Dying Waves

Nerissa wasn't sure know long had passed since she had been captured, but despite the fact that she'd been taken against her will, she'd grown close to the humans, she'd even wormed her way through Rosie's cold, hard exterior and gotten a glimpse at the warm, beautiful soul. They had often unlocked the bars and moved them aside so that she could show them tricks that her sister's had taught her.

And then tragedy struck, a being that she didn't know that name of, attacked her group of hunters and killed them before her eyes. Lana had told her to stay quiet and keep out of sight, she followed her orders immediately.

"Get down!" Lana and Rosie yelled simultaneously at her, causing her to shy away from the loud noise.

She did as she was told and ducked down under the water, swimming to the bottom of the hole and curling in on herself to remain out of sight from the attacking beings. Moments later, the attackers gained the upper hand and began killing the large group of hunters that had been using the warehouse as a home ever since they had caught the mermaid.

The screams of the hunters had echoed through the water and into her ears, leaving her writhing in pain. The noise had ended as soon as it had started and she waited until she heard the intruders leave before lurching towards the surface. Rosie and Lana's faces were the first things she saw, the female's face were pale and streaked with a strange red liquid and their eyes were glassy and unseeing.

"Lana?" She questioned hesitantly and reached out to grasp her hand, only to feel a stinging sensation in her eyes when her friend didn't move or reply, "Lana, Rosie?" She shook the humans again, but to no avail.

Nerissa slowly backed away in confusion, she had witnessed her sisters in similar positions to the group, but being as naive as she was, she didn't understand what death meant. A strange feeling overcame her and her eyes began to sting the longer she stared at them.

It didn't take long for her to turn and dive back under, returning to the one place that made her feel any comfort whatsoever. She never would have guessed that her life would take a turn for the better...or the worst after that tragic night. She never knew just how much impact two strange men would have on her life, until she met them, that is.

_________________________________________________________________________________

It had been around three weeks since that day and Nerissa was slowly deteriorating. Her hair had lost its shine and hung limply around her pale, gaunt face. Her lips were chapped and faded, her eyes were dull and lifeless and she was quickly getting thinner, due to the fact that she hadn't been in salt water for a long time now. The water from the hole had vanished inch by inch until she was left curled up on the cold ground with nothing to keep her warm.

She had been ready to let go of life and swim towards the light that shone brightly from the center of the darkness that clouded her vision when sudden banging and shouting met her ears. She was no longer sure if she was imagining thing or not, because at one point or another, she was sure she'd seen her sisters.

"Hello?" A deep voice called out.

"H-Help!" Her voice was raspy and dry as she forced herself to reply.

"Did you hear that?" Another voice asked.

In an attempt to gain their attention, she weakly raised her shaking hand and slapped it against the ground, the sound drifted upwards and the sound of footsteps got closer to the hole that she now classed as her prison.

"Hold on, we'll get you out," The first voice comforted.

A loud bang caused her to wince slightly and a second later, the bars were slid out of the way and she caught sight of two men -one tall and the other rather muscular- watching her with shocked eyes. Her eyes stung as she raised her head before flinching at the bright light. The taller one said something that she couldn't hear and jumped down into the hole with her. Nerissa let a defensive hiss as she took in the male's large form.

"Hey, it's okay," He soothed. "We're here to help you."

A strange piece of warm fabric was placed over her before she whimpered as she was lifted upwards and held out for the other man to take. The two of them got to work on untangling the net from around her legs; she let out an occasional hiss as it tugged at her skin.

"We need to get her to the hospital," The tall one stated, appearing beside her.

"Sam, we need to find her clothes first."

"We can put her in the car and then go shopping," Sam replied and reached out to her, only to retract his hand when she let out a choked yelp and struggled to move away. "Dean, we need to move quickly, she's bleeding badly."

Sam slowly reached out to her again, relief welling in his chest when she winced but didn't move away again. He gently pulled her arms through the sleeves of his jacket before zipping it up, lifting her into his arms and hurrying out the door with Dean hot on his heels.

_________________________________________________________________________________

"Hold on!" A far away voice ordered as Nerissa drifted in and out of unconsciousness.

"Dean, I think we're losing her!" A frantic voice joined in and she attempted to get away from the noise.

Dean grumbled something under his breath and rammed his foot down on the accelerator. After much debate, they had decided to take her to Ellen's, seeing as she clearly wasn't human and the roadhouse was much closer than Bobby's house. Her eyes flickered open and she winced against the bright light that overwhelmed her. A large hand covered hers and for some reason, she sought comfort in the warmth it offered and attempted to grab onto it; upon seeing what she was trying to do, Sam intertwined their hands and marveled at how soft her pale skin was.

"Wh-Who are you?" She croaked, her voice raspy due to her dry throat.

"My name's Sam," The stranger replied, trying to get over the sound of her strange, yet exotic accent. "That's my brother Dean driving."

She blinked until her vision became clearer and she could see the muscular figure of a sandy blonde haired man sitting on a strange type of material and using a strange contraption that Lana once explained the use of to her.

"Where am I?"

"In my car," Dean explained, glancing back at her through the mirror. "We're taking you somewhere with people who can help."

"Stop your car," Nerissa suddenly demanded, feeling the call of the ocean from deep within her bones.

"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded.

"Stop your car," She repeated, feeling her mermaid temper rising; she needed to get to the ocean if she were to heal properly.

A part of her felt the need to start singing, knowing that no one -not even the strongest of will power could resist her enchanting voice- and that's exactly what she did. The car soon pulled in to the side of the road and she forced the door open before slowly climbing out and heading in the direction of the sea.

"Where are you going?" Sam demanded as he and his brother got over the sound of her enchanting voice and hurried after her.

"The ocean, I have to go to it," She whispered, easily sliding her arm out of his grip.

Nerissa broke into a clumsy run and as she got within two feet of the sea, she unzipped the coat and dropped it to the sand before diving into the familiar salty water. She immediately resurfaced and felt herself slowly begin to heal; her hair regained its silky, braided style, she went back to the weight she was before she was dying and her lips and tail were no longer chapped and faded. Dean felt his eyes widen as he stopped beside Sam and caught sight of her shiny golden tail that flickered every so often, sending drops of water raining down.

"A-A mermaid," He gasped, pinching himself sharply to make sure he wasn't dreaming. "Sam...That's a mermaid."

"I can see that, Dean," Sam replied, mouth slightly open.

Before another word could be spoken, her eyes suddenly rolled back into her head and she collapsed, face first into the ocean. The two brothers darted forward and grabbed her arms, pulling her back onto the sand. They watched curiously as her tail dried slowly and her legs twisted and warped until it split down the middle and turned into a pair of legs.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Nerissa felt her fingers twitch one by one as she slowly regained consciousness. A bright light brushed across her eyelids, burning her eyes slightly as it moved on to warm the next object in its path. The familiar warmth enveloped her hand and a thumb brushing over her knuckles caused her eyes to snap open before she shot up, almost colliding with Sam's large form as she did so.

"S-Sam?" She questioned.

"You know my name," He started. "But I don't know your name."

"Nerissa," She stated after a moment of assessing him, before coming to the conclusion that he was trustworthy. "My name is Nerissa."

"You're name means From the Sea," He stated casually. "Or sea nymph."

"I remember who it was that gave me that name," She whispered, getting lost in her memories.

"Sounds like that person was very dear to you," He smiled.

"He was...He is," She corrected with a sigh before glancing around. "Where am I?"

"You're at the Roadhouse."

At his words, a woman with long dark blonde hair entered the room, carrying a tray filled with a plate and a glass of water. She smiled at the sight of Nerissa sitting up, conversing with Sam.

"Nerissa," She walked over and set the tray down on the bed in front of her. "I'm glad you're awake."

"How do you know my name?" Nerissa asked wearily.

"You were mumbling in your sleep," The woman replied. "I just assumed your name is Nerissa."

"Hey Ellen, where's Dean?" Sam interrupted in an attempt to change the conversation.

"At the bar, drinking as usual," Ellen patted him on the shoulder before sitting in front of Nerissa.

Sam squeezed her hand tightly before releasing her and heading off in search of Dean. Ellen turned back to Nerissa and began explaining what was on the plate.

_________________________________________________________________________________

"This is a bar," Ellen explained as she led Nerissa into the main part of the roadhouse.

"What is its purpose?" She asked. "Is it a weapon of some sort?"

"No, it's a place where people come to unwind," Ellen laughed. "We serve drinks and food. It keeps the customers energized."

"So, no one gets hurt then?"

"Of course not, unless a bar fight breaks out," The elder woman gently pushed her onto a bar stool.

"What do you do when a bar fight breaks out?"

"We break the two opposing sides up and then throw them out," Ellen answered patiently. "Most of the time, when a fight breaks to, we ban them from the bar."

"Does that work?" Nerissa's head tilted to the side curiously.

"It works rather well," Ellen stated as Sam and Dean slid onto stools at either side of her.

"What are you two talking about?" Dean gulped down a mouthful of beer.

"Miss Ellen was telling me what a bar is and what happens during and after a bar," Nerissa chirped happily.

"You don't know what a bar is?" Dean choked on his beer.

"I've been trapped in a hole underground for three weeks or more," She replied. "I do not even know the name of what you are drinking."

"It's called beer, do you want a taste?" He held the bottle in her direction.

She hesitantly took the bottle and raised it to her lips before gulping down a large mouthful. She immediately started choking as the liquid burned a path down her throat. The three humans were on their feet at once and surrounded her in a protective circle. A set of hands steadied her as she slumped backwards.

"We should get her to her room," Ellen's voice was wobbly as it drifted into Nerissa's ears.

"Good idea, Ellen," Sam scooped her up bridal style and walked towards the back of the roadhouse with Dean hot on his heel.

"She's a lightweight," Dean smirked in amusement.

He set her down on the bed and placed the thin strap of her dress back onto her shoulder before pulling the comforter over her and heading to the door with Dean.

"Goodnight, Nerissa."

That was the last thing she heard before she could no longer fight against the darkness pressing in on her from all sides and her eyes slipped shut and she drifted into a long, nightmare filled sleep.