Everyone, look! Fanart for Chapter Nine!

lunissa. deviantart art /May-we-be-362986030

Thank you.

–––

June

–––

Aziraphale was just putting the finishing touches on what he personally felt was an outstandingly fine tea table, when Death appeared directly in front of him. Aziraphale gave a yelp and nearly dropped his teapot. "Oh! Good gracious, you scared me, popping in like that!"

FEAR IS A REACTION I AM QUITE USED TO RECEIVING, Death replied.

"No, no, that's not the kind of fear I meant," said Aziraphale, trying to sound conciliatory. "I was simply startled at seeing you stand before me like that all of a sudden. Now then, what was -"

YOU HAD NO REASON TO BE.

"To be what?"

STARTLED. I AM EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME.

"Yes, but... Hold on, we're getting completely sidetracked. Why are you here, may I ask?" said Aziraphale, setting his teapot down on the table and resisting his still-tingling nerves' desire to begin rearranging everything there.

ER, said Death.

Aziraphale turned round to face him again, hands in his sides and the beginnings of annoyance in his mind. "Now, now, surely you can't have come here for no reason. Out with it, if you please."

I HAVE HEARD SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR INTENTION TO ORGANISE A CHRISTMAS PARTY A FEW MONTHS FROM NOW. I WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND.

"Oh..." Aziraphale bit his lip. "In that case, I'm very sorry I was so rude to you just now. Crowley and I have been racking our brains for months now to work out how to contact you directly, and here you are yourself! Fancy that!"

YES.

The conversation, such as it was, flagged a bit.

"Er..." said Aziraphale. "Would you like to stay for a cup of tea?"

VERY KIND, BUT NO, THANK YOU.

"Then do you need more information about when and where the party will take place? Or about the guest list?"

I NEED NONE. AS I SAID, I AM EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME. IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF WHERE I CHOOSE TO LET MYSELF BE SEEN. UNTIL THEN, GOODBYE.

"Goodbye," Aziraphale said uncertainly as Death turned to go. Then he started forward. "No, wait! Azrael!"

Death stood still at once. YES?

Aziraphale reached out a hand towards him, then drew it back. He looked down. "I can't help but wonder... What is the reason you wish to attend the party? Not that I'm not glad, mind, because I truly am, it's just..."

IT'S SIMPLE, said Death, and turned around. YESHUA HA-NOTSRI IS THE ONLY HUMAN BEING I'VE EVER KNOWN WHO GREETED ME WITHOUT THE LEAST BIT OF FEAR OR UNCERTAINTY, BUT AS SOMEONE HE KNEW AND TRUSTED. I CANNOT FORGET THAT. I HAVE BEEN WAITING NEARLY TWO THOUSAND YEARS FOR THE PROPER CHANCE TO PAY MY RESPECTS.

There was silence for a space. Then Aziraphale raised his head, and said slowly, "I think... I think that a great many of us, including myself, all too often forget that you, Azrael, are an angel as well."

TRUE. BUT DO YOU KNOW IT NOW?

"Yes," said Aziraphale. "I do."

THEN I THANK YOU, BROTHER. And Death was gone.

When Crowley came in for tea, not five minutes later, he found Aziraphale in tears. For the rest of that day and the following night, Crowley never once left his side.

–––

Ring ring. Ring ring. "Mmmh... What on... Oh, this had better be good." Beep. "Hello?"

"Hello, Scarlet?"

"Wh- Sable, is that you?" Now where had her bottle of water got to?

"Uh, yeah... Listen, can we talk?"

War took a few seconds and a drink of water to process this. Then she groaned and flopped sideways into her pillow. "Sable, it's four a.m. here! Aren't you supposed to be in the same time zone as I am? What are you doing up?"

"Four a.m.? Sorry, didn't know. Haven't slept in days."

War raised her head a fraction. "I knew you were a workaholic," she said, "but this is ridiculous. What are you trying to do, make yourself drop?"

"Well, suppose I did... drop, I mean... would you care?"

"Don't be stupid," said War. She sat up and swept her hair behind her back. "There's no point in asking a question when you already know the answer. Now you had better give me an incredibly good reason for waking me up this early. I don't care if you can't sleep, that's no excuse to -"

"I should have known, I guess. I did know."

"Know what?"

"That you wouldn't care if anything happened to me. He was right, the son of a gun, he was right..."

"...Sable?"

"Nah, nothing, forget it, just... forget it. I'll let you go back to sleep now. Forget I called."

"Sable, wait! Ow! Dammit!" She kicked off the sheets tangled around her legs and scrambled out of bed.

"Yeah? What? What do you want?"

"Me?" She was standing in the middle of the room now, hand in her side and eyes blazing. "You're the one who went and decided to tear me out of my sleep so you could babble about nothing at all, and now you want to take it out on me? You're not serious!"

"I said forget it!" Famine snapped. "There's no point in talking any more. Just like there was no point in asking you if you gave a damn about me. I shouldn't have bothered at all."

"No, you shouldn't have, you absolute moron," shouted War, "because you know that I do!"

Famine didn't answer, but there was no click of a broken connection, either. War walked over to the open window, and stood staring out over the slowly awakening city. Dawn was coming, pink and orange, and there was a big early butterfly sitting on a leaf on the branch by her windowsill. It was pretty, but it flew away when she tried to touch it. A shame.

"...really?" she heard Famine ask. "You're... You're not just saying that, are you?"

War rolled her eyes. "No, Sable, I'm not just saying that. We've known each other for six thousand years, of course I care about you. I like you." And in a rush of surprise, she realised that she meant it.

"Scarlet... Scarlet, that's -"

"And just so you know, I'm going to punch you in the face for waking me up, the next time I see you. And if you don't get some sleep yourself right now, I'll punch you again."

"That's good to hear. It really is. And I'll do that. I think I might be able to, now."

"By the way, I'll be arriving at Heathrow on the tenth of next month. Some things I need to take care of in London. When will you be there? Pollution is due on the eighteenth, he said."

"Me? Same day as you."

"You've decided that just now, haven't you."

"Well, uh... I..."

"Good night, Famine." Or what was left of it, at least.

"Yeah, you too. And good luck on your civil war."

Her eye twitched. "Thanks. I'll be seeing you."

"See you soon. And Scarlet?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you." He hung up.

Drained and heavy-eyed, War crept back in bed, pulled the sheets over her, and was asleep before her head hit the pillow. Even the considerable noise of rebuilding that started up outside shortly after, as it had been doing every morning for weeks now, couldn't make her stir.

–––

"Adam?"

"Yes, Pep?"

"D'you know yet what you couldn't remember?"

"You mean at the start of spring?"

"Yes."

"No."

"You're sure? I wish you could: me and the others can't get it out of our heads, what happened that day."

"You're scared?"

"I am not scared! I'm just curious!"

"That's good. I'll need all the support I can get, from you an' everyone."

"...why?"

"Because I'm scared."

"..."

"Pep?"

"..."

"Pep? Pepper? Are you okay? You've gone all glassy! Pep? Say something!"

"Oh my G- I mean, Holy - I mean, what?"

"I'm scared."

"But... But you can't be scared! Of anything! You're Adam!"

"I'm not scared of anythin' bad happening, Pep. I'm scared of something big."

"Big like what?"

"Like I said, I don't know. But..."

"But...?"

"It's like... like there's someone waiting for me."

"Who?"

"I don't know yet, and they don't either, but they're waiting."

"I don't get it."

"Well... Look, up there. What d'you see?"

"Um... Blue sky, some clouds, early stars... Why?"

"It's up there."

"What is?"

"Or at least it will be."

"You're crackers today, Adam."

"I could do with some, too, I think. How about ice-cream afterwards?"

"Okay."