"Vox, the whole tower smells like smoke. Val's and the regular kind," Velvette shrugged. Honestly, the air circulation probably just rotated everyone's smoke in a diluted constant miasma in here, even with how Vox fusses about the filters. "Plus, we film porn here and Valentino goes on literal tears for whichever unlucky bitch is going to be the day's new Stretch Armstrong. Point is, this place ain't exactly kid friendly."
"Hey! I can keep my whores in line, no one's going to fuck with the niño. Especially not with daddy right around the corner~"
"Hm. Good point." So maybe he just had a smell of lingering smoke through the tower. But Velvette had a good point. Already, he was setting up an assessment of the filtration systems. They needed souping up, and there was a merciful, MERCIFUL new project he could busy himself with to settle his daddy jitters.
"Exactly, Val! Glad we're on the same page," he noted with the slightest lilt of a purr. He closed the panel and opened a new one with tower schematics. He needed a moment to look things over...
Tap, tap, tap on the counter.
"Velvette, can you send over the data on your Love Potion formulation? Specifically how you handle the distillation process. I have to wonder about second-hand effects, but first I want to wrap my head around the properties of Valentino's smoke. And..."
He flopped back in his chair. "...Guess I'm going on gum and patches or something on the tobacco for a while. That's gonna be fun."
"Ohh, he's so sexy when he's serious," Valentino teased, biting his lower lip in amusement. Velvette was still actually thinking about all of this - and all of the implications.
"...So, like... how much of this is your white boy 'I have an heir' shit, how much is 'I'm the shit for doing something impossible', and how much is it 'I'm gonna be a dad'? I never pegged you for an actual parental type."
That... was a bunch of good questions, really. In the rush of the renovations and having done far more talking with Alastor over the months rather than rushing right into scrapping like they'd done for decades, he never really sat and stewed over where these feelings were coming from.
Was he excited? Absolutely. Scared? Shitless. But for all of his thinking ahead, his climbing, mind set on the future- so as not to be left behind as the times swiftly changed, obviously- where did he see himself in connection to all of this? In the middle of the 'I'll show him I'm not an idiot', 'I'll prove that wasn't a waste of time', 'I'll make you regret what you'd told me that night 70 years ago', 'I'll show everyone just how good I am at THIS, too', he was thinking back more and more to those times he spent with his own father.
But it was the 50s. There were expectations a pop had for their son. While they did have some amicable times, there was that unspoken oath to not be a slacker and work hard, always move your way on up. Be responsible- boy oh BOY would his mother have given him the riot act for all of this...
But living for almost 100 years, experiencing plenty of movies, stories of how the times have changed steadily and even seeing how the hellborn function in their family units, it was... nice. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he sort of wanted something like that, too.
And weren't you supposed to always be better than your parents? He certainly was better than his by a long shot.
"Oh, Vel...! I'm leaving the 'legacy' and 'heirs' crap to those Goetia! They can enjoy their little Middle Ages foibles." He waggled his fingers dismissively.
"But how can it NOT be column B and C? We haven't seen anything like this since Lilith! The first Sinner! We're going in the fucking HISTORY books! And... sure, I didn't exactly have any little bundles when I was alive..."
He sat up straighter. "BUT! But...! Imagine the bolstered support! I go from VoxTek Hot Shot to New Dad, and the family-minded demographic number skyrockets! Those 'why offer a thing when you've got no stake in it' naysayers can officially shut the fuck up!"
The people had been bitching for better car seats and buggies, right? Why buy from some random hack when you could instead buy from someone with a kid that you can trust?
"We're not exactly 'family friendly' here, Vee. Milking a bunch of dumb bimbos is sort of the business model," Velvette rolled her eyes. "So - what, you're having some hellish miracle demon baby like the annoying as fuck princess? Aren't we going to fuck up that kid?"
"Chiquita, baby, whores on earth had babies aaaaall the time. Half of them became whores to afford those babies, even. Bebé is going to be born here in Hell, they're gonna be our twisted little bastard no matter what, and we'll adore them~" Valentino chuckled, lighting the cigarette that had been refused and taking a puff to spread that red mist of his like an engine letting off steam.
"You're being surprisingly chill about this. I figured you'd throw the biggest tantrum about it in jealousy."
Yeah, Val, are you secretly down bad in a family way and want to share with the class or something? But hey, he wasn't in the mood to deal with a tantrum when things were already happening.
But Vox laughed, crossed his arms behind his head. "How hard can it be to raise a kid? I mean, my parents weren't winning any awards or anything and I turned out fine!"
"Babe. I'm going to throw the rock in this glass house: you were a serial killer and you spiraled so hard you fucked up and died," Velvette GESTURED at Vox. At all of him. "Babies scream and cry and shit. Kids are little hyperactive weirdos. By the time they're grown, they're going to be fucked up. Hopefully only mentally, if we can keep fuckers on the streets from shanking 'em."
So much bullshit. So, so much shit to worry about and neither of these dumbass men are taking it seriously.
"And you're sure Alastor's just gonna squeeze it out and bail? Why do you like this fucker, again?"
Whether or not the words were going in one ear and out the other was anybody's guess. But his gaze diverted, perhaps thoughtfully, with the last.
"He can bail or choose to stay. I don't give a shit," he replied breezily, even if he felt a sharp twist in his stomach. The truth was... complicated, but that was on a need-to-know basis.
"Regardless, it was a mutual decision not to put an end to it, so we've got the better part of several months to figure things out. In the meantime, all I can do is ask that you both trust me on this. Neither of you are required to do anything; I'm not roping you into anything other than keeping quiet about the whole thing- Alastor, the baby, the whole nine yards."
He rolled his shoulders, and once that Fizzbot rolled in with a tray of drinks, Vox was happy to take one of them.
"Besides... if fuck-ups like the Morningstars can stumble their way into raising a kid to adulthood, I can pull it off and better."
He propped his chin in his free hand with a grin. "Now, now...! I wouldn't dream of leaving you on babysitting duty. I don't need a second voice judging my tastes or their first word being 'pissbaby'. One of you is plenty."
He turned his gaze to Valentino. "As for you, Val- if you promise not to take them with you to any of your shoots or let your actresses so much as lay a hand on them... we'll discuss it later."
Ah, right--
"So! With all of that covered, if you feel like pestering Alastor, it's out of my hands, but... uh..." Claw drumming. Fidgeting. He caught himself this time, and pointedly stopped. "Maybe curb the smoke. I think I remember reading something about pregnancy coming with a sharper sense of smell. Guy was able to pick up the cigarette I'd had and showered off the night before. Either that, or I need to fire my dry-cleaners."
A beat. "And no touching! ...Hah- He's not a touchy guy, okay? I'm serious. It's always been a thing with him."
"'The hatchet's not buried'," Velvette repeated in a mocking tone, getting a little confident snicker from Valentino.
"I won't touch your toy, Cariño~" Valentino purred, long drooling tongue playfully licking at his bottom lip, "Who knew that the Radio Demon was just like a stray cat - needed to be bred so he calmed down~? How was he, by the way-- can we film the next time you two--?"
"That's my cue to fuck off, then. At least I'll get to dress the fucker, maybe he'll even let me fix that fucking mess of a hairdo."
His expression fell with the snicker. ...Goddamn it. They were still adversaries, certainly! A temporary ceasefire!
An adversary that, with that word going around, had him brighten and nearly choke on his next drink as the memory of that night flit to mind. The sounds he'd made, the way he twisted around and those sharp teeth dug into his flesh, legs wrapped around- He lifted the back of his hand to his mouth to catch a bit of the whiskey that dribbled down as he coughed and fought to take in air for the moment.
Who was he to kiss and tell, anyway!? Even if it was fucking incredible-
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sugaronthecream) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
divinetree2025-10-07 08:11 pm
no subject
"Hey! I can keep my whores in line, no one's going to fuck with the niño. Especially not with daddy right around the corner~"
no subject
"Exactly, Val! Glad we're on the same page," he noted with the slightest lilt of a purr. He closed the panel and opened a new one with tower schematics. He needed a moment to look things over...
Tap, tap, tap on the counter.
"Velvette, can you send over the data on your Love Potion formulation? Specifically how you handle the distillation process. I have to wonder about second-hand effects, but first I want to wrap my head around the properties of Valentino's smoke. And..."
He flopped back in his chair. "...Guess I'm going on gum and patches or something on the tobacco for a while. That's gonna be fun."
no subject
"...So, like... how much of this is your white boy 'I have an heir' shit, how much is 'I'm the shit for doing something impossible', and how much is it 'I'm gonna be a dad'? I never pegged you for an actual parental type."
no subject
Was he excited? Absolutely. Scared? Shitless. But for all of his thinking ahead, his climbing, mind set on the future- so as not to be left behind as the times swiftly changed, obviously- where did he see himself in connection to all of this? In the middle of the 'I'll show him I'm not an idiot', 'I'll prove that wasn't a waste of time', 'I'll make you regret what you'd told me that night 70 years ago', 'I'll show everyone just how good I am at THIS, too', he was thinking back more and more to those times he spent with his own father.
But it was the 50s. There were expectations a pop had for their son. While they did have some amicable times, there was that unspoken oath to not be a slacker and work hard, always move your way on up. Be responsible- boy oh BOY would his mother have given him the riot act for all of this...
But living for almost 100 years, experiencing plenty of movies, stories of how the times have changed steadily and even seeing how the hellborn function in their family units, it was... nice. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he sort of wanted something like that, too.
And weren't you supposed to always be better than your parents? He certainly was better than his by a long shot.
"Oh, Vel...! I'm leaving the 'legacy' and 'heirs' crap to those Goetia! They can enjoy their little Middle Ages foibles." He waggled his fingers dismissively.
"But how can it NOT be column B and C? We haven't seen anything like this since Lilith! The first Sinner! We're going in the fucking HISTORY books! And... sure, I didn't exactly have any little bundles when I was alive..."
He sat up straighter. "BUT! But...! Imagine the bolstered support! I go from VoxTek Hot Shot to New Dad, and the family-minded demographic number skyrockets! Those 'why offer a thing when you've got no stake in it' naysayers can officially shut the fuck up!"
The people had been bitching for better car seats and buggies, right? Why buy from some random hack when you could instead buy from someone with a kid that you can trust?
no subject
"Chiquita, baby, whores on earth had babies aaaaall the time. Half of them became whores to afford those babies, even. Bebé is going to be born here in Hell, they're gonna be our twisted little bastard no matter what, and we'll adore them~" Valentino chuckled, lighting the cigarette that had been refused and taking a puff to spread that red mist of his like an engine letting off steam.
"You're being surprisingly chill about this. I figured you'd throw the biggest tantrum about it in jealousy."
"Mean!!"
no subject
But Vox laughed, crossed his arms behind his head. "How hard can it be to raise a kid? I mean, my parents weren't winning any awards or anything and I turned out fine!"
no subject
So much bullshit. So, so much shit to worry about and neither of these dumbass men are taking it seriously.
"And you're sure Alastor's just gonna squeeze it out and bail? Why do you like this fucker, again?"
no subject
"He can bail or choose to stay. I don't give a shit," he replied breezily, even if he felt a sharp twist in his stomach. The truth was... complicated, but that was on a need-to-know basis.
"Regardless, it was a mutual decision not to put an end to it, so we've got the better part of several months to figure things out. In the meantime, all I can do is ask that you both trust me on this. Neither of you are required to do anything; I'm not roping you into anything other than keeping quiet about the whole thing- Alastor, the baby, the whole nine yards."
He rolled his shoulders, and once that Fizzbot rolled in with a tray of drinks, Vox was happy to take one of them.
"Besides... if fuck-ups like the Morningstars can stumble their way into raising a kid to adulthood, I can pull it off and better."
no subject
"I'll flay a motherfucker that fucks with 'em, but that's it. If I give you a fuckin' inch you'll take a mile," Velvette accused.
no subject
He turned his gaze to Valentino. "As for you, Val- if you promise not to take them with you to any of your shoots or let your actresses so much as lay a hand on them... we'll discuss it later."
Ah, right--
"So! With all of that covered, if you feel like pestering Alastor, it's out of my hands, but... uh..." Claw drumming. Fidgeting. He caught himself this time, and pointedly stopped. "Maybe curb the smoke. I think I remember reading something about pregnancy coming with a sharper sense of smell. Guy was able to pick up the cigarette I'd had and showered off the night before. Either that, or I need to fire my dry-cleaners."
A beat. "And no touching! ...Hah- He's not a touchy guy, okay? I'm serious. It's always been a thing with him."
no subject
"I won't touch your toy, Cariño~" Valentino purred, long drooling tongue playfully licking at his bottom lip, "Who knew that the Radio Demon was just like a stray cat - needed to be bred so he calmed down~? How was he, by the way-- can we film the next time you two--?"
"That's my cue to fuck off, then. At least I'll get to dress the fucker, maybe he'll even let me fix that fucking mess of a hairdo."
no subject
An adversary that, with that word going around, had him brighten and nearly choke on his next drink as the memory of that night flit to mind. The sounds he'd made, the way he twisted around and those sharp teeth dug into his flesh, legs wrapped around- He lifted the back of his hand to his mouth to catch a bit of the whiskey that dribbled down as he coughed and fought to take in air for the moment.
Who was he to kiss and tell, anyway!? Even if it was fucking incredible-