Chapter 2.

The snow was so bright with the moonlight, it was almost blinding. The line of trees in the distance were black and ominous, and Piper had no idea where they were headed.

There were very few things she knew at this exact moment. The first and most pressing was that running in the cold, dead of night wasn't pleasant. The freezing air burnt her lungs and nose. Her toes were numb, making running all the more awkward. She felt the painful chill rise from her ankles and shoot up her legs with every step.

Alex was ahead of her, leading the way. Nicky was behind. She could barely make out their panting over the crunch of snow under their feet.

It was a small flicker of red when it caught Piper's eye. One small bit of movement as it rose to face level and then fell, dissappearing into the darkness. As they neared the fence, it appeared again. The glow intensified and it was then that she could make out a figure. Alex slowed, but still headed in the same direction. The smell of smoke met them, hanging in the dense air, too cold to rise. The red glow appeared again, then spiraled off to the side as Bree Connor flicked the cigarette through the fence. They came to a stop in front of her.

"Change of plans, I see?" she smirked towards Alex, and Piper realized she was talking about her. Alex didn't even turn back, just continued looking through the fence and out into the forrest.

"No change, just a modification." Her eyes turned and made quick survey of each of them.

"Well, as much as I would like to sit here and discuss this over tea, ladies... We've got a prison to escape." Nicky made her way past them and to the fence. She leaned down and brushed some of the snow out of the way. Piper leaned around Alex to watch. Nichols grabbed one of the links at the bottom and tugged. What had looked like just another link in the fence, easily gave way and opened up to a hole. Small, but big enough for a person to squeeze through. Piper's mouth fell open as she scoffed.

"Wh... How long has this been here?"

Conner turned towards her, folding her arms across her chest. Piper had seen her around fairly often the past few weeks, though she had no idea how long she'd been here. Her short, light colored hair was speckled with snow, but she wasn't even wearing her jacket. Just her thermals and her sweats from what Piper could make out in the darkness. She didn't know how she wasn't freezing. "I've been working on it for a few months...no thanks to you. You and that fucking chicken just about ruined it."

The chicken... it all made sense now. Piper had racked her brain, hell, even questioned her sanity about that chicken. After a few weeks, she had to just convince herself that she'd just imagined it. It was no wonder why some people went crazy in prison. I'm not crazy.

"Well, that veridict is still out." Nicky snipped before dropping to the ground and crawling through the hole. Piper didn't even realise that she'd said it aloud. Alex turned and locked eyes with her while Conner was following Nicky's lead. She said nothing, but she didn't really have to. Piper knew her well enough to read her without words. But what she saw scared her. She could still see the hurt in her eyes that she'd seen the day that Alex had cut her off. Anger. Fear. But there was something else. Determination, maybe? She dropped her gaze when she went to push her glasses up her nose. She took a deep breath and turned towards the fence.

It felt like hours before anyone said a word. The only relief to the silence was the occasional call from an owl paired with four sets of feet sloshing through the snow and ice. Occasionally someone would step on a small limb and the crack it would make as it gave way would be almost deafening. They had only been about half an hour outside of the perimeter when they had heard the alarm ring out. They had all stopped dead in their tracks and turned to one another. They each nodded, a silent vow to each other. There was no turning back now. They had known would be no turning back the moment they crossed through that fence. That had felt like an ethernity ago.

Alex had managed to avoid all eye contact with her. Even when Piper quickened her pace and reach out and touch her arm, trying to get her to turn to her, she would tense and pull away as if she were being burned. Finally after the 4th or 5th attempt, Alex came to a hault and turned on her, taking Piper by surprise. She dropped her arm quickly.

"Yes?" The severity of her tone caused the other two to stop and turn towards them. Piper looked nervously between each of their faces. The tension radiated between them. Alex's eyebrows were raised in that manner that made Piper feel like a scolded child. Just seeing that expression angered her. Alex dipped her head and shrugged, palms up, willing for her to speak. Piper searched her face. She couldn't remember a time when she had ever been on the recieving end of that look.

Bree took a step towards them, breaking the silence.

"We'll be there shortly. How about not killing each other until we can atleast get out of this fucking cold." She said firmly, her eyes bouncing between them. Piper started to protest, but Nichols cut her off.

"And where is there, exactly?" She folded her arms. Whether it was against the cold or out of tired frustration, Piper wasn't sure.

"Cooperstown. It's only for a few hours. A day, max. But we'll be able to get some sleep until were able to hit the highway." She rubbed her palms together and blew into her cupped hands, trying to ward off the cold.

"The way I figure, is they're probably expecting us to go North. Head to Canada. So, assuming that they even take the chance of tainting their perfect repuation with the news of four excaped convicts, they'll probably send out parties to Utica and Mohawk for starters, seeing as they're both on major highways and are pretty sizeable areas. Then they'll probably head towards Rome and Syracuse. Bus stations, airports... It wouldnt surprise me if they were already combing through some of them." Nichols shrugged and gave a nod, seemingly satisfied.

The sky had just started to lighten into streaks of pinks and violets when they broke the treeline that opened up to a parking lot that was situated behind an aged, single-story, yellow building. There were a few cars scattered sparingly throughout the spaces, and one of the windows aligned down the side of the building flickered with the light from a TV, no longer watched by its sleeping inhabitant. Piper's heart was in her throat as they passed the doors. The peeling gold number on the door told her that they had stopped in front of room number 8. They stood silent as Conner reached out and nervously tried the door knob. Her eyes were closed, shoulders tensed. Her sigh of relief as the door opened spoke for all of them. Alex looked at her in disbelief.

She shrugged dismissively. "I know people." And with that, stepped into the room. Nicky laughed and shook her head, following closely behind.

It definitely wasn't anything spectacular. Two double beds, yellowed bedside lamps and a stain of questionable orgins on the geometric carpet outside of the dimly-lit bathroom doorway. But it was the Ritz as far as they were concerned. Piper took a deep breath and held it in. The warm air smelled of dust and stale cigarettes and it was fucking beautiful. She knew she was grinning like an idiot, and couldn't have cared less. Alex turned and shut the door behind them and slid the chain into the tray of the lock.

It was Nicky's unexpected squeal of excitement that just about made them jump out of their skin. She ran and launched herself onto the closest bed, just about falling off the other side. She buried her face in the pillows and took a long and dramatic breath in.

"Jesus fucking Christ..." She exhaled and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling for a moment before she laughed, sat up, and raised her eyebrows at the others. "Dont act like you didn't want to do the same thing."

Alex made her way into the bathroom as Bree turned on the television and climbed onto the bed next to Nicky. Piper was still trying to let the reality of it all sit in. She still wasn't completley sure if she was awake or not. So many things had transpired during the last 24 hours, that she was barely able to make sense of it all.

"Stop trying to compartmentalize. You need to get some rest." Alex had walked out of the bathroom and sat on the edge of the second bed. She looked up at Piper as she leaned down to untie her boots. One corner of her mouth raised in what someone else would consider an attempt at a smile, but Piper knew better. She pushed her glasses up to rest on top of her head as she slid off her jacket and outer layer of khaki. She pushed the sleeves of her grey sweats up to her elbows and then climbed under the blankets. Piper watched her, still trying to work up the brain power to walk.

"Come on Chapman, don't ruin it. Get excited." Piper couldnt even distinguish the voice through the fog of her thoughts.

She smiled, distracted and walked over to the same bed as Alex. She stripped down to her sweat pants and thermal shirt and climbed in under the covers. The pillow was cool against her face, but she could already feel Alex's body heat radiating under the sheets. She was laying facing her, eyes closed and Piper enetertained the fleeting thought that she'd already drifted off to sleep. She studied her face. Her nose and cheeks were still flushed from the wind. Her pulse thumped heavily in her neck, just below her jaw. The same spot that Piper had kissed a thousand times. She saw the muscles in her jaw tighten, and it was then that she realized that Alex could feel her staring and was fighting the urge to open her eyes. She reached out, her fingers brushing against the smooth skin of her arm, and without a glance, Alex rolled over, putting her back towards her.

Piper's chest tightened as she tried to fight off the stinging sensation in her eyes.

And for one brief, fleeting moment, she'd wished that she was back in the comfort of her own bunk.

A/N: Again, it's not a huge chapter, but I'm getting there. I appreciate the reviews and all the follows, I definitely consider it encouragement. You guys are the fuel to my fire. Thanks again for reading.

-C