Her frown deepened. Tatiana was now very dangerously in the realm of being wrong, a feeling she did not relish and that her pride was unlikely to abide. In truth, Charles' political toadying had been something that Tatiana had rather overlooked in her quest to find the ideal political husband. She was stubborn, but would she be stubborn about him, or just about her goals?

It didn't help that Valerian was echoing the concerns that Tiberius had hinted at.

She remained quiet for a long moment.

— Valerian Macnair —

The following 3 users Like Tatiana Macnair's post:3 users Like Tatiana Macnair's post
   Justin Ross, Mariana Macnair, Reuben Crouch

---

— graphics by mj ❤ —

Valerian fell silent along with her, but he was the first to break it after the moment had passed.

"I can't give you the political power you seek. Not at this point in my life," he said, leaning forward to touch the top of her hand with her fingertips, "but neither will he. I will not beg you to be my bride, but I will beg you not to be his." Very rarely were disagreements with Tatiana won; she was stubborn in a way he was not, and usually they were about much more trivial matters than this. However, he felt as though he had breached a wall that he had not managed to penetrate before, and he would continue trying until he was met with another barrier.

"But if you were to be my bride..." He thought back to the way Macmillan had spoken of her during the confrontation, about how she was his—and that was before any proposal was made. "... you would have a great deal more freedom at my side than you would at his." Valerian, of course, still had expectations of any woman who became Mrs. Macnair, but none of them were expectations Tatiana did not already fill by virtue of having been raised by his own mother. It would be so easy...

---

The following 2 users Like Valerian Macnair's post:2 users Like Valerian Macnair's post
   Mariana Macnair, Reuben Crouch

---

To even entertain that she might have judged Mr. Macmillan incorrectly would mean admitting defeat, something that Tatiana would not even consider were it not for his surprising earnestness. She knew down to her very core that there would be no emerging from this situation without losing face with someone in some capacity, but even her mind did not churn quickly enough to steer her through this mess with any degree of speed.

"Very well," she said at last, quietly.

— Valerian Macnair —

The following 1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post:1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post
   Mariana Macnair

---

— graphics by mj ❤ —

Her response stopped him in his tracks.

"You will not be his bride, or—?" he asked, unable to mask his uncertainty.

Valerian had great confidence in himself, but he had not gone into this conversation believing he would walk away with anything but a dose of disappointment. But now?

---

The following 2 users Like Valerian Macnair's post:2 users Like Valerian Macnair's post
   Mariana Macnair, Reuben Crouch

---

Very well, I will not marry Macmillan.

Very well, I appreciate your viewpoint and shall cut you from my life when I become Mrs. Macmillan.

Very well, I shall marry you.

Very well, I will resign myself  to spinsterhood.

Four options. Four paths. Four distinctly different versions of herself. It did not matter which Tatiana wanted to be now, only which version she would least resent in her sunset years.

"Very well, I hear you," she concluded. "Very well, I acknowledge Charles Macmillan's shortcomings. Very well, I accept—" here Tatiana paused, reluctant to truly say the words aloud "—I accept that I might have erred in my judgement."

Who will you be, Tatiana?

Single.

Spinster.

Mrs. Macmillan.

Mrs. Macnair.

He credited her already with far more freedom than she truly had.  

Single.

Spinster.

Mrs. Macmillan.

Mrs. Macnair.

Mrs. Macmillan.

Mrs. Macnair.

Mrs. Macmillan.

Mrs. Macnair.

"Very well, I suppose he is not the choice I thought he was."

Mrs. Macnair.

"Very well, I will accept your proposal."

— Valerian Macnair —

The following 5 users Like Tatiana Macnair's post:5 users Like Tatiana Macnair's post
   Ingrid Rowle, Justin Ross, Mariana Macnair, Reuben Crouch, Valerian Macnair

---

— graphics by mj ❤ —

Every very well that left her mouth caused Valerian's heart to skip a beat, and each time it recovered with a vengeance. At first it was admitting that Macmillan was not the ideal. Then it was admitting that her judgment had been off.

He became aware that his lips had parted in anticipation, so he shut them, swallowing the thickness that had formed in the back of his throat. The pause that came next was far, far too long, and in that moment Valerian might have convinced himself that he did truly want Tatiana for her sake—not for his mother's sake, not because he wanted to slight Macmillan, not because it was what was easy.

But then she accepted his proposal, and suddenly he felt... calm. Not elated, not shocked, not confused. It was a simple serenity, knowing that whatever Macmillan had pulled would go unrewarded, and that Tatiana had made a decision that would not cause him pain at dinner for the years to come.

"You will not regret your decision," he promised, reaching out to take her hand again, although this time he did not pull away. Was it possible, he wondered, that he might one day come to view her the way he ought to? He doubted it, truly, but of all women he could potentially marry Tatiana was the one he would least likely regret.

---

The following 3 users Like Valerian Macnair's post:3 users Like Valerian Macnair's post
   Mariana Macnair, Reuben Crouch, Tatiana Macnair

---

As soon as she said it, relief and regret flooded her with equal measure. Still, she allowed her cousin to take her hand—it was rather an alien gesture, in light of their new arrangement—eyes searching his face for confirmation that she had, indisputably, made the right decision.

She found no such confirmation.

Marriage to Valerian had one disadvantage, one so unbecoming she could not speak it aloud: he could not be done away with if he failed her; she was, Tatiana thought, too sentimental for such a thing.

At least for now.

"I should very much hope not," she answered dryly, a small, if uncertain, smile playing at her lips.

— Valerian Macnair —

The following 1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post:1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post
   Reuben Crouch

---

— graphics by mj ❤ —

It was done, then. It still left one question burning in the back of his mind: what could be done with Macmillan?

Macmillan, who had already proved so impulsive and prone to violence.

Macmillan, who had been parading around with Tatiana despite the bullet in his side.

Macmillan, who had already broken the terms of the duel, and so very likely would not take well to Valerian enforcing it further.

He was not sure, but in the pit of his stomach there was a nervous tingling sensation that he could not pinpoint the source of. "You should write to your brother. It will be only a matter of time before the rest of the house learns of it." Valerian would tell his mother, of course, because after weeks of enduring her verbal jabs he was desperate to hear a word of praise instead. "And I would tread carefully with Macmillan—he does not take well to being told no." There was a sourness in his voice, a remnant from their first confrontation. He would offer to go with her, to make sure she was safe—but, really, he did not think Macmillan would harm her, though he could not say the same for himself.

---

  

---

"Of course," came her murmured excuse. It was but one of many things she and Charles Macmillan had in common.

Rather a troublesome trait to share if a couple intended to marry.

Rather an excellent trait if a pair was working together against an external force.

At least with Valerian, she could always be assured to have the upper hand.

— Valerian Macnair —

The following 1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post:1 user Likes Tatiana Macnair's post
   Reuben Crouch

---

— graphics by mj ❤ —