Breathe In|O P E N|Breathe Out

[Savannah Brooks]

Vannah practically ran down to the lake, not bothering to wait for Chase. She kicked off her sandals and let her bare feet skim the water. The cool dampness of the grass on the edge of the lake was refreshing. Vannah stood on the edge of the water with her eyes closed, taking in the familiarness of everything: the smell, the sound, the feel.

[Chase Firebrand]

It was surreal seeing Vannah so happy, so peaceful. If he hadn't seen her that night at the hospital, when she'd been so soft and unsure, he'd have thought he was hallucinating right now. As it was, he watched her more than the play of sunlight on the water. He smiled as he watched, letting himself enjoy the moment for as long as it would last, though part of him was waiting for her to remember that he was here and object.

When she stopped, he walked up to her left and just behind her, letting her enjoy the freedom of the moment. "Did you ever see the light reflecting off the water onto the ceiling?" he asked, his voice low enough to be easily ignored if she chose to ignore him.

[Savannah Brooks]

Vannah looked up. She had forgotten Chase was there until he spoke. She nodded. "Yeah." She let her perfectly polished toes skin the water. It was welcoming...inviting her in. She hadn't been in the Lake almost the whole year..and even when she does go in she doesn't go in very deep. She makes sure she can stand. It surprised her that the year was mostly through. So much had happened in the short months, but she didn't want to think about that now. Vannah debated whether or not to get into the water. The nurse had told her not to get her wounds wet, but who was she to obey?

[Chase Firebrand]

Chase's smile returned. Vannah had remembered he was there only to forget him again. He'd had no admonitions against water, so her hesitance seemed like the same thing that had kept her standing in the entrance hall when the doors were so close. "You can swim, right?" he asked, the only further warning of his intentions the sudden wash of crimson across his eyes. She was either going to enjoy this, or murder him on the spot. He scooped Vannah up and, fully clothed, both of them went into the water.

[Savannah Brooks]

In an instance, Vannah was thrown into the air. She felt the cool water suddenly surround her. The water burned her eyes. Vannah surfaced and gasped for air. She flailed her arms in the air before slowly inching towards a spot in the water where she could stand. "CHASE, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" She screamed, her face reddening with anger.

[Chase Firebrand]

Vannah's panicked gasp was more than enough of a hint; Chase had jumped with Vannah in his arms rather than actually throwing her in case she couldn't swim, and he ducked his head away from flailing arms to catch her around the waist, even as she found her own footing. He'd worry about her pulling her wand later--at the moment, he was more concerned with figuring out if her fury was due to nearly drowning, or if she could swim after all and hated surprises.

As soon as they were in the shallows, he backed off, raising his hands in supplication. "Sorry!" he barked, making his way with backward steps toward the shore, the weight of his water-filled boots making the movement slow.

[Savannah Brooks]

Vannah was glad to be in shallow waters. No, she couldn't swim but she was hoping to keep that from certain people's minds, like Chase. Vannah trudged out of the water. Her clothes were drippping wet. She pulled her wand out from her torso, it was also soaking wet....completely inusable until it dried. "Are you completely insane or just stupid?" She shouted.

[Chase Firebrand]

Chase was still on the defensive; the mistake had been his, and there was no rational way to shirk responsibility other than the obvious; "How was I supposed to know you'd freak out like that? Even if you couldn't swim, I had a hold of you. God, you're uptight!"

He'd finally made it to shore, so he stopped, grimacing at his aching leg. The effort of moving against the water, then supporting the weight of water in his clothes was still more than the healing tendons and joints wanted to accept. Chase kept an eye on Vannah as he bent to rub a fist into the tightening knot of muscle on his calf.

[Savannah Brooks]

"You're an dumbass. I can swim." Vannah lied. The dressings wrapped around her stomach were completely soaked through and Vannah was afraid that horrible scar would split open again. Vannah made it out of the lake. Her shirt wrapped tightly around her because it was wet, revelaing the outline of uneven bandages that completely covered her stomach.

[Chase Firebrand]

"Could've fooled me," Chase grumbled. He straightened and pulled out his wand, shaking the water off it, still watching Vannah. He debated helping her out as he coaxed a stream of heat out of his wand that started the task of steaming his clothes dry, but for the moment, he felt a spike of spite and pointedly ignored Vannah's state. "Call me whatever you want, kitten, at least I don't have a stick up my ass. And no, that's not an invitation, no matter how much it turns you on."

[Savannah Brooks]

Vannah's anger rose, and as it rose her face became more red. She let out an exasperated moan. "Go fork yourself." She said snatching her shoes from the ground. Vannah combed her wet, ruined curls back with her fingers before walking away from Chase at a rapid pace and muttering something unintelligent.

[Chase Firebrand]

"Only in your dreams, kitten!" Chase called, more to have the last word than out of any real desire to piss her off further. He watched her storming off out of the corner of his eye as he finished drying himself, then headed off in the opposite direction.