[center][h2]Helsinki, Finland[/h2][/center]

"So it has been decided, then."

Prime Minister Juha Sipilä sat in the back of his car as his driver brought him to his office. It was snowing outside, but that wasn't anything particularly odd for literally any location in Finland in the middle of December. His phone-the latest in the Lumina line-was pressed close to his ear as he looked out on the peaceful-looking buildings of Helsinki, their roofs covered in a thin layer of fluffy white snow. Though he often preferred to speak to his aides in person, being able to look out the window without seeming rude was one of the many upsides to speaking over the phone.

"Yes, Prime Minister. It was a close vote, but the parliament has chosen to pass the bill."

"Damn. I know we need it, but... Russia will see this as a provocation. We might get a few more boots out of it, but the tensions will skyrocket."

"They will, but they are already climbing steadily. The Russians already have troops on the border, and with their new Anti-NATO, it is doubtful that they won't send any more. This will simply speed up the tensions, which isn't exactly a bad thing. It gives Russia less time to build up their military against us."

Juha shivered at the analysis. His aide was entirely right, but he just didn't want to think like that. He spoke as if war was inevitable, and perhaps it was. Still, that wasn't something he himself wanted to accept. Sure, Finland had survived other wars with Russia, but there was no denying the fact that Russia was a military juggernaut, while Finland was a tiny nation that didn't even have a technological advantage. If all the reserves could be mobilized at once, and Russia didn't mobilize their own reserves, then they could be beaten. Unfortunately, the vast Finnish reserve pool couldn't be mobilized fully without a [i]lot[/i] of foreign assistance.

So, regrettably, NATO was the only place they could turn.

"I shall have a statement prepared shortly." He said, sighing. "I just hope we never have to call for their help. What of the 2016 budget?"

"Still no consensus, but it looks like the military budget will be increased. Some of the more... militant members of the parliament are advocating for the restoration of the Salpa Line, which of course, requires a significantly higher budget. I doubt that it will be increased that far."

"Good. Restoring the Salpa Line would be nothing more than a provocation. Is that all?"

"Yes, Prime Minister. Good day."

"To you as well."

[hider=To All NATO Members]
Our esteemed colleagues and dear friends in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization,

	The parliament of our nation of Finland has been discussing the possibility of membership in NATO for quite some time, and on December 5th, 2015, voted in favor of applying for membership in the face of the formation of a Russian-led NATO equivalent. We no longer have the luxury of staying isolated from the goings-on, and thus have chosen to request that our nation be reviewed for membership. Our nation is fully prepared to contribute to defense of the organization, and I will point out that it meets all requirements. It is our belief that our entrance into the organization would further deter the unacceptable Russian aggression we have seen in recent years, and be a mutually beneficial partnership for all involved parties. The Finnish nation eagerly awaits your response.

Sincerely, Prime Minister Juha Sipilä
[/hider]

[center][h2]Salla, Finland[/h2][/center]

Snow covered the trees as more fell down from the sky in the never-ending bombardment that cursed the village. Tourists always seemed to like it, but only because all the tourists were either skiers or the rare history buff who wanted to see the giant bunker line that never actually saw combat. The skiers were there specifically for the now, and the history buffs were too busy talking about how important the Finnish climate was in repelling the Soviets in the Winter and Continuation wars.

In the middle of the never-ending sea of white, a small section of wooden brown stood out. It wasn't a tree trunk-the surrounding trees were all rather short, and their trunks were sheltered by their needles. Which, of course, were covered in snow. Though the wooden brown was rather hard to miss if one was looking for it, if one was not, they would never notice it. Which made things that much better for the two people that lay behind it.

A flash came from the oddity, which then let out a great [i]bang[/i]. Seconds later, a deer a few hundred meters away fell to the ground.

"How far was that? Two hundred? Two-fifty?" Said one of them, their voice muffled by a scarf over their mouth.

"Closer to three hundred, I'd say."

"Jesus, three meters with iron sights. You [i]are[/i] good, I bet that's on par with military snipers."

"Most of our snipers use 12x scopes, no clue what kind of training they get though. The Americans are supposed to be able to land first-shot hits on targets six hundred meters away using a 10x scope, so if we do the math, I'm technically five times better than an American Army sniper."

"Technically?"

"Well, obviously. You can't just apply math to skill, they're completely different things. An American sniper might not be able to pull off that shot using my gun, but I'd bet money that I'd do worse with one of their guns in a combat situation."

"Well, your name [i]is[/i] Sisu, so I have my doubts about that."

"Don't remind me that I have a boy's name, you [i]mulqvist[/i]."

One of them stood up and lowered their scarf from over their nose and mouth to reveal a playful smile. The second did the same, had chuckled at the mock insult.

"Are you ever going to explain how you got that name?" Said the second one, whom followed the first down the hill they were on towards the fallen deer.

"I would if I knew myself." Said the first, her breath making clouds of moisture in the below-zero December air. "Honestly, I don't think even my parents know at this point. They probably just thought it was a cool name."

"I still think it fits you, you know."

"Hah! As if. Not having shaky hands while giving a practice speech is hardly an example of anything of the sort. I'm not the kind of person to run towards gunshots, I'm the kind of person to hide under a desk and wait for the police. When I actually pull something crazy off, then you can say my name fits."

"When you actually cower under a desk, you can say your name [i]doesn't[/i] fit."

"Touché, Kristoffer, touché."