AN: Hey guys! I'm back! First off, thank you for the review, favs and follows. I really wanted to answer the review in PMs, but the last week was really busy for me. But with the future reviews, I'll do my best to answer them.

There is not much action in this chap, sorry, but it is needed to build the story. Action will come, as I'm sure you already know. I hope you enjoy it!

Oh, and I stumbled on a video on YouTube, a song for Bisohock Infinite written by Gavin Dunne which is really awesome! You should really watch that video. The lyrics and music are incredible! Juts type: Bioshock Infinite Song – Dream of The Sky.

Enjoy!

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June 22, 1912

They lied to me. They said that I had to protect Elizabeth from everyone, yet there is the problem of the False Shepherd. They were the ones that brought him to Columbia, knowing perfectly well that his mission was to bring the girl to New York. And they brought me in all this mess, knowing that I would never let Booker take her away. They knew about the conflict of interests, yet they still helped the both of us. What are they playing at? What is their purpose? There is something greater behind all this, than just protecting a girl with unique powers. Something on a greater scale… I can feel it. And I'm not happy with it. *sigh*
They lied to me, yet…they didn't… For you can't lie on something you never said. And they never said that I had to save the world, again…Bastards…

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Chapter 4: The Lamb and the Shepherd

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"Protect me?" the girl asked with a frown. And for the first time I scrutinized her up close. She wore a white and blue dress. She was of medium height, about 5ft 6in, with long dark brown hair made in a ponytail. Her skin was of a pale shade, certainly caused by her confinement in that monument; her petite rosy lips were narrowed in a thin line from anger. And she had the most gorgeous pair of big blue eyes…that held so much emotion. I was so mesmerized that I had to focus very hard to stay in control and not invade her thoughts. My use of the mind arts was so extensive in the past, that I had developed I reflex of entering people's minds with just but a glance. I refused to invade her privacy. She had suffered enough…

She frowned at me, and I had to turn away. She was beautiful, and to deny that I found her very attractive would be a complete lie. But I wasn't here for that.

"Yes." I answered.

"He too said that he was a friend and wanted to help me." She continued pointing toward the man lying next to her. "Why would two men appear suddenly out of nowhere to help me? I was confined in that tower for all my life! Why now, and why the two of you appear all of a sudden? What do you want from me?!" she exclaimed with fury. "You want to study me, too?!"

"No. Nothing of sorts, I assure you. Like I said, I'm here to protect you." I replied calmly.

"Protect me from what, or whom? You…you killed the Songbird, didn't you? I saw what you did with your weapon." She asked, sounding hopeful but defensive at the same time. "His duty was to guard me there" the girl continued.

"I hope I did. If not, I'll do it again until it stops…" I tried to reassure her. "What is your name?" I asked suddenly. Referring to her as girl was becoming annoying.

"Elizabeth…" she answered, still staring at me. "Then whom else you're here to protect me from? The ones that guarded me imprisoned in that tower?"

"Yourself, Elizabeth…" I said. God, I sounded just like the Luteces!

"Myself?" she asked, quirking her head to the side in bird-like fashion.

"I can only imagine what you went through during all those years, but I can with certainty say why you were held in that place all your life: your powers." I replied. The faster she discovered the truth, the better. I had no intention to lie to her. I had had enough lie in my twenty-five years of life, to last me a few centuries…

She started playing with her right pinky; a sign of nervousness. Suddenly I realized that the said finger was much shorter than her left one, and was covered by a thimble. What had happened to it, I wondered. Unconsciously I gripped my left hand, as if a phantom pain traveled through my own severed limb.

She was hesitating to talk to me about it. And it was completely natural. Had she babbled everything she knew by now, I would have severely scolded her. Knowledge was power…

"You're different, Elizabeth. And that difference makes you very dangerous. I don't know to what end those people wanted to use your powers, but I know that those powers have no limit." I said, as her eyes widened and she took a step back. "I know, for I have the same powers…" I finished with a somber voice.

"Wh-…What?! You…you…no…"

"Yes Elizabeth, I can open tears…" She seemed to be under shock. It was surely hard to believe that all this time she wasn't…alone. The sad truth though, was that she actually was, as I wasn't from this world. But the thing is: I wasn't from any of worlds… She hadn't found someone to relate to. No. I had…

And now I began to understand what the Luteces meant by until it is enough.

I was going to protect her. No deadlines, no specific conditions. I was just going to protect her.

"How do I know that you're not lying?" she asked me, finally getting over her shock.

"I can show you." I replied. "There is a tear not far from here." I continued, as she frowned from my answer. "I can feel tears around me." I elaborated. "Can't you?

"No… I..I can just see them." She answered. I saw that she wanted to add something, but she restrained herself. She was still disbelieving. Good.

"Come, it's this way." I said, pointing at my left.

"What about Mr. DeWitt?" she asked, glancing toward the said man.

"Don't worry. He would be fine, we wouldn't be going far." I reassured her.

"Alright, lead the way." She said. Nodding, I started to walk toward the rip I felt, as she closely followed behind. After a minute or so, we arrived in front of the tear and I saw a glimpse of trust setting in her eyes, but there was still much doubt in them.

Surprisingly enough, no one was around, again. So I calmly approached the nearly invisible rip in the space-time continuum and taking a good grip, ripped it open, making it produce its usual screech. Not wanting to take any risks, I closed the tear, completely erasing it from existence.

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This time I saw Elizabeth's eyes widen and she approached me; outstretching her right hand to my face. "Incredible…" she whispered, touching my check.

I feelt a little uneasy from her closeness to me. Human contact was something I was very awkward with, even before my first jump. And all those years of wars hadn't made it easier for me…

Finally she retracted her hand, but still continued to stare intensely at me.

"I'm here to help you, Elizabeth. You can trust me." I said calmly.

"I will try." she said in a whisper.

"That's all I'm asking for."

"So what do we do now?" she asked looking around, as if trying to find an answer in the environment.

"I don't know for now, but I'll find soon enough." I assured her. I still had to talk to this False Shepherd...

"Listen!" the girl exclaimed suddenly. "Do you hear it?"

"Hear what?" I asked, a frown forming on my face.

"Music!" she exclaimed, excitement dancing in her eyes.

And now that a listened, I could hear music in the distance.

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"Can we go, Mr. Potter?" she asked, eyes darting back and forth, like an innocent kid. And that, she was: an innocent girl who hadn't seen anything but books and the walls of her prison. She was innocent, there was no denying it, but I could feel something else in her. Something powerful...

"I'm not here to dictate your life, Elizabeth. You had endured enough of it. I'm just your protector. You can do whatever you wish; I will just follow you." I said with a reassuring smile. I wanted to show her that I wasn't an enemy, but a friend.

"Alright! Let's go then, Mr. Potter!" she exclaimed excitedly before taking a hold of my hand and dragging me away.

"Call me Harry, please. No need to be formal." I said, following her back to the unconscious man. As I finished my sentence, I felt her grip tighten around my hand. But the gesture was so imperceptible, that I would have missed it if she hadn't chosen my magical hand.

"Ah...alright. Harry." she said as if testing the name.

A moment later we retrieved DeWitt, and after I pulled him on my shoulder, we departed for the source of the music. I could have levitated him, but decided otherwise. It was better to not attract attention for now. The people that guarded Elizabeth in that tower wouldn't just let her get away. And if the mighty prophet Comstock was really behind all this, I didn't think that it would take him long to send people after us. But we had an advantage. The prophet somehow knew that the False Shepherd would come after the girl. I had heard and seen enough to understand that he knew of it years in advance. Yet, there was no mention of me. Anywhere. No one knew about my involvement, and that put us a few steps ahead of them.

As we approached the quay-like structure on which people danced under the music played by a few musicians, Elizabeth squealed in glee and ran toward them. And making it look like an everyday occurrence, she entered the group and began dancing with them under the happy tune. Seeing her like this, a small smile formed on my usually scowling face. The girl was truly innocent.

I looked around and spotted a bench. Approaching it, I lied the man down and looked him over. He was of middle age, with short brown hair. He looked tall, but a bit shorter than me. About 6ft. His build was of an experienced soldier, and his scowling face, even in the state of unconsciousness made me smirk. A trait that we had in common.

With a sigh I turned toward Elizabeth and took a few steps toward her before leaning on barrier that surrounded the little quay-like structure. I decided to not use magic to wake this DeWitt fellow. It would give the girl more time to enjoy herself. I wasn't in a hurry. I had all the time in the world…

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After watching her dance happily with the people for half an hour, I saw movement with my side vision. The man was finally waking from his slumber. He opened his eyes and looked around, trying to understand where he was, when he spotted Elizabeth. He stood up and began walking toward her, but just as he passed me, I stopped him with my hand on his shoulder.

"We need to talk, Mr. DeWitt." I said calmly.

His reaction was instantaneous, as with lightning fast reflexes he turned around, drawing his pistol and raising it to my head. It was very impressive, but he was unaware of one thing about me: I was even faster than him. My seeker reflexes plus the physical training I undertook during all those years made me a very dangerous opponent in close range combat. But what made me even more dangerous was my left hand...

At speed hard to follow for the eyes, I outstretched and clasped his weapon holding hand with my own, and began to squeeze. He tried to resist, but after I increased the pressure and heavily dented his pistol with my bare hand, he released it with a yelp of pain and took a step back, surprise evident on his face.

"Who the hell are you?!" he exclaimed, before taking the strange device he used to ride the sky-line, and putting it around his left hand. He was preparing to engage me when I decided that it was enough… With the force of a sledgehammer I slammed in his mind, making him stumble from the shock. But what I saw defied all logic… I couldn't read him. Not because he had an incredibly strong shield. No. His mind just contained too much information. Too much information for a single human being. It was just impossible. The colossal amount of memories, feelings, and sensations was just too much. Even for a Master of Legilimency like me, it was an impossible task. I couldn't even distinguish anything! I could see them, yes; but my mind just couldn't make any sense of it. So with resignation, I drew back.

The man in front of me was special, of that I was sure.

Slowly, he regained his composure, and looked me in the eyes. I could see a glimpse of fear in them. He understood what had happened. Good…

"You…you entered my mind! How did you…? Is that a new Vigor?!" he babbled taking ragged breaths. "Who are you?! And how do you know my name?"

"Elizabeth told me." I answered calmly.

"What?! You talked to her? What do you want?" he asked narrowing his eyes.

"I will be frank, Mr. DeWitt: I indeed entered your mind, but surprisingly enough and I assure it is very strange, I wasn't able to extract any information." I began. "To answer your second question, no, it's not a new Vigor, but an ability I possess. As for who I am, well, let's talk about you for now." I finished.

"If you were unable to take info from my head while I was unprepared, what tells you that I will cooperate now?" the man asked, forming a snarl on his face.

"Because, I'm completely out of your league, Mr. DeWitt." I said, adding a bit of condescension in my voice. I never liked to brag, or showoff, but he had to understand that I wasn't playing around, and wouldn't take no for an answer.

"We still have to see that!" he exclaimed. "You shouldn't have-…" he continued, but stopped after discovering the shocking truth. He couldn't move…

"I see that you realized your immobility." I said calmly, summoning his destroyed gun that lied on the ground, to my hand. With a wave of my other hand, I repaired the previous damage I caused it, and pointed it toward the man's head. "I assure you, Mr. Dewitt, I'm way out of your league…" I finished, under his wide unblinking eyes.

"Who-…what the hell are you?!" he whispered strongly.

"I'm afraid that I'm the one asking questions." I replied. "And you don't have to whisper for fear of attracting attention. No one would hear or see us." I continued, speaking about the notice-me-not charm that I casted around us. "Now, the first question: what is your full name?" I asked. "And don't try to lie to me, I can sense when people lie."

He frowned even more and tried again to struggle with the spell, but it was a futile attempt. Then he stopped, and seemed to weight out his options. Finally, he looked me in the eyes and replied.

"My name is Booker DeWitt."

"Good. Mine, is Harry Potter. Pleased to meet you." But he didn't seem that enchanted with it. Very understandable. "Why are you in Columbia, and what does Elizabeth had to do with it?" I asked stepping closer to him.

"I...I'm here to protect the girl, and bring her…to Paris." He answered. Good try…

"You're here indeed to protect the girl, but you have to bring here somewhere…and it's not to Paris." I said. "Try again."

"I'm telling you! It's the truth!" he continued.

"Mr. DeWitt, you're lying. Please, don't make me use unpleasant methods to extract the truth." I said, shaking my head. He cursed under his breath.

"I…I need to bring the girl to New York to wipe away my debt. I…I lost a big sum of money, and the man that I owe isn't someone to be trifled with." He explained, causing a grimace to form on my face. "I need the girl…"

"I'm sorry Mr. DeWitt, but I can't let you take Elizabeth. She has just escaped that dreadful place, and I'm not letting you take her to another." I said, saddened by his situation, but angered that he would condemn an innocent girl.

"I…I know. I was the one that set her free…" he whispered. "I saw what they did to her…"

"Then you must understand my position." I said steely.

"And you must understand mine..! I can't go back without her!"

"You have only yourself to blame, Mr. DeWitt." I said harshly. We were responsible of our actions and the consequences it brought. I learned that lesson the hard way. "You seem like a good man to me, Mr. DeWitt. You should take your life in your own hands."

"You don't know me, pal. I'm no good man." He said casting his eyes down.

"You're not born a good man. You become one, by your actions." I supplied.

"No deed can repent for my sins." He whispered.

"Oh, I assure you Mr. DeWitt, there is always a choice. It is only the matter of taking the good…or the easy.

With a wave of my hand, I released him from the spell and he fell to his knees, the sudden recovery of control over his body overwhelming him. After he stood up, I handed the gun back to him and turned toward Elizabeth. Releasing a sigh I took a step forward before hearing him speak.

"What will you do now?" he asked, returning his weapon to its holster.

"I don't know. I have very little knowledge of this place, but one thing is sure: the people behind her imprisonment would come after her sooner than later. And I don't want to put her in more danger than I have to." I answered truthfully, watching her twirl happily under the music.

"Paris…" Booker whispered.

"What?"

"Paris. I hadn't chosen that destination randomly." He explained. "The girl is enamored with the city, from what I've seen of her. You should take her to Paris." He finished, and I remarked something in his eyes. Something, that wasn't there a few moments ago.

"It has merit. I will ask her and see what she thinks." I said, surprised by his sudden cooperation. "I'll just have to find a way to leave this crazy city."

"I haven't seen much of this place myself, but I've seen a few airships. You could use one of those." He continued. "And…I will help you get to it. Four hands are better than two, after all…" he finished with resolve.

If I wasn't an experienced killing machine, my eyes would have widened from the shock. He had done a complete turnaround from a few moments ago. And it was genuine. He wasn't lying. What had changed?

"What made you so cooperative, all of a sudden?" I asked, intrigued.

"She reminded me my deceased daughter… She would have been about the same age as Elizabeth." He explained with a melancholic look. "She is someone's daughter too. And she was probably kidnapped." He continued. "I…I don't know what I would have done if my daughter was taken away from me…"

"You would have gone to the end of the world, and beyond…" I said sadly.

"Yeah, probably…" he agreed.

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We stayed in silence for a few minutes before deciding that it was time to go. As one, we approached the dancing girl, but neither wanted to be the one to interrupt her. Finally I stepped toward her and waived my hand.

"Elizabeth…" I called calmly, but she couldn't hear me over the music. "Elizabeth." I repeated, louder. This time she turned toward me and upon spotting me, a flamboyant smile appeared on her face.

"Harry! Come dance with me!" she exclaimed in an exited voice, and I wondered how she still had so much energy, after all this time. "Come!" she continued, taking my hand and dragging me in the circle.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea…" I replied, looking back, and spotting a smirking Booker. He was certainly finding my situation quite humorous. Seeing the dangerous man that had threatened him just a few minutes ago, forced to dance under a happy tune…

"Let's dance, Harry!" the girl said happily, tugging my hand even more. With a resigned sigh, I began to move in rhythm along her. She happily jumped and twirled, as I calmly and methodically led the dance. She laughed with joy doing unusual but beautiful moves, as if she had danced all her life. And I realized that maybe, she had…

Despite myself, a small smile tugged my lips, now for the second time in the same day. A very rare occurrence…

Finally, after a few minutes, I decided that it was enough. "Elizabeth, we need to talk." I said, but she was too caught in the dance. With a sigh, I jerked her toward me, and making her twirl, dropped her in my arms. She squealed in delight and smiled widely at me. "Elizabeth, we really need to talk." I said, and after I put her back on her feet, I nodded toward Booker that was eying us with an indescribable face.

"Oh, Mr. DeWitt! You're awake!" she exclaimed, approaching the man. "How do you feel?"

"Fine." he said simply.

"Elizabeth, what do you think about leaving Columbia?" I asked suddenly.

"Leave Columbia?" she repeated. "Yes..." she continued in a whisper.

"What do you say about Paris?" I asked again. Her eyes widened.

"Paris...?! Yes! Yes! I want to go!" she said with excitement. "But...how could we do that?"

"Mr. DeWitt had quite an ingenious idea to borrow an airship." I explained. "It shouldn't be too hard with our range of skills..."

"Well, let's go then!" the girl said excitedly.

"Speaking of skills, you never mentioned what you were doing here and how you did...what you did." The older man remarked.

"I'm here to protect Elizabeth, as you surely understood by now. Actually I was on my way to the library in the Monument Island, to set Elizabeth free, when the building began shaking and I heard her scream." I began, nodding toward the girl. "I followed you to the top when the statue crumbled. I have to congratulate you on your quick reflexes, Mr. DeWitt; they saved both of your lives."

"Thanks.."

"After I saw the both of you fall to the water, I used an ability of mine to teleport near you and caught Elizabeth. I'm sorry that I didn't catch you, but at the time, her safety was more important." I continued. Then..." I began but was interrupted by the said girl.

"And then he slayed the Songbird with a wooden sword!" she exclaimed.

"You killed that beast?!" the man asked me incredulous.

"Well, I think, but I'm not sure. I severed a big portion of its body and it crashed in the water." I explained. "And it's not a sword, but a wand." I continued, summoning my Elder wand to my hand.

"A wand?" Booker asked, raising an eyebrow. He furrowed his brows and leaned toward it. "What kind of weapon is it?"

"A Magical one." I replied. "I'm what you call, a Wizard."

"Wizard? Magic?" DeWitt asked even more disbelieving.

"Oh, don't be so surprised. After all you've seen here: flying cities, fire throwing people, mechanical men… it isn't that hard to believe that magic exists, is it?" I asked rolling my eyes.

"So, it's not a sword…?" Elizabeth asked slowly.

"No…" I said with a snicker.

"And, what can you do with your…magic?" Booker asked.

"Everything I wish." I replied simply. It was the complete truth. It had no boundaries.

Then with a quick flick of my wrist, I conjured a red rose and offered it to Elizabeth.

"Whoa…" she whispered eying the flower in her hand. "It's beautiful."

"It's eternal. It'll never wither." I supplied.

"That's…"

"Magic." I interrupted her. "Now, I think we should better go.

The other two nodded and we began walking toward the exit of the beach. Booker, that was walking the closer to me, asked me another question.

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"You never said why you came to protect her."

"Because I'm like her…" I replied.

"You mean, you have…"

"The same powers to control rips in the space-time continuum, yes." I answered seriously. "And I know the consequences of usurping that power; which is exactly what the people that guarder Elizabeth in that tower want. I can't let them use her like that…"

"What do you mean the consequences? Have you misused that power?" he asked a frown appearing on his face.

"A story for another time, Mr. DeWitt." I answered. "This way." I continued pointing toward a metallic gate. Suddenly I had a sense of Déja vu. Elizabeth opened the gate and stopped, for two people were obstructing her way.

"What…? You again?" I heard Booker ask in disbelief.

I felt a cold shiver travel my back, as I turned toward the gate. There, stood the Luteces, each of them holding a pillow with a gold jeweled box on it. What were they doing her-… Wait! Did he just say: You again…?! Booker knew of the Luteces…?!

"Oh no…" I whispered with dread, as they opened their boxes.

"The Bird?"

"Or the Cage?

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