Author's Note: Hey everybody! Welcome to chapter six! Wow! :D I hope you've all been enjoying it so far! As usual, don't forget to review, follow, and favorite if you want to read more! Thanks a million! :) Enjoy!

Chapter Six: Farewell... For a While

October 31st, 1909,

Nine Years Later...

Nine years have passed since I was a little girl of eight years. I was seventeen now; I had become a girl of many possibilities, enjoying the adolescent life. But I still remember my childhood, how lonely it was, yet it was never lonely when Aunt Rose was around. She was my perfect company, always there for me when my mother wasn't. She had died when I was small, too small to remember. Aunt Rose said I was three when she died of typhoid fever.

"Oh, Aunt Rose! Aunt Rose! How about this one? Isn't it pretty? Take a look!" I chimed happily, spinning around in one of the dresses I was trying on.

Aunt Rose watched me closely, smiling brightly as she folded up the other dresses I had tried on, "It is very pretty, dear, like you. Though I think you should wear something that is more modest, perhaps?"

I frowned, rolling my eyes at her, "You sound like a mother, Aunt Rose." I placed my hands on my hips, staring intently into my reflection in the mirror and examining the curve of my body, "Do you think this dress accentuates my... um, rear?"

She sighed, "I am your mother, Elizabeth. Though not biologically your mother. I am your aunt with every duty to raise you like you should have been raised by your own mother, if she wasn't dead, of course. And I suggest you wear something that isn't... obvious." She hanged on the last word, glaring at me with piercing eyes.

"Obvious?" I asked, now slightly irritated by her glowering.

"Obvious as in not making yourself too attractive. In others words, not too noticeable. Understand?"

I almost stomped on the floor, but I keep my temper in check, "But, Aunt Rose..."

"But what?"

"I'm not a damn child anymore."

"I am merely teaching you what is acceptable for young girls your age, dear. That is all." Her expression then turned into that of hurt.

I pouted, feeling hurt myself by my own words, "I haven't left this tower in sixteen years... Aunt Rose, there is a good chance I'll never meet a real boy in my life. Besides, no one would want a freak like me." I rubbed the thimble on my deformed right pinkie, a lone tear running down my cheek.

Aunt Rose then reached out and brought me into her inviting embrace. Her arms tightly wrapped around my slender waist as I cried quietly into her shoulder.

"Shhhh, dear. Shhhh, it's okay. I'm here. Elizabeth, please..." She softly stroked my hair, her other hand rubbing the small of my back.

"It's true," I mumbled.

"It is not. Definitely not. You are far from being a freak, dear. Far, far from that."

"I wish I could believe that," I whispered.

"What does Songbird think? What do you think He thinks?"

I pulled away from her and said, "Songbird? I don't know."

"You should ask Him, darling. Go ahead now."

Songbird was like a dear old friend to me. He had been there by my side since I was eight, which was when Aunt Rose and Uncle Robert first gave Him to me as a gift.

I whistled a four-note tune to get His attention. Before I knew it, the gigantic mechanical bird towered over me, beaming His glowing, green eyes into mine.

"Can I ask you something important?" I asked Him. He cocked His giant, mechanical head to the side, "Am I... a freak...?"

The Bird shrilled in response, His high-pitched scream echoing from all directions and bouncing off the walls of my room. I quickly slapped my hands over my ears to shield them from the blaring noise.

"I think His answer is no, Elizabeth," Aunt Rose remarked.

He then disappeared from the room, flying back to His own cage, I assumed.

"I think so too," I said, giggling and smiling.

"You believe me now?" She asked.

"I believe Him."

The remainder of the day seemed to have passed by in minutes not hours. I spent those remaining hours of the day trying on new dresses and jewelry, reading novels, and singing to my heart's content. Songbird would stay and listen to me for hours on end. Before dinner, I took a short bath and did my hair, styling it into my usual ponytail with a blue ribbon that held it up. When I was finished, I called for Aunt Rose and Uncle Robert, but only to receive no reply from them. I looked around the place and searched in all the rooms of the tower. They were nowhere to be found. It was if they had suddenly vanished without a single trace of their existence. I called for Songbird and asked Him where they could possibly be. He didn't know either. After spending an entire hour looking for them, I started to worry and even panic a little. That was then I remembered that I had forgotten to look in the one place where they would most likely be... The laboratory.

I ran to the lab as fast as I could. The door was locked, but luckily, I had a lock pick with me, which always came in handy when I needed them. I was pretty sophisticated with lock picks since I had nothing but free time on my hands. I unlocked the door and went inside, but only to find an empty room. No trace of Aunt Rose and no trace of Uncle Robert anywhere. I felt like crying as I stood there feeling hopeless and worried sick. I then did one last search before leaving and found a piece of paper lying at my feet. It was a letter, written in fading ink.

It read,

Dear Elizabeth,

You are probably thinking where we are. Well, to put it simply, we are currently on leave, for business and personal reasons...

Do not worry, though, we shall return soon. We are not confident when, but there is no reason to panic. You are safe. You are not alone.

Songbird will keep you away from harm, and He will never disobey you. You can thank us later for programming Him that way.

Nonetheless, we shall never forget you.

We shall return, and we will, eventually...

Sincerely,

Your Aunt Rose and Uncle Robert, with much love.

P.S. Farewell... for a while.

Author's Note: This concludes chapter six of "The Girl in the Tower." As always, thank you so, so much for reading! We've now witnessed Elizabeth evolve from a child to a young woman. SPOILER ALERT: I just want to note that Robert and Rosalind Lutece died on that date, thanks to Jeremiah Fink, who was sent by Comstock to sabotage their machine, which was responsible for creating tears. This story is set in an AU setting, but I have kept some of the original backstory in order to keep true to the game's storyline without embellishing it too much. Anyway, please review, follow, and favorite! Lots of thanks! :)