Author's Note: Back again with another historical Eastern-European fic, this time NOT done as part of an art-swap, haha. As usual, let's get the historical facts out of the way so you can enjoy the story! The Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, or as it was called for short, LietBel, was an extremely short-lived experimental nation formed by Russia for only nine months: February 17th 1919 to July 17th, 1919. Russia wanted to recreate the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, so it decided to forcefully combine Lithuania and Belarus together, an idea that the two countries hated with a burning passion. Belarus even saw it as being annexed by Lithuania, and several Belarusian nationalists resigned. Only Lithuanians were given positions of power in the new government, stationed in Vilnius, Belarus had absolutely no say in anything and Russia went out of their way to make sure Lithuania was dominant over Belarus in everything.

Russia also promised to give Lithuania money to better run the government, but that was a lie. There never was any money.

After Vilnius was seized by the Polish in April, whom Russia was currently in the middle of a war with, the capital was moved to Minsk. Lenin finally dissolved the Republic on July 17th to negotiate a peace treaty with Polish communists. Belarus ended up being owned by the newly-formed Soviet Union, while Lithuania would get into a war with Poland over Vilnius just two years later.

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All Natalya could think as she walked down the aisle was that everything was wrong. Her dress wasn't white and was bought very cheaply from a clothing store and needed tons of repair, there weren't any people watching aside from her siblings, and she wasn't even marrying a man she loved.

But the part that made her the most upset was the fact that she wasn't even happy about it, not one bit. Normally, she would've jumped on-board because she thought it was a sick thing she could later laugh at later, but there was nothing funny about this.

Natalya walked slowly down the aisle, wanting to delay the actual services as much as she possibly could. She was happy nobody could see her face through the black thick veil on her head so they couldn't see her displeasure, but they could most likely sense it. She kept walking, listening to the sounds of her older sister playing the piano as loudly as she possibly could the traditional bridal march. Her cheap brother wouldn't even walk her down the aisle himself, and that was truly awful. Instead, she had to walk it herself.

Natalya finally reached the end of her walk and turned to face the man she was being forced to marry, smiling slightly as he finally lifted up her veil.

"Natalya...you look beautiful..." Toris gasped quietly, making her blush a bit.

"You look handsome. Too bad my cheap brother couldn't buy you an actual wedding suit, right?" She teased, looking at him wearing his old uniform from the previous Great War.

"I don't mind it so much." Toris shrugged, and Ivan finally walked up to the couple.

"Are you two ready for your vows?" He asked happily, ignoring their head nods. "Alright, let's get started!" He started reciting from memory everything the two would agree to do when they were married,mostly involving death, which made the duo tense up noticeably. After Ivan recited their vows, he smiled at them. "Okay, now you two may kiss!"

"I do not want to kiss..." Natalya grumbled, simply nodding at Toris to acknowledge his presence. Toris nodded back, and the two looked away.

"Nonsense! Of course you want to kiss! It it a wedding, yes? So kiss!" Without warning, Ivan grabbed the pair by the back of their heads and smashed their faces into each other, forcing them to form their lips into some sort of awkward kissing position. He quickly let go and the two drew back, holding their mouths.

"Ouch, I think my mouth is bleeding!" Natalya announced in distress.

"I think you chipped a tooth..." Toris grumbled, holding his cheek.

"Well, whatever. Now it's time for the reception, doesn't that sound like fun? I got you a cake!" Ivan ran out of the room, leaving just the couple and Katia, who walked over to them.

"Are you two alright?" She asked nervously, and she sighed when they both shook their heads. "Look, I do not agree with this either, but Ivan believes he is in the right. Once Ivan sets his sights on something, it is impossible to change his mind, even if he is in the wrong."

"I don't want to be married though!" Natalya cried, finally letting tears flow from her violet eyes. "Not to Toris, not to Ivan, not to anybody! Just let me live my life, damn it!"

"What am I supposed to do? Just try to make the best of this..." Katia said with the slightest hint of a threat in her voice.

"Do we have to?" Toris asked, and Katia nodded.

"Now dry your tears and hurry to the reception! There's going to be cake!" Katia ran out of the room too, and with no other choice. Toris offered his hand to Natalya, and she took it and was led out of the alter to a small dining room.

There were several tables set up, along with a small buffet, but almost all the food offered was either spoiled or bland, or even both. Ivan hurried over to the couple with the plate that had the wedding cake on it. "Can you believe we had the money for such a feast? You two are a very lucky couple!" He beamed.

"Oh yes, what a feast indeed!" Natalya struggled to smile, walking over to the table. There was a large pot of lukewarm stew there, but only one spoon. She supposed everyone had to eat out of the same pot with the same spoon.

"Is it not? Try that, it's really good!" Ivan smiled, and Natalya slowly picked the spoon up and dipped it into the stew, nearly shuddering at its gross texture. She put it in her mouth and very nearly spit it back out; but Ivan's stare told her to swallow it, and swallow it she did. She nearly cried again when she felt the cold, slimy mess slide down her throat like some sort of sly animal. She threw her spoon down and hurried back over to Toris.

"I swear, the cake is better. Have some!" Katia said in a kind voice, taking one of the pieces.

The cake itself was probably the cheapest thing there, simply being made from flour and water and being a sickly color of white. Both Toris and Natalya took one slowly, nervous of how it'll taste.

"It's good!" Katia smiled, eating her piece.

Toris took a small bite of his and spit it back out, disgusted by its watery texture. Ivan gave him a dirty look.

"Toris! I spent all night making this cake for your wedding, and now you just spit it out?" He demanded.

"All night? Seriously? I couldn't tell." Toris mocked. "Where's some vodka? I have to wash the taste out of my mouth."

"No vodka, but we do have some milk!" Katia said, bringing him a small glass of it. He downed it without a second thought, happy it was at least cold.

After Toris' show, Natalya was too nervous to eat her own piece, so she hid the hand holding it behind her back and acted like it was gone.

"Look, I know this wedding is really inexpensive-" Ivan started, only to get cut off by Toris scoffing. Another dirty look shut him up. "-It's inexpensive, but it's the best I could do, especially on such short notice. Plus, you two are married now, and what is not to love? Toris, you're finally married to your dream girl!"

"I don't want to get married to her like this!" Toris shot back, but Ivan ignored him.

"Look how beautiful your wedding dress is, Natalya. Surely that's a good memory, right?" Katia asked her sweetly, and Natalya nodded, but it was only to make her older sister happy.

In reality, she hated the stupid dress which Ivan most likely pawned off one of his citizens who didn't want to get arrested for having such a luxury. It was a slim, tight dress that showed off the figure she had finally started to get at eighteen, and it was a dark navy-blue, almost black. It had a high neck with lots of lace and a bow, and a tight ribbon was tied around her waist that flowed down to the floor. The bow was white and black-striped. The skirt went down to her feet and covered her heavy brown boots perfectly, and she had black gloves on her hands. A black veil covered her face and only went to her shoulders, while a black bow was on top of her hair. Black tights were under her skirt, along with knee-long pantaloons and a slightly longer petticoat. Overall, the effect was very badly put-together, and she loathed the stupid dress the second she laid eyes on it.

Toris' outfit was just a simple brown military uniform with a black coat over it, and he tied his hair up in a ponytail to try and look dignified, but Natayla didn't think it looked very nice on him.

Ivan walked back over to the couple again. "I nearly forgot to tell you your new name!" He smiled.

"New name?" Toris wondered.

"What was wrong with our old one?" Natalya angrily demanded.

"Well, you are a married couple now, and a new country, so therefore, we must change your name. Your name was different when you were married to Feliks, right?" Ivan asked, addressing Toris.

"No, it was exactly the same." Toris answered, but was promptly ignored.

"I now pronounce you two, the Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic! The very first of its kind in Europe! How exciting! Maybe you two should kiss again?"

"No!" Both sharply declined.

"You never finished your cake, Toris!"

"That's because-" Toris got cut off by Ivan ripping it out of his hand.

"It's because you need a bit of motivation, right? How about if you and Natalya eat it together?"

"How would that even work?" Natalya asked.

"Eat two different sides until your lips lock into a kiss!"

"Stop trying to make us kiss!" The two demanded.

"It's getting late, we should go home." Katia suggested from over at the table, where she was currently wrapping up some of the food.

"Yes, Katia's right. Time for your honeymoon!" Ivan grinned, pushing the two ahead of him. The two didn't need any other motivation and ran out of the church, Natalya looking ready to cry again. Katia and Ivan joined them a few minutes later.

"Luckily, our house isn't very far away from here, so let's go!" Ivan grinned, leading the way for the newlyweds. For the whole walk, Natalya leaned on Toris, wishing Ivan had the decency to at least pick a man who was around her size. She was quite sick of people towering over her all the time.

"Look, I brought dinner!" Katia grinned, trying to make the two smile. She showed off the large pot of stew she took from the dinner, and Natalya's cheeks tinged a slight green at the sight.

"The sad thing is that I'm positive I've eaten worse things than that stew." Toris said.

"We all have, we were in a war." Katia stated.

"Here we are!" Ivan announced happily, pulling out a key from his coat pocket and unlocking the dark brown front door.

The house was in the same place the proud golden mansion of the Russian Empire once stood, which was very hard to believe at the current time. The new house was a very simple brown and white cottage, with barely any plants around it, and only five rooms inside. Ivan ushered everyone inside and shut and locked the door.

"Well, welcome home!" He said, then took off for his room. Katia put the stew in the icebox and went into her own bedroom, leaving just Toris and Natalya alone.

"I have to piss." He announced, turning and leaving the room.

"I have to too!" Natalya said as well, running after him.

The couple ran outside into the crisp, February air, and the Belarusian girl suddenly felt herself wondering why her wedding gown was so thin. Did Ivan want her to freeze as well? She kept running after Toris, but he beat her to the outhouse, leaving her standing outside shivering.

As she was waiting, Katia came outside as well, holding a small red box.

"What is in there?" Natalya asked curiously.

"Your rings! I cannot believe Ivan nearly forgot them!" Katia laughed, opening it up. At their reveal, Natalya's eyes grew wide and she sucked in her breath. She was expecting a pair of cheap, chipped rings with fake jewels, but these were the real thing. Her time in the Russian Empire allowed her to recognize real jewels, and she instantly knew that her ring had a real diamond in the center with a very tiny violet amethyst in the center of it. She grabbed the ring and stared at it in absolute confusion.

"How...did he get this? All luxuries are banned!" She roughly demanded, nearly shoving the ring in Katia's face.

"I do not know." She answered simply, but Natalya could tell she was lying. Not wanting to push the issue further, she slipped the ring onto her finger and took her place back in front of the outhouse's door. "Also, please hurry in there, Ivan wants you two to go to bed early tonight." She spun around to go back inside, letting those words sink in.

They sunk in too quickly for her, and the instant Toris came outside, she fell into his arms.

"Oh, Toris! Big Brother Ivan is forcing us to share a wedding bed!" She cried.

"So? We just have to sleep in the same bed together." Toris shrugged and ran his hand through her dark blonde hair.

"No, it's not just that. He's going to make us pursue the lustful acts true newly-weds commit. But...we do not love each other! At least not like that!" Tears formed in her eyes again. "Oh, please do not let him!"

"It's alright, please do not cry. We'll just pretend." Toris reassured her, letting her go.

"Won't he figure it out though?" She wiped her eyes.

"I will be sure he won't." Toris kissed her gloved hand, then took notice of the ring on her finger. "Who gave you this?"

"It is my wedding ring. Katia is inside with yours, if you want it." She lightly pushed him away from her, more in a joking manner than a mean one. He nodded and went back inside, and Natalya took his place inside the outhouse.

She tried to think of possible ways to delay her task, but figured nothing would work, especially if someone else needed to use it. With a sigh, she hiked everything up and pulled both her tights and pantaloons down, choosing to pee just like a guy would, her usual method of doing so.

After she finished, she redressed and ran back inside, feeling super cold. The cottage wasn't much better, but it was at least cozy, she could give it that.

Katia was pouring the stew into four different mismatched bowls, but Natalya didn't feel like eating that slop again, and instead dug around in the icebox until she found a raw onion nobody was using. With a knife, she peeled it and took a huge bite of it, making Katia glare at her.

"Are you seriously eating that thing instead of stew? And on your wedding night? What will Toris think?" She scolded, but Natalya simply shrugged.

"I hate that stew, and Toris will not care." She walked away from her and sat in front of the fireplace and continued to eat.

Katia placed the four bowls on the table and called everyone else to eat, sitting down to eat herself. Ivan eagerly started to eat too, but Toris played with his food more than eat it, scooping the stew up into his spoon and then dropping it back into the bowl.

"Toris, please eat this food we're lucky to have. A lot of my citizens do not have food tonight." Ivan gently scolded.

"And whose fault is that?" Toris muttered under his breath bitterly.

"Nobody has food nowadays, we're all just making do." Katia reminded Ivan.

Natalya watched them eat dinner, but did not move from her spot on her floor, wanting to have at least one silent rebellion. To her dismay, however, nobody scolded her or demanded for her to eat her stew anyway, and after dinner, it was simply thrown back into the pot and put into the icebox.

Katia retired to the couch with a book, and Natalya went outside and picked some grass to chew to help sweeten up her breath a bit. When she came back inside, she was greeted by Ivan's large smile, which could only mean trouble.

"It is time for your vows to truly be fulfilled." He explained, pushing her into his own bedroom and shutting the door. "It is your honeymoon, so you must do what all newly-weds do. Do not think you can fake it, since I will be listening."

"Why are you so determined to ruin our lives?" Natalya suddenly demanded, giving him a dirty look. He ignored this and started removing her veil, a gesture she drew back violently from. "What are you doing?"

"Dressing you up for your wedding bed!"

"Why can't Katia do this, at least?"

"Because she is busy." Ivan removed Natalya's veil, letting her hair fall down fully to her waist.

"She's just reading!"

"Do not argue!" Ivan said roughly, grabbing Natalya's hands and forcing her gloves off. She nervously nodded, afraid of making him upset.

Afterwards, Ivan became more gentle, slowly untying her skirt and blouse and unbuttoning her boots until she stood there in her underwear. He opened his wardrobe and pulled out a silky black nightgown that was very low-cut and lacy. He carefully tied that onto her, then tied a navy-blue robe on over that. He finally pulled her hair up into a tight bun and spun her around.

"Beautiful. You can see why I chose you for this." He gently pushed her out of his bedroom. "It is your honeymoon! Tonight, you become a real wife! Be happy about it!"

Natalya nervously opened the door to her shared bedroom and called out to get Toris' attention. He turned around, but nearly fell over when he saw her in her nightgown.

"Oh, hi Natalya..." He stumbled, making her giggle a bit. She shut the bedroom door and walked forward.

"Something wrong? You seem nervous." She teased in a flirty tone, playing up the illusion.

"Nervous? Maybe a bit..." Natalya threw herself at him, falling into his arms and rubbing herself against him.

"Oh, do not play coy. You have done this sort of thing before, have you not?"

"Not with women."

"Then it will be a first time for both of us!" She tossed him onto their bed and crawled on top of him, smiling the best she could in her nervousness. She looked over at the door, knowing very well Ivan was listening in, waiting to hear the sounds that proved their union.

Of course, it wasn't necessary for a new combined nation to confirm their marriage and country with sex, but almost all of them did anyway, so it was perceived as the norm, and was something Ivan clearly endorsed, despite not being in a union with just one other nation before.

She knew they couldn't fake this part easily with a listening ear, so Natalya tried to think about the best way to go about it. After a few more minutes, she leaned in close to Toris and whispered to him:

"Okay, we will do this for real, but I have my own rules. You are not putting anything in me yet, I do not want to lose my virginity that soon, that quickly, and to you. Understand?" She said in her rough Polish, hoping it would make him listen better. He nodded simply, and she rolled off him and started slowly undressing herself, making as much of a show of it as she possibly could.

First came her light robe, then came the black nightgown, which she simply slipped off her shoulders to reveal her camisole underneath. She untied that and dropped it to the floor, then brought one of her legs up on the bed as she undid her petticoat. She ran her hands down her legs seductively before taking off her tights and pantaloons last until she was standing there in front of Toris, totally naked.

"Wait, how are we going to do this if I can't put it in?" He asked as she climbed back onto the bed, finding himself unable to keep his eyes off her small A-cups. They never looked that small in her outfits.

"Silly, you said you have done this with men before? Therefore, you have an amazing mouth. Show me you do." That last part was spelled out as a demand, and Toris was happy to oblige, even though he wouldn't admit it.

She kneeled up on the bed and put her cunt up to Toris' face and he quickly started to lick it. Natalya held onto his head for balance, trying her hardest not to moan. She wasn't actually enjoying this, was she?

"Faster..." She directed, and Toris did, and she did moan that time, just a small one, but it was a moan nonetheless. After hearing her vocal approval, Toris kept at it, going faster and faster until all she could do was moan, and those quickly grew louder and louder. "Deeper!" She commanded, and he did so, fitting his tongue perfectly inside and licking her various crevices. "Ah...Toris...stop..." She moaned, panting heavily. She had no idea if Ivan was even listening or not, but if he still was, then he was getting one hell of a show, that was for sure.

Of course, Toris didn't let up, and Natalya started grinding on his face, trying to bring herself closer. "Toris...I'm close..." She warned him, and while he didn't say anything, he did nod and went in a bit further, catching her off-guard and making her cum as she cried out his name.

He came out from under her and slowly used his fingers to wipe all her femcum off, seductively licking it off his fingers. She giggled a bit, despite her sleepiness.

"You...are...amazing..." She gasped, smiling at him.

"But what about my needs?" He asked, and she got back on top of him again.

"Do not worry, I haven't forgotten about you. I can either do to you what you just did to me, or you could put it in my asshole. The choice is yours..."

"Can I put it in you? I think I would feel more comfortable with that." Toris asked, and she nodded. "Wait, don't we need some sort of lubrication?"

"I do not know, do we? You are the one who runs around sticking it in other mens' butts. You tell me." Natalya grinned.

"Well, those were guys. You are a girl."

"So? Isn't a butt a butt?"

"How about we do it, and if it starts to hurt, I will go find us something, okay?"

"Alright." She undressed him from the waist down, then started to slowly tease his tip with her tongue, trying to get him hard enough to fit inside her. He was already halfway there, but she needed him to be fully hard, so she fit the whole tip into her mouth with ease, slowly and gently sucking on it.

"Natalya..." He moaned, and she gave him an innocent look with her eyes.

She fit the whole thing into her mouth easily after a few more minutes, sucking faster and faster with every bit she put into her mouth, and Toris voiced his approval. Right when he was on the edge, she decided he was big enough and quickly took it out.

Afterwards, she kneeled above him again and slowly teased her anal opening with the tip, slowly moving back and forth on it. Toris moaned quietly, in obvious need for her to put it in, so she complied, slowly taking the whole length in there. She instantly gasped at the sharp feeling, but didn't really feel like stopping, especially with her brother most likely still listening through the door, so she moved up and down slowly the best she could, making Toris moan louder.

"I'm amazing? You're amazing." He teased, and she gave him a sexy smile and rode him a bit faster, ignoring her pain.

"Are you close?" She softly asked, and he nodded, so she went even faster, and soon enough, he cummed inside her, making them both gasp in surprise.

"Natalya..." He started in partial apology, but she simply climbed off him and started to slowly redress herself, ignoring the pain in her rear.

"Toris...do not blame yourself, this isn't your fault." She said softly, but he could tell she was being serious. He nodded and redressed himself as well, and she soon joined him in bed, crawling over to be at his side.

"Can we please cuddle with each other?" He asked softly after turning out their light, and she smiled and complied, happy that that was not an action being forced upon her. He cuddled her back, and the two newly-weds quickly fell asleep, falling into fitful sleeps and dreams.

#########

Natalya woke up at what she thought was an early time, but clearly was not, since Toris was nowhere to be found. She ran into the kitchen, still in her nightgown and robe, and asked Ivan where he was.

"I asked him to oversee the choosing of his new government members. It is a very serious and important task, you see." Ivan said dully, not looking up from his book.

"Why couldn't I come with him?" She asked.

"Well, you were asleep." Ivan started to sip whatever was in his mug.

"So? I could have been awoken! I am very much an important part of this union as he is! What about my new government?" She demanded, slamming her hands down on the table loudly.

"Your part? You have no place." Ivan admitted.

"No place? Of course I have a place!"

"I created this union to recreate the old Grand Duchy of Lithuania, you should know that." He turned another page in his book calmly.

"No, you created it to protect us from Polish military forces dominating us!"

"Stop yelling at me."

"Then give me some power!" She yelled still, resulting in Ivan standing up calmly from the table and roughly grabbing her wrists.

"You have no power in this union, only Toris does. One more word about it and I will give you up to the Poles. And we all know you do not want that, now do you?" Ivan smiled quite cruelly, and Natalya could only nod nervously. He smiled back cheerfully, let her go, and returned to his book. She had trouble breathing afterwards, so she ran into Katia's room and threw herself onto the bed.

"I have no power!" She announced, crying into her sister's ragged blanket.

"Slow down, what do you mean?" Katia asked in concern, brushing her hair.

"Big Brother Ivan set this whole marriage up purely so Toris could dominate me in politics! It is not an equal partnership at all!" She complained through her tears, not looking up.

"What were you expecting?" Katia resumed with brushing her hair. "He told me his entire plan. He wants to restore the Grand Duchy of Lithuania back to its former glory, and you were a part of it."

"But so were you! Why is he so focused on us?"

Katia finished brushing her hair and tied it back into her usual messy braids. She then clipped her bangs back with simple hair clips. "Maybe I should cut my hair..."

"Sestra! Guess who is back!~" Ivan's cheerful voice sent literal icy shivers down Natalya's whole body, and shiver she did. She slowly walked into the kitchen slash living room, where Toris was indeed standing, snow still melting from his coat and boots. "He had such a fun time in office today!~ Tell her all about your fun day in office!"

"I'd rather not," Toris declined, unbuttoning his coat.

"He kicked out all of your Belorussian bosses. It is totally a Lithuanian campaign now," Ivan's smile grew wider as Natalya glared at Toris.

"Why'd you do that? I thought you promised me we'd be equal politically!" She huffed.

"I did! Ivan-" The room suddenly grew colder. "I care little for your policies. I ruled you just fine when we were children, and I can do it again," He forcefully grabbed her arm and pulled her into a rough kiss, nearly slamming their mouths together. Afterwards, he opened the ice-box. "We still have that stupid stew left?"

"Toris, what have I told you about being thankful? Would you like to see some of your starving citizens? Would that be enough to make you grateful?" Ivan asked. Toris found a random wilted peach in the corner, soggy and very obviously old and past its prime and started nibbling on it with a sour look on his face.

"There are no poor people in my nation, I would know."

"Maybe there'll be new stuff at the market for us!" Katia said in a cheerful tone, happily walking into the kitchen.

"Stuff we cannot afford," Natalya grumbled under her breath, picking at her food.

"The market! What a lovely idea! You two should go to the market! I bet there's some imported chocolate there! Very romantic!"

"It's too cold for that," Toris finished eating his peach and threw the pit out the window, as they still had no trash can.

"Nothing's warmer than love!" Ivan finished his soup in one sip and yanked Natalya out of her seat. "Come on, get dressed! You're going to the market!"

"It's also not safe out there! What if you-know-who sees me?" She demanded in a nervous tone. "He might try to attack me!"

"You two always have your weapons on hand, you'll be perfectly fine," Ivan reassured her, throwing their coats to them. They very reluctantly got dressed in them just as Ivan shoved them out the door. "Have fun!~ Bring back something nice!~"

Toris groaned once they had left the house. "He's so obnoxious,"

"I know," Natalya rolled her eyes. "I cannot believe I used to be in love with him,"

"I cannot believe I used to date him," The two said at the same time, then blinked.

"What do you think they will have at the market? He really wants us to bring something back," Natalya snuggled close to Toris, which made him blush.

"Vegetables. Rotten ones."

She snickered. "Spoiled milk and cheese."

"Poorly-distilled vodka,"

"Chipped toilet bowls!"

"What's a toilet?"

"I have no idea, but most of Western Europe have them now. I bet they're really nice,"

They finally approached the market, which were simply a few stalls set up in the back alley of several stores, so the sidewalk was badly chipped and covered in both snow and garbage. Due to the poor quality of the goods, nobody called out to them or tried to convince them to buy their goods, and Toris and Natalya walked by most stalls without even a first glance.

"Looks like we were right," He whispered to her in Polish.

"Mmmhmmm," She kept a tight grip on his arm.

"Let's buy something. Something small. Ivan is expecting us to," He hurried over to the next stall he saw, which was selling meat. "Mmmmm, I miss having real meat,"

"Me too," Natalya gazed at the stall's wares, noticing that the only salvageable piece of meat was a gutted fish most likely about to pass its prime. "We'll take that," She pointed to it without hesitation.

"Okay," The man simply nodded and tossed it into her hands, not even wrapping it. She winced in disgust. "30 rubles."

Toris checked his pockets, only to find about seven. "Ivan never paid me for my work this morning!" He realized, staring at the man. "I do not have enough," He started to apologize, and he grabbed the fish back.

"No money, no fish."

"Well if you let me go back home, I'm sure I could find the rubles you need,"

"Money now, or no fish ever. I am not a charity."

"Excuse me, are these two bothering you?~" A sweet voice asked the man, and a shadowy figure dumped out way more than was necessary for the fish. "I believe that is more than enough,"

The man tried to return some of it, but the figure shook their head. "Like I said, keep it. It is totally on the house,"

Toris' eyes widened when he recognized the accent, and grabbed Natalya and shielded her with his body. "We gotta get out of here, now," He whispered in her ear.

"What's wrong?~ Like, you don't want to catch up for old times' sake?" Feliks smirked, flipping his hair. "Like how I should take back what is rightfully mine? Both of you?" He giggled.

"Go away," Toris started to walk away, but stopped when he felt the cold touch of steel at his back.

"No. Not until you give me what I want and dissolve your union,"

"You think I wanted this?!" He forced a laugh. "If I could dissolve it, I gladly would,"

"Then do it,"

"I can't!"

"Then I guess I'll have to, like, totally dissolve it myself!~" He blew Toris a kiss. "Byebye!~" He literally skipped away from the couple, and Natalya didn't start breathing again until he was gone.

"He's not really going to do it, is he?" She asked nervously, but Toris simply shrugged.

"He's been bitter about this union since the very start. I bet he is," He led her to a vegetable stall, where the only thing available was a basket of several too-ripe potatoes. Toris threw down his seven rubles and ran away from the market, carrying the basket.

"I think that was the actual price," Natalya stifled a giggle once they were far away from the market.

"It doesn't matter, at least we have something for Ivan now. And at least we can eat it too,"

##########

Soon February turned into March, which soon melted into April. The new month was announced with a huge rainshower that melted the snow further, and Natalya grinned and ran outside. "It's raining! It's raining!" She tilted her head back and stuck out her tongue to catch the falling raindrops. Toris watched her from the window and chuckled.

"She must really love the rain," He mused, ting his hair back into a ponytail.

"She does," Ivan smiled, somehow simply appearing in the room like he normally did. "It'll ruin her clothes though. You should tell her to come inside,"

"Why? She'll be fine," Toris stood up and tried to leave the room, but Ivan yanked on his ponytail.

"Well you want your wife to look good, right? How can she keep up her appearance if she's frolicking in the rain and mud?"

"She's happy! This is literally the happiest I've ever seen her! She's your sister, why can't you just let her be happy?" Toris suddenly snapped. "It's bad enough I have one overbearing ex-boyfriend nation constantly breathing down my neck, I don't need two!"

Natalya ran back inside and yanked on Toris' arm. "Come on, play with me!"

He allowed himself to be pulled out into the torrential rain, which sprayed so much water into the air one couldn't see straight. A few distant rumbles of thunder sounded in the background, making Toris tense up.

"Are you afraid of thunderstorms?" She questioned, dragging him to a semi-dry spot under a tree.

"No, not really, but-" He was shocked when she gently kissed his lips.

"All the romance books I read in the Empire said a kiss as only truly romantic if shared in the rain," She then flopped down on the ground, falling into a giant mud puddle. She only snickered.

Toris touched his lips with his fingers in shock. "I thought you hated me,"

"I do not hate you. I just hate this union and your dominance over me,"

"Fair enough, but Ivan's forcing that last part onto me!"

"He is only scared of the Polish forces,"

"Aren't we all?" He flopped down on the grass too, also landing in a giant mud puddle. This time, they both snickered.

"I wish Ivan would pay me more," Toris spoke up after a few minutes of silence.

"If he did, you would save it up and run away from him,"

"I would run away to America. They say the streets are paved with gold and nobody goes hungry there!"

"Will you take me with you?"

"I'd dream of nothing more," Toris placed a small peck on her lips, making them both blush and smile. "Hey, the rain is slowing," He noticed, standing up. He suddenly clutched his heart and doubled-over, making Natalya stare at him in worry. "Ugh...V-Vilnius...it's no longer under my control," He groaned in pain, taking a few meager steps to the house.

"But isn't it our capital?!" Natalya asked in shock, helping him into the house and lying him down on the couch.

"Yes." Ivan responded, emerging from the shadows. "But it's okay, we'll just move it to Minsk. Makes me glad you have two capitals," He instantly brightened and smiled at them.

"Maybe you should just dissolve us," Toris suggested weakly, earning him a glare.

"Never! We can and will make this work. We've made it work so far!" Ivan left the room, and Natalya placed her hands on Toris' chest.

"What if he takes over my capital too?" She whispered urgently.

"There's nothing I can do. Ivan controls my military, and you have virtually none to speak of. We will just have to hope for the best," He placed his own hands on hers and smiled weakly.

"Tell me more about America,"

"Nobody's poor there, nobody goes hungry. Even for an immigrant it is a paradise," Toris explained. "Arthur's older sister visited there a few times, and according to him, she loved it."

"I'd love to go,"

"Me too,"

##########

The sweltering July sun beat its heat down on Europe equally, yet somehow certain other places were feeling it more than others. These included Toris and Natalya, who woke up feeling completely different.

"I don't feel them anymore...Belarusians," Toris held his chest and quickly got out of bed and rushed into the kitchen, where Ivan was hurriedly writing something and Katia was quietly eating breakfast. "What happened?" He demanded.

"Oh, I took your advice! LietBel is no more!" Ivan smiled at Toris.

"What? Why!? You can't just leave her defenseless like that!" He slammed his fists down on the table.

"Oh, she won't be defenseless. She'll still be living with me. I have a wonderful idea for her and Katia to be a part of. The Soviet Union! The name is still a work in progress," He put down his pen.

"Why did you dissolve us? You made it very clear you weren't going to!"

"I wanted to start peace treaties with Feliks during our war, but I couldn't unless I separated you two. So I did! Surprise!" He pointed to Toris' stuff, all hastily-thrown into suitcases. "There's your stuff, now go byebye!"

"You can't just do that!"

"Watch me!" Ivan growled, pushing Toris' hands off the table. "Now get dressed and leave my sight,"

Toris glared at Ivan and stormed back into his bedroom, finding the old uniform he got married in so many months ago still in his drawers. He quickly put it on and adjusted his suitcases, and without a second glance, he left Ivan's meager cottage, not looking back until he felt the cold steel of a knife at his neck.

"Like, hello!~" Feliks grinned into his ear. "Now that you're done with Ivan, it's my turn for some fun,"