PS
At the North Pole, the wind is cutting. Victor has doubt that somewhere out there, Walton's ship is sailing on. He doesn't know what they will do to his body. It feels like cheating, somehow, that he gets the second chance. He hunches his shoulders against the wind, kneeling to get his second coat out of the bag he brought with him. Leaving the barge had been hard, leaving the warm, familiar group of faces. Friends. Edward. He pulls the coat out, putting it on top of the one that he's already wearing. He needs to find where the creature lies, if he can. He needs to pay his respects before he goes home. Ernest will be there. Dismayed, mourning.
"Victor?"
Victor stops moving and looks around widely. He can see nothing but the snow that's falling like long sheets around him, already soaking through his collar. It's going to chill him to the bone if he's not careful. He could die out here, with only voices carried on the wind talking to him. The Admiral had given him his life, but little else. It was harsh, but fair. Victor couldn't begrudge him that.
"Hello?" Victor called out to the wind. He doesn't know who would be out here. The creature is dead, long dead. Encased in snow. It wouldn't be calling his name.
"It has been quite a while, I'm afraid."
Victor turns around slowly. Through the cold, the sleet and what may well be a rising blizzard, he still knows the silhouette that's in front of him. Even without confirmation, he smiles, stepping forward as he drops his bag to the ground.
"Data."
It's impossible to be anything other than pleased, a warm glow that flows right through him. He walks right up to Data, putting his arms around his former warden. He can see the way the snow doesn't melt against Data's skin, but it's familiar instead of disconcerting. Still familiar, after all this time. He can feel Data hugging him back, despite the layers of clothes.
"I did not think that you would be here." Victor admitted after a second. "I had feared that I would have to do this alone."
He draws back and Data smiles, the expression as restrained and self contained as it has always been.
"Out here?" Data said, giving Victor a warm look. "I think not. Were you intending to leave, or..."
The 'or' hangs. Victor just nodded. He knew what Data had meant. Somewhere out here, the Creature had made its final resting place.
"I wish to see it, one last time. Before we retreat to warmer climes."
Data looked at the sky, then at Victor.
"We may be here a while yet, I'm afraid. The weather is very poor."
"The Admiral's joke, perhaps." Victor said, reaching down to grip his former warden's hand. "It is likely that we will face many trials out here. Will you stay?"
Data looked almost confused by the question. "Of course. I think we could have a few more adventures. I intend to be here for quite a while."
Victor glanced at the ground. Data's idea of 'quite a while' was probably his idea of a very long time indeed. It was good. It was more than he could have hoped for. He looked back up at Data, and following the other man's nod, they turned and wandered off into the growing blizzard. There was a body out there somewhere, of a creature that had suffered more than any one being deserved. But beyond that, south, there was warmth again. Warmth, and the remains of family to add to that already walking through the snow.