Old Rebel Yeller -- Chapter 5

[big_pink]

Fixed the wacky-assedness of the box size -- ALL of chapter 5 is now. Thank god you say. Whew, sez I.

Comments

[samirant]

He’d sacrificed watching the 22-minute movie about the battle mostly because he wouldn’t put it past his brother to wander off if he left him alone for too long.

I'm enjoying this story so much; I planned on reading it straight through, but this little bit made me laugh so hard, I wanted to make sure and tell you. I felt terrible when Tim died and while I knew something Dean carried on his person was significant, I was pretty impressed how it all came together.

The interaction between the brothers is great and I love both the original OC's, Beau and Mira. And I'm racing to finish the rest.

[arliss]

She looked at Dean, who was staring out at the fields. Something in her face softened following Dean’s gaze, and Sam knew that Dean occasionally had that affect on people, something that was innate and had nothing to do with sex or picking up women, though Dean thought it did.

The faraway look snapped suddenly, came back to Sam with a jolt, because Dean was now smiling sunnily. “So where’d you dig up the body?

These two observations are so true to Ackles' Dean. I don't think it's necessarily on the page, I think it's a part of his personality he brings to the role. But that you've picked up on it, and present it to us here is marvelous. It crystalized that element of Dean, that I had accepted as a facet of him, but had not ever actually had called to my attention. Short version: I knew it, when you pointed it out, I recognized it. Good work.

I've just now found this story, and am catching up, slowly.

[big_pink]

Thanks -- funny, I haven't looked at this one in a little while, and when I read the bit you'd quoted, it made me feel all...I don't know. I love historic sites and they are so sad and so magic and so weird. And I loved writing this one. Playing around with how we remember the past seems so appropriate when talking about the Winchesters, doesn't it?

I don't know much about the actors that play the characters -- I confess, I'm about the characters, and it sometimes ruins it for me, to see the actors out of character. But regardless, I think that Ackles does a fine job with it, and I'm sure he's just inherently sexy. But that switch up, from being thoughtlessly, unconsciously charismatic to goofy in two seconds flat, is really awesome. I mean, look what he does with his face in that tiny clip from Crossroad Blues, when he's asking about MySpace. It's brilliant and subtle and so quick. Hat's off to the lad.

[hiyacynth]

Okay, I've been putting off reading this for some time, mainly because a) your writing is so good that it occasionally makes me feel like never writing again b) I knew I wasn't going to be able to stop once I started, and I don't have tons of reading time these days, and c) I wanted to save it as a reward for some great sacrifice to come. But today I was overcome by the urge to read really GOOD fic, so I treated myself between tedious tasks at work. And I was going to wait and comment when I finished, except that you broke me with this:

“I had a life, Dean,” he said quietly. “It involved an apartment, a bike lock, Jess’s car, her parents’ cabin up north, the padlock to the boathouse - “

and then I had to leave you slathering a comment letting you know my general state of awe and fawning.

Surely I will grovel toward you again soon, as I finish this up and then wait for Dazzleland to be finished so I can drown myself in that all in one gulp as well.

[big_pink]

OMG, it's so funny when someone comments on something that I haven't read in awhile, because I had to go back and read the chapter. It's so...warm in Virginia, isn't it? Dazzleland is a cold and dark story, so it was so nice seeing Buttercup again. Thanks for that. And for the blistering good comments -- makes me feel warm all over.

[misswonderheart]

I tried to do this one before the holiday, and then El Jay ated it. *sigh* Such a travesty that I have to read it again.... *completely fake eye-roll*

Maps, visitor centers, interpretive signage on the side of historical trails - all of it was feeding into his innate love of things making sense. Order: these things imposed order onto messy history.
Aww, Sammy and his map!porn.... *smishes*

I love Dean getting lost in the memory of the battle. History can be compelling, and I think he feels a connection with those soldiers...

“Can’t even imagine that,” he stated firmly, without hesitation. But soft, and Sam knew that even though Dean had been falling asleep as Sam had jabbered on excitedly about things he didn’t know the first thing about, his brother had been processing it at a level Sam couldn’t even begin to understand.
Oh, Dean....

Sam was not going to want to sit around while good old boys cast Civil War ordnance in a stifling hot garage decorated with Rebel Battle flags and curling photos of Confederate soldiers.And do you

[big_pink]

You know what the best thing is about you going through this line by line? I get to READ it again. I forget things. The Japanese fan line...hey, that's not half-bad, I think. Heheheh. I think the reason I liked this fic in particular was because it helped me bridge some of that 'okay, I guess we're back to being brothers' again thing that season 1 only partially fleshed out. By season 2 is was about 'okay, now we're brothers' but there were some blanks.

Plus, I really think archaeology is a cool metaphor.

[misswonderheart]

it helped me bridge some of that 'okay, I guess we're back to being brothers' again thing that season 1 only partially fleshed out. By season 2 is was about 'okay, now we're brothers' but there were some blanks.

Ooh, yes, very much so. And, since a lot of putting them back on the right path is about analyzing the past and filling in the blanks in the middle, archeology is pretty much the perfect metaphor!

Re: the keys

[big_pink]

Yeah, making people pay attention to Sam (and more to the point, SYMPATHIZE with him), is sometimes a trick when Dean's being all pretty and angsty over in the corner. I'm glad you liked the keys. I like keys as a symbol -- hell, I like them as an icebreaker at a party. "Tell me about your keys" and watch people go.

[chemm80]

Okay, I couldn't find chaps 3 and 4 on here, so comments here from 3-5:

Dean loved an unplanned swim....came with the territory when you had a vintage car with roll-down air conditioning, the looking for water.

This brought back so many memories of childhood trips in a 60's era car like this to see my grandmother in Alabama. It was hot and humid and hell, yes, you looked for water. I love the thought of Dean liking to swim, especially when it's hot. And not just because there's a lot of Dean skin involved. It's a sensuous pleasure that he totally would enjoy. Okay that last wasn't really any less Dean!porny than the preceding one, now was it? Forget it.

Sam had done nothing to binrg on the confessional, but he had, unfortunately, the word 'confidante' printed on his forehead in some secret code only girls understood.

I believe this with all my heart.

like every hujman in history knew to do when someone is throwing iron balls at you from distances resembling city blocks. Duck and fucking cover

[chemm80]

Continuing cause I pressed the wrong button:

Sam sighed, "What? I can't have keys?.....I had a life, Dean," he said quietly. "It involved an apartment, a bike lock, Jess's car, her parents' cabin up north, the padlock to the boathouse--"

I love this. Smart Sammy fixing things and yanking Dean off his high horse at the same time.

[big_pink]

THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING I should say, because I haven't read this for ages and I've literally forgotten so much of it. I love me a smart Sammy with heart, too.