The candles in the room had blown out when the roof flew away plunging them again into the darkness. Malou blinked, willing her eyes to adjust to the change in light. She could just make out the pale circle of Mr. Prewett's face when there was another roar adding to the layers of everything else.

Then it hit.

Something hit her chest knocking her backward. She opened her mouth to cry out but water filled her lungs before she could. The water slammed her backward into the kitchen wall as she insistinctively reached her hand out for Mr. Prewett's hand - whether to anchor herself or himself she had no idea.

  

---

As the water hit him, Faustus was pushed back toward the furthest corner of the room, underneath the half of the kitchen with the roof still attached. Once more, his vision blurred and threatened to give out on him as he struggled to make anything of his surroundings. From where the water was pinning him in the corner, he could see the appliances in the room begin to float while other heavier ones quickly disappeared underneath the brackish water. The cabinet that had once pinned him to the floor was now itself stuck to the opposite wall, its contents long gone from its shelves. And through the haze of the storm and rising water, he saw a flash of something pale. A hand, reaching out from the outstretched wall closest to him.

That must be where Miss Skovgaard was trapped. He had to move fast. Water was quickly rising, and though she was safe from being trapped under the roof, Faustus could almost touch the roof from where he tread water. His ribcage screamed at him in protest as he began to make his way towards her. "Miss Skovgaard!" He called, pumping his arms and ignoring his side as he came within arm's reach of her.

He grabbed her hand and put it over his shoulders. By the grace of Merlin, there had been a heavy wooden table against the wall that had stayed underwater. Faustus was able to gain footing on that and stand up a fraction in the water. "Are you alright?" he gasped through mouthfuls of water before surveying her face to make sure she hadn't been hurt again and searching frantically for a way out.

---

  

Something hard hit the back of Malou's head, most likely the wall, she would have cried out in pain if she hadn't been under the water, but as it was her eyes saw sparks of light beyond the darkness. Then something warm held her hand, tugged her arm over broad shoulders and a soaking coat. Mr. Faustus. She held on to that thought as her head ached and black edges encroached on her already darkened vision.

His strong arms pulled her out from the water, which Malou rather unceremiously began coughing up lungfuls of salt water. Admist the coughing and kicking against layers of wet skirts all Malou could manage was to croak "Yes/"

He pulled her slightly and her legs kicking for purchase were able to find something strong under them for her toes to balance on. Had it been any other day she would have been entirely too embarassed at the mere thought, but this night was nothing like a normal day, and so she sagged into Mr. Prewett. "We need to get out of here." The supplies were a lost cause, all she could hope for now was that she could keep Mr. Prewett from further harm.

  

---

His expression would have been one of relief had they not been in a room filling up with water and threatening to drown them at any moment. That she answered at all was a relief and he nodded, tightening his grip around her waist as she leaned into him.

His eyes moved from making sure she was alright to desperately searching for a way out. The water level was just high enough that the wall that had once met the roof over their head was just out of their reach. But perhaps if he could hoist her up, she would be able to get to safety.

”If I lift you up, would you be able to reach the top of that wall?” He asked, nodding his head towards the corner of the wall where the two sides met.

---

  

Malou followed his gaze, she thought she might be able to reach it. "I think so." But there was heistation in her voice as she thought about the wind roaring up there and the possibility of the roof flying away. She glanced around them but the doors were covered. In her skirts there was no way she'd be able to swim out. If he could get her up there, if she could help him up, perhaps there would be another room they could find a way into. It was likely there best chance.

  

---

He heard the hesitancy in her voice and paused before moving them forward. His eyes went up to the ledge, uneasy about the idea of hoisting her up there leaving her open to potentially get knocked over. They had to get out of the room sooner or later, but the truth of the matter was that it could be a lot worse out there for them.

“Are you certain?” He asked, though the water level was slowly rising now, and he was losing his footing on the table he was currently balancing them on.

---

  

No. She wasn't certain. But they had to try. So she nodded. Her toes had lost purchase on the table and again her legs were kicking again her skirts, each movement stinging her bruised ankle. The current pulled her toward the sea away from Mr. Prewett which in turn led her to wrapping another arm around him. She hated that she was clinging to him, his rib couldn't take it, she knew, but it she didn't she didn't know if she could keep herself from being dragged out to see. "We have to try." The water and rain was cold on her skin and her teeth were chattering already. They wouldn't survive much longer in the water, a voice in the back of her mind told her, memories of healing those injuried in the ship crash this spring coming back to her.

  

---

At the same time she reached to wrap her arms around him, he tightened his grip. She'd vocalized his exact thoughts, which brought a grim expression to his face. There was simply no other way, unless they wanted to stay and keep being dragged towards the part of the room that the roof was under. "Alright," he said, more to prepare himself for whatever came their way next.

He adjusted his grip on her waist and would have apologized for the impropriety immediately had they not been in such dire straits. Faustus pushed them off the table and toward the wall. His toe caught a shelf that had miraculously stayed on the wall and he was able to lunge forward and push her towards the wall.

---

  

Malou had no idea how they had managed it, but as Mr. Prewett pushed them toward the wall she reached for the top of it and managed to grab it. Her fingers clung to their precarious grip on the top of the wall, wet and sliding, her fingers bit into something but she ignored it, trying to push herself up despite the layers and layers of wet fabric clinging to her. Petticoats tangled around her legs as she tried to find purchase on the wall. All she managed was to cling to the wall, the waves still trying to drag her, the rain and wind lashing at her head and hands.

  

---

Merlin, he wasn't even sure this would work. Faustus grimaced, knowing that her skirts weighing her down could have been a possibility. The good news was that now that his arms were free, he could actually perform some magic. "Hold on, Miss Skovgaard." he murmured. It was better that she could at least hang on. Making sure his wand was still in his pocket, Faustus swam towards the wall and managed to grab hold of the edge. The wind was howling something fierce, but he managed to use the flat side of the wall as leverage and haul himself up on the broken part.

It was horribly uncomfortable, but it was the only other way out aside from risking staying in the room until it filled and additionally getting pulled under. He reached to grasp her hands, intending to pull her up onto the wall.

---

  

Mr. Faustus said something but Malou couldn't hear him over the water and the roar of the wind. All she could focus on was holding on to the wall, clinging as she kicked her legs to try and stay near the wall, it was as if she were constantly swimming back toward the wall. Soon she felt the warmth of Mr. Prewett next to her, pulling himself up onto the wall and then his hand was there reaching for her own.

Malou let go of the wall with a hand, the pressure pulling intensely on her second hand as she swung for his hand. She felt the warmth of his palm as her hand started to slide from the tentative grasp, she held on harder. Wet hands were not helping them. With more strength then she new she possessed she managed to grab his other hand and together they managed to haul her onto the edge of the wall, feet still in the rushing water.

Wild eyes looked around to find that it had not been the roof of the kitchen that had flown off but half of the room above it. Malou's gasp was lost to the wind as she turned and noticed half of a parlor behind them - and it had a roof to protect them. Malou scrambled onto her knees, the wet fabric of her dress catching on broken floorboards, nails, and wall fragments. She didn't even notice. She was almost standing, wind and rain lashing at her when a branch caught her in the middle and sent her backward to the water.

Breathe knocked out of her Malou couldn't even scream as she was flung back into the flooding kitchen, her hand reaching for Mr. Prewett in desperation, fear wild in her wide eyes.

  

---

Thank Merlin. They were almost there. Faustus nearly breathed a sigh of relief as she was able to grasp his hand. And then there was a horrible sound that wrenched through the air as a branch crashed through, knocking Faustus forward. He stumbled, but was able to catch himself on the portion of the wall that had managed to stay in tact.

But Miss Skovgaard was hurled backward, and Faustus watched in horror as she disappeared into the water again.

”No!” Wand in hand, Faustus dove back into the brackish water. The cold was still a shock to his lungs and he grunted in pain as he resurfaced. Whatever injury he had on his side was sure to have ripped even further. The water thrashed him this way and that, but he managed to stay afloat whilst searching for the healer.

If only he could just get ahold of her, he could get them out of there. He had his wand this time around, he’d been prepared. There was no end to the genuine fear that pounded in his heart as he searched for some sign of her in the water.

---

  

The last thing Malou saw before her face disappeared in the salty sea water was Mr. Prewett's horror struck eyes. They would haunt her dreams in the months to come as would be panic as she struggled against the surging water. She flailed, feeling the cord of her reticle twist and tighten painfully around her wrist, only the tangled mess keeping it from being pulled away. She kicked, desperately at her skirts, at the water, at anything that could propel her upwards, but she was pulled further and further toward the crumbled remains of the kitchen.

One of her kicks met resistence, the fabric of her gown or petticoats stuck on something, her eyes stinging at with seawater couldn't make out what it was, but she couldn't breathe. Panic began to overtake her as she tugged and tugged at the skirts. It didn't budge. If she could have cried she would have, but instead her numbed fingers tried to reach for the reticule, hoping to blast herself away from the water with a wand. Head throbbing, air gone, water tugging at her, feeling the metal clasp of the reticule was the last thing she recalled before she lost conciousness.

  

---

Damn.

It had been far too long since he'd seen her disappear below the water. A muttered charm later and Faustus tucked his wand into his jacket, plunging below water as a bubble of air encased his face from the top of his nose and over his mouth. The water stung at his eyes as he struggled to see what had gone where. Everything seemed to be magnified below water - the noises that the furniture made as it crashed into the walls were not comforting. But - there!

The flutter of her skirts was unmistakable, and Faustus swam towards the movement. His heart stopped as he realized she wasn't moving, and he swam faster until he reached her, his ribs screaming at him all the while. Once there, he realized what had been the cause - her petticoats had been caught on the hook of a cabinet, and he quickly gave an experimental tug at her skirts to see if the hook would release them. With no time to waste, once he felt resistance against his hand, Faustus took his wand again, pulling the excess of her petticoats taut and slicing them cleanly with a spell.

Once he felt her begin to float freely, he surged upward, taking her around the waist, and putting another arm beneath her knees as he folded her into his chest and kicked upwards. As he broke the surface, Faustus' foot found the table which was somehow miraculously still anchored to the floor. Arm still wrapped firmly around her waist, he grabbed his wand and waved it. A rope attached itself to his waist and to an anchored point somewhere in the room above the kitchen.

Ignoring the additional pressure on his wound, Faustus waved his wand again, and slowly they were pulled to the edge where he was able to transfer the rope from his waist to around her. He clambered up onto the floor of the room and pulled Miss Skovgaard onto the floor, immediately casting a shield around them. He had had enough of being pulled hither and thither. With a soaking wet hand, he cupped her cheek in his palm. "Miss Skovgaard." He said, brushing the stray locks of hair around her face. When she didn't respond, Faustus brought his wand to her chest and muttered a few more words, attempting to remove whatever water had made its way into her lungs. "Miss Skovgaard."

---

  

It was not a gentle revival, but even as Malou's lungs hacked up every drop of water in them, her mind focused on the gentle warmth on her chin that she had felt. Had she imagined that? She rolled onto her side trying to figure out where she was amongst the coughing and water. But the explusion was too strong, drawing tears to her eyes and dragging through her lungs and throat. Finally, voice horse and eyes stinging with tears Malou pushed herself up slightly, looking mildly panicked as she searched for Mr. Prewett.

Her gaze caught on him and relief flooded through her. He was alright.

"Mr. Prewett." She croaked, eyes meeting his, relief clear, even as tears trailed down her soaked cheeks. "You're alright." It was barely more than a whisper but she found she could almost cry in relief.

And then she noticed the missing half of the room, the floor that had once been a kitchen celiling gone, the storm that still surrounded them. But it was calm here - shielded. Had he? He must have rescued her. The last thing she remembered was falling into the water.

  

---

Her revival caused him to release a breath of relief, and he moved further away to give her room to recover, keeping a hand on her back as she coughed up the water that had been expelled from her lungs. When she looked at him, he felt an unfamiliar lurch in his stomach but shoved that to the side to make sure she was alright otherwise. Her ankle might have needed to be re-bound, but it seemed she'd been spared the worst of injuries.

"I'm alright," He reassured her, tempted to bring his hand to her cheek once more. He held back though, and withdrew his hand from her back once he was certain she was steady. His expression changed to one of a grimace as he eased back from his kneeling position and let his weight fall on his hand as he leaned back. "Just barely." He said through a laugh. His heart hadn't completed racing at top speed, and he surveyed her again, not trusting his eyes.

"We'll need to move soon." He said, with a glance around at his shield. He didn't trust that things would have died down so quickly after their ordeal. "And make our way back to the ballroom."

---