocks an eyebrow. “Folk shit. Indie music.” 

That’s what Dean was afraid of. “Shit.”

“Why? What does that mean?” Charlie grabs onto his arm. 

Dean’s worst fears, that’s what. “It means that ain’t my kid. It’s Chuck.” 

“Who the hell is that?” Ash stands up as Dean walks away, cursing every stupid atom that had decided to make this dumb universe. Although, he guesses, that was Chuck’s purview too. 

“He’s god! God before the reboot I mean, the dick who up and left and only came back to screw me and Sam over. Fuck, I thought we’d finally gotten out from under his thumb! Now, apparently, he’s just using my kid for his meat-suit.” Dean takes a deep breath. This is bad. Worse than bad-bad. 

“So… what do we do? How do we nuke God?” Charlie asks the question like it’s normal, just another Saturday afternoon. 

Dean thumps his forehead onto the nearest table. Sure, sure, good, great. They were back to square fucking one. “I don’t fucking know,” 

“Alright, break it down. We need more mojo, right? How do we get more mojo?” 

“Well, angels are the next best thing, right? Maybe if we get them all together, they’re obviously not psyched about folk-God, or whatever,”

Ash points at her like she’s a genius. “Alright, yeah!” 

“Guys, there aren’t enough angels left to even try.” Dean feels hopeless. There’s nothing to do. They are literally out of options. There’s no hope. 

“Well, where can we get some more angels, then?” 

Dean stands up. “I know a place.” His heart feels like it’s being squeezed like a lemon. It’s a crazy idea. It’s practically impossible. And probably suicide. And he’s gotta find a way. “We gotta break open the Empty.” 

“The Empty?” Ash looks skeptical. Dean smirks. 

“Yeah, angel/demon afterlife. We punch our way in there and we’ve got juice for days, man.” He spreads his arms out, asks the question. 

Ash glances at Charlie then back at Dean. He sniffs and nods. “I’m in.” 

Dean looks to Charlie, who scoffs. “Duh. Of course. So what, we get in and say pretty please help us kill your dad?” 

A warm feeling spreads through Dean’s chest. “Well, we’ll have a little help on the inside. Cas.”

“Castiel? The angel dude?” 

“He’s dead?” Charlie’s voice has much more concern than Ash’s. Dean nods in response to both questions. It still makes him feel like he’s swallowing glass to think about it. “What happened?” 

Dean looks down at his boots. It’s only the scene that keeps playing on repeat behind his eyelids. Cas crying, holding onto his shoulder, telling him… telling him goodbye. Telling him that. “He saved me.” he starts, expression guarded. “He made a deal.” 

Ash grunts and nods, ready to drop it. Charlie stays quiet too, but she clearly wants to say something. Dean’s thankful for the drop. He doesn’t know what he’d say if they asked more. All he knows is that he needs Cas back. And he needs to talk to him. He needs to tell him that - that he wants him to just stay fucking put, damn it. That he needs to stop dying on him. And that he can’t just go and say something like that and then leave. It’s a bitch-ass move. 

“Yo, Deano?” 

Dean jerks his head back up. “Yeah. Sorry.” 

“How do we jail-break ‘em?” 

“Guessing we’re gonna need some serious magic shit. And since we can’t get to Rowena…” 

Ash breaks into a wide grin. “Pamela? I’ll give her a call.” 

Pamela is “busy,” so they have to wait for her to finish up with Jesse before she can come by. Dean has to hand it to her, it’s just about the most Pamela thing in the world to put off their realms-saving work for a heavenly hookup. Dean hangs around talking for a bit, filling his friends in on the latest on Earth, but he can’t concentrate. Ever since they’d decided the next thing is to get into the Empty, he can’t relax. He takes his beer and goes outside to wait, settling down on the Roadhouse’s front step to watch for Pamela.

After a bit, Charlie plops down next to him, a soft grin on her lips. He returns it half-heartedly before looking out across the clearing. She leans her head against his shoulder. A few minutes pass in comfortable silence before she turns into him. “So we gotta get into the Empty.” she sighs. Dean nods glumly. Just his fucking luck. Even heaven is ruined. But at least… at least they’ve got a shot. “And get Castiel.” 

Dean frowns and pulls away to look at her. Maybe it’s just his paranoia, but he hears some deeper meaning in her voice. “The guy died for me. I gotta,” he presses his lips together, hating himself for the half-lie he’s telling. Cas deserves better. Charlie just nods and watches, like she’s waiting for him to keep going. When he manages to talk again, his voice cracks. “We gotta get him, Charlie.” 

Charlie pulls him into a side hug. “I always said he was dreamy, that angel.” She points out. Dean snorts. He remembers. He’d blushed like an idiot after she said that the first time. 

“Yeah.” He mutters. Okay, so she knows. That he and Cas are… that Dean’s… good. Cas deserves recognition. He deserves someone to talk about him. For Dean to talk about him. But then Charlie just hasn’t spoken, and he feels like he needs some explanation. “I… there were other guys, before him.” He continues, clearing his throat. His mind wanders to Benny and Lee, Crowley. “But he’s… he’s it.” 

He risks a look at Charlie and she is just staring at him with a fond smile. She surges forward and kisses his cheek, squealing. “Yes, I fucking knew it, you bisexual dumbass! Bi, right?” 

Dean laughs. “Yeah, I guess- wait, you knew?” 

Charlie looks around, like Dean’s a dumbass it was so obvious. “Well, yeah, dude. Game recognize game.” She motions between the two of them and he scoffs. That’s right. Gaydar. That would’ve been nice to have for the last, oh, 12 years? “We’ll get him back.” 

Dean pulls Charlie in for another hug and leaves her tucked under his arm until a motorcycle pulls up and Pamela gets off, shaking her hair loose like a blind slow-motion model in a porno. She grins at the pair on the steps like she can see them. “Take a picture, you two. It’ll last longer.”

“How did you-”

She throws a hand out in dismissal. “Please, I can feel ogling from a mile away.” She pauses, laughing at the embarrassed silence Charlie and Dean are sporting. “Nah, I’m just joking. I do the hair-shake for a reason. I deserve a good stare. Hell, it’s half the reason I own this motorcycle.” She throws her helmet in the general direction of the motorcycle and greets her friends. Dean can’t decide whose hug is more flirty, his or Charlie’s. 

“Alright, bitches. Let’s séance some shit.” 

tag list: (ask or dm to be removed or added)

@dochunterwitch  @justonecitizenoftheearth @gnbrules @purpe @castiel-is-a-cat @alienapparatus

[bruciewayne]

(pt. 5 stevetony ocean’s eleven au, ao3 link in bio)

Steve grins at the familiar face, “In my defence, someone didn’t want to tell me where he lived.”

Sam shrugs, waving him in, “You could have figured it out. You left Barnes and Nat alone together?”

“They didn’t give me much choice,” it would be incredibly debilitating to both his plan and his interpersonal relationships if they decided to kill each other in Nat’s rental.

“Yeah, they tend to do that. Anyway, spill.”

“Spill?”

Sam pats Steve’s shoulder in the way one would to mollify a distraught child, “You’ll catch up on the modern lingo soon.”

“I was inside for two years! Spill is old slang!” Steve defends.

“I see prison has done nothing for your habit of changing the topic.”

Steve scowls, “Stop doing your shrink-thing.”

“Stop changing the topic. What’s the plan.”

“Maybe I don’t have a plan. Maybe this is just a house call.”

“A house call? Like the way Washington in September of 2014 was a house call?”

“Well this one would be in Vegas, see,” Steve concedes.

Sam grins, shakes his head, “Man, I’ve missed you.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure you’re the only one.”

“Don’t fucking say shit like that, Rogers,” they hear Bucky snarl from behind them.

Steve knows it’s unfair, especially considering, well, everything, but he can’t help it. Thankfully, Nat shuts both of them up with a glare strong enough for them to table the inevitable argument. For now.

“Well. Go on then.”

“Right, it’s big,” Steve starts, hell, he’s barely sure if they can scrape together enough people who will still follow him to pull this off, but might as well act like he can, “bigger than what we’ve done before. We’ll need a big crew.”

“Guns?”

“Not loaded, no-one’s getting hurt,” Steve affirms.

“Glad to see your rules haven’t changed,” Bucky mutters.

Steve carries on as though Bucky hadn’t spoken, “It needs to be very precise, there’s a lot of security, but the take–”

“What’s the target?”

“Eight figures each.”

“Target?” Bucky asks again.

“You said Vegas? You want to hit a casino?” Sam asks, confused. They’d done casinos before.

“Three,” Steve says, pulling out a folded piece of paper.

Sam looks over it. Steve was right about it there being a lot of security, it’s looks like just about the least accessible vault ever designed, and that’s without the guards. “The… Asgard vault?”

“It feeds into The Hermes and The Chitauri,” Natasha says, “those are all…”

“Laufeyson’s places,” Steve confirms. Bucky looks like if he were a cartoon he would have steam pouring out his ears and lasers shooting from his eyes straight into Steve’s prefrontal cortex. Steve makes the executive decision to deal with that later. “Think he’ll mind?”

Sam grins, “Just a little.”

Steve explains the plan to them and lets them ruminate over it. Even he can admit it’s a little outlandish and even more foolish, but if they manage to pull it off…

“We’d need a big crew, multiple cons simultaneously, I know you still have contacts around–”

“But where are you even going to get the money to back this? Off the top of my head, I'd say we’re looking at a Boesky, a Jim Brown, a Miss Daisy, two Jethros, and a Leon Spinks. And probably the biggest Ella Fitzgerald ever.” Nat asks, cutting him off. Plans are all well and good but they’re worth jack if they don’t have the capital, and last she checked, none of them are millionaires. Yet.

“Loki has a long list of enemies.”

“Enemies with nothing to lose, loose cash, and trust in… oh.”

“Oh?” Bucky speaks up for the first time in a while. He knows where this is going and he likes it even less.

“Fury.”

“Hm.”

Steve rolls his eyes, “Buck don’t do that.”

“You want to work for Mr. Paranoid–”

“Actually I’m pretty sure it’s Colonel Paranoid–”

Bucky completely steamrolls over him, “–to take from the Fort Knox of casinos? Why? And don’t fucking say money ‘cause we both know that’s not it.”

“Well, why not?”

“Why not? Maybe because you could go back inside? Because the Asgard vault isn’t a little painting? Because you full well know that if you get caught Laufeyson won’t just come for you, he’ll come for your entire livelihood.”

“Good thing I don’t have much to lose.”

Bucky gives him a withering look. They’ve known each other long enough that Steve’s fully aware that if he’s not serious Bucky will walk straight out the door.

“Because yesterday I walked out of New Jersey with my entire wardrobe and a set of divorce papers, because we’re nothing compared to before, because the house always wins. You play long enough, never changing stakes, the house takes you. Unless, when that special hand comes around, you bet big. And then you take the house. We’re taking the house.”

“Fucking fine,” Bucky grumbles out, “but we still need to talk, Rogers.” That’s all the warning Steve gets before he’s being dragged out of Sam’s living room and into the front yard.

“I want you to promise me that you won’t get caught.”

Steve looks at him incredulously, “Do I look like I have control over the police force?”

“Tony does.”

If it weren’t for the gaggle of children passing by, Steve would have decked Bucky right then and there. “Don’t bring him into this.”

“No! You know what? No! You’re not getting arrested over him! Not again. I told you I wasn’t going to see you in prison and I stood by that. You don’t get to be mad.”

“I don’t get to be mad? I was behind bars!”

“Because of your own bullshit! Because you wanted too much and you lost it all!”

Steve grinds his teeth together, “Been talking to Tony?”

Bucky huffs, like he would ever voluntarily talk to Stark, “I watched the tape of his visit. You put on a good act.”

Steve remembers that day pretty well, he’d broken down crying in front of Tony, which hadn’t helped his reputation in the slightest, but like any half-decent con, he’d managed to just about turn the beating by the other inmates in his favour.

Steve takes a deep breath to centre himself before he throws the punch.

 “You can’t punch your way out of everything,” Natasha reminds him, cleaning up the cut on his cheek as Sam tosses a bag of frozen peas to Bucky.

“You shouldn’t’ve stopped him,” Bucky grumbles.

“What and let the both of you land yourselves in the ER before we hit Asgard?”

“Glad to know your priorities are straight, Romanoff,” Steve says, wincing as she applies antiseptic.

“Like yours are? Drop the fucking prison bullshit, we do this as a team or not at all. Apologise, both of you.”

“I’m sorry for going to prison,” Steve says, acrimony dripping from every syllable.

“Steve!”

“I’m sorry you continually make bad decisions,” Bucky says, matching his tony with Steve’s.

“James.”

“You know I’m not going to stop, I… you know how much Tony means to me, and I know he sent me the papers but he didn’t... he didn’t sign them. He didn’t sign them and I’m not going to give up on him until…”

“Until he gives up on you?”

“Well,” Steve smiles ruefully, “I suppose.”

A beat of silence passes over them.

“I do realise why you’re… annoyed. I’ll deal with my marriage after all this. I’m done with secrets,” Steve continues.

“Fine,” Bucky acquiesces.

“Fine?”

“Fine.”

“Right…” Sam says, slowly, “glad we got that over with. Time to find Col. Paranoia?”

“Sure, I wonder what he’ll say.”

[spnreactionblogging]

CARRY ON

spoilers below but I’m very late to the game

here we go!!! there's Some Woman in the thumbnail for this episode and I'm like oh boy did you fuckers turn castiel into a girl to make it Not Gay, I will riot. we're off to a dread-inducing start I'm honestly not even sure I want to watch this? I have not heard anything good but since my options are either keep SPN blacklisted forever but ultimately get spoiled anyway, or use my dwindling remaining time to see it for myself without being told what happens, may as well be on my own terms I am hearing that misha and possibly j2 were not happy with this, whatever this is (?????) yikes I don't understand how you even have another episode after the last one. that seems like a traditional ending. you either beat a dead horse or go ultra meta and it sounds like they dropped the ball, big time but let's see jack's sweet and deserved better. there's a clock but it's NOT heat of the moment playing, damn oh the dog. we love you miracle dog sam's still jogging where's eileen!!!! I like seeing sam cooking I actually enjoy watching them do domestic stuff dean sneaking food to the dog 😭 can this be the whole episode, just them doing chores I meant to catch which book sam was reading I can't tell but it looks like it's old this is extra bonus sad for knowing that they couldn't even like, have a wrap party or anything. extra isolated. :( SPECIAL GUEST STAR JIM BEAVER!!! "Are you sure you're ready for this?" "Oh, I don't have a choice." dean hasn't been this relatable to me in years, this is how I feel watching this lmao akron pie fest dean dies of complications from diabetes god I miss bakeries or restaurants or anything I do love Sad Sam Face "I"'m thinking about Cas, you know? Jack. If they could be here." thank you Sam that pain isn't going away for me either "stop being an eeyore" Sam's the Eeyore of the series, Dean, okay, and same lmao jared fucking slammed that pie into jensen's face and they just filmed it. you can see the actual glee on his face brady??? like sam's old classmate? wasn't that his name? or no some kid. is this just a regular-ass monster of the week. do sam and dean just get killed by like. regular people? are there no monsters anymore. I would actually love that. humanity is truly the worst monster of all. didn't we learn that in season 1 :') in "the benders" are these guys sam and dean? are they just murdering monster families like they did in the holiday episode? what is happening. are those dean's shoes. I could probably recognize how they walk if I really paid attention i guess not. probably. "singer and kripke, FBI" ha fucking clowns lmao poor sam they still have dad's journal, huh. THE LORE evil mimes. vamp-mimes. I guess they kill these dudes? we gonna unmask them or what there we go this guy looks like joseph gordon-levitt oh we love torture on this show this is definitely "dean who's NOT the ultimate killer" amirite "if those kids are dead he's gonna use a spoon" how very walter sullivan of you also I feel like sam would not do this anymore but hey who am I, someone who likes consistent characterization? lol we're back to creepy barns instead of wet pipe factories dean has a fucking shuriken lmao I honestly for real need a machete for the overgrown weeds I don't hate this so far? I'm tired of the constant torture but I guess this feels like early seasons, kind of. idk. lmao sam with the concussions. classic tie them to a chair. it's what we do. i will be disappointed if they are not tied to a chair jenny? cue studio killers. I do not remember whatever episiode this is but it looks very early based on sam's hair oh thanks sam. couldn't get out of this episode without beheading a woman too one of the suggestions for me typing "woman" was a high-heeled shoe emoji. thanks, predictive text...?????? true feminist oh damn he could very well get tetanus from that. that's how trinity dies, man. should've gotten your booster shot, dean. vaccines save lives this is like the plot of signs why don't you guys wear bulletproof shit. your plot armor was holding you together until now. GUYS THIS IS HOW HUNTERS GO OKAY don't ever un-impale someone, guys like "dean we are in a major city, there are ambulances" call fucking 911, someone could be there already "I've always looked up to you" because you're taller than me lmaoooo idefk what to say about this like. we all know this is how hunters die. you fucking leered at jessica is what you did, dean if sam makes it out of this I'll accept it. if sam lives I can be okay. if this is the only way sam gets free of this, I'm okay. CALL 911 AND CALL JACK "always keep fighting" aw :( they're both very good at crying, I will give them that we never think it's gonna be the day. at least you got pie. OH THE WINCHESTER FAMILY MUSIC don't do this to me dean got a way better death than castiel. this actually reminds me a liiiiittle bit of the end of season 2? with how dean holds sam's body. the writing here is overwrought though. jared and jensen do the best they can with the script they're given but like you guys just FOUGHT GOD. they're a bit too up their own ass with this. you can tell that dabb thinks he's very clever. sam... gets a dog again? at least. i guess. the pacing is bad. I don't hate this on principle but it is not executed well. I am having like no emotional response to this except maybe relief for sam in a horrid way. like, you're free! at what cost. it's like the opposite of season 5? sam survives instead of dean. and... sam marries a dog. where do they get all this fucking lumber!!! did sam chop that all himself dude if he woke up to "heat of the moment" i'd lose my shit in the best way. gabriel wins. "gotta keep you on your toes." what had to change in this because of the pandemic? at least sam has a dog to be in scenes with him. the two guns as big and little brothers is an interesting choice of a shot. god the fucking phones. "DHS" "CIA" "dean's 'other other' phone" "state patrol" what's the paperwork on his desk? (512) is an Austin area code I have this on amazon prime and the saddest thing thus far is X-Ray: Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester, with no other actors at all. meta ways, pandemic related. "this is agent bon jovi" donna's alive??? sam just quit, babe. just quit. or take a day off at least, jesus. didn't you just drive back from ohio are you even gonna go back to the bunker DEAN IN HEAVEN!!! how'd you get here. "well at least I made it to heaven" lmao he said the same thing oh hey bobby!! I love jack god i've missed jim beaver you guys moved on to dream bubbles!!!!! RUFUS how very homestuck + narnia of you, starring sam winchester as susan pevensie so jack just like melded all of these metaphysical spaces, I'm cool with that "so the question is what are you gonna do now, dean?" get a better beer so I can drink and drive with my car that's in heaven, I'm already dead so who cares what I hit TELL ME WHERE IS BALTHAZAR FOR I MUCH DESIRE TO SPEAK WITH HIM break everyone out of the empty I do get the impression this was supposed to be a big cast reunion and the pandemic clobbered that :( oh it's the original license plate on the impala sure do love that cas and jack "helped" to give dean everything he's ever wanted. the only time "carry on my wayward son" has been diegetic I guess sam and the dog had a child I like jared in glasses are we doing a bunch of elderly makeup yeah there he is did they just spray grey temp dye on his hair or what is sam gonna drive into toluca lake!!! buddy please don't just run the engine in a garage, he took off his glasses and that makes me nervous jake gyllenhaal looking dude which cover is this must be nice to have healthcare I so appreciate that sam's wife has zero personality and is merely in the background, of no importance whatsoever compared to his kid named dean are the two impalas gonna meet in heaven????? vancouver is beautiful, or wherever this is at jared looks so cozy in that coat you can tell j2 really do love each other for real the majesty of that forest/that river got me choked up a bit, it's such a lonely thing. like. I can see what they were going for? like dean just... getting sick, falling off a ladder, getting in a car accident, etc etc would've been more potent, I think. the execution was not good. I'm not that unhappy though. it's all right. eh. it's fine. the heartfelt message from the cast (what's left of them....) and the crew was sweet. I want to know what they were intending to do? I feel like you can definitely feel the weight of COVID fucking this up which is genuinely upsetting. sam gets like 50 years of being free of dean I GUESS???? perhaps the only way to break the cycle.

at least there was no sexual assault in this episode. i have definitely watched way worse episodes of this show. it's like. twee. but I can't be mad at these guys especially with how much I know jared in particular has been struggling with the state of the world this year but jensen talked about it with rosenbaum on his show too. 2020 has been rough. like. at least they filmed it. whatever. I feel like I get what they were trying to do even if circumstances meant it wasn't really pulled off. it seems like they were supposed to have a big cast reunion and the pandemic took the wind completely out of their sails. this feels incredibly tacked on. 15x19 would've been a much better place to stop. I feel like I just read andrew dabb's notes. I get what they were trying to go for but they didn't pull it off. I thought it was gonna be a lot worse tbh in summary: EHHHHHHHHH

[kindabraveandlittlestupid]

Couples Costumes

So Halloween snuck up on me this year because it’s fucking tomorrow and I kinda forgot about it with all the things on the news. I had a handful of Halloween related posts that I wanted to post and while I managed to get a few done, the ones that require some photoshop work are still on my ‘To Do List’. Clearly, I went a little overboard with my post here posting 45 Halloween Costumes above (I am counting the classic Batman Costumes and the Wayne/Garth pics as just two costumes, so yes my math is sound).

I WAS planning to do a Velma/Shaggy or Salt/Snail costume with my S.O. but I am remarkably alone yet again, woe is me and my pity party. ^_^ Not being a downer, I promise. *Slaps Cheeks* Back on topic, Michael! You're rambling again. Yeah so here is a list of costumes. I might make another list next year but let's be honest the best couples costumes will be on this post. If you have your ideas/suggests I love to hear/see them in the notes.

Cartoons

Ash & Misty (Pokemon) - Kind of a classic costume these days as they are both iconic. Who wouldn't want to see their girlfriend in some jean shorts tiny yellow tank top? Misty can be switched out for sexy Pikachu.

Bob & Louise (Bob’s Burgers) - Lots of great characters in the show but none better than Bob and Louise (sorry Tina fans). This would be a fun outfit to host a party and cook burgers. Just a thought.

Birdman & Birdgirl (Harvey Birdman Attorney at Law) - Fun costume for Adult Swim lovers. I love for my girlfriend to do that inner monologue out in the open the way Birdgirl does. I could also switch Harvey out for Phil because “Ha Ha Naughty”. 

Max & Roxanne (Goofy Movie) - Simple costume with some paint on the nose and select clothes. I suspect only the 80′s thru 90′s kids would make the connection but the Z Generation has proved me wrong before.

Wanda & Cosmo (Fairly Oddparents) - Not my favorite costume set but one that would be fun if we had a kid who we were fairy godparents too.

Curious Georgia & Man in the Yellow Hat (Curious George) - This is all the excuse you need to jump on my back or my front or my bed. 

Alice & The White Rabbit (Alice in Wonderland) - Alice in Wonderland has lots of males to dress up as between the March Hare, White Rabbit, Mad Hatter and more. I am sure you girls like options.

Lilo & Stitch (Lilo & Stitch) - If I had four arms the sexy stuff we would do in bed but I don't sadly. However, I can make a great stitch voice not that a cartoon voice does much for you.

Jack Skellington & Sally (Nightmare Before Christmas) - I might be too broad shouldered for this sort of couples costume but if my partner is willing I am game. 

Mavis & Jonathan (Hotel Transylvania) - Mavis is perhaps a little to cute. I mean kind of a strange crush on a little vampire girl, so yeah I am not against someone cosplaying her for me.

Nick Wilde & Judy Hopps (Zootopia) - A little bit anthropomorphizing of Nick and Judy but they got good chemistry and so do we.

Spinelli & T.J. (Recess) - Not to take an innocent toon in a wrong direction but you know they probably smoked weed in high school together and T.J. convinces her to wear a dress for prom but no doubt still has her boots on. They make a cute couple to say the least.

Finn & Fionna (Adventure Time) - Heroes of Adventure Time! Sadly (not really sad about that) I am not blonde but we can always up on some 

Velma & Shaggy (Scooby Doo) - Yet another cartoon crush. I like a nerd and a little thick Velma.

Fred & Wilma (The Flintstones)  - Costumes are epic enough being basically caveman tunics. I can get behind this costume more if we had a Pebbles or Bam Bam to take out trick or treating.

Movies

Black Widow & Captain America (Avengers) - If I could afford it I would be Stark. If my hair was longer I would be Thor. Perhaps Hawkeye would be a better pairing. Regardless Black Widow is a woman among many men. This means you get your pick of which hero I dress up as.

Sam & Suzy (Sunrise Kingdom) - Kind of a hipster approach towards Halloween but sometimes being a nitch audience is ok.

Max & Furiosa (Mad Max) - If my girlfriend had a buzzed head, (for whatever reason that was) Mad Max would be an awesome costume to do together.

Mask & Tina Carlyle (The Mask) - I am a big Jim Carry fan so any excuse to dress up as his characters is a win. Camren Diaz was also smoking hot in this film.

Ash & Sheila (Army of Darkness) - Ash is pretty badass and the number 1 reason to dress as him is to have a chainsaw on your hand and double barrel shotgun on your back.

Dorthy & Scarecrow (Wizard of Oz) - I can also be a Tinman or Lion for your pleasure. That and you can be a green witch... no, I think prefer Dorthy.

Mary Poppins & Bert (Mary Poppins) - This costume would be so much better if I could sing or dance but I can't so I won't.

Aragorn & Arwen (Lord of the Rings) - If I find a woman into the Lord of the Rings (and Game of Thrones) she might be a keeper.

Harry Potter & Hermione Granger (Harry Potter) - Am I the only one who is upset Harry didn't hook up with Hermione? Am I the only one upset Emma Watson didn't hook up with me? Am I rambling? Should I shut up now?

Peter & Gamora (Guardians of the Galaxy) - Might easily be my favorite couple in the MCU. Gonna be a long night painting my girlfriend green.

Beetlejuice & Miss Argentina (Beetlejuice) - Again painting the girlfriend green and myself white! I suppose you could be Lydia and I can actually do a great impression of Michael Keaton's Beetlejuice.

Morticia & Gomez Addams (The Addams Family) - I would pay Thing if I could but sadly I can not disembody may hand and have it run around. I will have to settle for Gomez but your free to pick between Morticia or Wednesday. 

Wayne & Garth (Waynes World) - Playing to males? Meh sure. I loved this movie and I don't mind some cross-dressing for my partner. Just gonna be weird when Wayne makes out with Garth.

Shows

Burt Macklin & Janet Snakehole (Parks and Rec) - I am a special agent on a mission and your a wealthy widow with a secret. Only Parks and Recs fans will get this and that's just fucking great. Two rules though we don't break character and if I find a Johnny Karate, I must fight him.

Dexter Morgan & Hannah McKay (Dexter) - Might have been one of the hottest love scenes in a TV show ever. This costume works well with the plastic wrap and doubly fun to take it off you later.

Eleven & Mike (Stranger Things) - Pretty adorable couple on screen. Not sure about Season 2′s ‘rebel’ storyline in the city but still awesome all the same. I can't wait for season 3.

Batgirl/Catwoman & Batman (Batman Show) - I’m Batman. *Coughs* I mean I am dressed as Batman. The 1960′s Batman costume were simple but fun. Woman didnt look bad at all in their costumes either.

Daredevil & Electra (Daredevil) - I may keep it simple with the black mask and black shirt combo over the body armor. The good thing about those Marvel shows is the outfits are basic as hell.

William Riker & Deanna Troi (Star Trek) - Loved the TNG. Loved Star Trek. Can't go wrong with simple clothes and the Starfleet badge.

Comics/Video Games

Wonder Woman & Superman (DC Comics) - Open to interpretation about which Superman or Wonderwoman we are dressing up as. I have to admit the Wonder Woman movie costume was awesome. 

Batman & Catwoman (DC Comics) - Few romances have ever been so ‘Cat and Mouse’ or rather ‘Bat and Cat’ than that of Batman and Catwoman. The skin-tight body suit and whip make Catwoman all that much alluring. You can decide if you want to go TV show, Cartoon, Comics, Video Game or Movie versions of Selena Kyle.

Rogue & Gambit (Marvel Comics) - A man with deep love and a woman who can never be touched by him (at least skin to skin). This is some Shakespeare level tragedy for this lovely duo.

Spiderman & Black Cat (Marvel Comics) - What can I say its the costume on Black Cat... 

Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda) - I am totally open to also as playing as Ganon if you want me to capture you and tie you down to the bed. 

Misc

Mimes - A whole day of not talking to one another and miming shit out?! Sounds horrible lets just talk in private when no one is looking.

Fireman & Dalmation Girl - Who’s a good girl? Who’s a good girl? You are! Yes you are!

Little Red & Big Bad Wolf - I won't lie 90% of the reason this costume works is that it leads to sexy time in the bedroom.

Waldo & Wanda - We go to Good Will, buy a bunch of random junk. Write Property of Waldo on it and leave it around the neighborhood all night long. We can set up a Waldo themed house so people can bring items back to us.

Snail & Salt Shaker - Oh ho ho am I clever? Probably not someone has been bound to make a costume like this before. I think it be fun for you to avoid me the whole part as I walk around as a Salt Shaker.

Frankenstein & Bride of Frankenstein - Classic movie costume and its really all about the hair for the bride. I can imagine this being a big hit with the kids and fun for a monster movie night.

Regards Michael California

[marvelcinematic]

The Bucky Trap (Part 4/?)

Summary: James Buchanan Barnes never considered himself as a fatherly figure until Cassie Lang decided to set up him up with you. Nevertheless chaos ensues.

Word Count: 943

Genre: Fluff

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader

A/N: Kind of a short chapter this time, but more chapters to come soon. This is more of a filler chapter, but after this one reader will be in it more.  

“And then what?” Cassie said excitedly from her part of the couch where she listened to Bucky’s story. Her eyes were filled with hope that something magical happened.

“And then I walked her to her car, and said bye.” Bucky said calmly as he leaned back. What could he do? He wasn’t going to harrass her. The people in the room looked at him expectantly until they realized that really was it and suddenly disappointment filled the air.

“Dude,” Sam groaned, “You really are clueless. Don’t you know what walk me to my car means?”

“Uh, yeah? Walk a lady to her car in case someone doesn’t try to hurt her.” Bucky as he looked across to the disappointed faces shaking their heads.

Steve started, “Buck, it’s an elementary school.” He could just be as lost as Bucky sometimes, but even he was caught up with modern flirting.

“Yeah, what’s going to happen? A rabid child tries to bite her?” Natasha said with an amused smirk. Boy was he head over heals for this girl.

“Based on modern flirting techniques Mr. Barnes, that is a flirting method that should end with flirting from the other human.” Vision said. Part of him was satisified he wasn’t the daftest one in the room when it came to social cues.

Bucky groaned as he put his face in his hand, “Oh my God I knew that.” In the 40s Bucky Barnes would have gone through with the flirtation. When he was the Winter Soldier he probably would have ignored inhibitions and go for straight for the mission. But here James was, the middle man who suddenly had no idea how to flirt or progress.

“So now what?” Cassie said to the people around her. She could try her best all that she wanted, but it all relied on Bucky.

Steve was about to speak up when Scott walked in, tired, bruised, but grinning when he saw Cassie, “Peanut?”

Cassie’s eyes lit up as they laid on her father, “Daddy!” Perhaps Bucky was in too deep, but for a second he thought they were acting again and he almost jolted up to look for you. Which was weird, because why would you even be here?

Cassie ran towards her real father to be scooped up in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you.”  she said softly into his suit.

For a second, Bucky admired the human connection held between the father and daughter along with the rest of people around him. He yearned for something. Not a child, but someone he could hold and suddenly he grew sad. Deep down, he knew he shouldn’t have you. It was really unfair in hindsight, lying to you and thinking he deserved you.

The unspoken thought at that moment was, what would happen now? Before anyone could look at each other, Cassie told Scott, “Daddy?”

“Yes Peanut?”

“I need to tell you something.” Everybody held their breaths as they glanced between Bucky and Scott.

“What is it?”

Cassie braced herself before saying in a breath, “SoItoldMissYNthatMrBuckyismydadbecauseheslonelyandhelikesherandIwantthemtogetmarriedsohehastopickmeupfromschoolinsteadofyou.” No one in that room could really understand her, except Scott, whose jaw dropped and he looked between his daughter and Bucky.

He suddenly covered Cassie’s ears as he said in shock, “You’re using my daughter to get laid?!” He couldn’t blame the man, the dude looked cold. And in reality he would be lying to himself if he said having Cassie didn’t help him get closer to women. But identity theft? That wasn’t a joke.

The team’s eyes shot to Bucky, looking at him for a response. Bucky tried to search for the right answer, but there really wan’t one. “I mean, kind of?” Scott looked down at Cassie, his hands still covering her ears as he looked at everyone. Any other father would have gotten mad, but he was a cool dad. Plus that guilty look Cassie gave him tore him apart. He removed his hands and said, “So your mom and Jim have no idea?”

“Nope.”

“You do realize if she finds out she will kill Bucky and then me.”

“Yup.”

“So give me a rundown of what we have so far.” Scott said to the group as he clapped his hands rather awkwardly. This was a ridiculous idea, but it was Cassie’s ridiculous idea and he supported it.

Cassie gave him a quick run down, from Bucky’s first look at her teacher, to his slip up, to him walking her to her car.

Scott nodded, processing the entire situation, “So he just, said bye and left?”

“Yup.” the entire room said in unison.

“So what’s next?” Scott said expectantly, to which he was met with confused faces as they tried to think of ideas. And suddenly Scott was in his element. See, this was a ridiculous idea, but he was good at making ridiculous plans.

“Okay, blank slate, I got this.” Scott said as he thought for a moment. “Okay, here’s the plan. Bucky, you’re going to run into (Y/N) at the office supply store. Why the office supply store? Because teachers need that stuff. Why would she be there you ask? Because Cassie is going to use up all of her printer paper doing excessive art after school. Now, you’re going to need to flirt with her there. Soften her up, but not too much because Cassie will be there for backup. Cassie, you’re going to invite her to the Mets and Giants game this weekened. Surprise! Hank and Hope got us a bunch of tickets and I was going to invite your mom and Jim but they can watch from home. Bucky, you’re going to flirt to a maximum, while I, Scott, the cool Uncle will take Cassie to buy some cotton candy. Then the two of you will fall in love and kiss and we’ll be good. Any questions?” He really expected someone to come up with a better plan. But he was met with silence as everyone searched for a better way.

Alas, Natasha, probably the best strategist in the room said, “I mean, it’s dumb. But it’ll work.”

Tag list: @just-add-butter @mizz-kraziii

[imjustthemechanic]

Natalie Jones and the Golden Ship

Part 1/? - A Meeting at the Palace Part 2/? - Curry Talk Part 3/? - Princess Sitamun Part 4/? - Not At Rest Part 5/? - Dead Men Tell no Tales Part 6/? - Sitamun Rises Again Part 7/? - The Curse of Madame Desrosiers Part 8/? - Sabotage at Guedelon Part 9/? - A Miracle Part 10/? - Desrosiers’ Elixir Part 11/? - Athens in October Part 12/? - The Man in Black Part 13/? - Mr. Neustadt Part 14/? - The Other Side of the Story Part 15/? - A Favour Part 16/? - A Knock on the Window Part 17/? - Sir Stephen and Buckeye Part 18/? - Books of Alchemy Part 19/? - The Answers Part 20/? - A Gift Left Behind Part 21/? - Santorini Part 22/? - What the Doves Found Part 23/? - A Thief in the Night Part 24/? - Healing Part 25/? - Newton’s Code Part 26/? - Montenegro Part 27/? - The Lost Relic Part 28/? - The Homunculinus Part 29/? - The End is Near Part 30/? - The Face of Evil Part 31/? - The Morning After Part 32/? - Next Stop

Okay, so when I said I was too tired to write tonight?  I lied.  The gang move on to their next destination and try to track down Desrosiers.

There was a lot more spite in Jim’s voice than Nat would have expected – and probably more than Jim himself expected, either, to judge by the long silence that followed.  Nat turned to look, and found Jim looking sullenly at the sidewalk at his feet while Sir Stephen, behind him, waited for him to raise his head so he could catch his eye.  Jim refused to do so.

“Stop looking at me like that,” said Jim.

“You cannot see me,” Sir Stephen pointed out.  “You don’t know how I’m looking at you.”

“Yes, I do,” said Jim, “because it’s the same way you’ve looked at me every time you were leading up to saying Buckeye would have done this or Buckeye would have said that.”  He turned and glared at Sir Stephen.  “See?  There it is!  I knew it!”

“It is only that you surprise me sometimes,” said Sir Stephen.

“Because I’m not your old buddy,” Jim said, “and you’re disappointed every time.”

“Well, now you know what it was like for Allen and for Mrs. Francis,” Natasha spoke up.

The two men had been about to start arguing, but Nat’s statement successfully distracted them.  They both stopped, and Sharon had to urge them back into motion before she walked right into them.  Nat turned to face backwards as they continued up the Jovana Tomaševića.

“When Allen met me,” she reminded them, “he said I looked like his daughter but didn’t act like her.  Same with Mrs. Francis talking to Clint when he thought he was Robin Hood.  The other person looks like somebody you know but they aren’t, and if Allen and Laura could cope with that, so can you.”

Sir Stephen hadn’t thought of it that way – and now that he did, it seemed he felt rather sheepish.  “This is different,” he protested.

“It really isn’t,” said Nat.

“I don’t think it is,” Allen put in.

“Thanks, Dad,” said Nat.  He was probably obligated to agree with her, but she didn’t care as long as somebody supported her.

“I wouldn’t know,” Jim said, “since I don’t actually know anybody.”

That seemed to be the end of the conversation between him and Sir Stephen, which was a relief, but there was more discomfort to come.  They reached the French Embassy, which was in an aging, tile-walled house, across the street from the stone walls and a row of trees that provided privacy for the people living in the suburb beyond.  They told the man at the desk inside why they were there, and he invited them to sit in the little waiting room until a passport official could see them.

Allen sat next to Nat, and while they waited, he leaned over a little to ask softly, “you can’t have children?”

“No,” said Nat.  “None of us can.”

“There were more of you?” he asked.

Hadn’t she told him that?  Apparently not.  “Yeah,” she said.  “I was one of twenty-eight to begin with.  We got whittled down to ten by the time we were teenagers.”

“Oh.”  Allen nodded, frowning.  “Well… you can adopt.”

The words were kindly-meant, but Nat rankled.  “You do realize I’m not here to be the vessel by which you have grandchildren, right?”

“I didn’t mean that,” he said.

“Then what did you mean?” Nat asked.  “This is the twenty-first century.  Usually I only have to remind Sir Steve of that, but now apparently you, too.”

“I didn’t mean it that way, Ginger Snap!” he repeated.

“Then you should have kept your mouth shut,” Natasha snapped.

She was far too good at reading people, and so she knew right away that hadn’t been fair to Allen.  He’d meant to comfort her, because he assumed her infertility upset her – and if she were being honest, it did upset her when she thought about it.  That was why she usually didn’t.  Motherhood was only one of the possible futures the Red Room had taken from Natasha, but it was one that particularly stung.  Perhaps that was because it meant that she, like Jim and like Sir James Buckeye, would leave no legacy.  She was the product of four billion years of organisms reproducing, and now this particular genetic line was at a dead end.

“Doctor Jones?” a voice called.  The passport official had arrived.

Nat plastered a smile on her face and stood up.  “Hi,” she said.  “I’ve got Madame Desrosiers’ passport here.”

She followed the official back to his office, where she spun a story about how she knew Desrosiers, how she’d learned her old friend from academia had left her passport behind, and why she was turning it in here instead of there.  While she did that, she also kept him distracted while she slipped a USB drive into his laptop, containing a program that would email recently edited files to Fury in London.  She retrieved her little drive before waving goodbye, and they trooped back outside.

Within five minutes, Sharon’s phone beeped.  She swiped it, and smiled.

“Well?” asked Nat.

“A woman calling herself Helene Desrosiers checked into a hotel in Messina on the island of Sicily, using a French passport as her ID,” said Sharon.

“That’s our next stop, then,” said Natasha.  “Text your wife, Clint – time to get a head start on that shopping list.”

Another tourist bus took them back to Tivat, where they got a flight to Messina.  Nat did think about flying first class just so they could bill it to the British government, but the flight was so short it didn’t seem worth it.  They flew coach.  Nat, sitting next to Allen, was quiet for most of it, but she did have something to say.  It just took her an hour or so to work herself up to saying it, because it wasn’t something she said very often.

“I’m sorry,” she said.  “I know you didn’t mean it that way.”

“I know,” Allen replied.  “I’m sorry I… I swear I didn’t just come in and announce it to everybody.”

Nat was relieved to know he was smart enough to realize what she was really upset about.  “Oh?” she asked.

“They asked where you were, and I said you and Jim were still in bed,” Allen explained apologetically.  “Sam said, what, together?  And I couldn’t just lie.”  He began twisting his empty airplane pretzel bag in his hands.  “I think Sam’s a little jealous… I think he likes you, himself.  But we got into this whole weird discussion about whether somebody like Jim could have children, and then you two suddenly arrived and we were worried you’d heard some of it.”

That put the awkwardness – and Sam’s comments – in a very different light, and Nat felt ashamed to have judged everybody so harshly.  They weren’t perfect angels, of course, they were human beings who said things they shouldn’t say, but they didn’t disregard Jim’s humanity.  The question was, when had she gotten so invested in it that she’d become defensive?

“I’m sorry I embarrassed you,” said Allen.  “Next time I’ll lie.”

“What, next time you find me in bed with guy I just met last week?” Nat asked with a raised eyebrow.

Allen turned red.  “Is that something that happens often?” he asked, horrified.  Apparently the possibility had never occurred to him.  He struggled for a moment, then added, “it’s up to you, of course, I mean, you need to do what makes you happy…”

It was only a lifetime of training to hide her emotions that kept Natasha from giggling at his expression.  “As a matter of fact, it doesn’t, but it’s nice to hear that you’d support my ambitions no matter what they might be.”

As brief as the flight to Sicily was, they almost didn’t make it.  Like Santorini, the island of Sicily had been created by a volcano, and that volcano was not a quiet one.  Mount Etna was one of the largest and most active volcanoes in Europe, and it had been smoking gently for several weeks.  Air traffic was being detoured to avoid potentially clogging the engines with volcanic ash, and they had to wait in a holding pattern for nearly two hours before they were finally cleared to land at Messina.

The volcano was nearly fifty kilometres from the city, but it was still possible to see the looming column of smoke, which meandered up for a long way before veering off to the east, blown away by high-altitude winds.  It was beautiful to look at it, but also felt ominous.  They were chasing a mad alchemist, and here they were, on top of one of the biggest furnaces imaginable.

“That looks bad,” Clint remarked, watching the smoke column nervously as they crossed the airport parking lot.  “Are we sure it’s safe to be here?”

“It’s not close,” said Sharon.  “If it really erupts, all they’ll get in Messina will be an earthquake.”

“Uh-huh,” Clint said.  “You know what?  That’s not reassuring.”  His phone beeped, and he dug it out of his pocket for a look.

“Now what?” asked Jim.

“Pistachios,” said Clint.  “Sounds like Sicily is famous for them.”

Messina was quite a modern town compared to many of the places they’d visited so far.  The old city had been utterly destroyed in World War II, so almost everything now in it was less than seventy years old.  Where Tivat and Kotor had been dark stone and narrow cobbled lanes, Messina was clean new buildings painted pastel colours, on either side of broad streets lined with orange trees.  Across the strait, beyond the pillar of Saint Mary, it was possible to see the tip of Calabria.

Fury’s text message had given the address of the hotel Desrosiers was staying at – the Europa Palace, located in a blocky yellow and green building set well back from the street behind a line of palm trees.  From the outside it looked more like a seedy apartment block than anything a person might compare to a palace, but the lobby turned out to be quite nice, with marble floors, burgundy leather armchairs, and glittering chandeliers.  Nat paused before approaching the desk and looked at Sharon.

“You or me?” she asked.

“Better be you,” said Sharon.  “We’re not here to arrest her.”

Nat therefore went up and rang the bell.  The woman who came out of the back office to answer was middle aged, with darkly-tanned skin and bleach-blonde hair.

“Buongiorno,” she said with a friendly smile.  “Come posso aiutarti oggi?”

“Buongiorno,” Nat replied.  “We’re here to meet a friend, Senora Helene Desrosiers.  She told us she would be staying here.”

“The East Asian lady?” asked the clerk.  “You’ve already missed her, I’m afraid.  She went on to Taormina this morning.  She had me call ahead and confirm her reservation there.”

“That’s a shame,” said Nat.  “Can you tell us where she’s staying there?”

“I’m afraid not.  It would be a breach of privacy,” the clerk said.

Nat wouldn’t press her, then – she had other ways of getting information.  “Of course,” she said.  “I shouldn’t have asked.  One more thing: is the hotel’s restaurant open to non-guests?  My friends and I have been on the plane for hours because of the eruption, and we’re all starving.”

“Certainly,” said the clerk.  “Please, go ahead.”

“Grazie,” said Natasha, and the others echoed – this being the only word in Italian most of them knew.

“Prego, prego,” the clerk assure her.

[waywardnerd67]

Back Home

Summary: Nikki moves back to her hometown after a bad break-up. Finally, after a year she is back on her feet and has a chance run in with fate. Characters: Dean Winchester, Nikki (OFC) Pairing: Dean and Nikki (OFC) Warnings: Angst/Fluff Word Count: 2515 (With lyrics) Louden Swain Song: “St. Louis” – Able-Legged Heroes (Lyrics Bold) A/N: This is for @mrswhozeewhatsis 2018 Louden Swain FanFic/FanArt Project. This will be the only story I ever name a character after myself. I only did that because this is about my hometown and also why not. Flashbacks are italicize. As always this is unbeta so all mistakes are mine. Likes, comments and reblogs are splendid and I will love you doubly for them! Enjoy! **Special Note**: I chose this song specifically because when I read the lyrics and listened to it I immediately began writing a story in my head. There is also the fact that I was born, raised and still live in St. Louis. For a song to inspire me to write a story about my hometown is truly something special. 

So I'm back home But what remains I watch the snow Drift off my windowpane

I sat back in my seat resting my head against the cold window as the world zoomed past me. The steady rhythm of the train helped my body to relax for the first time in days. Glancing to the left I saw a couple snuggled together bringing up hard memories for me. I turned my music up letting the rock tunes flush out the unwanted thoughts. I closed my eyes for just a moment and there was his perfect face. Short, spiky dirty blond hair that was always soft to the touch. Strong, chiseled jaw that was covered by stubble. Full red lips that sent chills down my body whenever they were pressed against my skin. His nose and cheeks dusted with freckles that were more noticeable in the summer sun. Finally, his eyes. Eyes that pierced through every wall I had built around me. Eyes that were like looking into a heavy forest on a bright spring day. Eyes filled with constant worry, guilt, love and protectiveness. I opened my eyes blurring from tears. I closed them again so they could fall.

Opening them slowly again a slow smile spread across my lips. The train was pulling into the St. Louis Amtrak station. I looked fondly at the skyline I grew up taking for granted. The tall buildings filled with regular people working nine to five. Hotels buzzing with guests here to see everything St. Louis could offer. Most of all, the centerpiece of my hometown, the Gateway to the West. The Arch. Standing six hundred and thirty feet into the low hanging clouds. The Arch grounds were covered in snow making it a picture perfect sight except for the aching in my chest as the train came to a stop. I grabbed my bag slinging it across my body and pulled my stocking cap down on my head as my long, wavy chocolate brown hair covered my ears protecting them from the frozen tundra that is St. Louis in December.

The breeze makes me choke And all the time the answers were in front of my face I try to think about tomorrow but I can't forget today

Walking off the train, I look to see if my best friend, Megan, is there yet. Pulling out my phone I dial her number anxiously awaiting her answer. “Nikki? What’s up?” she said obviously forgetting she was supposed to pick me up. “Hi Megalynz, you were supposed to come get me from the train station downtown. Remember?” Her apologies started flying as I could hear her frantically getting her things. I looked around and decided I could probably walk to Union Station making it easier for her to get me. I told her to meet me there and to take her time. I pulled my heavy coat tighter around me and put my earbuds back in to block out the city chaos all around. As I walked, I marveled at how small I was compared to everything around me. The buildings, the parking garages and even the people hurrying along the streets to their jobs or event. The ache in my chest was growing painfully choking me. Shaking my head, I pushed forward concentrating on the lyrics flowing into my ears.

When I finally reached Union Station, Megan is waiting for me with hot chocolate and an ‘I’m sorry for forgetting you’ donut. As she drives back to her house where I will be living until I get on feet she talks about everything going on in her life. I smile and nod at all the appropriate moments and silently grateful she never asks why I shipped all my stuff to her. We pull into her driveway that is freshly shoved by her boyfriend and she gives me the five-cent tour. “The basement is your domain. There is a living area, a bedroom and a full bathroom. You can stay with us for as long as you need.” She said to me as we walk down into the basement seeing all my boxes from Kansas. “Thank you Megalynz. I think for the rest of the evening I just want to rest down here by myself and get through some of my boxes.” She nodded as she left me be.

I'm back home I feel depressed I found your clothes

Unpacking my boxes was more traumatic than I was expecting. I found a few of his flannels I had stolen to wear with his scent on them still. Whiskey, leather and car grease. I picked up my favorite red and black one holding it to my face as a wave of fresh tears came down my cheeks. My chest was burning from me trying to hold in my emotions and finally I let them out screaming into the shirt. Rage bubbling up inside me as I threw the shirts in a corner and laid down on the small couch sobbing. Memories of better times flooding my head and overwhelming my soul. Why did he have to consume me? Why could he not just leave me in peace?

“Dean Winchester put me down!” I giggled as he spun me around from behind in the Bunker library. “No more research, Nerdy. Time to spend some time with me.” He said as I glanced back at him seeing him wiggling his eyebrows. I started laughing as he led me to our bedroom, “Sorry pretty boy, Sam and I have to finish looking for a lead on the First Blade since Crowley obviously dropped the ball. Now, if you’re a good boy and help us then I will spend all the time in the world with you.” I started to drag him back to the library where Sam was chuckling to himself. “Nope!” Dean said grabbing me around the waist again carrying me down the hallway. “Sam! Sam, help me!” I called out as I heard him laughing. “You’re on your own with him, Nikki.” He yelled as I sighed loudly in frustration. “Dean, you’re being a very bad boy right now.” I said placing my hands on my hips as he closed the door nodding, “Yes, but that’s why you love me.” Rolling my eyes, I nodded slowly as he closed the distance between us.

Why leave a note? Why leave a note? Your words are a joke

The memory felt so real in my mind that I could feel his strong arms around me. Holding me tightly giving a false sense of safety and comfort. I sat back up looking through the one box I knew had exactly what I needed in this moment. Safely contained in a wooden box and wrapped in bubble wrap was the bottle of Jim Beam bourbon I packed away. I preferred Bulleit whiskey, but it made me think of him too much so I was making the move to bourbon to drown my sorrows. I opened the bottle and tip the spout to my lips. The burn down my throat was comforting and warmed my body. After a few more swigs from the bottle I placed it on the small coffee table and spotted something in the shirt pocket of one of his flannels. I crawled over sitting in the middle of the shirt pile and pulled out the piece paper opening it.

“Nikki, I know you’re mad at me. I know there is nothing I could ever do to get you to forgive me. Hell, I don’t forgive myself for what happened. I was trying to protect you and Sam from the Blade… from me. I hurt you both in ways I could never imagine but especially you. I wish you would just talk to me one last time. Let me try to make things right. Let me say I’m sorry in person. I love you, Nikki. I was never able to say that out loud to you and I don’t want to go through life without saying it at least once to you. All the women I have been with and none of them make me feel as you do. I’m the best version of me when you are around and I need you. I love you and I need you. Please come back to me. -Dean”

I ran my fingers over his handwriting that was distinctively beautiful in his own way just as he was. All this time waiting for him to man up and say those words. Three little words and it was in a damn letter. I fold it the letter up walked into my new bedroom placing it in the top drawer of my dresser. Standing there letting the anger from everything that had happened and reading his letter fueled me. There was no time for sulking, weeping or wallowing. No, it was time for me to get my life together and not think about the past. Look forward and move on.

I found my old records And all my books I found my old Bee-Gees But the turntable, you took I made a call into work I said I can't make it in today I'd sleep it off But I'm too awake And all the time the jokes that did not make any sense I finally figured out the punchline was at my expense, yeah My expense

Six months after leaving everything behind and moving back home I had found a job and was able to move out into my own apartment. Megan was on her way over for our weekly dinner and movie night. When I opened the door for her I was met with a large box being carried by her boyfriend. “Hi, you didn’t need to bring me a present.” She chuckled at me as she kissed her boyfriend goodbye. “It arrived for you this morning. It’s from Kansas so it must be from…” I held up my hand for her not to finish. “Well, it can wait until tomorrow after I’m off work. Right now, it is girls’ night and Captain Steve Rogers is waiting for us.” Megan laughed as we settled in with beer and pizza.

That night I tossed and turned thinking about the box. Not getting any sleep, I decided to call into work for the first time and tried to sleep off the funk that was stuck on me like a fungus. After lying in bed for what seemed forever I got up picking up the box and placing it on my bed. Cutting it open with the knife I kept at my bedside I looked inside to see a bunch of my things and another letter. I set the letter to the side and looked through my things. Quite a few of my books that Sam had borrowed throughout my time living in the Bunker. A few records I had bought to play on Dean’s turntable and now had no way of playing them for myself. Finally, my favorite band t-shirt of Dean’s It looked like it had been wadded up in the bottom of his closet which pissed me off.

“Nikki, is that my Led Zeppelin 1977 Tour shirt?” Dean asked as I nodded looking down at it. “You said I could grab any shirt from your bag to borrow since all my shirts are stained in Vamp gunk.” They had just finished a case in Nebraska taking out a nest of Vamps. Sam had been working a case in Sioux Falls with Jody and Claire. “You so know that is my favorite shirt, right?” I looked up nodding as if I did not know everything about him already. “If anyone were to mistreat that shirt in any way I would be heartbroken and upset.” When I focused on him I saw he was actually nervous about me wearing the shirt. “Do you want me to take it off?” There it was, his tell. The corner of his lip slowly rising into a smirk as he nodded. “You’re a jerk. You were just trying to Vulcan Mind Meld me into taking off my shirt!” I shouted as I threw a pillow at him. He caught laughing, “It almost worked too.” I huffed sitting on the bed brushing my long hair. “Awe, don’t be mad plus it looks better on you than it does on me. You should keep it.” I kept my shoulders straight and huffed. “You know I will keep because you were being a jerk.” I glanced over my shoulder to see him pouting as I looked back I smiled as I did a victory dance in my head.

I picked up the letter surprised to see Sam’s handwriting. “Hey Nikki, I hope you are well. I miss you a lot and have been tempted to find your new number to call you. I was cleaning Dean’s room out and found a few of your things in there. I also wanted you to have your books back. Things are… complicated here since you left, but I understand why you did. Sorry, the shirt looks like a giant ball of winkles. Dean has been sleeping with it every night since you left and now that he has left the Bunker I figured I would send it to you. He’s hunting hardcore now across the country by himself. I mainly stay in the Bunker to do research for him and take on local cases or work with Jody and the girls. He says he wants to be alone and it worries me but you know how stubborn he is. Anyway, I’ll stop blubbering. I hope to hear from you when you’re ready of course. Miss you. -Sam” I folded the letter putting it with the other one in my top dresser drawer. I missed Sam and Castiel a lot, but it was for the better to have a clean break.

I looked out my office window admiring the snow falling on the streets of downtown as my manager walked in. “Happy one year of putting up with me.” She said as I laughed. She sat down the small cupcake on my desk sitting in one of the chairs. “Thank you, Suzy. It’s hard to believe it’s been a year already.” She nodded as we chatted about upcoming events and meetings for the next hour. She got up to leave, “Why don’t you get out of here early. There is nothing that can’t wait until Monday. Have a great weekend.” I smiled thanking her and started packing up my laptop. As I walked out on to the busy sidewalk I had no idea I had a date with fate. Looking down as I grabbed my phone out of my pocket I ran into a sturdy body knocking me backwards. “I’m so sor…” I looked up into a familiar pair of forest green eyes, “Dean?” I whispered.

With nowhere to go And all the time the answers were in front of my face I try to think about tomorrow but I can't forget today I cannot forget today (Today) I'm back home

My Nerd Herd: @waywardbaby @waywardrose13 @carryonmywaywardcaptain @anotherwaywardsister @ladywinchester1967 @dwgrl1903 @akshi8278 @ericaprice2008 @mirandaaustin93 @spnbaby-67 @time-travel-bouqet @1967-essentialghoul @weirdoblogger69

[billyhargrovefanfiction]

Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth |  Billy Hargrove x OFC

CHAPTER TWO

Andie gets to school when second period is just starting. She walks into the classroom and sees Rich and Sam already sitting in their usual seats. She takes a deep breath and walks up to them. ‘Hey.’ She mumbles shyly. ‘Hey Andie, where were you first period?’ Sam asks her. He doesn’t sound angry. Andie takes a seat. ‘I overslept.’ She answers cautiously. ‘Are you okay?’ Rich asks her. ‘Yeah, I’m fine, bit of a headache and some bruises and scratches from the fight,’ she points at the scratches on her face. She is wearing a scarf to hide a hideous hickey on her neck. They don’t need to know about that. She shows her hand, which is bruised and cut from the punching and the falling. ‘But I’m fine,’ She adds. ‘What happened with Billy?’ Rich asks. ‘Nothing.’ Andie answers quickly. Rich frowns. She can’t talk about Billy right now, too many confusing feelings, so she turns to Sam. ‘Is Lisa okay?’ Sam sighs. He sounds frustrated. ‘She’s certainly more beaten up than you are.’ ‘I’m so sorry, Sam. I really didn’t mean for it to get so out of hand, but she did start it.’ ‘I know. I obviously shouldn’t have put you guys in the same room. But she’s okay, really.’ Andie sighs in relieve. Not because Lisa is okay. She just really doesn’t want a fight with Sam. Andie looks at the door just as Billy enters the classroom. He has a big bruise next to his eye. She looks away. ‘Do you guys want to go to the movies after school?’ She asks. Sam looks at her sheepishly, ‘I’m hanging out with Lisa. I could bring her?’ Andie gives him a look. ‘You are the funniest man alive. how about you, Rich?’ ‘I have basketball practice.’ He says. ‘You guys are no fun.’ Rich laughs. ‘Last night was enough fun for the rest of the year, thank you very much’ He says. ‘You could hang out at basketball practice? I’m benched most of the time anyway.’ Andie sighs. ‘Why not.’ The teacher walks in and class starts.

Andie sits down on the gym’s stand. She actually quite enjoys basketball. She gives Rich a wave when he walks onto the court. He waves back but has a worried look on his face. Right behind him Billy enters the court. Of course, Andie thinks to herself. He’s wearing a tank-top and the usual basketball shorts. Their eyes meet, but he shows no emotion. ‘Okay boys, today we have Billy joining us, say hi.’ Nobody says hi. ‘Run a few laps, warm yourselves up, in ten minutes we’re starting.’ Everyone starts running. Andie decides now is a good time to try and sort out her Billy-feelings. She just doesn’t know where to start. The facts: In the video-store he acted like a dick. Last night they made-out, like, heavily. Who started it? She can’t remember. It ended weird, that’s for sure, but Andie isn’t sure exactly how they left things. Is he mad at her? Is she mad at him? Are they fine? Were they ever? She touches the bruises on her arm from him grabbing her. She feels like she should be mad at him, but she just isn’t. They were both very drunk and she did elbow him in the face. This is not helping. She sighs and leans back. She follows Billy with her eyes. He is running his laps effortlessly. She has never been much of an athlete, especially not after a night of heavy drinking, but he is obviously made for this. ‘Okay shirts with Steve, skin with Frank. Billy take your shirt off, you’re with Frank. Jim and Richard, you’re benched.’ Rich turns to Andie and throws his hands up. She laughs. Rich isn’t really a great athlete either, his dad made him join the team. He has played exactly three games in two years of being on the team. He throws his shirt back on and runs up a couple steps to sit next to Andie. She pats him on the back. ‘Good walk.’ ‘Don’t get too comfortable, Richard, I’m going to rotate players.’ The coach yells after him. Rich gives him a thumbs up and the coach rolls his eyes. ‘Alright Billy, let’s see what you’ve got.’ Billy takes off his shirt and they start the game. He’s good. He’s actually really good. Rich is staring at Andie, but she pretends not to notice. After a few minutes it gets annoying and she gives up. ‘Okay, go ahead.’ She says reluctantly. ‘What happened last night with Billy.’ Rich asks her like it’s a statement. Andie sighs. ‘He tried to calm me down, after the fight… We made-out a bit and that’s all.’ She says dryly. Rich scoffs. ‘Come on, Andie, he was heavily strung-out, and you were completely freaked when you came out of the bathroom. Something must have happened.’ ‘He was high?’ Andie mumbles. ‘Were you really that drunk? He was completely coked-up.’ She frowns. ‘Well, it doesn’t matter anyway, we had a heated make-out session and he grabbed my arm a little weirdly but it’s not a big deal.’ ‘How do you mean weirdly?’ ‘, like he was amped-up, so the coke kind of explains that.’ Andie says, more to herself than too Rich. Meanwhile Billy is scoring left and right. He plays very aggressively and it’s fun to watch. Andie discovers the odd sensation of feeling kind of bad for Steve. He’s getting crushed. ‘Andie, just…’ Rich starts, but he gets interrupted. ‘Okay, Richard, you’re in for Steve.’ The coach yells. He gets up. Andie grabs his arm ‘Really, Rich, don’t worry about me. If something else had happened I would talk to you guys about it. I promise.’ He sighs. ‘Alright, fine. I’m just worried about you, you know that right?’ He says. Andie smiles at him and nods. She lets him go and he walks down to the court. Andie sees Steve walking out with Nancy. She remembers the punch thing from last night. Poor Nancy, having to deal with that jock-douche. When they were kids Nancy and Andie were good friends, but their friendship watered down when they got into High School. They didn’t have a lot of classes together and just kind of drifted apart. Maybe I should ask her to hang out sometime. She focusses back on the team but honestly, it’s too painful to look at. Billy is single-handedly annihilating Rich’s team. She grabs the book that’s in her bag and starts reading, but she keeps peeking at Billy’s sweaty body. She can’t help herself. It’s a really nice view.

After the game, just as Andie walks out of the gym, Billy comes after her and stops her. He has his shirt and gym-bag in his hand and is clinging on to them for dear life. He looks extremely uncomfortable. It’s a weird look for someone who’s usually so confident. He hands her her terminator sunglasses. ‘You should watch your stuff.’ He mumbles. He sounds out of breath and his chest is glistening from sweat. Andie smiles inadvertently. ‘Oh, yeah, I was looking for those.’ That’s a lie, she didn’t even know she had forgotten them. ‘Thanks for hanging on to them.’ He shifts his weight. ‘Yeah, well, don’t get you panties in a twist, I thought they were mine.’ He says, also lying. There’s an awkward silence. He runs his hand through his hair. ‘Well, that’s all’ He mumbles as he turns back around. He looks irresistible. So why resist? Andie decides. She grabs his arm and he immediately turn back around. She quickly lets him go. ‘Eh… I… Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to go see a movie.’ She says in one breath. Billy frowns. He doesn’t answer. ‘I was going to go with my friends, but… they were busy I guess.’ He still doesn’t say anything. ‘And eh… Have you seen Nightmare on Elm Street? Because… eh… I haven’t’ She really doesn’t have anything else. He looks like he’s thinking. She raises her eyebrows in question. God, it’s not a difficult question. He sighs. ‘You know what, I don’t really do the whole dinner-and-a-movie date thing.’ He bites his lip. ‘So… No, I don’t think so.’ He adds. He sets his bag down and throws his shirt back on. Andie watches him, a confused look on her face. He grabs his bag, mumbles a short ‘Yeah…’ to himself and walks to the exit. That was weird. Andie shakes her head. Alright, whatever. She walks into the hall to her locker when she sees Steve trying to get his open. It’s not opening, and he proceeds to punch it in anger. This is probably about Nancy. His locker is one away from Andie’s and nobody else is in the hall. She debates whether to just ignore him or say something. ‘Open up you piece of garbage.’ He says to his locker, but it still won’t open, and he punches it again. Andie sighs and walks up to him. ‘You okay, Steve?’ She asks him reluctantly. He makes a frustrated noise and gestures toward his locker. ‘The thing wont open.’ Andie nods understandingly. ‘Maybe you should try a gentler approach.’ She suggests. ‘Here, check this out,’ She walks up to her own locker and puts a hand on it. ‘My dearest locker, please accept my offering of the following numbers and present to me your glorious realm.’ She says to it and she puts in the combination. She pulls on the lock. It doesn’t open. She frowns. ‘Well, that’s just rude.’ She mumbles. Steve laughs. ‘Thanks, dude, I see now my past mistakes.’ Andie laughs. Steve’s face drops again, and he sighs. ‘Seriously though, are you okay?’ Andie asks. ‘Yeah… I just…’ Steve starts. He sighs again. ‘I guess me and my girlfriend just broke up.’ ‘Oh, man, sorry about that. That sucks.’ Andie says. ‘Yeah, it does.’ He answers softly. They both try their lockers again and both open this time. They grab their books. ‘I just broke up with someone too actually.’ Andie says. She had almost forgotten about it with all that happened. ‘I’m not too broken up about it though. To be honest, he was a dick.’ ‘I guess that’s what Nancy is feeling too.’ Steve mumbles. Andie closes her locker and looks at him. ‘No, Steve my guy was cheating on his girlfriend with me. You’re not so bad.’ Steve closes his locker too and they start walking toward the exit together. ‘What do you know? I mean, how do you know I wasn’t cheating on Nancy too?’ Steve asks her. Andie shrugs. ‘I don’t, but you seem like a nice guy. I mean you’re a tool but more centered around shampoos and lotions and ball sports.’ He laughs. ‘Pretty accurate, I guess.’ He says, shrugging. ‘What was your name again?’ He asks as they walk out to the parking lot. Andie sees Billy leaning on the hood of his car. He sees them and gets an angry expression on his face. Andie frowns. ‘Hello?’ Steve asks. ‘Sorry, what?’ Andie says, keeping her eyes on Billy as they slowly get closer to him. ‘Your name?’ Steve repeats. ‘Andie,’ she mumbles. Billy scoffs audibly and crosses his arms. Did he just scoff at me? Steve frowns and follows her gaze to an angry Billy looking at them. ‘What’s up with him?’ He asks. Billy pushes himself off the hood. ‘You work fast, sweetheart.’ Billy yells at Andie loudly. Andie stops walking. Now it’s her turn to look angry. Steve stops too, a confused look on his face. ‘Are you really doing this right now, Billy? Did you not just reject me?’ She yells back at him. Steve raises his eyebrows. ‘You asked him out?’ He asks Andie. Billy rolls his eyes. ‘I’m just saying you’re fast.’ He yells. They’re standing about 50 feet apart, neither of them showing any intention of moving closer. ‘This is a weird interaction.’ Steve mumbles. ‘Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m just being nice. He was basically crying in the hallway.’ She yells at Billy, gesturing to Steve. Steve frowns ‘Oh, come on, I was not.’ ‘So you offered him some consolation pussy?’ Billy yells. Steve’s eyes get big. Andie scoffs. ‘How DARE you!’ She screams. ‘Not cool, man!’ Steve yells. Billy points at Steve aggressively. ‘STAY out of this, Harrington.’ ‘Why don’t YOU stay out of this Billy! Go home!’ Andie yells. ‘What is happening…’ Steve says to himself. ‘You try telling me what to do again, bitch!’ He yells at her. That’s when Andie runs up to him. ‘Oh shit…’ Steve mumbles and he runs after her. Billy leans back on his car again. Andie get’s right up in his face. ‘What did you call me?’ She whispers, her voice trembling in anger. ‘I don’t like people telling me what to do, you’d be a good girl to remember that.’ He hisses. She punches him straight in the jaw. He flinches, but then he starts laughing. ‘Ah yeah, that’s just how I like it honey. Why don’t you try that again.’ He says, still laughing. She goes to punch him in the nose, but Steve pulls her back. ‘Just leave him, Andie, he has some serious anger management issues.’ Steve says to Andie. ‘That makes two of us,’ She hisses through her teeth. But she listens to Steve and starts walking away. ‘Oh come on, honey. That’s the second time this week you’re holding out on me!’ Billy yells after her. Andie bites her lip. ‘Fuck it, she can skate home.’ Billy mumbles and he gets in his car. ‘What on earth was all that.’ Steve asks Andie as they watch Billy drive away, tires screeching. Andie sighs. ‘I don’t know, man, that guy is complicated.’ Steve chuckles. ‘Yeah, no shit, he’s insane. You should stay away from him Andie, seriously.’ He says to her, a serious look on his face. Andie chuckles. ‘I don’t like people telling me what to do, be a good girl and remember that.’ She says imitating Billy’s husky voice. Steve laughs. ‘See you around, Andie. Good luck with that situation’ He says gesturing towards where Billy took off. Andie laughs, ‘Yeah, good luck with yours.’

When Andie turns the corner to her street she sees Billy’s car sitting in the drive-way. ‘No. fucking. way.’ She says out loud. She runs up to the car. He’s not in it. She looks around, but she doesn’t see him. That’s when she sees her mom’s car is in the garage. She cautiously walks up to the door and opens it. She’s immediately greeted by a sea of laughter coming from Billy and her mom. What on earth? She walks into the kitchen. Her mother is sitting on a stool and Billy is leaning on the kitchen counter. They both look at her. Billy smirking and her mother with an annoyed look. ‘Oh, hi.’ Her mother says. ‘What the fuck are you doing here.’ Andie says to Billy, shooting lasers with her eyes. ‘Come now Andie, be nice to this lovely young man. He just came by to talk.’ Her mother says to her while staring at Billy. She’s nearly drooling. ‘Give us a minute, mother.’ Andie says to her. She doesn’t move. Andie rolls her eyes. ‘Don’t worry Lois, we just need a second to talk, I can handle her angry.’ He says in a low voice, winking at her. Andie scoffs. ‘Alright then.’ Lois says reluctantly, she walks out of the room like she’s walking a catwalk. Andie rolls her eyes and turns to Billy. ‘What…’ She starts, but he interrupts her. ‘Do you still want to go to the movies?’ He grabs a grape from the fruit bowl and throws it in his mouth. Andie blinks. ‘I… What?’ She asks stuttering. ‘The movies, you asked me to go?’ He says, like it’s common sense. Andie doesn’t even know what to say. ‘You still want to go right?’ He asks her, chewing on another grape. She scoffs. ‘No! What? How can you possibly think I still want to go after what just happened?’ She says. She’s not even angry at him right now. Just confused. Billy rolls his eyes. ‘Oh that? Come on, kid.’ ‘You called me a bitch. That’s not cool, Billy. I punched you in the face. How…’ He interrupts her again. ‘I guess that makes us even then, right? Come on Andie, you can handle some bad words and I can take a punch, we’re perfect for each other. Let’s go out.’ She walks up to the kitchen table and sits down on a chair. She’s so confused. ‘You are so confusing… half an hour ago you said you don’t go on movie dates.’ ‘Dinner-and-a-movie dates. Yeah, no, but I haven’t been on one in a while so why not.’ He says like it’s self-explanatory. Andie shakes her head in confusion. ‘And then you were yelling at me?’ He sighs and walks to the kitchen table grabbing the chair across from her. He leans on his elbows and speaks softly, like he’s telling a secret. ‘Look, I changed my mind and I was waiting for you to come out so I could tell you that, and then you came out with Steve and well… I don’t like the guy, okay, just come out with me.’ Her time to sigh again. ‘Billy, I don’t think I can handle all this.’ She gestures at him with her hands. He leans in a little closer. ‘I’m sorry okay, I’m sorry.’ He says. ‘Look, Billy, it’s okay. Okay? But…’ ‘No, no. No but, just, I like you. Come out with me. We don’t have to go see a movie let’s just get some ice-cream and I’ll take you right back home. It doesn’t even have to be today. How about Saturday?’ He says like it’s the hardest thing he’s ever done. She grunts. ‘I know I’m a dick okay, just ice-cream.’ She grunts a little louder. She looks at him. He smiles at her. ‘Fine, Billy, let’s get some damned ice-cream on Saturday.’ She says finally, throwing her hands up in despair. He leans back. ‘Alright, great!’ Andie sighs. She’s not sure if it’s a great idea, but whatever. It’s just ice-cream. ‘So, you never told me what you and that girl were fighting about last night.’ ‘You never asked.’ He rolls his eyes. ‘I’m asking now.’ Jesus, mood swings much? ‘Well, me and Sam have been friends since we were little and Lisa, Sam’s girlfriend, is jealous of that.’ Andie explains. ‘Ah. Is she right to be?’ Andie frowns. ‘No. She isn’t. We’re just friends’, she states. ‘How long are those two together?’ He asks. She crosses her arms and leans back. ‘Why are you interrogating me on this?’ She asks. Billy let’s out a chuckle. ‘I’m not, I’m just showing an interest. People do that, you know. And, by the way, I did get an elbow in the face over it so I feel like I’m involved.’ He points at the bruise on his face. ‘Yeah sorry about that.’ Andie mumbles. He smiles ‘Don’t sweat it, like I said, I can take a punch. Answer my question.’ ‘Right, eh, they’ve been together for about a year or so?’ Andie says. Billy thinks for a second. ‘So why did she attack you now?’ Andie signs ‘I don’t know man, I guess -in her mind- I wasn’t really a threat before because I was seeing John.’ ‘Who’s John?’ He asks, his voice dropping an octave. Oh God. ‘Eh, he’s this guy I was kind of seeing but last week I found out he has a girlfriend, so we’re done now.’ Billy nods slowly. This suddenly feels like a therapy session. ‘And how does that make you feel?’ Yep, this is therapy. Andie chuckles. ‘Fine, I guess. I’m still kind of angry at him but I didn’t love him, or even really like him, so I’m fine really.’ He’s thinking. ‘Do you need a notepad to write this all down?’ She adds. He chuckles. ‘Alright, I get it, I’m gone.’ He gets up and starts to walk out. Andie follows him to the door and opens it for him. ‘Bye.’ He says, smirking at her. This is awkward. ‘Bye.’ Andie answers. He doesn’t move. She raises her eyebrows. His hand moves up. She swallows. He grabs her scarf and pulls it down revealing the hickey he left on her throat. He lets out another chuckle. He gives her a kiss on the corner of her mouth and walks out. She moves her hand to her lips and follows him with her eyes. Well, he’s certainly not boring, she thinks, and she closes the door.

Thursday comes around and after school Rich, Sam and Andie are sitting on the ground in an alley next to the school gym. They are passing a joint around. ‘I’m not saying it’s some big conspiracy, I just don’t understand why anyone would be stupid enough to just go into the woods, bringing nothing. It’s just too dumb. He’s not a dumb kid.’ Sam says, sounding frustrated. They are talking about Will Byers who got lost in the woods last year. ‘If the kid says that’s what happened, that’s what happened, Sam, why would he lie?’ Rich asks him. Andie sighs. They’d had this conversation a thousand times before. Sam was obsessed with it. ‘I don’t know but when he had just disappeared everyone was like, he can’t have run away because all of his things are still at home and stuff. And now everyone is like, oh yea he just went into the woods, like now it suddenly makes all the sense in the world. I’m telling you, the kid is too smart to do something like that’ Rich rolls his eyes. ‘You keep saying that, how would you even know that, you don’t know him.’ ‘He gave him piano lessons when he was younger, Rich, he told you this a million times.’ Andie says, bored out of her mind. She takes another hit and passes the joint to Sam, who does the same. The discussion continues for a few more minutes until Sam has to go home. Rich and Andie talk some more about a big test they have on Monday and then Rich takes off too. Andie stays in the alley for a little longer. Her mom’s sister is visiting today which means her mother will be pretending to care about Andie. She’s not up for that today. Maybe she should just go eat at a diner, she considers. Would she have to call home? She’s pretty sure her mother will just come up with an excuse for her. She closes her eyes. It’s nice out today, kind of cold, but Andie likes it cold. ‘Andie Mann.’ She hears an angry voice call out. Fuck. She opens her eyes seeing Miss Janet right in front of her, arms crossed. She doesn’t say anything, she just looks at Andie. It looks like she wants her to say something, but Andie doesn’t know what to say. Maybe she thinks it’s just a cigarette? Andie takes the joint out of her mouth and smiles sheepishly. Smooth. ‘What are you waiting for, Mann, get up.’ The teacher says impatiently. Andie drops the joint on the ground and gets up. ‘Let’s go.’ Miss Janet adds. Andie frowns. ‘Where are we going?’ She asks genuinely confused. ‘The principal’s office, Mann, let’s go.’ Shit. They walk into school and through the hall to the principal’s office. When they get to the principal’s secretary’s desk sitting on the bench is none other than Billy Hargrove. He doesn’t look up but keeps staring in front of him with a look on his face like he could murder someone. Andie chuckles. ‘Is this funny to you, Mann?’ Miss Janet bites at her. ‘Nope, ma’am.’ Andie says as she sits down next to Billy. The secretary isn’t there so Janet walks into the principal’s office. ‘You okay there, buddy?’ Andie asks Billy. He doesn’t respond. Andie chuckles again nervously. Miss Janet comes back out. ‘Stay here. He’ll be right with you.’ She says and she walks out. Silence. Then Billy grunts angrily. Andie frowns. He looks really pissed. ‘What happened?’ She tries again. He huffs. ‘What happened? I moved to this piece of shit garbage town. That’s what happened.’ Alright… Andie decides to just leave him alone. Except Billy keeps making angry noises and Andie is kind of giggly so she’s having a hard time not laughing at him. This keeps going for a bit until Billy gets up and starts walking around the room impatiently. ‘Why is that asshole making us wait. There’s like five people in this school, what could he possibly be doing.’ He looks so cute when he’s angry. Andie snorts loudly trying to keep from laughing at him. He finally looks at her. ‘What the fuck is wrong with you?’ He asks. ‘You know what he’s probably doing?’ Andie asks him trying so hard not to laugh. He stops pacing and is studying her face. ‘Jacking off.’ Andie answers her own question and she bursts out laughing. He frowns. ‘Are you high?’ He asks her. Andie nods her head, and she leans forward still laughing her ass off. He chuckles, but quickly goes back to being angry. She keeps laughing. Billy rolls his eyes. ‘Okay, it wasn’t that funny Andie, calm down.’ He says. She stops laughing. ‘You calm down.’ She mumbles at him. ‘What the hell is taking so long.’ Billy repeats and he starts pacing again. ‘Relax, Billy.’ ‘Fuck you.’ He shoots back immediately. Andie raises her eyebrows. Andie decides she should probably get him to calm down or he’ll probably get into some deep shit with the principal. Billy walks up to the secretary’s desk and knocks some papers on the floor mumbling ‘Oops.’ Andie rolls her eyes. What a child. She thinks for a second but realizes quickly that she knows exactly what to do. She gets up. A stoned Andie is a no-bullshit Andie. ‘Come here, Billy.’ She says. Billy shoots her a look. Andie sighs. She walks up to him and grabs the collar of his jacket with both hands. Billy frowns. Andie kisses him. The heat they felt before is back immediately. He kisses her back. One of his arms wraps around her, stroking her back with his hand. The other hand grabs her behind the head deepening the kiss, his tongue messaging hers. It’s a very passionate kiss, just like the one they shared at the party. Billy moves his hands, grabbing her ass. She moans, and he lifts her up setting her on the secretary’s desk. Andie smiles into the kiss and grabs his waist pulling him against her. He lays his hands on her knees and moves them up to her thighs. They break their kiss for a moment to catch their breath. Billy moves back in and bites her lip softly. They continue their kiss. Suddenly a voice comes from principal’s offices. ‘God help me.’ They break their kiss, and both look towards the voice to see the principal standing in the doorway.

CHAPTER THREE PART ONE

[the--blackdahlia]

Thirteen Chapter 2

Title: Thirteen Chapter 2

Summary:  It’s been ten years since John turned his back for two seconds. Can him and Dean finally find what they’ve been missing?

Warnings: language

AN:  So I'm making Dean six years older than Sam instead of just 4. And some events from the show are being changed around!

Ten Years Later

 They searched and searched. No stone went unturned, no state left unsearched. Other hunters joined their hunt, especially the ones who had taken to the little two year old. But they had found nothing. It was like Sam had just disappeared off the face of the planet. Dean had dropped out of school so he could dedicate more time to looking for his lost little brother. John had even gave him the Impala early and had got himself a truck so that they could cover more ground.

 Dean’s eyes were starting to burn from driving for so long without sleep. He needed to sleep, but he hadn’t slept well in the past ten years. On more than one occasion, John had slipped Benadryl into his food in order for him to sleep for more than two hours. He was going to get himself killed before they even found Sam.

 “Dean, pull over.” John said into the CB that he had in his truck. They had installed one in the Impala too, because even when there was no radio signal or they couldn’t reach their phones, the CB was always right there.

 “Dad, I’m fine.” Dean answered.

 “We are stopping in this motel up here.” John said. “End of story.” Dean sighed. He wanted to look for his brother. For the past ten years, he woke up every morning hoping that his dad’s panic was a figment of his imagination, that Sam was right there the whole time and John just hadn’t seen him right away. Or that he was playing hide-and-seek. That’s all.

 “Dad…” Dean grumbled.

 “Dean.” John said. Dean sighed and pulled into the parking lot of the motel but didn’t get out of the car. He was secretly praying that there was no room, but he knew from lack of cars in the parking lot that wasn’t the case. John waited for Dean to get out of the car, but realizing he wasn’t, he sighed and headed in.

 There was an older woman sitting behind the counter. She wasn’t paying attention to the door though. Instead, she was focusing on the soap opera on her TV. John cleared his throat.

 “I’d like a room.” John said.

 “Yeah, I got those.” She smarted off. She turned to look at him. She could see Dean in his car, right outside the glass door. “Two queens or a king?” She asked. John sighed.

 “Two queens.” She slid him the book to sign in and took the money. Normally, he just paid for a night and that was it. But ever since they had drove into this little town, John had felt something was off. So he paid for a whole week. John climbed into his truck and drove around to their room, Dean following behind them. They unloaded and headed inside, setting up the salt lines and sigils.

 “Dad, where are we?” Dean asked a while later, when John was browsing the phonebook for places to eat.

 “What do you mean?” John asked. Dean had a mad spread out in front of him.

 “I know we’re in Indiana, but this town, it’s not even on the map!” Dean said. “And it’s not exactly a little place.”

 “Hawkins isn’t on there?” John asked, looking over Dean’s shoulder. “Huh? Weird.”

 “Something just doesn’t feel right about this place.” Dean said.

 “Well, maybe it’s a sign.” John said, walking away from his son. Dean looked up at him.

 “A sign? A sign for what?” Dean asked. John pinched his nose. He knew this was always coming, he just kept hoping that they found him first.

 “Maybe it’s a sign we need to stop looking for Sammy and start hunting monsters again.” John said. Dean was on him in no time, pushing him up against the wall with a growl.

 “We are not giving up on him!” Dean snapped. “He’s still out there somewhere! See this?” He held up the amulet he wore around his neck. The fist, and only, Christmas present he ever got from his brother and he wore it with pride every day. “This is my hope that my brother is still out there! And he needs me!” Dean let go of John and backed away.

 “Dean, I miss him to. And I blame myself every day that I wasn’t watching him, but we’ve been looking for ten years. Bobby, Caleb, Pastor Jim, and others have been looking. He’s nowhere to be found.” Dean tensed up.

 “I think you should get out of my sight right now.” Dean hissed. John grabbed his jacket and left the room without a fight. He knew better than to poke at Dean when he was like this. As soon as the motel door had shut, Dean started swinging, leaving a hole in the drywall.

 ****

 John headed into town, looking for some food. He hated to give up hope that Sam was alive out there, waiting for them, but he knew that it was a long shot. It had been ten years since his little boy was taken. All the stats showed that, more than likely, Sam had probably been dumped someplace not long after…

 As John stood in line at the diner to place his to go order, he glanced over at a stack of newspapers. The story was about the decommissioning of a lab that was known for kidnapping children and almost destroying the town…

 John didn’t even wait for his food. He grabbed the newspaper and drove as fast as he could back to motel.

 ****

 Silence. That’s what greeted him as he woke up in his little cot with the thin sheets and the teddy bear he had received one year. It was cold and it was quiet. Normally, he could hear people outside the steel door that locked every night. Carefully, he got to his feet, wearing just the thin gown that he wore all the time. He gently pushed opened the door.

 “Mama?” He called out, looking around. “Mama?” He walked down the hallway. The lights were still on. No one was there though. “Mama!” But no one answered him. He made his way to the double doors that led to the part of the building he was never supposed to go. The part where the outside could see him and take him away. They swung open then and a person in a hazmat suit walked towards him.

 “Kid, what are you doing out of your room?” The person asked. He screamed and the man covered his ears. The boy took off running then, through the double doors. “Shit. He’s escaping! Someone stop him!” The man said, but it was too late. His walkie talkie wasn’t working and the kid, well, he was gone.

Forever Tags: @petrovadixon @secretlyshycomputer @marvel-af @aiaranradnay @theas-bedtime-stories @newtospnfandom @skeetskeetfucker @dekahg @af112992 @sammat97 @dslocum89 @kenzie-110101 @whatisauser @nanie5 @bandobsession98 @cutie1365 @crownedloki

Supernatural Tags: @essie1876 @mrsdeanfuckingwinchester @smoothdogsgirl @winchestergeekfreak @jadepc @sabigmart

Thirteen Tags: @peppermint--teas

[babygirl06301]

I can’t put my fucking thoughts together right now.

I was gonna make a proper post about these last two SPN episodes, but I’m just gonna bullet point the pain away.

*during the pickax to the wall bit* I bet if Sam and Dean had taken off their shirts next, the wall would’ve come down easily.

I have been WAITING FOR SO DAMN LONG FOR DEAN TO USE THAT FUCKING GRENADE LAUNCHER!!

Dean’s leg looks gross as hell.

I think they should 100% kill Toni. Fuck her kid.

Jodi is badass as always.

Sam’s speech made me proud. They grow up so fast. First pre-law, now leading an army. @thesuperwhovian and I liken it to Buffy coaching her Slayers. Mega cute.

As soon as Dean said he was gonna help Mary, I knew I was gonna cry.

And I was right. That fucking speech. I like that Dean cut himself some slack finally. Typically he blames himself for not protecting Sam, but in that speech he sort of told himself and Mary that he didn’t stand a chance from the beginning. Also, I was kind of waiting the entire season for Dean to get proper mad at her. I wanted him to hate her in that sort of irrational way. Sort of like “how could you abandon me?” Other than the time that Dean told Sam about Hell, I’d argue that this scene is Dean’s best block of dialogue. At least for a while. Beautifulllllllll.

The only good thing Ketch ever did was kill that Toni bitch. I knew from the last episode of season 11 that she was an ass, and I’m happy she had her ass handed to her. 

Ketch doesn’t know the meaning of “psychopath.” Dean had the Mark of Cain, bitch. 

It’s justice that Mary got to kill him, I think.

It’s ironic that we cut from Mary holding a gun to Ketch to Sam holding a gun to that British bitch. I can’t be bothered to learn her name.

Sam’s “PASS” was the most badass thing. And I fucking knew that bitch was gonna use Lucifer as a way to try and stay alive.

Too bad for her, because Jodi was having none of it.

That little family powwow at the end was so cute. It’s nice to have some closure for everything that went on this season between the three of them. Although, it kind of made me wary of where they were taking Mary’s character. I felt like, from the jump, they weren’t going to keep Mary around. Like, she never felt long term to me. Before Billie got killed, I thought she’d choose to go back to heaven or something. Now, though, I don’t know how they’re gonna proceed, based on the end of the second episode. Which is what we’re gonna talk about now. Thanks for giving us a heartwarming ending just before ruining our fucking lives, SPN.

I love that in the midst of all this shit going down with the baby, SPN still finds room to make fun of IKEA.

Kelly calling for God, LOL. GOD’S ON VACATION, BITCH.

Crowley dug himself out of a grave, that’s fun. Just like his ex-boyfriend Dean.

I am SHOOK that Rowena is dead. You can’t just not bring her around for a fuck-ton of episodes and then just “whoops she’s dead.” Fuck off.

Lucifer has a nice ass jacket, though.

Cas, I’m not your keeper or anything, but we typically don’t walk up to slits in the universe and traipse through.

*gun-blazing mystery man shows up* That’s 100% Bobby. Bet.

Mark...dyed his beard. And he trimmed it. Lookin’ good, my sweet.

Mary finally gets to meet the King of Hell. 

I was super pumped to hear that the gates of Hell would close, but Crowley would stay top side. I had this little fantasy of him shooting up human blood again, maybe owning a tie shop. You know, the life.

The flannel thing was cute as hell. And also, awwwwww. He loves those little assholes.

OKAY. The thing with Cas and the whole “the baby brings paradise”? Did Chuck make any of his kids read the Bible because???? Does Cas understand that that probably means the kid is the anti-Christ and/or the Beast? Does he know that after shit-misery in the apocalypse brought on by the anti-Christ, then there’s paradise? Does he fucking understand that that baby is probably desitined to kill the world and everyone in it and then, and ONLY THEN, will there be paradise? I mean, fucking come on. That’s classic Revelations bullshit. It’s end of days shit, motherfucker. Cas. Babe. COME ON. 

Dean being healed by Cas is the cutest thing. Also, I love how Cas comes into the room, sees all three Winchesters, and says “Dean?” Classic.

Referencing “The French Mistake” was hella grand. Although, I’d hardly call that meta. I saw something somewhere that said this episode would be super meta, but it wasn’t? They just referenced that episode, and that was all. I thought the Phantom Zone lookin’ place was gonna be like “this is the world after Donald Trump’s presidency” or some shit.

I fucking knew it was Bobby. What did I tell you? Jim Beaver lied to us on Twitter, that beautifully clever man.

Jesus, Sam and Dean have a hell of an impact on their world, heh?

Bobby’s gun being named after Rufus is the saddest thing. Well, it’ll be the saddest thing for at least another 10 minutes, anyway.

I like that Lucifer mentioned Chuck again. Just because I love Chuck.

Although Chuck could’ve helped out a little with the thing at the end, don’t ya think? Anyway.

I’m so sad about Crowley. I saw somewhere that Crowley will be in season 13, but you never know what that means, you know? Will he be in a different vessel? Is he just going to be there but in Purgatory? Or will he be totally fine and things will go back to normal? Either way, his final words being “bye, boys”? I can’t. What a way to go. He went out like a fucking hero. 

Castiel’s death pissed me off for like 0.2 seconds. Mainly because we know Misha will be back. No, I wasn’t sad for too long about Castiel’s death.

What I was fucking wrecked because of was Dean’s fucking reaction to Castiel’s death.

Hold on, let’s talk about Mary. See this is what I was talking about with the whole her leaving the show thing. Although, we didn’t see her die. So, I’m guessing the boys will try and get her back somehow. And probably time moves differently in that world so it’ll have been years of her trapped with Lucifer or some shit. I don’t think either her or Lucifer is gone for good. In fact, I think they’re signed on for 13, too.

Back to Dean. Holy fucking fuck. Yes, he wasn’t just sad because of Cas. He was sad because of Mary. But he fucking dropped to his knees in despair next to Cas, and the look on his face when he saw his best friend dead in the sand...that sent shivers down my spine. And his wings. Castiel’s wings. This is different than before, you understand, because Dean wasn’t mad at Cas. Not like in season 7. He was annoyed, sure, but he always is. Dean and Cas were finally in a place where they could talk shit out and be okay. After everything with Lucifer and Kelly and everything else, they lost each other again. That hurt so damn bad.

What the fuck kind of name is “Jack” for a nephilim?

If that kid came out that big, that’s probably what killed Kelly. That’s gross, I know, but I can’t help the thought. I’m glad he’s not a baby though, because I didn’t sign up for Sam and Dean raising a baby. It’s kind of annoying that it’s a bit of an Amara repeat, but it’s better than the alternative. Plus, if he gets out of hand, he’s old enough to kill!

To be honest, kind of a shitty ending. Not by way of content, because this season was bomb af, but the whole two episodes were kind of tame. Other than them killing off two regulars and two recurring characters, of course. But the very last second is usually something that is like “what????” But this was just sort of “okay, the kid was born, he’s fully grown (that’s weird), can’t wait for next season.” You know? 

All in all, though, a top notch season. I’m really happy with it. I know a lot of people aren’t because it’s nothing like SPN used to be, but who cares. I thought this season brought out some new and interesting styles and ways of presenting the content that I hope continues into next season. I’m not too worried about Cas and Crowley, but I’ll probably mourn them and Rowena all the same. And Dean crying over Cas’s body is gonna ruin me for the next few months. Thanks, SPN. 

[flauntpage]

Blackout At Home: When The Lights Went Out At Shea Stadium In 1977

At 9:30 p.m. on July 13, 1977, with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning, Mets third baseman Lenny Randle walked to the batter's box for the third time that night. Four minutes later, New York City went completely dark.

"I thought it was my last day on Earth," Randle told a TV reporter at the time. "I thought God was calling."

There was a higher power involved, as it happened, but it was Mother Nature. Roughly an hour before, lightning strikes on a Consolidated Edison substation along the Hudson River tripped two circuit breakers, triggering a "cascading effect" that plunged Gotham into its darkest night. Years of municipal neglect, historic crimes spikes, and lost manufacturing jobs had left New York City's poorest neighborhoods isolated and desperate. In the dark, it all came to a head. Looting, rioting, arson, and a violent madness kicked civic responsibility to the curb, stepped over it, and then hauled out a free sofabed.

During the 25 hours of blackout, more than 3,700 people were arrested, a thousand fires were set, and more than 1,500 stores were ransacked and destroyed, adding up to a total cost of $300 million. It was a gut punch to a city that was already on edge in numerous ways. The city was teetering on the edge of several different kinds of insolvency, and serial killer David Berkowitz, aka the Son of Sam, was still on the loose murdering young New Yorkers for sport. His final victim was killed two weeks after the blackout.

The boozing, brawling, straw-that-stirs-the-drinking Yankees were the big sports story of 1977, culminating in Reggie Jackson's three-dingers on three-pitches from three-pitchers in the World Series-clinching Game Six. It's a tale brilliantly told in Jonathan Mahler's Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx is Burning . But on the night that the entire city was engulfed in flames, the Yankees were in Milwaukee. Randle and the Mets were at home, trapped in the dark with everyone else.

It's perhaps fitting the Mets were home during one of New York City's lowest points, because 1977 was arguably this wayward franchise's most depressing season. It was the year that board chairman M. Donald Grant was goaded into trading Tom Seaver, "The Franchise," by a curmudgeonly Daily News sports columnist named Dick Young, who didn't much like players trying to get paid what they're worth. When Seaver was finally dealt to the Reds in June's "Midnight Massacre," it cost the Mets dearly; they would lose 94 or more games in every full season until 1984. Fans stayed away in droves. On July 13, the official crowd was 14,626 in a stadium that held 57,000.

Still, there were people in the ballpark, including organist Jane Jarvis, who got everyone in Shea singing White Christmas in the dark, a bit of whimsy before folks headed out into the raging void.

VICE Sports spoke to six people who were in Shea Stadium on July 13, 1977, a night—if not a game—they'll never forget.

The Leadoff Man

The Mets were putrid, but you'd never know it when watching their new third baseman. In his first year with the Mets, Randle had 156 hits with a .304 average, and his animated personality made him a fan favorite. (And he hadn't even revealed his musical talents yet.) In a 2015 MLB Network documentary, Randle earned the label The Most Interesting Man in Baseball ; at the time, he was a lone light in an otherwise dreary season. Randle led off the July 13 game and was 0-for-2 when he stepped to the plate in the home half of the sixth. As the pitch from Cubs starter Ray Burris came in, he took his cut. You couldn't see a damn thing in Shea Stadium anyway, so why not try to steal one?

"It was pitch black, so I swing, make contact, and take off. What would you do? The Cubs Manny Trillo and Ivan de Jesus tackled me as I coming into second," says Randle, 68. "I'm from Compton so I'm used to playing with no lights, having games lit with candles and car high-beams. We had great eyes and great vision. I figured the game was going to continue, but I guess everyone in charge was too concerned about the ice cream melting."

Illumination or not, Randle wanted some baseball action. There was never pandemonium at Shea that night, but there was certainly confusion. So to keep folks entertained through their early steps into the unknown, Randle and four other Mets took phantom infield, turning the most gorgeous double plays of their life. And just like back in Compton, other players drove cars onto the diamond so that fans could see the show.

"We played imaginary baseball," the current co-owner/GM/manager of the Nettuno Italy baseball club says. "It was the best infield in the history of the Mets, it was phenomenal, the fans gave us a standing ovation. Back then, everyone had a better sense of humor about the game. We had fun… But I still want that hit back."

The Wide-Eyed Kid

For a baseball-loving kid, having a grandfather who supervised a ticket gate is a sweet deal. Mike Montaigne, 50, of Floral Park, NY, went to games all the time and sat in the upper deck, no charge. It wasn't like there was a big demand for tickets.

"I was there with my mother, father, and older brother, and it seemed like there was nobody up in our section. Shea was so big, if you had a small crowd, it just felt empty," Montaigne recalls. "It was weird when the lights went out. I think I was too young to be scared, but it was strange having the only light in Shea coming from the single emergency lights at each section. I had no idea what was happening but then the organ kicks in, players drive their cars onto the diamond, and they're pantomiming taking infield practice without a ball… I'm 10, this is the craziest thing I've ever seen. I thought everyone was having a great time. I realized years later, it was to keep people calm."

Montaigne and his family were some of the last people to leave the stadium because, with the 7 train out, his grandfather needed a ride to his home in Jackson Heights. He says the drive down Roosevelt Avenue was fine, nothing out of the ordinary except local guys directing traffic in the absence of police officers. But Montaigne did learn learn a new word.

"We had the radio on and the announcer said the city is worried about looting. I'd never even heard the word looting before," he says. "We drove home safely and uneventfully to Greenlawn, out on Long Island. I remember passing the Nassau County border and all the lights were on. It was the last we heard of the blackout that night. Next morning, I watched the news. Now I truly understood what looting meant. "

The Opposing Hurler

As the Wednesday night game got underway, the Cubs were riding high, with a 53-32 record that was good for a four game NL East lead over the Philadelphia Phillies. The last place Mets were already 20 games back. Coming off back-to-back 15-win seasons, righthander Ray Burris was 10-8, and throwing a two-hitter when Randle stepped up.

"Lights had gone out during games before, so I just stood there on the mound," says Burris 66, who is now the Phillies rehab pitching coach. "I noticed Lenny had taken a phantom swing, pretended he hit the ball, and started running the bases. I thought, 'What in the world is he doing? I had the ball in my hand. If memory serves, I tried to hit him as he rounded second. Lenny was a colorful character, loved to compete, and it was great having him as a teammate on the Yankees a couple of years later."

The Cubs were staying at the Waldorf-Astoria, and they couldn't shower in the dark, so the team boarded the bus and headed down Northern Boulevard after the game was officially postponed. Burris can still see the ride as clear as day.

"Seeing the rioting and looting firsthand was unbelievable, guys everywhere just walking down the street with stolen TVs and stuff. It was like people were possessed," Burris says. "We didn't say a word, but you start thinking 'This is not good, this is not good.' What if they storm or hijack the bus? Or they realize there's professional athletes making good money on here? Being young men, we would have protected ourselves. We told the bus driver, do not stop. I don't know the driver's state of mind, but he did an amazing job getting us through the mayhem."

Upon arriving at the Waldorf, Burris breathed a momentary sigh of relief, but his room was on the 16th floor and the elevator was out. He and a teammate on the 15th floor walked up with candles, but Burris's flamed out on his floor. He had no matches.

"I can't see my hand in front of me and I don't know which way to go. I was scared to death," he says. "I didn't know if there was someone hiding in the hallway or what. I went room to room looking at the numbers up close until I found mine. There was no air conditioning, so I hardly slept. The next morning, I was so happy we were headed to Philadelphia, but I still had to carry everything back down the stairs."

After the suspended game, the Cubs weren't the same for the rest of the season. The team, worn out for obvious reasons, dropped a doubleheader to the Phils on July 15th. From that day forward, the Cubs would go just 27-47 to finish at an even 81-81.

"The record is what it is, but we definitely started a downspin following the blackout," says Burris.

The Weary Traveler

In 1965, when Jim Hague was a mere lad of four, his father took him out to Shea to see Sandy Koufax pitch. Tug McGraw would best Koufax on that day, as the Dodgers lost 5-2, and the Mets had made a fan for life. Jim's father died when he was 10, so at the age of 14, unbeknownst to his mother, he started making the trip from Jersey City out to see the Flushing Nine. He was 16 in July of '77. That night, at least, his mom knew he was at Shea. She knew nothing of his whereabouts in the wee wee hours, or of his long night's journey into day.

Like everyone in the park, Hague, now 56, didn't know exactly what to do, but he was probably the only solo teenager who needed to cross state lines, and the Hudson River, to get home. Hague left Shea, saw the subway was kaput, and went back into the stadium, where he sat with roughly 25 other stranded Met fans until 1 a.m. (Hague, a sportswriter by trade, credits the club for giving away sodas, peanuts, and hot dogs.) They were told that buses were going to come get people—Hague guesses there were a thousand people milling about Shea—and those buses finally rolled up at 5:30 a.m. The sun was rising. And the buses were only going as far as Port Authority Terminal.

"I didn't have money to take a cab home or anything, so I walked to the PATH station at 33rd, and there were another 250 people waiting to be told what to do," Hague says. Finally, at 10:30 a.m., different buses took the weary traveler to New Jersey. There he found out that he needed another local bus to cross the finish line. Hague made it at around 1 p.m. The 38-mile round-trip took Hague nearly 24 hours.

"Needless to say mother was a combination of terrified and thrilled that I was home," he says.

He still remembers how desperately he wanted to crash in his bed. Looking back, he enjoyed the adventure, primarily thanks to his fellow Mets fans.

"We became a band of brothers out at Shea," he says. "We were telling stories about our favorite players, best games we'd seen, commiserating about how losing Seaver was like a death in the family, life as Met fans, laughing, joking, reminiscing… We consoled each other, and sang songs off a little transistor radio that picked up a station from Cleveland."

Most of Manhattan was in darkness during the blackout. Photo by Thomas Monaster/NY Daily News via Getty Images

The Disgruntled Employee

For a couple of seasons, Mark Trost was the top souvenir seller at Shea Stadium. He chalks that up to having prime real estate. His stand was on the field level, third base side, which stood in the path of exiting fans. It certainly wasn't due to his dedication to the franchise. A self-described nerdy comic book guy, Trost, 61, was uninterested in baseball and despised the Mets and their followers.

"I couldn't stand it," he says with a disdain seemingly untampered down forty years on. "The fans tortured me every day. It wasn't an upscale clientele like today, it was the dregs. And the owners were no better, they tormented us. They'd make us stay until the end of a doubleheader with nobody left in the ballpark. The worst was Banner Day. Stupid thing went on for like 15 hours. It wasn't fun"

Both sides of Trost's bitter equation came to a head the night of the blackout.

"Within probably 15 minutes, the bosses came running over and said shut it down, so we pulled the garage door-style gates, because they were afraid fans were going to go crazy and loot the joint," he laughs. "Then they made us wait an hour or longer to see if the lights popped back on, even though everyone was gone."

Trost says the experiences of that night isn't what sticks in his craw. It's what Mets management did some 12 hours later, with broad swaths of New York City still without electricity.

"They made us come back! It was a hot, humid day and I basically walk through Flushing to Shea, and I'm thinking, 'Why are they doing this? You can't play a baseball game without power,'" Trost says. "So I get there, and there's a fair number of concession people and ticket takers who made the trek, and they don't let us in the ballpark. We stood outside baking for a while and they just sent us home. Of course, the lights came on that afternoon and they could have played."

Trost, who is president and founder of Film Archives, doesn't look back on his Mets years fondly, but at least he got a solid nickname out of his miserable experiences.

"You know my brother-in-law Greg Prince, #1 Mets fan in the world? He calls me Mr. Stem, the Bizarro world version of Mr. Met. Because I hate everything about that team so much."

The Familiar Voice

Howie Rose has been with the Mets, either on radio or television, for more than two decades. But back in 1977, he was a 23-year-old reporter for WHM radio, which had him doing reports throughout the morning, catching an afternoon nap, and taking in games at night. He and a handful of other radio reporters didn't sit in the press box, but rather in a box with Thornton Geary, the Mets vice president of communications who also happened to be Dick Young's son-in-law.

"It was a great summer night at Shea, even if there weren't many people there. The fans made good on their promise to stay away, but I was reveling in being at the ballpark," recalls Rose, 63. "When the lights went out, nobody knew what to expect. We were in a different place than the previous blackout in 1965, which was a quiet night, or later in 2003, when everyone feared terrorism. At first, I thought it was just Shea, but you could see out to Flushing and everything was dark. There was a lot of improvisation, with the upbeat organ music and the cars on the field, to keep fans calm and entertained as it became evident this extended far beyond the stadium. Nobody knew if the subways were running, and if not, how were they going to get from Point A to Point B. There wasn't a sense of panic in the ballpark, but within a half hour, there was a creeping trepidation."

Rose was still living with his parents in Bayside, Queens, a 15-minute drive from Shea, and he knew the side-street route home. It was a restless sleep that night, though, because Rose had to be at the radio station, in midtown Manhattan, by 5 a.m. One part of the morning commute had him going through Long Island City, which was a much dicier neighborhood in those days than it is today. The whole experience compounded a creepy feeling that Rose had felt acutely over the previous few months.

"I didn't know from the looting until I got in the car and turned on the radio, so I'm listening to the reports as I go through a rough section of Queens, with no traffic lights or cops. So there was visceral fear, but there was also a lingering one that summer," says Rose. "My girlfriend at the time lived in the Bronx, very close to where Son of Sam had hit a couple of months earlier. You were told don't park, don't make out in the car. If we went out on Saturday night, we would sprint into her building before the motor was off. That was the backdrop to the blackout morning. It was frightening."

Rose doesn't remember anyone losing their cool or acting out inside of Shea that fateful night in 1977, but he's pretty sure that he can put to rest one story of attempted robbery.

"I've gotten to know Lenny Randle a tiny bit," Rose says. "I think I'd recall a ball in play because it would've been a uniquely hairy situation. I think Lenny might be the only guy in the world who remembers it that way."

On September 16, 1977, the game was resumed in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Cubs beat the Mets 5-2, and Ray Burris got credit for a complete game victory. In the bottom of the eighth, Lenny Randle stroked a triple to right field. It remains his only official hit of the blackout night.

Blackout At Home: When The Lights Went Out At Shea Stadium In 1977 published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv

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Blackout At Home: When The Lights Went Out At Shea Stadium In 1977

At 9:30 p.m. on July 13, 1977, with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning, Mets third baseman Lenny Randle walked to the batter's box for the third time that night. Four minutes later, New York City went completely dark.

"I thought it was my last day on Earth," Randle told a TV reporter at the time. "I thought God was calling."

There was a higher power involved, as it happened, but it was Mother Nature. Roughly an hour before, lightning strikes on a Consolidated Edison substation along the Hudson River tripped two circuit breakers, triggering a "cascading effect" that plunged Gotham into its darkest night. Years of municipal neglect, historic crimes spikes, and lost manufacturing jobs had left New York City's poorest neighborhoods isolated and desperate. In the dark, it all came to a head. Looting, rioting, arson, and a violent madness kicked civic responsibility to the curb, stepped over it, and then hauled out a free sofabed.

During the 25 hours of blackout, more than 3,700 people were arrested, a thousand fires were set, and more than 1,500 stores were ransacked and destroyed, adding up to a total cost of $300 million. It was a gut punch to a city that was already on edge in numerous ways. The city was teetering on the edge of several different kinds of insolvency, and serial killer David Berkowitz, aka the Son of Sam, was still on the loose murdering young New Yorkers for sport. His final victim was killed two weeks after the blackout.

The boozing, brawling, straw-that-stirs-the-drinking Yankees were the big sports story of 1977, culminating in Reggie Jackson's three-dingers on three-pitches from three-pitchers in the World Series-clinching Game Six. It's a tale brilliantly told in Jonathan Mahler's Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx is Burning. But on the night that the entire city was engulfed in flames, the Yankees were in Milwaukee. Randle and the Mets were at home, trapped in the dark with everyone else.

It's perhaps fitting the Mets were home during one of New York City's lowest points, because 1977 was arguably this wayward franchise's most depressing season. It was the year that board chairman M. Donald Grant was goaded into trading Tom Seaver, "The Franchise," by a curmudgeonly Daily News sports columnist named Dick Young, who didn't much like players trying to get paid what they're worth. When Seaver was finally dealt to the Reds in June's "Midnight Massacre," it cost the Mets dearly; they would lose 94 or more games in every full season until 1984. Fans stayed away in droves. On July 13, the official crowd was 14,626 in a stadium that held 57,000.

Still, there were people in the ballpark, including organist Jane Jarvis, who got everyone in Shea singing White Christmas in the dark, a bit of whimsy before folks headed out into the raging void.

VICE Sports spoke to six people who were in Shea Stadium on July 13, 1977, a night—if not a game—they'll never forget.

The Leadoff Man

The Mets were putrid, but you'd never know it when watching their new third baseman. In his first year with the Mets, Randle had 156 hits with a .304 average, and his animated personality made him a fan favorite. (And he hadn't even revealed his musical talents yet.) In a 2015 MLB Network documentary, Randle earned the label The Most Interesting Man in Baseball; at the time, he was a lone light in an otherwise dreary season. Randle led off the July 13 game and was 0-for-2 when he stepped to the plate in the home half of the sixth. As the pitch from Cubs starter Ray Burris came in, he took his cut. You couldn't see a damn thing in Shea Stadium anyway, so why not try to steal one?

"It was pitch black, so I swing, make contact, and take off. What would you do? The Cubs Manny Trillo and Ivan de Jesus tackled me as I coming into second," says Randle, 68. "I'm from Compton so I'm used to playing with no lights, having games lit with candles and car high-beams. We had great eyes and great vision. I figured the game was going to continue, but I guess everyone in charge was too concerned about the ice cream melting."

Illumination or not, Randle wanted some baseball action. There was never pandemonium at Shea that night, but there was certainly confusion. So to keep folks entertained through their early steps into the unknown, Randle and four other Mets took phantom infield, turning the most gorgeous double plays of their life. And just like back in Compton, other players drove cars onto the diamond so that fans could see the show.

"We played imaginary baseball," the current co-owner/GM/manager of the Nettuno Italy baseball club says. "It was the best infield in the history of the Mets, it was phenomenal, the fans gave us a standing ovation. Back then, everyone had a better sense of humor about the game. We had fun… But I still want that hit back. "

The Wide-Eyed Kid

For a baseball-loving kid, having a grandfather who supervised a ticket gate is a sweet deal. Mike Montaigne, 50, of Floral Park, NY, went to games all the time and sat in the upper deck, no charge. It wasn't like there was a big demand for tickets.

"I was there with my mother, father, and older brother, and it seemed like there was nobody up in our section. Shea was so big, if you had a small crowd, it just felt empty," Montaigne recalls. "It was weird when the lights went out. I think I was too young to be scared, but it was strange having the only light in Shea coming from the single emergency lights at each section. I had no idea what was happening but then the organ kicks in, players drive their cars onto the diamond, and they're pantomiming taking infield practice without a ball… I'm 10, this is the craziest thing I've ever seen. I thought everyone was having a great time. I realized years later, it was to keep people calm."

Montaigne and his family were some of the last people to leave the stadium because, with the 7 train out, his grandfather needed a ride to his home in Jackson Heights. He says the drive down Roosevelt Avenue was fine, nothing out of the ordinary except local guys directing traffic in the absence of police officers. But Montaigne did learn learn a new word.

"We had the radio on and the announcer said the city is worried about looting. I'd never even heard the word looting before," he says. "We drove home safely and uneventfully to Greenlawn, out on Long Island. I remember passing the Nassau County border and all the lights were on. It was the last we heard of the blackout that night. Next morning, I watched the news. Now I truly understood what looting meant. "

The Opposing Hurler

As the Wednesday night game got underway, the Cubs were riding high, with a 53-32 record that was good for a four game NL East lead over the Philadelphia Phillies. The last place Mets were already 20 games back. Coming off back-to-back 15-win seasons, righthander Ray Burris was 10-8, and throwing a two-hitter when Randle stepped up.

"Lights had gone out during games before, so I just stood there on the mound," says Burris 66, who is now the Phillies rehab pitching coach. "I noticed Lenny had taken a phantom swing, pretended he hit the ball, and started running the bases. I thought, 'What in the world is he doing? I had the ball in my hand. If memory serves, I tried to hit him as he rounded second. Lenny was a colorful character, loved to compete, and it was great having him as a teammate on the Yankees a couple of years later."

The Cubs were staying at the Waldorf-Astoria, and they couldn't shower in the dark, so the team boarded the bus and headed down Northern Boulevard after the game was officially postponed. Burris can still see the ride as clear as day.

"Seeing the rioting and looting firsthand was unbelievable, guys everywhere just walking down the street with stolen TVs and stuff. It was like people were possessed," Burris says. "We didn't say a word, but you start thinking 'This is not good, this is not good.' What if they storm or hijack the bus? Or they realize there's professional athletes making good money on here? Being young men, we would have protected ourselves. We told the bus driver, do not stop. I don't know the driver's state of mind, but he did an amazing job getting us through the mayhem."

Upon arriving at the Waldorf, Burris breathed a momentary sigh of relief, but his room was on the 16th floor and the elevator was out. He and a teammate on the 15th floor walked up with candles, but Burris's flamed out on his floor. He had no matches.

"I can't see my hand in front of me and I don't know which way to go. I was scared to death," he says. "I didn't know if there was someone hiding in the hallway or what. I went room to room looking at the numbers up close until I found mine. There was no air conditioning, so I hardly slept. The next morning, I was so happy we were headed to Philadelphia, but I still had to carry everything back down the stairs."

After the suspended game, the Cubs weren't the same for the rest of the season. The team, worn out for obvious reasons, dropped a doubleheader to the Phils on July 15th. From that day forward, the Cubs would go just 27-47 to finish at an even 81-81.

"The record is what it is, but we definitely started a downspin following the blackout," says Burris.

The Weary Traveler

In 1965, when Jim Hague was a mere lad of four, his father took him out to Shea to see Sandy Koufax pitch. Tug McGraw would best Koufax on that day, as the Dodgers lost 5-2, and the Mets had made a fan for life. Jim's father died when he was 10, so at the age of 14, unbeknownst to his mother, he started making the trip from Jersey City out to see the Flushing Nine. He was 16 in July of '77. That night, at least, his mom knew he was at Shea. She knew nothing of his whereabouts in the wee wee hours, or of his long night's journey into day.

Like everyone in the park, Hague, now 56, didn't know exactly what to do, but he was probably the only solo teenager who needed to cross state lines, and the Hudson River, to get home. Hague left Shea, saw the subway was kaput, and went back into the stadium, where he sat with roughly 25 other stranded Met fans until 1 a.m. (Hague, a sportswriter by trade, credits the club for giving away sodas, peanuts, and hot dogs.) They were told that buses were going to come get people—Hague guesses there were a thousand people milling about Shea—and those buses finally rolled up at 5:30 a.m. The sun was rising. And the buses were only going as far as Port Authority Terminal.

"I didn't have money to take a cab home or anything, so I walked to the PATH station at 33rd, and there were another 250 people waiting to be told what to do," Hague says. Finally, at 10:30 a.m., different buses took the weary traveler to New Jersey. There he found out that he needed another local bus to cross the finish line. Hague made it at around 1 p.m. The 38-mile round-trip took Hague nearly 24 hours.

"Needless to say mother was a combination of terrified and thrilled that I was home," he says.

He still remembers how desperately he wanted to crash in his bed. Looking back, he enjoyed the adventure, primarily thanks to his fellow Mets fans.

"We became a band of brothers out at Shea," he says. "We were telling stories about our favorite players, best games we'd seen, commiserating about how losing Seaver was like a death in the family, life as Met fans, laughing, joking, reminiscing… We consoled each other, and sang songs off a little transistor radio that picked up a station from Cleveland."

Most of Manhattan was in darkness during the blackout. Photo by Thomas Monaster/NY Daily News via Getty Images

The Disgruntled Employee

For a couple of seasons, Mark Trost was the top souvenir seller at Shea Stadium. He chalks that up to having prime real estate. His stand was on the field level, third base side, which stood in the path of exiting fans. It certainly wasn't due to his dedication to the franchise. A self-described nerdy comic book guy, Trost, 61, was uninterested in baseball and despised the Mets and their followers.

"I couldn't stand it," he says with a disdain seemingly untampered down forty years on. "The fans tortured me every day. It wasn't an upscale clientele like today, it was the dregs. And the owners were no better, they tormented us. They'd make us stay until the end of a doubleheader with nobody left in the ballpark. The worst was Banner Day. Stupid thing went on for like 15 hours. It wasn't fun"

Both sides of Trost's bitter equation came to a head the night of the blackout.

"Within probably 15 minutes, the bosses came running over and said shut it down, so we pulled the garage door-style gates, because they were afraid fans were going to go crazy and loot the joint," he laughs. "Then they made us wait an hour or longer to see if the lights popped back on, even though everyone was gone."

Trost says the experiences of that night isn't what sticks in his craw. It's what Mets management did some 12 hours later, with broad swaths of New York City still without electricity.

"They made us come back! It was a hot, humid day and I basically walk through Flushing to Shea, and I'm thinking, 'Why are they doing this? You can't play a baseball game without power,'" Trost says. "So I get there, and there's a fair number of concession people and ticket takers who made the trek, and they don't let us in the ballpark. We stood outside baking for a while and they just sent us home. Of course, the lights came on that afternoon and they could have played."

Trost, who is president and founder of Film Archives, doesn't look back on his Mets years fondly, but at least he got a solid nickname out of his miserable experiences.

"You know my brother-in-law Greg Prince, #1 Mets fan in the world? He calls me Mr. Stem, the Bizarro world version of Mr. Met. Because I hate everything about that team so much."

The Familiar Voice

Howie Rose has been with the Mets, either on radio or television, for more than two decades. But back in 1977, he was a 23-year-old reporter for WHM radio, which had him doing reports throughout the morning, catching an afternoon nap, and taking in games at night. He and a handful of other radio reporters didn't sit in the press box, but rather in a box with Thornton Geary, the Mets vice president of communications who also happened to be Dick Young's son-in-law.

"It was a great summer night at Shea, even if there weren't many people there. The fans made good on their promise to stay away, but I was reveling in being at the ballpark," recalls Rose, 63. "When the lights went out, nobody knew what to expect. We were in a different place than the previous blackout in 1965, which was a quiet night, or later in 2003, when everyone feared terrorism. At first, I thought it was just Shea, but you could see out to Flushing and everything was dark. There was a lot of improvisation, with the upbeat organ music and the cars on the field, to keep fans calm and entertained as it became evident this extended far beyond the stadium. Nobody knew if the subways were running, and if not, how were they going to get from Point A to Point B. There wasn't a sense of panic in the ballpark, but within a half hour, there was a creeping trepidation."

Rose was still living with his parents in Bayside, Queens, a 15-minute drive from Shea, and he knew the side-street route home. It was a restless sleep that night, though, because Rose had to be at the radio station, in midtown Manhattan, by 5 a.m. One part of the morning commute had him going through Long Island City, which was a much dicier neighborhood in those days than it is today. The whole experience compounded a creepy feeling that Rose had felt acutely over the previous few months.

"I didn't know from the looting until I got in the car and turned on the radio, so I'm listening to the reports as I go through a rough section of Queens, with no traffic lights or cops. So there was visceral fear, but there was also a lingering one that summer," says Rose. "My girlfriend at the time lived in the Bronx, very close to where Son of Sam had hit a couple of months earlier. You were told don't park, don't make out in the car. If we went out on Saturday night, we would sprint into her building before the motor was off. That was the backdrop to the blackout morning. It was frightening."

Rose doesn't remember anyone losing their cool or acting out inside of Shea that fateful night in 1977, but he's pretty sure that he can put to rest one story of attempted robbery.

"I've gotten to know Lenny Randle a tiny bit," Rose says. "I think I'd recall a ball in play because it would've been a uniquely hairy situation. I think Lenny might be the only guy in the world who remembers it that way."

On September 16, 1977, the game was resumed in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Cubs beat the Mets 5-2, and Ray Burris got credit for a complete game victory. In the bottom of the eighth, Lenny Randle stroked a triple to right field. It remains his only official hit of the blackout night.

Blackout At Home: When The Lights Went Out At Shea Stadium In 1977 published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv