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Started January 06, 2020 by @Fraust

tune

With that, Halm led Cas through the gardens, approaching the creek. He made sure he could easily step between Cas and the water if he was drawn to it again, setting the barrel down.

As soon as Cas caught a tiny glimpse of the creek, he tightly closed his eyes and squeezed Halm's hand harder, now relying on the other to lead him.

Halm, holding Cas's hand in his still, set about doing his task as fast as he darned; one by one, he lowered the souls into the waters, careful not to touch it himself. He went quickly so they could get out of there faster.

Cas wanted to watch, but he was scared to be drawn to the water again. He decided to bury his face in Halm's arm to help himself resist the temptation to look.

Halm continued, eventually emptying out the barrel.
"I'm done," he told Cas, putting his free hand on top of his head.

"Cool… is the creek gone?" He asked, still keeping his eyes firmly shut.

"It will be soon," Halm said. He picked up the barrel, shaking it and turning it back into a bag. He slipped it into his pocket, then bent enough to pick Cas up. He started walking away Cas's head against his chest instead of on his should so that if he opened his eyes he wouldn't see the creek.

Cas jumped a bit at first when Halm picked him up, but quickly relaxed and buried his face in Halm's chest, sighing. "What're you gonna do with the souls?"

"I put them in the creek to be taken to the final stage with one of the other gods," Halm explained, shifting his hold just slightly. Zia meowed once in Cas's hands.

"Ooh… what gods?" He asked, keeping his eyes shut for now. He'd keep them shut until he felt safe to open them.

"Marcos," Halm said simply. Cas would recognize the name as the god of the moon.
"His garden is like mine, but instead of individual flowers they grow on giant trees." He smiled at the thought.

Cas nodded. "That sounds cool… will I ever get to meet any other gods? Other than the nature guy? I didn't like him much…"

"I don't know," Halm admitted.
"We don't have a reason to go to them, and it's not likely any will come visit us." He paused at the mention of Derlik.
"No one likes him," he said. "He's the reason most of the feuds start in the first place. He's an asshole."

"Our reason could be that we want to visit." Cas shrugged. "And it makes sense that no one likes him… does he generally try to kill things as leverage?"

"He does it all the time. Usually, though, just for fun." Halm's voice took on a hard edge; he obviously didn't like what Derlik did with his free time. He stopped, looking down at Cas and his closed eyes.
"We're back at the house," he said, much more gentle.

Cas seemed to tense up when Halm's voice grew harsher, seeming nervous. He relaxed when Halm calmed down, though, and he opened his eyes when prompted.

Halm was troubled when he felt Cas tense up, though he didn't say anything about it. He'd have to watch how he spoke. He walked up the path to the house, opening the door and stepping in.
"Anything you want for lunch?" He asked.

"Whatever you want to make is fine. It's always good, so I don't much care." He shrugged and looked around from Halm's arms.

Halm nodded, heading into the kitchen.
"I think I'm just going to make a quick salad. I need to go finish collecting memories." He looked down at Cas.
"I don't think it would be a good idea for you to come with me for this."

Cas nodded again, laying his head back on Halm's chest. "Understandable… is there anything you want me to do here while you're gone?"

Halm thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"No, not that I can think of." He transferred Cas to one arm, beginning to fix a salad for the both of them.

"Alright… how long do you think you'll be gone?" Cas asked, sounding almost vaguely nervous again, though it wasn't clear why. He didn't think he'd be too bad off with Zia here and all, but he couldn't be sure…

"A couple hours at most," Halm said, looking down at Cas with slight concern.
"Why?" He asked.

"Um…" Cas considered for a few seconds, his thoughts swirling and troubled. "W-Well, I… uh… I kinda have pretty bad separation anxiety, and it tends to be… um… worse when I get… attached… to people…" He spoke slowly, shortly, and his voice faded to nearly nothing at the end.

Halm listened to Cas's words, growing even more worried. He didn't speak for a moment after Cas finished, thinking this new information over.
"Do you think you'll be able to be alone for two hours? Or would it be better for you to come with me?"