Work Text:
Ding
Doors closing
Aziraphale’s stomach dropped to his shoes.
He should never have tried to do this on his own. He should never have tried to convince Crowley to become an angel again to help him. Even if he didn’t mean it, even if it was a split-second decision made to try and protect him from the leagues of Heaven and Hell who will likely never leave them alone. He should never have left. Especially not after everything Crowley said, what he was waiting to hear from him for so long.
He knows.
He knows this well.
He spent years thinking about nothing but this.
But now, it’s too late, he has nowhere left to run, and he only has one hour to set his plans into motion before—
Ding
Doors opening
The lift doors opened and spat him onto the sidewalk outside of the Dirty Donkey. He misses the days of taking the escalator instead. Having a lift established so close to home made his skin crawl. Having a portal was okay. He could turn that on and off. But the lift is controlled by Heaven, so they could use it to visit whenever they saw fit.
Everything is exactly how he left it. The shops, the streetlights, the gum stuck to the sidewalk, the fags in the cracks of the pavement. The smell is as overwhelming and nauseating as it is comforting after years of nothing but ozone and lemony-fresh sparkly white floors.
The noise is less comforting. He’ll be glad to get inside and block out the droning hum of midday Soho even just for a moment. Five minutes, no more.
The only difference he can see between the day he left and now is that he doesn’t see Crowley’s Bentley parked over the road. Unfortunately, this gives him even less time than he thought. He never should have hoped—assumed that he would be right where he left him. He doesn’t have time for any of these thoughts and yet, they are all but consuming him.
Aziraphale looked both ways and crossed the road, checking behind him one last time before approaching the doors.
Home.
Heaven stopped feeling like home a very, very long time ago. Earth has always felt more like home, but nowhere as much as here. His first and only permanent dwelling, his pride and joy, his earthly life’s work contained within the brick walls that survived two Wars, Armageddon, and a siege from a hoard of demons. He has no time to waste, but he can’t help but hesitate, his hands balling into fists at his sides as memories of his last time here flash through his mind.
You can’t leave this bookshop.
The blinds are pulled shut over the door windows. Perhaps Muriel chose not to operate the shop after all. He was never given any real information on their status; their file was locked from his view. Perhaps they just stepped out. Perhaps they were never here at all.
Aziraphale fished out his keys, squeezing them in his palm to remind himself that they are still real and still his, that the shop is still his. Muriel has the only spare key, and no one else needs a key to enter. Permission must be granted; he made sure of that before he left.
He checked over his shoulder again and down each side street before putting the key in the lock. His hand instinctually grabbed the handle, fingers slotting into the grooves worn over hundreds of years. The sound of the lock disengaging as the metal turned inside made him choke up with emotion. I’m home. Even just for a moment, even if I never come back again, I’m home.
Oh, Crowley. Nothing lasts forever.
As Aziraphale stepped inside he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Breathing deep through his nose, he closed the door behind himself and turned the lock. He knows he’s wasting time, but he pressed his forehead to the door and exhaled everything he’s been holding in since he left for Heaven. Every emotion, every thought of what he wished he could have said to Crowley, of what he wished he was brave enough to do instead. He reached for his pocket watch, turning it over in his palm before flipping it open to read.
54 minutes.
Turning around, adjusting his waistcoat, he finally passed the entryway and stepped down onto the shop floor. He scanned right to left, checking to see if everything was still where he left it. The books are mostly in the same spot, he suspects Muriel read as many as they could in their free time. The portal is not set up for communication, which is good. He doesn’t need any prying eyes or ears right now. Looking to his left, he expected to find Muriel tucked away in the corner. The corner where he broke his own heart.
You idiot. We could have been…us.
“Shop’s closed. Owner didn’t want to run it anymore.”
Instead, he saw a pair of black boots on his desk, crossed at the ankle, a pair of long legs hugged in black denim, and a head of red hair resting against the back of his desk chair.
“Crowley.”
“Supreme Archangel Aziraphale.”
He knows that tone. He knows he deserves that tone. But he does not have time for that tone.
“Crowley, I need you to listen to me very carefully. I don’t have much time to explain so I need you to do what I say and ask questions later.”
Crowley scoffed, still not even facing him, “Why’s that? Heaven find out what kind of angel you really are?”
“I need you to go out the back door and meet me at Mr. and Mrs. Cheng’s restaurant,” Aziraphale checked the time again, “I don’t have time to argue with you.”
“You don’t have time to argue with me? Then don’t.”
You have got to be kidding me…
“Fine, then just listen to me. Back in Tadfield, you said that we were entering the calm before the storm, that Armageddon was just the warm-up for the Big One. You were right, and I don’t have time to explain because Heaven gave me a time limit and I need to tell you everything before they take me away because if I don’t then—”
“Don’t care.”
“—everything will be destroyed and-and…you what?”
“Did I stutter?”
Aziraphale was taken aback.
“You don’t care? You’re telling me you’re sitting here in my shop, in my chair, because you don’t care?”
“Nope. I’m not here for you, I’m here because Muriel asked me to be. They said Heaven is on high alert and they wanted to know that I’m here where they can’t reach me.”
If Muriel knows something is amiss, then he might have even less time than he thought. He checked the clock behind Crowley. 52 minutes.
“What did they say exactly? And where is Muriel? Or was it just you alone sulking in the dark?”
He hasn’t even seen Crowley face-to-face, and he has 52 minutes left to convince him to follow through with his plan to prevent an Apocalypse. Again.
“Probably upstairs dusting the atlases again. They won’t be much help to you; I was only able to get through to them so much. Still very allegiant to Heaven. Which you should know considering you’re the boss. Well, third in command, more like,” Crowley finally stood and turned to face him, “They just said ‘please come to the shop, I think you’re safer here’ so I came. Like friends do for each other.”
Aziraphale has absolutely no time for the way his heart is pounding so hard he’s afraid it will burst from his chest. He has no time for his eyes to scan every millimeter of Crowley’s face, checking to see that every line and freckle is still where it should be. He has no time for his corporation to betray him and his breath to catch from the sight of him scowling and then sighing as he catches sight of himself in the reflection of Crowley’s sunglasses. He watched in real time as his own expression turned from annoyance to anger. Crowley is not taking this seriously.
“The Book of Life. It is real. Heaven has it. They will use it. And if you don’t listen to me, we may never have the chance to stop their plans. Everything and everyone will be gone, Crowley. All of this will be gone.”
Crowley’s brow twitched. His mouth, too. Aziraphale knows he cares.
“I’ll leave; I’ll find some other star system now that Gabriel and Beelzebub took Alpha Centauri. I don’t need Earth just like you don’t need this shop. Nothing lasts forever, yeah?”
Throwing his own words in his face struck a nerve.
“It’s not about the shop! It’s not about books or the Bentley or Soho or Earth. This is about the entirety of creation, everything that has ever been created will be destroyed! Everything you created, everything we created, everything we are or have ever wanted to be, gone in an instant. You were right, I will even do the blasted apology dance if it means you will just listen to me! I have 49 minutes left before Heaven expects me back and if I am not back, they will hunt me down and I will be the first name wiped from the Book of Life. Yours will be next. They will do it anyway but if you just listen to me, I think we can—”
Crowley cut him off again, “Why should I go anywhere you ask me to? Why should I even listen to you? I spent over 6,000 years doing that and it never did me an ounce of good.”
“Please, don’t do this right now.”
Crowley sniffed and looked at his fingernails.
“You didn’t listen to me last time, so why should I listen to you now? You got yourself into this mess. You left me here while you got promoted to top arse kisser and you expect me to just drop everything for you again?”
“I left to do what was right! Who else was going to fill Gabriel’s shoes with any ounce of competency? How could I just let that opportunity go knowing the other choices were Michael and Uriel, or worse, Sandalphon? How could I turn and run when I finally had a chance to make my voice heard? To have eyes on the inside, waiting for them to spill their plans to me so I could put a stop to them? How could I ensure your safety if not in the highest seat outside of the Metatron and God Herself?”
“Sure, my safety,” Crowley stepped forward and pointed a finger at his chest, “You couldn’t even listen to me before you left, you were so absorbed in yourself and making a difference that you didn’t even consider what it would do to me! What becoming an angel again would do to me! You didn’t leave for me, you just wanted to finally be the angel Heaven expected you to be. So don’t you dare pretend like you did anything for me, Aziraphale, you left for yourself.”
“Everything I do is for you, Crowley!” Aziraphale squared his shoulders and pointed right back at him, walking Crowley backwards towards the clock, “Everything I have done is for you! For us! For the life we created for ourselves!”
“Then why the Hell did you leave me?!”
Aziraphale exploded.
“Because I had to! Because I needed to feel like I had control of something in my life for once! Because God needed me and it felt good to be needed by Her again! Because if I didn’t go willingly, I knew what Heaven would do to you to make me go! Because I-I…”
I love you too much to risk losing you. But I couldn’t just run away with you. Not with everything I knew.
He ran his hands through his hair frantically and tugged at the strands to try and get a handle on himself before he makes this worse. He can’t say it now; he can’t do this now. He shouldn’t have to do this now; he should be able to take his time and plan it out and—
He. Doesn’t. Have. The. Time.
“I cannot argue right now, Crowley. I have 45 minutes to explain everything to you and for me to be back in that lift. They’re watching the shop, but only the front. You need to leave from the back and meet me down the block immediately. If you aren’t there, then you will very likely never see me again, and I hope you enjoy what little time you have left here. But if this is my last time on Earth, I am not leaving without a proper meal, and I do not have time to leave Soho.”
Aziraphale watched Crowley very carefully as they both caught their breath, trying his hardest to not dwell on everything he just admitted out loud for the first time. Crowley stared at him for a terrifying handful of seconds before brushing past him and heading for the back. Aziraphale let out a shaky sigh, smoothed his hands down his front to adjust his waistcoat, and watched Crowley slip out of sight. When he turned around to leave, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.
“Supreme Archangel Aziraphale? What’s going on? Where’s Crowley?” Muriel asked timidly from the top of the spiral staircase. They look…Earthly. No more starched kilt, they’re wearing clothes that aren’t Heaven-issued. They look comfortable and confident, despite the trepidation dripping from their posture. He motioned for them to come down and checked the clock again. He’s running out of time.
“I sent Crowley down the road to wait for me. Thank you for looking after my shop in my absence. I can’t explain, I don’t have enough time, but I am sorry in advance if this doesn’t work out how I hope it does,” Aziraphale grabbed Muriel’s hands, “Things are not what they seem. Do not believe what the others tell you, angels or Archangels, and especially the Metatron. Do not believe anything they tell you, do you understand me?”
Muriel frowned harder, “What’s happening? This isn’t at all like the last time we prepared for war. Why can’t you tell me?”
“Muriel, do not get in their way. Do not ask them questions. And whatever you do, do not tell them Crowley was here. I’m sure they already suspect that my intention was to find him, but they cannot know how close he is. Tell them I was here if you must, but do not tell them what you heard. I must go now. Please change back into your Heaven-issued uniform and please, stay out of trouble.”
Aziraphale’s eyes started to burn as he fought off tears. He can barely process everything happening to him, let alone what is about to happen to everyone else. Muriel will be fine so long as they don’t tell Heaven about their friendship with Crowley. They can survive this. They just need to listen.
“I…yes, Supreme Archangel.”
Aziraphale nodded firmly, “Very good.”
Aziraphale walked down the road as quickly as he could weave through the afternoon foot traffic and pushed the doors to the restaurant open. He scanned the room hoping to find Crowley waiting for him, but just as he thought he had spotted him, Mrs. Cheng came to greet him.
“Mr. Fell! My goodness, it is so good to see you again. It’s been a few years, I thought you would never come back,” She placed a hand on his shoulder as if she couldn’t believe her eyes, “And Mr. Crowley as well, I thought you two broke up when I saw him here without you again but here you are.”
“We didn’t—I’m so sorry, but I am in a terrible hurry. Thank you for your kindness, Mrs. Cheng. And it’s good to see you as well.”
“Of course! Please, go to him.”
Good Lord. How many humans think he and Crowley are an item? They aren’t anything right now, and they may never be anything at all if Heaven gets their way.
As soon as he confirmed that Crowley was, in fact, here and waiting for him, Aziraphale breathed a sigh of relief.
40 minutes.
Aziraphale sat down at the table across from Crowley and before he could open his mouth to speak, Crowley said, “You’re clearly in a rush so I ordered our usual. Now talk.”
“I’m…Thank you, Crowley. I promise that I can explain everything, and I do mean everything, but I don’t have enough time to explain it all right now. The first thing I need to know is if we can put aside what happened the last time we spoke so we can save humanity.”
We’ve known each other a long time. We’ve been on this planet for a long time. I mean, you and me. I could always rely on you. You could always rely on me, we’re a team. A group. A group of the two of us. And we’ve spent our existence pretending that we aren’t.
Come with me, work with me! I-I need you! I don’t think you understand what I’m offering you.
“What happened the last time we spoke was I finally put words to the dysfunctional mess of our relationship, and you didn’t want to hear it. I nearly begged you to stay with me, and all you could say was I forgive you. Do you have any idea how that made me feel? That I kissed you and you saw that as an act that warranted forgiveness?”
“Crowley, it’s not that I didn’t want to hear it. I have always wanted to hear precisely that. I was planning to tell you nearly the same thing if the cotillion ball hadn’t been interrupted. But then circumstances changed in an instant and I knew I could no longer…I couldn’t be what either of us deserved, Crowley. If I said no to Heaven, I would have spent however long we had left of eternity regretting it. I wasn’t ready for the level of commitment you were suggesting. Running away together, leaving everything behind without a second thought. Leaving Heaven in the hands of someone even more incompetent than Gabriel, it would have eaten away at me. And I think you know deep down that I couldn’t say yes to you. You also knew you couldn’t say yes to me. Without being on the same page, neither of us was in the position to make a choice that big on a whim.”
Crowley stared at him in silence for a good 30 seconds, which made a bead of sweat drip down the back of Aziraphale’s neck because he has no time to waste right now.
“Christ, Aziraphale, it wasn’t some split-second decision for me. I’d been begging you to run away with me for ages and you always said it wasn’t the right time. Will there ever be a right time?”
He’s not getting the words to come out the way he wants; he rehearsed this so differently in his mind and it keeps going in directions he can’t predict.
“Of course there will be a right time for us, but that moment was not the right time, and neither is now. I can’t risk losing you when I barely had you in the first place. You knew how I felt or else you wouldn't have brought it up. You knew how I felt about you; how I still feel about you. But neither of us would have been happy with our choice. Neither of us was in a place for compromises. I couldn’t run away, and you couldn’t come back to Heaven. I’ve spent years thinking this over, Crowley. I had an awful lot of time to think about my choice.”
“Here you are, Mr. Fell. So happy to have you back in my dining room,” Mr. Cheng chose that moment to deliver their food to the table, “Please let me know if you need anything.”
“Thank you so much, everything looks wonderful as always.”
Crowley nodded appreciatively and thankfully, they were left alone again. They ate in silence for a few minutes before Aziraphale got the courage to continue his thoughts.
“I was never unsure about wanting you, Crowley. What I was unsure of was my commitment to Heaven versus my devotion to God, and how that would impact my ability to move forward with you. I knew the Metatron was hiding something. He had no reason to offer me the position of Supreme Archangel unless it was part of something larger than I could see from down here. Without getting closer there was no way for me to find out what the next phase of the Plan was and how we could stop it. They will never be satisfied unless they can claim a total victory over Hell, and if that means sacrificing humanity and destroying the physical universe, they are willing to do so.”
“Then why didn’t you just tell me that? Why did you drone on and on about how you wanted me to join the ‘good side’ again and how that was the only way we could be together?”
He has a point, of course, but things are always easier in hindsight.
“The only reason I can tell you now is because I’ve had years to think about why I made the choice I made and why I said what I said. In the moment I was so full of adrenaline and nerves and trying to work out how I could possibly convince you to come with me. But I think I knew deep down that I couldn’t convince you to come with me. I knew you would never become an angel again. And part of me wanted you to say no to keep you away from the Metatron and the Archangels. When I think about it, I think it was more quid pro quo than I ever realized until I was in the middle of it. Having you on Earth kept me from falling out of line in Heaven because they could use you as a bargaining chip to keep me doing what they needed. And I absolutely knew if I disobeyed, they would come after you. So, I obeyed. I went to Heaven. I left you behind. And I’m sorry that I didn’t have the courage to say more plainly that I was also tired of pretending we weren’t more than friends.”
He can’t believe Crowley didn’t interject more, but he isn’t complaining by any means. He needs to pick up the pace if he wants to explain his plan, but he has a feeling that without this conversation, Crowley wouldn’t even be willing to hear his plan.
Crowley shook his head, “They really are the worst, you know. I don’t know how angels like you and Muriel made it out of there with any kindness left in you. They parade around up there like they’re all high and mighty when in reality, they’re just a bunch of self-absorbed wankers.”
Yes, they are.
“Like demons are any better? I’m sure Hell has been just as insufferable about their hierarchy changes. I’m surprised they didn’t try to pull you down there, honestly.”
“They did. They wanted me to go back to my old post when they sent Shax back to Hell, they even tried to promote me to being a Duke again since they never really filled Ligur’s spot after I destroyed him. But with you gone, I had nothing left to lose. They had no bargaining chip for me. So, when I declined, they sort of left me alone. They still send someone with my mail, but they had nothing to use against me to get me to return for good.”
Part of him imagined Crowley going back to Hell out of spite, but he knew if that happened, he would have heard about it through the grapevine. Most of the angels never really spoke to him. He had been on Earth for so long that he was unfamiliar with most of the ones who didn’t work directly under the Archangels.
“Did I hear you right, earlier? Were you really planning that whole ridiculous ball just to confess your feelings to me?”
Aziraphale smiled with sincerity for the first time in years.
“Well, yes. I thought I could throw two birds and hit one stone. I already needed Nina and Maggie to confess their feelings, I thought I could as well since I went through the trouble of setting up a romantic evening.”
“Two birds with one stone, Aziraphale.”
“As you say. Now can I please explain everything to you so we can save the world?”
Ding
Doors opening
Uriel, Michael, and Sandalphon stepped out of the lift and into the abysmal dump called Earth. She’s never liked it down here, not as much as she hates visits to Hell, but it’s close. She keeps her visits few and far between because she hasn’t found a good way to get the stench out of her shoes afterwards, even miracles have their limits.
The trio headed to Aziraphale’s silly little shop. They know they can’t go in without permission anymore. They watched as the Metatron was so wrapped up in his game that he missed that Aziraphale cast a quick ward to prevent not just demons from entering, but angels, too. All except the former Scrivener Muriel, and the demon Crowley.
Crowley has been a thorn in their sides since the dawn of time. They always knew he was a bad egg, that he would side with the opposition, that he would Fall and lose his Grace and join the legions of the newly damned. He didn’t quite follow in the footsteps of Morningstar, but he asked one too many questions and that was that.
When they realized that the troublemaker had formed an alliance with Aziraphale of all angels, they knew they needed to keep their eyes on them. Aziraphale has always given them that same feeling, like an itch just out of reach. They didn’t pay him much attention before the War, and the only thing that really made her suspicious for the longest time was that he ‘lost his sword’ right around the time when the first humans were cast from the Garden thanks to the very same demon that she watched Fall.
Aziraphale is the kind of angel that was always just good enough to avoid Falling, just devoted enough to avoid higher scrutiny, just able to sneak past suspicion of Gabriel and the Metatron and God. Uriel and Michael? They knew what kind of angel Aziraphale was. But because he was technically fulfilling his duties as Earth’s representative, they couldn’t act on it without concrete evidence of wrongdoing. They watched him subvert everything angels are supposed to be. They watched him partake in humanities like food and drink and music and fashion and those insufferable books.
They have all the knowledge of God’s omnipotence and divine plans, what could Aziraphale possibly find so entertaining that doesn’t exist in the kingdom of Heaven? How could he stand to listen to music from composers that were sent to Hell without even so much as whispering past Purgatory? How can he fill his Heaven-given body with things meant to sustain humans? How can he fraternize with the enemy over and over again and betray Heaven? Subverting the Great Plan and losing the antichrist and trying to prevent the kingdom of Heaven from prevailing over Hell? Why can’t he just trust in Her plans and follow the rules and not push the edges of what is acceptable for an angel of his status?
More importantly, what is so bloody special about Aziraphale? Why hasn’t he Fallen for being a traitor and befriending the demon Crowley? More than befriending, she knows that the two of them are more than acquaintances. She knows more goes on behind closed doors than she can prove with the photos of their not-so clandestine meetings. Why did Aziraphale get chosen to be Supreme Archangel? He spent the last 6,000 years gallivanting around Earth while angels like Uriel and Michael and Saraqael did the hard work of commanding the leagues of Heaven! What makes him so special that he got picked to lead them after Gabriel betrayed them in the exact same way?
None of that even matters. It won’t matter in a few hours.
The Metatron has plans. The Archangels have plans. God has plans, too. Hers may be ineffable, but theirs are infallible.
The Second Coming cannot and will not be fulfilled with Aziraphale in the way, and especially not with Aziraphale and Crowley in the way. They gave him an hour to say goodbye to his precious bookshop, and to get one last sickening human meal, before the plans start falling into place. He thinks he’s in charge. He thinks they don’t know he’s seeking out the demon Crowley to say goodbye before the end of the world. Before they’re both erased from the Book of Life.
They have a feeling that Aziraphale might accidentally forget when he needs to be back by, so they left early to make sure that if he is running, that he can’t get far. They have backup on the way. They have eyes on his miracle activity. If he tries anything funny, they are taking. Him. Out.
Michael knocked on the door to the bookshop impatiently until Muriel opened it, “I’m so sorry, I was—”
“Where is the trait-Supreme Archangel Aziraphale? We know he was here.”
Sandalphon sneered, “We can smell him.”
Uriel wanted to roll her eyes but refrained as Muriel looked between the three of them nervously.
“He was here, your excellencies, but he left.”
“When did he leave?” Michael asked. “Where did he go?” Sandalphon added.
You fools, the longer we waste here the further away he’ll get.
“Muriel, did he say anything to you? Did he have anyone with him?” Someone has to ask questions that will actually help them figure out where he slipped off to. If he left the neighborhood already, they’ll have to call for additional back up.
“He was alone, but he did say he was planning to have a meal before he had to report back to Heaven for his upcoming duties. I assume it was about the plans you informed me of in our meeting the other day.”
They know Muriel isn’t stupid enough to lie to them. Aziraphale can’t have gone far. They’ll have to start working their way down the street and searching for him until backup arrives.
“Run it by me one more time, Aziraphale?” Crowley asked as he pushed a dumpling around with his chopsticks.
“They are going to erase us from the Book of Life, but I was able to sneak in a clause while they were distracted. I scattered it across the Book to make it harder for them to decipher the entirety of what I did. We will be removed as an angel and a demon, but not altogether, not our essence or our memories. When we get thrown into humanity, we will be in similar bodies to the ones we have now and in similar situations. I need you to find your way to me as quickly as possible. I will be at this bookshop as an employee,” Aziraphale slipped Crowley a piece of paper, “I need you to memorize this information and to hide the paper somewhere they will never find it but that you will be able to find it once you no longer have summoning abilities. A failsafe in case our memories do get a bit scrambled. I suspect they will realize at least part of what I did and come after us, so we need to act as quickly as possible. They might find me in a human body, but if they can’t prove that I have my memories, it might buy us some time.”
Aziraphale balled his hand into a fist to resist the urge to reach across the table and take Crowley’s hand in his.
“But I need to know that you and I can put aside everything we want to discuss with each other for just a little while longer so we can save humanity. If everything goes to plan, Crowley, no more running, no more lying. No more hiding from Heaven or Hell or from each other. Can you promise me that you will at least give me the chance to properly apologize when we make it out?”
Crowley sat up straighter in his chair.
“I need you to promise me that you won’t run away from me this time, that you’ll run away with me. That you’ll listen to me and hear me when I say that we are more than just an angel and a demon, that we haven’t just been friends this whole time, that you and I are both—”
“There he is!” a voice called from across the room, cutting Crowley off before he could finish his sentence.
Aziraphale dropped his chopsticks and frantically checked his pocket watch as angels weaved their way across the restaurant and approached them, “No. No, it’s far too soon, I had more time! You said I had more time!”
There is no point in him saying it’s not what it looks like, because this is exactly what it looks like. There is no point in trying to run or in telling Crowley to run. Neither of them made an attempt to push their chairs out. They just stared at each other as they were flanked from both sides. Heaven gave him one chance. They knew this was exactly what he would do with his time and they let him do it anyway. The last to arrive were Uriel, Sandalphon, and Michael.
“I told you we couldn’t trust the traitor,” Uriel crossed her arms and scowled, “Guards, seize them both. Use maximum force if necessary.”
“Promise me, Crowley.” Aziraphale pleaded as he was grabbed by the shoulders and forced from his seat, but he also silently mouthed something else.
Find me.
“I promise, Aziraphale.”