#ella says crap

[fairytale-poll]

SEMIFINAL ROUND, MATCH 4 OUT OF 4!

Propaganda Under the Cut:

Margrat:

She inherited the role on the death of an acquaintance and she's doing her best but she's like twenty-one and so, so shit at it. She can't make the wand turn things into anything but pumpkins. She's being followed around by two interfering old ladies who are better at everything. She's up against a far more competent Wicked Fairy Godmother who believes *she's* the good one. It's Mardi Gras, there are zombies, she punches a snake in the face at one point...

Fairy Queen of Sweet Dreams:

Multilimbed ancient god summoned by Ella’s plight <3 She outright tells Ella to move past the Disney crap and be willing to admit she’s willing to take revenge on her stepfamily for abusing her and literally murdering her companions. And then proceeds to sing one of the prettiest songs I’ve heard in a musical. She also calls herself “mother” which was definitely for the lesbians • She's literally the Goddess of All That Is Green and Good. She's ancient fey goddess who comes to Cinderella after an accidental offering of innocent blood and grants her the power to get revenge on her wicked troll Stepmother and stepsisters. She takes Cinderella to the end of time to crafter her slippers and gown from the lat dying star in the universe. In short, she's metal as fuck

shes summoned through the spilling of innocent blood at the base of her favorite tree. she makes a dress and shoes for ella out of pure starlight and enchants them so that as long as theyre on her feet all her dreams will come true. she has an absolutely Banging musical number. also she definitely had smthn going on with ellas mom theres a line that says she used to dance under the tree naked with her

Unlike most other fairy god mothers she gets right to the point and is like """"you want revenge let me help you"""". She is off putting and I love her so much. She also has many many arms and is extremely beautiful and ethereal.

[anonymousewrites]

Adolescent Antichrist (Book 5) Chapter Two

Father Figure! Lucifer x Teen! Reader

Demon! OC x Reader

Chapter Two: You Became an Idiot While in Hell

Summary: Chloe is on a strange case and has to face quite the unexpected face.

Mouse Note: Second official chapter! Sorry for the late post, I read JJK Chapter 2551 and couldn't process anything

            “Los Angeles,” breathed Lucifer. The last thing he had needed when acknowledging a new arrival in Hell, Lee, was a reminder of his old life on Earth. Of Chloe. Of (Y/N).

            His kid. The person he cared about more than any other, the one he’d returned to Hell to protect. The kid that would want him to help Lee’s murderer be brought to justice because (Y/N) was a good person.

            Lucifer couldn’t avoid the reminders of them and their heart. So he did the only thing he could. Lucifer turned to face Lee and squared his shoulders.

            “I’m going to do something I haven’t done in ages, for old time’s sake,” said Lucifer. “I’m going to solve your murder.” For (Y/N). Because it is the right thing to do, and that’s what they’d want.

            The only thing Lucifer wanted was to make his kid proud.

l

            Chloe’s case was not going well. Not only were there very few leads, but she had forced herself to dress up to investigate, and now, instead of really knowing what happened, another man was dead.

            “Well, no ID on your street kebab yet, but I found this on him, a .45,” said Ella. “Same as the one that killed Lee.”

            “Yep,” said Chloe.

            “And my Spidey-senses tell me this is our murder weapon, but I’ll know more when I get back to the lab,” said Ella.

            “Okay, great. Good,” said Chloe, walking away.

            She knelt over the body of the dead man and sighed. She needed answers, but so far, she had very few, and none of them seemed to lead her to the truth behind Lee’s death.

            “Agh!”

            The man’s dead body coughed, and Chloe jumped. He coughed up blood and sat up weakly, body still covered in lacerations and the literal embodiment of death.

            “Oh, man, I’m so sorry,” said the corpse(?). “That’s gross.” Chloe stared. “Hey, are you the detective? I’m a demon, and Lord Lucifer sent me to give you a message about the case.”

            “Lucifer.” Chloe’s eyes widened. “How is he?”

            “He’s the King of Hell, so he’s great,” said the demon. “But, uh, sometimes a bit…sad, I guess. Don’t tell him I said that. Anyways, he wanted me to tell you…uh, it’s safe where you stored it.”

            Chloe furrowed her brow. “What? What’s safe?”

            “The thing that you stored?” said the demon.

            “ ‘Stored?’ ” repeated Chloe. “Where?”

            “I don’t know, you’re the one who stored it,” said the demon.

            “Wait, I stored it?” said Chloe.

            “Yeah, it’s safe where you stored it.” The demon groaned. “Oh, crap. This body’s too jacked up to keep working. But you got this…And, uh, Lucifer says to say hi to ‘(Y/N).’ ” The body fell back, dead.

            “Wait, wait!” cried Chloe, but the corpse was a corpse once again.

            “Decker?” said Ella, approaching. “What the hell, did you move the body?”

            Chloe groaned. Now she just had more questions. And, what was worse, she had a message from Lucifer to (Y/N), but Chloe wasn’t sure if she should give it to them. After all, their mental health had already spiraled just from Lucifer’s leaving. She didn’t want to trigger anything worse by letting Lucifer saying “hello” without (Y/N) getting to see him return.

            She resigned herself to ask Linda for advice. After all, a therapist should know how to help (Y/N). Hopefully. Then again, (Y/N) wasn’t exactly human, so what did Chloe know? Or anyone.

            Other than Lucifer. He took care of them.

            Oh, god, Chloe was going to feel better no matter what she did. If she told (Y/N) Lucifer said “hi” but still wasn’t coming back, she risked them spiraling and growing angry. If she didn’t tell (Y/N) anything, she’d feel super guilty and risk their anger if they found out she hid something like this from them.

            Chloe was so screwed.

l

            “Hey, uh, Linda?” Chloe stepped into the therapist’s house.

            “Oh, hi, Chloe,” said Linda, smiling as she bounced Charlie in her arms. “Welcome in. I thought you and Maze were working on a case.”

            “We are,” said Chloe. “But, uh, something’s going on, and I wanted to talk to you about it…”

            “Is something wrong?” said Linda, frowning.

            “A demon paid me a visit,” said Chloe.

            Linda’s eyes widened. “What?” The last time demons had come to Earth, it had ended in kidnapping and near-death. “What’s going on?”

            “Lucifer sent me a message,” said Chloe.

            “Oh. Really?” Linda was surprised.

            “Yeah, it didn’t really make sense,” muttered Chloe. She shook her head. “But that’s not what I’m concerned about. I’m concerned about (Y/N). Lucifer wants me to say hello to them for him.”

            Linda pursed her lips. “And you don’t know whether or not to tell them.” Linda was a therapist; she knew what Chloe was concerned about.

            “What do you think?” said Chloe, furrowing her brow.

            “I think you shouldn’t tell them,” said Linda.

            “What if they find out I hid something and get angry?” said Chloe.

            “(Y/N) needs to move on from Lucifer leaving,” said Linda. “I know that hiding things might seem…counterintuitive, but they’re mourning. To be constantly reminded of Lucifer and told that he’s trying to speak to them but isn’t coming back could cause more harm. He isn’t coming back. (Y/N) needs to have time to wrestle with that and become accustomed to that fact.”

            Chloe nodded. Right. Lucifer wasn’t coming back. That was, unfortunately, a fact.

l

            Another unfortunate fact was that in the late night, Chloe found herself in a gunfight defending Meg, Lee’s sister.

            “Meg, listen to me,” said Chloe. “You can do this. We’re not gonna die her.” She steeled herself. She was going to face everything that came towards her. “Get ready.”

            Above them, several guns went off, and Chloe and Meg ducked down farther behind the kitchen island. The three men were still on the attack, and the pair were still in danger. The bullets ran out, and tense silence descended.

            A confident whistle broke the quiet, and everyone paused in confusion. A man walked into the kitchen, and the gunmen glared.

            “What the hell?” said Rod, the first.

            “Hello, bad guys!” chirped a voice that made Chloe’s heart skip a beat.

            Lucifer? No, Chloe had to be imagining it. He couldn’t be here, no matter how much she wanted him to be.

            “Who’s this crazy fool?!” said Rod.

            “I hope I’m not late to the party,” continued who Chloe hoped was Lucifer.

            Unable to keep herself from looking, Chloe peered around the corner. Her eyes widened. It was Lucifer. He was there. On earth. In the kitchen. Here when she was in danger!

            One of the men noticed her, aimed, and fired. She ducked back, but Lucifer already grabbed him and slammed him through the wall. The second man aimed at Lucifer, but Chloe interceded and shot him. Meg made a run for it while Lucifer grabbed the gun from Rod’s hands before he could harm anyone. He broke it between his hands, and Chloe knocked Rod out with the butt of her gun before he could do more.

            Silence.

            Chloe and Lucifer stared at one another. Lucifer smiled and took a step forward.

            “Thought you could use a hand, but…” Lucifer gestured to the amputated hand (another part of the mess Chloe had been dealing with). “Looks like someone beat me to it.”

            Chloe didn’t respond. All she could do was gaze at him. She could barely believe it. So, she did the one thing she could to convince herself Lucifer was real. She kissed him. Lucifer returned her act of affection, pulling her close.

            He’s real. He’s here.

l

            (Y/N) glared at the screen. “That’s bullshit! Just because it’s in black, that doesn’t mean the design is ‘chic!’ ”

            “Birdie, relax, it’s a TV show,” said Em.

            “But the judges are being stupid! They always say that colorful outfits are worse than all black!” said (Y/N), huffing.

            “This is Project Runway,” said Em.

            “So?”

            “I don’t think it’s that serious,” said Em.

            “Taste is important,” grumbled (Y/N).

            “I’m going to turn this off if you keep going crazy, Birdie,” said Em.

            “Fiiiiiine,” said (Y/N), slouching in their seat.

            The elevator dinged, and Em and (Y/N) exchanged glances. They hadn’t gotten texts from anyone saying they were coming over, and almost every time someone came over unannounced, it meant trouble.

            Em slid towards the table they kept a demon blade taped under, and (Y/N) narrowed their eyes, letting the shadows stir around their feet.

            The elevator doors slid open. A man stepped out. (Y/N)’s eyes widened.

            “Dad?”

            Lucifer stood in the Penthouse and smiled confidently at Em and (Y/N). “Hello!”

            “What-How—” Em stared.

            (Y/N) was frozen, eyes wide.

            “I’ve returned!” said Lucifer, grinning as if nothing was wrong, as if this wasn’t insane. “Well, it’s good to see nothing has changed around here.” He walked through the Penthouse, looking around in satisfaction.

            “…Is that all you have to say?”

            Em tensed as (Y/N) spoke. The shadows swirled around their feet, and their hands had curled into fists. The look in their eyes was dark and dangerous. Em saw it clearly; (Y/N) was furious.

            “Of course. I’m back, isn’t that what counts?” said Lucifer brightly.

            “No,” hissed (Y/N). “No, that isn’t! You left! You abandoned me! You said you wouldn’t, and you did!” They marched up to Lucifer, and the shadows behind them spread out, cloaking the room in darkness. “So you don’t get to just walk back in without an apology!”

            “(Y/N)—” began Lucifer.

            “What is wrong with you?” snapped (Y/N).

            “(Y/N), I’m here now,” said Lucifer. He reached out, and shadows leapt up to grab his arm as (Y/N) glared at him.

            “Yeah, you are. After abandoning me,” said (Y/N). “So it’s going to take a hell of a lot more than walking back into my life to make it up to me.”

            “What can I do? Give you money?” said Lucifer, smiling and raising his hands to show he was open to anything.

            (Y/N) scoffed. “That’s what you think I want? You became an idiot while in Hell. You should know that’s not what I care about.” They turned away and walked towards their room. “Just go away again. You didn’t care when you left, and you clearly don’t care now.”

            “(Y/N), I want to make it up to you. Just tell me how,” said Lucifer.

            “My dad knew what I would want,” said (Y/N). They glared at him in their doorway. “But he abandoned me. So fuck you.” They slammed the door.

            Silence, and Em’s brow creased in worry for (Y/N).

            “Well…that didn’t go as well as I’d planned,” said Lucifer.

            “…You should’ve known (Y/N) would react that way,” said Em, quietly. “Your leaving hurt them.”

            “I know,” said Lucifer, smiling. “But don’t worry, everyone will be alright. I’ll handle everything.”

            He walked away, and Em was left alone in the living room in the middle of the worst situation possible: a regressing Lucifer (in terms of relationships with others) and a pissed-off (Y/N).

Taglist:

@sammyscreencaps-13

@grippleback-galaxy-galaxy

@scarlettqueen190

@ziro-the-null-god

@sammy-13

@zeros-rot

@ceridwyn3

@technikerin23

@poetoflawed

@slytherinroyalty16

@ilse235

@theurbannoodle

@lookitseddie

[oh-shinx]

[An audio recording of Ella, a quiet girl with a french accent stubbing her toe. She says:

"FUCK SHIT BASTARD CRAP FUCKING CUNTWAD OF A TABLE MOTHERFUCKER BITCH FUCK!!!!!!"

A girl with an Aussie accent, Hazel, can be heard laughing in the background.]

[jackiequick]

Los Bandoleros | Fast and Furious Au Fic 🇩🇴

- Get to know Val Toretto -> click here 📚

- Latest Fast & Furious fic -> click here 🏁

Timeline: After Fast & Furious (2001). Take place between 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) & Fast and Furious (2009).

Characters shown/mentioned: Dom Toretto, Valentina Toretto, Mia Toretto, Letty Ortz, Han Lue, Soffi Sasaki, Leon and etc.

Pairing: Pre!Deckard Shaw x Valentina Toretto, Dominic Toretto x Letty Ortiz, Han Lue x Soffi Sasaki

Summary: Ever wonder how more about our leading lady and how Valentina ‘Val’ Toretto, met two members of the Fast Family? Take a look.

—-

It was midway through the day, the streets were roughly empty expect for a few cars. It was Friday, so people were out at work. That resulted in children playing the streets with their mother’s watching them, some people on motorcycles, and the sound of music being played all across town. It was a somewhat cloudy day, so it wasn’t too bad but the weather was high and very humid.

Santos was chatting around town, greeting everyone taking his sweet time reaching the market. Val was waiting for him, since she went to shop for food as he left to buy beer. Finally he arrived with a sly smile.

“Sorry. The line was long?” Santos apologies taking her hand walking down the street with her.

“Line? Que line? No—you were talking.” Val remarked chuckling holding the bags of green plantains.

“If Tia is mad, I’m blaming you.”

“Alright, vamos! Hablas demasiado.”

Val gasp laughing slapping him his shoulder as Santos laughed. Soon enough they arrived at the house, they handed the food and beer over to Tia, Issy and Jessica.

Meanwhile at the airport, Han walked out holding his girlfriend, Sofi, hand looking around the the place. The two chatted gazing the place until someone called out their names, a escort for them, welcoming them to Dominican Republic as Anthony Santos played inside the car.

—-

When they arrived, Dom was fixing a car with two kids nearby him, grounded again. Han decided to take a complain about the heat in which Dom scoffed at how he’s already complaining. Even said why couldn’t they stay at a hotel. Sofi was waving a hand in front of herself feeling the heat calm down on her as well. Of course it’s hot here with no air conditioning around to cool them off, only the richer ones ordered one. So suck it up Han.

Val was outside hand washing some clothes with Issy talking. Santos left to find Dom at that point, pointing out the two newbies who have arrived. But like anything, the word got around as the kids whispered about newbies catching Issy’s attention.

Issy nudged with a smirk, “¿De qué están hablando estos niños? ¿Hay dos chinos aquí?”

“Son algunos amigos que Dom invitó.” Val repiled shrugging with a simple smile.

Issy leaned back eyeing the short hair girl turning back to her friend, “La chica, sin embargo, es flaca.”

Val cringe for a second before looking at the girl for herself and hissed, “No te preocupes. Un poco de moro de habichuelas, carne de cerdo y plátanos arreglará eso.”

Issy chuckling nodding in a agreement, “Pero ella es bonita!”

“Muy bonita!” Val repiled nodding with a smile, but before she can say anything else she caught one of the kids before running into the kitchen, “Hey! No, sal de ahí!”

She picked up the kid, Antonio, holding his hand walking him over to where the others were. She sighs, “I swear theses kids never learn..go play or something.”

Sofi was walking around carrying her bad over her shoulder stumbling into the path and asked, “Um eh-crap. Hola? Sorry Spanish, isn’t my first language..”

Val was waving off Antonio to go play and turned to face girl with a chuckle, “Uh hey. Is there anything i can do for you?”

“Oh thank god you speak English…your English is not bad.”

“Uh thanks? Born in a America, the states, but some spend time here.”

“Oh that’s cool! So um you know Dom then?”

“I know him. He’s my brother. Hi, Val Toretto.”

She hold out a hand and the other girl shaked it.

Sofi stood there awkwardly for a moment and half smiled softly, “Hm Soffi Sasaki, nice to meet you. One question..”

“Shoot.” Val replied walking back over to the yard, motioning for her to obviously follow her, stopping herself from rolling her eyes.

“Why is it so hot here? Couldn’t we uh..stay at a hotel or something?”

“Hotel?! I-muchacha you’re kidding right?”

“What? Did i say something wrong?”

“It’s hot here, embrace it! Dominican Republic is hot almost every day.”

“Um okay, I’ll try. Um w-what did you call me earlier ‘much..cha’?”

“Oh, muchacha! It means women, girl, lady. All the stuff.”

“Isn’t it señora..?”

“Well yeah we use that too, but different country equals different slang.”

“H-how long have you lived here?”

“Uh 7 years or so? Maybe less..”

“Oh um..wow. You know the land then?”

“Yeah sorta. My brother is the one who moves around more than i do.”

“You’re Spanish is good..”

“You can thank my friends for that one.”

The girls kept talking as they entered the kitchen, Valentina automatically started to put Soffi to work, Tia’s orders to at least do something. They asked if they had guys in their lives, work, stuff they liked to do, clothes, daily lives and etc. Val even teases Soffi calling Han, who she met earlier from Dom introducing him to the group, girlfriend and boyfriend. Soffi blushes brightly and asked if she was dating anyone to get a rise from her, Val shake her head ‘no’.

Thankfully food was served, everyone sat down a table chatting and smiling, cracking a few jokes. Antonio’s older brother Micheal took a bite, in which Jessica slapped his hand and reminded him of Dom’s rule. First bite, you gotta say grace. Later on, Dom explained the plan to them, break out an old friend from jail.

————

It took some work and breaking a few bylaws to do, especially from Val opening a gate with pliers to do so. Once it was done, Leo was out of prison as they all scurried into a old school bar for a quick refresher and to grab Letty. Han was being flirted with by a short, curvy woman with wide freeing curly hair, named Cara.

Val was drinking a Mamajuana as she noticed the conversation and then tossed Soffi a presidente, who catch it quickly examining the alcohol in her hand.

She hesitated to drink and glanced at the girl, “Um, i don’t know..”

“It’s fine, just one bottle. I’m usually not a huge drinker but weeks like this and a simple prison break, you deserve it.” Val explained.

“Um, okay i’ll drink to that. You seem rather confident Valentina.”

“Just Val, please.”

“Okay Val. How did you end up here?”

“What do you mean?”

“Living like this. I’m just from Tokyo and a simple street racer. How did you end up like this?”

Val hesitated for a second, that was a first time Soffi saw her that way. From the moment she was introduced to her, 49 hours ago, she saw a confident and cool young women. Since Val greeted Soffi, all she did was eye her and asked her some questions every once in a while. Cracking a joke or sipping her drink, meeting people and watching everyone who walked by.

But hesitation was a bit of a surprise. Soffi thought she overstepped saying that, rarely knowing anything about this girl and asking that question made her go quiet for a second. But before she can say anything Val distracted her and said, “Oh hey isn’t that Han with Cara?”

“Huh? Who?” Soffi asked, looking over her shoulder noticing the sight herself, “Ohh…that’s okay.”

“Isn’t he your boyfriend? Go dance with him or Cara might.”

“It’s fine. Han won’t do that.”

“Soffi. It’s a party, everyone is a little tipsy and having fun, go for it.”

The short haired girl knew that something was happening that she switched the conversation on her, since Val practically pushed her into Han’s direction. Soffi stumbled over to Han holding her beer bottle with a smile, looking over to see Val was already gone leading two guys across the bar.

She sighed, soon changing gears asking Han to dance with her, he happily walked over to the floor, leaving Cara to chat with the bartender instead. On the other side of the bar, Val was chatting with the two guys with a smile siping her beer as she noticed Dom was having his own fun on the couch.

That was until Letty showed up with a smirk, winking at Val.

She gave her a smile hug smirking and asked, “Where is he?”

“Where do you think?” Val replied motions her over to the girls on the couch with Dom, smirking back.

“Incredible. All I had to do is follow the smell of Skanks.”

“Ain’t that hard to track him down.”

“Or you! Took me hours to track your ass down to this side of the D.R.”

“Hey, i just follow his lead. And the food is always good.”

“Yeah, whatever. Meet you outside in 10?”

“You know it.”

Letty kisses her cheek, waving goodbye not before glaring at the guys who Val was talking to a minute again. As she was off to grab Dom away from the party, holding a duffel bag with a smirk hiding behind a simple glare. Soffi was dancing with Han noticing Dom and Letty walking out confused as to who she was, but didn’t bother to ask since Han was twirling her around in glee. Her laughter could be heard, as Han smiled brightly.

———

The next day, Val woke up in a small hotel room nearby the building that held last nights party, looking over the nightstand to see a note from Dom saying ‘Gone out with Letty to the beach. Enjoy yourself. Love, Dom’. She rolled her eyes chuckling, not surprised he went out to take his women on a daytime trip to the lower countryside. That left Val to have a day all to herself.

So she headed out to do her usual routine. After breakfast she would make her way downtown to the market, greeting people, looking at the price tags to motorcycles as she catching a ride on the back of a pickup truck with a bunch of other people and so much more. Stop and stare at the plenty of music being played from across the streets, as some guys would catcall her out loud or even make kissy faces, Val would just roll her eyes groaning in disbelief. Sometimes she will laugh at them though.

Usually Val tends to do things with others of the family and friends she was happily provided with. But over the last few years, she didn’t get to see much of them. With her sister living in the states, the death of a friend while the others just drifted away with time, Dom finding himself with jobs to do, Letty always heading out and the list goes on. Yeah sure, she’s open to plenty of stuff to do, but sometimes she can get a bit lonely and decided that, it isn’t so bad to be by herself. It hurts sometimes, however sometimes she rather just get herself into trouble on her own.

Come lunchtime, she would head over Tia’s place for some food. But today, she decided to treat herself to a simple restaurant for some salami, queso frito, arroz blanco with eggs and tostones. Sound like a lot of food but she’s hungry and it’a delicious according to the waitress who served her, when she asked for a mixture of recommendations. So Val decided to mix it up and eat that whole plate. Of course she had a soda and water to go with it.

She snapped out of her thoughts realizing the time, rushing out of the restaurant thanking the waitress for the delicious meal and drinks, heading over to Tia’s to help out with anything and just chat with Issy. That same afternoon, around 5:00pm, Val found herself walking along the sidewalk landing towards the beaches of the Dominican Republic.

It’s one of the many things she adored about the country. The sun hits just right in the afternoon, the waves are calm on most days, the water was so fresh and cold that it can practically heal your skin’s texture to becoming softer, people always come with their partners and family and or something they come alone to relax. Not just that, nearby the beach there were places to sit, eat and drink if you like. Music would play as the corners of the beach, it felt like Paradise to her.

Today she brought a chair, her bag and ordered a coconut to be sliced open as she drank it without a straw. She removed her t-shit to reveal a deep red bikini top, rising back her black $1 dollar sunglasses she stole got from a random store 5 years ago with a smile, only to drop downs the sunglasses as she heard voices.

“Co—” Val stopped herself from saying that bad word out loud knowing there are children, seeing the people who spoke, “-i mean. Hi.”

It was Soffi again wearing a blue dress, it appears like Han left to grab extra chairs or something. “Hey!” She replied with a smile, “I um didn’t think to see you here.”

“Nope. Me either. Why?”

“Cara and Leo recommended this beach and we decided why not.”

“Of course they did..”

“You don’t seem too excited to see us?”

Val eyes widen sheepishly putting her coconut onto her lap and exclaimed, “Oh no—i mean i am. I just wanted some time to myself i guess?”

“You sure? Um-uh we can leave if you like. I’m getting the feeling this isn’t about right now.” Soffi replied taking a seat next to her, pushing back her bangs.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, are you okay? I must’ve said something wrong last night or whatever to pull you away..If i did, I’m so sorry.”

“Mm hm, okay. Look Soffi, I’m fine. And uh, about what you said last night. I don’t remember.”

“Lies..”

“What?”

“You’re lying. You pushed me towards my boyfriend last night instead of answering my questions.”

“Because Cara was flirting and questioning Han. If i had a boyfriend, i would’ve examine that situation!”

“He’s my boyfriend, i can handle it.”

“Yeah, whatever.”

Soffi got annoyed and Val got defensive. She walked away, over to the bar to get another coconut as Han returned eating nuts, asking if she was okay. She lied, saying to go check on his girlfriend. Han stopped her, saying that whatever happened last night to try and let it out or talk about with somebody.

Val just scoffed walking away, looking at the bartender to another coconut and rolled her eyes at the man who eyeing her. She rather not have any of that today, not in the mood.

She wouldn’t mind meeting somebody on the beach and start a romantic getaway with them for a weekend, hang out with family and friends like she used to and stop the running across the country. But it’s not possible. At least, not yet.

Originally it was supposed to be a less than few weeks in the Dominican Republic to spend time with Dom and return home to be around Mia. However after returning every once in a while to the country, theses weeks turned into months. Now it resulted in 7 years of living conditions and travels, being underground without being seen from anyone that worked in the U.S. or return to the states for long. Don’t get Valentina wrong, she loves it here.

But sometimes get it’s a little lonely and harder with the heist they have to pull off soon. And she can’t imagine going back to the states either. Her life was there, a lost time to make up for, but a life. Sometimes she feels like it was her fault, but she can’t just blame herself or trade it for the world. Her family choose this life or the life choose her and the issues that followed behind it. But still it stinks a bit sometimes.

Somebody tapped her shoulder, Val hissed yelling, “Han i said i was fine! Or if that guys from the bar—” she pauses seeing it was Soffi again sighing, “—yes?”

“You don’t have to give me attitude you know?” Soffi barked at her the girl and rubbed her face from the heat, “I just wanted to know if you’re okay.”

“Why? We barley know each other. We just met yesterday.”

“You are mad, i see that. But Val, look I overstepped last night or something. I’m sorry. If that, you were asking me questions i just wanted to ask you some.”

“Gotcha.”

“It’s only fair.”

“Look Sof, i don’t make friends as easily as possible. And I’m sorry i was rude. But I’m not in the mood to talk about my feelings right now.”

“…okay. What do you want to talk about?”

“Uh, I don’t know. What do you got?”

“Well, I don’t know actually.”

“Oh god..”

Val can already tell this girl was a piece of work, getting on her nerves and giving rising her temper a bit. But a part of her kinda liked that, somebody who can annoyed the shit out of her and push her buttons a bit, even if it makes her wanna punch a wall. She reminded her Vince, with being able to annoy her sometimes.

“You wanna something about me huh?” Val said with her arms across.

“Y-yeah? I guess, tell me anything.” Soffi replied with a smile.

“I hate a huge ass pushover, someone who doesn’t always think for themselves. They need a little confidence.”

“W-what if they don’t have a confidence? You hate them then?”

“Not exactly. Because eventually when you roll with Dom’s crew you grow to have some confidence and speak up when you like. Get your point across.”

“Okay um..sounds like you speak from experience? Were you—are you a pushover?”

“I can be a bit of a pushover depending on the person calling the shots but usually, i try to say something if I’m feeling pissed off.”

“Note to self, don’t piss you off?”

“Like i said, depends on the person. Another thing, I’m human, so i get sensitive about certain topics.”

“Me too. I mean, everyone can get sensitive right?”

“Yeah, what do you want to know about me?”

—-

Soffi wanted to ask the question from last night, ‘How did you end up like this?’ Or ‘How did you end up here?’ But she guessed that it might accidentally scare her off or something again.

So Soffi decided on another question and asked, “So, do you have a boyfriend or uh, girlfriend?”

“Um no boyfriend. And I don’t swing that other way either.” She replied sipping her coconut.

“Oh um okay. Sorry I didn’t know. Why though? You are smart, way more confident than i am and very pretty—”

“I’mma stop you right there, girl. Thanks for the compliment but you’re pushing it. No offense.”

“Sorry, but it’s true.”

“Uh, sweetheart, who’s the one with the boyfriend here? Me or you?”

“Me?”

“Exactly.”

“So? I’m just saying—”

“I know but you’re making yourself sound smaller when you clearly don’t need to be. You’re pretty and you’re pushing the line here.”

“But why don’t have a boyfriend?”

“Just haven’t found the right one yet. I mean, i went on date or two before but..”

“But what?”

“But they weren’t just right.”

“So you never had a boyfriend before?”

“Oh i did, his name was Leon. First relationship I ever had and Dom approved of him thankfully.”

“What happened?”

“We moved on. It was short lived relationship, but stayed friends. How about you and Han?”

“It was love at first sight.”

The girls smiled.

Val joked with a laugh, “Oh nahhh! Of course it was. Booo.”

“What?” Soffi said with a smile, “It’s true! We saw each other at a race and I fell for him.”

“Of course. Ain’t surprised.”

“Don’t believe in love?”

“Ah well, I know it exist due to my brother and you being in love. But I don’t think it’s for everyone.”

“Alright fair.”

Val smirked, “Alright, five bucks. If my next relationship turns out well, you get five dollars.”

“But it has to actually be love.” Soffi said with a hint of a smirk on her face, “Then I get the five dollars.”

“Hmm, you ain’t never getting those dollars then.”

“We’ll see about that.”

The girls smiled, returning back to the beach to find Han eating his fruits waiting for them with a smile. To day Valentina Toretto met two friends that week an understatement, they would become part of the huge team they would create soon. A family.

Also, little did she know in a few long years Soffi will be getting a solid five dollars, after years of trying to find Valentina a boyfriend.

——-

Thank you so much for reading a twist on a underrated movie of the series. I hope you enjoyed it. Please like, comment & share!

There will be more Fast and Furious fics in the future if you like 🏁

Tags: @gaminggirlsstuff @gcthvile @topgun-imagines @ohgodnotagainn @morgan108 @msrochelleromanofffelton @withakindheartx @sherloquestea @blackheart-beauty @rooster-84 and whoever else wants to be added to my list

[mlleclaudine]

Tagged by @darkbloomiana. Shuffle your music and make a poll for people to vote for their fave song.

Okay, let me preface this by saying that this list is from an ancient (c. 2003) classic ipod that I recently unearthed, the awesome design with the clicky wheel and massive hard drive. Even though I hadn't touched it in probably over a decade, it booted right up when I finally found a Firewire cable to charge it. Say what you will about Apple's business practices, their engineering remains stellar.

About 30 gigs of this particular ipod's storage is devoted to music that I kept on hand for quick reference back when I used to pick up extra cash by playing wedding receptions, so there is a *lot* of Accompaniment For Drunken Audiences To Sing Along To-type stuff. Rounding out the Soundtrack For The Supremely Uncool, there are full operas, lieder, 80s and 90s crap that I painstakingly Torrented via various torturously slow and unreliable internet connections, show tunes, symphonies, and what have you.

Tagging @morningmightcomebyaccident, @okimafan, @thexfridax, @frenchtwistresistance, @seanpgilroy and anyone else who wants to play.

[touchstoneaf]

(playlist acknowledging canon. I hate acknowledging canon. Much longer list for my actual Saving These Idiot Boys fanfiction series, lol.)

Problem Child (Simple Plan, both)

Perfect Memory (Remy Zero, C)

The Scientist (Coldplay, L)

Push (Matchbox 20, L)

Over My Head / Cable Car (The Fray, L)

It’s Beginning to Get to Me (Snow Patrol, both)

By My Side (Three Doors Down, both)

Rolling in on a Burning Tire (Dead Weather, L)

How Does It Feel (Ian Moore, L)

Hearing Damage (Thom Yorke, L)

Going Down in Flames (Three Doors Down, L)

No Love (Simple Plan, L)

Inside Out (Eve 6, L)

Clarity In Kerosene (Nothing,Nowhere, both)

One Step Closer (Linkin Park, both)

In the End (Linkin Park, L)

Eyes on Fire (Blue Foundation, L)

Destroyed (Within Temptation, L)

Elastic Heart (Sia, L) 

Movies (Alien Ant Farm, C)

Damn Your Eyes (Ella Fitzgerald / Alex Clare cover, L)

Wonder (Embrace, L)

Problem (Hozier w/ Ariana Grande, L)

Far Behind (Candlebox, L)

Mudshovel (Staind, L)

December (Collective Soul, L)

Savin’ Me (Nickelback, L)

The World I Know (Collective Soul, L)

Sex and Violence (Stone Temple Pilots, L)

Decode (Paramore, both)

Comedown (Bush, L)

Superman’s Dead (Our Lady Peace, L)

Coma (Stone Temple Pilots, L)

How to Save a Life (The Fray, C)

Best of You (Foo Fighters, L)

How’s It Gonna Be? (Third Eye Blind, C)

Neptune (SJ Tucker, L)

Bring Me to Life (Evanescence, both)

Glycerine (Bush, both)

Say Something (Bekah Kelso, C)

Behind Blue Eyes (The Who, L)

Chemicals Between Us (Bush, L)

Coming Down (Halsey, L) 

When Worlds Collide (Powerman 5000, L)

Without Me (Halsey, L)

Gone Too Soon (Simple Plan, C)

Don’t Leave Me This Way (L)

Hit Me Like A Hurricane (Luke Combs, B)

Never Too Late (Three Days Grace, C)

Diary of Jane (Breaking Benjamin, L)

Better Man (Little Big Town, both)

Breath (Breaking Benjamin, L)

Ticket to Heaven (Three Doors Down, C)

Leave Out All the Rest (Linkin Park, L)

Hello (Adele, C)

Rolling in The Deep (Adele, L)

I Loved You All Along (4am) (Our Lady Peace, both) (from here we diverge into 'what if' territory again, but with the canon crap involved, see next list)

[oddinary4bts]

The hate you are getting is so upsetting to see. I am truly starting to believe that these people are just doing whatever it takes to guilt trip you into changing your story. I remember you saying WAY before you began posting the story that CC would be even MORE ANGSTIER than your previous one. What more do they want? It’s safe to assume that if it’s way angstier there will be a lot of pain so the readers have a choice to proceed with caution, it is not your fault. They are just throwing temper tantrums. And it pisses me off how they use mental/emotional health as a reason because as someone who has also suffered from depression, anxiety etc in the past. I know what I can & can’t handle. I’m not gonna go blaming the writer because I’M the one that read it in the first place. The entitlement is showing BIG TIME. ALSO that other fanfic writer talking about how you lost credibility in their eyes?? Like what??? You put the warnings in the fic, how are you at fault if it triggered someone??? What did they want? For you to be a doormat too?? I don’t think so, there’s no reason for you to have to take this crap from anyone.

Honestly Ella, post whatever you want! There will always be someone hiding in the corner that will get “offended” by something so just live your life, write about what makes you happy, you’ve inspired lots of people i’m sure. I knows easier said than done but don’t let them dim your light. 💡❤️

That was a kind message bby I appreciate it✨ I do feel like people were trying to guilt trip me? Or maybe they weren’t but holy shit did they make me feel guilty and horrible about writing CC… and telling me I lost credibility? Like what do you want me to do with this comment? Why was it necessary??

Anyways, love you bby, thanking you for saying all of that🫶🏼

[dotspoetrycorner]

Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies Cynthia x Reader Part 8

Chapter 8: Vote Pink

The next morning went as usual except I didn’t have any friends now. I had to walk to school and had no one to sit with in class most of the day. Right before our assembly for student council speeches Susan, Dot, and Rosemary stopped me in the hallway.

“Ella!” Rosemary called out, “We forgive you for what happened last night.”Dot continued, “you’re so important to us El, we don’t what to lose you just because of a small disagreement.” ‘Small disagreement’ right, because me not wanting to be a part of ruining someones reputation is a small disagreement. But they are my friends, and I know they do care about me. And I care about them. Then Susan spoke up, “Of course if you do anything like that again we can’t speak to you again.”  Of course. “Sit with us at the assembly?” Dot asked. I can’t say no to Dot, she’s my best friend. “Of course” I replied. We went into the gym, I sat in between Dot and Susan, and we waited for the assembly to start

“I want to promise you all that nothing like the shenanigans of last night's pep rally will ever happen again. As the current class president, I take responsibility for that. I failed you. But know that because I failed you, I will work harder than ever to win back your trust.” Buddy was giving his speech, and honestly, I didn’t really believe him. I had always liked Buddy, but this week has changed how I think about so many things. Everyone around me then started to chant “let’s have fun like we did before, vote for Buddy in ’54!” Susan gripped my arm until I joined in. I always knew that it was bad if Susan was mad at you, but I didn’t know how bad it could be.

Miss McGee quieted everyone down and uncounted the start of the speeches for student council candidates. First up was Jane, but she told Miss McGee she didn’t want to run. That was until someone called her a slut in front of everybody and she ran up onto the stage.

“I just wanna say that I don't think Rydell was so fun for everyone before. It wasn't for me. And I know it hasn't been for a lot of kids who don't fit in for whatever reason, 'cause we're considered strange or the wrong type. The truth is that most people in this auditorium aren't popular. Some don't even want to be. We just wanna be ourselves but we haven't even gotten the chance to do that yet or to have fun. 'Cause we're too busy just trying to survive high school.”

She was perfectly putting into words what I had been feeling this whole week. So continued, “Maybe you've accepted that. Maybe you're used to things being that way at Rydell. As the new girl, I'll tell you, it's crap.” Miss Mcgee interrupted her, “Jane, if you're not going to run-“ “I endorse her.” I looked over to see Olivia Valdovinos walking up to stand with Jane. Then Susan butted in “You can't endorse her. She isn't running for anything.” “Well, maybe she should. I endorse her too.” Cynthia stood up and also went to the stage, then Nancy saying “me three.” 

Everyone started shouting until Miss McGee hushed them and turned back to Jane “Now, Jane, would you like to throw your hat back into the ring?” “Yes.” She answered, “For president.” Woah. Her announcement was followed by more chatter and booing. Jane could make an actual change here; but I can’t support it with my friends. Everything following happened so fast. I looked back at the stage and immediately locked eyes with Cynthia. Cynthia, the realest friend I’ve had. I shifted in my seat. Susan grabbed my arm and whispered “if you say anything we will never talk to you again.” Honestly, I’m okay with that.

I stood up, shaking Susan’s hand off me and yelled “vote for Jane” as loud as I could. The 4 girls up front looked at me and Cynthia repeated “vote for Jane”, turned around, and pulled down her skirt, mooning the whole school. I immediately turned my head to face the other way, trying not to laugh as everyone gasped. When I turned back, the girls were running off the stage and were headed towards the door to the parking lot. Cynthia quickly changed course towards me, grabbed my hand and pulled me with them. 

We ran outside and Olivia found the keys to the t- birds car (expertly hidden one top of the front seat) and hopped behind the wheel. We all followed, Jane jumping in the front seat and Cynthia pulling me into the back. I tried to jump over the car door but my shoe got caught, making me fall forward. Into Cynthia. We were both shocked, our noses touching and our eyes wide. I got a really weird feeling being so close to her. It didn’t make sense, we used to sit close all the time, its just what friends do. Maybe I just wasn’t used to being friends with her again. Olivia started to car and we all took off, snapping Cynthia and I out of, whatever that was. 

“Holy smokes! What did we just do?!” Jane asked. “We just gave the best campaign speech in all of Rydell!”  Olivia answered. “We just stole a car!” I said, the reality of the situation just now setting in. “And it was amazing” Cynthia chimed in. “And we looked great doing it” Nancy said. “What am I going to do? No one’s going to vote for me now.” Jane said, seemingly also regretting what we had done. “You have a great platform, Jane. The socs have been controlling Rydell for too long, people will like what you said” Olivia stated. She made a lot of sense, and people do love someone who breaks the rules. “You’re like a vigilante. Steal from the rich give to the poor type stuff. People like that. We can work with it.” I spoke up, running through different campaign strategies in my head. The Jane spoke again, “maybe you’re right. But I didn’t do this speech alone, I can’t do my campaign alone.” “The 5 of us together could really shake up this school” Cynthia said. Jane sat there fro a minute before saying the sentence that would change it all:

“We’re gonna need some jackets” 

[crimsonwing]

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

I tried to explain what happened to the Old Man Neeley but he didn't listen.

He said something like "Don't give me that crap, kid. I'm not fond of beating on someone on the ground but I can make exceptions" Rebeca tried to intervene "Stop it! Why are you so mean to us?"

"You tell me. What do we have here, missie?" He said, pointing at her bitten calf.

"Ya think this is the first time someone's got hurt for helping one of his kind?"

Then he pointed to his bad eye. "The bitch didn't even say thanks when I got this busted for her! They're a rotten lot, I tell you. Keep getting close and you'll get hurt real bad." --- "No se de qué habla." Traté de explicarle lo que paso, pero el anciano Neeley no iba a escucharme.

"No me vengas con esa mierda, chico. No me gusta pegarle a alguien que está en el suelo, pero puedo hacer excepciones." Rebeca trató de intervenir "¡Basta! ¿Por qué esta siendo tan malo?" "Bueno, tu dime muchacha. ¿Qué tenemos aquí?" dijo apuntando a su pierna mordida. "¿Crees que es la primera vez que alguien se lastima ayudando a uno de los suyos?" Luego apuntó a su ojo malo "Porque esa perra ni me dijo gracias cuando me jodieron este ojo por ella. Todos son manzanas podridas. Sigue acercándote, y te va a ir muy mal."

[fairytale-poll]

ROUND 3D, MATCH 2 OUT OF 2!

Propaganda Under the Cut:

Fairy Queen of Sweet Dreams:

Multilimbed ancient god summoned by Ella’s plight <3 She outright tells Ella to move past the Disney crap and be willing to admit she’s willing to take revenge on her stepfamily for abusing her and literally murdering her companions. And then proceeds to sing one of the prettiest songs I’ve heard in a musical. She also calls herself “mother” which was definitely for the lesbians • She's literally the Goddess of All That Is Green and Good. She's ancient fey goddess who comes to Cinderella after an accidental offering of innocent blood and grants her the power to get revenge on her wicked troll Stepmother and stepsisters. She takes Cinderella to the end of time to crafter her slippers and gown from the lat dying star in the universe. In short, she's metal as fuck

shes summoned through the spilling of innocent blood at the base of her favorite tree. she makes a dress and shoes for ella out of pure starlight and enchants them so that as long as theyre on her feet all her dreams will come true. she has an absolutely Banging musical number. also she definitely had smthn going on with ellas mom theres a line that says she used to dance under the tree naked with her

Unlike most other fairy god mothers she gets right to the point and is like """"you want revenge let me help you"""". She is off putting and I love her so much. She also has many many arms and is extremely beautiful and ethereal.

Lilia:

Adoptive fae father of a human child. Was entrusted by a faerie princess to hatch the egg containing her child and raise him should the worst happen (and it did). Bat Fae

MY BOYYYYY. I LOVE HIM. For real though, this 700-year-old/punk rocker/war veteran/gamer grandpa who is also a high school junior genuinely means so much to me. (To add a bit more credibility to him being in this poll, he is theorized to have been inspired by the good fairies from Disney’s Sleeping Beauty)

[flowerslut]

so cotn alice isn't into pop culture right? but how would she feel after listening to criminal by britney spears? like, seriously, just think about it for a minute. it's such a jalice love song love that for them

cotn!alice isn't into contemporary stuff. she listens to the music josie likes. she knows how to work a record player and how to operate the dinosaur of a TV that they had to buy when the last one crapped out in the early 00s. she's heard pop music here and there before but she definitely prefers josies 50s/60s jazzy (lol) favorites like sarah vaughan, ella fitzgerald, nat king cole etc

also this is so funny because cotn!alice would hate that song so much. she'd be so concerned for britney spears and she would spend an afternoon texting emmett while she listens to that song over and over again (because in my mind, he would be the one to tell her to listen to it) saying to him "is she okay?? if he's a bum why does she like him?? is this supposed to be a love song??? why did you recommend this to me? what on earth??" meanwhile emmett is like wow you literally have no imagination I can't believe you can't relate to this song and alice calls him up just to yell at him and say HE IS NOT A VILLAIN AND HE HAS A CONSCIENCE AND DOES NOT HAVE A TAINTED HEART WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU and emmett just laughs and says "you said taint" and the entire time this is happening they're on opposite sides of the house so alice has to go chase him down to yell at him in person and carlisle (the only other person in the house at the time) doesn't know whether to go see why alice is yelling and emmett is laughing or not. he decides to not to interfere and turns on the radio to drown them out. another britney spears song starts playing. he has now, unknowingly, involved himself. when alice appears in his office 20 seconds later demanding him to tell her more about this poor britney spears character he realizes he has, somehow, messed up

[abdlgossipblogg]

“ I’m gonna hold your hand when I say this…. Your “sfw agere” community harbors ten times more predators than ours ever could. With the amount of non risk aware narrative and misinformation shared on the daily, as well as all the adults interacting with literal kids. It’s laughable you think it isn’t just diet kink. If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it might just be a fucking duck. Lmao “

And I'm going to hold your hand when I say that's complete crap. Most of the pedos in our community believe we are a part of YOUR community since you can't stop cross-tagging OUR communities and creators, dragging us into your nonsense. Literally on this blog, we requested you not to bring our creators or our community, and you chose to ignore us. You'd rather us a punching bag instead of confronting the nasty folks in your own community.

From the abusers, assaulters, and others, you’d think with all the free time yall have sitting on your asses attacking us, you’d would focus on your own community issues, And at least our community is working on improving itself . For example having 18+ if we interact with your community since we recognize how damaging crosshatching is.

Even before the age-re community existed, you had pedos and pedo supporters hiding in your group, praying on people. So, how do you explain/exucse that??

Y'all have a community because you literally get off on childhood objects. We formed a community because of trauma and abuse. Someone in your community literally said aka were mental ill and yall get off on child nostalgia and items.

We literally have physiological professionals behind us, all you guys have is the pedos support you because they love the fact yall carter towards them (case in point Ella and Emmy). You never see somebody in our community jerking off in a child aisle or assisting pedos, or punching people. So I hope this helps you realize how ridiculous you sound. Let us be alone. As someone who regresses and is also kinky, yall bring down the BDSM community so much. Not because of the kink you are in, but because yall are such catty mean girls, you’d rather focus on the people living their lives then call out your own for being disgusting.

And don’t get me wrong I’m not saying our community hasn’t publicly hated yours, but a lot of comes from yall cross tagging and our are coping mechanism, constantly being sexualized (against our desire). So please leave us be to handle our own freaks and go deal with your our.

Admin since you said “communities that are close to abdl can be mentioned here”, I should be allowed to write this.

[readingromancehea]

✨✨IT'S RELEASE DAY!✨✨

Your newest spicy hockey romance is NOW LIVE!

https://mybook.to/WhatIfIToldYou

🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅

𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒈𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔—

Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Look, I don’t know who made up that stupid saying but I am not in love with Ella Montgomery.

Sure, she’s my best friend and has been since we could walk. Sure, I offered to let her move in with me when she moved cross-country to apply for the open position as our hockey team’s new mascot. That doesn’t mean I’m in love with her!

Now, did I get a little antsy when she mentioned future relationships and bringing random men back to my home? Maybe. Did I completely panic when she met a man and went on a date with him? I mean, I might have. But when that date went sour, did I come to her rescue and kiss her the way she deserves to be kissed?

Oh. Uh...hmm…yeah, I guess I did do that.

Actually, I did much more than that.

I didn’t just cross the line with my best friend, I erased that line altogether. The line no longer exists.

She enjoyed it as much as I did and now I can’t stop thinking about what the next time will feel like, and the time after that and the time aft—oooh no,

I think I’m falling my best friend.

First comes love, then comes…oh crap…I’m in so much trouble.

🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅

https://mybook.to/WhatIfIToldYou

[poochiray]

Fanfic Friday

(...just a snippet of what I'm working on) *

The party is in full swing by the time Todd and Black arrive. It’s a posh place—a mini mansion. Black hates being reminded of their social privilege, but teens like them can’t really argue against lavish parties with free booze. They cross over the threshold into the entrance hall, noticing one archway leading to the living area where people are crammed together and grinding to whatever crap is playing on the surround sound speakers. The other side of the hall has a grand staircase leading up to the second level, with couples making out against the banister. Neither of these choices are appealing to Todd, so he randomly walks over to an unmarked door and breathes a sigh of relief as he finds a considerably less crowded hall leading into a kitchen.

“I’m going to get something to drink. Too sober for this shit,” Todd says to Black. “You coming?”

His best friend isn’t even paying attention to him. Todd hates how frequent this behavior has been lately. Todd clears his throat, leaning into Black’s space. He repeats the question in Black’s ear. Black’s eyes are searching the sea of people that are dancing.

“Nah,” he finally answers. “I have to find Ella.”

Ella.

Even her name falling from Black’s lips makes Todd sick with jealousy. He has to get out of there before he says something stupid. Todd nods his head, swallowing down the festering feeling within his chest. He needs a drink. Now.

[missellafitz]

**The concert dates for this Caesars Palace engagement were June 6-18, 1974, which begs the question, why did this take place on the 19th? Was Frank doing an additional show without Ella? How was she a surprise? Was the show itself a surprise? Love the possessive pronoun of "my" though, hehe.

Also, this engagement apparently brought Frank out of retirement and was the catalyst for "The Concert" that he, Ella, and Basie had at the Uris Theater in NYC the next year. One thing I'll say is that Frank LOVED to sing with Ella, so maybe she really was enough to bring him back to the stage.

A Secret Caesars Palace Trove Captures Sinatra, Ella and Scores of Others, Unaware

By Anna Wilde Mathews Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

March 19, 2001 12:01 am ET

LAS VEGAS -- On June 19, 1974, Frank Sinatra took the stage at Caesars Palace. Backed by the Count Basie Orchestra, he delivered a set of standards before telling the audience, "Surprise! My girl's gonna sing for you." On that cue, Ella Fitzgerald joined him for a rollicking duet of "The Lady Is a Tramp." The two traded lines and improvised harmonies, punctuated by Mr. Sinatra's exhortation: "Swing, baby!"

It was a special evening, even by the lofty standards of the Caesars showroom, then a premier venue for the biggest names in entertainment. But the two singers themselves probably weren't aware of one thing that made their performance exceptional: Every note was captured by a reel-to-reel tape recorder wired directly into the Caesars sound system.

It was only one of scores of acts recorded in secret over a quarter of a century at Caesars Palace -- a playlist that includes Louis Armstrong, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Duke Ellington, Judy Garland, Peggy Lee, Johnny Mathis, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Sarah Vaughan and dozens of other show-business luminaries.

Behind it all was Dave Rogers, the longtime sound engineer at the hotel and casino's 1,000-seat Circus Maximus showroom. Mr. Rogers stored the tapes at home, keepsakes that he occasionally played for the memories.

Then, in 1998, he died, and the tapes were in the hands of his stepson, Gilbert Cebollero, a former craps dealer who set out to turn them into a profitable endeavor. Since then, Mr. Cebollero has managed to strike an unlikely deal with a fledgling company backed by television impresario Norman Lear to release the material on compact discs and, possibly, over the Web. Already, singer Andy Williams and the estates of Mr. Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. have tentatively agreed to participate, and the first CD is in the works.

The obstacles are big, however, and many of the recordings may never reach a mass audience. Mr. Lear's company, Neon Tonic, is still struggling to secure release rights from many of the artists, their estates or their record labels -- which have been surprised to learn of the tapes and aren't all eager to strike a deal. Some of the artists worry that their performances may not be good enough for public consumption.

Yet the tapes themselves aren't the typical muffled bootlegs. Mr. Rogers created recordings of startling clarity, often with nearly commercial sound quality. And the collection is more than just live music; it is an unedited record of Vegas culture in its heyday. As the curtain falls on Mr. Sinatra's duet with Ms. Fitzgerald, a microphone picks up his parting remark: "OK, baby, the bar's open." On another tape, a disoriented Judy Garland stumbles off-key through "Over the Rainbow." Moments like those may never make it to record stores, but if Mr. Lear and his partners succeed, many hours of unique recorded entertainment will.

In 1966, when Andy Williams performed on opening night at the new casino and its showroom, the venue was among the most glamorous in the world. The hotel feted its first visitors with two tons of filet mignon, 300 pounds of crab and 50,000 glasses of champagne.

Mr. Rogers helped build the sound system that was used on that first evening. A veteran engineer at the Flamingo and the Sands, Mr. Rogers had moved over to Caesars about a month before the opening. For much of the next quarter of a century, he could be found in an open booth suspended above the rear of the Circus Maximus. There, he twiddled dials on the soundboard to ensure that the mix was clean and balanced. He almost never missed a night. "His home was Caesars," says Donovan Belian, a son of Mr. Rogers who is now a carpenter in Las Vegas.

A constant tinkerer, Mr. Rogers worked hard to please the most finicky artists. He built an echo chamber under the stage to add depth to performers' tone. As a special favor, he once set up a VCR in Mr. Sinatra's hotel room.

Such services put Mr. Rogers on a first-name basis with many stars. He collected autographed pictures from the likes of Raquel Welch and Burt Bacharach. One of his backstage photos shows Bill Cosby arm-in-arm with Sammy Davis Jr., who is wearing a "Caesars Sound Crew" T-shirt. In another, Mr. Rogers hugs a smiling Nancy Sinatra. The pictures weren't his only souvenirs. A pack rat, he also filled a wooden locker backstage with old tools and gadgets, and at home collected discarded televisions, radios and other electronic debris.

Then there is the stash of Caesars recordings, made from the showroom's soundboard over a period stretching from the late 1960s to the early 1990s. Mr. Rogers kept the reels and cassettes in his workshop at home and occasionally listened to them while he puttered around, his stepson Mr. Cebollero says.

The taping may have begun as a way for the sound engineer to catch technical mistakes and thus hone his craft, says Mr. Rogers's daughter Suzynne Fowler. Michael Rogers, the sound engineer's oldest son, says, "I think he wanted to record his history, and maybe even the industry's history." The younger Mr. Rogers, now a Las Vegas theatrical electrician, worked at Caesars with his father in the mid-1970s.

Dave Rogers took a leave of absence in 1994 as he battled liver disease brought on by years of diabetes. He never returned to work. In January 1998, he died at age 66. A brief obituary published in local newspapers noted his National Guard service and his membership in the theatrical stage employee union. It gave his occupation as "director of sound in the entertainment industry."

In all, Mr. Rogers had captured hundreds of hours of concerts and comedy by well over 100 performers. Upon his death, it all ended up with Mr. Cebollero.

The Balloon Drop

Mr. Cebollero's mother, Elba, had met Mr. Rogers, who was already divorced with four children, while she was working at the Caesars front desk. The two married in 1970. As a teenager, Mr. Cebollero hung out backstage at Caesars while his stepfather worked. He recalls New Year's celebrations when his stepfather let him release the flood of balloons above the Caesars audience.

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Through the 1970s and '80s, Mr. Cebollero bounced around Las Vegas as a bellboy, a stagehand and eventually a craps dealer at various casinos. More recently, he has worked as a residential real-estate agent. By the time his stepfather died, Mr. Cebollero faced a federal tax lien of more than $19,000, which he says was related to a dispute over tip income from his casino days. The lien was lifted in 2000; Mr. Cebollero says he took care of it with a reduced payment.

Mr. Cebollero says he was motivated to turn the tapes into a business in order to preserve his stepfather's work, not to pay a tax bill. In the past, "I never applied myself," he says. "But I plan to now."

Today, Mr. Cebollero, 43 years old and never married, lives with his mother in the modest two-story white stucco house Mr. Rogers had built for the family in the mid-1970s. Over the door hangs a small sign: "Mi casa es su casa." In the basement and in a shipping container in the backyard, he keeps all the things his stepfather hoarded over the years. "Everything they were throwing out, he'd bring home," Mr. Cebollero says.

His mother wouldn't comment for this article. Nor would his sister, Lorraine. Stepbrothers Mr. Belian and Michael Rogers say they support Mr. Cebollero's efforts. Ms. Fowler declines to comment, saying she doesn't know the details of her stepbrother's plans. Stepsister Trish Elliott says she "has no problem" with Mr. Cebollero's efforts.

Mr. Cebollero used an address for Nancy Sinatra obtained through a Web site to send her a compilation of Sinatra snippets from the Caesars tapes. But he sent it under the name of a friend, keeping his own identity secret: "I didn't know what kind of feedback I would get," he says.

His efforts drew the attention of Robert Finkelstein, a longtime Sinatra family attorney who represents the music-rights companies controlled by the singer's children. Mr. Finkelstein says the Sinatra estate had no knowledge of the recordings before hearing from Mr. Cebollero in 1998.

Threat of Litigation

After several months, negotiations over the rights to the Sinatra tapes stalled. Neither party will specify the terms Mr. Cebollero sought. Mr. Finkelstein then fired off a letter threatening to sue, arguing that the recordings were illegal, unauthorized bootlegs. "If someone says to you they possess tapes of your recordings, your initial reaction is, 'You have no right to those,' " he says. "That can be resolved either by litigation or by compromise."

But Mr. Finkelstein also explained the situation to longtime acquaintance Hal Gaba, chief executive of Act III Communications, a media holding company of which Mr. Lear is chairman. A jazz buff, Mr. Gaba already ran a side business distributing videos of performances by Mr. Sinatra and others, and Act III was negotiating to purchase the Concord jazz record label. He immediately saw the potential of the Caesars tapes. With Mr. Finkelstein's knowledge, Mr. Gaba contacted Mr. Cebollero.

Messrs. Gaba and Lear had already been noodling around with the idea of a music Web site that would reach jazz fans all over the world. The recordings, they figured, could provide a one-of-a-kind draw to the site. "I had this fantasy of this little guy in this obscure corner of Caesars Palace," says Mr. Lear.

In early 1999, Mr. Gaba began traveling to Las Vegas to meet with Mr. Cebollero, first over lunch at a Caesars coffee shop, and later at the home Mr. Cebollero shares with his mother. There, Mr. Gaba was ushered into a dark basement cluttered with dusty equipment, including an old Caesars soundboard and a pile of black-painted floorboards from the original showroom stage. During hours of reminiscing about oldtime Vegas, Mr. Cebollero played samples from the tapes.

Over the next few weeks, Mr. Gaba and Mr. Cebollero pinned down details of a tentative deal. Mr. Gaba would see to the daunting task of securing legal clearances from artists and record labels. Mr. Cebollero would receive royalty payments. Neither side will disclose terms.

Mr. Cebollero also insisted that he retain possession of the original tapes. "It's sentimental," he says. "My dad's handwriting is on it." And he wanted his stepfather credited on the CD packaging.

A Five-Hour Trek

More troublesome, he wouldn't let the fragile recordings out of his sight even for an overnight shipment. So starting in the summer of 1999, he and a friend drove five hours from Las Vegas every couple of weeks to deliver boxes of tapes to a recording studio in the San Fernando Valley home of a producer who works with Mr. Gaba.

Initially, Mr. Cebollero refused to leave the house while the producer and another sound engineer transferred the recordings from the original analog tapes to digital tape. Later, the music was put on computer, and song by song, they smoothed out distortions and toned down extraneous noises -- the foot-tapping of a Count Basie Orchestra musician, for example.

Many of the tapes were dusty or moldy, and a few were so brittle that they broke. Some of the older ones needed a special player obtained from a used-equipment dealer. Many had only fragmentary, hand-scrawled labels, or weren't identified at all. Clues such as a reference to Watergate helped pinpoint performance dates.

The sound quality of the Caesars tapes is nonetheless impressive. Band members can be heard laughing quietly at a headliner's jokes. Comments never meant for an audience also come through clearly. When Mr. Sinatra turned to quietly thank the band after a rendition of "My Kind of Town," he added, "Sang my d--- off that time!" Then he told the audience, "I just had an intimate discussion with the gentlemen of the orchestra which cannot be repeated."

The engineers also had to make sense of a jumbled archive. A single shipment contained a 1991 routine by comedian Joan Rivers; a 1972 show by singing duo Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme; and a 1988 Red Skelton performance. Another tape in the batch came with a label that read only, "Thunder and Cow." It turned out to contain a series of moos and booms apparently meant for sound effects.

In the same shipment, Mr. Cebollero brought a vintage Sammy Davis set from Halloween 1981. It opens with the Basie orchestra swinging through "Sweet Georgia Brown." Then Mr. Davis delivers several of his standards, such as "Teach Me Tonight," along with some classic Vegas stage patter. "You're looking at the only black actor who wasn't in 'Roots,' 1 or 2," he says at one point. Later, he jokes: "I can't help it if I'm short! If I had any real class, I'd be in a bell tower someplace, saying 'The plane, boss, the plane!' "

By last fall, nearly 500 hours of concert tape had been digitized. Mr. Cebollero was now flying the tapes over from Las Vegas, though he still didn't want to check them as luggage. Mr. Gaba and Mr. Lear, meanwhile, were putting together their start-up in a Beverly Hills office lined with posters of "All in the Family" and other Lear television shows.

Calling on friends and their own resources, they raised about $3 million in seed money. The new company began a months-long process of building a Web site and picking a name and logo. Eventually, Neon Tonic beat options like "Gigolution" and "Shanghai Lobster" because, company executives thought, it suggested a sophisticated music club.

Mr. Gaba began trying to resolve the tangled legal questions surrounding the tapes' past, starting early last year with Caesars' parent company, Park Place Entertainment Corp. Mr. Cebollero insists that his stepfather never tried to conceal his taping from the performers or his bosses. "It wasn't like it was hidden," he says.

But Caesars executives say they weren't aware of the tapes before Mr. Gaba contacted them. Tom Pilkington, once Mr. Rogers's boss at Caesars and now a vice president with Park Place, says he had "no clue" that his employee was keeping a collection of such recordings. "It wasn't a policy of the hotel" to regularly record and archive shows, he says. He does remember Mr. Rogers making some tapes for performers' personal use, at their request. Generally, acts that played Caesars had contracts that explicitly banned recordings.

Still, Park Place decided to work with Mr. Gaba. The hospitality firm agreed to sell compact discs containing the showroom tapes and to allow the start-up to use the Caesars name in packaging and marketing the CDs. The Neon Tonic CDs would first be sold exclusively through Park Place retail outlets, then distributed more widely by Concord Records, the jazz label Mr. Gaba and Mr. Lear had bought. But the deal was contingent on Mr. Gaba's securing legal clearances from artists and others with rights to the recordings.

For help, Mr. Gaba looked to Mr. Finkelstein, who had been named to Neon Tonic's board. Together, he and Mr. Gaba crafted a tentative agreement to allow use of the Sinatra material. Then Mr. Finkelstein reached out to others who manage the rights to some of the other big acts Mr. Rogers had taped.

Jeff Lotman, who runs a marketing company that represents the work of Sammy Davis Jr. and others, says he was surprised when Mr. Finkelstein called him and told him of the tapes. But he liked the offer: The Davis estate would get a stake in Neon Tonic, as well as royalties from recording sales. "Our clients are not making new movies, so anything we can do to raise the awareness is obviously a good thing," says Mr. Lotman, whose company is called Global Icons LLC. Mr. Davis's widow, Altovise, agreed to participate.

Mr. Gaba personally courted Andy Williams, a longtime acquaintance, at the Grill, a Beverly Hills power-lunch venue. Mr. Williams, who became a Caesars regular after performing the hotel's first show, says, "I never knew they were recording me." When he found out that several of his shows had been taped, "I felt an invasion, a little bit, of privacy."

A tape of a June 10, 1969, show finds Mr. Williams performing a lush, brass-backed "Moon River," along with a medley from the musical "Hair." The show includes an appearance by a very young Jimmy Osmond, who delivers a squeaky "I Dig Rock 'n' Roll Music." Between songs, Mr. Williams warns: "I think I ought to tell you the truth -- I'm a swinger!"

Mr. Williams agreed to sign on as an investor, with veto power over recordings of his own performances.

Neon Tonic has offered other artists veto power, as well as royalties based on album sales. Some also have been offered stakes in the new company. The company says it is close to signing agreements with several, whom it declines to name. One problem: The Sinatra estate wants the original tapes of Mr. Sinatra that Mr. Cebollero now holds. Until the two sides agree to terms, none of the Sinatra material from Mr. Rogers's recordings is likely to be released.

Some of Mr. Rogers's recordings probably won't ever reach the public. Jeffrey Berkowitz, an attorney who represents Judy Garland's daughter Lorna Luft, says the singer's children wouldn't want "to have poor-quality stuff released" and are "more concerned about protecting the name and image of their mother" than anything else.

During an undated Garland show that Mr. Rogers recorded, the singer leaves the stage soon after the start, telling the audience, "I'll be back in a minute." Later, in the middle of "That's Entertainment," she stumbles on a line. Then, as the band plays on, she interjects, "There are too damn many words in this song. I'm sure that someone from either Warner Brothers or MGM wrote the lyrics."

Retreat From the Web

The Web downturn has altered Neon Tonic's plans. Just days before a test launch of the Web site in late January, Mr. Gaba decided to delay it indefinitely. For now, Neon Tonic will focus on the CDs.

The first disc, a compilation of individual tracks from several artists' performances, is tentatively scheduled for summer release. It isn't yet clear how many artists will be on it. Mr. Sinatra's duet with Ms. Fitzgerald probably won't be, though Neon Tonic hopes to include it in a later CD. Remarks Mr. Rogers taped that obviously weren't intended for an audience -- including Mr. Sinatra's risque private remark to his band -- probably won't make it to disc.

A Neon Tonic executive says the liner notes are likely to acknowledge Mr. Rogers in some way. As for the tapes, Mr. Cebollero hasn't told even his partners where he keeps them.

Last September, the Circus Maximus showroom closed forever with a performance by Steve and Eydie. It has since been leveled. Park Place is considering building a larger showroom at the hotel. A company spokeswoman won't comment on the type of entertainment it might provide. The hotel still has a sound engineer on staff. He works part time, mainly to handle special events.

[tamiveldura]

Friday Update!

Brief! Because I am Le Tired.

For the Anthology Workshop, I have skipped assignment #1 last week so that I could finish writing Vampire Mated, the novella I also happened to start just last week. I wrote 23k in six days and it's 50% kinky sex and it's also the fastest thing I've ever written and I LOVE it.

It's due to the editor first week of July and I need to do some formatting for that.

Hold on to that, more of Mated to come.

This week the Anthology Workshop assignment #2 (of six) was a cozy mystery set at a beach. On my YA/fantasy penname S.T. Lynn (long time fans will recognize the Cinder Ella trilogy, now in paper and hardback https://www.tamiveldura.com/product/black-trans-fairy-tales-omnibus/) I have a short story series called the Mischief Mysteries. They're a set of cozies from the point of view of a pet rats (based on my own rats years ago).

None of the Mischief Mysteries are available anywhere. I'm holding them for now until I have enough for a substantial collection OR I can find a good trade/small press market for them.

All that to say I wrote a Mischief Mystery for the cozy assignment and turned it in today. I think it's a strong story and I have all my fingers crossed that the editor buys it (but I won't know until the workshop in August!)

Sorry to leave you in suspense 😂

The third assignment next week is MilScifi, which I love, with two incredible, intimidating editors. I have a MilScifi short story series (check out the Boundary Shock Quarterly magazine, I'm in every issue starting at 14: https://www.boundaryshockquarterly.com/), but I'm not dedicated to using that world if the call for subs doesn't fit. I'll know on Monday!

I'm going to take a break this weekend and play the crap out of APICO. Save the bees.