The End of Dreams (one-shot, M, J, darkfic, PG-13)

[Luxe de Luxe]

back for a re-read, Red. ..it's lost none of it's emotional power.

[redwinter101]

:curtesy: Thank you so much.

Red

[starbucksjunkie]

Indeed.

Piercing and beautiful. Again.

[redwinter101]

There is no greater compliment. My thanks, sbj.

Red

[jen]

I finally got up the courage to read this again, and I saw it very differently.

Oh, sure. I cried thru it again, but I expected that. What I didn't expect was to see the hope there that I didn't see when I read this before.

Josef is the true hero of this piece. Aware that if he doesn't take action, he will lose his closest friend, he forces Mick to face up to and internally acknowledge Beth's death.

It will be a long, difficult journey, but I think Mick will be OK. Josef will see to it. In time, memories--good, bad, indifferent--slowly force pain of grief to share the stage with just the business of living. The story never says, but I'd guess that Josef takes Mick back to casa Kostan and keeps him around people. Isolation is a big part of the problem.

This is emotionally powerful, painful in some ways but ultimately very life affirming. Wonderful story

[redwinter101]

Thanks, jen. I love your description of the pain of grief sharing the stage with the business of living. That's something Josef has learned; but can Mick? With Josef's help, I think so - but he will be different. I think after losing Beth, he'll never be quite the same Mick again, no matter how many centuries pass.

Red

[aolver]

"I abandoned her in life, and then I abandoned her in death". He abandoned her in life? I wonder what he meant by that.

[redwinter101]

"I abandoned her in life, and then I abandoned her in death". He abandoned her in life? I wonder what he meant by that.

That he wasn't with her as she was dying - hence Josef telling him that she didn't care etc.

Red

[wpgrace]

Thanks, jen. I love your description of the pain of grief sharing the stage with the business of living. That's something Josef has learned; but can Mick? With Josef's help, I think so - but he will be different. I think after losing Beth, he'll never be quite the same Mick again, no matter how many centuries pass.

Red

Hmmm.... I agree. I think eventually we all lose someone, whose loss we never quite get over, that changes us forever. Tho our forever is just a mortal one.

I have always loved this piece, because of the Josef bit, in part. He WOULD be there. As long as they're both living, they will both be there for one another. I love it also because I always envisioned Mick never turning Beth, and thus she would eventually die on him. And maybe just like this... he thought he could face it, he thought her mortality was what he treasured, but finds out he can't deal very well after all.

Which always DOES raise the question you just have... what would Mick be like then? What would his life be, now that he truly had to start over again? WIth happy memories of Beth and a life lived and a loved shared... but her no more. Just he, and Josef, going forward again to start a new phase of immortality.

I just love it when a fic really stirs that kind of pondering... yours so often do.

[redwinter101]

Thanks, Grace. I waver so much on what the "final" outcome would have been for Mick and Beth - I can see scenarios where he would have turned her AND scenarios where that would never happen. And that then leads onto all kinds of aftermath possibilities - for both of them. There's a part of me that loves not knowing - and my little romantic soul can't help but believe somehow, somewhere, Mick got the happy ending he deserved (even though I'm not clear on what that might look like).

Red

[coco]

Thanks, jen. I love your description of the pain of grief sharing the stage with the business of living. That's something Josef has learned; but can Mick? With Josef's help, I think so - but he will be different. I think after losing Beth, he'll never be quite the same Mick again, no matter how many centuries pass.

Red

Hmmm.... I agree. I think eventually we all lose someone, whose loss we never quite get over, that changes us forever. Tho our forever is just a mortal one.

I have always loved this piece, because of the Josef bit, in part. He WOULD be there. As long as they're both living, they will both be there for one another. I love it also because I always envisioned Mick never turning Beth, and thus she would eventually die on him. And maybe just like this... he thought he could face it, he thought her mortality was what he treasured, but finds out he can't deal very well after all.

Which always DOES raise the question you just have... what would Mick be like then? What would his life be, now that he truly had to start over again? WIth happy memories of Beth and a life lived and a loved shared... but her no more. Just he, and Josef, going forward again to start a new phase of immortality.

I just love it when a fic really stirs that kind of pondering... yours so often do.

Sneaking on at work to post which I really shouldn't be doing but I couldn't resist after reading this.

This fic is definitely one that leaves you pondering, Grace. When I read this fic not that long ago, I was quite overcome with the reaction I had to it. It's accurate to say that in life we will all, at some point, lose that special person and it does indeed change us forever and that at times it's a struggle to deal with their loss in your life but what I love most about this fic, is the real sense of hope you feel from it. Life does go on. It's just different from before and with Josef in Mick's life, he'll be OK.

[wpgrace]

Thanks, Grace. I waver so much on what the "final" outcome would have been for Mick and Beth - I can see scenarios where he would have turned her AND scenarios where that would never happen. And that then leads onto all kinds of aftermath possibilities - for both of them. There's a part of me that loves not knowing - and my little romantic soul can't help but believe somehow, somewhere, Mick got the happy ending he deserved (even though I'm not clear on what that might look like).

Red

Well exactly! That's the beauty of fanfic over the show itself; in fanfic many possibilities can be explored from many different points of view. I just always DID feel her humanity was of SUCH value to him, and the loss of his own so traumatic for him, and that whole blood-sucking thing so repulsive to him, that he would not turn her, would in fact enjoy watching her age, maybe would encourage her to employ JLo's back up plan... and as time went by, would not see her as getting old and ugly, but just following nature's way.

Now, what your story introduced to me is the possibility that having done all that, and she gets sick at some point, or just old and feeble and near death, THEN he would have a sudden OH SHIT moment and regret not turning her... but too late. And then you get this lovely story... and Beth totally getting it and dying in peace nontheless... and Josef pulling him back from the brink again.

And to me--as to our darling coco-- there is a happy ending even in your story. If he can get to the same peace Beth did... then he had a mortal lifetime with her. That's what he wanted with Cora. That's been his standard. Now he's had it.

Now NEXT time he falls for a mortal, IF he falls for another mortal, maybe THEN, having experienced the until death do you part part, maybe THEN he'd be a little more keen to use the fangs on the girl. He's got time to work all that out.

[wpgrace]

Deleted cause somehow it posted twice... sorry!

[redwinter101]

And to me--as to our darling coco-- there is a happy ending even in your story. If he can get to the same peace Beth did... then he had a mortal lifetime with her. That's what he wanted with Cora. That's been his standard. Now he's had it.

I agree, Grace, although I have written an alternative reaction for Mick after this scenario plays out - that he wouldn't want to go on without Beth (even with Josef by his side).

It's one of the things I love about dsr's stories - the totally convincing way she has set out a scenario where they BOTH come to the conclusion that Beth being turned is the right thing. They both want it. Beth overcomes her fears and Mick comes to terms with her losing her human life.

As you say, the beauty of fanfic is infinite possibility.

Red

[wpgrace]

And to me--as to our darling coco-- there is a happy ending even in your story. If he can get to the same peace Beth did... then he had a mortal lifetime with her. That's what he wanted with Cora. That's been his standard. Now he's had it.

I agree, Grace, although I have written an alternative reaction for Mick after this scenario plays out - that he wouldn't want to go on without Beth (even with Josef by his side).

Hmm... is that the one with the big warning to moi affixed to it? Cause I don't recall it...

It's one of the things I love about dsr's stories - the totally convincing way she has set out a scenario where they BOTH come to the conclusion that Beth being turned is the right thing. They both want it. Beth overcomes her fears and Mick comes to terms with her losing her human life.

True ... she has brought them organically to the same spot... and they both struggled with that decision over the course of her series.

As you say, the beauty of fanfic is infinite possibility.

Red

I'm a believer.