Chapter Text
(3,879 words)
Long ago, their pod all lived together in a body of water the humans called Lake Iniqua. It was a nice enough lake, but its proximity to the Lake of Fire made it a much more dangerous place to stay than what would be ideal. The Lake of Fire got its name from the humans, as well, due to the dark rumors surrounding it and the number of people that had gone missing there over the years. The lake is infested by Cecaelia—also known as sea demons—and sending one of his kind there is as good as a death sentence.
One day, one of the elders, Lucifer, challenged another elder, Michael, for the throne after their king disappeared into the night, rumored to have been kidnapped by vengeful Cecaelia. In the daylight, in front of the eyes of the entire pod (even the extremely young ones that would rather be looking for shells), the two were civil and calmly discussed an exchange of power.
That night, however, Michael had violently attacked Lucifer by pushing him into the running motor of a human boat, proceeding to then banish him to the Lake of Fire. Bleeding and wounded, Lucifer had little choice in whether he went or not, and little chance of living.
Michael had announced the next morning that Lucifer had left during the night, and that as such, he would be in charge of the pod. No one questioned it, and Michael never so much as indicated what actually happened or owned up to what he had done. Why would he? After all, no one had seen him, right?
Castiel had seen him, though. Castiel, roused from his sleep by the noise, had hidden in the seaweed and watched the whole thing. But he was very young and very small, and had never even seen a fish gutted in front of him before. He shook in fear just out of sight, terrified by the display in front of him and too traumatized afterwards to tell anyone what he saw, let alone what might happen to him if he ever let it be known what had really happened between Lucifer and Michael.
Castiel never spoke again, not even as Michael had arranged for the entire pod to be moved to another lake entirely, far enough away from the Lake of Fire that Lucifer—assuming he was even alive after his injuries and subsequent banishment—would never be able to find them.
The pod was officially torn apart after that as some refused to leave and chose instead to stay behind, perhaps not trusting Michael as a leader. The rest left with Michael, either by choice or because they were too young to choose for themselves—like Castiel had been. He hasn't said a word since watching the fight that tore up his family, and to this day, no one knows the truth.
Well, technically they're not actually family, but they do share a common relative, probably. And all the years of mating within the group makes everyone relatives in some way. Probably. Maybe. Castiel hasn't really asked, for obvious reasons (not that he'd really want to ask, anyway). He believes the humans would call him a mute, though he's never actually met a human himself before and only knows of them from Gabriel's stories about them (those are his favorite stories).
Oh. He's also a…mermaid? He's male, so is the term still mermaid? Regardless, Castiel is a mer…person…and he's been living with one of the family's elders, Gabriel, ever since Naomi abandoned him and Zachariah before that. Metatron, Malachi, Bartholomew…the list goes on and on, filled with individuals who thought they could 'cure' him or were otherwise stuck with him. Castiel doesn't know who his parents are, but he doesn't think anyone really does.
It doesn't matter. Gabriel is his protector now—and the first one to not leave him out in the open in hopes another merperson might find him before a predator does, effectively making him someone else's problem. And Gabriel is…amazing. He's often scolded for not being serious enough, but Castiel likes his jokes and endless inspiration, not to mention his magic. He's…he's sure Gabriel must like something about him, too…
They've fallen into something of a system over the years. Gabriel makes sure he's safe and keeps him alive and tells him not to go up to the surface, Castiel goes up to the surface anyway to watch the birds waddle along the beach, Gabriel finds him there hours later and scolds him but lingers there himself, they go back down at sundown before anyone (read: no one, as they're likely the only two merpeople in the whole lake) notices their absence, and everything is okay.
Today is no different. Castiel leaves the cave Gabriel has claimed as his own and quickly swims to the surface. He pokes his head out of the water, the gills lining his neck and chest still fluttering nervously under the surface as he scans for any sort of threats (he does listen to Gabriel sometimes). When he sees nothing but the birds and one weird looking dog (he'd pet one before when it went into the water after a stick, so he thinks he likes dogs), Castiel brings more of his body out so he can rest his upper body along a rock that peeks out of the water.
Castiel loves watching the birds move around freely on the shoreline, able to waddle around and pick up seashells if they want to or fly away from it all when they've had enough. Castiel wishes he could fly away sometimes, but he can't even walk—not when his bottom half is a deep blue fish tail...
Unexpectedly, the dog perks up and begins making a loud noise that scares Castiel back into the water, though not enough that he doesn't bring his head back up a second later to look out again. He watches curiously as the animal's back half begins moving back and forth.
Moving quickly so more of him hides behind the rock, Castiel sees a figure running down the incline leading down to the beach—the incline that hides the rest of the world from Castiel's sight. It's a human—at least, he thinks it is.
The human is a female, as far as he can tell, what with the long hair and all. Castiel never really understood why females are supposed to have long hair. Why can't he have long hair if he wants it? He doesn't, but why can't he? Either way, the human seems to be wearing some sort of a uniform; red shorts and a white shirt with a plus sign on it and some sort of writing decorating the bottom, though he can't read it.
She's grinning down at the dog when she reaches it and then smiles out at the water. Castiel gasps softly and ducks behind the rock, peeking out a moment later when she begins to speak, barely audible over the loud noises the seagulls are making (as per usual).
"This place is gonna look great pretty soon," she says, and Castiel frowns. What's she talking about? This place always looks amazing. Must be a human thing… "Just another week and we can open back up."
As she's talking, another figure rushes down the incline, nearly stumbling over the unsteady sand leading down to the beach. This one, unlike the unremarkable first, is…a male and…beautiful.
"Jo, Bobby said we gotta get this dock painted today," the male says, bringing a hand up for a second to shield his eyes from the harsh sunlight.
Castiel catches one glimpse of his brilliant green eyes and feels his entire face flush bright red, quickly darting behind the rock entirely at the cost of not being able to see more of the male. He puts a hand to his chest, as if that will slow his racing heart. It doesn't.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm going. Who put you in charge?"
"Bobby, when he made me head lifeguard," the male replies. Castiel has no idea what that is, but it sounds important.
"Bobby's biased. He practically raised you."
"Well, somebody had to." The voices are fading, and when Castiel peers over the rock, he sees them both retreating. Panicking, Castiel makes a sound of distress that has both humans glancing over their shoulders before leaving anyway.
Castiel's face isn't any less flushed, even as he sinks below the surface to the cool water below. He only comes back up when he's certain his complexion is back to normal, and when he comes back up, there are no humans or dogs or even birds in sight. Castiel sighs softly to himself and rests his cheek against the rock, waiting for something to happen.
-
When Castiel comes back up the next day, he's surprised to see a group of five humans huddling over a strange chunk of wood that they're painting red. He tilts his head and peeks out from behind the rock slightly, silently observing. The human with the long red hair stands up and nearly spots him before he hides again. He knows he should go hide, but…
"Do we really have to finish this thing today?" she asks, cracking her neck and wrist. "My carpal tunnel really hates me today."
"You don't have to do anything, Charlie," another female hisses, not even glancing up. "You can always quit."
"And miss the chance to see girls in bikinis and make money? Not a chance, Ruby," Charlie replies. Castiel listens idly, always a little surprised whenever he hears actual human speech, especially since sound carries much more clearly on land than in water. He's never actually been able to see the humans as they speak before, though.
Castiel watches curiously as the five cover the wooden structure in paint. Eventually, the beautiful male from yesterday stands up and leaves for a few minutes, returning with a long black rope with white and red plastic things attached to it.
"I'm gonna put the rope in," he tells them before dropping the rope and pulling his shirt off over his head.
Castiel's face goes red again and he makes a strangled sound into his hands, trying fruitlessly to rub the color away. The blush just extends further as the male wades into water, rope slung over his shoulder. He rushes beneath the surface as the male gets close enough that he can probably see Castiel if he looks over. As the male swims by directly over the spot Castiel is hiding in, however, he can't help but allow his fingers to brush over the male's leg.
The male makes a startled noise and his leg swings out, kicking Castiel right in the face. His nose makes a strange cracking noise and the sensation makes Castiel's eyes water, but he quickly swims deeper underwater so he doesn't bother the male again.
In his haste to get away, Castiel runs into Gabriel, who quickly wraps his arms around the younger merperson in a restraining hug. "Whoa, whoa, kiddo, what's got your tailfins in a twist?" Gabriel pulls him away from his chest and catches sight of Castiel's watery eyes and bloody nose. "What happened?"
Castiel makes a vaguely distressed noise and pushes his face back into Gabriel's chest, wanting to forget all about the very beautiful male that had just kicked him in the face. Gabriel just sighs softly and runs his fingers through Castiel's hair.
"Hey, it's all right. Just calm down. Did the seagulls attack you again? I told you not to try to pet them, no matter how soft they look." Castiel shakes his head, and Gabriel hums, guessing, "You ran into a rock?" He shakes his head again, causing Gabriel to sigh. "Well, whatever it was, it's over now, okay? Now, what d'ya say we go and get something to eat?"
Gabriel's solutions could be…more helpful, but he's willing to take care of Castiel and keep him entertained, so it's okay. Besides, he's not sure he'd want to tell Gabriel about the human even if he could speak…
-
When Castiel goes back up to the surface later that day, just as the sun is beginning to set and disappear for the day, he takes a moment to lie on his back and watch the sky, enjoying the strange echoing noise sounding through his partially-submerged ears every time they go above the surface before dipping back below. There are strange ropes blocking off most of the deeper water, leaving only a small, shallow area fenced in, and the painted wood is lying unattended on the beach. It's all very strange…
He closes his eyes with a soft sigh, relaxing into the feeling of the water lapping at the sides of his face. His ease is instantly shattered when he hears the sound of something hitting the water, causing him to quickly sit up and sink below the water again so that everything below his eyes is beneath the surface.
To Castiel's surprise, he catches sight of the beautiful male from earlier—the one that had kicked him in the face, although Castiel is mature enough to admit that was likely his fault. He's…swimming. Castiel almost forgot humans can do that, since they do it so pitifully in comparison, according to Gabriel. Then again, it's not like fish can walk, so humans must have their strengths, too.
The male's head comes out of the water as he nears the flat rock, smoothed by the water frequently running over it. Surprisingly, the male pulls himself up onto the rock to sit down, head tilting backwards to look up at the sky. Castiel silently draws closer to get a better look, having never been this close to a human before, but the male suddenly turns to look at him, and Castiel is frozen in place, eyes wide.
"Hey, kid, this place is technically closed until Friday," he says, and Castiel quickly backs away. "I mean, I'm not gonna rat you out or anything, but you shouldn't be here. It's dangerous without a lifeguard." The male then cracks a sharp grin, adding, "There are sea monsters here."
Castiel startles, afraid the human might have figured out what he is already, eyes darting around nervously in search of an escape. But at his reaction, the male's smile softens.
"Hey, man, I'm just kidding," he soothes, gesturing for Castiel to sit on the rock, but Castiel remains firmly in place, treading water with as little movement as he can so he doesn't draw attention to his tail. Luckily, the color does grant some camouflage. "C'mon, what's your name?"
Castiel opens his mouth to reply, stunned since he hasn't been asked that in years (hard to be asked who he is when the only one he goes around these days is his current guardian, Gabriel), but no sound comes out. Right. He tries once more, but…can't. There's not even anything physically wrong with his throat or vocal cords, but…but he can't, so he just shakes his head a little. It never used to bother him, not being able to talk. And now it…does. Why can't he speak? What's wrong with him?
The human scratches at his wet hair for a second, brushing the short strands back and flinging tiny droplets of water everywhere. "Can't talk?" he eventually guesses, and Castiel nods solemnly. "That's all right. I'm Dean."
Dean. Even his name is beautiful…
"I'm gonna be a lifeguard here in about a week," Dean tells him, kicking his legs lightly in the water. "I'll be giving out swimming lessons for anyone that needs 'em. You interested?"
Castiel, of course, can swim exceptionally well—compared to humans, that is, since Gabriel says he's kind of clumsy on his turns and is easily distracted when swimming. But…Dean… He finds himself nodding before he can think of why he shouldn't—namely the massive tail that makes up the entire lower half of his body.
Dean grins. "Great. I can give you one now, if you want." He nods dumbly again, and Dean nods in return. "All right. You look like you can tread water pretty well, but I'm gonna go grab an inner tube, anyway. Hard to learn to swim when you're all worried about staying afloat."
The human slides off the rock and swims smoothly back to shore, marching up the incline for a few seconds before quickly coming back down, a strange circle around one of his arms. Castiel brings his whole head and upper chest out of the water, only to remember his gills still visibly moving along his neck and ribs as he adjusts to breathing air. With some effort, he's able to close them, mostly concealing them from sight just as Dean returns to the rock and hands him the circle, helping fix it over Castiel's head and under his arms.
"There ya go, buddy. How's that?" Castiel swims in a little circle, pleased that his tail is decently hidden from sight. He smiles up at Dean, and Dean smiles back. "Wanna practice some swimming now?"
Castiel nods quickly and spends the next hour or so trying to copy Dean's arm movements while the human swims. It's strange, having to rely more on his arms than his tail, but he does his best and beams every time Dean compliments his form or speed.
Unfortunately, it can't remain evening forever. The sun finally dips low enough that the entire sky is a beautiful orange, but the sunset also brings Gabriel from around a corner. "Cas, there you are!" the older merperson says loudly, sounding relieved enough that Castiel feels guilty. Dean turns to look at Gabriel, which makes him pause. "Who's your friend?"
"I'm Dean," Dean responds as Gabriel comes closer, and the two then shake hands. Like adults. Wow…he's never seen Gabriel act like one of those before…
"Gabriel. Castiel's brother and guardian." Castiel is surprised by that, and looks over at…his brother. He's never had a brother before… "And you," Gabriel begins, spinning around to face him, "should've been home quite some time ago."
Castiel huffs quietly and presses his forehead against the inner tube still around his torso. Gabriel chuckles softly, probably shaking his head and preparing to wag his tongue some more.
"C'mon, don't make me the bad guy. It's getting late, Cassie, and it's time for good little guppies to catch some z's." In response, Castiel very maturely blows him a raspberry, just like Gabriel does whenever anyone older than him (mostly Michael, on the very rare occasions that he drops by to check up on them) tries to tell him what to do. This move earns him a laugh. "What were you doing out here, anyway?"
When Castiel doesn't answer, Dean replies, "I was giving Cas here a swimming lesson. I'll be a lifeguard here in about a week."
"Oh yeah? I didn't know people swim here," Gabriel remarks, and Castiel allows his tail to swish underwater to create small whirlpools. It's difficult to stay interested in a conversation he can't even contribute to…
"Yeah, people haven't for years. Some rare turtle laid eggs here or something," Dean answers dismissively, though Castiel doesn't remember ever seeing a turtle in this lake before. "Plus, all that crap about some sea monsters being spotted here. Scared people away for a while, but we're hoping to make a comeback."
"And you plan on having people swim here all summer?"
"That's the plan, yeah." Castiel runs the tips of his fingers just over the surface of the water, watching the ripples left behind. "By the way, what are you two doing here? You live around here?"
"You could say that, yeah," Gabriel replies with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Either way, thanks for keeping Cas out of trouble."
"Yeah, it's no problem," Dean says. "I had fun. Always preferred one-on-one time to a whole group, y'know? Besides, Cas actually listens to me."
"Yeah, I'll bet he does." Gabriel still has that sharp, troublemaking twinkle in his eyes that sets Castiel on edge. "Well, I'll take him home, then."
The older merperson takes his hand and leads him away through the water, going around the shoreline and out to the side where some seaside houses lie in the distance, out in what he'd always assumed is another merperson's territory. As they go, Dean climbs out of the water and begins drying off, apparently leaving. Gabriel waits until the human is completely gone with a little wave before helping Castiel out of the inner tube and pulling him below the surface.
"Castiel, what have I told you about going to the surface?" Gabriel begins the second they're back inside their underwater cave.
Castiel flashes a sheepish smile and brings his hands together along the wrists and thumbs as his fingers fan out to the sides, making the motion of a flying bird.
"Nice try, but no biscuit, kiddo. You're in big trouble this time." Castiel deflates, but nods. "Mind explaining what that was? 'Cause it looked to me like you were getting all friendly with a human, and you know that can't lead anywhere good."
He looks up at Gabriel with what he hopes are pitiful eyes, wanting him to understand that…well, while it had been an accident, Castiel isn't exactly opposed to seeing Dean again… Probably not the best message to convey, actually, but Gabriel just raises an eyebrow, gaze focused somewhere over Castiel's head.
"Cas, c'mon. This is a disaster in the making," Gabriel reaffirms. "Just because you finally found somebody you wanna make heart-eyes at doesn't mean you should. Besides, what happens when Dean finds out what you are? I don't wanna have to sweep up the pieces of your broken heart and tell Michael what happened and why we gotta relocate everybody all of a sudden."
He frowns, but sighs and nods, relenting. Gabriel does have a point, as much as he wants to deny it. Dean is a human, and Castiel isn't. Just because he likes Dean doesn't mean he should go around him, not to mention the fact that Dean…might not like him back, anyway.
Gabriel eventually sighs and ruffles his hair, perhaps recognizing a lost cause when he sees one. "Look, I'll see what I can do, okay? Maybe I can work up some sort of a spell or something to hide all your fishy parts. Been looking into it for a coupla months, and now we've got a reason to try it out. But give me some time, and whatever you do, don't follow anyone on land."
Castiel tilts his head at Gabriel and makes a freestyle swimming motion (that he'd learned from Dean), swishing his tail a little.
"Swimming is…fine, I guess." The older merperson rolls his eyes. "I mean, it's either I say you can do it and you promise to be careful, or you do it behind my back, right?" Castiel flashes another sheepish smile, and Gabriel ruffles his hair, standing more or less on-end from the water all around them. "Yeah, yeah. You take after me with all that stubbornness, y'know."
He tilts his head at Gabriel before sticking his tongue out, causing Gabriel to laugh and stick his out in return, gills fluttering happily in the water. Yeah…he's very lucky to have been found by Gabriel. Gabriel is good.