Archive of Our Own

The first installment of Carrying On was born out of a desire to 1) procrastinate on other writing projects and 2) explore the aftermath of a hunt gone wrong. How do the boys handle themselves when they have the physical safety to emotionally process what happened? How does Dean deal with a partner (Kate, OC) who empathizes when he lashes out or doesn't let him escape a difficult discussion by taking a long drive in Baby?

Carrying On is a three-part, feminist Canon Divergence saga set in the Bunker Era. The Winchesters are exploring trauma, recovery, found family, and the terrifying logistics of raising a not-fully-human infant. Expect deep emotional reckoning, heavy medical anxiety, and the distinct flavor of millennials realizing that they might have just killed the hunting industry.

Hurt/Comfort is far and away my favorite trope, expect plenty of it. I started writing because I couldn't get enough of it. I also process my own trauma and reparent my own demons through writing and, as a result, Kate is a shameless self-insert. This series is my brain is actively rewriting scenes from my life how how I feel interactions should have gone.

 

Welcome to the bunker.

About: This project started as procrastination from my novel and spun out into a multi-part series on healing from trauma. I wanted to give the boys the home and family they didn't have growing up. I wanted them to have time and space to process the trauma from their lives and job. I wanted to give them what John Winchester couldn't: a civilian life. I wanted to give them a place to lay their weary heads, I wanted to give them peace. Well, peace-ish.

While the trilogy is drafted (and part 1 is complete), I would love to hear your ideas or theories in the comments! I have the major plot points down for the second two parts, it's just a framework and I could still sprinkle in your ideas if they fit in my world!

Content Warnings: Features heavy themes of supernatural possession, emotional manipulation, bodily violation, and intense medical/pregnancy anxiety. Specific chapter-level warnings will always be posted in the individual chapter notes.

Structure: Book 1 is a series of vignettes that lead up to the future installments of domestic life for the Winchesters inside the bunker. Subsequent books will cover topics ranging from the classic Monster of the Week to figuring out the best brand of diapers to contain an infant Cambion's blow-out.

Vibes: Found Family. Domesticity in the Men of Letters Bunker. Severe reproductive anxiety with a dash of stubborn millennial humor. Bonus vibe: Sam Winchester lurking on pregnancy forums for morning sickness remedies.

A Note on Process: This series is entirely conceived, plotted, and written by me. However, I utilize an AI assistant while drafting as a digital sounding board for structural brainstorming as well as help formatting clean HTML code for the archive layout. I understand if this is a non-starter for readers and wanted to be transparent up front on my process.

Soundtrack: Each book in the series has a dedicated playlist on YouTube of classic rock songs from which chapter titles are derived. It's not a road trip with the Winchesters without a mixtape!

Updates: Installments drop every Thursday at 9pm Eastern. IYKYK.