♣ ― oksana.

oksana markovnikova. 42. grand duchess of northwestern russia.

[cksvnv]

vitvliyv​:

❛i cannot tell if you are joking. ❜   it isn’t the statement that is funny, but the way she’d made it. if the situation were less tense she might have grinned.   ❛   we are in spain. what if we informed the crown princess… in confidence, about those fires and who was really behind it ?  does that conflict with what we promised zhenya ? ❜  had anya even given her word over anything ?   ❛lenya can handle herself, but she is still a mother of a small child, one of us should be with her.  ❜  /.  @rcmvncv​ or anyone

“We are not going to kill him.” Even if it would have solved everything easily — and, in Alexei’s opinion, it would have been somewhat justified. A classic case of an eye for en eye. “Milena will see receding as losing.” To him it was the end result of an impossible gamble. “She said she’ll come join us soon. I expect her to keep her word.” Alexei did not like the limited amount of options they had. “We will either have Milena leave in all quietness, or we will use force to keep her on a throne that the whole world will know is Yurivič’s.” They would win, it wasn’t a very difficult equation to crack, especially if Milena still had a grip on Belarus’ forces. “I just don’t think it’s in our best interest to fight over Belarus.”

“ HE WOULD DESERVE IT. ” for once the younger duchess had said something that vitaliya could respect her for. it was easy to voice kind and popular opinions, it was much more difficult to suggest the callous ideas. “ we should see if he’s bluffing before we make her highness wave the white flag. it’s perfectly possible that he is not willing to see what we’ll do once we’ve been angered. ” the princess’s plan had been so damn ridiculous ! had it been really that difficult to respect the sanctity of her wedding vows ? milena should have returned to russia immediately after her mistake. “ tell him, tell the french that we think it’s amoral for them to use a two-year-old child in their schemes. ”

“ i genuinely think it’s a viable option in these circumstances all things considered. whatever happens next will be a mess to fix and it will damage our reputation for years to come. then there are the things he has done to consider. ” she did not think a belorussian duke’s life was worth too much. he had made a very educated decision picking a fight with them, it was not as if he were an innocent bystander. “ it’s not in our best interest. we already have plenty of enemies from the annexation of finland. it would be quite unprompted too. ” milena was a grown woman, if she could not handle her disappointment, she truly never should have been allowed a single position of power, let alone a throne. “ i agree — we should see if they’ll really make a move. i doubt d’orléans will want to spend much of his resources on yurivič. ”

[cksvnv]

aromancva​:

“ she wants to be queen. ” her jaw is beginning to set, eyes flicking from nadya to lyosha, burning look easy to read: don’t fund this. “ but she is a mother. she’ll protect katya. ” how strong was the evidence the duke had? surely he hadn’t managed to get his hands on a paternity test. “ if he wanted this information out, it would be out already. but he also knows we can turn around and call him an attempted baby-murderer. ” there must be footage of the incident they could release, showing lenya refusing the poisoned glass and lyosha taking it. “ he must want to meet. ” / @rcmvncv​ or whoever!

“ and then he and the rest of the world can call us liars for what happened after the poisoning, ” oksana pointed out lightly with a shrug. the solution to the problem seemed quite simple to her. “ we should just have him killed. ”

[cksvnv]

“ i heard you’re a roman yurivič symphatizer. ” | @lconid​

[ncdyc]

kcstyv​:

russians.

“Lenya called from Paris…” He had not expected something like this to be sprung on him. “Yurivič knows about Katya.” He had been so busy making sure Milena remained cool and rational, that he had not had time to truly process what the information meant. What it really meant. He should have spent an hour alone and altered his schedule for the day instead of holding the scheduled meeting with his inner circle. “The French too. They’ve presented an ultimatum for her.” ( ** @aromancva​, @cksvnv​, @ncdyc​, @kcstyv​ )

he’d suspected that her time in france would be spent picking up silly trinkets for the monegasque princess. this was not the anticipated topic of discussion. lenya, who always thought three steps ahead and yurivič is her undoing ? they should have acted quicker, spared him less time to dig up their skeletons. “ what are their terms ? ”

so lenya’s liability of a friendship with the french king had finally shown its true form.  ❛    we can counter — whatever they are,  ❜  all this time spent meticulously gathering intel has to count for something, her gaze darts towards anya and oksana.   ❛    can’t we ?  ❜  / @cksvnv​ , @aromancva​

[cksvnv]

it wasn’t difficult to guess what the most important term was. “ i’m curious to know what milena wants to do. is she going to hold onto belarus with tooth and nail ? ” oksana had to admit, it was a fairly pathetic look. “ are you thinking about funding her grab for power ? ”

[aromancva]

russians​:

“So is this what we think Lixue needed Kurakin for?” It was a bold statement to make, and everyone at the table knew Lixue well enough to know that it wouldn’t end there. “I have nothing against the Emperor, it’ll get complicated if Lixue has managed to acquire Kurakin’s help.” ( ** @cksvnv, @kcstyv, @aromancva, @vitvliyv, @kcliningrcd, @ncdyc, @zhcnyv )

“ HE CAN’T ACT WITHOUT YOUR APPROVAL. ” the czar was at the top of the pyramid, no one was to question the position. “ if her highness has offered a good deal, it would be in our best interest to know if it’s worth taking. is no one interested in seizing an opportunity ? even if we decide her highness is not fit for the throne, we can strengthen our ties with the current emperor. ” [ @cksvnv​, @kcstyv​, @aromancva​, @kcliningrcd​, @ncdyc​, @zhcnyv​ ]

“ kurakin will follow our lead. he’s not interested in making us his enemy. ” the duke was a military man, he understood hierarchy and his rank. “ but he seems to favor the princess over her brother. it’s still unclear why she went to him instead of us, directly. there isn’t anything he could offer that you wouldn’t have had to approve anyway, there was no need for a middle man. ” it was suspicious, but ultimately… “ see what she has to offer. having a ruler indebted to us is never a bad thing. ” [ @cksvnv​, @kcstyv​, @ncdyc​, @zhcnyv​, @kcliningrcd​ ]

[cksvnv]

“ it wouldn’t be the first time someone lyosha thinks fondly of stabs him in the back. ” kurakin might have been one of the few visitors in alexei’s new house but that did not tell much about the man’s motives. “ i can think of a few reasons: she knew lyosha would not support her and/or kurakin’s price is much lower than the czar’s. ” if lixue believed she could win with just kurakin, involving the romanovs was an unnecessary expense. “ and if she has a good deal and we take it, how long does it take for her to go over lyosha again ? ” | @rcmvncv, @zhcnyv​, @kcliningrcd​, @ncdyc​, @kcstyv​

[aromancva]

zhcnyv​:

“He has officially lost it. He told me to pick a date so we could go through with the marriage. I told him I’d think about it a while longer… I think our timing was good. Our play has come to an end.” [ @aromancva​ / @cksvnv​ ]

so the belarusian was becoming desperate – based on all that zhenya had shared, anya doubted he’d suddenly been overcome with adoration or desire. butterflies were already dead when pinned, he was still thrashing. “ we’ll leak the fake investigation details about suspecting the french princess on our end after you’ve refused him properly. ” blues shift to the redhead, seeking confirmation despite the firmness of her tone. “ there’s no reason to drop it earlier. ” [ @cksvnv​ ]

[cksvnv]

“ no but i’m curious. let’s pick a date and see what happens. you don’t need to spend any more time with him than you already are. ” did he think zhenya would offer him some security ? did he think he could use her to his advantage in some way ? oksana was curious to know what he had thought of. “ if you start planning a wedding, you can visit him under false pretenses as much as you want. you’d get a front seat to his fall. there’s some sadistic pleasure to be found in that. ” | @zhcnyv​ 

[cksvnv]

“ has someone found out why kurakin met with the chinese ? are they just friends ? am i the only one who doesn’t like it ? ” | @rcmvncv​, @kcstyv​, @aromancva​, @zhcnyv​

[cksvnv]

kvrvkin​:

“–It went well.” It wasn’t a secret, exactly, but he hadn’t expected it to be common knowledge. At least not yet! A few weeks was such a short time.–At least it was in the far eastern duchies…It seemed things were different here. And even more different from what he had expected. “I believe it went well, in any case. She holds her cards close to her chest.” A case of the pot calling the kettle black, at the moment. “But we’re so closely bordered that it’s in everyone’s best interest for things to be friendly, so I’m hopeful.”

“ and what does she want with you ? ” sometimes asking directly bore the best results. especially with the likes of kurakin. “ or what did you want with her ? ” which way was it ? what had konstantin told them ? “ a good rapport with china sounds more like a problem for the czar to care about. ”

[cksvnv]

kvrvkin​:

He turned back to thank the stranger with a wave as he fell into step with Oksana. “Good. A feeling of generosity is good,” the ghost of a smile played at the corner of his mouth, “I hope it’s catching.” He had come with his hand out, after all. “Mystery visit? No,” he brushed the idea, and any implication, away. “Meetings. And I met with the programme organisers.; I expected the process of finding an apartment and having it made liveable would be more laborious than it turned out to be.” For him, at least. Someone must have worked overtime to plan his arrival. “Is everything made quite so comfortable, here? I had almost expected a war bunker.”

“ it didn’t reach many ears until it was already over: ergo, a mystery. ” she was, quite frankly, a bit upset over it. it was like they had missed something completely obvious and now people were pretending it was no big deal. did kurakin think she was stupid ? “ and how was the meeting with lixue ? ” she asked coldly, nearly cutting his sentence. 

[kvrvkin]

“–Excuse me?” He takes a chance with English. He doesn’t recognise them from his visits to the Russian court and, well, he doesn’t speak any other languages…But he’s told representatives from across the globe have gathered here. Perhaps he should make the effort. Learn some Chinese, maybe. Or some…No. Not French. He catches up to the person up ahead, “I’m looking for main meeting room three?” @hshqstarters​

[cksvnv]

“ kurakin, ” oksana called from behind the man. “ it’s this way. no need to suffer through english instructions. ” she gestured him to follow as she walked past the man. “ i’m feeling generous so i should warn you that by now everyone’s heard about your mystery visit to tokyo a month ago. you confused a good deal of us. ” 

[cksvnv]

rcmvncv​:

“No.” He frowned. If the grand duke hadn’t been here for him, then… “Did he meet with Anya?”

“ well, neither did i. so imagine how stupid i felt when i stopped by his palace on my way to arkhangelsk and he wasn’t there. i could have taken a direct flight. ” it hadn’t been much of a detour but it had cost her seven hours. “ not to my knowledge. i ran into gavril when i was in st. petersburg and he said it was something personal. do you think he’s rubbing elbows with the japanese ? because if he tells us he was on a holiday, i’ll call him a liar. ”

[cksvnv]

“ did you know nikita kurakin was here two weeks ago ? ” ( @rcmvncv​ )

[cksvnv]

rcmvncv​:

should she have stayed at the casino for the party? anya hadn’t noticed any of the friendliness zhenya mentioned. “ have any of us been maintaining relations with them? ” the words are pointed, for no one other than her brother – he could not forever rely on everyone else handling his messes. “ do we know why they’ve joined the program, are they asking for meetings? i doubt they have any interest in embroiling themselves in more conflict. ” fingertips drum against her jaw, lips in a thin line. “ someone in france knows something. the king’s sister speaks plenty, but little has been relevant. is there anyone else we could apply pressure on who might know more? ” freja, maybe, if alexei were capable of pushing. [ @rcmvncv​ ]

“Ksyusha can answer that,” Alexei muttered. If being friendly with the Ukrainians was a crime, Oksana would have had quite a lot to answer for. “Do we know if they have meetings? Would that information reach us?” They weren’t stupid enough to speak to the friends of Russia — and secret meetings were almost too easy to arrange at the building. “I haven’t asked the Sävelsalos to go near them. I’d rather they didn’t.” A Finnish-Ukrainian friendship sounded like a match made in hell for him. “Ukraine can’t find a connection to Equanimity.” If Equanimity began shoveling money into Ukraine, things would get out of hand. “I don’t have anyone at the French court,” Alexei replied with a shrug. ( ** @zhcnyv​ / @aromancva​ )

“ fuck off, lyosha. ” she slowly sipped on her coffee before taking a deep breath. “ i’m not in touch with the sävelsalos. i only talk to leonid. we should have included vorontsova in this discussion. the grand duchess is on her palm as we all know. ” it was not much of a surprise ! vitaliya vorontsova was the only friendly face. everyone else were more or less suspicious or cautious or resentful towards the finn. her words were filtered: she held her tongue in zhenya’s presence. “ i don’t know if we should worry too much though. ” the initial shock had worn off. “ the soletskys were friendly with the talvities and nothing came from that. the sävelsalos aren’t bold enough to try to undermine our hold on ukraine. they have nothing to gain and too much to lose. ” it was too late for principles, wasn’t it ? “ we use milena then. ” | @zhcnyv​ / @aromancva​

[zhcnyv]

Staying in the meeting room once the meeting had wrapped up had never been something she did. This time, however, she lingered by the table until the last outsider had exited the room. “Did you ah… notice how the Sävelsalos were around both the Ukrainians and the French at the party? They seemed awfully friendly. I’m sure it’s nothing but…” [ @aromancva​, @rcmvncv​, @cksvnv​ ]

[cksvnv]

“ what ? ” oksana looked up from her papers. a frown drew lines between her brows. “ great. that’s what we needed: the sävelsalos ditching us. ” how much money would it cost to have them under surveillance for 24/7 ? “ so it’s certain that the french support roman ? are we looking at a continental political mess ? ” as if belarus and roman alone hadn’t been enough. | @aromancva​ + @rcmvncv​ 

[rcmvncv]

“I should have been born a d'Orléans,” Alexei sighed as he sat down with a steaming cup of tea in his hand. “The siblings let him do whatever he wants. He bombs a city, the siblings still stand by him. It’s astonishing.” ( @cksvnv​ )

[cksvnv]

“ then you wouldn’t have met me, and i would have despised you. that would make you feel terrible. ” the confidence was misplaced. alexei d’orléans would have been a man who didn’t care for a single opinion outside of his head... much like the man they were thinking about. “ blind loyalty is so boring though, isn’t it ? what you get is a bunch of brainwashed children who have nothing to say. you’d grow so exhausted and frustrated. ” she turned her head to look at him. her expression was light but her lips were turned into a pitying smile. “ i take it anya disagreed ? ” who would have thought ! absolutely no one could have seen it coming ! “ it was a long shot. you knew that. you still have irina and your mother to convince too. ”

[cksvnv]

aromancva​:

“ if we find the evidence we need and want to publicize that we have caught the assassin, the natural consequence will be pulling out of ukraine. ” the entire military tactic had been founded upon baseless rumors; they wouldn’t hold once the truth was revealed. “ should we be expecting retaliation for our actions? what will it take to end the conflict? ”

“ at the risk of sounding like vorontsova... russia doesn’t need to apologize. leon...nid– ” just using his first name was a mistake of one sort, she realized later. “ –will  be reasonable enough to want peace. i don’t think he’ll let his pride get the best of him. it will be easier if our olive branch is big though, but i think it’s up to lyosha. ”

[aromancva]

@cksvnv​

“ so. the king of ukraine. ” the initial objective of their operation was to gather evidence. the best way to present it was still a murky point in their plans. “ are you close enough to assess him? he’s…reasonable? ”  

[cksvnv]

“ yes ? ” an unexpected conversation topic ! oksana couldn’t help but to feel like she was being  judged. just a little bit. “ reasonable enough for what, exactly ? ”