Disclaimer: All of these characters are borrowed from the game Bioshock: Infinite, and I do not own or have any rights to them. Oh, and there are major spoilers in this story. Don't read unless you've finished the game.

Second Run - A Bioshock Infinite Fanfiction

Chapter 8: The Other Side Of The Coin

By ck-pasta

Note: This chapter takes place right after Anna and Booker part ways after their little "date." It's Anna's perspective.

Elizabeth couldn't get a hold of her emotions or thoughts. At one end, she was happy that she got to spend time with Kylar, on the other, she was a bit scared and livid that he knew so much about her, when she barely knew herself. She'd never felt like this towards a man before. Granted, she was locked up in a tower for twenty years of her life, but Kylar Birch just clicked with her. He would listen to her, he would spend time with her, and he would even protect her when danger came. It was as if the two of them already had a relationship with each other.

She traversed the tower and rode up the elevator to her house. Her clothes were dirty from the events earlier that day, so she made sure to get cleaned up before doing anything else. Once she was done, she went over to her library to pick out a book to read before she went off to bed. Her mind was jumble as it tried to figure out what she wanted to read, then she came across Romeo & Juliet. She was still set in a romantic mood, so she figured that this would be a nice read.

As she set off to her room, she heard the elevator coming up. Book hugged in her arms, waited to see who it was. No one else was supposed to have access to her house other than specified guests and her father, so she knew who to expect.

Comstock stepped out of the elevator, hands interlocked behind his back, "So, how was your day?"

Elizabeth laid down the book, slightly jolted towards him, "Oh, it was wonderful! Mr. Birch and I had a splendid time!" She still wasn't sure whether to tell her father about what Kylar told him. On one hand, Kylar may be a lunatic, and breaking off any interaction now would be beneficial. On the other, he may be right. She decided to take the risk.

Comstock started to pace back and forth, and he raised his voice a bit, "The guards told me that you opened up tear earlier. 'Made a machine appear from thin air' is what they described it. Care to explain?" He stopped pacing in front of Elizabeth, and leaned towards her.

Elizabeth was beginning to get a bit anxious. She started to rub around her thimble that was covering her lost pinkie, "W-well, the Vox were attacking, and Mr. Birch needed help or else they might have killed him." She looked down a bit, until she realized something. "Wait, if the guards were there to see that, why didn't they help us out? We were clearly in trouble!"

She looked at Comstock, slightly angered. He put his hand on her shoulder, "My child, my guards were ready to help, should you be in trouble. They saw how this Birch fellow handle himself. Some of them even commented on his spectacular shooting abilities. Did he happen to mention what he does for a living?"

Elizabeth shook her head, "No, we never got to talk about that. I was telling him about Columbia, then we decided to watch a film at the theatre. We were fine, until his nose started to bleed. Then we stepped outside and I asked him why it bled. He told me that he didn't know, but I figured it was from the altitude change, seeing as he is new here."

Comstock's face showed as if he had a revelation. He dismissed it, and looked back at her, "Well my Elizabeth, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. Just promise one thing, no more tears, okay?" He held his arms out to her, and she hugged him. "Okay, I promise."

Comstock went over to the elevator, and started his ride down, meanwhile Elizabeth went back to her book. She made her way to her room, and placed her book on her bed. There was a golden statue of Comstock in there, which she proceeded to kick until it started playing a tune that she used to fear. She opened her windows, just before Songbird propped his head in, eyes red, and ready to attack.

Elizabeth laughed and started rubbing Songbird's neck, "It's ok, it's just me. I just wanted to talk to you." She smiled at him as his eyes changed to green. He drew his wings in and perched on the balcony outside of her room.

Songbird opened up his hands and let a book fall out of it, right in front of Elizabeth. She picked it up and dusted off the cover, "The Principles of Quantum Physics, Volume 2, by Rosalind Lutece," She looked up at Songbird, "I didn't know she had a second volume." He tilted his head in erratic movements, just like any curious bird. "Thanks, I'll make sure to read it sometime."

She laid it down on her bed next to Romeo & Juliet, before returning outside to Songbird. "Now, you won't believe this, but I just met the most amazing man ever! He's handsome, strong, protective -" Songbird just sat there, looking at Elizabeth. She didn't know whether he actually understand her or not, but it gave her comfort.

During her younger teenage years, when she could still create tears and not just open them, she visited multiple neighborhoods and played with various boys and girls. There she learned how to talk fluently and how to act in society, as a teenager anyways. Although she enjoyed it, something always compelled her to come back to the tower. She never figured out what it was, and she slightly regretted it now that she can't make new tears.

One thing that always stuck out to her was the way the girls her age talked. Teenage girls often talked to each other about the boys they like, describing him to friends and usually bragging about him. Elizabeth never got to experience that. She was never able to meet a boy she saw herself being with. That is, until Kylar came along. Elizabeth felt the desire to tell someone, or something, about Kylar. Her instinctive need to vent was cured only through Songbird. He would listen to Elizabeth, no matter how long she talked.

Sure, Songbird used to be a symbol of oppression during her later teen years, but that changed after the Revolution. When Elizabeth was allowed out, Songbird became less protective, at least, less restrictive to the areas she roamed. She started to like him again, because he was her only friend. Songbird had always been there for her, for the past twenty one years, and took care of her.

Soon, she became tired and hugged the lower body of Songbird. He wrapped his wings around her, and held her with his arms until she started to let. She went to her bed, and Songbird flew away. One thing that always bothered Elizabeth was where Songbird went. Did he continuously fly? Or did he have a nest somewhere in Columbia? She brushed it off, as that didn't strike as important to her at the moment. All she cared about was Kylar Birch, the mysterious man who knew about her past. She lay in her bed, forgetting to read her book, and fell asleep thinking about Kylar.

The next morning Elizabeth woke up to the song of the golden statue. It played a different tune, as to not attract Songbird to come. She got up, and started to get dressed. She made sure to hurry to ensure that Kylar wouldn't have to wait like he did before. It kind of embarrassed her, seeing as he probably waited for a while before the ticket salesman let him in.

When she was done, she started to fix her hair, and tied the iconic bow to her ponytail. She made sure everything was fixed before heading over to the elevator. As she made her way down, she started playing with her thimble. I've got to get a hold of myself. Kylar probably can tell that I'm extremely nervous. He probably noticed how nervous I was yesterday. I barely got the history of Columbia out of my mouth. That film was a miracle. I finally got to stop talking, and just laid there next to him.

The elevator stopped at the lowest floor, and she made her way to the lift that let her off to Columbia. Just before stepping outside to the garden, Elizabeth heard Comstock talking.

"And make sure that those snipers are in place. I don't want to take any chances this time -"

Elizabeth walked out of the door, "Father?"

"Ahhh, my Elizabeth! Ready to go out already?"

She continued to walk over to the lift, "Well, yes. I offered Mr. Birch another tour. Hopefully this time we won't be interrupted by the Vox."

Comstock laughed, "I'm sure it won't come to that, child. You enjoy yourself!"

She got down to the entrance, and was surprised to see that Kylar wasn't already there. Hmmm, maybe I'm a little early? Oh well, I guess I'll try to find out where he's staying.

She started to converse to the ticket salesman, "Um, excuse me. Would you happen to know which direction Mr. Birch came from the other day?"

The salesman put on a hard thinking face for a second, "Ohhh, you mean that odd fellow that you said could come inside? He came from that inn over there. Saw him coming out of it that day."

Elizabeth looked over, and saw it. She started walking and said loudly, "Thank you!"

When she reached the inn, she stepped inside and saw innkeeper behind the counter. She was a rather large woman, then Elizabeth asked, "Hello, would there happen to be a Kylar Birch staying here?"

The innkeeper's voice was not pleasant, "Sorry hunny, we don't take names here. But if you find the man you're looking for, better not be doing anything. We don't allow any loud ruckus here in the mornings."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. She didn't quite understand what the woman meant by "loud ruckus." Do couples often come here and argue the whole morning?

She dismissed it, and asked another question, "Well, would you happen to have any new people staying? He about 6 feet tall, brown hair, green eyes."

"Oh, that new fellow? He's just down the hallway, fifth door on the left. So how'd he get a young gal like you to get on his bed?"

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me?"

"Y'know, how much he paying you to stick it in?"

It took Elizabeth a bit to realize what she was saying, "Oh, no, he's not paying me anything. We're just friends and I wanted to give him a tour of Columbia."

The innkeeper laughed, "Willing to bet it won't stay that way for long." She walked off right after winking at Elizabeth.

She didn't really know how to take it. She had never thought of having any sexual interactions with men before, let alone with Kylar. She shook her head before heading to his room. Once she got there she knocked lightly on his door. "Mr. Birch?"

The door swung open, but Kylar didn't greet her, Rosalind did. Elizabeth looked harder at Rosalind, "Ms. Lutece?"

Rosalind turned to Robert, "Oh dear. I think we may have overstayed just a bit."

Sorry for taking a little longer to dish out this chapter. I was studying for a calculus test, then I started. It took me a while to get the perspective of Anna, seeing as I'm a guy. Hopefully you guys stilled enjoyed it!

Oh, and I'm trying to make my chapters a little longer. Going to take the advice of Zetsumei and make them longer.