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Erin

The drive across South Dakota was long and boring. We stopped for lunch in Wall and as tempted as I was to ask to stop at the famous tourist trap I wisely kept my mouth shut. The Winchester boys didn't strike me as the tourist type. Dean filled up the car and pulled around to the small diner attached to the gas station.

Dean specifically asked for a booth. The waitress moved to slide past us and Dean stepped forward into my space, shielding my body with his while being careful not to touch my bare skin. Once she passed he motioned for me to slide into the booth first so I was against the wall instead of on the edge where I could be bumped.

I flashed him a grateful smile and slid in, pleased at the prospect of being able to eat in peace. I thought about thanking him, but I was pretty sure it was just going to make him uncomfortable.

I had just cracked my menu when Dean tensed beside me. I glanced towards him but his eyes were locked on a group of three that had just walked in the door. They were searching the diner and when one of them turned I could have sworn I saw a gleam of black eyes.

"Son of a bitch," Dean muttered. "We gotta go."

I jerked my head up in surprise. "Get the car," Dean ordered Sam, tossing him the keys.

Sam caught the keys in one hand and quickly obeyed, he slid out of the booth and turned towards the group of three near the door without a hint of fear on his face.

Dean grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the booth after him."Come on," he said in a low tone. He was careful to keep his hand around my sleeve as he propelled me ahead of him towards the kitchen.

I glanced back. "What about Sam?"

"He can handle it," he assured me. He pulled me through the kitchen and around back. "They're after you, not him."

He pushed open the backdoor and pulled me against the wall at the corner of the building. He stepped close, so his chest was only an inch away. I could feel his heat and the long line of his body, but he was careful not to actually touch me. His left arm came up, caging me against the wall and I sucked in a surprised breath. He pulled his gun from the back of his pants and held it loosely at his side. My breathing kicked up a notch and my chest brushed his. He glanced down at me and he seemed to suddenly realize how close I was. His eyes darkened.

I was close enough to notice the light dusting of freckles on his face for the first time. I licked my lips nervously and his eyes followed the motion. His jaw was like granite and he looked reluctant as he leaned back to glance around the corner for Sam.

An engine rumbled and a car whipped around the corner. I flinched and Dean turned back so he was looking down at me from inches away.

"All right?" Dean asked his voice a low rumble.

I nodded a little too quickly. It was a lie, I wasn't all right. I was terrified of the demons chasing me, confused about what I had done to deserve this and suddenly very aware of the sexy Hunter standing in front of me.

Not the time, I chastised myself.

Sam rolled down the window of the Impala and leaned out. "Lets go!" he yelled.

Dean flashed me a cocky smile and pushed me gently towards the Impala with his hand on my low back.

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Dean

I let Sam drive. I was too worked up to care either way. I wanted answers. It made no sense how those black eyed bastards had found us so fast. We didn't leave a trail, Sam and I both knew better. I glanced in the side mirror, but no one was following. It looked like Sammy had taken care of them.

I jerked my cell phone out of my pocket and hit redial. "Bobby," I said without bothering to say hi.

"What's going on?" Bobby asked, all business. I had just talked to him that morning and it wasn't like I ever called him to chat.

"They found us again," I said, pinching the bridge of my nose in frustration. "If we come to your place we'll be leading them straight in."

Bobby absorbed that for a beat. "Shit, they must have tagged her."

"Tagged her?" I asked, behind me I heard Erin shift. I glanced over my shoulder at her. Her grey eyes were still wide with fear, but she was holding it together better than expected. It made something in my chest tighten and I gripped the phone hard enough it bit into my hand.

"Yeah," Bobby said and I heard him shifting something that sounded heavy on his end. "That bastard might be able to track her wherever she goes."

"Well, what in the hell can we do about it?" The question came out sharper than I meant it to and even Sam glanced at me suspiciously. I shrugged.

"Well," Bobby said thoughtfully. "You need to find a witch. Get a couple of hex bags made up and it should shield her."

"Should?" I barked. "This guy isn't messing around Bobby. We've had half a dozen demons on our trail since yesterday morning. We need a hell of a lot more than should."

"It's hard to say, but I think it's your best bet kid."

I blew out a frustrated breath. I hated witches and I didn't like the idea of bringing Erin anywhere near them. But if Bobby was right, and he usually was, we didn't have a choice. "Any ideas where we can find a witch near by?"

Bobby was silent for a beat. "There's one...might help you if you have enough cash."

"Okay, where to?" I asked pulling out a pen and piece of paper from the glovebox.

"228 3rd St. Kulm, North Dakota. Don't piss her off. She's a mean old hag, but she knows her shit."

"Got it, thanks Bobby."

"Dean," Bobby said.

"Yeah."

Bobby cleared his throat and I knew I wasn't going to like what he was about to say. "This girl, make sure she's worth it. This witch isn't someone you want to be messing with for just a pretty face."

I glanced in the side mirror and caught Erin's eye. She had her arms wrapped around herself and her large eyes looked almost ethereal in the reflection. There had been a moment earlier when despite the danger she had looked like she was thinking about kissing me as badly as I had wanted to kiss her. Now, despite looking a little shell shocked she was glancing between Sam and I with wide, trusting eyes.

"I'm sure Bobby," I assured him and hung up.

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Erin

We got into Kulm after dark. Kulm was one of those small farming communities that I didn't understand how they still existed. It was half an hour from the nearest town, and was eight blocks by seven blocks in the middle of the prairie.

Dean parked the Impala in front of a small white house that looked like every other house on the block. Dean climbed out of the car, checked his gun and led the way up the walk.

He pounded on the door and it opened a crack with the chain still in place. A middle aged woman peaked out of the small opening. Her greying blonde hair was pulled back from a face that was more interesting than beautiful.

"Uh uh, no way Winchester," the woman said without preamble.

I glanced towards Dean. She seemed to know them, but Dean had told me earlier that neither he nor Sam knew this witch. It was right before he gave me the laundry list of things I wasn't supposed to do around witches. Which started with not eating anything she offered and ended with not leaving bits of hair or any personal belonging behind.

Dean stuck his foot in the door before she could slam it on us. "We need your help."

The witch clucked her tongue in disapproval. "You think I live in this tiny ass town because I wanna help people?" The woman asked rhetorically.

Dean reached into his pocket and pulled out a roll of twenties. He held it up to the small crack for the witch to see.

"I'll take a look," she agreed almost too quickly. The door closed for a second while she removed the chain and re-opened. She ushered the three of us inside. I shivered as I crossed the threshold. I was fully shielding. I shouldn't have been able to feel anything. It wasn't exactly like feeling someone's emotions, it was like I could feel the emotions of the room, the whole house. Dean glanced back at me with a concerned look but I was already scowling and looking around the house for the source of my discomfort but nothing looked out of place.

The witch sat down in a large, well-worn recliner. The only other piece of furniture in the room was a narrow love seat. I sat crossing my ankles, Sam politely took the seat beside me, but Dean stood. He clearly viewed this witch a a threat and didn't seem comfortable sitting while she was close. I didn't need to drop my walls to feel the coiled energy radiating off of him.

The witch cocked her head to the side to study me. She let out a low whistle as she settled more comfortably in her chair. "You are the real deal girlie," she said with a toothy grin.

Dean scowled and took a step forward so he was standing behind me. One of his hands settled onto the back of the couch inches from my shoulder. "What does that mean?" he growled.

The witch shrugged. "She's a talent."

"A talent?" Sam asked quickly because it didn't look like his brother was going to be able to be as polite to our host.

The witch nodded, a smirk twisting her lips. She reached forward and sipped from a mug of tea. She watched me like I was an animal in a zoo. Dean shifted restlessly behind me.

The witch clucked her tongue. "You've got a gift baby girl, there's probably only two, maybe three empaths in the country as strong as you."

I pulled back with a frown and Dean glanced down at me.

"Sane ones of course," the witch added and Dean stiffened. I wasn't as surprised. Many others with psychic abilities had fallen victim to the burden of their gift it would make sense that empaths had as well. It did surprise me that the witch seemed to think I was powerful. I had never met another empath, but I had spent all of my life avoiding my power.

"You have a gift child," she said with a teasing smile.

I tightened down my walls and set my jaw. "It's no gift," I growled at her. I didn't like the way she kept looking at me like I was some kind of prize that had shown up at her doorstep.

She whistled again and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "And you are shielding to beat the ban, can you feel anything under all that armor?"

I squirmed in my seat. This was not the conversation I had anticipated having. I thought we were going to get the charm bag and leave. I didn't sign up for going into my life story with this witch.

Dean stepped forward, drawing the witch's attention off of me and to him. "We need a way to hide from the demon that's after her."

The witch leaned towards me. She licked her finger and held it out towards me as though she were testing the wind. "He's a big one," she cooed. 

Dean took a protective step closer to me. "Yeah, we know. Look, can you do it or not?" he demanded.

Sam shot his brother an exasperated look, but he didn't interrupt.

The witch turned back to Dean, the smile stilling eerily on her face. Whatever she saw in his eyes made her stiffen. She quickly hid her discomfort behind a casual shrug. "Easy, peasy...but expensive," she added tightly.

Dean pealed off a dozen twenties and dropped them on the coffee table.

"Don't insult me child," she chastised.

Dean's jaw was like granite as he doubled the number of bills.

The witch scooped them up and shoved them into her bra. "I can make the charm," she agreed. "But all she needs to do is keep that armor up. Not even demon radar could get through that. I would guess it's why she hasn't been found until now," she paused for a moment and leaned forward as she regarded me. "Where did you learn to shield like that child?"

I blinked in surprise and was rewarded with flashes of memory from the night demons tore my family to pieces. "Learned the hard way," I told her, but my voice sounded thick even to me.

"Tell me," the witch ordered, leaning forward, a predatory gleam in her eye.

A warm hand settled on my shoulder. "We already paid," Dean said, I could feel the warmth of his hand even through my sleeve, and his fingers tightened reassuringly. "And we'll take the charm, just to be safe."

The witch clucked her tongue in disappointment but pushed herself to her feet. "It'll take me tonight. Come see me in the morning and you'll have your charm Winchesters."

Dean nodded and held the door for me and Sam, staying back so he was the last to leave. The witch watched us leave and a shiver ran down my spine as we left her house. We were silent on the walk back to the Impala.

"What did you feel?" Sam asked once we were in the car.

I blinked and shook my head. "I'm not sure, I was trying not to feel, but it wasn't good."

Dean was silent as he drove through the small town. He pulled up in front of the Prairie Rose Inn.

"I think I should keep an eye on her," Sam said decidedly after a moment.

Dean arched a brow. "You sure Sammy?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I didn't get a good feeling from her either. We should know if we're walking into something in the morning. You guys should get some shut eye."

"Okay," Dean agreed.

Sam nodded, checked his gun and walked back down the dark street. I stood and stared after him.

Dean let out a tired sigh. "It's been a long couple days, I could use a drink...how about you?"

I snorted thinking I had never needed one more. "Yeah, I could use a drink."

Dean nodded. "I thought I saw a liquor store a block back. You wanna walk? Or ride?"

I licked my lips and looked up at the sky. Even with the handful of street lights the night was full of stars. "It would be nice to stretch my legs."

He nodded and the two of us set off through the dark together. 

It was more of a liquor closet than a store and the old man working at the counter watched us suspiciously. Dean stayed close the entire time we were in the store. I found a bottle of white wine that had a screw cap and a fine layer of dust. Once I had mine I followed Dean into the next aisle where he studied the bottles of liquor. When the bell rung above the door he immediately shifted himself so he was standing between me and the new comer without ever looking up. I wondered if he even realized he did it. He reached out and snagged a plastic bottle of generic whiskey from the bottle shelf.

Dean placed a hand on my low back and gently pushed me ahead of him towards the register keeping himself between me and the man at the beer cooler. He must have decided the old man at the register was the lesser of the two evils. Dean peeled off a couple of bills, dropping them on the counter.

"ID," the old man asked.

Dean hesitated for a moment and a surprised smile tweaked the corners of his lips. "Ah, sure," he said with a shake of his head. He was careful pulling out his ID, and he kept his hand over the name as he handed it to the old man.

The old man held the ID up to compare the image to Dean and he squinted at him. "Well Ryan Ashid, you kids up from South Dakota to cause trouble?" he accused.

Dean cleared his throat. "No sir, just passing through."

"To where?" the old man demanded. 

Dean stiffened and sucked in a breath and I had the sneaking suspicion whatever was about to come out of his mouth wasn't going to be very nice. I quickly stepped in. I slid my hand through Dean's arm and leaned into him, pressing myself against his leather jacket. "Honeymoon road trip," I said and I forced out a giggle.

The old man's eyes dropped to me and I flashed him an innocent smile. His face softened immediately and he nodded knowingly. "Pardon me ma'am, I didn't mean anything by it. You just look awfully young. Coulda been a fake ID."

Dean snorted and before he could say anything offensive I stomped on his foot, keeping the smile plastered to my face. "Can't start the rest of your life together without taking the first step," I told him dreamily.

The old man nodded and handed Dean back his ID. "You all have a good night," he said holding the bag out to Dean to carry. "And congratulations," he told Dean. "She's lovely."

I stiffened at the sexist remark and Dean flexed the arm I was holding onto as a warning. "Yes she is, you can see why I scooped her up."

The old man chuckled and the two of us slipped out of the store. Once we were outside I dropped my hand and exhaled.

"Honeymoon?" Dean asked in disbelief. "To this hell hole?"

I shot him an incredulous look. "Were you seriously about to yell at that old man in there?"

Dean scowled at me. "It wasn't his business why we are here."

I snorted and shook my head in disbelief. "In a town this small, as a rule, they all make it their business."

"Yeah whatever," Dean griped playfully.

And I let myself smile into the dark. I looked back up at the stars, reveling in the cool night air and the freedom of walking fearlessly through the dark with a Hunter beside me. The anonymity of this small town was freeing in it's own way. I has spent too long hiding in Montana to ever be comfortable there.

"Did you ah-" Dean started to ask uncomfortably.

I glanced back at him and the look on his face convinced me without a doubt I wasn't going to like whatever was about to come out of his mouth.

"You know ah, put the whammy on him?"

"The whammy?" I asked with a disbelieving snort.

"You know what I mean, did you use your psychic thing?" he asked shifting the paper bag to his other arm uncomfortably.

I sighed, realizing in that moment that no matter how comfortable he seemed with me, he was a Hunter at his core and he would never be able to accept what I could do. I cleared my throat. "No, I didn't do my psychic thing. Since the witch said I could keep them off my trail by shielding I have been locked down."

Dean nodded. "So when you do that..." he started to say but he drew off thoughtfully.

"Yeah?" I pushed.

"Well, when you shield like that, is everything just like normal for you?" he asked.

I shrugged even though he wouldn't be able to see it in the darkness. "I wouldn't know."

Dean hesitated as we approached the office. "Sorry," he said after a beat. It was nice he at least seemed to realize he was being rude. "I shouldn't have asked."

I blew out a breath, feeling bad for his discomfort. "No, it's okay, you needed to know if they would be coming for us. If the witch was telling the truth we should be safe."

Dean nodded. "Come on," he said gently guiding me into the office ahead of him.

We didn't talk until we got to the room. Without needing to be told I waited just inside the door while Dean cleared the room. Then I moved to the bed furthest from the door and he nodded his approval tossing his own bag on the bed that would put him nearest the danger.

I glanced towards the window. "You think Sam's alright?"

Dean snorted as he began lining the entrances with salt. "I think watching one little witch is safer than demons."

I froze and my breath caught in my throat. I didn't mean to bring this down on them, but the gravity of it was undeniable. Sam really was safer standing outside the house of a potentially hostile witch by himself than Dean was with me. I nodded. "All I've ever done is put people in danger," I told him, keeping my eyes locked on the dark window so he couldn't see the tears that were burning the backs of my eyes. "My family, Jack, you and your little brother."

"Shit," Dean muttered. He poured me a large glass of my wine and came over to the bed. He dropped down next to me and held the plastic glass out to me. I reached for it and he spoke as our fingers brushed. "I didn't mean it like that."

"It's true," I told him and I paused as I absorbed his truth. Before I lost my nerve I pushed on. "And yes, you did."

He frowned, pulling back.

I gave him a tired smile and wiggled my fingers at him. "Remember?" I teased humorlessly. "I can feel it all."

"I thought you said you were shielding," he said suspiciously and his eyes flickered to the door as his whole body coiled.

"I am," I assured him quickly. "But I can't shield from touch. And lies, even white lies, meant to make me feel better," I added so he would know I wasn't upset with him. "Are easy to pick up."

Dean crossed his arms over his chest, wedging his hands out of sight as though he were making sure there was no chance of us touching again. "You can feel when someone is lying?" Dean asked. Instead of looking revolted by my ability his eyes suddenly sparkling with possibility.

I frowned cautiously. "Yeah."

His answering mischievous smirk made something in my stomach flop. "Oh sweetheart, you are about to be my lucky charm the next time I play poker."

His face screwed up thoughtfully and I got a bad feeling he was up to no good.

"I doubt they have a game in this town," I said gently and I took a sip of my wine.

Dean poured himself a drink and sat down on his bed across from me. "Maybe not, but there are plenty of towns we can go to."

I snorted and shook my head at his antics. I had never considered the possibility of using my gift to cheat at poker. When I smiled he relaxed and took another drink.

"We'll get this figured out," he promised me after a moment, his face uncharacteristically sincere.

I nodded, suddenly very aware that we were in the motel alone. He seemed to notice the tension too and quickly stood up to pour himself a second drink. "You mentioned a job, do you have a boyfriend or something we have to worry about calling the cops and reporting you missing? Having an APB out on you could make things complicated."

I snorted, "no boyfriend." I realized a little too late how quickly I had responded.

"Wow, that was fast," Dean said with a low chuckle.

I shrugged. "I guess it was...are you really that surprised?" I asked, my eyebrows stretching towards my hairline.

Dean's eyes ran over me and I felt a flush creep up my neck under the intensity of his gaze. "I mean yeah," he said honestly. "You're gorgeous, and you don't suck to be around. Why wouldn't you have a boyfriend?"

I was taken aback by the way he was totally unapologetic in calling me gorgeous and somehow still managed to come across like an ass.

I looked down at my hands. "Well, considering I can't touch someone without feeling everything they feel every second..." I dragged off.

Dean froze, and the look that crossed his face before he spoke again made me think once again I wasn't going to like what was about to come out of his mouth. "Are you saying you're a virgin?" he asked, his eyes cutting over me once more.

I snorted and drained the rest of my wine glass. This was definitely not a conversation I wanted to be sober for. "I'm twenty-five," I told him. "And I'm not a prude."

Dean stood and refilled my plastic cup. "So..." he dragged off with a meaningful wiggle of his eyebrows.

I sighed exhaustedly. "I did a few times, when I got desperate, but in the end it's not worth it. Guys are selfish," I tipped the glass back and took a long swallow of wine. I was just starting to realize how tired I was and the wine made my limbs feel loose and warm.

Dean tipped his glass up to his lips and took a long swallow. My eyes watched as the long line of his throat worked. He lowered the glass and pointed the rim at me. "Not all guys," he said and there was a gleam of dark promise in his eyes.

Dean let the moment hang between us just long enough for me to know the offer was serious. I blinked at him in surprise, I had spent most of my life avoiding men, I didn't know how to flirt with one.

Then Dean flashed me a teasing grin and pushed himself to his feet, completely unfazed by my lack of reaction. In general it didn't seem like too much fazed him.

He let out a tired groan and stretched his arms above his head. "I'm gonna take a shower and head to bed."

I nodded. When he went onto the bathroom I quickly changed and crawled under the covers. It wasn't quiet, the walls were thin and I could hear him singing in the shower. But sleep came faster knowing I wasn't alone.

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