verona’s handsiness had years ago been a likable trait, now the even the scent of her perfume reaching his nose made him wrinkle it. the delicate hands met tension underneath them. her jawline was more defined than normally as he waited for her to stop entertaining herself and move onto the reason for the meeting. he was sure he had expressed enough discomfort to make any sort of an attempt to appear unbothered completely vain. his shoulders did not relax even when there was a coffee table separating them. “ then you should bring it up with the king. he is here as you probably know. ” he had expected verona to dangle something personally interesting in front of him. something that he would have been tempted to accept despite it meaning that he was allowing her to maneuver him. “ what do you have ? ”

“ I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS IN COLLEGE… ” verona trailed a hand across his shoulders as she rounded the sofa of the sitting area. “ every single time national security came up, you were the gold standard. it’s been proven quite untrue by germany. ” she placed her hands on his shoulders, leaning over to speak almost directly into his ear. “ i feel a bit silly now for having asked for your thoughts back then. ” though hadn’t that just been an excuse to end up in the same room as him ? “ don’t you think it’s a great time to strengthen your security ? ” she straightened her back and waltzed over to the empty seat across from him. “ italy has a proposal for you. ”  [ @svmucl​ ]

catherinestuart​:

“there’s no point in asking wiebke. i’ve tried before. she still insists that complete political and economic control of basel is the only way for the region to successfully survive.” she pursed her lips, easily understanding just how frustrating it all must be. “the odds are on their side — all out war would be horrible.” switzerland would be absolutely decimated. 

“ oh that’s a good one, ” he scoffed. did they not feel any shame ? if there was something he could respect about verona di savoia, it was that verona never tried to dress her greed as anything but. “ elyse kept telling me that wittelsbach and zielcke were at odds with the king but at the moment... ” his eyes narrowed. the king was clearly and confidently on the side of his southern nobility. “ the oranje-nassau’s influence doesn’t really reach the king at the moment. the benelux countries are more or less indebted to germany because of france. ” it was extremely frustrating ! “ what do we know about the grand duke. maybe we’ve been trying to fix this from the wrong angle. ”

elysefz​:

“well, he’s very stubborn. it’s a family thing.” she accepted the cup, drumming her fingers over the ceramic. “max and non-violence?” she raised an eyebrow, incredulous. “he’s asking me for troops. actually, i think he’s expecting them.”

“ yes but at least you’re ruthless. why couldn’t he inherit a bit of that. ” elyse had a scary side, he personally wasn’t a fan of it or approved it much but in this one instance he could appreciate it. “ he is ? ” sam frowned. the frown grew deeper. “ are you in a position to pick a fight with germany ? ”

johannesgrunenberg​:

“Thank you,” he tipped his head forward graciously. “I won’t stay too long. We both know how Max gets and seeing us together won’t help.” Hans’s hands tensed before curling behind him. In the moment, he couldn’t muster the quote about idly hands and their dangers. “I sense we’re staring down the barrel of a gun, Samuel. I may have been sequestered in the fold but I have studied the movement we’re face. The Grand Duke is steadfast in his claim and if history dares to repeat, he will militarize the area if we march forward. No wants to lose land or power but lives are more important.” He urged that. “They’ve got friends in places we cannot reach and we’ve seen how those they keep deal with issues. Bloodshed and brimstone.” 

“What does Max wish propose we do about this once the waiting period ends? Is there no way to resolve this peacefully?” 

“ mh... ” the siblings strained relationship wasn’t something of any concern to samuel. they could fight about everything and everyone, sam knew not to entertain max’s foul moods. “ general safety is important, yes. ” he could agree with the statement to a certain extent. “ but this is not a decision between saving lives or wealth. basel is both our property and our responsibility. handing it over will displace 200,000 people — no matter how smooth a deal the germans will offer. ” it was not some historical dispute that divided opinions. basel was part of switzerland. period. “ we have a military to protect our borders and it’s their job and responsibility to do it. ” national pride was a powerful thing — samuel was convinced that it alone would be enough to convince enough many people to support a more aggressive solution. “ in order to solve something like this peacefully would require the aggressor to offer a peaceful solution. the germans will not do that, hans. ” 

maximiliians​:

“Fuck,” Max cursed, hating the indecision that had been plaguing this whole fucking crisis since the beginning. “We should have frozen all of their assets when we still had the chance, if we make it out of this intact remind me to try my uncle for treason.” It wasn’t a real solution, or anything that could help them now, but the vindictive part of him relished in the idea of it. “I know they fucking started it, but I don’t fully know our capacity to respond. I don’t want to overreact without seeing it first hand. I’m flying to Bern in the morning and then on to Aarau, join me?” 

“ worst case in scenario, that might have spurred them on quicker, ” sam pointed out — a very small comfort to numb the pain of retrospective wisdom. “ we can figure that out. you have a full line of military personnel at your service. meet with them, talk to them... they might have some ideas or at least knowledge that we don’t have. ” samuel was just happy to know that max was just as fed up with the situation as he was. “ yeah, of course. ”

maximiliians​:

“Do not mistake my caution for weakness,” he warned. “I will not have my first act as king to be to declare war.” Max took a breath. Sam knew him better than this, and deserved better from him. So he offered explanations instead of apologies. “We don’t have the numbers to mount an effective offensive,” the king slide a folder across his desk, the latest report from his generals. “The arms I bought from the Brazilians won’t arrive or be operational for another few weeks nor will our reserve forces. It would be us calling their bluff, only we aren’t prepared to meet it should they not be bluffing.” 

“I’m telling you your caution is actively hurting you,” Sam replied. He’d disagree about this. Caution was what you reserved for the unfamiliar things — and they were way past that point. The Germans were making a home out of Basel. “They’ve declared a war! They declared it the moment their soldiers crossed our border. It’s too late to call this anything else but a war.” As insane as it sounded! Switzerland in a war. “And are you preparing to call their bluff when you have the means to do so? That is what I want to know. Are you holding back because we are not in a position to act or because you are waiting for some divine order?”

maximiliians​:

“I will not be the one who incites violence,” Max tried very hard not to snap. Sam wasn’t the focus of his anger, wasn’t the cause, thought it irritated him a bit to feel as if his best friend and advisor thought he was simply sitting on his ass, waiting. “What else, exactly, would you have me do?“ The king took a breath, steadying himself before continuing without the iciness in his voice. “I’ve been speaking with Elyse, and the Poles, so the French aren’t our only option.”

“ you don’t have to be the first to start shooting. ” his thoughts had revolved around basel for a year now. it was frustrating to be stuck now. “ move up the troops, surround the city if it’s possible. ” anything that disrupted the current state. “ and is elyse or the poles going to help ? ”

sam gave the man a long look. “ you can come in. ” there was a reason why max’s lips remained sealed in johannes’ presence. johannes’ personal ambitions did not align with max’s — but unlike max, sam felt like even johannes’ grander goals involved the prosperity of switzerland. “ it depends on the germans’ plans. ” the big question mark. “ but if nothing changes, i think reclaiming the area will require more resources we are willing to sacrifice. ” lives.

“I have a deep inkling you won’t tell me anything but I’d rather ask you about this than Max.” Hans hung in the doorway like a shadow. “How bad is it getting?” 

@svmucl​

“ i know you’re probably tired of being asked about your uncle and aunt... but do you think there is no way to get them to change their minds about this ? ” ( @catherinestuart​ )

“ i don’t think max listens to me, ” sam admitted as he pushed a steaming cup of coffee in front of elyse. “ he insists on non-violence but i’m having a hard time seeing what our other options are. have you talked to him in a while ? ” ( @elysefz​ )

“ are you sure they will act ? ” sam asked, frowning. was there a reason to suspect that the germans would make another move ? “ they’ve essentially secured basel for themselves if we just sit and wait... ” they had been doing that for a while. sam was worried that the germans would be able to improve their defence line from what it already was. the possibility of regaining basel seemed further and further away each passing day. “ we could be the ones that make the next move. i don’t see why we should wait for them to either strengthen their position or expand it — both options are terrible for us. ”

“I can’t decide if waiting for them to act is better or worse than whatever they will eventually do,” Max sighed, “its the fucking anticipation, and things being out of our control that grates me.” 

@svmucl​ 

catherinestuart​:

“fanni and i were friendly.” they used to be, god knows what they are now. catherine’s brows furrowed at his suggestion, before slowly shaking her head. “on the contrary, i think pushing the germans further would make them want to work with us even less. it’s enough to deflect blame right now, but i’m sure the croÿs will appreciate a sizeable donation to fanni’s foundation in switzerland’s name.” 

“ good enough, i say. ” even old friendships went a long way. people were more willing to do you favours when they knew you on some level. “ if you want to pay for someone else’s crimes, sure. if verona managed to pin this on us, i’m sure we could fabricate a convincing enough a story about the germans. how they wanted to weaken our international position before trying to steal from us... ”

maximiliians​:

“Your first meeting with him was that bad, hm?” He arched an eyebrow, but the usual amusement that would accompany such a statement was absent, the Prince still too irritated by the previous meeting. “A meeting isn’t a contract and I don’t have to promise him anything.” Max sighed, “What did Femke think of him?”

“ no... i just think you don’t know what you get with him until all’s been said and done. he may treat us well or not. only time will tell. ” getting along with arnauld d’orléans was child’s play: they spoke the same language. it was just in the king’s presence, samuel felt like he was a apprentice trying to keep up with the masters. “ femke doesn’t think highly of him but that’s not because of the meeting. it’s a benelux thing. ” samuel waved his hand. “ but she agrees that the french make a good ally for this. ”

“ how well do you know the hungarians ? ” if his memory served him well, there was some sort of a connection between catherine and the croÿs. he would be glad to learn of any sort of a connection. “ perhaps we should try pinning the whole danube thing on the germans since we have nothing to lose there. ” ( @catherinestuart​ )

“ i can’t blame you for wanting to divorce germany. they’re giving me a headache and i am glad i don’t have to hold you accountable. ” ( @elysefz​ )

maximiliians​:

“I need a fucking drink,” his anger pressed at the edges of his vision, pounding rage into his skull - self righteous fucks with their pedantic lectures as if Max hadn’t argued the very same points with his uncle as it happened, back when he still felt powerless under the regency. But he was so close now, and for Basel, his people, and his son’s future - it was worth the risk. Maximilian poured them both healthy measures of his favorite cognac.  “Right,” he downed half his drink and ran a hand through his hair. “My uncle won’t act, so we will. We should meet with France again, but Arnauld is too unpredictable to be our only ally.” 

“ mhm... ” there was a difference between inaction and restraint. samuel personally could not blame the prince consort. only time would tell if staying put had saved them from a bigger tragedy or if they would end up paying a high price for it. “ i’d rather not work with him but... i agree. we’re running out of options and an enemy of our enemy is a friend. ” it was stupidly rough, almost barbaric, to dilute the dynamic into something so simple. “ i think you should see if you can get a deal from him. we just keep our expectations low. ”

“ i don’t know whether to laugh or cry. that meeting was a fucking joke. ” ( @maximiliians​ )