A/N: So sorry for the absence! My friend had my pc, with this story on it and I only got it back today. But that means more frequent updates from now on! Also, it's still AU so if you don't like it, don't read it!
After a few days of enduring the same destiny over and over she couldn't even care anymore.
She felt numb. How could humans do this, to her?
For what seemed like a thousandth time she listened to the owners voice.
"Come see the horrid freaks of the night, the monsters among us! The deadly creatures of the sea…"
She wanted to scream. It wasn't true, she wasn't deadly and she wasn't like the others. Why couldn't they see she didn't live to kill humans but only tried to save the few she could?
As she was startled by a child knocking on the tank, the fins on the side of her lionfish-like tail shot up, displaying the sharp spikes in them and quivering as a defense mechanism.
Immediately she received a foul look from the child's mother who pulled him along, mumbling.
"Come on honey, don't want you to get hurt by one of those monsters in here."
Booth had been miserable and grieving for the last few days. Losing Temperance had been much harder on him than he'd ever be able to expect.
The real shock had been just an hour ago though, when Lucas, his chef cook had told him he'd thought he'd seen Temperance at the circus.
In the freak show no less!
At first, he'd refused to go and check it out, but he couldn't though. He needed the truth. He needed to know if she was still alive or not.
So that's how he found himself standing in line to buy yet another ticket for the freak show.
His heart was beating faster and he felt the adrenalin rushing through his body. As soon as he had his ticket in his hand, he entered the tent and followed the crowd.
Even though he was standing in the back, he could see her. Her body had changed.
Her legs were simply gone, and a tail had taken its place. Scales covered her bare breasts and her hair had grown longer, twirling around her face in the water.
Gills covered her neck, clearly enabling her to survive in the water. His eyes had traveled up her body and when they connected with hers, he looked away, turned around and left.
The utter defeat broke her heart. He was disgusted by her, just like anybody else. Not caring anymore, she let her tears flow freely.
This was it, her ending, and she'd have to go through it alone. Abandoned by the person she had thought would understand.
Booth simply could take it no longer. The sight of her, locked up in a cage, displayed for everyone to see...
The moment he turned around, he promised himself he would get her out of there, as soon as he'd figured out a way.
Ever since he'd left she could feel herself get weaker. He'd managed to find the one thing that killed her kind and that was a broken heart.
It also didn't help that her tank appeared to be leaking, the level of the water had drained until just a slight part of her neck was still underwater and she struggled to breathe.
She knew she'd die either way.
By the time it was dark, Booth had gone back home, changed into black clothes, grabbed a long, black dress which would cover her up completely and had made his way back to the freak show at the circus.
He had a raw, red steak in a small plastic bag and as soon as he encountered the dog, he tossed it toward him, silencing the animal.
He would've wanted to leave sooner, but he'd been unable to find everything fast enough to leave before dark.
He quickly made his way to the back of the tent, where he was met with a heart wrenching sight.
The sweet and gentle creature he'd come to know as Temperance over the last few days, was unconscious on the bottom of the tank.
The water had drained almost completely and he could see she was in danger. She looked deathly pale and her breathing was too slow.
He struggled for a moment, trying to figure out how to open the tank and after a few minutes, he'd succeeded in opening it.
Quickly, he helped her to sit up and pulled her body against his.
"Temperance?" he whispered urgently. "It's me, Booth. Can you open your eyes honey?"
Slowly, her eyes fluttered open and met his before she slumped back against him. She was drying up again, she needed water. So quietly she mouthed it to him.
Her voice was soft and weak, but he heard her beautiful voice clearly as she asked for water.
He was about to pick her up into his arms, but was stopped when the lights were turned on and the voice of the owner boomed through the tent.
"What the hell do ya think you're doing?!" Booth turned to him, slipping out a knife from behind his belt. "Look, buddy, you either back off, or I'll make you.
She's coming home with me."
The owner snorted. "That plan has about a snowballs chance in hell. Get off of my property."
Booths jaw clenched. "Make me." At that, the owner advanced and attacked. Booth managed to fend off the attack and pushed him to the floor.
"You do that again, and you're going to get much better acquainted with this knife."
The owner, who had hit his head on the floor quite hard, struggled to get up, only to crumble back down in a lifeless heap.
Booth quickly put the knife back behind his belt and approached him. His heart was still beating. That was good. At least he hadn't killed him.
Then he turned to her and quickly helped her into the black dress.
She had little to none awareness of her surroundings. The only thing she noticed was how he helped her into the dress, the fabric sticking to her wet figure and how he carried her outside.
Her breath was coming in torturously slow pants and she felt every one of them burn down her throat.
Booth held her close to his chest as he picked her up and ran outside of the tent, as fast as his legs could carry him.
He ran towards the ocean, hoping fervently that every breath he could hear her take wouldn't be her last.
He ran into the water until he was in up to his chest and submerged her into the cool, salty water of the ocean.
The painful expression was exchanged for relief as he let her go into the water. Slowly she swam until she was underwater and took a deep breath, filling her lungs but keeping an eye on him.
She swam out of his arms. Even though he didn't want to let her go, he couldn't keep her trapped in his arms either. Anxiously, he waited for her to re-emerge from the water.
After a few moments she swam up to the surface again, lifting her head out of the water but making sure she could still breathe. As her gaze drifted back to the circus, she looked at it absentmindly.
"I'm not a monster." She whispered brokenly.
Booth crouched, so they were eye to eye, "Shh, Temperance, of course not. You're a mermaid, a creature of the ocean. Don't believe whatever those people said to you or about you."
"Creature…monster that's all the same. I kill people," Cautious she swam backwards, to ensure his safety. "But I guess you already knew that."
Booth nodded and felt his anxiety increase as she floated further away from him.
"Yeah, I knew what your - your species does the moment I saw you in the tank. But that - I'm not scared of you. We've been in the water for several moments and you haven't done anything to me. I - I don't think you will either."
Her eyes became glassy as she spoke to him.
"You think." She emphasized. "You have no idea what I'm capable of, nor do I think you'd like to find out. It's not safe, I don't belong there." Brennan tilted her head back up towards the land.
"Have you ever killed before?"
"Yes," Was her pained reply.
"Obviously, you regret it, don't you?" he asked gently.
Carefully she lifted her head to look at him.
"It's an instinct. I can't suppress it. I'll always have it in me."
"But you can suppress it, you're suppressing it right now, aren't you?"
"I'm trying to."
"No, you're succeeding. There is a difference. Trying implies failing and I'm still alive... so..." he smiled at her hopefully.
"You have no idea how happy I am that you're still alive," he whispered in a serious tone. When she didn't respond, he moved a little closer to her,
"You know, I've heard a lot of bad things about mermaids, but you know what stuck with me the most?"
"That we turn into foam if we suffer from a broken heart?" She asked, shaking her head. "No, your guess is as good as mine."
Booth shook his head, "No, I've never heard that one before. The one that stuck with me the most is that a mermaid's kiss can save a drowning man.
The fact that I'm still alive is proof that you're different. You could've killed me, but you saved me instead. No matter what they say about mermaids, I know you don't have a cold heart. I can see it in your eyes."
Slightly, she smiled at him. The first spark of happiness in days.
"As absurd as it seems, that one is true. But it doesn't happen often."
"You saved me," he responded. "I never could've survived the raging sea by myself. See? There is no reason to be afraid of what you might do in a life or death situation, cause you already know."
Booth started to swim towards open water. "I trust you. You're not going to kill me or even watch me drown. I've shown you my world." He stopped and turned to her, "Show me yours."