He couldn't get Latvia's words out of his mind. 'What if he's right? What if Russia changed us, and we're not noticing? I mean, we're noticing some of it, and of course he changed us, so what's to worry about? Unless, of course, there's something else. And he's absolutely right about the spaceyness, and the cleaning, and the quietness…

'Maybe I should ask someone. But whom do I ask? It'd have to be someone that hasn't seen me much since I went to live with Mr. – dammit, I thought I'd stopped that! – since I went to live with Russia. That'd just be awkward. "Hey, Mexico, I know we don't talk much, but have you noticed any bizarre personality changes since I went to live with Russia?" The others would probably start ignoring me.

'Anyway, what am I worried about? Maybe Latvia was wrong. Just because he says what he's thinking doesn't mean what he's thinking is right. And it's not like he was talking about me.'

"Estonia!"

He started. Finland was staring at him from the kitchen, arms folded. Even though his eyes were stretched as widely as possible in an effort to avoid the appearance of glaring, his irritation was clear. 'Wonder how many times he's called.'

"Sorry, I didn't hear you. What is it?"

With a smile that looked suspiciously relieved, Finland rolled his eyes. "I was wondering if you thought we should eat out tonight."

"Sure, if you want to. I mean, I don't want to be any trouble."

"None at all. Frankly, I love working in the kitchen, but it's nice to have a change every now and then." The light patter sounded almost forced, and Estonia didn't need to look for Sweden's dark silhouette to know what it was that Finland wanted to leave at home.

Finland glanced back into the kitchen before resolutely walking forward, into the living room.

"What are you working on?" he asked cheerfully. His eyes swept back and forth, as if by getting enough of a running start on one side, they could swing around and extend his peripheral vision to the doorway.

"Oh, just a puzzle. Do you want to help?"

"Yes! Of course I do."

Estonia couldn't resist a smirk. "Do you want to know what it's of?"

"Right. What is it?"

"A party outside in the summer."

"That explains all the blue. I see you're still working on the border."

"Yes. I still haven't found the fourth corner."

"Oh… hmm…" Conversation faded into the grunts of irritation, queries for particular pieces, and occasional crows of success that comprise every puzzle. After a few minutes of stretching constantly to reach pieces, Estonia gave up and stood over the table, darting from side to side like a bird at a feeder. They silently decided that while Estonia tried to assemble people, Finland would build the steadier sky and trees. Each soon built up his own pile of relevant-looking pieces and candidates for earmarked spots, and in the interest of easing his movements, Estonia carried a jumble of arms, legs, and half-faces in his left hand. The constant tension of search and comparison made them both simultaneously wonder if there was something better to do and obsessively covet the next perfect match. The satisfaction when Finland slid six pieces assembled by Estonia into the puzzle and attached them to the border was incomparable, and its smug afterglow lingered for a quarter of an hour.

Both gradually became so absorbed that they failed to register the slamming of the front door. It wasn't until Sweden had been gone for ten minutes that either noticed that they were, for the first time in weeks, completely unsupervised. Finland gazed wistfully at the puzzle; then slowly rose to his feet. The shaking feet, the hand that slowly rose to stroke his wrist – all paled in comparison to the expression on his face. Much as he tried to hide it, he was clearly angry, internally berating himself for his weakness. When he spoke, the words were clipped and sharp, as if they were a confession forced from him.

"You know, this has been fun, but I really need to –"

"So soon?" Estonia gave his most charming and innocent smile. It fooled neither of them. "I was really hoping we could finish the tent here."

"You'll have to do it without me." Yet as he spoke, he leaned heavily on his chair.

"It would take twice as long, and we both have to get up early in the morning."

"I… suppose you're right." He drew the chair out and retook his seat.

The most surprising part of the next hour was how quickly the awkward, tense silence shifted into the wordless interest of the game. Sweden returned home to find them still working. He put the groceries away on his own, quietly pleased by the uneventful nature of the evening. Estonia's attention began to wander by ten, and when Sweden went to bed at half past the hour, they both registered the sound. Only then did Finland look up from his reconstruction of a woman in a ballooning dress.

"You know, you've changed," he said with a smile.

In spite of himself, Estonia felt his eye twitch.

"Not in a bad way," Finland hastened to add, catching the gesture. "It's just that, well, I've been thinking about what Latvia said recently." His sheepish smile failed to draw a reply. "And it occurred to me that maybe he was being too negative."

Estonia remained silent. 'Great, I'm turning into Sweden. That's just what he needs right now.' With an effort, he produced a pained smile.

"I thought that maybe, even if Russia changed Latvia, and Lithuania, and, well, you, perhaps that wasn't all bad.

"I mean, sure, Latvia's a lot more spacey than he used to be, but he's also much quicker to speak up for himself if he has to. And Lithuania might be quieter and more nervous, but he also works harder, and he and Poland are closer than ever."

The next pause was a long one. Gradually, it occurred to Estonia that they were both expecting him to ask the obvious question. It was simply a matter of time.

"And me?"

"You pay more attention to people," he said simply. "I know it's probably because you're worried that they'll attack you or something, but it's still not a bad trait."

Estonia nodded and they returned to the puzzle. A few minutes later, Finland began to yawn.

"Want to finish this and go to bed soon?" Estonia asked.

"No, it's fine. I like it here."

They returned to their work, sliding piece after piece into place as the snow swirled outside.