Episode 24: Redemption (Epilogue)

[redemptionmod]

Title: Episode 24: Redemption (Epilogue)
Masterpost: Supernatural: Redemption Road (for full series info,
warnings, and disclaimer)
Authors: swordofmymouth and zatnikatel
Characters/Pairing: Dean/Castiel, Sam, OC and canon characters
Rating: NC-17
Wordcount: ~9,200
Warnings: language, violence, explicit sexuality, references to torture and Dean/Alastair
Beta: murron
Art:

Comments

[donovanspen]

What an absolutely amazing accomplishment. Congratulations to all of you who gave so much of yourselves to do this. And thank you. I love snuggling down for nice long reads and this has brought me many happy moments so far and I anticipate an extremely blissful week as I read through the final chapters.

[zatnikatel]

Thanks muchly... we're really thrilled to have given Dean/Cas fandom something to sustain them during S7, and hope that we've also treated the other principle characters with love and respect. If nothing else, we think this project shows that it definitely is possible to integrate Cas fully into the Winchester family without threatening the sibling bond...

;-)

[swordofmymouth]

Thank you for reading and sticking with it to the end, and I'm sure the Redemption Road team appreciates how happy it's made you!

[4getmenots]

*Stands and applauds with tears in eyes*
So fucking beautiful. It's open but totally tied up, I love it. I love Dean's awesomeness and stratosphere sex and Gabriel.
I would've liked to see Mira's reaction to Ruby though, and loose ends with her and Sam.
But I love you guys. Greatness abounds, thank you for ending with sex and cute Cas-ness.

[zatnikatel]

Thanks so much, we're thrilled you liked it.

When we decided to go end!verse with this we kinda wanted to follow the actual episode in terms of structure, so once we got to that point, we pared it down to Dean and Cas, pretty much like the ep itself had been. We set up Ruby as one of several plot bunnies for any possible follow up... Sword and I have brainstormed ideas for a possible sequel that would be a joint co-write and not on anything like this scale… I just can't handle the stress of anything this large again. We're not entirely sure if we'll do it, but we definitely hope to write together again, so who knows? If we don't, we also feel we've left them at a point where they can be left: all of them with the things they need to ensure that 2014 Zachariah showed Dean never happens.

Thanks so much for reading along! We finally got there! And apologies for the tardy reply - we're both pretty burnt-out and have needed some distance this week!

;-)

[swordofmymouth]

Thank you so much for reading our words! There's so much trauma throughout Redemption Road as part of the story, at the end there needs to be cuteness and uh, clinging-to-the-bedsheets-for-dear-life sex. Literally, lol.

[canaryhawk]

Thank you so goddamn much for everything you guys have done and made for us. I think this is just one of the things in this fandom that has had so much everything poured into it that I really, really can't describe how amazing it has been to have found this and followed it to such a gorgeous, glorious end.

You've broken my capacity to feel, and I sincerely thank you all so much for that <3

[zatnikatel]

Thanks so much. Boy, this has been a labor of love... an achievement for all concerned but also a very stressful experience at times. I'm proud of it and proud of my contributions to it, but at the same time I feel worn out by it. But I feel we did right by these characters we love and very happy to have given something to this fandom.

We're thrilled to have had you along on this odyssey...

;-)

[swordofmymouth]

Thank for reading and taking the journey with us, and I know all the Redemption Road team love and appreciate the response!

[efcia]

I can't believe it. You DID it. Your are totally amazing, all of you, every single writer, every single graphic artist who participated in this project and I don't have enough words to praise you. You should be very, VERY proud of yourselves because this- this is an utter perfection. You created something unique and breath-taking and I love you all. Also I'm crying and I have no idea whether I'm happy or sad (which is nothing strange, my emotional stability during last days is absolutely awful). I'm really trying to be coherent and makes sense but I don't think I'll be able to so you'll get an incoherent mess instead of a comment

[zatnikatel]

Hey there: thank you for such an awesome comment! Hope you will forgive my tardy response - I've been dealing with a couple or three very tight press deadlines here in the RL world of journalism.

It's funny but the idea for this initially came from my sheer butthurtness at what happened in 6.22, and I was a little amazed anyone wanted to participate, period. But together we took that butthurtness and turned it into something really positive that was a celebration of all that we love about all of these characters. I hope we've provided a good story and I hope also that if nothing else, this VS is proof positive that Cas could quite easily be integrated into the onscreen Winchester family without negatively impacting on the central sibling relationship/interaction in any way, shape or form. Because as we know, if the writers want to create a schism between Sam and Dean for plot purposes, they will do it even in the absence of Cas (coughs, season 7

[swordofmymouth]

Thank you for reading! I think Zatnikatel says it all a lot better than I can, and you touched on a lot of things that really made writing this so much fun -- being able to explore characters in new aspects of themselves, Gabriel and Kali was an odd side idea that took on a life of its own. Zatnikatel had amazing concepts running through her head for the 2014 'verse and for every idea that actually made it, we must have discarded and brainstormed fifty others that never saw the light of day; and I'm sure the entire Redemption Road team is flattered to know you think so highly of the work to see it in paper -- it's humbling!

[elfladyarwen]

No joke, went I read the last line, I got the same stomach-achy-throat-too-tight-overwhelmedwithhopeandlossandjoy feeling I got when the credits rolled on Return of the King. I can't believe this is the end. What am I going to do?

Basically this is my second Lord of the Rings, you guys. I hope your realize what a big fucking deal that is. What a big deal this whole project is for those of us who are too in love with Dean and Cas' love, too in love with Team Free Will. A million times thank you. For giving them the story they deserve. And for giving us reason to cheer their love on.

No thanks at all though for ruining all future attempts at writing fanfic for me. xP Nah, I'm kidding. but seriously.

[zatnikatel]

Hey, thank you so much! And my apologies for being so late - I've had a few deadlines in RL.

It is odd to think that it is over but at the same time it is a relief, as it was a stressful project at times - albeit very personally satisfying. It's nice to be able to kick back and read fic instead of writing it!

;-)

[swordofmymouth]

Hey you! No, seriously, you're a great writer bb! I'm thrilled you loved it so much -- don't sell yourself short along the way :) You've got a knack, keep feeding it with good words wherever you find them! And thank you . . .