Chapter 29 Fast Friends

Maria had not felt so close to another girl her age since primary school. Basia was lively, intelligent, and generous with her possessions and compliments. The two personifications were soon swapping clothing and sharing their favorite music, movies, and books. They studied together and the Polish entity happily quizzed Maria on Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in preparation for her weekly reports to Saxony. Strangely, Basia waved off Maria's offer to do the same for her voivodeship. "You've got enough to do," she said lightly, "and it's not that hard or exciting anyway. Now, I'll tell you what you can help me with." Basia flopped down on Maria's bed and smiled at her. "You can tell me the latest phrases the Berliners are using so I don't sound like a total Körperklaus when we go visit!"1

Sometimes while they were researching or writing assignments for Saxony, Basia would start humming a pop tune and dancing. Maria would join in, and soon the two girls were laughing and bouncing about. Saxony would come in, glower a little and remind them of their deadline. The two would try to calm down, but in a minute they would begin giggling all over again. Yet as the due date for the work grew nearer, Basia would grow serious, brewing strong cups of tea so she and Maria could stay alert as they worked late. Saxony was pleased with their work and would reward them by letting them sleep in late or even baking them fresh delicious coffee cakes.

On the weekends, the two entities went shopping in Dresden or took the bus or train to other cities and towns in the state. Saxony frequently had weekend visitors and the girls would sometimes stay home and visit with them. Thuringia was a frequent visitor, who brought fresh sausages and enjoyed shopping with the girls. At dinner, Maria noticed how Tante Magda would sometimes lean against Onkel Gisil as he told a story, or how he would squeeze her shoulder as he got up to get a pot of coffee started. She liked the subtle, dignified forms of affection between them; such a change from Vati and Muti's clinging to each other like horny teen mortals!

Saxony-Anhalt came to stay one weekend. Maria had always liked her Onkel Günther because he had been willing to play with her and give her cheats to videogames. The first time he called Saxony "Vati" she had been surprised. Of course, she reminded herself, he is Onkel Gisil's and Tante Magda's only surviving son. Saxony-Anhalt noticed her startled expression and laughed.

"That's right, Maria," he said kindly. "We're really cousins and since you're going to be my peer and co-worker in a couple of years, you don't need to call me 'Onkel' anymore." He sat down next to her and Basia and adjusted his glasses. Maria thought he looked like a hipper Austria, with short, mussier hair and hazel eyes. "So is Vati cracking the whip over you two?"

"Herr Saxony isn't so bad," Basia said. She checked her phone and got up. "Excuse me, I've got a call from Poland I have to take." She left the parlor, grinning wickedly over her shoulder at Maria.

Maria glared back at her. This was her Onke—nein, cousin, for goodness sake! But Vati and Muti were cousins as well. Günther had seen her melt down at her first Christmas, he had designed simple videogames and apps to amuse her, he had treated her like a child. He couldn't possibly be interested in her as a potential girlfriend. That felt weird.

Saxony-Anhalt had gotten up and was standing near the mantelpiece. "Maria, I want to show you something," he said. She got up and saw him take down a wooden statue of a little boy holding a rabbit. Time and handling had burnished the wood to a warm honey glow. "This was me, when I was little." He handed it to Maria and she caressed the smooth surface.

"It's lovely," she sighed. "Onkel Gisil is so talented."

Saxony-Anhalt laughed a little and she noted the dimples in his cheeks. "He didn't carve this one. Meine Muti, your Tante Magda, did." He took the statue from her hands and placed it back on the mantel. "Here's one Vati did of me." It was a larger carving of an older boy with a dog and fishing pole. As Maria studied the detail of the boy's clothes and dog's fur, she remembered the carvings of birds and horses Vati had given her to play with as a child. He must have done those over the centuries, she thought. She recalled visiting Muti in Liechtenstein and seeing an elaborately carved box with scenes of a little girl enjoying the Alps during the four seasons. Muti had told her that Onkel Vash had carved that as a Christmas gift and that the little girl represented Maria. She had been touched that her prickly uncle could reveal such a sweet side. All the craft and skill she was seeing made her feel awkward.

"I must be the only German personification that doesn't carve wood," she mumbled as she placed the statue back on the shelf. Saxony-Anhalt raised an eyebrow at her.

"You can always learn. It's not hard. You start with soft wood and simple shapes. I can show you." He smiled at Maria and she felt strange, as if he were a handsome kind stranger and not a family member. She blushed and struggled over what to say, but fortunately Basia bounced back into the room, saying that Saxony wanted to talk to his son about some business. When Günther left, the Polish entity poked Maria's arm.

"So, what do you think of him? Isn't he cute? And I think he likes you!" She chortled. Maria blushed deeper and punched Basia's arm.

"I called him Onkel! He's seen me in braids and diapers! It would feel creepy!" She protested, but Basia only laughed harder and then waved her hand dismissively.

"Mój Bóg, you don't have to sleep with him tonight! Just stop thinking of him as an uncle and start thinking of him as a handsome young state who's vaguely related to you. I mean, it's not like Saxony is like your father's real brother. Pan Günther would have to treat you well because he'd get in a lot of trouble with Germany if he just led you on and dumped you."

"You're just talking crazy," Maria muttered. Actually, Basia's argument made sense. She liked Saxony-Anhalt and it was flattering to think that he was interested in her. But she had other things to think about. She turned to Basia, dark violet eyes flashing. "How about we find someone for you, Frauleinchen? Let's come up for a plan for German-Polish unity. Maybe Hamburg or Bremen would be a good match!" Basia snorted and the two ended up tussling and giggling.

Poland himself visited a few weeks before the two girls' quarterly break. He was accompanied by a beautiful, petite blonde with blue eyes. "Ciotka Elenka!" Basia cried as she ran to the female's arms. She turned to Maria, a wide smile on her face. "This is my auntie, the city of Krakow!" The city gently disentangled herself from her niece and took Maria into her arms; she was astonished at the mixture of strength and softness in Elena Łukasiewicz's delicate body.

"I am so pleased to meet our neighbor and my brother's little German niece," Krakow murmured. Her voice and Austrian German reminded Maria of Muti. "Would you like to join us on our Goethe tour?" Elena continued. "It would be such a pleasure to hear you read selections from him in German." She smiled sweetly, her dimples appearing under high cheekbones.

"Ja, I'd be happy to do that. I just have to finish this report on social services in my state and I'd love to go!" Maria looked up to Saxony for his approval. Onkel Gisil smiled and said, "Of course! You need to see how his surroundings influenced him." The Polish entities grinned approvingly and Maria felt happy and reenergized to complete her work.

Maria enjoyed the drive into Thuringia with the Polish personifications. Feliks was a fast, yet assured, driver, and the female entities chatted about the poetry scene in Krakow. Maria showed Elena her artwork and was pleased to hear the artistic city's praise. They stayed at Tante Magda's house, and the German state proudly escorted them around the major sites of Weimar. As the Poles and Thuringia talked about Goethe's prosody and influence on European poets, Maria felt awkward. Vati had never had much interest in poetry beyond what Friedrich der Groß had written. Yet when Elena, Basia, Feliks and Tante Magda had urged her to read a passage from Faust, she obliged, realizing the beauty and meaning of the description of the great doctor's awakening in nature from the horror of his beloved Gretchen's death.

"Beautiful," Krakow sighed. She turned to the others. "My German was influenced by Austria, so to hear the pure language read so beautifully is a real treat."

"Well, we've got some fabulous poets of our own," Poland retorted. He began to recite, and Krakow joined him. The two alternated lines, and Maria was delighted to realize her own Polish was good enough to recognize the rhyme scheme and meaning.

"Those lines came from Pan Tadeusz,"Feliks told her. "They have a, like, special meaning to Elena, right?" He nudged his sister affectionately. "Tell her about Karol."

Krakow blushed and looked straight at Maria, her round blue eyes shining. "When I met John Paul the Great, he was only an assistant to the Archbishop of Krakow," she began. "Yet, you can tell when a mortal is special and I sensed it right away. I loved him, not in an inappropriate way, of course, but I could tell he had a great spirit. Those lines we just recited about a Slavic pope? I knew he would be the one. And when he was ready to go to Rome to study, I wrote in the rectory's copy of Pan Tadeusz, 'Karol will be that pope.' She giggled, as much to hide her tears as to show her pride. "And I was right!" She poked her brother's arm.

"Tak, you were right and I was wrong," Poland grumbled affectionately. He turned to Maria. "I told her that the age of great mortals, especially like Polish ones, was over, but she insisted that she sensed greatness about him. I lost a beautiful Arab mare and Pomeranian bitch to her, but I gained, like, hope and freedom." Pride glistened in his pale green eyes.

Maria listened, taking it in. She turned to Thuringia. "Do you think we will have a great German mortal like that in this age?" she asked.

Tante Magda shrugged her well-defined shoulders. "Who knows? There are many good mortals, but few great ones." She smiled, showing off the bridge Muti had gifted her. "Maybe the next great Chancellor of Germany will come from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern!"

Maria smiled politely, but she doubted it. In many ways, the mortals of her state still seemed backwards and narrow-minded in their concerns; they wanted tourism and more money, not dreams of dominating German politics. As she studied them, she sometimes found herself wishing that the humans would disappear and the wolves, deer, cranes and eagles would be her charges. An image of herself striding through Rostock's forest, animals and birds following her to the coast, popped into her head.

"I need a potty break!" Basia declared. She jumped up and gestured towards her aunt and their German hostess. "Come with me." The other female entities got up, but Maria and Poland stayed put.

Feliks edged closer towards her. "Goody, we get a chance to talk, kochanie," he said, taking out a cigarette and lighting it. "How's your internship going? I've been thinking about you and Basia and how you feel about the work."

Maria sighed and looked longingly at the cigarette. She knew she shouldn't indulge in such a filthy habit, especially since her mortals clamored for clean, green technology, but Poland made it look so chic and worldly. "The research and papers don't bother me. It's like schoolwork, but it feels more practical and real," she said. "But it gets boring. I could see doing it for a few years and then moving on to something else, but for the rest of my existence..." She shuddered.

Poland sighed. "It's better than going to war every few years," he replied. "Although some states and nations would probably like that." They both knew he meant Vati. "But mortals do boring work all the time and they manage. So don't even try to tell me it would be better, chickie."

"It would if I could do something I really liked, like study animals or art," Maria retorted. "Then it wouldn't be so dull and feel like work." She imagined herself in a white, sunlit room, working at a computer and doing art. Every assignment would be different and interesting. There might even be a boyfriend or husband doing his own work in his own study. She smiled and then shivered when an image of Saxony-Anhalt came to mind.

"So you're still thinking of, like, what you told me at your graduation party? The one year plan?" Poland's voice was softer and deeper. When she looked at him, she noted how the sunlight and shadow played upon his face, making his cheekbones and jaw prominent. He wasn't a pretty, boyish fellow anymore, but a handsome, aristocratic young man. He was, Gott helfe ihr, attractive.2

"I still think of it," she admitted. It couldn't be so bad, she thought, to be a Polish mortal under her nation's protection. But she thought of aging, time, and mortality and wondered how she could escape that part of the bargain.

Poland's chin-length hair swung against his jawline as he nodded. "You know," he said slowly, "you don't have to become, like, mortal, to leave Mecklenburg-Vorpommern." He took a drag on his cigarette. "You could become a Baltic entity in another state. Maybe one that you feel more at home in." He gazed at her and she felt her stomach twist. "It's obvious you get along with me, and Basia always raves about you. Even Elena has taken a shine to you and I've learned to trust her in everything."

Maria stared back, growing nervous. "But Onkel Ludwig wouldn't allow me to leave," she protested weakly, "and Vati wouldn't stand for it." She paused and thought. "What could we do about it?" She couldn't believe she was asking this question.

Poland smiled and he looked so confident, she felt both alarmed and soothed. "Your Onkel Ludwig and I want to bury the past," he said in his new, rich voice. "I've been a good economic and political ally to him over the years, and your state is the closest to mine. His strength and, like, my courage and connections to the United States would keep Russia in his place. He wouldn't mind a closer relationship to his Eastern neighbor." He took a drag on his cigarette and exhaled a slow stream of smoke. "Your father would be upset, of course, but he's just, like, a state, and if Germany thinks it would be good for us to be closer, he'd have to listen." He looked at her with bright green eyes. "I know, this sounds weird and all, but it doesn't have to happen all at once, and like, you could always say, 'Nie," and I'd totally understand." He shrugged and there was something sweet and insouciant in his face. "I'd be like bummed for a little while, but I'm an old nation and I can get over it."

Maria could hear female voices chattering over the horizon; she only had a little time to talk. "I'm intrigued, but I need to think it over," she whispered. "And," she added more kindly, "I'm flattered and honored, but I can't jump into anything, tak?" She studied Feliks for cues.

"Of course," the Polish nation said. He stubbed out his cigarette. "You should probably consult with Saxony. He's got no dog in this fight, and he could give you the pros and cons of the situation." The sun seemed to shift and he was once again effeminate Feliks, the nation in a strange love arrangement with Lithuania and Ukraine.

On the drive back to Dresden, Maria was silent. Basia and Krakow chatted in Polish and she understood it to be mostly trivia. Poland concentrated on the roads, and she concentrated on the strange conversation she had had with him. Vati wouldn't approve, of course, but Feliks was right; he was just a state and she was legally an adult. She could choose partners within Germany and if she presented a compelling case to Onkel Ludwig, she might be able to have a consort from another nation. She glanced at Poland's fine, sharp profile as he drove; he had not suffered the same economic damage as other nations in the European Union, he was a nation with intelligent, hard-working mortals and a key geographical location. He had coasts, an historic forest, farmland and thriving cities. If it were acceptable to think of her German cousin as a potential suitor, why not someone who was "uncle" in name only? Then she imagined Vati's rage and pain at her choice and she hesitated. Suddenly a small hand ruffled her hair.

"Mój Bóg, I got the best idea ever!" Basia exclaimed. Maria turned and saw the Polish entity grinning at her. "For our next quarter break, we should totally go to the Netherlands!"

"Why?" Maria wasn't interested in legal prostitutes or hashish. She tipped her head towards the calm Krakow. "Why couldn't you come to my state or I visit you and your relatives?"

"Because it would be, like, fun!" Basia insisted. "Like, there would be lots of museums to inspire your art, lots of young mortal men to flirt with, cool cafes and clubs. We should totally do it!" She leaned over and whispered, "we could get weed cards and smoke hashish at a hookah club!"

Maria laughed, "You're silly!" But as she thought about it, it sounded appealing. Vati always told her she needed regular visits to her state to stay strong and healthy, but a week or two in the Netherlands couldn't weaken her. It would be fun to go to another nation without her parents, as a young woman with a friend who shared so many of her interests. She wasn't a child anymore, she decided; Vati and Muti would understand. "Tak," she finally said. "We should do it!"

"Ausgezeichnet!" Basia exclaimed. "We'll make plans when we get back. It'll be a total blast!"

Hmmm, what do you think is going on with Maria's interest in Saxony-Anhalt? Or Poland, for that matter? And what do you think will happen when they visit that handsome, poetry-loving, bunny-carrying fellow, the Netherlands? Thanks for reading and reviewing!

1 German: clumsy awkward person. The closest thing I could find that fits the American term "rube" or "hick"

2 German: God help her