"How far is Jokkmokk actually?" Asked Sven as the two were walking. "It's been so long since I have been this far out."

Esther sighed. "A couple of days at least... But we'll probably take a week to get there."

"A week? That long?"

Esther looked behind her at Sven. "Yes, back in the day I didn't have to travel this much... But scavenging gets harder as time goes on."

Sven looked confused. "How so?"

She laughed. "Houses don't magically refill themselves with valuables, you know?" So, I need to travel further each year."

"Why do you travel during winter anyway? It seems silly to me."

"Well, during summer I go to Bodø to get my supply of insulin. It's a long way, far longer than this one. So, I drive there by bike. Something you obviously can't do during winter." She said as she looked at the white carpet the snow formed.

Sven nodded. "So, you don't spend much time in your hometown then?" He said.

"Exactly, I try to be there for a month at least, to spend time with my mom, but it's hard. Time is precious."

He thought for a moment. "Only your mother? What happened to your dad, if I may ask?"

Esther sighed. "He died a few years ago, before the war. He had a brain tumour..."

Sven looked down. "I am sorry to hear that." He said a little uneasy.

The conversation fell silent as they followed the snow-covered route.

"Well, there might be no cars anymore, but at least the old roads still have a purpose." Esther said. "This one leads straight to Jokkmokk. Monotone, but at least you won't get lost."

Sven nodded. "Yeah, I stopped using my car a year after the war. The gas stations here quickly ran out of fuel..."

Esther shrugged. "I never got my driving licence in the first place, so it didn't really have an effect on me."

Sven looked confused and asked Esther why.

"Well, we had everything we needed back in Jokkmokk... Before insulin became so rare."

The conversation became quiet once again. Eventually it was noon and the two settled under a large pine tree besides the road to eat lunch.

"So, what do you usually eat during these trips?" Asked Sven.

Esther shrugged. "Whatever I have on hand. But usually something sweet, to keep my sugar values up."

Sven nodded. "Well, what will it be today?"

She thought for a moment. "I think we'll go for salted deer meat, alongside peaches."

Sven looked sceptical. "Salted meat with peaches? What kind of combination is that?"

She laughed. "Don't worry, it's not as bad as you think." Esther opened the can of peaches and poured the water in it into the snow. She then got out the small box that contained the meat and proceeded shared the contents between her and Sven.

Esther immediately began eating, but Sven looked quite confused at his food. Eventually, he too started to eat as well. He didn't make any more comments about the food combination. Perhaps he didn't find it so bad after all?

When they were done, they gathered their stuff and began walking again.

"At least winter is ending." Said Esther. "I am happy about that; I hate wandering around in the dark."

Sven nodded. "Yes, you're right. I love Norrbotten, but the winters are so cold and dark... At least the summer makes up for it."

Esther laughed. "You like the midnight sun? Because all it does for me is making my sleep schedule a mess."

He sighed. "It was awesome. Back in the day me and my wife used to sit outside at 12 at midnight and we looked at how beautiful nature was. I miss her so much."

"It must be hard... What kind of person was she?"

Sven thought for a moment. "She was calm, sweet, intelligent and beautiful... Exactly what I wanted in a woman."

Esther nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a nice person, sorry about what happened... The Disaster at Kiruna shocked us all. No one expected a nuclear strike to happen here in Norrbotten."

Sven sighed and looked down. Clearly the matter was still very emotional for him.

Hours passed as the two kept travelling further to Jokkmokk. They passed forests, fields and lakes, but always remained on the road. Eventually, it started to snow again. It then snowed harder and eventually it turned into a blizzard.

Esther and Sven almost had to crawl through the snow. "We can't travel like this!" Screamed Esther, making sure that Sven could hear her through the noise of the storm. "It's getting too cold and dangerous. We need to find shelter immediately or we'll freeze to death!"

"You're right!" He replied. "But I don't see any houses nearby."

Esther sighed. "Me neither... We'll have to improvise, let's leave the road and look in the woods." Sven agreed and so they ventured away from the road they had been travelling all day. They couldn't see much, but eventually they found a small cave.

Esther looked inside. "This will do." She said. "At least it'll protect us from the storm."

Sven agreed and so they went inside. It wasn't exactly a cave, but more like hole in a hill, but it sufficed.

They both got comfortable and waited out the storm. Unfortunately for them, it didn't seem to end quickly. The sun soon went down and it became night.

"Well, seems like that's the end of our journey for today." Said Sven.

"It seems so. Snowstorms have been very frequent this year... I wonder if the war has something to do with it?"

Sven shrugged. "I am not exactly a scientist, I wouldn't know. Anyways, what do you suggest we do now?"

Esther sighed. "Well, going outside is not an option for now. If it were me, I would eat dinner and go to bed."

"Well, what's for dinner then?"

"Canned pears with the rest of the salted meat."

Sven rolled his eyes. "Canned fruit, again?"

Esther giggled. "Yep, I need to keep my sugar values up and it's the only thing we can eat cold... Unless you are volunteering to search for wood?"

Sven looked outside and quickly shook his head. "Canned pears it is then."

She smiled. "I know you would love my idea."

Together, they ate dinner and talked for a bit. Afterwards, they grabbed their sleeping bags and slept. Hopefully, the snowstorm would be over by tomorrow, although that was not a guarantee.