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rudnitskaia · 11 days

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Im desperately withholding the urge to ask like 13 questions for romauncebut ive narrowed it down to 3, 6, 18 and 19

Hey-hey, Edd! ✨

Thank you for your wonderful ask again! I'm very grateful for the inspiration and the opportunity you gave me to reveal more of the RoMaunce story. 💖

I decided to write and post the ficlets for the remaining part of your ask all at once. I remember you wanted a drawing for № 18, and I will certainly do it in the end of May / beginning of June (only from Rocky's perspective and containing that bonus part of the question), but now I want to cover it at least with a short story. :3

So, here they are, the ficlets for questions № 3, № 6 and № 18 from that list in the chronological (for the characters) order.

№ 18 - Who leaves little notes in the other’s one lunch? (Bonus: what does it usually say?)

A Real Unicorn

“Oh, Rocky, what a—” Ivy stopped short when she noticed that the pieces of paper she had picked up from the floor beneath the table where Calvin and Rocky had been sitting just a moment ago weren't trash, but… notes.

A pile of small, tightly crumpled notebook sheets, all neatly handwritten in pencil. It was unlikely that anyone had ever given Rocky an assignment on paper, and Calvin also had no reason to write so often to the cousin whom he saw every day. Maybe Rocky wrote down poetry that way? Though it would have been a bit of a stretch to assume that he was that meticulous. Ivy stroked the sheets with her fingers. Were they really valuable, since Rocky kept them with him, or did he just put them in his pocket and then forget to throw them away? It wasn't that important, actually. It was better to just return the loss… but curiosity eventually got the better of Ivy.

Forgetting about the plates and cups, she began to read the lines, puzzled to find a strange list of orders from the cafeteria. Pizzas, pastas, salads, coffee… no, Ivy didn't see anything surprising in the fact that Rocky might have dined somewhere else besides Little Daisy, but why did he keep the notes that the waitresses usually made for the kitchen?

She wondered about that until she accidentally turned over one of the sheets.

What she saw was hard to comprehend. With each new word, Ivy's gaze grew more excited. Her heart beat more frequently. Her eyebrows arched in surprise.

She didn't stop until she had read them all, from beginning to end, but even then she couldn't believe it. Ivy sat back in the chair and stared at the wall.

What was more likely? That Rocky had completely lost his mind and over and over again was writing himself tender endearments and, for some reason, wishes of bon appétit, in the same thin handwriting that listed the orders on the back side of the sheets, or that he had a… no, it couldn't be. It seemed ridiculous to even try to imagine.

After all, if somewhere in the world there existed a woman who willingly writes such words to Rocky Rickaby, then somewhere in St. Louis might as well live a real unicorn.

№ 3 - Most common argument?

The Chains That Are Too Short

“Someday I'll steal you away for more than a couple hours, and then we'll get really entertained,” Rocky chuckled, helping Mau roll up the blanket. Another night under the stars in St. Louis was coming to an end.

“Really? Are you planning something for a whole three hours?” quipped Maura at him.

“I was rather hoping for something between fifty years and forever,” Rocky shrugged, picking up his violin case. “And then it is as it goes. You know, all that happily ever after, but… livelier. With a bit of sparks here and there.”

“Hmm. So, you’re going to take me, like a princess, away on a white horse to your sugar castle in the kingdom beyond the clouds, and we'll live in love and harmony, become exemplary neighbors, start paying our taxes, have a bunch of obnoxious kids and die the same day.”

“Why not?” Rocky seemed not to notice her sarcasm. “Yes, the script is old-fashioned, but it's proven by both time and folklore. It's almost a guide to action, if you know how to apply folk wisdom properly. And if we dig deeper into the poetry of feudal Europe, we can probably find a couple or three good tips even about paying taxes.”

“Maybe so, but unfortunately, happy fairytales are now left only as an exception and only on the stages of theaters. And you and I don't have enough for a single ticket even together,” Mau started to walk toward the fire escape, but Rocky caught up with her and took her by the arm. Her words, or rather what was clearly between the lines, made his heart feel totally uneasy.

“Mau… I can get some money. I…”

“It's not about money, Roark,” she sighed. “Or rather, it's not just about them. You know it well already…” she took only a step before Rocky stopped her again.

“Come with me,” he blurted out anxiously.

“Where to?”

“In general! Now! We could live together…”

“You sleep in a car. Which isn't even yours.”

“If I rearrange a few things, we both could fit in there. And I could give the cactus to Freckle…”

“Roark…”

“And… and! And I could also ask Miss M. about a job for you. Sooner or later things will get better at Lackadaisy, and… what if we could rent a room together?”

“That's the very problem. I can't be seen anywhere in criminal circles. My father and I are being chased, and rumors will definitely spread if I show up in the underground, and then… then my father and I will have to run away again, and if anyone finds out that you and I are together… Dio mio, don't you realize they'll kill you?”

Rocky quietly groaned and started pacing back and forth. He was almost shaking from nerves. Mau, meanwhile, continued, oblivious to the need to speak in a low voice:

“These thugs are not going to stop at anything to get us. It's bad enough that you're at odds with the locals, so I pray every night that you'll at least stay alive after your ventures, and I don't want to bring the New York Mafia down on you too! This is madness, Roark! I told you many times, I can't be seen with you while you're in the bootlegging business. Maybe we could rent a shabby little room somewhere if you were just a musician, but you ain't, and you ain't going to be!”

In despair, Rocky flailed his arms.

“But I can't! I can't leave Miss M.! I can't—”

“I know,” Mau interrupted him. “And I'm not asking you to. But you can't tease me with a bright future either… It's too much even for me. We're alive, and we have each other, here and now, and that's more than I could ever hope for. Please, just be with me while it's possible…”

Rocky still couldn't calm down. He was breathing erratically, heavily… when Mau stepped closer to him and gently embraced him, he pulled her against him so tightly that she involuntarily sighed. He was sickened by how right she was. His entire being was rebelling against that rightness, wanting to burn that truth to the ground and recreate his own, happy truth from the ashes, whatever risks it took. The seconds lingered… Rocky didn't unclench his hands. Anything to keep Mau in his arms now… anything to avoid going back into the night alone.

But the chains bound to them were too short to allow them to reach the morning.

Interesting fact: The question № 3 was the hardest for me to explore, because for me Rocky and Mau are not the couple that has many constant, repetitive topics to argue about. At first I thought to write about Rocky ignoring his health issues, because that definitely would've got Maura's nerves, but that topic becomes a 'constant argument' only in the distant future from the Lackadaisy current timeline. But finally, I found the topic that is definitely difficult for them both and may cause repetitive uneasy discussions. I hope it covered the question.

№ 6 - What is their favorite feature of their partner’s?

The Serenity in You

The Epigraph: When stars drown in the night and the storm fills your mind, it's important to find the safe haven to hide…

The summer heat in the car was becoming unbearable. Rocky felt as if he was drowning in the dense air, almost as much as in his own thoughts. Whenever he was able to doze off, fears and memories began to flood his mind, to crash over him in suffocating waves. Carefully, so as not to wake her, Rocky found Maura's hand, gently intertwining their fingers together. Even back then, when he hadn't had the courage to tell her about his feelings, she had taken his hand in hers so often that it had become almost a sacred act for Rocky. She didn't even seem to realize how every time they were sitting or standing in front of each other she began to stroke the back of his hand… and how much peace, serenity even, that gentle touch brought him.

Suddenly he heard a whisper:

“What are you thinking about?”

Rocky slightly shivered from tension. What he was thinking about… he wished he didn't know himself. Keeping his eyes shut, he mumbled:

“Ah, it's nothing. You know, there's a pesky streetlight out there, and its reflection in the window keeps me awake…”

Mau was silent for a while, and only turned slightly on her side, resting her head on his chest.

“I love hearing your voice, Roark. Falling asleep listening to the tune you hum and the sound of your heartbeat. It's soothing… almost like the sound of the rain outside the window, only… much warmer. Dearer. But when your heart beats like this… like how it beats now… I want to know what makes it so heavy.”

Once again, the nightmares that had haunted him became clearer in his mind. He hesitated; he was uncomfortable with these ugly thoughts himself, and the last thing he wanted to do was to make Mau sink into them, too. But when she gently, yet confidently squeezed his hand in hers again, his doubts receded. She was here, right next to him. And as long as she touched his fingers with hers, they would not drown in this boundless sea. So finally, gently leaning his cheek against the top of Maura's head, Rocky began to speak.

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rudnitskaia · 25 days

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And as I promised, right in a row, the 2nd part (the 1st) of the answer on number 19 from that list for @coffeintheface @acesandocs. 💖

Note: that ficlet highly depends on a joke headcanon that Mau and Rocky really married by accident. I wrote about it in the very old answer to an ask, but I'll also place it here for convenience.

"I can even imagine how these two might spontaneously get married because of an accidentally blurted out series of utterly stupid puns. Because it’s simply something fun to do. Like, they sneak out on the roof in the night, chatting incessantly, and then

Mau: You won’t do such a felony to me.

Rocky: A fell-on-knee? Well, I can dare.

Mau: And if I agree you’ll dare to do it right now?

Rocky: Oh, Miss Venza, it would be such a delight, but no one will marry us in the dead of night.

Mau: The dead of night, huh? I remember you told me about some business you run with a funeral home. There's supposed to be a minister. A funeral home marriage in the dead of night. Sounds like a perfect match.

And soon Rocky, arm in arm with Mau, will be banging on the door of the Arbogast Funeral Home, and if the face of sleepy Abelard Arbogast could have stretched more from their request, it would have stretched. :D"

So, here's the ficlet. :3

The Dawnright Truth

Note: Italian speech

“Hush!” Mau shushed Rocky, barely holding back a giggle herself. He habitually helped her to get over the window and then sat on the window sill, gesturing that he wouldn't utter another sound. Mau smiled. She only had a couple hours of sleep left, but for nights like this, she was willing to sacrifice even them. It was impossible to count how many conversations, how many laughs and fiddle tunes the roof of this house had heard… and Maura hoped that tonight would not be the last and that roof would hear a lot more.

As she took a step back inside her room, Rocky gently squeezed her palm and pulled Mau lightly toward him. Please don't go. She shook her head with a chuckle. No. It's almost dawn. Not letting go of her hand, Rocky pressed his fist to his chest. Waved one way, then the other in some strange pantomime, looking at Mau with the most sorrowful expression that he was capable of. Jokingly sorrowful, of course, but there was truth behind the joke. If it were up to him, he would make sure that this moment would never end; the moment when the whole city was asleep and no one but the stars in the sky could hear them. So that there would be no need to carve out time for secret meetings. And so that he wouldn't have to hide what he put into every melody he played to her at nights, behind the stares and smiles in the daytime.

Alas, now he didn't even have the violin in his hands to tell her, as usual, everything without words. He was about to hop back to the fire escape and continue to amuse her at least with his ridiculous silent performance, when Mau, laughing inaudibly, stepped forward and kissed him. So easily and openly that Rocky held his breath in surprise. But soon he loudly exhaled through his nose, closing his eyes and relaxing his shoulders. All thoughts, all words and images froze for a moment, and then swirled in his head in a fantastical dance again, as if drawing new music from that gentle touch. Rocky moved forward, toward her, giving himself over to the sensation of flight that had taken over him…

…when suddenly there was a loud thud.

The landing from heaven to earth was disgustingly hard. Rocky rubbed his chin, which had hit the floor just a moment ago, and propped himself up on an elbow.

“Mau? Is everything alright?” came a voice from outside the room.

Maura looked worriedly at the door and pointed Rocky under the bed.

“Quick!” she whispered to him, rushing over to the chair and placing it headboard down on the floor. Much louder, she replied: “Yes, I’m fine!”

A knock sounded.

“Are you up already? Can I come in?”

Mau clasped her hands together. Anxiously, she leaned closer to the bottom of the bed and muttered:

“I beg you, not a sound,” and then answered her father: “Of course!”

Not more than a second later the door opened and Augusto peeked into the room. Mau smiled awkwardly at him and pretended to pull up a chair.

“Was reaching for a book and dropped it. Sorry, didn't mean to wake you.”

Augusto nodded, seemingly paying no attention neither to the strange excuse nor to the wide-opened window.

“I was already awake. But why did you get up so early?”

“Couldn't get any sleep… tossed and turned for a while, and then decided, why lie around for nothing? Better go and bake some muffins before opening…”

Rocky didn't understand a word she was saying, but the tone in which Mau was speaking… no, not speaking, chirping with her father, caused him to laugh inaudibly. He wondered if it was from anxiety or if she always acted that way with him. The dust made his nose terribly itch. But Rocky didn't risk moving and only wrinkled his nose, hoping the sensation would go away soon. After examining all the cracks in the bedframe, he turned his head to the side and suddenly saw the jewelry box next to him. And he wouldn’t pay that much attention on it if he didn’t notice the tip of some kind of note sticking out of the box. A letter? From whom, he wondered?

Meanwhile, Augusto walked into the room.

“How lucky. I was just about to leave the keys for you in the hallway, but I heard you were up. I have to go out for a while.”

“Oh, sure,” Mau accepted the keychain from his hands. “For how long?”

When Rocky carefully pulled the sheet from under the lid, he was surprised to find out that it was his note. One of many he had left for Mau at the eatery. In some he had doodled all sorts of silly things, in others he had hastily made up short humorous poems that vanished from his memory as soon as they had hit the paper. And she… kept them? No way she did. Neglecting all precautions, Rocky lifted the lid of the box… and immediately slammed it shut.

But it was too late.

Several seconds of his confusion were enough for a tinkling melody to fill the room.

Mau's heart sank. Augusto stared in puzzlement at the direction of the bed and, not listening to his daughter's objection, looked underneath it. Rocky waved at him awkwardly.

“Good morning, Mister Venza.”

“You!” the man exclaimed angrily, pulling the guy out from under the bed by his coat. “Parasite!”

“Papa, stop swearing,” said Mau with pressure. Augusto stood up, not letting Rocky out of his grasp, and shook him as if he was holding not a young man but a weightless rag.

“What is this, Mau?”

“Please leave him alone.”

“I knew that scoundrel wasn't just hanging around in our eatery for nothing. Do you realize he's a criminal, Maura?”

“No more than we are!” objected Mau.

“That's already too much, sweetheart!” groaned Augusto and shook Rocky by the scruff of the neck again. “I've seen enough of his kind, you can see 'em a mile off! A swindler, a bandit, a rascal! What if he tells anyone about us? Or even worse, what if he hurts you?”

“He won't hurt me ever!”

“Of course, he won't. And he won't show up on our doorstep again either. I respect your choice, darling, but that! I simply can't allow that to happen! For me to willingly entrust you into the hands of some thug, some… some…”

“He's already my husband, papa!” Mau moaned in despair and immediately regretted what she had said. Augusto froze with his eyes wide open, now filled with true dread, but still didn't loosen his grip.

“Maura,” he began cautiously. “Don't tell me you're expecting a child from him.”

“What?! No!” exclaimed Mau indignantly. “It just happened… accidentally!” she tried to justify herself, but seemed to make it worse.

“How can you accidentally marry a man?”

“We thought it was in jest. I never would have thought a priest at some backwater funeral home could actually wed people! We were going to get a divorce somehow…” sighed Mau, and then, after a moment of hesitation, added in a low voice: “…but I don't think that's necessary anymore.”

Augusto unclenched his fingers, releasing Rocky, and slowly lowered himself onto the bed. With a trembling hand he fumbled in his pocket for a pack of cigarettes, took one out and lit it. For several long seconds there was absolute silence in the room.

“What's your name even, hubby?” Augusto finally asked, so quietly that Rocky could barely make out the words.

“Roc… Roark Rickaby, Mister Venza,” Rocky held out his hand to the man, but he didn't even look at it.

“Does he know? About us,” he questioned, clearly referring to the disastrous troubles with mob that had been the reason the Venza family had fled New York. Mau nodded.

“Yes. I told him everything.”

The room filled with heavy silence again. Augusto took a long, nervous puff and stared at the floorboards for a long moment, unblinking. Finally, he covered his face with the palm of his hand and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke.

“Oh, dear Lord…”

#hope you'll enjoy it <333 #coffeintheface #acesandocs #missedditart #heldig writings #lackadaisy #romaunce #maura venza oc #rocky rickaby #lackadaisy oc #maura venza #lackadaisy rocky #rocky lackadaisy #lackadaisy ocs #lackadaisyocs #lackadaisyoc #lackadaisy fanfiction #lackadaisy oc x canon #oc x canon

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rudnitskaia · 26 days

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✨DRUNKEN BIRTHDAY PARTY✨

A few sketches for @ahhhh-118 after Maríanne's invitation to drink some bunny hugs to celebrate Maura's birthday. x))

Featuring:

Rocky Rickaby and gorgeous Tracy J. Butler herself by @lackadaisycats

Maríanne Villanueva by @ahhhh-118

Unknown Creature by @aghostnamedcalamity

and Maura Venza by me 😁

#heldig arts #lackadaisy #tracy j butler #rocky rickaby #ahhhh-118 #aghostnamedcalamity #lackadaisy oc #romaunce #maura venza oc #maríanne villanueva #maríanne villanueva oc #lackadaisy ocs #lackadaisyoc #lackadaisyocs #lackadaisy rocky #rocky lackadaisy #maura venza

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rudnitskaia · 1 month

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Someone she knows just had a baby and Mau is asked if she wants to hold it, how odes she react?

follow-up question is she good with kids?

Thank you so much for the ask, @coffeintheface, it was super cute to draw! I love to dive into such cozy scenes, they soothe me, and I hope you'll feel that warmth, too. ✨💖✨

And it was the perfect opportunity to show Mau as a kid. :3 Augusto daily tried his best to braid her hair, let's praise the man, he's a pro now. x))

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rudnitskaia · 17 days

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If I have time in May or June I'll definitely draw Mau in this wedding dress. Maybe it will be some kind of a wedding art with Rocky, since my dear @aghostnamedcalamity encourages me to, heheh. ^/////^

#i accidentally found this dress in the online store three years ago or so when i searched for a summer dress for myself #i was so in love with its style that i put it into favorites despite i didn't need a wedding dress #now i opened the favorites section in search for another good i put there and stumbled to that dress again #the time has come #and we all know who'll wear it instead of me #maura venza #romaunce #maura venza oc #lackadaisy oc #lackadaisy ocs #lackadaisyoc

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rudnitskaia · 25 days

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Sorry i got so excited to ask questions i forgot to specify but maybe a drabble for 3, 6 and 19. And a drawing for 18. But if you feel specifically inspirred to do something different im not complaining. Love these goobers so any kind of romaunce content is a win for me😁

Hey-hey, Edd! 💖 Tysm for the ask, I'll cover all the numbers, I promise! ✨😭✨ These are very interesting topics for me, so count it as part 1/?. :3 I'll tag your main and your new @acesandocs acc so you won't miss it. <3

I hope you meant numbers from that list, but if you meant the other - DM me, please.

I'll start with the number 19, "Who tells their family/friends about their relationship first?"

And I came up with two ideas, so I post the two-parts answer in a row. Because I headcanon that it's Freckle who was the first one to suspect his cousin develops feelings for a certain Italian waitress, but technically the one who got the confirmed information about Rocky's and Mau's relationship would've been Augusto. So I did both.

First story will be from the Freckle's side. I once started to do a comic from it, but gave it up. So now behold this ancient scenario in a ficlet. :D

The Right Moment

“And what a pizza they have!”

“Pizza?”

“Yeah, sugary pizza!”

“Is this... thing really worth it?” Calvin sighed, deciding not to clarify what that ridiculous phrase meant.

“Oh, true ambrosia. You'll be flabbergasted!” Rocky exclaimed, keeping up his pace. Calvin felt that he had been trying to catch up with his cousin through the streets of St. Louis for about an hour, and he feared that he was going to spend just as long on the heat as he already had, but fortunately Rocky finally turned around the corner and confidently swung open the blue door of the little eatery. Calvin followed him inside and found Rocky waiting at the counter, but finding no one at it, he sat down at the table that was nearest to the entrance, placed his fedora against the wall, and drummed his fingers impatiently on the countertop. Calvin sat down across the table and studied the details of the unassuming establishment. Since when had Rocky developed such a fondness for Italian cuisine…?

“Why, if it isn't Mister Rickaby himself!” A lively woman's voice with a quavering “r” sounded over Calvin's ear.

“Miss Maura,” Rocky grinned. “How else could it be? Your cozy place is an oasis that shelters travelers from the scorching sun. I've even rescued one suffering man along the way. Working for the good of your enterprise, so to speak. Meet my cousin, Freckle.”

“Freckle?”

“Calvin. McMurray,” he habitually corrected Rocky, and finally turned around, meeting his gaze with the tall, young Italian woman. Calvin stared at her face and lean figure, but by the time he realized he was doing it for too long, thankfully, she was already looking at Rocky.

“We'll have two glasses of lemonade, please, your incomparable sugary pizza…”

“And a sandwich, please. Any kind. Not sweet,” Calvin added hastily.

“Not sweet? Are you sure he's your cousin, Rocky?”

“Oh, yeah, he is. He just doesn't realize what he's missing,” he waved it away. “You know for yourself that pizza's an undoughbtfully subtle thing.”

Mau laughed out loud.

“Oh, come on. I'm the one who knows batter that it’s just your oven self that works on a different fuel.”

“Hey!” Rocky chuckled with feigned indignation, but Maura was already heading past the tables toward the kitchen. Calvin stayed silent as he watched Rocky's eyes on the girl. He didn't say a word when Rocky again engaged the waitress in banter when she returned with the order. He preferred not to evaluate the flavor of the monstrous slice that was aptly called ‘sugary pizza’, but the sandwich and lemonade were very good indeed. Calvin kept his mouth shut even when Rocky, leaning against the counter, took a few good minutes to say goodbye to Mau. Only on their way back to the Little Daisy Café he surrendered to his curiosity.

“So… about that ‘sugary pizza’.”

“What, do you regret not trying it after all? I knew it! I knew you'd bite your head off. Well, I'll ask Miss Maura make more next time.”

“Next time, yeah. How long have you been visiting this place?”

Rocky pondered.

“A month? Or about two… something like that.”

“Only for sugary pizza?”

“No, why, they have good coffee, lemonade, and…” Rocky began to list without a backward thought, but then suddenly frowned. “Wait, what are you implying?”

“Nothing,” Calvin looked away and smiled involuntarily. Rocky squinted.

“Don’t tap dance with me, sneaky gingerbread. I can see right through you.”

“Well… uh. Neither of us are blind. Miss Maura probably… it seems she likes you.”

Shaking his head, Rocky ran a hand through his hair in relief.

“Oh, Freckle. You don't understand anything. Miss Maura… she's always like that. With everyone. Gives away words like hot cakes. Mine may be puncakes, but they aren’t served with any ‘additional syrup’.”

Calvin stared at the passing cars for a while, thinking if he should try to change his cousin's mind. But suddenly Rocky cautiously asked:

“…you really think?”

Calvin shrugged. Was he sure of what he was talking about? It was hard to tell. But what he'd seen in the eatery certainly… brought up some thoughts.

“Why don't you ask her out, since you two have been in touch for so long?”

“It's not that simple, Freckle,” Rocky sighed and gestured vigorously. “You have to be thorough, have to pick the right moment. Besides, have you seen her grumpy old man? A glancekiller. It's like rescuing a princess from a dragon's lair. And you're suggesting I just walk up and say…” he stopped in the middle of the street in a deep bow with his hands widely outstretched to the sides, “…do me a favor, my fair maid, go with me on a promenade!”

Suddenly Rocky felt how something was lowered on his left hand. He turned his head in puzzlement and found his own fedora hanging there. But it wasn't that that surprised him, it was… Maura. She was looking at him and Freckle with amusement, and Rocky had no idea where to get away from that look. And he wanted to get away. Wanted it desperately. Preferably somewhere under the ground. But before he could say anything, Mau nonchalantly stated:

“Well, if you promise to be a faithful knight, toss a pebble into my window at night.”

Calvin, who was watching all this, began to quietly laugh. Maura waved to him with a mockingly innocent smile.

“Goodbye, Mister McMurray, it was nice to meet you,” and, without waiting for Rocky's reply, she headed back toward the eatery.

Calvin's laughter grew louder the longer he stared at Rocky's confused face. It was simply impossible to hold back. Calvin felt like he was choking, but he didn't stop chuckling even when Rocky elbowed him in the side and exclaimed:

“Stop cackling, you!”

Rocky took a deep breath, covered his face with the fedora and let out a muffled yell. As Calvin continued to laugh, he patted his cousin on the back a few times, either sympathetically or encouragingly; it was also hard to tell.

Though one thing was definitely undoubtful: now Calvin had not a single regret about that visit to Italian eatery. At all.

#tysm for the ask dude <333 #it gave me so much fuel *w*#acesandocs #coffeintheface #missedditart #heldig writings #lackadaisy #romaunce #maura venza oc #rocky rickaby #lackadaisy oc #lackadaisy ocs #lackadaisyoc #lackadaisyocs #maura venza #lackadaisy rocky #rocky lackadaisy #lackadaisy fanfiction

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rudnitskaia · 5 months

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Augusto Venza...

At first sight you’ll see a tired grumpy middle-aged man, whose glance is so heavy that can almost kill, and who works in the kitchen of his own small eatery in St. Louis. But would you believe that once there was a lively lighthearted guy behind his shell?

Augusto was born in 1885 and raised in a small village in Piemonte. His family owned a small vineyard and sold their wines through their neighbors, the Riva family. But Gusto had many other ways to occupy himself besides the family business. Very... nasty ways. Gusto Venza was not a mere firecracker, he was a freaking BOMB. He was loud, he was reckless, he was hot-headed as hell in both his words and actions. A troublemaker is a word too dim to describe his behavior in youth. He and his best friend Leone Riva were the headache of the whole village. It all settled down a bit in 1902, when the Riva family migrated to the U.S., and Augusto was entrusted with the duty to sell the wines himself. To tell the truth, Gusto wasn't smart or experienced enough for such a task, but he coped with it somehow, purely with the help of his own irrepressible energy and charm that were truly hard to resist.

That's why, when he ended up in Turin in 1904 and met Federica, the daughter of one of the wealthy customers, the spark between two 18-year-olds turned into the fire so quickly.

And very soon Federica found herself pregnant.

There was a huge scandal. And though Gusto did all he could to marry Federica, her family rejected his proposal. They insisted that the only way of solving such a disastrous accident is to break Federica and Augusto apart and to send the child into the orphanage after their birth. To Augusto's highest disappointment, Federica refused to go against her parents will, no matter how hard he tried to change her mind. She was too afraid to do so. But Gusto was stubborn enough to convince Federica's parents at least to give him the child. A few bribes, and in 1905 newborn Maura was registered under her father’s surname and without any real mother's name mentioned.

That was supposed to be a happy ending, but Gusto's father and stepmother also refused to help him. “It will be a fatal blow for the family’s reputation and business”, that’s what they told, when he returned home with a baby in his arms.

So, Augusto, furious and offended, cut all ties with Federica and his own family, took the baby and tried to start his life with a clean slate. But three lonely years in Turin destroyed him to the core. It was a miracle that both he and Maura survived those harsh times. Gusto was poor as dirt, had no support and had troubles finding a stable job, because he often skipped the shifts in order to take care of Mau. Only in 1908 Augusto's devastation was literally cried out in the letter to Leone. Not expecting any sympathy, Gusto told him everything he hid before out of shame. By that moment he has already faced the fact that his own failures led him to such a horrible life. But he simply couldn't hold it inside anymore.

Still, his best friend didn't abandon him. Instead, Leone sent Augusto some money and invited him to New York. Gusto had nothing to lose, so he packed his meagre possessions and headed to the U.S. with his daughter.

To say that the Riva family helped Augusto would be an understatement. In every sense they saved his life. Gave him a job in the kitchen of their cafe&bar in South Village, a small corner to live until he manages to rent a room by himself, looked after Mau when he couldn’t. No wonder Augusto became the most loyal and devoted person to the Riva family and was ready to do literally anything for them and Leone in particular. By the time when Prohibition started Leone became the one who ran the business, and when he decided to turn the bar into a speakeasy, Augusto didn't say a word against and stayed Leone’s right-hand man, delivering moonshine and doing many unsavory things. In 1923 he even allowed Maura to play pool on bets there, when she was offered that job. He wasn’t blind; he knew Mau was talented and he, as a truly loving father, respected her decision to try to catch her luck. Moreover, despite Augusto had no faith in criminal patrons who covered Leone's speakeasy, he trusted Leone with his life, so Augusto's condition for Maura’s occupation in the gambling club at the speakeasy was simple: his daughter must stay untouched. Only playing pool and nothing else.

Everything seemed to be fine until one awful night in 1926 Maura returned home all pale, shaking and deadly silent, with some bruises and her hair and dress ruined. The memory of his shivering daughter, of her teary eyes with a blank sight, still chases Augusto in his worst nightmares. When Maura after a few hours finally whispered the name, Augusto's rage was ready to burst out like a volcano.

And he didn't suppress it. The very next day he massacred the security and... well, let's just say that after what Augusto did to that criminal lord the latter considered being shot as a merciful blessing. From him Augusto also stole the papers that could expose one of the powerful criminal syndicates in New York, including involvement of some corrupt authorities.

…and only then he understood what a horrible mess he had created.

So, as usually, he came to Leone, told him everything and gave him those crucial papers, because these documents could have destroyed Leone’s business and endangered his family as well, and bringing them to the police or some press would have been totally unwise. After much deliberation, Leone and Augusto decided that the latter will leave the city with his daughter, while Leone will secretly keep the documents and try to play the poor cards they got to avoid as much damage and gain as much profit from that awful situation as possible.

Augusto immediately took Maura and fled from New York to the unknown direction, leaving the syndicate in the full confidence that he is the one who has broken one of the crucial gears of the syndicate and is holding both 'the valuable asset' Maura and the dangerous documents. Since then the Venza family has scurried from place to place, moved from state to state, covering their tracks, and tried to lie as low as possible. Augusto became completely jammed to the thought that he can't send his daughter away and wander alone, because if she is found, he won't be able to protect her, being far away, and that twisted his caring and protective nature into something nearly paranoidal. All their money rapidly melted away into nothing. From July of 1926 to March of 1927, the Venza family spent relatively quietly in Kansas City, even opening a small eatery; until Augusto in a call receives a hint from Leone that Kansas City may as well become unsafe for them soon. So, in April of 1927, the Venza family ends up in St. Louis, where they also rent a small place for the eatery and do their best to live a quiet, unremarkable life away from any criminal activities. Cherishing the hope that their past will fade into oblivion someday.

However, St. Louis has its own underworld, and who knows, what will happen, if the Venza family becomes involved into it again. But that’s a whole other story to tell…

#after almost 9 months i finally decided to post it so here it goes :3 #heldig writings #heldig arts #lackadaisy #lackadaisy oc #augusto venza oc #maura venza oc #leone riva oc #lackadaisy ocs #lackadaisyoc #lackadaisyocs #augusto venza #maura venza #leone riva

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