- A/N -

Out of all of the fanfictions that I have published here so far, this is by far the one with the least attention given to it, perhaps because it has the lowest general fanbase. Now, I myself have decided to update this story less than the other ones that I currently have on, but only because I do want to continue it, and I know that there are people out there who would appreciate to have a story like this posted somewhere. That being said, if there are currently any silent readers, please make yourselves known, as it would really help in my writing process to have someone show support while the story is being written and not merely afterwards.

From the previous chapter alone, I know that already both our protagonist and the readers have gone through some unpleasantness, but please remember that, despite the musical numbers and the whimsy of some of the characters, Fiddler on the Roof does not have a particularly pleasant ending, especially as it represents a reality. I do not intend to make many things simple for Hodel and Perchik in this story, but believe that they deserve their happiness at some parts, as does everybody, and shall provide them with happiness accordingly.

This chapter will be much shorter than the first, as it will be describing Hodel's "transportation process". For those of you who've guessed it already, let this chapter confirm your suspicions...


2 Towards the Cold

As far as planning and preparation went, despite not being the eldest, Hodel was by far the most calculated of her sisters, and tried to think up every alternative and outcome before taking action. However, in times of desperation, even the best sometimes forget, and it was with this mindset that she made the unfortunate decision of doing whatever possible to be on board the next train leaving for the concentration camps further east. The first thing she noticed after a mere two hours after departure was how cruelly, how severely, and how unbearably cold it was in the cargo compartment she had snuck onto. It wasn't right, it wasn't wise, and it most certainly might result in trouble, but what else was she to do if she wouldn't be given passage in a legal manner? It had taken stealth, cunning, and resulted in a few scrapes and bruises to accomplish, but now that she had made some progress towards finding her way to Perchik, Hodel wasn't about to regret anything.

Although, the feeling of the frost right down to her bones did make it hard to concentrate on anything else.

When choosing that specific compartment, all that had been going through Hodel's mind was that she must not get caught, and thus the most abandoned-looking place seemed the most logical to gravitate towards. Not that she couldn't easily have snuck in with the crowds or the like and not been noticed, but why risk someone asking her for a ticket or even questioning her identity? Hodel never thought that she would prefer desolation to human company, but every time she thought of the stationmaster and how terribly he had treated to her and lied about her ticket, she ground her teeth and decided that yes, even a hard, wooden crate was better company.

I'm coming, Perchik. And then we'll be together, she thought, trying to remember why she was doing this in the first place. By now, as previously mentioned, she had already begun to lose hopes of being married under a canopy or, more recently, even being married at all, but being with Perchik was still what mattered the most, what kept her going, and so she remembered it at every opportunity. And now, on a train ride that would take up at least another night and possibly another day, what else was she to do?


The journey, for better or for worse, the latter making up the majority of Hodel's experience of it, was tolerable only for as long as the poor, lonely young woman, could keep up a certain amount of certainty as to her goal. As expressly stated by many great philosophers before, "if there is a 'what', there does not need to be a 'how', and if there is a 'how', there does not need to be a 'why'". For Hodel, the former was her current problem, as she realized the following morning when she woke up—for lack of a better description, I say "woke up", as she did not get much sleep to begin with.

The train had stopped at a station, it's first, she was certain, and Hodel did not know just where that station was. If she had been in the passenger compartment or the like, then a conductor might've announced it and she would have been made aware of the destination but, as it was, she had no idea where she was, or if she ought to disembark. Of course, by that point, fed up with her less-than-comfortable dwelling, she was ready and willing to; but, on the other hand, it would all be for naught if she arrived at the wrong station.

Which one are we at now? she wondered, trying to keep her hands warm by rubbing them together and resisting the urge to let her teeth chatter, lest she make a noise. The news of Perchik was that he was taken to Camp 58, along with all the other rebel prisoners, but which one are we at now?

Suddenly, a voice rang out in the distance, followed by the train whistle, which Hodel heard more distinctly. The voice, she determined, must be announcing their departure, but from where, exactly?

If I get off now, I can still make it, she thought. What if this is the location, and yet I miss it forever?

But then, on the other hand, she considered after a moment, what if it wasn't the correct location, and she jumped off? Then, not only would she had no chance of ever reaching Perchik, but she might never be able to leave...

All things considered, it was best to wait. And, if she had taken a risk, then...no, no, it was better not to think about it for now.


The next stop came sometime in the afternoon, announcing the town of Novosibirsk. This, Hodel remembered, was a growing city that she had heard about, and was of great importance to the completion of the railway lines towards the East. Of course, she did not know more about it than that, but wondered, briefly, that if it was close by to the camp where Perchik was being kept, then perhaps one day she could be able to see it in more detail. At this station, the train lingered for more than three hours, the workers taking away a lot of cargo and leaving Hodel will less and less of a place to hide—although, miraculously, she was not discovered—until, finally new passengers had been brought on board and the crew was ready for departure once more.

Wrapping her shawl about her, and fighting to keep the empty hole in the pit of her stomach from paining her more than it already did, Hodel focused on the trip ahead, praying to God that the next stop would be the place that she was searching for.

And then it came.

"Next stop: Concentration camp 58! Comrades, disembark!"

Panting heavily, Hodel waited for when the cargo hold would be open. It was true that she was neither quick nor in her right frame of mind at that point, but she was certain that she had heard it, the conductor's voice indicating the next stop to be at the place she so desperately wanted to reach, and was ready to throw herself out of the train if necessary.

Which, unfortunately, is exactly what she would have to do, as the voice of the conductor never sounded in reality—only in her mind.


- End Note -

I feel that I should apologize—as I have in a similar instance for my fanfiction, The Secret Heart—for writing this chapter in short snippets rather than one long, continuous description. But, considering that these snippets represent mere fractions of an otherwise boring and miserable time of travel for Hodel, I thought it best to make as short as possible.

Also, in naming the concentration camps, I decided to just list them by number for simplicity purposes in the story. Because, for those who do not know, when Stalin came to power in Russia, the concentration camps—or Gulags, as they were more commonly known—were many, and the prisoners even more so. It would have taken some very concrete research to pinpoint an exact concentration camp and location to use, so please ignore that piece of historical inaccuracy in this story.

In the next chapter, I have not as of yet decided whether or not to include Perchik; however, I can safely promise that Hodel will be experiencing more human interaction and that the story will not be a continuously lonely read consisting of just one character. In many ways, I suppose you could say that the first two chapters of this fanfiction may be the hardest to get through, but I hope that readers can also acknowledge how they are necessary, especially in illustrating the difficulties that are to come. Again, this is not an easy story to write, but I hope that some people may find enjoyment in it, regardless.

If you'd like, I encourage readers to please comment, follow, or even favourite in order to show support for the story. Thank you very much, and I'll see you in the next chapter.