A/N: Okay, it's time for the real final chapter. :D And since we've had more than enough drama lately, it's time for fluff! And look ma, I managed to finish the fic before Christmas (with thr- two days of spare even)! Yay! XD

Special thanks to Wang Yao for the information this chapter is based on. (Rest of the thanks are at the end of the chapter :D)

Always By Your Side

Epilogue: 2009 (1374)

"Su-san? Are you here?"

Finland pushed the heavy wooden door open and coughed due to the dusty air inside.

"Su-san?" He called again.

Sweden hastily turned around, surprised. He took a few steps away from the worktable he had been standing by and hid his hands behind his back.

"Yer h're alr'dy?" He asked, louder than he had meant to. The old shed they were in was mainly used as a storage room, and he had thought it would be the perfect place to finish his project hidden from the other's eyes. Of course, he had forgotten Finland had still lived in his house when the shed had been more actively used.

"I-I thought it was urgent, so I hurried here. And...Umm...you weren't in the house, so I came looking for you." Finland scratched the back of his neck, nervous.

But of course, Sweden thought, both amused by Finland's flabbergasted expression and annoyed by his own mistake. He should have expected him to come earlier. Why did he have to call him before he was ready? Sweden was going to slap his forehead, but froze and quickly hid his hand again.

Finland looked at him with a curious expression.

"Umm...So, what's going on?" He tilted his head.

Sweden sighed. If only he had a few minutes more to finish the preparations...Guess it couldn't be helped. At least it was ready already if nothing else.

"Th're's sumthing I want ta sh w y'." He mumbled, fighting to keep his expression normal. He really should have rehearsed this.

"Huh? What is it?" Finland looked surprised. Sweden pulled the hand from behind his back.

"'Pen year hands." he said. Finland did as he told him and Sweden dropped the small item he had been gripping in his palm into his waiting hands.

"Huh? A coin?" Finland said, looking at the small coin. "Why...Oh...Is someone making counterfeit coins in your house?

Sweden shook his head. "N', it's fer y'. Lo'k cl'ser."

Finland lifted the coin to his eye level to read the inscription.

"Den underbara sagan om ett land på andra sidan havet...Sverige 1809 2009 Finland..." He said slowly. "The wonderful tale about a country on the other side of the sea, Sweden 1809 2009 Finland..."

He looked at Sweden again, amazed.

"You really did this for me?"

Sweden nodded.

"Oh..." Finland hid his mouth behind his fist and blushed lightly, but quickly tried to brush it off. "Thank you."

"Yer welcom'."

Finland looked at the coin again.

"Two hundred years...has it really been that long already?" he smiled at coin and put it in his pocket.

"Yea." Sweden replied somberly.

"Two hundred...We've come a long way from there, haven't we?" Finland said cheerfully.

Sweden stared at him and frowned. Finland noticed this and blinked, looking a lot more nervous again. "Oh...Umm...I-I didn't mean it like that..."

Sweden interrupted his shaky explanations by reaching out and grabbing yhim into his arms.

"Huh? Huh?" Finland yelped, his voice muffled. Sweden hugged him tighter.

Please don't bother to explain, it doesn't matter.

Finland soon stopped protesting and closed his eyes, softly hugging him back.

It still felt a bit awkward and he wasn't sure would it ever be quite the same it once had been. But who cared? Even if it was different, it wasn't bad. All that mattered was that they were here now. He sighed and buried his face in Finland's soft hair. It smelled of the wind and flowers...A scent he had almost forgotten...

"Su-san! Su-san!"

Sweden looked around the trying to think where the voice had come from. The forest around him looked dazzling in the soft morning light. He soon spotted the smaller boy in white running towards him.

"Su-san!" he called again cheerfully and tripped over his own feet as he tried to slow down.

"Oops!" He yelped and fell on the ground face first only a few feet away from Sweden.

Sweden rushed to him.

"'Re y' 'Kay?" He asked, concerned.

Finland lifted his head from the moss and smiled weakly.

"I'm okay, the ground s soft here." He said feebly and quickly got up on his knees. "Whew, the flowers are okay too!" He exclaimed happily and sighed in relief.

"Fl'wers?" Sweden asked. He only now noticed the flowers Finland was holding in his hands...Large green leaves and white and small bell-shaped flowers...

"There were a lot of lily-of-the-valleys and I wanted you to see them too." He said happily.

"B't they're pois'n's... " Sweden muttered, surprised and a little worried. "Y' need ta w'sh yer h'nds."

Finland shook his head. "It's okay, I wrapped them in cloth." He said and lifted the small flower bunch higher. Sweden could now see the flowers were resting inside a piece of white cloth.

"Umm...These are for you." Finland said shyly and held the flowers out to the taller boy.

"Fer me?" Sweden asked, touched. He carefully took the flowers and look at them. The linen cloth felt pleasant against his skin and there were still dewdrops on the leaves.

Finland smiled. "Umm...Do you like them?" he asked carefully.

Sweden nodded and looked at the flowers again.

Finland looked relieved and sat down next to Sweden. He sat down too, still staring at the lily-of-the-valleys.

"Umm...What's your favorite flower?" The Finn asked to break the sudden silence.

Sweden looked up towards the sky and thought about it. Soon he blinked in surprise; there were so many beautiful flowers to choose from he didn't know which he liked the best.

"I-I d'n't h've on'." He admitted.

"Oh." Finland sounded confused. "S-sorry for asking."

Sweden shook his head to show there was no reason to apologize.

"I l'ke th'se." He mumbled, turning the flowers in his hands.

Finland beamed at him.

Sweden lifted the flowers up to his face and took a deep breath. The hypnotic scent of the lily-of-the-valleys filled his senses. He closed his eyes and let the smell drift into his mind. The warmth of the morning sun after the long night and the pleasant fresh air were mixed into it, until all there was a medley of warm happiness and Finland's soft humming, which soon turned into singing. Sweden hadn't learned to understand the words, but nonetheless it sounded very beautiful and soothing.

His shoulders loosened up and he let out a content sigh.

I will never forget this moment...

Sweden opened his eyes to realize he was still embracing Finland. He quickly let go, feeling embarrassed. Finland took a few steps backwards and looked away, his cheeks red.

"Umm...I should probably go now." He said quietly.

Sweden shook his head.

"D' y' want ta g' ta see th' lily-o'-the-v'lleys f'rst?" He mumbled.

Finland blinked. "I didn't know they're already in bloom..." He said, sounding hopeful.

"Th'y 're h're."

Finland smiled happily. "That would be really nice. But, umm..." He looked troubled. "It's quite cold there...And I don't have a proper coat"

Sweden looked at the corner and at the boxes there. One of the larger ones was open.

"Th're sum old clothes th're." He said, pointing at the box. "Try th'm."

"Umm...Thank you." Finland said shyly and went to see. He picked up some of the clothes in the box.

"Oh...Is this okay?" He carefully put the rest of the clothes back and showed a light blue mantle to Sweden.

Sweden gave an approving nod. "Yea." He hesitated. "'Ts yer 'ld an'way."

"Huh?" Finland looked at the cape more closely. "Oh...you're right."

He looked at Sweden again. "You...Still had it?"

Sweden looked away. "Yea." it probably looked weird, storing someone else's old clothes...

He looked at Finland again, who in turn was looking at the mantle again. Sweden's eyes widened in surprise; the sadness in the Finn's eyes had once again resurfaced and he looked like he was about to cry.

Finland shook his head slightly and got up, clutching the mantle.

"Thank you." he whispered and put it on. Sweden stared at him for a while before taking his own coat from the side of the door.

"R'dy to go?" He asked

Finland nodded and smiled faintly. Sweden opened the door and walked outside. He blinked in the sudden sunlight. It was warmer than he had remembered it to be, and many of the braver flowers were already in full bloom.

He looked behind to see Finland was outside too. He was closing the door behind him. Sweden smiled and looked at the flowers again. Even though he would always love fall, right now, his heart belonged to spring.

"Ok, th's way." He said at the Finn following him and started walking towards the forest. Finland hurried to walk by his side.

"Hey, did I tell you of the time when Hana-Tamago dug all my salmiakki into the backyard?"

"Yea."

"Oh...Did I already mention it this week?"

"Yea."

"Umm...Is it okay if I talk about it anyway?"

"...Yea."

And so they continued walking, with Finland happily chattering about Hana-Tamago's latest mischief and Sweden contently listening to him.

I don't know what the future has in store for us, or even how long we can live in peace...The world changes so fast nowadays, who knows what happens tomorrow...

But one thing I do know for sure; whatever is going to happen, I know where I want to be when it happens...Right by your side.

Always.

A/N: ...And on this note we finally end our story. =3

Whew...I must admit that while I loved writing this, it wasn't always easy. Getting inside the characters' heads was a pain (I'm looking at you, Sweden!), but I hope I did okay. Actually, I doubt this shows in the fic, but I think I delved in a little too deep...I've been feeling really melancholic ever since Sweden and Finland got separated in the fic. Lol. Well, it was worth it.

Sweden really doesn't have a national flower. Hmm...Guess he wasn't able to pick one. Aww =3 (Lol, and apparently Finland has two; both lily-of-the-valley AND white rose. That's kinda cute.)

Special Thanks to:

- Hidekaz Himaruya, for...gee, I wonder. For creating Hetalia and making sure history lessons are never the same again? ;)

- Wikipedia. I haven't felt so educated in my whole life.

- Ruusu, for much needed information and for being an all-out incredible person.

- Wang Yao, for the info about the commemorative coin and many insightful reviews.

- WhiteFrost for pointing out that typo, as well as for interesting reviews. (Btw, you were right about the civil war -bit ;)

- Tamer Lorika for being the funniest stalker in the world. XD

- Each and every reviewer not yet mentioned. Knowing that there were people enjoying the story and wanting to read more made all the sleepless nights so much easier, and I cherish every review I got.

- You, who are reading this sentence. Thank you for sticking with the fic, I really hope you enjoyed it.

...From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

So, until we meet again...goodbye and take care. :) If you excuse me, I'll just go and fall asleep on my feet. XD

Finland had started to sing again, his voice as clear as the early spring morning around them. Sweden still didn't understand the words, but he knew they told about love.