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"Soooo, how's it look?"
Aziraphale turned slowly in a circle, standing in their study of their new cottage, finally stopping to look at Crowley. He couldn't stop beaming. Not that he even wanted to.
"I'm taking that you like it?" Crowley smirked, walking around him and hugging him from behind, arms tight.
Aziraphale blushed, still not used to the casual touches they've.. started up, but loving them all the same.
"My dear," He started, stopping suddenly as he spotted something he had missed somehow, "My dear boy, what is that thing doing here? Does it not belong in the flat?"
He was, of course, talking about the.. statue.. thing that he'd seen in Crowley's flat. It had looked strangely familiar, but it had never really struck him where from. Now that it was here, he tried to remember where he'd seen the piece. Other than Crowley's place of course.
"Ah that, well no. It's not their's, you see, I- well I.. borrowed.. it. Technically it's been mine since nearly 80 years now, Angel. Why, don't you like it?"
The penny finally dropped for Aziraphale. "You mean to tell me..! You mean you took it from that burning church?!"
"It's not like they were gonna need it Angel! They had bigger problems, didn't they?! What's a missing statue at a bombed sight?"
"You do have a point I suppose." Aziraphale agreed reluctantly, although he was self aware enough that he acknowledged his own bias to it. That night.. he had some very fond memories from that night.
He tilted his head, walking towards it as Crowley followed, unwilling to let go of him.
"Is this an eagle lecturn? Why do you..?" He frowned, looking at it every which way.
"My Angel" When had Crowley sidled up so close to him? he thought as Crowley whispered in his ear.
Aziraphale shuddered almost violently, face flushing against Crowley's wicked chuckle. He kept looking at the statue to avoid looking at Crowley, afraid of what he might see on his face.. or rather show on his own.
"Um.. Why," He stuttered, feeling Crowley's breath on his neck, wishing more than ever to just... "Why do you even have it, dear one?"
"Ah," Crowley sighed tantalizingly, lips touching his ear, "isn't that the question." Was that a hint of teeth on his earlobe?
"Crowley..." Aziraphale closed his eyes, leaning back against the demon, holding onto the lanky arms still around him, "Crowley, are you trying to distract me?"
"Is it working?" Crowley was very deliberately nibbling on his earlobe now, pressed so, so close to the Angel.
Yes. "Of course not." Aziraphale said, and no he hadn't sighed, of course not. He whirled around, determined to get an answer to the question he couldn't even remember, "Tell me Crowley."
Crowley sighed, stepping back, but still not letting go. Thankfully at least he seemed to remember the topic of their conversation, as Aziraphale had gotten well and truly distracted. Not that he was going tell Crowley that.
"That statue," Oh, that's right! "I went back- later, to get it to my place." His glasses were back on as he stepped back, collapsing on the sofa they'd brought from the bookshop.
As Crowley patted besides him, Aziraphale joined him, snuggling up close to the demon.
"Why, though? Did you like it that much?" He asked, tilting his head to shoot a considering look at the statue.
"Not reallyy" Crowley was blushing? "Well-That night- we saw each other after a while, didn't we? You seemed happy, and well after that whole 'magic act', well I-" Crowley sighed and straightened out of his slouch slightly. "I went back to get it to well commemorate that day, I suppose."
"Oh Crowley.." Aziraphale didn't stop himself this time, leaning in and kissing his lovely demon softly.
"I'd missed you so much, you know? That time apart, it hadn't been easy." Aziraphale said, pulling back slightly, their foreheads touching, breathing each other's air.
"You'd been so angry the last time we'd met-"
"Well of course I was! You'd asked me for what amounted to a suicide pill! You.. you.. Now I know what it was for, but back then, even the thought of you.. you.." Aziraphale was breathing fast, hands clutching Crowley's tightly.
"Angel, hey, Aziraphale, look at me. It's all ok, I'm fine see-"
"Would you have given me hellfire someway Crowley? If I'd asked?" Aziraphale couldn't help but ask, trying to make a point.
"Of course not! Have you lost it!" Crowley pulled back, aghast.
"How is that different from the holy water, Crowley? You see how I could be so angry-"
"That's different! You know it's different!" Crowley pointed a finger at him, "I- engfk- how could you compare-"
"What? How is it different? You can't even think of that fact now.. how could you expect me to-"
"Because I was in love with you! It must be different for you! How could you expect me give-"
"And I wasn't?!" Both of them were on their feet. How had it gone so sideways, so fast?
"You think I wasn't.. Crowley.. I may not have acknowledged my own feelings, let alone yours, but that doesn't mean I couldn't feel my love for you!"
Aziraphale stepped forward, taking off the offending glasses from the demon's face, his heart clenching at the raw emotion in his eyes.
"My darling," He said, tracing his fingers down the Crowley's face, "I'm so sorry.. so sorry that you thought you were alone.. so sorry I was.. I wasn't better to you..."
"Angel, it's- it's in the past now- just let it- you love me, and are now with me, right? That's all there is to it, then." Crowley nodded firmly, arms back around him, hugging him.
"I don't deserve you- all right all right." Aziraphale grunted, as the arms tightened around him like a vice, in warning.
"So the statue is staying, yes?" Crowley asked, humming a little as Aziraphale nuzzled into his neck.
"Yes, yes. Of course it is. Do you know.. that night was the first time I saw the Bentley, too, right?" He smiled, feeling Crowley's answering smile against his temple as he pressed a kiss there.
"And well.. that night.. I realized, that is... that bomb knocked my feelings into place, let's just say." His smile turned sheepish, as Crowley pulled back to look at him, an eyebrow arched high in question.
"That night..? Because I saved you from those Nazis?" Crowley tilted his head, the blinked, "Or was it because I saved your books? Oh-oh it was the books, wasn't it. Figures! I saved your books and you fell in love with me-"
"No!" He couldn't help but protest even as he couldn't hide his smile, "It's not that I fell in love.. it's that I realized that I've been in love with you for.. oh a long time."
"Angel," sighed Crowley, "never change."
There they stayed, rocking in a strange dance of their own, arms around each other, the statue in the background, a witness once again, to their love.
"Come on." He said at length, pulling back very reluctantly from his demon, "Let's look around the place, I want to see how the whole place looks now that the furniture is all in place."
Smiling, Crowley followed him as they took a small tour of the lovely cottage they'd found a while ago, their own place, their own home.
They ended up in the garden, finally, where most of Crowley's plants waited to be planted in the soil from their pots.
"It's going to be lovely." He sighed, knowing Crowley will be working on the garden, and so it will be nothing but perfect.
"They better be perfect." Crowley growled, glowering at the plants, making them shake, the poor things. Aziraphale tutted, and resolved to make sure to come in and coddle them a little.
When Crowley wasn't looking of course.
"Fancy some tea, my dear?" Aziraphale asked.
Holding hands, they walked back to their kitchen, Crowley muttering something about coffee, to make the first of countless pots of tea in their home.
"So do you have any more mementos from our time together?"
Aziraphale giggled at the string of almost incoherent protests coming from Crowley as they walked in.