Hey all, I'm doing another little side story for Saving the Lost. this one does not require you to read the before mentioned fic, but it is recommended. Please enjoy.
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It was 1718, that's when he was born. He didn't know that at the time though. He just knew that one day he opened his eyes and there he was. He was a French colony; he could feel it but didn't know the words. In fact the only words he knew were those of his natives that found him, the Chitimacha. When they found him they were confused by him. They had never encountered someone like him. Well not exactly. They knew he was a baby but his dark skin and blonde hair made them wonder where he came from. There was also the fact they found him alone and nude in a site they deemed holy. So they took the child in and hide him from the European invaders. THey gave him the name Sakima. Even when on of them came asking if any strange children had been found, he had blonde hair and blue eyes to match his own. They hid him and took him north.
As time passed the native people that had taken him in noticed he aged very little and after a generation he only looked to be five. They were scared and treated him with the respect of an elder. He became a shaman for while his body did not age his mind did. He knew he was different and spent his free time asking the spirits for answers. It wasn't very helpful. He would see things. Men fighting with guns and muskets. None of it made sense until he noticed there were always a few men in each that were constant. Were they like him? One was a young boy, older looking than him but younger than the other soldiers. There were two older men that seemed to be doing most of the fighting and a younger boy, between his age and the age of the boy fighting, that looked like him but his skin was pale and his eyes were violet. He knew these people had to be connected to him, somehow.
When the fighting was over a new figure began to appear in his visions. A little girl, with curly brown hair and blue eyes set into a lightly tanned face. It wasn't long after the vision with the little girl that the tribe he stayed with was approached by a tribe from further north with a request to show a strange girl they had found to their shaman. Sakima was the shaman so they brought them before him. At first they were quite upset as they thought he was just your ordinary 5 or 6 year old. But when it was explained that he was older than he appeared and that he was part of the spirit plane, the visitors agreed to show him the girl. It was the girl from his vision. She was not even a year in appearance, but he immediately felt a connection to her. A connection that grew when she opened her eyes and looked at him. He knew she was like him and he explained it to the one's that had brought her. After that they left her with him and he made sure to take care of her, with the help of some of the village mothers. He gave her the name Ohio, for the river that ran prominently through the lands she was found in.
He continued to ask the spirits for answers and got more visions. The man that had the long blonde hair like his own was in them less often now but he could tell that the shorter haired boy that had fought in the red coat was growing angrier with the one that watched over him. He watched as the boy plotted and tried to convince the other boy to join him against the older man. Watched as he grew suddenly from a boy to a young man. It was this drastic change that lent for him to believe they may be the same. He was shown visions of war as the seasons changed and the young man fought his guardian for his independence. He won and he saw how it hurt both the young man and the elder man in the end.
More years passed and he still sought the visions. He watched as the young man embraced a young girl of about 5 with long black curly hair and the same blue eyes. Saw as he promised to protect her and keep her safe and to never treat her like property. He then saw as the young man searched for something, or someone. He could tell from his visions that he was searching in the lands from which the girl in his care had come from, she confirmed this and said she could feel him in her lands. She had grown some after the young man had won his war and again a few years later. She now appeared the same age as himself. He watched the young man become worried about something after some time searching, he assumed it was due to not finding what he was looking for.
Again years went by and he found himself no longer seeking the visions as much. They were not answering his questions only causing more. Then one day, he found it to later be in the year 1803, the villagers brought a young man to the village. He was one of the white men and was dressed as a fur trader but carried no gun for hunting. They brought him to the village because he had been searching for someone and he thought they might be here. They drug him before the chief, who asked him why he was there.
"I heard that this village does not take well to outsiders that are not natives. I wanted to know why?"
If he had said that in his own language it would not have had the impact it had as when he spoke in language of the spirits. No white man could know that language. Sakima made his way forward to stand beside the chief. He looked at the man and recognized him as the one in his visions. When the man saw the boy he smiled, though he seemed a bit confused.
"Are there two of you? You're not the one I knew would be here. I'm still glad I found you though."
He studied the man before answering back in the same tongue he was using. "You are like me?"
The young man smiled bigger and nods. "Yes. You got that rather quickly didn't you. It took Florida a while to understand we were the same."
He didn't understand what the other meant by that, but continued. This was his chance to get his answers. "I've seen you before when I've asked the spirits for answers about myself. What are we?"
The man blinks at the statement and question. Then his face takes on a look of understanding and he smiles even more.
"Oh I get it. To answer your questions we are the embodiment of the land. I'm the United States of America. I used to be the colonies of England but I fought for my independence and won it. I did that so I could find others, like us. The European nations see us as property. They don't even know there are more embodiments here than my brother and I. They would trade us and sell us as though we were slaves." He pauses in his explanation and looks down sadly. "I hope you will not be angry at me for buying your land from France. For you to be here you must be the land I just bought from him."
Sakima stays where he is and takes in all he has been told. But it raises one more question after answering all his others.
"I believe this to be true, what does that make you to me?"
The man raises his head and smiles at him. "It would make us brothers. We were born of the same land and I will not treat you as less than me. We are equals."
"You just said you own my land, how can we be equals?"
He winces and looks down sadly. "I can not force you to stay with me. But even as I say we are equals those that over see me will not agree. We are not human. We are born as the land but the way the world works is that we end up being servants of the chiefs of this world. My chief is the one that wanted your land. I asked to come out so I could find you and take you in. I want us to be equals. My chief doesn't."
The honest in his conflicting words lead Sakima to understand. They were slaves to the land and those that owned it. Their own feelings were not necessary but they existed outside their connection. He understood now.
"I will get the other and we will go back with you."
He leaves and returns with Ohio, she stares at the man.
"We have the same eyes."
America laughs and rests his hand on the top of her head. "Yes, yes we do. And so does our sister. Though our other brother has different eyes. You can meet Florida when we get back." He removes his hand from her head, then he seems to remember something. "Ah, what should I call you? It would be rude if I just called you by your titles. I'll let Florida introduce herself to you."
"I am called Sakima. This is Ohio."
He chuckles a bit, "The irony of that name. You can call me Alfred."
"Why is my name so funny?"
Alfred smiles. "Its because you just became a state named Ohio, or rather a part of you did. We may need to come up with something else to call you to be rid of confusion, a nickname of sorts." He looks thoughtful for a moment before smiling. "How about Belle? It means the same, just in French."
She looks thoughtful and smiles back. "I will accept it."
Before he knew it Sakima and Ohio were following Alfred out of the village. It took them several weeks to get to Washington, Alfred's capitol. Along the way he had explained more about what they were and what was happening. They had been interested in why they wouldn't be meeting their other brother, the one with violet eyes. Alfred had been surprised that He had been able to describe him but just shook his head and explained that due to the war for independence England had refused to allow Alfred to see his brother. Tensions were high between them and Alfred said he could feel war on the horizon. He was also trying to talk his chief out of going to war with his brother to claim him as a state or colony. It wasn't working very well.
Sakima learned that Alfred was a very good person and came to like him very much. He knew he would always want to stay by the man's side.
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Ok so the ending kind of sucked but this I hope will answer some questions about my version of the states. Especially Ohio. She is the embodiment of the Northwest Territory. Ohio was made a state in February of 1803, once she was a state Alfred could tell where she was. The Louisiana Purchase also occurred in 1803 and so the end of this takes place just after that happened.
Notes on the names:
Ohio - It means beautiful and the state was named after the river. Not sure of the tribe from which the name originates but I looked up Native American girl names and Ohio was one of them. Sorry It was too tempting since I had Ohio as a shortened title for her in Saving the Lost.
Belle - Means beauty in French. Alfred's thought process was that she would have been born from French territory won by the English after the seven years war, he doesn't like england right now so he gave her a French name.
Sakima - It means king and is Native American in origin. Louisana was named for King Louis, not sure which one, so the name works. In Saving the lost he goes by Louis, a shortened version of his title. He's also something of the Arthur of the America's due to his attachment to the spirits in this story. He does retain his native name in the future, but uses the nickname to lessen confusion for the English speakers.
Historical notes:
Sakima was born when the French settled New orleans and claimed the Louisiana territory. I based the date off of when the city was founded as I have no clue when they claimed the rest of the land, just that it was before 1803.
The first war I mention is the French and Indian War, which later became the Seven Years War. This is significant for Ohio as she was borne when the Northwest Territory became English territory. England declared it an Indian Reserve and refused to allow settlers to go there. This was one of the many reasons for the unrest that lead up to the American Revolution.
In my head-canon I also have Alfred finding Florida after the Seven Years War when Florida was handed over to the English as a prize in the war. Spain was on the loosing side. This will be gone into more detail when I write up Florida's history fic, it will be kinda like this one, but not exactly.
In 1783 the Northwest Territory becomes a part of the United States, then the Confederate States, and in 1786 they passed the Northwest Ordinance that set into place the structure for creating states from the territory. This would have been when Alfred went in search of Ohio for the first time. Worried when he couldn't find her.
Hmm, can't think of anything else to mention in these god awful long notes so if you have any further questions ask in a review. And all reviews are well appreciated. Thank you for reading.