Burntout

Salt in an Open Wound

Andromeda Claire Holloway

"What's your plan?" he asked as we walked along the coast, me still barefoot in the water, letting the waves roll over my ankles.

I kicked up the water, sending it into Regulus' face. He spluttered as the salt stung his eyes and nose. I watched him rub his eyes like it would make the pain go away. I rolled my eyes, how stupid could he be. He was simply rubbing the salt in, like salt in an open wound. Even the village haggard knew how dumb it was. I sneered at him when he looked, mocking him, "What's your plan?"

He scowled, water dripping slowly down his face, "At least I kept us alive."

"Us? Oh, so we're a team now," I taunted.

"Any second the dagger would've given out." Regulus did have a point and I had to give it to him- he was smarter than the average male. That was saying something, especially coming from me, the one who had gained a reputation as an assassin and hater of the male sex. By the average male I mean Theodore but I wasn't going to give Regulus the satisfaction of knowing that.

Instead, I twirled my freshly cleaned blade, the water droplets sparking off, gleaming in the afternoon sun. I smirked as more water got into his eyes, "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be alive right now." I sent another spray of water, this time adding in some sand so that it would get into his smart-ass mouth.

He flinched away but not fast enough because it hit him square in his mouth, which was open to make another comment. Regulus spat out the water but I heard the sand crunch as he ate it. I let out a cackle of delight at the sight of his disgust. He glared at me and then came closer, stepping into the ice-cold water, "Do it again. I dare you." Not one to back down, I pulled my leg back quickly and then kicked it forward, aiming to also hit his kneecap hard enough to make him limp.

He caught my leg with one hand, his other grasping the wrist of my left hand, the hand I held my dagger in. Before I could react, he had grabbed the hilt of my dagger, twisting it out of my grip and then kicking my free leg out from under me. I fell back into the water, which spilled into my mouth, the briny taste filling it. Shocked, I looked up to see Regulus standing over me, a smirk playing on his lips.

How I hated him.

I stood up, drenched in water, only to find Regulus placing the dagger under my chin, forcing me to look up into his dark eyes. The flat of the blade pressed against my chin and I prayed he didn't cut me with it. The blade was still dipping with salt water so it would burn like hell if it was so much as a nick that he left one me.

Regulus said in a low voice, "You just can't learn, can you, Andromeda." My name rolled off his tongue like poison, smooth and dangerous.

He leaned in closer, "I have you just where I want you now, darling." A piercing memory speared my head, running through me at the word darling like I had heard him say it to me before. Suddenly a distant voice, a voice from somewhere in the back of my head spoke in a soft tone-

"Love looks pretty on you, darling."

I jolted, my eyes opening wider and before I knew it, I had stumbled backward, falling into the water. Spitting water out of my mouth once again, I ran my hands through my hair. I begged the voice to play again but instead, a different voice spoke. This one was too faint for me to hear but I could tell that there was a gentle, aching tone to it.

"Come back," I pleaded, knowing it was a useless battle against myself. Regulus drew near, his eyebrows furrowed, his hand still clutching my dagger, which I noted had drops of blood on it. But I couldn't feel any sting or pain in my frantic state.

Regulus bent down, running a finger over the blade. He looked at the state I was in and sarcastically said, "Here I thought you would kill me for calling you that but no, you're begging for me to be near you. If I had known sooner-"

"Will you shut up?!" I yelled at him, "Go drown yourself or something, be useful." Now I couldn't hear any of the whispers in my head and I angrily kicked the water right into his face.

He dropped my dagger and I snatched it back up, still trying to bring back any memories of who the person speaking was. It was too pleasant to be Theodore, who was always serious or annoyed at my remarks, or be Regulus, who was either lacing dangerous tones into his voice or being flirtatiously cocked. Yet, the voice-only showed after something Regulus said...

"No, it's not that little snake," I muttered to myself.

Regulus perked up, flashing me a sarcastic smile, "Who's a little snake?"

I glared, hoping he would've gone away or at least out of my line of sight, "Didn't I tell you to go drown already?"

He opened his arms wide, "Why yes you did but I can't do that. Humanity could never live without me, especially the ladies in town."

I groaned, trying to ignore that I had soaked his white shirt with so much water that it was now see-through, and instead focusing on how he had just held my dagger to my neck. He sure did deserve all of my hate but I sadly had to split it between him and Theodore. The two prats would need to share my disgust towards them because that was the only thing they would ever get out of me.

A wave of water hit me as Regulus swept his useless sword over the water's surface. I gritted my teeth, now completely soaked through with the cold water. He grinned at me and I felt annoyance swell through me. Instantly I was on my feet, my dagger pressed against his windpipe. He didn't flinch, even as I pressed the dagger in harder, ready to stab in at any moment.

"The minx wants to kill me now. How about a kiss instead, darling?" As he was speaking, I felt his sword move to press against the small of my back, the metal digging in.

I leaned in, "Sure, why not?" He blanched and I took the chance to push him into the water, his sword narrowly missing me. I grinned, striding over and taking the sword out of his hand, bending over to make eye contact with him. Regulus stared at me and I smirked, mocking him again by saying-

"Guess you fell for me, huh?" 

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A/N:

Two updates in one day, I'm doing so well! No, seriously though,  I couldn't wait to write this chapter so I was like I'm just gonna go ahead and do it! Plus, I was bored so yeah.

Should I do Regulus' POV next chapter? Let me know because I'm tempted to but I don't want to interrupt the flow of the story.

Love you, my Ravens! :)

-Rae