I bundle myself in as many layers as I can manage.

"Do you wish to come walk around with me, Hemmin?"
She is still at my table, laboring over her mending.
"Go on without me, ma'am." She replies, monotonously. "I have work to tend to."
"Surely that can wait until later." I reason.
"No." She thuds. "I have work."

She has made up her mind. No sense in wasting any more time arguing.
I head out of my room and back into the raging cold of the outside world.
The ship is alive and everyone is bustling around doing their various tasks.
I make my way through the chaos and manage to get across the gangway without being knocked into the icy waters of the ocean.

Save a few of my crew members, the docks of the port are practically abandoned.
I suppose the villagers of this frigid land are intelligent enough to stay warm inside their dwellings... but perhaps not intelligent enough to make their dwellings out of something other than snow.

I continue down the docks until I reach the snowy terrain. There is now a walkway that I assume will lead me to the heart of the town. I follow this path.

I have been walking long enough so that the Gerda is merely a speck in the distance behind me.
I have hardly seen but a few of the Inuits.
They are much more intelligent than I originally gave them credit for.
They have devised very cozy-looking garb that covers the entirety of their bodies.
I admit to being slightly envious, for they seem much more cleverly outfitted for this climate than I.

"Mind if I join you?" Ember appears at my side.
I can't help but smile at his presence. "Not at all."
We walk in silence for quite a ways.
"I have been told that the crew is getting restless." I confide in him.
"Yes, they are." He answers.
"Have you noticed?" I inquire.
"Most certainly."

I try to keep my body from shaking in the cold.
Conceal. Don't feel.
I just need to keep myself going a little bit longer.
We will be at the top of the world soon.

"We'll make it, Ember." I am assuring him as much as I am assuring myself. "We'll make it to the Kingdom On The Top Of The World."
He grunts.
"If you'll excuse me, Your Highness, I should be getting back to the ship."
I feel disappointed and slightly confused by his brisk departure, but I do not question.
He turns away and heads back in the direction of the Gerda.

I feel despair well up within me as something dawns upon me.
This is the first time Ember has ever left me still feeling cold.
Have I become so sick that I cannot even feel Ember's warmth anymore?

I try to brush aside all of the confusion.
I explore this peculiar kingdom of Inuitia. I wander around the frozen village, allowing myself fresh air and time to stretch out my legs on solid ground.
I am not able to communicate with any of the Inuits, however, since they seem to speak an entirely different language. I find this out very quickly.

I enter into what I assume is a store. It is a store made of nothing but ice, nevertheless, it is still indeed a store.
An old woman greets me; or I reckon she is greeting me because she smiles warmly. I do not understand anything she speaks.
I allow my eyes to wander over the shelves, which seem to be made out of frozen blocks.
Kristoff would love this place.
I see jars of seaweed, bags of tubers, and hunks of some sort of mystery meat.

The old woman draws my attention over to a corner of her store which has several racks of Inuit garments. They all look so gloriously warm.

"I have no money." I try to tell her, for my Arendelle currency is of no use to the Inuits.
She does not seem to grasp the meaning of my words. She presents a pair of magnificent Inuit gloves to me and wills me to put them on.

I admit that I can't resist how snug they look.
I slip them on over my Arendelle gloves. They feel fantastic beyond words.
I let the warmth radiate over my frozen fingers. I let out a sigh of contentment.
The Inuits most definitely know what they are doing.
At last, I cannot keep the gloves. I regretfully remove them from my hands, accidentally taking off my Arendelle gloves along with them, revealing my translucent, blue flesh.

The Inuit woman's eyes widen upon seeing my hands.
She immediately starts talking, releasing a long strand of words that I cannot grab onto. She gestures wildly. I feel as though she is trying to tell me something important, but I cannot understand what it is. "Ikkuma! Ikkuma!"
I think she is beginning to realize that I cannot grasp her words.
She looks at me sadly.
The Inuit woman takes both pairs of gloves into her hands and gives them to me, with a pleading look in her eyes.
She wants me to have the gloves, I believe.

"Thank you." I tell her, pulling them back onto my hands.
She grasps my hands in hers and looks deeply into my eyes. I can see desperation. I want so much to know what she is telling me.
"Ikkuma."

I leave the store not knowing.

I should be heading back to the Gerda now. I have been gone for quite a while and I wouldn't want to keep my crew waiting, should they be done with their business already.

Upon boarding the ship, I see that Ember has found his favorite spot yet again.
He sits with his body facing the strange ice kingdom. He has a deep expression on his face, as if he is looking into one of the many secrets of the world.

"How do you like Inuitia?" I ask him.
I note that his gray eyes light up when I approach him.
"It seems to be quite interesting... from afar." He responds.

"Queen Elsa." Captain Roald strides to me. He holds himself as if he owns the Gerda (Technically, he does, being that he is the captain).
"Yes, Captain?" I turn my full attention to him.
"Shall I give my crew the signal to hoist anchor and return to Arendelle?"
"No, Captain." My voice is firm. "You may hoist anchor and continue sailing North."
"But, my queen-"
"I have given my orders."

I see something flicker in his eyes, something that very much scares me.