"You know I'm really truly grateful to have met somebody just like you, but life, it goes along, and from what I know, that means we'll have to part soon" Arms wrapped tightly around the slightly taller man's neck, as Lukas pretty much had to choke the words out of his chest, his voice still coming out as soft and quiet while his face remained buried in the crook of the Danes' neck. The Dano-Norwegian union had a lasting impact on Lukas, and he kept his cultural ties with Matthias. The representation of Denmark simply nodded, holding onto the Norwegian tightly. "It's hard to believe that after tomorrow, I may never see ya again." He responded with simply, moving an arm up to pet Lukas's hair gently.
Whoa whoa whoa, take it from the top, will you?
As an influential kingdom of Europe, and as the 14th century being described as Norway's 'Golden Age', Lukas was pretty happy, more than just happy! he had what he needed, and wanted for that matter, everything was going perfectly well. With peace, and an increase in trade! Especially with the British Islands, good stuff. Good stuff I tell ya.
It was quite the disappointment when, in 1349, Lukas had grown quite ill, and his people dying by the hundreds. Within a year, a third of his population had been wiped out completely by the black death, and later reduced the population to half the amount he had originally by the year 1400. So many of his villages were gone, everyone dead, and all he could do was lay in bed, trying to make himself better; at some times, while just laying there with nobody but his own thoughts, he wished that he could just die. He was sure it'd happen eventually once all his people were gone, and Denmark or Sweden took over all his land. He had a huge abundance of land, too! From all the deaths, there was hardly half the space as before occupied, the reduction in taxes weakened the king's position, and many aristocrats lost the basis for their surplus, reducing some to mere farmers. High tithes to church made it increasingly powerful and the archbishop became a member of the Council of State. He could hardly deal with the pain, himself; both the emotional and physical pain of his people dying, and on top of that, the pain of his own sickness. By the time the Black Plague ended, Lukas could hardly stand himself up. Everything hurt, the amount of people he had lost. Let us say it takes more than just an emotional impact on a country when their people constantly die.
If in 1380, the king of both Denmark and Norway; Olaf Haakonsson hadn't created a union between the two, Denmark-Norway, Lukas was sure he'd have dissolved by now, and in 1397, Sweden joined the union, making it the Kalmar Union.
When a war was waged against the Germans, causing a trade blockade and higher taxes for Norwegians, which resulted in a rebellion. However, Lukas, himself, was too weak to pull out of the union, as much as he so much wanted to, he and his people simply weren't enough to survive on their own without the Kalmar Union. A centralising policy which inevitably favoured Denmark was pursued, why did it favour Denmark, of all countries? The Danes? Because Matthias had a greater population than Norway and Sweden, combined.
Lukas slipped even further into the background of the Kalmar Union under the Oldenburg dynasty, which was established 1448. At least, Lukas and his people had some affection for King Christian the second, who stayed in the country for several years. Other than that, there really wasn't much else to have affection for.
Soon enough, Berwald departed himself and the Swedes, his people, from the Kalmar Union in 1524, Lukas did try and follow in Sweden's steps, and leave the Kalmar Union as well; but failed, as he was still too weak to leave the union, and Denmark–Norway became it's own personal union under Denmark's rule, again. In 1536, Lukas and his people were integrated into Denmark, and as a consequence, Norway's Council of the Realm was abolished. Even though he continued to have separate institutions and his own laws. Much of the Norwegian population moved to find work in Copenhagen, attend University, or join the Royal Fleet. He didn't particularly like it, but the idea that he was stuck in a union with Denmark for possibly the rest of his life was starting to grow on him, seeing as his people were treated equally to Danes. Suppressed, but it wasn't like the Danes weren't suppressed.
After the personal union of Matthias and Lukas was attacked by the United Kingdom at the Battle of Copenhagen, an alliance was made between Napoleon and Denmark-Norway, however, the wars were only directing them towards dire conditions and mass starvation in 1812. By 1814, Matthias found himself on the losing side of the wars, and that was when the victorious powers of the Napoleonic wars forced Matthias, under the treaty of Kiel, to give Norway to Sweden, while Egill, Greenland and the Faroe Islands remained with himself.
In an attempt to resist another personal union with Berwald, Lukas took this as his opportunity to declare his own independence, on May 17th of 1814. The consequences of trying to resist the decision to link Norway with Sweden caused the Norwegian-Swedish War, as Sweden tried to use his military to link Norway into a personal union with him, but seeing as Sweden's military was not strong enough to defeat the Norwegian forces, Norway simply couldn't afford to support a war, and British and Russian navies blocked the Norwegian coast. Lukas had next to no choice but to accept that he had to share yet another union with Sweden. Even after his declaration of independence.
Now carrying these memories which pain me with a smile, I walk away from yesterday to our fated goodbye.
There we go. Top taken, back to the point. Where were we? Ah, yes! The representation of Denmark simply nodded, holding onto the Norwegian tightly. "It's hard to believe that I may never see ya again." He responded with simply, moving an arm up to pet Lukas's hair gently.
What felt like after too far soon, Lukas parted from the hug at the sound of his name being called, his few days of independence was pretty nice, but now it was time to go, and there wasn't much he could do about it, seeing as the Norwegian-Swedish War didn't really end with a winner, simply none of them could actually have a legitimate war over this, therefore, had no choice. "Goodbye." He sighed and took a few steps back from the Dane. Within a few moments of his name being called again, the hand of Sweden wrapped around his upper arm, tugging him away.
Throughout his union with Sweden, Lukas used the Danish written language which descended from Old East Norse, rather than using Classical Norwegian or Old West Norse. It felt as if he was only linked with Sweden simply because Berwald had lost Timo to Ivan, Finland to Russia. He was there because Berwald needed someone to take the place of the link he had previously lost, "If I were to go through life living just to take somebody else's place, then I would rather have been born as a pebble, living out my peaceful days."
The two states of Sweden and Norway kept separate constitutions, laws, legislatures, administrations, state churches, armed forces, and currencies; although their kings mostly stayed in Berwald's capital, Stockholm. The Norwegian government was presided over by Swedes until 1829, and Norwegians until 1856. That office was later vacant and then abolished in 1873. Since then, foreign policy was conducted through the Swedish foreign ministry. Lukas felt as if he hadn't a purpose, other than living as a replacement of Timo in Berwald's house. He had felt much closer in his union with Matthias, but seeing as Denmark-Norway's alliance with Napoleon caused Arthur and Ivan to give permission to Berwald's occupation of Norway as compensation for the loss of Finland in 1809 and as a reward for joining the alliance against Napoleon. He was a reward.
That was all he was, Lukas was simply a prize given to Berwald for being against Napoleon. The prize that was given because the prize that Berwald wanted was given to Russia.
"Then maybe we could then avoid misunderstandings too, and then maybe I would never have ever gotten to know you" Lukas pretty much whispered while his face stayed stuffed into one of the many pillows on his bed. He almost wished he hadn't gotten himself stuck in this, what had he even done? How could he have prevented this? God knows what. One minute it's great, he's in his 'Golden Age', the next he's sick, and the minute after that, he's stuck in union after union. What a shame, really. Can he not just fend for himself? Is it really that hard? He almost wanted to confront Berwald about what he really meant to the Swede, but honestly? Did he even have the guts? At this point, Lukas wanted to be back in his union with Denmark, where he, at least, felt as if he wasn't simply a replacement for something that Berwald couldn't have anymore, either that or be independent. Independence sounded great for any kingdom, but could he really? Probably not. Within the hour, he had lulled himself to sleep there, after tons of tossing and turning and trying to get his thoughts and feelings sorted out.
Lukas sat up in the bed, and a few moments later got up off of it, the only sound being his teal dress falling down to his knees, and the small tap his shoes made each time they touched the floor as Lukas walked through the halls, looking for some way to vent out everything he had in him, his first instinct telling him to make music, or, at least, some sort of relaxing sound; but seeing as he no longer had his violin, he'd have to find another way.
It didn't take long before he stumbled across a piano (Invented in the early 1800s, yes they'd exist by now).
Curiosity sparked inside him, perhaps he could try and learn how to play that? It couldn't be that hard, seeing as when he sat down all he saw was a ton of little black and white buttons to press. After bringing a finger across all of them, he began to test out one of them at a time, trying different combinations of keys at a time. Eventually, he thought it sounded perfect, and words began to form in his head, despite not moving his lips in the slightest, he could hear his own voice flooding the space around him.
"All I ever wanted was for you to hear my thoughts, all my dreams and fears, just say them out- Yet I go and lie to you and say I'd rather not, even though you never found me out." Images of times he spent with Matthias, with Egill, and alone, flashed before his eyes, almost as if he could reach out and touch them, step back into those times, yet his fingers wouldn't stop moving along the keys of the piano, no matter how much he willed them to stop. "I'm just so much weaker than you thought I ever was, than you ever would've wanted to believe-" He stared at the face of Matthias, he couldn't feel the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes, but he knew they were there. "So why? Tell me. Tell me!" With that, the image of Matthias staring at him with a smile burst into tens of thousands of little shards.
A moment later, he was sitting up in bed, staring into the pure darkness, the room had been lit up with daylight the last time he thought. Looking over, he could see Berwald fast asleep beside himself, clearly undisturbed by Lukas's abrupt actions of waking up.
With this endless pain in my heart, tearing me apart, but also you beside me, can't you see how happy I'd be? I'd smile and I'd say, "It was all for the best you see" Was the only thought he could think as he watched the soft movements of breathing.
With gentle movements, as to not disturb the sleeping Swede, he swung his legs off the bed, slipping his shoes off so he could walk through the hall silently, "As the world in front of me melts and fades away, I only have one thing to say: These miracles flooding me won't make it go away. Because I can still hear your voice calling out my name." Lukas simply needed some time to clear his head, so he figured a small walk would do perfectly fine for that, it's not like he wasn't free to do that much as he pleased. Without warning, a paper hit him in the side of the head, it was folded up almost perfectly, and how it managed to hit him with such force was far beyond him, turning it over, he could see his name written in that kind of handwriting that's absolutely beautiful, yet is pretty goddamn hard to read. Without much question, he opened it, and let his eyes scan over the words time after time after time.
Lukas,
If you're just going to get lost and never find a place where you belong. Deep in my heart, I wished you'd let someone else do that, but I knew all along. Pretending not to understand, we turned the other cheek. I'm sure one day we'll laugh again as the cycle then repeats.
-Matthias A.
Lukas fell to his knees, hopefully not waking anyone in the process with the noise. Any tears he had held back for the years he had been in this Sweden-Norway union, there was nothing he could do to stop them from falling. "All that I can do is beg as hard as I can, but the nightmares keep on haunting me. Even though I've seen you leave a hundred thousand times, I can only watch you disappear- I'm just so much weaker than you thought I ever was, than you ever would've wanted to believe-" His voice came out pretty oddly, considering even though normally during sad times, he could keep it under control, and keep it soft. They're really aren't words to describe it, honestly.
So why? Tell me. Tell me!
Then, it was when he decided that he would peacefully try to separate himself from Sweden, he had been in this for long enough, he and his people could survive on their own by now! He could do it by now... Yeah, he could do it-
June 7th, of 1905, a declaration of independence by the Storting. Sweden accepted the union's dissolution on 26th of October that year. After a vote confirming the election of Danish Prince Carl as the new king of Norway, he accepted the Storting offer of the throne on the 18th of November.
Years passed, a lot of years passed. God knows how many, but a lot of years passed. Winter Wars? Far behind them. They were the Nordic Five now. That's who they were. Not a union of any sort, nobody 'belonged' to anybody, well; Greenland and the Faroe Islands were still Denmark's, and Åland was still Finland's. Otherwise, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and Finland. The Nordic Five.
For the nights I won't make it through, I spend beside you, while holding onto your hand
Telling me I will and I can, I pray every night that days like this will never end
Painting colours vivid and bright I see every time I go ahead and close my eyes
Just what should I do so everything remains the same?
Hey, is it alright if I keep calling out your name?
In the moment I was born, I wouldn't stop screaming
Saying that I wanted to fade away and disappear
Ever since the day I stopped, I had always been searching,
For the one I'd someday meet,
For the you that has to leave.
With this endless pain in my heart, tearing me apart, but also you beside me
Can't you see how happy I'd be? I'd smile and I'd say, "It was all for the best you see"
As the world in front of me melts and fades away, I only have one thing to say:
These miracles flooding me won't make it go away
Because I can still hear your voice calling out my name
Hey, is it alright if I keep calling out your name?