Disclaimer: Hetalia, Poland and Lithuania don't belong to me.
Nobody could not deny that she was beautiful, even as a child. Her clear eyes were emerald green and partially hooded by heavy, long-lashed eyelids. Her long, golden hair was straight and silky, and her skin was like alabaster. The young Barbara Łukasiewicz not only had looks, she had everything to live for. Born to nobility, the rulers of the land of Szmaragd to be precise, she wanted for nothing, and during her birth, many a bard across the land sang of the beauty and goodness of the Golden Rose. Naturally, she was one of the most eligible nobles on the continent, and her parents felt assured that their only daughter's future was secure.
Not everything the songs spread were true, however. In fact, some of them were exaggerations and others were but fabrications. Though Barbara was inarguably a beauty, and dressed in the finest clothes, she was far from the perfect little princess that she was thought of to be. The girl might have known how to behave in front of her parents, loved how others doted on her and enjoyed wearing the beautiful dresses she had, but in her was also difficult personality that oftentimes got her into trouble. Few outside the palace knew this, but anyone who dealt with her and crossed her path more than once knew better.
Barbara was, first of all, loud and far from elegant. She ran and skipped rather than walked slowly, and those who heard the words coming out from between her soft, pink lips described her speech as too energetic, lacking in dignity and almost peasant-like. She was also proud and stubborn, childishly so, oftentimes wanting things to go her way. Neither was she content with sitting pretty and making acquaintances with just anyone. Often, nobles from neighboring countries came to visit, more often than not bringing their children with them. She, however, found herself uncomfortable around them and swiftly judged most of them to be obnoxious and difficult to hide this anxiety. She wanted nothing to do with Prince Gilbert of Blau, or his cousin Roderich, and neither did she show any interest towards the seemingly dashing Count Antonio of Sangre. Barbara would do almost exactly the same thing every time. The princess would either yell at her visitors or hide behind her parents' back, much to the latter's displeasure, would almost always end up getting her way, going off on own in the end and disappointing the royals. You see, she really was far from perfect, and sometimes, Queen Rozalia wondered if this was just a childish phase she was bound to outgrow, as they truly did wish that her only daughter be less difficult.
With the way she was, one might wonder whether she really had any true friends to call her own at all. Surprisingly, she did, and it could be said that Barbara's best friend was probably the last person one would expect. Stubborn and difficult she might have been, but she wasn't without a good heart, free, playful spirit and a certain need for breathing room outside the luxurious palace she had been raised in. Her friend was an unconventional one, yet she never really saw this, nor did she care in the first place.
"Eglė, you're late!" Seven-year-old Barbara teased as she beckoned her best friend from the shade of the birch tree she was sitting under. The eight-year-old brunette who came carrying two small wooden swords was tall for her age, easily towering over Barbara by a good head despite being only nine moons older. She gave one to the princess, who accepted enthusiastically. "Ready?" The blonde asked as she stood up, brushing the hem of her striped skirt, a wide smile on her face, and her green eyes dancing. She loved afternoons like this, where escape was easy and the servants were more than willing to cover up for her in the event that her mother asked. Eglė nodded and smiled, before taking on a mock serious expression as she held out her sword, her long, chestnut braid whipping behind her. Barbara stuck out her sword arm, narrowing her eyes and grinning. "C'mon! Give up already, broski," she laughed. With Eglė, she felt freer and found it easier to be herself and there was no shouting or hiding around her. Truth be told, the young princess often felt stifled by the palace, lessons, expectations and whatnot. Though there were things she simply loved about being highborn, she sometimes couldn't help but wish that she wasn't born royal. She loved her parents, but sometimes, they expected too much from her. Eglė, however, saw her as just her, Barbara. Not the princess, not someone to handle with care, but rather, just the girl that she was.
"Not so fast! I'll beat you again and you know it!" The brunette shot back, a smirk breaking the serious expression that she put on. Barbara had won two days ago, and Eglė saw that her best friend was improving quickly, though she was confident that today was her day, just as it was the day before. Eglė Laurinaitė was far from royalty, though her father was one of King Casimir Łukasiewicz's soldiers. Raised with simple values, this young maiden was gentle, friendly and even somewhat shy, but not without being firm and tough at the same time. She knew what the most beautiful flowers were but at the same time, was also skilled with the sword from a young age. While she sometimes found the princess at her worst to be difficult, she had a way with her that nobody else had, something she earned the first day the both of them met.
November, three years prior
Five-year-old Barbara was crossing the soldiers' dining room, making her way to the palace kitchen while trying not to get caught and fully intending to taste the chocolate cake that her parents had promised for her birthday dinner that night. The thought of the rich, sweet brown cake was enough to make the young girl's mouth water, and she definitely did not enjoy waiting. Seeing the doors wide open, she picked up her skirts and ran as quickly as she could in her mint green silk slippers, weaving her way around tall, broad-shouldered uniformed men, some of them looking at her with either amusement or annoyance as she skirted by. So excited was she, that she did not notice that a young girl had crossed her path. Said girl gave a gasp as the blonde collided with her, and she ended up sprawled on the marble floor, a familiar blonde right on top of her.
Barbara recovered first, and pushed her small body upwards, only to find that she had fallen right on top of a young girl who had curling dark hair that reached her waist and who wore a girl's bodice and blouse with trousers. She never once saw a girl in trousers, her parents had told her when she first asked that only men wore them, yet seeing them on a girl for the first time, she did not find herself appalled. In fact, she liked them on her, and for a moment imagined how she would look like wearing a pair.
The girl's eyes fluttered open, and the princess stood up and moved aside, allowing the former to sit up. The brunette's eyes were green, not the sharp green of emeralds; but rather, tinged with a little blue that reminded one of the sea. She rubbed the back of her head as she looked at the little golden-haired culprit, who looked back and couldn't help but stick her hand out to help her up.
"Get up! My arm already hurts okay," the blonde complained, pouting. The dark-haired girl laughed as she accepted the delicate, soft hand with her work-hardened one and got up with ease, shaking back her long waves. Her attacker looked the princess, and if she indeed was, she was likely up to her own brand of mischief once again. "Does it hurt so much that you couldn't even say your name," the princess taunted, planting her small hands on her skirted hips. "I'm Barbara," she added, pointing at herself. The brunette realized that she was facing the princess after all; the casual manner of speaking gave the latter away. Somehow, she forgot her manners and immediately started talking, not wanting the blonde to think that such a small bump on the head could rob her of something as simple as her speech.
"Hello Barbara, I'm Eglė. Are you alright?" The girl, Egle, asked after introduced herself, before suddenly realizing that she called the princess by her first name. She silently scolded herself, thankful that her father hadn't heard her. Rather than feel insulted however, Barbara found herself smiling. Eglė had called her by her first name! Immediately, she knew that she liked the taller girl standing in front of her, and thus, did not wish to or even bother to correct her. Here was someone who called her by her normal first name, without any of the titles and stuffiness.
"Of course I am! Better than you at least. I'm not a weak princess like Roderich," Barbara answered with mock indignation, recalling one particularly feminine prince of Blau, before grabbing Eglė by her arm. "Let's be friends," She announced, before dragging the brunette towards the kitchen. Despite her small size, she was stronger than she looked, something Eglė just realized. "Want some chocolate cake? I'll get you the best slice, before those stupid old men eat all of it tonight," Barbara offered without waiting for a reply. From the first moment, she already liked Eglė, and she wasn't about to let her go.
The sun was setting, and the two girls sat under the cool shade of the birch tree, the last of the late summer heat fading from the air. As she herself had predicted earlier, Eglė won, sticking her wooden sword under the smaller girl's chin. She had to admit, however, that Barbara was improving a lot. The princess was small yet swift, and she had gone a long way ever since her first lesson in the winter after they met. Eglė herself had been taught how to handle a toy sword ever since she was three and a half. She initially was surprised that her best friend took an interest in her father's sword of all things, but she learned that Barbara was a determined and stubborn girl. A beautiful maiden, but with the fire of a warrior somewhere inside, the tall brunette recalled her father saying when her best friend touched his sword for the first time.
"Why do you make it so hard for me?" Barbara complained, lamenting over her loss once more. She knew that her best friend had a lot more experience, but she couldn't help but crave the satisfaction of winning at her favorite pastime. Eglė grinned mischievously as she wrapped her hand around Barbara's right arm, the arm that used to be so soft, but had now grown firm.
"I gave you a hard time because you're getting better, Basia. Didn't you win two days ago? Look, your arm doesn't get always get tired now," she explained, calling her friend by her pet name and remembering that fragment of a memory from the day they first met. Barbara still had the tendency to be proud, and Eglė wanted to show her that sometimes, winning wasn't everything. Taking one of the swords, she held it out to her friend, who looked at her, confused. "Take it, I want you to practice some more and get even better. When you win again, I'll give you some of my old breeches," she explained, her friend grinning excitedly upon hearing the word "breeches" and taking the sword. Eglė knew how much her friend particularly liked how trousers looked, just as much as beautiful dresses. Barbara replied with a tight hug. She wasn't going to disappoint her closest friend who was firm but kind, who understood her, and whom she loved with all her heart.
Hey guys! Here's my first story, which is saying a lot because I was the girl who often averaged a C+ in high school when it came to writing. I'm a huge Hetalia fan, and my favorite pairings are LietPol, DenNor and Spamano! ^_^
This story was based on the folk tale "Tam Lin", with a few alterations, our two main characters knowing each other in their youth. Of course, something's bound to happen later on! ;) This will be the first of a series fairytale adaptations using LietPol. Of course this takes place in a fictional world with fictional countries, as I don't want to end up messing with actual facts, and this is the only way I could incorporate a Fey court without butchering things up.
As you can see, both Poland and Liet are genderbent here. As for how I chose their names, I wanted something that sounded simple, powerful and not too girly for Fem!Liet, as she's the daughter of a soldier here. For Fem!Poland, I wanted a name that sounded feminine, but strong. Hence, they're Eglė and Barbara (Basia).
I wanted to portray Poland (genderbent or not) without succumbing to how the fandom "Flanderizes" his character. I often see him being written as someone who speaks purely in Valley Girl speech, crossdressing and wearing only pink all the damn time and often without substance. Often, he's relegated to being a supporting character in fairytale retellings as well. I wanted to show both feminine and masculine traits in Barbara at the same time, and make her a well-balanced girl. She can be shy, likes being spoiled and enjoys chocolate cake, but also talks casually, is rambunctious rather than elegant and loves swordfighting. She likes beautiful dresses, but also likes trousers. After all, if Poland had a thing for fashion…wouldn't he be into in all kinds of interesting clothes in all colors and not purely skirts or the color pink? I want to show that she has both strength and courage in her, important things that she needs as she grows up and faces both the unknown and the unexpected like the heroine almost nobody expected her to be.
As for Lithuania, I wanted to portray his counterpart here as someone who's kind and accepting, but also strong and firm at the same time, a girl who'd be honest with her best friend without fear and later on, prove to be someone with a strong will who could resist orders from her captors and have a mind of her own rather than blindly following, even if her circumstances force her to do something terrible, and her old feelings are put to the test. I wanted Eglė to be a heroine in her own right as well, someone who will prove to have both backbone and as a good heart.