[h2]Esme Stirling[/h2]

Esme listened to Cason’s footsteps behind her as she walked to her car. It was as if he was a puppy following their favorite person. Having a demon that was smitten with her and doing all they could to keep her safe and alive instead of trying to kill her at all costs was still strange to her. All she did was help Annabeth by taking away her pain and stitching up her wounds that were caused by an angel named Samael, for him to say he was in her debt. She still couldn’t believe that she was running around with a demon and hellhounds, two things she was taught to kill and never trust. If her family was here now and knew all that she had been through since their passing, she could only imagine what they would say about it and tell her how big of a mistake she was making trusting him, because he could turn around and stab her in the back at any moment. 

In the back of her mind, she knew full well it was a possibility. She knew Cason could decide to kill her himself or even send a hellhound after her, though wondered if his feelings for her would impede that. It was a thought she had sitting on the back burner to think about when she actually had a chance to think about things other than cases that were thrown in her lap or being overwhelmed by everyone's emotions and being completely exhausted from it. With the way things have been going, she hardly had the time to think about things that revolved around herself since she met up with the Winchesters and the others after hearing of Dean being alive. Since meeting up with them, it had been one giant crap sandwich after another and seemed like more were on the menu, with no end in sight just yet. She hoped they could all get through this with no fatalities and if anything were to go right, it would be the town and its residents got through it in one piece. 

When Cason caught up with Esme and ran his finger from her bicep and down her arm, she flinched at his touch. She didn’t put up much of a fight to keep him from prying her keys from her hand. For once, she didn’t really want to drive. She didn’t want to have to concentrate on the road and where they were headed. A chance to sit in the passenger’s seat and relax sounded too good to pass up. When Cason quickly planted a kiss on her cheek, she flinched and paused in her tracks as he jogged to her car. She closed in on herself a bit, just barely catching his words, smile, and him starting her car. She was fighting against the images that flashed before her eyes of a past event and scolding herself for letting a simple action affect her still after all the time that had passed. Esme had thought she had somewhat gained control of it, but with her mental state not being the best at the moment, it made it hard to bottle and hold back the flinching like she had. 

It’s been a year and a half since the event and it still had its claws deep in her. She mentally kicked herself and scolded herself for being so weak and letting it still affect her, and told herself she was better and stronger than this. Shaking herself to snap herself out of it, she walked to the passenger’s side of her car without a fuss to Cason, who was in the driver's seat. Esme didn’t have it in her to complain about who was driving. She was just too mentally tired to fight with him over it. Once at the car door, she opened it with a shaky hand, got in, then shut the door and ran a hand through her hair as she leaned back in the seat. “Ready when you are.” she sighed as she looked over at him. She then turned her gaze out the window as she sighed again. Propping her arm up on the door, she rested her head on her arm as she continued to look out the window. 

“Be honest with me.” she said after being silent for a while. “Do you think we really have a shot at this?” She asked so that she could get her mind on other things and she honestly wanted to know what he thought.