Year 1150

It was relatively quiet in the house of the finnish woman (more like young girl) when there was a wail that cut through the silent air. The girl who lived in the house stumbled out from her bed and to the crib where the crying baby laid.

She picked him up and gently tried to soothe him. "Shh... it's alright, Alfred, mommy's here, please don't cry."

When the baby didn't show signs of calming she decided to sing to him like she remembered her human mother singing to herself centuries ago. So she began with her soft alto.

"Tiitiäinen metsäläinen
pieni menninkäinen,
posket on tehty puolukasta
tukka naavantuppurasta
silmät on siniset tähdet"

Alfred camled down some, so that he was only sniffling now. He looked up at Aino with his blue eyes that looked like they had stars in them. They were so familiar now.

How long had Aino had little Alfred any way? It seemd like she found him just yesterday, yet she knew it has been a little more than a century... maybe a century and a half... She hadn't seen Su-san much since then either...
"Tiitiäinen metsäläinen
pieni menninkäinen
keinu kuusen kainalossa
tuutu tuulen kartanossa
sammuta siniset tähdet!"

Alfred had calmed down fully by now but he was totally awake. She rocked him as she walked around the small room lighted by the fireplace. She wondered how long it would be until he'd grow up, wishing he'd get out of the baby stage already. Not that he wasn't adorable but she didn't have time to interact with her people anymore now that he needed almost all of her attention. She hadn't even been on an adventure since she found him, not that she'd actually change him for anything in the world, but it could get difficult when she needed to hunt or fish with the baby...

As she laid herself on the bed once again after Alfred had fallen asleep she couldn't help but feel things would be different soon... and that was magic speaking.

The next morning there were few demanding knocks on her door just as she had finished cooking porridge. She took her long knife and held it protectively infront of her as she went to open the door. You could never be too careful, especially in these dangerous times when christians ran around, mostly trying to turn others into christians as well... and if the didn't suceed... well, most were killed. And she didn't have a desier to die yet and leave Alfred alone and vulnerable.

She craked the door open and saw the blond... person... Ivan, who had been... um... offering... to take her live with him...

"Mitä helvettiä? Taas? Ivan, I'm not going to come and live with you!" she almost shouted at the tall, sweet looking russian. "I've told you again and again and again that, NO, I'm not interested in you! You can take your proposal and shove it up your arse! Saakelin karvakorva, painu hiiteen..."

She shut the door to his face and bolted it. She leaned against it for a while before sighing and continuing on with her chores. Not long after was there another knock on her door. Aino was ready to scream at Ivan as she opened the door.

"Ivan! I told you alre-" she stoppped at mid-rant when she saw that it wasn't Ivan. No, it was someone more dear to her, Berwald. "Oh, hi Su-san! Long time no see, eh? How are you doing? Do come in! Feel free to sit where ever you want to, I'll be back in a minute, I have to check on Alfred. There's some fresh rye bread on the owen if you'd like and there's dried meat in the cupboard, help yourself!" she babled as she dragged her gloomy friend inside and sat him down on a stool she herself had carved before dashing upstairs where she heard some sniffling coming already.

Deciding to take him downstairs she gathered him to her arms and left the room. Going downstairs with Alfred was always a challenge, trying not to drop him and balancing on the rickety stairs. She hummed quietly and held her right arm out to keep balance.

It happened so fast. She stepped wrong and began to fall sideways, off the stairs. Her eyes widened and she swore as she tried to turn her body so that she wouldn't fall on Alfred.

However, her fall was interrupted mid-fall as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her and gently lowered her to the ground.

Aino blinked in surprise as she turned to Bervald who had a concerned glint in his cold looking eyes. "Su-san! T-thank you so much!" she said, shaking slightly. The shaking got worse when she realised that she had been saved from certain death.

"Yeh sh'uld b'ild n'w sta'rs," Berwald said as he held her close, trying to calm her down.

"I-I know... i-it's just that... I-I haven't had the time... with I-ivan trying to presurade me i-into living with him, taking care of Alfred and all the daily chores..." she tried to explain it.

"Wadda ya me'n wit' Iv'n try'ng ta m'ke ya liv' wit' 'im?" asked Berwald slowly. There was no way he'd let that russian bastard get his love.

Aino looked up at him with bewildered expression. She had never seen Berwald this... well, agitated, and she'd seen him in many, many moods (including homicidal rage, heart wrenching sorrow and in love, though she didn't know it) which, for many others, would look exactly the same, irritated.

"Well, he's been trying to court me for the last fifty years. He's such a creep, let me tell you. I mean, I look like a bloody fifteen-years-old who hasn't complitely filled out yet," she said and poked her small breast which wobbled at contact. "And I have an addopted son, who'd want to look after him as well as me?"

"I w'uld," muttered Berwald quietly, so quietly that Aino didn't hear it. Oh, but he would crush that russian pervert for even thinking of his Aino like that. He'd only have to rope Ingvar and Mathias into helping him and they'd be set to take over the land of that piece of shit.

"Anyway, Su-san, why are you here?" Aino asked as hed shock subsided.

"'M b'ss... 'e wants ta t'ke 'ver yer land," Berwald explaned gloomly. "'E t'inks yer pe'ple 're t' wil'."

"He what? Su-san, can you do anything?" asked a worried Aino. She really didn't want to fight with Su-san... he was always so nice... though sometimse he could be pretty scary

"'Ready tri'd. Th' 'nly t'ing I c'n d' 's k''p ya saf'," he answered, looking sad. "Th' 'rmy sh'uld be 'ere b' t'morow ev'ning."

"Already?" panicked Aino. She clutched Alfred closer to her chest. "I-I can't fight them and protect Alfred at the same time! And what do you mean "keep me safe"? There's no way you'd fight against your people."

"U c'uld c'me 'n' liv' wit' me 'til tis ov'r," Bervald offered.

"I suppose..." Aino agreed. "But, as soon as it's safe enough, I want to move back here."

The lullaby of Tiitiäinen (Tiitiäisen tuutulaulu), by Kirsi Kunnas

Tiitiäinen the forester,

gnome so small,

cheeks made of cowberry,

tufts of treemoss as hair,

eyes are blue stars

Tiitiäinen the forester,

gnome so small,

swing under spruce's wing,

slumber in winds manor,

close those blue stars

(Translation, by me : P)

"Mitä helvettiä? Taas?" means "What the hell? Again?"

"Saakelin karvakorva, painu hiiteen..." litterly means"The damned furear, go to hell" "furear" referes to an uncivilices country man... or a dog...

So that's how Finland ended up living with Sweden...

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