[h2]Esme Stirling[/h2]

Esme had watched Madison come and sit at the table and try the burrito before she threw Dean’s burrito at him. The way Madison’s face lit up with a smile warmed her heart and brought a warm smile to her lips. She even gave a warm laugh when Madison said the burrito made her happy, then turned to Sam to tell him she liked the food. “I’m happy to hear that you like it.” she said warmly before taking another bite of her half. When she threw Dean’s burrito at him, she watched him as he barely stopped it from hitting his face and narrowed his eyes at her as he spoke. Esme lifted an eyebrow as she looked at him and her smile faded. She then sat her burrito on a napkin, which she had a few bites left of, and crossed her arms over her chest as she listened to what he said. Even when he laughed and walked over to the table and sat down, her posture and face didn’t change. 

She chewed and swallowed what was in her mouth as Dean spoke to Madison about slowing down so she wouldn’t get heartburn and didn’t want to see what her body tries to do when it had indigestion. She could tell that Madison was growing on Dean, just by how he was acting with her, but that still didn’t change the way she was looking at him at that moment. It was clear that Dean, narrowing his eyes at her, had triggered something. Dean should have remembered that it bothered her tremendously when he or those she cared for narrowed their eyes at her, especially when she was playing around and trying to keep everyone’s mood light. Esme turned her gaze to the table and closed her eyes. Dean’s words replayed in her head. Had hell changed that part of him, that he didn’t find her antics funny anymore, but annoying? She sighed inwardly at the thought as she opened her eyes. 

Knowing what once made him laugh and throw it back on her all in good fun no longer had the same effect saddened her to think about it. Before she could get too far into her thoughts, she lifted her gaze to Madison to watch her eat the burrito she had offered her. Esme’s gaze softening a little as she looked at Madison. It was then she noticed Sam had come and sat at the table with them and noticed how he was looking at her. His look was one of concern and what made her mood change so drastically. When Esme saw Sam was about to say something, her gaze stayed soft as she lifted her hand from her arm and gently shook her head as her eyes closed briefly to tell him she was fine and not to worry about her sudden change. When he still kept looking at her, she gave him a look that said she really was fine, then finished the last few bites of her burrito.  

Balling up her trash, Esme threw it into the bag that still sat on the table, then stood and heading into the kitchen without a word but gave a smile to Madison. Walking into the kitchen, she took in what it offered them, still unsure of how long they’d be there. She looked in the refrigerator and the cabinets to see what they had. It really wasn’t all that much. She sighed a bit at the thought of eating nothing but takeout or having pizza delivered to them. That wouldn’t do for her. Esme walked out of the kitchen and back to where everyone was sitting, stopping next to Madison. She pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from the inside pocket of her jacket, setting the paper on the table she wrote on it, and leaned down. “I’m going to go out for a bit, but if you needed me, you can call me on this number. I’m sure either one of the guys will help you figure out how to use a phone.” she said so only she could hear. “I’m going to pick up a few things we might need.”

Standing back up straight, Esme gave Madison another warm smile, then looked at the guys with the same smile before walking around behind Dean and running her hand along his shoulders as she went to the front door. “I’ll be back soon.” she told them before reaching the door. Opening the door, Esme gave the three one last look that said she would be back before walking out the door and to her car, smiling as she heard Sam’s words. Once in her car, she started it and pulled out.

[h2]Sam Winchester[/h2]

Sam watched Dean after he asked his joke of a question, seeing his brother's face fall a bit. He instantly regretted asking, even though it was a joke. He continued watching his brother as a smirk came to his face, followed by the small fake chuckle when he clapped him on the arm. The smile he had faded a bit as he watched Dean being shaken from his thoughts, then followed his gaze to the table to watch Madison. A large smile made its way to his face as he watched her and saw how happy she became as she ate the burrito Esme shared with her. When she turned to him with a smile and said she liked the food, he couldn’t help but give a chuckle. “That’s great. We’ll have to see what else we can get for you to try.” he said warmly. From the corner of his eye, he saw Dean give Madison a thumbs up. He could see that she was already growing on him, but he couldn’t help wonder if that would end up being a good thing or a bad thing in the end. 

His brother, like himself, had a soft spot for orphans, especially girls, that were thrown out into the world on their own. They always felt the need to help them if they could if they ever came across any. Madison was now different. Her situation pulled at that part of them and he couldn’t just leave her on her own, even if he knew she wasn’t fully human. She was also too childlike to leave in the world alone, and there was still no telling just how powerful she was and just how much destruction she could cause if her powers got out of control. So, the way he saw it, he needed to stick around and do what he could to help her and help Castiel teach her all she needed to know. Esme, throwing Dean’s burrito, had pulled him from his thoughts. The laugh he had been holding in escaped him at his brother’s words to Esme. “Apparently not.” Sam said with a laugh that only Dean could hear. 

Sam then noticed how the narrowing of his brother’s eyes at Esme had affected Esme’s posture and mood. He could see how much it bothered her that his brother narrowed his eyes at her, causing him to make a mental note of it. At Dean’s gesture to follow, he did and sat in a chair next to Madison just as Dean told her to slow down and made his comment about her getting indigestion. Sam agreed with Dean on that. He didn’t want to find out what would happen if she ended up getting indigestion from eating too fast. “He’s right. I’d hate to see how your body would react to indigestion.” he said as his smile faded a bit. “Plus, the slower you eat it, the more you can enjoy it.” He then leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes drifting over to Esme, who now seemed to be in thought. The more he watched her, the more concerned he grew about her at how much it bothered her that Dean narrowed his eyes at her. 

He had never seen someone take the action the way she did. He was starting to see that she took things and felt things differently than most, just like how his brother felt things more strongly than most. When Esme opened her eyes, Sam watched her more intently as she watched Madison and smiled at her before meeting his gaze. Before he could open his mouth to say something, she stopped him with a simple gesture to tell him she was fine. He wasn’t so sure as he continued to watch her even after her look of trying to confirm she was and then finished her burrito. Sam turned his attention back to Madison as Esme took care of her trash and threw it into the bag that sat on the table, but when she stood, his attention went back to her. His eyebrows knitted together after she smiled at Madison and headed into the kitchen and disappeared from his sight as she checked out the kitchen.

Sam glanced at Dean before looking back at the kitchen, glimpsing Esme as she checked out the cabinets, realizing just what she was doing in there. When Esme returned and stopped by Madison, he watched her actions with her. He could see that she was getting ready to leave and was making Madison comfortable enough to be okay with her leaving. Sam was about to speak up when Esme straightened and headed to the door and said she’d be back soon, then gave a nod confirming she’d be back, which he knew was mostly directed at Dean. “Be careful. There are some real weirdos around.” he called before the door closed. He then looked to Dean to see how he was reacting to her suddenly leaving in the way that she did. With how they had acted with each other earlier, he thought she’d say more to at least Dean and show some sort of affectionate gesture, like a kiss on his cheek, not running her hand along his shoulders as she passed behind him on her way to the door.