Following the trail of stick black blood, Dean ran swiftly to the reservoir, his heart hammering rapidly against his ribs. He skidded to a halt when he saw Castiel, who had his back towards him, walking into the dark water of the lake. Castiel's arms were slightly raised, as if in acceptance, as he walked deeper and deeper into the water until finally, he was completely submerged.

No, damn it! Dean cursed inwardly, ripping his jacket from his shoulders. Without so much as a second thought, he sprinted forwards, losing his shoes along the way.

He dove headlong into the icy water, ignoring the chill as he swam deeper into its murky depths.

He couldn't see Cas, he could barely see five feet in front of him. But he knew he was there, he could feel it. He reached out, and felt the water grow slicker, like thick oil. It darkened until it was completely black, surrounding Dean in its shadowy veil.

The urge to breathe burned through Dean's body, but he ignored his instincts for air.

There was a massive surge of energy, which caused Dean to lurch back in the water. He struggled within the inky depths, trying desperately to see where Castiel was.

Then, as if by some miracle, he saw him. Castiel floated in the water, trapped in the shimmery light of a sun beam hitting the water, which was slowly clearing. It was as if the angel was surrounded by the same heavenly light that he emitted when he exposed his Grace, except this was full of tragic beauty as Castiel's body slowly began to sink down into the lake's bottomless depths.

With a powerful surge of his arms, Dean swan towards his angel, grabbing his face between his hands. Cas's eyes remained closed, and his skin was as cold as the water surrounding him. The pressure in Dean's chest was no longer that of needing to breathe, but of a deep, resounding pain of the thought of losing the one person who mattered to him most in this world apart from his brother.

Don't you die on me now, Dean thought fiercely, clenching Cas tighter. Don't you dare give up.

With his last ounce of strength, Dean leaned forward and pressed his lips against Castiel's, breathing the last of his air into the angel. Cas's lips were surprisingly warm and soft, and Dean's eyes closed briefly as he held him close.

When his eyes opened again, spots began to dot his vision from lack of oxygen…but before he slipped into unconsciousness, he saw Castiel's eyes open once more. They were still a bright, bold blue, even in the black water, and they seemed to glow a little brighter when they landed on Dean.

Dean's hands slipped away from Cas as his body fought to keep him from slipping away, and just before the darkness could envelope him, he felt the gentle brush of two fingers against his forehead.

With a flash, Dean gasped, and discovered he was sucking in air rather than water. His eyes opened to see the stretch of sky above him, smudged with clouds. His head rolled to the side, where a very wet angel lied beside him, breathing just as heavily as he was.

Castiel looked over at Dean, and sapphire eyes beheld the emerald green ones at his side, and slowly, a smile took over the lips Dean had just kissed.

"You…saved me," Castiel said, his voice slightly heavy.

"Yeah, well," Dean coughed, smiling crookedly. "You saved me once."

They looked at each other once more, but before anything else could be said, Sam and Bobby rushed over to them, worry etched on their faces.

"Dean! Cas!" Sam exclaimed, dropping down to look them over. "We thought… I mean, Dean, you…"

"I'm fine, Sammy," Dean said, sitting up, clapping a hand on Sam's shoulder.

Bobby looked down at Dean with a stern frown. "You tryin' to give me a heart attack, ya idjit?" he scolded.

Dean merely smiled and stood up, before offering a hand to Castiel. The angel took it, looking at Dean when a certain warmth spread from their joined hands. Dean's eyes flickered briefly, but he looked away.

"Hey, look," he said, leaning down to pick up something from the water.

It was Castiel's trenchcoat, which was thoroughly soaked in Leviathan blood and brackish water, but otherwise still intact. Dean smiled slightly and folded it, before handing it over to Cas once more.

"Think this belongs to you."

Cas smiled softly. "Yes, I believe it does."

Ooo0ooO

Author's Note: Hello, everyone! This is my first attempt at a one-shot fic, which was inspired by a Desitel fanart I stumbled across. Check out the artist's other work!

brilcrist . deviantart . com