Wolvena

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

Esme continued to look out the window with her head rested on her arm as they made their way down the highway, waiting on Cason to answer her question. As soon as he started talking, she glanced up and looked at his reflection in her window. When Cason finished explaining and shot a glance her way, she gave a soft and silent sigh as she closed her eyes briefly. She knew he was truly being honest with her. She could feel it and it put her a little at ease despite the situation they were driving towards. Esme found a little comfort in knowing that he could be honest with her, especially when she asked him to be. Plus, her being an Empath, she would know if he was being untruthful, it’s hard to lie to an Empath. Taking her eyes off his reflection, she looked back at the scenery passing by out the window. Adjusting her arm and head, she put her free hand on her forehead and rubbed it as it began to ache, then rubbed one of her temples. A common side effect when she wasn’t in a good place mentally.

Esme had closed her eyes at the same time Cason took his deep breath before speaking again. She listened to his words and couldn’t help but his the slightest of smiles as he confessed he had finally noticed she had been fighting with something mentally since they met. She softly shook her head, to say there wasn’t a need to apologize. “I guess you somewhat see why I act the way I do to certain things.” she whispered. She gave a shuddered, heavy sigh as she opened her eyes and swallowed hard. She dropped her hand from her head and into her lap, then buried her face in her arm for a moment before looking out the front window. “No one knows what I struggle with daily, not even Dean.” As she spoke, she barely sounded coherent, as if she had drifted off into her own world to keep from thinking about it. “Thank you, though.” A shiver overtook her as a partial memory flashed before her eyes before she could stop it, causing her to sigh again.

After somewhat regaining herself, adjusting her position, she reached over the seat and into the back seat and opened the cooler she kept back there. Esme pulled out a couple of bottles of water before closing it, then grabbed the black faded leather jacket that was draped over the seat. Turning back around, she made herself comfortable, then draped the jacket over her lap with care before setting the waters on the seat between them. She then reached for the glove box and opened it, pulled out a bottle of painkillers, then opened it and dumped two into her hand before closing it and putting the bottle back into the glove box and shutting it. Popping the pills into her mouth, she grabbed one bottle of water, opened it, and took a to wash the pills down. After putting the cap back on, she set it in the seat next to her, then took the jacket and folded it into a makeshift pillow with care.

Sinking down into the seat, she placed the jacket against the window and laid her head on it, then crossed her arms over the chest Esme nuzzled her face against the jacket before looking out the front window and took in the scent on the jacket, the scents on the jacket almost instantly making her body relax and her mind calm. The jacket almost severed as a security blanket and it held a special place in her heart, which was clear to see. The more she took in deep breaths and the scents of the jacket, the more her body relaxed and the calmer her mind became. Eventually, the jacket relaxed her so much; it caused her to doze off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

Supernatural - After The End

Esme Stirling

Esme smiled softly as she heard and felt Dean follow her into the kitchen and remained when he took the bags from her and placed them on the floor beside the refrigerator. When he took her by the hips and pushed her towards the counter, she looked up into his face. Her smile faded at his words and the panic on his face. When he asked to look, she turned her head slightly as he took her hand and the bandana, wincing a bit as he pulled it from her cheek, her hand dropping to her side as he took the bandana into his fingers. His next words made her wince a little, but smile inwardly at his protectiveness and need to go back and handle everything. She knew she looked rough after her interaction with the bikers, but not that rough. She hadn’t expected this much of a reaction out of him. Sure, she expected him to be worried and upset about the state she came back in, but she hadn’t expected him to feel guilty about it.

Esme tried to get a word in, but it was impossible in his panicked state of mind. So, she remained quiet as he spoke and watched him as he looked at her cheek, then hovered his hands along her torso and looked the rest of her over as if he could see through her shirt. She could feel his mixture of emotions heavily and they were weighing on her. She always hated when he felt like this and it was always hard not to be overwhelmed by them with how strongly he felt things. When Dean took a deep breath and rested his hand on her uninjured cheek, she also took a deep breath as she leaned her cheek into his hand. As he closed his eyes, she brought her hand up and rested it on his in an attempt to help him calm his nerves. She closed her eyes briefly and rubbed his hand with her thumb, then opened her eyes to look up at him and placed her free hand on his bicep, giving it a squeeze.

She stepped closer to Dean, moving her hand from his bicep to his cheek with a gentle ‘shh’ as she ran her thumb along his cheek. Esme then pulled his face down to hers to rest his forehead on hers. “Breathe.” she whispered warmly to him. “I’m alright. You’ve seen me in worse shape than this before.” She closed her eyes and took in a breath, slowly letting it out through her nose. “It was just a couple of leather-clad asshats. Apparently, they thought I was going to be an easy target. When I refused their advances and fought back, they got a little rough.” she told him. “When I drew my gun and told them I’d shoot something off they may need later, they called me a psycho bitch and ran off.” She gave a little laugh, quickly regretting it as pain shot through her stomach and ribs, making her wince. “I have to admit, the temptation to shoot their asses was strong.”

She held back the laugh that threatened to show itself at her comment and softly sighed. The temptation to shoot them was real, but knew that it would have done nothing to improve their stupidity, but hoped that having a gun pulled on them would make them think twice about attacking another woman. “My other injuries are just bruises here and there, I think. Nothing a little ice and a good soak in a bath later can’t cure.” she spoke warmly with a small smile as she opened her eyes and softly nuzzled his nose with hers. As far as she knew, her back, stomach, and ribs were just bruised from everything. Her ribs didn’t feel broken, just a little tender from being kicked so hard, then again, you couldn’t be too sure when it came to ribs. Tilting her head a bit, her lips met his in a sweet kiss as she closed her eyes. Pulling back a bit, she looked into his eyes. “I look worse than I feel. Please don’t let your anger, guilt, and worry get the best of you.” she whispered softly against his lips. Esme then took Dean's face into her hands, holding his face just far enough away to see her face, and she smiled warmly. "Really, I'm alright. Just promise me you'll stay here and not do anything stupid like going off after those two. Okay?" She then tilted his head down to place a kiss on his forehead, then tilted it again to kiss his nose, cheeks, and finally his lips all in an attempt to get him to calm down and listen to her.

Sam Winchester

Before Esme’s return, Sam had to think about his brother’s answers and questions in response to his own question. He could hear the confusion in his brother’s tone and it made him choose his words carefully. “Maybe they bothered her but didn’t affect her then like they do now.” he started. “Perhaps all her time hunting alone has made her act to and see things differently.” He fell quiet for a moment, watching Dean as he thought about what else he had said about not laughing fast enough and Esme being afraid of him, causing a soft sigh to escape him. “No, I don’t think she is afraid of you because you went to Hell. If she was, she wouldn’t have gone off with you for a drink and to catch up or come here to help us with Madison.” he said in a matter-of-fact tone. He fell quiet again, thinking about his next words as he continued to look over at Dean. “The way I see it, you have both changed in many ways from your time apart. It’s going to take some time and patients to learn what those ways are and work your way through them.” he told his brother. “Just her coming back shows she wants to be here with you.”

After Esme’s return, Sam couldn't help but notice how Dean and Madison perked up when they heard Esme’s car door close. It had brought a smile to his face. He could also see how disheveled she looked when she came through the door but didn’t react as to not get a rise out of Dean or Madison, even though he was concerned for the woman and wondered what had happened while she was out for the short time. It wasn’t hard to miss his brother's reaction to her appearance and see the worry on his face for her. Madison’s words of excitement and her taking his hand pulled his attention from the two, and he smiled warmly at her with a small chuckle. “I knew she couldn’t stay away long.” he told her. He then looked back at Dean and watched as he followed Esme to the kitchen like a puppy, but shot him a glace, telling him to grab the rest before going into the kitchen with Esme. He watched the two disappear behind the wall, then faintly heard Dean’s voice talking to Esme.

When Madison awkwardly let go of his hand, he looked back at her as she pushed her hair behind her ears and shrugged her shoulders before speaking to him. A warm smile came to his face as he looked at her and he shook his head. “It’s alright, I don’t blame you for getting scared when you heard Dean say Esme wasn’t coming back. I would have felt the same if I were in your shoes.” he told her in a warm tone. “I’d be happy to have your help with the rest.” He knew that if Madison helped him with the rest, even if he didn’t need it, it would give Dean and Esme a little more time together and also give Dean the chance to take care of Esme. With a warm smile still on his face, Sam stood from his chair and turned to Madison, offering her a hand to help her out of her chair. “Let’s go get those bags.”

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

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.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

As Esme leaned against the counter in the kitchen, she became more and more lost in her own thoughts and eventually zoned out. Most of the conversations going on around her went unheard, but there were a few things that made their way through her heavy thoughts. She just barely caught the conversion of who was riding with who on the way to the town they were headed to and hardly any of the conversation that Natalia had on her phone. Her mind was still swimming with all the potential outcomes of the case, if they managed to keep the seal from being broken or not. What exactly would they go through when they got to the town and began to keep the demons from breaking the seal and what would happen if Samhain was in fact risen? She unconsciously gripped her beer bottle tighter as scenarios flashed before her eyes. Esme knew this was going to be the biggest thing she had ever faced in her time as a hunter.

When Cason approached her and gently wrapped his arm around her waist, she was completely oblivious until he gripped her waist, leaned in, and whispered in her ear. The action caused her to flinch and take in a sharp breath as she looked at him as he pulled back. Esme could see that he was scanning her eyes and trying to read her emotion before he spoke again. She had to admit to herself that she wanted to go along with what he said. She did just want to leave Bobby’s and be on the road for a while. As she saw his sweet smile and she worked to find her words, Esme didn’t realize that he worked to scrunch up the fabric of her shirt or the fact that his arm was still around her. “I’ll be better once I get out of here for a bit.” she said in a low tone. “Leaving before the others sounds………” She trailed off when she felt Cason’s thumb on her skin just above her hip and flinched.

She knew what he was trying to do. Calming someone was much easier with skin to skin contact, but did he really have to worm his way under her shirt to touch around her hip for the skin contact? His was calming her, but really? It was feeling like a losing battle to keep him from getting so close, almost as if he had no knowledge or didn’t care about personal boundaries. “Really? You couldn’t have just taken my hand?” she asked him with a raised brow. After a moment, Esme pulled away from him and downed the rest of her beer, and tossed the bottle in the trash. “Come on, let’s get a head start.” she said to Cason before walking to the door. She turned once at the door and looked at the two women in the kitchen. “We’ll meet you all there.” she told them, then walked out the kitchen door without waiting for a reply. As she walked to her car, she pulled her keys from her pocket with a small sigh.

She was just about tempted to let Cason drive her car, just so she could relax in the passenger’s seat on the way there and not worry about too much. Though it was really hard for her to let anyone drive her car, the only ones that had ever been behind the wheel were her parents, herself, and Dean. Then there was the demon that Cason had to retrieve her car against her will, which still got under her skin a bit. Was she in a fit state to drive? Probably not. Could she drive? Yes. Esme had driven in a far worse state before and had made it to her destination just fine, with only a few minor hiccups on the way.

Supernatural - After The End

Sam Winchester

Sam had smiled at Madison’s response to wanting to enjoy the burrito, but most of his attention was on Dean and Esme at the moment. He had noticed how she didn’t notice Esme’s mood change or when she got up and went to the kitchen because she was too wrapped in the burrito Esme had given her. It wasn’t until Esme had given her the note did she even look in Esme’s direction and he saw the nervousness in Madison’s eyes as she glanced at him and then back to Esme as she walked around Dean. Sam opened his mouth to say speak, but closed it and looked at his brother as he brought his fist down on the table and said he messed up and Esme wouldn’t be coming back and it was his fault she wasn’t coming back. He knew his brother truly felt that was true, but he knew she would be back by the way she gave Madison the note and the way she spoke before she left.

It was clear when she said she would be back soon that she mostly directed her words towards Dean. Sam uncrossed his arms, leaned forward, and stared at Dean, the stare soon turning into a glare as he narrowed his eyes. The look he shot at his bother saying, ‘Really?’ even though he knew Dean wouldn’t see the look with his head leaned back. Then he turned his gaze to Madison and softened it. “Don’t worry. She’ll be back.” he told her softly. He watched her as she looked at Dean, then back to him with her eyes glowing a gentle amber and her breathing had picked up. He then gently took the burrito from her hands and placed it on the table before taking her hands and cradling them within his to calm her. “Hey…..” he said gently as she looked into her eyes. “She said she would be back and I believe her.” He let a moment pass before he leaned in to whisper into her ear.

“Dean upset Esme and now he’s afraid that she won’t come back, but I know she will be.” He pulled back and gave her a warm smile as he looked into her eyes, hoping that his words would bring her some calm. After a moment, Sam turned his attention back to Dean and giving a small sigh at the state that his brother was in over Esme. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Dean.” he told his brother. “How long has it been since the two of you were last together?” he asked him. “It would be easy to forget what would upset someone after being apart for so long. But from what I saw, it was you narrowing your eyes at her that seemed to upset her. So, I suggest that you refrain from doing that in the future.” He paused to watch Dean for a moment and to let his words sink in. “You said nothing wrong.” He looked back to Madison with a slight smile and gave her hands a gentle squeeze.

“I’ll be right back.” he told her softly. Sam then pushed himself from the chair and onto his feet, then walked to the kitchen. He went to the fridge, opened it, and pulled out a couple of beers before closing it. Opening the beers, he tossed the caps onto the counter before heading back to the table Dean and Madison were sitting at. Once back at the table, Sam walked up to Dean and set one of the beers on the table in front of him. “She’ll be back.” he told him as he placed a hand on Dean’s shoulder. “She’s far too happy to be back with you to let something like this make her leave again.” He then moved his hand from his brother’s shoulder and patted his chest. “Just give her some time to work it out.” He then walked back around and sat in the chair he was in before, took a drink of his beer then sat it on the table in front of him. He leaned back in his chair and watched Dean and Madison as they waited for Esme to return.

Esme Stirling

Esme drove to the market, her radio blaring to keep herself from thinking back to what had happened before she left. She tapped the beat of each song on her steering wheel and sang along with the songs she knew, not holding back, since she was the only one in the car. This was something she often did whenever she was upset or even in a grim mood to calm herself, and it worked just about every time. Music was something that resonated with her and could calm her even if she was in the foulest of moods, especially if it was a song she knew and loved. She jammed out all the way to the market, not caring who saw as they drove past her or saw her stopped at a stoplight. She was enjoying herself and the music, probably a little too much, but that was something she didn’t care about at that particular moment. Her mood was calming, and she was now smiling, that’s what mattered at the moment.

Once Esme was in the parking lot of the market, she found a parking spot and killed the engine. Shoving her keys in her pocket, she opened the door and exited the car, locking and shutting the door behind her before heading inside. Once inside, Esme tried to get what she thought they would need quickly. She didn’t want Dean thinking she had up and left him again, but part of her thought he may already be thinking that with the way she left. She gathered everything that was on the list that she had mentally made and even grabbed a few “special” items that she would use later on in the day. That was if she could get the kitchen to herself and at least keep Dean out of it for a little while. The thought made her smile to herself a little. Once he smelled it, she knew it would be tough keeping him out. After getting through the checkout line and getting everything bagged and paid for, she gathered everything and headed back out to her car.

Once at her car, Esme pulled out her keys and unlocked her car. Opening the back driver’s door, she placed the bags into the backseat, making sure anything that could get crushed was in a safe spot. The next thing she knew, she heard footsteps approach behind her before she could close the door. A silent sigh escaped her as she heard a man’s voice, who was clearly drunk. “Hey, gorgeous! How about you and me go grab a drink?” he asked as he stared at her ass. You didn’t have to be an Empath to know what this guy's intentions were, but being an Empath, she could strongly feel what the guy wanted, which made her uncomfortable. Pulling her head out of the back, she shut the car door and turned to face the man that stood behind her, her eyes quickly scanning over him and taking in his biker appearance. “Thanks, but no thanks.” she said in a firm tone. Turning on her heel, she went for the driver’s door, but the man stopped her by grabbing her upper arm and spinning her around to face him again.

“Oh, come on baby. Don’t be like that. I could show you a good time.” he cooed as he stroked her arm with the back of his fingers. “Get your hands off me.” she snapped. Esme pulled away with a glare, her eyes glimpsing the Biker’s Goon behind him, who was smirking. “You’re barking up the wrong tree. Now leave me alone, if you know what’s good for you.” she almost growled as she narrowed her eyes at him. She went to turn once again to get into her car, but the Biker grabbed her once again, taking her by her upper arms and shoving her back hard into the car, and knocking a bit of air from her lungs. He leaned in close, pressing himself against her with a large smirk. “Mmmm, you’re feisty. I like em feisty.” he whispered before smelling her hair. She struggled against his grip but failed miserably against his larger size. “Get off me, you gorilla!” she yelled at him as he began to lean in to kiss her.

Esme tried to pull away from the oncoming kiss, but soon found out she wouldn’t be able to avoid it with how he had her pinned under his weight. Thinking quickly, she kneed the Biker in the groin, then punched him in the face once he released her and fell to his knees. “I told you to leave me alone!” she yelled, pushing herself from her car, then kicked him in the face for good measure and sending him sprawling. “You bitch!!” yelled the Goon as he rushed her, then punched her in the face. The force of his punch sent her to the pavement beneath her feet. Before she could look up at the Goon, he kicked her in the stomach, forcing a groan from her lips as she rolled to her side, holding her stomach and feeling blood run down her cheek from where his ring had left a gash. “Hellfire!” she groaned. Why does this happen to me? she asked herself. The Goon knelt down and grabbed hold of her jacket and pulled her to her feet, a smirk still resting on his face.

“Now be a good girl and we won’t have to punish you anymore.” he told her as he slammed her against her car. Esme smirked at his words as he held her jacket firmly and pressed her against the car. “Punishment? You call this punishment?” she sneered. “You don’t know what punishment is.” She then punched the Goon in the face, then grabbed his shoulders, and kneed him in the groin when he released her. Pushing herself off the car, she kicked him and drew her gun, releasing the safety as she pointed it at the two men who were on the pavement. They looked up at her wide-eyed as they saw the gun. “Now scram before I shoot off something you might need later!” The two scrambled to their feet and muttered something about her being a psycho bitch before running off. Sighing loudly, she brushed her hair from her face as she watched them run off as she put the safety back on her gun and tucked it away.

Holding her stomach with her left hand, she looked around for the keys she dropped after being grabbed. Spotting them, she picked them up and opened the car door with her right and slowly got in. After closing the door, she lifted her shirt to look at her stomach. It was red and already starting to show bruising. Esme let her shirt fall from her grip, then placed the key into the ignition and started the car. She then took time to look at her face in the rearview mirror, since she could still feel the blood running down her cheek. The Goon’s ring had left a pretty nasty-looking gash on her cheek. Reaching over, she opened the glove box and pulled out a bandana, then closed it before bringing it to her cheek to stop the bleeding. Holding it in place, she threw the car in reverse and backed out of the parking spot, then put it drive and drove out of the parking lot and back to the safe house.

Once back, she parked the car and killed the engine, then shoved her keys in her jacket pocket as she normally did, then opened the door, not attempting to fix her slightly disheveled appearance. Once she got out and shut the door, she opened the driver’s back door and grabbed what she could with her one free hand, and headed inside with a little difficulty with both her hands full, one hand full of bags and the other holding the bandana to her cheek. As she entered, she gave everyone a small smile before heading to the kitchen with the bags. Her smile growing as she heard Sam say, ‘See, I told you she’d be back’ as she entered the kitchen. “Could one of you grab the rest, please?” Esme called warmly from the kitchen as she set the bags on the counter with a small sigh.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

Esme watched Natalia as she reacted to her question, happy to see that she wholly agreed with what she said and how she felt about the situation. She nodded softly at Natalia’s response, taking in her words and knowing she meant what she said. When Natalia turned to Cason, her gaze followed and listened as Natalia confirmed what she had said. As Natalia sighed, so did she, feeling that this was almost an impossible task to complete. She gladly took the beer offered to her and took a long drink from it, even though she knew she was about to drive. She felt she needed it after the way she woke up and now being hit with this news. With her emotions and nerves high, she seriously needed something to calm them, and a beer would definitely do the trick. Luckily for her, she had a little something in her stomach to keep the effects to a minimum.

Esme’s gaze when back to Natalia when she spoke to her. “Right.” she said with a nod. She knew they had discussed more while they were out in the garage getting the beer and talking. She looked at the kitchen door. Esme could feel the rise of emotions coming from the kitchen, even with the bit of distance that was between her and the others. Her brows knitted together a bit and wondered what had been said or done to cause it. Cason's’ words pulled her attention away from the kitchen do and to him, her brows still knitted together as she took in what he said. Esme sighed heavily at his words, not being able to hold it back, but glad he was being honest with them. She knew how slim their chances were of stopping it from happening, especially with the team they had. She didn’t need to hear him say it to know that. But they still had to try to keep it from happening and keep the people in the town from becoming innocent victims.

At Natalia’s words to Cason, she nodded softly in agreement. It could be pointless, but they had to try and stop the seal from being broken, that much was for sure. At Cason’s next statement, she shook her head at how he went from gloomy to joyful, then watched as he headed inside. Of course, that would be his way to handle the situation at the moment. When Natalia gathered the beer and looked at her, Esme looked back at her and nodded at her comment. “Yeah, I’m hoping sooner rather than later myself.” she replied as she followed behind Natalia. Once inside, she found a place to stand and wait for everyone to return from getting dressed. She leaned against the counter, crossed her arms over her chest as Natalia asked Annabeth her question. Esme could still feel the rage that was once high in the room but had been calmed, it was easy for her to tell who it was from and glad that it had been calmed.

Esme projected some of her own emotion into the room to clear it of the rage that lingered to keep herself from feeling it. Once she was satisfied, she stopped and took a drink of her her beer after giving a soft sigh. As she stood there, she found herself going over things in her mind of how things could possibly play out when they arrived in the town to take care of things. She tried her hardest to keep things on a positive track, but negative thoughts kept worming their way in and causing her to grip her bottle of beer tightly.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

When Cason moved to Esme’s side and grabbed her hand she thought little of it, she didn’t even look in his direction. She mostly played it off as his instincts kicking in as she kept her focus on Castiel. She stayed quiet as Castiel spoke to them, but mostly to Dean, taking in and processing everything she heard come from his mouth and also Dean’s. Esme was surprised by what she was hearing, but not quite as surprised as she thought she should be. It was just something that came with the job of being a hunter, which made it hard for things to really surprise her about certain aspects of cases. After everything she had witnessed in her time as a hunter, thinks that revolved around the supernatural were almost nothing, but there were things about humans that would surprise her to no end. It was a little funny to her on how that worked.

When Castiel’s attention when to Cason and Annabeth, Esme grew tense at his words to Dean. She stood straighter and moved slightly so that stood in a spot that she shielded Cason and Annabeth both, even if Sam and Natalia were protecting Annabeth as well, her eyes narrowed. But it seemed her action was for not for Cason disappeared with a pop, leaving her standing there on her own. So she moved a little more, so she was closer to Natalia, Sam, and Annabeth with a small sigh. She wasn’t going to let her be smited by Castiel, she had been helpful and had done nothing against them. “You will do no such thing.” she stated firmly almost at the same time Natalia and Sam spoke. Esme knew she wasn’t a match against an angel, but she wasn’t going to let Castiel just up and kill her without a fight.

She also knew that their words were more than likely falling on deaf ears, since Castiel only seemed to listen to what Dean had to say. Her gaze shifted more to Dean, waiting for him to say something to stop Castiel from doing anything. When he did, a wave of slight relief washed over her. Esme continued to watch Dean and listen to what he said to Castiel. Her fists clenched as she stood there, her eyes dropping for a moment as she heard Annabeth speak, then went back to Dean and Castiel. At Castiel’s words and powering down, she relaxed slightly and moved back to her original spot. She placed her palms on the table and leaned into them, her gaze dropping to the table as Castiel continued to speak to Dean. Her gaze lefted slightly at the mention of Annabeth having a deeper connection with Lilith than Sam, this was new news to her.

Esme kept silent though, just leaning against the table and taking it all in. Her fingers gripped at the table, her nails slightly digging into its surface as she felt Dean’s anger rise and Annabeth’s nervousness rise. Her eyes closed tightly as Dean snapped at Sam, but was relived when he didn’t continue on. Now was not the time for that discussion. They needed to focus on what they needed to do for the seals to remain unbroken. Opening her eyes, she lifted her gaze as Dean took the note from Castiel’s hand. When Dean looked around at them after looking at the note and saying it sounded easy, she pushed herself upright and gave a small smile and a nod, letting him know she had his back on this. When Bobby came over, she watched his actions. She too was wondering about the question he asked Castiel. They needed more information before going out to take care of it.

She watched Bobby walk to the fridge and pull out three beers for himself, Dean, and Castiel. At Bobby’s works, she nodded in agreement. It was definitely going to be that, no doubt about it. Esme watched Dean take the beers from Bobby and open Castiel’s before handing it to him. Her gaze fell on Castiel, watching him as he inspected the beer before taking a sip and thanked Dean. She lifted an eyebrow when he then downed the entire beer and spoke. Spending time with this guy was definitely going to be a challenge for her. He was strange and one of the driest people she had met. She pushed that aside as he continued to talk and then answered Bobby’s question, his words causing her to cross her arms over her chest. Of course, he didn’t have any more information for them. That’s how it always seemed to work out, but at least he could tell them a little more.

Esme turned her head to Natalia when she spoke to her about helping her grab the beers from the garage, noting the tone she used. “Umm, sure. I can give you a hand.” she replied. She then walked around the table and met up with Natalia and walked out into the garage with her and seeing Cason standing there smoking next to Dean’s Impala. Esme saw her nod of acknowledgment to Cason before Natalia turned to her and spoke. She opened her mouth to respond, but closed it when Cason spoke up and turned her gaze in his direction. “I agree with you on that.” she replied with a sigh. “No, he didn’t tell us where they are, but gave us, or rather Dean, a location to go to.” Esme turned her attention back to Natalia, the look on her face slightly troubled. “Honestly…... I don’t have any idea if we can stop it from being broken or not, but can we really stand by and not try?” she asked her.

The thought of just sitting back and letting it happen hadn’t crossed her mind. She felt the need to go there and at least give it her all to try and stop the seal from being broken. She knew it could be a long shot and that one of them could possibly be killed or seriously injured in the process, but she still had to try, even if that person was her that ended up seriously injured or dead. Esme then looked Natalia fully in the face to read her and see what she could be thinking.

Supernatural - After The End

Esme Stirling

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.

Sam Winchester

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.

Supernatural - Hell On The Horizon

Esme Stirling

Esme avoided direct eye contact with everyone in the kitchen. She either looked between two of them or looked at their foreheads. After everything that had happened since meeting up with them, she felt like the oddball of the group and still wasn’t sure if she really fit in with them. Yes, she was a hunter, but she wasn’t normal either. Trouble seemed to follow her wherever she went, whether or not she went looking for it. If it hadn’t been for Dean pleading with her for her to stay, she would have left and gone through things on her own once again, but not before doing things properly this time. She couldn’t leave like she had done last time, not again. Esme couldn’t allow herself to do that again. She was better than that. She hoped that the awkwardness between her and Mika would calm and not hinder them working together.

Esme stopped projecting her emotions when she felt Dean calm, and his shoulders dropped. She could feel him staring at her, but she didn’t dare look in his direction at that moment. She still wasn’t too happy about him telling Cason to kiss her, to pull her out of her deep sleep that morning. Her gaze had dropped back to the table, feeling that everyone was relatively calm at the moment. Though when Natalia spoke, she lifted her gaze in her direction, but didn’t look directly at her, giving a smile and a laugh at her words, followed by a nod in agreement. “Thank you, and yes he does.” she said with a laugh in her tone. Esme then reached over the table and grabbed a sandwich for herself and took a bite after Sam and Natalia had their own. When Natalia’s phone rang and she answered it, Esme looked in her direction again, listening as she spoke.

The one side of the conversation she heard caused her to raise an eyebrow, wondering what exactly the conversation was about. She continued to eat her sandwich as she waited for the phone call to end, then Natalia explain what the call was about after Sam had asked. “Raising of the witnesses?” she whispered softly as Mika left to get a book. Esme watched Mika as she grabbed the book and flipped through it as Dean followed, then spoke. She didn’t like the sound of this. Esme’s attention soon went to Bobby at Dean’s question to him. She could feel herself growing tense as Bobby brought the book to the kitchen and spoke about what the breaking of the seals meant as threw the book on the table. Esme looked over at the book that lay not far from her, taking in what she could before Dean snapping at Bobby pulled her attention from it.

She didn’t blame him for getting snappy about Bobby calling the angel his friend, when it was clear they weren’t. She closed her eyes briefly at Annabeth’s words and Dean’s response before he prayed to the angel to come and help them. The last thing she wanted to deal with right now was an angel, but she knew they needed answers about what was going on with the seals being broken. Esme listened to Dean’s prayer and took in the angel's name, making sure she didn’t forget it. Castiel. she thought to herself. As soon as Castiel appeared in the room and spoke to Dean, she could feel herself tense more as she took in his words and how he seemed to have no concept of personal space. Esme could hardly believe what she was hearing. If these seals were broken, Lucifer would roam the earth and bring hell with him. She had to agree with Castiel that couldn’t happen.

They would all have to work together and do what they could to keep that from happening. Yes, she knew it wouldn’t be easy, but they had to at least try to keep it from happening. If they had an angel on their side, maybe that would give them a better chance of stopping it from happening. Lucifer couldn’t be allowed to roam the earth. Though she wondered how they would keep the seals from being broken and which ones were being broken.

Supernatural - After The End

Esme Stirling

Esme continued to eat, a smirk coming to her lips as she heard the talk going on between Dean, Madison, and Sam. She didn’t hear all of it, but she could guess what they were talking about. From where she sat, she could see each of their faces and saw that each of them had a smile on their lips, which kept her at ease. She slightly looked over her burrito at the three, watching them silently as they talked, and looked over at her as she ate. What relieved her the most was that she couldn’t feel the fear she felt earlier coming off Madison as she stood near Dean. Just him showing she impressed him and had a use for her, seemed to have calmed her a great deal.

Just feeling the tension and stress leave the room had caused her shoulders to come down and relax. Esme’s eyes lifted a bit more from her burrito after she took a bite as she saw Dean and Sam speaking in a lower tone. She watched as Dean stepped close to Sam and patted him on the chest with a wink. She could only guess what they were talking about, but she knew it was something good by what she felt coming from them. As she watched Dean and Sam, she remembered when she had first met him and how their relationship grew from there. How their fathers tried to keep them apart, but they would sneak off to be with each other every chance they had.

She would also call Dean for help on cases that proved to be a little more than they could handle. Esme dropped her gaze to the table, a smile now on her lips from the memories that flooded her mind. She let the slowly fade away before she looked back up and at Madison. “Madison, would you like to try some of this?” she asked her warmly. She then grabbed the wrapper that the other half of the burrito sat on and pulled it across the table and in front of a chair.

Sam Winchester

Sam continued to watch Esme as she ate and made sounds of contentment. She acted like she was starving or had a serious case of the munchies, which caused him to rais his eyebrows a bit. He was about to ask Dean a question when Madison spoke. He gave a chuckle and a nod to her words as he looked down at her. “I have to agree with you on that. She is weird, but I have to say I like her as well.” he said, so only Madison could hear. “I haven’t known her long, but I agree she is nice and does like you and very obvious Dean likes her.” he continued with a laugh.

Madison beaming up at him made him smile back at her, even when she glanced back at Esme as she made her sounds around the burrito she ate. He looked at Dean as he shook his head at his comment about liking Esme, a grin coming to his face at Dean’s response, as he stepped over and patted his chest with a wink. “I’m beginning to see that now.” he said with a laugh in his tone. “If she meant that much to you, how could you let her get away?” He said it in a joking way, not expecting Dean to give him an answer, as he clapped his hand on Dean’s upper arm. He let his hand drop to his side and looked to Esme as Esme spoke to Madison and offered her the other half of her burrito.

“You sure you want to do that?” he asked her with a grin. “It seems you could eat the whole thing, plus another one.” Esme mocked being hurt by his words but then gave a small laugh followed by a nod. “I’m sure. Plus, it’ll give her the opportunity to try some food since it didn’t pan out yesterday.” she told him. Sam had to agree with her. It would give Madison the opportunity to try some food, even though he knew she didn’t really need to eat anything. He then watched Esme as she dug into the bag and pulled out something else and her eyes landed on Dean as a mischievous smirk made its way to her lips.

“Heads up!” Esme called just before she threw it at his brother. Sam couldn’t stop the smirk that crept its way to his lips at the action as he held back the laugh that threatened to escape him.