Remi waited a minute before hesitantly wading through the waterfall herself and emerging on the other side.

She carefully treaded water beneath her, and the water snakes stayed clear of the churning she was making with her movements.

Remi's eyes widened in shock when she saw Killure being attacked by the water snakes. But instead of looking alarmed, he was simply grabbing them by their necks and tossing them to the other side of the pond, where they would just turn around and rapidly swim back towards him, vengeance clouding their minds.

Water snakes were like piranhas, but far larger and much worse; the scent of blood intoxicated them, made them relentless. They were also extremely territorial, and simply stepping on one of them would invoke the wrath of the entire swarm.

Remi sighed in aggravation. This was the water snake's home, and they were the ones disturbing it. If Killure didn't let up soon, they would be on edge for months to come, and they'd never let anyone in their waters again.

Swimming around where Killure was disinterestedly plucking away water snakes just before their jaws clamped onto his skin, hurling them away from his body, Remi gestured for him to hurry up and get out.

Killure effortlessly leapt into the air. Wings sprouted from his back and begun flapping powerfully, keeping him in the air.

He gracefully flew over to her, and landed silently on the ground. His feet didn't even make a squishy sound against the rock-filled mud he was stepping on.

The water snakes snapped their jaws at them from a few feet away, unable to get any closer in the shallow water, for they were twice as long and half as wide as a full grown man.

Without a care in the world, Killure stepped into the shallow waters, just out of reach from the water snakes, and begun washing the dirt from his feet. After they were free of mud, he flew a few feet into the air towards his shoes, which were still beside the big rock he'd sat on before going in. He slipped them on, and waited for her to get ready.

Remi didn't miss how his eyes greedily took in her soaking wet frame and the way her dress clung around her breasts and waist, dripping water down her legs.

Somewhere deep within her, Remi wished he would explore every inch of her body with his hands and tongue and lips—not just his eyes.

Her eyes widened in horror at what had just gone through her mind, and she quickly shook her head to get her mind out of the gutter.

That was when she noticed a small gash on his left leg where a tooth must have grazed it. Blood trickled out from the wound.

"You're hurt," she commented plainly, coming over to him and gesturing towards his shin.

He glanced down and pursed his lips, as if he'd just noticed that was there. "S'pose I'm a bit rusty."

Remi quickly ran to the shallow waters and scooped up water with her cupped hands. Some of the water snakes had left, but many still glared at her with their beady eyes.

She brought the water over to Killure and knelt down in front of him, splashing it across the gash on his leg, cleaning the wound a little.

He quickly jerked his leg away from her, his lips twisting into a scowl. "I'm fine," he hissed, but she only tightened the grip she had on his ankle.

"Their bite is poisonous, you know. When their saliva mixes with human blood, the result is poison. With a small cut like that, you aren't going to die or anything, but it could make you sick for days if I don't do something," Remi pressed, pulling his leg back to her.

He peered down at her through his hooded, dark eyes and smirked. "I think you just want to touch me, doll. I mean, if that's the case, you could have just asked and I would have showed you anything and everything you want to see."

"Except your back," Remi replied without really thinking, causing Killure to tense and his smirk to disappear. He never took off his shirt in the light.

He let out a low growl. "Be careful what you say, doll."

"And if I'm not?" she said after a few seconds of tense silence, glancing up and raising an eyebrow, as her glowing fingers aided his body in fighting against the poison running through his system.

Her heart skipped a beat when she realized the position they were in. Her kneeling in front of him. He also seemed all too aware.

Out of the corner of her eye, Remi noticed the crotch area of his pants had tightened to the point where it looked painful to wear.

Remi's hold on the cells she was multiplying to help fight off the poison faltered for a moment, her attention elsewhere.

His fists were clenched at his sides, veins straining in his muscular arms, as if he was doing everything in his power not to touch her.

She couldn't help but feel her ego inflate a little at the sight of such a beautiful man becoming hard because of her.

Killure shifted around uncomfortably until Remi got fully rid of the poison in his body and cleaned his wound. She ripped off part of her sleeve to wrap around the gash, not particularly caring about the well-being of her dress. It had already become ruined on the way here after managing to catch on every single prickly or thistly plant and snag.

"All done," she announced, standing up and beginning to walk away.

An arm wrapped around her waist and she moved so quickly in the air that she could hardly make out anything other than blurring colours.

Her back lightly hit a tree, and Killure was before her, his handsome face only inches from her own.

His fingers traced circles across her upper thigh, freezing her in place.

This time, he'd pressed himself against her.

She could feel every part of him—especially the part that was hard for her.

She wondered what his plump lips tasted like, and what it would be like if she slipped a hand beneath his trousers.

Just as her body began to tremble and Remi thought that she couldn't hold back any longer, Killure bent his lips down to her ear and whispered, his hot breath fanning the side of her face. "My thanks to you, master. For all of it."

And then he flitted off to a tree, out of sight.

It was only then that Remi realized he was talking about showing him the waterfall and cave and their wonders.

She scowled at the way he played her, and then began walking through the dense greenery of the jungle, back the way she'd came.

———

The next night, Remi was fast asleep in her canopy bed, white sheets tangled around her legs and her head surrounded by pillows.

A slight creak partially roused her awake, stirring her from slumber.

Remi forced one of her heavy eyelids open, and it took quite a few second for the gaze to clear from her eyes. She made sure to keep her breathing steady, just in case there was an intruder in her room.

But all she saw in her groggy, half asleep state was Killure moving about. When he turned to glance her way, Remi quickly shut her eye and smoothed over her expression, pretending to be fast asleep.

From the slight creaking of the floor, Remi could tell Killure had come over to the side of her bed and crouched down beside her.

He simply watched her for a few moments—she didn't hear any more movement.

And then he spoke.

Remi had to strain to hear the deathly quiet words that came from his mouth. Her eyelids were impossibly heavy, threatening to close at any moment.

"And so, my pretty little master, this is it."

Her heart skipped a beat. Was he about to kill her? Did he truly have such little regard for his own life that he was willing to die in order to ensure her death? Still, she was half asleep, and couldn't manage to even wake up enough to register him as a threat.

She felt his cold claws move up her neck, until they found a loose strand of hair and twisted around it. "I'll be out of your way, once and for all. There's something I have to do, and you won't want me back after I've done it."

He paused a moment, before continuing. "I s'pose this is goodbye, doll, even if you won't remember it when you wake up."

And then she felt his soft lips brush against hers.

Unable to keep herself awake any longer, the heavy fog of sleepiness washed over Remi, and sucked her into slumber.