Drabble Fic - Priceless (11.15)

[madebyme_x]

Title: Priceless
Summary: 11.15 Drabble. A flashback. John POV.
Rating: PG13
Genre/Spoilers: Gen. Spoilers for Season 11.
Warnings: None.
Word Count: 100
Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural that privilege belongs to CW, Kripke and Co, I'm simply borrowing them for a while. I'm not making a profit, this is just for fun and all the standard disclaimers apply.

Priceless

It's late when his boys walk across the sticky carpet of the small town motel, slinging duffles onto cigarette-burned bedspreads, all without complaint.

Gut churning, John escapes to hustle some pool, trying not to worry about what Mary would think as he downs his bourbon. When he leaves, his wallet fat, he sees the sign; Wrestling! He missed Christmas last year, then Dean's birthday; have they ever spent any time together that didn't involve hunting?

He buys three tickets.

When life is at its darkest he clings to the look of delight on his children's faces that night – priceless.




A/N: For me, it was such a treat to hear about John doing something with his boys that didn't involve hunting. The look on Sam and Dean's faces during that wretsing match was priceless, full of boyish glee, and I couldn't help but focus in on John here.

Comments

[citrusjava.livejournal.com]

Awwww........

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Thank you!!! It's nice to sometimes see glimmers of John as a father, not blinded and obsessed with hunting and revenge :)

[freya922.livejournal.com]

It's perfect, and I bet it's exactly the backstory the writers had in mind, too!

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

What a lovely comment - thank you! I really wanted to expand on John's backstory here, and I do hope that it want something like this. I love the idea of John doing something 'normal' for his boys, to give them a moment of boyish joy.

Thank you for stopping by :)

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

Yes yes - I know some people slag John off for his shitty parenting but I'm of the school that thinks he loved his boys, and while he may have got some things wrong, it was never due to lack of caring. So yay for wrestling fun!

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Oh I'm with you; I always thought that John truly believed he was doing what was best for his boys, especially given the circumstances. And while I don't necessarily agree with his methods, I do thing that he loved his boys.

Thank you for stopping by :)

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Lovely! You showed the fun, but with the hint of sadness and desperation behind it. This backstory is now headcanon for me!

John is such an interesting character. Some of his parenting choices make me want to slap him, but on the other hand, he got a lot right in very difficult circumstances.

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

What a lovely comment! I'm so happy that you enjoyed the backstory here, I really wanted to flesh it out a little more.

Yes, I find John fascinating. While I don't agree with all the choices and decisions he's made, I think he thought that he was doing what was best for them. He's no saint, and he won't win any awards, but when I think about his shiny eyes when he sees his sons in Shadow, I can't believe that he didn't care and love them.

Thank you so much for stopping by. Take care, :)

[twnchesterangel.livejournal.com]

ohhhh I could go on and on but really, just thank you soooo much for this. I truly believe, that while their live was hard and John was harsh, he loved his boys and I can absolutely see this happening. THANK YOU. This was sad and sweet all at once. Loved it. *hugs*

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Thank YOU for the lovely comment, I'm so happy that you enjoyed it. I wanted to shine a little light on John's POV here, fill in a little of the backstory.

And yes, I'm with you on John; he's flawed and he's certainly made some harsh decisions, but I can't believe that he didn't care and love his sons.

Thank so much for you kind words and support. Take care :)

[brightly-lit.livejournal.com]

Aww, so great! Poor John, just doing his best. Love. <3

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for stopping by! I really wanted to focus on John and the backstory here, and I've always thought that in his own sometimes misguided way, he was doing his best for his boys.

Thanks again for your kind words ♥

[brightly-lit.livejournal.com]

I totally agree! I've never understood the hate John gets. He wasn't the world's best father, but I also truly believe he always did his best. <3

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Absolutely! I always think of those shiny eyes in 1.16 when John is reunited with his boys for the first time in a long time. I'd love to see JDM back playing John in Show :)

[milly-gal.livejournal.com]

Oh honey that's beautiful, a little desolate which makes it ever MORE beautiful!

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Awww thank you so much, what a lovely comment! I think a bittersweet feel suits the Winchesters so much, especially in this situation with John.

Thanks again :)

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Lovely. <33 They were filled with childish glee = remembering some good times in the past. :))

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'm really happy that you enjoyed it. I wanted to try and shine a little light on John's POV and flesh out the backstory a little.

I love the idea of the boys finding some childish glee as they reminisce about good times in the past *happy sigh*

Thanks again. Take care :)

[metallidean-grl.livejournal.com]

As a staunch John supporter, I absolutely loved this and thank you for writing it. I saw some very negative comments around the net regarding the reasons John would take the boys to wrestling matches. I couldn't believe it that what was a fond loving memory for Dean and Sam was twisted into negativism by some fans. I get frustrated a lot with some of the narrow mindedness of some people when it comes to John. I admit he wasn't the best father, that his methods were not the best, BUT, he was their father, and as has been noted in comments, he did love his boys to the end of the earth and did what he had to do to keep them safe and train them for the future, which I expect he knew something of, especially Sam. His obsession did the get the better of him, but I do believe there were more moments like this in their childhood that have just not as yet become Canon.

Show has messed up John's character royally the last many years, to which I am still upset about, but I am pleased that they are doing more things recently to change that around some. So, the thought of the Winchesters enjoying a night of wrestling, and Dean and Sam delighting in the moment, as replayed in this episode, was a joyous event to see. I could really see a young Dean and Sam depicted in Jensen and Jared's performance as they delighted in the wrestling match. Definitely a priceless night for our boys.

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'm really happy to hear that you enjoyed it, especially John's portrayal.

Like you say, John isn't perfect and he's made some mistakes, but I believe his heart was in the right place, and that he really did love his boys. I always think of 1.16 Shadow, and those shiny wet eyes when he first sees and hugs his boys.

I too was delighted to see Show offer a positive memory of John for the boys, and I'm more than happy to take it!

Thank you so much for stopping by, it was great to hear from you. Take care, :)

[borgmama1of5.livejournal.com]

Nice to read a positive John moment--I;m sure there were some like this!

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

Absolutely! I loved seeing a positive memory from the boys of John, and it really stuck with me and I had to explore it a little further.

Thank you so much for your kind words. Take care :)

[becc-j.livejournal.com]

This is wonderful! And it's fantastic that they gave us this extra detail to the boys lives, I love how you've given us John's pov and those feelings of guilt and regret.
And I loved their expressions during the fight as well, so great to see them smiling! :D

[madebyme-x.livejournal.com]

I'm really happy that you enjoyed this - thank you! I loved that Show gave us a relatively positive John memory from the boys, and I couldn't help but explore that a little here with John's POV.

It was so great to see the boys let their hair down and enjoy doing something together as brothers! Adorable! :D