They managed a week in the forest before the rains came. At first, the soldiers were relieved, and a few of them even managed to crack smiles as they walked through the night and even partially into the day, the rain cooling the air to an easier heat to deal with, and the water kept their skin cool and even gave them a chance for fresh water.

That relief changed into concern after the third day of non-stop rain, the ground beneath their feet already becoming knee deep in water. They tried to find higher ground, but other than a few small hills that allowed no passageway to protection, there was none.

It was around midday when the weather turned worse, the rain becoming torrential until they couldn't see but a few feet in front of each other, stumbling over hidden roots and the water and more than once falling into the water and disappearing for a few seconds before surfacing and dragging themselves back up.

All in all, they were becoming increasingly concerned and moved as fast as they could against the weight of the water around them. Castiel had struggled the hardest, remaining upright only because Dean caught him every time he fell, holding him a bit closer each time.

Still, Dean did not expect to hear such a loud creak echoing around them, nor the sound of water suctioning that filled the air quickly afterward. Yet, when he heard an unnatural rustling, he did not expect to look up to see a loosened tree falling towards them.

"Cas! Look out!" Dean shouted, shoving Castiel away from him before leaping away from the falling tree. Castiel fell into the water, submerged, but Dean had no chance to see if he was alright before he was surrounded by the trees branches, dragging him under the water and pinning him to the ground.

He struggled against the heavy branch that rested above his waist, his body pressed tightly against the dirt beneath him as clouds of black rose from his struggling. He gripped onto the branch above his head, his lungs screaming for air as he dragged himself up the surface of the water so close, yet not close enough to save him from drowning with another branch pressing against his shoulder blade, effectively keeping him down.

Then he felt the branch shift just enough, and he breached the surface, gasps leaving his mouth as he took in mouthfuls of fresh air. Mills was standing beside him, pulling the branch up to the best of her abilities while the other soldiers struggled to shift the large branch that was keeping him down.

"Cas? Cas?!" Dean shouted, struggling to turn his head more than a few inches before being stopped by the strain it put on him to stay up. It took only a moment, though, and Castiel was standing by Mills, water dripping from his hair and down his face as he blindly touched Mills shoulders before guiding his hand down the branch until he reached Dean's face.

"Are you okay?" Castiel asked, his eyes wide with fear as his finger roamed over every inch of skin on Dean's cheeks, his fingers brushing over a small cut that Dean had got from one of the smaller branches that smacked him on the way down.

"I'm fine, but you need to get out of here," Dean growled, his grip on the branch above him making his arms shake slightly for the effort. It was dangerous for them to stay there too long, especially when they had almost been caught by enemy troops not long before the rain started and shielded them from capture.

"Dean, if we leave you'll drown," Mills cut in, shock written clear on her face as Dean just nodded, his mouth twisting into a frown as he pulled himself a bit higher, the water licking at his chin.

"It's okay. As long as you get to safety, it'll be worth it," Dean shouted above the sound of the pouring rain, feeling one by one as the soldiers halted, and he knew from the tingling in his spine that told him that they were staring at him.

"Are you sure?" Mills asked, her voice almost too soft to be heard. Dean nodded, gritting his teeth as he felt the bark scrape along his back. The confliction on her face was clear, but eve she knew that if they stayed there, they would all get found and killed by the soldiers anyway.

"Okay. Let's go!" She shouted at the other soldiers before gently lowering the branch back down. It pressed against his back once again, almost dragging him under, but he held on furiously, using what leverage he had to keep himself up. It wouldn't last long, only a few minutes, but damn it if he wasn't going to fight every step of the way.

"I'm not leaving," He heard Castiel say, and he would have looked over if he thought he could deal with the distraction. Still, those hands left him, but to grab the branch and forcing it back up again, allowing Dean a little leeway as he let his arms release some of the tension, stinging with every movement.

"Cas, the water's still rising. I won't be able to breath soon anyway," Dean replied, his eyes moving to Castiel, shock lacing his expression when he saw the unshed tears in the soldier's eyes. Castiel shook his head stubbornly, holding on tightly and refusing to let go when Mills put a hand on his shoulder.

"I don't care. I go where you go," Castiel growled, the stubborness in his voice making clear that he was not going to change his mind, no matter what was said. Dean stared at him for a moment before his eyes softened, and he felt his own tears beginning to well up. He was going to die, and he was going to lose this man in the process.

"Okay."

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The water was lapping at Dean's nose now, barely able to get the breaths he needed as it continued to rise steadily higher. Castiel had tried to pull the branch up higher, allowing him more room to breath, but there was no hope, and Dean was beginning to becoming submerged.

So he just let go, his body falling back in under the water with a splash and slipping back down to the bottom. His back ached from pulling himself up for so long, and it tingled as it finally straightened back out when he touched the bottom. He could hear Castiel shout his name, but simply closed his eyes, waiting for the world to slip away around him.

Soft hands touched his face, and he felt guilty for giving up like that when Castiel was still trying to desperately hold on. He just didn't have the energy, and moved to push those hands from his face, only for his eyes to shoot open when he felt the soft brush of lips against his own.

The blurry form of Castiel could be made out in the water, his eyes closed as he pressed his lips firmly against Dean's and parted their mouths, a soft breath leaving Castiel and flooding into Dean. He breathed in, his lungs aching when they got just a little bit oxygen when Castiel shot back up to the surface before coming back down, moving a bit faster to Dean and touching his face, using his fingers to guide him back to his lips.

Dean got the idea of what was going on when Castiel pressed his lips against Dean's again, letting the air that he held push into Dean's mouth. Dean breathed in, and Castiel moved back up. Dean took a moment to expell what air he had, meeting Castiel halfway with the kiss and breathing in.

Dean had no idea how long that they traded air for, his lungs stinging and a dizziness overcoming him from being light-headed. He might not have recieved a lot of oxygen from Castiel, but it was enough to keep him alive, and when the rain finally stopped, and the water began to recede, Castiel pulled the branch up, allowing Dean to take a strong gasp of air that made everything rush at him at once.

Castiel was beside him, the branch braced on his shoulder as he stayed as close to Dean as he could, his eyes sparkling with worry as Dean held himself up and let out a breathy laugh, just amazed that he was still alive.

He didn't have a lot of energy, but he could hear the enemy lines growing closer, and he took what little he had to lean over, just barely pecking Castiel on the lips before putting his entire focus on keeping himself up. He saw a light, and it fell on them, calls of triumph from the enemy growing closer and closer to the trapped soldiers.