#surely there'd be even more of an outcry if it were

[booasaur]

[rebellicnrising]

WHO: kaleb ripley & dante @riiseandfall WHERE: a hallway near the training room WHEN: after the tribute interviews

he's not sure how he ended up here. at some point after max had left- ( or had he left max? truthfully, he doesn't remember )- kaleb had left that corner booth, waving off more of those insistent voices that demanded to withdraw their bets ( tomorrow, tomorrow-- i'll get with you tomorrow-- ) and slipped deeper into the tribute training center, hands in his pockets and his thoughts racing. it takes him a moment to realize what this places is- another hallway that circles above the training center, doubling as an observation deck- and his steps slow to a stop, turning to approach the windows that looked down into the large gymnasium-- the equipment, the training dummies, the weapons.

( it's all falling apart. ) before the games were said and done, he would lose every cent he'd made if things kept up as they were-- even now, he knows that if he were to check his messages, there'd be dozens upon dozens of notifications full of people wanting to withdraw their bets, voicing their own pieces of that outcry from the interviews. he should've told each and every last one of them no-- told them that they knew the rules, bets could not be withdrawn past the gamemakers scores being released, like he inevitably had to tell at least one asshole every fucking year; but this year wasn't like any other year. hell, even he can't condone what the games have brought this year-- and he's too tired to argue.

it's the only way he can think to describe it: tired. this bone deep ( sadness ) weariness that drags at him, weighing him down even as he stands there overlooking that training equipment. that heaviness in his chest that ached with loss-- the loss of business, loss of his mother ( no-- no, we're not feeling that here ) and the loss of -- ( don't. ) his own voice speaks the warning in his mind, trying to fight against how that ache in his heavy chest twinges, unable to stop the memory of the rose garden and purple glittering around wild blue eyes. ( i don't care what sort of monster you think you are or what you might become because of it because i'll love you in spite of it. -- you’ll love me? …you can’t. you shouldn’t—we have a rule-- ) it's a physical pain that shoots through his chest and hands reach for that railing that lines the overlooking windows, gripping tightly as his jaw clenches- fighting to keep his expression flat- and mind echoing with those four words; how the moment they were spoken, the rug had been pulled out from under his feet.

we have a rule-- -- he never expected he would be the one to break it. it had been a joke once upon a time- a ground rule established while they came down, sweaty and panting, limbs heavy with euphoria; he'd laughed when dante had said it-- kaleb ripley fall in love? make himself vulnerable and give another person power over him in such a way? it was fucking laughable-- goddamn preposterous. he hadn't fallen in love; love had crept quietly into his heart, climbing vines up his spine and twisting around his ribs before slipping silently into his heart and covering it from the inside out. love that bloomed when dante smiled, when he laughed. it had been so quiet, he hadn't realized it at first and tried to ignore it- to deny it-- only to have it slip from his mouth unbidden ( i'll love you in spite of it ), exposing just how deeply dante had rooted himself in kaleb's chest. the door to his heart had flung open without thought- ( i'll love you in spite of it-- the door is open, to welcome you home-- ) leaving him open and exposed and--

we have a rule -- -- and it had been this sharp reminder; that's not what this was, what was between them. he could lie to himself all he wanted but when it boiled down to it, it was a business transaction. ( that victor you parade on your arm like some sort of prize you have done nothing to earn-- ) a friendship if he were to be generous though it certainly hadn't been built the way of conventional friendship. he'd wanted to claim it was a slip of the tongue, play it off but the moment those words had left dante's mouth, all it sounded like was rejection-- a hurt that he pulled himself from as hard and fast as he could, slamming that door shut and barricading himself inside. ( we have a rule-- fucking fool, what did you think would happen? and what difference does it make in the end? what has any of this earned you aside from pain? ) they had a rule for a reason and it's echoing in his mind ( we have a rule-- ) playing in the background of the memory of his father's office ( -- your mother is dead because of you-- it should've been you-- )-- the screens above caesar broadcasting those executions and his mind supplanting his mother's frightened face in their place while a peacekeeper plays back the sound of his own voice in the rose garden tight with emotion ( you want to make them choke on it? // i'll love you in spite of it )-- and he can feel notification after notification roll in, vibrating against his thigh and he knows what they're all going to say and he can practically see the numbers of his accounts plummeting and every success he had fought for on his own is crumbling around him, the games looming ever closer and the clock ticking down those moments and who knew if he'd ever get another with--

( it's all falling apart. )

the weight of the last 24 hours crashes on him and he feels so goddamn heavy and his mind is so unbearably loud-- this cacophony of noise that runs each thought over one another in this never ceasing loop of all these failures. there was no one else to blame, he was the orchestrator of his own demise, each choice leading to another and he was just now getting to see the domino effect of those choices; he just had to stand back and watch it all burn. he's aware of the sound of steps approaching and when he turns his head to investigate, shoulders tense and there's that urge left over from the tribute ball that whispers ( leave ) to himself at the approaching figure but he stands still, turning his face back towards the glass windows, staring out into that empty room. "you did well in the interview," he says to dante, eyes still glued ahead, voice calm and detached, "held your composure and played the part better than most."

[fkevin073]

How do you think things would have played out between Jace, Alys and Aemond's in a world in which Alys is Alicent and Viserys'daugther? 👀

Ouu 👀 I've been asked about this before actually as a prompt, and it's been lingering in my mind for a while.

hmm. I think there's definitely a lot of possessiveness/jealousy going around. If things are switched around and alys (as aemond's sister) is closer to Jace than to him, there'd be even more tension between them. But I think Alicent wouldn't let her daughter get too close to Jace considering the state of her relationship with Rhaenyra at the time.

I mean first of all, Alysanne would have the full on Targaryen look. I kind of like the idea of Alicent and Viserys having one kid that inherits her colouring, but we can set that aside for now.

I mean I think Aemond would want to marry her. He's obsessed with being seen as a "true" Targaryen and proving his birthright, so marrying her kind of "completes" that image. But because Aemond is a second son, and Alysanne is a second daughter, Otto probably wants to marry them elsewhere. Helaena and Aegon marry for the symbolism of it all, so they'd probably be looking to marry Aemond/Alysanne elsewhere to make alliances.

Would Alysanne be in love with Aemond?

... Unclear. I think there'd definitely be tension between them, and I think they'd be the closest out of all the green siblings. Aegon is well, Aegon, and Helaena has her kids, so for a while all they have is each other. I head canon that Alysanne wasn't there when Aemond lost his eye because Alicent was keeping her close (because Alysanne I think was friendlier with the Strong boys).

BUT!

How about this: there's a role reversal here. When the Blacks come to King's Landing to deal with Vaemond's petition, Viserys demands that Alysanne marry Jace. Of course there's an outcry about this, but it happens, and instead of Jace being made to stay in King's Landing first, they go to Dragonstone. Of course Aemond is furious, but he takes some of his anger out on her (even tho she didn't do anything), but eventually she goes.

to make things juicy, I think Alysanne would grow to love Jace during her time there, even though she might not want to. She doesn't have a dragon, but he doesn't think less of her for it, even though he had done the Pink Dread with Aemond. I think part of that was also Jace reacting to Aemond hinting at his muddy parenthood (which I'm sure happened off screen).

But it's definitely not smooth sailing. Alysanne is fiercely loyal to those she loves, but Jace also points out that Aemond wasn't innocent that night on Driftmark. I think Aemond would definitely twist things to make himself look better when she asks him what happened. I mean who would blame him? He wants his sister to be on his side and he's a kid who lost his eye. He feels like he's the victim, and in many ways he is.

As for Alysanne falling for Jace - I think she can't help it. Though I love Alicent, I can see why the Greens would be envious of Rhaenyra's kids. While I think Rhaenyra has more shortcomings as a mother than many in the fandom would like to admit (even tho I love her too), she's definitely (from what we've seen) more compassionate/patient/affectionate with her kids. I don't think that's Alicent's fault, per se. She was only 14 when she became a mom in the show, and she was maritally r***d. Her and Rhaenyra were in wildly different positions when they became mothers.

But I think seeing that with Jace and being on the receiving end of his affection/care opens her heart a lot more. Seeing him with his brothers shows her a kind of love she hasn't really seen/experienced. She loves her family - of course she does. But the Greens are wildly more dysfunctional, almost crueler with their love. Jace's is much purer, and a bit more stable.

I think that's part of the reason why Aemond loves Alysanne to begin with in IKYLAO. As a kid, she was gentle with her love and affection, and he didn't really get that elsewhere, and she has this undying devotion for her brothers. I think when you've been touch starved your whole life, or when you receive affection from your parents rarely, when you find an open source of it that wants to give it to you, you never want to let it go.

But yeah, Alysanne goes to Dragonstone and slowly falls in love with Jace. It also gives her and Rhaenyra a chance to get to know each other a bit better. Since Alysanne is in their hands when Viserys dies, I'm thinking the war doesn't happen right away. Mostly because when Otto starts to speak of treason Alicent shuts that right down because she knows Daemon would kill Alysanne, and I also think seeing how well Jace treats Alysanne would soften Alicent a lot more and realize that despite their disagreements, Rhaenyra (overall) raised her boys to be good people.

Idk if you've ever watched the show the White Princess? It's giving Henry and Elizabeth vibes (minus the gross weird stuff from episode one)

But yeah, still a lot of tension between Alysanne, Jace and Aemond. Maybe Aemond refuses to marry, or he ends up marrying Baela? Or maybe he just winds up with Alys Rivers in this universe too.

omg this has become so long so sorry! but there could be other ways this goes.... thanks for the ask!

[munsonsduchess]

Teenage Kicks

summary: it's 1993, you and eddie both work at the mall and have a friendly not so friendly rivalry going on, really you're just messing with each other until someone calls chicken w/c: 2,777 warnings: kissing, swearing, public make outs, mentions of shitty parents a/n: so i've had two weeks from hell but i should be back on track, i actually really loved writing this because 90s nostalgia is my jam (even if i was only a wee thing in the 90s). as always if you enjoyed this please leave a comment, a reblog, come into my inbox and say hey, whatever floats your boat

(moodboard by me)

Hawkins Indiana in 1993 was not that much different than the same town in 1983 Eddie thought to himself as he packed out tapes and CDs. All that's really changed in the last ten years or so is how the youth buy their music, when he'd been little it was all vinyl records and tapes had only just started to appear on the market. 

He remembers his uncle calling them a fad and saying that nothing would ever come close to experiencing music on a 12 inch disc. Now it seemed as though vinyl was on its way out once and for all as more and more people wanted tapes they could play in their cars or on their portable radios. Granted the battery life in those kinds of radios was nothing to write home about but still it meant not having to drag a whole record player with you whenever you wanted to go someplace and listen to music with your friends. 

The mall too had gotten busier in the last ten years, sure there'd been an outcry from residents and small business owners when the place first opened, but now the place was full of customers from every facet of life in hawkins. 

Hawkins Indiana was split into two sides, ask anyone who lived there and they'll tell you  the same. There was the affluent side of the  town, huge houses with more rooms than inhabitants, monuments to capitalism, kids who shopped exclusively in the Gap and wouldn't be caught dead wearing anything from the sale or clearance ailes. 

Then there was the other side of Hawkins, modest working class family homes, folks struggling to pay the rent or their bills and of course Forest Hills Trailer Park where the so-called dregs of society wound up. Eddie himself being one of those 'dregs' but he'd been called worse and most of the insults that got thrown at him tended to bounce right off the almost impenetrable armour he'd built around himself. You do what you can to survive in a small town when you're markedly different from your peers. 

The only person who ever managed to get under Eddie's skin and stay there was Hot Topic Girl. She had a name of course and Eddie knew her first and foremost by that name, especially since he was accustomed to hearing it screamed from a trailer window at ungodly hours of the day and night. What got under his skin about her was that she seemed to find it so easy to push his buttons and rejoiced in doing so. 

➽───────────────❥

It was shaping up to be another day of selling N'Sync and Backstreet Boys CDs to Yuppies for Eddie when a woman about the same age as his uncle walked into the store and made a beeline for him,

"Is your name Eddie?" she asked seemingly breathless, "I was told to ask for Eddie" 

"That's me, how can I help ma'am?" Eddie was approaching this conversation with trepidation, people usually didn't ask for him by name unless they already knew him. Either from buying music before or from his band,

"The girl in Hot Topic said you could help me find a record" the woman said, "I've been looking for it for months for my sister in Idaho and I was told you'd have it" 

"By the girl in Hot Topic?" Eddie asked, just to be clear on who he was going to hold responsible for this when the transaction was over. He gave some descriptors to the woman to make sure they were talking about the same person,

"Yes that's her! She told me to come straight here and ask for Eddie and that you could help me" 

Eddie grit his teeth and balled his fists by his side. No doubt this woman was going to be a nightmare customer and it was yet another way for Hot Topic to screw with him,

"What record are you after ma'am and I can see if we have it" 

"It's Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn live in Nashville in 75" 

Of course it was. Fucking country music. 

➽───────────────❥

Sometime that afternoon while you were folding shirts left in disarray by the horde of teens who'd passed through earlier that morning you were alerted to someone clearing their throat, and older man probably slightly older than your mother was standing at the counter with a sour expression on his face,

"Do you work here?" he asked sharply, "because I have been standing here for twenty minutes and no one has come to help me" 

"My apologies sir, I didn't realise you needed my assistance" you smiled sweetly, falsely, at the man and made your way back over to the counter, "how can I help you?" 

"The boy in the music store said you would have something I require" 

"The boy in the music store huh? Let me guess about yay high, curly hair, looks like a degenerate?" Eddie was getting his revenge it seemed for the woman you'd sent his way earlier, "what is it you require sir and I can certainly check?" 

The man went on to explain in great detail exactly what he was looking for and you did your best to school your features so he wouldn't see how irritated you were by his presence alone. You had to give it to Eddie,  he had picked the most annoying person on the planet to send your way.

When you eventually did get the man the items he required and sent him on his way it was time for your shift to end. Good riddance to the mall and shitty customers for another day, as you passed the music store on your way out you made sure to flip Eddie off knowing full well he could see you through the windows.

➽───────────────❥

It usually went on like that, you and Eddie making each other miserable with customers or ragging on each other when you passed in person. Some people just didn't seem to understand the relationship you had with the metalhead, sure you were both in the 'alternative' category, you listened to similar music although you tended to skew more punk or grunge as opposed to Eddie's metal although there was no denying that stuff like Metallica, Korn, Guns N Roses and especially Rage Against the Machine went hard. 

You just enjoyed getting under Eddie's skin to tell the truth, there was something adorable about him scowling at you over the food court or plotting as he stocked out CDs. Sure you had a massive crush on the guy, probably since middle school when he'd played in the school talent show but that didn't mean you couldn't mess with him a little. Or well a lot. 

➽───────────────❥

You didn't usually work the evening shifts, needing to be home before dark most days for reasons you'd only disclosed to the manager who'd hired you. You didn't want anyone pitying you or worse if they knew that the reason you wanted to be home before your mother was so you could ferret away as much cash as you could without her or her boyfriend of the hour noticing. You were saving to get out of Hawkins once and for all, to live a better life somewhere. 

However it would seem that the gods laugh at the plans mortals make because not only was your mother and her boyfriend aware of your stash they'd taken it all and simply left you nothing but a few dollar bills and some loose change. They'd run off to get married somewhere and taken both your money and your car with them. 

So you'd agreed to do as many double shifts as you could to try and rebuild your nest egg up to something close to what it used to be. Which was where you currently were, the closing announcements were playing over the Mall's PA system and any last minute stragglers were making their way out, parents headed home to their families, teenagers heading to a party, carefree with no responsibilities to hold them down. So you went about your closing duties, counting the register, putting stuff back in its proper places where someone had picked something up and discarded it somewhere else, you really hadn't expected the phone to ring and so when it did you almost jumped out of your skin,

"Thank you for calling Hot Topic Hawkins, we're currently closed - " you didn't even get to finish before a familiar voice came down the line,

"I thought that was you, what's up? You never close" 

"We all have our reasons for the things we do, Munson, what's it to you?" 

"Bite my head off why don't you? Can't a guy ask a question?"

You sighed into the phone, you hadn't meant to be so snappy with him, you were just exhausted from everything that was going on recently. Eddie was probably the one person who'd actually understand what you were going through right now,

"My mom and her stupid boyfriend took all my savings and went to get married somewhere, and they took my car so I had to get the bus this morning" 

"Shit that fucking sucks. Did they get everything?" 

"Apart from like five bucks and some change, yeah they cleaned me out. Everything I've been working for gone" 

There was silence on the other end of the line and then Eddie spoke again, 

"You need a ride?" 

You could have jumped for joy. The buses didn't run this late at night after the mall closed and you really really didn't want to walk the ten or so miles in the dark,

"Yeah, Eddie, that would be great. Just let me finish up here" 

"Oh I see how it is. It's Munson until you need something then it's Eddie" there was no malice to his tone and you couldn't help but laugh,

"I mean if it's too much trouble I could probably ask that Hargrove guy in the sports store. He lives in the trailer park too" 

"Absolutely fucking not. That dude is just as likely to try and date rape you or some shit. I'll finish up here and wait on you" 

You both hung up, which gave you time to fly through your closing duties and at least attempt to fix your appearance in the little mirror hanging in the back room for employees before you saw Eddie. He was giving you a ride because he was heading the same way that was it you were sure of it. Still you didn't want to look entirely awful sitting next to him.

Pulling the shutter down as you left the store you saw Eddie leaning up against the wall next to you with his keys in his hands, 

"You ready?" 

"Yup, if the place burns down now it's not on me" 

"Cool, you hungry? I was gonna swing through McDonalds on the way home" 

"Eddie I - " 

"On me, since you're broke and all" 

The way he spoke left no room for arguments so you simply followed him out to the parking lot where his van was sitting. Eddie made a show of opening the door for you and clearing out some of the trash. His over the top spiel kept you laughing the entire ride, he was charismatic and funny and so easy to talk to. 

When you'd both collected your food Eddie drove for a while before coming to a stop at a cliff top overlooking the town, it was a pretty popular make out spot and lovers lane for teens so it wasn't like you were the only ones there. As you both ate you laughed at the squeaking backseat of cars and the steamed up windows around you, the windows of the van themselves steaming up from the food. 

It was so easy to talk to Eddie, even though this was your first full conversation that didn't include name calling or worse, it felt so natural like you'd known each other all your lives. You talked about music, about culture, about everything, admittedly with some arguing thrown in for good measure,

"Kurt Cobain is a hack!" 

"You take that back!" 

"As if! The guy can't play for shit and his lyrics make no fucking sense" 

"Oh ok because exit light, enter night makes so much fucking sense" 

"The song is called Enter Sandman! It makes total sense" 

"You're so wrong Munson like on a fundamental level" 

"Oh so it's back to Munson now? What happened to Eddie?" There was a shift in the atmosphere of the van when he said that and suddenly the conversation wasn't about differences in musical taste anymore, if it had ever been. 

Eddie grinned at you as you rolled your eyes at him, if that's the game he wanted to play then you had no problem following his lead,

"I dunno, maybe if you're super nice to me it'll come back" you said leaning over the centre console to steal one of his fries

"What if I'm not nice?" Eddie watched your mouth as you spoke his eyes not leaving your lips for a second,

"What if I don't want you to be?" 

That was all it took before Eddie grabbed you by the front of your shirt and pulled you against him. Lips crashing against each other in a frantic kiss. Your hands buried in his dark curls, tugging on them every so often eliciting a groan from Eddie and allowing you to lick into his mouth. 

It was all tongues and teeth, hands grabbing onto anything they could reach, time seemed to move slowly, almost as if it had stopped completely and all that mattered was the feeling of Eddie's lips on yours and his broad calloused hands sneaking under your shirt, caressing the expanse of your stomach.

You broke apart at the sound of a loud bang on the drivers side window, as Eddie rolled it down you were both met with the face of Hawkins Chief of Police Jim Hopper shining his flashlight into the van,

"Evening Chief" Eddie grinned, "how can we help?" 

"You can pack it up and move along. I don't care what you're up to but it can't be here" 

"We were just having something to eat, just got off work" you explained batting your eyelashes at the older man, "closing shift in the mall really takes it out of you" 

The Chief just sighed. He knew you both worked in the mall, you'd seen him with his daughter and her friends enough times to know he knew exactly what you both did for employment,

"Well I'm sure you're both ready to get going then, looks like you're all done to me" he gestured with his flashlight to the empty wrappers and drinks, "y'all get home safe now" 

"Of course chief" Eddie smiled before throwing the van into drive and making sure to give the chief a wave before leaving the spot altogether. 

The closer you got to the trailer park the more your mood fell. You'd had an amazing time with Eddie but now you had to leave, your mom and stepdad as you had to call him now were probably at home already which meant they'd be drunk and you'd end up pushing everything you could think of in front of your door to keep them out while you looked for a new hiding place for your money.

As Eddie pulled up outside his own trailer he leant over again and grabbed your hand in his own,

"It's gonna be ok" 

"Thanks but you don't know that" 

"Yeah I do, you're my girl now. I'm gonna make sure you're ok" 

"Your girl? That's awfully presumptuous of you Munson" you laughed, you really hadn't expected him to say that. One time making out in his van and now you guys were dating? Is that really all it took,

"Don't act like you haven't been flirting with me this whole time" he grinned, "I know you weren't just messing with me" 

"Hmm maybe" you returned his grin with one of your own, "but I'm not telling" you hopped out of the van and made your way back to where your own trailer was sitting, "you'll have to stick around and find out" 

"Oh you are never getting rid of me now sweetheart" 

"I'm counting on it" 

That night as you lay in bed and listened to the sounds from outside your window you thought to yourself for the first time in a very long time that, yeah actually, things might actually be ok from now on. Now you had Eddie. 

Taglist: @eddiesmutson @eddiemvnsonss @pillow-titties @prettyboyeddiemunson @hellfireeddiemunson @that-lame-ghoul9000 @xbreezymeadowsmunsonx @boomhauer @flashyourgreeneyesatme @ches-86 @jobean12-blog @shenanigans-and-imagines @anxiousstark @ruinedbythehobbit @winnifredburkleismyhero @slytherinintj13 @inluvweddiemunson @wheaty-melon @lucciaa9 (if you've been striken out it means tumblr won't let me tag you properly)

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