I hope this is correctly posted/matches the request...
anonymous
March 4 2009, 23:45:54 UTC
I am so, so sorry if this is historically incorrect. My research didn't turn out that... well, resourceful as I'd hoped, which is to say I have nfi when firearms arrived in Sweden or Finland (speaking of guns, though, my History teacher would probably shoot me for not knowing this). Anyhow, this is meant to take place at their first meeting.
Also, Christianity didn't arrive in Finland until the 11th/12th century, so before then a form of animism prevailed as a religion.
And uh. Enjoy?
- - -
Finland paused. He stood as still, as quiet, as possible. The forest ahead of him was thinning, which meant it'd be easier for his prey to spot him. He could just make out the imposing dark form just some ten meters ahead of him. Its greasy, musky smell contrasted with the fresh scent of pines around him, making it easy to keep track of the beast.
The Finn tightened his hold on the sheath-knife as he crept closer. The bear was not yet full-grown, yet it was huge, its clawed paws leaving prints almost as big as his head. Three meters away, he stopped. The bear was still, listening to the sounds of nature, sniffing for any sign of danger. But Finland knew he couldn't be spotted that way; cloaked in fur and leather, he was the scent of forest.
Then the bear lowered its head and let its guard down, and Finland knew his chance was there. He unsheathed his knife and closed his eyes for a moment, in respect to the spirit of the great king of the forest he was about to slay.
A few brisk steps as he sprinted forward, grabbed the beast by the scruff of its neck, raised his knife and stabbed it deep into the bear's neck. The shudder of pain and anger that went through the bear was like a small earthquake, not that he'd experienced such a thing, and the Finn held on with all his might as the animal trashed in his hold.
Something seemed amiss. Why wasn't the bear falling already? His strike was meant to kill quickly and mercifully. Had he miscalculated? A moment later the thought was confirmed as the bear twisted and turned, forcing the hand holding the knife into a painful position, and Finland gasped in pain and surprise as warm blood trickled over his hand from the wound. The bear swung around and the nation was thrown down to the ground.
Finland could feel tears pricking his eyes. His wrist was throbbing and his fingers squeezing the handle of the blade were slick with blood. The bear roared above him, furious and in pain, and he realised there wouldn't be another chance to strike. No man could win a fight against an enraged beast.
Finland scrambled to his feet and took off running into the forest. He could only hope that he was more agile than the bear, that he had wounded it deep enough to slow it down. Otherwise... He would rather not think about that.
Loud crashes and thumps followed close behind him, along with blood-chilling roars. He wished to blend in with the shadows and smells of the forest, but there was little hope of that now, now that he could feel the cold sweat of fear on his face. He muttered under his breath, apologised to the great bear for harming it, calling its name like a prayer, asking it to save his life this time.
He was shaken thoroughly to hear another roar, but much, much closer than he had assumed. The bear must have caught up with him. Finland changed direction and spared a glance over his shoulder, just the tiniest glance to see how close the beast was and he felt his feet sliding on their own accord, felt his step faltering and he fell...
He groaned in agony as his sprained wrist took the fall. He felt a presence behind him, looming, menacing. The smell of grease and musk and blood filled the air. Finland felt sick with fear. Playing dead was no good now, he'd be dead for real in a minute. A thump on the ground as the bear stepped closer. Finland closed his eyes, slowly moved the knife from one hand to another and gripped it tight. He'd slash out when the bear was close enough. That was his only chance now.
He breathed deep and counted under his breath. One... Two... Three...
A shot rang through the air, so loud Finland almost yelped. Instantly following it was a cry of pain behind him, from the bear. A strange silence hung in the air until there was a heavy crash when the body of the bear fell to the ground. Finland lay still, eyes wider than ever, barely daring to breathe.
When there was no sound of further movement, he shakily stood up and looked behind him. Yes, there it was, the mighty form of the king of beasts. Around it was a strange smell, something sour and unwelcoming. Finland scrunched up his nose briefly, then turned around again.
Some meters away from him stood a man. His clothes were, though warm and suited to the northern climate, somehow different; made from heavier fabric, and cut in an unfamiliar way. In his hand he held a metal pipe, of sorts, where the sharp and stinging smell was coming from.
His eyes were just as sharp, a bright cold blue, their gaze fixated on Finland.
"Är du okej?"
The words, though worried in tone and softer than he'd expected, said nothing to Finland. He blinked in confusion and reflexively stepped back when the man walked closer. He gripped the knife in his hand again, but the man only passed him by and stopped to take a look at the bear. Having checked it was indeed dead, he slung his gun over his shoulder and turned to Finland again.
"Vad heter du?" he said. Finland could only shake his head in reply, causing the man to raise an eyebrow. He stepped closer, but this time the Finn didn't back away. The man placed a hand on his chest and said slowly and clearly, "Sverige." He pointed at Finland. "Och du?"
This time the message was clear, despite the language barrier. "S... Suomi," the smaller nation answered hesitantly. There was a pause, during which the look on the other man's face changed from confusion and curiosity to something resembling recognition.
"Finland," he then said, in a voice as if he'd just met a long-lost childhood friend.
- - -
Translations (if someone needs them):
Är du okej? = Are you okay? Vad heter du? = What is your name? Sverige = Sweden in Swedish (obviously) Suomi = Finland in Finnish (not so obviously?)
Re: Continued.
anonymous
March 6 2009, 14:33:15 UTC
*slow anon is slow* Is this supposed to continue, or does it end there?
Not that it really matters because the fic is really nice. The flow, the pace and Finland. Because Finland is awesome. Haha. I like it very, very much.
I love how you included their actual languages, and kill me, but I have always thought that Suomi sounds way more prettier than Finland.
Anon!author here.
anonymous
March 23 2009, 20:50:23 UTC
Hiya, and glad to hear you liked the fic. ^^ About continuation, well, I have thought about leaving it here, as it does work by itself, but if I have time I might slip in some late continuation fills.
Anon, that was amazing! I kind of had film going on in my head while reading this, felt so realistical. I loved it, keep up with awesome work, anon! >///
Re: Continued.
anonymous
March 14 2009, 07:20:38 UTC
Totally agree with anon above, I too had a film playing in my head while reading this. It's so visual and exciting! AH! And when Su-san appeared I squealed! And then the first meeting introductions <3
Re: Continued.
anonymous
April 3 2009, 19:41:55 UTC
Previously commented Anon here, would the author of this fic mind if I wrote a second part to this, if I can come up with something? And would people like to read it?
Re: Continued.
anonymous
April 4 2009, 13:24:51 UTC
Authoranon here: I definitely don't mind! Frankly, I've got my hands a bit full at the moment (bloody kink meme, it's eating my miiind) so any other takers are more than welcome! ^^
Continued by another author
anonymous
April 5 2009, 19:49:33 UTC
I decided to continue previous author's usage of only Swedish and Finnish (and in this case, some Russian) language on dialogue. I've tried to keep it simple and explain a bit in previous or former sentence what the characters are saying, but in case you need translations, they can be found from the last part (damn, I'm supposed to know Swedish as I am a Finn but I needed translator most of the time and I'm afraid there are grammar mistakes so please forgive me!) I also gotta warn you, there's a lot of references to Christianity, I hope I don't insult anyone by how I wrote about it, that wasn't my intention!
***
Finland. Finland pondered the name the strange man, who called himself Sverige, had mentioned. It must have been what he, Suomi, was called by others out in the wide world.
Finland peered above his shoulder like cautious animal at the man who had saved him from the rampaging otso, bear. It was as if the man with those striking blue eyes had recognized him, and Finland in return couldn't shake off the familiar feeling about him. Maybe they had met earlier? Finland would have liked to know, but there was a language barrel. He couldn't understand a thing the other said, thought he didn't say much.
They had went over to Finland's house, a small cottage by a lake. Sun was setting as they sat around a wooden table, drinking the sahti Finland had home brewed.
"Pidätkö siitä?" Finland asked Sweden if he liked the drink, but of course the other didn't know what he meant, just took another sip. Finland held back a chuckle as Sweden made a face at the taste that was new to him. Silence taking over the room again, which suited the both men well, they drank and ate some meat and veggies.
Sweden thought it was a very crude meal.
"Odota." Finland asked his new companion to wait and stood up. He had to go check the fishnet in case some vendace or even bass had got caught. He was on his way to the door, when he was suddenly gripped by his shoulder. Instinctively he begun to turn around to defend himself. No one ever just touched somebody like this without a warning around Finland's place, so Sweden's action took Finland by surprise. "Mitä nyt?" The boy asked, what was it now?
Sweden just stared at him sternly, without a word, making Finland shake in his boots. This man was very frightening, Finland thought. The taller man's hand still held him tight, but Finland didn't attempt to shake it off. Sweden probably didn't want to hurt him. Hopefully...
Sweden sighed heavily, shaking his head a little. "Du har mycket att lära sig." Yes, Finland had a lot to learn. Sweden felt an urge to protect this young little brute, teach him some manners, proper language, and feed him properly, but he would need to start from the very basics. Sweden licked his fingertips and rubbed some dirt off Finland's soft cheek. "So mycket att lära sig..."
Re: Continued by another author
anonymous
April 5 2009, 19:52:45 UTC
Weeks passed, Sweden staying constantly at Finland's house. Much had changed since his arrival, Finland noticed; he was now paying tax to Sweden's boss, and was able to sell his things, mainly lumber and tar, via Sweden's place. Somebody called England was very thankful of his timber, especially. Finland was happy to be of use to others. He was also learning Swedish so he could finally speak with his new companion, although Finland wondered why couldn't Sweden learn his language.
"Nej." Sweden had said, refusing to learn Finnish. "Det är en klasslös språka."
Finland bit his lip to keep himself from objecting. That wasn't nice thing to say about his language, but Sweden had been very kind to help him out so Finland didn't want to argue. Besides, Sweden had fine clothes, those stinking metal pipes he could kill a bear, king of the forest, so easily, and many other things Finland didn't have. So perhaps Sweden was right and Finland was wrong. Maybe his language was low, ignoble.
***
Finland had been walking for hours in the snow, carrying the skull of the bear he had confronted and almost get killed by weeks ago. Finally he spotted the great scots pine. This was the "skull pine" he would hang the bear's skull into, so it's spirit could reincarnate. This was very important thing to do, so that the celebrations could be started to honor the great animal. Finland prepared to climb up the tree to hang the skull high in to the branches, but then he heard footsteps and turned around to see who it was. It was none else than Sweden, and Finland could tell he was irritated. Not by looking at his ever so stony expression, but by his way of walking, and the dreadful aura about him.
"Vad i hela friden?" That wasn't exactly a question Sweden spoke out, rather just mad muttering, but Finland wasn't sure so he tried to explain:
"Jag är... Erm, karhunpeijaiset..." How to explain the celebration of the bear to this outsider?
Sweden shook his head as he came straight at Finland and took his hand forcefully, making him drop the skull. Finland gasped as the sacred skull dropped to the ground and cracked in half.
"Perhana!" Finland swore aloud, horrified and mad at the same time.
"Tyst." Sweden had probably never raised his voice at anyone, neither did he now, but something about his eyes was like a slap in the face for Finland "Kom." With that order given, Sweden started to drag Finland after him.
"Men den skalle..." Finland couldn't just leave the skull there, by the gods! The emuu of bears, Hongatar, would not look kindly upon this. Finland swore more when he thought about the ancestor of all bears not blessing his next hunt, it would turn out catastrophic at best. Finland tried to pull his hand off Sweden's grip, but he was just too strong for him. "Stoppa!" was all Finland was able to say, until he couldn't come up with the correct Swedish words anymore and just pleaded in his own language; "Ole kiltti..."
Finland's earnest, almost miserable plea hurt Sweden in a way nothing had done before. It hurt somewhere within his chest, but he knew what he had to do. He couldn't ignore Finland's false beliefs that would eventually lead him and his folk down to Hell.
Re: Continued by another author
anonymous
April 5 2009, 19:55:15 UTC
They arrived to a building with a tall bell tower. The tower was still under construction, but the first floor could very well be used.
Why is he taking me there? Finland wondered. Buildings like this one had been started to build all over since Sweden's arrival, and they had one thing in common; the strange cross symbol. Finland hadn't paid much attention to them up until now. They entered the quiet hallway and as their footsteps echoed from the walls of the large hall, went further inside. Few candles in their chandeliers lit the place dimly in addition to the sunlight coming trough narrow, but very tall windows. The place was serene and it's silence calmed Finland down for a while, until his eyes met that strange cross again. It was larger than those he had seen before, made from dark, varnished wood, hung on the wall behind an altar. Finland took a better look at the cross and saw that on it, there was a figure of a man.
"Sätta sig." Sweden told Finland to sit, taking a seat himself.
Getting a bit nervous now, his eyes still glued at the strange man on the cross, Finland sat besides Sweden. Finally he tore his eyes from it, and looked at Sweden. The other was now holding a book, with the same cross symbol ornating the cover. "Vad är det?" Finland asked with his still very clumsy Swedish.
"Det är en Bibel." Sweden told him, opening the Bible and searching trough the pages. "Det är Guds ord."
"Gud? Ukko, eller Mielikki, eller..." If this "Bible" was the word of God, which god did Sweden mean? Finland had many gods and goddesses too.
"Nej." Sweden almost pierced Finland with his poignant eyes, or at least that's how Finland felt. "Der är bara en Gud."
Only one God? Finland didn't quite believe Sweden. The Baltic brothers too, they had had many gods and goddesses last time Finland had visited them, also Norway had this Thor, and he was really cool, like Finland's Ukko, the supreme god. How could there suddenly be only one?
Sweden helped Finland read the Bible till late evening, teaching him what he believed was the holy word that would save Finland from the Devil. Sweden believed this was his most important task at Finland's place yet, he wouldn't allow Devil to have control over him no longer. He would do his best to save Finland.
"...och so-..." Sweden's sentence was cut short when Finland's head suddenly slumped against his strong shoulder. The fair-haired young man was fast asleep. Sweden let his eyes wander on his pale face, his slightly parted lips, snowy eyelashes lining his closed yes... Sweden felt really warm all of a sudden, watching this tender, yet really strong boy. Sweden closed the Bible and put it aside, and then leaned closer, very carefully, very slowly, towards the boy. His touch on that soft skin was light as a falling snowflake when he gently stroked Finland's cheek. Then, careful to not to make a sound, he took his silvery cross necklace from under his shirt where it had been hidden, removed it from his own neck and put it around Finland's neck instead. It would belong to him now. Sweden only then found that he had been smiling when his face went back to expressionless as Finland made a motion. He seemed to be waking up. Sweden quickly backed off from Finland, taking some distance while still holding him up so he wouldn't topple over.
"Uhh..?" Finland's voice was sleepy, he slowly opened his eyes. "Minä... Erm, jag..." He quickly remembered to switch to Swedish, "Jag..." but he couldn't find the correct words to tell Sweden he hadn't intended to fall asleep in the middle of a lecture.
"Det är okej." Sweden stared in front of him, not really looking at anything, just stared and pretended that nothing had just happened. His heart was pounding.
Finland rubbed his eyes a bit, yawned and asked if they could go home already. "Ska vi gå hemma?"
Re: Continued by another author
anonymous
April 5 2009, 20:21:44 UTC
***
Meanwhile, standing on a foresty hill overlooking the field the church was built on, stood a sizeable man in long coat and creamy scarf.
"Bóže moj..." Russia had became too late, Sweden had already took little Finland under his wing, teaching him what ever rubbish he wanted. Oh well, it was only a matter of time when Finland would become his. Everyone would become, in time. Russia smiled at this sweet thought, and turned away, for he would return.
***
Translations:
Finnish: Otso: Bear (it is said to be "bear's true name", and it's not commonly used in modern Finnish, it's more a poetic way to say bear. More common way to say bear is "karhu") Sahti: (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahti ) Pidätkö siitä?: Do you like it? Odota: Wait Mitä nyt?: What now? Karhunpeijaiset: Bear's celebration (you certainly don't hear this in modern Finnish, peijaiset is not commonly used when talking about parties etc.) Perhana!: (Finnish swearword, "milder" version of the famous Perkele) Emuu & Hongatar: (Emuus were said to be the ancestors, "mothers" of certain animal species, Hongatar was the emuu of all bears. Emuus were prayed to grant their children as prey when going to hunt, or asked to restrain their children in case they caused trouble.) Ole kiltti: Please (literally it means "be nice/kind") Ukko, Mielikki: (these were gods in paganic Finland. Ukko was the god of thunder and was the supreme god, Mielikki was the goddess of forest) Minä: Me
Swedish: Du har mycket att lära sig: You have much to learn Nej: No Det är en klasslös språka: That is a classless language (classless, bad, low etc.) (This was one of those hard sentences for me to form so it might be slightly incorrect translation) Vad i hela friden?: What the -(something, I think "what the heck" is close enough) Jag är: I am Tyst: (be) quiet Kom: Come Men den skalle: But the skull Stoppa!: Stop! (quite obvious) Sätta sig: Sit Det är en Bibel, Det är Guds ord: It is Bible, it is the word of God. Gud: God (d'uh) Eller: or och so-...: and so-... Jag: Me Det är okej: It is okay Ska vi gå hemma?: Shall we go home?
Author!Anon of the first fill.
anonymous
April 6 2009, 06:55:37 UTC
Oh my goodness... Thank you so much for continuing this. *___* I loved how you included the languages, for the first time it didn't feel awkward including Finnish in the midst of English. And the mentions of the paganic traditions were just perfect. *swoons over you*
Re: Author!Anon of the first fill.
anonymous
April 6 2009, 08:47:23 UTC
Thank you for the comment! I'm glad you liked it, hehe, I'm such a nerd for old religions like that so it was fun to write! But your fic was the original inspiration for this so it's all thanks to you, Author!Anon of the first fill :)
Re: Continued by another author
anonymous
April 6 2009, 15:45:27 UTC
If you want to post this elsewhere, I could help you with the Swedish bits. The grammar is a bit weird and it's kind of distracting for a Swede to read it. ^_^;
Also, Christianity didn't arrive in Finland until the 11th/12th century, so before then a form of animism prevailed as a religion.
And uh. Enjoy?
- - -
Finland paused. He stood as still, as quiet, as possible. The forest ahead of him was thinning, which meant it'd be easier for his prey to spot him. He could just make out the imposing dark form just some ten meters ahead of him. Its greasy, musky smell contrasted with the fresh scent of pines around him, making it easy to keep track of the beast.
The Finn tightened his hold on the sheath-knife as he crept closer. The bear was not yet full-grown, yet it was huge, its clawed paws leaving prints almost as big as his head. Three meters away, he stopped. The bear was still, listening to the sounds of nature, sniffing for any sign of danger. But Finland knew he couldn't be spotted that way; cloaked in fur and leather, he was the scent of forest.
Then the bear lowered its head and let its guard down, and Finland knew his chance was there. He unsheathed his knife and closed his eyes for a moment, in respect to the spirit of the great king of the forest he was about to slay.
A few brisk steps as he sprinted forward, grabbed the beast by the scruff of its neck, raised his knife and stabbed it deep into the bear's neck. The shudder of pain and anger that went through the bear was like a small earthquake, not that he'd experienced such a thing, and the Finn held on with all his might as the animal trashed in his hold.
Something seemed amiss. Why wasn't the bear falling already? His strike was meant to kill quickly and mercifully. Had he miscalculated? A moment later the thought was confirmed as the bear twisted and turned, forcing the hand holding the knife into a painful position, and Finland gasped in pain and surprise as warm blood trickled over his hand from the wound. The bear swung around and the nation was thrown down to the ground.
Finland could feel tears pricking his eyes. His wrist was throbbing and his fingers squeezing the handle of the blade were slick with blood. The bear roared above him, furious and in pain, and he realised there wouldn't be another chance to strike. No man could win a fight against an enraged beast.
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Loud crashes and thumps followed close behind him, along with blood-chilling roars. He wished to blend in with the shadows and smells of the forest, but there was little hope of that now, now that he could feel the cold sweat of fear on his face. He muttered under his breath, apologised to the great bear for harming it, calling its name like a prayer, asking it to save his life this time.
He was shaken thoroughly to hear another roar, but much, much closer than he had assumed. The bear must have caught up with him. Finland changed direction and spared a glance over his shoulder, just the tiniest glance to see how close the beast was and he felt his feet sliding on their own accord, felt his step faltering and he fell...
He groaned in agony as his sprained wrist took the fall. He felt a presence behind him, looming, menacing. The smell of grease and musk and blood filled the air. Finland felt sick with fear. Playing dead was no good now, he'd be dead for real in a minute. A thump on the ground as the bear stepped closer. Finland closed his eyes, slowly moved the knife from one hand to another and gripped it tight. He'd slash out when the bear was close enough. That was his only chance now.
He breathed deep and counted under his breath. One... Two... Three...
A shot rang through the air, so loud Finland almost yelped. Instantly following it was a cry of pain behind him, from the bear. A strange silence hung in the air until there was a heavy crash when the body of the bear fell to the ground. Finland lay still, eyes wider than ever, barely daring to breathe.
When there was no sound of further movement, he shakily stood up and looked behind him. Yes, there it was, the mighty form of the king of beasts. Around it was a strange smell, something sour and unwelcoming. Finland scrunched up his nose briefly, then turned around again.
Some meters away from him stood a man. His clothes were, though warm and suited to the northern climate, somehow different; made from heavier fabric, and cut in an unfamiliar way. In his hand he held a metal pipe, of sorts, where the sharp and stinging smell was coming from.
His eyes were just as sharp, a bright cold blue, their gaze fixated on Finland.
"Är du okej?"
The words, though worried in tone and softer than he'd expected, said nothing to Finland. He blinked in confusion and reflexively stepped back when the man walked closer. He gripped the knife in his hand again, but the man only passed him by and stopped to take a look at the bear. Having checked it was indeed dead, he slung his gun over his shoulder and turned to Finland again.
"Vad heter du?" he said. Finland could only shake his head in reply, causing the man to raise an eyebrow. He stepped closer, but this time the Finn didn't back away. The man placed a hand on his chest and said slowly and clearly, "Sverige." He pointed at Finland. "Och du?"
This time the message was clear, despite the language barrier. "S... Suomi," the smaller nation answered hesitantly. There was a pause, during which the look on the other man's face changed from confusion and curiosity to something resembling recognition.
"Finland," he then said, in a voice as if he'd just met a long-lost childhood friend.
- - -
Translations (if someone needs them):
Är du okej? = Are you okay?
Vad heter du? = What is your name?
Sverige = Sweden in Swedish (obviously)
Suomi = Finland in Finnish (not so obviously?)
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Not that it really matters because the fic is really nice. The flow, the pace and Finland. Because Finland is awesome. Haha. I like it very, very much.
I love how you included their actual languages, and kill me, but I have always thought that Suomi sounds way more prettier than Finland.
*faps to Su-san*
Thank you for the fic. <3
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Anon, that was amazing! I kind of had film going on in my head while reading this, felt so realistical. I loved it, keep up with awesome work, anon! >///
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***
Finland. Finland pondered the name the strange man, who called himself Sverige, had mentioned. It must have been what he, Suomi, was called by others out in the wide world.
Finland peered above his shoulder like cautious animal at the man who had saved him from the rampaging otso, bear. It was as if the man with those striking blue eyes had recognized him, and Finland in return couldn't shake off the familiar feeling about him. Maybe they had met earlier? Finland would have liked to know, but there was a language barrel. He couldn't understand a thing the other said, thought he didn't say much.
They had went over to Finland's house, a small cottage by a lake. Sun was setting as they sat around a wooden table, drinking the sahti Finland had home brewed.
"Pidätkö siitä?" Finland asked Sweden if he liked the drink, but of course the other didn't know what he meant, just took another sip. Finland held back a chuckle as Sweden made a face at the taste that was new to him. Silence taking over the room again, which suited the both men well, they drank and ate some meat and veggies.
Sweden thought it was a very crude meal.
"Odota." Finland asked his new companion to wait and stood up. He had to go check the fishnet in case some vendace or even bass had got caught. He was on his way to the door, when he was suddenly gripped by his shoulder. Instinctively he begun to turn around to defend himself. No one ever just touched somebody like this without a warning around Finland's place, so Sweden's action took Finland by surprise. "Mitä nyt?" The boy asked, what was it now?
Sweden just stared at him sternly, without a word, making Finland shake in his boots. This man was very frightening, Finland thought. The taller man's hand still held him tight, but Finland didn't attempt to shake it off. Sweden probably didn't want to hurt him. Hopefully...
Sweden sighed heavily, shaking his head a little. "Du har mycket att lära sig." Yes, Finland had a lot to learn. Sweden felt an urge to protect this young little brute, teach him some manners, proper language, and feed him properly, but he would need to start from the very basics. Sweden licked his fingertips and rubbed some dirt off Finland's soft cheek. "So mycket att lära sig..."
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"Nej." Sweden had said, refusing to learn Finnish. "Det är en klasslös språka."
Finland bit his lip to keep himself from objecting. That wasn't nice thing to say about his language, but Sweden had been very kind to help him out so Finland didn't want to argue. Besides, Sweden had fine clothes, those stinking metal pipes he could kill a bear, king of the forest, so easily, and many other things Finland didn't have. So perhaps Sweden was right and Finland was wrong. Maybe his language was low, ignoble.
***
Finland had been walking for hours in the snow, carrying the skull of the bear he had confronted and almost get killed by weeks ago. Finally he spotted the great scots pine. This was the "skull pine" he would hang the bear's skull into, so it's spirit could reincarnate. This was very important thing to do, so that the celebrations could be started to honor the great animal. Finland prepared to climb up the tree to hang the skull high in to the branches, but then he heard footsteps and turned around to see who it was. It was none else than Sweden, and Finland could tell he was irritated. Not by looking at his ever so stony expression, but by his way of walking, and the dreadful aura about him.
"Vad i hela friden?" That wasn't exactly a question Sweden spoke out, rather just mad muttering, but Finland wasn't sure so he tried to explain:
"Jag är... Erm, karhunpeijaiset..." How to explain the celebration of the bear to this outsider?
Sweden shook his head as he came straight at Finland and took his hand forcefully, making him drop the skull. Finland gasped as the sacred skull dropped to the ground and cracked in half.
"Perhana!" Finland swore aloud, horrified and mad at the same time.
"Tyst." Sweden had probably never raised his voice at anyone, neither did he now, but something about his eyes was like a slap in the face for Finland "Kom." With that order given, Sweden started to drag Finland after him.
"Men den skalle..." Finland couldn't just leave the skull there, by the gods! The emuu of bears, Hongatar, would not look kindly upon this. Finland swore more when he thought about the ancestor of all bears not blessing his next hunt, it would turn out catastrophic at best. Finland tried to pull his hand off Sweden's grip, but he was just too strong for him. "Stoppa!" was all Finland was able to say, until he couldn't come up with the correct Swedish words anymore and just pleaded in his own language; "Ole kiltti..."
Finland's earnest, almost miserable plea hurt Sweden in a way nothing had done before. It hurt somewhere within his chest, but he knew what he had to do. He couldn't ignore Finland's false beliefs that would eventually lead him and his folk down to Hell.
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Why is he taking me there? Finland wondered. Buildings like this one had been started to build all over since Sweden's arrival, and they had one thing in common; the strange cross symbol. Finland hadn't paid much attention to them up until now. They entered the quiet hallway and as their footsteps echoed from the walls of the large hall, went further inside. Few candles in their chandeliers lit the place dimly in addition to the sunlight coming trough narrow, but very tall windows. The place was serene and it's silence calmed Finland down for a while, until his eyes met that strange cross again. It was larger than those he had seen before, made from dark, varnished wood, hung on the wall behind an altar. Finland took a better look at the cross and saw that on it, there was a figure of a man.
"Sätta sig." Sweden told Finland to sit, taking a seat himself.
Getting a bit nervous now, his eyes still glued at the strange man on the cross, Finland sat besides Sweden. Finally he tore his eyes from it, and looked at Sweden. The other was now holding a book, with the same cross symbol ornating the cover. "Vad är det?" Finland asked with his still very clumsy Swedish.
"Det är en Bibel." Sweden told him, opening the Bible and searching trough the pages. "Det är Guds ord."
"Gud? Ukko, eller Mielikki, eller..." If this "Bible" was the word of God, which god did Sweden mean? Finland had many gods and goddesses too.
"Nej." Sweden almost pierced Finland with his poignant eyes, or at least that's how Finland felt. "Der är bara en Gud."
Only one God? Finland didn't quite believe Sweden. The Baltic brothers too, they had had many gods and goddesses last time Finland had visited them, also Norway had this Thor, and he was really cool, like Finland's Ukko, the supreme god. How could there suddenly be only one?
Sweden helped Finland read the Bible till late evening, teaching him what he believed was the holy word that would save Finland from the Devil. Sweden believed this was his most important task at Finland's place yet, he wouldn't allow Devil to have control over him no longer. He would do his best to save Finland.
"...och so-..." Sweden's sentence was cut short when Finland's head suddenly slumped against his strong shoulder. The fair-haired young man was fast asleep. Sweden let his eyes wander on his pale face, his slightly parted lips, snowy eyelashes lining his closed yes... Sweden felt really warm all of a sudden, watching this tender, yet really strong boy. Sweden closed the Bible and put it aside, and then leaned closer, very carefully, very slowly, towards the boy. His touch on that soft skin was light as a falling snowflake when he gently stroked Finland's cheek. Then, careful to not to make a sound, he took his silvery cross necklace from under his shirt where it had been hidden, removed it from his own neck and put it around Finland's neck instead. It would belong to him now. Sweden only then found that he had been smiling when his face went back to expressionless as Finland made a motion. He seemed to be waking up. Sweden quickly backed off from Finland, taking some distance while still holding him up so he wouldn't topple over.
"Uhh..?" Finland's voice was sleepy, he slowly opened his eyes. "Minä... Erm, jag..." He quickly remembered to switch to Swedish, "Jag..." but he couldn't find the correct words to tell Sweden he hadn't intended to fall asleep in the middle of a lecture.
"Det är okej." Sweden stared in front of him, not really looking at anything, just stared and pretended that nothing had just happened. His heart was pounding.
Finland rubbed his eyes a bit, yawned and asked if they could go home already. "Ska vi gå hemma?"
Sweden nodded stiffly.
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Meanwhile, standing on a foresty hill overlooking the field the church was built on, stood a sizeable man in long coat and creamy scarf.
"Bóže moj..." Russia had became too late, Sweden had already took little Finland under his wing, teaching him what ever rubbish he wanted. Oh well, it was only a matter of time when Finland would become his. Everyone would become, in time. Russia smiled at this sweet thought, and turned away, for he would return.
***
Translations:
Finnish:
Otso: Bear (it is said to be "bear's true name", and it's not commonly used in modern Finnish, it's more a poetic way to say bear. More common way to say bear is "karhu")
Sahti: (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahti )
Pidätkö siitä?: Do you like it?
Odota: Wait
Mitä nyt?: What now?
Karhunpeijaiset: Bear's celebration (you certainly don't hear this in modern Finnish, peijaiset is not commonly used when talking about parties etc.)
Perhana!: (Finnish swearword, "milder" version of the famous Perkele)
Emuu & Hongatar: (Emuus were said to be the ancestors, "mothers" of certain animal species, Hongatar was the emuu of all bears. Emuus were prayed to grant their children as prey when going to hunt, or asked to restrain their children in case they caused trouble.)
Ole kiltti: Please (literally it means "be nice/kind")
Ukko, Mielikki: (these were gods in paganic Finland. Ukko was the god of thunder and was the supreme god, Mielikki was the goddess of forest)
Minä: Me
Swedish:
Du har mycket att lära sig: You have much to learn
Nej: No
Det är en klasslös språka: That is a classless language (classless, bad, low etc.) (This was one of those hard sentences for me to form so it might be slightly incorrect translation)
Vad i hela friden?: What the -(something, I think "what the heck" is close enough)
Jag är: I am
Tyst: (be) quiet
Kom: Come
Men den skalle: But the skull
Stoppa!: Stop! (quite obvious)
Sätta sig: Sit
Det är en Bibel, Det är Guds ord: It is Bible, it is the word of God.
Gud: God (d'uh)
Eller: or
och so-...: and so-...
Jag: Me
Det är okej: It is okay
Ska vi gå hemma?: Shall we go home?
Russian:
Bóže moj: Oh my God (I think...)
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