@Fraust
"And… a-and Cas was really upset too… not just for me. He… h-he's been raped before. Worse than me, and… I-I was a cat at that point… I had to watch…"
"And… a-and Cas was really upset too… not just for me. He… h-he's been raped before. Worse than me, and… I-I was a cat at that point… I had to watch…"
Serna fell silent, eyes widening a bit. These poor boys…
"I… I'm so sorry… He…" She closed her eyes a moment. How could Halm have done this?
"Not by Halm, of course, b-but I… he was really desperate when he was younger… he couldn't be alone, and he always ended up with the wrong guys. I-I had to help him with so many breakdowns, ma'am… He was so furious with Halm when he found out, but he just… h-he broke down again as soon as he came back from beating him up…"
Serna pursed her lips tightly.
"You poor boys…" She held Nix close. Damnit, why did everyone have to, to be hurt?
At least now she could actually do something to help…
Nix sighed shakily and huddled closer to Serna, hiccuping again. "Cas has been through so much… I-I'm worried about him. He's got the rubber band, but he forgot about it recently, and I just… I can't stand to see him hurting himself…"
Nix had so much to worry about. Not just Cas, but himself too.
"Zachary is with him. I'm sure he'll keep Cas safe. He'll… He'll make sure Cas uses his rubber band."
"But Zachary can't do a whole lot right now! Halm shattered him and he can't talk and I'm not sure he could stop Cas…" Nix whimpered. "A-And I'm his service animal, so it's my job to protect him!"
"You need to be taken care of too, Nix," Serna said quietly. "You're the one who got hurt. We'll all keep an eye on Cas for you, okay? Me and Gloria and Zachary. Cas won't be able to hurt himself. But you have to let us take care of you too…"
Nix rubbed at his teary eyes, his lip quivering a bit. "B-But he still has to be alive sometimes and that terrifies me… what if he does something to himself while we're not watching?"
"I'll make sure to keep a close eye on him, okay? I'm a goddess," Serna explained gently. "I can keep an eye on him without being with him, and no one is going to go so far away we can't get to him, I promise sugar." Serna cupped Nix's head in her gentle hand, wiping a tear away.
Nix nodded weakly. "O-Okay…" He whispered, huddling up against Serna again. "I know… um… I know he's an adult, technically, but he still needs a lot of help. He needs to be taken care of. His dad was abusive and his mom was totally out of the picture and he lived on the streets for a while and he just… he wasn't raised with the gentle hand he needed, so now he's really delicate. It's easy to hurt him."
Serna nodded.
"Okay then. We'll make sure to be gentle, yeah?" She sighed softly, rubbing the back of Nix's head. Everyone was just so… Broken. She just wanted to scoop everyone up and hide them away, to make all the sadness go away…
Nix sighed as well and nodded again, curling his tail around himself. "D-Do you think I'm gonna live longer now that I'm a person?" He asked. "Or am I gonna die soon?"
"Yes, you're going to live longer. You're not gonna die anytime soon, sugar." Serna gently rubbed his back, leaning against the head board. Just like Halm used to when they sat like this.
"O-Okay…" Nix buried his face further into Serna's shoulder, struggling to hold back fresh tears. "Mm… I didn't… I didn't like Zachary at first. He's still not my favorite person. But he makes Cas happy, and that's what matters to me… I trust him to take care of Cas, and to not hurt him the way his exes did."
Serna nodded.
"He's a good man. He'll take care of Cas. And it's okay if you don't like him. I, it's understandable for you not to really trust people right now."
Nix nodded a bit. "I was really upset about them being together at first because of all of Cas's exes… I mean, he wasn't even eighteen with most of them, and they all treated him so badly…"
Serna nodded.
"I know it must be terrifying to have Cas be with someone after that. We'll make sure he's safe, okay?"
"Okay… I'm just… I'm scared for him. Especially since Zachary's hurt right now and clearly I'm not doing so great either… I just hope that Gloria can help him…"
Serna nodded.
"She'll be able to help him. She can help you too, you know. And Zachary." She settled down a bit, rubbing Nix's back.
"Mm…" Nix purred weakly at the petting, trying not to let his tears fall. "Where is he right now? Is he doing okay?" He asked.
Serna closed her eyes a moment.
"He's with Cas. He still seems to be asleep…" She kept rubbing Nix's back, holding him close.
"Okay… he needs to get his sleep. He's had a hard time with this too…" Nix sighed. "I just… I wish I could go back in time and fix all of this…"
Serna nodded.
"I do too. But… There are some things even gods can't do." She sighed softly in turn, rubbing Nix's head lightly.
"Mm… I'm sorry if we're putting any extra stress on you, ma'am… I'm sure you weren't expecting to suddenly have three new emotionally unstable people in your house."
"It's alright, Nix. I… There are so many who get hurt. I'm just glad I'm able to help you three." She gave a sad smile, looking away a moment.
Nix nodded a bit and buried his face in Serna's chest, sighing shakily. "Thank you, ma'am… I… I'll try my best to not be a nuisance, but I think I've already kinda been one…"
"You haven't been at all. And you won't be, either. Please don't worry about it sugar." Serna ran her fingers through Nix's hair, letting him rest against her.
"If you say so…" Nix sighed again, huddling closer to Serna. "Um… you were saying something when you came in, right?"
"Ah, I was saying breakfast is ready. Do you think you could eat?" Serna looked down at Nix, patting his head lightly.
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