ovrdrivess

[ovrdrivess]

caleb had been to ionie's place many times before. today, like most days, he was looking for information. the halperin fundraiser had raised more than just money, it had raised questions, ones that caleb didn't think needed answering. and so he made the trip downtown to the oracle shop, wallet full of cash and anything else he might need.

the smell of incense hung in the air as he entered the shop, and he breathed it in slowly. he could hear ionie moving about in the back, and he busied himself looking at a couple of trinkets while he waited for her to come through. "no rush." he replied.

the click of her heels caught his attention and he turned to look for her, eyes resting on her face when she finally appeared. he noted the look she gave him and he tipped his head, unable to fight a small smirk. "ionie," his smirk turned into a smile, "looking beautiful as always. i'm here on business, but we can get to that in a little bit. how've you been doing?" he asked, genuinely interested. he slid a cigarette from his jacket pocket, lifting it to his lips. "is it okay if i smoke?"

@ovrdrivess

Sunlight was streaming through the windows, panels of light cutting through the shadows of the shop in the afternoon. There were some lamps lit low in corners of the store, giving enough light but not being overbearing. Glass cases were in the front, showing off the strange and unusual, but harmless: decks of cards turned on their faces, crystals, what may or may not be bones. A crystal ball near the main desk, kept out of the sun. Small stacks of candles and lotions sold beside a few empty velvet bags on small tables. Drying herbs hung in bunches in the corners of the main room, flowers and plants lending their delicate scents to the smell of incense in the room.

Further in the store, there was a doorway with velvet red curtains framing it tied back, a large, beautiful table with two elaborate candlesticks holding unlit, dripping candles, a few chairs taking up the majority of the side room. Shelves on the walls here have more decks of cards, another crystal ball covered with a cloth, a few full velvet bags cinched tight, and a ouija board and planchette.

The bells above the front door jingled softly, and Ionie's voice, muffled from the even further back, called out, "One moment!" Her accent wrapping around the words as she finished putting her new shipment away quickly. Pulling her shawl tighter around her, she came out from the back room, through the room with the table, before she came into the main room, the sound of her heels announcing her arrival. "Welcome to Ionie's Oracle - oh," a slow smile curled across her face as she saw her handsome guest. "Mister Caleb. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

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after the events of the halperin fundraiser, caleb had plenty to think about. he'd spent the morning going over the books, dotting the i's and crossing the t's and making sure everything was in order. he'd asked javier to stop by as soon as he could, keen to debrief the whole evening before either of them spoke to the boss. he ran his hands through his hair, taking a moment to collect himself before his cousin arrived.

a knock sounded at the door and caleb knew he didn't need to answer it, javier would let himself in. "that you, javi?" he called out, rising from his chair and picking up two glasses, filling one with water and one with whiskey, and set both of them on the table in the corner before he sat back down.

starter for @violentcnds

[ovrdrivess]

"that so?" his eyebrows arched up, a look of faint amusement on his face. "i'd better make sure you don't then. not sure the boss would be too happy about that."

his gaze left rosa for a moment, travelling across the room once again to the people standing around them. "keen eyes and keen instincts, mrs alvarez. i've noticed who's here and how they're behaving. question is, how long is it going to stay this calm? and whose shit is about to hit the fan?"

caleb had to concede that she had a point there. people would keep talking if they didn't think someone was a threat. but then if they knew who her husband was or even caught a hint of how smart rosa was...? could spell trouble. "this is where i ask if people have said anything i should know about?" caleb knew that this evening wasn't just a regular fundraiser, there were ulterior motives and he had his theories, but any intel about that he was all ears for.

Rosa’s grin curved slow and deliberate, a spark lighting behind her eyes as she tilted her champagne flute in his direction. "Please, Caleb. If I ever did overtime, you’d know—your books would come out a lot lighter, and half this room would be sweating harder." She let the joke hang there just long enough to soften the edge, then took a sip, eyes still watching him over the rim of her glass.

"But I don’t need recon to know when the wind’s shifting. You can feel it in a room like this… when people start showing up to be seen rather than to blend. Too many sharp suits, not enough sharp eyes." A pause, her gaze flicking past him briefly. "And the ones who should be nervous? Funny how calm they look."

Rosa set her glass down with a quiet clink and adjusted her glove like she wasn’t saying anything important at all. "You’d be surprised what people say around a woman they think is only good for looking pretty and a song."

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"i'm glad it's not just me." imposter syndrome was hard to fight off sometimes, but rosalyn was clearly here for a reason, so she wasn't about to argue with whatever had brought her there. "that fish outta water feeling is starting to ease off a little." she laughed softly.

"me neither. it feels so foreign to me." rosalyn's family had always gotten by and they were comfortable, but they were by no means wealthy. and now she lived at the opposite side of the country to them anyway. "officially, yes," she nodded in answer to his question, "i've written one or two articles about them, nothing people don't already know, but that's the closest i've gotten." she paused for a beat, "until now, that is. how about you? are you well acquainted with them or a stranger like me?"

“Certainly not.” Archer offers a faint smile. Her words, spoken so neatly, confirm what he already suspected: that this stranger is an outsider. It hushes the question that had been circling in his mind the moment he failed to place her among the familiar constellation of syndicates. “I’m not quite used to this brand of old-money opulence,” he murmurs. It's not entirely a lie. The Tanakas luxury had struck him like a thrown brick when he was first being ingratiated, and he'd been certain his first paycheck was a mistake; he'd never held so much money in his hand before. “Is this your first foray with the Halperins?”

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AMANDA SEYFRIED Golden Globe Awards (January 07, 2024)

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"can i be honest?" she said quietly, "i have no idea how i managed to get an invitation to this thing." rosalyn felt like she'd been walking past famous faces all evening, and she was torn between boldly approaching them to try snag a small interview and not wanting to get thrown out for being inappropriate. eager to stay, she'd chosen to keep her mouth shut and hover on the periphery of the room instead. "i thought they'd made a mistake when that little envelope landed on my desk." she laughed. "here i am though."

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i love when men do men things 😮‍💨

THE LAST OF US - 2.03

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"and we'll never forget it." the truth was, rosa wasn't wrong and caleb knew it. he had to hand it to her, the woman knew how to work for what she wanted and he admired her determination. the gallardo spirit was in her blood long before she'd ever become an official member of the family. "mmhm, they can be clumsy. would make my life a whole lot easier if a lot of 'em were like that." either way the pendulum swung, caleb's guard was always there ready to shoot up when he needed it.

"a tailor so good he could stitch them back together after the suit? i'm sure L.A.'s got one of those somewhere." amusement was still etched on his features and he nodded. "course i do. what's an evening of glamour without the entertainment?" caleb arched a brow in question at her next admission. colour him intrigued. he had his own suspicions about this evening thanks to some very reliable intel, but he was curious to know what rosa had to share. "oh yeah? you been doing some recon overtime i don't know about?"

Rosa didn’t flinch at the jab about her last name. She tilted her head instead, all honeyed charm and faint menace, like a cat slowly stretching its claws. “Oh, I earned this last name, Caleb. you know that. Every letter of it.” She let her eyes wander the room again, a subtle echo of his earlier scan. “Familiar’s overrated anyway. Sometimes it’s the ones you know too well that’ll bleed you quickest. At least with strangers, you see the knife coming.”

The grin he gave her was infectious, but she caught it with something more feline—sharp at the edges, soft in the middle. “If it was a Riley, I hope they’ve got a good tailor. Would be a shame to ruin a suit when my husband puts him through a wall.” A pause, then “But I do like a little show with my evening, don’t you?” She lifted her champagne flute again, took a slow sip without breaking eye contact. A pause, then a glimmer of amusement curled at her mouth like smoke. "Speaking of shows, I know what the Halperins are looking to achieve with the one they're playing tonight, but what about yourself?"

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a smile was enough encouragement for scarlett to stick around, and she made sure to return one of her own. nodding slowly, she tipped her head and gave a small shrug of her shoulders. "too many parties i think sometimes. it's exhausting!" she laughed, "not that i'm complaining. there are people in the world who have much harder lives than little ol' me in my ivory tower." the smallest hint of her well-concealed southern accent bled into her words.

"i'm scarlett, by the way, scarlett alexander." she offered him her hand by way of a proper greeting. she never assumed anyone knew who she was, even though a lot of people did. it felt presumptuous of her to think that everyone she met was aware of any of the movies she'd made.

More than a chance for Hollywood's influential parties to mingle, this party is a rare chance to size up the competition... but as much as Roark has been able to scout himself, he feels eyes on him from everywhere, eyes on his family, and a constant uneasiness pricks along his arms and the back of his neck. More than anything it feels like a trap, because if there's one thing Roark has learned about Americans over the last decade it's that their favored brands of opulence and gore often come hand-in-hand.

When Scarlett addresses him, then, she's just enough of a distraction to take the edge off, and though his mind still races with the intertwined cacophony of laughter and war cries he manages a little smile. Humorless, but friendly enough at a glance. "Sure," he says, the word just barely tinged at its edges with the smart softness of home. "You seem right at home, I'm jealous. You go to a lot of parties, then?"

[ovrdrivess]

WICKED: PART ONE (2024) dir. Jon M. Chu

[ovrdrivess]

"uh huh, I see." he nodded, a smirk of amusement colouring his features. "well at least you've got the right last name now." he jibed gently, knowing she could very well take it. rosa seemed to have a thick skin that suited gallardo life very well.

"oh i know those things - the useful things - doesn't mean they're familiar though, does it?" what was that phrase? 'know thine enemy'. not that everyone in this room was an enemy, but the gallardo trusted circle was fairly small, at least that was how caleb saw it anyway. "can't let 'em know what we know, ro."

the look on rosa's face didn't escape his notice. who would've thought his hotheaded cousin could provoke that sort of smile? the old romantic in him liked to see it, he couldn't lie. "doesn't he just." caleb had to laugh a little. javier wasn't known for his subtlety, and maybe that was needed this evening to distract him from his own edginess. strength in numbers and all that. "you think some poor, hopeful riley saw you on your own and thought they might have a chance? some real romeo and juliet shit." he flashed her a grin of amusement. "their dreams are gonna be crushed when he gets here."

Rosa clicked her tongue and gave a little pout, mock-wounded like he’d just accused her of being dull at parties. “Noble?” she echoed, one brow lifting as her fingers drummed against the bar behind her. “Caleb, cariño, I’m not noble. I’m useful. You learn the difference when you’ve got more mouth than sense and the wrong last name.” Her eyes sparkled when she said it, but there was no real bitterness—just history she wasn’t ashamed of.

She shifted her weight, gaze slipping past him to the crowd again. “Strangers?” she questioned, low and easy. “You mean you haven't already memorized their shoe size and the name of the mistress they think no one knows about to use against them? I'm surprised.”

The question about Javier made her pause, just for a beat, before she let a little smile curve her lips. It wasn’t soft exactly, but it was different from the one she wore in front of strangers. “He’ll be along,” she said, tone breezy but sure. “You know him. Hates being looked at but somehow still likes to make an entrance.” Rosa looked back out across the room, scanning the crowd without really seeing it. “Besides, I came early. Wanted to see who blinked first when I walked in without him.” She turned back to Caleb with a wicked grin. “You held out a solid fifteen seconds. I’m proud of you.”

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perhaps he wasn't masking his inner thoughts as well as he hoped he'd been, so his guard flew back up as he offered rosa a tight smile. "just staying alert, that's all. too many strangers i'm not acquainted with yet." they weren't strangers in the sense that caleb didn't know them, just that he didn't trust them, and he was keen to keep his eyes on them.

a low snort of laughter left him as she spoke again. "i'm flattered you'd offer, rosa. didn't have you down as the noble type but maybe i was wrong. gotta happen at least once in my life, right?" he took a swig of the water he was holding, then set it down, unsatisfied by its tastelessness. "speaking of my cousin, where is he? thought he'd be on your arm."

“You look like you’re about five seconds away from committing a homicide,” she said lightly, tilting her head. “And here I thought I was the one in this family with a flair for dramatics.” Family was a polite word for what she really meant; syndicate. But one didn't speak that word when there were so many ears around.

She stepped in closer, low enough so no one else could hear, eyes glinting. “Don’t worry, Caleb. If it gets bad, I’ll throw myself across your path like a woman in the pictures. Take the heat off you.” Then, with a shrug and a smirk, “Besides, better me than Javi, no? I look better in blood-red.”

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caleb gallardo's look for the halperin fundraiser

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scarlett alexander's look for the halperin fundraiser

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rosalyn cooper's look for the halperin fundraiser

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scarlett had been to so many of these sorts of parties, and she was used to the hustle and bustle, the busy foot traffic around the food and drinks. there were a number of people she didn't recognise, but then she very rarely left her hollywood bubble so why would she recognise everyone? she lifted her drink to her lips and took a small sip, her trademark smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. feeling the urge to speak to someone, scarlett sidled up to the nearest person, keeping her security close by (because when could she not?), and cleared her throat. "isn't this just a wonderful party?"

event starter for @everyuglything

[ovrdrivess]

caleb was fighting the urge to grab a glass of something stronger than the water that was currently in his hand. he wasn't feeling on edge or anything, but with such a mixture of people in one room, he couldn't help feeling the need to throw back some dutch courage. still, he resisted, eyes scanning the room to find a familiar face that he didn't want to punch. said eyes scanning the room must have looked particularly intense because he felt them lock on to someone across the room, someone who was now coming over.

event starter for @fclsehearted