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Crowley’s family had recently moved to the Tadfield area, but it wasn’t until Halloween that he realized that he had chosen the wrong group at school as his friends. They called themselves “The Foul Fiends,” the clever name being the lone clever thing about them. The dark colors of their wardrobe and too cool for school attitude had appealed to Crowley at first. He was grateful for the cigarette they’d offered him on his first day to help with his nerves, even if he didn’t particularly care for the taste and let it burn up to his fingers after two small drags. He and Beez got on alright and rolled their eyes at whatever ridiculous antics Hastur and Ligur came up with to pass the time. The gang’s leader, Lucifer, had told Crowley that if he stuck with them, they would make his life interesting in the otherwise boring little village.
On a crisp October morning, Lucifer invited Crowley to attend their Halloween bonfire, a sort of tradition the Fiends held since deciding a few years back that they were too old for trick or treating. Having no other plans, he decided to go. When Crowley showed up to the start of the trail Lucifer had given him directions to, the sun was just starting to sink below the horizon, casting the sky in a gorgeous All Hallow’s Eve orange glow. Lucifer stepped out from the shadows of the wooded path. Crowley didn’t see any of the others around. The smirk on Lucifer’s face unsettled Crowley instantly.
“Um, hey, Luce,” Tony said, trying to play it cool even as an anxious itch worked its way up his spine. “Where’s everybody else? Out lurking and stealing candy from some kids to snack on fireside?”
Lucifer chuckled, that smirk not wavering. “Nah, they are already in the woods. I figured since it was your first time here, I’d hang back and make sure you found the place alright. Spooky woods, these. All kinds of stories get told by folks in town about the weird stuff that lives in here. Wouldn’t want you getting lost on a night like tonight, would we?”
At sixteen, Crowley told himself he was too old to believe in that spooky mumbo-jumbo. However, in the short time he’d lived in Tadfield, he had to admit ‘weird stuff’ seemed pretty normal around here. Still, he couldn’t let Lucifer know he thought that.
“On a night like what, Halloween? Pfft, as if it's really any different than any other night. It’s just a bunch of trees and a couple of owls. People just let their imaginations get the best of them. I’ll be alright. ‘Ppreciate the gesture, though.”
“Don’t mention it,” Lucifer drawled, turning himself around to head down the ever-darkening path. “Shall we get going, then? Don’t want the gang to worry about us crossing paths with the Warden of the Woods.”
“Warden of the Woods?” Crowley asked as he followed. “Who is that, some forestry ranger assigned to this area?”
“Not as far as anyone can tell, no. The stories say that Warden of the Woods is a spirit who watches over this forest, but the only time people have seen it is at night when they come out here to have a fire. They say they’ll see something glowing in the distance one moment and it’s gone the next. So they go after it, try and figure out what they saw, but when they come back, the Warden has doused the fire and left a battery-powered lantern. Then, they’ll hear a voice shout ‘AVAUNT! YOU WHO DARE THREATEN THESE WOODS MUST LEAVE AND NEVER RETURN! OR ELSE…’”
Stifling a chuckle, Crowley prodded him along. “‘Or else what?,’ I’m sure they ask.”
“Some do, yeah. At that point, the Warden reveals himself again, but this time holding, if you can believe it, a flaming sword. The stories stop there because people are so spooked they run.” Lucifer shrugged his shoulders. “Not that that spooks you, right?”
Crowley had to admit, the story seemed a bit hokey. “Nah, I’m good. Although, it must be some old spirit if it says stuff like ‘avaunt.’ And clearly it doesn’t bother you guys if you come out here every year.”
Here, Lucifer stopped. He spoke while still facing away from Crowley. “Oh, we’ve never been here before.”
Crowley froze, that anxious shiver back in full. “But, I thought you said -”
“I said we have a bonfire every year.” Lucifer clarified, turning to face Crowley. “I never said it was in these woods. We’ve really just hung out in Hastur’s big back garden. We thought you might want to help us try something new this year.”
A vowelless utterance squeaked out of Crowley’s throat. “What’s that?”
“We’re going to catch the Warden of the Woods. You’re going to be the bait.” With that, Lucifer snapped his finger and in an instant, Hastur and Ligur jumped out of the tree line and grabbed hold of Crowley, Beez close behind with a couple lengths of rope. They bound him at the wrists and ankles, retying them twice each because Crowley wouldn’t hold still enough for Lucifer to be satisfied with the knots.
“Really, guys, this isn’t necessary,” Crowley tried to assure them as they held him fast. “I’m not scared. I can sit and be bait, whatever you want. You don’t have to tie me up, honestly. I’ll be good, I promise. Just please let me loose.”
“Not a chance, bub,” Ligur grunted in his ear. “Can’t have you running off when you change your mind. There’s nothing worse than a traitor ruining a plan.”
Lucifer threw Crowley over his shoulder and carried him to a small clearing, plopping him down on a fallen log. He watched on as his captors gathered up dried leaves, twigs and sticks, and a couple of chopped pieces of wood one of them must have dropped off earlier. It was clear Beez must have some sort of scouting or camping background based on the careful approach to how they arranged these items within a shallowly dug pit. They took a crumpled piece of what looked like maths homework and lighter out of their pocket and, after receiving a nod from Lucifer, used them to light the fire.
“Now, we wait,” they said, settling down on the log next to Crowley, admiring the beauty of their own work as the flame grew up through the middle of the stack.
“So, what exactly is the plan here?” Crowley asked, trying to wrap his head around it all. “We sit here and wait for this spirit to show up, you blockheads go chasing after it, and I’ll, what, wait here for it to waltz up with a bucket of water? Hope it gets close enough so I can stand up and get my arms over its head?”
Lucifer sat on Crowley’s other side and leaned in tight to whisper. “Oh, I won’t let you have all the glory of catching Tadfield’s biggest legend. No, I’ll stay close, just behind that tree there, and keep watch. As soon as it comes close, I’ll jump out and grab it, simple as that. It won’t even have time to grab its flaming sword. You’ll be just fine.”
“And if the Warden doesn’t show up tonight?” Crowley wondered aloud.
“We cut you loose and we all go back home. And you never speak of what happened tonight, not if you know what’s good for you,” Lucifer warned. “Now shut up and keep your eyes peeled.”
Given his current situation, Crowley didn’t have much choice in the matter. Beez reached into their pocket for a cigarette and offered him one, but he shook his head. He wanted his senses as clear as possible. Every crackle of the fire roared in his ears, the breeze cooled his clammy skin to add to his shiver, and he smelled the fresh dew on the grass. The glow of the fire made it hard to see very far in the dark, but -
Wait.
What was that?
Crowley swore he saw something move in the shadows, maybe 30 meters away. He squinted, trying to look harder.
Then it was there, clear as day. Standing in a spot where the moon shone through the trees, a figure cloaked in shimmering silver, its face hidden. It stood stock still, facing the fire.
It watched and waited.
Beez must’ve noticed the catch in Crowley’s breath. They looked at his face, then followed the direction his eyes were locked on before gasping, too.
“It’s real. It’s really real. Blimey, boys, do you see it?” they rasped.
They fell silent. Then Lucifer stood up and flicked his hands toward the glowing shape. “All right, kids, you know what to do. Get going.” He stalked off behind his tree while Hastur and Ligur did as they were told.
Beez stood up and checked Crowley’s knots one last time. “I want this back, you hear me. But just in case you need it, I want you to have it for now,” they whispered so quietly that he could barely hear.
A small metal object was pressed between his fingers as they finished their checks. Crowley snuck a quick glance to see it was a pocket knife. He allowed himself to give the smallest of nods of thanks as to not tip Lucifer off.
Beez headed out, leaving Crowley alone by the fire. He looked back up to where the Warden of the Woods had been a second ago, but it was already gone. He scanned through the shadows, but couldn’t see anything. Sweat was beading across his forehead even as his blood ran cold. Any moment, whoever that was could walk up and who knew what it would do to him.
Behind him, he heard a snap and a yelp followed by the sound of something loud hitting the ground. A look over his shoulder revealed a shocking sight: Lucifer swinging 2 meters off the ground in rope netting, eyes wildly searching his surroundings.
“GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!!” Lucifer bellowed, but then with a snap, he vanished.
Crowley acted as quickly as he could, shifting the knife in his grip into a position so he could flip it open and start sawing away at the ropes at his ankles. He halted his slow progress when, after hearing another snap, the fire went out and left him in utter darkness. One more snap and the ropes unraveled and fell to the ground. Despite the sudden freedom, Crowley didn’t dare move, didn’t dare breathe.
“Wait here, dear boy,” a soft voice spoke from just over his shoulder, causing him to jump. “I’ll be back in two shakes of a lamb’s tail. I have to deal with these cronies first.”
Frozen with fear, obeying the request was easy for Crowley. Even with the leaves covering the ground, whoever had spoken to him silently strolled past into the darkness, the edge of a satiny cloak brushing his arm in the process. In the following moments, three more snaps were followed by three more yelps as Ligur, Hastur, and Beez were likely incapacitated in some way.
The figure appeared before him again, holding a lantern like Lucifer had mentioned earlier in the. Crowley’s eyes worked their way up to see what he was up against. The hand holding the lantern extended out from under a silvery cloak, the hood of which was covering the face of the individual wearing it.
“Who…who are you?,” Crowley asked. “Or should I say, what are you? And what did you do to my friends?”
“Oh, pardon me, dreadfully sorry,” the creature fussed, using his free hand to push the hood back to rest between his shoulders, revealing a face that could only be described as angelic topped with the fluffiest head of white-blond curls. “I’m Aziraphale. I’m an… Well, I’m not at liberty to tell you exactly what I am, but I can tell you that I’ve been assigned to watch over these woods, as they will play an important role in a great plan in a few years time. Can’t host that event in a pile of ash, now can we? As for those people you were here with, I’ve sent them home to their beds, where nightmares will plague them for their actions and make them forget what happened here tonight.”
Crowley couldn’t help but notice the bite in Aziraphale’s tone when he said ‘people’ and not ‘friends’ as Crowley had referred to them. Some of the tension in his body started to release.
“You can relax, my dear,” Aziraphale continued. “I mean you know harm, I swear it. I just wish I could have gotten to you sooner, before they tied you up like some sort of animal intended for the spit. Are you alright? Are you hurt at all?”
Taking his first full breath in what felt like hours, Crowley took stock of himself, giving his wrists a rub and his legs a good stretch. “‘m alright, I think. I admit, you put on a good show, but now that I’ve met you, I’m not so scared anymore. ‘m more disappointed in myself for choosing to hang around with that lot. Some friends they turned out to be.”
“Yes. Quite.” Aziraphale’s voice was clipped again, but it softened. “I didn’t mean to spook you, so I do apologize. I know the stories have gotten quite outlandish throughout the years as I’ve taken measures to keep the forest safe. You young people and your need to set things ablaze for fun…Anywho, do you know your way out? Or shall I see you back to the trailhead where you came in?”
Crowley was immediately sad to think Aziraphale was ushering him away. “I…um…I might get lost, yeah. First time out here, still don’t know my way around. Do you mind? Or do you have more fires to put out?”
Raising two fingers to his temple, Aziraphale closed his eyes for a moment before shaking his head. “No more fires, no more trespassers to deal with. I’d be happy to show you the way, come with me.”
Aziraphale extended a hand to help Crowley up, which Crowley took and couldn’t help but notice how warm it was. Their hold lingered for a moment as they stood eye to eye, but then Aziraphale pulled away all too soon in Crowley’s opinion (not that he could explain where that opinion came from at that moment). That hand then waved toward the path and they fell into step alongside each other, walking and exchanging further pleasantries all the way.
When they arrived back where Crowley had started, he looked at Aziraphale. “Thanks for, well, thanks for being my guardian angel tonight.”
“Of course, happy to help. You’re most welcome, Crowley.”
“Can I-. I mean, may I come back to see you sometime? No fires, I promise. After tonight, I don’t really have any friends, and I just thought-”
“Yes.” It came quickly, but it came with certainty and a smile from Aziraphale, too. “Please, any time you’d like. You are always welcome back here.
“Alright, cool. Great. That’s really great.” Crowley had to stop himself from rambling. He ran his hand through his hair, a nervous tick of his. “Thanks again, Aziraphale. I’ll, um, I’ll see you around then, yeah?”
“I’m looking forward to it, dear boy,” Aziraphale replied with that smile again. “May you make it home safely and dream about what you like best.”
Hopefully you, Crowley couldn’t stop himself from thinking.
“Thanks. Have a good rest of your Halloween, angel…” Crowley felt the blush color his cheeks as soon as he realized what he said. “Aziraphale! I mean, Aziraphale.”
Crowley watched as Aziraphale tried to stifle a chuckle. “Have a good night, Crowley. Until next time.”