A little boy was walking in the snow. He was walking through a thick forest where leave less trees intermingled with pine trees. The trees didn't look green or really brown, just different shades of gray-blue. Although the boy was wearing a dark gray scarf and a lighter gray coat, and thick boots, he was still cold. He stopped and readjusted his little black hat and continued forward. He wiped some frost off his auburn hair to improve his visibility. He didn't know where he came from, or where he was heading, but wanted to get somewhere warmer. He was very short, around three feet tall if not shorter. The snow was tall, but he was so small his legs only sank up to his knee. Walking was hard still, though. His legs were stubby and he was knock-kneed. He continued forward, hoping to see someone to help him.
He held his hand up and rubbed his nose. The cold was making it a bit numb at the tip. Resting for a bit, he bent down and picked up some snow. It chilled his hands but he liked how the snow looked. It was barely sparkling in the light from the sun, basically non-existing behind the looming clouds ahead. He smiled and dropped the snow. He wiped his hands on his coat and rubbed them to warm them up. He put his hands to his mouth and let out a warm breath. He could see it and it succeeded at warming his hands. Just for a second, it warmed them. Onward he travelled, noticing the increasing cold. Wouldn't want to stay in this spot too long. He'll catch his death.
The gentle winds from before increased in speed and strength. The breezes transformed into gales and a snowstorm was sure to happen, maybe even a blizzard. It was even harder to walk for the poor little boy. The wind was pushing him to his left and he was beginning to become tired. His hands were numb, so were his ears and nose. He lifted his scarf to his face and attempted to heat up his nose, but it unfortunately made it a bit harder to breathe. He had stopped his hat from flying away several times. Snow started to fly into his face and he realized it was a snowstorm. He held his arms around his face to prevent his hair and snow getting into his face. He squinted his ruby red eyes, trying to see past the sheet of snow ramming into him.
The snow on the ground increased, climbing up his legs as he continued. His legs were becoming sore and numb at the same time. He's started to shiver as well, very lightly. Keeping his pace, he didn't speed up nor slow down. The wind however, naturally slowed him down as the snowstorm evolved into a blizzard. He stopped at a snow bank that managed to stick out of the white blanket covering the ground. His legs gave way and he lay on the bank and slid more onto the ground. His hat fell off and rolled a few inches out of his reach. He just wanted to rest for a little bit, because he was so tired. He wanted to rest until the blizzard blew over, he decided. He stuck his thumb into his mouth and gently closed his eyes.
General Winter and his troops have also been making their way through the increasing tempest. They were determined to hunt enough to create a surplus of food. Using up all their food and making a gamble with the hunting was too risky, so they tried to make the best out of any opportunity to hunt. The good weather had unfortunately morphed into a powerful storm. "Sir, General Winter, we'll have to head back soon or we'll freeze." One trooper implored. Another said "If we turn back now, we'll still freeze! We're in a new territory far beyond Ukraine!" Winter looked back at them and scoffed back "Now, men, calm yourselves. We're not too far into unfamiliar territory. Quit the bellyaching and let's continue." The men behind them moaned and one claimed they were maybe even 1,000 miles into unknown territory. "If an old man like me can travel this far without complaining, so can you. If it makes you children feel better, we'll bag a couple of game, then head back. Are you alright with that?" The men sighed but agreed. They waded through a few more trees before coming across a small clearing. Through the screen of snow, they could make out a small figure laying on the ground. As one soldier aimed for the figure, Winter placed his arm in front of his chest before he could throw his knife. "Hold on for a second. My eyesight might be failing, but it seems too small to be a deer or caribou. And it's not moving. Let's take a closer look before we bag it, da?"
They walked forward and approached the figure with caution. Upon closer inspection, they were shocked to see it was a little boy, crouched into the fetal position in the middle of a blizzard. "I… is he dead?" a soldier asked, concerned. Winter turned the boy over to find he was shaking from the cold, and breathing. "Nyet. He's alive. But he's freezing. We should head back and bring him with us. If he's not dead now, he will be if we don't take him with us." Winter decided. He scooped up the little boy and put his little black hat on his head. Holding him in one arm, he motioned to the other soldiers to retreat back to the camp. "We've collected enough food for a week or two."
They arrived at the camp, a few miles from the Ukrainian – Unknown Territory border. Katerina was surprised to see them back but was eager to see them. "Oh, I'm glad you're all okay!" she exclaimed. "We could see and feel the blizzard from here!" Some of the soldiers greeted her, a third went to their quarters, and the last third loaded the game they caught into the slaughterhouse to be prepared for eating. When they parted, Winter approached Katerina and knelt down. He showed the sleeping toddler to Katerina. "We found him in the middle of the storm, out in the unknown territory." He explained. "Oh! My goodness, is he okay?! Do we—" "He'll need some food and few blankets and I'm sure he'll be fine. We'll check for frostbite, though." He looked at the sleeping boy and back at Katerina. "Hmm. They look related. Could this be a new country? It could explain why he didn't perish so easily."
He held the kid out a bit and confided to Katerina, "This boy will be your new little brother. I want you to take care of him. I believe he is a new country, once he wakes up, we'll ask him his name and he'll live here until he's old enough to fare on his own." Just then, the new country started to move a bit more and stretched. "Oh, I think he's coming around!" Katerina sharply whispered and she hovered above him. The boy slowly opened his garnet red eyes and stared forward at the two new faces in his field of vision. One was nice and the other was a bit frightening. "Hello there," Winter greeted. "It's nice to see you're okay." He looked at them both. "… Privet…" the boy said to the both of them. Winter set him down, he staggered a bit but then stood still. Katerina introduced herself to the boy and told him she was his older sister, and would take care of him. "Sestra…" he repeated. Then she introduced him to Winter and said he (hopefully, she added) would be like a grandfather to him. "Dedushka…" he whispered loudly. Winter crouched down beside Katerina. "Now, tell us your name. You are a new country." The boy thought for a bit then slowly said in English, "Russiaaaa…" He dragged out the word like he was a tiny bit unsure. Winter shook his head lightly and said "The territory we found you in shall be called 'Russia'. Your family name will be 'Braginski', after your sister's name. Tell me your first name." Russia thought for a bit, twiddling his fingers. He quietly thought for a minute, as if he didn't know or forgot it already. He then recalled his name and said, "Ion. My name is… Ion Braginski." He gave a soft smile to his sestra and dedushka. Winter smirked and said "Alright then... Ion Braginski it is."