Veronica Mars is a marshmallow (ronmars) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2015-12-14 19:05:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, svetlana sergievskaya, veronica mars |
Who: Svetlana and Veronica
What: Friends chatting over coffee
When: Mid-December
Where: Random coffee shop
Warnings: Low
Status: Log | Complete
Everything was crazy with getting ready for the holidays. Plus Veronica was still adjusting to her new job even though she had been there for over a month now. Between that and holiday shopping and spending time with her dad she didn’t have all that much free time. A lot had happened since the last time she saw Svetlana. Well actually not really that much but she had met Svetlana’s dream!husband and had yet to tell her about it so that needed to happen. And then there was the fact that all her friends seemed to be getting pregnant. A part of her wanted to make sure that Svetlana wasn’t as well. She needed at least one friend without a baby.
After receiving their drinks the pair of blondes made their way to one of the tables taking a seat. “So,” Veronica began. “Please tell me you’re not pregnant.” Might as well ask that first. She knew it was probably unlikely that all her friends would be having kids, but seriously it was like one after another lately. First Sharon, then Lina and Emma. Who was next?
There rarely was a time when Svetlana wasn’t working on some sort of case. She made time for her friends, but it was always there. Like the one she was currently going over from when she’d had to do the seminar at the precinct which had been a punishment of sorts. So far, she wasn’t liking what she was finding, but she wasn’t about to give up or hand it to someone else either.
But that was neither here nor there. She had her file with her of course, but that was just so she could do some follow up after coffee with Veronica.
Or… She could be greeted with the pregnancy question.
“.....That would require sex. Anatoly and I may be complicated and confusing, but there is no sex or risk of pregnancy….”
Yes. She was confused as she didn’t know that all of Veronica’s friends were pregnant or had been and that was why she made the comment. It was just.. very random and the Russian woman didn’t bother to hide her confusion or the strange look she was giving Veronica. Because really. What?
“Why?”
Well that was a relief. For selfish reasons of course. But really it was weird how pretty much all her friends were like moms now. “That seems to be the news I keep getting lately,” Veronica said taking a sip of her coffee. It was more accurate to say that she kept figuring out on her own because she was clever and everyone was keeping it secret until after the first trimester it seemed. Veronica just picked up on it ahead of time.
“How are things with Anatoly. Other than complicated?” she asked raising a brow. “I met him,” she added casually. Because she had and it wasn’t a huge deal but she did want to inform Svetlana of it. She was sure her friend would do the same if she randomly ran into Logan although it would be more difficult to tell it was her Logan given what a common name that was. Unlike Anatoly, which was how Veronica had figured it out. Well that and the accent.
“Oh.” Well, that made sense then. If it seemed to be going around (almost like a flu. Probably shouldn’t think about pregnancy as an illness), it would make sense to ask someone else who supposedly had a shot at being pregnant if they were. “I assure you, I am not pregnant.”
As she had already stated since there was no sex involved.
Then Veronica was asking how things were with Anatoly and… that she had met him as well. O...kay? That was random. It seemed today was full of randomness then. Not that it really mattered, it wasn’t like Svetlana felt they should never meet. It just wasn’t something she had been anticipating.
“They’re...going?” There was nothing defined. “He showed up at Chanukah shabbat. It seems my brother invited him.” And then Mikhail making a comment on how she needed to be careful but she already knew that. “Nothing has changed since the last we spoke if that is what you mean.”
That was the best news Veronica heard all day. Not that she wasn’t happy for her friends. It was just… weird. And yeah she didn’t want to be the only one without kids around. Backup was the closest she would ever get to having an actual kid. “Keep it that way,” Veronica quipped with another sip of her coffee.
These were not random things to Veronica. Just things Svetlana needed to be caught up on. And Veronica would rather get it all out there at the start. “Well that was sweet of him,” she commented. Because it was. Always nice when a guy got along with the family and all that. “So you still haven’t admitted how you feel about him?”
That was something that was appreciated, getting things out and in the open like that. She just didn’t have the prior knowledge so for her, definitely random though they also made sense once she had the basic understanding. She was amused by the comment on how she should keep it that way in terms of not getting pregnant. “Noted.”
“Dmitri likes to meddle. It is the same here and the dreams.” Well. Before he got sick and died in the dreams. But the fact remained, her brother meddled. A lot. Or Veronica could make the comment about her having feelings for Anatoly. Which nearly made her choke on her tea. Because that would require her to actually admit to herself what her feelings were on the matter.
They were confusing and complicated. She knew Anatoly had feelings for her. She knew she trusted him with her life but she didn’t really know what her own feelings on the matter were. They just...were.
“Are you sure Dmitri has not found you and said something?”
“I’m sure,” Veronica replied with a knowing smirk. If both Veronica and Svetlana’s brother saw it there was clearly something there. It was just a matter of time. But Veronica was usually good at picking up on things ahead of time. Which was why it got so annoying when people tried to keep things from her. Not much she could do about that though.
“I take it your brother feels the same way I do?” that smirk was still on her face. However she didn’t want to tease Svetlana too much. And really she wasn’t trying to tease her friend. Just get her to admit things, for her own happiness.
Svetlana just nodded some as Veronica verified that Dmitri had not in fact found her. She wouldn’t put it past her brother but that didn’t really matter at that point. With Svetlana though, she wasn’t purposefully keeping anything from Veronica. It was either things she just didn’t seem to think were important (like the live game of Russian Roulette) or she herself hadn’t put thought in or knew, as in her feelings because she kept everything so closely guarded that it usually took some sort of action to make her realise what was going on.
“That is one way of putting it.” It was hard to explain the dynamic of Svetlana with all of her brothers. Dmitri was the meddling one who just wanted her to open herself up to people and not be so guarded. Erik had always been the exact opposite and he’d had a very strong influence on her, as did his death. And Mikhail was… well, he worried but kept his thoughts to himself most of the time. Beyond the brief warning he had given her to just be careful. Probably because he knew it could end badly if she listened strictly to Dmitri’s advice.
She wasn’t worried about Mikhail’s concerns though.
“I don’t really have time right now to worry about it though.” Which was always the case with Svetlana. Maybe she did hide behind her work. But she was actively investigating and the path it was leading was… troublesome, which meant it had her full attention.
Veronica was right there with Svetlana. Who did have time to worry about a love life and relationships really? There was so much else to do and focus on. And she did know that Svetlana was usually always busy with one case or another. She remembered exactly what that was like.
“Just try to be honest with yourself,” she shrugged. She knew Svetlana wasn’t keeping anything from her on purpose. Nor were her other friends really. But with Svetlana it seemed more as if she was keeping things from herself and Veronica and apparently Svetlana’s brother were just picking up on them. Either way Veronica wasn’t mad at her nor could she fault her for anything.
“Speaking of not having time. Any interesting cases lately?” Veronica could still help with the whole legal part of things if Svetlana needed it. She still had her license, she just wasn’t exactly practicing at the moment, choosing to focus on something else instead.
“I can do that.” Since the word try was in there. And she did try to be honest with herself, it wasn’t like she lied to herself. She just...pushed everything to the side to focus on other things that were easier to handle. Like trafficking cases. Yes, she found the complexities of her work far easier to handle and understand than her own personal emotions. Such was the way of Svetlana.
“I picked up a new one. I was called into the police station to do a training course as one of the detectives yelled at a witness and scared her off. So I said I would look into it. See if it was truly his actions or if it was an excuse.”
Taking a sip of her tea, Svetlana stared out the window for a moment before turning her attention back to Veronica.
“I’m still investigating but it does look to be more complicated.” Complicated in a way Svetlana really wasn’t thrilled about. “Are you adjusting well to your new job?”
“What detective was that? Or actually what station? And then detective?” Veronica knew a few at the Irvine PD. She was just hoping Svetlana didn’t say Logan because that would be embarrassing. But she knew others besides him. Sharon used to work there as well and there was also Leon. Those were the ones she was closest with at least. There were some others that were more casual acquaintances because of who she knew. And her old job. Being a defense lawyer she had a tendency to interact with the police.
“I’m sure you will be able to figure it out,” she assured her. Svetlana was good at what she did. Veronica was well aware of that fact. “If there is anything I can do let me know,” she added with another sip of her coffee before answering Svetlana’s question. “I am. It took a few weeks but I think I finally got the hang of things.” Sharon was still training her technically but she was beginning to feel more at ease there.
“Irvine Department, Detective Orcot.” Which had been… interesting. She had understood his frustration but that also wasn’t an excuse to her. He at least seemed vaguely remorseful when saying to make sure she let the girl know that he was sorry and that it went beyond just wanting to get information for the case. Still though. “I told him I would let him know what I find out.” Over dinner. Which had seemed odd but she hadn’t thought anything of it.
“I will, thank you.” It was making sure first that her suspicions were correct because if she was right and this led back to Stahma… well, that would be opening a whole other can of worms that she didn’t want to deal with. Honestly that family was a thorn in her side for a slew of non professional reasons.
“That’s good to hear. I am unsurprised that you would adjust quickly though.”
So it was Leon. At least it wasn’t Logan. “Ah,” Veronica commented. “Leon,” she added knowingly. “He can be very passionate. Not a bad guy though.” He was actually one of Veronica’s good friends. Sharon’s and Logan’s best friend. But there was no need to go into all of that.
“Thanks,” Veronica replied taking the compliment with a smile. Svetlana seemed to know her well too. She was good at adjusting to most any situation. “I’m looking forward to having a bit of time off for Christmas though. My dad has been driving me crazy about how we need to spend more time together lately.”
“He is. He seemed very excited for when I would meet with him to discuss whatever I find.” Language barriers, those were her best friend. But really, a discussion about a case over dinner. Americans were strange but she just went with it. It was easier that way.
“Ah.” Nodding some, Svetlana sipped her tea. “Family is important.” Even if it was just her and her brothers now. Part of that had to do with their parents being in Moscow, and currently in prison as Molokov played… whatever game it was he was playing to get to her. But it had always been that way. Even more so once Erik had been killed. She could understand a family member wanting to spend more time together.
“And when exactly are you meeting him?” She couldn’t exactly picture Svetlana and Leon meeting up outside of work. They were so different. But knowing Leon he was probably trying to get a date. He didn’t seem to have the best luck in that department which Veronica did like to tease him about. She didn’t see him having much luck with Svetlana either. The Russian was too focused on her work and Veronica had a feeling if she did decide to see anyone it would be Anatoly.
“Yeah,” Veronica agreed. She was always close with her dad. Not so much her mother, but that was another story one she always preferred not to get into. “You mentioned your brother is here. What about the rest of your family?” she realized she didn’t know all that much about Svetlana’s own parents.
“He said over dinner.” To which she shrugged because, well, even if she thought it was a bit odd, she also was known to do plenty of meetups over dinner just because of scheduling issues. “I guess it worked better for his schedule.” Because Veronica was right, Svetlana really wouldn’t have agreed to a date with Leon. Beyond the wanting to hit her head on a wall initially, there were her trust issues in general and not letting people close. So she didn’t see the purpose of going on dates to just… go on dates.
And then Veronica asking about her family. That was always fun. There were a lot of intricacies that came with that thanks to Stahma and Molokov, but she supposed it wasn’t too hard a question to answer in general terms.
“My two surviving brothers are in America. Mikhail flies out periodically from Washington and was here for Chanukah since Dmitri and I are both in the area,” Or when Mikhail had shown up during Dmitri’s spiral following the arrival of Stahma. “Our parents remained in Moscow.” There was a subtle hardening of her eyes at that. She had always been closer to her brothers anyway, but with the way things currently were going and the fact she was still struggling to get them out of prison, it was a sore topic.
“Yeah I’m sure that’s the reason,” Veronica replied though it was clear she didn’t think that at all. She wasn’t sure if Svetlana would catch on though with her language barrier issue. “Where are you going for dinner?” More details before she just jumped to the wrong conclusion was always a good thing but either way she would probably let Svetlana know her suspicion.
She listened as Svetlana talked about her family noticing the way her eyes narrowed at the mention of her parents. “Something happen back in Moscow?” Veronica asked picking up on the fact that there was more to the story there.
She caught the comment and while she wasn’t quite sure what Veronica was hinting at, Svetlana did quirk a brow at her. Then the question about where they were going for dinner and the Russian woman shrugged. “It was not discussed. I told him I would call him once I had information for him.” For her, it was strictly business and he had seemed fine with that. Oddly happy but nothing to point towards him being anxious or anything of that sort.
And oh that was a complicated question. Letting out a slow breath, Svetlana absently drummed her fingers on the table for a moment to collect her thoughts.
“Laws in Russia are… complicated. Tightening of rules against NGOs which receive funding from foreign entities and are not acting in the country’s supposed best interest. My work falls under that. I do not speak of it with my parents, they do not ask. They were arrested under suspicion of discussing my work as it is seen as foreign agency. Cold War terminology. Or so the official line is.” Svetlana didn’t believe it. Especially as Stahma had broken into her apartment undoubtedly to find evidence for her father. No. This was something else. This was pure Molokov but she had no proof.
“Just make sure he knows it’s just a business meal,” Veronica commented. Hopefully that was enough. She didn’t want to meddle too much in her friend’s lives. Just wanted what was best for the both of them and for some reason Veronica still believed Anatoly was best for Svetlana. Weird considering she had only met him once but from the things her friend told her it was clear he cared.
“So your parents were arrested for no reason basically?” Veronica could feeling herself getting mad on behalf of Svetlana. That was just fucked up. Yeah the justice system in the United States wasn’t always the best but it was better than that. “Just because they were suspected of talking to you about your work?” Veronica did know a lot of things but she wasn’t all that up to date on her Russian politics. However that didn’t sound like a good enough basis to arrest someone.
There wasn’t much to say to the comment on making sure Leon knew it was strictly a business meal, but Svetlana nodded all the same. Veronica clearly knew him better than she did and it wouldn’t be the first time she had gotten confused by intentions because of language and cultural differences. Besides, there was the more pressing conversation about her parents which honestly wasn’t something she’d been planning to discuss. Anatoly knew because she’d gone to him when it happened but it was something she kept to herself otherwise. She was handling it.
Or trying to. But there was only so much she could do but she continued anyway.
“That is the official reasoning, yes.” Right. Which… left the question of unofficially, which was all suspicion and nothing more on her part. Paranoia. But she knew Molokov and while she had always been unnerved by him in Moscow, the dreams put it in a whole new light.
“And the unofficial?” Once again it was clear there was more to the story there. The Leon topic was already forgotten about as far as Veronica was concerned. This conversation was far more compelling and she could tell that it wasn’t something Svetlana opened up about often. Hopefully she wasn’t pushing her friend too much.
“Unofficially I have nothing but my suspicion that it ties more to personal…” What was the word she wanted? The conversation had been easier with Anatoly because he spoke Russian and he knew Molokov in the dreams. “History.” That took longer to find than it should have. “The man is former KGB, still a politician. He has shown up in my dreams, the one who used me as a pawn.”
Sighing, Svetlana took a sip of tea before continuing, absently drumming her fingers again.
“It would not be the first time he or his family have focused on mine. It is why Erik was in Beslan where he died. It is a personal matter for him and he was given information of my work here to make a case against them. But it is nothing more than suspicion.” And the laws were easy to manipulate if you knew how.
“Who is Erik?” She assumed it was another brother? She knew of Dmitri and Mikhail. Svetlana had mentioned both of them. But she didn’t remember her mentioning an Erik. It could be because he was gone though. Veronica could imagine that was painful to talk about.
“Sounds personal to me,” she frowned. “I can’t stand when people who don’t deserve power are in power.” She was sure it was the same for Svetlana. Probably more so with everything she was going through.
“My eldest brother.” And the one she had always felt closest to when she was younger, as well as in the dreams. But right, she had only said surviving brothers when they were talking about family earlier. Which was fine, it was hard to explain. Most people didn’t know about Beslan and was something they had to look up if they weren’t from Russia or knew of the conflict with Chechnya.
“That has been my feeling on it.” Using her parents to get to her. She had no idea what Molokov’s endgame for her was. She didn’t understand why he would always show up at her functions when she’d still been based in Moscow. It was frustrating. She had accepted when Stahma had shown up that soon it would be her turn to be focused on as she’d done all the damage already to Erik and Dmitri and had been unable to get to Mikhail. She hadn’t expected this but it had been months now. “Neither do I.”