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Crowley must've been so scared. He didn't even know why. No one would answer him no matter how hard he screamed. He just wanted to do it right. And he was burned because of it. He probably didn't even know if that was the end of his punishment. Oh, he must've been terrified.
No angels had fallen since the Fall, since before the earth was finished and Adam (the first one) opened his eyes for the first time. Aziraphale reckoned he should've fallen countless times during his 6,000 years on Earth but he supposed it looked bad to have an angel who had beaten the first temptation only to learn to question God. He just wished he had questioned sooner.
How alone he must've been. The other demons were tempted, they had openly rebelled against God together but Crowley had only asked questions. No one must've known why he was there. He had no one, Aziraphale thought. Until he met me. And I abandoned him.
Hell wouldn't accept him, Aziraphale knew that. When the demons had originally finished falling, they built Hell from the literal rock bottom they landed in and he had made no friends only Crowley in there. He would likely be alone once he landed. Then again, a test from God herself was never going to be easy.
It must've been painful. The fall itself was where his divinity burned away and his whole form was scorched through the bone. And that's to say nothing of the pain of impact. Hurtling thousands of miles an hour through space just to hit the rocky ground. It must've taken eons to fade. Perhaps it never truly would, maybe all demons carried the bodily ache with them wherever they went. Oh, poor Crowley.
Honestly, it was all he ever wanted. Heaven had promised no more apocalypses, no more meddling in his affairs, and he could finally return home to Crowley. All it took was to abandon all that he had been. A leap of faith.
Honestly, Crowley had it so much worse. He was never given a choice. He wanted to make the universe beautiful and good and then the floor gave out under him. Quite the shock. I am making this choice. Jumping, not falling, into the abyss.
The stars were shining so beautifully from where Aziraphale stood. They were always beautiful, but one could rarely see them through the bright lights of London. He didn't know where Alpha Centauri was but he picked a direction and smiled, promising himself that the next time he saw Crowley he would tell him how beautiful he made the stars. In the distance, the first rays of light creeped into the sky.
Has it always been it beautiful? Could this be how every day, 6,000 years and counting, begins? How could I have so rarely noticed? I should watch it more often. I'll see if Crowley would come with me.
Aziraphale didn't know if Crowley would forgive him. But it was a beautiful new day and there were bound to be many more. Azraphale closed his eyes, smiled, and took a step.