( continues...) as well. That's what adulthood had taught him was important to protect.

At the very end we're shown a mother who loves her son so much she stays around to protect her son, but she's been driven mad by the trauma of dying. It takes not saving him (since there'll be another crisis around the corner) but him releasing her for her to move on and stop hurting people.

I'd draw parallels here with Home, when another mother stuck around, but for a much longer time, in a very specific place, and her only motivation was to save her son. What made Mary different from Timmy's mother? They're both horrific deaths with young children barely saved...I can't suggest much. Maybe knowing about what makes a bad ghost helped her not go all Shining on anyone, and just step in when Sam needed her the most, and then disappear.

That's two really sad episodes in a row. This had way less comic relief in it than last week to boot.

I'm reading this epic fic--it started promisingly, but I read the header while it was being posted, so I didn't know there were 200k words. AND THE STATUS QUO HASN'T CHANGED IN FOREVER. The sex was fun, the characterisation interesting...

And now they've gone back on Cas--makes his first couple chapters make no sense at all, and she's pulling surprises out of her hat. Tight, tight, POV, but how can you have two neurotic sexually active characters never think about being HIV positive? And I mean that in the plural--they blurt it out to each other and then it's one more reason they're so perfect for each other--I think the middle 100k is just a litany of the physical responses they get from each other, admitting their fucked up pasts, and explaining more love than can possibly be healthy. Oh, and mentioning the conflict they're hoping will go away if they ignore it.

But the funniest thing is that she has had Dean put his knees together not once, but twice so far. Yeah, never gonna happen, sweetie.

But the funniest thing is that she has had Dean put his knees together not once, but twice so far. Yeah, never gonna happen, sweetie.

They can't reach each other! Can they? It'd be as effective as unfolding paper. Still ending up creased.

I mean, she mentions the bow in his legs two sentences prior (he's wearing women's underwear, which I'll come back to later). He's posing in front of a mirror, and puts his knees together to see how he looks. LIKE HE BROKE HIS LEGS, THAT'S HOW. Totally crushed the sensual mood.

The stats say that there are a lot of male transvestites, and those numbers are largely made up of men whose only female garment is a panty. In this story, Dean isn't wearing it as a kink, and he isn't wearing it as a gender expression, he's wearing it because they're pretty, and after having fought hard to not be a pretty boy in his teens, dammit, he does want to be pretty sometimes.

Women's underwear cut to hold stick and berries (should the man have them) is not women's underwear, right? If you get silken men's underwear with lace trim, the wearer is no longer a transvestite, right? Maybe not, anyway?

There are probably a lot of men numbered amongst transvestites because the women's section is the only place they can get the pink frilly numbers they want--alongside the men who like the way it *doesn't* fit their cock and balls and get off on that, or the people who can only wear this one piece of clothing (so far) that expresses a gender they're coming to terms with, or a million other reasons, right?

I mean, does that make sense, in the same way that when I wear a tie, from the men's department, I'm not a transvestite either? (If someone tried to sell me women's ties I would beat them about the head with something much harder than their tie-ette)

Women's underwear cut to hold stick and berries (should the man have them) is not women's underwear, right?

I wouldn't think so. I've seen some pretty fancy, silky stuff when underwear shopping, but it was specifically designed for men. Wearing that sort of thing wouldn't make a man trans any more than wearing coveralls would a woman without an accompanying urge to identify or present as the opposite gender, though "girly" and "boyish" might be fair descriptions.

Yeah, I gather the cry of "I'm not a transvestite! I just like wearing women's panties instead of boxers!" would be followed by the laugh track, whereas--hey, Victor's Secret is a bit more well kept. It's not the fault of the guy who has to suffer through the uncomfortable fit.

(Noting, of course, there are some guys that *love* said fit)

Paid my cable bill and finally caught up on Show.

The end. OMG. I don't think I've been double-sucker punched like that in ages. First the sight of baby Sam and Dean making his choice (despite the unfortunate eyebrows, that actor gave really good Dean, props to him), and then Sam actually cluing in. I flove it when Sam gets what Dean has done for him/what he means to Dean. Actually, I can't really recall any other instances. Dean selling his soul for him was an obvious one, but I can't remember if it was shown that Sam Got It. Maybe this was a first. Heart-clench.

ita, what is the Cas-foster-fic?

I think of Season Five as the Season Where Sam Pulled His Head Out Of His Ass Re Mommy Dean. Starting with heaven.

Here's Smiling Out of Fear by pinupchemist, Julie. Probably the best foster D/C AU I can remember reading, but I'm always open to a new good one, or remember an old good one.

Oh ho ho. I guess I was spoiling for a fight, but I went to look up fictional MBTI scores. First off, do I believe in MBTI? Secondly, do I think you can apply rigorous psychology to fictional characters? Thirdly, how contradictory do I feel right now?

• Dean Winchester
• Sam Winchester
• Castiel

My biggest beef is about Dean, no surprise:

Dean has trouble with projecting or predicting future consequences

Why is he the team lead, then?

He draws on the details of a situation at hand, rather then having a large amount of stored knowledge about specific creatures

Why does Sam say "You're a genius -- when it comes to lore, to -- you're the best damn hunter I have ever seen -- better than me, better than dad.", huh? Huh? He remembers a bunch of shit too.

Just because you're an improviser doesn't mean you don't have a great big rolodex of info (cf bon bon's rob rob).

I do like this about Sam, though:

He is empathetic and wants to bring their life back into harmony. However, applying this function to the people closest to him is still developing.

It's one of my favourite things about him, seeing him struggle with it. And he improved his speed over Bad Boys.

I guess I was spoiling for a fight, but I went to look up fictional MBTI scores.

Entertaining! Maybe?

First off, do I believe in MBTI?

Limited usefulness. It's not a terrible start to realizing that individuals are all different but it's not gospel. Still, it was useful for me when I first was introduced to it to realize that people see and react to the world from their unique perspective.

Secondly, do I think you can apply rigorous psychology to fictional characters?

You're usually psychoanalyzing the writer, I think. I want to think they all keep the characters separate and honor them but I don't actually believe it usually happens that way.

I mostly feel less intrusive poking in the head's of fictional characters. I'm not judging them, I am ... no, I am judging them but also a hint of fair consideration.