Chapter 28
The images of their first meeting, the festival in the village, the incident at the stable, their first time, all run in front of Dean's eyes as his mighty roar shakes his surroundings. He will not let these damn creatures drown the love of his life. Only now he realizes how foolish he has been acting and the demon curses himself for being so violent and cruel when beating up the human. But this is not important now; he must save Castiel or die trying. Dean knows that his chances are low, as no one has ever escaped the Sirens' claws. Once the prey goes in to the lake, they are doomed. But Dean is not afraid of death, not if it earns him Castiel's forgiveness. And he does not know what else he can do to get the human to forgive him after how terribly he treated him.
"You won't get him. I won't let you!" the demon snarls and dives underwater.
Castiel does not fight against the creatures that are dragging him to the bottom of the lake. It's so quiet and peaceful underwater. Maybe the ones who used to say that death is painful and unpleasant were wrong? Maybe Castiel's own death will be beautiful, like these creatures, which caress his body with their ghostly, pale hands. He can hear their cooing voices, lulling him to sleep as his vision little by little gets blurry.
He yields to their comforting caresses, placing his fate in their hands. The water is so clear this deep down, illuminated by strange insects that look like fireflies. Castiel feels like a king being carried by beautiful maidens towards his throne. And everything is mesmerizing and splendid until he feels a sharp pain in his left arm. The water muffles his shout and when he turns his head to see the cause of his pain, his eyes go wide and he starts to flounder, trying to break free from their tight grips. There are no traces of pretty maidens anymore. There are only terrifying creatures with red, glowing eyes and rotten, sharp teeth, hungry for his blood, and one of them is chewing a shred of his ripped shirt.
His lungs scream for air, his whole body aches and he tries to break free from the creatures while they bite at his legs and arms, digging their claws into his flesh. The water bubbles and turns red around them and Castiel is half-unconscious when he feels a strong hand gripping his arm tightly. The force yanks him out of the Sirens' grip, pulling him towards the surface. Castiel turns his head to see what just happened and sees Dean. They stare at each other for a few seconds before the demon signs for him to keep swimming.
There is a deafening screech and the human clutches his ears. Dean's sword plunges into one of the Sirens' chests, cutting the black, scaly body like butter. The water turns into a whirlpool around Dean and his rivals. Despite his wish to help the demon, lack of air and the roaring water wall prevent Castiel from doing so.
He's thrown into a violent coughing fit as soon as he breaks the water's surface and inhales deeply. Castiel looks around for something that he can use as a weapon so he can return to the bottom and help Dean. He swims to the nearest tree, with branches hanging low above the water, and grabs one of them. The young man's hands are trembling as he breaks off a thick branch, plucking the leaves off. He could use it as a spear; he's been trained well enough at Blazing Blades to know how to use improvised weapons.
Castiel takes a deep breath, hoping that it will be sufficient, and is ready to dive when the surface of the lake stirs, forming bubbles and circles on it. Unexpectedly, Dean rises out of the water, gasping for air greedily with a bloody sword in his hand.
"Dean!" Castiel cries out, swimming towards him, gripping the wooden 'spear' tighter in his hands.
"Cas… get out of… the water…" the demon pants heavily, "and find the… necklace… Now!"
"But…"
"I'll be fine. I'm right behind you. Go and find it," Dean rasps.
"We can go together," Castiel says stubbornly, not moving from his place.
"I said…" The demon never finishes as one of the Sirens dives out and sinks her teeth deep into the demon's neck, drawing blood out. Dean yells from pain and tries to use his sword, but he can't. Then he reaches his hand back, grabbing the creature's neck, ripping her off of his flesh. He punches her hard in the face, smashing her cheekbones. The siren sinks into the lake shrieking.
Castiel freezes in fear and falls in some kind of stupor, unable to move or shout, until Dean's hand grabs his tunic and throws him out of the lake and onto the shore. The blue-eyed man does not have time to feel pain as he finds himself sitting on his ass, staring at the lake with Dean in the middle of it.
"Don't try to come into the water. I won't be able to do it again. Find the charm necklace and get out of the forest. Please, Cas." These are the words the human hears before two Sirens jump at the demon and drag him underwater.
"Dean!" Castiel screams and falls down on his knees. "Noo… no, no, nooo!" he shouts and bangs his fists on the ground. "Why? Why are you doing this to me?" He yells at the skies above. "What did I do to deserve this? Is it because I fell in love with a demon?"
No one answers his cries and he stares at the lake in dead silence. "Find the necklace." Dean's words ring in his mind and Castiel gets up on shaking legs, which feel like they've turned into cotton. He staggers to the bushes, where as he remembers he dropped the necklace. A thorough search confirms his doubts and the young man puts it around his neck.
It starts with small tremors, which soon turn into violent sobbing. Castiel falls down on his knees and covers his face. He can say that the goal to kill himself is partly achieved, as he has lost the other half of himself – Dean. Tilda was right about Dean when she said that he still loved the human. Why would the demon risk his life saving him if he hated Castiel?
"Please come back, Dean. I swear to all the Gods that I won't have any hard feelings towards you. I'll forget everything. And I'll walk out of your life if you wish. Just come back, please…" Tears are streaming down Castiel's face, escaping through his fingers.
"I like everything except the walking out part," someone rasps and the young warrior forgets how to breathe. He removes his hands from his face and sees the demon sitting in front of him in the water: beaten, bruised, and bloody, but alive.
"Dean…" Castiel's voice is broken and he's shocked, but his instincts are still sharp as he lunges forward, grabbing the demon's arm and trying to drag him out of the water.
"Calm down, Cas. They're dead," Dean says fondly when he sees concern and worry on the human's face.
"You killed them? All of them?" Castiel asks, not believing his ears.
Dean nods with a small smile and walks out of the water. They sit on the ground in awkward silence, though the human can't resist all the overwhelming emotions that are stirring inside him. His heartbeat increases, remembering that Dean can hear his thoughts and feel whatever the human feels. He gulps nervously, but to Dean's honor, the demon does not say anything that would make Castiel uncomfortable.
It's still one of the early days of spring and the nights are cold, so it's not a big surprise when the brunet starts to shiver in his wet, icy cold clothes, which stick to his body like glue.
"You are cold," Dean says, breaking the silence.
"I will live," mutters Castiel and fidgets on the ground. His tremors are getting worse and soon after his teeth start to chatter.
"Take off your clothes," Dean says suddenly.
Castiel jumps slightly and stares at him. "What?" A small amount of fear creeps into his eyes.
The demon instantly feels it and tenses up. His lover is scared of him! What has he done?!
"Cas," he begins gently, "you need to get out of your wet clothes before you fall ill and die. My body heat can warm you up. Usually, I could use my magic skills to dry them, but I don't have enough energy right now."
"I don't want to," Castiel protests weakly, already knowing that he's losing this battle.
"I won't harm you. I swear upon my brother's life." The demon lowers his gaze, biting his lip.
Castiel studies his face for a few seconds and then starts to undress. His wet clothes fall heavily on the ground and he can't stop shivering. Damn cold!
Dean nods and follows his example. An extra pair of clothes join Castiel's on the solid ground.
"Come here," Dean whispers as he sits on the ground, opening his arms in invitation. The young man makes a hesitant step forward and the demon grabs his wrist gently, pulling him onto his lap.
"You're frozen." Dean lets out a small chuckle as he wraps his hands around the human, pressing him against his chest.
"Yes, cold water will do that to you," Castiel mumbles, closing his eyes and feeling terribly comfortable in his lover's arms. The heat Dean radiates is burning hot. The demon rubs Castiel's arms, back, and legs, trying to warm him up and step by step the human stops shivering.
"I'm sorry." Dean presses his forehead to Castiel's shoulder. His words are quiet, but the brunet can hear what he says. "I am so sorry for everything that I've done to you. I can't express how much I regret it. I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I still beg for it. Please forgive me, Cas. Because… because…" He trails off, swallowing hard. "Because I can't live without you."
Castiel's heart skips a beat after hearing Dean's confession. He moves away a little to take a look at the demon's face and he's met with sorrowful green eyes.
"But if you decide not to forgive me, I will und…" The gentle touch of Castiel's lips to his cut him off and Dean moans loudly and lustfully into the kiss.
"Cas… I've missed you so much… Oh, Gods..." Dean grunts, wrapping one arm around the human's waist, tugging him closer, while the fingers of his other hand slide into Castiel's thick hair. "What's so amusing?" He arches his brows when he hears his lover's chuckle.
"You mentioned Gods, Dean. And if I remember, you said you don't give shit about them." A smile dances on the human's lips.
"Uh… well…" the demon stutters. "Screw the Gods, come here," he rasps and flips them over so he can lie on top of Castiel and claim his lips in a sweet kiss.
After hours of much wanted and needed lovemaking, both lovers are sated and exhausted. Castiel lies on top of his beloved, playing with the demon's short hair and listening to the funny purring sounds that Dean makes. He yelps when Dean's hand smacks his bare ass after he tugs at the demon's hair a little too hard.
"Cas," Dean begins cautiously.
"Mm?" Castiel asks, half asleep.
"I need to ask you a favor." The demon sits up and leans on his elbows, looking at the human.
"What is it? What favor?" Castiel decides to move himself aside and sits on the ground.
"I… I need you to give me Kiss of Death," Dean blurts out and falls silent.
Give him his demon-killing knife? Why would a demon need it?
"The dagger? Why?" Castiel narrows his eyes. "What do you need it for, Dean?"
"I may need it soon," says the demon without any further explanations.
Castiel looks at his lover, trying to understand what's happening in his mind, but he can't think of anything specific. But he knows one thing, whatever the reason is, it's not pleasant and he fears that something huge and horrendous is coming their way.
