#would you dismiss it because you're from kansas

[cantsayidont]

December 1986. In the wake of the Crisis on Infinite Earths, John Byrne plainly expresses the ugly nativist foundations of Superman's new post-Crisis origin. Contemplating the history and culture of Krypton, which he's just received as a massive telepathic info-dump from a hologram of Jor-El, Superman unequivocally rejects as "ultimately meaningless" every single aspect of his Kryptonian heritage, from language to art to religion. Moreover, he expressly denies that he himself is an immigrant. This is not simply semantic; in Byrne's version, the starship that carries Kal-El to Earth is a "birthing matrix" — an in vitro womb in which Kryptonian embryos are grown — so he's not technically born until he lands on Earth and is decanted by his human parents on American soil:

This is actually Byrne's kindest take on the post-Crisis Krypton in this period: His horrifying 1988 WORLD OF KRYPTON miniseries, drawn by Mike Mignola, presents Jor-El's world as a fallen, postapocalyptic society, ruined, both environmentally and morally, by the degeneracy (a word I use advisedly) of Krypton's last Golden Age. Only Jor-El is presented as having any moral worth, and only because of his interest in the traditions and history of Krypton before the fall, which his father and peers (including Lara) consider distasteful. This questioning of modern Kryptonian culture ultimately gives Jor-El the wherewithal to save his (unborn) son from Krypton, both from its actual destruction and from its soulless corruption of natural human values. Yikes!

It's also worth recalling the status quo that MAN OF STEEL erased. Since 1958, Superman had been part of a diaspora of Kryptonian survivors: Besides himself and Krypto (with whom Byrne later dispensed very harshly), there were the millions of inhabitants of the Bottle City of Kandor, stolen by Brainiac before the destruction of Krypton and later enlarged on the distant planet Rokyn; Supergirl, born on Argo City after Krypton's destruction; the prisoners in the Phantom Zone; the Kryptonian bully Dev-Em and his parents (who later traveled to the 30th Century); and Supergirl's Kryptonian parents (who survived the destruction of Argo City and later settled in Kandor). In his Fortress of Solitude, Superman kept a private journal in Kryptonese. His intimates often referred to him as "Kal," not Clark. He observed, to at least some degree, certain Kryptonian customs, and in moments of stress, he would invoke the name of the Kryptonian god ("Great Rao!"). He was, like many members of real-world diasporas, a man of two worlds — neither wholly of Krypton nor entirely of Earth, but part of both, and an interstellar hero.

The Byrne/Wolfman reboot erased almost every facet of that, and very deliberately. Part of this, of course, was a desire to shake things up for commercial reasons, while part was DC's editorial conviction (mistaken, I think) that allowing any Kryptonian survivors other than Superman himself weakened and undermined Superman as a character. However, as the pages above make clear, it was also a desire to slam the door on the idea of Superman as an immigrant — and, by extension, on the Jewish coding that had been a central feature of the Superman comics mythos for nearly 30 years.

[slayfics]

Absolutely breathtaking commission from @kurumi-igarashi, depicting the moment Katsuki proposes to Kansa. She really out did herself on this one, I’ve been speechless over it for days. Short fic to follow.

Dynamite proposes to Persuasion.

950 words

Kansatoki and Katsuki walked down the busy sidewalk patrolling for anything of interest. It was rare for the two to patrol together as Katsuki preferred one of them to be at the agency at any given time.

Pedestrians nodded at the heroes as they passed. The occasional fanboy stopped to ask Persuasion for a picture while nervously navigating around the intimidating Dynamite.

"Thank you!" The fanboy smiled at Persuasion placing his phone back in his pocket, hands shaking he took off quickly down the street as soon as his gaze caught Dynamite's intense glare.

"Can we get back to it then?" Katsuki huffed, rolling his eyes and continuing to walk down the street.

Kansatoki followed his lead, an amused smile at his unspoken jealousy. "Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Is it about how annoying your fans are? Because I agree," Katsuki stated.

"No, it's about Yume and Eijiro."

"What about 'em?" He asked.

"Did they seem to be acting strange to you?" Kansatoki asked

"Nah," Katsuki said dismissing her concerns swiftly, but Kansatoki continued to make her point.

"Today Yume would barely say two words to me. Usually, she won't give me a moment alone, and the same with Eijiro. As soon as he saw me, he took off to his office."

"So? Sounds like there being good employees and it's about damn time. Plus, they were both out sick the last two days so- probably just recovering still," Katsuki replied.

"That's the thing though! I facetimed Yume when they were out sick to check in and she was out shopping at the mall with Eijiro!"

"HAH! Are you snitching on your best friend to the boss? It's not my damn business how they use their sick days." Katsuki responded.

"Yume never lies to me though! If she wasn't sick but needed the day off, she would have told me that," Kansatoki said, frustration rising.

The past few weeks Kansatoki could feel a change in Katsuki's emotions. He was more on edge and nervous than she had ever felt him before. Whenever she asked, he used the excuse that it was stress from hero work and running the agency.

Last week Katsuki went out for drinks with Eijiro while Kansatoki and Yume had a girl's night. Yume agreed with Kansatoki that something seemed off with Katsuki. Things escalated when the two boys called the girls to pick them up after getting completely shit-faced at the bar.

A normal occurrence for two best friends except Katsuki never gets drunk. Ever since that night, Yume started passing off the same excuse; Katsuki was just overwhelmed with hero work and running the agency.

The three of them were hiding something from her and she was going to find out what.

What Kansatoki didn't know is that night the boys when out for drinks, was also the night Katsuki had bought an engagement ring. His nerves were the result of him having absolutely no clue how to propose. Letting his anxiety get the best of him, he got drunk with Eijiro. Leaving the girls to drive down and bring them home in Yume's car.

To make matters worse, Katsuki's drunk ass dropped the ring.

Finding it in her car the next day, Yume exploded with excitement. Knowing she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret, Katsuki forced her and Eijiro to take a few "sick" days while she got her emotions under control.

"You're overthinking things," Katsuki said in a desperate attempt to end the conversation. Kansatoki was smart, and her quirk left little room to keep secrets from her. He knew any day she'd discover the truth.

As if answering his plea, a call came through the communicator:

Requesting hero backup at Kappabashi Steet. Villains attempting to make an escape.

"Let's go," Katsuki motioned for Kansatoki to get on his back.

Sighing at the interruption she got on, with a few explosions they were at the rooftop where the villains were attempting their getaway.

The two of them instantly got to work. Wrapping her whip around one, Persuasion brough a villain to the floor, slapping her hand across his face he fell into a deep sleep induced by her quirk.

A helicopter hummed int the background as it filmed the heroes for breaking news.

Dynamite let out explosions aimed at the other two, causing large debris to go flying Persuasions way.

Dodging it easily she turned to Dynamite in disbelief, that wasn't a mistake he's made since UA. He specially trained for his explosions to be contained and not a danger to the heroes working beside him. Whatever secret he was keeping was now affecting his hero work.

"The fuck?" She called out to him.

"Shit- you good?" He asked.

"No! I'm not! I'm tired of you hiding shit from me! Just tell me what the hell has been going on with you!" Kansatoki snapped finally reaching her breaking point.

Katsuki and their friends acting strange was one thing, but being so distracted he was making mistakes in his hero work was a whole other beast. Katsuki doesn't put anything above his hero work, so what secret could be so impactful? Kansatoki couldn't bear the growing concern she had for him any longer.

Katsuki grunted as he ran both hands over his face, reaching his own limit. "Fuck fine! You really want to know!?" He snapped back. The helicopter hummed in the background filming the hero's couple's spat on a live broadcast.

"Oh! So, there is a secret?! Of course, I'm right," Kansatoki yelled. Wind flowed through her hair, emerald eyes sparkling in the setting sun.

"I've been trying to figure out how to ask your dumb ass to marry me!" He yelled.

Kansatoki froze, processing what Katsuki had just said.

Did she hear that right?

Katsuki let out a sigh, "Fuck it," he said getting down on one knee. "Marry me?"

The live broadcast and headline "Dynamite proposes to Persuasion!" lit up around news outlets.

featured OCs

💚 Kansatoki Hikari

💚 Yume Hoshiro

[alj4890]

Day 5: Photograph

Choices Red Carpet Diaries Appreciation Week

(Victoria Fontaine x MC*Jessica Clarke x Chadley Fortnum) *platonic*

With the prompt: "What on earth are you wearing?" "What do you mean?" "That horrendous...thing must have been made by a blind person."

A/N I love how Victoria has so little patience and how incredibly stupid Chadley is. I wanted them to have scenes together in RCD ever since he was first introduced. In my head canon, these two are pushed together often because of their friendship with the MC and since Victoria was attempting to be nicer in Book 3, Chadley is just the one to test her sincerity 🤣

@choicesrcd2022 @hopelessromantic1352 @promptnonny @tessa-liam @twinkleallnight @trappedinfanfiction @flyawayboo @krsnlove

Rating PG for some language

Masterlist

An Ugly Time of Year

"Hey, where's your Christmas decorations?" Jessica asked.

"You're looking at them." Victoria replied.

Jessica's brow furrowed as she scanned the room.

"What am I looking at?" She asked.

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Those boxes over there."

"Oh!" Jessica eagerly went out to the sunroom to peek inside. "I can't wait to see your home decorated!"

"Since you talked about us needing a Christmas party, I realized my home would be the best place for it."

Jessica hid a smile over how easily Victoria fell in with her hints. Her beach side mansion was too beautiful not to show off.

"My mom went all out each year with decorations." Jessica continued, carefully lifting boxes listed fragile out of the crates.

"Let me guess." Victoria joined her with two cups of coffee. "You had Santa's, reindeer, and fat snowmen everywhere."

"Of course we did!" Jessica smiled at her. "It's the time of year to go all out with the lights and inflatable Christmas decorations. Our tree though was the focal point. Multicolored lights with ornaments both old and new. Some had glitter. Others were made of wood. Then the..."

Jessica trailed off when she opened the first set of ornaments. They were a muted cream color. The next box held some pale blue ones. Raising her eyes up, she took in the same color scheme throughout the downstairs part of Victoria's home.

"Oh good. You found them." Victoria dug into another crate. "And here's the lights and a few little trinkets we can set on the tables."

She dusted her hands off and motioned with her head for Jessica to follow.

"Wait!" Jessica exclaimed."Is that it?"

"Is what it?"

"Your decorations?"

"Yes." Victoria narrowed her eyes in silent warning. "Why?"

"No reason!"

For some reason Jessica felt the need to hold her hands up. She wasn't certain if it was in surrender or to ward off an attack.

"I just expected more...color."

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Look, I get that in Kansas you--"

"Iowa." Jessica corrected.

Victoria glared at her for interrupting.

"Whatever corn shucking place you came from. I get that you probably had a display so garish that it made people blink nonstop just to be able to take it all in."

She motioned around her luxurious home. "But I worked too hard to have my home cluttered with clashing colors and fat cartoon characters."

She sank down upon her blue couch. "I took the colors I not only look amazing in but also match my private beach to decorate my entire home. Naturally I'm going to keep it looking perfect for the holidays."

Jessica frowned at the thought. "Don't you enjoy Christmas?"

"Yeah, sure." Victoria flicked her hand, dismissing the sentimentality of the day.

"Well..." Jessica sat down across from her easily annoyed friend. "How did your family decorate when you were little?"

Victoria huffed, lip curled in a sneer.

"They threw everything they could find up, claiming it was beautiful."

Jessica perked up hearing that. "That sounds nice."

"Nice?!" Victoria rolled her eyes. "You Nebraska people and--"

"Iowa."

"--and your need to parade your junk from the attic every year."

"It isn't junk!" Jessica argued. "It's memories! You see something that makes you recall a special time." Her eyes narrowed. "It's what makes decorating for Christmas so special!"

Victoria snorted in response.

"What does that mean?" Jessica cried out.

"That snort means it's stupid." Victoria snapped.

"Ugh." Jessica threw her hands up in the air. "Fine. Let's just go get a tree and decorate."

"I already set one up." Victoria motioned toward a corner of her sunroom.

"Wait! That's your tree? In here?!"

"Geez Jess." Victoria huffed. "Don't have a stroke over this. I want all this out of my home. In here, at least, I don't have to see it unless I want to."

"Oh. My. God." Jessica ran her hands over her face. "I can't believe how Grinchy you are!"

Victoria ignored her, reaching over to drape her white tree in clear lights.

"Can we at least have some Christmas music on while we decorate?" Jessica pleaded.

"You are such a baby." Victoria muttered.

She flipped through her tablet until she found a station playing Christmas music.

"Happy now?"

"Thank you."

It wasn't long before Jessica got back into the happy Christmas spirit.

"You know, your tree really is beautiful like this."

"I know." Victoria replied. "I don't know why you got your panties in such a wad. I always know how to make things beautiful."

"Uh huh." Jessica shook her head. "Anyway, what kind of theme do you want this party to be?"

"Was it not clear by my decorations that it is a Christmas party?"

"Nevermind." Jessica muttered. "Don't forget about brunch Saturday."

"I'll be there."

"Good." Jessica paused on her way out. "And don't forget to dress festive."

"I'll dress appropriately." Victoria grumbled.

"Festive." Jessica repeated.

**************

Saturday...

"Victoria!"

The actress turned around, expecting to see a fan wanting her picture. She made certain her long blonde hair fell in a golden cascade over her left shoulder as her winter white dress flared out revealing long, tan legs.

Her picture perfect smile disappeared in a flash when she saw who had shouted her name.

It was that Chadley that Jessica was so crazy about. Granted the man was incredibly handsome and he even seemed to be talented.

But oh good lord. He was so stupid.

"Hey!" His smile over seeing her made Victoria feel a touch guilty for being irritated.

"...hey..." She mumbled.

There was something about his earnest, almost vulnerable innocence that caused her to try even harder to watch what she said around him. He took everything so seriously that most of her sarcasm was a wasted effort anyway.

Might as well be nice to the puppy-like creature.

Her eyes narrowed once she saw what type of shirt he had on.

""What on earth are you wearing?"

"What do you mean?" He asked. "It's clothes."

Victoria eyed the monstrosity that was half Hawaiian shirt mixed with some god awful old timey truck draped in lights hauling Christmas trees. She couldn't be certain but it looked like dancing reindeer around the collar.

"That horrendous...thing must have been made by a blind person."

Chadley looked down at his shirt. His happiness over seeing her again slowly turned to bewildered sadness.

"Jess said to wear something festive."

Victoria rolled her eyes. "There's festive and then there's whatever the hell that thing is."

She immediately regretted her comments. She'd sworn earlier in the year to be a better person. And here she was, acting like her old self and insulting someone to their face.

"My mom mailed me this shirt." He explained. "She said it would look great on me."

Victoria ran her fingers through her hair while scrambling for a way to not only apologize to Chadley but to also save face.

"Look, I uh, I guess it really is festive." She forced a smile as they got into the elevator together. "Great, er, job, Chadley."

She added a few pats on the back to hopefully send the message home.

He winced and moved away from her after the second pat.

"Crap." Victoria muttered. "I'm sor--"

Her eyes widened the moment the doors opened and he brushed past her. His long legged stride had him inside Jessica's penthouse apartment faster than Victoria could react.

Dropping her head forward, she counted only prime numbers in her head until she got her temper under control.

She was going to have to run him down and make him accept her apology.

The last thing she needed was to be reprimanded by everyone.

****************

"Looks like everyone's here." Jessica beamed at all of them as she handed out mimosas.

Addison looked around the room. "Where's the Professor?"

"Hunt said he was too busy to join us." Seth replied. "Wedding plans."

"What about Holly?" Teja asked.

"Ryan whisked her away for a romantic getaway at Big Bear." Matt told her.

Jessica poured herself some orange juice in a champagne glass.

"So..." Her smile grew as she slipped her hand in Seth's. "We've got some news to share."

"Matt and Addison already know." Seth added.

"And we've done a beautiful job of keeping it a secret." Matt winked at Addison.

"What's going on?" Teja asked.

"We're having a baby!" Jessica and Seth yelled out at the same time.

"For real? No way!" Teja swooped in to hug them both. "Congratulations!"

"What Teja said." Victoria hugged Jessica.

Chadley came up beside her and hugged the couple. He didn't make eye contact with Victoria nor did he remain close once he finished hugging Seth.

Jessica wiped at her tears, laughing when Seth claimed all the credit for the pregnancy.

"When's the baby due?" Addison asked as they all gathered around to look at the ultrasounds.

"June." Jessica settled back in Seth's arms.

"I'm so excited!" Addison began to go into great detail all the outfits she was going to make for Jessica and the baby.

"What about me?" Seth asked. "Doesn't the father get anything?"

"You already got the best wife." Teja teased. "You better hope the kid takes after her. Then you'll know you really won something."

As the rest of the group teased the expectant parents, Chadley and Victoria were unusually quiet.

And of course, Jessica picked up on it right away.

"Is everyone ready to eat?" She walked over and linked arms with Chadley. "I made your favorite."

He perked up some. "Egg whites no butter or oil with kale and turkey sausage?"

"Yep." She urged him to join the others.

She then cornered Victoria.

"What happened?"

"Nothing."

Jessica narrowed her eyes.

"Ugh, fine. I might have made a couple of comments on the way here about his shirt."

"Victoria!" Jessica harshly whispered. "You know how he takes everything we say to heart!"

"It just slipped out." Victoria mumbled. "I mean, look at that shirt!"

"Victoria." Jessica said with a hint of reproach.

"I tried to apologize!" Victoria snapped. "But he just won't let me."

"You have to make this up to him." Jessica argued. "He adores you."

"Bleh. I know." She sighed. "Fine. I'll think of something to make this better."

*************

The night of the Christmas party...

"Attention everyone!" Victoria tapped her glass with a knife.

The crowd turned towards her.

She stood on the fifth step of her stairs so she could see everyone.

"It's time for the Secret Santa exchange." She motioned towards her open sunroom. "Presents are under the tree."

Biting her bottom lip, she watched quietly as a very depressed Chadley was pulled along by Jessica and Seth.

It had been an uphill battle just to get him to come to the party. He wouldn't answer her texts or talk to her. He refused every invitation to dinner and lunch she gave.

Victoria knew she really hurt him when he asked Jessica to ask her to take his name off the guest list.

So, she did what any hard working woman in Hollywood would do. She begged Jessica for a favor in getting him to come to the party. She then found out who his Secret Santa was, demanded they trade with her, and set out to find the perfect gift that would make him accept her apology.

If this didn't work, she didn't know what would.

"Here's yours, Chadley" Matt handed him a present wrapped in blue paper with a white bow on top.

Jessica glanced at the present then at Victoria. She couldn't help but be proud that Victoria was actually putting in some effort to make up with him.

Chadley's brow furrowed as he slowly began to unwrap it.

Victoria couldn't take the wait.

"For the love of all that is holy!" She bit out. "Hurry up and open the damn present!"

Chadley blinked at her then did as she asked.

His eyes widened as he lifted the sweater out of the box. They then filled with tears.

"Oh what the..." Victoria dropped her head in her hands.

The last thing she intended to do tonight was to make a grown man cry.

Before she could react, she was lifted off the ground and swept into a tight hug with way too many muscles.

"This is the best sweater I've ever gotten!"

He set her down, beaming once more at her in that sickeningly adorable way of his.

Chadley ripped off the dress shirt he had on with little thought to all the people watching. He then pulled the sweater over his head, modeling it for everyone to see.

"Merry Liftmas?" Seth choked on his laughter after receiving Jessica's elbow in his stomach.

"Look!" Chadley eagerly went around pointing out all he loved about it. "No lifts, no gifts! That's how my trainer motivates me!" He turned toward Victoria. "How did you know?"

Victoria shrugged. "Lucky guess."

He shook his head. "No. It's because we're best friends. Best friends know everything about each other."

Victoria mentally groaned yet kept a smile plastered on her face.

He continued on, stopping everyone trying to look at their own gifts to admire his instead.

Jessica made her way over to Victoria.

"So?" She couldn't stop smiling. "You uh, went full on tacky festive with your gift, didn't you?"

Victoria rolled her eyes as she watched Chadley in utter disbelief.

"Tis the season to be ugly, Jess." She sighed over spending money on something like that. "So freaking ugly."

[nicolewoo]

Speakeasy Part 1

Pairing: Fergal Devitt X Reader. Finn Balor X Reader

Scenario: Desperate to make enough money to live on during the great depression, Reader gets a job at a Speakeasy, and finds a dangerous ally. Can she trust this man and his stories or should she listen to her friend's advice and steer clear of him?

Warnings: Part 1 has no warnings. Future parts probably will.

The minute I walked in, I could smell it.... the stale smell of cigarette smoke and alcohol were practically oozing out of the walls. This wasn't going to be good for my throat, but then again, this wasn't going to be good for anything except paying bills. It's 1930 and a girl's gotta do what she's gotta do.... especially living alone in Chicago.

I had a job at a diner, but the breakfast tips weren't enough to get by, and I'd been frantically trying to get a job in a proper theater. The problem was that everyone wanted dancers that could sing. I had the singing part down. The dancing? Well, I've got 2 left feet. No matter how many lessons I took, I just couldn't dance. So, here I am, in a speakeasy, getting ready to try out for a bunch of mafia guys, risking getting arrested just so I could pay the bills.

Count your blessings, girl. A lot of people are a lot worse off. I told myself as I remembered leaving Hutchinson Kansas due to The Great Depression. I remembered the sight of homeless families and bread lines and brawls for crumbs. Yes, I was doing something illegal, but I was going to be able to live because of it.

I was shaken out of my thoughts with the sound of a trumpet squeaking out. I knew before I even looked that it was my friend Tony getting my attention. “You made it. You look great, doll.” Tony said coming up to me. “Let me introduce you to the band.” He placed his hand on the small of my back and led me over to the stage.

“Marty,” Tony called out getting the band leader's attention. “This is Y/N, the singer I told you about.”

Marty barely looked up from the sheet music he was reviewing, “Hey. Let's hear those pipes, doll.” He sounded less than enthusiastic. “Guys.” He yelled to the band. “Give me some Mean to Me.”  He motioned me over to the mic.

Ok, well, let's do this. I sidled up to the mic, trying to insert some extra swag into my walk so I'd look more experienced than I was. The music began and I reached up to hold the mic stand as I started to sing.

“You're mean to me. Why must you be mean to me?” Marty looked up with a look of surprise.

“Gee, honey. It seems to me. You love to see me crying.” Tony gave me a big thumbs up to encourage me.

“I don't know why. I stay home. Each night when you say you'll phone.” I started to see the band members nodding and smiling to each other.

“You don't and I'm left alone. Singing the blues and crying.” I saw a couple of men come from the back room to see who was singing, but I couldn't make out their faces in the dark room.

I was ecstatic to see such a great reception, and I was pretty sure I'd gotten the job. As the song swelled to the harder part, I focused on hitting all the right notes and making the song sound as sexy as possible.

I saw one of the men who'd come in from the back signal to Marty, but I didn't know what the signal meant. I peeked at Marty, but I couldn't read his expression. He made me wait until the end of the song.

“Ok, kiddo. You got the gig. We'll see how tonight goes, and if you do well, we'll talk about something permanent.” Marty showed no emotion. I'd gotten the impression that he'd gone through a lot of singers, and didn't expect any better from me. “Guys,” He yelled over the sound of instruments playing different sections of the songs and talking among themselves. “We start a full practice in ½ an hour, so go get some food now. We're gonna be busy tonight.” He dismissed the band with the same lack of emotion as when he'd hired me.

Tony ran to me as excited as me. “You did it, doll!” He hugged me tight. Then started to lead me outside. “Lets get some chow.” He said as he pointed to a diner across the ally from the speakeasy.

As we sat down, I asked, “So, does Marty want me here or what?”

Tony chuckled under his breath, “Oh yeah yeah! He doesn't show emotion,” he explained. “But don't worry. You're in!” He assured me.

“I didn't know what the signal was from the guys in the back.... or even who they were.” I explained.

“Yeah, Hey. So....” Tony paused. “Ya know not to talk about... ya know.”

He didn't finish his thought, but I knew what he meant. Although I'd never spent any time in this seedy underworld, I was no dummy. “Say no more.” I replied.

“Ok. If you have any questions, just come to me, but not at the club.” He assured me. “Just focus on singing and let them do their stuff.” His gaze bored a hole in me, and I nodded in understanding. “Most importantly,” Tony reached over and put his hand on my arm, “DON'T get romantically involved with any one there. Do you understand?”

“You don't have to worry. I know who they are.” I assured him.

Tony was like a big brother to me. He'd been a regular at the diner where I worked; me always starting my day as he was ending his over breakfast. We became great friends, and Tony and his wife had taken me under their wing, inviting me over for dinner, watching out for me. Working at the speakeasy wasn't what Tony and his wife wanted for me, but when I couldn't get a theater job, they had finally given in and got me the audition. Tony had promised his wife that he'd protect me from the going ons of the club.

After dinner, I sat with Marty going over what songs I knew and what songs I needed to get to know in order to keep working there. He was pleasantly surprised at my song knowledge, and we both felt we had enough to put on a good show tonight. It was perfect because Marty had had to sing himself since losing their last singer. We went over the songs with the band until we were comfortable with each other's styles.

Afterward, I practiced in the back, pouring over the pages of sheet music Marty gave me while tinkering the notes out on an old, out-of-tune piano in a side room, hoping to add in some of these songs soon. The closer we got to show time, the more anxious I got. It was more than if I'd be entertaining... I was worried about getting arrested. Tony had assured me that if the cops came in, and I couldn't get away in time, he'd bail me out before morning, but still. A proper girl like me didn't get arrested. What would my parents think if they were alive? I pushed those thoughts out of my head and tried to focus on the music again.

I heard the band start, happy music flooding through the whole building. I peaked out at the crowd and was shocked to see the club almost full already. What surprised me the most was the class of the people in the club. I had expected to see hardened criminals and desolate prostitutes, but instead, the crowd was full of Chicago's best. Ladies in fine dresses with fringes everywhere. Men in tuxedo suits sporting walking sticks and monocles. I glanced at my own aged floor length dress that I'd bought from a theater who was throwing it out, and lamented at the state of it. Would these rich muckedy mucks accept me in this ragged thing? Before looking at them, I thought I'd looked good, but now. Now, I was wracked with every insecurity I'd ever felt.

I saw Tony rise from his seat at the bandstand and come backstage to me. “You ready?” He asked all excited.

“Tony!” I almost started crying. “Those people. They're all so fancy. This dress is so old and ratty.” I started to say, but he placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Doll, the minute you open your mouth, everyone is going to fall in love with you. You've got the voice of an angel. We can buy you more dresses when you get paid. In the meantime, don't worry about it. You look amazing, and the stage lights are going to hide any imperfections in the dress.” He gave me a quick hug as I heard Marty announce me.

“Ladies and gentlemen, We've got a special treat for you this evening.” How the hell did Marty have emotion now? He sounded positively jovial. I guess he was just a good actor. “Tonight, for the first time at Club Red, we are proud to present our new singer, Y/N.”

The crowd responded to Marty's happy announcement with excited applause. Tony took my arm and escorted me out to stage, depositing me in front of the mic before taking his own seat in the horn section.

We started with Ain't Misbehavin', and the crowd went silent as they focused on me. I prayed they were enjoying the performance, and I poured every ounce of energy I could muster into making the song sound sexy. I wasn't sure how I was doing until the song ended, and the crowd went nuts! They were applauding and giving me standing ovations. I even heard some lewd whistles from near the back where the mob guys had been earlier. I was a hit!

When I turned to find out what song we were singing next, Marty smiled warmly at me. “You did great.” He whispered just to me. “Am I Blue” is next.

The music sounded and the crowd quieted as the slow song changed the mood in the room.

“Am I blue? Am I blue? Ain't these tears in my eyes tellin' you.”

Marty whispered over my shoulder, “Go walk through the crowd, engage them.” he encouraged.

“Am I blue?” I slowly left the stage, pleasantly surprised when the spot light followed me with no notice. “You'd be too. If each plan with your man just fell through.” I placed my hand on a lady's shoulder emphasizing the phrase and she reached up to pat my hand in understanding. I wandered to another table. “Was a time. I was his only one.” I crooned to a table of men, and they smiled broadly at me. “Now I'm the sad and lonely one.” I continued to wander through the crowded room, placing my hand on a shoulder here, singing closely into a gentleman's ear there. The crowd was eating it up. “Now he's gone, and we're through. Am I blue?”

My eyes settled on a man at the table next to me in the back of the room. He was quite frankly the most beautiful man I'd ever seen, with a chiseled jaw, perfect black hair, sparkling blue eyes and his black tuxedo, black shirt and white bow tie matched by a white pocket square. He oozed money and sex. Logically, his table should have been the next I visited, but the way he was looking at me... lustfully... deterred me, and I skipped his table. He made no indication that my turn away from his table bothered him, but his eyes didn't leave me for the rest of the song causing butterflies in my stomach. He gazed so intently at me, I felt like he could see through my dress to my naked body.

I managed to gather my wits again as the song ended and I walked back up to the stage. This job was too important to me. It was this or I ended up being the one in the bread lines tomorrow. I couldn't let anyone, not even this wickedly beautiful man, get in the way of me making this money.

I stayed on the stage the rest of the night. I already had the crowd eating out of the palm of my hand, I didn't need to pander to them anymore. At the end of each song, the crowd cheered for me, and I noticed the lone man in the back smile as he gauged the mood of the crowd.

It was late... very late.... and I was tired when the show ended. “Heya doll. How bout I give ya a ride home?” Tony said as I started leaving the club with an extra few bucks in my pocket as the sun peeked over the horizon.

I was so tired, I could barely speak, but I nodded yes to Tony. He was full of energy, praising my performance, telling me how happy he was. Saying he was sure I'd be hired permanently tomorrow. I fell asleep in the gently rocking car, and Tony laughed when he had to wake me up. “Guess you're gonna have to get used to the schedule.” He teased. “Good thing you're not working at the diner this morning.” After I thanked him for the ride, Tony watched until I was safely in my apartment building before heading to the diner to get some breakfast before he went to bed. I didn't care that I was hungry, I took off my dress and fell asleep in my underclothes.

I dreamed of music notes flying through the air, of gathering them in a bag and presenting them on beautiful sheet music to the guests. I dreamed of the smoky bar and the man seated in the back and that he paid me for one of my music sheets, a small contained smile on his lips.

[caranfindel]

Recap/review 14.13: “Lebanon”

THEN: They hit me right in the face with gorgeous young 1.01 Dean saying "Dad's on a hunting trip and he hasn't been home in a few days" and beautiful baby 1.01 Sam saying "we've got work to do" and we end with 14.12 and Sam furiously punching his brother and then furiously hugging him and Dean saying "let's go home" and does anything else matter? No.

NOW: We see the reflection of Sam and Dean walking up to a pawn shop, with a nice selection of guitars and sunglasses and that weird monkey that was in Rocky's Bar. The proprietor seems friendly enough. Dean flashes him a wad of hundred dollar bills because they're looking for "the really good stuff." This gains them admittance into a secret back room full of things hunters would be interested in, including a hockey mask (?) and a perfume atomizer full of dragon's breath. They tell the guy they're looking for the skull of a specific woman who was executed during the Salem witch trials, and the fact that he has it basically proves that he killed the friend of theirs who previously owned it. (Also Sam picks up a teddy bear and starts to pull the string to make it speak and the guys warns him not to and this is Dean's role, isn't it, messing with things he shouldn't be messing with? But I don't care because chastized Sam and eye-rolly Dean are precious to me.)

Sam goes through a ledger of the guy's inventory and says he's got a lot of occult objects that they should take with them. (Dean plays with the dragon's breath. Sam ducks and flinches and does the really, Dean? thing with his hands and face. I laugh again.) Dean agrees they should take the stuff home.

Title card!

The Impala zooms past a sign welcoming us to Lebanon, Geographical Center of the USA. Then we find ourselves in front of a movie theater showing Beetlejuice and Hell Hazers (All Saints' Day is coming soon, and I imagine Route 666 can't be far behind), where a group of teenagers is talking about... somebody. "People say they're brothers," a kid in a knit cap says, "but all I know is, I was standing right here, and I heard this bam from the trunk of their car. And then, this like, shallow breathing." I'm pretty sure this is a fake-out, and it will turn out he's talking about someone else, but the Impala pulls up in front of the theater and Knit Cap Kid says "that's them!"

As the Winchesters get out of the car and enter a liquor store (decorated with that Family Business neon sign from Rocky's), Sam is still reading the ledger, which lists things like a hangman's rope, fairy dust, and John Wayne Gacy's cigar box. Well, that's oddly specific! The guy working there greets the "Campbell brothers" and knows their usual order. Oh, wow. I love that they're actually known in Lebanon, and that they're going by Campbell. And we know that actual Lebanon, Kansas is too small to have a movie theater or this much business downtown, but I'm happy to handwave that.

What do you mean, "happy to handwave that?" You're always complaining about the inaccuracies regarding tiny Lebanon having traffic cams and whatnot.

Well, maybe this episode just MAKES ME HAPPY, okay?

Anyway. Sam thinks cataloguing the confiscated items would be a good way to take Dean's mind off "things," but Dean's pretty convinced nothing will ever take his mind off that.

Outside, the teens are asking where the guys even come from, and what about their weird trenchcoat-wearing sidekick, and "that kid with the dumb Bambi look on his face all the time" (!) One girl says that, whatever the deal is with these guys, they do have an awesome car, and no one can argue with that. And the other girl, Max, who seems to smitten with the first girl, gets an idea.

Inside, Sam has discovered something significant in the ledger - the "beyzoo" (no, I know that's not how you spell it), which is one of eight ancient Chinese treasures. A pearl that gives you "what your heart desires." Oooh, getting rid of Michael, maybe? But as the guys are discussing this, Dean sees the Impala drive by the window. Guess Max figured out how to impress that other girl! (BTW, there are couple of COOL old trucks on the street.)

The guys see Knit Cap Kid standing on the sidewalk looking confused, and while Sam tells him the car is dangerous to whoever stole it, Dean looks like he wants to murder someone. And yet the Winchesters are confused when the kid says he doesn't want to die. (Or get locked in the trunk!) He says Max is new and he doesn't know where she lives. Dean raises a fist, but Sam pulls him away.

MURDER. I'D MURDER THEM.

Post office. There's a poster of stamps featuring old cars behind the customer service counter. I'm really getting my old truck fix tonight. Sam comes in with his sweet anxious smile and asks for help finding the girl who washed his car, since he forgot to tip her. Post Office Lady is not amused or helpful, or the least bit swayed by his sweet anxious smile. Then Dean comes in and calls her by name and asks about her grandson and she MELTS and he gets sincere and puts his hand on hers and she does exactly what I would do, which is offer up ANYTHING YOU WANT, ANYTHING AT ALL, WOULD YOU LIKE MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER WHILE I'M AT IT? Unfortunately, all she knows is where Max's mother works.

SAM’S FACE.

(Sidebar: Have I mentioned that Sam is wearing that nice blue jacket from the episode where he killed the alpha vampire? I like it. Toss that stupid orange jacket, Sam, and wear this more often. And Dean's wearing the black jacket that I always love.)

At the restaurant where Max's mom works, we learn that she has no idea where her daughter is, because she was supposed to be in school. But the guy working in the kitchen knows February 7 is Skip Day (is it always February 7? what about when that falls on a weekend?) and that she'll probably be at a party at this old house on Route 36. (Yes, I did confirm that Route 36 is just outside of Lebanon. Yes, I did use Mapquest. I'm old school up in here, y'all.)

Party house. The little batch of delinquents has taken all the boxes of occult objects out of the Impala for some reason. Including the evil teddy bear. Luckily, someone announces "pizza's here" before a girl pulls the teddy bear's string. At some point I've got to find out what would happen if you pulled it. Fic it for me, friends! (Also, I just noticed the teddy bear's mouth is SEWN SHUT and that's not creepy AT ALL.) The camera slowly pans to a wooden box, and we watch the lid open to reveal a smoky/dusty ghost hand. With a ruffled sleeve. Uh oh.

Knit Cap Kid runs in to warn the partiers that "those guys" are looking for Max, and he's told to chill. Another teen goes into the bathroom, where the mirror frosts over and then the CREEPIEST CLOWN EVER comes out of it. Seriously, creepier than the clown in Plush, which you wouldn't think was possible.

The Winchesters pull up in yet another antique truck, where Dean greets his car with "Baby, Baby, please tell me you're not hurt." Sam's more concerned about the boxes of dangerous occult objects missing from the back seat. Ghost Kid comes running outside and the girl following him tells the brothers that he saw a clown ghost that tried to kill him. Maybe it's my imagination, or maybe Sam has a flash of crap, a killer clown ghost expression before they run into the house.

Dean announces they're FBI and everyone needs to get out, now. Once the room is cleared, he asks if "anything screams clown to you?" Sam immediately notices John Wayne Gacy's cigar box and guys, I'm ashamed to say I didn't put the two together until now. The killer clown ghost is John Wayne Gacy. And Sam is freaked the fuck out about it. "We should burn that right now," Dean says, in a lovely holding-in-the-freakout way, and Sam rushes to throw it into the fireplace. Then Dean says "I mean, this is like a best worst thing that's ever happened, because you love serial killers, but you hate clowns" and I'm DEAD. (I'm also loving TWO gifts from the Continuity Fairy in once sentence.) The lights start flashing before Sam can get his lighter lit, and then the killer clown ghost shows up and tosses Dean around. Knit Cap Kid and the girls run back inside just in time to watch John Wayne Gacy's ghost go up in flames. So the kids get the "monsters are real" speech and are told to keep it secret.

Back at the bunker, Sam's going through the occult goodies and thinks he found the magic pearl. Dean's ready to use it right now, and dismisses Sam's suggestion that they call Mary or Cas. If it doesn't work, he doesn't want to have gotten their hopes up. Sam looks distressed at the idea it won't work, but agrees. The pearl doesn't come with any instructions, so Sam suggests Dean hold it and concentrate on what his heart desires. "Michael out of my head," Dean says, and I'd have been more specific. I'd have concentrated on Michael out of my head and destroyed, and me perfectly fine, but, well, what do I know?

(Also, I KNOW all you Wincest and Destiel fans are gonna have your own ideas about what - or who - appears in front of Dean when he’s granted what his heart desires. This setup is better than sex pollen. Have fun, my kinky little friends.)

Dean clutches the pearl and concentrates, and the lights flash and then go out, and in the red emergency light we see someone in the bunker. Someone fighty, who knocks both brothers down and then pulls out a shotgun and says "don't you move," but it's a familiar voice and then the lights come on and what do you know? Winchester Surprise!

So, was anybody truly surprised? I covered the guest stars on first viewing, as I always try to do, but I noticed on rewatch that they didn't even credit JDM at the beginning of the episode. Which they sometimes do, to avoid spoilers. And yet. Has there been a single episode of this series that was more spoiled? I don't think so.

(Sidebar: What do you think would have happened if Sam had taken the pearl and made a wish? I think Michael would be gone. Because I don't think there's anything Sam wants more than saving his brother.)

Back to our story. Everyone is shocked. John thinks Sam should be in Palo Alto, apparently in his 14th year of post graduate work. He thinks he's still in 2003, and he doesn't notice his boys are older. And they apparently don't notice that his hair is very short and a lot greyer than it was when we last saw him. (I mean, really, they slapped a wig on Samantha Smith to make her look like The Last Version Of Mary, so why couldn't they do the same thing with JDM? It's distracting.) Sam figures they must have accidentally summoned John from the past. So they do what one does in this situation - sit down and drink.

John's astonished. Dean's proud. Sam's visibly anxious. We don't get to see exactly how much of the backstory they tell him, but they do tell him about the apocalypse and Lucifer and living with "an angel and Lucifer's kid." And now John thinks he died "taking out Yellow Eyes," which... not really? But okay. And they don't tell him Mary's back, until he mentions her and Sam's, all, yeah, about Mom, and then she comes in and John hears her voice and tears up and dammit. This reunion is everything I didn't think I ever wanted. I mean, I've made no secret of the fact that I'm not a fan of John Winchester. He's a fascinating character and JDM does a great job with him, but he's such an awful father (don't bother arguing with me, you will not change my mind) that I can't really like him. And I'm not too impressed with resurrected Mary, either. But when these two come together... damn. It's good. It's very good. Well done, you two.

I love that the boys give them some privacy, because it's been over a decade since John saw them, but it's been even longer since he saw his dead wife, and this should really be a John and Mary reunion.

Out in the hall, Dean's gleeful and Sam's all, how the hell did this happen? Dean explains that he's wanted this since he was four years old (oh, my heart) but Sam warns that messing with time will not end well. I don't actually remember Sam being that concerned about the unintended consequences of time travel, but I'm sure there's a good reason he's bringing it up now. Dean doesn't care. Dean just wants one family dinner together (oh, my heart again, remembering his one last dinner with Mary).

Sam, sans Dean, runs into John in the library, because Mary's off making a shopping list and he decided he'd rather examine the bunker than be involved in that I guess? Okay. But then this happens.

I screwed up with you a lot, didn't I?

No, that's okay.

No, it's not. Sammy, tell me the truth.

I don't want to talk about that.

You didn't have a problem talking about it before you left.

Dad. For me, that fight, that was a lifetime ago. I don't even remember what I said. I mean, yeah, you know, you did some messed-up things. But I don't... I mean, when I think about you... and I think about you a lot... I don't think about our fights. I think about you... I think about you on the floor of that hospital, and I think about how I never got to say goodbye.

Sam. Son. I am so sorry.

I'm sorry too. But you did your best, Dad. You fought for us, and you loved us. And that's enough.

OH MY GOD. This is everything I ever wanted.

1. John admitting he was a crap parent to Sam.

2. Sam trying to sidestep that - because he's Sam Winchester and that's what he does - and John not letting him.

3. Sam finally calling him out instead of just saying nah, it's fine.

4. John calling him Sammy.

5. Sam pointing out that he didn't get a goodbye from John. (Did he ever find out that Dean got praise and an apology?)

6. John apologizing.

7. Sam forgiving him.

8. "And I think about you a lot."

9. The way Sam keeps having to stop talking and look away and make that little "hmmm" noise.

10. And the tears.

10b. The way Sam tears up even before The Talk, when he remembers them as kids trying to make Winchester Surprise.

11. The shaky voice.

12. And Sam's shirt.

13. And the way Sam's expression looks so much like his expression in Sacrifice, when he tells Dean that his confession was about how he let his brother down.

This, right here, is two minutes and 24 seconds of the best television I've ever seen. I don't care what else this episode does, this 2:24 is worth it. And yes, this is three weeks in a row that Jared Padalecki has ripped my heart out of my chest and STOMPED ON IT.

And I love it.

Meanwhile, Dean gets the shopping list from Mary. Sam finds him and tells him he's right, because Sam also just got everything he ever wanted, and then offers to go shopping with him. (Saaaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmm!!!!!!!)

When they get to town, the guys split up - Sam to the grocery store, Dean to the liquor store. Dean's surprised to see the liquor store guy, the one who remembered his "usual" earlier in the day, has no idea who he is. If Dean had ever seen "It's a Wonderful Life," he might say this is just like when George Bailey goes into Martini's Bar and isn't recognized. But apparently Dean Winchester, pop culture aficionado, has never seen that movie (no, I haven't gotten over that, and I never will) so he doesn't recognize a classic uh oh, we changed the course of history moment when he experiences it.

Meanwhile, Sam steps out of the grocery store and finds that neither Max nor the postal clerk recognize him. And then he sees a wanted poster in the post office window. Dean Winchester, wanted for assault, murder, and credit card fraud. Whoops! He trots to the car, where Dean is waiting, and tells him they have a problem. "Yeah, we do," says Dean. "Check this out."

He shows Sam his phone and it's a video of SAM IN GLASSES AND A BLACK TURTLENECK AND SLICKED BACK HAIR GIVING A TED TALK. HE RUNS A LAW FIRM AND LOVES KALE. IT IS THE SECOND MOST AMAZING THING I'VE SEEN TONIGHT.

HE'S STEVE JOBS.

So, those of you who were spoiled... did you know about this? Or did they actually keep THIS AMAZING THING under wraps?

Sam Jobs tells his audience that being your best leaves no time for hobbies or a family, and Sam has seen enough. He tells Dean about the wanted poster, and Dean says yes, of course he googled himself too ("a lot of beheadings," hee!!!) and wonders if there are alternate versions of them running around. Sam thinks it's a "temporal paradox," and time is self-correcting, changing to the new one. If they don't fix things, they'll become those alternate versions of themselves. "Well, I'm cool," Dean says, "but you're, ugh." Sam's less worried about them, and more worried about what else might have changed.

(Sidebar: You know, I could quibble about why bringing John forward in time has such a significant butterfly effect, but bringing Mary back, and their other time travel, and Henry's time travel, changed nothing. I absolutely could. But I choose not to, because SAM JOBS, Y'ALL. But okay, let's think about it. 2003 John would have disappeared while Sam was at Stanford. Dean wouldn't have gone to get Sam. Or Sam would have refused to go. Maybe the hurt on both sides was still too fresh. Maybe that's why Dean's hunting alone, and Sam's an internet-famous lawyer.)

What else has changed, you might ask? How about ZACHARIAH? That's right, my favorite angel is back. And with him is ORIGINAL FLAVOR CAS WITH HIS FLUFFY HAIR AND THINGS JUST KEEP GETTING BETTER AND BETTER. Zachariah calls him "Constantine" and Castiel says "I don't understand that reference" and THANK YOU BABY JESUS, I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID TO DESERVE THIS, BUT THANK YOU. They enter Max's mom's restaurant and ask who's been messing with time. (Because she would know?) And if they don't start talking, he'll have Cas murder all of them. "My name is Castiel," he intones solemnly. "I'm an angel of the Lord." YES YOU ARE. He reveals himself like he did to Dean (no, not like that, jeez) with the shadow wings. Outside, the Winchesters see the bright light of an angelic reveal coming through the restaurant windows, and they know something's up.

They herd everyone out of the restaurant, and are shocked to see Cas and Zachariah. Zachariah is equally surprised to see them. He says they had big plans for the Winchesters, but then their father disappeared and... and he doesn't finish, so we'll never know why yoinking John out of 2003 changed any of that vessel stuff. (Handwave!) Cas, of course, doesn't know them, and when Zachariah orders him to kill them, he complies.

Dean pulls out an angel blade but is, of course, unwilling to actually kill Cas, so he starts hitting him with other things. And Cas, for whatever reason, doesn't just put a finger on his forehead and kill him dead. (Handwave!) Zachariah chokes Sam and asks him what they did, even though he can't talk because he's choking (handwave!) and Sam acts like he's trying to speak so Zachariah gets closer to hear him, and Sam stabs him with an angel blade. Cas continues fistfighting with both of them, and slams Sam head-first into a table a couple of times, leaving him spitting blood on the floor. Which Sam uses to paint an angel-banishing sigil while Cas is choking Dean. Smart Sam for the win!

Bunker. Pretty bruised Dean has explained the temporal paradox, and John accepts that he has to go back, or else Mary will probably disappear. "Okay," he says. "I mean, me versus your mom, that's not even a choice." DAMMIT JOHN WINCHESTER DO NOT MAKE ME CARE ABOUT YOU. Elsewhere, pretty bruised Sam explains it to Mary, and tells her John won't remember anything.

John tells Dean he never meant Dean to have this kind of life. He's proud of him, but he hoped he'd be able to have a normal life, with a family. "I have a family," Dean says. They sit down and have one final family meal together, and everyone's quiet and sad until John points out that they can either think about what's going to happen, or appreciate what they have right now. They cheer up and listen to Bob Seger (well, we listen to Bob Seger) and talk and laugh and have the family dinner Dean has always wanted.

Later, while doing the dishes, Sam says how unfair it is that they all had this and then have to throw it away, and John has to go back to being Dad. He thinks it would be nice for John to go back knowing what he knows now. "I used to think that too," Dean says, and admits that he's blamed both John and Mary for their crappy lives. And if they could send him back to 2003, or even earlier, maybe none of the crap would happen. "But here's the problem. Who does that make us? Would we be better off? Maybe. But I gotta be honest, I don't know who that Dean Winchester is. And I'm good with who I am. I'm good with who you are."

Later. Mary and John are holding hands, and I guess they're doing the thing now. I'd hoped they'd at least let these two have one last roll in the hay (especially since I'm pretty sure Mobby is permanently done after this), but no. They have a very sweet goodbye and their sons are brokenhearted and I am too. John tells his boys to take care of each other and Sam says "we always do." That's a nice change from telling Dean to take care of Sam, isn't it? He tells them both (BOTH) that he's proud of them and loves them, and they have a three-way hug and Sam wipes his eyes and Dean says "love you too" and I REALLY CAN'T, BOYS, YOU HAVE TO STOP. Then John takes Mary's hand again and Sam crushes the pearl (why does Sam have to be the one to do it?) and John glows and then fades away.

We get a quick glimpse of downtown Lebanon returning to normal, and the three teens talking about how cool it is that "those guys hunt monsters," and then we're back to the bunker. Cas walks in the door and sees the remaining Winchesters, obviously distressed, and asks what happened. "Well, there's a story," says Dean.

And finally, we see the Impala WITH HER ORIGINAL KANSAS PLATE. John's asleep in the driver's seat when he gets a phone call from Dean. "No, I'm okay, I just had one hell of a dream. No, it was a good one."

GUYS. GUYS.

When I heard there was going to be a musical episode for the 200th, I was sure it would suck. When I heard about the Scooby Doo crossover, I cringed, because I knew it would be awful. WHY AM I ALWAYS SO WRONG.

Eh, who cares why. Let's just appreciate what we were given. Happy 300, my friends. Here's to 300 more.

(Please help me stay unspoiled for future episodes, thanks!)

[salasvognsen8-blog]

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