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p class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst"emspan lang="EN-AU"In the background Crowley and Aziraphale met on the tops of buses, and in art galleries, and at concerts, compared notes, and smiled./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" /p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"The bus was a vivid, bright red, covered in city smog and scattered stains. It wasn't blood red, instead, a garish shade that hurt Crowley's eyes and whispered in his ear of London. /span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"The smell of pollution and people and emcity /emwafted drunkenly through the air, circling around and occasionally drifted past the lone figure atop a bus./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Crowley muttered irritably at the phantom wind that fluttered through his hair, running a hand through the dark strands, attempting to fix it. After a few attempts, he resigned to having messy hair, and checked his watch./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Aziraphale was late. He always was. Virtue was ever vigilant, but this specific part of it wasn't particularly punctual./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Since the Antichrist had been born, the rules of the Arrangement had been a little skewed. It had once been merely a business event, an organisation of convenience, but now, it was...different, perhaps./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"But then again, it could have just been Crowley. Aziraphale was an angel, after all, and Heaven was harsher on rules then it let on./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Crowley checked his watch again, sighing. The bus was about to leave, and even though they weren't going anywhere, it took quite a lot of effort to stop it from leaving./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Just as he was about to bless Aziraphale and mutter for him to hurry up, there was a sudden breath of air next to him, and inexplicably, the angel was beside him./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Are you supposed to do that?" Crowley asked amusedly. The angel looked slightly guilty./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""I have permission, from..." He started to attempt, before shaking his head. Crowley smirked./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""No." Aziraphale admitted. The bus started to move, the sound of the engine growing louder in their ears. He pulled out a little notepad, and opened it to a page full of neat writing. /span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Let's start." He said. Crowley blinked distractedly./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Uh, notes, yeah." He muttered. He didn't have a notebook, and didn't need one. Because, really, he wasn't there for the notes./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Well, he seems to be a normal child, so far." Aziraphale observed. "I've been trying to tell him some stories from the Bible."/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Crowley winced. "Don't you think he should have done something a little more, by now? He just kind of...sits there."/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Aziraphale looked affronted. "Of course not! He's just a little child, dear. Give him a few more years."/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"The demon looked bored. "emYears? /emIs this what parenthood is like?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""I'd expect so, yes." After a second of silence, he added: "We're not his parents, though."/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Crowley blushed. "No, of course not. I didn't mean..."/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU"Aziraphale smiled, and Crowley fell silent. The sound of the bus filled the silence, with its long droning./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Do you have any observations?" The angel enquired. Crowley shook his head./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Notes are rather boring, I admit." Said Aziraphale. "The child won't be doing anything interesting for a while yet. "/span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Let's do something different." Crowley tempted, eyes starting to glitter from behind his sunglasses. emThis /emwas more like it./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Like what?" The angel asked hesitantly, cautiously. Crowley shrugged, trying to be nonchalant./span/p
p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"span lang="EN-AU""Whatever you want." He said, and Aziraphale decided that perhaps, that would be okay, just this once./span/p
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