Russia trudged through the snow, lead pipe held loosely in his hand. His long scarf fluttered behind him, giving the illusion of visible wind blowing in his wake. His body was weak and his head hung down to his chest in exhaustion. He didn't even know how long he had been walking anymore, couldn't remember where he was going. The only thing that he knew was to put one foot in front of the other.
All it took was one slip-up, he stepped on a single, unbroken patch of ice, and his foot slid forward, bringing him down flat on his back. He didn't even bother trying to get back up, he already knew that he didn't have the energy for it. So he simply lay there, watching his breath drift up into the air and dissipate as the cold vanquished the heat.
He closed his eyes, feeling the blood dripping from the sides of his mouth. If only he hadn't lost that fight, if only he hadn't been kept from getting the land in the sunshine he so deserved, he wouldn't be here now. So here he lay, waiting for the cold to take him and the end to come, alone, in the cold, as he always had been.
The sound of boots crunching in snow caught his ears. He didn't bother looking, knowing that it would probably just be his opponent, coming to finish the job that had been starter. Good, the faster the better, so he didn't have to bear this desolate cold any longer than necessary. However, instead of feeling a weapon or boot crushing in his skull, he felt fingers brushing his icy hair away from his forehead. He slowly opened his eyes, and found himself looking up into a pair of blue eyes, much like the color of the cloudless skies in the southern countries. The warm smile that was underneath those eyes could have melted even the heart of General Winter himself.
"You shouldn't be out in the cold little Russia." Ukraine knelled down in the snow and pulled Russia's head into her lap before wrapping her arms around him in a hug. Russia slowly lifted a hand until it was touching her arm, making sure that she was really there. Now that she was there, he wasn't cold anymore. She was all the warmth he needed.