"You did a bad thing for a good reason, Principality Aziraphale." Raguel regarded him mildly.
Aziraphale had taken a few unconscious steps backward, though he stood up straight. His eyes flickered with anger, but he didn't flinch.
"Why," Aziraphale asked quietly. "Why the facade? Surely Gabriel has told you that I betrayed Heaven by stopping the Apocalypse."
Raguel's face remained impassive. "You know I am the Archangel of justice. I have come down here to judge for myself, Guardian of the Eastern Gate."
Aziraphale didn't move, and his eyes never left her gaze. "Whatever Gabriel said was true. I worked with a demon to stop the End Times. I nearly killed the Anti-Christ child, but was...stopped."He didn't want to mention the possession of Madam Tracy because that was a whole nother topic."The thing is, we both appreciate this world, and the humans that inhabit it, despite all their faults."
At that moment, the bell above the bookshop door tinkled, and the door creaked open. Aziraphale gasped as he turned to see who had come into his shop. Over Raguel's shoulder stood a concerned looking Crowley, arms crossed and leaning against a wall.
"NO," Aziraphale groaned, "What are you doing here?!"
Making sure you're not in danger."Crowley replied, nonchalantly. He nodded to the woman in front of him. "So, which one is this?"
Raguel turned to face him, her expression disapproving. "I am the archangel Raguel, Serpent of Eden."
"You know who I am then, do you?" he levelled a casual finger at Aziraphale. "I happen to know that the angel over there has been an obedient angel all this time."
"How do you know of this arrangement, demon?" she tilted her head slightly, inquiring.
Crowley seemed to falter for a moment, then covered it with a smooth gesture of ease. "He sent me a note that he was being evaluated, so I shouldn't come around." Aziraphale's dumbfounded expression and clenched fists made the demon wince. No, he probably shouldn't have said that.
Raguel's eyebrows lifted. "Oh really?" She fished out her phone, scrolled through her pictures and presented them with a perfectly enhanced photo of Azirphale's conversation with Crowley.
"Shit!" Crowley muttered.
"Language, Crowley." Aziraphale muttered.
"And I know that you, Serpent of Eden, came into this shop dressed as a woman on my first day here."
"What do you want, Raguel?''Aziraphale interrupted. "To seize my mortal corporation, my eternal essence? To lock me in a white room for hundreds of years and forget about me until I 'learn my lesson?' " Aziraphale's voice grew more booming and considerably more forceful in pitch. Crowley looked away, afraid to recognize the terror in his friend's face after having disappeared for centuries. When the angel returned, he seemed afraid of white rooms and being touched on the shoulder.
"That sounds like an excellent idea." A masculine voice echoed in the shop. Gabriel appeared next to Raguel, face pinched.
Rotating on his heel, Aziraphale could see Uriel and Sandalphon struggling to hold Crowley's arms behind his back while the demon swore at them.
"Raguel," Aziraphale said coldly, his aura beginning to spark to life. "Do you know why I became friends with a demon...with Crowley?" His glare fell upon Gabriel, "It's because I was never looked down on or belittled by him." his voice lowered a little, "Maybe he was trying to tempt me into evil in the beginning, but couldn't or wouldn't do it. Crowley isn't a demon in the sense of the word, more of a fallen angel. He's kind-"
"Shut up!" Crowley hissed.
"It's true." Aziraphale continued. "He saved countless children during our 6000 years. The children of the Flood, the Plagues, wars. And he saved me-from despair...and danger. I did the same for him. He taught me that there's more to my existence than my job and being yelled at for things I may not have done properly. He showed me what it meant to be human. "I'm tired of being treated like c-crap, Gabriel!"
Gabriel rolled his eyes, "That's touching sunshine, but it still doesn't excuse your fraternizing."
Aziraphale's eyes widened, then his face flushed red, not with embarrassment, but sheer anger. He stomped over to the Archangel, nearly nose to nose with him and hissed. "How dare you! Do you really want to go down this path, Gabriel? Because I happen to know that one, if not more of you are fraternizing with Hell as well!"
Gabriel's violet eyes narrowed dangerously, his chin raised. "You can't prove that." he scoffed.
A ghost of a smile graced the Principality's lips. "Oh, but I can." He turned back to Raguel. "Raguel, you might want to have a look at both Gabriel and Michael's contacts on their phones."
"And why is that?" Raguel inquired.
"Because I heard Michael talking to Hastur over his phone in passing." Crowley added.
"He's lying, of course!" sneered Uriel
Raguel extended her hand. Michael hurled a warning glance, but handed it over to her colleague. She unlocked their phones, easily navigating each. For a few seconds, all that could be heard in the room was the sharp click clack of a grandfather clock, and the scrolling sound of one on a mobile. After a moment, Raguel looked up. "They are not there, Principality Aziraphale."
Aziraphale paled. "No, they have to be-" he clutched a tuft of his flaxen hair. He lifted his head suddenly. "Records!" He said triumphantly, "They'll likely be records of their calls in the data banks Upstairs that can't be altered by anyone!"
Raguel nodded, "I will investigate those."
"You're taking the word of a traitor and a demon?!" sniffed Sandalphon with disdain.
"I will not divert the laws of Heaven, Sandalphon." Raguel returned, primly. "Ours is one of order, discipline and fairness."
"Speaking of Heavenly law," Crowley added, "You might want to interrogate Gabriel about summary executions of fellow angels; namely, Aziraphale."
That commanded Raguel's attention again. "What is this he speaks of, Gabriel?" Her stare fell upon the fellow archangel.
"The demon is lying, as they are prone to do." Gabriel sniffed, seeming unconcerned.
At that moment Raguel turned to Aziraphale. "Aziraphale?"
The angel looked elsewhere, directing his eyes to the floor as he spoke. "I-I was kidnapped in broad daylight in London by Uriel and Sandlaphon. There were some other angels also, but I don't recall who they were. I was hauled back to Heaven where I was assured in no uncertain terms that I was to be dealt with to maintain peace. I was ordered to step into hellfire."
"And yet you stand here right now." Raguel mused. I think we will return to that in a moment. "Where were Uriel and Sandalphon?"
"They were standing next to Gabriel during the-my execution." Aziraphale replied, meeting the eyes of his superiors.
"And Michael?"
"Downstairs, supplying holy water for my execution, which I was sentenced to after an actual trial." Crowley added helpfully.
"So you, Gabriel, took it upon yourself to capture an angel assigned to Earth. Not only that, you and your cohorts decided to be judge, jury and executioner without sanction from higher up?" Her tone was low and harsh.
It caused the archangels to shift uncomfortably now, but it was Gabriel that spoke up. "I felt it my duty-"
But he was cut off by Raguel. "Judge not, Gabriel, lest ye be judged. Why did you request that I observe Aziraphale? So that I may share your opinion of his guilt? As it happens, I do not. In fact-" she turned around and allowed a wan smile to grace her lips. "I believe what they've achieved was appropriate. It was not ours to question that the Lord's Great Plan remains the only plan. And I believe that Aziraphale fought for the sake of humanity, as did the demon Crowley. If the Lord had not caused Aziraphale to fall, then it is not our place to pass that judgement ourselves. "
Aziraphale's eyes misted as he released the breath he did not know he was holding. "Bless you." he said hoarsely.
She spoke to her fellow archangels now, "Have you anything to say in your defense?" Her eyes narrowed."Your silence is telling. I think we need to have a conversation with the Metatron about your conduct."
Aziraphale snapped his fingers, the circular carpet rolling up and with another snap, candles appeared lit around the holy sigil.
Before Raguel could make contact however, Aziraphale heard the shout of "Look out, Angel!" from Crowley. Aziraphale turned to glimpse Gabriel rushing towards him, wings out while brandishing a holy sword. He winced, bracing himself to be run through, but a scream did not issue from him. An inky shadow obstructed his path at the last moment. Glancing up, he trembled as he took in the sight of the sword protruding from Crowley's left side, his wings safeguarding him and Raguel. Gabriel was smiling maliciously.
"Crowley!" Aziraphale shouted, his heart stuttering at the sight of the wounded demon.
"You are too predictable, serpent." Gabriel barked with a cruel laugh.
"And you're extremely stupid, Gabe!" snarled Crowley.
The room exploded in a flash of divine light and hellfire. By the time Aziraphale lowered his arm from his face, Crowley and Gabriel were gone. Uriel and Sandalphon looked knowingly at each other. Then they too, disappeared from sight.
He began to speak, glancing back at Raguel. But her eyes weren't on him. It took only a moment before he understood where her gaze fell. A terrible abyss had formed beneath his feet. Raguel reached for him but it was too late, his heart stopped as he began to plummet into the depths.
TBC...
A/N: I'm so sorry it took so long to post this. I was having trouble writing the confrontation scene.