The person who emerges from the dark is clad in a perfect Dolce and Gabbana suit, its greenish gold tones accompanied by delightful splashes of lilac and dark red as the cascading vines have been embroidered and printed onto the soft fabric. His ascot might be Versace if you look at the print and his shirt is a simple white perfectly tailored one, as always. His velvet red boots have a platform that might rival any shoe that Bowie has ever owned. He pulls one of his hands through his slicked back hair. Under his arm where normally a designer purse is placed is now a Scottish cat, (That he doesn't like pussy doesn't mean he can't enjoy a cat!)
"Trust is good, proof is better." He says as he takes off his shades. Revealing a beautiful smoky eye that compliments his blue eyes. He sits down in his chair and hold up his hand, a men and woman who are bigger than the average doorframe run towards him and give him a cigarette pipe and light it. It is utterly strange to see two of those people seem to be absolutely terrified of this measly man who would struggle to get a bottle open. (Don't get me wrong I would kill for a waistline like that, and he is moderately tall especially in those heels.) But nothing about this man is threatening but his mere charisma.
He puts the cat on his lap.
"Even you are smarter than these idiots, don't you think chandler." He says to the cat. Two extra chair are put on either side of the one he is sitting in.
"Ivo, mother, come sit with me, let's read these children to filth...." He says as the smoke escapes his mouth, like a dragon, lying in wait, ready to pounce, like a car before it had finally caught its bird.

"Valentino we didn't know you would be here." Elisabetta explains, her muscles tensing as he wipes her messy pink hair out of her face.
"You weren't supposed to know either. And Ivo is right, you've been playing fast and loose with your industries." Valentino mentions.
"The only one who has his finances in order is actually the least competent of all of you." Ivo comments with a slight smirk
"Oh thank you so much Ivo" Guiseppe says while taking the chance to do a hairflip.
Ivo frowns. "I am glad you are aware that you are barely functioning Guiseppe but I am not talking about you. I am talking about Aurelio."
The blonde one with extreme dark circles and a perfect suit frowns. "Umm, thank you, I think?" But in reality he was more than offended, although he was the youngest he felt he had been assigned the most difficult job and he has done it the best. (not that he'd ever say something that rational out loud.)

"The alphabet mafia needs everyone to do there job and do it well to thrive." Valentino says with a smile "I have been proud of you for years. As Natan has given us courage as a house, I am here to give you courage as gangsters, in the last three years we have wiped out the existing mafia and taken over their industries. Every single one of you has something to be proud of. But now that our status has been secured it does not mean we can start losing our edge. There are still queer youngsters who need your help, and there is still money that needs to be made. We are not a house anymore. And it is high time you start remembering that. Mafia is based on skill, not on your charisma, nerve or talent. You cannot be pretty anymore Guiseppe, you need to start realising why I have chosen you for this position."

"I can remember refusing this position at first." Guiseppe says with one eyebrow shooting in the sky with more power than the apollo 11 reaching for the moon.
"And I remember Valentino Giving it to you!" Ivo says, raising his voice before The boss raises his hand to show him he can tone it down.
"Elisabetta," the buff pink haired girl straightens her back and puts her hands on the table, you can see the beginning of her tattoo sleeves. "you have been doing well in the restauration of the villa's on the island. But please do not forget you have to sell them too. After all they're real estate, not only dollhouses to construct." The boss reads from a paper. The woman sighs and nods, fairly disappointed that she has let somebody down again. "I love the new bathroom you built in my house though." He adds with a slight wink and immediately Elisabetta's attitude changes from disappointed teenager to proud toddler who's parent just framed their artwork like it was the most valuable Picasso in the world (Valentino much preferred Van Gogh or Toulouse Lautrec, but the kid doesn't have to know.)

"Guiseppe" He goes on. "You have been spending more time at your bars than actually managing them. Not to mention that you have given the fabric industry left to manage by a nineteen year old boy!"
"In my defence he knows his stuff, he could spot chiffon from miles away." Guiseppe says while taking a swig of a bottle of wine.
"Everyone needed to drink from that bottle Guiseppe." Ivo says quietly his mouth curling up in disdain.
"What are you scared of?" He says with a smirk.
"What about cold sores? You're a party girl after all." He sneers.
Immediately Guiseppe stands up, ready to punch the consigliere in the face but the two bears of humans immediately push him back down.
"You have not been doing your job well, and remember Guiseppe, a nail in the coffin is often forged by the corpse itself. You are disposable, a life like yours can get dimmed fairly quickly in times like this. People don't ask questions about people like us." The intimidating man smiles. "What a great outfit you're wearing...."
Guiseppe smirks and scoffs "Is it the only compliment you could come up with, old man?"
"Frankly.... Yes." He says with a smile.

He turns towards a beautiful woman, she is wearing a mink fur coat even though it is not remotely cold inside the venue. The bone white luxury accentuates her tanned skin and freckles, she has been suspiciously quiet throughout the whole meeting but she exudes a certain kind of confidence. A confidence that she knows cannot be destroyed even by the one who could make her disappear.
"Gianna." Valentino sighs. "The ballrooms you've been renting out. Both the regular and our ones have been extremely successful. I can't say that about your other responsibility. Although you look very fish today I cannot say that the fishing industry is thriving at the moment."
"I can do a whole lot of things Valley. But controlling nature is not one of them."
Valentine sighs again and shakes his head.
"I, however, do have a controlling nature, Gianna..." He responds.

"Moving on, little wren here." The newsie/military kid (why does newsie have a strangely nonbinary vibe to it? Or is it simply because no theatre kid can escape the grasp of the LGBTQ.)
"I am older than Aurelio." They say with an adorable frown that only kids ever seem to produce. Their brown eyes shifting from human to dog. (thankfully the impression is not good enough to make chandler the cat hiss at them.)
"True, and what is your excuse that you seem to be drinking more coffee than our costumers in the coffeeshops??"
The smile fades off their face "I drink tea...." They say.
"I can't complain about your alcohol sales, though but if I would guess most of those bottles were bought by Aurelio."
"Oh you can't sample your own products Aurelio." Guiseppe says.
"Says the one who asked me for opium two days ago." Aurelio retorts with nothing but a faint smile.
"Any pain you're hiding from us? Has your life caught up with you?" Ivo remarks, cutting a cigar.
"Only pain I have is the pain in the arse you are Ivo."
"Purr! Read him to filth bitch!" Gianna exclaims.
Guiseppe stands up ready to clock every single thing about Ivo's immaculate outfit
"May I remind you I can dry up your income, can choose not to give you a lawyer in a court case or even bail you out....." Ivo says and Guiseppe immediately sits back down. "I thought so."
"Children.... Hush." Natalia says

"And last but not least Aurelio." Valentine sighs. "Even though I have still no idea how you drink so notoriously even for my standards while maintaining the most organised parts. The way you are handling the medicine trade is incredible and I am very pleased you've made so many experimental treatments possible for the people in need here. The disaster you are in your personal life, the success you are here. I will say that I am truly proud of you."
The young man smiles and briefly closes his eyes in gratitude.

Meanwhile, Romeo's mouth is hanging open when he suddenly feels a strange tingle in his nose. And then, he hears a cat...... (Have I mentioned Romeo is one of those people who has a lot more allergies than the average person, dressed in pyjamas, lanky, can't dance, right now he has no home, has allergies.... He slowly starts to become a worse and worse prospect as a partner or flatmate.) And as the sneeze escapes his nose, the whole room falls silent. And before Romeo knows what is happening he has been picked up and his feet cannot touch the floor anymore. He looks up and the whole table full of gangsters as his face flushes and Guiseppe slams his head on the table.

Romeo is busy with asking himself what kind of hair products these divas are using because without flaw their hair is more luscious that any other people he has seen. (Maybe it's the mafia of good looking hair?) The three people sitting at the head of the table stand up.
"Isn't that the twink from the club Guiseppe?"
He nods his head while it's still on the table.
"Madam I am not a...."
"You want to tell us you're not gay?" Ivo asks, his eyebrows floating above his head.
"Girl, you are gay as fuck." Guiseppe says, his voice still muffled by the table.
"Or bi." Aurelio whispers.
"Well he is not gay enough to clock Natan." Valentino says as he takes a sip of his wine.
"Hey I look fish today Val! Don't talk to your mother that way." Natalia says with an eyebrow raised.

"How did he even get here?" Gianna asks.
"That's the first question that actually makes sense." Elisabetta say as she lights her cigar. (she doesn't like cigars, but Valentino once told her she wouldn't like them, she has been smoking them ever since.)
"I followed...Guiseppe, and ummm you, Ma'am."
"Always Guiseppe." Ivo groans.
Valentino rolls his eyes. (the way teenagers do when their mum tells them they're too young for something, but then ten times worse.)
"We all know what this means, we have to take care of this boy." He says as he grabs something from under the table and slowly walks towards Romeo, the young boy closes his eyes in expectation of a revolver and his last few second on earth.
But nothing happens, he only hears his own squeals of terror.
"Oh come on don't be dramatic, the colour is not that awful!" Valentino says. "You dare come into my meeting and question my sense of style?"
Romeo opens his eyes, the thing Valentino is holding is a lilac glittering tracksuit.
"You must lip-sync for your life honey!" Snatching the wig from his head.
"it...it....it was fake?"
"Of course it was fake!!!" Guiseppe screams. "That's what we have been trying to tell you."
"No you were talking about the catch of that day or something!" Romeo sputters.
"He's dumber than instant coffee this one." Elisabetta says with a smile.
"And you don't know the difference between a espresso macchiato and a cortado..." Wren says quietly.

"Quiet!" Valentino yells. "YOU MUST LIPSYNC FOR YOUR LIFE!!!"
(I had expected more thunder and lightning Valentino, but I'll settle for this.)

And so a minute later, Romeo was dazzling everyone in his lilac tracksuit. (except Guiseppe who was still closely inspecting the table for his own common sense.) His newfound Twinkness coming in handy as he put his whole body into the song like a virgin by the revered Madonna. (No We are not going to start a Cher versus Madonna debate now! We do not have time). And strangely, it felt freeing as the people in the room clapped and yelled some slang he did not understand yet but felt absolutely validated by, as he lived his fantasies of being a slut for this once. And loving the fact that He was no longer wearing his pyjamas. The unashamed authenticity was strange now that it was forced out of him by a queer mafia but it felt incredible, as if a fire was raging though his soul and he finally saw who he imagined himself for these years. In front of these people who had been close to killing him he discovered a part about himself that was the first part he has ever truly loved. And while singing the most inappropriate song in the world he asked himself if this is what praying is supposed to feel like. (What kind of religious trauma do we need to insert here! Oh Romeo, oh Romeo, how disappointed I am in you Romeo.)

As the music stops and he is still standing on the table, panting in the euphoria he has created for himself.
"Can we keep him???" Elisabetta asks as she looks at him.
He is wanted, not shunned, even though he isn't supposed to be here.
"I'm sure he has people waiting for him." Natan/Natalia says,
"He probably has, can we give you a ride?" Ivo says as he picks up some papers.
"My father doesn't want me anywhere near his home."
"See we can keep him." Gianna says, "He needs people to guide and protect him! I mean he was dumb enough to walk into this meeting!"
"He'll be a liability." Aurelio says, "It's unfair to take a puppy in without the means to feed it."
"Your department has enough money to spare." Ivo says as he looks at some papers.
"But I do not have the patience."
"Would you rather have him live with Guiseppe?" Wren asks.
"I'll take him in." Aurelio sighs.
"That's what I thought Aurelio, don't be narrow minded." Valentino says while walking towards Romeo.

"Welcome to the alphabet mafia, the place of crime and community."