Benjamin stared at her, then his forehead wrinkled as he thought about her question. Not only did he have to think back to how he felt about her, he also had to determine when he had started seeing her as more than a friend. He remembered witnessing her transformation and thinking back, that initial transformation had probably shocked Steph as much as it had shocked him.
"I don't think I can give a simple yes or no answer to this. It's a bit of both and I'll do my best to explain because it depends a lot on the situation." He didn't want to just say 'Yes', because it wasn't entirely true and giving a definite answer like that would give an unnecessary sting and could lead to Steph making assumptions he then had to try and rectify. 
"Generally," he began his answer, "I judge a person by their actions, not their gender, race, or species, but I did grow up with certain ideas which are hard to unlearn. We met after I had joined the organisation and I was already used to the idea that creatures from myths were real, but the organisation also reinforced the concept creatures like vampires and demons are evil. Then we met your group. It was shocking to see something like Gaia in real life and honestly, I was a bit afraid of her at first. And when saw you for what you really were I too found it difficult to look beyond what I had already learned about demons and such, and..." He looked straight at her. "I admit I felt fear, but that moment passed immediately when I saw how the agents reacted to you, and you to them. I didn't stand up for you because I liked you, I did it because I saw who the dangerous ones were." 
He recalled she had only shown her true form, nothing more, and the agents had aimed their guns at her. The thing he remembered most clearly was her fear for them, and for good reason, the agents had looked ready to fire at her. It had immediately shattered the thought 'demon!'
"But," he continued, "if we would have met in your true form back when I was still a ghost hunter and you wouldn't be the victim of aggression, I think I would have been afraid, because you would have been the first demon I'd have seen and I wouldn't have any reason to assume you weren't evil."
It was probably not exactly what she had wanted to hear, but it was the truth.

[hr]

"Then why was I even suppose to come with you?" Morrison asked, glancing at Carl from the corners of his eyes. "To have back-up in case things go sour?"
It wouldn't have been the first time, he was often used for missions to take out dangerous creatures, not explore possible harmless ones. Although he had never had to battle an angel before, he had quickly read up about their weaknesses when he had gotten this assignment.