It was snowing again. Russia was starting to hate the snow more than anything – well, anything except maybe the ice. Even though he'd experienced more than his share of winters (this year it would be five hundred sixty four), he never seemed to get over how cold it got. He couldn't stop shivering. So, he wrapped his scarf a little tighter and took a swig of the drink called 'vodka.' It was a relatively new beverage – created in the year 1405. He hadn't liked it when he first tried it. It was stronger than he expected, and initially, it had made him choke and cough. But gradually he'd become accustomed to it, and found its dull warming sensation very helpful in the winter, even if it didn't actually warm him.

This city, Moscow, was located inside a large belt of forest. Ivan thought that the dark trees in the distance looked very imposing in this snowstorm. They looked almost ghost-like, and he imagined that he could see black silhouettes passing from trunk to trunk in the darkness. He was thankful when he finally reached his destination at the city center and stepped inside the warm, fire lit meeting room. Vaguely, he wondered if trees ever got cold.

He ignored that.

"You've made your decision, then?" he said to the men gathered around a small table in the center of the room. He made his way over to the fireplace behind them as they gathered their things.

"Da," came the reply. Russia was pleased.

"So," he said cheerfully, rubbing his hands together, "where shall our capital be?"

"We have decided that the most opportune place for the nation's capital would be here, in Moscow." one of the older men, one Ivan had known for nearly all the man's life, spoke up. "It is a large, developing city and the forest provides an element of protection vital in these times. Not to mention, its position near the local rivers make it an excellent spot for trade. Additionally, we believe…"

Russia listened for several minutes. The decision of where to place his capital had plagued him for some time. He was just glad to finally be rid of it, but the men also made several good points. He very much agreed with them. "Alright," he said. "Moskva budyet stolitsey." Moscow is the capital.

After a few hours, the meeting finally adjourned. Much of it had been about what to do now that Russia finally had a capital. The Orthodox Church had already relocated to Moscow because the city commanded such authority – maybe there was less to do than they thought, especially with the church behind them. At least, that was the hope. Ivan's only true hope, though, was that with a united Russia there would be far less turmoil in the land. But he could only hope.

He bid his comrades goodnight and quickly left. Stepping outside again, he found the blizzard had not subsided. But a vicious wind now raced through the city, causing the trees to groan and sway, and sending wisps of snow in all directions like a heard of sheep scattering from a wolf. Ivan could already feel the cold seeping in past his clothing.

He began the long walk home, reaching into his pockets to keep his hands warm. Once again, he watched the forest and the shadow people that moved through the trees, but as he came closer to them he found that, rather than foreboding, the trees looked almost lonely. It was a sad thing, Ivan thought, to be so alone for so many centuries.

But then Ivan saw that they were not alone. He watched the shadows for another moment, thinking he had been wrong – but something had moved. Then he heard it – a tiny cry in the distance. A child? How had a child wandered so far from home this late, and in such weather?

He made his way to the borders of the forest, searching everywhere for the source of the noise. The tall trees – giants of their kind – loomed overhead, the dark pines slowly swaying in the breeze that seemed to grow weak once it entered the forest. The snow was not as high here, but Ivan had not seen any trace of footprints leading to or from the massive trunks. Had he been mistaken? He'd sworn he heard a child crying, but then he remembered the sounds of the wind and wondered if he hadn't made a fool of himself.

He waited. There was nothing for a long time.

Then suddenly – and very close by – there was another tiny cry. Faint, this time. Ivan rushed over to the spot where the sound had come from. He nearly panicked when he couldn't find the child right away, but then, when he stepped past a thick black pine tree, he spotted it. Hiding inside a hollow at the base of the tree, protected from the wind, was a toddler - a young girl, no more than two, by Ivan's count. Dressed in a tiny white nightgown, she had nothing on her feet, which were covered in dirt and snow. She was shivering horribly.

"Hello there," Ivan said, walking towards her. She turned to look at him, but didn't move. She had dark brown hair and violet eyes the same shade as his own. Ivan noted this with interest. He'd never met anyone with the same eye color before. "Are you lost?"

She didn't say anything, so he tried asking something else.

"What's your name?" he said, kneeling down beside the tree so that he wouldn't seem so intimidating.

This time, she responded. "M-Moscow."

Russia's blood went cold. There was no way... She was like him?

"Moscow," he said, "do you know why you're in the forest?"

She shook her head nervously. "Who are you?"

Ivan just smiled. "My name is Russia."

Suddenly Moscow started to cry. She got up off the ground and rushed toward him, wrapping her arms around his waist and causing Ivan to half fall over from the sudden embrace. She didn't let go right away, and Ivan felt his shoulder go hot with tears.

Then she said something, but he didn't hear what. The wind from the storm was still quite loud, so he leaned in a bit. "Moscow?" he tried to rouse her. "Moscow, what is it?"

"Starshiy brat," she said. "Starshiy brat, starshiy brat..."

Big brother.

Da, so this is part one of my fic. I know, I know, my Russian is probably horrible, but I'm LEARNING. It'll have more parts and other capitals, trust me, but I'm afraid I'm a bit focused on writing something else at the moment. But regardless, I hope you enjoyed the fic! ^__^''