A blindingly white landscape stood out before me, it's vastness was something I was familiar with. The ground was bare, covered in many feet of snow. What little vegetation there was, like small trees, were dead. My breath puffed out before my eyes as I took in the sights before me. This was my home.
My name is Ivan Braginsky. However, to many, I am better known as Russia. I raised a freezing cold bottle of liquor to my lips, taking a long, draining drink of the clean liquid. The liquid was extremely cold against the warmth of my mouth. The sensation of the alcohol finally settled in and it felt like I had set my body on fire, in the greatest way possible. I took a deep breath of the brisk air and dropped the now empty bottle as I continued to trek through the thick snow, I was nearly there. I soon approached my destination and saw what I was here to see. Her.
Just past my border line was the most exquisite creature my eyes allowed me to behold. Her name was Chun-yan, though many knew her simply as China. Her beauty was that of a sunflower in the snow. A large smile broke out behind the scarf protecting my face and my pace quickened. I could see her clearly now, her dark brown hair poked out just under the fluffy Russian style hat she wore. The hat was a gift from me so she would always be warm when we met with one another. Her slim figure was buried beneath multiple layers of warm coats. The closer I came the larger her smile grew, her chocolate brown eyes shining as she raised an arm to wave at me.
"Ivan!" She called, her beautiful voice ringing out over the snow covered plains.
Drawing up resolve, I mustered the strength to dash through the snow. I covered the yardage that separated us and drew her into a warm embrace. I took a moment of silence to breathe in everything about her. She always smelled of flowers and somewhere warm.
"I missed you... My spring blossom." I murmured to her softly as she continued to hug me tightly.
She raised her head, the brown eyes I loved so much meeting my own violet ones. She smiled yet again as her slender hands raised up to pull my scarf down, revealing my nose and mouth. I smiled back at her as we both leaned in towards one another. Our lips were mere inches from one another when she hit me.
"Ivan! You've been drinking again!" She said angrily as she hit my chest.
Her blows were soft and I was hardly effected. Nevertheless, my face turned red and I couldn't bring myself to make eye contact with her. She continued to rant and my brain instantly droned out her words. I zoned back in sometime nearly two minutes later.
"You know how much I hate substance abuse!" She reminded me for the millionth time before her rant faded into angry sounding Chinese.
She finally stopped, puffing air loudly while she glared up at me.
"Chun-yan my love, I am very sorry. I shouldn't have drank before coming here." I apologized, rubbing her arms gently as she shivered.
"That's right you shouldn't have!" She pouted, folding her arms against her body to stay warm.
"Forgive me lovely." I pouted for a few more moments before her face softened.
"I forgive you Ivan." She murmured before pressing herself against my chest.
"Thank you." I replied, leaning my head down to kiss her forehead with a small smile. We stood in silence for a few minutes, enjoying one another's embrace before I spoke again.
"How are things back at home?" I inquired, still holding her tight.
"They are good. I've been seeing a little too much of Japan lately however."
I growled slightly at the mention of Japan. I'd never really cared for the man, I disliked how snake like he was. Japan was someone who was never particularly straightforward about matters.
"Don't be like that, he's practically my little brother."
"I don't care. If he's hanging around your borders, there's something wrong."
"I'm sure it's nothing."
A small gruff sigh escaped my lips in reply and Chun-Yan laced her gloved fingers with my own.
"You should relax some Ivan." She coaxed, lifting her free hand to caress the side of my cheek.
I leaned into her touch, it was something I missed whenever we had to part. I let out another sigh as she began to guide me down towards her. I set aside my suspicions of Japan and met her lips with my own. I wished that she could just come to my home, where we could properly see one another. Where we could escalate our intimacy beyond these few stolen kisses. But alas, our union was one that could cause the other nations to target us. We were both large countries with a lot of power and if anyone knew that we were this intimate, they would see us as a threat. Time stole away our few passionate minutes and we parted for air, the cold making it even harder to breathe properly.
"Ivan... I miss you." She said softly once her breathing was steady.
Her gloved hand was still on my face, her thumb gently running over my cheek. Again I leaned into her touch, trying to soak in everything I could about her.
"I miss you too, my sweet." I raised the sleeve of my coat, glancing at my watch.
I frowned, it was nearly time for me to leave. Chun-yan frowned up at me again. "You have to leave soon, don't you?" She asked, squeezing my hand gently when I didn't reply.
The answer was rather clear. I never had enough time to be with her. I spent more time walking to see her than I spent actually with her.
"I have a meeting with a few of the Baltics... And my sisters." Now it was Chun-yan's turn to be upset.
"I don't like your sister... Belarus or whatever her name is."I definitely couldn't blame her for her dislike of my younger sister.
As disturbing as it was, she is madly in love with me. Though, Belarus is at least smart enough to know not to tangle with Chun-yan. Honestly, if it came down to a battle... I was almost positive I would stand by Chun-yan's side.
"Let's not talk about her." I returned, kissing her softly as my hands played with hers.
"Alright..." She managed between our kisses. Slowly I began to pull our bodies apart, still kissing her.
The space between us made me sad and the cold began to penetrate my clothing without her there. Finally, our lips parted and I could see the sadness in her face. "We'll see one another again soon." I assured her softly, parting more until just our hands were touching.
"I'll send the first bird this time." She returned.
My hand finally parted from hers and I started my trek back home through the unforgiving snow. I glanced back to see Chun-yan staring after me before turning to go. This relationship of secrecy and political caution was what happened when the Bear met the Dragon.
Later that same day found myself sitting at a large dinner table, surrounded by my subordinates and family. Latvia was on my right side, looking nervous as ever while my sister Ukraine sat on my left. Belarus sat a fair distance from me, letting her displeasure towards our separation show.
"Russia... Sir. About the farmland-" I knew that my mind needed to be on what Latvia had to say to me, but instead my mind was elsewhere. In my imagination I was miles away, nearby a warm lakeside. There was a small home there, and so was Chun-yan. My delicate flower, dressed in her beautiful traditional clothing.
I was a love-sick fool.
I thought back on her reprimand for my drinking. She'd been that way since her Opium abuse some years ago. Once she had cleaned her and her people up, she swore off anything similar to drugs or alcohol. I really needed to quit.
"Is he even listening?" I heard one of the Baltics ask quietly.
"I want Navel patrols increased in the east near Japan and Korea." I said suddenly, recalling what Chun-yan had said about Japan's recent appearances.I could see the questions on everyone's faces but no one dared to speak. Once an order was made by me, no one questioned it.
"Y-yes sir!" Latvia said quickly when no one else confirmed my order. He shuffled the paperwork in his hands before clearing his throat nervously. Latvia always seemed the most afraid of me.
"Um sir... About the farmland." Lithuania spoke up this time.
"What about it?" I returned.
"We're running out of workers! We have too much produce and not enough people for harvest. I can't do everything myself!" Ukraine said. If there was one thing my air-headed sister knew something about, it was farming. "We need machinery." She added.
"My people also need machinery. I do not have the ability to make things appear as I so wish." I replied a little louder than usual. Estonia and Belarus' faces remained stoic. Ukraine appeared upset with me. Latvia and Lithuania both shook a bit, almost unnoticeable.I don't know if I was in a bad mood from having to leave Chun-yan or just because sometimes I got too frustrated with my responsibilities as a powerful country.
"Are we finished?" I asked as I pushed my seat away from the table and stood to my feet.
"Brother! The farmland!" Ukraine spoke up again.
I hadn't actually meant that as a question as I made my way out of the room. I plucked my coat off of a coat-hanger, putting it on. I ran a hand across my face slowly before I pulled my gloves out of my coat pocket and slipped those on as well. With a heavy sigh I made my way towards my bedroom. I closed my door behind me, locking it tight. Though, no one but Belarus dared to enter my room anyway, the lock was to keep her out. My room was rather cold, so I was grateful for my warm clothing. I approached the radiator under the window and switched it on. I patted the foot of my bed, feeling a hot water bottle warming the bedding.
I shed my coat once my room grew warmer and laid it on my desk chair. I glanced sideways at the mahogany desk, my eyes finding the picture I often spent too much time looking at. It was a black and white photo of Chun-yan and I. We had it taken at the most recent world conference. To avoid suspicion, I had taken pictures with many other countries, but this was the only one that mattered. My eyes lingered on the picture for a few long moments before I removed my gloves and set them on the desk. I glanced at my nearby bottle of vodka and contemplated a glass before I decided against it. If I was going to quit, I needed to stick to it. I grabbed the bottle, unlocked my door, and set the bottle outside in the hallway. After locking my door back I slowly climbed into my bed with a yawn.
As much as I wanted to sleep, my mind was plagued with thoughts of politics, my people, my family, and my lover. This was nearly too much for one man to bear. I folded my arms over my face and let out a growl. Sometimes the pressure got to me too much, am I not a person like everyone else? Why couldn't I have happiness and someone to love?
